I really enjoyed this witchy novel of goddesses, a teen witch cult/coven, and a sweet romance. The back and forth between Francesca (Frankie) and Ashrad (Ash) is priceless and so entertaining. It buffers the strange and ugly happenings of the teen cult/coven on an island near to Frankie’s and Ash’s homes. Such a great story to engage you.
A fairy tale in current time. After swimming in the local natural pools, five people turn into birds. The lore of the pools is strange and true. One of the new birds was the boyfriend of a girl whose home life is simply sad. Her sister is also transformed along with her best friend and a couple of women. The girl refuses to give up on her boyfriend and searches for a way to turn him back. A quirky story.
Cowboy romance filled with the ups and downs of a young woman’s heart. Lauren has had thirteen failed romances chronicled as the story unfolds. Rhen is the cowboy she meets in a comical way which leads to a volunteer job, an apartment, and lots of heart/soul searching. Young love described at its best-the thrills, the heart flutterings, and the agony of breakups.
Such a delightful cozy romance. Love is slowly building for two people with terrible childhoods. She was abandoned at birth and lived in foster homes. No one adopted her because of a pre-existing heart condition. Her love of astronomy carried her along through life. He lived hand to foot with a vagrant father, never having a real home or any security. Trust was absent for him until they met and love grew.
A lovely and touching story of love, of change, and of a second chance. The characters of Billie, Mick, Phoebe, and Dean are carefully crafted to relay their emotions and personalities, struggles and acceptance. I thoroughly enjoyed the novel.
Strange Bedfellows is a very strange and weird novel. There is a cat who changes to a girl and back as the familiar for a guy who is clueless but ardent. Then, there is a witch and her dog familiar (a guy) that shows up and everything goes haywire. A lot of spicy stuff and it feels really weird when it is the dog as a man and the cat woman. The story was a little too strange for me.
Stories that enchant you and bring you into a place where magic abounds are so fun to read. This is Ms. Allen’s specialty and Paper Ghosts does not disappoint. Occurrences of ghosts, deep disappointments, hidden secrets, and backstabbing friends unite to create a tale of love and loss, of the chance to rectify errors. Another terrific novel to enjoy.
This novel-oh my goodness. It is so emotional and heart hitting. The relationships are well defined and very deep. The mistakes of a father, long grieving his wife, unable to be a relatable father-loving his son but not knowing how. Nori and Sophie-friends since young, understanding each other yet not. I cried most of the way through the novel because of the heartache of the story and of the many missing chances. It was a good cry from feeling the story. Excellent novel.
I found this novel to be very sad and borderline depressing. The life of Paulette is fraught with bad decisions and heartache. She carries grief for years from the accidental death of her married lover, has a baby with his best friend, and lives her life moving from one mistake to another. Her treatment as a Black woman in 1970’s England is reflective of the racism of the age and the hardness of life in a predominantly white area. The last chapter was a tearjerker.
An undelivered and returned to sender letter draws three grieving persons together on a journey across the country to deliver the letter to the intended. The story is a heartfelt and tender look at grief which has impacted two sisters (one fourteen years old) and a stranger on this quest. Along the way, feelings are evident as healing begins. Add in an unexpected romance and it is a very touching and often uplifting novel.
Just as a side comment, if you have ever experienced the type of grief that steals your Joy and strikes at any moment months or years later, the emotions of the characters will ring very true, as they did for me.
A romance sparked by magic, vexes, and spice. A relationship starting with contention and distrust is so cute and often funny. Lucy and Grayson are at different ends when it comes to his grandfather, the owner of the bookstore where Lucy is manager. He has not communicated with his grandfather for twenty years and during that time, Lucy has become very endeared to the grandfather. Grayson wants to correct the distance and envies Lucy’s relationship. Sparks and chemistry between them muddies the water.
The injustices and horrors of crimes and of racism are recounted in a story of a Texas Ranger, a Reconstruction Quaker school teacher, and the trial of a murdering gang in Corpus Christi. The dialog is reflective of the time as is the furor of racist mobs and the inequality of justice. A great historic novel.
The tumultuous and very challenging and changing lives of teens at a prestigious private high school is the setting for the novel. Characters from The Academy novel continue into their senior year joined by some new students and staff. The engaging story flows similar to Elin Hilderbrand novels and utilizes dialog, thoughts, and the voice of a narrator.
Fun and engaging novel. So enjoyable to read as the pages are filled with oddball neighbors in a brownstone in Calgary. Main character, Moma, has her own definitions of each resident as she has never interacted with them. When she is tasked with being the temporary manager, she reevaluates her definitions and finds there is more to the people than she imagined. Plus, there is a budding love with Sami, the restaurant owner next door.
A funny cozy mystery about a dog crazy town, a group of critical dog moms, a savvy septuagenarian crime reader, an outcast woman, and murder. The outcast woman is cast as the villain by the town because of her outspoken behavior. She teams up with the septuagenarian and antics ensue as they set out to solve the murder.
Cuteness is all through this charming romance between an ex-special forces cowboy and a princess on a Wyoming ranch. She is as awed by the beauty of the area as he is of her. His duty is to protect her and enlivens the definite chemistry they share.
A longtime, unsolved death of a young vagrant brings two once loves together as the case is reopened. She is now the sheriff and is determined not to let the relationship taint the case as he was present at the location where the youth died. Long time yearning for each other is hard to resist in this terrific mystery/romance.
A uniquely interesting and alluring novel. The idea of dying and receiving a second chance at life is intriguing. Joey gets the chance when she dies at thirty-two and requests to go back to her freshman year at college. It was a pivotal year for love that never panned out. Does she get what she desires or does fate have another idea?
Excitement abounds when three people trapped in a castle in the 1700s are joined by several times over granddaughter of the earl of the castle. Their tough task is to somehow figure out what they need to do to return to current time. A pleasurable novel.
