Tag Archives: Books

Review: Firefly Cove

Posted on by

Firefly Cove is the second in Davis Bunn’s Miramar Bay series.

Lucius Quarterfield lived in the 1960s and developed pleurisy when he was seven. The illness damaged his heart to the point that doctors did not give him long to live.

Though often weak and in pain, when Lucius was grown, he bought a small automobile dealership, which eventually turned into a chain.

He fell in love with a woman named Jessica, who was opposite from him in almost every way. However, since he knew he would die young, he felt it was best to pull away, to spare Jessica the pain of losing him.

After eleven months, he wants to see her and drives back to Miramar. His worst fears are realized when he has a heart attack and dies in her arms.

But then he wakes up in a cold room with a sheet over his face. People call him Luke, not Lucius. His hands and face are not his own. He discovers the date is almost fifty years ahead of his own time.

Nothing in the book’s descriptions said anything about this, and the other books in the series that I have read so far don’t have any kind of supernatural or science fiction elements. So it was jarring. Maybe the author wanted it to be as disorienting to the reader as it would have been to the character.

I don’t believe in reincarnation because Hebrews 9:27 says, “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” There’s also nothing in Scripture about any human inhabiting any other human’s body. From what I have read of the author, I think he believes the same way. So I am not sure why he would have this occur in his story.

I decided to view the situation as a plot device, just like other impossibilities such as time travel.

In Lucius’s situation, the young man whose body he woke up in had just attempted his third try at suicide. His therapist’s supervisor is ready to have him locked up. He would be even more ready if Lucius told him he had actually lived fifty years before. All Lucius wants to do is find out what happened to Jessica.

Luke’s therapist, a Persian young woman named Asha, notices several differences about him right away. He looks the same but carries himself differently, speaks differently, and has even lost his French-Canadian accent. She and her supervisor think Luke’s “near death experience” led to Dissociative Identity Disorder, or a split personality. Yet he doesn’t manifest certain hallmarks of that illness.

At it’s heart, this book is a love story, though an unconventional one. The story was well-written. We’re drawn in as Lucius’s situation slowly unfolds, figuring out modern gadgets and ways, what kind of man Luke was, how he should proceed, what his future should look like. The characters were well-developed–besides Lucius, I particularly liked Asha and her grandmother. The intrigue of what’s going to happen to Luke–will he ever find Jessica, what will he do when he does, will he be able to avoid being committed to an institution, will anyone else ever believe his story–keeps us engaged, as does Asha’s story. I’m still processing what I think about the book. Even though I normally wouldn’t care for this kind of story, I found it engaging.

I’m inclined to think this might have worked better as a stand-alone novel, except that the theme of the Miramar Bay books has to do with second chances.

(Sharing with Bookish Bliss Quarterly Link-Up)

Review: Miramar Bay

Posted on by
Miramar Bay by Davis Bunn

When I started listening to The Christmas Hummingbird by Davis Bunn, I didn’t realize that it was the eighth novel in a series. The first few books in the series were free for Audible subscribers, so I decided to try them out.

In the first novel, Miramar Bay, Connor Larkin is an actor known for his “bad boy” good looks and for dying onscreen (97 times so far). His current gig is a fake “reality” show featuring his relationship with a Hollywood starlet. But now the studio has written an on-air wedding into the script, and Connor bolts. He had visited Miramar, on California’s central coastline, some years before, and it seemed a quiet place to hide out and think.

Connor steps into a Miramar restaurant playing Sinatra music and is drawn in. He had originally wanted to be a musician playing this type of music, but his early acting roles led him another direction. He finds himself applying for a waiter’s job at the restaurant.

Sylvie Cassick had put all her money and hopes into the restaurant and named it Castaways. Her father had been an artist, a kind man but an impractical dreamer. When her mother left them, Sylvie took on the role of trying to keep things in order and the bills paid. She had not heard from her mother in years, and her father passed away, so she’s on her own. Her staff has become dear friends. But everything hangs by a thread: one major problem or repair could cost her everything.

And then the unthinkable happens when illegal drugs are found in her fish order.

As Conner and Sylvie get to know each other, they bond over music. But when Sylvie learns who Connor really is, she can’t get over the fact that he lied to her.

Miramar is known as a place of second chances. Will Connor and Sylvie find theirs as they each face their separate crises?

Some of the characters in the later book were here, too: the sheriff, the head waitress, and a few others.

I looked online to see if Miramar is a real place, and it is: you can read more here.

I loved the small-town, close-knit community Bunn created. The characters seemed real and relatable. The plot kept me invested and interested.

As with the Christmas book, there’s not much mention of anything of a spiritual nature in this book, though everything else I’ve read from Bunn has been Christian fiction. One character visits a chapel a couple of times and prays for help. Perhaps Bunn meant this as a crossover into the general market, which would then draw readers back to his many other books. This is a good, clean read, but it was a little sad to me that the author, who knows real peace can only be found in Christ, had Connor find his peace in a community.

The only other thing some readers might find objectionable is a fair amount of alcohol consumption. One example: Sylvie’s friends “make” her drink brandy to brace herself before sharing bad news. I know this is an area where good people can differ, but to me alcohol seemed to be mentioned a lot.

I listened to the audiobook nicely read by Graham Winton. If you’re familiar with the Adventures in Odyssey radio program by Focus on the Family, Graham’s voice sounds a lot like the actor who portrays character Jason Whitaker there–so much so, that I had to look up that actor. But that actor’s name is Townsend Coleman.

(Sharing with Bookish Bliss Quarterly Link-Up)

Review: Set the Stars Alight

Posted on by
Set the Stars Alight

In Amanda Dykes’ novel, Set the Stars Alight, Lucy Claremont is the daughter of an English watchmaker whose family invites a young “lost boy” into their circle. Dash grew up in America until both parents died. He lived with a distant aunt who wasn’t home much and seemed not very interested in him.

Lucy’s father loved to tell stories and riddles to the children. Many of his stories centered on a legend about a man who lived 200 years before, Frederick Handford. Handford was a seaman who, accused of treason, stole a boat called the Jubilee and was never heard from again. Many had searched for any sign of Handford or the Jubilee, to no avail. Many stories had been told about what might have happened.

Lucy grew up with a love for the ocean and a desire to research and find the Jubilee. Dash grew up loving the stars, after hearing about them from Lucy’s father and using his homemade telescope. Their interests and circumstances seemed to take them in opposite directions until their paths crossed again while researching the Jubilee.

The story shifts back and forth from 2020 to the 1800s and what really happened with Frederick Handford. He was the son of a respected admiral who, since his own glory days, fell to drink. Frederick grew up with his father on one end of the house, drinking and raging, and his mother at the other end, playing parts of Handel’s Messiah. When his mother died, he ran away to escape his father’s rage and neglect. He was taken in by a kind local shepherd, but inadvertently brought tragedy to the man and his family. Frederick spent the rest of his life trying to make it up to them, especially the man’s daughter, Juliette.

Amanda writes in her author’s notes that this story felt like a set of nesting dolls, with many layers and stories within stories. That’s an apt description.

Amanda’s stories have a way of deeply touching hearts. Her characters are real and flawed, yet their stories are redemptive.

One of my favorite quotes comes from the book comes from a poem titled “The Old Astronomer to His Pupil” by Sarah Williams:

Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light;
I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night.

A few more quotes that stood out to me:

He is coming, and coming, and coming, and coming after you. In every sunset, in every snatch of birdsong In everything that stirs deep into you and makes you hungry for bigger things, eternal things. That is Him, pursuing you with tenderest grace. In the places so hard they wring your soul. In the places so beautiful they steal your breath. He is there, filling your soul, giving you breath.

Made-up tales that stand through time . . . they are echoes . . . of truth.

I think it’s our duty to keep the stories, to pass them on. It is our duty—and our honor. In a world as dark as ours, we—that is, people—forget how to see the light. So we remind them by telling the truth, fighting the dark, paying attention . . . setting the stars alight. There are things shining brightly all along, if we will notice.

Such freedom, to know our limits. And to know the God who has none.

God had a way of redeeming wounds with the strength of others.

Surprise gave way to curiosity, And curiosity–as it was meant to from the time God breathed life into the great wide world–made way for wonder.”

I listened to the audiobook, which was mostly good except the narrator’s diction wasn’t clear in places. I checked out the e-book from Libby to get the author’s notes and look up some passages.

I thought the modern-day part of the book moved a little slowly at times. But overall, this was a lovely, touching story.

(Sharing with Bookish Bliss Quarterly Link-Up)

Winter Fire: Christmas with G. K. Chesterton

Posted on by
Winter Fire: Christmas with G. K. Chesterton

I’ve not read G. K. Chesterton except for one novel, The Man Who Was Thursday, and a few pithy quotes. The quotes were enough to entice me to read more. So I was excited to see Winter Fire: Christmas with G. K. Chesterton by Ryan Whitaker Smith.

When I looked at the sample of the book at Amazon, however, I was disappointed that the book seemed to be less of Chesterton and more on Smith commenting on Chesterton. I eventually decided to get the book anyway, and I am glad I did.

Smith says that reading Chesterton is an “acquired taste,” and I agree. I would not have gotten nearly so much out of Chesterton’s quotes here without Smith drawing out the meaning.

If you’re not familiar with Chesterton, Wikipedia says he “wrote around 80 books, several hundred poems, some 200 short stories, 4,000 essays (mostly newspaper columns), and several plays. He was a literary and social critic, historian, playwright, novelist, and Catholic theologian and apologist, debater, and mystery writer.” He was a columnist for several newspapers and even wrote some Encyclopedia Britannica entries (including the one for Charles Dickens). He might be known best for his Father Brown stories about a priest who also does detective work.

He was baptized into the Church of England as a child, dabbled in the occult, then came back to the Anglican church as an adult, and later converted to Catholicism. I am curious how and why he embraced Catholicism but haven’t read enough to know his thinking. But “Christian themes and symbolism appear in much of his writing.”

Smith says Chesterton wrote prolifically about Christmas, much more than could be included in this book.

Winter Fire contains thirty days of readings, with Smith expanding on, explaining, and giving the cultural background to quotes about Christmas from some of Chesterton’s essays. After each reading is a Bible verse and questions for thought.

Then there are a variety of Chesterton’s other writings: several poems, a few essays, and a couple of short stories. Finally, Smith included recipes and games prevalent at the time Chesterton lived (1874-1936). The weirdest game, called Snapdragon, involved raisins doused in brandy, then set on fire. Then children tried to reach into the fire quickly and grab a raisin.

One of the readings here inspired a blog post, A Christmas Boomerang, and I have another post or two in mind based on thoughts read here.

Smith says the title of this book “is taken from a quote featured in the reading for Day 13: ‘Christ is not merely a summer sun of the prosperous but a winter fire for the unfortunate.’ The image of a fire burning amid the frosts of winter seemed a fitting image to draw from for a book that not only celebrates the comfort, joy, and revelry of Christmas, but the mercy of God who has called us to His everlasting feast” (p. 12). He writes that “The purpose of our journey is not so much to dwell in ‘the place from which Christmas came,’ but to allow that place to dwell in us, to return to our own country with christened eyes, to look upon our everyday surroundings with a baptized imagination” (p. 17).

I have scores of quotes marked, but I’ll try to share just a few:

In the majestic march of Progress, we have first vulgarised Christmas and then denounced it as vulgar. Christmas has become too commercial; so many of these thinkers would destroy the Christmas that has been spoiled, and preserve the commercialism that has spoiled it” (Chesterton, p. 32).

I have never understood what people mean by domesticity being tame; it seems to me one of the wildest of adventures (Chesterton, p. 45).

Omnipotence and impotence, or divinity and infancy, do definitely make a sort of epigram which a million repetitions cannot turn into a platitude. It is not unreasonable to call it unique. Bethlehem is emphatically a place where extremes meet. (Chesterton, p. 84).

Christmas did not merely borrow certain traditions from paganism; it survived paganism. It was a stronger thing than all the pagan world could offer. It was fiercer than its creeds, more potent than its rituals (Smith, p. 116).

The land endures the harshness of winter in order to be reborn in the vigor of spring. Everywhere we look, nature is rehearsing resurrection, preparing for the day when all things will be made new, when measurable time gives way to immeasurable eternity (Smith, p. 128).

These are a couple of stanzas from Chesterton’s poem “The House of Christmas”:

A Child in a foul stable,
Where the beasts feed and foam;
Only where He was homeless
Are you and I at home;
We have hands that fashion and heads that know
But our hearts we lost—how long ago!
In a place no chart nor ship can show
Under the sky’s dome.

To an open house in the evening
Home shall men come,
To an older place than Eden
And a taller town than Rome.
To the end of the way of the wandering star,
To the things that cannot be and that are,
To the place where God was homeless
And all men are at home.

The book cover, texture, and illustrations have a lovely old-fashioned feel to them.

Chesterton uses a lot of irony, and often. as Smith says, is “saying several things at once” (p. 11). I have question marks at a couple of places in the book. But I was inspired, taught, and encouraged by much that I read, and I am sure I’ll read this again in future Advent seasons.

(Sharing with Bookish Bliss Quarterly Link-Up)

Reading Plans for 2025

Posted on by
Reading Plans for 2025

I like to set some goals for my reading year. If I mean to read more of a certain author, or get to particular titles, those things don’t happen unless I plan for them.

But I also like having flexibility to read a new find or pick up something I am in the mood for or feel the need to read about.

Some of my reading goals this year:

  • One Dickens book I’ve not read yet.
  • A couple of classic books.
  • One C. S. Lewis book I’ve not read yet.
  • A book about writing.
  • A book about productivity, time management, or organization.
  • At least one biography, autobiography, or memoir.
  • A Bible study book.
  • A Christian living book.
  • A book related to midlife or aging.
  • Some of the unread books on my shelves or in my Kindle.

I like reading challenges that help me reach my goals and expand my horizons. Plus, reading challenges are a fun way to share about books we love. But I don’t like being involved in too many because of the record-keeping involved.

These challenges best intersect with my goals:

Mount TBR challenge

Bev at My Reader’s Block hosts the Mount TBR Reading Challenge, where we set a goal to read a certain number of books we already own. Details and rules are here. Bev has set the challenge up in increments of twelve, each set represented by a particular mountain. Last year I read 31 books from my shelves and Kindle app. This year I’m aiming for Mt. Blanc again, which is 24 books.

TBR 25 in '25

The TBR 25 in ’25 Challenge hosted by Rose City Reader dovetails nicely with the Mount TBR challenge. It’s the same idea—to read books you own but haven’t read it (though rereads count, too). The difference is, we aim for 25 and list them some time during the challenge. I don’t have my whole list figured out yet, but I know I want to read Ron Hamilton: The Man Behind the Patch by Shelly Hamilton, Bloom In Your Winter Season by Deborah Malone, Writing for Busy Readers: Communicate More Effectively in the Real World by Todd Rogers and Jessica Lasky-Fink, The Testament by John Grisham (have not read anything by him. I got this at a library sale a few years ago), The Wingfeather series by Andrew Peterson, and Rembrandt Is in the Wind: Learning to Love Art through the Eyes of Faith by Russ Ramsey, to name a few.

I listed this challenge last year but then forgot about it since it was new to me.

2025 Nonfiction Reader Challenge

Shelly Rae at Book’d Out hosts the Nonfiction Reader Challenge. This can be done one of two ways. Shelly has twelve books in different categories that we can aim for. Or we can be a “Nonfiction Grazer” and make our own goals. Although I might hit a few of her categories, I’ll go the grazer route and incorporate the nonfiction goals mentioned above.

Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

Finally, The Intrepid Reader. hosts the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge. A lot of my fictional reads fit this category. I’m going to aim for the Medieval level at 15 books.

Do you have any reading goals or participate in any book challenges?

(Sharing with Bookish Bliss Quarterly Link-Up)

Two Christmas Books

Posted on by

The Everyday Gospel Christmas Devotional was taken from Paul David Tripp’s larger book, Everyday Gospel: A Daily Devotional Connecting Christmas to All of Life. The 25 selections are only two pages, easy to incorporate in one’s devotional time. Each day’s reading begins with Scripture,and they cover a wide variety of topics related to Christmas. Excellent resource.

Some of my favorite quotes from the book:

The beginning of Matthew presents us with a majestic one-time moment in history that you shouldn’t run past in your desire to complete your daily Bible reading. God has recorded and preserved it for you because he wants it to leave you in gratitude and awe. And that awe is meant to capture your heart with such force that it changes the way you think about who you are and how you live your life.

The one who designed us to sing recorded and preserved songs for us. These songs are meant to focus our hearts, instruct us in the ways of the Lord, motivate our joy, and put words to our worship.

The entire biblical story is about a God who gives his creatures what they do not know they need, what they often do not want, and what they could never earn or do for themselves—but which they cannot live without.

The end of the reign of evil on earth began with the birth of Jesus. Later Satan would be defeated at Christ’s temptation, he would be defeated on the cross, and he would be defeated by the empty tomb. Jesus was victorious on our behalf and now reigns in glory. His reign guarantees the end of sin and death and an eternity of peace and righteousness for all who believe. The dragon is defeated. The Son reigns. Hallelujah!

The Christmas Hummingbird by Davis Bunn is perhaps the most unusual Christmas novella I have ever read (or listened to).

Ethan Lange lives in Miramar Bay, CA, and is awakened by banging on his front door. He finds a female police officer telling him an out-of-control fire is heading their way and he must vacate immediately.

A few weeks later, Ethan is in a rental property, having lost everything in the fire. When he runs into the police officer who saved his life, Ryan Eames, she asks if he would be willing to be deputized to help with a problem: people are robbing some of the vacation houses belonging to out-of-towners just before fire reaches them. In fact, police suspect the fires were started on purpose as a cover for the robberies.

As Ethan helps Ryan, he rescues a number of homeless animals, including a hummingbird overcome by smoke. Later we learn why hummingbirds mean so much to Ethan. Ryan’s mostly silent son takes an interest in helping the hummingbird, which he names Trevor.

Ethan contacts homeowners in the affected area offering to transfer their valuables to a vault in his bank.

Ethan has a side interest in art and often makes miniatures used in films to depict cities or neighborhoods. His contact in Hollywood calls to say a company is making a film series of his favorite childhood fantasy series, and does Ethan want in? Yes, of course.

Both Ethan and Ryan have been hurt before, so they are slow to consider another relationship. As Ethan gets to know Ryan and her son, Liam, he forges a special relationship with Liam. He finds that Liam is a gifted artist, though he rarely lets anyone see his work.

I love that there are so many layers to this book: the mystery of the fires and robberies, Ethan’s relationship with both Ryan and Liam individually and together, the hummingbird, the fantasy story Ethan’s latest project is based on.

Most of what I have read from Bunn has been Christian fiction. I don’t recall anything of a spiritual nature mentioned in this book, but I listened to the audiobook read by Graham Winton, and it’s impossible to flip back through pages. Nevertheless, this is a lovely story. I just discovered it’s also part of a Mirarmar Bay series by Bunn.

(Sharing with Bookish Bliss Quarterly Link-Up)

Favorite Books of 2024

Posted on by

I posted all 74 books I read this year here, doubling up on my posts today since they overlap. I felt I had a good variety and enjoyed probably 98% of what I read.

But there are always a few standouts, and this year is no different. Most of these were not published this year, but I am glad I read them in 2024.

My top ten books read in 2024 are:

Adorning the Dark: Thoughts on Community, Calling, and the Mystery of Making by Andrew Peterson. Immediately upon finishing this book, I read it again. I wanted to soak up as much of I as I could. I’m sure I’ll read it again. From my review: “He writes about battling self-doubt, creating as an act of worship, the fact that creating is work, not magic, that writing what we know doesn’t mean the polished end, but the struggle. He writes about humility, self-consciousness, and the fact that we don’t create to draw attention to ourselves even though ‘art is necessarily created by a Self’ (p. 28). He references Lewis and Tolkien and others and talks about imagination, serving the work, and serving the audience.”

Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart: How to Know For Sure You Are Saved by J. D. Greear. As one who wrestled with assurance of salvation for decades, and knowing several others in the same boat, I found this book very helpful. From my review: “Satan can trip people up over assurance because if we’re insecure about our salvation, we come to a standstill in our Christian growth. We don’t have the confidence to serve the Lord in any way. Instead of going forward in our Christian lives, we’re spinning our wheels over the same issues. On the other hand, there is such a thing as false assurance. Jesus said there would be people who stand before Him some day, fully assured that they are all right spiritually. They’ll be shocked to hear Him say, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'”

Help for the Hungry Soul: Eight Encouragements to Grow Your Appetite for God’s Word by Kristen Wetherell “is not about how to read or study the Bible. She goes further back than that to our appetite for God’s Word. We’re made to hunger for God. Satan tempted Adam and Eve to hunger for the wrong thing for the wrong reasons. Our spiritual appetites have been skewed ever since.”

Life Without Limits: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life by Nick Vujicic. It would be hard to function without limbs. But Nick shares how his parents and others along the way helped him to thrive. I didn’t agree with every little point of theology, but I was inspired by Nick’s story.

Isaiah for You: Enlarging Your Vision of Who God Is by Tim Chester. Our ladies’ Bible study went through this, along with reading Isaiah, last spring. Isaiah has some beautiful, familiar, relatable passages, but others that are a little harder to work through. Chester did a great job explaining the passages with the overarching purpose of the book in mind.

Whose Waves These Are by Amanda Dykes, my favorite fiction book this year. I had never read Amanda before, but I loved this book and am seeking out others of hers. Set in a coastal Maine village, the story goes back and forth between two brothers during WWII and the granddaughter of one in modern times. I loved the story, the writing, the strong sense of place.

Hope Between the Pages by Pepper Basham. Pepper is another new-to-me author. This book is set in the Asheville, NC, area and also goes back and forth between current times and 1915. Modern-day Clara Blackwell owns a bookstore in Biltmore village but is about to lose the store unless she can find the lease. In searching, she discovers her grandmother was the librarian at the Biltmore House in the early 1900s. Books, Biltmore, Asheville–what’s not to love? 🙂 I enjoyed the story in both timelines.

The Edge of Belonging by Amanda Cox. Amanda is yet another new favorite author to me. In this story, a homeless man discovers an abandoned baby. He plans to find a home for her, but grows too attached. But he can’t raise her alone. In the current day, Ivy receives a mysterious letter from her grandmother after her death, sending her on a search for how her family, all unrelated to each other, came together.

The British Booksellers by Kristy Cambron goes back and forth between WWI and the forgotten “Coventry Blitz” of WWII. Amos is the son of a tenant farmer and good friends with the daughter of the manor house. He goes off to fight in WWII and comes back scarred and morose. Charlotte is widowed, and now they own competing bookstores on the same street. But to survive WWII, they’ll all have to learn to work together.

Everything Sad Is Untrue: (A True Story) by Daniel Nayeri has the distinction of being the most “different” book I have ever read in its style. Daniel’s mother became a Christian in Iran and then had to flee the country with her two children. The family deals with many losses and new adjustments. It took a while to get into this book, but I was glad I persevered. I loved it.

Honorable Mention:

What were some of your favorite books read this year?

(I often link up with some of these bloggers.)

Books Read in 2024

Posted on by
Books read in 2024

I read 74 books this year, including audiobooks–75 if you count reading one twice in a row. That’s down a little from the last few years, but that’s fine. I don’t want to race through books just to get to a certain number. I want to give each its due.

I felt like I had a good blend of older and newer books, some having been on my shelf for a while; others were hot off the press. I enjoyed some by old favorite authors and discovered some new-to-me authors that have become new favorites. I read 29 fiction books, four classics, 35 Christian fiction, and five other fiction.

(MTBR behind a book title refers to the Mount TBR [To Be Read] reading challenge, an encouragement to read books already on hand. I decided to acknowledge those here rather than making a separate post. I aimed for 24 books [Mt. Blanc] and read 31.)

Titles link to my reviews:

Classics:

Nonfiction:

Christian fiction:

Tin Can Serenade by Amanda Dykes was a delightful short story.

Other fiction:

How was your reading year?

(I often link up with some of these bloggers.)

Two Reading Challenge Wrap-Ups

Posted on by

Though I’ll finish a couple more books by the end of the year, I thought this would be a good time to report on a couple of reading challenges I participate in.

Shelly Rae at Book’d Out hosts the Nonfiction Reader Challenge. Shelly has twelve different categories that we can aim for. Or we can be a “Nonfiction Grazer” and make our own goals. I chose the latter course, because I was only interested in a handful of the categories listed.

My own goals for this challenge and the results were (linked to my reviews):

Memoirs/Biographies:

Books About Writing:

Bible Study Books:

Christian Living Books:

Letters/Journals:

The Collected Letters of C. S. Lewis, Volume III. I’m maybe halway through this one.

A Book by C. S. Lewis I Have Not Read:

Same as above.

Organization/Productivity:

Related to a Holiday:

The only category I missed was aging/midlife.

By my count, that’s 28 nonfiction book (or 29 if I count reading Adorning the Dark twice. I’m satisfied–all these were informative and some were profound.

The Intrepid Reader hosts the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge. I like a variety of fiction categories, but historical fiction is probably what I read most. I aimed to read fifteen for the Medieval category. I completed twenty-four.

Linked to my reviews:

I love that there are classics here as well as some hot off the press, old favorites as well as newly-discovered authors.

Next week I’ll share my completed list of books read this year and my top favorites.

Review: Christmas at Sugar Plum Manor

Posted on by
Christmas at Sugar Plum Manor

Christmas at Sugar Plum Manor by Roseanna M. White is a sweet (pun intended) Edwardian-era novella with shades of Jane Austen and The Nutcracker.

Lady Mariah Lyons’ step-father, the Earl of Castleton, has to leave his estate to a distant cousin due to an entail on the property. His heir, Cyril Lightbourne, had visited the manor as a child, where he and Mariah became fast friends. They were both imaginative and fun-loving, renaming Plumford Manor as Sugar Plum Manor and writing tales set in the woods.

But due to a misunderstanding, Cyril thought the Earl didn’t really want him as an heir, so he’s been absent for twelve years. Now he’s been invited to Plumford Manor for Christmas and is not quite sure what to expect.

Mariah isn’t sure, either, whether Cyril will be the same friend he was, or whether he will be distant and aloof. She’s heard he is courting Lady Pearl, and she doesn’t know why the men who flock to Pearl can’t see the cruelty behind the beauty.

Another guest arriving at the manor for Christmas is a Danish Greve (Count) who specifically wants to seek Mariah’s hand in marriage because his prince wants to strengthen ties with England by having a member of the royal court marry into a leading English family. He doesn’t love her: he thinks she is pleasant enough, though a bit silly, but he attributes that to her youth. Though handsome, he comes across as almost emotionless, cold, and calculating.

The two men had an altercation in the past, which sets the tone for their meeting at Plumford. Their pursuit of Mariah adds to their animosity and desire for revenge.

Mariah is a sweet girl, though not as beautiful as her widowed older sister. Her siblings and mother think she’s a bit immature, even ridiculous. Now the Greve feels the same way. Is what she always thought of as joyfulness truly childishness? Does she need to tone herself down to marry the Greve, or will Cyril ever see her as more than a childhood friend?

Embedded in the story are themes of faith, forgiveness, redemption, and being who God created you to be. I listened to the audiobook nicely read by Liz Pearce. This was a nice Christmas read.

(Sharing with Bookish Bliss Quarterly Link-Up)