Can't Wait Wednesday: A Christmas Vanishing by Anne Perry (Christmas Novel Book 21)

 

For this week's Can't Wait Wednesday, hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings, I'm featuring A Christmas Vanishing by Anne Perry. She passed away earlier this year and  I'm sad to think it is her last holiday story. I have read almost all of her Christmas novels and am a twenty plus year fan of her Monk and Pitt series. This story will be extra special this holiday season for all of her lifelong fans. 

November 7, 2023

Historical Mysteries/Holiday Mysteries

Description courtesy of Amazon books

Mariah Ellison, Charlotte Pitt’s grandmother, accepts her longtime friend Sadie’s gracious invitation to spend Christmas with her and her husband, Barton, in their picturesque village. But upon arrival, Mariah discovers that Sadie has vanished without a trace, and Barton rudely rescinds the invitation. Once Mariah finds another acquaintance to stay with during the holiday season, she begins investigating Sadie’s disappearance.

Mariah’s uncanny knack for solving mysteries serves her well during her search, which is driven by gossip as icy as the December weather. Did Sadie run off with another man? Was she kidnapped? Has someone harmed her? Frustratingly, Mariah’s questions reveal more about the villagers themselves than about her friend’s whereabouts. Yet in the process of getting to know Sadie’s neighbors, Mariah finds a kind of redemption, as she rediscovers her kinder side, and her ability to love. 

It is up to Mariah to master her own feelings, drown out the noise, and get to the bottom of what occurred, all before Christmas day. With the holiday rapidly approaching, will she succeed in bringing Sadie home in time for them to celebrate it together—or is that too much to hope for?

Stacking the Shelves #18

 

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Reading Reality. It's a place to showcase any books I have purchased, borrowed, or been lucky enough to have been given an advance copy of. Hope you find something that looks interesting to you or that makes you remember a favorite book you need to finish. Enjoy your reading this week :)

I have wanted to read Georgette Heyer for awhile now and see her reviewed positively by so many of my fellow bloggers. This book particularly interests me due to the focus on the Napoleonic Wars period so I'm thinking it's a good place to start. I have borrowed a copy from the Libby App and started today. I am very confused by some of the initial conversation but that hopefully will iron itself out as I continue with the book. Also, I'm going to probably swap it out for one of the classics on my Classics Club list that just isn't doing it for me. If you've read this one, did you like it?

It's time to start another Cadfael book. The last one I read was book 4, St. Peter's Fair and it wasn't my favorite but this one looks unique and interesting. I like to go in order with most series books I read so this is next. Always full of great atmosphere set in the 1100's world of Shrewsbury and Wales, the Cadfael Chronicles are fun to pick up for a quick read and great mystery. Also, they are often on sale so you can slowly collect them all for around $1.99 each. My daily Book Bub emails really pay off when it comes to Kindle books!

I read and reviewed MacLean's stand alone novel, The Bookseller of Inverness recently and really enjoyed it. This is book one in the Captain Damian Seeker series and I always hear good things about the novels. Set during the Cromwell period in London, it has been called, "the best historical crime novel of the year" by one paper and that sounds like a book I should try. Another one I got on sale for $1.99 this week thanks to my daily Early Bird Books email. 

Can't Wait Wednesday: The Battles of Bonnie Prince Charlie: The Young Chevalier At War by Dr. Arran Johnston

 

For this week's Can't Wait Wednesday, hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings, I'm featuring The Battles of Bonnie Prince Charlie by Dr. Arran Johnston. I love all things to do with the Jacobite period and this book delves into the personal as well as the political and military aspect of the Prince's decisions. 

While I'm not a huge fan of dissecting battles piece by piece, this book looks like one which gets into his mind and the reasons why he made the decisions he made which led to the fatal battle of Culloden. It also seems to be a somewhat sympathetic portrait of Stuart, explaining why he failed and how unprepared he was for the mission he was tasked with.

Anything offering a new perspective on an old story is always welcome. What book are you excited to read this week?

October 30, 2023

History/Scottish History

Description courtesy of NetGalley

Prince Charles Edward Stuart (1720-1788) was the grandson of Britain’s last Stuart king and the last of his line to fight for their right to the throne. Born in Rome and raised at his father’s cultured and cosmopolitan court-in-exile, the young prince grew up beneath a heavy weight of expectation and yearned for the chance to prove his worth. In 1745, just as it seemed his best opportunity had already passed, Charles threw caution to the wind and embarked on a secret and seemingly desperate expedition to Scotland. What followed is one of the most remarkable, famous, and often misrepresented episodes of Scottish history: the ’45.

This is the story of the last Jacobite rising and the charismatic but controversial prince who led it, presenting a human portrait of the Stuart prince through the words of those who served alongside him. The picture revealed is one of a humane and capable young man taking on a mission far greater than his experience had prepared him for, pushed to the limits of his abilities at a cost from which he never recovered.

Following Charles Edward Stuart over the battlefields of Prestonpans, Falkirk and Culloden, this book reveals the prince’s strengths and flaws as a commander, and the difficult relationships he had with the very people on whom his fortunes, and reputation, would depend. It is the story of how the prince faced conflicts both on and off the battlefield, weathered challenges posed by friends as well as foes, and left a legacy which remains hotly contested to this day.