When Andrew McCammon, a windower, is called into the Stake President's office for an interview, he has no idea what to expect. But having a calling to be Bishop extended to him, plus being told that he needs to be engaged before he is sustained in two weeks, is certainly not it. Overwhelmed, Andrew doesn't know where to begin or how - until he hears the sacrament talk on family history that next Sunday.
This is a really fun book. It teaches why family history is important and how it can be an adventure. It talks about having a good attitude during trials. This book talks about people and first impressions and that things aren't always what they seem. It has romance and even a little mystery. I think it's a great choice for a light fun read this summer.
Andrea wakes up in a hospital in Los Angeles with no memories of who she is or how she came to be there. Esther and Jack, her parents, reintroduce her to a life where no previous memories exist. Her only happiness is her music, and with her music she becomes a success. However, she feels there must be more.
Matt has spent a year searching for the wife that abandoned him and his son. He knows he needs to forget her and go on, and seeing her in Las Vegas gives him the desire to move ahead with his life.
This book was a bit emotional. That is to say, I experienced all emotions while reading it. I really don't want to give anything away so I will try not to be too descriptive. I read this book very slowly and savored it. I wasn't sure through most of the book what I was hoping would happen. But I wanted love to triumph and I couldn't figure out if it would. My one minor complaint was the development of some of the characters. I had remaining unanswered questions about most of them - but especially Rick. What was the purpose of his personal vendetta against Andrea? It just didn't make sense to me. However, I loved the spiritual growth that Matt experienced, and I loved the unpredictability of the whole story. The author did a great job of pulling you in and making you think. I pondered on whether I would be the same person I am, without the memories that make up my life. I would like to hope so.
Paul Bryant is devestated by the loss of his pregnant wife in a car accident. Her last request is that he find a mother for their newborn twins. As Paul has terminal cancer, he knows this is not a request to take lightly. Jane is hoping for a date when, out of loneliness, she answers a personal ad. She then enters into a very strange relationship.
This is a very unique book. It is a romance - but it is truly not your "boy meet girl, boy and girl fall in love, boy and girl get married, boy and girl start a family" book. I won't spoil the magic by explaining exactly what it is. I was captivated by this story. It is a book that is almost 400 pages long - but I read it in a night. It will make you think about your own priorities and what choices you would make in certain situations. It will also require you to think about the relationships in your lives and are they what you want? I think this book was entirely worth the cost and I'm sure you'll think so too.
It all started with a cake. Annabelle Pleasanton needs a cake, (not just any cake, a Portuguese cake from a particular bakery) to keep her boss happy and hopefully smooth over past incidents. But the cake brings more than she's bargained for: a cute new guy in her life, a promotion at work, and competition among old acquaintances.
This book really is laugh-out-loud funny! My son kept asking me why I was laughing, because I just couldn't keep it in! (I do read alot, but very rarely ever laugh). It is my ideal romance. Girl meets boy. Girl likes boy. Girl makes fool of herself while trying to appear cool for boy. This book was written by a woman who truly understands the insecurites that girls can have, with appreciation for a good clothing sale. It was a wonderful book and great entertainment for a girl of any age.
Really, all I have to say is, this is the newest Anita Stansfield book. From that statement you could probably figure out a few different things. One, that this book is a part of a series, which happens to be called the Barrington Family Saga - her newest series and this is Volume One. It is set in England in 1838 on an English estate. Two, you could also figure out that it is a romance. And it is. A very good one. It does have a few more intimate details than most of her books, but is done very tastefully with a beautiful explanation in the Foreword at the beginning of the book. The third thing you could figure out from my previous statement is, it's addicting. Most of Anita Stansfield's books grab you from the beginning and don't let go. That would be the same with this one. I was swept into it from the first paragraph and I have to say - it is really good.
I do feel that I should give a brief warning. This book does contain some adult subject matter. I state this so that readers know that this is a book geared more toward adults and maybe late teenagers.
"Serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints proves to be one of the best decisions of Kenidee Ashford's young life. But losing her mom to cancer while she is on her mission devastates her. Kenidee clearly remembered the morning that she'd make the decision to end her mission and go home...Sobbing, she'd fallen to her knees and unloaded her burden...And the moment she turned her burden over to the Lord, the healing began."
Her prayers answered, Kenidee faithfully completes her mission, but new challenges await her when she returns home- a new young stepmother with three unruly children, roadblocks in her career plans, and love where she least expects to find it."
I don't know what it is about Michele Ashman Bell's books, but I love every one. This one was no exception. They are always captivating, they draw you in from the first page. The characters are real and very alive, but they still have weaknesses, which makes them just that much more endearing. This is a story about accepting what is and finding the silver lining in any cloud. It is also a romance, but that isn't the focus of the book. As Kenidee figures out that what is best for her may not necessarily be what she planned, love has a way of stepping in from a direction she doesn't expect it to come from.
I truly enjoyed this book. I read it in just a few hours. I can't wait to read the author's next one.
"For both Wade and Laura, their marriage is a new beginning, a future filled with enough love and magic to last forever. Little can they imagine how one ugly encounter threatens to shatter their fragile joy, opening doors to Laura's past that had been slammed shut by pain."
This is the fourth book in the series that began with "Timeless Waltz". It is the conclusion to problems that had barely begun to surface with Wade and Laura in "Dancing in the Light." Here is my honest opinion, and I hope you'll be able to handle it; I must say that I think it's far more dramatic then it needs to be, and surprisingly, a bit tedious in places. I got the feeling that the author was stretching this story to make it last, rather then conclude it and be done. But please, don't let me damper your enthusiasm for this series. I have loved all of them up to this one. True fans will need to read it, if for no other reason than to have the entire story complete. I truly hope you like it better than I did.
"As trials come thick and fast, Wade Morrison finds himself facing devastating loss and a desperate loneliness greater than he ever could have imagined. Thankfully he has a large and loving family, without whose support he could not survive. Ultimately, however, Wade's greatest source of strength comes through his faith and reliance on the Savior's unconditional and atoning love.
Just when it seems that the bottom has fallen out of his world, Wade finds love in the face of loss, trust in a time of personal betrayal-and happiness greater than he had ever hoped to experience again."
This book is next in line after "Timeless Waltz," and "A Time to Dance". It talks about Alex's newly discovered brother Wade and how that happiest time in his life turns quickly into the hardest. Strangely, this was a really great book for me to read. As I have recently been diagnosed with breast cancer, I could totally relate to Wade's entire world turning upside down with the trials he has to go through. I have turned to my novels in the past month as a way to escape my own life, and this book didn't let me down at all. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It also taught me a few things about testimony and helped me cope with my present situation. Anita Stansfield is well-known for her LDS romance novels, and I appreciated this one just as much as all her other books.
"Something fell to the floor with a soft clunk. Margarette stared at object in disbelief. Matthew moved closer, his eyes following hers. There on the rough planks lay a small black bag. He reached for it, and as Soren, Anna, and Jens crowded around, he released the cord that held it closed and gently shook the contents of Margarette's bunk. A glittering bracelet dropped onto a quilt square. All four adults gasped in astonishment. The metal chain appeared to be of inferior quality, but five large stones, each a different color gleamed almost as though they were hungry to claim the small amount of light in the ship's gloomy interior."
Here's a summary of "The Emerald": an expensive bracelet full of priceless gems, falls into Margette's hands. Hoping to encounter the bracelet's true owner on her journey, she refuses to part with it on her journey with her children to join the Saints in Nauvoo. But as life circumstances occur, she is forced to make decisions regarding these gemstones and love.
Jennie Hansen's novels never fail to captivate me. This book is volume 2 in "The Bracelet" series, but it stands completely on its own as a novel. One does not need to read the first one to read this. I am certain that you will enjoy this book as much as I have. This author has once again given us a wonderful book full of romance and suspense. You will come to adore the characters and I hope that the next book will allow us to find out what happens next with them.
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