All the Light We Cannot See.

GoodReads Synopsis: Marie Laure lives with her father in Paris within walking distance of the Museum of Natural History where he works as the master of the locks (there are thousands of locks in the museum). When she is six, she goes blind, and her father builds her a model of their neighborhood, every house, every manhole, so she can memorize it with her fingers and navigate the real streets with her feet and cane. When the Germans occupy Paris, father and daughter flee to Saint-Malo on the Brittany coast, where Marie-Laure's agoraphobic great uncle lives in a tall, narrow house by the sea wall. In another world in Germany, an orphan boy, Werner, grows up with his younger sister, Jutta, both enchanted by a crude radio Werner finds. He becomes a master at building and fixing radios, a talent that wins him a place at an elite and brutal military academy and, ultimately, makes him a highly specialized tracker of the Resistance. Werner travels through the heart of Hitler Youth to the far-flung outskirts of Russia, and finally into Saint-Malo, where his path converges with Marie-Laure.

My Thoughts:  I know I'm in a very small minority, but I did not like this book at all.  It was a good story, but it took forever for anything to happen.  If you love a book full of beautiful descriptions and long, wordy prose about nothing, then this is the book for you.  It was not, however, the book for me.

The Witness Wore Red.

GoodReads Synopsis: Rebecca Musser grew up in fear, concealing her family's polygamous lifestyle from the "dangerous" outside world. Covered head-to-toe in strict, modest clothing, she received a rigorous education at Alta Academy, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints' school headed by Warren Jeffs. Always seeking to be an obedient Priesthood girl, in her teens she became the nineteenth wife of her people's prophet: 85-year-old Rulon Jeffs, Warren's father. Finally sickened by the abuse she suffered and saw around her, she pulled off a daring escape and sought to build a new life and family.  The church, however, had a way of pulling her back in-and by 2007, Rebecca had no choice but to take the witness stand against the new prophet of the FLDS in order to protect her little sisters and other young girls from being forced to marry at shockingly young ages. The following year, Rebecca and the rest of the world watched as a team of Texas Rangers raided the Yearning for Zion Ranch, a stronghold of the FLDS. Rebecca's subsequent testimony would reveal the horrific secrets taking place behind closed doors of the temple, sending their leaders to prison for years, and Warren Jeffs for life.

My Thoughts: I saw this walking through the library one day and grabbed it on a whim.  And boy am I glad I did.  It was a fascinating account of life in the polygamous cult of the FLDS.  It was so sad to read that people lived life like this and thought it was normal and acceptable.  It made me slightly depressed, but it was such a good book.  Definitely a story worth being told and one that people should hear.

The Sugar Queen.

GoodReads Synopsis:  Josey Cirrini is sure of three things: winter is her favorite season, she’s a sorry excuse for a Southern belle, and sweets are best eaten in the privacy of her closet. For while Josey has settled into an uneventful life in her mother’s house, her one consolation is the stockpile of sugary treats and paperback romances she escapes to each night… Until she finds her closet harboring Della Lee Baker, a local waitress who is one part nemesis—and two parts fairy godmother. With Della Lee’s tough love, Josey’s narrow existence quickly expands. She even bonds with Chloe Finley, a young woman who is hounded by books that inexplicably appear when she needs them—and who has a close connection to Josey’s longtime crush. Soon Josey is living in a world where the color red has startling powers, and passion can make eggs fry in their cartons. And that’s just for starters.

My Thoughts:  After finishing Garden Spells, I had to read all of Sarah Addison Allen's other books.  This was another fantastic story that I loved so much.

Love Does.

GoodReads Synopsis:  As a college student he spent 16 days in the Pacific Ocean with five guys and a crate of canned meat. As a father he took his kids on a world tour to eat ice cream with heads of state. He made friends in Uganda, and they liked him so much he became the Ugandan consul. He pursued his wife for three years before she agreed to date him. His grades weren't good enough to get into law school, so he sat on a bench outside the Dean's office for seven days until they finally let him enroll. Bob Goff has become something of a legend, and his friends consider him the world's best-kept secret. Those same friends have long insisted he write a book. What follows are paradigm shifts, musings, and stories from one of the world's most delightfully engaging and winsome people. What fuels his impact? Love. But it's not the kind of love that stops at thoughts and feelings. Bob's love takes action. Bob believes "Love Does." When "Love Does," life gets interesting. Each day turns into a hilarious, whimsical, meaningful chance that makes faith simple and real. Each chapter is a story that forms a book, a life. And this is one life you don't want to miss. Light and fun, unique and profound, the lessons drawn from Bob's life and attitude just might inspire you to be secretly incredible, too.

My Thoughts:  I read this after both my husband and my mother told me that I should.  And it was full of some wild and crazy stories.  I love one of the things he said in the book about seeing the "whimsy" in life and just doing crazy things sometimes for the fun of it.  There were funny stories, sad stories, sweet stories, and touching stories.  And despite me not 100% agreeing with some of his theology, I was definitely challenged to DO love.  Not just speak love or feel love, but to actually put feet to feeling.  Great book!

Garden Spells.

GoodReads Synopsis:  The women of the Waverley family -- whether they like it or not -- are heirs to an unusual legacy, one that grows in a fenced plot behind their Queen Anne home on Pendland Street in Bascom, North Carolina. There, an apple tree bearing fruit of magical properties looms over a garden filled with herbs and edible flowers that possess the power to affect in curious ways anyone who eats them.  For nearly a decade, 34-year-old Claire Waverley, at peace with her family inheritance, has lived in the house alone, embracing the spirit of the grandmother who raised her, ruing her mother's unfortunate destiny and seemingly unconcerned about the fate of her rebellious sister, Sydney, who freed herself long ago from their small town's constraints. Using her grandmother's mystical culinary traditions, Claire has built a successful catering business -- and a carefully controlled, utterly predictable life -- upon the family's peculiar gift for making life-altering delicacies: lilac jelly to engender humility, for instance, or rose geranium wine to call up fond memories. Garden Spells reveals what happens when Sydney returns to Bascom with her young daughter, turning Claire's routine existence upside down. With Sydney's homecoming, the magic that the quiet caterer has measured into recipes to shape the thoughts and moods of others begins to influence Claire's own emotions in terrifying and delightful ways. As the sisters reconnect and learn to support one another, each finds romance where she least expects it, while Sydney's child, Bay, discovers both the safe home she has longed for and her own surprising gifts. With the help of their elderly cousin Evanelle, endowed with her own uncanny skills, the Waverley women redeem the past, embrace the present, and take a joyful leap into the future.

My Thoughts:  There are not words to describe how much I absolutely loved this book!  It was whimsical and magical and romantic and just lovely.  It made it to my list of all-time favorite books.  

44 Cranberry Point.

GoodReads Synopsis: I love living in Cedar Cove, but things haven't been the same since a man died in our B and B. Turns out his name was Max Russell, and Bob had known him briefly in Vietnam. We still don't have any idea why he came here and-- most important of all-- who killed him. Because it now appears that he was poisoned. I sure hope somebody figures it out soon! Not that we're providing the "only" news in Cedar Cove these days. I heard that Jon Bowman and Maryellen Sherman are getting married. And Maryellen's mom, Grace, has more than her share of interested men! The question is: Which one is she going to choose? Olivia -- I guess it's Olivia Griffin now -- is back from her honeymoon, and "her" mother, Charlotte (who's in her mid-seventies at least), seems to have a man in her life, too. I'm not sure Olivia's too pleased.... There's lots of other gossip I could tell you. Come by for a cup of tea and one of my blueberry muffins and we'll talk.  -Peggy

My Thoughts: Another solid entry in the Cedar Cove books by Debbie Macomber.  These books are great when you need something light and quick.  My only complaint about them is that even now after reading five of these books, there are SO many characters that I tend to get them mixed up when she jumps from scene to scene.  But despite that, they're sweet stories that always end well.  And I'm a sucker for a happy ending!

Found.

GoodReads Synopsis:  It’s been eight months since Mickey Bolitar witnessed the tragic death of his father. Eight months of lies, dark secrets and unanswered questions. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Mickey’s sophomore year of high school brings on a whole new set of troubles. Spoon is in hospital, Rachel won’t tell him where he stands, his basketball team-mates hate him... and then there’s Ema’s surprise announcement: she has an online boyfriend and he’s vanished. Whilst searching for Ema’s missing boyfriend (who may not even exist!), Mickey gets roped into helping his nemesis, Troy Taylor, with a big problem. All the while, Mickey and his friends are pulled deeper into the mysteries surrounding the Abeona Shelter – until the shocking climax, where Mickey finally comes face-to-face with the truth about his father.

My Thoughts:  This was a great end to the trilogy.  I'm kind of sad it's over because I love reading more about the Bolitars.  The sub-plots were great, and there was a lot of growth in the characters.  And the ending was fantastic.