tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64987010111096516072024-03-17T22:03:17.069-05:00Christian Chick's ThoughtsGood Books Are Meant to Be SharedBeckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.comBlogger1915125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-77903908886133639502022-07-15T00:00:00.001-05:002022-07-15T00:00:00.187-05:00Review & Giveaway: "The Case for Heaven" (2022 film)<p><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpAjMwBy_VDgA0KfC_JSOUj0LmyyBHjxrKPriOrC1nOUqtKM9xSQjPdWvAt7T7QX7GrCDY-ZWi96C3wpps2napVaeIQkHWtsg5zxHyCMlGq6BsqsYVHOjFvl9ZH9AT7eqP0TC7U8kFbVfpsSXFeS0lSDuNKY7MWIp1y1FObTBlAkxKAm3cYdXSSlIBFA/s3840/Promotional%20Poster.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2160" data-original-width="3840" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpAjMwBy_VDgA0KfC_JSOUj0LmyyBHjxrKPriOrC1nOUqtKM9xSQjPdWvAt7T7QX7GrCDY-ZWi96C3wpps2napVaeIQkHWtsg5zxHyCMlGq6BsqsYVHOjFvl9ZH9AT7eqP0TC7U8kFbVfpsSXFeS0lSDuNKY7MWIp1y1FObTBlAkxKAm3cYdXSSlIBFA/w640-h360/Promotional%20Poster.png" width="640" /></a></i></div><i><br />We all want to know what happens after we die. In </i>The Case for Heaven<i>, best-selling author and investigative journalist Lee Strobel explores the evidence for the afterlife in order to address man’s biggest fear: death. Inspired by his own brush with death, Strobel searches for answers to the most profound questions we all have, about heaven, hell, and Near-Death Experiences. Featuring interviews with experts and skeptics, </i>The Case for Heaven<i> will challenge, encourage and inspire as Strobel dares to probe the most important question. If there is a heaven, can we prove it? </i><p></p><p>The Case for Heaven<i> documentary is based on Lee Strobel's new book of the same name, and features interviews with best-selling author John Burke, world-renowned pastor Francis Chan, the late Evangelist Luis Palau, and more.<br /><span></span></i></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>T</i><i>he Case for Heaven </i>is a really interesting documentary. While I felt like it kind of jumped all over the place (interviewees include a man who has extensively studied and written about near death experiences, the former lead singer of Hawk Nelson who famously renounced his Christian faith, the late evangelist Luis Palau, and a skateboarder who found Christ at a low point in his life, as well as others), it never failed to be interesting. Strobel brings up some points about Hell that I never considered before, and I loved his description of Heaven.</p><p>I don't know how theologically accurate anything is (I feel like, overall, our knowledge and study of both Heaven and Hell has been sorely lacking in Evangelical Christianity), but I definitely would like to learn more, and I think that's maybe the point. <b>3-1/2 stars.</b></p><p><b>Giveaway: </b>I'm giving away one 3-month subscription to Pure Flix, which is the exclusive streaming home of <i>The Case for Heaven</i> beginning July 15! (You can check out the Pure Flix content <a href="https://www.pureflix.com/" target="_blank">here</a>.) Giveaway limited to US winners only.</p><a class="rcptr" data-raflid="988b762e42" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/988b762e42/" id="rcwidget_yi9l0tg2" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script><p><a href="https://www.pureflix.com/movie/the-case-for-heaven " target="_blank"><i>Watch </i>The Case for Heaven<i> on Pure Flix!</i></a></p><p><i>Check out the trailer on <a href="https://youtu.be/74sng-Lmir8 " target="_blank">YouTube</a>.</i></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of material connection: Many thanks to Pure Flix for providing a sample of the product for this review. Opinions are 100% my own.</span></p><br />Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-91344734680329412442022-07-03T07:00:00.001-05:002022-07-03T07:00:00.204-05:00Spotlight & Excerpt: "A Dress of Violet Taffeta" by Tessa Arlen<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieFj1BaSNeSJSzrG1NBrC3rii7WvNSeNqijW2E4VvGRfTUfUdHYLNqG-m6fmrQ9sebc-0-wVvniGRahigyCn1GEtdshaXPR9YbBVzRiNGiQaaGu68UgBFmHV1Q-BHodCOuDz68ekF4dA1Ri7vhIqSuFVDCEgiOTbPrqViWnGwCZEPoON1qLBx-QnCccg/s1857/A%20Dress%20of%20Violet%20Taffeta%20cover%202022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1857" data-original-width="1238" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieFj1BaSNeSJSzrG1NBrC3rii7WvNSeNqijW2E4VvGRfTUfUdHYLNqG-m6fmrQ9sebc-0-wVvniGRahigyCn1GEtdshaXPR9YbBVzRiNGiQaaGu68UgBFmHV1Q-BHodCOuDz68ekF4dA1Ri7vhIqSuFVDCEgiOTbPrqViWnGwCZEPoON1qLBx-QnCccg/w266-h400/A%20Dress%20of%20Violet%20Taffeta%20cover%202022.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br />Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for the new historical fiction novel <i>A Dress of Violet Taffeta</i>! This gorgeous novel releases July 5 from Berkley. Keep reading to learn more about the book and check out an excerpt from the first chapter! <span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i><b>A sumptuous novel based on the fascinating true story of La Belle Époque icon Lucy, Lady Duff Gordon, who shattered the boundaries of fashion with her magnificently sensual and enchantingly unique designs.</b></i></p><p><i>Lucy Duff Gordon knows she is talented. She sees color, light, and texture in ways few people can begin to imagine. But is the male dominated world of haute couture, who would use her art for their own gain, ready for her?</i></p><p><i>When she is deserted by her wealthy husband, Lucy is left penniless with an aging mother and her five-year-old daughter to support. Desperate to survive, Lucy turns to her one true talent to make a living. As a little girl, the dresses she made for her dolls were the envy of her group of playmates. Now, she uses her creative designs and her remarkable eye for color to take her place in the fashion world—failure is not an option. </i></p><p><i>Then, on a frigid night in 1912, Lucy’s life changes once more, when she becomes one of 706 people to survive the sinking of the Titanic. She could never have imagined the effects the disaster would have on her fashion label Lucile, her marriage to her second husband, and her legacy. But no matter what life throws at her, Lucy will live on as a trailblazing and innovative fashion icon, never letting go of what she worked so hard to earn. </i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdpaOeesZo_5wm3EQq8bsXtHCmHaI9aMp9Nxn7ja9ZDXZVa40PE6pLc8GwoZGKnv0L-nCs2eSpn9wuTgFmEZGvt4qGgMSo0qiGjUbTTmWn6w-o5PTbBdfdnbiZmhe6UV9-zTOBfcfgAB6eaCTDTzveEyZBSH9LxqW9LUmeDFwtBBM0HPRG7vAVljPSiQ/s750/A%20Dress%20of%20Violet%20Taffeta%20Tour%20Graphic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="750" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdpaOeesZo_5wm3EQq8bsXtHCmHaI9aMp9Nxn7ja9ZDXZVa40PE6pLc8GwoZGKnv0L-nCs2eSpn9wuTgFmEZGvt4qGgMSo0qiGjUbTTmWn6w-o5PTbBdfdnbiZmhe6UV9-zTOBfcfgAB6eaCTDTzveEyZBSH9LxqW9LUmeDFwtBBM0HPRG7vAVljPSiQ/w400-h266/A%20Dress%20of%20Violet%20Taffeta%20Tour%20Graphic.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<b><br />Excerpt from <i>A Dress of Violet Taffeta</i> by Tessa Arlen </b><p></p><p>April 1893 ~ Lucy</p><p>Lucy turned the envelope in her hands to read the sender’s address. It was from her barrister’s clerk, Mr. Wilfred Clemens. Using the tip of her dressmaking shears she slit it open and pulled out two pages: an official document and a letter. The letter, written in black ink, confirmed that the marriage between Lucile Christiana Sutherland and James Charles Stuart Wallace solemnized on the 13th day of September 1884 had been dissolved on the 30th of April 1893. She could see Mr. Clemens’s long, clean shaven face, his lips pressed together in disapproval as he had written in his even copperplate hand: “Your decree absolute has been granted and you are now legally divorced.” She was officially dropped from polite society.</p><p>She stared down at the document releasing her from James. What had she expected to feel now that the long years of her marriage were over: elation, joy? Guilt that she had not been a worthy wife? Gratitude that she would never smell the sour odor of stale brandy on James’s breath as he lay beside her in their bed, or feel him fumbling at her nightdress, his legs thrusting hers apart? She shook her head to rid it of his slurred command that she lie still when she had tried to pretend she was turning away from him in her sleep to avoid the brutality of his nightly assaults, until, bored with her, he had pushed her away, and told her she was frigid. </p><p>She sat down at her dressing table and looked at the serious woman gazing back at her in the looking glass. Where has that eighteen year old girl gone who fell so completely in love nine years ago? That laughing, happy girl? She saw for a fleeting moment the skinny tomboy who swam in the icy water of the Gulf of St. Malo, who fished in the pond for tiddlers in spring and skated on its surface in winter. Is she still in there, somewhere?</p><p>She searched her reflection for lines. Yes, there they were at the corners of her eyes. Her mother reminded her not to frown; her sister dismissed them as laughter lines. Lucy traced the edge of her jawline with her forefinger: my face is too thin. She pulled the lamp closer and leaned into its light. Her skin was still firm, her mouth full-lipped. At least she hadn’t become grim and tight from nine years of disappointments and the indifference of a husband whose interest lay only in women who drank gin and kicked up their legs in a pantomime chorus. Did he ever really love me? She wondered. Had that younger, superficially charming man ever felt any emotion deeper than the need to gratify momentary physical pleasure? </p><p>She did not feel joy that she was free—not a quiver not a shred—she simply felt relief. If relief was all she felt, so be it! Perhaps joy of a sort would come in its own time. She bent and opened the bottom drawer of her chiffonier and lifted a parcel onto her lap, peeling away the layers of tissue paper. A bright flash of indigo and violet gleamed in the light as she held the silk up to her face. Violets and heartsease. Women of her mother’s generation believed that flowers were symbolic. Violets represented faith, and heartsease peace. The rich hue made her skin look porcelain smooth, pearl white. She shook out the folds of taffeta around her like a cloak and walked slowly around the room, feeling the heavy rustle pull behind her.</p><p>Wrapped in silk she hurled the two pillows on the right side of the bed across the floor, pulling her own into the center. She lay down and stretched her arms and legs out as far as they would go to the bed’s four posts. This is my bed now, my room and if I can hang onto it, my house! </p><p>She smoothed her hands down over the violet silk and looked around the pretty room she had created in the weeks she had waited for her divorce—obliterating all evidence of a masculine presence. A swathe of white muslin embroidered in white roses, looped around the crown of her bed, softened the thick mahogany posts. Gone were the heavy red brocade curtains, blocking the light from the windows, replaced by simple dove gray linen, over sheer white muslin, that she kept open at night. She had recovered the gold and maroon cushions with silver-gray silk. To her mother’s horror she had painted over the burgundy wallpaper with a tinted wash of lavender. The pale walls reflected the rising sun in the morning, flushing them a soft pink and in the evening had the cool grayish tint of lavender. She lay quite still in her bed, her hands folded behind her head, breathing in the late night air as it belled the muslin curtains inward. </p><p>For the first time in weeks she was hungry! No more half-raw joints of beef squatting on the sideboard in my house! Tomorrow she would order a roast chicken for lunch. Surely Celia would be able to manage something as simple as a roast chicken? What a pity James had emptied the cellar, her meagre budget didn’t extend to wine. She ignored the niggling voice that whispered in her head: Supposing it doesn’t work, what will you do? What will you do?</p><p>“It will work!” she said to her room, slowing the rhythm of her breath. “It will most certainly work!” </p><p>After breakfast she would put on her hunter-green broadcloth and walked to Farmers & Rogers in Regent Street where she would buy ten yards of the sheerest gray chiffon and a length of deep indigo silk for the sleeves of the dress. Sleeves were important and hers would be sublime.</p><p>Lucy could see the dress as if it were hanging in her wardrobe. She reached out to the table by her bed for the tablet of drawing paper and a pencil. Sitting up against her pillows she started to sketch the bodice. “Smooth, tightly fitted with a plunging vee neckline,” she instructed herself, “ending between my breasts.” She looked down and laughed. They were not as mountainously glorious as Elinor’s snowy prow, but they would look impressive enough if she pushed them up with her corset. “The décolletage trimmed with the Chantilly lace from my wedding dress and embellished with . . . a bow?” She tapped her pencil. “No, dark blue appliqued flowers. . .here and here and here.” Her pencil traced lightly over the page: “Soft, bouffant gray chiffon sleeves, set over the indigo silk, and gathered into frilled cuffs of long lace above the elbows, because romantic sleeves half-covering slender arms are irresistible.” She drew the line of the skirt. “Simple. . . feminine,” and corrected herself. “Alluring and feminine.” Alluring is what would sell. The dress must captivate, attract women who would want one like it.</p><p>When she looked up from her drawing the sun was streaming in through the windows. It was the first day of her new life.</p><p>Chapter 1, pages 11-14</p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><i>PURCHASE LINKS<br /><a href="https://amzn.to/3OmRVBW">AMAZON</a> | <a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-dress-of-violet-taffeta-tessa-arlen/1140032562?ean=9780593436868">BARNES & NOBLE</a> | <a href="https://www.bookdepository.com/Dress-Violet-Taffeta-Tessa-Arlen/9780593436851?ref=grid-view&qid=1655752284004&sr=1-1">BOOK DEPOSITORY</a> | <a href="https://bookshop.org/books/a-dress-of-violet-taffeta/9780593436851">BOOKSHOP</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58819057-a-dress-of-violet-taffeta">GOODREADS</a> | <a href="https://www.bookbub.com/books/a-dress-of-violet-taffeta-by-tessa-arlen">BOOKBUB</a><br /><br /><b></b></i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyWGxXth4njsM1d6Yht6_LCWPxgsYXvKmMO8JfghXx2OpwsNt18YzJVCkmatmc9sMT31VNxN_e-vK0Oy-wbowc4c9B2s5VWGEQhC3WaP3JhWWKiIuFayS6u_f-aF592pQRDgBwl4L01_gsIZTfbLKNzYZDgPY8wul505Hs0OCxlq1Sv_WzS-4opbxFEA/s513/Tessa%20Arlen%20Headshot%202055.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="513" data-original-width="501" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyWGxXth4njsM1d6Yht6_LCWPxgsYXvKmMO8JfghXx2OpwsNt18YzJVCkmatmc9sMT31VNxN_e-vK0Oy-wbowc4c9B2s5VWGEQhC3WaP3JhWWKiIuFayS6u_f-aF592pQRDgBwl4L01_gsIZTfbLKNzYZDgPY8wul505Hs0OCxlq1Sv_WzS-4opbxFEA/s320/Tessa%20Arlen%20Headshot%202055.jpg" width="313" /></a></b></i></div><i><b><br />Tessa Arlen</b> writes historical fiction when she is not toiling away in her garden. She is the author of the Edwardian mystery series: Lady Montfort and Mrs. Jackson; the Woman of World War II mystery series. Poppy Redfern. And two standalone historical novels: In Royal Service to the Queen, and A Dress of Violet Taffeta.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.tessaarlen.com/">WEBSITE</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TessaArlen/">FACEBOOK</a> | <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/tessaarlen/_saved/">PINTEREST</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/tessa.arlen/">INSTAGRAM</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8267477.Tessa_Arlen?from_search=true&from_srp=true">GOODREADS</a><br /><br />Read an in-depth <a href="https://austenprose.com/2022/04/15/an-exclusive-interview-with-tessa-arlen-author-of-a-dress-of-violet-taffeta/">interview with author Tessa Arlen</a> revealing insights into her new historical fiction novel, </i>A Dress of Violet Taffeta<i>. </i><p></p>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-50994673224253304652022-06-24T06:00:00.001-05:002022-06-24T06:00:00.208-05:00Review: "To Kiss a Wallflower" by Jen Geigle Johnson, Heather B. Moore, & Anneka R. Walker<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTB7tmDxxP31PE1ptiAD0Gvqy2SLkFUyx61K4p4qit1MTHoUXfjREz1JOgmMbR-73S51Hzss14Z1RZGQWLrWEtaAD0ih19G4AbcMxoDoPdKeZTb8C3ho5Ri0qWL3-K5OhBgBF3glJlaflFXX6fk5fv-YrSg2trII17ybKCjwhH0F5YjhN7xhXtEjwB-Q/s1545/To%20Kiss%20a%20Wallflower%202022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1545" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTB7tmDxxP31PE1ptiAD0Gvqy2SLkFUyx61K4p4qit1MTHoUXfjREz1JOgmMbR-73S51Hzss14Z1RZGQWLrWEtaAD0ih19G4AbcMxoDoPdKeZTb8C3ho5Ri0qWL3-K5OhBgBF3glJlaflFXX6fk5fv-YrSg2trII17ybKCjwhH0F5YjhN7xhXtEjwB-Q/w259-h400/To%20Kiss%20a%20Wallflower%202022.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />I've recently been enjoying Mirror Press's Timeless Regency Collection, and the latest release, <i>To Kiss a Wallflower</i>, is another great novella collection.<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>To Kiss a Wallflower is the nineteenth book in the Timeless Regency Collection, a bestselling anthology series from Mirror Press. The book features three novellas from acclaimed historical romance authors whose stories reveal that eventually, all wallflowers will have their chance at love . . . This is where it begins.</i></p><p><i>“The Wallflower’s Dance,” by Jen Geigle Johnson</i></p><p><i>Lottie Hughes likes people, as long as they aren't too close. Does it bother her that no one asks her to dance? Yes, but she's not sure how to drum up dance partners when she has almost no dowry, no title, and freezes up when anyone tries to talk to her. When she suddenly inherits a huge amount and is the new center of attention all over London, her secret dreams might come true but also her worst nightmares. Suddenly everyone wants to talk to her. Men ask her to dance. And she is inundated with interested suitors. She fights to stay close to the few friends she knows are true. One man saw her before her life changed forever. But does she want to accept his help when he, too, might be insincere?</i></p><p><i>“Letters to a Wallflower,” by Heather B. Moore</i></p><p><i>Ellen might be beautiful and considered a diamond of the first water by Society, but she is so very tired of the pressure to marry a titled gentleman so that her beauty won’t go to waste. When her cousin Dinah dares Ellen to attend a ball with no frills and to stand with the wallflowers, Ellen takes on the dare. What’s in the wager for her? The prize cuttings of her aunt’s extraordinary roses. But what Ellen isn’t expecting is Lord Ravenshire to engage her in the most interesting conversation. When she confesses to him of her opposition in marrying for a title, he confesses his distaste of the London scene. They strike a bargain together, one which will either push them apart or lead to a future sweeter than either of them could have imagined.</i></p><p><i>“To Marry a Wallflower,” by Anneka R. Walker</i></p><p><i>Charlotte Winters is destined to spinsterhood until she turns down an unwanted proposal and everything changes. With gossip rampant, her father attempts to salvage her reputation by betrothing her to another. Soon she is sent off to her aunt’s to meet Lord Templeton, her intended. Anxiety-ridden, Charlotte begs her aunt to let her observe Lord Templeton from afar before their introduction. She never planned to pretend to be her fictional cousin to learn more about him, or to fall in love with Lord Templeton’s friend in the process. Lord Templeton dreads returning to the empty halls of Newcliff Manor. When his father’s old friend, Mr. Winters reaches out for assistance, Lord Templeton finds himself returning home engaged to a woman he has never met. Desperate to learn more about Miss Winters, he befriends her cousin. He wouldn’t have spoken to her, or lied about his identity, if he’d known the quiet woman would sneak into his heart.</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
As with any novella collection, I liked some more than others, but this collection trended in the way I like: I enjoyed the first novella, really liked the second, and loved the third ... which left me with a very favorable impression of this book! Each story can be read in an hour or two - making for a great way to pass an evening! <b>4 stars.</b><br /><br /><b><i>The Wallflower's Dance</i></b><div><div>Friends falling in love is always fun to read about, so I liked the basic concept of this novella. But ... Denny was such an idiot that I struggled to root for him as a suitor for Lottie. I really didn't like how he didn't notice Lottie as a woman until other men did. Still, I liked the longstanding friendship between the two families, and the story came to a satisfying conclusion. <b>3 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><i>Letters to a Wallflower</i></b></div><div><div>Ellen & Aaron are perfect! This is such an enjoyable novella. I loved their scheme to pretend to court while actually falling in love. I haven't read too many fake relationship Regencies (marriage of convenience is far more common), and this one does the trope justice. <b>4 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><i>To Marry a Wallflower</i></b></div><div>Mistaken identity isn't often my favorite because I don't enjoy lying, but here? <b>I loved it.</b> Charlotte and Luke are both so inherently likeable, and their chemistry was fire. I loved every second I spent reading this story. <b>5 stars.</b></div><div style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"><br /></div></div><span id="docs-internal-guid-08317159-7fff-7d6c-bc94-68babe64828b"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><i>Buy the book: <a href="https://amzn.to/3tvLsNc">AMAZON</a> | <a href="https://www.bookbub.com/books/to-kiss-a-wallflower-timeless-regency-collection-book-19-by-jen-geigle-johnson-and-anneka-r-walker">BOOKBUB</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60165801-to-kiss-a-wallflower?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=tuTLUqSBjb&rank=1">GOODREADS</a></i></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><i>Read my reviews of </i>The Inns of Devonshire <i>(<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2021/10/review-inns-of-devonshire-by-sally.html#more" target="_blank">4 stars</a>), </i>A Seaside Summer <i>(<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2021/09/review-giveaway-seaside-summer-by-josi.html" target="_blank">4 stars</a>), and </i>Her Country Gentleman <i>(<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2022/04/audiobook-review-her-country-gentleman.html#more" target="_blank">4 stars</a>).</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<i><br /><b>ABOUT THE SERIES<br /></b><br />Since 2015, Mirror Press has been presenting the Timeless Regency Collection, a curated anthology of novellas and short stories featuring bestselling authors from the contemporary and historical romance genres. The collection has hit the USA TODAY bestselling list and charted at #1 at Amazon.com. Learn more about the series and other anthologies published by Mirror Press at their <a href="https://timelessromanceanthologies.blogspot.com/">website</a>. <br /><br /></i><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6j8N-D6xNNd2TMztTd7d9aI-ZVayeatsokzjrl2afW3sy8AoRVC1XlhHe3DwSjEXMQ2F7PJYHQEpt7TheTxN0CGRZoI1y68wa9CQbfdEsq0jQvKlsiH7v1dEMt5BILC5btwoiFJvXfD-J28Ivx3elpOO0zEYJiI-iKb8f0LSl1hIHmEvwfzAnoRNy7g/s500/Jen%20Geigle%20Hohnson%20headshot%202022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6j8N-D6xNNd2TMztTd7d9aI-ZVayeatsokzjrl2afW3sy8AoRVC1XlhHe3DwSjEXMQ2F7PJYHQEpt7TheTxN0CGRZoI1y68wa9CQbfdEsq0jQvKlsiH7v1dEMt5BILC5btwoiFJvXfD-J28Ivx3elpOO0zEYJiI-iKb8f0LSl1hIHmEvwfzAnoRNy7g/w160-h200/Jen%20Geigle%20Hohnson%20headshot%202022.jpg" width="160" /></a><i></i></div><i><br /><b>Jen Geigle Johnson</b></i><p></p></span><div><i>An award-winning author, including the GOLD in Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards and LDSPMA Praiseworthy's top award for Romance, Jen Geigle Johnson has more stories circulating in her brain than can possibly be told. She discovered her passion for England while kayaking on the Thames near London as a young teenager. History is her main jam. Her literary heroes include the greats: Jane Austen and Charles Dickens. But she has modern sensibilities as well. </i><br /><br /><br /><i>She loves to share bits of history that might otherwise be forgotten. Whether in Regency England, the French Revolution, or Colonial America, her romance novels are much like life is supposed to be: full of adventure.</i><br /><br /><a href="https://jengeiglejohnson.com/" style="font-style: italic;">WEBSITE</a><i> | </i><a href="https://twitter.com/AuthorJen" style="font-style: italic;">TWITTER</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJenGeigleJohnson/" style="font-style: italic;">FACEBOOK</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.instagram.com/author.jen.geigle.johnson/" style="font-style: italic;">INSTAGRAM</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17273762.Jen_Geigle_Johnson" style="font-style: italic;">GOODREADS</a><br /><br /><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7X2cal3Lbh-9erKiwqJ0vbCXN9YQ_Ss68lJkfOLayGKr1sQoM9Z0m1OfK0THtprIcZhSdIISRaG7zYRyFA4A1oFzy-7ZIEKMYaB1eZ3sESwvv74abiBI9WqFeJEz1biYirpVs7zQrm4FVP5okLk8Lie-9qqbC_lKRbrPP15gpqKur7vcm2UPARu0qtg/s560/Heather%20B.%20Moore%20headshot%202022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="399" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7X2cal3Lbh-9erKiwqJ0vbCXN9YQ_Ss68lJkfOLayGKr1sQoM9Z0m1OfK0THtprIcZhSdIISRaG7zYRyFA4A1oFzy-7ZIEKMYaB1eZ3sESwvv74abiBI9WqFeJEz1biYirpVs7zQrm4FVP5okLk8Lie-9qqbC_lKRbrPP15gpqKur7vcm2UPARu0qtg/w143-h200/Heather%20B.%20Moore%20headshot%202022.jpg" width="143" /></a></div><br /><b>Heather B. Moore</b></i><b><br /></b><br /><i>Heather B. Moore is a USA Today bestseller and award-winning author of more than seventy publications. She's lived on both the east and west coasts of the United States, including Hawaii, and attended school abroad including the Cairo American College in Egypt, and the Anglican School of Jerusalem in Israel. She loves to learn about anything in history and, as an author, is passionate about historical research.</i><br /><br /><a href="https://hbmoore.com/" style="font-style: italic;">WEBSITE</a><i> | </i><a href="https://twitter.com/heatherbmoore" style="font-style: italic;">TWITTER</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.facebook.com/heather.b.moore.3" style="font-style: italic;">FACEBOOK</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.instagram.com/authorhbmoore/" style="font-style: italic;">INSTAGRAM</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1344869.Heather_B_Moore" style="font-style: italic;">GOODREADS</a><br /><br /><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTr5CGtzEw6AVzRAwKSTroSKNCkLCE8HL--1j1UYLQxStG42P78cpAfe5l5msJy_LgExSTF42qvVIOmkgM5jqXrSXJzdyPKRH8LjaU46jt-kyf0M97IN8YFp042QVaM98VXR2hX13eLL1G6UefUwMiv4WVK8dn3R6GL4bkD7KKRj5af049nyxaTQQZ_w/s500/Anneka%20R.%20Walker%20headshot%202022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTr5CGtzEw6AVzRAwKSTroSKNCkLCE8HL--1j1UYLQxStG42P78cpAfe5l5msJy_LgExSTF42qvVIOmkgM5jqXrSXJzdyPKRH8LjaU46jt-kyf0M97IN8YFp042QVaM98VXR2hX13eLL1G6UefUwMiv4WVK8dn3R6GL4bkD7KKRj5af049nyxaTQQZ_w/w160-h200/Anneka%20R.%20Walker%20headshot%202022.jpg" width="160" /></a></div><br /><b>Anneka R. Walker</b></i><b><br /></b><br /><i>Anneka Walker is an award-winning author raised by a librarian and an English teacher turned judge. After being fed a steady diet of books, she decided to learn about writing. The result was a bachelor's degree in English and history. When she isn't dreaming up a happy ending for a story, she is busy living her own with her husband and adorable children.</i><br /><br /><a href="https://www.annekawalker.com/" style="font-style: italic;">WEBSITE</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/annekarwalker/_created/" style="font-style: italic;">PINTEREST</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.facebook.com/AnnekaRWalker" style="font-style: italic;">FACEBOOK</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.instagram.com/authorannekawalker/" style="font-style: italic;">INSTAGRAM</a><i> | </i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17271414.Anneka_R_Walker?from_search=true&from_srp=true" style="font-style: italic;">GOODREADS</a><br /></div></div><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. 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."</span></div></div><div><br /></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-13800830506029058052022-06-15T22:17:00.000-05:002022-06-15T22:17:05.497-05:00Review: "To Tame a Cowboy" by Jody Hedlund<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi1VDzrQXP4UR_HDvNiPvm-7g9HfbsVbXL4tpTs5tJpKOVr9UESqsqF0Jj5A29ewg7CeitQTO-95L3lGJ02HIo-NfKwE0eTICclf2qM7Jq9AvUG_AVDqK5BFMV-Q6Rw77WX1Vs_vOfILKI4qc6iY4ScCMxy5xlYIYp-0miFyUaBtgNSkxmVTqw94OSRw/s2549/to%20tame%20a%20cowboy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2549" data-original-width="1650" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi1VDzrQXP4UR_HDvNiPvm-7g9HfbsVbXL4tpTs5tJpKOVr9UESqsqF0Jj5A29ewg7CeitQTO-95L3lGJ02HIo-NfKwE0eTICclf2qM7Jq9AvUG_AVDqK5BFMV-Q6Rw77WX1Vs_vOfILKI4qc6iY4ScCMxy5xlYIYp-0miFyUaBtgNSkxmVTqw94OSRw/w259-h400/to%20tame%20a%20cowboy.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />Do you have genres you never read, except when an author you love writes in that genre? That's me with western fiction/cowboy romances. It's one of those genres that I'm never drawn to, even though I live in the "Wild West." But when Jody Hedlund releases another cowboy romance, I am <i>all in</i>. <span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i><b>They share a passion to heal what is broken, but it’s their own hearts that need to be made whole.</b></i></p><p><i>Brody McQuaid is a broken man, and he knows it. While his body survived the war, his soul did not. Besides loving his little niece, his only sense of purpose comes from saving the wild horses that roam South Park. Ranchers in the area have taken to killing the horses, which are competing with their cattle to feed on the open grass.</i></p><p><i>Savannah Marshall is a veterinarian on her family’s Colorado ranch. She longs to keep her father happy following the tragic death of her older brother, including marrying a man of his choosing. But days before her wedding, she gets cold feet and disappears to South Park. As she learns more about the destruction of the horses, she joins Brody in an attempt to save the wild creatures. But when Savannah’s family and the resentments of the area cattlemen catch up with them both, Brody and Savannah will have to tame their fears if they’ve any hope to let love run free.</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p>I love a good wounded hero, and Brody McQuaid certainly fits the bill! Brody is so spiritually and emotionally crippled following his experiences in the Civil War, and, while his young niece helps pull him out of his fog, it's not until Savannah shows up on the scene that he truly begins to heal.</p><p>Savannah is fleeing an unwanted engagement when she encounters the McQuaids. While she helps Brody heal, he helps her to find her voice and overcome her people-pleasing tendencies. They truly are a perfect match.</p><p>So here's what I loved (as non-spoilery as possible):<br /></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Honesty is a Hallmark of Savannah and Brody's relationship</li><li>Sizzling chemistry and wonderful romantic scenes that never cross the line</li><li>A realistic villain (who you know will never win)</li><li>While Savannah helps Brody, it's very clear that the Lord is ultimately responsible for his healing</li><li>Check-ins with the other McQuaids, and a great setup for Ivy's story</li></ul><div>I absolutely devoured this book! I'm glad I haven't read book two yet (I read <i>A Cowboy for Keeps</i> last year) because now I'll still be able to spend time with the McQuaids while I wait for Ivy's book! <b>5 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div>Content note: Brody struggles with PTSD, which can be hard to read about. Also, a suicide attempt in the past is briefly discussed.</div><div><br /></div><div><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3OjJAPK" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></div><div><i>Read my reviews of </i>A Cowboy for Keeps <i>(<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2021/01/review-cowboy-for-keeps-by-jody-hedlund.html#more" target="_blank">4 stars</a>) and <a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/search?q=jody+hedlund&max-results=20&by-date=true" target="_blank">other Jody Hedlund novels</a>.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-5274238562453247344" itemprop="description articleBody" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, "Century Gothic", Trebuchet, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 18px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FEoPxuYNnih-sfh20ZOjndPUzNs4CmtBrBx-23AGy2943bMmFiSSSBvuAaTEgb9Z1sA1JFC9_tbHYsRcz1ikdk0xNfDASAbZlqjCqze5-oCapMBRET6Mjop___0zRRYi8rEFpJFbJx4S/s1600/hedlund.jpg" style="color: #e3bb1e; margin: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="266" data-original-width="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FEoPxuYNnih-sfh20ZOjndPUzNs4CmtBrBx-23AGy2943bMmFiSSSBvuAaTEgb9Z1sA1JFC9_tbHYsRcz1ikdk0xNfDASAbZlqjCqze5-oCapMBRET6Mjop___0zRRYi8rEFpJFbJx4S/s1600/hedlund.jpg" style="border: 0px solid rgb(227, 201, 96); height: auto; max-width: 650px; padding-left: 2px; padding-right: 2px;" /></a></div><i></i></div><i><b>Jody Hedlund</b> is the award-winning author of multiple novels, including the Beacons of Hope and Orphan Train series, as well as Captured by Love and Rebellious Heart. She holds a bachelor's degree from Taylor University and a master's degree from the University of Wisconsin, both in social work. Jody lives in Michigan with her husband and five children. Learn more at <a href="http://jodyhedlund.com/">jodyhedlund.com</a>.<br /></i><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links; this means if you click the link and purchase an item, I will receive a small 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."</span></div><p></p>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-21476435157322190612022-06-13T20:52:00.000-05:002022-06-13T20:52:34.004-05:00Review: "Coloring God's Love for Me" by Janae Dueck<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU2SbU_qsHBHK4n0N29YOWnXE2EBgidyROFWj3RI7gz3bn7xUrRSx6zst-WV9zphmL4AhryAtRz9GlFvJMhIfMSWvymdmi7AW50VquGCFASG6ysbtUhQl5EaQagaXA4sqVsEszHhn60AmbpzX32ZMOovL1ZQpbZr7QNtUjHFNmgvXVDtJUbZ7ocGkBiA/s3300/Coloring%20God's%20Love%20for%20Me.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3300" data-original-width="2550" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU2SbU_qsHBHK4n0N29YOWnXE2EBgidyROFWj3RI7gz3bn7xUrRSx6zst-WV9zphmL4AhryAtRz9GlFvJMhIfMSWvymdmi7AW50VquGCFASG6ysbtUhQl5EaQagaXA4sqVsEszHhn60AmbpzX32ZMOovL1ZQpbZr7QNtUjHFNmgvXVDtJUbZ7ocGkBiA/w309-h400/Coloring%20God's%20Love%20for%20Me.jpg" width="309" /></a></div><br />When I was a kid, my church always participated in The 50 Day Adventure, which had special workbooks for each age group. As I've looked through <i>Coloring God's Love for Me</i>, I've been transported back to those days!<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>Hold on to the Bible’s promises of God’s love, care, and protection with this coloring book devotional for kids. Each devotion includes Scripture, a reflection on the verse using kid-friendly examples, and a coloring page that illustrates the promise.</i></p><p><i>This activity book for kids ages 6 to 9 features<br /></i></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><i><i>100 promises based on God’s Word that encourage children to trust the Lord no matter what–through exciting adventures, new experiences, anxieties, challenges, and sad times</i></i></li><li><i><i>devotions that guide children toward a better understanding of who God is and His loving plans for them</i></i></li><li><i><i>illustrations to color on every page that represent the biblical truths in fun, creative ways</i></i></li></ul><p></p><p><i>Enjoy hours of coloring God’s promises with</i></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><i>sturdy paper perfect for markers, gel pens, crayons, or colored pencils</i></li><li><i>short readings great for family and homeschool devotions, kids’ quiet times, or Sunday School lessons</i></li><li><i>notebook-sized pages that fit just right in a backpack or car seat pocket</i></li></ul><p></p><p><i>Kids will love personalizing this keepsake devotional as they color their way through each promise and reflect on God’s goodness. Coloring God’s Love for Me is a hands-on devotional for kids that makes an encouraging gift for summer vacation, birthdays, Christmas, and Easter.</i></p><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqi1DrVFID-6-S7ffYXzzbivQeh4FrPx1vb4FUR10IQGlQPGtAf-HMLGbW8GY3uaxrulmUmXu4yec2r9kFBwQZAeFKK2IFqse_eiwy8Lhy36wOCD8KZb2F7UindfRGSGt0vWJbOo5PgHuGxlwapyZBwdvD5laDZHN0MzBvOzaKGDbRFgrdKO2Z9ivUag/s2799/PXL_20220611_162520276.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2799" data-original-width="2798" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqi1DrVFID-6-S7ffYXzzbivQeh4FrPx1vb4FUR10IQGlQPGtAf-HMLGbW8GY3uaxrulmUmXu4yec2r9kFBwQZAeFKK2IFqse_eiwy8Lhy36wOCD8KZb2F7UindfRGSGt0vWJbOo5PgHuGxlwapyZBwdvD5laDZHN0MzBvOzaKGDbRFgrdKO2Z9ivUag/s320/PXL_20220611_162520276.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9KqIbLXfCZr8V-EzXgC-LNnM_21m2HxwUN-TtessY44xuwjx8ANpSXEr3HsIf3vtNPUvkBikq-TRtvMLbsDZAJrfyXJ-UxlsS4fvsNKIzpNft-Y9q-xAcVOkxDc6LZwbUaxwcrAJrKeVX5TkFlEikBCni5acdp1x3yuXusGmmGQ4wap5oabGrFg7x5A/s2869/PXL_20220611_162408975.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2869" data-original-width="2868" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9KqIbLXfCZr8V-EzXgC-LNnM_21m2HxwUN-TtessY44xuwjx8ANpSXEr3HsIf3vtNPUvkBikq-TRtvMLbsDZAJrfyXJ-UxlsS4fvsNKIzpNft-Y9q-xAcVOkxDc6LZwbUaxwcrAJrKeVX5TkFlEikBCni5acdp1x3yuXusGmmGQ4wap5oabGrFg7x5A/s320/PXL_20220611_162408975.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />I really like this devotional coloring book! There are 100 devotionals; you could work through them day by day or pick and choose depending on your child's needs. (Or your needs; this is a devotional that I would enjoy as an adult, also!) Each devotional includes a Bible verse, devotional content, and a coloring page. While geared to kids 6-9, I think younger and older kids could enjoy this book - especially because the coloring pages vary from simple to intricate.<p></p><p>The book begins with a table of contents and helpful note to parents and also includes a couple crafts and other activities at the end. It looks like a very fun and very useful devotional for families! <b>5 stars.</b></p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3zRVGvx" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad)</i></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of material connection: I received this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review, and the opinions expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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."</span></p>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-55774518763075772082022-05-23T17:46:00.001-05:002022-05-23T17:46:50.081-05:00Review: "When the Day Comes" by Gabrielle Meyer<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNQ6pbSoNOrKPIpX1SF_mt9aW8VZVnuJS3OKkHb6SlgLaTowmgtHjHhvOjcq6xpPWFJSNmmUIc6XKraedQqUVT5PJ4_lMC2XdqIIJF17q87Zedk9PvAY_b_W5MXHfnDFN7BNIig2tU-tyFC01YqeiANfqMRAr89FAE6mcxDfUC4TF8FYWayqjO_IUYRQ/s400/59627675.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="259" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNQ6pbSoNOrKPIpX1SF_mt9aW8VZVnuJS3OKkHb6SlgLaTowmgtHjHhvOjcq6xpPWFJSNmmUIc6XKraedQqUVT5PJ4_lMC2XdqIIJF17q87Zedk9PvAY_b_W5MXHfnDFN7BNIig2tU-tyFC01YqeiANfqMRAr89FAE6mcxDfUC4TF8FYWayqjO_IUYRQ/w259-h400/59627675.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />It had me at time travel. (Of course it did!) I will <i>always</i> pick up a time-related book. But this? This is so unique and delightful.<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>Libby has been given a powerful gift: to live one life in 1774 Colonial Williamsburg and the other in 1914 Gilded Age New York City. When she falls asleep in one life, she wakes up in the other without any time passing. On her twenty-first birthday, Libby must choose one path and forfeit the other--but how can she possibly decide when she has so much to lose?</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p>When I think about other time travel novels I've read, TV shows I've watched, etc., most are someone traveling from the present day to the past, someone traveling from the past to the present, or someone traveling from the future to the present. <i>When the Day Comes</i> is different in that both timelines are set in the past. Libby is living in two timelines that are on the cusp of war: 1774 Williamsburg and 1914 New York. At first, I wasn't sure I'd enjoy two timelines in the past, but <i>I loved every single thing about this novel</i>!</p><p>The novel begins when Libby is 13 months shy of her 21st birthday, when she will decide which timeline to remain in for the rest of her life. Though she thinks she knows what she will choose, events in both timelines soon become complicated, throwing a wrench into her plans. Ultimately, she must learn to let God write her story, strange though it is.</p><p>I had such complicated feelings as I read - joy, sorrow, fear, revulsion. The first person point of view really serves Libby's story well. There are some big twists (some that I anticipated, others that I did not) and difficult topics, and everything comes together to create an incredibly satisfying novel. I'm thrilled that this is just the first book in the Timeless series, as I can't wait to revisit this world! <b>5 stars.</b></p><p>Content note: There are some difficult themes, including rape and abuse. Nothing<i> </i>is graphic.</p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3wGQBUQ" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></p><p><b></b></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>Gabrielle Meyer grew up above a carriage house on a historic estate near the banks of the Mississippi River, imagining real and make-believe stories about the occupants who had lived there. She went on to work for the Minnesota Historical Society and loves writing fiction inspired by real people, places, and events. She currently resides in central Minnesota on the banks of the Mississippi River, not far from where she grew up, with her husband and four children. By day, she’s a busy homeschool mom, and by night she pens fiction and non-fiction filled with hope. Learn more about Gabrielle and her writing by visiting <a href="http://www.gabriellemeyer.com">www.gabriellemeyer.com</a>.</i></p><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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."</span></div></div><div><br /></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-67696659434586746792022-05-21T14:44:00.002-05:002022-05-21T15:19:39.015-05:00Review: "Bloomsbury Girls" by Natalie Jenner<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI3vTCqBTx5Rel5PkGZ_INnMZWsOK_scvbLsGGUzpl-mxxbn2p5eptmgl-gT08ljSvzcA1fl-XHjBU3wvzZcuKi6wvDlEimf5JlV0PKmC6TeQ36sqWsYnKa0CBrRSZLbaVP2P0lbTdTkoSnImJ0GGU3_DlOHN-uh2rbssPIoWsCCgf0nVMufFpD1x3EA/s2841/Bloomsbury%20Girls.%20Final%20Cover.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2841" data-original-width="1868" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI3vTCqBTx5Rel5PkGZ_INnMZWsOK_scvbLsGGUzpl-mxxbn2p5eptmgl-gT08ljSvzcA1fl-XHjBU3wvzZcuKi6wvDlEimf5JlV0PKmC6TeQ36sqWsYnKa0CBrRSZLbaVP2P0lbTdTkoSnImJ0GGU3_DlOHN-uh2rbssPIoWsCCgf0nVMufFpD1x3EA/w263-h400/Bloomsbury%20Girls.%20Final%20Cover.jpg" width="263" /></a></div><br />I remember all of the hype surrounding <i>The Jane Austen Society</i>, and I truly intended to read it but never did. But now that I've read Natalie Jenner's next novel, <i>Bloomsbury Girls</i>, I think I'm going to need to remedy that! <span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><b><i>Natalie Jenner, the internationally bestselling author of </i>The Jane Austen Society<i>, returns with a compelling and heartwarming story of post-war London, a century-old bookstore, and three women determined to find their way in a fast-changing world in Bloomsbury Girls.</i></b></p><p><i>Bloomsbury Books is an old-fashioned new and rare bookstore that has persisted and resisted change for a hundred years, run by men and guided by the general manager's unbreakable fifty-one rules. But in 1950, the world is changing, especially the world of books and publishing, and at Bloomsbury Books, the girls in the shop have plans:</i></p><p><i>Vivien Lowry: Single since her aristocratic fiancé was killed in action during World War II, the brilliant and stylish Vivien has a long list of grievances--most of them well justified and the biggest of which is Alec McDonough, the Head of Fiction.</i></p><p><i>Grace Perkins: Married with two sons, she's been working to support the family following her husband's breakdown in the aftermath of the war. Torn between duty to her family and dreams of her own.</i></p><p><i>Evie Stone: In the first class of female students from Cambridge permitted to earn a degree, Evie was denied an academic position in favor of her less accomplished male rival. Now she's working at Bloomsbury Books while she plans to remake her own future.</i></p><p><i>As they interact with various literary figures of the time--Daphne Du Maurier, Ellen Doubleday, Sonia Blair (widow of George Orwell), Samuel Beckett, Peggy Guggenheim, and others--these three women with their complex web of relationships, goals and dreams are all working to plot out a future that is richer and more rewarding than anything society will allow.</i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7X8UeeO94dHf_f8eg5wX_UZL4phg6kJ897o0rh6ok0WWqwuv8I4eI5de6Nm2u8MwOmEUQFF11DwkmJ5YPdKPwqITAv-QitTZbAyJxKEN6NPtJF-foL_dW9fmJ6q4xZjCuUBfCRnbVU7AYKhfn3cOPPdBSP2ayD7morp-nFzpy7xguY2yFKPyIPgE5Tg/s1200/Bloomsbury%20Girls%20Book%20Tour%20Graphic.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7X8UeeO94dHf_f8eg5wX_UZL4phg6kJ897o0rh6ok0WWqwuv8I4eI5de6Nm2u8MwOmEUQFF11DwkmJ5YPdKPwqITAv-QitTZbAyJxKEN6NPtJF-foL_dW9fmJ6q4xZjCuUBfCRnbVU7AYKhfn3cOPPdBSP2ayD7morp-nFzpy7xguY2yFKPyIPgE5Tg/w400-h300/Bloomsbury%20Girls%20Book%20Tour%20Graphic.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Genre: Historical Fiction, Women’s Fiction<br />Publisher: St. Martin's Press (May 17, 2022)</p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p>Set in 1950, <i>Bloomsbury Girls</i> is the story of a bookshop in London - Bloomsbury Books - and the people who work there. While the novel focuses on the shop's three female employees, Evie, Grace, and Vivien, from time to time the reader glimpses the story from a male employee's point of view.</p><p>Bloomsbury Books is managed by Mr. Dutton, an old-fashioned man (though not without his scandalous secrets) who set a list of rules to be followed at all times. Each of the short chapters in the novel is headed by one of those rules, and I loved seeing how the rules fit into the larger story.</p><p>Relationships, both good and bad, are the focus of the novel. Some long-standing and fraught with misunderstanding, others new and tentative - all have a profound impact on the characters. Each woman also gets a taste of romance, and I found Evie's and Grace's love stories to be so sweet.</p><p>Also, a quick mention of the audiobook - I went back and forth between the audio version and the ebook, and I found the narration to be delightful...and also too slow, even when I sped it up! Simply put, I can read a book much faster than I can listen to one, but if you are a fan of audio, you'll enjoy this.</p><p>Finally, I have to point out that there is a character list at the beginning, which always helps me immensely when I'm beginning a new book. (And the way Vivien is referenced made me chuckle.) <b>4 stars.</b></p><p>Content note: Some sensitive themes, including sexual affairs, abuse, racism, and same-sex relationships, are included, though nothing is ever graphic in any way.</p><p><i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOOXfMlNnjg" target="_blank">Watch the book trailer.<br /><br /></a><a href="https://soundcloud.com/macaudio-2/bloomsbury-girls-by-natalie-jenner-audiobook-introduction" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sample the audiobook.</a><br /></i></p><p><i>Buy the book:</i><br />PRINT & DIGITAL BOOK<br /><a href="https://amzn.to/3Lt5Plj">AMAZON</a> | <a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bloomsbury-girls-natalie-jenner/1139985334">BARNES & NOBLE</a> | <a href="https://www.bookdepository.com/Bloomsbury-Girls-Natalie-Jenner/9781250276698?ref=grid-view&qid=1650839870320&sr=1-1">BOOK DEPOSITORY</a> | <a href="https://bookshop.org/books/bloomsbury-girls/9781250276698">BOOKSHOP</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/58428207">GOODREADS</a> | <a href="https://www.bookbub.com/books/bloomsbury-girls-by-natalie-jenner">BOOKBUB</a><br /><br />AUDIOBOOK<br /><a href="https://amzn.to/3rL0xty">AMAZON</a> | <a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bloomsbury-girls-natalie-jenner/1139985334?ean=2940176473056">BARNES & NOBLE</a> | <a href="https://www.bookdepository.com/Bloomsbury-Girls-Natalie-Jenner/9781250852311?ref=grid-view&qid=1650841253382&sr=1-5">BOOK DEPOSITORY</a> | <a href="https://bookshop.org/books/bloomsbury-girls/9781250852311">BOOKSHOP</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60553813-bloomsbury-girls">GOODREADS</a></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<i><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9kTteISGNajDBDfqNcfI9Kytu3O2IBUN_hX5ig0kx_5OW-_tNbl3pknyF7wMb-VolX_ffCeLR4qcoaJKCvM6Il7Ym-ljKy672btmQBkYM_3Q1HMMGcyDM6QwKa6FLcqMCvjiJqGBnWZsTSFFdSq432U5mHij6MXfIUKt4DX8-uCrYHR-Zlfx0MhwztQ/s1477/Author%20Natalie%20Jenner%20headshot%202022.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1477" data-original-width="1236" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9kTteISGNajDBDfqNcfI9Kytu3O2IBUN_hX5ig0kx_5OW-_tNbl3pknyF7wMb-VolX_ffCeLR4qcoaJKCvM6Il7Ym-ljKy672btmQBkYM_3Q1HMMGcyDM6QwKa6FLcqMCvjiJqGBnWZsTSFFdSq432U5mHij6MXfIUKt4DX8-uCrYHR-Zlfx0MhwztQ/s320/Author%20Natalie%20Jenner%20headshot%202022.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><br />Natalie Jenner</b> is the author of the instant international bestseller </i>The Jane Austen Society<i> and </i>Bloomsbury Girls<i>. A Goodreads Choice Award runner-up for historical fiction and finalist for best debut novel, </i>The Jane Austen Society<i> was a USA Today and #1 national bestseller and has been sold for translation in twenty countries. Born in England and raised in Canada, Natalie has been a corporate lawyer, career coach and, most recently, an independent bookstore owner in Oakville, Ontario, where she lives with her family and two rescue dogs. Visit her website to learn more.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.nataliejenner.com/">WEBSITE</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/NatalieMJenner">TWITTER</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100010638227094">FACEBOOK</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/authornataliejenner/">INSTAGRAM</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18786953.Natalie_Jenner">GOODREADS</a></i><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. 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."</span></div></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-38430882179361019292022-05-17T20:58:00.000-05:002022-05-17T20:58:10.732-05:00Review: "Out of the Blue" by Susan L. Tuttle<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOMLggBCaFfZjI1BvvnLZUr2Pt7T6ILClorjnBAokWywHzRPlnQNdD2WhyZHH-Aa5eNu-HGVVv0lVaY7DJ2AfnBoyn-7GDpTEBKn_Al1VEl-cEzfo6J-VugeH2bL9bMXP78oGKoCeAjfjhI2P6KXfpHHNmowCxmXRSnmvFAKcLv_iQfxiHNrOu4YtBEA/s400/58539022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="267" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOMLggBCaFfZjI1BvvnLZUr2Pt7T6ILClorjnBAokWywHzRPlnQNdD2WhyZHH-Aa5eNu-HGVVv0lVaY7DJ2AfnBoyn-7GDpTEBKn_Al1VEl-cEzfo6J-VugeH2bL9bMXP78oGKoCeAjfjhI2P6KXfpHHNmowCxmXRSnmvFAKcLv_iQfxiHNrOu4YtBEA/w268-h400/58539022.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><br />It's always a good day when I can read a new Susan L. Tuttle book!<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>Falling in love again wasn’t on her checklist, but he’s about to pencil it in.</i></p><p><i>Nate Reynolds’s ugly history has dogged him long enough. He has spent years reforming himself, but there has to be a purpose for all the pain in his youth. When he discovers the perfect campground for rehabbing juvenile delinquents, he sees his chance for redemption. Even if it means butting heads with the owner’s granddaughter, Gwen Doornbos, a woman who, for all her sharp edges, possesses a heart similar to his. The more time he spends with her, the more he envisions a future he once thought impossible.</i></p><p><i>Four years ago, Gwen Doornbos lost her husband at the hands of a troubled teen. Her dream of ministering to kids died with him, and she returned home to help her grandfather run their family summer camp until his retirement. That day has finally arrived, except her grandfather has other plans for Camp Hideaway, and they include the irritatingly handsome Nate, a do-gooder with more brawn than sense who insists on bringing the past right to her door.</i></p><p><i>When an accident requires Gwen to temporarily assist Nate, she discovers that the campers challenge her in ways she’s not ready to face. Yet if she can find the courage to stay, the darkness that has shrouded her for so long may lift to reveal a love arriving out of the blue.</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div><i>Out of the Blue</i> is a beautiful story of second chances, forgiveness, and moving on after tragedy. Four years after her husband's tragic death, Gwen is still mired in grief and anger. When she learns that her grandfather has rented out their family campground - the camp she planned to sell - to a man who wants to run a camp for at-risk youth, she is livid. But Nate - and a special camper - slowly begin to tear down Gwen's walls.</div><div><br /></div><div>Gwen is stubborn, prickly, and hurting. Nate sees the camp as his own redemption story. Both are imperfect and make mistakes. But they also learn and grow and make each other better. I love when characters grow throughout a novel, and that certainly happens here! Also, I appreciated how faith was woven into the story - it didn't feel shoehorned in, but it seemed like a natural progression.</div><div><br /></div><div>And then there's the romance! Nate and Gwen have snapping chemistry, and watching them dance toward each other was a pleasure. Also, we'd better see more of these characters in the future, as I'm dying to know more about Nate's sister, as well as Gwen's friends! The <i>one</i> thing I didn't like was the <i>NCIS</i>-bashing that went on ... but I guess I can forgive it 🤣 (Also, I'm literally going to pull up last night's episode the instant I hit publish on this post). <b>5 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3MtdDDO" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book or borrow through Kindle Unlimited</a> (Amazon ad).</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Read my reviews of Tuttle's </i>At First Glance<i> (<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2019/01/review-at-first-glance-by-susan-l-tuttle.html">4-1/2 stars</a>), </i>Then Again, Maybe<i> (<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2021/01/review-then-again-maybe-by-susan-l.html">4-1/2 stars</a>), </i>Love You, Truly<i> (<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2020/01/review-love-you-truly-by-susan-l-tuttle.html#more">5 stars</a>), and </i>Never too Late<i> (<a href="#">5 stars</a>).</i><br /></div><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, "Century Gothic", Trebuchet, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="Susan L. Tuttle" class="aligncenter wp-image-13340 size-medium" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEiP1DNLZOthqK31gqvHyBhJWB6EaVwN6X3tnSGRSSz4BLHiv4IIxdGYCDt91zmBZbSv9QH1FrcADfILH4v8LzM53CfT6xmHnKRq6V9IbgZmvHIiRZiqiDsQNor5FgS3OCOxm_z-x-SKeCHdPTeDIZqGhlvWmJDGmYl-WQ63VuC_aszVCrS-e15NTZJ7nQ=s0-d" style="border: 0px solid rgb(227, 201, 96); height: auto; max-width: 650px; padding-left: 2px; padding-right: 2px;" width="300" /></div><br /><i>ACFW Carol Award finalist <b>Susan L. Tuttle</b> lives in the Mitten State of Michigan where she's a mom of three and happily married to her best friend. Between still homeschooling her youngest and leading the women's ministry at church, she finds time to write stories filled with inspiration, hope, and encouragement. Connect with Susan at <a href="https://susanltuttle.com/">susanltuttle.com</a>.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>CONNECT WITH SUSAN: <a href="http://www.susanltuttle.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/susanltuttle5/">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/Susan_Tuttle5">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/susanltuttle/">Instagram</a></i></div><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I borrowed this book through Kindle Unlimited. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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."</span></div></div><div><br /></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-88389593143437805702022-05-15T20:17:00.000-05:002022-05-15T20:17:27.102-05:00Review: "Turn to Me" by Becky Wade<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBT9vUsFkCIHVD7DROwvKzybUByct8jyhJXnPhvbeppVioehE4c4VZIPbJj_XbDYduMJ6O1TdXWgJXfsCgmkNwC3XMH0kyTGGFwPqsFPZmzj-A8WDiR0l46yqUcA8g7Iz2771Kxv_MTGSsStnfbaVME7nZCSx6rvRrVoaQEmdJShsTo3TeaZzVw9wa4w/s500/59788607.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="324" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBT9vUsFkCIHVD7DROwvKzybUByct8jyhJXnPhvbeppVioehE4c4VZIPbJj_XbDYduMJ6O1TdXWgJXfsCgmkNwC3XMH0kyTGGFwPqsFPZmzj-A8WDiR0l46yqUcA8g7Iz2771Kxv_MTGSsStnfbaVME7nZCSx6rvRrVoaQEmdJShsTo3TeaZzVw9wa4w/w259-h400/59788607.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />Every spring since 2012, I have eagerly anticipated the arrival of the newest Becky Wade novel in my mailbox. This year, that novel is <i>True to You</i>, the final book in the Misty River series.<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>His promise will cost him far more than he imagined.</i></p><p><i>Guilt has defined Luke Dempsey's life, but it was self-destructiveness that landed him in prison. When his friend and fellow inmate lay dying shortly before Luke's release, the older man revealed he left a string of clues for his daughter, Finley, that will lead her to the treasure he's hidden. Worried that she won't be the only one pursuing the treasure, he gains Luke's promise to protect her until the end of her search.</i></p><p><i>Spunky and idealistic, Finley Sutherland is the owner of an animal rescue center and a defender of lost causes. She accepts Luke's help on the treasure hunt while secretly planning to help him in return--by coaxing him to embrace the forgiveness he's long denied himself.</i></p><p><i>As they draw closer to the final clue, their reasons for resisting each other begin to crumble, and Luke realizes his promise will push him to the limit in more ways than one. He'll do his best to shield Finley from unseen threats, but who's going to shield him from losing his heart?</i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqcfvUyCN4419N3eM_2XTGlGJ_-OmwfWeL8paZTHj1M89F8HF20KfLiPwTETumZHuLv1JcXSG5Zkz2K6TLzjznuHVfmvzmlMdnCLdO8ROljDLgA-OwJ7IKGXZ7LYoDrdrHTiV-dve2cMaIgjdI1c2V4NJjR0VTMMlCDh_7Wsetn7Ka-njUUnQa1wHg3A/s2240/BlogTourBanner.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1124" data-original-width="2240" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqcfvUyCN4419N3eM_2XTGlGJ_-OmwfWeL8paZTHj1M89F8HF20KfLiPwTETumZHuLv1JcXSG5Zkz2K6TLzjznuHVfmvzmlMdnCLdO8ROljDLgA-OwJ7IKGXZ7LYoDrdrHTiV-dve2cMaIgjdI1c2V4NJjR0VTMMlCDh_7Wsetn7Ka-njUUnQa1wHg3A/w640-h322/BlogTourBanner.png" width="640" /></a></div><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<br />I mean, what can I say about this book that I haven't already said about every other Becky Wade book? <i>Turn to Me</i> has it all - sizzling romantic tension, an intriguing mystery (can we say <i>treasure hunt</i>???), a strong spiritual thread, check-ins with the couples from the previous books in the series, and, <i>finally</i> a B-plot love story for Ben (member of the "Miracle Five" who recently had his heart stomped on).<p></p><p>I've been really curious about bad-boy Luke from the beginning of this series, and I have to say his story didn't disappoint! I loved the romance between Luke and Finley, the humor with his foster puppy Agatha, the reunion with his family, and the reconciliation with the other members of the "Miracle Five."</p><p><i>Turn to Me</i> is a wonderful conclusion to the Misty River series ... and now the wait commences for Becky Wade's next novel. <b>5 stars.</b></p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3Pn74oj" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></p><p><i><a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/search/label/becky%20wade" target="_blank">Read my reviews of other Becky Wade novels.</a></i></p><p><i>Enter the giveaway:</i></p><p><i></i></p><p><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvAFqlTkR7D6UruJRDuXBxxSaUvFMws_4zWLrMGvcBDTlzbRFERr3TcuSXF5gKEWKCxQZr1ibWlWhMdnWOvdCfCP5XydL3AU4jwKg74jMMqDsiWKPGdtXR1K0AaH4RyV4pJpfgyTZgLyWVEGqRASBPTEoUbZGt-7JxZDSrYzbyU7Pk8AcJxuqQfXXXKQ/s1080/TurntoMeGiveaway.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvAFqlTkR7D6UruJRDuXBxxSaUvFMws_4zWLrMGvcBDTlzbRFERr3TcuSXF5gKEWKCxQZr1ibWlWhMdnWOvdCfCP5XydL3AU4jwKg74jMMqDsiWKPGdtXR1K0AaH4RyV4pJpfgyTZgLyWVEGqRASBPTEoUbZGt-7JxZDSrYzbyU7Pk8AcJxuqQfXXXKQ/s320/TurntoMeGiveaway.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></div><i><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://beckywade.com/home/turn-to-me-giveaway">https://beckywade.com/home/turn-to-me-giveaway</a></i></div></i><p></p><div><i>Follow the blog tour:<br /><br /></i></div>May 5th<br /><a href="https://insidethewongmind.com/">Inside The Wong Mind</a><br /><br />May 6th<br /><a href="https://blessedbookish.wordpress.com/">Blessed & Bookish</a><br /><br />May 7th<br /><a href="https://booksandeverydaylife.home.blog/">Books and Everyday Life</a><br /><br />May 8th<br /><a href="https://www.simplysusan.home.blog/">Simply Susan</a><br /><br />May 10th<br /><a href="https://melmo2610.wordpress.com/">Melmo2610 A Bookish Blog</a><br /><br />May 12th<br /><a href="https://beckysbookshelves.blogspot.com/">Becky's Bookshelves</a><br /><br />May 14th<br /><a href="https://hollysbookcorner.home.blog">Holly's Book Corner</a><br /><br />May 15th<br /><a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/">Christian Chick's Thoughts</a><br /><br />May 16th<br /><a href="https://remembrancy.com/">Remembrancy</a><br /><br />May 18th<br /><a href="http://thegreenmockingbird.wordpress.com">The Green Mockingbird</a><br /><br />May 19th<br /><a href="https://batyasbits.home.blog/">Batya's Bits</a><br /><br />May 20th<br /><a href="https://lifeofliterature.wordpress.com/">Life of Literature</a><br /><br />May 21st<br /><a href="https://brittreadsfiction.wordpress.com/">Britt Reads Fiction</a><br /><br />May 22nd<br /><a href="https://www.amywatsonauthor.com/">Amy Watson Author</a><br /><br />May 23rd<br /><a href="https://moments-of-beauty.blogspot.com/">Beauty In The Binding</a><br /><br />May 24th<br /><a href="http://reviewsbyerin.dreamwidth.org/">Reviews By Erin</a><br /><br />May 25th<br /><a href="http://www.mybookaday.com/">My Book A Day</a><br /><p><i><b></b></i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXE-iCczcxRftTW87i6AY0nUZtxHPa6T5aZlCbAreFsMI48mEjGUM14_ozqXiVYtlVj6rzB8Rhye4n-wZDa47LaYrKGmsty-EqtM8tBCJqLqNUGY6yCmmcJ6JrVikY0a7eGKkWJh3EJdEbtkJ0oT2iOr0J1up8k_0ZR8xio1zd7ciqWevvN-qTB4Zjww/s899/becky-wade-3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXE-iCczcxRftTW87i6AY0nUZtxHPa6T5aZlCbAreFsMI48mEjGUM14_ozqXiVYtlVj6rzB8Rhye4n-wZDa47LaYrKGmsty-EqtM8tBCJqLqNUGY6yCmmcJ6JrVikY0a7eGKkWJh3EJdEbtkJ0oT2iOr0J1up8k_0ZR8xio1zd7ciqWevvN-qTB4Zjww/s320/becky-wade-3.jpg" width="214" /></a></b></i></div><i><b><br />Becky Wade</b> is the Carol and Christy award winning author of swoon-worthy contemporary inspirational romances.</i><p></p><p><i>She loves to connect with readers via her web site at <a href="http://www.beckywade.com">www.beckywade.com</a>, via her Facebook author page at <a href="http://www.Facebook.com/AuthorBeckyWade">www.Facebook.com/AuthorBeckyWade</a>, or via Instagram at <a href="http://www.Instagram/BeckyWadeWriter">www.Instagram/BeckyWadeWriter</a></i></p><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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."</span></div></div><div><br /></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-79006460574890746122022-05-13T22:49:00.005-05:002022-05-13T22:49:51.586-05:00Review: "The Master Craftsman" by Kelli Stuart<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn6BydXari4TZiu3b3zfyARkxnloEVPxR_noHZ15cZ9jMnVfVwHp--Aq68Ldwc6HocZWW4NkXngenZvBQHlqv-TWftaNyYcf3Er8pBzWiGzQUc5CRRoHdgGMAAD26i_XsOjCZqR1QPBkUoOxQO7Jip13OmooT6ObC2igUrbf8L98r-YOpEs8A8bhIq_g/s400/58322824.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="259" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn6BydXari4TZiu3b3zfyARkxnloEVPxR_noHZ15cZ9jMnVfVwHp--Aq68Ldwc6HocZWW4NkXngenZvBQHlqv-TWftaNyYcf3Er8pBzWiGzQUc5CRRoHdgGMAAD26i_XsOjCZqR1QPBkUoOxQO7Jip13OmooT6ObC2igUrbf8L98r-YOpEs8A8bhIq_g/w259-h400/58322824.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
Man, does Kelli Stuart write a good novel! I loved both <i>Like a River from Its Course </i>and <i>A Silver Willow by the Shore</i>, so when I heard she had a new novel coming out, it made its way to the top of my TBR. What I didn't anticipate, though, was just how much fun I would have reading this book!<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>In 1917, Alma Pihl, a master craftsman in the House of Fabergé, was charged to protect one of the greatest secrets in Russian history--an unknown Fabergé Egg that Peter Karl Fabergé secretly created to honor his divided allegiance to both the people of Russia and the Imperial tsar's family. When Alma and her husband escaped Russia for their native Finland in 1921, she took the secret with her, guarding her past connection to the Romanov family. </i></p><p><i>Three generations later, world-renowned treasure hunter Nick Laine is sick and fears the secret of the missing egg will die with him. With time running out, he entrusts the mission of retrieving the egg to his estranged daughter, Ava, who has little idea of the dangers she is about to face. As the stakes are raised, Ava is forced to declare her own allegiance--and the consequences are greater than she could have imagined.</i></p><p><i>This modern-day treasure hunt from award-winning author Kelli Stuart transports you into the opulent and treacherous world of the Russian Revolution to unearth mysteries long buried.</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div><i>The Master Craftsman</i> is a split time novel taking place in the early 1900's and the present. The present story centers around twenty-something Ava, who partners with her estranged, dying father, the famous treasure hunter Nick Laine, in his search for a secret Fabergé egg - one that has connections to their family. The story in the past is told from several perspectives, but mainly Karl Fabergé's, in the years leading up to and during the Russian Revolution. </div><div><br /></div><div>I loved every second I spent reading this novel - even when it seemed a little too <i>Mission Impossible</i>/<i>National Treasure/</i>name your own adventure thriller and when I guessed two fairly big plot twists. Why wasn't I bothered? Because I loved the story, the history, the treasure hunt so much! This novel, while <i>so much fun to read</i>, isn't nearly as deep or difficult or affecting as the other Kelli Stuart novels I've read, which is just fine with me. It's a different type of story for a different type of day. But it's written just as well as her other novels, and the setting (in both time periods) feels completely authentic.</div><div><br /></div><div>Also, I took way too many breaks while reading to look up various Fabergé eggs, and I also learned a little history along the way. I would call that a win - it's not often that a novel causes me to do more research on my own. <b>4-1/2 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><i>Buy the book (<a href="https://amzn.to/3PknP3v" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon ad</a>).</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Read my reviews of </i>Like a River from Its Course<i> (<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2016/07/like-river-from-its-course-by-kelli.html" target="_blank">5 stars</a>), and </i>A Silver Willow by the Shore <i>(<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2019/11/review-silver-willow-by-shore-by-kelli.html#more" target="_blank">4-1/2 stars</a>).</i></div><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div><i><br /></i></div><div><div style="font-style: italic;"><b>Kelli Stuart</b> is a writer and a storyteller at heart. A graduate of Baylor University with a degree in English Professional Writing, and a minor in the Russian language, Kelli has honed her skills in the written word through editing, ghostwriting, blogging, and traveling the world.</div><div style="font-style: italic;"><br /></div><div style="font-style: italic;">Kelli is the bestselling author of the novels Like a River From Its Course (2017 Carol Award winner for Best Historical Fiction), A Silver Willow by the Shore (2020 recipient of the IPPY Award for Literary Fiction and an NIEA winner), and The Fabulous Freaks of Monsieur Beaumont. Kelli co-authored It's a Wonderful Christmas, a collection of holiday novellas inspired by favorite Christmas films. In 2022, Kelli's fourth novel, The Master Craftsman releases.</div><div style="font-style: italic;"><br /></div><div style="font-style: italic;">Kelli is also co-author of the nonfiction book Life Creative: Inspiration for Today's Renaissance Mom with Wendy Speake.</div><div style="font-style: italic;"><br /></div><div style="font-style: italic;">Kelli currently lives in Tampa, Florida with her husband and five children.</div><div style="font-style: italic;"><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book from the publisher. 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.”</span></div></div><div style="font-style: italic;"><br /></div></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-57566982969315188982022-05-03T07:30:00.001-05:002022-05-03T07:30:00.194-05:00Review: "Finding Love in Big Sky, Montana" by Angela Ruth Strong<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijY60n91GHsf96UBz_J2aRyKaBd35EldeU3vOA0m1K6B-jqogRJOFGN3ZtvGK6PGr12pY1beu_YZE3ty6PrMUwUAgqpSomqt13j6zQfR9yP8Vnsh0Bz-omht1GW1_IuWeieBAwY0_CPQtVLE6Y44pUEJq5xRG9pwzhPkIRQXd2OiSs9RhMrBGtqGQZlA/s960/Finding-Love-in-Big-Sky-Cover.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="622" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijY60n91GHsf96UBz_J2aRyKaBd35EldeU3vOA0m1K6B-jqogRJOFGN3ZtvGK6PGr12pY1beu_YZE3ty6PrMUwUAgqpSomqt13j6zQfR9yP8Vnsh0Bz-omht1GW1_IuWeieBAwY0_CPQtVLE6Y44pUEJq5xRG9pwzhPkIRQXd2OiSs9RhMrBGtqGQZlA/w259-h400/Finding-Love-in-Big-Sky-Cover.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />Nothing makes me want to read a book more than hearing it has been or will be made into a movie! <i>Finding Love in Big Sky</i> has already been filmed, and I'm eagerly awaiting news of when and where to watch it. In the meantime, I thought I should read the book.<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i><b>Bright Star Ranch led him to her–but will he stay?</b></i></p><p><i>Josh Lake is forced to head home for the holidays after he’s suspended from his job in the city, but running into Paisley Sheridan could be exactly what he needed. Not only does she board him at her ranch in exchange for his advertising expertise, but spending the Christmas season with her in Big Sky, Montana, brings more joy than he’s felt in a long while. Is he willing to give up the lavish lifestyle he’s worked for in exchange for the gift of love?</i></p><p><i>The last thing Paisley wants for Christmas is to spend time with Josh Lake—the guy who broke her heart in high school—but until her bank loan goes through, she has to take all the free help she can get. Unfortunately, Josh seems to want back in her life again, and the town’s quirky coffee shop owners don’t help by hanging mistletoe at every opportunity. Will Paisley succeed in driving him away, or will she find the healing needed to have hope for a future together?</i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG1gxLJKheD9y8QL47ei4Lo9_NIUC-VJxnf0l3ectzmkQSMmOdIoliK7xifa2RP9LG8EIl_Qot9QMti33DC3MVwyAfORpWDyaCR4rYgJJ0Bu984bXtCF83fD3MyCqVKwiXIoiDRPu2ZRlmqIYK5G_M7tFwYyNfLr5TmbcCzj5JhB7_bZ4YPKAREfivKQ/s851/Finding-Love-Montana.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="851" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG1gxLJKheD9y8QL47ei4Lo9_NIUC-VJxnf0l3ectzmkQSMmOdIoliK7xifa2RP9LG8EIl_Qot9QMti33DC3MVwyAfORpWDyaCR4rYgJJ0Bu984bXtCF83fD3MyCqVKwiXIoiDRPu2ZRlmqIYK5G_M7tFwYyNfLr5TmbcCzj5JhB7_bZ4YPKAREfivKQ/w640-h237/Finding-Love-Montana.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><b>Genre:</b> Sweet romance/western<br /><b>Release Date: </b>September 2016<p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>Finding Love in Big Sky, Montana</i> is a sweet second-chance romance set during the Christmas season. Paisley and Josh knew each other as teens but lost touch after high school. When he turns up in Big Sky just before Christmas, he and Paisley reconnect. As Josh helps Paisley on her ranch in return for a temporary place to stay, they get closer, and their romance is both sweet and humorous. </p><p>While the novel is, of course, mainly a love story, the side characters really shine. I especially loved Dot and Annabel, two elderly best friends who run Big Sky's coffee shop. (If you've ever seen the wonderful Hallmark Christmas movie <i>Matchmaker Santa</i>, Dot and Annabel may seem familiar!) And then there's Sam, Josh's brother, who definitely deserves his own love story. (Apparently he got it in the next book in the series!)</p><p>I loved the romance. I loved the characters. But I did feel that the book went on maybe slightly too long - there are so. many. conflicts: disease, money trouble (for both main characters), domestic abuse, work conflicts. It's a lot for one book to hold, and I did find myself skimming/speed reading as I reached the last quarter of the book. Overall, though, I did enjoy the story, and I'm finding I'm a big fan of Angela Ruth Strong's writing style. I'm glad I read the book. Now bring on the movie! <b>4 stars.</b></p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3upslUJ" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></p><p><i>Read my review of Strong's</i> Christmas Ella <i>(in the Once Upon a Christmas collection, <a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2019/10/review-once-upon-christmas-by-andrea.html#more">4 stars</a>) and </i>Husband Auditions <i>(<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2021/09/review-husband-auditions-by-angela-ruth.html#more" target="_blank">5 stars</a>).</i></p><p><i>Follow the blog tour:</i><br /><a href="http://deana0326.blogspot.com/">Texas Book-aholic</a>, April 27<br /><a href="http://www.iluvthebooks.com/2022/01/review-finding-love-in-big-sky-montana.html">I luv the books</a>, April 27<br /><a href="http://amandanicolle.blogspot.com/?m=1">Inklings and notions</a>, April 28<br /><a href="https://thesacredline.com/">The Sacred Line</a>, April 28<br /><a href="https://debbieloseanything.blogspot.com/">Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations</a>, April 29<br /><a href="http://www.forhimandmyfamily.com/">For Him and My Family</a>, April 30<br /><a href="https://rebekahreadslit.blogspot.com/?m=1">Rebekah Reads</a>, April 30<br /><a href="https://debs-bookreview.blogspot.com/">deb’s Book Review</a>, May 1<br /><a href="http://www.amybooksy.blogspot.com/">Locks, Hooks and Books</a>, May 2<br /><a href="https://ashleyscleanbookreviews.blogspot.com/">Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews</a>, May 3<br /><a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/">Christian Chick’s Thoughts</a>, May 3<br /><a href="http://becauseisaidsomyadventuresinparenting.blogspot.com/">Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting</a>, May 4<br /><a href="https://vickysluitercom.wordpress.com/book-tours/">Vicky Sluiter</a>, May 4<br /><a href="https://bizwingsblog.blogspot.com/">Bizwings Blog</a>, May 5<br /><a href="https://melissawardwell.com/category/backporch/">Back Porch Reads</a>, May 5<br /><a href="https://truthandgracehomeschoolacademy.wordpress.com/">Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy</a>, May 6<br /><a href="http://familymgrkendra.blogspot.com/">Happily Managing a Household of Boys</a>, May 7<br /><a href="http://www.miriamjacob.wordpress.com/">Miriam Jacob</a>, May 7<br /><a href="http://storiesbygina.wordpress.com/">Gina Holder, Author and Blogger</a>, May 8 (Author Interview)<br /><a href="https://www.facebook.com/mary.a.hake/">Mary Hake</a>, May 8<br /><a href="https://blossomsandblessings.blogspot.com/">Blossoms and Blessings</a>, May 9<br /><a href="http://www.abakersperspective.com/">A Baker’s Perspective</a>, May 9<br /><a href="http://www.simpleharvestreads.com/">Simple Harvest Reads</a>, May 10 (Guest Review from Donna Cline)</p><p><i>Enter the Giveaway:</i><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWq44yuTG89bezswd3vSy8wZB9F9jN8odAU8Wg5oEri-6fBwvyPb-4BdOUMT0o7fTTU3OBPSDMhKMERzU2V3kcII7q77N4liCOAfe2h3GGTTfVsRmyXlnulBTyf-uH_z1J0cXXHIocXdPPjraIUR-xz05rQBmBW1JGadLGw95X6ANRYRt87GUd4n8MpQ/s475/6da7b43f-86de-4c78-a777-666166f2f274.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="475" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWq44yuTG89bezswd3vSy8wZB9F9jN8odAU8Wg5oEri-6fBwvyPb-4BdOUMT0o7fTTU3OBPSDMhKMERzU2V3kcII7q77N4liCOAfe2h3GGTTfVsRmyXlnulBTyf-uH_z1J0cXXHIocXdPPjraIUR-xz05rQBmBW1JGadLGw95X6ANRYRt87GUd4n8MpQ/s320/6da7b43f-86de-4c78-a777-666166f2f274.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">To celebrate her tour, Angela is giving away the grand prize package of a movie package with a $25 gift certificate to the movies, popcorn, popcorn bowl, and an autographed copy of Finding Love in Big Sky, including author notes in the margins!!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p style="text-align: left;"><b>Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.<br /></b><br /><a href="https://promosimple.com/ps/1d0b4/finding-love-in-big-sky-montana-celebration-tour-giveaway">https://promosimple.com/ps/1d0b4/finding-love-in-big-sky-montana-celebration-tour-giveaway</a></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div style="text-align: left;"><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2wpIXp2_VoF61zcMpaj6rem965iMm0LtlYOwfJupViwieex4N1QgfuPrSkCXqrHrGDDrjPG6EOGMAMPmHctqFA2fEEJyAga4HyPW_OELCQqeRsMbTR0pvLbwhQ59QjcIOLdp7M3D6pQYuz5GXp1o3YM4ErkJO3kIARn7yktrSZx_Hgte7gkcSCjbyVg/s1024/Angela-Ruth-Strong-Headshot-2-717x1024.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="717" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2wpIXp2_VoF61zcMpaj6rem965iMm0LtlYOwfJupViwieex4N1QgfuPrSkCXqrHrGDDrjPG6EOGMAMPmHctqFA2fEEJyAga4HyPW_OELCQqeRsMbTR0pvLbwhQ59QjcIOLdp7M3D6pQYuz5GXp1o3YM4ErkJO3kIARn7yktrSZx_Hgte7gkcSCjbyVg/s320/Angela-Ruth-Strong-Headshot-2-717x1024.jpg" width="224" /></a></div><br /><i><b>Angela Ruth Strong</b> sold her first Christian romance novel in 2009 then quit writing romance when her husband left her. Twelve years later, God has shown her the true meaning of love, and there’s nothing else she’d rather write about. Her books have since earned TOP PICK in Romantic Times, won the Cascade Award, and been Amazon best-sellers. Her book </i>Finding Love in Big Sky<i> filmed on location in Montana and will air in spring of 2022. She also writes non-fiction for SpiritLed Woman. To help aspiring authors, she started IDAhope Writers where she lives in Idaho, and she teaches as an expert online at WRITE THAT BOOK.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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."</span></div></div></div></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-29029784587900707012022-05-02T07:00:00.001-05:002022-05-02T07:00:00.216-05:00Review: "The Murder of Mr. Wickham" by Claudia Gray<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheSbbdh9w8GdJBcUBZhLc3CbKSMpaIuNdqZ-c97b-yCsMufsRibDs3NV97UMZ1pGTe7tNj7zk34gxKN6g_c6A_fYS3Zma9EWdDiEFekfogRa5vnnAnQz6-7-LDCzoLDtzTqWDEzF-CMpXq0qkuOTZXIUkFaBhE5dZ3LRtkvbyCdac0Hc4alZ7oJCc7eA/s2400/The%20Murder%20of%20Mr.%20Wickham%20by%20Clsudia%20Grat%202022.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="1556" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheSbbdh9w8GdJBcUBZhLc3CbKSMpaIuNdqZ-c97b-yCsMufsRibDs3NV97UMZ1pGTe7tNj7zk34gxKN6g_c6A_fYS3Zma9EWdDiEFekfogRa5vnnAnQz6-7-LDCzoLDtzTqWDEzF-CMpXq0qkuOTZXIUkFaBhE5dZ3LRtkvbyCdac0Hc4alZ7oJCc7eA/w259-h400/The%20Murder%20of%20Mr.%20Wickham%20by%20Clsudia%20Grat%202022.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />I <i>love</i> all things Jane Austen, and I am by no means a purist - I will consume anything and everything that could be considered Austen-adjacent. So when I first heard about <i>The Murder of Mr. Wickham</i>, I didn't hesitate to sign up for the blog tour ... without even reading the synopsis first! That turned out to be a fine decision, as this book is simply delightful!<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i><b>A summer house party turns into a thrilling whodunit when Jane Austen's Mr. Wickham—one of literature’s most notorious villains—meets a sudden and suspicious end in this brilliantly imagined mystery featuring Austen’s leading literary characters.</b></i></p><p><i>The happily married Mr. Knightley and Emma are throwing a party at their country estate, bringing together distant relatives and new acquaintances—characters beloved by Jane Austen fans. Definitely not invited is Mr. Wickham, whose latest financial scheme has netted him an even broader array of enemies. As tempers flare and secrets are revealed, it’s clear that everyone would be happier if Mr. Wickham got his comeuppance. Yet they’re all shocked when Wickham turns up murdered—except, of course, for the killer hidden in their midst.</i></p><p><i></i></p><p><i>Nearly everyone at the house party is a suspect, so it falls to the party’s two youngest guests to solve the mystery: Juliet Tilney, the smart and resourceful daughter of Catherine and Henry, eager for adventure beyond Northanger Abbey; and Jonathan Darcy, the Darcys’ eldest son, whose adherence to propriety makes his father seem almost relaxed. In this tantalizing fusion of Austen and Christie, from New York Times bestselling author Claudia Gray, the unlikely pair must put aside their own poor first impressions and uncover the guilty party—before an innocent person is sentenced to hang. </i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqeiKdIiX8BwpiesOjebl6dUCIjFgkDuvhe1yWLfjDIn_XjFG0y5tonuxF1Dbs023Yf5KEsfXgPDjH8DWHCC9m_Nrm8m_hlRAabVhcScPZZFrcinnA7JlDCWcqUbE4bYa5RIok_XaRLZhUogrCVoq3ir5evQNTyYxyyKLCjkerkB8qYpWNAZ0WBfXU_A/s1200/The%20Murder%20of%20Mr.%20Wickham%20Twitter%20Book%20Tour%20Announcement%20.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1200" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqeiKdIiX8BwpiesOjebl6dUCIjFgkDuvhe1yWLfjDIn_XjFG0y5tonuxF1Dbs023Yf5KEsfXgPDjH8DWHCC9m_Nrm8m_hlRAabVhcScPZZFrcinnA7JlDCWcqUbE4bYa5RIok_XaRLZhUogrCVoq3ir5evQNTyYxyyKLCjkerkB8qYpWNAZ0WBfXU_A/w400-h225/The%20Murder%20of%20Mr.%20Wickham%20Twitter%20Book%20Tour%20Announcement%20.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><b>Genre:</b> Historical Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Austenesque<br /><b>Publisher:</b> Vintage (May 3, 2022)<p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>The Murder of Mr. Wickham</i> finds characters from several Austen novels gathered at a house party at Knightley & Emma's house: Darcy & Elizabeth (<i>Pride & Prejudice</i>), Colonel Brandon & Marianne (<i>Sense & Sensibility</i>), Fanny & Edmund Bertram (<i>Mansfield Park</i>), and Captain Wentworth & Anne (<i>Persuasion</i>). Also in attendance are the Darcys' eldest son Jonathan and Henry & Catherine Tilney (<i>Northanger Abbey</i>)'s daughter Juliet. When the villainous Wickham shows up - and is shortly, thereafter, murdered - Jonathan and Juliet work together to uncover which member of the house party committed murder.</p><p>I loved this story so much! Not only is it fun to check back in with beloved - and not so beloved - Austen characters, but the mystery is well plotted and quite intriguing! I thought Claudia Gray did a wonderful job of staying true to the characters while bringing out their weaknesses that could, potentially, cause them to commit murder. Everyone, save Juliet, had a motive; Jonathan's alibi cleared him immediately, but all of the other guests could have done it. I can't say anything more without divulging some secrets best to be discovered by the reader, but just trust me when I say that the mystery unfolds in an intriguing manner and comes to a satisfactory resolution. I sincerely hope Gray has more Austen-esque novels in her, as I would dearly love to revisit Jonathan and Juliet again! <b>5 stars.</b></p><p>Now for the fun part ... As someone who has watched practically every Austen movie ever made, I found myself picturing particular actors and sometimes mixing-and-matching from different versions! (I realize that some of these actors have played multiple roles in the Austen-verse ... maybe that's why my brain shifted some of the roles around between versions! For example, Jonny Lee Miller has played both Knightley and Edmund Bertram, and the Edmund I pictured has also played Mr. Elton!)</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Darcy (Colin Firth, 1995) & Elizabeth (Jennifer Ehle, 1995), Wickham (Adrian Lukis, 1995)</li><li>Knightley (Jonny Lee Miller, 2009) & Emma (Romola Garai, 2009), Frank Churchill (Rupert Evans, 2009), Mr. Elton (Jeremy Sisto, 1995 - yes, from <i>Clueless</i>!)</li><li>Colonel Brandon (Alan Rickman, 1995) & Marianne (Charity Wakefield, 2008)</li><li>Edmund (Blake Ritson, 2007) & Fanny (Frances O'Connor, 1999)</li><li>Wentworth (Ciarán Hinds, 1995) & Anne (Sally Hawkins, 2007)</li><li>Juliet - obviously not in any of the movies, but I pictured her as her mother, Catherine (Felicity Jones, 2007)</li><li>Jonathan - I had absolutely no mental picture of this man. But then, I rarely picture characters as I read! Gray's versions of these characters were just so spot-on that I couldn't help but picture (and hear) the actors.</li></ul><p></p><p><i>Content note:</i> While nothing is explicitly mentioned, the mechanics of a sexual act are pondered a few times. Any curses are noted in the way they used to be - with dashes between the beginning and ending letters.</p><p><i>Buy the book: </i><a href="https://amzn.to/3L0pfNV">AMAZON</a> | <a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-murder-of-mr-wickham-claudia-gray/1140329241?ean=9780593313817">BARNES & NOBLE</a> | <a href="https://www.bookdepository.com/Murder-Mr-Wickham-Claudia-Gray/9780593313817?ref=grid-view&qid=1650393063428&sr=1-1">BOOK DEPOSITORY</a> | <a href="https://bookshop.org/books/the-murder-of-mr-wickham/9780593313817">BOOKSHOP</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55285135-the-murder-of-mr-wickham">GOODREADS</a> | <a href="https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-murder-of-mr-wickham-by-claudia-gray">BOOKBUB</a></p><p><i><b></b></i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhys3l_Mfs74kYJBzrYLyrfTPYKL9OOfE6qPFBrEzd4ltWyXFddDrxrjCeq5rDU7Ma7iti5sE2RWFCUgsKmOYS2FzrOmxIa-KfgSS_r6eIxLrsn0UQcxScjvN6znvlDnAJ6zUrsIix4_UiXkGwW-ACJvI6ufQEgXCf-nRPxgav9zldUTg1KaEdKQ68R5w/s750/Claudia%20Gray%20headshot%202022.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhys3l_Mfs74kYJBzrYLyrfTPYKL9OOfE6qPFBrEzd4ltWyXFddDrxrjCeq5rDU7Ma7iti5sE2RWFCUgsKmOYS2FzrOmxIa-KfgSS_r6eIxLrsn0UQcxScjvN6znvlDnAJ6zUrsIix4_UiXkGwW-ACJvI6ufQEgXCf-nRPxgav9zldUTg1KaEdKQ68R5w/s320/Claudia%20Gray%20headshot%202022.jpg" width="213" /></a></b></i></div><i><b><br />Claudia Gray</b> is the pseudonym of Amy Vincent. She is the writer of multiple young adult novels, including the Evernight series, the Firebird trilogy, and the Constellation trilogy. In addition, she’s written several Star Wars novels, such as Lost Stars and Bloodline. She makes her home in New Orleans with her husband Paul and assorted small dogs. </i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.claudiagray.com/">WEBSITE</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/claudiagray">TWITTER</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/authorclaudiagray">FACEBOOK</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/claudia_gray/">INSTAGRAM</a> | <a href="https://www.bookbub.com/authors/claudia-gray">BOOKBUB</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1192311.Claudia_Gray?from_search=true&from_srp=true">GOODREADS</a><p></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to leave a positive review, and the opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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.</span></p>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-71082536051141543252022-05-01T20:19:00.000-05:002022-05-01T20:19:02.974-05:00Anticipated May Releases<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4y4LCV1x4ayaUt_y4BQm1De89-5RS5HZi42NmTGgQzBJpJeb82M-YorkOOL6HGKbLPGFtZtOrDerd0RQkhjR0yi0nntazKMqx7TLCWxUbawHUkb0YT3MDoHRWAU7oZgOszQpClvdLgHzdd3G7mfNfGV9XkEBVtahpQloV8hrNnYGu9t33t7X6yubNpg/s2240/Pink%20Mother's%20Day%20Blog%20Banner.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1260" data-original-width="2240" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4y4LCV1x4ayaUt_y4BQm1De89-5RS5HZi42NmTGgQzBJpJeb82M-YorkOOL6HGKbLPGFtZtOrDerd0RQkhjR0yi0nntazKMqx7TLCWxUbawHUkb0YT3MDoHRWAU7oZgOszQpClvdLgHzdd3G7mfNfGV9XkEBVtahpQloV8hrNnYGu9t33t7X6yubNpg/w640-h360/Pink%20Mother's%20Day%20Blog%20Banner.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />May is shaping up to be a wonderful month for new releases! I've already read one of these, and there are many more I'm looking forward to!<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>The Murder of Mr. Wickham </i>by Claudia Gray</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTgRtWKLskdmOY_4T_5yPpudHjyU2QqMEqOXDcTzGEsICivUCk_I9iOJR_O2v5eIkxyuFxP08hqNcbdgHUGMPI-Eob-QZ7pGc4p8aeUEtPnQp6DgqlKWoNOTG9wW-wWwkfhnpPlh2dX2ha23bcCOaK8ItPbrogim4xyaQFfnBKkZGvJe5Pv-dlbhKC8w/s2400/The%20Murder%20of%20Mr.%20Wickham%20by%20Clsudia%20Grat%202022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="1556" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTgRtWKLskdmOY_4T_5yPpudHjyU2QqMEqOXDcTzGEsICivUCk_I9iOJR_O2v5eIkxyuFxP08hqNcbdgHUGMPI-Eob-QZ7pGc4p8aeUEtPnQp6DgqlKWoNOTG9wW-wWwkfhnpPlh2dX2ha23bcCOaK8ItPbrogim4xyaQFfnBKkZGvJe5Pv-dlbhKC8w/w259-h400/The%20Murder%20of%20Mr.%20Wickham%20by%20Clsudia%20Grat%202022.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />Release date: May 3, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Vintage</div><div><a href="https://amzn.to/373WOzU" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy on Amazon</a> (ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>I read an ARC of this book while I was on vacation in April. </i><i><b>I actually dreamed about it</b>; I was that involved in the story! This gets a solid 5 stars from me, and I dearly hope Gray writes a sequel! My review will post tomorrow, so be sure to check back.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><div><b>A summer house party turns into a thrilling whodunit when Jane Austen's Mr. Wickham—one of literature’s most notorious villains—meets a sudden and suspicious end in this brilliantly imagined mystery featuring Austen’s leading literary characters.</b></div><div><br /></div><div>The happily married Mr. Knightley and Emma are throwing a party at their country estate, bringing together distant relatives and new acquaintances—characters beloved by Jane Austen fans. Definitely not invited is Mr. Wickham, whose latest financial scheme has netted him an even broader array of enemies. As tempers flare and secrets are revealed, it’s clear that everyone would be happier if Mr. Wickham got his comeuppance. Yet they’re all shocked when Wickham turns up murdered—except, of course, for the killer hidden in their midst.</div><div><br /></div><div>Nearly everyone at the house party is a suspect, so it falls to the party’s two youngest guests to solve the mystery: Juliet Tilney, the smart and resourceful daughter of Catherine and Henry, eager for adventure beyond Northanger Abbey; and Jonathan Darcy, the Darcys’ eldest son, whose adherence to propriety makes his father seem almost relaxed. In this tantalizing fusion of Austen and Christie, from New York Times bestselling author Claudia Gray, the unlikely pair must put aside their own poor first impressions and uncover the guilty party—before an innocent person is sentenced to hang. </div><div style="font-style: italic;"><br /></div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>Turn to Me </i>by Becky Wade</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWHqy16eIGot_WNroriaqe8v0Iv9-aQcs7JG2iVPHQOYLJt6zt8GxQSs0YIr8RJlsept5LzN3G7tOwyjecrLyPQk0ioHfJRvh2ZH3wx8UjgW3ZUOVkW00G3cdBJdjDwIz6WhfFI5JHGYla65YAv7tOQDab9AE5T1Sfclpqy9VQQniYFESz_QbQN8x61Q/s500/59788607.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="324" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWHqy16eIGot_WNroriaqe8v0Iv9-aQcs7JG2iVPHQOYLJt6zt8GxQSs0YIr8RJlsept5LzN3G7tOwyjecrLyPQk0ioHfJRvh2ZH3wx8UjgW3ZUOVkW00G3cdBJdjDwIz6WhfFI5JHGYla65YAv7tOQDab9AE5T1Sfclpqy9VQQniYFESz_QbQN8x61Q/w259-h400/59788607.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />Release date: May 3, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Bethany House</div><div>Series: Misty River #3</div><div><a href="https://amzn.to/3ktULIv" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy on Amazon</a> (ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>A new Becky Wade book is always cause for celebration! I've been looking forward to Luke's story ever since the first Misty River book released. Look for my review on the 15th.</i></div><div><br /></div><div><div><b>His promise will cost him far more than he imagined.</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Guilt has defined Luke Dempsey's life, but it was self-destructiveness that landed him in prison. When his friend and fellow inmate lay dying shortly before Luke's release, the older man revealed he left a string of clues for his daughter, Finley, that will lead her to the treasure he's hidden. Worried that she won't be the only one pursuing the treasure, he gains Luke's promise to protect her until the end of her search.</div><div><br /></div><div>Spunky and idealistic, Finley Sutherland is the owner of an animal rescue center and a defender of lost causes. She accepts Luke's help on the treasure hunt while secretly planning to help him in return--by coaxing him to embrace the forgiveness he's long denied himself.</div><div><br /></div><div>As they draw closer to the final clue, their reasons for resisting each other begin to crumble, and Luke realizes his promise will push him to the limit in more ways than one. He'll do his best to shield Finley from unseen threats, but who's going to shield him from losing his heart?</div></div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>When the Day Comes</i> by Gabrielle Meyer</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu-gCLrVZscGi01wYOJ9R3gxnB7xUiP7TF6cW-wXlJOjr1hur4TkR3RkD66nrAt42q6_pgYQg251wmS2kaS4US55OoUMfYCEzUVzUB7AGWTgvJqF5b8YsjFe3ON21jYfdCEcfcNCGpA8LKA3HTCJaACLpuYTse90y7feR88FsPMW0HBMeACvQ0QG-oFw/s400/59627675.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="259" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu-gCLrVZscGi01wYOJ9R3gxnB7xUiP7TF6cW-wXlJOjr1hur4TkR3RkD66nrAt42q6_pgYQg251wmS2kaS4US55OoUMfYCEzUVzUB7AGWTgvJqF5b8YsjFe3ON21jYfdCEcfcNCGpA8LKA3HTCJaACLpuYTse90y7feR88FsPMW0HBMeACvQ0QG-oFw/w259-h400/59627675.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />Release date: May 3, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Bethany House</div><div>Series: Timeless #1</div><div><a href="https://amzn.to/3OQ6sHy" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy on Amazon</a> (ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>If you've been around here very long, you know I'm a complete sucker for all things time travel ... so as soon as I heard about this book, it went onto my TBR. My copy should be making its way to me at this moment!</i></div><div><br /></div><div><div><b>How will she choose, knowing all she must sacrifice?</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Libby has been given a powerful gift: to live one life in 1774 Colonial Williamsburg and the other in 1914 Gilded Age New York City. When she falls asleep in one life, she wakes up in the other. While she's the same person at her core in both times, she's leading two vastly different lives.</div><div><br /></div><div>In Colonial Williamsburg, Libby is a public printer for the House of Burgesses and the Royal Governor, trying to provide for her family and support the Patriot cause. The man she loves, Henry Montgomery, has his own secrets. As the revolution draws near, both their lives--and any hope of love--are put in jeopardy.</div><div><br /></div><div>Libby's life in 1914 New York is filled with wealth, drawing room conversations, and bachelors. But the only work she cares about--women's suffrage--is discouraged, and her mother is intent on marrying her off to an English marquess. The growing talk of war in Europe only complicates matters.</div><div><br /></div><div>But Libby knows she's not destined to live two lives forever. On her twenty-first birthday, she must choose one path and forfeit the other--but how can she choose when she has so much to lose in each life?</div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>Bloomsbury Girls</i> by Natalie Jenner</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia8hndkkSDp3F5Og1Q03ZTGwGHP4k9DwRjOmpSrABmmh-nzrUNmT0QpmIc-SLoaJoad5BoUl3uGqaxBcJe-YSRO2LW4Zdg2hBJ94jzC2fNYWPVpxJ_larCbEmVOl_gp0L656cY3oL5bfqI6jtm0b6FUTWlB5HrcSxaC8zmNvSj9vp_JxezbbY9XsmOWg/s2841/Bloomsbury%20Girls.%20Final%20Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2841" data-original-width="1868" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia8hndkkSDp3F5Og1Q03ZTGwGHP4k9DwRjOmpSrABmmh-nzrUNmT0QpmIc-SLoaJoad5BoUl3uGqaxBcJe-YSRO2LW4Zdg2hBJ94jzC2fNYWPVpxJ_larCbEmVOl_gp0L656cY3oL5bfqI6jtm0b6FUTWlB5HrcSxaC8zmNvSj9vp_JxezbbY9XsmOWg/w263-h400/Bloomsbury%20Girls.%20Final%20Cover.jpg" width="263" /></a></div><br />Release date: May 17, 2022</div><div>Publisher: St. Martin's Press</div><div><a href="https://amzn.to/3LzTfjX" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy on Amazon</a> (ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>I'm listening to the audiobook version of this right now, and I'm really enjoying it! Look for my review on the 21st.</i></div><div><br /></div><div><div><b>The internationally bestselling author of <i>The Jane Austen Society</i> returns with a compelling and heartwarming story of post-war London, a century-old bookstore, and three women determined to find their way in a fast-changing world.</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Bloomsbury Books is an old-fashioned new and rare book store that has persisted and resisted change for a hundred years, run by men and guided by the general manager's unbreakable fifty-one rules. But in 1950, the world is changing, especially the world of books and publishing, and at Bloomsbury Books, the girls in the shop have plans:</div><div><br /></div><div>Vivien Lowry: Single since her aristocratic fiancé was killed in action during World War II, the brilliant and stylish Vivien has a long list of grievances - most of them well justified and the biggest of which is Alec McDonough, the Head of Fiction.</div><div><br /></div><div>Grace Perkins: Married with two sons, she's been working to support the family following her husband's breakdown in the aftermath of the war. Torn between duty to her family and dreams of her own.</div><div><br /></div><div>Evie Stone: In the first class of female students from Cambridge permitted to earn a degree, Evie was denied an academic position in favor of her less accomplished male rival. Now she's working at Bloomsbury Books while she plans to remake her own future.</div><div><br /></div><div>As they interact with various literary figures of the time - Daphne Du Maurier, Ellen Doubleday, Sonia Blair (widow of George Orwell), Samuel Beckett, Peggy Guggenheim, and others - these three women with their complex web of relationships, goals and dreams are all working to plot out a future that is richer and more rewarding than anything society will allow. </div></div><div><br /></div><div><div><b>These books are just the tip of the iceberg - May has so many great releases! What are you looking forward to?</b></div><div><br /></div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received ARCs of some of these books for promotion/review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions are my own. Some of the links in this post 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."</span><br /></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-79941520690337120202022-04-30T19:45:00.001-05:002022-04-30T19:45:07.242-05:00Review: "The Mad Girls of New York" by Maya Rodale<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjZcWOr0Svs6HqChvisNgklAN-AJDCCSurkCj1XYM1sLjU3vr5m7H-_0emlePSJlHO_BtgZdjRYT_TysQjS8Y4S1VfFto249P8m9VEz4F1pfvj0o8nI1vbsWOs7jVkzvqNgWtcStRbBBA-8CpXbrsoHV8QsrEVdnqc4gO4GrFcNT4EGGSGVKBTgjKjpA/s383/cover239437-medium.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="255" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjZcWOr0Svs6HqChvisNgklAN-AJDCCSurkCj1XYM1sLjU3vr5m7H-_0emlePSJlHO_BtgZdjRYT_TysQjS8Y4S1VfFto249P8m9VEz4F1pfvj0o8nI1vbsWOs7jVkzvqNgWtcStRbBBA-8CpXbrsoHV8QsrEVdnqc4gO4GrFcNT4EGGSGVKBTgjKjpA/w266-h400/cover239437-medium.png" width="266" /></a></div><br />Do you remember learning about Nellie Bly in school? I do - very vaguely. (Let's be real ... high school was a long time ago!) While she struck me as incredibly brave, I don't know if I would've picked up a book about her ... except that this cover called out to me! I'm glad it did, because the story inside is great.<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>The year is 1887, and Nellie Bly is a young woman with a dream: to write for one of New York’s most respected newspapers. The editors on Newspaper Row are convinced that women are too emotional and delicate to report on the harshness of the city’s scandals—and Bly is on a mission to prove them wrong.</i></p><p><i>But how does a woman pave a path for herself in such a cut-throat and male-dominated industry? Nellie’s solution: by playing a part that only a woman can. Her pitch: she’ll go undercover as an admitted patient at Blackwell’s Island Insane Asylum for Women, a facility that has long been rumored to be a deplorable ruin where New York’s unwanted women are locked away and forgotten. Journalists are turned away at its doors. So it’s up to a female reporter who can play the part of a mad woman to expose the truth—and Nellie is just the woman to do it.</i></p><p><i>The </i>New York World<i> agrees to put Nellie’s acumen to the test. Nellie will have herself admitted, experience the horrors of Blackwell’s first-hand, and her editor will check her out of the facility in one week. But once inside, can she make it out and publish her findings before a (very attractive) rival journalist scoops her story?</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p>This fictionalized account of Nellie Bly's undercover reporting about an insane asylum is so ... fun? It seems strange to talk about such a serious subject in that way, but I really did enjoy every second I spent reading this novel! </p><p>The story starts with Nellie desperate to get a job with a New York newspaper. She soon comes up with the idea to get herself committed to Blackwell's, a women's insane asylum with a horrible reputation, and she convinces an editor that her story has merit. </p><p>Nellie's journey is fraught with danger - both physical and mental - as she seeks at first to gain information for her article but then quickly just fights to survive. The conditions she encounters are horrific, and the women she meets have stories that tear at her heart.</p><p>As this novel is based on a true story, I had no doubt that Nellie would make it out alive, but I still felt the tension and danger! I also finished the novel with a desire to learn more about the real Nellie. This is a fascinating story, and I'm so glad I read it. Also, just a heads up for anyone wondering, although the book description seems to tease a romance, this is not at all a romance novel. Nellie has a couple minor flirtations, but there's really no romantic storyline at all. <b>4-1/2 stars.</b></p><p><i>Content note: </i>There are a handful of mild swear words, as well as one instance of the f-word. Also, some of the descriptions of situations in the asylum are difficult to read but not at all explicit.</p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3vuTVBC" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i><b></b></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-To0W_I8LpBSa2zWPvVpddIlryeTnCGe56RQTELDiRz7qeR-wyio56Laoj7xEF0843RuK75PPn2TZWIstEC90M5WeNIEXjb4qVUZg_NiG1qbW-XlfG2QfRdzGb7qOW6WcCAOCHkhEl2vYVMTzmxWEIpn3IfjjJoeWMl9MWphZQSoku8m3RW4dx7dEeQ/s933/377744.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="933" data-original-width="622" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-To0W_I8LpBSa2zWPvVpddIlryeTnCGe56RQTELDiRz7qeR-wyio56Laoj7xEF0843RuK75PPn2TZWIstEC90M5WeNIEXjb4qVUZg_NiG1qbW-XlfG2QfRdzGb7qOW6WcCAOCHkhEl2vYVMTzmxWEIpn3IfjjJoeWMl9MWphZQSoku8m3RW4dx7dEeQ/s320/377744.jpg" width="213" /></a></b></i></div><i><b><br />Maya Rodale</b> is the best-selling and award-winning author of funny, feminist fiction including historical romance, YA and historical fiction. A champion of the romance genre and its readers, she is also the author of </i>Dangerous Books For Girls: The Bad Reputation of Romance Novels, Explained<i>. Maya reviews romance for NPR and has appeared in Bustle, Glamour, Shondaland, Buzzfeed, The Huffington Post and PBS. She began reading romance novels in college at her mother’s insistence and has never been allowed to forget it.</i><p></p><p><i>Sign up for her newsletter at <a href="http://www.mayarodale.com/newsletter">www.mayarodale.com/newsletter</a></i></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to leave a positive review, and the opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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.</span></p>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-5134356169157145542022-04-23T11:28:00.000-05:002022-04-23T11:28:47.150-05:00Review: "The Element of Love" by Mary Connealy<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMj1I8MOaulOwabJM-lYJjfyQ_g5WgMLpwyJSKSsMzA3MkDLNqHTN1NY9ppVL_luCC5xH2KTEvU3Ni7zkUD0d4RNtmjFzm7Dwzey9Z8VjbAMgacy02-qq51j9XYUxeVwhFWO8ltayWqTLSvRct1Kwdgkxogeu_kBoKzShBOLIh1bw9-fPlXznexP3xVA/s395/cover242604-medium.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="395" data-original-width="255" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMj1I8MOaulOwabJM-lYJjfyQ_g5WgMLpwyJSKSsMzA3MkDLNqHTN1NY9ppVL_luCC5xH2KTEvU3Ni7zkUD0d4RNtmjFzm7Dwzey9Z8VjbAMgacy02-qq51j9XYUxeVwhFWO8ltayWqTLSvRct1Kwdgkxogeu_kBoKzShBOLIh1bw9-fPlXznexP3xVA/w259-h400/cover242604-medium.png" width="259" /></a></div><br />Another lifetime ago, I really enjoyed reading Mary Connealy novels. (Seriously, according to this blog, it's been eight years since I've read one of her books.) When <i>The Element of Love</i> came up as a featured book for Bethany House bloggers, I decided it was time to read another Connealy book.<span><a name='more'></a></span><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p></p><p><i>With their sharp engineering minds, Laura Stiles and her two sisters have been able to deal with their mother's unfortunate choice in husband, until they discover his plans to marry each of them off to his lecherous friends. Now they must run away--far and fast--to find better matches to legally claim their portion of their father's lumber dynasty and seize control from their stepfather.</i></p><p><i>When Laura befriends a mission group heading to serve the poor in California during their escape, she quickly volunteers herself and her sisters to join their efforts. Despite the settlement being in miserable condition, the sisters are excited by the opportunity to put their skills to good use. Laura also sees potential in Caleb, the local minister, to help with gaining her inheritance. But when secrets buried in Caleb's past and in the land around them come to light, it'll take all the smarts the sisters have to keep trouble at bay.</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p>I finish this book with some seriously mixed feelings. It’s a quick, easy read, no doubt about it. I really enjoyed the story of three sisters escaping their evil stepfather and heading out into the world. Michelle, Jilly, and Laura are brilliant, and they have been specifically taught certain skills that will enable them to take over their father’s lumber business one day. Each girl will get 1/3 of the business upon her marriage or her 25th birthday, whichever comes first. But when their stepfather arranges marriages for them to evil men – men who will allow him to continue running the business – they hatch a plan to escape, find husbands they can control, and return to claim their inheritance.</p><p>The escape scene is frantic and fraught with danger, setting up what could be a thrilling adventure. Things slow down, though, as the sisters meet up with Parson Caleb Tillman and a group of missionaries heading for mining country to start a mission.</p><p>This book, while focusing on all three girls, is really youngest sister Laura’s story. While at first she sees Caleb as a means to an end – if she marries him, she can claim her 1/3 of the lumber business, thus wrenching control of at least a portion from her stepfather – she soon finds herself drawn to him and wanting to continue working with the people at the mission. Yet she also feels a sense of duty – she must help run the business, even if her heart desires something else. I really appreciated her journey as she tried to discern God’s will for her (after at first charging straight ahead!).</p><p>So why the mixed feelings about the book? I guess the stakes just didn’t seem high enough, even though, ostensibly, they were as high as they could be – the girls’ mother’s life was in jeopardy! Except it wasn’t really, which was made clear early on, and that lowered the suspense. Also, I guess I just expected the stepfather and his minions to be more of a threat; other than the girls’ fear of him, he didn’t factor much into the story.</p><p>Also, while I enjoyed Caleb and Laura as people, and I liked their conversations, I didn’t feel the connection between them. Same for Zane and Michelle, which is clearly where another book is headed. The pairing that intrigued me the most was Nick and Jilly, and they barely shared any space on the page in this novel!</p><p></p><p>All that said, I did enjoy <i>The Element of Love</i>, and I would be interested in continuing the series – especially when it comes time for Nick and Jilly’s story! <b>3 stars.</b></p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3KeSwDf" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).<br /><a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/search/label/mary%20connealy" target="_blank">Read my reviews of other Connealy novels.</a></i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwbu7p1NmW328os1BU291L_ZAHPtpffAteB3QOrDta8McU1iV-s8yaXGeOXizbM9NcZGdm8Zff7sSJoG8aIC8Zo7VAoEqiFEe6fMc8ylskqbqJohvxIcZgJlpQ6ux4VnXUukHUok4xG3LfH4KFkleqmqiXFRB4E4Ixv67Gnw_YmwAaiGPNm6sa2Sdjjw/s448/58306.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="448" data-original-width="320" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwbu7p1NmW328os1BU291L_ZAHPtpffAteB3QOrDta8McU1iV-s8yaXGeOXizbM9NcZGdm8Zff7sSJoG8aIC8Zo7VAoEqiFEe6fMc8ylskqbqJohvxIcZgJlpQ6ux4VnXUukHUok4xG3LfH4KFkleqmqiXFRB4E4Ixv67Gnw_YmwAaiGPNm6sa2Sdjjw/s320/58306.jpg" width="229" /></a></i></div><i><br /><b>Mary Connealy </b>writes romantic comedy with cowboys always with a strong suspense thread. She is a two time Carol Award winner, and a Rita, Christy and Inspirational Reader's Choice finalist.</i><p></p><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to leave a positive review, and the opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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.</span></div><div><br /></div></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-67148786156931028122022-04-22T07:00:00.002-05:002022-04-22T07:00:00.198-05:00Audiobook Review: "Her Country Gentleman" by Sian Ann Bessey, Sarah M. Eden, & Rebecca Connolly<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR0b9WLwu9GLa6aTi7MZXmU_7JgmOHQx7jwQJYUzH-QZApRYVbaF0UCK7cSczGry6U48J5ChPRdLkJAWxRnjoyXI3qFIjWQYbM8KnojMCE_Qhlq2JfcRG6lUthyDq0aBZcnx_3BC4MVLXsFDj5hJdvRah_FDTWFNCBQUwDJ2dDUYd9FPTUYMi2FJcjUA/s318/60563810._SX318_.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="318" data-original-width="318" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR0b9WLwu9GLa6aTi7MZXmU_7JgmOHQx7jwQJYUzH-QZApRYVbaF0UCK7cSczGry6U48J5ChPRdLkJAWxRnjoyXI3qFIjWQYbM8KnojMCE_Qhlq2JfcRG6lUthyDq0aBZcnx_3BC4MVLXsFDj5hJdvRah_FDTWFNCBQUwDJ2dDUYd9FPTUYMi2FJcjUA/w400-h400/60563810._SX318_.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />I've recently come to dearly love Regency romances ... but what of romances set in the Georgian Era? I'll admit I didn't even know if it came before or after Regency (turns out the Regency period comes at the end of the Georgian Era). <i>Her Country Gentleman</i> is a novella collection set during the era.<span><a name='more'></a></span><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p></p><p><i><b>London is not the only place to find love....</b></i></p><p><i>'Spring at Tribbley Hall'<br /></i><i>by Sian Ann Bessey</i></p><p><i>When Charlotte's grandmother invites her to accompany her to Norfolk, Charlotte jumps at the chance to visit the sea and escape the fuss surrounding her sister's wedding preparations in London. Lord William Cheston, on the other hand, is most unhappy when his mother informs him that her old friend and a granddaughter are coming to stay. Not only is it lambing season, but he's also dealing with the mysterious loss of several sheep. The last thing he needs is a child underfoot.</i></p><p><i>When Charlotte and William first meet, he does not realize that the lovely young lady is the granddaughter in question, and she assumes that the man dressed in work clothes in the barn is a servant. A dinner party at the house introduces Charlotte to some of the gentry living nearby but cannot compare to her experience the next evening, when she and William battle to save the life of a newborn lamb.</i></p><p><i>Soon afterward, Charlotte stumbles upon a clue to William's sheep's disappearance. And when her life is placed in jeopardy, William is forced to choose between saving Charlotte and catching the thief.</i></p><p><i>'Love of My Heart'<br /></i><i>by Sarah M. Eden</i></p><p><i>Cordelia Wakefield has never lived anywhere but London and is not overly happy when her family is forced to retrench to a small estate near Teviotbrae, Scotland. An ill-fated game of battledore and shuttlecock brings her face-to-racquet with Sebastian, who runs the home farm at nearby Teviot Castle. What begins as a clash of personalities, expectations, and preferences, soon leads to a friendship neither had expected.</i></p><p><i>As the magic of Teviotbrae weaves its spell, the possibility of something more than friendship begins to blossom. But what future is there for a lowly farmer and a London lady?</i></p><p><i>'Miss Smith Goes to Wiltshire'<br /></i><i>by Rebecca Connolly</i></p><p><i>Martha Smith wants to marry for love, and will not be persuaded otherwise. She is highly sought after in Society for her beauty and status, but refuses to consider any suitor whose only claim is that his prospects meet with her mother's approval. Her widowed mother has had enough of Martha's romantic sensibilities, and is sending her to stay with unfortunate cousins in Wiltshire to show her that marrying for love is a risk that is too great.</i></p><p><i>Benjamin Steele, Lord Hillier, is working on his new and dilapidated estate when he first catches sight of the striking Martha Smith. Becoming Lord Hillier has only brought him a house that needs significant repairs, tenant farms that had been abandoned, and only the money he'd already possessed. He wants meaning in his life, and he's more than willing to work for it. Though worlds apart in all else, on this point they can agree: a life of meaning would change everything.</i></p><p><i><b>From the publisher of the 'USA Today' best-selling number-one Amazon Timeless Romance Anthology series in regency romance.</b></i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>Her Country Gentleman</i> features three novellas set in the English countryside. One of the things I tend to dislike about novellas is that the romances often seem rushed. That does happen with all three of these stories, but it didn't blunt my enjoyment too much. I really enjoyed each novella pretty equally; they were all <b>4 stars</b> for me. I probably enjoyed <i>Spring at Tribbley Hall</i> the best, just because of the mistaken identity (always a favorite trope of mine!) and the slight mystery, but all were enjoyable. I also found the descriptions of fashion in <i>Miss Smith Goes to Wiltshire</i> to be fascinating; the fashions were definitely different in the Georgian Era than what we've come to know as Regency fashion. I look forward to more entries in this new Timeless Georgian Romance collection!</p><p>I listened to the audio version of this book, and narrator Kim Bretton did a fine job. However, her voice was just a bit <i>too</i> soothing, and I dozed off multiple times and then had to go back and figure out where I was. I think that, had I been listening while doing other chores rather than while lounging during vacation, I wouldn't have had that problem!</p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3v5RANz" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book or audiobook</a> (Amazon ad).</i></p><p><i></i></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook. I was not required to leave a positive review, and the opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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.</span></p>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-35904291792036156392022-04-14T16:35:00.003-05:002022-04-14T16:35:24.894-05:00What I'm Reading: January - April Mini Reviews<p>Hello, friends! I'm on vacation this week, so I'm finally catching up on some things I've neglected recently, like posting reviews! I have actually read more books than I've reviewed on the blog; I've just gotten <i>really</i> lazy about posting! Then I end up getting frustrated with myself when I want to remember what I thought of a book and can't find anything I've written ... so I'm trying to fix that now! <span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p>First up, my new Nichole Van obsession!</p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>Suffering the Scot </i>by Nichole Van</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizDO0nDoSs3yku3g_9QEwlwayssSJJDm-ssBloYqRhEUyNF3DukY5FmMmijrjrfEMx4U98LzgKjF5E_ksh6x6yiu_QB5Z6xDRWX1sNfQvR51lNHcIhcSs-LuUH8y_gdhZF9shAf1XnIDvaumnNiXG5_rlZHCtWSoSTqsOTxFzKXvcdHCBP-cQqW_gnmg/s475/45319756._SY475_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizDO0nDoSs3yku3g_9QEwlwayssSJJDm-ssBloYqRhEUyNF3DukY5FmMmijrjrfEMx4U98LzgKjF5E_ksh6x6yiu_QB5Z6xDRWX1sNfQvR51lNHcIhcSs-LuUH8y_gdhZF9shAf1XnIDvaumnNiXG5_rlZHCtWSoSTqsOTxFzKXvcdHCBP-cQqW_gnmg/w266-h400/45319756._SY475_.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br />This book marks my introduction to Nichole Van's writing, and as I finished, I knew I needed to immediately get my hands on the second book in the series! <i>Suffering the Scot</i> had me laughing out loud multiple times - which I definitely was not expecting! I also loved the romance - the connection between Andrew and Jane was palpable, and I ached for them to just kiss already :-) I loved every second I spent reading this book! <b>5 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3M3vXTx" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>Romancing the Rake</i> by Nichole Van</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE8UiS4q220-rzNVAreRM_peKVga2E9cvArVUN3Tb_fY0a-MACx16aOJwea5KrfVBwyXTRkWV41yk8y8ESnCtIgJi2q_1P3lMRwKEhbnPKZ8dPtcKdhdhE8GdOWSK4viPmUiXyMzUTuJya2qZ8AFYcuM0cARcNm4H5Lww_5fKAqPlXT6V2-zjn_S4OSA/s475/50714290._SY475_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE8UiS4q220-rzNVAreRM_peKVga2E9cvArVUN3Tb_fY0a-MACx16aOJwea5KrfVBwyXTRkWV41yk8y8ESnCtIgJi2q_1P3lMRwKEhbnPKZ8dPtcKdhdhE8GdOWSK4viPmUiXyMzUTuJya2qZ8AFYcuM0cARcNm4H5Lww_5fKAqPlXT6V2-zjn_S4OSA/w266-h400/50714290._SY475_.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br />I maybe didn't enjoy this book <i>quite</i> as much as the first book in the series, but it was still wonderful. I loved Rafe and Sophie's connection, and the mystery of Sophie's parentage and Rafe's father's distaste for her kept me flying through the pages. I'm eager to continue the series! <b>4 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3xuol8H" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><i>Love Practically </i>by Nichole Van</b></h3><div><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPKyfAWrXHrcYAZuokqUfk--hH43ODb8ZFFimbmgwX9_IQ2iZTzOOA-k4iiizjGORlBmXlf56tfSSIDdcVNF5MtHV3xKqPYeDmqKMRDGoUsLCJm33wVj4PE_R4gtO5sGJ8gJSGvmmU3m1YTgZXus1nqyS2h1w8y1iw7qhyrrOIC0CSd5R3YHucuJectg/s475/60112869._SY475_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPKyfAWrXHrcYAZuokqUfk--hH43ODb8ZFFimbmgwX9_IQ2iZTzOOA-k4iiizjGORlBmXlf56tfSSIDdcVNF5MtHV3xKqPYeDmqKMRDGoUsLCJm33wVj4PE_R4gtO5sGJ8gJSGvmmU3m1YTgZXus1nqyS2h1w8y1iw7qhyrrOIC0CSd5R3YHucuJectg/w268-h400/60112869._SY475_.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><br />Love Practically </i>was at the top of my March most anticipated reads list, and it turns out it belonged there, as this book is <i>wonderful</i>! Leah and Fox meet as young adults; this encounter brands itself on Leah and informs her choices going forward, while Fox moves on without giving Leah another thought. Twenty years later, Leah is stunned when Fox shows up and asks for her hand in a marriage of convenience. Watching these two fall in love - Leah with the man Fox really is, not her rose-colored image of him, and Fox with the woman he met and forgot - was simply delightful. I also cannot wait to continue this series, which will focus on Leah's brothers. <b>5 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3M6O4bb" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>Let It Be Me</i> by Becky Wade</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDSYVrpnmz15Nhr4EX0-90MXPW09bdT2KFEe27I8RRZ8r887lRKBIlTmu0hBjvKqlm7CAwpscTTpoqvBOmp2NPrF-TKmxICfRXjLfNXGQIqW1DF8wejxObSpok6R6AaqW6Y7SHOn7VOvEQPv6KVzOz-rG_j9ObZRKKGgvc0UvA5GfgOqU-rUrRtZOtMg/s750/53483006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="486" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDSYVrpnmz15Nhr4EX0-90MXPW09bdT2KFEe27I8RRZ8r887lRKBIlTmu0hBjvKqlm7CAwpscTTpoqvBOmp2NPrF-TKmxICfRXjLfNXGQIqW1DF8wejxObSpok6R6AaqW6Y7SHOn7VOvEQPv6KVzOz-rG_j9ObZRKKGgvc0UvA5GfgOqU-rUrRtZOtMg/w259-h400/53483006.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />I've come to expect excellence from Becky Wade books, and <i>Let It Be Me</i> is no exception! It has a couple with chemistry (in spades), an intriguing mystery (that took a turn I 100% did not anticipate), and a faith thread that feels authentic. This is one of those stories best uncovered for oneself; so much of what I want to say would be spoilery! But trust me when I say that this is a book that is absolutely worth your time. <b>5 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3uHasly" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>A Good Girl's Guide to Murder </i>by Holly Jackson</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgulGrDqXHkAG3AKcs6IN9tDR57V-tHJVnkA8vaw74yNIhZa-yQBzxn-X0uCdanzw4tucJ6RsLIb2nz7-3G2QIjnL3EGUrZlKP4utqQSlJgqMKReVQ_3Ioojc_1uS8Bqyfg63-DD-UaBaFMYeifdQtZTuzzv6VDw7KcMjylLVc_RjDrPO_0Pb8qU4JFlg/s400/55371143.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="265" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgulGrDqXHkAG3AKcs6IN9tDR57V-tHJVnkA8vaw74yNIhZa-yQBzxn-X0uCdanzw4tucJ6RsLIb2nz7-3G2QIjnL3EGUrZlKP4utqQSlJgqMKReVQ_3Ioojc_1uS8Bqyfg63-DD-UaBaFMYeifdQtZTuzzv6VDw7KcMjylLVc_RjDrPO_0Pb8qU4JFlg/w265-h400/55371143.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><br />I listened to the audiobook version, which is what I would absolutely recommend - it definitely gives it a <i>Serial</i> vibe. (Does anyone even remember <i>Serial</i>? Whatever happened to Adnan? Is he still in prison?) The story <i>also</i> has a serial vibe, as it's about a high school girl trying to solve the 5-year-old murder of teenager Andie Bell, whose boyfriend was blamed for the crime. Some aspects of the book are cliched and convenient, but the story is completely fascinating, and I basically couldn't stop listening! <b>4 stars.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><i>Content warning: Swearing, talk of sexual assault and drug use, description of murder</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3EcnMBH" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in this post 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."</span></div><div style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></div></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-42148836163642091422022-04-03T11:43:00.001-05:002022-04-03T11:44:02.885-05:00Anticipated April Releases<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCuq4Fp2puqd1Jl8ruc0xZlAa0Tf33eNJZTJJn86y7Ntcpuo0LCEVYh-TvzOYo3oJPM9LZ_mY_C9ult1P6VTWn0Nu_NLWJe_ETzwU0PgAxGLLFB-aKLHneiwuS4G_BFe8g26ua-gd5o-joAhI8ET46_LgCUQe6EBFVqPYxKFBJRa2EdS2yCCaur-sySw/s2240/Pink%20Mother's%20Day%20Blog%20Banner.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1260" data-original-width="2240" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCuq4Fp2puqd1Jl8ruc0xZlAa0Tf33eNJZTJJn86y7Ntcpuo0LCEVYh-TvzOYo3oJPM9LZ_mY_C9ult1P6VTWn0Nu_NLWJe_ETzwU0PgAxGLLFB-aKLHneiwuS4G_BFe8g26ua-gd5o-joAhI8ET46_LgCUQe6EBFVqPYxKFBJRa2EdS2yCCaur-sySw/w640-h360/Pink%20Mother's%20Day%20Blog%20Banner.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />After waiting 2/3 of the way through March before posting my anticipated March releases, I was determined to do better. So here you go on April 3!<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><p>As always, I can't vouch for the "spice" level - you can assume that anything put out by a Christian publisher will be low on the spice meter, but beyond that, you may want to do more research. If/when I get around to reading and reviewing these, I'll let you know of any potential content issues. </p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>All That It Takes</i> by Nicole Deese</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3txTa0CavWLRETii-VvYPSpUjSpoUYoK-E8OF9RLdkvit2nZxjqR6QO5NuITPUUHFL3Pl7DsNkEgA01DVPs1e_Jx6r4oMuINIKm_9kORVWk1Q3eVojwd6RjV7Az-1FWFOFV3PBl17UJQ-efeYoxpIQup-hj1_0qlOSTQVcuQr9jUKnvzz5wSNnBgPqg/s394/cover242605-medium.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="255" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3txTa0CavWLRETii-VvYPSpUjSpoUYoK-E8OF9RLdkvit2nZxjqR6QO5NuITPUUHFL3Pl7DsNkEgA01DVPs1e_Jx6r4oMuINIKm_9kORVWk1Q3eVojwd6RjV7Az-1FWFOFV3PBl17UJQ-efeYoxpIQup-hj1_0qlOSTQVcuQr9jUKnvzz5wSNnBgPqg/w259-h400/cover242605-medium.png" width="259" /></a></div><br />Release date: April 5, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Bethany House</div><div>Buy on <a href="https://amzn.to/3uJXWjW" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon </a>(ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Nicole Deese's </i>Before I Called You Mine <i>was one of my favorite books of 2020 (<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2020/05/review-before-i-called-you-mine-by.html" target="_blank">my review</a>), so I'm really eager to read this new novel! My copy arrived last week (thanks to the publisher for sending me a review copy!), and I'm ready to dive in.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><div>When the ever-cautious Val Locklier moves cross-country with her son for a secure job, everything she'd planned unravels within the first week. After Val reluctantly agrees to rent an apartment from her best friend's brother, an unexpected chance at an elite filmmakers' mentorship ignites fresh hope for a dream career. But as Val's community begins to expand, so do her insecurities, especially those heightened by her growing attraction to a certain friendly landlord. </div><div><br /></div><div>Pastor Miles McKenzie returns home from a short-term mission trip to discover that not only does he have an intriguing new tenant living upstairs, he's also been reassigned to a local ministry on life support. Disillusioned and restless, he distracts himself by throwing his energy into a host of new projects--not the least of which is pursuing Val--without stopping to consider the future. </div><div><br /></div><div>As Val struggles to stop hiding behind the camera and Miles wrestles with shattered expectations, they'll find that authentic love and sacrifice must go hand in hand.</div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>The No-Show</i> by Beth O'Leary</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLl2O9ReNG30t3zXvEm-jwPWCwIG2nbYJCGt-u-hC3cw1366gMA3he7isBDOMq1NrJc15oTJqRBbrSK9CLzDrIMtiXVlxNHbxf1UuGA_vjXYOpABKx4ujlAH34XthEEkK8EX5VP7lsaQwP_1D2WByCpEMTiGYir-5rvO1JW44l5KBzP_tUwDcGzmuvFg/s383/cover233033-medium.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="255" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLl2O9ReNG30t3zXvEm-jwPWCwIG2nbYJCGt-u-hC3cw1366gMA3he7isBDOMq1NrJc15oTJqRBbrSK9CLzDrIMtiXVlxNHbxf1UuGA_vjXYOpABKx4ujlAH34XthEEkK8EX5VP7lsaQwP_1D2WByCpEMTiGYir-5rvO1JW44l5KBzP_tUwDcGzmuvFg/w266-h400/cover233033-medium.png" width="266" /></a></div><br />Release date: April 12, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Berkley</div><div>Buy on <a href="https://amzn.to/35zkXh1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon</a> (ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><div><i>I thought O'Leary's </i>The Flatshare <i>was charming, and this sounds like a lot of fun ... </i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div>Three women who seemingly have nothing in common find that they're involved with the same man in this smart new rom-com by Beth O'Leary, bestselling author of The Flatshare.</div><div><br /></div><div>Siobhan is a quick-tempered life coach with way too much on her plate. Miranda is a tree surgeon used to being treated as just one of the guys on the job. Jane is a soft-spoken volunteer for the local charity shop with zero sense of self-worth.</div><div> </div><div>These three women are strangers who have only one thing in common: they’ve all been stood up on the same day, the very worst day to be stood up—Valentine’s Day. And, unbeknownst to them, they’ve all been stood up by the same man.</div><div> </div><div>Once they've each forgiven him for standing them up, they are all in serious danger of falling in love with a man who may have not just one or two but three women on the go....</div><div> </div><div>Is there more to him than meets the eye? Where was he on Valentine’s Day? And will they each untangle the truth before they all get their hearts broken?</div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>The Mad Girls of New York</i> by Maya Rodale</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlmYzWVlfj2CWRO0Y5_EhqN1Q-PbMnbhFUwtVVTpmkzBVHuNVIPGrA3Z4912khAhngH7yuINbjkSsKhW0ZliIujpUX1Cr2zxLGFBNUyvScUIFGhr3UfdNScWQzmBVZG13NFLCZwoP76vCbzDpvHsW8QrGPktUfPpPB1oAPCmJVwu0dB8BZy-jrbPu8yA/s383/cover239437-medium.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="255" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlmYzWVlfj2CWRO0Y5_EhqN1Q-PbMnbhFUwtVVTpmkzBVHuNVIPGrA3Z4912khAhngH7yuINbjkSsKhW0ZliIujpUX1Cr2zxLGFBNUyvScUIFGhr3UfdNScWQzmBVZG13NFLCZwoP76vCbzDpvHsW8QrGPktUfPpPB1oAPCmJVwu0dB8BZy-jrbPu8yA/w266-h400/cover239437-medium.png" width="266" /></a></div><br />Release date: April 26, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Berkley</div><div>Buy on <a href="https://amzn.to/3JbBvtu" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon</a> (ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>A novel about Nellie Bly? SIGN ME UP! I remember being fascinated by Bly when I learned about her in school, and this book sounds great! It's one that I've earmarked for my vacation reads later this month.</i></div><div><br /></div><div><div>In 1887 New York City, Nellie Bly has ambitions beyond writing for the ladies pages, but all the editors on Newspaper Row think women are too emotional, respectable and delicate to do the job. But then the New York World challenges her to an assignment she'd be mad to accept and mad to refuse: go undercover as a patient at Blackwell's Island Insane Asylum for Women.</div><div><br /></div><div>For months, rumors have been swirling about deplorable conditions at Blackwell’s, but no reporter can get in—that is, until Nellie feigns insanity, gets committed and attempts to survive ten days in the madhouse. Inside, she discovers horrors beyond comprehension. It's an investigation that could make her career—if she can get out to tell it before two rival reporters scoop her story.</div><div><br /></div><div>From USA Today bestselling author Maya Rodale comes a rollicking historical adventure series about the outrageous intrigues and bold flirtations of the most famous female reporter—and a groundbreaking rebel—of New York City’s Gilded Age.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>What books are you anticipating this month? I'm always up for adding more to my TBR!</b></div><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received ARCs of some of these books for promotion/review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions are my own. Some of the links in this post 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."</span></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-6870297276090356532022-03-28T21:52:00.000-05:002022-03-28T21:52:42.313-05:00Review: "Until Leaves Fall in Paris" by Sarah Sundin<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmmGokI6b4CA9woLw9I8LrN44byVzp4X2jw18p1YBf725C6lR3keBRA7jpvl1clwqo-wTgRMzxbSYU2Qtew3R2T77XzdGilhsS3QVc1oyVVZLFEh8g1oLXbGPpYPPBW9ACl_m6GkIbde49rMC66YiOhk2HuCZ33DlPVYEP-OeO3Aej9M1_nGY6E5qew/s1024/58298507.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="663" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmmGokI6b4CA9woLw9I8LrN44byVzp4X2jw18p1YBf725C6lR3keBRA7jpvl1clwqo-wTgRMzxbSYU2Qtew3R2T77XzdGilhsS3QVc1oyVVZLFEh8g1oLXbGPpYPPBW9ACl_m6GkIbde49rMC66YiOhk2HuCZ33DlPVYEP-OeO3Aej9M1_nGY6E5qew/w259-h400/58298507.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />Every year, I eagerly anticipate Sarah Sundin's new release, and, so far, I've always been completely charmed by the book when I read it. This year was no different!<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>When the Nazis march toward Paris, American ballerina Lucie Girard buys her favorite English-language bookstore to allow the Jewish owners to escape. The Germans make it difficult for her to keep Green Leaf Books afloat. And she must keep the store open if she is to continue aiding the resistance by passing secret messages between the pages of her books.</i></p><p><i>Widower Paul Aubrey wants nothing more than to return to the States with his little girl, but the US Army convinces him to keep his factory running and obtain military information from his German customers. As the war rages on, Paul offers his own resistance by sabotaging his product and hiding British airmen in his factory. But in order to carry out his mission, he must appear to support the occupation—which does not win him any sympathy when he meets Lucie in the bookstore.</i></p><p><i>In a world turned upside down, will love or duty prevail?</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p>What a story - a story of two brave Americans risking their lives to thwart the Nazis in Paris! When the novel begins, Paul is a grieving widower who longs to take his daughter and return to the United States, but he is convinced by the US military to remain at his automotive factory under the guise of an opportunistic businessman who sympathizes with the Germans. Lucie, a ballerina with the Paris Opera Ballet, buys her Jewish friends' bookstore and continue to run it in their honor, and then begins aiding the resistance.</p><p>Paul and Lucie are drawn to each other immediately, though their romance is hampered by Lucie's belief that Paul is a collaborator and Paul's need to keep his activities secret. The novel is filled with tension - both of the romantic variety and the suspense variety. In fact, I think I felt more tense while reading this than I've felt while reading any other Sundin novel. It's not that I doubted that Paul and Lucie would end up together, but the journey to their "happily ever after" was fraught with danger that felt so real.</p><p>One thing I really appreciated was the way Paul and Lucie were so different in the way they approached life, and they each became better people by knowing the other. I also especially loved Lucie's growth as she came to understand that not having a formal education didn't make her stupid; God gave her talents that she could use to make a lasting impact.</p><p>Also, while this is a stand-alone novel, Evelyn and Peter from <i>When Twilight Breaks</i> do make a fun appearance.</p><p>This is a wonderful story that kept me tearing through the pages, a story I'm still thinking about days after finishing it. <b>5 stars.</b></p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3NvZCpS" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).<br /></i><i>Read my <a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/search/label/sarah%20sundin" target="_blank">reviews</a> of other Sundin novels.</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-2073649123215375156" itemprop="description articleBody" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 18px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, "Century Gothic", Trebuchet, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimAEzvRwsV0dUe043jLPm1zmXbBqf4Nn5pTocW1V9h1kMhFWXj9kexP5RZbeEqxawXNSvtuUhDXu1gpiIYb45lgCNZNhItrgiPxdch__QyG5EmUhzlrFWxNKZaXT5P15OneUD19h7nQoZs/s1600/unnamed+%252874%2529.jpg" style="color: #e3bb1e; margin: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimAEzvRwsV0dUe043jLPm1zmXbBqf4Nn5pTocW1V9h1kMhFWXj9kexP5RZbeEqxawXNSvtuUhDXu1gpiIYb45lgCNZNhItrgiPxdch__QyG5EmUhzlrFWxNKZaXT5P15OneUD19h7nQoZs/s320/unnamed+%252874%2529.jpg" style="border: 0px solid rgb(227, 201, 96); height: auto; max-width: 650px; padding-left: 2px; padding-right: 2px;" width="200" /></a></div><i><b>Sarah Sundin</b> is the author of the Waves of Freedom, the Wings of the Nightingale, and the Wings of Glory series. A graduate of UC San Francisco School of Pharmacy, she works on call as a hospital pharmacist. During WWII, her grandfather served as a pharmacist's mate (medic) in the Navy and her great-uncle flew with the US Eighth Air Force. Sarah lives in California.<br /></i><a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001C41vEUhpWj3tSIFOqmltvBlP1tF-c_IECpqxWva57piQNT1lEpP_ZgLQ-nlvz_-54H--cnfkHlYDp4_t6yJrdOZDTLKhmEivihvmcaC3VlsTOiBorpK8Y-z7K4Qy5MgSQYypx1Pqwrtp6PjM-NaiqmYfRY_VpI1WTVHnJZU_YWwTBIJ3qe69Iw==&c=PE5cu8sgDq0xFfSl0bns9o98jt-rKuNFDzy1oM-o0EXJPu42-j1pow==&ch=CUPVXbPCoaJusjPGzD7RRPov9sHFOZXmG1TbcqSlaVlldMEZhqk_WA==">Website</a> | <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001C41vEUhpWj3tSIFOqmltvBlP1tF-c_IECpqxWva57piQNT1lEpP_ZgaKMkE1-eUc-ZBN_b0xix79l9mbB0loAZNCcEMblp4sn02IG6koxrU-i8ZVXRpbNnQ7a2OX4CC0NVy3seDs34DEN5uq2fWLV_38ydzL0dR27enSpw_sVklDl3ascdNBYRaL2oLXyY-_ipmGdKJwzJ8=&c=PE5cu8sgDq0xFfSl0bns9o98jt-rKuNFDzy1oM-o0EXJPu42-j1pow==&ch=CUPVXbPCoaJusjPGzD7RRPov9sHFOZXmG1TbcqSlaVlldMEZhqk_WA==">Facebook</a> | <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001C41vEUhpWj3tSIFOqmltvBlP1tF-c_IECpqxWva57piQNT1lEpP_ZkEDFcTv0hfABujjMyyZDQv82MujZRrb9Km8xbano9bm81Jr0UNg6LCk7BO5o3nckLMI0iUoKoSLQy3Rujg3uzQGhBtm67We-ePjiRj5bguzYsLM9pQ-vcxlj6wCfCfMYg==&c=PE5cu8sgDq0xFfSl0bns9o98jt-rKuNFDzy1oM-o0EXJPu42-j1pow==&ch=CUPVXbPCoaJusjPGzD7RRPov9sHFOZXmG1TbcqSlaVlldMEZhqk_WA==">Twitter</a> | <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001C41vEUhpWj3tSIFOqmltvBlP1tF-c_IECpqxWva57piQNT1lEpP_ZoZBoWnxrxAPpSdWiOIN1UILaCVnMbBgaBKPp3Q6XC22p92tDEHQV2l715N4MiGo-JzJFWBJ1fXShxg2RezUf4Vp70aGc-4DpyFQFbL0ljalrCxNqzOu5EnQbkUZZ05TWB325JqffUD4&c=PE5cu8sgDq0xFfSl0bns9o98jt-rKuNFDzy1oM-o0EXJPu42-j1pow==&ch=CUPVXbPCoaJusjPGzD7RRPov9sHFOZXmG1TbcqSlaVlldMEZhqk_WA==">Pinterest</a><br /><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book from the publisher. I was not required to leave a positive review, and the opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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.</span></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-74261228833478052072022-03-19T15:29:00.000-05:002022-03-19T15:29:34.818-05:00Anticipated March Releases<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjlxt1kXeLsCDMneCZRxaxgqnSPEt60W8Nmk2S4u1_pdZtwDU0O55WyjqAPUAXCcXdoJpQSPp8nj2EDZyEDFOpsd8ThlT9CCk9HKFd6JXEzfe3I54e0KrK7ZgJyZYkXpeT0EIK9Nt_csL_WeKNycBQ5R0pax_YqdS-iWeB72aQOpn0riJ_Qutd4qHweVw=s2240" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1260" data-original-width="2240" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjlxt1kXeLsCDMneCZRxaxgqnSPEt60W8Nmk2S4u1_pdZtwDU0O55WyjqAPUAXCcXdoJpQSPp8nj2EDZyEDFOpsd8ThlT9CCk9HKFd6JXEzfe3I54e0KrK7ZgJyZYkXpeT0EIK9Nt_csL_WeKNycBQ5R0pax_YqdS-iWeB72aQOpn0riJ_Qutd4qHweVw=w640-h360" width="640" /></a></div><br />Yes, I realize I'm soooo late on this, as March is nearly over! Somehow, the beginning of March just slipped on by. But I still want to tell you about these books, even though some have already been released😉<p></p><p>As always, I can't vouch for the "spice" level - you can assume that anything put out by a Christian publisher will be low on the spice meter, but beyond that, you may want to do more research. If/when I get around to reading and reviewing these, I'll let you know of any potential content issues. </p><p>I normally post these in order of release, but I'm putting my most anticipated release of March first. <i>I Cannot Wait To Get My Hands On This Book.<span></span></i></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>Love Practically</i> by Nichole Van</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhJZC1gX4aRckEKJbHDF9VmaLO97rV-pN16p_ga3XDb1szyCHsJByRxD4QTBemIlP1fAgAz6KHMibQqofC8BT-I9x-s0MGzwubzAu7SyLf9-Y_Q9y2bcXCkM1C2UQnRhTm34y7d_PVh1vJaXbzGPJFEc18rl9Jf-IqBbj34xhf0Do8n0TAlx97ySDvNrw=s475" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhJZC1gX4aRckEKJbHDF9VmaLO97rV-pN16p_ga3XDb1szyCHsJByRxD4QTBemIlP1fAgAz6KHMibQqofC8BT-I9x-s0MGzwubzAu7SyLf9-Y_Q9y2bcXCkM1C2UQnRhTm34y7d_PVh1vJaXbzGPJFEc18rl9Jf-IqBbj34xhf0Do8n0TAlx97ySDvNrw=w268-h400" width="268" /></a></div><br />Release date: March 23, 2022</div><div>Publisher: independently published</div><div>Buy on <a href="https://amzn.to/3I8I9jp" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon</a> (ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>I discovered Van earlier this year (and by "discovered" I mean "finally read a book of hers that I downloaded for free ages ago"), and I quickly fell in love with her Scottish romances. This one looks like it's exactly my thing: older protagonists, marriage of convenience, Scotland. GIVE IT TO ME NOW!</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><div>As a young woman, Leah Penn-Leith fell hopelessly in love with Captain Fox Carnegie—the only irrational mark on her decidedly sensible life. Fox, unfortunately, did not return her regard.</div><div><br /></div><div>Their story should have ended there. After all, Fox left for India. And Leah returned home to Scotland to rear her much younger brothers.</div><div><br /></div><div>But twenty years later, Fox appears on Leah’s doorstep—older, scarred, and world-weary—proposing a marriage of convenience between them. He needs a mother for his young ward, and Leah, with her capable good sense, comes highly recommended. What woman could say No to such a proposal? Not Leah. Fox has always wreaked havoc on her ability to think rationally.</div><div><br /></div><div>But after their marriage, Leah confronts the chaotic reality of Fox’s life. His castle, ten miles up a rugged Highland glen, is shambolic. His ward, Madeline, is a precocious handful. Fox’s time in India is shrouded in rumor and mystery. Worst of all, Fox himself is distant and broken, his personality as altered as his scarred body.</div><div><br /></div><div>Throughout it all, Leah is left with two questions: What happens to a woman after her most-cherished fantasy comes true? And can a marriage, begun in practicality, transform into something deeper? Something like . . . love.</div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>The Element of Love </i>by Mary Connealy</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRH9m3c0HYgL0w4Jdfdt9Tb1YdnwD34wTz7_8Ysmug38CgfYKUvkUwu20dvZ8_aCrIsOU4xbnWhad6alyQlyuQPEvT0GU0pCMzZssCFOFAaDnW6qSAVmpRar_y6eleREVuEImn6iEPH8r4T1mamUZSvmLzuWLgDT2qwlbyOJEawD8mR3SsL4YXO4Klg/s395/cover242604-medium.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="395" data-original-width="255" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQRH9m3c0HYgL0w4Jdfdt9Tb1YdnwD34wTz7_8Ysmug38CgfYKUvkUwu20dvZ8_aCrIsOU4xbnWhad6alyQlyuQPEvT0GU0pCMzZssCFOFAaDnW6qSAVmpRar_y6eleREVuEImn6iEPH8r4T1mamUZSvmLzuWLgDT2qwlbyOJEawD8mR3SsL4YXO4Klg/w259-h400/cover242604-medium.png" width="259" /></a></div><br />Release date: March 1, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Bethany House</div><div>Buy on <a href="https://amzn.to/3N2zfaR" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon</a> (ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>It's been years since I last read a Mary Connealy book, and this new series would be a great place to jump back in! My copy just arrived in the mail, so look for a review in the next few weeks.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><div><b>She mixed danger, desperation, and deception together. Love was not the expected outcome.</b></div><div><br /></div><div>With their sharp engineering minds, Laura Stiles and her two sisters have been able to deal with their mother's unfortunate choice in husband until they discovered his plans to marry each of them off to his lecherous friends. Now they must run away--far and fast--to find better matches to legally claim their portion of their father's lumber dynasty and seize control from their stepfather.</div><div><br /></div><div>During their escape, Laura befriends a mission group heading to serve the poor in California. She quickly volunteers herself and her sisters to join their efforts. Despite the settlement being in miserable condition, the sisters are excited by the opportunity to put their skills to good use. Laura also sees potential in Caleb, the mission's parson, to help with gaining her inheritance. But when secrets buried in Caleb's past and in the land around them come to light, it'll take all the smarts the sisters have to keep trouble at bay.</div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>Love, Decoded</i> by Jennifer Yen</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH7uXnFasBE4C_1Td8nSRhcSfHKx6GOSqh_sYDCD6OJlyWbHfXLVXpD6cnayCgm-6HrNoQy4IjvuPYAKiXAVMw8tvRBNz1k4o3U44jAPYDueJUHnNW1cSaumAbPXl2NXQuXlg38cLcndwiBRe10FgIn2Nkk5ZSC9_jusLV7VqHDGKfKcknCCA37cK7ow/s385/cover235036-medium.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="385" data-original-width="255" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH7uXnFasBE4C_1Td8nSRhcSfHKx6GOSqh_sYDCD6OJlyWbHfXLVXpD6cnayCgm-6HrNoQy4IjvuPYAKiXAVMw8tvRBNz1k4o3U44jAPYDueJUHnNW1cSaumAbPXl2NXQuXlg38cLcndwiBRe10FgIn2Nkk5ZSC9_jusLV7VqHDGKfKcknCCA37cK7ow/w265-h400/cover235036-medium.png" width="265" /></a></div><br />Release date: March 8, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Penguin Teen</div><div>Buy on <a href="https://amzn.to/36d7cVx" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon</a> (ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>I am always down for an Austen retelling. This YA </i>Emma<i> adaptation sounds adorable!</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><div><b>A hilarious, heartfelt rom-com about the unexpected consequences of one teen's quest to help her friends find love, perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Jane Austen.</b></div><div><br /></div><div>High school junior Gigi Wong strives to be the best. After all, that’s what everyone expects of her—her parents, friends, and even potential colleges. Thankfully, her best friend, Kyle, is always there to listen with a smile and a delicious bowl of ramen. Still, with her future—and her dreams—on the line, how is she to stand out when her classmates seem so perfect too?</div><div> </div><div>Her answer comes in the form of an app writing contest. If Gigi can secure the nomination to represent her school, she has a chance at a prestigious tech internship. That’s sure to get her applications noticed . . . All she needs is a winning entry.</div><div> </div><div>When transfer student and new friend Etta confides that she’s struggling to fit in, it gives Gigi an idea. What if she takes what she’s learned from shadowing her aunt Rose, a professional matchmaker, to create a fun friend-making app? Perfect!</div><div> </div><div>When Gigi's app goes viral at school, she's the center of attention--and a major scandal. She never meant to hurt anyone, let alone Etta and Kyle. Can she save all she worked so hard for and the relationships that mean so much to her?</div></div><div><br /></div><div><div><b>Are any of these March releases on your radar? I'd love to know what books you're anticipating this month!</b></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received ARCs of some of these books for promotion/review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions are my own. Some of the links in this post 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."</span></div><div><br /></div></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-56188849943547435482022-03-13T14:42:00.001-05:002022-03-13T14:42:14.270-05:00Review: "In Search of a Prince" by Toni Shiloh<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhGTitdmcYf2pT69G1wH-zvA9nYSSk7WI_XhCcBjdf2ssHKuUK2dyLtuw7I6Z2Orm-QHDHyFUPcMGQ2kpX-q-QfTc3oJtnWDjgJVrMBwFmu-j-P_I1ZEXS3mReMtYaGAwkcsJMmi7lH8o2m9y9RZOLEQXfuFTc6Me3L051djfFwUxPNsy_DV9KM6bnz4A=s864" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="864" data-original-width="560" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhGTitdmcYf2pT69G1wH-zvA9nYSSk7WI_XhCcBjdf2ssHKuUK2dyLtuw7I6Z2Orm-QHDHyFUPcMGQ2kpX-q-QfTc3oJtnWDjgJVrMBwFmu-j-P_I1ZEXS3mReMtYaGAwkcsJMmi7lH8o2m9y9RZOLEQXfuFTc6Me3L051djfFwUxPNsy_DV9KM6bnz4A=w259-h400" width="259" /></a></div><br />Do you like royal romances? They're not my favorite, usually (with some notable exceptions, of course). What I am a big fan of is Toni Shiloh's writing, so of course I had to give this book a shot, and I'm so glad I did!<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" /><p><i>Brielle Adebayo is fully content teaching at a New York City public school and taking annual summer vacations with her mother to Martha's Vineyard. But everything changes when her mom drops the mother of all bombshells--Brielle is a princess in the kingdom of Ọlọrọ Ilé, Africa, and she must immediately assume her royal position, since the health of her grandfather, King Tiwa Jimoh Adebayo, is failing.</i></p><p><i>Distraught by her mother's betrayal, Brielle is further left spinning when the Ọlọrọ Ilé Royal Council brings up an old edict that states she must marry before assuming the throne or the crown will be passed to another. Uncertain who to choose from the council's list of bachelors, she struggles with the decision along with the weight of her new role in a new country. With her world totally shaken, she must take a chance on love and brave the perils a wrong decision may bring.</i></p><p><i></i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" /><p>I really liked this story! It has romance, a strong faith arc, and even a little suspense. It's a modern day marriage of convenience (my favorite trope!) with a twist. Though the beginning was a little slow for me, I read the last 2/3 in one sitting because I couldn't put it down. I especially enjoyed watching Bri get to know her new environment and find her own, unique footing. Bri is a woman who's breaking down barriers in a patriarchal society, and I love that she sought advice from others and viewed the Lord as the ultimate authority in her life as she prepared to step into her new role as leader of Ọlọrọ Ilé. I also really, really liked the romance, though I won't spoil anything here - several men are presented as potential husbands once Bri learns she must be married in order to ascend the throne. </p><p>Overall, <i>In Search of a Prince</i> is a fun read, and I'm eager to return to the world of Ọlọrọ Ilé again. <b>4 stars.</b></p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3vYWPiN" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book </a>(Amazon ad).<br />Read my reviews of <a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/search/label/toni%20shiloh" target="_blank">other Toni Shiloh novels</a>.</i></p><p><i></i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjoBpe7TzBHoP_thCvmH4w87jlV6JNWLOHNAlxlhIK-OHVBo7A9x_8Q4rUdqNwxgdASXsM8wHaRXda5bvSXW2Z-lA3nStd81msOUfjswwzxKT9JORcGEdBoW-6LF6XntqXFboF9WKRS5SRjbCGZ1yjapYx9znfYFcb2gK4-7Px-q7UUm8gIKG7w7TFK7w=s1024" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="683" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjoBpe7TzBHoP_thCvmH4w87jlV6JNWLOHNAlxlhIK-OHVBo7A9x_8Q4rUdqNwxgdASXsM8wHaRXda5bvSXW2Z-lA3nStd81msOUfjswwzxKT9JORcGEdBoW-6LF6XntqXFboF9WKRS5SRjbCGZ1yjapYx9znfYFcb2gK4-7Px-q7UUm8gIKG7w7TFK7w=s320" width="213" /></a></i></div><i><br />Toni Shiloh is a wife, mom, and Christian fiction writer. Once she understood the powerful saving grace thanks to the love of Christ, she was moved to honor her Savior. She writes to bring Him glory and to learn more about His goodness.</i><p></p><p><i></i></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review, and the opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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."</span></p><div><br /></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-67538069380610347952022-02-11T18:53:00.000-06:002022-02-11T18:53:41.821-06:00Review: "Sunrise" by Susan May Warren<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgefnp0V789SFKwjoCgRRSR7Jz9j5SMVW0ucor62fdj2CvaGYty6sKFg_U2aYNM-4FPZZpyBNza9KUlKNqmEeo2h2qUt0rI1owSJ-iqnh4nzuJpQD7Z1xGtFBZ0PRcMk6kVQkv4c0H2IEmIsHgASw-iNjZNfnw-cWwxKn5MCvVe0_shsnh15xzNl86CrA=s1913" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1913" data-original-width="1238" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgefnp0V789SFKwjoCgRRSR7Jz9j5SMVW0ucor62fdj2CvaGYty6sKFg_U2aYNM-4FPZZpyBNza9KUlKNqmEeo2h2qUt0rI1owSJ-iqnh4nzuJpQD7Z1xGtFBZ0PRcMk6kVQkv4c0H2IEmIsHgASw-iNjZNfnw-cWwxKn5MCvVe0_shsnh15xzNl86CrA=w259-h400" width="259" /></a></div><br />Susan May Warren is one of my must-read authors; if she writes it, I'll read it! So I was very eager to get my hands on the first book in her new Sky King Ranch series, <i>Sunrise</i>.<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>Pilot Dodge Kingston has always been the heir to Sky King Ranch. But after a terrible family fight, he left to become a pararescue jumper. A decade later, he's headed home to the destiny that awaits him.</i></p><p><i>That's not all that's waiting for Dodge. His childhood best friend and former flame, Echo Yazzie, is a true Alaskan--a homesteader, dogsledder, and research guide for the DNR. Most of all, she's living a life Dodge knows could get her killed. One of these days she's going to get lost in the woods again, and his worst fear is that he won't be there to find her.</i></p><p><i>When one of Echo's fellow researchers goes missing, Echo sets out to find her, despite a blizzard, a rogue grizzly haunting the woods, and the biting cold. Plus, there's more than just the regular dangers of the Alaskan forests stalking her . . .</i></p><p><i>Will Dodge be able to find her in time? And if he does, is there still room for him in her heart?</i></p><p>Sunrise <i>is the first explosive volume in a new nail-biting series from USA Today bestselling author Susan May Warren. </i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>Sunrise </i>is the second chance romance of Dodge Kingston and Echo Yazzie. High school sweethearts ripped apart by hurts and misunderstandings, the two reunite ten years later when Dodge returns to Copper Mountain. The unraveling of what went wrong in the past is spread throughout most of the novel, and it was their relationship that kept me turning through the pages. </p><p>There's a bit of a suspense thread in the novel, though it's not as strong as in several of Warren's other books. I do think the suspense will be ratcheted up in the rest of the series, as the Jane Doe minor character looks to feature more prominently, and the preview (billed as "What Comes Next") sheds some light onto Dodge's brothers Ranger and Colt, and their lives seem to be exciting, to say the least!</p><p>Though I felt like the beginning of the book was a little slow, the book also became more and more enjoyable the farther I got into it, leaving me incredibly eager to get my hands on book two, which releases in June! <b>4 stars.</b></p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3rK9u6M" target="_blank">Buy the book </a>(Amazon ad).</i></p><p><i>Read my reviews of <a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/search/label/susan%20may%20warren" target="_blank">other Susan May Warren books</a>.</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, "Century Gothic", Trebuchet, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib83UdPfa1C0KF6Dh67clXocg_wZWcAuZSDXpphpOR5C_ZTJs2Kz41S_M0eWiW6M_0s6aPYwA9bimQ4P5zGj7CoEwWWHGz27uo7CvGn3tQJxb4u27Wjyzuq4wXPIsKo-TbrqWOKLca9uYw/s1600/susan+may+warren.jpg" style="color: #e3bb1e; margin: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib83UdPfa1C0KF6Dh67clXocg_wZWcAuZSDXpphpOR5C_ZTJs2Kz41S_M0eWiW6M_0s6aPYwA9bimQ4P5zGj7CoEwWWHGz27uo7CvGn3tQJxb4u27Wjyzuq4wXPIsKo-TbrqWOKLca9uYw/s200/susan+may+warren.jpg" style="border: 0px solid rgb(227, 201, 96); height: auto; max-width: 650px; padding-left: 2px; padding-right: 2px;" width="200" /></a></div><i><b>Susan May Warren</b> is the USA Today bestselling, Christy and RITA award-winning novelist of over sixty-five novels. An eight-time Christy award finalist, a three-time RITA Finalist, she’s also a multi-winner of the Inspirational Readers Choice award, and the ACFW Carol Award.<br /><br />A seasoned women’s events speaker, she’s a popular writing teacher at conferences around the nation and the author of the beginning writer’s workbook: The Story Equation. She is also the founder of <a href="http://mybooktherapy.com/">MyBookTherapy.com</a>, and <a href="https://novel.academy/">Novel.Academy</a>, a school for aspiring novelists.<br /></i><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review, and the opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small 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."</span>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-34788950204700634792022-02-11T15:29:00.000-06:002022-02-11T15:29:32.500-06:00Review: "Never Leave Me" by Jody Hedlund<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjr3yPt0ydASFxGvTpNYI5eLnKWE_KwLjk4PjO2or2X4wkjUZzoMUUhUk72ffYd1oK95WW7nmuhFPDPCQXfBASzTTAE-TsZ3Wow3q5h20B2xBlaMG7Amua549UFgRs5N0hHo5vsG3MG7DRGXBKNJiFLBRZ0eBn80VomwbA8FkAT6QyGXkdpw-jqnQMiAw=s2549" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2549" data-original-width="1651" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjr3yPt0ydASFxGvTpNYI5eLnKWE_KwLjk4PjO2or2X4wkjUZzoMUUhUk72ffYd1oK95WW7nmuhFPDPCQXfBASzTTAE-TsZ3Wow3q5h20B2xBlaMG7Amua549UFgRs5N0hHo5vsG3MG7DRGXBKNJiFLBRZ0eBn80VomwbA8FkAT6QyGXkdpw-jqnQMiAw=w259-h400" width="259" /></a></div><br />Last summer, I read the first book in Jody Hedlund's Waters of Time series and loved it, so there was no hesitation on my part when I heard there would be a book two. Now I'm hoping for a book three!<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>In the last stages of a genetic disease, Ellen Creighton has decided to live out her remaining days at the estate of her longtime friend Harrison Burlington. Harrison cares deeply for Ellen, but as a wheelchair-bound paraplegic, he's never allowed himself to get serious in a relationship. However, he's desperately trying to save her by finding the holy water that is believed to heal any disease.</i></p><p><i>When he locates two flasks, Ellen refuses to drink one of them because she believes the holy water killed her sister and father. In an effort to convince her to take it, Harrison ingests the contents first, and when Ellen witnesses the effects, she can no longer deny the power of the substance in the bottles. Dangerous criminals are also seeking the holy water, and Ellen soon learns they will go to any lengths to get the powerful drug--including sending her back into the past to find it for them.</i></p><p><i>Bestselling and award-winning author Jody Hedlund plunges you into the swiftly flowing river of history in a race against the clock in this breathtaking, emotional second Waters of Time story. </i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<p><i>Never Leave Me</i> continues the story begun in <i>Come Back to Me</i>, picking up about a year after those events. (I think. Maybe not. I'm a little sketchy on the present time timeline! Also, if you haven't read <i>Come Back to Me</i> yet, please stop reading here and go back to read that book, as this review contains spoilers for that one.) Ellen's VCL has continued to advance, bringing her close to death. Her friend Harrison, who assisted both her father and sister in their search for holy water prior to their deaths, is desperate to find some for her - not only because he's her friend, but because he has been secretly in love with her for years.</p><p>Of course, finding the holy water doesn't cure all their problems - in fact, it makes some things worse, as an evil man also in search of the holy water learns of Harrison's and Ellen's healings, and forces Ellen into the past to procure more holy water for him. While there, she meets a horrible lord, his wonderful brother (hopefully book 3 will be Sir Nicholas's story!), and both her sister and father! The action in the 1300s is thrilling as Ellen and company race to find the water while also trying to stay alive. </p><p>The story has elements of friends-to-more, fake relationship, and marriage of convenience, all tropes I love! The chemistry between Ellen and Harrison was palpable, and I loved the time they spent together on the page. They are apart <i>a lot</i>, though - and often in different time periods. I understand why it happened, but I wish there would've been more time for relationship building.</p><p>This book brings up some interesting ethical/moral dilemmas. Who should have access to the holy water? When should it be used? As much as I wanted both Ellen and Harrison to live, I also couldn't help feeling that they had used more than their fair share. I'm sure this will come up again, should there be a third book. (And there should be!)</p><p>Overall, I really enjoyed this second installment in the Waters of Time series, and I sincerely hope the story continues soon. (It has to, right? There are definitely some things that haven't been tied up yet.) <b>4 stars.</b></p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/3sD6F6w" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book</a> (Amazon ad).</i></p><p><i>See my reviews of </i>Come Back to Me<i> (<a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/2021/06/review-come-back-to-me-by-jody-hedlund.html" target="_blank">5 stars</a>) and <a href="https://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com/search?q=jody+hedlund&max-results=20&by-date=true" target="_blank">other Jody Hedlund novels</a>.</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" />
<div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-5274238562453247344" itemprop="description articleBody" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, "Century Gothic", Trebuchet, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 18px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FEoPxuYNnih-sfh20ZOjndPUzNs4CmtBrBx-23AGy2943bMmFiSSSBvuAaTEgb9Z1sA1JFC9_tbHYsRcz1ikdk0xNfDASAbZlqjCqze5-oCapMBRET6Mjop___0zRRYi8rEFpJFbJx4S/s1600/hedlund.jpg" style="color: #e3bb1e; margin: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="266" data-original-width="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FEoPxuYNnih-sfh20ZOjndPUzNs4CmtBrBx-23AGy2943bMmFiSSSBvuAaTEgb9Z1sA1JFC9_tbHYsRcz1ikdk0xNfDASAbZlqjCqze5-oCapMBRET6Mjop___0zRRYi8rEFpJFbJx4S/s1600/hedlund.jpg" style="border: 0px solid rgb(227, 201, 96); height: auto; max-width: 650px; padding-left: 2px; padding-right: 2px;" /></a></div><i></i></div><i><b>Jody Hedlund</b> is the award-winning author of multiple novels, including the Beacons of Hope and Orphan Train series, as well as Captured by Love and Rebellious Heart. She holds a bachelor's degree from Taylor University and a master's degree from the University of Wisconsin, both in social work. Jody lives in Michigan with her husband and five children. Learn more at <a href="http://jodyhedlund.com/">jodyhedlund.com</a>.<br /></i><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free for review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in this post are affiliate links; this means if you click the link and purchase an item, I will receive a small 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."</span>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-70070560037005544832022-02-01T16:30:00.000-06:002022-02-01T16:30:21.144-06:00Let's Fall in Love: Anticipated February Releases<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhuFHmkH1xXkxSq3cfKZW7SluhOD0IsKx_9x6bUQB6hdxilrrdqC-Kjrm-ikexlPwaIK3GEcu4aivzKlDRgiAFCUDevk_xn6TYqvPMw1Nz9juJIBis2inxtyUU8QV5WezX8pVFG7c2ITo2wW0Nq-M7ij4Xexbut4Yp8hEB8HNbP8yAU5TAnMvjZV0XptA=s2240" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1260" data-original-width="2240" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhuFHmkH1xXkxSq3cfKZW7SluhOD0IsKx_9x6bUQB6hdxilrrdqC-Kjrm-ikexlPwaIK3GEcu4aivzKlDRgiAFCUDevk_xn6TYqvPMw1Nz9juJIBis2inxtyUU8QV5WezX8pVFG7c2ITo2wW0Nq-M7ij4Xexbut4Yp8hEB8HNbP8yAU5TAnMvjZV0XptA=w640-h360" width="640" /></a></div><br />It's the month of LOVE! Yes, I'm single, but I've always loved Valentine's Day. I never need an excuse to read a romance novel, but for those of you who do ... February is the perfect time!<p></p><p>Here are some February romance releases that I'm excited about. I haven't read any of these books yet, so I can't speak to the "spice" level ... so be sure to do your own do diligence before reading! I do plan to read several this month, and I'll be sure to let you know my thoughts after I've read them.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>Until Leaves Fall in Paris </i>by Sarah Sundin</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhVO_az4tEMjJWc6XgH4V9UtCDV-pa2T9-MDFOmFqU3eU8ck9BpLgQRtvITbExwaqO5Jp2fI77sMI9M3zCdA_6El4Qy2HMfiMU6g1VzU7ZVrowN72u_gHkQRejbbMPm8FBED8ak7ZOcK8lmN42CY8gNceB5LvBv7htJe9M99qvuXzpe0Zy3oqqiIUjx0A=s1024" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="663" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhVO_az4tEMjJWc6XgH4V9UtCDV-pa2T9-MDFOmFqU3eU8ck9BpLgQRtvITbExwaqO5Jp2fI77sMI9M3zCdA_6El4Qy2HMfiMU6g1VzU7ZVrowN72u_gHkQRejbbMPm8FBED8ak7ZOcK8lmN42CY8gNceB5LvBv7htJe9M99qvuXzpe0Zy3oqqiIUjx0A=w259-h400" width="259" /></a></div><br />Release date: Feb. 1, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Revell</div><div>Buy on <a href="https://amzn.to/3ARQN3P" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon </a>(ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Sarah Sundin's books never fail to make my yearly best-of list (well, when I actually make one!), and I'm so ready for this book! It should be on its way to me at this very moment.</i></div><div><br /></div><div><div>As the Nazis march toward Paris in 1940, American ballerina Lucie Girard buys her favorite English-language bookstore to allow the Jewish owners to escape. Lucie struggles to run Green Leaf Books due to oppressive German laws and harsh conditions, but she finds a way to aid the resistance by passing secret messages between the pages of her books.</div><div><br /></div><div>Widower Paul Aubrey wants nothing more than to return to the States with his little girl, but the US Army convinces him to keep his factory running and obtain military information from his German customers. As the war rages on, Paul offers his own resistance by sabotaging his product and hiding British airmen in his factory. After they meet in the bookstore, Paul and Lucie are drawn to each other, but she rejects him when she discovers he sells to the Germans. And for Paul to win her trust would mean betraying his mission.</div><div><br /></div><div>Master of WWII-era fiction Sarah Sundin invites you onto the streets of occupied Paris to discover whether love or duty will prevail.</div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>In Search of a Prince</i> by Toni Shiloh</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjwAG3nHvZJpNLJdKZEQIGaps5i-Br9Z3pOKTHqpNarU9F7Ye_dMkBqCWfuaw-gckXj7z-NWYF9YuSnZ7L2L3Meni0M1zu_rGnBpkUwkfZuLDzsj630p98XqyLHIYKlhMb7E0LkAZB-CT_7CQiDzAAsi_irmnXAoQfc50Dk0_LLFQVvuB55srCWdr6XkA=s864" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="864" data-original-width="560" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjwAG3nHvZJpNLJdKZEQIGaps5i-Br9Z3pOKTHqpNarU9F7Ye_dMkBqCWfuaw-gckXj7z-NWYF9YuSnZ7L2L3Meni0M1zu_rGnBpkUwkfZuLDzsj630p98XqyLHIYKlhMb7E0LkAZB-CT_7CQiDzAAsi_irmnXAoQfc50Dk0_LLFQVvuB55srCWdr6XkA=w259-h400" width="259" /></a></div><br />Release date: Feb. 1, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Bethany House</div><div>Buy on <a href="https://amzn.to/34sYwJn" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon </a>(ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>I have been eagerly anticipating this book ever since I heard about it last year. I've loved several of Shiloh's other books, and this one sounds wonderful!</i></div><div><br /></div><div><div>Brielle Adebayo is fully content teaching at a New York City public school and taking annual summer vacations with her mother to Martha's Vineyard. But everything changes when her mom drops the mother of all bombshells--Brielle is a princess in the kingdom of Ọlọrọ Ilé, Africa, and she must immediately assume her royal position, since the health of her grandfather, King Tiwa Jimoh Adebayo, is failing.</div><div><br /></div><div>Distraught by her mother's betrayal, Brielle is further left spinning when the Ọlọrọ Ilé Royal Council brings up an old edict that states she must marry before assuming the throne or the crown will be passed to another. Uncertain who to choose from the council's list of bachelors, she struggles with the decision along with the weight of her new role in a new country. With her world totally shaken, she must take a chance on love and brave the perils a wrong decision may bring.</div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>A Perfect Equation </i>by Elizabeth Everett</h3><div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgPPtTxqs5Uhx5xTtxNdlCIGaN7ibuUVl7j1Pq9e6-VlO11Q5WGBUvbZmeO2mLb_FXaq7hkgRZctNZCgmmpZsxIvc73HEjS6FxWLU4QiIGyEtghGVIaqFdprpceg3JELtPnImBw1X0Sd197ktggSL8t9mp-qocxYQPPQDZIIPBj3GquxCBA4TITKhhUkA=s475" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgPPtTxqs5Uhx5xTtxNdlCIGaN7ibuUVl7j1Pq9e6-VlO11Q5WGBUvbZmeO2mLb_FXaq7hkgRZctNZCgmmpZsxIvc73HEjS6FxWLU4QiIGyEtghGVIaqFdprpceg3JELtPnImBw1X0Sd197ktggSL8t9mp-qocxYQPPQDZIIPBj3GquxCBA4TITKhhUkA=w266-h400" width="266" /></a></div><br />Release Date: Feb. 15, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Berkley</div><div>Pre-order from <a href="https://amzn.to/32QLzcb" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon </a>(ad)</div><div><br /></div><div><i>I mean, seriously ... that cover is perfection, and the description sounds like just my kind of romance. I can't wait to read this one!</i></div><div><br /></div><div><b>How do you solve the Perfect Equation? Add one sharp-tongued mathematician to an aloof, handsome nobleman. Divide by conflicting loyalties and multiply by a daring group of women hell-bent on conducting their scientific experiments. The solution is a romance that will break every rule.</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Six years ago, Miss Letitia Fenley made a mistake, and she’s lived with the consequences ever since. Readying herself to compete for the prestigious Rosewood Prize for Mathematics, she is suddenly asked to take on another responsibility—managing Athena’s Retreat, a secret haven for England’s women scientists. Having spent the last six years on her own, Letty doesn’t want the offers of friendship from other club members and certainly doesn’t need any help from the insufferably attractive Lord Greycliff.</div><div><br /></div><div>Lord William Hughes, the Viscount Greycliff cannot afford to make any mistakes. His lifelong dream of becoming the director of a powerful clandestine agency is within his grasp. Tasked with helping Letty safeguard Athena’s Retreat, Grey is positive that he can control the antics of the various scientists as well as manage the tiny mathematician—despite their historic animosity and simmering tension.</div><div><br /></div><div>As Grey and Letty are forced to work together, their mutual dislike turns to admiration and eventually to something... magnetic. When faced with the possibility that Athena’s Retreat will close forever, they must make a choice. Will Grey turn down a chance to change history, or can Letty get to the root of the problem and prove that love is the ultimate answer?</div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>Strength in the Storm </i>by Laurel Blount</h3><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh0oYPN1RFi9iez2p5f6VGR4K0FsEUol0M8GQzoQNC0W0flbs6aC2JmRHh6vS5xo4tP_lIUTHDLdRdMBmh33IbtlNVvF5FEsl1NIpdvFa9Gw-8M8UPaJ5EK8I9xVYGjoF5uNrLOHZwksPUe3ogW1aVbWUew5XP0hprC3XjrDQPHIXu89TbJ19SYkV73-Q=s2322" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2322" data-original-width="1440" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh0oYPN1RFi9iez2p5f6VGR4K0FsEUol0M8GQzoQNC0W0flbs6aC2JmRHh6vS5xo4tP_lIUTHDLdRdMBmh33IbtlNVvF5FEsl1NIpdvFa9Gw-8M8UPaJ5EK8I9xVYGjoF5uNrLOHZwksPUe3ogW1aVbWUew5XP0hprC3XjrDQPHIXu89TbJ19SYkV73-Q=w248-h400" width="248" /></a></div><br />Release Date: Feb. 22, 2022</div><div>Publisher: Berkley</div><div>Pre-order from <a href="https://amzn.to/34rd1gQ" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amazon </a>(ad)</div><p><i>I have a ... complicated relationship with Amish fiction, but something about this book piqued my interest. </i></p><p><b>In this touching Amish romance, a brokenhearted woman and a steadfast man discover that the safest place to weather tragedy is in each other's arms.</b></p><p>After the murder of both her parents, Emma Hochstedler returns to the small community of Johns Mill, hoping to resume her quiet existence. Reclaiming her place proves harder than expected--especially now that a movie is being made about her family's loss. But then, an old friend offers her a lifeline that gives her new purpose.</p><p>Amish builder Samuel Christner is the biggest--and the strongest--man in town. In fact, the gentle giant has only one weakness--Emma. Even though she broke his heart, he won't let his childhood sweetheart face her troubles alone. He hires Emma as a nurse for his elderly aunt...and finds himself falling for her all over again.</p><p>But while romance blooms, storm clouds gather. And when darkness falls, it will take all Sam's strength--and all their love--to see them through.</p><p><b>What books are you looking forward to in February? Let me know in the comments - I'm always eager to add to my TBR!</b></p><p><b></b></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received ARCs of some of these books for promotion/review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions are my own. Some of the links in this post 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."</span></p><div><br /></div>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6498701011109651607.post-6090526067170375132022-01-29T16:38:00.000-06:002022-01-29T16:38:54.058-06:00Review: "An Unlikely Duchess" by Jessica Nelson<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgDZ8UWM_lqdAlvJRTJO8AmOU4fygBrkEyi9iKEWhV8zFdlHxmrN5BQ7GQYbvHYtvfPEDMjweKwy0yM3OTKg5p6gpTWZe_4rBIo-2BvHNdNSgfWPu6Y4c2M_2ZjQ0cBqhhYwatyMfDn9l0IJhoYX8uviCQRhFFMUH1Vbpjkq8On9LZxGjG8m5b-NsVr3w=s400" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="254" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgDZ8UWM_lqdAlvJRTJO8AmOU4fygBrkEyi9iKEWhV8zFdlHxmrN5BQ7GQYbvHYtvfPEDMjweKwy0yM3OTKg5p6gpTWZe_4rBIo-2BvHNdNSgfWPu6Y4c2M_2ZjQ0cBqhhYwatyMfDn9l0IJhoYX8uviCQRhFFMUH1Vbpjkq8On9LZxGjG8m5b-NsVr3w=w254-h400" width="254" /></a></div><br />One of the reasons I love regency romance so much is that practically every other one includes a marriage of convenience, which is by far my favorite romance trope! So when I heard about Jessica Nelson's <i>An Unlikely Duchess</i>, I knew this book would be right up my alley.<span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><hr style="width: 66%;" /><p><b><i>A marriage of convenience </i><i>is the only way to save her family…</i></b></p><p><i>Widow Sophia Seymour never planned to marry again—let alone become a duchess. But with her father missing and her family impoverished, an old betrothal contract promising her hand to a notorious duke is her only hope. And Edmund DeVane intends to honor the agreement—in name only. After all, Edmund needs a wife with an impeccable reputation to protect his debuting niece. But as their arrangement starts to feel much more real, can their budding love survive Edmund’s deepest secret? </i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" /><p>As I think back on <i>The Unlikely Duchess</i>, which I finished reading a couple weeks ago, what sticks with me isn't the romance but rather something that all of us who claim to follow Christ have either dealt with or will face in the future: seeing someone who profoundly and positively impacted our faith journey behave in a way that is the antithesis of everything they taught us. This is just a small portion of the novel - Sophia's struggle to reconcile a loved one's behavior with what this person taught her about Jesus - but it's what has stuck with me.</p><p>As for the rest of the book, it's a fairly standard marriage of convenience, with the couple slowly falling in love throughout the novel. I really, really loved Sophia, and I liked Edmund well enough. And while Edmund was a dummy about the "big conflict" that tore them apart, I loved their reunion. This is an enjoyable novel that is, frankly, better than what I expect of Love Inspired titles, and I look forward to reading more of Jessica Nelson's books in the future. <b>4 stars.</b></p><p><i><a href="https://amzn.to/34gL9Mr" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buy the book.</a> (Amazon ad)</i></p><hr style="width: 66%;" /><p><i><b>Jessica Nelson</b> believes romance happens every day, and thinks the greatest, most intense romance comes from a God who woos people to himself with passionate tenderness. When Jessica is not chasing her three beautiful, wild little boys around the living room, she can be found staring into space as she plots her next story. Or she might be daydreaming about a raspberry mocha from Starbucks. Or thinking about what kind of chocolate she should have for dinner that night. She could be thinking of any number of things, really. One thing is for certain, she is blessed with a wonderful family and a lovely life.</i></p><p><i></i></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. 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."</span></p><div><br /></div><p><br /></p>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09461142634929195207noreply@blogger.com0