Empathy, trust, Advice Angel…

“I’m listening. Tell me your worries” has been repeated numerous times by Ginny on her radio advice show for the last fifteen years.

But she has no answer or advice when shortly before their 25th anniversary, her husband announces he wants a divorce. He has no intention of traveling with Ginny to Italy on the surprise anniversary trip she booked. On the spur of the moment, she offers four radio listeners the chance to travel to Italy with her. Each selected listener , ranging in age from 27-80, has some type of heartbreak in their life.

Hopefully, this trip will be a healing process and offer self-discovery to each.

I liked the one-word description at the beginning of each chapter . Each word was a clue to something within the chapter. I try to choose 3 words that describe a book at the beginning of each of my reviews!

Another winner from this author! I’ve read 3 books so far by this author.

A book about self-discovery, friendship, relationships, and second chances.

Liked the cast of characters .

Author paints a vivid picture. Liked the setting.

Rubble, destiny, rewrite…

Two mothers-to-be , Juliette and Elise meet in the park one day. Both their lives will change forever.

Juliette and her husband Paul own a Parisian bookstore. Elise’s husband Olivier, is an artist who is the toast of the town. Elise is a wannabe artist in a tense marriage because of her husband’s political leanings.

Wartime Paris and it becomes “too late to turn back, too late to leave, and too late for Olivier to change his fate.” To avoid arrest (guilty by association), Elise entrusts her daughter, now 3yo, with Juliette. More than a year later, when Elise returns, she finds the bombed out remains of the bookshop. Where is Elise’s daughter, Juliette, and Juliette’s family?

An amazing story!

Loved the three main female characters. Strong, memorable women that made difficult decisions

A story of misery but also an inspiring story! Incredible sacrifices.

Emotional story of mother / daughter bonds.

Well researched . Don’t skip the author’s note!

I liked the quote “We all have choices over the way our story ends.”

I don’t remember which Harmel book I read first. But I have bought, read, and enjoyed all of her books since then!

Highly recommend! Thank you for a great read!

Regrets, lifeline, snippets…

Imagine being an 11-year-old child who is relocated to live with a host family. Now imagine being the parents that made this decision.

Picture two worlds — 11yo Beatrix has lived in London her entire life with her parents Reginald and Millie. But now in 1940, her parents have sent her alone to live with an American host family. She will live with Ethan and Nancy Gregory and their two sons in Boston.

After five years of living with the Gregorys, Beatrix returns abruptly to London post-war, with snippets of memories.

Reginald and Millie originally sent her away “so she could have a childhood, not realizing that her childhood would be taken from them.”

A story of relationships, loss, love, tragedy, and forgiveness.

Great ending!

Liked the cast of characters.

Paints a vivid picture — characters and locations seem very realistic.

Although the story takes place during the war years, it does not focus on WWII. It’s more about how one person can change the equilibrium in two families.

Whodunit, rumors, reckoning…

Bodie was a student in a NH boarding school in the 1990s. In 1995, her roomie Thalia was murdered. Omar, the athletic trainer at the school , was arrested for the murder and has been in prison for 23 years.

23 years later, Bodie has been invited back to teach two two-week classes about film and podcasts. Now everyone is questioning the murder case and the arrest of Omar. One of the podcast students decides to examine the case for her class project.

Many questions and theories are discussed, including suspicions concerning a popular teacher.

Many possible suspects! Did Omar do it or not?

How memories change over the years!

What will you find when you re-examine your youth?

Slow start - lots of characters - stick with it!

Chaos, protected, revolt…

“What we need is another explanation for how this fire may have started.”

The fictional account of the deadliest urban disaster in American history at its time. The 1811 fire resulted in 72 official fatalities at the 5yo Richmond theatre. The cause was the mistakenly-raised lit chandelier , which caught the backdrops on fire, before spreading to the roof.

The story of four very different people. Sally is a 31yo widow, who went to the play with her brother-in-law and sister-in-law. Cecily is Maria’s lady’s maid. Cecily acted as chaperone for Maria on their walk together to the play, with plans to meet afterwards. Gilbert, the enslaved blacksmith, was not at the play , but did rescue 12 women (mostly jumpers) from the fire. Jack is a 14yo stagehand who is hoping for a permanent job.

Choices and decisions are going to have long-term consequences. What will the investigative committees decide? Will the secret about the pulley be discovered?

After all, “It’s not lying. In our business, we just call it acting.”


Author painted a realistic picture for me of the panic & chaos of trying to survive.

Much info online about the theatre & the real fire in 1811. Gilbert is mentioned online. Photos & videos online.

Loved the bluebird carving!

Don’t skip the author’s note!

Well researched. Great story based on the available facts!

I would like to visit Monumental Church, built in 1812-1814 on the site. NRHP in 1969.

“Veneer of respectability,” regrets, sacrifices….

A tale of how two dates changed many lives forever. 18-year-old Catholic Viv becomes pregnant after two dates with 19-year-old Joshua, who is Jewish. Despite her parent’s disapproval , Joshua and Viv will marry, providing a father and a name for their future child. After being pronounced man and wife on their ill-fated wedding day, Viv’s mother offers Joshua a hard-to - refuse offer.

Joshua will go to NYC to pursue a musical career and Viv will raise Maggie as a single mother.

Five years later, in 1939, when many children are being evacuated for pre-war safety reasons, four-year-old Maggie will be placed with a wealthy, childless couple in the British countryside.

What happens during the next five years will be a truly harrowing story . We will learn the choices made and the consequences of these decisions.

A little bit of mystery, history, and romance!

I liked the cast of characters! What a difference between the two sets of grandparents! I loved the twist involving the priest! A story of relationships.

I am stingy with 5.0 ratings. However, after saying that, I have read several deserving books in the last few months. This book was one of them.

I will read future books by this author.

I liked the letters scattered throughout.

For Those Who Are Lost by Julia Bryan Thomas was another book about pre-war evacuation of children. (Guernsey). 5000 children were evacuated. Both books were excellent — NOT at all duplicates. For Those Who Are Lost was one of my top three favorites for 2022. I rated both 5.0.

Displaced, conceal, protect…

No goodbyes…

Roger, Ana, Oskar, and Renata’s stories merge in Israel, post-war. All were removed or stolen during wartime and relocated .

Roger was placed at 3yo in a French monastery . He has been baptized Catholic, but the church can no longer resist the court system. Roger has been “harbored, hidden, sanctified, saved,” and now been claimed by his Jewish aunt from Israel.

Brother and sister Oskar and Ana (Daniel & Mira) are taken to the Dabrowski family farm in Poland . Oskar learns to whittle, play chess, and tend to farm duties. Ana remembers their parents but Oskar doesn’t remember, and considers the Dabrowskis his family. When they are relocated again, Ana sees it as a way to reconnect with her roots but Oskar sees it as a loss of home and family.

Renata is an archeology grad student currently on a dig in Israel. Her mother recently died; she never told Renata the truth about her past.

We will learn about their past and future struggles amid the uncertainties of life. It will be a voyage of discovery for all .

STUNNING!

I enjoyed the significance of the nesting boxes and chess sets!

A very tender, moving story .

A story of relationships

Highly recommend!