Reading, Writing & Pondering

  The Legacy of Longdale Manor by Carrie Turansky is a split time novel set in 1912 and 2012. It has been awhile since I read a split-time novel and I felt this one was well done with smooth transitions.  In 2012, Gwen Morris is working as an art appraiser for her grandfather's business when she is sent to England's Lake District to appraise the painting and antiques of an old family friend of her grandfather's. While she is there working, she meets David Bradford, the owner's grandson who is helping her keep her estate in good working order. Gwen also searches for her father, whom she has never met, with some interesting results. In 1912, Charlotte Harper is struggling after her father passes away and she discovers he hid an affair from her mother and their family. What makes this even worse for Charlotte is that he was also a pastor. After she finds out, Charlotte struggles with both her faith and trusting in male relationships. After her father's death, Charlott...

  Between the Pages by Pepper Basham is a dual timeline story that left me sighing with contentment at the ending. Clara Blackwell has been working in her family's 100-year-old bookstore for as long as she can remember. It was her father's legacy and she inherited his love of books and stories. At the same time, she has been busy caring for her mother after her father passed away and minding the bookstore. You could say she has been living a relatively, secluded predictable life. Then a letter is found while the bookstore deed is missing and Clara is off on an adventure to find her family's legacy--and maybe discover a new future. I enjoyed both the story of Clara, Max, and her family's bookstore--as well as the historical story of Sadie and Oliver. I rooted for both couples and booed when the villains entered the scenes. While I own a couple others, this is the first book that I have read from Pepper Basham--and now I want to read the others even more. I like how she b...