Stranger
In Paradise
Home
Front
Book
Two
Barbara
Bretton
Genre: Post -World War 2 Romance
Publisher: Free Spirit Press
Date of Publication: October 15,
2014
ISBN: 9781940665085
ASIN: B00MTC0RBY
Number of pages: 347
Word Count: approx. 70,000
Cover Artist: Tammy Seidick
Book Description:
Before they became The Greatest
Generation, they were young men and women in love . . .
The year is 1953 and London is
throwing the party of the century. Even though the ravages of World War II are
still visible throughout the kingdom, the world is gathering on the Mall to
celebrate the coronation of England's beautiful young queen.
For almost ten years, journalist
Mac Weaver has been far from his New York home. America has changed since the
war ended and he wonders if there's still a place for him in the land of
backyard barbecues and a new Ford in every driveway.
However a chance encounter with
beautiful English reporter Jane Townsend is about to change his life forever.
As the new monarch waves from the window of her fairy-tale glass coach, a
homesick Yank and a lonely Brit fall in love.
One week later, Mr. and Mrs. Mac
Weaver board the Queen Mary for New York and a guaranteed happily ever after
future in the land where dreams come true.
But there are dark shadows on the
horizon that threaten Mac and Jane's happiness and family scandals that just
might tear them apart . . .
"This
generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny."
--Franklin
Delano Roosevelt
My Rating:
Favorite Quotes:
“Open your eyes, Liz thought. Can’t
you see the people who used to be?
Love wasn’t a modern invention.
Before computer chips and microwave ovens and VCRs, men and women had
fallen in love and married and somehow managed to make happily-ever-after come
true…”
“The fact that
he found her beautiful thrilled Jane.
She’d never realized what power there was in being a woman. What pleasure there was to be found in the
simplest gesture when there was a man close at hand to appreciate it.”
“He wasn’t
much good at dealing with sorrow. His
wife had seen too much of it for one lifetime.
The obvious solution was to make sure sorrow never found either one of
them again. Their meeting had been
touched by magic. Their marriage would
be, as well.”
My
Review:
To complete
this review I read both books, A Sentimental Journey and Stranger in Paradise,
512 pages, and it wasn’t enough, I want more.
The world fell to the wayside as I immersed myself in their world of the
1940s through 1990. The tale starts well
before my time, but I felt like I was living it with them. I heard what my mother called “the Old Standards”
playing on their radios. Her characters
were fully fleshed out and inhabited. I
was so captivated by Ms. Bretton’s writing that I seemed to be smelling,
seeing, feeling, hearing, and living whatever they did. I grieved their losses, breathed a sigh of
relief when they came to their senses, fretted for their concerns, despaired
over the injustices of the time, and cheered for their accomplishments. I am exhausted to say the least, but would
gladly continue if Ms. Bretton could be coerced into writing more of this
exceptional story.
Empress DJ
About
the Author:
A full-fledged Baby Boomer, Barbara
Bretton grew up in New York City during the Post-World War II 1950s with the
music of the Big Bands as the soundtrack to her childhood. Her father and
grandfather served in the navy during the war. Her uncles served in the army.
None of them shared their stories.
But her mother, who had enjoyed a
brief stint as Rosie the Riveter, brought the era to life with tales of the
Home Front that were better than any fairy tale. It wasn’t until much later
that Barbara learned the rest of the story about the fiancé who had been lost
in the war, sending her mother down a different path that ultimately led to a
second chance at love . . . and to the daughter who would one day tell a little
part of that story.
There is always one book that’s
very special to an author, one book or series that lives deep inside her
heart. SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY and STRANGER
IN PARADISE, books 1 and 2 of the Home Front series, are Barbara’s. She hopes
they’ll find a place in your heart too.
Facebook: www.facebook.com/authorbarbarabretton
Twitter: www.twitter.com/barbarabretton
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/Barbara_Bretton
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