The Phantom Tree

I really enjoyed this book!!

The Phantom Tree by Nicola Cornick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a very enjoyable book. The premise was intriguing--a time travel, missing persons, murder. I have read several romance novels by this author, so I was very interested to try this one out.
The beginning immediately drew the reader in: a woman in an obviously modern-day town happens to see a centuries-old portrait reportedly of Anne Boleyn. But the woman, named Alison, knows that this portrait is actually of a key person from her own past: Mary Seymour, daughter of Katherine Parr. As the book unfolds, the reader discovers that Alison and Mary became roommates at Wolf Hall in 1557. Mary is sensitive to otherworldly occurrences, and Alison becomes an inadvertent time-traveler. Alison has been trying to find a way to connect with Mary again for years, and believes that Mary has left her clues to unlock a mystery that will be the key to Alison's future.
The author creates a wonderful tone in the book that is tense, ever-so-slightly ominous, and a bit magical. I wanted to keep reading because the narrative switched back and forth between present Alison, past Alison, and past Mary. Once I finished the book I had to go back and re-read certain passages that were clues as to what happened later in the book.
There were a few places where I wished the author had elaborated a bit more on key events and things were glossed over that deserved a bit more attention.
Overall, however, I found this to be a great book, and once I finished it I was disappointed that I had to leave the world and feelings that the author had created. I would absolutely recommend this book.


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Brightly Burning

Well, I'm back after a massive break! School has started, and even though I am still busy with unpacking and getting settled in a new house, I am so far behind on my reviews.  I think it will be good to get back in a "routine." Even though it's a NEW routine!
This was a good book.  Not a great book, and certainly not an awesome book, but it was good.  The author did a great job with world building and creating her setting.
Now, I have never read Jane Eyre.  I have seen the 1996 movie.  And I read Jane Steele a couple of years ago.  Since this book was another take on Jane Eyre, maybe I should read it.  But due to the fact that I know how the story goes, I most likely will not...

Brightly Burning by Alexa Donne
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Okay, I am not sure how to review this book. It was described to me as a sic-fi take on Jane Eyre, and I received an ARC from the publisher. Although sic-fi is not my favorite genre, I did think the premise sounded interesting. Stella is an orphan who was sent to live on a farming ship years ago. She does not live in the best conditions, and applies for jobs off of her ship in an attempt to escape and find a better life. The only job she is offered is the governess to a young girl on an isolated ship that no one knows much about. Once on the ship, she meets the small crew and finds a place to fit in. Eventually the mysterious captain of the ship returns, and she finds herself drawn to him. As she gets closer to him, she begins to feel even more uncertain about her place on board the ship and the nature of his character.
The setting of this book, a small ship that is orbiting the moon, helps to create a feeling of isolation that contributes to the tone of the book. The bleakness of space is a big part of the story. I enjoyed the character of Stella. She was easy to identify with, and I found her relatable. The secondary characters were a bit flat, but not to the extent that it took away from the story.
The pacing of the book moved along very well, until about 1/3 to 1/4 of the way through. It was easy to tell that the story was moving towards a big event/reveal, but when it happened, it was rather anti-climactic. I found myself just thinking, "Really? That was it? Oh..." After that the plot dragged for several chapters. Then, all of a sudden, the story picked up in a very dramatic way, but the previous chapters had not helped to create a sense of tension or suspense, so the big action seemed kind of superfluous or inorganic. Huge exciting things were happening one after another--bang, bang, bang--but I did not feel invested in what was going on because the pacing was just all off.
All in all, I enjoyed the book until the very end. The lack of action, and then abundance of action in the last part of the book took me out of the story a bit. Nonetheless, it was still a good read.


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