Archive | December, 2016

#BookReview: The Innkeeper of Ivy Hill by Julie Klassen

30 Dec

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Julie Klassen is an exceptional historical author, and she completely charmed me with The Innkeeper of Ivy Hill. I loved the picturesque English village and delighted in the compelling characters who reside there! As I began reading, I became immersed in Jane’s world and the complexities of living and working at The Bell. “Can Jane bring new life to the inn, and to her heart as well?” I can’t wait to continue the Tales from Ivy Hill series and find out!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. No review was required, and all thoughts expressed are my own.

 

About the book:

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On a rise overlooking the Wiltshire countryside stands the village of Ivy Hill. Its coaching inn, The Bell, is its lifeblood–along with the coach lines that stop there daily, bringing news, mail, travelers, and much-needed trade.

Jane Bell lives on the edge of the inn property. She had been a genteel lady until she married the charming innkeeper who promised she would never have to work in his family’s inn. But when he dies under mysterious circumstances, Jane finds herself The Bell’s owner, and worse, she has three months to pay a large loan or lose the place.

Feeling reluctant and ill-equipped, Jane is tempted to abandon her husband’s legacy and return to her former life of ease. However, she soon realizes there is more at stake than her comfort. But who can she trust to help her? Her resentful mother-in-law? Her husband’s brother, who wanted the inn for himself? Or the handsome newcomer with secret plans of his own . . . ?

With pressure mounting from the bank, Jane struggles to win over naysayers and turn the place around. Can Jane bring new life to the inn, and to her heart as well?

Purchase a copy: http://amzn.to/2huzpYR

Visit the author: http://julieklassen.com/

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Friday Freebies

30 Dec

Freebie Graphic- BuzzingAboutBooks.com

 

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Scent of Danger by Alexa Verde

Kindle

To find her missing sister, small-town cop Maya Hutchinson risks her life by posing as her glamorous twin. Under escalating attacks, Maya accepts protection from dashing senator’s son Connor McNamara. Cop turned PI, Connor McNamara has his own secret mission and is forced to choose between family loyalty and love. When the scent of danger draws near, will Connor and Maya survive long enough to forgive and accept each other?

Secrets of Rios Azules series: sweet, wholesome books about faith, love, and murder. Welcome to Rios Azules, a small Texas town where rivers and emotions run deep, and the secrets are deadly.

 

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Silent Stars of Bethlehem by Laura Hodges Poole

Kindle

From the time she was a child, Carly Shepherd has gazed at the silent stars in the night sky of her home town of Bethlehem, North Carolina. With her childhood overshadowed by her father’s abandonment and mother’s alcoholism, she wonders how anyone can believe in an equally silent God. After all, she’s not felt his presence any more than her earthly father. Though she remembers Christmas pageants and attending church as a child, she no longer has any use for what she considers fairy tales.

Drew Middleton is seeking shelter from a rain storm when he walks into Carly’s vendor tent at a fall festival, but he’s quickly taken with the talented artist and her creations. Feeling an instant connection, Carly is confused by her feelings, especially when she realizes his spiritual commitment.

Dealing with a wayward brother and career opportunities that may require relocation, Drew knows now is not the best time to begin a relationship, especially with someone who doesn’t share his faith.

Carly’s past and their chance of future together collide when she’s snared into refurbishing sets for a Christmas pageant with Drew’s help.

Will Drew’s love and their shared experience bring about a spiritual awakening in Carly this Christmas? Or will time run out as the stars continue to shine silently over Bethlehem?

 

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Everlasting Light by Andrea Boeshaar

Kindle 

The American Civil War has ended, but Alaina McKenna still awaits news about her husband, Braeden. Did he die in a Yankee prison? Was he buried in a shallow grave on a Virginia battlefield? Or has he turned his back on the specter of death and loss around him and sought solitude west of the Mississippi River, never to return home, again?

As Christmas nears, Alaina deflects the advances of a suitor in the neighboring county, choosing to cling instead to hope and her belief that Braeden will return. As winter’s chill settles upon her farm, Alaina cries out to God in one final Christmas Prayer.

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#BookReview: For the Record by Regina Jennings

29 Dec

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I love reading Regina Jennings’ stories because I know they will bring smiles and laughter, and For the Record did just that! While it is the third book in the Ozark Mountain Romance series, this novel reads as a stand-alone story.

Rich characterization and romantic chemistry bring Joel and Betsy’s story to life, and I delighted in their antics. The adventures in Pine Gap continue as a thread of mystery weaves its way through the narrative, adding an element of intrigue to the entertaining story line. I thoroughly enjoyed this cleverly crafted tale and can’t wait to read more!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. No review was required, and all thoughts expressed are my own.

 

About the book:

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Betsy Huckabee might be a small-town girl, but she has big-city dreams. Writing for her uncle’s newspaper will never lead to independence, and the bigger newspapers don’t seem interested in the Hart County news. Trying a new approach, Betsy pens a romanticized serial for the ladies’ pages, and the new deputy provides the perfect inspiration for her submissions. She’d be horrified if he read her breathless descriptions of him, but these articles are for a newspaper far away. No one in Pine Gap will ever know.

Deputy Joel Puckett didn’t want to leave Texas, but this job in tiny Pine Gap is his only shot at keeping his badge. With masked marauders riding every night, his skills and patience are tested, but even more challenging is the sassy journalist lady chasing him.

Purchase a copy: http://amzn.to/2icgIx4

Visit the author: http://www.reginajennings.com/

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#BookReview: The Cherished Quilt by Amy Clipston

28 Dec

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The Cherished Quilt is a lovely, heartfelt story! With imagery and emotion, Amy Clipston skillfully brings her characters and their community to life, and I loved spending time in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania.

Themes of guilt and grief are finely woven through Emily and Christopher’s story, but their journey is also filled with hope and healing. It was such a pleasure to watch their relationship grow and blossom! I thoroughly enjoyed The Cherished Quilt and look forward to continuing the Amish Heirloom series.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. No review was required, and all thoughts expressed are my own.

 

About the book:

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Emily Fisher is eager to meet the new employee at her father’s shop in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania. But when Christopher Hochstetler arrives, his cold demeanor freezes her attempts at building a friendship.

Longing for a fresh start, Christopher travels from Ohio to Bird-in-Hand to work at his uncle’s shop. Christopher’s heart is still wounded from memories of home, and making new friends is the last thing on his mind—he knows the pain that comes with losing those you love. When Emily is kind to him, he tries to remain distant, but he soon finds himself stealing glances at her throughout the day.

When Christopher shares his tragic reasons for leaving home, Emily decides to make a quilt for him as a gesture of their friendship. Even though he is not a member of the church, she’s found someone with whom she can imagine a future. The two are quickly falling in love when a family emergency calls Christopher back to Ohio without warning.

Emily finishes the quilt, in spite of her pain. But when Christopher receives it, will he have the courage to follow his heart?

Purchase a copy: http://amzn.to/2ii9700

Visit the author: amyclipston.com

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Merry Christmas!

25 Dec

ChristmasWishes

Friday Freebies

23 Dec

Freebie Graphic- BuzzingAboutBooks.com

 

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Plantation Christmas Weddings: Four-in-One Romance Collection

Kindle

’Tis the season for romance as four hearts are rekindled with love. Everything a widow felt she knew about her life changes when she meets her daughter’s future father-in-law. A successful novelist seeking peace with her past finds it in a mansion and the eyes of a handsome history buff. The trap is set for a divorced couple to receive the best Christmas present ever—a second chance at love. After being jilted at the altar, a wedding planner gets reacquainted with her heart. Will jingle bells be wedding bells in four Plantation Christmas Weddings?

 

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Letters from Santa by Becca Whitham

Kindle

Army intelligence officer Alex Stevens has been trying to prove his father didn’t desert during WWII so his mother can receive survivor benefits. He’s followed every lead until it ran dry. Then Violet Poplovich, the daughter of another soldier who deserted at the same time as Alex’s father, walks into his office with a check she thinks came from the army. But the army doesn’t issue checks from the First National Bank of North Pole, Alaska. All Alex wants is the truth, and he wants Violet to help him find it.

Violet doesn’t want to believe her father’s a deserter, and she certainly doesn’t want to believe he’s been sending cashier’s checks for fifteen years without ever trying to contact her. Except maybe he has…disguised as Santa. When she receives some mysterious gifts, Violet is forced to consider that her father may be alive.

Both of them are looking for the same man, and the only person who can help is Santa.

 

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Mistletoe Memories: Four-in-One Historical Collection

Kindle

Spend a heartfelt Christmas on Schooley’s Mountain as four generations make a house a home. Carpenter Stephan Yost vows to build a precocious spinster a home by Christmas. Civil War widow Mary Ann Plum learns the greatest peace on earth comes from giving and receiving love. Olympia Paris must protect the orphanage she grew up in from a man intending to play Father Christmas to most of the town. Joy Benucci turns to a modern-day Scrooge to save a transitional home for foster kids. Will Christmas be a season of miracles in their lives?

 

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Christmas Mail-Order Brides

Kindle

Ride the transcontinental railroad as marriage arrives by mail-order—and just in time for Christmas. Annika arrives in Wyoming to discover her intended is missing. Jolie’s journey to Nevada is derailed by disaster. Elizabeth carries a load of secrets to Nebraska. And Amelia travels to California to wrap up her final attempts at matchmaking. Will the holiday season be the ticket to spark love in unexpected ways?

 

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The Chamomile by Susan F. Craft

Kindle

Lilyan joins Patriot spies in British-occupied Charlestown, South Carolina, to rescue her brother from a notorious prison ship. She’ll lie, steal, kill or be killed in order to protect her family. Desperate for help, she seeks out Nicholas Xanthakos, a scout with Francis Marion’s partisans, and the pair set out to save her brother.

But will they reach him in time? Or will her growing feelings for Nicholas disrupt their mission and send the pair to the gallows?

 

fields-of-the-fatherless

Fields of the Fatherless by Elaine Marie Cooper

Kindle

In the early months of 1775, war is brewing in the American colonies. Although frightened, eighteen-year-old Betsy Russell (an ancestor to actor Kurt Russell) of Menotomy Village, Massachusetts, wants to be prepared in case of attack by British troops. Her father, prosperous farmer Jason, is the fourth generation of Russells on this land yet their very rights as British Colonials are being stripped away one by one. Will the King of England take their land as well? Tensions are growing here in the countryside west of Boston and the outbreak of battle seems a certainty. Jason desperately wants to protect his family his wife, children and grandchildren and their future. Betsy makes every attempt to be prepared for the worst. But not even the American militia could have predicted the bloody massacre that was about to occur right on the Russells’ doorstep. If Betsy loses everything she holds dear, are the rights of all the Colonists endangered?

Fields of the Fatherless is based on a true story.

 

a-place-called-morning

A Place Called Morning by Ann Tatlock

Kindle

Mae Demaray retreats from life after her young grandson dies accidentally while under her care. What was once a quiet life in an old clapboard house on a quiet Minneapolis street, rich with the hues of security and love, is now shattered. But a decades-old family secret, based on an unlikely friendship over the years, brings redemption and restoration once it is revealed.

 

broken-things

Broken Things by Andrea Boeshaar

Kindle

Award-winning author Andrea Boeshaar takes readers into the world of a woman who comes face to face with the haunting memories of her past – and the man she once loved.

Returning to her hometown, Chicago, Allie Littenberg learns her actions had worse repercussions than she realized – especially for Jack Callahan, the handsome Chicago cop she loved, but left. She finds Jack is now a bitter shell of a man, his tenderness erased by years of anguish.

Can God use Allie to not only mend the hurts in her own family, but also bring peace to Jack, his son, and estranged wife? Allie is compelled to find out.

 

after-the-storm

After the Storm by Yvonne Lehman

Kindle

Sharon cannot face her future until she has dealt with her past. When an accident takes everyone in her family except Sharon Martin’s grandson, she is forced to face the secrets of her past. For decades she has protected herself and “his family” from the damage this secret could cause. But when Bobby’s well-being depends on her honesty, will she have the courage to speak the truth? When tragedy strikes, can love and honesty save a life?

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#BookReview: A Family Arrangement by Gabrielle Meyer

22 Dec

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A Family Arrangement by Gabrielle Meyer

Purchase a copy: http://amzn.to/2gfy9YW

Abram Cooper has ten months to turn rough Minnesota country into a vibrant town, or his sister-in-law will take his three sons back to Iowa with his blessing. Until then, Charlotte Lee has agreed to keep house and help raise his children as part of their bargain. But can the single father fulfill Charlotte’s requirements in time to make sure that she and his boys don’t leave—and take his heart with them?

Charlotte is convinced that the wilderness is no place to raise her nephews. But as she watches the community slowly develop, she sees that Abram just might be able to make it blossom. With three little matchmakers bringing her and Abram together, Little Falls could become not just a flourishing town, but the perfect home for their patchwork family.

 

My thoughts:

Gabrielle Meyer’s love of history and her hometown is evident as she transports readers to the Minnesota countryside. Influenced by historical events, A Family Arrangement brings to light the struggles and sacrifices involved in the building of Little Falls and offers picturesque glimpses into the past.

Abram and Charlotte’s story is a delightful blend of history and romance, and I loved experiencing the creation of a town and a family and seeing them both flourish. Brimming with imagery and emotion, this charming story warmed my heart and left me eager to continue the Little Falls Legacy series!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. No review was required, and all thoughts expressed are my own.

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Winners!

12 Dec

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Thank you all for visiting and participating in this giveaway!

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#BookReview: Pray A to Z | Prayer Prize Pack #Giveaway

8 Dec

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Pray A to Z by Amelia Rhodes

Purchase a copy: http://bit.ly/2guYoyl

Change the world one prayer at a time.

How would our community change if instead of absently saying, “I’ll pray for you,” we actually did pray—deeply, intensely, and purposefully?

Pray A to Z: A Practical Guide to Praying for Your Community will help you topically organize your prayer requests and lay the burdens of your community at the feet of our Heavenly Father.

With compassion and encouragement, Amelia Rhodes offers Bible verses and prayer prompts, organized topically for every letter of the alphabet. There are five topics per letter—three prayers of petition asking God to work in a certain area of need, and two more prayers of praise to reflect gratitude for God’s presence in the daily issues and relationships of life. Through petition and praise, your specific, focused communion with God will lighten your heart as you place the heaviness of those prayer requests where they belong—on His strong shoulders.

Whether you are praying for a friend’s adoption journey, a neighbor’s bankruptcy, or a family member’s cancer, this book will give you Bible verses, prayer prompts, and prayer starts to guide you through praying for even the most difficult issues that affect the people you know and love. Perfect for either individual or group prayer, Pray A to Z will help you experience the peace that comes from communicating with God.

 

My thoughts:

Pray A to Z is a wonderful prayer guide! Organized alphabetically by topic, this little book is sure to make a big impact on its readers. Rhodes brings attention to a myriad of issues and struggles that many in our community are facing and calls us to be more mindful and intentional in our petitions and praise. I really appreciated the thoroughness and thoughtfulness of the suggested prayers, as well the pertinent scriptures that begin each section. Simple, yet effective, Pray A to Z is a great tool to use in your individual prayer life, as well as in a group setting.

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Learn more about Pray A to Z and how to pray for your community, and enter to win Amelia’s Guide to Prayer Prize Pack to get you started.

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One grand prize winner will receive:

Enter today by clicking the icon below, but hurry! The giveaway ends on December 20. The winner will be announced December 21 on Amelia’s blog.

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amelia-rhodes
Amelia Rhodes is a speaker and author of Isn’t It Time for a Coffee Break: Doing Life Together in an All-About-Me Kind of World. Amelia’s writing has also been featured in four Chicken Soup for the Soul titles, devotionals for the OneHope blog Undeterred and the international devotional Upper Room. Amelia has a growing speaking ministry and speaks regularly to women’s groups on topics of spiritual growth, friendship, and community, offering practical tools for living our faith in the everyday. She lives in Lowell, Michigan.

 

 

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I received a complimentary copy of this book. No review was required, and all thoughts expressed are my own.  Click here to read what other bloggers are saying about Pray A to Z.

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#BookReview: The Pattern Artist by Nancy Moser

7 Dec

the-pattern-artist

The Pattern Artist by Nancy Moser

Purchase a copy: http://bit.ly/2ggTLYa

Born into a life of hard work, English housemaid Annie Wood arrives in New York City in 1911 with her wealthy mistress. Wide-eyed with the possibilities America has to offer, Annie wonders if there’s more for her than a life of service. Annie chooses to risk everything, taps into courage she never knew she had, and goes off on her own, finding employment in the sewing department at Macy’s. While at Macy’s Annie catches the eye of a salesman at the Butterick Pattern Company. Through determination, hard work, and God’s leading, Annie discovers a hidden gift: she is a talented fashion designer—a pattern artist of the highest degree. As she runs from ghosts of the past and focuses on the future, Annie enters a creative world that takes her to the fashion houses of Paris and into a life of adventure, purpose, and love.

 

My thoughts:

Boasting wonderful characterization and a fascinating story line, The Pattern Artist captivated me from beginning to end! I loved experiencing Annie’s journey out of her life as an English servant and into living her American dream. I also delighted in the notable historical events that are deftly woven through the fabric of this compelling novel. Alive with imagery and emotion, The Pattern Artist is a beautiful story!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. No review was required, and all thoughts expressed are my own.

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