Fiction

Skipping Christmas by John Grisham Review

December 14, 2010 |

Author Jessica

Imagine skipping Christmas, just for one year! No Christmas tree, no cards, no parties, no tree. Now, meet the Kranks in Skipping Christmas by John Grisham. Mr. Luther Krank is a cranky and penny pinching accountant at a prestigious firm. Mrs. Nora Krank, a loving mother to Blair, and a volunteer for numerous associations. Now, Blair Krank, a happy Peace Corp volunteer, heading for the deep jungles of Peru for a year.

With Blair leaving for a year, Mr. Krank convinces his wife to skip Christmas, just for one year. They deal with neighbors, television reporters and friends who don’t exactly agree with this. Mr. Krank looks through his receipts and finds that last year the spent roughly $6,500.00 on Christmas. He points out that if they skipped Christmas and went on a cruise instead, his wife would save a lot of headache. She wouldn’t have to send out cards, buy gifts for people she doesn’t even like, and she wouldn’t have to try and give away the fruit cake that she hates so much. John Grisham does a fabulous job of making you rethink the whole idea of Christmas. Skipping Christmas definatley has a lot of Christmas spirit in it, even with the Kranks trying to get away with giving nothing, and receiving nothing.

I have to say, I like the thought of skipping Christmas. I know my husband would really like it, but being the parents of three children, the oldest of which is 5, it’s hard to do away with it. I am the “Grinch” of my family! For Christmas one year, my mom gave me a grinch backpack. It is still my favorite bag to carry through the holidays! I don’t like to spend money! I’m not creative when it comes to gifts or decorations! I don’t like to decorate, because it means I have to take them back down and put them away in less then a month. To give you a clue, we got our first Christmas tree EVER last year. My husband and I have been married for 8 years now. Yeah, we don’t do holidays. But, as my kids get older, the more we both enjoy Christmas morning and seeing the excitement in my 19 year old sister’s eyes, and my kids’ eyes. We have so many traditions that my mom started when we were young, and we still continue with them, even though she passed away 3 years ago. Once you put aside all the craziness of the holiday, and concentrate on what Christmas is all about, and seeing your kids get so into it, it’s hard not to enjoy it. Maybe, some day, my husband and I will go on a cruise instead of celebrating Christmas, but for now, we’ll enjoy the hectic holiday with our wonderful family.

You can read an excerpt here.

Rating:

Title: Skipping Christmas

Author: John Grisham

Format: Paperback, eBook

Page Nos.: 208

ISBN:978-0440422976

Publisher: Bantam

Release Date: October 2010

Available for purchase: Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble

Reviewer: Jocee

Posted in Fiction |

Tags: Contemporary, Holiday, One |

No Comments »

Pajama Chat Readers Online Book Club Starting In January

December 13, 2010 |

Author Jessica

Those of you who have followed me for sometime are aware that I have occasionally been a panelist on the Pajama Chat Readers Online Book Club. Recently, I was approached by Terry Kate of Romance in the Backseat to become one of the regular panelists, of course I jumped at the chance to discuss my favorite books in person and online.

For those of you unfamiliar with Pajama Chat Readers, once a week at a set time the panelists call in to talk about the chosen book, while we are on the phone all of you can listen in and discuss the book with us in the online chat room or (and we really like it when this happens) you can call into the number listed and talk with us about the books. If you can’t make it to live chat have no fear, we post the link so you can listen in whenever it is convenient for you.

I am going to be handling one week a month and we will be discussing contemporary romance novels. If you are not interested in the contemporary novel chosen, don’t worry, each week a different genre will be covered by a different set of panelists.

Terry from Romance in the Backseat will be discussing all things Young Adult.

Lexie from Poisoned Rationality will be discussing historical romance novels.

Jackie from Literary Escapism and Natasha from Wicked Little Pixie will be discussing all things Paranormal/Urban Fantasy.

The Club will be officially starting in January and the novels being discussed will be:

Pale Demon by Kim Harrison

Out for Blood by Alyxandra Harvey

Jane by April Lindner

Ten Ways to be Adored When Landing a Lord by Sarah MacLean

You can read excerpts and reviews of the novel before the club at Pajama Chat Readers Online Book Club. If you are a blogger and are interested in being a panelist, shoot me an email. I hope to see all of you at our book club!

Posted in Fantasy, Fiction, Musings, Romance, Young Adult |

Tags: Book Club, Contemporary, Fantasy, Historical, Romance, Young Adult |

No Comments »

Daughter of Mine by Laura Fabiani

April 15, 2010 |

Author Jessica

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.

Posted in Fiction, Romance |

Tags: Contemporary, One, Romance |

2 Comments »

A Case for Love by Kaye Dacus

April 8, 2010 |

Author Jessica

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