When the Day ComesWe received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
When’s the last time you finished a book and just wanted to go, “Ahhhh”? Or in one furry case, decided the tome is almost better than bacon? Almost. (Hi, Kimber.)
Well. Gabrielle Meyer’s When the Day Comes is that kind of book. Here’s why:
“I thought maybe it was just me,” frowned Her Momness. “Then I read some other reviews. And it’s definitely not ‘just me.’ So there!”
Here’s why Mom found To Be Where You Are so disappointing. (The short version).
Whoosh! Or Whoof! Where did summer go? Mom and I were just getting used to long days and more sunshine. Before I could bark twice at the Powder Puff sauntering by on her afternoon walk, the season is done-ski. That makes Mom and me kinda sad, if ya know what I mean. (Summer winding down. Not the Powder Puff.)
Anywho, since we recently posted a list of Summer Stinkers (as in, Do Not Waste Your Time, Do Not Collect $200 or even a penny), one of us thought now would be a good time to do a Summer Wrap-Wrap thingy. Like when we highlight our favorite reads from the summer. Books with heart. Solid writing. Something to say that matters. You might be surprised how hard books like that can be to find these days. Or maybe not?
Anywho again. Here are our 6 Best Reads of Summer (in no particular order). Drum roll please…
“The former chief believed Harrison had chosen death over being accused of murder. Now the real killer had returned. The clock was ticking.”
Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
“Un-Put-Downable.”
That’s a new word Mom and I just made up. You already know what it means. So here’s the scoop on this gripping and intense barn burner. We couldn’t put it down!
Note: Occasional foul language.
What’s the last book you read that whizzed by like greased lightning? That grabbed you from chapter one and didn’t let go until the last page? The action-packed, high octane thriller Sleeping Bear is that kind of a book.
I was going to read “a few chapters” just to get a feel for the story. Next thing I knew, I was 59 chapters in and goin’ for broke! Talk about a “page turner”!
Today we’re doing a spotlight of this Jane Austen-ish book by British author Linda O’Bryne:
Fiction has always been my go-to world, a place of entertainment, excitement and imagination – I am told that I wrote my first story when I was four about a lady who had twenty children! Sadly it has been lost for posterity.
I have been writing all my life in the time I could spare from having a “proper job”, mostly for children under the name of Linda Blake, stories of ballet dancers, pony riding and talking animals! Not all in the same book!
But my love of romance, a great tendency to say “What if..?” and the endearing characters of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice have now resulted in a series of books that will take the reader forward to the next generation of heroines.
I am retired, live in Kent and am a keen member of my local drama group. Directing and acting take up a lot of my time – I have been given the onerous task of writing the Christmas pantomimes – but I still need to cope with a large garden, doing daily battle with the heron who thinks my pond is his own breakfast buffet and keeping in touch with friends and family scattered all over the world.
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Note: We did not receive this book in time to read and review. So we’ll leave that to you. *Also, the cover for this book was “under wraps” when we were wrote this post, hence its absence.
By Ted Mulcahey, 2022Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Kimber the Magnificent here.
Bet you’re wondering why Mom and I agreed to jump on the blog tour for this murder mystery/action/adventure thingy. Glad you asked. We joined for two main reasons:
Kevin and Jenne (“Jenny”) O’Malley are “trouble magnets.” You won’t find that on their business cards. But the Washington-based interior designers seem to draw trouble wherever they go, even on vacation. That’s what happens when a cantankerous ex-client turns up dead in their room at a swank lodge in Napa Valley.
Finding GraceNote: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Remember that line from the Mel Gibson movie The Patriot? The one about being a parent? While debating whether or not South Carolina goes to war against the crown, Gibson, portraying colonial militia captain Benjamin Martin, says he’s a parent and he hasn’t the luxury of principles. In other words, family first.
At about 3:55:
Caroline Booker never got the Martin memo.
Indeed, Caroline thinks she’s Peter Pan. Don’t give me that “bold and unapologetic” horse hooey. Caroline the “gifted ornithologist” just doesn’t want to grow up. Or assume responsibility for anyone. Or anything. She just wants to live a life of travel and adventure unencumbered by bothersome little details like her husband, Charles. Or her daughter, Grace.
A foundling child, Charles yearns for a family. Caroline doesn’t. He tricks her into getting pregnant (long story). Caroline’s pretty ticked with this unexpected turn of events. And not interested in her child. At. All.
Chuck hopes Caroline will change her mind. She doesn’t. You see, Caroline’s waaaay too busy “being me” to be a parent. She holds Chuck to his promise to parent their daughter Grace without her, so Caroline can travel the world and follow her birds.
Unsurprisingly, a rift develops between husband and wife. Think Grand Canyon with Toxic Mother a la mode. And Grace grows up caught in the middle of one ginormous familial schism. It leads to her mental illness.
Kimber here. Telling you Mom’s nominating Caroline for life membership in the Big Kitty Litter Box in the Sky Society. In fact, one of us was ready to chuck the book after a few chapters. As in, So don’t have time for this. (Hi, Mom.) But cooler heads and paws prevailed. So we gave it another chance. With mixed results.
Overall, Finding Grace is an absorbing, intense, and complex read. It’s peopled with flawed but carefully crafted characters. Some grow and learn. Others don’t. (More on that in a min.) The title has a double meaning.
Masterfully written and expertly paced, it traces the complicated ties and effects of commitment, community, abandonment, emotional neglect, and hope. It’s a searingly heartrending story about a father’s unconditional love for his daughter and a cold, calculating “mother” who never got the Martin memo. Caroline’s more interested in birds than she is in her own daughter. And that’s a problem. Cuz Caroline the Majorette Jerkette is as appealing as an overcooked cabbage.
For example, in a rare twinge of conscience, Majorette Jerkette flies in from Lisbon after Grace attempts suicide. Following years of physical and emotional abandonment , M.J. sweeps into the hospital like she owns the place. She demands to see her daughter because she’s Grace’s “mother.” Oh, really? When did that start, you overcooked cabbage on Peter Pan steroids?
Another example: On page 130 Charles and Caroline are “on vacation” in – where else? – the Canary Islands. It doesn’t go well. Demanding and utterly self-absorbed per usual, Caroline wonders, “Where has my adoring Charlie gone? And how do I get him back? What’s wrong with him?” Well, sweetie. Try looking in the mirror.
Later in chapter 27, Charlie finally realizes that “the mathematics of marriage to Caroline had been exposed,” and “he refused to participate in her rigged equation any longer. But what damage have I done to my daughter?” The answer is: Plenty.
This isn’t a bad read if you can get past Caroline and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Century. And a triumphant note of hope, grace, and Serenity is sounded toward the end. But Majorette Jerkette overwhelms the story. We just wanted to slap her. And lose the cabbage.
Scene stealers: Dr. Riley and Daisy. Also the Booker dogs Abigail and Bailey. So there’s that.
What?If you’ve been following Pages and Paws for any length of time – say, 20 minutes or so – you know that Her Momness sometimes says weird stuff about books. (Don’t tell her I said that, okay?)
Sometimes Mom’ll read a “best-seller” that’s topping the charts and go, “Aaaarg! Barf-o-rama and gag me with Meow Mix! Bleeeech and double bleech!!” And sometimes she’ll read an obscure-ish book by an unknown indie author and chirp, “Why isn’t this magnum opus in every library, on every shelf, and in every bookstore in America and the whole world included?! Cuz it’s Seriously Awesome!”
Well. You know Mom. (Insert eye roll here.)
She also thinks some of the best writing and coolest stories around can be found in the Children’s Section of the local library. (Not sure what that says about Mom. Can I get back to you on that?)
Anywho, Mom was lumbering back from The Book Place the other day with her usual truckload of To Be Reads. All from the Children’s Section. I’m not making this up. Then she decides it’s time for a Pop Quiz. Like this:
“Okay, Kimmi. What children’s classic opens with these lines”:
Love Ever LastingNote: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Isn’t this a cool cover? We almost expect to see Pemberley come into view over the next hill. Or maybe Combe Magna.
Wait. Where were we? Oh yeah. Love Ever Lasting. It’s a newly released historical romance from Bramley Hall Regency Romance.
Grace Buchanan is 19 years old and has given up any hope of marrying. She’s been too occupied raising her younger siblings while her widowed father drinks away his wages as the town blacksmith. All Grace wants is an everlasting love. But her family dynamics make that unlikely.
When the much-loved Parson of Bramley Hall dies, his son, Matthew Morten, takes on his father’s mantle and becomes the new parson. Matthew has barely settled in to his new role when a deadly plague sweeps through the town. Grace’s younger brother is afflicted.
Matthew and Grace are suddenly thrown together as they fight for the town’s survival and the survival of their loved ones. How will Grace care for her siblings after her father’s death? Will Matthew’s meddlesome mother and Grace’s mischievous siblings doom their romance before it even gets off the ground? And what about other contenders vying for Grace’s hand? Will the spark between Matthew and Grace kindle and grow, or will responsibilities and family drama snuff it out? And where else will you find a carriage horse named “Obediah”?
Love Ever Lasting is a sweet, gentle read. Period-correct writing, vivid descriptions and historical settings combine with solid writing and rich, full-bodied characterizations to create a story with heaps of heart and wagons of warmth.
Portions of the plot seem a bit contrived, like Grace’s over-the-top response to the bee thing. It seems to have been written for the sole purpose of casting Matthew as a knight gallant. A little thin.
This isn’t exactly a barn burner. It moves like molasses in January in places. But if you enjoy inspiring historical romances with an Austen-esque flavor, Love Ever Lasting will make a pleasant addition to your summer TBR – or anytime.
Love Ever Lasting is a clean Regency Romance and the third book in a three-story series. Each book can be read as a stand alone, but is best read in release order.
About the AuthorsMichelle Helen Fritz was born and raised in Maryland and Arizona with lots of traveling throughout the States. She began her literary career as a personal assistant to Indie authors and loves to see the process of an idea turn into a finished book.
Michelle loves to write about dashing heroes, and the compelling women that tempt them, with a dash of intrigue, an abundant amount of romance, and scenes that hopefully make her readers swoon. She is the mother of four children whom she homeschools and currently resides in Maryland with her own jaunty hero who makes all of her dreams come true.
E.A. (Ericka Ashlee) Shanniak is the author of the successful fantasy romance series A Castre World Novel. She is hobbit-sized, barely reaching over five feet tall on a good day.
When she wears her Georgia Romeoa’s not only does she gain an inch, but she is also able to reach the kitchen cabinets. Ericka loves to write at her desk that her daughter’s cat destroyed. Fortunately for everyone, she can see over it.
Ericka resides in the small town of Coldwater, Kansas with her husband, two kids, two dogs and two grumpy cats. The cats were her kids’ idea.
Pages & Paws 