Book Review: Out Of The Corner by Jennifer Grey

                                                    

Rating: 3 Out of 5 Stars

When I heard about this book being published I was intrigued. 

Dirty Dancing was one of the soundtracks to my senior year of high school.

Prom's theme was "The Time Of Our Life."

It was a very iconic movie and pretty much came out of nowhere. 

I also had watched Jennifer Grey on Dancing With The Stars.

So of course I wanted to read this book. 

I will try not to give too much away in this review.

I wasn't aware Jennifer Grey's parents were famous. 
(Think 'old Hollywood' here.)   That pretty much set up for

me that she didn't 'just happen' to get into show business. 

She went to private schools, spoke fluent French and her parents

were friends with a lot of famous people and she met many other

actors that would become famous in the future. 

 (Lots of name-dropping in this book!)

What I didn't know was the difficulty she had in getting acting jobs. 

It was not easy street for her.  And then of course the whole

'nose job' thing happened.  

I had also heard that she and Patrick Swayze did not get along, 

so I wanted to read her take on that as well.  The chapter on Dirty Dancing

was very interesting.  The small amount of time they filmed it in and it

wasn't even summer!!!  

Another shocker for me (which it I guess it shouldn't have been because

 I was alive during this time of course...probably just not paying attention)

was that Jennifer was in a serious relationship with her co-star, 

Matthew Broderick from 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off' in which she played his 

sister in the movie.   I also did not know about their horrific car accident

while they were on vacation in Ireland.  

It was very interesting to read about Jennifer from a young age until present time.

I was a little shocked at the end of the book.  She has a very nice epilogue and 

(poem?) at the very end called 'The Ride Home' which I want to print out because it really sums up how fast time moves.  It is spot on. 

I gave the book a 3 out of 5 just because I thought I would like her more than I did.

Maybe it was because of the time period she grew up in, (she's 12 years older than myself) the drugs, drinking, jumping into relationships and neediness?  

I give her a lot of credit for putting her life story out there and being very in-depth!

(There are some things that I'm how on earth did you know this happened on such & such a day and the vivid memory of it?!?!)

Purchase on Amazon @

Out Of The Corner

No comments

Posted at 6:34 PM  |  by Elle

Book Review: 28 Summers

My Rating: 5 Stars

This book starts with the reader already knowing the ending. Some reviews I've seen state that it would've been better to save what Mallory's fate is until the end of the book, but I feel that the reason Elin disclosed her illness was so you could appreciate what a full life she led, although bittersweet.

This book is based on the play and movie, Same Time Next Year.
Mallory Blessing and Jake McCloud come into one another's life via her brother Cooper Blessing and connect romantically almost instantly in 1993.  Although they have chemistry from the beginning, Jake is in a relationship with his childhood sweetheart and Mallory is starting her life over on Nantucket. They agree to spend Labor Day weekend together every year, no matter what is happening in their lives.  are not to contact one another throughout the year unless there's a marriage, pregnancy or death, which they abide by.

I loved how each chapter began with real life highlights of events that were happening in the specific year.  Another highlight was the mouth-watering details in the meals they prepared and ate!!! I need some recipes for these dishes Elin!!!  She also peppers characters and businesses from her other books throughout the story, which is very comforting; makes you feel like you've been here before (and if you've read any of her books before, you kind of have been!)


Dislikes:

- I did not enjoy the politics within the book. (Beach Read...trying to escape reality here!!)
- At times I felt sad for both Mallory and Jake because their situation could've been different if they were just honest with themselves and others in their lives. 

They could've had more time together during their lifetime (life is short!) 
- Infidelity. It is bothersome that both characters so easily could drift back to one another for one weekend a year and then just return to the rest of their lives for the remainder of the year.  ( they did find it difficult to separate and thought of one another when not together...torturing themselves.)

If this is your very first Elin Hilderbrand read, please don't totally judge her on this book alone.  It was a bit more 'serious' and depressing than some of her other books.
Checkout 'The Blue Bistro' to experience just one of my favorites of hers!

Click here to purchase your copy!  

No comments

Posted at 7:01 PM  |  by Elle

Book Review: Here's To Us by Elin Hilderbrand

My Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

This was a fast summer read for me.
Beware, there are a lot of characters to keep track of at first, but you will get the hang of how the story line jumps from present day, to the past and back by chapters explaining various parts of the main characters lives. 

This light, summer read is focused around Deacon Thorpe, a famous celebrity chef, his three wives (Laurel, Belinda and Scarlett) and three children (Hayes, Angie and Ellery.)  I must admit that I liked Deacon's first wife Laurel the best and would've rather seen the story be about their life together minus the two following ex-wives.  But, this was Elin's story to tell, not mine.

The Thorpe family is quite dysfunctional and full of drama to say the least!
The book begins with a flashback of a very important day in Deacon's life. The last day he spent with his father on Nantucket.
The second chapter starts with his best friend and agent John 'Buck' Buckley revealing that it is his duty to gather "Deacon Thorpe's entire family at the house on Nantucket so that they can spread Deacon's ashes and discuss the troubling state of his affairs."

You learn about each of the key family members in Deacon's life and some secrets along the way.

I could have done without the drug use and alcohol issues some of the characters struggled with.  I  wasn't expecting these topics at all.  
There were some scenes I was not a fan of because of this.

As always, there are some recipes throughout the book, which is always an enjoyable addition to Elin's books!

No comments

Posted at 2:49 PM  |  by Elle

Book Review: Killer Music by Tammy L. Grace

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

     Killer Music is not the usual genre that I read, although I've been trying to get more into mysteries lately instead of the normal women's fiction I tend to gravitate towards.

     At the beginning of this novel Grayson Taylor is introduced to the reader and I really was intrigued by all the entanglements going on in his life.  I hadn't read the book description so little did I know that the story would be centered around this man's death!

     Grayson Taylor is an executive who runs the Los Angeles office of Global Records, a recording company.  He travels to Global's Nashville office every six weeks and is planning on starting his own independent label;  he just needs to work up the nerve to tell Mel Lewis, the CEO of Global.  Grayson is staying at a hotel in Nashville and receives an unexpected visit from his high school sweetheart's brother Andy, who informs Grayson he has a seventeen year old son named Taylor.  Andy wants Gray to contribute to Taylor's expenses for college, although his sister has been against telling Gray he had a son for all these years.  Andy informs Gray that Taylor works at Silverwood, which is where a record industry party is taking place that evening.

     Cooper Harrington is a local private detective who works closely with Nashville's Chief of Detectives, Ben Mason and his office manager Annabelle, who is also a friend from college.  Cooper has been invited by the woman he is dating to a country music party taking place at Silverwood.  Coop is briefly introduced to Grayson Taylor at the event  along with many legislators looking to gain supporters for their upcoming campaigns. Coop is a natural observer and watches many interactions between people while his date Shelby goes off to meet some of the well-known country stars.

     Detective Harrington is called the day after the party to begin the investigation into Grayson Taylor's death which took place during the party at Silverwood.  Coop works closely with Ben's department and his assistant Annabelle in interviewing guests from the party as they try to piece together who would've killed Mr. Taylor and why.

     There are many characters in this story and I honestly had no idea who was the killer.  The story is very enjoyable and I found myself not wanting to put the book down. Ms. Grace definitely keeps you guessing throughout the book!

Killer Music is Tammy L. Grace's first book in the Cooper Harrington Detective series and is her first mystery novel.  She has also written three books in the Hometown Harbor series in the women's fiction genre.

No comments

Posted at 7:26 PM  |  by Elle

Book Review: The Same Sky by Amanda Eyre Ward

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received this book in exchange 

for an honest review from NetGalley.

This was the first book I've read by Amanda Eyre Ward

 and I cannot wait to read more of her books!

The Same Sky was a very quick read for me because

 I couldn't wait to find out what happened to the characters.  

Each chapter in the book alternates between Clara and Alice's lives.

The book begins by Clara telling how her mother left her and her twin baby brothers with their grandmother in Tegucigalpa, Honduras when she was just five years old, while her mother went off to America (Austin, TX.)  Clara describes what it is like to live in Honduras; her daily living conditions, struggles, friends and fears.  As her story-telling progresses she realizes at the age of twelve that she needs to leave the poor conditions in Honduras for America.  It is extremely dangerous and she needs to figure out how she will make this happen.  

The alternating story is in Alice's voice.  Alice Conroe is a forty-one year old co-owner of a famous Texas Barbeque restaurant with her husband Jake.  She is unable to conceive a child, so they decide on surrogacy only to have the mother change her mind a day after the baby was given to them.  The mother had forty-eight hours to change her mind and unfortunately for the Conroe's she takes the baby back the next day, leaving them heartbroken.  Alice is depressed, empty, consumed by wanting a baby.  Her husband Jake is also upset about the situation, but has a business to run and seems to want to make his marriage the priority since they aren't succeeding with starting a family.

Throughout the book you will hope for the best for both of these women; one who wants to reunite with her mother and the other who longs to be a mother.  You will also wonder how Clara and Alice's stories coincide with one another.  I will not give away spoilers, but will say the ending will grab your heart for both of them.  

Listen to a podcast in an interview with Amanda Eyre Ward here!

No comments

Posted at 10:46 AM  |  by Elle

Book Review: A Taste of Chardonnay by Heather Heyford

A Taste of Chardonnay by Heather Heyford

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is Heather Heyford's debut novel and I'm already looking forward to follow-up books in the Napa Wine Heiress series!

This book focuses on Chardonnay "Char" St. Pierre, the middle child of the famous French vintner Xavier St. Pierre and the late actress, Lily d'Amboise. Char's sisters are Sauvignon (aka "Savvy") and Merlot (aka "Meri'.) My first impression when I realized the sisters were named after wines was that these women were going to be uptight, snooty brats. I was pleasantly surprised that they all seem to be likable characters.

Char is a charitable person who helps out in local soup kitchens, homeless shelters, and collects donated clothing for the less fortunate. She has a degree in public service from the University of Connecticut and has a plan to get a charity organization up and running. Her plan involves winning the McDaniel Foundation's Napa Charity Challenge so that she can start up her charity without the help of her father's money. The challenge involves running a half-marathon, raising funds from local businesses and a charity auction. Char is determined to win.

What Char doesn't foresee is another competitor by the name of Ryder McBride. He's a famous actor who has come back to the area to participate in the Napa Charity Challenge for his own cause. Although they don't see eye-to-eye when they first meet, they both admit to themselves there's an attraction there.

There are family secrets intertwined in the story line and the shining of light on some great charitable causes. Neither character comes off self-centered, which was a breath of fresh air.

I would've liked to see more relationship development between Char and Ryder, as it felt like it happened quickly. All in all though this was a quick read and I'm looking forward to reading Char's sister's stories in the forthcoming books.

                                 A Taste Of Sauvignon will be available on April 14, 2015

No comments

Posted at 7:30 PM  |  by Elle

Book Review: Codependent No More/Beyond Codependency by Melody Beattie

Codependent No More & Beyond Codependency by Melody Beattie

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I wanted to learn about co-dependency because I wasn't completely sure what was meant by being co-dependent. This book is wonderfully written and is extremely informative.

I wish I had read this book as a young woman so I could have been more aware of relationships with friends and others during that time of my life who may have been codependents. I believe reading this book as a young adult would help aide in figuring out personal issues (and relationships with others) sooner in life rather than later.

Although the book also focuses on alcoholism, substance abuse and 12-step programs, there are many more topics in this book that relate to general life issues. Learning to love and accept yourself (and others), expressing yourself, setting goals and learning how to communicate properly are just some of the helpful topics covered.

This book is actually a 2 in 1 book with 'Codependent No More' being published in 1987 and 'Beyond Codependency' being published in 1989. Melody Beattie, the author, is a recovered addict, alcoholic and codependent. The reason this book is so insightful is because Ms. Beattie wrote from the heart. She shares her experiences and those she has connected with vividly in this book.

I must tell you that I started this book on February 11, 2014 and to my surprise I finished it exactly a year later. The reason I spread this book out over such a long period of time was because it is not 'light & fluffy' reading. It is intense and thought provoking. This was a borrowed book, but if I owned a copy I would go through the book again and highlight many insightful and smart advice that I could pass onto my daughters.

Here are more books by Melody Beattie that you may enjoy!

No comments

Posted at 7:58 PM  |  by Elle

Book Review: Leading Man by Benjamin Svetkey

Leading Man by Benjamin Svetkey

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Note: I received this book from a GoodReads GiveAway.

I am doing a 'Pass It On' with a Book Give Away on my blog's FaceBook Page!  All you need to do is  'Like' my Facebook post comment HERE!  I will be numbering your comments & then using the True Random Number Generator to choose the book giveaway winner.  If this book interests you, head on over now to enter!  (United States entries ONLY please!)

Max Lerner had always been caught up in the lives of the rich and famous.  It began with his childhood idol, Johnny Mars.  The book takes a look back at Max's relationship with his one true love, Samantha, and the devastation he faces when she and Johnny Mars marry.

Max is a writer for KNOW magazine, which is a great fit for him since he is infatuated with fame.  He interviews celebrities, travels to exotic locations and tries to get over Samantha

 (with little success.)

Benjamin Svetkey, the author of 'Leading Man', was a writer and editor for Entertainment Weekly magazine for two decades and definitely draws upon his experiences for material in this book.

Although I found the ins and outs of movie set life, celebrity interviews,  pop culture and traveling interesting, after awhile it seemed to be a bit monotonous.  I really liked the meet-ups that popped up between Max Lerner and the actor Alistair MacLean.  Alistair's character seemed to be the smartest in the book.  I would've liked more dialogue between them.

All in all, this is a quick read and the story line has you wanting to find out what happens in the end.

Thanks to GoodReads & Vintage/Anchor books for this giveaway!

These are quotes from the book that I enjoyed the most:

"Fame is like money-----you're just borrowing it.  Someday you're going to die, and somebody else is going to get it." -Alistair MacLean

"I had seen the inside of the factory where celebrities were manufactured, watched them roll off the assembly lines and get packaged for the public.  The mystery wasn't totally gone, but fame was definitely losing its luster.  I was starting to realize that the sparkle and glitter that had so mesmerized me--that so mesmerized the whole world--turned out to be mostly marketing." -Max Lerner

"People want to be famous because it gives them the illusion that their life is important.  That it actually matters that they're alive.  That even after they die, some part of them will live after them.  Fame is really a state of grace, only with money and power and beautiful lovers."  -Alistair MacLean

"One minute I was living with her, the next she was married to Johnny Mars." -Max Lerner

"All I wanted was to make Sammy love me again, whether that was what Sammy wanted or not.  I never thought about her feelings.  I was selfish and self-centered." -Max Lerner

"You didn't steal here.  I lost her.You were just lucky enough to find her."  -Max Lerner

"I had spent my entire adult life with my face  pressed up against the windows of other people's lives.  I'd interviewed the famous, traveled to the most glamorous locales on Earth, but I'd never been more than an emotional tourist."  -Max Lerner

"As far as I can tell, people look wherever the camera is pointed.  It doesn't matter who it's pointed at.  You're famous because it happens to be pointed at you a lot of the time. If it were pointed art me, I'd be famous too."  -Max Lerner

No comments

Posted at 2:08 PM  |  by Elle

Guess What Tomorrow Is?

The National Readathon is a nationwide reading marathon from Noon to 4pm in your time zone.  

Find out more about this event here.

Look here for local Readathon events near you.

Enjoy your afternoon of reading!

No comments

Posted at 5:11 PM  |  by Elle

Book Review: Wind Chime Point

Wind Chime Point by Sherryl Woods

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This is the second book in the Ocean Breeze seeries. For some reason I enjoyed this book more than the first.

The focus is on Gabriela, where as the first book focused on Emily.
Gabi finds herself unemployed, broken up with her boyfriend and pregnant. She returns to Sand Castle Bay to figure out her next steps and finds herself becoming friends with the local cabinetmaker, Wade Johnson. Their friendship grows and she resists the fact that she may be falling for him. Of course her grandmother, Cora Jane, is right there trying to nudge their relationship along.

The story also continues with the planning of Gabi and Samantha's sister Emily's wedding. Samantha is still feeling down in the dumps because she's not landing any acting jobs and Gabi steps up to try to help her with public realtions. The last book in this series will be Samantha's story and I'm hoping that book is even better than this one.

This series is a very relaxed and mellow. It's not heavy on the romance, but more so focused on the mentality of falling in love and making life choices.

No comments

Posted at 3:02 PM  |  by Elle

Book Review: A Week In Summer: A Short Story by Meve Binchy

A Week in Summer: A Short Story by Maeve Binchy

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



This was a very short story and the first book I've ever read by Maeve Binchy.

The story was about marriage, dedication to work and family, late-in-life parenting, and the lack of vacationing in this family's life.

Kathleen decides that since her husband has been let go of his teaching job, they have a week in summer that they can schedule a vacation; something they've never done before. Kathleen's husband Brian is depressed and really isn't interested in going anywhere, but they make an agreement that if he goes on this vacation she will give him some time to figure himself out.

Kathleen heads to a senior citizens travel agency (this part was quite funny being this is what my Associates degree is in) and can't seem to choose a destination that her husband would be happy with. Finally the agent asks to consider what she'd like to do, not her husband. She points out that she would like to trace her ancestry, which brings her to the decision of Ireland as the destination for their vacation.

Nice storyline, but a bit depressing at parts.

No comments

Posted at 7:35 AM  |  by Elle

Book Review: Return To Willow Lake by Susan Wiggs

Return to Willow Lake by Susan Wiggs

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is the ninth book in the Susan Wiggs' Lakeshore Chronicle Series.

The story focuses on Sonnet Romano, her mother Nina and her longtime childhood friend Zach Alger.

The book starts out with Sonnet visiting the town she grew up in because she is home for her best friend and step-sister, Daisy Bellamy's wedding.  This is the continuation from the eighth book in the series, 'Marrying Daisy Bellamy.' 

 The one sentence that sort of threw me off was this one:

"Since high school, he and Sonnet had gone in different directions, and she hadn't seen him in ages.  Now she couldn't take her eyes off him."

That sentence is in reference to Sonnet's childhood friend Zach Alger.  

Having just read the ninth book, Sonnet and Zach had spent some time together in that book helping Daisy un-pack and I believe they also watched movies together with Daisy and Logan.  The above sentence makes it seem like this was Sonnet's first sighting of Zach 'in ages', when in the previous book they had spent time together.

I usually don't write reviews with spoilers, but this one I feel the need to.

*********************SPOILER ALERT**************************

Keep

Reading

if

you

do

not 

mind 

a

spoiler

for 

this

book

!!!!!

!!!!!

!!!!!

!!!!!

Sonnet gets drunk at Daisy's wedding reception, has sex in a boat down by

the lake with Zach and she regrets it later.  What she really regrets is ruining their many years of friendship with the complications of the feelings she now has for Zach because of their night together.

She returns to NYC and her boyfriend Orlando whom her father has set her up with.  Sonnet's father, Laurence Jeffries is running for the state senate and Orlando is her father's campaign manager.  She feels they are a good match, however she just doesn't feel that 'love connection' and spends half of the book trying to justify why she shouldstay with Orlando.

The second storyline to this book is a pretty huge one.

Sonnet's Mom, Nina Romano, has breast cancer and she is pregnant. 

Sonnet decides to leave NYC and a fellowship she has been offered overseas, in order to help out with her mother during this difficult time in her life.

Of course there are many interactions with Zach when she returns to Avalon.

They even end up working for a production of a reality series taking place at Camp Kioga.  Most of the book is waiting for Sonnet to come to her senses and see that her and Orlando are not a match and to await the outcome of Nina's health situation.  Most of the book Sonnet is trying to get the friendship that her and Zach had, back to what it used to be.  But in the prior book it seemed like both of them were interested in one another.

  The discontinuity between these two characters was upsetting to me.

I gave the book 3 stars because I've always liked these chracters, I just wish it would've been a more believable between Sonnet and Zach; at least on Sonnet's part anyway.

 

No comments

Posted at 2:25 PM  |  by Elle

Book Review: The Girls Of August by Anne Rivers Siddons

The Girls of August by Anne Rivers Siddons

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received this book in exchange 

for an honest review from NetGalley.

This is the first book I have read by Ann Rivers Siddons and I was pleasantly

 surprised at how quick of a read this book was for me.

I was a bit surprised how depressing a lot of the storylines were being this 

is supposed to be a 'beach read' kind of book.

The Girls Of August is about a group of women who vacation at a 
different beach houses every August. 

The Girls Of August were Madison, Rachel, Barbara and Cornelia.

The women's husbands were all in medical school when the August beach

vacationing began.  The first beach house the women stayed at was Teddy's wife Cornelia's 

aristocratic family's beach home in Alabama.  Shortly after Teddy went into private practice, Cornelia left Teddy for a college boyfriend. 

 Teddy's second wife , Melinda, clicked with Madison, Rachel and Barbara and became a beloved friend to all the girls ; they considered themselves the 'original' Girls Of August.  

Then after 15 summers of vacationing together, Melinda is killed in a car crash.

The Girls Of August hadn't seen one another in three years after Melinda's death, 

but decide it is time to renew their annual beach ritual.

  Madison and her husband Mac have met Teddy's young, new wife, Baby Gaillard, but the other girls have not.  Baby has offered her family's beach house on the remote Tiger Island for the Girls Of August beach retreat.   Madison, Rachel and Barbara plan a get-together in June so

 they can meet and think over the choice of this particular beach house.  

It is quite an adjustment for the middle-aged women to adjust to the 22 year old Baby

on their vacation.  They all have very little tolerance for some of Baby's behaviors,

which sometimes is comical.  But looming inside these women's minds are the troubles

they are currently facing in their lives.  This is where the storyline doesn't feel like a

light and fluffy beach read any longer.  It becomes a bit depressing and very much reality.

This book kept my attention, but it felt rushed at a lot of points in the story.

I felt like I wanted to know more details, especially toward the end of the book.

I almost hope there is a sequel to this book so that Madison, Barbara, Rachel and Baby's

stories can be further explored.  Not sure if the author has enough content in mind for a

sequel, but there are definitely loose-ends that I would like to be see tied up.

No comments

Posted at 8:00 PM  |  by Elle