From A Stray....

Book Info: A Little Ray of Sunshine by Lani Diane Rich. Published by NAL Trade in 2008.

I picked up this book on a whim. It was mentioned on one of my yahoo book groups and I thought why not? It was a free e-book through Amazon.com. Today, as I gave into the desire to continue to stay in bed, I picked up my kindle and it was at the top of the page. So again, I thought, why not?

The story itself is an interesting one. A young woman named Emmy James (EJ) gave up her life 6 years ago to travel from place to place working odd jobs. She is cynical and obviously running from some sort of past. Enter secondary character Jess, who believes she is an angel of sorts. Jess travels the country as well, though she does so in search of people she can help. This unlikely pair ends up together on a cross country journey to attend the 8th wedding of EJ's mother, Lily to her childhood friend, the widowed Danny.The life that EJ had given up all those years ago included Danny and his two sons David (Digs) and Luke.

Luke, who EJ had been engaged to marry. Luke, who took two years to get over the devastation of losing EJ. Danny had been stand in father for EJ for years, every time Lily decided to dump her unwanted daughter for awhile. Therefore EJ's disappearance with out contact for six years caused a lot of hurt and anger.  Lily was a child star who was a critical and unloving mother. Hence EJ getting left with Danny and the boys so often. It is, therefore, quite a set of shocks for EJ to find out that, 1- Her mother is marrying Danny and, 2 - Her mother has changed drastically.

Jess is the kind of friend that everyone hopes for. She talks to EJ and forces her to face Lily. Which is not easy. While the changes to Lily seem drastic, it is obvious that she is still far from okay. Yet, using an outsiders view allows readers to understand that Lily's comments are more a reflection of personal fears then a commentary on those she is talking to. Towards the end of the story, we find out that Jess is running from her own demons which must be faced. EJ tries to be the good friend and help Jess talk but it doesn't work... until it has to.

Criticisms: 

Editing: There were grammatical errors that should have been corrected during an editing process. There weren't many, but enough of them for me to stop and have to re-write the sentences in my head so they made sense. If you have to do that, then you lose the magic of letting the story take you away. 

The Cover: I like everything except for the fact that the girl has a cigarette in her hand. In the story the main character gets a tad upset when offered a cigarette, reminding everyone that she gave it up 7 years before. It is a personal pet peeve of mine that the cover artists don't actually read the books they are creating covers for. 

My only other issue was the beginning was written in such a way as to confuse the reader. With no understanding  of the main characters choices, her remarks about them make very little sense. It is taken on faith that the author will explain them at some point. Which she does. It is just a touch unsettling at first.
Any other criticism comes from being caught off guard by the topic. I wasn't aware that it would hit a tad close to home for me and therefore it was like getting slammed with a frying pan on this dreary Sunday morning. It was a kind of emotional roller coaster for me. There was a scene in particular that brought a tear to even my jaded eye. When Jess is forced to face her demons, EJ is stuck facing her greatest fear: she is helpless. She has no idea what to do to help her friend. And therefore she turns to her mother. With the horror of Jess's past so apparent, Lily's takes Jess in her arms and lets Jess mourn. There is quite a bit of crying... the ugly kind of crying. Lily holds Jess and Danny holds EJ as both girls cry. And it is there that EJ recognizes the extent of the changes in Lily, and the changes that this trip have brought to her own life:

Mom cuddled Jess as though she were a small child, holding onto her, whispering words of encouragement and pride in her ear, selflessly giving every bit of strength she had to this motherless girl. She didn't cry a single tear, just held onto Jess and was a mom. The mom I never had. But still, there she was, fixing the unfixable, saving Jess's life, saving me. I leaned against Danny, felt him strong and solid next to me, and a bone-deep relief flowed through me. This was what it was like, I marveled, to have parents who would catch you, no matter what. This was what it was like to be loved so powerfully that it even transferred to the stray little angels you brought home with you.                                                                                       (A Little Ray of Sunshine, page 274 (e-Location 5765)  

As I read that scene, my eyes teared up and I had to put down the Kindle. Not because I was EJ, but because I was Jess. I was the stray that had been brought home and cared for. I would not be the person I am today except for people out there who have taken me under their wing. I can only hope that those of us that are lost can find the Lily and Danny's of the world. The mama and papa Thorne's of my world who catch us when the world shifts beneath our feet.