A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner

I love a story that takes place in two different time periods. This story follows two women - one in 1911 and the other in 2011, and each comes into contact with a beautiful scarf. I love the idea of following an inanimate object and giving it a story. The motto from the fabric store in this story is: Every beautiful thing has a story to tell. It’s true. And this novel tells that story.

Beautiful, unique, and emotional, A Fall of Marigolds spans a century to reveal a remarkable path travelled by a lovely scarf. From a horrific fire in New York City, all the way to 9/11 at the Twin Towers and then beyond, this story bounces between tragedies and triumphs. It’s about learning to live when others could not. It’s about starting over after the world seems to fall apart.

This story also shows the importance of stories. Our stories are important, and sometimes they must be told. And sometimes not. But they must be faced.

The contemporary pings the historical and vice versa, providing the reader with a wonderfully moving experience. You can purchase A Fall of Marigolds here.

New York City is the setting for the book - in two time periods. If you could visit New York City at any time in the last 250 years, when would you choose to go?

Leave us a comment to get your name in the drawing for Hemorrhaging of Souls by Nicola Furlong this week.

Back in the Day . . .

Do you ever wish you lived in the days of the butcher, the baker, and the candlestick maker? How about the Cobbler, the Haberdasher, and the Milliner?

Speaking of Milliners . . . I just read this great book about a hatmaker. Carla Stewart’s The Hatmaker’s Heart. Stewart is known for her “nostalgic novels.” They generally have to do with a specific moment in time, and when I read her stories, I want to go back. Ok, keeping it real . . .. I’ve never actually lived in the roaring twenties, but when I read Hatmaker, I felt like I was there. And I wished I could wear one of her hats . . . and go back there.

It’s a story about postwar (between the wars) women and explores the paradigm shift whereby women sought after careers and college education in greater numbers than ever before. It examines the plight of women who lost husbands in the war, and tried to find a way to support families on their own. And how they came up against the old guard who promoted their traditions of women at home. 

The Hatmaker’s Heart follows a girl who loves designing and making hats back in the day when nearly every outfit required a different, matching hat. 1920s high fashion in NYC and then London dominates the scenes and provides a colorful backdrop for the drama which unfolds as Nell discovers who she is and learns to stand up for herself in a male-dominated workforce at a time of great change.

Nowadays, hats are for fun, sun, or warmth. What was the last hat you purchased for yourself? Do you like hats? Would you wear one every day if that was in style? Leave us a comment for a chance to win this week’s drawing.

The Hatmaker’s Heart is a quick and fun read. I hope you’ll give it a try.

Review by Jennifer Fromke

All Who Dream

All Who Dream is a romantic thrill ride. I loved the entire story. The characters still haunt me. Even the side characters were a pleasure to read. I feel like I know them all so well. 

The story is multi-layered with lots to keep the reader's interest. The hero and heroine must learn essentially the same lesson, but their journeys are so vastly different and they come from completely different places, so the story seems to echo in harmonies. 

The romance was sweet . . . deep, pure, real . . . and clean.

The motivations for each character rang true on every side. I believed every thing in the story. I love NYC, so it was great fun to camp out there for most of this book. It's a fun read for writers especially, because of the book tour, the publishing company insights, and the general fun surrounding one character's mystery series.

PLUS! Deese writes poetry. Good poetry. It's almost reminiscent of Possession by AS Byatt - poetry written by a character embedded in the fiction. She also writes fictional scenes written by another character. 

The dialogue is witty. The interactions, funny and very realistic. I'm sure this story will stay with me for a long time - I hope you'll give this author a try. All Who Dream does not disappoint.

Here’s the back of the book blurb:

Struggling to rebuild her life after she was brutally attacked and left for dead six years ago, Angie leads a simple life: managing a florist shop, leading a weekly recovery group, and blogging about the joys and challenges of being a single mom.

But simple just became a lot more complicated.

When Angie’s blog goes viral, she’s caught in a whirlwind: signing with a publicist and heading to NYC for a book tour, where she meets brooding bachelor Jackson Ross. Though she is drawn to the mysterious CEO of Pinkerton Press, her instincts are as unreliable as her heart. She won’t fall victim to a man ever again.

Jackson is well-versed in the art of denial. His perfect facade has been nearly impenetrable—until now. When the details of Angie's past are targeted by scandal, Jackson urges her to confront her fear despite his refusal to do the same. But neither of them can move forward without first uncovering one vital truth...

That while some keep fighting to survive, all who dream will find the courage to live.

FYI: This book is the third in a series, but stands alone very well. I have not read the first two yet, but this one makes me want more. Don’t be afraid to start with book three.