Michaela MacColl

The trend of using historical figures in fictional novels tends to be, at least for me, very hit or miss. Too often the authors seem to do very little research either of the time in which their story is situated or the real-life people who populate it. Fortunately, author Michaela McColl has clearly done her research in her novel Always Emily in which Charlotte and Emily Bronte solve a mystery.

Charlotte, after the deaths of their two older sisters, is now the eldest of the family and she show more takes her responsibilities seriously. In a family of eccentrics including their minister father, she is the one who sees the need for practical planning and caution in everyday life. But she has a whimsical side that only comes out in the stories she has been working on since childhood. Emily, on the other hand, is wild and imaginative. She loves the freedom of the moors and is only still when she is writing.

It is on one of Emily’s rambles that she stumbles upon a mysterious young man and a mystery. Charlotte, home for two weeks from her teaching job, is immersed n her own mystery concerning their beloved but ne’er-do-well brother, Branwell. As the two sisters investigate separately, it becomes clear the two mysteries are linked and they must work together if they are to solve them.

Always Emily is a fun fast mystery with a touch of the gothic about it. It is well-written with enough action to keep the reader entertained throughout. Aimed at a YA audience, it should appeal to fans of the sisters of all ages. show less

Fifteen year old Emily Dickinson, dreamily playing hooky in the fields instead of doing her drudgery household chores, meets a mysterious handsome stranger, who talks intelligently with her and is very charming. He coyly refuses to tell her his name, so Emily calls him Mr. Nobody. It is 1845, and the quiet, introspective, sometimes frail but still rebellious Emily chafes at being so often confined to her house by her protective mother. She has no real friends apart from her younger sister, show more so it is quite exciting to meet someone new in their small New England town. But this promising friendship and flirtation is cut short when Mr. Nobody is found dead in a pond on the Dickinson property. Emily goes against her mother's wishes to view the body and sees details that spark her imagination, as she begins to wonder whether Mr. Nobody's death was not an accident. She begins to secretly investigate the crime, something girls of that time just did not do, especially when it means sneaking around, exploring unknown parts of the township, or having to ask strange men piercing questions. And what will she do if her nosy sister finds out what she is doing?

I loved this book! Emily is depicted as a spunky character, full of curiosity, who loves poetry so much she is compelled to write--she scribbles down poetic fragments in a hidden notebook whenever inspiration strikes, since her family would disapprove of her writing. I think the title of the book is very apt, as not only is there a secret connected to the deceased Mr. Nobody, but Emily told him she was Miss Nobody, and she too has a secret: her writing. I liked how each chapter is titled from a line of a Dickinson poem. The mystery is also very well done, and the setting very realistic, with period detail and vivid descriptions of the daily life of women in the 1840's, from cooking to cleaning. Excellent book for middle school and up. show less

I loved this book! Obviously, I read a ton of kids' books... children's book, chapter books, and as much YA as I can manage. Reading for a living is a dream; it really is! But if there's one thing I'm quickly growing tired of (if I can be completely honest here), it's fantasy. I find the YA market so saturated with vampires, werewolves, paranormal activity, time travel, and pretty much every other fantastical spin imaginable. I like it just fine, but I am much more a fan of realistic show more fiction, or better yet... HISTORICAL FICTION! So I was thrilled when my Chronicle rep put [b:Prisoners in the Palace|7926790|Prisoners in the Palace|Michaela MacColl|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1276486377s/7926790.jpg|11241956] into my hands! First of all, it's a stunningly beautiful book inside and out. Seriously, you have to look inside this book! But once I started reading, I realized that in this case you absolutely can judge a book by its cover. Michaela MacColl has done her homework. Liza's story is set in 1830s London, when Queen Victoria was a young girl. The details are so delicious, and the story so wonderfully engaging. I relished every page of this book. I won't go into the plot; you can read that on your own. But I will absolutely recommend this book, and put it into the hands of as many people as I can!
And... job perk: I have booked Michaela MacColl to come to RJ Julia on December 8th. Can't wait! show less

I loved this book. I thought that overall it was well written and I felt like the book allowed me to slip into the Alcott's lives for a few hours. It takes place over a few weeks in the life of Louisa May Alcott. Here she's just 15 years old but the would later grow up to be the writer of classic "Little Women." The story starts when her mother goes off to earn money for the family as her father, Bronson, refuses to "work for anyone." Louisa is put in charge of running the household for the show more summer which includes taking on her mother's role in harboring an escaped slave, George, on the Underground Railroad and thwarting the slave catcher, Finch, who comes to Concord to find him.

What I liked about it was that Louisa acted of the time period and didn't act as if she knows she's going to be famous someday. She's also not perfect by any means. She's a bit judgmental, has issues with her father and at times appears as if she's trying to make those around her feel sorry for her. Still, she's easy to root for and I loved that there's a murder mystery and several love stories thrown in for good measure.

It's easy to learn facts about people like Henry David Thoreau, Emerson and the Alcotts but it's another for an author to skillfully turn them into people and not just remnants of the past.

I highly recommend this for YA, mystery and Alcott fans. show less