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Mistletoe Memories

10/15/2013

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Mistletoe Memories
by Lisa Karon Richardson, Jennifer AlLee, Carla Olson Gade, and Gina Welborn
September 2013
Barbour Publishing



This review was written by 3 members of the Inkwell Inspirations blog since 3 of the book's authors are Inky blog members. Any Treasure Hunt references are meant for the Inkwell Inspirations version.

Mistletoe Memories is a Christmas-themed book of connecting novellas set at Schooley’s Mountain, New Jersey. In yesterday’s Treasure Hunt post, Lisa Karon Richardson, author of Midnight Clear said,  “The four stories in MISTLETOE MEMORIES cover the almost 200 years after the house was built and center around a house that became a refuge that became an orphanage that became a home.”

Join us as we travel back in time to when the house was first envisioned, and then walk by our side as we step through the stories to discover interesting facets of 4 couples who dared to dream of the house as their future home.



‘Tis The Season by Carla Olson Gade
1820, Late Oct

Carla Olson Gade has used an historic figure and estate to give credence to hero Stephan Yost's reason for being on Schooley's Mountain - an actual resort area back in the day. Carla has also placed heroine Annaliese Braun in one of those resorts as the doctor’s daughter.

Annaliese loves her summers on Schooley’s Mountain and would even accept life as a spinster if it allowed her to live there year ‘round. But late fall every year her father drags her back to their ornate Manhattan apartment. This year will be different though, for her father announces that he’s hired Stephan Yost to build her the house of her dreams in time for Christmas. Annaliese wonders if perhaps a home and family at Schooley's Mountain are in God’s plan for her after all.

But remorseful Stephan curbs his attraction for her lest she guess his secret and reject him outright, believing it would be less painful for everyone if he guards his heart and leaves quietly when the job is done.

Of course, I haven’t given you all the facts in this tender love story, and neither did Carla at first. I like the way she wrote the story, dropping bits of character information here and historical info there when I needed to know. I didn't need writing gimmicks to keep reading as she'd given me enough heartfelt emotion to keep me interested. As for the ending, I’d like to say, I saw it coming, yet when it did, it was natural and right, the whole tale flowing in a surprising and satisfying conclusion. Based on this story, I can definitely say I’ll be looking for more of Carla’s stories. 

     Submitted by Anita Mae Draper



Mercy Mild by Gina Welborn
1868, December 22nd

Almost fifty years after Carla Gade’s story, can devotion and joy still fill the incredible house built for Annaliese by her handsome carpenter husband?

I will tell you this much: you will fall in love with Deputy Ezekial Norcross on Page One. Gina Welborn excels at vivid imagery, characterization and apparently emotional manipulation! Don’t read this novella in public if you don’t like sniffling back tears. Zeke is in charge of finding new homes for a passel of orphans but as a single man, he can't adopt any (he’d take them all!) unless he has a wife. And of course he has his eye on war widow Marianne Plum, wife of the man he fought with and most respected. She is kind, practical and lonely…and bears such secret pain from her childhood, the idea of parenting paralyzes her. And Zeke knows it because of what her husband shared during the war.

Did I mention Zeke’s mom harbors a big dislike of the widow? You may think her a harsh woman for this but I know you’ll be touched by Gina’s handling of it.

Gina adds the cutest little girl ever and some heart-wrenching truths about the Civil War to this thoroughly charming tale. Gina, this is my favorite of all your novellas so far.
     
     Submitted by Debra E. Marvin



Midnight Clear by Lisa Karon Richardson
1910, December 6

Orphan Olympia Paris is plenty old enough to have left behind the rambling home now known as Heath House where she and many others grew up, but she can’t part from the children who depend on her and each other as family. Yet they may not have a choice. There is no way she can pay the back taxes and the house will go to auction. With Christmas closing in, the next best thing to funding is the happy return of her dearest childhood friend, another orphan, Teddy Carstairs. 

It’s rags-to-riches for Theodore, anxious to turn his hometown into a successful tourist destination again. The friendly devotion he shared with Olympia blooms into a strong attraction for both, though he never anticipated his business plans would hurt the woman he’s always loved. 

Olympia is devastated. She thought she, of all people, knew Teddy, so how can he even consider tearing down the big house that so many generations have treasured.

Lisa Karon Richardson’s writing flows so skillfully, you’ll be surprised to find yourself at the end facing one of the sweetest closing scenes I’ve read. I loved the depth of these characters’ regrets and Lisa’s skill with real conflicts between two people who belong together. 

     submitted by Debra E. Marvin



Comfort and Joy by Jennifer AlLee
Present Day

First, the gushy part: I loved this novella, and I don’t know if Hallmark Channel has a Google alert to see what people are saying about them, but if they do, listen up. This would make a great Hallmark holiday movie.

At times poignant, at times funny, with a full serving of heart-warming, Comfort and Joy tells the story of Comfort House, a transitional home for kids who have outgrown the foster system but aren’t quite ready to support themselves on their own. Running this charity is Joy Benucci, who thinks she has enough on her plate--until she answers the door one day to find a drop-dead handsome lawyer…with an eviction notice.

That lawyer, Evan Lancaster, has an entirely different view of the foster system--and is pretty suspicious of Joy (Why? You’ll have to read it to find out. I don’t want to give away too much of the story!) But round the cast out with a news anchor with her own agenda, and a delightful group of ex-foster kids, and you end up with one enjoyable read.

But I do need to share my favorite line, the one that took my breath away. (I won’t give the context, because I don’t want to spoil the ending for anybody!

“She isn’t a show dog. Her pedigree doesn’t determine how she’ll turn out.”

What a reminder that, through God, we can be so much more than our upbringing. Such a powerful takeaway from an incredible novella! Well done, Jen!

     Submitted by Barb Early



There you have it. Four delightful romances to celebrate the Christmas season. And although falling in love doesn't happen only at Christmas, and we've only covered four such stories, people have fallen in love every day during the past two centuries and more. 





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In Honor Bound by DeAnna Julie Dodson

7/19/2013

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It could be the ornately detailed covers. Or it could be because I enjoy historicals in all periods. Or it could be the hint of a marriage-of-convenience story in the 1st title - admittedly one of my favorite themes. Whatever the reason, I was drawn to DeAnna Julie Dodson's medieval series, The Chastelayne Trilogy.

Admittedly I downloaded Book 1 In Honor Bound as a free download. When Book 2 in the series, By Love Redeemed, was offered as a free download last month I snapped it up right quick too. And I can honestly say that when I flip through my book carousel on my tablet, the rich covers of this series stand out from the rest of the ordinary book covers spinning past.


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The Chastelayne Trilogy by DeAnna Julie Dodson
Before I go any farther, I have to say that unlike the innocent-looking books on DeAnna's website book page, The Chastelayne Trilogy is not for the faint-hearted. Yes, I know she appears... passive when you look at her Fun Page but don't be mislead by her pages on cats, quilting, cross stitch and barn swallows. After all . . . cats and barn swallows on the same page? Right. And if you click on The Greatest Sport Ever link, you won't see swimming or tennis or some other non-contact sport. Oh no . . . you see Hockey - a full body-contact sport. If you check way down on her hockey page, you find this delicious quote of DeAnna's:

...he was always a delight to watch on defense - especially when putting Peter Forsberg in his place (his place, of course, being on his backside on the ice). 

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See what I mean. She may look like a sweet Texan who wouldn't crack a peanut, but don't let that fool you. Her skirmish and battle scenes are some of the best I've read and she doesn't hide the fact that human blood runs red. It's a wonder she can keep her vivid imagination between the covers of a book. (She does, doesn't she? I mean, what do we really know about this woman?)

I say that as a reader because In Honor Bound is a gripping tale of love won and lost in the bedroom as well as the battlefield. Tastefully and artistically written in 1997 (paperback editions displayed below), In Honor Bound is a timeless tale where events unfold in frightening detail without paying lip service to modern trends in writing. I generally don't like head-hopping but the way DeAnna writes ... coherent thoughts from different characters slip into the scene as easily as a warm spoon in ice cream.

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The Chastelayne Trilogy by DeAnna Julie Dodson
In Honor Bound leaves the bedroom door open to the most heart-wrenching scenes that left me bawling hopelessly. Sweet scenes with soft words that caressed and soothed me with tenderness. Then without warning, curt hurting words, uttered in guilt. I cried for the person receiving it as well as the person giving it because I cared so much for both of them. That's the essence of DeAnna's three-dimensional characters - they never came out of character by jarring gesture or word or deed. They became real.

DeAnna excels at portraying deep emotions that thrum with realism. Although the situations were medieval, the relationships could and do happen every single day - then and now.

Several times I highlighted lines (on my Kindle app) which seemed particularly unforgettable:

- And every moment of closeness, every embrace, every caress was purchased at the cost of his coolness towards her the next day or, worse, his absence from her altogether.

- I did what pleased me to get the crown, thinking I could get forgiveness later. Now I've gone too far to even ask. 

- Tom took the piece of black bread he offered and wolfed it down, wincing as it scratched its way down his raw throat.

- I could have loved you.

Oh, that last one did me in and I wept for several minutes - not the first nor last time while reading this wonderful book.

Here's the back cover blurb:
His father will stop at nothing to keep the royal bloodline "pure" --even murder. But his sins have nearly destroyed Prince Philip and the future of his reign.

Forced into a political marriage, Philip tells his bride, "I will not lie to you, I will not be unfaithful to you, and I will not love you. My heart is pledged to another and I am not a man to break an oath."

His one true love is a lowly serving girl. When Philip refuses to set her aside in order to form a politically beneficial marriage, his father has the girl tried on false charges and executed. He then forces Philip to marry the beautiful and nobly born Lady Rosalynde. Devastated and embittered by his loss and his father's betrayal, Philip is determined to never love again . . . not his father, not his wife, not his God. Although Rosalynde adores him, he withholds his heart from her, refusing to let even death end his devotion to the love he lost. Despite his coldness towards her, Rosalynde is determined to love him and teach him to love her -- as determined as the God he has turned his back on. As civil war rages throughout the realm, Philip faces a greater struggle within himself. Will he open his heart to love again or let his pride destroy him and his kingdom?
You can find an excerpt of the Prologue and Chapter 1 on DeAnna's website. Check it out and see if it interests you.

As an added bonus, the host of the Novel Characters blog is an artist and animator named Monica who draws the main characters of books as she imagines them while reading. And she has posted her vision of Rosalynde & Philip from In Honor Bound by DeAnna Julie Dodson. In my opinion, Monica's portrayal of the two main characters from In Honor Bound are worthy of any Disney movie.
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DeAnna Julie Dodson has always been an avid reader and a lover of storytelling, whether on the page, the screen or the stage. This, along with her keen interest in history and her Christian faith, shows in her tales of love, forgiveness and triumph over adversity. A fifth-generation Texan, she makes her home north of Dallas with three spoiled cats and, when not writing, spends her free time quilting, cross stitching and watching NHL hockey. Her first books, In Honor Bound, By Love Redeemed andTo Grace Surrendered, are a trilogy of medieval romances and have just been redesigned and freshly edited for Kindle and Nook. She is also the author of the contemporary mysteries, Letters in the Attic and The Key in the Attic, and has recently signed on to write two more Annie's Attic Mystery: The Diary in the Attic, due out in Spring 2013, and The Legacy in the Attic, due that summer. Her newest books, written as Julianna Deering, are 1930s English cozies, The Drew Farthering Mysteries.  Rules of Murderand two sequels are due out from Bethany House starting Summer 2013. You can find out more about DeAnna and her books, including sample chapters, at her website:http://www.deannajuliedodson.com/
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The Earl's Mistaken Bride by Abby Gaines

3/22/2012

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The Earl's Mistaken Bride
by Abby Gaines,
Book 1 The Parson's Daughters,
Love Inspired Historical, Dec 2011

The Earl’s Mistaken Bride is the most delightful Regency I’ve ever read. My senses tingled as I perused the back cover. Anticipation grew upon reading the front teaser blurb. And my imagination soared as I delved into a world where a season wasn’t related to the weather and a ton didn’t refer to a measurement. This is not my normal Old West fare, yet Abby Gaines drew me in with fascinating fleshed out characters trying to lead normal lives in a society most of us can’t even imagine. 
 
My anticipation for this book stems from the fact that it’s along the lines of a mail-order bride or arranged marriage story where the groom and bride don’t meet until the wedding is imminent. They must learn to put aside petty grievances and become respectful partners under strenuous circumstances. What a way to start a marriage, but hopefully, love will follow.  
  
However, The Earl’s Mistaken Bride differs from the above story lines in that the bride and groom know who they’re to marry and they both agree. Yet even with this knowledge, the groom is shocked when he lifts his new wife’s wedding veil. Surprise! She’s not the one he chose. Does this sound confusing? Well, let me explain… 
 
Lord Marcus Brookstone’s besotted grandfather allowed the Spenford estates to fall into disrepair when he neglected his duty and put all his attention on his wife. Marcus’ father reversed the damages expounding to Marcus that love was their enemy. He made Marcus put aside his childhood friend, a common gamekeeper’s son, and instilled in him the theory of class distinction. As the future earl, Marcus was to set himself apart from everyone except those of his class. He was not to claim love, friendship and other vices, concentrating solely on unemotional pursuits pertaining to the Spenford estate. Above all, he must never let his deportment flag or do anything to incite the tiniest scandal. 
 
Marcus did not want to marry lest he be tempted to fall in love with his wife. Besotted men make fools of themselves. They throw pride and deportment by the wayside and care not what others think of them. They forget who they are and everything they stand for. That is Marcus’s greatest fear. 
 
There’s only one person he shows affection for and that’s his mother. He’s so stricken when it appears she may die, he makes a deal with God… Marcus will find a wife to give his mother peace and in return, God will heal her.  
 
Who’s he going to marry? By rights, he should marry someone of equal  birth, a woman of great beauty who looks and acts like a countess. But all the women in his circle think only of wealth and status… of spending their wealth to draw attention to themselves. Certainly they’d make demands on him. Maybe even tempt him into falling in love. And that would be the ruin of them all! Marcus cannot go that route.
 
Instead, he goes back to his country estate knowing the parish reverend has five virtuous daughters—a necessary trait for a countess—he remembers that two of them are great beauties. He can’t remember their names, but that is a minor detail and easy to discover. On the way through the village, he finds one of the reverend’s daughters fending off a suitor. She’s quite beautiful and Marcus is instantly attracted. If he has to look at a wife across the table, she may as well be comely. In reply to his query, she coyly says her name is  Constance Somerton. She requests that he not report their meeting to her father  because she’s not supposed to be down in the village. Marcus is taken with her flirtatious ways and promises not to say anything. Why would he? His problem is solved… she’s the perfect Countess of Spenford.  
 
When the reverend asks Constance if she’s willing to marry the Earl, she thinks back to three years earlier when he helped her save a puppy in distress. She fell in love with him at the time and although she hasn’t seen him since, he obviously feels the same if he’s specifically asked for her hand. Elated that God has chosen to bless her for her faith in His guiding hand, she eagerly waits for her wedding day. 
 
The time has come. The reverend has pronounced them man and wife. Giddy with excitement, Constance can barely contain herself yet she waits in breathless anticipation to look once more upon her husband’s handsome face. He moves closer to her. He grasps her veil. He lifts it over her head...

Surprised and confused, Marcus stares down at his new wife. She isn’t the girl he met down in the village at all. She’s plain and angular where only beauty will do. She looks nothing like a countess when being a proper countess counts for everything! And as they ride off in their coach toward their new life together, he leaves her huddled in a corner alone. Because there are two things that he’s sure of… first, he kept his part of the bargain, so his mother  will live. And second, he doesn’t know what game his new wife is playing, but at least with her conniving nature and plain face, he isn’t in any danger of falling in love. 
 
Poor misguided Marcus and Constance with her dashed dreams. This marriage is going to take a lot of work. 
 
Read an excerpt…

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Abby Gaines, 2011 RWA New York
As a Harlequin SuperRomance novelist, Abby Gaines knows how to crank the tension out and she does it throughout the book. My emotions kept me glued to the pages, but the conflict kept me turning them. Like all happily-ever-afters, I breathed a sigh of relief at the end, but was sad it was over. The snappy dialogue and attention to detail would have kept me entertained for twice as long. I can’t wait for Abby Gaines's next novel. 
  
Disclaimer: I did not get this book for free... I paid full price for it and believe it's worth every cent.

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From This Day Forward by Margaret Daley

11/24/2011

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From This Day Forward
by Margaret Daley
Summerside Press, Sep 2011 

Margaret Daley has successfully filled her debut historical with the emotion, suspense, and action her fans have come to love and expect. The 1816 inspirational romance begins with a dramatic situation and doesn’t let up as the tension builds toward a climatic end.

As a Canadian, I was particularly interested in the way Daley handled the War of 1812 and whether it would stir patriotism to such an extent as to colour the effect of the story itself.
 
I needn’t have worried. Daley is a professional - an expert at the writing craft. Her English heroine, Rachel Gordon and hero, Nathan Stuart each carried a full arsenal of internal conflict and used them with equal effectiveness. The result is a book which can be read in the romantic and inspirational spirit it was written without the reader worrying about choosing sides.

After choosing  love over family, Englishwoman Rachel Gordon was banished from the ancestral home. In a new land with nothing save for a maid, her baby and what she carries in a cart, newly widowed Rachel faces her own shortcomings. Raised in the nobility without a thought to where her food came from, Rachel must now provide nourishment for three. She has her husband’s gun for protection, but not the skills to fire it. And the hazards of the new land include creatures she never imagined she’d encounter, never mind have to defend herself against. Oh, for the safety of an English manor.

Doctor Nathan Stuart is still suffering the effects of the war, both from the men he was unable to save as well as those whose lives he was forced to take before they took his. Yet he can’t help feeling remorse for breaking the Hippocratic oath. What good is a man if he can’t stand on his word?  Flowing on Nathan’s internal conflict is the demoralizing relationship with his grandfather – a man whose hatred of anything English overrides everything.
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With a cast like this, readers who love Daley’s novels for what she puts in them will take away a satisfaction of knowing another time hurdle has been breached.
Look out history – Margaret Daley has you in her sights.

If you'd like to know more about Margaret Daley and her books, check out her site at  http://www.margaretdaley.com/


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Masquerade Marriage by Anne Greene

11/7/2011

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Masquerade Marriage by Anne Greene, White Rose Publishing

It’s 1746 in the Scottish Highlands and Brody MacCaulay wakes to a massacre. Blinded in one eye, buried beneath his dead clansmen, he hears the clipped English voices as they walk amidst the wounded Highlanders and finish them off with bayonets. Against his urge to strike out in fury, he silently waits for them to pass. Then leaving his fallen brothers and father behind on the battlefield, he gathers other injured clansmen and makes his way to a hidden cave. If they leave, they’ll be hunted by the English. Their fight, their world, is over.

In a distant castle, Megan MacMurry mourns the loss of her fiancé who led and perished in the Highland battle. Upon her pastor’s advice, she decides to honor her fiance’s death by saving one of his men the only way possible – through marriage. Megan is sure the chosen man will be willing to trade his doomed life for a new name, new clothes, and new life as her marriage-in-name-only husband. When the list is presented to her, she chooses the only familiar name – that of a boy who teased her mercilessly until she took a club to him and his friends. No doubt, Brody MacCaulay wouldn’t remember her girlish warrior stance. And if his teasing was what she had to put up with, she’d do it for her fiance’s sake.

Of course, once Megan is introduced to the adult Brody – a man with a mind of his own who fears nothing for himself - she begins to doubt her choice. Brody has turned into a fine specimen who turns the lasses’ heads. Surely she’s not jealous!

For his part, Brody only agrees to the marriage because his sister and mother are now under his care and they’ll be safer under his protection in a castle. And no matter what Megan says, he’ll never admit to making a secret vow of love when he was but 15 yrs old and a 12 yr old female warrior with flaming red hair stood defiantly before him with a club and warned him to stop the taunting.

Totally satisfying, the end was not been what I expected. On reflection, I realized it was what I’d hoped would happen in a fleeting moment of despair. For I cried when the end was near and things had not gone as planned. I felt Brody and Megan’s loss when they realized precious time had slipped away and there was nothing they could do. And then, when I read the last paragraph of Masquerade Marriage, I smiled.

The story is one of faith in the face of adversity. Faith in God. Faith in yourself. And faith in those people God surrounds you with.

My only concern with this book was the thick Scottish brogue in the beginning chapters since the book starts in Brody’s point of view. But the farther I read, the more I began to appreciate the soft burr of his words. I knew when he was talking and began to follow his speech patterns in my mind. And after a while I didn’t want to separate the brogue from the man, because … well… that was part of Brody.

Anne Greene, I commend you on your character choice of worthy adversaries. And more.

Masquerade Marriage is available in both ebook and print.

Anne Greene can be found at http://www.annegreeneauthor.com/

This Book Review was originally posted on my Draper's Acres blog 
before I created this website and divided the one blog
 into a series of blogs based on content.
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The Brides of Simpson Creek series by Laurie Kingery

9/18/2011

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The Brides of Simpson Creek series
by Laurie Kingery
Love Inspired Historicals

I want to bring your attention to The Brides of Simpson Creek series created by Laurie Kingery and published by Love Inspired Historical. Laurie has taken the mail order bride plot and flipped it upside down to create a series based on mail order grooms.

This series fascinated me from the moment I heard about it. I mean, we’re all familiar with the destitute or despairing mail order brides who choose to start a new life with a stranger in order to escape their old one. Let’s face it, in the 19th century, there wasn’t much for a woman to choose from if she didn’t have money to do what she wanted.

But why on earth would a man choose to be a mail order groom?

Laurie’s reasoning in the Brides of Simpson Creek is sound and believable. It’s 1865 Texas and the war is over. So many men and boys were lost in the fighting with some towns hit hard than the rest. So it is the case in Simpson Creek. Men are in short supply and almost a dozen young women of marrying age want a family of their own. Without the men, the town won’t survive. When one enterprising young lady suggests they place an ad for husbands, the idea doesn’t set well with everyone, but the ones looking to get married are all for it. And so The Simpson Creek Society for the Promotion of Marriage aka The Spinster’s Club is born. An ad is submitted to the Houston Telegraph with explicit instructions for marriage-minded bachelors to write back and wait for an invitation before appearing in town. With business taken care of, the ladies start checking the post office. It would be nice if men did what they were told, right?

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Book 1 – Mail Order Cowboy

Milly Matthews and her sister, Sarah, are trying to protect their ranch from Indians, rustlers and unruly neighbors. Milly is also the one who thought up the Spinster’s Club. She wants a man she can love and trust to help her run the ranch. And she’s adamant that men who reply to the ad should follow the rules and not just show up in town without an invite.

British Cavalry officer, Nicholas Brookfield isn’t really interested in finding a wife and settling down in Simpson Creek. He’s on his way to a job at the British Embassy, but after reading the ad where ladies were looking for husbands, he just has to come take a look – without writing of his intentions. He just shows up in the middle of a Spinster Club meeting and once he sees Milly, he's a goner. 

Brave, spunky heroine vs dashing, protective hero. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Foreshadow: Throughout this book, Milly’s sister, Sarah had one crippling fear – that one of the marriage-minded bachelors would be a Yankee and try to hide it. By the time I finished Mail Order Cowboy and was ready for Book 2, I was yearning for the heroine to be Sarah and the man who comes calling to be a Yankee. Laurie did not disappoint me.

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Book 2: The Doctor Takes a Wife

Sarah Matthews takes over the running of the Spinster Club when Milly marries. Sarah is still mourning her fiancé who never returned from the war – most likely shot by a Yankee. She loathes Yankees. When a badly-needed doctor answers the ad, Sarah takes on the task of corresponding with him. During their correspondence, Sarah’s interest is sparked. Her attraction intensifies the first time she sets eyes on Nolan – until he opens his mouth and his words have a flat, nasal accent! Betrayed by the lying Yankee, she passes him off to the Spinster's Club.

Dr. Nolan Walker is a widower who wore the blue during the war, but treated men of all colors. He wants to settle down where no one else cares either. Nolan doesn’t want to choose another member of the Club, he wants the woman he fell for through the letters, and he’ll wait until she’s ready to accept him. But will Nolan’s dream come true when Sarah’s prayers are answered and she has to choose?

Brave, misguided heroine vs honorable, lonely hero. This book sent me on a rollercoaster of emotions, but what I liked best was the snappy interplay between Sarah and Nolan.

Foreshadow: Sarah’s housemate is Prissy Gilmore, the new chairwoman of the Spinster’s Club. Sarah is hoping Prissy will meet someone this time. But in the background of this book is Caroline who lost her fiancé in Book 1 and feels her life is over. I really want to read Caroline’s story.

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Book 3 The Sheriff’s Sweetheart

Prissy Gilmore, the mayor’s daughter, is easily attracted to handsome men so when she sets her cap for the new sheriff the minute she lays eyes on him, she has a hard time proving he’s really the one for her. But no man could be better for her than the honorable sheriff who only wants to take care of her and protect her town.

Sam Bishop and his dog are on the run and need a place to lay low. When Sam spots an ad for marriage-minded bachelors, he heads to Simpson Creek intent on finding a job and attracting a rich wife to cover his gambling problems. It’s his lucky day when he rides into town and within minutes of each other, gets a job as sheriff and meets the mayor’s attractive daughter. After awhile, Sam wishes he hadn’t lied about his credentials and wants to come clean with Prissy. But can he come clean with her and keep her love before his past catches up to him?

Devoted, impetuous heroine vs dishonest, loyal hero. At first, this hero made me mad. I understood why he did things, but that didn’t explain his continued dishonesty. Yet, Laurie took this ‘bad boy’ and turned him into a worthy hero.

Foreshadow: Caroline applies for the town's schoolmarm job. If she can’t have a family of her own, she’ll teach other people’s children. Oh Laurie – why haven’t you written a story for Caroline?

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Book 4 The Rancher's Courtship

Guess what? I was over at Laurie’s website the other day and she has the 4th book in the Brides of Simpson Creek coming out in November and yes, the book is finally Caroline’s story. The Rancher’s Courtship has Caroline working as the town schoolteacher when her deceased fiancé’s brother, Jack, shows up with twin six-year-old girls and a herd of cattle. Jack is unaware of his brother’s demise and had planned to leave his daughters with the newlyweds while he finished his cattle drive. Oh, this sounds like another good one from Laurie Kingery although I’m not sure it classifies as a mail order groom story. Of course I’ll have to read it to be certain, though.


I sure hope Laurie will be at the ACFW conference in St Louis this coming week because I’d personally like to tell her how much I’m enjoying this series, as well as find out more about Book 5 scheduled for Jul 2012 according to her website.

Good twist on an old theme, Laurie. I'm enjoying this series immensely.

You can find out more about this Texas-born author at http://www.lauriekingery.com/index.html


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Jewel of Persia by Roseanna M. White

7/9/2011

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Jewel of Persia by Roseanna M. White
WhiteFire Printing, June 2011

This extraordinary book gives a fresh look at the politics between the wives and concubines at the highest level of a harem. Until I read Jewel of Persia, I never considered how things would work if the king loved one wife more than another. And I never considered what it would be like to be one of many wives if you truly loved the king as a man. How it would feel if you knew he continued to sleep with his other wives. That’s what I liked about this book… it gets right down to the core emotions as well as the social interactions involved.

The story centers around Kasia (ka-SEE-uh), the oldest daughter in a large Jewish family with not much money, but lots of love. One day she makes the mistake of speaking to a wealthy Persian and soon finds herself a concubine in the King of Persia’s harem. Her shamed parents tell her siblings and her friend, the young Esther that Kasia was swept down the river and with that lie, Kasia is cut away from the family she loves and begins her influential climb into the very heart of Xerxes (ZIRK-seez).

If you think this is just another story of Queen Esther’s life, think again, for the actual Biblical tale is only a very small portion of this book. I’ve read many books that marry Biblical truth with fictional characters, but none came close to the heart wrenching storylines in the Jewel of Persia. Using several point-of-views, we discover who is really telling the truth and who just seems to be. Who is willing to die for the king and who’d rather see him dead. Who is acting out of love and whose act of love is a screen for more sinister purposes.

Jewel of Persia is about good versus evil and light against darkness. Steadfast Kasia feels herself surrounded by God's presence as a light shining through the murky veil of evil. It's very effective in showing those who believe in God as the omnipotent Creator who loves and cares for them and those who put their faith in the god of darkness, Ahura Mazda.

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This was the first book I read from this author and although I received it as a gift for review purposes, any books by Roseanna M. White in this genre will now go on my auto-buy list.

If you'd like to know more about Roseanna M White and her books, you can check out her website at http://www.roseannawhite.com/.

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To Win Her Heart by Karen Witemeyer

6/19/2011

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To Win Her Heart by Karen Witemeyer, Bethany House, May 2011

Karen Witemeyer’s suburb story skills shine in this second-chances tale that caught my attention at the first paragraph and kept me enthralled until the very end. Little details on every page gripped my heart and drew me into the lives of a man seeking a new life and a woman trying to shed her old one. I agonized between writing my own story and reading To Win Her Heart which I kept close so I could snatch a peek at every chance.

I believe Karen Witemeyer reached new heights with her choice of strong, yet vulnerable characters - social opposites who believe past errors have ruined their chance for a family of their own.

Eden Spencer is only in her late twenties, but in 1887 she’s considered a spinster. She lives with a small staff - people who’ve known her forever, and opens her personal library to the town. Church, good works for orphans and reading at her weekly children’s story hour fills her with joy, but it’s not enough to satisfy the emptiness for babies of her own. She needs a husband for that, except her mistrust in men is almost as strong as her need to keep her reputation spotless.

Levi Grant is a huge blacksmith who’s been in prison for accidently killing a man in a boxing match. Newly released, he heads to Spencer, Texas where the local preacher is the only one who knows his past, but is keeping it a secret because the town is desperate for a smithy. All Levi wants is to wrap himself in his new-found faith and do his ironwork without bringing attention to himself.

Two people from different social circles, neither needing a hint of scandal, yet they share a love of books. Never mind that Levi looks out-of-place in Eden’s library. It’s what’s inside him that counts. And here's where it gets interesting because Karen Witemeyer has given Levi a character trait he’s ashamed to show in public. As a child faced with ridicule, Levi fought back the only way he knew how - with his fists. And now that he’s out of prison, he’s sworn off fighting and has found a way to overcome his ‘defect’. Or has he? Perhaps it’s just hidden and waiting for an inopportune moment to make itself known. How I empathized with Levi because every day was a struggle of suppression, especially when he met Eden and his guarded emotions slipped away and revealed the real Levi Grant.

By that time I’d accepted him as a strong, yet vulnerable hero. I knew him. I knew his regrets. I knew he was an honorable man intent only on following God’s path. I knew his heart. And I was ready to do battle for him if he wasn’t going to defend himself.

Eden thinks she’s falling in love with a peaceful, reputable man. A pacifist who won’t allow herself to be linked with anyone with a hint of dishonesty or violence to their name, she’d rather live alone than let another man make a fool of her. If she isn’t careful, she’ll be the fool for not seeing Levi as God’s gift to her.

I hope you can tell home much I loved this book. The morning after I finished reading it, I awoke with Levi and Eden on my mind – and they stayed with me throughout the day and week. Truly a wonderful, heart-touching story with tears and laughter and finally, relief that yes, there is a happy ending after all. But oh, what a beautiful romantic tale of God’s hand on their lives.

If you'd like to know more about Karen Witemeyer and her books, go to her website at http://www.karenwitemeyer.com/ and take a look around. You might even want to try your hand at her Fan Fiction contest where you get to let her know how you think a book should end.


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    What is a book?

    A book is an adventure I'd love to take but know I never will. It can make me feel everything is right in the world. And it can make me want to throw it across the room regardless of what it knocks over. A book can make me laugh and cry. It makes me realize no matter what I'm going through, someone somewhere is in a much worse predicament
    than me. 
    My all-time favourite book
     is the Book of Ruth 
    in the Bible.
    Anita Mae Draper

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