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Book Review: Can We Start Again? by Shirley Benton

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
Is it ever too late for a second chance?

Tammy and Alvin had mapped out their entire lives together, including a pre-parental plan – a list of everything they wanted to do as a couple before they had children. But no amount of planning could have anticipated the heartbreaking problems that lay ahead – problems that shattered their once-perfect relationship and led to a traumatic break-up.

Then, after years of trying to move on, Tammy’s world is turned upside down when Alvin comes back into her life asking for a second chance – with a difference. He proposes that they spend time together, doing the things they had once so eagerly planned, in a bid to remember why they felt they’d have children together some day, and ultimately recapture what they had.

Still in love with Alvin, Tammy finds herself powerless to say no, even though their problems are still simmering in the background and threatening to boil over at any moment. Still, what they once had is surely worth trying to save.

But can something that’s broken every truly be whole again?
Review:
I loved the concept for this novel. I can totally see myself creating this pre-parental plan, as I feel I’m kinda doing it now. Right after I got married last September I was bit by the travel bug, and have since either gone on or will be going on trips to: St Lucia, New York, Alabama, Chicago, Kansas City, Green Bay, Las Vegas and the Bahamas. If you think I’m afraid I won’t be able to travel once we have children, you would be correct. I might be going overboard, but I don’t care! Anywho, back to the novel. So I loved the idea, and was even pretty jealous I hadn’t thought of it. The execution though I wasn’t as in favor of. I actually found myself hoping we would come in at a different time, maybe when the breakup was happening, instead of when two years had already passed and have the story unfold a different way. I still enjoyed reading the book and seeing the love these two characters clearly had for another, but I kept getting a twinge of something missing, something that was just within reach but not quite there with the plot. I do have to give props to the writing as it was tight and on-point, and I will definitely read more from this author – looking forward to what she comes up with next!
3.5 stars

In My Mailbox: Week of June 16

Title: When Girlfriends Let Go
Author: Savannah Page
Received: CLP Blog Tours
Synopsis: A novel about love, self-discovery, and realizing sometimes you have to let go.

Jackie Kittredge is the consummate drama queen living the charmed life. She’s enthusiastic, outspoken, and is always looking for a good time. At twenty-seven she’s got a swanky Seattle townhouse, a wealthy husband, a designer wardrobe, the best of girlfriends, and a calendar filled not with meetings and deadlines, but spa appointments and happy hour reminders. On the outside, she’s got it all.

On the inside, though, Jackie’s charmed life isn’t as it seems. She’s seeing a therapist, battling the demons of coming from a broken home and a past of promiscuity and heavy drinking. She can be selfish and demanding, sometimes even wearing her best friends thin. And now her marriage—what she thought could be her solid foundation—is on the rocks. Her husband Andrew spends nearly all his time at the office (and possibly with his secretary), and apologizes for his absence with lavish gifts and empty promises.

Miserable and desperate, Jackie questions if her marriage is worth fighting for. Then a string of events begins to put things into perspective…into a perspective she didn’t quite anticipate. With her best friends by her side and some tough love, Jackie finds herself not only asking if she’s where she belongs, but if she’s who she’s supposed to be.

This is a passionate story about having to answer some of life’s most important and difficult questions. It’s a story about fear, courage, and personal growth. About what happens when girlfriends let go.

While this Women’s Fiction novel is Book #6 in the When Girlfriends collection, it can be read as a stand-alone.

Title: The Hope List
Author: Chrissy Anderson
Received: Chrissy Anderson
Synopsis: When she was just sixteen, Chrissy Anderson made a life list…

…It’s been long forgotten and replaced by one filled with hope. But with all of Chrissy’s lies, a lover she’s horribly betrayed, and an ex-husband with secrets of his own; it might be too late to rely on her new list for happiness. In fact, it might be too late for Chrissy to ever have the truly, madly, deeply love she has always craved. Follow Chrissy as she hits rock bottom, dusts herself off, and fights harder than ever to finally have her wedding cake and eat it too.

In book THREE of The List Trilogy, Chrissy Anderson is confronted with her worst fears; a fatherless child, the pointless “death” of another friend, and a bump in the road at her beloved business that could destroy all of her hard work. Unlike Chrissy’s challenges in the past, there’s no longer a choice between love and obligation. It’s too late for that. In The Hope List, the only thing that can put Chrissy on the right path is honesty.

Everyone makes mistakes, but all will pause as they follow along on Chrissy Anderson’s new journey to ask, “Is she worthy of forgiveness?”

The Hope List picks up where book TWO, The Unexpected List left us hanging on the edge of our seats. The long-awaited conclusion finally reveals the outcome of a married woman’s chance encounter with her soul mate that took place many years ago in book ONE of Anderson’s romantic saga, The Life List.

CHRISSY ANDERSON spends her life doing exactly what she always wanted: doting on those she loves. A former fashion executive, she is a writer, wife, and mother whose own life events inspired The Life List. She lives in Portland, Oregon, with the love of her life and her beautiful daughter.

Title: Autumn Getaway
Author: Jennifer Gracen
Received: BookTrope
Synopsis: Author Jennifer Gracen brings together a colorful cast of friends and family in Book One of the Seasons of Love series, Autumn Getaway. Newly divorced mom Lydia is just getting back on her feet. Her college roommate’s wedding promises a much-needed getaway weekend with old friends, at a beautiful manor in Connecticut.

When she meets Sam, a handsome friend of the groom, she’s nearly overwhelmed by a confusing mix of hope and trepidation. Their instant connection feels intensely real, to both of them, but the ink is barely dry on her divorce decree. It takes all her nerve, and more than a little prodding from her girlfriends, to convince Lydia to give her heart — and Sam — a chance. But when the magical weekend comes to a close, Sam must return to Chicago, while Lydia heads back to her complicated life and young son in New York. Can their newfound connection survive the trials of physical distance and years of emotional baggage?

Written with an appreciation for the day-to-day struggles of a newly single mom, Autumn Getaway explores the burdens and blessings of family, revels in the spirit of friendship, and celebrates the power of romance and hope as Lydia and Sam take a second chance at love.

Title: After I Do
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Received: BookSparks PR
Synopsis: From the author of Forever, Interrupted—hailed by Sarah Jio as “moving, gorgeous, and at times heart-wrenching”—comes a breathtaking new novel about modern marriage, the depth of family ties, and the year that one remarkable heroine spends exploring both.

When Lauren and Ryan’s marriage reaches the breaking point, they come up with an unconventional plan. They decide to take a year off in the hopes of finding a way to fall in love again. One year apart, and only one rule: they cannot contact each other. Aside from that, anything goes.

Lauren embarks on a journey of self-discovery, quickly finding that her friends and family have their own ideas about the meaning of marriage. These influences, as well as her own healing process and the challenges of living apart from Ryan, begin to change Lauren’s ideas about monogamy and marriage. She starts to question: When you can have romance without loyalty and commitment without marriage, when love and lust are no longer tied together, what do you value? What are you willing to fight for?

This is a love story about what happens when the love fades. It’s about staying in love, seizing love, forsaking love, and committing to love with everything you’ve got. And above all, After I Do is the story of a couple caught up in an old game—and searching for a new road to happily ever after.

Book Review: The No-Kids Club by Talli Roland

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
At almost forty, Clare Donoghue is living child-free and loving it.
Then her boyfriend says he wants kids, breaking off their promising relationship. And it’s not just boyfriends: one by one, her formerly carefree friends are swallowed up in a nonstop cycle of play dates and baby groups. So Clare decides it’s time for people who don’t have children to band together. And so the No-Kids Club is born.
As the group comes together—Anna, who’s seeking something to jumpstart a stale marriage, and Poppy, desperate for a family but unable to conceive—Clare’s hoping to make the most of the childless life with her new friends.
Will the No-Kids Club be Clare’s route to happiness, or will the single life lose its sparkle?
Review:
Talli Roland is a favorite author of mine, and her books never disappoint! The No-Kids Club is a fast-paced read filled with dynamic characters and interesting storylines. Clare, Anna and Poppy are similar in they are all child-less, but each has a different reasoning for that. It’s easy to identify with each woman and get invested in their lives. It is a little bit on the predictable side but still a cute chick lit book that I really enjoyed. You must read Talli Roland if you are a chick lit fan!
4 stars

On Tour: A Moral Dilemma by Zara Kingsley

Zara Kingsley will be on tour June 16-July 14 with her chick lit novel A Moral Dilemma Think you would never date a married man? ……

On Tour: The Right Design by Isabella Louise Anderson

Isabella Louise Anderson will be on tour June 16-30 with her novel The Right Design Interior designer Carrie Newman could not have envisioned a more perfect…

Book Review: Scared Scriptless by Alison Sweeney

Reviewer: Samantha I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Summary: Maddy Carson is a mass of contradictions. She loves…

On Tour: Family, Friends and Lovers Collection by Sophie King

Sophie King will be on tour June 9-23 with her chick lit collection featuring the titles: The School Run, Second Time Lucky, and Love is…

Book Review: Chelsea Wives by Anna-Lou Weatherley

Reviewer: Samantha I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Summary: This is Desperate Housewives meets First Wives Club set…

In My Mailbox: Week of June 2

Title: A Horse Named Joe
Author: Lisa Loomis
Received: CLP Blog Tours
Synopsis: Roni Dugan, a wealthy investment banker from Wall Street, life continues to unravel two years after the financial meltdown of 2008. An intriguing story, which follows her to a small island in the Bahamas, Green Turtle Cay. Can the island, a horse named Joe, and a shy Bahamian dock master, help her to see life differently?

This novel will amuse and subject you to a whole other world and culture where friendship, love, and self discovery abound.

Title: All Fall Down
Author: Jennifer Weiner
Received: Engelman & Co.
Synopsis: Allison Weiss got her happy ending—a handsome husband, an adorable little girl, a job she loves, and a big house in the suburbs. But when she’s in the pediatrician’s office with her daughter and a magazine flips open to a quiz about addiction, she starts to wonder whether her use of prescription pills is becoming a problem. On the one hand, it’s just prescription medication, the stuff her doctors give her. Is a Percocet at the end of a hard day really different than a glass of wine? Is it such a bad thing to pop a Vicodin after a brutal Jump & Pump class…or after your husband ignores you?

Back in the car, with her daughter safely buckled behind her, Allison opens the Altoid tin in her purse and slips a chalky white oval underneath her tongue. The pill unties her knotted muscles, erases the grime and ugliness of the city, soothes her as she frets about the truth of her looking-good life: that her husband’s becoming distant, that her daughter is acting out, that her father’s early Alzheimer’s is worsening and her mother’s barely managing to cope. She tells herself that the pills let her make it through her days…but what if her ever-increasing drug use, a habit that’s becoming expensive and hard to hide, is turning into her biggest problem of all?

All Fall Down is the story of a woman’s slide into addiction and struggle to find her way back up again. With a sparkling comedic touch and tender, true-to-life characterizations, this tale of empowerment and redemption is Jennifer Weiner’s most poignant, timely, and triumphant story yet.

Title: That Night
Author: Chevy Stevens
Received: SheReads Book Club
Synopsis: As a teenager, Toni Murphy had a life full of typical adolescent complications: a boyfriend she adored, a younger sister she couldn’t relate to, a strained relationship with her parents, and classmates who seemed hell-bent on making her life miserable. Things weren’t easy, but Toni could never have predicted how horrific they would become until her younger sister was brutally murdered one summer night.
Toni and her boyfriend, Ryan, were convicted of the murder and sent to prison.
Now thirty-four, Toni, is out on parole and back in her hometown, struggling to adjust to a new life on the outside. Prison changed her, hardened her, and she’s doing everything in her power to avoid violating her parole and going back. This means having absolutely no contact with Ryan, avoiding fellow parolees looking to pick fights, and steering clear of trouble in all its forms. But nothing is making that easy—not Ryan, who is convinced he can figure out the truth; not her mother, who doubts Toni’s innocence; and certainly not the group of women who made Toni’s life hell in high school and may have darker secrets than anyone realizes. No matter how hard she tries, ignoring her old life to start a new one is impossible. Before Toni can truly move on, she must risk everything to find out what really happened that night.But in That Night by Chevy Stevens, the truth might be the most terrifying thing of all.

Title: The Glass Kitchen
Author: Linda Francis Lee
Received: St Martins
Synopsis: With the glass kitchen,
Linda Francis Lee has served up a novel that is about the courage
it takes to follow your heart and be yourself.
A true recipe for life.
Portia Cuthcart never intended to leave Texas. Her dream was to run the Glass Kitchen restaurant her grandmother built decades ago. But after a string of betrayals and the loss of her legacy, Portia is determined to start a new life with her sisters in Manhattan . . . and never cook again. But when she moves into a dilapidated brownstone on the Upper West Side, she meets twelve-year-old Ariel and her widowed father Gabriel, a man with his hands full trying to raise two daughters on his own. Soon, a promise made to her sisters forces Portia back into a world of magical food and swirling emotions, where she must confront everything she has been running from. What seems so simple on the surface is anything but when long-held secrets are revealed, rivalries exposed, and the promise of new love stirs to life like chocolate mixing with cream. The Glass Kitchen is a delicious novel, a tempestuous story of a woman washed up on the shores of Manhattan who discovers that a kitchen—like an island—can be a refuge, if only she has the courage to give in to the pull of love, the power of forgiveness, and accept the complications of what it means to be family.

Title: Safe and Sound
Author: T.S Krupa
Received: T.S Krupa
Synopsis: When Jill met Jay Greenfield she knew she had found her forever love. She was a kindergarten teacher, he was a high-powered attorney and their lives were perfect. But when a tragic accident takes Jay’s life, this young bride is left to pick up the pieces.

Jill finds herself a young widow facing multiple decisions she thought she had a lifetime to decide. With support from her childhood best friends, Lanie and Stella, Jill attempts to piece her life back together. With nightmares plaguing her dreams and the struggles of constant grief over Jay’s passing, Stella and Lanie keep near constant vigilance over her.

In the process of settling the estate, Jill learns that her husband was not quite the man she thought he was. She finds herself transported to the small beach town of Oak Island, North Carolina. But the fairy tale ending she envisioned no longer exists. She must face the reality that Jay is gone as she finds herself having a chance at love one more time.

Safe and Sound follows a yearlong journey of love, loss, friendship, and conquering the unexpected.

Title: The Dress Thief
Author: Natalie Meg Evans
Received: Quercus Publishing
Synopsis: Alix Gower has a dream: to join the ranks of Coco Chanel to become a designer in the high-stakes world of Parisian haute couture. But Alix also has a secret: she supports her family by stealing designs to create bootlegs for the foreign market. A hidden sketchbook and two minutes inside Hermès is all she needs to create a perfect replica, to be whisked off to production in New York.

Then Alix is given her big break – a chance to finally realize her dream in one of the most prominent Parisian fashion houses – but at the price of copying the breakthrough Spring Collection.

Knowing this could be her only opportunity, Alix accepts the arrangement. But when a mystery from her past resurfaces and a chance meeting has her falling into the arms of a handsome English war reporter, Alix learns that the slightest misstep – or misplaced trust – could be all it takes for her life to begin falling apart at the seams.

Title: The Walk-In Closet
Author: Abdi Nazemian
Received: BookSparks PR
Synopsis: Kara Walker has never found much glamour in her own life, especially not when compared to the life of her best friend Bobby Ebadi. Bobby, along with his sophisticated parents Leila and Hossein, is everything Kara always wanted to be. The trio provides the perfect antidote to what Kara views as the more mundane problems of her girlfriends and her divorced parents.

And so when the Ebadis assume that Kara is Bobby’s girlfriend, she willingly steps into the role. She enjoys the perks of life in this closet, not only Leila’s designer hand-me-downs and free rent, but also the excitement of living life as an Ebadi.

As Kara’s 30th birthday approaches, Leila and Hossein up the pressure. They are ready for Kara to assume the mantle of the next Mrs. Ebadi, and Bobby seems prepared to give them what they want: the illusion of a traditional home and grandchildren. How far will Kara be willing to go? And will she be willing to pull the Persian rug out from under them when she discovers that her own secret is just one of many lurking inside the Ebadi closet?