Jane - April Lindner

The Story: Jane Moore´s life is not so easy. She has always been family´s ugly duck, has recently lost her parents and doesn´t have any money, what made her leave college, where she was studying.

Without any other option, she got a job as a nanny at Thornfield Park, mansion of Nico Rathbury, a rock-star, typical bad boy, father of a little and lovely daughter, that doesn´t receive much of his attention.

Nico knows many futile women, only interested in his money and fame, and because of this he gets facinated for strong and at the same time sweet Jane´s personality and tries to keep her close, turning her into a close friend. Inevitably, they end up falling in love, but Nico has his secrets, and some of them may destroy his romance with Jane for forever.

My Opinion: I wrote a completely different review for this book, but I decided to download BBC´s mini-series Jane Eyre and I changed this text. Deservedly.

First of all, I have to affirm that April Lindner is very brave. For those who doesn´t know "Jane" is a retelling of Jane Eyre, that I´m ashamed to say that I´ve never read. But I had an idea of how big and wonderful Charlotte Bronte´s book is (by the way, what great sisters they were) and of April Lindner´s intteligence.

"Jane" is amazing! She got the most important scenes from the original story (as I could watch in the series) and turned them into a modern book, but tasting as a classic. A new masterpiece, a new story of a timeless tale.

There are some differences between both books. First of all, Jane happens in actual days and the male character is a musician. The girl that Jane babysits is Nico´s daughter, he´s not her tutor and there´s the press and the band. But we have the same essence, the gothic atmosphere is present and we recognize the same Jane, so strong, with her honest opinions, the Jane that changes, that blooms when falls in love. Well, I have to stop here so as not to tell the whole story.

This is a story that I´ll always remember, unforgettable. And I want to thank the author for giving me the oportunity to read her wonderful book, by sending me its ARC.

How many stars? *****

Soundtrack: Although I know it´s not the perfect melody, everytime I had Jane in my hands, I started to sing: Diary of Jane by Breaking Benjamin - and as Nico was a rock star, it´s worthy!!!

ARC - Strangers - Mary Anna Evans

"Joe had the eyes of a raptor and the ears of a bat. When the gunshot sounded, he was not fooled by the echo. (...) When he got there, maybe he´d do what she told him to do. Maybe he´d wait. Or maybe he´d go for the shooter´s throat. But surely Faye knew that he would not leave her alone and in danger.
Never"

The Story: Every house has its secrets and its ghosts. Maybe these ghosts are not exactly hauntings, but parts of a past that should be lock and key, buried in its basements, secret passageways or gardens. Dunkirk Manor is not different. Within its walls are hidden murders, betrayals and mainly objects with historical value, including the diary of a Spanish priest that lived in 1565.
Faye and her husband Joe were hired by the house´s owners to study these old objects that belonged to Dunkirk Manor. They had just created an Archaeological Consulting Firm, and it became their first work. It sounds really amazing, even for immensely pregnant Faye, that barely can stand at her feet.

The Suspense: Everything was going very well until Glynis, one of the employees, disappears leaving inside her car some objects that she found and a letter asking for Faye´s help. And that car was left behind full of blood. Days after that, her boyfriend is found dead in a river, with his throat slashed.
So, Faye is called to help the police with her archaeological knowledge, intending to interpreting what was the connection between the artifacts that Glynis has found with her disappearance.
As she is getting involved into the history, Faye discovers that she might be in danger and also the baby she´s waiting for.

My Opinion: Merging humor, mistery and romance with intelligence, Mary Anna Evans has built a suspense realy nice to read. It was her first book that I ever read and it did not disappoint me. She knows how to create a tale that leaves you stuck from the beggining to the end, specially because it´s simple but has a very complex story as its backdrop, a tragedy.
Faye´s character is adorable. Despite being pregnant A LOT, she doesn´t feel vulnerable. Even with her enormous belly, she digs deep into the story, going through many dangers and breathtaking situations. But, she´s lucky! She has the help and protection of her devoted husband, that is another excelent character.
Speaking about Joe, I was curious with his story. Strangers is the sixth book within a serie with these characters. You can read it out of sequence because I didn´t have any problem to understand the book and I didn´t feel lost, but instigated to know more about this couple. As I could comprehend, their romance started in a very unusual way. Faye helped him, gave him a shelter and teached many of the things he know. OF COURSE I will search for the first book - Artifacts - to read.
It´s worthy to have a look at this author´s work that´s so talented and extremely kindly and that knows Brasil!!!

How Many Stars: ****

The Soundtrack: It´s not a song that has lyrics that remind me of this book, but the atmosphere and the mention of ghosts (even indirectly) made me feel that it was perfect for the book - Question by System of a Down.

PS - Link to Mary Anna Evans´ at Livraria da Cultura:
http://www.livrariacultura.com.br/scripts/cultura/busca/busca.asp?nautor=954993&refino=1&p=1