V. R. Christensen
Author of Of Moths and Butterflies
About the Author
Image credit: Photo taken by Michelle Olsen, Candid Reflections, September 2009
Series
Works by V. R. Christensen
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Christensen, V. R.
- Gender
- female
- Education
- Brigham Young University-Idaho (Interior design)
- Occupations
- Interior Designer
- Organizations
- Historical Fiction Authors Cooperative
Past Times Books
Authors Anon
Literary Underground
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - Short biography
- V.R. Christensen is a lifelong student of English culture and history, and she draws upon a wide range of knowledge and experience to construct her work. Focusing on the age old struggles that have riddled the human spirit, her intensely emotional stories draw a parallel between our day and those of an age passed, illustrating that, while some things have changed utterly, many others have stayed remarkably the same.
V.R. Christensen attended Brigham Young University, Idaho, where she earned a degree in Interior Design, while, at the same time studying English Literature, Art History and Sociology. When she is not writing, she is designing impractical clothing, redecorating her historical homes, or making impossible demands of her husband of seventeen years. She travels a great deal and considers herself a citizen of the world. Currently, V.R. makes her home in Appalachian Virginia, where she lives with her husband, three children, seven cats and a dog named Jasper. V.R. is a member of Historical Fiction Authors Cooperative, Past Times Books, Authors Anon and Literary Underground, all of which are aimed at ensuring that the publishing revolution now upon us produces some of the finest work available to the reading public–and makes it available. [from Amazon.com 9/23/2013] - Places of residence
- Appalachian Virginia
Members
Reviews
According to Kindle, I got 65% of the way through "Cry of the Peacock" before I finally admitted defeat. "No. I just CAN'T. Life is too short." It felt like I had been reading it forever and NOTHING happened. I have since read many reviews where people stated that the book could have benefitted from editing, a kind way of saying it was unbelievably boring. I don't think any amount of editing could have saved this - situations that were uninteresting the first time certainly didn't benefit show more from being rehashed and repeated time and time again - but if it was half as long I might at least have finished it.
Sometimes, bad books make me angry. This one did not - in fact, I really wanted to like it and despite my harsh review I think this author has some promise. (I didn't do any research, I'm hoping this was her first book.) There was some good material about the opening of the Underground in London; and about "Magdalena societies" that helped unwed mothers at the time, which I assume was factual and showed that substantial research went into creating this novel. Unfortunately, the characters and the story built around these elements were just not remotely interesting. show less
Great title, beautiful cover art but unfortunately the story line was a bit too slow and predicable in the first half. I find this cat and mouse game between the hero and herione so frustrating although I do appreciate the nice flow of the story, the hint of mystery and it does suit the period in which it is set. If the first half of the story had moved along at the same pace as the second half it would have been made for a very good read but as it stands I gave it a respectable 4 out 5 stars.
This review was written for LibraryThing Member Giveaways.
Warning: This is a LONG book. That's normally not a bad thing, but I felt the story dragging in some places while being perfectly well-paced in other parts of the book. Bethany needs to get a grip. She craves attention, but she doesn't really want to admit that she doesn't know who she really wants to settle down with. In her eyes, all the men want her sister, Laynie. Here's the thing: Laynie is sweet. She's respectable, reliable, honest, and deeply caring. She may not be her sister's equal show more in terms of poise and beauty, but in some ways, she's far more valuable.
Bethany has a lot of growing up to do. She may be the oldest, but she seems to lack the wisdom to see things in a clearer light. Things aren't always what they seem to be, and people aren't always who they portray themselves to be either.
The father of the girls---I just roll my eyes at this man. He really needs to step it up and be a real father instead of just merely ignoring them or sending them away to their aunts and letting them be her problem for awhile. Really? He should have hired a governess to straighten Bethany out!
I appreciate that the book is cleaner than most other books of this time period. I also like the fact that girls do manage to get along a bit better as the story gets closer to wrapping up. But is it a book I'd keep? No. It just doesn't have the "right formula" for me to want to keep it. show less
Bethany has a lot of growing up to do. She may be the oldest, but she seems to lack the wisdom to see things in a clearer light. Things aren't always what they seem to be, and people aren't always who they portray themselves to be either.
The father of the girls---I just roll my eyes at this man. He really needs to step it up and be a real father instead of just merely ignoring them or sending them away to their aunts and letting them be her problem for awhile. Really? He should have hired a governess to straighten Bethany out!
I appreciate that the book is cleaner than most other books of this time period. I also like the fact that girls do manage to get along a bit better as the story gets closer to wrapping up. But is it a book I'd keep? No. It just doesn't have the "right formula" for me to want to keep it. show less
This novel has an interesting perspective, of following a fallen woman who belongs to the middle-upper classes. It has a good pace, and an easy reading style that I easily got into. The main character had a hesitance based on her past experiences that was believable, but it seemed to go on a bit too long, making the novel feel longer than it really needed to be. I will look forward to reading more from this author. I would also recommend checking out the novel for the fantastic artwork show more between chapters. show less
This review was written for LibraryThing Member Giveaways.
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 12
- Members
- 465
- Popularity
- #52,882
- Rating
- 3.5
- Reviews
- 22
- ISBNs
- 9
