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Hello Fellow Readers!

Sorry for the little break last week.  It was a crazy around here. I have been reading despite the craziness and have plenty of books to share with you.

Do you compare books to food?

I have been having an inner debate about what I call “popcorn” books. This is not a derogatory term. I find that sometimes I just need a quick read to take my mind somewhere else and let it rest for awhile. I am all in favor of “popcorn” books, after all, that is a huge market and can be all that some people read.  Good for them – they are at least reading. I would say that a “popcorn” book is generally summed up with the plot line as follows:  girl has some obstacle, she meets guy who appears to be wrong for her, they battle, and then eventually find themselves in love. There can be lots of variation in the obstacles and the reason for the antagonism between the main characters. It is fine with me. You know that they will end up together at the end and it is predictable but satisfying.

“Popcorn” books make great beach reads. They are light and simple and can hold your attention.  It is not hard to follow the plot so they can be put down and picked up easily.

There is another level of book that is a bit above “popcorn” but not quite on the level with Jane Eyre. These books probably show more personal growth for the characters and the characters in general have more depth. This category is still a good beach read but more of one that you hate to put down because you want to see what happens.

With that lead in, I want to tell you about The Sound of Glass by Karen White. I received an advance copy of this book from the web site www.firsttoread.com . This is a site for readers to be able to sign up for advance copies of books.  I suggest that you take a minute and go to the site and check it out. I have some pros and cons about the site but I will address those some other time.

The Sound of Glass will be available on May 12 but you can pre-order your copy on Amazon now.
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The story is told from the vantage point of three women.  One of the women is dead, one of the women is recovering from several losses and one is on a mission.  While the weaving of stories and different times can be a hard technique to master and really annoying to a reader, this was one of the best examples of doing it right that I have ever read.

Merritt is trying to put her life together.  She lost her mother in a car accident at the age of 12. While she was in college, her father remarried and she was hurt by his marriage and broke off her connection with him. Her husband of seven years died two years ago.  She is informed that her husband inherited a house in South Carolina and that as his heir, she inherited the house.  She has decided that she needs to leave Maine and go to the house and see if she can rebound from the relationships that haunt her.  She wants to be somewhere where she doesn’t know anyone and can just be alone.

She no sooner gets to the house when her step-mother, Loralee,  and her 10 year old half brother arrive intent on living with her. Loralee is the second woman in the book.

The third woman is Merritt’s husband’s grandmother, the woman that left the house to Merritt’s husband.  It is through finding out more about her that Merritt finds out more about the things that haunt her.

Do you read a physical book or electronic books more?

I had a hard time putting the book down.  While it became obvious what Loralee’s intentions were, she plays a pivotal role in the story.

This is not a “popcorn” book.  There is a lot of depth of character and the end is not completely clear from the beginning.

I think you will find this a good book to read this summer.

Thanks for reading!