Allegra is a lovely and bright young woman who has everything but a family. She was abandoned by her mother when she was a child. Sent to live with grandparents while her father, a cold military officer ignored her except for an occasional visit every year for a few hours. Her grandparents were also remote, not quite knowing what to do with a young child that interfered in their lives. As Allegra matures she is sent off to boarding school, then on to Columbia University. Eventually she lands a job in editing at a major New York publishing house, being mostly solitary except for her life long friend Shep. That relationship is strained when the military interferes with his personal life and the challenges of a long term relationship become difficult. Allegra must find her own way, her own joy. She travels across the country to sunny California and its beaches and interesting people to at last meet someone that bonds with her. The characters are interesting, the settings beautiful, and the narrative is pure Danielle Steel style. The book follows her usual formula but she makes each one unique in its own way and this one is no exception. Thoroughly enjoy this latest Steel read. Thanks to #NetGalley#Joy#Danielle Steel for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Joy by Danielle Steel is a heart wrenching story of loss and love. The three star rating is driven by how the Army is characterized in this book. There are four references to “killing machine(s).”

I appreciate that Ms. Steel was painting a picture of PTSD and the challenge some soldiers experience reconciling the horrors of war with life back home. This characterization also draws parallels between Shep, Isabelle, and Bradley’s behavior; however, painting the Army as a heartless “killing machine” that doesn’t care about its soldiers was unsettling.

As with all Danielle Steel novels, I quickly came to care about the characters and wanted them to find happiness. This book delivers an emotional and engaging journey.

I recommend this book to fans of Danielle Steel and to those who a love an underdog story. Just be aware of some tough language around the US Army.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The title of this book is certainly an oxymoron. This is the story of Allegra who actually doesn't have a lot of joy in her life. We hear one bad thing after another from the time she is a child to when she grows up. This was a book that I read in 2 days. I often feel that Danielle Steele puts a lot of mundane details in her books. That was not the case here. This was an OK book to read. Would be good for a lazy day that the beach. I wasn't thrilled with the way it ended. Not one of her best but she's still a good author.

This is a GREAT READ. It is the story of Allegra Dixon, who lived a very lonesome life. Here Mom and Dad divorced when she was 6yrs.old.Her mother wouldn't take her and her father was military intelligence traveling all the time. She lived with her elderly grandparent until she was old enough for boarding school . The summer she was 16 she met Shep whose family had a beach house next to her mother's parents and she spent the summers there. They became good friends, he was a little older. They got married and he joined the military. Well we know how things can be there. After they divorced she left New York and moved to California .Follow her Journey on what her live became.

Another page turner!! I would love to pick the brain of DS and figure out how she continues to turn out such amazing stories and characters! I loved this one just as much if not more than all of the previous books (and I’ve read them ALL) you won’t be disappointed in this one…the main character has you rooting for her from the start!

Danielle Steele is an author I enjoy reading. This was one that took me deep into the life of Allegra.
Allegra had a life full of so much change and so many people who left her life and did not say goodbye. She adapts to her life changes in a way that made me cling to what had happened to her and to watch and feel how she was able to know the direction she was going and I wanted her to find joy in her life.
I highly recommend this book. Danielle Steele has given her fans and readers another wonderful book.
Thank you NetGalley, Danielle Steel and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC of Joy. This is my personal review.

Joy by Danielle Steel

This is the story about a young girl named Allegra. Allegra, is rejected by her father and her mother. She has such a sad life and so much love to give.

What a great story.

Another quick read from Danielle Steel. I don't know what it is about her books, but I always seem to enjoy and breeze right through them. When I first began this book, I thought that I had already read it because I noticed some similarities with the characters background. I found myself routing for her. She had to catch a break at some point, am I right?! All in all, I enjoyed it. The only problem was it ended so abruptly. Interaction with a new character and BAM...BOOK OVER. Feel free to use your imagination!

I absolutely loved this book. I have always been a huge fan of Danielle Steele. Having read all of her books and have several favorites, I think this is my new favorite. It’s a must read for a nice weekend, a beach book or whatever. I highly recommend it.

I enjoyed this book. At first, I thought it was a book where allegra would stay together with her first husband. Then I got more into the book and thought it was so much better. I'm glad the ending turned out the way it did. I'm grateful that netgalley and the publishers let me read this in exchange for an honest review.

Quick read and this story moves fast… so fast. I’m not a big fan of this type of storytelling - it quickly moved from one scene to another and I felt like I was being “told” more than “shown”. I like Allegra as a character and the message of the story overall but the ending seemed rushed (as the whole book did) and random.

A wonderful story of love, loss, strength and finding life's joy. . Allegra is a woman who has always found herself alone, with no family, and no one to love. From her earliest memories to the present, she has always had those that should have loved her, hold something back. When she finally finds her one true love, fate has a way of intercepting.
As always, Danielle Steel writes in. such a way that the characters become real, their pain and success become something we feel, and the story touches one and all. If you are a fan, you will not want to miss this latest book.
Ii received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The journey Allegra goes on in this book is moving, deep, and you see her as she goes through several trials, but by the end she has clearly found out who she is, what she wants, and has learned so much. This story was so good as all Danielle Steel books are and I’m so happy I read it! Joy is a wonderful book. Highly recommend!

Joy" is a novel by Danielle Steel. It tells the story of a young woman named Joy who faces a series of challenges and hardships as she navigates her way through life. From heartbreak and loss to triumph and resilience, Joy's journey is one of self-discovery and growth. As she learns to overcome adversity and embrace the joys and sorrows of life, she finds strength in the love and support of her family and friends. With its heartfelt storytelling and relatable characters, "Joy" is a poignant and uplifting novel that reminds readers of the power of hope, love, and perseverance.

I had high hopes for this book since it's by an author I usually enjoy. But the theme of leaving what you know and jumping headlong into a new attraction is foreign to me, married for 46 years. I'm totally not into this kind of reinvention since you take your own "stuff" into each relationships.

So, nope not going to recommend this one. My version of joy is a sustained rhythm of gratitude and appreciation for what's around me, not a discarding the past for something new and exciting. Sorry.

Allegra grew up being abandoned by her parents and dumped off at the grandparents house. She had to stay hidden as she knew she was nor a welcome guest. She stayed in her room and read.

Fast forward to high school, she fell in love with her boyfriend whom she married. He decided to enlist and he came back a changed man

Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group and Net Galley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoy books by this and this one was no different
Allegra was born to two people who should not have had children and raised by her grandparents,, who are very distant. In spite of this, she makes something out of her self and her life.
Things change when she meets Shep and they keep changing, when shit keeps going back to deploy
I enjoyed this book and I do recommend it

Joy, by Danielle Steele isn't set to be published until August 2024, but thanks to Netgalley I was able to read this lovely novel before release date.
It's a typical DS novel full of anguish, strength, loss, sadness, love, wealth, beauty, second chances, and romance. The resilience that DS gives her characters is often times amazing to read.

In this novel, DS takes the readers to Afghanistan and the wars overseas. Not in the sense that she's writing about the action, but the turmoil of the loved ones left behind to worry, live without family and learn to move on afterwards. Allegra's father was Army. He was upper ranked and took his job more seriously than he took being a father to Allegra. As a young girl she was shifted around from grandparent to grandparent, then to boarding school, never really knowing what being part of a family is like or being loved by one. Her relationship in high school seems to be something only the special ones dream of, until he too, decides to enlist and Allegra is back where she started.
Things don't get easier for Allegra throughout the entire book. There's special times, and there's more love than she had as a child, but this woman has been through a lot of loss and survived. She does find happiness at times, and even searches for it with a new start across the country.

DS did a wonderful job with this gem of a book. While the MC are all seemingly so unhappy most of the time, she keeps it real and relatable so that the reader doesn't feel as though they are wallowing in sorrows or doing the whole "woe is me" thing.

For me it was a lovely, quick read that I didnt want to put down, but I can see how it would be a little slower paced for others. I can't wait for August so I can recommend and buy this for family.

Thank you Netgalley, DS and the publishers for the ARC in return for an honest, unbiased review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read an advanced reader’s copy of Joy.
Believe it or not, despite my many years of reading this was my first Danielle Steele book! And I really enjoyed it. I am anxious to read more from her to see how similar and different her other many books are from
Joy.
It did take me a couple chapters to get into the flow of this story. I believe that is because most of my recent reads have all taken place in the last decade, so it took me a bit to get interested in Allegra’s childhood. But once Allegra falls in love with Shep, I was very invested in her story and it was a quick read from there to the end for me. The book flows easily and quickly through her frustrations with Shep to the sweet love with the composer and to the end without many side storylines or superfluous details.
Joy is an enjoyable read and readers will find themselves rooting for Allegra throughout the entire book.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me an ARC copy.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love the way Danielle Steele writes a story. It’s so easy to keep up and and sucks you in. Joy is a story about a young girl, named Allegra, that goes through a lot of pain and abandonment. The story follows her life and all of the highs and lows. I was rooting for Allegra. It was a good book.