Lady in Waiting by Susan Meissner

Lady in Waiting by Susan Meissner
Publication Date: September 2010
Publisher: WaterBrook Press

Donated By:  Tiffany H.

Love is a choice you make every day.

Content in her comfortable marriage of twenty-two years, Jane Lindsay had never expected to watch her husband, Brad, pack his belongings and walk out the door of their Manhattan home. But when it happens, she feels powerless to stop him and the course of events that follow Brad’s departure.

Jane finds an old ring in a box of relics from a British jumble sale and discovers a Latin inscription in the band along with just one recognizable word: Jane. Feeling an instant connection to the mysterious ring bearing her namesake, Jane begins a journey to learn more about the ring—and perhaps about herself.

~

In the sixteenth-century, Lucy Day becomes the dressmaker to Lady Jane Grey, an innocent young woman whose fate seems to be controlled by a dangerous political and religious climate, one threatening to deny her true love and pursuit of her own interests.

As the stories of both Janes dovetail through the journey of one ring, it becomes clear that each woman has far more influence over her life than she once imagined. It all comes down to the choices each makes despite the realities they face.

TOUR COMPLETE!

Participants:
Andrea - A Chick Who Reads
Kathy - DNF
Lisa - Books in the Burbs

The Life You've Imagined

The Life You've Imagined

Author:  Kristina Riggle

Publication Date:  September 1, 2010

Publisher:  Avon

Donated By:  Shonda (My Book and Couch)

Is the life you're living all you imagined? 

Have you ever asked yourself, "What if??" Here, four women face the decisions of their lifetimes in this stirring and unforgettable novel of love, loss, friendship, and family. 

Anna Geneva, a Chicago attorney coping with the death of a cherished friend, returns to her "speck on the map" hometown of Haven to finally come to terms with her mother, the man she left behind, and the road she did not take. 

Cami Drayton, Anna's dearest friend from high school, is coming home too, forced by circumstance to move in with her alcoholic father . . . and to confront a dark family secret. 

Maeve, Anna's mother, never left Haven, firmly rooted there by her sadness over her abandonment by the husband she desperately loved and the hope that someday he will return to her. 

And Amy Rickart—thin, beautiful, and striving for perfection—faces a future with the perfect man . . . but is haunted by the memory of what she used to be. 

Kristina Riggle's The Life You've Imagined takes a provocative look at the choices we make—and the courage we must have to change. 

TOUR COMPLETE!

Participants:

Emily - done

Leah - received 1/4; mail by 1/14; mailed 1/13 DC# 0310 2010 0000 3679 1564 (did not read - mail back at end of tour)

Heather - done

Jennifer - done

Natalie - done

Leah - done

Reviews:

Emily- The Many Thoughts of a Reader - DNF

Heather - Proud Book Nerd

Jennifer - Girls Gone Reading - DNF

Natalie - Coffee & A Book Chick

Leah - Amused by Books

Man in the Woods

Man in the Woods

Author:  Scott Spencer

Publication Date:  September 14, 2010

Publisher:  Ecco

Donated By:  Jennifer (Crazy-for-Books)

One of the most acclaimed modern American novelists, Scott Spencer captures the intensity of human passion—and its capacity to both destroy and redeem—with unparalleled precision and insight. Now, in his most stunning novel yet, this wry, witty, and deeply sensitive writer returns to the territory of his New York Times bestseller A Ship Made of Paper, in a gripping and provocative psychological thriller of morality and manhood, choice and fate.

Paul has been on his own since he was a teenager, leading a life of freedom and independence, beholden to no one and nothing. Fearless, resolute, and guided by his own private moral code, he has hunted for food in Alaska, fought forest fires, and been deputized in a manhunt for a kidnapper in South Dakota. Once he thought his life would have no particular rhyme or reason, touched only by transient strangers. Then he meets the beautiful, intelligent, loving Kate Ellis and her daughter, Ruby, who offer order and constancy. But Paul is a man of deep convictions, and the compromises we all make to get along in the world elude him.

On his way home after rejecting a job remodeling a luxurious Manhattan apartment, Paul stops to gather his thoughts at a state park just off the highway. Instead of peace, he finds a man savagely beating a dog, and in a few fateful moments Paul is plunged into a world of violence and onto a tumultuous journey of self-knowledge, guilt, and redemption.

With the psychological acuity and razor-sharp prose for which he has been celebrated, award-winning, bestselling novelist Scott Spencer once again takes us on an unforgettable journey of manhood lost and found.

Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail and STATE abbreviation in the comments.

7 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON

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Participants:


1. Tiffany

In the Belly of Jonah

In the Belly of Jonah

Author:  Sandra Brannan

Publication Date:  September 1, 2010

Publisher:  Greenleaf Book Group Press

Donated by:  Jennifer (Crazy-for-Books)

In the Belly of Jonah is a fast-paced mystery with a likable protagonist and an intricately woven narrative brimming with bizarre yet believable twists. The first in a series, the book expertly lays the groundwork for Liv Bergen, amateur sleuth, and her love interest, FBI Agent Streeter Pierce.

Liv becomes involved in the investigation of the murder of Jill Brannigan, a summer intern at the limestone mine Liv manages near Fort Collins, Colorado (a breathtaking setting that unwittingly becomes an accessory to crime). In doing so, she inadvertently puts her friends, her family, and herself at risk of being swallowed in the belly of a madman bloated with perverse appetites for women, surrealistic art, and renown.

Perhaps a bit too daring (and at times irreverent) for her own good, ''Boots,'' as Liv's eight siblings call her, soon realizes she has a knack for outsmarting and tracking down the Venus de Milo murderer--and she enjoys it! As the gripping plot of In the Belly of Jonah unfolds, Liv Bergen takes her place alongside the best female crime-solvers as a woman with smarts, self-confidence, and intuitive savvy.

Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail and STATE abbreviation in the comments.

10 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON

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Participants:

Teresa

Without a Word

Without a Word:  How a Boy's Unspoken Love Changed Everything

Author:  Jill Kelly

Publication Date:  September 9, 2010

Publisher:  FaithWords

Genre:  Christian Fiction

Donated by:  Jennifer (Crazy-for-Books)

WITHOUT A WORD is a riveting memoir that blends remarkable achievement with passion, sacrifice, love, pain, and human interest. It takes the reader into the lives of a celebrity couple, Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Kelly, and his wife, Jill, to reveal the Kelly family's private struggle and how eight and a half years with their severely disabled, terminally ill son, Hunter, unfolded in a redemptive and transforming manner. The light of Hunter's love through his brief and silent life shone into the shadowed corners of Jill and Jim's lives resulting in Jill believing that Jesus Christ was authentic, her learning to forgive Jim of past indiscretions, and finally resulting in Jim's seeking and finding God. Lessons gleaned from Hunter's life and death, and Jim and Jill's struggle to save their marriage during tumultuous times, make this a compelling and inspiring read.

Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail and STATE abbreviation in the comments.  

7 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON   

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I'd Know You Anywhere

I'd Know You Anywhere: A Novel
Author:  Laura Lipman
Publisher: William Morrow
Publication Date: September 1, 2010


Donated by:  Heather @ Proud Book Nerd

Near the start of this outstanding novel of psychological suspense from Edgar-winner Lippman (Life Sentences), Eliza Benedict, a 38-year-old married mother of two living in suburban Maryland, receives a letter from Walter Bowman, the man who kidnapped her the summer she was 15 and is now on death row. The narrative shifts between the present and that long ago summer, when Eliza involuntarily became a part of Walter's endless road trip, including the fateful night when he picked up another teenage girl, Holly Tackett. Soon after Walter killed Holly, Eliza was rescued and taken home. Eliza must now balance a need for closure with a desire to protect herself emotionally. Walter wants something specific from her, but she has no idea what, and she's not sure that she wants to know. All the relationships, from the sometimes contentious one between Eliza and her sister, Vonnie, to the significantly stranger one between Walter and Barbara LaFortuny, an advocate for prisoners, provide depth and breadth to this absorbing story.

TOUR COMPLETE!

Participants:


Heather shipped 10/21:  DC# 03091140000075132240


Ashley Basically Amazing Books - DONE
Rebecca Beck's Book Picks - DONE
Emily The Many Thoughts of a Reader - DONE
JHS            Colloquium - DONE
Kendall Reading Reading & Life - DONE
Tiffany Tiffany's Bookshelf - DONE
Melody Melody & Words - DONE
Betty         Reflections w/ Coffee - DONE


Reviews:

Ashley Basically Amazing Books

Rebecca Beck's Book Picks

Emily The Many Thoughts of a Reader

JHS           Colloquium

Kendall Reading Reading & Life - no review, DNF

Tiffany Tiffany's Bookshelf

Melody Melody & Words

Betty         Reflections w/ Coffee

The Good Daughters

The Good Daughters: A Novel
Author:  Joyce Maynard
Publisher ~ William Morrow
Release date ~ September 1, 2010


Donated by:  Kendall @  Reading, Reading & Life

Two families, the Planks and the Dickersons, are mysteriously entwined in this exquisite novel that centers on decades of life at a New Hampshire farm. Youngest daughters Ruth Plank and Dana Dickerson, born on the same day in the same hospital, take turns narrating the struggles they face as children. Ruth feels a coldness from her mother; Dana is unsettled by her kooky parents constantly uprooting her and her brother Ray. Regardless, the Planks pay a yearly visit to the Dickersons no matter where they've ended up living. As the girls come of age, Ruth takes an interest in art, sex, and Dana's brother, Ray, with whom she later reunites, at Woodstock, in a swirl of drugs and mud. Meanwhile, Dana realizes that her desires are directed toward women and sets off to pursue agricultural studies at a university, where she meets Clarice, an assistant professor. As time goes by, the floundering Plank Farm is in danger of being seized by Ruth's former boyfriend, a man who has had his eye on the land for years. As Ruth and Dana pursue love, contemplate children, and search for home, the truth of what unites their families is finally--at long last--revealed, in this beautifully written book. (From Publishers Weekly)

• Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail and STATE abbreviation in the comments.

• 14 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON

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Participants

Emily - DONE

JHS - mailed 4/1 DC: 9449010200793565116211

Kathy

Amy

Reviews

Room by Emma Donoghue

ROOM:  A Novel
Author:  Emma Donoghue
Publication Date:  September 13, 2010
Publisher:  Little Brown

To five-year-old Jack, Room is the entire world. It is where he was born and grew up; it's where he lives with his Ma as they learn and read and eat and sleep and play. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits.

Room is home to Jack, but to Ma, it is the prison where Old Nick has held her captive for seven years. Through determination, ingenuity, and fierce motherly love, Ma has created a life for Jack. But she knows it's not enough...not for her or for him. She devises a bold escape plan, one that relies on her young son's bravery and a lot of luck. What she does not realize is just how unprepared she is for the plan to actually work.

Told entirely in the language of the energetic, pragmatic five-year-old Jack, ROOM is a celebration of resilience and the limitless bond between parent and child, a brilliantly executed novel about what it means to journey from one world to another.

• Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail and STATE abbreviation in the comments.

• 7 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON

    Make sure to fill out the Blogger Sign-Up Form!

Participants:

Betty - done
Melanie - done
Jennifer - done
Leah - done
Ashley - done
Heather - done
Amy - done
Tiffany - done

Reviews:

Betty:  Reflections with Coffee
Melanie:  Lit Chick Cafe
Jennifer:  Girls Gone Reading
Leah:  Amused By Books
Ashley:  Basically Amazing Books
Heather:  Proud Book Nerd
Amy:  The House of Seven Tails
Tiffany:  Tiffany's Bookshelf

Up From the Blue

Up From the Blue

Author:  Susan Henderson

Publication Date:  September 21, 2010

Publisher:  Harper

ARC Donated By:  Jen (Crazy-for-Books)

When Tillie Harris goes into labor with her first child, nothing is right. Her husband is away on business, the boxes in her new home aren’t unpacked, and the telephone isn’t even connected yet. Forced to reach out to her estranged father for help, their first contact in years, Tillie must face the painful memories she’s been running from since she was a little girl—the memories of her own mother and the year that changed everything.

As a child, Tillie’s home was a manic and messy world with her mother, Mara, at its center. While some days brought dancing, dress-up, and laughter, others became long hours of listening to Mara cry, depressed and unable get out of bed. When Tillie’s father takes a top job at the Pentagon and forces the family to move, and as Mara’s worsening condition can no longer be ignored, Tillie’s life spirals out of control.

When the family arrives at their new home in Washington, Tillie’s mother has vanished—a stunning development made even more disorienting by her father’s refusal to discuss what happened. As he tries to impose a new, orderly pattern to family life, Tillie’s fertile imagination attempts to fill in the missing gaps, inventing elaborate narratives about what might have happened, and about her father’s culpability. But when the veil is lifted and the mystery revealed, Tillie discovers that the truth behind her mother’s disappearance is far more complicated than she could have imagined.

• Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail and STATE abbreviation in the comments.

• 7 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON

• Make sure to fill out the Blogger Sign-Up Form! 
• 
  
• Participants
• Betty - DONE
• Tiffany - DONE
• Stephanie - DONE
• Heather - DONE

Reviews

Betty -   Reflections With Coffee  

Tiffany - Tiffany's Bookshelf
Stephanie - Steph the Bookworm
Heather - Proud Book Nerd

A War of Her Own: A World War II Novel

A War of Her Own:  A World War II Novel
Author:  Sylvia Dickey Smith
Publication Date:  September 1, 2010
Publisher:  Crickhollow Books


Donated By:  Kelli (I Would Rather Be Reading)


A War of Her Own is a compelling World War II historical novel, set in Orange, Texas, in 1943, about a Texas version of Rosie the Riveter in search of happiness.


In the summer of 1943, Orange, Texas, is a sleepy little town overrun with tens of thousands of new workers. With jobs galore at the wartime shipyards, the workers are rich with cash and looking for a good time.


Bea Meade, mother of an infant son, finds her life shattered when her philandering husband announces he is leaving her for another woman. To make ends meet, Bea takes a job at a shipyard as a riveter. Meanwhile, she searches for the love missing in her life.


Life is good for everyone in Orange--except Bea, who has to fight her own battles against a no-good husband, the prejudice facing women in the workplace, and the mysteries of her own past.


Bea's journey to discover who she really is, a vibrant woman of her times, serves up an entertaining story of the World War II homefront you'll remember long after the final pages.

TOUR COMPLETE!

• Tour Participants:
• 1. Kathy -done
• 2. Tiffany - done
• 3. JHS - mailed 10/22 DC# 03101230000227400799
•  
• REVIEWS:
• 1. Kathy - Mommy's Reading
• 2. Tiffany - Tiffany's Bookshelf
• 3. JHS - Colloquium

Dead Politician Society

Dead Politician Society
Book 1 in a new series!
Author::  Robin Spano
Publication Date:  September 1, 2010
Publisher:  ECW Press




When the mayor keels over dead in the middle of a speech, a clandestine student society immediately takes credit for his demise. Their mission is to create a perfect political system by any means at their disposal. Clare Vengel, a rookie officer fresh from the police academy and beyond bored with her routine as a beat cop, volunteers to go undercover as a student to infiltrate the secretive organization. A streetwise amateur mechanic, Clare takes a dim view of book smarts—she is of the opinion that higher education is for people who can't handle the real world. In short order, she alienates a popular professor and begins to lose the respect of her police superiors. Soon, another politician is killed, and Clare steps up her clandestine involvement with the suspect students. When two more politicians die, the race begins to apprehend the culprits before her own duplicity can be revealed.

• Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail and STATE abbreviation in the comments.

• 7 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON

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•  
• Participants:
•  
• 1. Natalie  - Done
•  
• REVIEWS:
• 
  
• 1. Natalie - Coffee and a Book Chick

The Witch of Hebron

The Witch of Hebron
Author:  James Howard Kunstler
Publication Date:  September 7, 2010
Publisher:  Atlantic Monthly Press

In a post-oil America, there is no electricity, no Internet, people travel by horse and buggy, the government is little more than a rumor, wars are fought over dwindling resources and illness is a constant presence; and in the little town of Union Grove, New York, the people must deal with roving bandits and a sinister cult that threatens to shatter the hamlet's stability.

TOUR COMPLETE - THANKS FOR PARTICIPATING! 

•  
• Tour Participants
• 1. Jenn -done
• 2. Carrie - done
• 3. Tiffany - done
•  
• Reviews:
• Jenn
• Carrie - couldn't finish - no review
• Tiffany

Simon's Choice

Simon's Choice
Author:  Charlotte Castle
Publisher: Night Publishing
Release Date:  August/September 2010

Donated by:  The author, Charlotte Castle

 When Simon Bailey's dying nine-year old daughter asks him what will happen when she dies, he assures her that she will go to heaven. When she asks who will live with her, he makes an offer that further rips his family apart - he offers to go with her.

Simon's Choice is an exploration of grief, questioning the traditional understanding of loss and taking us on a journey from the fibre-glass fabricated world of Disneyworld, to Hindu practices of self-immolation in India,

• Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail and STATE abbreviation in the comments.

• 7 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON

• Make sure to fill out the Blogger Sign-Up Form!  

Tour Participants:

1.  Heather

2.  Melissa 
3.  Kendall

4.  Jennifer (Crazy for Books)

Buzz Off

Buzz Off (Story Fischer)  (ARC)
Author:  Hannah Reed
Publisher: Berkley
Publication date:  September 7, 2010

Donated by: The author, Hannah Reed

After her mentor in the honey business is found suspiciously stung to death in his apiary, beekeeper Story Fischer must sort through a swarm of suspects, including her ex-husband.

• Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail and STATE abbreviation in the comments.

• 7 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON

• Make sure to fill out the Blogger Sign-Up Form!  

Tour Participants:

1. Tiffany  - done

2. Stephanie - rcv'd 8/19 - gave extra time; mailed 1/14 DC# 0310 2640 0000 0587 5238

Reviews:

1. Tiffany - Tiffany's Bookshelf 

2. Stephanie

Russian Winter by Daphne Kalotay

 
Russian Winter: A Novel
Author:  Daphne Kalotay
Publication Date:  September 7, 2010
Publisher:  Harper Collins

Donated by:  Harper Collins

Set in both modern-day Boston and post-WWII Moscow, RUSSIAN WINTER tells the story of Bolshoi ballerina Nina Revskaya as she becomes a member of Stalin's cultural elite before escaping to the West following a terrible betrayal. Decades later, she has decided to auction off her famed jewelry collection—including the rare set of amber that a Boston professor, Grigori Solodin, translator of the works of Revskaya's late poet-husband, believes may hold the key to a long-kept secret. The literary mystery Grigori sets out to solve—with the help of Drew Brooks, a young associate at the Boston auction house—reaches much deeper: to the cost of making art and trying to live and love under circumstances of enormous repression.

• Tour Sign-ups Open to USA Residents; Leave your name, e-mail, and STATE abbreviation in the comments! 

• UPCOMING RELEASE - 10 DAY LIMIT PER PERSON!   

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 Tour Participants

Jen mailed 7/21 ~ DC # 9102128882300246297873

1.  Kathy - done
2.  Margaret- mailed 0308 3390 0001 8232 8381

Reviews ~

Kathy
Margaret

Huck

Huck - The Remarkable True Story of How One Lost Puppy Taught a Family - and a Whole Town - About Hope and Happy Endings

Author:  Janet Elder

Publication Date:  September 2010

Publisher:  Broadway Books (Random House)

289 pages

Huck is a page-turning, unforgettable true story of the tenacity of one small dog, the unexpected, extraordinary kindness of strangers, and a family’s devotion to each other.
 
Michael was four when his relentless campaign for a dog began. At seven he made a PowerPoint presentation, “My Dog,” with headings like “A Childhood Without a Dog is a Sad Thing.” His parents, Janet and Rich, were steadfast; bringing a dog into their fast-paced New York City lives was utterly impractical.

However, on a trip to Italy, a chance happening leads Janet to reconsider, a decision then hastened by a diagnosis of breast cancer.  Janet decides the excitement of a new puppy would  be the perfect antidote to the strain on the family of months of arduous treatments for her illness. The prospect of a new puppy would be an affirmation of life, a powerful talisman for them all.

On Thanksgiving weekend, soon after the grueling months of treatments are over, Huck, a sweet, mischievous, red-haired, toy poodle joins the family and wins everyone’s heart.

A few months later the family ventures to baseball’s spring training, leaving Huck with Janet’s sister in Ramsey, New Jersey.  Barely twenty-four hours into the trip, Janet receives the dreaded phone call: Huck has slipped through the backyard fence and run away.

Broken-hearted and frantic, the family catches the first plane to New Jersey to begin a search for their lost puppy. It is a race against time, for little Huck is now lost in an area entirely unfamiliar to him, facing the threat of bears and coyotes, swamps and freezing temperatures, rain and fast cars.

Moved by the family’s plight, strangers – from school children to townspeople to the police lieutenant – join the search, one that proves to be an unyielding test of determination and faith.

Touching and warm-hearted, Huck is a spirit-lifting story about resilience, the generosity of strangers, and hope. 

TOUR CLOSED!

Tour Participants:

1. Loren - done
2. Marissa  - done
3. Betty - done
4. Stephanie  - done
5. Laura  - done 

Reviews:

Stephanie
Laura
Marissa
Loren
Betty

If You Lived Here, You'd Be Home Now

If You Lived Here, You'd Be Home Now

Author:  Claire LaZebnik

Publisher:  Hachette

Publication Date:  September 2010

336 pages

From the well-loved author of Knitting Under the Influence and The Smart One and the Pretty One comes a new novel about a young single mother trying to move out of her family's shadow.

Rickie left home a long time ago-so how is it that at the age of twenty-five, she's living with her parents again, and sleeping in the bedroom of her childhood home?

At least one thing has changed since high school: She now has a very sweet but frequently challenging son named Noah, who attends the same tony private LA school she herself attended. Rickie fit in fine when she was a student, but now her age and tattoos make her stand out from all the blond Stepford moms, who are desperate to know why someone so young-and so unmarried-has a kid in first grade.

Already on the defensive, Rickie goes into full mother-tigress mode when her small and unathletic son tells her that the gym teacher is out to get him. She storms the principal's office, only to discover that Andrew Fulton, the coach, is no dumb jock. As her friendship with Andrew develops, Rickie finds herself questioning her assumptions-about motherhood, being a grown-up, and falling in love.

TOUR COMPLETE - THANKS FOR PARTICIPATING!

Tour Participants:

1 Stephanie - Steph the Bookworm
2 Shonda - My Book & Couch
3 Mamakitty - Mama Kitty Reviews
4 Cindy - Oodles of Books
5 JHS - Colloquium
6 Heather - Proud Book Nerd

Reviews:
1 Stephanie Steph the Bookworm
2 Shonda Me, My Book & the Couch
3 Mamakitty Mama Kitty Reviews
4 Cindy Oodles of Books
5 JHS Colloquium
6 Heather Proud Book Nerd