Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this novel from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

A captivating novel about two sisters fighting for survival in male-dominated Dark Ages Britain that weaves a thrilling spell of magic and myth—from a bestselling author and historian.

In Dark Ages Britain, sisters Isla and Blue live in the shadows of the Ghost City, the abandoned ruins of the once-glorious, mile-wide Roman settlement Londinium on the north bank of the Thames. The native Britons and the new migrants from the East who scratch out a living in small wooden camps in its hinterland fear that the crumbling stone ruins are haunted by vengeful spirits.

But the small island they call home is also a place of exile for Isla, Blue, and their father, a legendary blacksmith accused of using dark magic to make his firetongue swords. The local warlord, Osric, has put the Great Smith under close guard and ruled that he make his magnificent swords only for him so that he can use them to build alliances and extend his kingdom.

For years, the sisters have been running wild, Blue communing with animals and plants and Isla secretly learning her father’s trade, which is forbidden to women. But when their father suddenly dies, they find themselves facing enslavement by Osric and his cruel, power-hungry son Vort. Their only option is to escape to the Ghost City, where they discover an underworld of rebel women living secretly amid the ruins. As Blue and Isla settle into their new life, they find both refuge and community with the women around them. But it is all too fragile. With the ruins collapsing all around them, Blue and Isla realize they can’t elude the men who hunt them forever. If they are to survive, they will need to use all their skill and ingenuity—as well as the magic of their foremothers—to fight back.

Review:

I wasn't sure what to expect when I received Dark Earth, by Rebecca Stott, from NetGalley.  I honestly thought this was going to be a YA fantasy novel.  Instead, this was an historical fiction about two sisters trying to survive in a brutal society where women were either not noticed, or were treated as property.  They had no one to rely on but each other.  

I really liked this book for its portrayal of the two sisters, the feudal society where rumors could kill, and (against all odds) the way women found ways to thrive.  This was a book about survival, but also about claiming one's worth.  Considering the history books have scant accounts of what women's lives were like, the author fleshes out their lives to bring this time period to life.  This was a powerful historical fiction that I really enjoyed.

What I Liked:

Setting/Historical Details:

Although most historical accounts skip over women, the author found ways to bring the time period to life for the reader.  The details of food, clothing, and customs showed how women were always one step away from disaster.  This was the time of the Vikings, where raids were common.  Your village could be a peaceful haven one day, and be razed to the ground the next.  Most inhabitants would be killed.  The "lucky" ones were sold of as slaves.  

There were also rigid roles for men and women.  Isla and Blue's father was a blacksmith who specialized in making magnificent swords.  Women were never allowed to even set foot in the workrooms, as people felt it brought bad luck.  But Isla's father having no sons, secretly allowed his daughter to help him make the swords.  If anyone were to find out, the all would have been immediately outcasts.  This may not seem like a problem, but given the viking raids, there were safety in numbers.

Characters:

Both Isla and Blue have hidden talents.  Isla has learn the skills of her father and can make the special swords that the King and his son covet.  And Blue, has learned how to use herbs for healing.  She also has "The Sight", and can see some of the future.  Both Isla and Blue are smart enough to know that if anyone knew of their skills they might be called witches and killed.  

I loved the relationship between the two sisters.  Although they did support each other, they were not completely honest with each other.  They each had their secrets.  This created tension and mistrust between the two.  Figuring out how they can have an equal relationship, each allowing the other to shine, is what this book was really about.

Story:

The story was revealed in pieces.  There were flashbacks where small details were revealed and had relevance to what was happening.  The mystery of what happened to the girls mother after a Viking raid was a central piece of the story.  But the actual story of survival was riveting.  They constantly had to appear stupid, yet outsmart various men in the story.

I loved that they find other women who are creating a meritocracy, rather than a  patriarchal society.  This was not a story where men swooped in to save the women.  These women saved themselves!  

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  July 19th, 2022

Author:  Rebecca Stott

Publisher:  Random House

Genre:  Historical Fiction

Page Length:  336 Pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  Besides being a compelling account of being a female during the Dark Ages this was an adventure story of survival.  I really enjoyed this book.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

The sleepy little farm that Laurel Early grew up on has awakened. The woods are shifting, the soil is dead under her hands, and her bone pile just stood up and walked away.

After dropping out of college, all she wanted was to resume her life as a tobacco hand and taxidermist and try not to think about the boy she can’t help but love. Instead, a devil from her past has returned to court her, as he did her late mother years earlier. Now, Laurel must unravel her mother’s terrifying legacy and tap into her own innate magic before her future and the fate of everyone she loves is doomed. 

Review:

Wake The Bones, by Elizabeth Kilcoyne is the perfect book for a late summer, or autumn read.  It has a moody atmosphere, young characters at a crossroads, and creepy supernatural elements.  I loved the small town element, and young people just out of high school trying to find their way.  The title refers to Laurel's ability to sense the final moments of an animal from touching their bones.  But the title seems to go deeper than that.  I took it to mean finding your place in the legacy of your family and community.  Laurel and her friends are all in that moment when you decide where you want to (or need to) go with your life.  For Laurel, it means dealing with the death of her mother, and her (possibly being a witch).  For Isaac, it means fleeing a dangerous home situation.  And for brothers Ricky and Garrett (who love Laurel and Isaac, respectfully), it means deciding what your willing to do for love.

This was a beautiful book with supernatural elements, and a "big bad" coming for the group.  This could represent many things, and I loved that one could interpret this in a variety of ways.  If you love horror and YA, you will really enjoy this book.

What I Liked:

Moody Atmosphere:

This small farming community in Ohio is one I have never experienced in real life.  The people, young and old, work hard.  They are up at dawn and doing manual labor like fixing fences, and picking weeds.  It's backbreaking work, but Laurel and her friends are in it together, so they still manage to have a few laughs.

But, there is an underlying current of doom.  The land is not as fertile as it once was.  And Laurel has an unusual hobby.  She is a taxidermist.  She scours the land for the remains of animals who have died and brings them to life as still life sculptures.  It's her way of connecting to the land.

Lauren also lost her mother when she was a small child.  Did her mother kill herself?  Or did she die trying to protect Laurel from an unspeakable Evil?  Will the bones reveal the secrets of the land?  Is her mother a ghost?  Who, or what is the Evil thing that may be trying to kill Laurel?

via GIPHY

Diversity of Paths:

I liked that even though the main character, Laurel, drops out of college, her life is not over.  For many people, college is just not for them.  There was some sadness that she has to start over to find the right path.  But Laurel always knows that her farm is where she wants to be.  There is no real struggle to leave, which I found to be refreshing.  One can make a life, a good life, anywhere.  And some people feel a strong connection to where they grew up.  So many times in YA, the characters can't wait to leave their small town.  And some of these characters do feel that way (with good reason). But I really liked that the author presented a counterpoint.

Characters:

Laurel is still trying to understand her mother's death.  This legacy comes with a heavy burden.  her uncle has raised her, and she feels a deep obligation to help out at the farm.  She also knows that her uncle is grieving too.  So she feels like she can't talk to him honestly about her mom.  This is hard for Laurel.  She really has no one she can really talk to about all of this.  

Laurel's friends will break your heart.  She has three male friends who are also trying to figure out their life paths.  Brothers Garret and Ricky are hometown boys all the way.  They like where they live and have no desire to leave.  But Garret is secretly in love with Laurel's other friend, Isaac. Garret and Isaac both want to be together, but how can they do that in a homophobic town?  Isaac is sick of living in the shadows, so he desperately wants to leave to a larger city.  Also, as his father is an abusive alcoholic, Isaac really needs to leave if he wants to keep himself safe.  These are Laurel's "ride or die" friends.  They believe Laurel when she tell them something evil is on the way.  Even with all their tensions, they are always there for each other.

Story:

This story is one of growing into an adult, but also of dealing with the baggage of one's family, all with the backdrop of a supernatural suspense thriller.  The group keeps finding grizzly dead animals around the farm.  Is someone (or something) trying to mess with Laurel?  Was her mother an actual witch?  Could Laurel be, as well?  There is evil all around, but also there is the earth, the natural healer.  I loved that Laurel and her friends are so in tune with the land that they can sense something bad is coming.  When it does arrive, it takes all of them to drive it away.  There will be a cost, but not one I saw coming.

Trigger Warning for domestic violence & suicide

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  July 12th, 2022

Author: Elizabeth Kilcoyne

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Genre: YA Contemporary Horror

Page Length: 320 Pages

Source: NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation: This was a moody, scary read.  I loved it.  If you enjoy horror, you will love this book.

Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

“You are the next step in human evolution.”

At first, Logan Ramsay isn’t sure if anything’s different. He just feels a little . . . sharper. Better able to concentrate. Better at multitasking. Reading a bit faster, memorizing better, needing less sleep.

But before long, he can’t deny it: Something’s happening to his brain. To his body. He’s starting to see the world, and those around him—even those he loves most—in whole new ways.

The truth is, Logan’s genome has been hacked. And there’s a reason he’s been targeted for this upgrade. A reason that goes back decades to the darkest part of his past, and a horrific family legacy.

Worse still, what’s happening to him is just the first step in a much larger plan, one that will inflict the same changes on humanity at large—at a terrifying cost.

Because of his new abilities, Logan’s the one person in the world capable of stopping what’s been set in motion. But to have a chance at winning this war, he’ll have to become something other than himself. Maybe even something other than human.

And even as he’s fighting, he can’t help wondering: what if humanity’s only hope for a future really does lie in engineering our own evolution?

Intimate in scale yet epic in scope, Upgrade is an intricately plotted, lightning-fast tale that charts one man’s thrilling transformation, even as it asks us to ponder the limits of our humanity—and our boundless potential.

Review:

Upgrade, by Blake Crouch, was a fun, fast-past thriller.  In a world where it's become easy to alter your DNA, doing so is illegal, and for good reason.  Logan's own mother was the architect of a scheme to alter DNA to help increase food production, but it had world-wide disastrous results.  Now, to alleviate his guilt, he has become part of a special law-enforcement unit to catch people changing DNA.  This could be done for profit (there's a market for genetically enhanced animals), or for terrorism.  Either way, it's almost impossible to put that genie back in the box. 

How do you get past the baggage of your family?  And what are you willing to give up in order to save the world?  I really enjoyed this book, and could easily see this as a highly entertaining movie.  If you enjoy thrillers and speculative fiction, you are in for a treat.

What I Liked:

Set-Up:

Logan lives in a world where scientists (specifically, his own mother) have tried, and failed, to use DNA splicing to fiddle with Nature.  Changing DNA has become easy, and many people would love to use the technology to do anything from create enormous alligators, to obtain super human abilities.  I loved all the science, gadgets, and back-channel government organizations.  This is a world where one should be paranoid!

Characters: 

Logan has tremendous guilt over his part in starting a global disaster.  He blindly followed his charismatic mother, a scientific genius, as she tried to play god.  Now, after doing prison time for the incident, he is doing what he can to mitigate the damage he has done.  But it will never be enough. 

Logan is the ultimate people-pleaser.  First, he worships his brilliant mother, seeing (too late) that she is an egomaniac.  He also can't match his sister, who is a badass military officer.  He is constantly trying to be someone he isn't.  He even does this to his wife and child.  The guilt is killing him.  I loved that Logan didn't have all the answers.  He is the sidekick who tries, and fails to become the hero.  But, in doing so, he has the one thing his mother and sister don't, a moral compass.  

Story:

There's a lot of twists and turns in this story, which I loved.  You often don't know who the good guys are?  And I don't think the "good guys" really understand if they are doing anything wrong.  It's that old adage of the ends justify the means.  Which never really absolve one of accountability.  If you have to use that excuse, you've already lost the argument.  

This was  a quick and absorbing read, and would make a perfect summer vacation escape. 

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  July 12th, 2022

Author:  Blake Crouch

Publisher:  Ballantine Books

Genre:  Speculative Fiction

Page Length:  352 Pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  This was a really fun thriller filled with science, genetics, and family ghosts.  If your in the mood for some escapism, you will love this book.

Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

On a bitter cold day, in the December of his Junior Year at Harvard, Sam Masur exits a subway car and sees, amid the hordes of people waiting on the platform, Sadie Green. He calls her name. For a moment, she pretends she hasn't heard him, but then, she turns, and a game begins: a legendary collaboration that will launch them to stardom. They borrow money, beg favors, and, before even graduating college, they have created their first blockbuster, Ichigo a game where players can escape the confines of a body and the betrayals of a heart, and where death means nothing more than a chance to restart and play again. This is the story of the perfect worlds Sam and Sadie build, the imperfect world they live in, and of everything that comes after success: Money. Fame. Duplicity. Tragedy.

Spanning over thirty years, from Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Venice Beach, California, and lands in between and far beyond, Gabrielle Zevin's Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is a dazzling and intricately imagined novel that examines the multifarious nature of identity, games as artform, technology and the human experience, disability, failure, the redemptive possibilities in play, and above all, our need to connect: to be loved and to love. Yes, it is a love story, but it is not one you have read before.

Review:

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin, follows the highs and lows of a deep friendship.  Over decades, Sam and Sadie connect and disconnect.  First as children, and then back and forth as adults.  I loved that this story touched on so many themes, from love and friendships, to becoming adults, to what it means to be a woman in the gaming industry.  It all fits elegantly together to form a tapestry of an unforgettable story.  

What I Liked:

Story Structure:

The story is structured as interviews that Sam and Sophie give to media outlets, and as flashbacks.  I loved the style.  It gave the reader clues to future events in the story, putting together different puzzle pieces.  When the pieces fell into place, it was extremely satisfying.

Characters:

Sam and Sadie are very much alike.  Both are genius-level intelligent, and awkward with others.  When they find each other as children, they feel an immediate connection.  But one of the problems that each of them has is that they often read social signals incorrectly.  This often creates friction between them, and leads to them "breaking up" for years on end.  They have a pattern of connecting and then having terrible misunderstandings that leaves both of them exhausted with each other.  Deep down, each of them know they bring out the best, and worst, in each other.  

I also enjoyed many other characters in this book, especially Sam's grandparents, who raised him, and Sam's roommate, Marx.  At first, Marx seems insignificant to the story.  He is Sam's long-suffering roommate and protector.  But Marx becomes an important bridge between Sam and Sadie, as well as their business partner.  I loved how Marx sort of snuck up on the reader and became a pivotal character for both Sam and Sadie.

Themes:

Friendship is the major theme of the book.  Do you have a friend that you haven't talked to in years, but then you call them and it like no time has passed?  It's a comforting feeling, but also one that involves loss.  Why did you lose touch with them in the first place?  What deeper friendship could you have had if you kept them closer?  Sam and Sadie have these moments of deep closeness, and even deeper betrayal.  

I dearly loved the author exploring what it means to be a woman in a field that is dominated by men.  The gaming industry is notorious for treating women poorly.  It has been deeply misogynistic and hostile towards women, discounting their contributions and questioning how they even became part of the gaming world.  Sadie is constantly having to consider how it will look if she make certain decisions.  Will using her former professor's game engine seem like she is incapable of doing great work?  Will it look like a man helped her out?  Will people take her seriously?  Sam never has to face such scrutiny. 

What I Was Mixed About:

Perhaps it was intentional, but Sadie deals with a lot of internal guilt, while the men in the story never do.  Both Sadie and Sam do some pretty awful things, yet Sadie seems to be the only one who feels bad about them.  Her guilt also leads her into destructive behavior that was had to read about.  But, Sam is also no angel.  You never see him even realizing he has something to be sorry about.  Okay, I suppose he does have some guilty feelings, but they are buried DEEP inside. 

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  July 5th, 2022

Author:  Gabrielle Zevin

Publisher:  Viking Press

Genre:  Contemporary Fiction

Page Length:  416 Pages

Source: NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  This is a story about the video game industry, but also of a friendship that ebbs and flows over decades.  I was entertained, and really moved by this book.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

England, 1882. In Victorian London, two children with mysterious powers are hunted by a figure of darkness —a man made of smoke.

Sixteen-year-old Charlie Ovid, despite a lifetime of brutality, doesn't have a scar on him. His body heals itself, whether he wants it to or not. Marlowe, a foundling from a railway freight car, shines with a strange bluish light. He can melt or mend flesh. When two grizzled detectives are recruited to escort them north to safety, they are forced to confront the nature of difference, and belonging, and the shadowy edges of the monstrous.

What follows is a journey from the gaslit streets of London, to an eerie estate outside Edinburgh, where other children with gifts—the Talents—have been gathered. Here, the world of the dead and the world of the living threaten to collide. And as secrets within the Institute unfurl, Marlowe, Charlie and the rest of the Talents will discover the truth about their abilities, and the nature of the force that is stalking them: that the worst monsters sometimes come bearing the sweetest gifts.

With lush prose, mesmerizing world-building, and a gripping plot, Ordinary Monsters presents a catastophic vision of the Victorian world—and of the gifted, broken children who must save it.

Review:

I didn't know what to expect when I started reading Ordinary Monsters, by J.M. Miro, but I liked the blurb and was lucky enough to receive an advance copy from NetGalley.  This book was a cross between Miss Peregrin's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Rigs, and a Stephen King novel: Fantasy with a hefty helping of Horror.  The story follows several children who have supernatural "Talents" as they being sought by two groups of people.  Those who want to protect them, and those who want to use them for evil.  But who will reach them first?  The children in the story are pawns in a much larger game of chess.  Both sets of adults looking for them want to use them in some fashion or another.  They can sense this, and it's difficult to know who the children can trust. 

I really liked all the characters in this story, both adults and children.  All the characters are fully realized and one can really sympathize with nearly all of them.  Charlie, a African-American teen has been brutalized all his life.  He has no reason to trust anyone.  But he quickly sees a kindred spirit in Marlowe.  Although Marlow is much younger than Charlie, he has also seen many hard times.  He no sooner finds a stable home than he is ripped away from it.  Both have powers they don't understand. 

The adults in the story, especially the two detectives, Coulton and Alice, were also wonderful characters.  Each had a compelling backstory that added motivation to what they were doing.  I loved how protective they became as they got to know the children.  Even the villain, who of course never considered himself to be evil, had a long and interesting history.

The world-building is also top-notch.  The world is mostly set in Victorian London.  It's grimy, smoggy, and filled with desperate people.  Everyone is one step away from destitution.  Get hurt on the job?  You become homeless.  Kids who are orphaned must fend for themselves.  But it's the shadow world that some of the characters must enter that mirrors London that is even more terrible.  It's filled with dread, and horrible creatures.

My only complaint about this book is that it is SUPER LONG!  At nearly 700 pages, this book is an epic.  And it's part of a series!  If you are in the mood for a long, but compelling, read, this book ticks all the boxes.  Fun characters, creepy bad guys, magical school, vast conspiracies and very gothic horror await.  This book will keep you enthralled (and probably also give you nightmares).

Trigger Warning for Child Abuse

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  June 7th, 2022

Author:  J.M. Miro

Publisher:  Flatiron Books

Genre:  Historical Horror/Fantasy

Page Length:  672 Pages

Source: NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  If you like dark fantasy mixed with horror, this book is for you. The world-building and characters will leave a definite impression.  This is the beginning of a series that will be a must read for me.

Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Three weddings. Three funerals. Alessa’s gift from the gods is supposed to magnify a partner’s magic, not kill every suitor she touches.

Now, with only weeks left until a hungry swarm of demons devours everything on her island home, Alessa is running out of time to find a partner and stop the invasion. When a powerful priest convinces the faithful that killing Alessa is the island’s only hope, her own soldiers try to assassinate her.

Desperate to survive, Alessa hires Dante, a cynical outcast marked as a killer, to become her personal bodyguard. But as rebellion explodes outside the gates, Dante’s dark secrets may be the biggest betrayal. He holds the key to her survival and her heart, but is he the one person who can help her master her gift or destroy her once and for all?

Emily Thiede's exciting fantasy debut, This Vicious Grace, will keep readers turning the pages until the devastating conclusion and leave them primed for more! 

Review:

When I first read the description of This Vicious Grace, by Emily Thiede, I thought,"Oh no, not another Chosen One saga".  But the beauty of this YA Fantasy novel is that there is so much more going on in it.  For one thing, the main character is one of several Chosen Ones.  Alessa may be the chosen savior of her island, but she is starting to think a mistake has been made.  She is desperately lonely, keeps killing the people she gets partnered with, and others are actively trying to assassinate her.  But, even with a lethal touch, she does finds ways to connect with others.

This story had wonderful world-building with a rich society (somewhat modeled after Italian culture), scary monsters, and an impending apocalypse.  There is also a fun, romance that brings two traumatizes characters together.  With themes of friendship and teamwork, this was an exciting beginning to a new YA fantasy series.  

What I liked:

World-Building:

This story is set in a world where the apocalypse happens on a regular basis.  Every five years, demons descend on the world, and it's up to the Finestra and her partner, the Fonte to destroy them.  Each Island has their own Finestra (basically, there are several "chosen " ones at the same time).  Once a Finestra saves her Island, she can retire, and perhaps train another Finestra some time in the future.  It seems pretty simple.  But, there are all kinds of rules and rituals that Alessa must follow in order to become the savior.

I loved all of the rituals, social customs, and class structures that the author created to make this world come to life.  She also created creatures that are the stuff of nightmares to really give the heroine a strong incentive to keep going.  

Characters:

Alessa is a strong, yet vulnerable heroine.  She has been deliberately isolated from her family in order to hone her gifts.  Of course, they also do this to protect everyone, as one touch from the Finestra can kill.  Since she has accidentally killed her three previous Fontes, she is petrified of failing her country.  

But, nevertheless, Alessa persists.  With people losing faith in her (and others trying to kill her), she could easily give up, but she does not.  She knows that, somehow, she needs to find a new way to become the savior she is meant to be.

Dante is similar to Alessa.  He is an outcast who also has the gift of strength. But with many childhood traumas, he doesn't think he is worth much.  Alessa hires him as her bodyguard, and he begins to see that he is more than what others tell him he is.  I found his story full of hope as he has to reconcile his past with his present.  

Alessa and Dante have a wonderful chemistry, and I loved how they helped each other to reach their full potential.

Friendships & Teamwork:

Much like the messages of friendship that are found in Harry Potter, and Buffy The Vampire Slayer, The Vicious Grace stresses the power of connecting with people and nurturing friendships in order to grow stronger.  I can't say too much more without spoilers, but I love that message.  

Trigger Warning for child abuse.

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  June 28th, 2022

Author:  Emily Thiede

Publisher:  Wednesday Books

Genre:  YA Fantasy

Page Length:  448 Pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format: E-Book

Recommendation:  With wonderful world-building and themes of teamwork and friendship, this is a promising start to this series.  If you enjoy fantasy, you will love this book.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

The secret is hidden within a collection of Dior dresses...

London, 2017. There's no one Lucille adores more than her grandmother. So when her beloved Granny Sylvie asks for Lucille's assistance with a small matter, she's happy to help. The next thing she knows, Lucille is on a train to Paris, tasked with retrieving a priceless Dior dress. But not everything is as it seems, and what Lucille finds in a small Parisian apartment will have her scouring the city for answers to a question that could change her entire life.

Paris, 1952. Postwar France is full of glamour and privilege, and Alice Ainsley is in the middle of it all. As the wife to the British ambassador to France, Alice's job is to see and be seen--even if that wasn't quite what she signed up for. Her husband showers her with jewels, banquets, and couture Dior dresses, but his affection has become distressingly elusive. As the strain on her marriage grows, Alice's only comfort is her bond with her trusted lady's maid, Marianne. But when a new face appears in her drawing room, Alice finds herself yearning to follow her heart...no matter the consequences.

The City of Light comes alive in this lush, evocative tale that explores the ties that bind us together, the truths we hold that make us who we are, and the true meaning of what makes someone family.

Review:

Historical fiction is my favorite genre.  I love all the details of other eras, particularly of the clothes.  That's why I was so keen to read The Last Dress From Paris, by Jade Beer.  The story follows the wife of a British ambassador in Paris in the early 1950's.  I loved all the descriptions of that world, with the details of how each diplomatic event was planned, and the high fashion that needed to accompany it.  The story of the crumbling marriage of the ambassador and his wife, and the young man who gets in the middle of it was not very compelling.  Considering the young wife's life leading to that point it didn't make a lot of sense for her to risk everything.  With an ending that was surprisingly realistic, and not romantic in the least, I was not satisfied with the book.  This would make for a solid library read, but I wouldn't recommend buying it.

What I Liked: 

Setting/Details:

I'll never know what it's like to live in high society, or be a young bride in the 1950's, but the author's depiction of these things puts me in the center of it.  Living in Paris as the wife of an ambassador was full of social obligations to plan beautiful parties and receptions, and dress in the latest fashion.  I was particularly struck by how Alice had to weigh all her choices, right down to her choice in flowers, against any political implications.  She couldn't be seen as only favoring British things, or she would be insulting her French hosts.  But she also needed to make sure British influences were represented, as she and her husband were an extension of England.  It was a tightrope of balancing two opposing forces.

Fashion:

Alice reveled in her role as an ambassador's wife, and really loved that she had access to couture apparel by designers such as Dior.  As her husband was an ambassador, no expense was spared to dress Alice in the most exquisite gowns.  I loved the descriptions of the clothes, and how they were made.  These works of art were made to actually be worn, so the construction of each piece had many features to aid in the comfort of the woman who wore it.  We also get a glimpse behind the scene as Alice, and later Lucille, learn about the mannequins (the women who modeled the clothing).  These were hard working women who not only modeled the clothes in the showroom, they also had to endure countless hours standing stock-still as the designer draped various fabrics on them to find the perfect materials for each design.

Story:

I really enjoyed the more modern story of Lucille as she tries to solve the mystery of the eight dresses that her grandmother owned.  She travels to Paris, thinking that she only is there to retrieve one dress, but then finds that there are actually eight dresses, two of which are missing.  How could Lucille's grandmother own any Dior dresses, let alone eight?  And why can't the grandmother just tell her the story?  While I felt that these were legitimate questions, I loved the scavenger hunt this put the character on.  It was fun to unravel the mystery.  And I loved the people she met along the way.

What I Was Mixed About:

Story:

While I enjoyed Lucille's story, I was less impressed with Alice's tale.  And that's a problem, as it is the basis for Lucille looking for the dresses in the first place.  I am not going to go into too much detail, as I hate spoilers.  But, much of the story didn't make sense to me.  Given that Alice was much younger than her husband (she was 25, while he was in his 40's), I can understand that she was restless.  But she seems totally stunned that her husband is all business when he becomes ambassador.  I felt that the author gave him a personality change in order to justify that Alice was unhappy.  But she was certainly happy to wear Dior every chance she got!  The risks Alice took to find happiness seemed reckless.  I don't think a woman in such a high profile social position would have jeopardized her entire world for a budding romance.

Ending:

Again, I do not want to spoil anything.  But I thought the ending was really strange.  It was surprisingly realistic, given how romantic the novel wanted to be.  I really wanted the ending to be a lot more hopeful.  What I did enjoy was the resolution of Lucilles story, and that the mystery of the dresses was solved.  

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Release Date: June 16th, 2022

Author:  Jade Beer

Publisher:  Berkley Books

Genre:  Historical Fiction

Page Length:  384 pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format: E-Book

Recommendation:  If you love the world of Paris fashion, you may be able to get past some of the flaws in the story.  This would be a library read for me.