Review: How to Romance a Rake

How to Romance a Rake by Manda Collins

The Ugly Ducklings Trilogy #2

Romance – Historical, Published July 2012

Challenges: Historical Fiction Challenge, NetGalley Reading Challenge

Read September 2012, 352 pp.

4.5/5 ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤

Book #1 – How to Dance with a Duke

Book Blurb:

You can lead a wallflower to the ball, but you can’t make her bloom—unless one daring young bachelor turns up the heat…

What’s a nice girl like Miss Juliet Shelby doing at a place like Lord Deveril’s ballroom? With her shy demeanor, she’s a total stranger to the dance floor and a source of mockery for the ton. So imagine her surprise when Deveril gallantly comes to her defense—and offers to teach her to dance! Juliet can hardly believe the most handsome bachelor in London would notice her, until he takes her in his arms and sets her heart ablaze…

Lord Alec Deveril has never felt such a spark of attraction for an unmarried lady before. Unlike the “fashionable” ladies he’s accustomed to, Juliet possesses a generous spirit, a fiery intelligence—and an explosive secret. Deep in the London underworld, a dear friend has vanished, and Juliet fears the worst. Deveril insists on helping, escorting her through the darkest alleys in town. But he too is hiding a shocking secret—and the only way he can defeat the devil in his past is to seduce the angel in his arms…

Thoughts:

Again, I’m in love with The Ugly Ducklings!  I adored the first in the series – How to Dance with a Duke – a great combination of romance and mystery.  The same is true with book two.  This time it’s duckling Juliet’s turn to find a husband, but she would have never guessed who it would turn out to be.  Her mother has a husband picked out for her, but Juliet cannot stand the sight of him!  But she and her cousins have a few tricks up their sleeves to get around her mother’s match.  When Juliet discovers her dear friend Anna has gone missing and left her baby behind, she knows it has to be foul play.  It is Lord Deveril who comes to her rescue and insists on accompanying her in finding out the truth behind the disappearance.  I love the chemistry between the three cousins and the men in their lives and while the story focuses on Juliet and Lord Deveril, we still get to see glimpses of characters from book one.

Can’t wait for Book 3 – How to Entice an Earl - about Ugly Duckling #3 – Cecily and Juliet’s cousin, Madeline – comes out January 29, 2013.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Review: The Ugly Ducklings – How to Dance with a Duke

How to Dance with a Duke by Manda Collins

The Ugly Ducklings Trilogy #1

Romance – Historical, Published Jan 31, 2012

Challenges: Historical Fiction Challenge, NetGalley Reading Challenge

Read February 2012, 352 pp.

5/5 ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤

Book Blurb:

What’s a wallflower to do when she’s suddenly in need of a husband? Use all the pluck and moxie she can muster to get what she wants…

SHE’S IN NEED OF A PARTNER

Miss Cecily Hurston would much rather explore the antiquities of Egypt than the uncharted territory of marriage. But the rules of her father’s exclusive academic society forbid her entrance unless she weds one of its members. To clear her ailing father’s name of a scandalous rumor, Cecily needs to gain admission into the Egyptian Club—and is willing to marry any old dullard to do it.

AND HE HAS ALL THE RIGHT MOVES

Lucas Dalton, Duke of Winterson, is anything but dull. He’s a dashing and decorated war hero determined to help Cecily—even if that means looking the other way when she claims the dance card of Amelia Snow, this season’s most sought-after beauty. But Lucas has a reason for wanting Cecily to join the Egyptian Club: His brother went missing during one of Lord Hurston’s expeditions to Egypt. An alliance with the explorer’s bluestocking daughter could bring Lucas closer to the truth about what happened…or it could lead him to a more dangerous love than either he or Cecily could have imagined….

Thoughts:

Absolutely loved it!  Great mix of romance and mystery, set in Regency England and the height of all things Egyptian.

Cecily’s father, Lord Hurston, the founder of the Egyptian Club, has fallen mysteriously ill since his return from Egypt.  His secretary, Will Dalton, has gone missing from the expedition and is presumed dead.  Cecily, who has always had a great interest in Egypt and her father’s studies, is determined to get into the exclusive Egyptian Club to reclaim her father’s personal journals in hopes of figuring out what could have gone amiss during their latest expedition, but is embarrassingly not admitted into the club that only allows entrance of club members and their spouses.  As an unmarried woman, Cecily is laughed out the door – and sadly enough, that tidbit was her own father’s rule!  So along with her dutiful cousins’ help, Cecily is determined to change that fact and get her father’s journals back.

Lucas, the new Duke of Winterson, and Will’s brother, is also looking for clues to his brother’s disappearance and is willing to do anything to get the information he needs.  When he discovers that it is the beautiful Cecily that he needs to get help from, he doesn’t hesitate to reject her attempt at finding a husband that is a club member.  In fact, he wouldn’t mind marrying her himself.  I loved the nonstop banter and chemistry between Lucas and Cecily.

I also loved the archaic vocabulary Collins used throughout the book – I was so glad for my kindle dictionary!  The characters were great! I loved all three of the “ugly ducklings.”  While this story focuses on Cecily, all three of the cousins had great wit, intelligence, and a need for independence in a time where social standing and popularity meant everything.

The mystery of the missing artifacts and journals as well as Will’s disappearance and Lord Hurston’s sickness left me suspicious of everyone!

Can’t wait for Book 2 – How to Romance a Rake - about Ugly Duckling #2 – Cecily’s cousin, Juliet – comes out July 31st.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Sunday School Review: To Win Her Heart by Karen Witemeyer

To Win Her Heart by Karen Witemeyer

Christian Historical Romance, Published 2011

Challenges: Historical Fiction Challenge

Read August 2011, 347 pages

4/5

Book Blurb:

Do they have a fighting chance at love?

After completing his sentence for the unintentional crime that derailed his youthful plans for fame and fortune, Levi Grant looks to start over in the town of Spencer, Texas.  Spencer needs a blacksmith, a trade Levi learned at his father’s knee, and he needs a place where no one knows his past.

Eden Spencer has sworn off men, choosing instead to devote her time to the lending library she runs in the town her father founded.  When a mountain-sized stranger walks through her door and asks to borrow a book, she’s reluctant to trust him.  Yet as the mysteries of the town’s new blacksmith unfold, Eden discovers hidden depths in him that tempt her heart.

Eden believes she’s finally found a man of honor and integrity.  But when the truth about Levi’s prodigal past comes to light, can this tarnished hero find a way to win back the librarian’s affections?

My Thoughts:

I have definitely become a fan of Karen’s work and of Bethany House’s historicals! I loved her A Tailor-Made Bride and am looking forward to reading her other published book Head in the Cloud as well as her upcoming release in June, Short-straw Bride. 

In Spencer, Texas – 1887, Eden is more than surprised when the new blacksmith in town knocks on her door to visit her library.  What could a brute of a man like him want with her books?  Levi is looking for a new start in life after serving two years in prison for killing a man in a boxing fight.  No one in town knows of his past crimes except for the Cranfords who have agreed to let him run their blacksmith.  Will Levi ever be able to right his wrongs or will he always be haunted by his past? 

I really enjoyed Levi’s character.  Even though he might have somewhat of a shady past, he becomes one of the most outstanding members of the Spencer community.  He struggles with a lisp, unable to say words with s’s very well, but he makes up for it by always searching for another word to replace it, which is why he loves to read – not to mention the pretty librarian.  It takes a while for Eden to figure out why he improperly calls her Eden instead of Miss Spencer.  But when the truth starts to leak of Levi’s past, will she ever be able to get past it?

Thank you to Bethany House for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Check out my review for Karen Witemeyer’s A Tailor-Made Bride!

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Review: The Soldier’s Wife

The Soldier’s Wife by Margaret Leroy

Fiction, Published June 28, 2011

ARC received from Hyperion Voice

Historical Fiction Challenge (Historical Tapestry)

Read: June 2011, 403 pp.

4.5/5

Book Blurb:

As World War II draws closer and closer to Guernsey, Vivienne de la Mare knows that there will be sacrifices to be made. Not just for herself, but for her two young daughters and for her mother-in-law, for whom she cares while her husband is away fighting.

What she does not expect is that she will fall in love with one of the enigmatic German soldiers who take up residence in the house next door to her home. As their relationship intensifies, so do the pressures on Vivienne. Food and resources grow scant, and the restrictions placed upon the residents of the island grow with each passing week. Though Vivienne knows the perils of her love affair with Gunther, she believes that she can keep their relationship and her family safe. But when she becomes aware of the full brutality of the Occupation, she must decide if she is willing to risk her personal happiness for the life of a stranger.

A novel full of grand passion and intensity, The Soldier’s Wife asks “What would you do for your family?” “What should you do for a stranger?” and “What would you do for love?”

First Impressions (Out of all the books I have to read, why this one?):

A few years ago I read and really enjoyed The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows.   Guernsey is a little island north of the coast of France, but is part of the UK.  My favorite genre to read is historical fiction, pre-1900s, but since I loved all the people living on Guernsey island in Potato Peel Pie, I decided to give this one a try.

My Thoughts:

I really enjoyed the author’s style of writing.  It was an easy and quick read, yet the lush descriptiveness made me feel like I was on the island right there with Vivianne.  I’m glad the final version will have a map because I found myself googling the island to see where everything was taking place.  The Soldier’s Wife is driven by the character of Vivianne, a thirty-something mother of two daughters and caretaker to her ailing mother-in-law, – her everyday life, her gardens, her trips around the island to visit friends, and even her view of the German soldiers who have taken up residence next door. 

In The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, one of the main characters, Juliet, lives in London and communicates by letter to the islanders so the reader gets to see not only what is going on Guernsey, but also what is happening in London.  In The Soldier’s Wife, none of the characters ever really know what is happening outside of their bubble world on the island.  At the beginning of the occupation, they are allowed to use radios, but eventually these are banned, although one of Vivianne’s friends has hidden hers in a casket at the funeral home. 

Vivianne has always yearned for a safe, cozy, known environment.  I think that is one of the main reasons she ultimately decided not to put herself and her children on the small boat to leave the island before the German occupation.  There was no news from London or anywhere, for that matter, and she did not even know if the boat would really make it across the water. All she knew was that so far the Germans hadn’t come and that maybe their little island would be overlooked.  It was a desperate hope, but ultimately, Vivianne was wrong and I think she pays dearly for that decision especially with her relationship with her teen daughter Blanche.  But was she really wrong to decide not to flee? 

Throughout the novel, I really liked how the author uses the different fairy tale stories as well as the scenery and weather descriptions to signal foreboding and the slow, gradual accession of the German occupation.  Vivianne reads fairy tales to her daughters and she even contemplates the fact that all the stories she is reading are about weary soldiers who have been gone to war for a long time and have to endure many challenges and even supernatural encounters to make it back home. I liked Vivianne and Gunther together, even if she was sleeping with the enemy! I really don’t know how they kept it a secret from the rest of her family. I never thought that Gunther would betray them and that they truly loved each other in their own ways.  They both loved living in their own secret fairy tale world.

I think it is Johnny’s character that really puts the morale back into Vivianne’s step.  He is forever hopeful that Britain will overtake the Germans and that the state of things will not last forever.  I think many people, including Vivianne, have given into the Germans.  It is a slow declination into poverty for the islanders and they often feel content and even grateful that things aren’t worse for them.  For the most part, as long as they comply by a few rules, the soldiers leave them alone.  It is not until the islanders start seeing the forced laborers and hear of the concentration camp, and especially for Vivianne when her daughter Millie gets directly involved, that she starts to really notice the reality of their situation and take action.

This would be a great book club book as there are many things to discuss.  (Note to self: I need to start a book club so I have someone to discuss with!!) There are some great questions at the end of the book and the more I think about it, the more I love this book! It has a quietness to it that is very profound.  I love the questions, too posed in the book blurb – How well do you really know someone?, What would you do for your family?, What should you do for a stranger?, and What would you do for love?

Quotes:

I loved fairy tales just as she does, enthralled by the transformations, the impossible quests, the gorgeous significant objects – the magic cloaks, the satin dancing shoes.  And just like Millie, I’d fret about the people in the stories, their losses and reversals and all the dilemmas they faced.  So sure that if I’d been in the story, it would all have been clear to me, that I’d have been wise and brave and resolute, that I’d have known what to do. (p. 4)

…where the princesses follow the pathway down to another world, a secret world of their own, a place of enchantment. (p. 5)

After tea, I read her a bedtime story that tells of a girl who married a creature as ugly as a hedgehog, and at night he took off his coat of spines and became a handsome man. (p. 94)

But however happy they were on Guernsey with their loved ones, they were obliged to return eventually to their homeland, under a contract written in blood that could not be disobeyed.  Sooner or later they had to leave the people they loved and sail away. (p. 184)

I don’t like that ending. It’s sad. It’s not a good ending,” she (Millie) says.

Learn more about Guernsey and the Occupation of the Channel Islands.

I received a complimentary copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

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Review: The Mammoth Hunters

The Mammoth Hunters by Jean M. Auel, Audio narrated by Sandra Burr

Earth’s Children Series #3

Fiction, Published 1985

Challenges: Audio Book Challenge, Historical Fiction Challenge

Read April 2011, Unabridged – 26 hrs

Story: 3/5, Narration: 5/5

• #1: The Clan of the Cave Bear
• #2: The Valley of Horses

Book Blurb:

Now with her devoted Jondalar, Ayla boldly sets forth into the land of the Mamutoi – the Mammoth Hunters, the Others she has been seeking.  Though Ayla must learn their strange customs and language, it is because of her uncanny hunting and healing skills that she is adopted into the Mammoth Hearth.  Here Ayla finds her first women friends, and painful memories of the Clan she has left behind.  Here, too, is Ranec, the dark-skinned, magnetic master carver of ivory tusks to whom Ayla is irresistibly drawn – setting Jondalar on fire with jealousy.  Throughout the icy winter, Ayla is torn between her two men.  But soon will come the great spring mammoth hunt, when Ayla must choose her mate and her desiny – to remain in the Hearth with Ranec, or to follow Jondalar into a far-off place and an unknown future.

Thoughts:

I came to love many of the members of the Lion Camp and their relationships with each other and with the newcomers.   They not only accept Ayla and Jondalar into their camp, but also her horses.  They even build an annex for them, which many of the Mamutoi find shocking, to persuade Ayla to stay the winter with them.  Among their members, is Rydag, a young boy who is like Ayla’s son, half Clan and half “the Others.”  When Ayla teaches him the Clan ways to talk with his hands, the members of the Lion Camp realize that he is not dumb, but was just unable to speak like them. 

I’ve been listening to the audio books of this series back to back. Absolutely LOVED The Clan of the Cave Bear and The Valley of Horses, but this one seems very, very repetitive and had to listen to 26 hours of Ayla’s ridiculous love triangle drama. Come on Jondalar, step up!!   You would think that after all the mishaps in their communication skills in the valley that they would have realized that perhaps they should consider NOT making assumptions about what the other person thinks or feels and just come out and ask them! It certainly would have saved a few hundred pages of ridiculous miscommunications!  Really, for someone who is supposed to be so understanding of subtle, and perhaps not so subtle, body language, you would think Ayla would get it through her thick skull why Jondalar is avoiding her and sleeping with another man in the SAME cave as him where he can HEAR EVERYTHING does not help matters…seriously!!!

I will continue with the series because I want to see what happens with Ayla and Jondalar, but do they have to be the most genius members of all mankind, really???  I would like to see another person come up with a new idea instead of Ayla or Jondalar. And I wonder what will happen with Wolf!

LOVE THIS REVIEW on Amazon! Hilarious!

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Review: The Valley of Horses

The Valley of Horses by Jean M. Auel, Audio narrated by Sandra Burr

Earth’s Children Series #2

Fiction, Published 1982

Challenges: Audio Book Challenge, Historical Fiction Challenge

Read March 2011, Unabridged – 21 hrs

Story: 5/5, Narration: 5/5

• #1: The Clan of the Cave Bear
  

Book Blurb:

In The Valley of Horses, Ayla, the unforgettable heroine of The Clan of the Cave Bear, sets out on her own odyssey of discovery away from the nurturing adoptive family and friends of the Clan.  She is in search of others like herslef and in search of love.  Driven by her intelligence, her curiosity, and her destiny, she explores where the Clan never dared to travel and encounters a hostile world of awesome mystery, glacial cold, terrifying beasts, and intense loneliness in which survival itself is a constant battle.

Sharing a hidden valley with a herd of steppe horses, Ayla finds a unique friendship with animals as vulnerable as herself and ingeniously discovers the complex skills needed to survive – skills no Clan member was ever able to master.  But none of her experiences prepares her for the emotional turmoil she feels when she rescues a young man – the first of the Others she has seen – from almost certain death.  Torn between her desire for human companionship and her fear of the unknown Others, she struggles against her deep attraction to the handsome Jondalar.  It is Jondalar who teaches her the meaning of true friendship and love.

Thoughts:

I enjoyed listening to Ayla’s long journey away from the Clan and her many struggles and triumphs.  As we learned at the end of The Clan of the Cave Bear, Ayla has been cast out of the Clan and all the people she grew up with and loves thinks she truly is dead.  So she must leave and follow her adoptive mother’s advice to find the Others, people of her own kind.  She walks a long way and decides she must find a more permanent home for the coming winter since she has not seen any people.  She finds a valley with a cave high above and sets up camp.  The descriptions of her making tools, killing animals for furs and meat, are truly amazing.  She constantly struggles with her complete isolation and makes friends with the most unlikely of her kind.

Jondalar and his brother, Thonolan, are on a rite of passage journey, one that takes them far away from their home, in search of the end of the Great Mother River.  It is a long journey, as they discover many kinds of people often join their families for meals and hunting parties.

The narration switches back and forth between Ayla and Jondalar’s stories until they finally meet and I really enjoyed both of their stories.  Usually, for me, when the story flip flops between two points of views, there is usually one that I like more than the other and can’t wait until it flips back, but that was not the case for this story.  I just could not wait until Ayla and Jondalar’s paths crossed, but this did not happen until at least 2/3 of the way through.

One of my favorite aspects of these books are the maps.  I love maps and whenever a books has one, I often find myself flipping back to it to see where the characters are in relationship to where they’ve been.

Side note: I should probably mention, too, that there are a lot of detailed sex scenes throughout these books, so don’t be shocked…

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To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

To Kill A Mockingbird

by Harper Lee

Fiction, Published 1960

Pulitzer Prize for Fiction – 1961

Read Sept-Oct 2008

5/5

From the Cover:

Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning masterwork of honor and injustice in the deep South — and the heroism of one man in the face of blind and violent hatred

One of the best-loved stories of all time, To Kill a Mockingbird has been translated into more than forty languages, sold more than thirty million copies worldwide, served as the basis of an enormously popular motion picture, and was voted one of the best novels of the twentieth century by librarians across the country. A gripping, heart-wrenching, and wholly remarkable tale of coming-of-age in a South poisoned by virulent prejudice, it views a world of great beauty and savage inequities through the eyes of a young girl, as her father — a crusading local lawyer — risks everything to defend a black man unjustly accused of a terrible crime.

Review:

I somehow missed having to read To Kill A Mockingbird in high school and just got around to listening to the audiobook narrated by Sissy Spacek. First of all, the narration is just perfect. Sissy Spacek does an excellent job as Scout and has the colloquialisms down pat.

I also loved how Scout grows as the novel progresses. Her feelings toward her reclusive neighbor, Boo Radley, change as she grows up. As a young child, she feeds into her older brother’s stories and is afraid of him. They spend most of their summers devising ways to get Boo to come out of his house. But when trouble arises for the children, it is Boo who saves their lives.

Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird. (Ch. 10)

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I Want to Join the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows

Historical Fiction, Published 2008

5/5

From the Cover:

January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject.  Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’d never met, a native of Guernsey, the British island once occupied by the Nazis.  He’d come across her name on the flyleaf of a secondhand volume by Charles Lamb.  Perhaps she could tell him where me might find more books by this author.

 

Review:

Every book lover will love this book.  This beautiful novel is written through a series of letters during the late 1940s from London to Guernsey Island.  It begins as Dawsey Adams who has lived on Guernsey his entire life finds Juliet Ashton’s name on the inside cover of a Charles Lamb book and wants to know if there’s more out there just like it.  Juliet herself has been effected by the bombings in London and all her precious books have been destroyed, but she and her friends and family are for the most part unharmed.  She quickly becomes enamored by the lives of those living on Guernsey Island and how they were so deeply effected by the war.  The Nazis had invaded the island and forever changed the lives of the Guernsey people.

The letters are written from the members of the Guernsey Literary Society to Juliet telling her all about their adventures and hardships during the war and how reading and the literary society has changed their lives.  You will not be able to put this one down as you read the letters along with Juliet and yearn with her as she awaits to receive the next letter from Guernsey.  Letter after letter, Juliet quickly falls in love with all the Guernsey people and longs to be a part of their lives and she just has to attend one of their literary society meetings!

Quotes:

I wonder how the book got to Guernsey?  Perhaps there is some sort of secret homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers.

Have you ever noticed that when your mind is awakened or drawn to someone new, that person’s name suddenly pops up everywhere you go?  My friend Sophie calls it coincidence, and Mr. Simpless, my parson friend, calls it Grace.  He thinks that if one cares deeply about someone or something new one throws a kind of energy out into the world, and “fruitfulness” is drawn in.     -From Juliet to Dawsey (p. 116)

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Anne’s House of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery

Anne’s House of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery

Anne of Green Gables Series #5

Fiction, Originally Published 1917

E-Book from MobileRead

Read Aug.-Sept. 2008

4/5

From the Cover:

Anne’s own true love, Gilbert Blythe, is finally a doctor, and in the sunshine of the old orchard, among their dearest friends, they are about to speak their vows.  Soon the happy couple will be bound for a new life together and their own dream house, on the misty purple shores of Four Winds Harbor.

A new life means fresh problems to solve, fresh surprises.  Anne and Gilbert will make new friends and meet their neighbors: Captain Jim, the lighthouse attendant, with his sad stories of the sea; Miss Cornelia Bryant, the lady who speaks from the heart – and speaks her mind; and the tragically beautiful Leslie Moore, into whose dark life Anne shines a brilliant light.

Review:

The fifth in the Anne series finally gets around to Anne and Gilbert’s wedding and them moving off on their own for the first time. There are no crazy Anne episodes in this book as much of House of Dreams focuses on the neighbors of Anne and Gilbert, namely the lighthouse keeper, Captain Jim, their immediate neighbor, Leslie Moore, and the town gossip, Miss Cornelia.  Captain Jim really is the heart of this story as many of the beloved characters from Avonlea are not talked about much in this book.  Captain Jim is an old man who has lived in the lighthouse in Four Winds for many years and knows everything about everyone.  He also loves to tell about his adventures from when he was younger.  Then there’s Leslie, who Anne finally meets and is unsure as to why Leslie dislikes her.  Anne later discovers that Leslie has had a pretty sad life and it is up to Anne to lighten her load and bring her a little Anne-happiness.

I am a somewhat late Anne reader, as I only read the Emily books as a child.  But L.M. Montgomery has quickly become one of my favorite authors over the last few years.  So far my favorite in the Anne series is the third book, Anne of the Island , but I still really enjoyed Anne’s story as a young bride and finding about her new neighbors in Four Winds.  What’s your favorite Anne or L.M. Montgomery story? To find out more about L.M. Montgomery, check out this page.

Quotes:

The garret was a shadowy, suggestive, delightful place, as all garrets should be.  Through the open window, by which Anne sat, blew the sweet, scented, sunwarm air of the August afternoon; outside, poplar boughs rustled and tossed in the wind; beyond them were the woods, where Lovers Lane wound its enchanted path, and the old apple orchard which still bore its rosy harvests munificently. (CH 1)

That September was a month of golden mists and purple hazes at Four Winds Harbor – a month of sun-steeped days and of nights that were swimming in moonlight, or pulsating with stars.  No storm marred it, no rough wind blew.  (CH 8 )

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These is my Words

These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901 – Arizona Territories by Nancy E. Turner

Historical Fiction, Published 1998

Read June-July 2008

Arizona Author Award, Willa Cather Literary Award Finalist

5/5

From the Cover:

A moving, exciting, and heartfelt American saga inspired by the author’s own family memoirs, these words belong to Sarah Prine, a woman of spirit and fire who forges a full and remarkable existence in a harsh, unfamiliar frontier. Scrupulously recording her steps down the path Providence has set her upon – from child to determined young adult to loving mother – she shares the turbulent events, both joyous and tragic, that molded her, and recalls the enduring love with cavalry officer Captain Jack Elliot that gave her strength and purpose.

Rich in authentic everyday details and alive with truly unforgettable characters, These Is My Words brilliantly brings a vanished world to breathtaking life again.

Review:

Although loosely based on the life of the author’s great-grandmother, These Is My Words is a fictional piece written completely from the diaries and letters of Sarah Agnes Prine, a young woman living in the frontiers of Arizona during the late 1800s.

Sarah is just 17 at the beginning of the novel in July of 1881 and has very poor writing skills. She is determined to chronicle her family’s trip across the southwest from Cottonwood Springs in New Mexico Territory to San Angelo, Texas through hostile Indian territory. As Sarah’s journey changes, her diary and writing style changes as well. She very quickly grows up during her travels across the American Southwest and her writing beautifully reflects this shift.

Over twenty years are chronicled by Sarah in this novel. Sarah experiences many ups and downs out on the Territory. She marries a man that does not love her, has a daughter, loses her husband, finally finds true love with a man she met at 17 along the trail, starts a new family and creates a prosperous life that she helped build. Sarah is a strong female living out in the wild west and she not only writes about her daily chores but also about the people living around her, people that both change and shape her life’s journey.

Recommended to anyone interested in reading about American pioneer life, traveling across America in a covered wagon, and settling down in an unknown frontier. I love epistolary novels and Sarah’s detailed journal entries are so fantastic that she and her entire family just jump off the page. I’m definitely looking forward to reading the next in this series, Sarah’s Quilt. Also recommended is One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd by Jim Fergus.

My biggest Buff Orpington rooster is on the small corral fence letting me know he is in charge, all puffed up and sassy. There is nothing more silly than a rooster taking over the world, but every day he thinks he can. I wonder if we are just a little part of the world, like that rooster, and that the real things go on around us while we strut in our own yards trying to take charge of things. -September 1886 (p. 279)

Check out my review at the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge Blog

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