Are you ready to be transported?
Spinning the moon by Karen White is a compilation of two of her early novels, In the Shadow of the Moon and Whispers of Goodbye. Both were reedited and released together. What drew me to picking up this book is the beautiful cover. I am New Yorker who loves the idea of southern charm. When I saw this photo of Oak Alley, I knew I had to read this book. Both books are set in the south during or around the Civil War. Both books center on family, trust,and love. If you are looking to get lost in a mystery Spinning the moon is book for you. I will review them separately below.
In the Shadow of the Moon- Laura Truitt is pregnant and in search of a new place to live when her and her husband stumble upon this dilapidated plantation house, she is overcome with a sense of knowing. She doesn't exactly understand why she is drawn to this house but she knows it must be hers. She is invited inside by a older women Mrs. Cudahy,who tells Laura that is house is been in her family since it was built. During their meeting Mrs. Cudahy tells Laura that she has been waiting to sell the house but was told by her ancestors she must wait until Laura arrived. Laura is puzzled by this and asked Mrs. Cudahy what she means as they are strangers. Mrs. Cudahy then reveals a photo of a women who bares a shocking resemblance to Laura. Laura knows that this house needs to be hers, she and her husband move in a soon welcome a baby named Annie. Eager to share with Annie her love for sky watching the family travels to Moon Mountain to watch the Genetti's Comet. This is when Laura's life turns upside down. While at Moon Mountain, Annie Disappears, and her husband Michael overcome with grief takes up the hobby of flying, dies in a plane crash. This section of the book was the most confusing for me, to be honest i felt that the loss Laura experience was rushed and I had to read the chapter of Annie's disappearance over again because i felt like i missed something. Once the book gets going you realize that these are minor details. Struggling with her loss of the anniversary of Annie's disappearance, Laura's mom convinces her to attend another comet viewing in hopes that whoever took Annie would return her to Moon Mountain.Suddenly, Laura is transported to Louisiana during the Civil War. She meets the Elliot Family who are puzzled when she is found on their land, which happens to be Laura' house in present day. She meets Julia Elliot and her children along with Julia's brother in law Stuart. How did she get there and why? Will this lead her to find her daughter? Can she trust the Elliot family? Laura must blend in to survive but she know too much from the future. Stuart is immediately taken to Laura but is not sure what to make of her. Can he trust this women who just arrived?
Laura's only goal is to find Annie and get back home. but soon, the lives of the Elliot family and Laura are entangled forever. Be on the look out for a crescent shaped birthmark.
I was surprised by how much i enjoyed this book. I am not usually a fan of time travel but found myself captivated by the story. I listened to the audio book and i think the addition of the southern accents really made me feel like i had been transported to the past like Laura. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to escape to another place for a little while without leaving home.
If you like the NBC show Timeless, I recommend In the Shadow of the Moon. Both have the time travel, love and adventure vibes.
Whispers of Goodbye- Also set in the south during the Civil War. This book begins with our mine character, Catherine receiving a letter from her estranged sister Elizabeth. In the letter, Elizabeth pleads with Catherine to come and visit her because she is afraid. What is Elizabeth afraid of? No one knows and as Catherine arrives at her sisters plantation, she is is told that her sister vanished. Her brother in law John seems to not care that his wife is missing and wants to continue life as it was with his daughter Rebecca. It seems that all was not well in this home. Catherine desperately wants to find out what has happened to Elizabeth. Why was her sister afraid? Who was she afraid of? Catherine begins to live with John to help take care of Elizabeth's daughter Rebecca and to wait for her sisters return. Suddenly, Catherine finds herself attracted to her brother in law, John. What will happen when Elizabeth comes back? We will never know because word that Elizabeth's body has been found is brought to John and Catherine.Was Elizabeth who she said she was? What was Catherine's sister hiding? This is where the story takes a turn for the romantics. John confesses to Catherine that when he came to look for a wife, it had been Catherine that he wanted and not Elizabeth but she was to young. However, Catherine is scared that John has secrets, she just can't shake the feeling that he might have something to do with Elizabeth death. However, days after her sister is laid to rest she agrees to marry her brother in law, to give her niece a mother and to give her self a real chance at love. Catherine is a widow who lost her only son Jamie in a downing accident. This is her chance a a new family but can she trust John? This is the one place for me that the story was lackluster, there was so much back and forth between John and Catherine that you just wanted to shake them and say come on just talk to each other really talk. There is a reason for all this bickering, to help create this cloud of doubt surround John. What secrets could he be hiding? Could he have really killed his wife? John's best friend certainly thinks so and arranges to meet Catherine to warn her of John's wild temper. Should Catherine stay and build a life with John and Rebecca? or should she take the child and flee forever? There is voodoo and Gris Gris galore in this story and it only adds to the crazy mystery of what happened to Elizabeth. This book is full of betrayal, murder and lust. Something I just couldn't get passed in this book was the use of the phrase "overly much" I think that it said four or five time and i just didn't like it. I enjoyed this book, i have never considered myself a fan of Gothic romance but this book had a lot of a lot going for it and i think for the most part it worked. I did like the resolution of the book and although i had guessed the culprit in Elizabeth's disappearance, there was one more surprise at the end for readers that some might find the ultimate betrayal. I would recommend this book. However, If i had to choose, I preferred In the Shadow of the moon.
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