The English Master Piece by Katherine Reay

 As the recently promoted assistant to the Tate's Modern Collections keeper Diana Gilden, Lily helps plan a world-class Picasso exhibit to honor the passing of the great artist--and she's waited her whole life for this moment. The opening is beyond anyone's expectations--the lighting, the champagne, the glittering crowd, and the international acclaim--until Lily does the unthinkable. She stops in front of a masterpiece and hears her own voice say, "It's a forgery." The gallery falls silent.

Lily's boss, Diana, is polished perfection, schooled in art, and descends from European high society. She's worked hard to become the trusted voice in London's modern art scene and respected across the Continent. The Tate's Picasso Commemorative is to be her crowning achievement, featuring not only the artist's most iconic and intimate works, but a newly discovered painting--one she advised an investor to purchase. But when Lily makes her outrageous declaration, suspicion and scandal threaten everything Diana has achieved, as museums and collectors across Europe, already doubting most post-war acquisitions, fall into chaos and rumors of a world-wide forgery run wild.

All Lily has ever wanted is to follow in Diana's footsteps and take the art world by storm in her own right. Yet one comment puts not only her own career at risk but also her mentor's. Unless . . . Was she right? With the clock ticking and the clues starting to pile up against her, Lily must uncover the truth behind the Picasso before she loses not only the career she's always wanted, but her freedom.

Pick up your copy here...                                                                                                                                     The English Masterpiece: A Novel: Reay, Katherine: 9781400347278: Amazon.com: Books

Katherine Reay is a national bestselling and award-winning author of several novels and one work of nonfiction.

For her fiction, Katherine writes love letters to books, and her novels are saturated with what she calls the “world of books.” They are character driven stories that examine the past as a way to find one’s best way forward. In the words of The Bronte Plot’s Lucy Alling, Katherine writes of “that time when you don’t know where you’ll be, but you can’t stay as you are.”

Katherine holds a BA and MS from Northwestern University, and after several moves across the globe, lives outside Chicago.

Please visit Katherine on social media, on FB at Katherinereaybooks, Instagram @katherinereay, or visit her website at www.katherinereay.com

The London House By Katherine Reay

 Uncovering a dark family secret sends one woman through the history of Britain’s World War II spy network and glamorous 1930s Paris to save her family’s reputation.

Caroline Payne thinks it’s just another day of work until she receives a call from Mat Hammond, an old college friend and historian. But pleasantries are cut short. Mat has uncovered a scandalous secret kept buried for decades: In World War II, Caroline’s British great-aunt betrayed family and country to marry her German lover.

Determined to find answers and save her family’s reputation, Caroline flies to her family’s ancestral home in London. She and Mat discover diaries and letters that reveal her grandmother and great-aunt were known as the “Waite sisters.” Popular and witty, they came of age during the interwar years, a time of peace and luxury filled with dances, jazz clubs, and romance. The buoyant tone of the correspondence soon yields to sadder revelations as the sisters grow apart, and one leaves home for the glittering fashion scene of Paris, despite rumblings of a coming world war.

Each letter brings more questions. Was Caroline’s great-aunt actually a traitor and Nazi collaborator, or is there a more complex truth buried in the past? Together, Caroline and Mat uncover stories of spies and secrets, love and heartbreak, and the events of one fateful evening in 1941 that changed everything.

In this rich historical novel from award-winning author Katherine Reay, a young woman is tasked with writing the next chapter of her family’s story. But Caroline must choose whether to embrace a love of her own and proceed with caution if her family’s decades-old wounds are to heal without tearing them even further apart. 

Pick up your copy here...                                                                                                                                    Amazon.com: The London House: 9780785290209: Reay, Katherine: Books

Katherine Reay is a national bestselling and award-winning author of several novels and one work of nonfiction.

For her fiction, Katherine writes love letters to books, and her novels are saturated with what she calls the “world of books.” They are character driven stories that examine the past as a way to find one’s best way forward. In the words of The Bronte Plot’s Lucy Alling, Katherine writes of “that time when you don’t know where you’ll be, but you can’t stay as you are.”

Katherine holds a BA and MS from Northwestern University, and after several moves across the globe, lives outside Chicago.

Please visit Katherine on social media, on FB at Katherinereaybooks, Instagram @katherinereay, or visit her website at www.katherinereay.com

The London House By Katherine Reay

 

Uncovering a dark family secret sends one woman through the history of Britain’s World War II spy network and glamorous 1930s Paris to save her family’s reputation.

Caroline Payne thinks it’s just another day of work until she receives a call from Mat Hammond, an old college friend and historian. But pleasantries are cut short. Mat has uncovered a scandalous secret kept buried for decades: In World War II, Caroline’s British great-aunt betrayed family and country to marry her German lover.

Determined to find answers and save her family’s reputation, Caroline flies to her family’s ancestral home in London. She and Mat discover diaries and letters that reveal her grandmother and great-aunt were known as the “Waite sisters.” Popular and witty, they came of age during the interwar years, a time of peace and luxury filled with dances, jazz clubs, and romance. The buoyant tone of the correspondence soon yields to sadder revelations as the sisters grow apart, and one leaves home for the glittering fashion scene of Paris, despite rumblings of a coming world war.

Each letter brings more questions. Was Caroline’s great-aunt actually a traitor and Nazi collaborator, or is there a more complex truth buried in the past? Together, Caroline and Mat uncover stories of spies and secrets, love and heartbreak, and the events of one fateful evening in 1941 that changed everything.

In this rich historical novel from award-winning author Katherine Reay, a young woman is tasked with writing the next chapter of her family’s story. But Caroline must choose whether to embrace a love of her own and proceed with caution if her family’s decades-old wounds are to heal without tearing them even further apart. 

Pick up your copy here...                                                                                                                                    Amazon.com: The London House: 9780785290209: Reay, Katherine: Books

Katherine Reay is a national bestselling and award-winning author of several novels and one work of nonfiction.

For her fiction, Katherine writes love letters to books, and her novels are saturated with what she calls the “world of books.” They are character driven stories that examine the past as a way to find one’s best way forward. In the words of The Bronte Plot’s Lucy Alling, Katherine writes of “that time when you don’t know where you’ll be, but you can’t stay as you are.”

Katherine holds a BA and MS from Northwestern University, and after several moves across the globe, lives outside Chicago.

Please visit Katherine on social media, on FB at Katherinereaybooks, Instagram @katherinereay, or visit her website at www.katherinereay.com 

My Thoughts...

I read this on one sitting, I could not put it down.  Secrets and heartbreak always keep me reading late at night.

The redemption was so sweet. I have to say this one is a keeper.

4 stars and I recommend it to historical fans.

The Mary Reader received this book from the publisher for review. A favorable review was not required and all views expressed are our own.

The Austen Escape By Katherine Reay

Mary Davies finds safety in her ordered and productive life. Working as an engineer, she genuinely enjoys her job and her colleagues—particularly a certain adorable and intelligent consultant. But something is missing. When Mary’s estranged childhood friend, Isabel Dwyer offers her a two-week stay in a gorgeous manor house in England, she reluctantly agrees in hopes that the holiday will shake up her quiet life in just the right ways.
But Mary gets more than she bargained for when Isabel loses her memory and fully believes she lives in Jane Austen’s Bath. While Isabel rests and delights in the leisure of a Regency lady, attended by other costume-clad guests, Mary uncovers startling truths about their shared past, who Isabel was, who she seems to be, and the man who now stands between them.
Outings are undertaken, misunderstandings arise, and dancing ensues as this company of clever, well-informed people, who have a great deal of conversation, work out their lives and hearts.

Pick up your copy here...
https://www.amazon.com/Austen-Escape-Katherine-Reay/dp/0718078098/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1510364087&sr=8-1&keywords=the+austen+escape+katherine+reay

Katherine Reay has enjoyed a life-long affair with the works of Jane Austen and her contemporaries -- who provide constant inspiration both for writing and for life. Katherine’s first novel, Dear Mr. Knightley, was a 2014 Christy Award Finalist and winner of the 2014 INSPY Award for Best Debut as well as Carol Awards for both Best Debut and Best Contemporary. She is also the writer behind Lizzy & Jane and the The Bronte Plot – all contemporary stories with a bit of "classics" flair. Katherine holds a BA and MS from Northwestern University and is a wife, mother, runner, former marketer, avid chocolate consumer and, randomly, a tae kwon do black belt. After living all across the country and a few stops in Europe, Katherine and her family recently moved back to Chicago.

My Thoughts...

I love Jane Austen and anytime that I get to read an Austen redo as I call them I will gladly do it.
I loved the way the story flowed and the imperfect characters it was not like a fairy tale. It was like reading real life.
I recommend this book to Austen fans and those who like a contemporary remaking.
I gave this book 4 stars and can't wait to read the next book that Reay pens.
The Mary Reader received this book from the publisher for review. A favorable review was not required and all views expressed are our own.