Night of Miracles

Finished February 20
Night of Miracles by Elizabeth Berg, read by the author

This novel features a few characters that live in a small town in Missouri called Mason. Lucille has lived in Mason all her life, and is in her eighties. Her mind is still keen, and she holds strong to her values. She never married, but has a young woman in her life, Maddy, that she treats as a daughter, and whose young daughter Nola considers her a grandmother. Lucille has been teaching baking classes, but they've been getting more popular, and she is looking to take on an assistant. She has also recently made friends with her new neighbours, Jason and Abby, a couple with a young son, Lincoln. As Abby faces some health issues, Lucille spends time with Lincoln, making a new friend.
Iris Winters is new to town, leaving Boston after the breakup of her marriage, a decision she still revisits. She befriends her neighbour Tiny, who runs a local taxi business. Tiny is a large man with a big heart, and he begins to ask Iris's advice on his love life.
At the local diner, Polly's Henhouse, one of the waitresses, Monica, is beginning to take steps outside her comfort zone after the recent death of her much-loved mother. She's long had a crush on one of her regulars, and begins to consider how to make a move to indicate her interest.
As we get inside the heads of Lucille, Iris, Monica, and Tiny, we see the importance of relationships and communication. All the lives of these people are intertwined and as they grow closer, they also overcome barriers.
This is a story of love, of loss, of friendship, and of new beginnings. I really enjoyed it. And the baking made my mouth water.

The Unfinished Angel

Finished December 2
The Unfinished Angel by Sharon Creech

This lovely children's novel tells a tale of an angel who lives in an old house in a small village in Switzerland. For a long time the angel has been watching theneighbours, an old lady Signora Divino and her grandson Vinny, but not really doing that much. The angel feels like it doesn't know what it should be doing or how to do angel-like things. While it is supposed to understand all languages, it isn't really that good at them, and the words it uses aren't always right. It hasn't seen any other angels and isn't sure where to find them and what the extent of territory it is responsible for. The angel likes animals and when feeling upset flishes (yet that is what it calls it) up to see the goats, which always make it feel better.
But then the American man Mr. Pomodoro and the girl Zola come to live in the house and things start to happen. To start, Zola can see the angel and knows it is an angel and expects it to do angel things. Like when she finds the homeless children in the barn before the angel notices and want the angel to fix things. Like when Vinny throws garbage and Zola wants the angel to fix things. But though the angel helps when it can, everyone discovers that sometimes it is the people that do most of the fixing.
I love the use of onomatopoeia in the words used by the angel. A good example is Mr Pomodoro tappling at the keys for his dimputer. The book plays with language in both the words the angel uses and Zola's playful utterings.  The whole book feels playful and fun, and gives the reader a good feeling inside.

Emerald City

Finished March 31
Emerald City by Alicia K Leppert
This novel, set in Seattle, tells the story of a young woman, Olivia, who is struggling with depression. Her mother died recently, and the hard life the two had after the desertion of Olivia's father has had its toll. Olivia exists, barely, moving through the routine of her life as a waitress and her small studio apartment. Even her friends have deserted her. When she thinks she has hit a low, she finds that someone does care and she has been helped. As she moves forward, she must find the strength within herself to ask for help, find new friends and possibly new love. The young man who has come into her life, Jude, is a bit of a cipher. Olivia finds herself trying to figure him out and once she does, the two together have to figure out the next step in their lives, together or apart.
A love story, a story of redemption, and hope, this is also one with a touch of the other.
Olivia has more backbone than she has given herself credit for, and her honesty with herself and her situation help a lot to keep her moving in a positive direction.

Forbidden

Finished February 19
Forbidden by Syrie James and Ryan M James
This teen novel looks to be the first in a new series. It begins with Claire Brennan, a scholarship student at an elite high school in Los Angeles, ready to start a new term. Claire's mother has moved them around a lot and Claire is desperate to stay at Emerson Academy until she finishes high school. But Claire is starting to have visions, and she confides in her two best friends about them.
There is a new boy at school, Alex MacKenzie, from Scotland. But he seems shy and at first Claire doesn't know what to make of him. Then she notices something else and begins to wonder and so do her friends.
Alec chose Emerson Academy as a place to lie low and have an experience he never did, high school. But he's an angelic watcher gone AWOL, and is constantly on the lookout for danger and signs of his cover being blown. What he didn't plan on is developing feelings for Claire.
Obviously, this is paranormal romance, with a touch of thriller thrown in. There is suspense, fast-paced action, and first love. Here we have the world of angels (Grigori), Fallen (the ones the angels watch for bad behaviour), and Nephilim (part angel, part people that the angels are wary of). A good read, and an ending that seems perfect to lead to a sequel.

Breath of Angel

Finished March 24
Breath of Angel by Karyn Henley
I received this as a prepublication copy from Library Journal and had never read anything by this author before. This is the first book in The Angeleon Circle series, and from the series and book titles you can see that angels are the theme here.
The main character is Melaia, a young priestess/chantress, who witnesses the murder of a messenger in her temple courtyard. Shortly after this event, the murderer shows up there, but while he did the act as a hawk, he now appears in his human form. He asks for a tale to be told. As Melaia discovers, the tale she tells is not complete and the version she tells has elements missing. As Melaia travels to the royal court, she ends up caught up in the feud between the two brothers of the tale, and takes refuge with a group of angels who are trying to set things right. There she finds that order can only be restored by one who has "the breath of angel, blood of man," and Melaia herself has a large role to fill in the story.
I found the story interesting and engaging, and would be interested in reading the rest of the series. I could see this appealing to teen readers based on Melaia's age and her growing awareness.