Beyond the Checkered Flag

Author: J.D. Wylde
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: CreateSpace Publishing, 2013
Pages: 102
Rating: Do Not Recommend

Synopsis: Bobby Wayne Forsythe is a NASCAR superstar on the verge of greatness with the likes of The King and The Intimidator when an on-track accident leaves his career in jeopardy and his future uncertain. He returns to the home he owns with Lauren Foster-Forsythe, Wife Number 3. The only woman he's ever loved. And the only woman who has ever walked away from him - without a backward glance, leaving his heart broken. And a gaping hole in his soul that no other woman has been able to fill. And he's tried. A lot.

Lauren Foster-Forsythe is a country music sensation and the ex-wife of Bobby Wayne Forsythe. Theirs had been a whirlwind courtship; their marriage fairytale. Their life together perfect, until Bobby Wayne's deceit destroyed everything, leaving Laurent with bittersweet memories of what could have been. And a stately, centuries-old mansion on the shores of Albemarle Sound she still jointly owns with him. A home she needs to turn ownership over to him if she is to move forward. It's hard. It's the only home she's ever had.

With her career in chaos, her life in turmoil, Lauren returns to the stately house on the shore for one more visit. Instead of finding closure, she finds Bobby Wayne. Still hard-bodied, still white-hot sexy. Still able to make her heart race like no other man. Even when hope seems lost, buried in the rubble of bad choices and hasty decisions, sparks of attraction fly, tempers flare, but nothing revs like two hearts still deeply in love. Still wanting one more chance to cross the finish line a winner.

Review: I read The Journey by this author, and I'm still interested in reading more of her books, but the leading man in Beyond the Checkered Flag creeped me out. 

The book itself was sexy, but I couldn't get past the red flags that Bobby Wayne's character kept throwing.

Other Books by J.D. Wylde:
The Journey

Lessons in Chemistry

Author: Bonnie Garmus
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2022
Pages: 400
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing as an average woman. But it's early in the 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute takes a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans, the lonely, brilliant, Nobel-prize nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with - of all things - her mind. True chemistry results.

But like science, life is unpredictable. Which is why a few years later Elizabeth Zott finds herself not only a single mother, but the reluctant star of America's most beloved cooking show Supper at Six. Elizabeth's unusual approach to cooking ("combine one tablespoon acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride") proves revolutionary. But as her following grows, not everyone is happy. Because as it turns out, Elizabeth Zott isn't just teaching women to cook. She's daring them to change the status quo.

Review: This was a hot book in 2022, hitting the best sellers list, popping up in multiple reading/book club facebook pages, and Barnes and Noble named it their Best Book of the Year. I wholeheartedly agree. From page one I was hooked. My only negative critique is that I wish it had a better ending. It was flimsy given the way the rest of the book was so cleverly written. I still give it 5 stars.

I'm looking forward to the on-screen adaptation. This will be great as a mini-series.

The Journey

Author: J.D. Wylde
Genre: Fiction / Christmas
Publisher: Barnes & Noble Press, 2021
Pages: 128
Rating: Recommend 

Synopsis: There are some who are blessed to hear the Divine voice. Stephanie Holmes is one who does hear. Like a modern-day Job, she is a reluctant traveler who follows an extraordinary path during a freak snowstorm that leaves her and her fiance, Daryl, stranded in the mountains of East Tennessee. On Christmas Eve, no less!

Oh, and is it mentioned, she is eight months pregnant?

Daryl Robard knows these mountains. From one side of the vast wilderness to the other. He grew up here. Wants to come back home, to live his life here with Stephanie. And that life - that future he desires - starts now. He's certain he cna find them shelter from the storm.

But Stephanie is reluctant to trust him or God. This is more than just a journey home. It's a journey of faith.

For both of them.

Review: I really liked this novella. The synopsis likens Stephanie to Job, but I also saw Mary, Jesus' mother in her, and in this journey. Wonderful modern-day nod to the Christmas story. 

I'm looking forward by reading more books from this local author.

Other Books by J.D. Wylde:
Beyond the Checkered Flag

The Bean Trees

Author: Barbara Kingsolver
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Harper & Row, 1988
Pages: 232
Rating: Do Not Recommend

Synopsis: It is the charming, engrossing tale of rural Kentucky native Taylor Greer, who only wants to get away from her roots and avoid getting pregnant. She succeeds, but inherits a three-year-old Native American girl named Turtle along the way, and together, from Oklahoma to Arizona, half-Cherokee Taylor and her charge search for a new life in the West. Hers is a story about love and friendship, abandonment and belonging, and the discovery of surprising resources in seemingly empty places.

Review: Generally speaking, I don't love coming of age novels, but I see this one raved about in various book groups I'm in on social media. For a novel to stand the test of time like this, and be required reading in high school, I thought it must be worth reading.

It took me a second to realize very early on that at the heart of this novel are two women whose lives will eventually converge. 

One minor detail at the beginning of the novel, kind of threw the whole book off for me - a young woman is given a baby, just handed a baby one day and somehow everything works out. It felt unrealistic, even for a book set in the 1980s.

Christmas in Mustang Creek

Author: Linda Lael Miller
Genre: Fiction / Christmas
Publisher: Harlequin, 2021
Pages: 304
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Growing up in Mustang Creek, Wyoming, Charlotte Morgan couldn't wait to escape to the big city. But with a job she doesn't love and sense of loneliness she can't shake, life in New York is less fabulous than she'd like to admit - especially now that veterinarian Jaxon Locke has left town.

Jax's move to Idaho to fill in dad's practice ended things with Charlotte just as they were getting interesting. But he didn't expect to miss her so much. So when Charlotte returns home to help care for the great-aunt who raised her. Jax is determined to get to Wyoming and do whatever it takes to win her back...and he'll start to giving her the most magical Mustang Creek Christmas of all.

Review: This was a super cute, and quick novel to read for Christmas. I'd read more by this author. I finished it Christmas morning while the novel itself ends on Christmas Eve. That was fun.

Martita, I Remember You

Author: Sandra Ciscernos
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2021
Pages: 51 (combined English/Spanish is 128)
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: As a young woman, Corina leaves her Mexican family in Chicago to pursue her dream of becoming a writer in the cafes of Paris. Instead, she spends her brief time in the City of Light running out of money and lining up with other immigrants to call home from a broken pay phone. But the months of befriending artists in the metro, sleeping on crowded floors, and dancing the tango at underground parties are given a lasting glow by her intense friendships with Martita and Paola. Over the years the three women disperse to three continents, falling out of touch and out of mind - until a rediscovered letter brings Corina's days in Paris back with breathtaking immediacy.

Review: I was three books shy of my reading goal for the year, when I picked this thin book off the shelf at my library. I figured at 51 pages, I could get through it no matter what it was. I recognized the author because a decade ago I read another book by Ciscernos, The House on Mango Street, which I loved.

Told largely in letter format, this short novel was transportive, and it made me want to visit Paris. Now in my mid-forties the friendship, history, and years since these women first met was relatable. 

Once Upon a Christmas

Author: Lauraine Snelling / Lenora Worth

Genre: Fiction / Christmas
Publisher: Steeple Hill Books, 2010
Pages: 256
Rating: Do Not Recommend

Synopsis: The Most Wonderful Time of the Year - Romance blooms between Blythe Stensrude and Thane Davidson after their dogs tangle leashes in the park - until Thane becomes guardian to his three-year-old niece. Blythe doesn't think she's mother material, but how can she refuse Thane's request to give a neglected little girl the best Christmas ever?

"Twas the Week Before Christmas - Upon arrival at her grandmother's Louisiana plantation for the holidays socialite Elise Melancon is confronted with a shocking request - her grandmother wants her to "reform" a handsome young man so he can date another woman! Perhaps Elise will discover that life's greatest gifts don't always come in a box.

Review: This is two novellas in one - The Most Wonderful Time of the Year and 'Twas the Week Before Christmas. I don't know that I really loved either. I know my own life experiences play into my feelings about the relationship of the couple in The Most Wonderful Time of the Year. I was willing Blythe to walk away. 'Twas the Night Before Christmas was just too. . .something, improbable maybe. Furthermore, it felt really dated with undertones of societal class. It's also worth noting that I struggle with novellas and short stories because there isn't time for character or plot development. I should avoid these since I tend to judge them for what they actually are.

Home Sweet Christmas

Author: Susan Mallery
Genre: Fiction / Christmas
Publisher: Harlequin
Pages: 400
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Until Camryn Neff can return to her "real" life in Chicago, she's in Wishing Tree to care for her twin sisters. She's not looking for forever love, not here. But handsome hotelier Jake Crane is temptation she can't resist, so she suggests they pair up for the season. No golden rings, no broken hearts. At his side, she sees her hometown through Christmas-colored eyes. The cheer is cheerier, the joy more joyful. She thought she had put her future on hold. . .maybe her real life was here all along, waiting for her to come home.

New in town, River Best is charmed by Wishing Tree's homespun traditions and warmhearted people. When she's crowned Snow Queen, she's honored by wary. Dylan Tucker, her king, seems like the stuff of sugarplum dreams, but she can't shake the feeling that he's hiding something. As they perform "royal" duties - tasting cookies, lighting trees - Dylan's good humor and melty kisses draw her to the brink of love. But she can't let herself fall until she uncovers his secret, even if her lack of faith means losing him forever.

Review: This is the follow-up to The Christmas Wedding Guest, and I think I liked it even more than that one. I wish Dena and Reggie played bigger roles in this novel, but the new cast of characters make for fun reading on their own. Perfect seasonal choice.

Other Susan Mallery Novels:
The Friendship List
The Sister Effect
The Christmas Wedding Ring

Wishing Tree Series
The Christmas Wedding Guest
Home Sweet Christmas

Mischief Bay Novels
The Girls of Mischief Bay
The Friends We Keep
A Million Little Things

The Christmas Wedding Guest

Author: Susan Mallery
Genre: Fiction / Christmas
Publisher: Harlequin, 2021
Pages: 432
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: The Somerville Sisters believe in love, but they've lost their faith in will happen for them. Reggie hasn't been home since the end of the world's shortest engagement. When her parents decide to renew their vows, she buffs up her twinkle to help with the Christmas wedding. Unexpectedly, Toby, her first love is back too, and the spark between them shines as brightly as ever. In the spirit of the season, will they let go of past hurts and greet the new year together?

Done waiting for the one, Dena is pregnant and on her own - on purpose. But then a gorgeous, sad-eyed songwriter checks in to a room at her inn. Micah, unable to write since he lost his wife, finds inspiration in Dena's determination to be a mom. One snowflake-speckled kiss and he's a goner. But Dena is afraid to believe that a rockstar could fall for a cookie-cutter small-town girl like her.

As the Christmas wedding draws closer, these two sisters just might unwrap the most treasured gift of all - love.

Review: It's been a long time since I read a Susan Mallery book, but I enjoy this author. Super cute Christmastime novel despite some repetition. I'd love to see this novel as a Hallmark movie.

Other Susan Mallery Novels:
The Friendship List
The Sister Effect
The Christmas Wedding Ring

Wishing Tree Series
The Christmas Wedding Guest
Home Sweet Christmas

Mischief Bay Novels
The Girls of Mischief Bay
The Friends We Keep
A Million Little Things

Hester

Author: Laurie Lico Albanese
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2022
Pages: 336
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Isobel Gamble is a young seamstress carrying generations of secrets when she sets sail from Scotland in the early 1800s with her husband, Edward. An apothecary who has fallen under the spell of opium, his pile of debts have forced them to flee Glasgow for a fresh start in the New World. But only days after they've arrived in Salem, Edward abruptly joins a departing ship as a medic - leaving Isobel penniless and alone in a strange country, forced to make her own way by any means possible.

When she meets a young Nathaniel Hawthorne, the two are instantly drawn to each other: he is a man haunted by his ancestors who sent innocent women to the gallows - while she is an unusually gifted needleworker, troubled by her own strange talents. As the weeks pass and Edward's safe return grows increasingly unlikely, Nathaniel and Isobel grow closer and closer. Together, they are a muse and a dark storyteller; the enchanter and the enchanted. But which is which.

Review: I remember The Scarlet Letter being one of my favorite required reading books in high school, and this imagined back story was not only fun, but also not implausible.

First, let's talk about the cover. The cover artwork is stunning. The colors and detail are eyecatching, and illustrate the heart (core) of the novel beautifully.

Normally I am not a fan of including sex scenes in books set during this time period. It was a hidden side of the times, and including sex seems like a money grab, ie sex sells. However, how would one write a book about Hawthorne's inspiration for The Scarlet Letter, and his possible relationship to (with) her without sex? That is the entire basis for The Scarlet Letter. 

Underlying themes/events also drew me in - readers get a real sense of what New England was like when every aspect of daily lives and livelihoods revolved around ships and shipping industry. The atrocities of slavery and the early days of the Underground Railroad are also mentioned. 

This is a complex and encompassing novel. The author certainly packs a punch in 336 pages.

Weaving Sundown in a Scarlet Light

Author: Joy Harjo
Genre: Poetry
Publisher: Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc., 2022
Pages: 160
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Harjo selected her best poems from across fifty years, beginning with her early discoveries of her own voice and ending with moving reflections on our contemporary moment. Her poems are musical, intimate, political, and wise, intertwining ancestral memory and tribal histories with resilience and love.

Review: I haven't read poetry since college, but I was looking for books to celebrate Native American Heritage Month, and this seemed like a good option. It was the week of Thanksgiving and we had out-of-town guests visiting. I knew I wouldn't have a ton of time for reading so I decided to give poetry a try.

Since I don't read poetry, I feel underqualified to rate this, but I did like the notes the author included at the end for each poem. I didn't realize this information was available until I was almost finished with the collection. I would have preferred these notes either before or after each poem throughout the book, rather than at the end.

The Husband Hour

Author: Jamie Brenner
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Little, Brown, and Company, 2019
Pages: 384
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Lauren Adelman and her high school sweetheart, Rory Kincaid, are a golden couple. They marry just out of college as Rory, a star hockey player, earns a spot in the NHL. Their future could not look bright when Rory shocks everyone-Lauren most of all-by enlisting in the US Army. When Rory dies in combat, Lauren is left devastated, alone, and under unbearable public scrutiny.

Seeking peace and solitude, Lauren retreats to her family's old beach house on the Jersey Shore. But this summer she's forced to share the house with her overbearing mother and competitive sister. Worse, a stranger making a documentary about Rory tracks her down and persuades her to give him just an hour to talk about her husband. . .

One hour with filmmaker Matt Brio turns into a summer of revelations, surprises, and upheaval. As the days grow shorter and her grief changes shape, Lauren begins to understand the past-and to welcome the future.

Review: I hadn't planned on it being so long before I read another Jamie Brenner novel (I read Forever Summer in 2017). I like this author. Interesting story lines and relatable characters.

Other Jamie Brenner Novels:
Blush
Drawing Home
Gilt
Summer Longing
The Forever Summer

Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor

Author: Lisa Kleypas
Genre: Fictions
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2012
Pages: 224
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: One rain-slicked night, six year old Holly lost the only parent she knew, her beloved mother Victoria. And since that night, she has never spoken a word. 

The last thing Mark Nolan needs is a six-year-old girl in his life. But he soon realizes that he will do everything he can to make her life whole again. His sister's will give him the instructions: There's no other choice but you. Just start by loving her. The rest will follow.

Maggie Collins doesn't believe in love again, after losing her husband of one year. But she does believe in the magic of imagination. As the owner of a toy shop, she lives what she loves. And when she meets Holly Nolan, she sees a little girl in desperate need of a little magic.

Three lonely people. Three lives at the crossroads. Three people who are about to discover that Christmas is the time of year when anything is possible, and when wishes have a way of finding the path home. . . 

Review: Tis the Season. Who are we kidding? I read Christmas books all year long. This was cute. It's a movie on Hallmark, Christmas with Holly, but since I don't have that channel, I won't be able to watch it. 

I did look it up on youtube, and with the exception of Holly, the characters looked nothing like I had imagined so that's the end of that.

Heart Berries

Author: Terese Marie Mailhot
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Catapult, 2019
Pages: 160
Rating: Do Not Recommend

Synopsis: Having survived a profoundly dysfunctional upbringing only to find herself hospitalized and facing a dual diagnosis of post traumative stress disorder and bipolar II disorder, Terese Marie Mailhot is given a notebook and begins to write her way out of trauma. The triumphant result is Heart Berries, a memorial for Mailhot's mother, a social worker and activist who had a thing for prisoners; a story of reconciliation with her father - an abusive drunk and a brilliant artist - who was murdered under mysterious circumstances; and an elegy on how difficult it is to love someone while dragging the long shadows of shame.

Review: I did not care for the author's stream-of-consciousness writing style. I believe she has a story to tell, but this jumped around a lot and at times I didn't know who she was talking about, or what time of her life she was recounting. Disappointing, but it's a check mark on my read for Native American Heritage month.

The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells

Author: Andrew Sean Greer
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers, 2014
Pages: 304
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: After the death of her beloved twin brother and the abandonment of her long-time lover, Greta Wells undergoes electroshock therapy. Over the course of the treatment, Greta finds herself repeatedly sent to 1918, 1941, and back to the present. Whisked from the gas-lit streets and horse-drawn carriages of the West Village to a martini-fueled lunch at teh Oak Room, in these other worlds, Greta finds her brother alive and well - though fearfully masking his true personality. And her former lover is now her devoted husband...but will he be unfaithful to her in this life as well? Greta Wells is fascinated by her alter egos: in 1941, she is a devoted mother; in 1918, she is a bohemian adultress.

Review: This fun book is for fans of Oona Out of Order. I love time travel when it has a historical fiction slant. In fact, it felt like I was treated to three different historical fiction novels at one time. 

I enjoyed each of Greta's lives, and the lives of those who surround her in each time period. I love an author who can tie one person into multiple eras. 

This was a quick read, and if I wasn't a full-time working mom with 3 kids at home, I would have finished this faster than I did.

Summer at Firefly Beach

Author: Jenny Hale
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 2020    
Pages: 288
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Hallie Flynn's favorite place in the world is her Aunt Clara's beautiful beachside house, with its inviting wraparound porch and enchanting views across the sparkling turquoise ocean. For Hallie, going to Firefly Beach, filled with magical childhood memories, feels like coming home. But in one moment, Hallie's left brokenhearted when her adored Aunt Clara passes away.

In her last letter, Aunt Clara included the bucket list Hallie wrote when she was twelve yars old - and a final wish for Hallie to complete it. Stepping away from her dead-end job and predictable schedule, Hallie embraces Aunt Clara's words.

Spending the summer at Firefly Beach, Hallie begins to remember the things that matter most to her. Best of all, her childhood friend Ben Murray is there, supporting her every step of the way. But a run-in with wealthy Gavin Wilson, a newcoming to Firefly Beach, leaves her questioning her future and facing something buried deep in her heart.

Review: Why yes, I am hanging onto summer as long as I possibly can. This was a super cute beach read, totally predictable, and a wonderful escape. I'm looking forward to the other book in this two-book set. 

Tomorrow There Will Be Sun

Author: Dana Reinhardt
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group, 2020
Pages: 288
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Two families arrive in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, for a once-in-a-lifetime vacation. Jenna has organized the trip to celebrate her husband's fiftieth birthday - she's been looking forward to it for months. She's sure everything is going to be just perfect - and the margarita refills delivered by the house staff certainly don't hurt, either. What could go wrong?

Yet as the families settle into their vacation routines, their best friends, suddenly seem like annoying strangers, and even Jenna's reliable husband, Peter, is sharing clandestine phone calls with someone - but who? Jenna's teenage daughter, Clem, is spending an awful lot of time with Malcolm, whose questionable rep got him expelled from school. Jenna's dream of the ultimate celebration begins to crack and eventually crumbles completely, leaving her wondering whom she can trust, and whether her privileged life is about to be changed forever.

Review: This book opens with the character lounging poolside with a drink, and a hint of the drama to come. I was sold. This was just a fun, entertaining, escapist novel.

I'd be lying if I didn't also read this because the author's name is Dana :-)

Prairie Fires

Author: Caroline Fraser
Genre: Biography
Publisher: Picador, 2018
Pages: 656
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Millions of readers of Little House on the Prairie believe they know Laura Ingalls - the pioneer girl who survived blizzards and near-starvation on the Great Plains, and the woman who wrote the famous autobiographical books. But the true saga of her life has never been fully told. Now, drawing on unpublished manuscripts, letters, diaries, and land and financial records, Caroline Fraser - the editor of the Library of America edition of the Little House series - masterfully fills in the gaps in Wilder's biography. Revealing the grown-up story behind the most influential childhood epic of pioneer life, she also chronicles Wilder's tumultuous relationship with her journalist daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, setting the record straight regarding the charges of ghostwriting that have swirled around the books.

The Little House books, for all the hardships they describe, are paeans to the pioneer spirit, portraying it as triumphant against all odds. But Wilder's real life was harder and grittier than that, a story of relentless struggle, rootlessness, and poverty. It was only in her sixties, after losing nearly everything in the Great Depression, that she turned to children's books, recasting her hardscrabble childhood as a celebratory vision of homesteading - and achieving fame and fortune in the process, in one of the most astonishing rags-to-riches episodes in American letters.

Spanning nearly a century of epochal change, from the Indian Wars to the Dust Bowl, Wilder's dramatic life provides a unique perspective on American history and our national mythology of self-reliance. With fresh insights and new discoveries, Prairie Fires reveals the complex woman whose classic stories grip us to this day.

Review: This book is divided into three parts. The first part puts Laura's early life into historical context. It was excellent. The second part is a lot of information about Laura's daughter Rose, who in today's terms, was a hot mess. It was cumbersome, and didn't feel like the author ever really found her writing groove. The third part included more Rose than I found necessary, but she also returned to Laura and her legacy.

Had the second part been stricken from the book entirely, the reader would be no less informed and probably more satisfied overall.

As a fan of the Little House books and Laura in general, having been to several home sites, this was a must-read.

The Jetsetters

Author: Amanda Eyre Ward
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group, 2021
Pages: 384
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: When seventy-year-old Charlotte Perkins submits a sexy essay to Become a Jetsetter contest, she dreams of reuniting her estranged children: Lee, an almost-famous actress; Cord, a handsome Manhattan venture capitalist who can't seem to find a partner; and Regan, a harried mother who took it all wrong when Charlotte bought her a Weight Watchers gift certificate for her birthday. Charlotte yearns for the yeas when her children were young, when she was a single mother who meant everything to them.

When she wins the contest, the family packs their luggage - both literal and figurative - and spends ten days traveling from sun-drenched Athens through glorious Rome to tapas-laden Barcelona on an over-the-top cruise ship, the Splendido Marveloso. As lovers new and old join the adventure, long-buried secrets are revealed and old wounds are reopened, forcing the Perkins family to confront the forces that drove them apart and the defining choices of their lives.

Review: This book is everything this genre should be.

I have a rule to not read books that have less than a 4 star rating on Goodreads. Well, as they say, rules are made to be broken. I saw this book on a library shelf and loved the title and the cover. I brought it home and started reading. I loved it. Then I looked at Goodreads - 3.10 stars. Whaaa?

Maybe it's the right book at the right time. Maybe it's the right book based on my own life experiences. It doesn't matter. I couldn't put this book down.

Interestingly, it gets compared to The Nest, which I didn't like at all and for which I could find no redeeming qualities.

Looking for Leroy

Author: Melody Carlson
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group, 2022
Pages: 304
Rating: Recommend

Review: It's official: Brynna Phillips is done with men. They only break your heart. But just when she makes this declaration, her friend Jan convinces Brynna to join her on a camping vacation in Sonoma Wine Country. As they wind their way toward their destination, spanking-new mini camper in tow, Brynna recalls her teenage camp romance with a boy named Leroy. How can it have been nearly 30 years ago? All she remembers is that Leroy was a genuinely good guy and that his family owned a vineyard - in Sonoma. She doesn't even remember his last name. Jan insists they look for him, and the search begins.

Beyond the slim chance they'd ever be able to find him are questions that have haunted Brynna for decades, including What's the point of digging up the past? and Can Leroy every forgive me for losing touch?

Synopsis: I love Melody Carson for light, fun reads. Looking for Leroy was both and it fit the genre, but I wanted just a little bit more from it. For whatever reason I felt a removed from their romance, and I missed the sweet moments of Brynna and Leroy falling in love.

When Stone Wings Fly

Author: Karen Barnett
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Kregel Publications, 2022
Pages: 344
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Kieran Lucas' grandmother is slipping into dementia, and, when her memory is gone, Kieran's last tie to the family she barely knows will be lost forever. Worse, Granny Mac is being tormented by flashbacks of her mother's death and the loss of their home.

In 1931, Rose McCauley's Smoky Mountains home is threatened by the Tennessee Great Smoky's Park Commission as they create a new national park. But Rosie vows the only way they'll get her land is if they haul her out in a pine box. When a compromise offers her and her disabled sister the opportunity to stay for her lifetime, it seems too good to be true.

Ornithologist Benton Fuller arrives to conduct a bird survey for the park and the two form a tenuous bond. But their friendship broadens a rift between her and the other mountain folk who are suspicious of any government connections. Then the discovery of an illegal still in the woods near her cabin leads to a violent clash between sides that could destroy them all.

Eighty-five years later, Kieran heads back to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to find answers to great-grandmother's mysterious death and bring peace to Granny Mac before it's too late. Park Historian Zach Jensen may be the key to locating both answers and a precious family heirloom. But just as in the past, Kieran's needs clash with government regulations. Will Zach block her from recovering what she needs and solving this family mystery?

Review: I love Karen Barnett's Vintage National Park series, and was initially disappointed that she went in another direction with the Great Smokey Mountains National Park story. However, I enjoyed this novel, and surprisingly, enjoyed the present day story most. 

Vintage National Park Series
Book 1, The Road to Paradise
Book 2, Where the Fire Falls
Book 3, Ever Faithful

What So Proudly We Hailed

Author: Marc Leepson
Genre: Non-Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2014
Pages: 256
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: What So Proudly We Hailed is the first full length biography of Francis Scott Key in more than 75 years. In this fascinating look at early America, historian Marc Leepson explores the life and legacy of Francis Scott Key. Standing alongside Betsy Ross, Thomas Paine, Patrick Henry, Paul Revere, and John Hancock in history, Key made his mark as an American icon by one single and unforgettable act, writing The Star-Spangled Banner. 

Review: My husband and I are history buffs and one of the places we wanted to visit was Fort McHenry. I knew Francis Scott Key wrote the Star-Spangled Banner during the Battle of Baltimore in 1814, but I went looking for more information about him. He seemed like one of those "forgotten" historical figures.

What So Proudly We Hailed answered all of my questions and was readable, not dry like some biographies can be. 

We made it to Fort McHenry before I finished reading the book, but knowing something about Key made visiting the fort even more interesting. Finishing the book after visiting brought the pages to life even more.

If I have one complaint or issue with the book it's that the author, like so many others in 2022, view 19th century America through a modern-day lens.

The Beach Trap

Author: Ali Brady
Genre: Chick Lit
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group, 2022
Pages: 384
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: When twelve-year-olds Kate Steiner and Blake O'Neill meet at Camp Chickawah, they have an instant connection. But everything falls apart when they learn they're not just best friends - they're also half sisters. Confused and betrayed, the girls break off all contact.

Fifteen years later, when their father dies suddenly, Kat and Blake discover he's left them a joint inheritance: the family beach house in Destin, Florida. The two sisters are immediately at odds. Blake, who has recently been demoted from regular nanny to dog nanny, wants to sell the house, while social media influencer Kat is desperate to hold on to the place where she lived so many happy memories. 

Kat and Blake reluctantly join forces to renovate the dilapidated house, with the understanding that Kat will buy Blake out at the end of the summer. The women clash as Blake's renovation plans conflict with Kat's creative vision; meanwhile, each sister find herself drawn into a summer romance. As the weeks pass, the two women realize the most difficult project they face this summer will be coming to grips with their shared past - and learning how to become sisters.

Review: I picked this book up on the day between a week-long Florida vacation and the day I returned to work. It was a perfect way to continue the vacation high. A little bit Parent Trap and a little bit HGTV reno show, it was a fun read (and bonus, set in Florida).

Love Finds You in Paradise, Pennsylvania

Author: Loree Lough
Genre: Christian Fiction
Publisher: Summerside Press, 2009
Pages: 320
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: For as long as anyone can remember, tourists have flocked to the quaint town of Paradise, Pennsylvania, where Amish buggies are as common as shops selling handcrafted goods. But to attorney Julia Spencer this town is anything but a paradise. Raised in foster homes, Julia has succeeded in life only through steely determination and independence. The close-knit Amish people are a mystery to her, but local veterinarian Simon Thomas knows them well and is fiercely protective of their simple ways, which are increasingly threatened by the outside world. When Julia agrees to defend a local teenager charged in a case involving an Amish boy, she and Simon find themselves on opposite sides of an intense and emotional legal battle. Just when it seems they will never understand one another, God has something to teach them both about the power of forgiveness. . .and the joys to be found in Paradise.

Review: The prompt in one of my book clubs for August is, "read a book set in your home state." My home home state is Pennsylvania, and between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, we have Amish country. There are a ton of novels set in this locale. I haven't read one in years so I decided to travel down this path to keep the challenge reading light and fun.

The ending is obvious before you even begin reading, but the journey is fun. I enjoyed the novel for what it was, but at times I was thinking, "enough already." There is a lot of filler text and unimportant dialogue (both spoken and mental). It's typical for this genre, which I think is perfect for summertime reading. 

There are other books in the "Love Finds You" series, and I'm looking forward to reading them in between novel with heavier or more intense themes - my palate cleansers so to speak.

Love Finds You in Poetry, Texas

Author: Janice Hanna    
Genre: Christian Fiction    
Publisher: Summerside Press, 2009
Pages: 310
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Belinda Bauer in her ivory tower. . .In the German community of Poetry, Texas, Belinda spies and opportunity. The tiny town is filled with loggers and railroad men in need of wives, so she sets herself up as a marriage broker. She writes little poems to be printed in newspapers all over the country and one by one, women begin to arrive in Poetry. There's only one problem: Belinda doesn't have a clue what she's doing and all the brides marry the wrong men! One client is particularly unhappy. Georg Kaufman, the local barber, has lost more than one prospective wife to Belinda's fumbled attempts. For some reason, she can't seem to find Georg's "perfect match," though it's not for lack of trying. Is there a poetic ending in store for Georg and for Belinda herself?

Review: Cute, fluffy, easy-reading. I enjoyed the Texas story, and I can't resist mail-order bride books. This was a perfect, summertime reading book.

Comfort Me with Apples

Author: Catherynn M. Valente
Genre: Science Fiction / Fantasy
Publisher: Tom Doherty Associates, 2021
Pages: 112
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Sophia was made for him. Her perfect husband. She can feel it in her bones. He is perfect. Their home together in Arcadia Gardens is perfect. Everything is perfect.

It's just that he's away so much. So often. He works so hard. She misses him. And he misses her. He says he does, so it must be true. He is the perfect husband and everything is perfect.

But sometimes Sophia wonders about things. Strange things. Dark things. The look on her husband's face when he comes back from a long business trip. The questions he will not answer. The locked basement she is never allowed to enter. And whenever she asks the neighbors, they can't quite meet her gaze. . .

But everything is perfect. Isn't it?

Review: I was following, thinking I was figuring it out, and then nope. I was on the right track though. I thought this book was great. Saying much more than that enters spoiler territory.

The Hotel Nantucket

Author: Elin Hilderbrand
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company, 2022
Pages: 416
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Fresh of a bad breakup with a longtime boyfriend, Nantucket sweetheart Lizbet Keaton is desperately seeking a second act. When she's named the new general manager of the Hotel Nantucket, a once Gilded Age gem turned abandoned eyesore, she hopes that her local expertise and charismatic staff can win the favor of their new London billionaire owner, Xaviar Darling, as well as that of Shelly Carpenter, the wildly popular Instagram tastemaker who can help put them back on the map. And while the Hotel Nantucket appears to be a blissful paradise, complete with a celebrity chef-fun restaurant and an idyllic wellness center, there's a lot of drama behind closed doors. The staff (and guests) have complicated pasts, and the hotel can't seem to overcome the bad reputation it earned in 1922 when a tragic file killed nineteen-year-old chambermaid Grace Hadley. With Grace gleefully haunting the halls, a staff harboring all kinds of secrets, and Lizbet's own romantic uncertainty, is the Hotel Nantucket destined for success or doom?

Review: The Hotel Nantucket is classic Elin. It's over-the-top in her signature way, and I loved every second. I tried to read slowly to savor and make it last longer with minimal success. The perfect summer beach read (even though there's no beach in sight from my patio which is where I read most of this).

This is exactly what I expect from Elin Hilderbrand, an entertaining escape.

Other Elin Hilderbrand Novels:
The Five-Star Weekend
Summer of '69
The Blue Bistro
Golden Girl
The Island
The Castaways

The Winter Street Series
Winter Street
Winter Stroll
Winter Storms
Winter Solstice

The Winter in Paradise Trilogy
Winter in Paradise
What Happens in Paradise
Troubles in Paradise

The Summer of Lost and Found

Author: Mary Alice Monroe
Genre: Southern Fiction 
Publisher: Gallery Books, 2022
Pages: 368
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: The coming of spring usually means renewal, but for Linnea Rutledge, this spring is only bringing challenges. Linnea faces a layoff from the aquarium she adores, and her family's finances, emotions, and health teeter on the brink. To complicate matters, her new love interest, Gordon, struggles to return to the Isle of Palms from England. Meanwhile, her old flame, John, turns up from California and is quarantining next door. She tries to ignore him, but when he sends her plaintive notes in the form of paper airplanes, old sparks ignite. When Gordon at last reaches the island, Linnea wonders - is it possible to love two men at the same time.

Love in the time of COVID-19 proves difficult, at times humorous, and ever changing. Relationships are redefined, friendships made and broke, and marriages tested. As the weeks turn to months, and another sea turtle season comes to a close, Linnea learns there are more meaningful lessons during this summer than opportunities lost: that summer is a time of wonder, and that the exotic lives in our own backyards.

Review: I wasn't sure I was ready to read a book set during the COVID-19 pandemic. Having just lived through it, and now living through the repercussions of decisions made by the government during that time, it is still really raw.

I enjoyed this novel. It is worth noting that this is the 7th book in the The Beach House series, a fact that isn't noted anywhere on the book itself. That was frustrating, but it makes sense. I found the introduction of characters in the first chapter to be rushed and confusing.

If I have one criticism it's that the departure of one beau was just too simple and convenient. It suits this subgenre though so it's not reason enough to not read the book.

I requested Book 1, The Beach House, from the library.

Such a Fun Age

Author: Kiley Reid
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2019
Pages: 336
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Alix Chamberlain is a woman who gets what she wants and has made a living, with her confidence-driven brand, showing other women how to do the same. So she is shocked when her babysitter, Emira Tucker, is confronted while watching Chamberlains' toddler one night, walking the aisles of their local high-end supermarket. The store's security guard, seeing a young black woman out late with a white child, accuses Emira of kidnapping two-year-old Briar. A small crowd gathers, a bystander films everything, and Emira is furious and humiliated. Alix resolves to make things right.

But Emira herself is aimless, broke, and wary of Alix's desire to help. At twenty-five, she is about to lose her health insurance and has no idea what to do with her life. When the video of Emira unearths someone from Alix's past, both women find themselves on a crash course that will upend everything they think they know about themselves and each other.

Review: I've seen this book mentioned a lot in my online reading clubs/pages, and surprised to see it was published in 2019. How did I not hear of this sooner. I loved this book because the characters felt real to me, and people I felt like could know in my own life. The ending was especially satisfying.

Fly Girl

Author: Ann Hood
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Norton, W. W. & Company Inc., 2022
Pages: 288
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: In 1978, in the tailwind of the golden age of air travel, flight attendants were the epitome of glamor and sophistication. Fresh out of a college and hungry to experience the world - and maybe, one day, write about it - Ann Hood joined their ranks. After a grueling job search, Hood survived TWA's rigorous Breech Training Academy and learned to evacuate seven kinds of aircraft, deliver a baby, mix proper cocktails, administer oxygen, and stay calm no matter what the situation.

In the air, Hood found both the adventure she'd dreamt of and the unexpected realities of life on the job. She carved chateaubriand in the first-class cabin and dined in front of the pyramids in Cairo, fended off passengers' advances and found romance on layovers in London and Lisbon, and walked more than a million miles in high heels. She flew through the start of deregulation, an oil crisis, massive furloughs, and a labor strike.

As the airline industry changed around her, Hood began to write - even drafting snatches of her first novel from the jump-seat. She reveals how the job empowered her, despite its roots in sexist standards.

Review: Fly Girl is a contender for my favorite book of the year. Written by a former flight attendant, I related so well to this book.

When I was little, and sometimes even now, I look up a plane and wonder where it came from and where it's going (although the Flight Radar app answers those burning questions). Even before I took my very first flight as a senior in high school I thought that being a flight attendant would be glamorous and exciting. I would still love to travel the world, and I still like to fly.

Well-written, entertaining, informative, and fun. In a way I feel like this book was written just for me. Loved it.

The Lady and the Mountain Man

Author: Misty Beller
Genre: Christian / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Misty M. Beller Books, Inc., 2014
Pages: 288
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Leah Townsend, a recently orphaned heiress, flees Richmond after discovering her fiance's plot to kill her after their wedding. She needs a safe place to hide, and finds herself accepting a newspaper marriage proposal from a God-fearing young rancher in the Montana Territory. But when Leah arrives at the mountain ranch, she learns her intended husband was killed by a grizzly, leaving behind a bitter older brother and a spunky younger sister.

When Gideon Bryant finds a city girl standing in his log cabin, his first thought is to send her back where she came from. He's lost too many people to the wild elements of these mountains - his parents, his wife, and how his brother. his love for this untamed land lives on, but he's determined not to open his heart to another person.

When when an accident forces Leah to stay at the ranch for seven more months, can Gideon protect his heart from a love he doesn't want? Has Leah really escaped the men who seek her life?

Review: Really fun read for this genre. Lots of adventure and romance. Thoroughly enjoyed.

The Palace Papers

Author: Tina Brown
Genre: Non-Fiction
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group, 2022
Pages: 592
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: "Never again" became Queen Elizabeth II's mantra shortly after Princess Diana's tragic death. More specifically, there could never be "another Diana" - a member of the family whose global popularity upstaged, outshone, and posed an existential threat to the British monarchy.

Picking up where Tina Brown's masterful The Diana Chronicles left off, The Palace Papers reveals how the royal family reinvented itself after the traumatic years when Diana's blazing celebrity ripped through the House of Windsor like a comet.

Brown takes readers on a tour de force journey through the scandals, love affairs, power plays, and betrayals that have buffeted the monarchy over the last twenty-five years. We see the Queen's stoic resolve after the passing of Princess Margaret, the Queen Mother, and Prince Philip, her partner for seven decades, and how she triumphs in her Jubilee years even as family troubles rage around her. Brown explores Prince Charles' determination to make Camilla Parker Bowles his wife, the tension between William and Harry on "different paths," the ascendance of Kate Middleton, the downfall of Prince Andrew, and Harry and Meghan's stunning decision to step back as senior royals. Despite the fragile monarchy's best efforts, "never again" seems fast approaching.

Review: I had eye surgery last week so I have to listen to audio books right now. I took full advantage and chose a long book that would likely take me weeks to read in hard copy. 

This book was so good on audio, although I imagine some parts would drag in print. 

Brown is a royal family expert and I thoroughly enjoyed this comprehensive look at Queen Elizabeth, nearly her jubilee, Camilla, Kate,  Meghan, and other royals.

The Turn of the Key

Author: Ruth Ware
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press, 2020
Pages: 384
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: When she stumbles across the ad, she's looking for something else completely. But it seems like too good an opportunity to miss - a live-in nannying post, with a staggeringly generous salary. And when Rowan Caine arrives at Heatherbrae House, she's smitten - by the luxurious "smart" home fitted out with all modern conveniences, by the beautiful Scottish Highlands, and by this picture-perfect family.

What she doesn't know is that she's stepping into a nightmare - one that will end with a child dead and herself in prison awaiting trial for murder.

Writing to her lawyer from prison, she struggles to explain the events that led to her incarceration. It wasn't just the constant surveillance from the home's cameras, or the malfunctioning technology that woke the household with booming music, or turn the light off at the worst possible time. It wasn't just the girls, who turned out to be a far cry from the immaculately behaved model children she met at her interview. It wasn't even the way she was left alone for weeks at a time, with no adults around apart from the enigmatic handyman.

It was everything.

She knows she's made mistakes. She admits that she lied to obtain the post, and that her behavior toward the children wasn't always ideal. She's not innocent by any means. But, she maintains, she's not guilty - at least not of murder - but somebody is.

Review: I struggle getting into the print versions of Ruth Ware novels, but Imogen Church brings Ware's stories to life with her reading/narration of the audio versions. I found this book to be so entertaining and sometimes creepy. The end was strange with unanswered questions, but still a satisfying novel.

Ruth Ware Novels
The Death of Mrs. Westaway
The It Girl
The Lying Game - review coming soon
The Woman in Cabin 10

Then She Was Gone

Author: Lisa Jewell
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Dreamscape Audio, 2018
Pages: 384
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Fifteen-year-old Ellie Mack was the perfect daughter. She was beloved by her parents, friends, and teachers. She and her boyfriend made a teenaged golden couple. She was days away from an idyllic summer vacation with her whole life ahead of her. And then she was gone. Now, her mother Laurel Mack is trying to put her life back together. It's been ten years since her daughter disappeared, seven years since her marriage ended, and only months since the last clue in Ellie's case was unearthed. So when she meets an unexpectedly charming man in a cafe, she is surprised at how quickly her flirtation develops into something deeper. Before she knows it, she's meeting Floyd's daughters-and his youngest, Poppy, takes her breath away. Looking at her is like looking at Ellie. And now, the unanswered questio
ns she has tried so hard to put to rest haunt her anew. . .as well as some new ones about Floyd and Poppy. . .

Review: I had cataract surgery on Monday, but didn't want to give up reading for the weeks in between surgery on the first eye and surgery on the second. I chose this book because it was free on Audible.

I was reading reviews on Goodreads and it seems like quite a few readers had figured out the connection. I did as well, but it didn't seem as obvious to me as it seems to have been for others.

This was a little farfetched, but it was interesting too if you can get past some of the improbabilities. If the goal is entertainment, this is a winner.

A Fire Sparkling

Author: Julianne MacLean
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Amazon Publishing, 2019
Pages: 432
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: After a crushing betrayal by the man she loves, Gillian Gibbons flees to her family home for a much-needed escape,but when she finds and old photograph of her grandmother in the arms of a Nazi officer, Gillian's life gets even more complicated. Rattled by the discovery, Gillian attempts to unravel the truth behind the photos, setting her off on an epic journey through the past.

1939. England is on the brink of war as Vivian Hughes falls in love with a handsome British official, but when bombs begin to fall and Vivian's happy life is destroyed in the blitz, she will do whatever it takes to protect those she loves. . .

As Gillian learns more about her grandmother's past, the old photo begins to make more sense. But for every question answered, a new one takes its place. Faced with a truth that is not at all what she expected, Gillian attempts to shine a light not only on the mysteries of her family's past but also on her own future.

Review: There was something about this book the drew me in immediately. I latched onto the story and didn't let go. I had sworn off World War II novels for awhile because it was starting to feel like that if you read one, you read them all. This was different.

I also felt the dual timeline worked for this novel. I still say it's an overdone literary device, but this author made it work.

I fall short of giving this a highly recommend rating simply because some parts were predictable, and it was light on historical fact. Yes the events in the novel actually happened, but that's where the "historical" ends. This is primarily a novel of fiction. Still a good read.