The Temptation of Gracie is a lovely read, the kind of the book to enjoy while wrapped up in a blanket with a cup of tea. It’s the story of three women — Gracie, who has lived the past 40 years in a sleepy village in Devon, her high-powered and workaholic daughter Carina, and Carina’s 17-year-old daughter Anastasia — who travel to a castle in Italy for a weeklong cooking class. What Carina and Anastasia don’t realize is that Gracie has lived in Italy before, and that this castle is linked to a passionate romance from Gracie’s past.

First of all, I love the idea of a weeklong cooking class in an old Tuscan castle. How incredible would it be to learn how to cook delicious pasta dishes — made with fresh, all natural ingredients! — in such a beautiful, evocative setting? The class is run by a mother-daughter duo, which just adds to the intimate, homey feel, and I love the idea that such an experience can shift your whole relationship with food and eating.

I love the family dynamics as well between Gracie, Carina and Anastasia. I love how they were all somewhat distant from each other in the beginning, but the location and the food help them let down their defences and become closer to each other. I found it sweet how Gracie and Anastasia bonded over a boy Anastasia had met in Tuscany. To Carina’s concern, Gracie responds that it’s good for young people to have at least one wild, passionate fling even though it’ll more than likely end in heartbreak, and that youth of Anastasia’s generation are savvy enough to know how to be careful. I found that whole subplot sweet, and love how the experience of love can forge bonds across generations.

One thing that fell short for me was the romance from Gracie’s past. I wanted to be swept away by this storyline, and I wanted to believe in a youthful passion so strong that Gracie still remembers it 40 years later. And to some extent, the affair was passionate. Gracie was certainly in love with a wealthy, powerful man, and he broke her heart (of course) due to external circumstances beyond his control. But I never quite bought into his love for Gracie (at least until the very end of the book, where it was a bit too little, too late). He makes Gracie do something that she feels conflicted about, and the way he convinces her to do it anyway made me wonder if he liked her for herself or for what she could do for him (in this case, have revenge on a greedy family member).

The present-day update on this romance also fell short for me. The conflict in the present-day hinges on a big reveal that comes courtesy of Anastasia and close to the end of the book. The problem was that this reveal was pretty obvious to me early in the book, and so it was more frustrating than anything that Gracie kept missing the signs and misunderstanding the situation.

I also wasn’t a fan of the subplot featuring a busybody from Gracie’s village in Devon, who wanted to organize a grand funeral for another resident, but hated not having Gracie around to do the grunt work. This character and subplot bookended the main story, and while it added atmosphere as well as provided insight on Gracie’s life in Devon, it just dragged on too long, particularly at the end. I would have much preferred to see how Gracie’s life turned out myself rather than hear about it secondhand in the midst of a flurry of activity over a funeral for someone we never even met.

Still, overall, I enjoyed the story. The Temptation of Gracie is a feel-good book that’ll make you emit a happy sigh and want to cook spaghetti with your family members. The conflicts and drama are heartfelt but fairly light, and you can just imagine what a beautiful movie this would make.

+

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Canada for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Well Met is a light-hearted enemies to lovers romance against the backdrop of a small town Renaissance faire. Emily joins the fair’s group of volunteers as a favour to her sister and to her niece, and butts heads against Simon, the fair’s serious organizer, who doesn’t appreciate Emily’s lackadaisical attitude. It turns out Simon has a deeply personal reason for wanting the fair to be just perfect, and Emily learns they have more in common than she first realized.

I love the chemistry between the leads, particular when they’re in role as a Captain Blackthorne the pirate and Emma the tavern wench. Unlike Emily, I never really minded Simon’s seriousness. (My one big minus for this book was Emily’s utter cluelessness at the potential reasons behind Simon’s churlish behaviour and at the considerate things he did on the down low.) Still, like Emily, I totally found Simon’s flirtatious pirate persona hot, and I loved their in-character banter. I also love how their feelings for each other expanded beyond their fair characters and into the real world.

The unabashed cheesiness of the Renaissance faire setting definitely added to the charm. Situations like the wench costume’s tight bodice (not a corset, as Simon points out!), the choreographed battles, and above all, the staged handfasting ceremony (!) all factored into the romance.

I also love the family dynamics, with Simon’s unwavering devotion to his brother Sean’s legacy and Emily’s instinctive generosity in helping her sister manage daily tasks after a major injury. The relationship between Emily and her older sister was so sweet, and I love how much they supported each other.

Finally, I love the secondary characters, particularly Mitch the hot flirty guy in a kilt and Stacey the other tavern wench. I love how they, and Chris the bookstore owner and Renaissance fair queen, so easily welcome Emily into their community’s family feel, and make an effort to include her, a newcomer, in the town’s events. I’m excited to learn that the next book will be Stacey’s story, and from the preview excerpt in this book, seems that it will have a dynamic of a hot guy who isn’t a serious romantic prospect and a sweet guy friend who likely turns out to be the hero. I found Stacey to be a dynamic, compelling character, and I can’t wait to see her find her HEA.

+

Thanks to Penguin Random House Canada for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Mary Jennifer Payne’s Daughters of Light trilogy is a timely story about climate change, the power of sisterhood and female friendships, and the role teenage girls can take in fighting for a better future. It features twin sisters Jade and Jasmine Guzman, who find they are among a group of superpowered teen girls with the ability to battle demons and greedy politicians whose actions can destroy the world.

Check out below my reviews of all three books, and an excerpt from Darkness Rising, the final book in the trilogy!

Literary Treats Reviews:

• Book 1: Finding Jade
• Book 2: Solomon’s Ring
• Book 3: Darkness Rising

Excerpt: Prologue from Darkness Rising

September 12, 2032

To Whom It May Concern,

My name is Jasmine Guzman. I’m sixteen years old (almost seventeen) and I live in Toronto, Canada. I have an identical twin sister named Jade. We live in the Regent Park neighbourhood with our mom. And, if you find this in my watch, I’m likely dead. The thing is, I’ve been told if I die, you will die as well. If you’re part of the human race, that is. Not exactly a win-win situation, is it? That’s because, apparently, I’ve been deemed to be the Chosen One in some ancient Dead Sea Scroll, and my job is to save the world. Who’s chosen me? I have no clue. I know what you’re thinking: What a cliché. Plus, I’m all of about five foot two and weigh less than a hundred pounds soaking wet. Well, I agree with you. Believe me, I often wish this whole situation were fiction. But it isn’t. And I need to tell the world the story of how my life has changed over the last two years, because it is pretty unbelievable. Everyone thinks I have a big mouth, anyway, so it will come as no surprise that I’ve decided to write this all down in a letter on my video watch. Let’s just say keeping secrets isn’t one of my strengths.

Our world is hugely at risk because of climate change. In fact, “at risk” is an understatement. Earth is dying, and humans are the cause. The pollution here in Toronto is so bad, it’s impossible to go outside most days without wearing an anti-pollution mask at least part of the time. But, really, we’ve got it lucky, don’t we? Countries like Australia, nearly the entire continent of Africa, and much of South Asia and South America, not to mention the Middle East, are barely habitable now. Oh, and I nearly forgot the state of California. Decades of drought, water and food shortages, and climate change–driven conflict have caused surges of desperate people to flee their homelands. All these climate change refugees were just trying to reach the areas of the world less impacted by environmental change and that still had an abundance of resources. They were trying to live. Literally. A case of stay where they were and die or leave (with a chance they might die trying). And when the politicians and a good amount of people in places like Canada, New Zealand, most of Europe, and the USA saw the waves of desperate people racing toward their countries, what did they do? Well, rather than help their fellow human beings, they closed their borders and started campaigns of fear against the refugees. Against the “other.” And that caused terrorism to spike everywhere, including Toronto.

But that isn’t the only thing going on in our world. There’s also the little problem we’ve got with demons. Yep, you heard me right. Demons. I know, now I sound totally crazy. Believe me, I used to think I was. Crazy, that is. But don’t stop reading. Because I’m not insane. Not in the least. I can explain everything, but I’ll have to go back quite a few years to my sister’s abduction in order to do so.

We were ten years old when it happened. When Jade was abducted. I tried to tell
everyone that the person who took her was actually some sort of monster with dead, flat black eyes and teeth like sharpened bits of ivory, but no one listened. Not one adult listened when I repeatedly insisted that Jade wasn’t taken by a human. Instead, I was sent to a long list of psychiatrists and psychologists who diagnosed me with PTSD and a host of other stress-related mental health issues. Eventually, I half believed the diagnoses myself and pushed the image of the teenaged boy with the demon eyes to the back of my consciousness.

Everything was relatively normal (if living with the loss of your twin sister can ever be called normal) until the day I was sent to Beaconsfield, a secondary school out of my district that is full of identical twin girls. That day was the beginning of my realization that I am a Seer, a Daughter of Light. We Seers, I was soon to discover, are identical twin girls descended from Lilith, Adam’s first wife, from the Old Testament. We also each have a Protector.

Protectors are hard to describe. They’re kind of like retired Seers who are now
responsible for guiding and watching over young Seers of their own. Our powers develop around the time we hit puberty, and from what I’ve been told, they sort of dwindle away as we reach adulthood. My protector is Mr. Khan. Though I hated him when we first met at Beaconsfield, I now can’t imagine my life without him. He is kind of a father figure to me. Jade and I lost our dad to cancer when we were just little. Mom developed lupus shortly after that, and then Jade disappeared. So life was pretty tough, to say the least. Mr. Khan means a lot to me. Not only does he look out for me, he challenges me. I’m basically a better person now because of him. And, as crazy as it sounds, we Seers are tasked with saving the world from demons, climate change, and other nasties like corrupt politicians. We don’t have powers in the superhero sense, but we can read minds and have the strength and speed of elite athletes. The bond Jade and I have as twins even allowed me to travel to the Place-in-Between nearly two years ago to bring her back. Oh, I forgot to mention the Place-in-Between. It’s basically a reflection of London, England, that exists on a lower plane. Demons and lost souls populate the Place-in-Between, where they relive the most violent and bloody periods of the city’s history. Apparently, all of this apocalyptic stuff, according to some obscure Dead Sea Scroll, is supposed to come to a head really soon in a Final Battle between good and evil, light and darkness. I guess saving humanity is sort of on our shoulders — no pressure.

On top of all of that, I’m kind of wheeling with an angel. Yeah, that’s right. His name is Raphael and he’s not just any angel, but an Archangel, and he can heal people. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. Things are kind of weird between us at times because he disappears when I feel like I really need him around. Totally annoying, obviously. I can’t stay angry with him for long, though, and earlier today he healed Lily, my friend and fellow Seer, and then put himself at risk with London’s terrorism squad so that we wouldn’t be caught. Apparently, everyone in the UK is microchipped for identification, and since Lily, her sister Cassandra, and I are all from Toronto and don’t have microchips, we’ll be arrested if we’re scanned. And that’s not good, because we’re currently wanted as terrorists. We’re the prime suspects in a terrorist attack on Toronto’s water supply. The thing is, we’re innocent (you’re just going to have to believe me on this one) and being framed by the city’s mayor, Sandra Smith.

At the moment, Lily, Cassandra, and I are being hidden in a safe house in London (the real London, in 2032) by members of the group called the CCT and some Protectors. The official line is that CCT is a terrorist group — that’s according to many of the world’s governments. But the other side of the story is that they’re not responsible for any of the atrocities being pinned on them; rather, they want to help support the world as it transitions during this time of extreme change and ensure social justice prevails. It’s a tall order because I know some governments, most notably Toronto’s, are pretty corrupt. I’m choosing to believe the latter explanation for the CCT at the moment, especially as they seem to be offering us sanctuary.

Which brings me back to right now. The three of us are in London because we got split up from the others — Amara and Jade — when we transitioned from the Place-in-Between. That’s another one of our abilities: we’re able to travel to the Place-in-Between. We can’t stay there long, though, as being on that plane seems to drain us of our energy. I actually think it’s draining our life force because we’re travelling to a place inhabited by the dead. We had to go back to return Solomon’s Ring, this ring that allows humans to control demons, to the Roman wall in London. It was Jade’s first time back to the Place-in-Between since we rescued her from there, and things got really weird. First off, there was this guy down there who was about our age, and somehow Jade knew him. Not only did she know him, she lied to me about knowing him. I don’t think he was a lost soul. And he definitely wasn’t a Seer. Which means he would have to be a supernatural being of some kind. My gut tells me he’s not one of the good kind. But I’m hoping I’m wrong about that.

I’ve got to go. The others will be wondering what I’ve been doing in the bathroom for this long. I guess the real reason I’ve written all of this down is not only to let people know what’s happening in our world — I mean, what’s really happening — but also to say that I feel scared. Really scared. It’s not something I can really express to anyone, mainly because I’m the Chosen One.

And I’m not just scared for me. I’m scared for all of us. For the whole human race.

With love and in solidarity,
Jasmine Guzman

Excerpt from Darkness Rising by Mary Jennifer Payne © 2019. All rights reserved. Published by Dundurn Press Limited.

Blog Tour Schedule

+

Thank you to Dundurn Press for inviting me to be a part of this blog tour!