Salvation City

By Sigrid Nunez

From the back of the book:

In the wake of a flue pandemic that has ravaged much of the U.S., orphaned thirteen-year-old Cole Vining is taken into the home of an evangelical pastor and his young wife. In isolated Salvation City, the small southern Indiana town where they live, Cole feels sheltered and deeply loved, yet still an outsider. His new world is starkly different from the secular one in which he was raised, and he must struggle to understand as everything he has ever known is now challenged.

Just my opinion:

Coming of age novels are always quite interesting to me and I especially enjoy looking at how the author approaches this issue. Salvation City presents a new twist to the topic as we watch a boy grow into a young man in the wake of a flu pandemic that killed his parents.

Cole is a character you easily learn to like and sympathize with. He is raised in a rather lenient household with progressive parents who care very deeply for him, although they have some difficultly showing their love at times. After their deaths, he is sent to an orphanage where the other children can often be quite cruel. He is finally adopted by a preacher and his wife, who come to love him very much and are willing to show and tell him that.

As he goes through puberty and learns to adapt to his new surroundings, his story gets more and more complex.

This is a fascinating tale that looks at how different the world could be following an epidemic of radical proportions. The author does an excellent job of portraying the changing world and the effect it has on those who survive.

It’s a great read and one I didn’t want to put down. I’m sure you’ll enjoy this book and I hope you get a chance to read it.

Some favorite passages from the book:

The best way to remember people after they’ve passed it so remember the good about them.

We’re all going to die, that’s for certain. And the thing for folks to do is stop wasting their energy being all headless and fearful like a herd of spooked cattle.

When it came to spreading infection, they were informed, they themselves—school kids—were the biggest culprits.

It’s not like every other bad thing stopped happening to make room for the flu. People are still getting cancer and having heart attacks and strokes and road accidents. The idea that we could handle any kind of surge on top of that—whoever’s fantasy that was, it was never going to happen.

Nothing sadder than a bunch of Christians trying to prove they’re every bit as hip as the lost.

Sometimes when things turn out this way, survival can feel like betrayal.

Outside the light was pale. The sky looked low and as fragile as eggshell, as if a rock hurled hard enough could smash it.

Incognito

By Gregory Murphy

From the back of the book:

New York City, 1911, William Dysart, born to wealth and married to a society beauty, longs for a life of purpose, but feels trapped by circumstances and by the wishes of his wife and domineering father. Having lost his mother as a boy, he’s repressed all memories of her mysterious death—but feels his work as a lawyer is something that would have pleased her.

Just my opinion:

This really is an enjoyable read. Set at the turn of the 20^th century, the author does an excellent job of depicting life during that time period among the newly elite of the upper northeast portion of the country. Relationships were definitely different at that time as people bowed to the wishes of their families and did what they had to in order to remain in the good graces of society.

For the protagonist in Incognito, he does everything to keep his wife and father happy … within reason. However, living that life is beginning to depress him. His wife isn’t happy because she wants more and more to impress their wealthy friends and one way she is determined to do that is to live in a house that is designed for parties and other similar social events. She feels their current home isn’t going to make the type of impact on them as she wants, so she bargains with his father to help them build a house she can be “proud” of.

But for William, he’s quite content where they are and feels they simply cannot afford to live the lifestyle Arabella desires. They are beginning to argue incessantly and he’s questioning his feelings for her -- and if he ever truly loved her.

Entering the picture is a young woman who William meets while working for a client who has plans to turn her Long Island property into a national park. In order to do that, she is determined to expand by getting her hands on the woman’s land, which is right next to hers. But Sybil doesn’t want to sell and tells William as much. She refuses to accept all offers, even with the threat of having her home condemned and taken over by the state. That would mean it could be given to her greedy neighbor.

William is puzzled by the whole scenario and decides to find out the true story of why his client is so set on having the property and why Sybil is refusing to sell. In the meantime, he is finding himself more and more drawn to the young and pretty Sybil. In fact, he’s actually finding himself falling in love with her.

Incognito is a book that captures your attention and it’s not easy to put down. I loved the story itself, as well as the history aspect. Engaging and evocative, it will have a place on my favorite reads of the year.

Some favorite passages from the book:

That’s what life is all about—making and unmaking mistakes, getting back on the track and moving on. The problem with mistakes is that they have the habit of growing into such big, fat, lovely excuses.

I thank God women are too sensible to be blinded by things like physical beauty.

William opened the paper and read:

Incognito

Unknown and unknowing

I assumed that disguise

till love lifted the veil

and I could see with your eyes

In Malice, Quite Close

By Brandi Lynn Ryder

From the book jacket:

When Tristan Mourault—expatriate aesthete and heir to a world-renowned collection of Impressionist masterpieces—catches sight of young Karen Miller during a trip to San Francisco, he knows he must have her. Convincing himself that she deserves more than the frayed, middlebrow life she was born into, he sets in motion a campaign of flattery, enchantment, and romance that sweeps Karen off her feet. First, he stages her disappearance. Then, her transformation. Karen, the ordinary fifteen-year-old girl, becomes Gisèle—Tristan’s daughter by day, his lover by night, and the crowning achievement of his lifelong quest for beauty and perfection.

Just my opinion:

This book could only be described as eerie. It’s outright spine-chilling, with its sinister and disturbing theme. Not for the weak at heart, this book is very vivid as it takes the reader in a different kind of world where the rich are capable of getting exactly what they desire, regardless of the consequences to others. Absolutely fascinating, the story delves into the minds of the mentally disturbed, as well as the frightening effects of sexual perversions.

The story revolves around adult Tristan Mourault, who has a serious attraction for teen Karen Miller, who is sexually abused by her father. Tristan is attracted to Karen and begins stalking her, learning about her family life and her desperate need to escape. He then works his way into her heart, earning her trust and convincing her to come with him to the other side of the country. He stages her death so the authorities won’t look for her.

However, her younger sister is never convinced that she died and works with the local police force to continue investigating her disappearance.

If you enjoy thrillers, In Malice, Quite Close is definitely a book for you. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Some favorite passages from the book:

She was at that transcendent age: old enough to sense her power and too innocent to use it.

Obsession, you see, requires neither audacity nor courage, but only servitude.

This is how she was. Bright as a diamond that catches your eye in a window full of other jewels.

Things come to a meaningful end in books, but in life things are just things. Disconnected things. And everyone pretends to have control.

Love is life’s greatest hoax, my sweet. There is no love between men and women, because there is no understanding. There is only delusion.

All stories must come to a finite end. That is their beauty.

Mice

By Gordon Reece

From the book jacket:

Shelley and her mother have been menaced long enough. Fleeing their fears and anxieties, they retreat to Honeysuckle Cottage deep in the countryside, which they hope will put a halt to years of suffering at the hands of others. Shelly has endured merciless bullying from the girls who used to be her best friends, and Elizabeth’s domineering husband of eighteen years has abandoned them for a younger woman. For Shelly and Elizabeth are “mice” – timid, nervous and obliging.

Just my opinion:

What an absolutely amazing book! This is definitely at the top of my list for the best novels of 2012.

This is the story of Shelley, a teen who has been severely brutalized, both mentally and physically, by the same girls she grew up with and who were once her very best friends. They suddenly decided she was an easy target and hurt her very deeply, finally putting her in the hospital with their abuse. Her mother Elizabeth put up with years of mental anguish at the hands of her controlling husband, only to have him leave her for a much younger woman. When Shelley decides she would rather remain living with her mother, the man turned his back on both of them, choosing, instead, to push them out of his life entirely.

Rather than remain in the house where they have lived their lives as “mice,” they move to a secluded cottage in the countryside. With no traffic and no neighbors for miles around them, they finally feel as if they can start their lives over and no one can bother them.

That all changes when they become victims of a break-in by a maniacal young man who is drunk and strung out on drugs. The events that transpire will change their lives forever.

I was so enthralled by this novel and just couldn’t stand to put it down. The pace is quick and the sentences are so well-written, I found myself staying up late to finish it. Gordon Reece has a way of allowing readers to put themselves right in the pages alongside the characters. You can see clearly exactly what’s going on and you want to reach out and take part in the story.

A super new book and one I hope you’ll try.

Some favorite passages from the book:

Writers always seemed to know the names of flowers and trees; it helped to make them sound more authoritative, more Godlike.

Staring up at the sky, I liked to imagine that I lived in a simpler, more innocent time – ideally a time before there were any human beings at all, when the earth was one vast green paradise and cruelty, hurting for the pleasure of hurting, was completely unknown.

It seemed more natural to me to say nothing, to suffer in silence, to stay very still and hope not to be seen, to scurry along the skirting board searching for a safe place to hide.

I understand that the greater the trauma the less adequate words become until, I imagine, when we face the greatest test of all, only silence seems appropriate.

I was surprised to see that it was Lady Macbeth who had engineered King Duncan’s murder and not Macbeth as I’d thought, and I found myself wondering, in the light of what my ‘best friends’ had done to me, whether women were the gentler sex after all. Was it possible that women were actually crueller than men?

Real life was the complete opposite of order and beauty; it was chaos and suffering, cruelty and horror.

I wondered idly is Shakespeare had ever killed anyone – how else could he have known so exactly what the aftermath was like?

It was strange to watch Tom chasing Jerry round and round the kitchen, bringing the frying pan down on his head and flattening Jerry like a pancake while the music raced jovially along and the comic sound effect – boing! – rang out again and again. Violence in bright colour. Violence without blood. Violence without death. It wasn’t like that in real life.

No one ever gets away with anything in the movies because they can’t have an audience thinking that crime pays. But this isn’t a movie – this is real life. And people get away with things all the time in real life.

The loss of just one person, one individual, no matter how worthless their existence had been, was meant to matter.

For the first time in my life I began to think that perhaps the loss of an individual wasn’t of very much significance after all. Perhaps it was a meaningless as the casual crushing of a fly against a windowpane. Perhaps the fabric of the universe didn’t change one iota.

No matter where we are or what we’re doing, death and horror are always near us. The challenge is to get on with our lives and be happy even though we can always wee them out of the corner of our eye, blurred, but still recognizable in the background.

Life was brutal. Life was savage. Life was a war. I understand that now. I accepted that now. And I said: Bring it on. I wasn’t going to be anyone’s victim. Ever again.

Slow Dancing on Price’s Pier

By Lisa Dale

From the back of the book:

Fifteen years ago, Garret Sorensen’s family, trust, and heart were destroyed when Thea Celik married his brother. Now that her marriage is ending in divorce, Garret finally feels free to mend his relationship with his brother and put the past behind him. But the quaint streets and bustling piers of Newport, Rhode Island, trigger a lot of memories – all leading back to Thea.

Just my opinion:

What a great summer read! Here are three people – Garret, Jonathan and Thea – who grew up, lived together and shared everything together. As teens, Thea fell deeply in love with Garret, but due to circumstances, married Jonathan. Garret hurt her and broke her heart and Jonathan offered to pick up the pieces. However, the marriage threw Garret into a rage and he disowned his brother and refused to attend family events if Jonathan and Thea were in attendance.

Now, Jonathan and Thea are divorcing and Garret sees it as an opportunity to mend fences with Jonathan. It’s also a chance to get to know his niece, their daughter. Garret finds every chance to blame Thea for the divorce – after all, she’s wicked and thoughtless and obviously, she must have done something to cause Jonathan to leave.

On the other hand, as he comes more and more into contact with Thea, he begins to question his rash decisions, both now and when they were young. Does he still harbor feelings for her? Does she for him?

This is a wonderfully written book full of emotion and twists and turns within relationships. The characters are well-developed and you’ll find yourself loving some and hating others.

It’s a great summer read, so toss it into your beach bag, find a quiet spot and open the cover. Warning: Be prepared to spend the day with this book … it’s a page-turner!

Some favorite passages from the book:

When we walk through fire – and we all do at some point – we come out the other side to find ourselves altered. If we’re lucky, we become richer, more complex, more alluring people because of our trials. But sometimes, we just get burned.

No matter how distant we get from our beginnings, we’re never very far away at all.

Where logic and emotions competed, emotion usually won.

If she made a self-discovery, it was not that she’d discovered who she was – but rather, who she wasn’t.

To assure another person It’s okay was also to acknowledge that something was wrong.

When a good friend offers you a gift, you don’t say no.

The Beach Trees

By Karen White

From the back of the book:

Julie first knew loss at the age of twelve, when her younger sister disappeared from their backyard—never to be found. As her once close-knit family grew apart, Julie’s mother obsessively searched for the girl, and when her mother died, Julie took up the search. Even as she went on with life, discovering a love for art that she attributed to her painter great-grandfather, she never let go of the hope that she might find her sister. Then, while working at an auction house in New York, Julie meets Monica Guidry—a struggling artist and single mother who reminds Julie so much of her sister that she can’t help feeling drawn to her and even a bit protective.

Just my opinion:

Here are two women who become the best of friends, so when Monica dies, Julie inherits her 5-year-old son and a beach house in Mississippi. Julie feels it’s important to take the little boy to meet his family. What she doesn’t expect to find is a beloved house destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. At first, she’s not sure what to do, but she quickly becomes determined to rebuild. What she doesn’t expect is that ownership of the house is shared with Monica’s brother, who Julie takes an instant dislike to.

Thus begins one of the most amazing stories I’ve read. Not only is the plot wonderful, the words are absolutely amazing. In fact, I had so many page flags marking quotes that I thought I would have to narrow them down to add to my review here. But I decided to include them all because I want you to really see how beautiful this writing is.

It really is a great book and I stayed up late into the night (or early in the morning, if you prefer your glass half full!) to finish it. I know you’ll want to include this one on your summer reading list.

The only question I have is: Why haven’t I read anything by this author before?

Some favorite passages from the book:

Death and loss, they plague you. So do memories.

The garish colors looked defiant against the scrubby grass yards and plywood windows of their neighbors. A tall, white lighthouse sat nestled between the opposing traffic lanes of the highway, leaning slightly inland.

You ain’t dead yet, so you ain’t done.

It wasn’t the mountain ahead that wears you out, but the grain of sand in your shoe.

Wide front steps led up to a gracious front wraparound porch dotted with wicker rocking chairs and more plants hanging from the porch ceiling. Matching turrets framed the front of the house like parentheses, giving the impression of a castle. Large double wooden doors sat in the middle, long rectangular windows in each polished door like drooping eyes staring warily at the encroaching garden.

Climbing hydrangea drooped haphazardly off of trellises, while large clay pots exhibited their gaudy offerings of forget-me-nots and verbena in the shade of the fountain.

Great tragedy gives us opportunities for great kindness. It’s like a needed reminder that the human spirit is alive and well despite all evidence to the contrary.

After a hurricane, when everything is in such disarray, you look up at the sky and see that everything’s clear up there, the sky’s blue, and the birds are stretching out their wings and rebuilding their nests. And it’s up to those who can bear to look down again who are left with the responsibility of restoring life down here.

Moving on doesn’t mean forgetting.

Sometimes a person needs to be forced underwater to see if they’re going to drown or swim.

You have a generous heart, Julie. But don’t forget to save some of it for yourself.

We looked at each other as if we were speaking the same language but with accents that made our words indecipherable to each other.

We all need something to soften the sharp edges. To give us balance. Otherwise, I think we’d find ourselves stumbling around in the dark like lost souls.

Sometimes you got to put up with a whole bunch of ugly so you can appreciate a little bit of beautiful.

Having questions doesn’t necessarily mean that you don’t already know some of the answers.

The hot spring erupted into a scorching summer, the humidity heavy and intrusive, its thick fingers reaching through window blinds, under doors.

The verdant foliage and brilliant colors of summer gardens faded to hues of brown and beige as dead blossoms littered the ground and scattered with the cool winds.

I was too angry to respond, too scared of the cloying darkness with only the thin beam from my flashlight to illuminate what lurked in the corners.

When everything you’re about to see is too much, look up and see that the sky is clear and know that everything is going to be all right.

Our lives are spent searching for what makes us whole, for the things that make surviving worthwhile.