Doppio Forno: cocci & dolci

A book by an author you've only read once before    This is my second book of the Charles Lenox mysteries and I liked it. The serie is set in London in the Victorian era and Charles Lenox is a gentleman and amateur sleuth. The story is good, a good plot and, as in the first book, there is a nice description of the Victorian atmosphere. I liked this book better than the Vanishing Man, maybe because it was a more complex story and I started also to really like the main character.  I am sure I am going to read again from this serie.  Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review! Goodreads: The Last Passanger by Charles Finch

A Mistery The book is set in London in the Victorian era, Charles Lenox is a gentleman and amateur sleuth. It was my first book from Charles Finch, and I liked it. I am sure I am going to read other installments of this series because almost all the characters are well described and “real” and I want to know more about Charles Lenox investigation (and hopefully I will meet again Lancelot!) The story was a little too slow for my liking and the mystery was really engrossing. I liked the description of the Victorian atmosphere and the explanation of the titles and ranks of the Nobility. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review! Goodreads: The Vanishing Man by Charles Finch

A book featuring an historical figure Artemisia Gentileschi story told in verse. The story is very interesting, and it gave me the opportunity to google and admire some of her paintings. I love historical fiction novels, and this is not the first novel that pushed me to learn more about painters almost unknown to me. The story is in verse but it is quite readable; Artemisia didn’t have an easy life, she lost her mom when she was twelve, she was raped at seventeen and she had an hard time to be believed, she didn’t really had justice, her rapist was found guilt but he wasn’t sentenced to prison. In the book Artemisia overcame all her troubles with the help of her paintings. Two paintings are at the center of the novel:   Susanna and the Elders and Judith slaying Holofernes, like Susanna and Judith Artemisia lived in a men world she had to go through a lot of struggles to be heard. Goodreads: Blood Water Paint by Joy McCullough

A book set in the decade I was born This is the second novel from Elin Hilderbrand and as the other one (The Perfect Couple) I was not captivated by it. I decided to read this book because it was one the 2019 Goodreads historical fiction nominees and I wanted to give a second try to this author, but I think I will stop. The story is very thin, the characters are quite stereotypical; the only character I liked and I think it was well develop is Jessie, the youngest sister of the Foley-Levin family. I read in one of the reviews on Goodreads that the author addressed many important issues but then they weren’t really explored or developed and I must agree with this opinion, may it would have been better to leave something out but to go deeper in just a few of them . I read this book for my 2020 Book challenge and I thought this novel could fit in the “book set in the decade you were born” category but I was not really impressed on the description of the sixties. Hopefully ...

It is my first book by Nicola Upson, and I was surprised by the story. I love historical fiction, and this is a very good book about the life of Sir Stanley Spencer (1891-1959). I must admit I didn’t know the work of Sir Stanley Spencer and this book gave me the opportunity to discover a painter and his works. It left me with the wish to I to go and visit the Sandham Memorial Chapel. I loved more the first part where it is well described the life and the relationship between Elsie, the Spencers’ housemaid and Stanley. It is a beautiful description of everyday family-life with its ups and downs. The second part of the book was interesting but, because it was a quite detailed description of the conjugal struggles and of Stanley relationship with Patricia Preece, I didn’t like much. I recommend this book to readers who loved “The Paris Wife” by Paula McLain because it describes the marriage life and troubles of an artist and to the readers who love to learn more about art...

I read and loved Grace and The Forever Bridge, two previous novels from this author, and so I was very happy to receive a digital copy from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley. It is a good story and a good book, but I didn’t love it as I did with the previous T. Greenwood novels. Even though I think that the author succeeds in describing the atmosphere of the late sixties and the different mindset about disabled the characters seem stereotypical described as “good” (Ginny and her friend), “bad” (the father in law and mother in law). Finally, sometimes “the road trip” appears a little unbelievable. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!  Goodreads: Keeping Lucy by T. Greenwood. Expected publication: August 6th 2019 by St. Martin Press.