Book Review: Tatiana and Alexander

Missed my review of The Bronze Horseman, book 1 in the series? Check it out here.

Book Review:

Tatiana and Alexander

The Tatiana and Alexander Series, Book 2

By Paullina Simons

Tatiana and Alexander (aka The Bridge to Holy Cross) picks up where the first book in the series, The Bronze Horseman, left off, sort of. The book begins in three parts. The reader follows Tatiana as she leaves the Soviet Union and starts a life and a family in New York. On the flip side, Simons shows the reader the life that Alexander lives from the moment he and Tatiana are separated. Finally, the story flashes back to Alexander as a boy, from leaving the U.S. as a boy with his communist parents, to his education and start in the military, ending when Alexander and Tatiana part ways.

Recommendation:  Of the trilogy, this was my least favorite. I was already attached to the characters when I started the novel, but I think it can also be a standalone novel, as there are enough flashbacks to fill in any holes in the story. However, because of the switching between storylines, I found the book a little hard to get into. It wasn’t until the first storyline was gone and the second close to it that I truly became engrossed in the story and the story.

I especially enjoyed reading about Alexander’s boyhood and Tatiana’s life in America (struggling with feelings for Alexander and the unknowns about his life), but I did feel a little short changed regarding the former. We have 500+ pages of Tatiana’s childhood and life during the war in The Bronze Horseman, but felt like it was only 100 or so pages about the same timespan in Alexander’s life. I wanted more. The flashbacks didn’t help with this – I ended up feeling like I was rereading parts of The Bronze Horseman, which might have made Tatiana and Alexander stronger as a standalone book, but I don’t think added a whole lot to the book as part of the series. Most of the flashbacks were just too close to Tatiana’s story in The Bronze Horseman to add much to this book.

While the structure of Tatiana and Alexander was very different from The Bronze Horseman, the character’s passion that the reader felt in the first book was still present in the second. Their love for one another was still vibrant, despite the challenges and separation they faced. Their pains and struggles were felt. You, the reader, wanted them to be together as much in this book as in the previous book. You wanted them to be a happy family.

Read this book, so that you can finish the series and find out whether or not Tatiana and Alexander live happily ever after. If you’ve become as attached to the characters as I have, it’s worth it.

Grade: B-

Book Review: The Bronze Horseman

I read The Bronze Horseman when it was first released and loved it. The series has been on my list for quite a while but I just never got around to picking it back up, until now. I reread The Bronze Horseman and loved it just as much as the first time I read it. I’ve finished the second book and am halfway done with the third (and last) book in the series. Can’t wait to see how it ends!

I usually like to review book series in a single post because I like the sense of continuity. However the post for this series was getting very long, even without my review of the third book. Therefore, I will be posting about each book in this series individually. Stay tuned for book 2 and book 3 over the next week or two.

Warning: This review contains slight spoilers.

Book Review:

The Bronze Horseman

The Tatiana and Alexander Series, Book 1

By Paullina Simons

On the eve of Russia entering World War II, 16-year old Tatiana meets Alexander, a young officer in the Soviet Union’s Red Army. Unbeknown to the two, Tatiana’s sister had been seeing Alexander for two weeks and had already fallen in love with him. As the Soviet Union enters WWII, an odd sort of love-triangle ensues. Tatiana and Alexander are madly in love but Tatiana refuses to break her sister’s heart.

As Leningrad is blockaded, Tatiana and her family struggle to survive on the increasingly smaller rations and diminishing stockpile of food. On top of that, they must survive through German bombings and street violence unleashed by desperate, starving people. Tatiana has it worst of all. Amidst the hazardous trips to the store to get the family rations, she struggles with feelings of betrayal (that she is betraying her sister) and with hiding her feelings during Alexander’s visits to the family.

Half way through the book, the plot changes a bit to focus on Alexander and Tatiana (and no, I won’t tell you why/how) – their love, their life together and their life apart. There are less scenes set during civilian life and more scenes set amidst the Red Army, as Alexander and the Soviet Union continues fighting Germany and Tatiana becomes a nurse in Leningrad. Their love is so intense that you can’t help wanting the novel to end with Alexander and Tatiana living happily ever after.

Recommendation: Loved loved loved this book.  Can’t recommend it enough. I love the historical fiction – the insight into life in the Soviet Union as well as the nation at war – mixed with a passionate romance. The book was well written, and the characters well-developed. I couldn’t put it down.

More than anything, throughout the book, you can feel the characters’s emotion and the passion, something I find rare in many books. It’s one thing to get absorbed in the story, but another to feel the sense of dread in the pit of your stomach or the excitement bubbling over. It’s a huge compliment to Simons as an author that she’s able to make the reader (or at least this reader) feel that way.

If you’ve read The Bronze Horseman, please leave me a comment and let me know what you thought about it. I’d really like to hear if you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Grade: A+

Book Review: The Invisible Bridge

Book Review:

The Invisible Bridge

By Julie Orringer

In 1937, a young Hungarian Jew, Andras Lévi, receives a scholarship to study architecture in France. Not long after arriving, he is notified by the school that Hungary is no longer offering scholarships to Jews. The anti-Jew laws have begun. Andras figures out a way to continue his schooling without the scholarship, working hard first at a local theater and later with a set builder. His free time is spent with Claire Morgenstern, a dance teacher 9 years older than him who grew up in Hungary but had lived in Paris for 15 years. Meanwhile, Lévi’s brothers – Tibor and Matyas – are pursuing their own education, Tibor at medical school in Italy and Matyas finishing high school in Hungary.

When World War II starts, Hungary refuses to reissue visas and the Lévi brothers are forced to return home. Claire Morgenstern, né Klara Hasz, returns with Andras at great risk to her life and family. As a young girl, Klara and a friend had been attacked by policemen and she ended up killing her attackers. A warrant was still out for her arrest.

The second half of the book takes place as Hungary becomes involved in WWII – switching back and forth between stories of Andras & his brothers and Klara & the rest of the family. All three brothers are conscripted into labor battalions, separated from each other and their families for most of the war. They suffer prejudice and abuse. They watch injustices taking place, and if they’re lucky, they are shown a little bit of kindness by an officer or a guard. Meanwhile, Klara, Tibor’s wife, and the rest of the family continue to live in changing city of Budapest. Curfews are imposed; food becomes scarce. They move to the ghettos; deportations start and stop. Letters between Andras and Klara trickle to a stop.

Review & Recommendation: For me, The Invisible Bridge started off a little tough. I think it took me a little while to get accustomed to the unfamiliar names and to remember the characters. While I read this book at a much slower pace than I read most others, within 25 pages or so, I found it easier to connect to the characters and became engrossed in the story.

The Invisible Bridge, Julie Orringer’s first novel that was inspired by her grandparents>, is a great tale of war, courage, family, and love. This is not a story where everyone lives happily ever after. Not every romance turns out like Cinderella. Family members fight and make up. Mistakes are made and prices are paid. Not everyone lives at the end. It’s reality. But this story reminds you not to take what you have for granted. It reminds you that a simple kindness, a small gesture, can mean the world to someone else both in times of peace as well as in times of war.

If you enjoy historical fiction, The Invisible Bridge is definitely worth reading.

Grade: B+

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Book Review: Ken Follett’s Epic Novels

Book Review:

The Pillars of the Earth & World Without End

The Pillars of the Earth Series

By Ken Follett

I was hesitant to pick up The Pillars of the Earth and it’s sequel, World Without End. You see, whenever there’s hype about a movie, I tend to be sorely disappointed. It’s less the case with books, but the hype still makes me wary about starting a certain books. What had I heard about these two epic novels (almost 1,000 pages each) ? I heard that The Pillars of the Earth was amazing, and World Without End was a let down after the first novel.

All in all, I enjoyed these two books but I didn’t completely agree with what I had heard about either book. The two books were set in England during the twelfth and fourteenth centuries, respectively. I remember in high school learning about the kings and queens, about the peasants and nobles, about the Crusades… These two books brought all of that textbook learning into context.

The Pillars of the Earth: While I enjoyed this first book, by no means did I think it lived up to all the hype. I appreciated the historical setting and the plot. The book was largely centered around the growth of a priory and town, and the efforts of its inhabitants to better their lives. The construction of the town’s cathedral played a central part in the story, throughout the book.

I appreciated the characters: monks  and a prior at a monastery who struggled to bring wealth to the town and overcome obstacles from the priory’s superiors; a builder and his children, who struggled to not only survive but to reach his goals of building one of the greatest cathedrals in England; a noblewoman whose family had fallen from their position, her struggle to support herself and her brother, and her search for happiness; and noblemen who terrified the town. Some characters were horribly crude and mean. Those characters made me thankful that I didn’t live in that time, where pillaging and rape seemed to be almost expected and accepted. But the characters that persevered despite all that was against them gave me hope. They worked and fought so hard, I was happy to see them achieve their goals and desires in the end.

World Without End: Like The Pillars of the Earth, the World Without End was not what I had heard. I heard it was very disappointing. Some even argued not worth reading. I debated about whether or not to read the novel but I don’t like not finishing series so I gave it a shot. I actually found it easier to get into, but there was most definitely a dry period in the middle of the book. I’m glad I read the second book but it definitely wasn’t as good as the first.

World Without End had the same strengths as The Pillars of the Earth – a fantastic historic perspective and very strong characters. However, the plot was a bit more difficult to get through. The construction of town landmarks – a bridge, a hospital, the rebuilding of the cathedral – continued to play an important part in the book, but so did war and the plague. It was the emphasis on war towards the center of the book that made this book drag, but once those scenes passed, the book picked up again.

Several of the characters in this sequel were ancestors of the main characters in The Pillars of the Earth. The characters were constantly overcoming obstacles to their wealth and happiness – a cruel nobleman, an unfair religious figure, laws favoring the nobility… but despite all of it, they persevered. Their dedication towards their professions, their friends, and their family were encouraging. To push so hard in the face of so many challenges is really inspiring.

Recommendation: If you enjoy novels set in the past, then these two books are worth reading. If that’s not your cup of tea, these will probably be difficult to make it through.

Grade: B-

A Bit of Comfort: The Princess Bride & Hot Cocoa

When things are tough, I usually curl up and lose myself in a book. I burrow under a blanket with tea, hot chocolate, or wine by my side. I let the characters take my problems away. The Princess Bride is one of my favorite books to curl up with. I can read it over and over again. As the weather turns chillier and the blanket comes out (along with this book!), I heat up a glass of hot chocolate and get ready to spend a long afternoon on the couch. The hot chocolate recipe is a new favorite recipe of mine. I’ve given it as a gift, but not going to lie, I kept lots for myself.

One of my favorite food blogs is Everyday Annie (previously Annie’s Eats). It’s the first blog I check in the morning; it’s the first blog I check for recipe ideas. Annie is a full-time doctor, wife and mother. Every time I read her blog, I’m amazed at how much she has accomplished.

Last week, on Thanksgiving day, Annie’s father passed away unexpectedly. As I was blessed with a wonderful day with my parents, in-laws, and siblings, Annie was grieving. Tears come to my eyes as I try to imagine what she must be going through. Annie, I’ve never met you, and you probably don’t follow my blog. But this post is dedicated to you and your family. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

The Princess Bride

By William Goldman

The Princess Bride is a classic. You know the movie? Well, the book is even better.

A father reads aloud to his his sick 10-year old son a story by S. Morgenstern. The story that has everything in it: “Fencing. Fighting. Torture, Poison. True love. Hate. Revenge. Giants. Hunters. Bad men. Good men. Beasts of all natures and descriptions. Pain. Death. Brave men. Coward men. Strongest men. Chases. Escapes. Lies. Truths. Passions. Miracles.” (p 9-10) Years later, Goldman gives the book to his own son for his tenth birthday and goes on to discover that S. Morgenstern’s story is not what he thought it was. Goldman discovers that his father only read him the “good parts.” This book is Goldman’s 1973 adaption of S. Morgenstern’s tale, leaving out the boring family genealogies and pages upon pages of descriptions where nothing happens.

Buttercup was a milkmaid and the prettiest girl alive. She falls in love with her “farm boy” Westley, who leaves to make his fortune in America. Not long after he sets sail, Buttercup receives a letter saying that his ship was taken by the Dread Pirate Roberts, who never leaves prisoners alive. That was the last Buttercup heard of her one true love.

Buttercup’s beauty wins her a an engagement to Prince Humperdinck of Florin. Just before their wedding, Buttercup is kidnapped. Twice. The next two hundred pages is packed with fighting, plotting, deceiving, and revenge as Westley struggles to rejoin his one true love.

If this story rings a bell, it’s because the movie was pretty true to the plot as well as the dialog. However, like all movies, it’s impossible to fit everything into two hours. Read the book. You’ll learn the stories behind Fezzik and Inigo – how they ended up with Vizzini the Sicilian, what Fezzik’s childhood was like, and how Inigo’s father died at the hands of the 6-figured man. These are the pieces that make me like the characters even more.

Recommendation: Read it. Please.

Grade: A+

And to go with The Princess Bride…. make some of this hot chocolate mix. Give some as gifts or hoard it all. But if you give it as a gift, you should at least hoard a little bit. You’d be sad if you didn’t. And then make it every night with a generous dollop of whipped cream. It’s rich, it’s decadent. It’s grown-up hot chocolate. It’s amazing.

Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix

This recipe was adapted from Gourmet (2005) via Everyday Annie

Ingredients:

  • 2 c. vanilla sugar
  • 3/4 lb. good quality semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
  • 4.5 oz. good quality bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
  • 1 c. Dutch process cocoa powder (I used Ghirardelli unsweetened cocoa since I’m unable to find Dutch process cocoa powder)

Place all ingredients in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Pulse until chocolate is finely ground (mixture should be completely combined).

Makes 38 servings (2 Tbs. mix or 1 c. hot chocolate).

Serve: Mix 2 Tbs. mix with 1 c. warm/hot milk or water, stirring until all chocolate is melted.

Storage: Store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.