Last summer I scoured the internet in search of the newest Elizabeth Chadwick historical novel, as she is by far my absolute favorite author in the genre.

If you weren't as lucky as I was to find the UK title, here are some links to get your shopping done easier:
Follow Elizabeth Chadwick's site: http://elizabethchadwick.com/ and Twitter: @Chadwickauthor - https://twitter.com/Chadwickauthor

• Amazon Paperback
• Kindle
• Barnes & Noble
• Books A Million
• IndieBound

I know I am not alone with the sentiment that Chadwick is a fantastic writer, so I jumped at the chance offered by the USA publisher Sourcebooks to give away their upcoming July release of The Summer Queen! See the end of the post for the details on the giveaway, but for now I would like to whet your whistle with a re-post of the review I posted last summer.

Book summary

Eleanor of Aquitaine is a 12th century icon who has fascinated readers for 800 years. But the real Eleanor remains elusive.

This stunning novel introduces an Eleanor that all other writers have missed. Based on the most up-to-date research, it is the first novel to show Eleanor beginning her married life at 13. Barely out of childhood, this gives an entirely new slant to how Eleanor is treated bv those around her. She was often the victim and her first marriage was horribly abusive.

Overflowing with scandal, passion, triumph and tragedy, Eleanor's legendary story begins when her beloved father dies in the summer of 1137, and she is made to marry the young prince Louis of France. A week after the marriage she becomes a queen and her life will change beyond recognition . . . 

Once upon a time there lived an amazing woman who was destined to be ruler of Aquitaine. Her heart and soul was with Aquitaine and the heritage that she was born with. In a time where women were considered frail or used as chattel, Eleanor of Aquitaine rises up and becomes Queen of France, then dumps her husband and that title only to soon become Queen of England.

After many reads based on Eleanor's life, one would think I've had enough. But then here comes Elizabeth Chadwick writing a novel that she has wanted to write for a very long time. Her previous historicals on William Marshal were based during Eleanor's time, and Eleanor would beckon to the author to write Eleanor's story.

And that she did. With typical Chadwick flair, we have a start to what will prove to be an amazing trilogy on Eleanor, except our main protagonist is now called Alienor. My first inclination was to shy from this twist on the anglicized name of Eleanor, but Chadwick's skillful writing set me at ease with this proper spelling of Eleanor right away. Among other things, I loved how she portrayed Louis; my feelings about him changed as his character changed.. and she made him more interesting than he probably was! What a sack of uselessness he seemed to be.

Alienor's story is familiar to most of us medieval fiction lovers, but as always Chadwick tells it beautifully and with deft writing skill. She does not inundate us with endless facts and names, she simply draws us into Alienor's world from the time she was a child to the time she finally meets Henry, her second husband. It is a poignant tale as we ache for Alienor during her loveless marriage to the weak and overly pious King of France even though we know eventually she will break free. But Chadwick gives us the full story, the full measure of Alienor so that we live and breathe in Alienor's world unlike any other novel on the woman.

We root for Alienor as she faces obstacle after obstacle (and goes on a crusade!) and we still manage to learn a bit more of the story behind the well-known history of the era. Her sister Petronella shows us a new side of a scandalous story, and Alienor herself proves she is not all ice as one would believe. The supporting characters all add to the nuances of the drama, and there were some characters who get to stay around longer than others as the author saw fit. Fans of both Chadwick and the love and hate story between Eleanor and Henry will love this telling, but will be sad when the novel is over because there is still so much left to be told. I am impatiently waiting for the author to write the next installment, The Winter Crown, which we hope will be available by the fall of 2014.

As I stated in my final reading status update on Goodreads, "Chadwick writes so well I am annoyed I've finished the book." There is no need for me to repeat how awesome and vivid of a story that Elizabeth Chadwick writes, she is the ultimate contemporary expert of medieval historical fiction in my humble opinion. Yet I will never get tired of complimenting Elizabeth Chadwick's writing as long as she promises to write more, more, more, more, and more!!! Come on, 2014!

A problem that I'll have to debate during my wait for her next novel is trying to decide which is my favorite Chadwick novel of the eight that I've read. I've read three Chadwick's this year but 2011's Lady of the English still sticks in my mind. Perhaps I'll have to have a Chadwick Re-Read Marathon to see which is the cream that rises to the top. Of those that I've read, Shadows and Strongholds, Lady of the English, and now The Summer Queen will be battling for that position. Which novel was your favorite Chadwick thus far?

A simply wonderful story to enjoy

Mambo in Chinatown by Jean Kwok
Riverhead Publishing June 2014
Review copy provided by the publisher, thank you!
Burton Book Review Rating: 5 stars, new fave

Read my review of Girl In Translation, also by Jean Kwok

From the bestselling author of Girl in Translation, a novel about a young woman torn between her family duties in Chinatown and her escape into the world of ballroom dancing.

Twenty-two-year-old Charlie Wong grew up in New York’s Chinatown, the older daughter of a Beijing ballerina and a noodle maker. Though an ABC (America-born Chinese), Charlie’s entire world has been limited to this small area. Now grown, she lives in the same tiny apartment with her widower father and her eleven-year-old sister, and works—miserably—as a dishwasher.

But when she lands a job as a receptionist at a ballroom dance studio, Charlie gains access to a world she hardly knew existed, and everything she once took to be certain turns upside down. Gradually, at the dance studio, awkward Charlie’s natural talents begin to emerge. With them, her perspective, expectations, and sense of self are transformed—something she must take great pains to hide from her father and his suspicion of all things Western. As Charlie blossoms, though, her sister becomes chronically ill. As Pa insists on treating his ailing child exclusively with Eastern practices to no avail, Charlie is forced to try to reconcile her two selves and her two worlds—Eastern and Western, old world and new—to rescue her little sister without sacrificing her newfound confidence and identity.

There is something in Jean Kwok's writing that sinks under your skin and takes shape as it blooms into something unexplainably beautiful. Even though that's not a great sentence, it evokes the nuance of what I want to say, though the author of Mambo In Chinatown does not have any problems with getting her words out. The author has a unique voice with her story telling as she pulls from her own experiences and transports us to a place of completeness and unity with her characters. Her main character of Charlie is a clumsy dishwasher with callouses, yet she becomes an irresistible young woman when allowed to break out of her family's close inner shell.

Charlie's family life is a huge dynamic in the story, as we learn through Charlie's daily tasks the way it is for a family of Chinese immigrants and their offspring assimilating into the scheme of their new world. While Chinese customs may feel strange when I would think about them offhandedly, they are neatly told with a solid purpose and reason throughout the novel and are very intriguing. This is how we become immersed with Charlie and her growing struggles while accepting her intolerant father and her naive sister. As Charlie learns how to become independent, she needs to find a way to do it without alienating all those that she loves, adding to the fact she doesn't have a selfish bone in her body making her a very likable character.

And while the story is definitely character focused, the events of Charlie's life seem a bit like a Cinderella story with a very modern (and Chinese) slant. Following in her mother's footsteps, she learns things about herself she never thought possible, and she even falls in love. As the nobody-dishwasher turns into someone that turns heads, the fabulous writing pulls us into this coming-of-age story and doesn't let go. Once you do get going and begin to feel like Charlie is your new best friend, you won't want to put this book down.

Much like her debut novel, Girl In Translation, Jean Kwok gives us a unique look at a topic I never thought I would be interested in regarding the Chinese culture, and this novel features an added facet of the elite world of ballroom dancing. Once again the author has added her book to my favorites list. I sincerely hope I do not have to wait another four years for another Jean Kwok novel!

Four unique stories each with four unique women..

Sincerely Yours:  A Novella Collection