My Week in Books – 24th December ’17

New arrivals

After last week’s notable absence of new acquisitions, normal service has been resumed….

Dear Mrs Bird by A. J. Pearce (eARC, NetGalley)

London, 1940. Emmeline Lake and her best friend Bunty are trying to stay cheerful despite the Luftwaffe making life thoroughly annoying for everyone. Emmy dreams of becoming a Lady War Correspondent and when she spots a job advertisement in the newspaper she seizes her chance – but after a rather unfortunate misunderstanding, she finds herself typing letters for the formidable Henrietta Bird, the renowned agony aunt of Woman’s Friend magazine.

Mrs Bird is very clear: letters containing any form of Unpleasantness must go straight into the bin. Emmy finds herself dismissing problems from lovelorn, grief-stricken and morally conflicted readers in favour of those who fear their ankles are unsightly or have trouble untangling lengths of wool. But soon the thought of desperate women going unanswered becomes too much to bear and Emmy decides the only thing for it is to secretly write back . . .

The Renaissance Club by Rachel Dacus (eARC, courtesy of Fiery Seas Publishing)

Would you give up everything, even the time in which you live, to be with your soul mate?

May Gold, a college adjunct teacher, often dreams about the subject of her master’s thesis – Gianlorenzo Bernini. In her fantasies, she’s in his arms, the wildly adored partner of the man who invented the Baroque. But in reality, May has just landed in Rome with her teaching colleagues and older boyfriend. She considers herself a precocious failure and yearns to unleash her passion and creative spirit. Over the course of the tour, she realizes she has to choose: stay in a safe but stagnant existence or take a risk. Will May’s adventure in time ruin her life or lead to a magical new one?

355: The Women of Washington’s Spy Ring by Kit Sergeant (ebook, review copy courtesy of the author)

Culper Ring members such as Robert Townsend and Hercules Mulligan are well known for the part they played in the Revolutionary War, but who was the mysterious 355 that could “outwit them all?”

British sympathizer Margaret (Meg) Moncrieffe expects to find the carefree America she remembers as a youth when she returns from her Irish boarding school. Instead she finds the new country at war, with her father on one side and her new love, Aaron Burr, on the other. When her misguided attempt to end the war results in dire consequences for the Continental Army, Meg switches allegiances in order to amend the damage she caused.

After her husband Jonathan is captured by the British and dies aboard one of the notorious prison ships, a pregnant Elizabeth Burgin realizes she is stronger than she once thought. When a prominent member of the Culper Ring enlists her help on a heist of the prison ships, Elizabeth readily accepts, putting herself and her family in jeopardy in order to save the lives of strangers.

Patriot Sally Townsend wants nothing more than freedom for America. When her family is forced to take in enemy soldiers, Sally seizes the opportunity to garner information from them and pass it on to her brother, Robert, knowing that one false move could result in the noose for both of them. Instead of finding herself in danger when British intelligence officer Major John André shows up at her family’s doorstep, Sally finds herself falling in love. But Major André is playing the same dangerous game as her and Robert, albeit for the other side.

Told from the viewpoints of these three women – including the one operating under the code name 355 – this is an absorbing tale of family, duty, love, and betrayal.

Burning Cold (Cara Walden Mystery #2) by Lisa Lieberman (ebook, review copy courtesy of the author)

Budapest: 1956. Newlywed Cara Walden’s brother Zoltán has disappeared in the middle of the Hungarian revolution, harbouring a deadly wartime secret. Will Cara or the Soviets find him first?

Cutting short her honeymoon in Paris to rescue a sibling she’s never met was not Cara’s idea, but her husband Jakub has a reckless streak, and she is too much in love to question his judgment. Together with her older brother Gray, they venture behind the Iron Curtain, seeking clues to Zoltán’s whereabouts among his circle of fellow dissidents, all victims of the recently overthrown Communist regime. One of them betrayed him, and Cara realizes that the investigation has put every person they’ve met at risk. Inadvertently, they’ve also unmasked a Russian spy, who is now tailing them in the hope that they will lead him to Zoltán.

The noir film of Graham Greene’s The Third Man inspires Lisa Lieberman’s historical thriller.

Hattie’s Home by Mary Gibson (ebook, review copy courtesy of Head of Zeus)

Hattie, a rising star in the ATS, finds herself relegated to the factory floor on her return from the war. Her work mates are unforgiving at Hattie’s attempt to raise herself up and she is soon ostracised. After journeying across the world to Australia to marry her beloved, Clara is betrayed and returns penniless, homeless and trying to raise a child in the face of prejudice. Lou, a war widow, has lost more than most in the war. Her daughter and parents are dead, killed in a bomb blast on an air raid shelter.

These women will forge a lifelong bond to overcome crippling grief, harsh prejudice and post-war deprivation to find hope in a better tomorrow for themselves and their children.

On What Cathy Read Next last week

Blog posts

Tuesday – I shared my Top Ten Books I Hope Santa Brings which was a lovely fantasy to indulge in as I’m sure I don’t deserve all the wonderful titles I selected.

Wednesday – WWW Wednesday is the opportunity to share what I’ve just finished reading, what I’m reading now and what I’ll be reading next. I also published a list of my favourite book covers from 2017 – there are some beauties in there.

Thursday –For Throwback Thursday I shared my review of Madam Tulip by David Ahern, a fun, humorous mystery starring a fortune-telling amateur detective.

Friday – I launched my Buchan of the Month 2018 Reading Challenge which involves reading a different John Buchan book each month. I’m hopeful that a few others will join me in this enterprise, even if only to read one or two of the titles on my list.

Saturday –I set out my Blogging & Reading Goals for 2018, including the reading challenges I’ve signed up for. Can’t resist a reading challenge! It’s been a wonderful thirteen months of blogging and I’ve learned so much from following other blogs. That has given me lots of ideas for things I’d like to incorporate into my blog next year.

Challenge updates

Goodreads 2017 Reading Challenge – 156 out of 156 books read, 1 more than last week
Classics Club Challenge – 5 out of 50 books reviewed, same as last week
NetGalley/Edelweiss Reading Challenge 2017 (Gold) – 45 ARCs reviewed out of 50, same as last week
From Page to Screen 2016/7– 7 book/film comparisons out of 12 completed, same as last week
From Page to Screen 2017/18 – 2 book/film comparisons out of 3 completed, same as last week