Category: Time Slip

Book Review | “Some Veil Did Fall” (Book No.1 of the Rossetti Mysteries) by Kirsty Ferry #ChocLitSaturdays

Posted Saturday, 30 July, 2016 by jorielov ChocLitUK, Kirsty Ferry, Rossetti Mysteries, Some Veil Did Fall 0 Comments

Why I feature #ChocLitSaturdays (book reviews & guest author features)
and created #ChocLitSaturday (the chat via @ChocLitSaturday):

I wanted to create a bit of a niche on Jorie Loves A Story to showcase romance fiction steeped in relationships, courtships, and the breadth of marriage enveloped by characters written honestly whose lives not only endear you to them but they nestle into your heart as their story is being read!

I am always seeking relationship-based romance which strikes a chord within my mind’s eye as well as my heart! I’m a romantic optimist, and I love curling into a romance where I can be swept inside the past, as history becomes lit alive in the fullness of the narrative and I can wander amongst the supporting cast observing the principal characters fall in love and sort out if they are a proper match for each other!

I love how an Indie Publisher like ChocLitUK is such a positive alternative for those of us who do not identify ourselves as girls and women who read ‘chick-lit’. I appreciate the stories which alight in my hands from ChocLit as much as I appreciate the inspirational romances I gravitate towards because there is a certain level of depth to both outlets in romance which encourage my spirits and gives me a beautiful story to absorb! Whilst sorting out how promote my book reviews on behalf of ChocLit, I coined the phrase “ChocLitSaturdays”, which is a nod to the fact my ChocLit reviews & features debut on ‘a Saturday’ but further to the point that on the ‘weekend’ we want to dip into a world wholly ideal and romantic during our hours off from the work week!

Acquired Book By: I am a regular reviewer for ChocLitUK, where I hand select which books in either their backlist and/or current releases I would like to read next for my #ChocLitSaturdays blog feature. As of June 2016, I became a member of the ChocLit Stars Team in tandem with being on the Cover Reveal Team which I joined in May 2016. I reference the Stars as this is a lovely new reader contribution team of sending feedback to the publisher ahead of new book releases. As always, even if I’m involved with a publisher in this sort of fashion, each review is never influenced by that participation and will always be my honest impression as I read the story. Whether the author is one I have previously read or never had the pleasure to read until the book greets my shelf.

I received a complimentary copy of “Some Veil Did Fall” from ChocLit in exchange for an honest review! I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein. It should be noted ‘Some Veil Did Fall’ was requested prior to the two teams I joined on behalf of ChocLitUK. I simply have become more active with the Reveal Team & begun my journey as a ChocLit Star in-between receiving this novel and the day my review posts.

Why Jorie has such a hearty penchant for time slips & ghost stories:

For as long as I can remember, I have entertained a healthy appetite for the paranormal – especially in regards to Southern Gothic Literature, Paranormal Romance and Ghost Stories most definitely being at the top of the list of ‘must reads’ for my literary wanderings! It has taken quite a long while to sort out which authors truly whet a thirst of interest for me to read, as when I found the Ghost Harrison series by Heather Graham, I was truly thankful for the respite I found inside my ‘first!’ Graham novel: Ghost Walk set in New Orleans! Imagine my good fortune!? A ghost story and a romance all in one!

When I came to find out that Edith Wharton wrote ghost stories, I must say, I was rather chuffed to have found a copy of her paranormal stories through my local library’s ILL catalogue! As you can tell by the review I composed, I was quite wicked happy for the readings! More recently, I explored why I find the supernatural so very alluring when I reviewed Southern Haunts, an anthology series of Southern Gothic stories set in the realms of the paranormal! There simply is something to be said for that ‘elsewhere’ vibe to stories that bend time, setting, place and living history behind the backdrop of what cannot be seen but can surely be felt as being as real as the breath you see catch in a Wintry sky.

Now, when it comes to time slips, I’m equally motivated to soak inside a story that is hinged between timescapes and/or generational time intervals where characters or circumstances are equally tied together. One of the best impressions I had of how time can slip and affect characters so substantially as to directly affect the reader was within the story A Fall of Marigolds. If you want to read a story by an author whose conquered this genre with equal dexterity for writing convincing paranormal attributes into their back-stories, look no further than Christina Courtenay! My first reading by her was of The Silent Touch of Shadows wherein I was pleasantly taken for a wicked twist of an ending!

More recently I explored this theory in practice by my reading of The Memory Painter, where I was only slightly disappointed for the direction of the story’s core of heart, as it was the predictable route to go rather than the route less taken where I had hoped I’d venture instead. What gets me invested in both styles is the curious ‘unknowns’ that occupy the spaces between understanding what is physically happening to the character and how the mind can entreat inside an experience far outside the scope of where physical reality or science can explain it. This is one reason why I love watching episodes of The Ghost Whisperer as it’s a whole series in full pursuit of what walks between the veils of what is seen and unseen.

Notation on Cover Art: I shrank this image down for my readers – as the copy of the cover art to use on my review is such a blaring bright pink, it hurts your eyes in the larger format! The interesting bit is that IRL the book is lovely to hold & to look at as it’s not glaring! I even loved how it’s a combination of hot pink with blocked black imagery – I know it’s a particular style of art but for the life of me it’s eluding me right now to remember what it’s called! Laughs. I’m not a pink girl either – so hats off to Ms Stevens for creating a cover that made me smile!

Some Veil Did Fall
by Kirsty Ferry
Illustrator/Cover Designer: Berni Stevens
Source: Direct from Publisher

What if you recalled memories from a life that wasn’t yours, from a life before…?

When Becky steps into Jonathon Nelson’s atmospheric photography studio in Whitby, she is simply a freelance journalist in search of a story. But as soon as she puts on the beautiful Victorian dress and poses for a photograph, she becomes somebody quite different…

From that moment on, Becky is overcome with visions and flashbacks from a life that isn’t her own – some disturbing and filled with fear.

As she and Jon begin to unravel the tragic mystery behind her strange experiences, the natural affinity they have for each other continues to grow and leads them to question … have they met somewhere before? Perhaps not just in this life but in another?

Genres: Gothic Literature, Ghost Story, Romantic Suspense, Thriller

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Book Page on ChocLitUK

ISBN: 9781781891612

Also by this author: The Girl in the Painting

Published by ChocLitUK

on 1st November, 2014

Format: Paperback Edition

Pages: 288

Published by: ChocLitUK (@ChocLituk)

Available Formats: Paperback, Audiobook, Large Print & E-Book

Order of Sequence of Rossetti Mysteries:

Some Veil Did Fall | Book One | Read more on Author’s blog

The Girl in the Painting | Book Two (Synopsis) | Read more on Author’s blog

Converse via: #RossettiMysteries + #ChocLit

About Kirsty Ferry

Kirsty lives in the North East of England with her husband and son. She won the English Heritage/Belsay Hall National Creative Writing competition in 2009 and has had articles and short stories published in Peoples Friend, The Weekly News, It’s Fate, Vintage Script, Ghost Voices and First Edition.

Her work also appears in several anthologies, incorporating such diverse themes as vampires, crime, angels and more.
Kirsty loves writing ghostly mysteries and interweaving fact and fiction. The research is almost as much fun as writing the book itself, and if she can add a wonderful setting and a dollop of history, that’s even better.
Her day job involves sharing a building with an eclectic collection of ghosts, which can often prove rather interesting.

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Posted Saturday, 30 July, 2016 by jorielov in #JorieLovesIndies, 19th Century, 21st Century, Art, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Britian, British Literature, Castles & Estates, ChocLitSaturdays, ChocLitUK, Deaf Culture in Fiction, England, Equality In Literature, Flashbacks & Recollective Memories, Ghost Story, Ghosts & the Supernatural, Gothic Literature, Gothic Mystery, Gothic Romance, Green-Minded Publishers, Haunting & Ethereal, Indie Author, Modern British Author, Modern Day, Paranormal Romance, Parapsychological Suspense, Romance Fiction, Romantic Suspense, the Victorian era, Time Slip

Blog Book Tour | “Loving Eleanor” by Susan Wittig Albert

Posted Monday, 30 May, 2016 by jorielov Loving Eleanor, Persevero Press, Susan Wittig Albert 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! I received a complimentary used copy of “Loving Eleanor” direct from the author Susan Wittig Albert in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I wanted to read ‘Loving Eleanor’:

I admit I’ve been charmed by the previous releases on behalf of Ms Albert, especially a nod towards her China Bayles series as I am a tea drinker who loves reading Cosy Mysteries – however, even her Cottage Tales and the Historicals she’s written with her husband have fetched my eye! I even have the first of the China Bayles series – still awaiting me to peruse it’s chapters, as I originally began reading it during a readathon in August of 2013 when I first launched Jorie Loves A Story live to the world – who knew in a few months, I’d be celebrating my third blog birthday so soon after my third blogoversary this past March?

I was especially pleased to see the author moving into the curious branch of writing Biographical Historical Fiction – as this is a particular preference of mine as a reader! I have oft-times mentioned how I seek out these kinds of stories for the fusion of reality, history and a closely personal touch of insight on behalf of the person who lived whose come back to life against the pages! I love soaking into the shoes of living persons, feeling their emotional connection to their lives and watching how things played out for them.

For me, I find I have hours of enjoyment nestled inside a Biographical Historical Fiction novel – one nod of assurance in this regard is how many lovelies I’ve previously found and devoured, whilst finding Ms Albert is writing about the women I most want to know more about! I have appreciated Eleanor Roosevelt since I was a young girl – she was extraordinary due to how she broke tradition and how she lived a life on her terms. I never could quite put my finger on which biography to read first, until I saw this book come into my life! I thought for once, I finally have found the right author who can pen the truer story behind who Eleanor was in her private life!

Thus, it’s quite fitting, this shall be the first novel I’ve read in full by Susan Wittig Albert! I know I will be picking up her mysteries, if my thoughts on behalf of Tea & Crumples are any indication of how I love reading about ‘tea, life and conversations’ – yet, what strikes my fancy moreso than the mysteries themselves, is to find a copy of A Wilder Rose! I grew up on the Little House series, inasmuch as I adored the Little House novels – I think it would be quite champion to read her cleverly written biographical historicals ahead of her mainstay releases!

Loving Eleanor
Subtitle: The intimate friendship of Eleanor Roosevelt and Lorena Hickok

When AP political reporter Lorena Hickok—Hick—is assigned to cover Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt, the wife of the 1932 Democratic presidential candidate, the two women become deeply, intimately involved. Their relationship begins with mutual romantic passion, matures through stormy periods of enforced separation and competing interests, and warms into an enduring, encompassing friendship that ends only with both women’s deaths in the 1960s—all of it documented by 3300 letters exchanged over thirty years.

Now, New York Times bestselling author Susan Wittig Albert recreates the fascinating story of Hick and Eleanor, set during the chaotic years of the Great Depression, the New Deal, and the Second World War. Loving Eleanor is Hick’s personal story, revealing Eleanor as a complex, contradictory, and entirely human woman who is pulled in many directions by her obligations to her husband and family and her role as the nation’s First Lady, as well as by a compelling need to care and be cared for. For her part, Hick is revealed as an accomplished journalist, who, at the pinnacle of her career, gives it all up for the woman she loves. Then, as Eleanor is transformed into Eleanor Everywhere, First Lady of the World, Hick must create her own independent, productive life.

Drawing on extensive research in the letters that were sealed for a decade following Hick’s death, Albert creates a compelling narrative: a dramatic love story, vividly portraying two strikingly unconventional women, neither of whom is satisfied to live according to the script society has written for her. Loving Eleanor is a profoundly moving novel that illuminates a relationship we are seldom privileged to see and celebrates the depth and durability of women’s love.

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9780989203531

on 1st February, 2016

Pages: 306

Published By: Persevero Press
(author directed publishing platform)

Formats Available: Hardcover, Paperback, Audiobook and Ebook

Converse via: #LovingEleanor

About Susan Wittig Albert

Susan Wittig Albert is the award-winning, NYT bestselling author of the forthcoming historical novel Loving Eleanor (2016), about the intimate friendship of Eleanor Roosevelt and Lorena Hickok; and A Wilder Rose (2014), about Rose Wilder Lane and the writing of the Little House books.

Her award-winning fiction also includes mysteries in the China Bayles series, the Darling Dahlias, the Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter, and a series of Victorian-Edwardian mysteries she has written with her husband, Bill Albert, under the pseudonym of Robin Paige.

She has written two memoirs: An Extraordinary Year of Ordinary Days and Together, Alone: A Memoir of Marriage and Place, published by the University of Texas Press.

Her nonfiction titles include What Wildness is This: Women Write About the Southwest (winner of the 2009 Willa Award for Creative Nonfiction); Writing from Life: Telling the Soul’s Story; and Work of Her Own: A Woman’s Guide to Success Off the Career Track.

She is founder and current president (2015-2017) of the Story Circle Network and a member of the Texas Institute of Letters.

Site for A Wilder Rose
Site for China Bayles series | Site for Darling Dahlias series | Site for the Cottage Tales series
Mystery Novels with her husband
Story Circle

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

2016 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

Posted Monday, 30 May, 2016 by jorielov in 20th Century, Biographical Fiction & Non-Fiction, Blog Tour Host, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, Eleanor Roosevelt, Equality In Literature, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Indie Author, LGBTTQPlus Fiction | Non-Fiction, Lorena Hickok, Passionate Researcher, Self-Published Author, Time Slip, Writing Style & Voice

Book Review | “The Ten Year Reunion” by T.S. Krupa Third #Contemporary #Romance novel by the author of “Safe & Sound”!

Posted Tuesday, 24 May, 2016 by jorielov Avalon Haddam Press, Big City Dreams, T.S. Krupa, The Ten Year Reunion 0 Comments

Acquired Book By: I was offered to receive T.S. Krupa’s third novel “The Ten Year Reunion” in exchange for an honest review as well as host a special feature to coincide with the book if I elected to do so. I received a complimentary ARC copy of the novel “The Ten Year Reunion” direct from the author T.S. Krupa. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

My interest in reading The Ten Year Reunion:

One my favourite novels of [2014] as a 1st Year Book Blogger was Safe & Sound because it broke through a few literary barriers and told an honest story from a contemporary point of view whilst giving you a hearty Romance and a narrative that owned itself to it’s own living truth inside the world Krupa created. I appreciated the fact the #EqualityInLit inclusion of a happily engaged couple proved that when you seek out diversity and stories of equality, there can be a softness to the inclusion to where everything feels quite natural and organic, rather than purposely included to be ‘different’.

I like honest stories and especially Romances rooted in relationships, as these are my favourite kinds to read and thereby the ones I seek out the most to devour! On the contemporary and modern side of the ledger, since I read Safe & Sound and even a bit before, there is a bit of a gap in my reading life as I mentioned on a post (my first ’10 Bookish and Not Bookish Thoughts’ meme!) as much as I related a bit about this on my review of Robin’s Reward. Most recently, I finished reading my first Clare Chase Romantic Suspense novel which was not only written in a style of Contemporary Fiction I adore finding but kept me on the edge of my seat! Similar to Ms Krupa, Ms Chase writes characters of diversity with such an organic natural inclusion as to inhabit the story as if they were always meant to be a part of it.

The Contemporary story-teller who stands out as far as a serial author (from the past few years) would be Mary McNear who writes compelling and emotionally-driven fiction for readers who are seeking a stimulating read with an uplift ending! I have had the pleasure of reading her Butternut Lake series and cannot wait for her next release! It’s a hard genre for me to curl up inside because too often I find authors are not writing Contemporary Fiction in a style that I am particularly keen on reading. When I find authors like the ones I’ve mentioned and a handful of others I’ve happily blogged about over the past three years – their stories are ones that I will continue to champion and cheer for as they give us such a grounding of contemporary life in our crazy hectic modern world!

My Connection to the Author: T.S. Krupa

Although we only tweeted a few times and exchanged preliminary emails to have a special showcase of her novel Safe & Sound featured on Jorie Loves A Story, I feel as though I have had the pleasure of getting to know her a bit better in the process! And, by extension her publicist Ms. Caitlin O’Brient Bauer (of Royal Social Media). As you will see as you retreat back to the Author Interview & Live Author Q&A threads of conversation, you will find Ms Krupa to be warm, engaging, and inspiring! I am blessed twice over for our paths to have crossed and I have my Jorie Loves A Story Twitter account to thank for bringing us together! I have been blessed to continue to work with her on her future book releases, as she is an author I love to read compelling and inspiring Contemporary Rom. I came to appreciate both of them as they give book bloggers their time and grace.

In the time since I hosted Ms Krupa last year until now [May 2016], our paths have separated a bit as I wasn’t able to return too frequently to #ChickLitChat (which ended up moving strictly to Facebook) nor interact as much as I had hoped to with her via the twitterverse. I lost touch for quite a long while to be honest, and when her beautiful note arrived into my Inbox about her third release, I felt truly blessed our paths had crossed at the publication of her debut novel. She’s definitely an author I consider a blessing to have known and I look forward to following her literary career.

I am disclosing this, to assure you that I can formulate an honest opinion, even though I have interacted with her ahead of reading her début novel. I treat each book as a ‘new experience’, whether I personally know the author OR whether I am reading a book by them for the first time. This is also true when I follow-up with them on future releases and celebrate the book birthdays that come after their initial publication.

Notation on Cover Art: Can I just say an evening sky full of clouds and the hint of fog is my kind of night to be caught up inside? I love grey skies in general and overcast days to me are the best slices of happiness we can have unexpectedly grace our lives – as they are such a lovely break from oppressive humidity and volcanic heat patterns — thus, this cover was instantly grabbing my attention! I liked how the typography ‘fades’ out in the clouds and how the pier provides a bit of an infinity impression which always seems to represent to me the various ways in which a path can knit together. There is always hope left when there is a path without end to be found in front of you! And, using purple simply charmed me as it’s quite literally one of my most favourite colours!

The Ten Year Reunion
by T.S. Krupa
Source: Direct from Author

Ten years ago, Danielle ‘Dani’ Jackson graduated from Coastal State University in Wilmington, North Carolina and left her heartache behind—for what she thought was forever. Now a promising pediatric surgeon at Boston Children’s Hospital she has been invited back for her college reunion.

With encouragement from her best friend, Dani begrudgingly returns to face her past–the death of her friend and a broken heart from Jake Dillon, her first love. During her trip she revisits the four years she spent at CSU. By applying to CSU she defied her father and the ‘perfect’ plan he had laid out for her, which included attending an Ivy League school before medical school, but Dani had other plans. She traded in her father’s dream, for an institution with sandy beaches and soccer that made her feel at home. Dani never questioned her decision—she knew she was right. What she didn’t know, was how hard growing up was going to be.

At the reunion weekend she reconnects with her friends Adeline ‘Addie’ Smith and Colleen ‘Callie’ Schumaker. The girls met freshman year due to Addie’s persistence and quickly became inseparable, but after graduation they started to drift apart. The weekend is further complicated when Jake shows up. Together they all realize that life has been hard on everyone and no one’s life has been perfect. The reunion gives them the time to deal with the past and an opportunity for a second chance—for each of them.

Genres: Contemporary (Modern) Fiction (post 1945), New Adult Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Time Slip and/or Time Shift

Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-0692685440

Also by this author: Safe & Sound, On the Edge : Cover Reveal, On the Edge

Published by Avalon Haddam Press

on 10th May, 2016

Format: Paperback ARC

Pages: 378

Published by: Avalon Haddam Press

Genre(s): Contemporary Fiction | New Adult | College Reunions

Contemporary Romance | Second-chance Love

Converse via Twitter: #TheTenYearReunion

About T.S. Krupa

T.S. Krupa was born in New Haven, Connecticut. Raised in a Polish household with a blended American culture, she is fluent in Polish. She graduated with her bachelor’s degree from Franklin Pierce University,where she also played field hockey. She earned her Master’s from Texas Tech University and recently graduated with her Doctor of Education from North Carolina State University. She lives in North Carolina with her husband and two dogs.

In 2014, T.S. Krupa published her award-winning debut novel Safe & Sound. In 2015, she released her sophomore novel On the Edge. The Ten Year Reunion was her third novel. Big City Dreams and Big City Dreams have followed. TS Krupa is signed with SBR Media Group.

Posted Tuesday, 24 May, 2016 by jorielov in 21st Century, Addictions and Afflictions, ARC | Galley Copy, Author Found me On Twitter, Blog Tour Host, Book Cover | Notation on Design, Book Review (non-blog tour), Boston, College & University Years, Coming-Of Age, Contemporary Romance, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, Flashbacks & Recollective Memories, Fly in the Ointment, Grief & Anguish of Guilt, Indie Author, Life of Thirty-Somethings, Medical Fiction, Modern Day, New Adult Fiction, Romance Fiction, School Life & Situations, Second Chance Love, Singletons & Commitment, Sports, Time Slip, Vulgarity in Literature, Weight Loss

Author Interview | Conversing with Historical novelist Debbie Rix from #Bookouture!

Posted Tuesday, 26 April, 2016 by jorielov Bookouture, Daughters of the Silk Road, Debbie Rix 0 Comments

One of the blessings of hosting the authors of Bookouture, has been happily finding all the lovely styles of stories emerging out of this UK Indie publisher! I have a soft spot for historicals – when I can curl inside a slice of the historical past I have not yet had the pleasure of exploring, there is an overwhelming bubbling of joy bursting in my readerly heart! I love travelling through the different portals of time, but I also, love finding myself being in a position where I can learn something about History through the eyes and lives of strongly writ characters who endear you to their stories inasmuch as the timescape by which they are living!

Daughters of the Silk Road appealed to my sensibility for antiques and the artifacts passed down through generations which withhold stories of their own, as they are moved through time from one person to another. This is one reason I find it incredible to be browsing through an antique emporium and/or attending an auction – what curious thoughts dance through a writer’s head inasmuch as a reader – what would all those objects of art and antiquity or ordinary life speak on behalf of their own journey? What could we gleam in knowledge about how life was lived through those pieces as well? What curious fascinations of thought course through your veins as you happily ponder all the lovely mysteries attached to everything set before your eyes!

Such a joy for me to be featuring Ms Rix today – celebrating her new book but also, the excitement of finding how history cross-sects with destiny!

To gain a bit of a back-story on how I came to host Bookouture authors,

please visit my first conversation I featured with this publisher with Teresa Driscoll!

Venice 1441: Maria and her brother Daniele arrive in the birthplace of their father, Niccolo de Conti. An Italian merchant who has travelled far and wide, Niccolo has brought spices from India, lengths of silk and damask from the lands east of India and porcelain; a vase of pure white, it’s surface painted with bright cobalt blue flowers and dragons, the symbols of good fortune.

Maria settles in her new home, watching the magnificent and bustling city come to life each morning from her bedroom window. But while her father is away travelling, she soon finds herself and Daniele in terrible danger. She must protect her brother at whatever cost, and shemust guard the delicate vase.

London 2015: Single mother Miranda is struggling to make ends meet and build a new life for her and daughter Georgie. When Miranda meets the charming but mysterious Charles, she is intrigued. Could he be her second chance at love? And why is he so fascinated by the old vase sitting on her hall table…

A stunning and richly evocative story following the journey of a precious family treasure passed down from one generation to another.

What drew you towards writing a time slip narrative, which unites the 20th Century with the 15th Century? Was the dexterity of owning both eras part of what appealed to you most? As this isn’t the first time you’ve used this story arc to tell a tale straight out of history’s mirror.

Rix responds: I feel that time-slip is both a useful and enjoyable discipline – both for myself as the writer, and I hope, for the reader. The presence of a modern hero or heroine guides the reader gently into the old story. The tricky part is to create a modern story that is as compelling as the historical one.

It is almost inevitable that the historical element will be interesting; that it will introduce the reader to a character in history, or to a time and a place in the past about which they know very little. But It is harder to do that with a modern story. I was determined, with this second book, to create a modern narrative that really engaged with the reader, so they were keen to ‘get back’ to Miranda’s modern story.

As a writer, there is also a certain joy in having two stories running simultaneously. You feel pleasure as you take up one narrative and leave the other behind. It keeps things fresh. And I like the puzzle element of it – of weaving the two stories together so they create a satisfying whole. Read More

Posted Tuesday, 26 April, 2016 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Bookouture, Historical Fiction, Indie Author, Reader Submitted Author Interview, The Writers Life, Time Slip, Women's Fiction, Writing Style & Voice

Blog Book Tour | “Letters from a Patchwork Quilt” by Clare Flynn

Posted Tuesday, 1 March, 2016 by jorielov Claire Flynn, Cranbrook Press, Letters from a Patchwork Quilt 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! I received a complimentary copy of “Letters from a Patchwork Quilt” direct from the author Claire Flynn in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Old World Arts & Crafts and a joy of letter-writing:

When I originally read the synopsis for this novel, I was hoping the title would yield to a revelation of how letters and quilts would come together to unite the story! I wasn’t entirely sure how Flynn would pull this off, but as I started to read the Prologue something quite wicked happened: the letters and the quilt were stitched together as one, thus lends the precursor glimpse into how Letters from a Patchwork Quilt picks up the story-line and the reader’s heart-centred attention! As who wouldn’t want to read a novel where a character discovers hand-written missives stitched protectively inside an heirloom quilt?

This is a nod towards old world arts and crafts and the joy of letter-writing, of which I happily am a fond appreciator of both on equal terms. I love the mystery of the premise inasmuch as the allure of how the letters were purposely and lovingly placed underneath the patchwork in order to be secured safe for time’s arrow to reveal them at a point in the future they were meant to be read again. Isn’t it a wonderfully delish premise that gives your mind a lot to ponder even before you open the pages inside Chapter One?! This is how I found myself on the precipice of the story and the intrigue of where Flynn would take me once I was fully ensconced inside her prose!

Letters from a Patchwork Quilt

In 1875 England, a young man, Jack Brennan, from a large and impoverished Catholic family refuses to be pushed into the priesthood and runs away to fulfill his dream of becoming a teacher.

Jack falls in love with Eliza Hewlett, but his dreams and plans are thwarted when his landlord’s daughter, Mary Ellen MacBride, falsely accuses him of fathering the child she is expecting.

Rather than be forced to marry his accuser, Jack decides to run away to America with Eliza. Just as they are about to sail, Jack is arrested and dragged from the ship, leaving Eliza alone en route to New York with just a few shillings in her pocket.

Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9780993332418

on 1st October, 2015

Pages: 360

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

2016 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

Posted Tuesday, 1 March, 2016 by jorielov in 19th Century, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Britian, Bullies and the Bullied, Catholicism, Coming-Of Age, Content Note, Fly in the Ointment, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, History, Indie Author, Passionate Researcher, Prejudicial Bullying & Non-Tolerance, Time Slip, Vulgarity in Literature

Category: Time Slip

Why I feature #ChocLitSaturdays (book reviews & guest author features) and created #ChocLitSaturday (the chat via @ChocLitSaturday):

I wanted to create a bit of a niche on Jorie Loves A Story to showcase romance fiction steeped in relationships, courtships, and the breadth of marriage enveloped by characters written honestly whose lives not only endear you to them but they nestle into your heart as their story is being read!

About Kirsty Ferry

About Susan Wittig Albert

About T.S. Krupa

Why I feature #ChocLitSaturdays (book reviews & guest author features)
and created #ChocLitSaturday (the chat via @ChocLitSaturday):