LDS Women's Book Review

Welcome!

I am so excited to be the one to kick off the blog tour for Meg's Melody! Kaylee sweetly agreed to take part in our Countdown to Christmas 2010 last year and it was great learning a little more about her. You can read her interview here.

Kaylee is also giving away a copy of Meg's Melody to a lucky commenter at the conclusion of her blog tour, so be sure to comment on each of the posts during the tour. Trust me when I say Meg's Melody is worth the effort to win!

Kaylee Baldwin grew up in Mesa, Arizona, and graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in English literature.

She currently lives in southern Arizona with her husband, Jeremy, and their three children. When she is not writing, Kaylee enjoys reading, starting new craft projects, and spending time with her family.

For more about Kaylee visit her website/blog.

From the back cover:

Meg never imagined she'd end up like this. With nowhere else to turn, she's forced to rely on the family she pushed away, the church she abandoned, and an unexpected friendship to help her find her forgotten melody. Meanwhile Matt is still mourning the loss of his wife. But determined to keep things together for his daughter's sake, he decides starting over in a new place might be just what his family needs. 



This touching story combines romance with redemption and real conflict to remind you it's never too late to find joy. Kaylee Baldwin's capable hand renders a sincere, heartfelt story of rediscovery and hope. Perfect for romantics of all ages, this book will captivate your heart and rekindle your belief in the magic of music.

This might be Kaylee's first novel, but it doesn't read like it. She has put a lot of effort into studying her craft, and it shows. I like the cover; the softer colors and expectant mother are appropriate for the story, and the music notes and flourishes are a really nice touch.

I can only imagine what an expectant single mother must struggle with, as I've never been one myself, but I feel like Kaylee did a good job capturing what that situation might be like for someone in Meg's situation. While she had very supportive family around her, they weren't perfect. They were a pushy with sneaking in "dates" without Meg's permission, which was one thing that kept me from liking Meg's sister, Missy, very much.

One thing I really appreciate is how well Kaylee wrote Lilia, Matt's four-year-old daughter. I have read many books with children that made me cringe because they were either too... well, just too much- or simply not believable in voice or behavior. I loved Lilia, and feel like there was a great balance of her presence in the book as well as an appropriate level for how a 4-5 year old girl would speak and behave.

There is a bit of a love triangle, or square if you count Austin, though the reader can guess pretty quickly who Meg will most likely end up with. The question is if they can get through the extra baggage they're carrying to be together and if it is just too soon for both of them. I found the second love interest to be a bit over the top at times, but there are guys like that out there, so it wasn't unbelievable. I didn't like Austin. But I wasn't supposed to like him. One thing I didn't understand was how easy it was for certain characters to dismiss the fact that Meg was having a baby and everything that meant.

Meg experiences some spiritual progress as she returns to church after her husband leaves her, though I didn't find the book preachy at all.

The romance is clean with a few toe-curling scenes that were very well done. I really liked the love interest, and while things might not have gone exactly how I hoped, I found the ending quite satisfying.

Meg's Melody is available for purchase from Deseret Book and Amazon.

My rating: 4/5 stars

January 21st