Book Review
THE KITCHEN MISTRESS--Katherine’s Story
The Letter Series—Book 3
by Kathleen Shoop
Book Description
For every woman who’s had to choose between the secrets that protect her and the people she loves the most…
1892—Des Moines
Katherine Arthur and her family are back and it’s time to collect the money Mrs. Mellet left them in her will. The tidy sum will allow the family peace of mind and a future that’s stable and fulfilling. But when things don’t go exactly as planned, Katherine steps up to do more than her share. Hired as a kitchen mistress, her intuition (with the help of a mysterious recipe book), cooking prowess, and work ethic make her the perfect partner for the enigmatic, wealthy woman next door. Then Aleksey Zurchenko arrives.
Violet Pendergrass is a well-heeled, progressive woman with half a fortune in one hand and a plan for enduring prosperity in the other. Resourceful, shrewd, and tough, Violet doesn’t realize her one and only weakness leaves her vulnerable as she attempts to solidify her independence. She sees unparalleled value in Katherine’s gifts and does her best to keep the girl close, to keep her true work secret from her mother and the world.
Katherine’s loyalties to her mother and Violet grow strained and soon her commitment to both frays even further as her feelings for Aleksey grow. Katherine must decide if pursuing her work with the formidable Violet and protecting her family are more important than following love. Can she do it all? Love, hope, joy, secrets buried in walls and hearts; all are threatened by those who claim to care about the Arthurs. Can Katherine separate what’s right and true from what it takes to survive? Are they even different things?
The Last Letter Series of novels by Kathleen Shoop is set in the Midwest of America in the late 19th and early 20th century. Shoop takes readers on an emotional journey through love, loss and redemption. Inspired by family letters, the novels pull from historical events and places and feature the life and times of the fictional Arthur family as they make their way in the world.
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"Kathleen Shoop is a master of emotional depth and creativity." - K.C.Finn, Readers’ Favorite Reviewer
"The Kitchen Mistress is a beautiful story beautifully told. Kathleen Shoop is a master storyteller with a great gift for the first-person narrative, a voice she harnesses so well to create a dramatic effect on readers... One of the things I enjoyed about Shoop's writing is her mastery of the conflict. It is introduced very early in the narrative and it escalates pretty fast. I read the story nonstop, waiting eagerly for the satisfying denouement." -- Romuald Dzemo for Readers' Favorite
"The Kitchen Mistress is a beguiling story, with characters that feel so real the reader could almost believe they walk the same road with them. The protagonist has a complex world to navigate and it is interesting to see how she deals with her secrets, faces the challenges of her relationships and her work, and how she connects to herself. The Kitchen Mistress is delicately written, with a beautifully imagined plot, great prose, and memorable characters. I was seduced by the expert writing and could not stop reading until the last page." -- Arya Fomonyuy for Readers' Favorite
Book Review
I have waited so long for this book to release, it has been my most anticipated read of all the books I have. The Letter Series grabbed hold of me from the first book of this amazing historical and emotional series, the era, the characters, their struggles have been so captivating to follow. It's been quite a while since reading the previous book so I was delighted that the author had included past events to jog my memory and also great for anyone who hasn't yet read the book 1, although I urge you to do so as that is what started my love of this series and the amazing author, Kathleen Shoop.
After so much turmoil Jeanie and her children are together as a family should be, yet after another cruel blow they are left homeless in the town of Des Moines where past events are still held against them in many quarters. Living hand to mouth, desperate to find somewhere to live and be able to stay together, they find a glimmer of hope for better times in the shape of Miss Violet, who gives them jobs and a place to live. Jeanie tends to the gardens while Katherine becomes the kitchen mistress, and I could have sat and read about their daily chores all day long as the author brings them to life so vividly. Yet Katherine has a hidden talent, a talent that could save them all or reduce them to poverty yet again. When Miss Violet uncovers her secret Katherine feels the immense pressure of keeping the family together and will do anything she can to make it happen, she may have had to grown up very quickly but her young age still makes her vulnerable and unaware of the situations around her and the lies being told. Will her risk to save her family from further hardships be worth it or will it bring more heartache? Will they encounter even more despair as events unfold?
Absolutely unstoppable reading, The Letter Series has made such a connection with me, the characters, who now feel like family, warm my heart through their stories and their desperate times, my emotions were pulled as as I continue to want to keep them from harm after all they have been through. The author connects the reader to the past and brings the old era to life so vividly, it simply fascinates me, I didn't want to put it down, a never ending book is the only way to fulfill my needs!
Reading The Kitchen Mistress is like reading a film, the whole story is brought to life in the readers mind through Kathleen Shoop's magnificent writing, you are there in Des Moines watching the characters play out their scenes, feeling their emotions with them, gripped to find out more. A story filled with hope, love, despair and the power of never giving up, and I love every single moment with the Arthurs and am now desperately awaiting their next story.
Letter Series Book 1 - The Last Letter
I have waited so long for this book to release, it has been my most anticipated read of all the books I have. The Letter Series grabbed hold of me from the first book of this amazing historical and emotional series, the era, the characters, their struggles have been so captivating to follow. It's been quite a while since reading the previous book so I was delighted that the author had included past events to jog my memory and also great for anyone who hasn't yet read the book 1, although I urge you to do so as that is what started my love of this series and the amazing author, Kathleen Shoop.
After so much turmoil Jeanie and her children are together as a family should be, yet after another cruel blow they are left homeless in the town of Des Moines where past events are still held against them in many quarters. Living hand to mouth, desperate to find somewhere to live and be able to stay together, they find a glimmer of hope for better times in the shape of Miss Violet, who gives them jobs and a place to live. Jeanie tends to the gardens while Katherine becomes the kitchen mistress, and I could have sat and read about their daily chores all day long as the author brings them to life so vividly. Yet Katherine has a hidden talent, a talent that could save them all or reduce them to poverty yet again. When Miss Violet uncovers her secret Katherine feels the immense pressure of keeping the family together and will do anything she can to make it happen, she may have had to grown up very quickly but her young age still makes her vulnerable and unaware of the situations around her and the lies being told. Will her risk to save her family from further hardships be worth it or will it bring more heartache? Will they encounter even more despair as events unfold?
Absolutely unstoppable reading, The Letter Series has made such a connection with me, the characters, who now feel like family, warm my heart through their stories and their desperate times, my emotions were pulled as as I continue to want to keep them from harm after all they have been through. The author connects the reader to the past and brings the old era to life so vividly, it simply fascinates me, I didn't want to put it down, a never ending book is the only way to fulfill my needs!
Our Rating
(an easy 5)
Letter Series Book 1 - The Last Letter
Katherine wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't found the letter...
In the summer of 1905 Katherine Arthur's mother arrives on her doorstep, dying, forcing her to relive a past she wanted to forget. When Katherine was young, the Arthur family had been affluent city dwellers until shame sent them running for the prairie, into the unknown. Taking her family, including young Katherine, to live off the land was the last thing Jeanie Arthur had wanted, but she would do her best to make a go of it. For Jeanie's husband Frank it had been a world of opportunity. Dreaming, lazy Frank. But, it was a society of uncertainty--a domain of natural disasters, temptation, hatred, even death.
Ten-year-old Katherine had loved her mother fiercely, put her trust in her completely, but when there was no other choice, and Jeanie resorted to extreme measures on the prairie to save her family, she tore Katherine's world apart. Now, seventeen years later, and far from the homestead, Katherine has found the truth – she has discovered the last letter. After years of anger, can Katherine find it in her heart to understand why her mother made the decisions that changed them all? Can she forgive and finally begin to heal before it's too late?
**Independent Publisher Awards**
2011 Gold Medal, Best Regional Fiction-Midwest
**National Indie Excellence Book Awards**
2011 Finalist Award-Historical Fiction
2011 Finalist Award-Regional Fiction
**USA Best Books 2011 Awards**
Winner, Fiction--Western
Finalist, Fiction--Historical
Finalist, Best New Fiction
**International Book Awards**
2011 Finalist Award-Historical Fiction
2011 Finalist Award-Best New Fiction
Letter Series Book 2 - The Road Home
Find your way home...
1891—Living separately for three years, fourteen-year-old twins, Katherine and Tommy Arthur, have done their best to make each boarding house feel like home. But unrest grows as they are driven to questionable actions just to survive. Meanwhile their desperate mother is confronted with breaking yet another promise to her children. Then a miracle descends. Hope rises on a cold, rainy night and changes everything. If Jeanie could just get word to Katherine and Tommy, she knows she can set their lives right again. Agitators, angels, and dangerous “saviors” illuminate the Arthurs’ unmatched determination and smarts.
1905—Though she tries to forget the awful years that hurt so much, the memories still haunt Katherine. Now, tearful mourners at her mother’s funeral force her to revisit a time in her life that both harmed and saved her in the most unexpected ways. Tommy grieves his mother’s passing as well. He too is thrust backward, compelled to rediscover the events in his life that shaped the man he has become. Will he commit to reconstructing his broken life? The Arthurs come to understand that forgiveness is the only way back to hope, the only way to find all that was good in the misfortune that transformed their lives forever.
1891—Living separately for three years, fourteen-year-old twins, Katherine and Tommy Arthur, have done their best to make each boarding house feel like home. But unrest grows as they are driven to questionable actions just to survive. Meanwhile their desperate mother is confronted with breaking yet another promise to her children. Then a miracle descends. Hope rises on a cold, rainy night and changes everything. If Jeanie could just get word to Katherine and Tommy, she knows she can set their lives right again. Agitators, angels, and dangerous “saviors” illuminate the Arthurs’ unmatched determination and smarts.
1905—Though she tries to forget the awful years that hurt so much, the memories still haunt Katherine. Now, tearful mourners at her mother’s funeral force her to revisit a time in her life that both harmed and saved her in the most unexpected ways. Tommy grieves his mother’s passing as well. He too is thrust backward, compelled to rediscover the events in his life that shaped the man he has become. Will he commit to reconstructing his broken life? The Arthurs come to understand that forgiveness is the only way back to hope, the only way to find all that was good in the misfortune that transformed their lives forever.
Available to buy from.......
The Family Letters
Available to buy from...
The second set of letters, Love From Mama, was written in the early 20th century. This collection is larger than the love letters as it contains correspondence by Jeanie, Frank, her children, some friends and also relatives. This non-fiction look into the past is a treasure for anyone who loves history in its raw, but real form! (Coming Soon)
About Kathleen Shoop
Bestselling author, Kathleen Shoop, holds a PhD in reading education and has more than 20 years of experience in the classroom. She writes historical fiction, women’s fiction and romance. Shoop’s novels have garnered various awards in the Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY), Eric Hoffer Book Awards, Indie Excellence Awards, Next Generation Indie Book Awards, Readers’ Favorite and the San Francisco Book Festival. Kathleen has been featured in USA Today and the Writer’s Guide to 2013. Her work has appeared in The Tribune-Review, four Chicken Soup for the Soul books and Pittsburgh Parent magazine. Kathleen coordinates Mindful Writing Retreats and is a regular presenter at conferences for writers.I adore writing historical fiction (The Letter series, After the Fog and Donora Stories that are coming soon!) but am having a blast writing romance like Home Again, Return to Love and Tending Her Heart (Endless Love series). Thank you so much for the time you take to read.
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Sharon Martin
Blogger & Promoter at Beck Valley Books          |
This book really moved me and made me think. When someone's soul is truly innocent it makes it hard to see the bad in others. When the heart is pure--it is so easy to take advantage--Katherine is both innocent and pure of heart. This is her coming of age and awareness story--NOT TO BE MISSED!!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for reading and reviewing, Sharon. Your insight into the story and your opinion will be so helpful to readers who are deciding to read or not! Book 4--Tommy's story and 5-- Jeanie's story are coming, too!!
ReplyDeleteThe Kitchen Mistress sounds like a very mysterious and interesting read. Hopefully Kathryn can have it all love, money and family.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like an interesting book. I love the artwork on the covers of their work. :)
ReplyDeleteYou should always follow your heart because it knows the right thing to do.
ReplyDelete