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 World War II had a massive effect on lives across the world; Silvana and Janusz, living in war zones, have been affected more than most. Separated at the very beginning of the war as a young married couple with a small son, Janusz immediately joins the army while Silvana is left in Warsaw with their son Aurek. Soon forced to flee the city, Silvana and Aurek hide in the woods, while Janusz eventually finds himself in England as a veteran. Six years after their separation, they’re reunited and start family life in a small house in Ipswich, but both have changed, and both have damaging secrets they’re determined to keep.
22 Britannia Road has received a great deal of acclaim on its release, so I was expecting quite a lot from this novel. World War II stories are everywhere these days, so it does take something special or a different perspective to help a book stand out from the crowd. With its post-war story told simultaneously with the immediate history leading up to the war and afterwards, along with its Polish characters, the book easily accomplishes that much, providing a new family perspective on the hardships endured during the war.
Silvana and Janusz’s reunion is uneasy; they barely remember what one another look like. Everything in their lives has changed. For Aurek, things are even more difficult and confusing, as he simply doesn’t remember his father and just wants to go live with his mother in the woods again. He has no concept of society, much less that required by the strict British school system and, partly, his father, who wants a son to be proud of.
One of the most interesting aspects of the book was actually Aurek’s reaction to other children, school, his father, and so on; it demonstrates the adaptability of children as much as it shows how much adults struggle to accept the same tasks. Oddly, in this way it reminded me of Room by Emma Donoghue, even though the subject matters diverge wildly.
And then, of course, there are the secrets, which have the potential to destroy the family’s newly forged life. Complicating things are people who thrust themselves into the Nowaks’ newly forged lives, like Aurek’s first friend Peter and his elegant father. Silvana is a character that is difficult to understand, with her complicated past, while I think Janusz longs for the life that will be familiar to most readers; a promotion, a son to be proud of, a wife who loves him, a shiny new car. The opening scenes of the book, when he paints his house worrying what his stranger wife and child will appreciate, while reminiscing about the woman he’s fallen in love with in France, were actually some of the most poignant for me in the entire book.
While, for me, 22 Britannia Road wasn’t earth shattering, it was a book that certainly shed another light on life during and after World War II, particularly for immigrants. And it’s a worthy look into the minds of both adults and children who have to deal with the nearly unimaginable happening thanks to the horrors of war. Recommended.
All book links to external sites are affiliate links. I received this book for free from Amazon Vine.
 This book follows directly on from The Tea Rose and The Winter Rose. As a result, this review will have spoilers for both.
Though Seamie Finnegan and Willa Alden love each other, they were driven apart by an accident resulting in the loss of Willa’s leg. Now, unable to satisfy her greatest passion of climbing, Willa spends most of her time finding other ways to endanger herself and live on the edge. She spends her time photographing mountains in Tibet, following wars, and getting captured. Seamie, meanwhile, can’t forget Willa or cease worrying about her, no matter how hard he tries; even burying his sorrows in the pursuit of other women can’t seem to erase his memory of her.
Surrounding the couple are a cast familiar to anyone who has read any of the Rose trilogy – Fiona and Joe, who are getting older now, their brigade of children, India and Sid, and other more minor characters from the earlier books. It’s always nice to see familiar characters again; Seamie himself has been in all of the books, while Willa featured prominently in the last one. Part of the appeal of such a series is definitely getting stuck in with characters to care about.
Unfortunately, that was one of the flaws in this book for me; I couldn’t like the characters that Willa and Seamie became. Willa is driven to do truly ridiculous deeds simply to escape the fact that she’s lost her leg, to defy death just because she can – and because she doesn’t care if it takes her. Despite her seemingly courageous behavior, she complained. Often. Seamie, meanwhile, treats one character in particular very badly, and makes promises that he simply can’t keep. I couldn’t like characters that could act like this, no matter how strong their love is supposed to be.
As with all of the books, there are several other plots going on. We are deep in the midst of World War I for much of the book, with an associated German espionage plot taking up a lot of the book’s time. That had an unexpected ending, one which actually made me consider reading the book over again to see if I could pick up the pieces. Fiona and Joe’s children are growing up, with their oldest girl taking on a political mind of her own and one of their sons off to fight in the war. And India does what she does best, doctoring the soldiers who return even as she worries about the ones that she herself loves.
The book held my attention, though, and does deal with some more complicated issues. The effect of front line warfare on a person’s mind, for instance, is one that is surprisingly hard hitting towards the end of the book. Infidelity plagues several characters, as does blackmail and the difficult circumstances people find themselves in during wartime.
Personally, though, I felt like this particular installment suffered more from the same flaws as the first one, with characters that are simply too large for life and are difficult to believe in. Too many famous people in one family, too many lucky escapes; even the share of tragedy the book has doesn’t quite outweigh this for me. It’s a good read, but this series for me just doesn’t match Donnelly’s standalone works. Still, I’d recommend the entire trilogy to those who seek out well-written historical family sagas. The Wild Rose is a good read – just don’t expect it to be A Northern Light.
All book links to external sites are affiliate links. I received this book for free for review from Netgalley.
 As a child, Sylvia idolizes her beautiful, poised mother, who presents precisely the perfect image to the world – a stereotypically ideal wife and mother. But inside, Sylvia’s mother is anything but, as she’s been carrying on an adulterous affair and involving her children for years. As an adult, Sylvia has a husband and family of her own. She’s grown frustrated with her life and family, trapped in a seeming prison of her own making, until she meets Tai, the father of one of her art students. She’s irresistibly drawn to him. Can she avoid repeating her mother’s mistakes?
This book is told through two different time periods, both through Sylvia’s eyes; her childhood while she watches her mother slowly unravel her family’s life, and her adulthood where she is finally tempted by a man who isn’t her husband. This was an effective technique for telling the story, as each timeline has its own secrets that aren’t revealed until later in the novel. Both the narrative voices are (obviously) similar but never presented any problems in differentiating themselves to me.
What Sylvia slowly begins to realize is that her adult life has begun to parallel her mother’s, although it takes her a lot longer than it does for the reader. She hasn’t defined herself quite enough for her tastes. She’s an art teacher, but she feels as though she’s lost her own art. Her husband has buried himself in their new house, a project that’s been ongoing for years. Her younger child still needs her, but her older daughter is starting to grow apart from her, and her responsibilities are overwhelming her. She’s not sure where she is in her life, and in steps Tai, a chance to define herself apart from her family, a man who wants to give her attention just as she is. Even as she does that, she’s still not defining herself, merely repeating her mother’s footsteps.
In this sense, the novel is really about the quest of a woman reaching middle age to create her own identity. As readers we can see precisely why she is captivated by Tai, although he remains a more mysterious character. She needs to feel loved again, just for who she is without any of the trappings of her ordinary life.
The novel also carefully explores the damage that infidelity can wreak on a marriage and family, the slow but inexorable ways that couples who love one another deeply are led into adultery, and the difficulties of trying to keep together a marriage despite those faults. Would you stay with someone who had cheated so on you? Even Tai’s son is a victim, though neither Sylvia nor Tai appear to consider those consequences until it’s too late.
This thoughtful novel is an excellent choice for anyone who enjoys fiction about the inner workings of women’s lives and the difficulties wrought on relationships by infidelity. Outside the Ordinary World is a read that will linger in your mind long after you’ve turned the final page.
All book links to external sites are affiliate links. I received this book for free for review.
 In 2044, the US has all but collapsed. Most people, including an impoverished boy called Wade Watts, spend almost all of their time in OASIS, a virtual reality game created by James Halliday. When Halliday dies, he doesn’t create a will, but leaves everything he owns to the finder of an Easter egg (a secret within a game) he’s cleverly hidden within OASIS. The secret is hidden within 80’s references and challenges. Naturally, this gives rise instantly to hunters called “gunters” seeking the Egg. Wade, under his pseudonym Parzival, is the first to find one of the key components of the secret, but finds his life and those of his fellow questers are in very real danger from the “Sixers”, a corporate group determined to seize OASIS for themselves.
I loved this book. Absolutely loved every minute of it. Cline does not miss a beat in this phenomenal dystopia, not from the storyline to the characters to the writing itself. It’s the perfect book for gamers, in particular those who remember the old days fondly, and for those who adore adventure, a touch of romance, and thinking about that essential question – “What if?” What if the recession continues? What if virtual worlds take on the real one? What is reality?
I’m not quite old enough to have witnessed 80’s gaming in person, but I’ve been a gamer since I was only 4 and have been surrounded by the same references Cline uses throughout my life. The book is littered with gaming trivia, but I don’t think it would be difficult for a non-gamer to understand, as Wade is an excellent narrator and elucidates every small point, somehow without detracting from the narrative, as the book continues.
And what a narrative it is as Wade takes us on his own personal adventure. It may be a mix of real and virtual, but this is a story to be swept up in. The narrative follows Wade’s journey to find the three keys and gates in hopes that either he or one of the more honest gunters will find the Easter egg before the corporations or the government can do so. OASIS is free and an essential resource for the poor, who use it for easy access to education and an escape from their generally dim, impoverished lives. Wade’s journey is a true adventure in the best sense of the world as he conquers challenges he could barely have imagined, stretching brain and virtual limits to attain his objective. He grows not only physically and mentally but personally, stretching into the persona of Parzival and escaping his past.
Also, as a medievalist, can I tell you how awesome the name choice of “Parzival” is for this character? Arthurian legends mixed with video games! Parzival was a knight who went on a quest for the Holy Grail. How fitting – the Easter Egg is very much a modern Holy Grail.
The supporting characters are equally wonderful, and it’s hard to describe them without spoiling the story. Given that all the characters sport avatars that do not have to match their physical appearances, you can guess what might happen – I was absolutely delighted with the way that Cline handled this aspect of the story and found it completely fitting for our world, subverting expectations in the best ways. Imperfections can be beautiful, too.
As you can probably tell, I adored this book to pieces. It’s the perfect read for anyone who loves gaming, anyone who loves adventure, and anyone who simply loves an exceptionally good story. It’s thoughtful, with a lot to say about our culture, without ever losing its narrative appeal. This is unquestionably a top read of the year for me and I can’t recommend Ready Player One enough.
As such, I’m delighted to say I have one copy to give away to a reader in the US. Just leave a comment to be entered to win – the competition will close one week from today, on August 23rd at 12 noon EST.
All book links to external sites are affiliate links. I received this book for free for review.
 Susanna Horenbout, a young painter with a famous father, is sent to Henry VIII’s court in order to serve as the king’s personal illuminator. Before she even approaches the presence of the king, she’s the focus of an attempted murder, and is placed under the protection of courtier John Parker. As she and Parker develop intense feelings for one another, they’re also forced to contend with plots against the king by some of his closest advisors. Can their careers – and indeed their lives – survive the best efforts of their foes?
The subject of this book is very intriguing; there is little new in Tudor England fiction these days, but a female painter and a mystery surrounding her seemed like it had potential to be quite the read. While this was overall an enjoyable book, it did have some flaws that marred what could have been an exceptional and unusual debut in the over-saturated Tudor-obsessed historical fiction world.
The primary flaw was the speed of the narrative. This is a short book and actions throughout feel rushed. It’s hard to get attached to characters who are constantly going, without much rest for pages. It seems as though every time the two main characters get an interlude to develop their relationship, they’re interrupted by something related to the general mystery / intrigue plot, and personally I always prefer character development to a racing plot. The plot itself is a good intrigue plot, and perfectly suited for those who are after that sort of thing – it’s just rushed along without much chance for a break.
Overall, it’s a real shame, because Diener has a beautiful way with words and I could tell that there were moments in this book that I could have happily luxuriated in her turns of phrase. I will certainly be eagerly looking for any books she writes in the future, because I think she could become quite good if she lets the historic world and her characters take on a bit more prominence. I believe this book is the first in a series, so I’ll be looking forward to advance reviews of the next.
While In a Treacherous Court does have its flaws, it also has its perks, and it’s worth a read for anyone seeking a fast, different historical fiction read set in the Tudor world.
All book links to external sites are affiliate links. I received this book for free for review.
 Mario is one of the enduring characters of my childhood, an instantly recognizable face and voice, and a character that still features in video games which can be just as fun as they were when I was six years old. There’s no way that nostalgia won’t creep its way into my review, and I’m not sure that it shouldn’t. I could not resist this book by Jeff Ryan, which delves into the history of Nintendo in America, just how Nintendo caught on with the masses at one of the worst times to release video games in history, and how they continue to captivate us as competition ramps up from a series of new competitors.
I was particularly entranced by the early sections of the book where Ryan looks at Nintendo’s history. I knew they started out in the nineteenth century as a card company, but the intervening years until the NES was released in North America were mostly lost to me. Ryan fills in the gaps and does quite a bit towards explaining just why Mario was so successful when other characters failed. He suggests that Mario’s very lack of personality, beyond the simple facts of his life, make him appealing because he is an everyman. There is a reason Mario doesn’t speak beyond “Woohoo!” because the less we know about him, the more we can put ourselves in his shoes. It’s an intriguing concept, and it’s true that Mario games the few for me which don’t actually need a story to succeed.
Ryan is clearly a Nintendo fan, which comes through in his writing, and is instantly appealing to another person who has had a Nintendo console nearby for the past twenty-five years. We didn’t get our NES until I was four, but that means I can’t remember a time when I didn’t have the ability to play a Mario game more or less whenever I wished. This book definitely succeeds in tapping into those memories and covering all aspects of Nintendo, not just Mario games.
Perhaps the only thing the book is lacking is actual hands-on interviews conducted by the author himself. A lot of it is research gleaned from a huge variety of sources, but we don’t get much insight into the personalities of the people behind Nintendo. Shigeru Miyamoto is of course the posterchild for cool Nintendo games; I loved hearing more about the older games that he created before Mario and how Mario changed as time went on, but would have loved even more insight from the mind of a man who can create gaming addictions at will.
I did quite like the rotating history of Nintendo’s competitors and how Nintendo has managed to innovate and remain on top for years. After the slow sales of the GameCube, many people thought Nintendo was going to be like Sega and sell only software because of the difficulties they were having. But Nintendo fought back with the Wii, which has been ridiculously successful and found a home with everyone from small children to elderly disabled.
There is every indication that the company will continue to fight back in the future, providing pure fun for all to enjoy, and in the end Super Mario was a lovely tribute to both the company and the great character of Mario himself. If you’re a Nintendo fan, you can’t go wrong with this book.
All book links to external sites are affiliate links. I received this book for free for review via Netgalley.
 The insect kingdom is an incredible place, and many of us humans hardly think about them unless they’re annoying us, in which case we promptly squash them and forget about it. But insects are unbelievably diverse; new species are being uncovered virtually every day. Since they are so different from us, insects provide us the unique opportunity to study genetics without reading human traits into them. We simply can’t ascribe an ant human emotions, certainly not as easily as we can with monkeys or dogs or lions. Zuk uses this perspective to explore the sexual and familial relationships of insects and apply her conclusions to help us examine the human condition and what really is special about us – and them.
The non-fiction bug has bitten me hard, so I thought it was only appropriate to read non-fiction about insects! Stupid jokes aside, this was a genuinely fascinating book in ways I never suspected it would be. Marlene Zuk makes biology incredibly interesting, using examples from a variety of insect species to demonstrate interesting facts about genetics that I’d never really have thought about. One of my favorite chapters was on insect parenting, where she goes into depth on the vastly different aspects of insect parenting, including how some insects are more attentive to their young than some cuddlier creatures. She does pull from many other species when comparing with insects, which I think helps the book fit in nicely with a lot of things that casual readers already know.
I also loved that she used insects as a means of questioning what precisely it means to be human. Outside of consciousness, which is impossible to really define as we have no idea what causes or even if everyone’s is the same, much of human behavior is replicated elsewhere. For example, bees communicate with each other in what is for all intents and purposes a language, and if we narrow the definition of language enough to exclude them it becomes pretty clear that we’re doing it solely to make ourselves look special. Bees confer on decisions, like when moving to a new hive, do waggle dances to show each other where food is, and can fly in large groups to unfamiliar destinations without losing stragglers. It’s very sophisticated behavior for such tiny insects.
Zuk also spends some time on gender roles and how our assumptions of insect genders throughout the years have reflected on our own biases. Even now, many of her students find it impossible to believe that certain insects, like many of the bees you see flying around or army ants, are female. The queen bee was for years assumed to be a male bee – of course, no one even postulated that it could be female until one was dissected for evidence. She shows how ingrained gender roles still are in our society, an unfortunate reality that was excellently illustrated in this case.
She also spends quite a bit of time explaining evolution and how insects may have turned out to be this way. I really appreciated this – I haven’t read much about evolution and I don’t feel I learned much in school, so having such a fantastic explanation alongside interesting traits that seem improbable was incredibly helpful. Among other things, she helps to explain how different “personalities” can have their own advantages – meaning both work from a selection standpoint – and she also goes into some experiments done on artificial selection and the advantages some really peculiar aspects of insect life might have, especially in light of their extremely short lifespans. It felt quite comprehensive and detailed to me, but I was never at a loss for understanding. I felt like I’d learned something once I’d finished.
Even if you’ve never looked at a bug and wondered whether it was male or female, Sex on Six Legs is a genuinely fascinating book. Its title is provocative, which I hope gets it the attention it deserves, but the content is so much more than a look at insect sex. Zuk uses insects to help define our own world, imparting a great deal of biological knowledge and wisdom along the way. I can’t recommend this book highly enough.
I am an Amazon Associate. I received this book for free for review from Netgalley.
 Cora Cash, one of America’s greatest heiresses in the late Victorian era, naturally has a scheming mama. And that scheming mama wants her incredibly wealthy daughter married to a British peer. She’d like a prince, but she’ll settle for a duke, regardless of what Cora really wants – which is her American friend Teddy. But when Cora meets the Duke, Ivo, by complete accident, she begins to fall for him and finds herself married to him in very short order. But British society is further from home than just the ocean crossing and Cora soon finds herself in over her head between her mother-in-law, the Prince Regent, and the many preferences and proprieties that encapsulate her new husband’s every day life.
This book is sold as similar to Jane Austen and Edith Wharton, as a book that is reminiscent of Downton Abbey, a television series I recently watched and fell in love with. It had huge shoes to fill, so perhaps it’s not a surprise that it came up short. It was an enjoyable read, but much shallower than all three comparisons. In reality, I came across someone else saying it was like The Luxe series for adults, and I think that’s probably the most apt description I’ve seen yet.
Part of the problem with the book is that much of it is told and little of it is shown to us. Cora is meant to be a stubborn, plucky heroine, determined to escape the shadows of her mother’s influence, but in reality she is a girl who reacts, not a girl who acts. She seems much more comfortable letting her money and comfort slide her along through life without really fighting for anything she cares about. Even towards the end of the book, most of her ‘growth’ consists of ordering the butler to do things to spite her mother-in-law.
The one aspect I really enjoyed was the story of Cora’s colored maid Bertha. Bertha has her own difficulties as a colored lady’s maid, particularly in her native US. Things begins to change for her as she moves to England with Cora and the stigma fades away to some extent, offering her the first chance of an independent life she has really ever had. But her loyalty to Cora often gets in the way. This was actually a really fascinating aspect of the story and had me wondering what ladies’ maids really thought – were they loyal to the women who had fashioned their entire careers? I wished others servants were equally fleshed out because I’m sure the more fleshed out dynamics of an American versus British ‘downstairs’ would have been fascinating. As it is, Bertha ignores most of the other servants, completely isolating herself.
The American Heiress was certainly an enjoyable read that I managed to zip through in just one day. But I think the many comparisons it’s received have done it a disservice, and the book is best treated as a lighter historical read than classic material. Historical beach reading at its best.
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 Wearing his very best, Oliver le Beau Blackthorn sets off to propose marriage to his beloved, Madelyn. Since his amorous advances were received favorably, he’s reasonably certain that he has a chance at her hand in marriage, even though he is a bastard. Reasonably certain, anyway, until her brother kicks him out and delivers him the beating of his life, right in front of Madelyn’s little sister Chelsea. Beau begins a lifelong campaign to get revenge on Thomas; what he doesn’t count on is Chelsea dropping right into his lap. Nearly forced to marry the odious and insincere reverand who rules Thomas’s life, Chelsea is determined to get the ultimate revenge by eloping with Beau. The pair soon discover that they’re united in a lot more than dislike for Thomas.
This was a sweet, very readable historical romance that at times even had me laughing. The main couple have that all-important chemistry; in fact, they’re more often found teasing each other than anything else, which made me really feel that they had a particular connection. They are truly adorable together, and their discovery of that makes for a very enchanting read. This is the basis of the appeal of the entire book, and it’s one thing Michaels does very very well.
The plot itself is very simple; the couple set out for Gretna Green and mainly focus on evading Thomas. He is not evil, just misguided, with little affection for either of his sisters; so there isn’t really a villain at all in the story, though it could have very easily slipped into that trope. I personally had envisioned quite a few different scenarios towards the end in the way of the HEA – I didn’t actually expect it to end the way it did. But it was a good ending, and no one really reads romances for the exterior plots anyway.
I suppose my only problem with the book is the title. Beau is not a rake. They make occasional references to his “extensive experience” with women but he’s ridiculously far from the classic image of a rake. Not once does he take advantage of Chelsea – he never even tries. He’s rather the perfect gentleman. I wonder if the book was given that title just to attract attention and trade on the well-known romance stereotype – it’s not at all descriptive of the contents of the book.
The Taming of the Rake is a sweet, funny, and enchanting romance, a great choice for other historical romance fans, and definitely recommended by me.
All book links to external sites are affiliate links. I received this book for free from Netgalley.
 Maggie Bullock would do just about anything to save her father’s life, so when she has to rob a bank to pay for his medical treatments, she goes and does it. She has no regret; the bank is run by a man she thought was her father’s friend, but who failed to loan him the money for his treatments. Immediately, Maggie flees the small town she grew up in, but hot on her heels is bounty hunter Dean Collier. He’s been offered a chance to make good if he catches her, and he truly longs to be a sheriff again, but he hadn’t counted on Maggie’s bewitching ways. Over the three weeks it takes him to return her for ransom, their resilience will be tested over and over again.
I downloaded this book because of the many rave reviews it was receiving on Twitter. While I don’t think they were entirely undeserved, on first impression this book and I didn’t get along particularly well. In part I think it was because Dean’s attraction was described a little too coarsely – I have no idea what men think but personally, this was a bit more than I had bargained for. It’s hard to describe what exactly put me off him, but his thoughts towards her are far from honorable, probably fairly accurately along the lines of what a man with a captured woman actually thinks. He never takes advantage of her – but the start of the book had me worried.
Regardless, I perservered, and it’s once the couple get to know each other that the book comes into its own and becomes an enjoyable read. Rooting along with Maggie and Dean against the bad guys when the final showdown occurs is as satisfying as you’d expect it to be. Dean is a fairly stereotypical romance novel hero – a guilt complex because he blames himself for deaths he couldn’t have helped – but Maggie is a feisty Western heroine and I couldn’t help but like her. She does her best to see things as they truly are and seize the moment. She had me from the first few virtual pages – that bank robbing scene is very well written and perfectly done to grab the eager reader. She has some hard facts to face over the course of the novel, but she always accepts and follows what she believes in. It’s just a shame Dean isn’t as appealing!
Overall, I’m not sure I’ll be singing Catch Me‘s praises to every romance reader I know. But if you’re looking for a satisfying Western romance and prepared to overlook a hero in favor of a strong heroine, this one could be the book you’re looking for.
All book links to external sites are affiliate links. I received this book for free from Netgalley.
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