Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too!

Margaret and Chip appear to be the perfect couple at the start of this women’s fiction title. Both have just completed their MBAs and are on the path to high achievement. Margaret is hoping that Chip will propose to her. Not much of a spoiler because what I am writing next happens very early in the book. Chip does propose but does it in a small plane that Margaret had not wanted to fly in. There is an accident and Margaret suffers a serious injury which upends her life. The novel then tells the story of what happens to Margaret. The story is also about Margaret’s parents, her sister, Chip and his family and the hospital staff, especially Ian.

Readers will be rooting for Margaret as she figures out what to do in her life. The reader will undoubtedly enjoy spending time with her family and with Ian as well.

I enjoyed this novel which I read quickly. The author does not sugarcoat what Margaret experiences in her recovery. However this is a romance so each reader will have to decide if they want to buy into the semi-fairy-tale.

I would read other books by the author and would look forward to doing so. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-galley of the novel which I was given in exchange for an honest review.

#HowToWalkAway #NetGalley

As was true of volume one, this book is full of jokes that are sure to amuse and entertain elementary school aged children. A few examples:

Why was the man fired from the calendar factory? Because he took a day off.

What dogs make the best scientists? Labs

What do you call a police cat? Claw enforcement

There are many, many more jokes in this illustrated volume.

Understanding jokes and puns makes kids feel clever. They also love trying to stump the adults around them. For these and other reasons, joke loving kids will enjoy this book!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for these laughs. The opinions are my own.

#TheWorldsBestJokesForKidsVolume2 #NetGalley

When was the last time that you read a book and found that tears were rolling down your cheeks? For me, it has been quite a while but I cried over this one.

When I told my husband about this novel, he said that it must have been depressing. I replied that it was not depressing but that it was sad. Sadness is an essential piece of this book and yet to me it was a wonderful read and one that I recommend highly, if it is your kind of book or if you are willing to see if it is.

Henri, a French man with a history, was a journalist who covered wars. His thirteen year old son, Sam, did not know him. Just when they are about to meet, Henri saves a young girl but himself is injured and thereafter is in a coma. This means that Sam and Henri’s reunion takes place in the hospital where Sam, who has synesthesia, senses deeply and feels Henri’s presence. Sam spends every day at the hospital sharing himself with Henri and the novel’s other protagonists.

This book is the story of several characters: Sam, Madelyn who is a young girl in a coma and Eddie, the woman that Henri let get away. Their relationships are explored and intersect with one another over the course of the novel which is told in alternating voices.

There is a philosophical underpinning to this book. The characters both live their lives and imagine the ways in which their lives might have played out differently with the same people. The author also explores what she imagines that characters think and feel when they are in a non-awake state and what happens when someone is about to die.

Nina George comments that she wrote three of her novels, of which this is the third, to better understand death. She was writing in the aftermath of her father’s death. The book is beautifully written.

I very much enjoyed this author’s novel, The Little Paris Bookshop and feel that The Book of Dreams is also a keeper. For me, it is a five star novel.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a moving and wonderful read. The opinions are my own.

#TheBookOfDreams #NetGalley

This is a wonderful book that will give young readers a sense of how amazing and interesting the world is. The author describes places on every continent, including Antarctica. The illustrator has created worlds with lot of detail that show how unique each site is. Every two page spread includes fun facts. The narrator speaks in the second person, telling the reader “You are there…”
I enjoyed visiting places like the Eiffel Tower, Angkor Wat, Yosemite, Mount Everest and the Forbidden City. I also spent time in places that I did not already know including Burj Khalifa and Pantanal. Plus for additional fun, the end of the book has a section with details of illustrations that children can hunt for in the text.

I highly recommend this one. It will encourage children to dream of travel and adventure! Many thanks to NetGalley and Quarto for this enjoyable trip. The opinions are my own.

*****Five stars

#AtlasOfAdventuresWondersOfTheWorld #NetGalley

We live in a time when many people are very interested in their family roots and genealogy. Think about the use of all of those DNA testing kits for example.

This book, which I love, looks at the family trees of a number of well and lesser known figures. Just some of the trees featured are those of Mary Shelley, Abraham Lincoln, William Shakespeare, Ada Lovelace, Henry Ford, Marie Antoinette and Queen Elizabeth the First. Some of the families I did not already know included, for example Desiree Clary, a jilted fiancee of Napoleon who later became Queen of Sweden and the tree of the founder of an Indian dynasty. There are fun facts listed for each entry and a bit of history to give perspective.

If you know a budding genealogist or a child who enjoys history, consider getting this book for them. It is a treasure.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Quarto for this e-galley. The opinions are my own.

***** five stars

I read this when it first came out and found it to be a good women’s fiction read.  It takes place in a Maine town that felt very much like the one where LL Bean is located.  The subject is a rash of teen pregnancies and their impact.

From Publishers Weekly

Review

“The storytelling is dazzling, as it always is in a Perry novel. . . . Like the great Dickens novel Our Mutual Friend, the Monk series has a deep, almost primal bond with London’s river, which disgorges all sorts of objects, including human bodies, with each tide. . . . [An] uncommonly atmospheric mystery.”—The New York Times Book Review

“Fascinating and addictive . . . Another strong historical mystery that is true in both culture and manners to its Victorian setting.”—New York Journal of Books

I have not read this one but now think that I will!

“Banner’s four-generation saga is set on an island near Sicily, where myths of saints get served up with limoncello as the Esposito family’s bar. As the captivating characters are challenged by war, financial crisis and heartbreak, their bonds hold them together. The island is fictional, but consider this dreamy summer read your passport.”—People

“Like pictures of a childhood summer, or a half-forgotten smell, this book is sweet and heady with nostalgia; not radical, maybe, but comforting as a quilt.”—NPR

“A gorgeous, sweeping story set over four generations . . . The novel calls to mind Captain Corelli’s Mandolin and Beautiful Ruins. It is not just the protagonists and their struggles that make Banner’s narrative incredible, but also the smaller, secondary characters that add color and detail, and the intricately described island of Castellamare itself.”—Interview

“Rich and immersive, this book will take you away.”—Vox.com

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Love happens in all places, at all times and, hopefully, for all people. Each person’s story includes joy, heartache and changes over time.
Amy Bloom’s novel is both universal and specific regarding relationships, as she writes about Eleanor Roosevelt and Lorena Hickok, largely from Lorena’s point of view. Their coming together and moving apart is richly imagined as is the era in U.S. history. With appearances by FDR, Missy LeHand and others, historical personages are shown with both their strengths and flaws. This novel evoked many feelings. Definitely a book worth reading.

I’ve already blogged about the first three books in this series; they are The Seven Sisters, The Storm Sister and The Shadow Sister.  So…that makes The Pearl Sister, book four, with three more  still to come.  I was very eager to read this book so ordered it from England as it had not yet released in the U.S..   As in all of the novels in the series, this one is about a sister who was adopted as a baby.  CeeCee, learns about herself and her birth family along with the reader.  Parts of the novel take place in the present while the story of CeeCee’s birth family takes place in the past.  The parts of the novel join together well.  The characters are vivid and their stories well developed.  Australia is the setting for much of the novel and the historical background was fascinating; I learned about pearl divers, the fate of children who were sent to orphanages because of being aborigine and Caucasian and about aboriginal art and beliefs.  Some suspension of disbelief is required but I was more than willing.  If you enjoy historical/present tense novels with a good story in a long book, this one is for you

UPDATE:  I am currently reading the next in the series, The Moon Sister and will blog about it in the future.

I’ve been thinking about how to best write about this book by first time author Jess Montgomery. First time author! Wow, Ms. Montgomery writes like an experienced novelist as she effectively creates a place, characters and narrative tension. She has written what I consider to be a truly excellent debut novel.

The Widows are Lily and Marvena, each of whom has children, has lost a husband and is trying not to lose her way. Life in Bronwyn County, Ohio for them and those they love, following WWI is full of hardship. Coal is king and a harsh master. Poverty and company scrip rule many lives.

In this world, Marvena and her common law husband John have worked to organize the miners. This is a freighted and difficult task given the strong arm tactics of the mine owners. Pinkertons are brought in to quell resistance. Other outsiders try to dominate illegal moonshine businesses.

On the surface, Lily’s life looks better. She is married to Sheriff Daniel Ross, a former boxer and half brother to the mine owner. However, early in the novel, Daniel is killed. The circumstances surrounding his death are a central mystery in the novel.

Both Marvena and Lily have relationship history with Daniel. Each realizes that she did not fully know him. As they come to know one another, Lily and Marvena come to also know themselves.

Peopled with many additional characters that come vividly to life, this novel is engaging, realistic and compelling. Put it on your TBR pile for January when it will be released. I recommend this one very highly.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author and St. Martin’s Minotaur for this fantastic read!

Robyn Carr has written many novels over several series; fans of hers will know that she has written the Virgin River, Thunder Point and Grace Valley books. Her latest series takes place in Sullivan’s Crossing. The Best of Us is novel number four. Old characters reappear but, if you have not read the other titles, this can be read as a stand alone.

Love grows across three generations in this story. The teen pair are challenged by a threatening medical diagnosis; the couple in their thirties face an unplanned pregnancy and the couple in their sixties show that love can happen at any age.

Place is also important in this novel. Sullivan’s Crossing is that small town that people think of when they imagine small town life as idyllic. There is a beautiful setting near the mountains, kind people and a strong sense of community.

Long term fans of Roby Carr will most definitely welcome her latest book.