#WRC2017: It Happens All the Time by Amy Hatvany

This fall, members of the Vise Library are participating in the Booksparks Winter Reading Challenge! We have received copies of several books from publishers for honest reviews. We hope that you enjoy these reviews (and books)!

About the book:

From master storyteller Amy Hatvany - whose writing has been hailed as "gripping and emotionally honest" (Stephanie Evanovich, New York Times best-selling author) comes a provocative and compelling novel about two friends whose lives are changed by a drunken kiss.

I want to rewind the clock, take back the night when the world shattered. I want to erase everything that went wrong.

Amber Bryant and Tyler Hicks have been best friends since they were teenagers - trusting and depending on each other through some of the darkest periods of their young lives. And while Amber has always felt that their relationship is strictly platonic, Tyler has long harbored the secret desire that they might one day become more than friends.

Returning home for the summer after her college graduation, Amber begins spending more time with Tyler than she has in years. Despite the fact that Amber is engaged to her college sweetheart, a flirtation begins to grow between them. One night, fueled by alcohol and concerns about whether she's getting married too young, Amber kisses Tyler.

What happens next will change them forever.

In alternating points of view, It Happens All the Time examines the complexity of sexual dynamics between men and women and offers an incisive exploration of gender roles, expectations, and the ever-timely issue of consent.

I will have to say that this book is very heavy and it is about a topic that needs to be discussed more often.  Consent and date rape are very real topics in our society that happen "all the time."  This book explores that topic between two people that have known each other their whole lives.  Amber and Tyler have been best friends and Amber trusts Tyler more than anyone else in her life.  She gets engaged and Tyler really hopes she leaves her fiance for him.  However, one drunken kiss leads to something that will ultimately change them and their relationship forever.  This book shows us both Amber and Tyler's points of views after the rape and revisiting their past friendship together.
  
This book is not just for women, but for men as well in order to understand what "no" really means, no ifs ands or buts.  I think this book sheds light on the fact that rape can happen to literally anyone and that it can happen from the person you least expect or the person you trust the most.  It is very heart felt and really hard to read at times.  However, in order to confront issues and understand them, hard things need to be taken head-on.  I think Hatvany does just that and should (hopefully) make a difference into this everyday nightmare!
  

Find it: | Amazon | Barnes & Noble |

About the author:

Amy Hatvany graduated with a degree in Sociology only to discover most sociologists are unemployed. Soon followed a variety of jobs - some of which she loved, like decorating wedding cakes; others which she merely tolerated, like receptionist. 

In 1998, Amy finally decided to sell her car, quit her job, and take a chance on her passion: writing books. Her background in sociology inspires and informs much of her writing as she tackles timely and controversial issues in her novels including mental illness, domestic abuse, and alcoholism. She is the author of BEST KEPT SECRET, OUTSIDE THE LINES (a Target book club pick in 2012 and a Costco Pennie's Pick in 2013), THE LANGUAGE OF SISTERS, HEART LIKE MINE, SAFE WITH ME (a Good Housekeeping pick), and SOMEWHERE OUT THERE (a Target Recommended Read).

Amy lives in Seattle with her husband and children. You can learn more at www.amyhatvany.com.

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#WRC2017: Sweet Lake by Christine Nolfi

This fall, members of the Vise Library are participating in the Booksparks Winter Reading Challenge! We have received copies of several books from publishers for honest reviews. We hope that you enjoy these reviews (and books)!

About the book:

Linnie Wayfair knows just how many people are counting on her. But knowing doesn’t make doing any easier.

Everyone in Sweet Lake, Ohio, wants her to muster all her business sense and return the Wayfair Inn to its former glory. Her parents hope she’ll forgive her scoundrel of a brother and reconcile the family. The eccentric Sweet Lake Sirens want her to open the inn—and her heart—to new possibilities. And her hilarious lifelong friends Jada and Cat are dropping none-too-subtle hints for her to ignite a romance with Daniel Kettering, the sexy attorney who’s been pining for her for years…

Now a shocking turn of events will open old wounds and upend the world Linnie has carefully built. She has to make changes quickly—and the results, though not entirely what she expected, might be what she’s been yearning for all along.

Linnie has been taking care of the family business (managing an inn) ever since her father had a stroke.  Linnie has made several improvements since she has taken over and believes that the inn will eventually be handed over to her.  However, the family has always been in the care of the first son in the family.  This is where some hostility with her brother comes into play and to top it off, he does something pretty terrible that makes things even worse.  Not only is their personal relationship in ruins, but Linnie wonders if the business will still continue to thrive with Freddie in the picture.  There is a group of women called the Sweet Lake Sirens that have taken on the task of repairing Linnie and Freddie's relationship.  Linnie has to decide if she can ever forgive Freddie in order to move on.  There is plenty of real-life family drama to this story and a great group of side characters.  Linnie has an admirer in Daniel that makes you want to root for them throughout the entire story.  This book was such a wonderful read!
  

Find it: | Amazon | Barnes & Noble |

About the author:

Some writers are gifted with an unusual life and I’m certainly one of those. I’ve lived in Ohio, Virginia, California, Utah and now South Carolina. In college I was featured on the front page of the Houston Post for a lark that erased all my debt. I first met my four adopted children in the sweltering heat of the tropics. I helped build several companies and was lucky enough to earn a living doing what I love best—writing—in a PR firm I owned.

If you’re wondering about beginnings, here they are: I’m the middle child in a litter of six kids raised in Cleveland, Ohio during the psychedelic 60s. My late mother swore I taught myself to read at the age of two. While this claim stands unsubstantiated, I can tell you that I spent most of my childhood toting a book in one hand, and pen and paper in the other. I’ve been writing ever since.

In 2004, I made the wisest and most irrational decision of my life, and began writing fiction full-time. The five books in the award-winning Liberty Series have all reached bestseller status, and are “highly recommended” by The Midwest Book Review. I’ve also begun releasing the Heavenscribe series, and have several other works as well.

In February 2017, look for Sweet Lake, the first installment in the new series I’m writing for Amazon Publishing’s Lake Union imprint. The second book in the series will release in July 2017.

All the years of hard work pay off daily in sweet notes, comments and reviews by readers. Please continue the mail, tweets and comments on Twitter, Facebook and Goodreads. I cherish your support and love chatting with readers.

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#WRC2017: Sweet Southern Hearts by Susan Schild

This fall, members of the Vise Library are participating in the Booksparks Winter Reading Challenge! We have received copies of several books from publishers for honest reviews. We hope that you enjoy these reviews (and books)!

About the book:

When it comes to marriage, third time’s the charm for Linny Taylor. She’s thrilled to be on her honeymoon with Jack Avery, Willow Hill’s handsome veterinarian. But just like the hair-raising white water rafting trip Jack persuades her to take, newlywed life has plenty of dips and bumps.

Jack’s twelve-year-old son is resisting all Linny’s efforts to be the perfect stepmother, while her own mother, Dottie, begs her to tag along on the first week of a free-wheeling RV adventure. Who knew women “of a certain age” could drum up so much trouble? No sooner is Linny sighing with relief at being back home than she’s helping her frazzled sister with a new baby…and dealing with an unexpected legacy from her late ex. Life is fuller—and richer—than she ever imagined, but if there’s one thing Linny’s learned by now, it’s that there’s always room for another sweet surprise…

Linny has had very bad luck when it comes to love.  She has been a widow twice and is trying her third time at happily ever after.  However, there are a ton of obstacles in the way of marriage bliss.  For one, her husband Jack has a teenage son that doesn't seem to care about Linny and is making things very difficult.  Linny's sister is also about to have a new baby and her mother is about to go on a huge trip with several of her friends.  Linny's new in-laws make it hard for Linny to feel welcome since they really adored Jack's ex (who tries to stay in the picture).  Since Linny worries about all of this, she has a hard time concentrating on her own marriage.

This book starts with Linny and Jack's honeymoon that is a white water rafting trip.  Even though Linny does not enjoy this type of thing, she agrees to go because she knows this will make Jack happy.  Unfortunately, the two have to cut their honeymoon short when Jack's son is super upset about some drama with Jack's ex and needs them to come home early.  This sets the path for their first year of marriage together.  Linny must find her strength to be able to speak her mind and to put her needs and the well-being of her marriage above all else.  

This story felt very real and shows that sometimes we lose sight of things that are important while focusing on the other things around us.  Linny just wants to be happy and she hopes that she found that with Jack.  You will have to read to find out if that happens and how everything else plays out!
  

Find it: | Amazon | Barnes & Noble |

About the author:

Susan Schild writes wholesome and sunny Southern fiction. She likes stories about charming men, missing money, adventuresome women, sweet dogs, and happily ever afters at any age. 

Susan is a wife and a stepmother. She enjoys rummaging through thrift store for treasures like four dollar cashmere sweaters and amateur watercolor paintings. She likes taking walks with her Lab mix, Tucker, and his buddies. She and her family live in North Carolina.

Susan has used her professional background as a psychotherapist and a management consultant to add authenticity to her characters.

SWEET CAROLINA MORNING, the sequel to LINNY'S SWEET DREAM LIST, was released August 2nd, 2016. 

SWEET SOUTHERN HEARTS, the final book in the Willow Hill series, will be released on January 10th of 2017 and is available for pre-order now. Readers can look forward to more adventures, new beaus, sinister ministers, lovebirds over fifty, a road trip for Mama and her pals, and maybe even an I DO...or two.

Connect with the author:

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