The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict

I have followed Marie Benedict since her first novel. She is a native Yinzer and often speaks at events here in the 'burgh. In February she spoke about her latest book, The Queens of Crime. It was a fascinating lecture about how she became interested in the real life disappearance of an English nurse, May Daniels. With maps, photographs, and newspaper clippings, she detailed how she became invested in using the real life mystery as the basis of her fictional one. 

Set in 1931, the novel features the 5 Queens of Mystery writers from the Golden Age: Dorothy and Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham, and Baroness Emma Orczy. They are a part of a London group known as the Detection Club, made up mostly of men. They feel that they are just as able to write and solve mysteries as their male counterparts and so embark on solving a real life one. The actual disappearance and investigation was actually reported by Sayers and her journalist husband. Nurse May Daniels and her friend Cecelia traveled to Bourgoune, France. They traveled by ferry from Brighton England, intending to take advantage of French shops and food. However, Daniels mysteriously disappears, after seemingly having an upset stomach, and being approached by an unknown man while sitting on a park bench. She does not return with her friend. Her body is found months later in a pool of blood.

The five queens of crime travel to France to retrace her journey and interview those who might have come into contact with Daniels. The police seem reluctant to pursue the case that they believe is one of a drug addict. In their investigation the women began to piece together another woman's disappearance that is connected with London men, the Williams father and son, and a theatre producer, Alfred Chapman. When they establish an hypothesis as to what actually happened, they concoct a plan to entrap the murderer. 

With a cavalcade of characters, the mystery unfolds to its conclusion, complete with red herrings. I had to keep myself from finding newspaper articles about the real mystery so that I didn't spoil the end of this tome.  This was a delightful read that combined mystery and historical fiction. The personalities of the mystery writers shines through as they each have a different tack to solve the case. I have not read any of Marsh, Allingham, or Sayers' works previously, but the novel has given me a new set of detectives to read. 
 

The Nine: The True Story of a Band of Women who Survived the Worst of Nazi Germany by Gwen Strauss

It was somewhat difficult reading Madness and The Nine at the same time. Both nonfiction and both detailing horrific experiences of two groups of people who were made to endure situations that in many cases would destroy the human spirit.

Strauss tells the story of her great aunt, Hélène Podliasky who was part of the French Resistance during World War II and eight others who were arrested for their actions and sent to Ravensbrück Camp in Germany. During the journey there they became a cohesive group. The others in the group were

Suzanne Maudet (Zaza), Nicole Clarence, Madelon Verstijnen (Lon), Guillemette Daendels (Guigui), Renée Lebon Châtenay (Zinka), Joséphine Bordanava (Josée), Jacqueline Aubéry du Boulley (Jacky), and Yvonne Le Guillou (Mena). While on a death march from the camp, the nine decided to escape. Their journey to freedom is the crux of the book.

Strauss through her research of the time and with the survivors of The Nine, presents a book that is nearly unbelievable as to the heroics of these women. Their 10 day journey is told through the eyes of each woman who has her own chapter in the book. It presents a bit of biography and the roles that they each assumed while on their journey. Their goal was to get to the front and cross into the area that was held by the Allies and especially the Americans. With bloody feet, tattered clothing, and a dearth of food, the reader is brought along on the painful journey with them. They struggle to find safe places to rest and German citizens to trust. At times they played into the stereotypical role of women to advance their cause - helpless and ignorant about war.

Strauss also gives insight into how the Nazis treated the prisoners in the camps, babies snatched from mothers while those mothers were raped, slave labor and starvation. It was painful to read.

The nine women formed such a bond that gave them the strength to have hope and survive. It goes without saying that if they had tried to do this alone, none would have made it. They developed strategies for survival, including trading recipes, one of the more upbeat sections of the book.

The book is so well researched with an abundance of footnotes. At times, I had wished for a more linear account, but understood the rationale for Strauss to write the way she did. Another interesting feature was how the author managed to find the women and/or their surviving family members. It was an intriguing, tho painful read.



 

The Collector by Daniel Silva

Finally caught up with the Daniel Silva books on my TBR shelf, although this was read sporadically while I was trying to read my way through the Pittsburgh Arts and Lectures series books as well as the Gables Book Club books. The Collector is the 23rd in the Gabriel Allon series and Silva just keeps getting better in his craft with each of them. 

Despite the fact that Allon is supposed to be in retirement, he is recalled back into service as the master spy and art expert that he has practiced in his past. He needs to track down a painting that had been stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. It seems that within the secret safe of Lukas van Damme, a very rich shipping tycoon, an empty frame was found that would match that painting  - The Concert by Vermeer. Van Damme had been murdered and it was argued that the murderer was also the one who stole the painting. As he investigates, the trail leads to him Denmark and a cybersecurity expert, Ingrid Johansen. She is also a renowned thief and Allon soon recognizes that she could be an ally in resolving the crimes. 

In inimitable Silva fashion the novel takes on a much more serious theme as the investigation leads to a possibility of a nuclear war between the United States and Russia. With the introduction of Ingrid, he has created another strong character who works with him in averting the crisis and the resolution of the crimes. The plot is intricate and one of the best in the series. 

It is amazing how Silva is almost prescient in knowing world events before they happen. In this novel, the Russian war with Ukraine plays a large part in how the events materialize. The tensions between Moscow and the U.S. are also underscored. Silva's books are masterpieces in spy and politics and never fail to entertain. It will be interesting to see how and if he includes Ingrid in his 2024 book which will be published in July!

 

The Cellist by Daniel Silva

The best laid plans are often sidetracked by life's interruptions. Because our book club was canceled for April, I felt I had ample time to read a number of books before the May book club. However, IT,  happened and my free time, airplane, and travel time were usurped. 

It took me a bit longer to finish Silva's 2021 book than I had expected. Drawing on many characters from past novels, The Cellist takes place as the world is in the grip of the pandemic. There are countless references to lock-downs, masks, and COVID-19.

The book begins, as many of his do, with the very suspicious death of Viktor Orlov, a close friend of the Israeli intelligence commander, Gabriel Allon. The body is discovered by Sarah Bancroft, who had worked with Allon in previous novels and is now working at Isherwood Fine Arts. When she finds Orlov at his desks, she strongly believes that he was poisoned by some sort of nerve agent. Her connection to Orlov was in regard to money she was to collect for the restoration of a painting the gallery had sold to a Russian oligarch.She  In a very convoluted way, this leads to the introduction of the cellist in the novel's title - Isabel Brenner, who works for RhineBank, AG in Germany as a money launderer. Allon devises a scheme to find Orlov's killer and recruits Brenner to become his prime operative. 

From a London, to Geneva, to Zurich to France, Jerusalem and even Wilmington, DE, Silva whirls the reader through a maze of banks, concert halls, museums and villas as he delves into the money laundering schemes of Russia and its wealthy leader, Vladimir Putin. The novel's culmination is at the January 6th Insurrection in Washington, an ending that Silva completely rewrote having been an eyewitness that day while being in Washington on business.  One of the hallmarks of the Gabriel Allon and Silva books is how closely they are tied to the geopolitical real-world events. This was no exception and provides the author a virtual soapbox from which he can deliver his political views, which are quite critical of the 45th president and his followers. The author's notes at the end of the book are illuminating and indicative of the research that Silva does for his novels.

This wasn't one of my favorite Allon books, but a good read, nonetheless. It is my intent to finish the 2022 novel before his new tome is released in July, 2023. Too many books and not enough time.

 

 

Matrix by Lauren Groff

It is 1158 and Marie de France, seventeen and orphaned, arrives at an abbey where she has been sent to live. Matrix is the recounting of her life and that of the 12th century poet.  

She is a remarkable character and the reader marvels at the fact that she has been orphaned in France since the age of 12 and has managed her estate before being discovered. At that point she was sent to Westminister where she lived for 3 years. Believed to be the illegitimate half sister of King Henry II, she is totally enamored of Eleanor, the queen based on the real-life Eleanor of Aquitaine. She is sent to the abbey because she is most likely unmarriageable due to her largeness of frame and "no godly avocation."

Set in a remote part of the English countryside, the abbey is impoverished despite the large amount of land that it encompasses. Marie discovers this is because the tenants living on the abbey's land have not been paying rent. She makes an example of one family and after that the others fall in line. 

With Eleanor as a model of a powerful woman, the novel recounts how Marie brings order to the abbey and even the countryside. Having taken the veil, she uses her strong character and sense of right to lead the nuns as she works her way up the chains or command from subprioress to prioress to abbess. Groff begins most sections of the book with Marie's age so the reader knows how Marie is aging and becoming more powerful. 

Along the way new women come into the fold of the abbey and Marie's interaction with them and their stories add to the mature person into which Marie has developed and grown. Especially poignant is the tragedy of Avice de Chair, a novice who is sent to the abbey for having sex. She was or becomes pregnant and the description of her labor is heart-wrenching. 

Groff interweaves so many characters in and out of Marie's life and it serves to illustrate the power of a woman as well as one who is compassionate and ambitious at the same time. She makes improvements to the abbey and tends to those who are sick and troubled. The author does not shy away from descriptions and situations that may make a reader uneasy: the queer life in the abbey and the Christian tenet of women being inferior.

Matrix is a fascinating novel and demonstrates the command of prose that Groff possesses. Because of having COVID, I was not able to attend the Gables Book Club discussion of the book, but understood that I was probably the only one who liked it. It is worth a read to not only understand 12th  century life of women in a patriarchal society, but also to witness the development of a woman who can overcome life's strife with determination and ingenuity.

The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure

There are not too many books dealing with World War II and German doings that I do not enjoy. The Paris Architect was no exception. A number of subplots and character development made the novel an enjoyable and interesting read. 

The opening of the novel provides just the shock value to entice the reader to read on. A man witnesses the cold-blooded murder of a Jewish man by Nazi soldiers as he is on his way to a business meeting. 

Lucien Bernard is an architect, living in Paris during the German Occupation with his wife Celeste. The two are merely going through the motions of a marriage as both are involved with other people. He is approached by an industrialist, Manet to aid in the hiding of Parisian Jews. His first reaction is to turn down the offer, but the idea of a lucrative reward for the job spurs him to take it. He has a very creative mind and finds after a couple of successful jobs of allowing Jewish people to avoid being discovered by the Nazis, that he actually enjoys thwarting the German soldiers. 

His affair with Adele seems to be crumbling and he finds himself at a loss until Manet connects him a member of the Wehrmacht who employs Lucien to design munitions factories, which he agrees to do, although hie is accused by his wife on her departure from the home as a collaborator. Therein lies a conflict as Lucien knows that he is helping the Germans, but is convinced that the French will be able to use the factories after the war. 

His world is shattered when he witnesses the death of a couple whom he believed to have hidden safely, his office is infiltrated by an intern whose uncle is connected, Adele sleeping with a Nazi officer. Belfoure builds the suspense as Bernard tries to walk a tightrope between his loyalty to France and keeping the Nazis at bay. 

There are some very poignant scenes in The Paris Architect when a young Pierre enters his life and an affair with Adele's employee, Bette, commences. The novel builds to a conclusion, that until the last page the reader is kept on edge.

Belfoure includes a wonderful map of Paris with all the streets that are mentioned in the book referenced. The book is beautifully written and would entice me to read another one of his books. 

House of Spies by Daniel Silva

I am always a year behind on Daniel Silva's books, but that's OK since I know I always have one waiting for me every July. Last year's read was The Black Widow and my July read this year was House of Spies, the 17th installment in the Gabriel Allon series. It takes place about 4 months after The Black Widow with nearly the same group of characters. 

Allon has been promoted to the Director of the Intelligence Office on King Saul Boulevard. Appearing with him in this book are his arch rival, Uzi Navot, Ari Shamron, the former director, Christopher Keller, Mikhail Abramov, and from The Black Widow, Natalie Mizrrahi. 

After terrorist attacks by Isis in France, the West End, and Washington, Allon is determined to bring Saladin, the ISIS leader down. Because Natalie nursed him back to health, she is one of the few who can identify him. The path to Saladin is traced to assault rifles from the London attack through a gallery in Saint-Tropez and the Moroccan desert. Along this path Allon and his crew manage to blackmail the drug kingpin, Jean-Luc-Martel and his companion, Olivia Watson into providing information and setting a meeting with Saladin. 

The action becomes quite the cat and mouse game with Keller, once a British special Ops figure, assassin, and now an MI6 officer, in the midst of the planning and execution. It is an intriguing plot that attempts to rid the world of this radical leader. Allon builds a coalition of Israel, France, and the US to carry it all out. Somewhat true to life, the French and the British have the bulk of the action here while the United States' role is somewhat diminished. One realizes, also, that even if Saladin is captured or killed, there will be other who will carry on his war, in just what arena is undetermined. 

Silva is truly a gifted author who keeps the reader on the edge of his seat, turning pages as quickly as possible. As far as this reader is concerned, he is a must-read author, who continues to hone his craft.

Luncheon of the Boating Party by Susan Vreeland

In 1999 we traveled to Washington D.C. for a getaway weekend. One of the places that we put on our itinerary was the Phillips Collection. There was an exhibit of Impressionist paintings. Among them was The Luncheon of the Boating Party by Renoir. This painting has fascinated me ever since. When I saw Vreeland's book appear on the Kindle Daily Deals, I immediately bought it. The appeal was even more enhanced after seeing a number of Renoir's paintings, especially Ball at the Moulin de la Galette at the Museé d'Orsay in June. I chose it for our Gables Book Club's September selection, with apologies for picking another art book. 

Susan Vreeland does a wonderful job in creating the back story of the attendees at the luncheon. In 1881 Renoir was a struggling artist both in the artistic sense and in a personal sense. He had been painting in the impressionistic style, but had wanted to extend his notoriety beyond that group, especially after the critical review of Emile Zola. He had painted numerous portraits, but knew that he needed another large painting to follow the Ball. At the urging of his patron, Madame Charpentier, he decided on a painting that would take place at the Maison Fournaise. And so he began to assemble the models. They came from every walk in life, including artists, actresses, lawyers, the children of the owner of the cafe, a seamstress, and a dancer. Over an 8 week period of time he painted them and the setting of the party. He was really under a self-imposed deadline due to the natural lighting and a nautical festival that would be taking place there. 

Thirteen of the people in the painting are easily identified, but there is a mysterious person in the center of the work, almost hidden. Renoir was consumed with the fact that he needed to have 14 people appear so as not appear to be imitating The Last Supper. Could it be that he painted himself in? Prominently seated in the fore of the painting is Aline with her dog. She would eventually become Renoir's wife. The lives of the other models give a peak into the cultural, historical, and social mores of the time. Vreeland in her narrative gives an insight especially in to the issue of women's rights and the women who strive to assert them whether it be in subservience to a man or the right to an abortion. 

The description of the food that is served prior to Renoir's painting on the Sunday afternoons leaves one craving some of the dishes. Chapter 17 begins with such a description of a Charlotte Malakoff:

"They’d sung a few songs while eating the Charlotte Malakoff, a mold of strawberries, ladyfingers soaked in rum, and almond cream, and now they were ready to take their poses."

This was the inspiration for the dessert at the evening's book club discussion. 

There is also a bit of a romantic triangle between Renoir, Aline, and Alphonsine Fournaise, both of whom were in love with Auguste and he with them.

This was a delightful book to read and one that you should read with the painting at your side. The characters are well developed, the setting well described, and the research extensive. I will be looking to read one of Vreeland's other books.

bonjour kale by Kristen Beddard

I was a bit skeptical when our book club chose a book about kale for its December read. I am not fond of kale, probably dating back to the summer when our CSA in Watertown only had kale to distribute because of  a horrible growing season. The book was available in the Kindle edition for a mere $1.99, so why not?

bonjour kale is a memoir, a collection of recipes, and a travelogue of Paris. Kristen Beddard, a native Pittsburgher, after college settles in New York City where she meets her husband, Phillip. Soon after they marry they move to Paris for his job. She is a "trailing spouse" and for the greater part of a year feels isolated and like a fish out of water. She describes their quest for an apartment, her many attempts to learn the language, and trying to make friends, as well as trying to fit into the culture. 

But the most disconcerting matter of the move was the absence of kale in the Parisian markets. Kristen's background was rooted in healthy foods and eating. One of the mainstays of her diet was kale and it didn't exist in France. And so began the Kale Project. It was her attempt to introduce the vegetable into the cuisine of the French. One of the issues she discovered was lack of a French word for the greens. In her quest she really couldn't even ask for it and have the market proprietors understand her. As she eventually allies herself with some farmers, the memoir details her mission to bring kale from farm to table. She ends each chapter with a recipe or two, which I can say that I will not try. I admire her tenacity in this undertaking, but I still can't bring myself to cook this green.

This was an easy, fun,  and interesting read. I enjoyed the smattering of French words, the descriptions of the markets, and the references to Pittsburgh. If anyone really likes kale, you would absolutely love this book.

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

I had really wanted to read this book and was disappointed when I wasn't going to be able to attend our neighborhood book group when we were going to discuss this. I tend to read my own selections when this happens. But, then, the date was changed and I ordered the book for my Kindle and got to reading. What an incredible read - an historical lesson, a page turner and tearjerker all rolled into one remarkable book.

The Nightingale begins with an elderly woman, about ready to move into an assisted living facility, going through some memorabilia in a trunk in her attic. The reader is told of an old passport that obviously has had some disturbing memories tied to it. The in flashback, the novel begins its story of two diametrically different sisters who live in rural France during the Nazi occupation of the country. Vianne lives on the family homestead, Le Jardin, while Isabelle is being disciplined at a boarding school for showing her defiant and rebellious attitude.  The sisters' mother died when they were young leaving their father to try to cope with raising the two girls. He couldn't cope with this and virtually left the girls to fend for themselves. Vianne marries the postmaster, Antoine,  the village in the Loire Valley and has a daughter, Sophia. Their life is then torn apart when Antoine goes off to war and Vianne is left to maintain the house, teach in the local school, and raise Sophia.  Add to this the arrival of Isabelle, who has been sent by their father when he shuns her living with him in Paris.

As the novel unfolds the horrific crimes of the time are revealed without sugar-coating the events or feelings of the time. Vianne's home is requisitioned by a Wehrmark officer and he billets there. Isabelle joins the resistance movement and guides downed airmen over the Pyrenees to Spain and safety. Jewish friends of the family disappear overnight and children are left as orphans. The result of this is a heart-wrenching story of a time that was filled with calculated torture, persecution, and lack of compassion for the human race.

Kristen Hannah has given her readers a novel that takes twists and turns and will, ultimately, keep the reader not wanting the book to end. A definite must read that will stay with her readers long after the book is closed.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Sitting on the top of the NY Times Best Sellers List for the last two years is the complex novel of wartime France and Germany. But All the Light We Cannot See is so much more than that. It has been sitting on my bookshelf since its publication and the impetus to read it now comes from the lecture to be held 4 April 2016 as part of the Ten Literary Evenings of the Pittsburgh Arts and Lecture series.

The basic premise (if there can be such a concept) of Doerr's work is the parallel lives of two young adults during the ending days of World War II. Werner Pfennig is an orphan who has an incredible gift for understanding, building, and using radio transmissions. Living in the Zollverein section of Germany, he found an old radio that he repaired and on which he and his sister, Jutta, listened to broadcasts from France. He is selected to attend a "prestigious" technical school where he will hone his skills and be trained for military maneuver and tracking the resistance movement. He is stationed in Germany, Russia and, finally, Saint Malo.

Marie Laure LeBlanc, blind since the age of six, lives in Paris with her father, Daniel, who is the locksmith at the Museum of Natural History.  Her father is a loving and doting person. He builds a model of the neighborhood in which they live that includes every drainpipe, house, and even manhole covers so that Marie Laure can have some independence when she is out of their residence. As the Germans occupy Paris, the two flee to the countryside, described by Doerr in haunting and realistic narrative. Entrusted to Daniel is the extremely valuable "Sea of Flames" diamond, the possession of which held a curse and a promise. It was so precious that other models have been made to divert any treasure seekers, such as the nefarious Reinhold von Rumpel.  They finally reach the Britanny coast town of Saint Malo and the home of her great uncle, Etienne and his housekeeper, Madame Manec. There again Daniel builds a model of the area surrounding Etienne's house. The house holds many secrets including many radio transmitters, a false backed wardrobe and the mysterious activities of the agoraphobic Etienne. The model that Daniel constructs holds these secrets and even more.

The story that unfolds in these two different worlds is gripping and compelling. The will to survive, overcoming fear and the presence of life are underlying themes. It would be impossible to count the number of times light or the absence of it was referenced in the book. Perhaps the most powerful  quote is uttered by the French radio broadcaster: "Open your eyes and see what you can with them before they close forever." Doerr utilizes a complex narrative style as he alternates focusing on Werner and Marie Laure and moving back and forth in time. The reader knows that the two lives will cross paths, but is not sure whether the intersection will be as good and evil or as another encounter. The conclusion of the book is intricate as it intertwines the lives of the characters in a time far distant from the original period of the novel. I am intrigued by Saint Malo and would love to visit the city. Although complex, the chapters are short, manageable and conducive to a emotional and wondrous read.

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert

Every so often the Gables Book Group decides that it is time to read a classic. For most of us we are rereading books from our high school days. However, for this month, the book that was chosen was one that I had not read as a teen. Madame Bovary has been translated numerous times and, as evidenced by our discussion, that can influence the reaction to the book. 

Emma Bovary, much like Anna Karenina, is a tragic heroine from another time and another culture. However, Emma is not the heroine that with whom reader can empathize. She is superficial, materialistic and for the most part uncaring. She marries Charles Bovary at a time when he is still mourning his first wife. She goes to a very fancy party and gets a taste of what life among the "rich and famous" can be like. When she becomes sickly, the two move to a small market town. Charles gives up his successful medical practice for her, but she is not grateful at all. She dreams of being in Paris and the rich life. In reality, she spends most of her life in a dream  world.

Upon arrival in their new home, Emma discovers she is pregnant. In perhaps the most tragic part of the novel, she is in contention for the world's worst mother. She will have nothing to do with her daughter and sends her to a wet nurse and neighbor to raise her. Only when it is convenient does she spend any time with Berthe. Emma, in search for a better lot in life, has an affair that ends with her eventual rejection. The end of the novel is tragic for all the characters involved. Death does not come without its far reaching fingers. 

I am glad that we read this novel.  Its impact would be lost on youth and it's understandable why Madame Bovary is considered the first modern realistic piece of fiction in the realm of world literature.

The English Girl by Daniel Silva

Gabriel Allon appears in his 13th novel by Daniel Silva in The English Girl. Once again, Silva does not disappoint. He is an author on whom the reader can count to deliver a story with twists, turns, strong characters and well researched locations. 

At the end of Silva's last book, The Fallen Angel, we left Gabriel and Chiara in Jerusalem after having survived a major terrorism incident. The destiny of a number of familiar characters was hanging in the balance and the reader had to wait an entire year to read of their fate. The action of this latest novel begins in Corsica where Madeline Hart, the English Girl, is kidnapped. She has been linked to having an affair with the British Prime Minister and the ransom for her life will need to be paid before she is released and the proof destroyed. Allon is called upon to help rescue her - his ability to slip in and out of countries without detection is a major reason. His task further takes him Marseilles, France, Surrey, Essex and the private realm of #10 Downing Street before the climax in Russia.

Along the way Gabriel enlists the aid of Christopher Keller, an operative who once had Allon in his sights. Their alliance, tho unusual, takes advantage of each man's talents and skills. However, as is typical of Silva's books, the plan encounters a major roadblock in the explosion of the car with Hart's body in the trunk at the time of the arranged exchange. Gabriel becomes more focused on avenging the girl's death and soon the familiar team is assembled at a safe house in Surrey. The plan pieced together like working on a jigsaw puzzle. Each element is crucial to the completion of the mission. The complex strategy requires infiltration of a Russian Oil company and another kidnapping. 

When the reader begins to feel like all the pieces are falling into place, the puzzle is reconfigured. There are enough twists and turns that finally come to a brilliant conclusion. Daniel Silva is a master storyteller. The action keeps the reader turning pages to see the completed puzzle as a whole entity. What is even more masterful is ability to paint a picture of a place. His attention to detail is superb and consummate and his insight into world affairs profound. In The English Girl he has prophesied the Snowdon affair as well as the use of chemical weapons by Syria and the Hezbollah. We are left wondering if the old woman fortuneteller in Corsica was as astute with her prognostications? I guess we will learn in July, 2014.

The Paris Wife by Paula McClain

It is unfortunate that students in high school never get to know the story behind the story. It is almost certain that every student reads at least one Ernest Hemingway novel, novella, or short story. Maybe, if there is time, a teacher when teaching about the author will mention Hemingway's service in wartime, his fascination with bullfighting and his tragic end of life. What is left out is his struggle to become a writer, his bohemian life-style in Paris, and unfortunately, his treatment of women. These are the things that make an author come alive and therefore his works.

The Paris Wife is a fictionalized account of Hemingway's marriage to his first wife, Hadley Richardson. There is enough history here that the reader knows that not too much of the book has been fictionalized. Richardson and Hemingway are introduced as young people who are living in Chicago. They become infatuated with each other, fall in love and are eventually married. Hemingway is writing for The Toronto Star and the Cooperative Commonwealth.  Hadley's mother was very over-protective of her as a child, she heard the gunshot that was the cause of her father's suicide and when she met Hemingway a bit unsure of such a relationship. They were married after less than a year, a courtship that was carried on mostly by short visits and letters. They decided that they would go to Rome to live for a while, but Sherwood Anderson convinced them that Paris was a better place to be.

McClain vividly describes their life in Paris from their impoverished accommodation, to the dance halls, the sights and sounds of the Latin Quarter, and of course their association with the members of the "Lost Generation." I have always been fascinated with how all of these incredibly creative people converged in this city and managed to produce volumes of literature. From Stein to Dos Passos to James Joyce to Ezra Pound, Fitzgerald and Hemingway. There is an energy that one senses that was passed from one to the other. The wives, including Alice B. Toklas, were an important support group and one has the distinct impression that that's who Hadley was.  

The gradual disintegration of the marriage was hastened by the attention paid to Hemingway by one of Hadley's best friends, Pauline Pfeiffer, a wealthy fashion designer who was living in Paris. The Hemingways' lives were marked often by traveling to Austria, Pamplona, and even back to North America. It was not uncommon that the two traveled separately. It was during one of these trips when Ernest returned to Paris without Hadley that he began an affair with Pauline. They eventually agreed to a divorce, but remained on amicable terms for the sake of their child, Bumpy (John Hadley Nicanor Hemingway).  Pauline eventually becomes Hemingway's second wife and Hadley marries Paul Mowrer. 

The Paris Wife was a good read, albeit sometimes the writing seemed choppy, that is a glimpse into the life of Hemingway in Paris. Despite knowing the outcome of the relationship, the reader does root for the two to make it through the rough times of the marriage. Hemingway is not always the villain, and Hadley is not always the persecuted and maligned wife. She is, however, a woman who gave up dreams of pursuing her own career in music for that of her husband. She was supportive and encouraging. It will be interesting to read Hemingway's version of the Parisian life in A Moveable Feast. A good read that was both educational, enlightening, and enjoyable. 

Portrait of a Spy by Daniel Silva

Gabriel Allon has "retired" to Cornwall to spend leisurely days with his wife Chiara. He awaits his next restoration project and is delighted to learn that Julian Isherwood has an undiscovered Titian needing work. Gabriel and Chiara travel to London to negotiate the work but a terrorist gets in the way. Terrorists have launched attacks in Paris and Copenhagen. The eagle eyes of Allon spot a human bomb in crowded Covent Garden. He has mentally calculated the timing of the next explosion and his instincts are triggered as he steps in to try to stop the detonation. And so the 2011 installment of the Allon series begins.

Silva, once again, brings the art restorer/ Israeli operative out of retirement. To say that this is a coincidental is a given, but Silva gets a pass to set up one of the most intricate books in the series. Gabriel cannot say no to the coalition of terrorist fighters being assembled by the the United States and joins them in Washington. All the players whom we have come to know are there: Eli Lavon, street surveillance expert; Uzi Navot, Israel's chief of secret intelligence; Ari Shamron, esteemed head of Massad and Adrian Carter, director of the CIA's National Clandestine Service. A most ingenious plan is formulated that involves recruiting Nadia al-Bakari, daughter of Zizi al-Bakari who financed mass murder and was killed by Allon in The Secret Servant.  Could the team enlist her aid to bring down the group who has threatened to continue the work of Al-Qaeda and Bin Laden. (n.b During the writing of this book the death of Bin Laden happened. Silva incorporates it into the plot without skipping a beat.)

The action moves from London to New York, Washington, Paris, the opulent city of Dubai, and the Saudi desert. Setting is a real strength of any Silva book. He has done his research and through his descriptions he plops the reader down into those settings. Portrait of a Spy is no exception. Anyone who has been to London feels right at home walking with Gabriel and Chiara through Covent Garden even if it is on the heels of a human bomb.

Portrait of a Spy is thrilling and a page turner. Silva is a master of that. There is no way the reader can erase the final scenes from the mind's gallery. But Silva is also a political and social commentator. He does not easy hide in this book his disdain for the Saudi treatment of women nor the country's leadership in it's part in the terrorists' world. His mastery of the subject matter almost make for prophetic reading and a real wake-up call to those who have been lulled into complacency.  His books are not to be missed and I dread the day that Gabriel Allon goes into retirement for real.

The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson

I really enjoyed 13 Little Blue Envelopes and was excited to learn that Maureen Johnson had written a sequel. This was a fast and equally enjoyable read. At the end of the previous novel, Ginny Blackstone's backpack was stolen and with it the last little blue envelope in it. As The Last Little Blue Envelope opens, Ginny is struggling with writing the college admission essay that asks what is the turning point in your life. Of course it was the trip to England to follow her Aunt Peg's instructions. Then everything changes and she is contacted by Oliver, a mysterious young man, who has come into possession of the last little blue envelope. And so another adventure ensues.

Ginny contacts her Uncle Richard, OKs it with her parents, and takes off to find out Peg's last instructions. Although this adventure is not nearly as extensive as the last journey, there is still the excitement, twists, and a satisfying resolution. In addition to Oliver, Ginny's friend Keith and his new girlfriend, Ellis join her on a journey to Paris, Belgium, Amsterdam, and eventually Ireland. The foursome must try to evade the police, while finding themselves in the midst of a very strange hostel overrun by cats. The tension between Keith and Ginny heightens as the book progresses. Ellis is a very likable character who is a real friend to Ginny.

Although the book could stand on its own, the reader will enjoy it much more if she has read Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes. It is a great story and Johnson's attention to details of international travel is spot on. Dublin on New Year's Eve was enough for one to start packing a suitcase and boarding that plane to cross the pond- Guiness at Temple Bar, crossing the River Liffey, and the bells of Christchurch. Maybe that should be put on my bucket list. A good and satisfying read.

The Wild Rose by Jennifer Donnelly

Jennifer Donnelly weaves a story with the best of authors. I have been waiting for the third part of the trilogy since June, 2008 when I finished The Winter Rose. Can I just say that it was so worth the wait?

The novel opens in 1914 with England and Europe on the verge of World War II and in the throes of the suffragette movement, economic distress, and espionage. The reader is reacquainted with Fiona and Joe Bristow and their children, Seamus Finnegan, Maud and India Selwyn Jones, Willa Alden, and Max van Brandt and the story ensues. Fiona and Joe have a feisty daughter, Kate, who carries on the family fight for rights and political equity. Seamus has returned from the expedition to the South Pole and Willa is attempting her climb of Mt. Everest. Their paths all cross and are intertwined in complex relationships and twists. It is very hard to relate or summarize such a novel because of the turns that the plot takes from beginning to end. Suffice it to say that the reader remains engaged, enthralled and on the edge of her seat as it progresses.

Donnelly is a master of setting her novels and characters in the midst of historical events. The Wild Rose is not an exception. Not only do we encounter the likes of Henry Asquith, liberal Prime Minister of England, Ernest Shackelton, Winston Churchill, and Lawrence of Arabia, but we are thrust into the dark days of the Spanish Flu epidemic and the bawdy days of Parisian bohemian life. I was glad that a good friend had made me watch Lawrence of Arabia. It made the scenes in the book much easier to comprehend. This volume of the trilogy centers around Seamus Finnegan, the third of the Finnegan children and his true love, Willa. At the end of The Winter Rose we are left with Seamie leaving Willa at the base of Mt. Kilimanjaro and Willa heading for Mt. Everest. Of all the trilogy's characters, these two are the least likeable and one finds oneself wanting to shake them and awake them to the realities of life. Yes, Willa has lost a leg, but her whiny self deprecation and piteousness are way over the top. On the other hand, she has an incredible sense of adventure and, at least for some of the novel, a real desire to live life to its fullest. Seamie needs to understand that love is for life and women are not trophies to collect and count.
Not only does Donnelly craft characters, but she is a master of mood and setting. As the reader follows the action from Westminster to Wapping, from Cairo to Damascus, or from Nepal to Paris, the sounds, sights and even aromas spring to life. You know that the author has experienced the places about which she writes and that she can convey those pictures in an extremely graphic manner.
In the end, which by the way is a stellar shock and has a jaw-dropping effect, the book is the epitome of highly crafted writing and research. I reiterate: I aspire to be Jennifer Donnelly's research assistant. She addresses age-old problems of drug abuse, the mental effects of war, and the political machinations of those who aspire to leadership. I do hope that the characters will reappear, possible in a new series with Kate Bristow as the protagonist. I want to know more about her and her new-found career. But, for the moment, I will basque in the pleasure of having just read another marvelous tome by Jennifer Donnelly.

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

The move has been completed and most of the boxes have been unpacked and so it was a treat to sit down with a book and forget about the real world for a minute or two. I began reading Revolution during one of the car rides back and forth from Watertown to Mars. Jennifer Donnelly is one of my favorite authors with whom I have been acquainted since she was a guest at Sackets Harbor School. She is a North Country native and garnished awards and praise for her YA book, A Northern Light, an historical novel set in the Adirondack Mountains and based on a true story of murder and cover-up. Revolution is also historical fiction that is a bit edgier and is also grounded in the present.

Andi Alpers is a senior in high school and is on the verge of not graduating. She is suffers from depression and a tremendous guilt over the death of her ten year old brother, Truman. She lives with her mother who has had a nervous breakdown over this event and the divorce from Andi's father. Music has been the constant in Andi's life. She composes, takes lessons and has a most interesting play list on her iPod. She remarks, "…music lives. Forever. …it’s stronger than death. Stronger than time. And its strength holds you together when nothing else can.” And "boys let you down, music never does." Andi's father finds out the academic trouble she is in and intervenes. He has her mother committed to an institution and whisks Andi away to Paris with him where he is working on an genetic project and where, under his scrutiny, Andi will work on her senior thesis - a paper on how the French musician Amade Malherbeau has influenced musicians up to the present day.

Upon her arrival in Paris, Andi discovers the diary of Alexandre, a street performer who lived during the French Revolution. Through the pages of the diary, Andi begins an adventure of self-discovery as she reads of Alex's struggle in helping to protect the young dauphin, Louis-Charles, son of Louis XVI and Marie Antionette. Further adding to this connection is the project on which Andi's father is working - DNA analysis of a heart that is believed to be that of Louis-Charles. Numerous persons have claimed to be the tortured child who actually escaped the prison in which he was held. The novel is multi-layered and circular. It is divided into parts that mirror Dante's Divine Comedy. Andi's guide in Paris is a cab driver/musician whose name is Virgil, just as the guide was through the circles of Hell.

Andi is determined to leave Paris as soon as possible, but she must finish an outline and intro to her thesis before her father will allow her. She works toward a deadline by researching Malherbeau, his works, and his life. He is inextricably tied to Alex and the Revolution. The reader travels with Andi to libraries, historic homes, and the mysterious catacombs. It is there that the truth becomes clearer to her, but where, also, the reader must suspend a grasp on reality. Andi's epiphany - "Life’s all about the revolution, isn’t it? The one inside, I mean. You can’t change history. You can’t change the world. All you can ever change is yourself."

Andi was a tough character to like at first, but she grew on me and I began to empathize with her plight. Alexandre was a feisty young woman who knew what she wanted in life, but rather than pursue that dream, put it on hold to protect the person whom she loved and who depended upon her for his life. I wanted to know more about her and the situation into which she was thrown.

Jennifer Donnelly is an AMAZING writer. Her books are meticulously researched and written. ( I joked with her once that I would gladly be a research assistant for her.) Having just returned from Paris in April, I was immediately transported back there with Andi. I have walked through the catacombs and with Donnelly's descriptions I know readers will also have that same experience vicariously. In Revolution Jennifer Donnelly proves once again that her mastery of storytelling, research, and the writing craft combine to make one fantastic read.

The Ravenscar Dynasty by Barbara Taylor Bradford

Barbara Taylor Bradford authors books in which you love to become immersed. They are sagas of time, people and place. The Ravenscar Dynasty is set in Edwardian England at the turn of the century and relates the family history of Edward (Ned) Deravenel. The Deravenels are what we would call a conglomerate company. They have marble quarries, woolen factories and vineyards. As the novel opens we learn with the family that Ned's father and brother as well as a uncle and cousin are killed in a hotel fire while visiting Carrara Italy and the marble factories. The tragedy forces Edward to leave his place at Oxford and relocate to London to manage the company.

Aligning himself with cousin Neville, the two Yorkshire men begin their search into the real reasons behind the deaths. Edward and Neville are a formidable pair as they begin to unearth the facts and to take back full control of the company from the Lancashire faction under the leadership of Henry Grant and his conniving wife, Margot. The plot, as one might expect, has many twists and coincidences as it leads to the climax. The secondary characters and plots are interesting and help reveal the true character of the Deravenels.

Edward, as BTB tells us so often, is very tall, good-looking, and quite the ladies man. He is drawn to the older woman and has had many affairs in his short lifetime. He is very much in love with Lily who is expecting his child; marries Elizabeth Wyland, but continues to keep mistress, Jane Shaw. Each woman has a different effect on his life and lead him to make decisions with far-reaching consequences. The constant and stable woman for Edward, tho, is his mother, Cecily. She is the matriarch of the Deravenel family and can be counted upon for wise counsel.

The Ravenscar Dynasty is the first of a trilogy (Being Elizabeth and The Heir) and has a very interesting parallel. Bradford writes in an introductory author's note about the similarities in her novel with the historical figures of Edward IV, duke of York, and his cousin, Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick who was later given the title "Kingmaker." Edward IV fought to regain the country from Henry VI, Duke of Lancaster in much the same way as Ned has gone to battle with Henry Grant. This is not the best book Bradford has written. It is often repetitious and sometimes slow-moving. But it is an entertaining read for a hot summer day.

Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky

Suite Française is a posthumously novel published by Irène Némirovsky, a Russian Jew who lived in Paris during the German occupation. It had originally been intended to be a five-part work, modeled after a Beethoven symphony. However, Némirovsky was arrested and deported in 1942 and eventually died at Auschwitz before the work was completed. The work that exists today was found in a suitcase by her daughters Denise and Elizabeth who could not bear to read their mother's words. The novel was eventually published in 2005.

The first part of the novel is "Storm in June" and recounts the massive exodus of Parisians at the time of the German occupation through the eyes and actions people of people trying to flee the city. The Péricands are a wealthy family who have their servants pack all their belongings for them. They will be traveling to Nimes. Gabriel Corté, a writer, is fleeing with his mistress. The Michauds are a couple that work for a Parisian banker. They originally believed that they would be evacuated with the rest of the bank workers, but were left behind when there was no room for them. They were given orders to meet the bankers by a given time. Charles Langelet goes it alone by trying to steal gasoline from unsuspecting motorists. At times comical, poignant and very satiric, this movement of the symphony is allegro.

The second part of the novel is "Dolce" and is told through the eyes of Lucille Angellier whose husband is a prisoner of war. Her disdain for him because of his unfaithfulness leads her down the path of guilt as she must come to grips with her romantic feelings for Bruno, a German soldier who is billeted in the house that she shares with her mother-in-law. Their platonic relationship grows into what will more than likely become a romantic one. Or will it? To complicate matters, a German officer is shot by a local hunter and Lucille is drawn into the situation when asked to harbor the criminal. The novella is the adagio movement, told slowly and serenely. The descriptions are incredibly beautiful with the reader dwelling on each phrase as to breathe in the scene that is being created.

Némirovsky was a devout fan of Tolstoy's War and Peace and also Turgenev and Chekhov. As we think what would have been if she had finished this literary symphony, we can only surmise that it would have been on equal standing with Tolstoy's masterpiece. She was an accomplished writer at the time of her death and we can be thankful that at least we have a portion of her masterly crafted opus magnus.