Evidently Ms. Leavitt ran across the (awesome!) Women's Connection website and noticed that it contained book reviews. She was very excited about this and suggested that maybe I could review one of her books. I was honored that she thought enough of the organization and the reviews to suggest that we cover her. I immediately checked out her book, Coming Back to Me. There is definitely a reason why Ms. Leavitt receives splendid reviews - she deserves them.

Life is complex and delicate. For example, how did you meet your best friend? Would you have met her if you weren't at the right place at the right time? What if you and her and didn't have anything in common because of your upbringing and morals? This book is the epitome of "cause and effect."

The beginning of this book lets the reader in on the fact that something has happened during childbirth where the baby has lived and the mother is still struggling to survive. The reader knows right away that this is going to be an emotional story. Through a series of flashbacks, mixed in with current events, we learn about the lives of the people involved.

Gary is an artist for a publishing company. It is as if fate drew him to Molly, a school-teacher. A chance meeting at a coffee shop secures their future, and they are eventually married and ready to start a family. Before we learn more about Gary and Molly's relationship, flashbacks reveal the strange upbringing of Molly and her sister, Suzanne.

When they were young and living in California everything was wonderful between the inseparable sisters. Suzanne turns into a rebel teen once they move to New Jersey. Fed up with her mother and all of the responsibility of taking care of Molly and the chores, Suzanne finally runs away to be with her boyfriend. Molly and Suzanne never reestablish their relationship once their mother dies. Suzanne follows her rock star boyfriend around, continuously asking Molly for money and Molly eventually gets fed up and decides to ex-communicate Suzanne. Finally comfortable with her choices in life, she meets Gary.

Back to the future - as the reader already knows by now, Molly and Gary try to have a baby. Things go perfectly until after the delivery. Molly develops a rare blood disorder and is forced to stay in the hospital for many months in critical condition. The strain of this on her husband is the catalyst for major changes in Molly, Suzanne, and Gary's lives. Things that are normally taken for granted are cherished in this stunning novel of human nature. Love, betrayal and trust are the major themes, but the characters are what this book is all about. Leavitt could probably write about a common horsefly with pure, raw, emotion. She will draw you into this book, I guarantee it - absolutely compelling and a must-read.

Angela L. Campbell
Davenport Public Library