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Writing, Reading, and Rural Life With a Border Collie

Author Archives: Eowyn


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Why ‘Falling Into Magic’ Is Like a Denver Omelet

 

Falling Into Magic (Better Beginnings, November 2020)

By Elizabeth Pantley

Mystery/Romance/Humor

Ever been up to your eyebrows in a dense-as-a-pea-soup-fog read? You come up for air, ravenous. Wipe the sweat off your brow. And look around for something light. Fluffy. Fun and delish. The literary version of a Denver omelet.

Falling Into Magic is that kind of a book.

Hayden is an editor/writer for Seattle-based Natural Living Magazine. She likes to write, read, and hike. Hayden also owns a Himalayan cat (nobody’s perfect.) The cat thinks she’s queen of the world. Cuz she really is. (Kimber: You think I’ve got attitude? Wait till you get a load of miss feline sassy pants, Toots.)

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Meaning of ‘Home’ & ‘Family” Probed in Evocative Historical Fiction

The Children’s Train (Harper Collins, 2021)

By Viola Ardone

Historical Fiction

This book may not be what you think it is. Yes, it’s an historical fiction account of an effort to help impoverished children in southern Italy by transporting them by train to better off families in northern Italy in the aftermath of World War II. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg – or the shoe – in this hauntingly beautiful novel spanning some fifty years.

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When “Always Love You” Needs a Warning Label

I Will Always Love You

By Ashley Lee London

Kimber here. I’m on the job. Talking Her Crankiness down from The Cliffs of Insanity. (You’ll get that if you get “As you wish.”)

Why is Mom up there? Well. It all started with a book blog tour. And, oh Lassie! Did those guys ever step in it! Here’s what happened:

1. The back cover blurb on this book is off base by about a mile and a half. Talk about misleading. Not a good start, folks.

2. The print quality of this book is atrocious. Hard to believe anyone would send out a book with so many pages in this condition. Great day in the ouchie! (See photo.)

3. Then, tour organizers only wanted positive reviews. Read: Not honest ones.

Nope

Mom and I? We don’t roll that way. So we bowed out of the tour. Here’s our honest review instead:

 

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Set Sail for ‘Hope’ With Rousing Historical Ficiton

Acts of Hope (2020)

BookLife

By Martin Elsant

Historical Fiction

Perditus qui haesitat.

Acts of Hope is a prodigious tome of epic proportions. Set in the 16th century, the story adeptly navigates the serpentine coils of political, cultural and ecclesiastical clashes in multiple countries from England to the Holy Land. Also pirates. Forgeries. Narrow escapes. Double-crosses and desperate battles. Revenge and forgiveness. Steadfast courage and stalwart faith in the face of overwhelming odds. True love. And hope.

An enjoyable historical novel, this book features study characters, exotic settings, and a solid, engaging plot.

The story opens off the Portuguese coast as Diego Lopes and his daughter Maria flee the Inquisition. Their ship is bound for Diego’s estate in Bristol, England. When Maria’s father dies later as a result of wounds suffered during his arrest per the Inquisition, Maria takes over his substantial shipping business, becoming one of the wealthiest women in the world.

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GUEST POST: How to Fail at Blogging or Succeed With Reverse Psychology

Gang way! Dog on a mission!

Mom and I have a mission here. We do honest book reviews. They’re not everyone’s bowl of kibble. Fine. If you’re reading along, you probably already know that.

But what you may not know is that we just bowed out of a book blog tour because the tour organizer wanted rainbows and roses, sunshine and unicorns only regarding the book in question. We don’t roll that way. We do For Real here. (More on that later.)

So when this honest, down-to-earth guest post by one of our new favorite writers, D.L. Kennedy, came along, it resonated. (D.L. Kennedy is the author of Thirteen Miracles. Read our full review here.) If you’re a discouraged blogger or a struggling blogger, this one’s for you. Take it away, D.L.:

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5 Simple Strategies to Build Your Blog

 

Does this sound familiar:

Are you are blogger? Would you like to control your own schedule? Do you want and make money at it? How about making enough money from your blog to be able to quit your job and blog full time? Let me show you how to build a money making blog!

 

Just enroll in my specially-discounted razzle-dazzle on-line course and you can make money with your blog, too!

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‘Blood Countess’ Poses Strange Dichotomy

Blood Countess

Blood Countess (Lady Slayers)

Barnes & Noble

(Amulet Books, 2020)

By Lana Popovic

Historical Fiction/YA

“Sick puppy,” says I, Kimber the Magnificent.

“No kidding,” Mom rejoins. “Seriously off her rocker.”

I’m not sure what a “rocker” is. But the antagonist in this book, Countess Elizabeth Bathory of Hungary, is off it by about a mile and a half.

This is a weird book to peg or review. Mom started it the other night. She kept me up until one in the morning finishing it. Ugh!

It’s a gripping read. For sure.

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Finding Treasure in ‘The Lost Jewels’

The Lost Jewels

The Lost Jewels: A Novel

Barnes & Noble

(Harper Collins, 2020)

By Kristy Manning

Historical fiction

 

How can a heart be full of both sorrow and joy?

 

That’s the salient question at the core of this finely crafted historical novel by Kristy Manning. An ambitious undertaking, The Lost Jewels spans some four hundred years between 17th century London and modern day Boston. It features two strong female characters, Essie Murphy in the early 19th century, and Kate Kirby, present day jewelry historian.

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Why Did The Chicken Bus Cross the Road?

Adventure by Chicken Bus: An Unschooling Odyssey Through Central America (Resource Publications, 2019)

 

By Janet LoSole

Non-fiction
hi res ABCB.jpg

When the author first reached out to me requesting a review, I didn’t know what to think about this book. As in, What’s a ‘chicken bus’?* (Kimber: “Can I eat it?”) I was dangling on the rim edge of Not Interested. As a veteran homeschooler myself, however, I decided to give it a chance.

What a ride.

 

Adventure by Chicken Bus is a thoroughly entertaining, fascinating ride along with a family of four as they travel through Central America over the course of roughly a year and a half. With two little girls in tow, ages then-five and eight, the LoSoles roam all over the region, including the Caribbean coast, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, and Mexico.

It’s quite the odyssey. Continue reading →


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‘Invisible’ & ‘Unbroken’: Two Remarkable WWII Reads

Combining history and biography can be a challenge, especially when the setting is a world war. But two recently read books do that and more, offering compelling reads that shouldn’t be missed. Both are set in WWII.

Here they are:

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