Cathy Marie BuchananRecensioni

Family

Just really boring and pointless.

Buchanan has a gift with words. Her style is poetic and elegant, while at the same time gritty and realistic for the time period she's writing about. I was drawn in immediately by the plight of the main characters, and I couldn't wait to read on and discover what happened to them. Although I found the ending a little rushed and perhaps a bit too pat and simplistic, I greatly enjoyed going along for the ride and letting myself be swept away by the story Buchanan spun.

Not impressive at all. The characters didn't interest me, the different narrators for each chapter was annoying, and I just felt like the whole book was a struggle to read. Ugh.

3.5 stars. My enjoyment of this book was probably enhanced by a basic knowledge of ballet and having recently seen some works by Degas in person.

Have very mixed feelings about this book, which was fascinating and beautifully written in many ways. The era and the reality of life for the ballet girls is, at first, superbly evoked but then it just becomes too much and loses credibility. For the first half of the book or more, I thought I would give it a 4 star, possibly 5 star review (despite a couple of small issues like Antoinette's dialogue, which is deliberately clumsy, but jars nonetheless), but the second half,in my opinion, was disappointing and too miserable.

I honestly wasn't sure what to expect with this book. It was an impulse buy; I had never heard of the book before, but the plot sounded somewhat interesting. Once I started reading, though, I could not put it down. The narrator wasn't the most compelling character, but I loved the language the author used, the almost dreamlike storytelling narrative, and the overall plot in which the Niagara River was the unspoken main character of the book.

I enjoyed The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan so much that I’m kicking myself for not reading her first novel when it came out in 2009.

Something about historical fiction sucks me in completely, and Buchanan’s story flowed seamlessly through the pages. At times predictable, the plot dragged as history is never as fast-paced and gripping as fiction. I did have a bit of an issue with the first person narrative: the reader is stuck with one sister per chapter, jumping back and forth jarringly.

Overall, despite these minor complaints, the novel is intriguing—a fast and satisfying read. The language and expertise Buchanan shows when writing about the ballet and Paris Opéra is solid. The story is heart-wrenching, sad yet beautiful, and will satiate readers who also enjoy the novels of Ami McKay and Marina Endicott.

Read my full review on my blog: http://www.monniblog.com/2013/04/the-painted-girls-by-cathy-marie-buchanan/

This book is everything a great HF book should be. Beautiful writing, characters you want to hug and not let go of, and a story so captivating you don't want to put the book down.

The story begins in the early days of WWI, in Niagara Falls Canada. Bess is a 17 year old girl brought up in society, expected to do all the "right" things a girl of her station should do: marry the right man, become a mother and carry on. Tom is "the river man", a fisherman and the man who pulls the "floaters" from the river when called upon. No spoiler, to tell you they fall deeply in love.

If you know me at all, you know the romance genre (whether historical or any other embedded tag) is not my go to book. However, this book is so much more. The author was raised in Niagara, the story loosely built on a real-life river man and his family. Her research and knowledge of the area and time is what earned the 5 star rating.

If you like a great story, characters that grab you and take you away-Read this book-I loved it.

I went into Daughter of Black Lake without much investigation beforehand. I knew that this was a story that touched on an area of history that doesn’t get much attention, and was intrigued by the pagan aspect of it. Other than that, I was wide open! My hope was to be transported to another time and place, which I can tell you that Buchanan does expertly. From the first page I was transported into the lives of those who lived in Brittania before the Romans took over. It was fascinating.

In terms of the story, it was simple enough to follow. We are introduced to Hobble and her village. I thought Buchanan did a good job of setting up their society. It’s true that there are some rather brutal parts of their belief system, but keep in mind that these fit with the time. I thought they were handled as gently as can be expected. I’m also not generally a fan of dual POVs, but in this case it was done exceptionally well. Watching Devout and her daughter Hobble, 17 years apart, navigate their changing world was so intriguing.

So what were my issues? First off, the pacing of this book is really slow. There is a lot of repetition, especially when it comes to the sort of love triangle that develops. Combined with the fact that there is a large cast of secondary characters, it made it a little tough to keep focused on the overall plot line. As the story progressed, it definitely picked up. However by the time I was invested fully, it was already the ending and the story was complete. I’ll happily still give this book a solid 3-star rating and recommend it!

I really enjoyed this book. Having lived on Grand Island, NY, for the past 11 years, I'm familiar with Niagara Falls and some of the stories that were told in the book. It was kind of cool to see familiar things in a novel.

I felt for the struggles Bess endured. She's a very strong woman, whether she thinks that of herself or not. She is someone to emulate, I think.

3 Sisters, of which
2 Ballerinas at the Paris Opera School
1 Theater Extra

1 Laundress Mother
Poverty
Absinthe

Modelling for Degas
Pseudo-Science (Physiognomy)
1 Pseudo-Scientific Play of the Determinism of Poverty

1 Creepy but Useful Opera Patron
1 Before-School Job at the Bakery
1 Sweet Baker's Son

1 Weak-Willed Good-for-Nothing Boy
1 Even Nastier Friend
2 Murders

What a snivelling self-centred wuss. The protagonist is a caricature of what must be the stereotypical teenager of the late 1910s and she never grows out of it. Her story is also so predictable that it lacks imagination. It feels like little more than a vehicle to tell some fictional versions of Niagara Falls history. Which are interesting, but not in this trite novel that encapsulates every cliche about that time period. Of the story had been of the male protagonist of the story, that might have been more interesting. Recommended for teen girls who have not read much about that time period. Everyone else should take a pass.

Daughter of Black Lake is an immersive, atmospheric story, which is exactly what I was hoping for when I chose to read it. The story is set in the first century AD, during the time when the Romans invaded Britain, or Britannia. I love reading historical fiction stories set in very early times, but I can't say that I've ever read any stories from this exact time and this exact setting. The story is told from the perspectives the people of Britannia as they feared the day the Romans would come to their community prepared to fight.

We hear from both Hobble and her mother Devout. Hobble is a young girl with a limp, hence her name. According to the old ways of her people, sacrifices sometimes must be made to appease the gods, and it was usually the sickest or weakest animal or human in the group. Hobble's walking impediment makes her the obvious choice, if the druids ever decide a human must be sacrificed. In Hobble's POV, we get to see how the community interacts with and fears the instruction of the druid priests, who seem to be direct lines to the gods but often are seen as harsh and demanding.

Devout's POV tells the story of how she came to be married to Hobble's father, Smith. There were very specific circumstances that led up to a marriage match, and a very specific ceremony, and all of this was super interesting to read. There is some tension between Devout and her husband, and the story progresses until we finally get to figure out what happened to make them hold one another at arm's length. In her own POV, Hobble tries to figure out what is going on with her parents, while also trying to balance life in Black Lake with the constant threat of invasion by the Romans.

Early in the story, we find that Hobble and Devout have a magic about them: they are seers. Hobble especially tries to keep her sight a secret, but this is very difficult once Fox the druid priest comes and insists on staying in the family's house. The relationship between Fox and Hobble is very tense throughout the story. I sort of wish there were some chapters from the druid's point of view, because his thoughts must have certainly been quite the opposite of most of the other characters.

I really enjoyed reading this one, from start to finish. The setting was pretty vivid in my mind, and I feel like I got a nice glimpse at how things may have been for those living in the more remote parts of Britannia after the time of Julius Caesar. I loved watching these characters move about in their world, doing each of their day-to-day activities. I anticipated that I would like this one before I ever started it; I found that I liked it more than I imagined I would. It's a little bit dark at times and these characters have a lot of hard choices to make, but all of the vivid details and the resilience of these people make for a great story.

I received a hardcover copy of this book for free from Riverhead Books in exchange for an honest review. These thoughts are my own. Thank you, Riverhead Books!

In Iron Era Briton, the season of Fallow is upon the small community of Black Lake. The small community works the land, hunts, forges iron, and lives off of the land; protected by and ruled over by their gods. Sacrificing to them when rain does not stop or fields do not grow is part of their everyday life. For Devout, Mother Earth is her provider. Devout came of age that Fallow and is able to seek a mate. With this comes a choice, mate with Arc, a fellow field hand or a tradesman, Young Smith. As Devout is choosing, change is coming to Black Lake. A Druid comes to tell of the impending Roman invasion and most of the Smith clan goes to fight. Seventeen years later, Devout's daugther, Hobble sees the Roman's arrival in one of her visions. When a druid again shows up to Black Lake, he wants to use Hobble's visions to incite the villagers to fight.

Daughter of Black Lake weaves together the coming of age stories of mother and daughter for an intimate portrait of life within an Iron Age settlement. The point of view switches between Devout and Hobble as young women giving a progressive view of Black Lake and the people there. I enjoyed reading about the day to day activities of Black Lake and how much their beliefs in the four gods of Protector, War Master, Begetter, and Mother Earth affected their daily lives. I was enthralled by Devout's devotion to Mother Earth and the rituals she followed as well as Hobble's gift of sight and how she used it. The writing had immersed me in the lives of the people of Black Lake and their daily struggles and successes. While they lived a very different life from us, the uncertainties they faced and bonds they made felt very similar to life today. This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

I requested an ARC of Daughter of Black Lake because I loved the author's first novel, The Painted Girls. In other words, I went into reading Daughter of Black Lake with a lot of assumptions. The first part of my reading process was disappointing because for the most part I was letting go of those assumptions and embracing the book for what it is. Once I embraced the book for what it is, I found it a deeply engaging read: one of those "just one more chapter" books that leave once exhauted and bleary-eyed the next morning.

Daughter of Black Lake is set in Britain during the Roman occupation. The Romans aren't much of a presence around Black Lake, a tiny hamlet perched at the edge of a bog, but the knowledge that they could appear at any moment shapes much of the narrative. Some people in Black Lake see the occupation as an opportunity: to learn new skills, to move beyond their old boundaries, and to make money. Others see the occupation as a threat to their entire lifeway, which is shaped by by Druid beliefs and practices.*

Hobble, the book's central narrator, is simultaneously less-than and more-than those she lives with. As her name suggests, she disabled, though not significantly. She walks with a limp, but her father has taught her her to run, and she's a swift as anyone else just a bit more ungainly. And in this Druid world, where the runts and imperfect animals are chosen for sacrifice, disability puts one at specific risk: there haven't been any human sacrifices in a generation, but those with weaknesses know that, if that changes, they may be the ones paying with their lives. At the same time, Hobble is a Seer. She'll be stopped in her tracks by a flash of blinding white light only she can see, then finds herself viewing images of some future event or location. This is primarily a pragmatic skill: she knows where clusters of mushrooms grow hidden, she easily collects plants for her work as a healer, she sometimes plays with her friends telling them where they'll find a particular stone or other item. But Hobble can't choose what she'll see or when she sees it, so when others want her to use this gift for a specific purpose, she can't.

Smith and Devout, Hobble's parents, have a relationship at once loving and distant. They hold secrets from one another, and neither fully knows the other. With her gifts, Hobble sees each of them more clearly than they see the other, but Hobble's understanding of their relationship remains incomplete.

The plot is moved along by the arrival of a Druid priest determined to inspire the villagers to a final uprising against the Romans. He's keeping a close eye on Hobble and her family, who can't be sure whether this attention reflects respect for her gift or disdain that might lead to Hobble being seen as a candidate for sacrifice.

What I particularly enjoyed about this novel is the way the two narratives—Hobble's growing understanding of her parents and the tensions the Druid's presence creates in Black Lake—play out in tandem, making the book simultaneously mythic and very human in scale.

I strongly recommend this title, which rewards readers on multiple levels. You may find the start a bit slow, but trust that you'll be caught up in the novel's tale and characters if you just keep reading.

I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions are my own.

*(Note: I know next to nothing about the actual Druid faith and Druid practices. Buchanan clearly did due diligence in depicting this world, but I can't tell you how well her depiction lines up with historical reality. If you've read this book and know more than I do about historical Druid identity, please leave a comment. I'd love to read your thoughts.)

The Day the Falls Stood Still is a spellbinding historical fiction novel set on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls from 1915 -1923, the time just before and after World War I. The story is told in a first person narrative by Bess, who is seventeen when we meet her. She's at the end of her school year at Loretto Academy but knows something is wrong when her mother attends the ceremony alone. Her father has been dismissed from his job as Director of the Niagara Power Company and taken up drinking. Her sister, Isabel has been abandoned by her fiance and a recluse in her bedroom. Her mother has taken up dressmaking for her former friends in society and now, unable to afford her final year in boarding school, Bess will need to apprentice as a seamstress with her.

As Bess and her mother struggle with her luggage, they meet Tom Cole who carries their trunk to the streetcar. Tom is a local riverman who catches fish for pay, pulls dead bodies out of the river, and works nights in the saloon. Her parents disapprove of Tom but they continue to meet each other each other every afternoon when Tom walks home from the river. They fall in love and marry and through poverty, anxiety, and tragedy as they forge a life together.

Tom loves the river, but the only jobs available are involved in the destruction of it and his cherished Falls. What will come first in his priorities, his family or his ethics? Tom, a man of strength and conviction, is an expert on the Niagara Falls area and uses his knowledge of the dangerous environment to rescue the desperate and foolish who fall victim to the dangers. The author fictionalizes real life river man, Red Hill in the character Tom Cole. Many stories and myths about the river are real, though told through some fictional characters. The book is also beautiful to look at with pictures of the Niagara Falls area at the beginning of many of the chapters .

I loved the historical detail and the magic and danger of Niagara Falls, which becomes a character of its own. The author describes the historical context of Canada and the early conflicts that arose between environmentalism and the utilization of new sources of energy. The characters are dynamic , the setting is colorful and the historical detail fascinated me. There is both joy and sorrow in this story, with a lasting emotional impact. It's a wonderful book and I highly recommend it.

Told in alternating perspectives, The Painted Girls follow the lives of the van Goethem sisters as they struggle against poverty and vices in Paris during La Belle Epoque. Young Marie, an aspiring ballet dancer, becomes a model for the artist Edgar Degas while older sister Antoinette finds work elsewhere in the theatre and falls in with the wrong crowd. A great read, and highly recommended if you enjoy art history novels like The Girl with the Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier or The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman.

"It is about being born downtrodden and staying that way. Hard work makes no difference, he is saying. My lot, the lots of those around me, were cast the moment we were born into the gutter to parents who never managed to step outside the gutter themselves."

Audiobook narrated by the wonderful Cassandra Campbell, Julia Whelan, and Danny Campbell.

I found it sort of slow paced, but I really enjoyed it. I liked all of the Ballet history and the first person accounts of what life was like back then. The switching between character views confused me at first, but got easier.

I liked the gritty, real life depiction of life for 3 young sisters in a late 19th century Parisian slum, but the characters and plot didn't go deep enough. I bailed after about 100 pages.

A wonderful historical fiction love story that takes place in the early 1900s. Bess Heath was a 17 year old when her affluent family's fortunes changed. She met Tom Cole, a fisherman, riverman and layabout according to others, and she wanted to get to know him. Her parents had other ideas for her, but eventually she and Tom got together. The story plays out while man is trying to harness the power of Niagara Falls for hydro-electricity. Tom's family have been Rivermen for the last few generations and have performed daring rescues over the years. Tom is alarmed by the changes in the river once the generators become operational. As well, WWI occurs during the time frame of this story. I do not want to give the story away, but have your kleenex ready at the end.

Buchanan tells of life in Paris during the late 1800's particularly for the young van Goethem sisters who wish to be accepted as ballet dancers at the Paris Opera. Life for them is a struggle and the oldest, Antoinette, spends time in prison for stealing money to try to help her imprisoned lover. Marie has a chance at being a successful ballet dancer and becomes the model for the sculpture Little Dancer Aged Fourteen by Edgar Degas but she doesn't get much farther than her debut. The youngest sister, Charlotte, is the only one to succeed long term as a professional ballet dancer.

It is a story of what girls had to endure to become ballet dancers, of life on the Paris streets during the late 1800's, of the artistic and cultural changes taking place at the time, and of the human drive to succeed despite the odds.

3.5 stars

This story follows three sisters, all ballet dancers. Their father has died and their mother, a laundress, neglects them and doesn’t have enough money to take care of them all. The middle sister, Marie, ends up posing for some of Degas’ paintings. The oldest sister, Antoinette, gives up dancing and falls in love with Emile, who is later accused of murder.

The story follows the viewpoints of Marie and Antoinette and alternates between them. I listened to the audio, and though there were two different narrators for each girl, I still found it difficult to follow who was speaking if I missed the intro to the chapter (which did say). I appreciated the author’s note at the end that tells us that the sisters were real and Marie was one of the ballet dancers who posed for Degas. Emile was also real, as was his story, though in reality, he and Antoinette were not involved. I do think both stories are interesting, but I just wonder if I might have liked it better if I wasn’t listening to the audio. I’m still rating it “good”.½

The first half of this novel was so good! I was absolutely absorbed in Bess's story. However, the second half of the novel was incredibly dull. Still, I love the time period and loved learning about the Canadian side of Niagara in the early twentieth century. Definitely a great read for historical fiction junkies.