A hard book to read… but interesting. I got this book almost a year ago and I tried to read it then, but I couldn’t. It was about how tragedy effects people differently and the heavy grief when you lose someone you love. I had just lost my sister and it was just too much. So I set it aside. A year later I picked it back up, because I like this author. I like her writing style. So I gave it another try. I […]
Drowning is the first of six novellas in the Revitalizing Jane series by Jenni James. Known for her Young Adult Faerie Tale Collection and her Jane Austen Diaries, this is a new genre for James. Drowning is most definitely for adult readers as it deals with the sensitive subject of marital abuse. We meet Jane more than a year after her divorce. Her children want her to date again and she reluctantly agrees. As the book proceeds, hints are dropped here and there letting us […]
Amy Harmon calls her books romances, but I really think there needs to be another designation for her stories. Because while romance is part of her stories, they are so much more! They contain the whole of life—dreams, disappointments, struggles, triumphs and failures—all wrapped up in lovely prose that sinks into your soul. Take this for example: “True beauty, the kind that doesn’t fade or wash off, takes time. It takes pressure. It takes incredible endurance. It is the slow drip that makes the stalagtite, […]
Ilana’s Wish is the 8th book in the Newport Ladies Book Club series—and I’ve enjoyed every single one of them! However, this one—this one spoke to me on so many levels. Ilana Goldstein is a regular woman—just like so many of us—who got slammed by the unfairness of life. Her one dream in life is for a family, for children, but she has issue after issue after issue that prevents that from happening. This poor woman barely has a chance to breathe between the events that […]
I have a special place in my heart for books that deal with issues faced when having a handicapped child. I really liked Rebecca Talley’s previous book, The Up Side of Down, which looks at how a Down Syndrome child can change and challenge the family dynamics, but also bring a huge dose of love. I wasn’t quite as enamored by this book. I would have liked there to be more transition time between the break up of Lauren’s marriage and her feelings for Ethan. […]
Let me address the content warning up front. I put it there because some of my readers will be offended by the portrayals and themes in this book. I usually only give a content warning for gratuitous language, violence or sex—when they’ve been thrown in for the shock value alone. THIS IS NOT ONE OF THOSE BOOKS! I soooo loved this book! I don’t even know how to describe how much I loved it. Amy Harmon is a talented writer and this book pulled me […]
Another 2009 Whitney winner, this debut novel, Gravity vs the Girl was a very compelling read. I thoroughly enjoyed it. At first, I wasn’t sure if the ghosts were “real” ghosts or the product of an emotional breakdown. By the time I figured it out, it really didn’t matter. Without giving it away, I’ll just say that I would have loved the book no matter which way it went because we are all haunted by ghosts of our past in one way or another—sort of […]
I got Her Good Name by Josi Kilpack a couple of weeks ago but I had to wait to read it because other less important stuff like cooking and cleaning and working my day job kept getting in the way. I started it a few days ago and then stayed up until 2:00 a.m. this morning to finish it. That right there should tell ya sumthin’. I liked this book for so many reasons. First, I liked Chrissy. She’s Latino and I think it’s about […]
*While there is nothing explicit in this book, it does deal with the harsh reality of internet predators, kidnapping, and assault. If your children have access to the Internet, you need to read this book. If those children are over the age of 12, they need to read this book. I liked the Prologue, which sets the tone and foreshadows events to come. I liked the way Josi started each chapter with e-mails between Jess, Emily and Colt. It was unnerving to see how subtle, […]