Graceful Waters

Rating:
Summary: Fast-paced, Fun to Read, and Highly Recommended
Review: Grace Waters is a troubled, smart-aleck, 17-year-old juvenile delinquent apparently intent on harming others and herself. She's gotten so out of hand that neither her mother nor her step-father knows what to do with her. After assaulting a teacher, the juvenile court judge incarcerates Grace until her 18th birthday, which is six months away. Grace is too angry to care. She arrives at Sapling Hill, a kind of boot camp for juveniles, and it doesn't take long for her to realize that the camp instructors don't play by the same rules as the world outside the institution. By yelling, shaming, intimidation, and withholding of privileges, the instructors compel the teen girls to behave, and they suffer consequences when they do not. Surprisingly, Grace responds-in particular, she responds to the tough and relentless Instructor Carey, who sees something in Grace that the kid doesn't even know is there. But Grace's journey isn't going to be an easy one. She is hiding secrets that first must be lanced and healed, and the young woman is in no way prepared to share, not even with Carey for whom she gradually gains a caring and respect.

From the first pages, I was hooked. The narrative is fast-paced, the secondary characters are colorful, and the dialogue sparkles. Some of the events at Sapling Hill are quite amusing, and there is plenty of conflict between the teens. It reads like a cross between "An Officer and a Gentleman" and "The Breakfast Club," in other words, immensely accessible, seemingly light-but dealing with harsh realities under the surface. Grace's journey is compelling, and Carey's role in it is honorable. The relationships that Grace develops once she drops her guard enough to look around and open up feel truthful and real.

Miller and Foster have done an excellent job showing Grace's growth curve from age 17 to 19 or so as she learns to deal with the abuses she has suffered. The romance that eventually grows for her is a fitting end to her struggle. A book that is a lot of fun to read, this one is highly recommended. ~Lori L. Lake, reviewer for Midwest Book Review and author of Gun Shy, Under The Gun, Different Dress, Ricochet In Time, and Stepping Out: Short Stories.

Rating:
Summary: Graceful Water...a MUST READ!
Review: Graceful. Such an ironic name for the violent teenage delinquent that throws a chair at her teacher, cusses a judge, and spits on a prison guard. But ironic in the sense that there is so much more to this character than her first appearance.

From the moment she steps out of the prison van and into Sapling Hill, a boot camp for girls, the reader is drawn in to this character, wanting to know everything there is to know about her and her past.

But Grace is hiding that past behind an iron wall. A wall that only one woman will be able to break down. Joanna Carey is the senior instructor at Sapling Hill and it's her tough as nails approach that will either break down that wall, or send Grace directly to prison. The choice of which happens is ultimately up to Grace.

It's this journey that keeps the reader turning the pages, watching Grace try to go from an angry juvenile delinquent to the intelligent and talented young woman that Instructor Carey sees her for.

Once you start reading about this journey, you won't stop until the very last page.

Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down!
Review: I couldn't stop reading this book. The characters were so interesting and the story line was different than most, showing a great deal of knowledge about our penal system. I really liked this one alot! No surprise with these two authors. I can hardly wait for the next one.

Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down!
Review: I couldn't stop reading this book. The characters were so interesting and the story line was different than most, showing a great deal of knowledge about our penal system. I really liked this one alot! No surprise with these two authors. I can hardly wait for the next one.

Rating:
Summary: So very original and sweet
Review: I did not expect this book to be so good when I started reading it. But the more I read, the more I loved it. Watching young rebel Grace turning into wonderful, sweet and loving young woman was wonderful. Her love and devotion are commandable.
This book has enough plot, romance and feelings for any reader.