It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 12/20/10

This fantastic meme is now hosted by Sheila at One Person's Journey Through a World of Books.

This week I tried, unsuccessfully, to read a couple of books that I just don't know if my interest is high enough to read one more sentence.  Am I burned out?  Too busy?  New case of ADD?  I don't know but I won't mention those books.

This week I read:


I am currently reading or plan to read this week:



New to my TBR List (either own or from library):



This week I will be participating in a Blog Hop Tuesday and Wednesday.  New Giveaways!

I will also be reviewing:



Now I have to get back to reading.  I am really into "Across the Universe."

Peace and Plenty Giveaway!

Finding Your Path to Financial Serenity..

“When money is plentiful, this is a man’s world. When money is scarce, it is a woman’s world.” Unearthed in a 1932 Ladies Home Journal, this quote is the call to arms that begins PEACE AND PLENTY, Sarah Ban Breathnach’s answer to the world’s– and her own personal– financial crisis As only Ban Breathnach can, she culls together this compendium of advice, deeply personal anecdotes, and excerpts from magazines, books, and newspapers– particularly those of the Great Depression– to inspire readers who are mired in today’s financial difficulties.

Focusing on her own personal path, Sarah Ban Breathnach will relate never-before revealed details about how she fell from the financial top to the bottom. Readers will immediately see how deeply she understands the plight of those trying to maintain a happy and comfortable home, while at the same time not even knowing if they will be able to make the mortgage to keep that home.

Sarah has proved to be the voice of comfort for years to women who are spiritually bankrupt, and now she will reach to those who are financially strapped, showing them how to pull themselves out of their psychic and fiscal crises while providing deep comfort and reassurance throughout.

Read an Excerpt!

Reaching out to those financially strapped, the author goes beyond coupon clipping to pulling yourself out of that deep, dark hole mentally and spiritually, while giving you courageous tips of fortitude to what is really important and what we “can” live without while being both much happier and content.

“An astonishing number of people you know, probably including yourself, insist that they have to do a lot of economizing…This isn’t because of the size of their incomes or the lack of size; it’s because they haven’t as much money as they with they had, which would be true no matter what their incomes. They have a dream of the way they’d like to live, but it’s always just ahead of them, and by the time they’ve covered the distance, it’s moved a little farther on. Their ships are eternally on the horizon and never come in.”

“The reasons that so many marriages fail is not that there is too little money in the bank – though that is undoubtedly in many cases a factor – but too little riches of other sorts treasured, laid by, counted over, assured and reckoned with foresight and with honesty and wisdom in the spending of them.”

“ATM cards and balancing your checkbook in your head or from your online statement are devices of the collective consciousness of the banking industry to keep us in debt.”

With the envelope system, you can only spend what you have. One Rule to Remember:
You can never borrow from your rent, utilities, car payment, or any others!

About the Author.. Click on Sarah’s Photo to learn more…

In addition to SIMPLE ABUNDANCE, Sarah Ban Breathnach is the author of THE SIMPLE ABUNDANCE JOURNAL OF GRATITUDE, SOMETHING MORE, and MRS. SHARP’S TRADITIONS. She currently resides in California.

Thanks to Hatchette Book Group, I have three copies to offer!  All you have to do is fill out this form:

U.S. Only
No P.O. Boxes
Leave comment love.

Book Blogger Hop

I'm blog hopping today, discovering new book blogs because it just sounds fun. Click on picture above to find more fabulous book blogs that are nearly as good as mine. They each answer this question: "What do you consider the most important in a story: the plot or the characters?"

My answer? Neither. Dialogue. Make me laugh.

Mostly Good Girls Review

Mostly Good Girls by Leila Sales

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Leila Sales is hilarious! She has given the voice inside my head a voice on the pages. She's also inspired the voice inside my head to be more clever. Not that I talk to myself or anything because that would be totally weird. Okay, maybe just a little.

Violet attends a pricey prep school where the expectations are to play by certain rules. Dress just so, be just so, and always, ALWAYS strive for success by doing your best. Katie is Violet's best friend. Katie is tired of playing the game. Katie wants to feel validation for herself and who she is rather than following rules and adhering to expectations.

Truth is, I hit page 114 still waiting for the conflict or just to answer the question, "What is this book about?" On page 114, I realized that my face hurt. I couldn't stop smiling. The book was Seinfeld - a book about nothing but about everything and it was hilarious. The conflict came but I mostly enjoyed the parts where it was about nothing. As a good blogger knows, a good post is about nothing with a twist be it humor, meaning, or a dangling participle.

Hilarious.

There are mature themes incorporated into the story. Language is not always for mostly good girls. Kind of like watching Seinfeld reruns but knowing the punchline is inappropriate for your children's ears and having to mute while they discuss being sponge - worthy (although sex is only an innuendo in the book).

The chapters are short and succinct which only adds to the humor. One chapter is entitled, "Genevieve is anorexic." The evidence is laid out for the reader as Violet makes the case for Genevieve being anorexic. She's absent. She only drinks Diet Coke. Every couple of weeks she will make some gooey, creamy concoction, like tiramisu, and she will bring it into homeroom, and she will demand in a crazed tone that the rest of us eat it. "All of it!" she will shrill. "As much as you want! Help yourselves! Yum!" etc.

Two chapters later, "Genevieve is not anorexic." In its entirety:

"Genevieve was back in school today. Turns out she just had the flu and was too delirious with fever to let any of her friends know where she was.

"When she found out about the anorexic rumor, she got all indignant and went around complaining, I can't believe you thought I'd been hospitalized!" Though she also sounded a little proud to be so skinny that her classmates had mistaken her for being in advanced stages of a life-threatening eating disorder.

"Whatever, Genevieve. It was a totally rational assumption."

It still hurts. I'm still smiling.

Thanks to All About {n} and Simon and Schuster PulsIt for a copy of this book.



View all my reviews

Goodnight Tweetheart Review and Giveaway

Goodnight Tweetheart by Teresa Medeiros

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Abby got the ultimate stamp of approval. Oprah picked her book for her book club. That was four years ago. Abby's star is fading fast. Book two needs to be written but she's stuck on Chapter 5. Deadline has passed. She's on the verge of getting dumped by her publicist, bordering on agoraphobia, and quickly heading down the path of no return; the eccentric cat woman. Not good.

Enter Twitter. What does one do on Twitter? So she tweets. Someone answers. His name is MarkBaynard. He's a college English Literature professor on sabbatical, traveling the European continent. At least that's his story and he's sticking to it. Abby accuses him of being a 15 year old adolescent living in his mother's basement with body parts in his freezer.

The relationship develops one tweet at a time or 140 characters or less. He pulls her out of her writing funk, her blossoming agoraphobia but she keeps her cats. Their interactions are hilarious. I dream of being so clever! They also discuss some pretty deep issues and share their true selves albeit he does forget to inform her of one teeny tiny detail of his life. No spoilers here but a dispeller; his name really is Mark, a lit professor on sabbatical. He is not married nor gay.

Every conversation begins with "What are you wearing?" Nearly without fail, Abby replies that she is wearing sweats with coffee stains and - fill in blank -. The fill in blank is usually unusual like a pill box hat from any of Doris Day's movies. Mark also claims he is wearing a combination of clothing from a character from pop culture. Perhaps the black coat of Keanu Reaves from The Matrix and the ghost canister on Bill Murray from Ghostbusters. The dialogue is heavy laden with pop culture references. It's snarky, intelligent, and keeps the reader on her toes.

They sign off with references from a television show - The Waltons, for instance. Goodnight Mary Ellen, Goodnight Erin, Goodnight John Boy, Goodnight Grandma. The Cosby Show, Goodnight Dr. Huxtable, Goodnight Theo, etc. and finally, "Goodnight Tweetheart."

The relationship is built solely on tweets. Both are too insecure to share their pictures with one another (although they are accessible via internet at any time). With growing intimacy, they discover the importance of their friendship and how much they want to be there for each other in times of need.

Very cute, quick but meaningful read.

Assuming Galley will sponsor giveaway, I have 2 copies available.  Or, if I forget to ask and they don't have giveaway copies, I have one gently used copy.  Either way, at least one person will be very happy.

U.S. Only
No P.O. boxes
Contest ends January 1, 2011

Sundays at Tiffany's Winner

Laurie of Laurieville (Population 1)

How lucky is she?

Merry Christmas!

City of Tranquil Light by Bo Caldwell

City of Tranquil Light: A Novel by Bo Caldwell

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Bo Caldwell’s 2001 debut novel, The Distant Land of My Father, set in historic China and based on the story of her uncle, was a critical and commercial success—a national bestseller that was loved by critics, booksellers, and readers in equal measure. In 2002 Caldwell turned to the story of her maternal grandparents who were missionaries in China in the early 1900s. For years her mother had urged her to write about them and when she dove into the research she found their lives full of conflict, danger, and heartbreak, as well as joy and fulfillment. But life, in the form of a cancer diagnosis, kept her from her writing desk until 2006. When she returned, she completed City of Tranquil Light (Henry Holt and Company), a searing love story of a man and a woman, their God, and the country they jointly loved and a deeply researched and page-turning portrait of a country in utter turmoil.

 

A novel based on her grandparents wasn’t Caldwell’s idea. “I’m embarrassed to say that before I had dismissed my grandparents’ lives as too dull and simplistic. But as I reread my grandfather’s memoir and began to ask my mom about my grandparents, I learned how wrong I’d been.” As she began to see her grandparents as her mother had seen them, and to read the biographies and autobiographies of other American missionaries in China, Caldwell found similar stories. “I saw a pattern emerge in the later lives of many of these men and women. Most eventually returned to the United States, usually to be near their children (now grown) and grandchildren, but also because of illness or frailty. I was moved by the contrast between their lives in China and their later lives in the U.S. After enduring decades of war, famine, illness, personal danger, and great hostility toward their work, these people settled safely in the suburbs where they walked in rose gardens and played with their grandchildren and lived out their days. I was struck by the sacrifice that must have been involved in leaving the people and work that had been at the center of their lives, even with the reward of the comforts of modern life. I also began to feel that missionaries often get a bad rap in fiction. While there were certainly those who exploited the people they had come to serve, there were also many who poured out their lives for strangers and for their faith. And I wanted to tell their story.”

 

That story is one of marriage, of leaving one home and finding another, and of faith. “When I began the novel, I tried to understand my grandfather’s faith and to present it accurately,” says Caldwell. “I tried to see the world through his eyes.” Then life intervened, including a battle to quit drinking followed shortly after with a diagnosis of breast cancer. Once Caldwell returned to writing two years later, she returned as a different person. The combination of sobriety and a serious illness had affected her faith deeply, and she was no longer writing about her grandparents’ faith. She was writing about her own.

My Take: I did not expect to like this book as much as I did. The author's voice is compelling and articulate. The story is told by two narrators; Will and Katherine. Their voices and outlooks are distinct and different from one another. Although they are married and serve together in China, their experiences and perceptions are very different.

The years the couple are in China are pivotal in the country's economic and political outcome. A dynasty ends, a civil war is fought, there is drought and famine, the country is run by bandits, the cities are burned and pillaged yet the Chinese spirit prevails. The people continue to rise up and meet the challenges.

The couple begin as singles, traveling to China because they feel "called" to do so. The book details their steerage passage from Seattle to China, their journey inland, their different callings, their courtship then marriage. The miracles they see and experience from the first convert to interactions with a lead bandit to the experiences during the Civil War and their return to the United States are moving and heart wrenching.

This is a story about a country but also about marriage, family, friendship, and enduring love.  The personalities of the characters stay true throughout and the reader is convinced of their faith and authenticity.  The author has given her grandparents an amazing gift by providing a voice and vehicle to teach once again of Christ and through their example. I loved this book.

*I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review by The B&B Media Group

Athena Project by Brad Thor

The Athena Project by Brad Thor

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When a terrorist attack in Rome kills more than twenty Americans, Athena Team members Gretchen Casey, Julie Ericsson, Megan Rhodes, and Alex Cooper are tasked with hunting down the Venetian arms dealer responsible for providing the explosives. But there is more to the story than anyone knows.

As Casey, Ericsson, Rhodes, and Cooper close in on their target, they will soon learn that another attack—one of unimaginable proportions—has already been set in motion, and the greatest threat they face may be the secrets kept by their own government

My Take: Who is this Brad Thor? Why have I not been reading his books all along? This book is action-packed with a very well developed story and twists and turns. I was actually burned out from reading yet I could not. put. this. down.

Why I liked this story: Thor creates a Delta team of all female members. They are intelligent, athletic, strong, beautiful and follow orders. Not only that but they have access to all the super cool gadgets the male spies seem to always have. This is the anti James Bond. They are just as skilled as any Bond but instead of being the token arm and bed candy, the women are the protagonists.

I hate James Bond movies. Being married to a man, I have seen more James Bond movies than I ever care to see again. I would love to watch an Athena Project movie.

Another point is that this book is essentially clean. There is no unnecessary sex scenes. In fact, I don't recall any sex scenes, although innuendo is included in some spy scenes. It was refreshingly clean. Language is minimal. There is guard who drops the F bomb right before he gets shot. Besides that - nothing offensive.

Dialogue is fun and clever. The team enjoys camaraderie that rivals the Ya Ya Sisterhood.

The story scares the crap out of me. I loved it. Imagine harnessing the space/time continuum enough to send an electromagnetic bomb through and have it detonate in a populated city. Bad guys in Yugoslavia or Siberia with machine, send through bomb, hits San Francisco, detonates, and magnetizes that city. Power grids go down. All computers are wiped clean. Credit cards don't swipe. DVR won't record. I bet it would even kill my Kindle.

THIS is why I refuse to go paperless on all banking accounts, thank you very much! And yet I don't carry large amounts of cash. See how scary this can be?

Back to the story - Loved it! Exciting, thoroughly entertaining, and written in layman's terms.

Vixen by Jillian Larkin Review

Jazz . . . Booze . . . Boys . . . It’s a dangerous combination.

Every girl wants what she can’t have. Seventeen-year-old Gloria Carmody wants the flapper lifestyle—and the bobbed hair, cigarettes, and music-filled nights that go with it. Now that she’s engaged to Sebastian Grey, scion of one of Chicago’s most powerful families, Gloria’s party days are over before they’ve even begun . . . or are they?

Clara Knowles, Gloria’s goody-two-shoes cousin, has arrived to make sure the high-society wedding comes off without a hitch—but Clara isn’t as lily-white as she appears. Seems she has some dirty little secrets of her own that she’ll do anything to keep hidden. . . .

Lorraine Dyer, Gloria’s social-climbing best friend, is tired of living in Gloria’s shadow. When Lorraine’s envy spills over into desperate spite, no one is safe. And someone’s going to be very sorry. . . .

From debut author Jillian Larkin, VIXEN is the first novel in the sexy, dangerous, and ridiculously romantic new series set in the Roaring Twenties . . . when anything goes.

My Take:  I liked the concept of this book; the changing from Victorian to Flapper era. Three girls are introduced in this book; Clara, Gloria and Lorraine. Clara has a secret past and has been sent to assist with Gloria's trip to the alter. Gloria, is a pampered rich girl who decides to sow her wild oats before beginning her marriage of convenience. Lorraine is Gloria's best friend.

Each character is introduced to the underground world of Chicago's forbidden clubs that include the prohibited alcoholic beverage, colored bands, and the mob. Each character responds differently. The story line is cleanly addressed and there is a clear ending with the option of subsequent books to follow the paths of these girls.

My problem was character development. I just didn't ever get to a point that I really liked any of the characters. I felt like I knew Clara better than the others, but I ended the book not really caring about any of them a whole lot.

The Flapper lingo is new but not distracting. I didn't really understand the significance of becoming Flapper except foregoing the standard Victorian norm. I think I would have felt like the story was more cohesive if I understood the significance of becoming a Flapper which might explain the decisions that each girl makes in response.

Still, this is the first book in a series. I would still be interested to see where the story continues and I want to know the characters better. 
 

Pearls of Patience by Margaret Mcsweeney

Hello - I'm thrilled to announce the 2nd Annual 12 Pearls of Christmas! We've lined up several authors to share their Christmas "Pearls of Wisdom"! Please follow along beginning today (Monday the 13th) through Christmas day as Melody Carlson, Lauraine Snelling,  Rachel Hauck, Tricia Goyer, Maureen Lang, and more share their heartfelt stories of how God has touched their life during this most wonderful time of the year.

We are also providing this series as free content for your own blogs (as 12 html posts) - if you'd like to share the 12 Pearls of Christmas with your blog readers email (amy@litfusegroup.com) and she'll send you the content.

AND BEST OF ALL ... there's also a giveaway!!!! Fill out the quick form at the link located at the bottom of this post or any of the following 12 Pearls of Christmas posts (on any of the participating posts) to be entered to win a PEARL NECKLACE, BRACELET AND EARRINGS! You may enter once a day. The winner will be announced on New Year's Day! Pearls - a tangible reminder of God's grace to us all.

~~~

Pearls of Patience
by Margaret Mcsweeney

As I write by the light of my Christmas tree on a late winter’s night, I reflect upon the poignancy and purpose of this season.  The tiny white lights look like strands of pearls draped gracefully (perhaps haphazardly is a more honest description) across the evergreen boughs.  Tomorrow I will hang the ornaments and at last place the angel atop the tree   

Angels carry a special meaning this Christmas.  My brother, Randy passed away on December 2nd from a heart attack at age 53.  He was feeding a stray cat on his side porch.  Randy was always like St. Francis of Asissi – animals would find him, sensing a kind soul.  And my brother was a gentle and patient soul.  He loved to fish.  He tried to teach me, but I immediately lost interest when I realized worms were involved. And I could never sit still on the banks of a river and just wait.  However, Randy could do that.  He could wait, and waiting is a true gift.  He put into practice the Scriptures.  “Wait upon the Lord.”  “Be still and know that He is God.”  Patience doesn’t have to be passive.  Wait is still an action verb.  Part of the waiting process for fishing is seeking.  Elaine (Randy’s wife of 31 years) told me that Randy said he could see the fish deep beneath the waters.  He actively waited for the right time to catch them.

During Randy’s last fishing trip on earth – just a week before his death, he felt an urgency to take a picture of the clouds with his cell phone.  When he returned home, he showed the picture to Elaine.  They realized that a face of an angel was looking at Randy from the sky – perhaps waiting for God’s timing to bring Randy home to heaven.  Maybe this “angel in the sky” was part of the heavenly host that appeared to the shepherds over two thousand years ago.  A Christmas Angel.

The Christmas Angels brought tidings of great joy that Jesus, our Lord and Savior was born.  And because of that incredible gift from God that these angels announced, we all have the promise of eternity. As we await Christ’s return, let us actively wait by seeking fish – not the kind you have to catch with worms, but rather with words.  Words, or rather good tidings, can bring hope to the hopeless and faith to the faithless. 

May each of you be blessed this Christmas season by the words you say, the words you hear and the Word you share.   And may the 12 Pearls of Christmas be a blessing to you, too.

 ~~~

About Margaret: Margaret McSweeney lives with her husband, David and two teenage daughters in the Chicago suburbs. After earning a master's degree in international business from the University of South Carolina, Margaret moved to New York City to work at a large bank where she met David. Charity and community involvement are very important to Margaret. She is the founder and director of Pearl Girls. For more information please visit www.pearlgirls.info. Margaret is fast at work on several fiction manuscripts and her book Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace was written to help fund the Pearl Girl Charities. Connect with Margaret on Facebook or Twitter.

~~~

A three strand pearl necklace will be given away on New Year's Day. All you need to do to have a chance of winning is {FILL OUT THIS QUICK ENTRY FORM}. The winner will be announced on the Pearl Girls Blog (http://margaretmcsweeney.blogspot.com) on New Years Day!

12 Pearls of Christmas Series and contest sponsored by Pearl Girls®. For more information, please visit www.pearlgirls.info

Did She Know?

Here's a sneak peak post of the 12 Pearls of Christmas series that I'll be hosting at my blog for the next few weeks! Please follow along through Christmas day as each post shares heartfelt stories of how God has touched a life during this most wonderful time of the year. AND BEST OF ALL ... there's also a giveaway!!!! Fill out the quick form at the link located at the bottom of this post to be entered to win a PEARL NECKLACE, BRACELET AND EARRINGS!  Pearls - a tangible reminder of God's grace to us all.

~~

Did She Know?
by Anna Joujan

Mary, did you know . . . that your baby boy is Heaven’s perfect Lamb?  And the sleeping child you’re holding is the great I AM

I am in the middle of a revival of my used-to-be-annual project of a Christmas card sketch.  For several years, with a few years missed, I have done a sketch of some image of Mary the Mother of Jesus, something that came to my mind without complete awareness of why that particular picture was needing to be put to paper.  It was originally a simple pencil sketch that, once completed, I would have printed out into a set of cards that would go out to all my friends and family.  Along with the sketch, however, I have always had a verse that came to mind to signify the meaning of the drawing in my mind.  And so I have had images such as “Be it unto me according to your word,” as well as a more enigmatic one that went with “Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me . . .”  But each one was important for that year of my life.  And so I would spend the necessary costs in order to produce and mail in relatively large scales, for my general penny-pinching tendencies.

This year I did not expect to produce a card.  The fact of my life lately as a boarding school librarian/teacher in Zambia, Africa, has made such projects feel rather far-removed from the realm of possibility.
And yet, I have had an image in my head for several months now.  I started to put it to paper, and I abandoned it for a bit, figuring it was a bit frivolous with all the practical work I had to do.  But then I picked it up again, and it is now nearing the stage of completion, hopefully to be completed with printing and mailing once I arrive in the U.S. for a holiday visit with family.

What I realized is that, frivolous though it may seem, it is actually quite important.  For women [especially Western women of faith], the holidays carry with them great amounts of expectation and stresses.  So much so that we often get swallowed up with the hectic pace and forget to soak in the meaning.  What is important for each of us, I believe, is to “pick and choose.”  We must resist the pressure to do what doesn’t not bring meaning for us.  And we must cling to those traditions and activities that promote an aura of true, Christ-centered celebration for ourselves and for our loved ones.

So this year, Lord willing, I will be sending out my cards—and enjoying every bit of it; and in case you wondered, Mary did you know . . .?  will be the theme

 ~~~

About Anna:  Anna G. Joujan was born in South Dakota, as a Canadian citizen, and was raised in Zambia, the child of missionary teachers.  Since her family’s move to the U.S., Anna spent her childhood and early adulthood traveling throughout the world thanks to various educational and work opportunities . . . France, China, Peru, and Jamaica being some of the stops in her journeys. Her undergraduate degree in French Literature led to a Masters in Information Sciences, and to work as a college and high school librarian, and a cross country coach. She has also returned to Zambia multiple times to teach for individual families and for local schools. All the while continuing pursuing her passions of writing, artwork, photography . . . and card-production.  You can find her online at http://annajouj.wordpress.com

~~~

A three strand pearl necklace will be given away on New Year's Day. All you need to do to have a chance of winning is {FILL OUT THIS QUICK ENTRY FORM}. One entry per person, per day. The winner will be announced on the Pearl Girls Blog (http://margaretmcsweeney.blogspot.com) on New Years Day!

12 Pearls of Christmas Series and contest sponsored by Pearl Girls®. For more information, please visit www.pearlgirls.info

Rescue by Anita Shreve Review and Giveaway

Rescue by Anita Shreve

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A rookie paramedic pulls a young woman alive from her totaled car, a first rescue that begins a lifelong tangle of love and wreckage. Sheila Arsenault is a gorgeous enigma--streetwise and tough-talking, with haunted eyes, fierce desires, and a never-look-back determination. Peter Webster, as straight an arrow as they come, falls for her instantly and entirely. Soon Sheila and Peter are embroiled in an intense love affair, married, and parents to a baby daughter. Like the crash that brought them together, it all happened so fast.

Can you ever really save another person? Eighteen years later, Sheila is long gone and Peter is raising their daughter, Rowan, alone. But Rowan is veering dangerously off track, and for the first time in their ordered existence together, Webster fears for her future. His work shows him daily every danger the world contains, how wrong everything can go in a second. All the love a father can give a daughter is suddenly not enough.

Sheila's sudden return may be a godsend--or it may be exactly the wrong moment for a lifetime of questions and anger and longing to surface anew. What tore a young family apart? Is there even worse damage ahead? The questions lifted up in Anita Shreve's utterly enthralling new novel are deep and lasting, and this is a novel that could only have been written by a master of the human heart.

My Take: This book is a tricky one to review. Tricky because Anita Shreve is an incredibly gifted writer. Her style is unique and her voice clear. But this book was not interesting to me.

Summary: Small town young man saves trashy but sexy drunk stranger. Before developing any kind of meaningful relationship with her, they have a quick wham, bam, and thank you ma'am. And then some more. And then she announces she's pregnant. She's still trashy and he (Webster, the protagonist) gives up his dreams because now he's going to be a daddy.

Baby comes. It's a girl. Honeymoon phase and everything's peachy. Did I mention that Sheila, the new mother is trashy? The history on her is vague and sparse. Essentially, hard childhood, one living sister, Sheila learns how to play pool and thus hustle. Angry men losing to a hustling woman, history of a bad relationship with a cop that she owes money to and she's a drunk. Oh, and she's still trashy. And a drunk.

Fast forward into Rowan's teenage years. She's struggling and may not get into college because... wait for it... she's a drunk. Webster is single parenting because Sheila is gone. That particular conflict is described. Bottom line: Sheila is a trashy girl and a drunk. Catalyst = Webster finding Sheila and then a big drama regarding Rowan.

The story was just uninteresting to me. Shreve details the life saving techniques EMT's use every day. Interesting but not interesting enough to comprise so much of the book. The story of Sheila, Webster and Rowan is incomplete. The past 15 years is summed up in one paragraph for Sheila. Who is Sheila? I have no idea. Webster is a little more developed but, by the end of the book, I still didn't even know him. Rowan is a confused teenager who may be a drunk. Maybe she's trashy, too.

Writing style is clearly Shreve. She writes well. It's just not a story I cared about. Language is moderately offensive. Just in case you missed it, Sheila is a trashy mystery. And a drunk. Sex is limited but random.

If you love Anita Shreve, you'll like the book. I like Anita Shreve. I feel nothing for the story.

Thanks to Brad at Hatchette Book Groups, I have one copy for one lucky Shreve lover!
U.S. and Canada only.
One copy per household.
No P.O. Boxes
Contest ends December 22