“A biblical story with a heart for today’s world, pulling out an array of joy and hope, sorrow and loss.”–Mesu Andrews, award-winning author
“Taking us on an intriguing journey through heartbreak and healing, Heather Kaufman leads her readers directly to the joy of the empty tomb.”–Connilyn Cossette, award-winning author
Martha of Bethany is no stranger to adversity. After her mother’s untimely death, Martha shoulders the responsibility of raising her siblings–quiet and studious Lazarus, and wild and rambunctious Mary. She finds solace in friendship and the beginnings of first love, but just as Martha begins to imagine a new future, hardship strikes again and her dreams crumble into dust.
Ten years later, Martha’s friend pleads for the new teacher, Jesus of Nazareth, to come and heal her husband. When Martha discovers that the carpenter-rabbi is connected to her past, she’s not sure she can trust him with her future. But as he continues to perform miracles, the invitation to believe becomes harder to resist, renewing Martha’s hardened heart, even as she faces an unknown future.
About the Author
Heather’s passion for storytelling started at an early age, from scribbled poetry at age six, to a full-length novel by sixteen. Over the years, her love of writing grew, eventually leading her to earn a BA in English from McKendree University and an MA in English, Writing Studies from the University of Missouri—St. Louis.
Heather is the author of The Story People (Concordia Publishing House, 2016) and Loving Isaac (Concordia Publishing House, 2018). Her debut novel with Bethany House Publishers releases January 2024.
She is married to Andrew and together they have three adorable children and one persnickety dog. When not reading, writing, editing, or accumulating mounds of books, Heather can be found exploring new parks with her family, enjoying yet another cup of coffee, or working on a home improvement project. She and her family make their home in St. Louis, Missouri.
“How can I begin to tell of the many things I have found? Or of the One who found me? I see His hand in my story like a weaver’s shuttle through the warp, steady and sure, pulling here, loosening there, doing the work necessary for beauty. How do I tell of His capable hands, the ones that rescued me?”
“Before I can share the many ways I was found, I would have to begin with the day I was lost.”
And so, in the prologue, ( I hope you read prologues!) we have the reason for Heather Kaufman’s imagination of Martha’s life long before she ever met Jesus. As with other great Biblical fiction, Kaufman utilizes a few verses and passages we know of a Biblical individual. These are not changed from Scripture. But where Scripture is silent, the author suggests possible life events that send Martha, Mary, and Lazarus on their different life trajectories until they encounter Jesus. “Maybe she or he reacted this way because…” In the meantime, Kaufman’s Martha becomes so real, so human, you will sympathize, you will judge, you will hold your breath as you hold her secrets, and you will wonder how she survived growing up in her father’s house. You will begin to understand a woman’s plight in Jewish society in the first century. Kaufman presents challenging relationships well. Some romantic, some familial, some friend-based. You will sigh, you will cry, you will ask, “Why?” But hopefully, when all is said and done, you will turn to the Biblical story to check out what truth we do know, and you’ll never view Martha or her siblings as 2- dimensional again!
I received a copy of the book from the author and publisher, through Celebrate Lit via NetGalley, plus I bought my own ebook. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“Yahweh keeps providing beacons of light in your life to guide you when you need it most.”
***
“None of us is worthy. We are all naked and undone before the holiness of God.”
“Who can stand before this holy God?”
“Those who align themselves with His Son.”
***
“Sometimes love engulfs us suddenly, like a consuming fire.”“…Other times it comes over us slowly, like a sunrise.”
My Rating
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I’ve found another new-to-me Biblical fiction author well-worth following!
Lorelei Collins possesses a soft heart for any animal in need, so when she finds a buffalo calf bawling beside its mother’s lifeless body, she can’t help but bring it home to raise on the ranch she and her sisters are building in the Rocky Mountain wilderness. Little does she realize that its white coloring is rare and considered sacred by Native Americans, which makes it highly valuable to them and the European trappers alike.
A flood of men visit their ranch to regard the marvel, some trying to woo Lorelei into marriage so she’ll bring the buffalo calf along as dowry, and others trying to steal the calf outright. When the men’s advances become more sinister, she approaches Tanner Mason, the quiet and mysterious owner of the new trading post, with an idea: She and the calf will move to his post, along with her family’s trusted Blackfoot friend. This will solve both their problems, bringing customers to his trade room and protecting her family from the trouble brought on by so many strangers. Yet as the danger travels with her, Lorelei and Tanner are faced with a threat greater than anything they’re prepared for–one that will test the limits of both their abilities and the love growing between them.
USA Today bestselling author Misty M. Beller delivers an exhilarating addition to the Sisters of the Rockies series fraught with peril, adventure, and romance amid the majesty of the Rocky Mountains.
Misty M. Belleris a USA Todaybestselling author of romantic mountain stories, set on the 1800s frontier and woven with the truth of God’s love.
Raised on a farm and surrounded by family, Misty developed her love for horses, history, and adventure. These days, her husband and children provide fresh adventure every day, keeping her both grounded and crazy.
Misty’s passion is to create inspiring Christian fiction infused with the grandeur of the mountains, writing historical romance that displays God’s abundant love through the twists and turns in the lives of her characters.
Sharing her stories with readers is a dream come true for Misty. She writes from her country home in South Carolina and escapes to the mountains any chance she gets.
More from Misty
My latest release, Rocky Mountain Promise,follows the four Collins sisters who traveled west to accomplish their father’s deathbed request, and stayed on to run a ranch in the Wyoming Rockies. This particular book is Lorelei’s story, the third sister by age.
I loved writing Lorelei! She LOVES animals and has a heart to heal and nurture. Growing up on a ranch in the early 1800s, she understands that animals are important to survival, but she loves taking in any injured or orphaned creature she finds.
Like the orphaned buffalo calf with beautiful shades of white fur she discovered on the plains. The creature was only a couple weeks old, far too young to survive on its own in the wild, so she took it home to nurture until it could be released back into a herd.
Little did she know, white buffalos are extremely rare and considered sacred by the Indians, which puts them in high demand. I first learned about this belief when I was reading the non-fiction book My Life as an Indian, a memoir of James Willard Schultz, a white man who married into the Blackfoot tribe and lived among them for many years.
The respect for the white buffalo originally began with the Sioux, and they have a legend about the White Buffalo Woman that I won’t take time to share here (though you can read about it in Rocky Mountain Promise!). The deep respect for a white buffalo spread quickly among all the tribes and the trappers who lived in the Rockies and the surrounding plains, and such a creature (or even its hide) became one of the most sought after treasures in that day!
In Lorelei’s story, trapper and Indian alike show up in their cabin yard to see the remarkable white calf, some trying to woo her into marriage so she’ll bring the buffalo calf along as dowry. Others try to steal the calf outright. She ends up taking drastic measures to protect both the calf and her family. Any guess what she did?
I pray you love Rocky Mountain Promise as much as I do!
Blessings!
Misty
My Impressions
“Her mission was to save—especially animals. She was the one who came along after the hunters and found the helpless, those not mortally wounded, or the innocent that had depended on those now lifeless.”
It’s always a treat to read another historical romance by Misty Beller. Each book just seems to get better and better. In Rocky Mountain Promise, we have Lorelei’s ( the third of four Collins sisters) and Tanner’s story. The four sisters venture into the West in the 1830s, following their late father’s instructions.
Lorelei loves animals with a passion, especially helpless ones. She happens upon an orphaned baby albino buffalo and adopts him before she understands the Native American lore surrounding the white buffalo and the trouble he could bring to the ranch.
I enjoyed every minute of my time with Lorelei and Tanner. Lorelei is so sweet, such a great nurse/vet to animals or humans alike, so kind and free. ( I found the eldest sister, Rosemary, much harder to like because of her overbearing personality.) Tanner is amazing as well, so thoughtful, protective, going out of his way to help, honest, and wise as concerns both business and people.
There is so much to like about this book! The mountains will call to you as you read of the characters traveling through them. The romance is sweet and paced just right, interspersed with plenty of trouble and action. Anyone who loves animals will love Lorelei and her devotion to them. Tanner’s trading post is so well described I felt like I could have been there to receive and judge furs or shop for hard-to-obtain goods. I also loved the interactions between the cultures.
While this is definitely part of a buildable series, I believe the book could be enjoyed as a stand-alone.
Faith is woven quietly into the novel, but that faith is strong. “I don’t know what God’s plans are for Curly. All I know is we need to take the next step before us.” I wish we all, myself included, would be that obedient to what God places before us.
Will faith lift Tanner out of the belief in his own worthlessness? Thanks to people who should have loved him and had his back, he is sure he is a failure. “why did it seem he was always the villain, even when he tried to protect?”
I highly recommend this book. I received a copy from Celebrate Lit through NetGalley. All opinions are my own, and no positive review was required.
Notable Quotables:
“God hasn’t rejected you. You are good enough exactly the way He made you. Better than good enough—you’re perfect. Exactly the way He wants you.”
“Treasure is found in ashes.”
My Rating
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Magnificent! Misty Beller will keep you spellbound from the first page to the last as you enter her beautiful, romantic, and dangerous world of yesteryear.
It promises beauty but steals life instead. Will the ghosts of Barlowe Theater entomb them all?
Barlowe Theater stole the life of Greta Mercy’s eldest brother during its construction. Now in 1915, the completed theater appears every bit as deadly. When Greta’s younger brother goes missing after breaking into the building, Greta engages the assistance of a local police officer to help her unveil the already ghostly secrets of the theater. But when help comes from an unlikely source, Greta decides that to save her family she must uncover the evil that haunts the theater and put its threat to rest.
Decades later, Kit Boyd’s best friend vanishes during a ghost walk at the Barlowe Theater, and old stories of mysterious disappearances and ghoulish happenings are revived. Then television ghost-hunting host and skeptic Evan Fisher joins Kit in the quest to identify the truth behind the theater’s history. Kit reluctantly agrees to work with him in hopes of finding her missing friend. As the theater’s curse unravels Kit’s life, she is determined to put an end to the evil that has marked the theater and their hometown for the last century.
About the Author
Jaime Jo Wright, multi award-winning author–including the Christy and Daphne du Maurier awards–is a coffee-fueled and cat-fancier extraordinaire. She has entwined her life with the legendary Captain Hook, residing serenely in Wisconsin’s rural woodlands. Her literary vocation involves penning chilling Gothic tales, a baffling change from that of Austenites, with a strong preference to the master of dark, Edgar Allan Poe. Two mischievous urchins adorn their family, who keep their mother on her toes – providing an exhilarating amount of chaos.
“Secrets are meant to stay that way or old curses come to life. Nobody wants that.”
Wow! So many different moving pieces to this puzzle, The Lost Boys of Barlowe Theater, by Jaime Jo Wright.
1. What do you need to know, in a nutshell?
This is a dualtime, occurring in 1915 Kipper’s Grove, Wisconsin, and in present time, same place.
2. The first line is a killer, and will draw you in. “Sometimes death came quietly.”
3. The main characters in the past are Greta Mercy, a poor girl, who has been befriended by wealthy socialites Eleanor Boyd and her brother, Oscar. Greta is struggling to keep herself and her brothers out of the poor house, when she falls under the curse of the theater.
“Barlowe Theater was not a place that brought joy and entertainment, as was its supposed purpose. No, it had already taken lives in the construction of it, tortured the ones who dared stand in its way, and now it was hunting those innocents who had happened into the shadows of its deadly interior. The theater was cursed.”
4. Have your blood pressure medicine ready. The stress, the angst, the wondering how many family members might be lost due to the theater’s curse!
5. In the present day, the main characters are Kit Boyd, a food pantry liaison, and Evan Fischer, a dissenting critic for a psychic TV show. Evan took a while to grow on me! Kit and Evan are searching for Madison, who disappears on a tour of the theater.
6. Only Jaime Jo Wright can take so many mixed-up creepy cards from two different stories, shuffle them thoroughly, deal them seemingly randomly, and produce a thoroughly satisfying end result, minus the fear. One you won’t see coming! One which includes not just suspense, romance, and creepiness, but God’s Truth coming to light.
Run out and get your copy of The Lost Boys of Barlowe Theater now!
I received a copy of this book from Early Readers on Library Thing via NetGalley. I am also waiting for my purchased paperback copy for my keeper shelf to arrive. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“But in truth, hope was too terrifying a thing to lose to reach out and grasp it. It was easier to function without it—without expectations. Then, when loss visited, it was a familiar silence.”
“Love, loyalty, and heroism came with expiration dates. It was only a matter of time.”
“You can line up all the facts, but at some point you have to step out in faith too.”
“True loyalty isn’t based on a scale.”
“Anyone who puts all their faith in another person is bound to get hurt.”
“That was how loyalty began, though, wasn’t it? Walking through trials together and then coming out the other side of them . . . together.”
Some secrets can only stay buried for so long. . . .
Anna Lakeman has spent her life working alongside her paleontologist father, drawing intricate sketches at every dig. When they find dinosaur bones near their home in Wyoming Territory, they’re given the opportunity of a lifetime and are swiftly caught up in the competitive era of the Bone Wars. But after her father becomes sick and Joshua Ziegler, an old beau, returns for the summer, Anna’s world is upended, and the practical, orderly life she has made for herself shatters.
Medical student Joshua Ziegler left his hometown to forget Anna, the one woman he truly loved and deeply hurt. But when he returns, time hasn’t erased the feelings they’ve always had for each other. After Joshua’s nephew goes missing–just like his sister did years ago–and Anna’s job is threatened, tensions mount and dangerous secrets are unearthed.
“Kim has long been a favorite author of mine, and her book The Secrets Beneath is no exception. This book is full of intrigue and adventure, twists and turns.”–TRACIE PETERSON, USA Today bestselling author
Pre-order from Baker Book House and receive the book at 40% off, plus two magnets and a signed book plate!
Kimberley Woodhouse is the best-selling and award-winning author of more than two dozen books. She is a wife, mother, author, and musician with a quick wit and positive outlook despite difficult circumstances. A popular speaker, she’s shared at more than 2,000 venues across the country. Kimberley and her family’s story have garnered national media attention for many years including ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, The Montel Williams Show, Discovery Health channel’s Mystery ER, The Hour of Power, The Harvest Show, and over 1,000 other TV appearances and radio interviews. She lives and writes in the Poconos with her husband of thirty years. kimberleywoodhouse.com
Find Kim on twitter and facebook:
twitter.com/kimwoodhouse
author fan page Kimberley Woodhouse
My Impressions
“The garden—his garden—was alive with color today, while the inside of him was black as death.” With this ominous opening sentence, I could see The Secrets Beneath would be quite different from other historical fiction books Kimberley Woodhouse has written.
While Woodhouse’s books are on my “buy first, ask about content later,” list, Woodhouse has elevated her historicals to include psychological suspense, channeling Jaime Jo Wright or Janyre Tromp. This may be one of my best reads of 2023!
I had never heard of the Bone Wars of 1877-1892. I actually looked them up. Woodhouse meticulously researches these, and weaves a beautiful, intricate story of a Wyoming archaeologist, Peter Lakeman, and his daughter, Anna, an aspiring archaeologist. Anna has a few regrets about young men from years ago that come back to play important roles in her present life. I stayed up way too late to finish this book, as the mystery and romance held me enthralled and unable to escape.
I loved Anna’s father for his wisdom, quiet observations, and clear assessments of situations as well as parental love for his daughter. His example shows how a child will later better understand the one True Father. When one has a father more like the neighboring Julian Walker has, comprehending the love of a good Father can be very difficult.
Every chapter starts with a quote from Earl Douglass. Historical notes are always a pleasure to read, separating fact from fiction. I love the well-woven spiritual truths that are hidden within the book, as well.
Because of all the emotions evoked, the surprises, and the choices characters make, I would highly recommend The Secrets Beneath for a book club.
I received a copy of the book from the author and from NetGalley. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“But if people could see him differently . . . that would help him to be a better person.”
“If only faith and science could be reconciled. Why couldn’t the two come together?”
“Isn’t it dangerous to believe and rely on love changing a person here on this earth?” Dad shook his head. “The only love that can truly change anything or anyone is God’s love. His is supernatural. Our love here on earth fails. It falters. It isn’t enough. We shouldn’t love someone based on the idea that they will change. That’s wrong thinking.”
“You don’t need kindness—although that’s nice isn’t it? You don’t even need a friend. But you do need to see God’s love. He’s the only one who can restore you.”
My Rating
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Magnificent!! Ready for book 2!! (Yesterday)☺️
Giveaway
For those who leave a comment on this post between today, September 16, and Tuesday, September 26, I will put your name in a hat and draw one winner to receive a paperback copy of Kimberley’s book, The Secrets Beneath. Be sure to include your email so I can contact you if you win!
In 1837, Juniper Collins and her sisters are shocked by their father’s final request in his will for a special set of beads to be returned to a Piegan Blackfoot woman he credits with saving his life during his travels west. Together, the sisters set out for the trapper rendezvous to find the woman, but their mission turns more daunting when they come upon the mass of men and lodges spread out in the Green River Valley.
Riley Turner came west to find peace and quiet and live off the land, but when four unprotected women arrive at the rendezvous, he feels compelled to help them and is more fascinated by Juniper than any other woman he’s known.
As their search brings only empty leads and dead ends, the sisters must decide whether to return east or stay in the mountains to continue looking–and that’s if the mystery woman is even still alive. Is the risk to honor their father’s last request worth the danger they find at every turn?
Discover the majesty–and treachery–of the Rocky Mountains in this unique combination of exhilarating adventure, inspiring faith, and sweet romance from USA Today bestselling author Misty M. Beller.
Misty M. Belleris a USA Todaybestselling author of romantic mountain stories, set on the 1800s frontier and woven with the truth of God’s love.
Raised on a farm and surrounded by family, Misty developed her love for horses, history, and adventure. These days, her husband and children provide fresh adventure every day, keeping her both grounded and crazy.
Misty’s passion is to create inspiring Christian fiction infused with the grandeur of the mountains, writing historical romance that displays God’s abundant love through the twists and turns in the lives of her characters.
Sharing her stories with readers is a dream come true for Misty. She writes from her country home in South Carolina and escapes to the mountains any chance she gets.
More from Misty
What IS a trapper rendezvous?
Rocky Mountain Rendezvous is the story of four sisters who head west to accomplish their father’s deathbed request—return a special set of beads to a Blackfoot woman who saved his life during his travels west two decades earlier. The sisters head west with the supply wagons bound for the 1837 trapper rendezvous to find the native woman. But the sight that greeted them in the Green River Valley (in modern-day Wyoming) was nothing like they expected!
Men EVERYWHERE!
Supply wagons would come from the east every summer, and mountain men and natives would come from all throughout the Rockies to trade furs for the supplies they’d need in the coming year. This was usually the only opportunity for trading each year, so EVERYONE came and the camp stretched for miles. This was a great time for friends to catch up, and the festivities always included a great deal of drinking and horse racing. The rendezvous was a sight to behold!
In Rocky Mountain Rendezvous, Riley Turner is one of the trappers at the meet-up, and he realizes immediately what kind of danger the ladies are in from unscrupulous men in the crowd. He helps them with their search, and they find so much more than they expected along the way!
Each book in this series will take place during a different year, featuring a different rendezvous. Definitely fodder for fun stories. I pray you love this first book as the Collins sisters embark on the search of a lifetime.
Blessings!
Misty
My Impressions
“It’s been a while since we’ve discussed the rules we set for ourselves before we started on this journey. It might be good we take time to recall them. Especially the one about not allowing an attachment to form with any of the men here.”
It’s time to visit the Rockies again (as they were in the 1800s) with Misty M Beller as she leads us into a new series, Sisters of the Rockies. Rocky Mountain Rendezvous introduces us to the four Collins sisters, but we get to know Juniper best.
The four sisters arrive in 1837 in the Green River Valley, now Wyoming, at an annual trading rendezvous. Having promised their dying father they would find the Piegan woman who used her healing knowledge to save his life, the young women hire a young and handsome trapper, Riley Turner, to lead them to different Blackfoot Piegan tribes.
Riley and Juniper both are very likable. However, Riley’s childhood leaves him with scars hard to overcome. Juniper may be attracted to Riley, and decides to help him in a way he may not be prepared for. But she must guard her heart, as the women made a list of rules for themselves before coming west. Topping the list was no romantic attachments to men on the trip!
Part of the mystery I figured out. There was some unfinished business at the end, which leads one to believe it will be solved in the next story.
I loved learning about the rendezvous, a new historical event for me. I wonder if Dragoon’s character will grow more in another book, or is he just not a strong person? While I had fun imagining the pet coyote pup and the story flowed well, I really yearned for more vivid descriptions of the gorgeous, dangerous scenery and events.
I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit via NetGalley. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“He wouldn’t be his parents. He would be better.”
Why did she have to say no to one love in order to accept the other?
Loving someone made you far too vulnerable to the pain of loss, whether they left you by choice or through injury or sickness.
“Even when you think you know a person, sometimes they change.”
I try to take the measure of each person individually instead of labeling an entire tribe as dangerous. There’s good and bad in every village.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Great! I love Beller’s Western historicals set in the 1800s Rockies!
Ivy Zimmerman is successfully navigating her life as a young Mennonite woman, one generation removed from her parents’ Old Order Amish upbringing. But when her parents are killed in a tragic accident, Ivy’s way of life is upended. As she deals with her grief, her younger sisters’ needs, the relationship with her boyfriend, and her Dawdi and Mammi’s strict rules, Ivy finds solace in both an upcoming trip to Germany for an international Mennonite youth gathering and in her great-great-aunt’s story about Clare Simons, another young woman who visited Germany in the late 1930s.
As Ivy grows suspicious that her parents’ deaths weren’t, in fact, an accident, she gains courage from what she learns of Clare’s time in pre-World War II Germany. With the encouragement and inspiration of the women who have gone before her, Ivy seeks justice for her parents, her sisters, and herself.
Leslie Gould (www.lesliegould.com) is a Christy Award-winning and #1 bestselling author of over 35 novels, including four Lancaster County Amish series. She holds an MFA in creative writing and enjoys studying church history, research trips, and hiking in the Pacific Northwest. She and her husband live in Portland, Oregon, and are the parents of four adult children.
More from Leslie
The historical thread of my dual-time novel A Brighter Dawn is set in Nazi Germany from 1937 to 1939. During that period of time, Germany incorporated Austria, mandatory registration of all Jewish property began, and concentration camps opened. Then came the Night of Broken Glass—the anti-Jewish pogrom in Germany, Austria, and the Sudetenland. Soon following was the German occupation of Czechoslovakia before the Nazis invaded Poland in September 1939.
My main character, Clare Simons, is a Mennonite young woman from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, who is staying with her uncle and cousins in Frankfurt, Germany. She doesn’t follow current events much and struggles to balance the Nazi propaganda her uncle and oldest cousin believe with the events unfolding around her. Slowly, she begins to see the truth behind the Nazi lies.
One thing that broke up the narrative of the heavy events I researched and wrote about? The food.
When I traveled in Germany with my husband (who had lived there during his Army service years ago), I marveled over the scenery, became engrossed in the history, and definitely enjoyed the food. My background is Swiss, so it wasn’t that the food was unfamiliar. It was just at a level I hadn’t experienced before!
As I researched what Clare would fix for meals, I pored through cookbooks. For added inspiration, hubby and I ate at German restaurants. Jägerschnitzel (seared pork with gravy). Rinderbraten (paprika and caraway spiced beef roasted in red wine gravy). Wienerschnitzel (breaded and fried pork loin with warm potato salad and a vegetable remoulade.)
I noted food in research books, documentaries, and films. The entrees became focal points in the stories, including rabbit stew, a Christmas goose, and Sauerbraten with Spätzle and red cabbage. So did the desserts, including trifle and Black Forest cake.
When I visited Germany with my hubby, one of the things I really loved was stopping in a café for Apfelkuchen (apple cake) and coffee in the afternoon. In one scene in A Brighter Dawn, when Clare and her cousin Lena stop for coffee, they order apple cake too. Then, in another scene, Clare bakes an apple cake for the family of the nearby Jewish grocer who will soon lose their property.
Below is a recipe for a simple and dense German apple cake (which may have originated in Poland and been influenced by a Jewish apple cake recipe).
The food in A Brighter Dawn doesn’t take away from the narrative, but it is a reminder that a nurturing soul, such as my character Clare, can stand against the lies of an evil regime.
German Apple Cake
Ingredients
1 cup salted butter, melted
2 eggs
¾ cup white sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ½ to 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
5 cups apples—peeled, cored, and thinly sliced (to soften apple slices before baking, place in a microwavable dish with a lid and microwave them with a Tablespoon of water for 3–4 minutes)
1 cup chopped walnuts
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×13 cake pan.
Beat butter and eggs with an electric mixer until creamy. Add sugar and vanilla; beat well.
Stir together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Slowly add flour mixture to egg mixture; mix until combined. The batter will be very thick. Fold in apples and walnuts by hand using a wooden spoon. Spread batter into the prepared pan.
Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 45–50 minutes. After 30 minutes, put a sheet of foil over the top of the cake to keep it from burning. Cool cake on a wire rack.
Possible Toppings
Before baking:
Crumble: ¼ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup white sugar, ½ cup flour, 4–6 Tablespoons softened butter. Combine ingredients and evenly spread over the top of cake.
Butterscotch: Sprinkle a package of butterscotch chips over the top of the cake.
Almonds: Sprinkle almond slivers over the top of the cake.
After baking:
Dust with confectioners’ sugar.
Drizzle with caramel sauce.
Sprinkle with white sparkling sugar.
Top with whipped cream.
My Impressions
Leslie Gould has written a very compelling, yet for me, too political story about a young Mennonite woman, Ivy Zimmerman, and her family who live in Oregon. Following a family tragedy, Ivy and her sisters leave their beloved Gran and travel to stay with their estranged Amish grandparents on the other side, who live in PA. As the sisters travel back to PA with their Amish grandparents, they are accompanied by a great-aunt, who tells Ivy a story about another young woman. This woman, Clare, is a relative who visited Germany years ago, and stayed with a family of three sisters.
I enjoyed the dual timeline, even as it surprised me. I loved the historical timeline (narrated in third person)best, but the present-day story (told in first-person pov) is also interesting. I liked learning more about the Mennonites. I was surprised, as Clare is, at the difference in beliefs and practices of the American Mennonites vs. their European counterparts.
Gould wants to make sure the reader understands history and its importance today. While we aren’t responsible for the actions of others, the past can teach us. “But we have a responsibility to it—to caring for those affected by it, by never forgetting, and by doing all we can to prevent such atrocities from ever happening again.”
I totally agree with that.
However, this was a difficult book for me to finish. For one thing, there are too many characters to keep them all straight. I also had some difficulty sorting out the which Mennonite group Gould is referring to in places. I felt as if the author had a ton of information she was excited to share, and didn’t pare it down enough for one book.
Gould heavily emphasizes the Ukrainian/Russian conflict before WWII. According to Gould, it’s very clear that the same events are now being repeated.
What I didn’t enjoy: Strong inferences made that being a Christian means you can only hold one political view. I hear that from both sides of the aisle, and it saddens me. Because we are human, we are imperfect, and our politics are imperfect. We will not all agree, but we should all be able to speak our minds respectfully, yet not insist that our way is the only way. Also, I read for enjoyment, not a rehashing of the conflict in the world around us. Realism is ok, but I expected this type of book to be more educational about WWII and the Mennonites, not the strong political statement I felt it became halfway through.
All in all, this is an interesting story, but very political and with too many threads in the tapestry.
I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit via NetGalley. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“How did my grudges correlate with my will to survive? Not physically survive, but emotionally?”
“What was the difference between a grudge and a boundary?”
“I’d read once that if you flew west on a plane at one thousand miles an hour, you’d be continually in the dawn of one day for twenty-four hours. But I liked the idea. It gave me hope. A new day was always beginning, somewhere.”
Miss Gwendolyn Brinley accepted a temporary paid companion position for the Newport summer season, believing it would be a lark to spend the summer in America’s most exclusive town. She suddenly finds her summer turning anything but amusing when her employer expects her to take over responsibilities as an assistant matchmaker. Tasked with the daunting prospect of attaining advantageous matches for her clients, Gwendolyn soon finds herself in the employ of Mr. Walter Townsend, the catch of the Season, but a gentleman Gwendolyn finds beyond irritating.
Walter Townsend is reluctantly in search of a wife for the sake of his unruly motherless children who cannot keep a governess for long. What he wasn’t expecting was Miss Brinley, an amateur matchmaker who turns his quest for a new wife into a complete and utter debacle. Constantly besieged by society ladies on a mission to win his affection, Walter must find a way to overcome their inundating attention–and his unexpected attraction toward Gwendolyn.
The more time they spend together throughout the Newport Season, the harder it is for Gwendolyn to find Walter a wife when she realizes his perfect match might be . . . her.
Named one of the funniest voices in inspirational romance by Booklist, Jen Turano is a USA Today bestselling author, known for penning quirky historical romances set in the Gilded Age. Her books have earned Publishers Weekly and Booklist starred reviews, top picks from Romantic Times, and praise from Library Journal. She’s been a finalist twice for the RT Reviewers’ Choice Awards and had two of her books listed in the top 100 romances of the past decade from Booklist. She and her family live outside of Denver, Colorado. Readers can find her on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and at jenturano.com.
More from Jen
A Chat with Jen Turano
You’re known for writing historical romantic comedies set in the Gilded Age. What made you decide to write in that particular era?
Funny thing, when I first tried my hand at writing historical, I wrote Regency—think Jane Austen, lots of drama, dukes, and probably a few countesses in serious need of attitude adjustments. One of those books, I believe I titled it A Marriage of Inconvenience, is the book that landed me my first agent. But, as she was shopping that book around, I read this fascinating book about Alva Vanderbilt. There was so much drama involved with the New York Four Hundred during the latter part of the nineteenth century that I threw myself into researching everything I could find about high society. I’ve been writing about that fascinating moment in time ever since.
Your new series revolves around matchmaking. How did you come up with that idea, and what can we expect?
I’ve been wanting to do a matchmaker series forever, and that idea reinforced when I watched Season 4 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and there was a prevalent matchmaking thread. However, I didn’t want to do a normal matchmaker story, which is why I decided it would be hilarious to have a heroine accept a paid companion position and then, due to unforeseen circumstances, find herself turned into an assistant matchmaker even though she has absolutely no experience with matchmaking in general and is actually old enough to be considered a confirmed spinster.
How do you come up with such unusual ideas?
I think I just view life a little differently. I’ve always been rather weird, so when I think of matchmaking agencies, or lady detectives, or hat makers, I begin thinking up all these outlandish situations and then, just when my heroine or hero thinks that nothing else could go wrong, I throw something else at them. It’s a highly amusing job at times, although I’m certain my characters don’t appreciate my odd sense of humor.
Do you have a favorite character or book?
I adore Gertrude Cadwalader from Out of the Ordinary, although that’s not my favorite book. My favorite book is Diamond in the Rough because Poppy Garrison gets herself in some fabulous messes.
Your characters do seem to find themselves in some interesting mishaps and messes. Do you write these from personal experience?
You know, I have to admit that a lot of the outlandish situations I write are based on either observations I’ve made over the years or . . . yep, they’ve happened to me or my friends. I’ve definitely led an interesting life, although I do embellish the situations in some instances—creative license and all that.
How do you come up with such unusual names?
Contrary to what some may believe, I don’t make up any of my names. I scour old obituaries or shake down my friends who are into researching their ancestors for cool names. That’s how I got Mercy Miner, Temperance Flowerdew, and Lucetta Plum.
What’s coming up next?
I just finished up developmental edits for the second book in the Matchmakers series, so now I’ll go back to writing the third and final book in that series. After that? Well, I’m not positive yet. I have two ideas roaming around in my head for the next series I’ll delve into, but I simply don’t know which one I want to write quite yet.
Thanks so much for having me! Always fun being here with your readers.
All the best,
Jen
My Impressions
A hilarious look at society’s upper crust in the Gilded Age of America. Jen Turano is always funny, but I enjoyed this book more than any others of hers. Perhaps I could really visualize the events of this story happening. From the supposed secret matchmakers to the misbehavior of society debutantes to the misbehavior of rich children left to their own devices.
Gwendolyn Brinley is such a likable heroine. She’s sensible, honest, truly caring, and able to take charge of almost any situation as needed. But she’s fair. She even helps people she doesn’t like, and those who should be her enemies.
Walter Townsend is a dreamy widower who has re-entered society as the most eligible bachelor of the season. Unfortunately, his looks are better than his social graces and his ability to manage his children. His growth throughout the novel is great to see.
I love the set up apparent for the next novel. Waiting impatiently for it.
I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit via NetGalley. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“It’s never a good idea to gift something that needs to be watered and fed.”
“Style is not difficult to obtain. It’s merely an attitude and how you present yourself to the world.”
“…jealousy is turning friend against friend…and life without friends is joyless indeed.”
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Magnificent! Turano will have you laughing and rooting for the underdog all the way!!
Miss Gwendolyn Brinley accepted a temporary paid companion position for the Newport summer season, believing it would be a lark to spend the summer in America’s most exclusive town. She suddenly finds her summer turning anything but amusing when her employer expects her to take over responsibilities as an assistant matchmaker. Tasked with the daunting prospect of attaining advantageous matches for her clients, Gwendolyn soon finds herself in the employ of Mr. Walter Townsend, the catch of the Season, but a gentleman Gwendolyn finds beyond irritating.
Walter Townsend is reluctantly in search of a wife for the sake of his unruly motherless children who cannot keep a governess for long. What he wasn’t expecting was Miss Brinley, an amateur matchmaker who turns his quest for a new wife into a complete and utter debacle. Constantly besieged by society ladies on a mission to win his affection, Walter must find a way to overcome their inundating attention–and his unexpected attraction toward Gwendolyn.
The more time they spend together throughout the Newport Season, the harder it is for Gwendolyn to find Walter a wife when she realizes his perfect match might be . . . her.
Named one of the funniest voices in inspirational romance by Booklist, Jen Turano is a USA Today bestselling author, known for penning quirky historical romances set in the Gilded Age. Her books have earned Publishers Weekly and Booklist starred reviews, top picks from Romantic Times, and praise from Library Journal. She’s been a finalist twice for the RT Reviewers’ Choice Awards and had two of her books listed in the top 100 romances of the past decade from Booklist. She and her family live outside of Denver, Colorado. Readers can find her on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and at jenturano.com.
More from Jen
A Chat with Jen Turano
You’re known for writing historical romantic comedies set in the Gilded Age. What made you decide to write in that particular era?
Funny thing, when I first tried my hand at writing historical, I wrote Regency—think Jane Austen, lots of drama, dukes, and probably a few countesses in serious need of attitude adjustments. One of those books, I believe I titled it A Marriage of Inconvenience, is the book that landed me my first agent. But, as she was shopping that book around, I read this fascinating book about Alva Vanderbilt. There was so much drama involved with the New York Four Hundred during the latter part of the nineteenth century that I threw myself into researching everything I could find about high society. I’ve been writing about that fascinating moment in time ever since.
Your new series revolves around matchmaking. How did you come up with that idea, and what can we expect?
I’ve been wanting to do a matchmaker series forever, and that idea reinforced when I watched Season 4 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and there was a prevalent matchmaking thread. However, I didn’t want to do a normal matchmaker story, which is why I decided it would be hilarious to have a heroine accept a paid companion position and then, due to unforeseen circumstances, find herself turned into an assistant matchmaker even though she has absolutely no experience with matchmaking in general and is actually old enough to be considered a confirmed spinster.
How do you come up with such unusual ideas?
I think I just view life a little differently. I’ve always been rather weird, so when I think of matchmaking agencies, or lady detectives, or hat makers, I begin thinking up all these outlandish situations and then, just when my heroine or hero thinks that nothing else could go wrong, I throw something else at them. It’s a highly amusing job at times, although I’m certain my characters don’t appreciate my odd sense of humor.
Do you have a favorite character or book?
I adore Gertrude Cadwalader from Out of the Ordinary, although that’s not my favorite book. My favorite book is Diamond in the Rough because Poppy Garrison gets herself in some fabulous messes.
Your characters do seem to find themselves in some interesting mishaps and messes. Do you write these from personal experience?
You know, I have to admit that a lot of the outlandish situations I write are based on either observations I’ve made over the years or . . . yep, they’ve happened to me or my friends. I’ve definitely led an interesting life, although I do embellish the situations in some instances—creative license and all that.
How do you come up with such unusual names?
Contrary to what some may believe, I don’t make up any of my names. I scour old obituaries or shake down my friends who are into researching their ancestors for cool names. That’s how I got Mercy Miner, Temperance Flowerdew, and Lucetta Plum.
What’s coming up next?
I just finished up developmental edits for the second book in the Matchmakers series, so now I’ll go back to writing the third and final book in that series. After that? Well, I’m not positive yet. I have two ideas roaming around in my head for the next series I’ll delve into, but I simply don’t know which one I want to write quite yet.
Thanks so much for having me! Always fun being here with your readers.
All the best,
Jen
My Impressions
A hilarious look at society’s upper crust in the Gilded Age of America. Jen Turano is always funny, but I enjoyed this book more than any others of hers. Perhaps I could really visualize the events of this story happening. From the supposed secret matchmakers to the misbehavior of society debutantes to the misbehavior of rich children left to their own devices.
Gwendolyn Brinley is such a likable heroine. She’s sensible, honest, truly caring, and able to take charge of almost any situation as needed. But she’s fair. She even helps people she doesn’t like, and those who should be her enemies.
Walter Townsend is a dreamy widower who has re-entered society as the most eligible bachelor of the season. Unfortunately, his looks are better than his social graces and his ability to manage his children. His growth throughout the novel is great to see.
I love the set up apparent for the next novel. Waiting impatiently for it.
I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit via NetGalley. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“It’s never a good idea to gift something that needs to be watered and fed.”
“Style is not difficult to obtain. It’s merely an attitude and how you present yourself to the world.”
“…jealousy is turning friend against friend…and life without friends is joyless indeed.”
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Magnificent! Turano will have you laughing and rooting for the underdog all the way!!
A haunting legend. An ominous curse. A search for a secret buried deep within the castle walls.
In 1870, orphaned Daisy François takes a position as housemaid at a Wisconsin castle to escape the horrors of her past life. There she finds a reclusive and eccentric Gothic authoress who hides tales more harrowing than the ones in her novels. As women disappear from the area and the eerie circumstances seem to parallel a local legend, Daisy is thrust into a web that could ultimately steal her sanity, if not her life.
In the present day, Cleo Clemmons is hired by the grandson of an American aristocratic family to help his grandmother face her hoarding in the dilapidated Castle Moreau. But when Cleo uncovers more than just the woman’s stash of collectibles, a century-old mystery and the dust of the old castle’s curse threaten to rise again . . . this time to leave no one alive to tell the sordid tale.
Award-winning author Jaime Jo Wright seamlessly weaves a dual-time tale of two women who must do all they can to seek the light amid the darkness shrouding Castle Moreau.
Jaime Jo Wright, multi award-winning author–including the Christy and Daphne du Maurier awards–is a coffee-fueled and cat-fancier extraordinaire. She has entwined her life with the legendary Captain Hook, residing serenely in Wisconsin’s rural woodlands. Her literary vocation involves penning chilling Gothic tales, a baffling change from that of Austenites, with a strong preference to the master of dark, Edgar Allan Poe. Two mischievous urchins adorn their family, who keep their mother on her toes – providing an exhilarating amount chaos.
“…fear was, and would always be, her closest companion.”
“Welcome to the Hotel California! …You can check out, but you can never leave!” (The Eagles) I heard that song playing over and over in my mind as I read Jaime Jo Wright’s newest Gothic suspense book, The Vanishing at Castle Moreau. What an incredible book! I laughed a lot at Wright’s wicked sense of humor. I was tempted to count the numerous references she inserted to pop culture and literature. (A challenge?) A dual-timeline, the two, possibly three stories tied together well, contrasting and paralleling each other. 2 different young women, in different centuries, answer the call for caretaker to an elderly grandmother who is sequestered in Castle Moreau. For both, it is an escape. But soon, both Daisy and Cleo find there is no escaping the hold of Castle Moreau. Spooky, haunting, yet filled with rays of Hope from faith breaking through, Wright eventually brings her novel to a satisfying non-paranormal conclusion. You don’t want to miss this suspenseful novel with its amazing conclusion from Jaime Jo Wright and Bethany House.
I received a copy of the book from NetGalley. I also bought my own ecopy and pb copy for my keeper shelf. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“Are you mad? Will you become what you hate?”
“Beauty is found in walls of stone, beauty where love begins.”
“…the castle called with an addictive element. Beckoning. It reached into the deep places in one’s soul and began to expose them for what they were. Broken pieces. Pieces only God could heal, and only others could help rescue if they simply had kindness in their hearts.”
The simple truth was that genetics ran deep, generations didn’t escape the curses of those who came before, and sins were likely destined to repeat themselves.
Protect. Save. Run. Her mantra in life.
“…fear was, and would always be, her closest companion.”
“It is in the dark corners, in the places we avert our eyes from, where truth lingers. Truth is not palatable. In fact, most cannotmanage the truth.”
My Rating
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Magnificent to the Max!! Only Jaime Jo Wright could write a story this humorous and spooky, and yet have it end with solid Hope!
Brianna Kelly was abandoned at Ballymacool House and Boarding School as an infant. She has worked there since she was a wee girl and will likely die there. Despite a sense that she was made for something more, Brianna feels powerless to change her situation, so she consoles herself by exploring the Ballymacool grounds, looking for hidden treasures to add to the secret trove beneath the floorboards of her room.
When Michael Wray, the son of local gentry, is sent to Ballymacool to deal with his unruly cousin, he finds himself drawn to Brianna, immediately and inescapably. There is something about her that feels so . . . familiar. When Brianna finds a piece of silver in the woods, she commits to learning its origins, with the help of Michael. What they discover may change everything.
Fan favorite Jennifer Deibel invites you back to the Emerald Isle in the 1930s for this fresh take on the Cinderella story, complete with a tantalizing mystery, a budding romance, and a chance at redemption.
About the Author
Jennifer Deibel is a middle school teacher and freelance writer. Her work has appeared on (in)courage, on The Better Mom, in Missions Mosaic Magazine, and others. With firsthand immersive experience abroad, Jennifer writes stories that help redefine home through the lens of culture, history, and family. After nearly a decade of living in Ireland and Austria, she now lives in Arizona.
My Impressions
Most of us Americans would say we have a decent grasp on US history. But, alas, how many of us know much about other country’s historical struggles? Jennifer Deibel returns us to Donegal County, Ireland, to learn of Irish War of Independence in 1919, and the preceding years.
What better way to learn history than through a story, complete with a beautifully recounted love tale reminiscent of Cinderella. Deibel is a wordsmith, putting the reader in the forest to smell the musty earth, see the majestic trees, and hear their whispering in the wind. This makes meeting a secondary character, Finnuala, all the more mysterious and slightly spooky.
Do you love to have an antagonist that you can take out all your negative emotions on? If so, Deibel provides the perfect scapegoat. Oh, how I enjoyed the negative emotions that that person evoked, making my anger feel righteously justified!
The occasional Irish phrases, words, and slang, never exactly interpreted, but given great contextual clues; allgive great authenticity and local color to the novel.
Perhaps what I appreciate most, though, was that Deibel shows that there are evil and righteous people on both sides of the conflict. This is a truth our own country would do well to remember.
If you read only one foreign-set novel this year, consider The Maid of Ballymacool. If you are a fan of faith that produces growth, fairy-tale-like love stories, historical fiction of foreign countries, this is a book you won’t want to miss! I highly recommend anything Jennifer Deibel pens!
I received a copy of this book from Revell Reads, via NetGalley, plus I won a copy through For the Love of Books Giveaway, plus I bought my own ecopy. Keeper shelf material! No positive opinion was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“All she needed were her walks in the woods, her treasures, and the good Lord.”
“She had never really had minded the cold. It was all she had known in many ways.”
“No, he was dangerous because he awakened something far more treacherous in her. Something she couldn’t afford to cultivate. Something deadlier than any poison or illness. Hope.”
“We were not blessed with our position in the community in order to lord it over others. On the contrary. We must use our authority to stand up for those who cannot do so for themselves.”
“Yer purpose in this world has precious little to do with what job ya hold. It’s to do wi’ the way ya impact the people around ye.”
“tis only One who knows the whole truth, and it’s not our job to take that mantle upon ourselves. We’d crumble under the weight of it.”
Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions 