Review: The Sound of Gravel

The Sound of Gravel by Ruth Wariner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Well, this book was upsetting.

I have a sickness for reading sad books, heart-wrenching sagas that make you appreciate your normal, mostly boring life. Most of the polygamist stories I have read have made me want to hug my kids, jump in the car, and start capturing the kids living in Colorado City. This book triggered that for me. Ruth's family was not the worst, by far, but that isn't saying much. Her step dad was awful, her mother was awful, and I wanted to cry, but I didn't, because I was in public.

This is a time for half stars, and I give this one 3.5. Ruth, glad to see you made it out the other side. You deserve happiness.

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Review: If You Find Me

If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ok, I'm a huge baby. This book made me cry. I think it's the mom in me. I need a tissue now.

This book wasn't quite what I expected. I knew it was about a girl who had been kidnapped, but that was about it. I actually liked how it was laid out with the rescue at the beginning and the flashback interwoven into the story afterwards. More of a mystery that way, dropping in the puzzle pieces. My nitpick: it didn't seem like the girls went to therapy or had any professional help outside of the social worker helping test them for school. Really? Maybe I missed a throwaway line or something, but no one on one sessions? No family / group therapy? Kids are resilient, but that missed the mark for me.

I've had this book on my list for a while now. Glad I finally got to it. 3.5 stars, but rounding up because it was a tear-jerker, and I love those kind of books.

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Review: Tell the Wolves I'm Home

Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My heart is hurting over this book. I need a tissue. And a hug.

This book hit all of the right notes with me. Coming of age story with a quirky, misfit heroine. Dysfunctional family dynamics that seem true-to-life. Love. Introspection. Grief. What can I say? I like a few tears in my books (sometimes).

Set way back in ye old 1987 (gads, I was in high school, folks. This isn't historical fiction!), AIDS was a scandalous, secret "gays only" disease. Times were different then. June loved her uncle, and after he dies she finds out she only knew parts of him. Walk with June as she tries to discover who he really was, who she really is, and bring some tissues, because you will need them. Unless you are a robot, then you will be fine.

Loved it. 4 stars. Going to hug my kids now.


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Review: The Air He Breathes

The Air He Breathes by Brittainy C. Cherry
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I rarely read New Adult, and I rarely read contemporary romance. Not my genres.

I have been going back and forth on my review and rating for a few days, and I think I'm landing on 3 solid stars. I really wanted to give it 4 stars. I liked how the relationship slowly unfolded, and I like the realistic grief each of them seemed to feel. I haven't been through this, thank goodness, but it seemed like how a person should react. But you lost me with the twist ending. If this had been a story about grief and two people coming together while they are falling apart, that would have been enough. In fact, it might have been a 4-star read for me, cheesy feathers and all. But the parts with Tanner ruined the 4th star for me. We could have kept a simply lovely tear-jerker without that added layer, so I'm back to 3 stars and a handful of tissues because I got something in my eye at the end of the book. I think it was a white feather. Stop judging me!

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Review: The Secret Keeper

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book hit all the right notes with me. Historical setting, family drama, romance, war, mystery. Totally my jam. Of course I loved it.

Laurel is an actress (a fairly famous one, btw). Her aging mother is dying and she is coming home to support her family. Laurel is also carrying a secret, one only she and her mother know. When Laurel was 16 she saw her mother stab and kill a stranger in the yard. Somehow they kept this from her siblings. And now that her mother is dying Laurel is bent on discovering the truth. We go on a journey of alternating timelines, past in WWII and present 2011. The mystery slowly unfolds, and it's a good one. I thought I had figured it out several times, then something else would happen to mess up my guess. And while I was mostly right about it, I was wrong in several ways.

Very satisfying story. I completely recommend it.


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Love Water Memory

Love Water Memory by Jennie Shortridge

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Amnesia. The power of memory. Love. Family. I'm going to be thinking about this book for a while. I really enjoyed it.

Lucie loses her memories. All of them. I can't even imagine. This book explores what might happen to your life if you had the slate wiped clean. Would you have the same interests? Mannerisms? Values? Would you love who you loved before? Such an interesting concept. Great book--I definitely recommend.



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The Storyteller

The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I'm a little bit wrecked right now. Excuse me while I gather my emotions to write this review...

Ahem. Yes, this book is wonderful. You bounce between the past and the present. We get to see the awful events of the Holocaust through two different sides, and we learn about them both with Sage as she struggles with acceptance and forgiveness. Forgiveness for herself, and for the past of others. And along the way is a beautiful fairy tale, an allegory of love and guilt, that ties the entire book up with a bow.

This book was great. I'm a big Jodi Picoult fan, and this one did not disappoint. At all.



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Moloka'i

Moloka'i by Alan Brennert

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is a lovely book. It's sad and happy all mixed together. It's richly drawn with historical details and the characters come to life. Like I said, lovely.

Rachel lives in Hawaii, and is diagnosed with leprosy at age seven. Seven, my friends. Tragic, simply tragic. As was done in the late 1800s / early 1900s, she was shipped to Moloka'i to live at the Leper's Colony. And if that isn't sad enough, she is completely cut off from her family. We follow Rachel through her life and her illness. I know what you are thinking: this sounds depressing! Not so. It does have parts that will make you sad, parts that will make you mad, and parts that will make you smile. It's a lot like life. And it's well written. Fans of historical fiction should check it out.



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The Spy Lover

The Spy Lover by Kiana Davenport

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The Civil War is one of my favorite times to read about in history, and I thought I would fall in love with this book. Looks like we will just be friends.

We get to see the Civil War through two Chinese-American's eyes: Johnny and his daughter Era. Both are caught in the middle of the war between the North and South, and both are struggling to survive a fight that isn't necessarily theirs. Their perspectives are very different and the war shapes them in very different ways. There are no real winners in a war, and everyone has a less than happy ending. Just like real life.

I have to confess the author almost lost me during a scene full of pit vipers. I. Hate. Snakes. I was listening to the audio and nearly wrecked my car. It was truly awful. No thank you. More terrifying than any horror novel, hands down.

Decent historical fiction, and interesting characters. I loved Johnny Tom. 3 stars.



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