BOOK REVIEW: Daughters of Shandong by Eve J. Chung

Daughters of Shandong by Eve J. Chung is the next book pick for our historical fiction/history book club. Based on the life of the author’s grandmother, it takes the reader into the mid-20th-century world of the Chinese civil war, during the Communist takeover.

The protagonist, Hai, is the eldest daughter in the wealthy, rural, land-owning Ang family, in a world where daughters are considered worse than useless. They are a drain on the family finances and are treated as such. Because Hai’s mother has birthed only daughters, the matriarch of the family, the brutal Nai Nai, treats her with contempt, forcing her to do hard labor and using physical punishment for any perceived infraction. Nai Nai is so monstrous as to seem inhuman. Hai’s spineless father is scarcely any better and is more of a nonentity.

As the Communist army approaches the Angs’ rural town, the family flees to safety, leaving Hai, her sisters, and her mother behind “to guard the family home.” As if the presence of a woman and a couple of girls could stop the army. Given the awfulness of Hai’s family and the disregard of the Angs for the peasants they have exploited and practically starved, it’s difficult to tell who the real villains are. But it is clear that Hai’s mother was good to the peasant farmers, and that helps protect the Hai women from worse as they are thrown off the land. (Although first, Hai is tortured in her father’s stead.)

A story of resilience in the face of grinding poverty and loss follows, as Hai and her mother and sisters make their way to the big city where they hope to be anonymous, then to refugee camps in Hong Kong, and finally to Taiwan. The novel delves into Chinese culture and 20th-century history, and so was an interesting look at those topics. It reminded me in some ways of The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck, being as infuriating as it was fascinating.

BOOK REVIEW: Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase

I was curious about steam levels in historical romances from the past. (Not way in the past, but recent past, like the 1990s. I can’t believe that was 30+ years ago!) I was reading romance back then, but not as often, and whatever the steam levels were did not stick in my mind.

So I read Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase, published in 1995, and based on this limited sample, I think steamy then is essentially the same as steamy now. Tropes, too, are familiar. This novel has an emotionally wounded MMC (Dain) who was shunned by his father and abandoned by his mother as a child. As an adult, he has made tons of money, but has lost himself in debauchery, convinced he is unworthy of love. His friends are all blackguards, and aristocratic society views him as the devil himself. The FMC (Jessica) is smart and determined, and refuses to be taken advantage of. But their desire for each other is instant and overpowering, and after a public indiscretion, they end up in a forced marriage. The storyline follows their road from lust to love.

There is wonderful emotional depth to the protagonists. Jessica, in particular, is a calm, pragmatic, take-charge kind of lady (even when she is shooting Dain.) Her responses to his cutting remarks are admirable, and her self-confidence make her the perfect foil for a man who lashes out to protect his own heart.

Loretta Chase is a USA Today Bestselling Author, and it’s easy to see why.

BOOK REVIEW: Isabella’s Rake by June Calvin

I received this book for free from Netgalley. That did not influence this review.

Isabella’s Rake by June Calvin is a closed-door Regency Romance adventure that will have you rooting for the strong-willed heroine and the infatuated rake.

Isabella is the granddaughter of a duchess who is determined to see her married well. Meaning to a respectable peer. But Isabella is a talented artist who wants to be mentored by someone who can teach her to do more than ladylike watercolors. She wants to paint bold landscapes. She enlists a new friend to help her dress as a boy to present herself to a famous London painter who takes students. That artist sees through her disguise and refuses to help, but another of his students, Harrison Curzon, a gentleman of the ton, is present at the encounter and agrees to take on the challenge. He understands her passion for painting despite the censure of high society because he suffers from society’s strictures as well. A gentleman might paint for entertainment, but not seriously, and definitely not to sell his artwork. Isabella comes up with a scheme so that they can meet in secret, but there is another problem: Curzon is a notorious rake. To be caught with him would be ruinous, even if painting is their most scandalous activity–and it might not be.

This delightfully entertaining novel was originally released in 1997, but has been updated for re-release on July 21. If you’re looking for a story with passion but no steam, have a look at Isabella’s Rake.

BOOK REVIEW: Lady Ferocity by Kate Archer

Lady Ferocity by Kate Archer is the first in a 7-book closed-door Regency Romance series, featuring the seven daughters of the Duke of Pelham, an eccentric nobleman living in the Yorkshire Dales. He has a poor reputation among his peers, who see him as something of a madman, which may be why he hasn’t gone to London in a long while. However, his eldest daughter is of an age to marry, and his sister, Lady Marchfield, has dragged the whole family to the city for Felicity’s season. Felicity is a naive, lovely young lady who does her best to be good-natured but is known, in her family, for having a quick temper. At her first social event, she is smitten by the handsome Earl of Rustmont and she decides he must woo her.

Mr. Percy Stratton is the only son of a newly-created viscount. His father wants him to marry  well to protect their new status. Percy, at 24 years old, sees no reason to marry any time soon. He hatches a scheme to court a lady who will soundly reject him. Hearing rumors that Pelham is “unhinged” and the daughters may be also, he resolves to make a pretense of courting Felicity. (His father will be appalled, given that the viscount cannot stand the duke.)  Seeing that she is taken with Rustmont, Percy offers to help her make the earl jealous by following her around like a lovesick swain.

Of course, readers know how the fake courtship trope turns out. But in this madcap rom-com, the journey is more than half the fun. There is a lovely supportive cast of sisters, who will each get their own stories. And there is a subplot involving their housekeeper, Mrs. Right, who rules the Pelham roost through farcical schemes of her own. There is also an encounter with a tiger!

This is a fun book, and I hope to read more in the series!

BOOK REVIEW: Corpse in the Canal by Mary Lancaster

 I received this book for free from Netgalley. That did not influence this review.

I’m an avid follower of Mary Lancaster’s historical mystery series, Silver and Grey. The latest release, Corpse in the Canal, continues the storyline of Constance Silver and Sebastian Grey, now a happily married couple, who investigate crimes in Regency England. Each story delves into different, evolving aspects of their relationship, and also brings in the love stories of some of the more peripheral characters. The emotional deep dives pull the plots along as much as the mystery.

In this novel, Silver and Grey are asked to look into the disappearance of the adult son of a wealthy gentleman from Buckinghamshire. The young man has not been gone long, but his father believes he is being lured into a relationship with a widow of whom the father (and mother) do not approve. The detecting duo are inclined to believe this is the son’s own business, but there is a suspicion of foul play and some urgency, so they agree to look into it. 

What they discover is that the young man is an awful person, with many enemies. He has left London to return home, so Silver and Grey also go to Buckinghamshire. There they find the young man has been murdered. Now, there is a true mystery to solve.

This series does not disappoint! I do recommend starting with book 1. The mysteries stand alone, but the relationship development is best understood by reading the novels in order.

BOOK REVIEW: The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout

Elizabeth Strout is one of my favorite writers. I just read The Things We Never Say, and I’m impressed all over again. A quiet book, it touches on so much that it both warms and breaks your heart at the same time.

The main character is Artie Dam, a high school history teacher living in a Massachusetts coastal town. He loves his job. He cares about his students, and they are all, in some way or another, inspired by him. He is married, with an adult son. He has friends and colleagues. But Artie is lonely.

The book deals with loneliness. With inability to connect. With depression. And with damaging secrets. As the novel progresses, one secret unfolds after another, not just in Artie’s life, but in the lives of everyone around him. Can no one truly connect because everyone has something to hide? There are moments of exquisite joy, but the joy fades. Resentment takes over. And finally, resignation is all that is left.

And yet, the novel comes back to the impact of Artie’s life, and the way he touched the lives of those around him.

I highly recommend this book. And all of Strout’s books.

BOOK REVIEW: Margery & Me by Maryka Biaggio

Where do you stand on the supernatural, the occult? Did you ever play with a Ouija board as a kid? Ever get a shiver of fear about a ghost nearby, even though you don’t believe in ghosts? What about communication with the dead?

Margery & Me by Maryka Biaggio takes us right to the heart of turn-of-the-20th-century Spiritualism, when séances conducted by mediums were all the rage, and their veracity was hotly debated. This novel tells the story of Margery (Mina) Crandon, a Boston native, who was considered one of the most convincing mediums of her day. Along with her husband, Dr. Roy Crandon, she performed séances for years, subjecting herself to intense scrutiny by scientists, journalists, believers, and unbelievers, who consistently failed to find proof-positive evidence of fraud. Her greatest nemesis was Harry Houdini, who was determined to expose her. (Whether he succeeded or not is the question.)

Biaggio cleverly sidesteps the natural skepticism of readers by having the narrator be Margery’s deceased older brother, Walter. It is Walter’s desire to contact Margery that sets in motion her foray into Spiritualism. He is the one who takes charge during the séances and who supports her against the bullying of her husband and those who would discredit her powers.

It’s a fast-paced read with a sympathetic but imperfect protagonist. And while I remain a skeptic, as long as I was in Margery and Walter’s world, I wanted to believe.