Pilgrim Footprints on the Sands of Time (Book Review)

Title: Pilgrim Footprints on the Sands of Time
Author: Sylvia Nilsen

Publication Information: LightEye Editions, paperback, December 2013  

Genre: Historical Fiction

Setting: 12th century Europe

Plot:  William Beaumont, a fulling miller’s son, is an ambitious but unsophisticated young man, whose dream is to study medicine at a university.  When he catches sight of Alicia Bearham, niece to the nobility, he falls madly in love.  Surprisingly, Alicia returns his feelings, and even more improbably, her family – far from warning him to keep his distance – invites him to accompany them on a pilgrimage to Spain.  Her family is unfortunately connected to one of the men who murdered Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral, and must expiate its guilt (although Henry II, who instigated the crime – “Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?” - escapes significant punishment) in order to regain its reputation.  William and his companions experience many adventures and dangers in France and Spain before returning to England.

Audience: Fans of Judith Merkle Riley; armchair travelers; those planning or dreaming of a pilgrimage.

My Impressions:  I was attracted to this book by the cover, which has a Pre-Raphaelite look despite its 12th century setting, and the author’s obvious passion for pilgrimages.  I was reminded of a book called Mount Joy by Daisy Newman I read many years ago about a young woman who leaves a college like Radcliffe to go on pilgrimage (until I looked it up on Goodreads moments ago I didn’t recall she also traveled to Santiago de Compostela).  In fact, I was surprised to read that pilgrims still travel to Santiago de Compostela in huge numbers (250,000 in 2010); I had thought there were more obvious destinations such as Rome and the Holy Land.

I did feel strongly the manuscript needed an editor.  The anachronistic language was very jarring and could easily have been avoided (“Hey, Will, are you alright?” “Still fancy her, do you?” “Is this why you’ve been so insecure about us?” and so on.  The concept of a medical “internship” may have existed in the 12th century but not by that name, and at one point I swear the characters went to lunch!).  William was more interesting when passionate about healing than when infatuated with Alicia.  Their rhapsodic utterances to each other were repetitive.

However, Sylvia Nilsen is knowledgeable and enthusiastic about her subject.  She has been the editor for a travel guide publisher and her company, amaWalkersCamino, takes small groups of pilgrims on the Camino Frances pilgrimage route in Spain.  She also walked from Paris to Spain to do the research for this book.  For more information on Sylvia Nilsen, please visit her website.  You can also find her on Facebook.

Source:  I received this book from the HistoricalFiction Virtual Book Tours and urge you to stop by the tour to learn more about the author and see what other bloggers had to say about this book.  

Virtual Book Tour Schedule

Monday, February 24
Review at Flashlight Commentary
Spotlight & Giveaway at Historical Fiction Connection

Tuesday, February 25
Interview at Flashlight Commentary

Thursday, February 27
Spotlight & Giveaway at Kinx’s Book Nook

Friday, February 28
Guest Post at A Bookish Libraria

Monday, March 3
Review at A Chick Who Reads

Guest Post at Mina’s Bookshelf

Tuesday, March 4
Review at Historical Fiction Obsession
Review & Giveaway at Broken Teepee

Wednesday, March 5
Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book

Thursday, March 6
Interview at Oh, for the Hook of a Book

Friday, March 7
Review at Reading the Ages

Monday, March 10
Review & Guest Post at Just One More Chapter

Tuesday, March 11
Review at The Most Happy Reader

Wednesday, March 12
Spotlight & Giveaway at So Many Precious Books, So Little Time

Thursday, March 13
Review at Svetlana’s Reads and Views

Friday, March 14
Interview at Layered Pages

Monday, March 17
Review at Book Nerd

Tuesday, March 18
Interview & Giveaway at Let Them Read Books

Wednesday, March 19
Guest Post at Kelsey’s Book Corner

Thursday, March 20
Review at From L.A. to LA

Friday, March 21
Spotlight at Passages to the Past

Thanks for stopping by!

Stillwater (Book Review)

Title: Stillwater
Author: Nicole Helget

Publication Information: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, hardcover, 2014, ISBN 0547898207

Genre: Historical Fiction      

Setting: 19th century Minnesota

Plot: Clement and Angel are twins left at a small orphanage in the frontier town of Stillwater, Minnesota.   Angel, adopted by a wealthy local couple, is the victim of Munchausen by proxy syndrome, while her brother, Clement, left cruelly behind at the orphanage, is cared for by the headmistress nun and an elderly Indian, Big Waters.  Stillwater Home for Orphans is also an important stop on the Underground Railroad, and even as a child Clement becomes involved in the transport of this precious commodity – human lives.   Davis, the son of one unfortunate runaway slave, is taken in by the kindhearted women in Stillwater’s brothel, The Red Swan (their antics provide some humorous relief to the dark depiction of frontier life).  As the three children grow up, their lives remain connected although Angel’s marriage causes heartbreak to Davis, causing him to enlist with Clement in the Stillwater Guard of the First Minnesota (shades of Emily Webster’s grandfather!).  Depiction of life in the Union Army makes even the turmoil of Stillwater seem like a picnic.

Audience:  Fans of Cold Mountain/Charles Frazier; March/Geraldine Brooks; The Last Full Measure/The Life and Death of the First MinnesotaVolunteers/Richard Moe; Marie Blythe/Howard Frank Mosher.

My Impressions:  Helget is an accomplished writer, and this book caught my eye when I noticed that she had received her B.A. and M.F.A. from Mankato State (Mankato is also the real life home of MaudHart Lovelace, author of the beloved Betsy-Tacy books).  However, I found the book both readable and very dark, full of lonely and mistreated characters with nothing to look forward to.  At times, that prevented me from enjoying her prose as much as I had hoped. In addition, the author’s back and forth from present day to flashback was confusing.  I was intrigued by the background concerning Minnesota moving from being a territory to a state, a part of Minnesota’s history with which I am unfamiliar.  

Source: Thank you to the Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours which provided me with this book in return for an honest review.  I urge you to stop by the tour to learn more about the author and see what various bloggers had to say about this book:   

Virtual Book Tour Schedule

Monday, February 24
Spotlight & Giveaway at Passages to the Past
Guest Post & Giveaway at La Vanity Victorienne

Tuesday, February 25
Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book

Wednesday, February 26
Interview at Oh, for the Hook of a Book

Thursday, February 27
Review at A Chick Who Reads
Guest Post & Giveaway at Historical Fiction Connection

Friday, February 28
Review at Sharon’s Garden of Book Reviews

Monday, March 3
Review at Lost in Books

Tuesday, March 4
Review at Confessions of a Book Hoarder

For one lucky reader, I have a book to give away (US/Canada only) – please post a message if you are interested, and I will pick a winner later in March.

Author: Nicole Helget shares her thoughts on writing and her influences on  her blog. You can also follow her on Twitter.

Good Field, No Hit - Duane Decker's Beloved Blue Sox (Book Review)

As Michelle Nolan comments in Ball Tales, Duane Decker's "Blue Sox stories, originally published from 1947 to 1964 and reprinted into the early 1970s, are among the most cherished and best remembered sports books of the baby boom generation."  The books follow the fortunes of thirteen baseball players trying to make their major league fortunes through various challenges.  I found them at the John Ward School library, introduced them to my brother, and more recently shared them with my nephews.  I was delighted to hear that my eldest nephew Christopher had submitted a book report on the first book in the Blue Sox series - which I thought you would enjoy:

Good Field, No Hit

Have you ever played baseball? Have you ever played some heads up hustling baseball? Johnny Madigan has played in the bush leagues for six years. Six loooong years. Sportswriters everywhere have tagged him, Good Field, No Hit, for the way he guards third base, but his complete and utter lack of power at the plate. Johnny’s kid brother, Buzz, Is always convinced that someday Johnny will make it to the big leagues. Johnny is not so sure. This is why when the Blue Sox pick him up Johnny, it is like a dream come true. 

The Blue Sox are in desperate need of a third baseman, as their other one is washed up and over the hill. On the hard-hitting Blue Sox however, sometimes being a good fielder is not nearly enough. Especially when competing with a 6”4”, 250 pound, maniac named Mike Marnie, who  has got more power than anyone in the majors. This same monster is only half as good with his defence at third, but the longball is all that matters to Jug Slavin, coach of the Blue Sox. It looks like Johnny is going down to the Bluefield Clippers, a Blue Sox farm team in the middle of nowhere, for sure. Ol’ Jughead was a power hitting shortstop when he played in the league himself. This is probably why he had eyes for the talent of Mike Marnie of Johnny Madigan. As for Marnie he is pretty sure of himself. He even goes out of his way to be a jerk to Johnny because, “No team could hold both players. There was simply too\ much bad blood between them. The club would split up into sympathetic fractions, and no coach could allow that. Marnie had kept it that way since spring training. It was a good move from his side of the fence, even if it was a dirty pool.”

Just before what Johnny believes is his last game in the big leagues, Buzz stops him at the gate to the field and tells him that he has a hunch, a certain hunch, that today was the day that Johnny will finally make it into the lineup. At the time Johnny just laughs. He isn’t laughing when Mike sprains his ankle and Johnny comes into his first ever MLB game. Johnny is the starting third baseman until Mike gets healthy again, but the question is, can Johnny prove once and for all that he, not Mike, has what it takes to be a starting third baseman in the MLB. All the signs point to yes. Until one day, out of the blue, Johnny is affected by the common disease, rabbit earitus. Or in better known terms, a heckler. Hecklers are a breed of human who take great joy in knocking certain athletes off their game. Will Johnny be able to handle the pressure?  

This story is a classic example of the scrappy little guy against the big mean, knuckleheaded guy with just the right amount of perseverance, and the importance of following your dream.

I can definitely relate to Johnny as I play third base on my little league team to. I know from experience that a team player in the dugout, is ten times better than a good player on the field. A team player unifies a team. A self-first player breaks one up. 

This compulsive, fast paced, and explosive, baseball themed book by Duane Decker is one of the greatest books I have ever read. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes Matt Christopher books. Sadly it is extremely rare, and the only copies on Amazon are $389.99. One of the best books in Duane Decker’s Blue Sox series, this book will delight readers of all ages.  

Thank you for being a guest blogger, Christopher!

Dominion by C. J. Sansom (Book Review)

Title: Dominion   
Author: C. J. Sansom

Publication Information: Hardcover, Mulholland Books (Hachette), February 2014

Genre: Historical Fiction   ISBN: 0316254916

Plot: Imagine if England had surrendered to Hitler.  In Sansom’s dark and convincing alternate history, it is 1952 and Germany is ruling England while Winston Churchill is hiding out from the authorities, encouraging a British Resistance. Newly recruited to the cause is David Fitzgerald, who has been surreptitiously passing along information obtained from his government job.  He kept his involvement from his wife whose family are ardent pacifists but that has created distance in his marriage, already strained by the death of their child.  When David’s Oxford friend Frank is committed to an asylum, both the Americans and Germans learn that Frank holds the key to a secret that could result in devastation to the whole world.  Only David can be trusted to rescue Frank, and as his cover is blown, he and his cohorts desperately try to escape with German agents in hot pursuit.

You can see the book trailer here, which is quite atmospheric.

Audience: Fans of Robert Harris’ Enigma, Alan Furst, and my old favorite, Anthony Price. Sansom is best known for his historical mysteries about Matthew Shardlake (the first of which I gave my mother for Christmas two years ago) but no previous knowledge of his work is needed to enjoy this book, one of just two standalones he has written.  You can buy the book here:     

Alibris
Amazon (Hardcover)
Amazon (Kindle)
Barnes & Noble
Book Depository
Bookish.com

What I liked:  This is a brilliantly depicted vision of what could have been, and even the minor characters are fully drawn and believable, particularly the secretary whose interest in David causes her downfall.  It’s a big, thick book (my favorite kind) and hard to put down.  It was the perfect read for a cold winter night (the last alternative history I liked this much was Black Hearts in Battersea).  It's a dark and deliberate journey to another world.

What I disliked:  I sympathized with the main character, David, but couldn’t really like him.  However, I forgot my feelings for him as I was drawn into the deadly chase, which included memorable scenes set in a pervasive, ominous London fog.  It takes a few minutes to acclimate oneself to lesser known historical characters, but then I sat back and enjoyed the blend of real and imaginary.  

Source: I received this book from the Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours and urge you to stop by the tour to learn more about the author and various readers' interpretations of this book.   For one lucky person, I have a hardcover copy to give away (US/Canada only) – please leave a comment if you are interested, and I will pick a winner.

What to Read in a Blizzard or During the Long Winter

My part of Boston got about ten inches of snow yesterday so it's the perfect time to recommend some winter favorites!  These are books that would make you feel the cold even if it were a warm July day.

Children's:

Little Bear by Else Holmelund Minarik (illustrated by Maurice Sendak) - This is one of the first books I remember:  It is cold.  See the snow. See the snow come down.  Little Bear said, "Mother Bear, I am cold. See the snow.  I want something to put on."

Snowbound with Betsy by Carolyn Haywood - Several years before I encountered Betsy Ray, I had met this other Betsy, an outgoing girl with pigtails and (later in the series) a little sister named Star.  I read every book by Haywood several times and even named my Teddy Bear after a minor character.  In this book, a storm cancels school the week before Christmas and some travelers are stranded at Betsy's home.   

Winter Cottage by Carol Ryrie Brink - A father and two daughters, down on their luck, appropriate a Wisconsin summer cottage when their car breaks down.  The father tries to repair their fortunes by entering contests while teenage Minty yearns for a permanent home. 

Winter Holiday by Arthur Ransome - Perhaps my favorite of the Swallows & Amazons books.  No camping, the Amazons have the mumps so are snowbound, but that doesn't mean there are no adventures as snow and ice abound.  Dick and Dorothea are introduced as characters and earn their place in the group.  

The Snow Ghosts aka The Snow Storm by Beryl Netherclift - A snowstorm paperweight takes three children visiting their aunt back in time to help save their ancestral home, Farthingales, from foreclosure.

The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder - No list of cold-themed books is complete without this one but you already know that, especially if you are participating in a group read with the Maud list!  This was already a favorite of mine in 4th grade when we were given the assignment of mocking up a newspaper based on a book.   Somewhere, I am sure I have some stapled pages with a headline, "Wilder and Garland Deliver Wheat - Save Town!"

YA:

And Both Were Young by Madeleine L'Engle - My favorite book by this beloved author is set in Switzerland.  Lonely, artistic Flip hates being separated from her father but learning how to ski and making friends with mysterious Paul help her endure the mean girls at her boarding school.  I read this for the first time the week my sister Andrea was born, one cold December (mumble) years ago.

Snowfall by K. M. Peyton - A lesser known historical YA by this author.  When Charlotte's grandfather tries to arrange a marriage for her, she escapes by going mountain climbing in Switzerland with her brother and his friends.  Peyton's depiction of the snow and Alps is as mesmerizing as Charlotte's coming of age.

Winter Shadows by Margaret Buffie - A time slip set in a Western Canada that is so cold you will shiver while reading it.   Two young women, one in 1856 and one in the present, communicate through a diary and an old brooch, as they try to deal with difficult family situations.  My review is here.

Adult:

The Colours of Snow by Kate Fenton - This is chick lit about a London artist who rents a cottage in the depths of winter in North Yorkshire so she can paint uninterrupted.  Naturally, there is a male interruption.  There is lots of snow but she mostly stays inside and eats chocolate.

In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming - This is the first in an award-winning mystery series set in upstate New York and it radiates cold!  Claire Fergusson is an Army chopper-pilot turned minister who encounters mysteries every time she turns around.  I am sure I have introduced dozens of people to this series, which I highly recommend.

On My TBR:

In Falling Snow by Mary-Rose MacColl - I don't remember who recommended this to me but historical fiction about nurses and  lost love and secrets from WWII is right up my alley.  It has been on my windowsill for a couple weeks waiting for the right moment.

The Winter Siege by D. W. Bradbridge - I read about this book on the Historical Fiction BookTour:

1643. As winter closes in around the town of Nantwich, the civil war that rages across the country, threatening to tear England apart, is yet to reach the town’s gates. But while the residents wait, eyeing the outside world with unease, they face a deadly threat from within: Townspeople have started dying – murdered – the red sashes of the royalists left on the bodies marking them as traitors to the parliamentary cause. It falls to Constable Daniel Cheswis to contain the bloodshed, but with few clues and the constant distraction of war, can he protect the people of Nantwich?

What are your favorites?

Sailing Out of Darkness (Book Review)

Title: Sailing Out of Darkness
Author: Normandie Fischer

Publication Information: Whitefire Publishing, trade paperback, 2013 

Genre: Inspirational Fiction 

Plot:  Samantha, in her mid 40s, is recently divorced from a cheating ex and rebounded into an affair with a childhood friend, Jack, whose live-in girlfriend objected violently.   Ashamed of her lack of control and poor choices, Samantha leaves her home, boat, and beau to visit Italy where her daughter is studying in Florence. Tootie, managing Sam’s business back in Maryland, suggests Sam rendezvous with her uncle Teo, a famous mystery writer living in seclusion in Italy.   No one knows that Teo’s writer’s block ended when he started having mysterious visions of Sam – before he even knew who she was.  When they meet in real life, there is an instant bond: they have both suffered in the past and yearn for happiness, but Sam, in particular, acts and believes she is unworthy of redemption.   Can their unexpected friendship bring them both solace or will Sam’s anguish prevent any future happiness?

What I liked:  Oh, the weather outside in Boston is frightful but reading about gondola rides in Venice is delightful!   I enjoyed the descriptions of living on the water in a charming small town on the Eastern Shore of Maryland (the second small Maryland town I have read about recently) and the heroine’s travels through Italy (including the mandatory visit to Florian’s which I have made myself).  I would have liked more descriptions of the two coffee shops Sam owned than endless pages about Jack’s psychotic girlfriend India.

What I disliked: The heroine is infuriatingly sorry for herself and inflicts her misery on everyone around her.  Having been hurt twice, she is unwilling to get involved romantically, which is understandable, but there is no reason to be rude to someone who befriended her when she was alone and miserable.  It wasn't completely convincing that Teo would fall for this conflicted, self-absorbed and tormented woman.

Observation:  These days, in traditional women's fiction or chick lit, the purpose of the best friend is to sympathize with the heroine and urge her to find a new man and have a fling.  In Christian fiction, the best friend is sympathetic but more bracing: "It's no good holding all this blame, Sam.  You need to let go.... You know perfectly well where you're supposed to take guilt and shame.  Better get on those knees of yours and work up some calluses, girl, or this is going to kill you, hear?...Seems to me, you get yourself right with God, then you look things square in the face..." Sam's friend Rhea admonishes.    

I suspect both approaches have their merits but must confess the former is more entertaining to this reader.

Source: Thank you to Trish and TLC Book Tours for including me in Normandie Fischer's tour.  I urge you to sample both Ms. Fischer’s recent books by stopping by one of the blogs below.   She is a lifelong sailor, which is reflected in her fiction, and also has a book out called Becalmed. You can visit her on Facebook or Twitter.   I have a copy of Sailing out of Darkness to give away (US only) – please leave me a message if you are interested, and I will pick a winner.

Normandie’s Tour Stops

Wednesday, January 22nd: Spiced Latte Reads – Sailing Out of Darkness

Thursday, January 23rd: The Most Happy Reader – Sailing Out of Darkness

Friday, January 24th: The Book Barn – Sailing Out of Darkness

Monday, January 27th: Obsessed Italian Brat – Sailing Out of Darkness

Wednesday, January 29th: Books and Bindings – Becalmed

Monday, February 3rd: Time 2 Read – Becalmed

Tuesday, February 4th: Staircase Wit – Sailing Out of Darkness

Wednesday, February 5th: Sammy the Bookworm – Sailing Out of Darkness

Thursday, February 6th: Good Girl Gone Redneck - Sailing Out of Darkness

Monday, February 10th: Shelf Pleasure (guest post)

Tuesday, February 11th: Cerebral Girl in a Redneck World – Becalmed

Wednesday, February 12th: The Most Happy Reader – Becalmed

Monday, February 17th: Patricia’s Wisdom – Becalmed

Wednesday, February 19th: Cruising Susan Reviews – Sailing Out of Darkness

Thursday, February 20th: Obsessed Italian Brat – Becalmed

Monday, February 24th: Every Free Chance Book Reviews – Sailing Out of Darkness

At the River's Edge: Chesapeake Diaries #7 (Book Review)

Title: At the River’s Edge:Chesapeake Diaries #7
Author: Mariah Stewart

Publication Information: Ballantine paperback, February 2014

Genre: Contemporary Romance 

Plot: Bestselling author Stewart’s Chesapeake Diaries series is set in the small Maryland town of St. Dennis.  In this installment, Sophie Enright turns her back on a successful career as a prosecutor when she finds her lawyer boyfriend cheating on her.  She leaves town to visit her brother, Jesse, who moved to St. Dennis and fell in love with Brooke Burke (main characters of book 4), and she decides to stay while figuring out a way to open the restaurant she has always dreamed about.  Conveniently, she finds a way to get over her not-so-broken heart when she meets Brooke’s former brother-in-law, a landscape gardener who moved to St. Dennis to be near his nephew.  Naturally, the course of true love never does run smooth…

Here is a link to an excerpt from Chapter 1.

What I liked: Every lawyer flirts with the idea of walking away from it all (don't tell my boss), so it is always entertaining to read about someone who does so.   Perhaps it was a little too convenient the way all Sophie’s plans fell into place so quickly – financing, property, renovations – but I always enjoy descriptions of food and décor.  One of the appealing aspects of this series is that characters from the other St. Dennis books appear throughout, including my favorite, Steffie, who runs the local ice cream shoppe extraordinaire, One Scoop or Two (who features in book 3).

The Chesapeake Diaries are a slow-paced but pleasant romantic series with wide appeal.   The books are suitable for readers who don’t care for gratuitous sex or bad language and appealing to those who enjoy quirky characters and a hint of magic, not to mention the charm of a small town.  The “diaries” in the subtitle are kept by Grace Sinclair, who runs a beautiful inn at Sinclair’s Point as well as the local newspaper (which provides a good excuse for her avid interest in everything that goes on in town).  Grace yearns for her son to return home and it looks like that will take place in book 8.  These books can be read independently but you’ll be so curious about how all the couples wound up together you’ll have to go back and read them all in order sooner or later! 

What I disliked:  Sophie decides to open a restaurant that will serve lunch and early breakfast for fishermen who shop at the nearby bait store at 5 am, then plans to work at the family law firm in the afternoon.  I am afraid she will be far too tired in the afternoon to provide her best legal work, and her brother agrees with me.  It's hard enough with a good night's sleep!

Source: I received this book from TLC Book Tours in return for a candid review.   I  urge you to visit other stops on the tour listed below to get different perspectives on this entertaining series.  I have a copy to give away (U.S. only) - if you are interested, please leave me a message so I can pick a winner.

Mariah Stewart's Tour Stops:

Monday, January 27th:  Literally Jen

Tuesday, January 28th:  Romancing the Book

Tuesday, January 28th:  Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers

Tuesday, January 29th:  Mom in Love with Fiction

Friday, January 31st:  Gidget’s Bookworms

Monday, February 3rd:  Booked on a Feeling

Monday, February 3rd:  Svetlana’s Reads and Views

Tuesday, February 4th:  Reviews from the Heart

Wednesday, February 5th:  Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

Thursday, February 6th:  Sara’s Organized Chaos

Friday, February 7th:  Joyfully Retired

Friday, February 7th:  From L.A. to LA

Monday, February 10th:  Bibliotica

Tuesday, February 11th:  Book Mama Blog

Wednesday, February 12th:  A Chick Who Reads.

Thursday, February 13th:  Lesa’s Book Critiques

Friday, February 14th:  Sharon’s Garden of Book Reviews

Monday, February 17th:  From the TBR Pile

Tuesday, February 18th:  Novel Reaction