The Best Day of Someone Else's Life by Kerry Reichs

Publisher: Orion
Publish Date: 2008
Pages: 332
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-0752891219

Despite being cursed with a boy’s name, Kevin “Vi” Connelly is seriously female and a committed romantic.  The affliction hit at a tender age of six when she was handed a basket of flower petals and ensnared by the “marry-tle.”  The thrill, the attention, the big white dress – its’ the best day of your life, and it’s seriously addictive.  But at twenty-seven, with a closetful of pricy bridesmaid dresses she’ll never wear again and an empty bank account from paying for it all.

Eleven weddings in eighteen months would send any sane woman either over the edge or scurrying for the alter.  But as reality separates from illusion, Vi learns that letting go of someone else’s story to write her own may be harder than buying the myth, but just might help her make the right choices for herself.

My Thoughts
The Best Day of Someone Elses’s Life is a funny, light hearted novel with likeable characters.  There are some genuine funny bits and is well written which flows along at a good pace and never gets boring.  Defiantly recommended as a beach read for a future bride-to-be or anyone interested in weddings. 

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Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda

Publisher:
Publish Date:
Pages:
Format: Trade Paperback
ISBN:

On the eve of the monsoons, in a remote Indian village, Kavita gives birth to a baby girl.  But in a culture that favours sons, the only way for Kavita to save her newborn daughter’s life is to give her away.  It is a decision that will haunt her and her husband for the rest of their lives, even after he arrival of their cherished son.

Halfway around the world, Somer, an American doctor, decided to adopt a child after making the wrenching discovery that she will never have one of her own.  When she and her husband, Krishnan, see a photo of the baby from a Mumbai orphanage, they are overwhelmed with emotion.  Somer knows life will change with the adoption but is convinced that the love they already fell will overcome obstacles.

My Thoughts

This is the first novel from Shilpi Somava Gowda. The characters are well-developed, their real-life situations are convincing and detailed, and the reader gets to share in the story of their lives over a span of twenty-five years.  Secret Daughter is a powerful and thought provoking story about love, family, identity, hope, and above all else, a mother’s love.  Highly recommended! 

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Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Publish Date: September 30, 2008
Pages: 320
Format: Trade Paperback
ISBN: 9780312370848 

Paris, 1942: Sarah, a ten year-old girl, is brutally arrested with her family by French police in the Vel’ d’Hiv’ roundup, but not before she locks her younger brother in a cupboard in the family’s apartment, thinking that she will be back within a few hours.

Paris, May 2002: On Vel’ d’Hiv’s 60^th anniversary, journalist Julia Jarmond is asked to write an article about this black day in France’s past.  Through her contemporary investigation, she stumbles onto a trail of long-hidden family secrets that connect her to Sarah.  Julia finds herself compelled to retrace the girl’s ordeal, from that terrible term in the Vel d’Hiv, to the camps, and beyond.  As she probes into Sarah’s past, she begins to question her own place in France, and to reevaluate her marriage and her life.

The beginning of Julia's story alternating with the girl's was strong. The need to find out what happened to Michel (Sarah's brother) and who exactly Sarah would turn out to be. Also enjoyable is Julie's own family drama and the mystery she uncovered that connected her to Sarah and her sad story, not only through geography but emotion as well.

While the story is fictitious, The novel is about actual events which were not well known nor spoken about. The author managed to switch seamlessly between Sarah’s’ story set in 1942 and Julia’s story in 2002. It is an amazing book which evokes all kinds of emotions. It is heart wrenching and though provoking.

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Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin

Publisher: St. Martin"s Griffin
Publish Date: March 15, 2011
Pages: 400
Format: Trade Paperback
ISBN: 978-0312554170

This story follows Tessa Russo and Valerie Anderson.  Both live in the same Boston suburb although they live in different social circles.  When Valerie’s son, Charlie, badly burns himself at a sleepover, he is rushed to the hospital and left in the care of Dr. Nick Russo, Tessa’s husband. At first, Nick and Valerie’s connection is only about Charlie but they soon grow very close.

Meanwhile, Tessa is struggling with her new role as a stay-at-home mother with her daughter Ruby and son Frankie.  It’s hard to adjust to suburban stay at home life, and Tessa is finding many of the women too obsessed with other people’s lives and appearances.  However, Tessa sometimes finds herself fitting the same mold.

When Nick becomes more distant and absent, Tessa becomes suspicious.  On Thanksgiving, she reads a text on his phone (from Valerie) that seems a little inappropriate but her friends and family try to tell her she’s being ridiculous.  However, after Nick and Valerie sleep together, Nick confesses to Tessa.  She battles with the decision of leaving Nick or forgiving him.  After meeting with Valerie for the first time, she meets with Nick who she hasn't seen in weeks.  Although she knows it is going to be hard, she realizes that she must try and give their relationship a second chance.

My Thoughts
Emily Giffin is back with some familiar characters (Tessa is Dex’s sister from something Borrowed) and a familiar plot of infidelity.  The novel is well written but still doesn't quite live up to her first two novels, Something Borrowed and Something Blue.  Giffin always has an enjoyable take on chicklit and is able to create characters that are emphatic but also flawed and imperfect.  A nice easy read with a thought provoking storyline about good people caught in a difficult situation.

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The House at Riverton by Kate Morton

Publisher: Washington Square Press
Publish Date: March 3, 2009
Pages: 473
Format: Trade Paperback
ISBN: 978-1416550532

On the eve of a glittering society party, by the lake of a grand English county house, a young poet takes his life.  The only witnesses are sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford.  This story unfolds both in the 1920’s and 1999.  Grace Bradley, in the 1920’s is a housemaid of Riverton Manor and in 1999 she is an old lady living in a nursing home approaching death, is visiting by a young director making a film about the poet’s suicide and is looking to Grace to fill in the missing pieces.

The reader knows that Robbie McCourt, the poet, who commits suicide at Riverton in 1925, really didn't  that the suicide story is a cover-up to a scandal.  Grace knows what really happened that night and has kept that secret he entire life – until now, in her final years of life when she starts at the beginning, when she starts work at Riverton for the Hartford family.

My Thoughts
In the page-turner of a novel, beautifully written and reminiscent of the era in England prior to and after World War 1, the author succeeds in weaving a complex tale of passion, jealousy and intrigue utilizing the past memories of 98 year old Grace Bradley and the secret she has guarded for over 60 years.

This story combines love, war, honour, family, money and scandals in an intricately woven web of deceit and secrets.  This book has so many twists and turns that you never really know what is going to happen – until the very last page when the entire story is finally revealed.

This book is a must read for lovers of historical novels and well written mysteries.  The House at Riverton is a literary feast.

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The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Publish Date: October 11, 2011
Pages: 304
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-0446547659

Amanda Collier and Dawson Cole were teenage sweethearts in 1984 small town North Carolina; from opposite sides of the tracks, their intense and beautiful romance didn't really stand a chance.  The Cole families are a bunch of hard drinking, woman beating, law breaking, and drug dealing bad boys, where as Amanda’s family are church going stand up citizens.   Despite the odds, or maybe because they manage to find each other and fall in love, they spend a considerable time at old man Tuck’s garage where Dawson works.

Now middle-aged, they've taken wildly different paths, but neither has lived the life they imagined.  When their old Friend and mentor Tuck dies, the pair are reunited in their hometown for the funeral.  The grumpy yet crafty old man as left specific instructions as to how his final wishes are to be carried out, including a trip to him cabin as well as some personal letters.  As expected the years apart haven’t hindered what Dawson and Amanda fell for each other despite that Amanda now has a husband and children.

My Thoughts
Dawson is another quiet, somewhat tortured hero of Sparks’ who you can’t help but fall for.  He works on the oil rigs, has spent time in prison and has spent almost his entire life running from is ghastly family and their reputation and has never gotten over his one true love Amanda.

It is a well-paced, touching love story, sometimes clichéd but not obvious or wearisome, but is mature and realistic.  There are actually quite a few characters involved here and Sparks has again written this using multiple points of view which as the suspense factor increases get shorter and shorter, so towards the end you’re only getting about a paragraph from each character, increasing the tension level while he wove all the storylines together and leaves the reader guessing the outcome.  In all, Nicholas Sparks still never really fails to show the main aspects in his novels.  There are still the flashbacks, the memories, the tragedy and the everlasting love.

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Loving Frank by Nancy Horan

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Publish Date: August 2007
Pages: -
Format: Kobo
ISBN: 978-0345502254

Loving Frank is a fictional recreation of the true story of the adulterous affair between Frank Llyod Wright and Mamah Cheney.

In 1903 Mamah Cheney and her husband, Edwin, had commissioned the renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright to design a new home for them.  During the construction of the house, a powerful attraction developed between Mamah and Frank, and in time the lovers, each married with children embark on a course that would shock Chicago society and forever change their lives.

My Thoughts
In the debut novel by Nancy Horan, fact and fiction blend together skillfully.  While many have considered Mamah a footnote in the life of America’s greatest architect, Horan gives full weight to their dramatic love story and Cheney’s profound influence on Wright.  It’s the mix of fact and fiction that fills in the blanks of a story that is typically unknown.

The Story, in which is told from the view point of Mamah, near the end of the book reveals a startling and unexpected twist you won’t see coming.  The pace and intensity may lag a bit in the middle and drop off after the tragic events on 1914, which anyone with former knowledge of the outcome of Frank and Mamah’s life together knows a terrible end is in store for them, but Horan somehow arranges for it to sneak up on the reader.  In this way, the author puts readers in Frank Lloyd Wright’s place, as we discover the aftermath through his eyes.

Do yourself a favour and refrain from Wikipedia searches while you’re midway through the story.  That way, you can fully enjoy the impact of this remarkable book.

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The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

Publisher: Washing Square Press
Publish Date: February 16, 2010
Pages: 560
Format: Trade Paperback
ISBN: 978-1416550556

Cassandra is lost, alone and grieving. Her much loved grandmother, Nell, has just died and Cassandra, her life already shaken by a tragic accident ten years ago, feels like she has lost everything dear to her. Cassandra learns that Nell wasn't who she thought she was. It turns out that Nell had been raised by a couple who found her on the dock after she had been abandoned on the boat that had carried her from England to Australia at the age of four. Nell had attempted to research her own heritage, but the sudden appearance of Cassandra in her life prevented her from putting all the pieces together. Cassandra takes it upon herself to solve the mystery for her grandmother once and for all. The story weaves back and forth between three generations -- Cassandra in 2005, Nell in 1975, and the two women who are the key to the puzzle in the early years of the twentieth century. 

My Thoughts

It’s narrated by three women in three different times - all three eras are linked by the same family secret that has been hidden for over a century. In present day Australia, Cassandra’s grandmother, Nell, dies and bequeaths her a crumbling old house in Cornwall, England. Intrigued, Cassandra travels to Cornwall, and finding a long forgotten garden in the grounds of the abandoned house, beings to unravel her family’s hundred year old secret. In Victorian England, spirited Eliza flees her from her wealthy but controlling family, never to be seen again. And in the early 1900s, a very young Nell arrives alone in Australia carrying just two items: a little white suitcase and a book of fairy tales written by a mysterious author.

Layer after layer, and in alternating chapters, Cassandra, Eliza and Nell tell their tale of love, loss, sacrifice and hope, weaving their individual stories together to make a poignant whole. Although part of the secret is guessable, the finer details are held back right until the end, and when it all comes together, you get a real sense of completion, a fairy tale within a fairy tale (that'll make sense if you read it), a story that stays with you long after the final page has been read.

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Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Publisher: Algonquin Books
Publish Date: May 1, 2007
Pages: 350
Format: Trade Paperback
ISBN: 978-1565125605

When his parents suddenly and tragically die, Jacob Jankowski quits veterinarian school at Cornell University just before graduation and finds himself aboard a circus train. The Great Depression is in full swing, jobs are scarce and the likelihood of Jacob being offered a position aboard the second-rate Benzini Brothers circus is even slimmer. Luckily the circus is in need of a veterinarian and August, the greedy and miserly ringmaster of the circus, decides not to pass up the opportunity to underpay his “Cornell-trained” vet.

Jacob quickly earns his keep by maintaining the menagerie, but because his position is awkwardly located somewhere in-between the working crew and the performers, he grapples with the sharp divide between labor and the elite. He works with both classes, and thus appreciates the benefits of associating with the higher society while at the same time sympathizes with the less-fortunate workers.

Jacob is enamored with Marlena, who is a performer in the circus and wife to August, from the moment he sets eyes on her, but his up-and-down relationship with August results in repeated attempts by Jacob to suppress his urge to act on his desires.

My Thoughts
As the behind-the-scenes drama in the Benzini Brothers circus is developed, the perspective in the novel switches back and forth between Jacob in the central story and Jacob as an old man of “90. Or 93. One or the other.” The younger Jacob is caring and cordial, while the older Jacob is cranky, and feeling abandoned in his old age. 

Author Sara Gruen has researched the depression era circus life down to the smallest of details and I feel that this captivating and vivid story will appeal to almost anyone. Filled with action, adventure and a sweet forbidden romance there is also a fascinating sideshow of secondary characters including a clever Polish Elephant, a grouchy little person as Jacob’s roommate and a cruel and schizophrenic animal trainer whose wife Jacob just happens to fall in love with. All of this has been wrapped together with a compelling and innovative behind the scenes look aboard a travelling circus train. Showing us more often then not the darker side of circus life after the big top closes down. This is a love story, a life story, an animal lover’s story but above all it’s a circus story and who of us hasn't dreamed about running away and joining the circus at some point in our lives?

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When in Doubt, Add Butter by Beth Harbison

Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publish Date: July 17, 2012
Pages: 352
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-0312599096

As far as Gemma Craig is concerned, her days of dating are over.  In fact, it’s her job to cater to other peoples’ dates, and that’s just fine by her.  At thirty-seven, she has her own business, working as a private chef, and her life feels full and secure.  She’s got six steady clients that keep her hands full.

For Gemma, cooking is predictable.  Recipes are certain.  Use good ingredients, follow the directions, and you are assured success.  Life, on the other hand, is full of variables.  So when Gemma’s takes an unexpected turn on a road she always thought was straight and narrow, she must face her past and move on in ways she never would have imagined.

My Thoughts

The characters are engaging and well developed and the story flows well.  Although the book is an easy read with some predictable plot points, there are enough interesting twists to keep you turning pages.  This book is an overall entertaining read.  There are serious parts intertwined with laugh out loud moments.  It was light hearted, yet realistic.  Beth Harbison always knows how to create characters varying and bursting with personality.

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The reviews made here are my personal opinion. I’m not being paid to review any of these books. I am by no means a professional book reviewer or editor.  I do this for the love of books.

Where We Belong by Emily Giffin

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Publish Date: April 16, 2013
Pages: 384
Format: Trade Paperback
ISBN: 978-0312554184

Marian Caldwell, New York producer of a hit show, thinks that her life is just about perfect. Great boyfriend, great career, and beautiful East Side apartment. And then one day, the past stands before her in the form of Kirby, her biggest secret, an unplanned child she gave up for adoption 18 years ago.  As the perfect life Marian created starts to shatter, she gets to know her daughter, and confronts her past, which she has pushed away for years.

My Thoughts
The back story of Marian's past and what lead to Kirby is woven in with the story and Marian and Kirby getting to know each other and try to figure out where they fit into each other lives and really where they want to go with their own lives now.

The chapters alternate in voices from Marian to Kirby's, with sections woven in of Marian at 18. The information is given to the reader as we need it and the characters remember, having the reader piece the present and past together and see how they relate to each other.

Finally, the novel addresses the important question of Kirby’s birth father, Conrad Knight. Marion lied to Conrad about her pregnancy; and while he is delighted to meet Kirby, who shares his talent and passion for music, he is rightfully angry with Marion, who never told him about the existence of his only child.

The interplay of the families involved - Marion and her mother and father and Peter Standish, Kirby and her mother, father, and sister, and Conrad Knight - is highly entertaining and realistic. And Marion’s transformation by her decision to tell Conrad the truth leaves room for yet another novel about these lovable and interesting families.

The book got better and better progressively and the highlight was probably when Marian saw Kirby and Conrad together in the bar, playing the drums like it was all meant to be. That was probably the turning point of Marian's character development and it's from there that we start to see the subtle shift in her priorities and her needs.

A compelling read, this book is an improvement on her other novels Heart of the Matter, Love the One You're With and Baby Proof, but perhaps doesn't live up to the first two in the series, Something Borrowed and Something Blue. Still, the plot moves along fairly quickly and all in all, it's a fast read.

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The reviews made here are my personal opinion. I’m not being paid to review any of these books. I am by no means a professional book reviewer or editor.  I do this for the love of books.

Chose the Wrong Guy, Gave Him the Wrong Finger by Beth Harbison

Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publish Date: July 9, 2013
Pages: 384
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-0312599133

The story follows Quinn Barton, who ten years ago was on her way to the alter to marry Burke Morrison, her high school sweetheart, when she was detailed by the Best Man - Frank Morrison, Burke's younger brother who at the last possible moment asked to to reconsider the marriage.  Frank revealed that Burke had been cheating on her, which she knew nothing about.  She had a choice - to stay and fulfill her guests' expectations, or run for her life.  She chose to run.  With the Best Man. 

Quinn’s convinced she’s moved on but when ten years later she’s making their grandmother’s wedding gown, she and the brothers reunite for the first time since that fateful, unhappy day and she realizes just how much she’s fooling herself because there are unresolved feelings and ghosts from the pasts that are hard to bury when your eyes are closed. She’ll have to do some serious soul searching to find out which brother if either is or was ever the right one for her.


My Thoughts

The story is told with a lot of flashbacks to both ten years ago and further back when Quinn first meets the Morrison boys, the back-story is necessary and it keeps things moving. Her plot may be a familiar topic in romance but she takes it to the next step and gives it tons of depth. Her characters are realistic, imperfect souls who’ll capture reader’s hearts and their empathies. Her narrative is flowing and visual, her dialogue is easy to read and a mix of belly laughing humor and angst filled histrionics.

Bottom line, Chose the Wrong Guy, Gave Him the Wrong Finger is a fun book with a lot of colourful characters.  Fans of Beth Harbison won’t be disappointed in her newest novel and newcomers to her work will want to rush out and pick up her back-list.  Either way, you are in for a treat!

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The reviews made here are my personal opinion. I’m not being paid to review any of these books. I am by no means a professional book reviewer or editor.  I do this for the love of books.

Crossing on the Paris by Dana Gynther

Publisher: Gallery Books
Publish Date: November 2012
Format: Kobo
Pages: -
ISBN: 978-1451678523

Three women - one young and working at her first job, one newly thirty and married with daughters, and one older, who is suffering from breast cancer and leaving France to head back home to the US. These three are the foundation for the book and tell us their stories.

Julie Vernet not only is on a ship for the first time, but she's also working and leading home. She is determined to both escape her small French town and help support her parents, who lost Julie's three brothers in WWI. She is a good daughter, even if she is thrilled to leave her home behind. Julie seeks an adventure; she unwittingly finds it in the form of a fellow worker, a Russian who pursues her most ardently.

On her first day, she meets Constance and Vera. The former is a young wife and mother who headed to France to convince her wayward sister to come home to help their parents through some health problems; the latter an aging socialite returning home to die. On board, Constance meets an attractive doctor whose attention she enjoys. The doctor also treats Vera, whose illness is a bit more advanced than we hoped. Julie attends to both women at various parts of the book, and their stories occasionally intersect.

My Thoughts
The stories slowly unfold, taking their time as the ship crosses from France to New York. As it gets closer to its destination, the three women adjust themselves to their fates, whether proactively or reluctantly. What will come of Julie, the small town girl now in a big east coast city? Or Constance and her marriage and children? And of course Vera. Will she find the peace and contentment she needs in order to die?

It is easy to get into this book, even if nothing terribly cataclysmic happens in it. Julie's story is the most combustible, but then again, she's the youngest and with the most wide open future. Constance and Vera, on the other hand, have more spiritual issues to face. For Vera, the journey is one of preparing herself for death. For Constance, on the other hand, the voyage represents an emotional departure from her staid and dull marriage.

This is an evenly paced book, much like the ship's course. It is nicely written, tells a good story, and features likable characters. If it is occasionally unsurprising, it makes up for it with plots that keep you entertained.

My rating: «««

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The reviews made here are my personal opinion. I’m not being paid to review any of these books. I am by no means a professional book reviewer or editor.  I do this for the love of books.