This is a fictionalized account of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald's life from the age of 15 to when F. SCott Fitzgerald died. Ms Fowler has recreated the world of the American South after WWI and the era of the flapper in a wonderfully descriptive, emotional, and enveloping novel. Her narration follows Zelda as she transforms from a small-town tomboy into an icon of a by-gone era and it is astonishing. Within the pages of this novel is everything from hope, aspirations, tragedy, love, adventure, drunkenness, and of course, death. Using thorough research on the era and participants, as well as Zelda's own writings, Fowler has created a novel that is equally mesmerizing as Paula McLain's The Paris Wife. I would highly recommend this account to anyone I know and especially those who love the writers of this era.

For purposes of full disclosure, I received this book as a Goodreads First Read.

A great collection of first-hand accounts of high-level negotiations from a master negotiator himself, Bill Richardson. This non-fictional book is not only an interesting book about a man's life in government, but is also a how-to on negotiating. Mr. Richardson has taken what can be a dry topic and made it entertaining with his sense of humor and wit. His experiences with world leaders like former President Clinton, President Obama, Saddam Hussein, Fidel Castro, and Chavez make this book even more interesting. While Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In focused on negotiating in business and your private life, How to Sweet-Talk a Shark: Strategies and Stories from a Master Negotiator pulls extreme examples of negotiating with world dictators, terrorists, torturers, and every day politicians. A quick-read it is both educational and entertaining. A must-read for anyone who may have to negotiate or who is interested in politics.

I really enjoyed this book! I wasn't expecting it to be as entertaining or readable but I found myself enthralled and loved every minute spent reading it. To say the least, I highly recommend it.

When Erica Flack finds a chest with childhood drawings, a few old diaries, a bloody baby shirt, and a WWII German medal she begins to wonder why her mother hid these things together in a dark corner of the attic. She hopes that by reading the diaries she will discover why her mother was so reserved and withdrawn from both her and her sister's lives. Now she must use all her abilities as a writer to investigate her own famiy's past. Surprises are numerous when Patrik becomes involved with a murder case while on paternity leave that seems to be connected to Erica's own investigation.

Ms Lackberg continues her successful Fjallbacka/Hedstrom series with another stunning tale of murder, history, family, and the ties that bind. This novel is a perfect example of how she can take the everyday and make it into an interesting mystery that remains believable. If read in order, her series is a cohesive look at life in Sweden. Her writing is domestic in a way that readers are able to relate to and feel like they are a part of the family, friends, and culture. This novel is just another example of why she is such a magnificent writer!

This book focuses on evidence, from the fundamentals of evidence to its admissability/inadmissability and the rules of evidence. It breaks down rather complex legal rules into an easy to read and thoroughly explained matter. The authors present numerous examples as they proceed and also provide information from cases that have set precedents in Canadian law.

A very readable overview of Ontario's Residential Tenancies Act with through explanations and examples. It also contains the Act itself and its Regulations in the back for easy reference. A must have for those learning or practicing in the landlord tenant field.

An amazing memoir! Stunning for its rawness and bare truths. While difficult to read in some parts due to the graphic details and nature of her captivity, you can't help but admire her strength and her ability to survive. A must read for an autobiographical reader.

An impressive portrayal of the relationship between mankind and the animal kingdom. Sara Gruen is descriptive to the point where every moment feels like you are there experiencing first hand the events that the characters are going through. A definite must read for any animal lover! A great follow-up novel to her bestselling novel, "Water for Elephants".

A journey into a portion of World War II that is rarely covered in books, this novel portrays a woman's life during the Nazi occupation of her island in the English Channel. Margaret Levoy does an excellent job at showing how difficult life was and how strong women had to be to survive. It is a heartwretching story of pain, suffering, survival, love and hope.

An impressive semi-fictional narrative of thoroughly investigated family history. She takes you through the lives of many of her female relatives as they lives in the mid-1800s through to the mid-1900s. Sporadically she has pictures, documents and notes from her family relations which add to the rawness of the tale. It was a pleasure to read for its attention to detail and honesty.

I really enjoyed this book! Part adventure, part mystery with a twist of sci-fi it was a pleasure to turn every page! I really enjoyed how Riggs incorporated real photographs in the story; it was an incredible way to breath more life into his tale.

I love classic gothic tales like "Jane Eyre" and was looking forward to a modern tale. Kate Morton takes her time in this novel to weave a gothic style tale of mystery and romance. The leading character, Edie, and the main narrator is likeable but I had difficulty feeling a sense of attachment to her. The story seems to have been drawn out in places where the author's focus is on details rather then a smooth story with an even pace. While some chapters flew by others definitely dragged for me. While I thoroughly enjoyed the descriptiveness of this novel, I found some of the characters unbelieveable, the story to be somewhat predictable and even under-developed in some areas. Overall it was an interesting ride but with some more good editing and development it could have been incredible.

"The Heretic's Daughter" is a fictional tale written as a first hand account of an actual historical event, the Salem witch trials. Filled with vivid descriptions, this novel puts you in the position of a young girl growing up in this hysterical world full of conniving and jealous people. This was a very well-written, enthralling story and was definitely a page turner! Anyone interested in history or the Salem witch trials would enjoy this impeccable novel.

A wonderful read thru a single family's past and connection to the Salem Witch Trials!

A masterpiece of a debut! This book had me spellbound from page 1 and I loved the twists and turns as each puzzle piece slowly came together. I could not put this book down and highly recommend this!

This book surprised me and I really enjoyed the combination of history and fiction!

I didn't like this book as much as I had hoped. While I did enjoy Arsenault's writing style, I found the text to be undeveloped and anti-climatic.

An interesting take on the Ripper murders but it would have been better if Cohen hadn't rushed the plot in the end. Also, this book focuses on all the JAmes siblings, not just Alice.

The prequel to The Heretic's Daughter, this novel is well done but I found the plot to be not nearly as exciting as her first novel. Still, all-in-all it was an enjoyable read.

Wonderful! A perfect end to a revamped campire trilogy!!!! A must read for the vampire fan.

This book reminded me a bit of "The Hunger Games"; it involves a post-tragedy society as it struggles to overcome horrors of a nuclear blast and has a young girl as its lead character. Mafi wrote this novel in the perspective of this young lady and the style is very journalistic. With bits of teenaged exageration the reader is projected into her life and experiences everything that she does. It was a great success and I look forward to the sequel!

I remember reading these stories to each other as a young girl and being scared not only of the stories themselves but also the creepy pictures within the covers. This book lead to many a sleepless night in my youth!

I read this book for the first time in high school and it scared me good. I wouldn't go into the basement for weeks! This is one of those books you read with all the lights on, during the day and with someone by your side. It's horrors will remain with you for days, weeks and maybe even years to come.

A thorough examination of the Hartford circus fire that makes you cherish every moment you have with your loved ones. O'Nan does an incredible job of mixing detailed facts into a literary timeline the puts you into the shoes of the survivors, investigators and heroes. It is a snapshot of a horrible fire that killed 167 people but O'Nan has made it a story that will continue to be read and remembered through future generations.

This is a compelling rendering of the "pilgrims" passage to Plymouth, their struggle to survive and plant new roots and their progeny's experiences with the natives. So much has been left out of history classes and it was wonderful to have a chance to read the facts. Philbrick does an impecible job of transforming history into an exciting tale of struggle, hope, faith, and compromise while never leaving out the emotions of the players and forefathers of America.

A harrowing fictional account of a mother as she struggles with her son's school massacre. Written as letters to her estranged husband, Shriver's novel is emotionally charged and difficult to read for how true to life it actually is. Filled with actual factoids on school shootings, Eva struggles to understand what made her son a killer while still caring for him. Shriver does an incredible job of portraying the "other side" of a school mass murder. While difficult to read in some portions, it is a novel that you won't be able to put down once you start it.

A tour de force with such detail that the suspense grows with each page! Mosse is expert at interweaving a tale from the 1890 and 2007 together. I was surprised at the suspense, the detail, the emotion and the sense of history that was included in this novel. Her use of the tarot as a character in it's own right was also a welcome surprise. I have never read a book quite like this one and look forward to reading some of her other works in the future.

Anne Bronte's writings bring like in the 1800s to life on the page. Her short descriptive chapters set a fast pace to her vivid writing. This is a small treasure of a novel with semi-biographical experiences is often ignored alongside her sisters more famous novels, Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights but it is not forgotten.

This novel was not at all what I had thought it was going to be about! I was very pleasantly surprised and enjoyed the mixture of prose and immaculate details that compromise this work of art. What a fantastic journey!

Read does a great job incorporating media and cultural references in her books. Such sentences like "Wednesday started out Capra and ended Polanski" add a element to her writing that many authors don't have. "Invisible Boy" was an amazing book. Sad, funny, with a dab of kick-butt - each page has something to offer to readers.

Morgenstern weaves an enchanting tale that contains all the excitement of a circus with a twist of magic. Each page draws you in further into the fantasy of illusions, carnivals and both the people that operate it and those who are affected by it. It is a masterful novel that capitivates from page one all the way to the last.