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 When her brother Lysander marries an Italian, Lady Julia Grey and her brothers are summoned back to the family home, a gigantic former abbey, for Christmas and for a scolding. The house party, however, consists of not just the large and eccentric family but some unexpected houseguests, including Nicholas Brisbane, who is in line for a title and with his fiancee, a silly widow, in tow. That isn’t the only shock going at Bellmont Abbey, though, when a body is found in the sanctuary and Julia’s priceless Grey pearls go missing. Reluctantly teamed up again, Julia and Brisbane must out the culprit and figure out who is behind the crimes.
I was so excited for this book and it didn’t disappoint at all! I just love when that happens. The plot may have taken a good 100 or so pages to get going, but I didn’t care, I loved this from the first word. The scene was carefully set before the murder occurred and I think the book would have suffered without that. The plot of this book is more complicated than in the first, but I didn’t find it any harder to understand by the end, though I’m sure more clues would reveal themselves on a reread. I did find myself reading much faster after the murder because I wanted to know what happened, but it was the difference between savoring Raybourn’s writing and desperately wanting to know how it all came out.
I also love the further development of the characters. Julia is an even sassier heroine than before. She’s come into her own and embraced her March background, firmly declaring herself her own woman. Brisbane is, if possible, even more of a mystery the more we learn about him. He’s an enigmatic, fascinating man, and it’s so easy to see why Julia is obsessed with him. I’m not into dangerous men, but I can see the appeal in this guy, and I think Julia’s infatuation is more on a level I can understand than, say, Bella’s was in Twilight. Also, this is a bit of a sidenote, but I adore the fact that these characters read! Raybourn mentions a stack of books on Brisbane’s nightstand and Julia reads herself to sleep on at least one occasion that I can remember.
Finally, I adore the atmosphere in this book. The prose is still gorgeous and clever and witty. I like the immediate contrast between sunny Italy and wintry England. I love Bellmont Abbey; as much as I deplore the dissolution of monasteries, the existence of these former religious buildings turned houses is fascinating, and such a conversion is much better than letting them go to ruin. I felt as though I could walk the halls of the abbey, see the ghost, feel the drafts, and just in general live in this novel for a little while. As soon as I finished, I wanted to go back and live in it a little longer. I can’t wait to read Silent on the Moor (a book like this set in my favorite part of England? Yay!) and am currently berating myself for having library books to get to before I can read it.
As you can probably tell, I loved this book. I really can’t stop gushing about it. If you love historical fiction, if you love mysteries, if you just love a good book, you should read this. Start with Silent in the Grave, but then buy this one on Amazon .
(I will be honest, about the only thing I don’t like about my copy of this book is its cover. Keith thought it was okay, but I really did not like it and think it gave the wrong impression, as do the romance novel covers that grace the current US versions. What do you think?)
 Hanna’s phone rings in the middle of the night. When she answers it, she is at first annoyed, until she realizes that she is being offered the opportunity to work on the Sarajevo Haggadah, one of the world’s most precious medieval manuscripts. On her official visit, she not only re-binds and restores the book but also picks up little clues as to its history, which she then follows across the world. Interspersed with Hanna’s narrative, we get these glimpses of the people in the book’s past, illuminating its purpose and fascinating past.
I love books about books and this is no exception. I enjoyed the intimate description of the book to start off with; now that I understand what quires are and how parchment is made, these things become much richer for me. I think that Brooks pulled off the intertwined narratives very well. If anything, I always wanted to hear more about the historical parts; what happened to these people? Each time, I got drawn in, and I didn’t want the vignettes to end. For the most part, the stories only follow the history of the book. It made me think about all of the medieval books that I have encountered. Most of them do not have a history as exciting as this one’s, but it’s a heady, exciting thought.
That isn’t to say Hanna’s personal story isn’t interesting, though. I doubt it would have worked without the book, but her search for her father and strained relationship with her mother add something that I think may make this more universal than to just those of us who are obsessed with old books. I liked Hanna and I liked the ending. More, though, the overall message got to me. This book survived some of the hardest parts of modern human history and each vignette highlighted something horrific, whether slavery, warfare, or the Inquisition. It saddens me that people can do such things to one another, but I think the fact that this book, this Jewish book with illumination by a Muslim, survived is Brooks’ way of keeping hope alive. I like that. I like that a lot.
Buy People of the Book on Amazon.
 What book do you think should be made into a movie? And do you have any suggestions for the producers?
Or, what book do you think should NEVER be made into a movie?
Good question. I very rarely think of books as films because I know much would be changed and because I’m not a visual person. I don’t tend to picture what I’m reading in my head, not even the characters. I do have one fantasy series that I think would make a fantastic movie, and that’s the Temeraire series by Naomi Novik. Fantasy series are fairly popular in cinemas right now and dragons are a universal draw. I think these books, particularly the first one, have a good mix of characterization and personal moments and potential for flashy battle scenes. They’re relatively small, so I don’t think much would need to be cut, either.
I’d also love to see one of Sharon Kay Penman’s historical novels make it to the big screen, just so I could visualize it, but so much would be cut out that it may not be worth it. A miniseries could do better. I also think The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson would make a great, if REALLY graphic, movie. Overall, though, I’ve never actually read a book and thought, “This would be a great movie.” It’s only upon reflection that I can consider it.
As for what should never be a movie? Well, my first thought is the Kushiel series by Jacqueline Carey. I adore these books, but not only are they long, they are also way too graphic and too complex for any of them to be crammed into 3 hours or less. I don’t think they could include everything that is relevant to the rest of the series. I also think that Carey’s writing style is exquisite and in part makes the book, and you can’t get that in a movie. I’d go see it, but would be very uneasy about it.
What about you? What book would you make into a movie, or not?
 When Isabel Allende’s daughter Paula passed away, her entire life and family structure changed out of necessity. This book, written to Paula, is mainly about that family, changing and growing and loving, interspersed with her own feelings and successes. We get an inside look at her writing, her beliefs, and how she does it all. This book truly sums up the days of her family.
I found this book extremely compelling. I’ve read and loved several of Allende’s books and having an insight into her life was amazing for me. I knew so very little about her. I also found it relevant to my own life because I’ve watched my mother deal with her grief over losing my brother and so I felt deeply for Isabel as well. It’s impossibly hard. I’ve actually recommended that my mom read this book because I found it heartening; Isabel finds meaning in her life even though the hole is always there.
Isabel paints the characters of her family in a way that makes us feel like we know them, that we could bump into them on the street. I was amazed at some of the intimate details she revealed and am not sure I could deal with the world knowing such things about me, but by the end of the memoir, they are our friends too, and we want them to get through their own individual struggles and hardships.
I’d very much recommend this memoir. Not only is it an insight into Isabel’s life, but she highlights many issues that she and her family members struggle with. I think many people would not only enjoy this work but benefit from thinking about what she has to say.
Buy The Sum of Our Days on Amazon.
 Today’s Question: Were you aware of the Member Giveaways Program? Have you posted any books in the giveaway? If so, what are your thoughts on the program? Have you requested any books, and if so, did you win any?
I’m a big fan of the LT blog and I head over there every time my home page tells me there is a new post, so I’ve been aware of Member Giveaway since it started. I think it’s a neat idea. It’s another way to get books into the hands of readers who really want them and I like that it’s completely random. I think it will be more useful for people with small or odd libraries who struggle to get books from the regular Early Reviewers program. Of course, that hasn’t stopped me from requesting. So far I have won two, the second one just yesterday. I’ll admit that I go there about once a week and request the ones I’m interested in. I don’t mind reviewing, as I review everything anyway, and I can’t resist free books. Of course, given the state of my TBR pile, I probably should learn to resist, but we’ll save that for another day.
I haven’t posted any to the giveaway and I don’t plan to. In fact, I don’t really understand why ordinary people do. I can see the benefits for an author to get a little extra publicity for their book, but for the rest of us, there are many swap websites where you can get a new book in exchange for the one you no longer want. It makes sense if you are simply clearing out your shelves and do not want to acquire new books, but I suppose that mindset is completely foreign to me! I’d also post some to support LibraryThing, but I think I’d rather do that without giving up my precious books. If I wanted to give some away, I’d just hold my own contest here. It’s been a while!
 This is a recent addition to the Sevenwaters series, but I don’t think knowledge of the first trilogy is necessary to enjoy it. I don’t remember much of the latter two books and still managed to fully understand and love this one.
Clodagh’s twin sister Deirdre is getting married, her mother is heavily pregnant with a child later in life than expected, and she herself must take charge of the house, try to comfort her worried father, and give up her marital prospects for the foreseeable future. At first, luckily, all this goes off without a hitch, except perhaps for the irritating warrior Cathal who has accompanied Clodagh’s cousin Johnny to the wedding and seems determined to rain on Clodagh’s parade every chance he gets. In the meanwhile, she meets again a man she likes very much and successfully gets through her sister’s wedding with the household intact. Clodagh’s mother Aisling even survives the delivery of a healthy baby boy, but then the unthinkable happens and Clodagh is the only one who can save her family from destruction.
I knew I loved the Sevenwaters trilogy, and I wasn’t surprised at all when I loved this, too. Juliet Marillier’s prose is astonishingly beautiful, weaving a fantasy world that exists side-by-side with a historical portrait of early Ireland. It’s so easy to get swept away into this world and Marillier has lost none of its magic. I knew absolutely nothing about the book going into it – not even the main character’s name – but I quickly realized that trouble was imminent. Once the main “trouble” occurred and I couldn’t put it off any longer, I absolutely sped through the book, as I’m sure I was intended to. I had to know what happened and this book is only predictable in some respects. I figured I knew what the ending was, but I needed to know how they got there. I particularly adored the tension between Cathal and Clodagh. That part of the story was beautifully done.
Marillier is brilliant at character development and it’s the people of her world that come alive so well. Clodagh is exceptionally well-rounded and it’s fascinating to watch her strength progress from a position as mistress of the household to braving a foreign world and pitting her wits against those of an immortal fairy lord. One gets the sense that she does not seek such challenge, but has the strength to endure what she must for those she loves. She is so full of compassion and love that she willingly gives of herself without asking to make someone else’s life easier. Similarly, Cathal’s character is revealed very gradually, each aspect of his personality coming out by the end of the story to make him fully understandable and sympathetic. His actions, his past, everything comes to light and in the end it’s impossible not to fall in love with these two.
I would recommend this book to everyone, unless you can’t tolerate fantasy. Marillier has it all, with great characters, an entrancing world you’ll never want to leave, a plot that is engrossing and keeps you up at night, and a beautiful style of writing. I loved this book – and the rest of the series – and I think you will too. In fact, I’m off to go acquire the rest of her books in some fashion, and see if they live up to this amazing series.
Buy Heir to Sevenwaters on Amazon.
 Michael Stirling knew he loved her when he saw Francesca Bridgerton for the first time. Unfortunately, she was only 36 hours away from marrying his cousin and best friend, John Stirling, the Earl of Kilmartin. Almost worse is that Francesca and John remain very much in love throughout their marriage, with Michael the occasional third wheel. He gets up close and personal with a woman he can never have, a woman he would never even try to have because he loves his cousin, but a woman that he loves. They become very close friends. Then, John dies tragically and unexpectedly. Michael can’t handle Francesca’s grief or his own and he flees to India. Four years later, Michael knows it’s time to return, and heads to London early to avoid Francesca, with whom he has not corresponded. Francesca heads early to London to find a husband, because she desperately wants a child. Unsurprisingly, they collide, and neither can handle the attraction that they suddenly feel for each other.
This was a really different take on romance. I can’t remember another book like it, or even one in which the heroine was previously happily married. There might be one, but my experience is a bit limited. Anyway, it’s always the male who has had the experience, whether it comes to previous marriages or affairs. Here, though, both of them have to deal with John’s memory and how to reconcile their feelings with how he would have seen things. I think it’s well done. Francesca especially struggles, because she was happy and she loved John and she’s afraid he’d think she was betraying him.
I also liked how the tone of the book was different from the rest in the Bridgerton series. Not only is the situation very different but the main character, Francesca, is described as feeling a little distant from her family because she’s more serious than they are, though with a snarky edge. Not only does Quinn tell us that, she shows us as well, a fair mark of her talent I think. This book is angsty (although I never thought of it that way until I saw another reviewer say so) and less “fun” than her other books, but its different take on romance and emotional strength are well worth it. I nearly cried at the end, twice, and honestly, who could say that about a typical bodice ripper?
Julia Quinn is definitely my favorite romance author. If you’ve ever considered reading romance or you’re just in the mood for something lighter, start with her. She consistently produces quality stuff with a slightly different edge and with much more between the characters than physical attraction.
Buy When He Was Wicked on Amazon.
 *spoilers for the previous two books!*
Skandian raiders have captured Will and Evanlyn. After nearly dying on board ship, they arrive safely, but as slaves with little choice in their own destiny. Will is determined to escape, but neither of them have any idea how to get home or how to enact this plan. In the meantime, Halt concocts a scheme to free himself from the king’s service to find and rescue Will, but in doing so is expelled from the Rangers and joined only by Horace, an apprentice knight who is determined to do all he can to save his friend.
This book introduces a lot of new challenges to our favorite group of heroes. Will’s viewpoint is absent for a while and I was surprised by how much I missed his voice. I also really preferred Will and Evanlyn’s half to Horace and Halt’s. I felt that I knew the outcome of the second one, but the first one was much more variable and worrying. I mean, I don’t think Will can die given that there are many more books out and the series is called “Ranger’s Apprentice” but that doesn’t make anyone else safe. I found that by the end, I really just wanted Halt and Horace to find Will and Evanlyn. The cliffhanger made me very nervous and I have book 4 on hold from the library. I hope it comes in for me soon!
I’ll still be recommending this series. I think Flanagan’s writing voice is getting stronger and the characters are definitely getting deeper and more interesting. Again, this series is almost enough to make me wish I was still a young adult because I know I would have loved it even more back then. And back then I wouldn’t have noticed how much Flanagan seems to be ripping off medieval Europe. Not that I mind, but it is very, very common in fantasy and I like original world-building.
Buy The Icebound Land on Amazon.
We’ve all seen the lists, we’ve all thought, “I should really read that someday,” but for all of us, there are still books on “The List” that we haven’t actually gotten around to reading. Even though we know they’re fabulous. Even though we know that we’ll like them. Or that we’ll learn from them. Or just that they’re supposed to be worthy. We just … haven’t gotten around to them yet.
What’s the best book that YOU haven’t read yet?
Well, this question had me going back through my LT library to figure out just what I have (as I scroll through I’m thinking “I have SO MANY books, is this a blessing or a curse?”). Usually I’ll remember what I have if I’m in a shop and not buy duplicates, but just cold recall doesn’t work out too well for me. So I do have one author whose works I should read, and that is Virginia Woolf. I have both To The Lighthouse and Orlando. Now, I absolutely adore Mrs. Dalloway, so that’s why I should try some others. I have plenty of other worthies waiting about, including a gazillion prize winners and classics, but I have little excuse for not reading one of these two considering my rereads of Mrs. Dalloway! I think I’m just worried that they’ll be less accessible to me now that I’m more than a year out from studying literature.
Have you read either of them? What did you think? What is the best book you’re not reading?
 The people in Güde’s village are starving. 1507 is the second year of no harvest and the people have grown thin, listless, and hungry. When a visiting friar arrives and claims he has a solution, the people are overjoyed. Güde is certain that he will find this witch, who must be in another town for all of her neighbors are good, kind-hearted Christians, and restore prosperity to her small village. Then perhaps she will regain the respect of her daughter-in-law, Irmeltrud, and be at peace in her son’s home. She doesn’t realize that Irmeltrud will seize at anything to get rid of her, and worse, that she isn’t even sure she can deny those accusations.
The Witch’s Trinity is a well-imagined tale of late medieval Germany, struggling under the burden of famine. I particularly liked the atmosphere which pervaded the book. There is a constant feeling of dread in the little village on the edge of the woods and it’s easy to see how the population could be pushed into madness. The reader can feel the hunger, suspicion, and desperation that takes the place of common sense and affection. We already know what the friar’s arrival will bring, but that doesn’t take away from this sense of unease. Interspersed are memories of happier times, when Güde was a girl and in love and did not know what hunger really was. Longing for that time is clear as day and also helps us to understand the great changes that have taken place.
I also thought the angle this book took on witchcraft was interesting. Güde doesn’t know if she has signed her soul over to the devil or not. She doesn’t know if the things she sees are in the mind of an old woman or actual visions. When she is convicted of witchcraft, she is very confused. In most books, the accused is always innocent and there is rarely any supernatural element. This perspective is something new and provided for a fresh, more unpredictable read. It’s left up to the reader to decide, as the novel goes on, whether Güde is seeing truth or whether her aging mind is providing her with hallucinations.
This is a solid work of historical fiction. It provides an engaging, unusual view into a world that no longer exists, and has a gripping story and varied, sympathetic characters. I would recommend it.
If you’re in the UK, The Witch’s Trinity will be released tomorrow. Buy it here. If you’re in the US, you can also buy The Witch’s Trinity on Amazon.
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