The Vanishing Place
by Zoë Rankin
New Zealand thriller (6/15/2025)
The Vanishing Place by Zoe Rankin is a thriller almost horror story in the bush country of New Zealand. Effie is the oldest of four children and is often left in charge of her siblings as her father disappears for weeks at a time. Her mother has died in childbirth and this last child is named Four.
The story goes back and forth in time which might be confusing to some, but doesn't bother me. Effie managed to get away from the family and is a police woman in Scotland. A child appears from the bush who looks like the young Effie and she returns to solve the mystery of where she is from. There is a double murder that creates questions from the past.
The mystery in my mind was always about the father. What made him leave the family so often? Was he an abuser? Did he have another family? The twists and turns kept me reading. New Zealand is an unknown country and I was glad to be reading an ebook so I could check tree and plant name. Thanks to Bookbrowse for this advance reader copy and look forward to discussing with friends.
The Secret History of the Rape Kit: A True Crime Story
by Pagan Kennedy
History of Rape Kits Biography (11/9/2024)
The Secret History of the Rape Kit by Pagan Kennedy is an advance reader copy from Net Galley through BookBrowse and I thank them for allowing me to read this book. The book certainly won't be for everyone, but I did learn a lot. I really had no idea how new the rape kit for sexual assault victims has been in existence and that it was often not used properly or thrown away. The book is a biography of Marty Goddard. She worked at a nonprofit and advocated for better treatment of those who had been assaulted. She thought of a rape kit that would assist in prosecution of perpetrators and managed to get the Chicago police interested in it. However, her name was not associated with it and instead Louis Vitullo was given credit. Marty did some training for the Justice Department. Eventually she disappeared and Kennedy did a lot of research to find out what had really happened to Marty Goddard. Kennedy had been a victim of assault as a child and as an adult and originally wrote about Marty in an article for the New York Times. The book is both a history of a woman who tried give women who had been assaulted a measure of dignity and believability and a story of finding out what had happened to Marty Goddard when she disappeared. The book would appeal to those who like to learn and may be surprised by learning how far we still have to go.
Becoming Madam Secretary
by Stephanie Dray
Becoming Madam Secretary (10/28/2023)
Becoming Madam Secretary by Stephanie Dray is an excellent historical fiction book. Frances Perkins was the first woman to be Secretary of Labor under Franklin Roosevelt. The book is fiction, and the author did make assumptions as she explains in her notes. The book is written in first person as if Miss Perkins is telling the story.
The book begins in 1909 with Frances Perkins beginning her journey as a woman fighting for the rights of children and women who are forced to work long hours in unsafe factories. She works for Florence Kelly, a suffragist and proponent of equality as Secretary of the Consumer's League. The fifty-four-hour bill is passed after much lobbying in Albany. Friends include Mary Harriman Rumsey, Sinclair Lewis, Al Smith, Theodore Roosevelt, and Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt.
The most important thing she accomplishes is the start of Social Security. The book ends with this accomplishment, although there is an epilogue that ends on the 50th anniversary of its passage. The book also includes personal information about Frances, her husband Paul Wilson, and their daughter Susanna.
All You Have to Do Is Call
by Kerri Maher
A timely subject (6/24/2023)
All You Have to Do Is Call by Kerri Maher takes place in the 1970s in an age when women are fighting for control of their own lives from personal choices to working outside the home. It is still a time when women are expected to be in the home, cooking, cleaning, and taking care of children. It is a time when Roe vs. Wade is before the Supreme Court and abortion is illegal. What a timely subject!
This work of fiction is loosely based on a real feminist group called Jane which did exist in Chicago during this time. Veronica is the founder of Jane in this book and is a housewife who is pregnant and leading a double life as someone who completes illegal abortions. Even some of her friends do not know she is a part of Jane. Other characters are Margaret, a young professor secretly volunteering; and Patty, who is against the organization until her wayward sister, Eliza, returns home after a long disappearance. All these women have difficult choices to make. The author does a very good job of developing this story. I would hate to think that we might have to go back to this period in history, but it is a distinct possibility.
The Lost English Girl
by Julia Kelly
Lost English Girl Review (2/22/2023)
A historical fiction which addresses sending children from cities like London and Liverpool to the country for safety to be away from German bombing during WWII. Liv becomes pregnant after only two dates with Joshua. Liv's family is Catholic, and Joshua's is Jewish. There are many characters to dislike in this book, but perhaps the worst is Liv's mother. Her family offers Joshua money so he can go to America to pursue his love of playing the Saxophone. Liv is left on her own to live in her parents' house. They have always considered her less than her sister Kate. Liv gets a job delivering posts after her daughter Maggie is sent to the country. She tries to visit Maggie, but the family harboring her aren't encouraging. They dress Maggie in fancy clothes, give her toys and horse lessons. The nicest people in the book are Joshua's parents who Liv meets when they are on her postal route. The story is good enough; however I was frustrated with so many characters just not being kind or smart. There is a mystery when Maggie is presumed dead and that kept me going to the end. I've read two other books by this author and will continue to read her books.
I received this book as are ARC from BookBrowse.
Once We Were Home
by Jennifer Rosner
Once We Were Home review (11/30/2022)
"Once We Were Home" by Jennifer Rosner made me sit back and savor the words and ache for the characters who were stolen or placed with strangers or mere acquaintance to save them from sure death. The intention was good, but the trauma it caused these young children was not anticipated. Many of these children who came from Poland and Jewish families were in Christian homes or Catholic monasteries. When the war ended, families looked for these children. Parents may not have survived, but other family members did. These children who had learned Christian prayers and ways were torn when they were placed in the new country of Israel. They had to learn a new language, live in communes and many were trying to find mothers. They also met others, fell in love, had families and jobs.
Roger was raised in a monastery. He was a curious child, always questioning and telling stories. Roger is taken by Brother Jacques to another monastery through many days traveling through the mountains. This is done as the church believes he should not go with an aunt and uncle who have survived the war.
Oskar and his sister Agata are given to the Dabrowski family and Oskar has no memory of his birth parents. Agata remembers her mother and doesn't understand why Oskar wants to go back to the Dabrowski's. This story is one of several mysteries that will keep you reading.
There are so many touching moments in this book, and it is relevant in today's world. There are still wars, countries not able to provide food, medicine, and safety for their population. The children in the Ukraine are just one example of another generation losing so much of their history.
This is an author I will be following and as I read the book, I realized that I had her first book "The Yellow Bird Sings" and had met her at a book signing in March of 2020, just before the whole world shut down. Here's hoping you enjoy "Once We Were Home" as much as I did and there will be more books by this gifted author.
Peach Blossom Spring: A Novel
by Melissa Fu
Peach Blossom Spring is a beautiful book (2/26/2022)
I just loved this book. It is a beautiful family story that starts in China when Japan invades China. Meilin and her son Renshu must leave their home where they had lived with comfort and even luxury. They travel with Wenling and her children to several places in China trying to stay ahead of the war. There are family issues and eventually Meilin and Renshu travel alone. Renshu is just a young boy. Meilin has so much strength in finding her way eventually to Taiwan. Renshu goes to school and eventually earns a scholarship to Northeastern University in America and changes his name to Henry. He meets Rachel during his college years, and they marry and have a daughter, Lily. Lily wants to know about the Chinese side of her family, but Henry is unable to talk about his life in China. Meilin comes to America only once. In some ways it is such a sad story of how a family loses their identity and become afraid of the political aspect of their native country. Yet it is a beautiful story of the evolution of a family and the changes that come as a result of their opportunities. I have read several books of fiction about China, notably The Good Earth, The Shanghai Girls and Snow Flower and the Secret Fan and this book stands right up there with these books. I would recommend it to those who like family sagas and want to learn about other cultures. Thanks to BookBrowse for sending me this book.
Sisters of the Great War: A Novel
by Suzanne Feldman
WWI Sisters go to war (9/30/2021)
Sisters of the Great War by Suzanne Feldman offers a new perspective of WWI. Ruth and Elise Duncan life with their father and grandfather in Baltimore. Ruth wants to be a doctor, but her father (a doctor himself) doesn't think this proper for a woman. Elise is a very good mechanic and keeps her father's car running. John Doweling is a family friend from England who has studied to be a doctor. He is going to join the British in fighting the war. Ruth and Elise decide to volunteer and are sent to Belgium where they join John. Ruth and John have feelings for each other that increases over time. Elise meets Hera and they at first hide their relationship and later it causes them to be disciplined. The descriptions of treating the soldiers are quite graphic and with shortage of doctors, Ruth has the opportunity to learn much about treating these men, even to doing amputations. The weather always seems to be a factor for the ambulances, lots of mud and rain. The Germans bomb the hospital areas and the anticipation of who might be injured or killed keeps you reading. If you like war stories, as I do, this one is a little different. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
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