Open Secret is more of an exploration of the adoption experience than it is a romance, but Janice Kay Johnson skillfully explores the emotional upheaval inherent in human relationships. Suzanne Chauvin was six years old when her parents died. Her aunt and uncle were prepared to take on her care, but not that of her…
Family at Last is a sweet story and one of the more pleasant recent series romances I’ve read. While it’s not quite strong enough as it could be, it’s not a bad way to spend some time. Be mindful, though: the book’s best character is a young boy and not the hero or heroine. Jarrod…
The Russian Word for Snow is one woman’s true account of her Russian adoption. It’s the story of how she persevered through bureaucracy and corruption, fear and anxiety, to get her son out of a Russian orphanage and make a family of three out of herself, her husband and little Alex. The book’s title refers…
This was my first Linda Castillo, and I’m impressed. Marketed as a romantic suspense, it is both romantic and suspenseful – and in nearly equal measures. While the hero’s unrelenting anguish became a little too much by the end of the story, it was true to his character, so I’m still fairly comfortable with it….
When I am cleaning up the kitchen for what seems like the millionth time or coaxing a reluctant child to do her homework, I remind myself that parenting has its perks. Topping the list for me is the joy of introducing my children to books I loved as a little girl. Over twenty years ago…
The Biological Bond is the story of Rebecca Martinson who meets the daughter she gave away for adoption when the girl develops aplastic anemia and needs a bone marrow transplant. This could have been a very interesting plot, but it ended up anemic instead. Sam Winslow and his wife had adopted a baby in the…
She’s The One presents an interesting storyline – a successful, single, black thirty-something librarian suddenly finds herself named guardian of an old friend’s biracial daughter. But the characters fail to draw sympathy, and the story falls on the flat side, despite a lively (if uneven) plot. Deanna Lindsay is comfortable in her upscale Manhattan life,…
The major conflict of And Mother Makes Three revolves around a deception, a well intentioned deception mind you, but a deception all the same. So, depending upon your tolerance for this plot device you may or may not enjoy this story. I did, but then I can forgive plenty if I enjoy the characters and…
The Long Way Home is the sequel to Desert Isle Keeper Little Darlin’, and while The Long Way Home does stand alone, I highly recommend that you find Little Darlin’ first and read it too. Rita Warren has made a lot of really big mistakes in her life. She bore a child out of wedlock…
Those of you who like the bad girl comes home story will really enjoy this book. I thought Kathleen Creighton handled the plot very well and avoided cliches. <!– var browName = navigator.appName; var SiteID = 1; var ZoneID = 4; var browDateTime = (new Date()).getTime(); if (browName=='Netscape') { document.write('‘); document.write(”); } if (browName!=’Netscape’) {…