Why am I passionate about this?

As someone who has experienced a lot of loss in my life, I’ve done a good amount of research and exploration into the soulful nature in all of us (the living and the dead) through reading nonfiction (Laura Lynn Jackson, Brian Weiss, Edgar Cayce, Jane Roberts, John Edward and Suzane Northrop among them) and fiction that deals with strong soulful connections. Through my own work as an author, I seek to provide the message love, in any form, transcends life and death. We only have to be open to the possibility to know it and experience it. Nothing is a coincidence and we are all connected. I hope these selections open you to the possibility.


I wrote

All That Is Sacred

By Donna Norman-Carbone,

Book cover of All That Is Sacred

What is my book about?

A lie, a secret, and an addiction fractured their friendship. Now, one of them is dead. Lynn convinces four lifelong…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of The Five People You Meet in Heaven

Donna Norman-Carbone Why did I love this book?

Mitch Albom creates a heavenly world for the main character, Eddie, who has just ascended from earth after saving someone at the carnival where he worked; thus, meeting his own tragic demise.

What strikes me most in this story are the seemingly irrelevant connections we make in life and how those connections could have a deep and lasting impact. Every single thing we do or say or the people we touch is purposeful here, and drives us, our souls, to seek grace in all that we do.

By Mitch Albom,

Why should I read it?

8 authors picked The Five People You Meet in Heaven as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A STUNNING 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF THE MASTER STORYTELLER'S INSPIRATIONAL CLASSIC

To his mind, Eddie has lived an uninspiring life. Now an old man, his job is to fix rides at a seaside amusement park.

On his eighty-third birthday, Eddie's time on earth comes to an end. When a cart falls from the fairground, he rushes to save a little girl's life and tragically dies in the attempt. When Eddie awakens, he learns that the afterlife is not a destination, but a place where your existence is explained to you by five people - some of whom you knew, others…


Book cover of I Liked My Life

Donna Norman-Carbone Why did I love this book?

Fabiaschi’s story is told from two very different perspectives.

One is from earth and told from the perspectives of a grieving daughter and husband as they grapple with their loss. The other is from purgatory or a stasis from the perspective of the mother/wife who seems to have committed suicide. But everything is not as it seems. From the afterlife, Maddy tries to help her grieving family find answers and closure.

I was fascinated by the way Maddy attempts to affect the lives of her loved ones.

By Abby Fabiaschi,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked I Liked My Life as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Maddy was a loving, devoted stay-at-home mother... until she committed suicide, which left her husband Brady and her teenage daughter Eve heartbroken and reeling, wondering how they can possibly continue without her. Maddy, however, isn't quite done with them. In an attempt to fulfil her family's needs, Maddy watches and meddles from beyond the grave, determined to find the perfect wife and mother to replace herself and heal her family. That's when she finds Rory: a free-spirited schoolteacher, who Maddy manoeuvres into Eve's confidences, but who turns out to be harbouring a tragedy of her own.


Book cover of Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

Donna Norman-Carbone Why did I love this book?

Vivi and her three friends sealed a bond as childhood friends. Together they move through the sometimes dysfunctional and always unpredictable nature of life through marriages and family.

At the core of this novel, Wells features a group of women who stick by one another and tell each other the hard truths through thick and thin. Their bond is a soulful, uncompromising connection of chosen sisters. This book reinforced for me the necessity of friendship and the importance of chosen families.

By Rebecca Wells,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Film tie-in edition of the international bestseller. When Siddalee Walker, eldest daughter of Vivi Abbott Walker (Ya-Ya extraordinaire - part Scarlett, part Katharine Hepburn, part Tallulah) is interviewed about a hit play she has directed, her mother is described as a 'tap-dancing child abuser'.

Enraged, Vivi disowns Sidda - devastating her daughter who postpones her wedding and puts her life on hold until she is granted forgiveness. Trying to repair the relationship, the Ya-Yas, Vivi's intrepid tribe of Louisiana girlfriends, sashay in and insist Sidda is sent 'The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood', a scrapbook of their lives together…


Book cover of What Dreams May Come

Donna Norman-Carbone Why did I love this book?

When Chris, the main character of this novel, dies, he teeters between a majestic heaven and the depths of hell when he can’t let go of his life because of his wife’s descent into depression.

This is a love story about a spirit that cannot move on because his soul is so deeply connected to his wife in the human world even though the peace heaven offers is tempting. This is the first novel opened my mind to the connections between souls on earth and those in the afterlife.

By Richard Matheson,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked What Dreams May Come as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

What happens to us after we die? Chris Nielsen had no idea, until an unexpected accident cut his life short, separating him abruptly from his beloved wife. Now Chris must discover the true nature of life after death. He also has to risk his very soul to save Annie from an eternity of despair.


Book cover of Signs: The Secret Language of the Universe

Donna Norman-Carbone Why did I love this book?

This book, written by psychic medium Laura Lynn Jackson, was gifted to me shortly after the unexpected passing of my sister.

The book validated for me what I already believed: everything happens in the time it’s meant to and everything (and everyone) is connected. Jackson reports story after story about how souls in the afterlife remain connected to their loved ones on earth.

And, for those who are open to the possibility, signs (and messages) are provided when most needed.

By Laura Lynne Jackson,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Signs as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A renowned psychic medium teaches us how to recognize and interpret the life-changing messages from loved ones and spirit guides on the Other Side.

“A collection of incredible stories . . . that speak to the universe’s endless capacity for magical moments.”—Goop 

Laura Lynne Jackson is a psychic medium and the author of the New York Times bestseller The Light Between Us. She possesses an incredible gift: the ability to communicate with loved ones who have passed, convey messages of love and healing, and impart a greater understanding of our interconnectedness. Though her abilities are…


Explore my book 😀

All That Is Sacred

By Donna Norman-Carbone,

Book cover of All That Is Sacred

What is my book about?

A lie, a secret, and an addiction fractured their friendship. Now, one of them is dead. Lynn convinces four lifelong friends to reunite on the one-year anniversary of her death to clean up the loose ends she left behind. From purgatory, Lynn reminds them of a sacred promise they made long ago to lead them toward healing so she can find peace.

Book cover of The Five People You Meet in Heaven
Book cover of I Liked My Life
Book cover of Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

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Alba

By Verity Croker,

Book cover of Alba

Verity Croker Author Of Alba

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Passionate reader Keen swimmer Outdoor yoga lover Piano player

Verity's 3 favorite reads in 2024

What is my book about?

ALBA - Hidden Secrets is a tale of blood, broken dreams, and buried secrets.

When I was in high school, several young teenage boys died in car accidents, with tragic outcomes for all involved, and I wanted to honour their memory without specifically identifying them.  

This novel is about secrets and loss, and how lives could be very different if fate hadn’t intervened. Many people hold secrets close to their hearts, and agonise about whether to let others in to help share their load.

Alba

By Verity Croker,

What is this book about?

Sixteen-year-old Rebecca is consumed by grief after the sudden, tragic death of her boyfriend, Alastair. Her pain is exacerbated by the fact that their relationship was a secret, a love story hidden from the world. Now, as she mourns in silence, she feels trapped, torn between the anguish of losing him and the guilt of revealing their bond.

Calum, Alastair's brother, remains unaware of their relationship. As Rebecca grows closer to Calum, their friendship takes an unexpected turn when they stumble upon a mysterious suitcase in an abandoned ice house in the remote northern Scottish village of Cromarty. They also…


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