A. B. Michaels

The Art of Love: Origin of Sinner's Grove by A.B. Michaels weaves a story of love, lust, betrayal, and sacrifice that kept me on edge often unsure whether to cheer or boo a character's decisions as I waited to see if those decisions would succeed or fail.
The first part of The Art of Love is all about August Wolff's quest to find his riches and prove himself whether to his family or himself is up for debate. With the disappearance of his wife and daughter, Wolff finds himself in a quandary as show more he begins his new life after discovering gold. When his search for his wife and daughter repeatedly comes up empty, he adopts a life in San Francisco, California filled with the trappings of happiness.
Michaels then introduces Amelia Bennett, a talented artist, who is forced to make decisions for the sake of her family rather than her own desires. When the situation becomes unbearable she hatches a plan with her fellow artist and friend, Sander de Kalb, who has reasons of his own to want to start over, to leave behind their lives in New York for San Francisco.
After she and Sander move to San Francisco, Amelia often feels the pangs of the son she left behind but knows in her heart she made the right decision, not only for herself but for all involved.
As Amelia's popularity as an artist is on the rise, she meets August Wolff, whose reputation leaves her hesitant to get to know him. When he commissions her to paint a mural for him and find art for his home, she's intrigued by more than the project at hand as is he.
Michaels creates two flawed but lovable characters and surrounds them with characters the reader wants to know better. She weaves their story lines together in a way that engages the readers senses and confronts stereotypes. The Art of Love delves into the ideas of what love and friendship mean while looking at the complications of marriage and divorce. There's a sense of modernity about this historical novel that made me feel a bit sad that some things haven't changed more than they have since the 1890s. show less

I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Sinner's Grove was actually kind of fascinating. On the surface, it's the story of 'boy meets girl, boy falls for girl, girl leaves boy, girl comes back many years later and they're forced to work together.' But it's much more complex than that. This is the story of Jenna and Brit. Jenna is an artist. Brit is an architect. Both are deeply hurt by actions in the past. When Jenna has to return to Sinner's Grove to help her show more grandfather with a project, neither she nor Brit are all that happy about having to work with each other. But much more is at stake than a past failed romance between the two. They have to get on the same page in order to save the project and also the lives of the people they love.

At first, I have to admit that I was not at all fond of Brit. We find out later how hurt he was by Jenna in the past and it kind of makes up for how he acted at the start of the book. But as we saw more about who he was and who Jenna was and who they were together, the love story got much sweeter. I grew to love both characters by the end of the book as well as the characters connected to them. Another important aspect of this book was the history involved with the project at Sinner's Grove and just how these people came to be. I really enjoyed the story from the past that intertwined with the present day story. It added depth to the events.

There was a bit of mystery involved with who was causing so much trouble for the project at Sinner's Grove and why. That part of the book kind of fell apart for me. The motives were just kind of weak and didn't make a whole lot of sense. It's almost as if this great mystery was constructed for the whole book and then at the end, the author had to come up with a reason why that I didn't quite buy.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book. There was romance, mystery, adventure, and excitement perfectly proportioned so you don't end up with too much of any one thing. show less

The earthquake in San Francisco in 1907 disrupted many lives. The death toll was staggering and what the earthquake did not damage, the resulting fires did. This is the world Jonathan Henry Perris, barrister, lived in, although not exactly what he expected when he emigrated from England. Bloody Tuesday started with a devastating riot outside the streetcar barn. With the union on strike for better wages, the driving was taken over by scabs, creating more upset. Young Jimmy Walsh was murdered show more and his best friend was found guilty. But was he?

There are so many twists and turns in this story you might begin to wonder if the mystery of this death and others will ever be solved. I thoroughly enjoyed trying to figure out who really did the dastardly deed.

An ARC of this first Barrister Perris Mystery was received through Red Trumpet Press and BookSirens. These impressions are my own and were in no way solicited. show less

California

Jenna Bergstrom is a San Francisco artist that made a startling discovery when she was fourteen that caused an estrangement with her family. Her loneliness was later sharpened by a tragedy. Now her grandfather, who is ailing, needs her help and expertise to re-open an artists’ retreat that was once famous and that is owned by her family that is located on the Northern California coast. There is just one problem. She will have to face the ex-love of her life, architect Brit show more Maguire.

Brit once spent a magical time with the girl of his dreams, seven years ago, only to see her completely disappear from his life. Now he is working on the biggest project of his career and she is back helping. Brit can’t afford the distraction Jenna is proving to be no matter how deep his feelings still run. The renovation at Sinner’s Grove is going terribly wrong. Enemies bent on destroying Jenna’s grandfather’s dream are closing in as Jenna and Brit struggle against the passion they feel for each other.

With the danger increasing Jenna discovers what true love and true family is really all about. Though she may have discovered it too late.

This a great romantic suspense that keeps the reader turning the pages just so they can find out what is happening at Sinner’s Grove and who is behind it all. The story is almost like two stories in one as history and the present are perfectly blended to make for a wonderful story that readers will find hard to put down. The characters are flawed and relatable and make for an intriguing book. The story comes alive for readers with every word that they read. It will also pull at the readers emotions and pull them in until the very last page. This is the first book in a series that if the other books end up as good as this one will make for an unforgettable series that readers will want to re-read over and over.

Received a review copy show less