Novelas Romanticas Gratis

  I picked this up at B&N on a whim and added it to my TBR stack and forgot about it (as I usually do!) until I was compiling my list for September reads and decided to add it in as a switch from my   otherwise heavy on the magic and literary theme choices. I'm glad I did, because this was perfectly enjoyable. Yes, it's on the eve of World War 2 (1937); the Nazis are rising and unease is building, but I don't think I've ever read a novel that includes the Hindenburg in it!  This is a novel about two sisters: Clara and Madeleine Sommers. They are from a wealthy East Coast family. Their grandmother, Violet, has terminal cancer and has requested the two women travel to Europe to deliver letters to three people that meant something to Violet. All expenses paid, and they get to travel on the Queen Mary, the Orient Express, and return home on the Hindenburg-the latest in fast, luxurious travel between Europe and the U.S.  The sisters don't...

I decided to review two books in one post this week. I was cruising along, reading at a good clip and somehow over the weekend hit a snag. However, some time at home (and I'll confess, a few late nights) had me finishing two books on my September list.  First is Aria's Traveling Book Shop by Rebecca Raisin. This is a sequel to Rosie's Traveling Tea Shop (read my review here ), but definitely isn't really necessary to read it before this one.  We find Aria and Rosie getting ready to take their campers to France so travel the fete and festival circuit. Aria's camper is chock full of books to sell, while Rosie (a former chef), creates delicious British treats to sell, along with specialty teas that often compliment Aria's books.  Aria is a young widower, and has firmly shut her heart to any possibility of ever falling in love again. She had her true love, and no one can match it. However, there is Jonathan; a quiet, handsome, and bookish ...

  Not going to lie. It hurt my heart a bit to finish this book. I, along with a whole lot of other readers, don't want to say goodbye to the Owens family. I was dragging my feet finishing this novel simply because I love this series so much. I guess you could call it a series, spread over 25 years. Alice Hoffman didn't expect to write more than the first novel, Practical Magic . That novel (I still have my original paperback) introduced me to Alice Hoffman and I've been a fan since.  However, fans kept asking for more about the Owens family, so Alice wrote three more books. But now it's time to say goodbye.  It took me a few chapters to remember the family tree, but heck my eyes were leaking not far into the story. Dang it! This novel centers around Fanny and Jet, and nieces Sally and Gillian. It also brings back brother Vincent, and two more Owens women, Kylie and Antonia, the two daughters of Sally.  Reading Magic Lessons will set you up for th...

  You know how you wait and wait for something, then it finally arrives, and instead of jumping on it and being happy it's finally here, you dink around and put it off for a bit? That's exactly what I did with this novel, the sequel to 2019's The Book Charmer (you can read my review here ).   I just can't get enough of novels that involve magic. Add in a small town and a family of sisters, and that's pretty much an irresistible trio for me.  Even though I couldn't wait to read this, I started it earlier this month and didn't get far before I got distracted--and thought oh no! I'm not going to enjoy this. That lead me to setting it aside and reading a few other books. This past week I picked it up again and decided I was going to dive in and finish it before I read anything else. So I did, and it didn't take long before I got over my stuck-ness and bam! I was back in Dove Pond with the Dove sisters and right in the thick of things.  This, the second i...

  Click here to buy from Amazon Well this book took me a bit to get through to the end. Mostly because it broke my heart over and over and I had to read it in bits and pieces.  I've heard so much about this book--tons of rave reviews, and even a few friends telling me about it. So I bought it last month and have been reading it since May 1st. Some books I can sail through; others take me a bit. This was a "take me a bit" kind of book. It's heavy. It's not a happy ever after. And even for the first 100 pages, I was wondering if I'd made a mistake and it wasn't a book for me.  But I kept with it, and wow, what a powerful, haunting novel. It's a bit of a thriller, murder mystery, and a family drama all rolled into one. It reminded me of Jane Harper's novels-the desolate feeling I get when I read them.  In a nutshell: Duchess and Robin Radley are two young kids who live with their mother, Star, in the small town of Cape Haven, California. They are dirt...

  Another book I've had on my bookshelf for a bit and finally put it on my list for February. Even then, it took me a lot of stops and starts to finally jump into this tale of two chicken shops, a generational feud, and a food wars show with a big prize that could change everything.  Sisters Amanda and Mae are pretty different: Mae is a home organizing rising star in New York City; she's got a popular book out, and is in the running for a co-hosting job on a popular home show. She's all about being organized; everything in its place and a place for everything. This is a direct reaction to her childhood and her mother, Barbara. Amanda still lives in Merinac, Kansas. She helps run her late husband's restaurant-Frannie's. Amanda and Mae's mother, Barbara, runs Mimi's-also a chicken restaurant.  Way back in the 1880's, Mimi and Frannie were two sisters running their own chicken shack. Then a feud erupted between the sisters, and Frannie set up he...

  I've been reading a lot of historical fiction this month. Maybe I'm trying to make up for the lack of it in my 2020 reading list? I have been ping-ponging between quite a few books, and not making a big dent in any of them. So, what I do when that happens is start another book. Ha! This was a quick read, and I enjoyed it very much. It was just what I needed to read. The Kitchen Front is based on an actual World War 2 contest that was sponsored by the BBC. In this novel, four women in the small town of Finley Village enter the contest hoping to be the winner. For each of them, it means a chance to change their lives for the better. Audrey is a widow with three children, barely hanging onto her home by baking pies and scones for the locals. Lady Gwendoline is Audrey's estranged sister. She is all about appearance and making her stuffy, nasty husband proud. Nell is a servant for Lady Gwendoline, and a very talented young cook. She dreams of leaving her position for somethi...

  The Children's Blizzard is historical fiction based on a tragic natural disaster that happened on January 12, 1888 in Nebraska. That blizzard, called The Schoolhouse Blizzard in some records, was previously written about in David Laskin's non-fiction book of the same name. I read Laskin's book when it was published in 2004 and was fascinated by this natural disaster that I'd never heard of before.  This is a fictionalized story of that day in 1888. The characters--Raina and Gerda, Anette, Fredrik, Tor-they are based on some of the actual students and teachers that survived the blizzard.  It's January 12, 1888. A strangely warm (40 degrees!) day on the Nebraska prairies. People took advantage of the mild weather to make trips to town from their homesteads for supplies. Students walked to school without their usual heavy coats and gloves. For most, it was a pretty short walk-maybe 15 minutes from their homes to the schoolhouses. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, ...

  In my quest to read holiday novels, I picked up Christmas at the Restaurant at my library a week ago. As I started to read it, I realized I had The Restaurant sitting on my bookcase. I had picked it up a few months ago and never got around to reading it. So...I had to read it first before I read the follow up Christmas novel. You're getting two reviews in one post today, Christmas Eve.  This was a quick read, and I'd recommend Pamela Kelley's novels to anyone who likes a gentle read with likable characters and a uncomplicated plot. That is not to say this was a dull book at all! As a matter of fact, it felt like a good visit with friends I hadn't seen in awhile. Three sisters: Emma, Mandy, and Jill, all have busy lives. Mandy lives in Nantucket with her husband and kids; Jill leads a busy life in corporate Manhattan, and Emma lives in Arizona with her professor husband. Their beloved  grandmother passes away, and leaves them a surprise: they, along with Chef P...

  'Tis the season! All the holiday books! Yay! I decided to deliver two holiday book reviews in this post since I read these back to back over the weekend. A big shout out to my friend Lee B. for passing on these two books to me to get my Christmas reading moving along.  I'll start with Happily This Christmas by Susan Mallery.  This is part of the Happily Inc series (book #6) so I am sure I missed a few things because I haven't read any of the other books. However, there is plenty here that makes it feel like a standalone, so don't hesitate to read it and then if you like, go back to the other books in the series.  Officer Garrick McCabe lives next door to Wynn Beauchene, but they've never really met each other. Wynn has certainly noticed Garrick-how could she avoid checking him out when he mows his yard shirtless? While both have noticed the other, neither is in any hurry to make the first move. Until Garrick's young daughter Joylyn is heading to his place to ...

  Blogger upgraded and I discovered I can add more fonts. After years of using one particular font, I decided to branch out and use this font, called "raleway". Exciting stuff!  Hester Fox has written three novels, and I've read them all. I still love her first novel the most, but this one was pretty interesting, a mix of spiritualism, grave robbers, and a secret society determined to reanimate corpses ala Frankenstein.  Did you know there were people who were hired to sit with someone as they died, and then sit with them a few days more to make absolutely sure they were really dead? All because people were terrified of being buried alive. Can you imagine having that job?! So. The orphan in this novel is Tabby, a young woman who, with her older sister Alice, ran away from their horrible aunt and uncle ten years before. The sisters were separated, and Tabby was forced to fend for herself as a young twelve year old in 1844 Boston. Penniless, wi...

I haven't read a YA novel for a very long time. Quite honestly, I'm afraid if I start diving into YA, I'll go down a rabbit hole and never come out again! Same goes for children's fiction, too. Sometimes thinking about everything I want to read overwhelms me and I panic and hyperventilate. I kid you not.  Sometimes, however, the book universe magic happens, and I'm given the opportunity to read a novel that ends up being so utterly charming and lovable it actually changes the course of my reading plans for the rest of the year. In a bizarre, whirly-gig 2020, what's another shift in my universe? So yes, I'll be incorporating YA into the remainder of my 2020 reading choices.  Dating Makes Perfect had me from the first few pages. I can't say that about a lot of books. Most of the time I have to read about 50 or so pages before I get invested in a story-but Winnie and her family are so engaging I was sucked in immediately. Winnie's older twin sisters are...

Heather Webber has written more than twenty-five novels-most of them are cozy mysteries and light romances. However, she has found her sweet spot in her previous novel Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe , and her newest novel, South of the Buttonwood Tree. I can't say it strongly enough how much I enjoy novels imbued with magical realism.  This is not a sequel, but a stand alone novel about Blue Bishop and the people she calls family. Set in the small town of Buttonwood, Alabama, Blue is a children's author and illustrator, and has a series of books about a bunny that have made her famous. However, her family name has made her infamous in her hometown. Blue and her sister, Persy are the only two left in the Bishop family; her brothers all died tragically and under unhappy circumstances, her father left the family and died; her mother Twyla willed herself to death after losing her sons and husband. Growing up with little money, the family did what it could to survive-ofte...

Summer. It's here. It took me a few months to get back into my reading groove, and I think I'm almost there again, thankfully.  The world is a hurting place, and I, along with so many others, are self-reflecting on my place in it, and my responsibility towards living a life of peace and love. I have always looked to the stories that books tell-whether they are fiction or non-fiction-to help me understand where the world was, and how we came to be where we are now. How others live; their cultures, the barriers they face, and the ugly and brutal things we do to each other out of fear and just plain ignorance.  I will continue to read stories, memoirs, and history books that will help me understand the beautiful, magnificent, deeply troubled and damaged world we live in and call our home. And I hope I can, in some way, make it better. I may not be out protesting, but I will vote for change, and donate to causes I feel are important. We all do what we can.  I saw a quote...

I do enjoy Phaedra Patrick's novels. The best way to describe them is that they are "gentle" reads. That's just what I needed when I picked this one up. No murder plots, no violence; just easy reading that relaxed me at night.  This novel begins with Mitchell Fisher. He's raising his young daughter Poppy on his own, after his partner Anita died years before. He's still grieving, and the only way he copes with it is to be super organized and to write a letter to Anita every night before he goes to sleep. He keeps the letters tucked in a drawer next to his bed, along with the last letter Anita wrote him just before she died. He hasn't been able to bring himself to open it and read it because he's afraid of what it might say.  Mitchell works for the city cutting locks off a popular bridge. It's a big deal for couples to put locks on the bridge and toss the keys into the river below. However, this is causing stress on the bridge--there are thousands of...

Hi all. Hope everyone is staying safe, taking care of themselves, and watching out for loved ones. Books seem to be even more important than ever as this pandemic unfolds and grows.  I am at home for the next week, so my world is pretty darn small. I'm used to being alone, so that is good. But I do miss going out, seeing my work friends, and especially being with my partner. But I'm in touch with a lot of folks via facebook, texting, snapchat, and facebook messenger. My gym is amazing, and has started virtual workouts every day so I've taken advantage of that. I can officially say they are tough workouts--lots of squats, lunges, and core movements. I am sore!  As I've on the Bookalicious Babe facebook page, I've struggled to finish any books in the past week. Really struggled. But I've been given a good kick in the butt, thanks to my job. I'm working on doing short videos reviewing books for my library. So, I've set a goal to read a book a day, and do a ...

I've always been fascinated by the saga of Henry VIII and his six wives, so it was a no brainer when I saw this novel. It's Henry VIII and his wives set in modern times. How would it all play out in our modern society? Olivia Hayfield delivers an absolute Dynasty-drenched saga which begins in the 1980's and takes us up to 2018. Harry Rose is a young twenty-two year old man married to Katie, and expecting his first child. It's 1985, and he is working to take the reins of the family business Rose Corp, begun by his father. He's stunningly handsome, charismatic, and grieving the loss, in a short span of time, of his brother Arthur, his mother, and his father. More sadness is on the way when their first child is stillborn.  From 1985 the story moves forward, as Harry begins his reign as Rose Corp's CEO, and welcomes his daughter Maria with Katie. Of course Harry, with his intense good looks, is irresistible to the women who cross his path. He loves Katie, but just c...

To say I was a little excited to read this book would be an understatement. I read Nancy Turner's first novel, These is My Words , waaaay back in the late 1990's, and absolutely fell in love with it. To this day, it remains one of my favorite novels.  Most people re-read favorite novels over and over, but I don't. I like to preserve that experience of discovering a story that sticks with me the first time I read it, and I think that if I read it again, it will somehow change for me, and I don't want that. So I will continue to tell people about These is My Words , all based on my first and only read.  However, Nancy Turner kept writing, and wrote Sarah's Quilt and The Star Garden, and My Name is Resolute, which continue the story of Sarah Prine, and then jump back to Sarah's ancestor, Resolute. Light Changes Everything tells the story of Mary Pearl Prine, Sarah's niece.  It's 1907, and Arizona is still a territory of the United States, and still a d...