Paris

Paris is a graphic novel about a penniless American artist, Juliet, who travels from America to Paris to study painting. To make ends meet, Juliet paints portraits of wealthy debutantes. One of her subjects is Deborah, a young English woman suffocated by an overbearing aunt and the narrow expectations for her life by her aristocrat family. Juliet is equally as confined by the rigid academic structure of her art education and finds an unlikely kindred spirit in Deborah. Both woman love art and it brings them together.

While the book cover is in color, the entire novel was drawn in black and white. The style is French and all of the drawings are intricate, full page drawings. If you are familiar with the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, then you will understand what the pages look like. This style is not one I particular like but I must admit it fits the story and there are many comic lovers out there who are attracted to this style. I was disappointed that there was no color inside the pages. I felt there was a promise of color inside because the book cover is so colorful.

Regarding the story, it was pretty predictable.  There were no surprises or drama either. The author, Andi Watson, used alot of French dialogue, some of which I could understand due to my high school French classes. There was much that I did not understand but since there wasn't much of a plot, it didn't really detract from the comic. In general, I was disappointed that there wasn't more to the story.

2 out of 5 stars.

Vanish in Plain Sight

Vanish in Plain Sight is the second book in the Brotherhood of the Raven trilogy. The trilogy is an Amish suspense series. Most of the main characters in Vanish are different from those in Murder in Plain Sight, the first book in the trilogy. 

The publisher's summary:  

Since she was a little girl, Marisa Angelo has been haunted by the image of her mother walking away, suitcase in hand, to return to her Amish roots. Marisa and her "Englischer" father never saw or heard from her again. Now Marisa has received a shocking call from police. Her mother's bloodstained suitcase was found hidden inside the wall of a Pennsylvania Dutch farmhouse. Desperate for answers, Marisa heads to Lancaster County. But no one—not the police or Marisa's tight-lipped Amish relatives—can explain what happened to her mother. Only one man is as determined as Marisa to unravel the mystery—Link Morgan, the handsome ex-military loner who found the suitcase in the house he inherited from his uncle. Now both Link's and Marisa's family members are implicated in the decades-old disappearance. The secret lies somewhere in the quaint Amish settlement. But someone will do anything to ensure the truth remains hidden forever. 

 I did not like the novel much. I could not connect with any of the characters, even those I liked from the first book in the series. There was no sense of drama of any kind nor any suspense which is strange as the series is advertised as Amish suspense. At one point in Marisa's investigation she was told her next step was to speak with the Amish Bishop. It took her 40 pages to do this and nothing happened in those 40 pages.

The mystery of the disappearance of Marisa's mother was compelling and I wanted to know what happened to her. The pages devoted to the disappearance were interesting. However, I skipped pages to reach the end of the story. It was unremarkable.

Yeah, I had to tell the truth. 1 out of 5 stars.

The Godmother's Secret

The Godmother's Secret is about Elysabeth Scropes who births Elizabeth Woodville's first son and English heir Prince Edward. I have been captivated by Elizabeth Woodville's story since watching the The White Queen TV series and the subsequent The White Princess series about her daughter. This book is another fantastic retelling of a part of Woodville's life but focuses more on her two sons, heir Ned and Dickon, the princes in the tower.

The publisher's summary:

May 1483: The Tower of London. When King Edward IV dies and Lady Elysabeth Scrope delivers her young godson, Edward V, into the Tower of London to prepare for his coronation, she is engulfed in political turmoil. Within months, the prince and his brother have disappeared, Richard III is declared king, and Elysabeth’s sister Margaret Beaufort conspires with her son Henry Tudor to invade England and claim the throne.

Desperate to protect her godson, Elysabeth battles the intrigue, betrayal and power of the last medieval court, defying her Yorkist husband and her Lancastrian sister under her godmother’s sacred oath to keep Prince Edward safe. Bound by blood and rent by honour, Elysabeth is torn between the crown and her family, knowing that if her loyalty is questioned, she is in peril of losing everything—including her life.

Were the princes murdered by their uncle, Richard III? Did Margaret Beaufort mastermind their disappearance to usher in the Tudor dynasty? Or did the young boys vanish for their own safety? Of anyone at the royal court, Elysabeth has the most to lose–and the most to gain–by keeping secret the fate of the Princes in the Tower. 

I relished reading this story. I knew that I would love it so I read slowly to savor each paragraph. There was alot of plot movement in each paragraph which made the book a fast read. The Afterward explains how the author decided to write about these characters. Our Elysabeth Scope is one of the author's ancestors.  Elysabeth's maiden name was St. John and our author performed extensive research not only genealogical but also historical about her ancestors. She gives the reader an alternative interpretation as to what happened to those two princes. No one really knows what happened to them so the ideas presented in the novel are plausible.

Because of her family connection to the characters, Elizabeth St. John presented them in a personal way. Family drama is exposed up front and close, especially with Elysabeth Scope's half-sister Margaret Beaufort. If you know Margaret's history, you know that she lived every day maneuvering around the changing politics of her day so that she and her son, Henry Tudor, come out on top. I see this novel not as historical fiction, which it is, but more so with family drama as the genre. I don't know if family drama can be a genre but the novel shows us one big dysfunctional family where every family member has their own desires and will manipulate every other family member for supremacy. 

So what is the godmother's secret?  Read the book and find out.  5 out of 5 stars.

Book of the Month: January

I read alot of books this month thanks to a staycation so I had quite a few books to consider for my best of the month. Keeper of the Queen's Jewels is an obvious choice because its one of the only two books I rated 5 out of 5 stars. Keeper is Adrienne Dillard's most recent novel, which was published in 2022. It is about Jane Seymour and her lady in waiting Margery Horsman. Each chapter alternates between the points of view of Jane and Margery. Margery was one of the ladies in waiting for Anne Boleyn who stayed on at Henry VIII's behest after Anne's beheading. For some reason he kept on all of Anne's attendants. At first Margery handled the wardrobe but later became in charge of the jewelry. She was adept at picking out the right jewels for the right gown. She also had her own drama to deal with, not just Jane's.

I learned alot about Jane's political ability. Yes, she did have some ability. I was not aware that she was terrified of ending up like her predecessor but I probably should have known that she would be afraid. Any woman would mistrust Henry VIII considering how he disposed of two prior wives. The court attendants were likewise terrified of Henry, including Margery. Everyone tiptoed around him so as not to set off his temper.

I loved reading about the dresses that the ladies wore, and the jewels of course, as well as descriptions of the food offered at these lavish Tudor feasts. Keeper is a feast for the eyes.

Book Cover of the Month: January

None of the covers of the books that I read this month were enticing. However, if I had to pick just one as my favorite is would have to be Sunburn by Andi Watson. Sunburn is a full length graphic novel about a girl who travels to Greece one summer to visit a family friend. The sunny colors of Greece, blue and white, on the cover caught my attention and was the reason I was interested in getting the novel. 

Illustrator Simon Gane did the artwork for the book. He is a British artist from Bath who works for Vertigo. Vertigo is an imprint of DC Comics that caters to mature audiences but also more sophisticated cartoonists. Gane is also a magazine and children's book illustrator. He sells original artworks from his Instagram page.

The Papal Assassin

The Papal Assassin is the first book in S. J. Martin's Papal Assassin Series. She previously published five book in her Breton Horse Warrior Series. The second book in the new series, The Papal Assassin's Wife, was published last month on December 5, 2022. I am looking forward to reading it because the Papal Assassin was wonderful.

The publisher's summary:

It is 1088, King William the Conqueror is dead, and his two eldest sons are about to go to war for the throne of England. It is a turbulent time in Europe, and Chatillon, at the heart of it all, must decide which of William's sons the Pope should support. Should it be the eldest, Robert Curthose, Duke of Normandy or William Rufus, who has already crowned himself King of England?

Piers De Chatillon, the tall, handsome master swordsman, powerful Papal envoy and assassin, has finally married the beautiful young Isabella Embriaco. He intends to turn her into a top political courtesan, assassin and spy. She will be trained to bring him valuable information by moving through the noble beds of Europe and removing those men who cause him problems. His dangerous lifestyle will repeatedly put her life at risk as she becomes a pawn in a deadly game.

Chatillon, involved in the imminent war between the two brothers, disregards the warnings of his friends to take care. They know a brutal Saracen pirate is out for revenge and will try to kill Chatillon and his new wife. Chatillon sends Isabella to Ghent on her first mission to kill an old enemy of his, not realising she is now carrying his child. Meanwhile, the Saracen assassins follow close behind her, and Chatillon is over a hundred leagues away in Normandy, too far away to save her.

This was a great read. From the first pages to the ending I was unable to put the book down. The Eleventh Century is a favorite period of mine so it made this fast paced historical mystery extra special. I heard that some of the characters from the Breton Horse Warriors Series are included in this new series. I will have to read at least one of those novels to see if I would like the series.

Piers is the consummate politician. Having worked in government for most of my life, I appreciate seeing someone with the skillset to get things done. He has a dark side but so do our current crop of leaders and if I'm honest, every great leader in history has had this too. Yes, I studied political science. I was amazed at Piers' successes and was rooting for him all along. He is a fascinating character and with the comeuppance he received from an enemy toward the end, I can see him having a soft side in future novels.

This is a lovely start to a new series. I am excited about it's future. 

Can't Wait Wednesday #17

The Can't Wait Wednesday meme has been hosted by the Wishful Endings blog for awhile. Here, we discuss the books that we haven't read yet. 

I have tried to purchase Christine DeMelo's newest book The Apprentice. It was published two months ago but my Kindle purchase will not go through. DeMelo writes historical fiction stories set in Italy during the Renaissance and I have loved every one of her previous 13 novels. All of them have been standalones as is The Apprentice. This novel is a tale of forbidden love and danger that revolves around historical facts from 1600 Naples, Italy. A man named Carlo convinces Florentine Maestro Giovanni Balducci that he should be hired as an apprentice. The two travel south to complete important commissions such as the adornment of the San Gaudioso catacombs. Here, Carlo meets and falls in love with a local monk. Later he meets a famous nun, Sister Giulia de Marco and her confessor, Father Aniello Arcieri, while restoring an altarpiece in a church. Sister Giulia and Father Arcieri draw Carlo into their Confraternity of Carnal Charity, whose wealthy noble acolytes believe divine glory can be achieved through sexual ecstasy. Unable to continue living a lie, Carlo confesses his secret to Sister Giulia and she assigns him a prominent role within the cult. The problem? Carlo captures the attention of the Holy Inquisition.

So, what's up Amazon? Why can't I buy my book?

Zemindar

Zemindar was published in 1981. I selected it because I needed a book title beginning with Z for the Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge. It is an epic story (1,031 pages) of a family that moves from England to India just before the Indian Mutiny. The book won the Georgette Hayer Historical Novel Prize that same year. The main character is Englishwoman Laura Hewitt. Laura accompanies her cousin Emily and Emily's husband Charles to Calcutta which is a wedding trip, not honeymoon, where Laura is a paid lady's companion for her cousin. She is also in love with Charles. After several months the group meets Charles' half-brother Oliver Erskine who is the zemindar, or hereditary ruler, of a vast estate called Hassanganj. Charles had never met Oliver before but receives an invitation to visit Hassanganj. While they are there, Emily gives birth and the Sepoy rebellion and siege of Lucknow occurs, known in history as the Mutiny, the Sepoy Rebellion and The First War for Independence. Zemindar has been republished several times in the past forty years. Each time the font gets bigger and the book has grown from its original 799 pages to the current 1031 pages. I am glad for the font size and cannot imagine how hard it would be been to read this after its initial publication. 

I finished the book in just 3 days. The story moved along quickly but there was a lull in the action when the characters were escaping from Hassanganj, which was about 200 pages long. Other than that, Zemindar was a captivating read. The characters were well developed and all of them were kindhearted to each other. They had opposite personalities which gave the novel some flavor. Laura is the main character and her point of view dominates. She is the character who grew the most during her nine months in India. Laura had an independent mind before the trip. Her cousin Emily and husband Charles were stuck in the rigid mindset of the British upper classes and could not adjust to India's culture. Oliver was the villain of the story but he wasn't really a villain. His reputation was rough, having had many sexual affairs with both British and Indian women. Even though he was born into a wealthy British family, he was raised in India and spent his entire life there. He understood the importance of independence to the Indians as well as their customs. Oliver was respected by them for accommodating their religious traditions but also by living their lifestyle. The reader learns about their side of the story on independence from Oliver's dialogue. The reader also learns about the history of the Mutiny, although it is from the point of view of the British. Still, there are aspects of what happened that are true to history. 

The descriptions of India were on point. It is an exotic destination for me and I never tire reading about it. In every book set in India that I have read, the British characters are incredibly bored. None of them have much to do and partying becomes a must. Zemindar shows this the best, perhaps because of the page count. The oppressive heat in India is best described here also. The author has the characters removing their excessive clothing at certain times of the day, napping during the warmest part of the day and sipping water at the right times in order to stay healthy. 

I loved Zemindar and am rating it 4 out of 5 stars. It lost one star for the dull escape they made from Hassanganj.

The Magdalene Deception

The Magdalene Deception is the first book in a trilogy called The Magdalene Chronicles. It is Gary McAvoy's debut novel.  McAvoy has published 6 books to date but recommends that readers begin with this book before reading any of the later novels including his Vatican Secrets Archives series. I have already read three books in the Vatican Secret Archives Series, but I decided to take McAvoy's advice and go back to the beginning. 

The publisher's summary:

For two thousand years, believers have relied on Christ's Resurrection as the bedrock of Christian faith. But what if the Vatican had been blackmailed into suppressing a first century manuscript revealing a different story about what happened after Christ's death-and that long-hidden document suddenly reappears? Michael Dominic, a young Jesuit priest expert in the study of ancient writings, is assigned to the Vatican as an archivist in the Church's legendary Secret Archives. Hana Sinclair, a reporter for a Paris newspaper whose privileged family owns a prominent Swiss bank, is chasing a story about Jewis gold stolen by the Nazis during WWII - millions of dollars in bullion that ended up in the vaults of the Vatican Bank. When Dominic discovers a long hidden papyrus written by Mary Magdalene -one- that threatens the very foundations of Christianity - he and Hana, aided by the brave Swiss Guards, try to prevent sinister forces from obtaining the manuscript, among them the feared Ustasha underground fascist movement, Interpol, and shadowy figures at the highest levels of the Vatican itself. Based on illuminating historical facts - including the intriguing true story of Berenger Sauniere, the mysterious abbe in the French village of Rennes-le-Chateau; and that Cathars, fabled keepers of the Holy Grail - The Magdalene Deception will take readers on a gripping journey through one of the world's most secretive institutions and the sensitive, often explosive manuscripts found in it's vaults.

As someone who loves codicology and paleography, this book was a perfect fit for me. I loved reading about the Vatican library and found myself dreaming about being able to personally sit inside its walls and choose manuscripts at will. The book introduces all of the characters in both the Magdalene Trilogy and the Vatican Secret Archives Series. Hana Sinclair, Cardinal Enrico Petrini and Karl Dengler resemble their characters in subsequent novels. Father Michael Dominic is quite different though. I was surprised that as a priest he didn't believe that prayer works or that his faith could be shaken by this new found document. Two years after his ordination, Dominic had plenty of doubts about his vocation. This perplexed me.

Also, there was not much suspense or mystery to the story. I got bored in several parts of the novel and did not feel a sense of impending doom over the possible release of the manuscript to the public. When Dominic translated it, I rejected its allegations about church history (no spoilers here) and can only assume that the general public in the story would reject it too. It was too far-fetched to be taken seriously but on top of that there was no mention of the manuscript being validated or not validated. It was only translated.

I expected more as the 3 books that I previously read had alot of suspense. Perhaps the author just got better at writing, which is always a good thing. The best I can say is that The Magdalene Deception is a good start to the series.

3 out of 5 stars.

Can't Wait Wednesday #16

The Can't Wait Wednesday meme has been hosted by the Wishful Endings blog for awhile. Here, we discuss the books that we haven't read yet. Later this month Janie Chang will be publishing her latest novel, The Porcelain Moon. The book takes place in France during WWI and I am anxiously awaiting it's publication on February 21, 2023.  

In 1918 a young Chinese woman, Pauline Deng, runs away from her uncle's home in Paris in order to evade an arranged marriage set up for her in Shanghai. Pauline's cousin Theo is helping her prevent the marriage. Theo is a translator for the Chinese Labour Corps in the French countryside. Another woman, Camille Roussel, is planning to leave her abusive husband. Camille offers Pauline a room for her to stay in and they become fast friends. However, Pauline soon discovers a perilous secret that Camille has been concealing. As both their situations escalate, they are forced to make an awful decision that will bind them together for the rest of their lives. The history that the author has built her story on is the historical fact that 140,000 Chinese workers were brought to Europe as non-combatant labor during WWI.  

I read the author's Library of Legends and loved it.  Here's hoping that The Porcelain Moon is just as entertaining.

The Avignon Affair

The Avignon Affair is the newest installment of the Vatican Secret Archives thriller series by Gary McAvoy and Ronald Moore. It takes place in Rome and Paris in the present day. There is also an alternating plot that takes place in France in the 1300s that concerns the death of a cardinal who is masquerading as a bishop while carrying a secret document. 

The publisher's summary:

Father Michael Dominic is called to France for an unusual assignment. A fourteenth-century bishop was found in a crypt buried under the burnt remnants of Notre-Dame-but he's wearing the ring of a cardinal, and two parchment scrolls had been hidden in his garment sleeve. Who was this 700-year-old custodian of carefully guarded secrets?

Once Father Dominic decodes the rolled scrolls, long-hidden confessions are exposed that throw France into political turmoil while creating havoc within Dominic's own team of friends. Relationships are tested and shocking new revelations emerge in The Avignon Affair.

I could not put this book down. The mystery to be solved begins with the Prologue so that the rest of the story is about what happened, how and why. The team of Father Dominic, Hana Sinclair and Marco Picard return in this installment of the series to solve another mystery from medieval times. Medieval mysteries are my favorite sub-genre so this series is a perfect fit for me. The team includes Father Michael Dominic who is the head of the Vatican Secret Archives, Hana Sinclair who is a reporter for the French newspaper Le Monde and Marco Picard, a bodyguard hired by Sinclair's grandfather to protect her. After reading 3 books in the series, they have become old friends to me.

While I was riveted by the story, the plot turned into a fantastical ending that was not believable. It was definitely interesting but just not plausible. I hate to be a spoiler here so I won't go into any details. The history part of the series delves into the Papacy of the late 1300s and the French monarchy which I thoroughly enjoyed. The authors mixed the older history with the new as the rebuilding of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is also part of the story. This mix is what makes this series tick. 

I hate to give a McAvoy book a lower rating that 5 out of 5 stars but The Avignon Affair had flaws. I am rating it 4 because the suspense level was significant.

Census

Census is a 5 part Comixology Original comic by Marc Bernardin and Adam Freeman. It is advertised as a horror comedy by the publisher. I have read the first 4 installments of the series and the final part will be published January 17, 2023. The story is about Liam Malone who takes a job as a census taker for $32 an hour. Liam has no ambition in life. After six years attending college he has not been able to obtain a degree and is looking for any job other than cleaning up human waste. While riding a bus in New York City he sees a sign that says "Good pay, flexible hours, no experience necessary" so heads over for an interview and gets a job working for the Census Bureau. What Liam doesn't know about this new job is that he will be counting demons for the Underworld census. He has to count and register all of the demons, djinns, changelings and other supernatural beings in New York. Liam learns that to get the job of a lifetime you sometimes have to sell your soul.

The idea for the story is rather creative but with Liam meeting female supernaturals who rape him for his blood, this is obviously written by a man. A woman writer would never create a character who is unappealing physically but cannot fight off the women who want him. The adolescent stuff aside, Census is hilarious. The reader sees Liam going door to door, never knowing what he is going to find when that door opens. Liam's home situation is also hilarious. He shares an apartment with two other men and they alternate who gets to sleep in a bed and who has to sleep in the bathtub. One roommate is always shown naked sitting on a toilet so the adolescent element continues throughout the story.

Each installment of the comic shows Liam coming across different types of creatures. For example, in part 2 he comes across a group of leprechauns that he must register. I enjoyed the story and wish it could keep on going. However, there is only one more release before this comic ends.

4 out of 5 stars.

The Sterling Affair

The Sterling Affair is the 8th installment of the Forensic Genealogist Series by Nathan Dylan Goodwin. I have read four other books in the series but not in order of publication so I was surprised to read in Sterling that the main character, Morton Farrier, was married with one child. The plot for Sterling is a bit more complex than prior novels. I am not sure how I feel about that as I loved the earlier books. However, the author is keeping the series fresh. His last two books are part of a new series, Venator Cold Case Series, wherein an investigative genetic geneology company, called Venator of course, is used to solve homicides. Venator is introduced in Sterling .

Back to the book at hand. . . The publisher's summary:  

When an unannounced stranger comes calling at Morton Farrier’s front door, he finds himself faced with the most intriguing and confounding case of his career to-date as a forensic genealogist. He agrees to accept the contract to identify a man who had been secretly living under the name of his new client’s long-deceased brother. Morton must use his range of resources and research skills to help him deconstruct this mysterious man’s life, ultimately leading him back into the murky world of 1950s international affairs of state. Meanwhile, Morton is faced with his own alarmingly close DNA match which itself comes with far-reaching implications for the Farriers.

I did not enjoy the book as much as I expected. The subplot concerning the spies was complex and while I normally love spy thrillers, I missed the simplicity of the earlier novels which focused on how Morton went about his genealogical research. As someone who enjoys doing this kind of research, the earlier novels hit my spot. That said, both of the book's subplots were intricately woven and well researched. I can see how Goodwin has improved his writing.

The story began with an Abstract that discussed the removal of 1,000 files by civil servants from England's National Archives relating to MI5, MI6 and MI8. The files were taken to Whitehall. This intrigued me and is part of the reason why I tried to concentrate on the spy subplot to make sure that I didn't miss anything. The information for the Abstract came from an article in The Guardian on December 26, 2017. Each of the files contained dozens of papers and some of these files included documents on the Falklands, Northern Ireland's Troubles, Britain's administration in Palestine, and tests on polio vaccines. 

I am sorry to say that Sterling is only a 3 out of 5 stars as Goodwin is one of my favorite authors.