Book Release : Shadow on the Crown by Patricia Bracewell

Shadow on the Crown
by Patricia Bracewell

Paperback: 432 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books (December 31, 2013)

Kindle Edition
File Size: 948 KB
Print Length: 432 pages
Publisher: Viking Adult (February 7, 2013)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.

About the book:

A rich tale of power and forbidden love revolving around a young medieval queen.

In 1002, fifteen­-year-old Emma of Normandy crosses the Narrow Sea to wed the much older King Athelred of England, whom she meets for the first time at the church door. Thrust into an unfamiliar and treacherous court, with a husband who mistrusts her, stepsons who resent her and a bewitching rival who covets her crown, Emma must defend herself against her enemies and secure her status as queen by bearing a son.

Determined to outmaneuver her adversaries, Emma forges alliances with influential men at court and wins the affection of the English people. But her growing love for a man who is not her husband and the imminent threat of a Viking invasion jeopardize both her crown and her life.

Based on real events recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and the perfect antidote to Tudor fatigue, Shadow on the Crown is packed with nonstop action, romance, and plenty of deliciously creepy Gothic flavor.

*Read and reviewed in March 2013*

Ethelred II, the Anglo-Saxon English king's wife had just died and he needed a new wife to please his counselors/advisers. There were two girls he could arrange to marry, one girl from the north and one from the south. Based on his careful analysis, an alliance from the south seemed far better than the north's. So King Ethelred II asked Richard II, Duke of Normandy to hand over his sister Emma, which at the time of request was only 15 years old. Richard II was hesitant at first to give up his young sister. After weighing things, he knew there's no other choice... he had to let Emma marry the English king because saying no to Ethelred II would mean war. 

So Emma went to England to marry the English king (age could be somewhere between 30-35?) but people from England aren't too happy about it. One English noble, Elgiva (the girl from the north) wanted to be a queen and she's determined to do everything to take Emma's crown. Emma knew that if she lost the crown, her life is doomed in England. 

I totally loved this book and I found myself researching more about Queen Emma's life just to satisfy my curiosity. Shadow on the Crown was an easy read. The story flowed just right. The book didn't look like a historian work - in a positive way. There's some kind of simplicity in the stories, I didn't doubt any of the author's fictional tales. The characters, the English setting at the time and even the character's dialogue felt authentic. It's not hard to imagine the places and people those time period. Even, Emma's romantic relationship to one of the characters (fiction) felt real. Oh I love Emma, she's a very smart girl. She could have not survived the whole queen stuff if she's not smart. Just imagine a queen at the age of 15! 

Shadow on the Crown is the first book to a trilogy about Emma of Normandy. There are too many things to learn in this book as it is rich in historical facts. I thank the author for introducing Queen Emma to me and I can't wait to read book #2! 

Hardbound Book Giveaway: Captive by A.D. Robertson

For twenty-five years, Tristan Doran has enjoyed a life of power and privilege, but his days at Castle Tierney are lonely and tedious, surrounded by servants and wolf Guardians enlisted to protect him. As a direct descendent of the Keepers—witches who have embraced dark magic—Tristan’s bloodline is too valuable to risk, so his overlord Bosque Mar has kept him safe, and therefore forced him to observe the centuries-old Witches War from the sidelines.

Sarah is a beautiful and young Searcher, fighting for the other side. When she is captured and made prisoner in Tristan’s castle, he is instantly infatuated with her. Each a captive in their own right, Tristan and Sarah are unable to contain their desires and the pair flings themselves into a passionate and forbidden romance—only to discover that their love is at the heart of a prophecy predicting the downfall of the only world Tristan has ever known. 

CAPTIVE is hot, sexy, and completely addictive. Tristan and Sarah are tangible and alluring characters, and Robertson’s coy and witty voice shines in the role of romantic narrator.

GIVEAWAY GIVEAWAY GIVEAWAY

Dutton Adult/Penguin is giving away one hardbound copy of Captive. This is open only for US readers and bloggers and must be 18 years old and above.

  

To join the giveaway, leave a comment with your email or leave a comment and send an email to kaori.books@gmail.com using the subject 'JOIN CAPTIVE GIVEAWAY'. Extra points will be given to those who will follow Bookingly Yours and share this post thru Facebook and Twitter with the link/s included in the comment section/email. Giveaway ends on October 16 and the winner will be announced shortly thereafter.

GOODLUCK!!

Book Review: The Age of Desire by Jennie Fields

The Age of Desire

Author: Jennie Fields
Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books (August 2, 2012)
Amazon Link

Note: I received a review copy of this book free from Penguin, U.S.A. The review posted below is based on my personal thoughts while reading the book.

Ratings: ★ ★ ★ ★

My thoughts:

I liked the book but it took me weeks to finish the story. I don't know Edith Wharton (that much) but after reading the synopsis and some more little research about her, her sexless marriage and scandalous affair with someone younger than her, I thought Age of Desire could be that interesting to read.

Well, it was interesting at first. Took me only 2 days to reach half of the book and then few more pages after that, it went from interesting read to frustrating read. Knowing more about Anna and Teddy, oh how I hated Edith. It's sad to know that Edith never loved her husband. It even came to a point where I was looking for more Anna's and Teddy' story in the book because I didn't find Edith's life worth reading, (sorry had to be honest here) I mean her affair with that man... it wasn't romantic. Not at all.  I tried to find one sensible reason why she loved Morton uhm I see nothing to like about him. Morton (+ Edith) and I just didn't connect all throughout the book. And that's frustrating... 

Overall, I'd still give this 4-star for the writing and for Anna's/Teddy's story. To read positive reviews for the book, click HERE.

About the book:

For fans of The Paris Wife, a sparkling glimpse into the life of Edith Wharton and the scandalous love affair that threatened her closest friendship.

They say behind every great man is a woman. Behind Edith Wharton, there was Anna Bahlmann—her governess turned literary secretary, and her mothering, nurturing friend.

When at the age of forty-five, Edith falls passionately in love with a dashing younger journalist, Morton Fullerton, and is at last opened to the world of the sensual, it threatens everything certain in her life but especially her abiding friendship with Anna. As Edith’s marriage crumbles and Anna’s disapproval threatens to shatter their lifelong bond, the women must face the fragility at the heart of all friendships.

Told through the points of view of both women, The Age of Desire takes us on a vivid journey through Wharton’s early Gilded Age world: Paris with its glamorous literary salons and dark secret cafés, the Whartons’ elegant house in Lenox, Massachusetts, and Henry James’s manse in Rye, England.

Edith’s real letters and intimate diary entries are woven throughout the book. The Age of Desire brings to life one of literature’s most beloved writers, whose own story was as complex and nuanced as that of any of the heroines she created.

About the author:

I love books and longed to start writing them when I was six years old. I wrote my first full- length novel in third grade. It was 365 pages! My teacher didn't have time to read it. As I am less wordy now, I hope you will find the time to read my books.

My new novel, The Age of Desire is based on the life and loves of my favorite novelist: Edith Wharton. Wharton's characters feel as real to me as the people I know. I hope that I've brought Wharton alive on the page, as well as her friend, Anna Bahlmann, her lover, Morton Fullerton, her husband, Teddy Wharton and last but not least, the inimitable Henry James. 

You'll see a Book Club tab on my website if you'd like me to meet with your book club. I'm happy to do it in person if possible, or via Skype or phone for those farther away. I look forward to sharing my books with you. Please visit my website,  http://jenniefields.com/ and let me know what you think of my books. 

Paperback Giveaway: The Age of Desire by Jennie Fields

THE AGE OF DESIRE 

by Jennie Fields

For fans of The Paris Wife, a sparkling glimpse into the life of Edith Wharton and the scandalous love affair that threatened her closest friendship.

They say behind every great man is a woman. Behind Edith Wharton, there was Anna Bahlmann—her governess turned literary secretary, and her mothering, nurturing friend.

When at the age of forty-five, Edith falls passionately in love with a dashing younger journalist, Morton Fullerton, and is at last opened to the world of the sensual, it threatens everything certain in her life but especially her abiding friendship with Anna. As Edith’s marriage crumbles and Anna’s disapproval threatens to shatter their lifelong bond, the women must face the fragility at the heart of all friendships.

Told through the points of view of both women, The Age of Desire takes us on a vivid journey through Wharton’s early Gilded Age world: Paris with its glamorous literary salons and dark secret cafés, the Whartons’ elegant house in Lenox, Massachusetts, and Henry James’s manse in Rye, England.

Edith’s real letters and intimate diary entries are woven throughout the book. The Age of Desire brings to life one of literature’s most beloved writers, whose own story was as complex and nuanced as that of any of the heroines she created.

GIVEAWAY GIVEAWAY GIVEAWAY

Penguin is giving away two paperback copies of THE AGE OF DESIRE. This is open to readers and bloggers from the US and must be 18 years old and above.
  
To join the giveaway, just leave a comment with your email. Extra points will be given to those who will follow Bookingly Yours and share this post thru Facebook and Twitter with the link/s included in the comment section. Giveaway ends on June 5 and winners will be announced shortly thereafter.

GOODLUCK!!

Download Today at $2.99 : Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt

Author: Beth Hoffman
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (October 26, 2010)

About the book:

When Camille Sugarbaker Honeycutt, the pretty but crazy 1951 Vidalia Onion Queen, dies suddenly, her twelve-year-old daughter CeeCee has barely a hope left in the world. To her rescue arrives Great Aunt Tootie in the most magnificent car CeeCee has ever seen, and she is whisked away to the storybook city of Savannah. For some flowers, Aunt Tootie holds, are born to bloom only south of the Mason-Dixon line and soon, among the sweet scent of magnolias and the loving warmth of Tootie and her colourful collection of friends, it looks as though CeeCee has arrived in paradise. But when a darker side to the Southern dream threatens this delicate, newfound happiness, Aunt Tootie and her friends must rally to CeeCee's aid. Warm yet heartbreaking, and generously spiced with humor, Saving CeeCee Honeycutt is the story of a girl who loses her mother but finds many others under a balmy Georgia sun.

Download ePub eBook for $2.99

Book Review: The Memory of Love by Linda Olsson

The Memory of Love

Author : Linda Olsson
Roughcut: 240 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books; 1 edition (February 26, 2013)
Amazon Link

Note: I received a review copy of this book free from the publisher, Viking/Penguin Books. The review posted below is based on my personal thoughts while reading the book.

Ratings: ★ ★ 

My thoughts:

I first picked up this book mid March but got, sort of, disconnected with the story due to the main character's overly long paragraphs in narrating her story. Picked it up again last week thinking it could get better the second time, only read about 10-15 pages. For the third and last time, today. And I was still struggling in reading the book. 

The Memory of Love is written in alternating POVs, first person for Marion (main character) and third person for Michael's story. Usually, I find the first person POV better than any other POVs. Though, this one is different. It was difficult for me to follow Marion's life story because she narrates her experiences in a very detailed manner that it got too wordy for my taste. I actually managed to get into the first quarter of the story. However, after a few more pages, I finally gave up. 

The book just didn't work for me. There are a lot of readers who loved the book, though. Click HERE to read their positive reviews.

About the book:

Fans of Astrid & Veronika and Chris Cleave's Little Bee will be thrilled to read Linda Olsson's third novel. Here is Olsson doing what she does best: illuminating the terrain of friendship and examining the many forms that love can take.

Marion Flint, in her early fifties, has spent fifteen years living a quiet life on the rugged coast of New Zealand, a life that allows the door to her past to remain firmly shut. But a chance meeting with a young boy, Ika, and her desire to help him force Marion to open the Pandora’s box of her memory. Seized by a sudden urgency to make sense of her past, she examines each image one-by-one: her grandfather, her mother, her brother, her lover. Perhaps if she can create order from the chaos, her memories will be easier to carry. Perhaps she’ll be able to find forgiveness for the little girl that was her. For the young woman she had been. For the people she left behind.

Olsson expertly interweaves scenes from Marion’s past with her quest to save Ika from his own tragic childhood, and renders with reflective tenderness the fragility of memory and the healing power of the heart.

About the author:

Linda Olsson was born in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1948. She graduated from the University of Stockholm with a law degree, and worked in law and finance until she left Sweden in 1986. What was intended as a three-year posting to Kenya then became a tour of the world with stops in Singapore, the U.K., and Japan, until she settled in New Zealand with her family in 1990. In 1993 she completed a bachelor of arts in English and German literature at Victoria University of Wellington. In 2003 she won the Sunday Star-Times Short Story Competition. Linda's first novel Astrid & Veronika became an international success, selling hundreds of thousands of copies in Scandinavia, Europe and the United States. It was followed by the heartbreaking and moving Sonata for Miriam. Olsson divides her time between Auckland, New Zealand and Stockholm, Sweden.

ARC Book Review: Shadow on the Crown by Patricia Bracewell

Shadow on the Crown 

Author: Patricia Bracewell
Paperback: 416 pages
Publisher: Viking Adult 
Amazon Link

Audible Audio Edition
Listening Length: 13 hours and 40 minutes
Program Type: Audiobook
Version: Unabridged
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Audible.com Release Date: February 7, 2013
Whispersync for Voice: Ready
Amazon Link


Note: I received a review copy of this book free from the publisher, Viking Adult/Penguin. The review posted below is based on my personal thoughts while reading the book.

Ratings: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

My thoughts:

Ethelred II, the Anglo-Saxon English king's wife had just died and he needed a new wife to please his counselors/advisers. There were two girls he could arrange to marry, one girl from the north and one from the south. Based on his careful analysis, an alliance from the south seemed far better than the north's. So King Ethelred II asked Richard II, Duke of Normandy to hand over his sister Emma, which at the time of request was only 15 years old. Richard II was hesitant at first to give up his young sister. After weighing things, he knew there's no other choice... he had to let Emma marry the English king because saying no to Ethelred II would mean war. 

So Emma went to England to marry the English king (age could be somewhere between 30-35?) but people from England aren't too happy about it. One English noble, Elgiva (the girl from the north) wanted to be a queen and she's determined to do everything to take Emma's crown. Emma knew that if she lost the crown, her life is doomed in England.

I totally loved this book and I found myself researching more about Queen Emma's life just to satisfy my curiosity. Shadow on the Crown was an easy read. The story flowed just right. The book didn't look like a historian work - in a positive way. There's some kind of simplicity in the stories, I didn't doubt any of the author's fictional tales. The characters, the English setting at the time and even the character's dialogue felt authentic. It's not hard to imagine the places and people those time period. Even, Emma's romantic relationship to one of the characters (fiction) felt real. Oh I love Emma, she's a very smart girl. She could have not survived the whole queen stuff if she's not smart. Just imagine a queen at the age of 15! 

Shadow on the Crown is the first book to a trilogy about Emma of Normandy. There are too many things to learn in this book as it is rich in historical facts. I thank the author for introducing Queen Emma to me and I can't wait to read book #2!

About the book:

A rich tale of power and forbidden love revolving around a young medieval queen...

In 1002, 15-year-old Emma of Normandy crosses the Narrow Sea to wed the much older King Athelred of England, whom she meets for the first time at the church door. Thrust into an unfamiliar and treacherous court, with a husband who mistrusts her, stepsons who resent her and a bewitching rival who covets her crown, Emma must defend herself against her enemies and secure her status as queen by bearing a son.

Determined to outmaneuver her adversaries, Emma forges alliances with influential men at court and wins the affection of the English people. But her growing love for a man who is not her husband and the imminent threat of a Viking invasion jeopardize both her crown and her life.

Based on real events recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Shadow on the Crown introduces listeners to a fascinating, overlooked period of history and an unforgettable heroine whose quest to find her place in the world will resonate with modern listeners.

About the author:

Patricia Bracewell is a native of California where she taught literature and composition before embarking upon her writing career. A lifelong fascination with British history and a chance, on-line reference to an unfamiliar English queen led to years of research, a summer history course at Downing College, Cambridge, and the penning of her debut novel SHADOW ON THE CROWN. 

Set in 11th century England, SHADOW is the first book of a trilogy about Emma of Normandy who was a queen in England and a power behind the throne for nearly four decades. Patricia is working on the two follow-up novels in the series, but takes time out for tennis, gardening and travel. She is the mother of two grown sons and lives with her husband in Northern California. 

Visit her website at http://www.patriciabracewell.com/

Giveaway Winner: Shadow on the Crown by Patricia Bracewell

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Christine D. 

Confirmation email sent, please reply with your mailing details. If you didn't win, you may join another upcoming giveaway next week.

Book Giveaway: SHADOW ON THE CROWN by Patricia Bracewell

A rich tale of power and forbidden love revolving around a young medieval queen

In 1002, fifteen­-year-old Emma of Normandy crosses the Narrow Sea to wed the much older King Athelred of England, whom she meets for the first time at the church door. Thrust into an unfamiliar and treacherous court, with a husband who mistrusts her, stepsons who resent her and a bewitching rival who covets her crown, Emma must defend herself against her enemies and secure her status as queen by bearing a son.

Determined to outmaneuver her adversaries, Emma forges alliances with influential men at court and wins the affection of the English people. But her growing love for a man who is not her husband and the imminent threat of a Viking invasion jeopardize both her crown and her life.

Based on real events recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Shadow on the Crown introduces readers to a fascinating, overlooked period of history and an unforgettable heroine whose quest to find her place in the world will resonate with modern readers.

GIVEAWAY GIVEAWAY GIVEAWAY

Penguin is giving away a paperback copy of SHADOW ON THE CROWN. This is open to readers and bloggers from the US and must be 18 years old and above.

  

To join the giveaway, just leave a comment with your email. Extra points will be given to those who will follow Bookingly Yours and share this post thru Facebook and Twitter with the link/s included in the comment section. Giveaway ends on February 20 and winner will be announced shortly thereafter.

GOODLUCK!!

Giveaway Winner: Thirteen by Kelly Armstrong

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Samantha R

Confirmation email sent, please reply with your mailing details.

If you didn't win, you may join another upcoming giveaway this week:

Book Giveaway: Thirteen by Kelly Armstrong

In 2001, Penguin published a story by an unknown author about a brash and independent, but fragile, young woman named Elena… who happened to be a werewolf. Bitten was the first installment of what would become the bestselling Otherworld series, and it introduced a fresh voice to the burgeoning urban fantasy scene—one that prized depth of character and narrative clarity over flashy magic and superpowers. 

In her Otherworld series alone, Kelley Armstrong has published twelve installments, ten of which were New York Times bestsellers. On top of her Otherworld series, she has balanced two New York Times bestselling young adult series, along with numerous novellas, anthologies and short stories. Rights to Armstrong’s novels have been sold in over twenty countries worldwide, and her peers, critics and fans have sung her praises since the beginning. Charlaine Harris raved, “There is never a slow moment… or a false line in Armstrong’s writing.”

It’s clear that her legions of devoted fans would agree: Eleven years later, Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld series is just as popular as ever, with relatable, unique, and beloved characters we’ve all come to adore—which is why it is so hard to say goodbye.

THIRTEEN (Dutton; July 24, 2012) will mark the final installment in the Otherworld series—something fans have been awaiting, and dreading, since the beginning. Featuring every single character—living and dead—since the first book, this stunning conclusion is the perfect farewell for Kelley’s fans.

The previous two installments, Waking the Witch and Spell Bound, reintroduced readers to Savannah Levine—the supernatural wonder girl of the Otherworld—who first appeared as a feisty twelve-year-old in the series’ second book, Stolen. Half-witch, half-sorcerer, Savannah’s remarkable power and pedigree have placed her in the crosshairs of a dangerous new group: the Supernatural Liberation Movement. They’ve kidnapped her brother, left her battered and bruised, and endangered the lives of her best friends, but when Savannah realizes just how far this fanatical sect is willing to go to expose the supernatural world to the unknowing, she must summon a strength she never knew she had.

Uniting Savannah with Elena, Clay, Adam, Paige, Lucas, Jaime, Hope, and dozens of other characters from her past in the ultimate battle for the fate of the Otherworld, Armstrong’s finale is both gripping and deeply satisfying.  Although predominantly in Savannah’s voice, THIRTEEN features chapters narrated by Jaime, Elena, and others, allowing readers one final moment with the distinct voices of their own favorite characters.

With the first-ever simultaneous on-sale date worldwide, July 24, 2012 will mark the bittersweet end of an era. Don’t miss your chance to wish the Otherworld a fond farewell.

A FINAL WORD FROM KELLEY ARMSTRONG

Some series begin with a grand, sweeping plan. Others with a single story. My series belongs to the second camp, and that single story was Bitten, written as a standalone novel, perhaps to be revisited in a few years with a sequel, but certainly not intended to launch a series. When my publishers raised the possibility, I was thrilled by the opportunity to spend more time with Bitten’s characters. But I couldn’t foresee a long-running series centered on my werewolves. I believed that having my Pack face an annual threat would get very old, very fast.

The solution was to expand my fictional universe. I decided not only would I bring in other supernatural types, but I’d spin off to new narrators, weaving a world that widened with every book.

It sounded like a great idea. Little did I realize that by the time Stolen came out, my readers would be happily settled in with Elena Michaels and her Pack, and wanting to follow them on countless more adventures. They really didn’t want me changing narrators, especially not switching to Paige, the over-confident young witch they’d met in Stolen.

So Paige’s first novel, Dime Store Magic, got off to a bumpy start. But I feel it was actually the book that truly launched the Otherworld as a series. It brought in a fresh crop of readers who were more comfortable with witches than werewolves. Most of the original readers stuck around, too, once they discovered that Paige wasn’t as bad as they’d feared.

By the time I returned to Elena in book six—Broken—I could see where I wanted the series to go—and also where it would end. So I began tipping in clues, though it was another five books before I launched the end-game with Waking the Witch, continuing it into Spell Bound and, finally, wrapping it up now with 13.

While some would say it would be fitting to return to Elena for this final story, I’ve always had another plan. Back in Stolen, I introduced twelve-year-old Savannah, and I dreamed that the series might run long enough for her to become an adult narrator. And so Savannah grew up in the series, wending her way through the lives of all the other characters, slowly maturing until, with Waking the Witch, she was ready to begin the journey that would, with 13, cement her place as a true “woman” of the Otherworld.

And yet I haven’t forgotten where it all began, and with whom. So before we begin the final journey, I’d like to take you for a quick trip into the past, back to Elena, to the prologue that launched the Otherworld series.

GIVE AWAY GIVE AWAY

Penguin is giving away one paperback copy of Thirteen by Kelly Armstrong, the long awaited final installment of the Otherworld series. The giveaway is open to book readers and bloggers from the U.S., and must be 18 years old and above.

To join the giveaway, just leave a comment with your email. Extra points will be given to those who will follow Bookingly Yours and share this post thru Facebook and Twitter with the link/s included in the comment section. Giveaway ends on August 15 and winner will be announced shortly thereafter. GOODLUCK!!

Book Review: Helen Keller In Love by Rosie Sultan

Helen Keller In Love


Author: Rosie Sultan
Hardbound: 256 pages
Publisher: Viking Adult (April 26, 2012)
Amazon Link


Note: I received a review copy of this book free from the publisher, Viking Adult. The review posted below is based on my personal thoughts while reading the book.

Ratings:  ★ ★ ★


My thoughts:


This is a novel based on Helen Keller's life. Though based on true story, the author wove a tale about Ms. Keller's life with the man she once loved, Peter Fagan.


It's been a while since the last time I read something based on a true story. I knew Ms. Keller's life story but nothing about her man, Peter Fagan. I didn't know she never married or maybe that part was intentionally omitted in history. Based on what I understand in the story, her teacher and her mother thought a disabled person (she was deaf and blind) should not marry. Poor Ms. Keller, never had the chance to experience having a family of her own.


While the story is interesting, I had issues concerning with the author's tale about Ms. Keller's life. Her instant attraction to Peter Fagan and "playful" dialogue made it seem unbelievable. The dialogue seemed too vulgar, highly unlikely to be her in my opinion. The book is narrated by Ms. Keller but often I get confused on the dialogue of some of the characters in the book. She was deaf and blind but in the book, it's like she can hear about all conversations going on around her. The flow of the story is continuous, most of the time I would forget that she's deaf and blind.  And then when I remember it, I would be confused with the whole narration. It was a challenging story to write for the author, but I have to admit that since this was my first time to read something with a deaf and blind character, there were too much complications in reading this. 


About the book:


A captivating novel that explores the little-known romance of a beloved American icon


Helen Keller has long been a towering figure in the pantheon of world heroines. Yet the enduring portrait of her in the popular imagination is The Miracle Worker, which ends when Helen is seven years old.


Rosie Sultan’s debut novel imagines a part of Keller’s life she rarely spoke of or wrote about: the man she once loved. When Helen is in her thirties and Annie Sullivan is diagnosed with tuberculosis, a young man steps in as a private secretary. Peter Fagan opens a new world to Helen, and their sensual interactions—signing and lip-reading with hands and fingers—quickly set in motion a liberating, passionate, and clandestine affair. It’s not long before Helen’s secret is discovered and met with stern disapproval from her family and Annie. As pressure mounts, the lovers plot to elope, and Helen is caught between the expectations of the people who love her and her most intimate desires.


Richly textured and deeply sympathetic, Sultan’s highly inventive telling of a story Keller herself would not tell is both a captivating romance and a rare glimpse into the mind and heart of an inspirational figure.


About the author:

Rosie Sultan won a PEN Discovery Award for fiction. She earned her MFA at Goddard College and was a fellow at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. She has taught writing at Boston University, the University of Massachusetts, and Suffolk University. She lives with her husband and son outside of Boston, Massachusetts.

Book Giveaway Winner: Escape From Camp 14 by Blaine Harden

Congratulations!!!!

Carl Scott

I just sent the confirmation email, please reply with your mailing details.

Thank you to the publisher, Penguin for the book giveaway!

Book Giveaway: Escape From Camp 14 by Blaine Harden

The shocking story of one of the few people born in a North Korean political prison to have escaped and survived. 
North Korea is isolated and hungry, bankrupt and belligerent. It is also armed with nuclear weapons. Between 150,000 and 200,000 people are being held in its political prison camps, which have existed twice as long as Stalin's Soviet gulags and twelve times as long as the Nazi concentration camps. Very few born and raised in these camps have escaped. But Shin Donghyuk did.


In Escape from Camp 14, acclaimed journalist Blaine Harden tells the story of Shin Dong-hyuk and through the lens of Shin's life unlocks the secrets of the world's most repressive totalitarian state. Shin knew nothing of civilized existence-he saw his mother as a competitor for food, guards raised him to be a snitch, and he witnessed the execution of his own family. Through Harden's harrowing narrative of Shin's life and remarkable escape, he offers an unequaled inside account of one of the world's darkest nations and a riveting tale of endurance, courage, and survival.

GIVEAWAYS GIVEAWAYS GIVEAWAYS

Penguin is giving away one paperback copy of Blaine Harden's Escape From Camp 14, and this is open to book readers and bloggers from the U.S. and Canada, must be 18 years old and above.
  
To join the book giveaway, just follow Bookingly Yours, leave a comment with your email. Extra points will be given to those who will share this post thru Facebook and/or Twitter, with the link/s included in the comment section. Book give away will end on May 3 and the winner will be announced shortly thereafter. 

Book Review: Escape from Camp 14 by Blaine Harden

Escape from Camp 14
One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West


Author: Blaine Harden
Hardcover: 224 pages 
Publisher: Viking Adult (March 29, 2012)
Amazon Link


Note: I received a review copy of this book free from the publisher, Viking Adult. The review posted below is based on my personal thoughts while reading the book.


Ratings: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★


My thoughts:


North Korea. I have always been interested in this country for years so when Penguin approached me for a review, I instantly said yes.  The book is about Shin Dong-hyuk life story, the only North Korean  known to have escaped Camp 14, a prison/labor camp for the political enemies of North Korea.  

Reading the first two to three chapters, I was a bit hesitant to read more because of the gory things (beating children to death, execution by hanging, firing squad, etc.) mentioned in this book and the fact that these are really happening in North Korea.  I was so absorbed by it, felt like my eyes were glued to the pages of the book. This is the book I cannot say I enjoyed reading, it was actually painful to read Shin's story but I just couldn't stop. Imagine, Shin's first memory was an execution of one prisoner from Camp 14, he was just four, a baby to our eyes. However, for Shin, and other North Korean prisoners, babies or not, they must be exposed to almost "daily" execution.

Some years later, Shin was again forced by the prison guards to witness the execution of his own mother and brother. They were executed because they tried to escape.  Reading this book was like reading Hitler's Holocaust stories. I nearly cried when I finished this book. How he managed to survive and  escape from the brutality of North Korean militaries was absolutely unbelievable. No one escaped camp 14 but Shin did.

Frankly, I don't understand myself. Why should I be interested with North Koreans or even Hitler's stories? I don't really have an answer for that. Perhaps it is because every time I read  things like this, I appreciate and value life more.

I highly recommend this, totally a life-changing book that one would not stop reading until the last pages of the book.

About the book:

The shocking story of one of the few people born in a North Korean political prison to have escaped and survived.


North Korea is isolated and hungry, bankrupt and belligerent. It is also armed with nuclear weapons. Between 150,000 and 200,000 people are being held in its political prison camps, which have existed twice as long as Stalin's Soviet gulags and twelve times as long as the Nazi concentration camps. Very few born and raised in these camps have escaped. But Shin Donghyuk did.


In Escape from Camp 14, acclaimed journalist Blaine Harden tells the story of Shin Dong-hyuk and through the lens of Shin's life unlocks the secrets of the world's most repressive totalitarian state. Shin knew nothing of civilized existence-he saw his mother as a competitor for food, guards raised him to be a snitch, and he witnessed the execution of his own family. Through Harden's harrowing narrative of Shin's life and remarkable escape, he offers an unequaled inside account of one of the world's darkest nations and a riveting tale of endurance, courage, and survival.


About the Author:

Blaine Harden is an author and journalist who reports for PBS Frontline and contributes to The Economist. He worked for The Washington Post in Africa, Eastern Europe and Asia, as well as in New York and Seattle. He was also a roving national correspondent for The New York Times and writer for the Times Magazine.


His most recent book is Escape From Camp 14. It's the story of Shin Dong-hyuk, the only person to have been born and raised in a North Korean prison camp -- and to have escaped to the West. It will published in late March in the United States by Viking, and in much of Europe in April. In a pre-publication review, Publisher's Weekly said Escape from Camp 14 "reads like a dystopian thriller."


Blaine is also the author of A River Lost. It's about well-intentioned Americans (including the author's father) who dammed and degraded the West's greatest river, the Columbia. The New York Times called it a "hard-nosed, tough-minded, clear-eyed dispatch on the sort of contentious subject that is almost always distorted by ideology or obscured by a fog of sentiment." An updated and revised edition of A River Lost will be published by Norton in the spring of 2012 to coincide with a PBS American Experience program about Grand Coulee Dam and the Columbia River.


Blaine's first book, Africa: Dispatches from a Fragile Continent, was described by The Independent (London) as the "best contemporary book on Africa."


Blaine lives in Seattle with his wife Jessica and their two children, Lucinda and Arno.

Book Give away Winner: The Darlings by Cristina Alger

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Enemy Through The Gates by DT Dyllin

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Book Giveaway: The Darlings by Cristina Alger

A sophisticated page-turner about a wealthy New York family embroiled in a financial scandal with cataclysmic consequences.


Now that he's married to Merrill Darling, daughter of billionaire financier Carter Darling, attorney Paul Ross has grown accustomed to New York society and all of its luxuries: a Park Avenue apartment, weekends in the Hamptons, bespoke suits. When Paul loses his job, Carter offers him the chance to head the legal team at his hedge fund. Thrilled with his good fortune in the midst of the worst financial downturn since the Great Depression, Paul accepts the position.


But Paul's luck is about to shift: a tragic event catapults the Darling family into the media spotlight, a regulatory investigation, and a red-hot scandal with enormous implications for everyone involved. Suddenly, Paul must decide where his loyalties lie-will he save himself while betraying his wife and in-laws or protect the family business at all costs?


Cristina Alger's glittering debut novel interweaves the narratives of the Darling family, two eager SEC attorneys, and a team of journalists all racing to uncover-or cover up-the truth. With echoes of a fictional "Too Big to Fail" and the novels of Dominick Dunne, "The Darlings" offers an irresistible glimpse into the highest echelons of New York society-a world seldom seen by outsiders-and a fast-paced thriller of epic proportions.

GIVEAWAY GIVEAWAY GIVEAWAY

Penguin is giving away a paperback copy of The Darlings. This is open to readers and bloggers from the US and Canada, and must be 18 years old and above.
  
To join the giveaway, just follow Bookingly Yours, leave a comment with your email or comment and email me at kaori.books@gmail.com with the subject "Cristina Alger giveaway". This give away will end on March 7 and the winner will be announced shortly thereafter. 


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