Mini Review: Holiday Books

Title: Promise Me
Author: Richard Paul Evans
Pages: 334

It’s 1989 and a year that will be very complicated and mysterious for Beth Cardall. Her six-year old daughter Charlotte is sick and only getting worse. The doctors are stumped about her illness and are not sure about the diagnosis. If that’s not enough, she learns her husband, Mark, has been unfaithful. They separate for awhile and Beth rethinks this as Charlotte’s illness intensifies. They reconcile under the condition that it’s for Charlotte’s best interest. Beth soon realizes she still loves Mark and wants to move past his infidelity. The same day she’s ready to give their marriage a second chance, Mark tells her even more devastating news.

As the holiday season approaches, Beth finds herself alone still trying to cope with Charlotte’s illness. On Christmas Eve, she meets the handsome Matthew and instantly her life is transformed. I figured out Matthew's connection to Beth pretty early, however I didn’t find that it took away from the storyline. Evans is a pro at telling holiday-themed stories filled with hope that the reader can’t help but to get lost in. As with his previous holiday novels, Promise Me will leave you feeling satisfied and believing the best in all things.

Title: Call Me Mrs. Miracle
Author: Debbie Macomber
Pages: 253

It's Christmastime in New York City. Mrs. Miracle aka Emily Merkle is spending the holiday season working in the toy department at Finlay's department store. Jake Finlay has went against the store buyer's suggestion of ordering 500 Intellytrons. J.R. Finlay, Jake's father and store owner, is not convinced his son made the right decision and questions whether his son will be able to run the store when he retires.

Meanwhile, Holly is looking after her nephew Gabe when her brother is called to return to Afghanistan. It hasn't been a smooth transition for either of them as both are sadden that Mickey will not be with them for Christmas.

A chance meeting at a coffee shop brings these two stories together. With Mrs. Miracle's help, Jake and his father, along with Holly and Gabe will have their best Christmas yet.

Goodnight Tweetheart - Teresa Medeiros

Abby Donovan's first novel was a bestseller and an Oprah Book Club pick. Now she's writing her second novel and is currently stuck on Chapter Five. Her publicist signs her up for a Twitter account to gain more exposure to her readers. Abby had no idea what Twitter is let alone tweets, hashtags or DMs. Her curiosity wins out when she gains a follower named Mark Baynard.

Slowly Abby finds herself drawn to Mark and anxiously waits the chirp of TweetDeck announcing a new message. As their relationship progresses, Abby begins to lower the walls she built after her father's death and her mother's diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer's.

Goodnight Tweetheart is a contemporary romance written mostly in tweets and direct messages. Medeiros illustrates how easily someone can connect to his/her online relationships. Hiding behind her computer screen, Abby feels more comfortable with herself than she does in real life. What started out as a flirtatious banter, flowed into a honest friendship leaving Abby wanting more.

Less than 230 pages, Goodnight Tweetheart can easily be read in few hours. Don't be fooled by the cute cover. It appears to be a quick chick lit/romance novel, but it's much more than that. I felt for Abby and Mark and wanted them to have the "happily ever after" ending. I do hope Medeiros brings them back in a follow-up novel. The ending certainly left me wanting more.

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Book details:
Genre: Chick Lit, Contemporary Romance
Pub. Date: December 14, 2010
Pages: 222
Source: Publisher

I received a complimentary copy of this book for the Goodnight Tweetheart blog tour. My participation in this tour and receiving a free copy did not influence my review in any way.

Sunday Salon

As Christmas rapidly approaches and 2011 is not too far behind, I can't help but think how fast 2010 has flown by. I guess it's true what they say: the older you are, the faster time goes by. It's quite scary when I sit down and really think about it. After reconnecting with high school friends on Facebook (most of which I also went to elementary school with), memories fill my mind of that time period. Which was years and years ago, but still seems like yesterday. At the end of the year, I always find myself walking down memory lane and reminiscing about the "good ole days". Certainly nostalgia at its best.

As quickly as I walk back into the past, I also turn around and think about the brand new year. All the possibilities it will bring. The clean, fresh slate it represents. Second chances to make things right, to fix those mistakes, learn from past lessons and to finally make those necessary changes. Excitement about the unknown and the surprises that await me in the new year. Plans and goals to create to make the new year my "best year yet".

Since September or October, I've been really thinking about my 2011 reading goals. I wanted to limit myself to challenges and am proud to say I've only signed up for two! What's in a Name 4 and 2011 eBook Reading Challenge. I'll admit that several are still tempting me and I may sign up for one or two more, but so far I'm standing strong.

In preparation for 2011, I spent an afternoon really looking at my TBR list. The idea occurred to me to break this list down even further into books I really want to read by December 31, 2011. Now this smaller list, I can work with. It's not daunting or makes me want to turn from my iMac screaming in the other direction. No. . . it's definitely doable.

So, what's on the list?

• Majority of the titles are books from my shelves that I haven't read yet. Some are purchases from 2010 and others are purchases from. . . well, it doesn't matter when I purchased them. They're still unread.
• Titles that my library owns that I wanted to read this year, but did not
  
• New releases in 2011. I know I couldn't just stick with books published prior to 2011. So I've added new books by James Patterson, Wendy Corsi Staub, Sarah Pekkanen, Jodi Picoult and Mary Higgins Clark, just to name a few.
  
• Kindle purchases since October.

Next year, I really want to read what I want, when I want to read it. Return to the days of reading without putting pressure on myself to read what everyone else is currently reading or reading a book just because I'm in the mood to read it. I need to get back to my roots and the reasons why I read.

So what are your 2011 plans? Do you have plans? Or is your plan not to have any plans?

Have a great Sunday everyone!

The Snow Globe - Sheila Roberts

Sentence summary: A snow globe affects the lives of three friends.

My review: Kylie is down on her luck this holiday season. Her boyfriend dumped her (for her sister!) and she’s recently unemployed. During a girls’ weekend with her two best friends, she wanders into an antique shop. A snow globe catches her eye and the shop owner tells her its history. Believing in miracles, Kylie buys it and hopes it will bring good things into her life.

As she prepares to spend the holidays with her family and her ex-boyfriend, she begins to see the scenery change within the snow globe. A toy shop is the main fixture and Kylie begins searching for the shop. When she finds it, she's surprised that the owner is a young man who is single and very cute. With the help of the snow globe, Kylie’s holiday will be merry and bright.

Suzanne is a busy woman: she’s a wife, a mother and runs her own real estate company. She wants to have the perfect home which leaves her harried and always on the go. Having her doubts about the snow globe to begin with, she’s even more skeptical when Kylie gifts it to her. One thing leads to another and Suzanne finds herself involved in a freak accident that leaves her immobile. Perhaps this is exactly what she needs to gain perspective.

Alison is facing the holidays alone without her beloved grandmother. Her mother died when she was young and spending the holidays with her family is something she dreads. The snow globe helps her see maybe she isn’t as alone as she thinks she is.

Lasting impression: The Snow Globe is a quick read. Less than 200 pages, it's easy to read in one sitting. Quite honestly, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would, especially Alison’s story (which seemed rushed and unfinished).

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Book details:
Genre: Fiction (Holiday)
Pub. Date: October 26, 2010
Pages: 166
Source: Library

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Here's what I'm looking forward to:

Title: There's Cake in My Future
Author: Kim Gruenenfelder
Pub. Date: December 21, 2010

From Amazon.com:

After listening to her closest friends’ latest travails in love, parenting, and careers, superstitious bride-to-be Nicole (Nic) believes she has the perfect recipe for everyone’s happiness: a bridal shower “cake pull” in which each ribboned silver charm planted in her cake will bring its recipient the magical assistance she needs to change her destiny. Melissa (Mel), still ringless after dating the same man for six years, deserves the engagement ring charm. The red hot chili pepper would be perfect for Seema, who is in love with her best male friend Scott, but can’t seem to make their relationship more than platonic. And recently laid off journalist Nic wants the shovel, which symbolizes hard work, to help her get her career back on track. Nic does everything she can to control who gets which silver keepsake – as well as the future it represents. But when the charmed cake is mysteriously shifted from the place settings Nic arranged around it, no one gets the charm she chose for them. And when the other party guests’ fortunes begin coming true, Mel, Seema, and Nic can’t help but wonder…. Is the cake trying to tell them something?

Sunday Salon

On this chilly, first Sunday of December I am feeling very congested and battling periods of uncontrollable coughing fits. I came back from Thanksgiving feeling a bit sluggish, with a trace of a sore throat. By Tuesday evening, I knew I had my first cold of the season.

This weekend, I've been lounging around my house trying to relax and shake this cold. Usually this is the perfect time for me to read, but for whatever reason I really haven't been in the mood to read. Last night I did manage to start reading The Snow Globe by Sheila Roberts. I've been meaning to start this since Tuesday. I plan to finish it today as it's less than 200 pages. I originally wanted to spend December reading holiday-themed books, but now I am rethinking that. While doing chores this morning, I started listening to Promise Me by Richard Paul Evans. I'm about an hour into it and I am really enjoying it so far. These two may be the only holiday-themed books I will read. Up next will be Simply From Scratch by Alicia Bessette. I've been wanting to read this one for awhile now and finally managed to check it out from the library.

For the past two years or so I've always looked forward to early December to read about next year's reading challenges. As I've mentioned before, I want 2011 to be different for me reading wise. I've been thinking about goals and the books I want to read next year, with an emphasis on reading books from my shelves. So sticking to this plan means limiting myself to reading challenges. Surprisingly my favorite challenges aren't calling to me for next year, while two or three new ones are so very tempting. I do know I will sign-up for What's in a Name 4 hosted by Beth Fish Reads. Soon I'll have to begin writing my wrap-up posts for 2010 challenges.

That's it from my corner of the world. I plan to continue relaxing today and hope to finish The Snow Globe later this afternoon. I really want to work out sometime today, but the verdict is still out on that. (I think I'm going through working out withdrawal!) My other huge task is to finish my Christmas cards by Wednesday. Usually they are finished by now, but this cold has stalled my plans.

Have a great Sunday everyone!

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Here's what I'm looking forward to:

Title: The Proper Care and Maintenance of Friendship
Author: Lisa Verge Higgins
Pub. Date: January 26, 2011

From Amazon.com:

Rachel Braun was the inspiration to her group of friends, the one who lived each day to the fullest - and the one whose life was cut tragically short. Upon her untimely death, Rachel left letters for her three best friends challenging them to face their biggest fears.

Sarah, an international relief worker, must travel half way around the world to track down the only man she ever loved. Stay-at-home mom Kate must confront her fear of heights by skydiving and soon finds that her new hobby is affecting her once-tranquil marriage. And Jo, a media mogul voted 'least likely to breed', is given the most terrifying assignment of all: caring for Rachel's orphaned and grieving little girl.

Even as these women mourn Rachel's passing, her legacy lives on and their lives are enriched by a friend who, in many ways, knew them better than they knew themselves.