Book Review: The Prayer by Norma Budden

The Prayer

(The Wish Trilogy Book One)

Norma Budden

Book Description:

University student, Sierra, has become bored with life, unable to find passion for anything. All she desires is to get in her car and drive.

Five-year-old Tamara loves her mom with all of her heart, but the unthinkable happens: her mom falls and suffers a head injury, then goes into a coma. A month later, the heartache has become too much to bear so she insists upon a trip to the ER, where she meets Doc Brady and wishes he could be the dad she never had.

Long after Tamara left the ER, she was still on Brady's mind – so much that, at the end of his shift, he makes a trip upstairs to visit her mother, Katarina. The moment he sees her lifeless form in the bed, he gravitates toward her in a way that takes him by surprise, even as a paternal instinct he didn't know he possessed yearns to shelter Tamara from further emotional pain.

A chance meeting later brings Sierra and Brady together. As they get to know each other, an emotional connection develops between them, but is it strong enough to withstand the pull Brady feels toward Katarina?

When all is said and done, will Brady and Tamara be able to hold onto each other, become the father-daughter team they both desire, or will something greater than either of them imagined stand in their way?

Buy Now on:

Amazon Kindle

Or read for free on Kindle Unlimited

My 5-Star Review:

A college student has yet to find her passion in life. A young girl is desperate for her mother to come out of a coma. A doctor tries to help the young girl, and in the process finds he is being drawn to both mother and daughter. Three strangers are pulled together by fate, design, or as the answer to a prayer.

THE PRAYER, the first book in The Wish Trilogy, by Norma Budden is a heartfelt story about love and faith. Filled with a cast of interesting characters, heartwarming moments, and a few twists and turns, it is sure to hold your interest and leave you wanting more. I highly recommend this story to readers who believe in the power of faith.

About the Author:

Norma Budden currently makes her home in Arctic Canada where she has lived for 25+ years. Working as a department manager at The North West Company by day and writer/mother/grandmother by night, Norma knows what it's like to be busy and appreciates moments of solitude, perhaps, more than the average person.

Though Norma's first serious attempts at writing involved poetry and song, she later went on to write non-fiction titles. However, over recent years, her truest passion seems to be in writing stories to appeal to readers' emotions, with a touch of mystery and romance built into the stories.

Norma is the proud author of the Freedom in Love series which, currently, has five titles published: An Affair to Remember, When Love Abides, Soul Confessions, Divided Loyalties and The Promise. She has recently published the first book in The Wish Trilogy titled, The Prayer. She is also the author of stand-alone titles, Coming Unglued: A Mother's Journey into Hell and If Only, among others.

Some of Norma's greatest passions in life are reading, writing, traveling and taking photos. She enjoys spending time with friends and spending time in the great outdoors.

You can learn more about what is happening in her world by visiting www.normabudden.com

Book Review: Before and Again by Barbara Delinsky

Hi all,

If you haven't read a Barbara Delinsky book - then start with her latest! You will be hooked.

Before and Again

Barbara Delinsky

Book Description:

Mackenzie Cooper took her eyes off the road for just a moment but the resulting collision was enough to rob her not only of her beloved daughter but ultimately of her marriage, family, and friends—and thanks to the nonstop media coverage, even her privacy. Now she lives in Vermont under the name Maggie Reid, in a small house with her cats and dog. She’s thankful for the new friends she’s made—though she can’t risk telling them too much. And she takes satisfaction in working as a makeup artist at the luxurious local spa, helping clients hide the visible outward signs of their weariness, illnesses, and injuries. Covering up scars is a skill she has mastered.

Her only goal is to stay under the radar and make it through her remaining probation. But she isn’t the only one in this peaceful town with secrets. When a friend’s teenage son is thrust into the national spotlight, accused of hacking a powerful man’s Twitter account, Maggie is torn between pulling away and protecting herself—or stepping into the glare to be at their side. As the stunning truth behind their case is slowly revealed, Maggie’s own carefully constructed story begins to unravel as well. She knows all too well that what we need from each other in this difficult world is comfort. But to provide it, sometimes we need to travel far outside our comfort zones.

From a multimillion-selling master of women’s fiction, Before and Again is a story of the relationships we find ourselves in—mothers and daughters, spouses and siblings, true companions and fair-weather friends—and what kind of sacrifices we are or aren’t willing to make to sustain them through good times and bad.

Preorder Now:

Amazon

Or at your favorite online retailer.

My 5-Star Review:

I have to admit that I am a long-time fan and have read nearly every book by Barbara Delinsky. So, when I had the chance to read an ARC of BEFORE AND AGAIN, I jumped at it. Ms. Delinsky writes unique, smart stories with interesting characters and plots. Her latest novel doesn’t disappoint.

Mackenzie Cooper is starting her life over again after suffering a tragedy that destroyed her marriage and former life. In her new town, she’s created an entirely new life with a new career, new friends, and a house that she loves. But when her friend’s life is suddenly turned upside-down, Mackenzie, now going by Maggie, is thrust back into the spotlight and slowly her safe new life begins to unravel. She must decide if she should hide away or begin to trust herself to take chances again.

BEFORE AND AGAIN should definitely be your next read.

About the Author:

Barbara Delinsky, author of BEFORE AND AGAIN (coming June 26, 2018), BLUEPRINTS (2015), SWEET SALT AIR (2013), ESCAPE (2011), and NOT MY DAUGHTER (2010), has written more than twenty-two bestselling novels with over thirty-five million copies in print. She has been published in thirty languages worldwide. 

Barbara's fiction centers upon everyday families facing not-so-everyday challenges. She is particularly drawn to exploring themes of motherhood, marriage, sibling rivalry, and friendship in her novels. Publishers often reissue beloved titles; THE PASSIONS OF CHELSEA KANE, FACETS, and COMMITMENTS were trade paperback releases in 2017.

A lifelong New Englander, Barbara earned a B.A. in Psychology at Tufts University and an M.A. in Sociology at Boston College. As a breast cancer survivor who lost her mother to the disease when she was only eight, Barbara compiled the non-fiction book Uplift: Secrets from the Sisterhood of Breast Cancer Survivors, a handbook of practical tips and upbeat anecdotes. She donates her proceeds from the sale of this book to her charitable foundation, which funds an ongoing research fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Barbara enjoys knitting, photography, and cats. She also loves to interact with her readers through:

Website:  www.barbaradelinsky.com 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/bdelinsky 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barbaradelinsky/ 

Twitter:  @BarbaraDelinsky.

Book Review: The Ocean Liner by Marius Gabriel

Hi all,

If you are searching for a great book to take to the beach or curl up at home with on a rainy day, this is a good choice. Here's my review.

The Ocean Liner

Marius Gabriel

Book Description:

As war engulfs Europe, 1,500 passengers risk everything to find a brighter future.

Cousins Masha and Rachel Morgenstern board the luxury liner the SS Manhattan bound for New York, desperate to escape the concentration camps that claimed the rest of their family. America offers a safe haven, but to reach it they must survive a hazardous Atlantic crossing.

Among their fellow passengers fleeing the war, each with their own conflicts, secrets and surprises, are the composer Igor Stravinsky, making a new start after a decade of tragedy, and Rose Kennedy, determined to keep her four children from harm. Particularly worrying to Rose is her daughter Rosemary, a vivacious but troubled woman whose love for a Californian musician may derail her family’s political ambitions. And then there’s young Thomas, a Nazi with a secret…

But, under the waves, the Manhattan is being stalked by a German U-boat. Will any of those aboard the ocean liner ever achieve their dream of a new life in America?

Buy now:

Amazon Kindle & Paperback

My 5-Star Review:

This is the fourth novel I’ve read by Marius Gabriel and I have enjoyed all of them. In this story, he takes us on a journey across the ocean on the luxury liner, the SS Manhattan, on its way to America with an interesting cast of characters who are both real and imagined. We meet cousins Masha and Rachel, escaping Nazi Germany, hoping for a better life. There is also a famous conductor, a renowned composer, Rose Kennedy and her children, including young Ted, and an aging film star, plus so many more. They each have a story, and Gabriel manages to weave each character’s tale into one magnificent novel.

Intriguing and beautifully written. You will not want to put this story down.

About the Author:

Marius Gabriel served his author apprenticeship while a student in the north of England. To finance his postgraduate research, he wrote 33 steamy romances under a female pseudonym. His identity as a man had to be kept secret until he turned to longer fiction under his own name. 

He is the author of 9 historical novels, including the best-sellers "The Mask Of Time," "The Original Sin" and "The Seventh Moon." Cosmopolitan accused him of "keeping you reading while your dinner burns." He very seldom burns his own, being an enthusiastic cook, as well as an artist and a musician. He has three grown-up children.

His last novel, "Take Me To Your Heart Again," (2016) followed the fortunes of the tumultuous Redcliffe sisters through World War II. The other Redcliffe Sisters novel, "Wish Me Luck As You Wave Me Goodbye," is available here on Amazon. Both can be read as stand-alone novels, but if you've read one, you'll want to read the other...

His recent novel, "The Designer" (2017) is set in Paris, and begins in 1944 with the chance meeting between an American war correspondent and an unknown fashion designer named Christian Dior. Shortlisted for an RNA Romantic Novel of The Year Award. 

His latest novel, out in March 2018, is "The Ocean Liner," set on a luxury ocean liner making the perilous crossing between Europe and the United States in the first weeks of World War II.