Mine is the Night

Liz Curtis Higgs is back! After this review after her last book I had my doubts about picking up this book. However, my love for Higgs and my desire for her to captivate me once more had me pushing through. She did not disappoint. This is the second of two and can absolutely stand alone, in fact I would recommend skipping the first and getting right to this one. It took me a whole first book and a few chapters into this one to realize this was an interpretation of the story of Ruth. Anyone else out there take as long as me to figure that out? Anyway, with that added twist I was hooked immediately. The language was still a bit challenging at times but I adjusted quickly and loved the story. The characters are full of depth and they'll feel like your closest friends before you're done. You always know a winner when you finish abook and keep thinking about the characters. Annoying, but a mark of a truly excellent story and storyteller.

Following the Jacobite rebellion Elizabeth and her mother-in-law, Marjory, flea penniless to Marjory's former hometown. Finding refuge with a distant cousin Elizabeth and Marjory begin to rebuild their lives in a way that looks nothing like their former existence. Beth takes up a needle and thread and Marjory begins cooking. Both begin to fall for two dashing men who capture their hearts and therein lies the tale.

This is one of those books that you just have to read to truly appreciate it. I promise you'll enjoy this one. Pick it up and be prepared to be transported to 1700's Scotland.

WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group provided this book to me for free in exchange for this honest review as part of their Blogging for Books program.

Ten Beach Road

Ten Beach Road by Wendy Wax

Review by: Melissa J. MacDonald

Genre: beach fiction

Publisher: Berkley

Date: 2011

Three women, complete strangers, have one thing in common, they’ve been duped by a Ponzi scheme. They  have lost everything and they unite to rehab the only asset they now own, third shares in a large but neglected mansion on Pass-a-Grill Beach, Florida. As they work to bring Bella Flora back to its former glory so that they can sell it and hopefully recoup at least some of their catastrophic losses, the women become friends. But the secrets they are hiding from each other could prove more devastating and hard to overcome than the massive work needed on the decaying house.

Madeline is a homemaker who is coping nicely with empty-nest syndrome. Content, if not sometimes bored, with her life she is completely shaken when she finds out her husband has not had a job for months. As he falls into depression she has to hold the family together….which also means taking care of her adult daughter who is pregnant by a married movie star.

Nikki is a renowned successful matchmaker to the stars . Her world crumbles as her money slowly but surely completely disappears. She’s particularly affected by the Ponzi scheme because the maker of the scheme, the one who has run off with billions of dollars, is none other than her brother. Her younger brother whom she raised.

Avery is a beautiful and feisty architect whose skills have somehow become less appreciated over her other….ahem, assets. A co-host with her ex-husband on a popular HGTV show she’s recently been fired and has no money and nowhere to go.

Somehow these three women must work together to get what money they can out of their only asset.  Described as a “perfect beach read” you will most definitely feel yourself transported to the beaches of Florida as you read this story. Bella Flora is described in detail and you’ll find yourself wanting to walk through the house and watch the renovation unfold. The three women have their own quirks and together they are often hilarious. As the story progresses so does a real-life storm and you will find yourself dashing through the last few chapters to find out what happens.

A very pleasant story that is almost, but not completely, ruined by very strong language. I was quite surprised that the author chose to sully a cute story with language you would only find in an R-rated movie. Instead of referring to strong language she wrote every word out and I found it quite distasteful.  Other than that, the story line is intriguing, the characters fun, and the setting idyllic.

Thank you to Berkley Publishing for providing a copy of this book for review.

Rated: R- for content and strong language