Saturday, November 14, 2020

Book Review and Giveaway - The Secret Sisters Club Author: Monique Bucheger on tour with Celebrate Lit

 


About the Book

Book: The Secret Sisters Club

Author: Monique Bucheger

Genre: Mid-grade, blended family, horses

Release Date: March 18, 2012


Twelve-year-old BFF’s Ginnie West and Tillie Taylor, want to be sisters. Ginnie’s widowed dad plus Tillie’s divorced mom could equal a lifetime of round-the-clock girl talk and slumber parties. Too bad Dad vowed to never marry again. Ginnie and Tillie come up with the perfect scheme to change his mind: ‘Operation Secret Sisters’ (aka OSS). After all, if they can’t get Dad to move on, Tillie can’t move in.
Things get more complicated when Ginnie stumbles across her mom’s hidden journals. Ginnie can finally get to know the mother she doesn’t remember and her dad doesn’t talk about—if Dad doesn’t take them away.

 

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author


When Monique isn’t writing, you can find her playing taxi driver to one or more of her 12 children, plotting her next novel, scrapbooking, or being the “Mamarazzi” at any number of child-oriented events.

Even though she realizes there will never be enough hours in any given day, Monique tries very hard to enjoy the journey that is her life. She shares it with a terrific husband, her dozen children, twelve granddarlings, too many cats, and many real and imaginary friends. She is the author of several books in three series and hopes to write many more.

 

More from Monique

Hello everybody!

 

I’d like to welcome you to the first book in my Ginnie West Adventures Series: The Secret Sisters Club. This series has been a fun journey that started longer ago than I care to admit. 

 

As a tween, Ginnie West was my imaginary friend who gave me courage. Since then, I have written her story through four novels to each become a #1 Amazon Best-selling novel.

 

The Secret Sisters Club is the story of 12-year-old BFF’s (Ginnie and Tillie) who want to become sisters. However, The Secret Sisters Club is more than a scheme (AKA: OSS: Operation Secret Sisters) to get Tillie’s divorcee mom to fall in love with Ginnie’s widowered dad. 

 

The Secret Sisters Club is a contemporary, middle-grade novel about: belonging, overcoming hard things, finding joy in the journey of your life, and finding the courage to change your own stars when you don’t like the hand you have been dealt—and realizing that ‘real’ family can be friends you have chosen when the people in the family you were born to are missing because of choices they made, death, divorce, and circumstances beyond your (and sometimes their) control—and these themes are shared in an uplifting, empowering, age-appropriate way.

 

Because Tillie was abandoned when she was six years-old by her birth dad, six years before The Secret Sisters Club starts, she longs to for  a “whole” family: with a mom, a good dad, a sister, and a brother. Tillie has always been timid, but Ginnie helps her feel brave. Tillie, in turn, helps Ginnie realize that she has a lot to be grateful for.

 

Ginnie has never worried about what her family looks like—because it has always “felt” right. She lives in a 3-generation farm family composed of her great-Uncle Ben, his two kids, her dad , Todd, and his brother, Uncle Jake–who were raised by Uncle Ben because they were orphaned as young tweens, as well as Ginnie’s twin brother, Toran.

 

Ginnie’s mother died in a tragic accident when she was 3 ½ years old, leaving Ginnie with very few memories of her mom. Which hasn’t been a problem for her—UNTIL she finds a box of her dead mom’s journals and starts reading one.

 

Then Ginnie realizes that she really missed out—her mom was pretty amazing: creative, energetic, courageous, funny, a nationally ranked beauty queen (which Ginnie couldn’t care less about) but also a nationally ranked equestrian and trick rider—which Ginnie cares VERY much about. And more than that—she realizes that her mother truly understood her. And while her dad loves her very much—Ginnie is constantly tossing him out of his comfort zone as he struggles to balance her need to be independent with his need to keep her safe.

 

The Secret Sisters Club explores the journey of two BFF’s finding strength to overcome adversities, humor in day-to day life, and courage to make hard choices as they grow up together, embracing their differences as well their similarities, to make life a totally awesome sauce adventure.


My Thoughts

The Secret Sisters Club is book 1 in the Ginnie West adventures. I have somehow managed to read this series out of order, but that is ok. This book is geared toward middle grade females. Although, I enjoyed reading this book and can't wait to add it to my grand-daughter's book collection. 
This book is where we meet best friends, Tillie and Ginnie. Ginnie's dad is widowed and Tillie's mom is divorced. They come up with The secret sister's club. They hatch a plan so they can have their parents get married so they could be real life sister BFFS. 
Both girls have some big situations they need to overcome. Tillie has a lot of hurt and pain. Her father was not very nice to Tillie and her mother. He up and left. Ginnie has a lot of unanswered questions about her mother who has passed. Her father is still so overcome with grief that it consumes him. They live with Ginnie's extended family. 
The author deals with some real life issues that kids in these situations may face. Being a child from a blended family - and now having a blended family I thought the author dealt with the issues well. It has a good wholesome message and the book kept my attention the whole way through. Ginnie and Tillie are likeable characters. 

I received a copy of this book through the Celebrate Lit blogging program -- all thoughts are my own. 

Blog Stops

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, November 6

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, November 7

Inklings and notions, November 8

Captive Dreams Window, November 8

Through the Fire blogs, November 9

Texas Book-aholic, November 10

For Him and My Family, November 11

deb’s Book Review, November 12

Locks, Hooks and Books, November 13

Artistic Nobody, November 14 (Guest Review from Joni Truex)

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, November 15

Ashley’s Bookshelf, November 16

Vicky Sluiter, November 17 (Author Interview)

lakesidelivingsite, November 17

Sara Jane Jacobs, November 18

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, November 19

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Monique is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/10355/the-secret-sisters-club-celebration-tour-giveaway


9 comments:

  1. Sounds like a great book to read.  Thanks for sharing and for the giveaway.

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  2. Love this series. My Daugther and her friends enjoy this series greatly. Thank you for sharing.

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  3. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on the book. Sounds like a good read.

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  4. Wonderful review, Connie! Sounds like one not to miss. Thank you for sharing.

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  5. This sounds like a wonderful book.

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  6. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this book, it sounds like a wonderful story to share with my own granddaughters.

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  7. Thanks for sharing about this book and author. It sounds like a sweet series for middle school girls.

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  8. I think my daughter would like this one!

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  9. Thanks for hosting The Secret Sisters Club on your blog. Ginnie and Tillie like making new friends. :)

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