Book Review: Call Me Zelda

Author: Erika Robuck
Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Publisher: NAL Trade

From the author of Hemingway’s Girl comes a richly imagined tale of Zelda Fitzgerald’s love, longing, and struggle against ever-threatening insanity.

From New York to Paris, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald reigned as king and queen of the Jazz Age, but those who really knew them saw their inner turmoil.

Committed to a Baltimore psychiatric hospital in 1932, Zelda vacillates between lucidity and madness as she fights to forge an identity independent of her famous husband. She discovers a sympathetic ear in her nurse Anna Howard, who finds herself drawn into the Fitzgerald’s tumultuous lives and wonders which of them is the true genius. But in taking greater emotional risks to save Zelda, Anna may end up paying a far higher price than she ever intended.

In this thoroughly researched, deeply moving novel, Erika Robuck explores the boundaries of female friendship, the complexity of marital devotion, and the sources of both art and madness.


Mrs. Fitzgerald's eyes, however, would not leave my mind. I had no idea what those haunting eyes would lead me to do. If I'd known then, I don't think I would have become as involved as I did.

"I hope they'll have tomato sandwiches at lunch," said Zelda. "I adore tomato sandwiches and lemonade. It's all I ate in Alabama."

"I'm not familiar with the salamander," I said. "A mythic lizard, purified by fire," she said. "A woman who burns through men to find her one true love." She struck a match and lit a cigarette, inhaling deeply and filling the space around her with her exhalations.

This story is the first one that I have read, fictional or non-fictional, written about the lives of F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda. Although, I have always been interested in their story and a huge fan of the time period they belonged to. This book is not told from Zelda's point of view, but is instead told by Anna Howard, who is a nurse in the psychiatric clinic that Zelda belongs to. While parts of the story are Anna's, others belong to Zelda and F. Scott and they weave in and out of the story as it is told through Anna's eyes. Anna quickly bonds with Zelda and understands why Zelda is where she is now. While Zelda is famous, of course, I liked that Anna was not. It gave the story a nice balance between fact and fiction.

I am very interested in stories about famous actors, musicians, actresses, etc. told by someone who is just an average, ordinary person. I felt that Anna's voice gave the story the jump start that it needed. Zelda was a flirtatious flapper suffering from mental illness and I almost felt like she may have told the story too dramatically and would have only considered her side of things. It was nice to see Anna connect with Zelda, and the moments when the two women bonded were by far the best in the book.

For anyone that is interested in the Fitzgeralds, The Great Gatsby, or the Roaring 20's, I would definitely recommend that you try this novel for yourself. There were many Gatsby allusions that I found inspiring and well thought out. If you are looking for a completely factual account, then I would say that you are looking in the wrong place because some of this story does focus on Anna and of course she is a fictional character. I enjoyed going back in time and seeing what Zelda may have really been like. I often compare her in likeness to Marilyn Monroe, who is someone I admire very dearly.

***A copy of this book was provided to me by the publishers at NAL Trade in exchange for my honest review***

Book Review: Tides

Author: Betsy Cornwell
Publication Date: June 4, 2013
Publisher: Clarion Books

When high-school senior Noah Gallagher and his adopted teenage sister, Lo, go to live with their grandmother in her island cottage for the summer, they don’t expect much in the way of adventure. Noah has landed a marine biology internship, and Lo wants to draw and paint, perhaps even to vanquish her struggles with bulimia. But then things take a dramatic turn for them both when Noah mistakenly tries to save a mysterious girl from drowning. This dreamlike, suspenseful story—deftly told from multiple points of view—dives deeply into selkie folklore while examining the fluid nature of love and family.


"Selkies need the land as we need the deep ocean," said Gemm. "They need it for its danger and its mystery. They come to the beaches and they sing. They sing to the ocean and the sky."

She sat on a rock and shrugged her body down into the water. It felt light and sweet against her skin, like kisses, or what she thought kisses must feel like. There wasn't much opportunity for kissing when she couldn't talk to people outside her family.

Friends. Mara hated how foreign the idea was to her. Still, she didn't know how to respond to this boy, this Noah, who sat on the rocks beside her, still sopping wet, clearly intended for dry land only.

And yes, Lo had been eating. Sometimes only celery, sometimes whole batches of cookies, but at least she ate. Noah was happy to see medium- and large-size tags on her clothes when it was his turn to do the laundry, and he pretended he didn't notice when she started cutting the tags off. He made up excuses for her when he heard her get sick in the bathroom. But now, seeing how angry she was, how much she hated her perfectly normal body, he couldn't pretend.

Noah and Lo Gallagher are spending the summer with their grandmother on a remote island where she is a lighthouse keeper. Noah has obtained a summer internship where he is working with Professor Foster and hoping to study marine life and be as close to the ocean as possible. Lo, Noah's sister, just needs a break from life and could do with a change of scenery. Lo struggles with bulimia and her family hopes that being away for the summer will help her heal. Noah and Lo quickly adjust to the island and soon come to the love the stories their grandmother shares with them about the selkies, seals that have the ability to take on a human form. Much to their dismay, the stories that they yearn for their grandmother to share with them are about to come true!

This story is told from many alternating view points, but none of the story ever becomes confusing and Cornwell gives readers a nice transition between character voices. Some of the characters that share their stories are Noah and Lo, the two teenagers that spend their summer on the island, their grandmother, Dolores, Maebh, the selkie elder, Mara, the selkie that Noah meets one day by the sea, and her brother Ronan. There are more characters and details that make up this story, but these are just a few of my favorites. I loved switching characters, and not every author can do it as successfully as Betsy Cornwell. Mara and Noah were of course my favorite characters, and I feel like I was feeling a lot of the same things that Noah was feeling as the story unfolded.

The mythology and fantasy in this story was amazing! I love stories about the sea and all its many wonders, real or make-believe. I have not read many other books, in fact I am not sure that I have read another book, about selkies. I loved the background and the mystery that comes with their nature. Mara was a fabulous character, and really allowed me to believe in her life as a selkie and a human. Cornwell sold Mara's character and I could really feel the pull for Mara's life at sea and on land. It wasn't over exaggerated like some mermaid stories, but was instead written in a very realistic sense.

This was a beautiful, tragic story with many surprising moments and added details. It would be the perfect beach or pool read!

***A copy of this book was provided to me by the publishers at Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin in exchange for my honest review***

Book Review: A Most Peculiar Circumstance

Author: Jen Turano

Publication Date: June 1, 2013

Publisher: Bethany House

Series: Ladies of Distinction # 2

Miss Arabella Beckett has one driving passion: to help the downtrodden women of America. Naturally, she supports the women's suffrage movement and eagerly attends rallies and lectures across the country. On her travels, she makes a simple offer of assistance to a young woman in need that goes sadly awry and lands both ladies in more trouble than they can manage. An independent sort, Arabella is loath to admit she needs help and certainly doesn't need help from an arrogant, narrow-minded knight in shining armor.

Mr. Theodore Wilder, private investigator extraordinaire, is on a mission. A mission that began as a favor to his good friend Hamilton Beckett, but swiftly evolved into a merry chase across the country. By the time he finally tracks down Hamilton's sister, Arabella, he is in a less than pleasant mood. When the lady turns out to have radical ideas and a fiercely independent streak, he soon finds himself at his wit's end.

When they return home to New York, circumstances force their paths to continue to cross, but the most peculiar feelings growing between them certainly can't be love. When the trouble Arabella had accidentally stirred up seems to have followed her to New York and threatens her very life, the unlikely couple must face the possibility that they might have landed in the most peculiar circumstance of all: love.

It was truly unfortunate, whatever the lady’s reasoning, that Miss James apparently felt one was not complete unless one had the attention of a gentleman, even if said gentleman was one she’d never met.

As a woman who was known for having strong opinions, dealing with annoyed gentlemen seemed to be a common occurrence in her life.

Arabella began tapping her one shoe against the hard floor, immediately stilling when she teetered from the motion. “I encourage women to stand up for their rights, Mr. Wilder. We are held accountable to the same laws as men, and yet we have no say regarding the passage of these laws.”

Miss Arabella Beckett was opinionated, bossy, and not at all what Theodore had expected when he’d agreed to fetch her home.

I read Jen Turano’s debut novel, A Change of Fortune, back in the fall and I absolutely loved every second of it. I always love trying out debut novels because it gives me a chance to find a new author whose books and writing style I am in love with. This definitely was the case with Jen Turano, and as you can see I was just as thrilled to pick up her second novel as well. This book tells the story of Arabella Beckett, whose brother shows up in the first book, and a Mr. Theodore Wilder. Arabella finds herself in between a rock and a hard place when she lands herself in jail and ends up being searched out by the private investigator, Mr. Wilder. This book is just plain fun! There is no other way to describe it.

Arabella Beckett is most certainly on my list of favorite characters of the year. She is always landing herself in trouble and getting herself stuck places that she can’t seem to get out of on her own. She is a quirky, determined heroine who carries her passions on her sleeve and doesn’t care that others might not agree with her morals and beliefs. I laughed so much at Arabella and almost wish she had her own series. She is just a fun, carefree, and likeable character who has the best intentions, but may not always make the best decisions!

Everyone that knows me knows that I am a feminist, who believes in equal treatment of all women. I would even go so far to say that I believe women can reach the heights of men socially, economically, and financially. Our world, of course, is getting more and more accustomed to this happening. One reason that I was so drawn to Arabella is because of the support she gave to the Women’s Suffrage Movement. Jen Turano does a fabulous job of bringing history to life through Arabella’s eyes. She is adamant that women be treated fairly, but of course in this time her ideas are thought to be radical. She was such a fun character to follow, and I truly enjoyed the history written into her character!

***A copy of this book was provided to me by the author in exchange for my honest review***

Book Review: Stroke of Midnight

Author: Olivia Drake

Publication Date: June 4, 2013

Publisher: St. Martin’s Paperbacks

Series: Cinderella Sisterhood # 2

He's no Prince Charming. She doesn't have a pumpkin coach. Sometimes love is nothing like a fairy tale; it's even better...

It's Never Too Late

The infamous Laura Falkner has returned to London society in disguise. Determined to clear her father's name, she becomes a companion to elderly Lady Josephine—only to learn the woman's nephew is none other than Alexander Ross, the devilish Earl of Copley, the man Laura once loved with all her heart. The same man who'd accused her father of theft and forced them to flee England.

To Fall Head Over Heels In Love

Alex has never forgotten Laura—or forgiven himself for letting her go. Today, Laura is as lovely—and stubborn—as ever, and her attempts at crime-solving are putting her in danger. The only way Alex can keep her safe is to marry her. But how can this notorious rake convince Laura that his heart is true…before the clock strikes twelve?

Laura’s breath knotted her lungs. The sight of him after all these years struck her like a blow to her mid-section. The cocoa-brown hair, the broad muscled build, the arrogant stance of those long legs – she absorbed it all in one searing glance. His presence set her ablaze with an intensity of emotion that could only be pure vitriol. How she despised the scoundrel!

If indeed Papa had been murdered, she could not allow his death to go unavenged.

Deeply unsettled, she trod onward without any clear destination in mind. If she couldn’t rely on the police, then whom could she trust? Her former friends and acquaintances undoubtedly viewed her as a pariah. She had no living relatives – there had only been her and Papa. She was on her own now, a rudderless raft in a vast sea of humanity.

First of all, I was enraptured by this cover! How beautiful! Secondly, the name of this series is, Cinderella Sisterhood. How can anyone say “no” to these two things? This is only my second book by Olivia Drake, the other being the first book in this series, and I must say that I am impressed with her writing. Her storylines are very easy to keep up with, even though they are fast-paced, and everything that happens in the story flows and makes for a nice reading pace for me as the reader. This particular story follows Laura Faulkner, who has come back to London society in hopes of finding out what happened to her father. Once she returns she meets a few people…and people from her once scandalous past.

When we first meet Laura Faulkner she has changed her name and has tried to change her appearance in hopes that no one recognizes her. Within the first few pages she is on the run with some burly man in hot pursuit behind her, and I knew from that moment that this book would prove to be just as adventurous as the first book in this series, If The Slipper Fits. Laura is a truly inspiring character and knows no boundaries when it comes to clearing her and her father’s good name. Like I said before, this plot line is fast, fun, and sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. Laura is a determined character who definitely has a mind all her own.

The best parts of this book for me were when Alexander Ross, the Earl of Copley came onto the scene. He brought out a side of Laura that I do not believe had surfaced since she and her father fled London. You can tell that Alex thinks he is devilish and irresistible, but Laura quickly puts him in his place. They are a great pair in my opinion, and even though I loved Laura, I felt like this book just would not be the same without Alexander Ross! I also greatly enjoyed Lady Josephine! She was just as much of a comfort and companion to Laura as Laura was for her.

***A copy of this book was provided to me by the publishers at St. Martin’s Paperbacks in exchange for my honest review***