Month: September 2014

+Blog Book Tour+ Star of Deliverance by Mandy Madson Voisin

Posted Tuesday, 30 September, 2014 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

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Star of Deliverance by Mandy Madson Voisin

Published By: Sweetwater Books (@SweetwaterBooks),
an imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc (@CedarFortBooks)

Official Author Websites:  Site @MandyVoisin | Facebook

Available Formats: Paperback, Ebook

Converse via: #StarofDeliverance

Acquired Book By: 

I am a regular tour hostess for blog tours via Cedar Fort whereupon I am thankful to have such a diverse amount of novels and non-fiction titles to choose amongst to host. I received a complimentary copy of “Star of Deliverance” direct from the publisher Sweetwater Books (imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc) in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Inspired to Read:

I felt a hitching in my chest growing as I read the opening chapter to Star of Deliverance as the last YA Fantasy which held my attention with such a rapt fierceness and knowing awareness my ears would not singe as the context would be a clean read was whilst I read Uncovering Cobbogoth; the very first Sweetwater Books title I read in late Spring! Stepping forward into this novel after I was under the weather for a short spell was not the easiest of tasks, as I had attempted to read it a few times without a success of soaking into the vein of it’s narrative. What originally drew me to alight on this particular title when it came around for a blog tour is the simple fact that I am betwixt vexation and frustration to sort through the new world of Young Adult; as I expanded on recently here and here. I knew if I elected to read a title by Sweetwater Books I would know going in I was going to be greeted by an intensely lit world and a character who more than likely would need to embark on a quest that I could attach myself to rallying behind.

One of the reasons I love the Fantasy genre as much as I do is because it is a bit of a collection of coming-of age histories from various walks of life all alighting in fantastically original worlds where the boundaries of our realm and their’s are set to different rules and different cultural attachments; yet at the heart of fantasy and reality lies one true central thread: the pursuit of freedom and the choice to live a free life pursuing one’s dreams. I love the epic heart of Fantasy as much as I like digging into an imagined world left behind for us to unravell one layer at a time. Seeing where each new world represents it’s own kind and how they choose to interact with others who are different from their own race is part of the dynamic of discovery. Diplomacy and humanistic tendencies are generally front-runners but there are also causes for uprisings from oppression and a growing sense of urgency to come out from a ruler who attempts to repress the spirit of his or her nation.

This one felt to me to garnish a bit of a new nexus of plausible thought – to seek out a remedy of hidden truth to free your people from a sickness that is not yet disclosed. In that one flicker of a plot thread I found myself attracted to finding out what the illness was being caused by, of whom was responsible for not giving the people a method towards healing, and what was the greater good and/or darkness surrounding the world at large that drew such a measure of strength out of an unexpected heroine?

Fantasy is one thread of literature I always find inspiring on several levels, but the most enchanting part of reading Fantasy for me is the wicked adventures you get to take whilst riding coattail close to the principle characters and seeing what they see in quite an extraordinary sensory exploration! I will be expressing my love of this genre more during #RRSciFiMonth (Sci-Fi November) – for now simply know it was always at the heart of what I read as a child.

I marked this as a “Re-Told Tale” for Cinderella (The Little Glass Slipper) by Brothers Grimm as I found a reference to how this story took on the previous incantation of an enslaved girl who sought individual freedom as much as cared about others around her which led me to believe it could be a re-telling of the classic canon. Although I do believe it was intended as a representation of Esther’s life as her voice is quoted at the start of the novel itself.

+Blog Book Tour+ Star of Deliverance by Mandy Madson VoisinStar of Deliverance
by Mandy Madson Voisin
Source: Direct from Publisher

Emi was born an outcast but raised as a healer. So when a young boy stumbles into her village with a rare disease, she knows that it's up to her to find the cure in the one place that abhors her people - the capital. But when Emi arrives, she's unwittingly thrust into a competition to win the crown prince's heart.

Staying in the game will give her time to search for the cure, but is it worth risking her life?

Get swept up in this epic teen fantasy that pulls you in from the very first page. Filled with intrigue, mystery, and romance, Star of Deliverance is guaranteed to keep you guessing.

Genres: YA Fantasy, Young Adult Fiction



Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Published by Sweetwater Books

on 9th September, 2014

Format: Paperback

Pages: 320

Author Biography: 

Mandy Madson Voisin

Mandy Madson Voisin grew up reading fairy tales and knew from a young age she wanted to write them. She graduated from Bringham Young University with a degree in English and starting writing Star of Deliverance soon thereafter. She currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona with her husband Kevin.

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The world of Deshan:

The ordinances of rule for the villagers who maintain the orchards for the High King fall under Feudal Europe or the rulers of 16th Century Japan (as parts of this story brought back happy memories of the Shinobi mysteries) inasmuch as I remembered the archaic control tactics for needing passes to move between territories and provinces to be a part of my beloved Leland Dragon series. There is a high level of security amongst those who are ordered to guard the commoners and those who are living at the palace – there is a disconnect between the two factions, as those who work in the orchards and outlying villages do not appear to receive news from outside their own living spheres.

The intricacies of knowledge of the world-building itself are clearly evident as Voisin has spent a considerable amount of time fine tuning the texture of her world as much as crafting the history of her people within it’s pages. I always appreciate the amount of time a writer takes to breathe such clarity of ‘time’ and of ‘place’ to their fantasy worlds – they are generally reminiscent of another time within our own known histories but even if they are completely created to stand on a unique ground of their own creation, it is how they can fuse to paper in such a way as to be ‘known’ as a truthful account that I credit the most in appreciation. Cobbogoth felt this way, Leland Province felt this way, even adventures of Father Mateo and Hiro felt viscerally real rather than obtusely created. The further I read into Star of Deliverance more of the world Voisin had created for us to find revealed itself in quiet whispers and it was an entreaty that delighted me.

My Review of Star of Deliverance:

A quick fire urgency is clearly evident as soon as you open the first pages of Star of Deliverance, as the inertia of how quickly the pace of the story is set consumes you as each new page is turnt. Emi is the adopted daughter of a village healer, gifted with a light of knowledge unseen of his kind and he bespoke of Emi to become his protégé years ago to save her from the enslaved life of their peers. Studying every facet of natural medicine Cen can etch into her memory, Emi grew inside the humble clinic as a nursing ground of nurturing the spirit of those who came to them as well as their physical wounds. Cen is an enlightened healer as evidenced by his methodology of practice and his approach to understand the whole of the person rather than by cluing into the symptoms alone.

There is a clear absence of law and order within the confines of truth, honour, and justice in this world – people are imprisoned without trial and without jury; taken from their families without fault of their own nor of any chance to recover a redemption of honour. They are erased as simply as extinguishing the lighted flame of a candle’s wick without consideration for their humanity nor their rights to live without the fear of being killed without prosecution. Despite the heaviness of the Dystopian world repressing the lives of those who work under arduous conditions to nib out a small living that doesn’t even give them a viable wage; Voisin creates a vacuum of light by the actions of the few who believe in keeping hope alive at all costs.

The closer Emi gains into the entrance of being wholly accepted at the palace the more my mind darted off to remembering why I loved watching Ever After; as she was a princess in the making as much as Danielle. Two girls who refused to live an ordinary life and who stood up for those who held no voice of their own to fix an accord against their circumstances. Emi has the cunning sense of knowing how to fudge her way through a unique turn of events that land her within ‘enemy walls’ so to speak and a spunky way of asserting herself without drawing her hand forward out of the lies she is spinning to covertly cover her real identity. The caste system is alive and well inside Deshan, as much as the fever of anxiety amongst those who work for the King and his family’s royal court. Everyone is vexed with concern over the growing disease that is taking root amongst both races of people: the Savian and the Brockan alike.

Before you even reach the centermost section of the novel, you realise you only know half of the story overall. What had felt like a revelation to understand the plausibility of the situation unfolding for those who need the cure and if the cure could be procured in time to save them; was not entirely what it first seemed to be at all. The curiosity for me was in following Emi’s lead as she continued to knit together the pieces of the expanding shroud of mystery tied into this mysterious disease and the origins of why it was coming back after being dormant for such a long time. The undercurrent thread of pursuing a royal honour is counter-center to the true beacon of where the ultimate hope lies for the people of Emi’s world. You cannot help to gather yourself into a comfortable spot to read her story whilst taking a respite from your own life and world to understand her own. To feel what she is feeling as she uncovers far more about her world than she ever felt she could dare hope to learn. And, to find the courage she needs at the moment it would mean the most to her people. This is a story to transcend out of history and inspire a new generation to stand for what is right even if there is a surge against what is true and where the light shines the brightest.

Mandy Madson Voisin has a historical voice curated out of the world of fairy-tales:

Reading Star of Deliverance if writ by another writer might have felt oppressively heavily with gutting emotions and an endless route towards a maddeningly cry for justice; however, with Voisin at the reins the opposite ended up being closer to the truth! You felt uplifted by how strong the oppressed were given their humble surroundings and the ache they had inside them whilst they fought for even the barest of necessities to live. They had a courage and a humility inside them to carry-on forward even if all they had to thrive upon was hope and the renewal of strength that comes from a promise of a better day still yet to be seen. Voisin carries this internal resolve through her characters and off-sets the stench of the darkness arising out of the command of those who would rather see the commoners expunged.

Voisin has a true gift for lending a historical voice whilst being curated out of the world of fairy-tales where anything can be conquered if self-confidence and self-belief is strong enough to overcome any hurdle that befalls you. She has entombed an incredible story inside her debut novel and I would find it remarkable if anyone does not feel lifted in spirit as much as strengthened by Emi’s resolve.

A very small spoiler:
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This Blog Tour Stop is courtesy of Cedar Fort, Inc:

Cedar Fort Publishing & Media

Virtual Road Map of “Star of Deliverance” Blog Tour can be found here:

Star of Deliverance Blog Tour via Cedar Fort Publishing & Media

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I positively *love!* comments in the threads below each of my posts, kindly know that I appreciate each thought you want to share with me and all the posts on my blog are open to new comments & commentary! Short or long, I appreciate the time you spent to leave behind a note of your visit! Return again soon! 

{SOURCES: Author photograph, Book Cover of “Star of Deliverance”, the Cedar Fort badge, the Book Synopsis, and the Author Biography were provided by Cedar Fort, Inc. and used by permission. Blog Tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Post dividers badge by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Bookish Events badge created by Jorie in Canva. Tweets were embedded due to codes provided by Twitter.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2014.

The tweets I posted after I read “Star of Deliverance”:

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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

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Posted Tuesday, 30 September, 2014 by jorielov in Apothecary, Blog Tour Host, Brothers and Sisters, Cedar Fort Publishing & Media, Coming-Of Age, Compassion & Acceptance of Differences, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, Debilitating Diagnosis & Illness, Debut Author, Debut Novel, Disabilities & Medical Afflictions, Equality In Literature, Fairy Tale Fiction, Fantasy Fiction, Father-Daughter Relationships, Good vs. Evil, Herbalist, High Fantasy, Indie Author, Life Shift, Light vs Dark, Medical Fiction, Naturopathic Medicine, Re-Told Tales, Realistic Fiction, Teenage Relationships & Friendships, YA Fantasy, Young Adult Fiction

+Blog Book Tour+ A Matter of Mercy by Lynne Hugo

Posted Tuesday, 30 September, 2014 by jorielov , , 1 Comment

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A Matter of Mercy by Lynne Hugo
Published By: Blank Slate Press (@blankslatepress) | Blog
Official Author Websites:  Site | @LynneHugo| GoodReads | Facebook
Available Formats: Trade Paper

Converse via: #AMatterOfMercy

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Acquired Book By:

I was selected to be a tour stop on the “A Matter of Mercy” virtual book tour through TLC Book Tours. I received a complimentary ARC copy of the book direct from the publisher Blank Slate Press, in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

+Blog Book Tour+ A Matter of Mercy by Lynne HugoA Matter of Mercy
by Lynne Hugo
Source: Direct from Publisher

Caroline Marcum thought she’d escaped the great mistake of her life by leaving Wellfleet harbor, but is forced to face it when she returns, reluctantly, to care for her dying mother. Ridley Neal put his past-and his prison term-behind him to return home to take over his father’s oyster and clam beds. Casual acquaintances long ago, when a nor’easter hits the coast, Rid and Caroline’s lives intersect once again. When Rid and two other sea farmers are sued by the wealthy owners of vacation homes who want to shut them down, and Caroline accidentally meets the person she most wronged, they each must learn to trust-and love.

Inspired by a 1996 lawsuit, A Matter of Mercy is a riveting novel about treasuring the traditional way of life in the shallows of beautiful Cape Cod bay by discovering where forgiveness ends. And where it begins.

Genres: Contemporary (Modern) Fiction (post 1945)



Places to find the book:

Published by Blank Slate Press

on 1st August, 2014

Pages: 278

Author Biography:

Lynne Hugo

Lynne Hugo is a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship recipient who has also received grants from the Ohio Arts Council and the Kentucky Foundation for Women. She has published five previous novels, one of which became a Lifetime Original Movie of the Month, two books of poetry, and a children’s book. Her memoir, Where The Trail Grows Faint, won the Riverteeth Literary Nonfiction Book Prize. Born and educated in New England, she and her husband currently live in Ohio with a yellow Lab feared by squirrels in a three state area.

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My Review of A Matter of Mercy:

The pull of narrative evoking out of the initial chapters of A Matter of Mercy propell the reader into a haunting ether-world between reality and the expanse of the next life past the one we walk on Earth. The emotional tug of understanding a daughter is on the precipice of saying good-bye to her mother, whose walk is ending through cancer is magnified by the subtlety of the setting being as serene and calm as a whisper of hope. You walk straight into the anguish of near-loss, ebbing out of the shadows of a recovered life being lived first by the daughter and then by an unknown secondary character who alights unexpectedly across the page during a random visit to the beach. You gather a foreboding sense there is an enriched history within the pages of the novel – stemming out of the place it is set as much as the characters who occupy it’s heart.

Although I had known the story was etched out of a daughter watching over her dying mother’s last days, reading the emotional taut passages choked my mind with the despair and the distraught feelings Caroline was facing as she tried to be brave in the face of uncertainty. There is no guideline to follow when your loved one is terminally ill and her character is writ with realistic truth of how a daughter musters the strength to deal with the routine of caregiving and the fleeting worry of unspoken conversations which emerge out of the fog of morphine.

Whilst reading about the tenacity the shell fishermen curate out of the angst of breathing a living out of a gamble against stacked odds made me re-value the delicacy of seafood; wild, caught, and captured by those whose belief in their trade outweigh the logic of the tides. A living brokered against the will to survive on less than a living wage whilst building their harvest is the measure of true grit and true iron spirit of survival. I was quite impressed with the interworkings of the way in which all of this takes place just offshore and away from land and sand. An entire world of a hard-won livelihood barely known to those outside the place in which the world exists.

I struggled to put my finger on the tone of the novel – the elusive narrative tone guiding the story forward at first felt like reading a realistic interlude of one woman’s story being interrupted through grief. On the opposite hand it felt like a grueling realistic quick-paced exploit of a law pervading through the hardworking men and women who lived off the grants for fishing off the shores where private land owners were attempting to upsurge their claims. I am normally not one who appreciates blatant and raw narratives, and although there were elements within this story I could appreciate and alight inside, there were full chapters where I had wished the roughness was polished out a bit more.

This is a story that aches with raw emotional tides of upturnt lives and washes out against the backdrop of two lives coming together from opposite backgrounds. The sincerity of their relationship felt stilted to me, as if they were simply being together out of necessity rather than any sort of honest attraction or mirth of reconciling their past. I felt myself pulled in and out of the story as it  proceeded to shift forward as I couldn’t find an anchor to keep me rooted in caring about how their lives were either going to continue to spiral out of control or find a bearing to make things right for once in their lives. I think it would be best for a reader to pick this novel up who appreciates stories that are more brutal in honesty and raw in intensity; whereas I appreciate stories that are rounded out a bit more and where the climax doesn’t feel as overpowering.

A direct appreciation for dedicated research & how a writer enhances their story:

Lynne Hugo deserves to be commended for the level of research she conducted to breathe authenticity into A Matter of Mercy, as even without a direct point of reference to clarify a few images wrought out of the trade of shellfishing, what I was able to grasp was the hardened life of those who walked the shores hoping their traps would yield a harvest they could live on. The certainty of how the imbalance of variables they cannot control ultimately wreck their fates was even more wrenching than realising how much joy they have in their work. Farmers of all backgrounds (by sea or land) are at the mercy of nature and the endurable buoyancy of trust and belief in what their able to harvest out of their endurance. It is a novel which breeches past the plate of where their toils end and humanises the reality of where the delicacies are procured.

Fly in the Ointment:

There was an undercurrent of abrasive language edging around the dialogue of the story, a bit intermittent and a bit unexpected in where it alighted in the thread of the narrative itself, but a presence that I cannot say added to the story itself but rather was inserted here or there. The only time I felt it might have relevancy is when Caroline’s mother started to use certain expressions in her conversations with her daughter – but rather than blame it on her terminal illness, it was blamed on a divorce. I had heard that sometimes people can change their personalities due to medications and due to life altering illnesses, so for me that felt more apparent of why she suddenly changed her spots for language rather than merely living a life alone without her husband.

I felt the entire arc of the story was hinged by two lost souls who were attempting to repair the damage they wrought out of bad choices and the sins of wrongs they could never fully find forgiveness for as the aftereffects ran too deep. What I hadn’t sorted out is why their emotional baggage was dispersed with a bit of recklessness and without a consequence or an emotional response. When Caroline first started to tell Rid for instance how she caused the fatality which took the life of a child, I found his sudden exit out of the scene and out of the conversation a bit circumvent and convenient. I was expecting an emotional response not a grab my clothes and leave without any hint of what his reaction could have been; as if she hadn’t spoken anything gutting at all.

I also had a small issue with Rid’s name itself – Rid I am sure makes sense to some who read this story, but for me, it felt like an annoyance, as though he had half a name rather than full name? Short for Ridley I must say I preferred the fullness of his name over the shortened nickname.

This blog tour stop was courtesy of TLC Book Tours:

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I positively *love!* comments in the threads below each of my posts, and happily CommentLuv only requires Email to leave a note for me! Kindly know that I appreciate each thought you want to share with me and all the posts on my blog are open to new comments & commentary! Short or long, I appreciate the time you spent to leave behind a note of your visit! Return again soon! 

{SOURCES: Cover art of “A Matter of Mercy”, author photograph, author biography, book synopsis and the tour badge were all provided by TLC Book Tours and used with permission. Blog Tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Bookish Events badge created by Jorie in Canva. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2014.

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Posted Tuesday, 30 September, 2014 by jorielov in 20th Century, Aquaculture, ARC | Galley Copy, Based on an Actual Event &/or Court Case, Blog Tour Host, Cape Cod, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, Fly in the Ointment, Geographically Specific, Grief & Anguish of Guilt, Indie Author, Life Shift, Literary Fiction, Modern Day, Realistic Fiction, Terminal Illness &/or Cancer, TLC Book Tours, Vulgarity in Literature, Women's Health

+Book Review+ Lost in Thought {Book No. 1: Sententia series} by Cara Bertrand #YA #bookseries

Posted Monday, 29 September, 2014 by jorielov , , , 5 Comments

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Lost in Thought by Cara Bertrand
Published By: Luminis Books (@LuminisBooks) | Blog
Official Author Websites:  Site | @carabertrand | GoodReads | SenteniaSeries Site
Available Formats: Paperback, Ebook

Converse via: #SententiaSeries

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Acquired Book By:

I was selected to be a tour stop on the “Second Thoughts” virtual book tour through JKS Communications: A Literary Publicity Firm. As this was the second novel in a book series, I was able to put in a request to receive the first novel Lost in Thought of which I received a complimentary copy of direct from the publisher Luminis Books without obligation to review. I received my complimentary copy of Second Thoughts direct from JKS Communications in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Inspired to Read:

I am a bit of a quirky bookish soul on the level of being attracted to a particular style of paranormal stories which may or may not fit into the norm as far as industry standard selections on a per annum basis might include. I am particularly particular in my choices of both vocal styling of characters within the paranormal genre and the nature of how the undertone of these types of stories will befall. I am a reader who has a penchant for light being a fuelled undertone to novels, and thus, I am forever and a half seeking out the few paranormal stories out there that match my idealistic impression of the genre and the reality of what is being written. I nearly tucked tail out of the paranormal genre completely due to my previous interactions with other Adult Paranormal stories which tipped the scale in an unfavourable way.

I decided to forego seeking Adult Paranormal titles for blog tours and/or off-tour reviews and focus instead on the YA portion of the selections being published quite readily. Even then, I find myself not attracted to the heavier end of the spectrum but rather the intuitive side of YA Paranormal Fiction. I have always amassed a certain propensity for parapsychological story-lines (in both books & tv series/motion pictures), but my inclination of what I elect to read or to watch are a far cry outside the ones you’d expect I would have been drawn to read OR watch. Part of my participation in Horror October (by Oh! The Books) will carve out the dance I walk on the fringes of a supremely popular genre. 

What drew my eye immediately into this book series was the premise – as I have to admit I was the girl in the darkened front row of The Sixth Sense who had worked herself up into a bit of a panic frenzy of not being able to handle half of the film; until a kind-hearted young bloke next to me (of whom I never knew previously or had the chance to properly thank afterwards; he disappeared that quickly!) told me *exactly!* when to ‘watch’ and when to ‘duck your eyes’; he clearly had been a groupie of the film director’s having seen this particular release 10x within the first few days of it’s release! I, on the other hand was a causality of a last-minute duck & dive into the theater with my best friend and as ill planned as we were, the front seats were the very last available to be had. Aside from the wicked horror of seeing it too close to the screen, what I appreciated was the premise of the film (perhaps not the straight-up horror bits mind you!) as a thesis of a theory of what happens when people see the dead amongst us. It is a thematic I was attracted too most intrinsically as forementioned on my blog having a connection to a field close-to that of a medical examiner. (see review of Daughter of the Gods).

Death by nature is always presented either in the light of faith-based stories or the gruesome after effects of being newly deceased on medical examiner series and/or police procedurals or detective mysteries. It is quite rare to find offerings of where the dead are alongside the living in a way that is representative of who they are after they pass and in such a way as to honour the spirit of the person who had died. Hence why I positively love watching Ghost Whisperer via seasonal dvds I loan through ILL’ing at my local library. The curiosity was always perked to find stories and characters who walk amongst the dead and/or are in communication with the dead on a parallel plane of acknowledgement as I think it has a bevy of choice as to how to portray not only the characters speaking to the dead but how to illuminate the dead themselves. 

Now imagine my excitement on having discovered the Sententia series!

And, the blessing to read the series from Book 1 straight into Book 2!

+Book Review+ Lost in Thought {Book No. 1: Sententia series} by Cara Bertrand #YA #bookseriesLost in Thought : First Book of the Sententia

Lainey Young has a secret . . .

She's going crazy. Everyone thinks she has severe migraines from stress and exhaustion. What she really has are visions of how people died - or are going to die. When doctors insist she needs a new and stable environment to recover, Lainey's game to spend two years at a private New England boarding school. She doesn't really think it will cure her problem, and she's half right. There is no cure, but she's not actually crazy.

Almost everyone at Northbrook Academy has a secret too. Half the students and nearly all of the staff are members of the Sententia, a hidden society of the psychically gifted. A vision of another student's impending death confirms Lainey is one of them. When she's finally getting comfortable with her gift of divining deaths, and with Carter Penrose, a recent Academy graduate and resident school crush, they uncover her true Sententia heritage. Now Lainey has a real secret. 

Once it's spilled, she'll be forced to forget protecting secrets and start protecting herself.


Places to find the book:

Series: Sententia


Also in this series: Lost in Thought : First Book of the Sententia


on 25th April, 2014

Format: Paperback

Pages: 288

Author Biography: 

Cara Bertrand
Photo Credit: Vallarta Adventures

Cara Bertrand is a former middle school literacy teacher who now lives in the woods outside Boston with: one awesome husband, two large dogs, one small daughter, and lots of words. LOST IN THOUGHT is her first novel and was a finalist for the Amazon/Penguin Breakthrough Novel Award.

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Teenagers are not naturally attracted to antiques?:

I was a bit surprised to read this sentiment being expressed in the opening bits of learning more of Lainey’s past, a smirk of a recognition seeing a bit of myself in Lainey, if truth be told. I fell in love with antiques as a young girl as I grew up in a home and family of whom appreciated unique pieces and aged eclectic finds. By thirteen I was attending auctions regularly and getting the feel for discerning what was worth bidding on and what was worth letting slide by. I always appreciated the subtle differences in glass, china, and dishware – not only for distinction of style but for the artistry of where the pieces originally came from. We even had a factory of sculpture straight out of Italy nearby from where I was attending high school, so you could say, I grew up not only surrounded by art, music, and cultural events but a proper sense of ageless curiosity about curios!

Wandering around emporiums of antiques in tucked away small townes is simply a day ‘out’ I can always drink in with a smile, a nod to the out-of-doors walking paths, and a happy spirit. I love the spontaneous conversations evolving around something I find my eye is drawn to learn a bit more about and how each antique shoppe has it’s very own unique way of putting everything on display. I love the photographs which are framed and hung on the wall as much as the shoeboxes stuffed to the gills with individual photos you can purchase in large batches or separately if you want to go for the ‘unfamiliar relations’ mosaic. The furniture of the 1800s is intermixed with pre-1950s and early 20th Century, and the moment of anticipation to check out the estate jewelry in the cases is always a bit of happenstance glowing excitement! Yet, it is the furniture and the kick knacks I personally adore the most (except for how my mind wanders about sorting through the ‘china’ room to percolate a personal style of ‘necessary  items’ in the dining room), as you can find such an array of hand-crafted artisan quality separates! One of my favourite finds are the pull down drawer desks and of course, an armoire that can fit and bemuse a woman’s wardrobe!

Hmm, yes, I do suppose being into antiques is not fashionably akin to being a teenager, but then who says you have to lead a conventional life!? I love Lainey’s spunk and her individualism!

My Review of Lost in Thought:

Realising you have a gift (especially a parapsychological gift) is innocuous enough, but to fully fathom how to encompass the truth of how far your gift can take you is quite another matter entirely! The paradoxical internal conflict at the jump-start of Lost in Thought set me inside the head of Lainey and etched out a time vortex to be wholly absent from my own living hours for the duration of her story to be told. There is something alluring about murder mysteries and to have orientated her revelation to know the dead through an act of murder was quite an ingenious hook for a potential reader to find on page 1! Of course, to be truthful, the reader would have to be a life-long appreciator ‘of murder mysteries’ such as myself to become rooted in their chair!

We quickly shift directly into Lainey’s life as she starts to end her gypsy life with her Aunt and takes up residence at a boarding school to finish out her tenure of high school. We start to watch her blossom by being able to have a bit of a routine rather than an unorthodox existence of following her Aunt Tessa around as she tours the country as a professional artist. It is whilst she is starting to settle into the Academy as a student we start to see her develop more as a person who is not only curious about what caused her headaches originally but if there was any truth to the origins therein. Her doctors always felt she was living too much out of sync with the normalcy other teens experienced during adolescence but she was never quite certain if her doctors understood her as they never had the fuller truth of what caused her the most duress. Lainey is a girl on the verge of understand who she is and why she was endowed with the gifts she has inside her, but there is always a pinch of foreshadow inside the story — alluring to a bit of a darker truth outside of the light.

I appreciated seeing the central core of the Sententia having roots in spirituality and watching how ethically they were attempting to do what was right whilst walking the fine line between interference with free will and observation. The internal core of the novel reminded me a bit of the Prime Directive from Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek and seeing theology discussed inside the novel was an unexpected surprise as I personally appreciated of whom the credit was given for having given the gifts to the Sententia. Each world is built differently inside the Fantasy genre, but what drew me to appreciate the Sententia is how humanistic they were whilst they understood a higher plane of existence. They are a bit advanced at discovering natural bourne gifts and how to wield them; yet they are a bit of a mystery to the outside world at large. This brought together an interesting proposition to the story’s central threads as they (the Sententia) are a unique sub-culture of humanity living on the fringes of ordinary society.

Lainey’s best friend Amy (who is also her roommate at the Academy) reminds me so much of Kit from Pretty Woman because she has her energetic enthused way of celebrating her roomie’s life that made me flash to mind her persona each time Amy walks into view or is wrapped up in a conversation with Lainey; which points closer to how this novel read more adult to me than high school teen; a bit more college than secondary school at least. Lainey never had a grounding of a friendship with a peer before due to all her expeditions but what she was truly gaining was further insight into who she was as an individual and how she wanted to proceed forward into her future. She is at the age where being given a gift came with certain responsibilities and certain consequences and I appreciated seeing how she was trying to align the balance she wanted in her life. Balance between trusting those who knew more than she did about the Sententia and trusting her gut instincts about everything else.

The only thing I was truly disappointed about aside from the strong language is that the story took an unexpected turn from what I had originally felt it was being projected as going towards — as far as the dead and the living are concerned. This is a story that is about the dead but it isn’t about helping the dead as I first had perceived but rather a unique bent on another vein of thought that walks alongside the dead and a bit on the level of the theory of the Grim Reaper if truth be told. Yet that isn’t entirely what it is about either. It is a very interesting story-line threaded through parapsychological phenomena that doesn’t allow you to fully guess where this novel is taking you; even when you think you understand everything you need to know about Lainey and her friends. Bertrand weaves in a twist or two that you are not expecting nor do you fully understand as this first installment ends on the tip of a cliffhanger; but not one that is hard to swallow but rather one that is most foreboding in where we shall enter Lainey’s life in “Second Thoughts”; because the title of the series itself is a leading clue to what lies within. 

On the writing style of Cara Bertrand:

Bertrand excells at painting a story that feels real and is lush on descriptive narrative as much as sense of place for Lainey and the other students at the Academy; straight down to the local haunt of the bookshoppe. She has a knack for carving out a setting that feels as real as breathing and gives the YA genre a solid footing as far as how to paint the whole of the world whilst developing the characters inside it. The only flaw I found was the inclusion of a brass word early-on when Lainey met her roommate which not only felt out of step with the rest of the story but was a deep disappointment for me, as I was thinking I had finally found a writer who had curbed using strong language and left the genre to stand on the merit of the story and their characters without falling into the pattern of where modern YA is taking younger audiences.

I personally do not consider any novel YA or for an audience of Children if it is going to include strong language. I am going to start to talk more about this on my blog as I index my reviews, but what is disappointing to me is why there appears to be such a need to include the words at all? Despite my grievances for the language choices within this novel, I did appreciate the story as the words were flittered about like those flies I mentioned on previous reviews and not the total distractment they could have become. Evenso, I would not be recommending this to a teenager as the language for me puts this firmly in the Adult Lit category; similar to how I have felt each time I pick up a (supposed) YA title and find the same inside their pages.

I’m disappointed writers feel they have to add these words in order to find an audience because to me literature should stand as an example that improves our lives rather than detract from the causal way in which language has become outside literature and school. It is sad to me because when I find a wordsmith who breathes such a breath of positive narrative prose into her books, I am regrettably saddened to see words flicker onto the page that make me inwardly cringe. Their absence would not deflect from the message of the story but their absence would be applauded for carrying a story without abrasive words to narrow the audience the story could have had. I truly love the way in which Bertrand writes her stories, and the few intermittently brassier words do not reflect her writing as a whole.

Especially considering how much effort she put into having ‘cursing’ occurring ‘off-camera’ in some instances and/or finding unique phrases to ‘cover-up’ a stronger explicit phrase. I was a bit confused why more than half the book is writ with a young mind in consideration and the other half letting certain words erupt onto the page? It was quite confusing to me as like I said, she has a singularly strong strength in writing the voice of a teenager and in evoking what a teen’s mind, heart, and process of thought will entreat whilst dealing with a personal crisis and a revelation of identity. To say reading this story left me betwixt reactions is putting it mildly; especially considering when the coarse words started escalating in both frequency of appearance and the choice of which ones would be included.

Fly in the Ointment : is it me, or are there two versions of YA?

Is it me or has the book world gone upturnt crazy, lately!? Now, I have already established I purposely stopped reviewing Adult Paranormal novels for my blog with the express reason to avoid vulgarity in stories yet what curious little word did you think I found on page 18? It wasn’t the worst of the worst (of which I have absolutely positively no tolerance for at all) but it was still a word I wasn’t expecting to find in a novel branding itself as YA! I mean, isn’t the point of being a Young Adult novel to adhere to a certain ground rule of exclusion for explicit vulgarity and violence? Am I missing the boat OR is literature becoming so muddled these days it is growing harder to know which way is up? Sighs. And, here I was thinking this would be the one book series I would not be composing a Fly in the Ointment on!

I run searches on this topic every blue moon as I had tonight to check to see if my definition had miraculously changed since I first picked up Young Adult fiction as a young adult myself over a decade and a half ago! The results of which run the full gambit of if your not exclusively akin to reading vulgar words in literature you are either: too sensitive, too prudish, too religious, or too blind to see where society has taken our youth. I do not concur with any of the statements, because of the mere fact when I was in high school (and quite frankly elementary & middle too!) we had our own set of perimeters on language. If you heard foul words flying out of the mouth of a classmate you knew to give them a wide birth and they were never one to emulate. I admit to overhearing teens in my own towne sporting words out of their mouths which make me wonder what has changed since I graduated, but that aside, my main concern is the habit of finding there is no longer a ‘filter’ for Children’s Literature and the young minds of whom pick up the books.

I read a comment tonight from a concerned reader (who sounded a lot like me; open-minded but with a conscience) who lamented about how the ‘age’ of who regularly reads Young Adult novels are not teens but rather graduating elementary schoolers and run of the mill middle schoolers. The teens already graduating into adult fiction and/or pursuing interests outside of literature completely. As a future parent I am finding more angst in finding vulgarity in Young Adult fiction than as a reader who has appreciated YA fiction for most of her life. I never ran into any of this in the 1980s through mid-1990s which begs the question: what exactly has changed and why are certain words so rabid inside modern literature? As a book blogger — I never fathomed I’d have to find over 30 ways to Sunday to opine my discontempt for vulgarity in literature!

I’d never advocate for banning books but I do advocate for books to be marked with explicit content for language as a method of understanding what we will find inside and therefore start to curb our disillusioned disappointment. If they can mark books for science fiction & fantasy as much as lyrics in music, I am thinking it is time to start marking books with ‘strong language included’ and ‘explicit violence’ if the case might be as well.

What was more puzzling for me is the mission of the publisher (Luminis Books) is to curate books which are meaningful as they are thought-provoking, yet how can a novel be meaningful if the language is brought down by the commonality of cursing and using abrasive words where they could have been tempered and softly spoken by more creative means? I am not sure I am appreciating YA novels being overrun with language that parents and teachers alike are trying so very hard to discern them from using on a regular basis. Even on my own behalf in the not so far off future, I am not going to allow my children to talk with such reckless abandon; it was not how I was raised nor is it how I will be raising my children. Teens can feel anger and they can feel vehemently overwhelmed, as who didn’t feel that way as a teenager? The anguish and angst of growing up is always deeply wrought and felt, but we were always told to use our words and to express our emotions by choosing words which helped to douse the flames of the fires we felt surging inside us. To find better ways to express what we wanted to say and to own who we were without muddling our speaking voices with the words of sailors as the saying used to go.

I am not certain what has changed or why certain books are being found with such inclusions, but I personally will rally behind each writer of YA who doesn’t use language in a negative way but rather uses language to teach a more appropriate way to understand our world. The stories with stronger language I will advocate for adult readers only.

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Stay tuned!

Next I will be hosting an Author Q&A with Cara Bertrand:

Cara Bertrand
Photo Credit: Vallarta Adventures

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This blog tour stop is courtesy of:
JKS Communications: A Literary Publicity Firm

Luminis Books Blog Tour with JKS Communications

Discover what I am hosting next by visiting:

Bookish Events badge created by Jorie in Canva

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I positively *love!* comments in the threads below each of my posts, and as CommentLuv only requires Email to leave a note for me I cannot wait to see what starts to populate below! Kindly know that I appreciate each thought you want to share with me and all the posts on my blog are open to new comments & commentary! Short or long, I appreciate the time you spent to leave behind a note of your visit! Return again soon! 

{SOURCES: The tour badge was provided by JKS Communications and used with permission. Book Cover Art for “Lost in Thought” & “Second Thoughts”, Author Biography & Book Synopsis provided by the author Cara Bertrand and used with permission. Blog Tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Bookish Events badge created by Jorie in Canva. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Tweets are embedded due to codes provided by Twitter.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2014.

The ‘live reading’ tweets I shared as I read & reviewed “Lost in Thought”:

{ favourite & Re-tweet if inspired to share }

 

Comments on Twitter:

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Posted Monday, 29 September, 2014 by jorielov in 21st Century, Agnostic (Questioning & Searching or Unsure), Antiques, Art, Balance of Faith whilst Living, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Review (non-blog tour), Bookish Discussions, Children's Literature, Clever Turns of Phrase, Coming-Of Age, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, Debut Author, Debut Novel, Equality In Literature, Family Life, Flashbacks & Recollective Memories, Fly in the Ointment, Gothic Literature, Indie Author, JKS Communications: Literary Publicity Firm, Life Shift, Light vs Dark, Mental Health, Modern Day, Orphans & Guardians, Parapsychological Gifts, Parapsychological Suspense, Premonition-Precognitive Visions, Questioning Faith as a Teen, Realistic Fiction, Sculpture, Teenage Relationships & Friendships, Transfer Student at School, Transitioning into Private School, Unexpected Inheritance, Vulgarity in Literature, Wordsmiths & Palettes of Sage, YA Paranormal &/or Paranormal Romance, Young Adult Fiction

Book Spotlight: “Island of a Thousand Springs” by Sarah Lark by German publisher Bastei Lübbe!

Posted Thursday, 25 September, 2014 by jorielov , , , , , , 2 Comments

Book Spotlight

I am highlighting a second novel I would like to read in the future which is being released by a new-to-me German publisher, Bastel Lübbe! I came across this lovely publisher through one of the tour companies I work with regularly (JKS Communications), and ever since I marked myself down to host for this blog tour, I’ve been wholly consumed by the publisher’s listing of historical fiction novels found over here on their Foreign Rights Page. I’ve even resorted to ‘stalking’ Barnes & Noble’s website in the pure wish of finding either this novel or the one I previously highlighted A Flower for the Queen! I found two delightfully intriguing novels which whet a thirst of interest to read, yet it is quite unfortunate the only copies available to read on the tour were digital / ebooks. I am therefore in hopeful anticipation for a print book to be released and one day I’ll be able to drink in the narrative of each write of whom has enchanted me! As I had for my previous spotlight, I went on a happy adventure online seeking all the lovely materials I’m sharing today with you, dear hearts!

Book Synopsis for “Island of a Thousand Springs”

Island of a Thousand Springs by Sarah LarkLondon, 1732. Nora Reed, the beautiful daughter of a merchant, falls passionately in love with her father’s clerk Simon. Despite their very different circumstances, the two dream of a future together on a Caribbean island – until tragedy strikes, and Nora is left grieving for her first love. Determined to fulfil her promise to Simon to reach the Caribbean, she enters into a marriage of convenience with Elias Fortnam, the widowed owner of Cascarilla Gardens, a sugarcane farm in Jamaica.

But life in the Caribbean isn’t what Nora expected. Though the island is as beautiful as she hoped, she is shocked by the behaviour of the plantation owners, including that of her husband, and their abuse of the slaves in particular appals her. Whilst unable to improve their lives as she wishes, she sets out to make some changes on the farm, inciting the rage of her husband, but earning the respect of the slaves on the plantation.

The arrival of Elias’s handsome son Doug changes Nora’s life, as the two begin to fall in love. However, one of the slaves on the plantation and Doug’s former childhood friend Akwasi has also fallen in love with Nora, and is infuriated by their relationship. Just as Nora feels that she is settling into her new life, it is torn away from her, leaving her enslaved, frightened and hopeless…

Author Biography:

Sarah Lark is an international bestselling author, famed for her captivating historical sagas, and with sales of 2.7 million in Germany alone. Three of her books, In The Land of the Long White Cloud, Song of the Spirits and Call of the Kiwi have already been published in the UK. A gripping tale of love and hate, courage and redemption, trust and betrayal, Island of a Thousand Springs is the first book in the Caribbean saga.

Title in Spanish: La isla de las mil fuentes

Written by the Author: Sarah Lark

Previously I highlighted an author team from France, today is is my pleasure to highlight a German author who lives in Spain, Ms. Lark who not only appreciates writing novels but is a horsewoman as well! I was overjoyed seeing all the lovely pictures of her and her horses on her website, which is in Spanish, but you can gather a sense of who she is through the content and the photographs! I am finding it extraordinarily fascinating to find new authors to read who are from two different countries (France & Germany) and are published by a German publisher! It is an incredible gift being a curious reader and always remaining open to where stories originate and to seek out stories from somewhere incredibly unique from our own literary wanderings within our own countries. I love the ability to expand my knowledge of the craft of stories as much as the expanse of where stories can take us if we read novels by those who live in a different place than we do ourselves. I think this is in part why I love reading my ChocLit novels, as they are written by writers who are not living in the United States, and therefore, are stitching a new and unique perspective of a story into their novels, of which I am always grateful to read. I like finding our similarities and our differences as I read, and I love seeing the excitement for sharing the creative joy of story which bubbled up inside the heart who wrote it. I simply love the art of discovering stories and knowing that reading has no limits nor any boundary if we are embracing the joy of where stories alight and take flight!

Author Connections:

Sarah Lark: Site| @SarahLarkWriter | Facebook

{ Island of a Thousand Springs is on Riffle }

{ these are not referral links but merely to help my readers find the author’s works }

Books Available on Barnes & Noble

Audiobooks via iTunes

{ As previously mentioned, I have been sorting out how to read the titles I am finding by this publisher, and when I realised that some of the novels are becoming audiobooks and some are being released into print book editions, I was beyond overjoyed! One day after I understand the German language better I will even understand more than the emotions coming through the audiobook excerpts I am sharing today! I’d love to listen to the audiobooks in both English & German one day! If I ever find these have gone into PRINT I will be one very happy book blogger & reader as my adventure towards reading books by this publisher will be closer to being fulfilled! }

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Publisher: Bastei Entertainment, an imprint of: Bastei Lübbe (@bastei_luebbe)

YouTube & Facebook

 Genres: Historical Fiction | Adventure | Romance

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What drew my eye into wanting to read the offerings of the German Publisher:

Being that I am always *excited!* to discover something new in the literary realms, I wasn’t just keen on reading “A Flower for the Queen” or “Island of a Thousand Springs” but other titles like this one: The Song of the Waterfall *of course its a trilogy, so it would have to be read in order! I was as giddy as a child let loose in a candy shoppe – all the lovely choices of wicked historical stories with heart, depth, and world-building narratives that felt as real as the any lived experience you could hope to alight on your journey! I loved the diversity of choices, the engaging premise per story which gave me an feather of an inkling of what was inside them, and the surge of excitement for finding a new publisher who was contributing the wicked sweet quality of story I find so exhilarating to read! Ironically or not, a lot of their titles were originally published in English, yet scour the internet as much as I do, I’ve yet to find a ‘book shoppe’ on this continent or another who has any copy of these novels in English! Outside of the few I’ve found on the forementioned Barnes & Noble website! I even tried to find them at Powells (my favourite Indie online)!

Here is my initial reaction in a nutshell: I am encouraged finding out about this publisher! Wow. How did we not know about them sooner in the States? Books from England are imported all the time, it is like a hidden well of literature! :) Do you know which online bookshoppes will carry the titles in print? Powells or Barnes & Noble perhaps? I wonder if my library could order them in print!? Apparently in Germany my favourite category is “Landscape Novel” which I think is their equivalency of our ‘epic saga’ or ‘historical fiction’!? 

I have always appreciated a nice long novel, into which I can disappear and alight inside the shoes of the main character whilst living as they do on the page. I love being able to take a journey through the world in which an author can give their readers, as much as I appreciate the breadth of a well-conceived and well-written world. When I saw this particular novel, what I liked the most about it initially is that it is a saga of one woman’s choices as life evolved for her during ordinary hours. She has to make choices that are not emotionally easy to accept, but she keeps moving forward and living the life that arrives for her to walk. I love gathering the sense that this is only the first step towards understanding where her journey is going to take her and where we are going to go as readers. The beauty of writers who write a lot of depth into their novels is having their readers feel as though they completed the journey the writer first took with their pen! I am thankful I could spotlight a new author I have found and I hope my spotlight will encourage new readers to find her stories as well! Especially if they are able to read ebooks or audiobooks — and if you do decide to read a Sarah Lark novel, kindly drop back and let me know your impressions!

My own journey towards securing the two novels I’ve highlighted still continues! Until then, I hope I have inspired another reader to seek out their mirth of narrative and the joyous discovery of finding ‘new’ historical fiction authors emerging out from a publisher we might never have known about previously!

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Audiobook Excerpts by Bastei Lubbe (in German)

Inspired to Share: I was hoping to have more to share about Island of a Thousand Springs, however, I wanted to share the two audiobook excerpts I found on YouTube, as despite the language barrier, you can gather through the voice of the narrator how powerful of a drama these two stories by Sarah Lark truly are, as emotions and feelings are always transparent by voice. I happily listened to both of them as I wrote this blog post! I was overjoyed having learnt the publisher is releasing the works into audiobook formats via iTunes, as I am quite picky about where I purchase audiobooks, and have updated my Review Policy to reflect this new place to find them! The interesting bit is that as I listened to these two excerpts, I started to gather a sense about the stories even without understanding the words as well as someone who is fluent in German. I believe it is because I always wanted to learn the language and therefore, it was a welcome experience to listen to the excerpts! Cheers, to Bastei Lübbe!

Sarah Lark :  Die Zeit der Feuerblüte via LuebbeAudio

{ Title in English: The Time of the Fire Flowers }

{ the novel on Riffle }

Sarah Lark : Der Klang des Muschelhorns via LuebbeAudio

{ Title in English: The Sound of the Conch }

{ the novel on Riffle }

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‘El grito de la tierra’ de Sarah Lark via edicionesbeditorial

{ Title in English: The Cry of the Land }

{ the novel on Riffle }

Inspired to Share: Imagine my excitement in finding there was a book trailer for one of Ms. Lark’s novels! I love the artistry and the music put into this trailer, as

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This blog tour stop is courtesy of:
JKS Communications: A Literary Publicity Firm

Bastei - Publisher Blog Tour via JKS Communications

Discover what I am hosting next by visiting:

Bookish Events badge created by Jorie in Canva

Reader Interactive Question:

Have you ever stumbled across an author OR publisher whose first language is not your native one and therefore it provides a bit of a language barrier? I remember when I first signed up for this blog tour, I contacted the author & the publisher via Twitter. I had not realised at the time the authors spoke primarily in French, German, or Spanish, and of course, I knew the publisher was German, yet I had hoped one or both of them might know a bit of English and/or have a translator to help them with English-speaking readers contacting them. I never before felt my desire to become fluent in German was ever more important than facing an incompatible way of communicating with a publisher of whose titles I most want to read!

Secondly, if I were to learn to ‘read’ in French & German, I could simply order copies of their books in either language and *celebrate!* What blessed joy the day shall be if I reach that point of understanding! Is there a language you read regularly other than the native language you grew up using the most!?

{SOURCES: Cover art of “Island of a Thousand Springs” and the tour badge were all provided by JKS Communications and used with permission. Author Biography & the expanded Book Synopsis provided by Ed Public Relations in the UK and used with permission. Blog Tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Bookish Events badge created by Jorie in Canva. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. The videos by Lübbe Audio had either URL share links or coding which made it possible to embed this media portal to this post, and I thank them for this opportunity to share such an imaginative exploration with you.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2014.

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Posted Thursday, 25 September, 2014 by jorielov in Audiobook, Audiobook Excerpt, Blog Tour Host, Book | Novel Extract, Book Spotlight of E-Book (ahead of POD/print edition), Book Trailer, Bookish Films, Debut in United States, Historical Fiction, JKS Communications: Literary Publicity Firm

+Blog Book Tour+ The Angel of Losses by Stephanie Feldman

Posted Wednesday, 24 September, 2014 by jorielov , , , 2 Comments

Parajunkee Designs

The Angel of Losses by Stephanie Feldman

Published By: Ecco (@eccobooks)

an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers (@HarperCollins)
Official Author Websites: Site@sbfeldman  | Facebook
Available FormatsHardcover, Ebook

Converse via: #TheAngelOfLosses

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Acquired Book By:

I was selected to be a tour stop on the “The Angel of Losses” virtual book tour through TLC Book Tours. I received a complimentary ARC copy of the book direct from the publisher Ecco, in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Inspired to Read:

I am always seeking stories which will challenge my mind and take me somewhere completely outside of where I have travelled before in literature. I had a sense that this was a story that I would devour — a story which would alight inside the vast plane of my imagination and give me something hearty to chew on afterwards. It was a premonition of a reaction long before the ARC ever arrived by Post. Do you ever find yourself stumbling across an author or a novel that you simply ‘know’ will leave an etched impression on your mind?! This is what I felt when I read the premise of Feldman’s novel and as I read the final words cast on the final page of the last chapter, I knew my premonition was true.

A notation on the cover art design:

The cover art for The Angel of Losses is a mosaic of the visual representations and clues of where the story leads you to follow it’s epic conclusion and of whom you need to pay particular attention to as the story evolves. Pictorial stimulating clues that you will only recognise as you alight on the pages in which give you the insight to understand the circle of their presence. The story is nearly a riddle when all is said and told – a riddle of a theory and a puzzle of an ancient truth aligning forward out of history.

+Blog Book Tour+ The Angel of Losses by Stephanie FeldmanThe Angel of Losses
by Stephanie Feldman
Source: Publisher via TLC Book Tours

The Tiger’s Wife meets A History of Love in this inventive, lushly imagined debut novel that explores the intersections of family secrets, Jewish myths, the legacy of war and history, and the bonds between sisters.

When Eli Burke dies, he leaves behind a mysterious notebook full of stories about a magical figure named The White Rebbe, a miracle worker in league with the enigmatic Angel of Losses, protector of things gone astray, and guardian of the lost letter of the alphabet, which completes the secret name of God.

When his granddaughter, Marjorie, discovers Eli’s notebook, everything she thought she knew about her grandfather—and her family—comes undone. To find the truth about Eli’s origins and unlock the secrets he kept, she embarks on an odyssey that takes her deep into the past, from 18th century Europe to Nazi-occupied Lithuania, and back to the present, to New York Stephanie FeldmanCity and her estranged sister Holly, whom she must save from the consequences of Eli’s past.

Interweaving history, theology, and both real and imagined Jewish folktales, The Angel of Losses is a family story of what lasts, and of what we can—and cannot—escape.

Author Biography: Stephanie Feldman is a graduate of Barnard College. She lives outside Philadelphia with her husband and her daughter.

Genres: Magical Realism



Places to find the book:

Published by Ecco

on 29th July, 2014

Pages: 288

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Elements of Folklore, Mythology, & the Craft of Stories within a Story:

One of the most beautiful additions to a story I am reading is the otherworld presence of either folklore, mythology, or the craft of how stories are told as they are passed down from one generation to another; oft-times referred to by myself as ‘living  histories’ as they truly are ‘the living history’ of a particular family. Inside Feldman’s novel, you gather a proper sense of time, place, and the stability of connection between the sisters and their grandfather was unified through the genesis of his art for story-telling. Their connective bond was untethered as they grew apart as they aged, but what I loved is seeing how the grandfather’s stories took such a central focus and method of shifting the story forward as I read deeper into the novel itself. To the level that his handwritten stories and prose scribbled into his notebooks were shared with the reader from one chapter into another. It felt very natural to go from an ordinary day out of Marjorie’s life, straight into a piece of this story she only had a peripheral knowledge of before finding one of her beloved grandfather’s notebooks.

My Review of The Angel of Losses:

Such a haunting and riveting opening of a Prologue for The Angel of Losses as we are caught inside of a memory of two sisters who are transfixed and spellbound by their grandfather’s tale of a land far away where a magician knows part of the truth of a missing son of a King. What implored me forward from there is this sense of foreboding, where did the tale leave off from the lore of the bedtime story and where did reality step forward out of the tale? I love feeling an undercurrent of suspense when I read a novel, and as this is my second Magical Realism with an under thread connection to Judaism (as the first was The Golem and the Jinni) I was mesmerized! Entering the story out of the Prologue, time has shifted forward for both sisters, as Holly (the one who was horridly afraid of her Grandfather’s story) switched religions and lived an orthodox life whereas her sister had grown into a bittersweet version of her younger self soured on how the loss of her sister has affected her heart. Her sister is still living, mind you, but the version of Holly as an adult is a far cry from the sister Marjorie knew as a child. The two are living worlds apart rather than mere blocks or cities separated by streets and the swirl of modern life between them.

I loved seeing the larger sense of their familial bond being tested by how one half of their connection is being shattered by the inability to have compassion outside of religious grounds. In this instance, I am referring to Holly’s husband is not accustomed to a non-Jewish family nor does he condone non-religious texts inside his home. A home that was inherited to Marjorie but on loan to Holly; the mere fact that Marjorie has to refer to Holly as Chava is another wrinkling thread of Marjorie’s disfavour of Holly’s choice in husband. You gather the sense at this point in the story where Marjorie is attempting to lock a hold of her past into her present, that the sister’s disconnection was already occurring long before Holly made her choice in marriage. There is an absence of words and an absence of sisterly compassion between both of them, and it points to a larger issue at hand that is slowly unfolding in the narrative itself. I like being caught up inside of a family drama, watching everything unravell as the story unfolds on its own timeclock.

Feldman has a gift for narrative voice stemming out of a wordsmith’s spirited soul for visceral imagery – she innately has gifted us with a special treat of a story, giving us a full-on adventure as we hug to the coattails of Marjorie as she pieces together the legacy and the history of a fabled Magician and the true meaning behind where the lore was always meant to take a believer; the latter of which she never felt she could ascertain on her own behalf. It is a true quandary of a problem – how to root out the history of a theory she has nibbling inside her own mind which other scholars were equally mystified about themselves? Her journey towards understanding edges her further into the mythes and pathos of ancient ruminations.

There are moments whilst I am reading I have gathered a proper sense on how each novel I consume is a building block for another yet to be known novel I will pick up in the future. As if I were stitching a tapestry woven exclusively with the threads and stitches of knowledge itself and of wisdom flowing out of the stories by which have enchanted my mind and enraptured my heart. Each story which slips into my mind’s eye has allowed me to grow, to transcend where I was before I read the story and to appreciate a bit more than I had already before the characters had lived their lives as a shadowy presence inside my own spirit. As I went deeper inside this story, I noticed little nuances of memory flittering through my internal memory files; automatically opening, closing, and filtering as I read Feldman’s prose. I had not realised I had amassed enough knowledge of the religious past to propel myself forward through this story at such an alarming clip of a pace! I cannot wait to re-read this novel when time is not extinguishing off the clock whilst a deadline was passed and overdue.

The researcher in me was happily appreciating the sections devouted to Marjorie’s attempt to research her thesis as much as research further into the legacy of her grandfather’s story. As she was always on the brink of realising that the story itself was much more than it first appeared to be. Being hunkered inside a library, piles of books atop of a table, and pages littered with bookmarks, post-it notes, and notebooks clotted full of scribbled ‘spur of the moment’ notes is what makes my own writerly heart go aflutter! Research is in part how I fell in love with writing, and it is research of another writer I treasure whilst I am reading their own stories cast out into the world for us to find. There is an electricity of excitement reading The Angel of Losses,…

At some point I started to read on autopilot, willing myself past sleep and choking myself a bit on exhaustion, but I simply needed to know how this story, this novel was going to end. I was a bit worried it might end on a cliffhanger, as I never take too kindly to ambiguous endings of stories; especially without the foreknowledge of a pending sequel. Two hours blinked off the clock and I’m at a loss for words — I’m so absorbed into this story, I feel as though I am the one pursuing the research to understand what is just outside of my own memory. This story is not like any other I’ve read and I will never quite forget it either. It is meant to be absorbed and illuminated inside the reader’s mind without revealing everything to the next reader who comes across it. For each of us has to read it ourselves and satisfy our own curiosity,… especially if we’re a seeker of stories and understand the greater meaning of what stories can give us all.

Stephanie Feldman gives her readers a window into a portal of time:

We are stepping through a veil slit into a portal of time made available through an opened window which is the novel inside your hands as your reading The Angel of Losses. Two stories came to mind as I started to read this fantastical journey: The Golem and the Jinni (novel) and The Neverending Story (film) as they are akin to how it feels to step through this world Feldman has provided us to discover. She gave us the same vehicle Bastian had in The Neverending Story, to become one within the story as it unfolded and to live as one with the character as she found where she was going herself. I loved this aspect of the novel because all of reality around me dissolved as I was wholly consumed by the voice of the evoking narrator and the clarity of Feldman’s vision for this unique novel which bent genre and illuminated the world half out of mystic history and half out of the truism of where faith can take anyone if only they were to believe in what is not yet seen.

On the footheels of consuming The Ghost BrideI felt honoured to have had the chance to read Feldman’s tome of esoteric concentration of mystic Judaism cross-sected with religious ancient truths. The suspension of reality and the generous backstories of where the mytho origins of the story can be traced was a treasurement to fall in front of my eyes. I devourted this novel as readily as if I were astride a thunderbolt – even knowing I was outside my intended deadline (as the moon had long since waned and the midnight hours had tilted into a crescendo) I could not yield to sleep. I had to consume the text as quickly as I could process the words on the pages themselves, as my mind was lit aflame by the creativity and the ingenuity of how the historical arc was interlaced into the present of the character’s lives.

Fly in the Ointment:

I counted the words this time and there were less than a dozen splintered out across the whole of the novel. I wasn’t happy to find them; this is an intellectually stimulating piece of literary fiction and they felt misplaced amongst the rhetoric. I am not even sure why they were included in such a brilliant spec of literary voice. They degraded the quality in my eyes, as not only could this stomach their expulsion it was necessary to keep in tact the gift Feldman had writ.

A small explanation on my tardiness:

I had lost hours whilst being needed at the hospital in visitation of my neighbour (as previously disclosed here & here) as much as I was out of the house on another appointment that could not be detained. I attempted to revive the lost hours and run into my deadline without passing through it — but alas, I am quite human and not as immortal as the character inside this novel. Time can be bent but time cannot be recaptured once lost. I apologise for the delayed response, but my tweeting at least was a small clue at my enjoyment whilst I read. I am attempting to make the rest of my scheduled book reviews & tour stops to be alight earlier in the day / evenings from here on out; barring any further unexpected life emergencies, crises, or unplanned events such as lightning storms. 

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This blog tour stop was courtesy of TLC Book Tours:

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Kindly know that I appreciate each thought you want to share with me and all the posts on my blog are open to new comments & commentary! Short or long, I appreciate the time you spent to leave behind a note of your visit! Return again soon! 

Reader Interactive Question:

Have you ever alighted inside of a novel that you unexpectedly were swallowed up inside? Taken root inside the shoes of the character, where their life was full of emotional upheaval and partially an exploration of how to create a life shift that will alleviate their disillusion with where their life was heading; to find a different way of living and carve out their own little peace of happiness? Did you ever read a novel that surprised you?

{SOURCES: Cover art of “The Angel of Losses”, author photograph, book synopsis and the tour badge were all provided by TLC Book Tours and used with permission. Blog Tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Bookish Events badge created by Jorie in Canva. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2014.

The ‘live reading’ tweets I shared as I read & reviewed “The Angel of Losses”:

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Posted Wednesday, 24 September, 2014 by jorielov in Agnostic (Questioning & Searching or Unsure), Angels, Biblical Fiction, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Browse, Book Cover | Notation on Design, Bookish Discussions, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, Debut Author, Debut Novel, Dreams & Dreamscapes, Equality In Literature, Family Drama, Family Life, Fantasy Fiction, Flashbacks & Recollective Memories, Fly in the Ointment, Folklore, Folklore and Mythology, Genre-bender, Ghost Story, Ghosts & the Supernatural, Good vs. Evil, Gothic Literature, Gothic Mystery, Grief & Anguish of Guilt, Haunting & Ethereal, Historical Mystery, Inspirational Fiction & Non-Fiction, Inspired By Author OR Book, Judaism in Fiction, Judiasm, Life Shift, Light vs Dark, Literary Fiction, Local Libraries | Research Libraries, Magical Realism, Modern Day, New York City, Psychological Suspense, Reincarnation, Religious History, Siblings, Sisters & the Bond Between Them, Superstitions & Old World Beliefs, TLC Book Tours, Unexpected Inheritance, Vulgarity in Literature, World Religions