Purls and Potions by Nancy Warren

 Alice works in a book shop up the street from Lucy's knitting shop. She is in love with her boss, Charlie, but he hardly notices her. Violet, Lucy's cousin and employee, feels sorry for Alice and decides that Lucy should make a love potion for her, not only to help Alice, but as a training exercise for Lucy. Meanwhile, one of the vampires that lives in the catacombs beneath Lucy's shop decides to volunteer to make sets for the local college's production of Midsummer Night's dream. Alice is also in the play and when some of the actors, horsing around, grab and drink some of her potion, all manner of romantic mix-up's occur. It is all rather humorous until one of the actors ends up dead, and Charlie is the prime suspect. Lucy feels duty bound to discover who the real murderer is before anyone else's lives' are destroyed.

It was kind of fun to read this just a few weeks before Valentine's day. The mixed-up relationships between the actors cleverly match the story of Shakespeare's classic comedy. Warren does a good job dropping clues, but the resolution scene is a little cliche. Still, I enjoy these books and will keep putting the next one on hold. Apparently I am not the only one who likes them because the wait time is always several months. (2019, 252 p)

Proud by Ibtihaj Muhamad, and Lori Tharps

 Ibtihaj's parents are African Americans that converted to Islam before Ibtihaj was born.  Ibtihaj's parents encouraged all of their children to excel in both academics and sports.  Ibtihaj played a variety of sports with her friends as a child, but some of them became more difficult when she started to wear the hijab in high school. Her mother steered her toward fencing because the fencing uniform met the modesty requirements of a conservative Muslim and could be worn with the hijab.  Ibtihaj applied herself to the sport, hoping to get a scholarship to a top college, and her coaches realized she had talent. They put her on a track to compete nationally and, eventually internationally.  Eventually she qualified for the 2016 Olympic games where she won a team bronze metal.  This book is a memoir of her journey, and catalogs all the hurtles she faced to become the first black Muslim American to compete in the Olympics wearing the hijab in a time in American history when prejudice against Muslims was steadily climbing. 

This book got a lot of attention when it was first released in 2018.  It is an inspiring story the exposes the prejudice Muslim Americans face in sports and in the workplace. Ibtihaj tells of both subtle and overt prejudice was a constant trial in her life both on and off the fencing arena.  Her account is honest and heart wrenching, but at times I wondered what the other side of the story is.  One major struggle she had was that the other members of the American woman's fencing team were not only unwilling to befriend her, but were openly hostile to her.  She blames it on the fact on racial and religious prejudice, but could there be more going on?  We only have her side. Regardless, she clearly had admirable tenacity to stick to her goals long enough to achieve them, and then used her notoriety to advocate for inclusivity and fair treatment of all. This is a good biography for anyone who either knows what it is like, or doesn't know what it is like, to be on the outside of social norms. (228, 2018)

Sole Survivor by Norman Ollestad and Brendan Kiely

 Norman lived with his mother and step dad, but often spent weekends with his adrenaline loving father. They would go skiing or surfing and his father was always pushing him to go past his comfort zone.  He and his step father didn't get along.  He was always telling Norm that life constantly changed and he just had to adjust. When Norman was 11 years old he won a downhill skiing competition even though he was one of the younger participants.  He and his father and his father's girlfriend were in a small airplane flying to the award ceremony when their plane crashed in the San Gabriel Mountains. Norman suddenly has to use all that both of his fathers taught him about perseverance and adaptation and  to make it down the snow-covered mountain and survive. 

This is a true story of an incident that actually happened to the author when he was a boy.  It is a thrilling and heart pounding survival story that I think would appeal to a lot of young readers.  It is, at times, hyperbolically dramatic.  At first I thought that Kiely was probably the main writer, just using Ollestad's story, but when I looked up Ollestad, it turns out he is a writer, too. The book brings up a lot of questions about his two fathers' parenting styles, and also about how Norman ultimately learns to deal with the trauma of the accident.  It would be a good choice for a "boys read" book club. (272 p. 2025)

If the Boot Fits by Karen Witemeyer

 Asher Ellis works hard as a ranch hand to support his widowed mother and little brother. When he discovers that their landlord raised their rent so much they had to leave their home and live in a shack, he is determined to prove that there was some kind of foul play.  The landlord's beautiful daughter, Samantha Dearing, comes home from finishing school to find that her father has planned a ball to introduce her to all the eligible ranchers in their area of Texas. She is put out and put off by all the the dandies vying for her hand and her inheritance. Then she sees a man escaping from her home stop and save her brother who had fallen into the pond. Is he a thief or a hero?  The only evidence he leaves behind is a unusual cowboy boot. 

Yes, that is right.  This is a gender switched version of Cinderella set in late 1800's Texas.  Unlike in the first book in this series, Fairest of Heart, Witemeyer doesn't really stick to the original fairytale very much.  There is the name thing going on, "Asher" instead of "Cinder" etc. and the lost boot, but the rest of the story is just another Witemeyer old West Christian romance. Some parts seem almost melodramatic, but other parts are surprisingly complex and heart-warming.  Both of the main characters are struggling to find out the truth about themselves and their families. I am almost embarrassed to say that Witemeyer is starting to be one of my favorite I-need-an-emotional-break/boost authors. (368 p. 2024)

A Heart Worth Stealing by Joanna Barker

 Genevieve Wild is still grieving the death of her father, while trying to prove to a male dominated society that she can manage on her own. When her beloved father's pocket watch is stolen, she finds that the local constabulary is no help, so she hires a private "thief-taker" to try to find it.  Jack Travers used to work for the Bow Street Runners, but was discharged when a case went array.  The illegitimate son of an earl, he was raised for society, but dependent on his own wits to earn his bread.  As he starts working with Miss Wild to find her father's watch, more threats to her family keep happening and they both begin to realize that there is more going on than a common robbery. They also start to suspect that, even though not suited in station, their hearts were made for each other. 

This is the third book I have listened to by Ms Barker.  Out of curiosity I went back and read my earlier reviews.  It seems that this book is much like the others, stereotypical and predictable, which isn't necessarily bad. I read these romantic historical novels when I want "predictable". The difference is that this one felt like it dragged in the middle.  I kept looking at my app to see how much was left.  I think it lacked editing. The author had two dramatic "endings" that she should have combined into one. I won't elaborate because it would be to much of a spoiler, but I can imagine several ways it could have been done. I think I might wait a while before I read another by Ms Barker. (288 p. 2023)

The Rival Queens by Nancy Goldstone

During the 1500's Europe was ruled by several powerful women.  One was, of course, Queen Elizabeth of England. Two more were Catherine de Medici, queen of France, and her daughter, Marguerite de Valois, Queen of Navarre. This is a duo biography of Catherine de Medici and Marguerite (called Margot) and their tumultuous relationship which had ramifications all over southern Europe. Catherine was not of a royal lineage when she married Henri II of France, nor was she particularly beautiful.  What she was was rich and connected to a powerful money-lending family in Italy.  While her husband was alive, she played the part of submissive vassal to the king and generous, even lavish, hostess to the court. When her husband died she used her political savvy to get herself named regent of his under-aged heir, her oldest son, Charles IX.  Her political ambitions were unbounded and she was willing to sacrifice her family and her allies to obtain her political ends.  She was determined to have all of her children on the thrones of Europe, so she married off her youngest daughter to the king of Navarre. Marguerite followed a path similar to her mothers.  She started out docile, but then became manipulative and powerful in the court of Navarre. Mother and daughter were at times on the same side, trying to further the prospects of Margot's brothers.  At other times there were bitter opponents, especially during the religious wars between the Catholics and the Huguenots. 

I checked out this book because I wanted to learn more about the Huguenots, since I have a Huguenot ancestor.  I did learn a little about the Huguenots and their political standing in Europe, but mostly I was amazed at how much power these two women, and Elizabeth I, wielded in a time when women didn't have any legal power. In some ways this makes them admirable, but in the end they didn't have many redeeming qualities.  They were both focused on themselves and their relations, and were more than happy to tax and sacrifice in battle their poor countrymen to feed their own greed and ambition. They seemed to have no altruism or compassion, even for those near to them. When they finally died, they left in their wake debt and ruination.  That being said, the book was very interesting and well written.  I have read several histories of this time period and it was interesting to see it from a woman's perspective. Goldstone seems to be a careful researcher and often states her sources and comments on their reliability. This is a good choice for anyone interested in this time period. (448 p. 2015)

The Secret of the India Orchid by Nancy Campbell Allen

In this sequel to My Fair Gentleman, Jack's sister, Sophia, has fallen for his best friend, Anthony Blake.  He is in love with her, too, but on the very day he wants to ask permission to formally court her he is forced to go back undercover as a spy to recover a lost document that could put Sophia and all his friends and relatives at risk.  Fast forward two years, Sophia, still heartbroken by Anthony's abrupt exit from her life, decides she needs to get away from London and go on a grand adventure.  She ends up in India, sponsored by a kind and wealthy English couple who are bent on finding a match for her. Anthony, who is still seeking for the document, finds himself in India as well, staying with the same family as Sophia. Anthony knows he should uphold his spy persona as a flirtatious rake, but he wants so much to mend his relationship with Sophia. Then there is a murder. Both he and Sophia are pulled into the investigation to find the killer, but the more time they spend together the more painful it is for both of them to pretend they are not in love with each other. 

The first in this series was a variation on the My Fair Lady story, but, as far as I can tell, this book doesn't have any cultural reference. It is just your standard murder -mystery-historical-romance like the books of Anna Lee Huber and Kristi Ann Hunter.  I enjoyed the book. The setting was rich and interesting, and the romantic tension between Anthony and Sophia was handled well. I wonder how someone from India would feel about the portrayal of their mother country.  One element of the story revolves around an ancient practice called Sati, in which a wife would be burned on their husband's funerial pyre. It was a real practice, but I would hate to have one of my country's worst historical practices be a main plot point for a story written by a foreigner.  Despite the possible cultural insensitivity, it is a good book and I will happily read more by this author. (320 p. 2017)