The Godmothers

    In this blog post, I reviewed Monica McInerney’s The Godmothers. This stand-alone women’s fiction novel is moving, heartfelt, and touching about family and discovering who you are. When Eliza Miller was seventeen years old, she lost her loving mother Jeannie, right before she told the truth about her birth father. She died from an accidental slip in the tub and faded away. Heartbroken, Eliza never knew the identity of her biological father. But years later, after she lost her job in Melbourne, Australia, with the encouragement of her two mothers, Olivia and Maxie, she flies to Edinburgh on a life-changing journey. There, she stays in Olivia’s hotel and asks about the truth about her mother that she had never known, and who could’ve been her father. Though they hedged the truth a tiny bit, they looked for clues in paperwork and photos. She also meets Lawrence, a widower of two years, who works for the hotel and for Olivia. There, she bonds with them and goes to Trim, Scotland, where she discovers the identity of her father and the hidden secret behind it. Lawrence tags along with her on the trip as they grow closer together. After that revelation, she flies back to Edinburgh and heads home to Australia to start a new life and a new future.

This emotional women's fiction is deeply profound, heart-breaking, and heart-wrenching.  I cared for Eliza, who had been through a lot at a tender age, and had the tender love from Olivia and Maxie to help her through it all. I also became worried for Olivia and Maxie, who harbored the real secret about how Jeannie died. The dual locations of Melbourne and Edinburgh were magnificent with gorgeous scenic settings.  The theme of the story is family–and what makes a family–who would love you who you are.

This heartfelt women’s fiction will pull at your heartstrings. I rated this book, four out of five stars for no reason. If you love women's fiction with non-stop dramatic action, plenty of suspense, and hints of twists and turns, check out The Godmothers. This book is recommended for fans who love Karen White, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, and Taylor Jenkins Reid.

Ten Days in Paradise

  In this blog post, I reviewed Linda Abbott’s Ten Days in Paradise. This memorable woman’s fiction novel deals with matters of the heart.  For Ellen Bennett, all she wanted to do is to go on vacation in Sanibel Island and take a break from her failing marriage and troublesome son. Sun, surf, and sand were all she expected to find in Sanibel Island. While she relaxed in paradise, she had a chance encounter with David Blakemore on the beach, a fellow traveler who’s vacationing with his family for his parent’s 50th wedding anniversary. At first they were strangers and later potential friends. But it later became something more intimate between them. During this time when she felt revitalized like never before, she befriended Liz Taylor, a priest at Grace Chapel, that’s about to be demolished by a wealthy businessman to built a family home on the island. With Ellen’s encouragement to go to the public, she helped Liz and her congregation in the biggest way by letting the public know about this in the news to spread the word. For David Blakemore, he’s a father of three kids and had never thought to fall in love with Ellen on the beach. His wife Marianne is a handful. His sister Maggie is estranged from his father, who’s going through some memory issues, that his mother couldn’t put her finger on.  Between them, things are a kind of nice, though they’re both married with children. This affair wouldn’t last long since it wouldn’t work. During David’s parents 50th wedding anniversary celebration, things change between his father and Maggie especially when his son Colin goes missing. At this time, Ellen’s husband Jeremy surprises her and tells her he wants to give their marriage another change and explained the issues that’s going on with their son. At the end of her stay, Ellen decides to follow her heart to stay in her marriage and break it off with David forever.
 
This tender-hearted woman’s fiction is about family, life, and marriage. I cared for Ellen who had been going through some difficult times in her marriage and had hit the crossroads. This break was what she needed to make the toughest decisions she had to ever face in her life. I did feel a bit bad for David, who’s been going through a turbulent crisis in his marriage, and also with his family as well. The picturesque location of Sanibel Island, Florida, made the scenic  settings pop on the page. The theme of the story is family brings us together when crisis pulls us apart.

This emotional woman’s fiction pulls at your heart strings. I have found a couple of nitpicks in this story, though this is just my opinion: the focus should be on David and Ellen and to trim the excess chapters dealing with the Grace Chapel and David’s family, unless they’re in the scene. There a lot of characters in this novel as well. Less is more.  I rated this book, four out of five stars because it has a HFN ending. If you love woman’s fiction that deals with family and matters of the heart, a hint of drama and non-stop action, Ten Days of Paradise will take you away. This book is recommended if you like woman’s fiction novels like Taylor Reid Jenkins and Karen White.

The Stars Are Fire

  In this blog post, I reviewed Anita Shreve’s The Stars Are Fire. This historical woman’s fiction novel is deeply heart-wrenching and powerfully moving read. In the late 1940s, Grace Holland is a young devoted mother of two and a wife in Hunts Beach, Maine. Her husband Gene is intolerable and her mother-in-law can’t stand her for some reason. Though Gene’s a good caring father, he has a funny way of showing it. Based on the true account of the wildfire that blazed that area in Maine, he helps the other fire fighters and hot spotters to contain it from spreading. Grace, and her neighbor Rosie, evacuate their homes to seek out shelter from the firestorm. After it ended, everything’s lost when she needs to find a place to call home and sought out her late mother-in-law’s home, and Gene is nowhere to be found and presumed missing if not dead. Grace would have to look for work and take care of her children with her mother’s help during this time. To make ends meets, she works at a clinic and meets new friend there. She also encountered a gifted pianist named Aidan Berne, who slummed in her home, and invited him to stay as a guest. They get to know each other better as his music enchanted her when he had stolen her heart. And when he left to play in Boston, Grace’s nightmare came to life when her husband Gene returned to his mother’s house with a frightful encounter that challenged Grace and pushed her to the limit. She discovered the real truth about her marriage as she seeks a way out of a loveless marriage to protect her children from him and to fight for her freedom to escape him.

This was a heartfelt and powerful woman’s fiction novel with a historical romance slant to it. I cared for Grace on how she cared about her children and tried her best to please Gene. She needed to support her family and do everything she could to avoid going into poverty. Before, during, and even after the fire, she had been dealt with some many life-challenging struggles, one too many she had to face alone. I’ve thought Gene had gotten what he deserved for his mistreatment to Grace and their children. I loved the dual locations of Hunts Beach and Biddesford Maine, which painted a vivid picture of how people lived during that time and what hardships they were dealt with. The scenic settings were picturesque and compelling to transplant yourselves over there. The theme of the story is that life can challenge you in the most difficult times, when you have to rely on yourself. The only nitpick was that there was no indication if Grace filed for divorce and gained primary custody of her children before she made her trips back home.

This historical woman’s fiction was so riveting, I enjoyed it completely to read it and be absorbed into Grace’s story. I couldn’t find anything to nitpick on from start to finish. I rated this book, four out of five stars for no specific reason. If you love historical romances and woman’s fiction novels with non-stop dramatic action, plenty of sparks of intrigue and a heap of heart-stopping moments,  check out The Stars Are Fire today. This book is recommended for those who love historical novels, both romance and fiction, and woman’s fiction novels as well.

Still Crazy

In this blog post, I reviewed Judy Prescott Marshall's Still Crazy. This novel tells the tale of Julie Holiday's journey from self-love, forgiveness, betrayal, and healing hearts. It all started when Julie discovered a mysterious note that's been addressed to her husband of 30 years, Dan.  That's when she suspected and believes he might be cheating on her again. It wasn't the first time, but it might not be the last time. Though everyone who knew him said she was crazy and wrong about Dan, but she had heard it all before. So she ought out to discover if she was right with help from her business partner and friend Lynnae, a single mother of two young boys. Until she had proof, she confronted him and denied him about it. She had enough and decided to give Dan his freedom when she sold her bakery and departed New York to go to Port Judith, Rhode Island. In the second half, she had gotten a fresh start by developing an inn and making her own from an old farmhouse. During the past year, she watched it unfold until it was up and ready for business with staff who she considered family and a new set of friends. Over the past year, she ran the operations and became a success until a suave man named Chad Claremont was besotted with her as a residential guest. But it became a bit too complicated to her since she couldn't let herself fall in love with him since she still had hard feelings for Dan and never stopped loving him.  The moment of truth came for her when Dan sought her out in Rhode Island and confessed his sins and how he wanted her back in her life even if it was at the inn in New York. It was up to Julie to forgive him and let him back in her heart or move on without him. 

This was an exceptional and heartfelt written woman's fiction novel that deals with infidelity and betrayal, forgiveness and second chances. I really cared for Julie and didn't blame her for seeking a fresh start to heal and to become stronger than before. Dan should've learned his lesson the first couple times when he strayed from her. I really liked the New York and Port Judith dual locations for the novel--both visually fantastic and picturesque scenic settings to take you there, especially of the inn in general. The themes of the story is forgiveness and being strong to seek God's guidance when you need it the most.

If you love heart-moving woman's fiction novels that deals with affairs of the heart with non-stop action, plenty of suspense and heartfelt drama, Still Crazy is the book for you.