Review of Walking on Water, by Richard Paul Evans

This is the final book in The Walk series and it tied up the story nicely.  As other reviewers have said, it is a diary and some of the entries can be tedious, but that is what makes it seem like a real diary to me. Like the other books in the series, the walk is interrupted, this time by his father's heart attack.  Alan flies home to be with his father and of course, encounters Nicole. He finds his father's "family tree" which is more like a life story and he finds out a lot of things about him that he did not know before. It helps him to understand why his father is the way he is and how that shaped him as well. He has still not made a decision about Falene and has not yet called her.  Kalaimai also makes a reappearance in this final chapter, with all her jokes and positive thinking.  He again meets some strange characters once he heads back out and there are some profound discussions in this book. Alan finally makes it to Key West and makes some decisions about how to spend the rest of his life. A wonderful series with some tedium, some excitement and a lot of thought provoking ideas.  I really enjoyed this series and hope to be able to introduce and share it with others.

Deadly Lies by Chris Patchell

I could not put this book down.  It kept me interested until the last page.  Jill Shannon was a victim of abuse from her step-father after the death of her mother and brother. After he dies, she vows never to be a victim again. Fast forward several years and Jill is a successful computer program creator married to a detective, Alex, who works in Cyber Crimes. Alex is working on a kidnapping murder case that takes him to California.  He meets up with a detective who assists him and later asks if he can look into the computer dating angle of a couple of murders he is working on.  Meanwhile, after being dumped by her boss, who she is having and affair with and being a victim of a date rape drug, Jill takes matters into her own hands and things spiral out of control. When the two situations overlap, Alex and Jill come to a crossroad where a serious decision must be made. A gripping read and a great debut novel.

Review of Almost Perfect, by Diane Daniels Manning

I read Almost Perfect by Diane Daniels Manning a few weeks ago. I got this book off Net Galley and am very glad I did.  I really enjoyed the story and think that this book would be enjoyed by young and old alike.

A family drama where 3 different people are helped by dogs to develop a healthy family relationship. Bess has retired from raising and showing prize winning poodles. She has birthed a litter for a friend who is injured. The dogs were sired by her champion male McCreery. When Bess meets Benny, a troubled teenager, she just wants him to leave. He falls in love with McCreery and wants him. Bess tells him he can have one of the litter but he does not want that. Benny attends The New Hope school for troubled children. When McCreery is stolen, Benny finds him and returns him to Bess. They develop a very strong affection for one another. The third troubled soul is David, Bess' son. He was trying to connect with his mother who had often neglected him growing up for her dogs. David and Benny take on the runt of the litter, Breaker, and train him. Benny has a very difficult relationship with his mother, father and step-mother. Through the dogs, their training and the shows all three of these people develop deeper relationships with each other, the dogs and other important people in their lives. A wonderful story.

Review of Dear Daughter by Elizabeth Little

I just finished reading Dear Daughter, by Elizabeth Little as a group read for a group I am part of in Good Reads.  It is not a book I would have picked up myself, so I am glad that our moderator picked this one.  Below is my review.

I would give it 3.5 stars if I could. Jane murders her mother in cold blood, is found guilty, goes to jail for 10 years, then gets the case overturned due to errors at the crime lab and gets released.  The fact that she is an heiress complicates her release and she goes into hiding.  Because she does not remember the night her mother was killed, she was drunk and/or on drugs,  she is not sure if she did it or not.  Jane disguises herself and changes her name to Rebecca and sets out to find answers.  Did I kill my mother or was it the person I heard arguing with her a few days earlier?  What does the name Ardelle or Adeline mean? With the help of her lawyer, Noah, Jane is able to travel by train to find this mysterious town and meet up with some likeable and not so likeable characters. Jane is not really a likeable character, but after what she has gone through and how she was raised, it is easy to see how she turned out the way she did.  An enjoyable read, that gets better as you go on.  Be prepared for a not so predictable ending.