January Pick:  Moloka'i by Alan Brennert 

This richly imagined novel, set in Hawai'i more than a century ago, is an extraordinary epic of a little-known time and place---and a deeply moving testament to the resiliency of the human spirit.

Rachel Kalama, a spirited seven-year-old Hawaiian girl, dreams of visiting far-off lands like her father, a merchant seaman. Then one day a rose-colored mark appears on her skin, and those dreams are stolen from her. Taken from her home and family, Rachel is sent to Kalaupapa, the quarantined leprosy settlement on the island of Moloka'i. Here her life is supposed to end---but instead she discovers it is only just beginning.

With a vibrant cast of vividly realized characters, Moloka'i is the true-to-life chronicle of a people who embraced life in the face of death. Such is the warmth, humor, and compassion of this novel that "few readers will remain unchanged by Rachel's story" (mostlyfiction.com).

Decembers Pick

           

In a desperate attempt to escape destruction decades earlier, humankind was forced underground, into the depths of the earth, creating a new society called the Tri-Realms. After her parents and sister are abducted by the Enforcers, seventeen-year-old Adele, a member of the middle-class moon dwellers, is unjustly sentenced to life in prison for her parents' crimes of treason. Against all odds, Adele must escape from the Pen and find her family, while being hunted by a deranged, killing machine named Rivet, who works for the President. She is helped by two other inmates, Tawni and Cole, each of whom have dark secrets that are better left undiscovered. Other than her friends, the only thing she has going for her is a wicked roundhouse kick and two fists that have been well-trained for combat by her father. At the other end of the social spectrum is Tristan, the son of the President and a sun dweller. His mother is gone. He hates his father. Backed by only his servant and best friend, Roc, he leaves his lavish lifestyle in the Sun Realm, seeking to make something good out of his troubled life. When a war breaks out within the Tri-Realms, Tristan is thrust into the middle of a conflict that seems to mysteriously follow Adele as she seeks to find her family and uncover her parents true past. In their world, someone must die.

November is Gambling Month

Full disclosure:  Jennifer has broken the Sorta Naughty Cardinal Rule this November.  She has not read this book. Instead, she is relying on the hordes of reviewers on Amazon and Goodreads who LOVED this book 4.5% of the time.  She has no idea how often the "F" word will be mentioned, but is fairly certain that there will be no zombies or people with magical abilities within the cover.  So taking a leap...Jennifer's November pick is:

Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline

I hope it's a good one.  I've got Clint Eastwood in my ear saying, "Do you feel Lucky?"

World War Z

This month's book is World War Z, by Max Brooks. As I am not a big zombie fan, I didn't expect to like it, but I found it was more about human response to a disaster than about zombies, per se. I thought it was fascinating, and had my husband read it. He thinks it's boring. Oh, well. Can't wait to see what y'all think!

Sorry for the delay...

This month's book is Divergent by Victoria Roth. 

In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.
During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.
Debut author Veronica Roth bursts onto the YA scene with the first book in the Divergent series—dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance.



And, yes, I know...this is sooooo not my usual type of book!

Mistress of Nothing - August Book of the Month

Synopsis

When Lady Duff Gordon, paragon of London society, departs for the hot, dry climate of Egypt to seek relief from her debilitating tuberculosis, her lady’s maid, Sally, doesn’t hesitate to leave the only world she has known in order to remain at her mistress’s side. As Sally gets farther and farther from home, she experiences freedoms she has never known—forgoing corsets and wearing native dress, learning Arabic, and having her first taste of romance.

But freedom is a luxury that a lady’s maid can ill afford, and when Sally’s newfound passion for life causes her to forget what she is entitled to, she is brutally reminded she is mistress of nothing. Ultimately she must choose her master and a way back home—or a way to an unknown future. (bn.com)

Anne's Pick for July 1st

A Land More Kind Than Home

by Wiley Cash

For a curious boy like Jess Hall, growing up in Marshall means trouble when you get caught spying on grown-ups. Adventurous and precocious, Jess is protective of his older brother, Christopher, a mute whom everyone calls Stump. Though their mother has warned them not to snoop, Stump can't help sneaking a look at something he's not supposed to—an act that will have repercussions. It's a wrenching event that thrusts Jess into an adulthood for which he's not prepared. He now knows that a new understanding can bring not only danger and evil—but also the possibility of freedom and deliverance.

Annell's Pick for June 10th Book Club

The Rent Collector

by Camron Wright

Synopsis:

Survival for Ki Lim and Sang Ly is a daily battle at Stung Meanchey, the largest municipal waste dump in all of Cambodia. They make their living scavenging recyclables from the trash. Life would be hard enough without the worry for their chronically ill child, Nisay, and the added expense of medicines that are not working.

Just when things seem worst, Sang Ly learns a secret about the ill-tempered rent collector who comes demanding money—a secret that sets in motion a tide that will change the life of everyone it sweeps past. The Rent Collector is a story of hope, of one woman's journey to save her son and another woman's chance at redemption. It demonstrates that even in a dump in Cambodia—perhaps especially in a dump in Cambodia—everyone deserves a second chance.

Athena's pick for May: Taliesin by Stephen Lawhead

An enchanting tale of love and loss, glory and grandeur, set in the twilight of Rome's power -- where the Celtic chieftains of Britain battle to save their land from an onrushing darkness. In this modern classic, Stephen Lawhead presents a majestic retelling of western literature's most compelling epic. A Druid Prince -- Singer at the Dawn of the Age. His song would kindle a vision that would burn forever. Taliesin, oracle of melody. His singing bore the haunting beauty of another world . . . and the spark of a kingdom yet to come. Charis, Lady of the Lake -- Driven by the cataclysm that destroyed her home -- the scented groves of the Isle of Apples, the coliseums of the bull dancers of Atlantis -- she encountered an uncertain future in a barbarous land . . . and the bard who would capture her untamed heart. Their love would bridge two worlds. And like golden threads, their lives would knit the fabric of a timeless legend; that of Merlin the prophet . . . and Arthur the king. --

About the Author

Stephen R. Lawhead is an internationally acclaimed author of mythic history and imaginative fiction. His works include Byzantium and the series The Pendragon Cycle, The Celtic Crusades, and The Song of Albion. Lawhead makes his home in Austria with his wife.

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March Book - Sorry It's Late!!!

Here is the pick for March - I am posting this for Celia and I totally forgot until today!

March's Book is:

Out of Time

by

Deborah Truscott

Synopsis

Kathleen Findlay is married to a cad, her mother is driving her crazy and her life is falling apart. Then her uncle dies, leaving her the family’s Revolutionary-era home and, she believes, an escape from her chaotic marriage. But one afternoon, while searching for a rake, she discovers a man in her garden shed — and a free fall through the centuries. 

As her life spins wildly out of control, Kathleen finds her heart and in the process, her own place in time.

Happy Reading Everyone!

Stationery Card

Knot Twins Birth Announcement

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Lauri's pick for February:

 

 The Sleeping Beauty by Mercedes Lackey

Heavy is the head - and the eyelids - of the princess who wears the crown.
In Rosamund's realm, happiness hinges on a few simple beliefs:
For every princess there's a prince.
The king has ultimate power.
Stepmothers should never be trusted.
And bad things come to those who break with Tradition..

The moral of the story? Sometimes a princess has to create her own happy endings..