Revolutionary Brothers

Revolutionary Brothers: Thomas Jefferson, the Marquis de Lafayette, and the Friendship That Helped Forge Two Nations by Tom Chaffin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was pleasantly surprised by Tom Chaffin’s new book “Revolutionary Brothers“.

The novel gives a short but very detailed dual biography of Thomas Jefferson and the Marquis de LaFayette. As a good American, I know many facts and details of Mr. Jefferson’s life, however, this book gave me a better insight into his life before and after making a huge impact on American History.

The story of the Marquis de LaFayette’s life was very fascinating, and his rise and fall of power have been very intriguing. He has left tremendous footsteps in American history, and unfortunately is not fully recognized by it.

An author has written a history that reads like a novel, which makes it so easy to read. He characterized the friendship of two extraordinary people in a remarkable manner. Thanks to him, I learned so much more about American History. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a free and advanced copy of the novel.

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The Other Daughter

The Other Daughter by Shalini Boland

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“The Other Daughter” includes everything that vivid psychological thriller lovers, like myself, look for in the novel and thrive from.

Catriona’s life, like a domino effect, is crashing down at a rapid speed. In a state of shock, she makes a decision, that will change her life as she knows it. In the meantime, on the other side of London, Rachel is taking a two and a half years old Holly to a playhouse, not knowing that it will be the last time she will see her daughter.

Two devastated mothers, two timelines, one appalling story…

I love everything about this book. I will honestly admit that I didn’t see the plot twist coming. Phenomenal writing, very catching storyline. And the characters are outstanding. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for a free and advanced copy of the novel.

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America Is Immigrants

America Is Immigrants by Sara Nović

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The moment I saw the name of the book – I was eager to read it.

America is a county that WAS built by immigrants and IS a country of immigrants. This specific publication has combined a large list of successful people who have made Americal as we know it today.

The US is home to foreign-born athletes, artists, civil rights leaders, inventors, scientists who have migrated to America and contributed to its history & leadership, medicine & food industries, social media & entertainment, industrial and technology inventions, etc.

It’s a wonderful and short read, that simply boosts with positive energy. Thank you, NetGalley, Random House pub and Sara Nović for a free and advanced copy of the wonderful book.

 

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The Paris Girl

The Paris Girl by Natalie Meg Evans

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Betrayal, despair and quandary are three words that describe Natalie Meg Evans’ new novel “The Paris Girl”.

The story starts off with an engagement of Russian former aristocrat Tatiana to a wealthy French nobleman, that sets a number of despondent events that would follow the young Russian princess. As the novel progresses, we follow Tatiana’s storyline which tends to change at a rapid speed. The first half of the book was thrilling and I could not get enough of the story. The novel covers major topics such as depression, rape, outside of wedlock pregnancy, wrongful conviction and fall of social status.

The second part of the book was anticlimactic. As many facts were already listed incorrectly since the beginning of the novel (that I was willing to ignore), the second half of the book simply lucked the realistic element of life and human nature. Nevertheless, I did enjoy the portion of the story. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for a free and advanced copy of the novel.

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The Secret Santa

The Secret Santa by Trish Harnetiaux

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is not a typical Christmas read, nevertheless, it is a pageturner!

The story is told from four main characters’ in an uneven sequence.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and the king and queen of Aspen’s real estate, Henry and Claudine are prepared for their annual company Christmas party. This year, a famous pop star and potential client/buyer joins their holiday celebration. Calhoun’s annual Christmas party is famous around town for its very unique “Secret Santa” game. As guests enjoy themselves in a cozy little mention, they are slowly being trapped in the house by an unpredictable snowfall. And it’s all fun and games until a very specific object makes an appearance at the party. An item, that besides disturbing the mellow little party can also ruin the lives of its hosts.

An astonishing plot, with a phenomenal twist at the end, makes this novel a captivating read. I love everything about it: the location, the secrets, the characters. Big thank you Trish Harnetiaux for a thrilling ride across the pages of her newest novel, and NetGalley and Arrow publisher for a free and advanced copy of the book.

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The Great Crash of 1929

The Great Crash of 1929 by John Kenneth Galbraith

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

“The Great Crash of 1929” has been seating on my “to be read” shelf for ages, and I finally gave it a chance. In the past couple of years, I came across many books/articles/stories/movies that at some degree evolved around the big financial crash of 1929, therefore I wanted to dig a bit dipper to fully understand the history of the big misfortune and learn the reasons that lead to the atrocious tragedy and effected many lives and lasted for almost a decade.

I was expecting the book to be written in chronological order, instead, it jumped back and forth between years/decades and overwhelmed me with all the details and facts about the stock exchange that I was not familiar with. Nevertheless, the novel has provided a lot of info that summarized the history of the big stock market crash and provided detailed explanations to the reasons that lead to it:

1. The bad distribution of income
2. The bad corporate structure
3. The bad banking structure
4. The dubious state of the foreign balance
5. The poor state of economic intelligence

This is an old edition of the book, that has been written and publishes decades ago, regardless, it contains the historical events and facts about the largest stock market crash.

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The Last Wife

The Last Wife by Nicola Marsh

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Last Wife is a mystery novel involving around prestigious and powerful Chicago family – the Parkers.

The novel starts with an intriguing email that contains scandalous info on all-female members of the Parker clan, the information that can not only ruin the family’s relationship but also their public reputation. The mysterious email was followed by a chain of accidents that harmed each member of the Parker tribe. And for the first time in years – Parkers unite in order to find the person responsible for the family’s misfortune.

The novel had such great potential. I was hooked to the plot from the first pages, however, the “big twist” I was so anxiously waiting for and the ending of the story was quite dissatisfying. It was a great build-up of the storyline, I wish there was the more fascinating finale. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture publisher for an advanced and free copy of the novel.

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