Author: David McCullough
Genre: Non-fiction
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2019
Pages: 352
Rating: Recommend
Synopsis: As part of the Treaty of Paris, in which Great Britain recognized the new United States of America, Britain ceded the land that compromised the immense Northwest Territory, a wilderness empire northwest of the Ohio River containing the future states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. A Massachusetts minister named Manasseh Cutler was instrumental in opening this vast territory to veterans of the Revolutionary War and their families for settlement. Included in the Northwest Ordinance were three remarkable conditions: freedom of religion, free universal education, and most importantly, the prohibition of slavery.
In 1788 the first bad of pioneers set out from New England for the Northwest Territory under the leadership of the Revolutionary War veteran General Rufus Putnam. They settled in what is now Marietta on the banks of the Ohio River.
McCullough tells the story through five major characters: Cutler and Putnam, Cutler's son Ephraim; and two other men, one a carpenter turned architect, and the other a physician who became a prominent pioneer in American science. They and their families created a town in primeval wilderness, while coping with such frontier realities as floods, fires, wolves, and bears, no road or bridges, no guarantees of any sort, all the while negotiating a contentious and sometimes hostile relationship with the native people. Like so many of McCullough's subjects, they let no obstacle deter or defeat them.
Review: When I saw this was about pioneers, I assumed this would be a story of a trail, or the trails, westward. However, had I read the jacket, I would have realized this was about the settlement of the Northwest Territory, which is now in part, the state of Ohio, specifically the town of Marietta.
Within the first 30 pages, I told my husband that we needed to plan a long weekend in Marietta, so clearly I was hooked. While this never really picked up momentum and became "unputdownable," it was interesting.
Author: Elizabeth Jeffrey
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Seven House Publishers, 2014
Pages: 224
Rating: Recommend
Synopsis: August 1914. The silver wedding celebrations of Sir George Barsham, MP, and his wife Lady Adelaide are overshadowed by the declaration of war with Germany. Over the following months, as the male estate workers head for the Front and the maids disappear to work in the newly-opened munitions factory, the Barsham family's comfortable, aristocratic lifestyle is set to change forever.
Determined to do his bit for King and country, James Barsham enlists as an office and heads for Flanders leaving Lady Adelaide's maid Polly devastated. To Lady Adelaide's dismay, her younger daughter Millie learns to drive an ambulance, a most unladylike skill. Meanwhile, Millie's sister Gina finds fulfillment in helping the local wives and children, left destitute while their husband's are away fighting.
During the course of the war, with devastating loses, the strength of character of the four Barsham siblings will be tested as never before. They encounter hardship, danger, heartache - and unexpected love.
Review: This book caught my attention on a scroll through Pinterest recommendations.
Beautiful Cover. . .check
World War 1. . .check
Family Saga. . .check check check
I was shocked when I picked it up from the library, and it was so skinny, 224 pages skinny.
I actually really liked this book, but it's not without problems. It's not expansive enough to be a true family saga, the characters are stereotypes, and the plot is predictable. For historical fiction though, the author is skilled in weaving a story.
Author: Maria Semple
Genre: Fiction / Satire
Publisher: Little, Brown, and Company, 2013
Pages: 330
Rating: Highly Recommend
Synopsis: Bernadette Fox has vanished.
While her daughter Bee claims a family trip to Antarctica as a reward for perfect grades, Bernadette, a fiercely intelligent shut-in, throws herself into preparations for the trip. But worn down by years of trying to live the Seattle life she never wanted, Ms. Fox is on the brink of a meltdown. And after a school fundraiser goes disastrously awry at her hands, she disappears, leaving her family to pick up the pieces.
Which is exactly what Bee does, weaving together an elaborate web of emails, invoices, and school memos that reveals a secret past Bernadette has been hiding for decades. Where'd You Go Bernadette is an ingenious and unabashedly entertaining novel about a family coming to terms with who they are, and the power of a daughter's love for her mother.
Review: This has been on my "to be read" list for quite awhile now. I was browsing the library's audio books and this one jumped out at me.
In a word, entertaining. In two words, entertaining and quirky. This audio was great, although I think it'd be pretty funny in print as well. The movie is due out in August. I actually think I'm going to watch it.
Author: Chip Cheek
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Celedon Books, 2019
Pages: 256
Rating: Do Not Recommend
Synopsis: Late September 1957. Henry and Effie, very young newlyweds from George, arrive in Cape May, New Jersey, for their honeymoon only to find the town deserted. Feeling shy of each other and isolated, they decide to cut the trip short. But before they leave, they meet a glamorous set of people who sweep them up into their drama. Clara, a beautiful socialite who feels her youth slipping away; Max a wealthy playboy and Clara's lover; and Alma, Max's aloof and mysterious half-sister, to whom Henry is irresistibly drawn. The empty beach town becomes their playground, and as they sneak into abandoned summer homes, go sailing, walk naked under the stars, make love, and drink a great deal of gin, Henry and Effie slip from innocence into betrayal, with irrevocable consequences.
Erotic and moving, this is a novel about marriage, love and sexuality, and the lifelong repercussions that meeting a group of debauched cosmopolitans has on a new marriage.
Review: First, let's talk about the cover. It's so pretty and nostalgic. In fact, that's why I read the book despite reading some negative reviews, and knowing this would contain graphic sex, which really isn't my thing.
I tend to shy away from men writing women, but decided to give this guy a chance because. . .the cover.
Cape May actually started on with a good premise, and the writing was decent. I could see a story developing. With the exception of the last chapter, the final 1/4 of the book was nothing but sex, graphic sex. I suspect that section of the book is what the author actually wanted to write, but he had to build some kind of story around it to sell it. I skimmed over it, but actually felt like the first 1/2 of the book, and the last chapter were decent. The author has potential, but not everything you want to write has to be published. Reign it in a bit, and voila. Of course I realize this is just my opinion, and there are plenty of people who won't have an issue with it.
Also worth noting, the setting of this novel is immaterial. This won't give you a glimpse of vintage Cape May. The events in this story could have happened anywhere.
This author has a young (baby) daughter, and at some point she is probably going to want to read what he wrote. This isn't what I want to picture my dad writing, and I'll leave it at that.
Author: Melinda Leigh
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Amazon Publishing, 2019
Pages: 330
Rating: Highly Recommend
Note: Each book in this series could be read as a stand-alone novel, but I recommend reading each book in order. They're all good.
Synopsis: When a retired sheriff's deputy is shot to death in his home, his troubled teenage stepson, Evan, becomes the prime suspect. Even more incriminating, the boy disappeared from the scene of the crime. Desperate to find her son, Evan's mother begs PI Lance Kruger for help. She knows her son is innocent. Kruger and defense attorney Morgan Dane want to believe that too, but the evidence against the boy is damning. Just as the trail goes cold, another deputy vanishes. His shocking connection to Evan's stepfather throws the investigation into chaos as Lance and Morgan fear the worst. . .that Evan is the killer's new target.
With so many secrets to unravel, will Lance and Morgan find him before it's too late.
Review: The books in this series are one sitting reads for me. I don't even start one until I know I can read it cover to cover.
That said, Leigh backed way off of the romance between Kruger and Dane in latest novel, which is a shame, but I know it's because she came under fire for the graphic scenes between them in the previous novel. However, this was too much the opposite direction. As she did in the first 3 books, she needs to weave their love story into the pages because it gives these fictional characters life.
The thriller side of this was good. Once again I wasn't sure who was behind the murder.
I freaking love this series.
The Morgan Dane series
1 Say You're Sorry
2 Her Last Goodbye
3 Bones Don't Lie
4 What I've Done
5 Secrets Never Die
6 Save Your Breath
Author: Barry Strauss
Genre: Non-fiction / Biography
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2019
Pages: 432
Rating: Recommend
Synopsis: Barry Strauss' Ten Caesars is the story of the Roman Empire from rise to reinvention, from Augustus, who founded the empire, to Constantine, who made it Christian and moved the capital east to Constantinople.
During these centuries Rome gained in splendor and territory, then lost both. The empire reached from modern-day Britain to Iraq, and gradually emperors came not from the old families of the first century but from men born in the provinces, some of whom had never even seen Rome. By the fourth century, the time of Constantine, the Roman Empire had changed so dramatically in geography, ethnicity, religion, and culture that it would have been virtually unrecognizable to Augustus.
In the imperial era Roman women - mothers, wives, mistresses - had substantial influence over the emperors, and Strauss also profiles the most important among them, from Livia, Augustus' wife, to Helena, Constantine's mother. But even women in the imperial family faced limits and the emperors often forced them to marry or divorce for purely political reasons.
Rome's legacy remains today in so many ways, from language, law, and architecture to the seat of the Roman Catholic Church. Strauss examines this enduring heritage through the lives of the men who shaped it: Augustus, Tiberius, Nero, Vespasian, Trajan, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius, Septimius Severus, Diocletian, and Constantine. Over the ages they learned to maintain the family business - the government of an empire - by adapting when necessary and always persevering no matter the cost. Ten Caesars is an essential history as well as a fascinating biography.
Review: I found this book so interesting. I didn't know much about the leaders of the ancient Roman Empire, and this delivered. It's not fast reading, but it isn't dry either. Each of the ten Caesars has his own chapter, and within each chapter are sections broken down by highlights of his life and career. Smart formatting, and easily digested.
Synopsis: As part of the Treaty of Paris, in which Great Britain recognized the new United States of America, Britain ceded the land that compromised the immense Northwest Territory, a wilderness empire northwest of the Ohio River containing the future states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. A Massachusetts minister named Manasseh Cutler was instrumental in opening this vast territory to veterans of the Revolutionary War and their families for settlement. Included in the Northwest Ordinance were three remarkable conditions: freedom of religion, free universal education, and most importantly, the prohibition of slavery. 
