Call Me Mrs. Miracle

Call Me Mrs. Miracle by Debbie Macomber            Audio Book: 4 hours, 56 minutes      Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages                   

Angel, Emily Merkle is sent to help Holly Larson, who is dealing with low esteem when her long-time boyfriend breaks up with her because she has no mothering skills (he has an 8 year old son with his ex-wife), 3 months after their breakup, Holly’s brother is called up to service in the Army and sent to Afghanistan.   Her brother is in a pickle because he is a widower with an 8 year old son, himself, with no one to look after his son while he is away serving Uncle Sam.     Step up Holly, who really never was much for kids, just in short doses.   Emily Merkle goes to work at Finley’s, a family owned department store.   The H.R. department at Finley’s make a typo on Emily’s name tag which reads, Emily Miracle.    Rather than change it, Emily tells staff and customers to call her Mrs. Miracle.    It works as she is like Mrs. Claus all grandmotherly and dear so they put her to work in the toy section.   Jake Finley, son of the owner studies trends trying to keep their business afloat and buys a shipment of 500 robuts that retail for $250 each because he believes against the store’s Buyer’s wishes.   Jake’s dad gives him the blues believing the buyer that they will be stuck with them because with the downturn in the economy, people won’t want to shell out that kind of money for a toy.    It is 2 weeks before Christmas and they aren’t selling this causes a huge rift with Jake and his Dad as the business has not been performing well financially for some time.    It is wonderful and magical or heavenly I should say, how people and things come together throughout the story.   A really good story that has been made into a film.    Debbie Macomber even includes recipes for some of the food mentioned as well as quotes from Mrs. Miracle here and there.    A very good read.   This book, a mug of hot chocolate and a plate of cookies would go so well together.    It is a great feel good holiday book with descriptions of carriage rides through Central Park,  the lighting of the tree at Rockefeller Center, and of course sitting on Santa’s lap, bringing lots of good holiday scenes to mind.    I especially liked Mrs. Miracle, she is like a banana pepper – sweet and spicy!   Good job, Debbie Macomber.

Wonder of All Things

The Wonder of All Things by Jason Mott
303 Pages

"On an ordinary day, at an air show like that in any small town across the country, a plane crashes into a crowd of spectators. After the dust clears, a thirteen-year-old girl named Ava is found huddled beneath a pocket of rubble with her best friend, Wash. He is injured and bleeding, and when Ava places her hands over him, his wounds disappear. Ava has an unusual gift: she can heal others of their physical ailments. Until the air show tragedy, her gift was a secret. Now the whole world knows, and suddenly people from all over the globe begin flocking to her small town, looking for healing and eager to catch a glimpse of The Miracle Child. But Ava's unique ability comes at a great cost, and as she grows weaker with each healing, she soon finds herself having to decide just how much she's willing to give up in order to save the ones she loves most."


Mott's follow-up to the Returned (a book that was made into a tv series) continues in the paranormal vein.  Mott has an engaging style of writing and while the ending is somewhat predictable I would still recommend this book to others.

The 13th Gift: A True Story of a Christmas Miracle

The 13th Gift: A True Story of a Christmas Miracle by Joanne Huist Smith    204 pages

The holiday season starts at Halloween at my house. It’s time to get busy and get everything done. So when this little book crossed my lap, I thought I’d get a jump on getting in the spirit. I like uplifting holiday stories, and this is one to tug at the heart strings.

In September 1999, Joanne’s husband Rick was having heart problems. He needed surgery. But he decided that he wanted to wait until closer to the holidays so that he could recuperate while the kids were on holiday break. Unfortunately, Rick’s heart had other ideas, and on October 8, he died at home.

The story starts twelve days before Christmas.  Jo and the kids---Ben, seventeen; Nick, twelve, and Megan, ten---aren’t doing too well.  They don’t want to face the holidays. It’s twelve days before Christmas and Jo hasn’t given it a single thought, other than pulling the covers over her head and hope it passes quickly.

 On evening, a poinsettia arrives on their doorstep. No one saw anyone out it there, but there was a card:

On the first day of Christmas
Your true friends give to you
One poinsettia for all of you.
It seemed to help, some. The flower’s arrival gave Megan the courage to hint about a tree and presents.

What follows is Secret Santa in the best sense of the word. Little gifts began arriving, anonymously of course, and no one can catch the giver in the act. None of the gifts are expensive, but they are life-changing. Soon, the shattered family starts wo work their way out of their crippling grief.

 Grab a box of tissues with this one!

 I received this book for free from Blogging for Books for this review.