Jencey's Writer's Corner

  When a family goes through a grieving period, often the question can become “What’s next?”  Nancy Thayer tells the story of a family that has to recover from two losses.  What better way to recover than to visit Nantucket?  Will they be able to move forward? Synopsis:    “Eddie Grant is happy with her life and her work as a personal assistant to Dinah Lavender, one of the most famous and renowned romance authors in the business. But being a spectator to notoriety and glamour isn’t as fulfilling as she once thought. Thankfully, Eddie has the perfect excuse for a vacation: Her hardworking younger sister, Barrett, is opening her gift shop on Memorial Day weekend, and could use all the help she can get.  But going home to the beautiful island of Nantucket means facing the family’s difficult past. Shortly after the death of Eddie and Barrett’s brother, their mother left them and their father made the spontaneous decision to buy a small farm. Eddie stayed ...

A friend of mine who also goes to a lot of events here in Atlanta said that I should really come and meet Jamie Ford.  I decided to go and see Jamie Ford at the Margaret Mitchell House.  The author is very kind and personable, and I highly recommend meeting him.  He was on tour for his book Love and Other Consolation Prizes. Synopsis: The story begins with Ernest standing by his car watching the events of the 1962 World’s Fair in Seattle.  His memories take him back to the 1909 World’s Fair in the very same location.  His life changed that day, because he was the boy who was auctioned during the fair.  The results were a permanent home for the first time since coming to this country.   His daughter Juju has plans for a story for her paper, where she is employed.  Juju wants to know her father’s story.  It is what she does not know about the story and her origins that might change the story.   Will she want to share it ...

How many of you are World War II buffs?  How many of you have read a great about the many events that took place during the war?  I myself am familiar with the concentration camps such as Auschwitz, Bergen Belsen, and Ravensbruck.  I was not familiar with the story of The Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly; I am delighted to share it now. Synopsis:  Caroline Ferriday works for the French Consulate in New York who helps French, but more specifically she works with orphans.  She has never married but shares living quarters with her mother.  There is also an interesting gentleman on the side.  Caroline sends packages to orphans and continues to help as Europe is rapidly invaded by the Nazis.   Over in Poland, Kasia is excited about the changes and an opportunity to help with the underground.  Her boyfriend Pietrik tries to keep her from being involved.  One day the Gestapo catches Kasia her friends and family, and they are sent t...

Small Great Things is the latest book from author Jodi Picoult .  In her latest book she covers the topic of racism and how it affects different groups of people.  I debated with myself on whether I wanted to cover this book on Writer’s Corner.  Synopsis:  Ruth Jefferson an African American has been a nurse for over twenty years.  She has worked in the Labor and Delivery ward in a small hospital in New York.  She has one sister Adisa who is lives in the ghetto and gets by on benefits and minimum wage jobs.  Her answer to everything is to turn to her prejudices for solutions to her problems.  One day while Ruth is at work she is assigned to a couple with a baby. The father asks her to not touch their baby and has her removed from the case.  The father Turk is a white supremacist and does not want anything to do with African Americans.  When his baby dies he wants to blame someone for his death.  So Ruth is promptly arrested ...

Thank you to Ballantine Books  for a copy of this novel Nightingale Way by Emily March.  This novel was given to me in exchange for an honest review.  I received no financial compensation for this review. It is time to return to Eternity Springs.  In this novel we meet Jack and Cat.  Their story is not like some of the other couples you have met in Eternity springs.  The main difference is that they are divorced.   I enjoyed the last Eternity springs novel and could not wait to share this one. Synopsis: Cat lives in Washington D.C.  She also volunteers with some local charities.   Cat published a story recently about a dog fighting ring through a blog she publishes. One day a bomb goes off in her dining room.  She is then spirited away to Eternity Springs by her ex-husband Jack.  He was following orders of Cat’s mother Melinda.  She and Jack both work for the government.  Cat does not want to stay a...

Thank you to Ballantine Books for a copy of Circling the Sun    in exchange for an honest review.   Have you ever heard of the movie Out of Africa?  It is a    movie starred Meryl Streep as Karen Blixen and Robert Redford as Denys Finch Hatton.  Beryl made a small appearance, but what is her story? Synopsis:  Beryl Markham was born in the colony of Kenya around the late 1800s.  She stayed on the farm there with her father.  Her mother left and went to England with her brother.   She was quite the free spirit growing up in Kenya.   Although she married early in life, her heart belonged to horse racing.   The one person that meant the most is Denys Finch Hatton.   Which readers know from their relationship with Beryl’s friend Karen Blixen.  What is life like in the colonies?  Will Beryl find happiness? My Thoughts:  I enjoyed the novel by Paula McLain abo...

I had a lot of fun with Fire and Ice .   I happened to get the audiobook to listen to this novel.   You can always count on  that they are really well done!      Fire and Ice introduces us to FBI agent Jack MacAlister and reintroduces us to Sophie Rose, Alex Buchanan, Reagan Buchanan, Bobby Rose, and others. Synopsis:   Sophie is busy at her desk writing an article for the Chicago Chronicle.   She wonders what the next assignment might be.   Mr. Bitterman her boss soon let’s her know that she needs to interview a man who called the newspaper for an interview.   Sophie contacts and meets with William Harrington who called the paper.    When they met he talks for three hours on his favorite topic himself and his upcoming races and lets slip about the Alpha Project.   Sophie barely pays attention until he shows up dead a couple of days later.   Well naturally she’s curious!   There is one major problem...