Shelley Reads and Writes

Tag: book review

  • The Book is Even Better!

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    In PS I Love You by Cecilia Ahern, Holly and Gerry were childhood sweethearts–soulmates. They grew up together, as best friends, so it was no surprise when they married and started their life together.

    But when the unthinkable happens, Holly struggles to continue living without her soulmate. Then, Gerry surprises her from beyond the grave. He leaves her with a bunch of notes that he signed ‘PS, I Love You’. Holly is told to open one a month for several months.

    Following whatever Gerry tells her, Holly buys a new outfit, gets a good job, tries karaoke, and much more. However, she quickly realizes that, even with Gerry’s death, she is still living for him.

    Lucky for Holly, she has a lot of family and friends to help her through the first year. She finds herself laughing, crying, and enjoying life again. Even better, she has a guardian angel by her side!

    I haven’t watched the movie in years (or read this book), but I am really glad that I picked it up again. I am looking forward to reading the sequel, so stay tuned!

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

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    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time.

  • A Sweet Romantic Novel Worth Checking Out

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    Mia DeAngelis made a change that would affect the rest of her life and her nephew Ben’s. However, she knew that it would be for the best.

    Deciding to move to Compass Cove, where her grandmother lived, felt like starting over. She took a job as a college librarian in a sleepy little beach town, where she knew that Ben would shine. The two move in with Mia’s grandmother and plan to make a life for themselves.

    Adam Miller, who retired from the NFL after an injury, returns to Compass Cove to lead a quieter, purposeful life. He becomes a coach at the college, so that football can still be a part of his life.

    They couldn’t be more different. A quiet librarian raising her sister’s child and a fast football star looking for a chance at a slower-paced life. However, when the two of them meet, everyone knows that they belong together. The two of them just need to realize it themselves!

    If you are looking for a sweet romantic read, you should start with Then Came You by Jeannie Moon. I couldn’t wait until Mia and Adam realized how perfect they were together, with little Ben by their side!

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

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    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time.

  • Can You Really Let Go of Your Past?

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    In Before and Again by Barbara Delinsky, Mackenzie Cooper’s eyes were off the road for a few seconds, and it changed her life forever, as well as many others. The accident ended more than two lives that day. After losing her marriage, family, and friends, she decides to get away.

    She finds herself in Vermont, with the name Maggie Reid. She has a small home and has adopted a dog and a few cats to keep her company. She has a good job at the Inn as a makeup artist and has quite a few friends in the community.

    That being said, she is still under probation, so she has to be careful as she gets closer and closer to the date when she doesn’t have to deal with her probation officer anymore.

    However, crime happens no matter where you live, and Maggie’s sleepy little town is thrust into the national spotlight when a local teenager hacks into the school database as well as several powerful men’s Twitter accounts. She finds her face on national television as she stands beside a friend with her own secrets!

    As Grace’s secrets come out, Maggie’s may also. The life that she worked so hard to protect may come crumbling down as Maggie struggles to deal with the loss of her daughter, five years later.

    I could not put this book down, especially as things started to come out about Maggie’s past. When her ex-husband and brother show up, you can imagine that Maggie isn’t going to be pleased.

    A Delinsky classic! Always good storytelling that is worth reading!

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

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    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time.

  • Elizabeth Berg Has A Way of Writing About Friendship

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    Your best friends will be by your side, no matter what. When Ruth becomes ill (and then terminal), her friends rally around her, determined to be there for her until the end.

    Ann, her closest friend, drops everything to ensure that Ruth is well taken care of. She spends her days and nights with her, without worrying about anything else. She wants to make sure that Ruth has everything that she needs (and then some) to enjoy her last days.

    As Ruth’s other friends rally, the women do what they always do, go out to eat, watch movies, and gossip. However, it is hard to think that it might be the last time that they do these things.

    I love a good Elizabeth Berg novel. She is a great storyteller, and really understands what it means to have a good group of friends, ones that you can tell anything to and they will still love you!

    If you are looking for a good read about friendship (especially between women), you need to pick up Talk Before Sleep by Elizabeth Berg.

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

    ***

    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time.

  • Will Alicia Get Her Revenge?

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    You set fire to me and left me for dead. You even pronounced me dead, never noticing that I was still alive. Everyone left me, yet somehow I survived.

    When Alicia escaped the fire, she began a whole new life. She meets a man named Christopher, who is only happy to take care of her. She tried (though not very hard) to become an actress, while biding her time until she could take revenge on the people who left her for dead.

    Alicia decides that she will have her revenge. Or will she? Is she willing to give up her love, just to get even? Christopher won’t stay with her if he really knows who she is, so is she willing to risk it all?

    The Girl Who Caught Fire by Lorna Dounaeva: another compelling novel in the series. I can’t wait to see how it ends!

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

    ***

    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time! 

  • Can You Find a Friend When You Need One Most?

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    The worst day of Gemma’s life changes her life forever. She has been raising her daughter on her own while her boyfriend looks for new opportunities in Australia. However, she receives an email from his brother, letting her know that Jack has moved on. In fact, he is raising another child with someone else.

    When Gemma gets this news while she is at work, she falls apart in the women’s restroom. There, she meets Crystal, a woman who takes her out to lunch to get away from all the prying eyes!

    Crystal has been where Gemma was. She was left suddenly and had to figure out how to move on. So, when she sees Gemma, she is ready to help!

    When she meets Gemma’s daughter, she falls in love with her. Poppy feels the same way about Crystal. Crystal starts helping Gemma care for Poppy as she tries to figure out what her future is going to look like.

    But then, jealousy happens. Poppy and Crystal start spending so much time with each other, that Gemma starts to become uneasy about the whole situation.

    I just loved Not Your Child by Sheila Norton, and I had to download quite a few more of her books, and I can’t wait to read them!

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

    ***

    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time.

  • Can You Really Trust Your In-Laws? (and Your Husband)?

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    Chelsea was having a rough go of it when she met the man that she would eventually call her husband. He helped her get better mentally. He was also there for her when her father was sick and eventually died. He even supported her love of painting, letting her dream of going to art school while he took care of her and provided for her.

    Then, it was time for her to meet her in-laws. They lived off-the-grid in a remote location. You couldn’t even get there by car. You had to hike for four hours to get to their cabin.

    They went for a weekend, but then it didn’t look like it was going to be very easy to leave. Chelsea didn’t feel any warmth from his mom, while she enjoyed getting to know his father. However, the family tension quickly became unbearable, and all Chelsea wanted to do was to get back home.

    As Chelsea learns more about her new family, she uncovers some truths which really change everything!

    Just like the other books that I read by Caine, this one had me trying to figure out what was going to happen and then completely go in another direction! If you enjoyed any of his books, you should give this one a try!

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

    ***

    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time.

  • Who Will Help a Child Who Really Needs It?

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    In The Teacher by Meg Gray, Emma Hewitt was starting over as a kindergarten teacher in Portland. She is completely happy to be with her group of kindergartners until she meets one father who hurriedly drops his son off mid-meltdown.

    After she learns more about the child, she just wants to help him, but his father is too busy to return her calls. Even after she gets his attention, the father doesn’t want to admit that his son needs her help.

    Once she learns about the trauma that the boy suffered, she is even more ready to support the two as much as she can. And then she sees the soft side of the father, and she wonders if she is really falling for the grumpy father of one of her students.

    As the family grows closer, you may wonder what is going to happen with the three of them. When I finished this book, I just had to grab the next one! Gray’s books are definitely worth picking up!

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

    ***

    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time!  

  • Will A Play Boy Ever Settle Down?

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    In The Girl Next Door by Meg Gray, Jocelyn Banks hates change, but she was given a job in a big city that she couldn’t pass up. In a few months, she could return home to her beloved paper and take it over. She finds an apartment to sit while the occupant is out of the city. It seems perfect until she runs into her neighbor, a cocky blue-eyed charmer.

    Luke Lewis has a reputation as a flirt, though he is also good at his job as an attorney in the family business. When he finds himself dealing with a big project at work, he realizes that he can’t lose focus, even with his adorable neighbor.

    When Jocelyn publishes something about his latest project, it brings the two of them together. And they find themselves becoming friends as they work on discovering the truth.

    I have already started (and finished) the third book in this series. I highly recommend giving this series a read!

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

    ***

    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time!  

  • When Tragedy Strikes, Can You Really Move On?

    Book Cover off of Amazon Website

    Marcus couldn’t wait to welcome his new baby with his new wife in The Way We Are by Meg Gray. As the couple (and their son Braydon) prepare for the new arrival, tragedy strikes, and Marcus is forced to plan a funeral instead.

    . As the couple (and their son Braydon) prepare for the new arrival, tragedy strikes, and Marcus is forced to plan a funeral instead.

    Meanwhile, Luke finally has his dream girl, and he is carrying around an engagement ring to prove it! However, when his brother’s life unravels, he struggles with his own feelings and doesn’t always act the right way.

    As Marcus struggles to find the light at the end of the tunnel, Luke’s plan backfires, and he is worried that he will spend the rest of his life alone.

    The two brothers have to lean on each other in order to get through this terrible ordeal.

    Though loss can be hard to read about, this series really shows us how family and friends will rise to the occasion to help others out when they need it!

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    If you are interested in this book, you can grab it from Amazon right here!

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    Please note, this is an affiliate link, where I will receive compensation if you buy the product, without any extra cost to you.

    ***

    Stay tuned for my next book review.

    Til next time!