Review/Giveaway: The Secret Language of Stones by M.J. Rose

AS WORLD WAR I RAGES AND THE ROMANOV DYNASTY REACHES ITS SUDDEN, BRUTAL END, A YOUNG JEWELRY MAKER DISCOVERS LOVE, PASSION, AND HER OWN HEALING POWERS IN THIS RICH AND ROMANTIC NOVEL BY NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR M.J. ROSE.

Nestled deep within Paris’s historic Palais Royal, safe inside La Fantasie Russie’s once-bustling workshop, young, ambitious Opaline Duplessi spends her days making trench watches for soldiers at the front and mourning jewelry for the mothers, wives, and lovers of those who have fallen.

Opaline has a rare gift, a form of lithomancy that allows her to translate the energy emanating from stones. Certain gemstones enable her to receive messages from beyond. In her mind, she is no mystic, but merely a messenger giving voice to soldiers who died before they were able to properly express themselves to loved ones. Until one day, one of these fallen soldiers communicates a message—directly to her.

So begins a dangerous journey that will take Opaline into the darkest corners of wartime Paris and across the English Channel, where the exiled Romanov dowager empress is waiting to discover the fate of her family.

Full of romance, seduction, and a love so powerful it reaches beyond the grave,

The Secret Language of Stones is yet another “entrancing read that will long be savored” (Library Journal, starred review).

“Spellbinding.” —Alyson Richman, author of The Lost Wife

(historical fiction)

 Release date: July 19, 2016 

by Atria Books/Simon & Schuster 

 320 pages 

Author’s page | Goodreads  

*****

 
The Secret Language of Stones is Book 2 in the Daughters of La Lune Series with The Witch of Painted Sorrows being the first one.  Though you can read this one first I do recommend starting at the beginning just because it is not only a really good book but these books are connected, making this one easier to understand.

MJ Rose has fast become one of my favorite authors, she has a wonderful way with words.  With a distinct writing style, that sounds poetic at times, I have no problem getting lost in her stories, The Secret Language of Stones was no exception.  While the previous book had more of the supernatural aspect this one had a strong historical element to it, taking me from the trenches of WWI to the Romanov fall and across the English Channel.

Not that it lacks the mystical elements that are the author's trademark because that is still there. I found the plot very unique and interesting.  It's through the talisman that Opaline creates, offering comfort to those grieving, that she falls in love with a ghost.

"You think you can avoid pain by not needing anyone. That if you never love anyone who you can lose, then you'll never feel lose.  But it's not true.  We're made to love.  Even if you think you can stop yourself from feeling, stop yourself from living, your emotions will find a way.  They'll trick you when you least expect it."

They had already, I thought.  My reluctance to form an attachment to a living man had resulted in my forming an attachment to a dead one.

The Secret Language of Stones is a compelling story of  love and lose during wartime.  I was taken to the streets of Paris and could feel the effects this war was having on it's citizens.  It's a story of hope and forgiveness, of healing and carrying on, it's magical in this love story but also heartbreaking during wartime.

I loved the ended, with closure and not huge cliffhangers.  But my interest is peaked to see what happens next. Definitely a series and author I highly recommend.

Thank you to Emma at France Book Tours for the invite to be part of this tour and the publisher (via Netgalley) for a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes.

M.J. Rose grew up in New York City exploring the labyrinthine galleries of the Metropolitan Museum and the dark tunnels and lush gardens of Central Park —and reading her mother’s favorite books before she was allowed. She is the author of more than a dozen novels, the co-president and founding board member of International Thriller Writers, and the founder of the first marketing company for authors, AuthorBuzz.com. She lives in Greenwich, Connecticut.

 Please visit her website, her blog: Museum of Mysteries Subscribe to her mailing list and get information about new releases, free book downloads, contests, excerpts and more. Or send an email to TheFictionofMJRose-subscribe at yahoogroups dot com To send M.J. a message and/or request a signed bookplate, send an email to mjroseauthor at gmail dot com

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