Sunday, February 26, 2017

Weekly Book Haul...February 26, 2017





Stacking the Shelves is a weekly book meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews, The Sunday Post is another great site hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer.  The Sunday Salon is a Facebook page where great readers share what they've read this week and Mailbox Monday is a weekly roundup of the new books people have received.


I had a great week.  Work is beyond busy, I'm completely overloaded all day, every day.  And in order to keep my sanity, I've been scheduling my reading time at night, and leaving my cell phone in another room - so I can hear the ring, but don't keep looking at my email.

I finished Fannie Flagg's The Whole Town is Talking, and I actually really enjoyed it.  Her books are the equivalent of tomato soup and grilled cheese on a cold, cloudy day.  They are just warm and comforting.

I got some really great additions to my bookshelf this week, I'm super excited of the new Taylor Jenkins Reid and Shari Low, they are two of my favorite authors.

The Promise Girls by Marie Bostwick....Every child prodigy grows up
eventually. For the Promise sisters, escaping their mother’s narcissism and the notoriety that came with her bestselling book hasn’t been easy. Minerva Promise claimed that her three “test tube” daughters—gifted pianist Joanie, artistic Meg, and storyteller Avery—were engineered and molded to be geniuses. In adulthood, their modest lives fall far short of her grand ambitions. But now, twenty years after the book’s release, she hopes to redeem herself by taking part in a new documentary.

Meg, who hasn’t picked up a paintbrush in years, adamantly refuses to participate, until a car accident leaves her with crushing medical bills. While she recuperates in Seattle, the three sisters reluctantly meet with filmmaker Hal Seeger, another former prodigy. Like them, he’s familiar with the weight of failed potential. But as he digs deeper, he uncovers secrets they’ve hidden from each other—and a revelation that will challenge their beliefs, even as it spurs them to forge their own extraordinary lives at last.

The Mutual Admiration Society by Lesley Kagen....FACT: Unbeknownst to
eleven-year-old Theresa “Tessie” Finley, she’s in over her head.

PROOF: After hearing a scream and catching a glimpse of a mysterious man carrying a body beneath the flickering streetlights in the cemetery behind her house, Tessie adds solving a murder case to her already quite full to-do list.
Tessie has elected herself president of the crime-stopping Mutual Admiration Society—as if dealing with her “sad madness” over the tragic drowning of her beloved father; showering tender loving care on her “sweet but weird” younger sister, Birdie; and staying on the good side of their hard-edged mother weren’t enough. With partner in crime Charlie “Cue Ball” Garfield, Tessie and Birdie will need to dodge the gossips in their 1950s blue-collar neighborhood—particularly their evil next-door neighbor, Gert Klement, who’d like nothing better than to send the sisters to “homes.” And, of course, there’s the problem of steering clear of the kidnapping murderer if they have any hope of solving the mystery of all mysteries: the mystery of life.
A rich and charming tour de force, The Mutual Admiration Society showcases Lesley Kagen’s marvelous storytelling talents. Laced with heartwarming humor and heartbreaking grief, this novel is nothing short of magical.

The Luster of Lost Things by Sophie Chen Keller.....There’s only one place
in the world that lonely twelve-year-old Walter Lavender Jr. feels at home: The Lavenders, his mother’s unusual West Village dessert shop, where meringues scud through displays like clouds, marzipan dragons breathe actual fire, and the airy angel food cake can make customers pounds lighter.

When the mysterious and magical Book at the heart of the shop vanishes and a landlord threatens closure, it’s up to Walter to find the Book and save the shop. Despite—or because of—a communication disorder that renders him speechless and friendless, Walter has a special ability to find lost things. In fact, the only thing he’s failed to find is his father, a pilot lost in a presumed plane crash at sea before Walter was born.

Accompanied by Milton, his best friend and overweight golden retriever, Walter’s quest will take him around and under New York City, into subway tunnels and soaring over Central Park, from bottle collecting in Chinatown to racing through the Met, and introduce him to the extraordinary and forgotten people of this fantastical city. Along the way he will discover his voice and learn what it means to truly be found.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid....Aging and
reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one in the journalism community is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?


Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband, David, has left her, and her career has stagnated. Regardless of why Evelyn has chosen her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.

Summoned to Evelyn’s Upper East Side apartment, Monique listens as Evelyn unfurls her story: from making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the late 80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way. As Evelyn’s life unfolds—revealing a ruthless ambition, an unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love—Monique begins to feel a very a real connection to the actress. But as Evelyn’s story catches up with the present, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.

Written with Reid’s signature talent for “creating complex, likable characters” (Real Simple), this is a fascinating journey through the splendor of Old Hollywood into the harsh realities of the present day as two women struggle with what it means—and what it takes—to face the truth.

Anne Boleyn, A King's Obsession by Alison Weir.....Born into a noble
English family, Anne is barely a teenager when she is sent from her family’s Hever Castle to serve at the royal court of the Netherlands. Yet what seems a strategic move on the part of her opportunistic father is actually a chance for the girl to grow and discover herself. There, and later in France, Anne thrives, preferring to absorb the works of progressive writers rather than participate in courtly flirtations. She also begins to understand the inequalities and indignities suffered by her gender.


Anne isn’t completely inured to the longings of the heart, but her powerful family has ambitious plans for her future that override any wishes of her own. When the King of England himself, Henry VIII, asks Anne to be his mistress, she spurns his advances—reminding him that he is a married man who has already conducted an affair with her sister, Mary. Anne’s rejection only intensifies Henry’s pursuit, but in the absence of a male heir—and given an aging Queen Katherine—the opportunity to elevate and protect the Boleyn family, and to exact vengeance on her envious detractors, is too tempting for Anne to resist, even as it proves to be her undoing. 
     
While history tells of how Anne Boleyn died, this compelling new novel shows just how she lived.

A Life Without You by Shari Low....Dee and Jen have been best friends since
their days of teenage crushes, bad 90's make-up and huge hair. 

They’ve passed every milestone of their lives together and now in their thirties own a successful boutique, sharing a bond that is as strong as the closest of sisters.
Until one day everything changes. 
Dee is gone, killed by a reckless driver, leaving Jen to face the harsh reality of a world without her. 
Jen vows to honour Dee’s dreams and take care of everything and everyone she loved. Until she realises that sometimes the only way forward is to let go of the past.




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Friday, February 24, 2017

After the Fall by Julie Cohen




What They Say....From the author who brought you Dear Thing, Julie Cohen, comes After the Fall--a poignant, beautifully heartbreaking novel about what it means to be family, the ties that bind us, and the secrets that threaten to tear us apart.


When an unfortunate accident forces Honor back into the lives of her widowed daughter-in-law, Jo, and her only granddaughter, Lydia, she cannot wait to be well enough to get back to her own home. However, the longer she stays with Jo and Lydia, the more they start to feel like a real family. But each of the three women is keeping secrets from the others that threaten to destroy the lives they’ve come to know. 
Honor’s secret threatens to rob her of the independence she’s guarded ferociously for eighty years.
Jo’s secret could destroy the “normal” family life she’s fought so hard to build and maintain.
Lydia’s secret could bring her love—or the loss of everything that matters most to her.
One summer’s day, grandmother, mother and daughter’s secrets will be forced out in the open in a single dramatic moment that leaves them all asking: is there such a thing as second chances?


What I Say..... I loved Dear Thing by Julie Cohen, so I was excited to get an ARC of her newest book.  And I was definitely not disappointed.

Jo's recently divorced - her husband took up with their nanny.  Even though this is a pretty awful thing to do,  Jo keeps bowing and scraping to him and acting like he's not a total pig.

When her first husband's mother, Honor, takes a nasty fall, it's impossible for her to return home.  She is not close to Jo (or anyone for that matter), and actually isn't even very nice to Jo, but true to her subservient nature, Jo brings her home to recuperate at her house.  

The timing couldn't be worse, as Jo's daughter, Lydia is struggling with her realization that she is gay, and in love with her best friend.

Jo has a secret affair with one of Lydia's teachers, who is also their neighbor.

And they are all skirting around the issue of Jo's first husband, Lydia's father and Honor's son, and their relationships with him an his untimely death. 

They are all circling each other, each trying to hide their own secrets.  But as they begin learning to talk to each other, they find that the family they are making is more than enough.

I love the characters that Julie Cohen creates, they are flawed, human and you end of caring about every one of them.....except for the nanny and the ex!








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Tuesday, February 21, 2017

A Death at the Yoga Cafe by Michelle Kelly



Hardcover272 pages
Published January 31st 2017 by Minotaur Books


What They Say.....Keeley Carpenter has found her center. After returning to Befrey, the traditional English village she called home ten years ago, she’s opened her dream yoga café, which doubles as both a yoga studio and a delicious vegetarian café. Even better, Keeley is dating handsome Detective Ben Taylor, and things are beginning to look serious.

Too bad things never seem to run smoothly for long. Eager to get involved with the local community, Keeley sets up a booth at the annual Belfrey Arts Festival, along with her nemesis, fellow small business owner Raquel. Preparing herself to play nice, she’s shocked when Raquel’s boyfriend, Town Mayor Gerald, is found dead after a public spat. Despite Ben’s strict warnings to stay out of it, Keeley isn’t going to let an innocent woman take the blame for the murder—even if it is glamorous, spoiled Raquel.

Now Keeley must balance a precarious murder investigation with the demands of her growing business and now-strained relationship. But when the killer takes a personal interest in Keeley, can she find the culprit before she gets bent out of shape? Charming and delicious, this cozy follow up to Downward Facing Death features recipes from Keeley’s café and is perfect for fans of Cleo Coyle and Laura Childs.


What I Say....This was the second book in Michelle Kelly's series.  Although you don't have to have read Downward Facing Death in order to enjoy this one, it would make more sense to read them in order.

Keeley is content in her life, she has opened her vegetarian cafe - which seems to be doing more business than you would expect in a small English village, and has settled into a happy relationship with her cop boyfriend, Ben.

Raquel has been her frenemy since high school, and Keeley doesn't really admire her dating choices - think old, rich men, but she tries to get along to keep the peace.  

When Raquel's boyfriend (the Mayor) turns up violently murdered, she reaches out to Keeley to help prove her innocence.  

In the meantime, Keeley's mom turns up unexpectedly and seems to be harboring a secret, her boyfriend is becoming increasingly angry at her meddling in his investigation, not to mention putting herself in danger.

How far will Keeley go to help an old enemy?  I can tell you right now, she went much further than I would - maybe I should do more yoga!

Sunday, February 19, 2017

Weekly Book Haul.....February 19, 2017





Stacking the Shelves is a weekly book meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews, The Sunday Post is another great site hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer.  The Sunday Salon is a Facebook page where great readers share what they've read this week and Mailbox Monday is a weekly roundup of the new books people have received.


I've been a really poor blogger lately.  I'm reading so many great books!!  But I haven't taken the time to sit down and write my reviews - but I'm committed to catching up today!  It's a dreary, rainy weekend in Arizona.  We don't get many of these, so I'm going to take full advantage.  I did all my boring errands yesterday, so today I may change pajamas, but that will be the extent of any effort made by me to do anything productive besides blog, blog, blog.

I have only added a few books over the last few weeks, but they are good ones!  Confession time, I may have already devoured two of them.....


Meet Me at Beachcomber Bay by Jill Mansell.....International bestseller Jill Mansell weaves a heartwarming tale of love, family and friendship in her latest novel.

1. A brief encounter that could have become so much more...if only everything were different
2. Step-sisters, bitter rivals in every area except one—by unbreakable pact neither will ever steal a man from the other
3. A love triangle that starts out as a mess of secrets and mix-ups, and only gets worse from there
Plus! Friendship, family ties, crossed wires and self-discovery, second chances and first impressions

The Night the Lights Went Out by Karen White.....From the New York Times bestselling author of 
Flight Patterns comes a stunning new novel about a young single mother who discovers that the nature of friendship is never what it seems....
 
Recently divorced, Merilee Talbot Dunlap moves with her two children to the Atlanta suburb of Sweet Apple, Georgia. It’s not her first time starting over, but her efforts at a new beginning aren’t helped by an anonymous local blog that dishes about the scandalous events that caused her marriage to fail.
 
Merilee finds some measure of peace in the cottage she is renting from town matriarch Sugar Prescott. Though stubborn and irascible, Sugar sees something of herself in Merilee—something that allows her to open up about her own colorful past.
 
Sugar’s stories give Merilee a different perspective on the town and its wealthy school moms in their tennis whites and shiny SUVs, and even on her new friendship with Heather Blackford. Merilee is charmed by the glamorous young mother’s seemingly perfect life and finds herself drawn into Heather's world.
 
In a town like Sweet Apple, where sins and secrets are as likely to be found behind the walls of gated mansions as in the dark woods surrounding Merilee’s house, appearance is everything. But just how dangerous that deception can be will shock all three women....


After the Fall by Julie Cohen.....From the author who brought you Dear Thing, Julie Cohen, comes After
the Fall--a poignant, beautifully heartbreaking novel about what it means to be family, the ties that bind us, and the secrets that threaten to tear us apart.
When an unfortunate accident forces Honor back into the lives of her widowed daughter-in-law, Jo, and her only granddaughter, Lydia, she cannot wait to be well enough to get back to her own home. However, the longer she stays with Jo and Lydia, the more they start to feel like a real family. But each of the three women is keeping secrets from the others that threaten to destroy the lives they’ve come to know. 
Honor’s secret threatens to rob her of the independence she’s guarded ferociously for eighty years.
Jo’s secret could destroy the “normal” family life she’s fought so hard to build and maintain.
Lydia’s secret could bring her love—or the loss of everything that matters most to her.
One summer’s day, grandmother, mother and daughter’s secrets will be forced out in the open in a single dramatic moment that leaves them all asking: is there such a thing as second chances?

The Book of Summer by Michelle Gable.....Physician Bess Codman has returned to her family’s
Nantucket compound, Cliff House, for the first time in four years. Her great-grandparents built Cliff House almost a century before, but due to erosion, the once-grand home will soon fall into the sea. Though she’s purposefully avoided the island, Bess must now pack up the house and deal with her mother, a notorious town rabble-rouser, who refuses to leave.

The Book of Summer unravels the power and secrets of Cliff House as told through the voices of Ruby Packard, a bright-eyed and idealistic newlywed on the eve of WWII, the home’s definitive guestbook, and Bess herself. Bess’s grandmother always said it was a house of women, and by the very last day of the very last summer at Cliff House, Bess will understand the truth of her grandmother’s words in ways she never contemplated.
The bestselling author of The Paris Apartment and I'll See You in Paris, Michelle Gable now transports readers to Nantucket.







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My (No So) Perfect Life by Sophie Kinsella





What They Say.....Part love story, part workplace drama, this sharply observed novel is a witty critique of the false judgments we make in a social-media-obsessed world. New York Times bestselling author Sophie Kinsella has written her most timely novel yet.
 
Everywhere Katie Brenner looks, someone else is living the life she longs for, particularly her boss, Demeter Farlowe. Demeter is brilliant and creative, lives with her perfect family in a posh townhouse, and wears the coolest clothes. Katie’s life, meanwhile, is a daily struggle—from her dismal rental to her oddball flatmates to the tense office politics she’s trying to negotiate. No wonder Katie takes refuge in not-quite-true Instagram posts, especially as she's desperate to make her dad proud.
            
Then, just as she’s finding her feet—not to mention a possible new romance—the worst happens. Demeter fires Katie. Shattered but determined to stay positive, Katie retreats to her family’s farm in Somerset to help them set up a vacation business. London has never seemed so far away—until Demeter unexpectedly turns up as a guest. Secrets are spilled and relationships rejiggered, and as the stakes for Katie’s future get higher, she must question her own assumptions about what makes for a truly meaningful life.
            
Sophie Kinsella is celebrated for her vibrant, relatable characters and her great storytelling gifts. Now she returns with all of the wit, warmth, and wisdom that are the hallmarks of her bestsellers to spin this fresh, modern story about presenting the perfect life when the reality is far from the truth.
 


What I Say....I'm a huge Sophie Kinsella fan, so I was so excited to get her latest book.  An it was as good as all of her books are, but it was a little different than the usual Shopaholic fare.

Katie is from a small, rural town.  After growing up without any money, she is itching to move to the big city and live the glamorous life that she see on Instagram.  So Katie moves to London and reinvents herself on social media into a glamorous career girl who lives an exciting life with her many friends.

The reality is that she has gotten a job that pays her nothing, and she spends her time taking pictures of things she hasn't bought, food she hasn't eaten and places that she doesn't live in.  

Katie has a budding romance with the the company owner's son, and things seem to be looking up when she suddenly finds herself fired by her boss from Hell, Demeter.

Katie heads back home where she begins to help her dad and stepmom create a "Glamping" site on their farm.  As they start to build up business, who should show up but Demeter along with her perfect husband and children.  She doesn't even recognize Katie, which makes a revenge plan easier to carry out.....

This was a fun read, but it also had a little more "real life" in it than the normal Kinsella novel.  It's always a risk when a best selling author strays from their formula in any way, but this was a home run.  And a timely reminder to live your life, don't instagram it.

Current Goodreads Rating 4.01

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