I Heart Bloomberg by Melody Carlson, Reviewed
June 9, 2008
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
David C. Cook (April 1, 2008)
by
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Melody Carlson is the best-selling author of more than 100 books for adults, children, and teens, including three of her latest, These Boots Weren’t Made For Walking, A Mile In My Flip-Flops, and Mixed Bags. She and her husband, the parents of two grown sons, make their home near the Cascade Mountains in Central Oregon. Melody is a full-time writer as well as an avid gardener, biker, skier, and hiker.
Favorite Bible verse: John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” It’s the “whosoever” part that gets me. That’s who I write for – “whosoever” and to me that means everyone and anyone.
Carlson, author of more than 100 books, begins her 86 Bloomberg Place series with I Heart Bloomberg that functions mostly to set up future storylines. Three women rent rooms at 86Bloomberg Place:
ABOUT THE BOOK
Kendall’s managed to wrangle her grandmother’s house-free and clear-except for the rules. No male roommates. But that’s ok, with the right ad she’ll pull in some girls, their rent and if she’s lucky, she won’t have to go to work any time soon.
For their part, Anna, Lelani, and Megan all have their reasons for wanting to move in: Anna has got to get out from under her overprotective parents; Lelani can’t take another day in her aunt’s tiny crackerbox house overflowing with toddlers and Megan needs a place free of her current roommate from Hades.
Though they come with assorted extra baggage filled with broken hearts and dreams, they will discover they also have a vast array of hidden strengths. And they struggle to become the women they want to be, they’ll find new hope and maybe even Kendall will learn a thing or two about life, love and the true meaning of friendship.
If you would like to read the first chapter, go HERE
SALLY SAYS:
I may be showing my age here (which I didn’t think was that high), but here goes.
I Heart Bloomberg is a light summer read, and halfway through it–knowing I had to review it–I wasn’t sure what I was going to say.
On one hand, the characters, most fresh from college or in their mid-twenties, are dealing with scenarios that as a mom and mother of two and 2/3rds 
I felt way past. Granted, one was dealing with the loss of her dad, but even her character moved past that quickly, and her struggle throughout the book dealt with getting along with her roommate. And then there was the one character that annoyed me to no end with her shallowness. I kept wishing someone would shake her. And then shake her again.
I finally decided that my problem with the story was that I felt way too old for the book. Their problems with each other seemed petty, and I had a hard time being patient with them and identifying with them as a reader. I don’t say that arrogantly, but I’m in a different phase of my life than they are. And so what matters to them didn’t matter to me.
But on the other hand, I wanted to find out what happened. The farther along in the book I went, the more I read — in other words, I couldn’t put the thing down.
So hmm. What does this mean?
I Heart Bloomberg is a light, fun read. If you love light and fun (which I do) and stories about being footloose and fancy free and worrying about hair, makeup, and expensive clothes, you’ll enjoy the book. If you crave more serious, issue-driven fiction like I do, you may not care for this book as much.
But whatever you think of those characters three chapters in, I’d like to see you put the book down.
The Perfect Summer Read, Washington’s Lady, Reviewed
June 3, 2008
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
(Bethany House June 1, 2008)
by
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Nancy Moser is the author of three inspirational humor books and eighteen novels, including Solemnly Swear, Just Jane, and Time Lottery, a Christy Award winner. She is an inspirational speaker, giving seminars around the country. She has earned a degree in architecture; run a business with her husband; traveled extensively in Europe; and has performed in various theaters, symphonies, and choirs. She and her husband have three grown children and make their home in the Midwest.
ABOUT THE BOOK
It has been said that without George Washington there would be no United States. But without Martha, there would be no George Washington. He called her “my other self.”
Who was this woman who captured the heart of our country’s founder? She dreams of a quiet life with her beloved George, but war looms…
Though still a young woman, Martha Dandridge Custis was a wealthy, attractive widow and the mother of two small children with no desire to remarry. But when a striking war hero steps into her life, she realizes that she is ready to love again. She is courted by, then marries the French and Indian War hero.
Yet she wonders whether this man, accustomed to courageous military exploits, can settle down to a simple life of farming and being a father to her children. Even as she longs for domestic bliss, Martha soon realizes she will have to risk everything dear to her and find the courage to get behind a dream much larger than her own.
Her new life as Martha Washington took her through blissful times at Mount Vernon, family tragedies, six years of her husband’s absence during the Revolutionary War, and her position as a reluctant First Lady.
Known for moving first-person novels of Nannerl Mozart and Jane Austen, in Washington’s Lady, Nancy Moser now brings to life the loves and trials of the First First Lady of the United States.
If you would like to read the first chapter, go HERE
SALLY SAYS:
With Memorial Day just past and the Fourth of July approaching, Washington’s Lady by Nancy Moser, is the perfect summer read. If you’re just the littlest bit patriotic, this book will leave you teary-eyed.
We all know that George Washington made many sacrifices as the leader of the American forces, but you’ll be surprised to learn all the sacrifices his wife Martha made. The book starts with the death of Martha’s first husband and moves quickly into her courtship with George Washington, which will make you smile more than once. From there, you get an eye-opening peak into the difficulty of life in the 1700’s. And from there you go knee-deep into the trials of the War and the stories of a nation who won but should have lost.
I think we often have a fantasy story-book ending of George and Martha’s life after the war, but the reality is so much different than expected. I have a much deeper respect for both George and Martha after reading all that they gave up — for us today.
Nancy Moser has written two previous historical fiction novels, but this one tops them both. Yes, the book is based on history and fact, but some sections had to be guessed at, and Nancy includes a section at the end that differentiates between what was fact and what was fiction.
Go buy this book and take it on your vacation. You won’t regret it.