The Kitchen Boy

Review of The Kitchen Boy: A Novel of the Last Tsar by Robert Alexander

Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: Drawing from decades of work, travel, and research in Russia, Robert Alexander re-creates the tragic, perennially fascinating story of the final days of Nicholas and Alexandra Romanov as seen through the eyes of their young kitchen boy, Leonka. Now an ancient Russian immigrant, Leonka claims to be the last living witness to the Romanovs’ brutal murders and sets down the dark secrets of his past with the imperial family. Does he hold the key to the many questions surrounding the family’s murder? Historically vivid and compelling, The Kitchen Boy is also a touching portrait of a loving family that was in many ways similar, yet so different, from any other.

My Review:

Today we have the story of the boy who witnessed the demise and execution of the entire Romanov family. This is the fictional account of the author through his main character, a boy named Leonka.

The boy named Leonka grew up to become a man named Misha and Misha immigrated, along with his wife, to the United States. He was/is fabulously wealthy thanks to a stash of Romanov jewels that he managed to bring away from the scene of the crime.

And now, when he is old and dying, he decides to come clean about his involvement in the crime as well as his failure to protect the family.

Before committing suicide, he sits down with a tape recorder and details his confession of what happened during those last days of the Romanov’s and their heirs. His role in the House of Special Purpose and in their death is detailed for her to hear, after he has gone.

But when she returns to Russia, his granddaughter, Katya, has more questions than answers. This is her real purpose in visiting Russia and not simply to carry out her grandfather’s last wishes.

The main story however is almost entirely in Misha’s voice. His version of events is what we read even as Katya will later hear it on tape.

And how we want to believe it, that every word on the tape is true though throughout the story we are told that Dear Misha is holding something back, but what?

We obviously have an unreliable main character here, yet even as he tells his story he feels some sense of relief and absolution somehow in this altered version of what actually happened. We don’t really understand though how this is possible. More importantly, like Katya, we want to know what the real version of these events is.

The characters here seem very real though I don’t know much about the assassination of the Romanov family except that they were gunned down like dogs to make way for Lenin’s rise to power and that has always bugged me. Even if the Czar himself is partly to blame for his own downfall.

Still it is tragic in a Romeo and Juliet kind of way. So the story is a good one. It makes you think. It makes you wonder.

The only downside to this story is some of the language and the violence. If you can look past this though, it is worth a read.

Under a War-Torn Sky

Review of Under a War-Torn Sky by L.M. Elliott

Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: When Henry Forester is shot down during a bombing run over France,the World War II pilot finds himself trapped behind enemy lines. In constant danger of discovery by German soldiers, Henry begins a remarkable journey to freedom. Relying on the kindness of strangers, Henry moves from town to town—traveling by moonlight, never asking questions, or even the names of the people who help him along the way. Each day brings him closer to home, yet every step in enemy territory invites new dangers.

Even as Henry fights for his own life, he quickly grows to realize the peril that surrounds all of the French people, and to admire the courage of the freedom fighters who risk death to protect him. Suspenseful and achingly true, this critically-acclaimed and deeply beloved novel explores the heartbreak of war, the strength of human spirit, and one young man's struggle to protect the things he loves.

My Review:

File this one under a recommendation from a fellow writer who was critiquing my own work. My story comes from the same era (World War II) and involves speakers of a foreign language but that is where the similarities end. Still I was intrigued.

This story is also in the YA or Young Adult genre which includes pretty much any genre that you can find for adults, just written for a younger audience. So in this case we have a YA Historical Fiction story.

Our main character is a young American pilot named Henry. He comes from a farm somewhere in Virginia. The war of course is a change of pace for him but what changes his life most dramatically when his plane is hit and he parachutes out in the middle of Switzerland.

After being treated in the hospital he is given the choice between spending the rest of the war in Switzerland or trying to escape through France. He chooses the latter and that is when his new adventures begin.

Dependent on the kindness of strangers, he must play an unwitting game of hide and seek with the SS who would love nothing better than torture and intimidate him into giving up those who helped him.

I enjoyed this story quite a bit. It was well-fleshed out as were the characters in it which surprised me somewhat as those characters were constantly changing as Henry tries to make his way North and hopefully to England or the Allies.

Henry was my favorite and he carried the story well. I can honestly say that reading this one was one of the few times where I could remember a story that could not be filed under the heading of Christian fiction and yet had such a positive and consistent character main character who claimed himself as a Christian. I found it refreshing.

The only downside for me was the crazy amount of dialogue that was mostly in French. The author did translate things that were important but some pieces of dialogue were left untranslated. I was able to figure out some of it based on my limited knowledge of French as well as my Italian but sometimes trying to figure it out slowed me down.

On the other hand, it did give the dialogue a bit of authenticity. I am just thinking that maybe it was a bit overdone.

As you might have guessed, it didn’t stop me from reading it to completion. Ms. Elliot’s story is an exciting one that I would have no hesitation in recommending to younger readers as well.

Contains: some war violence

Tuscan Rose

Review of Tuscan Rose by Belinda Alexandra

Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: FLORENCE, 1914. A mysterious stranger known as The Wolf leaves an infant with the sisters of Santo Spirito. A tiny silver key hidden in her wrappings is the one clue to the child’s identity. . . . FIFTEEN YEARS LATER, young Rosa must leave the nuns, her only family, and become governess to the daughter of an aristocrat and his strange, frightening wife. Their house is elegant but cursed, and Rosa—blessed with gifts beyond her considerable musical talents—is torn between her desire to know the truth and her fear of its repercussions. All the while, the hand of Fascism curls around beautiful Italy, and no citizen is safe. Rosa faces unimaginable hardship: her only weapons her intelligence, intuition, and determination . . . and her extraordinary capacity for love.

My Review:

First off, I must apologize for not putting out a review last week. The book I am reviewing was long and it took me a while to finish it. Which by the way is no reflection on the book itself, although there were some points where I was tempted to stop (more on that later), as much as it was on my schedule for that week. I am currently registering for school as I am returning to university for some graduate work in Technical Writing. Applying to be considered a resident student was more difficult than a thought it would be.

But without any further ado, let’s get to this week’s story. As you can imagine, this week’s story takes place in Tuscany and our main character is a girl/woman named Rose. As an infant, a man appears at the convent of Spirito Santo to leave her to be raised by the nuns.

The story starts and the very beginning and goes at least half way through her life I think but all the elements of a good story are there. We have first the mystery of Rose’s origins. The man who has left her at the convent left his charge with only a key as a hint to her birthright.

She grows up there surprisingly happy until she is told by one of the nuns that she must leave. And that is when most of her troubles begin.

The Marchese of the Villa Scarfiotti has hired her as a governess for his daughter Clementina and from the get-go it is clear that his wife, the Marchesa, intensely dislikes her along with almost everyone else. And there seems to be a very evil force at work. A force that eventually gets her labeled as enemy of the new Fascists state and compels her to leave her beloved Clementina.

As World War II progresses things get gradually worse for both Rosa and the majority of the Italian population who live and sometimes die at the whim of Mussolini and his black shirts. It seems that she goes from one problem to the next but manages to keep her style and dignity while trying to discover the history of her past.

I liked most of the story as I said earlier because it was in Italy and I appreciated that it covered a part of Italy’s history that I previously knew little about. I did not realized exactly how much the citizens of Florence suffered under the Mussolini government as well as under German occupation.

I liked Rosa for the most part but there were times when the things that she did bothered me. I mean I know people aren’t perfect but sometimes it was hard to like her. It probably had a lot to do with the love triangle part of the story since I have never been a fan of love triangles.

The other characters had their intended feel I am guessing. The Marchesa and Osvaldo creeped me out while I couldn’t help but also like Clementina.

This story also relied on the supernatural quite a bit as we discover early on that Rosa has the ability to sense the origin of items, especially those that once were alive such as the fur coats. That was an interesting twist to the story as well and it fooled me a bit as to which direction the story was going.

There is some language in the story but most of the words are in Italian so I don’t know if that will offend anyone. There are also two sex scenes which account for the two times that I almost stopped reading. One in particular bothered me a bit but I kept reading in an effort to find out the end of both the story of Rosa and the city of Florence.

So in the end, I am recommending it but with the above caveats. It is a unique and interesting story. Give it a try.

The Crown in the Heather

Review of The Crown in the Heather by N. Gemini Sasson

Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: Love and loyalty. Betrayal and murder. What is the cost of a crown?

In 1290, Scotland is without a king. Two families - the Bruces and the Balliols - vie for the throne.

Robert the Bruce is in love with Elizabeth de Burgh, the daughter of an adherent of the ruthless Longshanks, King of England. In order to marry her and not give up his chances of someday becoming King of Scots, Robert must abandon his rebel ways and bide his time as Longshanks' vassal.

But Edward, Longshanks' heir, doesn't trust the opportunistic Scotsman and vows to one day destroy him. While quietly plotting his rebellion, Robert is betrayed by one of his own and must flee Longshanks' vengeance.

Aided by the unlikely brilliance of the soft-spoken young nobleman, James Douglas, Robert battles for his throne. Victory, though, is never certain and Robert soon learns that keeping his crown may mean giving up that which he loves most-his beloved Elizabeth.

My Review:

This week’s story, like many, is the first in series (probably a trilogy). It was free when I got it on Barnes & Noble’s website. And last I checked it is still free now as an e-book.

Our story opens with Robert the Bruce and primarily features his point of view. Although some of the action shows Robert as a young man, most of it takes places as he is aging. The narrative seems to take off when he crosses his father by deciding that he will no longer be Longshanks’ man—think Braveheart because that is exactly the time period we are talking about.

Later Robert changes sides briefly to be with the woman he loves and to stay alive. It is not enough to put him back in his father’s good graces even if he thinks he is only doing what he thinks is best for his beloved Scotland.

Robert along with another main character, James Douglas, another Scottish noble, knows what it means to play both sides of the fence. Unfortunately James Douglas also sees what happens to those who double cross Longshanks when Longshanks kills his father.

Our final main character, the one I liked the least, is Longshanks’s son, also named Edward I think. We get an idea of the hatred between father and son from the get go as Edward refers to his father as his “sire.” It struck me as a rather cold name for a father and as I read further and further into the book, I believed that this was the author’s intention.

The writing was well done. I kept turning pages and wondering what was to happen next and yet the language seemed respectful of the time period it came from. Also, two out of the three protagonists were likable. The third was someone I felt sorry for but not enough to find him likable. He seemed as cruel as his father was and was not able to turn his bad childhood experiences into something positive the way that Douglas did.

I learned a lot from this story. The thing I appreciated the most was learning about Marjorie Bruce, Robert’s daughter. I didn’t know she had even existed. Her relationships with her father and step mother were beautifully portrayed here.

The story took me on a great ride and it was nice to see someone other than Mel Gibson as William Wallace as well, even if it is only in this story. I recommend this one as a great read and not too much bad language though there is some. There is also some violence, as well as attempted rape.

Two Reviews for the Price of One

First up: The Eyes That Moved (short story) by Rachelle M. N. Shaw

Overview from www.amazon.com: Kendra is a young girl who has a knack for spotting unusual trinkets and abandoned houses that hold treasures of their own. When she meets Adam, a fellow sleuth and collector, they decide to embark on their biggest adventure yet: the Whitson house. The house is a marvel, and its secrets are even juicier than Kendra had imagined. The third and final floor of the house holds something Kendra has been waiting a lifetime for. But she may have signed on for more than she bargained. There’s a darkness in the house that wasn’t there before, a pair of eyes in every corner, watching, waiting for her time to come. And Adam isn’t at all who he claimed to be.

My Review:

This story was given to me to review by a fellow writer in any way I see fit so I’ll begin with this one. Our main character, a girl named Kendra, likes old houses and has a date with another young man to explore one close to her neighborhood.

At first she finds no one there. She begins looking around and finds an old family tree that fascinates her for a while but her friend Adam wants her to move on.

That’s when she finds the creepy dolls and the truth about why she has been brought there. But is it too late?

I don’t usually review short stories but I was approached by someone on Facebook and I agreed. I am glad that I did because I thought it was really well-done. For those who like supernatural stories that are not too scary, it is perfect.

Review of  Caledonii: Birth of a Celtic Nation by Ian Hall

Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: The year is 69 AD, and the Romans have been lords of the southern part of Britain for over twenty years, but their roads stretch forever northwards. Knowing their armies will one day march on these roads, the Brigante King Venutius decides to send two of his young sons further north to safety.

Sewell, a northern druid, is given the task. He must first locate the boys, then get them safe to his homeland in the Caledonii nation.

It is a dangerous journey into hostile lands
He cannot fail.

My Review:

The next story for review was slightly longer but I think it was just designed as a teaser to get the reader into the series. And, as I suspected, at the end of the story there was a blurb about reading more books in this series.

But was it good enough for me to even consider that? The answer is a resounding yes. I hope the author is reading though because I am not sure if I can actually afford to buy future novels so if he would consider sending me a review copy I’d greatly appreciate it.

Our main character is a Druid named Sewell. The time is 69 AD in the South East of what would one day become Scotland.

His new assignment is to help a local king get his wife and children out of the area before the nasty Romans come through destroying everything in their path. And to top it off they also have to look out for their fellow monarch Cartimanda who has joined the side of the terrible Romans. She will no doubt be looking to curry favor with them.

The story combines some elements of Fantasy and the supernatural along with Historical Fiction. The writing is well-done and the characters are interesting.

Though I suppose it might not have interested me so much if it were not for my love of history and the fact that I remembered a lot of these characters (Cartimanda) from The British History Podcast.

There are some elements of sexuality but there was nothing graphic as I recall. Of course there is also some violence. Still, I found it engaging and well-done.

New Book Preview: A Baron for Becky

Genre
Regency romance, historical romance

Heat rating
R for implied sexual content, 2 out of 5 flames

Giveaway
Free copy of A Baron for Becky to random commenter

Book Blurb

Becky is the envy of the courtesans of the demi-monde - the indulged mistress of the wealthy and charismatic Marquis of Aldridge. But she dreams of a normal life; one in which her daughter can have a future that does not depend on beauty, sex, and the whims of a man.

Finding herself with child, she hesitates to tell Aldridge. Will he cast her off, send her away, or keep her and condemn another child to this uncertain shadow world?

The devil-may-care face Hugh shows to the world hides a desperate sorrow; a sorrow he tries to drown with drink and riotous living. His years at war haunt him, but even more, he doesn't want to think about the illness that robbed him of the ability to father a son. When he dies, his barony will die with him. His title will fall into abeyance, and his estate will be scooped up by the Crown.

When Aldridge surprises them both with a daring proposition, they do not expect love to be part of the bargain.

Excerpt:

PG heat level

Aldridge never did find out how he came to be naked, alone, and sleeping in the small summerhouse in the garden of a country cottage. His last memory of the night before, had him twenty miles away, and—although not dressed—in a comfortable bed, and in company.

The first time he woke, he had no idea how far he’d come, but the moonlight was bright enough to show him half-trellised window openings, and an archway leading down a short flight of steps into a garden. A house loomed a few hundred feet distant, a dark shape against the star-bright sky. But getting up was too much trouble, particularly with a headache that hung inches above him, threatening to split his head if he moved. The cushioned bench on which he lay invited him to shut his eyes and go back to sleep. Time enough to find out where he was in the morning.

When he woke again, he was facing away from the archway entrance, and there was someone behind him. Silence now, but in his memory, the sound of light footsteps shifting the stones on the path outside, followed by twin intakes of breath as the walkers saw him.

One of them spoke; a woman’s voice, but low—almost husky. “Sarah, go back to the first rosebush and watch the house.”

“Yes, Mama.” A child’s voice.

Aldridge waited until he heard the child dance lightly down the steps and away along the path, then shifted his weight slightly letting his body roll over till he was lying on his back.

He waited for the exclamation of shock, but none came. Carefully—he wanted to observe her before he let her know he was awake, and anyway, any sudden movement might start up the hammers above his eye sockets—he cracked open his lids, masking his eyes with his lashes.

He could see more than he expected. The woman was using a shuttered lantern to examine him, starting at his feet. She paused for a long time when she reached his morning salute and it grew even prouder. Then she swept her light up his torso so quickly, he barely had time to slam his lids shut before the light reached and lingered over his face.

She was just a vague shadow behind the light. He held himself still while she completed her examination, which she did with a snort of disgust. Not the reaction to which he was accustomed.

Author bio
Jude Knight writes strong determined heroines, heroes who can appreciate a clever capable woman, villains you’ll love to loathe, and all with a leavening of humour.

Jude Knight is the pen name of Judy Knighton. After a career in commercial writing, editing, and publishing, Jude is returning to her first love, fiction. Her novella, Candle’s Christmas Chair, was released in December 2014, and is in the top ten on several Amazon bestseller lists in the US and UK. Her first novel Farewell to Kindness, was released on 1 April. It is number one in a series: The Golden Redepennings. 

Desecration

Review of Desecration by J. F. Penn 

Overview from www.barnesandnoble.com: Death isn't always the end.

LONDON. When the body of a young heiress is found within the Royal College of Surgeons, Detective Sergeant Jamie Brooke is assigned to the case. An antique ivory figurine found beside the body is the only lead and she enlists Blake Daniel, a reluctant clairvoyant, to help her discover the message it holds.

When personal tragedy strikes, Jamie finds her own life entwining with the morbid fascinations of the anatomists, and she must race against time to stop them claiming another victim.

As Jamie and Blake delve into a macabre world of grave robbery, body modification, and the genetic engineering of monsters, they must fight to keep their sanity, and their lives.

My Review:

I return to another book by J. F. Penn with the novel, Desecration, which by the way is a very appropriate title considering some of the things that happen in this book.

Our main character is a young woman named Jamie who is also a police officer. But we don’t begin with Jamie the police officer. Instead we first glimpse the Jamie who is the mother of a dying child. This is a side of her life that she keeps secret from most of her colleagues.

She the children’s hospice for work, hoping to leave the disturbing images of her daughter dying behind. When she gets her next case though, all she gets is even more death, and we are not just talking about the murder victim, Jenna.

Digging deeper into the murder victim’s investigations she finds out about the underside of a morbid death worship type culture. One suspect, the love interest of Jenna’s, makes a living by posing dead bodies in provocative positions and then selling them to the highest bidder.

Others, Jenna’s parents, use the dead bodies for the advancement of science. At least that is what they claim but after seeing the freakish specimen’s in jars at a local museum Jamie begins to wonder how any of this can be legal.

For me it seemed to be more of a cautionary tale about how even art and science can go too far in their effort for pleasure and the greater good. This is what could happen when someone makes art or even science their god. The ends can justify the means in the eyes of such people and even make them forget their own humanity.

I will warn you. This story is macabre and downright creepy but there are some scary possibilities. I hope I don’t live to see this reality but it is something to think about, and possibly give you nightmares. Also, like the last novel I reviewed by Penn, the language is sometimes a bit strong.

It is a good book to read if you like mystery and thriller novels that make you think, and if you can stomach the dark aspects of it. In fact, you might not want to read this when you are eating. It is up to you.

I am not really sure whether I want to recommend this one or not. Just remember, you have been warned.