Her Royal Spyness Royal Spyness Mystery Series, Book 1 by Rhys Bowen

Her name is Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie and she is daughter to the Duke of Atholt and Rannoch. She is thirty-fourth in line to the throne, and she has not money.  None.  She has no job, no training, and no prospects.  She can marry Fish-face, or Prince Siegfried of Romania.  Her aunt, the Queen has also offered her the chance to be a lady in waiting in her castle.  But Georgie doesn't want any of that.  She wants to have a career and be self sufficient.  

In order for a young lady with a title to get a job, she has to go undercover.  She creates a cleaning service and some of her clients are London's wealthiest.  They would also recognize her, so she has to be very careful.  

She also discovers some secrets - some secrets that someone wants to keep badly enough that he or she would kill to keep the secret.  She has always been clumsy, but after a series of near misses, she realizes that someone is trying to kill her -and that someone is a member of London's upper crust society.  

Will she find the killer in time?  Can she keep food on her table and a roof over her head in the meantime to survive?  While there is humor in this book, there is also a clear message of how difficult it can be to just keep a roof over your head and survive in hard times.  

Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow

Hope.  That is the message of this book.  Even if you feel like you are totally messed up, or you are in a hole too big to dig out, or you just can't seem to catch a break.  There is hope.  You can get better.  Hope.

Charlie finds herself in a facility because she has harmed herself by cutting into her skin.  This time the cuts were bad enough to nearly kill her.  All of the girls at the facility have something in common:  they either burn or cut their skin, or abuse their bodies with drugs or alcohol.  After a few months in the facility, Charlie's insurance company will no longer pay for her treatment and her mother doesn't want her and her problems back in her home.  She exits the facility with no job, no home, or any place to go. 

Charlie is seventeen years old, and her options are few.  Luckily, Charlie finds friends who understand and support her, and help her realize she is not alone.  They give her hope and strength.
She is not alone.

There are estimations that one in every two hundred girls between thirteen and nineteen will self harm themselves.  There are few statistics on boys, but they also self harm as well.  Self harm is a coping mechanism for people who suffer from depression or mental illness.  Is isn't necessarily a cry for help or a warning that someone is suicidal. 

Kathleen Glasgow was a cutter.  She found her voice and solace in writing.  She strongly suggests that you find your solace and don't ever stop doing it.  Find your tribe and your reason to be. 

"I swear to you, the other side will emerge, slowly but surely.  It's not always sunshine and roses over here, and sometimes the dark can get pretty dark, but it's filled with people who understand, and just enough laughter to get you through the next day.  So:  go."  Kathleen Glasgow 

Be you.  And remember, there is Hope.  Always.

Prince Charles: The Passions and Paradoxes of an Improbable Life by Sally Bedell Smith

Who is the man who would be king?  What is he really like?  Will he ever be king?

Sally Bedell Smith gives us an insider's view of the life of a man who has waited his entire life to be king.  At age 68, he is set to inherit the throne from his mother, Queen Elizabeth II upon her death.  So what's a prince to do until that day?

Prince Charles is like many of us.  He deals with insecurities, overbearing parents, and a feeling that he doesn't know the direction his life should be heading.  Most of us muddle our way through, find our way, and settle into our lives.  Most of us, however, are not the future king of England.

Prince Charles leads a life of opulent luxury, but he also is passionate about agriculture, helping the poor, providing opportunities for underprivileged school children, and architecture.  He has spent his life behind the scenes working to fund his charities so others can benefit from the resources.

Again, like many of us, he has made some terrible mistakes.  His marriage to Diana was not good - right from the start.  His continued affair with Camilla was a royal scandal, and his decision making skills were not always up to par.

What we see as we read about Charles is his human-ness.  How would any of us deal with the daily pressures of royal life?  Would we deal well with always being on? Could we deal with the press prying into every aspect of our daily life?

If you are fascinated by the royal family (and I am), this might be a book you choose to pick up and read.  Bedell Smith is frank and shares a lot of information about the man who waits to be king.

The Others Series - Written in Red, Murder of Crows, and Vision in Silver by Anne Bishop

What did I read in August?  Well, August tends to be one of the busiest months of the year. (May is a close second.)  If you are in education, you know exactly what I am talking about.  However, in my downtime, and there wasn't much of it, but when I did have a chance to read, I picked up the books from the Others series.

Meg is trying to get away.  She isn't sure who she is trying to get away from or where she is going.  She just knows she has to be away from the Controller who keeps Meg and many others girls under his complete control.

Meg somehow ends up at the Lakeside Courtyard which is a series of businesses that are run by the Others.  The Others think of humans as prey, and human law does not apply within the confines of the Courtyard.  If a human ventures into the Courtyard or its lands after hours, a wallet or other identification will be supplied to the police, and the person will be considered missing/dead.

Meg would be in danger as she enters the Courtyard after hours, but for some reason, she doesn't smell like prey.  Meg also has the ability to sense danger, and can foretell the future when she has visions.

Simon doesn't like humans, but he wants to try an experiment with Lakeside Courtyard.  He wants the Others and humans to understand each other a bit more, and learn from each other.  He hires Meg as the Human Liaison in the mail room. Her job is to track and sort packages for the Courtyard.

What Simon soon realizes is there are people looking for Meg.  Very important people are looking for Meg.  People who have a lot of influence and money are looking for Meg.

What do these people want with Meg?  What will happen to Meg if they get to her?  What does it mean for the universe if Meg is captured?

This series takes a look at the world from the view of the animals and nature that inhabit it.  Humans have been know to wreak havoc on the natural balance, so their control must be limited. However, humans are a hearty breed, and they are always pushing back.

This book is very different from other fantasy books I have read.  It is yet another lesson on what happens if we humans are not good stewards in our world.  

The Women in the Castle by Jessica Shattuck

The title caught my eye.  The cover pulled me in closer.  I was with a group of students at Barnes and Noble, and I had to have this book.  There was just something about it that drew me to it.  I made sure it made it to the purchase basket. I have now finished the book, and it has been one of the most powerful, thought-provoking books I have ever read.

When Hitler came to power, Germany was rebuilding after a devastating end to the first world war.  Hitler promised to give them their country back, and give them good jobs.  He told the Germans that the Jews were rich businessmen who were making huge profits from Germany's troubled economy.

His solution?  He was going to send them back where they came from.  Where was this?  Many thought they were being sent back to Poland or Romania. Some thought maybe they were being sent to Israel.  Hitler had mentioned all Jews and immigrants were going to be sent to Madagascar to build their own country.  He also convinced the German people that the Polish and Slavic peoples belonged to a lower race and these people were essentially criminals.

Albrecht, Connie, Marianne, and a few others realize what Hitler really is. “For so long Marianne and Albrecht and many of their friends had known Hitler was a lunatic, a leader whose lowbrow appeal to people's most selfish, self-pitying emotions and ignorance was an embarrassment for their country.” Hitler was a danger to all of Germany, and the German people were too blind to see what was happening.  They were too busy in their own lives to care.  The churches were behind Hitler's theories because the leaders believed his words.

An assassination plot is crafted, and the men bring Marianne in on their plot for one reason:  if the plot fails, then she will be the one to keep the women and children safe.  Marianne knows this plot is extremely risky, but she also believes this is the only hope for their country.  

If you know history, then you know the assassination plot failed.  The men who were part of the plot were murdered in horrendous ways, and their wives and children were sent to work camps.  Marianne is able to get free, and then she starts her quest to find the wives and children of those men who were part of the assassination plot.  

This book kept me awake at night. There are so many parallels that I find increasingly troubling. Every day I see something in the news that reminds me of the words in this book.  When our youth are part of a political tirade, when a former leader is booed at a national gathering, and when the leaders of that group are smiling and clapping in the background.  I am sure you can think of more examples to add.

It is said that history always repeats itself, and I can remember from the time I could first read asking myself and others the question, "If we know about history and the mistakes we made the first time, why do we allow this to happen again?"  I ask all of you the same question today.

The Winner's Kiss by Marie Rutkoski

Arin thinks he is over Kestrel, but he is lying to himself. He thinks she has betrayed him and her words of love were false.   He has been told that Kestrel has married a prince from another country, and they are honeymooning in some faraway land.  Little does he know that Kestrel has been sent to a work/concentration camp because her father found out that she was in love with Arin, and was sympathetic to his country's cause.

War is eminent, and both Arin and Kestrel realize the need to fight the Emperor and his quest for land and power.  Kestrel must first escape from the work camp, and she cannot do that without strength.  Her daily rations are tainted with drugs that keep her from thinking clearly.  Will Arin find out about the lies he has been told before it is too late for Kestrel?  Will they ever be together again?

This book is a Young Adult Fantasy and is the final book in a trilogy called the Winner's Trilogy.  There is an element of romance, action, danger, and good versus evil.

Start with Book 1 (of course) and learn about how Arin and Kestrel meet when she purchases him at the slave auction.  Follow their adventures until the final battle.

Moonglow by Michael Chabon

Michael Chabon traveled across the country to California to help take care of his ailing grandfather.  The year was 1989, and while his grandfather was lucid, Michael listened to this grandfather tell the secrets of his life.  While his grandfather slept, Mike tried to put together the pieces of the story.

Those mostly one-sided conversations covered his early life, the time he spent in prison, World War II, his involvement with the Space Program, and life in a Florida retirement community.  Mike finds that there was so much more to this grandfather than he ever imagined, and he also discovers the answer to many unanswered questions about his family.

This novel is based on Chabon's real life history,  Sam is a man of many talents whose personality is one that the reader takes a while to discover.  His is a life full of discoveries, yet is also filled with extreme sadness.

One of my favorite parts of the book was the hunt for the python.  I highly recommend this book -especially for those who love the era of the 30's and 40's.

"We seemed to float right through the air

Heavenly songs seemed to come from everywhere

And now when there's moonglow, way up in the blue
I'll always remember, that moonglow gave me you."   

Moonglow by Tony Bennett