REVIEW - The Spectacular

OVERVIEW

This book was AMAZING!! I knew absolutely nothing about the Rockettes, Radio City Music Hall, New York City, or New York City history. This is the second book in a row that I knew NOTHING about the premise of the book. YES!! Fiona Davis delivered a strong, interesting, and well-written novel!!

I was so happy to continue reading historical fiction! The premise of this novel is the story of a Rockette and her unfortunate involvement in the murder spree of a bomber in NYC. The main characters were Marion, a Rockette; Peter, a psychiatry resident; and New York City. There are a lot of secondary characters including Marion's family, Peter and Marion's friends, and the Roxette organization. It was a historical novel that had it all including a big mystery, romance, and family dynamics!! I love it!

Since the story primarily takes place in 1956 (there are some flashbacks to 1992), the societal issues that were foisted upon women and the somewhat negative view of Rockettes by some were very integral to the novel. There were some men who were way beyond their time seeing women as equals, but they were in the vast minority. Additionally, the strength and power of strong female relationships and friendships were hugely featured which I loved! I thoroughly enjoyed the description of the Rockettes, costuming, and dancing as I have never attended one of their shows. It sounds AMAZINGLY wonderful. 

I loved the descriptions of some of the historically important dancers and choreographers who I was somewhat familiar with and how they impacted dance and choreography from 1956 until now. This was the beginning of the era of major productions on Broadway and an important point in dance and choreography!!

This was a really great read. Now, I want to deep dive more into the dancers/choreographers of that time period!! It is such fascinating stuff!

REVIEW: 4.5 stars

Writing: 4.5 stars

The Spectacular was a well-written historical novel with beautiful descriptions of New York City, the Rockettes, and all of the locations within the book. Fiona Davis wrote a strong and powerful book with so many layers of interest that I will be thinking about this novel for a long time. This is another well-researched historical novel and it really shows, but the descriptions and details did not bog down the ease of reading. So well done!

Character development: 4.5 stars

There were a lot of unimportant characters in this book due to the scope of the places involved, but the primary characters of Marion, Peter, and New York City were fully developed. They were fictional characters (except New York City), but I could picture them all which makes the books so much enjoyable. 

The many characters were needed for the story to make sense. Marion was a Rockette and Peter was a psychiatry resident which involved a lot of people. Of course, New York City was highlighted and it was done beautifully. So the main characters were fully explored which is what I enjoy in ANY novel, period. This is my kind of book!

Storyline: 4.5 stars

As this was historical fiction, the storyline was loosely based on a true story  Even though the basic storyline is based on a historical incident and fictional characters were developed around it, it was fascinating! I knew absolutely ZERO about this historical incident.

Book cover: 4.0 stars

Very pretty!

Book title: 5.0 stars 

Perfection! The book title is right on point!

Gut feeling: 4.0 stars

I felt that I would like it, but I loved it! 

Definite RECOMMEND

INFORMATION/LINKS

The Spectacular by Fiona Davis 

368 pages

3 days to read it (I inhaled about half of it today)

Read it as a LAPL (Los Angeles Public Library) ebook

Release date of 06/13/2023

https://www.fionadavisbooks.com/

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5616401536

https://www.penguin.com/dutton-overview/

https://lapl.overdrive.com/

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

REVIEW - The Mitford Affair

 

OVERVIEW

This is the third book by Marie Benedict that I have read and I have enjoyed all of them. This one was special because I had heard the name of the six Mitford sisters and that they were English, but that was it. So I went into this historical novel with NO back story which is the way that I like it!!

I have read a lot of contemporary fiction lately so it was great to go back to my absolute favorite genre of historical fiction!! There were six sisters and a brother in the Mitford Family. The main characters are Nancy, Diana, Unity, and Hitler - yes, Hitler!! Secondary characters are fascism and the looming threat of war!

The Mitford family dynamic was very dysfunctional with favorite children being a huge issue by pitting the siblings against each other. The siblings naturally settled into paired sets with one leftover who became the outlier. Additionally, the family had a title and land so the children were expected to marry well (i.e.: someone with money and power) and that added to the chaos in the family. Additionally, the family was political as the father was a member of the House of Lords. The majority of the novel takes place in Germany and England pre-WWII. It was fascinating to see how the Treaty of Versailles really caused all of the mess that created the perfect vacuum for Hitler to rise to power. But, fascinatingly, he had followers in England as well. 

There was some name-dropping (most of the Lords and Ladies were meaningless names to me), but there were a few biggies and they were integral to the plot. They were not just there to add color, but were important to the whole storyline!

This was a great historical novel as it makes me want to learn more! That is the sign of a well-written story!

REVIEW: 4.5 stars

Writing: 4.0 stars

The Mitford Affair was a well-written novel. Marie Benedict seems to become a better and stronger writer with each book that I have read of hers. This was also well-edited. I really liked that it wasn't overly populated with SAT words that I had to constantly look up and ruin the flow of the story. There were some German words sprinkled throughout, but most of them could be figured out through the context. It was obvious that this book was well-researched and it showed!!

Character development: 4.5 stars

This novel had a lot of characters, but the four main characters Nancy, Diana, and Unity Mitford have historical information such as letters and published books while the other main character Adolph Hitler has massive amounts of historical information. 

Unfortunately, the Mitford parents created the dynamic that allowed Unity to become obsessed with Hitler's power and charisma which then pulled Nancy and Diana into this Nazi chaos finally ending in a stunning finale. 

Even the secondary characters of fascism and the threat of war were fully fleshed out as well as the tertiary characters of the rest of the family. 

Storyline: 4.5 stars

Truth is stranger than fiction, for sure! Even though the basic storyline is based on historical truth, it was mind-blowing. The difference that this family could have had in history could have been catastrophic as they were well-connected socially and politically. I was gob-smacked (to steal a Mitfordism).

Book cover: 5.0 stars

Gorgeous!

Book title: 4.5 stars 

It was RIGHT on the money!

Gut feeling: 4.0 stars

I knew that I would like it, but I was thrilled that I loved it! 

Definite RECOMMEND

INFORMATION/LINKS

The Mitford Affair by Marie Benedict 

377 pages

5 days to read it (I had a hard time putting it down today)

Read it as a LAPL (Los Angeles Public Library) ebook

Release date of 01/17/2023

https://www.authormariebenedict.com/

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5656747437

https://www.sourcebooks.com/

https://lapl.overdrive.com/

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

My next book in the MULTIPLE July read is...

 The Spectacular by Fiona Davis

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

THREADS?!?!

So who has Threads??? Me, me, me! 

Of course, I also have Instagram to be able to have a Threads account! My handles are very similar to my blog address here: booksbydorothea 

Please come find me on social media and we can follow each other! 

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜

My next audiobook read is...

No Time Like the Future by Michael J. Fox

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

 

DNF - How to Keep House While Drowning AUDIOBOOK

I will not be finishing (DNF) How to Keep House While Drowning by K.C. Davis audiobook. It just wasn't the right book for me.

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

"33 Best Selling Books of 2023"

So far in 2023, these are the "33 Best Selling Books of 2023":

33. Things We Never Got Over
32. I Will Teach You To Be Rich
31. Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity
30. The Housemaid
29. Happy Place
28. Dog Man: Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea
27. Maybe Someday
26. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
25. The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom
24. Fairy Tale
23. Oh, the Places You'll Go!
22. The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
21. It Ends with Us
20. The Very Hungry Caterpillar
19. Verity
18. Diper Överlöde
17. November 9
16. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
15. Icebreaker
14. The Last Thing He Told Me
13. Reminders of Him
12. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
11. Ugly Love
10. The Covenant of Water
9. The Silent Patient
8. Where the Crawdads Sing
7. It Starts with Us
6. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
5. I’m Glad My Mom Died
4. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
3. Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones
2. Spare
1. Lessons in Chemistry

Wow, there are some interesting books on this list! But, I do not know how I feel about it! Hmm!

First off, I frequently give Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Oh, the Places You'll Go!, and The Very Hungry Caterpillar as a baby or graduation gifts!! Ha! So obviously, I'm giving GOOD gifts!!

Secondly, many of these books on this list are by Colleen Hoover whom I have never read. I just checked her website and it indicates that her books fall into the "New Adult and Young Adult contemporary romance categories, as well as psychological thriller" which are not my genres. That explains a lot!

Thirdly, I am waiting for a few books on this list from the library that includes The Covenant of Water, Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones, and Lessons in Chemistry!! 

Finally, I have read I’m Glad My Mom Died and Spare. Both were audiobooks and both were EXCELLENT especially as the author narrated the audiobook in both books.

In total, I am waiting for three books from the library and have read five books from this list! How many of these books have you read? Or are waiting to read?

If you want to know more about this list, you can find out more here: 33 Best Selling Books of 2023!!!

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

Happy 4th of July!!!

Please allow me to step on my soapbox for a moment. Genealogy is another hobby that I have that is separate from my love of reading. However, I am so very grateful for FREEDOM today - something that most of my ancestors from Europe, specifically, did not have! That is why they came to the "colonies" for their personal FREEDOM which covered a gambit of reasons. 

But, interestingly, many of the ancestors that I have researched so far came to the "colonies" for RELIGIOUS FREEDOM. Many from Germany, France, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom were fleeing religious persecution and seeking religious FREEDOM (Quakers, Mennonites, or Protestants in Roman Catholic countries). 

I celebrate each and every one of these individuals who came in search of a better life, land, futures for their children, and FREEDOM to worship in whatever manner they chose (and not dictated by the State).

I consider myself spiritual rather than religious. But it is amazing to see the marriage, christening, and deaths noted in different documents that were written in Latin or another language (Google Translate helps). It makes me proud that these people made ME!

Thank you to so many who came before me to allow my family and me to have FREEDOM in the United States!! Please celebrate your family that came to the United States for FREEDOM!

My family has been here for a very long time, but if your family came one generation ago or are immigrants, CELEBRATE them and you!!! We are ALL Americans regardless of WHEN we arrived!

Stepping off my soapbox. Now back to your regular programming... 

 

Have a safe 4th of July!! Enjoy the fireworks or books or BOTH - whatever makes you happy today!! 

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

 

My next audiobook is...

 How to Keep House While Drowning by K.C. Davis

Now, bear in mind that I am CURRENTLY reading FOUR e-books! Two are from the library, one is an ARC that I need to read by August 1st, and one is Kindle First Reads that I own.

It will be interesting to see how I juggle it all. But I really think that I can do it!!

I normally listen to an audiobook before bed, but if I like this book, I may buy it because it sounds like a great gentle book to keep up with housekeeping! Who knows?!?!

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

So I'm reading MULTIPLE books... WHAT!?!?

It always seems that LIBRARY books come in ALL at once! It happened to me again THIS weekend!! But I love my local, well actually HUGE, library!! Thank you, Los Angeles Public Library!!!

So I will be reading this library book:

The Mitford Affair by Marie Benedict

While also reading, this ARC! This book is historically dense and fascinating! Perfect for this history nerd!! This book has until August 1st to finish. So I will alternate until one or both books are done. If this one isn't finished, then I will alternate with another library book. Wild, right! Yes, I can do it!!

Flirting with Danger by Janet Wallach

So how do you handle multiple library books? Do you just power through or alternate? Do you postpone getting them? What about audiobooks in the mix? Inquiring minds want to know. Feel free to post in the comment section!

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜

P.S. The concert last night was a blast!! My daughter and I made AMAZING memories!! The only downside was sitting in the hot sun for hours until blessed shade came over us. Oh, and it was 91% humidity at 10:00 pm in Los Angeles!!! 

My First Reads Book is...

 

The Life She Wanted by Anita Abriel

Okay, so I knew that I had seen this book cover before and it was making me question my memory! I tried to request it from the Los Angeles Public Library, but it was so new that it wasn't available yet. So I just kept it on my Goodreads To-Be Read List!!

So after my last post about Amazon Prime First Reads, I started looking for a great First Reads book. Well, it turns out that The Life She Wanted was a First Reads for June 2023! YES!!!

So the moral of this story is ALWAYS go back and review the books that you have in YOUR personal library. You NEVER know what you might find!!

I'm off to the Fall Out Boy/Bring Me The Horizon concert in a few hours with my daughter today at BMO Stadium in Downtown Los Angeles. The weather is not ideal for an outdoor concert - hot, poor air quality, and 47% humidity (a lot for Los Angeles). BUT, I am going to make memories with my daughter!!

So I will be out late and am going to sleep in. So there may be no reading happening for the next few days! We will see.

Be safe out there, friends!!

Happy reading,

Dorothea 💜