Rainy Days With Amanda

Every year for Christmas, my husband finds me a unique or interesting book as part of my gift. This year, he chose Mona's Eyes. It's a book I've seen displayed at Barnes & Nobles as their book of the year for 2025. I always make the books he gets me on the top of the list of my TBR and what I found was a love letter. Here are my thoughts on Mona's Eyes by Thomas Schlesser.   About the Author Thomas Schlesser is the director of the Hartung-Bergman Foundation in Antibes, France. He teaches Art History at the École Polytechnique in Paris and is the author of several works of nonfiction about art, artists, and the relationship between art and politics in the 20th century. He is the grandson of André Schlesser, known as Dadé, a singer and cabaret performer who founded the Cabaret L ’Écluse. Mona’s Eyes is Schlesser’s second novel and his American debut. It has been translated into thirty-eight languages, including Braille. Schlesser was awarded 2025’s Author of ...

                                   THE LAST FAIRY WITCH By Jean M. Roberts Historical Fantasy Publication Date: March 31, 2026 ∞༺✦✮✦༻✧ SYNOPSIS ∞༺✦✮✦༻✧ Hannah Heronstone appears to have everything—a devoted husband, a beloved child, and a thriving business built on ancient herbal knowledge. Yet beneath the calm surface of her life, something old and malevolent stirs. A disturbing encounter with a friend from her husband’s past awakens Hannah’s suspicion that a coven of dark witches is gathering near Wentworth Manor. When Hannah, Peter, and Johannah journey to Ireland, her fears take terrifying form as she comes face to face with an unspeakable monster. A fairy offers her aid—but in a land where truth is slippery and magic demands a price, can such a creature be trusted? And where, across legend and time, can she find the Last Fairy Witch? Centuries earlier, Eithne is a young Irish slave whose gift...