First Line Friday and Giveaway | A Name Unknown

Happy Friday! I'm super excited to share a book that's been on my TBR list as soon as I heard about it!!

Seriously, the whole first page of this book is intriguing. But, I'll stick to the first line. ;)

Before I get into all of the "goodies" with reviews and about the book and all that amazing stuff (which you'll want to read), be sure to hop along to all of these other blogs and see what First Lines they have to share! Please note that I may not fully endorse all of the books that these bloggers read or the content in these blogs.

Sarah - All The Book Blog Names are Taken

Bree - Bibliophile Reviews

Rachel - Bookworm Mama

Heather - Encouraging Words from the Tea Queen

Beth - Faithfully Bookish

Katie - Fiction Aficionado

Andi - Radiant Light

Carrie - Reading is my Super Power

Robin - Robin's Nest

Sydney - Singing Librarian Books

Kathleen - Kathleen Denly

Jessica – A Baker’s Perspective

Trisha – Joy of Reading

Jeanette – CJane Read

CJ –Moments Dipped in Ink

Molly – Molly’s Caffeinated Reads

Rebecca - https://reviewsbyvandaniker.wordpress.com/

Iola - http://www.iolagoulton.com/category/firstlinefriday/

MY REVIEW

I tried really hard not to fan-girl over this book. I have enjoyed all of Roseanna White's books that I've read so far. This was no exception. I did figure out the main plot and resolution fairly quickly, but the tale was so exciting that it kept me turning pages nonetheless.

I loved Peter's stutter. I found it unusual and it added a lot to his story. I also appreciated how he was portrayed as good, yet he had his annoying faults. And... I loved what he did. Let's just say I could fully identify and grinned at all of scenes in which he was doing this activity.

Rosemary was a great character who was raised in the ghettos of London, stole for a living, yet was not so set in her ways that she was a horrible person.

The Christian theme was woven throughout the story, but it seemed a little weak for me. For example, I know that a person doesn't have to say a specific prayer to be saved, but it was like, "Do you believe?" The character said yes. She was told, "Welcome to the family!" No prayer was said. That just seemed odd.

The romance was hidden until the ending, and then it kind of had a lot with the feelings and emotions. Yet overall, I found it to have less romance than White's other books that I've read.

*I received this book from CelebrateLit and happily provided my honest review*

About the Book

Book title: A Name Unknown  
Author: Roseanna M. White  
Release date: July 4, 2017  
Genre: Historical Romance  

She’s Out to Steal His Name. Will He Steal Her Heart Instead? Rosemary Gresham has no family beyond the band of former urchins that helped her survive as a girl in the mean streets of London. Grown now, they are no longer pickpockets—now they focus on high value items and have learned how to blend into upper-class society. Rosemary’s challenge of a lifetime comes when she’s assigned to determine whether a certain wealthy gentleman is loyal to Britain or to Germany. How does one steal a family’s history, their very name? As Europe moved closer to World War I, rumors swirl around Peter Holstein. Awkward and solitary, but with access to the king, many fear his influence. But Peter can’t help his German last name and wants to prove his loyalty to the Crown—so he can go back to anonymously writing a series of popular adventure novels. When Rosemary arrives on his doorstop pretending to be a well- credentialed historian, Peter believes she’s the right person to help him dig through his family’s past. When danger and suspicion continue to mount, though, and both realize they’re in a race against time to discover the truth—about Peter’s past and about the undeniable attraction kindling between them.


Click here to purchase your copy.

About the Author

Roseanna M. White pens her novels beneath her Betsy Ross flag, with her Jane Austen action figure watching over her. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two children, editing and designing, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of over a dozen historical novels and novellas, ranging from biblical fiction to American-set romances to her British series. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to make their way into her novels…to offset her real life, which is blessedly boring. You can learn more about her and her stories at www.RoseannaMWhite.com.

Guest Post from Roseanna White

It’s always a challenge to make a historical setting authentic—especially when it’s set in a region you’ve only ever read about. As I was writing A Name Unknown, I learned so much about Cornwall—all the more when I had the opportunity to visit the gorgeous Penzance region while the book was still in edits! I quickly learned that I had far too many trees in my story, and hadn’t quite captured the uniqueness of the coastal setting. I dove into rewrites with excitement and gusto, ready to make my fictional Cornwall more like the real one. I studied the Cornish accent, Cornish foods, typical Cornish coloring in hair and eyes. I’ve now gotten rather proficient at making pasties (beef hand pies) from scratch, I’ve special-ordered ingredients to make Cornish ginger cookies called fairings, and I’ve spent quite a lot of time listening to videos of people speaking in a Cornish accent. Delving into this rich region and its history was a blast! And I’m so excited to get to share the culture of Cornwall—and a taste of their unique flavors—with you. In a special Celebrate Lit giveaway, I’ll be offering not only a signed copy of my book, but also some homemade ginger fairings! Here’s the recipe I used . . . after special ordering the Mixed Spice (reminiscent of pumpkin pie spice) and Golden Syrup (a thick syrup with a bit of a toffee flavor) from Amazon. 😉 (I have a gram scale so did use the weight measurements rather than volume—also, English teaspoons and tablespoons are a bit bigger than American, so I heaped them, and I turned out deliciously.) GINGER FAIRINGS RECIPE 100 grams butter, cold and diced 225 grams all-purpose flour ¼ heaping teaspoon salt 2 heaping teaspoons baking powder 2 heaping teaspoons baking soda 1 heaping teaspoon ginger 2 heaping teaspoons mixed spice 100 grams superfine (caster) sugar 4 heaping tablespoons golden syrup Preheat oven to 375 F. Grease baking sheets or line with parchment paper. Combine flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and spices in a stand mixer. Add the butter and beat until mixture forms coarse crumbs. Stir in sugar. In a small saucepan, warm the golden syrup until it’s clarified a bit; stir into the flour mixture until a dough forms. Roll the dough into walnut sized balls and put on prepared baking sheets a few inches apart. Bake 8-10 minutes, until golden. Cool a few minutes on the trays and then transfer to a cooling rack.

Giveaway

To celebrate this tour, Roseanna is giving away a grand prize of a paperback copy of A Name Unknown & 2 dozen cookies from Roseanna!!! Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/bc0e

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