Before I Called You Mine

I absolutely loved this story. It was funny, sweet, poignant, inspiring, and had the perfect ending. As someone with an interest in adoption, it was beautiful to follow Lauren's journey to motherhood (although I would have liked to know more about why she chose international adoption etc). I look forward to reading more by this author.

I am in no way familiar with the rules of international adoption, and, whilst I realise that Before I Called You Mine is fiction, it probably reflects the actual rules of a specific agency, or country or period of time. However Nicole Deese came up with the rules, they were the cause of a great deal of frustration to me. Surely if a child has to adapt to being away from the only home they've ever known, to living in a new country with new sights, sounds, smells, customs, places, food and language, it would be just as easy, or perhaps easier, to do it with two new parents to love them as it would be with one. And, to my way of thinking, it would be far easier for the prospective new parents to focus on the emotional struggles of their new child with each other for support. So, whilst I appreciated the romance and the humour and the 'what choice will she make' page-turning drive, I was frustrated at the basic premise. You'll have to read it for yourself to decide what you think!

Oh my! This book was incredible! As much as I really wanted to read it, I put it off for a while because I was sure it was going to make me sob and I'm not a huge fan of sad books. Silly me for worrying. Yes, I cried, because it really was beautifully written and totally broke my heart, but it made me laugh just as much. The relationship between Lauren and Joshua and the situations they found themselves in were so much fun. Such a perfect balance of heart, depth, humor, family and hope. Absolutely loved it and know it's a book I'll read again and again. \\n