Search This Blog








2023 Literary Escapes Challenge
- Alabama (1)
- Alaska (1)
- Arizona (1)
- Arkansas
- California (5)
- Colorado (1)
- Connecticut (1)
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia (1)
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa (1)
- Kansas (1)
- Kentucky
- Louisiana (1)
- Maine (1)
- Maryland (2)
- Massachusetts (2)
- Michigan (1)
- Minnesota
- Mississippi (1)
- Missouri
- Montana (1)
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York (4)
- North Carolina (3)
- North Dakota
- Ohio (1)
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island (1)
- South Carolina (1)
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas (1)
- Utah
- Vermont (2)
- Virginia
- Washington (2)
- West Virginia (1)
- Wisconsin (1)
- Wyoming
- Washington, D.C.*
International:
- Australia (3)
- Canada (6)
- England (12)
- France (1)
- Ireland (2)
- Scotland (1)
- South Korea (1)
- The Netherlands (1)
-Vietnam (1)





2023 Build Your Library Reading Challenge







Monday, January 28, 2019
Plotless Historical Novel a Long, Meandering Slog
8:36 AM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)
When the Givens Family immigrates from Ireland to the United States in 1819, it's to escape poverty, not embrace it. In doing so, however, they've lost everything. With their mother dead and their father gone for good, the three Givens teenagers are left to fend for themselves. James vows to make a decent life for himself with his thriving candle-making business. Flighty Erasmus, who seems destined for a different sort of existence, finally finds his calling as an itinerant preacher. Olivia, who refuses to embrace social mores, is likely headed straight for spinsterhood. While the three of them head in their separate directions, they will all become caught up in the crises and chaos of a booming Cincinnati.
None of the Givens' could have foreseen their involvement in the most divisive and dangerous cause of all—slavery. While James refuses to risk his position in society by embracing abolition, his siblings become actively engaged in helping slaves escape their cruel masters. The unforeseen consequences of their perilous work will have an especially heavy impact on Olivia. None of the Givens', in fact, will escape unscathed as the situation with a certain slave family escalates and finally explodes.
It's tough to describe the plot of The Eulogist, a historical novel by Terry Gamble, because, really, it doesn't have one. The tale is episodic instead of focused, making for a read that is slow, meandering, and dull. It's not uninteresting; it's just not very exciting. The characters are likable, the setting is atmospheric, and Gamble's prose is capable. Overall, though, The Eulogist feels like a long, anticlimactic slog. If I hadn't committing to read the novel for this blog tour, I likely wouldn't have gotten beyond its second chapter.
(Readalikes: Hm, I can't think of anything. Can you?)
Grade:
for language (no F-bombs), violence, and sexual innuendo/content
To the FTC, with love: I received an ARC of The Eulogist from the generous folks at HarperCollins via those at TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
--
Want more opinions on The Eulogist? Follow along on the book's blog tour by clicking the links below:
Tour Stops
Tuesday, January 22nd: Into the Hall of Books
Wednesday, January 23rd: Instagram: @dropandgivemenerdy
Friday, January 25th: Instagram: @giuliland
Monday, January 28th: Bloggin’ ‘Bout Books
Tuesday, January 29th: Instagram: @lifebetweenwords
Thursday, January 31st: Peppermint PhD
Friday, February 1st: Broken Teepee
Monday, February 4th: Instagram: @readvoraciously
Tuesday, February 5th: Instagram: @wellreadmama
Wednesday, February 6th: What Is That Book About
Subscribe to:
Posts
(Atom)




Reading
Zero Days by Ruth Ware

Listening
Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen



Followin' with Bloglovin'



-
-
-
Spell the Month in Books ~ June8 hours ago
-
-
-
Friday Fives - June TBR11 hours ago
-
A Blind Eye by Marion Todd12 hours ago
-
Friday Favorites – OwnVoices LGBTQIA+ Books14 hours ago
-
-
Bookcover Spotlight 3051 day ago
-
Books read in May1 day ago
-
Reading Wrap-Up: May 20231 day ago
-
-
Randomness...1 day ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
Monthly Round-Up: May 20232 days ago
-
May Reflections2 days ago
-
-
-
The Ferryman by Justin Cronin3 days ago
-
Review: Time After Time by Karly Lane3 days ago
-
-
How I Select Books to Read3 days ago
-
cleaning wins!3 days ago
-
-
-
-
-
5/20/20231 week ago
-
A Couple of Recipes!2 weeks ago
-
-
This feed has moved and will be deleted soon. Please update your subscription now.2 weeks ago
-
-
-
-
-
Dotty Beanie with Ears4 weeks ago
-
-
-
-
-
Are you looking for Pretty Books?7 months ago
-
-
HEARTS OF BRIARWALL by Krista Jensen9 months ago
-
-
-
-

Grab my Button!



Blog Archive
- ► 2021 (159)
- ► 2020 (205)
- ▼ 2019 (197)
- ► 2018 (223)
- ► 2017 (157)
- ► 2016 (157)
- ► 2015 (188)