Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters

Book Description:
In Victorian England, a woman wasn't supposed to be an archaeologist or a detective. Amelia Peabody was both. Thirty-one-year-old Victorian gentlewoman Amelia Peabody has inherited her father's strong will as well as his considerable fortune. On her way to Cairo to indulge her passion for Egyptology, she picks up Evelyn Barton-Forbes as a traveling companion. Evelyn has a tarnished past, but both she and Amelia believe that it won't come back to haunt her. That belief is shattered when Evelyn is attacked by a walking, homicidal mummy. Amelia enlists the aid of Radcliff Emerson, a prominent Egyptologist, to help unravel the plot against her friend and decipher the clues left by the mummy. Between grave digging and academic sparring, she manages to save his life. But with the threat of an ancient curse closing in, Amelia must resort to outrageous methods to prevent the mummy from making corpses of them all.
 
I loved, loved, loved this book!

The indomitable Amelia Peabody, Victorian spinster turned archeologist sleuth is an original - the original.  First in a long series of historical mystery novels starring Amelia, the series inception began with Crocodile on the Sandbank in 1975.   Since then, there are something like nineteen (!) books in the series, and Ms. Peters is still pumping them out! I can see why over the years, other authors have probably modeled their heroines after her, but they pale in comparison - no one is quite like Amelia!  She is irresistible! Having become a fan of this genre recently, I now recognize Amelia in several other historical mystery novels I've read lately. As much as I like these other female mystery solvers who also happen to be well-to-do Victorian ladies, none have been as deliciously fun to read as much as Amelia.  They don't even come close!

For one thing Amelia's dry wit and razor sharp tongue make the words leap off the pages.  She sparkles.  She's clever. She's rich.  She's blunt.  What a character, full of common sense and a strong dose of vinegar added for good measure.  She can match anyone. No one can up Ms. Peabody - well, maybe one person - a man whom she meets in Egypt on an archeological  dig ... but I get ahead of myself.  A self avowed spinster, she's proud of her status and is her own person.  Eager to travel and see the world, she befriends the destitute Evelyn Barton-Forbes, a young lady of aristocratic origin who has been cruelly duped into eloping with an Italian lothario who leaves her broke, ruined and unmarried.  Amelia, recognizing a kindred spirit in Evelyn, hires her on the spot to become her paid traveling companion.

The two travel from Rome to Egypt to sail along the Nile and see Egypt from the water (the only civilized way to see Egypt and the Pyramids).  Amelia is captivated by the country and it's antiquities and becomes an instant expert on all things Egyptian.  While in Cairo, they meet two brothers - one, a young, handsome and charmingly bashful gentleman who becomes instantly smitten with Evelyn and the other... well, let's just say Emerson isn't exactly like his brother. 

Emerson is a big bear of a man.  In Amelia's eyes he is just barely a gentlemen.  Dedicated to his archeological dig and abhorring the dirty dealings of antiquities dealers and their casual disregard for preservation, Emerson and Amelia come to loggerheads upon first meeting.  In her eyes, he is uncouth, lacking in the Victorian civilities she is accustomed to.  He criticizes everyone repeatedly and refers to her as "Peabody."  They are all thrown together while trying to solve the mystery of a mysterious mummy that is "haunting" Emerson's archeological site along the Nile.  Amelia, being the take charge kind of person that she is, commandeers the entire operation when Emerson falls ill and so begins our mystery.   Unbelieving in actual mummies, our archeological friends all try to capture the fake "mummy" and find out who is behind the deception that is scaring the superstitious workers off the site. 
 
As much as the mystery was fun to solve, it was also very funny!  The entire book is told as if Amelia is recounting the events at a later date and I loved it how she keeps referring to "her Critic" who seems to be looking over her shoulder as she writes.  Gee I wonder who it is? ;)  There are many funny little tidbits that cracked me up, particularly the asides she has in regard to Emerson or Lucas, a suitor of Evelyn's who is up to no good and most likely after her money. I had no idea this book would be such a riot!   I was giggling throughout - it was simply delightful!

I'm leaving tons out for I don't want to spoil the surprises, but trust me this is a priceless little gem.  I loved every word of it.  Amelia and Emerson's jabs at each other were hilarious, their little war, of course, turns into love and it was a joy to see how the whole mystery unfolds in the midst of Amelia's and Emerson's barbs towards each other and the mysterious shenanigans that take place in the desert while trying to nab the mummy!  I was riveted to the mummy mystery, I had an idea of who was all behind it, but was curious to see how it played out.  Plus, I had to keep reading to find out if the beautiful Evelyn, Amelia's companion, finds true love and if her reputation is regained.  I liked Evelyn a lot, I had a great deal of sympathy for her, she's been treated badly, yet she's strong as well.  She doesn't just roll over and play dead.   I hope we see more of her in future books!  Amelia's love story was great as well - a real hoot!  What a pair!!

Do yourself a big favor, read this book if you like historical mysteries with a strong and captivating heroine.  Long live Amelia! I'm eager to see just how the rest of this series plays out, much of which I'll listen to on audiobook in the future - a real treat!

5/5

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Not Quite a Husband by Sherry Thomas

Book Description:
Their marriage lasted only slightly longer than the honeymoon - to no one’'s surprise, not even Bryony Asquith's. A man as talented, handsome, and sought after by society as Leo Marsden couldn't possibly want to spend his entire life with a woman who rebelled against propriety by becoming a doctor. Why, then, three years after their annulment and half a world away, does he track her down at her clinic in the remotest corner of India?
 Leo has no reason to think Bryony could ever forgive him for the way he treated her, but he won't rest until he’s delivered an urgent message from her sister - —and fulfilled his duty by escorting her safely back to England. But as they risk their lives for each other on the journey home, will the biggest danger be the treacherous war around them - or their rekindling passion?

Another fab Sherry Thomas romance, but I'm afraid  this one didn't thrill me quite as much as her first two.  It was great, but it was darker than her previous two, plus the plot was difficult to follow because the story jumped around a lot, although that's not uncommon for her books.  But the kicker was, I had a hard time warming up to the heroine.

It's the story of a young Victorian couple, Bryony and Leo, who had once been married for a short period of time and then the marriage was annulled.  When we come into the story, it has been three years since their marriage dissolved in the year 1897.  Leo has come looking for his intrepid physician wife in the wilds of Northern India to bring her back to England because her father is dying.  With oblique flashbacks, we learn about what happened to their marriage and what went wrong while the two of them are dealing with each other in the present.  Is there still hope for their marriage and do they still love each other?  There is a lot we don't know about what caused their break up in the first place.  What went wrong with their marriage and what started it all?  It all gradually unfolds as the story develops and they deal with the crisis at hand of being in the middle of the Indian Mutiny in the Swat River Valley.   The descriptions were harrowing and in this sense it reminded me of another book, Duke of Shadows by Meredith Duran that features another Indian Mutiny. Both great storytelling, but different in many ways.  

As I mentioned above, the plot was initially hard to follow because of the jumping around in time.  For the longest time we are not privy to why Bryony insisted on the annulment and her reasons for wanting nothing more to do with her husband.   Why did she marry him?  She was the one that proposed in the first place!  Bryony came across as cold and unfeeling which detracted from my giving this five stars.  She remains that way for the first half of the book, an enigma, and it was hard for me to really like her. Not until the second half does she finally warm up when the story pretty much stays in present time and the action heats up with the mutiny.  I found it hard to believe her adoring Leo loved her so madly and for so long when she treated him so coldly.  He was great, and I loved his character.  He was my favorite, I loved it how he wouldn't give up on them for the longest time.  I felt sorry for him that she dropped him shortly after their honeymoon with no reason. She was cold in bed, seeming to dislike making love. He was perplexed at her behavior, thinking he could change her,  almost like a beloved puppy dog that keeps coming back for more no matter how much it's maltreated.  In his early days, he's young and handsome.  Charming.  Three years later, he's weather worn, hardened and weary.  He's seen a lot and yet he still loves Bryony, trekking miles and miles to go to her.  When he learns the truth of what happened and why Bryony turned away from him shortly after their marriage, I felt just terrible for him. Poor Leo! What guilt he must have felt! I really cared for his feelings. 

As much as the book was a slight let down for me compared to her first two, I did love how they come together and love each other while in the middle of this nail biting rebellion, trapped in this fort, worried they may not make it out alive. They are living their days and nights together as if they are their last, making up for their lost three years. The lovemaking is passionate, sweet, tender and desperate at times, it was wonderful.  Sherry Thomas has a style to her writing that conveys much emotion without being overly graphic or explicit. 

I've already read two of her other books and simply loved, loved, loved them, I will definitely read anything Thomas writes, even if this one wasn't a home run for me. It was hard for me to get into the plot and figure out what was really happening and where it was going to go and whether I even liked Bryony or not.  Through much of it I needed to know what was her motivation. Thomas' first two books were unique and marvelous, though they too had intricate plots that were hard to follow at first, but at least I liked the heroines!  If there was one way to make Not Quite a Husband better, she could have made Bryony more likable.  I know, I know, we're supposed to be surprised at why Bryony is cold and implacable, but it took away from the story, for liking the heroine, in addition to the hero, is key to me. I just couldn't get around her until I found out what her problem was.  By the end, I loved them together and their married couple playfulness, surprising the rest of his family with this new and different Bryony.  I loved it how they're all so amazed the way they keep acting like this they've been married for years, as if there had never been an annulment!

As a rule, I love Thomas' plot lines, which are intricate, often with flashbacks about a poignant lost love and getting it back some years later. Thomas has strong heroines with minds of their own. They've made big mistakes in their pasts, but they don't waste time feeling sorry for themselves, they get on with their lives. The men who love them are usually the ones that suffer the most because of it. I'm more sympathetic with what they go through than her heroines.  These kind of plot lines make her happily ever after endings all the more blissful and worthwhile because the hero and heroine have both been through wringer.  If there's one thing I can say about Sherry Thomas' books, they all have strong finishes!

Overall I consider this book a winner, but I was spoiled by the greatness of her first two books.  In any case, Not Quite a Husband won the 2010 RITA award for Best Historical Romance and I congratulate Ms. Thomas on her win! 

Congratulations!

4/5

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I won!

Over at Lauren Willig's blog, author of the The Pink Carnation Series, she's had this cover contest going on for who comes up with the best cover for her upcoming book, The Orchid Affair.  The cover has already been designed by the publisher, and it's a departure from her past books, totally different and a lot of fans were a bit outspoken and disgruntled over it (I personally like it).  Anyway, Lauren decided to have a contest for who could design their own cover and have a vote on it.

Well, I submitted my entry and designed it in keeping with her former style of cover - and it won!  And not just by a few votes  - I ran away with it!  I was over 40 votes ahead of the person next in line.  I was flabbergasted by it - but also secretly delighted!  Still, the voting and contest itself had loads of drama!  Stacked votes and before the contest started, Lauren posted some of the entries for people to ooh and ah at;  If you look carefully, the winner who won 3rd prize decided to help herself to my cover - you'll see what I mean.  What do they say, "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery?"  Hmmph!  Anyway, it was fun to win and I get an advance copy of the book and maybe a limited edition dust cover of the book itself!  That would be very cool!

Here is my winning entry, it's of a portrait by Ingres that hangs at the Frick Collection in NYC, one of my favorite museums.  I worked my Photoshop magic on it and voila! Apparently there is a book out there about Mozart that has a very similar cover, but I'd never seen it or heard of it until one commenter decided to point it out to all with a link during the voting (really, did she have to do that, it only made her look meanspirited).  Anyway, check it out!  I was #5.  I got something like 99 votes!

If you haven't read Lauren Willig's Pink Carnation series, give it a try, it's one of my favorites, and I had the pleasure of meeting and hanging out with Lauren this past June at a book conference in Phoenix.  She's delightful and I look forward to meeting her again some day, she's only across the Hudson River from me after all! :)

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Paul Is Undead by Alan Goldsher (audio)

Book Description:
Ladies and gentlemen, it's time to really meet the Beatles. This is a delightfully gory retelling of the Beatles' U.S. tour that reimagines the Liverpool foursome as bloodthirsty zombies who take over the world. . . literally!

For John Lennon, a young, idealistic zombie guitarist with dreams of global domination, Liverpool seems the ideal place to form a band that could take over the world. In an inspired act, Lennon kills and reanimates local rocker Paul McCartney, kicking off an unstoppable partnership. With the addition of newly zombified guitarist George Harrison and drummer/Seventh Level Ninja Lord Ringo Starr, the Beatles soon cut a swath of bloody good music and bloody violent mayhem across Europe, America, and the entire planet.

In this searing oral history, discover how the Fab Four climbed to the Toppermost of the Poppermost while stealing the hearts, ears, and brains of smitten teenage girls. Learn the tale behind a spiritual journey that resulted in the dismemberment of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Marvel at the seemingly indestructible quartet's survival of a fierce attack by Eighth Level Ninja Lord Yoko Ono. And find out how the boys escaped eternal death at the hands of England's greatest zombie hunter, Mick Jagger.

Through all this, one mystery remains: Can the Beatles sublimate their hunger for gray matter, remain on top of the charts, and stay together for all eternity? After all, three of the Fab Four are zombies, and zombies live forever.
 
Up until now, I have resisted  the current zombie craze that has been hitting the literary world. I've refused to give in - no Seth Graham-Smith and his ilk for me.  I've abhorred the cashing in on the greatness of Jane Austen and Abraham Lincoln.  But when I saw this book - on audio no less - narrated by my idol and favorite male audio narrator, Simon Vance - I had to give in.  I'm somewhat of a Beatle afficianado, having two older sisters that were bona fide Beatlemaniacs in the '60's and then becoming a die hard Beatles fan myself at the age of six, this was irresistible.  I had to have it.
 
I loved it. I laughed, I giggled, I couldn't get enough of it.  It made me giddy, the voices, the accents, the total irreverence and sheer audacity of it - a tour de force! Simon Vance outdid himself on this audiobook.  He became John, Paul, George and Ringo.  Not to say that he did perfect imitations of the Fab Four ... but close.  Not only the Beatles themselves, but all the voices and accents of a myriad of interviewees that make up this mock biography of the making of the Beatles - as zombies. We meet George Martin, Mick Jagger, Rod Argent (of The Zombies the rock 'n roll group) and many, many more characters - it's a who's who of the rock scene and history of the Beatles from their beginnings in Liverpool to present day.  I can't even begin to extol the cleverness and sheer madness of this book - anyone who knows anything about the real story of the Beatles will appreciate this satiric look at the four Liverpudlians that took over the world - or tried to at least as zombies.  Their goal to reach the toppermost of the poppermost, John's magic litany that transfixes audiences and turns the Shea Stadium Concert into a riot - the ultimate be all end all.
 
We follow the journey of the Beatles through the eyes of a Chicago writer who has taken it upon himself to thoroughly research the Beatles and he's the one conducting all the interviews.  It begins with John's childhood and how he is turned into a zombie as a baby.   The charisma and sheer magnetism of John is the dominant force in the book, he is the leader of the band.  He makes the major decisions that will affect the Beatles forever.  Ruthless, honest, full of bravado, he kills, he dismembers, reanimates and kills again.  Never one for regrets, when asked why he created riots and killed so many fans and innocents, the most you'll get out of him that's even close to an apology is "It's my zombie nature."

As soon as John meets Paul, he recognizes talent and it's a done deal.  He must kill him, reanimate him as a zombie and together - forever - they will be a band and write songs together and take over the world - the toppermost of the poppermost (whatever that means.)  Paul is not a happy zombie at first, but he gets used to it soon enough.  Fingers fall off haphazardly (not easy if you're a guitarist) as well as other body parts that are easily sewn back on.  Soon George joins the band.  Paul turns George into a zombie (John wouldn't do it since he felt George was too young) and the band gels.  Now to find that elusive drummer...  Before then, we follow the lads in their early days to Hamburg and onto the Cavern Club in London.  Finally Ringo joins the group and we have - the zombie Beatles!   We follow them through the making of A Hard Days Night and Help!  John's weight gain, their introduction to Bob Dylan and marijuana, the London scene, their intro to the psychedelic drugs like the dreaded lycergic (Brian Epstein's own LSD concoction) and it's many side effects.  We get the inside scoop and inspiration of some of their song writing - the macabre background on "Dear Prudence" in particular.
 
I'm leaving a ton out - mainly what being a zombie Beatle is all about - the stench, the gray color of their skin, the postules and open sores, the fact their semen is in powder form - yet they can create sex slaves all they want.  Did they?  Who knows, no one is admitting to anything.  The entire book is built on a series of interviews: the Beatles themselves, Beatles experts, fans, colleagues, rival bands - you name it.  Anyone that came into contact with them - and it was all so hilarious!  My hats off to Goldsher for pulling this off.  The crazy plotlines, Mick Jagger as a zombie killer, Ringo as a seventh ninja lord, Rod Argent, founder of the Zombies who resents the fact that the Beatles came along as a zombie band stealing his band's thunder - there are so many ridiculous and funny sequences in this book, I can't even begin to itemize them.   We follow the Beatles origins all the way up to their break up - Yoko's role in it is priceless.  No other mentions of  wives or girlfriends, natch. I marveled at how clever this all was, only a real Beatles lover will get into this, for the more you know about their true lives, the more you'll nod and laugh and laugh again. 
 
If you happen to be into the Beatles and know their history - or even care about their history - check this audio book out.  I stress, listen to it rather than read it for the voice and accent of Simon Vance is superb.  He must have had a ball recording it!   The only thing missing is the actual music, but since I know all their songs by heart anyway, it wasn't too much of a stretch to imagine the music.  Throughout the book there is plenty of gore and killing, yet I took it all in with the spirit of a parody.  After the first couple of battles and reanimations you get over the fact these Beatles are killers, thus taking it all in stride - they're zombies afterall.  The language is often crude and full of swear words galore, but the Beatles were no saints, so to me it sounds authentic.
 
Do yourself a favor and get this, listen to it and enjoy - it was brilliant and a real scream - no pun intended!

Yeah, yeah, yeah!

4.5/5

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Knight of Pleasure by Margaret Mallory

Book Description:
THE GREATEST PASSION

Lady Isobel Hume is an expert swordswoman who knows how to choose her battles. When the king asks her to wed a French nobleman to form a political alliance, she agrees. But that's before the devilishly charming Sir Stephen Carleton captures her heart-and tempts her to betray her betrothed, her king, and her country.

IS WORTH THE GREATEST PERIL

Sir Stephen Carleton enjoys his many female admirers-until he dedicates himself to winning the lovely Isobel. So when a threat against the king leads Isobel into mortal danger, Stephen has a chance to prove that he is more than a knight of pleasure...and that love can conquer all.

I'm really falling behind in my reviews, so this is short and to the point.

I really loved Mallory's last book, Knight of Desire, and it took me a while to get around to reading this one.  Pleasure didn't have the same amount of heightened drama and poignancy as her first effort, though I did appreciate the research that went into writing this medieval romance.  The writing itself was great, it was seamless and flowed well, but the actual plotline was frustrating to me between the hero and heroine.  They meet, there's an attraction, they give into it, but then she won't trust him.  It's almost a reversal of her first book in which the hero wouldn't trust the heroine.  Isobel, the heroine, was kind of a medieval tomboy, playing swords as a young teen who then gets married off to an elderly lecher.  She can't forgive her father for doing this to her, having been the apple of his eye. The theme of women and their utter helplessness while at the mercy of men in the medieval ages is strong throughout the story, as it was in her first book.  Despite Isobel's talent with a sword, she was still a woman that had no say in her future. 

Some years go by,  Isobel is a young widow, eager to inherit her dead husband's estate, having paid her dues over the years.  Only now she finds out that she's going to be married off again to someone not of her choosing.   She seeks help from the King (of England) who decides to marry her off to a French nobleman to try and make peace in that part of France by marrying a Frenchman to an English noblewoman.  Isobel isn't crazy about the idea, but what can she do?  While waiting for her betrothed to show up, she meets - and likes - Stephen Carleton who is a handsome young knight in the king's service.  We've met Stephen before in Knight of Desire.  He is the younger half brother of William, the hero from the last book.  Stephen is now grown and quite the ladies' man.   He has an eye for Isobel at once and the two of them develop "a thing" for each other - yet, she is betrothed to another - and Stephen's not a marrying kind of man.

This thing leads to another, and they can't deny their mutual attraction for each other which they can't stop.    They keep bumping into each other - alone - in the oddest places.  They have some clandestine up close and personal moments, yet Stephen resists bedding her, knowing it is unworthy of Isobel without marriage.  Yet, ironically, she wants to bed him before she marries her French nobleman, which he does and then he becomes the noble knight and asks her to marry him instead.   She won't, for she thinks he is unable to be faithful to her (knowing what a ladies man he is) and she doesn't want him to marry her strictly out of honor.  She hurts him by rejecting his offer - and coincidentally her French bridegroom shows up around the same time.  Due to some really lousy timing, Isobel must leave with her fiance right away to Rouen, leaving Stephen out in the rain and cold - literally.  He is crushed and goes to drown his sorrows.

More drama ensues as we find out that Isobel's fiance is up to no good and she is at his mercy when she arrives at his home in Rouen.  She's more like a prisoner than a soon to be bride and our suspicions about the intentions of her Frenchman are justified.  Luckily, Stephen ultimately follows her in the guise of diplomacy (it turns out he's really a spy for the king and he hasn't given up completely on her) and there's the usual danger and rescue at the end which is exciting and everything works out for Isobel and Stephen.   As much as the plot was well thought out and all made sense, I didn't find it compelling, although it wasn't boring either, it was just kind of ... nice.  I saw the pitfalls before they came and expected the eventual outcome.  Stephen was okay, but didn't have the charisma to hold my interest.  His rakish charms and good looks were worthy of a romantic hero, but I couldn't shake the idea that he was William's younger brother, and to me, William was the better man and Stephen was a bad boy. I just wasn't in the mood to read about a bad boy medieval rake who changes his ways over a tomboyish widow who turns him down when he asks her to marry him.  It just sounds like he was hung up on something he couldn't have and she should have trusted him more and given him the benefit of the doubt - easier said than done.

There were some very good scenes in the book, yet, ironically, they were not scenes between Isobel and Stephen.  My favorite moment was when Isobel and Stephen's older brother William are ambushed together and she must protect him from further violence.  William is hurt and Isobel almost single handedly saves him.  I found this part gripping and I suspect it's because I liked William so much in the last book, I was anxious for him, I still love his character.  I was glad to see his wife Catherine made a few appearances in this book as well, and she was able to talk some sense into Isobel about Stephen in the end.

All in all, it was a pretty good medieval but I had trouble with the actual love story between the hero and heroine.  I wasn't overly sympathetic with either one.  Isobel should have agreed to marry Stephen early on, taking a leap of faith, particularly when she had the King's blessing to do so and Stephen should have shown some more good sense in flirting with her in the first place.   But then we wouldn't have had the angst and worry and hand wringing that goes on in most romances.  I think I'm getting a little jaded of these type of plotlines and need a break for a while.

3.5/5

Disclaimer:  This book was sent to me by the publisher after winning it in a giveaway..

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Shanghai Girls by Lisa See (audio)

Book Description:

May and Pearl, two sisters living in Shanghai in the mid-1930s, are beautiful, sophisticated, and well-educated, but their family is on the verge of bankruptcy. Hoping to improve their social standing, May and Pearl's parents arrange for their daughters to marry "Gold Mountain men" who have come from Los Angeles to find brides.

But when the sisters leave China and arrive at Angel's Island (the Ellis Island of the West)--where they are detained, interrogated, and humiliated for months--they feel the harsh reality of leaving home. And when May discovers she's pregnant the situation becomes even more desperate. The sisters make a pact that no one can ever know.
 A novel about two sisters, two cultures, and the struggle to find a new life in America while bound to the old, Shanghai Girls is a fresh, fascinating adventure from beloved and bestselling author Lisa See.
 
I wasn't bowled over by this novel, but I did like it.  It's my first novel by Lisa See, and it wasn't until only after I finished Shanghai Girls that I heard it had mixed reviews and her previous novels were better.   Bearing that in mind, I felt that much of this book was flat, it didn't help that Janet Song's narration sounded that way as well.   Not much emotion at all.  Many of the characters were superficially developed, in my opinion.  Enough to know why they did certain things, but nothing more than skin deep.  The novel begins in Shanghai, China and follows the course of two sisters who flee China at the onset of WWII and immigrate to Los Angeles, making a life for themselves there with their arranged marriages.  It spans the period from the late 1930's to the late 1950's.  The book wasn't bad, but I had trouble with the two heroines, neither one of which I liked very much.  One came across as selfish and spoiled and the other just seemed stuck and didn't have the gumption to get herself "unstuck."  I was frustrated with her because of it.  I kept wanting to slap her and tell her to be smart and use her head!  Instead she felt sorry for herself and took what was given to her.  She just went along with everything.  Maybe that's just how things were for women back then, especially Chinese women.  In any case, I found much of the book plodding and frustrating - what else is going to happen to this family and how much more can they take?  It was depressing in many ways.

The story is about two sisters, May and Pearl.  May is the "pretty" one and Pearl is attractive but always feels she is overshadowed by her younger sister.  She always feels second best in her parent's eyes.  May gets to do whatever she wants whereas Pearl is the smart one, the one who went to college, the responsible one, the dutiful daughter.  Although Pearl feels resentful towards May, she is still devoted to her little sister and throughout the book you see how Pearl takes care of May, but May also looks out for Pearl, though since the story is all from Pearl's POV, we don't catch on to this until the final showdown between the two sisters at the end of book.

May and Pearl are "beautiful girls" in 1937 Shanghai.  They are models who pose for paintings that are then reproduced for advertisements and calenders throughout China before WWII and the coming of Communism and Mao.  Shanghai is a glamorous international city.  May and Pearl are living the high life until their world comes to a screetching halt when they find out their father has arranged marriages for them with "Gold Mountain Men" and they are to go and live in Los Angeles with them.  Both girls reject the idea, but it turns out their father has lost all his money from gambling debts and this is the bargain he has made - otherwise he will be killed.  Naturally, the girls are devastated and don't understand the full extent of the consequences.  They go through with the marriages, and Pearl and her new husband, Sam, consummate theirs on their wedding night, though May does not because her husband, Vern (Sam's younger brother) is young and "not right."  On the surface, obeying their parents, May and Pearl have no intention of going to California with their new husbands, who have gone on ahead to Hong Kong to await their brides before the final voyage to California.  May and Pearl ditch their husbands at the same time the Japanese attack Shanghai and all hell breaks loose!

From here the plotline changes to one of desperation.  We see how devastating the fall of Shanghai is, and Pearl and May must escape with their mother.  It is assumed their father has perished, never to return.  The three women make it out of Shanghai only to be trapped in a little shack in the countryside, where their mother and Pearl sacrifice themselves to Japanese soldiers in order to protect May who is hiding in the next room.  This was the first instance when Pearl aggravated the hell out of me.  Her mother was trying to save them both from being raped, but Pearl felt she must join her mother!  Come on!  Their mother dies and Pearl nearly perishes as well, but May gets Pearl to safety and eventually they board a ship to California.  With nowhere else to go, no money and the Japanese at hand, this is their only recourse - they must find their husbands in Los Angeles.  But, still they think they can eventually get away from their husband, they just need them to be able to get into the United States.

They arrive in San Francisco and wait on Angel's Island for months and months.  Angel's Island is the stopping point for all immigrants to go through.  It's not easy to just be accepted into the United States.  They must pass all sorts of questions and examinations and during this time, May informs Pearl she is pregnant from someone she knew in Shanghai.  I knew instantly who it was, but Pearl is clueless and the two sisters make a pact that Pearl will pretend she is pregnant and pass the new baby off as hers and Sam's, conceived on the one night they slept together on their wedding night.  The baby is born a girl.  They name her Joy and eventually they get off Angel's Island, live with their husbands in LA and life is not what it was promised to be like.  They all live together in this tiny apartment in Chinatown with Sam and Vern's horrible father and Pearl becomes a drudge of a Chinese housewife learning how to keep house from her drudge mother-in-law.  Learning to cook and clean and work in the various family businesses, Pearl resents the fact that May gets to be off and about, eventually working in Hollywood as an extra.  May's life seems glamorous and interesting, yet Pearl's is nothing but work.  It's as if May is not even married, for Vern never quite grows up, he is somehow retarded.  May seems free as a bird to Pearl and the resentment grows. 

The rest of the book tracks their life in Los Angeles, the racism they face as Chinese in the United States and their goal to try and live the American Dream. Eventually Pearl and Sam grow to love one another, but there is always the risk of discovery that Sam is a "Paper Son" immigrant - which is illegal.  If he is found out, they can be deported, this always hangs over their heads.  With the end of the war and the red scare of Communism and China rampant in the United States in the 1950's, Pearl and Sam must face many obstacles, some that become too great to withstand.  During this period, May and Pearl remain close, sisters until the end, but their relationship is now strained.   Joy is the focal point to them all as she grows up and the climax of the book involves Joy and the secrets that have surrounded her since her birth. 

I'm glossing over tons of events, and I'm trying to avoid spoilers, but the long and short of it is, this is a book that focuses primarily on the struggle of living in the US during this time as a Chinese immigrant and the racism they had to face every day that prevented them from achieving their goals.  It's amazing that anyone who was Chinese was able to get ahead back then!  Yet, many did, many persevered and survived.  Yet with Pearl's story, we see how she was strong, but could not deal with a lot that life threw her way.  She tried her best, but much of her was always still in Shanghai and the Chinese way.  I'm not saying she should have disregarded her memories and customs but it held her back from getting ahead and on with her life.
 
For much of the book, I didn't like May.  But by the very end, I realized I'd been wrong, as Pearl had been for so long too.  May was the realist in the family once they are in the US.  Embracing her new culture, getting ahead, getting work, making the most of her life.  I had a hard time with Pearl because whereas she was considerd the smart one, she was often stupid in the US, it's as if she was a fish out of water and was in shock.   May made something for herself, but Pearl and Sam ignored the writing on the wall when things were getting dicey with the US government, asking all sort of questions.  They kept to their Chinese ways, refusing to open bank accounts, Sam didn't learn English and Pearl was almost afraid to venture out of Chinatown at first.  So many mistakes were made by them that kept coming back to haunt them.  These small mistakes and errors utimately lead to a dramatic ending in which Pearl must examine her life and May helps open her eyes. 

Overall, the book wasn't bad, but I couldn't wait to finish it and get it over with.  The ending is so up in the air with a cliffhanger, I said to myself, "This is it?  This is how it ends?!" I was terribly disappointed with it.  I guess we're supposed to assume Pearl finally pulls herself together and gets some self-confidence and May stays home in LA and takes care of Vern?   I found the settings and theme of racism and discrimination of the Chinese interesting and enlightening and enjoyed that aspect of the book, but the story itself between these two sisters was a bit cliché - the pretty one, the not so pretty one, the big lie May reveals at the end - well, I saw it coming way, way back so it was no great revelation to me.    If this is a period of history you're interested in, I recommend it, from an historical fiction aspect, it's good. The research is well done, but I didn't get an overall feeling of being there as I have with other books.  I preferred the parts that were still in China and will definitely read See's previous books that take place there.

 I feel like this could have been better, but can't quite put my finger on why, but my gut tells me it needed more depth in the two sisters and not such a one sided perspective from Pearl. 

3.5/5

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Delicious by Sherry Thomas

Book Description:

Famous in Paris, infamous in London, Verity Durant is as well-known for her mouthwatering cuisine as for her scandalous love life. But that's the least of the surprises awaiting her new employer when he arrives at the estate of Fairleigh Park following the unexpected death of his brother.

Lawyer Stuart Somerset worked himself up from the slums of Manchester to become one of the rising political stars of England's Parliament. To him, Verity Durant is just a name and food is just food until her first dish touches his lips. Only one other time has he felt such pure arousal—a dangerous night of passion with a stranger, a young woman who disappeared at dawn. Ten years is a long time to wait for the main course, but when Verity Durant arrives at his table, there's only one thing that will satisfy Stuart's appetite for more. But is his hunger for lust, revenge—or that rarest of delicacies, love? For Verity's past has a secret that could devour them both even as they reach for the most delicious fruit of all...


SPOILERS AHEAD!

Another fantastic romance,  I had to get her next one right away!  I found Delicious a bit complicated to get into at first, I'm realizing that Thomas' novels go back and forth in time.  Usually, the hero and heroine have met previously, years go by and we switch back and forth to the "before" and the "now" time periods.  This is fine with me, I love these types of story lines, but it's confusing when you're still waiting for the story to "gel" in your mind.  The story is intricate in of itself and it took me a while to understand all the ins and out of what was going on, but once I did I couldn't put this down - it was so good!

Verity is a cook at a grand estate, Fairleigh Park.  The owner of the estate, a single, middle aged man has just dropped dead.   We soon learn that Verity had a torrid affair with him ten years earlier yet still remained as his cook afterwards, though at the time she was notorious, for he almost married her.  Huh?  An aristocrat marry his own cook?  Scandalous!  She must be pretty good at what she does!   Verity, now in her early thirties or so, awaits the new owner of Fairleigh Park, the half brother of the deceased, Stuart Somerset.  Stuart Somerset, recently engaged, is an up and coming MP and hopes to be Prime Minister some day.  He's also a bastard son who has overcome his humble beginnings and made the most of his life.  He's looking forward to marrying, settling down with a respectable woman and furthering his career.

Verity outdoes herself with his first meal at Fairleigh Park.  Unfortunately, he is not that interested in food and barely eats anything, but what he does eat is fabulous, a sensual feast of the senses - unforgettably delicious!  Verity is one of the best cooks in England and she has a reason for why she wants to impress Somerset, but we, as the reader, are still unsure what her motive is.  She plans on seducing Somerset with food at first and then herself - why? 

Stuart learns soon enough about his notorious cook, but they've never met face to face.  One day, they do meet under the strangest, most erotic circumstances.  It's really quite amazing, and I won't spoil it, but it's one of my favorite parts, and one of my favorite lines, here's a clue with one of his frantic thoughts:

Why, oh why had he never installed a chandelier directly over the tub?

I laughed out loud, he is so flummoxed by her!  Afterwards he cannot forget her, though he has yet to see her face.  This is key.  They ultimately begin a mysterious and erotic fling, though he keeps telling himself he must stop since he's engaged to be married and he is the upright Stuart Somerset, MP - a dignified gentleman who can't afford any scandals in his life.  Yet the pull of Verity - and her food - turns his staid and predictable world upside down!

Ah, but soon the reader finds out that Stuart did once have a certain someone in his life, he's not the invincible man he liked everyone to think he is.   As it turns out, Verity and Stuart had met years before and had one night of passion.  He didn't know her name and thinks of her only as "Cinderella."  He proposed marriage to Verity that night, but she turned him down, knowing there was no possible way she could accept, she was his brother's cook and their affair had just ended!  It's very complicated, but this is why Verity can't show Stuart her face for fear he'll recognize her - or not recognize her!  She has loved him ever since, as has he, but he never had any way to find her or find out who she was.

We also learn that Verity is not really who she seems to be.  Who is her family, and why can't she return to them?   Can her past catch up with her - and will she reveal who she really is eventually?

I loved Verity and Stuart, they had such charisma together, I was caught up in their story and couldn't wait to find out how it all turned out.  Both characters are well drawn, fully developed, not easy to do, for the plot was tough to manoeuvre around, but Thomas manages it perfectly all the way to the very end - amazing!  Another favorite scene of mine is emotional and poignant, when Stuart finally faces Verity once he knows the truth of who she is that she could have come to him for ten long years and never did.  He is torn, angry and heartbroken, but inside glad to have found her and know she is alive,

"Ten years I squandered on you, ten years of faithful devotion. I spent money I swore I'd never touch on three sets of detectives, looking for you. I could have married, I could have had children. I needed not to have worshipped your sham idol, but I did, because you never had the decency to let me go. You let me cling to false memories and false hopes."

I nearly cried at this point. I loved it how he was able to face her and tell her how he felt, as awful as it was for both of them! Such emotion, it broke my heart!

The thing I love about Thomas' plotlines is that they are so involved, deep and complex.  This is not your usual hero meets heroine, they fall in love, have sex and then some calamity happens and he must rescue her to prove his love for her and they live happily ever after.  Thomas' heroines have made mistakes, they've usually wished things had gone differently, but they've picked up the pieces and gone on, they're strong, independent women.  The heroes are real men, flawed and full of emotion and normal every day fears, hopes and dreams (they also happen to be handsome and rich).  They are looking for their one true love, a woman they can trust,  and usually, they've been burned too - either by the woman they love, or someone else.  We follow the transformation of both the hero and heroine and the journey to find that elusive thing called love.  It's magic and an amazing tale to get there. 

Delicious follows this trail.  It's sensuous, erotic, poignant and hard to put down, the whole food sensuality thing was fantastic and added an entirely new dimension to the novel!  I don't know if it's intentional or not, but there is one scene in the book that is very reminiscent of Pride and Prejudice and Lady Catherine de Bourgh.  Verity thinks at one point if she'll ever have her Mr. Darcy and  by the end, in an astounding speech that left me with tears in my eyes, Stuart does become her Darcy and announces to her aunt that he will love Verity forever and nothing will stand in his way to keep her.  Sigh, it was wonderful!   There are so many wonderful moments in this book, but I think the best are saved for the ending.

I'm leaving a lot out of this review, but take my word for it, Sherry Thomas' books are special.  Her side characters are great too.  Will Marsden, Somerset's secretary was great as well as Lizzie, Somerset's erstwhile fiancee, who's not all she seems to be.  Their story was fantastic as well!  I loved it and I hope you will too!  Sherry Thomas is an auto buy for me from now on!

Also, congratulations to Sherry for winning best historical 2010 RITA last night in Orlando for Not Quite a Husband, which I just finished myself yesterday - I'm not surprised at all that you won!  I loved it as well!  Look for my review of it coming up!

5/5

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