No Moon by Irene N. Watts

Fourteen-year-old Louisa Gardener becomes nursemaid to the young daughters of a wealthy titled family living in London, England, in 1912. Despite the bullying of Nanny Makintosh, for whom she is an extra pair of hands, Louisa loves her work. Haunted by memories of the drowning of her two-year-old brother on a trip to the seaside when she was but five years old, Louisa has been able to suppress her nightmares and deep-rooted feat of the ocean. But they soon come flooding back when the family decides to sail to New York aboard the Titanic. If Louisa refuses to go, she will be dismissed and never get beyond the working-class life she has escaped from. Will Louisa be able to overcome her fears and embark on a voyage that changes history forever? Her fateful choice makes No Moon a gripping, unforgettable story.

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I'll be honest with you, don't like Titanic stories; never have and probably never will. They scare me. I remember watching a documentary on TV about what researchers uncovered when they finally found the Titanic 73 years later after it sank... ballroom floors covered in moss, a once elegant staircase in shambles, and–the eeriest image of all: a pair of shoes firmly planted on the ocean floor, as if someone just stepped out of them. Every time someone suggests I watch Titanic, I shake my head no. Too sad, I say. 
When I first started reading No Moon I expected the entire book (which is only 232 pages long) to take place aboard the RMS Titanic. Instead, more than half of the book took place on land with barely a quarter of the story dealing with the tragic event of April 14, 1912. I really liked Louisa's voice; she kept me pulled into the story, no matter if it was going a bit slow or not. No Moon was an excellent historical piece not only with capturing a perspective on the Titanic, but with the Victorian and pre-World War I era as well. Some people might not find "downstairs life" (i.e. servant life) enticing, but I do. Especially since you may have never realized that running giant household could take so many different jobs and people! I have never read any of Watt's books until now, but I am familiar with some of her other titles: Remember Me, Finding Sophie, Goodbye-Marianne, and Clay Man. I'm glad I got the chance to read No Moon–it was a great story.

Recommendation: Not a fan of Titanic stories? Me neither, but that didn't stop me from enjoying No Moon! I thought it was a fantastic historical fiction book; read it to celebrate the Titanic's 98th birthday. Recommend to teens ages 12+.

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This Book is For: Teens who enjoy historical fiction set in the Victorian Era and readers who like short books.
Content: None (G)


The Last Straw: "And suppose there is no moon?"
                        "No moon? There is always a moon." (pg. 122)


|Pages: 232|Year Published: April 2010|Publisher: Tundra|
|Genre: Historical fiction, 1900s, Victoria Era, WWI, coming of age|
|Age Group: YA, ages 12+|Content: None (G)|
|Enjoyed It: 4/5|Content Rating: 5/5|Cover: 5/5|
|Overall: 5/5|

Anastasia's Secret by Susanne Dunlap

"Perhaps we will meet again," Sasha said, softening his voice. "But you must see that it does not matter. You have so much ahead of you. It's your choice now. Choose the future! Choose life!"
For Anastasia Romanov, life as the privileged daughter of Russia's last tsar is about to be torn apart by the bloodshed of revolution. Ousted from the imperial palace when the Bolsheviks seize control of the government, Anastasia and her family are exiled to Siberia. But even while the rebels debate the family's future with agonizing slowness and the threat to their lives grows more menacing, romance quietly blooms between Anastasia and Sasha, a sympathetic young guard she has known since childhood. But will the strength of their love be enough to save Anastasia from a violent death? Inspired by the mysteries that have long surrounded the last days of the Romanov family, Susanne Dunlap's new novel is a haunting vision of the life?and love story?of Russia's last princess - book jacket

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Dunlap’s first novel for young adults, The Musician’s Daughter, was one of my favorite historical fiction novels last year. Anastasia’s Secret however didn’t quite reach that level with me and was harder to get into. Although I love reading about the Romanovs and the Last Grand Duchess, I was just a little too disappointed because I was so hoping Dunlap’s second novel would be just as smashing as The Musician's Daughter. Of course you can’t always compare so critically because there were a few differences I would like to point out that shouldn't be compared. With Anastasia's Secret, Dunlap had to follow a set of rules/timelines because the character she was bringing to life had a very important history. Another reason why I tried to not judge too harshly was the fact that Dunlap (as she said in her author’s note) that she wasn’t use to writing in first person! That’s right. This story comes straight from Anastasia’s mouth and I must confess, Dunlap’s quite good at doing justice to the Duchess's personality. In fact, I couldn’t imagine Anastasia any other way.
After reading about halfway through the book I discovered a pattern in the storyline. The book slowed way down when Anastasia was talking about everyday life. Then it picked up (and skipped through time) again when Anastasia was with Sasha. It seemed like the entire novel evolved around Anastasia’s relationship with Sasha. I’m not really complaining about it because after all that is Anastasia’s “secret”, but I would have liked the scenes in between to have been more interesting. In The Musician’s Daughter I saw the streets of Vienna; in this book, I only heard about the Romanov family–it was hard to picture them. 
Despite a few flaws and high expectations, I did think Anastasia’s Secret was still a decent historical romance and that Anastasia was brought to life in a way that was almost magical. I can’t wait until Dunlap writes another story for us. (You wouldn’t believe how excited I was when I found out this one was being released!)

Recommendation: If you’ve read Dunlap’s other novels then Anastasia’s Secret is a must. I would highly recommend to history lovers or historical romance junkies both teen and adult. If you like fast-paced books or have a tendency to abandoned books after a couple chapters then try The Musician’s Daughter–Anastasia’s Secret is probably not for you. Recommend to teens ages 14+.

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For Parents and Teens

This Book is For: Teens or adults who enjoy a good historical (romance) fiction novel or who have a soft-spot for Anastasia stories.

This Book is Not For: Teens who don’t like historical fiction or who can’t stick with a slower plot.

Content Radar: There is sensuality between Sasha and Anastasia and some sexual situations–nothing extremely detailed. There is also lewd remarks from soldiers as well. Not appropriate for teens/tweens 12 and under. (PG)

The Last Straw: What is it about Bloomsbury novels? They smell like adventure!
“I hear the tune and recall a nursemaid singing to me.” - Anastasia

|Pages: 333|Year Published: Nov. 2009|Publisher: Bloomsbury|
|Genre: Historical fiction, romance, 1900s, WWI|
|Age Group: YA, 14+| Content: PG|
|Enjoyed It: 4/5|Content Rating: 4/5|Cover: 5/5|
|Overall: 4/5 |

Fever Season by Eric Zweig

After the Great War and Canada’s violet Spanish flu epidemic, 14-year-old David Staifer is left an orphan. As he recounts his life, David discovers a way to find his long lost uncle: hockey. The only way to get to Seattle is to take job with Montreal’s National Hockey League; but with the fever still at large on the West Coast, can David survive long enough to find his Uncle? Will his beloved team survive the hockey tournament as well?

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Fever Season was a nice peek into the past of hockey and what life was like during World War I. At first the story was kinda slow, especially when David talked about his childhood; only when he joined the hockey team as a sort of “janitor” boy, did things start to pick up. The reason I picked up Fever Season was because it was set on Canada. I don’t know anything about Canadian history (I didn’t even know about the fever), so I thought this book would help. Even though it was probably a bit too juvenile for me, I still enjoyed learning about 20th century Canada and what orphans had to go through during those times. With it’s lightness and “memoir” like style, I would definitely recommend to any hockey fan or history buff.

|Pages: 228|Published: Oct. 2009|Publisher: Dundurn Press|

|Genre: Historical fiction, sports, 1900s, orphans|

|Age Group: YA, ages 12+|Content: None|

|Enjoyed It: 3/5|Content Rating: 5/5|Cover: 4/5| (NEW!)

|Overall Rating|

A Countess Below Stairs by Eva Ibbotson

Ann is a countess. Or was until the Russian Revolution. Now the remaining Grazinsky family live penniless in England.
Ann decides to take a job as a servant in the house of the Earl of Westerholme. She must hide her aristocratic past and try to desperately fit into the "downstairs" life.
When Rupert, the Earl, makes plans to marry the beautiful but wicked Muriel Hardwicke, the household of Mersham is in deep trouble. Will Mersham, as well as the county be spared the cruelty of Miss Hardwicke? And will things ever be the same for Russia's "Little Star"?

The Review

At first I was a bit wary about reading this book because the reviews went on and on about how she falls in love with the Earl, Rupert. A Countess Below Stairs is actually a story about: Mersham and its whimsical characters; a cruel and deceitful wealthy heiress; a war-torn Earl; a few loony cousins; and a countess desperately trying to pose as a housemaid.

I really liked the characters and found myself laughing out loud at Anna, the handsome Prince Sergei, and the story of Pupkin (the dachshund who swallowed a diamond).

I loved A Countess Below Stairs because it's not your average gooey love story. The characters are unique and Anna was quite hilarious-I kept rooting for Anna to tell everyone she was a Duchess.

Some people might say it's too much of a fairy tale story, but who doesn't like a happily-ever-after?

Rating: 5 stars Pages: 400 Year Pub.:2007 Level: YA Fiction: Historical

Time Period: World War I This Book Is For: Girls

Recommend? Yes