Louisa Clark is an ordinary young woman living an exceedingly ordinary life—steady boyfriend, close family—who has never been farther afield than their tiny village. She takes a badly needed job working for ex-Master of the Universe Will Traynor, who is wheelchair-bound after an accident. Will has always lived a huge life—big deals, extreme sports, worldwide travel—and now he’s pretty sure he cannot live the way he is.

Will is acerbic, moody, bossy—but Lou refuses to treat him with kid gloves, and soon his happiness means more to her than she expected. When she learns that Will has shocking plans of his own, she sets out to show him that life is still worth living.

A love story for this generation, Me Before You brings to life two people who couldn’t have less in common—a heartbreakingly romantic novel that asks, What do you do when making the person you love happy also means breaking your own heart?

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The incredible journey of one man who sets out to circumnavigate the globe on a vintage motorbike fueled by kindness.

Follow the inspirational journey of a former stockbroker who leaves his unfulfilling desk job in search of a meaningful life. He sets out from Los Angeles on a vintage motorbike, determined to circumnavigate the globe surviving only on the kindness of strangers. Incredibly, he makes his way across the U.S., through Europe, India, Cambodia, and Vietnam, and finally to Canada and back to the Hollywood sign, by asking strangers for shelter, food, and gas. Again and again, he’s won over by the generosity of humanity, from the homeless man who shares his blanket to the poor farmer who helps him with his broken down bike, and the HIV-positive mother who takes him in and feeds him. At each stop, he finds a way to give back to these unsuspecting Good Samaritans in life-changing ways, by rebuilding their homes, paying for their schooling, and leaving behind gifts big and small. The Kindness Diaries will introduce you to a world of adventure, renew your faith in the bonds that connect people, and inspire you to accept and generate kindness in your own life.

My Gemstone Rating:

This is positively one of the best books I have read in 2018 or anytime at all. I of course followed is up by watching the limited series as well and it was amazing. Watching as one man works his way around the world only on the kindness of strangers. It is at times sad, seeing where people have come. Where society has come to where we don’t go right to kindness. However, for the most part I smiled and I cried and I laughed and I was so happy to see that there is kindness there. One things that I could see within this story is that many times it is those who have the least that are the most willing to share. In other moments it was those who knew what it was like to have little who were the most willing to share what they had. There was a moment or two of those who had much who decided to share, but mostly it was the other genres.

I have had people call me a kindness warrior, so I suppose it should come as no surprise that I read this one. I can completely respect this project and I would love to see more people do it. The more people do it, the more attention will be brought to it as well. Kindness needs to be something that all of us remember and know about. If more people in this world took a minute to simply be kind in a moment when they were in a hurry or something else, the world would truly be a better place. Kindness matters.

As the 12th Doctor put it so well in a message to his 13th self..

Always try to be nice but never fail to be kind.

One of the greatest loves of all time-between Elizabeth I and Robert Dudley-comes to life in this vivid novel.

They were playmates as children, impetuous lovers as adults-and for thirty years were the center of each others’ lives. Astute to the dangers of choosing any one man, the Virgin Queen could never give her “Sweet Robin” what he wanted most-marriage- yet she insisted he stay close by her side. Possessive and jealous, their love survived quarrels, his two disastrous marriages to other women, her constant flirtations, and political machinations with foreign princes.

His Last Letter tells the story of this great love… and especially of the last three years Elizabeth and Dudley spent together, the most dangerous of her rule, when their passion was tempered by a bittersweet recognition of all that they shared-and all that would remain unfulfilled.

I know there are many who chalk this book up to just being fan fiction and maybe for them it is, heck even for me I am willing to say there is a great deal of fan fiction involved. That being said I don’t mind fan fiction and when dealing with a relationship from so far away there will be a little bit of fan fiction. We know they had a special relationship and what is wrong with coloring in the lines a bit. There were times I found Elizabeth a little bit to much when it came to childishness and tantrums. I have a hard time picturing that is how she really acted. Royal blood and raised as she was, but it is of course possible.

There were some historical points that were not right, but if I wanted a complete bio I would be reading non fiction. Reading is an enjoyment for me and a historical fiction to me is about that entertainment mixed with the backdrop of history. So to me this book, was enjoyable. The pacing was good and the characters came alive on the page. To me that is the mark of a good book. So if you like historical fictions and don’t mind a few moments that are up and down as far as taking in the actions of characters I think you will enjoy this read. Give it a try.

My Gemstone Rating: