Lover of Ebooks

Wench. Dolen Perins-Valdez. 2010. HarperCollins. 293 pages.

Six slaves sat in a triangle, three women, three men, the men half nestled in the sticky heat of thighs, straining their heads away from the pain of the tightly woven ropes. The six chatted softly among themselves, about the Ohio weather, about how they didn’t mind it because they all felt they were better suited to this climate. They were guarded in their speech, as if the long stretch between them and the resort property were just a Juba dance away.

Wench is a historical novel set (primarily) in the 1850s, at a summer resort in Ohio. A resort where slaveowners were able to ‘vacation’ openly with their slave wenches. (Slaves were still expected to work, to make themselves useful to anyone and everyone.) Wench portrays the struggles of four slave women–their complicated relationships with their masters, mistresses, and even each other. Lizzie, our heroine, has a complex relationship with her master, Drayle, for unlike the other slave women she feels she actually loves him. The relationship is complex–readers see much of this through flashbacks. They learn how the relationship began–and how it has continued through the years resulting in the birth of a son and daughter. Drayle’s only children. Lizzie prays for freedom for her two children. Her one desire is to have her children be freed by their father. But so far, her requests have been refused.

Reenie, Sweet, and Mawu are the other three slave women readers meet in Wench. Each has a heartbreaking story. We see these characters through their relationship with Lizzie. We learn their stories through Lizzie. Because of these friendships, Lizzie’s life will be changed.

Wench is a compelling novel. Once I started reading, it was difficult to put down. It was easy for me to care about these characters. It was intense and emotional in many ways–because their lives were bittersweet at best. I would definitely recommend this one!

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

See the original post:
Wench

The Vigilante’s Bride. Yvonne Harris. 2010. Bethany House. 304 pages.

“Marry him? I most certainly will not. Why, I’ve never laid eyes on the man!”

Luke Sullivan didn’t exactly know what the consequences would be when he decided to rob the stagecoach. He’s not exactly a criminal. Just a hero with a momentary weakness–he’d just learned some surprising news about his past, his father, something that attributes blame to the rancher, Bartholomew Axel. Sullivan feels that Axel owes him a bit of money, and, that is his justification.

But what Sullivan didn’t know was that the stagecoach was carrying a beautiful young woman to her would-be-husband. She’s been purchased by a rancher. Three guesses as to who…yes, Sullivan’s enemy, Bartholomew Axel. Sullivan can’t in good conscience leave this woman to her fate. She has to be made to see the truth. That Axel is old, ugly, cruel, mean, and a bully. He’s not fit to be any woman’s husband. Since Emily McCarthy has never met him, and isn’t exactly thrilled with the arrangement to begin with, it’s not that big a struggle. Not that she’s happy to be ‘kidnapped.’ But she doesn’t consider it a crime for long. Especially after meeting Axel a few days later! No, Emily soon thinks that Luke may be the hero of her dreams.

Will Emily find her place in Montana? Will Luke Sullivan find a wife?

I liked this one. It is historical romance–Montana 1880s–with plenty of adventure and drama. I don’t think it’s the best Christian romance I’ve read this year. But I’ve certainly read worse.

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Link:
Vigilante’s Bride

Civil Contract. Georgette Heyer. 1961/2009. Harlequin. 432 pages.

“The library at Fontley Priory, like most of the principal apartments in the sprawling building, looked to the south-east, commanding a prospect of informal gardens and a plantation of poplars, which acted as a wind-break and screened from view the monotony of the fen beyond.”

Okay, so that first sentence doesn’t even hint at what the story is about. And it offers little incentive to the reader. Fortunately, most readers need only hear Georgette Heyer’s name to know that this may be a gem of a book. For those that aren’t the “most” in the readers listed above, I’d like to think I’m doing my part. A Civil Contract is a satisfying read in a very gentle and subtle manner. I enjoyed it. Enjoyed the characters and the subtle complexities of its non-plot. This is a very human novel.

You’re probably wondering, but what is it about??? Adam Deveril is a soldier whose father has just died. He’s inherited a title–he’s now Viscount Lynton–but he’s also inherited an overwhelming debt. A debt that is due to negligence, gambling, and mismanagement. He’s got a mother (Dowager is how she’s referred to in the text), and two sisters Charlotte and Lydia. Charlotte is engaged to be married, so she’s not one of his primary concerns. However, his mother and sister are. He’s been advised that he should marry for money. He finds the idea repugnant. Especially at first. But even Lydia, his younger sister, knows that sacrifices are called for in this occasion. It is her discussions of how she needs to be marry an older man for his money to “rescue” the family, that has Adam pondering how much he’s willing to do for his family.

The family home, Fontley, is at risk. All their property is at risk–most of their holdings are mortgaged already. And only their townhouse and Fontley remain. Adam feels that the honorable thing to do would be to sell everything they can and hope to break even. That is hope they have enough money to settle their debts. Whatever small amount may be left would be settled upon his sister for her dowry. He’s not worried so much for himself, for his comfort. He knows that he can go soldiering again and live on his pay if need be.

Of course, this newly-discovered money problem does mean that he cannot marry his first love, his supposed one and only love Julia Oversley. They met when he was injured. She became enamored with a vision of a dashing, heroic soldier. He became enamored of her beauty and charm. The parents consented at the time, though Lord Oversley did feel they weren’t well suited for one another. But now that he’s poor and soon to be without a home, he knows the only honorable thing is to break the engagement. Oversley does agree with him. Julia’s brokenhearted. Adam is melancholy but resolved that he’s doing the right thing, the responsible thing.

Enter Jonathan Chawleigh. A very wealthy man, but not “genteel” or gentle bred. Oversley introduces the impoverished Adam to Chawleigh with the hopes that they can solve each other problems. Chawleigh has high hopes for his daughter, his only child, Jenny. He wants to see her marry a proper gentleman, a man with a title, a man with dignity and distinction. A man that is part of the ton. Adam is shocked at first, but the more he considers the idea, the more he comes to feel it would be doing the better thing for his family–his mother and sister. The couple does meet first. And Chawleigh was right, Jenny doesn’t overwhelm men with her beauty and charm and grace. She’s the opposite of Julia in a way. Shy. Intelligent. Meek. Forgiving. Generous. Unassuming. And practical. Above all else practical. For those that are familiar with it, think Proverbs 31. Jenny is the essence of a Proverbs 31 woman. So after meeting her, while not overwhelmed by her beauty, he sees that they could live together amicably. They’d “suit” each other. Neither is dishonest. She knows that her husband is in love with another woman. He knows that she knows he’s in love with another woman. Yet this awkward situation somehow doesn’t stay awkward. Not for long. She doesn’t demand love. Her only hope–in the beginning–is for respect and dignity.

I loved Jenny. I did. I loved her father Jonathan. The scenes with him are just satisfyingly good. I loved Adam’s aunt Lady Nassington. I loved Adam’s sister Lydia. So many of the characters were just so wonderfully human, so thoroughly developed. I loved this quiet and gentle but always intelligent novel about marriage and love and family.

I wouldn’t say that I liked A Civil Contract better than A Convenient Marriage. But it was so much better than April Lady!

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Read more:
Civil Contract

What’s On Your Nightstand is hosted by 5 Minutes for Books.

I’m currently reading four books.

Jane Slayre by Charlotte Bronte and Sherri Browning Erwin. I’m enjoying this paranormal retelling much more than I thought I would.

Wildfowers of Terezin by Robert Elmer. This is historical fiction–World War II.

The Adventures of Nanny Piggins by R.A. Spratt. This children’s book is very funny! It is about three children who have a pig for a nanny.

Framley Parsonage by Anthony Trollope. This is the fourth in the Barsetshire series.

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

View post:
What’s On Your Nightstand (August)

Masquerade by Nancy Moser. 2010. Bethany House. 368 pages.

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Read more:
Masquerade

The Foundling. Georgette Heyer. 1948/2009. Sourcebooks. 439 pages.

When the young gentlemen strolling through the park with his gun on his shoulder and an elderly spaniel at his heels came within sight of the house it occurred to him that the hour must be farther advanced than he had supposed, for the sun had sunk below the great stone pile, and an autumnal mist was already creeping over the ground.

The Duke of Sale (Gilly) is twenty-four. But. He’s never lived his own life, or made his own decisions. He’s had an entourage for as long as he can remember. An entourage that is determined to keep him safe, healthy, and comfortable. An entourage that Gilly feels discourages his independence, his individuality. He’s never known a day of freedom.

Until. His cousin Matthew shares his troubles–he is being blackmailed. And the Duke determines to “solve” this family problem all on his own. He’ll do it by being nobody. Without “being” the Duke, without being the head of the family. No. He wants to see if he’s capable of being a man. Of thinking and acting like a man.

Does he succeed? At over four-hundred pages, you can imagine he does. But this new freedom doesn’t come without risks and challenges and mishaps. He’ll pick up not one but two strangers along the way. One young man, Tom, who is foolish and prank-loving. And one young woman, Belinda, a foundling, he “rescues” from an “uncle” who doesn’t have the best of intentions. Belinda will BELIEVE any man who offers her a purple dress, you see. Or a ring. She’s as silly as silly can be. But Belinda is NOT the love interest of Gilly. (I was quite relieved!)

The Foundling is not my favorite Georgette Heyer. It is a bit too long. There were so many potential ending places in the last hundred pages. Places where one more paragraph could have nicely done the job. But. For whatever reason, this ending would not be rushed. I liked it, but didn’t love it.

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

See the original post:
The Foundling

April Lady. Georgette Heyer. 1957/2005. Harlequin. 270 pages.

There was silence in the book-room, not the silence of intimacy but a silence fraught with tension.

April Lady is an enjoyable albeit predictable read. Our hero, Cardross, and our heroine, Nell, have been married over a year when the novel opens.

The book begins with an argument over money. The wife is being scolded by her husband for going over her quarterly allowance. It’s not that he’s not fabulously wealthy. He is. He just wants his wife to be able to account for the money he’s given her, for the unpaid bills that arrive at the house.

After the scolding, Nell is horrified to learn that she missed one bill. It is for a Chantilly lace dress. She can’t possibly tell her husband the truth–the bill got buried in a drawer, forgotten. She can’t possibly expect her husband to understand this circumstance. Perhaps her brother can help her…

Nell is keeping other secrets from her husband. She is lying about giving money to her brother, Dysart, to cover his gambling debts. She knows she is disobeying her husband by “supporting” her brother like this. But she can’t understand why her husband blames Dysart for being an addict. He should know that Dysart just can’t control himself when it comes to gambling and racing. Being unsure of her husband’s love (and respect), Nell spends much of her time afraid of her husband. She’s afraid to be honest with him, which is all that he is asking of her.

Both husband and wife are deceived. She is certain that he doesn’t love her, that their marriage is one of convenience not love. And he is certain that she doesn’t love him, that she married him for his money. (Her family is always in need of money since her father and brother are gambling addicts.) The reader is the only one who knows the truth: these two do love each other, and have loved each other from the beginning.

Is Nell as silly as she seems? Is Cardross as tyrannical and unforgiving? Will these two ever be completely honest with one another?

While I didn’t love the plot of this one–at least as much as other Heyer novels I’ve read in the past–I did enjoy the characters. Particularly the “minor” characters. Nell has a sister-in-law, Letty, whose troubled love life steals the show, in a way. She’s in love with a man, Jeremy Allandale, deemed “unsuitable” by her older brother. (Letty gets one of her many scoldings in the second chapter.) This love affair is “aided” by Letty’s cousin, Selina Thorne, a young lady who has read too many novels. This romance provides my favorite scene of the novel!

Dysart, Nell’s brother, and Mr. Hethersett, Cardross’ cousin who has a way of being in the right place at the right time to aid Nell out of her messes, also add to the novel’s charm.

One of the weaknesses of this novel, however, is Cardross. It’s hard for the reader to fall in love with Cardross when he’s only in a handful of scenes. (He spends most of the novel out of town on a trip.) Especially when most of those scenes show him scolding the women in his life. Are Letty and Nell silly? Yes. But still, that doesn’t mean it’s fun to read Cardross’ condescending scoldings. (Or Dysart’s scoldings for that matter!)

Also, I felt the romance between Cardross and Nell to be a little lacking. We’re told that it was love at first sight. Yet we rarely see these two in the same room. And when they are in the same room, he’s either scolding her or she’s awkwardly avoiding him in conversation. These two are uncomfortable in their scenes together. Neither wants to be vulnerable. Neither wants to show too much.

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Continue reading here:
April Lady

Sphinx’s Princess. Esther Friesner. 2009. Random House. 384 pages.

From the time of my first memories, my dreams were filled with lions–fierce, impossibly huge monsters with fiery manes and eyes black and cold as a starless night.

Nefertiti. Sphinx’s Princess is a fictional account of Nefertiti’s early years. Set in Ancient Egypt, the novel is rich in detail–history, mythology, culture. Readers learn what life as a royal might have been like through the eyes of a young woman betrothed to Pharaoh’s son. A young woman royal in her right–the niece of the Queen. Her father has warned her for years of the dangers of becoming too close to the Queen, of being a part of court life. Nefertiti is learning about these risks herself–for better or worse. Her story continues in Sphinx’s Queen which releases in September 2010.

Friesner’s Nefertiti is an intelligent, beautiful, compassionate young woman. She can read and write. She can sing and dance. Her life is saved by a slave–a Hebrew slave–and this changes her. She’s now tender-hearted and devoted to the life of one slave girl in particular. (I’m not sure I *believed* that anyone would take such risks for another person, slave or not.) Friesner’s Nefertiti is not concerned about politics, about power. She just wants a simple, private life.

Friesner’s Nefertiti is VERY different from Michelle Moran’s Nefertiti. Both books are, of course, historical fiction. So neither Nefertiti is the “real” Nefertiti.

I enjoyed Sphinx’s Princess. I look forward to reading Sphinx’s Queen soon.

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

See more here:
Sphinx’s Princess (YA)

Leaving Gee’s Bend. Irene Latham. 2010. Penguin. 240 pages.

Mama pulled a chicken egg from behind the azalea bush in our front yard and narrowed her eyes. “Ludelphia Bennett! You go back in there and get your eye patch.”

Historical fiction. Set in Gee’s Bend, Alabama. 1932.

Ludelphia’s mother is dying, and there’s nothing she can do about it. That’s what everyone says. But Ludelphia isn’t convinced. She thinks that if she can just get a doctor–a real doctor–to come and see her mother, there might be a chance. True, Ludelphia has never left Gee’s Bend, has never been to Camden. But. If there’s a chance that someone could help her–no matter how small–she’s got to brave it. It’s scary, no doubt about it, because it isn’t easy to leave Gee’s Bend. It requires a ferry. Which may not be a big deal…if you’re not in a hurry, if the ferry man can be found, if there hasn’t been a big storm upsetting the river, if you know exactly where you’re going. Ludelphia will have to brave more than just the river…as she embarks on this journey. A journey that proves physically and emotionally demanding.

I liked this one.

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Original post:
Leaving Gee’s Bend (MG)

The Convenient Marriage. By Georgette Heyer. (1934) Read by Richard Armitage. 2010. August 2010. Naxos Audiobooks. 5 hrs. 6 minutes.

You can listen to an audio sample here. You can also listen/download an interview with Richard Armitage on why he enjoys recording audio books.

First sentence: “Lady Winwood being denied, the morning caller inquired with some anxiety for Miss Winwood, or, in fact, for any of the young ladies. In face of the rumour which had come to her ears it would be too provoking if all the Winwood ladies were to withhold themselves.”

Lord Rule wants to marry Miss Winwood–the eldest Winwood, Elizabeth. But. Elizabeth is in love with another man–a poorer man, a soldier named Edward Heron. Horatia Winwood is the youngest of three sisters. But she may prove to be the savior of her family. Hoping to save her sister heartache, Horatia comes up with a plan that will allow her sister her happily ever after. All the while saving her family from financial difficulties–due in part to her brother’s gambling habits. What if she were to marry Rule instead…

My thoughts on the book/audiobook:

Horatia does have a stammer. Especially when nervous, I wonder how other listeners will respond to it…will they be charmed by it like Rule or find it grating on the nerves?

I loved reading chapter two–as I noted in my review–but I loved, loved, loved hearing it! It makes such a great dramatic scene! Horatio’s awkwardness and Lord Rule’s graciousness and charm…

‘Will you tell me how old you are?’
‘Does it matter?’ Horatia inquired forebodingly.
‘Yes, I think it does,’ said his lordship.
‘I was afraid it m-might,’ she said. ‘I am turned seventeen.’
‘Turned seventeen!’ repeated his lordship. ‘My dear, I couldn’t do it.’
‘I’m too young?’
‘Much too young, child.’
Horatia swallowed valiantly. ‘I shall grow older,’ she ventured. ‘I d-don’t want to p-press you, but I am thought to be quite sensible.’
‘Do you know how old I am?’ asked the Earl.
‘N-no, but my cousin, Mrs. M-Maulfrey, says you are not a d-day above thirty-five.’
‘Does not that seem a little old to you?’ he suggested.
‘Well, it is rather old, perhaps, b-but no one would think you as much,’ said Horatia kindly.
At that a laugh escaped him. ‘Thank you,’ he bowed. ‘But I think that thirty-five makes a poor husband for seventeen.’
‘P-pray do not give that a thought, sir!’ said Horatia earnestly. ‘I assure you, for my p-part I do not regard it at all. In f-fact, I think I should quite like to marry you.’
‘Would you?’ he said. ‘You do me a great honour, ma’am.’ (24-25)

I think it would be hard for anyone to listen to Richard Armitage perform that little scene without falling a little in love.

Most romance books are about courtship not marriage. Most leave the ‘happily ever after’ to your imagination. Of course, the couple stays together forever and after. We don’t see any differently. So it is interesting to see a romance novel concerned with the marriage–with what happens after the ‘I do.’

I appreciated the flaws of the characters. Most (if not all) of the characters are flawed: Horatia (Horry), Marcus (Lord Rule), Crosby (Rule’s cousin), Lord Robert Lethbridge (Rule’s long-time nemesis), Viscount Pelham Winwood (Horry’s brother), etc.

I loved Rule. I loved Pelham. I also really enjoyed Sir Roland. Was Lethbridge a good villain? I think so! He had just enough charm that you could understand why Horatia (and others) would want to think the best about him despite his reputation. As for our heroine, Horatia, I liked her. She was far from perfect. But she’s resourceful and spirited.

Listening to the novel (abridged though it may be) gave me a greater appreciation for Georgette Heyer. Why? While I’ve always appreciated Heyer’s dialogue–it being a chance for her characters to be witty, charming, or romantic–I appreciate it even more having heard it performed. The wit seems funnier. The action scenes even more dramatic. The love scenes even more romantic. I wouldn’t have thought it possible for one narrator to convey the chemistry between two characters–but with Armitage narrating it works really well.

Have you read the book or listened to the audio? Do you have a favorite character? A favorite scene?

© Becky Laney of Becky’s Book Reviews

If you’re reading this on a site (other than Becky’s Book Reviews or Becky’s feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

More here:
The Convenient Marriage (Audiobook)