A Mother and Daughter lose their dream

Recently I read two pieces of historical fiction by Philippa Gregory and while I enjoyed them both, I had a definite preference.

The book I preferred was The Constant Princess, a book about the early English years of Katharine of Aragon (otherwise known as the wife before Anne Boleyn). This book, told in her point of view, was a compelling tale of a Spanish princess taken from her home and thrust into a new country. Highly recommended. The story ends early in her life, years before Anne or Mary Boleyn enter the picture. You see not the old proud queen who watches her husband take lovers, but the young princess and queen who fights and never gives up. Currently my second favorite Gregory novel

Following this I read The Queen's Fool, a book told in the point of view of fictional Hannah Green, a young Jewish girl with "the Sight." Through the help of Robert Dudley and John Dee, Hannah finds herself at the court of Lady (and later Queen) Mary and caught between the battle between Queen Mary and her sister, Princess Elizabeth. While I enjoyed Hannah's story, it was hard after so many of Gregory's novels putting me into the minds of historical figures watching them from the outside. Hannah being in just the right place at the right time started to border on ridiculous and I found myself wanting more of Mary and Elizabeth. In another book of Gregory's I read she told the story from three point of views, something I feel may have worked better in this piece.

Still, I'm a fan of the author and look forward to reading more of her work.

Playing Catch Up

I know it's been a while since I've posted but I have been reading. Not as much as usual but that's what happens when you go back to school. Anyhow, here are mini reviews of what I've read over the past few months and if anyone wants more I'll write a full review upon request. I believe this covers everything though I may be forgetting something.

Breaking Dawn - Really weird plot twists but they served to tie together loose ends and complaints I'd had about the other books.

Queen of Babble - Fun. Loveable character.

Elements of Style - Had what The Emperers Children was lacking but was still missing something.

Queen of Babble in the Big City - Fun sequel. Did somethings unexpected from your typical chick-lit

Atonement - Very wordy. Interesting but too wordy, not enough plot. Wanted more from other characters. Movie was very true to the book.

Queen of Babble gets Hitched - Gave me what I wanted, though I'm not sure how I felt about the path it took. Preferred the other two books.

Heartsick - Twisted. A great read but made me a bit anxious about walking alone at night.

Swapping Lives - Started out with promise but did not live up to expectations. Characters glossed over issues and situations without many consequences and the actual wife swapping was minimal.

Not so neatly wrapped up

The Gatecrasher
By: Madeline Wickham

After my last read, I was a bit nervous picking this pink and green book up. Early on though, this book won me over with one simple fact - the characters were deeply flawed. Throughout the book, I watched as our superficial main character made heartless decisions and was won over not by the character, but by the simple fact that our author allowed her characters to be weak. Allowed them to be stupid, insecure and cruel.

As a result, I had the chance to experiences the changes these characters went over almost 300 pages. The gold digger didn't fall in love at first sight. The under appreciated sister-in-law didn't find her place overnight. The teenage boy didn't become popular in the first few chapters.

In fact, that's what interested me the most about this book. Early on, I predicted the ending. That there would be a huge confrontation, a lot of tears, and the characters would team together to work through it. And as I was waiting for this scene...the book ended.

I don't know if I'm disappointed or intrigued by the fact that the book ended a bit sooner than expected. I do know that whenever I tried to call it predictable, it gave me a small surprise to keep me on my toes.

Not a spectacular book. Definitely not up to the author's other works (under the name Sophie Kinsella, she's penned the remarkable Shopaholic series). Still, perfect for a day at the beach, a long relaxing night to yourself or to take with you on a plane.

Watered Down and Dull

Alphabet Weekend
By: Elizabeth Noble

My pile of birthday books still is not completed. Catcher in the Rye sits unfinished among my props for the show I ended weeks ago. But I hadn't picked up a book since I finished reading about those former Queens of England, and last Friday I realized why. I was in the mood for something light and easy, a romantic comedy of fiction. The next two books that I had are further historical fiction, not counting the handful of classics still waiting for me to give them a go. My brain needed a break, and my heartstrings needed a little bit of a tugging.

Well, with Alphabet Weekend, my brain certainly got a bit of a break. The characters were under developed, leaving me with an apathetic feeling toward our romantic lead. I spent the majority of the book wondering why I was supposed to root for these two, other than the fact that every other character said that they belonged together. Also, a personal pet peeve of mine, the other male in the potential triangle was so horrid, that there was no way any reader could expect them to end up together. Many of the secondary characters also blurred together, not quite having distinct personalities of their own. There were subplots, involving two other relationships. One, which was the parents of our heroine was pushed to the back burner, despite being potentially very interesting. The other, which featured our romantic interest's brother and his wife, did hold my interest, though it wasn't explored nearly as much as I would have liked.

And I wonder, is it the darkness of those two subplots that appeals to me? In one, the wife is diagnosed with depression and later the husband has severe health issues. In the other, the husband loses his job and shuts out his wife, who in turn is suffering from extreme attraction to a close friend's husband. Has this project taken away my not-so guilty pleasure of romantic comedy books?

I hope not, that would make me very sad. I have one more, purchased at the same time, by an author I quite enjoy.

In the meantime, if you're looking to read a fun, flighty romantic comedy (I believe the current term is beach reading) contact me for a thorough listing of books I've enjoyed over the years, before picking up this weak story.

What happened after Anne Boleyn?

The Boleyn Inheritance
By: Phillipa Gregory

After devouring The Other Boleyn Girl earlier this year, I made a mental note to try some of the author's other works. This one arrived on my doorstep for my birthday, and I must say that I'm glad this was the book I ended up with. Years have passed since Anne Boleyn was executed and this book follows the lives of three women whose lives were forever changed as a result. Anne of Cleves - the fourth Queen of England. Katherine Howard - the fifth Queen of England. Jane Boleyn - Anne Boleyn's former sister-in-law who offered damning evidence against the former queen.

Each woman tells their unique story, each one with a very distinct voice. I must say that one of the biggest issues that I faced with this book was that of the three characters, Anne was by far my favorite. After her, it was easily Katherine, who while annoying, had a certain little girl charm about her. Jane, however, I spent most of the book yelling at, hating her for my previous knowledge of the character, both in history as well as in Gregory's other works. Luckily, as I continued with my reading, I realized the author was initially highlighting Jane's delusional flaws, rather than retconning her character to gain the reader's sympathy.

Read The Other Boleyn Girl first, but when you're ready to learn more about what happened later and see how far the title of Queen of England fell, check out The Boleyn Inheritance.

And if you're in the mood for a drinking game, drink whenever you read the phrase "the Boleyn inheritance." You'll be tipsy before you even know it.

An amazing journey

Come Back: a mother and daughter's journey through hell and back
By: Claire Fontaine and Mia Fontaine

Once again, I find myself reading a true tale about the love that parents and children feel for one another. Once again, I find myself sucked in, closing the pages with tears in my eyes. This time though, there were so many ways in which I could identify, that at times it was hard to tell where the pages stopped and my own memories began.

Well no, it was easy on a logical level to tell the difference - I was not by any stretch of the imagination a teenage runaway who was sent away to an alternative boarding school. Really, it was reading the interactions between Claire and Mia, acting the way that only mothers and daughters act toward one another. Also, on a more personal level, Mia's boarding school included some self help lessons that were all too familiar to me.

In these pages, you read the two characters grow substantially, see Mia go from an angry, hurt teenager to a innocent and wondrous adult. Claire turns from a mother whose life is her daughter, to a strong woman who loves herself as she loves her child.

I went into the book expecting to read about a mother and daughter as they dealt with each other, and while I did, more importantly it was reading these two characters as they learn to deal with themselves.