Tag: contemporary

Mini-Reviews: Perilous, Retreat, Never

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Elizabeth Marie Pope, The Perilous Gard

Plain and practical Kate Sutton, a lady-in-waiting to Princess Elizabeth Tudor, is banished (after a misunderstanding) to a remote estate known as the Perilous Gard. There are strange rumors about the estate, and locals whisper that it’s a sacred place for the Fairy Folk, who grant pilgrims relief from their suffering but also kidnap the occasional human to be a slave in their realm. At first Kate scoffs at these superstitions, but as she spends more time with the “young lord,” Christopher Heron, and hears the tragic tale at the heart of the estate, she becomes a believer. But will she be able to stop the Fairy Folk from claiming Christopher as their own? I adore this Tam Lin retelling, which I’ve only read a couple times before, so I’m still surprised by just how good it is! It’s dark, meaty historical fantasy with a wonderful heroine, and while it’s marketed as children’s/YA, I think it’s an excellent book to read at any age. Highly recommended!

Nancy Butler, The Rake’s Retreat

When beautiful young actress Lovelace Wellesley witnesses a murder, she needs protection. Fortunately, she encounters local landowner Beecham Bryce, who invites her to stay at his estate until the investigation is concluded. Less fortunately, Bryce is a notorious rake and libertine, so Lovelace may not be safe in his house. Fortunately again, they meet Lady Jemima Vale, a “spinster” nearing 30 who is available to act as Lovelace’s chaperone. But when sparks start to fly between Bryce and Jemima, it’s the latter’s reputation that may be in danger. I read a positive review of this book somewhere and picked up a used copy, but I found it pretty disappointing. Yes, there’s some fun banter between Bryce and Jemima, but there’s also a lot of inconsistent character behavior and anachronistic dialogue. The murder mystery felt undercooked as well, so all in all, it’s not a book I’d recommend.

Mhairi McFarlane, If I Never Met You

Laurie and Dan have been together since their freshman year at university. Now they’re in their late 30s, living together and working at the same prestigious law firm. So when Dan dumps Laurie out of the blue, she’s shocked, angry, and grief-stricken – especially because she still sees him all the time at the office. Meanwhile, Jamie Carter is an ambitious new attorney at their firm whose reputation as a womanizer may harm his chances of making partner. He proposes a fake relationship to Laurie: He’ll appear to be “settling down,” which will help his career prospects, and Laurie will be able to demonstrate she’s moved on – and perhaps make Dan jealous. I’m a big fan of McFarlane’s but have read most of her books only once. Upon rereading, I devoured this one in a day and absolutely loved it! Though the novel doesn’t shy away from some heavy emotions and hard situations, watching Laurie and Jamie slowly discover each other is a delight. If you like your romance/chick lit with some emotional weight to it, I highly recommend this book and author!

Mini-Reviews: Love, None, Hedges

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Sheila Simonson, Love and Folly

Twins Jean and Maggie Conway are about to start their first London Season, but the death of King George III and the subsequent political unrest delay their come-out. However, the girls don’t need a Season to find romance: Jean is smitten with Owen Davies, a radical poet, while Maggie falls for Johnny Dyott, her cousin’s private secretary. But when Owen’s poetry runs afoul of the sedition laws, the whole Conway family must band together to protect both him and themselves. This book is a sequel to Lady Elizabeth’s Comet, which I loved, but it also features characters from The Bar Sinister, which I haven’t read. And while Simonson gives enough background that readers won’t be totally confused, I don’t think they will care much about these characters unless they’ve read the previous two books. Also, if you’re expecting a romance, you’ll be disappointed; the love story between Maggie and Johnny is brief and barely developed. This novel is well written and well researched, but for me it was disappointing, especially compared with Lady Elizabeth’s Comet.

Agatha Christie, And Then There Were None

Ten people of different ages, genders, and walks of life are summoned to an island off the coast of Devon. They’ve been invited under various pretexts, but the real reason becomes clear after dinner on their first night, when a recorded voice accuses them all of murder. Then the guests start dying one by one, in ways that echo a sinister nursery rhyme displayed in each of their bedrooms. Who is behind these deaths, and will anyone make it off the island alive? This is one of Christie’s most famous mysteries, and also in my opinion one of her creepiest! The setup—a mysterious murderer on the rampage in an isolated location—is straight out of a horror novel, and the tension builds wonderfully as the guests each face their inevitable fate. To be honest, it’s so dark that it isn’t one of my favorites by Christie, but it’s masterfully done and I admire the way she pulled it off!

Side note: Newer versions of this book have understandably used this title rather than the far more problematic Ten Little Indians (and, before that, Ten Little N—–s). I don’t fault the publisher for that, but I do wish this edition had acknowledged that changes were made, not only to the title but to the rhyme itself and several lines of dialogue. If I’m reading something different from the originally published version, I want to know about it!

Lish McBride, Rough around the Hedges

Will and Vanessa have been best friends for years, and he’s been in love with her the entire time. Van has only ever seen him as a friend—until their mutual friend group unintentionally spills the beans. Now she’s seeing him in a whole new light, but because of her cold, manipulative father and horrible upbringing, she’s scared to take a chance on love. Meanwhile, Van wants to enroll in courses to become a hedge witch, but her father, an esteemed professor, may throw a wrench in her plans. This book is a sequel to A Little Too Familiar, which I remember liking, but this one didn’t work as well for me. The world is so black and white—the good characters are all perfectly understanding and emotionally fluent, while the bad characters are irredeemably awful. Will in particular is flawless (unless you count the fact that he’s been lying to his supposed best friend for their entire relationship) and just doesn’t feel believable as a person to me. Overall, a very “meh” read.

Mini-Reviews: Afterlife, Thirteen, Crime

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Kirsty Greenwood, The Love of My Afterlife

When twentysomething Delphie chokes on a microwavable hamburger and dies, she finds herself in a strange version of the afterlife. She’s greeted by Merritt, a quirky and enthusiastic “afterlife coach,” and also meets a handsome man named Jonah who isn’t dead, just unconscious during a dental surgery. Merritt, a lover of romance novels, decides to give Delphie a second chance: She claims that Delphie and Jonah are soulmates, and if she can find him on Earth and get him to kiss her within 10 days, she’ll get her life back. Finding Jonah is more difficult than Delphie expected, but as she looks for him, she also starts to see her life and the people around her in a new light. I stayed up way too late to read this book in a single sitting, and I’d definitely recommend it to romantic comedy fans! But it’s a surprisingly emotional book, too; Delphie’s initial loneliness is heart-wrenching, and it’s satisfying to see her slowly open up to the people in her life. Overall, I liked this one a lot and will look out for more by Greenwood.

J. Jefferson Farjeon, Thirteen Guests

Lord Aveling has invited 12 guests to his country house for a hunting party. They’re a strange assortment that includes a politician, an actress, a painter, a journalist, and a rich tradesman’s family. A last-minute 13th guest observes various tensions among the group—tensions that come to a head with vandalism, a dead dog, and finally murder. I liked a lot of things about this book: The plot is twisty without being overly complicated, and several of the characters are three-dimensional and interesting. However, it’s hard to know whom to care about or root for because there’s no clear protagonist. At first it seems like the 13th guest, John Foss, and his love interest are the main characters, but they’re largely abandoned in the middle for the police inspector and a few sleuths among the guests. I found the shifts in focus distracting and frustrating, and I also didn’t love the ultimate solution of the mystery. Overall, a decent read, but I’m not eager to read more by Farjeon.

Ally Carter, The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year

Maggie Chase is a successful writer of cozy mysteries. Ethan Wyatt writes blockbuster thrillers for the same publisher. She’s hated him for years, viewing him as a golden boy who’s able to coast through life, while he continually calls her Marcie. But the two find themselves unlikely allies when they’re both invited to the estate of Eleanor Ashley, the world’s greatest living mystery writer, for Christmas. When Eleanor disappears from a locked room—and many of her guests have a motive for wanting her gone—Maggie and Ethan team up to solve the mystery, and perhaps to find love in the process. I enjoyed this book, but it didn’t give me the same sense of pure, unadulterated glee as The Blonde Identity. There was just a little too much going on between Eleanor’s disappearance, Maggie’s and Ethan’s individual pasts, and their budding romance. It’s definitely heavier than the fun Christmas caper I was expecting. I did like the book overall, but sadly not quite as much as I was hoping to.

Mini-Reviews: Bookshop, Notebooks, Vampire

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Madeline Martin, The Last Bookshop in London

Grace and her best friend Viv are excited to move to London from the countryside, both of them dreaming of working in a fashionable clothing shop. But the only job Grace can get is as an assistant at the disorganized and overcrowded Primrose Hill Books. At first she just wants to work there long enough to get a good reference, but gradually she comes to find fulfillment in her job, as well as a new love of literature. However, her joy in her work is tempered by the onset of World War II, in which she experiences the horrors of the Blitz firsthand. I have to say, much as I enjoy a book set during the Blitz, this one did nothing for me. The writing style felt awkward and unpolished, and while the author obviously did some research, it intruded on the narrative rather than being subtly incorporated. I wasn’t impressed with this one and won’t seek out more by this author.

John Curran, Agatha Christie’s Secret Notebooks: Fifty Years of Mysteries in the Making

This book is based on a collection of Agatha Christie’s notebooks, in which she jotted down the ideas and worked out the plots that would eventually become her published novels, stories, and plays. Curran, obviously a huge fan, compares Christie’s notes with her finished works and thereby paints a picture of her creative process. I think Christie aficionados would enjoy this book, but it’s definitely not for the casual fan as it assumes in-depth knowledge of her work (though Curran does provide spoiler warnings). Many of the notes aren’t particularly detailed or interesting, though they do shed a fun light on Christie’s somewhat haphazard process. The book also feels disorganized, with photos of the notebooks and little informational boxes interrupting the main narrative, sometimes for several pages. Basically, I’d only recommend this one to the true die-hard fans, but it did make me want to go back and reread some of my favorite Christie novels!

Jenna Levine, My Roommate Is a Vampire

Struggling artist Cassie is about to be evicted, so when she sees a “roommate wanted” ad on Craigslist for a great apartment with a suspiciously low rent, she’s desperate enough to check it out. Her would-be roommate, Frederick J. Fitzwilliam, seems strange and old-fashioned but harmless – that is, until she discovers the bags of human blood in the refrigerator. Yes, Frederick is a vampire, and he needs Cassie’s help to navigate the modern world. A romance soon develops between them, but people from Frederick’s past seek to keep them apart. I liked the premise of this book and found it a fun read, but I was unable to suspend my disbelief about Frederick’s situation. There are too many inconsistencies in what he knows about the modern world vs. what he doesn’t, and very little time is spent on what vampire life is like, whether Cassie will be “turned” and what that will mean for her, etc. Those hoping for a modern vampire story that makes sense will be disappointed, but if you’re just looking for a cute contemporary romance with paranormal trappings, you might like this one.

Mini-Reviews: Love, Byzantium, Ensemble

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Lindsey Kelk, Love Me Do

UK native Phoebe Chapman is excited to spend a couple weeks visiting her sister in Los Angeles. Sure, her sister has to leave pretty much immediately for an emergency work trip, but Phoebe is happy enough to stay at her luxurious house and explore the city, with the help of handsome neighbor Ren and bubbly personal trainer Bel. Phoebe soon learns that Bel has a crush on Ren but is painfully awkward around him, so she decides to help the couple get together. But a little well-meaning advice soon spirals out of control, with Phoebe writing love letters to Ren on Bel’s behalf – while falling for Ren herself. I’m a sucker for a Cyrano de Bergerac storyline, and I enjoyed this book even though Phoebe’s plan was obviously doomed from the start. Yes, Ren is a little too good to be true, and the conflicts are all resolved pretty quickly. But I liked Phoebe’s humorous voice and her enthusiastic descriptions of LA from an outside perspective. Overall, it’s a fun read if the premise interests you.

John Julius Norwich, A Short History of Byzantium

In the late ’80s and early ’90s, English popular historian John Julius Norwich wrote a three-volume history of the Byzantine Empire. This book condenses that longer work into a single tome of 500-ish pages, giving a broad-strokes overview of the history of Byzantium from the reign of Constantine the Great in the fourth century to the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453. It’s a lot of ground to cover, so Norwich mostly sticks to the emperors and other powerful figures (popes, patriarchs, rival monarchs, etc.) who show up in the historical record. As someone who’s only mildly interested in the Byzantine Empire, I don’t think I’m the target audience for this book, which would probably be more enjoyable to someone with more background knowledge. But Norwich is an entertaining writer, and I think I will retain at least some of what I read, so I’d recommend it to people who are enthusiastic about the period.

Aja Gabel, The Ensemble

This novel closely follows four characters, members of a professional string quartet whose careers and lives are intertwined in various complicated ways. There’s first violinist Jana, the ambitious and emotionally ruthless leader of the group; Brit, the calm and kind second violinist; Henry, the viola prodigy to whom everything seems to come easily; and Daniel, the cellist with a monumental chip on his shoulder. As time passes, each character comes to terms with what he or she really wants from the quartet and from life in general. Literary fiction doesn’t always appeal to me; I find “literary” is often synonymous with “depressing.” But in this case, I found enough to like about these (sometimes quite unlikable) characters, and enough outcomes to root for, that I liked the book more than I expected to. I also thought the descriptions of music and life as a musician rang true. Overall, I think I’d like to read this book again someday, so I’m keeping it on my shelves for now.

Mini-Reviews: Like, Gentleman, Aristocrat

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Hannah Orenstein, Love at First Like

Jewelry store owner Eliza is dismayed when she sees on social media that her ex-boyfriend has just gotten engaged. To console herself, she tries on the store’s most extravagant ring and takes a photo – then accidentally posts it to Instagram. When she wakes up the next morning, she discovers thousands of new social media followers, as well as several big online orders from the store. Since her fake engagement is good for business, she decides to keep up the charade. But as her little white lie spirals out of control, she risks losing both her business and a chance at love. I thought this book sounded cute, but Eliza’s behavior made me so mad! Basically, she starts dating a guy in the hope that he’ll actually become her fiancé (and thus make the lie true)…but she 100% leads him on and manipulates him into falling in love with her, not telling him the truth until after he proposes. I thought it was irredeemably awful of her, and her subsequent happy ending felt undeserved. Not recommended.

Mimi Matthews, Gentleman Jim

Ten years ago, stableboy Nicholas Seaton and young lady Margaret Honeywell fell in love, but the cruel interference of a rival suitor forced Nicholas to run away, and Maggie hasn’t heard from him since. Now, visiting a friend in London, she encounters Lord St. Clare, an enigmatic viscount who has recently come to England after years spent abroad. Maggie is convinced that St. Clare is Nicholas, but he staunchly denies it, while at the same time determinedly pursuing a relationship with her. Who is St. Clare, and what’s his purpose in coming to London? I haven’t hit a bad Matthews book yet, and this one is just as well written and entertaining as her others. It’s explicitly inspired by The Count of Monte Cristo, so if you know that story, the plot is pretty predictable. I also found the central romance a bit farfetched, given that Maggie and Nicholas were so young when they initially fell in love. But then, second-chance romance really just isn’t my trope. I did like the book and plan to continue with the series, though this installment can 100% stand alone.

Mignon G. Eberhart, Murder by an Aristocrat

Nurse Sarah Keate is called to the home of the wealthy and prominent Thatcher family when one of its members, Bayard, is shot in the arm. The family claims the shot was an accident that occurred while Bayard was cleaning his gun, but Bayard tells Nurse Keate that someone in the household tried to kill him. His claim seems to be proved true when he’s later found dead in the library. The family then coerces Nurse Keate into staying at the house, where more sinister things occur, including another death. This was my first book by Mignon G. Eberhart, and I quite liked it! The sensible Nurse Keate is a great narrator, and I appreciated the way the mystery unfolded; new evidence came to light at a good pace and so forth. The suspense aspects of the plot (lots of “had I but known” moments) aren’t really my thing, but they’re not too intrusive here. I’ll certainly read more by Eberhart, especially if I can get my hands on some other Nurse Keate books.

Mini-Reviews: Dance, Star, Strange

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Rainbow Rowell, Slow Dance

In high school, Shiloh and Cary were inseparable—best friends who knew they were destined to be in each other’s lives forever. But 14 years later, they’ve completely lost touch. Shiloh has been married and divorced, and now she and her two young children live in her childhood home with her mother. Meanwhile, Cary joined the Navy and hardly ever comes home. But when they both attend their good friend Mikey’s wedding, they get a chance to figure out what went wrong between them and possibly build a future together. I’ve long been a Rainbow Rowell fan and was delighted to discover she’d come out with another adult romance, so I snapped up the hardcover immediately. Overall I liked it a lot; she’s such a good writer, and she does a great job of depicting complex emotions in a relatable, realistic way. There’s not much of a plot, nor is there as much humor and joy as in my favorite of her books (Attachments), but I’d still highly recommend this one to fans of contemporary romance.

Elizabeth C. Bunce, StarCrossed

Digger is a street thief in a country that’s being unjustly oppressed by both the king and his fanatical Inquisition/secret police. She has no interest in politics – she’s just trying to stay alive and not get caught – but after a job gone wrong, she falls in with a group of young nobles and becomes a lady-in-waiting to one of them. At her employer’s mountain castle, Digger is blackmailed into spying on the castle’s owners and their guests, who are concealing many secrets that could have ramifications throughout the kingdom. I enjoyed this YA fantasy novel, which combines a streetwise, fish-out-of-water heroine with some solid political intrigue. It’s well written, with several twists and turns of the plot to keep things interesting. While the book has a reasonably solid ending, there’s plenty of room for a sequel, which I’m excited to read next month!

Tara Isabella Burton, Strange Rites: New Religions for a Godless World

The decline in traditional religiosity in America over the past several decades is well known, but along with this decline has come a surge in Americans who describe themselves as “spiritual but not religious” or as religiously unaffiliated. Burton’s thesis is that many contemporary Americans do still acknowledge a spiritual component to their lives; they just look for it in places other than traditional religious institutions. She discusses several ways in which contemporary Americans pursue spiritual fulfillment, including fandom, wellness culture, witchcraft, and political activism. I find Burton’s central thesis compelling and her examples incredibly entertaining – once you start to look for the oddly spiritual language in modern marketing, you can’t unsee it! The book does feel a bit dated now; it was published in 2020, and much of the data is from the mid-2010s. Still, I’d recommend the book to those interested in the subject, and I plan to read Burton’s next book, Self Made, at some point.

Mini-Reviews: Rom-Commers, Art, Undermining

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Katherine Center, The Rom-Commers

Aspiring screenwriter Emma has put her career on hold to care for her disabled father and younger sister. So when she gets the opportunity of a lifetime to work with her screenwriting idol, Charlie Yates, she can’t believe her good luck – that is, until she reads his script. Charlie has won fame and fortune for his gritty, dramatic screenplays, but this latest project is a rom-com, and it’s terrible. Charlie is terrible too, at first, but as he and Emma work on rewriting the script, they also grow closer to one another. This book requires a lot of suspension of disbelief – Charlie seems implausibly famous, he’s an abysmal romance writer but somehow genius in every other genre, and the reason for him writing the rom-com doesn’t really make sense. But the relationship between Emma and Charlie is charming, and I liked their back-and-forth, which is indeed reminiscent of classic rom-com banter. I also loved that, contrary to many characters in this genre, Emma is actually great at communicating her needs and feelings. So despite a few quibbles, I really liked this one and would recommend it if you’re interested in the premise.

Mimi Matthews, The Work of Art

Phyllida Satterthwaite isn’t a conventional beauty, but in her first London Season, her unique appearance attracts the attention of a duke known for his relentless pursuit of one-of-a-kind possessions. Now he’s determined to possess Philly as well, but she fears and dislikes him. In desperation she appeals to her new friend, Captain Arthur Heywood, for help. Arthur proposes a marriage of convenience, which will give her the protection of his name, but it’s not long before he and Philly develop real feelings for each other. But when Philly is the victim of some suspicious “accidents,” Arthur worries that the duke is out for revenge. I’m a fan of Matthews’s historical romances, and this one is no exception. The romance is sweet and develops naturally, and the steam is minimal (mostly fade-to-black). I also liked the resolution to the suspense plot, which nicely subverts reader expectations. I’m definitely planning to continue with the series this year!

Megan Bannen, The Undermining of Twyla and Frank

Twyla Banneker enjoys her job as a Tanrian Marshal, especially working with her longtime neighbor and friend, Frank Ellis. The job has been a little boring lately, but things pick up when one of their fellow marshals is found dead and covered in a thick, glittery mucus. Shockingly, the glitter seems to have originated from a dragon, though dragons are supposed to be extinct. Twyla and Frank investigate, with the help of a renowned dracologist who soon shows an interest in Twyla—which Frank doesn’t like one bit. I loved The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy and snapped up this sequel as soon as I could. Maybe my expectations were a little too high, because this book was a slight letdown for me. Don’t get me wrong; it’s still a good read, with charming characters and adorable dragons. But the love story, which is by far the biggest part of the plot, wasn’t compelling for me. We don’t get Frank’s point of view, and Twyla sees him as a platonic friend for most of the book, so the pacing feels slow. That said, I still liked this one overall and am definitely on board for book #3 when it comes out next year!

Mini-Reviews: Sonya, Benedettos, Magic

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Ben Macintyre, Agent Sonya: The Spy Next Door

Born to German Jewish parents in Berlin in 1906, Ursula Kuczynski grew up sympathetic to left-wing politics and joined the German Communist Party in her teens. After her marriage, she and her husband moved to Shanghai, where she was approached by a Soviet intelligence officer and recruited as a spy. She accepted the work eagerly, her ardent communist beliefs intensifying as the Nazis rose to power in Germany. Using the code name Sonya, Ursula engaged in espionage for the USSR for decades, her missions taking her all over the world and eventually leading her to the UK. I don’t generally gravitate toward nonfiction, but Ursula’s life is so fascinating that this biography reads like a novel. Macintyre weaves in plenty of history to give context to Ursula’s actions and also paints a vivid picture of her personal life, using her own writings and those of her family, friends, and associates as sources. This is definitely another winner from Macintyre!

Katie Cotugno, Meet the Benedettos

A few years ago, the five Benedetto sisters were living the high life in LA as stars of a successful reality TV show. Now, their fame and status are fading, and they’re even in danger of losing their house. Lilly, the sisters’ de facto leader, is determined to hold her family together but doesn’t quite know how. And things get even more complicated when movie star Charlie Bingley and his friend Will Darcy move into their neighborhood – especially when Charlie seems interested in Lilly’s sister June, and Lilly herself is simultaneously attracted to and repulsed by the snobbish Will. I couldn’t resist this Pride and Prejudice retelling and devoured it in a day. I like how this novel centers the relationships among all five Benedetto sisters; they’re very different people, but it’s obvious how much they love each other. I also loved the chemistry between Lilly and Will and especially loved getting inside Will’s head. Some things didn’t quite work for me – the ending was a bit anticlimactic – but overall I enjoyed this one, and it’s reminded me that I really want to read P&P again soon!

V.E. Schwab, A Darker Shade of Magic

This novel is set in a universe in which there are four different Londons: Grey London, in the ordinary world; Red London, in a prosperous world with abundant magic; White London, where magic is scarce and used as a weapon; and Black London, which devoured itself long ago. Kell lives in Red London but has a unique ability to travel between the worlds. Lila, a Grey Londoner, is a thief with ambitions to become a pirate. They meet when Lila picks Kell’s pocket, but the item she steals turns out to be an extremely powerful and dangerous artifact from Black London. Together, they must return it to its proper world before it falls into the wrong hands. I really love the creative world-building of this novel, and Kell and Lila are both compelling characters. Once they meet up, the book becomes a page-turner after a somewhat slow start. I first read this novel eight years ago and wondered whether it would hold up, but I still enjoyed it this time around and am excited to continue with the trilogy.

Mini-Reviews: Counted, Daemon, Elephant

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Noelle Adams, Counted

Jude has just learned that he has an inoperable brain tumor and has about three months left to live. He’s determined to achieve a few of his bucket-list goals before dying, and the most important one is to get married. So he decides to propose to Eve, a family friend who’s known him for years, though they’ve never been close. Eve has some misgivings but wants to help Jude, so she accepts. But they’re both caught by surprise as their marriage of convenience slowly turns into something real. I saw this book mentioned online as a gender-swapped retelling of The Blue Castle, so of course I had to try it! Really, it’s not very similar except for the premise – it’s much racier, for one thing! – but I still did enjoy this book. Both Jude and Eve are introverted, emotionally reserved people, so it’s nice to watch them slowly open up, and the development of their relationship feels realistic. It’s a quiet book with not much happening, and it might be a tough read for those who’ve been seriously ill or cared for someone who was. But despite the book not being quite what I expected, I’m glad I read it.

Carol Berg, The Daemon Prism

Two years after the events of The Soul Mirror, Dante is visited by a solider suffering from a magic-induced dream, in which a beautiful woman offers him a jewel that will give him his heart’s desire—but once obtained, the desire is then corrupted. When Dante removes the dream from the soldier’s mind, it enters Dante’s consciousness instead, tempting him with ever-greater magical knowledge. His quest to find the woman and discover the secrets of the jewel soon becomes part of a much bigger magical journey involving an ancient prophecy and the souls of the dead. This is a very satisfying conclusion to the Collegia Magica trilogy; after seeing Dante through the eyes of other characters in the previous books, it was fascinating to get his own perspective here. The plot itself is convoluted, and parts of the story drag a bit, but I loved Dante’s character development and the way things were resolved with the other main characters in the series. Overall, I’m glad I finally read these books, and fans of thick fantasy sagas should definitely check out Carol Berg.

Hannah Ledford, Elephant and Castle

Years ago, American student Nora spent a summer in London, where she fell in love with up-and-coming musician Hugh, though their relationship ended when she went back to the US. Now Nora’s job has brought her back to London, and when she encounters Hugh again, she finds herself wondering what might have been. Complicating matters is Hugh’s best friend, Julian, who liked Nora before and whose feelings come rushing back when he sees her again. But how can he pursue a relationship with her when she and Hugh might have unfinished business? This was a cute little contemporary romance that I read in a day. I like a hero who pines for the heroine, and the obstacles to Nora and Julian’s relationship felt legitimate – in fact, perhaps a little too legitimate given how easily they were ultimately brushed aside. The book ultimately felt light and superficial; I never really got emotionally invested in the story. Still, it’s a pleasant read with an enjoyable London setting, so it’s potentially worth a read if you like the premise.