It’s 1902 in New York City and Francesca, a 20-year-old bluestocking, openly works for reform while secretly attending Brainard College. She is the youngest of three and still lives at home with her parents in what is called the Marble Palace because of its opulence. Francesca is determined to get a journalism degree and become the first woman reporter for a major New York newspaper and her mother is just as determined to see her marry well. Francesca is beautiful and wealthy and suitors have never been a problem, but she is known to be different from other girls her age, so her best friends are her sister Connie and her brother Evan.
If you like turn of the century New York, wealthy and powerful men and beautiful and smart women you should give it a try. The mysteries are good and the romance is hot. If you are sensitive to the way alpha males treat the women they love then this may not be the series for you. It’s a favorite series of mine and they really need to be read in order.
It’s no shock that most of the women of the world fell in love with Viggo after watching The Lord of the Rings trilogy. I’d seen him in a few movies before, but it was really that trilogy that made me take notice.
But, it’s the movies since then that have secured his place as one of my favorite actors. He could have played the Aragorn character for the rest of his life, but he didn’t. I’ve loved the surprise of his choices.
Born in NYC in 1958, he’s lives all over the world. He has a son who was in Crimson Tide with him. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish Studies.
As I watch more of these movies I’ll try to come back and update. I debated on whether to list the movies in chronological order or in the order I like them best. Since this is my blog I’m going with the way I like them best!
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, illustrated by Jim, Kay, story inspired by Siobhan Dowd. 4.5 stars, middle grade fiction, 206 pages, 2011
An unflinching, darkly funny, and deeply moving story of a boy, his seriously ill mother, and an unexpected monstrous visitor.
At seven minutes past midnight, thirteen-year-old Conor wakes to find a monster outside his bedroom window. But it isn’t the monster Conor’s been expecting– he’s been expecting the one from his nightmare, the nightmare he’s had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments. The monster in his backyard is different. It’s ancient. And wild. And it wants something from Conor. Something terrible and dangerous. It wants the truth. From the final idea of award-winning author Siobhan Dowd– whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself– Patrick Ness has spun a haunting and darkly funny novel of mischief, loss, and monsters both real and imagined. from Goodreads
If I know a book will likely make me cry, more often than not, I’ll skip it. Plenty of things to cry about in real life, I do not need to be sobbing when reading fiction.
This book was so good I didn’t even mind that it made me cry twice. Not just tears in my eyes, but having to close the book and grab some tissues. I can only speak to this illustrated version. The fantastic illustrations really added another layer to this story for me. They created just the the right amount of darkness and terror needed.
Conor’s mom has been sick awhile and he’s having trouble at school. When a monster appears he’s scared, but nothing can be as scary as his nightly nightmare. The monster tells his stories and Conor’s life continues to get worse.
This is a kids book, but it goes to dark places. I don’t want to give anything away, but there’s so much to say, but I don’t want to say all of the spoilery things.
Have you read it? I highly recommend, but would read it first before sharing it with your child. As a mom you want to be prepared to discuss.
“There is not always a good guy. Nor is there always a bad one. Most people are somewhere in between.”
“Stories are wild creatures, the monster said. When you let them loose, who knows what havoc they might wreak?”
“Your mind will believe comforting lies while also knowing the painful truths that make those lies necessary. And your mind will punish you for believing both.”
“Conor was no longer invisible. They all saw him now. But he was further away than ever.”
Stacy's Books 