Heart-wrenching #Reads I won’t soon forget #BookReviews

I’ve been in an introspective mood for the last while and my reading choices reflect that frame of mind. Heart-wrenching, soul-searching stories sure to haunt your thoughts.

The first two are Amazon Prime reads- think library. You can ‘borrow’ books from their store and return them when you’re done. I joined Prime for free shipping, but quickly took advantage of their movie and television section, and now the book borrowing… Amazon rules, don’t they?

An unforgettable novel by Kristina McMorris, inspired by a stunning piece of history.

2 CHILDREN FOR SALE

The sign is a last resort. It sits on a farmhouse porch in 1931, but could be found anywhere in an era of breadlines, bank runs and broken dreams. It could have been written by any mother facing impossible choices.

For struggling reporter Ellis Reed, the gut-wrenching scene evokes memories of his family’s dark past. He snaps a photograph of the children, not meant for publication. But when it leads to his big break, the consequences are more devastating than he ever imagined.

Inspired by an actual newspaper photograph that stunned the nation, Sold on a Monday is a powerful novel of love, redemption, and the unexpected paths that bring us home.

My Review

Set in the Great Depression, Sold on a Monday is the gut-wrenching story of a parent’s desperation to see her children fed and cared for, and the reporter who got it wrong but couldn’t let the story go until he got it right.

Ellis Reed is a small-time reporter looking for a big break when he stumbles upon a destitute family while waiting for a photo for the society section of the newspaper who’d hired him. His compassion for the two kids sitting on the doorstep of a dilapidated house with a sign saying Kids of Sale propped in front of them drove him to take the shot. He had no intention of monetizing their circumstances, but when the photo accidentally ended up in front of his boss, he was forced into creating a story for a family he’d never met.

Compounding that lie, the photo gets destroyed right before the story goes to press and Ellis has to race back to the ramshackle town to take another one. Except, that family has moved on. What is he going to do?

When a young girl comes up to his car with a bouquet of wilting flowers for him to buy, fate once again steps in and Elis seizes the opportunity to use the girl and her brother in the new picture- he even manages to find the same sign lying in a pile of scrap wood. Satisfied with the results, and with the mother’s somewhat hesitant approval, Ellis races back in time to make the paper and figures that’s the end of that. Instead, it’s the beginning of a horrifying tale that needs to be read to be believed.

This story is based on a real newspaper photo that captured a nation’s attention- a must-read!

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On Blackberry Island, friendship, love and forgiveness are as constant as the ocean waves, if only you can make room in your heart for hope.

Michelle Sanderson may appear to be a strong, independent woman, but on the inside, she’s still the wounded girl who fled home years ago. A young army vet, Michelle returns to the quaint Blackberry Island Inn to claim her inheritance and recover from the perils of war. Instead, she finds the owner’s suite occupied by the last person she wants to see.

Carly Williams and Michelle were once inseparable, until a shocking betrayal destroyed their friendship. And now Carly is implicated in the financial disaster lurking behind the inn’s cheerful veneer.

Single mother Carly has weathered rumors, lies and secrets for a lifetime, and is finally starting to move forward with love and life. But if the Blackberry Island Inn goes under, Carly and her daughter will go with it.

To save their livelihoods, Carly and Michelle will undertake a turbulent truce. It’ll take more than a successful season to move beyond their devastating past, but with a little luck and a beautiful summer, they may just rediscover the friendship of a lifetime.

My Review

Michelle Sanderson returns to Blackberry Island from a ten-year tour of duty a changed woman. The things she’s been through, and the injuries sustained haunt her days and keep her up at night. On top of that, the inn she owns has been transformed into a kitschy money pit, and her once-best-friend-now-enemy is running the place. Pain and anger rule her tongue and hurtful, hateful words are exchanged- ones that aren’t easy to overcome.

Truthfully, Carly has done a good job keeping the inn going, especially after the mess Michelle’s mother left behind when she died. A double delinquent mortgage, unpaid bills, and shoddy repairs are just a few of the problems facing the new owner. Like it or not, Michelle needs Carly- and a never-ending supply of vodka to dull the misery wouldn’t hurt either.

Michelle is a proud, stubborn woman who’s had more than her share of hard knocks, starting back when her father ran out on the family with Carly’s mother, leaving Michelle the inn and a whole lot of resentment. She runs away to join the military and finds a place within the organized regimen that eases her anxiety. Until a fateful trip beyond the gates ends with her shooting a man down and taking a bullet to the hip. Filled with turmoil, Michelle returns home expecting safety to recover and instead finds life went on without her.

I had a lot of empathy for both women in this story. Their parents had a lot to answer for, but sins of the past don’t have to rule the future if forgiveness is in the hearts of those wronged.

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Moving on has never been harder—or so perfectly unpredictable…

Peyton Prescott would give anything for the carefree life she knew before breast cancer changed everything. But instead of using her second chance to move forward, she’s stuck promoting the memoir her brother convinced her to write, thus reliving the very battle she wants to forget. If she hopes her European book tour will allow her to enjoy revisiting her favorite travel-writing destinations, she’s wrong: her PR whiz is too consumed with his own goals to consider her needs.

Mitch Mathis has relied on discipline to achieve his goals, and with his new firm’s success riding on Peyton’s book launch, he must keep her on task. They’re here for business, not pleasure. And Mitch won’t let unbridled desire harm his professional reputation—not again.

When frustrated expectations and attraction throw the tour into chaos, it challenges everything Mitch and Peyton believe about themselves, life, and love, forcing these opposites to consider whether they can embrace the change they need to grow.

My Review

A breast cancer survivor, Peyton Prescott would like to forget the whole horrifying episode and move on with her jet-setting social media career, but instead she’s trapped, reliving the physical and mental toll over and over again while promoting the memoir her devoted brother talked her into writing during the ordeal.

She’d walk away, except half the proceeds are going toward cancer research, and the handsome PR whiz, who’s joining her on the tour, is counting on its success to cement his fledgling company in the cut-throat industry.

This is one woman’s journey to self-healing through a journey fraught with land mines waiting to tug her under. An emotional, heart-tugging read worthy of the re-read shelf!

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Do you like emotional stories now and then? Have you read anything from these authors? Let’s chat…