Reading, Writing & Pondering

  The Road Before Us by Janine Rosche is a tale with an interesting, diverse cast of characters on a trip down memory lane for more than one of them as they hit the road on Route 66. Jade was working as a financial advisor when she realizes her fiance and co-worker stole millions of dollars from their clients. After he goes to jail, and Jade is without a job, she agrees to go on a journey along Route 66 with her friends and former clients, Benny and Bridger as Bridger films a documentary. As they go on the trip, Benny reminisces about her first trip on her way to Hollywood with Paul, her husband who has passed away. Jade also remembers being a child on the route with her dad who kidnapped her away from her mom. All of them must face their past as they travel down the road--and also meet new people on the trip. This story grabbed me soon after I started The Road Before Us . I loved the banter and the jokes between Bridger and Jade. I enjoyed getting to know most of the characters i...

Meet Me at the Starlight by Rachel Hauck is a split-time novel set in the late 1980s and the 1930s/40s. It was especially fun for me to read the 1980s story-line as that is when I was growing up. However, the whole book kept me turning pages. Harlow Hayes came to Sea Blue Beach, Florida, to heal after a bad break-up with her fiance. She has spent much of her life as a fashion model and also starred in a movie. While she is in Florida, she runs into a former co-star, Matt, who also has some healing to do after making their own mistakes. Harlow becomes involved with the star's grandmother, Tuesday, who runs the local skating rink, The Starlight, which may soon be demolished.  Part of the book focuses on Tuesday's early relationship with her husband and her sons as she ran the Starlight through the 1930s and 40s. I admired Tuesday for all she went through and how she kept the skating rink open. I also loved how she helped folks out during the Depression who needed help. She was a...

  The Legacy of Longdale Manor by Carrie Turansky is a split time novel set in 1912 and 2012. It has been awhile since I read a split-time novel and I felt this one was well done with smooth transitions.  In 2012, Gwen Morris is working as an art appraiser for her grandfather's business when she is sent to England's Lake District to appraise the painting and antiques of an old family friend of her grandfather's. While she is there working, she meets David Bradford, the owner's grandson who is helping her keep her estate in good working order. Gwen also searches for her father, whom she has never met, with some interesting results. In 1912, Charlotte Harper is struggling after her father passes away and she discovers he hid an affair from her mother and their family. What makes this even worse for Charlotte is that he was also a pastor. After she finds out, Charlotte struggles with both her faith and trusting in male relationships. After her father's death, Charlott...