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bonniereads777's reviews
1617 reviews
Meghan and Harry: The Real Story by Lady Colin Campbell
2.0
Meghan and Harry, The Real Story, is supposed to be the true story of Prince Harry and his wife Meghan's decision to step back from royal life, written by Lady Colin Campbell. Instead it is a very one-sided, unbalanced biography which constantly snipes at both the Prince and his late mother Diana.
The opposite of "Finding Freedom," which is also unbalanced and tries to paint the couple as completely innocent victims, "The Real Story," staunchly defends the rest of the royal family, putting the blame for everything on Harry and Meghan. I think the real answer lies somewhere in between the two books.
The thing that irked me the most was the author's continual digs at the late Princess Diana, and how she tries to blame Diana for some of Harry's actions, even though she died 23 years ago. The author constantly also insults the intelligence of both Diana and Harry, essentially, though not specifically, calling them both idiots.
The one thing that rang true for me was the author's contention that Meghan was trying to commercialize and make money off of their names and the Meghan and Harry brand from the very beginning. The author contends that when Meghan found herself essentially blocked from profiting off of their royal status, that is when she decided to leave. I find that to be plausible, especially since the couple recently signed a $150 million deal with Netflix as producers. To me, this essentially means that the actual producers use the names of the royals to gain attention for their products. I do think there is some truth to that claim.
The opposite of "Finding Freedom," which is also unbalanced and tries to paint the couple as completely innocent victims, "The Real Story," staunchly defends the rest of the royal family, putting the blame for everything on Harry and Meghan. I think the real answer lies somewhere in between the two books.
The thing that irked me the most was the author's continual digs at the late Princess Diana, and how she tries to blame Diana for some of Harry's actions, even though she died 23 years ago. The author constantly also insults the intelligence of both Diana and Harry, essentially, though not specifically, calling them both idiots.
The one thing that rang true for me was the author's contention that Meghan was trying to commercialize and make money off of their names and the Meghan and Harry brand from the very beginning. The author contends that when Meghan found herself essentially blocked from profiting off of their royal status, that is when she decided to leave. I find that to be plausible, especially since the couple recently signed a $150 million deal with Netflix as producers. To me, this essentially means that the actual producers use the names of the royals to gain attention for their products. I do think there is some truth to that claim.
The Boat Girls by Margaret Mayhew
4.0
The Boat Girls by Margaret Mayhew is historical fiction based on the real life Boat Girls who worked the canals in England during WWII.
Fans of historical fiction will enjoy this book, especially those, like myself, who had not heard of The Boat Girls.
I received a free copy of this book from the publishers and Netgalley. My review is voluntary.
Fans of historical fiction will enjoy this book, especially those, like myself, who had not heard of The Boat Girls.
I received a free copy of this book from the publishers and Netgalley. My review is voluntary.
Winter of the Wolf by Martha Hunt Handler
3.0
Winter of the Wolf is about a tragic loss, and how a family copes with it. Bean and her brother Sam are close, and share more with each other than they do anyone else in the family. When Sam dies of apparent suicide, Bean, her parents, and her remaining brothers struggle to cope. Bean cannot accept that Sam would kill himself, so she starts an investigation. What she finds is a deeper understanding of her own family, and eventually the truth.
What I loved about this book is the true way it deals with an apparent suicide and the family's reaction to it. Unfortunately I have experience with this situation. Each member blames themselves, which is very true to life, and each individual grieves in different ways. The person or person who finds the family member is haunted forever because they cannot unsee that image. Everyone in the family cannot help to think of how they might have been able to stop it. The author describes this so realistically. Some family members break and retreat, some try to act as if everything is normal, and some reach out to others. In this book, Bean's mother falls into depression and retreats to her room. Sometimes when a parent retreats in grief, a child takes over as parent, and that happens in this book in some ways.
There are some things I felt were not completed and left hanging in this book. Sam admired, studied, and emulated the Inuit people, and this was brought up often in the book, but was not fully realized. There were no Inuit characters and no communication with Inuit characters other than Bean reading some books. Towards the last third of the book, I began to wonder why the Inuit people were brought up at all. In addition, Sam's wishes for a green burial were raised, but not honored. A totem pole was brought up, but not fully realized. And most importantly, when Sam's parents learned the exact reason for his death, which was autoerotic asphyxiation, their response was pretty underwhelming and unrealistic for the situation.
Although this book was told from the perspective of a 15 - 17 year old girl, this is not a YA book. There are adult themes that need adult supervision such as suicide, sex, autoerotic asphyxiation, drugs, and the occult.
The audiobook is read by Kelly Pruner, who does a good job as the grieving teenage girl, Bean.
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publishers and Netgalley. My review is optional.
What I loved about this book is the true way it deals with an apparent suicide and the family's reaction to it. Unfortunately I have experience with this situation. Each member blames themselves, which is very true to life, and each individual grieves in different ways. The person or person who finds the family member is haunted forever because they cannot unsee that image. Everyone in the family cannot help to think of how they might have been able to stop it. The author describes this so realistically. Some family members break and retreat, some try to act as if everything is normal, and some reach out to others. In this book, Bean's mother falls into depression and retreats to her room. Sometimes when a parent retreats in grief, a child takes over as parent, and that happens in this book in some ways.
There are some things I felt were not completed and left hanging in this book. Sam admired, studied, and emulated the Inuit people, and this was brought up often in the book, but was not fully realized. There were no Inuit characters and no communication with Inuit characters other than Bean reading some books. Towards the last third of the book, I began to wonder why the Inuit people were brought up at all. In addition, Sam's wishes for a green burial were raised, but not honored. A totem pole was brought up, but not fully realized. And most importantly, when Sam's parents learned the exact reason for his death, which was autoerotic asphyxiation, their response was pretty underwhelming and unrealistic for the situation.
Although this book was told from the perspective of a 15 - 17 year old girl, this is not a YA book. There are adult themes that need adult supervision such as suicide, sex, autoerotic asphyxiation, drugs, and the occult.
The audiobook is read by Kelly Pruner, who does a good job as the grieving teenage girl, Bean.
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publishers and Netgalley. My review is optional.
One Last Child by Anni Taylor
5.0
Five children are abducted during a daycare outing. Three and a half years later, four of them are returned. Only Ivy, the granddaughter of homicide detective Kate Wakeland, is still missing and presumed dead. Not allowed to join the investigation, Kate is unofficially following the case while working on a separate murder investigation.
This is the first in a series about 64 year old Detective Kate Wakeland, and I can’t wait for the next book. There are twists and turns and a completely unexpected ending. I read this through in a day because I could not put it down. It grabs your interest, your imagination, and your heart. If you love murder mysteries, stories about family conflict, and stories with strong female characters, you will enjoy this book.
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley. My review is voluntary.
This is the first in a series about 64 year old Detective Kate Wakeland, and I can’t wait for the next book. There are twists and turns and a completely unexpected ending. I read this through in a day because I could not put it down. It grabs your interest, your imagination, and your heart. If you love murder mysteries, stories about family conflict, and stories with strong female characters, you will enjoy this book.
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley. My review is voluntary.