Not sappy, but Endearing
356895
Many Christian authors go overboard with the sweetness, but not Linda Ford. The main characters were well-developed and I felt like I could relate to them.  Billy and Vivian seemed real, as did Mrs Black.  Highly recommended!
1587236
I think this was a freebie, so I had reasonable expectations for this book. Generally I do not enjoy trite and sentimental stories, but this one didn't strike me that way. The plight of poor Jamie, whose life has been so cruel and heartbreaking, was presented without fanfare. Hard to believe that such atrocious people exist, and it was painful to read. But I was cheering for Jamie all the way.
The personalities of his friends were well-developed and endearing. the descriptions of Lydia and her family were spot-on and created just the right atmosphere. She seemed like someone who had earned some happiness. The ending was joyous and well-deserved, from my point of view.
In retrospect, I am sure there are those who would find the story predictable, but I just found it heart-warming and we'll done
3283838
I read this fairly young, having read Dragonflight before it, and was immediately enamored of Menolly (who I have always called "Mel,"to show how fond I am of her character). As a preteen and teen this was charming and lovely, with enough music for my band and chorus kid heart, and enough drama for my artistic heart.

At 24, as a feminist--I probably would have abandoned this in the first chapter if not for the buoy of nostalgia. It's still a fun read. Not the best in all the Pern books, but fun and generally sweet. The fire lizards are charming, Mel is delicate with a bit of backbone, and overall it leaves you in a good mood.

Or rather, the end does.

I have a habit of complaining via notes within the book (the joys of s kindle). I also leave comments I find humorous or such, but mostly I complain. In the first two chapters, I had at least one complaint per page. By the third chapter I stopped leaving real complaints on blatant sexism, just highlighted and maybe left a frowny face. Some of the sexism is in-character stuff which is...annoying but fair, I suppose, but Pern is by and large a sexist society. Which makes very little sense if you read the prequel books, and/or pay attention to some quite significant aspects of the setting. Women have no place other than to be serving men, it seems like, with rare exception. Some later books improve upon this, but not this one. There are some good female characters--in the last half of the book. Not even half, more like third.

I have to give credit where it's due in that the ending really is so nice it's hard to properly complain, but I'm determined. There's fairly massive gaps of logic in the setting, and an abundance of characters with no real reason behind their maliciousness. Mel is practically Cinderella, except without the step-anythings, and all her family is terrible, except one brother who's not so much better really. It's not the sexism and maliciousness that really bother me is the thing--it's that it doesn't make sense. There's no balance, and once you notice it, it drives you batty. There's a few moments where you hate most everyone and would like nothing so much as for Mel to run off and go full native. Clearly none of these people deserve her.

But--if you like dragons, which I assume you do because dragons, Pern is a fun place to play. You'll have more fun in Ruth's books, but Mel's are nice, really. If I were fifteen or younger, I'd be giving this maximum stars. But I'm not, so I forced my nostalgia down. This isn't a groundbreaking work. It's not even a self aware book. But I don't think it's a bad book. I think if you're going to read this, if you're a feminist be prepared for some hissing and attempting to protect fictional characters from other fictional characters. If you're young, balance it out with books with less sexism, you deserve better. But I think it's worth reading, despite its numerous flaws. But I'd advise against judging Pern by any one book or series within it; every book and series are unique, and most of them have some bit of wonderful to them. They also have awfulness, and there's some books you cry your whole way through, but this isn't one of them. This book makes you mad for half of it, then starts making amends until you begrudgingly forgive it.

Oops, I critiqued Pern as much as the book, but oh well. Have fun reading about Menolly if you get the chance. There's better books of course, but that's true of any book.
1446335
Heart warming, a good change from typical love story
2087450
This is a sweet, feel-good book. No profanity, no sex, no blood and gore, and it was nice reading a story that didn't have any of those in it for a change.  I do read books - a lot of books, in fact - that include "adult" content but it's not always needed (or wanted), as shown in MAJOR DADDY.

Yes, everyone was kind of too good to believe and there really wasn't any conflict  in the story but I was okay with that.

I liked all the characters in the book including the little boys - they were sweet.

I wish there had been more military content in the book since one of the main characters is an Army Ranger but all in all, I thought this was a well written short "happy" book.
2850248
A sweet story, full of humor. The main characters are cute, but I think Owen's family was a protagonist by itself, especially the mother. The flashbacks were not really confusing, but somewhat inconsistent and they happened randomly, so I felt dragged out of the story sometimes, but I liked the author's writing and this story made me want to read something else by LB Gregg. I really liked Owen, I could totally relate to him, because I'm a bit socially unskilled too, so his inner struggles felt real. He is the narrator of the book and he has a very pleasing voice, with no self-pity and a very disenchanted (though not selfish) look at the world. Lovely.
4643231
When my book club selected his book, I wasn't too sure about it. It's not really my idea of historical fiction, but I gave it a chance. I'm glad I did...it's a lovely story about an older couple that had suffered loss, moved to Alaska during a time it was pretty much uninhabited, and met a little girl in the snow. The wife thought the little girl came from the snow child they had created and was fearful they would loose her like the Russian fairy tail in a book she had from her childhood. The couple struggle to survive in Alaska's hard winters, but found friends in some neighbors who helped them the first few years, teaching them what they needed to get through the long winters.

By chapter 38, I knew that the snow child, who had grown to a teen, would meet and fall in love with the neighbor's youngest son. I won't give away the ending, but it was bittersweet.

This is a great book to read in the winter around the holidays
3451203
Overall
A lovely follow-up story to the first, this novel has the same delightful kems, some return characters, plus new characters and more action. Although the character development isn't as in depth, the quicker pace gives good character growth in a shorter amount of time.

Despite some of the heavy topics dealt with in this novel, this isn't an overly emotional story, as the weight of the matter is balanced out by the strength of the characters. I found this to be a charming tale with charming characters and an overall warm feeling throughout the story. A good tale for curling up with on a relaxing day.

Strengths
Sometimes writing is so good you cannot help but notice the poetry of the language. Sometimes it's so bad you cannot help but notice the bumbling language. This writing is so natural that you do not notice it. You float along the words that carry you through the story. The writing is good, strong and consistent, but because the story demands it, the writing becomes secondary, letting the characters and the plot blossom.

There is a relatively simple, but enjoyable plot that allows some action and heated emotions to bleed through while dealing with the larger events, but the main characters aren't stars or heroes, just characters like you'd expect to happen in real life. I like that the plot almost seems to happen around the characters rather than to the characters and much of it is outside their control. In addition, the simplicity of the plot allows the reader to focus on the characters and relationships.

Spen and Daniel's dynamic brings a certain level of comfort to the story, as they both come across as being very human in their reactions and emotions. Spen is trying to be a good guy and a good friend, while Daniel struggles to not be viewed as a victim or a charity case while not wanting to push Spen away too far, since he likes the guy. As with the previous novel, I like that the romance isn't rushed but developed over time. This allows us to get to know the characters and let their relationship come across organically.

Weaknesses
Oddly enough, despite this story having a stronger element of "rich man swoops down and saves poor man," it bothered me less here. Maybe because the poor man did need saved and it wasn't on a purely financial level. Maybe it's because I have a giant soft spot in my heart for Leo. Maybe it's because Daniel needs to be saved so very much and I'm a romantic. Either way, be warned that money is used not to solve problems, necessarily, but definitely to make life peachy-keen. However, the events surrounding the use of money to solve problems is secondary to the main story and isn't really a weakness in my estimation.

Although there were very few (to no) weaknesses in this story, it also lacked anything to really blow me away and impress me, thus keeping it from a 5-star rating. However, it's a good, solid tale that's well written, plotted, and developed.
3650115
I would call this a romantic comedy and could totally see this made into one of those movies. I wouldn't call it true humor as it's not laugh-out-loud funny throughout. There were some funny moments and it was sweet. The characters were nice people that rang true of real life. The story flowed well start to finish. The writing is solid. Good read.
684480
This book was very sweet, but not sappy.  I was at first drawn in by the title, but I soon began to like the characters.  While it was somewhat predictable at times, it was a very fun and heart warming read.  It's a great book to read when you feel like you've lost all faith in love and the general decency of people.  Pick this up if you are looking for something fun, but not too heavy, and not too over the top in the romance department.
34361
I am, in every possible way, not the target audience for this book.  I rarely, if ever, read romances and can barely differentiate the World Series from the World Cup.  But, I enjoyed this book nonetheless.

The writing is clean and reads quickly, the characters interesting and well-developed, and the dialogue sharp and witty.  All of this made for a pleasant experience despite my initial reluctance to dive into a book so outside my normal interests.

My qualms may, in fact, be based partly in my ignorance of the genre tropes.  While I liked that this was not another book where two strangers meet and instantly fall in love, I still felt there were some minor issues in the development of the relationship.

From Anna's side (and I really wanted to refer to her as Amber the whole time because of the similarity of Anna Benson and Amber Benson) she has long had an interest in Zach.  However, this seemed to be something of a schoolgirl crush initially, and I would have liked some context for when it deepened into something more.

Likewise, despite there being a dual POV at work, it isn't until well after the relationship has become intimate that Zach's feelings are explained.  His interest in her seems to be primarily physical and sudden given he'd never shown an interest in her previously.  Also, while it didn't much bother me, some might object to his desire for a girl he knew as a child.

However, despite those small concerns, I enjoyed the book and recommend it to those who enjoy romances.
3218324
* * Provided by Author via Promotion in Exchange for an HONEST Review. * *

-- My Thoughts --
Judging a Book by it's Cover:
The cover seems to depict the standard-fact teen drama and the synopsis supports this theory, but with a bit more depth.
Looking Deeper:
The Teen/YA category is not one I normally choose to read, but due to recent events in my own home regarding our fifteen year old daughter, I'd thought this might be an enlightening tale to read. It *is* one I'd love for her to read later on, for sure. Avery is born with a minor physical imperfection, but we all know how cruel and mean kids can be. Her best friend is Dylan, who is gay and often subject to his own ridicule and torture. Together, they forge a tight bond over the years that is unshakable and unbreakable.
Blake and Devon are step or half brothers, living apart. They also happen to be the interests of Avery and Dylan. Blake's made many sacrifices to try to keep Harper - the queen of mean - away from Avery, unbeknownst to Avery.  Suffice it to say, Avery is such a strong and well-adjusted young lady. Her and Dylan both would make wonderful role models, advocates, or spokespersons for anti-bullying campaigns at their school and in their community. The relationship between Avery and Blake was interesting and pretty sweet. The secondary characters filled a wide-range of types and purposes, creating a fuller feeling plot in this short story. Dialogue and interaction was very age-appropriate, and even a little typical of what can be seen and heard at the high school today. I'm not certain how long this story was, but I'm pretty sure it's under 100 pages, maybe closer to 65-70 pages. That said, it did feel like a complete story that flowed smoothly from a beginning highlighting key points of Avery's childhood to the nicely-wrapped, solid conclusion. There was only the most minor of predictability, but there were also a couple of small surprises.
Overall, it was a quick, sweet read with a lesson to be learned in kindness and compassion.

------------------------------------------------------------
Heat Level: 2  ~  Score: 4.2  ~  Stars: 4
------------------------------------------------------------

-- Reviewer Info --
Tina J / Happily Ever Chapter
2792877
Really enjoyed this.  The characters are not stiff stereotypes.  There's a real story.  And its mostly warm and appealing.
3930829
I enjoyed this book, and will be checking out further works from this author. The story centers around Terri the FBI AGent and her partner Bobby investigating a string of murders that seem to be tied to a specific group of people. Their investigation leads them to Jen, the college professor/hacker, and her funny little chihuahua/pug mix, Snickers (loved the name).

The book hit some of my pet peeves, and lacked texture in some ways. but ultimately the characters were charming, the dog was cute, and the law enforcement work was just solid enough, though I get a little bit agitated at bold, black and white conclusions stated emphatically during the investigating process, when those conclusions aren't so clearly warranted based on information given to the reader. I was able to suspend my disbelief, though, because the working frame work was solid. I just assumed that I hadn't seen some of the behind-the-scenes stuff that they would automatically rule out.

What else bugged me? The author spent too much time with the villain. Ultimately this added nothing to the story, because there wasn't any in-depth exploration of his motivations or mental/emotional state to give the reader any support for his disturbing actions throughout, or why he suddenly showed such a deep level of psychosis, when his history as revealed didn't really show it. And since we already knew the results of his actions, the same impact to the story could have been accomplished with fewer words spent on this individual.

Apart from that, the characters seemed to fall in love too quickly. Fortunately they were both charming, so I could just move along with them, rather than dwelling on it. I wanted to believe it could really be that easy and not a cliche. If the characters had spent a little more time pondering their thoughts, and the implications of their feelings it would have lent more wight to their relatively sudden professions of love.

I like the device of giving one of the characters a pet. It allows the author to flesh out a character emotionally in a loving/vulnerable context before they get that way with their love interest. Plus I'm a sucker for pugs. But the author lost track of Snickers at one point! I spent multiple pages really worried about what Jen had done with Snickers when she spent one weekend in the city, because it was never referred to until like the next chapter, when it was oblliquely mentioned that Jen was picking him up from a neighbor. Whew.

This book was fun. I was satisfied with the ending. There were no critical fails. I'll go read another one of her books to see if she's tightened up some of the things that got under my skin. This author is a good storyteller, and with a few tweaks could camp out above the average territory I'll rate this book in.
1789203
Yes, it was a bit cheesy, and rated PG.  But that's two of the things that I thought worked for this book.  I loved that the characters weren't perfect. They helped each other in dealing with shortcomings.  I thought it was charming, but moved a bit slow at times.  It read fairly fast - one evening, but that too was nice.  I wouldn't have a problem recommending this book to anyone.  A good romance without too much blushing and still a nice story. It's always nice to come across a romance that doesn't need hip waders to get through all the mush.
2775323
Of course, as the illustrator, I am prejudiced, but that is not the reason I like it. The author has woven several themes into the simple story of toys abandoned in the attic - loss, grieving, that time changes, that people forget the simple things that they loved when they were young, as they grow old, but that memory triggers can bring all the emotion back as strong as ever before. It covers continuity, the reminder that parents were children too, that life is constantly evolving etc etc - but best of all it is a simple story about friends who stick together, no matter what happens - even when they are cross with one another - and it has a warm and happy ending - so a nice little story and I am really looking forward to reading more children's books from Jennie Orbell, whether I get to illustrate them or not :-).
2292131
I didn't want this book to end, in part because it was lovely and in part because I felt I was just starting to get to know the characters. While there were a couple of things that bothered me, I still gave this a 5-star (4.5 if that were an option) rating because I thoroughly enjoyed it and felt the characters were surprisingly well-rendered (more on that below).

*No Spoilers*

One of the common complaints about this book is that there are just "too many characters!" which I admit makes me chuckle a little bit. Yes, there are effectively ten main characters of this story: four parents and six children (though they are adults for much of the book). Because the families become blended, it can get confusing to remember which child belongs to which biological parents and siblings. However, it really isn't THAT difficult to set it straight in your mind, especially if you know this going into it. Write it on a post-it and stick it to the inside the cover if you need to; it's really that simple. My point is, please don't let such a triviality keep you from experiencing this story.

The other chief complaint is that the story jumps around too much, across time and between different points of view. When I first started this book I was disappointed by this and almost didn't continue reading it--that first 2-3 chapters have a very jarring structure and you aren't sure where exactly you are in the story. I'm not sure if this is intentional on behalf of the author or just oversight, but thankfully as the story continues it becomes much, much easier to follow along. I actually came to love the format in the second half of the book, as I figured out more of the storyline and grew more attached to the characters. However, if you are a reader that simply does not like stories that jump around through time and perspective, this probably isn't the story for you.

The other thing I heard from readers was that the characters weren't developed enough or that they didn't connect to the characters or couldn't "root for them." I disagree. One of the beautiful things about Patchett's writing is she can tell you everything you need to know about a character in very few words and she doesn't waste your attention by fleshing out every detail. She lets you in on what the characters are feeling only when it is necessary. I found each of the characters in this story unique in all the ways they needed to be. You find out more about some characters than others. I found myself most attached to the point of view of Franny, who is the character with whom we spend the most time. I would have gladly read a novel solely from Franny's perspective, though that would have resulted in an entirely different book. The characters of this story are very human. They aren't overly flawed or overly virtuous; they're just people. I didn't need any other reason to "root for them" than that. They each have to deal with the chaos of their lives, and they do so imperfectly.

Though Patchett doesn't spell everything out for you (which I love her for), there is a subtle theme of forgiveness/redemption in this story that I found beautiful and a little heartbreaking. The members of these two families don't live in perfect harmony, but they also don't harbor any dramatic grudges, which I found refreshing. I would have gladly read another 300 pages of this story.