Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours Book Review: Evita, My Argentina

Evita...My Argentina by Helen R. Davis

Publication Date: February 10, 2017

Custom Book Publications

eBook & Paperback; 228 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction/Biographical

EVITA … My Argentina Evita Perón tells her own spectacular story. Tracing her life back to her humble beginnings, when she is abandoned by her father, Evita takes the reader on her journey to become an actress and later, to the pivotal moment when she meets Colonel Juan Perón. Never content to stay in her husband’s shadow, Evita reveals how she shares his belief that Peronism will help the working class. Eventually she begins doing work on her own as the president of the Society of Benevolence, helping the poor and winning the peoples’ trust. As the times change and women get the vote, Evita becomes even more powerful, running the Ministries of Labor and Health, starting a foundation, and organizing the first female party, The Female Peronist Party. A larger-than-life story, told in her own fictional words, the powerful novel is as educational as it is entertaining.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Review: I have to say, Evita has intrigued me since I first listened to the musical back in my high school days. I'll even go as far as to admit to having the songs from the musical in my head as I read the book.

I learned quite a bit from this book. Up until this book, I had only found one biography. This book really made me want to learn much more about this woman who is very much a modern mystery.

It's told from Eva's point of view and in some ways that was a little detrimental to the story. Eva's voice didn't come across as strong, but rather more childish and immature. The book definitely could have been longer. Eva lived a lot in her 33 years.

Eva Peron is a cross between good and evil, depending on what you read. There are hints of Eva's darker side, and how anyone that was a threat to Peronism disappeared, but for the most part, this book painted Eva as Santa Evita.

From what I've read Ms. Davis did a very good at giving the details of Eva's life, but there was a lot that I felt was omitted. (One of the reasons I found the book to be a bit too short) I expected more about her relationship with Juan. I couldn't imagine Evita telling the story of her life without telling of her relationship with her husband. Also, from everything I read, Eva was totally unaware that she had cancer.

The one thing that really stuck me about Eva was how hard she worked for the poor people, regardless of whether it was done to make her look good, or if she really was the humanitarian. I hadn't heard of her children's city, until I read this.

This was an enjoyable read and a good book for Evita fans to read.

Rating: 4 flowers

About the Author

Helen R. Davis is an American author. Her first novel, Evita: My Argentina was previously published as Evita: My Life and republished with Custom Book Publications in Hong Kong. Her second novel, CLEOPATRA UNCONQUERED, which is the first in a series, imagines a world in which Antony and Cleopatra, rather than Augustus Caesar, are the victors of the Battle of Actium. the sequel, CLEOPATRA VICTORIOUS, will be released soon, followed by the titles CLEOPATRA MAGNIFICA and CLEOPATRA TRIUMPHANT. Her third novel, or at least, her third historical novel/alternate history, THE MOST HAPPY, will be published with Callipe Editorial, based out of Madrid Spain, on July 25th, 2017. For more information, please visit Helen Davis' website. You can also connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.

Blog Tour Schedule

Monday, September 25 Interview at Passages to the Past
Tuesday, September 26 Review at History From a Woman's Perspective (The Most Happy) Wednesday, September 27 Review at A Bookish Affair Guest Post at A Holland Reads
Thursday, September 28 Review at Pursuing Stacie (Cleopatra Unconquered)
Friday, September 29 Review at A Chick Who Reads (Evita)
Review at 100 Pages a Day (The Most Happy)
Monday, October 2 Review at Must Read Faster (The Most Happy)
Tuesday, October 3 Review at Book Nerd (Evita)
Wednesday, October 4 Review at Tudor Enthusiast (The Most Happy)
Thursday, October 5 Review at Faery Tales Are Real (The Most Happy)
Friday, October 6 Review at Pursuing Stacie (The Most Happy)

Giveaway

During the Blog Tour we will be giving away eBooks of Cleopatra Unconquered & Evita...My Argentina & a paperback of The Most Happy! To enter, please enter via the Gleam form below. Giveaway Rules – Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on October 6th. You must be 18 or older to enter. – Giveaway is open to residents in the US only. – Only one entry per household. – All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion. – Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen. Helen R. Davis

Book Review: The Girl That Knew Too Much

Author: Amanda Quick
Title: The Girl Who Knew Too Much
Publisher: Berkley Books
Publish Date: May 9, 2017
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: When Hollywood moguls and stars want privacy, they head to an idyllic small town on the coast, where the exclusive Burning Cove Hotel caters to their every need. It’s where reporter Irene Glasson finds herself staring down at a beautiful actress at the bottom of a pool…

The dead woman had a red-hot secret about up-and-coming leading man Nick Tremayne, a scoop that Irene couldn’t resist—especially since she’s just a rookie at a third-rate gossip rag. But now Irene’s investigation into the drowning threatens to tear down the wall of illusion that is so deftly built around the famous actor, and there are powerful men willing to do anything to protect their investment.

Seeking the truth, Irene finds herself drawn to a master of deception. Oliver Ward was once a world-famous magician—until he was mysteriously injured during his last performance. Now the owner of the Burning Cove Hotel, he can’t let scandal threaten his livelihood, even if it means trusting Irene, a woman who seems to have appeared in Los Angeles out of nowhere four months ago…

With Oliver’s help, Irene soon learns that the glamorous paradise of Burning Cove hides dark and dangerous secrets. And that the past—always just out of sight—could drag them both under…

Review: I was so excited to read this book. I have always loved Amanda Quick's Regency and Victorian period novels. (She's Jayne Ann Krentz for those that don't know) I don't wan to get excited about books anymore, because lately the ones I get really excited for disappoint me. This book has a lot of issues. First lets start with the cover. The picture is of a flapper. The book is set in the 1930s. That in itself makes for some problems with the story for me. Throughout most of the book I struggled to figure out exactly when things were taking place. The actor that Irene is trying to get the scoop on is often described as the next Cary Grant, but he didn't really achieve stardom until 1937. (Its little things like this that bug me) The subplot of the romance also reminded me a lot of a book I had read recently, The Illusionists Apprentice. The owner of the Burning Cove Hotel, Oliver Ward was a magician that gave up his career after a near fatal performance. It isn't identical to that book, but it definitely made me thing of it while reading. So there are two mysteries going on. 1. Irene's boss who she finds murdered at the beginning of the book that causes the whole string of events to follow.

2. Who is killing the women that seem to know something about Nick Tremayne.

Like all good mysteries, it is never who you expect. The only part of the story that lost its intrigue was the original murder, because it really got cast aside until well past the halfway point of the novel.

The focus is on Nick and the reporters and women that keep turning up dead as well as the attempts to silence Irene.

Then there's Irene and Oliver. So there's romance too, which added another layer to the story. Oliver was probably my favorite character and definitely a complex one. The romance though...just didn't cut it for me either.

This book needed more research and more oomph. I almost gave up on it several times, and only finished it because I had requested it from another library and hated to have it out of circulation there and for nothing.

I did like the main characters in this book, but the secondary characters seemed to suffer. Nick, in particular was pretty flat. Also with Hollywood types being part of the book, why were there no names other than Cary Grant mentioned?

The last quarter of the novel did pick up... and the ending was definitely a "WOW!" because of the whodunit and the reason why.

The first mystery got resolved in a strange, haphazard way that made me think that the author was looking for an easy way to tie up loose ends.

I hope the next book under the Amanda Quick name for Jayne goes back to a time period she's more comfortable with, or that she researches the period a bit more.

This book definitely left me disappointed especially from an author that usually delivers great stories.

Rating: 3 flowers

Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours Book Review: The Fisherman's Bride

The Fisherman's Bride by Catherine Magia

Publication Date: November 2, 2016

Publisher: Amazon Digital Services LLC, CreateSpace

Kindle & Paperback; 240 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction/Biblical Fiction/Christian Literature

READ AN EXCERPT.

She has no name. She is not even a footnote. Her tale is hidden behind the well-told fable of her husband, the man who would become Simon Peter, the first Apostle.

Cast off by her family after shunning a wealthy suitor to marry a humble fisherman, her life is fraught with hardship. She endures her husband’s growing restlessness, fish shortages from the Sea of Galilee, and the oppression of an all-powerful Roman Empire over her people. Then her life is forever changed when her dying mother is saved by a miracle performed by a young carpenter—a man who speaks with understanding and acts with compassion. A man who can inspire the extraordinary.

Simon Peter lives on in history as the undaunted martyr of the carpenter. This is the untold story of his young bride. Her journey traverses villages and deserts, love and tradition, and a brewing revolution, to an awakening of faith that challenges everything she has ever known.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound

Praise
"Catherine Magia has penned a moving Christian story that transcends religious boundaries--a novel that occupies the rare space between the historical and the Biblical realms. At once speculative and interpretive, Magia's vigorous first-person narrative of St. Peter's wife makes a compelling case for the life, motivation and spirituality of a minor, nameless Biblical character. An ambitious and impressive debut." -Andrew X. Pham, author of Catfish and Mandala and The Eaves of Heaven: A Life in Three Wars

"Right from the start, the evocative and compelling tone of The Fishman's Bride casts its line and draws in readers with a deftness that borders on enchantment. Perhaps this is because Catherine Magia uses an uncommon perspective and outsider's view of events. And, by 'outsider,' this means observations that come from beyond Jesus' inner circle, yet are closely connected by love and association. Also included in the saga are stories of fortunes made and lost, faith thwarted and regained, fathers and daughters, husbands and wives, and the impact of social and political change upon entire communities. Catherine Magia's attention to embracing the extent of daily living in Biblical times, from different methods of preserving fish to different attitudes encountered during their travels, brings the story to life.

Readers of Christian literature and Biblical retellings will find this story a powerfully written, compelling account of the impact of Jesus on all layers of society, narrated from the eyes of an outsider to his central group of believers who uses the ordinary life experiences of an unnamed wife to chronicle an extraordinary journey of love, faith, and miracles." -D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review.

Review: I wanted to be part of this tour because I knew this was a book my mother would love. She's blind, and I read it too her, which was a unique experience for me, as well.

Catherine Magia's writing brings Simon, the apostle's, life so well, that you almost felt like you were in the story.

Simon's wife remains unnamed throughout the story, which lets you see how women were treated in that time. She went from a wealthy daughter to a poor women who was disowned by her father, because she refused to marry a wealthy merchant, instead choosing to be the wife of Simon and orphan, fisherman.

You see Simon's struggles at business, her loss of a child, and the desire of her husband and his brother to find someone that will save the Jews, from Judas to John the Baptist, finally to Jesus and how his finding Jesus changes his relationship with his wife.

It takes half the book to first encounter Jesus, but it was really enjoyable to see the fiction relationship that Catherine created with Simon and his wife, and later how she figured in with Jesus' ministry as we see in the gospels.

Simon's wife may be a nameless character, but she is a strong woman, and a character you won't soon forget.

This story was absolutely stunning and so well written. If you love biblical fiction this is an absolute must read. (My mother agrees) We are both looking forward to the continuation of the story.

Rating: 5 flowers

About the Author
Catherine Magia was born in Brooklyn, New York, and moved to New Jersey as a teenager. Although her formal education was in the hard sciences, Catherine has always maintained a passion for the written word, publishing her poetry in several literary journals including the Michigan Quarterly Review.

She discovered the voice of Simon Peter's wife on a soul-searching journey, a trek through the biblical lands of Israel, Jordan, and Egypt. She spent seven years researching and writing her debut novel, traveling as far as Ephesus, Turkey.

She is working on her second book - the conclusion to The Fisherman's Bride.

By day, she works as an associate director of marketing research in the development of new cancer medications. She is currently based in Boston.

For more information please visit Catherine Magia's website and blog.

Blog Tour Schedule
Monday, April 17
Kick Off at Passages to the Past

Tuesday, April 18
Review at History From a Woman's Perspective

Wednesday, April 19
Excerpt at Broken Teepee

Thursday, April 20
Review at A Chick Who Reads

Friday, April 21
Spotlight at The Paperback Princess

Saturday, April 22
Review at Rainy Day Reviews

Monday, April 24
Guest Post at Let Them Read Books

Tuesday, April 25
Interview at Books, Dreams, Life

Wednesday, April 26
Spotlight at A Literary Vacation

Thursday, April 27
Review at Pursuing Stacie

Friday, April 28
Review at Beth's Book Nook Blog
Interview at Dianne Ascroft's Blog

Monday, May 1
Spotlight at Susan Heim on Writing

Tuesday, May 2
Spotlight at CelticLady's Reviews

Wednesday, May 3
Review at WS Momma Readers Nook

Thursday, May 4
Review at Just One More Chapter

Friday, May 5
Review at Unabridged Chick

Giveaway
To win a copy of The Fisherman's Bride by Catherine Magia, please enter via the Gleam form below. Two copies are up for grabs!

Rules

– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on May 5th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
– Giveaway is open internationally.
– Only one entry per household.
– All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion.
– Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen.

The Fisherman's Bride

Book Review: In A Gilded Cage

Author: Rhys Bowen
Title: In A Gilded Cage
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Publish Date: March 17, 2009
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: Irish immigrant Molly Murphy and her New York City P.I. business are in the midst of a sweeping influenza epidemic and a fight for women’s suffrage that lands her in jail. Her betrothed, Police Captain Daniel Sullivan, finds her, but he hardly has time to bail her out, what with Chinese gangs battling for control of a thriving opium trade. The only consolation Molly can take from her vexing afternoon in the clink is that it made her some new friends among the Vassar suffragists---and brought her a pair of new cases.

For the first, Emily Boswell is convinced her miserly uncle stole her inheritance and wants Molly to uncover the truth behind her parents’ lives and deaths. Second, Emily’s college roommate Fanny Poindexter wants Molly to find proof of her husband’s philandering so that she can leave him without one red cent. But when Fanny dies and her husband claims she’s a victim of the epidemic, it’s more than Molly’s conscience can take.

Review: In A Gilded Cage is the 8th book in the Molly Murphy series. I absolutely love Rhy Bowen's writing. I've read several of the Royal Spyness novels, and I found one of the Molly Murphy novels at our library. Unfortunately they don't have all of them, so I'm reading them as I find them

This book is really fast paced and there are a quite a few subplots in both of the cases that really make you think.

I think what made this Molly Murphy book stand out for me, was the fact that the focus stayed on her solving her two cases, Emily's parentage and Fanny's death, after she had taken on Fanny as a client investigating her husband.

The absence for the most part of her beau, Daniel, made this book more enjoyable for me. I know that he's a huge part of her life, especially as the series goes on, but right now, I find him intensely unlikable and I'm glad, we really get to see Molly work her cases without him.

Emily's case is very interesting, as she was told that her parents were missionaries that died in a cholera epidemic in China.  The eventual resolution to her case was a bit obvious once Molly really started investigating.

Fanny's case was more interesting, as she wanted to find out if her husband was cheating and then ended up sick and then dead before her case could be resolved.

Then other friends of Fanny's from her Vassar days started to die mysteriously too.

That's when things start to get interesting.

They all seemed to die of the flu, but they all showed symptoms that weren't consistent with the flu.

The end result was really not what I was expecting, but it was perfect.

I absolutely loved this book, and can't wait to go on to the next.


Rating: 5 flowers

Book Review: The Serpent In The Garden

Author: Janet Gleeso
Title: The Serpent In The Garden
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Publish Date: Feb 25, 2005
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: She opened the shagreen box. Couched in gray silk was an emerald necklace, one he had not seen for twenty years. The stones were just as he recalled them: a dozen or more, baguette cut and set in gold links, with a single ruby at the center. Flashes of verdigris, orpiment, and Prussian blue sparkled in the candlelight. The form of this necklace was as disturbing as ever. It had nearly cost him his life. It is the summer of 1765. The renowned and exquisitely dressed portrait painter Joshua Pope accepts a commission to paint the wedding portrait of Herbert Bentnick and his fiancée, Sabine Mercer, to whom Bentnick has become engaged less than a year after the death of his first wife. Joshua has barely begun the portrait when a man's body is found in the conservatory. A few days later, Sabine's emerald necklace disappears, and Bentnick accuses Joshua of theft. The painter is suddenly fighting not only for his reputation but for his life. With a sure understanding of period detail and character, Janet Gleeson creates a richly nuanced tale of greed and revenge that plays out in the refined landscapes and dark streets of eighteenth-century London.

Review:  This book took me forever to read and I don't know why. I really enjoyed it. I love a good historical mystery and this was fabulous.

Joshua Pope is an artist working on the wedding portrait for Herbert and Sabine. He's a totally unique character. He is a widower, whose wife and child died a year before from drowning. He's scared of water.

The mystery starts when a man ends up in the pinery. This book has a lot of information on the growing of pineapples, which is something Sabine knows a great deal about, and she is bringing that knowledge with her to England.

Shortly after the death of the man Sabine's beloved serpent necklace goes missing, and Herbert knows that it was left in Joshua's care.

This beginning part of the novel takes a a little bit of time to get going, but you get a good introduction to the characters, Sabine in particular. She's not particularly likable and she's one of the people that you suspect early on of being a killer, though there is no reason why she'd have her own necklace stolen.

While Joshua works to find out who stole the necklace, mystery after mystery appear and they all seem to point to one person.  Of course, that's not the killer, or perhaps it is, in a round about way when you make it to the very end of the book.

I love how thorough Joshua was in trying to find answers, especially after the death of Herbert's daughter Caroline.

There's a large cast of characters in this book and so many incidents that need investigating. Probably the most interesting is the existence of a woman who was the daughter of Sabine's late husband. Her existence keeps the story going, though ultimately she's not as important to the outcome as you might originally think.

I love how things began to keep turning up as Joshua keeps looking for answers. It made the story a real page turner. I definitely will read more of Janet Gleeson's books.

Rating: 4 flowers

Book Review: Tell Me, Pretty Maiden

Author: Rhys Bowen
Title: Tell Me, Pretty Maiden
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Publish Date: March 2008
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: It’s wintertime in New York, and for the first time since Irish immigrant Molly Murphy started her early-twentieth-century detective agency, she is completely snowed in with work. While she’s proving to be quite the entrepreneur and is very much in demand by some of Broadway’s brightest stars and Fifth Avenue’s richest families, she has to grudgingly admit that if she’s going to work more than one case at a time, then she’s going to need some help. Molly’s beau, the recently and wrongly suspended police captain Daniel Sullivan, would make an ideal associate, but before they can agree on the terms of his employment, they stumble upon a young woman lying unconscious in the middle of a snow-covered Central Park. When the woman wakes up she is disorientated and has and lost her ability to speak, the authorities are about to pack her off to an insane asylum when Molly can’t help but step in and take on yet another case.

Review: I am a huge fan of Rhys Bowen's 'Her Royal Spyness' series. My library doesn't have the first books in this series, so I'm starting at book 7.

I can safely say you can read these out of order. There is enough back story given so that you won't feel lost.

There is a lot going on in this story. Molly is a very busy private detective. She has at least three cases going on including the young woman that she finds in the snow drift in Central Park. It is Ms. Bowen's ability to have all these things going one without confusing her reader or let the story suffer, but that never happens here. Even the more insignificant case is important and oddly all of them tie together, and that's really what makes this an excellent read.

If you aren't familiar with the series, Molly Murphy is a young Irish private detective. She's very independent for a young woman in the early 1900s. Daniel is her beau. He's more old fashioned and definitely one that isn't fond of women working. There are times when his attitude is a little hard to take when combined with Molly.

When her caseload gets to be a bit much, Daniel takes on watching over a young gentleman to see if he is worthy of the young woman that desires to marry him, that way she's free to work for Blanche Lovejoy and her haunted theater. This case reminds me a bit of "Phantom of the Opera" or at least Phantom of the Musical.  It is through this case that she gets information on the young man she was investigating.

Then she's looking to clear the name of a young Yale student who is accused of stealing from a friend and killing the butler.

I loved how the piecing together of this mystery helps uncover the identity of the girl from the snow drift.

I really liked Molly. Her beau, Daniel not so much.

I'm looking forward to continuing this series to see how their relationship progresses.

Rating: 4 flowers

2017 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

From Passages to the Past

Here are the Reading Challenge details:

Each month, a new post dedicated to the HF Challenge will be created. To participate, you only have to follow the rules:

Everyone can participate, even those who don't have a blog (you can add your book title and thoughts in the comment section if you wish)

Add the link(s) of your review(s) including your name and book title to the Mister Linky we’ll be adding to our monthly post (please, do not add your blog link, but the correct address that will guide us directly to your review)

Any sub-genre of historical fiction is accepted (Historical Romance, Historical Mystery, Historical Fantasy, Young Adult, etc.) During the following 12 months you can choose one of the different reading levels:


I'm going for the Medieval level

20th century Reader - 2 books

Victorian Reader - 5 books

Renaissance Reader - 10 books

Medieval - 15 books

Ancient History - 25 books

Prehistoric - 50+ books

To join the challenge you only need to make a post about it, add your link in Mr. Linky below or just leave a link to your blog if you are not yet ready to post about it yet. If you don't have a blog you can just leave a comment for this post saying that you are joining.

The challenge runs from January 1st to December 31st, 2017.