A BYGONE ERA ... A RAFFLE WINNER ... A BOOK REVIEW ...

Happy Monday all.

I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend! As always it does go by so quickly. As promised, I will be giving away a lovely copy of THE CAGED GRAVES by Dianne Salerni. BUT... before I announce the winner, I would like to give my review.

As not to spoil the complete story for all who wish to read this fascinating novel, I'd like to review it a bit differently.

For me The Caged Graves sends the reader back in time. The author, Dianne Salerni, transports us back to rural nineteenth century Pennsylvania. A simpler, gentler, yet, naive and superstitious era of young America. A time where woman are submissive, and were raised to marry young, bear children, and listen to their husbands. But Verity Boone is different. She is opinionated, stubborn, and passionate. Very much like Jo March in Little Woman.

The author's prose flows beautifully, mirroring Alcott's own days. The struggles, the desires, and innocence of Verity. The dialogue is effortless, as if the author herself conversed with Alcott over afternoon tea.

It seriously blew my mind. If I didn't know better, I would have believed this novel was written in the nineteenth century.

But our author does something more intriguing than just penning a story of a young woman on the verge of marrying. She ever so subtly introduces a mystery. And it was this mystery that our heroin pursues, even jeopardizing her future, to find the answers. WHY? What was this obsession that drove her to find out the truth. Who were the unfortunate souls buried in these graves, and WHY were they entombed in cages outside the cemetery?

One must read the full novel until the end to find out. It's a slow and steady build up with lots of interesting subplots, mysterious and chilling characters, as well as more that one love interest to keep the reader turning the page.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Caged Graves. Not your typical historical novel by any means. What really fascinates me the most is that Ms. Salerni wrote this novel after discovering the original Caged Graves on a trip to Pennsylvania. Now imagine going to a cemetery, picking a few names off headstones, and creating a whole scenario with the spirits from the past. It takes a great deal of imagination to do this successfully and I am happy to say that Ms. Salerni pulls it off amazingly well.

Thank you Dianne, for creating such a memorable story for us to step back in time.

Dianne K. Salerni
We Hear the Dead (Sourcebooks)

The Caged Graves (Clarion/HMH 2013)

The Eighth Day (HarperCollins 2014)

http://www.diannesalerni.com
http://diannesalerni.blogspot.com/

AMAZON: LINK

AND, now for the winner of a hard copy, plus signed book plate. I was so happy to see who came up as the winning number ....

CONGRATULATIONS ..... MELISSA BRADLEY! What a fun surprise for me that one of my fellow Chicago blogger buddies won.

SO Melissa, let me know how you'd like me to give you your prize... Shall it be in the mail or in PERSON.... I see another six hour chat-a-thon coming up at Cafe Baci in the very near future. LOL.

I hope you all enjoyed my review and I hope you all get your copy. Every reader needs to escape from time to time and why not go BACK IN TIME.... You will be glad you did.

Have a great DAY EVERYONE!!!!