Recipes and Relationships

 The Divine Proverb of Streusel by Sara Brunsvold

Nikki Werner is at her wits end to know what to do with her life.  Her father has divorced her mother and according to a social media post, has recently remarried.  She is confused and afraid to move forward with her own relationship with her boyfriend, Isaac.  After school is out for the summer, she takes off for her grandmother’s farmhouse and her Uncle Wes, a virtual stranger.  The summer away, time with her relatives and her grandmother’s handwritten recipes help her to rediscover her roots and mend the broken places in her life.

This book contains some endearing characters.  Uncle Wes and Joyce were some of my favorites.  I loved how Nikki matured and came to understand her father better through the stories of her relatives.

The plot and characters kept me engaged with the book and provided a satisfying ending.  I think other readers will enjoy this book also, especially those who have experienced broken family relationships and need the hope of reconciliation.  I am grateful to the publisher for the complimentary copy of this digital book in exchange for my honest review.

New to me author

 

An American Immigrant by Johanna Rojas Vann

Melanie is a second-generation immigrant from Columbia.  She just doesn’t understand her mother until she receives an assignment to visit Columbia and write a story about the drug problem there.  Her mother insists that she visit her grandmother in Cali and Melanie’s life takes a drastic turn.

This was an enjoyable story, but one to which I really couldn’t relate.  But not everyone will be able to say that. With so much of our political life focused on the many immigrants who have recently entered our nation, this book has an important viewpoint for people like me who don’t have an immigrant experience in their recent past.  It was a valuable story in that it showed me the human element of illegal immigration.

The characters showed growth, especially Melanie, and the plot moved along nicely even though the ending was not a total surprise.  All in all, it was a satisfying read which conveys an important message of empathy towards others who walk a different path in life from ours.

I received this book in exchange for this, my honest review and I thank the publisher for their generosity.

 

Jamie Langston Turner's latest book

 

Every Ocean Has a Shore by Jamie Langston Turner

This book is one of the few on my blog that I haven’t received in return for an honest review.  Jamie Langston Turner is one of my favorite authors and I just had to purchase this book and include it on my blog.

True to form, this book moves at a leisurely pace so that the reader becomes very invested in the lives of each of the characters.  Gary, Fawna, and Alice are bound together by a near tragedy and despite going their separate ways, they maintain a friendship in which they each grow and develop as people.

Jamie has developed a wonderful cast of characters in her many novels and I was pleased to meet Eldeen, Jewel and Willard again.  It was like visiting old friends after years of absence.  And now I consider Gary, Fawna and Alice friends, too, and hope to meet them again in another book.

Jamie’s books stimulate the interest of the reader in the personalities and quirks of fellow humans.  She can make a character reading a National Geographic magazine seem fascinating.  I could also identify with the inner thoughts of the characters because they were so well expressed.  And at the risk of giving away a spoiler, I was truly sad with Eldeen’s death.  I was looking forward to seeing her in another book.

Although her books don’t beat the reader over the head with a Bible, the message of salvation and faith is quietly present as the characters make their way to God.  The love that they show to each other, and their families is a testament to their faith.  These elements make reading her books an uplifting experience that many readers would enjoy.  I enthusiastically recommend this book and her former ones as well.