Books I Read in October

 I found time to read 10 books this month.  I was pretty happy with that and found lots of great books to enjoy too.  I even found three books that were just perfect for the season and put me in a fall loving frame of mind.

1.  Beach House for Rent by Mary Alice Monroe-- I read and summarized this book in My September Reading list (2017) post but wanted to re-read the story since I have been reading the Beach House series from the start this year.  Here is what I wrote:  "In Beach House For Rent Cara Rutledge rents out her beach house on the Isle of Palms for the summer to Heather Wyatt.  Cara needs the money to try and keep her family afloat while Heather needs a quiet place to paint birds for her new job making postal stamps. Heather find solace on the isle and begins to be drawn out of her shell, opens her heart to falling in love, and begins embracing adventure.  However as Cara's world begins collapsing around her she just wants to return to her family home.  Heather refuses to budge and the two begin rooming together; forming an unlikely friendship."

 2.  Oliver's Story by Erich Segal-- I hadn't known there was a sequel to Love Story until I re-read the story last month. Having already watched the movie I knew the basic premise of the book.  Oliver is trying to move on after he has lost the love of his life.  It's been two years and Oliver truly believes he'll never love again.  Then one day he meets Marcie an executive from a mighty department store empire and while she intrigues him he's still not sure he's ready to move on. 

3.  Two Old Women by Velma Wallis-- I read this short story while in the hospital for my surgery.  It was quite interesting.  Written by an Athabaskan tribal member it is the story of two old women who are left behind by their tribe one brutal winter in the hopes of saving the rest of the tribe.  The two old women work hard together to survive the winter and even end up thriving.  

4.  High Country Bride by Linda Lael Miller-- This is the second book I read while in the hospital.  It was a cute story about Emmaline who signs up to be a mail order bride for Rafe McKentrick.  Rafe's father has promised to leave his ranch to whichever one of his sons marries and produces an heir first.  Rafe has no idea what to expect with a mail order bride and is pleasantly surprised that Emmaline is beautiful and spirited.  However Emmaline is keeping a secret that might just ruin everything.  

5.  Come Back to Me By Mila Gray -- Jessa had just turned 18 and is about to graduate from high school when she falls in love with her brother's best friend, Kit.  Kit and Riley (Jessa's brother) are in the marine corps and are being deployed overseas in less than a month. Jessa's father hates Kit and her brother has always been over protective of her but Jessa has decided Kit is worth defying her family for. Then an officer arrives on her doorstep to deliver news that someone she loves has died overseas. Jessa can't imagine having lost either her brother or her boyfriend. As most of the story is told in flashback form we wait through most of the book to find out who has died.  It was a pretty gripping read! Though labeled as young adult there are quite a few graphic sex scenes so be warned. 

6.  First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen-- I wasn't so sure about this book at first as the Waverly sisters and their family have special powers and while I love Harry Potter I often have a hard time reading other books about magic.  I don't understand it either... but I did really like this book!  It was such a cute story.  Each first frost of the fall the apple tree in the backyard of the Waverly family home begins to bloom and with that bloom the family feels a reset of the year.  A heartwarming story about family and finding your place. 

7. The Simplicity of Cider by Amy E. Reichert-- I enjoyed this story but did find that it took me weeks to read it as I didn't feel compelled to read it; know what I mean?  Sanna and her dad Einars run the Lund family orchard. Then one summer her dad hires Isaac and his son Bass to help with chores as Sanna dabbles in cider making.  Her father takes a nasty fall and the family must rely on their summer help even more.  With a big corporation looking to snap up the family land, Sanna's brother pushing for the sale, a bit of sabotage from someone close to the family, a simmering attraction between Sanna and Isaac, and a pretty big secret that Isaac is keeping; the book had a good plot line and several subplots that did keep me interested and I kept rooting for a happy ending for them all. 

8. Beach House Reunion by Mary Alice Monroe-- This 5th book in the series finds Cara Rutledge moving back home to the beach house to be surrounded by family.  Her niece Linnea moves in with her both open their hearts to the lessons of nature and the possibilities of love. 

9. The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan & Orpheus Collar-- I had already read this story with my boys but my younger two read this graphic novel version and just gushed over it. I'm not typically a graphic novel fan because I always want more details.  It helped that I had read the story beforehand. 

 

10.  The Bakeshop at Pumpkin and Spice by Donna Kauffman, Kate Angell, & Allyson Charles-- A cute set of short stories all centered around Halloween magic in the town of Moonbright, Maine.  In story on Bree meets Caleb and though sparks fly neither one can see how a relationship would work long-term with Bree living in Maine and Caleb helping at his family business in Philadelphia. In the second story Cassie is determined to not fall for the wrong sort of guy so she sets her sights on her stable, dependable boss who doesn't even seem to know she's alive.  

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