The Furies - review by Arianna

The Furies Natalie Haynes 3 / 5	Published 2014 First Sentence "The first thing they'll ask me is how I met her."
Publisher's Description: When you open up, who will you let in? When Alex Morris loses her fiancé in dreadful circumstances, she moves from London to Edinburgh to make a break with the past. Alex takes a job at a Pupil Referral Unit, which accepts the students excluded from other schools in the city. These are troubled, difficult kids and Alex is terrified of what she's taken on. There is one class - a group of five teenagers - who intimidate Alex and every other teacher on The Unit. But with the help of the Greek tragedies she teaches, Alex gradually develops a rapport with them. Finding them enthralled by tales of cruel fate and bloody revenge, she even begins to worry that they are taking her lessons to heart, and that a whole new tragedy is being performed, right in front of her...
Dear Reader, First off: apologies for the long hiatus! We've had a lot going on in our own lives lately: I've had a beautiful baby girl, and AmberBug has started an awesome new job! Both of which are keeping us quite busy. Not, of course, too busy to read! But unfortunately it's meant giving a bit less attention to our blog. We hope to resume more regular postings soon! In the meantime, on to my review... Unlike AmberBug, I went into this book with absolutely no expectations. I think that actually helped quite a bit, because I would also have been disappointed if I were expecting a really suspenseful, can't-put-it-down novel. This was definitely NOT that. It was, I suppose, more of a character study, although I found it odd that I didn't connect at all on any level with any of the characters - even though I think the author intended for me to. While I felt detached sympathy for Alex, the main character, I didn't really care about her outcome. And that was true several times over for all of her (what felt like peripheral) students. It was so odd, because I felt like you'd just barely met everyone and, boom, there was the crux of the plot! I think the author spent more time with those characters in her head, and expected we'd done the same? In any case, I found I just didn't care about anyone in the story. And I didn't believe in the main characters' motivations, which meant the denoument felt incrdibly flimsy to me.  I also didn't like how the reader was made to feel as if the entire group of students were involved in the crime being outlined, from the title and from how much attention was equally paid to everyone in the class. I wasn't quite sure how the rest of the students played into the actions of the one. Why did the reader have to spend so much time with all of them? Just to learn about the tragic lives of troubled youths? And to me, the connections between the story and the discussed Greek plays were VERY tenuous. While I enjoyed learning a bit more about a few classic Greek tragedies, I felt as if I didn't get a very thorough understanding of them, and yet at the same time - like Amber - I felt as if I were stuck back in a high school English classroom. Boring! And, I'm sorry - naming the other boy in a fight Donny Brooks: REALLY? That got to me, even though I laughed out loud upon first encountering it.  Overall, I'm not sure I would recommend this book to anyone, although I certainly didn't hate reading it. Some of the writing was really great. I just felt like the novel dragged quite a bit, and my time could have been spent better elsewhere. But I do agree with Amber that the inclusion of the Greek plays helped make the book quite a bit more interesting, and I did come away with a bit more knowledge, which I always appreciate.  Yours, Arianna

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Everything, Everything

Everything, Everything Nicola Yoon 3 / 5	Published September 1, 2015 First Sentence "I've read many more books than you."
Publisher's Description: This innovative, heartfelt debut novel tells the story of a girl who’s literally allergic to the outside world. When a new family moves in next door, she begins a complicated romance that challenges everything she’s ever known. The narrative unfolds via vignettes, diary entries, texts, charts, lists, illustrations, and more. My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla. But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly. Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.
Dear Reader, No. No, no, no. I was so disappointed - going into this, and even when I began reading, I thought: Great! I am going to totally dig this book, and fly through it, and it'll be a nice break from all the dense reading I've been doing this summer! And, well, it was the latter. But I was so thoroughly disappointed, especially given how great the ratings were on Goodreads! I was totally riding along on the premise, and then...it suddenly hit me, about 1/3 of the way through, The Twist. And I just spent the whole rest of the time reading going, "No. She wouldn't. Would she?!" Because this is essentially the plot of a movie. One that I've never seen, but while I was explaining the expected twist to my husband, he said, "Yeah. Like ______?" (I won't spoil anything for others, but that blank is clickable, if you'd like to see what I am talking about) and I said, "No way, for real?!" So on top of the book being predictable, it was kind of a copycat of a terrible premise of a movie. Blerg. I can see someone going into the book and not seeing the twist as being blown away by the ending, and that is awesome, and I am kind of envious of those people. Because had I been taken by surprise, I think I would have loved the book, too! I loved the characters, I loved the concept (in a strange love/hate way), and I loved the relationships. Everyone was believable and real and I flew through it over the course of two bedtimes. But. Yeah. Dang. I only rated it so highly because I could not put it down until the end. And I did thoroughly enjoy reading the book! I just hated that dread in the back of my mind...and was so frustrated when it was confirmed. Le sigh. Yours, Arianna

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Great House

Great House Nicole Krauss 3.5 / 5	Published 2010 First Sentence "Your Honor, in the winter of 1972 R and I broke up, or I should say he broke up with me."
Publisher's Description: A powerful, soaring novel about a stolen desk that contains the secrets, and becomes the obsession, of the lives it passes through. For twenty-five years, a solitary American novelist has been writing at the desk she inherited from a young poet who disappeared at the hands of Pinochet's secret police; one day a girl claiming to be his daughter arrives to take it away, sending her life reeling. Across the ocean in London, a man discovers a terrifying secret about his wife of almost fifty years. In Jerusalem, an antiques dealer is slowly reassembling his father's Budapest study, plundered by the Nazis in 1944. These worlds are anchored by a desk of enormous dimension and many drawers that exerts a power over those who possess it or give it away. In the minds of those it has belonged to, the desk comes to stand for all that has disappeared in the chaos of the world-children, parents, whole peoples and civilizations. Nicole Krauss has written a hauntingly powerful novel about memory struggling to create a meaningful permanence in the face of inevitable loss.
Dear Reader, When I was done with it, this book forced me to sit down and write out a summary of each section so that I could try to more fully comprehend what had just happened. I don’t even know where to start writing this review! It was a gorgeously-written but incredibly complex book, laden with nuances that the reader is never sure whether the author intended. Oy. Luckily, I read this one for my book club, so I was able to sit down with the group and realize that I was not the only one confounded and frustrated by the story! It was funny, because the book would take me some time to pick up, but whenever I did, I found myself flying through, captivated by the beautiful writing. (The character's situation in the first chapter really resonated with me, which initially drew me in.) Overall, it felt like it took me a little while to read, but I did enjoy the process of doing so. However...the reader is left with so much mystery at the end! It was initially very frustrating, and I wanted to rate the book really low in spite of the prose.  It certainly helped to talk the book over with others, though, and to give it some time to sink in. I was glad to learn I wasn’t the only one who had felt confounded, almost swindled by the author! As if we were missing a huge chunk of something that would make the entire story fall into place. However, we came to realize over the course of an hour (and sometimes heated discussion!) it isn’t quite necessary that the book have that sort of closure. The book stood well enough by itself, and most of us agreed it was certainly worth reading.  We discussed also how the author had published versions of the first section as a standalone short story in a couple of publications prior to fleshing it out into a book, and we agreed that that first story really did stand pretty well on its own. We also learned that Krauss had admitted to often being tired & distracted while writing the novel, because she was pregnant at the time. This could also have explained some of the readers’ confusion - but we thought a good editor would have helped if that were truly the problem.  The book club discussed some excellent things: we talked about how every character seemed tortured and unable to move on; we commented on the similarities between the regimes of Hitler and Pinochet; we discussed the very Jewish sensibility of this book, and how ultimately all anyone wanted to do was tell their stories, and be remembered by them. One group member said “story as legacy,” which I think sums the book up nicely. The book touches on estranged parent/child relationships, loss (and the need to hold onto something), writing as catharsis, and the fragility of memory. It was complex and dense at times, and ultimately a very rewarding read (especially after our discussion). So my overall impression is that I think it gives the reader a lot to take away, and I ended up rating it quite a lot higher than I would have when I first closed the book. It makes me so grateful to be able to participate in such a thorough & multifaceted discussion group - and often be introduced to books I might not otherwise have ever encountered! Yours, Arianna

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Delicious Foods

Delicious Foods James Hannaham 4/5	Published 2015 First Sentence "After escaping from the farm, Eddie drove through the night."
Publisher's Description: Darlene, a young widow and mother devastated by the death of her husband, turns to drugs to erase the trauma. In this fog of grief, she is lured with the promise of a great job to a mysterious farm run by a shady company, with disastrous consequences for both her and her eleven-year-old son, Eddie--left behind in a panic-stricken search for her. Delicious Foods tells the gripping story of three unforgettable characters: a mother, her son, and the drug that threatens to destroy them. In Darlene's haunted struggle to reunite with Eddie, and in the efforts of both to triumph over those who would enslave them, Hannaham's daring and shape-shifting prose not only infuses their desperate circumstances with grace and humor, but also wrestles with timeless questions of love and freedom.
Dear Reader, I was not expecting this book to be what it is. I don't know why, but I had a vision in my head of how this novel was before even cracking the spine. I actually audiobook'd this... so all spines are still intact. I have to say though, you must audiobook this one.... if only because the Author, James Hannaham, does a fantastic impression of crack cocaine. Yep, you heard right. Crack cocaine is a main character, and a very strong one indeed. I was so enamoured by this excellent writing trick, I had friends and family listen to the first crack chapter. Every time I listened, I picked up something I missed. I would come to work feeling "energized" and "pumped up"... but not because I was high on drugs but from how AMAZING James Hannaham writes and reads that character, it makes you feel the buzz. No, it won't get you high... but I dare you to listen to that chapter and NOT be woken up. I'm hard pressed to call this satire, even though I feel hints of it and have heard others call it that. I feel that the darkness looming over everyone is way too heavy to be satirical. Now, crack cocaine... that had humor. Eddie and his mother, that story is just downright sad.... a tragedy. I get a sharp pang thinking about them, I didn't cry but thinking back, it gets me a little emotional. Eddie, that poor boy who lost his father (fire) and then his mother (to drugs and delicious food) and had to find his own way to her. His story is heartwarming, sad and deeply tragic, warranting a book into itself. Eddie's mother, Darlene, holds a tragic story too. Her husband dies in a fire, she can't keep up with bills, she turns to drugs to self medicate and ends up (for lack of a better word) kidnapped by a corrupt company to slave drive them to "earn" their freedom. All this happens early on and we get set up for the "real" story. Think things can't get more tragic than that? Try again. If you plan on reading this, I HIGHLY suggest audiobook format (the Author narrates his book perfectly). I would also plan on listening only during "light" days, this book can pull the darkness in a little and I could feel the storm clouds rumbling... don't make this mistake... it'll bring you down even more. But oh boy, is this book something... so much to discuss here, I could see this being a great contender for the TOB (Tournament of Books) next year (crosses fingers). Happy Reading, AmberBug

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Everything I Never Told You (Review by AmberBug)

Everything I Never Told You Celeste Ng 4.5 / 5	Published 2014 First Sentences "Lydia is dead. But they don't know this yet."
Publisher's Description: A haunting debut novel about a mixed-race family living in 1970s Ohio and the tragedy that will either be their undoing or their salvation. Lydia is dead. But they don’t know this yet . . . So begins the story of this exquisite debut novel, about a Chinese American family living in 1970s small-town Ohio. Lydia is the favorite child of Marilyn and James Lee; their middle daughter, a girl who inherited her mother’s bright blue eyes and her father’s jet-black hair. Her parents are determined that Lydia will fulfill the dreams they were unable to pursue—in Marilyn’s case that her daughter become a doctor rather than a homemaker, in James’s case that Lydia be popular at school, a girl with a busy social life and the center of every party. When Lydia’s body is found in the local lake, the delicate balancing act that has been keeping the Lee family together tumbles into chaos, forcing them to confront the long-kept secrets that have been slowly pulling them apart. James, consumed by guilt, sets out on a reckless path that may destroy his marriage. Marilyn, devastated and vengeful, is determined to find a responsible party, no matter what the cost. Lydia’s older brother, Nathan, is certain that the neighborhood bad boy Jack is somehow involved. But it’s the youngest of the family—Hannah—who observes far more than anyone realizes and who may be the only one who knows the truth about what happened. A profoundly moving story of family, history, and the meaning of home, Everything I Never Told You is both a gripping page-turner and a sensitive family portrait, exploring the divisions between cultures and the rifts within a family, and uncovering the ways in which mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives struggle, all their lives, to understand one another.
Dear Reader, I was pleasantly surprised how much i liked this book. It wasn't on my radar at all but Arianna and her sister Bethany gave it such high reviews, I had to jump on the bandwagon (Check our what Arianna thought). It helped that this book was selected for the short list of the Tournament of Books this year AND was a free audiobook from Ford. I usually don't like to audiobook literary fiction, I don't like to miss a word and I know that when listening that tends to happen sometimes. However, this was a pleasant book to listen to, not sure exactly what made it so effortless, the narrator maybe? EINTY is beautifully written, the characters develop in deep and profound ways and the Author keeps you glued to the page right to the end. There was quite a bit of thoughtful topics brought about a fairly normal story of family struggle. The story starts with a tragedy and goes back and forth from past recollections and memories to how the family copes with that tragedy. The interesting thing is that the story isn't really about the missing daughter, that is more background noise. I liked how the Author tossed in a plot device (missing girl) but didn't focus on that as much as the family dynamic and the character development, this gave a little bit of mystery with a fantastic human touch. This might have been a five star favorite of mine but I'm not sure how memorable this will be for me. As touched as I was about the struggle the family had to go through and the tug and pull of the sibling love/hate, I didn't connect personally. I enjoyed getting that glimpse into a mixed racial family daily struggle, especially in that time period, but I wasn't too impressed with the cliche love affair the professor/father was having with his student assistant, I rolled my eyes but continued reading since everything else fit so nicely. EINTY is bold and beautiful but also dirty, we get to see the inner thoughts of each character and the truth behind it is startling but understandable. I was completely enraptured by the mother, who pushes her daughter to do what she had always wanted, which I guess could be prevalent in many mother/daughter relationships. If I had to compare this family to one thing, it would be an avalanche. The family standing on many loose rocks, a few trips over those rocks and everything starts to crumble. The mother leaving, the affair, the hardships of being mixed race, lydia wanting to please her mother so much that she sacrifices her own childhood - worried her mother will leave again. Truly heartbreaking. I would read/listen to this with the knowledge that this might bring a little rain cloud to follow you around, maybe even suggest carrying around some tissues and a puppy?! Yeah, a puppy. Happy Reading, AmberBug

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The Furies

The Furies Natalie Haynes 2.5/5	Published August 2014 First Sentence "The first thing they'll ask me is how I met her."
Publisher's Description: When you open up, who will you let in? When Alex Morris loses her fiancé in dreadful circumstances, she moves from London to Edinburgh to make a break with the past. Alex takes a job at a Pupil Referral Unit, which accepts the students excluded from other schools in the city. These are troubled, difficult kids and Alex is terrified of what she's taken on. There is one class - a group of five teenagers - who intimidate Alex and every other teacher on The Unit. But with the help of the Greek tragedies she teaches, Alex gradually develops a rapport with them. Finding them enthralled by tales of cruel fate and bloody revenge, she even begins to worry that they are taking her lessons to heart, and that a whole new tragedy is being performed, right in front of her...
Dear Reader, This was not the book for ME. Let me explain this... I think the publisher's description is very misleading, I was under the impression that it would be more thriller than anything else. This was NOT the case. Do not be fooled into thinking this is the next "Gone Girl", because it doesn't even come close. I might end up judging this too harshly because I don't like getting tricked. For example, if you notice above it says, "Finding them enthralled by tales of cruel fate and bloody revenge, she begins to worry that they are taking her lessons to heart, and that a whole new tragedy is being performed, right in front of her..." DUN, DUN, DUN! This statement has a miniscule bit of truth in it but mostly is completely wrong and exaggerated. I don't think this book needs to falsely advertise and give the readers wrong ideas, hoping it will sell books, they will only get disappointed because it ISN'T what they expected. Even if the book is good, the Author won't get the credibility she deserves from her readers if they fall into the wrong hands. That being said, The Furies does have a lot to say and would be perfect for the teen that is just starting to learn the Greek tragedies/plays. I mean wow, does this book break them down... which is wonderful for someone who HASN'T had classes in the plays before but for the most part I felt I was reliving those moments back in High School. Why would I want to read entire chapters dedicated to discussions that I've already hashed out? I can totally understand a teen being really into this, and the Author does a wonderful job breaking this down for someone to understand the plays better BUT for an adult, I don't think so. This might be one of those cases where I think being a YA book is really meant for a teen and not for everyone. I just wish that the publicity for this book could put it in the direction it needs to go... and not into the readers who expect some big mysterious "reveal". I did enjoy the 'Dear Diary' parts from Mel (one of the students), her experiences on being deaf are very interesting and her character stood out the most for me. I wish we could have followed her around more instead of having to sit in on "classes" discussing the greek plays. I wanted to feel a stronger connection to all the other characters in the book but I just couldn't see how with all the stuffing given to 'teaching'. To be honest with you, the book had a lot of potential though, the writing is pretty good and the Author does have an excellent grasp on certain themes (life choices, death, tragedy, friendships). She also does a great job picking out those important themes from the plays and giving the reader a lot to think about (as well as the characters). I wouldn't say this book is bad, just picked for the wrong type of reader. I think this might be the perfect book to give my teenage cousin who might be able to relate to the teachings in this book and wouldn't get bored with the many discussions of various greek plays. I know I would have enjoyed this book tremendously at that age. So shame on you, whoever picked the marketing ploys and blurbs that are downright misleading... I can only hope changes are made and the marketing turns directions to place this book in the RIGHT hands. Happy Reading, AmberBug

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Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands (Review by AmberBug)

Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands Chris Bohjalian 4/5	Published 2014 First Sentence "I built an igloo against the cold out of black plastic trash bags filled with wet leaves."
Publisher's Description: A heartbreaking, wildly inventive, and moving novel narrated by a teenage runaway, from the bestselling author of Midwives and The Sandcastle Girls. Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands is the story of Emily Shepard, a homeless girl living in an igloo made of garbage bags in Burlington. Nearly a year ago, a power plant in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont had a meltdown, and both of Emily's parents were killed. Devastatingly, her father was in charge of the plant, and the meltdown may have been his fault—was he drunk when it happened? Thousands of people are forced to leave their homes in the Kingdom; rivers and forests are destroyed; and Emily feels certain that as the daughter of the most hated man in America, she is in danger. So instead of following the social workers and her classmates after the meltdown, Emily takes off on her own for Burlington, where she survives by stealing, sleeping on the floor of a drug dealer's house, inventing a new identity for herself, and befriending a young homeless kid named Cameron. But Emily can't outrun her past, can't escape her grief, can't hide forever-and so she comes up with the only plan that she can.
Dear Reader, I think Arianna gave us an excellent review of this book. I'll try and fill in the gaps but I think that might be hard to do. This was an audiobook for me and I was very captivated by the book in that format. This might not be the case for everyone but I know for myself, I end up having a different experience based on the format of the book I'm reading. I know I've gone on a tangent about this before, so I'll spare you my rant. Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands is a heartbreaking tale about a girl stuck in the middle of a real life nightmare. I say nightmare because what happens to her is so unimaginable, but at the same time... entirely possible. Her (Emily's) parents work at the local power plant up in Vermont, which isn't that crazy except for when tragedy strikes the town and the power plant has a meltdown. Emily knows in her heart that her parents are dead and that the cause of the meltdown might lay in their hands. During the evacuation of her school, she ends up overhearing kids and adults talking about her parents and giving her strange looks. The reader is forced to follow Emily through all this but at the same time wanting to cover her ears and walk her away from the mess of emotions. Understandably, people are upset and will be talking about what might have caused the accident in the first place, it's only human nature to point fingers, right? In this book, we get to see the wrongness of it all through the eyes of an innocent girl. It's truly heartbreaking. What happens next in the book is somewhat predictable, after Emily hears the inner thoughts of her neighbors and friends, knowing that they blame her family for what has happened, she bolts. I don't think anyone in her position would have done differently. Just when you thought things couldn't get any sadder, they do. We follow Emily on her sad trip between finding her next meal, getting a good nights rest and learning who to trust. The entire time you feel hopeful for her, like she gets this power from within herself to keep going. Along the way, she meets this other homeless kid, much younger, and decides to help him out. These two become a team (with her acting as the parent/older sister) and they try and get by together. The journey they go through is just REALLY hard and sad, this is not a book for the "happy" only reading club. Nope. Read this when you have the right frame of mind, but know that the fuzzy parts make you feel really good and it's worth it. Happy Reading, AmberBug

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The Amado Women

The Amado Women Desiree Zamorano 4.5/5	Expected Publication July 1st 2014  First Sentence "Sylvia Levine (nee Amado) had been brooding for months."
Publisher's Description: Southern California is ground zero for upwardly mobile middle-class Latinas. Matriarchs like Mercy Amado—despite her drunken, philandering (now ex-) husband—could raise three daughters and become a teacher. Now she watches helplessly as her daughters drift apart as adults. The Latino bonds of familia don't seem to hold. Celeste, the oldest daughter who won't speak to the youngest, is fiercely intelligent and proud. She has fled the uncertainty of her growing up in Los Angeles, California, to seek financial independence in San Jose. Her sisters did the same thing but very differently. Sylvia married a rich but abusive Anglo, and, to hide away, she immersed herself in the suburbia of her two young daughters. And Nataly, the baby, went very hip into the free-spirited Latino art world, working on her textile creations during the day and waiting on tables in an upscale restaurant by night. Everything they know comes crashing down in a random tragic moment and Mercy must somehow make what was broken whole again.
Dear Reader, This might be the first book that I've read which shows a different side of Latino women. Usually, when reading books featuring Latinos, I find the light is a little dark and the setting a little poor (literally). I recently went to see Junot Diaz speak at a local College and he cried out for more Hispanic writing, and he vividly described what it's like to be a minority watching TV and reading books that are full of characters that live a completely different life. The Author, Desiree, gives us a side that reminds us of those similarities and gives us everything that is relatable within all different races. I love that! I gobbled up this story and felt SO much along the way, I didn't feel like an outsider peering into a secret life I knew nothing about. This is where I think we need to get, this is where we need to overcome the thought that people are so different, because deep down WE ARE THE SAME! Okay, enough of the rant... let's get back to the book. The Amado Women is beautifully tragic, three daughters and a mother get together for family gatherings and each time we see the bonds change between them. The mother, Mercy, who is a proud woman with strength and conviction. The eldest sister, Celeste, who broke free of the family early on (only to succeed in her occupation to make her quite wealthy). The middle child, Sylvia, married young and ends up raising two daughters. The youngest daughter, Nataly, who jumps from ship to ship without figuring out her place in life. Each daughter has an extremely compelling story, we become enveloped with the hurt and/or excitement each one feels.  Starting with Nataly, who can't settle down or live a productive money-making life. I know this person, the artist... the one who struggles to follow her passion but is clueless to the stress it causes others in her life. I felt very close to Nataly because I consider myself an Artist, but I didn't go down the road Nataly did... I was too worried I wouldn't be able to support myself sufficiently. I admire this character but also know that life as an artist is too difficult to cling to that hope, reality bites!  Her sister, Sylvia, has a very different approach with life, marrying an abusive husband and having two children. I know many people who would also relate to this woman, and maybe open the eyes of some to see how horrible living that way is. I found myself relating to this character quite a bit when she started thinking about the big "D" word. How her mother kept nagging her and reminding her that she needed to stay with her husband to be financially secure and for the children, it gave me flashbacks to my own divorce and the way my family handled it.  Then we have, Celeste, the one with "everything", but we quickly realize that she has just as much heartbreak (if not more) than the other two sisters. Money doesn't buy everything, we all know this but sometimes someone hides behind it in order to clear their mind from the tragedy they've experienced. So life like! Every character sweeps in on a cloud of truth dust, I found myself in awe of how connected I felt with all of them... even though each one was so different. The Author really touches on some realistic issues people go through, in all walks of life AND in all races. I love that this novel might strike a conversation outside of social norms, this would be the perfect book for a book club. Just imagine, sharing personal tragedies or triumphs and recognizing that the person next to you is very much the same. Okay, that happens from time to time. However, the times I've felt close to characters with a different background than me are few and far between. Desiree does this with The Amado Women and I believe every woman should pick this book up and feel that connection too! Happy Reading, AmberBug P.S. - Want a digital copy of Desiree's other books Modern Cons or Human Cargo? Head over to www.desireezamorano.com, subscribe to her e-mail list and she'll give a choice between the two. Also, tomorrow check out an exclusive interview with the Desiree Zamorano herself! Even more? The next day she'll be doing a guest blog, right here on ShelfNotes. Make sure you check it out.

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