Book Review: Coppermine by Keith Leckie

About the Book: In 1913, two Catholic priests disappear in the remot Arctic region known as the Coppermine. Northwest Mounted Police office Jack Creed and Angituk McAndrew, a young Copper Inuit interpreter, are sent on a year-long odyssey to investigate the fate of the lost priests. On the shores of the Arctic Ocean, near the mouth of the Coppermine River, they discover the mutilated remains of the missionaries. Two Inuit hunters are tracked and apprehended, and together the four begin the dangerous, arduous journey to Edmonton. At the top of the world, the brutal Arctic winter descends, and the fight for survival, and justice, begins.

My thoughts: Inspired by real life events, this excellent work of fiction combines history, mystery, adventure and romance while exploring the differences and similarities between the Inuit and the Western "civilization" of Edmonton, all set in the frigid white north of my home and native land.

The interplay between the characters is fascinating, especially when the two Inuit are put on trial and the reason behind the murders is gradually revealed, and you're on the edge of your seat awaiting the verdict of the jury.

The storyline was fantastic, the history was even more intriguing than I was expecting, the portrayal of the Inuit worldview was enlightening and the plot twists were unexpected. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Definitely two thumbs up!

Thank you to Penguin Group for providing me with my complimentary review copy of Coppermine.

Book Review: The Sixth Surrender by Hana Samek Norton

About the Book: Sister Eustace, born Lady Juliana, the last of the de Charnais line, is about to pledge body and soul to the cause of the queen duchess, Alienor of Aquitaine. Learned yet humble, passionate yet wholly innocent, Juliana has a singular determination - to possess her rightful home, the viscounty of Tillieres.

Alienor's young scribe must choose: husband or the cloister. Juliana prays for a man who is honorable, kind, and literate. Instead she is promised to Guerin de Lasalle, a worldly though landless mercenary with a blackened soul. The couple enters the union with just one shared desire: to put an end to the marriage.

As the queen's prophecy, "Honor, like love, comes in many guises," echoes through Juliana's first days as a wife, the race intensifies to safeguard the crowns of Normandy and England for John Plantagenet, Alienor's last surviving son. Schemes by traitorous lords and the mystery of Lasalle's past could cost John his thrones - and Juliana her life.

My thoughts: I'm not sure if it was the strange names, the unfamiliar history, the language of the period or a combination of all three, but I had a slightly difficult time following some of the plot lines. I don't like having to concentrate as hard as I had to, when reading fiction.

That being said, the parts I did understand easily, I did enjoy. Although, enjoy is probably not the right word to use, considering how much this made me appreciate that I did not live during this period of history! There were schemes, plot twists, battles and politics - a lot going on and a lot to keep track of.

I found the interplay between Juliana and Guerin to be very interesting - I found it to be very realistic in fact, because their relationship could've been so much better if they had trusted each other enough to actually communicate what was going on in their thoughts and lives. I think the same could be said for many real life relationships as well. The truth is not always easy to tell, but deception always makes things worse.

Thank you to Penguin Group for providing me with my complimentary review copy of The Sixth Surrender.

Book Review: The Jewel of St. Petersburg by Kate Furnivall

About the Book: Russia, 1910. The young Valentina Ivanova is the darling of St. Petersburg's elite aristocracy, charming them with both her classic Russian beauty and her talent for piano. But it is a scandal when she chooses her love not from their stock, or even from Russian blood. Her romance with Jens Friis, a Danish engineer, brings to her life a passion and intimacy she has never known. Unbending in their opposition, her parents push her into a loveless engagment with a Russian count.

Valentina struggles to claim her own independence. But at the same time she is desperate to protect her young sister from the dangerous tumult that is sweeping through the city.

Meanwhile, Russia itself is bound for rebellion. With the tsar and the duma at each other's throats, and the Bolsheviks drawing their battle lines, the elegance and opulence of tsarist rule are in their last days. And Valentina will be forced to make a choice that will change not only her own life, but the lives of those around her forever....

My thoughts: I really enjoy reading historical fiction and this book was definitely no exception. In my opinion, there is no more enjoyable way to learn history! And Russian history is something I knew very little of. My interest is definitely whetted by reading this excellent piece of fiction.

Valentina was an interesting protagonist - some of her characteristics (her sense of duty and loyalty to her family, especially her sister; her determination; her desire to become a nurse despite its lowly status) make her intensely loveable, while others (her naivete; her foolishness) do not.

You get to see the two drastically different sides of Russia as Valentina dances at opulent balls and enters the poorest districts of the city. The chasm between the elite and the poor is simply mind boggling.

It's so frustrating to see history played out, knowing that so much of the war and strife could have been prevented - you know, if selfish and proud humans were not the ones in control.

Thank you to Penguin Group for providing me with my complimentary review copy of The Jewel of St. Petersburg.

Book review - Promises to Keep

About the Book: Successful photographer Callie Perry thinks she has a pretty perfect life, although it may not be everyone's idea of happiness: a great job, lots of time with her daughters, but a workaholic husband. She couldn't be more unlike Steffi, her younger sister, who has never held down a job - or a boyfriend - for more than six months. Walter and Honor, their divorced and perpetually feuding parents, have almost given up hope that Steffi will ever learn what it is to be responsible ... until they all receive a shocking email that changes their lives forever and brings them together one extraordinary summer in Main.

Promises to Keep is about the hard choices we sometimes have to make, about having to be your parents' child long after you've grown up - and about the enduring nature of love.

My thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. I found the characters to be thoroughly believable and the plot to be not only entertaining, but also thought-provoking. Though dealing with several serious subject matters, it was also light-hearted and downright funny at times. I loved seeing how the characters grew throughout their life experiences, both personally and in their relationships with each other, in believable and realistic ways.

Unlike the other books I have reviewed on my blog thus far, this book is not Christian fiction, however, it is very tastefully written (ie nothing explicit) and I have no hesitation in recommending it to Christian adult readers.

However, because I am a Christian reader, I found that the deep issues of the story and even the relationships between the characters (though touchingly portrayed, developed and worked through) felt somewhat superficial, empty and unsatisfactory. This was not at all due to a deficiency in the writing (on the contrary it was very well-written), but due to a difference in worldview.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and would definitely recommend it.

Jane Green's website

Thank you to Penguin Group for providing me with my complimentary review copy.