Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Author Interview | In conversation discussing “The Lost History of Dreams” with Kris Waldherr taking us into her research and inspiration behind the topics explored in the novel!

Posted Wednesday, 25 March, 2020 by jorielov Atria Books, Kris Waldherr, Simon & Schuster, The Lost History of Dreams 1 Comment

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!

I have a wonderfully wicked surprise for you! This morning, I am featuring an author I was meant to read when this novel first published – as the publisher sent me an ARC copy of the novel. However, due to health afflictions & life as it evolved that particular year, I unfortunately never had the chance to finish reading it! Shifting forward – I put in a request for the audiobook at my regional library which was accepted and for this lovely blog tour, I not only resumed whence I had left off with the story *but!* I also listened to the audiobook version my library thankfully purchased for me!

Mind – the audiobook is quite popular and I had to wait for it to come back round to me in order to complete it for this tour, as well! I am thankful I originally knew about it via the publisher as it made accepting hosting this blog tour for Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours quite a bit easier!

The reason reading ”The Lost History of Dreams” appealled to me:

After reading “Once Upon A River”, I felt I have a good knowledge of the direction this Gothic tale might spin and it is such a unique premise, I felt it would be an interesting and captivating read. I wish there had been a Discussion Guide or Author Interview attached to this page for the book as I thoroughly enjoyed reading those for the former title. However, what was revealled seemed to fit my reading tastes as best as I could tell.

Being an appreciator of Forensic stories – either through medical examiner dramas on television such as Quincy, M.E.; Crossing Jordan; Murdoch Mysteries; NCIS & NCIS: NOLA or through narrative fiction such as the Lady Darby series by Anna Lee Huber – I am drawn into stories which centre round the examination of the dead. This is one of two stories I found by #newtomeauthors this year – the second, is “The Undertaker’s Assistant” by Amanda Skenandore – whilst I look forward to continuing my readings of the Lady Darby series as well.

This particular story offered an interesting approach to the context of the subject being explored – as it is not through the lens of the ME we’re focusing through but rather the photographer of the dead instead. Quite a curious leap I felt, as I knew there were photographs of the 19th Century which parlayed into this particular field – of where families wanted an after death reminder of the person they loved – the photographs in this instance are not for the examination of a crime or the cause of the deceased’s demise but rather a fitting tribute to the person who once lived.

In this instance, I felt Waldherr had a wickedly original plot and I was most compelled to seek it out to read! I was very grateful to be amongst the book bloggers who received this novel and I couldn’t wait to uncover the mysterious answers to the unique questions which would become alive as I read the story!

The Lost History of Dreams
by Kris Waldherr
Source: Direct from Publisher, Scribd | Audiobook Subscription
Narrator: Fiona Hardingham, Matthew Lloyd Davies

All love stories are ghost stories in disguise.

When famed Byronesque poet Hugh de Bonne is discovered dead of a heart attack in his bath one morning, his cousin Robert Highstead, a historian turned post-mortem photographer, is charged with a simple task: transport Hugh’s remains for burial in a chapel. This chapel, a stained glass folly set on the moors of Shropshire, was built by de Bonne sixteen years earlier to house the remains of his beloved wife and muse, Ada. Since then, the chapel has been locked and abandoned, a pilgrimage site for the rabid fans of de Bonne’s last book, The Lost History of Dreams.

However, Ada’s grief-stricken niece refuses to open the glass chapel for Robert unless he agrees to her bargain: before he can lay Hugh to rest, Robert must record Isabelle’s story of Ada and Hugh’s ill-fated marriage over the course of five nights.

As the mystery of Ada and Hugh’s relationship unfolds, so does the secret behind Robert’s own marriage—including that of his fragile wife, Sida, who has not been the same since the tragic accident three years ago, and the origins of his own morbid profession that has him seeing things he shouldn’t—things from beyond the grave.

Kris Waldherr effortlessly spins a sweeping and atmospheric gothic mystery about love and loss that blurs the line between the past and the present, truth and fiction, and ultimately, life and death.

Genres: Crime Fiction, Gothic Literature, Historical Fiction, Historical Thriller Suspense

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9781982101015

ASIN: B07L3D1L3F

Published by Atria Books

on 9th April, 2019

Format: Audiobook | Digital, Paperback ARC

Length: 12 hours and 12 minutes (unabridged)

Published By: Published By: Atria Books (@AtriaBooks)
{imprint of} Simon & Schuster (@simonschuster)

Converse via: #LostHistoryOfDreams, #HistNov and #HistFic
+ #Gothic #HistoricalMystery or #GothicSuspense
Available Formats: Hardcover, Audiobook & Ebook

About Kris Waldherr

Kris Waldherr is an award-winning author, illustrator, and designer. She is a member of the Historical Novel Society, and her fiction has been awarded with fellowships by the Virginia Center of the Creative Arts and a reading grant by Poets & Writers. Kris Waldherr works and lives in Brooklyn in a Victorian-era house with her husband, the anthropologist-curator Thomas Ross Miller, and their young daughter.

Photo Credit: Robert Presutti

Posted Wednesday, 25 March, 2020 by jorielov in 19th Century, ARC | Galley Copy, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Trailer, Bookish Films, Crime Fiction, Debut Author, Debut Novel, Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery, Historical Thriller Suspense, Literary Fiction, Reader Submitted Author Interview, the Victorian era

#PubDay Book Review | “Adequate Yearly Progress” by Roxanna Elden

Posted Tuesday, 11 February, 2020 by jorielov Adequate Yearly Progress, Atria Books, Roxanna Elden, Simon & Schuster 0 Comments

Acquired Book By: I have been a book blogger hosting publisher blog tours and/or featuring book reviews for Simon & Schuster (as well as a few of their imprints) since 2017 however I didn’t start to host for them regularly until 2018. What I appreciate about being a book blogger for this publisher is that they have the tendency of knowing the types of Contemporary & Historical stories which interest me to read even before I realise there is a new release forthcoming which I might gravitate towards wanting to read! It never fails to delight me finding one of their emails in my Inbox because they have the tendency of selecting the stories which align wonderfully with my own bookish wanderings. It is a joy to be a book blogger on their publisher blog tours and/or hosting reviews for them outside of the organised blog tours.

I received a complimentary copy of “Adequate Yearly Progress” direct from the publisher Atria Books (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

The reason reading ”Adequate Yearly Progress” appealled to me:

Ever since I was in school, I oft wondered what the teachers were talking about when they weren’t in the classroom. Growing up during budget cuts in the public & private school systems in the United States was an interesting view of the education system. Programs like Art, Drama, Shop (construction) and anything ‘extra’ after school were generally the first to get cut whilst they also had shortages on textbooks which is why I still remember how difficult it was to ‘lose our lockers’ in seventh and eighth grade because we literally had to go down to using ‘class sets’ without taking anything home except for copied work sheets which you could do in your sleep. In other words, for a lot of the years I was in school I didn’t feel academically challenged but what I gained instead was self-confidence, self-advocacy and self-esteem; in essence, I was building life skills and learning how to navigate the world.

Still though – there was a lot of bureaucratic red tape for the teachers, including the good ones who were student centred and held our interests ahead of their own. Some wanted to do more but were hindered by the budget or the restraints of the rules within public or private education (depending which school I was attending and which grade level). The only time I really had a chance to interact with the faculty and teachers more directly was in eighth grade where I befriended the school principal who tragically died prematurely shortly afterwards and in high school where the veil was fully lifted and I learnt far more than I expected!

For these reasons and the current state of public education in America, I decided this might be a rather timely novel to be reading. I also grew up being a dyslexic learner where most of my teachers didn’t realise I had learning difficulties because I learnt to overcompensate for my dyslexia – however, that’s a topic for another time as it lead to its own quirky complications!

Suffice it to say, from a very young age when it came to academic curiosity and literary wanderings – I did most of my educational pursuits off-campus and outside traditional education. I learnt more from my Mum who was technically my first teacher and through my family who always encouraged me to have as many experiences as I could and to seek out alternative learning opportunities.

Once I learnt how to work round my dyslexia the world of books became a cosy comfort because there wasn’t a subject I couldn’t explore on my own and there was a wide literary world out there to time travel through – in essence, what I have shared on Jorie Loves A Story is a small fraction of insight into my life as an independent learner and a self-motivating reader who continues to self-educate herself through literature and libraries.

Thus, I was dearly curious how this Contemporary novel might explore the current state of the educational system and the teachers who have a lot to deal with in regards to resources available to them in order to educate the children in their classrooms. I also thought it might have some cheeky humour along the way which is always a good thing to find!

Adequate Yearly Progress
by Roxanna Elden
Source: Direct from Publisher

Roxanna Elden’s “laugh-out-loud funny satire” (Forbes) is a brilliantly entertaining and moving look at our education system.

Each new school year brings familiar challenges to Brae Hill Valley, a struggling high school in one the biggest cities in Texas. But the teachers also face plenty of personal challenges and this year, they may finally spill over into the classroom.

English teacher Lena Wright, a spoken-word poet, can never seem to truly connect with her students. Hernan D. Hernandez is confident in front of his biology classes, but tongue-tied around the woman he most wants to impress. Down the hall, math teacher Maybelline Galang focuses on the numbers as she struggles to parent her daughter, while Coach Ray hustles his troubled football team toward another winning season. Recording it all is idealistic second-year history teacher Kaytee Mahoney, whose anonymous blog gains new readers by the day as it drifts ever further from her in-class reality. And this year, a new superintendent is determined to leave his own mark on the school—even if that means shutting the whole place down.

Genres: Contemporary (Modern) Fiction (post 1945), Education & Learning, Literary Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Teachers & Educators

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9781982135027

Published by Atria Books

on 11th February, 2020

Format: Trade Paperback

Pages: 400

Published By: Published By: Atria Books (@AtriaBooks)
{imprint of} Simon & Schuster (@simonschuster)

Converse via: #AdequateYearlyProgress, #ContemporaryFiction + #RealisticFiction
Available Formats: Trade Paperback, Audiobook & Ebook

About Roxanna Elden

Roxanna Elden is the author of Adequate Yearly Progress: A Novel, and See Me After Class: Advice for Teachers by Teachers. She combines eleven years of experience as a public school teacher with a decade of speaking to audiences around the country about education issues. She has been featured on NPR as well as in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, and more.

Website | Blog | Facebook | Goodreads | LibraryThing

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

#ArmedWithABingo 2020

Posted Tuesday, 11 February, 2020 by jorielov in 21st Century, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Compassion & Acceptance of Differences, Equality In Literature, Fly in the Ointment, Learning Difficulties, Literary Fiction, Modern Day, Multi-cultural Characters and/or Honest Representations of Ethnicity, Publishers & Presses (Direct Reviews), School Life & Situations, Simon & Schuster, Teacher & Student Relationships, Vulgarity in Literature

#HistoricalMondays Book Review | “Mount Vernon Love Story: A Novel of George and Martha Washington” by Mary Higgins Clark As a new reader of MHC’s stories, I was wicked excited when I learnt this lovely #HistRom about the Washington’s was her debut novel!

Posted Monday, 19 August, 2019 by jorielov Becoming George Washington, Mary Higgins Clark, Mount Vernon Love Story, Simon & Schuster, The Residence 0 Comments

I’ve launched a new weekly featured concentration of book reviews on Jorie Loves A Story which celebrates my love and passion for the historical past! For those of whom are regular readers and visitors to my blog, you’ll denote a dedicated passion for reading Historical Fiction (and all the lovely segues of thematic therein) – I am a time traveller of the historical past every chance I get to disappear into a new era and/or century of exploration. There isn’t a time period I haven’t enjoyed ruminating over since [2013] and there are a heap of lovely timescapes I’ve yet to encounter.

This feature was inspired by the stories I’ve read, the stories I’ve yet to experience and the beauty of feeling interconnected to History through the representation of the past through the narratives being writ by today’s Historical Fiction authors. It is to those authors I owe a debt of gratitude for enlightening my bookish mind and my readerly heart with realistic characters, illuminating portals of living history and a purposeful intent on giving each of us a strong representation of ‘life’ which should never become dismissed, forgotten or erased.

I am began this feature with the sequel to a beloved historical novel I first read in [2013] – it was one of the first ARCs I received and it was the first year I was a book blogger though it was through a connection outside my life as a blogger. I celebrated K.B. Laugheed’s literature to kick-off this feature and hopefully will inspire my followers to take this new weekly journey with me into the stories which are beckoning to read their narrative depths and find the words in which to express the thoughts I experienced as I read.

Borrowed Book By: I am a reviewer for Simon & Schuster – however, this book review is not affiliated with the reviews I am considering on behalf of the publisher. This is a novel a family friend lent my Mum and after she finished reading it, knowing how much I share her passion for the Revolutionary War era and early Colonial Americana History – she felt this might be a good fit for me to read after she did as a way to discuss the story together. This is something new we’ve been doing for the past few years now – ever since Mum first started getting back into reading with the Love Inspired Suspense novels. As we both share a healthy interest in Historical Fiction, this felt like a fitting ‘step outside’ the stories of Suspense we could both pursue together.

As the copy of “Mount Vernon Love Story” I borrowed via a family friend was read for my own edification and for future discussion with my Mum, I was not obligated to post a review; even though I elected to do so as a reader who loves to share her readerly life. I was not compensated for my thoughts shared herein.

NOTE: The Press Materials featured on this review were provided by the publisher and are used with permission after I made an enquiry with publicists I work with on blog tours. The Press Materials were found via this page and the attribution for the author’s photo has been maintained.

On why I thought I’d enjoy reading about Martha & George Washington:

It is hard to recollect when my fascination with the Washington’s began – though if you were to hear me say their names aloud, it would sound closer to Wershington per a telling sign of my parentage and grandparents roots being hinged in the North. I do know my fourth grade year was a keen one for Presidential History exploration – which I’ll recant a bit lateron on this post – however, I also remember being given two figurines – one of George, one of Martha. I am unsure why I don’t have a similar set for John and Abigail Adams, but I believe it might be because I was more keenly invested in Washington as a young girl rather than having the admiration I now have for the Adam’s which came lateron in my twenties and thirties.

He was quite the man of mystery for most of my life – though like most inquisitive souls, I did chase down some facts about him and some stories as well. I have aspired to visit Mount Vernon as I am quite interested in visiting the places which were of importance to the Presidents; I’ve had the pleasure of visiting a few of their hometowns and other places of interest in the past though I do long to visit a few more estates as much as I’d love to begin visiting their Presidential Libraries.

In regards to Washington directly, before I started seeking out Historical Fiction narratives featuring either him directly and/or the Revolutionary War or early Colonial Americana stories – there was the film The Crossing (1999) which left quite the strong impression on me. From there, I started moving into fictional accounts of History whilst in my mid-thirties whilst binging on Classical Films via Turner Classic Movies (a channel I can never tire of watching) – I watched 1776 (1969) which is a musical film about the founding of our country but more strictly about the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

You could say my jaunts into this era of history are quite eclectically tethered to different parts of my life and you’d be correct in that observation. The beauty of course is not being in any particular haste to ferret out new stories but to take a bit of time to seek out the stories which keep me invested in the subject of interest as I navigate new stories and new authors who are re-telling History in such of way as to re-paint it alive for those us far, far removed from the 18th Century to consider it ‘living history’.

Towards that end – I don’t oft get the pleasure of reading stories anchoured to both spouses – mostly I find stories through the portal of one of the husbands (ie. former Presidents) rather than in full scope of whom they were in their personal and/or their professional capacities. I felt this particular novel would be intriguing as it puts us behind closed doors and gets to see Washington as “George” the man who was in love with Patsy (‘Martha’) who just happened to be our first President of the United States.

Mount Vernon Love Story
Subtitle: A Novel of George and Martha Washington
by Mary Higgins Clark
Source: Borrowed Book (Family/Friend)

In Mount Vernon Love Story -- famed suspense writer Mary Higgins Clark's long-out-of-print first novel -- the bestselling author reveals the flesh-and-blood man who became the "father of our country" in a story that is charming, insightful, and immensely entertaining.

Always a lover of history, Mary Higgins Clark wrote this extensively researched biographical novel and titled it Aspire to the Heavens, after the motto of George Washington's mother. Published in 1969, the book was more recently discovered by a Washington family descendant and reissued as Mount Vernon Love Story. Dispelling the widespread belief that although George Washington married Martha Dandridge Custis, he reserved his true love for Sally Carey Fairfax, his best friend's wife, Mary Higgins Clark describes the Washington marriage as one full of tenderness and passion, as a bond between two people who shared their lives -- even the bitter hardship of a winter in Valley Forge -- in every way. In this author's skilled hands, the history, the love, and the man come fully and dramatically alive.

Genres: Biographical Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Romance, Presidential Life & History, Time Slip and/or Time Shift

Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9780743448949

Published by Simon & Schuster

on 1st June,, 2003

Format: Hardcover Edition, Large Print Edition

Pages: 223

Published by: Simon & Schuster (@simonschuster)

This particular novel was the author’s first published story.

Interestingly enough it is also my *first!* story of Ms Clark’s I’ve read!

A bit of trivia: this novel was originally entitled: “Aspire to the Heavens” (1969).

The version of the book I have is the hardcover edition published in *2002!* – however, I’ve included the details if you want to seek out this 2003 edition by Simon & Schuster. It should also be noted I read the *Large Print!* edition of the hardcover release – wherein it was quite easy on the eyes to read and a blessing for a girl recovering from five migraines in May, 2019.

I am delighted to say this hardcover edition features lovely interior illustrations!

Converse via: #MaryHigginsClark, #GeorgeWashington + #MarthaWashington

as well as #HistRom or #HistoricalRomance; #HistNov + #ColonialAmerica

About Mary Higgins Clark

Mary Higgins Clark Photo Credit (c) Bernard Vidal

The #1 New York Times bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark has written thirty-seven suspense novels, four collections of short stories, a historical novel, a memoir, and two children’s books.

With her daughter Carol Higgins Clark, she has coauthored five more suspense novels, and also wrote The Cinderella Murder, All Dressed in White, The Sleeping Beauty Killer, and Every Breath You Take with bestselling author Alafair Burke.

More than one hundred million copies of her books are in print in the United States alone. Her books are international bestsellers.

Photo Credit: © Bernard Vidal

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

#BeatTheBacklist 2019
#JorieReads with #MumReads
2019 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

Posted Monday, 19 August, 2019 by jorielov in 18th Century, Biographical Fiction & Non-Fiction, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Book Review (non-blog tour), Colonial America, George and Martha Washington, George Washington, Historical Romance, Martha Washington, Romance Fiction

#HistoricalMondays Book Review | “Death In A Desert Land” (Book Three: The Agatha Christie series) by Andrew Wilson

Posted Monday, 8 July, 2019 by jorielov A Different Kind of Evil, A Talent for Murder, Andrew Wilson, Atria Books, Death in a Desert Land, Simon & Schuster 0 Comments

I’ve launched a new weekly featured concentration of book reviews on Jorie Loves A Story which celebrates my love and passion for the historical past! For those of whom are regular readers and visitors to my blog, you’ll denote a dedicated passion for reading Historical Fiction (and all the lovely segues of thematic therein) – I am a time traveller of the historical past every chance I get to disappear into a new era and/or century of exploration. There isn’t a time period I haven’t enjoyed ruminating over since [2013] and there are a heap of lovely timescapes I’ve yet to encounter.

This feature was inspired by the stories I’ve read, the stories I’ve yet to experience and the beauty of feeling interconnected to History through the representation of the past through the narratives being writ by today’s Historical Fiction authors. It is to those authors I owe a debt of gratitude for enlightening my bookish mind and my readerly heart with realistic characters, illuminating portals of living history and a purposeful intent on giving each of us a strong representation of ‘life’ which should never become dismissed, forgotten or erased.

I am began this feature with the sequel to a beloved historical novel I first read in [2013] – it was one of the first ARCs I received and it was the first year I was a book blogger though it was through a connection outside my life as a blogger. I celebrated K.B. Laugheed’s literature to kick-off this feature and hopefully will inspire my followers to take this new weekly journey with me into the stories which are beckoning to read their narrative depths and find the words in which to express the thoughts I experienced as I read.

Acquired Book(s) By: I have been hosting blog tours and reviews for Simon & Schuster off and on for nearly a year now. I’ve had the joy of discovering their stories through Contemporary and Historical narratives whilst happily finding a lot of their authors are writing the kinds of stories which keep me engaged and rooted in their narratives.

This time round – it was a Historical Suspense novel and series which whet a thirst of interest to be reading as it is rooted in my love of Agatha Christie – this series puts Dame Christie in the driving seat of the sleuth rather than one of her characters and I have a propensity for seeking out these kinds of mysteries. Previously, I gave the Jane Austen mysteries my attention and there have been a few others over the years where living persons are the ‘sleuths’ who tuck us into their worlds. I find it a bit fascinating how living history is now a foundation for Mysteries, Suspense & Thrillers – as it extends my love of Biographical Historical Fiction.

I received a complimentary copy of “Death in a Desert Land” from the publisher Atria Books (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Ahead of reading “Death in a Desert Land” I also borrowed copies of the first two novels in this series: “A Talent for Murder” and “A Different Kind of Evil” from my local library which I happily shared ruminations about on this post for my personal edification and for continuing to share my bookish life with my readers. I was not obligated to do so in other words and felt it was beneficial to sharing my joy of the series.

Why I didn’t cosy into A Talent for Murder:

I do appreciate following the vision of a series from the beginning of how an author pens the stories – however, in this particular case, I didn’t find an easy entrance into A Talent for Murder – in effect, I found it hard to adjust to the writing style and find a compelling reason to read it. It was written in a rather brisk fashion and although the premise was a curious one – how Agatha Christie would go from writing to sleuthing was a strong component of why I wanted to read the story as a precursor to reading the second volume of the series and then, the recently released third Death in a Desert Land – I mused, perhaps this series might follow suit of a previously read Historical Romance series.

I am finding recently there are certain series which benefit from skipping over the first few volumes in exchange for the latest release. This did not used to be the case for me – I would generally find myself smitten by the first novel of a series in-progress and have a lot of good folly to follow through with the installments leading into the newest one being released – until, I’ve found that sometimes series grow more appealling with age than they do with their first entries into the rhythm of their stories.

Two series prior to this one worked this way for me recently – as soon as I picked up Death in a Desert Land, I found a different voice within it. A different method of delivery in the narrative and because of that – I found myself about to cosy into this story far easier than my first attempts within A Talent for Murder. Thereby, despite my personal preferences to read series in sequential order, there are apparently a few series out there which benefit me to skip round and find the installments which suit me best to be reading. You might have noted I borrowed the second novel in this series but opted instead to read the third.

This suited me as what initially had drawn my interest into reading the Agatha Christie series is by having a life-long pursuit of the author’s collective works. My favourite stories are those of Miss Marple even if in recent years I’ve had a glimpse of Poirot and have taken a firm liking to his quirky ways of sleuthing – there is still a stronghold of appreciation on my behalf for Marple. I dearly had hoped to find entrance into this series as I was most keen to discover how Christie would be presented as an independent sleuth and how that would counter to the image and impression I had of her previously.

Death in Desert Land
by Andrew Wilson
Source: Direct from Publisher

Fresh from solving the gruesome murder of a British agent in the Canary Islands, mystery writer Agatha Christie receives a letter from a family who believes their late daughter met with foul play. Before Gertrude Bell overdosed on sleeping medication, she was a prominent archaeologist, recovering ancient treasures in the Middle East. Found near her body was a letter claiming that Bell was being followed and to complicate things further, Bell was competing with another archeologist, Mrs. Woolley, for the rights to artifacts of immense value.

Christie travels to far-off Persia, where she meets the enigmatic Mrs. Woolley as she is working on a big and potentially valuable discovery. Temperamental but brilliant, Mrs. Woolley quickly charms Christie but when she does not hide her disdain for the recently deceased Miss Bell, Christie doesn’t know whether to trust her—or if Bell’s killer is just clever enough to hide in plain sight.

Genres: Amateur Detective, Biographical Fiction, Crime Fiction, Hard-Boiled Mystery, Historical Fiction

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9781501197451

Published by Atria Books, Washington Square Press

on 9th July, 2019

Format: Trade Paperback

Pages: 352

Published by: Washington Square Press | Atria Books (@AtriaBooks)
{imprints of} Simon & Schuster (@simonschuster)

The Agatha Christie series:

A Talent for Murder – book one

A Different Kind of Evil – book two

Death in a Desert Land – book three

Converse via: #AgathaChristieMysteries, #AgathaChristie + #HistMys

as well as #HistoricalMystery + #HistFic #Mysteries

About Andrew Wilson

Andrew Wilson is an award-winning journalist and author. His work has appeared in a wide variety of publications including the Guardian, the Washington Post, the Sunday Times, and the Smithsonian Magazine. He is the author of four acclaimed biographies, a book about the survivors of the Titanic, and the novels, The Lying Tongue, A Talent for Murder, A Different Kind of Evil, Death in a Desert Land.

Photo Credit: Johnny Ring

Location Courtesy of Royal Institute of British Architecture

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | LibraryThing | FantasticFiction

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

Posted Monday, 8 July, 2019 by jorielov in 19th Century, Amateur Detective, Biographical Fiction & Non-Fiction, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Crime Fiction, Historical Mystery, Lady Detective Fiction, Silver Hair Sleuths, Simon & Schuster

Author Interview | Remember when I read “The Chef’s Secret”? Happily had the chance to discuss it with the author, Crystal King!

Posted Thursday, 27 June, 2019 by jorielov Atria, Crystal King, Simon & Schuster, The Chef's Secret 2 Comments

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts,

Earlier in the year, I had the joy of being a part of the publisher’s blog tour for The Chef’s Secret wherein I had a few takeaways from reading the story I wanted to re-share with you today, in case you hadn’t had the chance to visit with me when this first went live on Jorie Loves A Story! Also, I am wicked thankful I could also participate on this tour with Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours as one of the things I had planned to do was to interview the author closer to when I shared my review – thankfully, I apparently was meant to hold off until this tour to do that and I am thankful to have a second chance to discuss The Chef’s Secret.

We enter into Scappi’s life at the time of his death – where we find Giovanni, his nephew is introducing us to how beloved his Uncle had been to everyone who had tasted his foods. It is through food where Scappi had found his destiny – to influence the taste everyone sought from him and to inspire Giovanni to better understand how to cook; to fuse flavour with the ingredients he preferred to use in his creations. It is through this overview of a lived life, we gain perspective – of how one man’s death has a larger net of sorrow – everyone in this community is grieving as if with one heart, one mind. Everywhere people are affected by the absence of this legend of a man, Bartolomeo Scappi. It is here we recognise how one man can impact so many lives through how he chose to interact and engage whilst he was alive. Yet, for Giovanni it is much, much more personal than that – for him, it is an arrow to his heart as Scappi was a surrogate father to his younger self when he needed a guiding hand in his life.

Shortly after this is announced, Giovanni is reunited with one of his dear friends, Valentino but the weight of the hour is alleviated by his Uncle’s trusted friend Francesco who was taking over the particulars in the background. From here, we meet quite a few officials of importance including the sitting Pope; a man Giovanni is not very fond of as he has changed too much of the past for his liking. The days of the lushly eloquent banquet dinners where Scappi could be inventive with his baking skills and his main dishes were cast aside for a more humbled and limited diet. It is this shared fate, Giovanni is learning will become his own as the Pope wishes for him to carry-on in Scappi’s absence as his personal chef.

It was here where you start to feel for Giovanni – he was under his Uncle tutelage yet when he is ready to ascend from his lessons and embrace the responsibilities he is inheriting, he’s cut to the quick straight out of the gate! He must yield and conform to the needs of his employer rather than to see a future cast through the creations his own heart yearns to cook. As a foodie and as a girl who loves to experiment with spice, herb, flavouring, protein, fresh farm veg and fruit and the cultural cooking heritages from the world – I can fully understand his vexations! It would be troublesome to not allow it to afflict your mind with a deeper sorrow than the loss of your Uncle.

In the background of what is happening to Giovanni, King has a natural acquiescence towards inferring what is happening in the Renaissance at the time in which we are meeting her characters. Little nods of whom might have been a friend of Scappi and little tucked in announcements of what life is like during this period of time gave a fuller grounding of the timescape, I felt. I like seeing those gestures as the novel becomes centrally important to the given century it is placed rather than feeling as if it could be a capsule of time somewhere within living history but without an identifiable marker. I felt Historical Fiction benefits from this kind of dedication as you get to tuck closer to how people are living – seeing how their lives are different from our own and knowing exactly why those differences are visible based on what their doing as we read the story.

-quoted from my review of The Chef’s Secret

This is a very interestingly writ novel – it moves not only as a time shift through different stages of the lives of the inspirational chef for Giovanni but it delves deeper into Scappi’s own influences and the life he led himself. If your a reader who loves culinary arts & delights, this novel has a heap of lovely mentions for the foodie soul and spirit, too!

I hope after you’ve had the chance to digest the information Ms King shares within this conversation you’ll know if this is a novel you will be able to read yourself and/or mention it to someone else you know will appreciate knowing about the book being published.

Be sure to brew your favourite cuppa

& settle into a comfy chair whilst you enjoy this interview!

The Chef's Secret (Interview)
by Crystal King

A captivating novel of Renaissance Italy detailing the mysterious life of Bartolomeo Scappi, the legendary chef to several popes and author of one of the bestselling cookbooks of all time, and the nephew who sets out to discover his late uncle’s secrets—including the identity of the noblewoman Bartolomeo loved until he died.

When Bartolomeo Scappi dies in 1577, he leaves his vast estate—properties, money, and his position—to his nephew and apprentice Giovanni. He also gives Giovanni the keys to two strongboxes and strict instructions to burn their contents. Despite Scappi’s dire warning that the information concealed in those boxes could put Giovanni’s life and others at risk, Giovanni is compelled to learn his uncle’s secrets. He undertakes the arduous task of decoding Scappi’s journals and uncovers a history of deception, betrayal, and murder—all to protect an illicit love affair.

As Giovanni pieces together the details of Scappi’s past, he must contend with two rivals who have joined forces—his brother Cesare and Scappi’s former protégé, Domenico Romoli, who will do anything to get his hands on the late chef’s recipes.

With luscious prose that captures the full scale of the sumptuous feasts for which Scappi was known, The Chef’s Secret serves up power, intrigue, and passion, bringing Renaissance Italy to life in a delectable fashion.

Genres: Cookery, Historical Fiction, Time Slip and/or Time Shift

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-1501196430

ASIN: B07HKM1C83

Also by this author: The Chef's Secret

Published by Atria Books

on 12th February, 2019

Length: 9 hours and 36 minutes (unabridged)

Published By: Published By: Atria Books (@AtriaBooks)
{imprint of} Simon & Schuster (@simonschuster)

Converse via: #TheChefsSecret, #HistNov and #HistFic
+ #Renaissance #Cookery with #BartolomeoScappi

Available Formats: Hardcover, Audiobook & Ebook

Posted Thursday, 27 June, 2019 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Book Spotlight, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Reader Submitted Author Interview