So crazy enough - this is my first dive into Danielle Steel's world. The writing style was a pleasant surprise, and I commend her for how she nailed the emotions of the main character and spilled the secrets on her upbringing. The story gets you in your feels for sure- happy and sad.

We meet Allegra, the accidental kid of a Military Intelligence Officer and his way younger socialite wife. She practically grew up playing musical houses between boarding schools and grandparents who, let's be real, weren't exactly thrilled to have her around. She finds love, but, spoiler alert, it doesn't stick around for long. Her journey is a rollercoaster, and while I didn't looove every twist, I'd be down for more Danielle Steel reads down the road. This was a pleasant surprise!

Of course another book by my favorite author is never a let down. Absolutely loved it. Thank you to Net galley and the publisher for this chance. Love reading her books.

Danielle Steele does it again. A story or resilience in a person who should suffer from abandonment trauma. This is the story of a young girl whose father traveled a great deal for the military and was distant. Then her mother leaves her with grandparents. She grows up and is successful in spite of all of this. She finds love anyway and then what comes are circumstances beyond her control. I am not sure if I could have been this resilient at all but you find yourself truly rooting for this young lady.

Once again Danielle Steele pens a great book.
The story has a first unusual twists which caught me by surprise, it added to the depth of the story
The name of the book sums it up, it was a joy to read

Allegra Dixon has lived a life of abandonments. Form her mother, to a father who is a military officer, to unemotional grandparents. She is sent off to boarding school and finally meets who she thinks is the love of her life, Shep Williams. They marry, after she finishes college, but don't tell anyone. She gets a job as a book editor and Shep joins the military. The horrors of war changes her husband and they soon divorce. But Allegra deserve loves and refuses to give up on it until she finds the joy she deserves.

Allegra pretty well raises herself with her mother leaves and her father is too busy as a military officer to even bother with her. Allegra loves her books. And she finally meets Shep a West Point cadet and her life changes. She becomes a book editor and Shep her love saying Afghanistan is where her must go. The war is changing her husband to man she doesn’t even recognize. The trauma and horror is getting to him. But she refuses to give up when she has finally found joy.

Danielle Steel takes me way back - i loved reading her books in high school. I enjoyed the story and was interested in where Allegra’s life would take her. But i found some of her thoughts and the writing to be monotonous and repetitive.

Allegra learns at a young age how to be brave and become invisible. She grows into a young woman that has learned to keep to herself because of her past. As an adult she meets a few different people who are good for her and a couple who are not so good for her at the end.

This book is very good and an easy read. It made me emotional in several parts of the book.

I haven’t read a Danielle Steel novel in years! The description of Joy sounded like something I would enjoy and sure enough I did! It moved fast and I liked the main character. I’m from the east coast and thought the setting was perfect for the beginning of the main character’s life. I think Steel gives us an easy to enjoy story with feeling and loss but love and hope as well. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this arc.

This story was a heartbreaking tale of a girl who just wanted to be loved and spent a majority of her life alone and seeking genuine love.

I liked it but wasn’t my favorite Danielle Steel book

In her latest book, Steel gives us the story of Allegra, the daughter of a military officer who is rarely home and a remote mother who abandons Allegra at an early age. As a teenager, Allegra meets her future husband, Shep, who also chooses a military life that eventually takes his toll. Suffering from PTSD, Shep transforms from a kind boy into an aggressive monster who endangers Allegra's life.

The second half of the book focuses on what happens to Allegra after her marriage to Shep crumbles. She leaves New York for the West Coast, where she goes to work for a famous movie composer. I don't want to spoil what happens next, but it's very different from the first half of the novel.

I always enjoy it when Steel's books cover a long span of time. In Joy, we get to follow Allegra through two decades of her life, through disastrous and sweet marriages, and through her journey for self-actualization, and ultimately, joy. I enjoyed this book and hope Steel continues to churn out more stories like this.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an advanced edition in exchange for my opinions.

Thank you to NetGalley, Danielle Steel and the publisher for allowing me to read in advance for a review.

This was a true Danielle Steel book where you experienced all the feelings of the character. The realness of what some children and spouses of soldiers experience really resonated with me. I really enjoyed reading Allegras journey and how she could maintain her strength and positivity through all the obstacles. I hope to read more about what the future holds for Allegra. Thank you again for another great read.

I’m giving the book three stars because it was an easy, fast read. It moved like a freight train without stops! Very repetitious, to a fault, as if the author thought the reader’s ability to retain what was said before, would be forgotten unless she kept pounding it over and over. After reading an amazing book, that was so well written, I was granted this book by Netgalley and the publisher (Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine), because I knew it would be a quick read and predictably, mediocre. If you are on a beach and want a book to get through easily, with some interesting points, then read it. I do not rehash the plot in my reviews. You can read the jacket covers for that piece. And you can also read others’ reviews, where they talk about the characters and the story. I focus on my opinion. Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. #NetGalley, #Joy, #RandomHousePublishingGroup-Ballantine.

What a sad existence Allegra Dixon lives. Absent mother, father who wants little to do with her, and then as she grows up she finds herself in the same predicaments. Finally, she finds love with her boss, and deals with many more adversities with him and then the fallout of his death. Quick read from one of my favorite authors.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy. I love Danielle Steel and will continue to read her books. Joy started off a little sad but by the middle I was totally invested in how Allegra will find the joy in her life. Once again I enjoyed another book by the queen of romance Ms. Danielle Steel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing-Ballantine for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Surprisingly, this was actually my first book by Danielle Steel. Overall, I really enjoyed the writing style and I felt that she did a great job conveying the emotions of the main character as well as the details of her tumultuous upbringing and life. The story was very moving and also just incredibly sad.

Allegra is the only child of a Military Intelligence Officer and his much younger socialite wife. She was unplanned and basically abandoned by both of her parents for all intents and purposes. She spent her life shuffled around between boarding school and grandparents who housed her but didn't really want to. She finds love and has it dramatically ripped away. Her journey is a riveting and interesting one. I didn't connect that much with all of the plot points but I would read other books by Danielle Steel in the future.

Thank you for the opportunity to review an early copy!

It's a book starting out in New York and northern New England and follows the main character through her life. She has several bad things happen and she lives through and overcomes them. Very interesting, highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to receive this book for an honest review.

I had such high hopes for this book because I absolutely love Danielle Steel. But I have to say that I was a little disappointed in this book. There was so much sadness in the main character, She has a horrible childhood, survive a terrible marriage and many horrible life events. Throughout all that she remained strong. But I felt so sad for her.
I will not let this deter me from Danielle Steel books. Maybe this one just wasn't for me.

allegra is the child of a loveless marriage, her mother leaves when she is 6 and her father is in the military. she goes to boarding school and after college meets a west point cadet. they fall in love, and things don't work out as planned.

The heartbreak in this book is like a melody. It begins somberly. You the reader feel for Allegra, for the love she learns to live without. You see her love Shep, make plans for a life with him only to see her surrender him to a life so all consuming it has no space for her. Imagine a life where you are an afterthought, a problem to be resolved. Literally abandoned by her parents, Allegra builds a life so structured it has little or no space for warmth, love, intimacy. I used the term melody to connect to the one bright note in Allegra’s life . A job for a film composer, not just any composer but one that has all the accolades of a long and prosperous life opens the joys of living a full and rich life to a woman in need of a caring and gentle soul.