I'm a Winner!

Look at the happy message I got from Goodreads today: "You are one of our First Reads lucky winners! You will soon receive a free copy of Broken Promise: A Thriller [Linwood Barclay​] in the mail."

THE SOUND OF GLASS (2015)

The Sound of Glass by Karen White
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Sound of Glass was my introduction to author Karen White, who writes what has been called 'grit-lit' (as opposed to 'chic-lit') because of her southern settings. The location of the story is Beaufort, South Carolina. I have a very close friend who lives there with her daughter part of the year and that caught my attention.

THE STORY: Merritt Heyward learns that she has inherited a big old Victorian house from her late husband's reclusive grandmother. Feeling guilty about his death and at loose ends, she leaves Maine determined to take up residence in Beaufort.

Before she can catch her breath, her too-young widowed step mother appears with Merritt's ten year old half-brother wanting to move in with her. Loralee claims to be cash strapped with nowhere else to turn. Reluctantly Merritt agrees they can stay for a short time even though she longs for time alone to heal.

WHAT I THOUGHT: Luckily I approached the end of the book just around bedtime. Unfortunately I didn't fall asleep because I kept thinking about what I had read. Even though there were secrets and conflicts, the characters were people you came to care about. Although the story basically revolves around Merritt, it is impossible not to love Loralee, who at first glance appears a stereotypical Southern lady, but is actually a wise and wonderful woman.

I did find it took a while to get the family genealogy straight in my mind as I was reading. I also found Merritt annoying sometimes in her ability to be standoffish. But Karen White writes well and tells a compelling story. I will certainly look for some of her other titles. And if you are like me, the descriptions of Beaufort will make you want to visit and drink sweet tea on a big old veranda overlooking the river.

FIRST SENTENCE: "An unholy tremor rippling through the sticky night air alerted Edith Heyward that something wasn't right." (Prologue, Beaufort, South Carolina July 1955)

BOTTOM LINE: Three women with unhappy secrets weave a tangled web as they tell their stories holding the reader spellbound. Highly recommended.

DISCLAIMER: An advanced reading copy (ARC) of this book was provided to me by NetGalley for an honest review.

Title: The Sound of Glass

Author: Karen White

Genre: Grit-Lit (Southern Women's Fiction)

Publisher: NAL

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

No. of Pages: 426

Copyright: May 12, 2015

ISBN-10:  0451470893

ISBN-13: 978-0451470898

Karen White, a New York Times bestselling author of 19 novels, writes 'grit-lit' or southern women's fiction, as well as "a contemporary paranormal mystery series set in Charleston, South Carolina." She lives near Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and two children.

AT THE WATER'S EDGE (2015)

At the Water's Edge by Sara Gruen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

After reading and loving Water for Elephants a few years back, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to request Sara Gruen's new title and I guess I wasn't alone. "At the Water’s Edge debut[ed] at #6 on the New York Times bestseller list, #5 on the Indie bestseller list, and #12 on the USA Today bestseller list!"

THE STORY: Madeline Hyde and her husband Ellis never go anywhere without his best friend Hank. Drinking, dancing, spending money, and amusing themselves consumes their days; but they throw away their privileged lives when they disgrace themselves at a fashionable Philadelphia New Year's Eve party. To escape, Ellis and Hank decide to make good on the many times they have talked about hunting down the Loch Ness monster. Maddie has always thought of their discussions as a game. After all, it is 1944 and World War II is raging; but Hank finds a ship that will take them across the Atlantic and thus begins a journey that will change them all.

The remote Scottish Highland and its inhabitants aren't particularly welcoming to this frivolous trio who expect to be waited on in the middle of difficult times. While the men go off to search for monsters, Maddie, left behind, learns more about the people and how they survive. She makes friends and begins to understand what life can really be.

WHAT I THOUGHT: A mixture of historical fiction (the Scottish during WWII), romance, coming of age, mysticism (Loch Ness monster hunting), and more, the book seems over the top sometimes but is always compelling. It is impossible not to think of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series (without the time travel) when you read this story.

FIRST SENTENCE: "The headstone was modest and hewn of black granite, granite being one of the few things never in short supply in Glenurquhart, even during the present difficulties."

BOTTOM LINE: Women everywhere will be reading this book - a great beach read!

Disclaimer: An advanced reading copy (ARC) of this book was provided to me by NetGalley for an honest review.

Title: At the Water's Edge

Author: Sara Gruen

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Spiegel & Grau (an imprint of Random House)

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

No. of Pages: 368

Copyright: 1st edition (March 31, 2015)

ISBN-10: 0385523238

ISBN-13: 978-0385523233

Sara Gruen is the #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Water for Elephants, Ape House, Riding Lessons, and Flying Changes. Her works have been translated into forty-three languages and have sold more than ten million copies worldwide. She lives in western North Carolina with her husband and three sons, along with their dogs, cats, horses, birds, and the world’s fussiest goat. (From Amazon)