James Acton, a pilot with the Royal Air Force during WWII, is also an ordained Anglican priest. Following the war and his release from a POW camp, James and Yvetee Haddad marry. His first parish was in rural England. When Yvette suffers a miscarriage with their first child, James shuts down emotionally. He leaves Yvette to find support and comfort from a stranger who experienced a miscarriage many years earlier. Unknown to James, the women became close friends.

Fast forward 20+ years and James, now a widower, is at another rural parish not far from his original assignment. (Yvette died of leukemia in 1964.) When James first enters his new church he finds a silk scarf left on a pew. The scarf becomes an important hint for James. There have been too many secrets. Even Tom, James college-aged son, did not realize that he had a sister.

The book offers a dual timeline. Commentary by Yvette is interspersed based on the notebooks she left behind. Yvette’s journals are filled with her thoughts and feelings following the miscarriage and the ways James changed after that.

If you are a fan of gentle reads and historical fiction, this is the book for you.

~Emma

In 1919, Lillian’s landlord killed his wife. Lillian is not connected to the murder, but police want to question her. Lillian is afraid that any connection with a murder will destroy her modeling career. She runs away, ending up at the Frick family home hoping for a cup of tea. However, it’s assumed she’s there to interview for the position of private secretary to Helen Clay Frick, Henry’s spinster daughter. Lillian is hired and does not correct anyone about who she really is. Henry offers Lillian a huge bonus if she can arrange for his lonely daughter’s engagement. Things progress, but…

In 1966, English model Veronica Weber ends up at the Frick Museum for a photo shoot. She is separated from the others and ends up locked in the museum during a winter storm. The archivist is also locked in and together the pair discover remnants of a scavenger hunt created by Helen Clay Frick for her suitor. With time on their hands, they decide to follow the hunt and see where it leads them.

This book is a treat for readers who enjoy historical fiction or art history. Readers will learn about the family of Henry Clay Frick, meet an in-demand model, and solve a decades-long murder mystery.

Two points of historical note:

#1) Henry Clay Frick left much of his estate to the city of New York. Currently the Frick Collection is at a temporary location while the original building is undergoing renovation. (See https://www.frick.org/madison)

#2) The character of Lillian Carter is based on real-life artists’ model Audrey Munson (June 8, 1891 – February 20, 1996). She was considered America’s first supermodel, the inspiration for many statues in New York City and elsewhere that can still be seen today.

~Emma

Her Hidden Genius

by Marie Benedict

During the 1940’s and 1950’s, Rosalind’s family wanted her to stay close to home, marry well, have children, and participate in family philanthropic endeavors. Instead Dr. Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958) became a brilliant scientist in a field normally dominated by men.

She participated in the “race to DNA” in Paris and London. A couple of male colleagues fraudulently took much of her research, lied, and received personal recognition, including a Nobel Prize, for Rosalind’s discoveries. Unfortunately, Rosalind died young from cancer probably due to her long-term exposure to radiation.

Even though the scientific terminology and procedures described were beyond my understanding at times, another forgotten heroine has been brought to the forefront by author Marie Benedict. I heartily recommend every historical fiction novel by the author.

The Other Einstein (2016)

Carnegie’s Maid (2018)

The Only Woman in the Room (2019)

Lady Clementine (2020)

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie (2020)

The Personal Librarian (2021) – with Victoria Christopher Murray

Her Hidden Genius (2022) 

~Emma

Her Quiet Revolution: A Novel of Martha Hughes Cannon,

Frontier Doctor and First Female State Senator

by Marianne Monson

This novel is based on the life of Martha (Mattie) Hughes Cannon. Martha was born in Wales in 1857. The young family emigrated to New York when she was just 2 years old. They joined the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints (the Mormon church), and after saving enough money the family headed west to Utah. Their goal was to settle in Salt Lake City. During the journey Mattie’s little sister, Mary Elizabeth, died. Her father died just days after arriving in Utah. It was during that time period that Mattie decided to pursue a career in medicine. Doctors were scarce, and women doctors were nonexistent.

For most women, their lifetime goals included marriage and lots of children. Polygamy was openly practiced. This was not the life Mattie wanted. She got her undergraduate degree in chemistry at the University of Deseret (now the University of Utah). With some financial help from the Mormon church, she attended medical school at the University of Michigan. Her education continued at the University of Pennsylvania, where she received a degree in pharmacy. She attended the National School of Oratory and learned how to speak eloquently in public. 

In addition to all her professional accomplishments, when Mattie moved back to Utah, she wanted to become a wife and mother. She soon became the fourth wife of Angus M. Cannon, a leader in the Mormon church. By this time the U.S. government was actively prosecuting polygamists, especially men. To help safeguard her husband, she left the country with her daughter.

In addition to being a physician, Mattie’s amazing life also included being a Utah State Senator (the first woman to serve in any state senate anywhere in the United States), a prominent women’s rights advocate and suffragist. In 2018, the Utah state legislature voted to honor Martha Hughes Cannon by sending a statue of her to Washington D.C. to represent Utah in Statuary Hall. The statue will be placed in Statuary Hall in honor of the 100^th anniversary of the 19^th amendment, which allowed women the right to vote in the United States. (It was intended to be installed in 2020, the 19th amendment’s official centennial, but that has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.)

This book is a treat for fans of historical fiction and women’s history in the late 1800’s.

~Emma

Murder in an English Glade

by Jessica Ellicott

Set in England in the 1920’s, Beryl Helliwell and Edwina Davenport are owners of the “Helliwell and Davenport Private Enquiry Agency”. The women are asked by neighbor Constance Maitland to determine if Ursula, her sister-in-law who is recently married to her brother Hubert, is having an affair with world- renowned artist Louis Langdon Beck. Constance is certain they are not but wants to satisfy her live-in cousin Cressida that it’s being investigated. Ursula and her husband are hosting an artists’ colony at Maitland Park, and Louis is in attendance. (I wasn’t aware that an artists’ colony offers respite from everyday distractions, a quiet place to work, and a sense of creative community for artists in different fields.) Sadly, Louis is found strangled and Constance wants Beryl and Edwina to help in solving the murder along with the local constable who is also a woman.

There are lots of twists and turns in this mystery along with a second murder. Beryl and Edwina are fun characters with differing personalities that shine through. I heartily recommend the entire series.

Beryl and Edwina Mystery series

Murder in an English Village (2017)

Murder Flies the Coop (2018)

Murder Cuts the Mustard (2019)

Murder Comes to Call (2020)

Murder in an English Glade (2021)

Murder Through the English Post (2022)

~Emma