Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Summer Reads

Hope everybody is enjoying their summer!  If you are looking for something to read, here's some ideas!  I haven't read all of these - just going by reading reviews and seeing some summer reading lists.

Happy Reading!!  Book Descriptions from Amazon

The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

Imagine that your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret—something with the potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others as well. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive. . . .

Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it all—she’s an incredibly successful businesswoman, a pillar of her small community, and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything, and not just for her: Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia—or each other—but they too are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband’s secret.

Goodnight June by Sarah Jio

Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown (Goodnight Songs) is an adored childhood classic, but its real origins are lost to history. In Goodnight June, Sarah Jio offers a suspenseful and heartfelt take on how the “great green room” might have come to be.

June Andersen is professionally successful, but her personal life is marred by unhappiness. Unexpectedly, she is called to settle her great-aunt Ruby’s estate and determine the fate of Bluebird Books, the children’s bookstore Ruby founded in the 1940s. Amidst the store’s papers, June stumbles upon letters between her great-aunt and the late Margaret Wise Brown—and steps into the pages of American literature.

Bittersweet by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore (Not in paperback yet)

   On scholarship at a prestigious East Coast college, ordinary Mabel Dagmar is surprised to befriend her roommate, the beautiful, wild, blue-blooded Genevra Winslow. Ev invites Mabel to spend the summer at Bittersweet, her cottage on the Vermont estate where her family has been holding court for more than a century; it’s the kind of place where children twirl sparklers across the lawn during cocktail hour. Mabel falls in love with midnight skinny-dipping, the wet dog smell that lingers near the yachts, and the moneyed laughter that carries across the still lake while fireworks burst overhead. Before she knows it, she has everything she’s ever wanted:  friendship, a boyfriend, access to wealth, and, most of all, for the first time in her life, the sense that she belongs.

   But as Mabel becomes an insider, a terrible discovery leads to shocking violence and reveals what the Winslows may have done to keep their power intact - and what they might do to anyone who threatens them. Mabel must choose: either expose the ugliness surrounding her and face expulsion from paradise, or keep the family’s dark secrets and make Ev's world her own.


Vintage by Susan Gloss

Vintage is Susan Gloss's sparkling debut novel in the vein of The Friday Night Knitting Club, centered around a Midwestern vintage clothing shop and and a group of women who eventually transform the store and each others' lives.

At Hourglass Vintage in Madison, Wisconsin, every item in the boutique has a story to tell . . . and so do the women who are drawn there.

Violet Turner has always dreamed of owning a shop like Hourglass Vintage. When she is faced with the possibility of losing it, she realizes that, as much as she wants to, she cannot save it alone.

Eighteen-year-old April Morgan is nearly five months along in an unplanned pregnancy when her hasty engagement is broken. When she returns the perfect 1950s wedding dress, she discovers unexpected possibilities and friends who won't let her give up on her dreams.

Betrayed by her husband, Amithi Singh begins selling off her old clothes, remnants of her past life. After decades of housekeeping and parenting a daughter who rejects her traditional ways, she fears she has nothing more ahead for her.

An engaging story that beautifully captures the essence of women's friendship and love, Vintage is a charming tale of possibility, of finding renewal and hope when we least expect it.


Some Girls Some Hats by Trudi Kanter

In 1938 Trudi Kanter, stunningly beautiful, chic and charismatic, was a hat designer for the best-dressed women in Vienna. She frequented the most elegant cafés. She had suitors. She flew to Paris to see the latest fashions. And she fell deeply in love with Walter Ehrlich, a charming and romantic businessman. But as Hitler’s tanks rolled into Austria, the world this young Jewish couple knew collapsed, leaving them desperate to escape.

In prose that cuts straight to the bone, Some Girls, Some Hats and Hitler tells the true story of Trudi’s astonishing journey from Vienna to Prague to blitzed London seeking safety for her and Walter amid the horror engulfing Europe. It was her courage, resourcefulness and perseverance that kept both her and her beloved safe during the Nazi invasion and that make this an indelible memoir of love and survival.

Sifting through a secondhand bookshop in London, an English editor stumbled upon this extraordinary book, and now, though she died in 1992, the world has a second chance to discover Trudi Kanter’s enchanting story. In these pages she is alive—vivid, tenacious and absolutely unforgettable.


Some of My Favorite Beach Read Authors - should be paperbacks

Four Friends by Robyn Carr
Ladies Night by Mary Kay Andrews -
Porch Lights by Dorothea Benton Frank
The Time Between  by Karen White
Island Girls by Nancy Thayer
Beautiful Day by Elin Hilderbrand
The Supreme Macaroni Company (Last in trilogy - Bravo, Valentine Series) by Adriana Trigiani

You can cut and paste these links to get some other book ideas!

http://www.redbookmag.com/health-wellness/advice/summer-beach-reads

http://fun.familyeducation.com/slideshow/reading-fun/


From Book Movement:

This Week's Top Club Picks and Rising Stars:
1. Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
2. The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd
3. The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty
4. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
5. The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin - Author
6. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
7. Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
8. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
9. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
10. All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Rising Stars: The Museum of Extraordinary Things Alice Hoffman
& The Vacationers by Emma Straub




Only with You by Lauren Layne


Only with You (The Best Mistake, #1)

I was laughing out loud at the beginning of Only with You by Lauren Layne as Sophie Dalton is trying to decide which shoes to wear for a bachelorette party in Vegas - great beginning to a fun story! Of course Sophie meets handsome Grayson Wyatt in an elevator and the chemistry begins there with a misunderstanding of her "occupation".  (With the name "Grayson" - I immediately pictured a "Fifty Shades of Grey" character but the story does not go there!) .  As Gray is dating Sophie's sister, this growing attraction to Sophie is complicated.  Sophie has to deal with her relationship with her sister, her  male best friend, and her  parents while she sorts her feelings for Gray.

The story is pretty predictable but a fun quick read!  I'd give this book 3 1/2 stars.

Book Description from Amazon:
Cocktail waitress Sophie Dalton doesn't exactly have a life plan. She's perfectly happy being everyone's favorite party girl. But when a Las Vegas bachelorette party goes awry and an uptight businessman mistakes Sophie for a prostitute . . . well, Sophie wonders if it's time to reevaluate her priorities. Swearing off her thigh-high boots for good, Sophie slinks back home with damaged pride-and a jackpot of a hangover.

Yet what happens in Vegas doesn't always stay there. On a trip to Seattle to open a new office, Grayson Wyatt meets his latest employee-who turns out to be the same woman he recently called a hooker. Wealthy and gorgeous, Gray is a man used to getting what he wants. And it doesn't take long to figure out that smart, sassy, sexy Sophie is everything he's been looking for. As their late nights at the office turn into hot morning-afters, they realize their Vegas misunderstanding may lead to the real thing . . . 

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Matchmaker by Elin Hilderbrand

The Matchmaker

Matchmaker by Elin Hilderbrand was a great summer beach read!  As usual, Elin Hilderbrand does a great job with this genre - based in Nantucket.  This was not a typical beach read - dwelt with a serious topic.l  I'd give it 4 3/4 stars!  Good book club!


Description from Goodreads:
A touching new novel from Elin Hilderbrand in which a dying woman sets out to find love for those closest to her - before it's too late

Dabney Kimball Beech, the 48-year-old fifth generation Nantucketer, has had a lifelong gift of matchmaking (52 couples still together to her credit). But when Dabney discovers she is dying of pancreatic cancer, she sets out to find matches for a few people very close to home: her husband, celebrated economist John Boxmiller Beech; her lover journalist Clendenin Hughes; and her daughter, Agnes, who is engaged to be married to the wrong man. 

As time slips away from Dabney, she is determined to find matches for those she loves most - but at what cost to her own relationships? THE MATCHMAKER is the heartbreaking new novel from Elin Hilderbrand about losing and finding love, even as you're running out of time

All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner

All Fall Down

I usually like Jennifer Weiner's books  - I love to read books that make me laugh.  Although I laughed some at All Fall Down, the topic of housewives being addicted to pills was not a funny subject matter.  But I did stay with the book and had a hard time putting it down.  Some of the addiction problems hit a little close to home as we all know someone with addiction issues.  Allison Weiss's life too me was sad - new big empty house she did not pick out or could not afford, a husband that did not pay attention to her, a daughter with some problems, a father with Alzheimer's, a mother that did not pay attention to her, etc. - she felt entitled to those pills to me to escape her horrible life!  I did feel like Jennifer did a lot of research on the subject matter.  The ending was not tied up with a pretty bow but that would be realistic with this subject matter.

This book would make a good discussion book for book club.  I'd give it 4 1/2 stars.  


Book Description from Amazon:

Allison Weiss got her happy endinga handsome husband, adorable daughter, a job she loves, and the big house in the suburbs. But while waiting in the pediatrician’s office, she opens a magazine to a quiz about addiction and starts to wonder…Is a Percocet at the end of the day really different from a glass of wine? Is it such a bad thing to pop a Vicodin after a brutal Jump & Pump class…or if your husband ignores you?

The pills help her manage the realities of her good-looking life: that her husband is distant, that her daughter is acting out, that her father’s Alzheimer’s is worsening and her mother is barely managing to cope. She tells herself that they let her make it through her days…but what if her increasing drug use, a habit that’s becoming expensive and hard to hide, is turning into her biggest problem of all?

With a sparkling comedic touch and a cast of unforgettable characters, this remarkable story of a woman’s slide into addiction and struggle to find her way back up again is Jennifer Weiner’s most masterful work yet.

Saturday, June 14, 2014

The Job Proposal by Wendy Chen




The Job Proposal
I was lucky to get an advance copy of The Job Proposal by Wendy Chen and enjoyed the quick summer read.  The main character Kate has figured out how to think like a man  - lots of one night stands with no long term romances so she won't get hurt, work long hours, no friends at work and concentrate on her career.  A lonely life but she is hoping this strategy will help her in the long run with career advancement.  When it becomes evident Kate needs a finance to help her career, she finds the perfect man for her fiance' who needs a green card.  When her best friend from high school comes to visit Kate, her views on life, career, and romance begin to slowly change.  This was a good read - great way to spend a lazy summer day!  I'd give it 4 stars - fun read!  

Book Description - Amazon:

All's fair in love and work.

Kate is enjoying being engaged—that it's a hoax is beside the point. To succeed at her ultra-conservative finance job she needs to reform her flighty, party-girl reputation, and a good old fashioned marriage of convenience is exactly what she needs to put her one step closer to the promotion of her dreams. But when Adam, Kate's best friend from high school, arrives for a visit, her perfect arrangement suddenly isn't so perfect anymore.

The nerdy boy she remembers from her teen years has grown into a gorgeous and successful man, and he's vying for her affection. Soon all the things Kate thinks she wants will change, and everything she doesn't know she needs, she may not be able to live without.

But will she be able to let down the walls she’s built to guard her heart and trade her fierce independence for love?


Thursday, June 12, 2014

Between Husbands and Friends by Nancy Thayer



I recently finished reading Between Husbands and Friends by Nancy Thayer - this book has recently been re-released in an e-book form.  I love reading anything by Nancy Thayer so I was excited to see this release that I have never read before.  This was a good summer read and an in-depth  look at the friendship between Lucy West and Kate Cunningham and their two families through the years.  As secrets are revealed, their lives become unravelled.  Some parts of the story were glossed over - so I'll just give it 4 stars.



 Book Description by Amazon:
When Lucy West and Kate Cunningham meet, the two spirited young women recognize kindred spirits in each other. Both Lucy and Kate married early and lack complete confidence in the brave new world of mothering. As their friendship deepens, their lives become fully intertwined. With husbands and children in tow, they spend glorious summers together in a large house on Nantucket island, sailing and feasting on lobster—and when their husbands are back on the mainland, the two women even get a chance to kick up their heels. The closest of allies, Lucy and Kate share their highs and lows, their joys and darkest secrets.
 
Or so Kate thought. One summer, in the midst of a devastating family crisis, Lucy reveals a truth she has long kept hidden from her best friend. And in the aftermath of this astonishing  revelation, the lives of the Wests and the Cunninghams will never be the same.
 

Your Perfect Life by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke


I just raced through reading Your Perfect Life by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke - it was a fun summer read!  Best friends Casey and Rachel end up switching bodies and lives after a high school reunion.  Casey is single and a successful TV host while Rachel is a busy, tired stay-at-home mom.  Their story may have been told before but I really enjoyed reading this book!  I'd give it 4 1/2 stars and would recommend it to my friends and book club.  There is a reading guide book for discussion in the back of the book.


Book Description from Amazon:

Two childhood best friends wake up the morning after their twentieth high school reunion to discover that they’ve switched bodies in this hilarious and heartwarming debut by two childhood best friends.

With “a delicious, page-turning premise, and sweet and surprising insights” (New York Times bestselling author Jen Lancaster), Your Perfect Life perfectly illustrates that old adage: Sometimes, you have to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes to see what’s in her heart.

Best friends since childhood, Casey and Rachel couldn’t lead more different lives. While workaholic Casey rubs elbows with celebrities daily as the host of Gossip TV and comes home nightly to an empty apartment, stay-at-home mom Rachel juggles an “oops” baby, two fiery teenagers, and a husband who barely seems the man she fell in love with two decades before. After an argument at their twentieth high school reunion, Casey and Rachel throw back shots to get the night back on track. Instead, they get a life-changing hangover.

Waking up in each other’s bodies the next morning, they must figure out how to navigate their altered realities. Rachel is forced to face the broadcasting dreams she gave up when she got pregnant in college, and Casey finally steps out of the spotlight to face the real reason why she’s alone. And they soon discover that they don’t know themselves—or their best friend—nearly as well as they thought they did.

Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke bring their “witty, winning style” (Sarah Pekkanen, author of The Best of Us) to every page of this novel that is sure to please fans of In Her Shoes and The Opposite of Me. Your Perfect Life is a story of humor and heart about two best friends, what they didn’t know about each other, and how, by switching lives, each learns to appreciate her own.

Saturday, June 7, 2014

The Pursuit of Alice Thrift by Elinor Lipman


The Pursuit of Alice Thrift


I found this book - The Pursuit of Alice Thrift by Elinor Lipman on a list of favorite romantic comedy reads so I thought I'd give it a shot.  It was the perfect escape while held captive in my house with workers replacing a water heater and cleaning up the flooded mess that ensued!  This book kinda reminds me of The Rosie Project as the main character - Alice Thrift - also does not have social skills - may have Asperger's - but she is definitely not trying to find a spouse like The Rosie Project.  This was a fun read - may have to buy another Elinor Lipman novel to read while next dealing with sheet rock repair and painters!  Oh well - at least I'll be entertained while waiting for workers!  I'd give this 4 stars.


Book Description from Amazon:
In her newest well-tuned, witty, and altogether wonderful novel, bestselling author Elinor Lipman dares to ask: Can an upper-middle-class doctor find love with a shady, fast-talking salesman?

Meet Alice Thrift, surgical intern in a Boston hospital, high of I.Q. but low in social graces. She doesn’t mean to be acerbic, clinical, or blunt, but where was she the day they taught Bedside Manner 101? Into Alice’s workaholic and wallflower life comes Ray Russo, a slick traveling fudge salesman in search of a nose job and well-heeled companionship, but not necessarily in that order. Is he a conman or a sincere suitor? Good guy or bad? Alice’s parents, roommate, and best friend Sylvie are appalled at her choice of mate. Despite her doubts, Alice finds herself walking down the aisle, not so much won over as worn down. Will their marriage last the honeymoon? Only if Alice’s best instincts can triumph over Ray’s unsavory ways.

Friday, June 6, 2014

Forever Interrupted by Taylor Jenkins Reid




Forever, Interrupted


Forever Interrupted by Taylor Jenkins Reid is getting lots of buzz so I was excited to read it.  This book did not disappoint - I zipped through it in a couple of days.  Elsie Porter meets the love of her life Ben Ross and they quickly form a relationship and marry in 6 months time.  Alas, Ben did not tell his mother about their relationship which becomes a problem when Ben dies in a freak accident.

This book is not just about overcoming grief but forming relationships and healing.  I enjoyed following Elsie's and Ben's romance and seeing the bond form between Elsie and Ben's mother Susan.

Great book - would highly recommend but would note to readers this is a story that doesn't necessarily appeal to everyone especially readers that like the fairy tale endings and happily ever afters.  5 stars.

Book Description from Amazon:
Elsie Porter is an average twentysomething and yet what happens to her is anything but ordinary. On a rainy New Year’s Day, she heads out to pick up a pizza for one. She isn’t expecting to see anyone else in the shop, much less the adorable and charming Ben Ross. Their chemistry is instant and electric. Ben cannot even wait twenty-four hours before asking to see her again. Within weeks, the two are head over heels in love. By May, they’ve eloped.

Only nine days later, Ben is out riding his bike when he is hit by a truck and killed on impact. Elsie hears the sirens outside her apartment, but by the time she gets downstairs, he has already been whisked off to the emergency room. At the hospital, she must face Susan, the mother-in-law she has never met—and who doesn’t even know Elsie exists.

Interweaving Elsie and Ben’s charmed romance with Elsie and Susan’s healing process, Forever, Interrupted will remind you that there’s more than one way to find a happy ending.

Catching Air by Sarah Pekkanen




Catching Air



I finished Catching Air by Sarah Pekkanen in a couple of days.  I've loved her past work and was looking forward to this book.  This is a good read but not quite as good as her other books.  I found myself not really relating to the female characters.  I did enjoy the book so 4 stars.


Book Description from Amazon:
From the internationally bestselling author of four books, including The Opposite of Me, a vibrant, compulsively readable novel about two married couples who pursue a dream to open a bed-and-breakfast in small-town Vermont.

In her previous works including The Best of Us, “rising star” (Library Journal) Sarah Pekkanen captivated readers by penning “refreshingly introspective, sharply realistic, and tenderly humorous” novels (Booklist) that had readers “flying through the pages” (Hoda Kotb, Todayshow). Now, in Catching Air, Pekkanen turns an unflinching eye on the tangled relationships of two pairs of thirty-somethings.

A chance to run a B&B in snowy, remote Vermont—it’s an offer Kira Danner can’t resist after six soul-crushing years of working as a lawyer in Florida. As Kira and her husband, Peter, step into a brand new life, she quells her fears about living with the B&B’s co-owners: Peter’s sexy, irresponsible brother Rand, and Rand’s wife, Alyssa…who is essentially a stranger.

For her part, Alyssa sees taking over the B&B as the latest in a string of adventures. Plus, a quiet place might help her recover from the news that she can’t bear children. But the idyllic town proves to be anything but serene: Within weeks, the sisters-in-law are scrambling to prepare for their first big booking—a winter wedding—and soon a shy, mysterious woman comes to work for them. Dawn Zukoski is hiding something; that much is clear. But what the sisters-in-law don't realize is that Dawn is also hiding from someone…

Relatable and dynamic, Catching Air delves deeply into the vital relationships that give shape to women’s lives.