Blog Hop

Hello Everyone! It's Friday and that means time to blog hop! This week's question comes from "Books Are A Girl's Best Friend":

Do you use a rating system for your reviews and if so, what is it and why?

Yes, I do use a rating system. I use a "star rating" system. Take a look on the right sidebar of my blog. It isn't perfect, but it gives my readers a quick overall rating. I believe people really need to read the review itself to see what it was I found lacking in the book as well as what I found spectacular. Only then will the rating make more sense.

Review for "Lord John and The Brotherhood of the Blade" by Diana Gabaldon

Lord John is once again in the midst of a mystery. However, this time it is a mystery that has haunted his family since his childhood. Lord John's father, the late Duke of Pardloe, was found dead in his home, a gun in his hand and his reputation sullied with rumours of being a Jacobite sympathizer. Did the Duke kill himself? Lord John knows he didn't and is desperate to prove it and in the process, reclaim his father's honour.

I liked this book more than the first installment in the Lord John series. As the story moves between John investigating his father's mysterious death, John's love affair with Percy Wainwright and his preparations for war, the reader learns a great deal more about this nobleman. A large part of the book focuses on the growing relationship between Lord John and Percy, with well-written, tender love scenes as well as some rough and raunchy ones too. If you are a homophobic fool, this is not the book for you. Although Lord John finds himself growing more and more fond of Percy, he cannot dispel the feelings he still holds for Jamie Fraser. Lord John's unrequieted love for the Outlander Scotsman makes me feel sympathy for him, for it is a deeply felt love, one within his soul, one he cannot forget, even in the arms of another lover.

Once again, Diana Gabaldon is amazing in her descriptions of historical accounts, with gripping battle scenes that make you feel the explosions of the cannons as they tear through the air. I did find the story to be a bit convoluted at times, with many names and connections to be remembered. However, I truly enjoyed the personal insights into Lord John's life...his relationship with his older brother Hal, his growing love for another man, and his sense of honour. This is an interesting and engaging book, written with wit and humour and full of details of 18th century London society. I will surely be reading the third and final installment.

This Week's Blog Hop

It's friday and it's time to hop around all of those wonderful book blogs out there! This week's question is :

How many blogs do you follow?

Well, this number is increasing every time I go on the internet! Right now I am following 24 different blogs. But I know that as soon as I finish this post and head over to the link for this hop, I will have added several more to my list! There are so many creative and informative book blogs out there that I could be on this computer 24/7. However, I do have to feed those three kids of mine at some point! Happy following!

Review for "Lord John and The Private Matter" by Diana Gabaldon

London, 1757, brothels, molly-houses, a dead soldier, spies, an Irish apothecary, treason, adultery, a woman in a green dress (or is it a man?), an escape upon the high seas, and a gay man as the lead character....how could I not read this book!

Lord John has made a shocking discovery while using the privy at a gentleman’s club. The man his cousin is betrothed to has a sore on his “private member”. Shocked and worried about a resulting scandal in his family, Lord John makes it his mission to confront the Honourable Joseph Trevelyan. However, being a major in His Majesty’s army, Lord John is called upon to investigate a fellow soldier’s death and possible act of treason. Investigating both matters at once, Lord John is led from “the drawing rooms of the nobility” to the seedy streets of London and a molly-house he frequented in his not so distant past. He finds himself in the midst of treachery and murder where two mysteries suddenly entwine themselves, both of which he is determined to solve.

Diana Gabaldon is an amazing author whose research is so impeccable that she sweeps you into the adventure with her rich, vivid descriptions. Those who loved the Outlander series will surely enjoy the plights of Lord John, although you will miss Jamie and Claire. However, since Lord John is in love with Jamie, he does think of the Scottish hunk in several spots throughout the book. Here is one such thought:

“Grey took comfort in the imagined vision – a long-legged man striding over the high fells of the Lake District, face turned up toward sun and scudding cloud, wind blowing through the richness of his auburn hair, plastering shirt and breeches tight against a lean, hard body.”(pg.14)

Yes, my Lord, I miss him too!

It was interesting to get a closer look into the character of Lord John, a gay man who always acts honourably and with a strong loyalty to his family and country. Always the gentleman, he is described as a lean, handsome man, whose sense of humour is revealed in his banter with others and with himself throughout the book. However, there is another side to this nobleman, which we find out as we enter the seedier parts of London’s night life where pieces of his past are revealed. True fans of Diana Gabaldon’s style, depth and wit will be rewarded with a great story where seemingly separate events are intricately and cleverly woven together. If history mixed with a mystery is your thing, you will not be disappointed with this tale.

The Blog Hop

Hey, have you joined the BLOG HOP? It's a place where book bloggers can support each other and share our love of the written word. This event is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy-For-Books. If you would like to participate, click on the link and sign up on her blog.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

How many books do you have on your "to be read shelf"?

Well, it is getting larger and larger! I am a "one book at a time" kind of gal! If I finish a book and it is part of a series, I go and get the next one right away and read that. But since I've been going to the new public library near my house, I've begun to accumulate anything that is in at the time that I may like. Also, since I started blogging this year, I have discovered many books that I may like through the recommendations of you out there in book blog land!

I think I am going to need a bigger shelf soon!

Review for "Rebellion" by Nora Roberts

A fiesty woman who isn't afraid to punch, kick, yell, scratch, and yes, bite. I love a heroine with a little attitude! Isn't this what every man in the 1700's wants? I don't care what anyone says, I believe most men, even today's men, are enticed by a challenge, and taming a hell-cat is certainly a task.

The highlands of Scotland is the setting for this historical romance, one filled with desire, hatred, love and war. Bringham Langston, the fourth Earl of Ashburn, is a wealthy Englishman, yet his true loyalties lie with the Scottish cause. Serena MacGregor is a true Scot....loyal to those she loves and passionate about her people and their history. Her hatred of all things English began when she was only a child and watched her mother attacked by a band of Redcoats. When Serena's brother brings home the handsome Bringham, he is stunned by her beauty and her sharp tongue. Bringham's noble title and dedication to Scotland does nothing to hinder her loathing of his heritage. But Bringham is not a man easily discouraged. He is determined to fight not only for Scotland and the bonnie Prince Charles, but also for the love of the beautiful and fiesty Serena MacGregor.

I enjoyed this book. It was a quick, easy read set in a time and place I love. Love, sex, war, battles, and yes, men on horses and in kilts! I enjoyed the banter between Bringham and Serena and the way she made his pursuit of her a difficult one, although she did let him kiss her without much of a fight! The attraction between the main characters is undeniable from the start, with some extremely steamy scenes that will cause you to have a sudden urge for a cigarette! Here is a quick excerpt for your enjoyment:

"He found it almost unbearably arousing to have her inexperienced hands undress him. With his eyes closed he traced kisses over her brow, her temples, her jaw, while his body tensed and hardened from the hesitant movements of her fingers. It was torture of the most exquisite kind. He realized that he was moving slowly not only for Serena and her innocence but for himself. Every instant, every heartbeat they shared here would be remembered."(pg. 230)

Having read several other historical romances of this period, this novel focused more on the romance and less on the battles and plight of the Scottish for their independence. But if your looking for a good summer romance, this is the book for you.

Review for "Until You" by Judith McNaught

"Until you, I never knew what true love was...."

"Until you, my life was never complete."

"I was nothing, until you."

Every true romantic has dreamed of having these words whispered to them in the throes of mad passion or tender love making. And so has Sheridan Bromleigh in Judith McNaught's novel ''Until You".

After the death of her english-born mother and younger brother, Sheridan spent her childhood roaming the American countryside with her father and the many strangers that they met along the way. Life was fun, exciting and unpredictable. That is, until her father decided to pay a visit to his spinster sister-in law in Richmond, Virginia. When aunt Cornelia took one look at Sheridan, she was flabbergasted and outraged. Her neice had grown up to be a tomboy who could swear in two languages and roamed the countryside dressed in pants and boots in the company of an Indian and a Spanish vagabond. She didn't look like a female or act like one. So it came to be that Sheridan was left in the care of her aunt, where she learned to dress, speak and act like a proper lady.

With the help of her aunt, Sheridan becomes a teacher in a school for wealthy young ladies. She is then hired to escort one of her students to England to meet her fiance. But the young heiress, a spoiled Charise Lancaster, escapes off the ship and elopes with a young stranger. Sheridan is then left to figure out how she will explain events to Charise's fiance. Meanwhile, Charise's intended, a not-so-wealthy Lord Burleton, has been killed in an accident by Stephen Westmoreland, the Earl of Langford. Feeling responsible, Stephen makes his way to the docks to explain the dire news to the fiance of the man he killed. But another accident ensues, and Sheridan is hit by a cargo net loaded with crates. She awakens in Stephen Westmoreland's mansion with no memory. She doesn't know her name, what she looks like, or where she's from. All she does know is that this beautiful man keeps calling her Miss Lancaster.....

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Sheridan is a fiesty, brave, red-headed beauty who is a romantic at heart. She realizes that she is falling in love with Stephen and that she wants that fairy tale ending....she wants her lover and husband to need her, want her, enrapture her with deep kisses and deeper words. Stephen is bitter about love in the beginning, believing that women only want him for his wealth and stature in society. Having been burned once, he is reluctant to open himself up to the notion of true love. But I so wanted to see Sheridan catch this gorgeous Earl. Although he tries to fight it at first, Stephen can't help but be attracted to Sheridan and her innocence, natural beauty and strong spirit. Sheridan and Stephen's steamy encounters leave not only the characters breathless, but the reader as well. This story left me with my heart all a-flutter and a feeling of hope.....hope that true love will always triumph, even for we tell-it-like-it-is, fiesty gals!

Review for "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo" by Steig Larson

We all have one. A family...the uncle who drinks too much at family reunions, the aunt that calls you cute and pinches your cheeks even when you're 22 years old, the cousin who got into trouble with the IRS, the selfish brother and the never-present father....the list is endless and different for each of us. But think darker.....think corruption, think kidnapping, think murder, think..... the horrifyingly unthinkable. Only then will you have a snapshot of some members of the Vangar family.

Mikael Blomkvist is a financial reporter, a crusading journalist who's out to get the bad guys in the gritty business world. But as the novel begins, he has just been convicted of libel against a wealthy businessman, Hans-Erik Wennerstrom. There is much more to this theme of corruption than meets the eye. Under the pretext of writing a history of the Vangar family, Mikael is enticed by Henrik Vangar, an elderly and very wealthy CEO of the Vangar Corporation, to find his beloved neice, Harriet, who disappeared 40 years ago on their secluded island. But there is much more to the Vangar family than meets the eye. A missing girl, an unsolved mystery, brutal murders...they are all connected somehow and Mikael needs help to prove it. Who better for this job than Lisbeth Salander, the tatoo-wearing, multi-pierced genius hacker who possesses a photographic memory. There is much more to Lisbeth Salander than meets the eye.

I was on the edge of my seat with this book. It is filled with many twists along the way and the story is layered with more than one mystery to be solved. The author jumps quickly between scenes and builds the mystery and suspense wonderfully. It has mature themes that sometimes are hard to read, but belong in the story. Things happen to characters, especially Lisbeth, that make you want to cringe, but are all important in the making of each character, making them flawed and hence, more believable. Mikael and Salander, this unlikely duo, not only unveil terrifying events, but they also discover a deeper connection between them that surprises and unsettles them both. This book has something for everyone....corporate corruption, serial murders, twisted families, misogeny, the publishing business, Swedish history, sex, adultery....all of it woven expertly together in an intriguing tale. It is safe to say that I will be reading the next installment in this Millennium trilogy. I am hooked.

Review for "Tully" by Paullina Simons

Tully Makker is a survivor. She survives her father's abandonment at the age of 7. She survives her uncle's "attentions" at the age of 12. She survives her mother's abusive hands throughout her childhood and adolescence. Her best friend's betrayal in her senior year of high school is the hardest for Tully to survive. She survives....but not without scars....scars on her wrists, scars that haunt her in her sleep, scars upon her heart. There are those who try to help Tully throughout her life. There's Robin, a good man who loves her unconditionally with all of her scars. A man who asks nothing of her, who endures her silence and betrayal, and still loves her with every ounce of his being. There's Julie, one of her best friends from childhood. Yet she too is trying to come to terms with her own life and her own mistakes and regrets. And there's Jack, the man who open's Tully's eyes and her heart, who makes her face her grief, a grief he too shares.

Undeniably, "Tully" is a story of survival and self-discovery. It's about a friendship so strong that it endures even beyond death. It is about a love so strong that it endures through months of absence and years of dreaming. What makes the character Tully so real is that she is far from perfect. She makes mistakes, big ones, mistakes that made me say "What the hell are you doing?" I disagreed with many of her choices, so much so that I wanted to shake some sense into her. But always throughout the story, I wanted Tully to take that step, to take off the armour, trust someone, let them in, let them help her unburden herself from all of the grief she carried around. I wanted her to see that her life was good....if she would only live it for herself.

Paullina Simons has fast become one of my favourite authors. She makes me adore her characters....fall in love with them...cheer for them...cry for them....mourn for them. She makes me find it within my heart to forgive them their sins...even when I wouldn't forgive myself the same sin. I cried a lot in this book, for the author has left the door open for me to examine my own life decisions, to ask the "what if" questions, to examine the skeletons in my closet. Sure, I have many regrets, and yes, my life could have been different. But like Tully.....I have survived.

Review for "The Winter Rose" by Jennifer Donnelly

India Selwyn Jones isn't a blond, spoiled, stunningly attractive heiress. Yes, she comes from money but you wouldn't know it to look at her. Her clothes are clean yet very worn; her hair a pretty colour but tangled and hastily pulled back and twisted atop her head; her eyes beautiful yet hidden behind spectacles. She could be you or I, a hard working woman wanting to make a difference in a cold world. What does make her beautiful is her inner being, her drive, determination, strength of spirit and generous soul. She is a female doctor in England, battling for respect and equality with her male counterparts in the early 1900s. Instead of taking the easy road after medical school and practising her profession in the esteemed parts of London, she sets off for the East End to serve the bitterly poor. It is here that she encounters Sid Malone, the same Sid Malone we were introduced to in The Tea Rose. He is the notorious gangster ruling the streets of London with fear and a heavy hand. The fates allow Sid and India to meet, but she isn't afraid of this mob boss....she is infuriated by his "business adventures" which affect the poorest people of London...her patients. Little does she know that in his own way, this seemingly cold-hearted man is as determined as she is to help those who have nothing.

Malone represents everything that India loathes. He is the polar opposite to her fiance, the aristocratic Freddie Lytton, a man on his way up in the House of Commons, but also a man that would do anything, including using India, to get where he wants to be. Yet India can't help but be drawn to Sid and his mysterious past. She soon realizes that he is a wounded man, a good man that "sometimes does bad things". Sid finds himself drawn to this fiesty, determined woman who somehow has the ability to make him want to be a better man, a man he was meant to be before that fateful night so many years ago...a lifetime ago. India gives Sid something no one else has ever given him....hope....a hope steeped in love and acceptance...a hope that he can lead the life he truly yearns for, the life he was supposed to lead. But he can only do it with India at his side. And there lies the battle.

In this second installment of the Tea Rose trilogy, Jennifer Donnelly makes us aware of the bitter poverty in London and the struggle of those trying to eradicate it. She takes us from the brutal streets of Whitechapel to the exotic plains of Africa and across the ocean to America. And all the while the reader is immersed in a plot that intertwines murder, sex, politics, women's rights and a bittersweet love story. I so wanted India and Sid to be together... to beat the odds.... to prove that there are second chances in life...to believe in hope even when living in hell...and most of all to believe that we all deserve to be loved. Isn't that what we all hope for?

Review for "The Pride of Lions" & "The Blood of Roses" by Marsha Canham

What is it about the Scottish Highlands that speaks to that romantic side of me, that hidden princess that wants to be saved by her gallant prince? Is it the Scottish man..... strong, stubborn, proud, laying down his life for his country, his kin and his one and only true love. In the Pride of Lions and in its sequel, the Blood of Roses, Marsha Canham has transported me back in time to that unique place in history where lairds ruled and battles were fought with swords over land and love.

I have been introduced to another striking Scotsman....Alexander Cameron, a legendary , dark-haired warrior whose destiny takes him to England and to the woman that will change his life forever. Upon meeting the undeniably beautiful but spoiled Catherine Augustine Ashbrooke, feelings arise in Alexander that he has pushed aside for many years. He wins her hand in a duel, yet she has no idea that this stranger will eventually win her heart, her love and her soul. Catherine eventually finds out that Alexander is a Scotsman, a spy in her beloved England. He has no choice but to take her to his homeland, to the highlands, a place he hasn't seen in years. Catherine has been raised to think of Scotland as a cold, desolate place and its people as pure savages who can't even speak proper English. All of this changes as Catherine undergoes a metamorphosis, from a pampered, English child to an empathetic, mature lass. She sees for herself the majestic beauty of the land, the rolling hills and the black lochs, as well as the compassion, honour and pride of its people. There is a powerful love between Alexander and Catherine, one that has him opening his heart and soul to a Sassenach, one that has her yearning for the very man that will battle against her homeland and her people. I enjoyed the banter between these two, reminding me very much of another Scot and Sassenach named Jamie and Claire.

These books are filled with ancient blood fueds and some historical battles that are vividly described by the author. I found myself caught up in the Scottish quest for freedom as they marched their way across England, only to be defeated at Culloden, a horrific ending to a gallant dream for liberty. Yet throughout the stories, there is that ever present sense of hope, hope for independence, hope for peace, hope for a love that is all encompassing and never-ending. I do believe we are all princesses waiting and hoping for our knight in shining armour to rescue us, to throw us down and ravage us in the wild grass, to take us upon his horse and ride us into the sunset, but mostly, to love us more than life itself. We are all waiting for our Jamie, our Alexander, our champion. I believe I have found my warrior, although I do wish he wore a kilt!

Review for "The Summer Garden" by Paullina Simons

After reading this book I can't help but ask "Can anyone truly survive war?" When that army seargant comes home to his beautiful wife, the one he envisioned every night on the battlefield as he crept along the cold forest floor, closer and closer to his enemy, does he just wrap his arms around her and forget? When he nestles his face into her long locks and smells her floral shampoo, does he just forget the whistling of the grenades and the blasts of the bombs? When he lays his hands upon her and feels her arch towards him, does he just forget the feel of his rifle and the cold steel of his blade? When he sees his dark-haired son for the first time since his birth, does that army seargant just forget the piercing eyes of his enemy and the smell of the dead? How can he? How could anyone?

Although the war is over, Alexander and Tatiana are still fighting. However, the battle is no longer with the Germans or Russians. It is with life....the reality of daily living. Both of them are tormented by the ravages of war, memories of pain, suffering and loss that engulf them when they look at each other, touch each other, whisper to each other. They already know how to love.....now they have to learn how to live.

I devoured this book. Being the final installment in the trilogy, I desperately wanted to know what happened to this amazing couple. The connection between Tatiana and Alexander remains undeniably awe-inspiring. She tries desperately to heal his scars, both physical and mental. There is nothing that soothes him more than Tatiana....his wife, his only true love, "his cradle and his grave". The whispers he shares with her are like footprints across my own heart. Only Jamie Fraser from Outlander has the power to caress me with words like Alexander does. Even as they grow older, Alexander remains the strong, striking and stubborn man he was in his twenties when he crossed the street for a young Russian girl named Tatiana. Fate tries to snatch their happiness away by luring their oldest son into the throes of the Vietnam war, a son who has grown up to be just like his dad, only taller, stronger and more beautiful.

I did not want this story to end. I have journeyed with these characters from the beginning of their tragically sweet love affair and I have run the gauntlet of emotions with them. For me, Paullina Simons has proven that love is stronger than the evils of war and hatred. She has made me believe that happiness can be found after devastating sorrow. She has shown that even the strongest of men need the loving whispers of another. She has made me believe that love will keep us young forever. Thank goodness....... I am forever young.

Review for "The Tea Rose" by Jennifer Donnelly

Could I do it? Could I face life bereft of my heart and soul, live life without the one that makes me wake with a smile and laughter in my eyes? I don't know. I suppose I would have to, yet I'm sure there would be something missing, a hole inside me that I would fill with the necessities of living...a job, some friendship, family. But I am sure that at some point the sadness of my lonely existence would overtake me. Would I have the courage to move on, to simply exist? This is the plight of Fiona Finnegan in Jennifer Donnelly's The Tea Rose.

It is 1888 and Jack the Ripper is wreaking havoc in East London. Amidst this terror is Fiona Finnegan, a young girl with a dream, a dream she shares with her lifelong love, Joe. They are supposed to be together forever, they are supposed to open their own shop, they are supposed to live happily ever after. But of coarse, life is not a fairy tale for Fiona. She is thrust into a world she never asked for, a world filled with sorrow, murder, despair and tragedy...a world without her Joe.


The Tea Rose is a story of murder, betrayal, innocence lost and strength found. As I turned the pages, I couldn't help but be drawn in by this strong female character. Her determination, strength and drive mixed with an unmistakable innocence draws everyone to her. Only she feels the emptiness inside her, that hole that cannot be filled by her large mansion in New York or her millions of dollars. Not even the wealthy entrepreneur, the handsome and much older and experienced Will McClane, can give her what she needs. Although I would have liked to feel more of the connection between Joe and Fiona, I am reminded of the strong message in this story, one that Fiona held on to....."The day you let someone take your dreams from you, you may as well head straight to the undertaker's. You're just as good as dead." And so, I keep dreaming.....

Review for "Outlander" by Diana Gabaldon

James Alexander Malcolm Mackenzie Fraser....what's in a name, you might ask. Everything. Honour, passion, strength, intellect, bravery, sex, love, excitement, playfulness, friendship and courage. All of this in one man? Yes...and more! Those of us who are Outlander fans know that there is no other man for any woman other than Jamie.

As soon as I discovered Outlander and the Scottish Highlander named Jamie, there was nothing and no one else for me. I ate, slept, breathed and dreamt only of Jamie. Obsession to the max. I spoke of Jamie to co-workers to the point where they either had to read the book or listen to me. Needless to say, they have joined me in my obsession. I discovered Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series of seven books in October and lived with her characters until February. Five months of Jamie...so little... yet so much. Jamie is the standard by which I measure all others. And thus far in my journey, no one can compare. Even Sarah Donati's Nathanial and Paullina Simons' Alexander don't quite fill the shoes of this great highland hunk. Close...but not quite. What is it about him? Is it his wit, his charm, his sensuality or his raw manliness that draws every reader to him. I believe it's all of this and more.

As in many other series I've read, for me, the first book is the best. It is the place where the journey begins for the characters and the reader. In Outlander, it is the place where Claire finds herself drawn to this young Scotsman, two hundred years in the past. It is the place where she fights against that burning inside her, that brewing passion that she knows will be all-encompassing. It is the place where the truth of her love overtakes her and the force of it plunges her into an emotional abyss, one she can't and won't escape.

Diana Gabaldon is an amazing writer whose talent I truly envy. She has made me fall in love with the beauty of Scotland, the heather in the fields and the mountains in the distance. She has taught me about the clans and their castles and the battle and suffering at Culloden. She has made me believe in a love that is more than physical, more than spiritual, one that transcends time and space. She has made me long for a man that can touch a woman with his eyes, his hands, his lips, but most seductively, with his words. With every turn of the page, I am plunged deeper into Scotland, deeper into battle, and deeper into love with a red-headed warrior named James Alexander Malcolm Mackenzie Fraser.

Review for "Tatiana And Alexander" by Paullina Simons

The Soviets and Allied forces are battling against Hitler and Alexander is in the midst of it all, this hell that is war. He is constantly haunted by images of his beloved, his Tatiana, her face, her laugh, her smell, the feel of her under his strong hands and his searching lips. But she is gone, he sent her away, but his mind won't let him forget her. He doesn't know that Tatiana has made it to America, where she too is living her own kind of hell without her one and only love. She hears Alexander's voice everywhere, calling for her. She searches the face of every broad shouldered, dark haired man, hoping, praying, begging....but her Shura is dead, only living in her heart and soul and in the son they created.

I can't believe how quickly I finished this book. I devoured it in a week, desperately wanting for Tatiana and Alexander to be reunited. As I turned each page, I continued to be drowned in their sorrows. The torment that Alexander struggles through is unbearable, yet he moves onward, from battle to battle, always the strong and courageous soldier. "Stay alive for me, my Shura", Tatiana would always say to him. "Stay alive", I say as my heart pours forth its own strength for this heroic character. He tries desperately, but as his body, mind and spirit are beaten down, I find myself crying out for him to hold on. She's coming....she has to come...she will come....won't she?

I continue to be obsessed with these characters. Even when I place the book down, I find myself wondering, will they make it? How can fate be so unkind? I want to push Tatiana onto that ship and yell "Go find him, he needs you, don't move on without him, open your heart and listen..." Will there ever be a time when they can just live, without fear, without war, without separation? I am hoping to get answers in the third book of the trilogy, which I am so anxiously waiting to arrive. Yet I too have my fears, for once I get my answers, my journey will be over. I will try to read slowly.

Review for "The Bronze Horseman" by Paullina Simons

She sits there, enjoying an icecream, her favourite, creme brulee, wearing a white dress with red roses and ridiculously uncomfortable high heels. It is a glorious June day in Leningrad as she sits on the bench, playfully swinging her legs as she waits for the bus. She glances up and there he is, staring, unabashadly from across the street. From that moment on, Tatiana's life is over...yet it is only just beginning. On this June day, Hitler has invaded Russia and Tatiana has met her Alexander.

This book has taken me by surprise. I had no interest in Russia and didn't know much about its land or people. However, I became immediately drawn into the plot, caught up in the undeniable connection between Tatiana and Alexander. Perhaps it is the strong female character that keeps me reading, a strength of spirit that does not impede on her innocence. Perhaps it is the beautiful dark-haired soldier, Alexander, very tall, very strong and unyielding in his love for Tatiana. Perhaps it is the struggle and the strife that these two people endure in order to be together, the sickness, starvation, war, guilt, deception. I couldn't help but cry for them when they were together and weep for them when they were apart.

In my opinion, the sign of a great writer is the impact the characters leave upon the reader. I can honestly say that I am obsessed. I cannot let go. I want to be that young girl walking with that tall, dark-haired soldier through the Summer Garden. I want that summer month in Lazarevo where I finally feel my one and only true love, in every sense of the word. I want it all, St. Isaac's cathedral, Lake Lagoda, Luga, Leningrad, the Fields of Mars, and the Bronze Horseman. I want my Alexander.

The struggle continues for Tatiana and Alexander in the second book of the trilogy, which of coarse, I have quickly begun. These characters are imprinted upon my psyche and their love for each other burns within my own heart. Thank god their journey is not over, and thus, neither is mine......

The Beginning

The journey back started last summer. I sat on the park bench, a beautiful July day, watching my kids in their easy play. I held the book in my hands and thought "Am I going to like this? Is it worth the effort?" I am glad to say, nine months and 20 novels later, it certainly was worth it.
This blog is about my journey back to the love of reading and the many adventures I've had with amazing characters along the way.

I remember as a kid I would sit for hours on the front porch, no responsibilities, no worries, no pressure from the "real world", oblivious to everyone and everything, except what Judy Blume was saying on the pages before me. Then high school came, grade eleven, boys, and part time jobs. University involved tons of reading, being an English major, but nothing that was "me"...for me. Then he came along, the one, my man, in the midst of teacher's college, all dark, hot and all-encompassing. Time floated on. Teaching involved a massive amount of constant reading and researching, but yet again.....nothing for "me". My world now revolved around children, many in the classroom and my own precious ones at home. No time or energy to read anything more than a page or two, and it usually involved "How to survive colic" or "How to keep them sleeping for more than an hour". Commuting, working, cooking, cleaning, finding time with that hunk of a man- sex? - with young kids around?, losing weight, gaining weight, all of it filling my life. And yet, I still didn't quite realize that "Me" was missing. I remember I'd call my mom and tell her my woes of young motherhood and how desperately tired I was and how I'd love to go to a real restaurant or take more than 5 minutes to eat, and she would reply "You know, after one time is another time." How the hell was that going to help me? And time marched on. Now I am 42, my kids are older and sleep through the night and I have great sex with that hunk of a husband. And I found that "me" again, the one I remember from my youth, the one on the front porch on a warm, sunny day, when not a sound could be heard but the rustle of the pages as I felt the characters evolve in my hands, line by line, page by page. My journey has come full circle. I found that time for "me" in a book again, my escape to anyplace I want, be it the colonies of early America, the Scottish Highlands or wartime Russia. I laugh and I cry, I moan and I giggle. My connections and visualizations make it a place all my own, one where my kids can't get me, or even that hunky husband.