The Silent Sister by Diane Chamberlain | Book Review

STATS:
Author, Diane Chamberlain
Published, expected October 7th, 2014
Publisher, St. Martin's Press
Kindle edition, 352 pages

DESCRIPTION FROM GOODREADS:
Riley MacPherson has spent her entire life believing that her older sister Lisa committed suicide as a teenager.  Now, over twenty years later, her father has passed away and she's in New Bern, North Carolina cleaning out his house when she finds evidence to the contrary.  Lisa is alive.  Alive and living under a new identity.  But why exactly was she on the run all those years ago, and what secrets are being kept now?  As Riley works to uncover the truth, her discoveries will put into question everything she thought she knew about her family.  Riley must decide what the past means for her present, and what she will do with her newfound reality.   

MY THOUGHTS:
I love Diane Chamberlain.  She never disappoints and I was so happy to receive an ARC of this book.
Most of the novels I have read by this author have had a developing love story at the center.  This one didn't.  At least not in the traditional sense. But it did her have talent for weaving a great mystery.  Every time I thought I had it figured out, she surprised me.
The main characters are Lisa and Riley.  We get to see what Lisa's life has been like all these years and also a good sense of what Riley's life is.  Both are very believable and they were written where you can clearly see why they made the decisions that they did.
We also have a few characters that are interesting in their own stories.  Riley's brother, the real estate lady, and the long time residents of the camp ground.  I love a few odd balls in the mix.
I think that if you are a fan of Chamberlain's The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes you will love The Silent Sister.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are mine.

Book Club Friday

This week I was able to get in two books!
First up is Reflection by Diane Chamberlain.

Here is the description from Goodreads:
Twenty years ago, a terrible tragedy shattered the tranquility of the small Pennsylvania Dutch town of Reflection. The residents of the village have never forgiven the one woman they blamed for what happened - Rachel Huber. She left town immediately after the incident and never again saw or spoke with anyone who lived there. Until now. When Rachel receives the news that her estranged grandmother is ill and needs her care, she returns to Reflection and to the legacy of guilt and recrimination that awaits her there. Rachel is stunned to find herself the object of open hostility, discovering that there are always those who can never forgive or forget. And although the Rachel who has come home is a stronger woman than the one she was before, she will need every friend she can find to protect her from the gossip and anger she still excites. Lily Jackson, a young woman who was personally touched by the tragedy - and one of the few who knows the truth about what happened - perplexes everyone by treating Rachel with kindness and compassion. And Michael Stoltz, the minister of the Mennonite church, is elated at Rachel's return. He and Rachel were close friends as children and later served together in the Peace Corps. Although they, too, had lost touch, now that they have found each other again, their deep and lifelong passion must be hidden from the town. But it is Rachel's grandmother, Helen, who becomes her strongest advocate, surprising the younger woman with her wise counsel and rare strength - and with a wealth of secrets she has long been concealing.


My Thoughts:
I thought that this book was very enjoyable.  So far, I have really liked everything that I have read by Diane Chamberlain and if I can't find a specific book at the library, I just reach for one of hers.
The main character in the book is so likable and you find yourself wanting the town to give her a break.  I mean, how can an entire town hate a person?
The characters all have a story, a history, and a purpose.  I love that the end was tied up nicely.  I love a complete and happy ending and this book had it.

Next up is Magic Hour by Kristin Hannah.

Here is the description from Goodreads:
Deep in the Pacific Northwest lies the Olympic National Forest– nearly one million acres of impenetrable darkness and impossible beauty. Even in this modern age, much of it remains undiscovered and uncharted. From the heart of this old forest, a six-year-old girl appears. Speechless and alone, she can give no clue as to her identity, no hint of her past. . . .
Until recently, Dr. Julia Cates was one of the preeminent child psychiatrists in the country, but a scandal shattered her confidence, ruined her career, and made her a media target. When she gets a desperate call from her estranged sister, Ellie, a police chief in their small western Washington hometown, she jumps at the chance to escape.
In Rain Valley, nothing much ever happens–until a girl emerges from the deep woods and walks into town. She is a victim unlike any Julia has ever seen: a child locked in a world of unimaginable fear and isolation.
When word spreads of the “wild child” and the infamous doctor who is treating her, the media descend on Julia and once again her competence is challenged. State and federal authorities want to lock the girl away in an institution until an identification can be made.
But to Julia, who has come to doubt her own ability, nothing is more important than saving the girl she now calls Alice. To heal this child, Julia will have to understand that she cannot work alone and must look to others–the people in the town she left long ago, the sister she barely knows, and Dr. Max Cerrasin, a handsome, private man with secrets of his own.
Then a shocking revelation forces Julia to risk everything to discover the truth about Alice. The ordeal that follows will test the limits of Julia’s faith, forgiveness, and love, as she struggles to ascertain where Alice ultimately belongs.
In her most ambitious novel to date, Kristin Hannah delivers an incandescent story about the resilience of the human spirit, the triumph of hope, and the mysterious places in the heart where love lies waiting.
My Thoughts:
I really loved every minute of this book.  You fall in love with Alice and can't help but want the best for her.  the story is told very well and there seemed to be little "fluff".  The ending was also great!

Now head over to Blonde, Undercover Blonde to see what everyone is reading and to share what books you read this week!

{Book Club Friday}: Breaking the Silence

It is Book Club Friday again and I am linking up with Blonde, Undercover Blonde. This link up is every Friday and you can review any book that you like. So - head on over and find some great books to add to your list.

This week I read Breaking the Silence written by Diane Chamberlain.

Here is the description from Goodreads:

Laura Brandon had promised her dying father she would visit Sarah Tolley, but her own agony is drowning out the old woman's ramblings. Her husband killed himself, and the only witness--her daughter, Emma--now refuses to speak. Desperate, Laura turns to a man she met once nine years ago: Emma's real father. Together they search frantically for the key to Emma's silence, only to find it in an old woman's fading memories of love, despair and unspeakable evil.

 What did I think:
Just as the description on Goodreads says, it is a story of mystery, love, and evil.  I love that it goes back and forth between current day and the past.  It makes it enough historical fiction to make me love it, but still so much more. 
The lives and characters of the past and present are written so well that you can see them all.  No detail seems to be left out.  I am a huge fan of everything being tied up in the end of books and this one does that perfect.

BOOK 12:30 FOR 2012
****Click here for more books that I have read and reviewed and here for my ever growing list of books to read in the future.

{Book Club Friday}: Kiss River by Diane Chamberlain

It is Book Club Friday again and I am linking up with Blonde, Undercover Blonde. This link up is every Friday and you can review any book that you like. So - head on over and find some great books to add to your list.

This week I read Kiss River by Diane Chamberlain.

Here is the summary from Goodreads.

Gina Higgins has come to the Outer Banks of North Carolina--a stranger with a secret. But secrets are a fact of life in the close-knit community of Kiss River...

Kiss River's historic nineteenth-century lighthouse has all but fallen into the sea, taking with it the huge Fresnel lens that once served as its beacon. Gina is desperate to find a way to raise the lens from the sea: the glass holds the key to her future, her fortune and her only chance to save the one person who matters to her.

Lacey O'Neill lives in the old lightkeeper's house, a home she shares with her brother, Clay. When Lacey meets Gina, she invites her to stay with them. Eagerly accepting the offer, Gina begins her quest to raise the lens as Clay finds himself drawn to her struggle, and to Gina herself.

As Gina's story unfolds, so does the shocking legacy left buried in the light, revealing more than Gina expected...much more. And with it comes new hope for the future...and for love.

What did I think:
This is the second Diane Chamberlain book that I have read.  I enjoy the mystery and romance together and really love the way that the book goes between the past and present.  While I loved the story itself, I felt that I was left with unanswered questions.  I know that books can't go forever, but I like for things to be tied up in the end without me having to imagine what comes next for the characters.

BOOK 7:30 FOR 2012
****Click here for more books that I have read and reviewed and here for my ever growing list of books to read in the future.

{Book Club Friday}: The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes by Diane Chamberlain

It is Book Club Friday again and I am linking up with Blonde, Undercover Blonde. This link up is every Friday and you can review any book that you like. So - head on over and find some great books to add to your list.

Today I am reviewing The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes by Diane Chamberlain.

Here is the synopsis from the author's website:

:Twenty-eight years ago, a North Carolina governor’s young, pregnant wife was kidnapped. Now, her remains have been found and a man charged with her murder. Only one person-CeeCee Wilkes-can refute the charges against him. But CeeCee disappeared years ago. .

Eve Elliot is a successful therapist to troubled students, a loving wife, a mother deeply invested in her family. But her happiness is built on a lie. When she was a lonely, vulnerable young woman, a single decision made in innocence led to a dark night of unimaginable consequences. Now, forced to confront her past, she faces another terrible choice: reveal to her family that she is not who she seems, or allow a man to take the blame for a crime she knows he did not commit. If the choice affected only her life, Eve is certain she would do what is right. But though inaction means condemning an innocent man, it also means protecting her family from the mistakes of her past.

Corinne Elliot has always known she was different: the only redhead in a family of brunettes, the paralyzing shyness that contrasts with her sister’s vivaciousness, the many fears-of highways, of bridges, of public spaces-that constrict her daily life. Still, with a new job possibility and a baby on the way, she’s found some measure of happiness-until the day she turns on the television and finds her mother’s image on screen.

Now, as the past explodes into the present, Corinne must confront the secrets she has always intuited, and find answers from the one person who knows the truth of what happened over two decades ago-CeeCee Wilkes.

This book was great!  I loved how it was written and the changing between past and present.  I loved that everything got wrapped up nicely at the end.  I hate to have unanswered questions when I finish a book.  I really completely loved it and can't wait to read more Diane Chamberlain.

BOOK 3:12 FOR 2012

****Click here for more books that I have read and reviewed and here for my ever growing list of books to read in the future.