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Sign of the Times by Susan Buchanan
Chick Lit Review

Sign of the Times by Susan Buchanan

Unique in a very creative way, Sign of the Times by Susan Buchanan, brings twelve people together, all of them different signs of the zodiac, each with their own personalities and differing opinions. Holly, a Sagittarius, is a travel writer who begins our book with a journey to Italy to do research for her new book. During her trip she finds a love interest … but that makes things complicated considering she has Tom, her fiance, back home. Tom, a Capricorn, isn’t so innocent either while she is away, and embarks into the world of internet chatrooms. Lucy, a Gemini, is Holly’s sister and she has her own relationship woes to deal with once she finally meets her match and risks losing her job. Her uncle Jack, a Libra, has issues taking managing his son and his high profile career as a prosecutor. We also meet Maggie, an Aquarius, and Jennifer, a Pisces, who are two best friends. Maggie is learning to live life post divorce and Jennifer is taking care of an ill family member. Obviously with one character per each zodiac sign, we end up with quite a slew of interesting stories being interwoven together. I found some characters more interesting than others, but most importantly, they were all unique in their own right. Some of them were cheaters, some faithful, some liars, some honest, some good, some bad, and a few sprinkled in between those lines … but overall completely unique. Ultimately they are all just searching for their own happiness, but while reading, I wondered how relevant their zodiac signs were, and how all of the characters would end up connected.

Overall, this story was quite fun. I found the ending interesting but honestly was expecting more of a bang than what I got. Other than that, I really enjoyed the vivid descriptions of the places visited as well as the personal interactions that each of the characters faced. The writing was well done and the flow was steady throughout, overall the author did a good job of creating a very realistic story and found a unique way to tie in the zodiac signs to the story.

[Rating: 4/5]

July 9, 2012
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In My Mailbox: Week of July 8
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In My Mailbox: Week of July 8

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: Ripple the Twine

Author: Jenn Flynn-Shon

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: A Tomboy-meets-Townie love story and tale about how friendship can save your life. Sara Quinn is a Sportswriter from Boston and over the past year she has started to earn major respect in the local market. In the process, however, she abandoned her personal relationships and put her emotions in the box. Regardless of her self-imposed timeout, a friend introduces her to Ben. With blue eyes, black hair and a brogue, he’s her ultimate triple threat. But they connect just as Sara learns that her friends are facing heavy emotional crises. She starts offering advice, becoming a rock for everyone else, and in the process Sara unearths her own long dormant insecurities. But a bag of peanut butter cups and a hockey game won’t fix her issues. She’s got to move past her emotional past without hiding behind her career for once. She needs her friend’s support as much as they need hers and the four will quickly discover that, when they stick together, their offense is virtually unstoppable.

Title: The Dinner Party

Author: Jenny Brenner

Received: From Jenny Brenner

Synopsis: Sometime back in seventh grade, Lainie and Miya pinky swore to attend the same college, snag gorgeous husbands, and live next door to one another for the rest of their lives. But is post-grad life ever what one imagines? Lainie Silver is twenty-eight, attractive, razor-sharp, and is nonetheless trapped in a mind-numbing job and a romantic slump. Sure, she’s thankful for a steady paycheck, a Fifth Avenue address, and minimal sagging of tenuous body parts. But it doesn’t seem fair that Miya managed to wangle a glamorous career as a celebrity make-up artist and a “perfect” marriage to Jake, a chef at The Union Square Café. Both are unbearable reminders of the novel Lainie can’t seem to write and the elusive love she craves. After hosting a tense dinner party (and throwing back one too many cocktails), Lainie succumbs to bitterness and bad judgment when Jake shows up at her apartment. Though Lainie can’t stand him, this minor detail doesn’t matter in the drunken haze of seduction. Eight minutes later, after mediocre sex and a hard look at the philanderer passed out on her couch, Lainie knows that her friendship—potentially her entire life—will never be the same. Determined to keep her secret, with guilty angst and acerbic wit as her must-have accessories, Lainie tries to resume so-called normalcy. This proves more difficult than she thought: she gets fired for taking too long a lunch, settles into the comfort of a boring relationship only to be cheated on when she least expects it, has a fender bender with her first love on the Long Island Expressway, and realizes she is wildly attracted to her new boss, Noah. Against the warnings of Miya and her nagging mother, Lainie nestles in to Noah’s world of custom suits and imported cars. She even lets him in on her one-night stand with Jake. She never (ok—hardly) suspects he could one day be the cause of all their undoing…

Title: The Silent Treatment

Author: Melanie Surani

Received: From Melanie Surani

Synopsis: While rebuilding her life after escaping an abusive boyfriend, twenty-five-year-old Kat Shergill doesn’t expect to find a piece of forgotten movie history during a bout of retail therapy. But there it is: a coil of long-lost silent film tucked inside an antique from an estate sale. Unfortunately, Peter, the handsome host of the sale, disappears before Kat has a chance to return it to him.

Curious, Kat watches the strip and is shocked to witness the brutal murder of a famous 1920’s star by a fellow actor. Against Kat’s wishes, the head of the department leaks the story of her valuable discovery to the media. Although she has no way of contacting Peter, who she keeps thinking about, guilt at being unable to return the piece, and unwillingness to reveal her idol as a murderer gnaws at her.

After a news article cites Kat as the film’s owner, she’s followed by a strange white car, her apartment is broken into, and she learns why some mysteries should never be messed with.

Title: Inner Circle

Author: Evelyn Lozada with Courtney Parker

Received: From Leigh @ Regal Literary

Synopsis: Against her mother’s wishes and her own reservations, Eve Inez marries Los Angeles Leopard’s superstar wide receiver, Chase Landon, and finds herself in a close-knit circle of friends who are also married to elite athletes.

Each of the wives soon discover their lives aren’t all glitz and glam, and that with wealth and fame there’s always a price to pay. It’s a regular battle of the sexes and Eve quickly realizes her circle needs protection against the everyday drama that keeps coming their way – prenups, baby mamas, scandals, cheating and worst of all, gossip.

In answer, Eve encourages the wives to band together to form The Wives Association. No athlete, no matter how rich, pampered or devious, is going to get one over on her girls – that is, until she herself is confronted with one terrible truth that strikes much closer to home than she could ever have imagined.

Inner Circle is a jaw-dropping peek into the lives of a group of women married to professional athletes. This gripping page-turner will make it impossible for readers to determine where real life ends and fiction begins and is sure to have every reader salivating for more.

Title: Where We Belong

Author: Emily Giffin

Received: From the SheKnows Book Club

Synopsis: Marian Caldwell is a thirty-six year old television producer, living her dream in New York City. With a fulfilling career and satisfying relationship, she has convinced everyone, including herself, that her life is just as she wants it to be. But one night, Marian answers a knock on the door . . . only to find Kirby Rose, an eighteen-year-old girl with a key to a past that Marian thought she had sealed off forever. From the moment Kirby appears on her doorstep, Marian’s perfectly constructed world—and her very identity—will be shaken to its core, resurrecting ghosts and memories of a passionate young love affair that threaten everything that has come to define her.

For the precocious and determined Kirby, the encounter will spur a process of discovery that ushers her across the threshold of adulthood, forcing her to re-evaluate her family and future in a wise and bittersweet light. As the two women embark on a journey to find the one thing missing in their lives, each will come to recognize that where we belong is often where we least expect to find ourselves—a place that we may have willed ourselves to forget, but that the heart remembers forever.

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: Midnight Promises

Author: Sherryl Woods

Received: Eric @ Finn Partners

Synopsis: When Elliott Cruz first courted struggling single mom Karen Ames, it it was a romance worthy of any Sweet Magnolia fantasy. The sexy personal trainer made it his mission to restore Karen’s strength—physical and emotional—and to charm her children.
Now, a few years into the marriage, colliding dreams threaten to tear a few years into the marriage, colliding dreams threaten to tear them them apart. Elliott’s desire to finance the business opportunity of a lifetime with their hard-earned “baby money” stirs Karen’s deep-rooted financial insecurities. It’s the discovery that their brother-in-law is cheating on Elliott’s sister—and thinks it’s justified—that puts their irreconcilable differences into perspective. Will their own loving fidelity be a bond so strong they can triumph against all odds?

Title: The Beach Holiday

Author: Anita Hughes

Received: Unsolicited

Synopsis: Have you ever wanted to escape?When Amanda finds her French husband wrapped around his sous-chef, her perfect life comes crashing down Worse, Andre seems to think she should just accept his infidelity and carry on as normal for the sake of their young son, Max Devastated by his betrayal, Amanda accepts her mother’s offer of an holiday and runs away with Max to an exclusive resort in Laguna Beach The St Regis Hotel is heaven on earth and Max is having the time of his life But while Amanda knows she should be using the time to think about what she wants, her life gets more complicated by a meeting with a handsome older man.

July 8, 2012
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Baby Talk – Top Five Baby Necessities
Chick Lit Plus

Baby Talk – Top Five Baby Necessities

I became a new mom on May 26, 2012. Since then, my life has become quite the whirlwind and I am constantly learning new things.…

July 7, 2012
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Confessions of a Cake Addict by Emma Kaufmann
Chick Lit Review

Confessions of a Cake Addict by Emma Kaufmann

The hilariously written Confessions of a Cake Addict follows Kate Pickles, hilarious and charming Londoner, as she hits rock bottom. She is completely unaware of what she is doing in life and can do nothing but complain to her bit sister Laurie in Australia. Kate is miserable at work and has a boss that takes advantage of her day in and day out, and a best friend who has the dating life that she would kill for … yet Kate does nothing but sit back and eat cake. She sits down and writes out all of her complaints in a series of “confessions” via letter and emails to her sister but it isn’t until her best friend convinces her to take a trip to Vienna where her life gets turned upside down. Kate falls in love and may have just stumbled upon the job of a lifetime.

Confessions of a Cake Addict brings the laughs and kicks traditional romance in the butt. This book will make you laugh out loud (which a lot of books promise but under deliver) and root for Kate to finally find happiness. Emma Kaufmann is one hell of a comedic author and she does a fabulous job at creating honest characters that you are able to laugh along with. And heck, who can go wrong with a cake addict? I’m pretty sure that I may have become addicted to cake after going on some of the dates that Kate goes on….some of those men sure were doozies! Overall, a fun read for anyone looking for a laugh.

[Rating: 4.5/5]

July 5, 2012
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Sorority Sisters by Claudia Welch
Chick Lit Review

Sorority Sisters by Claudia Welch

The heartfelt and charming, Sorority Sisters by Claudia Welch, begins in 1975 and follows four young Beta Pi pledges (Karen, Ellen, Laurie, and Diane) who are trying to find their place in college. The story follows them through their four years at university … and although they start off as mere strangers, the four girls forge a friendship that follows them for the rest of their lives. Through thick and thin and the ups and downs of life, the four girls become like sisters, truly creating an unbreakable bond.

I absolutely adored Sorority Sisters by Claudia Welch and truly admire what the book stands for. It’s a story about true friendship, one that spans over many years, and those types of books don’t come along very often. I absolutely loved all four of the girls (each with their very own wit and charm) and often found myself thinking about my best girlfriends and all of the memories that we have shared over the years. I loved the altering view points of each chapter and how we really got to know the characters through EVERY aspect of their lives. All too often, stories are told during the best part of a characters life, but we get to really know these girls through it all. Honest and real, Sorority Girls is a wonderful piece of story telling. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a one of a kind book about love and friendship.

[Rating: 5/5]

July 3, 2012
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Down At The Golden Coin by Kim Strickland
Chick Lit Review

Down At The Golden Coin by Kim Strickland

Down at the Golden Coin by Kim Strickland follows former pilot Annie Mullard, as she sinks to a new low in life and must go to run-down Laundromat, conveniently named The Golden Coin, to do her laundry. As if her luck couldn’t get any worse, the washing machine breaks down. But, it is fate stepping in and it is here that she meets Violet, a Messiah of sorts.

Down at The Golden Coin by Kim Strickland was not at all what I expected when I first started reading it. In my opinion, the name gives it quite the spin and I can’t help but to think of it being about an adventure of some type. Well, don’t be fooled like me … this book is more along the lines of a self-help book and about improving your overall outlook on life. Now, don’t run away just yet. It isn’t your typical self help book- this book is filled with wit and humor and it makes you really ponder the life that you are living. Kim does a fabulous job of making you think and making you see things in a different light. Overall, a great read and I would highly recommend it for anyone looking for a little pick me up.

[Rating: 4/5]

July 2, 2012
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In My Mailbox: Week of July 1
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of July 1

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: Rum Punch Regrets

Author: Anne Kemp

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: In just a few short weeks, thirty something Abby George has endured the death of her mother, was dumped by her fiancé, and got laid off from her job.

Stunned and seeking a shoulder to cry on, she turns to her perfect older sister, Leigh. But instead of comfort, Abby receives a surprise: Leigh needs her in the Caribbean to help with some mysterious personal business.

While assisting in the sale and repair of a bed-and-breakfast, Abby uncovers a few huge family secrets as she juggles an unexpected roommate, quirky locals, and nasty centipedes.

Abby’s world is further complicated when two potential suitors enter her life. Can Abby get beyond her own psycho drama long enough to open her heart to someone new? Or will she neurotically make her romantic life worse?

Packing nothing but her suitcases and a sense of humor, Abby George travels down an unfamiliar road, but it’s all she can do to hang on for the ride…

Or will she wake up with “Rum Punch Regrets?”

“Humor, mystery, romance and a beautiful island paradise. Throw in a lovable and spirited protagonist and you have Rum Punch Regrets, the perfect summer read.” – Kyra Davis, Women’s Fiction Author

Title: Haole Wood

Author: Dee DeTarsio

Received: From Dee DeTarsio

Synopsis: When San Diego weathercaster, Jaswinder Park, is mysteriously summoned to the island of Maui in Hawaii to help her grandmother, she ends up losing her job. This fair-haired, light-skinned foreigner, called haole by the natives, decides to stay in Maui for a couple of days until she can figure out what to do with her life. She realizes that her quick trip to Maui may not be all she’s hoping for when:

-She has to bail her Hawaiian/Korean grandmother out of jail for possession of pakalolo.

-The only thing she can understand her grandmother say is: “Not that.”

-She can’t decide which hurts worse, her sunburn, hangover, or memories of the night before.

-She’s labeled the “Liquor Licker” on the front page of the Maui News in a photo that shows
her doing a shot of tequila with a hunky Hawaiian who’s been found dead.

-It seems she’s had orgasms that have lasted longer than her career.

-She scrapes the bottom of the barrel to find her guardian angel.

Beautiful fabric found in her grandmother’s closet unfolds a future for Jaswinder as she designs sensuous silky wraps called sunshminas that provide sun protection. She tries for a Hollywood connection, but her company, Haole Wood, has some growing pains. From trying to find a killer, to selling her sunshminas, to lusting after Dr. Jac, the island dermatologist, to trying to ignore her so-called guardian angel, can Jaswinder learn to embrace the island way of life? Aloha!

Title: Don’t Let Me Go

Author: Catherine Ryan Hyde

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis:
Former Broadway dancer and current agoraphobic Billy Shine has not set foot outside his apartment in almost a decade. He has glimpsed his neighbors—beautiful manicurist Rayleen, lonely old Ms. Hinman, bigoted and angry Mr. Lafferty, kind-hearted Felipe, and 9-year-old Grace and her former addict mother Eileen.

But most of them have never seen Billy. Not until Grace begins to sit outside on the building’s front stoop for hours every day, inches from Billy’s patio. Troubled by this change in the natural order, Billy makes it far enough out onto his porch to ask Grace why she doesn’t sit inside where it’s safe. Her answer: “If I sit inside, then nobody will know I’m in trouble. And then nobody will help me.”

Her answer changes everything.

By the bestselling author of WHEN I FOUND YOU, SECOND HAND HEART, and PAY IT FORWARD, DON’T LET ME GO is the heart-breaking, funny, and life-affirming story of a building full of loners and misfits who come together to help a little girl survive—and thrive—against all odds.

Title: India’s Summer

Author: Thérèse

Received: From BookSparks PR

Synopsis: India Butler, single and about to turn forty, travels to LA in an attempt to reinvent her life.

In a world rarely illuminated by the flashbulbs of the paparazzi, she discovers the true meaning of “having it all.”

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: Before I Met You

Author: Lisa Jewell

Received: Najma @Cornerstone Publicity

Synopsis: Having grown up on the quiet island of Guernsey, Elizabeth Dean can’t wait to start her new life in London. On a mission to find Clara Pickle – the mysterious beneficiary in her grandmother’s will – she arrives in bustling and grungy 1990s Soho, filled with hope, excitement and dreams. She has the world at her feet and is ready for whatever life has to throw at her. Or so she thinks…In 1920s bohemian London, Arlette – Elizabeth’s grandmother – is starting her new life in a time of post-war change. Beautiful and charismatic, Arlette is soon drawn into the hedonistic world of the Bright Young People. But less than two years later, tragedy strikes and she flees back to Guernsey for the rest of her life. As Elizabeth searches for Clara, she is taken on a journey through Arlette’s extraordinary time in London, uncovering a tale of love, loss and heartbreak. Will the secrets of Arlette’s past help Elizabeth on her path to happiness?

Title: Free Gift With Purchase

Author: Jackie Pilossoph

Received: CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: Emma and Laura are about as different as two sisters can be. Emma’s always been the party girl, Laura, the hardworking doctor. But now, the two have something in common. Both are newly single and trying out the dating scene after marriage.

Emma’s a widow and a single mother with a guilty secret she can’t let go. Laura’s husband just dumped her for one of four women he’s been sleeping with. A dispute over the house forces Laura to move in with her sister and that’s when the fun begins.

Go on some dates with these 42 and 44 year-old adorable sisters who are both looking for love and your jaw will surely drop! Laura’s mixed bag includes Dan, a selfish womanizer, Ari, a stalker, and Tim, a compulsive liar. For Emma there’s gorgeous, sexy Preston, a self-proclaiming “fun guy,” beautiful Alice, who’s a lesbian, and a string of Matts who go from bad to worse. Then there’s separated, charismatic, wealthy Luke Sullivan. Luke’s carrying some baggage, but he makes Emma’s heart stop every time he appears. Free Gift With Purchase is a book about two sisters who have always seen things from an entirely different perspective, but who as women in need of each other learn to consider that instead of judging, looking through each other’s eyes might make their lives a lot richer. In other words, when you buy into opening your heart and believing in yourself, you might just end up with a Free Gift With Purchase.

July 1, 2012
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Clean Break by David Klein
Chick Lit Review

Clean Break by David Klein

The intense and sharply written novel, Clean Break by David Klein, follows Celeste Vanek as she asks her gambling husband for a divorce. She hopes to make a clean break (hence the title of the book) but that becomes a very unlikely scenario when her husband demands his family back … and does so in a very violent way. Jake Atwood witnesses the shockingly violent scene between the husband and wife, which ties in the second portion of the story. As if Jake hasn’t seen enough, we quickly learn that he has his own issues and is taking part in an affair with Sara, a married police detective. All of the characters and their story lines are interwoven together and they soon learn how that one crime will change their lives forever.

Psychological, suspenseful, engrossing, powerful, gripping …. there just aren’t enough words to describe Clean Break by David Klein. I was pulled in instantly from the opening paragraphs and read it in one day. David Klein creates very believable characters and very REAL emotions when describing a broken marriage and a family that has seen better days. There are several key moments throughout the book that make you question whether or not you would make the same choices and this book makes you think. Definitely not a happyily-ever-after kind of book, but overall, very thought provoking and a great, suspenseful read. I definitely finished the book grateful for my husband and our happy marriage.

[Rating: 4.5/5]

June 29, 2012
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Falling Uphill by Wendy Nelson Tokunaga
Chick Lit Review

Falling Uphill by Wendy Nelson Tokunaga

Falling Uphill by Wendy Nelson Tokunaga follows main character Candace Grey, an anthropology teacher at a small college in Michigan, as she receives an alarming message on her phone from San Francisco stating that “Ruth Fenton is dead.” Ironically, she is set to leave for California (Los Angeles) to conduct research on 1960’s TV star Pamela Parrish for her thesis at the same time. Instead she heads off to San Francisco after she discovers that Ruth Fenton is a long lost relative … only to meet a woman at the memorial service who claims that the subject of her thesis (Pamela Parrish) didn’t die quite like everyone claims, and that she was murdered instead of supposedly commiting suicide. This news invokes the inner mystery solver in Candace, and she knows that she must get to the bottom of it, plus, it would be a break through for her paper. While attempting to get to the bottom of the mystery, Candance begins to suspect her boyfriend back home of cheating, and also begins a small romance with a painter. What will happen with Candace? Will she be able to solve the mystery? Or will her life go up in flames?

Light hearted and moving, Falling Uphill is the perfect mix of romance and mystery. The whole time I felt like I was right there with Candace trying to solve the mystery, as well as live vicariously through her as she struggles in the romance department. Wendy Nelson Tokunaga does a good job at creating honest characters that go through the real ups and downs of love and life, whilst also uncovering a few shadows in the closet. My biggest complaint is that the book starts off a slow in the beginning. I almost gave up, but kept with it, and am glad that I did. Overall, a pretty good read.

[Rating: 3.5/5]

June 28, 2012
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