Valentines Day; a Day of pestilence, calamity and vexation

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

Ahhhh…
February 14.
A time when every store display is cinnamon heart red and a Pepto Bismol pink.
Jittery line-ups at flower shops and jewellery stores.
A time when school children get their parents to buy kits of cards or crates of craft paper, enough for ALL the kids in the class. When I was little, we’d spend an art class making “mailboxes” for our Valentines. Each child would bring to school an empty cereal or tissue box to decorate with paper, stickers, glitter, and bows. I once made mine with little “barn” doors. At the end of the day, we’d all traipse up and down the aisles of desks, playing mailman with our bundle of cards and dropping them in the appropriate boxes.
The number of Valentines you received was VERY important. It didn’t matter who they were from, just as long as you had more than the snotty pretty girl who sat at the front of the class in her new red velvet dress and black patent leather shoes.
Looking back, I can’t ever remember LOVING Valentine’s Day. Sure, I’ve received roses and cards and chocolate and jewellery. Once, a beau of mine even presented me with seat covers for my truck (yeah… no points, not even for originality, for that one.) All these gifts seemed ‘romantic’ at the time, but looking back, they were just candy floss, sugary sweet, and dissolved just as quickly.
Which brings me to the legend of St. Valentine. There are a couple of stories about the guy. My favourite is the one where he married Christian couples in secret in defiance of Emperor Claudius II. Valentine was a shit-disturber! He was a fellow who decided to go against the edict of the emperor (a tyrant, from what I’ve read). He recognized an injustice that stood in the way of goodness and decided to do something about it.
Heroic, not self-serving.
St. Valentine, the patron Saint of love. But, ironically, he is also the patron saint of the plague. Dictionary.com’s definitions of plague are:

  1. An epidemic disease that causes high mortality; pestilence.
  2. An infectious, epidemic disease caused by a bacterium, Yersinia pestis, characterized by fever, chills, and prostration.
  3. Any widespread affliction, calamity
  4. Any cause of trouble, annoyance, or vexation.
    Now thiiiiiink about this. Think honestly. Think carefully about your history with romantic love. Kinda fits some portions of these definitions, doesn’t it? Especially in high school. Or University. Or well into adulthood for some of us. Funnily enough, I was browsing through some ancient artefacts stored in my trunk. Journals from college and university are filled with all sorts of insecure angst about a boyfriend, and I was reminded that many a time I flung myself prostrate on my bed wishing and wanting and wondering about a certain boy. AND many a time calamity, trouble, annoyance and most certainly vexation followed.
    Since then, however, I haven’t been much of a romantic. I don’t think I’ve become hardened or stoic; I just think I’ve become a bit more introspective and sensible. (Well, I should hope so at my age!)
    Now, I think the most romantic notion is…
    consistency over time.
    Not words.
    Not purchases.
    Not public proclamations on social networking sites.
    But actions and decisiveness and dependability…
    …oh, and undying devotion and adoration doesn’t hurt either! : )

The Small Museum

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

by Jody Cooksley

What a wonderfully creepy novel about gruesome family secrets hidden behind the facade of a “respectable” family. Madeline Brewster is to be married off to a stranger in an attempt to help her family recover from a scandal. Her husband is none other than the most eligible bachelor in the county, Lucius Everley, a wealthy doctor in need of a young, compliant wife. After the nuptials and Madeline is moved to the Everley estate, she is pretty much abandoned by her husband. Not only is she friendless and alone, but the manor staff treats her like something dragged in from the bottom of a shoe. Sure, her sister-in-law Grace pops in at times, but when she does, Maddie can’t help but feel Grace is taking every opportunity to be the household’s mistress. Soon, in her isolation, Maddie begins to hear strange noises at night, most disturbingly a baby crying. Also, random objects start to appear in her bedroom, objects that once belonged to Lucius’s mother. Madeline begins to suspect something terrible is happening under the roof of her new home; either that or she is going mad.

Well written and highly suspenseful. Cooksley is very successful in slowly building suspense, especially through the atmosphere and the trail of clues she leaves along the way to the climax of the novel.
 
Trigger warning: Infant death

Thank you to Netgalley and Allison & Busby for the free copy.

Sweet Fury

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by Sarah Bischoff

I REALLY enjoyed this book. It was the soap-operatic suspenseful novel I needed to get me out of a minor reading slump. Told from various points of view, the reader soon realizes they cannot trust any narrator.

Lila Crayne is beautiful and brilliant. She is THE most sought-after actress of the moment. She has everything she could have ever wished for: beauty, fame, a handsome famous actor as a fiance and now the role of a lifetime. Lila and her husband are producing a feminist version of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “Tender is the Night” (a rendition I would love to read in real life). For Lila to fully envelope her character, she seeks therapy under the care of Johna Gabriel, who coincidentally has an infatuation with F. Scott Fitzgerald. The story is told in the third person narrative with chapters in first person under the guise of Jonah’s private patient notes on Lila and Lila’s journal. Soon, forbidden attractions occur, secrets are revealed, and half-truths are believed, culminating in a shocking act of violence. 

I enjoyed this novel’s pace, plot, and finding very few characters with redeeming characteristics. Now, I want to go out and read Fitzgerald’s Tender is the Night.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the free copy

A Sorceress Coes To Call

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by T Kingfisher

I immediately knew I would love this book because Kingfisher is a tried and true author. A Sorceress Comes to Call is a take on the fairytale The Goose Girl. So, If you’re a fan of Kingfisher and fairytale retelling, this book is perfect for you. 

14-year-old Corderlia’s mother, Evangeline, takes cohesive control to a new level. You see, Evangeline is secretly a sorceress whose “gift”, if you could call it that, is to place an “obedience” spell on anyone she chooses. This spell causes a person to do Evangeline’s bidding while being conscious that what they are saying and how they are acting is not of their doing…like being a marionette on a string. When Evangeline’s “benefactor” cuts off all monetary support, she sets off to town to find a wealthy suitor who will support the life she desires. 

Meanwhile, a woman by the name of Hester wakes up one morning with a sense of dread. She knows some ill fate is about to settle on her house, and sure enough, she is right when “doom” arrives in the form of a beautiful woman bent on seducing Hester’s brother Samuel. Even though Hester is focused on figuring out Evangeline’s motives, she is empathetic towards Cordelia, and it soon becomes evident that Cordelia is terrified of her mother, fueling Hester’s premonition. 

I REALLY enjoyed this book. It’s an entertaining fantasy with just the right amount of suspense and violence. I especially liked Hester’s character; her practicality, humour, and sense of sarcasm made her my favourite.

Thank you to Tor Publishing and Netgalley for the copy.

The Lost Apprentice

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

by Tara O’Toole

This novel was just the right thing to get me out of my reading rut. The worst thing possible has happened to Fiadh Whelan: her beloved cousin Muriel has gone missing and is presumed dead, and Faidh suspects that Murial’s coworkers are the only people who know the truth behind her cousin’s disappearance. To get close to these suspects, Faidh had to infiltrate the law firm where her cousin was working. Luckily, Faidh herself was finishing law school and was about to be assigned to a firm that would mentor her in her final term…the same firm her cousin was assigned Heron Early LLP.
There is something sinister happening at Heron Early; law apprentices are being kidnapped and forced to engage in death-defying tasks, all to become part of a secret society of lawyers who dabble in magic and psychological coercion. Will Faidh muster the courage and skill to pass these tasks? She must succeed in these tasks and get to the truth to find closure in Murial’s disappearance.
I love novels set in Ireland, and O’Toole does a lovely job of developing a wonderfully detailed setting and subsequent atmosphere that successfully immerses the reader. This novel is filled with suspense, humour and a dash of romance. It’s a perfect read to help get you out of a reading slump. Although a bit predictable, it was engaging enough to keep me reading, and I finished it in a day. I will definitely be on the lookout for more novels written by the author.

Thank you to Netgalley for the free copy.

For She is Wrath

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

by Emily Varga

Full disclosure: I both read and listened to this novel. The audiobook’s narrator is AMAZING, making it worth downloading.
I really liked this book. But then again, I always like books with strong female protagonists, especially ones that can be viewed as resilient, courageous heroines. For She is Wrath is a wonderful retelling of the Count of Monte Cristo, but this time as a Pakistani romantic fantasy. Loving the classic, I couldn’t help but be enamoured of this tale.
As with the Count of Monte Cristo, our tale begins with a daring prison break. Fast-paced and immediately engaging, we follow Dania, a strong-willed and determined young woman, on her bloody and daring journey from prison to the man who betrayed her…the man she loved.
This plot-driven novel is what young adults most often gravitate to first. It reads like a movie and would be an excellent addition to a classroom library and an engaging read-aloud.

Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for the free copy.

My Darling Dreadful Thing

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by Johanna Van Veen

What a wonderfully gothic tragic love story! I may have found a new favourite author to add to my list. Johanna Van Veen is a master at creating atmosphere. Creepy, sad and at times ominous. Our protagonist, Roos, has had a tragic life. Roos has been made to participate in her abusive mother’s seances since she was a child and showed a connection to the spirit world. She would have likely continued this life if it hadn’t been for a beautiful young widow, Agnes, who participated in a seance one evening. Agnes and Roos quickly find a connection to each other because they share one extraordinary thing in common…they both possess spirit companions. Agnes invites Roos to come and live with her in the decrepit, haunting estate left to her by her husband. Shortly after her arrival,  Roos realized there is more to the estate than first meets the eye. Her spirit companion can feel it too, and soon, strange noises and smells make Roos curious to find what or who else lurks in the hallways of her new home. What she finds is more than disturbing to both her and us, the reader.

The Puzzle Box

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

by Danielle Trussoni

The first Trussoni book I read was Angelology…if you haven’t read it, you should. Since then, Trussoni has written a number of books, one of which was The Puzzle Master, where our protagonist is Mike Brink, a fascinating character with ‘acquired savant syndrome. You see since Mike suffered a traumatic brain injury whilst playing football, he’s been able to create and solve intricate puzzles. He sees and, at times, feels patterns and solutions to the most complex and compelling puzzles. In the novel The Puzzle Box, Mike is challenged by Japan’s Imperial Family to open the infamous Dragon Box. But solving this puzzle is more than problematic. It’s deadly. Scores of individuals have died attempting. 

This novel is great fun. I find the character of Mike Brink fascinating; he is brilliant, socially awkward, and silently lonely, and it is hard for someone to understand him and his gift. The premise and plot of this book are highly engaging, and you will have read it in its entirety in a day.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for the free copy.

Swan

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

By Sisdura Ludwig

What drew me first to this book was its cover. What a beautiful, whimsical piece of folk art. What drew me second was the fact that it is a novel in verse. I absolutely adore a novel in verse, especially for middle and high school students.
Swan is a poignant true story about a 12-year-old girl named Anna. Born in 1858 in Millbrook, Colchester County, Nova Scotia, Anna was different from other girls; in fact, Anna was different from EVERYONE. You see, Anna is significant, not just big, but giant. At twelve, she is 6 feet 10 inches tall and is considered a wonder by everyone from the neighbour to the shoe pedlar. 
But Anna doesn’t want to be a wonder. She wants to be a regular girl with pretty shoes. 
As she ages, Anna discovers a way to use her peculiar size to help her family and figures. If everyone is going to look and stare at her anyway, she might as well make money to support her family, so she joins the circus as a “curiosity’.
Ludwig is a beautiful writer. Her word choice and lyricism are charming and sincere. Swan will serve as an invaluable mentor text in junior and senior high, showcasing the power of language and storytelling. Some examples of her beautiful writing are;
“I don’t know why 
God made the ground
So far from my head.”
“If God created a perfect world 
In only seven days
Why don’t I fit anywhere?”
What a fantastic discussion you could have around these two quotes alone!

Thank you to Netgalley and Nimbus Publishing for the free copy.

The Trouble with Hereos

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

by Kate Messner

The Trouble with Heroes is a book in verse, one of my favourite formats, especially for middle school fiction. This novel is about grief, anger, and self-discovery. Written in first person, Finn Connelly is still grieving the COVID death of his father. His grief is manifesting in ways that are detrimental to Finn’s growth and well-being, and he is, well, he has resorted to skipping school, failing his courses, and vandalizing the local cemetery. To make amends for this crime, Finn is assigned make-up assignments, particularly in Language Arts and Phys Ed. To do so, Finn must complete a poetry project centred around the theme “what makes a hero and put in 14 hours of “moderate to strenuous” activity.

Finn must hike all “forty-six Adirondack High Peaks to atone for his crime AND make up the course material and requirements. 

This novel is filled with the most engaging verse, a combination of humour and beautifully emotional lyricism. It also includes the formats of newspaper articles, instructions written in prose, photographs, recipes, and letters, indeed, one of the best examples of a hybrid text.

Finn’s journey of self-discovery and overcoming grief is beautifully developed through first-person narration. Messner effectively captured the voice of an adolescent boy through his humour, sarcasm, and view of the world and society.

This novel would be a VERY effective mentor text to use in the classroom. The theme, character development, writing formats, point of view, imagery, various poetic devices, and tone are all literary devices worth noting and can be illustrated effectively using Messners writing as an example.

The Trouble with Heroes is a versatile addition to any school or middle school classroom library. It’s not just a great read for individual students, but also a fantastic choice for book clubs and classroom book studies. Its engaging verse, unique writing formats, and relatable themes make it a book that can inspire a variety of learning experiences. 

The Trouble with Heroes will be published in April 2025. Thank you to Bloomsbury Children’s Books and Netgalley for the free copy.

The Bookseller’s Wife

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

Book 1 of Chiswell Street Series
by Jane Davis


Dorcus Turton comes from a family whose name historically holds power and respect. However, as the only surviving heir, her life has been challenging. Upon the death of her mother, her father started a downward struggle of alcoholism and gambling debt. Dorcus runs a girls’ school out of their home and takes up some seamstress tasks, but she can still not stave off the debt collectors, so she resorts to taking in renters. James Lackington and his wife turn out to be more than just renters; they are a wonderful addition to Dorcus’s life, with their kindness and generosity and their tremendous love of reading and books, something with which Dorcus strongly identifies. The Lackington’s dream is to become booksellers, and with the help of Dorcus and her father, their dream soon comes to fruition. Of course, tragedy strikes in the form of sickness, death and heartbreak, and Dorcus’s life drastically changes, but will it be for the better?
I really liked this book….up until the last third. The author went from a wonderful exploration of a resilient woman’s life during Georgian London to a focus on the politics of the time. The political atmosphere of the time is, of course, essential to character choice and the advancement of the plot. I just wished it was more woven into the plot instead of reading like a textbook. I was also a little disappointed in the book’s ending; it seemed rather abrupt, but then I realized that this book is the first in a series. So now I know that this isn’t the end of Dorcus’s story.

Thank you to Rossdale Print Productions and Netgalley for the free copy.

I Who Have Never Known Men

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

by Jacqueline Harpman

I Who Have Never Known Men is an apocalyptic novel about the end of man and womankind.
The unnamed narrator only knows one world: a prison with 39 other women hidden in an underground cave. She is the only child in the group and has no recollection of what the world was like before their imprisonment. We never know why these women are in prison; we only know that a political event led to the imprisonment of all women with men as guards.   If you liked the series Wool by Hugh Howey or have an attachment to Plato’s Republic, you will appreciate this story.
Something happens (we never know what) where the women are suddenly and surprisingly released and are faced with freedom.
This novel made me feel overwhelmingly sad. I thought it was all about loneliness and isolation. But then I thought about it and talked about it, and I came to realize that it really is a story of survival and resilience. Our narrator lived a life of agency and made decisions truly on her own.
This novel would make a solid addition to a High School reading list as it lends itself to wonderful discussion on theme and author choice.

Where I End

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

by Sophie White

Did it like this book? It was enthralling, highly atmospheric and deeply, deeply disturbing. 
I like books that jar me out of complacency.
This novel is rife with trigger warnings. While I’m not particularly fond of body horror, its inclusion in this book was not gratuitous. Instead, the descriptions served to enhance the theme, atmosphere, and characterization.
So, what is this gothic horror novel about?
Aoileann is a teenage girl who is trapped. She’s trapped on a remote island with her catatonic mother and her abusive grandmother. Aoileann’s entire life centres around the care of her mother, and this obligation has turned to hatred (often referring to her mother as “the bed thing”. 
The hatred is caused, in part, by a family secret…what caused her mother’s state? Both her father and her grandmother refuse to give answers.
Desperate for love, familial or otherwise, Aoileann is drawn to a newcomer, Rachel, a young mother who has arrived as an artist in residence. Aoileann’s desperation for love and companionship drives her to do almost anything for attention. Soon, she begins to resent the time and attention Rachrel has towards her newborn. 
Written in the first person, the reader is privy to an uncensored reading of Aoileann’s true thoughts, making her a very creepy, unsympathetic character. 
This is in no way a happy book. I needed to go hug a puppy after reading it. 
The author, in her forward, shares her inspiration for this story. 
So, did I like this book? I have been thinking about it on and off since I read it, a sure sign that I found it impactful. 
This novel lends itself to high school discussion on genre, theme, definitely atmosphere and the impact of first person point of view.
Thank you to Erewhon Books and Netgalley for the copy.