Customer Reviews

Ruby Among Us (La Rosaleda Series #1)

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ruby Among Us is a coming of age novel that wends its way through the lives of three women and the men who have loved them. Exploring the complexity of a young woman's fight to know the truth and an older woman's desire to protect her granddaughter from it results in a slow waltz of control, passion, fear and longing. Moments that shine of allegorical truth swirl within the story of Lucy and Kitty who live steeped in sorrow and guilt in parallel companionship that is only an inch deep.

Decades of story unfold when Lucy struggles to find out the truth about her mother's short life. Her quest takes her from a college campus to a vineyard, from death to death of innocence and from longing to sorrow to acceptance.

In the advanced reader's unproofed copy I struggled with some POV/tense issues that no doubt have been taken care of in the final version.

Inspirational fiction fans should find quite a bit to like in Ruby. Literary or romance fans may not find enough of either to really satisfy though there are flashes of each. The faith elements are realistically handled and some heavy duty topics are covered with grace and sensitivity.

Her mother Ruby died when Lucy DiCamillo was eight years old. Her maternal grandmother Kitty raised Lucy with love. Now an adult, Lucy wants to know more about her late mom than mostly the memories shared by her beloved grandmother, but fears any inquiries she makes might hurt Kitty.

Lucy slowly learns why Ruby was a single mom raising her. She also begins to gain other pieces of her mom's life before Lucy was born and over the eight years they lived together. As she begins uncover secrets that enable her to start to know her mom beyond just her grandmother's memories of her daughter, Lucy also understands much more what makes Kitty tick and she realizes her granny will always love and cherish her.

This is a superb character study of a young adult needing her own personal connection to her late mom who died when she was a child. As Lucy investigates her maternal family tree, she tries to do so without hurting her grandma; yet begins to have a nagging feeling that everyone else knows secrets they keep from her. Fans will accompany Lucy on her personal quest as she needs to feel Ruby amongst her.

Harriet Klausner

This lovely, sweet story is like a gentle stroll in a rose garden. There are velvety blooms of love; thorns of past hurts and fears; new buds of hope and innocence; tangled thick stems of hidden truths and lies; the faded blooms of past memories and of what might have been; and at the center the beautiful, heart-warming discovery of the most beautiful flowers of all: faith and unconditional love. Readers of inspirational stories will especially enjoy this one.

"Ruby Among Us" is a great book. I enjoyed most its depth. All the characters are layered and real, not cookie-cutter. I think this is one of those books which, every time you read it, you will notice something you had not thought about before. Makes it a great book. Forkner has definitely premiered well with Ruby.

I don't usually shed tears when reading a book. This one brought on the tears. Ms. Forkner makes her characters come alive. It is an engrossing story that captivates until the very end.

Rachel for Siloam Springs Writers

I didn't know what to expect when I received Ruby Among Us in the mail, but it didn't take long for the story to pull me in. Michelle Sutton expresses it well when she says that the story starts heavy, but the weight is necessary to understand why Lucy, the protagonist thinks, acts and feels the way she does. She yearns to remember her mother Ruby who died when Lucy was eight years old, yet grandmother Kitty is hesitant to fill in the many missing pieces of the puzzle that makes up their heritage.

As time passes the pieces of her family's past fall into place for Lucy and she finds she has come full circle, rediscovering herself and a faith in God she thought she never had.

I loved this book. Forkner's writing style brings alive the setting in a way that the Sonoma Valley becomes a character on its own. She opens up her characters hearts and draws the reader inside until you almost feel as though you are one with them.

I look forward to many more books from Ms. Forkner.

I generally shy away from reading books by a brand new author, but I was glad I made an exception in this case. Ruby Among Us is a positively beautiful story! I loved the vivid descriptions throughout the book of the gardens, the vineyards, and the town of La Roseleda itself. The author kept me turning the pages waiting to discover secrets that had been kept in this family for many years. The only thing I thought lacking in this book was the Christian message. To me, it was very subtle. I noticed the themes of grace and forgiveness, but there was very little shared about personal relationships with Christ.

Ruby Among Us was a fantastic book. Tina did a great job of bringing the characters to life. I felt like I really knew them. I found myself becoming angry at Kitty for what she had kept from Lucy and Ruby. I loved how the ending pulled together, it was absolutely beautiful. I cried tears of joy. I am looking forward to future books by Tina Ann Forkner.

This to me was a very thought-provoking book about family and the perceptions we ourselves have of our own families. Sometimes things are not as they appear and sometimes people make bad choices. This is a story about Ruby and the choices she made in her life and how they affected those around her. Do you ever wonder how the choices you make may affect others? Like I said, this was very thought provoking and definitely a worthwhile read. I loved the characters and couldn't wait to get more of them. Each page brought forth a new revelation that kept me spinning and seeking to learn more about the details that brought them to the choices they made. This is a book that I would highly recommend.

Ruby Among Us starts with a heavy theme, but it's important in order to understand Lucy's perspective throughout the story. If you love and miss your mother who has passed on, this story will move you to tears of healing and unleash memories of love. My mother had gone to be with the Lord for over ten years now, and reading Ruby Among Us sparked memories of loving times as I reached the conclusion of the book.

I don't want to give away any key plot points because half the pull of this story is not knowing imporant things about Lucy, Kitty and Ruby's pasts, and wanting so desperately to find out that you have trouble putting the book down. Forkner's writing style and voice is fresh, unique, and insightful. It's beautiful how she pulls you into the heart and mind of someone sheltered from life so much that she truly is an innocent in many of the things that take place around her. But the fresh, healing experiences she embraces, and her journey toward trusting others outside her immediate family is exciting and deep. And the romantic portions of this book are WONDERFUL and exciting. I felt my heart being tugged and moved with the tiny steps of faith that Lucy made toward healing...and toward love.

For someone who has always had a father in her life, it was eye-opening for me to see how truly painful it is for a young woman to never have a father figure in her life. In fact, so much pain is evoked that the hurt can taint choices and destroy a young woman's security for years to come. Our culture has tried very hard to shut down the importance of a man's role in a family and in a daughter's heart. Ruby Among Us beautifully illustrates how erroneous this belief is. For that reason alone I would love to see many men embrace this book. The bummer is that this story was so good I'm sad it had to end. I am praying that Waterbrook has enough sense to realize that readers will want more of Forkner's work in their hands, so hopefully there will be a sequel coming. Pretty please?