Category: Bits & Bobbles of Jorie

#WWWednesday No. XVIII | Jorie dives back into reading via #WyrdAndWonder!

Posted Wednesday, 10 May, 2023 by jorielov #WyrdAndWonder 2 Comments

I ♥ the premise of this meme {WWW Wednesdays} due to the dexterity it gives the reader! Smiles. Clearly subject to change on a weekly rotation, which may or may not lead to your ‘next’ read providing a bit of a paradoxical mystery to your readers!! Smiles. ♥ the brilliance of it’s concept!

This weekly meme was originally hosted by Should Be Reading who became A Daily Rhythm. Lovingly restored and continued by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words. Each week you participate, your keen to answer the following questions:

What are you currently reading!?
What did you recently finish reading!?
What do you think you’ll read next!?

After which, your meant to click over to THIS WEEK’s WWWWednesday to share your post’s link so that the rest of the bloggers who are participating can check out your lovely answers! Score! Perhaps even, find other bloggers who dig the same books as you do! I thought it would serve as a great self-check to know where I am and the progress I am hoping to have over the next week!

Join the Convo via: #WWWWednesday

the event of fantastical JOY has returned,
join me as I dive back into reading via #WyrdAndWonder!

About: *Wyrd & Wonder*

Wyrd and Wonder is an annual celebration of the fantasy genre. Sign up to join the party as we explore worlds of myth and magic, re-imagine traditional tales, cheer on heroes (prefer villains? Sure, we won’t judge you) and discover the secret doors that lead from familiar streets to adjacent realms where a discourtesy or a misstep may land you in hot water.

This year we’re focusing on all things magical, whether that’s magic users, magical creatures, magic systems, or things that raise the hairs on the back of your neck (in a good way). As always, you’re free to read and post outside the theme – we love low fantasy too! – but magic will be the theme for our banners and prompts this year.

We’ll be reading books, watching movies, playing games and sharing our thoughts online through blog posts and social media with as many like-minded adventurers as care to join us – there’s always room by the fire for a newcomer with a tale to share.

_{(Paraphrasing official 2022/23 blurb) : visit Imyril’s Announcement for Y6}

You might be curious where the heck, heck Jorie has been these past several months as past a certain point, I was unable to continue to UPDATE my blog and the only time I was able to re-surface was via tweets celebrating my JOY over S3 of Star Trek: Picard. Something I will go into further details about when I formulate the words to anchour a life update into a forthcoming Sunday Post as it is all connected. For now, I’d like to take a breath and re-focus on my top favourite bookish event of the year — as I happily co-host our Year 6 of Wyrd And Wonder!

For those of you who are used to me being more visually present during the opening week of Wyrd And Wonder and for a chase-up to the event itself in the months ahead of May — this year clearly went a bit differently for me as a reader and as a book blogger. My best foot forward is actually visible on our #bookstagram feeds on Insta wherein I’ve been quite active this Year 6 by finding 12x different prompts to respond to visually with book photos and commentary. I’ve been enjoying that pursuit and learning more about Insta and layouts for text additions by Annemieke who has kindly been tutoring me on the ins/outs of how much to say and the ways in which to say what you want to share. FYI: For those of us who are longer winded (ie. bookish chatterboxes), adding graphics is an easier solution than lengthier posts which dip too much into the comment sections!

Smashing, eh?

I couldn’t be happier as working on those photos in a new environment (ie. flat) and having a blank canvas (ie. bookshelves) has had a bit of a cleansing effect on me. Whilst at the same time, as I have only a few boxes unboxed at the moment, my photos are a bit different than in the past as I don’t have any props to use except the books and the shelves themselves. Ergo, I am focusing on the themes of the prompts and using my words on the graphics or in the post itself to celebrate the theme of the day so to speak.

Also: note to self, where EXACTLY did I pack ALL my bookmarks!?

I do personally feel Wyrd And Wonder snuck up on me this year because I had a bit of an insurrection of personal time and space to prepare for it. When you have to undergo a major relocation which was both unplanned and unwanted in your life, it is hard to shift back into something that gives you a lot of JOY. I’ve found myself unmotivated to blog, read or participate in a lot of things socially online since February and it is all connected to the relocation. I do admit, I like living here better as it is a quieter space – there isn’t a lot of jarring outside noises (ie. sirens, heavy traffic or whatnot which came with living off a major highway) but at the same time, it doesn’t quite feel like ‘home’ either. The other flat was happily lived in for eight years and everything had its proper place and it was ‘cosy’. This one still feels like we’ve ‘just arrived’ and we’re just making do. Oy. Towards that end, I think it has affected my desire to read or listen to audiobooks – although, that does seem a bit silly in one respect because I have better set-up for reading now than I did previously and my books are easier at hand than they were as well. *le sigh* To say I just feel overwhelmed going into May would be an understatement. Plus, of course, last year and all years prior Dad was living with us at home, and I admit, that is still an adjustment for Mum and I.

I guess to be frank, this #WyrdAndWonder just feels a bit more muddling to me and I’m just trying to make the best of it as I go along with what I am attempting to read, blog and share socially. Likewise, I’m trying like mad to sort out a way to be more present on our feeds via Twitter for @WyrdAndWonder as well. I’d be thrilled if I could sort that out before week’s end.

I am sure others might feel this way too, this year, as I know some of my fellow co-hosts have had their fair share of strife as well this early half of the year. Whilst I am sure our participants might feel similar angst as us, too. Sometimes the timing just feels ‘off’ for whichever reason but I refuse to let it take all the JOY out of May for me and that is why each day/week I am striving towards participating in some small way even if I can’t fully achieve what I had hoped to do when I first set plans in mind last year.

What Jorie is currently reading:

→ Wyrd and Wonder’s RAL: Howl’s Moving Castle
by Diana Wynne Jones, narrated by: Jenny Sterlin *audiobook

Week 1: Chapters 1 through 7 – hosted by Dear Geek Place
Week 2: Chapters 8 through 14 – hosted by The Fantasy Hive
Week 3: Chapters 15 through End – hosted by The Fantasy Hive
Discussions will be via Discord on our Other Worlds channel

Hosted by: @deargeekplace and @TheFantasyHive
Read the Announcement of the RAL via deargeekplace.com

So far, I can attest to the fact I am grateful for this choice as one of our RALs this year! I decided to borrow the book (in print) for my book photos during #WyrdAndWonder, but in truth I am actually listening to the audiobook which is narrated by Ms. Sterlin. Of whom is doing such a smashing job of getting my attention to listen to the story which on one side of the ledger is a bit scary (in respect to the Wizard Howl by the way in which he’s described!) and engaging on the other in respect to the girls’ themselves. I am quite charmed by Sophie who speaks to hats as I’ve long been fascinated by hatters and those who work in the shops where they are sold.
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Posted Wednesday, 10 May, 2023 by jorielov in #WyrdAndWonder, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Memes, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, WWW Wednesdays

A #FlashbackFriday kind of #WyrdAndWonder : Celebrating and re-visiting my LOVE of the Tipsy Fairy Tale trilogy!

Posted Friday, 5 May, 2023 by jorielov #WyrdAndWonder, E. Chris Garrison, Tipsy Fairy Tale trilogy 0 Comments

I am uncertain who first started the #FlastbackFriday hashtag on social media and/or on our blogs – but over the years I’ve been a book blogger, its morphed itself into a bit of a way of journalling the stories we’ve read in the past or the memories we want to revisit. In this respect, I’ve chosen to tackle this tag this particular May in a celebration of the stories I’ve adventured inside during past #WyrdAndWonder’s inasmuch as a continuing way to feature what I’ve been showcasing via #bookstagram.

Join the Convo via: #FlashbackFriday

About: *Wyrd & Wonder*

Wyrd and Wonder is an annual celebration of the fantasy genre. Sign up to join the party as we explore worlds of myth and magic, re-imagine traditional tales, cheer on heroes (prefer villains? Sure, we won’t judge you) and discover the secret doors that lead from familiar streets to adjacent realms where a discourtesy or a misstep may land you in hot water.

This year we’re focusing on all things magical, whether that’s magic users, magical creatures, magic systems, or things that raise the hairs on the back of your neck (in a good way). As always, you’re free to read and post outside the theme – we love low fantasy too! – but magic will be the theme for our banners and prompts this year.

We’ll be reading books, watching movies, playing games and sharing our thoughts online through blog posts and social media with as many like-minded adventurers as care to join us – there’s always room by the fire for a newcomer with a tale to share.

_{(Paraphrasing official 2022/23 blurb) : visit Imyril’s Announcement for Y6}

This particular year, as we embarked into #WyrdAndWonder, I was apprehensive about how my month would get on this year, as I had recently relocated, and it was not the kind of relocation that you can plan to execute for months on end and have a seamless transition on the day of the move itself. No. Unfortunately for me, it was the kind of move which took all my energy and even my spirits took a bit of a nosedive as well. I didn’t feel fully recovered from all the upheavals either by the time May began because I was still at sixes and sevens trying to put my room & shelves back together again. As I mentioned on my announcement post, I was just grateful to have my Fantasy shelves back together as they felt like long-lost friends who had arrived just in the nick!

Although – mentally, I wasn’t quite in the right frame to re-settle into stories. Try as I might, my readings of our RAL “Howl’s Moving Castle” has been trudging along at a very slow clip. Even as I’m composing my thoughts for this post, I am still within the first four chapters (and it’s the 27th of May!) – and still, I am hopeful I’ll make more enroads as I truly am enjoying the narrator’s approach to telling the story. She makes you feel enveloped in Sophie’s world and that is what won me over the most.

I had it in mind to preface my #bookstagram posts with blog posts to help route those who follow me into the posts we’re all sharing on our @WyrdAndWonder Insta feeds, but you’ll have to forgive me. The joy of blogging was a bit of a rough road for me to re-attain and it is only now in the waning hours of the month, I’ve found my passion for blogging again. I’ve chosen to use the last days of the event itself to back-blog those adventures I had in creating the graphics and why I selected the stories to feature within the posts themselves. I also learnt that I’m a bit too chatty on Insta and that is a work-in-progress to rectify as I sort out how to write shorter blurbs to run alongside the graphics themselves.

And, now without further adieu, let us discuss my favourite series celebrating the FAE:

Posted Friday, 5 May, 2023 by jorielov in #FlashbackFriday, #WyrdAndWonder, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Memes, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story

#TheSundayPost XV | Hallo, Hallo I’ve decided – my life is a SOAP OPERA and I need to exit stage left!

Posted Sunday, 19 February, 2023 by jorielov A Shape on the Air, Caleb Wygal, Death on the Boardwalk, Dr Dulac series, Myrtle Beach Mysteries 18 Comments

[Official Blurb] The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog. This is your news post, so personalize it! Include as much as you want or as little. Be creative, it can be a vlog or just a showcase of your goodies. Link up once a week or once a month, you decide. Book haul can include library books, yard sale finds, arcs and bought books..share them!

Enter your link on the post-

Sundays beginning at 12:01 am (CST) (link will be open all week)

Link back to this post or this blog

Visit others who have linked up

Read this week’s #TheSundayPost!

Hallo, Hallo I’ve decided:

my life is a SOAP OPERA!

Case in point:

your 10th Blogoversary is GENERALLY a MAJOR MILESTONE in of itself, right?

mine is slightly marred by the fact I have to relocate without the choice being my own!

In regards to my life behind the blog:

I was so EXCITED to tell my boss (of whom has become a bit of a confidante and close friend over the past year and nearly a half) that my life was FINALLY getting sorted and calmed down to the point of where I felt I could BREATHE. Only to have my WIND knocked out of me by a few mitigating circumstances that were completely out of my CONTROL. Perhaps you’ve experienced the same in your life? For starters, in the ongoing and continuing saga of my father’s recovery – he’s fallen 3x in one week, had two ER visitations and the last one of course, proved to be the best for us as the doctor in the ER gave us the best INSIGHT into his current prognosis and current medical state of affairs. Mind you, we were still adjusting to the news of his AKI (ie. acute kidney injury), severe lack of hydration, his recovery from pneumonia and previously his recovery from the Covid-flu variant.

Yet, the medical terminology disclosed to us after midnight (as that was when we could connect with his doctor the other night) – we were given so much technically specific informational bits that it made our heads swim with dots after awhile. The main takeaway though is what I already afeared might become true: as my grandfather (his father) died of renal failure. My Dad is currently in Stage 4 Kidney Disease and this is the FIRST TIME anyone has mentioned it to either myself or my Mum. Which in of itself seems fishy but there it is — sometimes, I suppose you have to be transferred to a different medical ER than the standard hospital one to get a more solid answer out of the medical staff. So there’s that.

This is the SAME week of course where our landlord asked us for our mailing address. HUGE red flag. They’ve had it since you know, DAY ONE? It only took less than 24 hours to solve that mystery as we were served with a non-renewal of lease notice. We have EXACTLY one month and less than two weeks to vacate and relocate. We are a humble working class family who lives paycheck to paycheck – so process that for a bit – and no, we don’t currently have moving supplies either. Our current goal is to a) raise funds to move (ie. moving supplies) and b) see if we can qualify for a personal loan (unsecured) to pay first and security if not last in order to transition into a new lease which blessedly will be a 12 month lease as we weren’t able to renew ours two years ago.

Here’s the kicker – are you sitting down?

The ONLY reason we were given this notice to vacate is because our landlord wants to RENOVATE our flat and raise the RENT. Never-mind the fact we’ve gone through 90+ days of hellish medical crises with my father. Or that we’ve said ‘goodbye’ to him 3x times over, lost our two beloved cats and are on Medicaid pending status to secure my father into long-term care. No, never-mind ANY of that because now we’re facing a housing crisis and an unplanned relocation within the next five weeks.

Which drumroll — guess which date of EXIT we were given?

MY 10th Blogoversary, the 31st of March!

I REFUSE to let that news taint my blogoversary but its been HARD. Emotionally especially.

Instead of celebrating with Mum, I’ll be relocating.

Thus, I’ve decided. My life is SOAP OPERA and I need to exit stage left. At some point, you have to question how you can keep pivoting and adapting to the challenges and adversities that keep presenting themselves to you in your life. Quite literally the day we learnt we had turned in all the paperwork needed for Medicaid was the day a letter was tacked on our door about vacating. After seeking out legal (pro bono) advice, we’ve learnt that we have ZERO LEGAL RECOURSE but it is suspected that is not the most kosher of circumstances that we’re being let out of our lease which is currently month to month. FYI: NEVER go month to month, you have ZERO rights even if the law says otherwise.

We’ve NEVER been late on our rent either and we only ask or request for repairs as they are warranted. We’ve rented this flat for 8 years and we have gone through 2x landlords and a sell of ownership. For long-term tenants it seems really odd that we’re being given the boot but of course, most things in life are unfair and this is just one of those instances. Is the timing perfect? Far from it. Does it feel beyond impossible? You bet. Am I going to get down about it? Wells, I might have felt EMOTIONALLY shell-shocked and overwhelmed for 48 hours – mind you, who wouldn’t? Even my boss questioned it as I apparently didn’t look so well after receiving the news at work. Yet. I adapt. I pivot. I find a way through an obstacle and I will get through this — even if I’ve worried about Mum and her current burden of stress in regards to my father. And, now the uncertainty of our housing situation.

Posted Sunday, 19 February, 2023 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Memes, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, Stories of Jorie, The Sunday Post

#TheSundayPost XIV | Sorting out our new normal whilst reconnecting with our crafty souls

Posted Sunday, 5 February, 2023 by jorielov 13 Comments

[Official Blurb] The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog. This is your news post, so personalize it! Include as much as you want or as little. Be creative, it can be a vlog or just a showcase of your goodies. Link up once a week or once a month, you decide. Book haul can include library books, yard sale finds, arcs and bought books..share them!

Enter your link on the post-

Sundays beginning at 12:01 am (CST) (link will be open all week)

Link back to this post or this blog

Visit others who have linked up

Read this week’s #TheSundayPost!

Sorting out our new normal whilst regenerating our love of CRAFT

Sometimes in life,

you have to take a step back in order to fully step forward –

which is why Mum and I are choosing to resume our crafty natures this Winter/Spring 2023!

In regards to my life behind the blog:

As many of you know, 90+ days ago my family’s world was turnt upside down when my Dad first entered the hospital in November, 2022. It was his second hospital stay which foretold the future of what was coming next for us as a family. That was when they discovered the blood clot in his leg and from there – he has never been able to return home. He’s in his second rehab facility and he is still moving towards long-term care as Mum and I can no longer care for him at home. In the weeks since I last shared our story via #TheSundayPost – we’ve now totaled 3x moments of when we’ve been asked to say our final goodbyes and we’ve also made pre-need arrangements for his funeral.

Also, within those 90+ days, we’ve lost two beloved cats and have been considering adopting a cat this February as we recognised that by not having a cat in the house, our own outlook and well-being is starting to suffer as a companion in fur always gave us a heart-lift as much as boost to spirits. At this point, we also realise it is definitely what we would consider as an emotional support cat as let’s face it – it has been a LONG and HARD three months but we’ve come through it all as a family.

Whilst my father was recovering from his AKI and pneumonia, I went online to sort out where he should go next and what the next best options would be for him overall. I found a longer-term hospital but I also found a rehab/long term care facility which would work on his new issues with swallowing as well as approach his care from a holistic and individual angle of approach which I felt might suit him best overall. Mum agreed and we took a chance on this new rehab facility to see if in effect it would have the positive changes, we were hoping to give my father.
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Posted Sunday, 5 February, 2023 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Memes, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, Stories of Jorie, The Sunday Post

Blog Book Tour | feat. The Blackstone Legacy series by Elizabeth Camden

Posted Saturday, 4 February, 2023 by jorielov (Narrator) Pilar Witherspoon, Baker Publishing Group, Bethany House Publishers, Carved in Stone, Elizabeth Camden, Hearts of Steel, Recorded Books, Written on the Wind 0 Comments

Acquired Book By: I am a regular tour hostess for blog tours via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours whereupon I am thankful to have been able to host such a diverse breadth of stories, authors and wonderful guest features since I became a hostess! HFVBTs is one of the very first touring companies I started working with as a 1st Year Book Blogger – uniting my love and passion with Historical Fiction and the lovely sub-genres inside which I love devouring. It has been a wicked fantastical journey into the heart of the historic past, wherein I’ve been blessed truly by discovering new timescapes, new living realities of the persons who once lived (ie. Biographical Historical Fiction) inasmuch as itched my healthy appetite for Cosy Historical Mysteries! If there is a #HistRom out there it is generally a beloved favourite and I love soaking into a wicked wonderful work of Historical Fiction where you feel the beauty of the historic world, the depth of the characters and the joyfulness in which the historical novelists brought everything to light in such a lovingly diverse palette of portraiture of the eras we become time travellers through their stories.

I received a complimentary copy of “Hearts of Steel” direct from the publisher Bethany House Publishers in exchange for an honest review. The Digital Audiobook copy of Carved in Stone” and “Written on the Wind” were available via my library’s CloudLibrary. My ruminations on behalf of the audiobooks (books one and two) are being shared for my own edification and to help introduce my readers to the series overall whilst sharing my own journey in its discovery. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I wanted to read this series:

When I first started blogging, I was going to set out to read new authors of INSPY Lit I hadn’t had the pleasure of reading previously. It was through my visitations with Casey Herringshaw’s blog which inspired the list I had developed of seeking out new and established INSPY authors who were drawing the eye of book bloggers like Ms Herringshaw and readers alike. It was through reading her blog rather extensively I found the list which was then developed in the final #70AuthorsChallenge. Uniquely, Elizabeth Camden happens to be the 67th author out of my original #70AuthorsChallenge List – as I disclosed ahead of reading her Empire State series.

What I hadn’t realised is that I had uncovered another intriguing saga to read whilst I start to shift back into the O’ Connors saga by Julie Lessman. I have had a firm penchant for INSPY dramatic Historical Fiction (ie. sagas, series, and multi-generational quartets or trilogies) and it always a wicked wonderful day when I realise I can settle into a trilogy and/or saga which is beautifully layered and dearly engrossing! As soon as I put on my headphones and began to listen to ‘Carved in Stone’ the first novel of the Blackstone Legacy series, I found myself smitten with the narrator and completely entranced with the developing story Camden had written.

She has a wonderful way of developing the momentum of a series early-on whilst grounding us through an engaging narrative that propels us forward and leaves us itching for more details. Those wordsmirths like Camden give me a wicked good read and I am grateful that my library had the first two novels in audiobook – allowing me to gain a foothold into the series before I moved into the last installment which is being highlighted on this lovely blog tour: “Hearts of Steel”.

Originally, I had planned to listen to both the first and second novel in full ahead of reading the third novel in print; however, the hours kept erasing themselves off the clock this past week as I had to double-down on my work hours (ie. double shifts) whilst dealing with an issue with our car and recovering from a charley horse yesterday as well as a small bout of illness that was most unwelcome and ill-timed! I decided to re-shape the context of my post for the blog tour and discuss what I enjoyed within the first moments of all three novels whilst leaving the door open for when I can resume my listening of the series and complete my joys of feeling anchoured in the Blackstone Legacy series overall.

I hope my shortened ruminations might tempt you to check out the series for yourself – or encourage you to take a look at some of Camden’s other stories and series as well. This is the second time I’ve had the chance to read one of her series on a blog tour and I am most grateful for being included on the tour – despite failing to post within the original time-line of the tour itself. I missed it by a day and I regret that but am full of appreciation to the publisher for sending me ‘Hearts of Steel’ as much as I am for being included on the tour list by Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours.

Hearts of Steel
by Elizabeth Camden
Source: Publisher via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Eloise Drake's prim demeanor hides the turbulent past she believes is finally behind her. A mathematical genius, she's now a successful accountant for the largest engineering project in 1908 New York. But to her dismay, her new position puts her back in the path of the man responsible for her deepest heartbreak.

Alex Duval is the mayor of a town about to be wiped off the map. The state plans to flood the entire valley where his town sits in order to build a new reservoir, and Alex is stunned to discover the woman he once loved on the team charged with the demolition. With his world crumbling around him, Alex devises a risky plan to save his town--but he needs Eloise's help to succeed.

Alex is determined to win back the woman he thought he'd lost forever, but even their combined ingenuity may not be enough to overcome the odds against them.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Inspirational Fiction & Non-Fiction, Historical Romance

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: ‎978-0764238451

Also by this author: A Dangerous Legacy

Published by Bethany House Publishers

on 17th January, 2023

Format: Trade Paperback

Pages: 336

The Blackstone Legacy series:

Carved in Stone (book one)

Written on the Wind (book two)

Hearts of Steel (book three)

Published by: Bethany House Publishers (@bethany_house)

an imprint of Baker Publishing Group

Formats Available: Hardback, Trade Paperback, Audiobook and Ebook

Converse via: #HistoricalFiction or #HistFic and #HistRom

#INSPYRomance + #INSPY or #INSPYBooks

About Elizabeth Camden

Elizabeth Camden is the author of twelve historical novels and two historical novellas and has been honored with both the RITA Award and the Christy Award. With a master's in history and a master's in library science, she is a research librarian by day and scribbles away on her next novel by night. She lives with her husband in Florida.

Posted Saturday, 4 February, 2023 by jorielov in #25PagePreview, 19th Century, Balance of Faith whilst Living, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Spotlight, Brothers and Sisters, Family Drama, Family Life, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Historical Romance, Inspirational Fiction & Non-Fiction, INSPY Realistic Fiction | Non-Fiction, New York City, Romance Fiction, the Gilded Age