Ponderings by Andrea: Leanna Ellis

One of the first books I reviewed on my blog is ‘Once in a Blue Moon’ by Leanna Ellis (you can read my review here). The latest book she has written is ‘Facelift.’

Here is the synopsis of this thoughtful novel:

In life and love, we could all stand a few nips and tucks. Kaye Redmond, a “can do” kind of woman, has the magical touch when it comes to staging houses to attract buyers. Her ability to make things “perfect” has served her well in her career. If only it could transform her personal life as well. With a failed marriage, an angry teenage daughter, and an ex-mother-in-law who is no fairy godmother. Kaye’s life is about as imperfect as it gets.

But sometimes…

Blessings come in the strangest packages. Like her ex-mother-in-law landing on Kaye’s doorstep after a botched facelift. Could caring for the impossible woman help Kaye get what she wants most: her husband back? But no fairy princess ever faced such obstacles: an ex-husband’s surgically enhanced mistress, hormonal teenagers, and – worst of all – an extra handsome prince? How’s a woman supposed to find happily-ever-after with all that going on?

Here is the biography of this fun and prolific author:

Leanna Ellis, formerly known as Leanna Wilson, has sold more than one million books and been published in more than twenty countries. Some of her titles include ‘Once in a Blue Moon,’ ‘Elvis Takes a Back Seat,’ ‘Lookin’ Back, Texas,’ and ‘Ruby’s Slippers.’ A recipient of the Reader’s Choice Award, Leanna lives with her family in Texas.

Here is a book trailer for this fun book:

There are a wide variety of well-developed characters, including Kaye, her 17 year old daughter, Isabel (aka Izzie), Izzie’s swimming teammate, Gabe, his guardian, Jack (who is also Kaye’s client), Kaye’s ex-husband, Cliff, and Kaye’s ex-mother-in-law, Marla. One of the marks of a talented author is to ability to write characters in whom the reader can relate, and that is the case with all of these characters. The characters were both empathetic and infuriating (you will have to read the book to decide which ones fall into each category)!

I love the opening paragraphs of the book; they are indicative of what is to come – smart and entertaining writing. They are written from the perspective of the main character, Kaye Redmond:

Once upon a time implies a fairy tale is about to unfold, something lush and grand and mythical, something with a happy ending. But the brothers Grimm a twisted sense of humor and, as it turns out, “once upon a time” is actually literary gobbledygook for “impending doom.”

They weren’t called Grimm for nothing.

In tale after tale, “once upon a time” invariably precedes certain disaster. Just ask Snow White, Cinderella, or Sleeping Beauty. They’ll back me up on this. Those innocuous few words are the harbinger of cursing fairies, parental fatalities, and death marches into dark forests for the near perfect princesses. Not that I consider myself a fairy princess by any stretch of the warped imagination, or even remotely close to perfect, but like those fair, aforementioned ladies, my own story begins with “once upon a time.”

If I’d only been given a five-minute warning. (p. 1)

Being the godly woman that she is, Kaye is hoping for a reconciliation with her ex-husband. But as many scenes confirm, she is more saintly toward him than I would ever be! Here is a interaction between them as Cliff visits Kaye’s home to see his mother, Marla:

Words fracture apart as the sensations I’ve needed, longed for, stampede through my body. A vibration zings my hip. He pulls back, yanks out his cell phone, and checks the Caller ID. “I have to go.”

“Work?” I tug on his shoulders in an effort to pull him back. He pockets the phone and hooks his arms around my waist. I lift my lips to him and kiss him, but he pulls back first. “I have to go.”

This is not how it’s supposed to go. Cinderella left Prince Charming holding a glass slipper. Desire building. Passion deferred. Which made Prince Charming chase after her. But Cliff is leaving, backing away, leaving me holding the bag… er, his mother. I attempt to camouflage my disappointment beneath a smile. “Okay. Come for dinner again if you want.” (p. 112)

Jack is a godly man, and he and Kaye have some wonderful spiritual discussions. Here is one:

Jack grabs an egg roll, bites off the end, chews, and swallows. “I don’t get plastic surgery at all. I understand it’s needed for car accidents and to repair birth defects. But…”

“Could it be avoidance?” I voice my own fears and reasons for not pursuing such a course.

“Exactly. We’re all headed in the same direction. You can’t evade death. And seems to me, folks don’t want to think about what could happen, what will eventually happen.”

Nodding, I plunge my fork into fluffy white rice. “They don’t want to have to make a decision about God.”

“You’re right. Interesting that God’s Word says we’ll grow more beautiful with age in heaven, and yet here on earth the opposite happens. Or we see it that way.” (pp. 143-144)

Later on, they both agree on the source from which true worth and beauty come. Kaye begins:

“Have you ever felt like you couldn’t measure up?”

He slants a glance my way. “Then I became a Christian. The fact is I couldn't measure up. Ever. But God doesn’t ask us to measure up. He gave us the stopgap.”

“Jesus,” I whisper the word reverently.

He nods. “It’s all too easy to look at ourselves the way the world does.” He tilts his head toward the house. “As if we need a facelift. A wig. A husband.” He thumbs his chest. “A wife. Whatever. In the world’s eyes, we don’t measure up. Look how the world raises someone to celebrity status – the ultimate in measuring up, and then the world works hard to bring them back down to size. The world celebrates adultery or at least excuses it. We need to see ourselves the way God does – in an eternal sense.”

The force of his words knocks into me and makes me breathless. Words I’ve heard in church come back to me – You are deserving. Because of the blood of Christ. You are a child of the King of kings and Lord of lords. If only I could remember that when I feel everyone’s gaze on me, sizing me up, critiquing me from head to toe. (p. 243)

Kaye is able to bring God’s truth to Marla, who has a misperception about Him:

“I think that’s what God wants us to see. How our imperfections give us a need for Him.”

“I don’t know about that. I just know that I can’t do it anymore.” She slides her fingers into her hairline and tugs her hair back. I can see the red lines from her facelift.

“Do what?”

“Be perfect.” She gives a bitter laugh and frames her face with her hands. “Have you seen me lately?”

I place a gentle hand on her arm. “No one wants you to be perfect, Marla.”

She sniffs and looks away, tears filling the corners of her eyes.

I slide my arms around her narrow shoulders. “God doesn’t expect perfection, either.”

“I always thought He did.”

I shake my head. “Nope. Not at all.” I give her shoulders a squeeze. “He’s like the makeup that covers our imperfections.”

She turns to look me in the eye. “Apparently, I need to take out stock in that kind of foundation.” (p. 267)

I really liked this latest release from Ms. Ellis! The book is at times tender and other times tough. It deals with lots of real-life issues. And I liked how it ended! I have enjoyed the Leanna Ellis books I have read to date, and I look forward to the next one that comes down the pike! My understanding is that she has a series of books with an Amish/Vampire theme. It will be interesting to see how she glorifies Jesus (as she does in this book) in that series!

You can order this book here.

This book was provided by B&H Publishing Group in Nashville TN for review and giveaway purposes.

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I have three copies of this book to pass along to three of you; thanks to Julie at the B&H Publishing Group for generously providing these copies!

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This giveaway is for U.S. residents only. The deadline for entry is Wednesday, January 19, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. EST. Three winners will be chosen via the Random Number Generator on Thursday, January 20, 2011 and will be contacted via email. The best to all of you!

Leanna Ellis is a prolific author. ‘Once in a Blue Moon’ is the first book of hers that I have had the pleasure to read.

Here is a book trailer for this entertaining read:

The main character in this wonderfully quirky and entertaining novel is Bryn Seymour. Her mother died on July 20, 1969, the day that Apollo 11 landed on the moon; her death was under suspicious circumstances. Bryn was only nine years old at that time. She never knew the identity of her father. She was raised by her mother’s mother, Bryn makes her living as an obituary and features writer for the Houston Chronicle. She has become a cynical woman who is not sure there is a lot of good in the world. Forty years later, her path crosses that of Howard, who was a friend of her mom’s in high school. He was also an employee at NASA at the time that Bryn’s mother was employed there. Bryn thinks Howard may not only shed some light on some of the holes in her life story, but would also be an interesting subject for a feature article.

Howard has an interesting world view. He has inside information from his time with NASA, and wants to spread his message. His son, Sam, moved to Howard’s small town in Texas, Marfa, in order to keep an eye on him and help him out when needed. Sam is a ‘preacher man,’ and the sparks fly when he meets Bryn. I don’t want to give away the ending of the book, but I do hope Ms. Ellis writes a sequel, so I can see the outcome of a potential relationship!

I found Leanna’s writing style to be very entertaining. Here is a passage I think is particularly good:

Flying reminds me how I’ve tried to soar above problems which weighed me down, sent me into a tailspin of despair, pulled me to depths from which I never thought I could recover. I always wanted to dare circumstances. Maybe that’s why I’ve never been afraid to risk my life. Only my heart. When it breaks, I know there is no recovery. (p. 206)

Her descriptions are vivid, and her attention to detail is keen. She does a wonderful job in transporting the reader into the lives of the characters, and making you care about them. I was particularly taken with the Bryn character; we have a lot in common, including being from close to the same era, time-wise, and growing up without a father. I am working on getting rid of my cynicism also! I really enjoyed ‘Once in a Blue Moon,’ and plan on doubling back to read the other Christian fiction books by Ms. Ellis that I have missed, including: ‘Elvis Takes a Back Seat,’ ‘Lookin’ Back, Texas,’ and ‘Ruby's Slippers.’

This book was provided to me by B&H Publishing Group in Nashville TN for review purposes.