Marrying the Prince

Absolutely loved the premise of the book. The prince wants the only girl to ever tell him no. Fantastic. 

Lots of layers to their relationship as he's a prince, and she's an employee at the palace. There's family drama all around. 

Tristan has some growing up to do, and Ms. Keanini isn't afraid to make her characters suffer to get them to grow. 

There's lots for Tristan and Jewel to unpack individually and together. 

What friends to lovers books do you like?

AMAZON 

Women fall at his feet. Except for her.

Prince Tristan Kane has a good life. Awesome friends, supportive family, a career that keeps him on his toes, and a new woman on his arm every weekend. But when he finally secures a date with the one who has always kept him at bay, Tristan begins to question if he's been wrong about love all along.

Jewel Huber is the only woman in the world to say no to Tristan Kane. And she isn't keeping him at arm's length because she dislikes him; in fact, it's the opposite. She knows as soon as she gives in to one date, he'll be gone in the wind, and she'll be nursing a broken heart.

But when their paths collide in the city of love, Jewel is swept off her feet and Tristan is left wondering what he should do--continue the way he always has or treasure the heart he's been gifted?

The Dictionary of Lost Words

This isn't my usual read, but I found the story fascinating. 

How many words have been lost from the English language because they were deemed unnecessary or too vulgar or not sophisticated enough to be included? 

This is the premise of the book, as we follow Esme from child to woman, and how words included and discarded affect her. 

The dictionary becomes her life's work. 

And through her determination to collect, she meets a variety of people she wouldn't have otherwise. 

Some relationships bring joy, and others sorrow. All bring experiences, which make up the fabric of her life. 

Be aware that some words are in the book that many label as offensive.

Thanks to Ms. Williams for all her research to craft such a layered book. 

Thanks to the audiobook narrator for breathing Esme's story to life. 

What books have you read that changed your perspective? 

AMAZON

Esme is born into a world of words. Motherless and irrepressibly curious, she spends her childhood in the Scriptorium, an Oxford garden shed in which her father and a team of dedicated lexicographers are collecting words for the very first Oxford English Dictionary. Young Esme’s place is beneath the sorting table, unseen and unheard. One day a slip of paper containing the word bondmaid flutters beneath the table. She rescues the slip and, learning that the word means “slave girl,” begins to collect other words that have been discarded or neglected by the dictionary men.

As she grows up, Esme realizes that words and meanings relating to women’s and common folks’ experiences often go unrecorded. And so she begins in earnest to search out words for her own dictionary: the Dictionary of Lost Words. To do so she must leave the sheltered world of the university and venture out to meet the people whose words will fill those pages.

Set during the height of the women’s suffrage movement and with the Great War looming, The Dictionary of Lost Words reveals a lost narrative, hidden between the lines of a history written by men. Inspired by actual events, author Pip Williams has delved into the archives of the Oxford English Dictionary to tell this highly original story. The Dictionary of Lost Words is a delightful, lyrical, and deeply thought-provoking celebration of words and the power of language to shape the world.

Dancing with the Prince

I liked the characters, the setting, and the problems that go along with meeting a incognito royal. 

All the elements of a solid romance are here. Meet cute, check. Flirting, check. Kiss, check. Tear apart, check. 

Only one problem for me, where was the ending?

The novella was so short, I missed a satisfying ending. 

Even so, I'll read another book by Ms. Larsen.

What book have you read that you wanted more of an ending to? Let me know in the comments. 

AMAZON

She's on vacation to forget her ex. He's trying to win a business contract. Can they find a happy ever after on a Mediterranean cruise?

Lindy's Mediterranean cruise is nothing like she had planned. Her cousin, who was supposed to keep her occupied and help her forget her ex ends up seasick and stays in the cabin, and Lindy is left to her own devices. When a handsome stranger with a sexy Spanish accent runs into her one night, she’s surprised he’s not as overbearing as some of the other men she’s met so far so Lindy agrees to see him the next day.

Carlos is on the cruise to convince the spoiled son of a rich investor to bring his business to Carlos’s home country of Aragonia. As the second son of the royal family, Carlos doesn’t have much free time, so meeting the beautiful American tourist is just a fun diversion. Yet the more time he spends with her, the more he wants to push his princely duties aside and enjoy the fascinating woman’s company. After news leaks out that Prince Carlos is seeing an American commoner, Lindy is shocked to learn that she’s the subject of tabloid gossip around the world. Lindy knows Prince Carlos is too far out of her league and Carlos knows he should follow the rules of his title, but are either of them brave enough to see where things could lead if they just give it a chance?

Mrs. Saint and the Defectives

 Wow. Ms. Timmer packs alot into this novel. 

To be honest, I misread the title when I pieked it up from the library. I thought it said detectives and thought I was reading a mystery. 

While I wasn't quite right, there is a mystery at the heart of this story. 

Be prepared for the emotional roller coaster provided by each of the characters as their stories unfold through Markie's lens. 

We could use a few more Mrs. Saints in the world, those people who reach out to those in need and make a difference in their lives. 

Have you ever picked up a book thinking it was one thing and it turne out to be another? Did you still enjoy the book?

AMAZON

Markie, a fortysomething divorcée who has suffered a humiliating and very public fall from marital, financial, and professional grace, moves, along with her teenage son, Jesse, to a new town, hoping to lick her wounds in private. But Markie and Jesse are unable to escape the attention of their new neighbor Mrs. Saint, an irascible, elderly New European woman who takes it upon herself, along with her ragtag group of “defectives,” to identify and fix the flaws in those around her, whether they want her to or not.

What Markie doesn’t realize is that Mrs. Saint has big plans for the divorcée’s broken spirit. Soon, the quirky yet endearing woman recruits Markie to join her eccentric community, a world where both hidden truths and hope unite them. But when Mrs. Saint’s own secrets threaten to unravel their fragile web of healing, it’s up to Markie to mend these wounds and usher in a new era for the “defectives”—one full of second chances and happiness.

Harlem Rhapsody

This is my first read by Ms. Murray.

She is an excellent resarcher. You'll feel as if you're in the time period in all the locations. 

She masterfully navigates you cheering for the heroine while explaining the complicated affair she had without making any characters unllikelable, which is challenging to do. Of course, these were real peopls as this is historical fiction. 

It was wonderful to have this piece of history, the Harlem Rennaissance, brought to my attention, and learn about the experiences these people had with creating their art and sending it into the world. 

A great piece of fiction to learn history through a brilliant author's lens. 

The audiobook narrator was fantastic!

What historical fiction novel has taught you something new? 

AMAZON

In 1919, a high school teacher from Washington, D.C arrives in Harlem excited to realize her lifelong dream. Jessie Redmon Fauset has been named the literary editor of The Crisis. The first Black woman to hold this position at a preeminent Negro magazine, Jessie is poised to achieve literary greatness. But she holds a secret that jeopardizes it all.

W. E. B. Du Bois, the founder of The Crisis, is not only Jessie’s boss, he’s her lover. And neither his wife, nor their fourteen-year-age difference can keep the two apart. Amidst rumors of their tumultuous affair, Jessie is determined to prove herself. She attacks the challenge of discovering young writers with fervor, finding sixteen-year-old Countee Cullen, seventeen-year-old Langston Hughes, and Nella Larsen, who becomes one of her best friends. Under Jessie’s leadership, The Crisis thrives…every African American writer in the country wants their work published there.

When her first novel is released to great acclaim, it’s clear that Jessie is at the heart of a renaissance in Black music, theater, and the arts. She has shaped a generation of literary legends, but as she strives to preserve her legacy, she’ll discover the high cost of her unparalleled success.