I received an advance copy of, The Moon, the Stars, and Madame Burova, by Ruth Hogan. I love books by Ruth Hogan, and this one is one of her best. Ruth colorfully weaves the story through her cast of characters. I especially loved Imelda and Billie.

This novel had me at hello!! The Moon, the Stars, and Madame Burova is exactly what I have been in the mood to read lately!! The storyline time hops between the early 1970’s to present day which works so well to create intrigue and build on the overall mystery throughout the novel. Ruth Hogan does a fantastic job the character development- I adored these characters!!! After finishing The Moon, the Stars, and Madame Burova, I checked online to learn that this is Ruth Hogan’s fourth novel - how the heck have I never read her before!?!? Although I am kicking myself for not discovering Ruth prior, I am thrilled to have her previous novels at the very top of my reading list!! The Moon, the Stars, and Madame Burova is a 5 star novel that I highly recommend to everyone!

I finished this book a day it was so good! Ruth Hogan’s writing is beautiful with a touch of magic that makes you feel fully immersed. The heroes and the villains are all delightfully fun and well written. I loved the multiple points of view which added so many layers to the story. As for main characters,. both Imelda and Billie were great characters and I fell in love with them.

I also enjoyed the split timelines that jumped from the 1970's to present. The setting in the 1970s definitely had a touch of magic that made you feel like you were watching an old movie. The timelines were woven together intricately and it really added depth to the story..

Overall this was lovely, uplifting, and beautiful story that anyone would enjoy.

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow Books for the ARC

Ruth Hogan is one of my favorite authors and I have been lucky enough to read all four of her books. As with all her books, this one had fantastically written characters and great dogs. Although the dogs in this book didn't always fair as well as in her other books, their endings turned out great. The other element that I always enjoy in her books is place. She is always able to create a common setting that almost becomes a character in the book. In past books it was a restaurant and a cemetery, in this one it's the sea and a boardwalk. And what endears me the most to her books - found family - which she created again with the lovely characters in this book. TW - there is a fair amount of animal abuse sprinkled through the first portion.

I loved the relationships and the interactions between all of the characters in this book. The author created a diverse and vivid cast. The story unfolded beautifully, switching from the past to the present, slowly fitting all the pieces of the tale together. There were a handful of quietly emotional scenes that snuck up on me and hit my heart. An enjoyable read!

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow and Custom House for access to this arc.

When Billie Marie’s father dies, the secrets and lies he left behind begin to unravel. His daughter, following the instructions her father left for her, is to visit one of his old connections, a tarot reader in Brighton, Madame Burova. A woman who 'knew where the bodies were buried. She had spent a lifetime keeping other people’s secrets.' Over time it had weighed on her spirit, and left her weary.

Madame Burova is aware of Billie Marie’s background, and has something left with her to pass on to Billie Marie - a trust fund from her biological mother. There is nothing for Billie Marie that identifies who her biological mother had been. The letter does, however, indicate that Madame Burova had known her biological father, and would like to meet with her, but allows that it is Billie Marie’s choice, and that she will abide by her decision.

This wanders back and forth through time, sharing Madame Burova’s younger years in the 1970’s, and the people who were memorable in both the negative and positive sense. She remembers Treasure, a biracial child who was persecuted by others, Cillian the daredevil performer, as well as Vivienne, who is somewhat of a self-entitled diva.

This is the third book of Ruth Hogan’s that I’ve read, and I’ve enjoyed them all. I loved the journey this took me on, as well as how it was shared from multiple views, allowing for multiple themes, as well. Friendship, devotion, romantic love, familial love and the ugliness of prejudice, while offering the best that life offers us, as well. A journey of the lost, and the found.


Pub Date: 21 Sep 2021


Many thanks for the ARC provided by William Morrow and Custom House / William Morrow Paperbacks
#TheMoontheStarsandMadameBurova #NetGalley

Ruth Hogan takes words we all know and can pronounce and strings them together in such a way to create characters with depth, and evocative settings. In telling the stories of both Madame Burova and Billie, it is necessary to have a dual timeline; in this case it really is a necessity, not an annoying gimmick. A book with depth, feeling, and atmosphere. I loved it, read it slowly and savored it.

“The Moon, The Stars and Madame Burova” By Ruth Hogan

The Cards Foretell a Beautiful Mystery in Your Future

In the dual time-line romantic mystery, “The Moon, The Stars and Madam Burova,” adult London woman, Billie, learns from a solicitor’s letter after both of her are parents are deceased that she is adopted. This earthshaking news sends Billie on an trajectory to learn her birth origin that leads through St. Pancras Train Stain and ultimately to Brighton Pier and Madame Burova’s Tarot and Palm Reading Booth.

Both of these locations may offer Billie insight into her unknown heritage. On this journey of discovery, the reader meets many intriguing characters—like MI5 Clive, Imelda and Cillian—all while uncovering missing pieces to her puzzling past.

This is another treasure by Ruth Hogan that is beautifully poignant. Your heart will soar and your heart will ache on the way to discovering who Billie’s birth parents are and how she found a home in London with the couple that raised her.

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The Book Maven’s Journal—Reviews for Word Connoisseurs
REVIEWER: J. Hunt
STAR RATING ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“The Moon, The Stars and Madame Burova” By Ruth Hogan
General Fiction (Adult), Women’s Fiction
Publication Date: September 2021
Publisher: William Morrow and Custom House

My Sincere Appreciation to NetGalley and Author Ruth Hogan and William Morrow and Custom House for Providing this Advance Reader's Copy for Review.

This novel has a fascinating premise for me, but I had a really hard time getting into it and keeping track of all the characters and going back-and-forth from the past to the present.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Split between two time periods, this book covers the career of Madame Burova at its inception and currently as she prepares to retire 50 years later. Along the way, we meet a charming cast of characters that you will love meeting from Billie, who discovers she was adopted to Cillian, the motorcycle Wall of Death Rider. Slightly quirky and full of heart.

Another amazing story from Hogan. The characters and the way she eove their stories together was all enveloping. Really enjoyable read.

The Moon, the Stars, and Madame Burova is a dual timeline novel set between the present and the early 1970's. Billie has just found out, after the death of her father, that she was adopted . Madame Burova is not only good at reading tarot cards, but can keep secrets. Billie comes to Brighton to find her birth mother and meets Madame Burova . Through flashbacks to the early 70's we learn the secrets to Billie's parentage. Along the way Billie discovers new friends and family. This is another fascinating book but Ruth Hogan. Thanks to the author, publisher William Morrow and Custom House, and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book for an honest review.

THE MOON, THE STARS AND MADAME BUROVA
BY RUTH HOGAN

I was extremely excited to receive an early ARC of Author Ruth Hogan's latest novel called, "The Moon, The Stars And Madame Burova. Ruth Hogan has outdone herself once again with her beautiful fourth novel. This was one of my most anticipated novels being published this year that I was over the moon to be able to read it now and review it. I had become enamored with Ruth Hogan's talented style of prose which descriptive words are able to vividly paint a picture in my head when I read and reviewed her third novel. I absolutely loved her third novel called, "QUEENIE MALONE'S PARADISE HOTEL." If you haven't already read it I implore you to do so at once. My review for it can be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show....

When I first discovered Ruth Hogan's work by mere accident it was when I read and reviewed, "Queenie Malone's Paradise Hotel," and I had never read anything quite like it before and it has remained one of my lifetime's favorite, unforgettable reading experiences. I equally loved her latest offering just as much. Ruth Hogan has the true gift of drawing you into her stories by perfecting all of the elements that enchant the five senses. She magically creates stories that you can't help but love her characters. She brings time and place alive in her settings like the masterpieces painted by the famous artists whose works we view in museums for they are priceless and classics on display to enchant the world. Her storytelling and plotting are so captivating that the closest I can describe it or compare it is the feeling of love you feel for your children or a beloved pet. You just feel your brain and mind are releasing the happy chemicals after vigorous exercising because you are on a natural high.

Her latest novel is about an honorable and lovable character named Imelda Burova who has the gift of being clairvoyant by reading tarot cards and being able to answer question's that are asked of her by her paying clients. Imelda's parents are from two different ethnic backgrounds. Her father of Russian heritage and her mother Romany. Imelda is taking over her mother's business and she knows how to accurately predict a stranger's future or get a reading of their past by learning at her mother, Aunt's and Grandmother's experience in practicing this mysterious art.

I used to be very skeptical of medium's but after reading the Author's Note it has made me a true believer. I also thought that these very empathetic and sensitive souls practiced black magic and I never wanted to open up a portal to let a demon into my life being raised Catholic and believing in God. This book is fiction and I am basing my change in thinking knowing that Imelda Burova wasn't practicing witchcraft which I totally oppose and wouldn't want to engage with it, ever. I am open to believing that due to this Author's research for the purpose of lending authenticity to getting the art of being able to read the tarot cards she read two books which she cites in the Author's Note I am interested in reading the two books that she listed but I am getting off track. In other words by reading this book it has opened my mind to reading about clairvoyant's and don't just dismiss it without further exploration and only then can I decide if the mortal human does have the ability to predict the future of someone they have never met before. Imelda Burova does not put curses on people and this novel is about so much more.

A young woman who taught Art History named Billie finds out that she was adopted after her mother and father die and she is left a letter of apology by her adoptive father. She learns that as a baby she was left at Madame Burova's booth on the Brighton beach sea front by her unknown biological mother. This novel is as much about Madame Burova as it is about Billie's discovery that the mother and father who raised her in a loving home never told her that they adopted her and her quest to meet Madame Burova who is Imelda. Imelda cannot reveal to Billie the identity of Billie's biological mother because the secrets she discloses are to be kept confidential like a lawyer and client or a priest and a member of his parish.

There is life long romantic love, quirky character's, community, etc. I will be highly recommending this to family and all of my friends who love to read and enjoy magnificent writing. Ruth Hogan respectively touches on social themes that happened in our lives that are still happening. I am grateful for the opportunity to have read this novel which has expanded my mind to at least do further research by wanting to read the two books that she cited to get the details right. In my humble opinion anything that you read that expands your mind is the sign of good literature.

Publication Date: September 21, 2021

Thank you to Net Galley, Ruth Hogan and William Morrow Custom House for providing me with my ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

#TheMoonTheStarsandMadameBurova #RuthHogan #WilliamMorrowandCustomHouse #NetGalley

with interwoven dual timelines - one set in the current day and the other set in the 1970s - this book was a little witchy, very charming, and a whole lot of fun to read. though it does take a while for the plot to get going, as is the case for many character-driven books, it’s beautifully written and is something that’ll easily keep your attention the whole way through.

This is the 4th book I've read by Ruth Hogan. She's great at using Brighton as a backdrop, and it makes me want to visit. I have come to discover I really like Hogan's books. A lot. What I've found about her books is that she has a lot of different strands that at first you aren't sure are going to make sense, but in the end, it all comes together. And this book is no different. There are several story lines over two timelines (the early to mid 70s and now) and they all come together in a satisfactory ending, even if the stories aren't completely happy. Madame Burova, tarot reader and clairvoyant, is at the center of this story of missed opportunities. There's also Billie, who discovers she's adopted after both her adoptive parents are gone, and goes to Brighton to find her birth parents. I liked Imelda's story, although I also felt sorry for her past. Still, she finds a way to reconnect her past to the present. Billie's story felt a little flat for me. I really wish there was more about Treasure, he was a character I would have liked to know more about. Most of his life from the 70s to now was glossed over, and I felt like there was more that could have been told about him. (However, I appreciated what I considered his heroic actions as a child, esp when dealing with difficult circumstances.)

I do have one serious (for me) gripe, and that is with the naming of the character Lady Longhorn. I live in Austin, I work at UT, and we are called the Longhorns. And the Lady Longhorns is the umbrella term for our women athletes. So already, that name is bringing weird associations for me. I guess maybe there are Longhorns in England, but it's not a name I would consider particularly English, and because of my associations with UT, every time I saw that name, it really threw me out of the book. I get this may be a relatively idiosyncratic reaction, but still. I wish she would be renamed to something perhaps a little less Texas sounding.

This book starts out just grabbing your attention. It is light with an air of mystery. It follows two time periods to lead up to who is the character’s birth parents that she finds out about once her father dies. The plot twist of the birth parents had me wanting to speed read to finish this book. What a wonderful and delightful book! Job well done!

I know that when I read a Ruth Hogan novel (this is her fourth), I will immediately be entranced, surprised, and uplifted by her singular cast of characters and her luminous writing style.

Imelda Burova takes over her Romany mother's booth at the Brighton pier in the early 1970s, having inherited the family talent for palm reading, tarot card reading, and clairvoyance. She's no con artist, and she guards her customers' secrets as if her booth were a confessional. When Imelda does double duty at a nearby "holiday park," she becomes a member of a close-knit community of entertainers that include a contortionist, a fledgling singer and her accompanist, mermaid triplets, and a daredevil stunt driver. Years later, she feels ready to retire, but she knows she must first fulfill the long-ago request of one of her customers.

In the present day, Billie is recently divorced and gave up her job as a university lecturer to care for her now-deceased father. As a newly minted "orphan" with an uncertain future, she wonders what's next for her. Then, the contents of two mysterious envelopes let her know that her beloved parents had adopted her when she was a baby, and supplied some tantalizing but cryptic photos that may or may not lead her to her biological parents. The envelopes are delivered by Madame Burova.

This is a charming story that kept me wanting more and feeling both satisfied and enriched at the end. I was especially impressed with the author's research, which included becoming a trained tarot card reader herself!

My thanks to the publisher, William Morrow, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

I have loved Ruth Hogan’s books since I read “Queenie Malone’s Paradise Hotel,” so I was overjoyed to be given the opportunity to read an ARC of her latest novel, “The Moon, the Stars and Madame Burova.” This novel, as in her previous ones, is full of delightfully quirky characters and a fascinating plot.

The novel alternates between two timelines: the present and 1972/1973. In the present, upon the death of her father, Billie receives a letter from her father sent to her by her father’s solicitor, which reveals that Billie was adopted. Shortly thereafter, the solicitor forwarded Billie a second letter from a stranger named Imelda Burova informing Billie that she had information to share that would benefit Billie and invited Billie to meet her in Brighton.

The 1972/1973 timeline focuses on Imelda Burova as a young woman making her living as a “Tarot Reader, Palmist and Clairvoyant”in a booth at Brighton Beach, following in her mother’s and grandmother’s Romany footsteps. Also in this timeline, several interesting characters are revealed, most of whom were seasonal entertainers at Larkins Holiday Park.

When Billie meets Imelda, Imelda shows Billie a photo of the entertainers taken at Larkins during the 1972/1973 season and tells her that one of them is her father, but Imelda doesn’t know who he is. Imelda will not reveal the name of Billie’s mother because she wished her identity to remain a secret.

The book is devoted to Billie’s quest to discover the identity of her birth parents, during which she befriends an intriguing cast of characters, whose actions during that fateful 1972/1973 timeline are explored in alternating chapters, providing tantalizing clues. This book will appeal to readers like me that enjoy a story populated by quirky, endearing characters. I loved the characters so much, I was sad for the book to end! To me this is a true testament to a book’s appeal.

thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow and Custom House for the arc of this book! This was a beautiful book. I loved The keeper of Lost Things, so I was okay with the slow buildup to the story - I was sure that the multiple stories and character-building would pay off in the end. The characters were great, and I was invested in them and their lives, both past and present. The writing drew me in as I knew it would and the story was intriguing because there was so much going on. I *might* have teared up at the ending. Thank you Ruth Hogan for writing such a great book.

This was an enjoyable read with an endless supply of quirky characters. While I know next to nothing about tarot cards, you could tell that the author took the subject and readings seriously (and did mention at the end of the novel that it was her goal to do so).

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.