Goodbye June, You Were Fab!

~ Jennifer @ The Relentless Reader ~ 64 Comments

  1. Our Love Could Light the World by Anne Leigh Parrish
  2. Girlchild by Tupelo Hassman
  3. A Complicated Marriage by Janice Van Horne
  4. Leave of Absence by Tanya J. Peterson
  5. Under the Dome by Stephen King
  6. Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger
  7. The Rest of Us by Jessica Lott
  8. The Third Son by Julie Wu
  9. Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin
  10. The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley
  11. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
  12. A Masque of Infamy by Kelly Dessaint
  13. The Violet Hour by Katherine Hill
  14. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
  15. The Sweetest Hallelujah by Elaine Hussey
15 books, not too shabby.
I only read 2 nonfiction books in June. That makes me a bit sad and I hope to improve that number in July. 
Even though I didn’t like Crusoe I’m glad to have gotten one classic under my belt this month.
June was full of bookish events. I met an author, I guest posted, my blog was featured on Book Bloggers International, and I celebrated my 1 year blogversary!
Can you believe that 2013 is half over?!? It’s time to whip up a Hall of Fame post for the 1st half of the year. That will be coming your way shortly, stay tuned!
How was June for you? 

The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley

~ Jennifer @ The Relentless Reader ~ 62 Comments

The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Publication Date: June 2013
Categories: Historical, Time Travel, Romance
Description:

Two women. One mysterious relic. Separated by centuries. Nicola Marter was born with a gift so rare and dangerous, she keeps it buried deep. When she encounters a desperate woman trying to sell a small wooden carving called ?The Firebird, ? claiming it belonged to Russia’s Empress Catherine, it’s a problem. There’s no proof. But Nicola’s held the object. She knows the woman is telling the truth. Beloved by listeners as varied and adventurous as her novels, you will never forget spending time in New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Susanna Kearsley’s world.

My Thoughts:

This reader has a confession to make. I didn’t want to read this book. Gasp!

Romance? Time travel? Psychic abilities? Those topics are out of my comfort zone, to put it mildly.

This WAS me.

Imagine my utter surprise when I cracked this open and actually LIKED IT.

This is me NOW!

Now wait, before you think I’ve gone ga-ga for romance let me set you straight. I could have lived without the modern love story. On the other hand, the historical relationship made me feel all swoon-y and sigh-y.

Speaking of the historical sections? The author nailed it. The research must have been intense. Kearsley doesn’t cut a single corner. Historical fiction turns my crank. This one was spinning it!

The Firebird is the 2nd book in a series but absolutely works as a stand-alone read. Hints to the past history of the characters helped with that. I could tell there was more to the story. But it wasn’t irritating or distracting.

I KNOW!

I judged this book before I opened it and I was flat out mistaken.  There’s a lesson in there don’t you think?

I was wrong about you Firebird! Forgive me?

Photo: Ashleigh Bonang

As a former museum curator, Susanna Kearsley brings her own passion for research and travel to her novels, weaving modern-day and historical intrigue. She won the prestigious Catherine Cookson Fiction Award for her novel Mariana, the 2010 Romantic Times Book Reviews Reviewer’s Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction novel for The Winter Sea, was shortlisted for a 2012 RITA Award for The Rose Garden, and was a finalist for the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel from the Canadian Crime Writer’s Association for Every Secret Thing. She lives outside Toronto, Canada.