reecaspieces

Overview

Alaska, 1974. Untamed. Unpredictable. A story of a family in crisis struggling to survive at the edge of the world, it is also a story of young and enduring love.

Cora Allbright and her husband Ernt, a recently-returned Vietnam veteran scarred by the war, uproot their thirteen-year-old daughter Leni to start a new life in Alaska. Utterly unprepared for the weather and the isolation, but welcomed by the close-knit community, they fight to build a home in this harsh, beautiful wilderness.

At once an epic story of human survival and love, and an intimate portrait of a family tested beyond endurance, The Great Alone offers a glimpse into a vanishing way of life in America. With her trademark combination of elegant prose and deeply drawn characters, Kristin Hannah has delivered an enormously powerful story that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the remarkable and enduring strength of women. About the highest stakes a family can face and the bonds that can tear a community apart, this is a novel as spectacular and powerful as Alaska itself. It is the finest example of Kristin Hannah’s ability to weave together the deeply personal with the universal.

Review

Ernt is a Vietnam war veteran. He has become unstable, volatile and abusive since his time as a POW. When he inherits a homestead in Alaska, he decides to move his family for a fresh start on life.

Alaska has always been on my bucket list. The vastness is appealing to me. So, I jumped on this book as soon as I heard it was available. Kristin Hannah nailed Alaska for me. I could just picture the greatness and the dangers which encompass this last frontier.

Not only did Kristin Hannah have a great setting she also created some of the best characters. Ernt with his insanity, Cora with her strength and Leni, their daughter, with her determination form a family like no other. And then there is Large Marge…yes that is her name…Matthew and his family, just to name a few. I enjoyed this community of outcasts. They have a tough exterior but their hearts know no limits.

Parts of this novel I savored and parts I rushed through because it was terrifying. It was tough to get through some spots. I had to stop and breathe in places, especially where Leni was concerned. This is an incredible book! This story encompasses so much. And I cannot tell you what I liked more…the story, the land, the people…all of it creates a tale of survival, love and hope.

I received this novel from Netgalley for a honest review

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Overview

In the spirit of Lilac Girls, the heartbreaking history of Korea is brought to life in this deeply moving and redemptive debut that follows two sisters separated by World War II.

Korea, 1943. Hana has lived her entire life under Japanese occupation. As a haenyeo, a female diver of the sea, she enjoys an independence that few other Koreans can still claim. Until the day Hana saves her younger sister from a Japanese soldier and is herself captured and transported to Manchuria. There she is forced to become a “comfort woman” in a Japanese military brothel. But haenyeo are women of power and strength. She will find her way home.

South Korea, 2011. Emi has spent more than sixty years trying to forget the sacrifice her sister made, but she must confront the past to discover peace. Seeing the healing of her children and her country, can Emi move beyond the legacy of war to find forgiveness?

Suspenseful, hopeful, and ultimately redemptive, White Chrysanthemum tells a story of two sisters whose love for each other is strong enough to triumph over the grim evils of war.

Review

I do not know where to start…this book is amazing!

Hana is a female diver of the sea. One day when she is coming up from a dive, she notices Japanese soldiers heading for her little sister who is on the beach. Hana does everything in her power to save her sister, Emi. And she does, but at the cost of her freedom. Hana is captured and forced to become a “comfort girl” for the Japanese army.

First off, let’s touch base with what is a “comfort girl”. As a blogger we are told not to quote a book unless we compare to the final copy. I have not compared this but I am quoting this anyway. This is a comfort girl “Ten hours a day, six days a week, she services soldiers. She is raped by 20 men a day”. Hana was only 16!

This is a tragic, heart wrenching story. It really takes you through an emotional roller coaster from the very first chapter. I was captivated all the way till the end. The novel is told by Hana during the occupation in the 1940s and also by Emi during present day. This is a tale of love and tragedy shared by two sisters. This is NOT TO BE MISSED! Read this TODAY!

I received this novel from Netgalley for a honest review.

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Overview

Henry Wolff regularly climbs out of his upstairs bedroom window. The neighbors think it strange that a grown man enjoys a Tarzan like swing from the roof, but then again, they all think Henry is a little strange. Recently widowed, Henry is an emotionally challenged father being sued by his daughter for financial control of the estate. Henry must prove he is normal – not an easy thing to do when you are not. Henry is different, not quite normal, not quite special. Rumors explaining his behavior run from PTSD in Vietnam to losing his son to SIDS. But Henry has a special gift. In a town divided by the have and have-nots, Henry alone can inspire and touch even the most jaded lost soul. But when tragedy strikes, can he unite his own family?

Review

Henry is not exactly right, whether from Vietnam or from the death of his son, he is just not all there. One of his adult daughters is trying to prove he is unable to take control of the money from his wife’s estate. This rip in his family is about all he can take.

I loved, loved, loved Henry! He is not quite right in the head, but his heart is amazing. I was immediately taken in by Henry. He is determined for nothing to stop him and he goes about it the best way he knows how. He gets a job at the pharmacy. He starts help people out, the wrong way…. this gives his daughter ammunition.

This story is so heartwarming and heart wrenching at the same time. You want Henry to get what he deserves without all this hullabaloo. But, as we all know, life doesn’t work out the way we plan. Everyone needs to read this sweet read, just to get to know Henry. He is a character not soon forgotten.

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Overview

In pursuit of a Russian sleeper cell on American soil, a CIA analyst uncovers a dangerous secret that will test her loyalty to the agency—and to her family.

What do you do when everything you trust might be a lie?

Vivian Miller is a dedicated CIA counterintelligence analyst assigned to uncover the leaders of Russian sleeper cells in the United States. On track for a much-needed promotion, she’s developed a system for identifying Russian agents, seemingly normal people living in plain sight.

After accessing the computer of a potential Russian operative, Vivian stumbles on a secret dossier of deep-cover agents within America’s borders. A few clicks later, everything that matters to her—her job, her husband, even her four children—are threatened.

Vivian has vowed to defend her country against all enemies, foreign and domestic. But now she’s facing impossible choices. Torn between loyalty and betrayal, allegiance and treason, love and suspicion, who can she trust?

Review

Oh wow! This book is beyond intense! Vivian works at the CIA, specifically on Russian sleeper cells. She accidentally comes across some Russian agent’s pictures. One of the pictures just happens to be of her husband.

When I started this read, I was sure I would not like Vivian. I honestly did not think the author would be able to pull her off and not come across as stupid. But, this author did and did it in a big way. Vivian is smart, hardworking and absolutely not someone who should be taken in by a Russian agent. But taken in….oh she is! And with four children, how is she going to get out from under this.

Matt! Oh Matt! He is one cool customer! He plays his hand so smart and smooth. I had a hard time knowing what to believe. Then….THE ENDING! There has to be a sequel to this! It did not end right. I NEED TO KNOW! AND SOON!

This read is fierce! I agonized right along with Vivian. What are her choices? What will her next move be? Will she go to jail? Will Matt?

I received this novel from Netgalley for a honest review

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Overview

Riveting, chilling, and page-turning. Be prepared to stay up all night.” — New York Times bestselling author Lisa Scottoline

For fans of dark and twisty psychological thrillers, Watch Me is a riveting novel of suspense about how far obsession can go.

Kate Youngblood is disappearing. Muddling through her late 30s as a creative writing professor at Blackwood college, she’s dangerously close to never being noticed again. The follow-up novel to her successful debut tanked. Her husband left her for a woman ten years younger. She’s always been bright, beautiful, independent and a little wild, but now her glow is starting to vanish. She’s heading into an age where her eyes are less blue, her charm worn out, and soon no one will ever truly look at her, want to know her, again.

Except one.

Sam Grist is Kate’s most promising student. An unflinching writer with razor-sharp clarity who gravitates towards dark themes and twisted plots, his raw talent is something Kate wants to nurture into literary success. But he’s not there solely to be the best writer. He’s been watching her. Wanting her. Working his way to her for years.

As Sam slowly makes his way into Kate’s life, they enter a deadly web of dangerous lies and forbidden desire. But how far will his fixation go? And how far will she allow it?

A gripping novel exploring intense obsession and illicit attraction, Jody Gehrman introduces a world where what you desire most may be the most dangerous thing of all.

Review

Kate is a novelist struggling to come up with her next number one. To make ends meet, she is a professor at a small college hoping to receive tenure soon. Sam is just a regular student with a good bit of talent. Kate wants to show him the ropes of the literary life. Little does she know, Sam has been watching her for years.

Kate starts out as a pretty strong, smart woman. However, I was a little shocked at how she allowed Sam to weave himself into her life. I expected a little more from her character. That being said, Sam….now Sam is a excellent stalker, which is why Kate allowed him to get so close, so very close. He does have a certain magnetism which attracts Kate and the reader!

This is your standard stalking novel. It has many twists and turns that keep the reader glued to the story. Standard is the operative word here. It is fast-paced and intriguing, but nothing new.

I received this novel from Netgalley for a honest review.

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Overview

Impacted by the recession, twenty-four-year-old artist Gina McKenna is down to her last few dollars and days away from living in her car when a successful businessman buys a painting and commissions another. As their relationship evolves, she’s seduced by his charm and mesmerized by his luxurious lifestyle until she discovers he’s a drug kingpin. As her world turns upside down, she struggles to survive vicious brutality.

Miguel Lopez is a cocaine supplier with a weightlifter’s physique and “the rules do not apply to me” attitude. Maniacal and ruthless, he has no qualms about killing anyone who interferes with his distribution network, including Gina.

Dedicated to eradicating illegal drugs, DEA Special Agent Bobby Garcia spent months and hundreds of thousands of dollars working undercover to buy his way up a dealer chain to identify the moneyman. When his fourteen-year-old daughter overdoses on cocaine, he traces the blow to Lopez. As Bobby’s mission becomes personal, he makes emotional decisions, which negatively impact civilians and his job. Unable to let go, he risks his career to orchestrate the biggest drug sting in Southern California. What happens isn’t what he expected.

When a deputy district attorney meets Gina at a party, he is smitten. As his attraction grows, so does Gina’s involvement with the DEA’s case, of which he is the designated prosecutor. Mindful of his professional ethics, he tries to stifle his feelings.

Sex and violence permeate the twists and turns of this cautionary tale about choosing one’s friends well.

Review

Gina is a struggling author, just trying to keep from living in her car. She sets up in the park to sell her paintings (this is illegal, by the way). She spots two men in a scuffle. Needless to say!!!!! These two men change her life….and not necessarily for the better.

I started out enjoying Gina. She has a good, kind heart. Then she makes some stupid decisions. I understand why…she needs the money or she is going to be kicked out of her apartment. Gina lives in beautiful Laguna Beach, CA. Lots of rich and powerful people live here, including drug dealers! Her contact with this side of Laguna Beach lands her in some serious trouble.

This tale covers just about everything. It is suspenseful with a small side of romance. There are several places where the characters state the obvious and the story is predictable. But it moves at a rapid pace and keeps you entertained till the very end.

I received this novel from the author for a honest review.

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