I finished reading Belinda Starling's wonderful The Journal of Dora Damage a few days ago. I cannot heap enough praise upon this book. I think I read somewhere that it has been compared with Sarah 
Waters's work, and I was skeptical at first (Sarah Waters does what she does so very well!). I do think, upon finishing the book, however, that it is a deserved comparison. There's so much about this book that works--excellent writing, likable and very unlikable characters (but very real characters), a very clever story and unique, too. And Starling obviously did her research, as the book is steeped in Victorian ambiance in all the right ways. I know I've mentioned it multiple times here, so I'm not going to into great detail about the novel. You can check out Andi's review that appeared in Estella's Revenge and Victoria's very detailed and perceptive review of it at Eve's Alexandria.
I managed to score a reader's copy of Tasha Alexander's A Fatal Waltz. It's the next Lady Emily Ashton novel that's due out in May. This is a series that has gotten better with each book, and I was so 
impatient waiting for this one that I actually asked for a reader's copy, which is something I've never done before. Although I want to read it slowly (when it's done I'll have a long wait for another and there's not a Maisie Dobbs or Lady Julia Grey mystery anywhere on the horizon either!), but I have a feeling it won't take me long to get through it.
I finished listening to Elizabeth Berg's Dream When You're Feeling Blue this week, too. I have mixed feelings about it. I used to read Berg's fiction quite often when I was younger, but it has been a while since I've read any of her books. The story is set in Chicago during WWII. It's one of those homefront stories meant to evoke nostalgic and patriotic feelings. It mainly centers on the three Heany sisters and their love affairs and the trials and tribulations of living during a war. Berg did a wonderful job of giving the reader a sense of what it must have been like in America, but I sometimes felt like it was more of a history lesson than just part of the story (occasionally the two things felt separate--the story and the history--if that makes any sense). The ending was a little abrupt and somewhat predictable. Still, it was a good choice for an audio book. I found myself looking forward to listening despite its shortcomings. A book that I've read several times and greatly enjoyed that has an American WWII setting is Marge Piercy's Gone to Soldiers.
Next up for audio is Penny Vincenzi's Sheer Abandon. I loved her Lytton Family Trilogy, which was about a London publishing family before, during and after WWI. I could happily reread those books. This novel sounds a little fluffy, but I think it will work perfectly for walking. I know this sort of story has been done before, but it's about three friends who meet as young college women traveling to Thailand. They strike up a friendship quickly and easily. A year later one will give birth in Heathrow airport and abandon the baby. Fifteen years later they're all successful career women, but the child wants to find her birth mother. I foresee all sorts of drama. The thing with audio books is if you miss something--traffic drowns out the audio or you space off for a moment, you can't just flip the pages back and read them over again. I can't figure out how to cue it or go back just a little. If I hit the back button it goes back to the beginning. This is why I like light, fluffy books. If I miss something I won't be too terribly disappointed.
In case you were wondering, I decided to read Washington Square by Henry James. I know I agonize over these choices sometimes. Sometimes I know exactly what I want to read, and I just jump into the next book. Occasionally though I only have an idea and several books will work, but which one? Sometimes I find myself choosing something and then later I am thinking I should have chosen something else (I hate when I do that). I do want to read the other books as well, but in this case I think Washington Square is exactly what I'm in the mood for. I must say, having only read his novella The Turn of the Screw, I didn't remember his sentences being quite so long. Looking at the pages, they tend to be solid chunks of text. I have a feeling that Henry James is not an author you just jump into feet first. But I think this is the best place to start with him. I'll let you know how it goes.