Book Review: Under a Cloudless Sky

This novel tells how a town's past can bring it down or save it. Set in Beulah Mountain, West Virginia, in 1933 and in the present. In the past, there are two girls who make a vow. Ruby and Bean come from two different homes. One is the daughter of the mine owner and the other is the daughter of a mine worker. Both girls are looked after by Bean's mother and they do not know about the conflict that is coming.

In the present, Hollis Beasley has decided he is going to hold onto the legacy which his family left him on Beulah Mountain. His friend Buddy Coleman, however, want to increase the coal production of the town and open a museum. He wants to share the entire history of this town, including the 1933 uprising. He also will do this without care for anyone else.

These two stories come together through an elderly woman who lives miles away. The children of Ruby Handley Freeman want to take away the life she knows, so she disappears. While she is going she discovers a secret which will effect her and those who come across her path.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat clear until the end. It is so well-written that I felt like I was int he midst of the story from beginning to end. There is suspense throughout. I look forward to reading other works by this author in the near future.

I was given this book by Tyndale in exchange for my honest review.

This book may be found at Amazon HERE!
or
at Barnes and Noble HERE!

Book Review: Perfectly Undone

Cooper has just proposed to Dr. Dylan Michels, a woman who has worked for the life she has. Instead of accepting the proposal, which would seem the most natural thing for her to do, she says no. She has spent her entire life trying to be perfect....as a daughter, partner, doctor, yet she has never been able to get over the death of her sister. In order to accept Cooper's proposal, Dylan must face the role she had in her sister's death as well as the information that Cooper sends her way.

This novel about forgiveness and looking-forward was so well-written, I had a hard time putting it down. The characters were rich and true-to-life.

When I first picked up the book, I did not like Dylan at all, but after she looks back at her life and decides to make some changes, she held more appeal for me. I found this book to be more enjoyable than I thought by the description and recommend it  highly.

I was given this book by NetGalley and Harlequin in exchange for my honest review.

This book may be found at Amazon HERE!
or
Barnes and Noble HERE!

Book Review: Bringing Maggie Home

It has been a while since I have read a novel by Kim Vogel Sawyer. I am so glad that I picked up this book. It was like seeing a friend who you haven't seen for a long time.

In Bringing Maggie Home, the main character is Hazel DeFord. When she was ten, her sister, Maggie, who was three, disappears while the two girls are berry picking.

Now, almost seven decades later, it is still a mystery as to what happened all those years ago. Hazel has kept this as a guilt as she feels responsible since she was the older sister. This feeling has kept her from becoming close to her own daughter, Diane. Diane does not understand why her mother was almost paranoid about her protection. Diane's daughter Meghan, loves her grandmother, including all the attention.

Meghan takes a leave-of-absence after a car accident which makes all three women living together for a while. While there the secret guilt of Hazel's comes to the surface and causes Meghan to wonder if she will be able to solve this case.

What good writing. I wanted to continue reading to the end so I could find out what happened all those years ago. I love it when this happens. It really touched my heart, even with a subject which almost made me not read it. This story changes points of view throughout, plus time periods. This is handled in such an effortless manner which shows the skills of the author. I felt like I was a part of each life.

This book is one that I thoroughly enjoyed and I highly recommend it. I was given this book by Blogging for Books in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: The Story of Arthur Truluv by Elizabeth Berg

Elizabeth Berg is such a delightful writer. The characters in this book were all warm and easy to have feelings for.

Arthur is visiting his wife's grave when he meets Maddy. Each day he goes there to eat his lunch. Maddy, a high school senior, goes there to help figure out her crush. Then there is Arthur's neighbor who is in love, but the family does not share that sentiment about her.

Arthur is open as he reaches out to Maddy, as a friend. Arthur likes to help others reach a goal.

This book is a nice book to read. It is nice not to have to worry if there is a previous book I missed or if I have to wait for a follow-up. This is the complete story. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I was given this book by NetGalley and Random House Publishing in exchange for my honest review.

This book may be purchased HERE!

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Book Review: Lift and Separate

Marcy was married to Harvey for over 30 years. He was the owner of Bountiful Bosom Lingerie Company. She was happy and so in love with her hubby until he announces that he is leaving her. Unsure what to do now, she decides to ignore it all. Soon she finds the reason why he wanted to leave, an affair with a model.

During this time, her mother was in an accident and the doctors find she also has cancer. Now Marcy has even more to deal with but also discovers that she has strength that she didn't know about.

This book is a fast read. I found the author was realistic in the way she had Marcy deal with all that was thrown at her. It could have been a difficult book to read but the way the characters and the details are faced are believable and amusing.

I was given this book by NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: The Animators

There are not a lot of women in the animation field, however, in The Animators by Kayla Rae Whitaker, Mel and Sharon have broke through and they are succeeding. Along the road they look into this art as a way to escape or a way to explore their, not always happy, past. This friendship gets tested when their first feature comes together. This success causes strain in their friendship and their partnership.

Whitaker made characters which I care about and created a book that I know I want to read again. The two friends lives are dealt with with humor and heartbreak. In one section you may be laughing while in tears in another. I loved this book and I feel others will love it also.

I was given this book by NetGalley and Random House in exchange for my honest review.

Book review: The City Baker's Guide to Country Living

At first look, the title, The City Baker's Guide to Country Living, looks like it should be a cookbook, however, once you look closely you will see that this is a fun novel.

Olivia Rawlings is a pastry chef for a Boston dinner club. That is until one of her desserts burn the building down. To escape, she goes to Guthrie, Vermont, where her friend Hannah lives. Soon, Olivia is offered a job at the Sugar maple Inn. She takes the job and then moves to the inn's property with her large dog. Soon Guthrie is taken over by her wonderful desserts. She also discovers that the owner of the Sugar Maple Inn, Margaret, would like Olivia's help in reclaiming the inn's blue ribbon for apple pie at the county fair. Life in a small town seems to suit Livvy. She meets others including a surprise arrival who has Livvy deciding whether to stay or go.

The author is able to help the reader soak in all of Vermont through her brilliant descriptions, including the descriptions of Livvy's desserts. This fantastic book will take the reader on a well-deserved trip to a most lovely part of the country, through the world of a pastry chef.

I was given this book by Penguin Group Viking and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: Miss Dreamsville and the Lost Heiress of Collier County

Miss Dreamsville and the Lost Heiress of Collier County is the next part of Miss Dreamsville and the Collier County Women's Literary Society.

Set in 1964, the ladies decide to fight a new development where Delores Simpson lives in a fishing shack.

Darryl Norwood is the ex-husband of Dora Witherspoon, who has given her assistance to the fight. And what a fight is is becoming, including a court hearing and a reappearance of a ghost.

This is a quick, very enjoyable story. I did not feel lost by not reading the first book. The characters are well developed and fun to follow along. I recommend this book to anyone that enjoys reading and laughing at the same time.

I was given this book by NetGalley and Atria Books in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: A Window Opens

Alice Pearse has wished to have everything.This married mother with three children is also a good daughter and a so-so dog owner. However, she is not very good at cooking, crafts, decorator, and so on. Her husband makes a job change which requires her to become more. She believes that having a good job and a happy life are right around the corner.

I love this brilliant, smile and chuckle book. Elisabeth Egan created a wonderful story for her first book. I recommend this book to anyone that wants a light story that gives in insight on wanting it all.

I was given this book by NetGalley and Simon & Schuster in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: Family Inheritance

In Family Inheritance, three sisters leave behind their lives to travel to Minnesota to be at the bedside of a dying mother. They have not seen each other since leaving home. So there are many issues that have never been faced and resolved. They come to be with their mother and each other, even though there are many hurt emotions, which caused them to move away in the first place. None of them knew the hurt that the others were feeling.

Due to the issues that are uncovered, this is not an easy book to read, but it is still very well-written. Plus it does show how the problems of one sibling can have far-reaching effects on the others.

I was given this book by NetGalley and BQB Publishing in exchange for my honest review. 

Book Review: Between Sisters

Cathy Kelly is such a rich author and she shares her wealth of talent with each of us through her works.

In the book Between Sisters, the sisters are Cassie and Coco. Their mother left them when they were younger. Now that they are grown, they are still feeling the pain. They were left in the care of their grandmother, so they did know love but not the love of their own mother.

Cassie now has a family with two teenage daughters and Coco is single. Each are successful career-women.

There are problems that erupt into their lives and seeing their pathway to the resolution is very interesting and intriguing.

As with many of her other books, Between Sisters, is not a light book to read. It includes mistakes and real-life instances throughout it.

I love the bond that Cathy Kelly is able to include in this book between the sisters. I would highly recommend this book to Cathy Kelly lovers and to those who enjoy books with reality throughout it.

I was given this book by NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: How to Party With an Infant

How to Party With an Infant is a humorous, touching account about parenthood and humans.

This book presents Mele Bart as a single mother from San Francisco. She tried to meet with other moms and finally found a group that worked. Now this group is going to have a cookbook contest. This book tells the tale of Mele and form which she fills out for the competition and stories about her group. Meanwhile, she is also dealing with complications with her daughter, Ellie's, father.

Anyone that can relate to the challenges of being a mom will enjoy this book.

I was given this book by NetGalley and Simon and Schuster in exchange for my honest review.