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Monday, November 28, 2011

Teaser Tuesday

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Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Should be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

•Grab your current read
•Open to a random page

•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

•Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


A Corpse at St. Andrew's Chapel: The Second Chronicle of Hugh de Singleton, Surgeon

"I trailed the man to Alvescot, where he - or some other, I cannot know - lay in wait for me behind the churchyard wall. When I investigated a sound I heard from the lynch gate I was thumped across the head for my curiosity." p. 215

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

From Our Home to Yours...

Heiress by Susan May Warren



Book Description:
The beautiful heiress daughters of newspaper magnate August Price have been given everything their hearts desire. But what if they want only to be loved--without an enormous price tag attached? When one daughter pursues a desirable marriage, she secures for herself a comfortable and glamorous life. But among the duties of privilege, will she also find the happily-ever-after she seeks? Her sister rejects the trappings of wealth, choosing instead to build a new life on the still-untamed frontier. Will she find happiness in independence or discover that she's left her heart behind in New York's glittering society? Set in the opulent world of the Gilded Age, each woman discovers that being an heiress just might cost her everything--including the chance for true love.

My thoughts:
I have really enjoyed Susan May Warren's books in the last few years and I was excited to read Heiress (Daughters of Fortune). The beginning of the story reminded me of another book I had read recently set during the Gilded Age, which I found depressing. I was disappointed and almost gave up reading the book. I decided to keep going a little bit more and thankfully the book took a different turn, well actually, several different turns and by then I was hooked.

Heiress (Daughters of Fortune) is an epic story that spans quite a bit of time. Esme and Jinx are sisters whose lives take very different turns, but even though one shuns society and one thrives in it, it does not bring them happiness. Ultimately, deceit and selfishness lead to a lives of unhappiness and hopelessness. Slowly they come realize that the love of God can heal and help.

While I was reading I kept thinking that the story reminded me of a Bible story, but I couldn't put my finger on it. At the end of the book the author noted that this story an adaptation of Jacob and Esau. This is a heart-stopping story that you won't want to put down. I definitely look forward to reading more books in this series.

Monday, November 21, 2011

What's On Your Nightstand - November

What's On Your Nightstand

I have to start off saying that my intended reading for October was derailed. I couldn't read two books I had listed due to them still being on hold at the library. I also intended to read Educating the WholeHearted Child, but I replaced it with another that I want to have read by the end of this week.

Here is my list for December:



From my October Nightstand I read:
Heiress (Daughters of Fortune) - Susan May Warren
The Unquiet Bones: The First Chronicle of Hugh de Singleton, Surgeon (Hugh De Singleton 1) - Mel Starr
Treasure of the Golden Cheetah: A Jade del Cameron Mystery - Suzanne Arruda
The Wheel on the School - Meindert DeJong (review)*

I also read:
The Crocodile's Last Embrace: A Jade del Cameron Mystery - Suzanne Arruda
Heavenly Hospitality: 250+ Everyday Ideas for Welcoming Guests into Your Home (Focus on the Family Presents) - JoAnn Janssen
Letters From Home - Kristina McMorris

I listened to:
Jo's Boys - Louisa May Alcott
A Palm for Mrs. Pollifax - Dorothy Gillman
Mrs. Pollifax on Safari - Dorothy Gillman
Don Quixote (Adapted for Modern Listeners) - Miguel de Cervantes
*read aloud

See what others are reading over at 5 Minutes for Books.

Teaser Tuesday

Photobucket

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Should be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

•Grab your current read
•Open to a random page

•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

•Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!



The Tale of Castle Cottage (The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter) by Susan Wittig Albert

(Badger Rules of Thumb are not strict rules but rather guidelines for personal and community behavior that badgers have adopted in order to get along in this topsy-turvy world. They are rather like the Ten Commandments, although perhaps more frequently observed.) p.27

Saturday, November 19, 2011

The Mother's Homeschool Journal - November 14-18, 2011

Delani was helping Mom out while we had our family devotions.

In my life this week…
This week was a little more normal. We have had an invasion of pesky ants all week long which has been very annoying!

In our homeschool this week…
We are closing in on the end of Term 1.

Caleb decided he was behind in his free reading and whipped through The Dragon and the Raven by G.A. Henty and Pushcart War by Jean Merrill. He left me pleasantly surprised!

Chantry and Destini finished The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald, which they absolutely loved. They also started Exploring Creation with Zoology 2: Swimming Creatures of the Fifth Day. Chantry will be doing the Junior Journal and Destini will be using the regular Journal.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…
This great article by Sally Clarkson. Convicting and inspiring!

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…
We topped the week off with an afternoon at the bowling alley with our homeschool group. Delani was thrilled that she could bowl!

My favorite thing this week was…
Watching Delani bowl--too cute!

Things I’m working on…
Getting my plans read for our next term. I have one kids down and three to go. I also will be spending time in the kitchen getting ready for Thanksgiving, though Costco's Pumpkin Pies are really calling my name.

I'm also hoping to do some sewing and then planning out my Black Friday shopping trip.

I’m reading…


I’m grateful for…
My family!

A photo, video, link, or quote to share…


The Homeschool Mother's Journal

See what others are doing over at The Homeschool Chick.

Friday, November 18, 2011

Book Review: The Alastair Trilogy by Georgette Heyer



These Old Shades-Book Description:
Set in the Georgian period, about 20 years before the Regency, These Old Shades is considered to be the book that launched Heyer's career. It features two of Heyer's most memorable characters: Justin Alastair, the Duke of Avon, and Leonie, whom he rescues from a life of ignomy and comes to love and marry.

The Duke is known for his coldness of manner, his remarkable omniscience, and his debauched lifestyle. Late one evening, he is accosted by a young person dressed in ragged boy's clothing running away from a brutal rustic guardian. The Duke buys "Leon" and makes the child his page. "Leon" is in fact Leonie, and she serves the Duke with deep devotion. When he uncovers the true story of her birth, he wreaks an unforgettable revenge on her sinister father in a chilling scene of public humiliation.
Devil's Cub-Book Description:
Devil's Cub is one of Georgette Heyer's most famous and memorable novels, featuring a dashing and wild young nobleman and the gently bred young lady in whom he finally meets his match?

Like father, like son?
Dominic Alistair, Marquis of Vidal and fiery son of the notorious Duke of Avon, has established a rakish reputation that rivals his father's, living a life of excess and indulgence. Banished to the Continent after wounding his opponent in a duel, Vidal schemes to abduct the silly aristocrat bent on seducing him into marriage and make her his mistress instead. In his rush, however, he seems to have taken the wrong woman?

A young lady of remarkable fortitude?
Determined to save her sister from ruin, virtuous Mary Challoner intercepts the Marquis's advances and throws herself into his path, hoping Vidal will release her upon realizing his error. But as the two become irrevocably entangled, Mary's reputation and future lie in the hands of a devilish rake, who finds her more fascinating every day.
Infamous Army: A Novel of Wellington, Waterloo, Love and War -Book Description:
IN THE SUMMER OF 1815, with Napolean Bonaparte marching down from the north, Brussels is a whirlwind of parties, balls and soirees. In the swirling social scene surrounding the Duke of Wellington and his noble aides de camp, no one attracts more attention than the beautiful, outrageous young widow Lady Barbara Childe. On their first meeting, dashing Colonel Charles Audley proposes to her, but even their betrothal doesn't calm her wild behavior. Finally, with the Battle of Waterloo raging just miles away, civilians fleeing and the wounded pouring back into the town, Lady Barbara discovers where her heart really lies, and like a true noblewoman, she rises to the occasion, and to the demands of love, life and war...
My thoughts:
I recently read the Alastair Trilogy by Georgette Heyer. I bought These Old Shades and Devil's Cub for my Kindle and discovered later that there was a third book, Infamous Army: A Novel of Wellington, Waterloo, Love and War . Since I have a thing for series, I had to read them all!

I found These Old Shades to be a slower Heyer read. It took awhile to for the action to happen. I think this had a lot to do with being set in the Georgian period.  Once the plot was all laid out then the action surfaced it was an enjoyable read.

Devil's Cub is Heyer at her finest! Filled with her classic witty dialogue, this story starts off with a bang and just keeps going. This was a hard book to put down.

Infamous Army: A Novel of Wellington, Waterloo, Love and War was a very different Heyer novel. I would definitely classify this as a historical novel. At first it took me a while to figure out how Lady Barbara Childe, the heroine, fit into the Alastair family. Then when I got to the description of the actual battle of Waterloo my brain was spinning. So it sounds like I hated it, right? Actually, no. When I reached the final page I felt perfectly satisfied with the story.
Infamous Army: A Novel of Wellington, Waterloo, Love and War is a more meatier novel that shows the folly of deceit, the beauty of forgiveness, and survival of the human spirit in a time of war.

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