Sunday, September 4, 2011

Monday Mailbox


Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme where we showcase the books that have come to our home in the past week. MM is currently on tour and the host for September is  Amused by Books.

Caveat: Mailbox Monday may cause your wish list to explode exponentially!

I thought my mailbox was going to be empty this week but these two books showed up Saturday.


In her best-selling debut, Commencement, J. Courtney Sullivan explored the complicated and contradictory landscape of female friendship. Now, in her highly anticipated second novel, Sullivan takes us into even richer territory, introducing four unforgettable women who have nothing in common but the fact that, like it or not, they’re family.

For the Kellehers, Maine is a place where children run in packs, showers are taken outdoors, and old Irish songs are sung around a piano. Their beachfront property, won on a barroom bet after the war, sits on three acres of sand and pine nestled between stretches of rocky coast, with one tree bearing the initials “A.H.” At the cottage, built by Kelleher hands, cocktail hour follows morning mass, nosy grandchildren snoop in drawers, and decades-old grudges simmer beneath the surface.

As three generations of Kelleher women descend on the property one summer, each brings her own hopes and fears. Maggie is thirty-two and pregnant, waiting for the perfect moment to tell her imperfect boyfriend the news; Ann Marie, a Kelleher by marriage, is channeling her domestic frustration into a dollhouse obsession and an ill-advised crush; Kathleen, the black sheep, never wanted to set foot in the cottage again; and Alice, the matriarch at the center of it all, would trade every floorboard for a chance to undo the events of one night, long ago.

By turns wickedly funny and achingly sad, Maine unveils the sibling rivalry, alcoholism, social climbing, and Catholic guilt at the center of one family, along with the abiding, often irrational love that keeps them coming back, every summer, to Maine and to each other.

Received from Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea. Thanks so much, Diane. I really  appreciate you sending me your copy. I've been looking forward to reading this one!





Ellie Calvin is caught in a dying marriage, and she knows this. With her beloved daughter away at college and a growing gap between her and her husband – between her reality and the woman she wants to be – she doesn’t quite seem to fit into her own life.

But everything changes after her controlling mother, Lillian, passes away. Ellie’s world turns upside down when she sees her ex-boyfriend, Hutch, at her mother’s funeral and learns that he is in charge of a documentary that involved Lillian before her death. He wants answers to questions that Ellie’s not sure she can face, until, in the painful midst of going through her mother’s things, she discovers a hidden diary – and a window onto stories buried long ago.

As Ellie and Hutch start speaking for the first time in years, Ellie’s closed heart slowly begins to open. Fighting their feelings, they set out together to dig into Lillian’s history. Using both the diary and a trip to the Summer House, a mysterious and seductive bayside home, they gamble that they can work together and not fall in love again. But in piecing together a decades-old unrequited-love story, they just might uncover the secrets in their own hearts…

Received from SA/St. Martin's Press

30 comments:

  1. I'm reading Maine right now and it's good so far. I hope you love both of your new books!

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  2. Personally, I think the world would be better offf with a bit more guilt! ;-)

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  3. I'm reading Maine right now also! It's a library book and I don't think I'll be able to renew it and it's much better than my F2F book club book that is not holding my interest!
    Enjoy your books!

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  4. I LOVED Maine! I hope you do to. Have a great week.

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  5. I really loved Maine...and Coming Up for Air is going on my list! It looks fabulous....thanks for sharing.

    Here's MY MONDAY MEMES POST and
    MY WEBSITE

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  6. Both of those books are ones I have my eye on. Enjoy!

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  7. I hope you enjoy both of your new books. Have a great week!

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  8. Kaye - Happy The USPS cooperated and it arrive quickly. Enjoy both books.

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  9. Wow, I want both of those (but I'm not begging for them so don't delete my comment)

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  10. I love that you have a mailbox with a penguin to match your blog! I try to change my mailbox each week; maybe next week I'll try to find one that matches my blog graphics.

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  11. Both these books look good- hope you enjoy them!

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  12. I read about this on Diane's blog. Glad you got it and hope you enjoy it.

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  13. MAine sounds wonderful! I also have the Coming Up for Air novel on my TBR list.

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  14. These both are on my wish list for someday. I have heard Maine is very good so I am looking forward to your thoughts on it. Enjoy both reads!

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  15. Both of those look good. I've got Maine on my to-read list. The other title is new to me.

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  16. I had never heard of Maine before but it sounds like my kind of thing. Enjoy your new books!

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  17. Maine is supposed to be good, but I have heard that some of the characters are really unlikable. I will be interested in hearing what you think of them, and will be excited to see your review!

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  18. Maine looks good!! I love books about relationships!

    I love Patti Callahan Henry!!

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  19. I really want to read Maine. I have it on my list at the library. It looks really good. Have a great week!

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  20. I am very excited to read Maine. I think Sullivan has a lot of promise.

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  21. How great to get "surprise" books!

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  22. I keep seeing Maine around the shops. Will look forward to your thoughts on it. Enjoy your books!

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  23. These look good. I hope you enjoy them.

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  24. Both your new books sound like great reads! Adding them to the never ending list :)

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  25. Maine is one that I planning to read for sure!! Enjoy!

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  26. They both sound good. Happy reading!

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  27. I read and enjoyed both. I really like PCH's books.

    To answer your question about the wedding - it was on Labor Day and was wonderful. A fun day all around. Thanks for thinking of us :)

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  28. Everyone seems to be loving Maine! Enjoy both of the wonderful new reads!

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