What I Read While I Was Sick

I  was out of commission for about a week, so was happy that I was able to lay in bed and do quite a bit of reading.  Unfortunately, once I was better, I had to catch up on all the work that I didn’t do while I was sick, so didn’t have time to write up my reviews.  So here they all are!!

Rescue by Anita Shreve

Rescue is the story of paramedic, Peter Webster, who pulls a mysterious woman, Sheila Arsenault, out the car she totaled while drunk.  He falls almost immediately in love with her and so begins their whirlwind romance, pregnancy and marriage.  Unfortunately, things do not stay idyllic for long and Sheila returns to her old ways and Peter is left alone to raise their daughter Rowan.  In Rowan’s 18^th year, she begins to give Peter trouble and he wonders whether to bring her mother back into her life or not.

Anita Shreve is a bestselling author and I’ve read some her work before and she never disappoints.  The characters are believable and despite Sheila’s many flaws, I was still pulling for her to succeed. 

I would definitely recommend this if you are in the mood for a serious book. 

4.5/5

Stately Pursuits by Katie Fforde

Hetty Longden has recently been dumped by her boyfriend (who felt that the best way to break up with her would be for her to find him in bed with another woman – what a jerk!) and is pretty much at loose ends, when her mother decides that to get over her broken heart, she should become the caretaker of her great uncle’s, in much need of work mansion.  

This is a British  novel, which I always enjoy.  I just love how they word things and the characters are so quirky and have eccentric neighbors and they live in the cutest little cottages.  It all just sounds so adorable and fun.  Hetty knows absolutely nothing about renovation, but with a lot of help from the supporting cast, she attempts to bring the mansion back to its former glory as a historic landmark.

This is a great book if you are looking for something light and not at all serious to read.

4/5

The Cotton Queen by Pamela Morsi

Laney Hoffman’s life has not quite turned out the way she planned, so she is forced to return home –back under the thumb of her beauty queen mother, Babs. 

I had never heard of this author before, but was intrigued as the back of the book had quotes from both Laney and Babs, each describing the other.  It’s also set in a small southern town, which usually means a good time with all the crazy town folk.

I really, really loved this book – the setting was great and the characters were people you’d imagine would inhabit a small town, all in each other’s business and driving each other nuts.  I would definitely recommend this. 

A side note – I picked this up used at my library’s book sale and it was autographed to  Rhonda from the author.  Shame on you Rhonda for not treasuring your autographed book!!!

5/5

The J.A.P. Chronicles by Isabel Rose

Willow Lake was THE camp for girls from the best families.  Seven former bunkmates come to together as adults at a reunion for a camp.  Ali Cohen, who is now an Oscar winning documentary film maker, was the outcast of the group and now wants to make a documentary about her former bunk mates.  They each agree to meet with her once they are back home for interviews about how their lives turned out. 

This was an interesting concept in that the former geek-turned-success tries to get a glimpse into the current lives of her former tormentors, hoping to find them miserable.  In the process, she learns a lot about herself and the illusions she had of these woman as girls.  I did like this book for the most part, but there were so many characters, that it was kind of hard to keep track of them all.  There would be a section highlighting each of the women, but when they were referred to later in the book, I had to refresh my memory as to which one was which. 

I did enjoy it and if anyone would like me to send them my copy, I would be happy to do so.  It was also bought at my library’s book sale, so it’s not a pristine copy, but it is a hard cover.  Just send me an e-mail with your address and I’ll  pop it in the mail for you. 

4/5

Well, there’s my reviews and now I’m tired.  I’ll have to leave the What I Watched  for another time.   Hope you saw something here you might want to read!!!