A Distant Melody, by Sarah Sundin

Allie Miller fails to reach the standards her parents set, starting with her plain appearance and ending with her choice of a church. But when her marriage to Baxter is practically arranged, she feels strangled by the impending doom of a loveless happily-ever-after. Everything changes when she meets the real love of her life, Lt. Walter Novak. Feelings spark as they try and find deeper meaning to life's ups and downs through a series of letter-writing. Friendship escalates to more than that, but society's rules and a few misguided assumptions keeps either one of them from admitting it.

I was swept away by the story immediately. Sundin did an extraordinary job bringing the protagonist and her love interest together with genuine trepidation and the cordiality that would have fit this time period perfeclty. It was clear to me that this novel had been carefully researched, making me feel like I'd been dropped right into the World War II time period.

I found myself pulling for Allie and Walt all the way through. The cat and mouse of their romance was done with a great amount of integrity. This whole perspective was delightfully refreshing. Upon the turn of the last page, I was left with an ending that was well thought-out and satisfying. I would highly recommend this novel for anybody interested in taking a trip back to a time when a person's word still meant something.

The Mermaid Chair, by Sue Monk Kidd

As Jaime rushes to untangle the confusing behavior of her mother, she's confronted with a setting that stirs a lot of unhealed pain concerning her father's death. An unplanned encounter with a monastery monk has her second-guessing the life she's left behind, and she's tempted to surrender to this new awakening. The safety of over twenty years of marriage become less and less appealing, and lines begin to blur along the intoxicating shoreline. A mermaid chair stirs more questions for Jaime than answers. She searches for reasons, and ends up finding her own heart. 

Sue Monk Kidd creates a delightful playground for a woman who might be dangling on the edge of an empty nest. With vivid detail and sentimentality, Kidd weaves a story of sweetness mixed with tragedy that brings the truest part of love to the surface. Back story is revealed in delicious layers and the whole story comes together in a rushing wave of crescendo.

I would highly recommend this novel for its interesting setting, unmatched prose and deep characterization. The ending left me with a deeper appreciation of middle age, and its potential for growth and new beginnings.

How to Write a Book Review

You’ve just turned the last page of a life-altering novel. Part of you is grateful for the sleep you’ll be able to get now instead of pulling another all-nighter. But the other part of you grieves. You will miss the characters you just closed the book on. They understand the deepest places of your own journey and in some ways have felt like friends.

If you were anything like me, you wanted to throw on a robe, grab an overnight bag and hop on the next plane to wherever the author might live. You felt compelled to tell her that you literally gave her book a standing ovation in the middle of your living room while ignoring the strange looks from family members. But after thinking it through, the whole idea felt a little ... well, insane. So how could you honor all of the hard work and artistry that went into a project of this magnitude? How could you give the author the accolades she’s due?

You can write a book review.

Yes, you. The Internet has made it really easy to assert your opinion about a score of different things with likes, pokes, Emojis and even reviews.

I’ve listed a few questions below to help you get started.

     What was the story about?

Who was the main character?
What kind of problems did she encounter?
Were you able to relate to any of the characters in the story?
Have you ever felt some of the ways the characters did?
Did you like the book?
What was your favorite part?
Would you recommend this book?

The two websites I’d like to recommend posting your review to are: www.goodreads.com and www.amazon.com.

A review is a wonderful way to show appreciation to an author. After all, showing up on somebody’s doorstep looking frazzled and holding a copy of her latest release probably won’t provide you with the best response anyway. Writing a book review is really the way to go.

Have you read anything worth mentioning lately? I have a gift for the first person to share a book review on one or both of the websites listed above. Please be sure and let me know if you’ve done so. I will be posting book reviews to this blog every now and then to keep the conversation going.

By the way, thanks for putting that book down long enough to participate in today's post.

Happy reading!