know thy neighbor...

"The Neighbor" by Lisa Gardner, proves that you never know those closest to you.  Sandra Jones, a young wife and mother, goes missing from her Boston home.  Her husband is an immediate suspect, as is her neighbor who is a registered sex offender.  It seems the only witness to Sandy disappearing is her 4 year old daughter.

But of course, everyone has secrets, and Sandy and her husband, Jason, each have skeletons in their closets.  The police want to find Sandy before it is too late but they cannot seem to find out what it is that Jason is hiding.

back to the beginning...

I went back to the beginning of Tess Gerritsen and her Rizzoli and Isles books.  The one I just finished, "The Surgeon" was quite good.  The was a good mix of suspense and romance yet I was left wondering who the bad guy was going be.

There is someone tormenting women.  He comes while they are sleeping and they never see it coming.  The only lead they have is a surgeon, Dr Catherine Cordell, who was a victim of the same crime a couple of years earlier, but during that attack she was able to shoot and kill the man.  However, the same crimes are being committed yet again with freakishly similar details.  And it seems his goal is to torment Catherine.

a little fluff goes a long way...

Sometimes it is nice when a story has its problems but then everything works out in the end.  I just finished reading "1105 Yakima Street" by Debbie Macomber.

There are many little stories going on within these pages.  It is a story about the town of Cedar Cove.  First there is Rachel and Bruce, recently married and now expecting their first child together.  The problem is Bruce's daughter, Jolene, who is having a hard time adjusting to having a stepmom.

Linc and Lori and are happily married couple.  Linc has a business that is failing and a father-in-law who doesn't accept him.

Olivia and Will, brother and sister, are worried about their mom who is starting to show signs of dementia and wonders how to bring up the subject.

careful and reckless...

I really, really enjoyed this book, "The Witness," by Nora Roberts.

Elizabeth is a 16 year old girl, studying at Harvard, who has had her path set out for her since the day she was conceived by IVF by a donor.  Her mother is a surgeon and wants Elizabeth to follow in her footsteps.
Elizabeth decided one day that she has had enough and defies her mother.  She decides to let loose and goes to a club, drinks too much and her life is forever changed.

It is twelve years later and Abigail Lowery is just trying to lead a quiet life in a small town, but people have noticed her and she is not sure how to react.  Police Chief Brooks Gleason is intrigued and sets out to find out all about her.

senses alive...

In "Close Your Eyes" by Iris Johansen and Roy Johansen, musical therapist Kendra Michaels loves to help others, through music she is able to reach kids that normally are unreachable.  She is also fond of her ordinary life.  She underwent stem cell surgery to restore her sight but her senses from when she was blind are part of what make her able to pick up on things that most people miss.

Kendra's former boyfriend, Jeff, an FBI agent, goes missing and former agent Adam Lynch comes to Kendra for help in located the missing man.

tv or not tv...

The book I just finished, "Last to Die," has characters that are based on the tv show "Rizzoli and Isles."  I read this book without realizing it was part of a recurring character type of book.  I am going to go back and read the series from the beginning, but I can say that because I have watched the tv show I was so able to picture each character, even though it is definitely different then what I watch on tv.

There is a privately owned school, called Evensong, that takes in children who are victims of violent crimes and need help with dealing with the world and all its danger.

Teddy has survived a massacre.  A couple years ago his whole family was killed and he survives and now the foster family he lives with is also killed.  Rizzoli is assigned to the case and tries to protect Teddy.

opposites attract...

"Beautiful Disaster" by Jamie McGuire is about Abby, a college freshman, who is trying to make a fresh start in life by leaving behind a life she wishes didn't exist.  Travis, the "one-night-stand" guy, is also a street fighter and very aggressive.

Abby makes a bet with Travis.  If Travis wins, she must live with him for one month.  If Abby wins, Travis must restrain from sex for one month.  There is obvious chemistry between these two, but it is up and down and there is a constant battle.  However, it works for them and it was a good and easy read.

friends

"How Lucky You Are" by Kristin Kusek Lewis follows three friends, Waverly, Kate and Amy who have been friends for a long time but are each going through issues of their own.  Waverly owns a bakery but is worried about the mounting bills.  Kate is standing by her husband as he runs an election for becoming governor but seems a future she doesn't want and then there is Amy who has a big secret she is keeping from her friends.

girl power...

Cate, Renee and Abby are the main characters in "These Girls" by Sarah Pekkanen.  All three girls have come to New York City for very different reasons and have come to live together.

Cate and Renee have been living together and take in Abby as a third roommate. Both work for a magazine, Cate as a features editor and Renee is trying hard to get promoted to the beauty editor.

Abby comes to them from a nanny job where something went wrong and she escapes to see her brother in New York who is friends with Cate and Renee.

All three girls really come to rely on each other for more than just being roommates and together they realize how much they have come to depend on each other.

heart and soul...

"The Heart Specialist" by Claire Holden Rothman, is a story about Agnes White, a young girl who is not interested in the normal girly things, but loves microscopes and dissecting things.  She wants to grow up and become a doctor.

When she was younger her father, a doctor,  was accused of murdering his sister and although he was acquitted, his reputation was soiled and he flees leaving Agnes with her pregnant mother.  Less than a year after that her mother dies and leaves Agnes and her baby sister on their own.

The story follow Agnes as she excels as a heart specialist but not so much at knowing when to listen to her own heart.

fun and mysterious...

I just finished reading "The Look of Love" by Mary Jane Clark.  I didn't know when I started reading the book that it was one about a recurring character.  I liked that even though the book followed the same character I didn't have to read all the other books to understand the story.

Piper Donovan has just been invited to a California spa to make a wedding cake for the spa owner, Jillian, and is invited to stay at the spa while she works on the cake design.

While Piper is at the spa there is a murder and it seems the target is the bride, Jillian, and that there are many people who may want to harm Jillian or her father.

Piper also meets another person at the spa and tries to help her by trying to uncover some foul play at the spa as well.

It was a fun and easy read and would definitely read another story with Piper as the main character.

a family tree...

Nancy Jensen's first novel, "The Sisters" really shows how three generations of women grow and change throughout the years.

Two sisters, Mabel and Bertie, are living with their stepfather in the town of Juniper, Kentucky.  Bertie is excited to graduate the 8th grade and looks to the future to marry her love, Wallace.  Mabel is trying to get away from her awful stepfather without letting Bertie know and something goes wrong, the stepfather is found dead and Bertie feels so lost because her sister and Wallace both disappear and both are left without their sister.

The rest of the book goes back and forth between Bertie and Mabel through the years.  Bertie sends all correspondence received from Mabel back to her and then finally just writes "deceased" on the envelope and sends it back to stop future communication.

As these two sisters fall away from each other, we are introduced to the next generation of women in this family. I do not want to give too much away, but I really liked how I was introduced to these remarkable women and the way they dealt with their struggles and how they overcame them as well.

kindy creepy...

"The Whisperer" by Donato Carrisi was quite a thriller, lots of twists and turns that were very unexpected.

A series of six arms, left ones to be specific, are found buried and arranged in a circle and seem to belong to five missing girls and the the sixth girl is yet to be identified.

Investigators start to dig into the case of the five missing girls and hope to find the identity of the sixth girl and pray she is still alive.  There is a lot going on in the personal lives of the investigators which comes into the story as background info, but it just makes the story better, more believable.

a family man detective...

"I, Michael Bennett" was a good and fast read.  Michael Bennett is a detective, has 10 children and a nanny who help keep his life in order.  But a mexican crime lord takes the life of Michael's good friends and he does everything in his power to catch this guy, which he does eventually.  But the crime lord threatens his family which cause Michael to take his kids and nanny and flee to his cabin.  However, he enters into a worse situation that he would have thought and has to protect his family and his city as well.

I really dislike the ending...kind of left me hanging.

love, loss and life lessons...

"You are the love of my life" by Susan Richards Shreve had its moments of ups and downs.  It was an easy book to read but I found it rather boring.

Lucy, a children's book author and mother of two, decides to leave New York and the father of her children who is married and move back into the house where she found her father when he committed suicide.

Lucy is having a hard time in the new neighborhood.  She is a very good mother and is having a hard time letting new people into her world or secrets and lies. Her children do not know the story behind Lucy's dad and how he died or anything about their father either.

Lucy finds out that keeping secrets isn't always the best choice...

guilty or innocent...

I have read many, many books by James Patterson and "Guilty Wives" was very good.  Four friends go away together to Monte Carlo for a much-needed girls weekend.  While they are away the unspeakable happens, two men are shot and they four women are arrested and go to jail.  One of the women, Abbie, refuses to give in and confess to a crime she didn't commit and spends her days trying to figure out how to get to the truth.  There are twists I did not see coming and really liked the ending too...

50 shades, thank goodness I am done...

I finished the third book in the trilogy, "Fifty Shades Freed" and even though I read the book quickly Ireally did not like it that much.  I know Christian was able to break through his problems and come out the other side because of the love he and Ana share, but honestly, I found it very boring overall.

What did you think?

2nd time is a charm...

Well, I just finished reading the second book in the "Fifty Shades" trilogy and I have to say that I liked this one a whole lot better than the first one.  I felt that this one had more of a story and was leading towards something.  I still really liked the sections where Ana and Christian are emailing each other back and forth.  The subject lines and signatures are very funny and their silly banter is quite cute.  At least now I can say I am looking forward to seeing what book three has to offer...

I will keep you posted :)

not quite a detective story...

"From Barcelona With Love" by Elizabeth Adler is the fourth in a series about Mac Reilly.  This is the first book I have read, not knowing it was a continuing series until just now when I was looking up other book by this author and I have to say it was good, really good.  I had no problem keeping up or even realizing there was a back story with Mac and his love interest, Sunny.

Bibi, a singer and actress, is accused of a double-murder.  There was never any proof and she was set free.  But Bibi goes into hiding, just disappearing from her life and leaving her daughter, Paloma, in the care of her sister.

Paloma starts to stalk Mac and really wants him to find her mom.

money and power...

This is the first book I have read by author John Lescroart.  This book, "Damage" was quite good.  It is about a wealthy family, the Curtlee's.  Their son, Roland, "Ro", was sent to prison for rape and murder.  It is 10 years later and the family lawyers have won him a re-trial.  Within days of him getting released from jail on bail, a key witness from the first trial is killed as it the wife of the jury foreman.  All signs point to Ro and homicide detectives are racing to gather evidence and get Ro back to jail where he belongs.

Good book...I am definitely going to pick up another book from this author soon.

Is it Tuesday?...

I really enjoyed "Tuesday's Child" by Fern Michaels.  Sophie Lee was sent to jail for a crime she didn't committ.  It is 10 years later and the really killer confesses to the crime.  He is dying and wants to to die with knowing he told the truth and he leaves all his assets to Sophie too.  All the lawyers race around to get things in order so Sophie can be released from prison and start to live her life.

There are twists and turns and surprises I never expected.  I have to say that I really enjoyed this book with the exception of the ending which I really despised.

Let me know what you think...

forgive and forget...

I read this book on a recommendation of a friend and I really liked it.  "What Alice Forgot" by Liane Moriarty follows 29-year-old Alice.  She loves her husband, adores chocolate  and her new house and her and her husband Nick are looking forward to welcoming their first child.

But then Alice falls and hits her head while at the gym and suddenly she is really 39 and the last ten years of her life are gone.  She has children she doesn't know.  She likes to exercise, swears off chocolate and loves her coffee and manicures.  And her husband seems to hate her.

As Alice tries to navigate the person she was with the person she has become, she finds things out about herself that she doesn't really like.  Her childlike ways are quite endearing and I really did enjoy this book...

sad, happy and all in between

"The Thin Line Between Here and Gone" by Andrea Kane was such a good book, one of the better ones I have read recently.

Amanda recently had a baby, and the baby is ill and needs his father Paul to save him.  But it turns out that the Paul never knew Amanda was even pregnant and then his car was found with blood, lots of blood and Paul was declared dead.  But then a friend of Amanda sends a picture of someone who looks a lot like Paul.  Amanda decides to hire someone to search for Paul before it is too late for baby Justin.

So, so good...

friends for life...

I usually do not read books by Danielle Steele, but "Friends Forever" sounded really good so I decided to give it a shot.  I can honestly say that I liked it, a lot.  It was told in story form, but it was easy to read and easy to follow and the characters were easy to fall in love with.

The story follows 5 friends, Andy, Billy, Shawn, Izzy and and Gabby, from their first day in Kindergarten through their lives.  They have ups and downs, but stay friends, really great friends, and their lives takes some twists and turns.

A good read for sure!

belonging is believing...

Wow, another great read in "Where We Belong" by Emily Giffin.

Marian is living her dream life.  She has a great career, has a wonderful boyfriend and lives in Manhattan.  She has no idea her life is going to change when there is a knock a the door.  An 18 year old girl, Kirby, changes everything and brings to light a secret that she has hidden from the world.

Together, Kirby and Marian, really do find out where they are supposed to belong...

the next great book...

Jennifer Weiner wrote a great book in "The Next Best Thing."  I loved this book.  Of course I love all things Jennifer Weiner.

Ruthie was badly injured in a car crash that left her parents dead, left Ruth scarred on her face and having to face multiple surgeries to repair and  Ruthie then is placed in the care of her wonderful grandmother. While living with her grandma, they both love the shows like the reruns of "The Golden Girls" and really can identify with the characters.

Ruth, after graduating, decided to move to L.A. to pursue her dream of writing a hit sitcom.  The ups and downs of the high-maintenance actors, the producers and casting directors also have their own opinions, and Ruth has to decide what is right for her.

Read it, Love it, Share it... 

every mother's worst nightmare...or not?

In the book "Little Face" by Sophie Hannah, new mother Alice, who has a 2-week-old baby at home, goes out for the first time alone and comes home to the front door being wide open, her husband sleeping on the couch, and her baby being abducted and replaced with a baby that Alice doesn't recognize.  David, her husband, does not believe the baby is different.  Her mother-in-law does not know what to believe but is treating Alice differently.  Then there are the police who are investigating and think Alice is going crazy or experiencing post-partum depression.

Great book, surprising twists throughout...

bigamy...

Tayari Jones writes about a man, James, with two families living in the same town, in the book, "Silver Sparrow."

One family knows about the other and one does not.    The two daughters, Dana and Chaurisse, are the voices that narrate the story.

I didn't love, I didn't hate it...

finance and government = a surprisingly good read

In "Need You Now" by James Grippando, Lilly and Patrick have both come across a conspiracy within the bank where they work as financial advisors where someone has killed himself because of a Ponzi scheme and he has left everyone looking for answers.  What Patrick and Lilly know can get them both killed and they do not know who to trust since even people within the government are involved.

I really liked this book...

catch me if you can...

Lisa Gardner is the author of "Catch Me", a book about Detective D.D Warren.  D.D. is approached outside of a crime scene by a woman, Charlie, who asks D.D. to be the detective who solves her murder that hasn't occurred yet.  Charlie's two best friends were both murdered on the same day, January 21st, a year apart and this year Charlie expects it to be her and has been training to protect herself from her upcoming murder.

Good read...

don't go to sleep...

"Before I go to Sleep" by S.J. Watson, wow, what a read.

The story is about Christine, a woman in her 40's, who wakes up one morning, next to a man she doesn't know, looks into the mirror and doesn't recognize herself because she has been in this amnesiac state for 20+ years and then we find out that she was in a car accident that took away her memories.  But on top of having no memories, once she goes to sleep for the night, all she has learned that day are erased and she has to start again new every day. Every day her husband, Ben, leaves little notes for her on chores to keep her occupied, leaves her a cell phone.  Ben, from page one seems a bit iffy and untrustworthy, but since Christine doesn't really know anyone, they seem suspect.  She starts seeing a doctor who meets with her and tells her to start a journal and write everything down, every day, and he remind her to read it to keep her up to date on her life.

I really enjoyed this book...the ending was so good :)

another good one...

Iris Johansen wrote another good one in "What Doesn't Kill You."  This is a recurring characters book which I like because I feel that I have already gotten to know all the people involved.

Catherine Ling, a CIA agent who was abandoned by her mother at the age of 4 years old.  She had to learn to fend for herself, always.  She meets a man, Hu Chang, a man schooled in the art of poisons.  Catherine has always done things her way, not always moral, but what feels right to her.

Hu Chang has created a very deadly and untraceable poison and Catherine is called to help.

I liked this book, a lot...

always good...

I just finished reading "11th hour" by James Patterson.  It is part of a series of the Women's Murder Club, book #11.  I always like James Patterson's book and this one was no different.  His books are easy to read and easy to follow and I like that I already know all the characters too.

Lindsay Boxer is finally pregnant and her work load is not slowing down.  She is working on two major cases, one that involves two heads (without bodies) found in the garden of a major celebrity and another that involves a gun that was taken from her police evidence locker that has been linked in possibly four other murders.

Good read for sure...

life is hard...

"Summerland" by Elin Hilderbrand is about 4 kids from Nantucket High School.  While driving home from a graduation party they have a car accident.  Penny, the driver, is killed, her twin brother Hobby is in a coma and the other two passengers, one of whom is Penny's boyfriend, Jake, have no injuries from the accident but have suffered emotionally.

Jake's family moves to Perth, Australia, where is mom is from, because they think it will better help Jake heal if he is away from his home.

The other passenger in the car, Demeter, has started abusing alcohol and other destructive behaviors that may be life threatening.

What the book is mostly about is how the relationships between the four friends and their parents came to be.  It is about how a tragedy can not only affect the family and friends, but also the people within its community.  It is about how even in hard times it is possible to move on and find a place of healing.

wonderful, fabulous, I love it...

Kelle Hampton, author of "Bloom: finding beauty in the unexpected" has touched me so deeply with this memoir of hers.

Kelle and her husband Brett have this amazing life together.  A two-year-old daughter, a baby on the way, great jobs, wonderful friends and are making a home together with Brett's boys from a previous relationship.

Every ultrasound shows that the baby is healthy and the parents-to-be are thrilled.

However, when the baby is born and placed in Kelle's arms, she notices that something is wrong with baby Nella.  Her fears are when the pediatrician confirms that Nella has Down syndrome.  At first, Kelle is hit with all the information and fear of what Nella may face in her life but in time she and her husband realize that Nella is a gift, being her parents a bigger gift and what follows is such a wonderful and uplifting life.

Please read...you won't be disappointed.

open your eyes...

In the book "Close Your Eyes" by Amanda Erye Ward, a women is murdered and her husband is arrested for the murder.  Their children, Alex and Lauren, both have different views of this major event in their lives.  Lauren has always believed that her dad murdered her mother and refuses to have any contact with her dad. Alex has the opposite view and believes their dad is innocent.

When they are older, Alex reveals that he has been in contact with their father.  Alex goes to Iraq and while there, disappears and this throws Lauren into turmoil, questioning everything.

 

against the grain...

I finally gave in and picked up a copy of "50 Shades of Grey" by E.L. James, from my public library.  I can honestly say that I am glad I did not have to spend my money on this book.  While the book was so easy to read and I finished it super fast, that is probably the best thing I can say.  I picked it up and decided to read it due the hype, which is the exactly reason I was staying away in the first place.  There really is no story or plot, it is all sex, and after the first encounter with Christian and Anastacia, I was sort of turned off.  I will definitely read the other two books and see how I feel after that, but I am not that impressed so far...

OK...Let me have it :)

a fun read...

Anna Quindlen, author of "Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake," writes from the heart in the book about how over the course of her life, from the column she used to write at age 30 for the New York Times, the death of her mom, her novels, her kids, her husband and her life.  What follows are her thoughts about all of these things and her place in the world then and now.  I did like the book and found it easy to read as well :)

yay or nay?

"In One Person" by John Irving...

I finished this weeks ago, and like other books I have read, I wasn't sure what I wanted to say.  I did really like this book.  The background, set in the 1960's, follows Billy Abbott, a teenager, who is dealing with "crushes on the wrong people" and how to deal with that.  Billy is bi-sexual, has his first encounter with Miss Frost, the school librarian, and his family is definitely hiding secrets regarding Miss Frost.

"In One Person" follows Billy from childhood through adulthood, through his love life with men, women and transgenders, through watching those he loves suffer and eventually die from AIDS, through his friendship with Elaine and finally through the love and acceptance of our differences.

Keep reading, always keep reading...

it's not all fun and games...

'The Art of Fielding' by Chad Harbach revolves around the characters of Mike, Henry, Owen, Guert and Pella.  I had such high hopes for the book but I think it kind of fell short.

Henry is a shortstop, with instincts like no other, but he throws a ball off course and that sends his life, and the life of the other 4 characters also off course.  Mike realizes that he worked so hard to get Henry into the spotlight and ignored his own life in the process.

Boredom = stalker

Karen Bergreen's "Following Polly" was a very enjoyable read.  From the beginning the character of Alice is easy to relate to and very likable.  She gets fired from her job and becomes a shadow to superstar Polly, following her everywhere she goes, unbeknownst to Polly.  But when Polly turns up dead and Alice is the number one suspect, Alice has to figure out who really killed Polly.

missing...

In the book, "The Local News" by Miriam Gershow, a boy goes missing.  Danny was popular, athletic and the shining star of the family.  His sister, Lydia, is the smart one and always lived in the shadow of her brother and she feels that going missing was the only interesting thing her brother ever did.

Lydia's parents are so consumed with the investigation of Danny that Lydia finds herself thrust into a world which she is unsure of.  The popular crowd, Danny's friends, are suddenly interested in her and the private eye hired to locate Danny also peaks her curiosity and Lydia starts to become involved more and more.

It is a look at how our siblings affect our lives, define who we are and who we will eventually become.

what comes after...

I just finished reading "Afterwards" by Rosamund Lupton.  It was such a good book.

Grace is working outside at her children's school, one is a student and one an assistant teacher, when there is a fire inside the school.  Grace's daughter, Jenny, is inside the school, and Grace races inside to find her.

Jenny and Grace are both injured in the fire and the story is told in the voice of Grace and is so poignant.  It is about the love a mother has for her children, and even more so her husband and sister-in-law, the police detective, who are able to follow the clues and find out that the fire was arson and do everything they can to save their family.

you can always go home...

I really enjoyed "Come Home" by Lisa Scottoline.  It is about Jill Farrow, a doctor and mother, who has been divorced and is finally happy to be engaged to the man of her dreams.  But then her ex-stepdaughter Abby shows at her door with the news that her dad, Jill's ex-husband, is dead, possibly murdered.

Abby asks Jill to look into his death.  Jill agrees because she misses Abby and her sister so much and her ex never allowed her to keep in contact with them.  As Jill digs into the life of her ex, she realizes that there were so many things about him that she did not know about and that you can never have an ex-child, and the love of a mother know no bounds.

friends close, enemies closer..

Harlan Coben's "Stay Close" is the latest book I have read.  I have always enjoyed Coben's books and this was good.  I didn't enjoy it as much as some of the other ones, but I did like it.

The book follows Megan, a soccer-mom with 2 kids, living the life she always wanted.  However, her past is soon going to catch-up with her.  She used to be an exotic dancer, had a photographer boyfriend in Ray and then there is Jack, the detective who cannot seem to forget the case that couldn't be solved.

The book follows these three characters as they try and figure out how to deal with their past and allow the secrets out and see where it takes them.

Olympics then and now...

"Private Games" by James Patterson was the latest in a series about a private investigative firm, Private.  The story is based in London as the site of the 2012 Olympic Games.  

At the start of the opening ceremonies, a member of the Olympic committee is murdered.  Then a reporter has received a letter from a man calling himself Cronus, saying how he thinks the Olympics needs to be restored to what they once were and that there is too much corruption in the games now.  All Cronus wants to do is destroy anyone involved in the modern games.

I liked it, but not as much as the past "Private" books.

so, so good

I really enjoyed "Home Front" by Kristin Hannah.  This story is about Jolene, a helicopter pilot, and her husband, Michael, a lawyer.  They are living their lives with their two daughters, going about their daily routines when Jolene is deployed to Iraq.  Michael also confesses he is no longer in love with his wife anymore and Jolene is forced to leave for Iraq, mad at her husband and yet having to trust her children in his care and do her job of protecting her country.

I really enjoyed this book, cried even, and that is saying a lot...

going up in flames...

"The Flame Alphabet" by Ben Marcus, is the book for today.

I was really interested in this book when I read the synopsis about how the fact that the kids are literally making their parents sick with their language, in this story of how far we will go to protect our families.  However, the more I read, the less I was interested.  The premise was interesting, but the book lacked sparkle for me.  It took me a long time to get through it and when I did finally finish it, I was so happy it was over...

didn't love it, didn't hate it...

In the book "Carry the One" by Carol Anshaw, the book opens at the wedding of Carmen and Matt.

At end of the party a carload of people, including Carmen's brother Nick and sister Alice plus their guests, leave the party.  They are all a bit drunk and stoned and while driving on a dark, secluded road, the car hits a girl and kills her.

The tale revolves around the siblings, Carmen, Nick and Alice and how they lives are forever changes by the death of the girl.

not the best of the bunch...

I finished reading "The Gilly Salt Sisters" by Tiffany Baker about a week ago and have been sitting on how I feel about it.  When I first started it, I found it a bit boring and thought it would be hard to get through.  I did finish it, and there were parts I liked, but on the whole I found the book rather dull.  There were parts that were dramatic, but in my opinion fell short.

The book follows the Gilly sisters, Claire and Jo, and the salt marsh where they live and work.

I read other reviews and I seem to be the only one who didn't love the book.  I am interested in finding out how others feel...

heartfelt and heartless...

I just finished "Another Piece of my Heart" by Jane Green.  I really liked it.  I think I have read most everything by this author and this one I quite enjoyed.

Andi gets married late in life, late in her 30's, to Ethan, a wonderful man with two children.  All Andi ever wanted to be was a mom, so she was so excited to take on that roll.  Sophia who is 8 years old is a wonderfully sweet and loving girl, happy to have Andi around, but Emily is difficult at age 12 and always resents Andi for marrying her dad.

Emily continues to spiral out of control and Andi cannot take the way Emily acts towards her and  contemplates walking away from her life with Ethan.

So much goes on in the story.  The characters are so real, in such pain that you can feel what they feel.  There is a lot of joy as well within this family and through all the ups and downs I wanted to route for each and every one of them.

sad, but uplifting too...

Wow, this book, "One Summer" by David Baldacci was so unbelievably good, sad too.  I even cried and I hardly ever do that for a book.

The book is about Jack Armstrong, who has terminal illness.  He is given very little time and is trying to find a way to deal with that.  His wife goes out to pick up some medicine for him and is killed in a car crash.  Jack's kids are taken away, split up and cared for by family and he is placed in hospice while he waits for his life to come to an end.  But then Jack starts to get better.  Doctors cannot explain it, but the disease he had is gone and he is given a clean bill of health.

Jack then gets all the kids back, moves from Ohio to South Carolina where his wife grew up.  He strives to become a better person and a better father.  He  is stunned when his mother-in-law sues Jack for custody of the kids because she thinks him an unfit parent.

I found this to be a story of love, loss, hope and the strong ties of family love.

the road no one ever wants to travel...

I am never without a book.  Never.  Reading is part of who I am and one of my favorite ways to escape the everyday ups and downs of life.  That being said, I just finished reading "Down the Darkest Road" by Tami Hoag.

The book follows the Lawton family.  They were a perfect family.  Lauren, Lance, Leslie and Leah.  They live in Santa Barbara and seem to have the perfect happy family until tradegy strikes.  Leslie is abducted and it seems that Leslie is the only one who is still interested in solving her daughter's case.  Even her husband couldn't take the pain and drove his car off a cliff.  Leah, the younger daughter, is having a hard time coping as well.

Such a great read!!

another mystery...

I think I have read almost everything James Patterson has writtten.  I just finished "Private #1 Suspect."  It was so, so good.  The book follows Jack Morgan who owns a private investigative firm, and his team as they try and solve their cases.

Jack arrives home from vacation to find a dead body in his bed.  It is his former girlfriend, who also worked for his firm.  Jack claims innocence and sets out to prove it.

Then there is the case about a movie star.  A case involving a known mobster.  And one more about murder that happens in a hotel.

James Patterson writes in such a way that it is so easy to follow along and I can read the book in a day.  I am always so eager to finish and look forward to finding out "who-done-it."

the butterfly effect...

"How it all Began" by Penelope Lively is my latest read.  It was a very easy read with interesting characters.  It is about how one thing can happen out of the ordinary and can change the way things play out.

I really liked the relationships between all the characters.  They are so real, dealing with real-life issues and touched my heart.

friendship and love...

Today I am writing about "Falling Together" by Marisa de los Santos.  I read both of her past books, "Belong to Me" and "Loved Walked in" and I liked those two better than "Falling Together."

I did enjoy the characters in this book.  Pen, Cat and Will were college best friends who went their separate ways.  It has been six years since they have seen each other when Pen and Will get an email saying Cat needs their help.  She asks them to come to their college 10 year reunion.  What follows is a story of friendship and love and the ties that bind.

Give it a read and then give me your thoughts...

It's never too early for a summer read...

I just finished "Summer Rental" by Mary Kay Andrews.  I really enjoyed this book.
It is about Ellis, Dorie and Julia, women in their 30's who have been friends since grade school.  They all have things going on in their lives but have come together for one month to rent a house and be together.

Along their journey they meet a women who is running from her husband and also ends up staying with them in the rental house.

During their month stay, the friends each have secrets to share and the all become closer as well.

Good, fun read for sure!

trying to escape...

In the book "Escape" by Barbara Delinsky, Emily is a lawyer, stuck in a life she really didn't want, and one day just walks out of work, packs a bag and drives away from the life she is unhappy with to try and figure out where she wants to be.

Her life revolves around her watch, her Blackberry and her computer and her husband who is also a lawyer, spend more time apart doing work then together.

I really enjoyed this book.

repeat characters rock...

There is something to be said for a series of books with the same characters.  I love the feeling of "knowing" the people in the books because I have been following along with them for so long.

This is true of the book "Gun Games" by Faye Kellerman.  It follows Peter and Rina and Gabe, the 15 year old prodigy they have taken in.

There is a suicide at a very prestigious school, where the victim apparently shot himself in the head.

The story follows Gabe as he falls in love with a girl and the ramifications of that as they keep their relationship a secret from Yasmine's parents.

I really enjoy all of Faye Kellerman's books, especially ones that follow Peter and Rina.

Love, love, love...

memories are hard, lack of memories harder...

This book, "The Memory Palace" by Mira Bartok was so, so good.  This a memoir, a wonderfully written, yet heartbreaking way for Mira to show her mother that in order to keep on loving her, she had to abandon her.

Mira and her sister both decided that in order to break away from their schizophrenic mother, they had to change their names and move away with no forwarding address.  Mira does keep a post office box where her mother writes letters and Mira keeps in contact when she can.

There is so much to love about this book.   Read it...and then tell me what you think!

another day, another book...

This last book, "Light From a Distant Star", by Mary McGarry Morris took me a bit longer to get through than others.  It isn't that I didn't like it, because I liked it just fine, but I was kind of bored by the story.

Nellie, the main character, is a 13-year-old girl who witnesses something, but doesn't quite realize exactly the depth of what she has seen, and in telling her parents she hopes to get to the bottom of it, but no one will listen to her or believe her.

There are characters in the story that to me have no relevance to story at all, like Bucky and Jessica, who just have more problems then Nellie, and maybe are there to show us that.

All in all, I probably would not recommend this book.

a little magic, maybe...

I just finished reading, "The Book of Tomorrow" by Cecelia Ahern.

The story revolves around a teenage girl named Tamara.  She and her mother are forced to leave their life of luxury after they find out her dad lost all their money and they move to the country to live with Tamara's aunt and uncle after her father commits suicide.  Her mother is in a kind of depression, not talking, and this leave Tamara on her own most of the time.

Tamara is given a locked diary.  She finds someone who unlocks it and she wakes up one morning to write in the diary but when she opens it, the diary already has an entry, dated for the next day.  Everything written there comes true and Tamara is forced to decide after each entry whether or not to change the course of her actions or let fate take over.

I liked the book, but it was not one of my favorites.

fun and easy...

I just finished reading, "Why My Third Husband Will be a Dog" by Lisa Scottoline.  It is a collection of small stories about the life of the author. There is lots of humor about her family...mother Mary, brother Frank and daughter Francesca, who also contributes with a few stories of her own as well.

Lisa talks about her love of her dogs, her two divorces, and other issues that will have you laughing out loud for sure!

If you want an easy, funny read, pick this up and read away...

wow, I mean, WOW!

This book, "Following Ezra," by Tom Fields-Meyer, was an amazing read.  It follows Tom and his son, Ezra, who at age three is diagnosed with autism.

They encounter a therapist who tells them they need to grieve for the child Ezra didn't turn out to be, which makes Tom angry, because the child Ezra is at the moment is an amazing little boy.  Tom never once gives in to what the therapist says and finds his own ways to get through to Ezra.  In fact, Tom does the exact opposite.

This is a must read for all parents.  It teaches us that every child is unique no matter what and as parents it is our job to find out what works.  

A mystery this time around...

I just finished reading, "Kill Alex Cross," by James Patterson.

I have read nearly everything by this author for many reasons.  I love a good mystery first of all and James Patterson is so easy to read and follow even if you have never read any of the books before.

This book is about the kidnapping of the children of the President of the United States
and the kidnapper doesn't want ransom of any kind.

Also in the midst of this a terrorist attacks Washington DC and we are led to believe there may be a connection between the attack on the nation's capital and the kidnapping of the president's children.

What follows is James Patterson at his best...keeping us guessing at every turn.  Alex Cross is a typical family man and relates well to the First Lady in the book parent to parent.

James Patterson = good read!

it's a ghost of a story

"The Night Strangers" by Chris Bohjalian is the book of the week.

I would say that my overall opinion of the book is a thumbs down.  I had a hard time getting into the ghost story part of the story as well as the herbalists who take over most of the storyline.

The main character, Chip, is a pilot who while flying a routine flight, has some geese fly into his engines and from there he must find a way to bring his plane to safety.  He lands in the water and a big wave causes the plane to somersault and 39 people die.

The aftermath of the crash and how Chip, his wife and his twin daughters deal with this horrible day is what follow in this book.

The next book for today is "Bonne", by Iris Johansen.  (This is the third book in the series.  The first two are "Eve" and "Quinn."  I read the first two as well, but that was before I started this blog, so I will just write about this third book).

Bonnie, who is the daughter of Eve, was kidnapped when she was 7 years old, and Eve had been searching for clues about who killed her and where her body is buried. Eve sees visions of Bonnie which cannot be explained, but Bonnie comes to her when she is sad or needs help.  This book follows Eve,  and her boyfriend Joe and fellow CIA agent Catherine as they follow clues to find Bonnie.

It was a very easy read, not the greatest book, but still enjoyable.

Love and War...

The book I just finished reading is "Next to Love", by Ellen Feldman.

The book follows three friends, Babe, Grace and Millie over a course of 20 years.  It starts as their men are going off to fight in World War II.  The book mostly deals with what happens after the war, and how they come to realize there is no life after war.

I like how the main focuses of the book are about friendship, marriage and parenthood and the choices that are made because of war and its casualties.