Literary Fiction

The Beautiful Ashes of Gomez Gomez by Buck Storm

 

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Audra Jennings PR in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

The Beautiful Ashes of Gomez Gomez by Buck Storm was a great book.  I wasn’t sure that I was going to like this book, but I fell in love with the book.  I did judge this book by the cover, and this one again showed me that I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.  It had a unique plot than I had read in a while, but I also fell in love with the author’s writing.  This book was so sweet that I am going to keep this book in my collection of books. I know I will reread it in the future.  I felt so bad for Gomez Gomez because I can’t even imagine how hard it was for him to go on after his wife was killed.  This is the first book that I read by this author, and I know that I will be reading more from him in the future.  If you are looking for a book with a unique plot, I will pick up a copy of this book because I am sure you will love it just like I did.

About The Book

Literary Americana fiction filled with humor and heart

When his wife, Angel, is killed in a head-on collision, Gomez Gomez feels he can’t go on–so he doesn’t. He spends his days in the bushes next to the crash site drinking Thunderbird wine, and his nights cradling a coffee can full of Angel’s ashes. Slow, sure suicide, with no one for company but the snakes, Elvis’s ghost, and a strange kid named Bones.

Across town, Father Jake Morales plays it safe, haunted by memories of the woman he left behind, hiding his guilt, loss, and love behind a thick wall of cassock and ritual. Then a shady business deal threatens the town–and his good friend Gomez Gomez–and Father Jake can’t just stand by and watch. But what happens when the rescuer is the one in need of saving?

The Beautiful Ashes of Gomez Gomez is quirky, heartfelt, and deeply human. Lives and hopes collide in the town of Paradise, stretching across decades and continents in this epic story of forgiveness, redemption, and love.

About The Author

Buck Storm is a critically acclaimed author and musician whose stories have found friends around the world. His nonfiction work includes Finding Jesus in Israel and Through the Holy Land on the Road Less Traveled. Storm’s novels include The List, The LightTruck Stop Jesus, and The Miracle Man. The latest, The Beautiful Ashes of Gomez Gomez, launches his new series, Ballads of Paradise.

Storm and his wife, Michelle, make their home in North Idaho and have two married children.

Learn more about Buck Storm, as well as his writing and music, at buckstorm.com. He can also be found on Facebook (@buckstormauthor)Twitter (@buckstormauthor), and Instagram (@buckstorm).

Buy A Copy

Add To Your TBR List

Let’s Be Friends

Enter To Win

Read An Excerpt

(more…)

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2020 Margaret Margaret

Looking Glass Lies by Varina Denman

Book Review Graphic

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

Looking Glass Lies by Varina Denman was a hard book for me to get and stay interested in this book.  I had a hard time with this book because I have never struggled with what Cecily was so I couldn’t understand or even feel like I could relate to what she was going through in her life.  I know that women who do go through things like this would probably relate and get more out of the book than I did.  I just found myself annoyed and not able to understand what she was going through during this book.  I did like how you got to see as she grew throughout this book because I think that it give others hope who are dealing with the same things.  I am sure that this book would be perfect for people who do go through things like this, but it just wasn’t the right fit for me.

About The Book

A poignant and relatable novel, Looking Glass Lies captures the war women wage against themselves, and the struggle to see beauty reflected in a mirror not distorted by society’s unrelenting expectations.

For most of her adult life, Cecily Ross has compared herself to other women—and come up short. After a painful divorce from her emotionally abusive husband, Cecily returns to her hometown of Canyon, Texas, looking to heal.

But coming home isn’t what she expects. In a town as small as Canyon, her pain is difficult to escape—especially with her model-perfect ex–sister-in-law working at the town’s popular coffee-shop hangout. With help from her father, a support group, and an old friend who guides her to see her own strengths, Cecily may have a shot at overcoming her insecurities and learning to love again.

The true test comes when tragedy strikes, opening Cecily’s eyes to the harmfulness of her distorted views on beauty—and giving her the perfect opportunity to find peace at last.

About The Author

Varina Denman writes stories about the unique struggles women face. Her award-winning Mended Hearts series, which revolves around church hurt, is a compelling blend of women’s fiction and inspirational romance. Her latest novel, Looking Glass Lies, releases in May. A native Texan, Varina lives near Fort Worth with her husband and five mostly grown children. Connect with Varina on her website or one of the social media hangouts.

Buy A Copy

Add-On Goodreads

Let’s Be Friends

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2017 Margaret Margaret

The German Girl by Armando Lucas Correa

Book Review Graphic

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

The German Girl by Armando Lucas Correa was a great book.  I am a huge fan of books like this because WWII is so interesting to me and this book was one of the better ones that I have read lately.  I love that this book goes between Hannah’s time and also modern times as you follow along with Anna.  I also love that this book talked about things I didn’t know had happened during WWII.  I have read tons of books about WWII, and I loved that I was able to learn about some of the other things that people dealt with during WWII.  I was sad when this book came to an end because I loved all of the characters in this book.  This book is also the first book that I have read by this author, and after this book, I have added him to my list of authors that I want to read more books by in the future.  If you love WWII books and are looking something different I would recommend this book to you.

About The Book

A stunningly ambitious and beautiful debut novel, perfect for fans of Sarah’s Key and All the Light We Cannot See, the story of a twelve-year-old girl’s harrowing experience fleeing Nazi-occupied Germany with her family and best friend, only to discover that the overseas asylum they had been promised is an illusion.

In 1939 before everything changed, Hannah Rosenthal lived a charmed life. Her family moved in Berlin’s highest social circles, admired by friends and neighbors. Eleven-year-old Hannah was often taken by her mother for an afternoon treat at the tea room of the beautiful Adlon Hotel, both dressed in their finest clothes. She spent her afternoons at the park with her best friend Leo Martin. But, in an instant, that sunlit world vanished. Now the streets of Berlin are draped with red, white, and black flags; their fine possessions are hauled away, and they are no longer welcome in the places that once felt like home. The two friends make a pact: come what may, they promise to have a future together.

As Hannah and Leo’s families desperately begin to search for a means of escape, a glimmer of hope appears when they discover the Saint Louis, a transatlantic liner that can give Jews safe passage to Cuba. After a frantic search to obtain visas, the Rosenthals and the Martins depart from Hamburg on the luxurious passenger liner bound for Havana. Life aboard the ship is a welcome respite from the gloom of Berlin—filled with masquerade balls, dancing, and exquisite meals every night.

As the passengers gain renewed hope for a bright future ahead, love between Hannah and Leo blossoms. But soon reports from the outside world began to filter in, and dark news overshadows the celebratory atmosphere on the ship; the governments of Cuba, the United States, and Canada are denying the passengers of the St. Louis admittance to their countries, forcing them to return to Europe as it descends into the Second World War. The ship that had seemed their salvation seems likely to become their death sentence.

After four days anchored at bay, only a handful of passengers are allowed to disembark onto Cuban soil, and Hannah and Leo must face the grim reality that they could be torn apart. Their future is unknown, and their only choice will have an impact in generations to come.

Decades later in New York City on her eleventh birthday, Anna Rosen receives a mysterious envelope from Hannah, a great-aunt she has never met but who raised her deceased father. In an attempt to piece together her father’s mysterious past, Anna and her mother travel to Havana to meet Hannah, who is turning eighty-seven years old. Hannah reveals old family ties, recounts her journey aboard the Saint Louis and, for the first time, reveals what happened to her father and Leo. Bringing together the pain of the past with the mysteries of the present, Hannah gives young Anna a sense of their shared histories, forever intertwining their lives, honoring those they loved and cruelly lost.

About The Author

ith 20 years of experience in Hispanic media, award-winning journalist and author Armando Lucas Correa is the Editor in Chief of PEOPLE EN ESPAÑOL, the top selling Hispanic magazine in the U.S. with more than 7 million readers every month. In his role, he oversees the editorial content of the magazine, PeopleEnEspanol.com and its digital editions for tablets and mobile.

He also oversees the brand’s social media strategy and events like 50 Most Beautiful (New York), the 25 Most Powerful Women (Miami), as well as Festival
People en Español (New York).

In Cuba, he entered the world of print journalism in 1988 when he was appointed the editor of Tablas, a national theater and dance magazine based out of Havana, Cuba.

Correa is the recipient of various outstanding achievement awards from the National Association of Hispanic Publications and the Society of Professional Journalism. He is the magazine’s primary spokesperson and regularly appears on national Spanish-language television programs discussing celebrity news and scoops.

His book En busca de Emma (In Search of Emma: Two Fathers, One Daughter and the Dream of a Family) was published by Rayo, Harper Collins in 2007 and for Aguilar, Santillana (Mexico) in 2009. His first novel The German Girl will be published in October in Enlgish and Spanish by Atria Books, a division of Simon and Schuster.

He currently resides in Manhattan with his partner and their three children.

Buy A Copy

Add-On Goodreads

Let’s Be Friends

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2017 Margaret Margaret

Save The Last Dance by Eric Johnson and Eva Ungar Grudin

save-the-last-dance-banner

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Pump Up Your Book in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

Save The Last Dance by Eric Johnson and Eva Ungar Grudin was such a different book from what I usually read.  I have read one other book that was written similar to this one and if you want to check it out you can click here to read that review.  I loved this book because it felt like you were reading personal emails from actual people.  I know part of the reason I loved this book is because I love being nosy and know what is going on with strangers.  I did at times get frustrated because I wanted to know what the characters were thinking and what not.  I also felt frustrated when the book ended because you have no idea what ended up happening with the characters.  Even with all that being said I still really enjoyed this book and it is one that I will keep in my personal collection of books.

save-the-last-dance

About The Book

A tale of the power and peril of first love rediscovered.

Adam Wolf and Sarah Ross were teenage sweethearts who grew up in Cleveland Heights, Ohio in the late 50’s and early 60’s. They set a wedding date when they turned fifteen. The day came and went. For most of their lives the two were out of contact.

 

With their 50th high school reunion approaching, Adam and Sarah reconnect. Email exchanges – after the first tentative “hi”, then a deluge- five, ten- by the end of the week twenty emails a day. Soon Sarah admits, “All my life I’ve been looking for someone who loves me as much as you did”.
Written entirely in email and texts, Save the Last Dance allows the reader to eavesdrop on Sarah and Adam’s correspondence as their love reignites. It also permits the reader to witness the reactions of significant others, whose hum-drum lives are abruptly jolted by the sudden intrusion of long-dormant passion. Can Sarah and Adam’s rekindled love withstand the pummeling they’re in for?

eric-johnson-eva-ungar

About The Authors

Eric Joseph and Eva Ungar (Grudin) were teenage sweethearts in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, who set a wedding date when they turned 15. The last time they saw each other they were 21 years old. Three years ago they reunited, around the time of the 50th high school reunion. Although their book is a work of fiction, it’s about a couple like them, who fall in love again, almost instantly, via email.

Eric is in public health, a consultant/educator at hospitals and clinics, concentrating his career on Native American health services across the country. Eva is an art historian who taught at Williams College in Massachusetts for 40+ years. She specialized in African and African-American art; the history of European painting: also Holocaust Studies – memorials and museums; In addition, she has performed in and written Sounding to A, a multi-media work about inheriting the Holocaust. It premiered at the Ko Festival of Performance in 2004.

Learn more about Eva and Eric and their history together by visiting hargrovepress.com – At the website you’ll find memories about their time together in the late 50s, early 60s, as well as interviews from today.
Their latest book is the literary fiction, Save The Last Dance.

For More Information

Visit the authors’ website.

Connect with authors on Facebook and Twitter.

Find out more about the authors at Goodreads.

Buy A Copy

 

Save The Last Dance is available at Amazon.

Pick up your copy at Barnes & Noble.

Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.

Add-On Goodreads

Let’s Be Friends

Excerpt

(more…)

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2016 Margaret Margaret

Bradstreet Gate by Robin Kirman

Book Review Graphic

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Blogging For Books in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

Bradstreet Gate by Robin Kirman wasn’t the right book for me. When I first started reading this book, it reminded me of the book “Defending Jacob by William Landay” even though they aren’t about the same things the writing reminded me of that book but that is about all because I found myself getting lost in all the details. I couldn’t sit down and read this book for extended periods of time because I got distracted and just couldn’t keep my focus on this book. I am sure this book will be great to some people but for me it just bored me, and I couldn’t wait until it was over.

Bradstreet Gate by Robin Kirman

About The Book

A tour de force about three friends affected by a campus murder, for readers of Donna Tartt, Meg Wolitzer, and Jeffrey Eugenides

Georgia, Charlie and Alice each arrive at Harvard with hopeful visions of what the future will hold. But when, just before graduation, a classmate is found murdered on campus, they find themselves facing a cruel and unanticipated new reality. Moreover, a charismatic professor who has loomed large in their lives is suspected of the crime. Though his guilt or innocence remains uncertain, the unsettling questions raised by the case force the three friends to take a deeper look at their tangled relationship. Their bond has been defined by the secrets they’ve kept from one another—Charlie’s love and Alice’s envy, Georgia’s mysterious affair—and over the course of the next decade, as they grapple with the challenges of adulthood and witness the unraveling of a teacher’s once-charmed life, they must reckon with their own deceits and shortcomings, each desperately in search of answers and the chance to be forgiven.

A relentless, incisive, and keenly intelligent novel about promise, disappointment, and the often tenuous bonds of friendship, Bradstreet Gate is the auspicious debut of a tremendously talented new writer.

From the Hardcover edition.

Robin Kirman

About The Author

ROBIN KIRMAN earned a BA in philosophy from Yale College and an MFA in fiction from Columbia University, where she served as a writing instructor in the English department. Robin lives in New York City and Tel Aviv.

Buy A Copy

Add-On Goodreads

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2016 Margaret Margaret

Sit, Stay, Love by Dana Mentink

Book Review Graphic

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Litfuse in exchange for my honest review.   I received no other compensation for this review.  All opinions expressed in this review are all mine.

Sit Stay Love by Dana Mentink was an excellent book.  I am a sucker for books that have animals as one of the characters because I love animals so much.  I enjoyed this book right from the start, and I was sad when it was over because I loved Gina and Tippy.  I wasn’t a huge fan of Cal but by the end of the book, I started to like him.  There are parts of this book that made me laugh out loud.  I also love that the author of this book is donating a part of the proceeds from this book to a rescue group that takes care of older dogs.  This is the first book I have read by this author, and I can’t wait to read more because her book made me smile and I love that about it.  I can’t say enough good things about this book, and I can’t wait to read other books by her.  If you love super cute Christian romance novels then I know you will love this book as much as I do.

Sit Stay Love by Dana Mentink

About The Book

Take one abrasive professional athlete, a quirky out-of-work schoolteacher, and an overweight geriatric dog, and you’re ready for a lesson in love…Tippy style.

Pro baseball pitcher Cal Crawford is not a dog guy. When he inherits his deceased mother’s elderly dog, Tippy, he’s quick to call on a pet-sitting service.

Gina isn’t thrilled to be a dog sitter when her aspirations lie in the classroom. Furthermore, she can’t abide the unfriendly Cal, a man with all the charm of a wet towel. But with no other prospects and a deep love for all things canine, she takes the job caring for Tippy.

As Gina travels through Cal’s world with Tippy in tow, she begins to see Cal in a different light. Gina longs to show Cal the God-given blessings in his life that have nothing to do with baseball or fame. When her longing blooms into attraction, Gina does her best to suppress it. But Cal is falling in love with her too…

Discover the charming story of Tippy, the dog who brought a family together.

Dana Mentink

About The Author

Dana Mentink enjoys writing in many different capacities. She currently writes for Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense, Harlequin Heartwarming and Harvest House Publishers.

Dana is the recipient of a Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award and an ACFW Carol Award as well as a Holt Medallion Merit Award winner.

Dana loves feedback from her readers. Contact her via her website atwww.danamentink.com.

Buy A Copy

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2016 Margaret Margaret