Synopses & Reviews
Welcome to the world of the fabulously wealthy in London, 1909, where dresses and houses are overwhelmingly opulent, social class means everything, and women are taught to be nothing more than wives and mothers. Into this world comes seventeen-year-old Victoria Darling, who wants only to be an artista nearly impossible dream for a girl.
After Vicky poses nude for her illicit art class, she is expelled from her French finishing school. Shamed and scandalized, her parents try to marry her off to the wealthy Edmund Carrick-Humphrey. But Vicky has other things on her mind: her clandestine application to the Royal College of Art; her participation in the suffragette movement; and her growing attraction to a working-class boy who may be her museor may be the love of her life. As the world of debutante balls, corsets, and high society obligations closes in around her, Vicky must figure out: just how much is she willing to sacrifice to pursue her dreams?
Review
"An enjoyable historical romp."--Kirkus Reviews
Review
"[A] compelling coming-of-age tale thats as good as any British period drama. . . . The Edwardian world here is so immersive and Vicky so likable that readers will want to put on the kettle on and settle in for a lovely read."--The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
Review
* "At equal turns humorous and heartbreaking. . . . A must-have first purchase."--School Library Journal, starred review
Review
* "Wallers intriguingly sympathetic characters, effortless and effective blend of history and romance, passion for her subject, and swift-paced plot make her a new YA voice to watch."--Booklist, starred review
Review
Nominated for the American Library Association's 2015 Amelia Bloomer Project List
Nominated for the Young Adult Library Services Association's 2015 Best Fiction fof Young Adults List
Seclected for Booklist's Top Ten Romance Fiction for Youth
Review
Praise for A Mad, Wicked Folly
* "At equal turns humorous and heartbreaking. . . . A must-have first purchase."--School Library Journal, starred review
"Wallers intriguingly sympathetic characters, effortless and effective blend of history and romance, passion for her subject, and swift-paced plot make her a new YA voice to watch."--Booklist, starred review
"An enjoyable historical romp."--Kirkus Reviews
"[A] compelling coming-of-age tale thats as good as any British period drama. . . . The Edwardian world here is so immersive and Vicky so likable that readers will want to put on the kettle on and settle in for a lovely read."--The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
Nominated for the American Library Association's 2015 Amelia Bloomer Project List
Synopsis
A delicious historical romance perfect for fans of Downton Abbey and
Upstairs, Downstairs
After the Russian Revolution turns her world topsy-turvy, Anna, a young Russian countess, has no choice but to flee to England. penniless, Anna hides her aristocratic background and takes a job as servant in the household of the esteemed Westerholme family, armed only with an outdated housekeeping manual and sheer determination. Desperate to keep her past a secret, Anna is nearly overwhelmed by her new duties--not to mention her instant attraction to Rupert, the handsome Earl of Westerholme. to make matters worse, Rupert appears to be falling for her as well. As their attraction grows stronger, Anna finds it more and more difficult to keep her most dearly held secrets from unraveling. And then there's the small matter of Rupert's beautiful and nasty fiancee. . . .
Synopsis
In Edwardian London, a girl dreams of being an artist, despite her family's disapproval. Welcome to the world of the fabulously wealthy in London, 1909, where dresses and houses are overwhelmingly opulent, social class means everything, and women are taught to be nothing more than wives and mothers. Into this world comes seventeen-year-old Victoria Darling, who wants only to be an artist--a nearly impossible dream for a girl.
After Vicky poses nude for her illicit art class, she is expelled from her French finishing school. Shamed and scandalized, her parents try to marry her off to the wealthy Edmund Carrick-Humphrey. But Vicky has other things on her mind: her clandestine application to the Royal College of Art; her participation in the suffragette movement; and her growing attraction to a working-class boy who may be her muse--or may be the love of her life. As the world of debutante balls, corsets, and high society obligations closes in around her, Vicky must figure out: just how much is she willing to sacrifice to pursue her dreams?
About the Author
Eva Ibbotson, born Maria Charlotte Michelle Wiesner (21 January 1925 20 October 2010), was an Austrian-born British novelist, known for her children's books. Some of her novels for adults have been successfully reissued for the young adult market in recent years. For the historical novel Journey to the River Sea (Macmillan, 2001), she won the Smarties Prize in category 911 years, garnered unusual commendation as runner up for the Guardian Prize, and made the Carnegie, Whitbread, and Blue Peter shortlists. She was a finalist for the 2010 Guardian Prize at the time of her death. Her last book, The Abominables, was one of eight books on the longlist for the same award in 2012.
The following interview appeared in the Fall 2001 Preview Magazine
Do you have any rituals?
I can write anywhere if I have to because I still use a pen and paper -, but when I am at home I go to the old carved desk I inherited from my mother who was a writer too, and told some fantastic stories. The morning is best for ideas, and I have to be wearing warm clothes because when I am thinking hard I get cold. And I have to have a waste paper basket handy for all the pages that have gone wrong.
Whom do your share your writing with first?
I don't really share my work until it is published, I feel too uncomfortable about unfinished work.
When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
I don't think I ever knew, it just happened. One day I wrote author' in my passport and that was that..
What were you doing when you found out that your first book was going to be published?
Cooking supper for my husband and children. My agent phoned and I shouted and we all danced about, except my husband who saw to it that the sauce did not burn.
What did you treat yourself to when you found out that your first book was accepted for publication?
My first money as a writer came from a short story in a magazine. It was a very small sum, and I bought Mars Bars for everybody in the family.
What was the first book you remember reading as a child? Did you have a favorite book as a child?
I don't remember the name of my first book, but I know it had a picture of very bright berries, green and red in a forest- and people lived inside the berries... Perhaps that's where my passion for forests comes from!
Do you read reviews of your own work?
Yes, when I am sent them, but I don't go out and look.
Whats the best question a teen has asked about your writing?
I don't know what the best question is, but by far the most common is Where do you get your ideas from?' - and the answer to that is very difficult (and therefore interesting).
What are you reading right now?
The Wizard of Earthsea, by Ursula Le Guin.
Susan, your editor, tells me Journey to the River Sea is a book you've wanted to write for years. How did the idea first come to you?
Journey to the River Sea was written quite quickly but it spent years and years inside my head. It started with my hearing about this fabled opera house a thousand miles from the mouth of the Amazon and I thought it was one of the strangest things I had ever heard - I meant to go there and see for myself but then I realised it would mean going back into the past because everything is quite different there now. So I went on reading and dreaming and researching and then one day, I picked up my pen to start a new book about witches and ghosts and found I had started to write an adventure story set in the jungle.