Showing posts with label MJ Lee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MJ Lee. Show all posts

Sunday, August 14

Book Review: Samuel Pepys and the Stolen Diary by MJ Lee


Author: MJ Lee
Title: Samuel Pepys and the Stolen Diary
Genre: Historical Fiction & Mystery
Pages: ebook
First Published: January 29th 2016
Where I Got It: My shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for an honest and unbiased opinion)


England, 17th century.

Samuel Pepys has been keeping a diary for many years; a diary that tells of all the political shenanigans he is witness to at the court of King Charles Stuart. And of all his own marital indiscretions as well.

And now it has been stolen, along with his wife’s favourite locket. Samuel must get it back, or he might lose his head in the Tower. He will certainly lose his wife, who thinks he’s given her locket to his latest mistress. 


I have been reading a lot of historical mysteries lately! Not usually my top 10, but I have been utterly addicted of late. 

Now, this story follows Samuel Pepys and his pal Will, after his diary and his wife's locket was stolen. Yes, Mr. Pepys was a real fellow and his diary was real as well. Was it ever stolen? Perhaps! The contents surly were steal-worthy from what I have heard. I have never read it, but now that I did some research on the real man (like I normally do ;D), I am curious to see what he has written and his view points on the times. 

Anyways...

This was a fun and exciting mystery. I thought I had the mystery solved, but then the ending through me for a loop. I mean the culprit had been suspicious, but a little overly so, so I paid it no mind. Kuddos to the author for getting me in the end! I was worried the King would not believe him since there was not an over amount of evidence.

I like Samuel even though he was a cheating bastard at times, but he was a man in 17th century England, so what is to be expected? 

I loved Will. Poor guy! I did some research, because I wanted to know if he was a real dude and he was. A part of me wanted Elizabeth to leave Samuel for him, which never happened, but a girl could hope! ;D Hopefully Samuel did turn around his cheating ways to be faithful to her. But I think Will would've been a better husband. 

My one and only compliant was the pacing of the book and length of some dialogue. There were moments of extreme slowness and moments of quickness that forced me to reread the section to fully grasp what happened. I think what dragged things out at times were the lengthy dialogue. Yes, it was important, but sometimes I wanted more directness and to have the story move on. 

In the end, this was a fun and exciting ride! I couldn't put it down, because I wanted to know what was going to happen next. The characters were fun. I loved Will and I want him to have his story shared next! I liked Samuel even though he was a cheating butthole, hopefully he keeps his promise to his wife *fingers crossed*, because Elizabeth was cute and deserved a loving husband *cough* like Will would've been *cough*. I do recommend this to those that like a good mystery. Out of five stars, I stamp this with 4 stars. 




























Friday, June 24

Book Review: The Irish Inheritance by MJ Lee


Author: MJ Lee
Title: The Irish Inheritance
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance, & Contemporary Set
Pages: ebook
First Published: June 15th 2016
Where I Got It: My shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)


June 8, 1921. Ireland. 
A British Officer is shot dead on a remote hillside south of Dublin. 

November 22, 2015. United Kingdom. 
Former police detective, Jayne Sinclair, now working as a genealogical investigator, receives a phone call from an adopted American billionaire asking her to discover the identity of his real father. 
How are the two events linked? 
Jayne Sinclair has only three clues to help her: a photocopied birth certificate, a stolen book and an old photograph. And it soon becomes apparent somebody else is on the trail of the mystery. A killer who will stop at nothing to prevent Jayne discovering the secret hidden in the past 
The Irish Inheritance takes us through the Easter Rising of 1916 and the Irish War of Independence, combining a search for the truth of the past with all the tension of a modern-day thriller. 
It is the first in a series of novels featuring Jayne Sinclair, genealogical detective.


My first thought when I finished the book………..wow. My second thought…………….Yayy! Should I elaborate more? Sighs…if I must.

This book was SO fun. It was certainly original and had me hooked since page one. I couldn’t get enough. The blend of history, mystery, drama, and action was perfect. The characters certainly made the story come to life.

It would be so cool to pay someone like Jayne to find uncover the mystery of who my mom's birth parents were. We know some small tidbits (more so the mom), so it would be neat. If I had money to spend like that I totally would track down someone to do that for me and my mom. 

At first I was worried and scared. I wanted this to work, but I had a horrible feeling it would not be interesting. However, I was wrong…OH so wrong. Everything flowed well and even the research aspects had me curious. I really wanted to figure out who was poor John’s real father. I figured out who the real dad was pretty quickly, but the actual “how is that possible” was the real question. The how and the why were the real mysteries.

AND THAT TWIST AT THE END. HOLY COW! *applauds* It was good. I didn’t see it coming.

Ooooh that main baddie was a snot. I wanted to kick him.

I hated Paul, Jayne’s hubbie. He was a real big jerk. I mean…Jayne is not innocent in the fall of their marriage, but C’MON! It may be a silly job to him, but at least the chit is making money. For realz. Especially for this job. The client, John, is paying a crap ton of money for her to find his real Dad. My BF would push me and help me for that money. Haha.

My one and only compliant was the loose end. Why did the IRA try and kidnap her? Maybe I missed the connection….but I didn’t really understand the connection to the story and why was it important? Were they trying to help keep John’s real dad’s ID a secret? Will it be explained in the next book? Mhmmmmmm

WHEN IS THE NEXT BOOK COMING OUT?! I WANNA READ IT!!!! LOL

I shall stop my ramblings now…..

In the end, this was super fun and addicting. The characters and the story had me hooked. There was one loose end that is stumping me, but there really is nothing else to complain about. I do recommend this for those that like a blend of history, mystery, drama, and action. It is a good one. Out of five stars, I stamp this with 5.