Rainbow Rowell Meet & Greet + Book Reviews: Eleanor & Park, Attachments, Landline

A few months ago a coworker informed us that Rainbow Rowell was going to be at our local library and zero part of me hesitated when it came to signing up - there was even less hesitation when it came signing up for the Meet & Greet that took place prior to her talk.

Having only experienced the magic of Fangirl, I immediately read my copy of Eleanor & Park and asked for copies of Attachments and Landline for Christmas. So good.

Anyway, on to the event. The Meet & Greet started around 5:30 for those of us who felt no qualms about spending $25 for the privilege to spend an hour and a half in close proximity to Rainbow and special upfront seating to her 7:00 talk. My coworkers and I did not hate either of those perks - third row was pretty bad ass.

I don't remember how many tickets were available for the Meet & Greet but Rainbow handled it like a champ. She went around and signed everybody's books (regardless of how many they brought - and there was one gentleman who I'm pretty sure had every edition of each of her books), swag, chatted a bit, and took pictures. 

And she is seriously the sweetest! Her smile never fell, her laughter was contagious, and bathe in her warmth. (Does that sound weird? That sounds weird.)

After the Meet & Greet, we headed to the auditorium for her Q&A session. We got to learn about Rainbow's feelings on her name (while growing up and now), which book was her favorite to write (Fangirl), how she became a novelist, finding time to write and have a life, having crushes on her own characters (she's in a bit of a love triangle with Levi and Baz), as well as many secrets! Okay, maybe not secrets, but an audience of 100-some people, Rainbow made it feel like an intimate conversation.

Overall, the whole night was amazing. I am so thrilled I got to meet one of my favorite authors and got her books signed - along with this amazing print from The Art of Young Adult.

Series:	Standalone
Genre:	Young Adult, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary
Publication.Date:	February 26, 2013
Pages:	328 (hardcover)
Published By:	St. Martin's Press
Website:	Rainbow Rowell
	Eleanor & Park on Goodreads
My review copy:	Bought

Where to get:

Two misfits.
One extraordinary love.


Eleanor... Red hair, wrong clothes. Standing behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. Making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough...Eleanor.

Park... He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she ever gets to the punch line. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises...Park.

Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.

(Goodreads)

Eleanor & Park is a cute story. It's not always a happy story, but it's a cute story. Or at least a cute romance. There are a lot of heavy themes throughout the book (bullying, abuse, drinking, drugs), but it's a sweet and interesting read.

I was drawn to Eleanor as this misfit character. She's an outsider character and is picked on for being "fat," a redhead, bad dresser and anything else the popular kids can think of to pick on her. Park, on the other hand, is accept by his peers despite his differences. Biggest difference? Eleanor doesn't care. She's who she is and they can accept her of bugger off.

One of the cutest scenes takes place early in the book where Park notices that Eleanor is reading his comic book over his shoulder, which is where their barriers begin to slowly break down. As the novel goes on it's obvious that despite their physical differences, Eleanor and Park have enough similarities that it's easy to see how they were drawn to one another and believe the ease in which they slowly fell into their relationship.

Series:	Standalone
Genre:	Adult, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary
Publication.Date:	April 14, 2011
Pages:	323 (paperback)
Published By:	Dutton
Website:	Rainbow Rowell
	Attachments on Goodreads
My review copy:	Bought

Where to get:

"Hi, I'm the guy who reads your e-mail, and also, I love you . . . "

Beth Fremont and Jennifer Scribner-Snyder know that somebody is monitoring their work e-mail. (Everybody in the newsroom knows. It's company policy.) But they can't quite bring themselves to take it seriously. They go on sending each other endless and endlessly hilarious e-mails, discussing every aspect of their personal lives.

Meanwhile, Lincoln O'Neill can't believe this is his job now- reading other people's e-mail. When he applied to be "internet security officer," he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers- not writing up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke.

When Lincoln comes across Beth's and Jennifer's messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can't help being entertained-and captivated-by their stories.

By the time Lincoln realizes he's falling for Beth, it's way too late to introduce himself.

What would he say . . . ?

(Goodreads)

My first foray into Rainbow Rowell's adult novels wasn't too bad. I wasn't crazy about Attachments, but I did really enjoy it. I'll admit that at first I didn't realize the story took place in 1999 so I didn't understand why these women were writing such personal things in email when they could have been texting, but then duh. Look at the dates on the email, Andrea. Once I caught on to that detail I was a lot more accepting of the plot.

I'll admit that Lincoln's job is a bit creepy - even he admits it - but there's something about him that doesn't make it creepy. He wants to stop reading Beth and Jennifer's email but finds himself drawn to them - and slowly falling in love with Beth.

Not only that, but we are hoping - and impatiently waiting - for the moment Beth and Lincoln will physically meet. Their relationship (of sorts) is completely one sided, but I was longing for them to run into one another. I mean, they work at the same company, how hard could it be?!

Attachments is told entirely from Lincoln's perspective. We're reading Beth and Jennifer's emails and he does and get to know these two women along with him. Rainbow writes her characters in such an amazing way that I actually care about Beth and Jennifer. We're not introduced to them and we care. We care so much about them!

While there were certain parts I felt the plot dragged a bit, Attachments is a rather cute and different love story that fans of Rainbow are sure to enjoy.

Series:	Standalone
Genre:	Adult, Paranormal, Romance
Publication.Date:	July 8, 2014
Pages:	356 (paperback)
Published By:	St. Martin's Press
Website:	Rainbow Rowell
	Landline on Goodreads
My review copy:	Bought

Where to get:

Georgie McCool knows her marriage is in trouble; it has been in trouble for a long time. She still loves her husband, Neal, and Neal still loves her, deeply — but that almost seems beside the point now.

Maybe that was always beside the point.

Two days before they’re supposed to visit Neal’s family in Omaha for Christmas, Georgie tells Neal that she can’t go. She’s a TV writer, and something’s come up on her show; she has to stay in Los Angeles. She knows that Neal will be upset with her — Neal is always a little upset with Georgie — but she doesn't expect him to pack up the kids and go home without her.

When her husband and the kids leave for the airport, Georgie wonders if she’s finally done it. If she’s ruined everything.

That night, Georgie discovers a way to communicate with Neal in the past. It’s not time travel, not exactly, but she feels like she’s been given an opportunity to fix her marriage before it starts...

Is that what she’s supposed to do?

Or would Georgie and Neal be better off if their marriage never happened?

(Goodreads)

Fangirl : Lanline :: Eleanor & Park : Attachemnts. (At least for me.)

I absolutely LOVE Landline. I read this book in a day because I could not put it down. I was a little worried about the paranormal aspect of talking to her past-husband, but it worked beautifully and no part of me ever went "No way would this ever happen." Granted, it's there's a high possibility it never will, but this felt real. I fully believe that Georgie was talking to her husband (then boyfriend) who was 18 years in the past.

Seeped in reality, Georgie and Neal's marriage is falling apart. She's always choosing work over family and her current choice of choosing work over a family trip to Omaha, it might be the last straw.

Taking place over the course of a few days, Georgie attempts to keep herself together while denying her life is falling apart. Refusing to stay in her empty house, Georgie bunks with her mother, stepfather, and sister. It's here that she finds some time portal to the past through her mother's landline, connecting her to Neal 18 years ago. Throughout the course of a few days and a series of phone calls, she reconnects with younger Neal and begins to examine her life.

Additionally, Rainbow gives us a peek into the early days of Georgie and Neal, allowing us a full fledged understanding of their relationship. I love the back and forth of the narration (past and present) because we don't just get to see Georgie and Neal as they are now, but as they were then. Young, carefree, and in love. Plus, we get to see their pre-relationship days of easy flirting, which were easily some of the cutest scenes in the book. These flashbacks allow us to become more invested in their relationship and develop a deeper hope that they will pull through.

With amazing supporing characters and a romance you can't help but swoon over, Landline will easily be one of my top 2016 reads.

Book Review: If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Series:	If I Stay #1
Genre:	Young Adult, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Family
Publication.Date:	April 2, 2009
Pages:	261 (paperback)
Published By:	Speak
Website:	Gayle Forman
	If I Stay on Goodreads
My review copy:	Bought

Where to get:

Just listen, Adam says with a voice that sounds like shrapnel.

I open my eyes wide now.
I sit up as much as I can.
And I listen.

Stay, he says.

Choices. Seventeen-year-old Mia is faced with some tough ones: Stay true to her first love—music—even if it means losing her boyfriend and leaving her family and friends behind?

Then one February morning Mia goes for a drive with her family, and in an instant, everything changes. Suddenly, all the choices are gone, except one. And it's the only one that matters.

If I Stay is a heart-achingly beautiful book about the power of love, the true meaning of family, and the choices we all make.

(Goodreads)

And there was so much noise. A symphony of grinding, a chorus of popping, an aria of exploding, and finally, the sad clapping of hard metal cutting into soft tress. Then it went quiet, except for this: Beethoven's Cello Sonata no. 3, still playing. The car radio somehow still attached to a battery and so Beethoven is broadcasting into the once-again tranquil February morning.

I want to break the double doors. I want to smash the nurses' station. I want it all to go away. I want to go away. I don't want to be in this hospital. I don't want to be in this suspended state where I can see what's happening, where I'm aware of what I'm feeling without being able to actually feel it. I cannot scream until my throat hurts or break a window with my fist until my hand bleeds, or pull my hair out in clumps until the pain i my scalp overcomes the one in my heart.

I'm staring at myself, at the "live" Mia now, lying in her hospital bed. I feel a bust of fry. If I could slap my own lifeless face, I would.

I have a feeling that once you live through something like this, you become a little bit invincible.

I know that makes me a bit of a hypocrite. If that's the case, shouldn't I stay? Soldier though it? Maybe it I'd had some practice, maybe if I'd had more devastation in my life, I would be more prepared to go on. It's not that my life has been perfect. I've had disappointments and I've been lonely and frustrated and angry and al the crappy stuff everyone feels. But in terms of heartbreak, I've been spared. I've never toughened up enough to handle what I'd have to handle if I were to stay.

If I Stay is a rather quick read - I read it in a matter of hours - because it's both short and engrossing. Unless you've been living under a rock, you know the premise of the novel. Mia and her family are involved in a fatal car accident that leaves her in some form of purgatory. Her body is unconscious, but her consciousness (?) is aware and drifting around the hospital watching her friends and family through an exceptionally emotional and dramatic time.
Mia's life story is told through a variety of flashbacks, typically inspired by those who are coming to visit her in the hospital or things they have said. I thoroughly enjoyed this type of storytelling as it allows us to feel what Mia was feeling and learn about her and her family.  We were able to connect with her in a way we wouldn't have been able to in a linear format. The memories themselves aren't linear, jumping from just a few months ago to being in the delivery room when her mother gives birth to Teddy and back.

Mia seems to have had a wonderful life, surrounded by love, and has she has these memories and sees her family surrounding her she is faced with the decision as to whether or not to stay. She is fully aware that if she does, nothing will be the same. But at the same time, is she ready to leave everybody behind? We don't get too much characterization of the other characters, but the peaks into Mia's life let us know that leaving them behind will not be an easy choice for her to make.

It's not a big secret that Mia lives (the sequel Where She Went that takes place between Mia and Adam three years later), but that doesn't take away from the emotional impact of If I Stay. I don't think you could read it and not be affected in some way.

Interview + Giveaway: Arrows by Melissa Gorzelanczyk

I am thrilled to be a stop on the book tour for Arrows by Melissa Gorzelanczyk hosted by Rockstar Book Tours! Today, I have an interview for your reading pleasure, but be sure to check out the additional stops below, or click on the tour banner above, for more!

Don't forget to enter the giveaway!

Title: Arrows
Author: Melissa Gorzelanczyk
Series: Standalone
Release Date: January 26, 2016
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction, Mythology, Romance
Find it: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks

A modern cupid story set in present-day Wisconsin combining the fantastical elements of Greek mythology with the contemporary drama of MTV's Teen Mom.

People don’t understand love. If they did, they’d get why dance prodigy Karma Clark just can’t say goodbye to her boyfriend, Danny. No matter what he says or does or how he hurts her, she can’t stay angry with him . . . and can’t stop loving him. But there’s a reason why Karma is helpless to break things off: she’s been shot with a love arrow. Aaryn, son of Cupid, was supposed to shoot both Karma andDanny but found out too late that the other arrow in his pack was useless. And with that, Karma’s life changed forever. One pregnancy confirmed. One ballet scholarship lost. And dream after dream tossed to the wind.

A clueless Karma doesn’t know that her toxic relationship is Aaryn’s fault . . . but he’s going to get a chance to make things right. He’s here to convince Danny to man up and be there for Karma. But what if this god from Mount Olympus finds himself falling in love with a beautiful dancer from Wisconsin who can never love him in return?

This fast-paced debut novel explores the internal & external conflicts of a girl who finds herself inexplicably drawn to a boy who seemingly doesn't reciprocate her feelings, touching on the issues of love, sex and responsibility, with a heroine struggling to control her destiny--perfect for fans of Katie McGarry's novels and MTV’s 16 and Pregnant.

Interview with Melissa Gorzelanczyk

Welcome to Bookish Lifestyle, Melissa! I'm so excited to have you here with us today! In tweet form (140 characters or less), how would you describe the story of Arrows to those who haven’t heard of it yet? 

Hey, thanks for having me.

Since my agent Carrie Howland and I met through a single tweet, I’ll throw-back to one of my original #PitMad entries:

An ambitious cupid is stripped of his power until he fixes a ballet prodigy’s life, originally derailed by his arrow. YA myth adapt #PitMad

What was the inspiration behind your story?

I think the plot started because I loved the idea of “cupids among us” while also being able to explore what love is, and what it’s not.

From there, inspiration was layered during multiple revisions and brainstorming sessions. Putting my own spin on the myth of Cupid and Psyche--as well as reflecting on bad relationships I’ve experienced or observed in real life--helped add depth to the story.

What is the hardest line to write - the first or the last?

I’d say the last. A scene doesn’t start to take shape for me until the first line feels right.

Teaser: the last line of Arrows is only two words.

What characters from mythology are your favorite? Do you have a favorite mythological couple? 

They’re all a little terrible, aren’t they? That said, of course I love Aaryn, the cupid in my book.

I also really really love Psyche—the girl who gave up her human existence for love. That’s so sweet and tragic and gutsy. And she stood up to her crazy mother-in-law.

What is the most memorable reaction you've had from a reader?

One girl finished my book and said it made her realize the relationship she was in wasn’t healthy. 

Now, I don’t hope everyone reading my book decides to break up, but I believe true love should feel good. I wrote more about that here: http://www.melissagorzelanczyk.com/blog/first-lines-love-shouldnt-hurt/

If I could live in any TV/movie/book universe, it would be . . . I’d want to switch between Gossip Girl (hello, Chuck Bass) and Friends (because I’d always be laughing).

If I could tell the world just one thing, it'd be . . . Take a chance.

I'm addicted to . . . Two things: Coffee, and that feeling I get when I write a line I love.

About the Author

Melissa Gorzelanczyk is a former magazine editor and columnist who believes love is everything. A dreamer for life, Melissa has been writing books since she was nine years old when she penned her first story about a beloved black horse. She is a member of the Class of 2k16, the SCBWI and The Sweet Sixteens. She lives in Green Bay, Wisconsin, with her husband and family.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule

1/18/2016- Seeing Double In Neverland- Interview
1/19/2016- A Perfection Called Books- Review
1/20/2016- Ohana Reads- Guest Post
1/21/2016- The Best Books Ever - Review
1/22/2016- Once Upon A Twilight- Review

1/25/2016- Bookish Lifestyle- Interview
1/26/2016- Literary Meanderings- Guest Post
1/27/2016- DanaSquare - Review
1/28/2016- Two Chicks on Books- Interview
1/29/2016- Here's to Happy Endings- Review

Interview + Giveaway: The Memory of Light by Francisco X. Stork

I am thrilled to be a stop on the book tour for The Memory of Light by Francisco X. Stork hosted by Rockstar Book Tours! Today, I have an interview for your reading pleasure, but be sure to check out the additional stops below, or click on the tour banner above, for more!

Don't forget to enter the giveaway!

Title: The Memory of Light
Author: Francisco X. Stork
Series: Standalone
Release Date: January 26, 2016
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction, Mental Health
Find it: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks

When Vicky Cruz wakes up in the Lakeview Hospital Mental Disorders ward, she knows one thing: She can't even commit suicide right. But for once, a mistake works out well for her, as she meets Mona, the live wire; Gabriel, the saint; E.M., always angry; and Dr. Desai, a quiet force. With stories and honesty, kindness and hard work, they push her to reconsider her life before Lakeview, and offer her an acceptance she's never had.

But Vicky's newfound peace is as fragile as the roses that grow around the hospital. And when a crisis forces the group to split up, sending her back to the life that drove her to suicide, Vicky must try to find the strength to carry on. She may not have it. She doesn't know.

Inspired in part by the author's own experience with depression, The Memory of Light is the rare young adult novel that focuses not on the events leading up to a suicide attempt, but the recovery from one -- about living when life doesn't seem worth it, and how we go on anyway.

“The Memory of Light is filled with hard truths and beautiful revelations. It’s a beacon of hope for those in the dark of depression. This book just might save your life.” -Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Isla and the Happily Ever After.

“The Memory of Light takes you to that cold strange place that is depression. Vicky’s journey back from darkness doesn’t simplify or sentimentalize the effects of mental illness. Francisco Stork shows us the universe of the human mind, how it can be terrifyingly dark – and how in the company of the right kind heart – infinitely dazzling.” –Martha Brockenborough, author of the Game of Love and Death

“Stork further marks himself as a major voice in teen literature by delivering one of his richest and most emotionally charged novels yet.” — Kirkus, starred review - 

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/francisco-x-stork/the-memory-of-light/

“Various studies have estimated that perhaps as many as one in five teens has a diagnosable mental health problem; it’s a subject that needs the discussion Stork’s potent novel can readily provide.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review -
http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-545-47432-0

“Vicky’s story has undeniable emotional strength and an encouraging, compassionate message. Stork writes his characters with authenticity and respect… informative and highly rewarding.” — Booklist, starred review

Interview with Francisco X. Stork

Welcome to Bookish Lifestyle, Francisco! I'm so excited to have you here with us today! In tweet form (140 characters or less), how would you describe the story of The Memory of Light to those who haven’t heard of it yet?

It’s the story of sixteen-year-old Vicky Cruz the day after a suicide attempt and her efforts to recover from an organic depression (one not caused by trauma) and the decisions she makes toward embracing life.

What is the hardest part of the writing process? Favorite part?

The hardest part was the craftsmanship required to captivate the interest of the reader from the first page to the last page. Vicky’s recovery and her interactions with the other patients in the hospital had to be both suspenseful and upbeat despite the serious subject matter of the book. Most of all, the reader needed to become invested in Vicky’s life and find it personally meaningful. My favorite part was entering the character’s mind so that I could think, speak and feel as someone with that kind of mental illness.

What do you do to recharge your batteries? What truly motivates you in general? In your writing?

Playing with my four-year-old granddaughter Charlotte brings me lots of joy. Our playtime consists of a lot of pretending (usually with me being some version of the Big Bad Wolf). I bring this joy of playing into my writing. For The Memory of Light, what motivated me the most was the thought of writing a book that would be helpful to a young person suffering from depression.

What is the weirdest thing you googled or came across during your research?

I don’t know if weird is the right word, but as I talked to survivors of suicide attempts, I was surprised by some of the reactions that parents had toward them. I didn’t expect stories of anger, disappointment and even rejection to the extent that I did.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

A little house within walking distance of the beach. Any place that is warm during the day for most of the year and has a cool breeze at night would do.

What was the last book you bought?

Desert Solitaire, A Season in the Wilderness, by Edward Abbey. My next novel is about a brother and a sister who cross over into the United States from Mexico and this beautiful book is helping me by giving me vocabulary, images and “feel” for their journey.

About the Author

Francisco X. Stork is the author of the acclaimed Marcelo in the Real World which received five starred reviews and won the Schneider Family Book Award for Teens; The Last Summer of the Death Warriors, named a New York TimesEditors’ Choice selection; and Irises. He was born in Monterrey, Mexico, spent his teenage years in El Paso, Texas, and now lives outside Boston, Massachusetts, with his family. Visit him online at www.FranciscoStork.com.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule

1/18/2016- Bookish Lifestyle- Interview
1/19/2016- Here's to Happy Endings- Review
1/20/2016- Storybook Slayers- Guest Post
1/21/2016- Such a Novel Idea- Review
1/22/2016- Literary Meanderings- Interview

1/25/2016- Worth Reading It?- Review
1/26/2016- The Bibliophile Chronicles- Guest Post
1/27/2016- Reading List- Review
1/28/2016- Paranormal Book Club- Interview
1/29/2016- Curling Up With A Good Book- Review

Book Review: A Mad, Wicked Folly by Sharon Biggs Waller

 

Series:	Standalone
Genre:	Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Romance, Realistic Fiction
Publication.Date:	January 23, 2014
Pages:	384 (Kindle)
Published By:	Viking
Website:	Sharon Biggs Waller
	A Mad, Wicked Folly on Goodreads
My review copy:	Borrowed from library

Where to get:

Welcome to the world of the fabulously wealthy in London, 1909, where dresses and houses are overwhelmingly opulent, social class means everything, and women are taught to be nothing more than wives and mothers. Into this world comes seventeen-year-old Victoria Darling, who wants only to be an artist—a nearly impossible dream for a girl.

After Vicky poses nude for her illicit art class, she is expelled from her French finishing school. Shamed and scandalized, her parents try to marry her off to the wealthy Edmund Carrick-Humphrey. But Vicky has other things on her mind: her clandestine application to the Royal College of Art; her participation in the suffragette movement; and her growing attraction to a working-class boy who may be her muse—or may be the love of her life. As the world of debutante balls, corsets, and high society obligations closes in around her, Vicky must figure out: just how much is she willing to sacrifice to pursue her dreams?

(Goodreads)

I wanted critics to laud my work. But most of all, I wanted to express myself through my art as I fancied, and not be told what or whom I could draw or paint.

"I don't expect you to understand the value of art. It's not a subject dullards and buffoons would be interested in," I said.

"Now see, that's where you'd be wrong. I find the illustrations on the Guinness beer adverts most inspiring."

A familiar feeling washed over me as I drew. I twas the one I'd had with Bertram and the other artists in the cafe that day in France after I had posed. I felt accepted for who I was. I didn't have to sort the words in my head first, making sure they were socially acceptable before I said them. I groped around for a word that fit.

Peace. I felt peaceful. I had come looking for a reference, but I had found so much more.

Then I knew: this wasn't just a passion I felt for my model. My feelings about him had nothing to do with how his looks inspired me; he was far more than a muse. With every stroke of pencil and crayon, I had drawn Will into my heart.

A Mad, Wicked Folly is one of those books that make me angry. Not because they're bad or anything along those lines, but because they portray and take place in a time where women had no voice. It's hard for me to fathom a time when women were truly considered the weaker sense and had no "understanding" about certain things. Where they went to school to learn how to be a wife and mother.

One of the characters even comments that if a man were to do what Vicky is doing he would be admired, but because Vicky has a vagina she is considered to just have bad behavior. Okay, he doesn't actually say "because she has a vagina," but I'm paraphrasing here.

I like Vicky, a lot. All she wants to do in the world is draw. She sneaks away from her reform school to draw with a bunch of boys, disobeys her parents demands, and applies to an art school all on her own and in secret. She is defying everything she has been taught to follow her dreams. How can you argue with a character like that?

Lucy, an American that Vicky meets outside one of the suffragists' events, I knew immediately that I was going to be fond of. She's the one who initially puts the thoughts of helping / becoming a suffragette into Vicky's head and it's her words that appear to push Vicky in the right direction (or wrong direction depending on your view point). And slowly but surely, becomes an excellent friend and confidant of Vicky's.

Then there's Will and Edmund. To those of you who detest love triangles, and I'll admit I've come across one or two in my time that were rather annoying, don't fret! Sharon handles this issue with dignity and grace. It is neither annoying nor obnoxious, nor is it cliche. Nor is it really a love triangle, but I can't go into those details without stating spoilers. Just know that the romance aspect of this novel is perfect. 

I have a soft spot for historical novels and A Mad, Wicked Folly is not different. Sharon clearly did her research (she also includes some notes at the end about this time period) and I loved turning to Google to look up the fashion and the historical figures she discusses. Sharon's characters come alive in a real time period during a real struggle for women. One of things I love is that she shows characters (men and women) on both sides of the suffrage struggle, which allows us a full glimpse into early 1900s London.

Filled with a sweet romance, women fighting for their rights, an exceptional cast of characters, and wonderful writing A Mad, Wicked Folly is definitely a novel that any one a fan of history and even those who aren't (yes, it's that good!) will enjoy.