The Second Mrs. Hockaday by Susan Rivers
254 pages
 
What’s it about?
 Major Gryffth Hockaday is on a short leave from the Civil War when he meets 17-year-old Placidia.  In a whirlwind romance they are quickly married and immediately return to his farm.  48 hours after returning home he is called back to duty.  Placidia is left to care for his young son, a few slaves,  and the farm while the war rages on.  Two years later, when the war ends, Major Hockaday returns to find Placicia accused of not only having had a baby while he was gone, but also murdering the baby.  What really happened?
 
What did it make me think about?
 What a pleasant surprise this little book was!  It is the best page-turner I have read in a while.  I could not put it down.  The book is written as a series of letters and you just want to know more.   Based on a true story, this novel illuminates what many women may have faced in the South during the Civil War.   
 
Should I read it?
 This novel combines history, great characters, and a compelling mystery to make for one good story!  Any fan of historical fiction should pick this book up.   
 
Quote-
       “In marveling at how transformed he is, I strive to keep in mind that I am changed quite as totally as the major.  It is challenging to remember the child who stood up before Rev. Poteat two years ago with a handful of spring flowers and a joyous heart, who trusted her fate to the good luck she had been born with and to a man blown into her path by the prevailing winds.”
 
If you like this try-
​Days Without End by Sebastian Barry
Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
March by Geraldine Brooks
​
9 stars

The Patriots by Sana Krasikov
538 pages
 
What’s it about?
 This multigenerational story begins in Russia in 1956.   The novel switches between narrators and time periods- covering the 1930’s through 2008.  Florence Fein is at the heart of the story.  She leaves Brooklyn College in the 1930’s and takes a boat to Russia- idealistically determined to seek a better life than she feels the American capitalist system can give her.  She quickly becomes trapped in a country that is not at all what she had hoped for.  Told through Florence, her son Julian, and her grandson Lenny- we learn about the Cold War from several interesting perspectives.
 
What did it make me think about?
 This work of historical fiction shed light on life inside early communist Russia.  It is truly mind boggling that the ideal life people were seeking with communism is so far from what the system gave them.  I also had never given a thought to how our own government viewed those Americans left in Russia.  

Should I read it?
This is another multi-generational saga about life under a Communist regime.  It is a good book- but it is also a big book.  This novel could  have used a little more editing…   it is still a good read though.
 
Quote-
 
“ ‘They abandoned us years ago.  The American embassy is as sealed as a fortress.  Nobody goes in or out except by automobile.  The guards won’t let you in even if you’re American born.  Why is it that none of the embassy workers have ever made any contact with the likes of us?’    ‘That’s right, she said.  We’re trash to them Absconders.  Traitors.  We left and good riddance.’ ”
 
If you like this try-
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
A Gentlemen in Moscow by Amor Towles
The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra
The Symapthizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen
 
 8 stars

 Everyone Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave
418 pages
 
What’s it about?
It is London, 1939 and Mary North wants to do her part when war is declared.  She goes straight to the War Office and signs up.  Meanwhile, Tom Shaw is classified as too important to the education department to be sent into battle, and simultaneously his best friend Alistair volunteers and is shipped off to war.  Mary, Tom, and Alistair’s lives become intertwined as the blitz of London begins and the war drags on.
 
What did it make me think about?
It always amazes me the how much I learn from historical fiction.  Although the blitz of London is very well known, this account certainly put a face to the suffering.  I was not aware that some children were left behind to face the blitz.  The blockading of Malta was also new to me. 
 
Should you read it?
Well this is the second book in a row that others liked more than I did.  Chris Cleave is a beautiful writer- but to me this novel was glib, meandering, and somehow missed the mark.  If you love anything World War II then pick it up- otherwise there are better books to be read!
 
Quote-
    “Mary took her arm.   ‘And we need to find you a nice soldier, do we?’
    ‘An airman would do in a pinch.  I draw the line at navy blue.’
    ‘Nice girls do.  I shall keep a lookout for you.  Of course it is quite ridiculous in any case.  There is no actual fighting is there?’
    ‘God no’,  said Hilda.  ‘They’re nice in uniform, not battle dress.’”
 
 
If you like this try-
 Among the Living by Jonathan Rabb
The Nightingale by Kristan Hannah
The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult
Love & Treasure by Ayelet Waldman
 
5 stars