Rainy Day Reads

Review: My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier I’ve decided on a whim to try and read all of du Maurier’s work. I’ve only ever read Rebecca, before this one, and I really enjoyed it. So I decided it was time to get going on some more of the author’s works.  “My Cousin Rachel” is the story of a young man, Philip, raised by his bachelor uncle. They live a bachelor life on the uncle’s estate, which Philip is set to inherit . They are both pretty content with this way of life and see no reason to change it. The uncle, Ambrose, goes to Italy to nurse some sort of affliction and Philip stays home to tend to the estate. Then he gets a letter from Ambrose, stating that the latter is married, but he since he isn't feeling well, he is postponing his return and staying in Italy for another season. Philip then gets a frenzied letter from Ambrose urging him to come to Italy immediately. Philip does so, but is too late. Ambrose is dead.  From then on we follow Philip’s inn...

I picked this up on a whim at the library. I think I have said a few times that I don’t really like reading crime/mystery novels, so you might wonder why I would pick this up, since it is blurbed as such. It’s because I’m a sucker for historical fiction. Especially ones that involve some sort of riddle or mystery. This book isn’t really historical fiction, as it is set in present day, but it is based on one of the most persistent conspiracy theories out there; the fact that some of the Romanovs survived the execution in 1918. The theory is largely based on the fact that the bodies of the son, Alexej, and one of the daughters, often believed to be Anastasia, but there is no certain proof, were not found along with the other bodies. However these last missing bodies were found in 2007, 3 years after the publication of this book, finally laying the Romanovs and the conspiracy theory to rest.   This book is about an American lawyer, Miles Lord, who has come to Russia to ...

This is a companion novel to ”Code Name Verity” which I have also read and reviewed (and loved!). In this one we see a few of the same people, but since it is a companion novel we mostly meet entirely new people. As with ”Code Name Verity” this book is set during WWII and the main protagonist is a young American woman, Rose, who has come to England to work for the ATA ferrying planes for the Royal Air Force. During one of her flights, she is captured by the Nazis and sent to a concentration camp. The book then follows her experience in this camp and with the people she meets there. The book was well-written and the story compelling, but I must say it was not as good as ”Code Name Verity”. That one had a few twists and tricks, that ”Rose Under Fire” did not have. This was more a straightforward story-telling. There is nothing wrong with straightforward, but ”Code Name Verity” kept you guessing all along, while ”Rose Under Fire” just didn't have that quality. The story was ...

Holy smokes, this book was just what I needed! Finally a good book after I have been struggling with some less than great books these past weeks. The story is set during World War II and follows two British women who both work in the war effort. The book had me gripped tight right from the start, the writing is beautiful and the story is compelling.  I feel like I shouldn't give too much away about the plot, but basically the two women end up in France behind enemy lines. One of them is caught and questioned by the Gestapo, and she must reveal her mission or face torture.  Beware of spoiler-ish notes below!!! The book is divided into two parts. The first is like a set up of the story and telling how Verity came to be in the Gestapo headquarters. During the entirety of this part the author had me questioning if Verity really was telling the truth or if she was somehow trying to cheat the Gestapo and buy more time for herself. But the story she told, the information she gave awa...