Touched

The past two weeks have been filled with books that have touched me and changed pieces of my heart.

Spirit Bound by Christine Feehan had some interesting ideas to contemplate and I found myself enthralled by the idea of custom kaleidoscopes. I loved the contrast in the characters, one who hid their talents, one who lived and breathed theirs, that was a fascinating dichotomy.  Overall though this book was a disappointment with the feel of a placeholder in the series.  I am hoping the next book in the series will find Ms Feehan on top of her game again.

Night Road by Kristin Hannah was won by our book group and had us pushing back our normal schedule in order to read this one for January's discussion. The author's portrayal of the grieving process in so many different ways via her characters was simply perfection.  I found myself crying frequently and touching the pages as if to somehow ease their grief. Stellar read and I can't wait to discuss it with my reading group.

A Simple Act of Gratitude by John Kralik There are only a few books I can point to and say without hesitation that simply reading it changed who I am forever.  This one did.  As I look back on a year of grieving the loss of my husband I see so many missed opportunities for me to be grateful...that has already begun to change and there will be many thank you notes flowing to those who've walked this journey with me in the months to come.  This is a definite MUST READ book.