Wednesday, December 30, 2015

"the memoir of johnny devine" by camille eide

Usually, I'm reluctant to put out good money to try a new-to-me author. However, when I saw a review of The Memoir of Johnny Devine on Sarah Sundin's blog, I decided the book was worth taking a chance on. I'm very glad I did!

Love can’t rewrite the pages of your past, but it can cover a multitude of sins—one page at a time.

In 1953, desperation forces war widow, Eliza Saunderson, to take a job writing the memoir of ex-Hollywood heartthrob, Johnny Devine. Rumor has it Johnny can seduce anything in a skirt quicker than he can hail a cab. But now, the notorious womanizer claims he’s born again. And so he seems to be. Eliza soon finds herself falling for the humble, grace-filled man John has become—a man who shows no sign of returning her feelings.

No sign, that is, until she discovers something John never meant for her to see.

When Eliza’s articles on minority oppression land her on McCarthy’s communist hit list, both John and Eliza become entangled in a HUAC investigation that threatens both John’s book and Eliza’s future. To clear her name, Eliza must solve a family mystery. She also needs to convince John that real love—not the Hollywood illusion—can cover a multitude of sins. But just when the hope of love becomes reality, a troubling discovery confirms Eliza’s worst fears. Like the happy façade many Americans cling to, had it all been empty lies? Is there a love she can truly believe in?

The Memoir of Johnny Devine is a dramatic story-within-a-story of a bad boy reformed and a good girl in need of reform. It’s a powerful tale of love, redemption, intrigue, and the miracle of deliberate grace.

The Memoir of Johnny Devine turned out to be not at all what I was expecting—and I mean that in the best way. I thought I'd be reading a Golden Age of Hollywood romance, and while there is some romance present, this novel is about so much more.

John's story—from being a high school dropout running from his past to becoming one of Hollywood's leading men to finding the Lord and changing his priorities—is simply fascinating. It also feels so real. In fact, I finished the novel wishing I could pick up John's memoir just to get the rest of the story.

Besides the slow unfolding of John's story, the novel also contains intrigue, as it takes place at the height of McCarthyism, and both Eliza and John find themselves the target of investigation—John because of his Hollywood connections, and Eliza because of her parentage. Eliza's quest to clear her name was especially fascinating.

Completely captivating and wholly engaging, The Memoir of Johnny Devine shows the power of Christ to change someone's life, whether that person has lived a life of debauchery or a life of striving to be good; no one is out of the reach of Christ. 4-1/2 stars.

Buy the book.

Camille Eide writes inspirational romantic & women's fiction. She lives in Oregon with her husband and is a mom and grammy. She's grateful for the amazing grace of God, and either in spite of or thanks to that grace, she has a PhD in Learning Stuff the Hard Way. She's also a church office admin, a bassist, and a fan of oldies rock, muscle cars, and tender romance. Visit her website at www.camilleeide.com.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I purchased this novel myself and chose to review it. The opinions expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase an item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Monday, December 21, 2015

"at love's bidding" by regina jennings


I don't know about you, but when I read fiction, I want it to include a toe curling romance. (You've probably figured this out about me already based on the books I review!) At Love's Bidding is one such example.

She sells priceless antiques. He sells livestock by the pound. Is he really the man to make a bid for her heart?

After helping her grandfather at their Boston auction house, Miranda Wimplegate discovers she's accidentally sold a powerful family's prized portrait to an anonymous bidder. Desperate to appease the people who could ruin them forever, they track it to the Missouri Ozarks and make an outlandish offer to buy the local auction house and all its holdings before the painting can move again.

Upon crossing the country, however, Miranda and her grandfather discover their new auction house doesn't deal in fine antiques, but in livestock. And its frustratingly handsome manager, Wyatt Ballentine, is annoyed to discover his fussy new bosses don't know a thing about the business he's single-handedly kept afloat. Faced with more heads of cattle than they can count---but no mysterious painting---Miranda and Wyatt form an unlikely but charged partnership to try and prevent a bad situation from getting worse.

The strength of At Love's Bidding lies in the romance. Wyatt and Miranda are a classic case of opposites attracting, and boy did they attract! Jennings hit the perfect tone with the slow build to the couple's first kiss, and the obstacles she threw in their way following the initial confession of feelings made sense and didn't feel contrived. I was incredibly invested in Wyatt and Miranda finding their happily ever after, and the romance portion of this book was handled expertly.

There's also a very intriguing mystery woven throughout the novel concerning the missing painting and its owner. I did not anticipate the turn the book took about three quarters of the way through, and that turn made the story so much more interesting.

At Love's Bidding also features a character (Miranda's grandfather) who is in the early stages of dementia. As someone who lost her grandfather to Alzheimer's, I don't like to read books or watch films about characters with dementia—it's too painful. So had I known, I probably wouldn't have picked up this book. That said, I thought Jennings did a good job with a difficult topic. (I wish the publisher would have given some indication of that important subplot in the back cover copy.)

Overall, though, in spite of the romance, I really struggled to get into At Love's Bidding. Sometimes I was even confused about events, and I think that's because I wasn't paying close enough attention as I read because I just wasn't engaged. When the plot took the aforementioned twist about three-quarters of the way through, my interest level skyrocketed, and I flew through the remaining pages. Had the whole book contained the same action and pacing, I would have loved it. As it is, it falls into the "It's OK" category for me. 3 stars.

See what others are saying.
Buy the book.
Read my reviews of Jennings' Sixty Acres and a Bride (4-1/2 stars), Love in the Balance (4 stars), and Caught in the Middle (3 stars).

Regina Jennings is a graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University with a degree in English and a history minor. She is the author of A Most Inconvenient Marriage, Sixty Acres and a Bride, and Caught in the Middle, and contributed a novella to A Match Made in Texas. Regina has worked at the Mustang News and First Baptist Church of Mustang, along with time at the Oklahoma National Stockyards and various livestock shows. She now lives outside Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with her husband and four children.

Connect with Regina: website, Twitter, Facebook


After a cross-country trip to track down a sold painting that could ruin her family's business forever, Miranda Wimplegate forms an unlikely but charged partnership with livestock auctioneer Wyatt Ballentine in Regina Jennings' At Love's Bidding. Miranda and her grandfather discover their new auction house doesn’t deal in fine antiques, but in livestock. And its frustratingly handsome manager, Wyatt, is annoyed to discover his fussy new bosses don’t know a thing about the business he’s single-handedly kept afloat. Faced with more heads of cattle than they can count–but no mysterious painting–Miranda and Wyatt must try and prevent a bad situation from getting worse.

Join Regina in celebrating the release of At Love's Bidding by entering to win her Cozy Winter Night giveaway and RSVPing to her January 5th author chat party!

at love's bidding - 400 

One grand prize winner will receive everything you need for a cozy winter night:
at love's bidding - collage 

Enter today by clicking the icon below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on 1/5. The winner will be announced at the At Love's Bidding Facebook party. RSVP for a chance to connect with Regina and other readers, as well as for a chance to win some great prizes!

at love's bidding-enterbanner

RSVP today and spread the word—tell your friends about the giveaway via FACEBOOK, TWITTER, or PINTEREST and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 5th!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Litfuse Publicity Group. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Saturday, December 19, 2015

"amish christmas at north star" by woodsmall, clark, flower, and ganshert

Several years ago, I tired of the Amish fiction genre. Now, it takes something big for me to pick up an Amish book—something like one of my favorite authors penning her first Amish story. When I heard that Katie Ganshert had an entry in an Amish anthology, well, I couldn't wait to read it!

One night four lives entered the world by the hands of an Amish midwife, just outside North Star, Pennsylvania. 

Rebekah’s Babies, as they are called, are now grown adults and in four heartwarming novellas each young person experiences a journey of discovery, a possibility of love, and the wonder of Christmas.

Guiding Star by Katie Ganshert
Curiosity gets the best of Englischer Chase Wellington when he investigates the twenty-five-year-old disappearance of an Amish baby. When he finds adventurous Elle McAllister in Iowa will his discoveries upend her world? 

Mourning Star by Amanda Flower
Eden Hochstetler slips from her parents’ fudge shop to investigate the death of her friend Isaac.  Who is guilty? Isaac’s handsome great nephew Jesse, an angry Englischer, or someone else?

In the Stars by Cindy Woodsmall
Heartbroken Kore Detweiler avoids North Star after Savilla Beiler rejects his love.  But when he is unexpectedly called to return home, he and Savilla must join forces to keep a family together.

Star of Grace by Mindy Starns Clark and Emily Clark
Andy Danner left North Star to join a new Amish settlement in Mississippi. His little brother devises a scheme to bring Andy home for Christmas and unwittingly unleashes the power of forgiveness in a reclusive widower’s life.

Since I came for Ganshert (and because her novella is first in the anthology), I'll talk about her entry first: Guiding Star. I've read Ganshert's women's fiction, romance, and dystopian YA, and I wondered how she would do writing an Amish romance. The answer is twofold: 1. She wrote a great love story. 2. She didn't write an Amish romance. That's because her heroine, Elle, was born Amish but raised by an Englisch family. Her interactions with her Amish family are very touching, but Elle and Chase are Englischers through and through. I found that to be refreshing—no one became Amish or left the Amish for love; through Elle, Ganshert gave an outsider's look into an Amish community. I also loved the build in Elle and Chase's relationship. 5 stars.

Mourning Star is a cute novella about two young women, Amish girl Eden and her best friend (and Englischer) Gina, who try to uncover the murderer of Eden's elderly friend Isaac. Along the way, Eden begins to fall for Isaac's nephew. This is a fun novella, though I did feel a little let down by the way the murderer was caught ... and by his motivation. Still, it was an enjoyable read. 4 stars.

In the Stars is the longest of the novellas in the collection, and I wouldn't have minded if it had been longer! Savvy broke Kore's heart when she unexpectedly ended their relationship. Her reasons (which I won't spoil here) are compelling, and I'm sure many women will identify in some way with her story. While I normally would scoff at this type of plot line, the fact that it's an Amish story makes it a bit more understandable. When Kore and Savvy are thrown together to care for some children, it's quickly obvious that they still care for one another, and I enjoyed watching them find their way back together. 4 stars.

Star of Grace turned out to be my favorite in the collection—a case of saving the best for last! This novella contains less romance than the other three, but it's also the most complete and compelling story. All Sam Danner wants for Christmas is for his older brother Andy to come home, so he devises a plan: if he can earn enough money to pay for Andy's train ticket home, surely Andy will come. He begins working for Vincent, a sad and bitter old man ... and as the two work together, both of their lives are changed. I loved watching Vincent's story slowly unfold and seeing how Sam's kindness to him rippled out to affect everyone around. 5 stars.

The prologue and epilogue (written by Ganshert) neatly tie together the various stories, and the epilogue answers several questions unresolved by the end of each novella. Overall, this is a wonderful collection—the perfect Christmas read! 4-1/2 stars.

Read the prologue and first chapter.
Buy the book.
Read my reviews of Ganshert's An October Bride (5 stars), The Perfect Arrangement (5 stars), A Broken Kind of Beautiful (5 stars), and Wildflowers from Winter (5 stars).

CINDY WOODSMALL is a best-selling author of several works of Amish fiction and a non-fiction book. MINDY STARNS CLARK is a bestselling author of both fiction and nonfiction, coauthoring the Christy Award-winning The Amish Midwife. Her daughter EMILY CLARK is an MFA student. AMANDA FLOWER authored the Amish Quilt Shop mysteries as Isabella Alan and received an Agatha Award nomination for Maid of Murder. Christy Award winner KATIE GANSHERT is the author of A Broken Kind of Beautiful, three other novels and two novellas.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free for review from Blogging for Books. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links on this page are "affiliate links." This means if you click on the link and purchase a product, I will receive a commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Thursday, December 17, 2015

"cornhuskers go to war" by tom kruger with jeff hower

In early March, I got an interesting phone call. Jeff Hower, one of the authors of Cornhuskers Go To War, wanted to know if I'd be interested in proofreading the book and giving my thoughts. I agreed, though with a bit of trepidation. You see, I had no doubt that I could proofread well/offer editorial comments. That's kind of my thing. But I wasn't sure if I'd like the book, and what would I tell Jeff if I hated it?

Fortunately, I had nothing to worry about!

On January 1, 1941, Nebraska football coach Biff Jones led his Cornhuskers-with names like Harry Hippity Hopp from Hastings, G.I.'s King Kong Royal Kahler, the Star City's Own Eddie Schwartzkopf, Hermie the German Rohrig, and Forrest Behm, Al Zikmund from Ord, Walter "the Butcher" Luther of Cambridge, and Cowboy Roy Petsch of Scottsbluff -out to Pasadena to play the biggest game of their lives: the 1941 Rose Bowl. Before the end of World War II , nearly all of these Nebraskans were proudly wearing the uniform of their country. This is the bigger-than-life story of how they lived and how they died . . . Celebrate and remember with us the 75th anniversary of that first Nebraska bowl game and of the entry of our nation into the Second World War. 

When I began reading Cornhuskers Go To War, I was simply doing my job. As I continued reading, though, I found myself drawn into the stories—stories about Butch Luther (and his fascinating sister Marylou), Al Zikmund, and other Huskers. And then there are the name drops—famous people who just happened to figure into these Nebraska boys' stories. People like Senator Bob Dole and football player/broadcaster Tom Harmon (father to NCIS star Mark Harmon). Kruger and Hower have written this book in such a way that you feel like you're sitting in a room with them, listening as they recount the stories they've gathered.

Whether you're a history buff, a Husker football fan, or just someone who enjoys reading a good story, you'll love Cornhuskers Go To War. It would also make a great Christmas gift! You can get your copy through the website, on Amazon, or at Hy-Vee and Bossleman Travel Center in Nebraska. 4-1/2 stars.

Note: So I just have to share this—I'm pretty sure this is the first time I ever saw my name in a book! (And if you know Jeff, you'll recognize that the last sentence sounds exactly like something he'd say!)



Tom P. Kruger graduated in 1974 from Shelton High School, located in a small farming community along the Platte River in central Nebraska. He went on to college at Kearney State and holds an undergraduate degree in history and social sciences as well as a graduate degree in high school administration. He taught and coached in St. Paul, NE, and Lexington, NE. He was a principal at Lexington High School and assistant principal at Grand Island Senior High School. He retired after thirty years as an educator. Tom also had a second career in the military. After graduating from college and completing four years of Army ROTC, Tom was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and assigned to the armor branch of the Army. He is a graduate of Armor Officer Basic Course as well as Advanced Armor Office Course for Armor Captains. He spent his last fourteen years in the Army National Guard and retired as a Major and operations officer for the 195 Armor Battalion. 

Tom lives in Grand Island, where he and wife Ronda raised their three sons--Heath, Cole, and Tad. He is currently researching and interviewing more veterans to complete Cornhuskers Go To War: The European Theater and Cornhuskers Go To War: Meet Me in Manila. Over the years, Tom has conducted over a hundred interviews with war veterans from WWI to Desert Storm to present day. Most of these interviews were conducted with WWII warriors. His experiences and military education and a life-time as a military historian made the writing of Cornhuskers Go To War a labor of love and a tribute that honors all who have worn the uniform honorably, and especially the WWII veterans. “When we honor one we honor all.”

Jeff Hower makes his living by helping Nebraska farmers make theirs: he works in the pivot and irrigation supply business.  Oh—and he was once upon a time a high school English teacher and school administrator with the Grand Island Public Schools.

Jeff also writes the news and a weekly column for the Central City (Nebraska) Republican-Nonpareil, and has filed numerous interviews with veterans and their family members in the attempt to document the memories and legacies of American heroes.   Cornhuskers Go To War is an extension of his interest in the men and women who built—and are building—the story of this great nation.

Jeff and his wife Daurice live in Grand Island, where they are raising their two children.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I read an early copy of this book and was not asked to review it. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Saturday, December 12, 2015

"whispers in the reading room" by shelley gray

If you're looking for historical fiction full of danger and intrigue with a touch of romance, then Whispers in the Reading Room is just your style.

Lydia's job at the library is her world—until a mysterious patron catches her eye . . . and perhaps her heart.

Just months after the closure of the Chicago World's Fair, librarian Lydia Bancroft finds herself fascinated by a mysterious dark-haired and dark-eyed patron. He has never given her his name; he actually never speaks to a single person. All she knows about him is that he loves books as much as she does.

Only when he rescues her in the lobby of the Hartman Hotel does she discover that his name is Sebastian Marks. She also discovers that he lives at the top of the prestigious hotel and that most everyone in Chicago is intrigued by him.

Lydia and Sebastian form a fragile friendship, but when she discovers that Mr. Marks isn't merely a very wealthy gentleman, but also the proprietor of an infamous saloon and gambling club, she is shocked.

Lydia insists on visiting the club one fateful night and suddenly is a suspect to a murder. She must determine who she can trust, who is innocent, and if Sebastian Marks—the man so many people fear—is actually everything her heart believes him to be.

Whispers in the Reading Room is one of those novels that you just can't put down. I should know, as I read it far into the night (and paid for it the next day). From the beginning, I was intrigued by Lydia, a quiet librarian who set aside her own wants to please her mother, even agreeing to marry a man she didn't love in hopes of securing her mother's financial security.

I also loved Sebastian, though perhaps I shouldn't have! Sebastian is not your typical Christian romance novel hero ... and that's probably why I liked him so much. He drinks, he owns a bar, he fights, he runs an illegal gambling club ... yet he is also fiercely protective of those he loves, he is generous to a fault, and he despises those who would take advantage of a woman in any way.

The novel's action moves at breakneck pace, as Lydia finds herself in one scrape after another and murders on Camp Creek Alley, the seedy area of Chicago where Sebastian's club is located, become all too frequent. There is also a delightful subplot featuring Sebastian's maid Bridget and his club manager Vincent. In essence, it's two love stories for the price of one!

For the first 90 percent of this novel, I was reading one of the best books of the year. At the very end, however, the novel faltered a bit. By that point, much, but not everything, had been resolved. Then the action jumped forward nine days, and the reader only finds out in passing who was behind the murders on Camp Creek Alley. Then the action jumps forward another week, and the reader learns that Sebastian has stepped in to help with Lydia's financial situation. It just seemed an odd narrative choice to me, as in the majority of the novel, the reader is completely involved in the action, so it was a letdown to find out about these two major events after they happened.

My disappointment in the end of the novel does not change the fact that it is a great book. It is so different from most of what is available in the inspirational market, and it is such a gripping story that, although let down a bit by the end, I still highly recommend it. 4 stars.

Note: Whispers in the Reading Room is the third book in Shelley Gray's Chicago World's Fair Mystery series. It functions as a stand alone novel, but characters from the first two novels do make an appearance. I read it just fine without having previously read the first two books, and now they are on my wish list!

See what others are saying.
Buy the book.
Read my review of Gray's The Outlaw's Heart (3 stars) in the Among the Fair Magnolias anthology.

Shelley Gray is the author of The Heart of a Hero series. Her Amish novel (written as Shelley Shepard Gray), The Protector, recently made the New York Times best seller list. A native of Texas, she earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in Colorado and taught school for ten years. She and her husband have two children and live in Southern Ohio.

Connect with Shelley: website, Twitter, Facebook


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Litfuse Publicity Group and The Fiction Guild. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

"One Enchanted Christmas" by Melissa Tagg


Earlier this year, I read a novella by Melissa Tagg (Three Little Words)—and immediately, I wondered what had taken me so long to read Tagg's writing! I started following her on Instagram and saw that she was working on a "secret project"...when said project became available in the Kindle store, I pre-ordered it immediately. That was a very good decision :-)

Friday, December 4, 2015

"the bridge" by karen kingsbury

A few years ago, I had a public breakup with Karen Kingsbury. (Well, as public as airing my complaints on my blog is—I'm certain Kingsbury doesn't know or care that I stopped reading her novels.)

Sometimes I wondered what it would take for me to read another Kingsbury novel—after the Cody-Bailey-Brandon debacle at the end of the Bailey Flanigan series, I completely lost interest in Kingsbury's novels.

I now have my answer: It would take the Hallmark Channel turning one of her books into a movie. They've done just that with Karen Kingsbury's The Bridge, which premieres this Sunday night. Suddenly, I realized that I wanted to read The Bridge before seeing the movie. Fortunately, the school library had a copy I could check out—my own copy (purchased but never read) disappeared.

Molly Allen lives alone in Portland, but she left her heart back in Tennessee with a man she walked away from five years ago. They had a rare sort of love she hasn't found since.

Ryan Kelly lives in Nashville after a broken relationship and several years on the road touring with a country music duo. Sometimes when he's lonely he visits The Bridge - The oldest bookstore in historic downtown Franklin - and remembers the hours he and Molly once spent there.

For more than four decades, Charlie and Donna Barton have run The Bridge, providing customers with coffee, conversation, and shelves of classics - even through dismal sales and the rise of digital books. Then the hundred-year flood sweeps through Franklin and destroys everything. The bank is about to pull the store's lease when tragedy strikes.

Now the question remains: Can two generations of readers rally together to save The Bridge? And is it possible that an unforgettable love might lead to the miracle of a second chance?


Hmmm...I may have to rethink that breakup now, as The Bridge has reminded me what I loved about Kingsbury's writing in the first place. She has a way of creating characters who feel so realistic, and it only takes a short time for me to become completely wrapped up in their worlds. (Hence my *cough* passionate *cough* feelings about the lives of fictional characters Bailey, Cody, and Brandon.) I read The Bridge very quickly because I simply could not put it down.

I loved the way Kingsbury slowly revealed Ryan and Molly's relationship through flashbacks interspersed throughout the present-day story, and, though I accurately guessed early on how The Bridge would be saved, that hunch didn't make the journey through the novella any less sweet.

If I have one complaint, it would be that I wish the story would have been told solely from Molly's, Ryan's, and Charlie's perspectives. The sections told from Charlie's wife Donna's perspective didn't grab me the way the other sections did. But overall, The Bridge is an excellent, heart-tugging novella, and I cannot wait to watch the film! 4-1/2 stars.

Note: Film-version Ryan is played by Wyatt Nash, who I thought looked very familiar, so I IMDb'd him. Nothing there that I would have seen, so I dug a little deeper ... and discovered that his real name is Matt Elrod, and under that name he's best known for getting blindsided twice by Boston Rob on the Redemption Island season of Survivor, which I binge watched earlier this fall.

Buy the novella.
Read my reviews of Kingsbury's Longing (if you dare!), Waiting for Morning (5 stars), and The Beginning (a prequel to The Bridge; 3-1/2 stars).

Karen Kingsbury is a #1 New York Times Bestselling novelist with more than 25 million books in print. She is America’s favorite inspirational storyteller as her last dozen novels have hit top spot on national bestseller lists. Several of Karen’s books are in production as theatrical and Hallmark original movies. 

Karen lives in Nashville with her husband and five sons, three of whom were adopted from Haiti. They live nearby to their actress/designer daughter who is married to Christian recording artist Kyle Kupecky.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I checked this book out of a library and chose to review it. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."