BOOK REVIEW: Sand Castle Bay by Sherryl Woods

April 6, 2013August 27, 2014 / Linda / Leave a comment

Sherryl Woods is a master storyteller when it comes to bringing small town living alive with warmth, emotions, and character-driven stories.

Sand Castle Bay is the first book in her new trilogy Ocean Breeze. Emily Castle, the youngest of three sisters, is a very successful interior designer on the West Coast. She left her life in North Carolina to follow her dreams. She also left behind the man she loved, Boone Dorsett, a successful restaurateur. A hurricane barreling straight towards her grandmother’s home has Emily heading back to North Carolina.

Neither Emily nor Boone were looking forward to seeing each other, but it was inevitable. There is still a lot of built-up emotion between the two. The hurt, betrayal, and misunderstandings of ten years ago still lingers. The author weaves a captivating story of these two characters working out their differences to get a second chance at love. There are complications thrown in – Boone’s young son and his ex in-laws – and trust issues, and it is all told with such attention to detail you feel you are part of the story. The supporting characters draw you in and make you feel like part of the community. The author beautifully sets the background for Emily’s two sisters and their stories, and I can’t wait to read the next two books in the trilogy.

Book Review: March by E. L. Doctorow

April 3, 2013April 3, 2013 / Jenn / Leave a comment

March by E. L. Doctorow

This month’s selection for “When Johnny Comes Marching Home: A Civil War Book Discussion” was March by E. L. Doctorow, not to be confused with Geraldine Brooks’ March.

I selected this book because of the accolades it has received: Pen/Faulkner Award and National Book Critics Circle Award. It was also a New York Times Bestseller. I had given the audiobook version to my husband to listen to, and he could not get past the first three discs. This did not bode well for my own listening of this book.

March tells the story of Sherman’s imfamous march through Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina during 1864 and into 1865. There is a rather large, colorful, and diverse cast of characters, led by William Tecumsah Sherman himself. Doctorow does an excellent job incorporating people from all “walks of life” into this story: freed slaves, Southern women, Confederate and Union soldiers, and even a British journalist. However, there were almost too many characters. At some point I lost track of who was where when and what happened to them. Some people stayed behind on different parts of the march and we never heard from them again. After a time, you wondered, “Hey, what happened to…?” and you never found out.

This book is not for the queasy or faint at heart, as there are graphic war scenes, including mass rape, killing of prisoners of war, drowning of freed slaves, and the burning of entire cities. If you’re expecting a nice, wholesome story, you won’t find it here. This is a realistic account of what actually happened during Sherman’s march to the sea. You’ll learn a lot and gain insight into a much maligned man.

Whether you love or hate Sherman and can or can’t justify his actions during the Civil War, one has to admit that he greatly helped end the Civil War and saved thousands of lives who would have been lost if the war had continued. March shows a softer side of Sherman, a man who, while following orders, often found himself at the mercy of his men, who got carried away with the spoils of war.

While I found this book to be interesting and the reader, Joe Morton, engaging, I did not love it. The language and style were easy to read and understand. I’m not sure what Doctorow could have done to take my rating from an “ok” to “great”.

Rating: 3 stars

Author Profile – Sherryl Woods

April 2, 2013August 27, 2014 / Linda / Leave a comment

Sherryl Woods is one of this library’s most popular romance authors. Her stories center around enduring friendships and family life in a small town setting

She is a graduate of Ohio State University School of Journalism. She spent many years as a television critic for newspapers in Ohio and Florida. She’s been writing novels since 1982 and is the author of over 100 books. When not reading or writing she enjoys gardening, tennis, theater, ballet and baseball. She currently lives and divides her time between Key Biscayne, FL and Colonial Beach, VA.

Sherryl has a new series coming out this spring called Ocean Breeze. It takes place in a small community on the North Carolina Coast and features the tight-knit Castle family.

The first book in the series is Sand Castle Bay and is available now. It features the story of Emily Castle who’s torn between a successful career in Los Angeles and her old boyfriend in North Carolina.

That book is followed by Wind Chime Point, coming out in April. It centers around Emily’s sister, Gabriella, and her struggle to fulfill her life-long dream. The third book in the series is Sea Glass Island and is coming out in May. It features the third sister, Samantha, who is trying to win the heart of her old crush.

Her books are published in both hardcover, located in our Fiction section, and mass market paperback, located in the Romance section.

Sherryl recently published an article in the Huffington Post called “Trash or Treasure – Why More Woman Should Read Romance Novels”. You can read it here.

BOOK REVIEW: Free Fall by Catherine Mann

March 31, 2013May 1, 2015 / Linda / Leave a comment

This book is my all time favorite book by this author. It is part of the Elite Forces series. It works well as a stand alone book.

Pararescueman Jose Cuervo James is 100% committed to his job and leaves no room for anything else. He is also a recovering alcoholic who can’t seem to come to terms with his past. Stella Carson is an undercover Interpol agent hoping for the “white picket fence” some day. She became an agent in hopes of finding out what really happened to her missionary mother who died in Africa. They are brought together on a high-risk rescue deep in the African jungle.

The author focuses on the mission of rescuing Stella and her fellow hostages and preventing an attack on the US Embassy and First Lady of the United States. Stella and Jose’s romance develops slowly as we learn about each of their pasts with all their flaws and imperfections.

The author writes an intriguing, captivating story with very likable characters. The story is fast-paced and filled with edge of your seat suspense with a few surprises thrown in. You feel like you are in the middle of all the action. There are subplots that keep the story moving and your interest piqued. It’s a book you just can’t put down!

Book Review: Tap Out by Eric Devine (Young Adult)

March 30, 2013March 26, 2013 / Sharon Tyler / Leave a comment

Tap Out

Tap Out by Eric Devine is a book for young adults and adults about how hard reality can be for some young people, and how finding a way out might seem like an impossible dream. This is realistic fiction, and might be just the read some young adults, new adults, and jaded adult readers might be looking for.

Tony Antioch is seventeen, and lives in a trailer park called Pleasant Meadows. Tony dreams of standing up and rescuing his mother from her own drug habits and constant stream of abusive boyfriends. Tony’s friends each have their own troubles to face, and after Rob and school situations bring Tony to a local gym to learn mixed martial arts, Tony thinks he might have found a talent and a way to help him escape from the troubled path that seems set for his future. However, Tony will have to solve some problems of his own before he can help his mother, any of his friends, or himself escape the paths they are on. With everyone around him stuck on a dead end track, can Tony find a way to stay true to himself and face the consequences of the choices he makes along the way?

Tap Out is a hard book to read, because the problems faced by the characters are very real, and very troubling. There are people trapped by their situations with no apparent way out. Tony, Rob, and the people around them feel very real, and I found myself with a racing heart and sweaty palms as the characters faced problems far beyond anything I have ever faced. The book is very gritty, and completely unapologetic in revealing parts of our society that often get overlooked or swept under the rug. I think that is wonderful. I could have done with a few less f-bombs being tossed around, although they were used realistically, but after awhile I did find it a little distracting.

Tap Out is a book I would recommend to older teens and adults. It deals with serious issues, and shows a very harsh reality. It is not an easy read, it is not fun or quick going. In fact there were a few moments in which I had to set it aside for a moment, but then immediately picked it back up because I needed to know what would happen next. Adults who work with teens, regardless of whether or not you think of the teens as at risk for abuse or of getting involved in dangerous situations, would do well to read the book in order to help understand, anticipate, and help teens they encounter deal with some serious issues.

A version of this review was previously posted on Sharon the Librarian.