Welcome to Mailbox Monday, the weekly meme where book lovers share the titles they received for review, purchased, or otherwise obtained over the past week. It is now being hosted at the Mailbox Monday blog.
Here’s what I added to my shelves during the past week:
A Modern Day Sense & Sensibility by Kaitlin Saunders — from the author for review
Revisit the beloved Jane Austen classic — with a twist! — in Kaitlin Saunders’ heartwarming new novel, A Modern Day Sense & Sensibility. After the success of A Modern Day Persuasion, this newest installment in Saunders’ series of Austen retellings will have readers swooning at the comical misunderstandings and classic romances that are freshly rewritten for modern times.
After their father’s untimely death, Ellie and Marianne Dashwood find themselves fatherless and penniless. Together with their mother and younger sister, they are unceremoniously at the mercy of their half brother and his conniving wife. Ellie finds a moment of happiness when she is introduced to her sister-in-law’s brother, Edward. But as their friendship grows, Edward fails to make any romantic overtures — a development that confuses the smitten Ellie. Eventually the Dashwood ladies are forced to relocate to a dingy apartment building in Oregon, where they slowly come to terms with their new frugal lifestyle. They soon befriend Brandon, a wealthy thirty-something hotel entrepreneur who immediately falls for Marianne. But Marianne takes little notice, preoccupied by the stunningly handsome Jim Willoughby. But just as things start heating up between them, she learns that the situation may not be exactly as it seems. As the sisters struggle through secrets, illness, and broken promises, Ellie and Marianne must find the answer: Does love really conquer all? Find out in Saunders’ romantic rendition of a beloved classic. (publisher’s summary)
The Collector of Dying Breaths by M.J. Rose — from Atria Books for review
In 1533, an Italian orphan with an uncanny knack for creating fragrance is plucked from poverty to become Catherine de Medici’s perfumer. To repay his debt, over the years René le Florentine is occasionally called upon to put his vast knowledge to a darker purpose: the creation of deadly poisons used to dispatch the Queen’s rivals.
But it’s René’s other passion — a desire to reanimate a human breath, to bring back the lives of the two people whose deaths have devastated him — that incites a dangerous treasure hunt five centuries later. That’s when Jac L’Etoile — suffering from a heartache of her own — becomes obsessed with the possibility of unlocking René’s secret to immortality.
Soon Jac’s search reconnects her with Griffin North, a man she’s loved her entire life. Together they confront an eccentric heiress whose art collection rivals many museums and who is determined to keep her treasures close at hand, not just in this life but in her next.
Set in the forest of Fontainebleau, crisscrossing the lines between the past and the present, M.J. Rose has written a mesmerizing tale of passion and obsession. This is a gothic tale perfect for fans of Anne Rice, Deborah Harkness, and Diana Galbadon. (publisher’s summary)
Pride & Prejudice: The Scenes Jane Austen Never Wrote by The Austen Authors Collective — from the Austen Authors for review
What did Mr. Darcy think when he first saw Elizabeth Bennet? How did Miss Bingley talk her brother out of proposing to Jane Bennet? And how did Lady Catherine de Bourgh find out Mr. Darcy was on the verge of proposing to Elizabeth? 25 authors of Austen-inspired fiction decided to answer these questions and more. Here are the scenes Jane Austen never wrote: ones that happened off stage, such as Mr. Collins proposing to Charlotte Lucas, and actual Pride and Prejudice scenes from the point of view of different characters.
Each author wrote according to their own inspiration, so Pride & Prejudice: The Scenes Jane Austen Never Wrote is not a complete novel in and of itself. It is a collection of scenes written independently and designed to complement the original. The reader can start at the beginning or dip into any scene they choose.
Contributing authors include Abigail Reynolds (Mr. Darcy’s Noble Connections), Sharon Lathan (Miss Darcy Falls in Love), Regina Jeffers (The Mysterious Death of Mr. Darcy), Mary Simonsen (Becoming Elizabeth Darcy), Susan Mason-Milks (Please, Mr. Darcy), Jack Caldwell (The Three Colonels), C. Allyn Pierson (Mr. Darcy’s Little Sister), Shannon Winslow (The Darcys of Pemberley), Colette Saucier (Pulse and Prejudice), Jane Odiwe (Project Darcy), Monica Fairview (Steampunk Darcy), Maria Grace (Twelfth Night at Longbourn), Diana Birchall (Mrs. Darcy’s Dilemma), Marilyn Brant (Pride, Prejudice, and the Perfect Match), Karen Doornebos (Undressing Mr. Darcy), Nina Benneton (Compulsively Mr. Darcy), Susan Adriani (The Truth About Mr. Darcy), J. Marie Croft (Mr. Darcy Takes a Plunge), Vera Nazarian (Mansfield Park and Mummies), Cailin Rubino-Bradway (Lady Vernon and Her Daughter), Kara Louise (Pirates and Prejudice), and Heather Lynn Rigaud (Fitzwilliam Darcy, Rock Star).
All proceeds from sales of Pride & Prejudice: The Scenes Jane Austen Never Wrote will be donated to Jane Austen-related charities. (publisher’s summary)
Loom Magic! by John McCann & Becky Thomas — from Skyhorse Publishing for review (The Girl will be reviewing this one!)
This book includes twenty-five new rubber band loom projects, including bracelets, sports-themed charms, key rings, pendants, and even a working slingshot. New crafters and dedicated fans will enjoy creating the wide variety of projects in this collection, including:
Cell phone case * Daisy chain bracelet * Watch band * Octo bracelet * Blooming beaded bracelet * Sports fan keychain * Matching barrettes * Pencil topper * Rainbow ring * Nunchuks * Rocker cuff bracelet * Snowman ornament * And many more! (publisher’s summary)
The Gypsy’s Dream by Sara Alexi — free ebook
Cross with her father, Abby, 17, boards a flight to Greece, but gets hopelessly lost and ends up in the wrong village.
Alone, with very little money, no Greek and no way to contact her friend Jackie, who has lined up a bar job for her, Abby realises she has to stand on her own two feet for the first time…
She meets Stella, who runs the local ouzeri – a rough and ready eatery were farmers gather to drink and take refuge from their domestic lives.
Stella does not need a naive young English girl hanging around, and the ouzeri is not the glamorous bar that Abby had bargained for.
But when events throw them together, the situation brings to the boil tensions that have been brewing for years, the ripples drawing in other people in the village, threatening Abby’s ability to ever leave, culminating in shocking unforeseen events and the uncovering of dark secrets that change peoples’ thinking about themselves and others permanently. (publisher’s summary)
What books did you add to your shelves recently?
© 2014 Anna Horner of Diary of an Eccentric. All Rights Reserved. Please do not reproduce or republish content without permission.