Fall of Poppies

"November 7, 1918
Brussels, Belgium

Sister Wilkins caught my eye from across the nurse's parlor of Institut Cavell. The day I'd been dreading had arrived. The British nurse had lose much during this war, though she knew better than anyone that I'd lost more. She also knew my secret, and that I'd do anything to protect it." (pg 1- The Daughter of Belgium, Marci Jefferson)

Hard to believe the life of those who survived the Great War, must have been as both survivors and those who served in the war that came back with more lost than they had going in. History is that great teacher, opening the eyes of those who weren't born then to remember a time when so many lost so much and paid the ultimate price. For some, it was simply coming home wounded and having to face a life they would no longer have.

That is just what you will find in the Fall of Poppies, a collection of short stories by nine different authors who each take their turn at weaving a beautiful story of recollection of the Great War and the results of Armistice Day, the day the war was over and celebrations took place all over Europe. They all have the same central theme but with vastly different results. I believe my favorite was The Daughter of Belgium, a story of a young girl, Amèlie, who had been her own survivor of the war along with her young daughter Hope. Left to deal with the outcome of a hospital that was moving, Matron Cavill asked her to care for one remaining patient they couldn't move, a wounded soldier that was being hunted for treason. Her only job was to see to it that he didn't starve. It was a soldier that she despised at the horrors committed to her when the German soldiers arrived at her family's tea shop and beat and raped her family.

She finds solace in knowing if she can simply return to her family's shoppe and recover a valuable painting, she might make a life for herself and Hope once the war ends. Her only problem is that the streets are still full of German soldiers who are rebelling against the end of the war, and will stop at nothing to ensure they take all they can before they are forced to leave Belgium. It will take trusting a man she has hated since being tasked with his care when the hospital relocated.

I received Fall of Poppies by a collection of authors like Jessica Brockmole, Hazel Gaynor, Evangeline Holland, Marci Jefferson, Kate Kerrigan, Jennifer Robson, Heather Webb, Beatriz Williams and Lauren Willig compliments of William Morrow, a division of Harper Collins Publishers for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation aside from a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest and personal evaluation. There truly is something for everyone in each of these stories and while they may simply be just well created fictional stories, these could very well be someone's true life story from the Great War. I absolutely LOVED it and will be adding this one to my collection of WWI novels in my personal library. I believe history is vitally important and these stories are just a part of that historical past!

For more information about Fall of Poppies or where you can pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Fall of Poppies: Stories of Love and The Great War

You can read more reviews of Fall of Poppies: Stories of Love and the Great War by visiting William Morrow's website. 

Land of Dreams

When I had the opportunity to review Land of Dreams by Kate Kerrigan, I really thought this would be a novel I would love. I love novels that take you back to fond times in our history, from WWII, to romance of the glory days of Hollywood in its infancy stages along with struggling to find ways to fit in for immigrants that had come to America searching for a better life. Even the back of the novel offered me a glimpse into something magical that fit the types of novels that I enjoy and find myself coming back to again and again. However this one for me didn't translate over from the premise to the actual story itself. There was a disconnect there I was searching for and never really found.

Being a huge fan of Kate Kerrigan's from Ellis Island, I was hoping for more than what I got by the end of Land of Dreams. Ellie Hogan has been through two marriages in her life time which has resulted in her being a single mother of two boys she didn't give birth to but adopted when their own birth mothers had abandoned them. Neither of the two boys, Leo and Tom were related either. She lives on Fire Island in New York where she makes a living as an Irish impressionist selling her works of art she paints from her time on the island or from her memories in Ireland. Tom, the youngest still lives with her while Leo has been sent to a Catholic boarding school.

She receives a phone call from the school telling her that Leo has simply left school and they fear is headed to California where he went with a schoolmate on vacation and found himself being lured into the magic of being the next rising star by a man he met there. Now Ellie, rushes off to find Leo in hopes of getting him to return home and back to school. When she arrives, she finds 16-year-old Leo in the company of Freddie Dubois, an upcoming agent finding new talent for the movie studios. He believes that Leo will be the next big star to make it to the big screen and has convinced Leo to audition. Ellie is torn between taking Leo back home and realizing that he already lost so much with the death of his father and abandonment of his birth mother, she relents and makes a temporary move to Los Angeles while he tries out. Upon her arrival she has now lost her drive to paint and instead immerses herself in being a full-time mother to Tom, supporting Leo in his career and making her own way in life with the men she meets. She knows she doesn't want to fall in love and get married again, but soon finds the charms of a man named Stan who comes to her aid more than once, a possibility. Soon war is declared and America is now involved with WWII and we see how that plays out for everyone involved including the internment of the Japanese Americans.

I received Land of Dreams by Kate Kerrigan compliments of William Morrow, a division of Harper Collins Publishers for my complimentary copy of this novel. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions included here are strictly mine. I was hoping for more than the novel delivered for me, perhaps dealing with Hollywood a bit more than just a gloss over when Leo was auditioning for the parts, but it was more along the lines of dealing with Ellie as the central character and what that meant as she transitioned to a life she never dreamed of and made the best of for the sake of her children and her friends. There were characters you got introduced to like Freddie, who seemed like filler instead of an actual character we could care about. We see bits of pieces of him through Leo's story but never understood his motivation or why he found himself in places he winds up. Even Leo's story is a bit vague considering Ellie uproots her entire life to chase after him, but he seems like a bit of a ghost in this one. I rate this one a 3.5 out of 5 stars and believe others may have different perspective than what I got. Being a huge fan of old Hollywood and WWII, I was hoping for more than what this one delivered.

For more information about Land of Dreams, Kate Kerrigan, or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Land of Dreams by Kate Kerrigan

You can find Kate Kerrigan on Facebook to stay up to date on all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on Land of Dreams, please visit William Morrow's website. 

Ellis Island - Giveaway and Review

All of us dream someday to find the perfect person to marry. Sometimes we find that person in our very best friend we have grown up with. Now much older we see them in a different light. Once just someone who we would climb trees with, scour the land for small animals and even walk us home from school, now they have matured into something much more. We shared a friendship and a love that isn't known until you find it in your best friend like John Hogan and Ellie Flaherty.

Ellie's spent her childhood growing up under her father's watchful eye being the priest of the village in which they lived. Living a life that he considers proper he wants only the best ethical life for Ellie, however when Ellie sees fit to fall in love with John and runs away to get married, it will create a dividing line for Ellie between her and her family.

Now living with John struggling to make ends meet in a run down college in the midst of war between the Irish and the British, Ellie worries that John efforts in helping out in the war will be their undoing. When he is wounded and can no longer walk, Ellie fears that now they will wind up poor since John can no longer work.

Receiving hope in the form of a letter from her friend from school, Shelia offers Ellie hope in working in America for a rich lady in need of help. Seeing an opportunity to help John with paying for an expensive surgery to make him walk again, Ellie sees no choice but to head to America long enough to make John well again.

In the novel Ellis Island by Kate Kerrigan we see the difficult choices that people had to make in living their homelands in hopes of coming to America for a better life. What some find here isn't the land of dreams being fulfilled while others are seeing that and so much more than they ever thought possible. Ellie will be faced to make a choice to return to her life with John with all his letters pleading for her to return, or see the possibilities for them all to come to America and make it in a land of hopes and dreams.

I received this book compliments of TLC Book Tours and Harper Collins publishers for my honest review. I LOVED how open and honest this story is of the struggle of leaving home for the possibility of something better like so many emigrants did back in the 1900's. While the work is hard at first many find their efforts worth it when little by little they see the prosperity just waiting for those willing to work hard for it. This book rates a 4.5 out of 5 stars. It does contain some profanity that may offend readers but since my goal is to provide an honest review, I must disclose this.

For more information about this book, the author and where to purchase a copy of this book, please click on the link below:

Ellis Island by Kate Kerrigan

You can also find more by visiting Kate's website by clicking here.

Thanks to the generosity of TLC Book Tours, they are offering a copy of this book as a giveaway for those following my blog. Here are the guidelines to enter.

1. Be a follower of my blog, Reviews From The Heart.

2. Be a resident of the US or have a US shipping address.

3. Please include your email with you comment as I need a way to contact you if you are the lucky winner. You can use the words (at) or (dot) instead of the symbols.

4. Leave a comment and let me know why'd you love to win a copy of this book. The giveaway will end on July 14th. I will notify the winner by email.