The BlueStocking Girl (The Von Strassenberg Saga, #2)

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The BlueStocking Girl (The Von Strassenberg Saga #2)

by Gwenn Wright (Goodreads Author)

4.24 of 5 stars 4.24 · rating details · 34 ratings · 11 reviews

The saga continues as William Drexler III stumbles upon a secret that unleashes his darkest memories and Viktor von Strassenberg fights to keep his own secrets hidden from those who need the truth most.

272 pages

Published November 2011

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Jan 30, 2012 Anissa rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: series, gothic

If it weren't for William Drexler III (who for some reason, is not called Will or Tripp by anyone) & his family's backstory, I would not have made it through. I quite liked William in the first installment & was glad to find he would be taking us forward this time. Learning about what ails his psyche was a good time. The courtship of his parents & what became of his mother were all bits that added to figuring out who William is. And we got to see more of Abbie. I was glad of that bec...more If it weren't for William Drexler III (who for some reason, is not called Will or Tripp by anyone) & his family's backstory, I would not have made it through. I quite liked William in the first installment & was glad to find he would be taking us forward this time. Learning about what ails his psyche was a good time. The courtship of his parents & what became of his mother were all bits that added to figuring out who William is. And we got to see more of Abbie. I was glad of that because from the brief intro to her character in Filter, I'd hoped (& thought) that there was a story there. She's more a peer of William even though he's drawn to Rocky. And after Rocky-the-Wishy-Washy in Filter, I was happy to see William stick to what he said & extricate himself from the "complication" that their relationship was turning into. That's not a total slam to Rocky, she's had a lot going on & needs time to sort herself out. She can seek out William after she's a little more settled. Anyway, I was still left with wanting to know more about what makes William, The Second, tick. I imagine there's more to come on that front & the whole Drexler situation as we proceed through the saga & given how this book ended, there had better be!

Now for what I didn't like. Maria Smythe! Not since Bella Swan have I so wanted to tell a girl to shut up! I did not like her. I tried & then I decided that she wasn't doing enough for me to try so hard. Her voice was irritating & her constant derision & condescension for anyone who wasn't what she thought was exactly worthy wore on me fairly early. She never seemed interested in helping anyone to see her point of view, she'd already decided they weren't worth the energy. Self-involved much, Maria? (view spoiler) Honestly, I feel badly that Maria is Katherine's legacy. Katherine deserved better.

And then there's Viktor. I so loved him in Filter & this time around I found that I didn't like him very much. I wanted to give Viktor the benefit of the doubt but honestly, so much of what happened to he & Katherine in Filter was due to secrets being kept & his desire to "shelter & protect". We all know how badly that ended the first time so, that he was once again in that wheelhouse put me off. I understand it's a complex situation but it's been eighteen or so years & he's had plenty of time for reflection & introspection to have identified where things went wrong & what could have been a better course. Why he didn't display any growth in this way is beyond me. (view spoiler)

Then there's Viktor's obvious disdain for Henrietta, (who I will freely admit was a pill in Filter) & his own daughter. Apparently Henrietta didn't grow one iota in the eighteen years that have elapsed either. Not after having been on the run with Viktor & baby Maria in the initial days of their escape in Filter or ever after. By all accounts, she is still only concerned with balls, money & marrying well & is living vicariously through her daughter Katie now. None of the tragedy of Katherine's life has made any lasting impression on her though she's been in necessary but self-imposed exile from the Demure family, lo these many years & is on board with Viktor's escape plan should they ever need to employ it. Again... WHAT?! Maybe this is to justify Viktor's dismissive tone with her & their daughter but I didn't like it. It felt like he scorned his own daughter for not being Katherine's & lavished all his attention & effort on Maria. (view spoiler)(less)

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Jan 25, 2012 Lani rated it 4 of 5 stars

Unlike the first book, i had no problems getting hooked on this book almost immediately. I really enjoy the changing point of view - i think thats what keeps me hanging on, and theres very little chance to get bored.
I was sad at first to realise that Rocky's point of view was no longer being told. I thought she was a great character. And William somewhat annoyed me through most of the book. The whole William/Abbie storyline irritated me. She was barely mentioned in the first book, and he seemed...more Unlike the first book, i had no problems getting hooked on this book almost immediately. I really enjoy the changing point of view - i think thats what keeps me hanging on, and theres very little chance to get bored.
I was sad at first to realise that Rocky's point of view was no longer being told. I thought she was a great character. And William somewhat annoyed me through most of the book. The whole William/Abbie storyline irritated me. She was barely mentioned in the first book, and he seemed all into Rocky. Then in this book he's pretty much a cold fish towards poor Rocky and never shuts up about Abbie? jerk. lol.
I was happy to quickly get over my disapointment of the no rocky point of view, when Maria became a new favourite. I found her storyline alot more interesting than the William storyline.
Of course, there are alot of spelling mistakes throughout the book. I also felt there were alot of "loose threads" i guess is the best way to describe it. There seemed to be a bunch of little things that happened that never really went anywhere...Whether they lead to something in the next book i guess remains to be seen! But possibly sometimes the writer throws in these little bits and pieces to somewhat confuse the reader? Or keep the reader guessing would be a better way of putting it i suppose. In both books i often found myself thinking, "oh i see where this is going", only to find myself thinkng "oops! no i dont!' a few pages later. I think thats my favourite, yet also most frustrating part of these books! The predictable doesnt seem to ever happen.
As for the ending.....i dunno. I dont think it was great. Weve already seen the whole "locked in the dungeon" thing with Katherine in the first book. Im kinda bored with that!
Theres plenty of spelling errors, and at one rather critical point, the writer used the name Peter several times, when at that stage we only knew him as Nicholas. That really gave away who he was before we were supposed to know!
But despite that, i really did enjoy the book! I was willing to overlook these things because im truly in love with the way the author writes.I really dont want this to sound negative, because its a great series so far, despite its faults!. And i'd definitely reccomend it! And i'll definitely be waiting for the third book!(less)

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Apr 20, 2013 inga rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: 19th-century, 2012, books-i-own, didn-t-like-the-heroine-or-the-hero, gothic-fiction, historical-fiction, had-me-in-tears, murders-mysteries, reviewed, too-many-different-povs, self-published-indie-publisher, own-on-kindle, reviewed-2012, reviewed-self-published-books, worst-books-ever

After reading the first book in this saga Filter, which was entertaining despite its flaws, I expected this book to be just as entertaining. But I gotta say I was underwhelmed. I don't mind typos in the least--as long as there are not too many of them. And while this book certaily isn't the worst edited one out there, there were quite some typos and missing words that I spotted.

What bothered me the most about The BlueStocking Girl was the characterization: I wasn't a big fan of William Drexler I...more

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Jan 07, 2012 Heather rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

It's always so hard for me to review books in the middle of a series because I fear spoilers...majorly. Ever since highschool when someone spoiled A Separate Peace (not that I would have enjoyed it anyway but still) I am scared stiff to do that to someone else. So, if my review lacks that certain "Heatherish, girly squealing" it is not by any means a reflection on the quality of this novel because WOW, Mrs. Wright, you have blown me away...again. Bluestocking Girl is an incredible follow up to F...more

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Jan 22, 2012 Davinadellsteinbeck rated it 5 of 5 stars

Loved it! I love the changing POV. It makes me not want to put the book down because I am constantly wanting to know what happens next. I also love how she keeps everything historically accurate. It is a huge pet peeve of mine when authors don't keep their details historically accurate. The mystery and suspense just keeps building. I can't wait to read book 3 and see what she has in store for the next Maria.

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Dec 27, 2011 Emily rated it 3 of 5 stars

As much as I adored Filter, I oculdn't find the same enthusiasm for The bluestocking Girl. Perhaps it was the constant switcing of points of view. I have my favorite characters and, I'm not gonna lie--I didn't like it when te story jumped to someone else.

There was also a long stretch of backstory that derailed my interest. owever, I still liked te book and will definately read te third installment. I'm dying to know the big secret...

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Mar 20, 2012 Stephanie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Unexpected. This book went in a direction I did not expect. I was ready to learn more about Rocky, but this book was a delightful surprise. I'm not sure if the rest of the series will continue in this direction, but I do like how it is going at this time. William is a very intense character and to learn more about his family history and how it is converging with Rockys' history is wonderful. You are left in suspense in the end as to what will happen to Will and if he will continue to dig deeper...more

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Jan 03, 2012 Ila rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: EVERYONE

I am a huge fan of the Von Strassenberg Saga, as well as the author's fantastic writing style. The BlueStocking Girl did not disappoint-in fact, I think I liked it even more than Filter! I really loved how well the book flowed through the different point-of-views. I am definetly loving the new witty young lady in the book. I think she is absolutely adorable and has quickly become one of my favorite literally charters. Just like with the first book in the saga, I ended up canceling plans just so...more

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Feb 14, 2012 Mr. Curtis marked it as to-read

Thanks for this second installment, Gwenn. What a wonderful surprise! And your note made me laugh.

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Apr 22, 2012 Kim Holgate rated it 5 of 5 stars

Another book left me yearning for more. I will admit the first few chapters with the different time zones do take a bit of adjusting to, but Gwenn's style of writing soon draws you into the chapters. Reading on a kindle i did miss the ability of flicking back and refreshing myself with the characters but the further into the book and especially near the end the characters are very much individual people. I think the Von Strassenberg Saga is a brilliant collection. I have never been as hooked on...more

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Feb 21, 2012 Colby marked it as to-read

Why haven't I bought this yet?

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Feb 25, 2013 Amber Eads rated it 5 of 5 stars

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Shelves: series

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Nov 03, 2012 Sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars

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About Gwenn Wright

As a reader, I rate books based solely on entertainment value. It doesn't matter if they're cheesy or cliche or predictable, if they keep me entranced I love them. It takes a lot of skill as a writer to be cheesy, cliche, predictable and STILL manage to be entertaining and entrancing.
As a writer, I studied history, criminal justice, English, business and personal coaching before deciding journali...more

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Quotes from The BlueStocking Girl

“How many times can a heart be shattered and still be pieced back together? How many times before the damage is irreparable?” — 38 people liked it

“Whatever happened in those more than one hundred years, from the time my great-great-great grandfather studied law to the time when my own father took his bar exam in 1989, I may never know. Perhaps it was just greed and the good, old-fashion corruption that comes with power. The Drexlers have moved from the fight for human rights to the fight for corporations and wealthy individuals. We file their taxes, write their contracts, clean up their messes. As I see it, we have become little more than glorified Public Relations reps” — 7 people liked it

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The BlueStocking Girl (The Von Strassenberg Saga #2)

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