The Mistletoe Inn by Richard Paul Evans and Cookie Exchange

December: The Misteltoe Inn by Richard Paul Evans 300 pages

At thirty-two Kimberly Rossetti, a finance officer at a Lexus car dealership, has had her heart broken more times than she wants to remember. With two failed engagements, a divorce and again alone with no prospects, she hardly seems the type to dream of being a published romance author. Dreading another holiday alone, she signs up for The Mistletoe Retreat, a nine-day writing retreat in Savannah, Georgia. Deep inside Kimberly knows she's at a junction in her life and it's time to either fulfill her dream or let it go. The other reason she decides to attend the conference is because famed romance writer, H.T. Cowell, once the best selling romance writer in America, and the author whose books instilled in her the desire to be a writer, will be speaking in public for the first time in more than a decade.

In one of her breakout sessions Kimberly meets another aspiring writer, and one of the few men at the conference, Zeke, an intelligent man with a wry wit who seems as interested in Kimberly as he is in the retreat. As Kimberly begins to open up to him about her stories and dreams, she inadvertently reveals her own troubled past. As Zeke helps her to discover why her books fail to live up to their potential she begins to wonder if he's really talking more about her life than her literature. But as she grows closer to him, she realizes that Zeke has his own darkness, a past he's unwilling to talk about.

The theme of The Mistletoe Inn is that like literature, relationships must be lived with passion and vulnerability to succeed.

review from goodreads.com

A movie was recently released on the Hallmark Channel.

Come what May!!

It's May 30, 2017 already! Thank you Cortney for hosting a lovely evening of fun and friendship.
In attendance: Cortney, Moana, Joy, Kanoe, Jamie and Keri

We have a summer lineup of books to read as well as selections for the remainder of 2017. Hooray!

June: The Rent Collector by Camron Wright  304 pages
Survival for Ki Lim and Sang Ly is a daily battle at Stung Meanchey, the largest municipal waste dump in all of Cambodia. They make their living scavenging recyclables from the trash. Life would be hard enough without the worry for their chronically ill child, Nisay, and the added expense of medicines that are not working. Just when things seem worst, Sang Ly learns a secret about the bad-tempered rent collector who comes demanding money--a secret that sets in motion a tide that will change the life of everyone it sweeps past. 

The Rent Collector is a story of hope, of one woman's journey to save her son and another woman's chance at redemption.

July: Left Neglected by Lisa Genova 324 pages
Sarah Nickerson is like any other career-driven supermom in Welmont, the affluent Boston suburb where she leads a hectic but charmed life with her husband Bob, faithful nanny, and three children - Lucy, Charlie, and nine-month-old Linus.

Between recruiting the best and brightest minds as the vice president of human resources at Berkley Consulting; shuttling the kids to soccer, day care, and piano lessons; convincing her son’s teacher that he may not, in fact, have ADD; and making it home in time for dinner, it’s a wonder this over-scheduled, over-achieving Harvard graduate has time to breathe.

A self-confessed balloon about to burst, Sarah miraculously manages every minute of her life like an air traffic controller. Until one fateful day, while driving to work and trying to make a phone call, she looks away from the road for one second too long. In the blink of an eye, all the rapidly moving parts of her jam-packed life come to a screeching halt.

A traumatic brain injury completely erases the left side of her world, and for once, Sarah relinquishes control to those around her, including her formerly absent mother. Without the ability to even floss her own teeth, she struggles to find answers about her past and her uncertain future.

Now, as she wills herself to regain her independence and heal, Sarah must learn that her real destiny - her new, true life - may in fact lie far from the world of conference calls and spreadsheets. And that a happiness and peace greater than all the success in the world is close within reach, if only she slows down long enough to notice.

August: My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares 324 pages
Daniel has spent centuries falling in love with the same girl. Life after life, crossing continents and dynasties, he and Sophia (despite her changing name and form) have been drawn together-and he remembers it all. Daniel has "the memory", the ability to recall past lives and recognize souls of those he's previously known. It is a gift and a curse. For all the times that he and Sophia have been drawn together throughout history, they have also been torn painfully, fatally, apart. A love always too short.

Interwoven through Sophia and Daniel's unfolding present day relationship are glimpses of their expansive history together. From 552 Asia Minor to 1918 England and 1972 Virginia, the two souls share a long and sometimes torturous path of seeking each other time and time again. But just when young Sophia (now "Lucy" in the present) finally begins to awaken to the secret of their shared past, to understand the true reason for the strength of their attraction, the mysterious force that has always torn them apart reappears. Ultimately, they must come to understand what stands in the way of their love if they are ever to spend a lifetime together.

A magical, suspenseful, heartbreaking story of true love, My Name is Memory proves the power and endurance of a union that was meant to be.

September: Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult 353 pages
Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book—one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.
And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He’s sure there’s more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.
A romantic and charming story, this companion novel to Off the Page will make every reader believe in the fantastical power of fairy tales.


October: Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie 315 pages
Just after midnight, the famous Orient Express is stopped in its tracks by a snowdrift. By morning, the millionaire Samuel Edward Ratchett lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside. One of his fellow passengers must be the murderer.

Isolated by the storm, detective Hercule Poirot must find the killer among a dozen of the dead man's enemies, before the murderer decides to strike again . . .

Movie Release 11/10/2017 staring Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfieffer Penelope Cruz


November: Belong to Me by Marisa de los Santos 400 pages
Everyone has secrets. Some we keep to protect ourselves, others we keep to protect those we love.

A devoted city dweller, Cornelia Brown surprised no one more than herself when she was gripped by the sudden, inescapable desire to leave urban life behind and head for an idyllic suburb. Though she knows she and her beloved husband, Teo, have made the right move, she approaches her new life with trepidation and struggles to forge friendships in her new home. Cornelia's mettle is quickly tested by judgmental neighbor Piper Truitt. Perfectly manicured, impeccably dressed, and possessing impossible standards, Piper is the embodiment of everything Cornelia feared she would find in suburbia. A saving grace soon appears in the form of Lake. Over a shared love of literature and old movies, Cornelia develops an instant bond with this warm yet elusive woman who has also recently arrived in town, ostensibly to send her perceptive and brilliant son, Dev, to a school for the gifted.

Marisa de los Santos's literary talents shine in the complex interactions she creates between these three women. She deftly explores the life-altering roller coaster of emotions Piper faces as she cares for two households, her own and that of her cancer-stricken best friend, Elizabeth. Skillfully, de los Santos creates an enigmatic and beguiling character in Lake, who draws Cornelia closer even as she harbors a shocking secret. And from the first page until the exhilarating conclusion, de los Santos engages readers with Cornelia, who, while trying to adapt to her new surroundings, must remain true to herself. As their individual stories unfold, the women become entangled in a web of trust, betrayal, love, and loss that challenges them in ways they never imagined, and that ultimately teaches them what it means for one human being to belong to another.


December: The Misteltoe Inn by Richard Paul Evans 300 pages

At thirty-two Kimberly Rossetti, a finance officer at a Lexus car dealership, has had her heart broken more times than she wants to remember. With two failed engagements, a divorce and again alone with no prospects, she hardly seems the type to dream of being a published romance author. Dreading another holiday alone, she signs up for The Mistletoe Retreat, a nine-day writing retreat in Savannah, Georgia. Deep inside Kimberly knows she's at a junction in her life and it's time to either fulfill her dream or let it go. The other reason she decides to attend the conference is because famed romance writer, H.T. Cowell, once the best selling romance writer in America, and the author whose books instilled in her the desire to be a writer, will be speaking in public for the first time in more than a decade.

In one of her breakout sessions Kimberly meets another aspiring writer, and one of the few men at the conference, Zeke, an intelligent man with a wry wit who seems as interested in Kimberly as he is in the retreat. As Kimberly begins to open up to him about her stories and dreams, she inadvertently reveals her own troubled past. As Zeke helps her to discover why her books fail to live up to their potential she begins to wonder if he's really talking more about her life than her literature. But as she grows closer to him, she realizes that Zeke has his own darkness, a past he's unwilling to talk about.

The theme of The Mistletoe Inn is that like literature, relationships must be lived with passion and vulnerability to succeed.

The Mistletoe Promise by Richard Paul Evans

Thank you for hosting in your festive home Cortney!

In attendance:

Cortney, Jamie, Lille, Lauren, Joy, and welcome Maria Nakata

Our fabulous December book with a sweet Christmas theme was written by Richard Paul Evans. Hallmark Channel has a movie made from this book. However, while the movie was entertaining there were a few deviations from the book that made the movie comparably less fantastic.

Richard Paul Evans has a way of making 300 pages fly by. The Mistletoe Promise has this effect as well. Perfect.

Happy Halloween, Here Comes Thanksgiving, and Get Ready for Christmas!

Our October Book Club took place at Joy's home.
In Attendance:
Lauren, Cortney, Jamie, Moana and Joy
This month we talked about two books. Our September book was Amaranth Enchantment by Julie Berry and our October book was I Am Not a Serial Killer by Dan Wells. Both books had great synopsises unfortunately the stories fell a little flat at the twists and turns.

candy corn, cookies, cream cheese & pepper jelly on pita chips,
pumpkin cake & cream cheese frosting, sparkling raspberry punch and
affectionately titled 'Butt Bars' sooooo delicious! see below for recipe

Book Suggestions mentioned tonight:
Graceling by Kristin Cashore (Adventure and strong female lead character)
Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder - *see below (must read the whole Study Series!)
The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley (The ebook cover is beautiful)

Recipe for Butt Bars (Mom's Double-Delicious Halloween Bars) Thank you Lauren!

1/2 c. butter
1 1/2 c. grahm cracker crumbs
1 can (14oz) sweetened con. milk
1 (12oz) pkg chocolate chips
1 c. peanut butter and/or butterscotch chips

1. Preheat to 350 degrees
2. melt butter in 9x13 baking dish
3. sprinkle crumbs over butter
4. pour sweetened con. milk over crumbs
5. top with chips, press down firmly
6. bake 25-30 min or until lightly browned
7. cool, then cut into bars

Our Books for November and December 2016:
Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
Tuesday, November 29th,7pm location TBD

The Mistletoe Promise by Richard Paul Evans
Annual Cookie Exchange
Tuesday, December 20th, 7pm Cortney's Home

The Gift by Richard Paul Evans

Cookies, Cookies, Cookies!!

I just love our December Book Club and Cookie Exchange. This year was super yummy. Thank you everyone!

This month our book pick was The Gift by Richard Paul Evans.
In Attendance,

Digna, Peggy, Cortney, Amalie, Virginia, Joy, Jamie, and Krystal

 Welcome to book club Peggy and Digna.

suggestions made for future reading:
The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
Blackmoore by Julianna Donaldson

Promise Me by Richard Paul Evans

It was such a fun Christmas Book Club. We had a really great turnout and lots of cookies for our Christmas Cookie Exchange.

Our book for the month was Promise Me by Richard Paul Evans
This story brought up great opportunity for discussion.

Attendance was really great with three new to the group:
Kainui Nihipali, Alofa Faamausili, and Kamailie Heide (wow, that was a lot of vowels, ha!)
Welcome Welcome!
Also in attendance:
Joy, Cortney, Jamie, Keri, Krystal, Alana, Amalie, Monica and her fun Mother-in-Law Carrie.

In addition to a cookie exchange....
We also collectively congratulate Alana Yates on her upcoming baby due next month.
Our January Book Club pick is Don't Go by Lisa Scottoline:

A suggestion for February: The Rent Collector by Camron Wright

The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom 1/23/2013

January Book Club is now less than a week away.

 Our book of the month is The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom.

 We'll meet at my house January 23 at 7 PM.

This is such a unique book and an immediate favorite when I read it (Book Club Jan2004). I'm grateful to Cortney for the suggestion to read it this month to see if it's still holds true the 2nd time around.

Get your read on and see you next week :)

Lost December 12/12/12

What a fun Christmas inspired Book Club Evening! Everyone enjoyed this month's choice,

Lost December by Richard Paul Evans.

I thought it was a great story in true Richard Paul Evans style. Something we've come to depend on from one of our favorite go-to authors.

As in December's past, we had a cookie exchange that was yummy!
(** totally scrumptious **).
Everyone brought 2 dozen cookies to swap. Cortney brought a variety of delicious treats.

We met at my house and in attendance:
Joy, Moana, Cortney, Ashley, Kanoe, and welcome to Krystal!

Everyone went home with a gift, the book "The Merchant from Bethlehem" by Johan Christian.

Book Brainstorming 11/14/2012

Thanks Cortney for hosting our November Book Club! And a big welcome to Ashley Mafi!
Also in attendance: Jamie, Kanoe, Joy and Moana

We didn't have a book selected for the month. So we had an evening of book brainstorming and tasty treats.
We've missed a few months meeting this year. We've also missed selecting any books for us to read.And so the quote of the night by Kanoe was very fitting:
"Our intentions are perfect"

We had all kinds of books brought up for discussion and most importantly we have a December book club choice: 
Lost December by Richard Paul Evans



A little of the discussion tonight:
Cortney: The Walk series by Richard Paul Evans, Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, These is My Words by Nancy E. Turner, Friday Night Knitting Club & Knit Two by Kate Jacobs
Ashley: Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Kanoe and Ashley and Moana: The Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling which we loved to read for book club, too.
Ashley mentioned a book we all thought sounded really interesting but just don't know the name of it or the author. So we have a challenge. What middle grade book was about a boy that would travel to other planets?
Jamie: Sweet Valley High by Francine Pascal
I made mention about one of my favorite book club book that we've read and would love for us to re-read The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Our Next Meeting will be held at Joy's Home 7 PM, December 12, 2012....that's right 12/12/12!

~joy

The Christmas List 12/21/2010

A Very Merry Christmas to YOU!
What a night of good cheer! Thank you Cortney for hosting our December book club and cookie exchange. YUM!

In attendance:
Cortney, Joy, Lynn, Betsy(Lynn's Mom-in-law), Wendi, Jamie, Sarah, and Moana.

Our discussion of The Christmas List by Richard Paul Evans was showered with wonderful reviews. Evans rarely disappoints. Which would explain why The Christmas List was the fourth of his books we've selected in less than three years.
The Sunflower February 2008
The Last Promise May 2008
Grace January 2010
The Christmas List December 2010

We humans...are seriously flawed. The things that are the most necessary, the most critical to us, are the things we take most for granted. Air. Water. Love.
If you have someone to love, you are lucky.
If they love you back, you're blessed.
And if you waste the time you have to love them, you're a fool.
-The Christmas List- p. 296

~*~*~Upcoming~*~*~
We will meet at Joy Paet's Home 7PM January 25, 2011
Our January book(s):


(that's right all THREE! The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay)
for February 2011:

Grace - 1/20/10

In January we met at Sarah Ohki's house and laughed and laughed. What a fun night.

We took turns discussing the book Grace by Richard Paul Evans, our book for both December and January. This was a book that made me cry. Pulled at my heart strings. I was glad to know it was fiction, even if the story isn't that far fetched. It was a good book to talk about among friends.
Those in attendance:
Sarah, Trisha, Tori, Molly, Laura, Joy, Lynn, Wendi

For February we will again meet at Sarah's home and have a
twuuu-luuuv-of-a-time
talking about The Princess Bride by William Goldman

~*~*~Upcoming Reads~*~*~
~ Kane and Abel by Jeffery Archer 3-10
~ The Help by Kathryn Stockett 4-10
~ Graceling by Kristin Cashore 5-10

~Joy

The Last Promise - 5/21/08

This month we read The Last Promise by Richard Paul Evans.

Richard Paul Evans has a writing formula down pat -
1. Find an unsuspecting attractive person.
2. Find out their love story.
3. Make sure one or both of them kept a diary or letters to one another.
4. Capitalize on it.

Positive book reviews were left on Goodreads.com by Rhona, Joy, Moana and Caddie.



We had a baby shower for Amber Standage. The Standages will be welcoming a new baby boy in early June. Right Amber?!

We all wish much love to you, Rick and big sister Taryn.



Thank you Molly for opening your beautiful home for book club this month. And thank you for all your planning to make Amber's baby shower so much fun. I loved the candles and blue theme. And thanks to Sarah, Molly and Trisha for the games and prizes.

In attendance:
Molly, Sarah, Joy, Trisha, Arielle, Bonnie, Jane, Amber and
Codee & Terry (Kahana) - Born May 1st. Congratulations Franco Ohana!!

The book we will be reading in June:
The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards.
**UPDATE** Our next meeting:
Wednesday, June 18th, 7 PM at DeAnna Dotson's home.

**Update** Congratulations to the Standage Ohana!
Bryant Richard Standage born June 6th.

**Update** Please notice the book for July is now The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.

The Sunflower 2/19/08

What a wonderful productive evening at Book Club! Thank you to everyone for all your great input.

Cortney may be our first published author. . .of a cook book. ;-) *hint *hint - Yum - I need the recipe for your Curry Pasta. Along with Cortney, Moana, Rhona, Jane, Codee and I talked about The Sunflower by Richard Paul Evans.

Perfect love casteth out fear. 1 John 4:18

What a nice, feel-good, inspirational book. We all loved the chapter headings, the author's style, and felt it was worth visiting his work again. (*read* check out MAY's selection)

**** Joy's review on www.goodnessmatters.com****
Knowing goodness matters to so many people makes it easy to recommend The Sunflower by Richard Paul Evans. It is such an uplifting, simple, good read.  Reaching the last page made me wish it could continue on - and even with the brevity of the tale it left such a lasting impression. At the heart of the story is a very real orphanage in Peru named "El Girasol" - The Sunflower. Paul Cook an American ER doctor, gave up his career and selflessly became the orphanage Director. A young woman, Christine Hollister, who's heartsick after her fiance broke off their engagement agrees to go on a humanitarian expedition with her best friend Christine. During this expedition, a beautiful story unfolds about service, children, sacrifice and love. The whole story is sumptuously written with thought provoking quotations from Paul's diary at the beginning of each chapter.  

*Paul Cook's Diary*
The surest way to minimize your own burdens is to carry someone else's. (ch. 6)

Today I overheard an American teenager comparing her deprivation to that of our children, because her parents would only buy her a used car. There are none so impoverished as those who do not acknowledge the abundance of their lives. (ch. 9)

Feelings can be like wild animals - we underrate how fierce they are until we've opened their cages. (ch. 12)

The more I study history the more I realize how little mankind has changed. There are no new scripts, just different actors. (ch.14)

I have come to believe that the only true way we can serve God is to serve His children. (ch. 20)
*~*~*~*~*~*
"Chocolate is God's apology for broccoli" (ha!)

From reading The Sunflower I understood how the value of service, sacrifice and generosity to others can have a healing affect in our own life. Oh, I want to pick up the book and start it again right from the beginning! ~Joy  updated 8/19/2011


And. . .drum roll please. . .We have the next 6 months of book picks. =D

March 25th (*note: 4th Tuesday)
The True Story of Hansel and Gretel: a novel of war and survival by Loise Murphy

April: Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

May: The Last Promise by Richard Paul Evans

June: The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards

July: The Appeal by John Grisham **Update** The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

**UPDATE**:
August: These is My Words by Nancy E. Turner

September: Breaking Dawn (Book 4 of the Twilight Series) by Stephenie Meyer
~release date August 2nd~

Can't wait to hear your comments. As for those of you who had to be away from us this evening - without question - Ladies, you were missed.

Next Book Club Meeting: March 25, 2008 at Cortney Nadig's home.
****Last Minute switch**** Book Club will be meeting at Rhona's home 3/25 at 7 PM.