A beautiful story about the power of relationships -- loved it.
341458
I just finished this book in the wee hours of the morning because I could't put it down.  It's a beautifully told story woven with laughter,  factual information about hoarding, wisdom, and various emotions but never pity.  What struck me is that the author doesn't feel pity for herself nor is she looking for it.  That was very refreshing to me.  What also struck me is while this was so deeply painful for her to experience such unthinkable living conditions, she approaches the emotions very matter-of-factly.  I liked the author and feel that if I met her, I'd like her in person too.  I enjoyed her story and sense of humor. I applaud her strength and courage, and I found her openness refreshing as well as her ability to separate the love of her parents from the frustration of her childhood.  Remarkable.
3748267
This was a lovely story that ended really sadly. It is about what happens after you get you dream, and how to balance the needs of the ones you love with living your dream. I felt it really connect with me, although i do not have much in common with the characters in the novel. It made me smile and cry, and I read parts of it out loud to my boyfriend. It was a powerful story about getting old and still having dreams, and i warmly recommend it to everyone who likes a powerful science fiction story about brave people.
385031
Beautifully written.  I loved this book.  The connections in this story were so thoughtfully creative. The sentence structure so simple, yet filled with meaning.  A great book club pick.
4456468
A beautifully written story about the power of love. I enjoyed the supernatural aspects and the twist at the end that I didn't expect. I loved the realistic characters.
4945026
Molly McCumber is a remarkable story of the power of love and friendship.  I loved it.
There are so many life affirming messages in it:  Acceptance, resilience, hope, honesty, transformation, courage- I learned about them all as I read.
I can see the author's intelligence, wisdom and compassion in every word.

Molly will touch and teach so many.  She is a wonderful role model in so many different ways as are her family and friends.
I can't wait to read the sequel...Thank you for such a light and warm gift.
4780085
This was a beautiful story, a believable depiction of how the emotions in a marriage can become so confused, colored by the feelings of each individual's story.  We can identify with how each person is justifiably feeling, and our heart is moved by their pain.  The efforts of the father's younger brother, who is part of their family, to draw them back together is both touching and humorous, and soon he becomes another pivotal character that moves into our hearts.

After keeping up good appearances on the state of their marriage until several situations can be dealt with, it takes a tragedy for the couple to drop their facades and turn to each other for comfort, causing both to realize how much they truly are a part of each other, and to remember their need and love for one another. The choices of others also result in healing and forgiveness on a number of levels, and it is a wonderful, heart-warming story.
2933881
This is a sweet story of faith and the power of love.  Claire is a young girl dealing with moving to a new town and a new school.  Then her mother becomes Ill and unable to care for the family.  This story will be especially meaningful to middle school girls who are facing similar family problems or helping a friend.  When I was 10, my mother was ill for an extended time. Claire's story rings very true to me. The story of a loving family striving to cope with the mother's mental illness.  Jean Ann Williams's novel is well written and meaningful.
1362090
Best Friends and Bastards is a delightful read about relationships of all kinds impacting our daily lives. Ms. Byrne shares how relationships with family, friends, fools, etc. shape our personality.  Best Friends and Bastards focus on how we respond/react in these relationships and how it often influence how we view ourselves. Her  characters are realistic and easy to connect with, settings are acceptable and the story elements were developed and touched all the sensory points maintaining the readers interest. There are plenty of situations occurring within the story's relationships mirroring the hectic, real life of the 21st century. The main and minor characters behavior and dialogue were expressive without going over the top with profanity and sensual activities and I enjoyed that aspect. Ms. Byrne's use inference in her writing style throughout the story allowing readers to use their prior experiences to connect with the book. I think Best Friends and Bastards is a nice book for a week-end of necessary "down-time" with three highly valued best friends: "me, myself and I.
4454102
I really liked this one. I tend to prefer P&P stories where neither Darcy or Elizabeth are previously married, or at least not happily married, and it should be before the story starts, or just a brief bit at the beginning. Most of the first half of this book is Elizabeth's first marriage, and her husband is a great guy. So, while we all know the poor man is going to die somehow, I find myself wishing he wouldn't and then bawling my eyes out when he does. Yet, I loved the book anyway. The emotions throughout the book are well written and natural. It was anamazing journey through various kinds of love, grief, family and friendly relationships. The story line isn't forced, the characters are relatable, and the growth is beautiful to witness. Thanks for a great read.
3141668
Take three generations of women from the same family, add in their problems and secrets, and mix it with the understanding, but at times unorthodox, support they give each other, and you have a heart-warming story from Pamela Duncan.  "Moon Women" is a solid 4 read.  If not for a slow start, which made me wonder if I should give it up, this would have earned a 5 from me.  Duncan weaves the story of life's lessons and the  need for ties between mothers, daughters, grandmothers and granddaughters.  By the end of the story, I loved each of these women, who started out like a portrait of dysfunction.  It also displays the strength of women who can forgive the men in their lives, and shows why this is oftentimes the best path to take.
3510643
I traveled to so many places both inside and outside of the human heart through the pages of One-Lane Bridge. It is a beautiful story of family, friendship, and love and how all connect to one another throughout time. The story magnetically draws you to each character and not only do you wonder what will happen next, but you actually start to feel each character's heart beat - yes, they are that real. As much as you want to find out what happens next, you reluctantly turn the page because you know you are closer to the last page of the book and you just don't want it to end. And to that end, should be your beginning of reading, One-Lane Bridge.
2514389
It was a really beautiful story, which shows how it is to fight to overcome yourself, to learn from the mistakes of the past, to have faith and how to get ahead and have confidence in yourself. Sometimes the difficult situations make us doubt ourselves, but with effort, dedication and faith everything can be overcome. Also, when there are people who believe in you and reach out to you in those situations, those problems can be overcome, because in the end sometimes people need a little push to believe in themselves. I received this book as an ARC and was delighted to read it.
1033829
I  loved this story of learning to trust in the power and durability of love.
1684216
This story captured the essence of what happens when we allow our hearts to make a love connection instead of traditions of our respective cultures. I was glad to see that the mother of the billionaire was very accepting of his choice of a mate. It dispelled some myths held about how many ethnic groups view Black people and their mating with other ethnic groups.  The story line was a good one with the heroine being a spirited young woman who was very comfortable in her own skin, not conforming to anyone else's idea of who or what she should be like and it paid off by netting her a man who loved her fiercely and who happened to also be a billionaire.  Very good character structure, excellent relational constructs and an overall good read.  I enjoyed this book immensely.
1570637
When I sat down to read this book I intended to read it for a few hours and then to do other things. But it was easy to read and interesting, so I just kept reading for a little bit more. That "little" lasted enough for me to read most of the book. And then I just wanted to keep reading till the end. I ended up reading late into the night. Even though I do that rarely recently. And it is one of the stories that stayed with me after I've finished reading. I just wanted to read again my favorite part, and as I kept thinking about it, I found there were many favorite parts, and even whole book would be worth reading one more time.

There was intriguing beginning from the first sentence. It got me interested in the story happening at the moment and in the beginnings of it. The main character Skye was easy to like and to relate to for me. She is strong, having her own opinion, stubborn, having her flaws too, but they made her even more likeable. I cared for her, and I could easily feel her emotions. I kept going up and down along with her. I enjoyed reading about the relationships between the characters. And I was interested to know the story of their ancestors too. It was beautiful story. Sometimes it just melted my heart. There were fun moments, nice moments, emotional moments and beautiful moments. There was interesting and important topic/question too, if you choose to be safe and ignore bad things happening around, or to be brave and stand up for what's right. This quote I found quite powerful and worth to mention "Ability or not, was there ever an excuse not to do the right thing?"

There were some sentences, where it was written a little bit too straightforward about the reasons behind behavior and feelings of the character. I would have liked it given in a little bit more subtle way, to find out these reasons myself, to figure them out, to read them between the lines.

But all in all, I enjoyed this story a lot, and I'm interested to read next story and to know more about the future of the characters I care about.

P. S. The cover is nice too.
1869019
Another great read for me. There are so many facets to relationships, let alone grieving that these characters face. Seeing the chemistry develop between these two hurting people was beautiful. Each of us has these complicated needs and emotions, and sometimes we get distracted or forget to show the ones we care how we care. Myriad complications complicate the beauty of the relationship in this story. It all comes down to recognizing what is most important, and cherishing it by action, word, and not just feeling it in your heart. Recognizing it is part of the conflict, acknowledging it is another. Sweet, and poignant story, full of supportive family members (for the MC), and the complications of real life, work, past relationships, etc. Well worth the time to read it. Ava is a wonderful, caring person, helps others, and is healing from her divorce, Scott is wounded, and healing from the death of his wife, and the subtly unhealthy relationship he had with her. Meshing their two lives together in the year after both of these events is a dance that is worth reading.
2357729
A beautiful story, beautifully written.  The characters have depth and create a relationship that is transformative and inspirational.  I would highly recommend this book