Rating: 
Summary: Incredible "period" story!
Review: This fantastic novel takes place during the Civil War. Newly wed Alice had to stay with the mother-in-law she despised while her husband went to war. The story is told first-person in letters to Alice's sister. Alice's contribution to the war effort, apart from giving her husband to the cause, was working with other women to make quilts for the soldiers.Alice's character grows from a slightly spoiled teen into a kind woman as the years of the Civil War pass. I grew to like her more and more as the book progressed. While the book is marketed as a mystery, the mystery part of the story is not as significant as in the other mysteries touted on today's market. Despite (faulty?) advertising, I enjoyed the book immensely. It's a quick read and worth sharing. I'm looking forward to finding other books by the author.
Rating: 
Summary: a disappointment
Review: This is a story of Alice, the wife of a Union soilder and herstuggles during the Civil War. It is told in letter fashion. We(the readers) read the letters Alice has written to her sister over a 2 1/2 year period. I have read all of Sandra Dallas' works and this was a disappointment. It took story lines out of her other books and placed them in a Civil War setting. The "letters" included lengthy quotations of conversations and copies of other letters therefore making them unlikely to be in a letter. There were many explicit references to sex in the letters which were not necessary.It should have been written in a different format. The "letters" did not seem like letters. The characters could have been developed better. It was easy to guess the mystery and know what was going to happen next. I would suggest reading Dallas' other works and leaving this one on the shelf. Buster Midnight's Cafe, The Diary of Mattie Spencer and The Persian Pickle Club.
Rating: 
Summary: Another great Sandra Dallas book
Review: This is such a wonderful, entertaining (and educating too I might add) read, during which I was totally immersed in the year 1862 and in the life of Alice Bullock, a soldier wife waiting for her husband Charlie to come home.
This is a women story - which does not mean that a man cannot enjoy - but that the book is about women and women sisterhood. How women can draw strength from each other and learn how to live (and survive) in a world whose rules are changing because of the war. Alice and Mother Bullock, Charlie' s strict mother are left alone in Bramble Farm with only the Negro and the hired man, both of which disappear after a short while. Although Alice and Mother Bullock do not really like each other they learn to work together and respect each other.
Alice life is described in detail in the candid letters she writes her sister Lizzie. This is very close to writing a diary as Alice does not hold anything from her sister, unless this is something she can not discuss even with herself.
The letters portray a growing up period for Alice who had no other way but to change from a young bride to a woman who has responsibility over the lives of others. Alice liked to have a good time, and is especially vain (as she herself says) over her sewing and quilting skills. This is her comfort and when she quilts, she forgets her fatigue.
I especially liked the beginning of each chapter where the Author takes time to explain about various quilt designs, their meaning and the history and art of quilts. This book was also educating to me in the sense it gives a very real account of life during the civil war which was especially interesting to someone non-american as myself who had no knowledge of the accounts of this war.
Alice is a great heroine. She is a fiesty, clever girl and we follow her small and large struggles a with care.
Tremendously enjoying, as I may say are all of Sandra Dallas's books.
Rating:
Summary: Don't hesitate, read this book now!
Review: What a page turner, nothing else got accomplished for a couple of days because I couldn't put it down! Set on the homefront in the Civil War, and written as a series of letters, you will enjoy it, especially if you favor historical fiction and like old time crafts. This was the first of Sandra Dallas' books that I read, and I have liked everything she has written, but Alice's Tulips remains my favorite. Do you know how sometimes you read something, and afterwards think to yourself, "how could I have not discovered this author, and this wonderful book, before?" Well, Dallas and Alice's Tulips are in that category. In fact, I wish I hadn't read this book yet, so that I could re-live the pleasure of that delightful very first read. I have lent this book to several people, and they have all loved it too. Don't deny yourself, get a copy of this book and read it now!
Rating:
Summary: Stands up well as a book of letters!
Review: When I first opened Alice's Tulips, I was a bit taken aback, because I did not know that the entire book was made of up letters to her sister. But by the time I finished I knew Alice, her mother, and her sister as well as my own neighbors.The supporting characters of the town are revealed to us in rich detail through the observations of Alice in her letters. We come in contact here with the prejudices of the day, the horrors of battle and some surprising ideas and suggestions from her sister that cross Alice's mind. Something that we surely think now women of that time would not have been so bold to think about. This is truly a heartwarming story, perfect to cuddle up with on a winter's afternoon.
Rating:
Summary: Great book!!!!
Review: Wow!! What a great book. I was rooting for Alice all the way! The book consists of letters Alice is writing to her sister during a 2 1/2 year time period that her husband Charlie is away fighting for the union in the civil war. It's amazing to see just how much young Alice grows up in those 2 1/2 years. Living with her mother-in-law, Alice starts out very prideful, wasteful, and immature, but by the end of the book she has grown so much, for the years were not easy on her. I highly recommend this book. A great read.
Rating:
Summary: Another winner!
Review: You'll laugh and you'll cry as you reach this touching, funny and well-written picture of life on an Iowa farm during the Civil war.You gain a new appreciation on how hard life was for women during this time, how vulnerable they were and the comfort they found among themselves. I also enjoyed the quilting lore that was included. All-in-all a fascinating read.
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