A TURN IN THE ROAD BY DEBBIE MACOMBER: A REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

 GIVEAWAY ENDED
A TURN IN THE ROAD

BY DEBBIE MACOMBER

ABOUT THE BOOK:

In the middle of the year, in the middle of her life, Bethanne Hamlin takes a road trip with her daughter, Annie, and her former mother-in-law, Ruth.

They're driving to Florida for Ruth's 50th high-school reunion. A longtime widow, Ruth would like to reconnect with Royce, the love of her teenage life. She's heard he's alone, too…and, well, she's curious. Maybe even hopeful.

Bethanne herself needs time to reflect, to ponder a decision she has to make. Her ex-husband, Grant—her children's father—wants to reconcile now that his second marriage has failed. Bethanne's considering it….

Meanwhile, Annie's out to prove to her onetime boyfriend that she can live a brilliant life without him!

So there they are, three women driving across America. They have their maps and their directions—but even the best-planned journey can take you to a turn in the road. Or lead you to an unexpected encounter—like the day Bethanne meets a man named Max who really is a hero on a Harley. That's when Bethanne's decision becomes a lot harder. Because Grant wants her back, but now there's Max….

From Seattle's Blossom Street to the other end of the country, this is a trip that could change three women's lives.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Through both words and deeds, #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber inspires women from all walks of life to realize their dreams.

Debbie Macomber overcame the obstacles in her own life to become one of the world’s most popular writers. She encourages women to achieve the goals that burn in their hearts as fiercely as the desire to become a bestselling novelist did in her own 15 years ago.

When Debbie first decided to write a novel, people called her a hopeless dreamer. She had only a high school degree and was dyslexic. She was also the very young mother of four active children. No one believed she had what it took to write a book—except Debbie. She eventually saved enough money to rent an old typewriter, and every night when the children were asleep, she would sit down to write.

She wrote—for years. But each time she completed a story and mailed it 
off to a publisher, the manuscript was returned, stamped "rejected." As tough as it was to keep her spirits alive, Debbie never gave up. Five long years and thousands of pages later, she received a letter in the afternoon mail. The letter was from Silhouette Books—and they wanted to buy her story. Her first novel, Heartsong, was published as a Silhouette Inspiration in 1984, and it became the first romance novel ever to be reviewed in Publishers Weekly.

Today, Debbie is the internationally acclaimed author of more than 100 novels. Popular around the globe, she receives approximately three thousand letters from readers every month. And she responds personally to each one.

She lives with her husband in Port Orchard, Washington. Their children are grown and she is now a proud grandmother. 

READ AN EXCERPT:

"I think Dad wants to get back together." Bethanne's daughter, Annie, spoke with studied nonchalance. "He still loves you, Mom."

Bethanne's spoon hovered over her bowl of soup as they sat at a window table in their favorite cafe. This wasn't actually news and shouldn't have come as any surprise. Didn't come as any surprise. She'd seen the signs, as recently as this morning. These days Grant was inventing excuses to call her.

Six years ago her world had imploded when her husband confessed that he'd fallen in love with another woman. With barely a backward glance, Grant had walked out—out of their home, their marriage, their lives. And now he wanted back in.

"Don't you have anything to say?" Annie asked, toying with her fork. She watched her mother intently.

"Not really." She swallowed the soup and lowered her spoon for another taste.

Annie, it seemed, had forgotten. But not Bethanne.

The morning Grant told her he wanted a divorce would stay in her mind forever. He couldn't seem to get away from her fast enough. He'd retained a lawyer and advised her to do the same, then coldly informed her that all future communication would be through their lawyers. The less contact with her and their children, the better, he'd said. A clean break was best.

Grant's decision had struck Bethanne with the force and unpredictability of a hurricane. She'd stumbled blindly through the next few months, trying to hold her family together, clinging to the semblance of normality while her world disintegrated around her. "You really don't have anything to say?" Annie prodded.

"No," Bethanne said shortly. She swallowed another spoonful of soup and reached for the herb scone. "What disturbs me is that your father would let you do his talking for him."

Annie had the grace to look chastened, but she pushed her food away as if she'd suddenly lost her appetite.

At one time Bethanne had dreamed Grant would regret what he'd done, that he'd seek her forgiveness and come crawling back to her. She'd wanted him to suffer for the way he'd treated her, for the hurt he'd inflicted when he'd turned his back on their children.

To finish reading this excerpt, go HERE on the Mira/Harlequin website. 

MY REVIEW/THOUGHTS:

In Debbie Macomber’s latest visit to Blossom Street, she has taken three women‘s stories about relationships and brought them together via A TURN IN THE ROAD. With Macomber’s well developed characters, the reader will travel along as they discover where the road of life will lead them. On the surface, the story is about Bethanne Hamlin and her daughter, Annie, helping Bethanne’s ex-mother-in-law, Ruth, by driving her cross-country from Oregon to Florida. The trip’s purpose is to allow Ruth to attend her 50th high school reunion. However, all three of these women are hoping for more than just a sight seeing trip and class party. Rather, they hope to clear up some past relationships and see what the future might hold for them.

This carefully designed trip encounters some unexpected detours along the way, but each adds to the story of one or more of the characters. For example, when their car breaks down, Bethanne meets a biker named Max who helps them out.  She is surprised by the instant chemistry between them and strongly feels they share a similar experience in their past. This feeling drives Bethanne to want to know Max better. Max has been lost for the past three years as he has tried to deal with the death of his wife and daughter. He is a good man and his easy going, gentle ways bring about a connection as he and Bethanne both know about loss and can understand each other’s grief.

The heartache in Bethanne’s past comes from six years ago when her husband Grant suddenly walked out on their twenty year marriage. The shock still seems very fresh to Bethanne. Recently Grant has returned to beg for a second chance and in fact, has Annie and Ruth on his side hoping to make it happen.  However, with Max entering the story, Bethanne’s son Andrew would encourage her as he never has forgiven his father for leaving them. Andrew did, however, tell Bethanne he would go along with whatever she decided. This is just one relationship that is to be sorted out on this trip.

Ruth does like the idea of seeing past classmates but one in particular has her attention.  A widow now for years, Ruth is hoping to see her high school sweetheart Royce and just a little curious to see if there is any spark left from this first love. She would more than welcome a rekindling of that relationship.

While trying to play a part in her mother’s return to Grant, Annie is also struggling with her own heartache and believes the trip will give her time to think things over. Having been deeply hurt by her long standing boyfriend, Annie is trying to sort out her emotions and feelings to see if their relationship is worth saving. Meeting some other guys along the way shows Annie it is possible to have fun and enjoy her life again. This gives her much to contemplate and less to mourn as the trip progresses.    

As always, Debbie Macomber takes readers into the lives of her characters and you feel as if you are part of the story. As she writes about this journey, each character will have readers being understanding of their choices in some cases as well as shocked over what happens in others. How all three women handle their relationships makes for a well written, compelling read that will keep pages turning and readers delighted as only Debbie Macomber seems able to do in each of her books for all of her readers.
 

GIVEAWAY

I HAVE ONE NEW HARD BACK COPY OF

DEBBIE MACOMBER'S A TURN IN THE ROAD

THANKS TO KIM AND MY GOOD FRIENDS

AT NANCY BERLAND PUBLIC RELATIONS
TO GIVE AWAY TO A LUCKY READER

 

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