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Sarah of the Moon
ALEX IN WONDERLAND The Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco in 1967. Alex Conley, a part-time writer for a Baltimore newspaper, is dispatched to chronicle the events occurring there. It is June of 1967, and the summer of love is in full swing. Alone, in this strange and magical place, he meets a girl named Sarah, a free spirit who is as mysterious as she is beautiful. What are the secrets of her past? Why does she dance each night under the light of the moon? These are just a few of the puzzles Alex needs to solve in the short time he has in that city. Then there?s another complication. He is beginning to fall deeply in love with her.
238 pages, Paperback
First published June 28, 2011
31 people are currently reading
558 people want to read
About the author
Randy Mixter
25 books45 followersAuthor Randy Mixter lives in Pasadena, Maryland, with his wife Veronica and their five cats. He writes in a variety of genres including Fantasy, Action/Adventure, Mysteries, and Suspense Thrillers. He currently has several novels and short stories available, with more on the way.
Find out about new releases, special discounts, and free book promotions at https://sites.google.com/site/randymi...
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Find out about new releases, special discounts, and free book promotions at https://sites.google.com/site/randymi...
Check out his Facebook author's page at: https://www.facebook.com/RandyMixters...
Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Northwooder1
Read his blog at: http://randy-mixter.blogspot.com/
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
July 18, 2011
-At first glance, I honestly thought this was going to be one of those sappy romance novels.AND I was wrong, it is FAR MORE than that. It's most likely because the description and the cover doesn't give the book the justice it truly deserves.(Some Hipster Chick, would be cool)
After the first two chapters, I was sucked in and couldn't put it down. Alex, the eighteen year old part-timer for a paper interested me. Why? Well, the era. Hippies are something I never read about before, and other than listening to the Beatles on occasion and watching their Hollywood true stories, I didn't know anything about that time period. And neither did Alex, a kid from a strict military family...until...(Readit) It made me think about where I would be at eighteen during the 1960's and if I'd be a bare foot walking flower child? My heart cried out for the main character, all I wanted was for him to have his happy ending. And that's saying something that I instantly fell in love with him. In the end I found myself wishing that there we're still more hippies, that there we're still people like that everywhere. Quite possibly I'm sure there could be, but that era in itself is gone. Which makes me incredibly sad, because their culture is one I could perfectly understand. Especially during these times. Four out Five!
After the first two chapters, I was sucked in and couldn't put it down. Alex, the eighteen year old part-timer for a paper interested me. Why? Well, the era. Hippies are something I never read about before, and other than listening to the Beatles on occasion and watching their Hollywood true stories, I didn't know anything about that time period. And neither did Alex, a kid from a strict military family...until...(Readit) It made me think about where I would be at eighteen during the 1960's and if I'd be a bare foot walking flower child? My heart cried out for the main character, all I wanted was for him to have his happy ending. And that's saying something that I instantly fell in love with him. In the end I found myself wishing that there we're still more hippies, that there we're still people like that everywhere. Quite possibly I'm sure there could be, but that era in itself is gone. Which makes me incredibly sad, because their culture is one I could perfectly understand. Especially during these times. Four out Five!
February 14, 2012
Today I read "Sarah of the Moon" by Randy Mixter and seldom have I been so touched as I was by his novel set in the Haight-Asbury district of San Francisco in 1967. If it were possible to give this book ten stars instead of merely five I would do so. The purpose of all writing is to transport us to a new destination, to expand our perspective of the world we live in, or to give us a glimpse of an existing world we've never seen. This author does so in such a profound way as to make it seem part of your own experience. There was a line in the story that says more than I ever could about the journey, ("It's a kind place to visit," he said.) I am thankful to own a copy of this book and know that it is one I will read often just because I will miss its presence. I am looking forward with great anticipation to reading all his other works.
March 29, 2012
SARAH OF THE MOON by Randy Mixter
When Randy approached The Reading Café about reviewing his latest novel, Barb and I were backlogged with books, novellas and interviews, that I thought this would be one story for a rainy afternoon. After writing another review, I came back to Randy’s email and thought I would take a quick look at Sarah of the Moon. Well, that quick look turned into an hour and before I realized it, I had finished the book.
Sarah of the Moon is a sweet romance story. Set against the backdrop of 1967 Haight-Ashbury Hippie era, Randy takes us on one young man’s journey of discovery-hippies, drugs, freedom, war, peace and love. Alex Conley is our ‘hero’. As the son of a retired colonel, Alex respects his father’s choices and life as a military man, but Alex strives for something different. The Vietnam War is in full swing, and like most young men of his age, the draft would soon be calling.
It was the summer of his 18th year, and Alex was working for the local newspaper when his editor Max Bestwick, sends him to San Francisco for a couple of months. His assignment-to write about the hippies in the Haight-Ashbury district. Seeing this as an opportunity of a lifetime, Alex jumps at the chance and is soon ensconced in the lifestyle of the time. We meet the residents of the house-Chick (Max’s wayward nephew), the self- proclaimed leader of the group, as well as Belladonna (Chick’s girlfriend), the Hope sisters (resident cooks) Cowboy, Sandman, Celeste and Matt, Skip, Benny, Oswald and Jezebel. A house open to anyone needing a home. A place to rest or simply someone with whom to talk. But it is Sarah, who catches Alex’s eye. Sarah is as mysterious as she is beautiful. And Sarah has a few secrets of her own.
Sarah is an enigma. She is a free spirit who dances every evening on Hippie Hill, to a tune only she can hear, but a tune Alex once heard in a dream. For it is Sarah of the Moon, who once entered into Alex’s dreams and told him of things to come. And along with Chick, it is Sarah who will introduce Alex to the many facets of life as a hippie. Alex meets an assortment of wandering souls and people hoping to make a difference. But it was the death of her parents that led Sarah to Haight-Ashbury. And it is their spirit that continues to nurture the child within.
Alex’s summer of ‘love’ ends as the people he has grown to love, come to the realization that life goes on, whether you are standing still or running wild. Each must make a decision and take the next step towards their future. But Alex’s decision has been made for him-he must report for basic training in 3 weeks.
Sarah of the Moon is a love story without a HEA. Sarah and Alex promise to meet again, but promises are sometimes like the grains of sand-many are grabbed but most will fall away. Alex returns from Vietnam hoping to find Sarah, but years of searching are fruitless, and the little reminders of the past, will continue to haunt him for many years to come.
Randy writes a beautiful story, without the use of foul language, graphic violence or sex. His characters are real, their emotions are tactile and his use of descriptive narration brings the Haight –Ashbury hippies to life-once again. As a reader, I put myself into the storylines, to get a sense of action and drama and with Sarah of the Moon it was no different. I lived the life of a hippie, for a few weeks in the summer of 1967.
see all of my reviews at : thereadingcafe.com
When Randy approached The Reading Café about reviewing his latest novel, Barb and I were backlogged with books, novellas and interviews, that I thought this would be one story for a rainy afternoon. After writing another review, I came back to Randy’s email and thought I would take a quick look at Sarah of the Moon. Well, that quick look turned into an hour and before I realized it, I had finished the book.
Sarah of the Moon is a sweet romance story. Set against the backdrop of 1967 Haight-Ashbury Hippie era, Randy takes us on one young man’s journey of discovery-hippies, drugs, freedom, war, peace and love. Alex Conley is our ‘hero’. As the son of a retired colonel, Alex respects his father’s choices and life as a military man, but Alex strives for something different. The Vietnam War is in full swing, and like most young men of his age, the draft would soon be calling.
It was the summer of his 18th year, and Alex was working for the local newspaper when his editor Max Bestwick, sends him to San Francisco for a couple of months. His assignment-to write about the hippies in the Haight-Ashbury district. Seeing this as an opportunity of a lifetime, Alex jumps at the chance and is soon ensconced in the lifestyle of the time. We meet the residents of the house-Chick (Max’s wayward nephew), the self- proclaimed leader of the group, as well as Belladonna (Chick’s girlfriend), the Hope sisters (resident cooks) Cowboy, Sandman, Celeste and Matt, Skip, Benny, Oswald and Jezebel. A house open to anyone needing a home. A place to rest or simply someone with whom to talk. But it is Sarah, who catches Alex’s eye. Sarah is as mysterious as she is beautiful. And Sarah has a few secrets of her own.
Sarah is an enigma. She is a free spirit who dances every evening on Hippie Hill, to a tune only she can hear, but a tune Alex once heard in a dream. For it is Sarah of the Moon, who once entered into Alex’s dreams and told him of things to come. And along with Chick, it is Sarah who will introduce Alex to the many facets of life as a hippie. Alex meets an assortment of wandering souls and people hoping to make a difference. But it was the death of her parents that led Sarah to Haight-Ashbury. And it is their spirit that continues to nurture the child within.
Alex’s summer of ‘love’ ends as the people he has grown to love, come to the realization that life goes on, whether you are standing still or running wild. Each must make a decision and take the next step towards their future. But Alex’s decision has been made for him-he must report for basic training in 3 weeks.
Sarah of the Moon is a love story without a HEA. Sarah and Alex promise to meet again, but promises are sometimes like the grains of sand-many are grabbed but most will fall away. Alex returns from Vietnam hoping to find Sarah, but years of searching are fruitless, and the little reminders of the past, will continue to haunt him for many years to come.
Randy writes a beautiful story, without the use of foul language, graphic violence or sex. His characters are real, their emotions are tactile and his use of descriptive narration brings the Haight –Ashbury hippies to life-once again. As a reader, I put myself into the storylines, to get a sense of action and drama and with Sarah of the Moon it was no different. I lived the life of a hippie, for a few weeks in the summer of 1967.
see all of my reviews at : thereadingcafe.com
August 16, 2012
If you think Sarah Of The Moon is just about hippies and the summer of love, think again. At its heart Sarah Of The Moon is a love story between a man and a woman from different cultures.
The setting is the Haight-Ashbury section of San Francisco and the year is 1967. Alex Conley is a reporter sent to cover the hippie movement by a Baltimore newspaper. Sarah is a mysterious free spirit who dances by the light of a summer moon to a song that only she can hear.
Before long, Alex and Sarah meet and, for Alex, it's love at first sight. The book then delves into their relationship and how it blossoms much like the flowers that adorn her hair.
Hidden in this fascinating love story is the mystery of Sarah. Will Alex be able to solve it in the short time he has? Or will Sarah always be the mystery never solved, the puzzle never completed.
Sarah Of The Moon held my interest from the first page to the last. I laughed and cried and found myself never wanting to leave the places and people on the pages.
The author has written a book for the ages. He has captured a time where magic might have existed, and the fierce light of true love was as brilliant as the moonlit sky.
The setting is the Haight-Ashbury section of San Francisco and the year is 1967. Alex Conley is a reporter sent to cover the hippie movement by a Baltimore newspaper. Sarah is a mysterious free spirit who dances by the light of a summer moon to a song that only she can hear.
Before long, Alex and Sarah meet and, for Alex, it's love at first sight. The book then delves into their relationship and how it blossoms much like the flowers that adorn her hair.
Hidden in this fascinating love story is the mystery of Sarah. Will Alex be able to solve it in the short time he has? Or will Sarah always be the mystery never solved, the puzzle never completed.
Sarah Of The Moon held my interest from the first page to the last. I laughed and cried and found myself never wanting to leave the places and people on the pages.
The author has written a book for the ages. He has captured a time where magic might have existed, and the fierce light of true love was as brilliant as the moonlit sky.
February 15, 2012
Randy Mixter's tale, Sarah of the Moon, was nothing like what I expected. I was pleasantly surprised when I read the first chapter. When I found that much of it took place in an area and atmosphere of which I had no experience I began to get caught up in the story. Randy draws his characters well with broad brushstrokes without resorting to gimmicks or stereotypes except in the loosest way. The story of the boy from Baltimore and the enigmatic San Francisco Flower Child, Sarah, is as touching as any I have ever read. Moon Crossed lovers like Romeo and Juliet, their story is well worth reading.
July 3, 2012
To be honest, I only got this book because I was intrigued by the title and loved the cover! But I was completely enthralled by it as I was reading it and it left me with many thoughts once I had finished it.
It is a perfect balance of war (Vietnam) and peace (summer of love), romance, mystery, compassion, energy which makes it a joy to read. If, like me, you have read some of the other reviews then you know that this does not have a "happy ever after" which is unusual for a romance book. But the ending does fit the book and will leave you with a lump in your throat and questions in your mind.
A book that I have really enjoyed!
It is a perfect balance of war (Vietnam) and peace (summer of love), romance, mystery, compassion, energy which makes it a joy to read. If, like me, you have read some of the other reviews then you know that this does not have a "happy ever after" which is unusual for a romance book. But the ending does fit the book and will leave you with a lump in your throat and questions in your mind.
A book that I have really enjoyed!
August 5, 2012
I absolutely loved this book. It is so well written that every page is a revelation.
When Alex goes to San Francisco during the 1967 summer of love, he is a fish out of water. Then he meets the beautiful and mysterious Sarah and things change rapidly. This is a story about a love that lasts a lifetime and a romance that lasts a summer. It is a book I'll come back to more than once. They say true love never dies. Sarah Of The Moon shows you why.
When Alex goes to San Francisco during the 1967 summer of love, he is a fish out of water. Then he meets the beautiful and mysterious Sarah and things change rapidly. This is a story about a love that lasts a lifetime and a romance that lasts a summer. It is a book I'll come back to more than once. They say true love never dies. Sarah Of The Moon shows you why.
April 4, 2012
A Great Book!
I have read hundreds of books in my lifetime but I rank Sarah Of The Moon as one of my all-time favorites. Great writing! Great story! I simply loved this book and cannot wait for more from this author.
I have read hundreds of books in my lifetime but I rank Sarah Of The Moon as one of my all-time favorites. Great writing! Great story! I simply loved this book and cannot wait for more from this author.
June 27, 2012
My parents gave me this book recently. Both praised the story and the setting. They said this book hit the nail on the head. Since they were both in San Francisco during the summer of love, when the story takes place, I decided to give them the benefit of the doubt. I must say they were 100% right. This was an amazing love story involving two people from different cultures who fall in love.
Everything was spot on from the dialogue to the setting of Haight-Ashbury at the height of flower power. This well written page turner will take you back to a more innocent time and make you wish you were there. That's how good this book is. To the author: write a sequel, please (more Sarah, more Alex). I loved this book!
Everything was spot on from the dialogue to the setting of Haight-Ashbury at the height of flower power. This well written page turner will take you back to a more innocent time and make you wish you were there. That's how good this book is. To the author: write a sequel, please (more Sarah, more Alex). I loved this book!
March 7, 2012
This book was absolutely beautifully written. I felt like I was reading a memoir because the details were so vivid. I was transported to a time I've never really known much about and actually found myself longing to have been able to experience a summer of such freedom and beauty. I fell in love with the characters. They are written in such a way that you would have trouble convincing me that they aren't real people. I really cared about them and feel like I want to know what they are doing with their lives now. It isn't often a work of fiction has that effect on me. Well done!
August 27, 2012
Sarah of the moon is a love story, a tragedy, a history, and a lesson in humanity. It is an engaging read with an exceptional supporting cast surrounding Alex's journey to not only find out and report on the haight-ashbury culture, but also his own identity away from home and family.
June 6, 2012
Slow start, but once it got interesting, I was hooked.
June 19, 2012
I wasn't sure I'd like this book but I did. It was a great love story and I got caught up in all the characters. It also had some humor in it. I will read more by this author.
June 19, 2012
I really liked this book. It was a great love story that takes place in San Francisco during the 1967 summer of love. It was well written and all the characters were likable. Sarah, you're my hero.
August 30, 2012
I thought the book was great. I was born in 1980 so the only things I know about the hippie era is from music and movies and tv shows like Wonder Years. The book really conveyed that well I could feel and sense the movement coming through the writing. The story line almost gets forgotten that the he is there to write a column but the love story takes over and I thought it was done very well. I am not big on romantic novels and this book certainly had more to offer but if the romance didn't take over as much as it did I would have given it 5 stars but I still highly recommend it.
I received this book for free as part of first reads
I received this book for free as part of first reads
August 28, 2012
I got this book free for my Kindle. I must say, it was much better than most of the other free books I've gotten. It's a gentle and mystical love story set in Haight Ashbury during the summer of love.
August 28, 2012
Cried during the last two Chapters! It broke my heart...I loved it!
October 3, 2012
Perhaps it's my own personal affinity for this period in history that made this story so like-able from the first page, but I never wanted it to end.
March 15, 2013
As soon as I started reading Randy Mixter’s bittersweet love story Sarah of the Moon and immediately teleported back to the summer of love, a time that was still innocent with hope not yet destroyed, I felt as though I was in a dream. To be sure, Mixter’s lyrical prose, especially his descriptions of Sarah dancing or of Alex taking in all the sights and sounds of Haight-Ashbury, had a very dreamy quality to them. On one hand Mixter’s describing what he might have seen if he had been a young, naïve man experiencing the hippie culture for the first time and trying to make sense out of it all, but on the other hand there was something much more happening here than reporting this summer of love. Then it hit me what Mixter was really getting after here.
On one level we have the love story between Alex and Sarah, falling in love during this magical summer of love, which is nice and romantic, but on the next level, and this is where the real meaning of the novel becomes profound and poignant, the story is really about the last dying gasps of the innocence the sixties promised. Ever since the assassination of JFK in 1963 and the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, America’s youth was living on borrowed time. The summer of 1967 was the last flicker of hope before everything turned tragic the following year. We all know what is going happen the next year: from Tet and the riots in Chicago to the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy.
What Mixter ultimately achieves with this hauntingly lyrical and bittersweet love story reminded me a lot of the movie American Graffiti where the five main characters have one fling together before they embark on their journey through the sixties. In Mixter’s novel it’s near the end of the sixties and although we do not have the chilling Dragnet-style ending in American Graffiti, we know what lies ahead.
Whether you lived through the sixties or not, Randy Mixter’s Sarah of the Moon is one story you will remember long after you have finished reading it.
On one level we have the love story between Alex and Sarah, falling in love during this magical summer of love, which is nice and romantic, but on the next level, and this is where the real meaning of the novel becomes profound and poignant, the story is really about the last dying gasps of the innocence the sixties promised. Ever since the assassination of JFK in 1963 and the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, America’s youth was living on borrowed time. The summer of 1967 was the last flicker of hope before everything turned tragic the following year. We all know what is going happen the next year: from Tet and the riots in Chicago to the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy.
What Mixter ultimately achieves with this hauntingly lyrical and bittersweet love story reminded me a lot of the movie American Graffiti where the five main characters have one fling together before they embark on their journey through the sixties. In Mixter’s novel it’s near the end of the sixties and although we do not have the chilling Dragnet-style ending in American Graffiti, we know what lies ahead.
Whether you lived through the sixties or not, Randy Mixter’s Sarah of the Moon is one story you will remember long after you have finished reading it.
January 3, 2013
Didn't think I'd get into this one when I first started it. A young writer from the Baltimore Sun is sent to San Francisco to cover the Hippie movement. He gets there around the summer of love - it may have been 1967, but it doesn't matter...he arrives and everything is in full swing. He meets a few people and goes to live with them in their house - one of the Victorians, I'm guessing. Anyway, he meets Sarah; she lives in the house as well, and he is intrigued by her. It's almost like she's ethereal, existing on another plane of existence, but that doesn't dissuade him. Sarah's like an angel; the embodiment of the hippie movement: gentle, peaceful, charismatic. Anyway, I don't want to give too much away, but the book follows these folks through the whole summer, and eventually, the young writer-turned-idealist has to return to the real world. Or does he?
March 20, 2013
I probably loved this book so much because there were many things that reminded me of my younger years that I could relate to. In addition, having spent a good amount of time in San Francisco- particularly the neighborhood focused on in this story- I was drawn in. I really enjoyed the book and was left wanting more by the last page. I guess the only thing that left me feeling unsatisfied was the fact that you never found out what became of Sarah... although maybe Sarah represented the half of young lovers that were separated by war- politics- social issues. I definately recommend this book!
February 6, 2013
I was going to give this book three stars because it bordered on the sappy side, but then I found myself liking the characters. This was a nostalgic read, a tour of Golden Gate Park, Haight-Ashbury, a concert with Janis Joplin and Jefferson Airplane, and the end of the hippies and the flower children. Now I really miss The Smothers Brothers, Laugh-In...
March 9, 2013
Every one wants that one great love... This was slow starting story for me, almost put it down. Very glad I didn't. I lived through that time and still, the book offered insight to a period of extremes and emotions which I have never truly understood. It married the warring factions of my memories. Well worth the time spent reading.
March 31, 2020
I have enjoyed this story three times now. It is my " go to " read when I am between other books, or just want to enjoy the experience of the era. I grew up in these times and can relate to the terms and free spirit feelings written about in the story. It is very well written and such an easy read. The beginning and the end tie together and leave you with a longing, yet satisfied feeling.
October 28, 2012
I was not disappointed in the book at all. It brought back memories of SF and the Haight-Ashbury district, flower children (hippies)all good times and all good memories. If you're from SF or not I would recommend this book. The characters are very lively. Give it a try.
September 17, 2012
Nice love story.
July 21, 2013
I loved this book. It was a bit historical with San Fran's flower power movement. It was a sweet love story. I would read it again.
February 21, 2013
I really, really liked this book. Liked the characters, the locale the time period and the sweet story of an intense first love. Not at all mushy.
March 13, 2013
An excellent read. Just a little bit of everything. Drama, tear jerking, history and laughs. An all around excellent book.
March 21, 2013
This is a great read.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews