Black Venus: A Novel by James MacManus

(Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!)

about book:

A VIVID NOVEL OF CHARLES BAUDELAIRE AND HIS LOVER JEANNE DUVAL, THE HAITIAN CABARET SINGER WHO INSPIRED HIS MOST FAMOUS AND CONTROVERSIAL POEMS, SET IN NINETEENTH-CENTURY PARIS.

For readers who have been drawn to The Paris Wife, Black Venus captures the artistic scene in the great French city decades earlier, when the likes of Dumas and Balzac argued literature in the cafes of the Left Bank.  Among the bohemians, the young Charles Baudelaire stood out - dressed impeccably thanks to an inheritance that was quickly vanishing.  Still at work on the poems that he hoped would make his name, he spent his nights enjoying the alcohol, opium, and women who filled the seedy streets of the city.

One woman who would catch his eye - a beautiful Haitian cabaret singer named Jeanne Duval.  Their lives would remain forever intertwined thereafter, and their romance would inspire his most infamous poems - leading to the banning of his masterwork, Les Fleurs du Mal, and a scandalous public trial for obscenity.

Black Venus re-creates the classic Parisian literary world in vivid detail, complete with not just an affecting portrait of the famous poet but also of his often misunderstood, much-maligned muse.

my thoughts:

OMG! Literary historical fiction is where its at!! I could not, nay, would not put down Black Venus until I had read the last page.  The book was just so damn captivating - it had me at Charles Baudelaire!!  Seriously, this book is one of the BEST Lit/Hist fiction books I've ever read.  It had drama, love, obsession, poetry, scandal, opium, infidelity, a trial, and heartbreak.  This book was like a well written soap opera (which I'm a fan of - yes, I used to be addicted to Y&R, Days, Passions, etc.) and I was hooked.

James MacManus writes about Paris in the 1800s and let me just say, his vivid descriptions and historical details provide a clear picture of the scene.  I could easily imagine the clothing, the decadence, and debauched lifestyle embraced by Charles Baudelaire and his mistress.  And I could even smell the foods, perfumes and rain soaked streets of Paris and found myself dizzy with excitement for this book, this story.  Yep, MacManus had me at his book's cover.  I was intrigued by the woman and her stance - it left me wondering who she was and what had happened to her.  Let me tell you, this is one tough lady who manages to get what she needs and wants and has no qualms about exploiting her sexuality to do so.  She's cunning, beautiful, and quite an inspiration to a certain poet named Charles Baudelaire.  Their relationship is filled with crazy drama involving infidelity, opium addiction, and desire.  For some reason they can't seem to let one another go, in spite of the fact that they are so bad for each other.  Its fascinating to read all about it - I swear you can't help but get caught up in it all.  Especially, when there is poetry at stake.

Baudelaire is taken to task for his work - its considered to be too explicit.  He has to endure a trial where the court is charging him for being so scandalous in his poetry.  His goal has always been to write poems that are are about life, which means that they will be about love, passion, sex, drugs, etc.  He does not want to go down in history as a poet who wrote about horses, flowers, and sunsets.  However, what he wants may just come at a price.  Exciting, eh?

Well, believe me, it really is.  So, yes, I would most definitely recommend this terrific new book, Black Venus to anyone and everyone who is a fan of literary fiction, historical fiction, and Charles Baudelaire - you will LOVE this book!!

Check out this video of author, James MacManus talking about his fantastic new novel, Black Venus:


He makes you want to read his book, doesn't he?  Well, go for it!  You'll be glad you did - I know I am.


Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!

Sleeping in Eden: A Novel by Nicole Baart

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book.

about book:

She knew what he wrote . . .

One little word that made her feel both cheated and beloved.

One word that changed everything.

MINE.

On a chilly morning in the Northwest Iowa town of Blackhawk, Dr. Lucas Hudson is filling in for the vacationing coroner on a seemingly open-and-shut suicide case. His own life is crumbling around him, but when he unearths the body of a woman buried in the barn floor beneath the hanging corpse, he realizes this terrible discovery could change everything. . . .

Years before Lucas ever set foot in Blackhawk, Meg Painter met Dylan Reid. It was the summer before high school and the two quickly became inseparable. Although Meg’s older neighbor, Jess, was the safe choice, she couldn’t let go of Dylan no matter how hard she tried.

Caught in a web of jealousy and deceit that spiraled out of control, Meg’s choices in the past ultimately collide with Lucas’s discovery in the present, weaving together a taut story of unspoken secrets and the raw, complex passions of innocence lost.

my thoughts:

What a terrific mystery!  I really enjoyed reading Nicole Baart's novel, Sleeping in Eden.  It was filled with intrigue, love, murder, and deceit.  Told through the eyes of two different characters from two different time periods, you get a mix of the past and present.  You find yourself going back and forth between Lucas and Meg and getting caught up in their dramas, all the while wondering which way Baart was going with her story - how were Meg and Lucas's stories even connected?  It made for some intense reading and required me to plunk down in bed with this book all night just to find out.  Suffice it to say, Baart kept me guessing the whole way through and left me going, "Wow!" in the end.

This is one book that I would most definitely recommend to fans of mystery/suspense novels - you will not be disappointed!  The writing is terrific - its engaging, vivid, descriptive and quite captivating.  The characters are unforgettable and easy to relate to.  And the story is just so darn good, you won't be able to put this book down for anything!

Check out Nicole Baart's website to find out more about her book, Sleeping in Eden!

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!

What A Mother Knows: A Novel by Leslie Lehr

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book.

about book:

An unsettling, emotional and suspenseful novel of the unshakable bonds of motherhood, in which Michelle Mason not only loses her memory after a deadly car crash, but can't find her 16-year-old daughter, the one person who may know what happened that day. But the deeper Michelle digs, the more she questions the innocence of everyone, even herself. A dramatic portrayal of the fragile skin of memory, What A Mother Knows is about finding the truth that can set love free.

my thoughts:

I absolutely loved reading What A Mother Knows by Leslie Lehr!  I couldn't put this book down - I was turning the pages so fast on my kindle that it froze and I screamed in frustration waiting for it to unfreeze (UGH!).  Anyhow, my point is that the book was riveting.  Reading about Michelle's struggle to figure out what happened to her and her daughter was nail-biting.  I'm not a mom, but I can only imagine the pain and terror Michelle must have felt not knowing where her daughter was or what was happening to her.  Plus, there is the tried and true 'mother's instinct' that kicks in when something is amiss and believe you me, it kicks into overdrive in Michelle and once it does - there is no turning back!

Twists and turns drive this story all the way through - you can't help but find yourself second guessing Michelle's actions or even your own predictions for what is about to happen (it is crazy fun!).  Especially when you begin to realize that maybe Michelle's memory isn't as reliable as you had thought it to be.  I swear I was on the edge of my seat the whole time I read this book and I loved every minute of it.  This is one book that I would happily recommend to everyone anyone who is a fan of mystery/thriller/suspense novels - you will love this book!

Here's the link to the schedule for this book's blog tour: What A Mother Knows - check it out!

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!

GIVEAWAY & REVIEW: A Dual Inheritance: A Novel by Joanna Hershon

Thank you to TLC Book Tours and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book.

about book:

For readers of Rules of Civility and The Marriage Plot, Joanna Hershon’s A Dual Inheritance is an engrossing novel of passion, friendship, betrayal, and class—and their reverberations across generations.

Autumn 1962: Ed Cantowitz and Hugh Shipley meet in their final year at Harvard. Ed is far removed from Hugh’s privileged upbringing as a Boston Brahmin, yet his drive and ambition outpace Hugh’s ambivalence about his own life. These two young men form an unlikely friendship, bolstered by a fierce shared desire to transcend their circumstances. But in just a few short years, not only do their paths diverge—one rising on Wall Street, the other becoming a kind of global humanitarian—but their friendship ends abruptly, with only one of them understanding why.

Can a friendship define your view of the world? Spanning from the Cuban Missile Crisis to the present-day stock market collapse, with locations as diverse as Dar es Salaam, Boston, Shenzhen, and Fishers Island, A Dual Inheritance asks this question, as it follows not only these two men, but the complicated women in their vastly different lives. And as Ed and Hugh grow farther and farther apart, they remain uniquely—even surprisingly—connected.

my thoughts:

A Dual Inheritance is a well written novel about the decades long friendship between two college classmates.  We get to know them as they get to know one another.  We see these young men grow up into adults and become husbands and fathers.  There is Ed, the guy from the wrong side of the tracks who is focused on making something of himself; and then there is Hugh, the guy who was born into money and privilege (the world that Ed so desperately wants to be a part of).  As these two men struggle to figure out their lives, their friendship blossoms and then abruptly ends (can't say why, because I don't want to spoil anything).  We see the different paths their lives take them on and get to meet their daughters - who wind up attending the same boarding school and befriending one another (a sign that perhaps Ed and Hugh are always meant to be in one another's lives?). 

All I can say is that Hershon has outdone herself with this terrific book about friendship, family, love, and life.  The beginning is a bit slow-paced and takes awhile to get into, but once you are in, well, you are in for the count.  You won't want to put the book down for anything - believe me, I didn't.  I passed on phone calls, television, and even dessert just so I could keep on reading. I loved the engaging characters and intriguing story line - this book kept my interest the whole way through.  Of course, I love character-driven stories, especially ones about friendship - so, this book was right up my alley.  I would definitely recommend this book (and believe me, I will!).

GIVEAWAY:  Thanks to the publisher and TLC Book Tours I have one copy of A Dual Inheritance to give away!! All you have to do is leave me a comment and your name will be thrown in the hat to win.  Oh, don't forget to include your email addresses, so that I can contact you if you win.  US residents only!  The giveaway runs through May 30th.  Good luck!! 

Thank you to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book!

A Beautiful Mess by Ali Berlinski

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book.

about book:

 Imagine what your life would be like if you laughed through all the mayhem. Ali Berlinski is an expert on making complicated family relationships and messy situations comedic. A biracial child of divorce, Ali grew up between two coasts and two families. With a gay deaf brother, ex-nanny step mother, and celebrity ex, it's no surprise that her personal life served as the fodder behind her first book, a beautiful mess.

Through personal anecdotes Ali explains how laughter helped her to embrace the lighter side of heartache, her stepmother's cancer, and even depression. Her story reminds us that sometimes we all need a little help laughing at our problems. Ali Berlinski will help you say yes to your mess.

my thoughts:

Love! Love! Love! I loved A Beautiful Mess by Ali Berlinski!  It was the perfect read for a rainy day - it picked me up and made me think about some things that I hadn't thought about in ages.  I found myself quite reflective as I thumbed through the pages and kept on reading about this woman's journey of self-discovery.  It was easy to identify with her on a personal level, because I've also had to deal with questions about my ethnicity, identity.  And, who hasn't endured heartbreak with a guy who you just can't seem to let go of, because he feels like he's THE ONE, but deep down you know he's not.  Oh, and the family drama - well, who doesn't have enough of that in their own family?  Of course, mine isn't as heartbreaking as Berlinski's, which I'm super grateful for.  

The author's openness about such personal experiences was refreshing and inspiring.  Her book of essays was filled with humor, emotion and raw honesty.  The topics she wrote about are all ones we can relate to, which makes reading this book feel as if you are having a chat with a good pal over a cup of tea.  I found myself engaged with this book from start to finish.   On a side note, I have noticed some people complaining about the part in the book where Berlinski bashes Elizabeth Gilbert's book Eat, Pray, Love - I have to admit that I didn't mind that part at all.  I wasn't a huge fan of that book and can understand Berlinski's dislike for it - especially, considering the fact that every time she mentioned her plans to move abroad and write, everyone would mention Gilbert to her (as if she was going to copy Eat, Pray, Love).  I just think its funny that people took such offense to Berlinski not being a fan of Gilbert - wasn't this supposed to be a book of personal essays, which means it consists of personal opinions?  So, if she didn't like the book, she didn't like it - big deal!  And, even if she was just jealous of Gilbert, so what?  Its crazy the things that people are sticklers about, isn't?  But I digress...

The bottom line is that I loved this book!  I enjoyed the book's candor and humor.  I found it to be a quick and short read that really gave me food for thought.  I would most definitely recommend A Beautiful Mess to fans of essayists and memoirs. 

To find out more about the author Ali Berlinski, check out her website.  

I would like to thank the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book.