Random Reads

All the Numbers by Judy Merill Larsen

     This adult novel is like a Lifetime Movie of the week.  Ellen Banks is a divorced mother whose 11 year old son James is tragically killed by a reckless jet ski driver.  Ellen and her other 15 year old son struggle with the unexpected death and loss.  Larsen skillfully portrays the moments after the crash, the hospital stay, and the difficult choices that Ellen must face.  The second portion of the novel involves the court room saga as criminal charges are filed against the jet ski operator who accidentally caused Justin's death.  Readers will enjoy this touching novel of loss, recovery, and forgiveness.

Finding Noel by Richard Paul Evans

   Mark Smart has decided to end his life.  He didn't find out about his mother's death until two days after her funeral.  He has dropped out of college and is estranged from his father.  If life couldn't get any worse, his car dies in a blizzard and he walks to a coffee shop to use a telephone.  Fate intervenes and he meets Macy Wood, an angel, his saving grace.  They strike a friendship which eventually leads to something more.  Macy was put in foster care at an early age and separated from her sister Noel.  Her foster mother was a horrible woman and Macy ran away until she moved in with Jo, a mother figure who becomes her actual mother when Macy asks her to adopt her.  Mark helps Macy track down her long lost sister as he faces his own difficult past.  This is a fast and breezy read and readers will appreciate the storyline's lessons.

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

     I thought this was one of Sparks's best novels and can easily see this book being made into a Hollywood movie.  John is in the army on leave when he meets Savannah Lynn Curtis in North Carolina.  John dramatically changed when he joined the army.  His former playboy ways and drinking days are far behind him.  Savannah is a wholesome girl working with Habitat for Humanity when she meets John at the beach.  They are immediately attracted to each other and connect in a deep way.  They fall instantly in love and neither person will ever be the same again.  Their love affair lasts the overseas seperation as John returns to his army service.  His enlistment is almost over and they agree to marry as soon as John is discharged.  A series of events and 9/11 drastically alters the course of their futures together.  Readers will be caught up in this love affair and will most likely finish this novel in a few days. 

Love in the Present Tense by Catherine Ryan Hyde

    From Publishers Weekly
Uniting vivid, needy characters in unlikely relationships is Hyde's specialty (Pay It Forward), evidenced in her emotional sixth novel. Featuring a tough teen, her sweet son, and their flawed but sincere neighbor, each take turns narrating their story in fresh, distinct voices. At thirteen, Pearl lives with a kind prostitute while her mom copes with a crippling drug addiction. In one tragic night, Pearl gets herself pregnant and accidentally kills the father, a police officer; on the run, Pearl decides that she and her son, Leonard, will share a "forever love," an unbreakable and unconditional bond. Pearl protects Leonard like a lioness, shielding him from the dangerous world and the tragic story of his father. At five, Leonard—smart, loving and saddled with a degenerative eye disease—stays with 25-year-old next-door neighbor Mitch while Pearl works; when Pearl disappears, Mitch must assume responsibility for Leonard—not easy to do while maintaining a home business and an affair with a client's wife. Despite Pearl's mysterious departure, Leonard stays true to her "forever love," denying that he has been abandoned. Mitch isn't so sure, and when Leonard begins having his own doubts, they both must re-examine their beliefs. Hyde excels in sentimental, utopian storytelling, and though it isn't as sharp a hook as "paying it forward," her story of a love that transcends time, place and human weakness is a worthy successor. (May)

   From Publisher's Weekly (April 25th)