Morbid Romantic

Book Review & Personal Blog

Conspirata (A Novel of Ancient Rome #2) by Robert Harris
Beginning in 63 B.C.E. and told by Cicero’s slave secretary, Tiro, this complex tale continues to chronicle Cicero’s political career as he charms, co-opts, and bribes his way into the exalted position of consul, ruler of Rome. Although Cicero is known as a brilliant politician and philosopher, he was also a slick manipulator and shameless schemer, competing with equally sneaky rivals Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus. Cicero realizes that as the empire expands, the greatest threat to Rome comes from within, plotted by well-financed conspirators bent on turning the republic into a dictatorship. With fabulous oratory and trickery, Cicero uncovers and crushes an insurrection, exposing himself to great danger and possible assassination. Riots, murder, civil unrest, corruption, treachery, and betrayal mark Cicero’s political legacy, resulting in a battle between him and Julius Caesar. Throughout, however, Tiro remains loyal and remarkably astute, recognizing that it is an act of madness for a man to pursue power when he could be sitting in the sunshine reading a book.

Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant
The year is 1570, and a new novice has just been forced into the Italian convent of Santa Caterina. Ripped by her family from the man she loves, sixteen-year-old Serafina is sharp and defiant. Her first night inside the walls is spent in an incandescent rage so violent that the dispensary mistress, Suora Zuana, is dispatched to the girl’s cell to sedate her. Thus begins a complex relationship of trust and betrayal. As Serafina rails against her incarceration, disorder and rebellion mount inside the convent, while beyond its walls, the dictates of the Counter-Reformation begin to impose a regime of oppression that threatens what little freedom the nuns have enjoyed. Acclaimed author Sarah Dunant brings the intricate Renaissance world compellingly to life in this rich, engrossing, multifaceted love story encompassing the passions of the flesh, the exultation of the spirit, and the deep, enduring power of friendship.

All apologies to everyone waiting for reviews, guests posts, etc. I came down with something mysterious and terrible, which doctors have yet been able to fix. So many antibiotics and hundreds of dollars later and I am still not better. So while my health is crap, my coping skills have gotten better, and I am ready to get back into things. Again, I apologize to everyone. I am going through the process of picking out important emails in my inbox and replying to them. I have a backlog of reviews to write (a stack of books are next to me and saved on my Nook), as well. Thanks to everyone for their patience and understanding. It’s like the day I hit 30 my body decided to give up on me.

So… I now have a Master’s degree in history. These last two years have been insanely busy, stressful, but fulfilling. I can certainly say that I have become a smarter person due to it, and while I think some of Graduate school is intended to break you, overall the experience was well worth it. I can say that now that it is all over. At the time…

But what does that mean? Well, for one, I need to find a job.

Two, it means that I can begin this blog again. It needs an overhaul. I want to speed up the loading time by getting rid of scripts and plugins. So first, I need to identify which plugins are causing the issues, and then eliminate them! Promptly. It is all coming. So bear with me as I roll out reviews slowly, and begin to fix this place up a bit. I am just happy that I finally have time to do this.

No. I am not dead, I promise. Otherwise I am typing this from the great, dark beyond.

In any case, I am not gone and have not abandoned this site. I am just in Graduate school and haven’t had the time to do a single thing other than work, sleep, and every now and then eat. I promise that I will be back soon, though. I am sorry to everyone waiting for a review. I have such a load piled up!

Vampire Wire (June 8th)

Wendy’s Minding Spot (June 15th)

JoJos Book Corner (June 18th)

Lauren’s Crammed Bookshelf (June 21st)

Melissa’s Bookshelf (June 12th)

I just wanted to make note that I will not be posting for the next two or three weeks. Why? It is the end of my very first Graduate School semester and I have a pile of work to do. In other words, final papers to research and write. As a result, I have little time for the internet or for pleasure reading. As soon as the semester is over, though, you can fully expect me to come back hard with a bunch of reviews.

I sort of over-extended myself this semester because I was unsure what I could take on. Unfortunately, that meant having to put aside a lot of books and reviews that I had promised to have done by a deadline, which I am very sorry for. Though rest assured that those books are at the top of my pile and will be done promptly. As soon as the last paper is submitted, I am going to sink back with some Vampire Wine and a book.