Should The Waters Take Us by Stephanie Soileau

     My attention was first caught by the description, epic saga, when I saw the write up for Stephanie Soileau's debut novel, Should The Waters Take Us being published by Doubleday Books on July 14, 2026.  I received an advanced reader's copy of the novel from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.   The word "epic" means to tell the stories of historic people or of a country's history.  In Soileau's case, the adventures and deeds being told are of four centuries of people originating in France, then moving to Arcadia, and ending up in Louisianna in the bayous.  The waters are paramount in their lives from the first voyage to the new world, to the livelihoods of living and surviving on the bayous for generations.  

    As in most dynamic tales, the adventures of the people jump from generation to generation, back and forth between eras and history unfolds and is retold to subsequent generations.  We are introduced toeach generation learning from the successes and failures of the ancestors and sharing those lessons with their children.  Some to be conquered, others to be relived over and over again as the land and the wilds are forever struggling against man and it's progress.

    I enjoyed the book.  I felt frustration with the characters when the hurricanes came and devastated the land over and over again throughout the centuries.  When men took advantage of the poorer people, essentially stepping on the backs of some to rise above them.  When children were at the mercy of the parents in the fight to simply survive. 

    I can't say that this was a book I felt joy to read, but I appreciate the story showing the reader what it means to persevere for the sake of life itself.  I will give this book a rating of 4 stars, and invite others to read,  , Should The Waters Take Us.  It's important to realize that struggle is part of life and seeing others doggedness can motivate us to do likewise.

Word of the year for 2026: Present

 Every year I choose a word of the year.  I try to live the new year focussing on that word.  Instead of a New Year's resolution, I instead look around me in the few weeks leading up to the new year and see what strikes me as something I need to concentrate on throughout the coming year.  

This year my choice was prompted by an article I read.  The information was in the news at the beginning of 2025, yet I just learned of it a few weeks ago while reading a pre-release novel.  There was a mention that second-screen writing was being done so that people can watch television while scrolling on their phone.  Essentially dumbing down the content so distracted viewers can still get the jest of the plot.  The news article hit home.

I am guilty.  My husband and I will watch a movie or a series at night and I am on my phone at the same time.  Usually doing my German studies on DuoLingo, then working through my various games, both thinking word games and simple matching games.  I am not really engaged in either activity, just floating between the two activities.  Not fully appreciating either one.  The more I thought of it, the more I felt like I am  cheating myself .  This prompted my word choice for 2026.  

I am choosing the word, Present. I am going to work on breaking my habit of distraction this year.  To pay attention to one thing at a time.  My "present" to myself will be to be present in a moment in time.   I don't think this will be an easy habit to break.   I'm pretty ingrained in a world of distraction and constant interruption.  The interruption being my thoughts jumping from one idea to another and then looking up those ideas one right after another.  I hope that by the end of 2026 I will be more focussed on the people and activities that are going on around me.  I will enjoy each activity for it's own merit and not  just to move on to the next one in the wings.  

We will see how it goes.  

I encourage you to look around you and see what sticks out in your life.  What word would you choose to focus on next year.  Share it with me and lets see how the journey goes.  

I pray it is a very happy new year for all! A new start for each of us to explore!  

Keeping Christmas All Year Long

    One of my favorite Christmas stories, outside of the greatest of all times, the nativity account in the book of Luke in the Holy Bible, is A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens.  I think I have such a fondness for it because I can relate to the story so well.  Depending on the year, Christmas can be quite a taxing time for people. Some years, Christmas presents the feeling of utmost joy, like the kind nephew Fred of Ebeneezer Scrooge exudes in the story.  The townspeople are all celebrating and jolly.  Yet Scrooge sees everything as either an opportunity to make money or save money, no matter the cost to others.  He sees frivolity as a waste of time and energy.  He finds no joy at Christmas as he has no use for it.

I prefer to watch accounts of A Christmas Carol that quote the actual text in the story, such as 20th Century Studios version with George C. Scott or my person favorite, A Muppet Christmas Carol staring Gonzo and Rizzo the rat as narrators.  I first encountered the tale in print form in school, another reason I enjoy it so much.  I simply love Dickens's theme of potential change of heart and temperament possible to any man. 

When you look at our society today, are we still depicting the characters of Dickens's classic tale?  Some people walk about, making merry, giving generously, seeing joy in every activity associated with Christmas.  Some like the character Scrooge, see no purpose in the occasion at all and view the holiday as a waste of time and money.  Does the person's circumstances dictate their disposition?  Scrooge has money.  He, from all outward appearances has no health or economic problems.  Yet he has no happiness. 

The Cratchet family has many problems.  Their youngest child is ill and seems to be in imminent  health danger.  The family has little money. Yet they see joy in the season with the meager lifestyle they live.  This all set my mind to thinking this season about what the joy of Christmas really is for each one of us.  

I confess that I have struggled being joyful this season.  I had rotator cuff surgery on my shoulder right after Halloween and it is a very slow healing procedure. I am on week 7 of wearing a cumbersome sling. I am very limited on my movement and it is my dominant arm so all the preparations I generally do are not happening this year.   I am working hard to keep my spirits merry and bright but occasionally I can slip into frustration and a sad mood.  

This has made me realize that the joy of Christmas truly is a mental endeavor.  Christmas consists of a feeling, not a thing.  It does not exist in material gifts, a specific day of the year,  or family tradition that must be repeated. It is simply the feeling of joy in the birth of our savior and the celebration with family and friends.  Whatever day or time that occurs.  

In the end of the story, Scrooge learns after experiencing the reliving of his life and the prediction of his future if he continues on his current life path,  that Christmas is a feeling and lifestyle that must be kept in the heart all year long.  This is the thought that is helping to sustain me this year.  Any Christmas can bring joy when you look at it simply. A gift of Christ come into the world and a mental challenge to remember this joyous gift of salvation all year long. 

I pray that you may keep Christmas in your heart all year long, and praise God for the gift of His son.  

Merry Christmas!

Mercy Hill by Hannah Thurman

     Four sisters, being raised in an employee cottage on the grounds of a mental hospital complex of buildings in Raleigh, North Carolina. Idyllic childhood, right? Four extremely smart sisters, a. mother, the doctor of psychiatry for the complex, focussed on saving the institution and pushing her girls to excel. Setting these goals above everything else in her world. One father, the peacekeeper for the family, tiring from his position as at home caretaker for the girls and as buffer for the mother's rants and overpowering need to control everything.  Could anything go wrong in this setting, could anything go right? 

    Mercy Hill, a debut Novel by Hannah Thurman, strongly reminds me of the Pulitzer novel, Demon Copperhead in the flavor of a story that compels the reader to continue the journey with the characters, even though each step is painful to experience. The fact that the Cross family is a dysfunctional family is a given, with a mother and father who have experienced difficult, perhaps tragic childhoods, and begin their family not only with the baggage of their pasts, but in a physical setting isolated from other families and children, surrounded by mentally ill patients.

    I was hesitant to request this Advanced Reader's Copy from NetGalley because it was such a heavy premise of a story. Yet I did and I am glad I decided to read the story. Yes, it was dark at times, but I was so engaged in the story that I wanted to know what would happen to the family.  How would the sister's mature, what would happen to the mental hospital, and the family as a whole.  I can honestly say that as a first book, Thurman did an excellent job.  The book was engaging. I felt the story moved along so well I eagerly stayed with the story through it's completion and felt very satisfied with the ending. I'm eager to see the responses to it as it publishes May 5, 2026 by Doubleday Books.  I think it will be much talked about in reading circles.  I encourage all to read it next spring and experience this accomplished new author.  

#MercyHill #NetGalley

     

The Take by Kelly Yang

 The Take by Kelly Yang first intrigued me with it's premise of aging.  The story centers around two women, one at the later stages of her career and the other just  finding her way into her life and career.  An experimental technology is available to transfuse the blood of the two women.  The younger would age, the older one would become youthful again. The price of youth, three million dollars.  Is the price too high to pay, for either woman?  

Women and aging is a common theme. Few embrace the natural occurrence, for if they did, there would be much less money spent on procedures, products and medications to halt or slow the process.  As a woman in my sixties myself, I can relate to the feeling of lost youth, yet not the extremeness of the solution. Yang writes about a movie producer, Ingrid, who finds her health is compromised do to her aging and seeks a young woman to transfuse with to regain her youth and competitive drive in her cut-throat Hollywood industry.  Maggie, a 23 year old Asian descent young woman is a struggling writer, trying to survive on her own while wanting to make her immigrant parents proud.   The payoff feels worthwhile to Maggie, three million for ten transfusions. But Ingrid doesn't share all the information about the risk. 

I was curious how Yang would tell this story. It was good, I liked the idea that the two women would learn and grow from each other.  Yet, it made me sad too. Without giving away the story, I will just say it dealt with a struggle of women using each other to get what they want, or need, instead of building each other up to be stronger together.  Sadly, I think this is more true than false.  So much competition ensues between women trying to beat time and each other to maintain their relevance in our society.  

The book makes one contemplate, is the end result worth the deceit and hurt. Does the betrayal outweigh the experience? 

When The Take hits the shelves on April 14, 2026,  read it and see how you feel. What would you do? 

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

Go Gentle by Maria Semple

     First of all,  I feel like I need to share how impressed I am with NetGalley's books and authors.  I have discovered so many new and new to me authors that I would never have found on my own. My newest treasure  is a book by Maria Semple, Go  Gentle . 

    There were so many times while reading Go Gentle, that I considered stopping right where I was in the book to write a raving review, because I was enjoying the novel so much that I just didn't think it could get any better than it was right then, but then it did, it surprised me again and got even better.  As an avid reader, (obviously, since I am always reviewing advance reader's copies for NetGalley) very few plots and stories surprise me.  I may be enthralled with characters, an author's voice in their writing, or various elements of the story.  Yet once I have gotten into the meat of the story, I can generally figure out where the story is going and how it is going to get there.  Not so with Semple's book, Go Gentle.  She surprised me over and over again.  I would love to share how, but I absolutely abhor spoilers, especially on a book this good.  Suffice it to say, The main character, Adora is a unique individual who embraces peace and happiness through her study of the great philosophers.  I know, from this line the book sounds like a snoozer.  But trust me, it's not! Adora, along with a motley crew of acquaintances and family take the reader through a romp of emotions and plot twists and turns that don't disappoint.  At times, I was so outraged on Adora's behalf that I wanted to scream with fury at the foulness of her treatment.  Other times, I romped along with her and the adventure that was unfolding in front of her. 

I can't even share my favorite quote of the book, as it has not been published yet, but I can say that although I took a philosophy class in college, I have never learned more about stoicism or the masters until I read Semple's book.  And this time I enjoyed the process.

Hopefully reader, I have intrigued you to search out Go Gentle by Maria Semple when it hits the shelves April 21, 2026, published by Penguin Random House.  This is another NetGalley book that I received as an advanced reader's copy in return for an honest review.  I give it 5 stars but honestly wish I could give it more.  Just because it kept me on my toes and guessing the outcome until the final end.  

The Lost Girl of Craven County - By: Emily Matchar

     North Carolina holds a special place in my heart as a destination I have often visited and made some wonderful memories.  Any book set in this locale peaks my interest, add a historical element and I'm hooked.  Such is the case for Emily Matchar's newest novel, The Lost Girl of Craven County,  being published by Penguin Random House , April 14, 2026.  

    The book begins in New Bern North Carolina, 1939, on the tails of the great depression,  with the whispers of upcoming war in Europe.  New Bern is a culturally diverse town with a thriving jewish community. Matchar focuses the story on two female characters, Millie, the 25 year old  daughter of a pickle factory owning  jewish family, and a mysterious young lady who shows up hurt and mute behind some pickle brining barrels one hot August afternoon.    Over time the puzzle deepens as Matchar weaves the details of the two women and their subsequent lives into a wonder tale of twists, turns of intrigue.  

    As an avid reader, few plots surprise me.  I generally have the basics of the story figured out early in a novel,  and then I am just verifying my premise to the end of the story. Matchar surprised me over and over again.  Just when I thought I"d figured out the identity of the lost girl, I'd be proved wrong with another detail.  Her well layered plot kept my attention to the very end.  I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Lost Girl of Craven County.  To be honest, it's killing me to not share the story, but It's just too good to ruin it for anyone. So reader, you'll just need to grab the book in April and read it yourself!  

Thank you NetGalley, Penguin Random House and, Emily Matchar for an Advanced Readers Copy in exchange  for an honest review.

Incidentals by:Sheila Yasmin Marikar

    Luxury travel takes a wicked twist in the book, Incidentals, written by Sheila Yasmin Marikar, and being published by Little A, New York,  March 31, 2026.  

Who hasn't seen a picture of an over the water bungalow and thought, "I'd love to go there!"  Such a romantic setting, the perfect place to work to rekindle a marriage.  At least that was what Sam thought, as he cashed in all his points to take his wife Sarah on a once in a lifetime vacation to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary.  

    From the start of the vacation, the reader is made aware that Sam and Sarah are at odds in their lives and marriage.  Sarah does not want the vacation and Sam wants to escape his life in an exotic tropical paradise.  I was hooked from the beginning  of the book as I got to know the couple and their struggles.  Early in their luxury flight, they meet, Krista and Kevin, first class travelers that seem to have everything money can buy and more. What looks to be a comrade and instant friend to Sarah, becomes an immediate annoyance to Sam, until a death in the Maldives throws the entire vacation into turmoil and intrigue.

    I liked the concept of the story and the setting. However, what started as a fun read grew tiring half way through.  It felt as though there was a constant rehashing of the same issues and when the climatic event was revealed, it was rushed and lacked zest.

There were definitely parts that I enjoyed in the novel Incidentals, but I felt like Marikar pushed through to complete the book, but lost enthusiasm that was felt in the onset.  Due to that, I will have to give it 3 stars. Yet, I look forward to reading more of Marikar's work as I did enjoy her story overall.

Thank you NetGalley, Little A and Sheila Yasmin Marikar for an Advanced Readers Copy in exchange  for an honest review.

 

Life lessons learned young...

It is commonly known that our childhood experiences often shape our adult lives. Many times we hear about how those experiences may negatively impact us, particularly if the experience is a sad or tragic one.  I have a different experience to share.

I did experience an emotional life altering event when I was 10 years old.  My cousin died.  Being a couple of the youngest grandchildren on my father's side of the family, I only had two or three cousins to play with at family gatherings, as all the other cousins were many years older.  My closest companion was my cousin Todd.  We were two years apart, with me being the older.  When he was eight years old, and I was ten, he was diagnosed and later died from the effects of a malignant brain tumor.  To say it was tragic is an understatement.  His loss at such an early stage of my life taught me what mortality truly meant. I faced the fact that no one is exempt from death and realized that it could be me or anyone I knew as easily as someone like a grandparent.  I can't say that the first few years after his loss I saw this reality as a gift.  In truth, I often worried that I would be next.  I thought that I would never live long enough to grow up, to finish school, get married, have children, or grow old. 

Now, in my 60's I can look at the experience in a different light. My fears actually made me thankful and self aware of every little joy in this life.  I think I have relished rights of passage in on a different level perhaps than some of my peers.  God took a tragedy in my world and made me hyper aware of joy without expectation.

Because I did not expect to grow up, when I did I felt blessed to do so. When I met my husband and we fell in love and married, I was amazed to have this experience in my life. I certainly did not see myself being fortunate enough to have children, so each one was a true miracle, a gift to behold. Now having seen my children grow to be adults and have happy marriages of their own, I am in awe of my blessings. It is because of this that   I believe I have been gifted with gratitude as a by product of loss. 

What in my mind makes my experience different than many is that this gratitude attitude did not come from a personal illness or accident averted.  It was learned vicariously through the loss of a beloved cousin.  God used my childhood grief to shape my continued life experiences. 

The concept of mortality hits hardest when it comes as an experience of losing someone your own age.  It makes one aware that life is not promised, and we are not indestructible.  To learn this difficult lesson young has impacted my entire life. But as with everything, God continues to show me his unending love and provision. He teaches me to be thankful for the life he allows me to have, and not take simple joys for granted. I hope to never forget each day is a blessing to wake up to, and continue to be amazed as I live past all expectations.    And someday, according to God's promises, see Todd again.

Handle With Care by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen

     Bonding through crisis is the central theme for Marybeth Mayhew Whalen's book, Handle With Care,  being published April 13, 2026 by Thomas Nelson (a trademark of Harper Collins Christian Publishing).  Four women, caught in a hostage situation brought forth by a domestic matter find comfort and allegiance together as they work to be released. Each woman has a personal dilemma to work through, and through their interwoven experience they are able to support each other as well as find answers to their personal challenges.  

     There are many facets of Whalen's book that I enjoyed. The novel is set up as the parts of a friendly letter, as taught in school.  In lieu of numbered parts to break the story into sections, the novel begins with the "heading", then progresses to the other parts of a letter (greeting, body, closing, and signature).  Chapters are introduced , yet the major sections of the novel are separated the letter elements.  Why the author chose this format is made clear in the middle of the story when one of the main characters, a past English teacher, explains how to write a friendly letter, which brings the whole concept together., 

    The story was poignant, well written, and thought provoking.  The characters came to life and were engaging.  As the reader, I became involved in their circumstances, and was on edge to see how it was going to work out.  Whalen's ability to transport a reader to her character's world creates an engaging escape. Look for Handle With Care next spring and enjoy. 

I received a preview copy of Handle with Care from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.