In the Lion’s Den by Barbara Taylor Bradford

“Barbara Taylor Bradford OBE was born and raised in England. She left school at 15 for the typing pool at the Yorkshire Evening Post. At 16 she was a reporter, and at 18 she became the paper’s first woman’s page editor. Two years later, aged 20, she moved to London and became a fashion editor and columnist on Fleet Street. Barbara started writing fiction when she was just seven-years-old and sold her first short story to a magazine for seven shillings and sixpence when she was ten. She published her first novel, A Woman of Substance, in 1979. It went from bestseller to super seller within its first year and stayed on the New York Times’ list for 43 weeks. Barbara has had 34 books published, all worldwide bestsellers, and her latest, In the Lion’s Den, is coming October, 2020. Ten of her books have been produced as TV films or drama series by her late movie producer husband Bob Bradford and actors including Liam Neeson, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Jenny Seagrove, Deborah Kerr, Sir John Mills and Elizabeth Hurley. Today, Barbara Taylor Bradford is published in over 90 countries in 40 languages, with sales figures in excess of 90 million. ”

Here’s a link to a wonderful interview with BTB on the launch of The House of Falconer: Book One: Master of His Fate-https://youtu.be/H6XV9hY-X-M

The Grateful Reader Review: by Dorothy Schwab

“James Lionel Falconer has risen quickly from a mere shop worker to being the right-hand man of Henry Malvern, head of the most prestigious shipping company in London. With Malvern’s daughter Alexis running away to the country after a terrible tragedy and refusing to return, James’ ascent to head of the company seems inevitable. But even a charmed life like James’ is not without its setbacks.”

Barbara Taylor Bradford fans have been anticipating the newest developments in the life of James Falconer, the brilliant young man that was the focus of Book One-Master of His Fate. Book Two in the House of Falconer series arrives here in the U.S on October 6, 2020. The wait for In The Lion’s Den has been similar to the anticipation for the next season of Downton Abbey a few years ago or now, season 4 of The Crown! Not to worry. All the events and characters from Book One are tied together quite nicely in Book Two. Readers will be relieved to see a quick review of the cast of characters; always appreciated when there are several family histories to track. BTB uses her typical finesse as she weaves the lives of the Lords and Ladies with the housekeepers and butlers, and all the offspring from past generations. Fans of the grand homes of the English countryside will take deep breaths and sigh at the descriptions; from the soaring ceilings in entryways to the sweeping vistas seen from the library windows. Just sink into the velvet cushioned sofas and imagine the delicious aromas drifting from the kitchens, as footman and waiters deliver covered platters of poached salmon and dressed crab topped with sprigs of parsley. With closed eyes, listen as the white wine is poured into the crystal goblets and chilled water into the silver beakers. Yes, please.

James Falconer is “charismatic, with a natural, persuasive charm and perfect manners.” He has brilliant business acumen to share with Henry Malvern, the ailing tycoon of London’s shipyards, docks, and warehouses. Mr. Malvern’s heir, Alexis, is not particularly interested in her father’s business and is dealing with her own bouts of depression; even being treated by the much talked about, Dr. Sigmund Freud. Throw in some really British bits: Uncle George from the Chronicle and his reports on the Prince of Wales and Queen Victoria from Balmoral, quick meet ups at the Pig & Whistle with Detective Crawford, and dining on borscht and chicken Kiev with Irina, a descendant of a Russian ambassador. All this along with the reboot of the wine division and the building of the “arcade” in Hull, and James Falconer figures he has his future planned in detail; written out and locked in the desk drawer, ready to put into action.

James Falconer has his parents’ support, the trust of Henry Malvern, and a “posse” of colleagues to listen or advise him. What could possibly keep him awake at night? His strategy is reflection and analysis. There really is so much to learn from the 21 year-old James Falconer. Oh, and by the way, his hobby is READING!

Relish and enjoy Book Two-In the Lion’s Den. GR

Here’s an added bonus: The Stately Homes I Love; an article written by BTB this past August. https://barbarataylorbradford.com/the-stately-homes-i-love/

Essie’s Roses by Michelle Muriel

“Michelle Muriel is the award-winning, bestselling author of the #1 Amazon historical fiction bestseller ESSIE’S ROSES and her new novel Amazon bestseller, WATER LILY DANCE. Water Lily Dance follows the lives and secrets of three brave women, centuries apart, connected by French Impressionist artist Claude Monet. Michelle holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts, magna cum laude, and worked as a professional actress, a member of Actors’ Equity and The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists for twenty years, doing theater, voice-over, and commercial work. Michelle transferred her skills in complex character development and historical research into writing heartbreaking, heart-mending historical, literary fiction. Her novels poetically explore the secret sides of life, stories told from multiple points of view by strong female characters in history harboring secrets and breaking norms fighting for freedom. She is also a songwriter and musician. Michelle lives in Missouri with her husband, Michael.To learn more about Michelle and her books, visit the author’s website: www.MichelleMuriel.com.”

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

“While Evie was growing up behind the windows of the big house, I was too, behind the windows of a slave’s cabin.” This is the story of two girls, Evie and Essie, confessing to each other as they lie side by side on a hillside; their dream is the same: To Be Free.

Amidst the vast cotton fields and flowers in Alabama, 1841, was nestled a small plantation named Westland. The land was inherited by the impossibly beautiful Miss Katie, now married to the corrupted, evil John Winthrop; the two have a daughter, intimidatingly, blonde and equally beautiful, Evie. The Winthrops live in the big house; along with house slave, lovable, pumpkin bellied, full of scripture and wisdom, Delly. Add the daily visits of young Essie from the slave cabins, to fill in the dynamic days at Westland. Michelle Muriel has “birthed” a family for readers to adopt as Evie and Essie grow up among Miss Katie’s roses and their favorite hillside on the plantation.

Evie, with nature’s help, teaches Essie to listen to her heart and DREAM: “The thing you most want to happen in your life. Right now. Someday. Only you know. Listen.” The ties that bind Evie and Essie are tested over and over, as they grow from sharing “giggles and gossip” into mature young women with dreams of their own “to do.” Will the ties of love and friendship shared between these two girls be broken? Will they be delivered from their own personal, living nightmares?

Michelle Muriel’s dialogue and descriptions will sweep readers away as the saga of Essie’s Roses unfolds from 1841-1865. Pearls of wisdom, inside jokes and humor, along with nightmares and secrets, will cast a spell that can only be broken by the fragrance of Essie’s roses drifting over the hillside as the last page turns. Oh, to wish for just one more day with Evie and Essie.

Meanwhile, hold tight to Evie and Essie’s prayer:

“Lord keep us safe. To run the race.

Faster still, though all uphill.

Keep us strong when we’re afraid.

Guide us home today we pray.

Hold our dreams inside Your hands.

Help us do the dreams You planned.

Amen. ”

Wishes do come true! The lovely Michelle Muriel is gifting devoted readers with the sequel, WESTLAND- COMING SOON!

Jackie and Maria by Gill Paul

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aduTHQkmYC8 **A great interview; the author discusses her novels The Lost Daughter and Jackie and Maria**

https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/176890

The Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

This novel of Jackie Kennedy, the most famous First Lady in American history paired with the world-famous opera singer, Maria Callas, will snap readers right up and create chaos with emotions. Gill Paul parallels the public spectacle and heartbreak of Jackie’s marriage woes and her grieving process in front of the entire nation with the rise and fall of Maria Callas’ opera career and marriage to her manager. Enter- Aristotle Onassis! As Americans watched this whole “affair” play out publicly, in every form of the press, there are certain assumptions that were made. Readers will now question the actions of the First Lady and Maria Callas as they each endured tragedy and found ways to survive the media’s interruption and interpretation of their personal lives. This phenomenon is nothing new with the current media situation in 2020. Readers may feel a deep connection to Jackie, as many lived the days of Jack Kennedy’s presidency, assassination and the aftermath. Gill Paul creates the idyllic world readers have always imagined – the “Camelot” that Jackie herself coined-and then crushes those images with vivid descriptions and accounts. From the White House to La Traviata in Dallas, to Milan and private islands, readers will be whisked away in limousines and yachts to a world most will only read about. So pour a glass of champagne, don your big, black sunglasses, find a chaise on the deck of the Christina then hide behind Jackie and Maria for a private tour of the world of Jackie, Maria, and Aristotle Onassis.

The Lions of Fifth Avenue by Fiona Davis

“In nationally bestselling author Fiona Davis’s latest historical novel, a series of book thefts roils the iconic New York Public Library, leaving two generations of strong-willed women to pick up the pieces.” AVAILABLE TUESDAY, AUGUST 4, 2020

Fiona Davis is the nationally bestselling author of five novels, including The Dollhouse, The Address, and The Lions of Fifth Avenue. She lives in New York City and is a graduate of the College of William & Mary in Virginia and the Columbia Journalism School.

The Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

“It’s 1913, and on the surface, Laura Lyons couldn’t ask for more out of life—her husband is the superintendent of the New York Public Library, allowing their family to live in an apartment within the grand building, and they are blessed with two children.”

Flash forward: ” Eighty years later, in 1993, Sadie Donovan struggles with the legacy of her grandmother, the famous essayist Laura Lyons, especially after she’s wrangled her dream job as a curator at the New York Public Library.”

EXPLORING: PERSONALLY– Laura and Sadie are forced to examine their own beliefs, goals and values. One would think at eighty years apart these would be vastly different, but are they really?

EXPLORING: EMOTIONALLY-Laura must sort out her feelings and devotion to her mother, her husband and her children. Sadie is musing over her past relationships along with her obsession with her curator’s job. Lots of self examination takes place for both women.

EXPLORING: SOCIALLY–For Laura, suffrage, women’s rights and birth control are new topics to learn about in the early years of the century. She discovers a bohemian group involved in speaking out and even protesting current laws & rulings. Should she join? What will her family think? These topics are not so different for Sadie, even in the late part of the twentieth century.

EXPLORING: PHYSICALLY– From the steps of the New York Public Library and the powerful statues of Patience and Fortitude, readers will gape in awe at the intricate descriptions of the building’s architectural designs; tunnels, elevators, private apartments, and of course, the Berg Collection.

As Laura Lyons is aspiring to be a writer at Columbia Journalism School she becomes involved in a mystery that “threatens her home and the library.” In the dual timeline so expertly woven by Fiona Davis, eighty years later Sadie’s job as curator is in jeopardy as rare manuscripts, books and notes begin disappearing!! This is on the cusp of preparations for the opening of the Berg Collection Exhibition. Is the thief on the inside or outside?

Readers, along with a private security expert, will be quickly ( but shhh….quietly!) turning pages deep into the night as clues to the mysteries are methodically revealed. THE LIONS OF FIFTH AVENUE and a trip to the New York Public Library for EXPLORING is “on hold” for readers everywhere. Five ***** to the Lions, the Librarians, and Fiona Davis. GR

The Library Lions

Patience and Fortitude, the world-renowned pair of marble lions that stand proudly before the majestic Beaux-Arts building at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street in Manhattan, have captured the imagination and affection of New Yorkers and visitors from all over the world since the Library was dedicated on May 23, 1911. https://www.nypl.org/help/about-nypl/library-lions

Across the Winding River by Aimie K. Runyan

“Aimie K. Runyan writes to celebrate history’s unsung heroines. She is the author of historical novels: Promised to the Crown, Duty to the Crown, Daughters of the Night Sky, and Girls on the Line. She is active as an educator and speaker in the writing community and beyond. She lives in Colorado with her wonderful husband and two (usually) adorable children.”

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

“A woman unlocks the mystery of her father’s wartime past in a moving novel about secrets, sacrifice, and the power of love…”

Across the Winding River follows the “hearts and minds” of Max, a young American soldier during WWll; Beth, his daughter’s search for clues to a long, lost secret sibling, and Johanna, the brilliant German test pilot in the Luftwaffe for the Nazi’s. All three walk a delicate line between memories and truth.

Readers will identify with Beth, a modern-day woman grieving the loss of her mother and also beginning to recognize and accept herself-recently divorced and adjusting to a new social standing. Beth’s father, Max, is living out his last days in a private care facility while Beth is doing all she can to organize his affairs while sorting out his memorabilia and learning about his war- time experiences. The author chooses to focus on Max and his medic experiences in a lesser known battle that raged for three months in Hurtgen Forest, known as the Death Factory, rather than the D-Day beaches of Normandy. The descriptions and details of the area and the lengthy battle with no clear victor, is a different perspective of the war. The third bend in the “winding river” is Johanna and the role she plays in living out her own mathmatical dreams as she finds it more and more difficult to hide her Jewish ancestry, while actually working for the Nazi’s in order to survive and avoid the concentration camps.

The lives of Beth, Max, and Johanna intersect in some twists and turns in the river; all to reveal powerful lessons in the sacrifices that have been made, and to uncover surprising secrets of love and loss.

Readers who choose Across the Winding River by Aimie K. Runyan will come to “champion amd adore” Max’s story.

The Battle of Hürtgen Forest was a series of fierce battles fought from 19 September to 16 December 1944, between American and German forces on the Western Front during World War II, in the Hürtgen Forest, a 140 km² area about 5 km east of the Belgian–German border.

New Orleans, Louisiana: The National WWII Museum tells the story of the American experience in the war that changed the world—why it was fought, how it was won, and what it means today—so that all generations will understand the price of freedom and be inspired by what they learn. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/

How Lulu Lost Her Mind by Rachel Gibson

From New York Times bestselling author Rachel Gibson comes the story of a mother-daughter journey to rediscover the past before it disappears forever.

Rachel Gibson is a New York times and USAToday bestselling author of 21 books.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

Lou Ann, a.k.a The Love Guru, has built her “brand” and thriving business from a highrise in Seattle. She travels IRL and virtually, spouting relationship advice to thousands of followers. In fact, she’s in the middle of her ten-city Find True Love in February tour! Now her mother, Patricia, age 74, diagnosed with Alzheimers four years ago, has been tossed out of the third care facility and is requesting to spend her last days at the family home near New Orleans. Lou Ann begrudgingly takes Patricia to Sutton Hall, an old sugar cane plantation that comes with its own “To Do” list. Packing for speaking engagements and book signings is not exactly the same as packing for south Louisiana; heat, humidity, possible alligators, a century old cemetery and a crazy bird named Raphael, soon take the place of fame, fanfare & fortune!

Lulu experiences the culture shock of moving across country to a locale of unfamiliar culture and landscape- swamps & bayous; not to mention dealing with the mood swings of Patricia as they both begin to deal with how these last days together would unfold for each of them. Lulu relies on meditating and Patricia gets caught up in TV game shows. Finding common ground and a good mattress turn out to be crucial! Lulu is grappling with saving her business or spending the last days making her mother happy- something many readers may know first-hand or have experienced vicariously. Either way, juggling family, business & volunteer commitments, are always a struggle as ill or aging parents take precedence in our lives. Rachel Gibson deals with the emotional struggles of such a life changing situation with honesty and laugh out loud humor.

How Lulu Lost Her Mind is a magnified view into the dynamic day to day battle of thoughts and emotions that emerge in times of crisis, but also the self analysis & reflection involved. Gibson juggles Lulu’s emotional episodes with Patricia by wrapping the “daily dilemas” in Cajun dialect and taking readers to local shops like Rouse’s market, Monique’s Chic Boutique, and Boots ‘N Roots! Readers will savor the poignant moments of mother-daughter time; and “laugh to keep from crying,” when those heart felt tensions ring so true.

The Paris Secret by Natasha Lester

Natasha Lester is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of historical fiction.

Her new novel THE PARIS SECRET is out now in Australia and will be published in the US and the UK later in 2020. Her other books, THE FRENCH PHOTOGRAPHER / THE PARIS ORPHAN, THE PARIS SEAMSTRESS, A KISS FROM MR FITZGERALD and HER MOTHER’S SECRET are also available from all good bookshops.

The Paris Secret

“A wardrobe of Dior gowns, a secret kept for sixty-five years, and the three women bound forever by war … from the New York Times bestselling author of The French Photographer
England, 1939: Talented pilot Skye Penrose joins the war effort where she encounters her estranged sister, Liberty, and childhood soulmate Nicholas Crawford, now engaged to enigmatic Frenchwoman Margaux Jourdan. Paris, 1947: Designer Christian Dior unveils his extravagant first collection to a world weary of war and grief. He names his debut fragrance, Miss Dior, in tribute to his sister, Catherine, who worked for the French Resistance. Present day: Australian fashion conservator Kat Jourdan discovers a secret wardrobe filled with priceless Dior gowns in her grandmother’s vacant cottage. As she delves into the mystery, Kat begins to doubt everything she thought she knew about her beloved grandmother.An unspeakable betrayal will entwine all of their fates. The Paris Secret is an unforgettable story about the lengths people go to protect one another, and a love that, despite everything, lasts a lifetime. “

The Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

Captivating characters. Breathtaking, emotional relationships developed in the innocence of childhood and others wrapped in the arms of a devastating war. The novel opens in Cornwall, England in 1928, with young, adventurous Skye and sister “in the house” Liberty, more often than not, at odds with each other, kicking and fighting! Their mother, Vanessa Penrose, with a devil-may-care attitude, is loved by both girls. Vanessa is a pioneer in her own right and loves to fly-even trying to set records. Readers are buoyed along the beaches of Porthleven with Skye and her friend, Nicholas; collecting cowrie shells, floating in caves or exploring lost gardens finding adventures on rope bridges! All simply exhilarating until the idyllic childhood ends and Skye & Liberty – following Vanessa’s footsteps, are sunk into the quagmire of women becoming pilots and clawing through the red tape of the WAAF-Women’s Auxiliary Air Force and the SOE-Special Operations Executive. This triple timeline moves from England, 1939 to Paris, 1947 and the unveiling of Christian Dior’s first collection. The world has known and admired Dior’s designs and creativity for decades; but his sister, Catherine, is the real heroine of the French Resistance. Catherine is superbly intertwined with Skye and Liberty as the war’s scarring memories have a life long impact on the sisters- and eventually, Kat Jourdan, a granddaughter. Natasha Lester brings the family saga full circle as present day, Kat, a fashion conservator, discovers a priceless collection of 65 Christian Dior dresses in a cottage in Cornwall. Readers will appreciate the depth of research into the WAAF, the Resistance, and struggles of the female pilots to actually fly and make a difference in the war. Natasha Lester’s background in fashion really shines through in her descriptions of the Dior gowns as Kat begins to wear them for meetings and rendezvous!

Plot “pattern pieces:” Dior gowns, sisters at odds, concentration camps, stolen identities, most of all a love story spanning decades. These pattern pieces are designed and stitched together to create a dream novel worthy of a Dior tag and definitely one for your collection!

The New Look: https://www.dw.com/en/the-new-look-how-christian-dior-revolutionized-fashion-70-years-ago/a-37491236

Porthleven Beach in Cornwall, England & The Lost Gardens of Heligan https://www.heligan.com/

Where the Lost Wander by Amy Harmon

“In this epic and haunting love story set on the Oregon Trail, a family and their unlikely protector find their way through peril, uncertainty, and loss.“

“Amy Harmon is a Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and New York Times Bestselling author. Amy knew at an early age that writing was something she wanted to do, and she divided her time between writing songs and stories as she grew. Having grown up in the middle of wheat fields without a television, with only her books and her siblings to entertain her, she developed a strong sense of what made a good story. Her books are now being published in seventeen different languages, truly a dream come true for a little country girl from Levan, Utah.”

“The Overland Trail, 1853: Naomi May never expected to be widowed at twenty. Eager to leave her grief behind, she sets off with her family for a life out West. On the trail, she forms an instant connection with John Lowry, a half-Pawnee man straddling two worlds and a stranger in both.

But life in a wagon train is fraught with hardship, fear, and death. Even as John and Naomi are drawn to each other, the trials of the journey and their disparate pasts work to keep them apart. John’s heritage gains them safe passage through hostile territory only to come between them as they seek to build a life together.”

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

“Wagons Ho!” That was the cry of the wagon master at the “jumping off place” for the brave families heading West to Oregon or California. Two thousand miles-with all their cherished and necessary items loaded into wagons, followed by herds of cattle and horses. The unimaginable quest of finding gold, land for the taking, or the adventure is what prompted the Pioneers to leave home and loved ones; to embark on such a wondrous, but treacherous journey.

Map provided by Amy Harmon https://www.authoramyharmon.com/wherethelostwander.html

For 20 years a map very similar to this was provided by the Grateful Reader for third graders as a similar novel for children was read; Bound for Oregon by Jean Van Leeuwen. All the chats by firelight between husbands & wives, and other parents, after the children were in bed, led to the pros and cons of “if and when” to leave on this journey into the unknown. A few had traveled to Oregon and California and returned, and were now available as guides or had written guide books for purchase. Diaries written by adults are accessible but accounts by children are rare. In the case of Amy Harmon’s Where the Lost Wander, her research and genealogy studies give her great family insights into the personalities and possible lives of Naomi May and John Lowry. Check out her website for a great Q&A on the blog. Where the Lost Wander is an adventure, mystery, and love story-but for older teens and adults.

Readers will be in anguish at times, and experience pure delight at others. With every crossing of the Platte and landmarks passed, “travelers on the trail” with Naomi May, her brothers, Wyatt, Will and Web and John Lowry and his mules, will celebrate each mile closer to the destination. Naomi’s mother, Mrs. May, is a brave, proud woman; a font of wisdom and understanding. In a poignant conversation she shares with John, ” The hardest thing about life is knowing what matters and what doesn’t. If nothing matters , then there’s no point. If everything matters, there’s no purpose. The trick is to find firm ground between the two ways of being.”

Traumas along the trail: Cholera, orphaned children, Indian attacks; all add to the stress and emotional turmoil for the families and the reader! But the celebrations of new life, new love, and weddings makes up for it. John’s mother, Jennie, said it best:

In order to travel West decisions had to be made as to what was necessary for survival-physical and emotional. The only decision at this point is to “load your wagon, put on your hat or bonnet”, and read Where the Lost Wander. Destinations and Celebrations are in sight!

Where the Lost Wander earns all the stars in the big prairie sky!

Once Upon a Book Club Box-Open gifts as you read! Use Gratefulreader10 as a promo code when you subscribe! https://www.onceuponabookclub.com/

Raphael Painter in Rome by Stephanie Storey

Another Fabulous Art History Thriller by the Bestselling Author of Oil and Marble, Featuring the Master of Renaissance Perfection: Raphael!

“Stephanie Storey’s debut novel Oil and Marble was hailed as “tremendously entertaining” by The New York Times, has been translated into six languages, and is currently in development as a feature film by Pioneer Pictures. Storey is also the author of Raphael, Painter in Rome, which came out in April 2020 in conjunction with the 500th anniversary of Raphael’s death.

Storey has a degree in Fine Arts from Vanderbilt University and attended a PhD program in Art History, before leaving to get an MFA in Creative Writing from Emerson College, and has studied art in Italy and been on a pilgrimage to see every Michelangelo on display in Europe.

Storey has also been a national television producer for nearly twenty years in Los Angeles for shows including Alec Baldwin on ABC, Arsenio Hall for CBS, and Emmy-nominated The Writers’ Room on the Sundance Channel. When not writing novels or producing television, Storey can usually be found with husband Mike Gandolfi — an actor and Emmy-winning comedy writer — traveling the world in search of their next stories. ” https://stephaniestorey.com/

Raphael : Summary from Simon & Schuster

Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling is one of the most iconic masterpieces of the Renaissance. Here, in Raphael, Painter in Rome, Storey tells of its creation as never before: through the eyes of Michelangelo’s fiercest rival—the young, beautiful, brilliant painter of perfection, Raphael. Orphaned at age eleven, Raphael is determined to keep the deathbed promise he made to his father: become the greatest artist in history. But to be the best, he must beat the best, the legendary sculptor of the David, Michelangelo Buonarroti. When Pope Julius II calls both artists down to Rome, they are pitted against each other: Michelangelo painting the Sistine Ceiling, while Raphael decorates the pope’s private apartments. As Raphael strives toward perfection in paint, he battles internal demons: his desperate ambition, crippling fear of imperfection, and unshakable loneliness. Along the way, he conspires with cardinals, scrambles through the ruins of ancient Rome, and falls in love with a baker’s-daughter-turned-prostitute who becomes his muse.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

“Why this is shaping up to be a wonderful competition, isn’t it?” The pope said with a musical lilt. “A Florentine in the Sistine, and an Urbinite in my apartments. May the best painter win.”

Stephanie Storey paints a fresco for readers: blending a fiery piazza in Florence with the eyebrow-raising shenanigans of the Vatican halls in Rome; highlighting Raphael’s insecurities and obsessions while illuminating Michelangelo’s gifts in sculpture and his unpredictable inadequacies in oil! Told in first person, which makes this novel an absolute delight, readers will gush at being taken into Raphael’s confidence, as he recounts the competition for becoming the best painter on the peninsula or even the world!

The reader is immersed in rich descriptions of Italian villages, the people’s deep emotion and devotion to family and the volatile political landscape of the late 1400’s. Strategies to succeed and be noticed by the pope and struggles with technique and recipes for a fresco mix, are the “tarps” over Raphael’s obsessive tendencies like twirling his father’s paintbrush or parting his hair behind his ears, and- oh the counting: una, due, tre, quattro– so he enters a room on the right number and foot! Readers will learn a bit of Italian and fill tablets with Renaissance history and places to visit. All this along with dukes, cardinals, palaces, and parades, are mixed into a stunning palette of plot and paintings.

Author, Stephanie Storey, suggests keeping a device handy for researching paintings so the visual descriptions and historical references may be appreciated and discovered as the novel progresses. This is good advice! The account of Raphael’s pondering, in retrospect, about the visit of Martin Luther to Rome and his possible reaction to the “sin, excess, and corruption” regarding the behavior of the cardinals, the pope, and the aristocrats, was certainly eye-opening and pointed to a naivete of the general population. Was this trip, in fact, what prompted Martin Luther to return home to Germany to write his bishop, including his 95 Theses; thus leading to the beginning of the Protestant Reformation?

Raphael hoped his paintings would “bend the world away from the earthly realm of violence, anger and war, and toward the heavenly ideal of harmony, love, and peace.” When a painting is revealed to the world the artist has no control of how it is received-people see what they want to see. The same is true when an author releases a book into the hands of readers- themes and characters are perceived in individual ways. After years of study and research, Stephanie Storey’s Raphael: Painter in Rome is a portrait of adoration and respect for the painters of the Renaissance. Her hope is that Raphael and his readers will “bend the world toward beauty.”

**Pinturicchio’s Frescos in the Secret Apartments**

We Came Here to Shine by Susie Orman Schnall

This gorgeous map is provided for readers at the front of the book: Illustrated by Silvia Gherra, Italy https://susieschnall.com/books/we-came-here-to-shine/map/

**World’s Fair History Provided by the author’s website:** https://susieschnall.com/books/we-came-here-to-shine/worlds-fair-history/

Summary by Susie Orman Schnall

Set during the iconic 1939 New York World’s Fair, two intrepid young women—an aspiring journalist and a down-on-her-luck actress—form an unlikely friendship as they navigate a world of endless possibility, stand down adversity, and find out what they are truly made of during the glorious summer of spectacle and opportunity…

Vivi Holden is closer than she’s ever been to living her dream as a lead actress in sun-dappled L.A., but an unfair turn of events sends her back to New York, a place she worked so hard to escape from. She has one last chance to get back to Hollywood—by performing well as the star of the heralded Aquacade synchronized swimming spectacular at the World’s Fair. Everything seems to be working against her, but her summer in New York will lead to her biggest opportunity to find her own way, on her own terms…

Maxine Roth wants nothing more than to be a serious journalist at the iconic New York Times, but her professor has other plans. Instead, she’s landed a post at the pop-up publication dedicated to covering the World’s Fair—and even then, her big ideas are continually overlooked by her male counterparts. Max didn’t work this hard to be the only—and an unheard one at that—woman in the room.

When Max and Vivi’s worlds collide, they forge an enduring friendship. One that shows them to be the daring, bold women they are, and one that teaches them to never stop holding on to what matters most, in the most meaningful summer of their lives.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

“Building the World of Tomorrow”- The theme of the 1939 World’s Fair in NYC. The fair spanned 1,216 acres with seven zones. Max was assigned to work as an intern in the Communications zone at “Today at the Fair,” a daily publication for each days’ events and Vivi was in the Amusement zone performing as the star of the synchronized swimming show. Check the map for those locations- isn’t that map the best? The girls are on opposite sides of the fairgrounds. So how do the paths of Max and Vivi cross? That’s what makes this “story go round!”

Susie Schnall employs an interesting mirroring technique in her opening lines of chapters 1 & 2 and even several more times in the novel. “Vivi Holden would eventually realize that not getting what she wanted that day was the best thing that could have happened to her.” Similarly, opening chapter 2 with, ” Maxine Roth would eventually realize that not getting what she wanted that day was the best thing that could have happened to her.” Each girl is coping with personal life dilemmas, power struggles in career paths and discerning conflicting dominant male opinions and uninvited advances. Schnall also uses foreshadowing early on when Vivi admits her sister has told her “she never wanted to see her again. And she couldn’t bring herself to even think of the other person. The potential of what could have been…”

Schnall takes the reader on a grand tour of the fair as the girls’ stories unfold. Readers will “yearn” for the girls to mature and grow in their own belief systems and find their own voice amidst the male dominated world in which they exist. Along with fabulous facts and descriptions of the World’s Fair, including a royal visit by King George VI and Elizabeth; readers will meet Elizabeth Dorchester and the National Woman’s Party. Max and Vivi hearing her speak at a rally, are inspired by rhetoric regarding women being treated equally in workplaces and how they should stand up for their ambitions. Remember, this is 1939. But sound familiar?

“Two friends who had shared an extraordinary experience, and extraordinary summer.” As Max’s professor had said, “The World’s Fair could be life-changing.” Susie Orman Schnall says it best: “All lit up by sunshine and optimism and a belief that the future and the better days it promised were just around the corner. The fair had a way of touching everyone who passed through its gates.”

We Came Here to Shine will change readers just as the 1939 World’s Fair changed Max and Vivi. Give it a “whirl!” ****

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The Library Lions

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Natasha Lester is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of historical fiction.

The Paris Secret

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