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Saturday, October 17, 2015

Black Rabbit Hall by Eve Chase (continued)

 (continued)

Black Rabbit Hall has it's fairytale elements--the orphans, evil stepmother, enchanted house with towers--yet so much of it seems plausible and contemporary. 


The characters are unforgettable; the only glaring problem is Caroline Alton. She knows so much more than the other characters but where does she acquire this knowledge? Who tells her where Amber is staying? How does she arrange a meeting after all these years? 

In the end, that probably doesn't matter. She knows where Toby is staying, after all, while no one else does. She is the house's darkest force who splits the family apart. It's up to the next generation to put all the pieces back together.

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Black Rabbit Hall by Eve Chase.

         When a couple chooses an ancient mansion, Pencraw Hall (aka Black Rabbit Hall) as their wedding venue, strange things come to light. Neither knows the history of the house--the Altons' story--yet Lorna remembers going to the house once while they were on holiday. For an unexplained reason, Lorna is drawn back to this house. 
        In a flashback, readers learn about another family that once lived in Black Rabbit Hall: a wild red-head American lady, her husband, and their children, Amber, Toby, Barney and Kitty. Black Rabbit Hall is a perfect haven for this troop, until a tragic accident changes everything. 
        After his mother's death, Toby becomes cool and distant. He becomes even more troubled when his father begins dating Caroline, an old flame. Amber feels torn between her loyalty towards her twin and her interest in Caroline's son, Lucian.
        The children of the former Mrs. Alton clash with the new Mrs. Alton, especially since she insists on changing everything at Black Rabbit Hall. She despises the family traditions and thwarts them at every turn. She even takes down a beloved portrait of the former Mrs. Alton.
         Decades later she offers her crumbling mansion to Lorna as a wedding venue. But why? If you love books about family secrets, unforgettable characters, and large estates in England, you'll love this book. 

(continued)

Saturday, October 3, 2015

If You Were A Tiger I'd Have To Wear White by Maria Dahvana Headley

This is a strange, magical realism story about endings–the end of Jungleland, the end of the golden age of Hollywood, the end of the MGM lion. it all plays out like a hallucination. I love that the lion never gives the reporter anything.

Jungleland was a real place for Hollywood animals to live in Thousand Oaks, California.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jungleland_USA

Read the story,

http://uncannymagazine.com/article/tiger-id-wear-white/

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