Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira – Book Review

March 1, 2015March 1, 2015 by Leelynn @ Sometimes Leelynn Reads ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I wish you could tell me where you are now. I mean, I know you’re dead, but I think there must be something in a human being that can’t just disappear. It’s dark out. You’re out there. Somewhere, somewhere. I’d like to let you in. – Laurel, p. 10

Losing a family member, especially one that you are close to, can be the worst feeling in the world. Imagine losing your best friend, your sister, and watching her die. This is exactly what happens with the main character Laurel, and the death of her sister May rocks her entire world. She ends up transferring schools, trying to make herself into a different person where nobody will ever know about her sister and the fact that May is dead.

Throughout the book, we see if this plan of Laurel’s actually works, through her own words. Since it all started as an English assignment – write a letter to a dead person – Laurel ends up using this assignment as a grieving mechanism, even if she doesn’t realize it yet. Her choices of dead people to write to seem to revolve around her memories of May. The more the letters come, however, Laurel eventually makes her own memories and opinions about the people she writes to that don’t always involve her sister.

Laurel does end up going through some character growth in the book, and while it does seem to take a while to happen, it eventually happens. Unfortunately, she is also a difficult character to fully relate to, and there were more times than one where I would get extremely frustrated with her thoughts and actions. Maybe it was because she was just being a teenager that was experimenting, or going through a rebellious stage, or maybe something else entirely. It just bothered me, because it seemed like she was doing it to herself, or letting herself be the victim of such actions.

It is important for those who do read this book to understand that you should never allow yourself to be victimized, and if something happens that makes you feel uncomfortable or violated, you need to talk to an authority figure and someone who can help you make those actions stop. Out of the entire book, this is the message that I feel needed to be stressed the most, and it was only mentioned at the very end.

Rated: 4/5 Stars

1929 (Book 1 of the 1929 Series) by M.L. Gardner

February 19, 2015 by Leelynn @ Sometimes Leelynn Reads ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

As Black Thursday triggers financial despondency, three young couples in New York City must trade their lives of luxury for poverty, tragedy, and setbacks.

When Jonathan Garrett’s brokerage firm collapses on the day of the Stock Market Crash, he unites with his closest friends (and former business partners), Aryl and Caleb, to relocate, track down a low-paying job, and cultivate a new life.

As the three men toil in their laborious jobs, their wives, Ava, Arianna, and Claire, slowly adapt to life in a shabby, rundown apartment, learning to sew, cook, and clean. With the help of their former, outspoken, Irish maid, Maura, and a new, equally Irish friend, Shannon, the wives become even closer than before.

The couples’ rocky path leads to more turmoil, however, when a business rival, Victor Drayton, creates one disaster after another. From petty tricks to outright violence, Victor’s nefarious mind will stop at nothing to beat down Jonathan’s last glimmer of hope.

Despite everything, Jonathan and his friends are fixated on surviving.

Emotional and financial destruction nip at their heels, until finally, with a lucky twist of fate, they escape city life and begin anew in their hometown of Rockport, Massachusetts.

A story set in the past, 1929 is full of romance, drama, and humor. Vivid, expertly crafted characters make this novel more than memorable–1929 is unforgettable.

Synopsis provided by GoodReads.

Tuesday Talks: Dating Non-Readers

February 17, 2015February 17, 2015 by Leelynn @ Sometimes Leelynn Reads ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Hey guys! I’m here again with another topic for Tuesday Talks. Since I’m only starting this Tuesday, I figured I could back track to the beginning of the year so that I will be eventually caught up. So for a little bit, there will be two Tuesday Talks posts (and videos) until I’m finally on the same page. Again, please feel free to leave me any comments you have, as I would love to delve into discussions with you all.

“How do you feel about dating non-readers?”

For starters, I’ll have to say that every single boyfriend I’ve had has been a non-reader, so to speak. It’s not something that they really had time for because of their busy work schedule. (Both are submariners, and have extremely long work days sometimes). Even right now, my husband (yes,we got married!) is out to sea and I’m not sure if he really has time to read while he’s gone. However, he knows just how much I love to read, and even let me pick out a book series for him to read while he’s gone. I know he’s not much of a reader, even if he does have books in his car. (Yes, his car of all places. More specifically, in the trunk. You know what that means.)

I picked out a book series that I fell in love with from the first moment I read it, but also one that should pique his interest. After all, he is a guy and most of the series that I read probably wouldn’t appeal to him (Vampire Academy anyone?) I gave him all five books of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, and told him to start with The Lightning Thief. He watched the movie, just like I did, and he thought it was going to be the exact same. I told him to read it anyway, and let me know how he liked it. It was a gamble, but he accepted my gifts to him and eventually had to leave.

A couple of days ago, I ended up receiving an email from you, letting me know that he’s doing alright and that things are pretty normal. That was standard for us, and as long as I got an email from him letting me know he’s good, then I don’t worry. But he also included something else that I wasn’t expecting, and it actually made me smile.

He told me that he’s already on Chapter 7 of The Lightning Thief. He also told me that even though he watched the movie, he still really likes reading the book. (Not to mention it’s at his reading level, or so he says.) Looks like I did a good job, right?

So even though my husband is not much of a reader, I think it really depends on the kinds of books that he is able to read, or wants to read. So my choice of the Percy Jackson books may have opened up the doors for him to start reading a little more than he already does.

Long story short: dating non-readers isn’t a complete loss, but try to get them to read something they never thought they would like. They may surprise you.