I don't do well with books that kill animals, no matter how small a plot point. ( )

Boring....tedious....vanilla

Only got 40% through it. ( )

Whole Latte Life by Joanne DeMaio is a wonderful summer time read. I so enjoyed my journey with Rachel and Sarah Beth as they went through many changes in their life. This book is full of emotion, I found myself both laughing and crying my way through the pages. Joanne Demaio has created characters in this book that I could instantly bond with.

Sarah Beth's life is completely turned upside down by so many losses. I totally felt all her emotions with her along the way. Sarah Beth is very lucky to have some wonderful people behind her as she tries to find herself after all the trauma she has been through.

Rachel is a wonderful best friend to Sarah Beth, she is also a woman who has experienced loss herself. She does her best to help Sarah Beth through all the changes in her life. I admired her for standing behind her best friend when times were tough. Rachel also encounters some unexpected changes in her life.

Whole latte Life is a very emotional read with the characters loss of loved ones and dreams, the strength of love to get through anything, dreams that really can come true and the unexpected joy of finding love again. I love to feel connected to the character I'm reading about and Rachel & Sarah Beth fit that bill completely. I admired their long standing friendship and the ability of their love for each other to over come some obstacles that developed through the story. I don't want to give to much away to spoil this wonderful story for you. You will have to check it out for yourself and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I look forward to reading more work by Ms. DeMaio, I can't wait to see what wonderful story she puts together next. ( )

Whole Latte Life by Joanne DeMaio
This story is about 2 women who are friends and in the present day they agree to spend a few days in NY. After shopping and a lunch Sara Beth leaves a note and takes off. Rachel is handed the note and does as she's asked, not to alert anyone but she needs a few days to find herself.
They've just turned 40 and Sara Beth has recently lost her mother and is at wits end what to do with her life and remembers the past, romances and life choices.
Rachel has lost her husband and has a college daughter and while in the city finds a new man in her life. He is so passionate to her, the places he takes her as he introduces her to his life.
As we go back in time to discover their secrets we are also brought into the present where things do work out as they each take on new things.
Love volunteer work with the flowers and the carriage house and especially the summer cottages with the names and what they symbolize in the story.
'mystical healing power of the salt air' love this phrase.
Not sure which of the woman's' life's I like best. They both do their own thing and it's the journey and process that leads them where they end up, loved the journey. ( )

Whole Latte Life is the poignant story about the bonds of friendship, love and self-discovery. Lifelong friends Sara Beth Riley and Rachel DeMartino plan a girls getaway weekend in New York City to celebrate their fortieth birthday. While having lunch in a restaurant, Sara Beth leaves their table for the restroom and never returns. Frantic, Rachel is handed a note by the waiter, in which Sara Beth tells her that she is sorry to cause her worry, but that she needs a few days alone to think and sort her life out. While searching the streets of Manhattan, Rachel meets a NYC mounted police officer, Michael Micelli, who helps her in the search of Sara Beth. This is a story of two women's journey of self-discovery that will have a life-changing affect on their bond of friendship and family relationships through the choices and decisions that they make.

In her debut novel, author Joanne DeMaio weaves an emotional tale about the bonds of friendship, personal growth and discovery, loss, love and forgiveness. Told in the third person narrative with alternating perspectives of Sara Beth and Rachel, the reader is drawn into these two women's journey of self-discovery. Both women have suffered losses in their lives: Sara Beth's recent loss of her mother throws her life into a tailspin and plunges her into a mid-life crisis where she second-guesses the lifetime of choices she has made. Rachel is a widow with a daughter away in college, who has managed to keep her life together and wonders if she will get a second chance at love. Rachel and Sara Beth are both realistic and complex women, who are confronting life-altering issues and challenges in their lives. Their journey will transport the reader through their small hometown of Addison, Connecticut; to the bright lights of the city that never sleeps of Manhattan (NYC); to a little summer beach cottage on Anchor Beach, Long Island.

Whole Latte Life is a beautiful exploration into the bonds of friendship, loss, life choices and redemption. It is a multi-layered story that will draw the reader into these two women's quest to find themselves, while exploring the life choices that they have made, the what-ifs and the roads not taken. It is a poignant story that will take the reader down a long winding emotional path of finding oneself through the introspection of loss, grief, longings, healing and new beginnings. Rich in detail and vivid descriptions of picturesque settings; with intriguing characters who are realistic, complex and easy for the reader to relate to and connect with; and a storyline that will tug at your heartstrings; Whole Latte Life is a powerful and compelling story that will remind the reader about the importance of family and friendship, while at the same time leave you pondering about the choices, decisions, what-ifs and roads not taken in your own life.

http://jerseygirlbookreviews.blogspot.com/2012/11/whole-latte-life-by-joanne-dem... ( )