TEASER TUESDAYS

Hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading, we get to tempt and tease potential readers with excerpts from our current reads.

This is how it works:

Grab your current read,
Let the book fall open to a random page, and move down toward the middle,
(NO SPOILERS, PLEASE!)
Share a couple of sentences, and then tell us the author, title, and page number.

Just in case we want to go out and grab it!

Here's mine:

The Buddha seems to still be laughing at her.  She covers the side of her eyes, bites her lip, and tries to listen as Nate's dad starts to tell them about the medical conference, about the temple he visited in Orange County while he was out there.  The Divorce Party, by Laura Dave, p. 77.

An excerpt from a review:  "In lustrous, supple language and with breathtaking acuity, Laura Dave explores the intricate inner lives of two women as they struggle to know the men they love… they face the same thorny question: how many lies—and how much truth —can love bear?"  Marisa de los Santos, author of LOVE WALKED IN.

So there it is, folks!  I hope you'll stop by, leave your comments, and link us to YOUR teasers!

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IT'S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING?

In this meme hosted by J. Kaye's Book Blog, we focus on our current and past reading weeks.

The past week was a good one for reading, despite my e-mail disasters!  So today I'm looking forward to another one with the books you see pictured above.

I started out with The Divorce Party, by Laura Dave, which has immediately drawn me in with the characterizations and the details.

Amazon blurb:

On their 35th anniversary, Gwyn Huntington and her husband Thomas have invited friends and family to their Montauk home. Instead of celebrating their decades-long love, they are toasting their divorce. This also marks the weekend that their son brings home his fiancée, Maggie Mackenzie, for the first time. Maggie thought she was joining a perfect family, but she is about to reckon with some uncomfortable truths about the man she wants to marry.


Sounds good, huh?
 
Next I'm trying to decide...hmm, okay, I think I'll go with Belva Plain's Crossroads.  It's been on my stack for awhile, so it's time.
 
On Amazon, we see the following:
 
A tragic accident forces Cassie Wright, owner of the prosperous Wright Glassworks, to raise her late husband’s love child as her own. Despite the painful daily reminder of his unfaithfulness, Cassie knows she is more than able to provide a privileged upbringing for little Gwen. As a member of the wealthiest family in Wrightstown, Gwen grows up to be quiet and smart, and can’t help but compare herself to Jewel, the gorgeous, gossip-loving receptionist at the Glassworks who fantasizes about marrying money. Fast-forward a few years. Gwen falls deeply in love and marries hardworking electrician Stan; Jewel is the wife of the shrewd CEO of the electric company where Stan is employed. The four soon become entangled in a twisted web of lust, greed, and envy. Plain carefully dissects each character’s thoughts, and arouses sympathy even when the most conniving among them get their due. The plotline is comfortably predictable, sure to satisfy Plain’s many loyal fans and others who seek safely entertaining fiction.
 
And finally...The Way Men Act.  I've read Elinor Lipman, so I'm sure this will be an enjoyable one!
 
On the book flap:  Things have not worked out the way Melinda LeBlanc would have guessed from her days as the belle of Harrow High School.  At thirty, she's back home, unmarried, and romanced out, designing wedding bouquets for old classmates who hadn't known a fraction of her early popularity.  So why is she alone—not counting the occasional horizontal encounter—while these dull brides have found both men and happiness?
 
Last week's reads:  8 Sandpiper Way, Limitations, and Home Another Way, all reviewed HERE.
 
Hope you'll stop by, leave your comments and links, and have an enjoyable week!!
 

 
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TEASER TUESDAYS

Teasing our way into this new week, and playing along with Miz B's meme at Should Be Reading, we can preview the books everyone else is reading.

Simply grab the book you're reading, let it fall open randomly, pick a couple of sentences near the middle of the page (NO SPOILERS, PLEASE), and then let us know the title and page number of the book.  Just so we can all go out and grab the book, too!

Here's mine, from Debbie Macomber's 8 Sandpiper Way.  You'll find the sentences on p. 199.

This book is another one in the Cedar Cove series, a cozy potpourri of characters that appear and reappear in subsequent books.  This scene is one in which one character laments the match-making blunders of the other.

"Don't worry about it.  You suggested I approach James and when I couldn't, you arranged this party and now it's backfired.  From my perspective this romance simply isn't going to happen.  C'est la vie."

This particular scene is one that I haven't yet reached in the book.  I'm on p. 153, but I'll probably be finished by the end of the day.  The story is seamless and the characters are richly layered.

I hope you'll stop by, leave your own thoughts and your links, and we'll traipse along the Blogosphere, collecting tidbits that will help us choose our next reads.

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IT'S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING?

What?  It's Monday already?  Well, at least we can be happy to play our meme from J. Kaye's Book Blog, where we get to talk about the books we're reading this week!

Delving down into the TBR stacks, I came up with these three.

Scott Turow's Limitations has been on my pile for awhile.  I don't even know when I bought it, actually, but now I'm eager to plunge in.  On the flap we read:

Life would seem to have gone well for George Mason.  His days as a criminal defense lawyer are long behind him.  At fifty-nine, he has sat as a judge on the Court of Appeals in Kindle County for nearly a decade.  Yet, when a disturbing rape case is brought before him, the judge begins to question the very nature of the law and his role within it.

Next I see another colorfully covered Debbie Macomber, about the wonderful residents of Cedar Cove, Washington:  8 Sandpiper Way.  Our book flap introduction tells us the following:

Dear Reader,


I have something to confide in you. I think my husband, Dave, might be having an affair. I found an earring in his pocket, and it's not mine. I'm also worried because some jewelry was recently stolen from an old woman—and Dave used to visit her a lot.


You see, he's a pastor. And a good man. I can't believe he's guilty of anything, but why won't he tell me where he's been when he comes home so late?

Reader, I'd love to hear what you think. I also want to tell you what's going on with your other friends in Cedar Cove. Like Sheriff Troy Davis, to mention one. His long-ago love, Faith Beckwith, just moved here!

So come on in and join me for a cup of tea.

Emily Flemming

As someone who has read several of these Cedar Cove books, I can tell you that you'll immediately find yourself within a circle of warm and cozy town residents.  Soon you won't want to leave!

Finally, I have a book that I noticed on other blogs and ordered from Amazon.  Home Another Way, by Christa Parrish, is all about going home again...about a broken, isolated woman and the flawed, faithful people who help her forgive and find peace.

This past week, I finished three books, and the reviews are up.  Alice in Thunderland is reviewed on MOONBEAMS AND RAINBOWS, and you'll find the next two, The Accidental Bestseller and Perfect for Framing on CURL UP AND READ.
 
Hope you'll stop by, pull up a chair, and leave your comments and links.
 
And be sure to have a great reading week!
 
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TEASER TUESDAYS

This Tuesday meme, hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading, gives us a peek into each other's current reads.

The rules are simple:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Mine is from The Accidental Bestseller, p. 212, by Wendy Wax.
 
"Funny how much easier it is to kick somebody else's rear end," Mallory said, smiling.  "I'm counting on you to control your fix-it habit.  You just call me whenever the urge to use a hammer gets too strong and I'll talk you out of it."
 
I know, I just had to add that third sentence!
 
So now it's your turn.  Hope you'll stop on by, leave your comments and links, and have a great reading week!
 
 
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DECONSTRUCTING A FRIENDSHIP -- A Book Review

My review of A Line Between Friends is now posted on my CURL UP AND READ blog.

Written by Michele VanOrt Cozzens, this is a nostalgic tale that will strike a chord with readers, reminding each of us about all of those past relationships/friendships and bringing those moments into the forefront of our minds as we follow this story of high school/college friends who never quite get it right.  It's all about near-misses, bad timing, and the desire to hang on in spite of all the evidence that suggests that they can't quite make it.

But who among us hasn't stubbornly persisted in one dream or another?

Reading and following this story to its satisfying conclusion is like a journey toward understanding ourselves.

This memorable story from a talented writer had me hoping and dreaming, even while I guessed at the inevitable conclusion even before we got there.  But it was the pathway to that destination that was so fascinating.

Definitely five stars on this one!

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IT'S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING?

In our Monday meme, hosted by J. Kaye's Book Blog, we launch our reading week by planning our books and reflecting on the ones we've completed in the past week.

Optimistically, I have three fine selections pictured here, beginning from left to right, with Perfect for Framing, by Maggie Bishop.  This is dubbed as an Appalachian adventure mystery and is part of a series.   It is a "thrilling whodunit, peppered with lovable characters and set against the beautiful backdrop of the mountains of North Carolina."

Then we have "The Accidental Bestseller," by Wendy Wax, and which I won in a contest at, of all places, J. Kaye's Book Blog!  This one tells the tale of four aspiring writers who collaborate together on a book about their lives—after years of struggling to make it on their own—and find success, scrutiny, and scandal following its publication.

Finally, I'll be plunging into the pages of Alice in Thunderland:  A Feminist Fairytale, by Maeve Kelly.  This is a part of my Alice in Wonderland Challenge hosted by Take Me Away, and which is described as "a hilarious feminist fairytale, a satirical look at male-dominated society, cocking a snook at the apparent logic of the structures that underpin our lives."

I am definitely looking forward to this upcoming reading week!  To see what I read last week and where the reviews are posted, check out my Sunday Salon at Accidental Life.

Hope you'll stop by, leave your comments and links, and have a fabulous reading week!

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