Book Description
In the tradition of Elizabeth Berg and Sue Miller, first-time novelist EllenSussman offers a rich, powerful story of a fiercely independent single mother who must learn to confront loss in order to find love. They met in high school, but had nothing in common: Blair Clemens, the weird hippie-chick who kept to herself, and Luke Bellingham, the golden boy-rich, handsome, and destined for greatness. Now, years later, Luke has fulfilled his early promise and is one of the country's most acclaimed screenwriters. Blair is a struggling single mother with a teenage daughter, a job as a chef, and a tragic secret that will test all of her emotional resources. Still as feisty and as offbeat as ever, Blair loves no one other than her daughter and she intends to keep things that way. That is, until she crosses paths once again with Luke Bellingham. Now, Blair is faced with the decision of her lifetime: what to do when the right man comes along....but at the wrong time.
Customer Reviews:
Melodramatic, but Does the Trick.......2006-10-12
This book is a graceful collision between a cheesy newstand romance, a melodramatic literary novel, and hippie chick-lit. The premise is totally relate-able -- two former high school classmates, who never spoke more than a few words to each other, meet years and years later. It's a little hard to believe how grounded the main female character is -- she is dying of cancer, she is a single mom, she suffered a major trauma in high school. Yet she remains a happy hippie chef. I also had diffiult buying that the two main characters could fall in love so easily, just like that. They almost overnight went from strangers walking his dog together while she was in her nightgown and jeans to deeply in love. The daughter was also the usual jaded, hard-bitten, angry daughter. But, in the end, it kept my attention. So it was cliche -- but it did the cliches well.
Beautiful!.......2005-09-22
Ellen Sussman has written a beautiful story. As an avid reader, sometimes I find a book that keeps my thoughts totally fixed on the story. This is one of them. No "wandering" at all!
The "lifestyle" of Blair is depicted early in the book pretty graphically. This is the only thing I would like to see changed - the author will soon learn to leave a little more to the readers' imaginations.
I will eagerly await her next book - let's hope there are many "next books!"
A Terrific Read!.......2005-03-03
What a marvelous book! "On A Night Like This" is anything but expected. The characters are real and heartfelt - complicated people who are fighting their way through a painful crucible. I cheered for them while feeling their sorrows. The style of "On A Night Like This" soars above - way above - the romance and chick lit it's been compared to. The mother-daughter struggles of Blair and Amanda are familiar enough, but Ellen Sussman infuses this relationship with some wonderfully wise twists. And Luke, while he earns his stripes as a jerk at times, makes for a worthy counterpoint to Blair's unvarnished emotion. The beautifully drawn California setting further enhances this sad but enveloping novel. This is a terrific read.
I've read this book a thousand times before...........2005-02-28
This is a fiction book that borders the venue of the Harlequin Romance. It was good stuff, although it was rather predictable. Girl is single mother, works as chef for a living. Girl finds out she has cancer. Cancerous girl gets contacted by a former fellow student from her high school. Girl and boy fall in love. Awww. Boy is married and his wife has left him. But alas, once the love bloom's his estranged wife returns and she's PREGNANT! *gasp* Oh but no worries, it turns out its not his and he tells her he wants a divorce. So then boy and girl resume love affair despite cancerous impeding death of girl. Oh wait, then girl's 16 yr old daughter gets groped and nearly raped and it's by Boy. Girl hates boy and ends it. Ohhh wait, it was not the boy. Turns out it was the landlord thinking 16 yr old girl was her mother who he used to bang on occasion since she used to be single and miserable before the boy came into her life. Now boy and girl and girls daughter run off into the enchanted woods and live happily ever....screeeeech..... Girl dies. Or at least the reader is led to believe that girl dies. Last line of book "Then in a circle of their arms, in the glow of the last filtered light of day, Blair (GIRL) slept."
She slept? Or did she die? Yah she probably died. But no one cried and no one was in the room and no one held her hand and how did this author not make it a really sappy ending when the rest of the book was???? AMAAAZING!
So you'd think I disliked the book? Nah, I really was all up in its face and I'm pretty sure I was liking it from page one to the last. I was glued like a virgin never been touched by sappy love story before. Ms. Sussman writes a damn good character and makes us then like them. Luke, every girls dream! He's a screenwriter and once wrote a movie about something that happened to Blair while in high school, but not while they were together. Aww he loved her years before he knew it? *sap*
Blair's daughter Amanda was also a nice character. Creepy part of book was when Amanda read a short story that Luke wrote about an older gentlemen living no a farm who had an affair with a teenage girl. But never fear he corrected her and told her he didn't want to get into her teenybopper jeans and again...all was fluffy and well.
It was a non harlequin full of fluff love story. It made me warm and fuzzy within and I could NOT put it down even though it was typical. I wanted the boy to leave the girl and I wanted her to die in a ditch somewhere alone while her new man boinked her daughter in the back of the restaurant the Girl worked in.
It would have been less typical and more interesting.
Yes...I prefer originality rather than recipe romance. But if you like that harlequin thing and you don't want to wait for the sex scene which turns out to just be a kissing scene on the last page...read this book. Or if you paid $1.99 for it via E-Bay then ....yah it's worth it.
Sweetpea...stupid dog name. I mean really. That's a cat's name anyday.
A POIGNANT VOICE PERFORMANCE.......2004-07-04
A seasoned performer, Barbara Goodson, has many outstanding voice overs to her credit in both film and television (most notably the Emmy-Award winning Winnie the Pooh). She gives a poignant performance of this story about the right love at the wrong time.
Another veteran of Winnie the Pooh, Michael Gough, has done outstanding work on many animated programs, and is the recipient of a pair of awards for Los Angeles theatre productions. His reading is full-bodied and strong as he brings the words of our hero to life. Once listeners hear, "On a night like this, I could fall in love...," they'll not soon forget him.
Luke Bellingham is 25 years out of high school and successful - at least as a screenwriter. His love life's a bit out of sync as his wife recently left him. It fall to Luke to find the missing among his high school classmates as preparations are made for the 25th reunion. First on his list is Blair Clemens, a woman who has been much on his mind over the years.
Blair is now a single mom who is dying of cancer. She has a 16-year-old daughter, and works as a chef at an upscale restaurant. Although Luke and Blair have not seen each other in all of the passing years, once they do meet again the attraction is instantaneous and undeniable. For Blair it seems here's the brass ring at last. But, should she catch it knowing she won't be able to hold it for very long?
Get out the tissues to listen to this one.
- Gail Cooke
Average customer rating:
- Beautiful Love Tales, Universal for Every Race
- *The telling that made things become so special between them
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For Nights Like This One: Stories of Loving Women
Becky Birtha
Manufacturer: Frog in the Well
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Lesbian
| Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| Gay & Lesbian
| Subjects
| Books
United States
| Short Stories
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Lovers' Choice
-
The Forbidden Poems
ASIN: 0960362843 |
Customer Reviews:
Beautiful Love Tales, Universal for Every Race.......2005-10-06
If you're not one for short story collections, FOR NIGHTS LIKE THIS ONE: STORIES OF LOVING WOMEN will change your mind. Becky Birtha's affectionate stories featuring lesbians from all walks of life were touching, intelligent and insightful. Birtha knows how to keep the cohesiveness of the tales, while making each one fresh and distinctive.
The book is composed of 13 novellas all about lesbian love. Although the work was published in 1983, its simple themes still transcend to contemporary times. Sexual identity, same-sex parenting, race and monogamy were issues Birtha addressed with candor and could be heard today in any lesbian relationship. Nothing she wrote seems outdated.
In the first story, two tripped out women get a rude awakening by a dude who detests their love in "It Was Over Then." Lurie and Sabra discuss raising children in "Babies," while Edna is intrigued by "Marissa," the new radical black teacher at her workplace. "Next Saturday" finds a Julliard teacher pining away for her student, Kacey, who reminds her of her own coming out experience.
"A Sense of Loss" could be the most relatable story to black lesbians because its theme of hidden identity. The narrator, Liz, returns home to attend her grandmother's funeral, where she feels out of place. No one knows she's a lesbian (except her sister), and she feels like a hypocrite for not being herself around her own family. Liz has a lover back home, a woman she could never bring home to mama. But there was one person who always knew her heart: Grandma. It's not until Liz is back home with her true family, her lover Mandy, that she can truly grieve her loss--her grandmother and her own isolation from her real family.
Julia and Gina think clothes make the lesbian in "Leftovers," and Emily realizes nothing compares to being with the one you love in "A Monogamy Story." Brownwyn holds onto a loved one's ring for "Safekeeping." Ellen doesn't like her lover's ex-girfriend and her obtrusive presence in "A Four-Sided Figure," while in the title story, a woman daydreams about a perfect lover--until she finds the real thing.
The last three tales deal with acceptance. Jessica let her pride keep her from loving "The Woman Who Loved Dancing"; black woman Francie has to accept whom she really is and the love of her white best friend; and Sojourner realizes no one knows her better than lover Sierra, not even herself.
Birtha's connection with all these tales is one of true love and all the forms it takes between women. We have the capacity to love freely and compassionately and that resonates with these stories. Birtha's writing in For Nights Like This One was poetic yet simplistic in its traditional themes--every woman, black or white, could relate.
*The telling that made things become so special between them.......1996-08-15
This $5 wonder is worth every penny and so much more. Becky Birtha is an extraordinary storyteller! She has graced us with vignettes that bring to life the every day stories of our living -- taking risks, loss, differances, finding home & family, what we give up and what we gain. The title story *For Nights Like This One* takes us inside the heart of a woman who discovers that she not only wants to love but also *she wanted to be loved by a woman, by a woman who could be much more than her own imagination could create.* The discoveries we share along the way left me saying yes indeedy! My opening line *and it was the telling that made things become so special between them* from Safekeeping speaks of what is now special between Becky Birtha and Mikkata ... I will read everything this woman writes. Open it up - read on ... find that something special
Product Description
Piano and voice, slow fox-trot.
Average customer rating:
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On a Night Like This
John Godber
Manufacturer: Josef Weinberger Plays
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General
| Drama
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0856762601 |
Average customer rating:
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On Nights Like This
Marianne Bluger
Manufacturer: Brick Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General
| Poetry
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Poetry
| Canadian
| World Literature
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0919626254 |
Book Description
Robert B. Parker hailed his novel Bait as "brilliant." Now, Kenneth Abel introduces former New Orleans prosecutor Danny Chaisson-and spins a tale of corruption and betrayal that "takes apart crooked Louisiana politics...and makes you care about every last one of the quick and the dead" (Kirkus Reviews).
"A Louisiana saga propelled by dark deeds and the politics of greed...stylishly written...shrewdly plotted." (Los Angeles Times)
"Dark and sometimes bitterly funny." (Chicago Tribune)
Customer Reviews:
NOLA as she used to be, pre-Katrina.......2007-02-18
This author stands shoulder to shoulder with James Lee Burke when it comes to evoking the social decay, political corruption, racism, antebellum elegance, and all around fascinating duplicity of New Orleans. Danny Chaisson can trust no one, not even himself, in this complex tale of murder and sleaze in the Big Easy. The NOLA of this book is the kind of place where orders to kill are conveyed with graceful manners. If Martin Scorcese would ever look past New York and New Jersey mobsters, he might find an equally mesmerizing set of wise guys in this book, and just as worthy of film as Don Corleone.
Robust New Orleans mystery drama.......2006-11-11
Just finished Kenneth Abel's Cold Steel Rain and enjoyed the dialogue and pacing. It's yet another novel set in New Orleans which I worried about at the beginning. However, the narrative stayed fresh and lively.
Starts strong..ends with a whimper.......2004-05-01
Going into this book, I thought it would be a rich story about New Orleans and corruption. Instead, the narrative is muddled, as everybody is double-crossing someone, and Jimmy Chiasson isn't believable. Abel does a great job describing the atmosphere of the Crescent City, but his characters all seem the same. Chiasson also survives a few encounters by dumb luck(or is it deus ex machina?). The ending also ruined it for me.
Just under four stars.......2003-07-31
"Cold Steel Rain" is a gripping thriller that is probably best read on a vacation, or any other period where large blocks of time can be dedicated to finishing the novel within a few days. This novel has so many characters, plots and sub-plots, that if, like me, you occasionally have to put the book down for a few days to deal with real life, by the time you pick it up again it is easy to have forgotten many plot details and characters.
The novel provides an excellent depiction of political corruption in Louisiana, where it appears almost everyone, from the Speaker of the House to local cops, are on the take. One of my favorite political scams as described in the book, involves Jimmy Boudrieux, the Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives calling for mandatory gun-safety classes as a requirement of handgun ownership. Seems like a concerned politician worried about the safety of his constituency, right? Turns out one of Boudrieux's political cronies is adding gun training classes as an additional profit center to his gun stores (stores Boudrieux is an investor in).
The primary plot of the novel centers around Danny Chaisson, a former idealistic attorney with the D.A.'s office, who was been reduced to little more than a courier of payoff money for Jimmy Boudrieux. When Danny appears to have lost his usefulness to the Speaker after being a witness to an extremely brutal restaurant murder, it looks like Boudreiuex and his associates may be ready to put Danny out to pasture.
One of the things that Abel does especially well in "Cold Steel Rain" is seamlessly slip in detailed biographies of most major characters in the novel, without letting this information interfere with the flow of the plot. If I had a major criticism of the novel, it would be that I simply thought it was maybe 100 pages or so too long. Whereas the first 2/3rds of the story threw off my regular sleep schedule because I couldn't bear to put the book down no matter how late it got, the final third or so was somewhat of a chore to labor through. A good editing would have improved this novel greatly.
Another small, probably petty, complaint I had with the book was the authors overuse of italics. After awhile, italics were used so often that it almost seemed like an insult to the intelligence of the reader, as if the author didn't think his readers would otherwise understand what points or concepts were important to grasp. Also, when writing the internal dialogue of the novels black characters, the author, who isn't, chose to do so in slang, which I found to be somewhat annoying, and hardly believable. Similarly, I had to cringe when the author, a male, tried to write in the internal voice of the young, female ATF agent as she started to find herself sexually attracted to Danny Chaisson. Note to the author: Simply ending every sentence with "girl" does not make a character sound authentically feminine. Luckily, this is a pretty minor portion of the book.
The author appears to want this novel to work not only as a thriller, but also as a sort of social novel about the struggle of the black underclass. There's a subplot about a renegade community activist who tries to keep the young black men in his community from going down the path of gangs and guns. The author illustrates how cheap, illegal guns sold by white dealers can infiltrate a black neighborhood, while at the same time not taking away the personal responsibility of those who keep these dealers in business by buying and using their product. While occasionally a bit preachy in this area, it was definitely an eye opener.
An Amazing Achievement.......2002-02-15
It's truly breathtaking how well-written this book is. If G.P. Putnum had put some marketing dollars behind it I have no doubt it would have risen to the New York Times bestsellers list. Incredibly solid. I can't wait to read the new Danny Chaisson thriller. I am ordering it tonight with the gift certificate my brother gave me for Christmas.
Book Description
From D-Day in June 1944 to the Fall of Berlin in May 1945, this illustrated account of the Waffen-SS panzers in western Europe features accounts of the battles in which they took part, as well as firsthand anecdotes from surviving Waffen soldiers and from Allied troops who faught against them. Strategies and weaponry are detailed, as are the major battles.
Customer Reviews:
Very good view of German side of the bocage.......2006-07-15
I wished for more on Whitman et al. but there are lots of good personal accounts of tank fighting, and many many well written sections regarding how the elite panzer units managed to turn back attacks when they were outnumbered 5 or even 10 to 1! One definitely gets the impression that if the Luftwaffe had been able to protect the skies at all, the stalemate in Normandy could have lasted for years because the Germans were better trained, had much better equipment and vastly superior tactics.
GRRREAT!.......2003-12-22
Accurately details the ss panzer divisions which fought in Normandy, The Netherlands during the battle for the arnhem bridge, and the Battle of the buldge. Great info and nice pictures and some really gripping accounts of tank battles!
Customer Reviews:
Awesome novel, recommended for SR fans and Everyday readers.......2003-05-06
From start to finish this book gripped me far moreso than any other SR Novel and many other books that I've read. Smith's knowledge of Japanese customs and vocabulary, in addition to the way 4 or 5 elements are brought together and found to be contributing to the main plot towards the end, as well as the tense contrast between explosive, emotional scenes and calm, focused times makes this a must read for anyone.
very good.......1999-10-27
It has been a while since i read this book but as a remember it had great character development, nice action sequences, and even though you guys dont think so...i really thought the ending was great. one of my favorites so far.
Good, but lacking........1998-06-29
This was a decent enough read, but it seems like Nyx had a page limit, he hit the limit, and then he stopped the book short. The beggining was filled with detail that brought the main character (who I ended up liking even though I'm tired of the "strong female warrior" role) to life, but the end just seemed like an easy out!
It had potential, but I thought it was a bit weak........1998-06-08
I was somewhat disappointed by this book. The main character was very well written and interesting. The perspective of the Japanese culture was wonderful, accurate and added more depth to the book- I'm very glad to see that Nyx did his research. However, the ending left much to be desired. Little was written about some characters who were most crucial to the plot. Far too much emphasis was placed on the main character to the point the others were drowned out. Consequently, near the ending it feels like you've missed something, as if author didn't include some vital information to complete the story. It all comes together in the last few pages, but it still left me feeling empty. The book was very enjoyable otherwise.
Another great book by Nyx Smith!.......1997-10-02
Nyx Smith is a master at characterization and plot development. He continues to write stories that will grab your attention from you, even when you're not reading. The involvment of the yakuzza, the Japanese mob, in this book was a shock. It made for wonderful reading. It even gives the reader a little bit of cultural education.
Average customer rating:
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Cold Steel Rain
Kenneth Abel
Manufacturer: Orion
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0752837915 |
Book Description
`Nothing stays dead in New Orleans. Not for long, anyway.' And no one knows this better than ex-district attorney Danny Chaisson. For him, the dead just show up in his bathroom mirror every morning, staring back at him with tired eyes. Several years previously, he stumbled from the straight and narrow path, and now he's the legman for Jimmy Boudrieux, speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives, for whom dirty dealing is more than a way of life, but the sole means of survival. So when Danny makes his regular pick-up (a briefcase full of hand-guns) at a down-town Vietnamese restaurant belonging to his friends, and returns a few minutes later to find that they, along with the rest of their clientele, have been shot dead at point-blank range, he knows that he's in trouble; the next bullet has his name on it. And Danny realises that nobody - least of all Jimmy Boudrieux or the bent cops who control the New Orleans police department - is going to lift a finger to help him.
Bleak, authentic, gritty, redolent with atmosphere, COLD STEEL RAIN is a class act. Certain to appeal to fans of Robicheaux and James Lee Burke, its hard inner city edge - its depiction of urban corruption post Huey Long - looks to Lawrence Block.
Average customer rating:
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Steel Rain
Tom Neale
Manufacturer: Headline Book Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books | Classics | Comic | Contemporary | Literary
Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0755322371 |
Product Description
This is a ARMY RESEARCH LAB ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND MD report procured by the Pentagon and made available for public release. It has been reproduced in the best form available to the Pentagon. It is not spiral-bound, but rather assembled with Velobinding in a soft, white linen cover. The Storming Media report number is A896623. The abstract provided by the Pentagon follows: The CN radical plays an important role in the chemistry of nitramine propellant flames. Diagnostic methods for detection of this radical are therefore important for studies of its role in propellant combustion experiments. In this work, CN laser induced fluorescence (LIF) in an atmospheric pressure flame was studied. The first such flame study involving observation of LIF in the strong CN B-X violet system, near 3880 A, but with excitation using strong, fundamental dye laser outputs, near 6000 A, is reported. Excitation at significantly longer wavelengths (smaller photon energy) than LIF observation wavelengths is unusual. Because the high intensity fundamental outputs of dye lasers may be used, these excitations could ultimately prove to be very effective diagnostic methods for this species. Subsequent investigation of the spectra has revealed that at least four distinct excitation processes, some of which involve molecular collisions, are responsible for the observed LIF as the laser is scanned in this region. The observed spectra reveal some of the unexpected effects of collisions and laser intensity on absorption and fluorescence in this molecule.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from WWP- Report on Oil Gas & Petrochemicals in the Developing World, published by Worldwide Projects, Inc. on September 1, 2004. The length of the article is 1505 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: INDIA: Construction plans for proposed $29,000,000 petroleum coke production capacity expansion and modernization project, RAIN CALCINING LTD. (RCL) [India] Order #: 093804.
Publication:
WWP- Report on Oil Gas & Petrochemicals in the Developing World (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 1, 2004
Publisher: Worldwide Projects, Inc.
Volume: 13
Issue: 09
Distributed by Thomson Gale
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Trial and Error
Steel Rain Cdorh 805924
Manufacturer: ORCHARD.COM
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD
Subjects | Books | Arts & Photography | Biographies & Memoirs | Business & Investing | Calendars | Children's Books | Comics & Graphic Novels | Computers & Internet | Cooking, Food & Wine | Entertainment | Gay & Lesbian | Health, Mind & Body | History | Home & Garden | Law | Literature & Fiction | Medicine | Mystery & Thrillers | Nonfiction | Outdoors & Nature | Parenting & Families | Professional & Technical | Reference | Religion & Spirituality | Romance | Science | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Sports | Teens | Travel
General | Books on CD | Audiobooks | Formats | Books
ASIN: 630881833X |
Books:
- Perfect Timing (Dafina)
- Peripheral Reaches
- Plantation: A Lowcountry Tale
- Pocho
- Pronto
- Proust: Swann's Way (Landmarks of World Literature)
- Pysanky in the 21st Century
- Race to the Swift: Thoughts on Twenty-First Century Warfare
- Restoring Grace
- River Woman: A Novel
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Love's Unending Legacy/Love's Unfolding Dream/Love Takes Wing/Love Finds a Home
- Guide to Network Defense and Countermeasures
- Blue Gold: A Novel from the NUMA Files
- Changer of Worlds
- Cracking the GMAT with DVD, 2007 Edition
- Handbook of Chemical Engineering Calculations
- Encyclopedia of British Columbia
- Hot And Cold: essays poems lyrics notebooks pictures fiction
- Allegheny National Forest hiking guide
- American Hero: The Life and Death of Audie Murphy
Accidental Happiness: A Novel
Her Daughter's Eyes (Nal Accent Novels)
Family Planning
A Blessed Event: A Novel
Quality of Care
