Cover Crush: Under the Canopy of Heaven by Susan Meissner

Hello, my name is Colleen and I am a cover slut. I know, I know....you aren't supposed to judge a book by it's cover. I just can't help myself!  A beautiful cover draws my eye every single time and I can't help but pick up the book it's dressing and see if the inside seems as intriguing as the outside. Sometimes it does, and sometimes a pretty cover is just a pretty cover. Either way, I love getting an eyeful! 

One of my favorite bloggers, Erin at Flashlight Commentary, created a weekly blog post called Cover Crush and she and some other blogger friends are sharing their favorite covers each Thursday. I've decided to join in this year and will link to their posts down below.

So, without further ado, my Cover Crush this week is.....

 

 

 

 

I have been a huge fan of Susan Meissner's writing since I first read Lady in Waiting in 2010. The covers of her books are always so striking to me as well and, while this one is very different in style then her most recent books, I think it is just as beautiful. The yellowed lighting makes it seem almost like a dream and I can't help but wonder who the young woman in front of that gorgeous fountain is. While we'll have to wait to read the story and find out, let's see what the book synopsis can tell us...

 

 

From the acclaimed author of Secrets of a Charmed Life and A Bridge Across the Ocean comes a new novel set in Philadelphia during the Spanish flu epidemic of 1918, which tells the story of a family reborn through loss and love.

From the darkest hours rises life in all its glory…

In 1918, Philadelphia was a city teeming with promise. Even as its young men went off to fight in the Great War, there were opportunities for a fresh start on its cobblestone streets. Into this bustling town, came Pauline Bright and her
husband, filled with hope that they could now give their three daughters–Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa–a chance at a better life.

Their dreams are short-lived. Just months after they arrive, the Spanish Flu reaches the shores of America. As the pandemic claims more than twelve thousand victims in their adopted city, they find their lives left with a world that looks nothing like the one they knew. But even as they lose loved ones, they take in a baby orphaned by the disease who becomes their single source of hope. Amidst the tragedy and challenges that surround them, they learn what they cannot live without–and what they are willing to do about it.

Under the Canopy of Heaven is the compelling story of a mother and her daughters who find themselves in a harsh world not of their making, which will either crush their resolve to survive or purify it.

 

Don't forget to check out what covers my blogger buddies are drooling over this week:


Magdalena at A Bookaholic Swede
Erin at Flashlight Commentary
Heather at The Maiden's Court
Stephanie at Layered Pages
Holly at 2 Kids and Tired

 

 

Created by Magdalena of A Bookaholic Swede



 

Audiobook Review: The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Pub. Date: June 25th, 2013
Length: 8 hours, 57 minutes

Synopsis

A chilling psychological thriller about a marriage, a way of life, and how far one woman will go to keep what is rightfully hers....

Jodi and Todd are at a bad place in their marriage. Much is at stake, including the affluent life they lead in their beautiful waterfront condo in Chicago, as she, the killer, and he, the victim, rush haplessly toward the main event. He is a committed cheater; she lives and breathes denial. He exists in dual worlds; she likes to settle scores. He decides to play for keeps; she has nothing left to lose. Told in alternating voices, The Silent Wife is about a marriage in the throes of dissolution, a couple headed for catastrophe, concessions that can't be made, and promises that won't be kept. Expertly plotted and reminiscent of Gone Girl and These Things Hidden, The Silent Wife ensnares the listener from its opening lines and never lets go.

What Did I Think About the Story?

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this story, which makes it somewhat difficult to pinpoint how I feel about it overall. I think this ambivalence was made even worse by the fact that I listened to the story and the two narrators were very good at bringing their characters to life, for good and for bad. It's such a unique and odd story that I just can't stop thinking about it even while I'm not sure I really enjoyed my time spent with it.

Let's start with what I enjoyed about the story. The way the author set the book up - with the chapters alternating between "Her" (Jodi's perspective) and "Him" (Todd's perspective) and with the reader/listener knowing from the very beginning that Jodi would somehow be involved in Todd's death - was fascinating to me. This back and forth development had me continually wondering when the actions that would inevitably lead to Todd's death would actually occur, especially given the fact that Jodi seemed always ready to justify Todd's actions and forgive him any infraction (and he makes SO MANY!). The two narrators (Karen White and Donald Corren) were excellent at fleshing out these two very different and distinct characters and making you feel like you could see right into their heads and understand, as best anyone could,  their motivations for the actions they take down this dark path. This being said, the excellent work of the narrators actually further drove home what I disliked most about this story.

So my biggest problem with the story? The fact that every single characters was, for me, wholly unlikable. While this fact doesn't typically keep me from enjoying a book overall, they were just so unlikable that I began to not even care about how the story would end, especially given the fact that I absolutely hated Todd. Picture for a minute the most disgusting pig of a man - the kind that leers at every woman between 16 and 60 and reduces them to their good and bad body parts, the kind that cheats on his wife consistently but doesn't see anything wrong with it because he "loves her", the kind that justifies his cheating as an animal sort of need, searching for the perfect woman to breed with - and you've got Todd. I found myself getting completely grossed out by his chapters and honestly just didn't care that he was going to somehow end up dead...he was just so unpleasant and had no self-awareness beyond his selfish needs. Jodi, while not disgusting, wasn't a very sympathetic character either as she came across as an incredibly intelligent if cold woman so willing to forgive Todd for no real reason other than they had a comfortable life that she would like to continue. Her chapters had quite a bit of psychological jargon in it as well (she's a practicing psychologist) which only really served to make her seem even more removed and distant from what was happening to her. Some slowly released backstory about her family was revealed that might have made me feel sorry for her, however this came out towards the end of the book and by that time I just didn't care anymore.

The final discovery of what happened to Todd and the aftermath that followed fell flat for me as well. There just wasn't any tension and release or twistiness that I really like to see in a mystery such as this. When the audiobook ended I honestly wasn't really sure what the point of the story even was.

As you can see this wasn't a hit for me, however I can't call it a complete wash either given how interesting I found the overall set up of the novel and the excellent narrators. I think this one is a story that readers will either love or hate, based on their preferences, and while I can't necessarily "recommend" it I will say that anyone still interested in it based on the synopsis might want to give it a try and see if they like it better.     

What Did I Think About the Cover?

It's not for me. It's just so stark and kind of boring. Given what sounded like a beautiful setting and all the drama that ensues in the story I would think so much more could be done with it.


My Rating: 2.5/5.0

 

I borrowed a copy of The Silent Wife from my  library's Overdrive system. All opinions are my own. You can find more information about the book, including other reviews and links to where you can purchase a copy, on Goodreads.

 

 



Release Day Blitz: Becoming Bonnie by Jenni Walsh

Publisher: Forge Books
Pub. Date: May 9th, 2017
Pages: 304
 
Genre: Historical Fiction

From debut historical novelist Jenni L. Walsh comes the untold story of how wholesome Bonnelyn Parker became half of the infamous Bonnie and Clyde duo.
​

​The summer of 1927 might be the height of the Roaring Twenties, but Bonnelyn Parker is more likely to belt out a church hymn than sling drinks at an illicit juice joint. She’s a sharp girl with plans to overcome her family's poverty, provide for herself, and maybe someday marry her boyfriend, Roy Thornton. But when Roy springs a proposal on her and financial woes jeopardize her ambitions, Bonnelyn finds salvation in an unlikely place: Dallas's newest speakeasy, Doc's.

Living the life of a moll at night, Bonnie remains a wholesome girl by day, engaged to Roy, attending school and working toward a steady future. When Roy discovers her secret life, and embraces it—perhaps too much, especially when it comes to booze and gambling—Bonnie tries to make the pieces fit. Maybe she can have it all: the American Dream, the husband, and the intoxicating allure of jazz music. What she doesn't know is that her life—like her country—is headed for a crash.

She’s about to meet Clyde Barrow.


 Few details are known about Bonnie's life prior to meeting her infamous partner. In Becoming Bonnie, Jenni L. Walsh shows a young woman promised the American dream and given the Great Depression, and offers a compelling account of why she fell so hard for a convicted felon—and turned to crime herself.

 

Read an Excerpt



 

Buy the Book

 

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | IndieBound

 

 

About the Author

 

 

Jenni L. Walsh spent her early years chasing around cats, dogs, and chickens in Philadelphia's countryside, before dividing time between a soccer field and a classroom at Villanova University. She put her marketing degree to good use as an advertising copywriter, zip-code hopping with her husband to DC, NYC, NJ, and not surprisingly, back to Philly. There, Jenni's passion for words continued, adding author to her resume. She now balances her laptop with a kid on each hip, and a four-legged child at her feet. Becoming Bonnie is her first novel.

 

Learn more about Jenni on her website, and connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.

 

 

It's Giveaway Time!!!

Author Jenni Walsh has a wonderful giveaway going on RIGHT NOW and will run through May 12th! Go HERE to enter to win an exclusive Becoming Bonnie Mug (above) and a $25 Amazon Gift Card! The giveaway is International so everyone has a change to win.

Good Luck!!

 

New Release Spotlight: Mr. Rochester by Sarah Shoemaker

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Pub. Date: May 9th, 2017
Pages: 464


"Reader, she married me."

For one hundred seventy years, Edward Fairfax Rochester has stood as one of literature's most romantic, most complex, and most mysterious heroes. Sometimes haughty, sometimes tender-professing his love for Jane Eyre in one breath and denying it in the next-Mr. Rochester has for generations mesmerized, beguiled, and, yes, baffled fans of Charlotte Brontë's masterpiece. But his own story has never been told.

Now, out of Sarah Shoemaker's rich and vibrant imagination, springs Edward: a vulnerable, brilliant, complicated man whom we first meet as a motherless, lonely little boy roaming the corridors and stable yards of Thornfield Hall. On the morning of Edward's eighth birthday, his father issues a decree: He is to be sent away to get an education, exiled from Thornfield and all he ever loved. As the determined young Edward begins his journey across England, making friends and enemies along the way, a series of eccentric mentors teach him more than he might have wished about the ways of the men-and women-who will someday be his peers.

But much as he longs to be accepted-and to return to the home where he was born-his father has made clear that Thornfield is reserved for his older brother, Rowland, and that Edward's inheritance lies instead on the warm, languid shores of faraway Jamaica. That island, however, holds secrets of its own, and not long after his arrival, Edward finds himself entangled in morally dubious business dealings and a passionate, whirlwind love affair with the town's ravishing heiress, Antoinetta Bertha Mason.

Eventually, after a devastating betrayal, Edward must return to England with his increasingly unstable wife to take over as master of Thornfield. And it is there, on a twilight ride, that he meets the stubborn, plain, young governess who will teach him how to love again.

It is impossible not to watch enthralled as this tender-hearted child grows into the tormented hero Brontë immortalized-and as Jane surprises them both by stealing his heart. MR. ROCHESTER is a great, sweeping, classic coming-of-age story, and a stirring tale of adventure, romance, and deceit. Faithful in every particular to Brontë's original yet full of unexpected twists and riveting behind-the-scenes drama, this novel will completely, deliciously, and forever change how we read and remember Jane Eyre.

Advanced Praise for Mr. Rochester

"With flair and heart, MR. ROCHESTER tells the story that legions of Jane Eyre fans have been waiting more than a century to hear. Sarah Shoemaker's impressive novel takes readers into the mind of one of literature's most vexing and compelling romantic heroes and paints a nuanced portrait of a man torn between responsibility and passion. Packed with historical detail and a fresh look at a classic story, MR. ROCHESTER is a page-turning delight.” —Tara Conklin, New York Times bestselling author of The House Girl

"Prepare to be swept off your feet by Sarah Shoemaker's stunning MR. ROCHESTER. As one of countless readers who adored Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, but never quite understood what Jane saw in Mr. Rochester, I was spellbound. Beautifully written, exquisitely crafted, and deeply engaging, MR. ROCHESTER is pure book club gold.” —Mary Sharratt, author of The Dark Lady's Mask: A Novel of Shakespeare's Muse and Illuminations: A Novel of Hildegard Von Bingen

"Shoemaker's detailed writing will transport readers to a bygone age of romance and heartbreak.” —Publishers Weekly

Buy the Book

 

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | IndieBound | Books-A-Million

 

 

About the Author

 

 

Sarah Shoemaker is a former university librarian and currently lives in northern Michigan. You can connect with her on Facebook.

 

 

 



Spotlight on Dead to Me by Lesley Pearse

Publisher: Penguin

Pub. Date: May 4th, 2017
Pages: 512

Genre: Historical Fiction


Two very different women, one unlikely friendship. In the chaos of war-torn Britain, can any relationship survive?

Dead to Me is a story about loyalty, love and the strength of friendship in the face of adversity, from international number one bestselling author Lesley Pearse.

Spring 1935. Two girls meet by chance on Hampstead Heath. To an outsider, they could not appear more different. Verity is well-mannered and smartly dressed, living with her parents in a beautiful house close to the heath. Ruby is dishevelled and grubby, used to a life of squalor where she is forced to steal to survive. Yet there's an instant affinity between them, and when their fortunes are shockingly reversed, it is the strength of their friendship that keeps them resilient to the challenges and hardships they face.

As Britain prepares for war, Ruby finds herself in Devon with the world at her feet and enjoying her first taste of romance. Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away, Verity is forced to leave behind everything she has ever known and a shadow from the past threatens her chances of a new beginning. But through it all, the girls are always there for each other. Until the day Verity does the one thing that will break Ruby's heart.

In a country torn apart by fighting, will Verity and Ruby survive long enough to find a way back to each other? Or do some betrayals go with you to the grave . . .?

Praise for Lesley Pearse's Novels

 

"Glorious, heart-warming" Woman & Home

"Quintessential Lesley Pearse that will delight her army of readers" Daily Mail

"Full of love, passion and heartbreak" Best 

"Another superb tale" The Sun

"Epic romantic drama…4 stars" Heat

"Evocative, compelling, told from the heart" Sunday Express

Buy the Book

 

Amazon UK | Book Depository

 

 

About the Author

 

 

Lesley Pearse is a global No.1 bestseller with fans across the world and sales of over 10 million copies of her books to date. A true storyteller and master of the gripping storyline, Lesley introduces us to characters that are impossible not to care about or forget. There is no formula to her books or easily defined genre and, whether historical drama like the No.1 bestseller, Belle or the emotionally powerful Trust Me based on the true-life scandal of British child migrants sent to Australia in the post-war period, she engages the reader completely. The author of 24 incredible novels, Lesley’s previous novel, Without a Trace, was another No.1 bestseller.

Dead to Me follows the fortunes of characters Ruby and Verity from the 1930s through WWII and features many places of importance to Lesley including her childhood haunts in Hither Green, SE London and Babbacombe, Torquay where she lives now.

 

You can connect with Lesley on Twitter.

 

 







Cover Crush: The Measure of the Moon by Lisa Preston

Hello, my name is Colleen and I am a cover slut. I know, I know....you aren't supposed to judge a book by it's cover. I just can't help myself!  A beautiful cover draws my eye every single time and I can't help but pick up the book it's dressing and see if the inside seems as intriguing as the outside. Sometimes it does, and sometimes a pretty cover is just a pretty cover. Either way, I love getting an eyeful! 

One of my favorite bloggers, Erin at Flashlight Commentary, created a weekly blog post called Cover Crush and she and some other blogger friends are sharing their favorite covers each Thursday. I've decided to join in this year and will link to their posts down below.

So, without further ado, my Cover Crush this week is.....

 

 

 

 

I find this cover just striking. The close-up of that face and the brilliant eye that matches the colors in the misty woods next to it is beautiful. I don't think it necessarily gives anything away regarding what the story might be about (other than it most likely takes place in or near some woods) but I don't even care....I could look at this cover all day.

 

So what's the story actually about? Let's see...

 

 

“If you ever say anything to anyone, they all die.”

When eight-year-old Greer Donner falls off his horse in the Washington wilderness, he braces himself to face the long hike home alone. But screams pierce the darkness, and he stumbles upon a dead-end road where a man is beating a woman—nearly to death. In a moment of courage, he stops the assault, but he’s left to face the man, who turns his wrath into an ominous threat: if the boy ever reveals what he has seen, his family will pay the ultimate price. The secret Greer now carries begins his emotional unraveling.

In Seattle, Gillian Trett is a photographer with a troubled marriage and a childhood she’s trying to forget. Domestic tension mounts when her husband’s stepsister arrives. Desperate for a distraction, and a way to advance her career, Gillian throws herself into uncovering the history behind an old man’s Holocaust photo of boys in a forest. The mysterious children and the truth behind the scene haunt her—she can’t let go of the image, or of her own shadowed past.

Then a horrifying revelation entangles Gillian’s path with young Greer’s. The boy and the woman, separated by a generation and a hundred miles, each confront the terrible power of harbored secrets—not only to eclipse the truth but also to illuminate the dark, unknown dimensions of their loved ones and themselves.  

 

Don't forget to check out what covers my blogger buddies are drooling over this week:


Magdalena at A Bookaholic Swede
Erin at Flashlight Commentary
Heather at The Maiden's Court
Stephanie at Layered Pages
Holly at 2 Kids and Tired

 

 

Created by Magdalena of A Bookaholic Swede

 

Audiobook Review: A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner

Publisher: Christian Audio
Pub. Date: March 11th, 2015
Length: 9 hours, 48 minutes

Synopsis

A beautiful scarf, passed down through the generations, connects two women who learn that the weight of the world is made bearable by the love we give away....


September 1911. On Ellis Island in New York Harbor, nurse Clara Wood cannot face returning to Manhattan, where the man she loved fell to his death in the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. Then, while caring for a fevered immigrant whose own loss mirrors hers, she becomes intrigued by a name embroidered onto the scarf he carries…and finds herself caught in a dilemma that compels her to confront the truth about the assumptions she’s made. Will what she learns devastate her or free her?

September 2011. On Manhattan’s Upper West Side, widow Taryn Michaels has convinced herself that she is living fully, working in a charming specialty fabric store and raising her daughter alone. Then a long-lost photograph appears in a national magazine, and she is forced to relive the terrible day her husband died in the collapse of the World Trade Towers…the same day a stranger reached out and saved her. Will a chance reconnection and a century-old scarf open Taryn’s eyes to the larger forces at work in her life?

What Did I Think About the Story?

I absolutely LOVE Susan Meissner's writing and A Fall of Marigolds is no exception. I continue to marvel at her ability to present two seemingly unrelated narratives, in different times and, often, different places, that always somehow weave together with even the tiniest bit of connection. Being the huge historical fiction fan that I am I also love that she often picks unique perspectives and situations that I haven't read about before. In this particular novel she also presented a perspective on a more recent national tragedy - the collapse of the Twin Towers - causing me to be just as enamored by this storyline as the historical one (which rarely happens for me!).

As the synopsis says, in the past storyline Nurse Clara Wood is somewhat hiding out on Ellis Island in an attempt to put her life on pause and not really deal with the tragedy she witnessed when the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire blazed right in front of her eyes and took the life of the man she had just started having feelings for. The vast amount of the novel takes place in this storyline and the reader (or listener in my case) gets a great sense of the lasting trauma and heartache Clara experienced after this event, especially given the guilt she carries that her sweetheart's death was her fault. While I can't say that I exactly understood her continued love for the man who died (they hadn't even gone on a date) I did feel quite sad for the way she felt after the experience. The very idea of leaving the island causes her physical distress and I really enjoyed the fact that a chance encounter with a sick immigrant during her work on Ellis Island, combined with the support of a no-nonsense yet caring doctor, formed the catalyst to have her finally deal with what she experienced and to work to get past the terror and move on with her life.  It was also fascinating to get to see Ellis Island through her eyes when it was still in operation and to get a feel for the vast amount of humanity that came through its doors.

While the present storyline dealing with Taryn Michaels was much shorter and therefore less developed than Clara's, it was actually my favorite of the two storylines as I felt like I could almost viscerally understand and experience what she went through. Having actually been alive when the Twin Towers went down (I was in college and distinctly remember the school dismissing classes and walking into my apartment to see the second tower fall) I felt a palpable dread listening to Taryn's recollections of that day and was amazed at the author's ability to place me down on that horrified and gritty street as the world fell apart around Taryn and the others near ground zero. Listening to this, especially when Taryn relays her guilt (like Clara's) that her husband's death was somehow her fault, brought me to literal tears and made for an interesting driving experience as I fought to control my emotions. The way the author wrapped up Taryn's story, and how she incorporated the scarf so important to both stories into that conclusion, was wonderful and left me with such a hopeful, satisfied feeling about the story overall and the future these characters would have.

I can't forget to mention the skill of the narrator (Tavia Gilbert) as I've learned a narrator can make or break a story's overall enjoyment. I was amazed at the emotion Tavia was able to put into both storylines and I completely blame her for my tearful reaction to Taryn's recollections of 9/11. She nearly broke my heart with it, but then was able to bring the hope back into the story and leave me feeling quite satisfied. She was also surprisingly good at altering her voice for both main characters as well as the secondary ones, the women and men both, and each one truly had their own voice and personality.

A Fall of Marigolds further affirmed my love for Susan Meissner's books, which is great as I will be beginning her newest novel, A Bridge Across the Ocean, very soon and have really been looking forward to it. With this particular story I was amazed at how similar Clara and Taryn's experiences and emotions were even though they were generations apart and lived wholly different lives. I listened to this audiobook on a long trip home for the weekend and stayed completely glued to it until it ended. If you haven't read Susan Meissner's novels before I highly recommend them and think A Fall of Marigolds is a great place to start! 

 

What Did I Think About the Cover?

I think it's very pretty, although I find it somewhat plain compared to some of her other novels. I do like that she get to see the titular Marigolds as well as get a hazy peak at some buildings that I think might be Ellis Island. Overall a nice cover.


My Rating: 5.0/5.0

My Reviews of Susan Meissner's Other Books

Lady in Waiting
A Sound Among the Trees
Secrets of a Charmed Life
Stars Over Sunset Boulevard

I purchased a copy of A Fall of Marigolds for my own library. All opinions are my own. You can find more information on the book, including other reviews and links to where you can purchase a copy, on Goodreads.