Wow, this book was such an inspirational read! There were moments when I was in tears and others when I wanted to whoop for joy. It is a book that every person, but especially women, can appreciate because it is the amazing story of Molly Melching, a fearless woman, known as one of the "most powerful women in women's rights". Through education and respect, she led African women to stand up for their rights and helped them celebrate their freedom.

However Long the Night reads like a novel. It is the story of Molly, an American university student who went to Senegal in 1974 and decided to stay, loving the people of that land, their culture and their warmth. Feeling at home in a country so unlike her own, Molly saw the needs of the people. With the help of several Senegalese scholars, she opened a children's center, “where she used elements of traditional African culture to reach out-of-school children in their native Wolof language.”

After experiencing life in remote African villages, Molly founded Tostan, an organization that promoted learning through education based on human rights, where villagers learned to read and write, and how to take care of themselves and their families through proper health care. This is where the topic of female genital cutting came up, a topic known as “the tradition” and never discussed, seen as a loving act to prepare a daughter for marriage.

By empowering women through discussion and human rights education, Molly helped revolutionize how Africans viewed their traditions without ever judging or criticizing. Her organization succeeded where many others failed. What touched me the most is how she involved the religious leaders and the village chiefs, the men, to understand the dangers of female genital cutting. Molly understood and saw the African wisdom beneath the uneducated. She trained all her staff to respect the African way so that through dignity, perseverance and patience, the African women took a stand and made the changes that would help all their future generations to triumph.

This is an important story because we can all learn from how Molly helped bring about change. This selfless woman dedicated her life to achieve what may have seemed impossible. I was inspired, uplifted and greatly touched by, not just her story, but that of all the African women and men who played a part in shaking their world for the better. A remarkable and unforgettable book—one of the best books I've read this year. Highly recommended.

Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging?

My name is Laura. I work part-time as a Special Care Counsellor in a community centre facilitating activities in our day programs for seniors with dementia. In the past I've worked in child psychiatry, implementing programs to assist kids with behavior challenges. Now I have two kids of my own (a 12 year-old girl and a 9 year-old boy) and realize that working with kids and parenting them are two different things. Parenting is harder!

I've been blogging for over four years, just after I published my novel Daughter of Mine, and discovered the wonderful world of book blogging! Occasionally you will also see book reviews by my friend Sandra who shares my love of books.

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia who now blogs at To Be Continued. It is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. Abi at 4 the Love of Books is hosting for the month of May. You can also view the touring blog list here for the upcoming months.

Books for Review:

Mister Dash and the Cupcake Calamity by Monica Kulling

Mr. Dash may not have a pedigree (he can count five different breeds of dogs as family), but from his furry head to his wagging tail, he is a gentleman. His fine manners make him a perfect companion to Madame Croissant. Their life together is graceful and civilized, what with walks in the park, stamp-collecting, and a passion for flowers.

Mr. Dash is also in charge of delivering Madame Croissant's world-famous cupcakes. All is well until Daphne, Madame Croissant's rather lively niece, arrives to turn the cupcake world upside down.

Filled with humour, this delectable story will appeal to dog-lovers AND cupcake-lovers the world over.


Ellie's Gentleman by Georgiana Louis

Ellie Sommers is twenty years old, beautiful, lively and intelligent. She has finally returned to her family home after another long London season. She wants nothing more than to stay in her beloved country town and ride her horses. Enter Robert Blakely, a widower and a true gentleman. He has come to spend Christmas with his long-time friend William, Ellie’s father. Robert has no wish to marry again and is shocked to discover his own interest in the beautiful daughter of his friend. The only problem is that he is twice her age and a widower who has convinced himself he will never marry again.

Books Bought: 







Free on Kindle:

I'm Not Her by Janet Gurtler

"For the first time in my life, I didn't feel envy..."

Tess is the exact opposite of her beautiful, athletic sister. And that's okay. Kristina is the sporty one, Tess is the smart one, and they each have their place. Until Kristina is diagnosed with cancer. Suddenly Tess is the center of the popular crowd, everyone eager for updates. There are senior boys flirting with her. But, the smiles of her picture perfect family are cracking and her sister could be dying. Now Tess has to fill a new role: the strong one. Because if she doesn't hold it together, who will?

Janet Gurtler tests the bonds of sisterhood in this moving debut that readers of Jodi Picoult and Sarah Dessen will savor.

This is the second book in the Ascendance trilogy and the sequel to The False Prince, (read our review) which my daughter and I absolutely loved. Once again, we dove into this book and couldn't put it down!

Jaron, newly crowned king of Carthya, senses betrayal in his kingdom. When an attempt to assassinate him occurs, he knows he cannot ignore the problems within his castle walls and the impending rumors of a coming war. So he flees the throne to take matters into his own hand, to confront the pirates and to stop them and his neighbouring king from taking his land. Jaron gets more than what he bargained for and he learns the hard way what it means to be king.

Both my daughter and I adore the main character, who is quite the character! He is smart and brave but also stubborn. My daughter likes how his stubbornness ends up helping him. I simply love the dialogue. It's witty, brilliant and funny too. The plot zips along in an adventure that takes us through twists and turns, keeping us in suspense. Fink is a new character introduced in this book, and he charmed me and pulled on my heartstrings because he is an orphan.

My daughter also mentioned to me that she liked that it was realistic, in the sense that Jaron went through a lot, including almost getting killed. Like in the first book there is violence, with scenes of swordfighting, hitting and whipping. But we did not find it gruesome, as it is also interspersed with funny and noble moments. It's a medieval setting, and there are also scenes of honorable actions.

Well, my daughter and I are counting this one as a favorite, and we can't wait for the last installment of this fun trilogy. Recommended to lovers of action-adventure tales, especially those young teens who are reluctant readers.

Claire Roth reproduces paintings for a living. She is a talented artist who is an expert on Degas, but who longs to have her own paintings displayed. However, she lost her confidence when she stirred up the art world a few years back with a scandal including her ex-lover who had also been her art professor. So when a well-known art gallery owner visits her studio to make a deal with her to copy the famous Degas painting, stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum years ago, in exchange for her own show at his famous gallery, she is pulled in and finds herself spiraling in a world of deceit.

There are many things I loved about The Art Forger. I was immersed in the art world which is fascinating, including forgery of famous paintings and exactly how it is done. Wow, that blew me away, to learn how an artist can use methods to make a copy look and feel so authentic that even scientific methods of verifying could not detect the forgery. This book had me doing research on the Internet. It made me want to visit museums and stare at the paintings.

Claire was an interesting character in that she was a great artist, intelligent, dedicated and vulnerable, but a lousy judge of character. I could empathize about and understand her relationship with the first man; she was young and impressionable. But I wanted to shake her when she threw caution aside and got involved with the second man. She had been burnt before and her current situation was already precarious. But her flawed character and the intriguing plot is what kept me turning the pages.

I also loved how the story was unpredictable. It kept me guessing how it would all end. It's true that the ending was tied up nice and neat, but after everything that happened I didn't mind. I wanted Claire to get a break, even though she made some stupid mistakes. She was honest and her love of painting, of creating, was so strong, I could relate to her passion. In summary, this was a great novel to escape into.

If you love art, the art world, a good story that's different, and an easy read, pick up The Art Forger. I'm positive you will learn things about art you never knew.

Congratulations to: 

Anne for winning 
Mira's Diary: Home Sweet Rome by Marissa Moss
and
Diane for winning 
The Happiness Handbook by Jenn Flaa

Sometimes I'm in the mood to read a romantic book, a love story into which I can escape. So I picked up Truths and Roses, and was happy to discover it was just what I was looking for.

Professional football player Will Kincaid ends his career by busting his knee just as he crosses the line for a glorious win at the Superbowl. He returns to his hometown a hero, wondering what he is now going to do with his life. But when he bumps into Hannah Jacobs, the only girl who ever rejected him in high school, old feelings come alive as they learn to deal with old secrets, bad memories and the growing attraction between them.

This was a fun book that dealt with serious issues realistically, yet without too much drama. I enjoyed the plotline and the characters as they both grew and changed. Hannah was stuck in a quiet life with unfulfilled dreams and couldn't move beyond a tragic event in her past. Will's whole life had been football and it seems he couldn't get his father's approval otherwise. He needed to come to terms with his strengths and weaknesses to determine where he was now headed in life.

Together Will and Hannah help each other, but must overcome their obstacles to be able to give the best of each other in their relationship. This is the message I really liked in this story. The romance builds well without silly bodice-ripping scenes or phrases telling me how gorgeous the characters are. Yes, there are some hot kissing scenes, but they are in good taste. And the sex scene isn't explicit.

I will definitely read another of Cooper's books when I'm in the mood for a good solid romance. Recommended to lovers of romance books.

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia who now blogs at To Be Continued. It is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. Abi at 4 the Love of Books is hosting for the month of May. You can also view the touring blog list here for the upcoming months.

Current Giveaways:

Mira's Diary: Home Sweet Rome by Marissa Moss (Ends May 20 -today!)
The Happiness Handbook by Jenn Flaa (Ends May 21)

Review Books:

I got a few gems from Netgalley. The first two are a new middle-grade adventure series. As I'm always looking for good books that will appeal to my 9-year-old son, I decided to give these a try. I started reading the first book with my son and he loves it!

Travels With Gannon and Wyatt: Botswana by Patti Wheeler and Keith Hemstreet

When Gannon and Wyatt arrive in Botswana for an African safari, they find themselves tangled up in much more than a family vacation. After receiving word that a poacher has shot and wounded a lioness, they set off into the wild in the hopes of saving the mother and her cubs before the poacher finishes the job. While on this amazing journey, they encounter Africa's Big Five--elephants, rhinos, cape buffalos, leopards, and lions--only to discover that the most dangerous predator in the African bush is not the king of beasts, but man himself.

In the tradition of the historic journals kept by explorers such as Lewis and Clark, Dr. David Livingstone, and Captain James Cook comes the adventure series Travels with Gannon and Wyatt. From Africa to the South Pacific, these twin brothers have traveled the world. You never know what they will encounter as they venture into the wild, but one thing is certain--wherever Gannon and Wyatt go, adventure is their constant companion.

Travels With Gannon and Wyatt: Great Bear Rainforest by Patti Wheeler and Keith Hemstreet

Gannon and Wyatt can't wait to trek into the Great Bear Rainforest in search of the mythical spirit bear, but surviving in this unforgiving wilderness proves more challenging than they could have ever imagined. When members of the expedition go missing, the brothers bravely set out on a search-and-rescue mission. Soon they find themselves lost in a forest teeming with grizzlies, wolves and mysterious gunmen. Guided by the wisdom of the First Nation people, Gannon and Wyatt uncover a sinister plot and must risk everything to save those who are missing and restore balance to the Great Bear.

In the tradition of the historic journals kept by explorers such as Lewis and Clark, Dr. David Livingstone, and Captain James Cook comes the adventure series Travels with Gannon and Wyatt. From Africa to the South Pacific, these twin brothers have traveled the world. You never know what they will encounter as they venture into the wild, but one thing is certain--wherever Gannon and Wyatt go, adventure is their constant companion.

The Spark: A Mother's Story of Nurturing Genius by Kristine Barnett

Kristine Barnett’s son Jacob has an IQ higher than Einstein’s, a photographic memory, and he taught himself calculus in two weeks. At nine he started working on an original theory in astrophysics that experts believe may someday put him in line for a Nobel Prize, and at age twelve he became a paid researcher in quantum physics. But the story of Kristine’s journey with Jake is all the more remarkable because his extraordinary mind was almost lost to autism. At age two, when Jake was diagnosed, Kristine was told he might never be able to tie his own shoes.

The Spark is a remarkable memoir of mother and son. Surrounded by “experts” at home and in special ed who tried to focus on Jake’s most basic skills and curtail his distracting interests—moving shadows on the wall, stars, plaid patterns on sofa fabric—Jake made no progress, withdrew more and more into his own world, and eventually stopped talking completely. Kristine knew in her heart that she had to make a change. Against the advice of her husband, Michael, and the developmental specialists, Kristine followed her instincts, pulled Jake out of special ed, and began preparing him for mainstream kindergarten on her own.

Relying on the insights she developed at the daycare center she runs out of the garage in her home, Kristine resolved to follow Jacob’s “spark”—his passionate interests. Why concentrate on what he couldn’t do? Why not focus on what he could? This basic philosophy, along with her belief in the power of ordinary childhood experiences (softball, picnics, s’mores around the campfire) and the importance of play, helped Kristine overcome huge odds.

The Barnetts were not wealthy people, and in addition to financial hardship, Kristine herself faced serious health issues. But through hard work and determination on behalf of Jake and his two younger brothers, as well as an undying faith in their community, friends, and family, Kristine and Michael prevailed. The results were beyond anything anyone could have imagined.

Dramatic, inspiring, and transformative, The Spark is about the power of love and courage in the face of overwhelming obstacles, and the dazzling possibilities that can occur when we learn how to tap the true potential that lies within every child, and in all of us.

Free Kindle Book:

Intwine (Intwine Saga #1) by Christina Moss

What happens when a girl falls madly in love, only to discover her new beau hails from a planet on the other side of the galaxy? A modern day Star Wars with nonstop adventure as she learns the secrets of his world, and other planets far beyond the Solar System.

INTWINE introduces Juliette Greenmoss, a shy but endearingly sweet girl from Southern California who, before meeting Seth Morrison, had never even stepped out of California much less stepped off of the planet.

INTWINE takes place over the course of a summer. The story eases you into an all too familiar world, and then hurls you into unforeseen dangers as Juliette confronts new enemies, other beings, and space travel. She learns of super human powers and advanced health and mechanical technologies that Earth doctors and scientists would kill to discover — all of it carefully hidden from the small planet Earth. By the end of a summer, our unlikely heroine begins to discover who she really is.

Bought:

Mother Warriors by Jenny McCarthy (Audiobook)

Stories of hope and recovery from a nation of parents of autistic children by the high-profile bestselling author of Louder than Words

When Jenny McCarthy published the story of her successful efforts to save her son from autism, the response was tremendous, including a number-three rank on the New York Times bestseller list and an appearance on the cover of Peoplemagazine. What she hadn’t anticipated was the overwhelming response from other parents of autistic children who wanted to share their own stories of success.

No two autistic children heal in exactly the same way. And in her new book, Jenny expands her message to share recovery stories from parents across the country, showing how each parent fought to find her own child’s perfect “remedy of interventions.” Along the way, Jenny shares her own journey as an autism advocate and mother, as well as the continuing progress of her son, Evan. Emotional and genuinely practical, Mother Warriors will inspire a generation of parents with hope.

This bright book is perfect for toddlers and  preschoolers who loves bubble baths because through its oversized pages he can venture into imaginative worlds, such as the Bubble Shoe Shop, Bubble Ice Cream Parlor and the Bubble Marsh, which were favorites for me and both my kids. The thick glossy pages explode with original artwork and close-ups of photographic images. Really, this book has a lot for the eyes to feast on.

The rhyming text takes readers on a magical exploration of soap bubble orbs and what we can imagine in them. I particularly liked the many photographs because they can be used as a guessing game of trying to figure out what the close-up of each photo is. The author also includes on every page spread the definition of two words so that new words are learned. At the back of the book, there are vinyl stickers that can be stuck and used over and over on the pages, but also in the bathtub! Both my kids thought this was so cool. 

The book is available in hardcover with a shiny white padded cover, as a waterproof bathtub book with LED light and also as an interactive iPad book app, which includes narration from the author's two daughters, sound effects and all kinds of fun stuff to do. This book is so attractive that my 12 year-old daughter loved looking through it as much as my younger son, and she thought both the artwork and the photos were awesome.

Highly recommended to brighten up the world of any child who loves big books, bright pictures and, of course, bubble baths.

Here's a page from the Book app version which gives you an idea how colorful and bright this book is.

Trauma Farm: A Rebel History of Rural Life by Brian Brett

Post Hypnotic Press

Released Feb 01, 2013

Narrator: Michael Puttonen

Length: 11 hrs, 47 mins, 10 CDs

Brett's writing is beautiful and his love of nature and the land are immediately apparent in his description of the flora and fauna, the farm animals, their behaviour (funny and awe-inspiring) and his experience with it all. Brett chooses not to write in chronological order but instead describes the eighteen years in one day, beginning with his memories of walking naked in the darkness of night on his 10-acre land, and on to the dawn, morning and so forth of that eighteen-year day.

Brett is forthright and honest about his opinions and observations on everything to do with farming. I marvelled at his discussion of the humble but versatile egg and also that of the honeybee, but I cringed and was saddened when he spoke of the horrific condition of animals on commercial farms. He speaks fondly of his everyday life experiences with his wife Sharon. And there are funny moments in the book, intimate moments too. I appreciated Brett's wisdom acquired from life on the farm and his reflections of it, even though I disagreed with his beliefs on evolution.

Being a city girl, I learned quite a few things listening to the musings of this poet-farmer and it made me long for the time when I believe (in the future under God's rule) we will go back to living in a paradise, a beautiful garden, as the Earth was meant to be, and be in harmony with the land, going back to a way of life that has becoming lost and destroyed by greed and commercialism. I even envied Brett his experiences with the land and farm, something I barely know about, and feel it as a loss.

Sometimes Brett lost me as he rambled on about everything along with his philosophical views only because there was no chronological order and his poetic mind could take on one subject after another. But for the most part, his humanity appealed to me and kept me listening.

I think that narrator Michael Puttonen captures well the voice of Brett, his moments of irony and humour. He conveys the feelings the author has of the farm life he muses on. I recommend this to readers who love memoirs, nature and learning about the life of farming.

Note: This book is rated C = clean read.

Reviewed by Laura

Disclosure: Thanks to Post Hypnotic Press for sending me this audiobook for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

Mair Ellis finds an exquisite shawl, the craftsmanship of which is unparalleled today, as she is clearing out her dead parents' house. Along with it she finds the lock of a child's curly hair. With her adventurous spirit, Mair sets out to find out all she can about the shawl which belonged to her grandmother. She traces it back to Kashmir, India, where her grandparents Nerys and Evan Watkins did missionary work. There she embarks on a quest that changes her life.

The story alternates with that of her newlywed grandmother Nerys in 1941 during WWII when she and her husband Evan live a simple life doing missionary work in a remote area of India. When Nerys suffers a miscarriage, Evan sends her with friends to rest in Kashmir, an exotic lakeside city, where the British dance, have affairs and gossip, while he travels on a missionary assignment elsewhere. There Nerys learns a lot about herself and what makes her happy. She becomes involved with three people who become key players in her life, Myrtle, Rainer and Caroline.

Although the book has a slow start and some slow parts throughout, Thomas is a great storyteller as she brings her story from the present to the past and weaves the two together. India is exotic and poor, and I learned so much about the fascinating art of shawl weaving. Both the present story and the historical one kept my interest. There is a scene in Mair's story that is heartbreaking. I also couldn't help but be reminded a little of The Great Gatsby as I read the historical one because of how the British socialized. The War affected the British society in India, and I can appreciate this was hard on wives whose husbands left to fight. It was touching to see how Nerys and Myrtle came to the aid of one of the women.

Nerys is a level-headed woman who is unsure about her faith except she loves her role in helping the children in the missionary post. She doesn't have a relationship with God, but she is kind and generous and self-sacrificing. But she does eventually engage in an affair with another man who falls in love with her. She feels absolutely no guilt about doing so and she gives no thought to what this relationship will mean to her lover, especially when her husband returns. This made me uncomfortable as it seemed that the book's message was that having an affair could actually spice up one's marriage and would not affect a woman's relationship with her husband. I could understand what drove one of the other women to have an affair but not Nerys. Her husband was not perfect but neither did he deserve to be cuckolded.

I can see that quite a lot of research went into the writing of this epic novel with storytelling that pulled me in and kept me turning the pages. I was invested in the story, but not always in the characters.

Have you ever read a thriller novel where extraordinary and harrowing things happen to the characters but somehow they get through it against all odds? Well, that's what it was like reading Frozen in Time, except that it's not fiction, it's the true-life thrilling story of how a handful of WWII officers crashed into the barren and frozen Ice Cap of Greenland and survived for months. The story also alternates with the present story of a quest to find the lost Grumman Duck plane and the frozen remains of three officers.

Just as he did with Lost in Shangri-La, Zuckoff once again blew me away with his writing, bringing to life through narrative prose these valiant men, their adventures, their survival stories, and their families. By the end of the book, I felt like I knew these people personally. This is the gift of Zuckoff's writing. He allows the reader to truly get to know the people he writes about—not just facts, but their hopes and dreams—making the reading experience a touching one.

I didn't know a thing about Greenland, but Zuckoff makes sure the reader understands what kind of land it is just so one could appreciate all the obstacles the survivors encountered and how miraculous their survival really was. There were several times I choked up with tears as I read about these men's self-sacrificing acts and their mental anguish.

This was a suspenseful read. I could feel the relentless cold, hear the howling wind through the many snowstorms and feel the fear as the men had to trudge through snow and watch out for hidden crevasses that were bottomless. I kept marveling at the men's resilience and ingenuity. One of the things that kept the men's hope alive was the power of prayer. Zuckoff writes that they prayed daily, stating, “There were no atheists in their ice hole.”

Zuckoff makes it clear in his note to the reader that he takes no liberties with facts, dialogue, characters, details or chronology. This nonfiction work is based on his thorough research in the form of declassified documents, maps, photographs, interviews and previously unknown journals. He also joined the expedition team that travelled to the remote glacier in Greenland in search of the lost Grumman Duck plane. He tells us firsthand all about it.

I am counting this book as a favorite of 2013. I am a big fan of Zuckoff and will read anything by him, knowing that I am in for a well-written, exciting, and grand story.

Reviewed by Laura

Disclosure: Thanks to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia who now blogs at To Be Continued. It is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. Abi at 4 the Love of Books is hosting for the month of May. You can also view the touring blog list here for the upcoming months.

Current Giveaways:

Mira's Diary: Home Sweet Rome by Marissa Moss (Ends May 20)
The Happiness Handbook by Jenn Flaa (Ends May 21)

Review Books:


However Long the Night by Aimee Molloy

Our Thoughts:

About the author:
Anne Sawyer-Aitch (pronounced like the letter “H”) is a puppeteer and stilt-walker. Nalah and the Pink Tiger is her first children’s book. She has worked for years with Minneapolis-based groups In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre and the all-women’s stilting troupe Chicks on Sticks. Anne likes to create all kinds of puppets: parade floats, giant stilt puppets, and intricate color shadow shows. Currently, she is performing her Nalah and the Pink Tiger puppet show in English and Spanish around MN. She is a recipient of awards from the Jim Henson Foundation, the Puppeteers of America, the MN State Arts Board, and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council. She lives in Minneapolis with her computer genius husband and a pack of imaginary dogs.

You can view her website at www.nalahandthepinktiger.com. Connect with Anne on Facebook

Reviewed by Laura and Son

Disclosure: Thanks to the publisher and Pump Up Your Book Promotions for sending us this book for review. We were not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.


Every Saturday, Booking Mama hosts a feature called Kid Konnection—a regular weekend feature about anything related to children's books. If you'd like to participate in Kid Konnection and share a post about anything related to children's books (picture, middle grade, or young adult) from the past week, visit Booking Mama.

Being a Downton Abbey fan, I was immediately attracted to the title of this story. Edward Parker, the concierge of a historic Atlanta apartment building invites the residents to enjoy weekly screenings of Downton Abbey and association afterwards so as to get to know each other better. Three very different women forge a friendship with each other and Edward.

Samantha Parker, a beautiful wealthy socialite who married young and for security, Claire Walker, a single mom who is now an empty nester and a struggling author, and recently divorced and young mom Brooke MacKenzie who suffers from low self-worth, find themselves enjoying these evenings and each others' company. As they experience life challenges, their friendship is tested and strengthened, all while watching Downton Abbey.

I really enjoyed this book and the characters. It was a fun book but it had its serious moments too. I think I could relate to Claire the most because she is a writer struggling with writer's block, but there was something in every character that appealed to me, including their struggles. Sometimes I wanted to shake Samantha for what seemed to be complacency, but as the story progressed I understood more where she was coming from.

Orlagh Cassidy is my new favorite narrator. Her narration was smooth and she was great with Edward's English accent and the Southern drawls of both the men and women. I was able to distinguish easily the voices of all three women, not only because of accents but also intonation. I was very impressed and I thing I wouldn't have enjoyed this book as much if I had just read it. If you haven't seen Downton Abbey you may miss some of the connections related to the story, but I think you can still enjoy this book without having seen the TV series. Or it may entice you to finally view it!

Just a note for those of you sensitive about alcohol. A lot of it flows in this novel. At every get-together there is either wine or hard liquor and the women have gotten drunk several times.

I recommend this book to all fans of contemporary fiction stories that deal with friendships and to Downton Abbey fans. This was a feel good book and perfect for light summer reading or listening.

I'm a new fan of John Heldt because of his ability to write stories that uses the time travel element to propel forward a good story without the fantastical part overwhelming the plot. And unlike other time travel novels, his characters only travel back within fifty years rather than hundreds. His first book The Mine (read my review) captured my attention and I enjoyed it so much that I wanted to read this second novel.

Recently widowed and childless, 48 year-old Michelle Preston decides to go back to her hometown for a class reunion. After visiting an abandoned mansion and entering a mysterious room, she ends up travelling back in time thirty years to 1979. She finds a job as a secretary at her old high school and meets her former classmates, her parents and her younger self, all of whom have no idea who she is. She befriends her younger self Shelly, as she was known in school, and also finds a new love. But knowing about future events propels her to make a sacrifice in order to save lives and give herself a second shot at life.

Once again, I was quickly taken in with the story and wondered how the time travel element was going to direct it. Michelle is in the position of being a mature woman in the same environment as her teenage self. She can see herself as she was back then, young and confused, with different eyes. It made me wonder what I would feel and do if I was suddenly thrown back to my teenage years to see myself in school with my friends and former boyfriend. Would I want to give myself advice and see if I took a different path in life? Probably. Or maybe not at all because of what those changes might mean for the future? You know how we all wish we had done things differently during those tumultuous teen years?!

Well, this book made me question all that because of what Michelle did. I have to admit that at first I had a hard time believing Shelly did not recognize herself thirty years into the future. I know my face hasn't changed all that much and I look pretty much the same way I did when I was in high school 28 years ago. Even her parents didn't recognize her. Also, there seemed to be little reaction toward seeing her former boyfriend who had been her husband for many years and had recently died. But once I got past this lack of dramatic opening (must be the Italian in me that expected it!) I was able to focus more on the storyline to see where it was heading.

Heldt managed to surprise me once again with his ending, which was bittersweet and satisfying. If you like time travel stories that deal with relationships and second chances you will like this one. It took me back to my high school days and entertained me with a story that had me questioning what I would have done differently if given a second chance.

Note: This book is rated S = sexual scenes, not too explicit.