Wednesday, January 17, 2024

The Girl from Provence by Helen Fripp

 

Feisty, unconventional, independent and resourceful heroine? ☑️

Forbidden, irresistible love? ☑️

Idyllic setting in the Provencale countryside? ☑️

A community in peril? ☑️

A vulnerable child in need of protection? ☑️

A literary legend who is also a heroic aviator? ☑️

A socialite mother who flies for the Resistance? ☑️

World War 2: can love win the day? ☑️

All this and more, with a side of lavender honey, from Helen Fripp's new historical novel, "The Girl from Provence", published by Bookouture.



Wednesday, November 22, 2023

Blog tour:- Can't I Go Instead by Lee Geum-yi, published by Scribe on 9th November 2023

 


Another fascinating book by Lee Geum-yi, who wrote "The Picture Bride" which I reviewed here last year. Korea is a country which seems rather mysterious and unknown to me, and I relish the opportunity to learn more.  

Description:-

Two women's lives and identities are intertwined - through World War II and the Korean War - revealing the harsh realities of class division.

Can't I Go Instead follows the lives of the daughter of a Korean nobleman and her maidservant in the early 20th Century. When the daughter's suitor is arrested as a Korean Independence activist,  and she is implicated during the investigation, she is quickly forced into marriage with one of her father's Japanese employees and shipped off to be a comfort woman to the Japanese Imperial army.

Years of hardship, survival and even happiness follow. In the aftermath of WWII, the women make their way home, where they must reckon with the tangled lives they've led, in an attempt to reclaim their identities, and find their place in an independent Korea.

My reaction:-

At the beginning of this novel, Korea is controlled by Japan.  A  Korean viscount has a splendid home in Seoul, a son by a concubine and his wife is due to give birth after a series of miscarriages.  She bears him a healthy daughter, Yun Chaeryeong.  For her eighth birthday, her doting father buys her a companion/servant from the settlement associated with one of his farms, and this girl, Sunam (effectively a slave), has her life changed forever.  It seems extraordinary that a person could buy another and belong to an eight year old girl, but this collision of lives goes on to have many repercussions.  Sunam is an intelligent and resourceful child who is able to make use of the new world she finds herself living in, and it is interesting to see how this develops.  Chaeryong, meanwhile, enjoys a privileged life and education while her mother becomes increasingly embittered and distant.

I will not spoil the plot of the story, but both girl's destinies are thrown into the air by war and discord.  Chaeryeong loses her first love and is married off and sent to the USA, while Sunam has to adopt Chaeryeong's identity and take her punishment for associating with a Korean Independence campaigner as a support worker for the Japanese Army - in a military brothel.  This broke many women, but what of  Sunam?  The story tells us of how both these girls fare throughout their lives, and also how little right to self-determination women of any social status had at this time.  Subjugation to men and class affects both of them.

Although terrible things happen in this tale, as they did in reality, I enjoyed reading this well-written and -translated story and learning more about Korea's place in history and the world.  There is plenty of food for thought within the pages.  I really appreciate the opportunity to read and share my thoughts on Can't I Go Instead.




Sunday, May 07, 2023

Books on Tour: New Beginnings in the Little Irish Village by Michelle Vernal


Bookouture's description:- 

 Welcome to the little Irish village of Emerald Bay where the sun is shining, the locals are gossiping, and romance is in the air. But will returning home be the fresh start Imogen Kelly needs?

Thirty-two-year-old Imogen Kelly is meant to be living her best life in Dublin but the bright lights of the city aren’t making her truly happy. So she leaps at the chance to take on an interior design job at the big country manor at the edge of Emerald Bay. It also gives Imogen an excuse to return to the place where she spent an unforgettable summer with her first love, Lachlan Leslie, the heir to Benmore House.

Imogen’s heart is full of hope at the thought of seeing her childhood sweetheart but on the way there she nearly has an accident on the winding, muddy country road. She arrives at Benmore House late and flustered, only to discover the builder working with her on the renovation project is none other than Ryan O’Malley – the class prankster who was forever pinging her bra strap at school.

Within seconds it’s clear he’s still a cheeky charmer, even if he’s transformed into a gorgeous guy who unexpectedly sets her pulse racing. Forced into close proximity with relentlessly cheerful Ryan, who’s forever (badly) singing rock ballads at the top of his voice, Imogen at first finds him an annoying distraction.

With St Patrick’s Day celebrations in full swing, Imogen has her work cut out to keep the job on track. Spending more time with Ryan, she discovers that, behind his warm smile and generous ways, he’s nursing heartache. But when she finally sees blue-eyed Lachlan again, Imogen has to face up to the truth about the secret summer romance they shared.

Will she leave Emerald Bay broken-hearted? Or will Imogen realise that home really is where the heart is?


What the publisher's description doesn't mention is that Imogen actually has a man in her life already - she has a relationship with her rather older boyfriend,  Nevin - "there's a bit of an age difference."  In fact, Nev comes with rather  lot of baggage as he has a previous marriage and grown up daughters who are still curiously dependant on their Dad to rescue them from various scrapes.  He wants no further children and Imogen has acquiesced, seemingly happy to pursue her career in interior design.  Her business is doing well and her success in Dublin is what leads her to accept a commission in her home village, giving her the the opportunity to visit her family and perhaps, at last, introduce her man to her childhood home.

Michelle Vernal has truly written a feel-good story, as warm as the community of Emerald Bay.  Imogen is very much a contemporary protagonist, seeking to find happiness and fulfilment in her chosen career and her personal life, yet not so lost in the glamour of life in the big city to have moved beyond her early life.  There is gentle humour and a great sense of place in the glorious Irish countryside, beautifully and wittily described.  I greatly enjoyed spending hours in Imogen's company as she adjusted to living back in her family home, coping with the fierce interest in her affairs of the community she grew up in, while dealing with her exacting employers, getting contractors to meet deadlines and specifications, her distant and demanding lover, her first real boyfriend and the disconcertingly multi-faceted man the classroom pest has grown up to be.  A deft and entertaining, compulsive read.  Thanks, Bookouture, for the opportunity to read this enjoyable book.


I was interested to learn that Michelle Vernal does not live in the Emerald Isle.  Michelle Vernal is a New Zealand author who writes stories that will take you onto the page with her characters and make you feel part of their lives. She writes with humour and warmth, and her readers describe her books as unputdownable, feel good and funny. Her writing has been likened to Maeve Binchy but with a modern-day vernacular. In 2015 she was shortlisted for the Love Stories Award. In 2020 she won the Reader's Favourite Gold Medal Award for Chick Lit, and in 2021 was shortlisted for the Page Turner Book Awards.

If you would like to discover what other readers thought of this book, why not visit the other participants in this  Book Tour, who are listed below:







Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Blog Tour: The Girl Who Escaped by Angela Petch

 



The Girl Who Escaped: Utterly heartbreaking and emotional WW2 historical fiction by Angela Petch

 

Italy, 1940. The girl sobs and rages as her father tells her the terrible news. “Italy is entering the war alongside Germany. Jews are to be arrested and sent to camps. We have to be ready.”

As fascists march across the cobbled piazzas and past the towered buildings of her beloved home city, twenty-year-old 
Devora’s worst fears come true. Along with her Jewish parents and twin little brothers they are torn away from everything they love and sent to an internment camp huddled in the mountains. Her father promises this war will not last long…

When they are offered a miraculous chance of escape by her childhood friend 
Luigi, who risks everything to smuggle vital information into the camp, the family clambers under barbed wire and races for the border. But Devora is forced to make a devastating choice between saving a stranger’s life and joining her parents. As shots fire in the moonless night, the family is separated.

Haunted by the question of whether they are dead or alive, all Devora can do for their future is throw herself into helping Luigi in the Italian 
resistenza in the fight for liberty. But posing as a maid for a German commander to gather secret intelligence, Devora is sure she sees her friend one night, in a Nazi uniform…

Is Devora in more danger than ever? And will her family ever be reunited – or will the war tear them apart?


An absolutely devastating but ultimately uplifting historical novel about how love and hope can get us through the darkest times. Perfect for fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Rhys Bowen and Soraya M. Lane.

 

Buy linkhttps://geni.us/B0BYC1V9NHsocial




Devora is the heroine of this novel.  Born in Italy to Jewish parents who fled Germany and the horrors of persecution during WW1, she is happily living in Urbino, studying with the ambition to become a doctor, with a group of friends and a teenage crush on the local heart-throb.  However, the rise of the fascists and invasion by the Nazis threaten her future and the safety of her parent and twin brothers.  Devora must discover new strengths and resources within herself if she is to have the opportunity to grow up and realise her dreams, and she also needs to determine who her true friends are.  A spirited and rebellious girl, she must grow up quickly.

I enjoyed getting to know Devora and her journey to adulthood against the background of the War in a setting I was somewhat unfamiliar with: the Italian Resistance and the risks taken in outwitting the enemy as part of the fight for survival.  Urbino is a beautiful, hill-top walled city, a world heritage centre in the Marche region of the Appennines which played a significant part in the Renaissance and was the birthplace of the artist Raphael.  It looks absolutely beautiful and luckily it was not bombed during the war and remained relatively unscathed.  I recommend a quick search to discover more about this beautiful place, but I digress...

This is a moving story of bravery and collaboration against a common enemy, with a satisfying ending.
It is a good read, too. Thanks to Bookouture for the opportunity to enjoy this book.




Friday, November 18, 2022

The Picture Bride by Lee Geum-yi

 


It is always fun to participate in a blog tour for a new book, and on this occasion it falls to me to share an excerpt of this fascinating story, The Picture Bride.  You might like to visit jaffareadstoo.blogspot,com for the opening of this passage before continuing here.




When a primary school was established in Jucheon, her father had sent her eldest brother to school. He reckoned that since the world was changing, his children should study the new subjects as they grew up. Two years later, he sent Willow, who had just turned eight. Hongju, her friend, pestered her own father, Mr. An, until she was able to enroll with Willow. Hongju’s family had been commoners for generations, but Mr. An had earned enough money by buying and selling cattle and bought land in Ojin Village. He built a tiled house overlooking the fields and settled down, then bought a genealogy allowing him to be considered a yangban. The local people called him “Wealthy An” because they didn’t think he merited any title.

 Both girls were the only daughters in their families, the other daughters having died early. Willow was the second child among her brothers, and Hongju was the youngest, after her brothers.

 It was much more fun for Willow to learn Hangul, Japanese, arithmetic, and gymnastics with friends at primary school than to study the Thousand Character Classic at her father’s Confucian academy. Although she had to climb over three hills to reach the school, it didn’t bother her. However, when her father passed away, her mother couldn’t afford the monthly school fee for both children. If one of them had to quit, of course it would be the daughter.

 Willow left school without completing her second year and helped with the housework and taking care of her younger brothers. The following year, Mrs. Yun sent Willow’s other younger brother Gyusik to school, but not Willow.

 “What about me?” Willow argued and pleaded. “Send me back to school, too.”

 “It’s enough if a girl can read and write her own name. What more do you need?”

 At that, Willow threw a tantrum. Mrs. Yun tore off her apron and stood up. “If you don’t stop right now, I’m going up to throw myself over the waterfall in Maebongsan Mountain and die.”

 Frightened of being an orphan, Willow embraced her mother’s legs as she prepared to leave the room and swore that she would never again talk about going back to school. After that, the only thing she could do was to comfort herself by writing on the ground with a poker so as not to forget the letters.

 After graduating from the four-year primary school, Hongju had not gone on to the girls’ upper school. She had no interest in studying, and her parents had no intention of sending their daughter to one of the new schools, the threshold of which none of their sons had ever crossed. After being in a place with a school and a market, Hongju returned to her mountain-valley home and felt bored, but Willow had been glad to have a friend nearby. While she was with Hongju, she could forget her situation, obliged as she was to help her mother earn a living. In the evenings, Hongju’s house was the only place that Willow was allowed to visit. Taking her sewing with her, Willow would hurry to Hongju’s place whenever she was free. Sewing was less boring when she was chattering with Hongju than when she stayed with her mother.

 Hongju had a room all to herself opposite the main building. There, Willow had enjoyed snacks such as dried persimmons or cookies, and read novels that Hongju kept hidden in her clothes chest. After reading the books, they would talk nervously about free love, apply lipstick, and imitate the heroines.

 The previous year, when Hongju had turned sixteen, her bridegroom had been chosen. He was from a prestigious yang- ban family in Masan. Her mother had taught her how to keep house lest her daughter be scolded once she was married. Most of all, Hongju had hated sitting quietly and sewing. Willow, who had acquired her mother’s skill while helping with the needlework, spent the evenings embroidering the cushions and pillowcases that her friend would take to her new home.

 When Hongju’s mother left the room to tend to other chores, Hongju would lay aside her embroidery frame and chat away. While Hongju was thrilled to be leaving Ojin Village for busy Masan, Willow was already missing her friend. It would be different from when Hongju had been away at school. Then, there had been a time limit, she would come back after graduating, but getting married meant leaving forever. 

When Hongju’s wedding was celebrated in the yard of her home and she had left the village, Willow cried more bitterly than Hongju’s mother. Now, there would be no one to open her heart to, no moments of respite with her friend. It seemed that Willow would never be able to cast off the shadow of her father’s absence. However, two months after her marriage, Hongju became a widow. Rumors circulated that the groom’s family had concealed the fact that he was sick, or that her father had been so eager to form an alliance with a yangban family that he had concealed the fact that a fortune-teller had said that their horoscopes showed that they were incompatible.

 Tradition dictated that once a woman was married, she “buried her bones” in that house forever. When Willow thought of Hongju, she was reminded of an embroidery left bloodstained after her needle pricked her finger. No matter how well the embroidery was done, it was useless once it was stained. In a flash, through no fault of her own, Hongju’s destiny had become that of a bloodstained embroidery.

 Willow sometimes felt guilty wondering whether her friend’s misfortune might have been caused by her own negative attitude, because she had disliked seeing her get married. “How will she spend her whole life in that household without a child?” Willow sighed as she sewed. Her mother had long been in the habit of saying that if it had not been for the children, she would have thrown herself over the Maebongsan Mountain waterfall long ago.

 “Stop sighing,” said Mrs. Yun as she cut a knotted thread. “That’s just Hongju’s destiny.”

 It turned out not to be the case. Hongju returned to her parents’ house shortly after her husband died, thanks to a divination by the Surijae shaman, who declared that if a young widow remained in the house, a yet greater disaster might befall them. Not only Hongju’s in-laws, but even her own family reckoned that her husband had died because of her. There was also a rumor in the village that Wealthy An had offered his in-laws a large sum, enough for them to live on, in return for bringing Hongju home.

On the evening she went to see Hongju for the first time after her return, Willow’s heart and steps were heavy. Willow had grown up seeing her widowed mother. More tenacious than the suffering of the one who had lost her husband was the wide-spread gossip about the woman who had devoured his vitality. The title of “widow” that she would have to bear like a yoke all her life was like the name of a great crime.

 As Willow made her way to Hongju’s house, combining her own sorrow with Hongju’s misfortune, she imagined all kinds of sad things. She prepared to hug her friend and cry. As she entered the gate, she could not help being struck by the sight of Hongju’s mother’s grief-stricken face. She seemed to lack the energy to say anything, merely greeting her with a look and nodding in the direction of Hongju’s room. When she saw Hongju’s elegant leather shoes lying on the stone step in front of the room, she felt tears rising. Willow left her straw sandals beside them and entered the room.

 Hongju, wearing mourning dress and with her hair in a bun, sat in the darkened room with one knee raised. She didn’t look around even though she knew that Willow was there. Her hus- band had died two months after the marriage. It was as though her whole world had collapsed. Willow, sympathizing with her friend’s unfortunate situation, scarcely daring to breathe, sat down next to her. A housemaid, coming in behind her, put down a plate of dried persimmons and looked briefly at Hongju. Once she had left the room, Willow prepared to speak.

 Just then, Hongju shook out her skirts and relaxed her formal posture, lowering her knee. With both fists resting on her crossed legs, she gave vent to her fury. “That guy had always been sick. I didn’t kill him, so I don’t see why I should stay locked in here like a criminal. If his family had not turned me out, what would have become of me? If I had to spend my whole life in that house, I would have suffocated to death.”

 Hongju was unlike any widow that Willow had ever seen. As Hongju spat out without hesitation ideas that she had barely dared formulate, Willow felt relieved. She was right. Even if someone became a widow, even if the children were left fatherless, it was not their fault.

 “That’s what I think, too. They did well to turn you out.” Willow and Hongju hugged and laughed, instead of crying. Without knowing that, Hongju’s mother, fearing that her daughter might reach some bad decision on account of her changed situation, asked Mrs. Yun to let Willow visit her every day.

Once again, as before, Willow and Hongju sat embroidering or chatting together or reading novels. The only thing that had changed was that Hongju now had experience of a man, so her words were more forthright.

 “I got through the first night as best I could because it was my first time. Having read love stories, I was better prepared than that sickly bridegroom smelling of milk. He was shaking so much he couldn’t even undo my dress. . . . Really, it was so frustrating.”

 Willow listened with red cheeks and sparkling eyes. 

This episode occurs early in the book, and gives some insight into the life of a teenaged girl in Korea a century ago.  Women's lives have changed massively since then, of course, in most parts of the world.  

Korea is somewhere I know little about, and it is interesting to learn of the Japanese  occupation which was experienced.  I had no clue about the migration of Korean workers to Hawai'i to work on sugar plantations, nor that marriages were arranged for these workers with girls from back home.  Those marriages were with the Picture Brides, who travelled to a strange land, far from their families and friends and with only a photograph to tell them about their spouses-to-be and nothing to tell them about what their new lives will be like.

This book is beautifully written and translated, and I am really enjoying reading the story, which is primarily Willow's tale, but also those of the small group of friends she makes on the way from her old life to the new.  I am learning about history and the world, women's lives and social mores and expectations.  It is good, an enriching experience. 







Monday, June 27, 2022

The Girl from Jonestown by Sharon Maas

It's my turn on the blog tour for Sharon Maas's amazing, compelling new book, The Girl from Jonestown.  This is the publishers' description of the story:
The woman looked at me, anguish brimming in her eyes. I picked up the note she’d left and read the scrawl: HELP!!! Then: Mom. Followed by a number.

A gripping and heartbreaking read, based on the true story of the Jonestown cult, one of the darkest chapters in American history.

When journalist 
Zoe Quint loses her husband and child in a tragic accident, she returns home to Guyana to heal. But when she hears cries and music floating through the trees, her curiosity compels her to learn more about the Americans who have set up camp in a run-down village nearby. Their leader, Jim Jones, dark eyed and charismatic, claims to be a peaceful man who has promised his followers paradise.

But everything changes when Zoe meets one of his followers, a young woman called Lucy, in a ramshackle grocery store. Lucy grabs Zoe’s arm, raw terror in her eyes, and passes her a note with a phone number, begging her to call her mother in America.

Zoe is determined to help Lucy, but locals warn her to stay away from the camp, and as sirens and gunshots echo through the jungle at nightfall, she knows they are right. But she can’t shake the frightened woman’s face from her mind, and when she discovers that there are young children kept in the camp, she has to act fast.

Zoe’s only route to the lost people is to get close to their leader, Jim Jones. But if she is accepted, will she be able to persuade the frightened followers to risk their lives and embark on a perilous escape under the cover of darkness? And when Jim Jones hears of her plans, could she pay the highest price of all?

A powerful and unputdownable novel inspired by the true story of Jonestown, about a woman’s brave attempt to save people who were promised paradise but found only lies. Fans of Where the Crawdads SingBefore We Were Yours and The Girls will be captivated by The Girl from Jonestown.So, what did I think?  I really enjoyed this book and found it an informative read.  I recall that I once worked with a woman from Guyana and had never bothered to look the country up on the map, but now I discovered that it is on the Caribbean shore of South America.  The descriptions of the location are colourful and evocative so that reading conveyed a strong and vivid sense of place.  The main character, Zoe Quint, has returned home after a period of world travel to escape a personal tragedy, so she sees her homeland with fresh eyes.  The secretive new settlement of Jonestown, deep in the jungle, is the subject of local conjecture and fascination.  When Zoe meets one of its members while shopping in town, her interest is piqued, especially as the woman attempts to communicate with her and it appears that she is not a willing participant.  This woman clearly feels that not all in the community can be trusted, and Zoe has to discover who she can trust, as well as how she can help.The Jamestown Massacre is well documented, and this is a fascinating fictionalised story based on what happened there.  It is historic, but also a thriller, and a very human tale.  Zoe puts herself in danger when she uses her status as a renowned freelance journalist to gain access to this community.  There's suspense aplenty and the pace is well maintained.  The Girl from Jonestown is an interesting and exciting story which I very much enjoyed.

Saturday, March 26, 2022

My Mother's Gift by Steffanie Edward



Book Description:

Can your heart belong somewhere that you’ve never called home?

When Erica gets a phone call to say her mother, Ione, is ill in St Lucia, she knows she must go to her. Though the island – the place of her mother’s birth – is somewhere that Erica has never seen as her homeland.

Even when the plane touches down in the tropical paradise, with its palm trees swaying in the island breeze, the sound of accents so like her mother’s own calling loud in the air, Erica doesn’t find herself wanting to stay a moment longer than she has to.

But stepping into her mother’s house, she is shocked by what she finds. Her mother’s memory is fading, her once-immaculate house is now dirty and messy, and she’s refusing help from anyone but family. And Erica knows she must stay with her, even though it means leaving everything else behind.

What she doesn’t know is that – even as her mother’s memories get worse – Ione still has a final gift for her daughter. Because the unspoken secrets of their past are about to emerge, changing everything Erica thought she knew about her mother, her home, and who she really is…

A captivating tale of grief, love, and what it means to find home, perfect for fans of Andrea Levy, Jojo Moyes and Amanda Prowse

My thoughts:

The main character, Erica, leads a busy and fulfilling life in London.  She is the Deputy Head of her school, is good friends with her boss and knows she stands a good chance of being promoted to her post when she retires.  Her daughter, Millie, is grown and independent, leading a good life of her own.  Meanwhile her mother, Ione, has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's type dementia and chose to return to the place of her birth, St Lucia.  Erica travels to see her during school holidays, knowing that Ione's sister lives close by to keep an eye out for problems.  It is the sort of smaller community where everyone knows everyone and it is where her mother considers to be home.  However, inevitably dementia progresses and Aunt Betty phones Erica, so that she gets permission to fly out before the school holidays begin to try and sort out her mother's predicament.

Dementia is a cruel and challenging disease.  Erica is faced with difficult situations and decisions, but she also has the opportunity to reflect on what matters most in her own life and what her future holds.  

There is a strong sense of place in this book.  I have never been fortunate enough to visit St Lucia, nor indeed the Caribbean, but Steffanie Edward paints a vivid picture of life on the island and it sounds glorious: the heat, the sea, the tropical fruits and flowers.

I really enjoyed reading this story and thought it balanced loss and hope superbly.  An excellent read.



Author Bio:
Steffanie Edward was born in St Lucia, brought up in London and now straddles between the two.
Anancy, Crick-crick and other Caribbean folk stories have been a part of her life since childhood.  In her late teens, she enjoyed reading Susan Howatch and nooks on slavery.  Her absolute favourite reads have been Wild Seed by Octavia E Butler, and Woman at Point Zero by Naawal El Saadawi.
Her writing career started with short stories, five of which have been published. Her first attempt at writing a novel was over twenty years ago, whilst living and working in Abu Dhabi.  That novel, Yvette, didn't make it into print, but the main protagonist, Yvette, has muscled her way into Stephanie's debut novel, This Other Island.