I love to read, recommend books and open the world of reading to others. I tutor to ensure that the next generation of readers will know the joys of a good book because their reading skills have improved. I am an avid reader, especially of mysteries and fiction. I believe that two of the world's greatest inventions were the public library and eyeglasses!
Not so long ago, I was transported to Paris and the world of Shakespeare & Co. in Ms. Maher’s last novel. This time, readers are placed firmly in the Chicago area in the early 1970s.
It is a time of upheaval and change, even as some cling to a more 1950s lifestyle. Readers are introduced to several main characters who live in the time period.
Veronica is a bit of a free spirit and a person who is involved in the social movements of the time. Most significantly, she becomes a part of the Jane network, providing safe, but illegal, abortion services.
Patty, a friend of Veronica’s growing up years, is more conservative. She is a traditional wife and mother who is concerned about her doctor husband’s recent lack of interest in her.
Siobhan is a newer friend of Veronica’s. The story opens as Veronica accompanies Siobhan to her illegal abortion. Siobhan is an artist who is separated/divorced from her professor husband Gabe. She is active in the Janes.
Margaret is a new Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago. She is finding her way and becomes friends with Phyllis. She also becomes involved with Gabe.
This is a rich historical novel that will remind readers of what life was like in the days before Roe v Wade, a time that we have now reentered. The author tells her story well and readers will become immersed in the lives of these fictional characters and the decisions that they make.
I highly recommend this one. It is being published at just the right time.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.
I don’t know Dad’s Luncheonette but I sure wish that I could go there and also that I could meet Scott Clark. He has put together a cookbook that showcases his state of California and there is much to enjoy in these pages.
In eleven sections are found loads of recipes. To name some: Pear Butter, Mac n Cheese with Puffed Rice topping, Shredded Potato Salad, Bacon Gouda Dutch Baby, Fried Artichoke with Artichoke Dip, Dungeness Crab Rice, Kumquat and Kale, Seasoned Herb Salad, Hard Cider Clam Bake, Kimchi Mary and Matcha Mochi Waffles. Are you hungry yet? There are 130 recipes in all.
In addition to the recipes, there are many sections filled with information. There are also photos.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 11 March 2025
“With his debut cookbook, Clark, chef and owner of Dad’s Luncheonette, wanted to celebrate California’s Central Coast. He succeeds on every count.” —Library Journal, starred review
Named a Most Anticipated Cookbook of 2025 by Book Riot
Often children follow the path of their parents but, here, Sally Page wrote her novel after her daughter, Libby Page, has published several. I think that Sally writes stories that are every bit as involving and heart warming as Libby’s (not that there is a competition. I loved Libby’s first novel The Lido).
As this story opens, Janice is working as a house cleaner. (See Phaedra Patrick for another good story about a cleaner). This job may not be high prestige but Janice brings a lot to it, including her curiosity about people.
In a way that reminded me of Maeve Binchy, in parts of this book, Ms. Page ably sketches the life stories of her characters. One, for example, has created a doll house but…it has an undertaker’s on the first floor. Readers will find out why.
Janice is an appealing and curious woman who enjoys reading and learning about people. What will happen as she learns more about herself? What will Mrs. B’s role be in this process? Read this enjoyable novel to find out.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for this title. I look forward to her next book. All opinions are my own.
This title was published in January 2023.
Advance Praise
“I absolutely loved it! So different, clever, funny, and charming.”
-Katie Fforde, Sunday Times (London) bestselling author
“Funny, wise, moving, and full of lovely moments…The characters are endearing and unforgettable.”
-Hazel Prior, author of the Richard & Judy Book Club Pick Away with the Penguins
“Absolutely spellbinding…Warm-hearted, thoughtful, funny, and yet deeply poignant.”
-Celia Anderson, author of 59 Memory Lane
“A treasure of a book. Beautiful, emotional, and heartfelt with a cornucopia of characters you’ll love spending time with.”
-Phaedra Patrick, author of The Library of Lost and Found
Fresh Water for Flowers is the first book by Valerie Perrin to be published in English. The writer’s native language is French. Fresh Water is a beautiful book that is told in a unique voice. Protagonist, Violette, was abandoned by her mother and grew up in care. She was a loner until she becomes involved with Phillipe Toussaint. Together they have a child but Phillipe eventually disappears.
Phillipe and Violette worked at a railroad crossing although Violette did most of the work; they later go on to become cemetery keepers. Violette remains there after Phillipe leaves.
The story is told from Violette’s point of view. She tells it all, her hard times, her hopes, the things that she learned and taught herself, the people she sees and cares for and those with whom she works. All this within the background of the cemetery and many sayings from gravestones.
This novel is filled with humanity. I recommend it.
I am reviewing the audio version. It was a beautiful listen and I was sorry when the story ended.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
The summer is not quite over yet! Here is a fun book for those last lazy days whether at the beach, on the porch or in the AC.
Phoebe writes greeting cards for a living. It has all gone a bit sour as her latest romance ended with her partner getting ready too marry someone else (the nerve!). So, this Brit goes to visit her wealthy sister in LA. Readers will enjoy watching how her California dreams come true.
Lindsey becomes friendly with Bel who has a massive crush on Ren. In a modern take on Cyrano, Phoebe tries to move this relationship forward. But…who would make the best couple? Read this one to fine out!
The descriptions of LA, food, houses, beaches, etc are all designed to give readers a great armchair travel experience. There are times to laugh and also some moments of deeper emotion.
All in all, a pretty perfect summer read.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper 360 for this title. All opinions are my own.
I have read a number of the historical fiction titles written by Ms. Jenoff. She has mastered the craft of telling involving stories that feature characters about whom readers will care. That is certainly the case in this story which echoes the trauma of WWII and is told through two principal narrators. There are sadnesses, mystery and a department store in these pages. Intriguing for sure.
It is easy to recommend this title to those who already know this author and/or to those who are coming to her stories for the first time. Fans of historical fiction will enjoy this one.
Many thanks to the team at HTP for the invite to this blog tour.
The book:
Last Twilight In Paris
By Pam Jenoff
On Sale: February 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780778307983
Park Row Hardcover
Price: $28.99
What it is about:
“A fast-paced and vibrant wartime tale of holding on to love against the odds and learning to fight for the truth.” –Kristin Harmel, New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Daughter
A Parisian department store, a mysterious necklace and a woman’s quest to unlock a decade-old mystery are at the center of this riveting novel of love and survival, from New York Times bestselling author Pam Jenoff
London, 1953. Louise is still adjusting to her postwar role as a housewife when she discovers a necklace in a box at a secondhand shop. The box is marked with the name of a department store in Paris, and she is certain she has seen the necklace before worked with the Red Cross in Nazi-occupied Europe —and that it holds the key to the mysterious death of her friend Franny during the war.
Following the trail of clues to Paris, Louise seeks help from her former boss Ian, with whom she shares a romantic history. The necklace leads them to discover the dark history of Lévitan—a once-glamorous department store that served as a Nazi prison, and Helaine, a woman who was imprisoned there, torn apart from her husband when the Germans invaded France.
Louise races to find the connection between the necklace, the department store and Franny’s death. But nothing is as it seems, and there are forces determined to keep the truth buried forever. Inspired by the true story of Lévitan, Last Twilight in Paris is both a gripping mystery and an unforgettable story about sacrifice, resistance and the power of love to transcend in even the darkest hours.
The author:
Pam Jenoff is the author of several books of historical fiction, including the NYT bestseller The Orphan’s Tale. She holds a degree in international affairs from George Washington University and a degree in history from Cambridge, and she received her JD from UPenn. Her novels are inspired by her experiences working at the Pentagon and as a diplomat for the State Department handling Holocaust issues in Poland. She lives with her husband and 3 children near Philadelphia, where she teaches law.
Start reading (you will want to keep going)
Prologue
Helaine
Paris, 1943
Darkness.
Helaine stumbled forward, unable to see through the black void that surrounded her. She could feel the shoulders of the others jostling on either side. The smell of unwashed bodies rose, mingling with Helaine’s own. Her hand brushed against a rough wall, scraping her knuckles. Someone ahead tripped and yelped.
Hours earlier, when Helaine had been brought from her underground cell at the police station into the adjacent holding area, she was surprised to see other women waiting. She had not encountered anyone since her arrest. She had studied the women, who looked to be from all walks of life, trying to discern some commonality among their varied ages and classes that had caused them to be here. There was only one: they were Jews. The yellow star they wore, whether soiled and crudely sewn onto a worn, secondhand dress or pressed crisply against the latest Parisian finery, was identical—and it made them all the same.
They had stood in the bare holding area, not daring to speak. Helaine was certain that her arrest had been some sort of mis take. She had done nothing wrong. They had to free her. But even as she thought this, she knew that the old world of being a French citizen with rights was long gone.
An hour passed, then two. There was nowhere to sit, and a few people dropped to the floor. An elderly woman dozed against the wall, mouth agape. But for the slight rise and fall of her chest, she might have been dead. Hunger gnawed at Helaine and she wished that she still had the baked goods she purchased at the market just before she was taken. The meager breads, which had seemed so pathetic days earlier, now would have been a feast. But her belongings had been confiscated at arrest.
Helaine looked upward through the thin slit of window near the ceiling. They were still in Paris. The sour smell from the city street and the sounds of cars and footsteps despite the curfew were familiar, if not comforting. How long they would stay here, she did not know. Helaine was torn. She did not want to remain in this empty room forever. Yet she also dreaded leaving, for wherever they were going would surely be worse.
Finally, the door had opened. “Sortir!” a voice ordered them out in native French, reminding Helaine that the policemen, who had brought them here and who were keeping them captive, were not Germans, but their own people.
Helaine had filed into the dimly lit corridor with the others. They exited the police station and stepped outside onto the pavement. At the sight of the familiar buildings and the street leading away from the station, Helaine momentarily considered fleeing. She had no idea, though, where she would go. She imagined running to her childhood home, debated whether her estranged mother would take her in or turn her away. But the women were heavily guarded and there was no real possibility of escape. Instead, Helaine breathed the fresh air in great gulps, sensing that she might not be in the open again for quite some time.
The women were herded up a ramp toward an awaiting truck. Helaine recoiled. They were being placed in the back part of the vehicle where goods should have been carried, not people. Helaine wanted to protest but did not dare. Smells of stale grain and rotting meat, the truck’s previous cargo, assaulted her nose, mixing with her own stench in the warm air. It had been three days since she had bathed or changed and her dress was wrinkled and filthy, her once-luminous black curls dull and matted against her head.
When the women were all inside the truck, the back hatch shut with an ominous click. “Where are they taking us?” someone whispered. Silence. No one knew and they were all too afraid to venture a guess. They had heard the stories of the trains headed east to awful places from which no one ever returned. Helaine wondered how long the journey would be.
As they bumped along the Paris streets, Helaine’s bones, already sore from sleeping on the hard prison cell floor, cried out in pain. Her mouth was dry and her stomach empty. She wanted water and a meal, a hot bath. She wanted home.
If home was a place that even existed anymore. Helaine’s husband, Gabriel, was missing in Germany, his fate unknown. She had scarcely spoken with her parents since before the war. And Helaine herself had been taken without notice. Nobody knew that she had been arrested or had any idea where she had gone. It was as if she simply no longer existed.
To distract herself, Helaine tried to picture the route they were taking outside the windowless truck, down the boulevards she had just days earlier walked freely, past the cafés and shops. The familiar locations should have been some small comfort. But this might well be the last time she ever came this way, Helaine realized, and the thought only worsened her despair.
Several minutes later, the truck stopped with a screech. They were at a train station, Helaine guessed. The back hatch to the truck opened and the women peered out into pitch blackness. “Raus!” a voice commanded. That they were under the watch of Germans now seemed to confirm Helaine’s worst fears about where they were headed. “Schnell!” Someone let out a cry, a mix of the anguish and uncertainty they all felt.
The women clambered from the truck and Helaine stumbled, banging her knee and yelping. “Quiet,” a woman’s voice beside her cautioned fearfully. A hand reached out and helped her down the ramp with an unexpectedly gentle touch.
Outside the truck it was the tiniest bit lighter, and Helaine was just able to make out some sort of loading dock. The group moved forward into a large building.
Now Helaine found herself in complete darkness once more. This was how she had come to be in an unfamiliar building, shuffling forward blindly with a group of women she did not know, uncertain of where they were going or the fate that might befall them. She could see nothing, only feel the fear and confusion in the air around her. They seemed to be in some sort of corridor, pressed even more closely together than they had been. Helaine put her hand on the shoulder of the woman in front of her, trying hard not to fall again.
They were herded roughly through a doorway, into a room that was also unlit. No one moved or spoke. Helaine had heard rumors of mass executions, groups of people gassed or simply shot. The Germans might do that to them now. Her skin prickled. She thought of those she loved most, Gabriel and, despite everything that had happened, her parents. Helaine wanted their faces, not fear, to be her final thought.
Bright lights turned on suddenly, illuminating the space around them. “Mon Dieu!” someone behind her exclaimed softly. Helaine blinked her eyes, scarcely daring to believe what she saw. They were not in a camp or a prison at all. Instead, they were standing in the main showroom of what had once been one of the grandest department stores in Paris.
