Novel Maven

Summary: Princess Elizabeth has a girlhood crush on Prince Philip of Greece, and is determined to marry him. The story follows both Philip and Elizabeth through the years of their separation because of the war, and leads up to their engagement and the disapproval of Elizabeth's' royal family at her choice of the pauper Prince Philip. The novel ends with their royal wedding. I received an electronic ARC of this title from HarperCollins UK through  Netgalley  in exchange for an honest review. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Read my  Disclosure Policy  for more information. Earlier this year, I picked up a book called The Queen's Secret: A Novel of England's World War II Queen by Karen Harper and I was disappointed in its content and that it centered on Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother instead of Queen Elizabeth II. This is the book I wish I had picked up instead! Flora Harding creates a sweet love story between the Princess Elizabeth and...

Summary: When Leena is given paid time off from work after having a panic attack during a meeting with a client, she decides to leave London life behind and go live in the country with her grandmother. Leena's grandmother Eileen is newly single, and decides to swap places with Leena and trades simple country living for the bustle of London. Each woman finds herself and a bit of romance along the way.   I received an electronic galley copy from the publisher through  Netgalley  in exchange for an honest review. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Read my  Disclosure Policy  for more information. The age differences in this book were refreshing. Typically women's fiction focuses on one age group, but having a young woman interacting with her grandmother's friends and having Eileen interact with young, hip Londoners made the story feel original. Each character had a romance, but they were one part of the story rather than having the whole ...

Summary: Rose is a bookseller and restorer living in a college town in Connecticut. She receives an interesting commission to restore a book from artist William, who has found an old manuscript written by an Italian ancestor. Rose discovers that the text is a treatise on art, but hidden underneath is a more private document written by Giovanni Lomazzo. The reader switches between present-day Rose and Renaissance Italy Gio until the document's mysterious story is revealed. I received an electronic galley copy from the publisher through  Netgalley  in exchange for an honest review. I also received a print galley from a convention with no strings attached. 😉  As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Read my Disclosure Policy for more information. Let’s be honest, I was first drawn to this book because of the gorgeous cover. It definitely stood out to me in a sea of galleys being offered for free at the Public Library Association convention in Nashville. I a...