The Forgotten Garden

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The Forgotten Garden

Kate Morton

Pan Books: 2008, 648 pages

Reviewed by Sheryl Walters

This story takes place over three generations and each chapter alternates between them.  It revolves around the mystery of the birth of Nell and her mother's life and her granddaughter's quest to find the truth.  The reader is taken on a journey to discover Nell's family's past and how she came to be adopted and who her true parents were.  I enjoyed the story and the many layers of secrets that were slowly uncovered between the different points in time.

Beauty and the Rake

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Beauty and the Rake (The Rookery Rogues #3)

Erica Monroe

Quillfire Publishing: 2015, 351 pages

Reviewed by Jessie Park

Abigail Vautille has lived in the Whitechapel rookery her whole life, working long, hard hours at the factories until a tragic event rendered her unable to work.  With no other options at hand, Abigail offers herself in order to deal with her father's gambling debts and save them from debtor's prison.  Inspector Michael Strickland of the Metropolitan Police likes the deal; he gets to spend two weeks with Abigail as his mistress in exchange for forgiving the debt but is unaware that she has never been with a man before.  After all, aren't all Whitechapel women the same?  As they spend more time with each other, both are unprepared for how deep their feelings towards each other becomes.  Will Abigail be able to let go of the past?  Will Michael be able to change his roguish lifestyle? Readers should be aware that there is some sexual content and explicit language but it is not constant throughout the book.  The typical cliches of romance novels are present, as is the lack of historical accuracy.

Bad Monkey

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Bad Monkey

Carl Hiaasen

Knopf: 2012, 317 pages

Reviewed by Tori Lyons

Andrew Yancey is a former Key West police detective who is reassigned to Health Inspector after an unfortunate incident involving his girlfriend's husband and a handheld vacuum.  When an arm is found by a tourist on a fishing excursion, Yancey sees this as his ticket back onto the force.  The unofficial investigation takes him to Miami and the Bahamas where he encounters a poncho-clad real estate developer, a kinky medical examiner, a voodoo witch, and the titular monkey, who retired to the islands after starring in the Pirates of the Caribbean films.  While I'm not generally a Hiaasen fan, I think his audiobooks are ideal for road trips.  They are light and entertaining, not requiring too much of your attention, and are humorous enough to appeal to a wide-range of travel companions.  

The Light Between Oceans

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The Light Between Oceans

M.L. Stedman

Scribner: 2012, 343 pages

Reviewed by Sheryl Walters

The Light Between Oceans follows the life of a lighthouse keeper, his relationship with his wife, the solitude of living remotely, and their desire for a child.  It is a feel good story, and I don't want to give it away at all, but I liked the writing style and would recommend it, although the premise was a bit far fetched.  I suppose it could happen, but it's doubtful.  I think it will make a great movie and look forward to its release later this year.

The Girl on the Train

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The Girl on the Train

Paula Hawkins

Riverhead Books: 2015, 325 pages

Reviewed by Sheryl Walters

Rachel, a recently divorced and depressed woman, takes a commuter train each work day and observes her old street from the window.  One day she notices something odd and subsequently involves herself in a mystery.  This book definitely seems to be written for Gone Girl fans as it has some similarities.  However, the character development is a bit shallow and I found it hard to follow at first because the chapters switch from different characters in first person.  That being said, it did keep me interested and I read it in one day.  I found the ending predictable but not disappointing.  

His Forever Family

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His Forever Family

Sarah M. Anderson

Harlequin: 2016, 256 pages

Reviewed by Jessie Park

Billionaire Marcus Warren and his executive assistant Liberty Reese were on their usual morning run, reviewing the day's schedule, when they find an abandoned newborn.  Suddenly seeing the maternal side of Liberty, Marcus beings to realize that Liberty is more than just his assistant but someone honest, someone who he could have a real future with, and not someone looking just for his money.  But Liberty doesn't want to get involved, she's worked too hard and too long to give up her security.  She wants her past to stay in the past but it gets more and more difficult to resist him.  His Forever Family is a quick read and it does contain some sexual content.  Readers should be aware that it is a Harlequin romance so the cliches will be abundant.  

I am Malala

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I Am Malala

Malala Yousafzai

Little, Brown and Company: 2013, 327 pages

Reviewed by Sheryl Walters

An inspirational account of Malala Yousafzai's life leading up to her attack by the Taliban for speaking out about the right of girls to obtain an education.  The book weaves through little tales of her life and shows how she was raised by her father to be a leader and stand up for what she believed.  It seemed a lot of the stories were thought of in hindsight of what she accomplished, but that didn't take away from the encouraging message that we can all make a difference.

Beating Ruby

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Beating Ruby (Spotless #2)

Camilla Monk

Montlake Romance: 2016, 310 pages

Reviewed by Jessie Park

The second book in her Spotless series, Monk brings back our beloved hero and heroine, March and Island.  Added to the mix is Alex, Island's new boyfriend who seems to be wonderful, who could be the one to finally end her virgin status, but isn't March.  Months after the events of the first novel, Island is trying to not think of March and get back to her life and immerses herself in her new work project: Ruby, a sophisticated piece of software that has somehow been used to steal a very large sum of money.  It looks like her boss is the suspect but he committed "suicide" and can't prove his innocence so Island takes up the task of clearing his name.  The sequel is fun, entertaining, full of action, and not explicit in sexual content or violence.

Brooklyn

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Brooklyn

Colm Tóibín

Scribner: 2009, 262 pages

Reviewed by Sheryl Walters

Eilis Lacey changes her life in the 1950s by leaving her family in a small town in Ireland for work in America.  This coming of age story is set in Brooklyn, New York, and allows the reader to follow Eilis's struggle to fit into society with other immigrants and Americans.  She struggles through being homesick, through her first love, and her friendships with other women.  She makes choices, sometimes that she comes to second guess, but she is strong and lives with her decisions.

Spotless

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Spotless

Camilla Monk

Montlake Romance: 2015, 332 pages

Reviewed by Jessie Park

Island Chaptal is a 25-year-old IT engineer who loves escaping into romance novels to distract her from the fact that she is also a 25-year-old virgin.  Her rather humdrum life takes a drastic turn when she comes home early from work one day to find a very attractive but very OCD hit man cleaning her apartment.  March isn't there to kill her but he wants the diamond that Island's late mother stole from a crime organization called the Board; apparently Island's mother wasn't a French diplomat as she was led to believe her whole life.  Island has no choice but to work with March whilst also avoiding all the other baddies who also want the diamond and want to dismember her.  This is an actiony-romance novel with none of the cheesy explicit scenes that are too often found in other contemporary romance novels.