BOOK REVIEW: Rock Bottom, Tennessee and Rock Bottom Rising by Kimberly Nixon

I just about never read a series out of order, but this time, I did. Reading the sequel made me determined to read book one.

(Book one) Rock Bottom, Tennessee by Kimberly Nixon is a poignant story of poverty and loss set in the Appalachian mountains in the early 1900s. In the argument between nature and nurture, the story comes down squarely on the side of nurture. The protagonist, Ruby Sullivan, was a sweet little girl, but she is subjected to a painfully hard life. Her father died the night she was born, her mother abandoned her, her brothers left home as soon as they were able, and she was brought up by her resentful grandparents. She grew up with very low self esteem and an underdeveloped sense of right and wrong.

Ruby is beautiful. She’s gifted with intelligence and a will to succeed, but little opportunity to do so. During her childhood, she excelled at schoolwork, but was often pulled from class to help on her grandparents’ farm. She had one friend, Leon, a similarly disadvantaged boy who worked part-time for her grandfather. And she had one supporter, Joseph MacCallum, the schoolteacher, who first comes to admire her smarts and her resilience, and then, falls in love with her.

Readers will sympathize with Ruby’s plight, her grasp at stability, and her inability to accept love that’s freely given. When tragedy strikes, Ruby throws caution to the wind and reaches for excitement and happiness in a self-destructive way, piling up one poor choice after another.

Based on the life-story of the author’s grandmother, Rock Bottom, Tennessee fits the story into its setting in a way that draws you in, and then tugs at your heartstrings.

The sequel, Rock Bottom Rising, is what I read first, and I highly recommend it also. Here’s my review:

Prepare to be inspired by this Depression-Era-to-WWII novel based on the adventures of the author's fascinating grandmother. Ruby Sullivan Ross, a resilient woman haunted by her past mistakes, must continually reinvent herself as she journeys from poverty, poor decisions, and dependence on crooked men to a promising life of self-sufficiency and self-respect. In Rock Bottom Rising, Nixon brings us a powerful tale of sacrifice, regret, and the redemptive power of forgiveness. Readers will feel Ruby's pain and root for her rise.

BOOK REVIEW: Disraeli: The Victorian Dandy Who Became Prime Minister by Christopher Hibbert

 Here is an example of how I tend to over-research. I’m thinking of setting my next historical romance in the late Victorian era rather than Regency England. I’ve been reading about customs, dress, etc. It’s a very broad time period (1837-1901) with a lot of world-changing events and technological advances. A while ago, I read Victorious Century: The United Kingdom, 1800-1906 by David Cannadine, which gave an overview, primarily of the political history. But now I wanted to zero in and focus more on the years around 1875.

So, I decided to read the relevant sections of Disraeli: The Victorian Dandy Who Became Prime Minister by Christopher Hibbert, a biography of Benjamin Disraeli. But I’m rarely ever able to read relevant sections. I need all the context to understand what’s going on. I ended up reading the whole thing.

The book is an interesting take on the prime minister, focusing more on his life than on his politics. Disraeli was supposedly a brilliant speaker and a clever politician. He was also a novelist. Hibbert quotes extensively from Disraeli’s letters, and I got the sense that Disraeli was more convinced of his own brilliance and eloquence than others were. Except for Queen Victoria, who he flattered shamelessly until he became a favorite.

He really sounds insufferable in his early life. By the time he was middle-aged, he’d lost much of his flamboyance and settled into more of a statesmanlike lifestyle. I didn’t get much of a sense of his politics, but that could be because his political aims were power for himself rather than any principled stance on issues. At least, that is the impression from this biography. Rather than outlining his politics, Hibbert quotes letters that list the country houses he visited and the dinner parties he attended. Which ladies he favored. And what a fine impression he was sure that he’d made. 

It isn’t what I was expecting from a biography, but it was nevertheless fascinating. It didn’t inspire me to dig up Disraeli’s novels, but it does make me want to read a biography of his arch-nemesis, Gladstone. 

BOOK REVIEW: A Governess Should Never Tempt a Prizefighter by Emily Windsor

A Governess Should Never Tempt a Prizefighter by Emily Windsor is an engaging (and steamy) romp through the world of prize fighting in the Regency Era.

Mathilda Griffin is a young lady in trouble. Her parents are dead and her guardian means to marry her off to an elderly lecher. Although her life up till now has been sheltered, she has the gumption to run away to save herself from a miserable future. She applies for the position of governess to the 13-year-old daughter of a famous prizefighter.

Seth Hawkins is a self-made man who climbed out of the Rookery by means of prizefighting. He was a renowned champion, so when he opens a boxing academy he has no trouble attracting members from up and down the social scale, even including a number of dukes. Despite the violence of his younger days and his profession, he’s a soft-hearted man, particularly when it comes to his daughter. And when Miss Griffin confesses the real reason she’s applying for the position of governess, he can’t help hiring her. (Her physical attractiveness is another reason.)

Mathilda is thrilled by the introduction to the world Seth inhabits, which is nothing at all like the world she comes from. Seth is enchanted by her enthusiasm. The reader is also introduced to a side of Regency London that is not usually seen in Regency Romance.

The protagonists progress from intense physical attraction to an appreciation of each other’s other qualities. And when Mathilda’s guardian finds her, Mathilda and Seth have to band together to protect each other and the love they have found.

This is an interesting take on the trope of “falling for the governess.” Generally, the MMC is a lord and the governess is either a commoner or a lady down on her luck. A male protagonist from the Rookery finding love with an impoverished gentlewoman is a fun twist.

BOOK REVIEW: The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

Our book group’s next pick is The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride. 

The novel begins with a prologue set in 1972, when a skeleton and a mezuzah are found in a well – a murder mystery. But then Hurricane Agnes hits, any possible additional evidence is destroyed, and any possible witnesses scatter.

The novel then begins again, about 50 years earlier. A story is told about the inhabitants of Chicken Hill, a poor neighborhood of Pottstown, PA. It is a community of Black and Jewish residents, primarily Jewish immigrants. Most of the earlier Jewish residents have moved down the hill into Pottstown to be more “American.” The people largely self-segregate, but there is a connection between the two groups. Moshe owns a dance and music hall and often brings in Black musicians. He hires Black workers. But the main point of connection is Moshe’s wife, Chona, who runs The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, endlessly extending goodwill and credit. Everyone loves Chona.

The plot loosely revolves around a teenage boy who was deafened in an accident in his home. His mother has recently died, and he has gone to live with his Uncle Nate and Aunt Addie. Nate does odd jobs and works for Moshe (and he has a secret past). Because the boy is deaf, he no longer goes to school. Presumably, this is how he was reported to the government. Now, the government keeps sending men to carry him off to Pennhurst, which everyone knows is a horrific institution. The Chicken Hill community bind together to, first, hide him, and then, rescue him. 

Along the way, the reader is introduced to a whole host of characters. New characters keep coming out of the woodwork, bringing in their involved backstories to help explain their roles in the increasingly complicated narrative. At times, it reads as a string of character sketches in search of a plot. Nevertheless, McBride ties it all together in the end as the murder victim and murderer are revealed. The murder mystery is the framework, but it is the character sketches that are the heart and soul of the work, showing the full range of human goodness, flaws, and evil.

BOOK REVIEW: Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout

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

Elizabeth Strout always digs deep into the hearts of her characters. They lead messy lives. They are flawed. But she portrays them and their situations with such compassion and realism that I’m always entranced. In her latest novel, Tell Me Everything, Strout returns to small-town Maine for a reunion of sorts with Olive Kitteridge, Lucy Barton, Bob Burgess, and a host of other familiar characters. Their lives are now intertwined. It is a post-pandemic world (though Covid is not entirely gone.) They’ve aged. They are, to some extent, taking stock of their lives. But they are also continuing to live those lives, encountering new dilemmas that must be resolved. There are new losses that must be adapted to. New friendships develop.

The novel dances around a murder mystery, but this is kept largely in the background. It’s not a detective story. Rather, the murder allows a more in-depth look at the type of person Bob Burgess is, as he takes on the defense of the main suspect.

More than this, the novel is about stories. Strout’s novels are always stories of people’s lives, but this book takes that one step further. Olive has heard of Lucy from Bob, and sends word that she would like to meet her to tell her a story, thinking she might be able to use it in her writing. (Lucy is a novelist.) They meet. Olive tells Lucy the story of her mother’s first love. This sets off a chain where the two meet and tell each other stories of “unrecorded lives.” The point being: everyone has a story.

The point is not an original one, but Strout does a superb job of showing the truth in this simple statement with a series of stories within the story. As always, this is a quiet book. Quietly intense. If you haven’t read Strout before, I’d recommend starting with an earlier book so that you can follow the lives of these people as they grow.

BOOK REVIEW: The Deserted Heart by Mary Lancaster

I took a dive into Mary Lancaster’s backlist and read The Deserted Heart, book 1 in her series, The Unmarriageable.

In this case, the “unmarriageable” is Charlotte, the second daughter of the Earl of Overton. Sandwiched between two very beautiful sisters, Charlotte is also disadvantaged by a small limp acquired during an illness, and a very slight stammer, that she is generally now able to control. However, she has gotten used to the idea that these deficits mean no man will pursue her, primarily because her parents and sisters constantly drive the point home. She is relegated to caring for her younger brothers, wearing hand-me-downs, and awaiting the day when she will be the spinster caring for her parents. Despite all this, she is good-natured, fun-loving, and devoted to her family.

The Overtons had been living abroad, but returned to London to salvage their poor financial state. The family is relying on the eldest daughter, Thomasina, a renowned beauty, to marry well and rescue them. Thomasina is prepared to do so, but none of her suitors has come up to scratch. Until, finally, the aloof Duke of Alvan makes his interest known. He is coming to the Overtons home to visit – and everyone knows what that means.

Alvan and Charlotte are both on their way to the Overton estate. They meet at an inn, under unusual circumstances, and find themselves confronting a mystery: the inn is entirely deserted. The staff has disappeared. They are unable to solve the mystery in their short time at the inn. But when Alvan later turns up at Charlotte’s family home to woo Thomasina, he is drawn instead to Charlotte. 

The two protagonists are genuinely interested in the mystery, but continuing to investigate also affords them an excuse to spend time together. Soon, Alvan is ready to offer for Charlotte, but she refuses him out of loyalty to her sister. Alvan leaves, devastated. He and Charlotte must then find their way back to each other.The protagonists make a great pair, and it’s a joy to see them solve the mystery and overcome the barriers keeping them apart. I’m going to have to keep going with this series!