Category Archives: Historical

Review: The Saints of Swallow Hill by Donna Everhart

Title: The Saints of Swallow Hill by Donna Everhart
Publisher: Kensington Books
Genre: Historical, Fiction
Length: 376 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Where the Crawdads Sing meets The Four Winds as award-winning author Donna Everhart’s latest novel immerses readers in its unique setting—the turpentine camps and pine forests of the American South during the Great Depression. This captivating story of friendship, survival, and three vagabonds’ intersecting lives will stay with readers long after turning the final page.

It takes courage to save yourself…

In the dense pine forests of North Carolina, turpentiners labor, hacking into tree trunks to draw out the sticky sap that gives the Tar Heel State its nickname, and hauling the resin to stills to be refined. Among them is Rae Lynn Cobb and her husband, Warren, who run a small turpentine farm together.

Though the work is hard and often dangerous, Rae Lynn, who spent her childhood in an orphanage, is thankful for it–and for her kind if careless husband. When Warren falls victim to his own negligence, Rae Lynn undertakes a desperate act of mercy. To keep herself from jail, she disguises herself as a man named “Ray” and heads to the only place she can think of that might offer anonymity–a turpentine camp in Georgia named Swallow Hill.

Swallow Hill is no easy haven. The camp is isolated and squalid, and commissary owner Otis Riddle takes out his frustrations on his browbeaten wife, Cornelia. Although Rae Lynn works tirelessly, she becomes a target for Crow, the ever-watchful woods rider who checks each laborer’s tally. Delwood Reese, who’s come to Swallow Hill hoping for his own redemption, offers “Ray” a small measure of protection, and is determined to improve their conditions. As Rae Lynn forges a deeper friendship with both Del and Cornelia, she begins to envision a path out of the camp. But she will have to come to terms with her past, with all its pain and beauty, before she can open herself to a new life and seize the chance to begin again.

Review:

The Saints of Swallow Hill by Donna Everhart is a captivating historical novel which takes place in the turpentine camps of Georgia during the Depression.

Delwood “Del” Reese is a hard worker but his penchant for womanizing soon becomes his downfall. Barely escaping with his life, he lives an itinerant life before hiring on at a Georgia turpentine camp. Del immediately upsets the status quo by working alongside the Black men who “cat face” the pine trees. He and woods rider Crow intensely dislike one another and their rivalry intensifies after Del’s promotion makes them equals.

Rae Lynn and Warren Cobb have a small turpentine operation on their farm in North Carolina. Rae Lynn works as hard as Warren because of their lack of workers. Warren is well known for his clumsiness and eventually he is in a tragic accident. Rae Lynn flees the farm disguised as man so she can work in a turpentine camp in Georgia. Through a series of unfortunate and almost deadly events, Rae Lynn’s deception is discovered.

Commissary owner’s wife Cornelia Riddle is stuck in an abusive marriage but meeting Rae Lynn becomes a saving grace. Despite her best efforts not to anger her husband, she is often the target of his frustration. When Rae Lynn’s deception is uncovered, their friendship is the only thing that makes her life tolerable. With Del and Rae Lynn’s encouragement, Cornelia makes a decision that is truly life changing.

The Saints of Swallow Hill is an atmospheric historical novel that is quite fascinating. The various characters are vividly drawn and for the most part, very appealing. Rae Lynn has not had an easy life but she is compassionate and stands by her convictions. Del undergoes tremendous growth after his life altering experience. Cornelia is a sympathetic character that is caught in untenable situation.  The turpentine camp work is hard, the conditions deplorable and workers are often in debt to the company who hires them.  In spite of the hardship and poverty, Donna Everhart brings this vibrant, historically accurate novel to an uplifting conclusion.

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Filed under Donna Everhart, Historical, Historical (30s), Kensington Books, Rated B+, Review, The Saints of Swallow Hill

Review: The Next Ship Home by Heather Webb

Title: The Next Ship Home by Heather Webb
A Novel of Ellis Island
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
Genre: Historical, Fiction
Length: 436 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Ellis Island, 1902: Two women band together to hold America to its promise: “Give me your tired, your poor … your huddled masses yearning to breathe free…”

A young Italian woman arrives on the shores of America, her sights set on a better life. That same day, a young American woman reports to her first day of work at the immigration center. But Ellis Island isn’t a refuge for Francesca or Alma, not when ships depart every day with those who are refused entry to the country and when corruption ripples through every corridor. While Francesca resorts to desperate measures to ensure she will make it off the island, Alma fights for her dreams of becoming a translator, even as women are denied the chance.

As the two women face the misdeeds of a system known to manipulate and abuse immigrants searching for new hope in America, they form an unlikely friendship—and share a terrible secret—altering their fates and the lives of the immigrants who come after them.

This is a novel of the dark secrets of Ellis Island, when entry to “the land of the free” promised a better life but often delivered something drastically different, and when immigrant strength and female friendship found ways to triumph even on the darkest days.

Inspired by true events and for fans of Kristina McMorris and Hazel Gaynor, The Next Ship Home holds up a mirror to our own times, deftly questioning America’s history of prejudice and exclusion while also reminding us of our citizens’ singular determination.

Review:

Based on real life events, The Next Ship Home by Heather Webb is an engrossing historical novel that exposes the darker side of Ellis Island.

In 1902, Francesca Ricci and her sister are bound for America and a brighter future. Their journey is harrowing as they endure unimaginable conditions in the depths of the ship. Francesca escapes the illnesses that plague the immigrants but her sister is very sick when they finally arrive at Ellis Island. Francesca is desperate to remain in America and she will do whatever it takes to make that happen.

Alma Brauer begins working at Ellis Island the same day as the Ricci’s arrive. She is quiet and introspective so she is easily overwhelmed by the sheer number of people she must deal with every day. Alma’s beliefs about immigrants grow and evolve as she helps translate for some of the new arrivals. She is also shocked by the corruption she witnesses but at the urging of others, Alma does not report these deplorable actions.

The two young women strike up an endearing friendship as Alma and her brother Fritz help Francesca settle into her new life in New York. As Ellis Island undergoes close scrutiny to root out corruption, Alma despairs when her parents’ set in motion a plan for her future.  Unbeknownst to her, her way out of an untenable agreement rests on Francesca’s shoulders.

The Next Ship Home is a captivating historical novel that shines a much-needed light on the horrendous treatment of immigrants when they are most vulnerable. Francesca and Alma’s experiences reveal how powerless and vulnerable women are during the time period. The corruption and exploitation of immigrants at Ellis Island is appalling as is the wide-spread prejudice and misconceptions about the people searching for a better life. Heather Webb brings this meticulously researched and well-written novel to a heartfelt and uplifting conclusion.

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Filed under Fiction, Heather Webb, Historical, Rated B+, Sourcebooks Landmark, The Last Ship Home

Review: Garden of Sins by Laura Joh Rowland

Title: Garden of Sins by Laura Joh Rowland
Victorian Mystery Series Book Six
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Genre: Historical, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 304 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Award-winning author Laura Joh Rowland is back with the sixth in her critically acclaimed Victorian Mystery series in which Sarah must search for the killer of a woman she found murdered on a train all the while waiting for the verdict of her father’s trial for heinous crimes committed two decades earlier.

London, November 1890. Crime scene photographer Sarah Bain Barrett faces a perfect storm of events. She and her husband Detective Sergeant Barrett are riding on a train that crashes. While rescuing other passengers, they find a woman who’s been strangled to death. Their search for her identity and her killer lead them to Cremorne Gardens, a seedy riverside pleasure park that’s a combination carnival, theater, freak show, and museum of oddities. It’s among the most challenging cases that Sarah, Barrett, and her friends Lord Hugh Staunton and Mick O’Reilly have ever undertaken. The suspects include a dwarf, a female acrobat, and a member of the Royal Family. Due to the royal connection, the police commissioner declares the case top-secret. Sarah and company must investigate on the quiet, keeping the suspects, the press, and the public in the dark. That’s easier said than done. The investigation is complicated by the injury Hugh sustained during their last case, Mick’s romance with a woman who has psychic powers, and Barrett’s old flame.

Meanwhile, Sarah’s father Benjamin Bain goes on trial for a rape and murder that happened more than two decades ago. The victim was a teenage girl named Ellen Casey. Is Benjamin Bain as innocent as he claims? Sarah has serious doubts. The trial is the scandal of the year, a media blitz. The outcome–and the truth about the murder on the train–are beyond Sarah’s wildest imaginings. What dangerous secrets are hidden behind the tawdry glamor of Cremorne Gardens? Is Benjamin Bain wrongly accused, or a guilty sinner who deserves to be hanged?

Review:

Garden of Sins by Laura Joh Rowland is a multi-layered historical mystery. Although the sixth installment in the fabulous Victorian Mystery series, this newest release can be read as a standalone.

Photographer Sarah Bain Barrett is on leave from the newspaper where she works while waiting for her father Benjamin’s murder trial to begin. She and her half-sister Sally Albert are at odds over his innocence. So, Sarah welcomes the distraction when she and her husband Detective Sergeant Thomas Barrett are assigned to a secret investigation by the police commissioner.

Sarah and Barrett were on a train when it derailed and they stumbled across a woman who was murdered. Sarah takes the woman’s camera and after the film is developed, they manage to find the hotel where was staying. The photos were taken in the Cremorne Gardens so that is where Sarah and Barrett start looking for answers. Cremorne’s owners are former circus members who also perform at their business.

In between their attempt to find out why the murder victim was interested in the Cremorne, Sarah also attends her father’s trial. She grows increasing tense as the prosecution lays out its damning case. With a guilty verdict a distinct possibility, Sarah’s effort to exonerate her father unexpectedly leads to new information. Will this discovery prove his innocence?

Garden of Sins is an atmospheric mystery with a fast-paced storyline. Despite her recent marriage, Sarah is still independent and incredibly stubborn. Old issues arise between her and Barrett and their marriage is suddenly under immense strain. The secret investigation also causes friction as Sarah makes rash decisions while angry. Benjamin’s fate hangs in the balance and results in even more tension between Sarah and Barrett.  With breathtaking twists and clever turns, Laura Joh Rowland brings this gripping mystery to a shocking conclusion. Old and new are sure to enjoy this latest addition to the Victorian Mystery series.

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Filed under Crooked Lane Books, Garden of Sins, Historical, Laura Joh Rowland, Mystery, Rated B+, Review, Suspense

Review: The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain

Title: The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Genre: Contemporary, Historical (60s), Women’s Fiction
Length: 346 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

A community’s past sins rise to the surface in New York Times bestselling author Diane Chamberlain’s The Last House on the Street when two women, a generation apart, find themselves bound by tragedy and an unsolved, decades-old mystery.

1965

Growing up in the well-to-do town of Round Hill, North Carolina, Ellie Hockley was raised to be a certain type of proper Southern lady. Enrolled in college and all but engaged to a bank manager, Ellie isn’t as committed to her expected future as her family believes. She’s chosen to spend her summer break as a volunteer helping to register black voters. But as Ellie follows her ideals fighting for the civil rights of the marginalized, her scandalized parents scorn her efforts, and her neighbors reveal their prejudices. And when she loses her heart to a fellow volunteer, Ellie discovers the frightening true nature of the people living in Round Hill.

2010

Architect Kayla Carter and her husband designed a beautiful house for themselves in Round Hill’s new development, Shadow Ridge Estates. It was supposed to be a home where they could raise their three-year-old daughter and grow old together. Instead, it’s the place where Kayla’s husband died in an accident—a fact known to a mysterious woman who warns Kayla against moving in. The woods and lake behind the property are reputed to be haunted, and the new home has been targeted by vandals leaving threatening notes. And Kayla’s neighbor Ellie Hockley is harboring long buried secrets about the dark history of the land where her house was built.

Two women. Two stories. Both on a collision course with the truth–no matter what that truth may bring to light–in Diane Chamberlain’s riveting, powerful novel about the search for justice.

Review:

The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain is a captivating dual storyline novel set in rural North Carolina.

In 2010, Kayla Carter and her young daughter Rainie are preparing to move into their new home. The move is bittersweet due to the accidental death of Kayla’s husband, Jackson. They designed the house together and she is not looking forward to living in such a secluded area. Kayla’s uneasiness is compounded by the troubling visit by a mysterious woman who knows too much about her family. When frightening occurrences continue at the house, Kayla discovers shocking details about the history of her new property.

In 1965, twenty-year-old university student Ellie Hockley becomes a civil rights activist who is helping Black residents in the South register to vote. She is assigned close to home and she finally becomes cognizant of the poverty and racism she has not noticed until now. Ellie is compassionate and cares deeply about the people she is trying to assist exercise their civil rights. Because of her activism, she is becoming estranged from her parents and brother, Buddy. Her family is concerned about her welfare, but Ellie is passionate about the work is doing.

In 2010, the women’s lives unexpectedly intersect when Kayla moves into her new home. The Hockley family still lives in their farmhouse which is close to Kayla’s property and the new subdivision. Ellie is caring for Buddy as his health continues to deteriorate. Her mom is also currently living with them although she and Ellie do not get along. As Kayla and Ellie begin to get to know one another, long buried secrets and the town’s appalling history will soon be unearthed.

The Last House on the Street is a compelling novel that highlights the tumultuous civil rights movement. Kayla and Ellie are wonderfully drawn characters that are very relatable. The dual times lines are absolutely fascinating and come together in a very shocking denouement. Ellie’s work with registering voters becomes increasingly dangerous as the local KKK ratchets up their effort to drive out the civil rights activists.  Kayla’s grief is still fresh and she is worried about her and Rainie’s safety. With jaw-dropping plot twists, Diane Chamberlain brings this mesmerizing novel to an unanticipated conclusion.

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Filed under Contemporary, Diane Chamberlain, Historical, Historical (60s), Rated B+, Review, St Martin's Press, The Last House on the Street, Women's Fiction

Review: A More Perfect Union by Tammye Huf

Title: A More Perfect Union by Tammye Huff
Publisher: Forever
Genre: Historical, Romance
Length: 369 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Inspired by true events, A More Perfect Union is an epic story of love and courage, desperation and determination, and three people whose lives are inescapably entwined…

Henry O’Toole sails to America in 1848 to escape the famine in Ireland, only to face anti-immigrant prejudice. Determined never to starve again, he changes his surname to Taylor and heads south to Virginia, seeking work as a traveling blacksmith on the prosperous plantations.

Torn from her home and sold to Jubilee Plantation, Sarah must navigate its intricate hierarchy. And now an enigmatic blacksmith is promising her not just the world but also her freedom. How could she say no?

Enslaved at Jubilee Plantation, Maple is desperate to return to her husband and daughter. With Sarah’s arrival, she sees her chance to be reunited at last with her family—but at what cost?

Review:

Inspired by real life events, A More Perfect Union by Tammye Huf is a thought-provoking and sometimes heart-wrenching novel which takes place in the South during the mid-1800s.

Impoverished and starving due to the potato blight in Ireland, Henry O’Toole emigrates to America. Almost immediately upon his arrival, Henry changes his last name to Taylor due to discrimination toward the Irish. Desperately trying to avoid trouble, Henry leaves New York and becomes a traveling blacksmith. His path crosses with Sarah, who is a slave on the Jubilee Plantation, after he is hired by the owner, Matthew Johnson.  Despite the very real danger of a relationship between them, Henry and Sarah eventually fall in love. But is there any chance of a future for them?

Sarah is devastated to be separated from her mother and brother when she is purchased by Mathew and his wife Martha at a slave auction. At Jubilee, she is a house slave who takes care of the Johnson’s young son Thomas. She also works under fellow slave, Maple, whose bitterness at her circumstances makes her vindictive and petty. Sarah attempts to remain above the jealousies and infighting between the other house slaves. But once her relationship with Henry is discovered, the rest of the slaves turn on her.

A More Perfect Union is a captivating novel with a compelling storyline. Sarah and Henry’s romance is sweet yet seemingly hopeless under the circumstances. Matthew and Martha are devout Christians who treat their slaves better than other plantation owners. However, they are determined to protect their Southern way of life. As Sarah and Henry plot their escape, Matthew has other plans for her future. The tension builds with every chapter as Sarah and Henry’s efforts to leave are stymied at every turn. With one final act of desperation, Tammye Huf brings this poignant novel to a nerve-wracking yet heartwarming conclusion.

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Filed under A More Perfect Union, Forever, Historical, Rated B+, Review, Romance, Tammye Huf

Review: Down a Dark River by Karen Odden

Title: Down a Dark River by Karen Odden
An Inspector Corravan Mystery Book One
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Genre: Historical, Mystery
Length: 336 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

In the vein of C. S. Harris and Anne Perry, Karen Odden’s mystery introduces Inspector Michael Corravan as he investigates a string of vicious murders that has rocked Victorian London’s upper crust.

London, 1878. One April morning, a small boat bearing a young woman’s corpse floats down the murky waters of the Thames. When the victim is identified as Rose Albert, daughter of a prominent judge, the Scotland Yard director gives the case to Michael Corravan, one of the only Senior Inspectors remaining after a corruption scandal the previous autumn left the division in ruins. Reluctantly, Corravan abandons his ongoing case, a search for the missing wife of a shipping magnate, handing it over to his young colleague, Mr. Stiles.

An Irish former bare-knuckles boxer and dockworker from London’s seedy East End, Corravan has good street sense and an inspector’s knack for digging up clues. But he’s confounded when, a week later, a second woman is found dead in a rowboat, and then a third. The dead women seem to have no connection whatsoever. Meanwhile, Mr. Stiles makes an alarming discovery: the shipping magnate’s missing wife, Mrs. Beckford, may not have fled her house because she was insane, as her husband claims, and Mr. Beckford may not be the successful man of business that he appears to be.

Slowly, it becomes clear that the river murders and the case of Mrs. Beckford may be linked through some terrible act of injustice in the past—for which someone has vowed a brutal vengeance. Now, with the newspapers once again trumpeting the Yard’s failures, Corravan must dredge up the truth—before London devolves into a state of panic and before the killer claims another innocent victim.

Review:

Set in 1878, Down a Dark River by Karen Odden is a fascinating historical mystery.

Chief Inspector Michael Corravan does not have a good feeling following the discovery the body of Rose Albert in a lighter on the Thames River. She is a young woman from a good family and there are few clues to follow. When another young woman is found murdered in the same manner, Corravan’s worst fears are realized. With the reputation of Scotland Yard already battered from a recent scandal, his boss, Director Howard Vincent, implores Corravan to tread lightly with the victims’ families. Will Michael be able to contain his frustration and concerns over his lack of progress in catching the killer?

Just as the first victim is found, Michael makes progress in another case involving a missing woman, Mrs. Madeline Beckford. After locating her, his attempt to drop her off at her home leads to a shock response. Concerned about her safety, Corravan instead takes her the hospital where his friend Dr. James Everett works. Michael puts his young partner Inspector Stiles in charge of remaining by Madeline’s side in an effort to discover what drove her from her husband’s side.

Meanwhile, more murdered young women are found in lighters and Corravan’s vexation with his inability to find the murderer results in impetus decisions that threaten the case. He is rough around the edges and works hard to contain his impatience. Corravan can be brusque and his irritation with some of the victim’s family members is difficult to contain. After angering a person with unexpected connections in high places, Director Vincent puts Stiles in charge of the investigation. Will Michael heed his boss’s warning to stay away from the case?

Down a Dark River is a compelling mystery with an outstanding cast of characters. Corravan is multi-layered with a temper sometimes gets the best of him. Inspector Stiles patience and compassion perfectly complement Michael’s bull in the china shop tendencies. The storyline is quite engaging with a very perplexing mystery to solve. With brilliant twists and cunning turns, Karen Odden brings this clever mystery to an unpredictable yet satisfying conclusion. An Inspector Corravan Mystery series is off to a strong beginning and fans will be eagerly awaiting the next installment.

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Filed under An Inspector Corravan Mystery, Crooked Lane Books, Down a Dark River, Historical, Karen Odden, Mystery, Rated B+, Review, Suspense