In October 1962, Colt Harrison and his little brother, Timmy, hatched a plan. They would run away from their Florida home, head for their aunt's house in Savannah, Georgia, and refuse to come home until their parents got back together. But things go terribly, terribly wrong. Colt's mother and father must come to grips with years of neglect and mistrust in order to recover their beloved sons, their love for one another, and their broken marriage.
In this emotional story, Dan Walsh takes readers on a journey to rediscover the things that matter most in life--love, truth, and family.
This is the second novel that I've read in the past couple of weeks that was set in the 1960's. It's not an overly popular time period; however, I've really enjoyed both of these books. The last book I read, Summer of Joy by Ann H. Gabhart, was set in a rural Midwestern town. This book is set in Florida during the two weeks of the Cuba Missile Crisis and really pointed out the uncertainty that this region, especially, was feeling.
New fun fact about me. I am a lover of history. I happened to have an AWESOME history teacher by the name of Mr. McClure who taught history in the form of a story (or maybe being the bookworm that I am, I just made it into a story, I mean, story is in the word). I would read all my history books at the beginning of every semester and just soak in the information. I've read all about the Kennedy era, but I swear I don't remember much about the Cuba Missile except for the embargo imposed by JFK (after he stocked up on cigars first). This story helped me understand a lot of the helplessness and borderline terror people were feeling at this time. The author, Dan Walsh, described long lines of Army trucks driving down the interstate in Florida and people just standing there watching, trying to figure out what was going on. He did an excellent job describing the shock people felt as President Kennedy told the country of Russia putting nuclear missiles in Cuba that were aimed straight for the U.S. Mr. Walsh really brought all of these pictures alive in my head.
Here's the thing, I just wrote a huge paragraph about the BACKGROUND story in this book. The real story is about a kidnapping going on during all of this. Can you imagine being the parents of this kidnapping and realizing, the story that is impacting your family the most, doesn't even come close to making the front page of the newspaper because any day now, World War III could be starting. This is how good the book was. Mr. Walsh did an excellent job of weaving the two stories together and then, sprinkled in some marriage advice for good measure.
A masterful story teller, I will look forward to many more books from Dan Walsh. This is actually one of the first books that I have read that I could see being made into a movie. (Hey Hollywood, are you listening?) I could see the guy from Facing the Giants and Courageous as one of the FBI agents assigned to the case.
But I digress. This is a really excellent book, and I highly recommend it to you. It has a little something (romance, intrigue, war, whodunit, etc.) for everyone.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through Bethany House Publisher's book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa...; : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
In this collection of brand-new historical novellas from four outstanding storytellers, four young women find their lives altered after each receives a letter that sets her on a new path toward a changed life--and perhaps lifelong love. From a Hudson River steamboat to a lush drawing room, from a carousel carver's workshop to a remote and controversial hospital, readers will love being swept into the lives of four young women who are making their way in the world and finding love where they least expect it.
I LOVE Novellas!
I read a lot of books, most of which are novels, that work very hard to engage your whole brain as you make your way through meeting the characters, getting lost in their problem, and then going with them through the climax of the story to the ending. Sometimes, though, when you read a lot of deep and intricate plot lines, your brain needs a break. You just want a nice, light story that doesn't make you think overly hard. A story that makes you smile and maybe, hopefully, even laugh.
I am happy to say that the Sincerely Yours Novella Collection does exactly that. The first story made me laugh at the spunkiness of the heroine on the second page. Gotta love a gal with gumption! :-) The story about the Carousel carver made you want to see the finished carousel so bad, and I literally busted a gut as our heroine tried to prove she was worth something by attempting to cook and do the laundry for a hotel. The second story gave you insight into the world of writing in the late 1800's or early 1900's, and I think I enjoyed the author's note at the end as much as I did the story. The fourth story was simply fascinating. It was not necessarily a funny, make-me-laugh kind of story, but it took a true story and gave a twist to it that brought characters to life.
Absolutely loved this collection of stories. These are quick reads (I think I finished it in about a day and a half), but the stories are excellent! l highly recommend.
I also wanted to let you know of a give-a-way being done by one of the authors, Jane Kirkpatrick. Her blog, http://janeswordsofencouragement.blogspot.com/, gives you some behind the scenes on one of the stories as well as a chance to win a pen and stationary gift set! Check it out.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through Bethany House Publisher's book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa...; : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
For Jocie Brooke, the summer of 1964 certainly was eventful, but it's nothing compared to what's coming to Hollyhill, Kentucky, and the Brooke family next. The past is coming to call, threatening to destroy the relationships that everyone thought were so strong. Two people--one thought to be gone for good and the other no one's ever heard of--are making their way to the small town. And it promises trouble for everyone.
This complex and beautifully written story is the perfect conclusion to The Heart of Hollyhill series. With true-to-life family drama, refreshing humor, and characters readers have come to love like dear friends,Summer of Joy will delight Gabhart's fans.
Everything always happens to 14-year-old Jocie Brook. Tornadoes, Fires, something's always happening to her. Abandoned by her mother, stubborn, tenacious, know-it-all Jocie just attracts trouble. Like the time she ran away and her adopted grandfather, Wes, had a tree fall on him trying to save her from a tornado. Or the fact that her Freshman English teacher seems to hate her for absolutely no reason. Then what happens when her entire world is rocked by the arrivals of two unexpected visitors.
One thing I thought was really neat about this book was the time period. So many times you either have modern day or 1940 or earlier and we totally skip the 60+ years in between. Summer of Joy is set in 1964 in a small town in Kentucky. I think this books describes very well small town life of that era. How everyone knows everyone's business. The tension between the integration of African-Americans into the everyday life of a small southern town.
I think this is a good story that will appeal to a wide range of ages. The main character, Jocie, is a 14-year-old girl, but the secondary characters will pull you in as well. This is the third book in a series; however I don't think you need the other two, although I am intrigued to go back and see how the stories weave together. I also don't think Ms. Gabhart is done with this series so I would be looking for another installation in the HollyHill series.
On a side note, there was one subject I thought Ms. Gabhart handled very, very well, and that was breast cancer. A side character, who shall remain nameless so as not to give anything away, is diagnosed with breast cancer and to see what was not available to women in the 1960's will make you extremely thankful to be alive today.
If you would like to have my copy to read, please leave a comment below and I will pick a name at the end of the week.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through Bethany House Publisher's book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa...; : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
A Regency Romance
Dutiful Jessamine Barry is tired of waiting patiently for a man to decide her future. So even though Lancelot Marfleet, second son of an aristocrat, is taking an interest in her during the London season, she refuses to consider him as a suitor. Instead, she's ready to take fashionable society by storm--and finds a rakish young man all too willing to help her do it. When things go too far, Jessamine will learn that the man who is faithful through thick and thin is more worthy than the one who speaks pretty words. But will her disgrace keep Lance from reconsidering her as a wife? And when tragedy strikes and Lance becomes his father's heir and a titled gentleman, will he think she only wants him now because of his title?
Okay. If I had read the above paragraph prior to reading the book I would have felt like I was duped once I was done. It makes me wonder if the descriptive paragraph was written by the author or by someone at the publishing house who flipped through the book or the last couple chapters of the book. Some of the scenarios above are totally inconsequential to the story.
Here's my take on the book, without spoiler alerts. Jessamine Barry is the daughter of a country vicar who, along with her best friend, is being sponsored for the London season by her godmother in hopes that she will find someone to marry. Nursing a broken heart from the man she has loved since she was 13, she seeks to reaffirm that she is someone any man would want. When two completely opposite men pursue her, will she make the right decision or will a decision be made for her.
Now...to me, that sounds more like the book. This book is a little slow in reading, but give it time, it does get better the further in it goes. If you like the Regency Era, you will probably like this book as well. The characters were well written for the most part, but, once again, it was the secondary characters that made it a little more for me. If you're an avid book reader, it won't hurt to try it.
My humble opinion...insert curtsy here :-)
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through Bethany House Publisher's book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa...; : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
