Book Review's - Week of 1/7/08

Full of Grace – Dorthea Benton Frank
         This one is the funny and heartwarming story of Grace, a single, Italian-Catholic, ex-Jersey Girl.  She’s dating a scientist who doesn’t believe in God at all, and who does research the Vatican would never approve of.  Neither does her family.  All the unforgettable characters are here, the grumpy no-nonsense grandmother, the loud, pushy, bossy father, and at the center, the rebellious daughter.  At first glance, this book is all funny, but it’s got twists and turns you’ll never see coming, parts will even have you running for the tissue box.  I give it 4.5 stars out of 5.

Navy Baby – Debbie Macomber
         Good girls sometimes make bad decisions, especially when they’re hurting.  In this story, Hannah is expecting.  She’s also the good, church going daughter of a pastor.  Riley is a naval seaman whose life changed when he met Hannah, and he’s been searching for months to find her.  This woman who stole his heart and never gave him her last name.  This book reminds us that we never know what fate has planned for us, and sometimes the last thing you think you want is the one thing you really need.  I give it a 4.

Dakota Born – Debbie Macomber
         We all need an escape sometimes Lindsay Snyder came to the dieing town of Buffalo Valley to see the house her grandparents lived in.  She never planned to stay, but when her life in Georgia was all wrong, and the kids of Buffalo Valley need a school teacher, so out she goes, for a year in Buffalo Valley.  She meets Gage Sinclair, a local farmer and their lives are forever changed, even if reluctantly.  This one gets a 5 out of 5.

Dakota Home – Debbie Macomber
         Yes, I really like Debbie Macomber, in case you were wondering.  In the second book of the Dakota trilogy, Lindsay’s friend Maddy has decided to move to Buffalo Valley to be near her friend and her friend’s new husband.  She’s hoping to find the same kind of happiness her friend found there.  She purchases the local grocery store, determined to make it profitable.  She sets her sights on Jeb McKenna, who doesn’t want or need anyone in his life.  Or so he thinks.  One night of unexpected passion changes everything for these two.  This one gets a 5 too. 

Amazing Grace – Danielle Steel
         A massive earthquake has devastating effects on Sarah Sloane’s life, but not in the way you might think.  Everything changes during a benefit she’s organizing at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco.  Just before midnight the room begins to sway and her world will be forever changed.  Safe outside the hotel she, a reporter, a Grammy-winning singer and a nun will find their worlds permanently linked.  Sarah’s husband’s financial crimes come to light because he is unable to contact the outside world and form his cover-up.  Sister Maggie will come to question her calling, and her new found love for photographer
Everett Carson.  And award-winning Melanie will find her calling in rolling up her sleeves to help less fortunate instead of being the princess her mother would like her to be.  5 stars out of 5!


         Thank you for reading over my first set of reviews.  Keep an eye out for new ones next week.