Teaser Tuesday - Orphan Train

Maybe it's because my grandfather was an orphan, but ever since I heard about the real-life Orphan Trains, I've wanted to learn more. Christina Baker Kline's novel provides a realistic glimpse at that time in history.  It's a book about a teenager who is in foster care (present day) and a woman who was an Orphan Train child back in the early 1900s. Their stories are fascinating, and I came to care about the characters and the challenges they faced. Anyone who enjoys good fiction, taking place during real historical events, will be glad they read ORPHAN TRAIN. It's a book I won't soon forget.

FYI: According to the author's notes, between 1854 and 1929 approximately 200,000 orphaned children were transported via rail from the East Coast to the Midwestern U.S. for the purpose of adoption. 

In my Teaser (from Page 28) the children are waiting on a train platform, getting ready to be considered for adoption:
I am with a group of twenty children, all ages. We are scrubbed and in our donated clothes, the girls in dresses with white pinafores and thick white stockings, the boys in knickers that button below the knee, white dress shirts, neckties, thick wool suit coats. It is an unseasonably warm October day, Indian summer, Mrs. Scatcherd calls it, and we are sweltering on the platform.

Genre: Literary Fiction
Length: 273 Pages
Amazon Link: ORPHAN TRAIN
Goodreads: Synopsis

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers
• Leave a comment on MizB's Teaser Tuesday post (HERE) and include your link so everyone can find your post.

Book Beginnings and Friday 56 - The Beach Trees

I've just finished reading THE BEACH TREES by Karen White and enjoyed it so much that I've added her other books to my wish list. Not only did I like the plot, I came away with a better understanding of the outlook and attitudes of people who live in disaster prone areas. Seems to me that no matter where we live, Mother Nature has surprises in store for us!  

Book Beginnings on Friday - Opening sentences:
Death and loss, they plague you. So do memories. Like the Mississippi's incessant slap against the levees, they creep up with deceptive sweetness before grabbing your heart and pulling it under.

Friday 56 (from Page 56 of my paperback copy):
Aimee regarded me with a steady blue gaze. "Why build skyscrapers in San Francisco that might be knocked down by an earthquake? Or why build farms in Kansas and Oklahoma that might get blown away by a tornado?" 

Genre: Women's Fiction
Length: 432 pages
Amazon Link: The Beach Trees

Here's the synopsis from Goodreads:
From the time she was twelve, Julie Holt knew what a random tragedy can do to a family. At that tender age, her little sister disappeared - never to be found. It was a loss that slowly eroded the family bonds she once relied on. As an adult with a prestigious job in the arts, Julie meets a struggling artist who reminds her so much of her sister, she can't help feeling protective. It is a friendship that begins a long and painful process of healing for Julie, leading her to a house on the Gulf Coast, ravaged by hurricane Katrina, and to stories of family that take her deep into the past.

Anyone can participate in Book Beginnings and Friday 56. 

   Click here to connect to other Book Beginnings posts 

   (sponsored by Rose City Reader.)

   Find other Friday 56 bloggers here 
   (sponsored by Freda's Voice). 

                

Teaser Tuesday - Bluebonnet Bride

   

Why can't I discover the first book in a series first? Seems like I always come across the second or third installment before ever reading the first one! Today's Teaser book,

 BLUEBONNET BRIDE 

is the third in the Men of Stone Mountain series by Caroline Clemmons, and I just started reading it yesterday. It's a terrific book - great description, good plot, appealing main character - so I know I'll read the first two stories as well. Too bad I won't be reading them in sequence.


Here's today's Teaser, from 2% on my Kindle:

Winds sucked at her skirt so hard her shawl whipped away. She feared all her clothes would be ripped from her body.

Genre: Romance
Length: 210 Pages
Amazon Link:  Bluebonnet Bride

Goodreads Synopsis:
When a tornado provides Rosalyn with the opportunity to escape the gallows, she collects her daughter Lucy and flees. They travel far enough West that Rosalyn believes she’s gone to the ends of the earth. She hopes she and Lucy will be safe in this remote North Texas town where she embarks on a new life as a dressmaker. If only she could avoid contact with people, especially the handsome sheriff who pops up every time she turns around. She fears either she or her chatterbox daughter may slip and reveal too much. 

Joel Stone has been content with his life, even if it’s not the one he’d dreamed. His younger brothers are married and living nearby, his aunts have moved to Radford Springs, and he is respected for the efficient job he does as sheriff. When he meets the new widow in town, his instant attraction staggers him. She appears uninterested, but he is determined to win her hand in marriage. 

But life doesn’t turn out the way either Rosalyn or Joel plan. They overcome temporary obstacles, but what of the secret she protects? Can he save her from the gallows?

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers
• Leave a comment on MizB's Teaser Tuesday post (HERE) and include your link so everyone can find your post.

Boomer Lit Friday

A weekly blog hop event for Boomer Lit writers

Thanks for joining us for another Boomer Lit Friday. We're featuring an excerpt from I.O.U. SEX, the story of three women who search for their high school boyfriends, decades after graduation. 

At this point in the story, people often wonder who Peg will choose as her private investigator and ask us, "Will Peggy fall for the P.I.?" Not a chance! Here's an excerpt from I.O.U. SEX giving you Peg's viewpoint when she first sees James Hornby. We hope this gives you a clear picture of why Hornby isn't exactly hero material.

He didn't look at all like what she expected. Instead of resembling the PIs she'd seen on television shows, he looked more like McGruff the Crime-Fighting Dog. You'd think he'd have the courtesy to rise to greet a prospective client, she thought. She straightened her shoulders and reminded herself that she would be the one paying for his services.

Not only did Peggy compare "Hornyberry" to McGruff, she also had a few more gems to say about him.

Not that this Bozo was such a prize. With his bald pate, jowls, and round belly, nobody would call him the pick of the litter.

That about says it all. Go, Peggy!

To connect with other Boomer Lit authors and read excerpts from a variety of terrific books, click HERE.

Boomer Lit

Boomer Lit Friday

A weekly blog hop event for Boomer Lit writers

Thanks for stopping by to participate in Boomer Lit Friday. Every week authors of books featuring Baby Boomers post excerpts on their blogs. Click HERE to connect to more.  

Our snippet today is from I.O.U. SEX, the story of three lifelong friends who make a pact to track down their high school boyfriends. June and Kiki have found their high school steadies, but Peggy hasn't been as lucky.

Peggy sat on the patio by the pool eating Krispie Kreme doughnuts and drinking a Coke, wondering what Kiki and June were up to. She hadn’t heard a peep out of either woman since their lunch, and she was dying to hear the latest in their boyfriend saga. These days, their lives rivaled “As the World Turns” for drama, and she hated to miss a single episode.

Since their last conversation, Peg had attempted to find where Mark was living without any success. She’d tried Kiki’s approach and done a computer search, typing “Mark William Smith” in the Google search box. When she hit “enter,” millions of hits popped up. Overwhelmed, she clicked on the big “X” and turned off the confounded machine. Given her computer ineptitude, she knew she’d probably done it wrong somehow. With only Mark’s name to go on, finding him on the internet would be like searching for a needle in a haystack the size of Texas.

The solution came one sleepless night when Peggy turned on the TV and saw a “Rockford Files” rerun.

“Why didn’t I think of hiring a professional before?” She said the words out loud to the empty room.

She wondered how much an investigation would cost, and what she would tell the detective. Peggy laughed, imagining herself explaining Kiki’s crazy idea of payback sex to a complete stranger. The guy would probably fall off his chair laughing at the idea that a fat broad like her even had such fantasies, much less intended to act on them.

And what would she tell Ken? Not that her husband paid much attention to what she did, but she’d need to come up with some plausible story for how she spent the money, just in case he noticed.

Peggy decided to go for it. She went to the kitchen to find the Yellow Pages to see if private investigators were listed.

I.O.U. SEX is available in paperback and eBook formats from
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Smashwords

Boomer Lit

Boomer Lit Friday

A weekly blog hop event for Boomer Lit writers

Thank you for stopping by for another excerpt from I.O.U. SEX, the story of June, Kiki, and Peggy, three Baby Boomers who search for their high school boyfriends.

Through an Internet search, Kiki has discovered that her old boyfriend Greg is now a televangelist, but she's having a hard time getting in touch with him. This scene shows her frustration.

 

Kiki lounged in the white leather recliner at the Pink Door Spa. She'd spent the morning getting her hair trimmed and her gray roots tinted red, then dozed while an herbal masque cleansed her face. After a hot stone massage, the manicurist completed her work. While the nail polish dried, Kiki used a pencil to punch buttons on her cell phone, trying the number she'd copied from the "contact us" section of Greg's website. 
      The woman who answered was not helpful.
      No, she could not connect Kiki to Reverend Houston.
      No, she could not give out his home address.
      No, she knew of no mailing address other than the one on the website--the one where donations should be sent. It seemed to Kiki as if the only question that would solicit a yes from the old broad was "Do you take credit cards?"

          

To buy an eBook or paperback copy of I.O.U. SEX, click here: I.O.U. SEX on Amazon
For links to more outstanding BOOMER LIT books, click here: BOOMER LIT FRIDAY  

Facial photo source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Facial_mask.jpg

Teaser Tuesday - The Fortune Quilt

 

I love to quilt, so it's no surprise that a book titled THE FORTUNE QUILT caught my eye. But this novel really isn't about quilting. The quilt connection is with a psychic who envisions an idea for a quilt, creates it, and then waits until the person it "belongs to" shows up. Then she gives a psychic reading, reflected in the quilt's design. The plot is about Carly McKay, a woman who is the recipient of one of the psychic's quilts.

I love Lani Diane Rich's voice - her characters are quirky but believable- and I had a great time reading this funny book.

TEASER: Hiking is not walking. Walking is something you do on a nice, level surface--like a sidewalk, or a path, or a floor--to get from Point A to Point B. If Point A and Point B are too far apart, you get in a car and drive, the way God intended. 
(at 49% on my Kindle)


262 pages
Genre: Women's Fiction / Contemporary Romance
Amazon Link: THE FORTUNE QUILT

Goodreads Synopsis: 
When Tucson Today segment producer Carly McKay visits the quirky artist’s community of Bilby, Arizona, to do a story on a psychic quiltmaker, she receives an odd reading... and her life falls apart in eerie harmony with what the quilt foretold. Her best friend professes his undying love; her show gets canceled; and the mother who disappeared seventeen years ago appears on their doorstep, getting instant forgiveness from the entire family... except Carly.

Carly rushes off to Bilby to return the cursed quilt, and then surprises herself; she stays. She rents a cabin, gets a job, and meets an artist who shows her new ways to look at life, and love. Can she run away and start a new life, or should she go back and stitch her old one back together? 

And why is it so hard to get a straight answer from a psychic, anyway?

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers
• Leave a comment on MizB's Teaser Tuesday post (HERE) and include your link so everyone can find your post.

Boomer Lit Friday - March 15

Thanks for dropping by to read our latest Boomer Lit Friday excerpt from I.O.U. SEX. June, Kiki, and Peggy have recently made a pact to track down their high school boyfriends, and now they're meeting for lunch. In case you can't tell from Peggy's lunch order, I.O.U. SEX is set in the South. The excerpt is from Page 54 (14% on Kindle). 

The next day, Peggy sat across from her two friends, studying the restaurant's menu and having a hard time deciding which entree to order. Finally, she told the waitress to bring her favorite meal--chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes with cream gravy, and a large Coke. A look passed between June and Kiki, but they said nothing, other than to ask for grilled tilapia with steamed veggies and iced tea. Peggy sighed, wishing she had their willpower, wondering if she could change her order, but the waitress had already taken their menus and left.

Kiki took a sip of water and smiled at the others before speaking. "So, how goes the great search? What's the latest?"

"Search? Wa...wait a minute," Peggy stammered. "Are you talking about your wild idea to find our old boyfriends? I thought that was just a joke. June, you're not searching for Denny, are you?"

June's cheeks reddened. 

                       

To connect with other Boomer Lit Friday authors and read excerpts from some terrific books, click HERE.

To connect to the Amazon link for I.O.U. SEX, click HERE. For more info about I.O.U. SEX, click on the tabs above this post. 

Photo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:CountryFriedSteak.jpg

Boomer Lit Friday - March 8

We're pleased to participate in Boomer Lit Friday for the first time today. 

Our snippet is taken from Chapter 1 of I.O.U. SEX.  In this scene, lifelong friends June, Kiki, and Peggy read June's high school diary, reflect on their teenage years, and come up with the idea of searching for their old boyfriends. [WARNING: This post contains one bad word and a bunch of innuendo.]

      Kiki rolled her eyes. "Shit, if I'd known then what I know now, things would have been very different. When I think of the staying power of those eighteen-year-old guys ...." She sighed. "Too bad we wasted it."
      Peggy put her hand over her mouth to keep her drink from spewing out with her laughter. She shook her head as if to dislodge Kiki's words from her ears. "Please, I'm serious. Those boys must have felt as sad as a fiddle with one string. So disappointed. So...unfulfilled. It must have been hard on them."
     "Unfulfilled?" June grinned. "That's priceless."
     Kiki arched an eyebrow. "That's also an understatement if I ever heard one, but you're sure right about the hard part."
            
Here's the criteria for Boomer Lit Friday posts:

The excerpt must be from a work that fits in the Boomer lit genre, which means it must focus on Boomer characters or issues faced by Boomers today, not nostalgia or coming of age set in the 50s and 60s.

For links to more Boomer Lit Friday posts and excerpts from some great books, click HERE. 

To link to I.O.U. SEX on Amazon, click on the book's cover to the left of this post.

Enjoy Boomer Lit Every Friday

Teaser Tuesday: The Law of Similars

My favorite Chris Bohjalian book (so far) is MIDWIVES, but I enjoyed this one too. No matter what he writes, I learn something new through his stories. That's always a plus for me. In this book, the subject was homeopathic medicine.

Today's Teaser is from Page 3 of my trade paperback copy:
"But about a week after Elizabeth's funeral, when Abby and I were just starting to settle into a routine that would become our life, I think the concept that Mommy really and truly wasn't coming back became a tangible reality in my little girl's mind--more real, perhaps, than the lunch box I packed every night for day care, or the stuffed animals that lined the side of her bed against the wall. It happened after midnight."

Title: The Law of Similars
Author: Chris Bohjalian
Number of Pages: 336
Amazon Link: Here

Synopsis (from Goodreads):
From the number one bestselling author of Midwives comes this riveting medical thriller about a lawyer, a homeopath, and a tragic death.  When one of homeopath Carissa Lake's patients falls into an allergy-induced coma, possibly due to her prescribed remedy, Leland Fowler's office starts investigating the case.  But Leland is also one of Carissa's patients, and he is begining to realize that he has fallen in love with her.  As love and legal obligations collide, Leland comes face-to-face with an ethical dilemma of enormous proportions.  Graceful, intelligent, and suspenseful, The Law of Similars is a powerful examination of the links between hope and hubris, love and deception. 

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers
• Leave a comment on MizB's Teaser Tuesday post (HERE) and include your link so everyone can find your post.

Teaser Tuesday - Ten Tiny Breaths

Today's Teaser Tuesday is from the prologue of 

TEN TINY BREATHS 

by K.A. Tucker

    êêêêê

"What the hell does a tiny breath do? Why not a deep breath? Why ten?"

Amazon Link
Goodreads Link
Number of Pages: 264
Genre: 
Contemporary Women's Fiction (maybe Young Adult)

Partial Synopsis (from Goodreads):
     Kacey Cleary’s whole life imploded four years ago in a drunk-driving accident. Now she’s working hard to bury the pieces left behind—all but one. Her little sister, Livie. Kacey can swallow the constant disapproval from her born-again aunt Darla over her self-destructive lifestyle; she can stop herself from going kick-boxer crazy on Uncle Raymond when he loses the girls’ college funds at a blackjack table. She just needs to keep it together until Livie is no longer a minor, and then they can get the hell out of Grand Rapids, Michigan.     
     But when Uncle Raymond slides into bed next to Livie one night, Kacey decides it’s time to run. Armed with two bus tickets and dreams of living near the coast, Kacey and Livie start their new lives in a Miami apartment complex, complete with a grumpy landlord, a pervert upstairs, and a neighbor with a stage name perfectly matched to her chosen “profession.” But Kacey’s not worried. She can handle all of them. What she can’t handle is Trent Emerson in apartment 1D. 

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers
• Leave a comment on MizB's Teaser Tuesday post (HERE) and include your link so everyone can find your post.

Book Beginnings and Friday 56 - Dakota Blues

Indie author Lynne M. Spreen says (on Goodreads):  
"Dakota Blues is about coming alive at midlife. Here's what I want to know: At middle age and in the second half, are we too old to start over? Is it foolish to try? Should we be winding down or giving it our all, burning bridges and blowing things up in a last attempt to realize our dreams? How best to travel this later-in-life pathway? These are the questions that fascinate me, and about which I crave to write."

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAY:

         Karen's fingers hovered over the keyboard while she tried to remember the killer argument she'd been about to make, but the idea had faded. Not for the first time that day, she wished the hall outside her door hadn't become the official gathering place for coworkers in search of gossip and idle chit chat.
        It wasn't like her to lose focus so easily.

THE FRIDAY 56 (from 56% on my Kindle):

        Karen agreed. "The van runs beautifully, and I'm planning to take it around the Divide, through Albuquerque so I can avoid the higher elevations. It's a bit farther, but safer."

       "Always play it safe, that's our Karen," said Frieda.

Author: Lynne M. Spreen
Genre: Women's Fiction
Number of Pages: 306
Amazon Link: DAKOTA BLUES 

MY THOUGHTS:
         This is such a good book! Fifty year old, high-powered executive Karen Grace faces three life-changing crises, all within a matter of days. When her mother dies, she must leave California for her rural hometown in North Dakota to attend the funeral; her husband threatens divorce because his young girlfriend is pregnant; and her career is in serious jeopardy. But when she meets 90-year-old Frieda, she's offered an opportunity to break away and make some changes. Her journey makes for a fascinating story that I highly recommend.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Anyone can participate in Book Beginnings and Friday 56. 

Click here to connect to other Book Beginnings posts 
(sponsored by Rose City Reader.)

Find other Friday 56 bloggers here (sponsored by Freda's Voice). 

                

Book Beginnings and Friday 56 - Love and Sleepless Nights

                              

Today I'm featuring LOVE AND SLEEPLESS NIGHTS for my Book Beginnings on Fridays and Friday 56 post.

Author: Nick Spalding
Genre: Women's Fiction / Humor / Romance
Number of Pages: 170
Amazon Link and Synopsis: Love and Sleepless Nights

                                        

BOOK BEGINNING:
Laura's Diary - Monday, April 1st
Dear Mum,
     Well, it's finally happened. I've achieved my lifelong ambition. 
     It's been many years in the making, but I can now honestly say that I, Laura Newman, have successfully thrown my guts up in front of a group of men at an important job interview.

Book Beginnings on Friday is hosted by Rose City Reader. To play, share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires and then add your name to the Linky list HERE.
                                                   
THE FRIDAY 56 (Laura is holding her newborn daughter):
      A sudden up-swell of tears rises from the depths of my being and now I start to cry with a combination of relief, awe - and not a little pride, if I'm being honest.
      I take the very small package into my arms, feeling the undeniable weight of new existence through every fibre of my being.

To participate in The Friday 56, hosted by Freda's Voice, post a few sentences from Page 56 of your current book (or from 56% on your eReader) and then add your name to the Linky list HERE.

MY THOUGHTS: Anyone who has ever had a baby (especially first-time parents) will relate to the emotions, experiences, doubts, and joys portrayed in this book. Presented as a series of diary entries (Laura's) and blog posts (her husband Jamie's), I enjoyed every single word.

Book Beginnings and Friday 56: Perigee Moon

PERIGEE MOON is my featured book for today's Book Beginnings on Friday and The Friday 56 post.

BOOK BEGINNINGS:
When the kids on Henley Street were seven and eight and nine, there was no one to blow the whistle. There wasn't a leader among them, not one to make a decision. During the summer there could be as many as eight boys who milled around and collected together on the sidewalks. They wanted to do something interesting and fun but waited for someone else to take charge. 

(NOTE: Of course, that changes when Kate Willoughby's family moves into the neighborhood!)

FRIDAY 56:
Once the fraternity pin was in place, Kate decided it was time to take the relationship to a new level. She wanted an engagement ring and she wanted it in time for Christmas, during their junior year of college. It was time.

(NOTE: This is at 16% on my Kindle -- my estimate of where Page 56 would probably be.)

MY IMPRESSIONS:
I read this book a while back and loved it! The author took me back to a simpler time and carried me through Kate and Luke's lives - from the 1950s all the way to the present. Filled with humor and true-to-life situations that reflect the times in which the characters lived, I found myself nodding in agreement more than once! The characters and story created by Lynn Schneider will stay with me for a long time.
(By the way, Kate Willoughby is a "Fatal Attraction" type of character that you'll love to hate.)

Author: Lynn Schneider
Genre: Women's Fiction
Number of Pages: 342
Amazon link.
Link to my review on Goodreads.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Anyone can participate in Book Beginnings and Friday 56. 

Click here to connect to other Book Beginnings posts 
(sponsored by Rose City Reader.)

Find other Friday 56 bloggers here (sponsored by Freda's Voice). 

                

Boomers & Books Review

Thank you, Sharon Tillotson, for your kind review of I.O.U. SEX. We're so glad you enjoyed reading our book.

Here's what Sharon had to say: Review of I.O.U. SEX

To get your own copy (in paperback or ebook formats - Kindle, Nook, etc.), click on the "Buy I.O.U. SEX" tab above. It makes a great Christmas gift.

Book Beginnings & Friday 56 - Tangled Ashes

Author: Michele Phoenix
Genre: Women's Fiction
Number of Pages: 384
Amazon Link: Tangled Ashes

Book Beginnings on Friday: 
(Prologue)
Marie stood in the shadow of the grand staircase and held her breath. The lights were out--they had been all evening--but the ochre glow from the flames on the patio illuminated the polished wood and chiseled stone that loomed around her with threatening austerity. Beyond the window, two columns of wide-spaced guards funneled a stream of nurses and maids from the castle's rear entrance to the fire that burned like a funeral pyre, exploding tiny, arcing embers into the warm night sky. 

Friday 56 (from 56% on my Kindle):
As Beck got to the final cellar that led to the space under the ballroom, he noticed that the stack of old bookshelves he and Jacques had displaced Monday afternoon had fallen. They'd been propped up against the wall when the two men had left, but now they were scattered on the floor. He stepped into the dark and musty room ahead with a little less confidence in his gait, grabbing a two-by-four from the pile near the destroyed wall. 

Amazon Synopsis: When Marshall Becker arrives in Lamorlaye, France, to begin the massive renovation of a Renaissance-era castle, he unearths a dark World War II history few in the village remember. The project that was meant to provide an escape for Becker instead becomes a gripping glimpse into the human drama that unfolded during the Nazi occupation and seems to live on in midnight disturbances and bizarre acts of vandalism.

My Thoughts: The novel is set in France and two plots intertwine--one taking place in the 1940s during World War II and the other in current times. The WWII tale is told by Marie during the Nazi occupation, while the contemporary part is from the point of view of architect Michael Becker who has been hired to restore the castle where both stories take place.  I enjoyed reading a story told from a man's perspective for a change. Although I wish I'd known what was causing Michael's angst a little earlier in the book, both plots held my interest until the end. Overall, I enjoyed this book. (I just noticed that one of the tags on Amazon for this book is "inspirational romance," which surprised me. Yes, the author did mention religious beliefs, but the result was not preachy or overdone.) 

Anyone can participate in 

Book Beginnings and Friday 56. 

Click here to connect to other Book Beginnings posts (hosted by Rose City Reader.)

Find other Friday 56 bloggers here (hosted by Freda's Voice). 

                

Teaser Tuesday - The Samurai's Garden

  

I'm about halfway through this lovely book and I'm enthralled. This love story is set in rural Japan when its feudal system ended and rogue samurai (ronin) terrorized villagers, destroying farms and taking lives. The unusual setting, time period (1870s), and strong characters have held my interest from the first page. Beautiful writing and good reading.


Genre: Historical Romance (Japan)
Author: Patricia Kiyono
Amazon Link:
The Samurai's Garden

Teaser:
He hadn't intended to do more than help her make her purchase, but the chance to get acquainted intrigued him. Working on her farm would allow him to pass the time while he decided on his life's course, as well as pay penance for the wrongs done by his former comrades.
[at 5% on my Kindle]

Goodreads Synopsis: 
Hiro Tanaka prepared for a life as a samurai warrior. But his world changed when Japan's feudal system was abolished by the Emperor. Now, he must find a new vocation. Disillusioned with fighting and violence, he travels alone, going north to the island of Hok-kaido. Many other samurai wander through the country and are known as ronin. Some have forsaken their honorable way to prey on the less fortunate.

Hanako Shimizu experienced first-hand the devastation caused by these disreputable wanderers. The previous winter, they raided her farm and killed her husband. Now, she needs to rebuild but has no money and no prospects -- except for the dubious intentions of the town merchant.

When Hiro, tired of his wandering, encounters Hanako in the market, arguing with the merchant, he poses as her late husband’s cousin then offers to help her on the farm in exchange for a place to stay. Working on the land, Hiro finally finds the peace he has been seeking. But the reappearance of the rogue ronin, led by an unscrupulous leader from Hiro’s past, forces him to take up his swords again. But now, the stakes are higher.

This time, he's fighting from the heart.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers