Songbird / Cape Refuge / Southern Storm

464 pages

First line: Mama waited tables down at the Texas Inn, right where Route 29 dipped back up from its sojourn across the bridge that spanned the James River.

Gospel singer Charmaine Hopewell has been searching for her mother since she was 11 years old, abandoned, and thrown into the foster care system.
Now she is married to Harlan Hopewell, a beloved televangelist who has risen to popularity due to his disdain for psychology and psychiatry.
Charmaine, despite their loving relationship, hides her own depression and search for meaning.
Upon finding her mother in a mental institution, Charmaine realizes she must force Harlan into a decision: publicly support his wife and her needs or hide their new-found cross to ensure his rising popularity.
Either way, Charmaine fears his ministry, and her own-both born through hardship and sacrifice-will be destroyed.

I absolutely loved this book.
It is not as bleak as the above description may sound.
It is charming, funny, southern, and touching.

Last line: She's been singing "Good Morning Merry Sunshine" for a while now. I've learned to join in as best I can.
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768 pages

From the Back Cover
Set in the South, volumes one and two from the Cape Refuge suspense series by Terri Blackstock come together under one cover. A unique island setting, close-knit relationships, fast-paced action, and underlying themes of faith combine to make for reading you cant put down at a value you can't turn down.

I liked these books. I liked "Southern Storm" better than "Cape Refuge", though.

These books are fast-paced, surprising, and suspenseful. They are both good mysteries.

My complaint about the first book (Cape Refuge) is that the characters weren't very well developed. I had a hard time picturing them in my mind. There weren't may physical descriptions of any character other than Blair, who has a prominent burn scar on her face.

I really dislike Morgan. She's supposed to be this caring, loving, mother-type woman, but she doesn't come across that way. She cries at the drop of a hat. She comes across as the stereotypical "weak woman." She annoys the heck out of me. You can be loving and motherly without being weak and naive.

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Currently reading:
River's Edge - Terri Blackstock (third in Cape Refuge series)
Quaker Summer- Lisa Samson


2008 total: 16
total pages read: 6,982