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Review: In Your Dreams (Blue Heron) by Kristan Higgins

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Aaahhh, the Blue Heron series. Wine, good-looking vintners, smart and sassy women, and swoon-worthy heroes.

So Emmaline has a crush on Jack, but so does half the town. He married and quickly divorced a hot ticket from Savannah, saved four stupid teenagers from drowning, and offers his friendship to any of his sisters’ friends who need a convenient date to a wedding.

What I absolutely adore about Jack is that he’s pretty realistic. Higgins precisely got into the mind of a man … focused on his own stuff, not purposely being a jerk but obliviously doing so, aware of his charm and hotness — and willing to use it for his own benefit.

Emmaline proves to be one of the most awesome female protagonists in a romance. She’s great at her job, insecure with men, not a skinny-minny, loving to her sister, annoyed with her mother, and just trying to get through life unscathed any more than she already is. Very realistic. And she has a smart-mouth on her, that Emmaline.

Higgins writes Emmaline in that little place of insecurity – in love with a man but not willing to tell him because she knows it’s going to blow up in her face. And you know what, it does blow up in her face.

And then Jack saves the day. And they live happily ever after. Because that’s how the Blue Heron men roll.

–Calliope

$5 for kindle!
buy IN YOUR DREAMS

Review: Growing Up Duggar by Jill Duggar, et al.

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20140302-232159.jpg I love watching 20 Kids and Counting (The Duggars) on TLC, and I couldn’t wait to read what the four oldest daughters had to say about growing up, well, Duggar.

I liked that they each gave several personal anecdotes relating to the concept they focused on in each chapter. I had fun peeking into their lives and feeling like I was in on something. The women wrote as if they were talking to me, personally, and I found it very engaging.

I’m an organized, linear sort of reader, so I appreciate that the book was divided into chapters relating to the various types of relationships Duggar children attend to. We hear about the young ladies’ and their siblings’ relationships with their family, God, and their community.

As a mom, I paid special attention to the chapters on relationships with parents and siblings. Even though I don’t homeschool, I don’t have the same beliefs about clothing, and I’m not as strict with media, I do see many areas where the Duggar style of raising children would help my family. The Duggars encourage kindness, forgiveness, and obedience using consistent, focused, and Bible-driven rules.

The only thing that really interfered with my enjoyment of Growing Up Duggar were the dozen or so references to websites and specific organizations that the Duggar family supports. Those mentions seemed a little bit on a PR/marketing bent, and it made me question the sincerity of the ladies’ stories.

Overall, this was an uplifting, eye-opening read. I am duly impressed with the many ways these four sisters serve The Lord and each other.

–Calliope

BUY Growing Up Duggar

Review: The Stone Boy by Sophie Loubiere

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20131110-160727.jpgWhat would you do if you thought your neighbour was abusing their child? Well, that’s the predicament faced by Elsa Perau. In this novel (touted as a national phenomenon in its native France), the reader is presented with the narrative view of Elsa Perau and her increasing concern for the safety of a child living next door to her. However, this isn’t just your usual case of an abused child living next door; Elsa isn’t exactly the most reliable person, and paranoia is the main theme of this novel. Is the child actually being abused, or is Elsa imagining it?
This novel is translated into English, and I believe that it lost something in translation. Don’t get me wrong, the pace and style was good, but I just couldn’t help thinking that I was missing something by not reading in the original language. It felt like a heavy fog – you could make out something, but not quite see it clearly.
As mentioned above, the pacing of this novel was good because just when you think it is going in one direction, it turns on you. This kept me guessing, and changing my mind at various points throughout. However, there are some parts where it seems like there is no build up to surprises, and it feels like a kind of “oh this happened, surprise!” And then it moves straight on. I did like how it made you think about what is real, and what you want to be real; so often in life we can make things seem real enough, and in fact there will be a completely different interpretation, depending upon who you ask.
Overall, it was an entertaining read, but I felt it lacked that certain je ne sais quoi. I recommend it for its ability to portray truths and versions of truths that I haven’t seen before, but being a phenomenon? I don’t know….

ARC provided by NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Buy it here: The Stone Boy

Review: The Hero by Robyn Carr

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5 stars!

Oh, Robyn Carr, I do love your talent. Who else can make an ensemble cast and a main character develop simultaneously in the same novel? Romance leads the way while family life and suspense follow closely behind.

I liked the romantic element in The Hero — Devon runs away with her daughter from a drug dealer-run commune — and ends up falling in love with a new guy in a new town (Thunder Point). He’s her hero in a way.

And I liked the family and community themes EVEN MORE. Rawley, the antisocial, grouchy old coot who helps Cooper at the beach restaurant, finally finds a social niche. Rawley found Devon walking along the road, saved her, and gave her a place to stay — a physical home and a home in his grandfatherly heart. Devon and her daughter Mercy are the family Rawley never had. He is Devon’s hero, too.

The women of the town quickly take to Devon, meeting her for coffee and lending an ear. They make her feel part of the town, without requiring that she repay them. The women’s friendships save Devon emotionally. They are her heroes.

By the end, we see the many ways Devon is a hero – to herself, her love interest, her daughter, Rawley, the doctor’s office. And she finally sees it too.

Around Devon’s story, Robyn Carr masterfully weaves in updates on the rest of the characters, whose stories began in Thunder Point books 1 and 2: Eric and Ashley, Cooper and Sarah and Landon (and Eve), Mac and Gina, Spencer and Austin… their relationships continue to grow and develop in wonderful ways. There are new homes, engagement rings, new jobs, a new school year, and even a beach wedding.

The Hero was a combination of the best romantic elements from The Wanderer (book 1) and the well-developed family elements in The Newcomer (book 2).

Thank you for a great escape, Robyn Carr! I lived in Thunder Point for a night and enjoyed every word, every chapter.

–Calliope

Buy It Now The Hero

Review: A Nantucket Christmas, by Nancy Thayer

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970104_10200426610931208_974928933_n2 stars.

A Nantucket Christmas is the story of a boy, Maddox, meeting a dog. But before he does, Thayer tells us the individual stories of the boy and his family, and of the dog and his plight.

This book meandered and wandered, describing Nantucket in its Christmas glory, and describing the personalities and quirks of Maddox’s family members. Unfortunately, the direction of the plot (boy meeting dog) wasn’t clear midway through. I was left wondering, What ABOUT this boy and his family? What is this book about? Where is the conflict?

Sure, there were small conflicts, but I saw no focal point, no literary conflict around which a compelling story could be told.

So, A Nantucket Christmas was mostly a slice of life story with an exciting birth scene and a warm meeting between boy and dog.

I wanted to love it, but with its uneven writing, sprinkling of puns, and reflective paragraph about yawning, I struggled to finish. This book might work as a short story or a Lifetime movie, but it doesn’t have the forward moving energy required of a good novel.

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

-Calliope

Buy It Now A Nantucket Christmas: A Novel