A Summer of Surprises: a story of second chances

A Summer of Surprises by Judith Keim is a part of the Seashell Cottage standalone series. Jill Conroy is tricked by her sister, Cristal, into being a housekeeper and cook for the summer at the Seashell Cottage where Greg Campbell and his nephew, Brody, have been hired to do maintenance projects on the property. Jill soon realizes that the time away from her home and the memories of her deceased, emotionally abusive husband is just what she needs. It isn’t long before Jill also realizes she needs to make a new life for herself. She begins her plans and her new future seems to be set. A sudden visit from Cristal, followed by their mother, forces Jill to reveal secrets she has been hiding. Can she close the door on the past for the open opportunity for peace, happiness and even love? 

Families and especially sisters can be complicated. Jill has spent her life in the shadow of her gorgeous sister which leads to an abusive marriage. Even though the tragic death of her husband has physically set her free, Jill is still trapped by her insecurities and familial bonds. The beach is truly healing in A Summer of Surprises as Jill finds a new strength, a new voice and a new purpose. I thoroughly enjoyed Jill and her journey. I cheered for her as she confronted the past and those who allowed her abuse to be such a secret. The Seashell Cottage series are all standalones and they are great stories of life-changing experiences and A Summer of Surprises is a great addition to the series. I highly recommend A Summer of Surprises as well as the Seashell Cottage. 

A Summer of Surprises is available in hardcover, eBook and audiobook 

The Idea of You: one woman's journey to a family

The Idea of You by Amanda Prowse is the story of one woman’s journey through miscarriages and coming to terms with the past. When the story opens, Lucy is at the christening of her co-worker’s son. She is reeling from the recent break up from her boyfriend, Richard, and his subsequent engagement to her cousin. While she is there, she meets Jonah Carpenter. Fast forward, she is now married to Jonah and they are expecting a baby. While they are happily planning and dreaming, the unthinkable happens. Lucy is rushed to the hospital where they learn she has miscarried. While Lucy is learning to deal with her miscarriage, her stepdaughter, Camille, is coming to stay with them. Lucy must learn to interact with her teenage stepdaughter as well as come to terms that a baby may not be in her future. When Camille reveals a life changing secret, Lucy must confront a past she has hidden from everyone including Jonah. Will Lucy be able to move forward? Will Jonah forgive her for hidden this secret? Will she ever have the family she’s dreamed of?

I loved The Idea of You! As a woman who has suffered multiple miscarriages, I could relate to Lucy and her desire for a family. The story was filled with drama, twists and turns which leave the reader eager to turn the page to find out what happens. I love the ending and the growth that Lucy displays as she comes to terms with how her life has turned out. It is a story that readers who understand Lucy’s situation would appreciate. Readers who have never experienced miscarriages would be able to get inside the mind of a woman who has and get a glimpse of the heartbreak a miscarriage can bring. I highly recommend The Idea of You.

The Idea of You

is available on Amazon

in paperback and on the Kindle

One of my most important lessons from school

One of the most important lessons I learned in school is that teachers aren’t always right. I know from firsthand experience when teachers would make a statement about a child that could affect his or her future.

                                                

One of the first statements ever made was when I was in kindergarten. My teacher, Mrs. Acton, told my mother that because I didn’t jump rope, I wouldn’t be a good reader. My mom knew that I could jump robe, I did at home all the time. Why I didn’t want to at school, I have no idea. My mom took this statement and laughed. At the time, the correlation was never explained to my mom but I have found research that shows that jumping rope can help with establish basic reading skills. However, my teacher made this statement on the fact that she didn’t see me jump rope at school, never acknowledging that I jumped rope at home. Although research shows that jump rope can help with reading skills. Many teachers fail to see the correlational relationships and immediately jump to the cause and effect relationship. Anyway, I certainly proved her wrong especially when I would be given awards in the 7^th grade for reading books at a college level. I’ve been reading ever since and it’s my favorite activity.

                                          

A second statement made to about me happened in the 3^rd grade. Third grade taught the dreaded cursive writing and like many people, I couldn’t make certain letters like they would supposed to look like. I did my own and I also write fast that sometimes my writing can be illegible. My teachers, Mrs. Stockings and Mrs. Mackenzie, both told my mom that because my cursive wasn’t legible, I would not do well in college. Again, my mom just laughed pointed out that many doctors' handwriting is illegible and they apparently made it through college! I did very well in college. I enjoyed all my classes. The funniest thing about this whole statement is by the time that I attended college, beginning in 1998, everything that was handed in had to typed and very little was handwritten!

A third statement was said to me constant during the 8^th grade. In the 8^th grade, I was a student aide to my team of teachers and they were amazed that I read so much. However, my Algebra teacher, Mr. O’Leary, didn’t like that I was reading romance novels and would tell me often that “those books will rot your brain.” Many of the romance novels that I read were written by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss or Julie Garwood who both are considered greats in the romance genre. Compared to what is written today, they will remain the greatest in their genre. Those romance novels led me to read other books and learning about different times and places in history. For instance, many of Julie Garwood’s historical fiction takes place in Scotland. Reading about this wonderful place led me to check out books about its history and people. Robert Burns, national poet of Scotland, is one of my favorite poets and Scotland is on my bucket list of places to travel to. There are many books out there are not worth reading but when a child is reading on his or her own, don’t put down their choice of book. Encourage their growth in reading and lead them to discover new and wonderful books.

                                   

Teaching is a difficult job and many teachers are never thanked like they should be. However, teachers, please be careful what you say about a student because that statement stay with him or her throughout their lives. If they aren’t like me and turn it into a positive, it can have devastating results for that child’s future.