More Than Words Can Say by Robert Barclay

2012 is shaping up to be a great year as far as books go. I am really in reader heaven. So far every book I have read this month has really been worth my time! More Than Words Can Say is one of those books I will mention to my friends as a must read.

From the author of If Wishes Were Horses comes a novel of long-buried secrets and self-discovery, showing us that sometimes what goes unsaid is more powerful than words. . . .

Chelsea Enright never expected to inherit her grandmother's lakeside cottage deep in the Adirondacks—a serene getaway that had been mysteriously closed up decades ago. This is no simple bequest, however, because when Chelsea finds her grandmother's WWII diaries, she's stunned to discover that they hold secrets she never suspected . . . and they have the power to turn her own life upside down.

Even more surprising is the compelling presence of local doctor Brandon "Yale, and Chelsea soon finds her "short stay" has stretched into the entire summer. She cannot put this cottage and her family's past behind her easily—and the more she learns about the woman her grandmother truly was, the more Chelsea's own life begins to change . . . and nothing will ever be the same again.

The 411 by Maria Gagliano
I read this book last week, over 4 books ago and in 1 day. I thought this review was already written and will do my best to do it justice in a typical Amateur Book Review. Fortunately, I have talked about the book for a week now with my girlfriends so it has stayed fresh in my mind.

Chelsea's beloved Grandmother, Brooke has passed away. In the lawyer's office, she is told that her grandmother has left her a summer cottage and a note that the lawyer is to give to her. The note is from Grandma and tells her to go to the cottage alone, pick up a few floorboards under a bed and find a box with more information.

Already, I am picturing a mystery and I am not big on mysteries. It isn't, it is a beautiful double love story told through grandma's diary flashback chapters and Chelsea's life.

I loved how sure Chelsea was that she would sell the cottage before she got there. She expected a run down summer place that hadn't been used by the family ever since Grandma closed the door so many years ago. While Grandpa was fighting in WWII, grandma was quietly falling in love with a painter who lived next door.

Chelsea's new cottage neighbor is a very cute doctor who wraps up her hand on their first meeting. Together they read Brooke's diary and piece together the past that shaped a love story and created a family.

The fact that this love story was written by a man was something I had to remind myself of more than a few times. Robert Barclay is a great writer.  Romance novels can for me, get too wordy but this was a quick read with a lot of heart.

The story is character driven and while it is sweet, it isn't sappy. In a nutshell Brooke's husband was fighting a war while she was making guilty goo goo eyes at her club foot, artistic, available, neighbor. She closed the house up and ran as fast as she could away from her heart. She loved two men at once and while I am unsure why she never went back, I loved Brooke who we only got to know in flashbacks. She was a spirit fire with a huge heart.

You can order More Than Words Can Say: A Novel, through Amazon

Disclaimer: I received an ARC to facilitate this review.