A Million Little Lies by Bette Lee Crosby

Good Day!  Are you looking for some new books to read?  The Girls of Victory Street by Pam Howes releases on July 27 along with From Beer to Eternity by Sherry Harris and Someone's Listening by Seraphina Nova Glass. The Cabinets of Barnaby Mayne by Elsa Hart publishes on August 4 and so does Piecing it All Together by Leslie Gould. Mums and Mayhem by Amanda Flower is out August 11.  It is so hot this summer that it is best to relax somewhere cool with a refreshing, cold beverage and read.

A Million Little Lies by Bette Lee Crosby has Suzanna Duff leaving town in the middle of the night with her young daughter, Annie.  Suzanna moved in with Earl when she was pregnant after her father tossed her out.  After what happened when Earl came home drunk, Suzanna knows she needs to get Annie out of there.  A nice man takes them as far as Cousins, Georgia where she can catch a bus.  Suzanna plans on heading to New Jersey because a friend moved there three years ago.  Unfortunately, the bus had left for the day.  Annie is hungry and Suzanna notices a flyer for the memorial lunch for William Parker.  Ida Parker, the widow, grabs Suzanna’s arm and call her Darla Jean.  Ida has mistaken Suzanna for her granddaughter whom she has not seen since she was an infant.  Ida insists that they stay with her and Suzanna figures it would not hurt for one night.  Ida is lonely since her husband passed.  With the addition of Suzanna and Annie, Ida’s home comes alive and she intends to keep it that way.  Suzanna and Annie continue to live with Ida, and they become a family.  Then one day someone from Suzanna’s past arrives in town.  Suzanna has a hard choice to make.

A Million Little Lies by Bette Lee Crosby is a heartwarming story.  It takes readers back to 1960 in a small Georgia town. I thought A Million Little Lies was well-written with realistic characters.  The characters have their good points and their foibles.  Suzanna told her first lie when she was ten years old.  It was just a white lie, but it was the beginning.  Suzanna and her daughter, Annie were living with Earl until he went too far one night while drunk.  She wants a better life for her child and Earl was not setting a good example.  Thanks to a kindly man, the pair end up in Cousins, Georgia.  Ida Parker had taken care of her husband for the last two years while the cancer took away the man she loved.  Her husband’s son, Thomas disappeared with his wife and granddaughter when he announced he was marrying Ida.  Ida misses having family.  When she spots Suzanna at her husband’s memorial, she reminds Ida of her granddaughter, Darla Jean.  A series of circumstances have Suzanna and Annie living with Ida.  A Million Little Lies is such a cute story.  It did seem that someone was watching over these three.  I was drawn right into the tale and I just kept reading until I finished it.    There is some foul language in the book that I wish had not been present.  A Million Little Lies has Southern charm, family, and wisdom.  There are good life lessons in this story with my favorite being that there is more than one type of family.   A Million Little Lies is a feel-good story that lingers with you after you finish it.  

Elementary School 1960s

A Million Little Lies is available from Amazon*.  It is available through Kindle Unlimited.  You can find Bette Lee Crosby's other novels here.  Thank you for stopping by today.  I appreciate it.  Tomorrow I am featuring False Conclusion by Veronica Heley.  It is the 14th A Bea Abbott Mystery.  I hope you have a serene day.  Take care, stay safe, and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader

*This post contains affiliate links.

Emily Gone by Bette Lee Crosby

Good Day!  The Printed Letter Bookshop by Katherine Reay will be out on May 14 along with My Ex-Best Friend's Wedding by Wendy Wax.  A Twist in the Tail by Leighann Dobbs releases on May 16 and it is the first book in The Oyster Cove Guesthouse series.  Sconed to Death by Lynn Cahoon, Murder with Cucumber Sandwiches by Karen Rose Smith and The Amish Cookie Club by Sarah Price publish on May 28.  These are just a few of the new books coming out in May.  

Emily, Gone by Bette Lee Crosby takes readers back to August of 1971.  A music festival has been scheduled by Big Sound to be held in Baker’s Field just outside Hesterville, Georgia.  George and Rachel Dixon along with their six month old daughter, Emily live near there and are overwhelmed by the music.  None of them get sleep until the rain hits on Sunday muffling the music thanks to their metal roof.  Emily is put to sleep in her crib and her parents fall into a deep sleep in their room.  They never hear the woman slipping into their home, pick up Emily and disappear into the night.  The next morning, Rachel goes into Emily’s room to discover her gone.  The Dixon’s life will never be the same again.

 

Vicki Robart and her boyfriend, Russ “Murph” Murphy are attending the music festival with thousands of others.  Vicki has been keeping herself numb with marijuana since her daughter was stillborn in February.  When they depart the festival on Sunday evening, Vicki is hungry.  She spots the dark farmhouse and has Murph stop hoping the family leaves their kitchen door unlocked.  Vicki sneaks into the kitchen and spots the baby bottles.  She has a chance to fill her arms which have ached since her little girl was stillborn.  Vicki’s act changes the lives of three women.  What happens, though, when the truth is finally revealed?

 

Emily, Gone is the story of what happens when a woman takes a child and the aftermath.  I thought Emily, Gone was well-written with steady pacing.  It deals with a tragedy that affects not just Vicki, Rachel, George and Emily but others as well including the residents of Hesterville and Sheriff Carl Wilson.  The kidnapping took place before the internet and amber alerts.  There is little forensic evidence and thousands of suspects.  Finding a six month old child is like finding a needle in a haystack.  Rachel Dixon blames herself for not locking the kitchen door while George goes through a similar blame game.  Russ Murphy knows what Vicki did is wrong, and he tries to find a way to rectify the situation.  The two stories are told in a direct manner.  The characters are realistic along with the feelings and situations.  I could feel Rachel’s distress and loss.  George wants to stay strong for his wife, but he is dealing with the same emotions.  Vicki is thrilled to have her baby and joy pours from her.  Bette Lee Crosby portrays the long term affects of the kidnapping.  Helen Dixon, George’s mother, is my favorite character.  She is not without flaws and is no stranger to heartbreak.   Helen, or Mama Dixon as she is called, provides strength to Rachel and George along with love, understanding, and provides practical advice.  I do want readers to know that the book contains foul language and judicious use of marijuana (it was the 70s).  I did feel that the story was a little long at 394 pages and Russ Murphy’s story seemed incomplete.  I appreciated the epilogue.  Emily, Gone is a feel good story that shows there is a reason for why things happen.  I enjoyed the reference to the little girl’s Mrs. Beasley doll (I wanted one of these dolls) from Family Affair.  There are two phrases I thought were especially profound.  “Sorrow does strange things to a woman” is the first.  “When someone you love hurts, you hurt for them.  That’s how love is” as said by Mama Dixon.  Emily, Gone shows that God does work in mysterious ways. 

Emily, Gone will be available on April 30 and is on Kindle Unlimited. Thank you for visiting me today.  I will be sharing my review of Murder in the Reading Room by Ellery Adams tomorrow.  May you have a sunshiny day!  Take care and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader

A Year of Extraordinary Moments: A Magnolia Grove Novel

Welcome!  An Amish Homecoming by Amy Clipston, Beth Wiseman, Kathleen Fuller and Shelley Shepard Gray is out today along with The Christmas Star by Donna VanLiere, Delayed Justice by Cara Putman, A Year of Extraordinary Moments by Bette Crosby, Dear Santa by Nancy Naigle and The Spitfire Girl by Fenella Miller (I will feature on October 24).  

A Year of Extraordinary Moments by Bette Lee Crosby is the second A Magnolia Grove Novel.  Dominic DeLuca left Magnolia Grove three and a half years ago and swore that he would never return.  His grandmother, Alice calls telling Dominic that her cancer has returned, and she only has months to live.  Alice would like him to return home to help her finalize details.  Dominic reluctantly returns to Magnolia Grove, but he is not prepared for his grandmother’s interference in his life.  Tracy Briggs lives with her mother, Lila and her hearing impaired son, Lucas and manages the Snip ‘N Save magazine that her father began.  Tracy has turned her life around since she left Dominic and returned home.  Her sister, Meghan is happy working alongside her husband, Tom at the Kindness Animal Clinic.  She wants Tracy to have a fulfilling personal life and encourages her to go out with Gabriel Hawke.  When Gabriel asks Tracy to accompany him to an awards dinner, it is beginning of their relationship.  Alice is unable to get a straight answer from Dominic regarding Lucas’ parentage, and she decides to take matters into her own hands.  Alice sets out to get answers and ends up having a special relationship with her great-grandson as well as Tracy.  It leads Alice to make decisions that will lead to unexpected repercussions.  Come along to Magnolia Grove for A Year of Extraordinary Moments.

A Year of Extraordinary Moments is not a standalone novel.  You need to read The Summer of New Beginnings before embarking on A Year of Extraordinary Moments.  I did find the story to be a slow starter.  The beginning was off-putting to me, and I wish the author had started A Year of Extraordinary Moments on a different note.  However, the pace slowly increases, and the story becomes more intriguing.  By the halfway mark, I was engrossed and kept reading until I finished.  I was surprised to find foul language and intimate relations before marriage included in A Year of Extraordinary Moments.  I thought A Year of Extraordinary Moments was a Christian novel.  The characters were well-developed, and I like that they keep evolving (except for one).  Alice was such a loving character.  You could feel the love she had for family and the pain she was experiencing from her illness and Dominic’s actions.  The point-of-view alternates between Meghan, Dominic, Tracy, and Alice.  It allows the reader to see each person’s perspective and understand what they are thinking and feeling.  However, it is also distracting and made it hard to become fully engaged in the book.  Bette Lee Crosby portrays what a family experiences when a child is hearing impaired.  In this book, Lucas is learning to speak with the aid of his cochlear implant and speech therapy.  I appreciated that the author shows the difference between a job and career that someone enjoys.  It is important to find your niche and follow your dreams.  I did feel the romance between Gabriel and Tracy was rushed.  One minute Tracy states they are just friends and then he asks her out for which he receives a resounding yes (I experienced whiplash at her sudden change of mind).  I was happy to see them become a couple, but their relationship seemed rushed.  There are some loving moments with Alice, Tracy, Charlie, and Lucas that will touch your heart.  A Year of Extraordinary Moments has family love and drama, friendship, romance, hope, faith and tension blended into one absorbing novel. 

Both of books in A Magnolia Grove Novel series are on the Kindle Unlimited Program through Amazon.  Thank you for joining me today.  Tomorrow I am featuring Forever Fudge by Nancy Coco.  It is the sixth book in A Candy-Coated Mystery series.  I hope you have a positive day. Take care and Happy Reading! 


Kris 
The Avid Reader

The Summer of New Beginnings: A Magnolia Grove Novel

Hello!  I hope everyone had a lovely weekend.  Bette Lee Crosby is the author of The Serendipity Series, Wishing for Wonderful, Wyattsville series, Cracks in the Sidewalk, Blueberry Hill and A Memory House series.  Readers can follow Ms. Crosby on Amazon, Bookbub, Facebook and Goodreads.

The Summer of New Beginnings by Bette Lee Crosby is A Magnolia Grove Novel.    Meghan Briggs has just graduated from high school in Magnolia Grove, Georgia and is looking forward to attending the Grady College of Journalism in the fall.  But then her father has a deadly heart attack, and Meghan steps in to take over the running of her father’s business, Snip ‘N’ Save magazine.  She wants to preserve her father’s legacy and memory by keeping the publication alive.  Tracy is more about enjoying life and rebelling against the norm.  When Tracy’s boyfriend, Dominic gets a job in Philadelphia, she announces she is moving with him.  Two years later Tracy returns home with her son, Lucas who has yet to start talking.  Tracy has grown up while she was away and begins helping Meghan with the magazine.  It turns out that Tracy has a flair for graphic design.  Meghan has devoted her time to running the magazine and not allowing anytime for a personal life.  One day Meghan is out running and sees a puppy struggling in the lake.  She rescues the little fellow and names him Sox.  She does not want to fall for the him in case his owner shows up, but Meghan is soon under his spell.  Meghan takes Sox to Dr. Tom Whitely to check for a chip, and she discovers her love of working with animals.  Megan used to write in composition books and she picks up the habit again.   It gives her an opportunity to work out her thoughts and emotions.  As the summer progresses, new challenges are put in their paths.  These women will need to reconcile the past in order to have a bright new beginning.  Come along for the journey in The Summer of New Beginnings.

The Summer of New Beginnings is nicely written and has a relaxed pace.  Bette Lee Crosby has a writing style that is relaxed (conversational) and draws the reader in.  The point-of-view switches between the characters with sections that remind me of diary entries.  It allows readers to discover what each character is thinking and feeling which I appreciate.  I like how each character is dealing with real life issues such as the loss of a loved one, problems with a child, limited income, dealing with an ex-boyfriend, falling in love, having to give up on a dream, etc.  There is a great family dynamic and it is lovely seeing these three women come together (help each other, support each other and love each other).  The author created realistic characters that readers can relate to along with their issues.  Ms. Crosby handled the issue with Lucas gently and with sensitively (I would say more but I do not want to spoil it for you).  There are some lovely life lessons in the story that many people will be able to relate to and apply to their own life.  The Summer of New Beginnings is what I call a feel-good book that will leave you with a smile on your face and a good feeling in your heart.  The Summer of New Beginnings will be out on Tuesday, March 27 and is part of the Kindle Unlimited Program on Amazon.

Thank you for stopping by today and reading my review.  Tomorrow I will be sharing my thoughts on Natural Thorn Killer by Kate Dyer-Seeley.  It is the first book in A Rose City Mystery series.  Please consider following my blog by clicking the follow button (top right).  I hope your day is filled with joy.  Take care of yourself and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader