Circling the Sun is a journey through brokeness, love, and courage.
351922
This is a great book.  I would recommend it to anyone, especially women.  It keeps one's interest and is unpredictable.  I have told many friends about how much I enjoyed it.
4895080
Very touching story, from beginning to end, which speaks of the transforming and healing power of love throughout the circle of love. I won't forget this book for a long time...
2645492
Garden of Goodbyes takes you on the journey of two sisters and one love down the rabbit hole of despair lost in a world of unfortunate circumstances swirling with abuse, mental anguish, and substance use. Faith Andrews gives you a look at the world through the eyes of three souls that are entwined and how the choices of one can change all three. In a heart wrenching story of love and loss Garden of Goodbyes leaves you with a book hangover just begging to see where the next road for the sisters Eden and Violet will lead.
2590534
This novel is mesmerizing and beautifully written. It is a challenge to read, as it is long and focuses on one man damaged by his past.  It is a story of friendship and love, anger and disillusionment, although what keeps the reader enthralled is the remarkable gift of acceptance. Love adds such strength to a damaged soul.
3204905
Frances Mayes inspired my heart with Under the Tuscan Sun. When I saw that she was coming out with a book about returning to her roots in the South, I was excited to read it. She and her husband bought and restored an old house in North Carolina. The book did not go through that journey so much as her reconciling with her roots.

The book was not what I expected at all. It was melancholy, full of raw moments. It reminded me of Maya Angelou's autobiography. You get punched in the gut with pain and then you see redemption in it. It is psychologically fascinating to see where the woman who wrote Under the Tuscan Sun hailed from. It gives such understanding to what she traversed in life to arrive depressed and divorced at a villa in Tuscany.

This is the story of her growing up in the South with an extremely dysfunctional family. We follow Frances through the death of her father, grand father, and later her mother. Then we follow her to an all girl college. The things of the day were strange and fascinating. In one chapter she tells about how the college lined them up naked to check their posture. They were photographed as well. Of course, you know those photographs were stolen by a neighboring college for young men.

There is this this level that we can connect on when we share our stories in such an honest way. Frances is gifted at doing this. She draws you into her story by simply telling it. She doesn't try to cover anything up or moralize it. She simply tells us. It's powerful. We are free to glean from her hurt, embarrassment, and her joy what we will. We simply walk with her as she discovers the back story of what shaped her family. I think when we seek to understand people and where they hail from, it's easier to find forgiveness. We come to understand.

I truly enjoyed this book. The last few pages tore my heart out. After losing her mama, she tells us that she does not share the belief that she is in heaven. It is the same feeling that I had at the end of Eat, Pray, Love. All the beauty of the story and the searching seems to be void. After all of that, there is still no peace made with her maker.  May her story continue on to reconcile the rest.

This book was graciously provided for review by Random House Publishers.
2917131
A quietly beautiful exploration of love, loss, letting go and finally finding yourself.
1415210
Jennifer Haupt takes readers on a journey that spans from the turmoil of Civil Rights Era Atlanta to an orphanage in Rwanda born of unspeakable tragedy. In this hopeful story that transcends race and cultural differences, Haupt guides both the survivors and readers toward the courage to believe in love again. An important story reminding us that when a crime is unforgivable, only grace will do.
1296428
Pick up this book and prepare to take a read through a garden in full bloom. It is a love story; tender and timeless, but also a life story.  As you wander through its pages, there are abundant blossoms of wisdom for you to look at and linger over, don't miss them. The plot is not your typical love story, thats for sure, but the love and energy that flows throughout is beautifully described, artfully worded, and worth the trip.  I feel as soul-nourished as if I had lived it.
959594
Kiss Me Like You Mean It is a beautiful and moving story. I was pulled in from the beginning, needing to know more about Gwen. The words pulled at something inside of me, creating a mirror at the things I try to avoid looking at. It made me feel, truly feel, as I took this journey with Gwen. It's poetic and heavy with meaning. It hurt to read in the best way possible. The rawness and honesty in Rogue's words is a breath of fresh air.

I can't put into words the feelings that filled me as I read this book. Sometimes the pressure in my chest was so great, I'd have to pause and allow the feelings to move through me. I highly recommend it.
1283347
This is a really beautiful story of loss and love. It's a story that shows real love isn't always hearts and flowers.
Shelby and Zach's love story is one that shows we may have to endure a journey filled with pain and sorrow to reach the sun, moon and stars.
2681183
Restless in L.A. is a romantic emotional journey that takes readers on a path of infidelity and love. In the age of social media Alex Hoffman, mother of three and loving wife plays with fire when she contacts her ex-boyfriend Matt who took her breathe away 20 years ago. During a friendly encounter things become steamy leading Alex to question whether the life she should continue on with the life that she built for herself or give into being with Matt once and for all. This book is quite the page-turner and will captivate readers who appreciate romance in all forms. Readers will grapple with Alexs decisions throughout the book but will ultimately not be disappointed in the end.
4899228
Taking in the landscape around me, Im mesmerized by the colors in the sky. The blues, purples, pinks, and reds look like watercolors, swirling amongst traces of clouds as the sun begins to set. The desert, though the plan life is primarily muted in color and stunted in growth, is still vibrant against the red, sandy dirt. Tall cylinder saguaro cacti reach into the night sky like long fingers escaping the earth, reaching helplessly for the stars.

I had to start off my review of this book with the vivid description of the Arizona dessert that this author brings to life in this book. Most of the book is written in such a colorful and vivid way that you feel as if you are immersing yourself into the world with every word you read. I found that to be a great strength for me in this novel, and a lot of what kept me reading when I was feeling a bit bored. Which unfortunately I did find myself lingering towards that notion of boredom a few times throughout the book, and the only reason for my four-star rating. Otherwise I overall enjoyed the book and characterizations that play around between the pages of Truth.

Truth is the second book in the Alex Conner Chronicles. It is best to read book one, Trust, before you read this or you may find yourself quite confused at portions of the book.

We pick up on Alexs story, and the cliffhanger in book one, finding her unable to deny her obligations to her heritage as an Earthern Protector. She has been focused on her training with her grandmothers friend, The Mistress of Weaponry and Potions, Dana. They are working hard to hone her skills to keep her protected in the search for her long thought dead father. Along the way Alex struggles with knowing her friends are in grave danger and she cant do anything to protect them other than to stay away. She also grapples with her love for two men, and the ability to figure out where her heart truly belongs. Overall, she faces a lot of new adventures and struggles in this installment of her journey. We get the same beautiful journal writings to see things through Alexs eyes herself not just as reading it in the book sense. I enjoyed that part of the way the author brings Alex to life once more in this book.

I will warn this book does end on another cliffhanger and you will want to run and grab the next installment to figure out what is to come next for Alex in her journey through this complicated life she is still getting used to herself. I also wanted to include the opening quotation from the book, because I felt it really hits on a lot of things that are brought up for Alex in this book.

Men plan, God laughs for choices we must bear,
For time does a man make, decisions wear and tear.
Stand tall and straight and face the wind,
Youre built with more than blood and sin,
Youre built with more than bone and skin,
Your lessons learned are built within,
And I will stand with you and face the wind,
Two men made by time and more.
~Son, S.A. Chamovitz, 2015
3747905
Ray Drake takes the reader into a journey of discovery, of heartbreak and pain, of spiritual awakening, of humility and maturity.  He shares the tenderness of loving someone, of letting go, of finding new love.
Ray shares the strength and resilience he found within Native Americans.  Despite all efforts to totally annihilate the Ojibwe by using every conceivable method, the power of spirituality shines through the pain, abuse, shame, and self-loathing.  This spiritual connection with the Great Spirit is evident by the traditions of the tobacco, the drum, the dancing, the fasting, the sacred pipe, the story telling and times of silence, the times of solitude and prayer, the connection to our mother, the earth.  The essence of the Great Spirit, I speak of Lord, is in all things.
Through personal suffering, pain, and heartbreak, we do come to a greater understanding of the suffering of others as Ray discovered. By sharing these moments with others, we come to understand that each in our own way will "dance for life, peace, and sanity."
I laughed with Ray and the people, and I wept with Ray and the people.  But always the strength, resilience and beauty of the people shine through in Dancing for the Fat Lady.  As Thomas Peacock  said, "We will endure because we are Indian." (Ojibwe--Waasa Inaabidaa:  We Look In All Directions) We all have so much more to learn from the ways and spiritual beliefs of Indians.
3634638
This is an evocative and moving book about love, courage, loss, longing and the power of continued connection between mother and son. With a whole new realm of connection possibilities to consider, it beckons the mind and heart to stretch wide open.  Its an emotional, often mysterious, heart crushing AND heart lifting account of a young life extraordinarily well-lived and the loving and energetic bond that continues still between Melody and Dev.  This story is an intimate and emotional journey that invites the reader to sit still and contemplate whats possible. Bring a box of tissue and also prepare to smile through your tears as the power of love does its magic.
3722693
NAVAJO SUNRISE is a deeply moving tale about finding love during the worst of times.  Although the plot is anything but uplifting, it's wonderfully written and delicately told and it stirs the soul.  Definitely a 5 star read!
3190593
I loved this book. The writing is rich and profound. I found myself rereading paragraphs over and over, soaking in the imagery and insight into our human condition.

I got out of this book what I didn't expect; a journey of my own.

I highly recommend Wind, Sand and Stars.
2492425
Rhythms takes us on a wonderful journey of African American life from the late 1920s to contempory times. She chronicles the lives of Cora, Emma, and Parris. It is a story about dreams and the price one is willing to pay to make them come true. In the background of the story is a sociological history of African Americans. Ms. Hill's writing creates wonderful, colorful pictures in the mind. Your emotions run the gamut. Within the telling about Cora, Emma, and Parris you will experience first love, sorrow, rage, humiliation, fear, bitterness, fire, low self esteem, confusion, honor, and faith. Each makes choices that causes a ripple of effects. The book show us the power of love and forgiveness. It is never to late to set things right by honoring the truth. This is a book you need to have on your shelf. Bravo Ms. Hill! I can't wait for the next one.