Separated @ Birth by Anaïs Bordier and Samantha Futerman 362.734 Bro

   

Fascinating book!  It is an entertaining read and best of all it is true.  Imagine two women who were born in South Korea.  One was adopted as the only child of a French couple.  Her passion is fashion.  The other was adopted into an American family who already had two biological sons.  She becomes an actress.  They both have great childhoods.  One day a friend of Anaïs sends her a You Tube video he saw on the internet because the actress looked so much like her.  Social media changed her life.  This is the story of how she (with a little help from her friends) tracked down the name of the actress and finally makes contact with her.

The story is told in alternating voices of the two women.  Neither adoptive family was every told that their daughter had a twin.  It is a fast read and will keep your interest from beginning to end.

The Midnight Plan of the Repo Man by W. Bruce Cameron FIC Cam

Ruddy McCann is not having a good week.  He's been attacked by a goose named Doris, his sister may be in love with a con man, and he's hearing voices in his head. 

This is not how Ruddy expected his life to turn out.  A former football star whose career ended in scandal and a prison sentence, Ruddy now works as a repo man. He just wants a quiet life with his dog, Jake.

But the voice in his head turns out to be the spirit of Alan Lottner, a realtor who was murdered 8 years ago.  When Ruddy meets Alan's daughter, Katie, sparks fly -- but it's tough with her father with him all the time.

So Ruddy needs to get rid of Alan's spirit by solving his murder, save his sister from financial ruin at the hands of her new love, and somehow get past Doris the goose.  It's all great fun.

The Midnight Plan of the Repo Man by W. Bruce Cameron is a light madcap caper.  Lots of fun and a great choice if you're looking for something humorous. 

The Mistletoe Promise by Richard Paul Evans FIC Eva

 

Even though I prefer books with a bit of an edge to them, I always read the Christmas books that come out around Christmas!  The story isn't too hard to figure out.  Two unhappy souls make a contract to "be a couple" during the holidays.  I have seen this theme in a hundred Hallmark movies.  You know how it is going to end.  But I like the way he writes.  What really kept me reading were the back stories of Elise and Nicholas.  As we follow the eight weeks of the mistletoe promise we are teased with glimpses into Elise's past and how she ended up with such low self esteem.  Nicholas also has some past problems but we don't find out anything about them until the very end of the book.

A short entertaining book with a feel-good ending.  'Tis the season so check out this book!

Midnight in Siberia

I like travel narratives (but only ones where things go wrong).  I also enjoy David Greene's reporting for NPR so when I saw his book "Midnight in Siberia: A Train Journey in the Heart of Russia" I knew I had to read it. And since this is a book about Russia, I suspected a few things might go wrong (spoiler alert: they do).

Former Moscow NPR Bureau Chief Greene took the Trans-Siberian Railway on a 6,000 mile journey from Moscow to Vladivostok.  Take a look at the book cover.  Looks like fun, right?

Along with battling the cold, Greene and his translator and friend Sergei visit interesting towns and sights, but his focus is the people he meets and their stories.  In a nutshell: Russians are a complicated bunch.  

I suggest reading it in front of a warm fire with a glass of vodka and a plate of Salo (basically pickles with pig lard).  If you're looking for yummy Russian recipes, this might not be the book for you.  However, Greene's insight and humor makes this great choice for anyone looking for a nuanced and thoughtful look at Russia and its people.

You can find "Midnight in Siberia" in the new nonfiction section: 914.704 Gre. 

Us by David Nicholls FIC Nic

Do opposites attract?  Well, Douglas Petersen is nagged into going to a dinner at his sister's 25 years ago.  He is a stereo-type of a scientist.  His sister's friends are free spirits and Douglas wants nothing more than to leave.  But when he does it is with one of those free spirits names Connie.  Does the attraction last forever? Douglas assumes it will last.  Things aren't always peaceful in their home.  Their 17-year old son, Albie, drives Douglas crazy and it leads to a lot of fights but still - they are a family.  Then one night Connie wakes up Douglas to tell him that she thinks their marriage has run its course and that she thinks she wants to leave him.  She isn't in any hurry.  They have a big trip to Europe planned for that summer - a last family trip before Albie goes to university.  She thinks they should of course go through with it.
     
And so they go.  Douglas drives his family crazy with his constant reading of guide books.  Albie drives Douglas crazy.  Albie wants some freedom - he doesn't want to hang around with his parents.  It is the trip from hell.
     
I loved this book.  Douglas is not someone I would like to spend a lot of time with - yet I found myself really loving him.  He truly can't help being who he is.  I also felt a lot of empathy and understanding for Connie and Albie.   This book was funny and sad.  It was depressing and uplifting. It was a good book!

The Other Life by Ellen Meister FIC Mei

     






 
 


   I usually don't go for time travel books.  (I read the mega-hit The Outlander which was okay but I will not be connoting on with the series.)  But there was something about the premise that made me give it a try.  And I really enjoyed it.  Quinn lives in the suburbs of Long Island with a great husband (Lewis) and their son, Isaac.  She is especially happy now because she is pregnant with a daughter.  Life is good until the devastating news that the baby is probably going to be seriously disabled.  Should they continue with the pregnancy?  She wishes Nan, her mother, were there to help her, but soon after she married Lewis her mother committed suicide.  
     In Quinn's basement there is a portal.  She has tried to ignore it but one day she goes through it.  On the other side is her life as it would have been if she had stayed with Eugene - who is the complete opposite of Lewis.  There she is no longer pregnant and she doesn't have a son - but her mother is there!  
     As Quinn wrestles with her choices she travels back and forth but the portal becomes smaller each time and it becomes harder.  
     An interesting story that may make you think about the major forks in your own life and the good and bad that might have been.  

      

Gray Mountain by John Grisham FIC Gri

 

   You can't go wrong with a John Grisham book - they are always entertaining and this one is no exception.  Of course the main character is a lawyer, but this time it is a female. Yay!  Her name is Samantha Kofer.  She is working insane hours to go up the ladder at her big Wall Street law firm.  She really doesn't like the work but she loves living in NYC.  And then 2008 happens.  She watches as others in the firm get let go.  She was lucky - well, sort of.  She does lose her job per se but they will pay her insurance for a year if she interns at a non-profit and she may get her job back in a year if things improve.   Easier said than done.  There are lots of lawyers looking for jobs.  In desperation she takes the only offer.  It is a legal aid clinic located in a Virginia town of 2200 people in the middle of Appalachia.  Having no trial experience Samantha is like a fish out of water.  She doesn't think she will last long helping ordinary people with lots of problems and no money.
     Before long she is involved in a dangerous situation - taking on the big coal companies.  They don't come out looking very good in this book!!   I listened to the audiobook and it was well done.

Accidents of Marriage by Randy Susan Meyers FIC Mey

 

Many books start out with a woman who is happily married with children and a life she loves.  This one starts out with a woman who is in denial of the reality of her life.  Maddy is a social worker who works mostly with women who are in abusive situations.  Often she works to help these women get out......and then the women go back.  It is hard to understand.  On the home front Maddy is married to Ben, a public defender.  He was a passionate man when they met.  But he has an anger management problem.  So Maddy, who can see a problem in others' marriages, chooses to manage her marriage by trying to keep her husband happy and keep peace in the household.  Her children have also learned to play the game.  Things have gotten worse and Ben is spending even longer hours at work.  One day Maddy has had to call Ben to come pick her up.  She had forgotten to get the new registration for her car (just one more example of how unorganized she is) and the police pulled her over and towed her car.  Ben is already running late but has no choice.  The anger in him rises and he gets into a 'game' with another driver.  And in an instant his life has changed.  Maddy is now fighting for her life from a traumatic brain injury.
       
This was an interesting book with the story being told through the eyes of Maddy, Ben and their oldest daughter.