Tiziana Manoretti is shocked when, as the only child of her parents, she is informed that she was adopted when a medical emergency threatens her mother’s life.  So begins the journey of Tiz to discover who she is and where she comes from, which leads her from the shores of Canada to sunny Italy. As Tiz is getting closer to the answer, suspicious events start happening and no-one will tell her the truth.  To make matters worse, Tiz’s best friend Chris has been sending signals that he wants to change their relationship to be something more.  Just when Tiz is starting to think about pursuing a new relationship with Chris, she meets an intriguing and sophisticated Italian man who is taking an interest in her.

Daughter of Mine by Laura Fabiani is a great novel of self-discovery and the power relationships have.  Fabiani’s description of the Italian countryside is magical, it makes me want to hop on a plane and fly there immediately.  However, the dark undercurrents in the beautiful setting kept me hooked sitting on the edge of my seat as Tiz fought against the roadblocks in her way.  I also loved the relationship with Chris, where a best-friend relationship moves into something more with both parties unsure about how to progress and fearing the change will hurt their existing relationship.

Fabiani beautifully explores what it means to be family and the lengths people are willing to go to protect their family from secrets that they mistakenly believe will hurt individuals.  Also, the lengths individuals will go to learn those secrets and how the heart has the capacity to love. Great read and I recommend it!

Rating:

Title: Daughter of Mine

Author: Laura Fabiani

Format: (paperback, hardbound, ebook): Paperback

Page Nos.: 204

ISBN: 0595717527

Available for purchase: Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble

For more information visit Laura Fabiani

**This novel was provided to me by the author but the views expressed are my own.

In honor of Easter this past Sunday, I decided to post a review of a Christian Romance novel.

A Case for Love by Kay Dacus is a contemporary romance that takes place in the town of Bonneterre, Louisiana. Alaine Delacroix is the moderator for a noon day television show (as she puts it, “fluff” pieces), trying to convince her boss that she is capable of the hard hitting news stories that will land her a spot on the evening news desk.  As Alaine is looking for a hard hitting story, one lands in her lap in the form of her parents’ loosing their business to an unscrupulous mortgage company working on behalf of the largest law firm and investment company in the city.  Alaine decides to assist her parents in any way that she can, both to help them and to get the story she needs for her career.

Lawyer Forbes Guidry is a partner in the law firm that his parents own but he has gotten there on his own merits.  Why then, is he feeling unfulfilled as an individual and feels like God has another purpose for him?  Forbes likes the security his income brings him and enjoys working with the law but is jealous of his friend who runs a pro-bono firm (works for the underprivileged and unable to pay individuals).  Not only is Forbes struggling with his own dissatisfaction, he has finally met a woman who interests him, only to find that she is standoffish because of a pending lawsuit against his parents’ company.

When Alaine can’t find an attorney willing to go up against the largest law firm in the city, she contacts Forbes and hires him to handle the case.  Forbes risks everything by taking Alaine’s case, his job, his relationship with his family and his heart.

I really enjoyed this book.  The characters’ concerns, reactions to the existing relationships and reactions to the new relationships were believable.  I really related to Forbes because he is the oldest sibling in his family, used to taking care of his siblings and finds himself struggling to step back and let them handle things without him.  The characters were empathetic and likable.  The story moved quickly and kept me hooked until the end.

A Case for Love is the third book in Kaye Dacus’ Brides of Benneterre, the first two being A Stand-in Groom and A Menu for Romance. I will be getting the first two books, some of the characters in the first two are in this book and I love books that have same characters, it is like visiting with old friends.

Kaye Dacus

Rating:

Title: A Case for Love

Author:Kay Dacus

Format: (paperback, hardbound, ebook): Paperback

Page Nos.: 320

ISBN: 1602604568

Publisher: Barbour Books

Release Date: February 1, 2010

**I received a copy of this book from the publisher but was not required to provide a review and it did not impact my review in any way.

I am very excited to present my first children’s book, Ima Nobody Becomes Somebody! by Brenda Poage, Illustrated by Jenna Murray.  This first grade reader is about Ima Nobody, a first grade reader who hates her name and feels picked on  by the neighbor boy Billy Do-good. As the school year progresses Ima gains a friend and is able to participate against Billy in the school Olympics.

I really liked how Ima didn’t allow her name to become who she was, even though she didn’t like the name her parents gave her.  I also liked how Ima and her friend came up with a plan for her to achieve her goal and then worked hard to achieve that goal.  This is a great book for anyone to read with/to their children to help them know how to deal with bullying that happens in school.

If you check out the author’s website, there are games for the kids to play and stories of real life bullying that children have submitted. Now I am pleased to be able to offer this book for one lucky reader. The contest will run starting today until next Thursday, April 1st with the winner announced April 2nd.  To make this a little more interesting, I want to know what horrible nicknames you were called as a child.  Post a name and be entered to win the contest.  I will start with myself, as is only fair, “four eyes” was the worst, I know, not really that bad as far as things go but it hurt my feelings that someone would be mean like that. Post your comments and win this great book to share!

www.imanobody.net

Rating: 1

Title: Ima Nobody Becomes Somebody!

Author: Brenda Poage

Illustrator: Jenna Murray

Type: Paperback

Page No.: 79

ISBN: 978-1-4490-0158-2(e)

Publisher: Authorhouse

Release Date: September 2009

This book was provided to me by the author.

Neferiti by Michelle Moran is the fictional accounting of Nefertiti’s rise to power in Egypt and her marriage but the tale is told from the view point of Mutny, Nefertiti’s half-sister and handmaiden.  Nefertiti was chosen to be a wife of Akhenhapten by her father and aunt, but it is through her own political maneuverings and beauty that she rises to Chief Wife.  Nefertiti and Akhenhapten changed the face of history forever.  They destroyed the temples to the gods that Egyptians had worshiped for 2,000 years, forcing the people to worship Aten, a lessor known god.  Ignoring tradition, Nefertiti changed the capital city, the role of the Chief Wife and rose to be crowned the first woman Pharoh.  Mutny is the quiet, not as beautiful sister who is trapped in a world she doesn’t like, forced to be a spy for her sister to keep the family in power.

Several years ago I had the chance to see Nefertiti’s bust in person and have been intrigued by this woman ever since.  The story is well told about the political machinations that must have occurred by the powerful families in Egypt’s upper class.  Mutny is a likable character who understands the bonds of family and does everything she can to assist her family to be remembered in the eternities.  Eventually, she falls in love with the wrong man (a general in the army who the Pharoh feels threatened by) and she must choose between staying with her family and leaving with the man she loves.

Several events transpire that cause Mutny to leave the palace of the Pharoh but despite the selfish behavior of her sister Nefertiti, when tragedy threatens the kingdom, she returns to assist her family.  This is how it is with family, you irritate each other and things don’t happen in the best way for everyone but when needed, you take care of them regardless of past acts.

This book was a fast read for me as the characters are compellingly real and the author does an amazing job of showing the power and mistakes made by Nefertiti.  The research performed by the author is incredible and the details of the everyday lives of the characters is amazing.  I couldn’t put it down and I highly recommend this book!

Rating: 1

ISBN: 0307718700

Format: Paperbook

Publisher: Crown