This Earl of Mine by Kate Bateman

 This Earl of Mine  by Kate Bateman

From goodreads.com:

WILL A FALSE MARRIAGE

Shipping heiress Georgiana Caversteed is done with men who covet her purse more than her person. Even worse than the ton’s lecherous fortune hunters, however, is the cruel cousin determined to force Georgie into marriage. If only she could find a way to be . . . widowed? Georgie hatches a madcap scheme to wed a condemned criminal before he’s set to be executed. All she has to do is find an eligible bachelor in prison to marry her, and she’ll be free. What could possibly go wrong?

LEAD TO TRUE AND LASTING LOVE?

Benedict William Henry Wylde, scapegrace second son of the late Earl of Morcott and well-known rake, is in Newgate prison undercover, working for Bow Street. Georgie doesn’t realize who he is when she marries him―and she most certainly never expects to bump into her very-much-alive, and very handsome, husband of convenience at a society gathering weeks later. Soon Wylde finds himself courting his own wife, hoping to win her heart since he already has her hand. But how can this seductive rogue convince brazen, beautiful Georgie that he wants to be together…until actual death do they part?

Leona’s Review:

The book begins in London, March 1816. 

If one wants a good read with romance, mystery and some history,  then This Earl of Mine is a great one. This is my first read by Kate Bateman and I look forward  to reading the series.

Getting married to someone in prison on the idea that Georgina Caversteed would become  a widow and prevent her cousin, Josiah,  from marrying her and getting her fortune was her main focus. 

The book has some interesting history about watercraft, and I do not want to say what because I think it is part of the story.

The descriptions of places like the wharf pulls the reader into the area. 

The spices  in the warehouse  reminds Georgie of the children's rhyme “Sugar and spice and all things nice. That's what little girls are made of “ and he nodded, “ I know it. Little boys are made of slugs and snails and puppy dogs’ tails”.

Other main characters are Pieter Smit, a “ salt-weathered Dutchman” who protects Georgie; Juliet, the sister of Georgie;  Simeon Pettigrew, the man  Juliet loves;  The mother Mrs. Caversteed; and the two friends of Ben, Alex and Seb.

Dedicated to “To my crazy, wonderful family, especially my three lovely monsters, and M, with much love.

I received a complimentary copy of This Earl of Mine to read and review. The opinions are my own. I gave it a 5 star rating.

Leona Olson

Book review of Cry of the Peacock by V. R. Christensen.

Cry of the Peacock by V. R. Christensen.

 

From goodreads.com

"An illustrious marriage, a fortune, a position of wealth and influence. These are the dreams and ambitions of any Victorian woman of sense. Or are they? Perhaps not for Arabella Gray. The death of Abbie’s father, the overseer of a large country estate, leaves her without means or resources, without, even, a place to live. Her landlords, in an extraordinary display of charity, invite her to live at Holdaway Hall. But the invitation is as puzzling as it is generous. Why are the Crawfords, who have never paid her any notice before, so concerned with her wellbeing now?
It’s a question the younger Crawford brothers would like to have answered as well. Certainly Miss Gray is a mercenary upstart. Certainly their brother is mad for fancying himself in love with her. Such a union would make them a laughing stock. They mean to put a stop to it, but when they learn that her past is closely—even disturbingly—connected with their own, they are brought up short, forced to ask themselves some very hard questions. As Abbie herself soon learns, there is a great mystery at the heart of her landlords’ extraordinary offer. Everything she has ever dreamt of might be hers for the taking, but is the price worth it? More than her happiness alone rests upon her decision. If she refuses Ruskin Crawford’s offer of marriage, will she be able to live with the consequences? If she does, will she be able to live with herself?
In the end, all must ask themselves some very hard questions. What does it mean to be a man or woman of honor and integrity? What does it mean, after all, to be a gentleman? And what, exactly, is the price of a woman’s heart?"

Leona's Review:
I liked this book. I had just finished reading two dark books and needed something different. I have always liked the Victorian age books and this fit the bill and it was not as dark.
It begins September 1890 in London. There is the death of a child just delivered and Abbie is quite upset We are introduced a little to Abbie, her sister, Mariana, the lawyer, William Meridith, Aunt Newhaven's home and one of the Crawford brothers.
Chapter One begins with two Crawford brothers at their London club where David and James are talking about David seeing Abbie outside of Abbie's  aunt's home.
The Crawford family has plans for Abbie, Arabella, to  marry the eldest son, Ruskin. There is a secret from the past about the Crawford and Gray families. The book is based on this secret. Even some in the family are unaware, as well as Abbie, of the reasons for the intentions of the marriage to Ruskin. The parents of Abbie and Miranda are dead.
The book deals with electricity, gas, the London tube, hydraulic lifts and cable. Names such as Emile Rogers

(1888: Start of Benz sales in Germany and abroad | Daimler Global Media Site > Classic > Daimler AG )

 and the Benz engines are also mentioned (http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/s/other-forms-of-victorian-transport-and-communication/). David had an interest in these projects and Abbie also found it interesting. I have included two sites to read for those who would like to know more on the subjects. I personally like to learn when I read and I find this information very much part of the book.
The book also mentions needlework, sewing, dresses, cabs, hair styles, mourning clothing, the library of books, dark woods of the old homes, politics, workers, unwed mothers, arranged marriages and the proper conduct of the women for society. Many English words are used also (or at least I find them  so): salver, a tray for serving food is one.
There were drawings at each chapter which added to the book.
The main characters are:
Abbie, Arabella, Gray.
Miranda Gray, Abbie's sister.
Mr. William Meridith, lawyer and friend of the Gray family and the Aunt.
Sir Nicholas and Mrs. Crawford, parents of the three sons.
David, James and Ruskin Crawford.
Katherine Barnwell, whose has a presumed arranged marriage with David.
Aunt Newhaven who runs the Magdalen home for unwed women in need of care and understanding.
Hetty Summerson who is having a child and is at the home.
I liked this book but did find some typos. Kathryn in used one time for the name Katherine (Kindle page 185) and another is Becky and no 's for the word (Kindle page 247). A couple of others I also saw. It did not stop me from enjoying this book and giving it a strong 4 Star.
Read some reviews about the book on goodreads:
www.goodreads.com/book/show/17874099-cry-of-the-peacock
Site of the author, V. R Christensen. You may also sign up for her newsletter.www.vrchristensen.com
I downloaded a free book from amazon.com to get this book. The opinions are my own.
Leona Olson
www.mnleona.blogspot.com

The Little Women Letters

Gabrielle Donnelly has brought the Little Women of the late 1880s into contemporary times with letters from the past. This is a book about the Atwater family and the ancestors of Fee and her daughters. The daughters, Emma, Lulu and Sophie are all different as were the March girls. The March family lived in Boston and the Atwater family live in London.

Lulu has gone into the attic to find family recipes for Great Aunt Amy who lives in Boston. As she goes through old papers, she finds letters written by Jo. I will say the letters are so real, there is a lot of emotions while reading them. For those who have read the books and watched the movies on the Little Women, the reader will go back into time. The Letters make the book.

The book is based around the family and even though the girls, all women, have sarcastic remarks to each other at times, I personally see a great family closeness.

The parents of Emma, Lulu and Sophie were at one time hippies. David is a publisher and travels a lot; Fee is interested in her garden. Emma is planning her wedding, Sophie is a upcoming actress and Lulu is still looking for her place in life. Charlie is a close friend that is like a member of the family and Matthew is the boyfriend of Sophie. There are other characters in the book and the author fits everyone into place.

The book goes back and forth from letters that Lulu reads in secret while in the attic to the modern lives of the characters in the book. The "crisis" might be shoes, food or where to live.

I have been to London and so liked the references to the different areas. This is an easy read and also a fun read. Very entertaining.

I liked The Little Women Letters and find it is a re-read for me.

I will give it four star. I wish to thank Gabrielle Donnelly for the complimentary copy of The Little Women Letters.

The Map of Time by Felix J. Palma

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author, Felix J. Palma and Simon & Schuster to read and review. The opinions are my own.


The book has been translated from Spanish to English by Nick Caistor.

I was first interested in this book because the cover said the book would have characters such as H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, two of my favorites.

Interesting read but a little confusing at times. I actually was reading this book and put it aside then began to read again. The review is just a touch because the reader must read the book to get the real details and content of the book or "Tale(s)" as the author has said.

H. G. Wells was one of the main characters in this book. His book, The Time Machine, was all the rage in Europe.
There are three parts of this book. Part One goes into the past, Part Two goes into the future and Part Three goes way into the future as well as a lot of this section stays in the book's time period of the late 1880s.
Andrew Harrington in Part One wants to go into the past to kill Jack the Ripper before he kills his love, Marie Kelly by using the machine that took the character, George, into the future with his Time Machine which is described in the book written by Wells, The Time Machine. Andrew is suicidal and his cousin, Charles, takes Andrew to see H. G. Wells so Andrew could travel back to the past. Marie is a prostitute in the Whitechapel area in London. I did some research and find the names I checked are the women Jack the Ripper killed except the name was Mary Kelly, not Marie. This section is very descriptive in the gruesome acts of what Jack the Ripper does to the women.
Part Two of The Map of Time journeys us into the future and time travel. Gilliam Murray has developed a program that takes men and women of London area from 1896 to the year 2000 and it is called Murray's Time Travel. The passengers are transported into the fourth dimension on a tram where they find automations are trying to take over the world in a legendary battle between humans and automations. The hero is Captain Derek Shackleton and his job is to defeat the king of the automations.

Claire Haggerty has decided to go to Murray's Time Travel with her friend, Lucy, but makes plans not to return to her time period. Claire has decided that the century in which she lives is boring and she has no interest in men in her time era. She believes the future holds more for her. When the passengers are getting ready to depart, Claire hides and see Captain Shackleton without his helmet, which had hidden his face during the battle. She tells him she loves him and wants to be with him in this time period. The man in charge of the group finds Claire and tells her she must leave with the rest of the group; Derek Shackleton rushes out of sight.

The tale is interesting and there are many details of people and events. H.G. Wells and his wife, Jane, are brought into the tale closer to the end.
Part Three has a Scotland Yard detective who believes that someone from the future is committing murder in London. This section is mainly about Wells but also has Henry James and Dram Stoker. H.G.Well's book, The Invisible Man, is part of this tale.

This book is difficult to read because there are so many different occasions happening and the book seems to jump into different areas but the author still brings the tales together. It is a page tuner and so many details and people are in this book, even if only a mention. After I started the book again, I started with Part Two and went back to Part One. The "Map of Time" is described in Part Three and well worth waiting for the meaning. It pulls the book together.

Some names are Jules Verne, Dram Stoker, Henry James, German chemist who developed aspirin (Felix Hoffmann) in the late 1800s and the chemist who invented Coca Cola.
Felix J. Palma has done a remarkable job on The Map of Time. It seems like he is in London and for the readers who have been to London, it puts the reader there but in another time era.

Anyone interested in time travel will find this a good read.

I have to give this a five star plus because of all the details in the book/tales.
Leona Olson

mnleona.blogspot.com