Two Dogs and a Book

The Coincidence Makers: A Novel by Yoav Blum Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Have you ever wonder why it seems that a series of events often takes place in order to bring birth to an incident? I recently read a book about the Great Halifax Explosion of 1917 and that is exactly what happened. A series of events, which occurred in the perfect order, was needed for this deadly disaster to materialize. “The Coincidence Maker” is about these beings whose sole mission is to create coincidences for something to happen without disturbing the free will of humanity. Two people bump into each other and fall in love. Two leaders who randomly meet and bring world peace. No coincidence is too small or too big. Emily, Guy, and Eric have been recruited to join the 75th class of Coincidence Makers. They called themselves “The Three Musketeers”. Guy used to be an imaginary friend and once fell in love with ...

The Story of Arthur Truluv by Elizabeth Berg My rating: 5 of 5 stars The Story of Arthur Truluv is a heartfelt book. Nowadays our seniors often have given hope to be useful although they have so much to give. This story is about Arthur, a widow, who visits his wife's grave every day at noon to have lunch with her. While in the cemetery, he befriends Maddy, a teenager who has never felt like the rest of her peers. Raised by an emotionally absent father, Maddy finds herself in a situation where she makes the decision to leave home and turns to Arthur for help. Their relationship blooms into something very special as Maddy gives Arthur a purpose and Arthur provides the emotional support Maddy so craves. The story is beautifully written and might bring a few tears to your eyes. View all my reviews

The Great Halifax Explosion: A World War I Story of Treachery, Tragedy, and Extraordinary Heroism by John U. Bacon My rating: 5 of 5 stars The Great Halifax Explosion is a historical depiction of the tragedy which took place in the Halifax harbour in 1917. As a Canadian history buff; I thought I knew a lot about what transpired on that dreadful December 6, 1917, but I was wrong. On that day, it is estimated that 2,000 people were killed, 9,000 wounded and 6.6 square kilometres (2.5 square miles) were destroyed in one-fifteenth of a second blast. Never in the history of mankind, had such shocking event taken place. John U. Bacon did an extraordinary job researching for this book. Each account added a new dimension to this horrific event. The book honours the astonishing heroism that took place which saved thousands of people. From a disastrous experience came so much positive. The branches of ophthalmology and pediatrics made astounding advancements, ...

The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn My rating: 4 of 5 stars The Woman in the Window is A.J. Finn's first novel. This psychological thriller is well written and will keep you on the edge of your seat to the end. A.J. Finn's writing is intelligent and well structured. If you read a lot of psychological thrillers, you might be able to guess some parts of the book, but the end will surprise you. In an interview, A.J. Finn mentioned that he suffered from depressions for 17 years as an adult. He said that he was able to incorporate some of feelings and frustrations he experienced in the main character. He also mentioned that he is a Film Noir passionate. The story is full of great movie classic references. Writing from experience is a way to keep the story close to reality. This is a pretty darn good first novel for A.J. Finn. I would not be surprised that this book will be a best seller in 2018. Looking forward to reading his second novel. ...

The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan My rating: 5 of 5 stars "The Keeper of Lost Things" is a beautiful and touching story about loss, love, broken hearts and second chances. Anthony lost the love of his life in a tragic accident. He also lost the only thing that reminded him of Therese. Anthony searched everywhere to locate the object, but never found it... but he found many objects on his journey and collected them. Eunice found a medallion on the best day of her life. She starts working at Bomber's publishing company and finds a best friend for life. Bomber has a secret and is faced with his parents' health quick failing. Laura married young and to the wrong man. After divorcing, she becomes Anthony's personal assistant and her life is totally changed. Laura is charged with reuniting the lost objects that Anthony collected over the years to their original owners. Therese, Anthony's dead fiancée, has another agenda and ...

The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant My rating: 5 of 5 stars Would you believe I found a copy of this book at my local dollar store? I have been wanting to read this book for a long time and here it was... marked $1. I could not pass this bargain! There was a lot of buzz about this book when it came out and that can be good or bad. I kept away from reading the reviews so that I would read this book with an open mind. I am glad I did. The Boston Girl is a wonderful book. I could not put it down. It is the story of Addie Baum, a young Jewish girl, growing up in Boston in the early 19 hundred. Contrary to the rest of her family, Addie was born in American and she has the desire to fulfill her life as much as she can. She has a difficult relationship with her mother and makes a few wrong decision when it comes to men, but besides that; she succeeds to live a life filled with awesome adventures, friends, and opportunities. Anita Diamant is a fantastic author...

Unraveling Oliver by Liz Nugent My rating: 4 of 5 stars I received an advance copy of this book from Simon & Schuster via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Unraveling Oliver is the story of a man found guilty of beating his wife into a coma. Oliver's childhood was made difficult due to his father's rejection and trying to fit in a world where he has no roots. As a young adult, he travels to France to work on a vineyard where he befriends the owner's son and his grandfather. For once he feels part of a family, but disaster strikes and he loses both in a horrible incident. He returns to Ireland broken. He eventually finds success by publishing children's books. This is when he meets Alice, an illustrator, who works with him on his books. They eventually marry, but it is not a good marriage. Oliver has many secrets, deep pains and a distorted sense of reality. When Alice confronts him with his deepest secrets; he is enrage...

I Can't Make This Up: Life Lessons by Kevin Hart My rating: 4 of 5 stars I wanted my first book this year to bring a smile on my face. I can't make this up by Kevin Hart did exactly that. We listened to the audio version on our way to visit my parents who live 9 hours away. The audiobook is read by Kevin Hart himself which made it more interesting and funnier. The book is about his life story and how he got to where he is today. His story is real and interesting. Warning: if you are listening to the book, you might want to do it without children around as the language is quite colorful. I recommend it, it is pretty good. View all my reviews

Never Let You Go by Chevy Stevens My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is a great book by a Canadian author. I really thought I had figured out who did it, but I was wrong. I love to be wrong, this means the author did a fantastic job at writing the story. I recommend this thriller. Let's see if you will be better than me and guess who did it. :) View all my reviews

Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson My rating: 4 of 5 stars Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson is a great thriller which will keep you on your toes to the end. After experiencing a very dramatic event and survive it, Kate is ready to move on with her life. She accepts her American cousin's invitation to swap apartments. She moves to Boston and Corbin moves to her apartment in London. She has never met her cousin and she soon discovers that he is not what he appears. A murder in the neighbour's apartment brings secrets to the light. Did Corbin put Kate in danger by asking her to move to his place? His past is catching up to him and Kate is now in the middle of it. If you like nail biting thrillers, this one is for you. View all my reviews

Everything You Want Me to Be by Mindy Mejia My rating: 4 of 5 stars Everything You Want Me To Be is a great thriller. The plot is well structured and the story is well written. Each character has motives to kill Hattie and it is up to Sheriff Del to solve the crime. He will be misled, and although the killer confessed, the truth is still to be revealed. This is a fast read. View all my reviews