A Week in Winter by Maeve Binchy

I bought this book when it was first released a few months back and it sat on my shelf.  Not because I didn't think I'd enjoy it, but because I knew I would.  I knew this was my last Maeve Binchy read and I wanted to save it to savor it.  I've counted Maeve Binchy as one of my favorite authors since I first picked up one of her books back in my university days.  I've found her writing to be like sitting down with a good friend over a cup of tea and catching up on all the gossip of our friends.  So it was for me a sad day last July to learn of her passing.  I'm very grateful that her husband decided to let this book be published posthumously.
Now for the book.  The book is similar in style to Evening Class and Quentins.  There is a main character that is the connecting force between the other characters.  Each story is told separately and could hold up as a short story in itself, but the lives of each character do collide in some form.  In this book the main character is Chicky Starr, an Irish lady who has spent many years in America only to come home to the village of her childhood and take over Stone House, a large home that has been owned by the Sheedy sisters for as long as anyone can remember.  Chicky is taken in by Miss Queenie Sheedy, whose dream it is to turn Stone House into a small hotel, displaying the kind of glory she remembers from her younger years.
The remaining characters have some sort of connection to Stone house, either as a guest, relation or worker.  Each story has the kind of well developed characters you would expect of Binchy's writing.  The end result is charming and enchanting. 
Some say that this book is not Binchy's best.  I would disagree.  It does match up to her previous works, I just wonder if it just didn't get that final polish that it might have otherwise had if she had lived to see it in its final draft.  The book does have a satisfying ending and is well worth a read.

The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan

The Painted girls is set in Paris in the late 1870's.  It is inspired by the real life story of Marie Van Goethem who was a ballerina that became the model for Degas' Young Dancer at Age 14.  Intertwined with Marie's story of survival is the story of her sister Antoinette.  The book alternates points of view between the two girls.  

The Paris of this book is not glamorous.  It is the darker, grittier side. The story of hard work, washerwomen, broken dreams and promises.

What I really enjoyed about this book was how the author was able to recreate Paris.  I could see it and experience it through her words.  The story of the sisters was emotionally sustaining and at times draining.  I would highly recommend this book for a book club.  It is worth reading.

The Imposter Bride by Nancy Richler

The Imposter Bride is one of those stories that I hesitate to write about in case I give away too much of the plot of the book.  Set in post-war Montreal, it is the story of Lily Azerov who arrives to marry a man she has never met.  He rejects her on sight, and his brother offers to marry her instead.  But Lily is not the woman she claims to be.  Her past in Europe begins to catch up with her and the new life she is trying to build in Canada. 
This book was so well written.  I did not know the answers to the mystery of Lily until the end of the story.  I immediately recommended this book to my Mom as a possible book club selection for her group.  I loved it and would love to read more of Richler's work.

The Kingmakers Daughter by Philippa Gregory

Poor Anne Neville, daughter of Richard, Earl of Warwick, the Kingmaker - one of the most hated characters in English history.  She was used as a pawn in her father's game of power in the War of the Roses, also known as the cousins war.  Her sister Isabel was married off to George, Duke of Clarence in her father's bid to get George on the throne.  When that didn't work out, he switched sides from York to Lancaster, marrying Anne off to Edward of Westminster (son of Henry VI and Margaret of Angou), hoping Edward would displace King Edward and take the throne for himself.  (Confused yet?  There are many Edwards, Richards, Henrys, Annes, Margarets and Elizabeths in this time in history). 
Both Warwick (her father) and Edward (her husband) were defeated and killed in battle.  Her mother abandoned her and claimed sanctuary at an Abbey.  Her only protection was Margaret of Angou (whom she referred to as the Bad Queen).  Anne was taken in by her sister Isabel and husband George, who held her not quite captive, but not quite free either.  They wanted legal control of all of her inheritance. 
Anne did escape their captivity (though the official historical facts of where she went remains a mystery) and married Richard, Duke of York (later Richard III), brother to Edward VI and George, Duke of Clarence.
Yes, it's a confusing history but a very interesting one.  I'd never much thought of Anne before, just the quiet, pale wife of Richard III, who lived in the North and was sickly.  There is much more to her and her history than that and I'm glad for Philippa Gregory's take on that.
I quite enjoyed this book and am enjoying the Cousin's War series much more than the Tudor series. 
In publication order the books go:
1) The White Queen - 2009
2) The Red Queen - 2010
3) The Lady of the Rivers - 2011
4) The Kingmakers Daughter - 2012
5) The White Princess - TBA
6) The Last Rose? - TBA

In chronological order the books go:
1)The Lady of the Rivers
2)The White Queen
3) The Red Queen
4) The Kingmakers Daughter
5) The White Princess
The Last Rose?

Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory

Jaquetta, Duchess of Bedford was a character from Philippa Gregory's previous "Cousins War" books that interested me the most.  Ms. Gregory doesn't write her series in chronological order.  Jaquetta was the mother of Elizabeth Warwick (wife of Edward IV), who in turn was mother to Elizabeth of York (wife of Henry VII, mother to Henry VIII).  She intregued me for several reasons.  the first being that her first husband was a Duke, much older than she, their marriage meant to strengthen ties between England and Luxembourg.  Her second husband was Sir Richard Woodville, the Duke's chamberlain.  They fell in love and had a secret marriage without permission of the king.  Jaquetta went on to serve in the court of Margaret of Angou and was a prominent Lancastrian at the beginning of the War of the Roses.
I really enjoyed this book.  It didn't disappoint.  I find Philippa Gregory's books to be hit or miss, this one lands at the top of her offerings for me.  It was well written about an interesting character in an intriguing time in history.  I am quite looking forward to her 5th book in this series, the White Princess about Elizabeth of York, I find that that is the missing piece of the story.

Rebel Heart by Moira Young

I really looked forward to this book after enjoying Blood Red Road as much as I did and it didn't disappoint.  I was back in the world I loved so much in a few pages.  It was so enjoyable to revisit this world and these characters.  Ms. Young is a gifted author and I hope more people discover and enjoy this trilogy she is writing.  I fully look forward to her next offering.
This book (while still action packed) found another, more emotional side to Saba, which I wasn't expecting.
Of all the dystopian fiction that is out there right now, this is by far my favorite series.  My only complaint is the wait I have until the next book is out!

The Kill Order by James Dashner

This book was the prequel to the Maze Runner series.  None of your known characters are in this one (with a few exceptions of mini flashbacks that hint of Thomas and Theresa).  The new main characters are Mark, Trina and Alec.  This starts where the Flare began.  And I just found it repetitive, confusing and full of zombie disgustingness.  It doesn't really answer any of the questions remaining left over from the Maze Runner books.  It is full of flashbacks.  A lot of this book is depressing and violent.  I had a difficult time getting through to finishing.