But when the only man she has ever truly loved returns, seeking the old Willow, it’s decision time. Should she risk stardom and the village’s new-found fortune on love? Or is being Marilyn Willow’s real ticket to happiness?
We all have that someone who got away. But when Stephanie Cohen’s college crush, Craig Hille, seems to take an interest in her, she is determined not to let him get away again. She puts all the effort into segueing their friendship into a real relationship, not letting anything get in the way. This means her job, her friend’s advice, and another great guy. Stephanie is convinced Craig is the one for her, and ignores all the warning signs that Craig just may not be that into her.
Just Friends With Benefits by Meredith Schorr is an extremely relatable story to all women. Stephanie is a great main character, a fun loving girl who works hard but enjoys a beer and baseball game, who is just trying to find that special someone to settle down with. I loved that I wasn’t quite sure what was up with Craig. I was confused by his behavior right along with Stephanie, and tried to figure him out along the way. My absolute favorite part of this book though had to be the group of friends. Made up of different characters, guys and girls, couples and singles with a variety of different jobs, they reminded me exactly of my friends. They were witty and loud and loving and they gave a perfect oomph to a romance story. I will definitely look forward to reading more from Meredith Schorr.
[Rating: 4.5]
One Flight Up by Susan Fales-Hill circles around four married friends, each at a different stage in their life, each unhappy in their own ways. India Chumley, our main gal, is a biracial, high powered divorce lawyer, whose clients and her own mother’s marriage keeps her from saying “yes” to all the proposals her hunky French boyfriend keeps bestowing on her. That, and the fact that she is still in love with Keith, her ex-fiancée who cheated on her weeks before their wedding date. Abby Rosenfeld Adams discovers her husband Nathaniel is having an affair, quite possibly multiple affairs, and is devastated that her high school sweetheart would throw away their years of marriage for a younger protocol. Esme Sarmiento Talbot is a spicy Colombian that has become bored of her suburban ways and too sweet husband Tim. She finds excitement with the waiter, and the bartender, and the doorman, etc. Monique Dawkins-Dubois is a successful gynecologist who married her husband mostly for his checkbook, and now is finding comfort in the arms of another employee. All friends have dived into affairs, but when their adulterous actions come back to haunt them, they must ask themselves- was it all worth it in the end?
I had a fabulous time reading One Flight Up. All the characters were similar with their unhappiness about where their life was, but all had different approaches on how to make it better. While I don’t typically like reading about affairs and cheating (I’m still a young gun that believes marriage is forever) I couldn’t help but get sucked into their world. The writing was flawless, and once I hit the middle of the novel, I really couldn’t put it down. I had to see what would happen to each woman, how she would come out of her particular situation. There really wasn’t a character I disliked, though I didn’t approve their choices, but as a reader, I could easily understand how they were feeling and why they were making their mistakes. I realized towards the end that maybe this is a little too much like my beloved Sex and the City. I saw Carrie and her Big issues with India and ex-fiancée Keith, Abby has the art loving, WASPy-like Charlotte, and Esme as a married Samantha. But that didn’t necessarily detract from my liking the book, because I’m still giving it five stars. A great book that I think chick lit fans will enjoy as well.
[Rating: 5]
Debut Authors & Novels- August/September 2011 Title: The Last Page Author: Lacy Camey Available: August 3, 2011 Synopsis: Norah Johnson is at a crossroads…
Amanda and I had so much fun with her first blog tour, we’ve decided to go for Round 2! Amanda will be touring again late…
Shannon Hart will be on tour September 12- October 3 with her debut novel Until the End of Forever When Sarah Matthews keeps having recurring…
After the accidental death of her parents, Emily retreated to their home, where she freelances for an online greeting card company and tries to come…
Lacy is on tour September 19-October 10 with her novel The Last Page Norah Johnson is at a crossroads and is in desperate need to…
Lee Tucker is in disbelief after her husband commits suicide. The disbelief doesn’t just come from his death, but also what comes after the funeral. Turns out her husband had made a few deals, worth one million dollars in loans, and now the loan shark is after Lee to pay that money back. After Lee discovers she is pregnant, and in no way able to repay her husband’s debts right away, she flees to her mother’s house in a small Oregon town. Her hometown is filled with ugly memories, including an alcoholic mother who never seemed to care for Lee. Since her mother succumbed to the alcoholism, and her house was left Lee, she decides to fix it up and sell it to pay the remaining debt. After a wonderful neighbor helps Lee get settled back into her childhood home, she finds a job as a business consultant at a struggling restaurant. While there, she is met with cold shoulders and hostility by the owner’s son, but pushes on with determination to make the restaurant succeed- and hoping her life will finally turn around.
The heroine in Riversong by Tess Hardwick can be described as resilient and determined. You learn right away about her horrible childhood with a sad excuse for a mother, and understand why she sometimes carries a chip on her shoulder. I was rooting for Lee the entire way throughout the book, and she is someone you want to see catch a break in life. This is Hardwick’s debut novel, and I feel she is an author to watch for. I enjoyed all the restaurant scenes and how hard Lee worked to make it a success, and the stories of other residents among the small town will make you smile while pulling at your heart. There were a few grammatical errors in there that I caught, and sometimes I wondered why the loan shark didn’t think to first look at her hometown for her, but overall, I really enjoyed a beautiful story with a smart heroine to connect with.
[Rating: 4]
