Can't Wait Wednesday: A Corpse in Christmas Close by Michelle Salter (The Iris Woodmore Mysteries Book Five)

 

For this week's Can't Wait Wednesday, hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings, I'm featuring, A Corpse in Christmas Close by Michelle Salter. It is book five of the Iris Woodmore mysteries and is set in 1923. Iris is a reporter sent to Winchester to cover a visit from the Prince of Wales and instead finds herself caught up in a murder investigation. 

I have not read any from this series yet but this latest book is due out this Saturday and looks like a fun Christmas read. I guess the horrible heat here at home has me in the mood for a winter holiday book. I can't read every cozy in every series but most of them work well for a stand alone read. I think this one might need to go on my list for later this fall. Happy reading and I hope you've found something you can't wait to read this week!

August 24, 2024

Cozy Mysteries/Historical Mysteries

When a pantomime turns deadly, Iris investigates a cast of killers…

Christmas, 1923. When reporter Iris Woodmore is sent to cover the Prince of Wales’ visit to historic Winchester, she discovers more than just royal gossip.

The leading lady in Winchester Cathedral’s charity pantomime is found dead in mysterious circumstances. And the chief suspect is Cinderella’s handsome prince, played by Percy Baverstock’s younger brother, Freddie.

For the sake of the Baverstocks, Iris must investigate the murder, even though it means confronting an old enemy. And as the line between friend and foe blurs dangerously, she’s ensnared by someone she hoped she’d never see again…

Stacking the Shelves #34

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!

This book caught my eye for two reasons: It is first in a series and has a foreword endorsement written by one of my favorite authors, Sharon Kay Penman. Set in 1270 during the reign of Henry III, it involves the murder of a monk and reminds me a bit of the Cadfael Chronicles. It is free to read in Kindle Unlimited and with my credits I was able to buy it for $0. Hopefully it is a good series!

This author has been featured on my favorite history podcast, Gone Medieval, several times. He is very knowledgeable about the time periods he covers and his latest book, Son of Prophecy, is about Henry VII and his origins in Wales, specifically how his Wales heritage is often minimized or overlooked altogether. Amin delves into how Henry and his family became the hoped for savior of the Welsh people and the son of prophecy foretold to rule England, Wales, and beyond. I like the idea of focusing on his Welsh background for a change. It is so hard to get these books on Kindle here in the U.S. so I confess I only have the sample right now. I hope to buy or borrow it somehow soon!

This mystery looked so different and interesting and it is written by a famous author of her time, Pearl S. Buck. I'd not read her other books and wasn't aware she wrote mysteries. This book was written in 1965. Aristocrats Sir Richard and Lady Mary are broke and need to sell their 1,000 year old castle. A man wants to buy it and transport it to America and there is also possible hidden treasure under it. The synopsis also mentions spirits haunting the castle and a cast of colorful, neurotic characters. It has that Agatha Christie vibe and I think it seems very unique. 

A House Divided by Michael Phillips and Judith Pella (The Russians Book Two)

 

Publication Date: 

January 1, 1968

Length:

304 pages

Summary:

This is book two of a seven part series called The Russians, written by the Christian husband and wife team of Michael Phillips and Judith Pella. I have read their Stonewycke books which are excellent and I had read book one of this collection years ago. I decided to read book two because it has been in my Kindle for awhile and I wanted to see how the story progressed. It was something different from my cozy mystery kick I've been on. 

When the story opens it picks up where book one left off, the main character, Anna Burenin is ladies maid to Princess Katrina Fedorcenko and has developed a relationship with Katrina's brother, Sergei who has been away fighting in the Russo-Turkish War along with his friend Dimitri, Katrina's love interest. Their stories converge as the war ends, soldiers return and the Russian Revolution's seeds begin to develop into a full blown crisis. 

Anna's brother Paul has his own set of troubles. Away at University in Pskov, he experienced a traumatic event involving a student who was bullied and ultimately driven to suicide. Through a series of events that spiral he becomes involved with radical revolutionaries who pose as friends, seeming to take him under their wing, all while convincing him that overthrowing the government and killing the Tsar is the only way to true freedom for the Russian people. Paul travels to St. Petersburg to be a part of the underground group plotting mayhem and violence, calling themselves, The Will of the People.

Can't Wait Wednesday: The Royal Rebel by Elizabeth Chadwick (Jeanette of Kent Book 1)

 

For this week's Can't Wait Wednesday, hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings, I'm featuring, The Royal Rebel by Elizabeth Chadwick. This is book one of two that will tell the story of Jeanette of Kent, cousin to King Edward III.  I love that Chadwick takes lesser known women of the Medieval era and spotlights them in historical fiction. I also find that the 1300's seems to have less literature dedicated to it. It's a nice change from the Wars of the Roses and the Tudors. Hope you have found something you can't wait to read this week!

September 5, 2024

Historical Fiction/Medieval Fiction

Description courtesy of Amazon

1338: England has declared war on France, and Jeanette of Kent, cousin to King Edward III, says goodbye to her family and travels overseas with the royal court for the first time. Once in Antwerp, she is captivated by talented household knight Thomas Holland, just as he in turn is powerfully drawn to her.

Although both know their romance is forbidden, their love for each other grows stronger than the danger they face, and they marry in secret. But before they can make their tryst known, Thomas has to leave for war, and in his absence, Jeanette is forced into a second marriage and locked away from the world.

Then Thomas returns, and the real fight begins. As hostile family members battle to keep Jeanette and Thomas apart, the defiant lovers vow to be reunited - whatever the cost...

Top Ten Tuesday: Books Whose Plots Involve Travel

 

This week's Top Ten Tuesday hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl features books that involve travel. This took some thinking to come up with ten. I tend to over think and so my running inner monologue went something like this..."how far is the traveling? Is it to another time and place? Another country? Down the block?" 

I decided it had to be at least characters traveling through time or to another country, across the ocean, etc. So that was my criteria. It will be fun to see others' lists and compare! Also, you could choose to focus on covers with planes, trains, and automobiles. That will be interesting as well. I'm not the best at adding just covers to my blog yet (not user friendly with this particular format) so I'm just going to make a list. If I reviewed it on my blog I have included the link. Happy Reading ya'll! :) 

1. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon- Because of course this one is my favorite with time travel throughout the whole series. 

2. The Seekers by John Jakes- This was a favorite of mine from Jakes' series about America. It includes the time of the Oregon Trail and the pioneers. That is traveling I love to read about. I probably need to re-read and review this wonderful book.

3. Into Africa by Martin Dugard- The amazing story of Stanley and LIvingstone's journey into the continent that fascinated the world. I absolutely loved this historical account of their journey. 

4. Crocodile On the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters- The first in the series and my favorite still. The journey down the Nile is so well written you feel like you are there. As usual, the original is the best!

5. Lionheart by Ben Kane- A great account of Richard I's journey on Crusade. It's part of a trilogy and well worth picking up.

6. Secret of the Scarab by Isabella Bassett- One of my favorite cozy mystery series of the year. The heroine and her eccentric Uncle are adorable and their journey to Egypt to uncover artifacts sees them caught up in of course, what else, but murder and mayhem. A fun read.

7. Murder On the Orient Express by Agatha Christie- This one has to be included on a list like this. Especially since it is train related. Not necessarily my favorite Christie book but a definite classic everyone should read.

8. Mayflower by Nathaniel Philbrick- A fabulous accounting of the Pilgrims' journey to America. It read more like a novel than a history book and that is the style I love best.

9. Leaving Ireland by Ann Moore- I really feel like this author has been overlooked. This is probably because she hasn't written a lot of books but her trilogy about a young girl, Gracelin O'Malley and her life during the 1840's potato famine in Ireland is well written historical fiction. This is the third book which I have yet to finish. 

10. Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brien- This is another classic book that I haven't read but plan to. I love sea voyage themed novels. Everyone says it is a good one. And the movie was excellent.