Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

Title: Outlander
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Genre: Fiction, SciFi, Historical, Fantasy

Synopsis: World War II is finally over and army nurse Claire Randall is on her 'second honeymoon' in the Scottish Highlands with her husband, Frank. The two had been separated for much of the war. While exploring the stone circle Craigh na Dun for flowers alone, while Frank was searching for his ancestors with a local historian, Claire gets pulled back in time 200 years. Using what she learned from Frank about local history, survival skills learned from growing up with an archaeologist uncle, Claire has to navigate life in the 18th-century Highlands and try to get home to Frank. When she meets some Highlanders on the road her life changes forever.

My Thoughts

I am guilty of picking this book up, reading the back cover, and putting it back down on probably five separate visits to the bookstore. I would always think, 'time travel it is so far fetched!' Then, not realizing it was based on the book I kept rejecting, I started watching Outlander on Netflix because it popped up as a 'recommended for you' suggestion over and over. Well, I loved it. When I realized that it was that book series, having not committed the book title to memory, I knew I had to read it. 
Outlander season one stays very true to the first novel of the series. A few changes to make it fit better for TV make slight chronological differences, but the same main events occur. The novel is also told from Claire's perspective so anything that happens when she is not around isn't seen, but sometimes described later by other characters. Often, this makes some of the more gruesome scenes from the show less so in the book. In the show, they portray some scenes where Claire is not present as they happened, especially those concerning Jamie. 
I know I'm late to the game on this one, but seriously I cannot wait to read more from this series.
Comment below if you have read this book or have suggestions for others like it!




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Freshwater Road by Denise Nicholas

Title: Freshwater Road
Author: Denise Nicholas
Genre: Historical Fiction

Synopsis: It's 1964, Freedom Summer, and Celeste has decided to leave her comfortable home with her father, Shuck in Detroit, college in Ann Arbor, and her white boyfriend, J.D., to travel to Mississippi to work with One Man, One Vote to get African Americans registered to vote. She finds herself stationed in Pineyville, a small town with few of the modern conveniences to which Celeste is accustomed. The locals are slow to trust this newcomer, but Celeste persists in running the Freedom School and adult voter registration courses at the local church. As summer goes by Celeste gains trust and witnesses tragedy in the small town all while working for Civil Rights and trying to reconcile her world at home with the one she sees in Mississippi.

My Thoughts
This is the second book in a row I've read set in the United States in the 20th century, so unlike me! I found this one on the clearance shelf at Barnes and Noble, the cover really got me ( I always judge books by the cover...). I liked so many things about this book, it is a coming of age story, a civil rights story, a story of parent-child relationships, and a little bit of a love story thrown in. 
I really appreciate the struggle Celeste feels when she sees how bad it is for people of her race in Mississippi. She compares it to stepping back in time and realizes her own naivete from the moment she enters the state. She is brave and stays to help despite her fear and has to learn how things are done in the south. 

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The Wife, The Maid, and The Mistress by Ariel Lawhon

Title: The Wife, The Maid, and The Mistress
Author: Ariel Lawhon
Genre: Historical Fiction


Synopsis: New York City, 1930, Judge Joe Crater has gone missing. No one seems to know the whole story about what has happened to him, but the three women who know him best; his wife, Stella Crater, his maid, Maria Simon, and his mistress, Sally Lou 'Ritzi' Ritz, each know a part of the story. 

My Thoughts

This book was recommended to me more than once by a colleague who really enjoyed it and has similar taste in books as me. He recommended it to me so many times that he finally just gave it to me for helping him with setting up some technology for his class. I am super glad that he did. 
This novel is based on the mysterious disappearance of Judge Joe Crater and the author fills it with intrigue. The story jumps around in time, each section dated like a diary entry but told in the third person perspective of each woman. Small tidbits of what happened to Crater come out as the reader learns about the complicated lives and complex relationships of Stella, Maria, and Ritzi. 
Because Joe Crater was never found and this is a work of fiction, the author uses creative license to come up with one possibility to explain his disappearance. It does not disappoint.  

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Queen Isabella by Alison Weir

Title: Queen Isabella
Author: Alison Weir
Genre: Nonfiction

Other books I've read by this author: Innocent Traitor

Synopsis: Princess Isabella of France marries Edward II of England and becomes queen. Edward is more interested in young men at court and allows his favorites to rule through him and mistreat and neglect Isabella. Isabella uses her influence and the King's waning popularity to fight back. This biography works to debunk some of the myths associated with Isabella's personality and character and make her a more real and relatable figure from history. 

My Thoughts

Since I read Innocent Traitor, a historical fiction novel by this author, I thought that this book would be fiction as well. When I received it as a birthday gift I realized this is, in fact, a biography of Queen Isabella.
For the first few chapters, I was pretty incredulous about this book being called Queen Isabella, because it was pretty much all about Edward II; what he was doing, who he was consorting with, life in England during his reign. Just when I was about to give up on any real information about Isabella other than her relationship to her husband, where she was moving about the country, what she was ordering for her court, about 200 pages in things started to get good. 
Now, this is not a biography that reads like fiction, as I have said about some other works, this one firmly reads like nonfiction. Nonetheless, it gets interesting when the Queen really becomes part of the story. Isabella decided to take her life into her own hands and not let King Edward continue to use her badly. History then starts to record more about her actions when she goes against her traditional roles as wife and queen. 
If you love monarch biographies, like me, then you should check this one out! 

Comment below if you have read this book or have suggestions for others like it!




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Princesses Behaving Badly by Linda Rodriguez McRobbie

Title: Princesses Behaving Badly
Author: Linda Rodriguez McRobbie
Genre:  Nonfiction

Synopsis: Real stories from history without the fairy-tale endings

My Thoughts

This awesome book was a gift I received for my 31st birthday, and it is so fun! The princess misbehaviors are broken into 7 categories that made me laugh aloud when I first read them; warriors, usurpers, schemers, survivors, partiers, floozies, and madwomen.
The princesses discussed are from all over the globe and from many different periods of time.  Each section starts with the legend and lore of each royal woman, then the facts are presented and the story as it most likely occurred based on fact is presented. I like that each bio begins with the name of the princess, the years of her life, and where the story takes place. 
 It is interesting to see how the culture of the time period and country of origin affect what was considered 'normal' princess behavior and what caused them to stand out and be remembered. It is amazing to see how events in each woman's life can become changed into legend over time by those who tell the story. The chapters also contain short princess profiles that fit into the category but whose stories weren't long enough to fill several pages.
If you like stories about unconventional women, princesses, and history then this book is for you! 


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Lady in the Lake by Laura Lippman

Title: Lady in the Lake
Author: Laura Lippman
Genre: Mystery 

Synopsis: It's Baltimore 1966 and  Madeline Morgenstern Schwartz, 37, questions the purpose of her life as her son heads off to college. Never seriously questioning her role as a homemaker before, a visit from an old schoolmate sparks Maddie's decision to leave her husband. When a young girl who attends the local synagogue goes missing, Maddie's mother, concerned more with the well-being of her daughter than the lost child, suggests that she join the search.  Maddie finds that helping the police leads her to a job at a local newspaper where she is ready to make a name for herself. When a woman turns up dead in a fountain and no one seems interested Maddie is determined to know more, but it seems that this woman doesn't want her murder to be solved.

My Thoughts

With Christmas and my birthday both at the end of December, I am excited to say that I have a whole stack of new books to read as we enter 2020. I received the Lady in the Lake as a Christmas gift from a dear friend who used the NPR book concierge to find me a book to my taste. 
It only took me 10 days to get through this one because it. was. awesome. You all know that I love when a story has a good twist and this one has just that. 
Maddie's character is predictable in all the right ways, but what really makes this story shine is the insight from the people she interacts with. When Maddie has a significant interaction with another character, the next chapter is told from the perspective of that character. He or she then describes the encounter from their point of view and provides insight into the story that only he or she can. Then the novel continues as a 3rd person account following Maddie.
Lady in the Lake has the perfect balance of identity crisis, struggles of women in the workforce and race relations in the 1960s, crime, and mystery. What's not to like?


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White Houses by Amy Bloom

Title: White Houses
Author: Amy Bloom
Genre: Historical Fiction


Synopsis: Franklin D. Roosevelt has just passed away and Elenor turns to her 'first friend' and estranged long-time lover Lorena Hickok for comfort. Over the course of four days, Lorena recounts her life, what led her to Elenor, and how their relationship changed her life. 

My Thoughts

The first thing I thought when I picked up this book of the shelf at the library was, 'this isn't a very long book.' Then again, I had just come off of over 500 pages of medieval writing about knights, so anything less than 400 pages seemed short.  After reading it I have decided it is the perfect length. Nothing is worse than a novel that is 100 pages longer than necessary that is always such a disappointment. Bloom wraps this story up so nicely. The reader feels like you have all the facts but it isn't overly wordy. It is perfect.
I love the way that it is broken into 4 parts and that each chapter begins by telling the reader the date and time like a diary. The chapter begins with what is happening at that moment and then Lorena usually relates the present back to a time in her past. It is really well done.
Bloom has a way of highlighting the qualities and complexities of relationships beautifully. At the end, I may have even shed a tear.
If you are looking for something that is quick and impactful read, this book is for you.

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