3.5 stars When Lord Nicholas Falcott, the Marquess of Something-or-other (I finished this book more than a month ago and can’t be bothered to go looking up piddling details like that) is about to be killed on the battlefield in Spain in 1812, he suddenly finds himself transported forward in time about 200 years. After being nearly run over by a car, he wakes up in a modern hospital, in the company of a stranger who tells him that jumping through time is less unusual […]
A Feminist Fairy Tale
I recently saw a review of this novel on NPR’s web site which compared it to Beauty and the Beast. Frankly, I don’t see it, but that’s okay because it’s so much better than a retelling of any known fairy tale. Novik combines elements of Slavic fairy tales, magic, and even some Tolkienesque flourishes (she admits to being a fan and it comes through in the work) to create a complex story about powerful women and friendship, the merits and difficulties of collaboration, and finding […]
Walls of Water is one hell of a name for a town
Another Southern mystery/romance/fantasy from Sarah Addison Allen. I need to not read these back to back — they tend to run together, and I run out of things to say beyond “these are so sweet and cute and fun!”. “We’re connected, as women. It’s like a spiderweb. If one part of that web vibrates, if there’s trouble, we all know it, but most of the time we’re just too scared, or selfish, or insecure to help. But if we don’t help each other, who will?” So fancy […]
Magic wallpaper & a ghost in the yard
More sweet sugar from Sarah Addison Allen. I really liked The Girl Who Chased the Moon — there’s a couple of mysteries to solve, a lovely young lady as a main character (not to mention her gentle giant of a grandfather), and some magical cake-making. Definitely one of her better novels. “Living down your own past was hard enough. You shouldn’t have to live down someone else’s.” The Girl Who Chased the Moon follows two main characters. First, there’s teenage Emily Benedict, who has come to North Carolina […]