For Valentine's Day, I thought I’d look at the last ten books I read with 💙 in the title.
You're wrong if you think they're all romances:
Hearts in Trim by Lavinia R. Davis (1954) – YA
Jointly inheriting a book collection leads to romance between Serena “Squeak” Bruce and her high school classmate Cliff. I have to say this is one of my favorite covers and it does make you immediately want to read the book. Thank you to Phair who sent me this book from her own collection when I mentioned my mother enjoyed Davis growing up. But why did those 50s heroines have such dreadful nicknames? Beany Malone, Dinny Gordon, Twink Elliott, and more . . .
Heartbreak Street by Dorothy Gilman Butters (1958) - YA
Dorothy Gilman is better known for her delightful Mrs. Pollifax mysteries than for her YA fiction, which is uniformly good. This is about a girl who yearns for college so she can get out of the bad neighborhood her family lives in but must settle for a secretarial job at a manufacturing company. Luckily, she makes friends who help her and her brothers overcome some of their challenges. I came so close to meeting Dorothy Gilman once! We were at the same party at the beloved Black Orchid bookstore in New York but I didn't know who she was until after she had departed. She definitely looked like a kindred spirit.
About That Kiss: Heartbreaker Bay #5 by Jill Shalvis (2018) – Contemporary Romance
Part of a series is set in San Francisco, where all the characters live or work in one particular old, renovated building built around a courtyard and a 150-year-old fountain.
Patriot Hearts by Barbara Hambly (2008) – History
This is the story of four women important to the early history of America: Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, and Dolley Madison, wives to three presidents, and Sally Hemings, the slave who bore Thomas Jefferson several children. My review.
This is the story of four women important to the early history of America: Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, and Dolley Madison, wives to three presidents, and Sally Hemings, the slave who bore Thomas Jefferson several children. My review.
The Queen of Hearts by Kimmery Martin (2018) - Fiction
A secret from the past comes between best friends who are doctors in Charlotte.
A Matter of Heart by Amy Fellner Dominy (2015) - YA
This was an interesting but not compelling YA about a competitive swimmer who learns she has a heart condition and has to learn who she is without sports.
The Girl with a Clock for a Heart by Peter Swanson (2014) - Suspense
George’s college girlfriend committed suicide – unless she didn’t. When she reappears after 20 years, she plunges George into chaos and danger. My review.
Hearts and Minds by Rosy Thornton (2008) - Fiction
A subtle story set at a women’s college in Cambridge about the new male head and the female senior tutor who initially opposes his appointment.
Home is Where the Heart Is by Joan Jonker (1993) - Fiction
Set in Liverpool, this is one of those British sagas about a working-class family with a heart of gold.
Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culbertson (2011) - YA
This was a very disappointing book with a good premise. Teen with a broken heart whose friend gives her an assignment of doing one uncharacteristic thing every day to cure herself, sort of like two books I like: Mystery on the Isle of Skye (1955) and 13 Little Blue Envelopes (2005). However, the main character’s self-absorption and nonstop whining spoiled the story. No one should let a broken heart interfere with a trip to Italy!
A secret from the past comes between best friends who are doctors in Charlotte.
This was an interesting but not compelling YA about a competitive swimmer who learns she has a heart condition and has to learn who she is without sports.
The Girl with a Clock for a Heart by Peter Swanson (2014) - Suspense
George’s college girlfriend committed suicide – unless she didn’t. When she reappears after 20 years, she plunges George into chaos and danger. My review.
Hearts and Minds by Rosy Thornton (2008) - Fiction
A subtle story set at a women’s college in Cambridge about the new male head and the female senior tutor who initially opposes his appointment.
Home is Where the Heart Is by Joan Jonker (1993) - Fiction
Set in Liverpool, this is one of those British sagas about a working-class family with a heart of gold.
Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culbertson (2011) - YA
This was a very disappointing book with a good premise. Teen with a broken heart whose friend gives her an assignment of doing one uncharacteristic thing every day to cure herself, sort of like two books I like: Mystery on the Isle of Skye (1955) and 13 Little Blue Envelopes (2005). However, the main character’s self-absorption and nonstop whining spoiled the story. No one should let a broken heart interfere with a trip to Italy!
Happy Valentine's Day!
5 comments:
What a fun post for Valentines' Day! It's quite an eclectic list of books. :D
Have you read all of the Mrs. Polifax books? I read the first one, the only book I've ever come across set in Albania! LOL! I enjoyed it very much and must get around to more. I've also read several by Rosy Thornton but not that one as far as I remember. Fun post.
What a great idea to post for Valentine's Day! So enjoyed reading it. I absolutely adore Mrs Pollifax. She is such a wonderful character, and her adventures are not "cutesy" at all. Serious stuff happens in the books.
What a great idea. You are absolutely right. The cover of Hearts in Trim is fabulous! I would pick it up and start reading in a heartbeat.
I read your review of Girl with a Clock for a Heart. Pity it didn't turn out to be that great, the title and the premise had seemed pretty neat. And thanks for the interesting tidbit about Dorothy Gilman -- I have her Thale's Folly on my TBR and I mean to try it for the Cloak & Dagger reading challenge.
~ Lex (lexlingua.co)
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