Book Review | November

Oh hey!  

Book Review?  What's that?  Haven't seen one of those around here in a while!

Sorry friends, after getting pregnant and going through the first trimester fun, I wasn't really into reading and had to take a little hiatus.  

But I'm back with three books to review from November (a little late)!

Once I was able to pull myself out of my book lull I immediately started reading Murder on the Orient Express.  Obviously this one peaked my interest because of the movie that came out with all the big celebrities!

I'll confess I tried to listen to this as an audiobook and was instantly lost, too many names to try and keep straight in my brain.

So I tried reading it and that definitely worked better for me.

It was good but I have to admit, I kind of felt like I was reading a book that had been assigned to me by one of my high school English teachers.  Not that that is a bad thing it's just the vibe I got from the book.

To quickly sum it up, there is a murder on a train and everyone is a suspect. 

There happens to be a world famous detective on the train as well.

The ending is good.  Real good.

Next up was The Couple Next Door, now I'll be honest I picked this book up for two reasons.  The first reason is because of all the good reviews I'd read about the book.

The second reason is because the main characters last name 'Conti' is my maiden last name and you just don't hear it very often, silly right?

Summing it up, a couple leaves their little baby asleep while they go next door for a dinner party.  

The come back and she's gone.

Page turner that will have you guessing until the end.

The ending is good.

The last book I read was Class Mom and this one was probably my favorite because of the main character and how freaking funny she is!

I want to be friends with her in real life.

To sum it up, she's a mom who has two college age daughters from two different men and then she has a little boy who is 5 or 6 with her husband, so she's a little older than most of the mom's in her son's class.  
The book is very light and enjoyable - a true chic lit book.

So there you go, I'm currently reading the third book in Elin Hilderbrand Winter Street trilogy and it's so good!  I really enjoy her books.

Fifty Shades of Grey

Happy Friday Friends!

I've been on a little blogging break, but not on purpose.  Last Friday I was watching the Today Show and saw this news thread about this new book Fifty Shades of Grey and I was very intrigued.  So I went on to Amazon to read the first three chapters and lets just say, Hook.Line.Sinker and DONE!  I was sold!  This book draws you in immediately and let's just say it's hot!

via

This is actually a trilogy and I'm already on the second book.  So the old blog has been hearing crickets while I've had my face buried in these books.  I haven't even been on Pinterest, GASP!  Pinterest is my latest obsession....until now.

Has anyone else started reading these books?  What do you think of them!?  I'm obsessed, but in a good way!

p.s. These books are definitely not intended for young adult audiences and I would not recommend anyone under the age of 18 (maybe 21) reading them. 

Perfect Summer Read: The Beach Trees

Hi Friends!  So sorry for my absence these past couple of months I hope everyone has been doing well and enjoying the warm weather!

With Summer right around the corner I like to get my summer reading list together.  You know the kind of books you like to take to the beach, pool, lake, mountains, etc. that you can just get lost in.  Well I have the perfect book for you!  It's called The Beach Trees by Karen White.

Set in New Orleans post Hurricane Katrina comes a heart warming story about moving on after great tragedies.  The main character Julie Holt is like a fish out of water in New Orleans in the beginning, she's a native of New England and has dealt with her own tragedy, the disappearance of her younger sister Chelsea when she was only twelve and then the death of her best friend Monica who leaves her only son Beau in Julie's guardianship.  Her life changing journey leads her to New Orleans where Monica grew up and has left a beach house named River Song to her son Beau.  Only after she arrives in New Orleans does she realize that Katrina has taken it's wrath out on River Song and there's almost nothing left.  So she must connect with the family that Monica ran away from and try to piece together the mystery of why she ran away from a family that seemed to love her so much while rebuilding River Song.

Here you meet Monica's brother Trey who is a very complex character and her grandmother Miss Aimee who is one of my favorite characters of the book.  One of the things that I love about Karen White's books is you get two stories in one.  The present day with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina which is Julie's story and then you get to see Aimee's story and what tragedies she dealth with and how she overcame them. 

My favorite quote of the book is, "Great tragedy give us opportunities for great kindness."  It get's me a little choked up thinking about all of the disasters that part of our country is facing right now in Missouri and other states in the wake of the tornados.  But this book shows us just what the human spirit is made of and how we overcome and move on, help one another when the weight is too much to bear.

There's romance, mystery, and drama all rolled into one and I promise it won't dissapoint.  I guarantee The Beach Trees will leave you inspired.  Follow this link to see what others had to say about the book.

Happy summer reading!!!

Book Review: On Folly Beach

On Folly Beach is a great Summer Read. I think it was a great way to kick off my summer reading list! On Folly Beach combines two different eras with the connection of war. You start out in 1942 during WWII and you meet the main characters there, two sisters Maggie and her younger sister Lulu. They run a general store which ends up being more of a book store because Maggie likes to lend people books from her collection. She has a cousin Cat, who lives with them and you'll find out quickly that she's the antagonist in the story. The second era is present day 2009 and you meet Emmy who has lost her husband in Afghanistan and her world is completely devastated. Her mother owns a book store in Indiana and ends up talking her daughter, Emmy, into buying Folly Finds, the book store on Folly Beach that Maggie and Lulu had owned. What draws Emmy there is a box of books that she finds cryptic yet romantic messages in and she's determined to find out as much as she can about these mysterious messages.

She moves to Folly Beach and ends up meeting Lulu who is an old stubborn woman, who makes beautiful bottle trees to catch bad spirits and also to communicate with loved ones, you'll find out why she's like that when you read the book. And you end up seeing many similarities between Emmy and Maggie and what connects them in a way that only true loss can. The book goes back and forth between Maggie's era and Emmy's era and you see how their stories unfold and ultimately who is writing the messages in the books.

There's mystery, romance, and deception with a bunch of twists that make this novel and great read, during the Summertime or any season for that matter.

This is the first Karen White novel I've read and I'll definitely be checking out her other novels as well. Check her out here. This review was part of the TLC Book Tour and you can check out other people's review of the book there as well!