Kate’s 2¢:  “The Last Telegram: by Liz Trenow

 “The Last Telegram: by Liz Trenow

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   Each chapter begins with a brief history of silk, starting from the Chinese Empress’s fishing a cocoon out of her tea, to the modern production of silk. Vignettes taken from her father’s ”History of Silk”. Then, the story spun on from the previous chapter, but tied in to the introduction.

   The question of who she actually married remains a secret until the end of the story. A great dramatic ploy, but, I’m not sure why the title is “The Last Telegram”.

A few take-outs:

–I need to make the most of the few years left granted to me.

–The family brought three refugees from the children’s camp to work in the family silk mill. They were very good workers

–Most prejudices are unthinking.

From her website:

Liz Trenow is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of historical fiction, including Under a Wartime Sky and The Silk Weaver. Her novels are published worldwide and have been translated into many languages.

A former journalist, Liz spent fifteen years working for regional and national newspapers, and BBC radio and television news, before turning her hand to fiction. She lives in East Anglia with her artist husband and they have two grown-up daughters and three beautiful grandchildren, some wonderful friends, singing in two chamber choirs (Baroque music, especially) and, of course, reading widely. This is where I write.

One strand running through some of my novels stems back to my family background: I was born and brought up in a house next to the family silk mill, a company which was founded nearly 300 years ago and is still going strong today. There is more about the silk company at www.stephenwalters.co.uk. 

From NLS/BARD/LOC:

The last telegram DB107696

Trenow, Liz. Reading time: 11 hours, 6 minutes.

Read by Susan Duerden.

Historical Fiction

Decades ago, as Nazi planes dominated the sky, Lily Verner made a terrible choice. She’s tried to forget, but now an unexpected event pulls her back to the 1940s British countryside. She finds herself remembering the brilliant colors of the silk she helped to weave at her family’s mill, the relentless pressure of the worsening war, and the kind of heartbreaking loss that stops time. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2013.

Downloaded: June 13, 2022

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Kate’s 2¢: “The It Girl” by Ruth Ware

“The It Girl” by Ruth Ware

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   Instead of chapters, the author uses ‘Before’ and After’. ‘Before gives a clear picture of what life as a freshman on the Oxford campus is like  prior to the murder of April. It develops the characteristics of the six students and how they interact with each other; their identities, uniqueness, and relationships. ‘After’ develops the characters ten-years after the murder, introducing the other possibilities after the convicted man dies in jail, still protesting his innocence.

   The author does a good job of casting aspersions on several other characters who may have done the dastardly deed.  Hannah second guesses herself and feels the need to unearth the truth, so she can put her doubts away and concentrate on Will’s  baby growing within her  and their marriage.

   I enjoyed listening to Imogen Church read this story.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ruth Ware was born in 1977 and grew up in Lewes. She studied English at Manchester University, where she developed a fascination with Old English and Middle English texts.

Before her writing career, Ware worked as a waitress, a bookseller and a publicist. She also spent time in Paris, teaching English as a foreign language.

Ware now lives near Brighton.

Early career[edit]

Before embarking on her writing career as Ruth Ware, Ware wrote five young adult fantasy novels under the alias Ruth Warburton, all of which were published by Hodder’s Children Books.

• A Witch Alone (2013) 978-1444904710

• A Witch in Winter (2013) 978-1444904697

• A Witch in Love (2013) 978-1444904703

• Witch Finder (2014) 978-1444914467

• Witch Hunt (2014) 978-1444914481

Writing style[edit]

In her crime books, Ware’s writing style is often compared to that of Agatha Christie.[4][5] Ware has admitted to being unconsciously influenced by Christie and other mystery novelists of that time.[6] Ware’s protagonists are usually ordinary women who find themselves in dangerous situations involving a crime. The first two of Ware’s novels feature a murder mystery with a group of people trapped, or otherwise restricted from immediately escaping the dangerous environment. Christie was famously known for utilizing this plot device, in novels such as Murder on the Orient Express.[7] Ware and Christie both choose settings and situations that foster the sense of dread that propels their characters to paranoia and often they react violently as a result. These environments create a sense of isolation for the events to unfold in.[8] Ware’s settings play a key role in drawing in the reader and are just as essential and integral to her story as the characters.

From NLS/BARD/LOC:

The it girl DB109689

Ware, Ruth. Reading time: 17 hours, 12 minutes.

Read by Imogen Church.

Suspense Fiction

Mystery and Detective Stories

Bestsellers

Psychological Fiction

“April Clarke-Cliveden was the first person Hannah Jones met at Oxford. Vivacious, bright, occasionally vicious, and the ultimate It girl, she quickly pulled Hannah into her dazzling orbit. Together, they developed a group of devoted and inseparable friends—Will, Hugh, Ryan, and Emily—during their first term. By the end of the year, April was dead. Now, a decade later, Hannah and Will are expecting their first child, and the man convicted of killing April, former Oxford porter John Neville, has died in prison. Relieved to have finally put the past behind her, Hannah’s world is rocked when a young journalist comes knocking and presents new evidence that Neville may have been innocent. As Hannah reconnects with old friends and delves deeper into the mystery of April’s death, she realizes that the friends she thought she knew all have something to hide…including a murder.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. Bestseller.

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