Friday, February 19, 2010

Recommend Me -- Sunshine and Shadow by Sharon and Tom Curtis


Recommend Me is a meme that Kate at The Neverending Shelf is hosting. Each Friday, participants will pick one of their all time favorite reads to share. This could be a book that your read yesterday or years ago.

To play along, grab a favorite read and tell us about it. You can include your thoughts about the novel, its summary, your favorite memory related to the novel... the possibilities are limitless. If you are up for a challenge, you can also include:
  • Your review of the novel
  • Links to others' reviews of the novel
  • Recommending to a general group of readers or if you want to be extra daring, to specific reader friends
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Sunshine and Shadow
Authors: Sharon and Tom Curtis
Publication: Bantam (September 1, 1986)

From the jacket: Could their explosive love bridge the chasm between two impossibly different worlds? He thought there were no surprises left in the world...but the sudden appearance of a young Amish widow Susan Peachey was astonishing -- and just the shock cynical Alan Wilde needed. She was a woman from another time, innocent, yet wise in ways he scarcely understood.

Irresisitibly, Susan and Alan were drawn together to explore their wildly exotic differences. And soon they would discover something far greater -- a rich emotional bond that transcended both of their worlds and linked them heart-to-heart...until their need for each other became so overwhelming that there was no turning back. But would she have to sacrifice all she cherished for the uncertain joy of their forbidden love?

Why I'm recommending this -- I thought the book was just magical. Alan is a movie director who was a former child actor abused physically and emotionally by his parent. Susan has been raised in the sheltered environment of the Amish community. Both have known sorrows but deal with them very differently. This is a wonderful love story about opposites attracting.

The beginning of the book hooked me immediately:
He liked the monster. Some monsters had it. Some didn't. This one did. Take the Creature from the Black Lagoon, for instance, or the Rancor monster in Return of the Jedi, They had real charisma. If a monster had that "certain something," movie audiences were perfectly cheerful about watching him consume half the cast.
This book came out, or came unto my radar, at about the same time as the movie Witness with Harrison Ford. That was another take on the Amish woman and the outsider. I loved the movie but love this book even more.

If you can find it (and only 39 members on LibraryThing and only 30 members on GoodReads have it), this is a wonderful book for lovers of romance between two very different characters.

(I have two copies in excellent condition that I am not sharing with anyone. They would be some of the first things I'd save if my house caught fire.)



4 comments:

  1. That's a pretty powerful recommendation, "things to take with you in case of a house fire"! Wow! Well, it definitely is an original story line, I would have never thought the two would compliment each other, but who am I to say. Great review!

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  2. Wow! The story sounds amazing and very original. Wonder why not that many people have heard of it? I'm definitely going to look for a copy!

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  3. Stopping by from Debbie's Book Blog. It's great how she spotlights blogs so we can find others that are interesting.
    I've starting being a follower and look forward to seeing what your reading.


    Chèli
    Cheli's Shelves

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  4. I came over from Debbie's book blog and am so glad I did. I like the review and specially the recommendation!

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