Reviews by Lucy S. (Westford, MA)

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Girl Falling
Girl Falling: A Novel
by Hayley Scrivenor
Dramatic - Girl Falling (9/9/2024)
This was a difficult read for me - confusing to read the description of the cables and the climbing first thing in the book, and the drama among the characters. There was too much emotion, too much crying and worrying about relationships, too many mistakes, legal, illegal …more
The Divorcees
The Divorcees
by Rowan Beaird
How Personality Governs Fitting In (11/15/2023)
I did not realize there were such things as Divorce Camps in the 50's - how things have changed. The author wrote in such detail about the relationships among the girls with their individual personalities and their need to get along. The author described how some …more
The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise
The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise
by Colleen Oakley
Characters working through relationship (10/19/2022)
Two unlikely characters coming together and trying to mesh very different issues. Sometimes frustrating, sad, and happy, watching the characters develop and try to work together to bridge distances.
The Forest of Vanishing Stars
The Forest of Vanishing Stars: A Novel
by Kristin Harmel
Magical and Heroic - Goodness vs Evil (5/6/2021)
This was a different WWII novel, a young woman can use her lifetime learning to rescue people suffering from the war; she overcame her solitary lifestyle, using her knowledge of the forest to keep the group safe. Love, courage, goodness vs evil. The book was suspenseful and …more
At the Edge of the Haight
At the Edge of the Haight
by Katherine Seligman
Hidden society right in the open (10/27/2020)
When the story begins, you think it will be a mystery, but it's more than that. It describes the hidden society right there on the streets. The book describes the serious homeless situation in your country and how the characters fit into their world on the street. The …more
Daughter of the Reich
Daughter of the Reich: A Novel
by Louise Fein
Emotional journey (3/19/2020)
There are many books that describe those terrible times from the perspective of the persecuted. This was the emotional journey of a young girl, daughter of a high ranking Nazi father who falls in love with her Jewish childhood friend. The characters were brought alive on …more
The Secrets of Love Story Bridge
The Secrets of Love Story Bridge
by Phaedra Patrick
Grief and guilt are paralyzing.... (1/2/2020)
Story of a man suffering from grief over the passing of his partner and paralyzing guilt for not doing enough to save her. Through some accidental, but heroic acts, he works his way back to acceptance and can slowly forgive himself. Letter writing was a big part of his life, …more
The Girl in White Gloves
The Girl in White Gloves: A Novel of Grace Kelly
by Kerri Maher
Life behind the curtain.... (11/12/2019)
I enjoyed how the author gave the reader a behind the scenes look into her life beyond her fame. How her family, especially her father shaped her life, her choices and her striving to succeed, as well as her choices in romantic partners. The life she lived had a public and …more
The Last List of Miss Judith Kratt
The Last List of Miss Judith Kratt: A Novel
by Andrea Bobotis
Slow starting but everlasting.... (7/15/2019)
Slow starting for me as Miss Judith Kratt decides to take a detailed inventory of the contents of her house where she has lived her entire life. The inventory, varied and detailed stirs up memories and family secrets and as the inventory progresses - the secrets, the …more
Courting Mr. Lincoln
Courting Mr. Lincoln
by Louis Bayard
view of an historical icon as a young man (2/20/2019)
Back and forth among the 3 intertwined characters and their relationship to each other and the culture of the day. The descriptions of Lincoln as a young man hint at the leader he will become in our history books. Not much action in the book - but the 3 main characters and …more
When We Left Cuba
When We Left Cuba
by Chanel Cleeton
Suspenseful, romantic - hard to put down (12/12/2018)
Story of familial pride, pride in country, love and loss, historical information woven in with our turbulent history with Cuba. The main character, Beatriz was ahead of her time and hers was a story of courage, but at the same time, sad for what was lost.
Sold on a Monday
Sold on a Monday
by Kristina McMorris
Ambition vs moral integrity (8/6/2018)
Historical fiction based in the early 1930's - the author pulls you into the lives of the characters - their past, present and leaves you wondering about their futures. Suspense as the story progresses - watching the characters and how they handle their ambitions with their strong moral integrity.
The Travelling Cat Chronicles
The Travelling Cat Chronicles
by Hiro Arikawa, Philip Gabriel
Disappointed (6/5/2018)
I think my expectations were too high for this book - there were so many really high positive reviews. I thought it was a nice story, but it felt more like a children's book in the writing style and that was distracting to me. I liked the strong concepts of love, loyalty …more
A Place for Us
A Place for Us
by Fatima Farheen Mirza
Tugs at your heartstrings (3/13/2018)
Writing was beautiful, emotionally descriptive but a sadness ran through the characters' stories. There was much love but competition between keeping those traditions and honoring differences of belief. I had some difficulty with the non-linear development of the story. One …more
Seven Days of Us
Seven Days of Us: A Novel
by Francesca Hornak
7 Days of Us Ended too Soon.... (5/9/2017)
I enjoyed the book and the way the author created these multi-dimensional characters, each with layers of personalities and hidden secrets. I think most families have pieces of their personality that are hidden away and the author did a very good job of developing and …more
Lola
Lola
by Melissa Scrivner Love
Disappointed (3/7/2017)
The book was fast-paced and at times, suspenseful. The main character in the story evokes sympathy and pity but at the same time, dislike.

Perhaps my reaction to the book was ignorance in a lifestyle that is very foreign to what I know. I was disappointed in the book because …more
A Piece of the World
A Piece of the World: A Novel
by Christina Baker Kline
Brings the painting to life (12/7/2016)
I enjoyed the book and it made me add the back story to the famous painting, Christina's World.....the author brings the characters to life and describes the incredible hardships endured in a world not really imagined in the painting. Christina's strength of character was …more
The Alaskan Laundry
The Alaskan Laundry
by Brendan Jones
Descriptive and authentic writing - character development bothersome (2/2/2016)
The descriptions of Alaska and life in the Alaskan frontier were detailed and creative, and brought that region to life. The characters were similar - rough, scrappy, course and crude - perhaps mirroring the lives they lead. The main character, Tara, running away from the …more
Maybe in Another Life
Maybe in Another Life
by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Path not taken (6/2/2015)
The author does a good job creating the characters and the setting and then weaves two story lines throughout the book, giving the reader what results could happen when faced with a choice. It was interesting to have a view into the alternative to the character's choice. …more
The Art of Baking Blind
The Art of Baking Blind
by Sarah Vaughan
Don't read this when you're hungry.... (3/11/2015)
There was a contest to find the next Mrs. Eaden and at the beginning of each chapter was an excerpt from the cookbook she wrote - the prose was wonderfully descriptive of baking and beautifully written.

The characters of the book - the absent, late, Mrs. Eaden and all the …more
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