Wednesday, February 27, 2013

The Last Runaway

The Last Runaway
by Tracy Chevalier

Genre: Historical Fiction

Synopsis:  Honor Bright is a modest English Quaker with a broken heart. Emigrating to Ohio with her sister in the hope of making a new life, she soon discovers that 19th-century America hard, precarious place to live. Its people are practical and unsentimental, its climate challenging. Even its quilts are different from those she makes. Moreover, it is divided by slavery, legal in southern states and opposed by many northerners.

One day a runaway slave appears in the farmyard of Honor’s new family, and she must decide what to do. Even Quakers - famed for championing human equality - may hesitate to break the laws of the land. Drawn into the clandestine activities of the Underground Railroad, a network of people helping runaways escape to freedom, Honor befriends two surprising women who demonstrate what defiance can achieve. Eventually she must decide if she too can act on what she believes in, whatever the personal costs.
Review: I very much enjoyed this book.  The main character, Honor Bright, is a mixed up young Quaker who feels compelled to help runaway slaves even though her family does not condone the activity.  Honor has to do some soul searching and figure out who she is and what is willing to give up to help others.  The story portrays the simple life of the Quakers in the mid 1800s and the life in early settlements in Ohio. Some of the story is written in the form of letters written by Honor to her family and friend back in England.  These letters capture her feelings even better than the prose of the novel.  We really get to know Honor and her inner workings.  I did not like a few of the characters but I don't think the reader was supposed to like them. I gave this book 4 stars as opposed to 5 because there were parts of the story that seemed superfluous and there was a lack of action in parts of the book.  While it wasn't a slow read, there were parts that were slow.  Overall, this was a very pleasurable read and a story that I haven't read before.
Rating: 4 stars

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

The Light Between Oceans

The Light Between Oceans
M. L. Stedman

The Light Between Oceans

Genre: Fiction

Summary:  After four harrowing years on the Western Front, Tom Sherbourne returns to Australia and takes a job as the lighthouse keeper on Janus Rock, nearly half a day’s journey from the coast. To this isolated island, where the supply boat comes once a season and shore leaves are granted every other year at best, Tom brings a young, bold, and loving wife, Isabel. Years later, after two miscarriages and one stillbirth, the grieving Isabel hears a baby’s cries on the wind. A boat has washed up onshore carrying a dead man and a living baby.

Tom, whose records as a lighthouse keeper are meticulous and whose moral principles have withstood a horrific war, wants to report the man and infant immediately. But Isabel has taken the tiny baby to her breast. Against Tom’s judgment, they claim her as their own and name her Lucy. When she is two, Tom and Isabel return to the mainland and are reminded that there are other people in the world. Their choice has devastated one of them.

M. L. Stedman’s mesmerizing, beautifully written novel seduces us into accommodating Isabel’s decision to keep this “gift from God.” And we are swept into a story about extraordinarily compelling characters seeking to find their North Star in a world where there is no right answer, where justice for one person is another’s tragic loss.

The Light Between Oceans is exquisite and unforgettable, a deeply moving novel.


Review: This book was recommended to me as "the best book I've ever read!" by a member of my book club, so I think part of my problem was that my expectations were too high.  The story is well-written, and the descriptions of life, places, and lighthouse keeping were interesting and informative without being dry.  I sympathized with Tom throughout the novel, and while I understood the choice he made, I didn't think that it fit within his character.  While I expected to sympathize with  Isabel, as well, I found myself wondering whether she perhaps had a mental disorder.  I could not fathom how else she would have changed from a happy, whimsical girl to a woman unwilling to listen to reason, even considering the miscarriages she had experienced.  At the heart of this story, I believe, is the question of what it means to be a good mother, and I do not believe that anyone in this story acted in the best interests of the child.  Certainly we will have a lot to discuss in our book club!  

Rating: 4 stars (I thought it was well-written and raised lots of interesting questions, but I struggled to like it because I didn't like any of the characters.)

The Night Circus

The Night Circus
by Erin Morgenstern


Genre: Fantasy

SynopsisThe circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des RĂªves, and it is only open at night. 

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands. 

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus per­formers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead. 

Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.

From GoodReads
Review:  This book was amazing!  It captured my attention from the get go both the first and second time I read it.  I was drawn into the magic of the circus and the wonderfully written descriptions of the sights, sounds, and smells of the circus.  As you are reading, you can imagine yourself in a place like this circus!  Morgenstern does a great job of hinting of what is to come by writing out of sequence but giving the reader enough information that we don't get frustrated.  The story line is so different from any other book I've read.  The characters are highly likable (well maybe not one or two of them) and you can't help root for both Marco and Celia.  You want them both to win the competition.  This story is so magical and wondrous.  I'm sure I'll read it again someday and I don't often read books more than 2 times!

Rating: 5 stars

Monday, February 18, 2013

Save Me


Save Me
by Lisa Scottoline

Genre: Mystery

ReviewRose McKenna volunteers as a lunch mom in her daughter Melly’s school in order to keep an eye on Amanda, a mean girl who’s been bullying her daughter. Her fears come true when the bullying begins, sending Melly to the bathroom in tears. Just as Rose is about to follow after her daughter, a massive explosion goes off in the kitchen, sending the room into chaos. Rose finds herself faced with the horrifying decision of whether or not to run to the bathroom to rescue her daughter or usher Amanda to safety. She believes she has accomplished both, only to discover that Amanda, for an unknown reason, ran back into the school once out of Rose's sight. In an instance, Rose goes from hero to villain as the small community blames Amanda’s injuries on her. In the days that follow, Rose's life starts to fall to pieces, Amanda’s mother decides to sue, her marriage is put to the test, and worse, when her daughter returns to school, the bullying only intensifies. Rose must take matters into her own hands and get down to the truth of what really happened that fateful day in order to save herself, her marriage and her family.

In the way that Look Again had readers questioning everything they thought they knew about family, Save Me will have readers wondering just how far they would go to save the ones they love. Lisa Scottoline is writing about real issues that resonate with real women, and the results are emotional, heartbreaking and honest.

From GoodReads

Review: After reading Scottoline's Look Again, I was very keen on trying another one of her books.  Look  Again read very quickly and really drew me in and kept me reading.  This book was similar.  It really kept me reading but it made me so angry!  The mother, Rose, had to make a split second decision and I honestly think her decision was exactly what I would have chosen.  The community vilified her for her choice but I think in that situation, everyone would have made the same choice.  Rose was shunned and that was what made me so angry.  After a half of the book, the story line goes a different direction and doesn't focus on that anymore (which is a good thing as then it made me less angry).  However the story line becomes a little unbelievable.  While this book wasn't a bad book, it wasn't good either.  If you want a really quick read that is interesting, this would be a good book for you!

Rating: 2 1/2 stars

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

These Girls

These Girls
by Sarah Pekkanen

These Girls

Genre: Chick Lit

Review:  This was an easy to read, moderately interesting story about three friends living in New York City.  Two girls are involved in the magazine publishing industry, so of course the book touches on beauty, weight and glamor (three topics about which I am not very interested in reading).  The third girl ran away from a nanny job, for reasons which don't get explained until very late in the book.  I felt like the author was cramming too many issues in each girl's life to be believable; is it realistic for one girl to have to deal with discovering a long lost half-sister, parents possibly separating, weight insecurity, diet pills, illness, unrequited love, making new friends, and job competition all in one relatively short book?  The character development was hit-or-miss; Cate, especially, did not seem to have much of a personality, and her back story was uninteresting.  In addition, I didn't think the characters made choices that fit with their personalities; I just couldn't see Abby behaving in that way, or Cate making the decision she made at the end of the book.

Perhaps I am just growing out of chick lit books...

Rating: 3 stars

Friday, February 8, 2013

In Need of a Good Wife

In Need of a Good Wife
by Kelly O'Connor McNees


Genre: Historical Fiction

Synopsis: or Clara Bixby, brokering mail-order marriages is a golden opportunity—a chance to start again. If she can help New York women find husbands in a far-off Nebraska town, she can build a new life away from her own loss and grief. Her ambitions are shared by a quiet Bavarian immigrant named Elsa, who hopes to escape servitude and make the most of her remaining years. And by Rowena, a once-wealthy widow who jumps at the chance to marry a humble stranger and repay a heartbreaking debt.or Clara Bixby, brokering mail-order marriages is a golden opportunity—a chance to start again. If she can help New York women find husbands in a far-off Nebraska town, she can build a new life away from her own loss and grief. Her ambitions are shared by a quiet Bavarian immigrant named Elsa, who hopes to escape servitude and make the most of her remaining years. And by Rowena, a once-wealthy widow who jumps at the chance to marry a humble stranger and repay a heartbreaking debt.For Clara Bixby, brokering mail-order brides is a golden business opportunity—and a desperately needed chance to start again. If she can help New York women find husbands in a far-off Nebraska town, she can build an independent new life away from her own loss and grief.

Clara’s ambitions are shared by two other women, who are also willing to take any risk. Quiet immigrant Elsa hopes to escape her life of servitude and at last shape her own destiny. And Rowena, the willful, impoverished heiress, jumps at the chance to marry a humble stranger and repay a heartbreaking debt. All three struggle to find their true place in the world, leaving behind who they were in order to lay claim to the person they want to be. Along the way, each must face unexpected obstacles and dangerous choices, but they also help to forge a nation unlike any that came before.


Review: It's hard for me to figure out what to say about this book.  Was it a bad book?  No.  Was it an "oh my gosh" amazing book.  No.  It was a decent story but I kept waiting for more meat to the story.  There were times that characters did things but there wasn't enough back story.  While the story flowed well, it was disjointed somewhat.  I guess I'm trying to say that there wasn't enough character motivation built in to the story.  I liked the story.  I liked the way the author wrote for the most part.  It really kept me engaged and it was a fast read.  If you're interested in a quick, easy read that is historical fiction, then pick it up but I wouldn't rush out to get it.

Rating: 3 stars
But the journey west is a struggle and the new life that waits for them in Nebraska is far from what they expected. These travelers soon learn that they must leave their pasts behind in order to lay claim to the women they want to become.
But the journey west is a struggle and the new life that waits for them in Nebraska is far from what they expected. These travelers soon learn that they must leave their pasts behind in order to lay claim to the women they want to become.
or Clara Bixby, brokering mail-order marriages is a golden opportunity—a chance to start again. If she can help New York women find husbands in a far-off Nebraska town, she can build a new life away from her own loss and grief. Her ambitions are shared by a quiet Bavarian immigrant named Elsa, who hopes to escape servitude and make the most of her remaining years. And by Rowena, a once-wealthy widow who jumps at the chance to marry a humble stranger and repay a heartbreaking debt.
But the journey west is a struggle and the new life that waits for them in Nebraska is far from what they expected. These travelers soon learn that they must leave their pasts behind in order to lay claim to the women they want to become.

The Great Escape



The Great Escape
by Susan Elizabeth Philips

The Great Escape (Wynette, Texas, #7)

Genre: Romance

Review:  When I'm looking for a light, fun read, I frequently turn to Susan Elizabeth Phillips.  This is the seventh of her books to feature a character from the fictional town of Wynette, TX, but the story focuses on Lucy from First Lady, which is one of my favorite romance books.  I'm sorry to say, this book didn't live up to my expectations. I really wanted to like it, but there were so many things that bothered me:
  • Lucy's change from perfect first daughter to goth-skank was too unbelievable.  And while I could understand her need to get away and "find herself", the fact that she didn't let her parents know where she was was inexcusable.
  • The banter between the main characters was often rude and disrespectful, instead of funny and charming.
  • The main characters jumped into bed with each other without seeming to ever have a real conversation, or liking each other in any way.
  • Some of the secondary characters were seriously unlikable.  
  • How she got the guy in the end was too underhanded to fit her character (or maybe it just made me mad.)
If you want to read a good Susan Elizabeth Phillip's book, try Natural Born Charmer instead.

Rating: 2 stars

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

I Couldn't Love You More





I Couldn't Love You More
Jilliam Medoff


I Couldn't Love You More
Genre: Women's Fiction

Summary (from Goodreads):  Which child would you save? A decision no parent can even fathom. Eliot Gordon would do anything for her family. A 38-year-old working mother, she lives an ordinary but fulfilling life in suburban Atlanta with her partner, Grant Delaney, and their three daughters. The two older girls are actually Eliot's stepdaughters, a distinction she is reluctant to make as she valiantly attempts to maintain a safe, happy household . . . Then Finn Montgomery, Eliot's long-lost first love, appears, triggering a shocking chain of events that culminates in a split-second decision that will haunt her beloved family forever. How Eliot survives-and what she loses in the process-is a story that will resonate with anyone who has ever loved a child. With hilarious honesty, wrenching depth, and a knockout twist, I COULDN'T LOVE YOU MORE illuminates the unbreakable bonds of family and reveals the lengths we'll go to save each other, even as we can't save ourselves.

Review: This was a well-written, easy to read and yet thought-provoking book.  It's the story of a suburban mother caring for her daughter and two step-daughters, who makes the obviously bad choice of getting involved with her college love, resulting in a tragic accident.  While the first half of the book focused on relationships between sisters, mothers and daughters, long-lost loves and marriage, the second half dealt with redemption and forgiveness, and it was this part that I couldn't put down. 

It had some flaws in my mind; namely, the main character's tolerant relationship with her overly dramatic sister, her support of her boyfriend's ex-wife, and her crazy bad judgment in resurrecting a relationship with her old college boyfriend who had no redeeming qualities.  But these were overshadowed by the believability of the mother's thoughts and emotions.

This would make a good book club book; there would be a lot to discuss!

Rating: 3.5 stars

A Place in the Country


A Place in the Country
Elizabeth Adler

A Place in the Country

Genre: Women's Fiction

Summary (from Goodreads): Fifteen-year-old Issy, and a newly-single mother, Caroline Evans, are struggling to find their way alone, as well as together.  At thirty-eight, Caroline is coming to terms with this new life, even though she has little money and all the responsibility for the two of them.   When she decides to leave their well-off lives in Singapore (and her cheating husband and his long-time mistress and powerhouse),  she ends up living in an English village pub, cooking dinners to earn enough to get by on; meeting unexpectedly quirky people, and making friends.  But Issy still adores her father and secretly blames her mother for their change in life. When Caroline’s dream of restoring an old barn into a restaurant finally begins to come true, her chance at happiness hangs in the balance as whispers of murder and vengeance find their way to her.  When Issy, hovering in that limbo between girl and young woman, begins to make some dangerous choices, the stakes are raised even higher.  A PLACE IN THE COUNTRY is filled with emotions that every woman will recognize as Caroline and Issy make their way in the world and do battle with those who would wish to see them lose their chances to gain their hearts’ desires.  Love and hate, blame and responsibility, deception and trust all collide in this novel that is Elizabeth Adler at her page-turning best.

 Review:  I admit I chose this book because of the cover, with a photo of a girl walking on a rustic path in a beautiful garden full of hydrangeas (I'm a sucker for hydrangeas).  The description sound like something I would enjoy, too: a single mother of a teenage daughter moves to the English countryside to open her own restaurant.

I couldn't stand it!  The characters were trite and one-dimensional, and I didn't like the spoiled teenage daughter, the flirty, indecisive, weepy mother, or any of the other overly dramatic characters.  The storyline was stereotypical, yet unbelievable (the mother has three wealthy men in love with her, really?)  It was confusingly written from multiple points of view, with no concept of the time that was passing.  But most of all, I couldn't stand the author's use of either italics or quotes to accent certain words, which has to be grammatically incorrect as well as annoying.  For example, "...wondering how to put their new 'home' in order..."  or "....she hadn't really ever been a 'chef'...had she been 'a woman' first?  Or 'a wife'?"  It read like the book didn't have an editor.

Do NOT read this book.

Rating: 1 star


A Stolen Life

A Stolen Life
by Jaycee Dugard

Genre: Memoir

Synopsis: In the summer of June of 1991, I was a normal kid. I did normal things. I had friends and a mother that loved me. I was just like you. Until the day my life was stolen.
For eighteen years I was a prisoner. I was an object for someone to use and abuse. For eighteen years I was not allowed to speak my own name. I became a mother and was forced to be a sister. For eighteen years I survived an impossible situation.
On August 26, 2009, I took my name back. My name is Jaycee Lee Dugard. I don’t think of myself as a victim, I simply survived an intolerable situation. A Stolen Life is my story—in my own words, in my own way, exactly as I remember it.
From the publisher

Review: This book is heart wrenching as you read a true story of Jaycee Dugard while she retells her story of  living in captivity and abuse for 18 years.  Dugard starts out in the preface of saying that the book may jump around and have tangents but that is how she is.  That was my major problem with this book.  Dugard would write a chapter and then have a reflection piece which to me should be reflecting on what she just wrote.  That's not what happened!  She would reflect on something that didn't always have something to do with the current chapter.  I'll be honest that drove me nuts.  The writing style was also very poor but I equate that to the fact that she only went to school up to 5th grade due to being kidnapped.  The story did keep me reading and I was so intrigued by what kept her in captivity for so long.  I was astounded to find out how many times she went out as she got older and I can't even imagine the mental abuse she suffered that she didn't even try to seek help when she was out. Dugard writes very openly and honestly about her situation.

Rating: 3 1/2 stars (due to the writing quality)

Monday, February 4, 2013

Unwind

Unwind
by Neil Shusterman


Genre: Young Adult Fiction

SynopsisIn America after the Second Civil War, the Pro-Choice and Pro-Life armies came to an agreement: The Bill of Life states that human life may not be touched from the moment of conception until a child reaches the age of thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, a parent may choose to retroactively get rid of a child through a process called "unwinding." Unwinding ensures that the child's life doesn’t “technically” end by transplanting all the organs in the child's body to various recipients. Now a common and accepted practice in society, troublesome or unwanted teens are able to easily be unwound.
With breath-taking suspense, this book follows three teens who all become runaway Unwinds: Connor, a rebel whose parents have ordered his unwinding; Risa, a ward of the state who is to be unwound due to cost-cutting; and Lev, his parents' tenth child whose unwinding has been planned since birth as a religious tithing. As their paths intersect and lives hang in the balance, Shusterman examines serious moral issues in a way that will keep readers turning the pages to see if Connor, Risa, and Lev avoid meeting their untimely ends.

Review:  Huh, what can I say about this book?  To say that I am appalled and disturbed that our society could believe that unwinding (the process of taking apart a teenager because they are unwanted by their parents or society instead of having the procedure of abortion) is the right way to go is an understatement.  I woke up one morning after reading part of the book the night before and couldn't sleep anymore because I was so disturbed by the concept-to think that a parent could have their child unwound after living with them for 13-17 years is so preposterous. I know this book is fiction but it's still so hard to believe that the author came up with this idea!  I've read other dystopian society books-the Hunger Games trilogy and Divergent and Insurgent.  While they are all fiction, the other two series that I mentioned seem more believable.  While the hunger games is a horrible event, parents had their hands tied regarding the event.  An unwinding is completely preventable and I just can't wrap my mind around why anyone would sign their child up for that voluntarily.  With that being said, the book is well written (although to me read very juvenile-it is clearly a young adult fiction book) and keeps the reader engaged.  It was an interesting read but you must be prepared to be disturbed!

Rating: 3 1/2 stars

Sunday, February 3, 2013

The Lost Wife

The Lost Wife
by Alyson Richman

Genre: Historical Fiction

Synopsis: In pre-war Prague, the dreams of two young lovers are shattered when they are separated by the Nazi invasion. Then, decades later, thousands of miles away in New York, there's an inescapable glance of recognition between two strangers. Providence is giving Lenka and Josef one more chance. From the glamorous ease of life in Prague before the Occupation, to the horrors of Nazi Europe, The Lost Wife explores the power of first love, the resilience of the human spirit- and the strength of memory.

Review:  What a beautifully written book!  The story is so poignant and engaging.  It is a story about the Holocaust and Czechoslovakian Jews but it's more about the romance between Lenka and Josef and what happened to them while they were separated by an ocean during the war.  The story keeps you reading and you can't help but feel for the characters.  Richman does a great job with character development.  The only thing that disappointed me in this book was the ending.  I wanted to know more about what happened after Lenka and Josef met up when they were in their 80s but the author leaves us hanging.  I like closure in books and this one didn't go far enough for me.

Rating: 4 stars