A Tree, A Book, and A Breeze

All the Lost Places Amanda Dykes Bethany House Publishers   Discovered floating in a basket along the canals of Venice, Sebastien Trovato wrestles with questions of his origins. Decades later, on an assignment to translate a rare book, Daniel Goodman finds himself embroiled in a web of secrets carefully kept within the ancient city and in the mystery of the man whose story the book does not finish: Sebastien. This is one of those books I really wish I could say I enjoyed more, but I admit I struggled with it. I don't know if I would say it is the book or just me , as I think some readers would enjoy it for the same reasons I didn't. Not that there weren't moments I enjoyed- I especially liked the character of Vittoria and Daniel's interactions with her. But the writing style of this one, while poetical, is also a little more abstract and lofty, which isn't really my preference. I didn't hate this one, and there were moments were I found myself invested, bu

The Rose and the Thistle Laura Frantz Revell In 1715, Lady Blythe Hedley's father is declared an enemy of the British crown because of his Jacobite sympathies, forcing her to flee her home in northern England. Secreted to the tower of Wedderburn Castle in Scotland, Lady Blythe awaits who will ultimately be crowned king. But in a house with seven sons and numerous servants, her presence soon becomes known. No sooner has Everard Hume lost his father, Lord Wedderburn, than Lady Hedley arrives with the clothes on her back and her mistress in tow. He has his own problems--a volatile brother with dangerous political leanings, an estate to manage, and a very young brother in need of comfort and direction in the wake of losing his father. It would be best for everyone if he could send this misfit heiress on her way as soon as possible. Drawn into a whirlwind of intrigue, shifting alliances, and ambitions, Lady Blythe must be careful whom she trusts. Her fortune, her future,