THE ENGAGEMENTS (J. Courtney Sullivan)

The Engagements is not a chick-lit novel, as the title might lead you to believe, but a novel about marriage: sticking together through the bad times, choosing not to marry, abandoning marriage and finding a new love, nontraditional marriage, and long, happy marriage.  I admit that I was somewhat confused during the early parts of this novel.  I initially had a difficult time keeping track of the stories (5 of them, told in short, alternating chapters) and the characters and I'm not sure that the format was helpful.  I understand the author's choice, though, since the stories were unconnected throughout most of the novel.

Mary Frances Gerety, a copywriter at the Ayers Agency, was the real-life creator of the DeBeers' company's famous slogan, "A Diamond is Forever."  In one segment of The Engagements we follow Gerety's fictionalized career and the developments in the diamond industry through much of the twentieth century.  In another, Evelyn has been happily married for more than 40 years, but husband Gilbert was not her first love nor the first man to put a ring on her finger.  We also meet Kate, a green-living non-profit worker who is madly in love with partner Dan and their daughter but is adamantly anti-marriage. Kate's gay cousin, to whom she is very close, is to marry his true love in a lavish ceremony now that same-sex marriage has been legalized.  In yet another separate story, Parisian Delphine leaves her unexciting but reasonably fulfilling marriage to business partner, Henri, to run away to New York with a much younger man with whom she has been having a passionate affair.  Last but not least, there is James, the down-on-his luck EMT who knows that his wife Sheila married beneath her and strives to prove that he is worthy of her love.

One of the things that I ultimately enjoyed most about The Engagements was the multi-layering of times, places, and people, the very thing that also made the novel difficult to follow initially.  It doesn't become apparent until the end of the novel that all of the stories and characters are, indeed, connected despite the fact that all occur in different eras. Would I recommend it?  Yes!

ISLAND GIRLS (Nancy Thayer)

Island Girls is a lovely, relaxing summer read, not too taxing on the brain or emotions, but with just enough intrigue and romance to keep the reader interested.  The premise is simple: three sisters, all from different mothers and one adopted, have to spend the summer together in the family summer home on Nantucket in order to inherit the house from their recently deceased father, Rory Randall, a notorious ladies' man.  Arden, Meg, and Jenny are as different as sisters could be. Arden, the daughter of Rory's first wife, Nina, is a sleek, sophisticated TV host in Boston.  Dowdy Meg, with a Marilyn Monroe figure and in denial about her feelings for her younger colleague, Liam, is a professor of English literature at a community college and the daughter of Rory's second wife, Cindy.  Jenny is the daughter of Justine, Rory's widow, and was adopted by Rory as a young girl.  She is now living at the beach house and working as a web designer and IT specialist.

I wouldn't call Island Girls great literature.  The outcome is predictable and problems are resolved a little too easily for real life, but do we really want real life when we open a book on a lazy summer day?  Thayer does a superb job, as always, of communicating the feel and ambiance of Nantucket's summer community, history, and beautiful beaches.  Her characters are likable enough that you care what happens to them and the family dynamics add a touch of excitement.  If you want a gentle, restful read that still engages your interest, this might be the beach read you've been looking for!

NO. 1 LADIES DETECTVE AGENCY (Alexander McCall Smith)

I may be one of the very few people in the English-speaking world who has never read this book, but it was well worth the wait!  Precious Ramotswe, a woman of "traditional" build, uses her inheritance from her late father to buy a home and to fund her own business, the only detective agency in Botswana run by a woman.  Precious employs unusual but very successful methods to solve local crimes.  To confirm a wife's suspicion that her husband is a philanderer, Precious successfully sets herself up as his next romantic target.  She stakes out river at midnight to discover what became of a missing husband and then confronts a major crime boss to find a missing boy.  She is intuitive, tender-hearted, and has detection skills worthy of Sherlock Holmes.  McCall Smith peppers his novel with Botswanian customs and attitudes, all of which add to its charm.  I don't know why I waited so long, but I'm happy that there are 12 more books in this series to look forward to!

LADIES' NIGHT (Mary Kay Andrews)

I don't know how Mary Kay Andrews (whose real name is Kathy Hogan Trocheck) manages to do this over and over again.  Some people that I know (yes, a couple of you BookBuggs!) would describe Andrews' novels as "fluff" because they feature women's friendships, humor, and, yes, romance, but I find Andrews' writing to be insightful and entertaining in novel after novel.  I don't believe that to be "worthwhile" a novel has to feature dark themes, angst, and unhappy endings.  We all strive, successfully or not, for happy endings in our own lives, don't we?  If we achieve happiness or enjoy waking up to a new day does that make us less worthy of interest or respect?  People love to laugh and for those of us who see life as a half (or maybe even 3/4) full glass, being able to see the humor in life is what makes it worth living.  Debbie Downer, get away from me!

That being said, "Ladies Night" is a book about infidelity, divorce, anger, and consequences.  Sounds hilarious so far, right?  Stay with me.  Grace Davenport Stanton is an interior designer and blogger.  She and her husband Ben have parlayed her lifestyle blog, Gracenotes, into a very successful career for both of them, with more than 200,000 followers, important sponsors, and a substantial income.  When Grace discovers Ben and her assistant, J'Aimee, in a compromising position in his $175,000 car, she does what any betrayed wife would do: she chases J'Aimee and Ben out of the garage and drives the expensive car into the pool. After fleeing her palatial home for the comfort of her mother's apartment, Grace discovers that she has not only been locked out of her home and her finances, but out of her blog as well.  The judge assigned to their case is notoriously hard on women in divorce cases and some consider him to be a woman hater.  He allows Ben to maintain control of all of their joint assets until Grace completes six weeks in a divorce therapy group to prove that she is over her anger at Ben.  It is here that she meets a diverse group of women (and one man), all of whom have let their anger over their spouse's infidelity get the best of them in ways that can't but make you chuckle.

I won't tell you much more about the plot, except that it will hold your interest and that it does have a happy, satisfying ending.  Real life is not simple and straightforward.  You will meet people that you love and others that you hate, plus a whole bunch that will fill in the in-between spaces with or without impact.  We all deal with frustration, helplessness, anger, joy, sadness, love, and hate, sometimes all in the same day and with the same people.   That's life!  Andrews does a wonderful job of bringing her characters to life in ways that many writers do not. You feel their desperation and celebrate their resilience, but most of all, you like them.  I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did!