Tag Archives: Lauren K. Denton

Top 10 Tuesday — Popular!

14 Nov

I am not feeling today’s TTT topic, Main Stream Popular Authors I Haven’t Read Yet. But I do have the song from Wicked stuck in my head now, LOL! So in a real twist on the topic I have taken some of the lyrics sung by Galinda to Elphaba and come up with a list of corresponding books whose titles, covers, or plot elements fit. Hope my list is popular with you! 😉

Top Popular! Titles

Talk to boys

Falling for Grace by Janet W. Ferguson

Turn to Me by Becky Wade

How to fix your hair

The Summer House by Lauren K. Denton

Tickled Pink by Debby Mayne

Good at sports

After She Falls by Carmen Schober

The All-American by Susie Finkbeiner

Shoes to wear

Dancing Shoes by Lynne Gentry

Sensible Shoes by Sharon Garlough Brown

Top 10 Tuesday — Weather!

17 Oct

Happy Tuesday! My husband and I have a beef with weather TV — it all has to be so dramatic! Over the weekend one cable weather channel titled the falling temps across our area as October Gloom. LOL. The forecast for today is sunny and a high of 69 degrees. If that’s gloom, I’ll take it. 🙂 Today’s TTT topic could take a dramatic turn as well, and some of the titles I’m sharing do sound ominous. But I wanted to have books that run the spectrum of weather events, so there are a few pleasant weather days too. I hope you find a book to love.

For more weather-centric books, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top Weather-Related Titles

Anchor in The Storm by Sarah Sundin

Hurricane Season by Lauren K. Denton

Flood Watch by Christy Barritt

Magnolia Storms by Janet W. Ferguson

On A Coastal Breeze by Suzanne Woods Fisher

A Season on The Wind by Suzanne Woods Fisher

Thunder And Rain by Charles Martin

Where The Blue Sky Begins by Katie Powner

Book Review — The One You’re With

26 Jul

The One You’re With by Lauren K. Denton made more than one of my book club members to break out in singing. 😉 While this novel doesn’t strictly follow Steve Stills’ song, it does detail the long term consequences of decisions in the romance department. What I would term women’s fiction, this novel got my group talking — always a big plus. We all liked the book, but the characters were another thing. Read all about the book, author, and our thoughts below.

Written in Lauren K. Denton’s signature Southern style, The One You’re With tells the story of a seemingly perfect marriage rocked by secrets from the past.

High-school sweethearts Mac and Edie Swan lead a seemingly picture-perfect life in the sleepy-sweet community of Oak Hill, near Mobile, Alabama. Edie is a respected interior designer, Mac is a beloved pediatrician, and they have two great kids and a historic home on tree-lined Linden Avenue. From the outside, the Swan family is the definition of “the good life.” And life is good—mostly. Until a young woman walks into Mac’s office one day. A young woman whose very existence threatens all Mac and Edie have built and all they think they know about each other.

Nineteen years after a summer apart, with a family and established lives and careers, the past that Mac and Edie thought they left behind has come back to greet them. For the first time, constants in their lives are called into question: their roles as parents, their reputation as upstanding members of the community, and the very foundations of their marriage. As they wade through the upheaval in both their family and professional lives, they must each examine choices they made long ago and chart a new course for their future.

Born and raised in Mobile, Alabama, Lauren K. Denton now lives with her husband, two daughters, and one fluffy dog in Homewood, just outside Birmingham. In addition to her fiction, she writes a monthly newspaper column about life, relationships, and how funny (and hard) it is to be a parent. On any given day, she’d rather be at the beach with her family and a stack of books.

Find her at LaurenKDenton.com or on Facebook (LaurenKDentonAuthor) or Instagram (LaurenKDentonBooks).

My Impressions:

The One You’re With by Lauren K. Denton was my book club’s selection this month. Women’s fiction, this novel explores secrets kept and revealed over the course of a marriage. Main characters Edie and Mac have been together longer than their 17 years of marriage, having been sweethearts from an early age. What they think of as perfect comes under pressure when a young woman shows up at Mac’s office with very shocking news — she’s his daughter. The ripples of that disclosure spread wide and quickly.

It was interesting to see how each character reacted to the news of Mac’s heretofore unknown child. Mac steps in as protector while Edie views their whole marriage as based on lies. Truth telling is a big theme in the novel. But truth and its importance in being shared takes on different meanings for the characters. I liked Mac and his willingness to fulfill not only obligations, but to provide a place for Riley in his life and in the life of his family. I disliked Edie — she accused Mac of deliberately lying to her, while she kept many things secret in her own life. There’s a contrast of thinking about things versus acting on them. That part of the story created the most discussion with my group. It is interesting that out of 6 women present at our meeting, we all sided with Mac! We all felt that the reactions from Edie and Mac’s family and friends were realistic. We felt sorry for Riley, and wished her mother Kat could have had a different life. We were thankful for an epilogue that showed a hopeful future.

The One You’re With wasn’t our favorite of Denton’s books, but we liked it overall and felt it was worth reading. It sure made for a lively book club meeting! And that’s several points in its favor.

Recommended.

Audience: Adults.

(I purchased this book from Amazon. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)

First Line Friday — The One You’re With

7 Jul

Happy Friday everyone! Today I am featuring my book club’s July pick, The One You’re With by Lauren K. Denton. I have had this book on my TBR shelf for a year and am excited to finally read and discuss it with my group.

Here’s the first line (or two 😉 ):

“Hey, you.”

Mac heard the deep voice but was sure it wasn’t directed at him.

Written in Lauren K. Denton’s signature Southern style, The One You’re With tells the story of a seemingly perfect marriage rocked by secrets from the past.

High-school sweethearts Mac and Edie Swan lead a seemingly picture-perfect life in the sleepy-sweet community of Oak Hill, near Mobile, Alabama. Edie is a respected interior designer, Mac is a beloved pediatrician, and they have two great kids and a historic home on tree-lined Linden Avenue. From the outside, the Swan family is the definition of “the good life.” And life is good—mostly. Until a young woman walks into Mac’s office one day. A young woman whose very existence threatens all Mac and Edie have built and all they think they know about each other.Nineteen years after a summer apart, with a family and established lives and careers, the past that Mac and Edie thought they left behind has come back to greet them. For the first time, constants in their lives are called into question: their roles as parents, their reputation as upstanding members of the community, and the very foundations of their marriage. As they wade through the upheaval in both their family and professional lives, they must each examine choices they made long ago and chart a new course for their future.

July Book Club Selection — The One You’re With

1 Jul

My book club is reading The One You’re With by Lauren K. Denton this month. This contemporary novel focusing on marriage has been on my TBR shelf way too long. Denton always delivers a thought-provoking read, so I am eager to discuss this one with my group. Have you read it? We’d love to know your thoughts.

Written in Lauren K. Denton’s signature Southern style, The One You’re With tells the story of a seemingly perfect marriage rocked by secrets from the past.

High-school sweethearts Mac and Edie Swan lead a seemingly picture-perfect life in the sleepy-sweet community of Oak Hill, near Mobile, Alabama. Edie is a respected interior designer, Mac is a beloved pediatrician, and they have two great kids and a historic home on tree-lined Linden Avenue. From the outside, the Swan family is the definition of “the good life.” And life is good—mostly. Until a young woman walks into Mac’s office one day. A young woman whose very existence threatens all Mac and Edie have built and all they think they know about each other.

Nineteen years after a summer apart, with a family and established lives and careers, the past that Mac and Edie thought they left behind has come back to greet them. For the first time, constants in their lives are called into question: their roles as parents, their reputation as upstanding members of the community, and the very foundations of their marriage. As they wade through the upheaval in both their family and professional lives, they must each examine choices they made long ago and chart a new course for their future.

Born and raised in Mobile, Alabama, Lauren K. Denton now lives with her husband, two daughters, and one fluffy dog in Homewood, just outside Birmingham. In addition to her fiction, she writes a monthly newspaper column about life, relationships, and how funny (and hard) it is to be a parent. On any given day, she’d rather be at the beach with her family and a stack of books.

Find her at LaurenKDenton.com or on Facebook (LaurenKDentonAuthor) or Instagram (LaurenKDentonBooks).

Top 10 Tuesday — Summer Vibes

6 Jun

Happy Tuesday! This week bloggers are sharing book covers with summer vibes. My list comes from books that just say summer to me — beaches, water views, porch swings.

What says summer to you?

For more summer cover love, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top Covers with Summer Vibes

Bookshop by The Sea by Denise Hunter

Falling for Grace by Janet W. Ferguson

Haven Point by Virginia Hume

The Key to Everything by Valerie Fraser Luesse

The Last Train to Key West by Chanel Cleeton

A Novel Proposal by Denise Hunter

A Stranger’s Game by Colleen Coble

The Summer House by Lauren K. Denton

Windswept Way by Irene Hannon

Top 10 Tuesday — 2023 Book Club Picks

6 Dec

Happy Tuesday! This week’s TTT is a Freebie, so I decided to highlight the novels my book club chose to read in 2023. Every year we vote at our November meeting on the books we will be reading in the following year. We choose 9 and leave 2 spots open for me to surprise them (usually new releases by favorite authors) and a Christmas-themed novel to vote on later for our December selection. I compile a list of books and those with majority votes are chosen. It’s a practice that has worked for us for 20+ years! I hope you find a book to love.

For more bookish goodness, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

My Book Club’s 2023 Selections

The Brilliance of Stars by J’Nell Ciesielski

Broker of Lies by Steven James

Cold Light of Day by Elizabeth Goddard

Daughter of Eden by Jill Eileen Smith

Heirlooms by Sandra Byrd

Honor Bound by Hallee Bridgeman

The One You’re With by Lauren K. Denton

Roots of Wood And Stone by Amanda Wen

The Sound of Light by Sarah Sundin

Top 10 Tuesday — Top Reading From The Last 10 Julys

26 Jul

This week’s TTT is too much of a reminder of my past failures. 😉 Bloggers were tasked to list past summer TBR picks that they DID NOT read. I chose to tweak or, really, avoid the topic altogether and went with the books my book club did read over the past 10 Julys — a good mix of genres. Have you read any of these? My book club would recommend them!

For more summer reminiscences, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

Novels My Book Club Read In The Past 10 Julys

Bridge to Haven by Francine Rivers (2014)

The Curse of Misty Wayfair by Jaime Jo Wright (2019)

Firefly Island by Lisa Wingate (2013)

The Hideaway by Lauren K. Denton (2018)

Justice Delayed by Patricia Bradley (2017)

Living Lies by Natalie Walters (2020)

My Brother’s Crown by Mindy Starns Clark and Leslie Gould (2016)

Relative Silence by Carrie Stuart Parks (2021)

Surrender Bay by Denise Hunter (2012)

Thief of Glory by Sigmund Brouwer (2015)

Top 10 Tuesday — Summer-y Book Covers

12 Jul

Happy Tuesday everyone! Summer is indeed in full swing, and what better way to celebrate than with some summer-y book covers. I have a dozen for you to choose featuring what I think of when I hear the word summer. There are covers with summer foods, weddings (bonus points for those set at the beach), front porches, and of course those with summer in the title. I hope you find one to love.

For more summer-y covers, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top Summer-y Book Covers

High Cotton by Debby Mayne

The Sweet Life by Suzanne Woods Fisher

Truelove And Homegrown Tomatoes by Julie Cannon

Crazy Little Thing Called Love by Beth Vogt

To Have And To Hold by Tracie Peterson and Judith Miller

The Wedding Dress by Rachel Hauck

Almost Home by Valerie Fraser Luesse

The Memory House by Rachel Hauck

The Summer House by Lauren K. Denton

On A Summer Tide by Suzanne Woods Fisher

Quaker Summer by Lisa Samson

Summer Plans And Other Disasters by Karin Beery

Top 10 Tuesday — Summer TBR

28 Jun

Happy Tuesday everyone! I am actually not planning my reading this Summer. Oh yes, I will be reading — a lot — but I am letting my Summer TBR be spontaneous. That’s certainly a new one for me. 😉 Today’s list will be short — only those scheduled for review or book club. Have any reading recommendations? Bring them on!

For more Summer Reading Lists, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

Summer 2022 TBR

Critical Alliance by Elizabeth Goddard

The Deadly Shallows by Dani Pettrey

Healing Skye by Janet W. Ferguson

The Last Train to Key West by Chanel Cleeton

And one of these. Which would you choose?

Bookshop by The Sea by Denise Hunter

The One You’re With by Lauren K. Denton

Shaped by The Waves — Christina Suzann Nelson