Bookreview: Chocolat

Author: Joanne Harris
Genre: I have no idea which genre this could be labeled as…
Published: 1999
Personal rating: 5/5
Yearly count: 14
Book Around the World Challenge, Western Europe 6/31

Chocolat begins with the arrival in a tiny French village of Vianne Rocher, a single mother with a young daughter, on Shrove Tuesday. As the inhabitants of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes clear away the remains of the carnival which heralds the beginning of Lent, Vianne moves with her daughter into a disused bakery facing the church, where Francis Reynaud, the young and opinionated curé of the parish, watches her arrival with disapproval and suspicion.

When he realizes that Vianne intends to open a chocolate shop in place of the old bakery, thereby tempting the churchgoers to over-indulgence, Reynaud's disapproval increases. As it becomes clear that the villagers of Lansquenet are falling under the spell of Vianne's easy ways and unorthodox opinions, to the detriment of his own authority, he is quick to see her as a danger. Under Vianne's influence an old woman embraces a new life, a battered wife finds the courage to leave her husband, children rebel against authority, outcasts and strays are welcomed... and Reynaud's tight and carefully ordered community is in danger of breaking apart. As Easter approaches, both parties throw themselves whole-heartedly into the preparations; Vianne for the chocolate festival she plans to hold on Easter Sunday, Reynaud into a desperate attempt to win back his straying flock. Both factions have a great deal at stake; the village is bitterly divided; and as the big day looms closer their struggle becomes much more than a conflict between church and chocolate - it becomes an exorcism of the past, a declaration of independence, a showdown between dogma and understanding, pleasure and self-denial.

This book was the perfect representation of France, with a great picture of a quaint little France village and of course the love of food that also permeates France. Next to that, this was a compelling story, and a mouth watering one. I´ve never wanted chocolate more than while reading this book. What I most like about this book is that Joanne Harris has managed to make both sides, both Vianne and Reynaud, real, both with their flaws and their sympathies. That´s not something you come across in every book. A very good read and highly recommended. Now if you´ll excuse me, I think I´m going to rent the movie and buy some chocolate…


Picture and description of the book were taken from Joanne Harris' website.

Bookreview: The Royal Physician’s Visit

Author: Per Olav Enquist
Genre: Historical
Published: 1999
Personal rating: 3.5/5
Yearly count: 13
Book Around the World Challenge, Western Europe 5/31

Set in Denmark in the 1760s, The Royal Physician’s Visit magnificently recasts the dramatic era of Danish history when Johann Friedrich Struensee, a German doctor from Altona, student of Enlightenment philosophers Diderot and Voltaire, and court physician to mad young King Christian, stepped through the aperture history had opened for him and became for two years the holder of absolute power in Denmark.

Dr. Struensee, tall, handsome, and charismatic, introduced hundreds of reforms, many of which would become hallmarks of the French Revolution twenty years later, including freedom of the press and improvement of the treatment of the peasantry. He also took young Queen Caroline Mathilde—unsatisfied by her unstable, childlike husband—as his mistress. He was a brilliant intellectual and brash reformer, yet Struensee lacked the cunning and subtlety of a skilled politician and, most tragically, lacked the talent to choose the right enemies at court, a flaw which would lead to his torture and execution.

I choose this book to represent Denmark, as it closely weaves fiction and non-fiction together. In fact, it wove it so closely, I still don’t know what was true and what wasn’t. What I can say about this book, is that it’s not for the faint of heart. Or maybe that’s just me, seeing as that I normally don’t read gritty books. Still, the fact that a lot of this was non-fiction made some parts of this book very disturbing. Still, it was a good read.



Picture and description of the book were taken from Overlook Press's website.

Bookreview: To Pleasure a Lady

Author: Nicole Jordan
Genre: historical Romance
Published: 2008
Personal rating: 4/5
Yearly count: 12

Marcus Pierce, a strikingly handsome aristocrat with a wicked reputation, inherits guardianship of spirited Arabella Loring and her two younger sisters – and immediately declares his intention to marry them off. But enchantingly defiant Arabella sparks frustration – and something deeply erotic – in Marcus. After matching both wits and swords with her, the possessive nobleman concludes this beautiful and formidable foe must be his.

Having sworn off marriage and men, Arabella wishes to be left alone to run her finishing school for young ladies. To that end, she boldly accepts Marcus's intimate challenge: if he can woo and win her within two weeks, she'll take her place in his bed as his wife. However, if she can resist his considerable charms, the Loring sisters will be granted their independence. Thus an extraordinary game of seduction begins....

I liked this book a lot, especially Marcus Pierce, who unexpectedly falls for love. I also loved a certain scene, with swords, and that’s all I’ll say about it. This book made me smile, and it’s a real feel good book. The bet makes the whole love-thing even more complicated than normal, which is fun to read. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the Courtship Wars trilogy.


Picture and description of the book were taken from Nicole Jordan's site.

Mailbox Monday & What Are You Reading?

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week (checked out library books don’t count, eBooks & audio books do). Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

While these books haven’t all come in the mailbox this particular week, they’ve been acquired this month, so let’s call this my catch-up post.


To Pleasure a Lady by Nicole Jordan
When a newly titled earl develops an unexpected passion for his beautiful ward, he wagers he can seduce her into accepting his proposal of marriage – a wager she's just as determined he won't win.

To Seduce a Bride by Nicole Jordan
Harboring a secret passion for a neighboring earl, a charming beauty asks a cynical duke for lessons in how to attract a gentleman's ardor – not realizing she's opening her heart to unexpected love with her arousing tutor.



To Bed a Beauty by Nicole Jordan
To escape a seductive nobleman's unwanted courtship, a spirited hoyden takes refuge in a London pleasure house, where her determined suitor must woo her under the eagle eyes of her protective courtesan friends if he hopes to make her his bride.


Bloodroot by Susan Wittig Albert
Just the thought of her family's Mississippi plantation is enough to set China Bayles adrift on a sea of memories. The sweet perfume of magnolia blossoms mixed with the hot, heady smells of the swamp. The house, perched on the banks of the Bloodroot River, a trenchant reminder of the bitterest, bloodiest moments in the country's history. And the secrets. The shameful, stifling secrets that have kept her away for so long....


An Unthymely Death and Other Garden Mysteries by Susan Wittig Albert
A delightful new treasury of ten mysteries featuring China Bayles, Ruby Wilcox, and their Pecan Springs friends, old and new. Also included: a Texas-size roundup of China's best recipes, craft ideas, gardening tips, and herb lore.

*********************



It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

Books I completed this week:

Chocolat by Joanne Harris (review to come)
A great book, although it does incite a craving for delicious chocolates.

To read this week:

The Cross-Country Quilters by Jennifer Chiaverini
The Case of the Missing Books by Ian Sansom
Ordeal by Innocence by Agatha Christie

Other than that, I’m not sure yet.


Pictures and descriptions of Nicole Jordan's books come from her site, pictures and descriptions of Susan Wittig ALbert's books come from her site About Thyme.

Sunday Salon: Back in Action

Past few weeks:
I've not had much time to read since my last post in May. In fact, since then I've only read two books, and that has been in the past two weeks. I'll be getting to the real reviews this week, but I'll talk about them real short here.

The first one, The Visit of the Royal Physician by Per Olav Enquist, was an interesting, but disturbing read. While reading it, I wasn't (and still aren't) sure about which part were fiction and which part were factual, but I know enough to know that the disturbing parts were very probably true. It took me a long time to read, mainly because I couldn't process this book in very long chunks. Still, it was a good read.

The second one, To Pleasure a Lady by Nicole Jordan, was just a light and funny hitorical romance. It wasn't quite up there with the writing of Julia Quinn, but it was still a good read.

What's in my reading basket for today?
I'm hoping to finish Chocolat by Joanne Harris, since I'm about half way through. Then next up is either Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder or The Cross-Country Quilters by Jennifer Chiaverini, depending on my mood. Although, I'm guessing it'll probably be The Cross-Country Quilters.

Other Sunday Salons where the talk is interesting:
Over at When She Reads this weeks discussion is about 'Who reads these days anymore?' and if people know about classics or have actually read them. My reply to the post:

Most people know the basic story lines of the classics (with a lot of mistaken assumptions mostly), but have never read them. Gone With the Wind, for example, everyone knows about it, most know the storyline a bit, but not many have read them. The same goes for Jane Austen, Charles Dickens and Alexandre Dumas, to name a few authors. I, myself, like classics, but I think the word classic brings up many negative associations in the minds of most people. Which is too bad, because they reached the status of being classics because the stories are really good.

Go on over to read the rest of the discussion!