The Forest of Vanishing Stars- Kristin Harmel- A "Must Read" - 5 Stars~

#ForestofVanishingStars #NetGalley 5 Stars Thanks author, publisher for the ARC.

An amazing book. which was not just about Jews fleeing the Nazi's near Belarus- it had some mystical almost magical elements. Yona ,who was born Inge to a wealthy young German couple was stolen the night of her second birthday and raised in the forest.

Jerusza, her kidnapper never let her see others, but taught her all she knew and more., Jerusza was old then and mystical voices told her what would happen in the future and that Inge/Yona would play a part.. What she never showed her was love or how to love or even to interact with others.

When the old lady died at 102 In early 1940 the Polish Holocaust was driving Jews into the nearby Naliboki forest. Yona interacts with them with compassion and tries to save them by sharing her forest lore. The author's fine notes tells us about the Bielski Partisans who practiced guerrilla war against the oppressors. Yona and her groups of survivors eventually did the same.

I have read " The Book of Lost Names" and this novel is just as excellent in a different way.

Three Times the Lady- Anna Chant - Women of the Dark Ages Book #3 ~ Terrific~ 5 Stars

 I am very much enjoying all the books from Anna Chant's "Women of the Dark Ages " series..Judith was very much an anomaly for her times but had an interesting and productive life. Alfred the Great was her beloved stepson and his youngest daughter married Baldwin II her son.

I am starting "Dawn of the Franks" now and will finish up with "The Girl from Brittia" before starting the next series about Siward of Gloucester and his compatriots. 

Recommended strongly for fans of Medieval Historical novels

Judge Thee Not- Edith Maxwell- A Quaker Midwife Mystery~ Very Enjoyable ~ Only ONE left to read!!

 Really enjoying this series and only one left to read, having started with an ARC for Book #7.

Lots of exciting events all with a theme of being accepting of others' differences, and of course murders!

Happily all of the main characters, most of the support characters and their children are well at the end of this book. Rose and David are anticipating their wedding and David had a big surprise for her.

Recommended! I actually sent a copy of book #1 to my friend in New Jersey to read, I enjoyed the pace so much. 

The Steel Beneath The Silk - Patricia Bracewell - Book 3 of the Trilogy~ Incredibly well done~

 

"In the year 1012 England’s Norman-born Queen Emma has been ten years wed to an aging, ruthless, haunted King Æthelred. The marriage is a bitterly unhappy one, between a queen who seeks to create her own sphere of influence within the court and a suspicious king who eyes her efforts with hostility and resentment. But royal discord shifts to grudging alliance when Cnut of Denmark, with the secret collusion of his English concubine Elgiva, invades England at the head of a massive viking army."

Like many others, I have waited years to read this final book in the trilogy of Patricia Bracewell's Emma of Normandy saga. I loved this book and must admit I love Emma also, my mother's family came to Ireland with the Norman kings by the early 12th century.

It was a wonderful tale enhanced by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle excerpts which give it great credibility. I think it ends in a very good place with a relationship between Emma and Cnut amicably looking toward the future.

Very much recommended to all, even those who have not read the other two books ( but I recommend them to you) 5 Stars!

Kenneth's Queen- Anna Chant (Women of the Dark Ages, #1) ~ Enthralling and Informative~

 An absolutely enthralling book about an unknown to history woman, whose husband Cinaed and children have descendants in English Royal house today. Cinaed, known to history as Kenneth Mac Alpin was the son of Alpin and generally regarded as the founder of medieval Scotland.

Baena,as Anna Chant the author names her, was a Pictish princess who was handfasted to Cinaed who was partially a Pict and was a Gael son of a king of Dal Riata. I learned an immense amount about these tribes and their wars from this excellently written author.

Baena was at first ignored by Cinead until his father Alpin was murdered and he would need to assume his role and father legitimate heirs. Their relationship was a struggle but became a good one and she supported Cinaed in his efforts to unite Dal Riata Gaels and the Pictish tribes.

I plan to read the rest of the "Women of the Dark Ages" books and anything else the author has written. 

The Venice Sketchbook- Rhys Bowen- Delightful Read! Order Now!

#TheVeniceSketchbook #NetGalley A delightful book that I read straight through, the best WWII so far for me( a genre I enjoy).Thanks Lake Union NetGalley and @Rhysbowen.

Venice pre-WWII ( 1938) finds Juliet Browning returning with a group of students and becoming reacquainted with Leonardo Da Rossi. This meeting will bloom into a love story that another generation in 2001 will continue.

Juliet's great niece, Caroline Grant inherits from "Aunt Lettie" her ashes, some artwork and 3 keys which will unlock secrets, some of which will remain. A compelling read with a fine ending. Recommended for WWII historical mystery fans.

The Book of Lost Names- Kristin Harmel- Terrific Book Club Read! ~ 5 Stars~

 I very much enjoyed this book, it was my book club choice for this month and I'm very happy about that. I have been enjoying many of the WWII era books. I was born at the very end of the war while my father was still in the South Pacific. and we didn't discuss it much for that reason.

The story actually begins in 2005 after Eva is working in a Florida library and sees a book she had encoded with real names of children.It skips back and for between 2005 when she flies to Paris and the details of her life as a forger for the French Resistance.

Eva Traube's parents seem to have been deniers of their danger in Paris, Her father, a Polish Jew had some idea of danger, as he had made a plan with an employer to provide escape documents for Eva.When they come for him at night Eva goes to that man who won't forge papers after the fact. He does give her some art supplies to make her own documents and tells her where Jews are fleeing in a free part of France.

In that small town in Free France, which eventually falls, Eva had a love affair with another resistance worker, Remy. She mourns his death her whole life and the ending had a lovely surprise.