"The Dark Rose" by Erin Kelly is WOW!

The Dark Rose by Erin Kelly tells the story of two people: Paul, a young boy and Louisa, a woman. They both have things hidden in their past. I really loved this book a lot! It took me only a day and a half to finish because I couldn't wait to get back to it. It's definitely a page turner that is hard to put down with a shocking ending. This is a double WOW book for sure! I already ordered Erin's previous book. I highly recommend this one!
(Gerard's review: My rating 5 stars out of 5)

The Dark Rose by Erin Kelly is about Paul and Louisa, who each have secrets that fill them with guilt, while seeking to move on with their lives.  Unfortunately, the past has a strong hold on both of them even though they find comfort together and confess their secrets to each other.  Louisa’s past is about a lover’s quarrel with a musician who broke her heart and drove her to the fine line of love and hate. Paul finds himself having to testify against the only friend he ever had which puts himself and those he loves at risk.  This book certainly has a unexpected ending!    

 

It was difficult for me to relate to either of the main characters because their choices were so stupid and had such different lifestyles than mine.  It also was set in England so had some unfamiliar terms.  This book reminded me of a soap opera that I had no connection to because I didn’t like the characters.  I would have enjoyed it more if it didn’t jump back and forth in time so much.  It was hard for me to follow and at one point, I was tempted to just flip through the rest of the book and read the 1989 year stuff first and then go back and read the rest in date order.  I would have organized it much differently, having the background first alternating chapters between Paul and Louisa and then once their lives converged, just continue on in chronological order.  Therefore, I did not like this book very much and do not recommend it.  I’m surprised Gerard liked it so well since he usually likes books with more action than this.  He thought it was great!  Guess you’ll just have to read it for yourself and see what you think of it.

(Karen's review:  My rating 2 out of 5 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs to Caroline's Kids Pet Rescue to help homeless cats this month.

"The Violets of March" by Sarah Jio

"The Violets of March" by Sarah Jio is a very interesting romance novel with mystery as well. It’s about a successful New York author who is recently divorced and goes to visit her aunt Bee at her beach house in Bainbridge to get away and think things through. While there, she discovers a diary about a woman’s similar experience to hers and gets drawn into trying to piece the bits and pieces together about her grandmother’s story.


I liked this book because it is not predictable from the start like many romance novels are. I didn’t understand what drew men to her like bees to honey, but it kept my interest all through. It’s about following your heart and knowing your true love will last forever. I enjoyed this light and entertaining read. If you like romance novels, I highly recommend it!
(Karen's review:  My rating 4 out of 5 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs to Caroline's Kids Pet Rescue to help homeless cats this month.

"Expecting Adam" by Martha Beck

Expecting Adam by Martha Beck is a wonderful story about John and Martha who are expecting the birth of their son. They discover late in her pregnancy that their boy is going to have Downs Syndrome. I really enjoyed this book. It is told by Martha and has both funny and sad parts. It has all the emotion you could ever want. Give it a try, it's well worth reading!
(Gerard's review: 3 out of 5 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs to Caroline's Kids Pet Rescue to help homeless cats this month.

"Through My Eyes" by Tim Tebow with Nathan Whitaker

A book for Football Lovers

I enjoyed the first half of Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow about his background. I learned that he was homeschooled and didn't know that homeschoolers could still play on school teams, but he did. I liked reading about his training and his work ethic. He has two older brothers and lived on a farm. About halfway through the book though, he goes into specific games and gives a play-by-play narrative which I found boring after awhile and quit reading it to move to something more interesting. I suppose if you are really into the nuts and bolts of football, you would enjoy it. I expected to read more about his off the field experiences, but there was only a little about that.
(Karen's review 2/8/12)

I knew about Tim Tebow, the football player. Now after reading Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow, I feel I know about the person. I enjoyed this book some; really liked the parts when he told about growing up and sharing his faith in God, which he is very strong about doing. I enjoyed his family stories and his thoughts on football and game situations. The only drawback was the game-to-game stuff in his college career was kind of boring, but overall, a pretty good read.
(Gerard's review 7/10/11)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs to Caroline's Kids Pet Rescue to help homeless cats this month.

Teaser Tuesday: "The Snow Child" and "Through My Eyes"

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should  Be Reading. Anyone can play along, so I thought  I  would play for fun! 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 teaser.   

Gerard's: I just finished The Snow Child and LOVED it.

They held her close, and a few drops of snow fell to the floor.  Quickly she slipped from their arms and ran out the door.

Taken from page 116 of The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey.

Karen's:

I would end up doing things above and beyond whatever was expected to get an edge.  I also began working out at odd times of the day and night, thinking, I'll bet there are no other kids in Jacksonville working out right now.

Take from page 33-34 of Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow (non-fiction).

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs to Caroline's Kids Pet Rescue to help homeless cats this month.