Monday, September 4, 2023

Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week
************
Warning:  Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles, and humongous wish lists.
************
Mailbox Monday, created by Marcia @ A Girl and Her Books, has a permanent home now at Mailbox Monday
************
Here is a shout out to the administrators:

Serena @ Savvy Verse and Wit

Martha @ Reviews By Martha’s Bookshelf

************
THANKS to everyone for keeping Mailbox Monday alive.

NetGalley's this week

An Orphan's Wish by Lizzie Page

England, 1953. An emotional and heart-breaking story about children tragically orphaned by the war, and the woman who is determined to save them, whatever it takes.

When Clara Newton became House Mother of Shilling Grange Orphanage, it was only supposed to be temporary, a job to help piece her life back together again after the war had torn it apart. But five years on, Shilling Grange is more than just a job, it’s her calling. The orphans have given her a reason to live again, as has her handsome war hero neighbour Ivor , who is now her dashing fiancé.

As Clara starts to plan her perfect wedding, she is shocked to discover that the village expects her to leave Shilling Grange once she is married. They can’t imagine how she could possibly be a good housewife while working full time at the orphanage. But Clara is horrified at the idea of deserting her orphans who have no one else in the world.

Clara starts to consider who could possibly replace her if she left. Who would take care of precious Peg who has never spoken a word or known love from anyone but Clara? And who would protect timid Jonathan from his life changing secret that only Clara knows?

But when a storm causes a catastrophic flood that risks the life of Ivor and the children, Clara is suddenly on the brink of losing everything once more. In this final heart-wrenching book in the series, will Clara and Ivor finally make it down the aisle? And will Clara find the strength to save the orphanage and stop it from falling into the wrong hands?

An utterly tear-jerking and unforgettable historical novel, set in the aftermath of World War Two. Perfect for fans of Before We Were Yours , Diney Costeloe and The Orphan Sisters .

The Royal Daughter by Soraya Lane

“My darling B, my heart, my soul. I only wish we’d had longer. Longer to search for the daughter that I should never have given up. The daughter that I should have been brave enough to keep, brave enough to tell you about, brave enough to tell the world about.”

London, Present day . As Ella looks down at a faded black and white photograph of an unknown woman and child alongside a yellowing piece of sheet music, she wonders how the two things can possibly relate to her own family. The items were left for her family at Hope’s House, a home for unmarried mothers whose babies were adopted.

Soon Ella learns that the photograph was taken on the picturesque Greek island of Skopelos, nestled in the turquoise calming waters of the Aegean sea, and that the woman in the photo holds the key to her family’s heritage. As she opens up to her new flame Gabriel , he tells her that she should go to the island to unravel the mystery and that he will wait for her.

Though Ella is torn she decides to go and once there, she discovers a heart-wrenching story of a royal family forced to leave their country for a new life in London, and of a girl with a unique talent for music who captured the heart of a young violinist but was forced to leave him and London behind for the sake of her family.

When Ella discovers the sacrifice made by the two young lovers and comes face to face with her forgotten Greek family, will their story give her the courage to follow her own heart back to London and Gabriel, or will the beauty of the island capture her heart and lead her to a new love altogether?

A totally addictive and heart-breaking novel about the strength of family ties and never giving up on true love. Perfect for fans of Santa Montefiore, Lucinda Riley and Victoria Hislop.

The Girls We Sent Away by Meagan Church

A searing book club read for fans of Ellen Marie Wiseman and The Girls with No Names set in the Baby Scoop Era of 1960s and the women of a certain condition swept up in a dark history.

It's the 1960s and Lorraine Delford has it all – an upstanding family, a perfect boyfriend, and a white picket fence home in North Carolina. Yet every time she looks through her father's telescope, she dreams of the stars. It's ambitious, but Lorraine has always been exceptional. 

But when this darling girl-next-door gets pregnant, she's forced to learn firsthand the realities that keep women grounded. 

To hide their daughter's secret shame, the Delfords send Lorraine to a maternity home for wayward girls. But this is no safe haven – it's a house with dark secrets and suffocating rules. And as Lorraine begins to piece together a new vision for her life, she must decide if she can fight against the powers that aim to take her child or submit to the rules of a society she once admired.

Powerful and affecting, The Girls We Sent Away is a timely novel that explores autonomy, belonging, and a quest for agency when the illusions of life-as-you-know-it fall away.

My first reads pick this month from Amazon Prime

Just Stay Away by Tony Wirt


When a mysterious neighborhood boy befriends his young daughter, stay-at-home dad Craig considers him a godsend—until it becomes clear that there’s nothing angelic about him at all.

Craig Finnigan is determined to finish his book this summer, but being an aspiring writer while wrangling his seven-year-old daughter is not easy. So when Alice makes fast friends with a neighborhood boy, Levi, Craig is happy she has a distraction from her constant visits to his home office.

But that happiness soon turns to misgivings as Levi’s behavior evolves from that of a shy, odd boy into something far more disturbing. Strange noises in the middle of the night and things disappearing from their home could be explained away—maybe it’s the water heater, or maybe Craig simply misplaced his flash drive. Craig can’t explain his paranoia, but he feels sure Levi is behind it.

As Levi’s visits to their backyard become more and more frequent, Craig finds himself the unwilling participant in a game he never asked to play…and one he’s not sure he can win.



3 comments:

  1. Nice variety. I guessed right away what The Girls We Sent Away was about. And Just Stay Away sounds creepy. Happy Reading!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I look forward to both. The first two are for book tours.

      Delete

Finding Sophie by Imran Mahmood

My thoughts What did I just read. From the first page to the last. I truly can't believe I actually stuck with this book.  This is the k...