The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

After reading Debutante Divorcee, I thought I'd confuse my wonderful new husband further by reading The Husband's Secret. This book was also a page turner. If you found an envelope in the attic from your husband marked 'do not open until after my death', would you open it?

416 pages.

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

Cutting for Stone is an absolutely beautiful story about love and medicine.  It is first the forbidden love of a beautiful Indian nun and a British doctor, both of whom are working in a small clinic/hospital in mid-twentieth century Ethiopia.  Next there is the love between their twin boys, who are left orphaned by her death during their birth and his disappearance.  Then there is the family love that evolves between their adopted parents, the two doctors who delivered them, and the babies.  Also, there is the love of the country, the images, sounds, and smells brought sympathetically to life by Dr. Abraham Verghese.  Conflict arises when both of the boys love a young woman they grew up with -- their housekeeper's daughter.
 
667 pages

Phantom of the Opera by Gaston LeRoux

There are rumors of a phantom living at the Paris Opera House, and he makes himself known to the managers through letters and malevolent acts. Singer Christine is kidnapped by the phantom and is taken to his home in the cellars of the Opera where he reveals his true identity to her simply as Erik, though not his real name. He plans to keep her there for a few days, hoping she will come to love him.

But she causes Erik to change his plans when she unmasks him and, to the horror of both, beholds his noseless, lipless, sunken-eyed face which resembles a skull dried up by the centuries, covered in yellowed dead flesh. Fearing that she will leave him, he decides to keep her with him forever, but when Christine requests release after two weeks, he agrees on condition that she wear his ring and be faithful to him. But he hears her telling her childhood friend Raoul that Erik abducted her. Raoul promises to take Christine away the next day to a place where Erik can never find her.   Neither is aware that Erik has been listening to their conversation and that he has become extremely jealous.

The next night, Erik kidnaps Christine and forces her to promise to marry him, lifting  his mask to kiss her on her forehead, and is given a kiss back. Erik reveals that he has never received a kiss (not even from his own mother) nor has been allowed to give one and is overcome with emotion. He lets makes Christine go after exacting a promise that she will visit him once on his death day, and return the gold ring he gave her. Upon his death, she returns to his lair, buries him and returns the gold ring.

469 pages

first published in 1910

Looking for Alaska

Author: John Green
Pages: 221



Cover Blurb: Before. Miles “Pudge” Halter is done with his safe life at home. His whole life has been one big non-event, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave “the Great Perhaps” even more (Francois Rabelais, poet). He heads off to the sometimes crazy and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young. She is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart. Then. . . .

After. Nothing is ever the same.

This book was another John Green gem. It didn't evoke as much emotion from me as "The Fault in Our Stars" did but was still a fantastic read.

Agnes Grey

Author: Anne Bronte
Pages: 214


Novel by Anne Bronte, published in 1847. The strongly autobiographical narrative concerns the travails of Agnes Grey, a rector's daughter, in her service as governess, first to the unruly Bloomfield children and then with the callous Murrays. Agnes's sole consolations in this dreary life are the natural environment and her blossoming relationship with Weston, the local curate.

It took me awhile to finish this book, I set it down several times to read something else, or because of the holidays I was busy. I am glad I have finished it, it was actually a good book.

Freeman by Leonard Pitts

This novel, set in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War, tells the story of three people whose lives intersect. Sam Freeman, an escaped slave who fled to the North and gained his freedom; Tilda, his wife, who remained enslaved; and Prudence, a wealthy white abolitionist.

When the war ends, Sam sets out to walk from Philadelphia to Mississippi to find Tilda. Tilda's owner refuses to accept that the South lost, and takes Tilda at gunpoint and heads West to make a new start. Prudence goes to Mississippi to establish a school for freed slaves.

The three of them come together in Mississippi, after each suffers terrible trials that result from the hatred and horrors of the war that divided the nation. The book is stark in its depiction of the grim aftermath of the war. Yet there are many moments of grace that bring hope to the human spirit.

I have long been a fan of the author, a syndicated columnist who writes for the Miami Herald. I find his fiction just as compelling.

432 pages

Ask the Passengers

Author: A.S. King
Pages: 293


Loved this book! It was a little slow in places but Astrid has so much stacked against her, especially in her home life and it's great to see her come out of it with a sense of humor and love. I recommend it!
cover blurb:

Astrid Jones desperately wants to confide in someone, but her mother's pushiness and her father's lack of interest tell her they're the last people she can trust. Instead, Astrid spends hours lying on the backyard picnic table watching airplanes fly overhead. She doesn't know the passengers inside, but they're the only people who won't judge her when she asks them her most personal questions . . . like what it means that she's falling in love with a girl.

In this truly original portrayal of a girl struggling to break free of society's definitions, Printz Honor author A.S. King asks readers to question everything--and offers hope to those who will never stop seeking real love.

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The Boy on Cinnamon Street

Author: Phoebe Stone
Pages: 234

I almost didn't grab this book to read and I am very glad I did. It is a quick read but has enough depth to bring tears to your eyes. I wish I knew a real Henderson. :) 

Cover blurb:

A story about a wounded girl and the boy who won't give up on her.

7th grader Louise should be the captain of her school's gymnastics team - but she isn't. She's fun and cute and should have lots of friends - but she doesn't. And there's a dreamy boy who has a crush on her - but somehow they never connect. Louise has everything going for her - so what is it that's holding her back?

Phoebe Stone tells the winning story of the spring when 7th grader Louise Terrace wakes up, finds the courage to confront the painful family secret she's hiding from - and finally get the boy.

There is no dog

Author: Meg Rosoff
Pages: 256
 I picked this book up not knowing what to expect and really liked it. It is funny and makes you think, it is heartwarming and witty.

What if God were a teenaged boy?

In the beginning, Bob created the heavens and the earth and the beasts of the field and the creatures of the sea, and twenty-five million other species (including lots of cute girls). But mostly he prefers eating junk food and leaving his dirty clothes in a heap at the side of his bed.

Every time he falls in love, Earth erupts in natural disasters, and it's usually Bob's beleaguered assistant, Mr. B., who is left cleaning up the mess. So humankind is going to be very sorry indeed that Bob ever ran into a beautiful, completely irresistible girl called Lucy . . .

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The Disenchantments

Author: Nina LaCour
Pages: 307
I didn't think I would like this book but after a couple of chapters I decided it had something and I needed to finish it. Bev has been Colby's soulmate, muse, and best friend since they were small and now everything seems to be changing. A week trip with the band brings opened eyes and coming of age. A new look at the world in the same company of, " Almost Famous" and Kerouac's " On The Road".