Books, Movies & TV!

I've been busy... I guess, or rather, actually I have just not posted any reviews in a while so I'm covering several things today.

First I want to talk about a couple of books. I recently finished The Language of Flowers (one of the books from my aunt) and I loved it! I am not a gardener but this book talks about all kinds of plants and their meanings. The story unravels in a good way and although there were some discrepancies in the story (head-scratching things that distracted me), overall I truly enjoyed this book and after it was over I kept thinking about it. That indicates a well-told story to me. I highly recommend this book. I wouldn't call it a light read, or a romance but it is well-written and worth it.

I also read the entire Lily Bard series by Charlaine Harris. I read recently that she will not be writing anymore in this series and I can see why. One thing about Ms. Harris' writing that I find amusing is that her characters go about their everyday business (like house cleaning) and Ms. Harris writes about it. I don't know if that's a southern thing or just something the author thinks about but I've noticed it in all her books. Sookie does a lot of house cleaning as well. Interesting. 
The Lily Bard series was captivating and I enjoyed the mysteries. Each book is pretty short and per Ms. Harris style, does not go exactly as you expect. A mystery I cannot solve in the first chapter is a good read for me. 

I am currently rereading a Georgette Heyer (The Grand Sophy). I absolutely adore Ms. Heyer's work and will be rereading a few of her books. 

Man of Steel--Full Cast

Over the weekend I watched two new movies. Man of Steel is the new Superman movie and I have to say I absolutely loved it. The story moved around in history and covered nearly everything the first three Christopher Reeve Superman movies did in only 143 minutes! Russell Crowe (not singing!) and Kevin Costner played Jor-El and Jonathan Kent (respectively) and both were magnificent. Diane Lane did a fine job as Martha Kent and surprisingly I thought Amy Adams' Lois Lane was perfect. She was brave as well as accident-prone as we expect from Superman's love interest. There was also a tiny bit with Lana Lang (Clark's high school sweetie) and a bit of Smallville. The Hercules/Jesus mythology was strong and Henry Cavill's Superman was an admirable and archetypal example (even though he's really a Brit). I liked the portrayal of Superman's humanity. I look forward to another one!

Brad Pitt looking yummy ... as usual.

I also saw World War Z with Brad Pitt. He looks delicious, as usual. Portraying a family man who worked for the U.N., he is basically forced to go back to work to help find "Patient Zero" in this newest Zombie flick. I love Zombies so I was excited to see this movie. I did not read the book and am unaware of the differences. I know that they changed the ending (originally this movie was supposed to be part of a trilogy) and the issue is basically resolved so I don't think there will be any sequels. (It wouldn't really make sense.) 

The Zombies in this movie move faster than any other Zombie I've seen. Other than that they look the same. Some of the other issues were that it only takes a bite to change into a Zombie (unlike The Walking Dead, where all you have to do is die). While not finding a cure, [SPOILER ALERT] Pitt's character does find a vaccine. This is an entirely new concept in my understanding of Zombie-verses. I am kind of interested in reading the book now, just kind of. 

I talk a lot about Buffy (the Vampire Slayer) but I have also been watching Angel. I am on Season 5 of Buffy now and Season 2 of Angel. I have to say that so far I enjoyed Season 1 of Angel more than 2. Buffy is still keeping me fascinated (the impromptu entrance of her sister is interesting). 

Wesley, (Charles) Gunn, Angel, Cordelia

Buffy and Dawn Summers

Angel is ticking me off, but I think we're supposed to have myriad emotions with this character because Vampires are inherently evil and he struggles against this natural tendency, which makes him very intriguing. 

Recently I found a BBC series called Copper and I watched the first episode. I love period pieces and this one takes place in New York City in 1864. Considering it's BBC I'm thinking it must be pretty authentic and I thoroughly enjoyed the first episode. I will be continuing to watch this. 

Matt Passmore/Jim Longworth

Season 3 of The Glades finally came out and I watched all of those in less than a week which explains why I'm behind on my school work. I now have six essays (750 words each) to finish up by Saturday. No problem. I enjoy The Glades because it's in Florida, they're mysteries, and the main character is easy on the eyes and quirky. All things I love. 

So that is what I've been up to lately with my free time. 

Book Review: Your Wicked Ways

Your Wicked Ways (Duchess Quartet #4)

by Eloisa James

Published by Avon Books, 2004.

Paperback, 384 pages. 

Listed $7.99 (I borrowed it from the Library)

Book Description

Helene, the Countess Godwin, knows there is nothing more unbearably tedious than a virtuous woman. After all, she's been one for ten long years while her scoundrel of a husband lives with strumpets and causes scandal after scandal. So she decides it's time for a change -- she styles her hair in the newest, daring mode, puts on a shockingly transparent gown, and goes to a ball like Cinderella, hoping to find a prince charming to sweep her off her feet...and into his bed.

But instead of a prince, she finds only her own volatile, infuriatingly handsome...husband, Rees, the Earl Godwin. They'd eloped to Gretna Green in a fiery passion, but passion can sometimes burn too hot to last.

But now, Rees makes her a brazen offer, and Helene decides to become his wife again...but not in name only. No, this time she decides to be very, very wicked indeed.

Book Review

I read and reviewed the first three books in this series here, here and here, and it has taken me a while to get back and finish. This story was fun and I enjoyed meeting some new characters, particularly Earl Godwin's brother and also his "strumpet," who turned out to be a lovely character. Of course I enjoyed seeing almost all of our old characters again from the first three books. Helene's motivation seems legitimate as she has watched her friends become mothers and therefore she wants to become a mother too. The fact that she would go to nearly any length, and a almost any sacrifice, which is really about her social standing, to become pregnant is interesting. 

All of Ms. James characters are intriguing to me as they have depth of personality and individualism that sets them apart from other historical fiction. Other than Helene wanting to become pregnant and her obsession with social norms, all the women were modern in their thinking about relationships and even parenting. 

Earl Godwin was difficult for me to forgive. I realized in the first book when we are first introduced to the two that their falling out early in their marriage was due to lack of communication and immaturity (and pride) so overcoming those things AND forgiving each other for past grievances was vital to creating a believable relationship. Actually, that was one of the things I liked about this story. I enjoy Alpha males and Earl Godwin is most definitely Alpha. His horrible treatment of his wife is more about making statements about other things in his life than it was about mistreating her or even being unfaithful. While many of those behaviors would be unacceptable in our time, they were not necessarily viewed the same in the 18th & 19th Centuries. 

Great strides we've made ladies! 

The friendships portrayed in this and in the other books in the series made me happy. These women loved each other and took care of each other, even better than family, which is right. At the moment when Helene is nearly ruined socially, they come together and come up with a solution--with help from an unlikely source, but it works--and it was fun to see it all play out. 

I am now done with this series and am not sure when I will be coming back to Eloisa James. My TBR pile is enormous and I have a nice little stack by Charlaine Harris that I'd like to read. So far I have become addicted to her Sookie Stackhouse books and other series (somebody PLEASE make these into a movie!) so I am hoping that this set does not disappoint.

Death is the New Birth Part 2

I believe in life after death. Mostly, I believe that our essence is something that can neither be created or made. Our lifesource is an energy form that has existed for as long as things have been in existence, so who knows how long that is… infinity? I do not believe our “souls” have a beginning or an end.

Is that strange?

I also don’t believe that God “created” the Earth from nothing. I believe something existed and He merely “organized” it into something with a power that we cannot explain or completely understand, I call it Priesthood; or the power of God given to man. I also believe that all these things can be explained via science. This is why miracles can be dismissed because sometimes there is an explanation; God has to follow laws, after all. I do not believe that science has all the answers. I do not believe that all theories are Truth, they are what they say they are; theories. When something becomes Truth then the behavior of God can be explained, thus we see an absence of a belief in miracles.

Faith is that leap between being able to prove something with science and believing in miracles. I believe in miracles.

Why do bad things happen to good people? Unfortunately, we are a product of our “creation” in that we are mortal and thus subject to the frailties of mortality; illness, injury, death.  Why do people get cancer? Some of the answers are in the environment or in our personal behavior or choices. Others are stamped in our DNA as part of our creation. This is why some people are born with predispositions to be addicts, unhealthy or other genetically linked weaknesses. God did not “create” us this way, our ancestors “created” us, on some levels. I also believe that some of our characteristics come with us.

I believe that we lived before we were born. At some point in the eternities a loving father (and mother) gave us a spiritual body. It probably looked similar to what our bodies look like now but without flesh, bone or blood. Our essence, our “energy” was changed to a thinking, functioning, intelligent being. We made friends. We had families. We made choices. We wanted bodies so we agreed to this plan to come to this alternate sphere (as opposed to a parallel universe) to gain our bodies and live in mortality. 

So dying, in a sense, is going back home.

When I read The Message (and reviewed here) I was struck by the beauty of the idea of seeing and being with family again. Being with loved ones. I believe they are busy doing things. Doing things for us, doing things for others that have gone before. I believe they are happy. I believe that death, funerals, the celebratory process is more about the survivors than about those that have gone on. We are left to cope and adjust the new normal that is thrust upon us.

I have experienced this traumatic unexpected loss of loved ones as well as losing someone who was sick and expected to pass. Either way is difficult. Admittedly it is more difficult to accept and move on from someone who dies in a tragic or unanticipated way but both are difficult. Both are losses that make you ache. Not because you are surprised but because you are still the one left behind.

There is some comfort in the idea of someone dying and believing they are happy, in a beautiful place and continuing to live a productive life. However, they are not with us and that is the trial. That is the difficult part. It’s not about worrying if they are happy, not for me, it’s about missing them. It’s about not being able to introduce my children. It’s about missing that relationship. Missing the person just because you miss them.

I look forward to death. I am not seeking my death but I am not afraid. I have people on the other side I want to see. What I don’t want to do is cause someone here any pain, but I suppose unless I completely withdraw from society, someone will be sad when I pass. If I am loved, I will be missed. And I want to be loved. I believe I am loved. So I’m not ready to go yet, but I have no fear.

If someday you read this and I have passed on you can know that I am happy. I am happy to be with my brothers, my grandmother, my friends, my father-in-law, my brother-in-law… and so many others that I miss dearly. I look forward to the day when we can all live together in our Heavenly Home and experience the next phase of our existence.

Book Review: Eloisa James "A Wild Pursuit"

A Wild Pursuit (Duchess Quartet #3)

by Eloisa James

Published by Avon Books, 2009.

Paperback, 402 pages.

Listed $6.99, I borrowed it from the Library.





Book Description

It is whispered behind the fans of London's dowagers and in the corners of fashionable ballrooms that scandal follows willfully wild Lady Beatrix Lennox wherever she goes.

Three years before, the debutante created a sensation by being found in a distinctly compromising position. Now, the ton has branded her as unmarriageable, her family has called her a vixen, and Beatrix sees no reason not to go after what -- and who -- she wishes.

And she wants Stephen Fairfax-Lacy, the handsome Earl of Spade. Beatrix, with her brazen suggestions and irresistibly sensuous allure, couldn't be more different from the earl's ideal future bride. Yet Beatrix brings out a wildness in the earl he has tried to deny far too long. Still, he's not about to play love's game by Lady Beatrix's rules. She may be used to being on top in affairs of the heart, but that will soon change.

Book Review

Every time I read the next book in this series I like it better than the one before. This volume ties up the knots created in books one and two, particularly with Lady Rawlings. Also, we get to see the cousin of Book 1s hero that we met briefly, Stephen Fairfax-Lacy. As usual I like the ladies Eloisa James creates and writes about. It turns out they are like us; real, emotional, insecure, fearful. Their parents say and do things to them that are inappropriate and damaging just like our parents did to us. For me, these books are akin to Susan Elizabeth Phillips in the emotional sense even though the setting is early 19th century. 

Beatrix Lennox has been misunderstood and branded her whole life. A father that neither loved nor cherished her and a self-esteem of a twig set her up for social disaster. She had enough self-respect not to become a pity-bride but not enough to understand the full implications of her actions. Typical teen angst on a serious Social Scene that we moderns can barely fathom. (Maybe the Brits, but Americans? Not likely.)

Fairfax-Lacy discusses enough dissatisfaction with the political process to sound believable. Tiresome Enclosure Acts and Corn Laws were giving him headaches and he was tired of fighting for the little-guy with no reward. I could see that (and I learned a few things, to boot). 

A little more sexual than I usually read but not erotica by any means. The emotional pull was definitely the strength of this story. Seeing people's points of view change believably through seeing for themselves rather than making a judgment call based on gossip alone was satisfying. 

I am looking forward to the next in this series, Your Wicked Ways, where we finally learn the outcome of poor Helene Holland whose presence has been in all four books.

Book Review: The Message

The Message

by Lance Richardson

Published by American Family Publications, 2000.

Paperback, 154 pages.

Listed: $12.95 (My husband gave me his copy to read that he received as a gift from our daughter.)



Book Description

On Christmas Day, 1998, Lance Richardson was involved in an accident which later left him in a comatose state for several weeks. While his body was being kept alive by medical support equipment, his spirit passed into the world beyond. In "The Message," Lance describes his experience in the world of spirits and delivers to us a message giving a greater understanding of the importance of families and the future of America. He was also taught concerning a most important principle of their society of peace, which, if followed by the people of this great nation, would rescue us from self-destruction.

Review

Normally I don't think I would add a review of what I consider a "religious" book but the message was so good and so powerful I decided I would go ahead do a review of this book. Basically this is a retelling of a man's NDE (Near Death Experience) and his visit to the "other side." I was deeply touched by his descriptions of "heaven" (which he called "Paradise" in the "Spirit World") as they were very similar to other descriptions I have read. "I had never seen such vibrant, brilliant color," he writes (p.52). "Leaves and sprigs carried varieties of color such as crimson, gold, blazing yellows of fire, shades of green and blue, and deep blood-red." 

When you have lost a loved one in death you tend to gravitate toward stories and books that share experiences of those that have visited beyond "the Veil." Telling of meeting loved ones that have passed on brought me much comfort. I was moved to tears thinking of my loved ones in such a beautiful (and busy!) place. It made me happy. This message alone was enough but then he tells that he was taught lessons that he was supposed to bring back. He was given a reason to come back to life and share this story. 

And what is this great message?

 +++SPOILER ALERT+++

Service. 

He explains that giving service to others is Love in Action. 

"Service is the action from of loving one another. When you truly love someone, you seek to serve them. Your concerns are for their happiness and welfare." (p. 117) He further admonishes that service starts in the home, then your neighbors and community, then extended family -- or, "the brothers and sisters of our nation." 

Wow. This is great stuff!

I have said for years that we love who we serve. Basically, Mr. Richardson states that we need to cultivate a loving society. 

Peace on earth!

What a remarkably beautiful message. Seriously.

I texted my husband as soon as I finished this book with this simple phrase. "Wow. We need to do more."

He responded, "I know."

I highly recommend this book, however keep in mind that it is a story told from the point of view of a religious, Mormon man. 

The Book Review: Brenda Novak "When Snow Falls"

When Snow Falls (Whiskey Creek)

Brenda Novak

Published by Harlequin Mira; October 2012

Paperback.

Listed $7.99, I borrowed it from the Library.

Book Description
Series: Whiskey Creek (Book 2)

After growing up in cheap motels, moving from town to town with her sister and mother, Cheyenne Christensen is grateful to be on her own. She's grateful, too, for the friends she found once her family settled in California. But she's troubled by the mystery of her earliest memories, most of which feature a smiling blonde woman. A woman who isn't her mother.

Although Cheyenne has repeatedly asked for explanations, the people who could help aren't talking. Cheyenne is set on finding answers, but without so much as a birth certificate, it won't be easy.

Things get even more complicated when her closest friend is attracted to the man Cheyenne has secretly loved for years. For Eve's sake, she decides to step aside—which lands her right in the arms of Dylan Amos, oldest and baddest of the hell-raising Amos brothers. He's the kind of guy she's sworn to avoid. She can't afford to make a mistake, not when she finally has a chance to learn who she really is and change her life for the better. But…maybe there's more to Dylan than she thought. Maybe letting him go would be a bigger mistake.

Review

I have said before that I love Brenda Novak's series books and this is no exception. I actually liked this one better than the first, which surprised me. The premise seemed promising but the booked moved slowly at first, and seemed very depressing... Her "mother" was dying of cancer (awful business), it's Christmas and all her friends are leaving town for a group cruise. Her business (she works with her best friend at a B&B) is being renovated so she has a lot of time on her hands and not a lot of people to spend it with. Her "sister" is troubled but I didn't hate her. The "mother," however, was horrible. A villain in retrospect, mostly. 

At first I was confused by the Joe (secret love)/Dylan struggle but that becomes clearer over time. The most awesome thing about this book for me was that Cheyenne refuses to date Joe, under any circumstances, until her BFF, Eve, gives her blessing. That was beautiful. Having had a similar thing happen to me in the past I was pleased with how this was handled; as if "loyalty" to a friend is more important than "true love." Yay! Some might not agree with me but this was huge for me and made me love Cheyenne even though for the most part she seemed a little more self-deprecating than I like for a heroine.

The reader learns early on what the heroine does not until the very end which is okay because the mystery is real and doesn't make her look like a paranoid, schizo-freak for questioning her upbringing. She really should be questioning it. That part of the story is fine. Also, I liked that the "bad boy," Dylan, was more about reputation than reality. It says a lot about small towns and rumor. It was very believable and because her friends loved her so much they were SPOILER: eventually okay with him.

I also liked the way the "triangle" is portrayed. It is honest and realistic. The reader likes both guys, for different reasons. I don't know what the author has in mind for the one Cheyenne "didn't pick" so we can find out more about him. ;) (No SPOILER there! haha!)

This was a satisfying read --and no blatant sexuality (Yay!-- about love and relationships; romance, parental and sibling. Not too high-brow, but enjoyable and engaging. I am looking forward to returning to Whiskey Creek in the next book, "When Summer Comes," which comes out January 29th.

Next up: Eloisa James "A Wild Pursuit" (Book 3 in the Duchess Quartet)

Book Review: Eloisa James "Fool For Love"

Fool For Love (Duchess Quartet #2)

Eloisa James

Published by Avon Books, July 2003

Paperback, 373 pages.

Listed $6.99, I borrowed it from the Library.

Book Description:

The Woman

Lady Henrietta Maclellan longs for the romantic swirl of a London season. But as a rusticating country maiden, she has always kept her sensuous nature firmly under wraps -- until she meets Simon Darby. Simon makes her want to whisper promises late at night, exchange kisses on a balcony, receive illicit love notes. So Henrietta lets her imagination soar and writes...

The Letter

A very steamy love letter that becomes shockingly public. Everyone supposes that he has written it to her, but the truth hardly matters in the face of the scandal to come if they don't marry at once. But nothing has quite prepared Henrietta for the pure sensuality of...

The Man

Simon has vowed he will never turn himself into a fool over a woman. So, while debutantes swoon as he disdainfully strides past the lovely ladies of the ton, he ignores them all...until Henrietta. Could it be possible that he has been the foolish one all along?

I really Really REALLY liked this book! I liked it better than the first one. Lady Henrietta reminded me a little of myself; headstrong, opinionated, acts before thinking, a true romantic and a dreamer. I liked her a lot! Simon was also an enjoyable character. Although a bit of a "dandy," surprisingly, he wasn't self-absorbed. Even though the description says Simon, "disdainfully" ignores other women, I did not think it was mean-spirited or hurtful. 

Both characters were likable and I cared about their romance. It was a little racy in places and would not recommend this book to those that are offended by semi-descriptive sex scenes. I like also that we get to see some of the characters from the first book (the point of reading a series). 

SPOILER ALERT:

I especially liked Simon's two step-sisters. They were definitely well-written and the author knows her little ones! The scenes with them were particularly hilarious and/or wince-inducing which I enjoyed immensely!

The only criticism I have is with the final chapter or epilogue. The entire book has details of a certain pregnancy and uncertain parentage of said babe, but the delivery time and date is simply overlooked. No discussion or even mention of what would have been a definitive moment for both characters was odd. I felt that was an oversight of the author; which may have been intentional as this is book two of four. 

I just picked up book three from the library so another review is pending in this delightful series!

Next up: Book 2 of Brenda Novak's Whiskey Creek series; When Snow Falls.

The Book Review: Brenda Novak "When Lightning Strikes"

When Lightning Strikes (Whiskey Creek)

Brenda Novak

Published by Harlequin Mira; August 2012

Paperback, 441 pages.

Listed $7.99, I borrowed it from the Library.


Book Description

Gail DeMarco left Whiskey Creek, California, to make a name for herself in Los Angeles. Her PR firm has accumulated a roster of A-list clients, including the biggest box office hit of all--sexy and unpredictable Simon O'Neal. But Simon, who's just been through a turbulent divorce, is so busy self-destructing he won't listen to anything she says. She drops him from her list--and he retaliates by taking the rest of her clients with him.

Desperate to save her company, Gail has to humble herself by making a deal with Simon. The one thing he wants is custody of his son, but that's going to require a whole new image. He needs to marry some squeaky-clean girl who'll drag him off to some small obscure place like Whiskey Creek...

Gail's the only one he can trust. She agrees to become his wife--reluctantly. But she isn't reluctant because he's too hard to like. It's because he's too hard not to love!


Review

I am a huge fan of Brenda Novak's! I especially love her romances. I read all of her books in the Dundee, Idaho series and this one proves to be similar in spirit and fun. 

Normally I do not like books with fake "rich and famous" people but this one was actually believable and not annoying. Gail DeMarco is someone I would admire and I think her honesty and integrity are not far-fetched. Maybe to some, but not to me. 

Simon O'Neal is also not an annoying or unbelievable movie-star character with issues. Of course he has issues. Both of the main characters have issues but they are not totally insurmountable. Simon's are more intense and his relative stupidity when it comes to women is a tad cliche'. 

Whiskey Creek is someplace I would like to live. I do kind of live in that kind of environment. We don't have a haunted Inn but we do have a haunted house. We have a couple of diners that have been here forever, so I get that part of the community and I love it! 

The DeMarco family is semi-dysfunctional (hello, issues.), but they have down-to-earth values and love each other. Simon's family is a train-wreck but that works for a Hollywood Hottie. His ex & his agent however, make me want to vomit, or punch someone. So considering I got emotional about it, I guess you could say I "fell for" the characters.

Overall I liked the novel and am looking forward to the next installment.

Currently reading: When Snow Falls (Whiskey Creek #2)!

Book Review: Eloisa James "Duchess in Love"

 “A book review is a description, critical analysis, and an evaluation on the quality, meaning, and significance of a book, not a retelling.”

Title: Duchess in Love

Author: Eloisa James

Publisher: Avon, Historical Fiction

Date 1st Published: 2002


Book Description 

Ambrogina Serrard, Duchess of Girton had not seen her husband, Camden Serrard, erstwhile Duke of Girton, since their wedding day when she was merely twelve years old. An eighteen-year-old rebel himself, he had snuck out the window and escaped to the continent leaving Gina to fend for herself against his father and her mother. He did not return home for his father’s funeral but would return home to grant Gina an annulment so she could marry her love; Sebastian, Marquess Bonnington.

Ensconced in the English countryside at a houseparty, Gina and her friends strive to both avoid and attract their estranged husbands. Hilarity, miscommunication and midnight trysts ensue. While trying to prove that her “fiance’” won’t stop loving her after marriage, she unwittingly inspires, of all things, the love of her “husband.”

An illegitimate Duchess, hypocritical aristocracy much lust and some love, death, pregnancy, scandal and naked sculptures make this novel both fun and semi-typical.

Critical analysis and evaluation on quality, meaning and significance:

While this proverbial “romp” in the English countryside is both enjoyable and intriguing, it is not Georgette Heyer. But I don’t want to compare Eloisa James to the Historical romance goddess, and I’ll just say that I liked this book; I was not bored, I did not find it too predictable and the setting was fun. I found some editing mistakes but I suppose those always exist.

Unfortunately, I cannot say that there is much meaning and significance in this work. I really can’t use that measure for my fun fiction so I’m going to have find a different appraisal strategy.

The Book Review: Diana Gabaldon "Outlander"

“A book review is a description, critical analysis, and an evaluation on the quality, meaning, and significance of a book, not a retelling.” --eHow

Title: Outlander 

Author: Diana Gabaldon 

Publisher—Date: Dell—1991

 
Description: 

Outlander (which is a play on the Gaelic word for “foreigner” or “outsider”) begins benignly in post WWII Scotland. An ex-army nurse and her husband are reunited and enjoying some time together in the Highlands after the long, despairing war. While gathering flowers (her hobby) at an ancient henge (ala Stonehenge), Claire Beauchamp Randall suddenly found herself in 1743. 

Caught between the English and the Scottish in a skirmish she is first captured by an English officer who looks uncannily like his progenitor, who also happens to be her erstwhile 1945 husband. “Rescued,” by the Scottish rebels she is transported to a castle keep and becomes the local “physician,” due to her skills as a nurse. Much intrigue ensues and Claire is married to a Scottish outlaw to save her own neck, as well as his. 

Considerable more strategy and conspiring occurs and Claire is equally venerated, and feared, as a physician and accused of, among other things, being a witch. All the while she tries to return to the original location of her time-travel to return home. She finds purpose in her ability to heal others in this time of blood-letting and leeching; and love in the Scottish warrior she wedded. We are to wonder if she will ever return to her own time or is she destined to be in 18th Century Scotland for the rest of her mortal life?

Was that too much description or Spoiler?

Critical analysis and evaluation of quality, meaning and significance?

There was a lot of research that went into this book. Because I am one of those people who double-checks facts, AND is fascinated by history, I checked some of her information and found it to be better than accurate. As far as structure goes I thought the actual story began when she dropped through time but upon further investigation I realized that this is a Book 1 of approx 7 (to date) and the information provided in the first few chapters does matter during the course of this novel and definitely in later installments. I believe the information could have been provided another way so the first bit of the book was unnecessary, in my opinion.

The style is unremarkable but not obnoxious. Her descriptions of flora and fauna could have been more in depth and descriptive (this is my personal preference, generally speaking). As part of a series I felt it was a great set up for more books, but I won’t be reading any more of them. Her style is not my preference and the story was not truly compelling enough for me. I was impressed with her use of British phrases and inferences (knowing the author is American).

As far as meaning and significance… um, it was an historical-romantic-paranormal-ish, science-fiction work. I really liked that she embraced both scientific, pagan and religious ideologies; that was extraordinary and insightful. I wanted to read this book because I remember my grandmother talking to me about it but she could not remember the author or title of the book. She passed away a couple of years ago and when I was again recommended the story I decided to read it and see what Granni was talking about.

I was not disappointed with the book or the story, I just felt it was a little bit too much suspension of reality on too many occasions. When Claire supposedly kills a wolf with her bare hands… well, my belief took a strong hit. I did not have trouble with the time travel or even with the uncanny resemblance of the antagonist to her husband (he wasn’t really estranged as she was in a completely different time), but I was tested time and again with capture and liberation over and over and over again. Yeah. I don’t think so.

I would recommend this book to those that like historical fiction, especially those with an affinity toward Scottish history. For romance, it was satisfactory. I would rate it at PG-13 at least as far as sex scenes go, if that matters to you. There were some disturbing moments (including male rape) but not so descriptive as to be critically disgusting.

Overall I liked the author, I liked this book but I won’t be reading any more of this series.