Too Scared to Tell

 Nonfiction by Cathy Glass

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

In this story, six-year-old Oskar comes into foster care because he'd been consistently turning up to school hungry and dirty. When social services investigated, they discovered that his mother had actually been out of the country for two weeks, and a few "uncles" are supposed to be taking care of him. Except, it turns out that none of the uncles are actually related to Oskar. Plus, Oskar is sporting a fresh bruise on his face.

Obviously foster carer Cathy Glass is very concerned about Oskar. And when a pair of mysterious men begin watching her as she brings the boy to and from school, men little Oskar seemed terrified of, she is even more worried. She determines to get to the bottom of all this in order to ensure the child's safety. 

This was an interesting story with some unexpected twists.

I also read recently by this author: A Long Way From Home

Anywhere But Here

 Fiction by Mona Simpson

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

In this story, Ann and her mother Adele travel from their family home in Wisconsin to California, so that Ann can be a child star in Hollywood.

That's pretty much all that happens in the long and kind of rambling novel that gives us the perspectives of Ann, her grandmother, her aunt, and briefly her mother. The characters are well-drawn and believable, but the timeline skips around a lot. It's confusing and nothing much seems to actually happen; then when something actually does happen it is buried in the pile of irrelevant observations. 

I read another book by this author that I liked, but this one I really did not care for.

I also read by this author: Casebook

What Lies Between Us

 Fiction by John Marrs

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Maggie and Nina share a house... and a lot of secrets. What lies between them unfolds slowly over the course of the novel and the ending is a surprise.

This book was okay but I didn't like it nearly as much as the others I've read by this author. I think it was that I found the characters kind of unpleasant. Still, that ending twist was good!

I also read by this author: Her Last Move

Pretty as a Picture

 Fiction by Elizabeth Little

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Marissa is an awkward sort of young woman who has trouble relating to people and navigating the world in general. However, she has a real talent for film editing and has had quite a bit of success collaborating with her (best) (only) friend Amy who is a film director. But now Marissa is trying to find work on her own, without Amy, and she finds herself in a bit over her head.

This was a really good story with believable and memorable characters. Also there were several surprises!

I also read by this author: Dear Daughter

A Long Way From Home

 Nonfiction by Cathy Glass

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

This story begins in an orphanage in an unnamed country where the British couple Elaine and Ian travel to adopt a baby. The conditions in the orphanage are terrible, and the reader can guess that the child they adopt will be emotionally scarred. The first part of the book closes when they bring little Anna home, but their problems have just begun.

Since this is a Cathy Glass nonfiction book, it's obvious that this kid will have enough problems to come into foster care at some point. Enter the second part of the story: What is really wrong with Anna? Why couldn't Elaine and Ian cope with her? Can Cathy help?

I also read recently by this author: Innocent

Borders of the Heart

 Fiction by Chris Fabry

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

J.D. is living on a remote farm in Arizona, trying to escape his past and stay disconnected from people in general. Then he finds a beautiful Mexican woman in the desert, half-dead from crossing the border, and he has to decide if he wants to get involved.

This was a good-enough romantic suspense story, but not as good as most I've read by Chris Fabry. I felt like it was a little too formulaic.

I also read recently by this author: Under a Cloudless Sky

Innocent

 Nonfiction by Cathy Glass

https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Molly and Kit are three years old and eighteen months old, respectively, when they are removed from their parents by Social Services and placed in Cathy Glass's care. The precipitating event is little Kit's broken arm, which the doctor suspects to be non-accidental. Also, in his short year and a half of life, Kit has visited the emergency room almost seventy times.

But a broken arm is not inconsistent with falling down the stairs, as his mother claimed had happened. Cathy isn't sure if the social workers have done the right thing in removing these children. After all, their mother seems so very devoted to them, even if their father seems overworked and a bit checked out. And both children are awfully sickly...

This was a good story with a surprising ending! 

(And, yes, this story did seem to merit all those italics in my descriptors.)

I also read recently by this author: Where Has Mummy Gone?