COVER REVEAL: Stephanie Dray THE WOMEN OF CHATEAU LAFAYETTE

Releasing 3.30.2021

An epic saga from New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Dray based on the true story of an extraordinary castle in the heart of France and the remarkable women bound by its legacy in three of humanity's darkest hours.

Most castles are protected by powerful men. This one by women...

A founding mother...

1774. Gently-bred noblewoman Adrienne Lafayette becomes her husband's political partner in the fight for American independence. But when their idealism sparks revolution in France and the guillotine threatens everything she holds dear, Adrienne must choose to renounce the complicated man she loves, or risk her life for a legacy that will inspire generations to come.

A daring visionary...

1914. Glittering New York socialite Beatrice Astor Chanler is a force of nature, daunted by nothing--not her humble beginnings, her crumbling marriage, or the outbreak of war. But after witnessing the devastation in France and delivering war-relief over dangerous seas, Beatrice takes on the challenge of a lifetime: convincing America to fight for what's right.

A reluctant resistor...

1940. French school-teacher and aspiring artist Marthe Simone has an orphan's self-reliance and wants nothing to do with war. But as the realities of Nazi occupation transform her life in the isolated castle where she came of age, she makes a discovery that calls into question who she is, and more importantly, who she is willing to become.

Intricately woven and beautifully told, The Women of Chateau Lafayette is a sweeping novel about duty and hope, love and courage, and the strength we find from standing together in honor of those who came before us.

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Q&A WITH STEPHANIE DRAY

What made you fall in love with Adrienne Lafayette and why do you think readers will fall for her as you did?

Thanks to a popular musical, the Marquis de Lafayette is known to a new generation as "America's Favorite Fighting Frenchman"--and there's good reason for that. He's easily the most lovable of our Founding Fathers, and his wife, whom he called his dear heart, is just as lovable if not more so. Adrienne was our French Founding Mother, so right up my alley as a heroine, but at first I worried she was too sweet, devoted, and forgiving. In short, too gentle for a novel. Little did I realize that more than any other historical heroine I've ever written, Adrienne fought and sacrificed for her principles, courageously threw herself into danger, confronted tyrants, and endured trials that would have broken lesser mortals. She truly humbles me, and when I talk about the Lafayette legacy, I think of it as every bit as much hers as it is his.

How long did it take you to write this book? Did the story evolve as you researched, or did you always know you wanted to take on the lives of these particular women?

I was always interested in Lafayette--an interest that grew as Laura Kamoie and I co-authored America's First Daughter and My Dear Hamilton. I think I had the germ of the idea for a Lafayette novel at least seven years ago, but I had other projects in the way. And I was always in search of an angle that would be fresh and unique. That came to me when I discovered that Lafayette's castle in Auvergne, which had been purchased and renovated by Americans, served to shelter Jewish children from the Nazis. Knowing how deeply the Lafayettes both felt about religious freedom, I knew this would have pleased them, and it touched me. I was then determined to know which Americans had purchased the chateau, and when I found out, yet another glorious chapter in the Lafayette legacy was born. That's when the story took shape for me about one special place on this earth where, generation after generation, faith has been kept with principles of liberty and humanity. I find that very inspirational, now more than ever.

The book is centered around Lafayette’s castle, the Château de Chavaniac, and the pivotal role it played during three of history’s darkest hours—the French Revolution and both World Wars. If you could have dinner with any three people (dead or alive) at Chavaniac, who would you choose and why?

Believe it or not, this is actually a difficult choice because so many incredible men and women passed through those doors. I'd have to start with the Lafayettes--though I hope they would not serve me pigeons, which were a favorite at their wedding banquet. To join us for dinner, I'd choose the colorful stage-star of the Belle Epoque, Beatrice Chanler, because she was a force of nature without whom Chavaniac might not still be standing. Actress, artist, philanthropist, decorated war-relief worker and so-called Queen of the Social Register, she was as mysterious as she was wonderful, and even after all the startling discoveries I made researching her larger-than-life existence, I have a million questions about the early life she tried so hard to hide. I can't wait for readers to meet her!

#TheWomenOfChateauLafayette #StephanieDray #StephanieDrayCoverReveal #CoverReveal

#HistoricalFiction

Book Review: OUTLANDER by Diana Gabaldon

Claire Randall and her husband Frank took a well-deserved second honeymoon to Scotland to celebrate their reunion. The couple had been separated for a long period of time during their years of service to the British military during WWII. Claire served as a combat nurse and Frank was fully invested in the ultra exclusive MI-6. Both had survived the war but had sacrificed the first years of their marriage to the cause. Scotland was the perfect place for a bit of rest and relaxation while Frank the once historian researched his family genealogy.

They both became quickly immersed in the quiet ways of Scottish life. Seeing all of the sights the couple had decided to venture to Craigh Na Dun, which was similar to the mysterious Stonehenge we know today. Caught by surprise they witness a secretive pagan like celebration dance that was performed around the stones by some of the local village women. Hiding from the women’s site they knew they had witness something they should not have been privy to and they went dashing off before they were discovered. Claire decided to go back the next day and investigate the stones further.

Leaving Frank behind to work on his genealogy of his ancestor Black Jack Randall, Claire decided to head to the stones alone. Standing in front of the stones Claire felt this irresistible urge to touch them as she had seen the village women do the day before.  Once her hands were upon the stones this awful sound of buzzing bee’s overwhelmed her and she was immersed in complete darkness. When she came to after touching the stones she found she was still at the stones and had no idea where the sound or darkness had come from. Deciding to venture from the stones Claire found her surroundings vaguely familiar but not exactly the same and the car was gone. Deciding to walk back to the village Claire found herself in the woods with no clue as to what had transpired. As bad luck would have it the first person she encountered was a man dressed in a military red coat and once her eyes locked on his face she instantly called for her husband Frank. After a violent introduction this man that had the same face as her husband stated his name was not Frank but instead Jonathan Randall, captain of the English Dragoons. With her mind reeling from fighting off an unexpected attack from Jonathan Randall, Claire did what her instincts told her to do and she ran. Unfortunately when she took off from Randall she ran straight into a group of rough Scottish highlanders. Having no choice in matters the highlanders scooped her up and fled from the pursuing Randall.

Now a captive of the highlander men Claire offers her medical service to the men’s obvious injuries. One of the young men in the group was a handsome man that the others called Jamie. He suffered from a dislocated shoulder, which she quickly popped back into place and wrapped up. Her skills were noted by the highlanders and decided she had valuable skills that would be highly useful back at home because they had not had a healer for some time and were in desperate need of one. The highlanders really had no other option than to take her with them because they could not just let her go they knew she was English and could very likely be a covert spy sent to watch the highlanders.  Claire was now a liability that had to be watched at all costs.

Castle Leoch eventually loomed ahead and Claire was in the worst-case scenario. She was now a captive of the Mackenzie clan and their laird Colum and his brother Dougal. With her mind still reeling from being sucked into the stones, not know when or where she was, she began to search for answers. It was a tremendous shock to discover the date it was not 1946 anymore instead the year was 1743! Shocked to the core Claire had no other option than to try and fit in at castle Leoch and bide her time until she could escape back to the stones. She must find a way back to her native 1940’s and her husband Frank. Home was always her first thought in her mind but with time it seemed to fade and she found her heart began to grow towards her highlander patient Jamie. Her heart began to open to Jamie and after a turn of awful events Claire and the band of highlanders were on the run from the evil forces of Captain Randall. Still trying to find her way back to the stones Claire was forced into a marriage that would protect her from Randall. Lucky for her it was Jamie that had offered his protection to her but they both were on the run from Randall and only time would tell if they could escape the evil Dragoons. In her heart Claire still wanted to go home to Frank but with a new love budding between Jamie and her she found she was being pulled between two lives and eventually she would have to choose one over the other.

4/5 Loved it and I know I say that about every novel I read but it is honestly how I feel. I am starting to think that I either loved it or hated it, there really is not much in-between for me.  Can I just say that I ended up picking this novel up because I watched the first part of season one of Outlander on Starz and Jamie is so smoking hot! Before the TV series I have to admit I was really intimidated by this series because there are a ton of books in it and for a Outlander newbie it is kind of scary to see eight plus novels at over 700 pages a piece but I am glad I finally got into it and it was more than worth it. I would highly recommend this novel to every historical and romance reader because it is a unique story line and is really romantic.

R ~ Rating for violence and graphic sexual references.

FTC ~ This novel is from my personal collection. I received no compensation for this review and it is reflective of my honest opinion of this novel.

A M A Z O N

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

STAY CONNECTED WITH ME: 

S U B S C R I B E ~ T W I T T E R ‪ ~ F A C E B O O K ~ I N S T A G R A M ~ G O O G L E +‪

~L I Z Z I E~

New Release: Victoria: A Life by A.N. Wilson

Victoria: A Life by A. N. Wilson
Released October 10.23.2014 ~ Non-Fiction

"When Queen Victoria died in 1901, she had ruled for nearly sixty-four years. She was a mother of nine and grandmother of forty-two and the matriarch of royal Europe through her children’s marriages. To many, Queen Victoria is a ruler shrouded in myth and mystique, an aging, stiff widow paraded as the figurehead to an all-male imperial enterprise. But in truth, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch was one of the most passionate, expressive, humorous and unconventional women who ever lived, and the story of her life continues to fascinate.
A. N. Wilson’s exhaustively researched and definitive biography includes a wealth of new material from previously unseen sources to show us Queen Victoria as she’s never been seen before. Wilson explores the curious set of circumstances that led to Victoria’s coronation, her strange and isolated childhood, her passionate marriage to Prince Albert and his pivotal influence even after death and her widowhood and subsequent intimate friendship with her Highland servant John Brown, all set against the backdrop of this momentous epoch in Britain’s history—and the world’s.

Born at the very moment of the expansion of British political and commercial power across the globe, Victoria went on to chart a unique course for her country even as she became the matriarch of nearly every great dynasty of Europe. Her destiny was thus interwoven with those of millions of people—not just in Europe but in the ever-expanding empire that Britain was becoming throughout the nineteenth century. The famed queen had a face that adorned postage stamps, banners, statues and busts all over the known world.

Wilson’s Victoria is a towering achievement, a masterpiece of biography by a writer at the height of his powers".

Amazon - Victoria: A Life by A.N. Wilson
~Lizzie~

E-Book Sale THE PARIS ARCHITECT by Charles Belfoure

Featured Daily Deal on Sourcebooks, "The Paris Architect" by Charles Belfoure will be $2.99 on THURSDAY AKA TODAY 4~2~2014 ONLY! I highly recommend this novel and if you would like to check out my 5 star review of it please do so. If you do not get this on Thursday it will be $25.99 for he e-book and it is currently only available in hardback for 25.99. Later this year in July the paperback will be released.

"A beautiful and elegant account of an ordinary man's unexpected and reluctant descent into heroism during the second world war."—Malcolm Gladwell, bestselling author of The Tipping Point and Outliers

“If you enjoy fast paced, graphic, and fascinating historical fiction, I recommend you read THE PARIS ARCHITECT.” – Erika Robuck, author of Hemingway’s Girl

"Lucien Bernard didn’t expect to join the French Resistance. It starts out as a game—an architectural puzzle. When a wealthy industrialist offers him a large sum of money to devise secret hiding places for Jews in Nazi-occupied Paris, Lucien can’t resist the challenge.

He begins a secret life, designing expertly concealed spaces invisible to the untrained eye—all while working with the Germans on the other side.

Set during the roundups and deportations of 1942, The Paris Architect is a powerfully human novel of survival, self-knowledge, and the challenge of sacrifice in the midst of uncertainty and fear.

Charles Belfoure is a former lecturer at Goucher College whose writing has appeared in the Baltimore Sun and the New York Times. An architect specializing in historical preservation, he is the author of several award-winning works of nonfiction. This is his first novel. He lives in Maryland".
~Lizzie~

The Great Gatsby Movie Art and Fashion

I know I am really late on "The Great Gatsby" Train but I must admit I held myself back. I read the book before I watched the movie and it was worth the wait. Beautifully filmed this movie is breath taking and I am glad I waited. I wanted to share with you all some of my favorite little things related to "The Great Gatsby". Happy reading all!

Carey Mulligan "Daisy Buchannan

Tiffany even jumped on board for Gatsby themed spread May 2013

For More On The Great Gatsby:
Check out the Soundtrack on Google Play
Amazon, Books, The Movie, and More on The Great Gatsby
You Tube "Young and Beautiful" - A Tribute to "The Great Gatsby"
You Tube The Great Gatsby Deleted Scenes - Alternate Ending SPOILER ALERT!

~Lizzie~

Book Review: THE GREAT GATSBY by F. Scott Fitzgerald

American classic literature at its finest. Short yet anything but sweet this novel will leave you feeling very reflective on your own life’s choices. At a tiny 180 pages this novel is not exactly an easy novel to read even for me it was rough going in a few spots. My interpretation is that Fitzgerald purposely wrote this novel intentionally vague. I think the point is to leave the story open for the reader to decide how they view the novel.

In the fabled city of West Egg Nick Carraway moved into a forgotten gardeners cottage between mansions the summer of 1922. Nick a WWI vet had moved to West Egg from the Midwest to pursue his hobby of writing. Nick’s had a lovely cousin named Daisy Buchannan that lived across the bay in East Egg. West and East Egg were very different from each other. East Egg residents were made of “old money” and West Egg was considered “new money”. The two suburbs fabled to be outside of Long Island NY were worlds apart. The two rarely crossed paths except for at “Gatsby’s Parties”. Coincidentally Gatsby happened to live right next door to Nick in a giant mansion. His parties were notorious for being the best in New York and the whole city would turn out for his shindigs.

Nick became quickly reacquainted with his beautiful cousin Daisy and her husband Tom. Nick and Tom were old Yale grad buddies. Tom also was heir to a vast family fortune and was an arrogant jerk. He and Daisy lived in the lap of luxury in East Egg. It was crystal clear to Nick after spending dinner with his rich cousins that Daisy was a very unhappy woman. Tom was the main source of that pain because it was said that he “kept a woman in NY”. Nick with out a choice would happen to meet this other woman that very night. During dinner Tom insisted that they go out for a night in town. On their way into town on the train Tom jumped off the train and headed straight to the local mechanic shop. Nick was stunned to discover that this other woman of Tom’s was also someone else’s wife. The mechanic’s wife Myrtle made Nick very uneasy. Daisy was his cousin yet after a little cajoling Nick partied like a wild man all night with Tom, Myrtle, and their closest friends.

Nick had been on a parting splurge when he received an official invitation to one of Gatsby’s wild parties. When he arrived he realized he was the only one who had actually been invited. He had a hard time finding the host of the glorious party and he happened to come across Daisy’s best friend he had met at dinner the other night, Jordan Baker. At least he had Jordan to cling to at the party because Gatsby was always aloof at his own parties. Nick had set out to discover more about the host and all he got back were outlandish tales of Gatsby’s background. He came to the conclusion that no one knew who Gatsby really was and right when he had given up searching him out Gatsby found him. He was nothing like he had expected, young, handsome, and defiantly sober unlike Nick. The pair hit it off and Nick found himself invited into Gatsby’s mysterious life of “new money”.

Gatsby had engaged Nick because he “wanted him to know something of him” because he had a request for Nick and miss Jordan Baker would explain the rest to him. Jordan had mentioned at the party that she had met Gatsby before and Gatsby needed their help. His request seemed like a simple thing. He wanted Nick to invite Daisy Buchannan to tea. Sounds simple enough yet Nick had no inkling at the history behind Jay Gatsby and Daisy. Nick felt compelled to arrange the meeting between his married cousin and this eccentric millionaire he barely knew and that was just the beginning.

4/5 I gave this novel a four even though I loved it because I had to re-read quite a few parts. The style of the prose maybe hard to digest for some readers, it can be difficult at times. If you did not read this in high school then I would highly recommend reading it before you watch the movie. I also think that if you did read it as high school mandatory curriculum then you should re-read it again because your interpretation as an adult might vary from a youth’s stand point. I also want to point out that the movie is almost exactly like the book except a few small parts cut out. The movie made a great follow up to the read.

R – Rating for violence and sexual references.
FTC – I bought this novel for my personal collection.
Amazon – The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
~Lizzie~

Book Review: THE PARIS ARCHITECT by Charles Belfoure

WOW…. this is an amazing novel. This one is not my normal time period. Yet I really enjoyed reading WWII novels when I was in college. This novel has a compelling story line that I just could not resist.

“The Paris Architect” set in 1942 Paris during WWII; the German’s have been occupying France for some time now violence is an every day part of life in Paris at this time. Lucien Bernard really is not the most likable person at first. He is architect struggling tot make ends meat just like everyone in this time period. He is not a man of high moral fiber. He is married yet he also has a mistress who is part of the Paris fashion elite. Lucien is the type that would never put his neck out for anyone else but in a time where murders happened daily it desensitizes a person and makes horrific uncalled for violence an everyday part of life. Lucien was barely making it and people around him were killed everyday for just trying to live.

Lucien came highly recommended for his architectural skills and when he is approached for a new job that could put his life at risk he really had to consider all his options. It was meant to be a one-time job of the up most secrecy. The job was to make a hiding space no Nazi or Gestapo could ever find. If he took the job then his new employer would make sure as an added bonus that he got a contact for building a brand new war factory for the Reich. Lucien had much to gain by drawing up one blue print for this ultra exclusive hiding spot. On the other hand he could loose not just his life, he could be tortured to death by the Gestapo. It was more than a huge risk to help anyone Jewish because anyone who was caught hiding a Jew or helping a Jew was killed right along with the Jew on the spot. Lucien deiced he would take the job because getting one over one the despicable Nazi’s was just something he could not pass up.

Lucien and his new employer did not anticipate that they would have to move more than once, which meant more than one hiding spot. The Gestapo aka Nazi secret police were closing in and if caught everyone would die. They had to stay one step ahead of the Nazi’s. Lucien at this point became fully invested in hiding some of the Jews and feared greatly the Gestapo were following him. Even with the looming threat he knew he could never just walk away at this point. His heart had changed and now he would do anything to help save people that were being wrongfully persecuted.

5/5 WOW again wow this novel is a quick paced mysterious read. You really have no idea what might happen next. I really enjoyed this one. However I do have to mention that if you are not up for blood or violence then this is not the book for you because there are gruesome torture scenes that are very detailed. I would highly recommend this novel to WWII lovers because it is a unique novel that pulls all your heart strings.

R-Rating for blood, gore, violence and sex
FTC- this novel was sent to me by the publisher for review.

Amazon - The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure
~Lizzie~

Joseph Caraud "Marie Antoinette"

Joseph Caraud (1821-1905)

La Reine marie­Antoinette Et Sa Fille, Madame Royale, A Versailles

Oil on canvas

1870

102.9 x 81.9 cm

(3' 4.51" x 32.24")

Private collection

Joseph Caraud (1821-1905)

Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI in the Garden of the Tuileries with Madame Lambale

Oil on canvas

1857

117.5 x 89.5 cm

(3' 10.26" x 35.24")

Private collection

Amazon
Marie Anoinette
~Lizzie~

John William Waterhouse "Female Study"

"A Female Study"

Date 1894

Medium chalk on paper

Dimensions 26.5 × 22 cm (10.4 × 8.7 in

"The Bouquet study" also known as 'Portrait of a lady in a green dress'

1903

For more on John William Waterhouse check out my other posts:

John William Waterhouse "Gone, But Not Forgotten"
John Willaim Waterhouse "Windflowers"

Sundays Art: Pre-Raphaelites, Fair Rosamund and Qu...

Lost Books, Love by Shelia Pickles and Giveaway Wi...

Sundays Art: Pre-Raphaelites Romeo and Juliet 1867...

Sundays Art: Pre-Raphaelites Miranda: The Tempest ...

Sundays Art: Pre-Raphaelites Ophelia 1894

New Release: Hemingway's Girl by Erika Robuck

Fresh into stores today, "Hemingway's Girl" by Erika Robuck.

“She remembered when Hemingway had planted a banyan at his house and told her its parasitic roots were like human desire. At the time she’d thought it romantic. She hadn’t understood his warning.”

In Depression-era Key West, Mariella Bennet, the daughter of an American fisherman and a Cuban woman, knows hunger. Her struggle to support her family following her father’s death leads her to a bar and bordello, where she bets on a risky boxing match...and attracts the interest of two men: world-famous writer, Ernest Hemingway, and Gavin Murray, one of the WWI veterans who are laboring to build the Overseas Highway.

When Mariella is hired as a maid by Hemingway’s second wife, Pauline, she enters a rarified world of lavish, celebrity-filled dinner parties and elaborate off-island excursions. As she becomes caught up in the tensions and excesses of the Hemingway household, the attentions of the larger-than-life writer become a dangerous temptation...even as the reliable Gavin Murray draws her back to what matters most. Will she cross an invisible line with the volatile Hemingway, or find a way to claim her own dreams? As a massive hurricane bears down on Key West, Mariella faces some harsh truths...and the possibility of losing everything she loves".

Amazon

~Lizzie~

Giveaway Incognito by Gregory Murphy

Hitting Bookstores Everywhere July 5th 2011

"An elegant literary mystery set during the Gilded Age.

New York City, 1911. Representing the widow of a Wall Street financier, lawyer William Dysart travels to a small Long Island town with a generous offer for Miss Sybil Curtis's cottage and five acres of land. But when Sybil refuses to sell, the widow threatens to use her influence with the state to seize the property.
Intrigued by Sybil's defiance and afflicted by a growing affection for her, William develops a desire to help her that becomes an obsession he cannot define, one that tears away the facade of his life, and presents him with truths he's unprepared to face".

Lets kick off this killer giveaway! 

The giveaway is for one finished paperback copy. This one is only open to the US residents only. Giveaway ends July 10th 2011 at midnight west coast time.

For 1 entry enter your name and email

For 2 entries be a follower and say so in the form

For 3 entries share this and add a real link.

~Lizzy~

Giveaway The Polski Affair by Leon H Gildin

"The Polski Affair is the story of Rosa Feurmann and others who found themselves as "guests" of the Hotel Polski during the Nazi occupation of Warsaw. The Hotel mysteriously drew in Jewish survivors who wished to buy their way to freedom. Rosa, a Jewish partisan infiltrates the hotel. She is detected and comes under the personal control of the Hotel's Nazi Commandant. What she did to survive continues to haunt Rosa's life. She is called as a witness at the Commandant's War Crimes Trial in Heidelberg and years later, she attends a reunion of the surviving hotel `guests'. It is only upon her return to Israel that Rosa ultimately reconciles her inner conflicts".

The Giveaway!

Up for grabs is one new paperback copy. This giveaway is open to the US AND CANADA. 

 

Rules

For 1 entry leave me a comment with a way to contact you.

For 2 entries follow my blog. If you already do, thanks, and please let me know in the comments. You're eligible for the extra entry as well.

For 3 entries blog or tweet this giveaway to spread the word.

Giveaway will end on November 22th at midnight.

Good luck to everyone I know one lucky reader is going to be very happy with this one. 

 

AMAZON

 

Book Review: THE LOVELY BONES by Alice Sebold

Hands down this is the best non-royalty historical fiction read I have read to date. I was hooked in with in the first few pages to the point where I wanted to sleep with it attached to my hand. I plunged so deeply into “Susie” that I finished it with in two days. Sleep deprived as I was, I found the book had taken a hold of me like nothing ever has before.

It is a tragedy in this world that people hurt children, it is a withdrawn subject to me and one that I choose not to ever touch on in my readings. I do not have a stomach for violence but violence with children involved hits a breaking point for me that I just cannot do. I purposely stayed away from this book because I was scared and I knew that a girl was brutally murdered but when I saw that maidens court had read it I knew it was time. I had to stomach the violence to see what all the fuss was about. I was in a dark mood the day I picked it up and happened to pick the off-handed read to change up the mix, I am glad I did.

As I braced myself for the read I found Susie Salmon, “Salmon like the fish” was in junior high in the early seventies. She was fourteen when her demonic pedophile neighbor Mr Harvey viciously murdered her. The murder happened with in the first few chapters because death was not the end of Susie Salmon. I instantly loved Susie as every woman could relate to being an innocent young girl in that awkward phase of life. She deserved to transcend directly to that place where lost loved ones waited with open arms to greet you. Something was transpiring and Susie found herself in a limbo place where people who could not move forward stayed in their own world, like a waiting room for heaven. Her little brother Buckley said it was the “in-between” part of Earth and heaven.

In the in-between Susie watched, she saw her family struggle with the loss that had no resolution. In my mind I have always felt that to loose a child at any age is a devastating event that many families are never able to recover from. To be just lost is worse because you never get the much needed closure. Susie found she did not have closure in her heaven either and she remained where she was and continued watching the time go by. The family changed the kids were growing up, mom had run off with her grief that was like a crushing weight. Her grandma moved in even if she was disfunctional in the begining, but with in it all they had each other still the core that mattered was intact. What kind of closure could there be for the girl that only her elbow was found? I was not really sure, I do not even think Susie knew what it was until it came in another unexpected form.

5/5+ loved it a exhilarating read that had me burning through pages all the way to the end. This book is reminiscent of my all time favorite movie “What Dreams May Become”, magically beautiful and deeply sinister all at the same time. I do have to state that I think if I had to give this a movie rating it would have to be R because it is violent and it does get into the disgusting details of a child’s rape and murder. With that out of the way I would highly recommend this read for who believes they can handle the grizzly details. This is one of those reads it is necessary to push through the bad to get to the startlingly good experience.

FTC This is my own personal book.

The Amber Room discovered? Time will Tell

The Amber room which falls for me into the category of the Seven Wonders of the world has always fascinated me. It has even been dubbed by some as the "eighth wonder" of the world. Mysterious and alluring as it is what is it that is so fascinating about it? Besides being a whole room made completely of the precious stone Amber, it is a gem of Russian history.

To the left is a picture of the original Amber Room before WWII

It had been said that when all the candles were lit the room glowed gold. Which would not surprise me since amber is light reflective. It had to have been a sight to behold, rendering one speechless.

1716 it was given by Prussian king Friedrich Wilhelm I to his then ally, Tsar Peter the Great of Russia. In Russia it was expanded and after several renovations, it covered more than 55 square meters and contained over six tons of amber.

Later the room was looted by Nazi Germany during WWII even after it was covered with wall paper to conceal its location. The Nazi's still found it and German soldiers disassembled the Amber Room within 36 hours under the supervision of two experts supposedly to be sent to Königsberg in East Prussia. The pieces were put into crates and from there is where the mystery begins.

Some believe the crates were seen at a railway station in Königsberg and it is possible they might have been loaded onto a boat that was sunk by a Soviet submarine. Another possible avenue might be it was taken to Weimar, the location of a "planned propaganda center". At one point later in the war Königsberg was heavily bombed and the the remains of the castle were destroyed by The Red Army in the 1960's.

The castle to the left is Königsberg before WWI.

Never to be found again the mysterious disappearance of The Amber Rooms pieces has intrigued many over the years. In 1997 one Italian stone mosaic that was part of a set of four which had decorated the Amber Room did turn up in western Germany, in the possession of the family of a soldier who had helped pack up the Amber Room

Amber which consists of fossilized tree resin, has always been prized for its natural beauty. Yes just like in Jurassic park it does contain some natural elements like animal and plant material. The uniqueness of Amber also come with a down side. If it is not properly cared for it will turn to dust. Even with modern day Amber jewelry you can not spray perfume or hairspray even possibly near it or it will develop a whitish film on it that may be permante. It is so sensitive it can not rub together like in beads, steam cleaners and ultrasonic cleaners will shatter the gem, it can not come into contact with any strong solutions, soaps, detergents, commercial jewelry cleaning solutions. Even kitchen substances such as lard, salad oil, butter and excessive heat of ovens and burners. Do not place amber art objects near heating ducts or in direct sunshine. Displays in lighted showcases should be properly ventilated. Avoid exposure to sudden changes of temperature, such as hot tubs, very cold water, and reaching into ovens, followed by a cold sink.

A recreated Amber room exist today at Catherine Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Someday I would love to see it for myself. I have been following the story of the Amber Room for some time becasue it perodically has showed up in the news. People stating that they think they might have found it but all have came back with empty hands. No Amber, no nothing. Until now a man who might be the closest to come to finding it.

"Priceless Amber Room of the Tsars, looted and hidden by the Nazis, is found by Russia treasure hunter"

"The Amber Room of the Tsars - one of the greatest missing treasures of WW2 that was looted by the Nazis during their invasion of the Soviet Union - may have been found.
A Russian treasure hunter is currently excavating in the enclave of Kaliningrad where he has discovered a World War II era bunker that the local German high command used in the battle for the city in 1945.
If Sergei Trifonov is correct then he has solved one of the greatest riddles left over from the war - and will make himself into a multi-millionaire."

"He anticipates that he will break into the bunker by the end of the month to find the treasure."

The real issue I see is if this man really does get into the bunker and finds the original crates that the Amber panels were loaded into then what about the actual Amber. With no one around to maintain its up keep then the Amber would it not have turned to dust? Time being the enemy here would there really be anything to find or just a pile of dust and some empty crates?


Thank you to the lovely Michelle Moran for posting this wonderful news link on the search for the amber room. It just happens to be another one of my historical obsessions.

Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, The Last Royal Family of Imperial Russia

During my college years I became obsessed with the last royal family of Russia. I spent hours in the library reading anything it had to offer on Nicholas II. I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered that Leslie Carroll include a section all about the last Tsar in "Notorious Royal Marriages". Reading the section on Nicholas and his wife Alexandria from a lovers point of view was a whole new aspect for me. One that I thoroughly enjoyed.

The family that was doomed from the beginning shared a unique quality that as Leslie stated "They were exemplary spouses and parents who lovingly raised their five sweet-natured children in a cozy domestic environment". Their marriage being a true love match they never cheated and truly loved each other.

Almost every living person knows of the story of Nicholas daughter Anastasia. She was labeled as the "lost princess". Rumors were fueled by the fact that the location of her burial was unknown during the decades of Communist rule. 20th Century Fox even went as far as to make a cartoon movie about her in 1997 where Rasputin was chasing her as an undead sorcerer fulfilling his promise of "The Romanov Curse". Through out the years after the families demise many women came forward claiming to be the lost princess, one in particular named Anna Anderson stood out from the rest. Some even believed she really was Anastasia. Later DNA test would prove that Anna had no relation to the Romanov family.

Initially I was drawn to their story because of a story my professor had told me. I am really unclear if it is true or not but the story goes that when the Tsarina was being held with her children and they knew that it was all over, she had sewn into their clothing precious gems mostly diamonds just in case they need money for an escape in the future. When the family was to be executed the bullets from the assassins ricocheted off of the gems and that they had to be executed up close. Here is what the wiki says:

"The executioners drew revolvers and the shooting began. Nicholas was the first to die; Yurovsky shot him multiple times in the head and chest. Anastasia, Tatiana, Olga, and Maria survived the first hail of bullets; the sisters were wearing over 1.3 kilograms of diamonds and precious gems sewn into their clothing, which provided some initial protection from the bullets and bayonets. They were stabbed with bayonets and then shot at close range in the head."

Morbid fascination I know... but then I discovered Faberge eggs. As an artist I was baffled. The detail of craftsmanship is impeccable nothing is even comparable to them. Each one was unique and given for a reason, even if that reason was a just a token of affection for the Easter holiday. The saddest part to me is that to this day there are many missing eggs. Many of them disappeared when the palace was looted. The missing eggs are in chronological order of creation: Hen with Sapphire Pendant, Cherub with Chariot, Nécessaire, Alexander III Portraits, Mauve, Empire Nephrite, Royal Danish.

It would come to be that in our life time the remains of the entire royal family would be found and DNA tested and the family could finally have their peace. Here is the timeline of discovery for the families remains:

1979: The bodies of Tsar Nicholas II, Tsarina Alexandra, three of their daughters, and those of four non-family members killed with them, were discovered near Yekaterinburg by an amateur archaeologist.

1998: The remains excavated from underneath the dirt road near Yekaterinburg were officially identified as those of Nicholas II and his family excluding one of the sisters, and Alexei. After the testing the remains were finally interred at St. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Saint Petersburg on 17 July 1998, eighty years after they were murdered.

2007: Builder Sergei Pogorelov (part of a team from an amateur history group who spent free summer weekends looking for the lost Romanov's) said that after stumbling on a small burned area of ground covered with nettles near Yekaterinburg he had discovered bones that belonged to "a boy and a young woman roughly the ages of Nicholas’ 13-year-old hemophiliac son, Alexei, and a daughter whose remains also never have been found. Acting on standard procedures, prosecutors reopened the investigation surrounding the deaths of the Imperial Family.

2008: DNA tests performed by a U.S. laboratory proved that bone fragments exhumed in the Ural Mountains belonged to two members of the Imperial Family, Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich and Grand Duchess Maria, according to Russian news agencies. Russia's Supreme Court ruled that Nicholas II and his family were victims of political repression and should be rehabilitated.

2009: Results of the DNA testing were published, confirming that the two bodies discovered in 2007 were those of Alexei and his sister Maria. Details relating to the forthcoming burial procedure will have to be discussed by a Russian State commission and by the Moscow Patriarchate.

I have never read a historical fiction read on the family but I would be very interested if one happened to cross my path. In the meanwhile check out the section in "Notorious Royal Marriages" about Nicholas and Alexandra by Leslie Carroll. Leslie even included the couples love entries in Nicholas journal which will just melt your heart and make you fall in love this royal family. Be sure to check out Arleigh's interview with Leslie on Historical Fiction, it is a good one too!