Bookish Whispers: June 2017

Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Unmentionable - Review

Author: Therese O'Neil

Publisher: Little, Brown USA

Genre: Nonfiction

Format: Hardback

Pages: 307

Have you ever wished you could live in an earlier, more romantic era?

Ladies, welcome to the 19th century, where there's arsenic in your face cream, a pot of cold pee sits under your bed, and all of your underwear is crotchless. (Why? Shush, dear. A lady doesn't question.)

UNMENTIONABLE is your hilarious, illustrated, scandalously honest (yet never crass) guide to the secrets of Victorian womanhood, giving you detailed advice

Unmnetionable has been on my radar since last year, but for some reason I just now picked it up. I have no good reason for this because my flatmate read it and loved it. It was totally worth the wait though. I ended up putting another book on hold to finish it. Plus, I feel asleep reading it more times then I can remember. I've already recommended it coworkers and friends that read. So what made it so good?

Therese Oneill's voice as the narrator is my favorite part of this book. She's full of sass and sarcasm and I loved it. Her voice had me laughing out loud as I read, which made it hard to read in public. There was also some amazing one liners that I couldn't help to share with friends as I read via Instant Message. No one ever said learning couldn't be fun!

All fun aside though, I felt the book was well researched. Therese touched on topics that appear in many Victorian novels and movies: fashion, food, servants, and social cues. All topics I knew a little about, but not a lot. A few things that had been romanticized, that were in fact horrific. Which also kept me reading, because I got to the point thinking, it couldn't possibly get worse.

I felt like the book flowed well through each section. One chapter leading into the next. The addition of ads from the era, and photos, with the snarky caption were fun. Especially the ads, because it's amazing to think our grand mother's ingested some of those things. Chemicals that today we aren't even allowed to buy or illegal have in our homes.

But I think my favorite part was that the punches weren't held back. Movies, TV, and books show the better side of the Victorian era. They leave out the fact the women weren't consider more than pretty thing to sit that couldn't handle the world around them. Therese Oneill tells doesn't hold back about how bad things could be, but reminds us at the end that it in fact wasn't all bad. While it seems bad for women of this century, the back then didn't know any better.

Except for Mr. Kellogg, the more I learn about the man the more I wish I could travel back in time. Now there's a man I want to punch.

Despite everything I loved about the book there was a couple of things I didn't love so much. For me I felt like the chapters jumped around on the subject. There was a couple of times when I had reread pages to get back on track, and there a few times that it felt like chapters shifted from their subject matter.

All-in-all though I loved the book. I borrowed it from the library, but I'm adding this book to my library. It's definitely one I could see myself picking up again. Unmentionable is one of those books that because there's a lot of information, a second, or third, read could present things I missed the first time around.

Buy, Borrow, or Skip: Buy it! It's a fun book to have around and pass among your friends.

Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Can't Wait Wednesday - The Last Magician

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings to spotlight and talk about the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released as well. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Release Date: July 18, 2017
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Author: Lisa Maxwell
Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy
Pages: 512

In modern day New York, magic is all but extinct. The remaining few who have an affinity for magic—the Mageus—live in the shadows, hiding who they are. Any Mageus who enters Manhattan becomes trapped by the Brink, a dark energy barrier that confines them to the island. Crossing it means losing their power—and often their lives.

Esta is a talented thief, and she's been raised to steal magical artifacts from the sinister Order that created the Brink. With her innate ability to manipulate time, Esta can pilfer from the past, collecting these artifacts before the Order even realizes she’s there. And all of Esta's training has been for one final job: traveling back to 1902 to steal an ancient book containing the secrets of the Order—and the Brink—before the Magician can destroy it and doom the Mageus to a hopeless future.

Why I'm waiting: The cover was the first thing I noticed, it's amazing. Add to that a female theif, magic, and time travel, sounds right up my alley!

Monday, June 26, 2017

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme started by the Broke and the Bookish. Each week they chose a new meme and bloggers pick their Top Ten Books, TV Shows, Movies, etc that fit that theme. This week theme is: Favorite Reads of the First Half of 2017!

Silver Volume 1 by Stephan Frank
Lost Boy by Christina Henry
Unmentionable by Therese O'Neil

Warrent the 13th and the Whispering Woods by Tania del Rio
Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
Howard the Duck Volume 1 by Chip Zdarsky

Chew Volume 1 by John Layman
Anno Dracula 1899 and Other Stories by Kim Newman

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Can't Wait Wednesday - Arrowood

Release Date: July 18, 2017
Publisher: MIRA
Author: Mick Finlay
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 352

London Society takes their problems to Sherlock Holmes. Everyone else goes to Arrowood.

The Afghan War is over and a deal with the Irish appears to have brought an end to sectarian violence, but Britain's position in the world is uncertain and the gap between rich and poor is widening. London is a place where the wealthy party while the underclass are tempted into lives of crime, drugs and prostitution. A serial killer stalks the streets. Politicians are embroiled in financial and sexual scandals. The year is 1895.

Why I'm waiting: I'm a huge Sherlockian, and while this isn't a Sherlock Holmes novel, it seems to be set in his world. So I'll definitely be picking this one up!

Monday, June 19, 2017

Top Ten Tuesday

Ree Varekai Series by Marie Brennan
Stalking Jack the Ripper Series by Kerri Maniscalco
Kingdom on Fire Series by Jessica Cluess

The Evertide Series by Todd Lockwood
Wolf by Wolf Series by Ryan Graudin
Three Dark Crowns Series by Kendare Blake

Shades of Magic Series by V.E. Schwab
The Witchlands Series by Susan Dennard
Flavia de Luce Series by Alan Bradley

The Immortals Series by Tamora Pierce

Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Can't Wait Wednesday - A Talent for Murder

Release Date: July 11th, 2017

Publisher: Atria Books

Author: Andrew Wilson

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 320

Discover the real-life mystery centered on the queen of crime herself: Agatha Christie. In this tantalizing new novel, Christie’s mysterious ten-day disappearance serves as the starting point for a gripping novel, in which Christie herself is pulled into a case of blackmail and murder.

Agatha Christie, in London to visit her literary agent, is boarding a train, preoccupied with the devastating knowledge that her husband is having an affair. She feels a light touch on her back, causing her to lose her balance, then a sense of someone pulling her to safety from the rush of the incoming train. So begins a terrifying sequence of events—for her rescuer is no guardian angel, rather he is a blackmailer of the most insidious, manipulative kind.

Why I'm waiting: Agatha Christie holds a special place in my library, my great grandmother introduced her to me. So I had to add this to my list, there so many theories about the why she went missing.

My Dream Reading Room - Discussion Post

My very first Discussion Post! One of my goals this year was to branch away from weekly memes and reviews. Which meant a Discussions Post. The problem has been I haven't had any idea on what to do or where to start. What better way than to start with my dream reading room/ library. Currently I've made a nest in my room/office that I curl up in with my cat to read when I have a spare afternoon, because it's the part my apartment that gets direct sunlight. But, this is a chance to share the space I'd create if money was no problem.

I knew exactly the room I wanted to create!

I have a love for antiques. In fact when my Great Grandmother downsized and let all of us grand-kids go through what she couldn't put in the new place, I knew exactly what piece I wanted. For years my favorite thing was her old writing desk, and I was never allowed to play with it. Now it is one of my most prized possessions and it's in front of that window which gets all that sunshine when I sit down to write my own letters and work on my own stories.

So why did I tell you this story, because I was looking through the Arhaus website to create this Reading Room, I did it with that desk in mind. The desk with my Great Grandfather's edition of Ivenhoe and other books I found in my Great Grandmother's attic when she moved. I realized I didn't want a Beauty and the Beast library, because I was never a Princess movie girl. What I wanted was something out of Dick Tracy or Batman. Because on top of that desk next to the books is a lamp with a green shield that looks like something you'd find on a PI's desk in the Maltese Falcon. With that in mind I found the perfect pieces!

I imagine a loft above a bar or a restaurant. The writing desk would sit against the wall so I could lean back in my chair and look at the city, the traffic, and the people. Where I could watch the rain, because those rumors are true. It does rain here, a lot!

But how would the rest of the room look?

Lined with bookcases of course! It's not a Reading Room without books to fill it, but they can't just be any bookcases, because I'm a cat lady. Which means the Littlest Monster would be there with me. He gets that name because he gets into everything. So I'd want a bookcase that would be able to handle his rough treatment. Something kind of like this:

A pair of these lined against the back wall that the Little Monster and climb up and down. Where I can put his Hedwig pillow so he can look out that large window and watch the crows and pigeons fly by. Drawers for storage of all sorts of bookish things, and probably snacks. Every Reading Room needs snacks!!

Of course it also needs light because the sun out here doesn't always show itself, and in the winter we rarely see it at all. So I'd need lights and lamps to make sure I don't go blind reading, because I'm old school and don't have an ereader. All my books are physical copies. I love the feel of books, the smell, there's just something about it I can't get past and load my collection onto a Kindle. But, I digress. Lighting! I'd want ceiling lamps as well as desk lamps, and to keep with that Dick Tracy and Batman vibe, here's what I found:

So maybe I went a little Steampunk with those, but really they are awesome! I've always loved the idea of exposed lights that dangle from the ceiling. Ergo, they have made an appearance in the dream Reading Room. This means of course I need side tables for those lamps and a chair to go next to that side table. Also, I'll need a couch, for days I want to curl up with one of the blankets my Grandma made and read. Also maybe a coffee table so the Little Monster can do that creepy staring thing he does when I'm reading and not acknowledging his presence. Furniture that I feel would look something, if not exactly like this:

Now I know what some of you will say. There's no color?! Everything is so dark?! Correct. I've always leaned toward a darker color palate. So even when I spared no expense I didn't feel like straying from that factor. While this room is a dream Reading Room, it's my dream. Not that it'll matter once I settle down with a good book anyway. I'll be lost in whatever world I'm reading about this week. While the Little Monster chases birds he wouldn't know what to do with if he actually caught them. Surrounded by the books that made my childhood a little less lonely and inspired me to want to become an author myself!

A huge thank you to Arhuas.com where I found all of these amazing images and ideas. If you like anything you see, here is a few links to check out: light fixtures, tables, and sofas. They have so many different styles and selection for any dream, or even real, reading room. Even for those of you wanting something outside, they have some pretty amazing outdoor section, too. If only my own patio could have fire pit, that is the downside of third floor living.

But to everyone who stumbles onto this post, tell me about your dream Reading Room. Where would it be? What inspired it? What would it have to have to make it your's? Because my Reading Room wouldn't be mine with the Littlest Monster pushing my book away from my face so I can tell him how handsome he is.