Book Review: Much Ado About Marshals by Jacquie Rogers

This is a delightfully fun, sweet read.

Much Ado About Marshals

by Jacquie Rogers

• Paperback: 306 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace (October 24, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 146639952X
• ISBN-13: 978-1466399525

Genre:  Historical Romance

My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Book Description

Publication Date: October 24, 2011

Buy a copy and see for yourself what everyone is talking about. Once you read just one of Ms. Roger's books, I can assure you that you'll be a fan... Diana Coyle, NOR Reviewer

*** CTRR Award ***

Jacquie Rogers creates a witty, delightful, and downright amusing book with impressive charming players. Cherokee, Coffee Time Romance and More Reviewer

Like romance? Love stories about the old west? Want a dreamy cowboy to cuddle up and read about? Then this is the book for you.

~~My Eclectic Bookshelf, 5 dragonflies

Daisy Gardner wants to be a detective just like dime novel heroine Honey Beaulieu.  To her delight, her sister shot a bank robber and he got away, so now she even has a crime to solve. But her parents insist she marry a man whose farm is miles from town.  She can't solve crimes stuck out there. What better solution than to marry the new marshal!

Rancher Cole Richards saves his friend from robbing a bank, but is shot for his efforts, and now is a wanted man.  His friend takes him to Oreana to see the doc, where Cole's mistaken for the new marshal.  Now he faces a dilemma few men have to face--tell the truth and hang, or live a lie and end up married. Either way could cost him his freedom.

Review:
Daisy is a feisty and curious young lady of the America 1885 West.  Her parents own the local general store and want her to settle down with a save, successful farmer. But Daisy has a mind and will of her own and she has decided that she will marry the new marshal.  She plans to be a female detective working right by his side.

Cole Richards is mostly unconscious when his faithful, but somewhat bungling friend, Bosco, brings him to the Doctor in Oreana. Daisy helps the Doctor tend to the injured stranger who they think is the new marshal since he fits the description and they got a wire that the Marshal would be arriving late due to an attack and leg injury. Daisy immediately sets her sights on winning “the Marshal.”

The problem is that Cole knows he is not only not the Marshal but he believes that Daisy’s sister can identify him as one of the men who bungled a bank robbery a week or so before.  Cole thinks  he isn’t good enough for the sweet, stubborn lady who is bent on getting fingerprints to proof the identity of the bank robbers.  The Marshal’s resistance is frustrating to Daisy but she will do whatever it takes, even if it means she has to stoop to feminine seduction.

In addition to the fun push and pull between Daisy and “the Marshal” there are several other delightful, quirky characters. Daisy’s best friend, Sarah, is looking for a handsome man too. The reputable farmer is nice but not alluring. On the other hand the latest stranger in town, the rugged, smart, 'Sam Jones', does catch her attention.  And Jones has the best trained and smartest mule, Katie, who might just steal the show even over the troublesome mutt, Winky, who knocks over an occupied privy!

Ms. Rogers has presented some really likeable characters in a fun, ‘mistaken identity’ plot. There is sweet sensual interest with a zing of sassy innuendo. The flow of the story is easy and light as you chuckle through the frustrations of the characters. I recommend this to anyone who likes romantic comedy and historical western romance. When you want something fun to read - pick this up and enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few fun quotes:

Cole's thoughts on his cowhand buddy:

Few men had bigger hearts than Bosco, even if the poor fellow was one ox short of a team. Location 335.

The Judge has Daisy lock in the cell with Cole:

[Daisy:] "You have no charge against me..."
"The charge is the refusal to listen to the evidence."
"I have not refused to listen to any evidence. I know the facts."
Judge Glover chuckled. "Case in point."  Location 5813.
 

I am glad I won this book and appreciate Jacquie agreeing to an interview and Giveaway - see the next post.

I will add this to Idaho for my Where are You Reading Challenge. It will also go on my TBR and New Author Challenge lists.

Martha's Bookshelf***Friday Pick May 18, 2012

[** If you are new to Friday Pick Giveaway - Welcome!  Scroll down a bit (below book group #19) for instructions on how to enter.] 

Happy Friday folks. Have you had a good week? I have -- busy but good.

Thank you to all who entered May 11 Pick.  There were TWO Automatic winner this week (those who requested the book four times and I did not note other people asking for that book during those weeks).
There was one book blocked by multiple requests again.
Carol L picked the Long Way Home
Linda K picked the The Ripple Effect
 

CONGRATULATIONS

to Random.org picked Winners from May 11 Pick:

janhvi chose a Gift Card
and

Maria chose Blood and Glory

All winners please fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me to confirm your win, send your snail mail address information and let me know if you would like bookmarks - sensual or sexy and I have a new supply of sweet bookmarks.

For sure My Rooms contain books!!
Image found at Hanging Plaques

New Book Group #28 May 18, 2012
*asterisks indicate lighter, smaller books suitable for international

Wanna Get Lucky? by Deborah Coonts

Sleeping Arrangements by Madeline Wickham

Game Over by Fern Michaels

Forever Victoria by Dorothy Garlock

Sleeping Alone by Barbara Bretton

Gentle From the Night Meagan McKinney (spine creased)

In Too Deep by Tina Wainscott

Gabriel's Lady by Ana Seymor

Wildflower by Jill Marie Landis

*Love and Other Four Letter Words by Caroline Mackler

*The Carousel by Rosamund Pilcher

*Shades of Grace by Barbara Delinsky (audio tapes)

Nightshade by John Saul

The Heart of Justice by William L. Coughlin

Cross Country by James Patterson

Fresh Disasters by Stuart Woods

New book Group #27 April 13, 2012
Some of the books on the right end are smaller and suitable for overseas mailing. :-)

Skylight Confessions by Alice Hoffman

Hannibal Rising by Thomas Harris (spine damage)

An Earl to Enchant by Amelia Grey (spine damage)

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

When Dreams Come True by Cathy Maxwell (slight spine wear)

A Week in Winter by Marcia Willett

Slow Heat by Erica Spindler

The Trouble with Joe by Emilie Richards

Midnight Hour by Debra Dixon

September Morning by Diana Palmer

Beneath the Surface by Annie White (slight spine wear)

The Amazing Mrs. Polifax by Dorothy Gilman

*The Dream Horse by Virginia Campbell Scott

*Summer's Belle by Paige Winship Dooly
*Not Looking for a Texas Man by Lass Small
*Ladies Start Your Engines

New book Group #26 March 2, 2012
These are Paired sets - two per author.
Four are parts of series the others are just singles by the same author.
Winners get both books if you pick these.

Nora Roberts
     Inner Harbor (#3 Cheasapeake Bay Series) and Blue Dahlia (SC) (#1 In the Garden Trilogy -(nice trilogy!)
Dick Francis
     Smokescreen (SC) and Field of Thirteen

New Group #25 January 12, 2012

*Smaller books on the right would be okay for most international mailing.

Leopards Kill by Jim DeFelice

Category 7 by Bill Evans and Marianna Jameson

Long Way Home (Friends Romance Series) by Wendy Corsi Staub

Hell's Belle by Jane Holleman

The Firebird Deception (Silhouette Bombshell) by Cate Dermody

*Shadow Rider: Apache Sundown by Jory Sherman

*Prime Time by Sandra Brown  

*Out of the Blue (Allegheny Hopes) by Janice A. Thompson

New Group #24 Pick Books November 25, 2011
(The only Thanksgiving title I found is a Harlequin I'd like to read someday so no Thanksgiving titles for November.)

Green Calder Grass by Janet Dailey

New Group #23 Pick Books October 14, 2011
I tried to pick some books that would be good for October -
Halloween or dark minded.

Ghost Writer (Shivers #3) by M.D. Spenser

Emily's Good Nightmare by Cosmic Debris Cosmic

Death Angel by Linda Howard

New Group #22 Pick Books September 2, 2011

Singles:

Tender Triumph by Judith McNaught

New Group #21 of Pick Books July 29, 2011

There are eight mysteries and I have asterisked nine books that are smaller and would be good for oversea choices if so desired.

Mallory's Oracle (Kathleen Mallory Novels) by Carol O'Connell

* I. O. U by Pickard, Nancy (spine creased)

Stand by Me Anthology with Dallas Schulze, Roberta Leigh and Linda Randall Wisdom (spine creased)

May, 2011 New Group of Pick books

Group #20

Singles

Luciano's Luck by Jack Higgins - Audio Cassettes

3/25/11 I did get to set up a new group of books:

Group #19

Singles

Primary Colors - audio tapes

Note of Peril (black strip on cover)

2/19/11 Book Group #18- Pairs!

Not all of these are two from a series but several are. Each pick gets two books.

Patricia Cornwell Pair:

Cruel and Unusual

At Risk (Win Garano)

I have finally updated the intro and Entry paragraphs here:

If you saw the pictures posted of my bookshelves and boxes you know I do have lots of books! And that doesn't include the other eight or so boxes at my office!! And more books as I find deals too good to pass up! I am sharing my book bounty by these Friday Pick Giveaways. 

I started Friday Pick in November 27, 2009 and in two years I  posted 26 groups of 16 books to find new homes! (March 2012)

I have periodically update the lists - deleting those won. You can still go to the Friday Pick list link to see older posts and the older lists book pictures if you want! I am happy to say that so far about 356 books have found new homes! YAY. I have to update my print out to check the exact number sent out - a few were never claimed.

Note rules here regarding international entries.

Because postage to overseas can be prohibitive I am willing to give a $5.00 book certificate to international winners - Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Borders, ARe, TWRP, ClassAct Books, eTreasures, Desert Breeze, etc....you tell me where and I'll set it up. So for my overseas visitors your comment may indicate a smaller book and I'll check postage or note your choice of gift card.

I learned that The Book Depository does not ship to everywhere. The postage for some of the books to far away places runs between $5.00 and $6.00 and up. Since I would award $5.00 for The Book Depository to an international winner, as an alternative you may choose a smaller book and we will hope the postage will not exceed $6.00. If the postage is more, or if you want to pick a larger book and you are willing to pay any extra postage beyond the $6.00 I will work with you on that. This may not make a difference to many but if it helps one or two of you to give one of my books a home that will make me happy too. :o)

TO ENTER:

Leave a comment and tell me WHICH BOOK you would like to get from the Friday Pick lists.
CUT OFF TIME IS THURSDAY NIGHTS AT 10:00 PM CENTRAL so I do not have to stay up past midnight to do the winner post!
I will randomly pick two winners to announce Friday mornings with the next Pick post.
Automatic wins are those who requested the book four times and I did not note other people asking for that book during those weeks.

WINNERS PLEASE CHECK THE WIN POST ON FRIDAYS AND fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me at mesreads@gmail.com. [I will confirm receipt of the addresses- well I realize I haven't always done this. But if you filled out the form and don't get the book within two weeks nudge me with an email please!] If I have the winners e-mail I will send a reminder in a week or so....

Thanks for helping these books find new homes!!

Repeating this helpful blog tip: You can right click on a link and you will be given the choice to open the link in a new window or tab so you do not navigate away from the screen you are on!! I use this all the time!

1/14/11 New List
#17
Moonfire by Judith Redman Robbins
Saving Faith by David Baldacci (Audio Book)

12/3/10 Book Set:

#16

Best Of Enemies by Taylor Smith

Sleight of Hand by Robin Hathaway

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

List #15---

List #14

Blood And Glory (Soldiers Of War) (Soldiers of War, Book 1) by Larson Reed

Gospel Truths by J.G. Sandom

Here is set #13 of Used books!

Pearl Beyond Price by Claire Delacroix

This is a group of books I have had for several years but not gotten to read. Since it doesn't look like I will get to read them for another year (or more!) I am passing them on. Although as I type them part of me still says "But you may want to read that some day!" Yes, yes; along with the other 700 books I am housing! Must Let goooooo.....

Group #12

The Ripple Effect by Lynn Erickson

Group #11

Cat's Eyewitness by Rita Mae Brown

Alien Chronicles - The Crimson Claw by Deborah Chester

Snow in April by Rosamunde Pilcher

Looking Back by Belva Plain

The Ring on Her Finger by Elizabeth Bevarly

List #1
Circle of Stars by Anna Lee Waldo

Pick #2

The Blue Zone by Andrew Gross

Pick #3

One Eye Closed by Karen Whiddon

Pick #4

Talking God by Tony Kellerman

Everything to Gain by Barbara Taylor Bradford

The Sixth Sense

The Shadow by Shelley Munro (PA)

Pick #5

See Jane Lead by Lois P. Frankel

The Daddy Spell by Patti Ann Cole

Misfortune by Nancy Geary

Cold Hit by Linda Fairstein - Audio Tapes

Pick #6

Elusive Love by Catherine Lanigan

Pick #7

Prey by Michael Crichton - Audio Tape

Princess Charming by Jane Heller (slightly creased)

Pick #8

(sc) = slightly creased on binding otherwise all in good shape

The Jury by Steve Martini - Audio Tapes

No Safe Place by Richard North Patterson - Audio Tapes

Pick #9

Three Weddings and a Kiss - Anthology

On Treacherous Ground by Earl Murray

Guardian by Dee Henderson - Audio Tapes

Time to Hunt by Stephen Hunter - Audio Tapes

Pick #10

The Third Twin by Ken Follett (spine creased)

Dreams Gather by Kathryn Collins (sc)

Audio Book Review: Turn Up For the Book by Julia Franklin

Here is a book with British drama and humor that includes a book shop... fun for book lovers. :-)

Turn Up For The Book

by Julia Franklin

• Audible Audio Edition
• Listening Length: 10 hours and 3 minutes
• Program Type: Audiobook
• Version: Unabridged
• Publisher: Books Are Loud
• Audible.com Release Date: September 20, 2011
• Language: English
• ASIN: B005QAA90K

Also Available at Electric Breeze Audio UNABRIDGED by Julia Franklin
Narrated by Julia Franklin
LENGTH 10 hrs and 3 mins
PRICE £7.99

Genre:  Romantic Comedy, British Chick Lit
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Product Description
This is a debut novel from actress and audiobook reader Julia Franklin. 'I've read somewhere between 300 and 400 novels as audiobooks over the last 25 years,' she says, 'so I thought it was time to have a go at a novel of my own.' The result is Turn Up for the Book, a romantic comedy that begins with the breakup, one Christmas, of a marriage.
Poor Viv has begun to look like the sofa she sits on most of the time. No wonder her unfaithful husband, Clive, is leaving her for a glamorous supermodel. But over the next 12 months, she will find that books and friendship will move her to a different kind of sofa altogether. Set against a background of publishing, food, and drink, oh yes, and maybe murder, Turn Up for the Book is a lovely lighthearted companion to warm you on dark winter evenings.

Review:
I think I would classify this as British chick lit more than romantic comedy.  It actually begins rather tragically but there is a good bit of irony and comedy further along in the story, with some true “laugh out loud” moments.

The primary figure in the story is Viv who has allowed her appearance to deteriorate over years of marriage to her unfaithful husband, Clive. This time Clive has chosen to leave her rather than just have an affair.  To make matters worse, he is leaving Viv, and their teenage son and daughter, for the beautiful wife of one of their best friends, Keith.  Keith had left his first wife, Ruth, for the beautiful model, Ursula.

Viv is devastated by Clive’s announcement and the children are angry and soon have emotional struggles that add to Viv’s own emotional difficulties.  Viv works at a book shop called Turn Up for the Book. Her employer is stingy and mean but Viv loves the work and is a diligent employee. As the book progresses the reader/listener has the fun of hearing Viv’s imaginary comebacks to and plans for ridding herself (creative murders) of her boss.

Ms. Franklin weaves the characters with good development so you understand where they are coming from and you can follow their interactions.  When Ruth discovers that Ursula has left her ex for Clive, she doesn’t have a lot of sympathy for Viv until she learns that it was Keith and Clive that told Viv to terminate contact and friendship with Ruth. Ruth is now a successful restauranteur and she calls Viv and pushes her to assert herself and pull herself from the depression she has settled into.

Viv is required to do a live interview at an author book signing. It is surprisingly successful and she gets called in to do a short weekly ‘Review the Book’ radio program which gets off to a slow start.  One night, in complete frustration, Viv steals the show and creates quite a stir by being bluntly honest about the “popular” books.

Clive discovers that Ursula isn’t quite what he expected while Keith begins a new relationship. 
There are new boyfriends for Ruth and Viv who have ironic connections to some of the other characters.  Although the story started on a sad note it ends up in an ironically positive position.

Ms. Franklin is the narrator so who better to tell the story as she intended it?  I enjoyed her British accent that fit so well with the characters' emotions. It is a shame that the sole rating I saw at Audible was negative as I found this an enjoyable listen even though it is not a genre I read a lot. I think you should give this book a try, in ebook or audio, if you don’t mind a bit of romantic drama and especially if you enjoy dry British wit, humor and irony.

Thank you to AudioJukebox and Books Are Loud for the opportunity to enjoy and review this audio.

I will add this to my New Author, ARC and Audio Challenges.

Novel Publicity Blog Tour: Interview with Alyson Miers and Giveaway

I shared my review of Chalinder's Walk in the preceding post. Now, please help me welcome the author, Alyson Miers, and Charlinder to share about their experiences.

Hello Alyson! Thank you for sharing at Reviews by Martha’s Bookshelf. I have really enjoyed Charlinder’s Walk and there are so many issues covered I am not quite sure where to begin the questions! 

Questions for Alyson:

Q1  How did Charlinder’s Walk develop? Did you have the idea plotted out from beginning to end or did it grow as you wrote?

I had the idea of the post-Plague world first. I could picture the setting, and there was Eileen and company and all their struggles, but for a long time there wasn't really a plot. In 2006, in the first few months of my Peace Corps assignment of teaching English in Albania, Charlinder presented himself and the idea of a walk around the world took shape. It was a story I couldn't have written without some experience abroad.

Q2  Had you planned to cover so many social issues when you began to write or did that grow too?

Looking back, I think the social issues became inevitable once the plot began to take shape. There are just so many ideas banging on steel drums in my head. There will be more social issues covered in my later novels, though perhaps not so many per book.

Q3  What made you create Gentiola as the unique character she is?

That is a very tough question. I had just arrived at site for my assignment, I spent a week reading Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell because I had almost nothing whatsoever to do with my time, and that book seemed to shake something loose in my mind, so that once I was finished with it, Gentiola began talking to me. She's very quintessentially Albanian in some ways, but in other ways she's a citizen of all countries and none at all.

Q4  Please share with us one surprising thing about your experience writing Charlinder’s Walk, or about something else related to your career as a writer.

A memory that jumps out is how the comparison---which is not spoken out loud, but sort of left in plain sight in the text---between Charlinder and Marietta's son George. It didn't really occur to me until I was writing the conversation, and this parallel took shape before my eyes. I liked the comparison, so I ran with it.

Q5  Which word would you use to describe yourself and your personality?

Creative.

Q6  Did you include knitting in Charlinder’s skills because it is something you like to do too?

It's something I like to do, so I can write it accurately, and it's also a handy skill for a post-apocalyptic setting in a non-tropical climate. It's a way of making things with your hands while you're walking somewhere or waiting for something. It's an accessible field on which gender differences can play out, because everyday knitting has nearly always been classified as women's work, and in pre-industrial setting, it's work that absolutely must be done. So, when we have a man who doesn't have a mother, sister or wife to take care of him, he has to take care of himself by doing things that men aren't supposed to do.

Questions for Charlinder:

Q1  Which word would you use to describe yourself and your personality?

Pragmatic.

Q2  Briefly, can you share with the readers the most important thing you want them to learn from your story?

This life and this world are all we have, so we need to make the most of the time we get on Earth and be good to the people and creatures around us.

Q3  What is something you would never be caught dead doing/saying?

I would never, ever lie to or manipulate a woman so she'll have sex with me. If she isn't interested, I can find someone else who is.

Q4  What is the one thing your readers would be surprised to know about you?

I normally hold that the best fistfight is the one you don't get into, but when someone I care about is being insulted, abused or threatened, I'm throwing caution and good sense to the wind and flying into battle.

Q5 If you (either Alyson or Charlinder) could have readers finish a sentence what would it be?

This is from Charlinder:

The best thing you can give to someone is......?

Thank you again for sharing time with my blog followers and me.

GIVEAWAY!

Novel Publicity Blog Tour Notes: Wanna win a $50 gift card or an autographed copy of Charlinder's Walk? Well, there are two ways to enter...

1. Leave a comment on my blog answering Charlinder's Question 5 above. One random commenter during this tour will win a $50 gift card. For the full list of participating blogs, visit the official Charlinder's Walk tour page.
2. Enter the Rafflecopter contest! I've posted the contest form below, or you can enter on the official Charlinder's Walk tour page--either way works just as well.

About the author: Alyson Miers was born into a family of compulsive readers and thought it would be fun to get on the other side of the words. She attended Salisbury University, where she majored in English Creative Writing for some reason, and minored in Gender Studies. In 2006, she did the only thing a 25-year-old with a B.A. in English can do to pay the rent: joined the Peace Corps. At her assignment of teaching English in Albania, she learned the joys of culture shock, language barriers and being the only foreigner on the street, and got Charlinder off the ground. She brought home a completed first draft in 2008 and, between doing a lot of other stuff such as writing two other books, she managed to ready it for publication in 2011. She regularly shoots her mouth off at her blog, The Monster's Ink, when she isn't writing fiction or holding down her day job. She lives in Maryland with her computer and a lot of yarn. Connect with Alyson on her website, blog, Facebook, Twitter or GoodReads.

Get Charlinder's Walk on Amazon or Barnes & Noble

Book Review: Charlinder's Walk by Alyson Miers

This is a thought provoking story filled with societal issues.
 

Charlinder's Walk
by Alyson Miers

• Paperback: 492 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace (October 16, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1466443839
• ISBN-13: 978-1466443839

Available in ebook and print
Genre: Fantasy, Post-Apocalyptic

My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Book Description
Publication Date: October 16, 2011
In 2012, the Plague ended the world as we know it. In 2130, Charlinder wants to know why. The origin of the disease remains a mystery. Their ignorance of its provenance fuels a growing schism that threatens to destroy the peace that the survivors' descendants have built. Unwilling to wait for matters to get any worse, he decides to travel to where the Plague first appeared and find out the truth—which means walking across three continents before returning home. Charlinder has never been more than ten miles from home, has never heard anyone speak a foreign language, and he's going it alone. He survives thousands of miles of everything from near-starvation to near-madness before he meets Gentiola. By then he’s so exhausted that the story she offers to tell seems like little more than a diversion...until he hears it. Nothing could have prepared him for what he learns from her, and no one ever told him: be careful what you wish for. The world is a much bigger place than Charlinder knew, and his place in it is a question he never asked before.

Review:

If you like discussions on social issues, you would like this book.
Charlinder is a 2o year old young man living in a small, 150 member, post-Plague community.   The only history that exists to try to explain what happened right after the plague, 118 years prior,  is a diary of an independent, fiery female, Eileen Woodlawn, whose feminist views pushed against the religious views of the time.

Charlinder’s small community has been built around a matrilocal society where children are raised by mothers and their brothers as the head of household with limited contact with the natural father.  Many work chores are divided along gender lines with women being responsible for spinning and weaving, men being responsible for hunting and carpentry, and the elderly and younger contributing where ever they can with chores like cooking and cleaning. 

Charlinder is a dedicated teacher and he is lucky his community has allowed him to continue with a school that teaches reading, writing and arithmetic as well as science and history. Charlinder, an only child and a bit of a misfit, spends time spinning and weaving, skills taught by his mother.  His behavior is unusual but accepted, yet the religious enthusiasts are starting to put pressure on other community members, including Charlinder, to recognize and teach that the plague was a judgment by God to punish man for his sins.

When tempers and disputes flare, Charlinder determines that he must travel to Italy to discover how the virus plague really started.  Charlinder sets out to travel across the United States, through the Bering Strait to Russia and then South to Italy. He must rely on the kindness of strangers for shelter and food as he walks across the world. Although he takes time to prepare some supplies, in a world without technology, where all activities are mostly primitive, no one thinks ahead to all that he will face, especially the language barriers. 

Through the walk the author, Ms. Miers, reveals different cultural communities with different prejudices and  religious, political, racial and gender struggles. There are recurring themes touching on the repressive roles of women in many societies and the harsh and judgmental way that people can use religion to control others' actions instead of encouraging tolerance.  The author shows that there is a never ending battle between the supporters of logic and science versus supporters of faith.

I found the travels and communities quite interesting. However Charlinder ultimately meets up with Gentiola whose life, actions and explanations of the past stretch realism.  Her answers raise more questions and Char has to wonder ‘Can she be believed?’  The best thing that comes from Charlinder’s thousand miles of walking is the influence he, even just one man, has along the way, and his own commitment to increased teaching and knowledge.
 
The writing flow is smooth and easy reading. Charlinder is a likeable character, if a bit odd. Although the community sexual system was not to my liking, I cannot say it is immoral without being judgmental on the societal choice.  This is suitable for mature YA and adults but, in addition to social issues engaging some thought effort, I caution parents that there is some open sexual discussion and activity. I’d say this story is best read with an open mind that is willing to see and ponder the dilemma of cultural oppressions. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gentiola complains to Charlinder:

Everyone learns history, but no one learns from it. Page 312.

Religion may be just a myth to you, but it is far more than a mistaken idea about the past you’ll be asking you neighbors to give up. Page 325.

Memory of another survivor explaining that Eileen has preconceived ideas just like the religious factions:

One’s religion is not the name of the church you visit, or the book you quote. It is the way you conduct yourself to others,”...  Page 343.

 Gentiola discusses tradition with Charlinder:

....there is no end to the ways that people are limited by societies hiding behind the safety of routine. It may help maintain stability, but tradition should never be used as a substitute for thinking for oneself. Page 392.

Thank you to the author and Novel Publicity for providing the book for review and hosting the Giveaways for this blog tour.  For a chance to win the book and/or an Amazon Gift Card please see the Author Interview and Giveaway Post. 

I will add this to my Post-Apocalyptic, New Author and ARC challenges.