The Forest of Vanishing Stars by Kristen Harmel - Book Review

 My review:

I loved the story of Yona.  Her bravery and heartbreaking experiences in her life makes for a wonderful story.  This is the first World War II story that I have read where people are hiding and surviving in the forest.  I highly recommend this book.  This is the second book that I have read from Kristen Harmel and I have loved them both.  I look forward to reading more of her books. Thank you to Netgalley, Simon and Schuster and Kristin Harmel for letting me read and review this book.  A five out of five stars!!

The description of the book from Amazon.com

After being stolen from her wealthy German parents and raised in the unforgiving wilderness of eastern Europe, a young woman finds herself alone in 1941 after her kidnapper dies. Her solitary existence is interrupted, however, when she happens upon a group of Jews fleeing the Nazi terror. Stunned to learn what’s happening in the outside world, she vows to teach the group all she can about surviving in the forest—and in turn, they teach her some surprising lessons about opening her heart after years of isolation. But when she is betrayed and escapes into a German-occupied village, her past and present come together in a shocking collision that could change everything.

Inspired by incredible true stories of survival against staggering odds, and suffused with the journey-from-the-wilderness elements that made Where the Crawdads Sing a worldwide phenomenon, The Forest of Vanishing Stars is a heart-wrenching and suspenseful novel from the #1 internationally bestselling author whose writing has been hailed as “sweeping and magnificent” (Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author), “immersive and evocative” (Publishers Weekly), and “gripping” (Tampa Bay Times).

The Good Neighbor by A.J. Banner book reivew

My review-

I put off reviewing this book because I don't like to give a negative review. I could not get interested in this book.  The writing reads like a beginner author and it doesn't improve by the end. I was able to finish reading the book and give it a 2 out of 5 stars because I did want to see if how I guessed the ending to be was accurate, it was.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers of this book for my honest review.

Amazon.com's description of the book-
 Shadow Cove, Washington, is the kind of town everyone dreams about—quaint streets, lush forests, good neighbors. That’s what Sarah thinks as she settles into life with her new husband, Dr. Johnny McDonald. But all too soon she discovers an undercurrent of deception. And one October evening when Johnny is away, sudden tragedy destroys Sarah’s happiness.

Dazed and stricken with grief, she and Johnny begin to rebuild their shattered lives. As she picks up the pieces of her broken home, Sarah discovers a shocking secret that forces her to doubt everything she thought was true—about her neighbors, her friends, and even her marriage. With each stunning revelation, Sarah must ask herself, Can we ever really know the ones we love?

Lana's War by Anita Abriel - Book Review

My review-  

  

This book had everything, spying, romance, danger, heartbreak, loss and a story that I have not heard before about World War II on the beautiful French Riviera.

Lana Antonova is happy in the beginning of World War II in Paris, France  When tragedy comes into her life she is recruited into the French Resistance in the French Riviera.  The setting is beautiful but the undercover work Lana is asked to do is very dangerous. 

I rate this a 4 out of 5 stars!! I did not want to put this down and enjoyed reading the inner working of the resistance. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers of this book for a copy for my honest review.

  

Amazon.com's description of the book-

 Paris 1943: Lana Antanova is on her way to see her husband with the thrilling news that she is pregnant. But when she arrives at the convent where he teaches music, she’s horrified to see Gestapo officers execute him for hiding a Jewish girl in the piano.

A few months later, grieving both her husband and her lost pregnancy, Lana is shocked when she’s approached to join the resistance on the French Riviera. As the daughter of a Russian countess, Lana has the perfect background to infiltrate the émigré community of Russian aristocrats who socialize with German officers, including the man who killed her husband.

Lana’s cover story makes her the mistress of Guy Pascal, a wealthy Swiss industrialist and fellow resistance member, in whose villa in Cap Ferrat she lives. Together, they gather information on upcoming raids and help members of the Jewish community escape. Consumed by her work, she doesn’t expect to become attached to a young Jewish girl or wonder about the secrets held by the man whose house she shares. And as the Nazis’ deadly efforts intensify, her intention to protect those around her may put them all at risk instead.

With Anita Abriel’s “heartfelt and memorable” (Pam Jenoff, New York Times bestselling author) storytelling, Lana’s War is a sweeping and suspenseful tale of survival and second chances during some of the darkest days of history.

A Summer to Remember By Erika Montgomery- Book Review

 My Review-

A Summer to Remember is a delightful story of Frankie Simon traveling to Cape Cod to find the truth of her mother's past and to search for her father.

A great story of love and family secrets.  An added bonus of this story was the old movie references and the setting of Cape Cod.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers of this book for my honest review.

Amazon.com's description of the book-
For thirty-year-old Frankie Simon, selling movie memorabilia in the shop she opened with her late mother on Hollywood Boulevard is more than just her livelihood—it’s an enduring connection to the only family she has ever known. But when a mysterious package arrives containing a photograph of her mother and famous movie stars Glory Cartwright and her husband at a coastal film festival the year before Frankie’s birth, her life begins to unravel in ways unimaginable.

What begins is a journey along a path revealing buried family secrets, betrayals between lovers, bonds between friends. And for Frankie, as the past unlocks the present, the chance to learn that memories define who we are, and that they can show us the meaning of home and the magic of true love.

Experience the salty breeze of a Cape Cod summer as it sweeps through this sparkling, romantic, and timeless debut novel tinged with a love of old Hollywood.

The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth - Book Review

 

My review-  This is my first Sally Hepworth novel I have read, but it certainly won't be the last! This book is a thriller, family drama and love story all rolled into one.  

Fern and Rose are twin sisters. Fern has had to struggle her whole life. Rose has had to look after Faith. Fern sees an opportunity to help her sister Rose that can't have a baby of her own.  But, once Rose finds out Fern is pregnant things start to go very wrong between the sisters. This will be a book that you will not want to put down till the end. 

 5 stars for The Good Sister!!  

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an advanced copy for my honest review.

Amazon.com's description of the book-
Fern Castle works in her local library. She has dinner with her twin sister Rose three nights a week. And she avoids crowds, bright lights and loud noises as much as possible. Fern has a carefully structured life and disrupting her routine can be dangerous.

When Rose discovers that she cannot get pregnant, Fern sees her chance to pay her sister back for everything Rose has done for her. Fern can have a baby for Rose. She just needs to find a father. Simple.

Fern's mission will shake the foundations of the life she has carefully built for herself and stir up dark secrets from the past, in this quirky, rich and shocking story of unexpected love.

Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson - Book Review

My review-

This is a book I will not forget!  When Pheby was taken to Devil's Half Acre and had to get other slaves ready for the auction block so she could survive I could feel her struggle. This was such a great story of love, hope, survival and also the cruelty that existed back in Pheby's time.  I was shocked to read this was based on history that actually happened.  Pheby Delores Brown was a true survivor in this story. I did not want to put this book down and would love to read more books by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers of this book for my copy for an honest review.  5 out of 5 stars!!!

Amazon.com's description of the book-

 Born on a plantation in Charles City, Virginia, Pheby Delores Brown has lived a relatively sheltered life. Shielded by her mother’s position as the estate’s medicine woman and cherished by the Master’s sister, she is set apart from the others on the plantation, belonging to neither world.

She’d been promised freedom on her eighteenth birthday, but instead of the idyllic life she imagined with her true love, Essex Henry, Pheby is forced to leave the only home she has ever known. She unexpectedly finds herself thrust into the bowels of slavery at the infamous Devil’s Half Acre, a jail in Richmond, Virginia, where the enslaved are broken, tortured, and sold every day. There, Pheby is exposed not just to her Jailer’s cruelty but also to his contradictions. To survive, Pheby will have to outwit him, and she soon faces the ultimate sacrifice.

Book Review- An Ordinary Life by Amanda Prowse

 My review-

This book was a definite 5 stars for me!!  This is a beautiful story of Molly's life.  At 94 years old, Molly always liked to say her life has been ordinary.  But, in reality her life has been anything but ordinary.  The life of Marvelous Molly was brave and heartbreaking at the same time. I do not want to give any story spoilers here, other than to say READ IT! You will not be sorry.

Thank you to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this book. After reading this book I look forward to reading other books written by Amanda Prowse. 

5 out of 5 stars!!!

Book Description from Amazon.com-

From the bestselling author of The Girl in the Corner comes a tale of love, loss—and one last extraordinary dance.

Christmas Eve, 2019. Ninety-four-year-old Molly lies in her hospital bed. A stroke and a fall may have broken her body—but her mind is alive with memories.

London, 1940s. Molly is a bright young woman, determined to help the war effort and keep her head up despite it all. Life becomes brighter when she meets and falls in love with a man who makes her forget everything with one dance. But then war forces her to make an unforgettable sacrifice, and when she’s brought to her knees by a daring undercover mission with the French Resistance, only her sister knows the secret weighing heavily on Molly’s heart.

Now, lying in her hospital bed, Molly can’t escape the memories of what she lost all those years ago. But she is not as alone as she thinks.

Will she be able to find peace—and finally understand that what seemed to be an ordinary life was anything but?