Friday, December 26, 2008

91. The Women of Pemberly, Book 2

By Rebecca Ann Collins
Rated 4 Stars
From Library

I decided to continue on with this series.  While still a little dry it is becoming slightly addictive.

The Women of Pemberley follows the lives of five women, some from the beloved works of Jane Austen, some new from the author’s imagination, into a new era of post industrial revolution England, at the start of the Victorian Age. Vast changes are in motion, as they were throughout this dynamic century. The women, like many of Jane Austen’s heroines, are strong, intelligent individuals, and the depth and variety of the original characters develop into a series of episodes linked together by their relationship to each other and to Pemberley, which is the heart of their community. The central themes of love, friendship, marriage, and a sense of social obligation remain as do the great political and social issues of the age. "The stories are so well told one would enjoy them even if they were not sequels to any other novel."

90. Second Time Around

By:  Marcia Willett
Rated 4 Stars
From:  Library

Marcia Willett is very much a hit and miss author with me.  Fortunately this book was a hit.

LIBRARY SUMMARY:  Mathilda Rainbird bequeaths her home to three unknown relatives: twenty-two-year-old Tessa, who misses her dead parents and brother but has learned to live alone; Will, a widower, who is drawn to Mathilda’s housekeeper, Isobel; and Beatrice, a retired prep-school matron who thinks the idea of living with her cousins is preposterous.Deeply moving and utterly real,Second Time Aroundfeatures the shining honesty that Willett’s fans have come to love.