BlueStockingReviews

FINDING

GREAT

READS

FICTION

BIOGRAPHIES

MYSTERIES

THRILLERS

Search

The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba

Apr 28
2 min

The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba

By Chanel Cleeton Three Women of Strength and Determination Fight for Freedom ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY In 1896 a battle for the biggest headlines rages between the New York newspaper tycoons Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst. When Grace Harrington lands a job with Hearst’s newspaper she know she has to find a big story to prove herself. It’s the story she finds in Cuba that changes her life. Evangelina Cisneros 18, is imprisoned in Recogidas for rejecting the advances on a

7 views0 comments

The Exiles

Apr 26
2 min

The Exiles

By Christine Baker Kline A Story of Suffering, Endurance, and Determination. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY THE EXILES is a story of the suffering, strength, and fortitude of three women. The story sheds light on the complicated aspects of Australian history, and the treatment of convict women and the Aboriginal people. Evangeline is a naive young governess in nineteenth-century London when she is seduced, becomes pregnant, and then accused of stealing and attempted murder. She is sent t

21 views0 comments

Seven Perfect Things

Apr 18
2 min

Seven Perfect Things

By Catherine Ryan Hyde An Immensely Satisfying Story of a Teenager’s Courage and Perseverance ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY When thirteen-year-old Abby Hubble spies a man dump a moving burlap bag into the river, she immediately dives in and rescues seven puppies. But now what? She knows that her father would never let her bring them home and the animal shelter is already full. Instead, she takes them to a nearby abandoned cabin and promises them that she’ll be back the next day to feed th

15 views0 comments

Nothing to See Here

Apr 18
2 min

Nothing to See Here

By Kevin Wilson A Unique, Pleasurable and Fun Read Where Children Don’t Play with Fire...They are the Fire ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Roommates Lillian and Madison haven’t spoken since boarding school when Lillian had to leave the school unexpectedly. A few years later, Lillian gets a letter from Madison pleading for her help. Madison’s two step kids are moving in with Madison and their father, who is an up and coming politician. Madison needs Lillian to be her step kids caretaker. Bu

13 views0 comments

The Pull of the Stars

Apr 11
2 min

The Pull of the Stars

By Emma Donoghue An Atmospheric and Heartbreaking Story Full of Compassion, Tragedy and Hopefulness. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Nurse Julie Power is the acting matron at an understaffed hospital in the center of Dublin, Ireland. It’s 1918 and the country is currently racked by both war and influenza. Nurse Julie works in the Maternity/Fever Ward where expectant mothers who also come down with this terrible new Flu are quarantined together. She is assisted in the ward by Birdie Sweeney,

29 views0 comments

The Summer of Lost and Found

Apr 11
2 min

The Summer of Lost and Found

By Mary Alice Monroe A Timely and Touching Story of Relationships During the Summer of the 2020 Pandemic ⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY In March 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic Linnea Rutledge is laid off from the the South Carolina Aquarium. As she worries about finances she agrees to help her Aunt Cara take care of her daughter, while Cara’s husband is battling Covid at home. Linnea’s boyfriend, Gordon is trying to return to Isle of Palms SC from England for the summer. Linnea’s prev

23 views0 comments

The Social Graces

Apr 11
2 min

The Social Graces

By Renée Rosen An Informative and Interesting Story of the Rivalry Between the Astor and the Vanderbilt Women ⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Alva Smith of Mobile, Alabama has recently married into the Vanderbilt’s, one of America’s richest families. She is still getting use to their exorbitant tastes, and the fact that despite their wealth the Vanderbilts were looked down upon by the likes of the Astors and other Knickerbocker families. Alva, who came from having nothing, will do whatever it

30 views0 comments

Greenlights

Dec 31, 2020
3 min

Greenlights

A clever, unique and thought-provoking memoir by actor and ad man Mathew McConaughey. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Greenlights, according to actor and author Matthew McConaughey is his love letter to life. He has been keeping diaries for over thirty-five years. He says the diaries contained “notes about successes and failures, joys and sorrows, things that made me marvel, and things that made me laugh out loud. How to be fair. How to have less stress. How to have fun. How to hurt peopl

36 views0 comments

The Chanel Sisters

Dec 29, 2020
2 min

The Chanel Sisters

An entertaining and enlightening historical fiction novel full of tragedy and hopefulness. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Antoinette and Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel are abandoned by their family at a young age. Nuns at the orphanage are preparing them to lead simple lives as the wives of tradesmen or shopkeepers. But the sisters are not content with what the nuns tell them they will be. They wanted something more ...something better. When they are finally old enough, the Chanel sisters set out

38 views0 comments

The Return

Nov 2, 2020
2 min

The Return

Nicholas Sparks A delightful fast read and essential reading for Nicholas Sparks fans. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Trevor Benson never intended to move back to New Bern, North Carolina. But when a mortar blast sent him home from Afghanistan, the dilapidated cabin he'd inherited from his grandfather seemed as good a place to regroup as any. Trevor is not looking for love, but he fall head over heels with a local deputy sheriff. Natalie Masterson seems to reciprocate his feelings, but she

16 views0 comments

When We Were Young and Brave

Oct 5, 2020
2 min

When We Were Young and Brave

By Hazel Gaynor An evocative historical fiction novel of courage, resourcefulness and friendships during the most traumatic of times. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Elsbeth Kent is a teacher at the Chefoo School, a missionary school in northern China and but is anxious to return home to England. But as she prepares to turn in her resignation, a terrible twist of fate determines a different path for Elspeth, and those children in her charge. Ten-year-old Nancy Plummer, is a British student

45 views0 comments

Faithful Place

Sep 28, 2020
2 min

Faithful Place

Dublin Murders Squad #3 Brilliantly Plotted and Full of Atmosphere ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY What happened to Rosie Daly? Teenagers, Frank and Rosie have been planning to run away together to London for months. The haven’t told anyone of their elopement plans. On the magically night of their planned departure, Frank is left waiting on a neighborhood street corner for hours with his rucksack at the top of Faithful Place. Rosie never showed up. He finds a note inside a nearby old cond

18 views0 comments

The Likeness

Sep 24, 2020
2 min

The Likeness

A beguiling book with great characters and vivid descriptions that come alive on the page ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Detective Cassie Maddox is asked to investigate the death of Lexi Madison, a young woman who is her doppelgänger. Lexi not only resembles Cassie, but was also living under the alias the detective had used in an earlier undercover assignment. A senior police officer, Frank Mackey convinces Cassie to impersonate Lexi, to help investigate her death and discover who she re

22 views0 comments

In The Woods

Sep 14, 2020
2 min

In The Woods

An amazing psychological thriller with descriptive writing and well-developed characters ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Rob Ryan is a detective with the murder-squad in Dublin, Ireland. Only a handful of people know that Ryan himself was at the center of one of the most perplexing unsolved cases in recent Irish history. At the age of 12 then known as Adam Ryan, he and two playmates wandered into the woods near his home in the town of Knocknaree to play. Hours after being reported missing

39 views0 comments

The Vanishing Half

Aug 29, 2020
2 min

The Vanishing Half

A compelling journey though the life-choices of racial identity and the consequences paid. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Desiree and Stella Vignes will always be identical twins, no matter what. They grew up inseparable in the fiction town of Mallard, Louisiana, a small, southern community exclusively founded for light-skinned blacks. At sixteen, the girls ran away from home together to New Orleans, and not long after they separated. Ten years later, one sister lives with her very-black d

31 views0 comments

All the Devils are Here

Aug 28, 2020
2 min

All the Devils are Here

Chief Inspector Armand Gamache #16 A perfect blend of fascinating characters, picturesque setting and a delightfully complicated and mesmerizing story. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY On their first night in Paris, the Gamache family gathered for dinner at a bistro with Armand’s godfather, the billionaire Stephen Horowitz. Walking home together after the meal, they watch in horror as Stephen is hit by a car and critically injured in what Gamache believes is no accident, but a deliberate a

39 views0 comments

The 20th Victim

Aug 19, 2020
2 min

The 20th Victim

Women’s Murder Club #20 By James Patterson, Maxine Paetro Hold on tight it’s a breathless roller coaster ride of a book. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Sergeant Lindsey Boxer catches the lead in the case of a lifetime. Mysterious murders are piling up in a San Francisco, L.A. and Chicago. All victims executed with uncanny precision and all seemingly linked to drug dealing. It’s can’t possible be one person responsible for all the murders at the same time so what is happening here? San F

31 views0 comments

A Good Neighborhood

Aug 7, 2020
3 min

A Good Neighborhood

Each character is powerfully drawn and the story they tell us is poignant. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Valerie Alston-Holt is raising her bright and talented eighteen-year-old biracial son, Xavier, in the established and gentrified neighborhood of Oak Knoll in North Carolina. Valerie is a professor of Forestry and ecology, and her she loves and cares for her yard almost as much as her son, particularly her eighty foot historic oak tree in the backyard. Brad Whitman, a beloved local busi

30 views0 comments

No Woods So Dark as These

Aug 3, 2020
2 min

No Woods So Dark as These

Ryan DeMarco Mystery #4 An absolute must read for lover’s of the Ryan DeMaro series. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY Former State Trooper Jayme Matson and Former Sergeant Ryan DeMarco are spending some quiet time recovering from some recent cases and the loss of their unborn child. But the door bell rings and once again the two are dragged into another case. Two bodies are discovered in a smoldering car in the Pennsylvania woods, and another body is found brutally impaled to a tree nearby.

36 views0 comments

The Lions of Fifth Avenue

Aug 3, 2020
3 min

The Lions of Fifth Avenue

Love the characters, the setting and the story. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SUMMARY 1913 - Laura Lyons and her husband Jack and their two children live in a seven room apartment tucked in a corner of the grand New York Public Library. Jack Lyons is the library superintendent and an aspiring novelist. Laura, a graduate of Vassar, wants more out of life than just being a wife and mother. She was recently accepted to the newly established Columbia School of Journalism. Her studies take her all ove

83 views0 comments