“The King of Lies” by John Hart

“The King of Lies” by John Hart

Wow. I tore through this book at top speed. I just couldn’t (well, I didn’t want to) put it down.

This is a story of a lawyer and what happens when his whole world goes bottom up. The story tugs at your own heart because even though it is a work of fiction it is also a story anybody can relate to.

All of us are comfortable in our own lives. Our reality has been a certain way for a very long time. We’re used to it. We can walk in the door and not have to face up to old issues that we either don’t want to look at or have forgotten completely.  Granted, we grow throughout our lives, but hopefully, it is just one small step at a time and you don't experience more than a mild jolt.  It is the big steps we have to take that can be most uncomfortable to make.  This is a big step.

It’s an eye opener. It’s like what happened to me when I read, “A Course in Miracles”. Beyond being a riveting story it makes you ask yourself if you are really being true to your own heart or have you been compromising your own truth for years. This book reminds you of what it is like to ask yourself a hard question and take the next step in growing spiritually.

I’m going to seek out more of John Hart’s work. The reading of this particular book began as a nudge from my own Spirit Guides. On my way to work about a week ago they urged me to hang a right on Fruitvale and swing past the library to have a look at the orphan books that had piled up over the weekend in front of the library’s doors. I picked up this book and several others. Books from writers I’ve never read before. Some fresh books and thanks to Spirit for the tip.

Every Last One by Anna Quindlen

It has been awhile since I did a review. It’s not that I stopped reading because I have not. It’s because my reading changed for a time. Instead of devouring them and then taking the few moments it would take to write a review I began to read books like a chain smoker. No pausing from one to the other.


People have things happen in their lives that jolt them, that somehow make them jump their tracks. That happened to us. Our long time neighbor of 20 years Phil passed away in January. Here it is six months later and I’m still off kilter. I realize that he is okay. I’m a psychic and a channel in my alter life and so am able to speak to him any time I want. So, I realize he has another life and is content and happy, but still I grieved. That grief took me away from much of what I was doing at the time. I have several blogs and several websites and lots of things to do that interest me not to mention a forty hour a week job.

I slipped into a rut that consisted of work and reading. Slowly I am taking small steps to move on. Now, I will try one other thing, a review. Why? Because I read a book that mesmerized me for a time.

In, “Every Last One” Anna Quindlen fleshes out her characters so well that you can almost finish their sentences for them you get to know them that well. Personally I think that is a very difficult thing probably because I have yet to do it myself with the passing attempts I make at writing. But, for me reading is a joy and I learn from each and every book I read (or re-read). I think I might have glimpsed some of her writer’s magic in this book.

From a writer’s standpoint I am in awe. From a reader’s standpoint I couldn’t put it down and from a person who is grieving I could feel hope.

This story shows what happens to a person who is happy with her life. Granted things might be a little different or better, but whose life is like that anyway? Perfect. No, this is about a real person’s life. The mother, the wife, the friend and how she is to each of those people who spin out from her center. But, there at the center of her universe it is safe. Each day flows one into the next. People change and there are regrets. But, really, it is just one day after another, one season after another and one year after another.

Until something so horrifying happens that cannot ever have been foretold. And, the last part of the story is how Mary Beth Latham learns that there can be life after a devastating moment.

I’m recommending it to any who would like to read it.

“The Geometry of Sisters” by Luanne Rice

“The Geometry of Sisters” by Luanne Rice
2009, Bantam Books
ISBN: 978-0-553-80513-0

Our library has a book bin outside the front door and in the dead of night people come to leave their orphan books. On my trip to the library the day I checked out “The Geometry of Sisters” I stopped by the box and saw an old textbook of beginning geometry. Geometry was one of my favorite subjects in high school and it had been a long time since I’d done anything with it. I had a yen to explore the world of numbers and angles again.

Then, wouldn’t you know I go inside the library and in the new book section, “The Geometry of Sisters” practically screams my name. Psychic stuff is funny that way. Anyway, I checked out the book and haven’t been able to put it down.

This is a really terrific book. I’ve read other things by Luanne Rice and I do like the way she tells a story. I was not disappointed with this one.
It has to do with the close ties between sisters and how secrets can tear apart relationships and families. How we react to things and do the only thing we can do and we can manage to really mess things up. And, it’s how to fix things too.

I loved the geometry part and was able to slide back in time to where I also got lost in the infinity, the logical sense, the oneness of numbers. I’m looking forward to that old beat up text book too. “Introductory Geometry – An Informal Approach” by James R. Smart.

A Woman's Place by Barbara Delinsky

A Woman's Place by Barbara Delinsky
1997, Harper Collins
ISBN: 0-06-17506-0


One of the readers here at my blog recommended I read Barbara Delinsky. On one of my trips to the library I sought out her place on the shelves and picked, "A Woman's Place" to read.

It is a woman's story, it is a family's story, it is a story of change. Claire Raphael is a very busy woman. She is a wife, she is a mother and she owns her own company. Into this busy life her mother is dying. If you can imagine how distracted and upset you would be with these circumstances, can you imagine now what it would be like to be served with divorce papers by your husband? And, he not only wants custody of your children, but he wants your business as well.

This is a heart aching journey where even at the greatest despair we can still love and learn. I really liked this book and will look for others by Barbara Delinsky.

“The Choice” by Nicholas Sparks

“The Choice” by Nicholas Sparks
2007, Grand Central Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-44-57992-6


“The Choice” by Nicholas Sparks is about the choices we make that affect our lives forevermore. Travis Parker lives by himself. He is not a hermit because he enjoys spending time with friends who go back many years. They are all married and all have kids, but he is a bachelor.

Gabby moves in next door. When the two of them meet it is both embarrassing and a clash of natures that you would think would totally ensure they would never exchange a civil word to each other in this lifetime. However…..

This is a wonderful story about falling in love. I have enjoyed pretty much everything I’ve ever read by Nicholas Sparks. I was not surprised that this was such a good book. And, for those who can understand…I shed a few tears as I made my way through it.

“Just After Sunset” by Stephen King

“Just After Sunset” by Stephen King
2008, Scribner
ISBN: 978-1-4165-8408-7

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a short story, but, here I am and I’m having a ball. This collection is by Stephen King and right now, I just finished the first one. It’s called “Willa”. You need to read this. I’m a psychic and I’m saying you need to read this.

As I started it I wondered at the actual construction of a short story. Of course it’s going to be shorter than a novel. With a novel you settle into a chair, curl your legs up, draw a blanket over you and get comfortable. It’s going to be awhile. But, with “Willa”, Stephen King just dropped me into the middle of a situation. It was very much like walking into a crowded room. Generally, I’m a wall flower and tend to cautiously, very cautiously move out into a party area. I felt the same with this story.

Stuff was going on. Stuff I wasn’t aware of, but everybody else seemed to already know. And yet, they knew nothing. I knew nothing and yet this story was moving forward. Suddenly I got a creepy feeling. I thought, “What if?” Then, as the story moved forward I thought, “No, that couldn’t be right.” But, it was right. And, it was crafted so wonderfully, as only Stephen King can, that it slowly dawned on me what was going on.

This was such a surprising story. It was such a delight and as a psychic I absolutely loved it. Now, on to the next story. Not sure if I will write of every one or just a few. There are 16 in this book. I’m certainly going to enjoy each and every one of them. Stephen King has got to be my all time favorite writer.

Reading….reading….

Okay, so now I’m almost half way through the book. I’ve read several of the stories. Some were short. Some were of the slasher type where I had to force myself to keep reading only because I knew in my heart the end would be good; and I was not disappointed. However, I was not inclined to comment on them. But, this story is different and I’d like to talk about: “Stationary Bike”.

I think people are always interested in hearing stories they can relate to. I could relate to “Stationary Bike”, because it was about getting fit and healthy. I have to force myself to do this and it just is not ever any fun. According to a friend of mine who is a psychotherapist I need to get to the psychology behind it all in order to make it work. I can go on any diet in the world, but somehow, somewhere along the line I sabotage it. That’s where this story got to me. It was interesting to see somebody ending up the way I end up every single dang time. However, it’s got that special Stephen King twist and Richard Sifkitz dips deeply into his artist’s imagination to create a place where he actually likes to exercise, where the motivation is there and the only motivation is because it feels good. I give this one a big ole thumbs up. Especially because at the end of it you’re thinking, “You know, this isn’t so far fetched. I bet it really could happen.” That’s what makes the stories Stephen King writes so scary.

Reading…reading…and, now I’m finished. Not a minute too soon either. The book was due back at the library 2 days ago and I think the fines on the 7 day hot picks (I got to renew it once) are 25¢ a day…maybe more. I will return it this afternoon and fork over whatever I owe. Totally worth it. No way was I going to read this one through half way.

Anyway, I absolutely loved every one of the stories in this book. I’ve been wondering for the last 2 days if much, much more of what I do isn’t obsessive compulsive behavior rather than just habit or rut. Stephen King has always pushed my buttons. I absolutely love it. The reviewer says, “Read this book.”

“The Witch’s Trinity” by Erika Mailman

“The Witch’s Trinity” by Erika Mailman
2007, Hodder & Stroughton, Ltd
ISBN: 978-0-340-96221-3

This is a scary book. It’s a story of fiction, but the events that unfold are true. We know of the Inquisition. We know women had a hard time of it in the 16th century. We know the hunt for witches was sweeping. What Erika Mailman tells in this story is what it might really have looked like.

During times of hardship many people become what might be thought of as their baser selves. Suddenly generosity and good will in times of plenty does not exist anymore and it becomes a dog eat dog world. Hardship, desperation, famine can bring out the worst in people and this is what happens in this book.

What is interesting to me is to see normal people, people who are most definitely not witches, tap into what might be construed other than normal behaviors. As a psychic I recognize that people can communicate in their dreams, that messages not understood by the conscious self can be delivered by the unconscious self, that astral traveling is a very real thing.

I mourn for those who endured the trials. I am sorry for the role the church played in the Inquisition. I sincerely hope those who hear of these times from history know the importance of not repeating those same lessons. And, I am so very glad in my heart that I can live a life where I can talk to dead people and not be condemned to die in flames.

Read, “The Witch’s Trinity” and you will be drawn into a story told in the manner of a woman who lived in the early 1500’s. You will be able to relate easily to these people even though more than 500 years separate you from her life. As a psychic I know you lived even then. Be reminded of what it was like and hope it never happens again.

“At First Sight” by Nicholas Sparks

“At First Sight” by Nicholas Sparks
2005, Warner Books
ISBN: 978-0-446-69846-7


I think the sign of a great storyteller is the ability to grab onto the most mundane thing and craft a story out of it. Nicholas Sparks does a really good job with, “At First Sight”. Don't get me wrong, love is not mundane, but there are lots of love stories out there and this one is definately different.

I loved, too, the look into the mind of a writer. Being one (unpublished, but one nevertheless) I love to hear of writing related experiences and to see just how a master storyteller weaves a story.

Jeremy and Lexie meet and fall in love. Fast. Within weeks she learns that she is pregnant and they determine to marry. His family and friends are alarmed and seek to caution him about the dangers of tying the knot too soon. He will not listen, but what happens is that seeds of doubt are planted.

This is a story about learning how to love despite misunderstandings and anger. It is learning more about yourself as an individual and about how to be a couple.

This is a terrific book for young people just starting out their lives as adults not sure of themselves in a world full of people of the opposite sex. I wish I’d come upon it when I was in my 20’s.

“What Matters Most” by Luanne Rice

“What Matters Most” by Luanne Rice
2007, Bantam Books
ISBN: 978-0-553-80533-8


“What Matters Most” by Luanne Rice delves deeply into love; the love between a man and a woman who can’t love each other but who do so anyway; the love between a clan and a newly discovered clansman; the love between two people who have known each other since birth.

Sister Bernadette and Tom Kelly are at the heart of the story. It’s got chaos, heartache and beauty. It’s especially interesting to me how Ms. Rice absolutely nails it about love and conflict and how love can win out every time.

Trust me and read it. I began it in the morning and finished it that evening. I was sitting on the edge of my seat. This is a really special love story.

“The Perfect Summer” by Luanne Rice

“The Perfect Summer” by Luanne Rice

2003, Bantam Books

ISBN: 0-7394-3708-9

“The Perfect Summer” by Luanne Rice is an engaging story with endearing characters. And, for those Action Jackson types there’s mystery and danger involved too.

This is a story about two families who have each undergone terrible tragedies, people who were linked in the far, far away past and who return to each other in the present. I know I’m dancing around the point here, but if you’re into romance, if you’re into mystery, if you’re into what goes on in the minds of kids read this book. I enjoyed it so much that I just couldn’t hardly stand to put it down.

Luanne Rice wrote a good one.

“Heart of the Sea” by Nora Roberts

“Heart of the Sea” by Nora Roberts
2000, A Jove Book
ISBN: 0-515-12855-4

I don’t know what it is about Nora Roberts, but I couldn’t put “Heart of the Sea” down until I was finished. It’s the third in the trilogy of the Gallagher’s of Ardmore.

This is the 3rd sibling to find love, Darcy who is a vibrant and beautiful woman. She’s never found the perfect man though she is sexy and beautiful and many would woo her. She is aloof and will not give her heart until she meets a man who is her match, Trevor Magee. He’s come to Ardmore to build a theater. His ancestors are from Ireland and from Ardmore and he had a yearning to know more of them.

What complicates matters is a faerie prince and the woman he loves. Prince Carrick and the ghost of Lady Gwen. Their story is 300 years old and their legend has lived all that time. They’ve also gotten themselves into a bind because of his pride and her refusal to love him if he could not say the words of love to her. Prince Carrick got angry and cast a spell that Lady Gwen would not find peace until 3 times lovers had spoken the words of love to each other.

In the first two books, “Jewels of the Sun” and “Tears of the Moon” Darcy’s brothers found love. Now, it is time for her.

Terrific book. They don’t have to be read in order, but I read them so and enjoyed them tremendously.

“An Ocean Apart” by Robin Pilcher

“An Ocean Apart” by Robin Pilcher
1999, St. Martin’s Press
ISBN: 0-312-97184-2

I think “An Ocean Apart” by Robin Pilcher is definitely one of those books you would likely enjoy.

David’s wife Rachel has just died. He is distraught with grief. His 3 children are also trying to cope without their mother. Everybody is in turmoil. Luckily, his parents have given him and the children safe haven. The kids have gone back to their boarding school, but he has taken a time off from his job to try to work through his grief.

His work is with the family’s Scottish whiskey distillery. His father, though retired, has stepped up to the plate to take his son’s place in the company while he moves through his grief.

Unfortunately, there are corporate raiders hovering and nobody realizes until it is almost too late what they are up to. Part of the plan is to get David out of the way and what better way to do that then send him to the States far enough away from Scotland that he won’t be aware of their nefarious takeover plans.

It is while he is in the States that David slowly comes to terms with his grief for Rachel and begins to meet people who don’t know who he is or why he is there. He settles into a quiet life as a gardener and comes to care for the people he is now working for.

This book was so good I didn’t want to put it down until I’d finished it. I will be on the look out for more books by Robin Pilcher, who, by the way is Rosamunde Pilcher’s son. The writing talent definitely runs in the family.

“Jewels of the Sun” by Nora Roberts

“Jewels of the Sun” by Nora Roberts
1999, Jove
ISBN: 0-515-12677-2

I’m on a roll, I suppose. I picked up another book by Nora Roberts to read. This one was, “Jewels of the Sun”. I couldn’t put it down until I was finished with the story.

Love story, coming to know yourself story, humorous, loving and the best sex scenes I’ve seen in awhile. Did I mention very well written? Jude is the main character. She’s a psychologist who was busy going through the angst of coming to know herself. She has a failed marriage behind her, dissatisfaction with her teaching career and parents who didn’t seem to know anything about her. She left. She left Chicago and went to her ancestral home of Ireland.

She had plans to live in a small cottage. Just for a short time. Just to get away from the tension and pain of her life in Chicago. And, it was there her psychic self was awakened; where she saw ghosts and talked to a faerie. And, where she fell in love with Aiden, a gloriously handsome man.

The story has twists and turns. It’s funny. It’s heart-warming. It’s touching. You’ll love it. And, did I mention it has a really nice ending? Best of all it’s the start of a trilogy. I can’t wait to get my hands on the next one in line.

“Tribute” by Nora Roberts

“Tribute” by Nora Roberts
2008, GP Putnam’s Sons
ISBN: 978-0-399-15491-1

“Tribute” by Nora Roberts is a good read. It’s expected if Nora Roberts wrote it. She’s written a gazillion books and you are right away comfortable the minute you open this book up.

“Tribute” is a mystery. Cilla is our heroine. She comes from a family of women involved in show business. She was a child actress, but her television show stopped when she was a teenager. She’d thought of them as her family. Her mother, married five times, mostly pushed her to try harder and through all of the insanity and insecurity of being a child star she weathered it to emerge as a resilient young woman.

That’s when she returned to her grandmother’s farm on the east coast. Her grandmother, Janet Hardy, was a huge screen star. Tragedy had touched Janet’s life when her teenage son had been killed in an automobile accident. Several of his friends had been in the car with him and one of them had become paralyzed. Then, a year later despondent, she had taken her own life leaving Cilla’s mother alone.

The story starts with Cilla assuming ownership of her grandmother’s farm. It has been neglected for years, but Cilla is determined to bring it back to its former glory and to what it was in happier times. She had evolved into a person who flips houses. She buys dilapidated houses, hires crews, contractors and subcontractors to help her and they fix the houses up. Then, she sells them. This one she is going to keep.

Ford, who writes graphic novels and is her new neighbor shows up to see why she’s taken a sledgehammer to the house. You know it’s love at first sight. But Nora Roberts takes her time with it. She shows you who these people are. She shows you what they’re afraid of, she shows you how they fall in love. And, she shows you the terror that can visit when somebody has an agenda and a reason for not wanting the new girl in town.

And, the sex is sizzling. I mean it is absolutely a scorcher. If anybody knew you were reading this stuff on your lunch break your supervisor would be writing you up for something. Sex aside, this is a really good book. I give it a really good two thumbs up.

“Wicked” by Gregory Maguire

“Wicked” by Gregory Maguire
1995, Regan Books
ISBN: 0-06-098710-3

One of the first books I ever read once I got past my school readers of Dick and Jane was, “Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz”. It was my mother’s when she was a little girl and the copyright is 1908. Frank Baum wrote it in Coronado and many was the time we’d pass by the house he wrote, “The Wizard of Oz” in as we wandered around Coronado when we lived there 25 years ago.

“The Wizard of Oz” with Judy Garland was the first movie I ever watched when I was 6 years old and it aired on our television during the holiday season. It’s been a favorite my entire life and I’m 53 years old now. I couldn’t have been more pleased to happen upon “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West” by Gregory Maguire. “The Wizard of Oz” is the fairy tale with a child’s focus. “Wicked" is the story behind the story and has an adult’s focus.

If you are a fan of, "The Wizard of Oz" then you must, you just have to read, "Wicked".

Where in Frank Baum’s Oz the Wicked Witch of the West is truly an ugly and horribly frightening creature, in the story Gregory Maguire tells she is a Munchkin born green. Elphaba, as the witch is known most of her life, doesn’t even think of herself as a witch until well into her adult years. It’s fascinating to see what she thinks of life and in this story what a champion of the down trodden she really is. Why, she’s a revolutionary at heart!

In this story you see who Elphaba’s parents were and what her life was like as she grew up. You see her sister Nessarose who eventually became known as the Witch of the East and you meet Glinda, the Witch of the North. The Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, the Scarecrow, and, of course, the Wizard are all in this story. But, you’ll come to feel this is the “real” story. This is the story that was never told. This makes them all human, makes them all believable and will endear them all to you.

In the picture I took of both books, you see “Wicked” the book I review here and you see a 1908 edition of “Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz” that belonged to my mother.

I loved Gregory Maguire’s book, “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West”. And, you know what’s even better? Gregory Maguire has written 2 more. I bought all 3 at the same time and can hardly wait to start in on, “Son Of A Witch” and after that, “A Lion Among Men (The Wicked Years, Book 3)”. Can’t wait.

“The Lucky One” by Nicholas Sparks

"The Lucky One" by Nicholas Sparks
2008, Grand Central Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-446-57993-3

"The Lucky One" by Nicholas Sparks is a really, really good book. I really couldn’t put it down once I’d started. Nicholas Sparks is a terrific writer and you can figure whatever you read by him is going to be a good read.

In The Lucky One" Logan is a Marine in Iraq. He finds a picture in the sand one day. It is a picture of a young woman. For some reason he is beguiled, but he figures that whoever has lost this photo will want it back. He pins it up on the bulletin board and it sits there day after day with nobody claiming it. One day he walks by and takes it off the board to put it into his pocket. And, that’s when his luck changed.

After that he couldn’t lose at poker games, games he’d managed to lose a significant amount of money in when he’d first started playing them. That was the first thing that happened. Then, there were all the near misses where he survived attacks and bomb blasts. He didn’t think anything of it, but his friend Victor was convinced that it was because of the picture he’d kept in his pocket.

When he got out of the Marines he and Victor decided to visit and catch up on a fishing trip. As they talked Victor told Logan that he’d been seeing ghosts of all their fellow Marines who had died in Iraq. Then, tragedy struck and Victor died in a senseless accident that, by rights, should have killed Logan too.

That’s when Logan decided to find the young woman in the photograph.

I’m not telling you any more. It would spoil the story. This is a riveting book, a mystery, a romance and an all around terrific novel.

“Mary Modern” by Camille DeAngelis

“Mary Modern” by Camille DeAngelis
2007, Shaye Areheart Books
ISBN: 978-0-307-35258-3

If you only read the first paragraph of this review, take away with you my recommendation that “Mary Modern” by Camille DeAngelis is a book to read. Somebody else on the Internet (I don’t remember who) wrote a glowing review and recommended the book. Consequently, I ordered it up from my library. Once I opened it up two days ago I couldn’t put it down.

It’s a novel, but it almost defies a simple classification and becomes more than that. It’s got love story, and science fiction, and horror all rolled in together. “Mary Modern” reminds me a little of my own first novel that was everything I wanted to read at the time and couldn’t find anywhere else…so, I wrote my own book. Should you be interested, “Secret of the Stones” is gathering dust under my bed. I am not near as good a writer as Camille DeAngelis so the fact that I’ve never been published doesn’t bother me. Not much anyway. But, love of writing is love of writing and love of reading isn’t far behind it and when I read something somebody has spent a lot of time on, has bled into and poured parts of themselves into it I appreciate it.

Lucy Morrigan is a scientist. A mad scientist. But, she is also very aware of her biological clock tick, tick, ticking away. Does she do something about it? Yes. She does. She goes and clones her grandmother Mary. Lucy thought she would be getting a baby. What she gets is her grandmother as a young woman. And, Mary is asking questions.

This is a story of love and attraction at so many different levels. When you say to somebody, “I’ll love you forever and ever.” did you ever think that such a thing could really come to pass?

Plunk yourself down. Be prepared to miss a few tv shows. Be late to work. Prop this book up and eat your lunch around it. You really won’t be able to put it down.

“Duma Key” by Stephen King

“Duma Key” by Stephen King
2008, Scribner
ISBN: 978-1-4165-5251-2

“Duma Key” by Stephen King is a fabulous read. Edgar Freemantle is the hero, though there are actually several heroes in this story, Edgar is the first we meet. The story revolves around him too. He’s a contractor; a very successful contractor in the life before things happen. He has an accident and he loses his right arm. Other bad things have happened to the man too. His speech is disordered, he’s got pain that won’t stop, he can hardly walk; life sucks. His marriage begins to dissolve quickly. As I said, life sucks for Edgar Freemantle.

But, he decides to move to Florida, to Duma Key, to heal up and it is at Duma Key where the rest of this story takes place.

Phantom limbs. You’ve heard of them. Well, Edgar’s right arm starts itching. He begins to draw. To create. To form. To waken and inadvertently bring back to life a horror that has patiently lain in wait for a very, very long time.

I don’t want to give away any more of the story. It’s classic King. You’ve got lots of good guys. You’ve got the bad guys and you’ve got an incredible understanding of human beings and what makes them tick.

Enjoy it. I surely did.

“One True Thing” by Anna Quindlen

“One True Thing” by Anna Quindlen
1994, Dell Publishing
ISBN: 0-440-22103-X

“One True Thing” by Anna Quindlen. This is a good book. You should read this book. If that’s all you read of this review I got the important stuff said.

This is the story of a woman, her family and the time she spent taking care of her dying mother. Anna Quindlen reaches into a story to pull the really good stuff out for you to see. What’s even more astonishing to me is that she pulled the stuff out of my own heart for me to see. I had no idea that stuff was in there. I cried for my own mother gone these 14 years now. And, even though I’m a psychic channel, even though I talk to my own mother often even though she is dead, I found unresolved stuff to think about, to hurt about, to cry about, to heal about.

Yikes, but this is a good book. This wasn’t time to spend curled up with a really good page turner. This wasn’t time to pass as you wait for something else to happen. This book reached out and grabbed me, wouldn’t let me go, wouldn’t allow me to do anything else until I had finished it.

I don’t know that I understand everything there was. I understood enough; enough for me. I’m glad I read it. I will read others written by Anna Quindlen. In fact, I don’t even have to know anything about the books she writes for me to pick one up anymore. If it’s got her name on it, it will be a good book to read. Thanks, Anna. I needed that.

“Wild Orchids” by Jude Deveraux

“Wild Orchids” by Jude Deveraux
2003, Atria Books
ISBN: 0-7434-3712-8

I’ve read a lot of books and most of them have been pretty good. Some have been absolutely fabulous. That’s what “Wild Orchids” by Jude Deveraux is. Absolutely fabulous. I don’t even want to tell you much about it so as not to spoil the story at all for you. I think I’ve been holding my breath for the last 50 pages or so. I just let it out.

Look into my eyes. You want to read this book.

Ford is the writer. Jackie is his assistant. They didn’t start out that way. The story goes back and forth from Ford’s point of view to Jackie’s. That in itself was interesting as hell to me.

Look into my eyes. You want to read this book.

My usual benchmark of a good book as to the amount of it I spend with a Kleenex in hand was spot on. This was definitely a three-hanky tearjerker. But, it appears there might be a new standard for me to judge good books; how often I find I’m holding my breath. “Wild Orchids” kept me on the edge of my seat.

It’s a rollicking good story. I was hooked from the first page and stayed that way to the last. It is a certainty that I will be seeking out other books by Jude Deveraux to read.

Normally I would say something about the story. Today I will not. What I want to know is that you’re intrigued enough to go find it at your library.

Look into my eyes. You want to read this book.