The Burton Book Review Rating System
1 star = Not recommended
2 stars = Interesting premise, someone else might like it
3 stars = Good but could be better, didn’t totally rock my boat
3.5 = I enjoyed it; Had some minor quirks
4 stars = Pretty Good, Recommend!
4.5 stars = Almost perfect! Enjoyed immensely!
5 stars = EXCELLENT PAGE TURNER! NEW FAVE!
Click to See my Top Ten Best Reads of 2009 at The Burton Review
Click to See my Favorite (top 8) Reads of 2010 at The Burton Review
Click to See my Top Ten Favorite Reads of 2011 at Burton Book Review
Click to See my Best of 2012 reads at Burton Book Review
The dates will show the year that I reviewed it (may not be publication year), and my rating:
(Of the year 2009 published Qty. #64)
(Of the year 2010, published Qty. #62)
(Of the year 2011, published to date: Qty. #43)
(Of the year 2012, published to date: Qty #82)
(Of the year 2013, published to date: Qty #17)
General/Literary Fiction
13, rue Thérèse by Elena Mauli Shapiro (2011, 4 stars)
22 Britannia Road by Amanda Hodgkinson (2011,4 stars)
A Spell on the Water by Marjorie Kowalski Cole (2012, 3 stars)
Burnt Shadows by Kamila Shamsie (2009, 4.5 stars)
Dracula in Love by Karen Essex (2010, 4.5 stars)
Fireworks Over Toccoa by Jeffrey Stepakoff (2010, 4.5 stars)
Follow Me by Joanna Scott (2009, 3.75)
Girl in Translation (2010, 4.5 stars)
Illusion by Frank Peretti (2012, 5 stars)
Mothers and Daughters by Rae Meadows (2011, 4 stars)
Of Bees and Mist by Erick Setiawan (2009, 4.5 stars)
Sunset Park by Paul Auster (2010, 2 stars)
The Darlings by Cristina Alger (2012, 4.5 stars)
The End of Everything by Megan Abbott (2011, 3.5 stars)
The Girl She Used To Be by David Cristofano (2009, 3.5 stars)
The Housekeeper and The Professor by Yoko Ogawa (2009, 5 stars)
The Last Storyteller by Frank Delaney (2012, 5 stars)
The Little Women Letters by Gabrielle Donnelly (2011, 3.5 stars)
The Matchmaker of Kenmare by Frank Delaney (2011, 4 stars)
The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe (2009, 4 stars)
The Wish Maker by Ali Sethi (2009, 1 star, did not finish)
This Must Be The Place by Kate Racculia (2010, 5 stars)
Valeria’s Last Stand by Marc Fitten (2009, 4 stars)
With All My Love by Patricia Scanlan (2013, 4.5 stars)
More Chick-Lit/Women’s Fiction than not:
Come a Little Closer by Dorothy Garlock (2012, 3.5 stars)
Laura Rider’s Masterpiece by Jane Hamilton (2009, 3 stars)
The Mating Rituals of the North American WASP by Lauren Lipton (2009, 3.5 stars)
Tumbleweeds by Leila Meacham (2012, 4 stars)
Crime/Mystery/Thriller
31 Bond Street by Ellen Horan (2010, 5 stars)
Charlotte Markham and the House of Darkling by Michael Boccacino (2012, 3 stars)
No Rest for the Dead by 21 authors (2011, 4 stars)
The Osiris Alliance by Jack Ford (2009, 3 stars)
Crowner Royal by Bernard Knight (2009, 3 stars)
Edge of Dark Water by Joe R. Lansdale (2012, 4.5 stars)
Oscar Wilde and the Vampire Murders by Gyles Brandeth (2011, 4 stars)
Pray for Silence by Linda Castillo (2010, 3.5 stars)
The Map of Time by Feliz Palma genre bending! (2011, 5 stars)*
The Gilded Shroud (Lady Fan Mystery Series #1) by Elizabeth Bailey (2011, 4 stars)
Georgette Heyer
Arabella (2009, 5 stars)
Bath Tangle (2011, 3.5 stars)
My Lord John (2009, 2 stars)
The Convenient Marriage (2009, 4 stars)
The Devil’s Cub (2009, 4.5 stars)
The Masqueraders (2010, 3.5 stars)
The Nonesuch (2009, 4 stars)
The Quiet Gentleman (2011, 4.5 stars)
The Unfinished Clue (2009, 3.5 stars)
Regency
A Darcy Christmas: A Holiday Tribute to Jane Austen (2010, 4 stars)
Bellfield Hall, or the Observations of Miss Dido Kent by Anna Dean (2010, 3 stars)
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (2009, 5 stars)
Darcy and Anne by Judith Brocklehurst (2009, 3.5 stars)
Georgette Heyer’s Regency World by Jennifer Kloester (2010, 3.5 stars)
Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy: The Last Man in The World by Abigail Reynolds (2010, 3 stars)
Pemberley Ranch by Jack Caldwell (2010, 3.5 stars)
The Darcy Cousins by Monica Fairview (2010, 4.5 stars)
The Maid of Fairbourne Hall by Julie Klassen (2012, 5 stars)*
The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen by Syrie James (2013, 4.5 stars)
The Other Mr. Darcy by Monica Fairview (2009, 4 stars)
The Tutor’s Daughter by Julie Klassen (2013, 5 stars)*
Wickham’s Diary by Amanda Grange (2011, 4 stars)
Victorian
An Heiress at Heart by Jennifer Delamere (2012, 4 stars)
Lady Julia Grey Mystery Series by Deanna Raybourn:
Silent in the Grave (Book One) (2010, 4.5 stars)
Silent in the Sanctuary (Book Two) (2010, 4.5 stars)
Dark Road to Darjeeling (Book Four) (2010, 4 stars)
Historical Christian/Inspirational Fiction
Against The Tide by Elizabeth Camden (2012, 4.5 stars)
A Lady in the Making (Prairie Dreams #3) by Susan Page Davis (2012, 4 stars)
A Lasting Impression (Belmont Masion Series #1) by Tamera Alexander (2012, 4.5 stars)
A Necessary Deception by Laurie Alice Eakes (2012, 4.5 stars)
A Sound Among the Trees by Susan Meissner (2012, 3 stars)
At Every Turn by Anne Mateer (2012, 3 stars)
Baroness by Susan May Warren (2012, 4.5 stars)
Bees in the Butterfly Garden by Maureen Lang (2012, 3 stars)
Belonging by Robin Lee Hatcher (2012, 4 stars)
Betrayal by Robin Lee Hatcher (2012, 4 stars)
Blue Moon Promise by Colleen Coble (2012, 3.5 stars)
Blue Skies Tomorrow (Wings of Glory #3) by Sarah Sundin (2012, 3.5 stars)
By the Light of the Silvery Moon by Tricia Goyer (2012, 3.5 stars)
Central Park Rendezvous by by Kim Vogel Sawyer, Ronie Kendig, Dineen Miller, MaryLu Tyndall
(2012, 5 stars)*
Flight of Fancy by Laurie Alice Eakes (2013, 4 stars)
Forsaken Dreams (Escape to Paradise #1) by MaryLu Tyndall (2013, 4.5 stars)
Heart’s Safe Passage (Midwife Series #2) by Laurie Alice Eakes (2012, 4 stars)
Heiress by Susan May Warren (2011, 4 stars)*
Hunter’s Prize by Marcia Gruver (2012, 3.5 stars)
Illuminations: A Novel of Hildegard von Bingen by Mary Sharratt (2012, 4 stars)
Lady Anne’s Quest by Susan Page Davis (2012, 4.5 stars)
Love In The Balance by Regina Jennings (2013, 4.5 stars)
Love on the Line by Deanne Gist (2012, 4 stars)
Paper Roses by Amanda Cabot (Texas Dreams #1) (2012, 3.5 stars)
Prize of My Heart by Lisa Norato (2012, 4 stars)
Queen of the Waves by Janice Thompson (2012, 3 stars)
Safe in His Arms by Colleen Coble (2013, 3.5 stars)
Short-Straw Bride by Karen Witemeyer (2012, 4.5 stars)
Sixty Acres and a Bride by Regina Jennings (2012, 4.5 stars)
Skip Rock Shallows by Jan Watson (2012, 3.5 stars)
Stardust : A Novel by Carla Stewart (2012, 4 stars)
Summer of Promise by Amanda Cabot (2012, 4.5 stars)*
The Irish Healer by Nancy Herriman (2012, 3.5 stars)
The Key on the Quilt by Stephanie Grace Whitson (2012, 4.5 stars)
The Measure of Katie Calloway by Serena Miller (2012, 4 stars)
The Messenger by Siri Mitchell (2012, 4 stars)
The Ride of Her Life by Lorna Seilstad (2012, 3.5 stars)
The River Rose: A Water Wheel Novel by Gilbert Morris (2012, 4 stars)
The Shadow on the Quilt by Stephanie Grace Whitson (2012, 4 stars)
To Have and to Hold by Tracie Peterson and Judith Miller (2012, 3.5 stars)
To Love and Cherish by Tracie Peterson and Judith Miller (2012, 3.5 stars)
To Whisper Her Name by Tamera Alexander (2012, 4.5 stars)
Two Crosses by Elizabeth Musser (2012, 5 stars)
Two Destinies (Book 3) by Elizabeth Musser (2012, 5 stars)
Two Testaments by Elizabeth Musser (2012, 5 stars)
Unending Devotion by Jody Hedlund (2012, 5 stars)*
Veil of Pearls by MaryLu Tyndall (2012, 4.5 stars)
Westward Hearts by Melody Carlson (2012, 3.5 stars)
Where Lilacs Still Bloom by Jane Kirkpatrick (2012, 5 stars)*
Where Wildflowers Bloom by Ann Shorey (2012, 3.5 stars)
Wings of a Dream by Ann Mateer (2012, 4.5 stars)
With Every Letter by Sarah Sundin (2012, 4.5 stars)
Words Spoken True by Ann H. Gabhart (2012, 4.5 stars)
Christian Fiction (Contemporary)
Hope Springs by Kim Cash Tate (2012, 3.5 stars)
Need You Now by Beth Wiseman (2012, 3 stars)
Shattered (book 2) by Dani Pettrey (2013, 4 stars)
Submerged (book 1) by Dani Pettrey (2013, 3.5 stars)
The Memory Jar by Tricia Goyer (2012, 4 stars)
Wildflowers from Winter by Katie Ganshert (2012, 3.5 stars)
Biblical Fiction
Delilah by India Edghill (2009, 4 stars)
Girl Mary by Petru Popescu (2009, 3 stars)
The Triumph of Deborah by Eva Etzioni-Halevy (2010, 4.5 stars)
Young Adult Historical Fiction
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein (2012, 5 stars)*
The Queen’s Daughter by Susan Coventry (2010, 4 stars) re:Eleanor of Aquitaine’s daughter
Historical Fiction
A Cottage By The Sea by Ciji Ware (2010, 5 stars) *
By Fire, By Water by Mitchell James Kaplan (2010, 4 stars)
Caleb’s Crossing by Geraldine Brooks (2011, 4.5 stars)
Castile for Isabella (part 1 of Ferdinand & Isabella trilogy) by Jean Plaidy (2009, 3.5 stars)
Claude and Camille by Stephanie Cowell (2010, 4.5 stars)
Cleopatra’s Daughter by Michelle Moran (2009, 4.5 stars )
Forever Amber by Kathleen Winsor (2012, 4.5 stars)
Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne du Maurier (2013, 4.5 stars)*
Harriet and Isabella by Patricia O’Brien (2009, 4.5 stars)
Hemingway’s Girl by Erika Robuck (2012, 5 stars)
His Last Duchess by Gabrielle Kimm (2011, 3.5 stars)
Hugh and Bess by Susan Higginbotham (2010, 4 stars)
Incognito by Gregory Murphy (2011, 4 stars)
Indiscretions of The Queen by Jean Plaidy (Georgian Saga) (2009, 4 stars)
Island of the Swans by Ciji Ware (2010, 5 stars)
My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira (2010, 4.5 stars)
O, Juliet by Robin Maxwell (2010, 5 stars)
Palace Circle by Rebecca Dean (2009, 3 stars)
Partners by Dave McGowan (2009, 3.5 stars)
Penelope’s Daughter by Laurel Corona (2010, 4 stars)
Receive Me Falling by Erika Robuck (2010, 4 stars)
Reign of Madness: A Novel of Juana of Castile by Lynn Cullen (2011, 4 stars)
Roses by Leila Meacham (2010, 4.5 stars)
Ruins of Lace by Iris Anthony (2012, 3.5 stars)
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles (2011, 4.5 stars)
Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant (2009, 4.5 stars)
The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by CW Gortner (2010, 4 stars)
The Darling Strumpet by Gillian Bagwell (2011, 4 stars)
The Day the Falls Stood Still by Cathy Marie Buchanan (2009, 4.5 stars)
The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott (2012, 3.5 stars)
The Invention of Everything Else by Samantha Hunt (2010, 4.5 stars)
The Kingdom of Ohio by Matthew Flaming (2010, 3.5 stars)
The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom (2010, 5 stars)**
The Last Queen by C.W. Gortner (2009, 5 stars)
The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott (2010, 5 Stars)**
The Murder in The Tower by Jean Plaidy (2009, 4 stars)
The Orphanmaster by Jean Zimmerman (2012, 3 stars)
The Queen’s Vow: Isabella of Casile by CW Gortner (2012, 3 stars)
The Secret of the Glass by Donna Russo Morin (2010, 3 stars)
The Shadow Queen: A Novel of Wallis Simpson by Rebecca Dean (2012, 3.5 stars)
The Shadowy Horses by Susanna Kearsley (2012, 4.5 stars)
The Wild Princess: A Novel of Queen Victoria’s Daughters by May Hart Perry (2012, 3.5 stars)
Wildflower Hill by Kimberley Freeman (2011, 5 stars)*
General Medieval Historical Fiction:
A Parliament Of Spies by Cassandra Clark (2012, 3 stars)
A Place Beyond Courage by Elizabeth Chadwick (2012, 4 stars)
Brothers of Gwynedd: Book One by Edith Pargeter (2010, did not finish)
Here Be Dragons by Sharon Kay Penman (2012, 4.5 stars)
Lady of the English by Elizabeth Chadwick (2011, 5 stars)*
Lords of The White Castle by Elizabeth Chadwick (2013, 4 stars)
Shadows and Strongholds by Elizabeth Chadwick (2013, 5 stars)*
The Forbidden Queen by Anne O’Brien (2013, 3 stars)
To Defy A King by Elizabeth Chadwick (2011, 4.5 stars)
Within the Hollow Crown by Margaret Campbell-Barnes (2010, 4 stars)
Eleanor of Aquitaine Related Novels:
Captive Queen: A Novel of Eleanor of Aquitaine (2010, 4 stars)
Devil’s Brood by Sharon Kay Penman (2009, 3 stars)
The Greatest Knight by Elizabeth Chadwick (2010, 4 stars)
The Queen’s Pawn by Christy English (2010, 3.5 stars)
The Scarlet Lion by Elizabeth Chadwick (2010, 4.5 stars)
The Second Duchess by Elizabeth Loupas (2011, 4 stars)
The Secret Eleanor by Cecelia Holland (2010, 3.5 stars)
To Be Queen by Christy English (2011, 4.5 stars)
Queen Defiant: A Novel of Eleanor of Aquitaine by Anne O’Brien (2011, 4stars)
France/French Revolution Novels:
Before Versailles by Karleen Koen (2011, 5 stars)*
Désirée: The Story of Napoleon’s First Love by Annemarie Selinko (2010, 4.5 stars)*
Finding Emilie by Laurel Corona (2011, 5 stars)*
For The King by Catherine Delors (2010, 4 stars)
Madame Bovary’s Daughter by Linda Urbach (2011, 4.5 stars)
Madame Tussaud by Michelle Moran (2011, 4.5 stars)
The Queen’s Dollmaker by Christine Trent (2010, 4 stars)
Twilight of A Queen (Book#5) by Susan Carroll (2009, 3.5 stars)
Wars of the Roses Related Novels:
Queen by Right (about Cecily Neville) by Anne Easter Smith (2011, 3 stars)
The Founding by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles (2010, 3.5 stars)
The Kingmaker’s Daughter (Cousins’ War #4) by Philippa Gregory (2012, 4.5 stars)
The Lady of the Rivers (Cousins’ War #3) by Philippa Gregory (2011, 3 stars)
The Rose of York: Love and War by Sandra Worth (2009, 3.5 stars)
The Stolen Crown by Susan Higginbotham (2010, 3.5-4 stars)
The White Queen by Philippa Gregory (2009, 4 stars)
To The Tower Born by Robin Maxwell (2013)
Tudor Genre:
A Dangerous Inheritance by Alison Weir (2012, 3.5 stars)
All the Queen’s Players by Jane Feather (2010, 3 stars)
Elizabeth I: A Novel by Margaret George (2011, 5 stars)*
Her Highness, The Traitor by Susan Higginbotham (2012, 4 stars)
Her Mother’s Daughter: A Novel of Mary Tudor by Julianne Lee (2009, 4 stars)
His Last Letter: A Novel of Elizabeth I and The Earl of Leicester by Jeane Westin (2010, 3 stars)
Pale Rose of England by Sandra Worth (2011, 4 stars)
Rivals in the Tudor Court by D.L. Bogdan (2011, 4 stars)
Secrets of The Tudor Court by D.L. Bogdan (2010, 4.5 stars)*
Secrets of the Tudor Court: At The King’s Pleasure (book 4) by Kate Emerson (2011, 4 stars)
Secrets of The Tudor Court: The Pleasure Palace by Kate Emerson (2009, 5 stars)
Secrets of The Tudor Court: Between Two Queens by Kate Emerson (2009, 4 stars)
Secrets of The Tudor Court: By Royal Decree by Kate Emerson (2010, 4.5 stars)
St. Thomas’s Eve aka The King’s Confidante by Jean Plaidy (2009, 4 stars)
The Arrow Chest by Robert Parry (2011, 4 stars)
The Boleyn Wife by Brandy Purdy (2009, 2.5 stars)
The Captive Queen of Scots by Jean Plaidy (2009, 5 stars)
The Dark Rose (Book 2 in Morland Dynasty) by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles (2010 reissue, 3 stars)
The Forgotten Queen by D.L. Bogdan (2013, 4.5 stars)
The King’s Damsel (Book 5) by Kate Emerson (2012, 4.5 stars)
The Other Queen by Phillipa Gregory (2009 0 stars)
The Queen’s Gambit by Elizabeth Fremantle (2013, 3.5 stars)
The Queen of Last Hopes by Susan Higginbotham (2011, 5 stars)*
The Queen’s Mistake: A Novel by Catherine Howard by Diane Haeger (2009, 3 stars)
The Queen’s Rival by Diane Haeger (2011, 4 stars)
The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory (2010, 4 stars)
The Royal Road to Fotheringay by Jean Plaidy (2009, 5 stars)
The Sumerton Women by D.L. Bogdan (2012, 4 stars)
The Tudor Rose: A Novel of Elizabeth of York by Margaret Campbell Barnes (2009, 3.5 stars)
The Tudor Secret: Book 1 Elizabeth I Spymaster by C.W. Gortner (2011, 5 stars)
The Virgin’s Lover by Philippa Gregory (2010)
Young Bess by Margaret Irwin (2010, 4 stars)
Tudor Non-Fiction
After Elizabeth: The Rise of James of Scotland by Leanda De Lisle (2009, 3.5 stars)
Arbella by Sarah Gristwood (2009, not a typical review, but 4 stars)
Bess of Hardwick: Empire Builder by Mary S. Lovell (2008, 5 stars)
Elizabeth’s Women: The Hidden Story of The Virgin Queen by Tracy Borman (2009, 4 stars)
Jane Seymour: Henry VIII’s True Love by Elizabeth Norton (2010, 3 stars)
Mary Tudor: Princess, Bastard, Queen by Anna Whitelock (2010, 3.5 stars)
The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn by Alison Weir (2009, 4.5 stars)
The Six Wives of Henry VIII by David Loades (2010, 4 stars)
The Women of the Cousins’ War by Philippa Gregory, David Baldwin & Michael Jones (2011, 4 stars)
Other Historical Non-Fiction
Anne Frank Remembered: The Story of the Woman who Helped Hide the Frank Family by Miep Gies (2009, 4.5 stars)
Sister Queens: The Noble, Tragic Lives of Katherine of Aragon and Juana, Queen of Castile by Julia Fox (2012, 4.5 stars)
Historical Fantasy/Arthurian
Dark Moon of Avalon (Book 2) by Anna Elliott (2010, 4 stars)
Sunrise of Avalon (Book 3) by Anna Elliott (2011, 4 stars)
The Twilight of Avalon (Book 1) by Anna Elliott (2009, 4.75 stars)
Child of the Northern Spring by Persia Woolley (2010, 3 stars)
Historical Romance (those that don’t qualify as Christian Fiction as well)
Highland Rebel by Judith James (2009, 3 stars)
My Unfair Lady by Kathryne Kennedy (2009, 3 stars)
The Treasures of Venice by Loucinda McGary (2009, 4 stars)
The Wildest Heart by Rosemary Rogers (2009, 3.5 stars)
Romance – Contemporary Fiction
Wild Highland Magic by Kendra Leigh Castle (2009, 3.75 stars)
Too Hot To Handle by Robin Kaye (2009, 4 stars)
What Would Jane Austen Do? by Laurie Brown (2009, 3 stars)
Inspirational Non-Fiction
Draw the Circle: 40 Day Prayer Challenge by Mark Batterson (2013, 5 stars)
I Love You to God and Back by Amanda Lamb (2012, 4 stars)
The Noticer by Andy Andrews (2009, 5 stars)
The Sitting Swing by Irene Watson (2009, 4 stars)
General and Biographical Non-Fiction
Betsy Ross and The Making of America by Marla R. Miller (2010, 3 stars)
Crimes of Paris: A True Story of Theft, Murder and Detection by Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler (2009, 4 stars)
The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner’s Semester at America’s Holiest University by Kevin Roose (2009, 3.5 stars)
Must You Go? My Life with Harold Pinter by Antonia Fraser (2010, 3.5 stars)
Children’s Fiction
The Man in the Moon: The Guardians of Childhood (Book One) by William Joyce
You’ll notice I use the Half-Star System. (I used to use 1/4 stars, too!)
While rating books on the Goodreads platform, I remember their following guidelines (borrowed from Deb):
Goodreads uses a 5 star rating system with the following definitions:
1 star – didn’t like it
2 stars – it was OK
3 stars – liked it
4 stars – really liked it
5 stars – it was amazing
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