THE WEDDING GIRL (Madeline Wickham)

I love both Madeline Wickham and her alter-ego, Sophie Kinsella, but I still can't figure out if they are really merging into one person or if it is just coincidence that Wickham's novels have definitely moved from literary fiction (more like Joanna Trollope) to chick lit. I really can't complain, though, because Wedding Girl was a delight to read, filled with quirky, interesting characters and desperate situations.

Milly, who is the "wedding girl", is engaged to be married and the wedding is in just a few days. Milly has been playing the role of the perfect fiance for months, convinced that her fiance, Simon, expects her to be the modern man's Barbie doll, successful, intelligent, and beautiful. Simon is the son of successful entrepreneur Harry Pinnacle, who abandoned his son at a young age but became a part of his life once again when Simon's mother died 10 years before. Simon's relationship with his father is built on resentment and is constantly tetering on the brink of collapse. Milly's mother, Olivia, is a manic social-climber (think Hyacinth Bucket with a career) whose successful bed and breakfast hotel seems to take precedence over her husband, James, and her marriage. Milly's older sister Isobel is a successful language interpreter who arrives home for the wedding with a secret, and Aunt Esme, Milly's godmother, harbors secrets as well that could ruin Milly's opportunity for happiness.

In the excitement of preparing for the wedding Milly has neglected to tell her intended and her family one important thing: that she married a gay man 10 years before so he could stay in the country, and now she is not sure whether she is divorced or not. When a young photographer arrives to capture all of the wedding preparations and festivities, he and Milly recognize each other from a past brief meeting on the sidewalk after her first wedding, and eventually things begin to fall apart.

This would make a terrific romantic comedy film. It's too bad that Hugh Grant is too old to play 29-year-old Simon, because he would be perfect in the role. In the meantime, enjoy the book!

DUNE ROAD (Jane Green)

This is an interesting novel because it is so immediate, so timely. Several of the characters are immersed in personal problems that are directly connected to our current financial crisis. This is women's fiction, not a Wall Street thriller, but the author does an excellent job of creating a realistic and entertaining picture of how our failing financial system affects the affluent families who have over-extended themselves and how the culture of the rich reacts when one of their own loses everything. The novel is set in Fairfield County, CT, where Green lives, so the resident famous author, elite shops, and private schools are realistic and the characters are believable.

The main character in Dune Road in this novel is Kit, a divorced mother of two whose supposedly happy marriage succumbed to her husband's focus on his successful career in the city and subsequent neglect of his family;'s emotional needs. Kit's 2 best friends are Charlie, another Wall Street wife, and Tracy, who owns and runs a popular local yoga studio. As with any good women's fiction, everyone either has a secret or is oblivious to the fact that their world is about to come crashing down. Is there romance? Of course, but it's not the focus of the novel. Is The story realistic? Who can say. Is the ending satisfying? Yes. I enjoyed Dune Road and other fans of Jane Green, Nancy Thayer, or Elin Hiderbrand will as well.

PERFECTION: A MEMOIR OF BETRAYAL AND RENEWAL (Julie Metz)

I started reading Perfection as I was preparing to move the book from the library's workroom to our NEW area. I was immediately drawn in to Metz's story of a woman suddenly widowed, left with a young daughter and a life in turmoil. The marriage was stressful and Henry, the late husband, left behind a complicated tangle of questions and problems for Julie and Liza, her daughter, to unravel. One surprising aspect of this story for me was that it is a nonfiction memoir, a fact that for some reason totally escaped me until I reached the end of the story and realized that the main character had the same name as the author! Duh!

Anyway, despite the fact that I am unable to distinguish nonfiction from fiction (bad trait for a librarian!), I would recommend this book. Julie Metz's willingness to open herself to scrutiny and to expose her innermost feelings about herself and her marriage to the world results in a memoir that is painful to read in many ways, but also reassures that reader that life can go on, even joyfully, after grief and betrayal. Metz presents herself as a real person with flaws, one who makes mistakes and shares responsibility for the less-than-perfect marriage that ends with her husband's death. She took the high road with this memoir when she could have presented herself as the pitiable victim. She's a strong woman who has worked hard to achieve peace and tranquility in her life. I don't think I could ever open my life to this kind of intimate scrutiny, but Metz does it in a way that makes you admire her courage.

INNOCENT TRAITOR (Alison Weir)

Meticulously researched and beautifully written, this is one of Weir's 2 works of historical fiction. Innocent Traitor is the story of Lady Jane Gray, whose brief claim to the throne of Britain ended in her beheading at the tender age of 16. The novel is written from several points of view: Jane, her mother Frances, and Queen Katherine Parr, Henry VIII's last wife. Frances is an abusive mother, perpetually disappointed by her failure to produce a son and her failure to achieve the social status that she feel her family deserves. She is an embittered social climber who lacks any empathy or motherly instincts. Katherine Parr, by contrast, is a warm, loving woman whose interest and attention provide Jane with her only experience of maternal love and attention aside from her nurse, Ellen. The character of Jane is a bit troubling as she is portrayed her as unnaturally intelligent and well-spoken beyond her years. At the age of 4 she seems to have the personality of a 20-year-old!

This novel is rich in historical details, especially concerning the conduct of everyday family life and the customs of the royal court. As we all know, though, it does end badly. If you are not in the mood for a sad outcome, this might not be the book for you, but if you love attention to historical minutiae, pick this one up. You won't be able to put it down.

DESERTER: MURDER AT GETTYSBURG (Jane Langton)

Jane Langton's Homer and Mary Kelly mysteries are always delightful reading. Homer, a (now) retired professor and Mary, a librarian/scholar, married later in life and enjoy a mutual love of historical and literary research. Though somewhat advanced in years, both are active, young at heart, and always ready to tackle an interesting mystery. Homer and Mary are based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, but research pursuits and personal interests often take them farther afield, affording Langton the opportunity to introduce the reader to details of various historical and cultural venues.

In this excellent novel the couple travels to Mary's family homestead in Concord, MA in pursuit of information on Mary's great-great grandfather Seth Morgan, a Harvard graduate whose mysterious disappearance during the battle of Gettysburg has piqued their interest. Their research takes them to the battlefields of Gettysburg by way of Harvard University's research libraries and memorial collections. The reader is treated to a dual storyline: while Homer and Mary follow clues hoping to shed some light on Seth's fate, we also follow the stories of Private Otis Pike, reportedly killed at Gettysburg, and of Seth's wife Ida, who travels to the battlefields in search of her husband despite her advanced pregnancy. Langton's historical research is superb and Homer and Mary are, as always, comfortable and humorous companions on our journey to the story's resolution. Langton's use of Civil War era photographs throughout the book make reading it an especially interesting and somehow more personal experience. Be prepared for a surprise at the end!