The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

This latest novel by the master of compassionate, heartfelt stories, has come up with a huge winner. The Last Song has already been made into a movie slated for an April release with Miley Cyrus as the leading character.

Veronica "Ronnie" Miller and her ten year old brother Noah, spend the summer in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, which is something Ronnie is not looking forward to. Her parents were divorced a few years earlier and she hasn't talked to him in all that time because she blames him for ruining her life. Noah is looking forward to spending the summer with his father and helps him around the house. Steve spends time playing music on his piano, which upsets Ronnie to no end. Steve spent years teaching piano at Juillard, then went on the road to play in concert halls, clubs, etc.

Ronnie meets Blaze, a young girl her age that is fighting her demons, rebelling more than Ronnie. Ronnie starts hanging around Blaze and Marcus, a ruthless and freaky oddball out to spread trouble wherever he goes, which causes a rift between the two girls. When a freakish incident occurs, things get crazy. Ronnie also meets Will, a beach volleyball player, working at playing in a big tournament that summer and falls for him. She doesn't understand Will's mother's aloofness towards her, but gets along with his dad and just married sister.

Ronnie gets to learn more about her dad and finds she really loves him after finding out her father has invited her and Jonah for a reason other than what she'd been led to believe. She had attended Juillard as a pupil of her father's and had stopped playing. With Will around to teach her about fishing and about the fragility of baby sea turtles and ends up working at the aquariam with Will. Ronnie learns an even more important lesson and that is forgiving her dad and herself. This is an excellent book for teens to read about first love and heartbreak.

Forever Friends Rating 5 Stars by Teri
Until Next Time, See You Around The Book Nook.

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Date Published: Sep 2009

ISBN: 978-0-446-54756-7

390pp

I got this book from my Mid-Columbia Regional Library to read.

First Family by David Baldacci

First Family by David Baldacci

In this offering by the master of the government thrillers, comes First Family, a top-notch suspenseful novel involving President Dan Cox and his no-holds barred First Lady Jane. From the first page, we find Sean King and Michelle Maxwell, former Secret Service Agents and now P.I's, are hired by the First Lady to find who kidnapped her brother's twelve year old daughter.

WShat is so odd is there is no ransom demands, so this is a much different kidnapping than the norm. The man who has masterminded this kidnapping, makes a big mistake when a major character is killed. And, to throw things off, to cover their tracks, they leave a disturbing piece of evidence on the dead body. The ramifications are far-reaching for some people.

While working on this case, Michelle is devastated by a death in her family and comes to find murder most foul, so she and Sean are seeking answers to her father's suscpicious behavior, believing him a suspect.

When Sean and Michelle find strange markings on the walls of an old house in Alabama, things start coming together with the reasons for why Willa was kidnapped, including a woman who is being held along with her who seems connected to Dan Cox's past, along with Sam Quarry and his sons and daughter Tippi, who's on life support and has been for years. Sean and Michelle have to race to reach Willa before it's too late. This is one of David's best and I really love his Sean & Michelle books.

Forever Friends Rating 5 Stars by Teri
Until Next Time, See You Around The Book Nook.

Published by: Grand Central Publishing

Date Published: April 2009

ISBN: 978-0-446-53975-3

452pp

I got this book from our Mid-Columbia Regional Library.