Lady D's Ramblings

Below Stairs: The Classic Kitchen Maid's Memoir That Inspired "Upstairs, Downstairs" and "Downton Abbey" by Margaret Powell My rating: 4 of 5 stars This book is a very interesting glimpse into the world of domestic service during the beginning of the end of British nobility. The book begins with the beginnings of Ms. Powell's life, and go into her life into domestic service. She tells great anecdotes about her previous employers that really do allow you to glimpse into the private lives of the British nobility, and really allow you to see that even at their height, they were just like everyone else, just with a bit more money. You can definitely see where the writers of Downton Abbey took some inspiration from the book and it's stories, and it's interesting to see just where some of the craziness came from. If you're a fan of the show Downton Abbey, or want to learn a bit more about that time, and the people who lived "below," then t...

Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey: The Lost Legacy of Highclere Castle by Fiona Carnarvon My rating: 4 of 5 stars Honestly, it took me a long time to finish this book. Not because it was boring, or hard to read, but because it was JUST dry enough that other books kept pulling me away from it. But I kept coming back to it. I'm a huge fan of the show Downton Abbey, and it was so awesome to me to see where the show's creators/writers pulled some of their inspiration for the show from. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey is the story of the triumph of one English family through some of the massive trials and tribulations of the late 18- early 1900's, including a world war, and an influenza epidemic. It is a very nice read, and history lovers of the time will be enchanted by the detail of the different problems that the people of the family faced. Fans of Downton Abbey, or British History fans, I would highly recommend this book to. ~♥~ Lady D

Bound by Flames by Jeaniene Frost My rating: 5 of 5 stars The Vlad and Leila series keeps getting better and better! I started this book last night, and I literally couldn't put it down until I finished it. Jeaniene Frost really outdid herself with this one! Leila Dracul is married to the world's most famous... or should it be infamous, vampire, Vlad Dracul... whom you may know better as Dracula... but don't dare call him that to his face. While their marriage is less than normal, they love each other with the passion of fire and now they face the same threat that they've faced before... Vlad's long time dreaded enemy Mihaly Szilagy. Leila and Vlad will travel the world trying to uncover him, and even though they face bigger challenges than they've ever faced before, they have each other, and the fiery passion that consumes them. Will they be able to take down Szilagy once and for all? And if they do, will Vlad's enemies truly leave them be? As I said bef...

Divergent by Veronica Roth My rating: 5 of 5 stars Beatrice Prior is a member of Abnegation, one of the five factions in post-war Chicago. She is coming up on sixteen, and her choosing day. She knows that she's not fit for Abnegagtion, but she doesn't know where she fits. When her pre-choosing day test, the test that is supposed to show you where you fit faction-wise. But Beatrice's test shows that she could fit in one of three: Abnegation, Dauntless, or Erudite. She finds out she is Divergent. At the choosing day, Beatrice's brother chooses Erudite, to the astonishment of everyone in her faction. And then Beatrice chooses Dauntless. Her faction is stunned. In Dauntless, Beatrice, now Tris, faces things that she's never seen or done before, like jumping off a building. As she fights her way, sometimes literally, through initiation, strange things start to happen. And when they come to a head, Tris will face her greatest challenge of all. Tris meets new friends in...

Burn for Me by Ilona Andrews My rating: 5 of 5 stars Burn for Me is the newest series in Ilona Andrews' repertoire. Honestly, I LOVED it! I CANNOT wait for the second book! Nevada Baylor is the head of the Baylor Investigative Agency, which is remotely owned by a company owned by House Montgomery, one of the big magical houses in this world. You see, people in this world all have magic, and they're ranked. The oldest and strongest magical families are called houses. Now, House Montgomery has never called in anything on Baylor, since Nevada makes sure to pay her mortgage every month, and keeps her nose clean. But when a pyrokinetic mage from another house decides to start burning down Houston, MII decides to call in their ownership. Nevada has no choice, unless she wants to lose everything, literally. Even though it means suicide, she takes the job. Unbeknownst to Nevada, a cousin of one of the pyro's cohorts has decided to take an interest in this case as well. And Conno...

Dance Upon the Air by Nora Roberts My rating: 5 of 5 stars Dance Upon the Air is the story of Nell Channing. She comes to Three Sisters Island after a troubled past, and there she hopes she can maybe set down roots. But if she's found, she knows that the man whom she left behind would kill her. Three Sisters Island was made of magick, and has a curse upon it that must be broken when the three are once again on island. Nell, as she will find out, is one of those three. On Three Sisters she does find peace. Peace in friendship, peace in finding herself, and peace in magick. As she's finding herself, she meets Zachariah Todd, the local sheriff. He stirs passions she no longer knew she had, but with him being a member of the law, if he found out about her past, he wouldn't want her. Can Nell give herself over to those feelings that Zach has stirred? And can she face who she really is, and help to break the hundreds of years old curse? Nora Roberts does it once again in this ...