Stephanie Zimbalist Books

David Clennon and Stephanie Zimbalist head a first-rate cast in this excellent, thought-provoking play produced by L.A. Theatre Works. It's a story, and performance, I won't soon forget!

at first i was turned off this book because the title was so cliche.

but they do say don't judge a book by its cover.

this book is wonderful! i have been thinking of re-reading it because i haven't read any good stories lately. i loved how she wrote of the main characters' emotions; you really get into the love story. and the time travel is fantastic!

i think this one i passed on to my mom and i had to get a new one for me, lol. i have since collected all of jude deveraux's novels from a used bookstore and have devoured almost all of them. i stay up nights reading them! i get so carried away in them. i have not met a jude deveraux book i didn't like; these books got me turned onto reading romance novels.

beware: you may actually cry at the end of this book. i'm not a crier but i was welled up! and it's been a looong time since i got involved in the characters of a book!! this is a book you will want to keep toting around with you from place to place because the story is so good.

happy reading!

Why aren't there many books like this out there? And why isn't Ms. Deveraux writing more books like this?

Heart warming and heart palpitating. If you love happy endings and like books that take you into a romantic adventure, this is it! And, the hero Nicholas, is devastatingly handsome :)

WANTED: 1. An unabridged audio version of A Knight In Shining Armor
2. A movie, maybe with Drew Barrymore playing Dougless Montgomery or Sarah Jessica Parker... or...

I usually don't choose to read stories that make me cry, but this is currently my favorite book. This story makes you laugh a lot, but it definitely is a "tear jerker." A very sweet enduring romance. I think it is an excellent book, with a full range of emotions and lots of action. I thought I'd read through the one star reviews to see why these people didn't like it. Well, many of them don't like Romantic Fiction. Don't read Jude Deveraux if you're not into predictable romantic stories! I liked the main character, yes, she was insecure and she cried a lot. Many women have lowered their standards on men for the security of being loved. I could relate to her. Some people didn't like the ending. This is the only area where I could agree somewhat. I would have liked it to end differently. The happy ending is not quite as happy as I would have liked, but I have to accept the authors way of resolving things. If I could write to Jude to compliment this work, I would. This is my second time reading this book & it was just as excellent the second time around. So....much better than the movie Somewhere in Time, with Jane Seymour & Christopher Reeve.

I adore Jude Devereaux and have read almost every single one of her books. A knight in Shining armor is one of her best work. Douglass is a little bit too weak for a heroine and lets people step all over her. But that changes toward the end. Nicolas is sweet, charming, romantic and funny...a hero you'll fall in love with. Nicolas first appear in modern times and experiences everything new to him. He returns to medieval times and Douglas follows, only to find out that Nicolas doesn't remember her. It's a beautiful love story that'll make you laugh and cry and wish you had a nikolas in your life.
The only tiny thing I wish could change is: wish the heroine and hero could somehow end up together. I know their souls did find eachother, but it's not the same as having Douglas and Nicolas ending up together.

Holy cow! I laughed, I cried, I got completely immersed. This is the first romance I have read that actually pulled off time travel in an amazing way - props to Jude! It is a great story, and you will end up crying but you will love every second!

Forr a writer, there is perhaps no harder act to follow than a successful first novel. Rush Home Road, Lori Lansens' debut, garnered rave reviews and was a national bestseller. Happily, her second novel ,The Girls, also has elements that will please critics and readers alike. The Girls, Rose and Ruby Darlen, are on their way to becoming the world's oldest surviving craniopagus twins -- they are attached at the head -- if they live to their 30th birthday...

This book made me smile, laugh, and cry. What a beautiful story of two sisters connected physically and emotionally. I wanted this one to be real when I finished--it was just amazing. Great author, can't wait to read her future stories. Loved the beginning--kind of wizard of ozzy--ending was beautiful, sad, but beautiful.

I can't stop thinking about this novel. The author captured me and captivated me until the final moments of the story. The characters became real. I shared their hopes and pain. Wonderful!

It is a very unique book and I enjoyed the time I spent with it. I found the storyline and the character to be people I absolutely fell in love with. It will not disappoint.

Lyrical, poetic prose opens this heartwarming and unique story of conjoined twins Rose and Ruby and the lives they led, both separately as two individuals with different likes and dislikes and together as sisters who must rely on each other solely for their very existence. Joined at the head, `The Girls'--as they are known as in their small Ontario town--are raised by loving adoptive parents Aunt Lovey and Uncle Stash, after their birth mother disappears shortly after giving birth. The conjoined twins are considered the pride of the town, not an oddity, and they rise above what most of us would think of as a handicap or disability and love each other unconditionally.

The Girls is a diary told in two voices--Rose's and Ruby's. Rose encourages her sister to contribute to what will become their life story and although she does most of the writing, both characters come to life as they observe the lives of everyone they meet, sharing their innermost thoughts, hopes, fears and dreams with the reader. I found myself so connected to Rose and Ruby that I didn't want their story to end, and when it did, I was left with a bittersweet ache for more.

The first paragraph reads like pure, sweet poetry that is sure to haunt any reader; it is what first grabbed me and pulled at my heart. The Girls opens like this:

"I have never looked into my sister's eyes. I have never bathed alone. I have never stood in the grass at night and raised my arms to a beguiling moon. I've never used an airplane bathroom. Or worn a hat. Or been kissed like that...So many things I've never done, but oh, how I've been loved. And, if such things were to be, I'd live a thousand lives as me, to be loved so exponentially."

Lori Lansens is an extraordinary Canadian author who paints a picture of rural Ontario farm life and two distinct lives with a magic wand of effortlessness, vividly colorful description and heartfelt compassion. At times you'll forget you're reading a novel because it reads with such clarity and believability. In fact, this novel is so full of realism, you may find yourself flipping to the author's photograph at the back of the book to see if she is a conjoined twin. Instead, you'll find her sitting alone at one end of a sofa, as if waiting for someone to join her.

The Girls: A Novel is a MUST READ for anyone who enjoys an emotional tale of love, loss and the challenges of life. Other books of comparable emotional impact: The Lovely Bones: A Novel and Mothering Mother: A Daughter's Humorous and Heartbreaking Memoir.

~Cheryl Kaye Tardif,
bestselling author of Whale Song: A Novel, "a compelling story of love and family and the mysteries of the human heart."

I have listened to this collection twice now, both times with pleasure. Hearing the acutal voices of Amelia Earhart, Rev. Martin Luther King, Winston Churchill and Neil Armstrong made a deeper connection than simply reading their words. The collection showcases different subjects and many times contrasts opposing viewpoints of the ideas. This volume is a fantastic introduction to the moving ideals and sometimes sad truths that have influenced Western Civilization.

It is a wonderful idea to make available recordings of great speeches. I hope we have more of this in the future.
In the case of older speeches, the selection is very good, considering the restraints of time, and the readers are uniformly excellent.
As for the modern speeches, it is a marvel of technology that we can hear these speeches as delivered. It is incredible that we can hear the voice of William Jennings Bryan. I can listen to Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" a thousand times and never tire of it! How I wish I could listen to the voice of Patrick Henry! But this selection is too heavily weighted to the modern, and many of those do not deserve billing as the GREATEST speeches of ALL TIME. Also, some of the modern speeches which are included are abridged, e.g. Reagan is cut off in the middle of a sentence, while lengthy and undeserving speeches are played out in their entirety.
Also, with only a few exceptions, the selection is almost entirely American. It is hard to understand why Jimmy Carter's lengthy speech on energy policy is included, while Pericles' funeral oration is not; or why only a small portion of a single Winston Churchill speech is included; why while Bill Clinton's complete 1993 pulpit address, in excess of 20 minutes, is included.
It would be helpful if the complete list of speeches were available to online buyers, as it would be to shoppers in a brick and mortar store.

Coelho is, hands down, my favorite author. After reading several of his novels, I couldn't wait to read this book. And I was not disappointed. Although there are countless formulas for writing love stories, somehow this book was different. I was captivated. Coelho has such an amazing way of expressing the character's feelings that you come to really know the characters in his stories.
All of Coelho's novels have themes, this one being 'forgivness'. At first, I didn't really grasp why, but after reading it, I think its a story about forgiving yourself.
Pilar (the main character in this story) takes you through a week that she spends with a childhood friend whom she hasnt seen in over a decade but happens to be in love with. During this week, Pilar experiences a huge 'ephinany' and begins to rediscover her faith. (I thought this novel focused a little to much on religion, but the concept of religion can be looked upon as a metaphor).
When I finished the book, I literally sighed with relief. I'm not sure why. Coelho's language brings you into a completely alternate world than your own and makes you actually feel the character's feelings.
READ THIS BOOK!!

I have this book since I am 16 years old. I've read it so many times and it always get me emotional... No matter what book they release, this is my FAVORITE BOOK EVER!

Pilar grows-up becoming a lovely, strong independent woman! Her childhood friend has become some more handsome, charismatic spiritual leader, making use of his religion as a refuge from his raging inner conflicts. He is said to be one who is even able to heal persons!

This lovely crafted story begins like a poetic narrative until Pilar is introduced to the gripping surprise of her lover having become a Seminarian. His whole life has been turned into an adventure shaped by his studies and new committment! When the italicised poetry becomes more narrative, the story moves more quickly and has numerous fascinating twists and turns. "It's risky falling in love." Their love simply moves gradually into new adventures and amzing enw pictures of their interesting culture!

Although I had read early on THE ALCHEMIST by Coelho, this story grew more lovely and compelling the more I read. It is well-worth discovery as another winner by Paulo Coelho. In-spite of the reviews making far too much of its strong religion that Spanish flavor of Cathoicism is totally tempered by pictures of beautiful love-making!

As I discovered after reading other stories of Authur Golden, Memoirs Of A GEISHA and Rosamunde Pilcher, The Shell Seekers this story seemed to stay with me longer to become another model of poetic beauty and pictures an eternal love spanning this world and the one of the Great-Not-Yet! Gratefully from Retired Chaplain Fred W Hood

Excentlant book, a pretty fast read with lots of meaning.
I recomment Paulo Coelho as a writer one of my favourits

I have been slowly finding time to read this book between grad school and work. Each time I begin I whish to have time to just sit and enjoy it. Today was that day as I awaited my tires to be mounted I sat in the sun and read this wonderful story. I saw so much of my own life reflected in the emotions, very well written and inspiring. I am passing it on to my mother so that she too can benifit from this work of art.
With all the praise why a 4 star rating? Well, although I truly love this story I was conflicted over some parts that just seemed to loose me. I read and reread certain passages just to get what happened. And still I found myself wondering too much with some odd unresolved feelings.
I loved the story I loved the dedication to the concepts of "LOVE and LOYALTY."
I recommend this book to everyone. As for me on to the next of his books...

When I read and enjoy a book, I pass it on, tell my friends and family, and am pleased when others can also enjoy the book. When I read a truly dreadful book, like Queen of the Underworld, I feel obligated to tell anyone and everyone who might be interested in reading the book to STOP. Don't make the same mistake I made. The hours you will waste reading that horrid book are hours you will never get back. Read a cookbook instead. It will be much more satisfying.

What a lot of interesting secondary characters! Unfortunately, the main character is pretty much annoying. An abusive stepfather gains our sympahy for the plucky heroine at first, but she's so clueless and chirpy--wow, look at me, folks, I'm having an affair! --we lose the sympathy fast and just keep waiting to see if she stumbles.

In the audio version, the narrator does a pretty good job with the various accents, but slips out of Southern a few times.

Many other reviews summarize the book so I won't repeat everything here. Suffice it to say - it was very disappointing! I kept waiting for something to happen and when the book finally seemed to get really interesting, it ended - just ended - with no resolution, finality, anything!! A waste of time - could have been so much more. Don't buy it - borrow it or pass altogether. If I like a book, I keep it - this one I will sell to a used book store or donate to Goodwill.

Bright-eyed, independent Emma Gant arrives in Miami in the summer of 1959 with the world at her feet. She has a married lover who'll show her the ropes, and a reasonably-priced residence orchestrated by a family friend, and an upwardly-mobile job at the Miami Star, the most important accessory for a recent graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill journalism school.

Emma joins the Star's reporting staff at a tumultuous time, shortly after Fidel Castro enacted his First Agrarian Reform. Living in a hotel run by Cuban émigrés for Cuban émigrés makes the upheavals of Castro's revolución more than just news to Emma. Placing her in this context, the author seems to be drawing a comparison between Emma's situation and that of the Cubans. As Emma is struggling to figure out her place in the world and gauge her future success, so are her newly exiled neighbors.

The more one reads into the life history of the author, the more Queen of the Underworld begins to seem like a semi-autobiographical novel. Godwin herself graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1959 and spent a year on the staff of the Miami Herald before embarking on the world travels that sparked her literary career.

What is most curious about the novel is that it takes place over such a short period of time. The story of Emma's coming into her own, Queen of the Underworld is a window into what seems to be a key moment in Emma's development, one that may affect her entire career. Godwin, however, manages to squeeze an unbelievable amount of action into less than two weeks. Emma's life during the span of the novel is so full, it is almost surreal; as she herself recounts, "in one week and three days, I met a gangster walking a dog, sat behind a notorious boss at a funeral, became friends with [an] ex-madame [...], and helped two Cubans smuggle arms out of Florida" (331), and that's not even the half of it.

By contrast, the novel's ending is unsatisfying and somewhat abrupt. While Emma fantasizes about writing a novel, there is nothing (besides Godwin's own history) that gives any indication that Emma will become a novelist. The narrative ends with both Emma and the reader waiting on her future, filled with unanswered questions.

Godwin's characterization, however, is the novel's saving grace. Emma is amazingly sympathetic despite her naïveté and the fact that she seems to have no compunction about sleeping with another woman's husband (although her sexual relationships do seem to be at odds with her history of sexual abuse). More significantly, Queen of the Underworld is full of finely drawn secondary characters. One such character is Don Waldo Navarro, a prominent academic who fled Cuba with his memoirs sewn into his wife's skirt. A minor character, who could have easily been shunted aside after his grand entrance, Don Waldo is made real in Godwin's attention to detail: he swims breaststroke in the hotel pool "in billowing maroon trunks" (260) with "his leonine head erect" (259) and has the ability of seamlessly incorporating a nine-year-old Spanish-speaking girl into a English-language conversation: "the great educator's consecutive translations into Spanish on Luisa's behalf bore no trace of pedagogy. Don Waldo made it seem merely as though he suddenly chose to complete the rest of his discourse in another tongue" (272).

Godwin has written a number of other novels including The Odd Woman, Violet Clay, and A Mother and Two Daughters, each of which was nominated for the National Book Award. A career author, she published her first novel in 1970. Her papers are archived in the Southern Historical Collection at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

In this novel by author Gail Godwin, we meet young Emma Gant as she is about to embark on her first job with the Miami Star after graduating college. We see her leaving behind a brow-beaten mother and a sexual and physical abusive step-father. She doesn't however travel to Miami as a fresh flower, for there to meet her is a married lover who has a strong hand in introducing her to a totally different life than she emerged from.
At her new home, Emma learns to co-exist with Cubans who have escaped Castro's clutches and meet some very colorful characters who have a great impact on her life, including the Queen of the Underworld, an ex-Madam, her boyfriends wife; a Jewish Mafioso and some Cuban exiles who are exporting dental equipment, or are they? Our young lady seems to have mingled with some not so favorable people.I feel the entire concept of the story was showing how different cultures and people influence lives and the choices we make, for better or worse.
It is the story of a young girl who I feel felt the excitement and drawing of the different people she met, the city and the job she was now part of, like someone tasting life for the first time and a freedom she didn't know existed. However, you do wonder if she is naive or just very smart as she lives among these very oddball characters, winding herself in and out of their lives. Are they part of her determent or does she use them to her advantage?
I felt this was a different story, at times a little hard to follow, but nevertheless still full of characters that were both mysterious, charming, repulsive, and interesting enough to keep you reading. It's the story of a young girl experiencing life with different cultures, moral standings and customes other than her own, as she makes her way in a time when perhaps the world wasn't ready to make room for her.