Audiobook review: Romancing the Duke (Castles Ever After #1) by Tessa Dare

Title: Romancing the Duke (Castles Ever After #1)
Author: Tessa Dare
Narrator: Carmen Rose
Story rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Audio rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Overall rating: 3 of 5 Stars

MY THOUGHTS

This is one of those cases when I’m sad that I didn’t enjoy a book as much as my friends did. I don’t often venture into Historical Romance, I prefer contemporary. But when all my friends rave about a book it’s hard to stay away.

This story is about Isolde Goodnight or Izzy. She is a daughter of the famous author of Goodnight Stories, popular stories for children. After her father’s sudden death she is left penniless and homeless. Her rescue comes as an unexpected inheritance of a Castle, though its previous owner Ransom, Duke of Rothbury is not happy at all. He left blind after some mysterious incident, he is grumpy, rude, very attractive and completely unwelcoming. He wants to be left alone and he wants Izzy gone.

Historical Romance is a genre full of tropes; it’s hard for an author to write something new. But Tessa Dare definitely managed it. Izzy is not a typical shy virginal heroine waiting for her prince charming. She is a strong bright woman who doesn’t give up even in such difficult circumstances.

Ransome is a very interesting character too. I love how we get to see the real man under his grumpy and tough facade. It was very satisfying to see how Izzy broke his walls one after another. Ransome was lonely and unhappy man and my heart broke for him when it was revealed why he was this way.

The banter between Izzy and Ransome was my favorite part of the book. I loved that they didn’t give each other an easy way out, they challenged each other. Because of her father’s famous stories (which he supposedly wrote to his little girl) Izzy is stuck in this false image of a little helpless girl. Nobody sees her as a woman she is. I loved how Ransome challenged her to be herself. And Izzy pushed Ransome to deal with his own demons.

What didn’t work for me I guess was the romance. While there were several very steamy scenes, I wasn’t feeling any chemistry between Izzy and Ransome.

Another aspect that I didn’t like – there wasn’t actually much going on plot-wise. That’s actually surprising, because I’m not really a fan of action-packed books. I always prefer emotional stories with less action but a lot of feelings. Since the romance in this book didn’t grab me I wanted more from the plot.

My thoughts about the audiobook

Carmen Rose is a new to me narrator. At first I had difficulties with audio, because she has this peculiar voice and I constantly got distracted. After some time I got used to her narration. What I’m trying to say is that the narration was good, but I personally needed more time to get into the audiobook.

All in all I think it was a case of “it’s me, it’s not the book”. Romancing the Duke was enjoyable story with interesting characters, humor and I’m sad I didn’t love it as much as I wanted. If you love Historical Romance I’m sure you would have more luck with this book that I.

Review: The Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes

Title: The Last Letter from Your Lover
Author: Jojo Moyes
My rating: 4 of 5 Stars

MY THOUGHTS

I think I can tell that Jojo Moyes became one of my favorite authors. I’ve read four books by her and I loved them all. I read The Last Letter from Your Lover back in May, when I had a break from reviewing. I had a pile of books, and I ended up writing mini-reviews for most of them. Not in this case. This book deserves a full review.

The Last Letter from Your Lover has similar structure to another Jojo Moyes’s book The Girl You Left Behind. There are two stories in one book. Strangely, I wasn’t frustrated when we were abruptly switched from one story to another as I was while reading The Girl You Left Behind. Probably I was prepared this time.

In 1960 Jennifer Stirling awakened in hospital after a car accident with no recollections of who she was and how she ended up there. As she’s trying to return to normal life, she could feel the strain between her and her husband and finally she found a letter from a mysterious B where he asked her to leave her husband. It’s obvious she had a lover, but who he was and how Jennifer could find him? In 2003 Ellie Haworth, a journalist who is trying to pick up her collapsing career, finds this letter in the newspaper’s archive. Intrigued, she decides to find out what happened to Jennifer and B, while trying to sort her own life, since she has an affair with a married man.

The first chapters of the book were slow, painfully so. Probably some readers would get bored and give up on the book, but I didn’t have problem with it. Jojo Moyes perfectly created this stifling atmosphere, where confused Jennifer couldn’t breathe.

I admit I was hesitant to pick up this book because it deals with infidelity. Writing about such sensitive topic requires tact and not every writer can pull it off. But Jojo Moyes did an amazing job here. All relationships in this book were complex, messy and real.

Laurence, Jennifer’s husband was an interesting character. I’m glad Jojo Moyes didn’t make him the evil, so Jennifer’s choice would be easy. Laurence was an average man from that period of time. He was cold, he thought that a good wife should be just a pretty silent thing on her husband’s arm, but he genuinely loved Jennifer, he tried to make her happy in his own way, and he suffered and didn’t understand why she wasn’t happy.

Romance between Jennifer and B really touched me despite it being an affair. Their story was unfolded in snippet, by letters, memories, and my heart broke every time something went wrong.

"If only’ is a very dangerous game indeed."

You know I tend to think and rethink “what if”; what if I’ve done it differently. I consciously try not to do it because what good can it bring? I’ve done what I’ve done and now I can’t change it. Life goes on. So Jennifer and B's story was like my personal hell. So many lost opportunities, so many different paths, so many “what ifs”.

I especially was grabbed by relationship between Ellie and John. He is married and she is that woman. I didn’t expect to feel so much. I sympathized with Ellie, I felt frustration, anger. Their relationship were painful, draining. While Ellie could see the toxic effect they had on her life, she couldn’t get out of this trap.

When I was in my early twenties, young and single, and later when I was happy newlywed I had a strong negative opinion about infidelity. I was quick to judge and thought that to have an affair was an awful and unforgivable thing to do. I also pitied and couldn’t understand those women who stayed with their unfaithful husbands. As time passed something in me shifted and I realized that things are not black and white. Relationships are more complex. I don’t try to justify infidelity. I personally think that if two people love each other and are in relationship, they should be faithful, but now I have it in me to at least try to understand the other side. The other revelation I had some time ago, you can’t really predict how you would react if you discovered that your partner was unfaithful. My close friend found herself in such situation. She always was pretty vocal that she would kick her husband out of her life if he cheated but when it happened she decided to give him second chance, she did it for herself, for their relationship, for their children. God, it’s so easier when it’s just two of you… So far they are good together. I’m sorry, I got way off track here, but this book made me think about all of this. There was a scene in the book that was a trigger to this train of thoughts.

The scene where John’s wife confronts Ellie.

I absolutely loved Ellie’s relationship with Rory. He is a sweet guy, very down-to-earth. I felt like he can be my neibour. He is not a muscular superhero with bad behavior, he is kind, caring guy. I don’t think I’ve ever come across such an unflattering description of hero.

"He’s not her type. He’s sarcastic, a bit chippy, probably several years younger than she is. She suspects he earns significantly less than she does, and probably still shares a flat."

Isn’t it wonderful?

and another:

"Her head, her flat, her life, are full of John. There’s no room for this man. Perhaps what she actually feels for him is sisterly, and only mildly confused by the fact that he is not exactly ugly."

At first Ellie didn’t see him as a love interest at all. She just liked to spend time with him and in his presence she could relax, be herself. There was a scene when they went skating:

"When she fell over, he laughed mercilessly. It was liberating to do this with someone whose opinion she cared so little for: if it had been John, she would have fretted that the chill of the ice was making her nose redden."

As they form tentative friendship I couldn’t help myself, but rooted for them and wished them to become more than friends.

There was also twist at the end which I totally didn’t see coming. Speaking about the end, I was pleased how the book ended. It was an open-ending but full of hope.

All in all I it was another great book by Jojo Moyes, and I enjoyed it a lot.

Review: The Girl You Left Behind by Jojo Moyes

Title: The Girl You Left Behind
Author: Jojo Moyes
My rating: 5 of 5 Stars

SUMMARY (from Goodreads)
In The Girl You Left Behind, two young women, separated by a century, are united in their determination to fight for what they love most - whatever the cost.

Whatever happened to the girl you left behind?

France, 1916. Sophie Lefevre must keep her family safe whilst her adored husband Edouard fights at the front. When she is ordered to serve the German officers who descend on her hotel each evening, her home becomes riven by fierce tensions. And from the moment the new Kommandant sets eyes on Sophie’s portrait – painted by Edouard – a dangerous obsession is born, which will lead Sophie to make a dark and terrible decision.

Almost a century later, and Sophie’s portrait hangs in the home of Liv Halston, a wedding gift from her young husband before he died. A chance encounter reveals the painting’s true worth, and its troubled history. A history that is about to resurface and turn Liv’s life upside down all over again...

MY THOUGHTS

"All that really matters is who you love."

I finished this book a while ago. Life went on; I started reading other books, but The Girl You Left Behind doesn’t want to let me go. It lingers and I have flashbacks to some scenes or phrases from the book. It’s so wonderful! It was a long time since a book made such a lasting impression on me.

The Girl You Left Behind is two stories in one. The first story set in France, 1916. Sophie lives in a small town under occupation. Her husband Edouard went off to war and one of very few things that she has of him is his portrait of her. The second story set in England, 2006. It is Liv’s story. Her husband, a talented architect, died four years ago. She continues to grieve, and the only thing that keeps her going on is the portrait of a young girl, which her husband gifted her on their honeymoon. When the heirs claimed that the portrait was stolen during WWI, Liv refuses to let it go without a fight. As confrontation escalates and facts about portrait’s past revealed it began to threaten Liv’s hopes for new love and happy life.

About first 30 % of the book is Sophie’s story and then we abruptly thrown into Liv’s life. I was so shocked and frustrated. I was invested in Sophie’s story, and I wanted to know what happened to her. So it took me a while to connect with Liv. At first I thought that this was all I’ve had of Sophie and I would only see glimpses of her in letters, newspapers, and memoirs; and I was really angry, because Sophie became a real person to me. Fortunately this wasn’t the case here. There were more of Sophie’s POV weaved in Liv’s story. Actually there were more time jumps than that, because Sophie’s parts were interrupted by her memories about her husband. Though it was at times frustrating I think this structure of the book made a perfect sense. It reflects the atmosphere in which people lived during the WWI. Person didn’t know what would happen tomorrow. He could be abruptly torn away from his familiar life and his loved ones, his future unknown.

So, back to Liv’s story. As I’ve said before, at first it was difficult to connect with her. But it’s the kind of story that sneaks up on you. One moment I was annoyed and frustrated because I wanted to know what happened to Sophie, the next I’m consumed by Liv’s grieve and loneliness. The author made such an amazing job here. Liv’s loneliness was such a palpable thing, it broke my heart.

When Liv’s story started I thought that it can’t be as emotional as Sophie’s story, that I wouldn’t be so invested in Liv’s life as I was with Sophie. After all what all our contemporary mundane problems are contrary to the problems of people during WWI? I should’ve known better. Jojo Moyes made me feel, made me cry and I became so immerse in Liv’s story that at some point Sophie’s chapters became interruptions.

And I loved the romance between Liv and Paul. There was something in their relationship that squeezed my heart and wouldn’t let me go. Was it their tenderness and hope or heartbreaking revelation what they are to each other, their longing and broken hearts, their desperation, their love, strength and faith? I don’t know. I just know that I wouldn’t forget this romance for a long time.

Despite my love for Liv, my heart belongs to Sophie. It was like I was with her on every step of her heartbreaking journey. She is such a strong and purposeful heroine. There was one scene that nearly broke me

(the scene where Sophie brought the portrait to the Kommandant)

And another one left me in despair and anger

(when Sophie was brought to the camp)

"Do you know how it feels to resign yourself to your fate? It is almost welcome. There was to be no more pain, no more fear, no more longing. It is the death of hope that comes as the greatest relief."

We don’t really know Edouard. At the beginning of the book he had already gone to the front, so we only see glimpses of him in Sophie’s memories. But Jojo Moyes wrote these short chapters amazing, Edouard became a real man and their romance with Sophie was beautiful. It made me felt her loneliness, longing and desperation even more.

When we hear the word “war” we often picture explosions, injured soldiers and think about their courage and self-sacrifice. But how often do we think about the women they left behind? Women which lived in occupation, which also made sacrifices. This wonderful book brings light to this side of the war.

Sophie and Liv had more in common than just the portrait. Both women kept going on because of their absolute faith in what they were doing. In Sophie’s case she believed that she will be with her husband again no matter what happened, and Liv was willing to risk everything to save the portrait.

"Sometimes life is a series of obstacles, a matter of putting one foot in front of the other. Sometimes… it is simply a matter of blind faith."

The Girl You Left Behind is a heartbreaking story about love and loss and hope. Now I can’t wait to read another book by Jojo Moyes and lost myself in her characters and their life.