Teaser Tuesday-March 24

Check out Teaser Tuesdays from A Daily Rhythm. TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.

This week my teaser is from Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand:

He found several thick chocolate bars-probably Hershey's military-issue Ration D bars-divided into segments and packaged in wax-dipped containers to resist gas attack.  Designed to be unpalatably bitter so soldiers would eat them only in dire circumstances, they were formulated to be highly caloric and melt-resistant.

pg. 127

Mailbox Monday-March 23

Mailbox Monday is a great meme that has us list the books that we receive. You can check out the Mailbox Monday blog to see what everyone else found in their mailboxes.

Rebel Queen by Michelle Moran

I haven't received many books in the mail lately, but when I found this one waiting for me when I got home, I was thoroughly excited!  

So did anything interesting show up on your doorstep?

What Are You Reading?

Sheila over at Book Journey hosts this meme that gives you the opportunity to share the books that you have been losing yourself in lately and also the ones that you are looking forward to picking up next.

What I finished listening to:

I finished listening to We Are Not Ourselves by Matthew Thomas.  This was a beautiful saga narrated by Mare Winningham, who did a wonderful job.

What I'm reading now:

Our current book club selection is Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand.  I have only just started but I have a feeling this one is going to be a book club favorite.

What's next?

Sometimes it's tough to pick my next book but I think I'm going with The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson.  A co-worker borrowed me all three of these audiobooks over a year ago and I've listened to the first two, without much enthusiasm.  I guess I'm the odd duck, not enjoying them as much as the rest of the world.  I'm going to finally listen to this final segment so I can at least say I've listened to the entire series.

So what is keeping you busy these days?

Audiobook Review: The White Princess by Philippa Gregory

Title:  The White Princess

Author:  Philippa Gregory

Narrator:  Bianca Amato

Unabridged Length:  19 hrs, 5 mn.

Here is a summary of the book from the publisher's website:
Philippa Gregory, #1 New York Times best­selling author and “the queen of royal fiction” (USA Today), presents the latest Cousins’ War novel, the remarkable story of Elizabeth of York, daughter of the White Queen.

When Henry Tudor picks up the crown of England from the mud of Bosworth field, he knows he must marry the princess of the enemy house—Elizabeth of York—to unify a country divided by war for nearly two decades.

But his bride is still in love with his slain enemy, Richard III—and her mother and half of England dream of a missing heir, sent into the unknown by the White Queen. While the new monarchy can win power, it cannot win hearts in an England that plots for the triumphant return of the House of York.

Henry’s greatest fear is that somewhere a prince is waiting to invade and reclaim the throne. When a young man who would be king leads his army and invades England, Elizabeth has to choose between the new husband she is coming to love and the boy who claims to be her beloved lost brother: the rose of York come home at last.

My Review: 
When starting another Gregory audiobook narrated by Bianca Amato, it is like welcoming an old friend back into my life for awhile.  She truly has a way of embracing the characters and bringing them to life.  The story of young Elizabeth was no different, as we find ourselves wishing the best for the young woman who has so many odds stacked against her.

We learn early on of the love affair Elizabeth had with the late Richard III, and realize that her marriage to Henry is a political move to appease her parents.  Henry has fought against everything Elizabeth held dear, her father, family, and even her lover.  He, in some way, is responsible for all of their deaths, but in order to secure his crown, Henry did what needed to be done.

Now that Henry has the crown and a beautiful bride at his side, one would think that he would not feel the threat of betrayal.  But that is not the case, especially with his mother Margaret dictating his every move and somehow controlling his thoughts.  When the possibility of a York heir returning to England arises, everything Henry and his mother have worked for could be lost.  

This was a very passionate novel as Elizabeth pines for her lost love, but then also embraces the open arms of her new king and husband.   Just when she thinks there may be hope for a real relationship with her husband, his mother intercedes, reminding him what is at stake.  Since Elizabeth is a York heir herself, her motives can never be trusted.

I think this review sums up the novel pretty good and overall it was an enjoyable experience.  With themes of love, honor, family, and royalty, you may enjoy this book as much as I did.  I don't hesitate in recommending this novel for either personal leisure or as a book club selection.

My Rating:  4/5

Disclosure:  This audiobook was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

2015 Goodreads Reading Challenge

Well I achieved my goal last year of reading at least thirty books, and since I have not been requesting as many this year, I decided to set my goal for only 20 books.  I mostly wanted to post this so I can keep a running tally throughout the year of what I have read.  Eventually, you should be able to click on the book title to see the review. I know it's kind of late to post this, but do you have any reading goals this year?

1.  Christmas Jars by Jason Wright--completed 1/07/2015
2.  The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie--completed 2/04/2015
3.  Someone Else's Love Story by Joshilyn Jackson--Completed 2/20/2015
4.  We Are Not Ourselves by Matthew Thomas--Completed 3/10/2015
5.  Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand--Completed 4/1/2015
6.  The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson--Completed 5/4/2015
7.  Still Life With Bread Crumbs by Anna Quindlen--Completed 5/11/2015
8.  Stella Bain by Anita Shreve--Completed 6/3/2015
9.  The Fine Color of Rust by P.A. O'Reilly--Completed 6/4/2015