Book Review: The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

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The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray is a historical fiction novel that spans many years and tells of the friendship between former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt and civil rights activist Mary McLeod Bethune. I don't know if I would have picked up this book if it hadn't been the August selection for one of the book clubs I belong to in my area because I don't read a lot of historical fiction. However, I am so glad that I read it and was able to learn many things I hadn't learned about in any of my history classes.  I don't recall learning anything about Mary McLeod Bethune, and she is an important part of American history. The things she helped spearhead to provide African American people equal rights is quite impressive. One of the things I was horrified to learn about is Franklin D. Roosevelt's resistance to stop lynchings because he was afraid of losing the Southern Democrats backing for his New Deal Bill. Another thing that I fo...

Book Review: The Guest List by Lucy Foley

book review The Guest List Lucy Foley

The Guest List by Lucy Foley is about Jules, a magazine publisher, and Will, a reality television show, getting married on a remote island off the coast of Ireland. As the festivities begin, old resentments bubble to the surface, and relationships begin to become strained. On top of that, when a dead body is found, people start to have a melt down.

Told from different characters perspectives, The Guest List had a modern day feel of an Agatha Christie book, and it kept you on your toes the entire novel. Early on, I suspected one particular character of being the murderer, and I was ecstatic that I was correct in my guess. As I got closer to the end of the book, I started second guessing myself, so the author did a great job in that department. Don't worry. I'm not going to reveal who the killer was.

I also love the fact that the story wasn't told in a linear fashion . . . it would flip from the present to a few hours before back to the present time. It was done very nicely. Don't worry, it wasn't very confusing. At least not until you get to the end of the book, and then, it's only a little confusing.

Most of the characters were very likeable, and the one that I didn't really care for throughout the book ended up redeeming himself a little bit because you could understand why he was the way he was. With that being said, one of the likeable characters ended up being a total jerk by the end of The Guest List.

I gave The Guest List by Lucy Foley five out of five stars, and I can't wait to read some of the other novels written by this author. If you enjoyed this book, I recommend Evil Under The Sun (Hercule Poirot, #24) by Agatha Christie.

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