Rumor Has it by Jill Mansell

★★★★★
Rumor Has It sizzles with Mansell's signature fresh sense of humor, poignancy, and happy ending with a twist.

Newly single Tilly Cole impulsively moves to a small town, only to find she's arrived in a hotbed of gossip, intrigue, and rampant rivalry for the most desirable man—Jack Lucas, whose reputation is beyond bad. Tilly has no intention of becoming another notch on his bedpost. But she finds the thoughtful, caring guy she comes to value as a friend doesn't seem to fit the town's playboy image. Should she listen to her friends or her heart? Is Tilly being mature and sensible—or running away from the love of her life?

Ahhh!  Another Jill Mansell book that I just loved!  I thought Rumor Has It was so good.  If you haven't seen any of my other reviews on this author, she is a British chick-lit author.  Her stories are funny and sweet and witty, and they have happy endings.  They are feel good, funny stories that are a pleasure to read.  I really enjoyed this book - Tilly is such a sweet character, and she ends up in an unexpected situation and place.  I found myself rooting for her to find someone to make her happy.  Recommended!

Delivered with Love by Sherry Kyle

★★★★☆
An old love letter found in the glove compartment of a young woman's inherited 1972 Volkswagen propels her to leave her life in Los Angeles and go to the small town of Capitola, California.There her dream of finding the writer of the letter leads her on an unexpected journey that changes her life forever.

Claire James, age twenty-three, is ready to make it on her own. When she's fired from her job as a waitress and subsequently kicked out of her sister's home, she sees it as an opportunity to start over. But even before moving, a thirty-five-year-old love letter written to her mother keeps Claire stuck in the past. Michael Thompson, a middle-aged real estate agent, wants to keep the past where it belongs—at least until his grown daughter is married. But, then a young woman comes to town . . .

To be honest, I read this book because it was a freebie, and I debated whether to give it 3- or 4-stars.  It was better than a 3 but not as good as a 4.  :)  Delivered with Love is a sweet, Christian fiction book.  I felt at times like some of the characters were not extremely well-developed.  There are several instances where the book is very predictable as well.  But the overall story is sweet, and there is a really cute love story, so I ultimately decided to give it 4-stars.  :)  I probably would have been disappointed had I paid full price for it, but it made for a good freebie read.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

★★★★★
Be prepared to meet three unforgettable women:
 
Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but it is 1962, Mississippi, and her mother will not be happy till Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid Constantine, the woman who raised her, but Constantine has disappeared and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone.
 
Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her seventeenth white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son, who died while his bosses looked the other way. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both their hearts may be broken.
 
Minny, Aibileen's best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobody's business, but she can't mind her tongue, so she's lost yet another job. Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town to know her reputation. But her new boss has secrets of her own.
 
Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. And why? Because they are suffocating within the lines that define their town and their times. And sometimes lines are made to be crossed.
 
In pitch-perfect voices, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women-mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends-view one another. A deeply moving novel filled with poignancy, humor, and hope, The Help is a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don't.
 
I loved The Help!  This is such a great book!  I couldn't put it down.  This is one where some of my household to-do's got neglected because I was reading.  The main characters in this book are so quirky and likable.  You mentally root for them the whole time.  Although this book is a work of fiction, it is amazing to me that this time was not so long ago, a time where inequality was part of life.  This story is filled with emotion, both good and bad, and it is so moving.  I am definitely going to see the movie just to experience it again.  I hope I'm not disappointed in the movie!  I'm not one for re-reading books regularly, but I may just re-read this one!!  Definitely recommended.

The Queen of New Beginnings by Erica James

★★★★★

What happens when your best hope for the future is through the past?

Voice-over artist Alice avoids telling the truth. It's not lying, exactly, and the freedom of reinvention makes those tough years in the past a little easier to bear. So when she meets writer Clayton Miller, she recognizes the suspicious signs of someone who wants to shrug off his old life. Untangling the web of secrets they've constructed creates an unlikely friendship-until Alice discovers that Clayton has betrayed her in the worst possible way.

The author of fifteen international bestsellers, Erica James deftly explores infidelity, bereavement, and the bonds of family with a sparkling voice that will resonate long after the book is finished.

Praise for Erica James.

I thought The Queen of New Beginnings was a great book!  I didn't know what to expect because I had never read anything by Erica James.  I picked this up when it was a freebie at bn.com.  It's another British chick-lit story, which I'm coming to find I really enjoy!  Even thought it is a light-hearted book, the story definitely has some depth of emotion to it.  I thought the plot was good and was really well thought out.  I was not expecting it, but this book was a page-turner!  I am going to keep my eye out for more by Erica James.  Great book!

The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
In the fall of 1984, high school students Amanda Collier and Dawson Cole fell deeply, irrevocably in love. Though they were from opposite sides of the tracks, their love for one another seemed to defy the realities of life in the small town of Oriental, North Carolina. But as the summer of their senior year came to a close, unforeseen events would tear the young couple apart, setting them on radically divergent paths.


Now, twenty-five years later, Amanda and Dawson are summoned back to Oriental for a funeral. Neither has lived the life they imagined . . . and neither can forget the passionate first love that forever changed their lives. Forced to confront painful memories, the two former lovers soon realize that everything they thought they knew-about themselves and the dreams they held dear-was not as it seemed. And in the course of a single, searing weekend, they will ask of the living, and the dead: Can love truly rewrite the past?

I was so excited to read The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks.  After reading 3 not-so-great books in a row, I was ready for something good and knew Sparks wouldn't disappoint!  Of course he did not.  This book is definitely a page turner and of course includes a great love story (actually 2 of them).  Sparks has such a knack for creating these stories that make you feel the emotion of his characters.  He did a great job with this novel.

I certainly don't want to ruin the book, so I'm not going to say too much - but there are reasons I enjoyed some of his other books better.  But trust me, this book is most definitely worth the read!

Gap Creek by Robert Morgan

★★☆☆☆
There is a most unusual woman living in Gap Creek. Julie Harmon works hard, "hard as a man," they say, so hard that at times she's not sure she can stop. People depend on her to slaughter the hogs and nurse the dying. People are weak, and there is so much to do. She is just a teenager when her little brother dies in her arms. That same year she marries and moves down into the valley where floods and fire and visions visit themselves on her, and con men and drunks and lawyers come calling.

Julie and her husband discover that the modern world is complex and that it grinds ever on without pause or concern for their hard work. To survive, they must find out whether love can keep chaos and madness at bay.

Robert Morgan's latest novel, Gap Creek, returns his readers to the vivid world of the Appalachian high country. Julie and Hank's new life in the valley of Gap Creek in the last years of the nineteenth century is more complicated than the couple ever imagined. Sometimes it's hard to tell what to fear most-the fires and floods or the flesh-and-blood grifters, drunks, and busybodies who insinuate themselves into their new lives. Their struggles with nature, with work, with the changing century, and with their disappointments and triumphs make this a riveting follow-up to Morgan's acclaimed novel, The Truest Pleasure.

I was so disappointed in Gap Creek!  I got it because not only was it a freebie, but it was part of Oprah's Book Club.  It has to be good, right?!  Wrong!!  :(  The most riveting part of this book is the summary.  It is really a slow, depressing book.  :(  After I read it, I read some of the reviews at bn.com.  The most recent comments said things like 'Slow,' 'Like Watching Paint Dry,' 'Mega-depressing Oprah Book, 'ZZZ,' and 'Free is the Perfect Price.'  I guess I should have read the reviews BEFORE I read it!


Unfortuantely there's not too much to say about this book.  It is slow.  It is depressing.  Most definitely not a page turner.  It doesn't even end well.  Boo.  :(


I'm ready for a good book!  I've read 3 not-so-great ones in a row.  So I just purchased and started Nicholas Sparks' new one, The Best of Me.  So far, soooo good!

Mitten Strings for God: Reflections for Mothers in a Hurry by Katrina Kenison

★★★☆☆
As mothers today we are faced with a daunting list of responsibilities. How easy it is to simply rush headlong through our lives, slaves to our daily obligations, and in the process race our children through their childhood. But there is a better way... In Mitten Strings for God, Katrina Kenison shares her own search for a more satisfying balance in her life. The result is a lyrical and tender series of reflections, interwoven with gentle suggestions and advice, that remind us what happens when we slow down and are fully present in our lives. Suddenly there is room for joy and play and intimacy, space for wonder and reverie, and time to awaken to the beauty of the world and discover the sacred in the ordinary. Tranquil in our own hearts and minds, we can offer our children the one thing they need more than anything else: us. And we receive something priceless in return-the chance to savor our lives and the precious people in them.


I was really looking forward to reading Mitten Strings for God because I think so many times I feel caught up in getting 'stuff' done, even if it's for the kids, that I have to remind myself to sit down with them and just enjoy the moment.  Based upon the title, I also thought this book was written from a Christian perspective.


I thought the concepts in this book were great: slow down, play with your kids, enjoy being with them.  Your time with your children doesn't have to be constant instruction.  I thought these were great concepts and great reminders.  However, contrary to what I thought, this book wasn't written from a Christian perspective (which was fine); but for me it was a little too 'touchy-feely.'  I could only read so much about watching trees sway in the wind and listening to crickets chirp (I may be making that up, but that's the feeling I got when reading).  Maybe that's my not-slowing-down mentality coming through!!  But I actually didn't finish reading the book because I got the gist pretty early on and got bored of reading more of the same.


This book has high ratings on bn.com, so if it sounds interesting I'd say give it a whirl.  I totally agree with the concepts of enjoying your children, but the style of this book was a little over-the-top for me.