Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Dear Mr. You

Dear Mr. You
Mary-Louise Parker
November, 2015
Scribner (Simon & Schuster)

Idgie Says:
This is a beautifully written and expressive book.  Mary-Louise has a wonderful way with the written word and this is such a different type of "memoir" that I don't feel that is the correct word for it.

Each chapter is a letter to a man in her life.  All men.  From her dad to a taxi driver to a Yanqui Indian boy who offered her a cigarette after she watched him dance.  These are lovely letters, deeply filled with feeling.  It showed so clearly how even tiny events can leave lasting impressions. 

She is a vibrantly talented writer who I personally hope to read much more of over the coming years.  

I HIGHLY recommend.

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Book Description:

A wonderfully unconventional literary debut from the award-winning actress Mary-Louise Parker.

An extraordinary literary work, Dear Mr. You renders the singular arc of a woman’s life through letters Mary-Louise Parker composes to the men, real and hypothetical, who have informed the person she is today. Beginning with the grandfather she never knew, the letters range from a missive to the beloved priest from her childhood to remembrances of former lovers to an homage to a firefighter she encountered to a heartfelt communication with the uncle of the infant daughter she adopted. Readers will be amazed by the depth and style of these letters, which reveal the complexity and power to be found in relationships both loving and fraught.

A ChristmasBonanza for The Dew

I just want to make sure that everyone sees what lovely surprises Santa sent me for review this Christmas Season.  There are some gems in this pile I am already certain of and others that hold high anticipation.  I can't wait to share these with you shortly!


Tuesday, December 29, 2015

My Sweet Audrina

 Idgie Says:
It really cracks me up that they keep republishing these vintage V.C. Andrews books and then writing follow up books in the series.  There is a heavy nostalgia value to these oh so naughty/nasty books that none of us were supposed to be reading when they came out, we all had them snuck under beds and left in the locker at school.  

I do find it odd that V.C. Andrews is now just a copyrighted name and that all of the new books are written by others, but I'm sure the continue to titillate today's youth or they wouldn't  continue churning them out. 

Apparently they are also quite successful on Lifetime too!

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MY SWEET AUDRINA
V.C. Andrews®
ISBN: 9781501138843
Pocket Books
December 29, 2015


 MY SWEET AUDRINA, available December 29th, will be a Lifetime movie January 9th, 2016!  

WHITEFERN, the sequel to MY SWEET AUDRINA, will publish July 26th, 2016.


About MY SWEET AUDRINA:
MY SWEET AUDRINA by V.C. Andrews® has been called “beautifully written, macabre, and thoroughly nasty” (Daily Express) and is the perfect winter prelude to Lifetime’s debut on January 9th, 2016 as well as the new sequel  Whitefern (July 2016)—the summer fling to satisfy your hunger for more!

THE IDEA OF HER SISTER HOVERED ABOVE THEM ALL

Audrina fiercely desired to be as good as her sister. She knew her father could not love her as he loved that other girl, for her sister was so special, so perfect—and dead. Upstairs in a locked room awaited her sister’s clothes and dolls, her animals and games—and her sacred rocking chair. Now Audrina will rock and rock and rock to reclaim all her gone sister’s special gifts. And then finally she’ll learn the secrets everyone else knows but her.

One of the most popular storytellers of all time, V.C. Andrews layers psychological suspense with sheer terror in MY SWEET AUDRINA, a provocative thriller of family gone wrong.

About V.C. Andrews®:
V.C. Andrews® has been a bestselling phenomenon since the publication of her classic Flowers in the Attic. That blockbuster novel began her renowned Dollanganger family saga, which includes Petals on the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, and Garden of Shadows. Since then, readers have been captivated by more than seventy novels in V.C. Andrews’s bestselling series. V.C. Andrews’s novels have sold more than 106 million copies.

Upcoming books:
 
MY SWEET AUDRINA, available December 29th, will be a Lifetime movie January 9th, 2016

WHITEFERN, the sequel to MY SWEET AUDRINA, will publish July 26th, 2016

SAGE’S EYES will publish January 26th, 2016
 

The Dollanganger series (Flowers in the Attic) books 1, 2, 3 and 4 are Lifetime movies

The Mirror Sisters, book 1 of 3, will publish October 25th, 2016

Monday, December 21, 2015

Where's Wilson?

Signed book | Where's Wilson? | children's book | written by Kelly Young-Silverman | illustrated by erin the greatIdgie Says:
I would say this is a perfect bedtime book for young readers 2 to 6 years old.  A lovely book that the child can transition from being read to into reading for themselves, or even reading to their younger siblings. The graphics will keep all ages amused and interested.


Available January 12, 2016
Pre-orders available now

Book Description:
It’s time to go to sleep. But one of the counting sheep from the Sweet Dream Team has gone missing. With bedtime soon approaching, and the town in a fuss, They need to find Wilson. They have to! They must!

Where’s Wilson is a whimsical, illustrated story about Wilson, an important member of the Sweet Dream Team, who wanders away from the team. With bedtime rapidly approaching, the whole community bands together to find Wilson. After all, how can anyone manage to fall asleep if there aren’t enough sheep to count?

Where’s Wilson is a delightful rhyming picture book, complete with fanciful watercolor illustrations that vividly bring the story to life. Children will love the sing-song verses and discovering new objects and characters in the multi-layered pictures.

Where’s Wilson is the second in a series of Evie & Knox night time story books.*


Thursday, December 17, 2015

The Bette Davis Club



Idgie Says:

 Any woman that starts the day with a double martini is someone you want to read about!  An interesting plot with enough twists and turns to keep the reader amused and interested. 

_____________________________________

The Bette Davis Club

A Novel

Lake Union Publishing
Pub Date

Description

The morning of her niece’s wedding, Margo Just drinks a double martini and contemplates the many mistakes she’s made in her fifty-odd years of life. Spending three decades in love with a wonderful but unattainable man is pretty high up on her list of missteps, as is a long line of unsuccessful love affairs accompanied by a seemingly endless supply of delicious cocktails.

When the young bride flees—taking with her a family heirloom and leaving behind six hundred bewildered guests—her mother offers Margo fifty grand to retrieve her spoiled brat of a daughter and the invaluable property she stole. So, together with the bride’s jilted and justifiably crabby fiancé, Margo sets out in a borrowed 1955 red MG on a cross-country chase. Along the way, none of what she discovers will be quite what she expected. But it might be exactly what she’s been seeking all along.

From acclaimed humor writer Jane Lotter comes this madcap, laugh-out-loud adventure, The Bette Davis Club.

___________________________________

Jane Lotter was a Seattle-based writer and humorist whose work has appeared in national publications. Her hilarious column, Jane Explains, ran in the Seattle Sun, winning several awards, including one from the Society of Professional Journalists. Jane’s only novel, The Bette Davis Club, won first place in the Mainstream category in the Pacific Northwest Writers Association Literary Contest.

Tuesday, December 15, 2015

The Violinist of Venice, the story of Vilvadi - A Shout Out and Excerpt

http://images.macmillan.com/folio-assets/macmillan_us_frontbookcovers_1000H/9781250071491.jpgSt. Martin's Griffin
 December, 2015

Like most 18th century Venetians, Adriana d'Amato adores music - except her strict merchant father has forbidden her to cultivate her gift for the violin. But she refuses to let that stop her from living her dreams and begins sneaking out of her family's palazzo under the cover of night to take violin lessons from virtuoso violinist and composer Antonio Vivaldi. However, what begins as secret lessons swiftly evolves into a passionate, consuming love affair.

Adriana's father is intent on seeing her married to a wealthy, prominent member of Venice's patrician class-and a handsome, charming suitor, whom she knows she could love, only complicates matters-but Vivaldi is a priest, making their relationship forbidden in the eyes of the Church and of society. They both know their affair will end upon Adriana's marriage, but she cannot anticipate the events that will force Vivaldi to choose between her and his music. The repercussions of his choice-and of Adriana's own choices-will haunt both of their lives in ways they never imagined.

Spanning more than 30 years of Adriana's life, Alyssa Palombo's The Violinist of Venice is a story of passion, music, ambition, and finding the strength to both fall in love and to carry on when it ends.

Click HERE for an excerpt

___________________

 ALYSSA PALOMBO has published short historical fiction pieces in Black Lantern, Novelletum, and The Great Lakes Review. She is a recent a graduate of Canisius College with degrees in English and creative writing, respectively, as well as a trained classical musician. This is her first novel. She lives in Tonawanda, New York

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

The Restoration of Otto Laird

The Restoration of Otto Laird Idgie Says:
This novel starts off with delightful wordplay and flow.  The  writing is music to the mind ear.  

This is the story of a man reaching his end years and content to settle into his routine and enjoy his days quietly with his wife in their outstandingly scenic retirement retreat.  But when the architectural gems that he spent his career building start to be threatened by demolition to make way for today's modern buildings, he finds himself no longer content to sit and watch the world go by.

At 78 years old, he finds a cause worth fighting for.  You will cheer for him.  

_____________________________________


The Restoration of Otto Laird

A Novel

Nigel Packer
St. Martin's Press
November, 2015

Retired architect Otto Laird is living a peaceful, if slightly bemused, existence in Switzerland with his second wife, Anika. Once renowned for his radical designs, Otto now spends his days communing with nature and writing eccentric letters to old friends (which he doesn't mail). But Otto's comfortable life is rudely interrupted when he learns that his most significant and revolutionary building, Marlowe House, a 1960s tower block estate in South London is set to be demolished.

Otto is outraged. Determined to do everything in his power to save the building, he reluctantly agrees to take part in a television documentary, which will mean returning to London for the first time in twenty-five years to live for a week in Marlowe House. Once Otto becomes reacquainted with the city he called home for most of his life, his memories begin to come alive. And as he mines his past and considers life moving forward -- for himself and his building -- Otto embarks on a remarkable journey that will change everything he ever thought he knew.

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Beatrice and Benedick - A Spotlight Book

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51pC0U6-KaL._SX323_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg"We know how it ended, but how did it begin?"

From the international bestselling author of The Glassblower of Murano, Marina Fiorato’s newest novel BEATRICE AND BENEDICK (St. Martin’s Press; December 8, 2015)  has already been praised as “lively” and “impressive” (Kirkus Reviews). Fiorato, who specialized in the study of Shakespeare’s plays at Oxford University and the University of Venice, imagines the backstory of Beatrice and Benedick from the much loved Shakespeare comedy Much Ado About Nothing in this captivating new novel.
 
More about the book:
Hidden in the language of Shakespeare's comedy are several clues to an intriguing tale. It seems that the witty lovers Beatrice and Benedick had a previous love affair that ended bitterly. But how did they meet? Why did they part? And what brought them together again?
Fiorato begins with nineteen-year-old Beatrice as she first meets Benedick at her uncle’s court in Sicily. Both quick with words and independent, they resist the sparks that fly with each interaction. Misunderstandings and politics on the island make their parting tumultuous, and they go their different ways to follow a path that has been laid out for them. With marriage far from either of their minds, Fiorato explains the feelings that change a strong willed couple’s point of view into the happy ending of Much Ado About Nothing.
About the Author
MARINA FIORATO is half-Venetian and has worked as an illustrator, an actress, and a film reviewer, and designed tour visuals for rock bands including U2 and the Rolling Stones. Her historical fiction includes The Daughter of Siena, The Botticelli Secret, and her debut novel, The Glassblower of Murano, which was an international bestseller. She was married on the Grand Canal in Venice, and now lives in London with her family.

Thursday, December 3, 2015

The Wedding Tree - Available Now!


THE WEDDING TREE by Robin Wells
December 1, 2015; Berkley Trade Paperback; $16.00; ISBN: 9780425282359
From national bestselling author Robin Wells, winner of the Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Awardtwo National Readers’ Choice Awards, and the Holt Medallion, among others, comes an atmospheric, multigenerational novel of wartime romance, loss, and renewal.  Stretching from modern-day Louisiana to World War II era New Orleans, the novel traverses the lives and loves of three generations of Stevens women, including young divorcé Hope and her grandmother, Adelaide. 

Adelaide and Hope’s intertwining histories speak to how societal and familial expectations influence women’s decisions—and how the fluidity of those expectations have affected the trials, lives, and loves of different generations within one family. Readers will empathize with the down-on-her-luck divorcé Hope, and perhaps, as I did, find themselves newly intrigued by the potential for unknown romance and adventure buried in family history. All these themes are packaged in a novel that will grab you, pull you in, and make every woman wish for a fighter pilot—or perhaps just a handsome widow next door—to sweep her off her feet. 

Wells again delivers the “sympathetic, memorable characters . . . touching story, gentle humor, and evocative writing” (Library Journal) she is known for.
 

Wednesday, December 2, 2015

The Seafront Tearoom - Available Now!


THE SEAFRONT TEAROOM by Vanessa Greene
December 1, 2015; Berkley Books Trade Paperback; $16.00; ISBN: 9780425281260;
Friendship, like tea, takes time to steep—but once you open your heart, the possibilities are endless. From the author of The Vintage Teacup Club comes a novel about three women who find friendship over Darjeeling tea and macaroons. A sweet celebration of all things English—from Earl Grey to chivalrous suitors—The Seafront Tearoom will appeal to fans of Kate Jacobs and Fiona Neill. 

Vanessa Greene’s novels have been called “a winning recipe” (The Sunday Express), “a delicious brew of love and friendship” (Trisha Ashley, bestselling author of Every Woman for Herself) and “the perfect book to escape everyday reality and enjoy curled up, sipping a cup of tea” (RT Book Reviews).

HOLIDAY STARS OF POCKET STAR EBOOKS!

 
HOLIDAY STARS OF POCKET STAR EBOOKS!

Whether it be stars in the sky, stars atop trees, or stars who offer great reads, all are holiday stars to savor. The holiday stars of Pocket Star EBooks offer perfect escapes for winding down this holiday season:

KATE MEADER
Rekindle the Flame (Nov. 30)
Romance / Contemporary / Holidays


Rekindle the Flame is the Hot in Chicago series prequel e-novella for $1.99 by Pocket Star EBooks
Melting Point is the mm romance e-novella from the series by Pocket Star EBooks
The Hot in Chicago series: Flirting with Fire (#1), Playing with Fire (#2), Sparking the Fire (#3 in September 2016)
Playing with Fire is a PW Best Book of 2015 for Romance/Erotica
“[A] flawless contemporary…Deft characterization, high stakes, and unabashed sexual hunger drive the gripping fast-paced story.”

DANI-LYN ALEXANDER
The New Year’s Wish (Nov. 30)
Romance / Contemporary / Holidays


Also indulge in Dani-Lyn Alexander’s The Perfect Gift Pocket Star EBook!
“Alexander paints a reliable, feel-good romance for the season that hits all the right notes, which is exactly what readers will seek for the holidays.”
—Library Journal

MARIAH STEWART
If Only In My Dreams (Nov. 30)
Romance / Contemporary / Holidays


The final installment in the Chesapeake Diaries, Driftwood Point, will publish June 21, 2016. If you can’t wait until then, indulge in the recent New York Times bestselling Chesapeake Diaries #9, That Chesapeake Summer

REXANNE BECNEL
Angels in the Snow (Oct. 27)
Romance / Contemporary / Holidays
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Tune in to UP Friday, December 18th, 7:00 pm ET to watch the movie Angels in the Snow!
Also indulge in Rexanne Becnel’s The Christmas Train Pocket Star EBook!


RAQIYAH MAYS
The Man Curse (Nov. 16; Pocket Star / Karen Hunter EBook)
Fiction / African American / Contemporary Women

Interview with Ebony
A Little Respect & Romance | African American Fiction (and More) “VERDICT There’s a lot to like about this ebook original. Meena has a good heart but manages to make lousy decisions with men, a problem that will have many female readers nodding in agreement. Making her fiction debut with a novel that is equally raw, profane, and touching, Mays is a promising author to watch.”
—Library Journal

ADRIAN PHOENIX
Thinning the Herd (Jan. 4)
Fiction / Fantasy / Urban


GABRA ZACKMAN
Double Down (Jan. 11) is book 3 in The Bod Squad series
Fiction / Romance / Contemporary

Game On is a thrilling romantic caper filled with double crosses, gadgets, and just the right amount of heat…Zackman’s debut mixes romance, pop culture, and espionage into a page-turner that plays with expectations. Readers will find a fast-paced story that is equal parts action and romance.”
—Library Journal

L.J. OLIVER
The Humbug Murders: An Ebenezer Scrooge Mystery
Fiction / Mystery & Detective / Historical

“Houses of ill fame, naughty noblemen, mutilation and murder, opium dens, conspiracies, blackmail, dim-witted coppers, and a cast that includes, among others, Fagin, the Artful Dodger, Mr. Pickwick, Ebenezer Scrooge, and Charles Dickens himself—it's all here in Oliver's tale set during the run-up to Christmas, 1833…Oliver includes enough action and sufficient twists and turns to provide some fun by the fireside, accompanied, perhaps, by a nice glass of Madeira.”

 

 



Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Martyrdom - A Coloring Book

martyrdomIdgie:
Well, this is certainly one of the most interesting coloring books I have come across.  Each page is a fairly horrific death scene.  Gruesome, yes? But also educational.  The death scenes are accompanied by a fully detailed description of how the individual became a saint or martyr, the time period, the manner of death of course, and what they are remembered for today. 

Definitely geared toward toward the youthful crowd - but not too young.  My 14 year old boy had two friends over and they sat and read it out loud to each other in length. They kept yelling for more red crayons.  

This book will need to be approved by the parent before getting into the hands of the children, but if the parents are game, you at least have them reading. 

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Martyrdom
by Hallie Fryd and illustrated by Julia Gfrörer
Sept. 29, 2015
Zest Books


The lives of the saints are filled with inspiring, life-changing moments—but the deaths of the martyrs are where you’ll find the real “Oh, hell no!” moments of history. This adult (very adult, as the body count will quickly indicate) coloring book gives aspiring crayon and paper artists the chance to hone their craft while buffing up their knowledge of Catholic history and tales. The attending stories will go down pretty easy at cocktail hours as well.

Each intricately detailed illustration leaves plenty of room for interpretation. How will you render the sea that drowned St. Clement (or the anchor that was tied around his neck at the time)? The clubs and arrows that stilled St. Valentine’s heart? The gladiator that finished St. Perpetua? And what about the scene surrounding St. Elmo when he passed on? The lives and deaths of the saints are shockingly detailed, but in the text they always appear in black and white—and now it’s time to color. (Pro tip: Make sure you have more than one red crayon handy.)

Plotted

Idgie Says:
What a fun book that allows you to take a story that is loved and actually trace the paths the characters took via an imagined map of that story.  

I would love to have this book beside the one I was reading as a "reference guide".  To see just what the home of the rabbits in Watership Down looked like, the distance they traveled to find their way to a hopefully safe place, etc. - that would be a fantastic addition to the story.

The illustrations are fabulous.  This would be a fantastic gift for a book lover.  I love my copy!

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Plotted
by Andrew DeGraff
Oct. 2, 2015
Zest Books

frederick_douglass_1frederick_douglass_2

This incredibly wide-ranging collection of maps — all inspired by literary classics — offers readers a new way of looking at their favorite fictional worlds. Andrew DeGraff’s stunningly detailed artwork takes readers deep into the landscapes from The OdysseyHamlet, Pride and Prejudice, Invisible Man, A Wrinkle in Time, Watership Down, A Christmas Carol, and more. Sure to reignite a love for old favorites as well as spark fresh interest in more recent works, Plotted provides a unique new way of appreciating the lands of the human imagination.




Girls Who Travel - Available Now!

GIRLS WHO TRAVEL by Nicole Trivilas
December 1, 2015; Berkley Books Trade Paperback; $15.00; ISBN: 9780425281444
For readers of Marian Keyes and Sophie Kinsella comes a breezy, travel-inspired rom-com about wanderlust, “roadmance,” and the bravery it takes to write your own narrative. 

The short story on which this novel is based was one of the most widely read stories of 2013 on Wattpad—downloaded over a half million times—and an abridged version of the manuscript was chosen by Marian Keyes as winner of Wattpad's “Marian Keyes Short Story Contest.” 

 Author Nicole Trivilas is one of the most followed Wattpad users of 2013 and a real-life globetrotter who has visited over thirty countries and every continent except Antarctica. Her novel explores the gray space between who you are and who you imagine yourself to be; and the difference between traveling—and traveling towards the future you want.

Medicis Daughter - A Spotlight Book with Excerpt

Médicis Daughter
Perfect book for the historical intrigue story lover. 

MEDICIS DAUGHTER: A Novel of Marguerite de Valois (St. Martin’s Press; December 1, 2015) by Sophie Perinot, an ambitious historical fiction uncovering the often vilified Marguerite de Valois, a controversial princess of France, who would later become queen by marriage. With her coming of age story, Perinot seeks to humanize Margot and reveal that under the cold public exterior, was a self-doubting girl trying to balance family and learning to lead in a male centric culture.
 
MEDICIS DAUGHTER is a fascinating look at a remarkable woman and her intense mother-daughter relationship with Catherine de Medici. Full of scandal and a strong female lead, Perinot’s newest novel will draw in all types of readers and keep them captivated in Marguerite de Valois’ thoughts.

Click HERE for the Excerpt

About the Book:
Winter, 1564. Beautiful young Princess Margot is summoned to the court of France, where nothing is what it seems and a wrong word can lead to ruin. Known across Europe as Madame la Serpente, Margot's intimidating mother, Queen Catherine de Médicis, is a powerful force in a country devastated by religious war. Among the crafty nobility of the royal court, Margot learns the intriguing and unspoken rules she must live by to please her poisonous family.

Eager to be an obedient daughter, Margot accepts her role as a marriage pawn, even as she is charmed by the powerful, charismatic Duc de Guise. Though Margot's heart belongs to Guise, her hand will be offered to Henri of Navarre, a Huguenot leader and a notorious heretic looking to seal a tenuous truce. But the promised peace is a mirage: her mother's schemes are endless, and her brothers plot vengeance in the streets of Paris. When Margot's wedding devolves into the bloodshed of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre, she will be forced to choose between her family and her soul.

Médicis Daughter is historical fiction at its finest, weaving a unique coming-of-age story and a forbidden love with one of the most dramatic and violent events in French history.