Monthly Archives: November 2017

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

29 Wednesday Nov 2017

Posted by in fantasy, Fiction, Science fiction

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This fantasy story is set in a world where there are four versions of London, each ruled by different leaders with varying amounts of magic. I loved the two protagonists – one a magician, the other a thief – and the novel’s humor and adventure.

“A Darker Shade of Magic has all the hallmarks of a classic work of fantasy. Its plot is gripping. Its characters are memorable. Its setting in four parallel, powerful Londons is otherworldly yet believable. Schwab has given us a gem of a tale that is original in its premise and compelling in its execution. This is a book to treasure.” ―Deborah Harkness, New York Times bestselling author of The All Souls Trilogy

“Schwab (Vicious) creates an ingenious set of nesting alternate Londons in this imaginative, well-crafted fantasy. Confident prose and marvelous touches-a chameleon coat, a scarlet river of magic, a piratical antiheroine-bring exuberant life to an exhilarating adventure among the worlds.” ―Publishers Weekly, starred review

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Emperor’s Club – dvd

21 Tuesday Nov 2017

Posted by in Drama, Fiction

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 “Character is destiny,” wrote Heraclitus and Ethan Canin is a master at exploring people who are struggling to understand themselves and the unexpected turns their lives have taken. The Emperor’s Club movie is based Ethan Canin’s short story, The Palace Thief, where a history teacher at an exclusive boarding school reflects on the vicissitudes of a lifetime connection with a student scoundrel.

But there is a feature to this movie which has the viewer question his/her values towards morality and ethics. The major theme appears to be that at some point in our lives we choose our path towards attaining the highest level of morality life allows us. This film also attempts successfully to portray how we measure whether we are or have attained these goals.  One of my favorite movies.

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Lilli de Jong by Janet Benton

15 Wednesday Nov 2017

Posted by in Fiction, Historical Fiction

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Set in Pennsylvania in the 1880’s, Lilli de Jong  is the story of a sincere and innocent young Quaker woman who does everything she can to keep her out-of-wedlock child.   Janet Benton is a first-time author, writes in a style reminiscent of Geraldine Brooks and seamlessly weaves accurate historical details into her powerful and elegant prose.

“Janet Benton’s remarkable novel Lilli de Jong is historical fiction that transcends the genre and recalls a past world so thoroughly that it breathes upon the page. From the first sentence, Lilli’s sensitive, observant, determined voice casts an irresistible spell. Benton combines rich, carefully researched detail with an imaginative boldness that is a joy to behold—though reader, be warned: Lilli’s story may break your heart.”
—Valerie Martin, author of The Ghost of the Mary Celeste

“A heartrending debut . . . Benton’s exacting research fuels Lilli’s passionate, authentic voice that is ‘as strong as a hand on a drum . . . that pounds its urgent messages across a distance’ . . . Lilli’s inspiring power and touching determination are timeless.”
—Publishers Weekly

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American Heiress: the Wild Saga of the Kidnapping, Crimes and trial of Patty Hearst by Jeffrey Toobin

07 Tuesday Nov 2017

Posted by in 20th century, Biography, History, Non-fiction, United States

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I knew only the most basic facts about the kidnapping of Patty Hearst before reading this book, which provides many interesting details about the kidnapping as well as the people involved, the political and social climate of the time, and the Hearst family. Several moments in this story reminded me that sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction!

“Terrifically engrossing…Toobin uses his knowledge of the justice system and his examination of the evidence to pierce the veil of spectacle…As for Patty Hearst herself, Toobin treats her as a person, not a tabloid phantasm.—New York Times Book Review

“The abduction and subsequent radicalization of Patricia Hearst is one of the most bizarre but illuminating episodes of that tumultuous era of protest…and in American Heiress Jeffrey Toobin retells the story with a full-blown narrative treatment that may astonish readers too young to remember it themselves…Toobin spins this complex chapter of recent history into an absorbing and intelligent page-turner.”—The Washington Post 

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The Strangler Vine (a Blake and Avery novel) by M.J. Carter

01 Wednesday Nov 2017

Posted by in Fiction, Historical Fiction, mystery

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“From the thrilling prolog to the satisfying conclusion, former journalist and nonfiction author Carter’s first foray into fiction hooks the reader into a ripping adventure ride, full of danger, conspiracy, and trickery. Young William Avery, a soldier in the service of the British East India Company in 1837 India, receives an unexpected assignment. He is to accompany Jeremiah Blake, a secret political agent with an astonishing talent for languages and Sherlock Holmesian disguises, on a mission to find the scandalous British writer Xavier Mountstuart, who is missing. Each twist and turn of the duo’s journey draws them deeper into the mystery of the sinister Thuggee cult and closer to uncovering the shocking truth at the heart of the puzzle of Mountstuart’s disappearance. VERDICT Carter’s clever historical thriller is a winner.–Barbara Clark-Greene (Reviewed November 15, 2014) (Library Journal, vol 139, issue 19, p76)

“Totally engrossing — the sort of story that makes you forget that there are other books stacked next to your bed, waiting to be read.”–Michael Lewis, The New York Times Book Review

“[A] yarn reminiscent of adventures by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.”—The New York Post

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