Tag: Faith

ARC, BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Favorite, Kindle, Misty M Beller Books, Purchase

Pretending to be the Mountain Man’s Wife by Misty M. Beller Review and Giveaway

Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Book: Pretending to be the Mountain Man’s Wife (Brothers of Sapphire Ranch Book 6)

Author: Misty M. Beller

Genre:Christian Historical Romance

Release date: November 19, 2024

In the wild mountains of the Montana Territory, the Coulter ranch is a place of family, second chances…and a hidden fortune. 

Determined to find his missing brother and catch the elusive mastermind behind the theft of his family’s precious sapphires, Gil Coulter embarks on a solo mission to the remote town where the criminal is rumored to reside. As Gil scours the surrounding wilderness for the thief’s hidden lair, he crosses paths with a captivating young woman who harbors secrets of her own.

Jess McPharland has spent her life hidden in the mountains, doing her best to stay separate from her family’s business. Yet the secret she’s just discovered will change her life forever. She offers a silent prayer, pleading for a man to help her conceal the truth she’s only just discovered. As if in answer, Gil Coulter rides through the trees, seeking the very criminal Jess calls Father. Now she must find a way to ask this stranger for the ultimate favor—to pose as her husband and shield her from the consequences of a change she won’t be able to hide much longer.

As Gil and Jess navigate the treacherous landscape and the greater danger from her father and his cronies, they find themselves caught in a web of danger, deception, and unexpected attraction. With each passing moment, the stakes grow higher, and the line between pretense and truth blurs. Will the love growing between them be enough to protect Jess’s secret and lead them to the justice Gil seeks, or will the truth shatter everything they’ve risked their lives to build?

From a USA Today bestselling author comes a mountain saga filled with high-stakes adventure, a pretend marriage, a secret baby, and love that heals wounded hearts.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Misty M. Belleris a USA Today bestselling author with over 1 million books sold. She writes 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

In Pretending to be the Mountain Man’s Wife, the heroine and her father live in a cave which is part of an intricate catacomb hidden inside Montana mountain.

I LOVED researching cave systems, especially those in Montana, and I was amazed at how many extensive tunnels and caverns have been discovered!

One of the most well-known is Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park, located between Butte and Bozeman. This spectacular limestone cave system features a series of caverns adorned with incredible rock formations. These days, visitors can take guided tours to marvel at the intricate stalactites, stalagmites, columns, and helictites that have formed over thousands of years. The cave is also home to several species of bats.

Another notable cave system is the Bighorn Caverns, situated in the Pryor Mountains south of Billings. This complex network of caves extends for over 14 miles, making it one of the most significant cave systems in the state. Experienced cavers can explore winding passages, underground streams, and vast chambers with unique mineral formations.

The Bighorn Caverns are very similar to how I imagine the cave system was that Jess lived in. As amazing as the tunnels are to explore, I’m not sure I’d want to live in such darkness. What about you?

I pray you enjoy Gil and Jess’s story in Pretending to be the Mountain Man’s Wife! J

Blessings!

Misty

My Impressions

“She would always be Mick McPharland’s daughter, and he’d never let her escape his control.”

Misty M. Beller has done it again! She has developed another fresh but related Coulter brother story to add another facet to the diamond that is Brothers of Sapphire Ranch series. Pretending to be the Mountain Man’s Wife is #6 in this series, and it tells the narrative of Gil Coulter and Jess McFarland in 1870s Montana Territory. ( Do yourself a huge favor and read this series in order to avoid spoilers!)

Gil happens upon Jess on a mountainside, where she promises to help him find his missing brother, Sampson. Her price is that he help her escape her father’s control. To explain Coulter’s presence to her conniving, mean-spirited father and henchman, Gil and Jess pretend to be married.  As Jess focuses on escaping, Gil insists on exploring and searching for his brother, plus the Coulter family’s jewels that were stolen recently. 

This is a story about love and loyalty that give unselfishly and even when it hurts. It’s about a daughter who understands how wicked her father is, yet because of her need for security and affection, craves her father’s approval, knowing it will never come. Beller shows us how an earthly father without love for his child makes it difficult for that child to understand God as a good father. “It seemed impossible to think of Someone Who loved her, Who planned good things for her—hope and a future—and also think of Him as a Father.” She also shows God’s acceptance, forgiveness,  and love for people who turn from their wrong ways to follow Him. 

All these truths are wrapped up in a beautiful, romantic, and achingly sad story. There is plenty of action and suspense to keep the reader turning those pages to find out what happens next.  

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own. 

Notable Quotables:

“God forgave you the very first time you asked. He doesn’t hold your past against you.”

“God was with them. He would make a way, even when there seemed no options.”

“Father was as different from Gil as the darkness of the cave from noontime sunshine.”

“I was a possession to him, someone he could use for his advantage.”

My Rating

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Magnificent! Another thrilling installment of the Coulter brothers’ stories, with the clear promise of more adventures to come!

Blog Stops

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, November 22

Melissa’s Bookshelf, November 22

Pause for Tales, November 23

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, November 23

Texas Book-aholic, November 24

Blossoms and Blessings, November 24

Lighthouse Academy Blog, November 25(Guest Review from Marilyn Ridgway)

lakesdielivingsite, November 26

Locks, Hooks and Books, November 27

For Him and My Family, November 27

Devoted To Hope, November 28

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, November 29

Jeanette’s Thoughts, November 29

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, November 30

Book Looks by Lisa, December 1

Holly’s Book Corner, December 1

Betti Mace, December 2

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, December 3

Cover Lover Book Review, December 3

Books You Can Feel Good About, December 4

Life on Chickadee Lane, December 5

Mary Hake, December 5

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Misty is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/00adcf54105

ARC, BLOG, Favorite, Kindle, NetGalley, PB, Purchase, Revell

A Healing Touch by Suzanne Woods Fisher Review

Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Title: A Healing Touch

Author: Suzanne Woods Fisher

Publisher: Revell

Released: October 1, 2024

Genre: Amish Romance

Ruth “Dok” Stoltzfus is the kind of doctor who still believes in house calls, addressing not just her patients’ physical needs but their emotional ones too. When newly widowed Bee faces a breast cancer diagnosis, Dok connects her with Fern Lapp for support. When her painfully shy assistant Annie finds herself drawn to a new calling, Dok goes to great lengths to help her achieve her dream. And when an abandoned newborn mysteriously appears at her office one frosty morning, Dok’s world takes an unexpected turn as ripples of change touch several lives.

A Healing Touch is a captivating tale of compassion, resilience, and the bonds that form in surprising places. Bestselling and award-winning author Suzanne Woods Fisher invites you into a new story that’s like medicine for the weary soul. Join Dok, Annie, and the tight-knit Stoney Ridge community as they navigate the twists of fate, discovering that sometimes the greatest healing comes from the heart.

About the Author

Suzanne Woods Fisher loves stories worth telling about people worth remembering. With over a million copies of her book sold worldwide, this bestselling, award-winning author of more than 30 books is always on the lookout for the unsung hero with an untold story.

Readers are invited to stop by Suzanne’s website at: http://www.suzannewoodsfisher.com

My Impressions

“a doctor can treat to the best of her ability, but only God can heal.”

If I hadn’t wanted to read this book before, the tongue-in-cheek descriptions of some of the characters in  the cast of characters (at the front of book) would have convinced me!

I couldn’t wait to return to Stoney Creek with Suzanne Woods Fisher for more of her wonderful Amish community there. However, A Healing Touch is as much about Englischers as it is the Amish. 

We get to see an intimate look at Dok Stoltzfus, the Bishop’s sister, who left the Amish ways behind. Dok obtained her MD, married an Englischer, but returned to practice among the People she left. Dok is much beloved and trusted in the community, but we begin to see her single-minded dedication to her patients is beginning to take a toll on her marriage. Will Dok find a reason to spend less time in the office and more at home? 

Another major character in the novel is Bee, who is a retired Olympic equestrian racer. Now widowed, she wallows in a haze of misery as life takes yet another unexpected turn. Will she allow a frenemy from the past to help with her beloved horses? What is the story between the two former acquaintances? You’ll love Fran, an Amish woman who comes alongside Bee (an Englischer) and teaches her valuable life lessons!

I especially loved seeing shy Annie, a young Amish girl, as she learns to overcome social anxiety. Dok has taken Annie as her secretary, hoping the position will nudge her out of her shyness. What nobody foresees is the interest that Annie develops. Can Annie trust God to work in her life and others’ to take her down the path He has for her?

I received a copy of the book from Revell via NetGalley. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own. 

Notable Quotables:

“Bad thoughts can be like weeds. Pull them out quickly before they take over. There’s no point in watering the weeds.”

“Faith infuses grief the way a tea bag steeps in hot water.”

“Extra kneading ends up with the best bread of all—light and airy and delicious. A little like life, I’ve always thought. Difficult times end up making us the best we can be.”

“…a person’s past wasn’t ​pertinent, only who they were now.”

“If you aren’t training…“you’re untraining.”

My Rating

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Magnificent! Each Stoney Ridge story seems to be even better than the last! Do we really have to leave Stoney Ridge?!!

ARC, Bethany House, BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Favorite, Kindle, NetGalley, PB, Purchase

Hope Like Wildflowers by Pepper Basham Review and Giveaway

Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Book: Hope Like Wildflowers

Author: Pepper Basham

Genre: Christian Fiction/Historical Fiction

Release date: October, 2024

An Appalachian Girl Seeks a Place to Belong
Return to the mountains of 1910s Appalachia with beloved author Pepper Basham to discover Kizzie McAdams’s story.

Kizzie McAdams spent her childhood longing to see beyond the mountains of home, but when her job as a servant in a landowner’s house results in an unplanned pregnancy, her world tips into uncertainty and heartbreak. Disowned by her father, she seeks comfort in the arms of the man who promises to take care of her, but his support is conditional and inconsistent. She finds acceptance in the home of a nearby family who not only offer Kizzie friendship but point her to a deeper understanding of God’s love.

Despite her change of heart, her status as a social outcast brings with it continued threats and alienation so she flees her past in hopes of starting over in a nearby town. But her new world carries many of the same prejudices as the old. It also brings the unexpected friendship of businessman Noah Lewis, a man who lives with the same desire as Kizzie for helping the marginalized.

Unfortunately, Kizzie and Noah’s attempts to help those in need pit them against Noah’s elder brother, a powerful mill owner who holds control of the family finances. Is Kizzie and Noah’s growing romance strong enough to battle family power, social expectations, and Kizzie’s past to capture their happy ending? And when Kizzie’s first love returns to claim her, which future will she choose?

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Pepper Bashamis an award-winning author who writes romance peppered with grace and humor with southern Appalachian flair. Both her historical and contemporary novels have garnered recognition in the Grace Awards, Inspys, and ACFW Carol Awards. Her historical romance, The Thorn Healer, was a finalist in the 2018 RT Awards. Her historical romance novels, My Heart Belongs in the Blue Ridge and The Red Ribbon, and her contemporary novels, the Mitchell’s Crossroads and Pleasant Gap series, showcase her Appalachian heritage, as well as her love for humor and family. She currently resides in the lovely mountains of Asheville, NC where she is the mom of five great kids, a speech-language pathologist to about fifty more, and a lover of chocolate, jazz, hats, and Jesus.

More from Pepper

It’s pretty easy to overlook wildflowers.

I mean, until they show off all their pretty colors, especially in the middle of a barren place, then they’re noticed and usually appreciated but did you know there’s a lot more to wildflowers that…meets the eye?

Apart from providing food and shelter for smaller animals and/or insects or assisting bees in pollination, wildflowers can be used as an ingredient for healing remedies and contribute to soil health and reduce erosion.

Especially in places where other plants aren’t likely to grow. They’re known as “hardy” because they can survive all sorts of weather conditions, extreme temperature, animal damage, even drought.

So why am I talking about wildflowers??

Because, in lots of ways, wildflowers are a great example of what hope looks like.

  1. Hope nourishes. Romans 15: 14 “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.” When we recall and reflect on what the Bible says about who we are in Christ, our hearts are encouraged and given the spiritual energy they need to remind ourselves of truth in the middle of hard times and wilderness-living.
  2. Hope spreads – Romans 15:13 – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” A heart filled with the knowledge of the love of God is a heart filled and “overflowing” with hope…and that hope is contagious. When we know whose we are and what our future looks like because of the One who loves us, we live in joy…even when the storms come.
  3. Hope restores and heals: “Isaiah 40:31 reads, “For those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
  4. Hope protects – Psalm 62:5-6 “Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.” Life is hard. Sometimes, bone-achingly, soul-shakingly hard. If we’re reliant on our own ability to protect our faith or mind or soul, we will fail. We’re not strong enough and neither is any of our human defenses, but God is amply able to protect us from the storms, trials, and droughts that mean to wither our hope. HE is the hero of our heart’s story and he is armed to overcome so we can trust Him with our hope and our futures.
  5. And hope grows in the hard places. Hope does not consist of weak or wishful thinking, it grows out of nutrients squeezed from the soil it has. Hard-won, many times. Romans 5:3-4 “ Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” A life with Christ doesn’t mean that pain is taken away, but there is a promise and purpose in the pain. The promise that God is with us and a purpose that He is making us more like Him.

Hope Like Wildflowers tells the story of hope, but the main character, Kizzie, isn’t relying on her own abilities to keep her hope strong. Oh no! She learned to trust in the only One who is strong enough to BE her hope. He nourishes her heart when her life has turned upside down and she’s been forsaken. He restores and heals her when she’s been broken and cast out. He protects her from dangerous men who try to hurt her, but also he protects her heart from choosing the wrong path. And through the hard places of life, Kizzie’s hope overflows in joy to touch the lives of those around her.

And it’s beautiful and unexpected.

Like wildflowers.

How has God helped bring hope to your life? What trials has His hope helped you through?

My Impressions

“Somehow, even in the middle of broken dreams, God touches the raw, painful remnants with a teensy bit of stardust.”

Pepper Basham invites us back to the 1910s in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where people are still divided by their socio-economic and racial status. This book, Hope Like Wildflowers,  is so well-titled! As Basham explains, wildflowers will fight their way up through mountain rock and other areas that one would think impossible soil. Yet, beauty springs out of surprising hardship. It is leaning into the Rock that is bigger and stronger than ourselves that gives strength to endure and overcome. We cannot do it on our own, as Nella encourages Kizzie.  “Life is hard, Kizzie. You can look for easy in all kinds of places, but more likely than not, that easy turns to its own kind of hard. The real test is what you do when the hard comes. There’s bound to be more times in life than not that the hard gets too big for your own shoulders. That’s why you need someone bigger, stronger, wiser.” 

What a journey you will go on with young Kizzie McAdams. We first see a bedraggled, rejected, pregnant, poor, mountain girl struggling to survive. But as Kizzie begins to spend time with her friends John and Nella, she begins to see there is a different road to life available, if she chooses. One that she will not have to walk alone. At first, it seems Kizzie will get trampled and tossed aside by those who are bigger and stronger. Every decision she makes will have you yearning with her as you see her difficult choices. 

Fortunately, Faith is like a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. As Kizzie makes decisions and moves to leave her old life behind, life actually gets harder in many ways. Will she return to her old ways, to the promised security, or will she continue to step out in faith and love?

Ms. Basham pens her novel with beautiful descriptions of the Appalachians, slices of local color, and great relatable characters with tough choices. While part of a series, this book can stand alone. Highly recommended, especially for fans of Catherine Marshall’s Christy. 

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit via NetGalley. I also bought my own copy for my keeper shelf. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own. 

Notable Quotables:

“It’s difficult to smile when your focus is on things that rarely lead to joy.”

“Sometimes the very best folks rise out of a second chance because they know what they’ve been forgiven of.”

“My mama says that our true self rises to the top when we’re mad or when no one’s looking.”-Kizzie

“The Lord don’t want nothing to do with the likes of me, Nella.” “Well, that just goes to show how little you know about the Lord. The broken kind’s who He’s been after from the start.”

“True compassion cared with a steel spine.”

My Rating

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Magnificent! What a poignant time to read Hope Like Wildflowers- when Appalachia must again wade through a very difficult time, but is buoyed by the strength and resilience of its people and their hope for the future!

Blog Stops

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, October 30

Melissa’s Bookshelf, October 30

Life on Chickadee Lane, October 31

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, October 31

Devoted To Hope, November 1

Texas Book-aholic, November 1

Lighthouse Academy Blog, November 2 (Guest Review from Marilyn)

Locks, Hooks and Books, November 2

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, November 3

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, November 3

Wishful Endings, November 4

Book Looks by Lisa, November 4

Sylvan Musings, November 5

For Him and My Family, November 5

lakesidelivingsite, November 6

Blossoms and Blessings, November 6

Connie’s History Classroom, November 7

Labor Not in Vain, November 7

Holly’s Book Corner, November 8

An Author’s Take, November 8

Back Porch Reads, November 9

Inklings and Notions, November 9

Cover Lover Book Review, November 10

Pause for Tales, November 11

Just Your Average reviews, November 11

To Everything There Is A Season, November 12

Vicky Sluiter, November 12

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Pepper is giving away the grand prize of a $25 Amazon eGift card and a print copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/00adcf5482

ARC, Barbour, BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Favorite, Kindle, NetGalley, Purchase

Virginia by Shannon McNear Review and Giveaway

Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Book: Virginia (Daughters of the Lost Colony Book Four)

Author: Shannon McNear

Genre: Christian Fiction / Historical Romance

Release date: September, 2024

The White Doe of the Outer Banks Grows into Womanhood

Return to the “what if” questions surrounding the Lost Colony and explore the possible fate of Virginia Dare–the first English child born in the New World. What happened to her after her grandfather John White returned to England and the colony he established disappeared into the mists of time? Legends abound, but she was indeed a real girl who, if she survived to adulthood, must have also become part of the legacy that is the people of the Outer Banks. In the spring of 1602 by English reckoning, “Ginny,” as she is called by family and friends, is fourteen and firmly considered a grown woman by the standards of the People. For her entire life she has watched the beautiful give-and-take of the Kurawoten and other native peoples with the English who came from across the ocean. She’s enjoyed being the darling of both English and Kurawoten alike—but a stirring deep inside her will not be put to rest.

One careless decision lands her and fellow “first baby” Henry Harvie, along with their Croatoan friend Redbud, in enemy hands. Carried away into Mangoac territory, out of the reach of Manteo and the others, she must learn who she truly is—not only the daughter of Elinor and Ananias Dare but also a child of the One True God, who gives her courage to go wherever the path of her life might lead.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Transplanted to North Dakota after more than two decades in the Deep South, Shannon McNear loves losing herself in local history. She’s the author of four novellas, the first a 2014 RITA® nominee and the most recent a 2021 SELAH winner, and six full-length novels. Her greatest joy, however, is in being a military wife, mom, mother-in-law, and grammie. She’s been a contributor to Colonial Quills and The Borrowed Book, and is a current member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Faith, Hope, & Love Christian Writers. When not cooking, researching, or leaking story from her fingertips, she enjoys being outdoors, basking in the beauty of the northern prairies.

More fron Shannon

So—here we are! I am just so, SO, sooo blessed to get to be on Celebrate Lit yet again. And book FOUR of my Lost Colony series! Initially I thought two, maybe three books. I pretty much disregarded the possibility of writing Virginia Dare’s story because, well, there’s a good bit of mythology surrounding her, and I felt absolutely no inclination to tackle any of that.

Until early last year. The idea dropped into my head and seemed too obvious to turn away. I didn’t have much idea of what would actually happen in the story, although I knew I wanted to explore the identity of the Mangoac, who held the interior of what is now North Carolina and Virginia when the Spanish and the English first arrived in the New World. They spoke an Iroquoian language and were referred to with dread and distaste among all their neighbors, including the Powhatan. Those people are what we know now as the Tuscarora.

Little was known of the Tuscarora before John Lawson wrote of his journey through the Carolinas in 1700-01. A few years later, Lawson himself met with a fairly horrible death at the hands of the Tuscarora (one wonders what he might have done to tick them off), and tensions soon escalated between settlers and indigenous peoples into all-out war. After their defeat by the English, the Tuscarora people moved northward and became the sixth nation of the Iroquois Confederacy.

They call themselves Skaru:re—pronounced sgah-ROOO-rah (with that long “ooh” held out a little extra)—translated variously as “Long-Shirt People” or “Hemp People,” for the garments they would weave from “Indian hemp,” also known as milkweed. The Tuscarora word for milkweed does indeed contain the same root as Skaru:re, but no one knows when as a people they might have made the transition from merely using milkweed fiber for cording or twine to spinning and weaving it into fabric, as the English did flax for linen.

I decided to have a bit of fun in my story, then, with Ginny being questioned about the making of a linen garment, and then a later mention of a “rough, twiny fabric.” I’d meant to expand upon that a bit, or at least address it in the historical notes at the end—and then completely forgot until working through the galleys.

So I get to talk about it—now. 

You might guess that both details, which may feel random to the casual reader, are a nod to the translation of the name Skaru:re, and to the influence that either the Spanish or the English might have had on various Native people groups. A good author endeavors, of course, to not have any random details littering a story. In Virginia, many small things point back to previous stories—there are hints of connection to Rebecca as well even though either story could be read before the other. By the same token, all four books are what we could term alternate history—a reach beyond what is known into what might have been. I think it most likely that as Native peoples acquired European fashions, they used what they already had (in the case of the Skaru:re, a familiarity with milkweed and other materials to provide fiber) to produce garments and other items modeled after what the Spanish and English used. They were nothing if not eager to take advantage of new technologies—and what if their contact with members of the Lost Colony was what sparked the idea behind their famed “long shirts”?

A stretch, for sure. But there’s a reason why I’ve always enjoyed writing speculative fiction as well as historical. 

My Impressions

“Her firstborn, taken by the People. Just as she herself was, all those years ago…“

Any history buff with the slightest interest in the lost colony of Roanoke should read this series, Daughters of the Lost Colony, and this book in particular, Virginia. Shannon McNear has outdone herself on this one. I loved every minute of this heart-rending, suspenseful book! I would encourage you to read the prior three novels so you have a better base for understanding some of the background and people involved.

Barely a young woman, Virginia Dare, who lives in the village that is a mixture of Kurawoten and English, is taken captive, along with two young male friends. Encouraged beforehand to do what they must to survive if such a capture by an enemy occurs, how far must they go? 

Will the Skaru:re tribe that took the young people make them slaves, torture them, or assimilate them into their culture? Why are Sees Far and others not coming to the captives’ rescue? How can God turn something so tragic into an instrument for good? This is a major question that resounds throughout the book, very timely in our country today. 

Many people argue that tragedy shows an absence of a loving God. Not so, says Ginny as she shares her mother’s belief. “He is God, regardless. The good things we enjoy, the little miracles that come, they come because He is good and loves to bless us. But the lack of blessings does not prove His absence or lack of care.” I loved the way that McNear shows that faith has to become real and personal for each individual. I loved the heartfelt prayers of Ginny and others as all they can do is cry out to God for help. 

Danger, romance, history, and a fair look at different people groups are all present in this fast-paced story. But so are the plan of salvation and an impassioned plea to see God as a loving Sovereign when all we can see is tragedy. Will we have the faith to trust God when we cannot see what only He can? “We must trust that He is able to weave our past into good for us, and indeed does so. And we must trust Him with each day. This day. And then the remainder of our lives.”

Is this easy? As Master Johson encourages Ginny, it is not. “…if ’twere easy to trust, then where would be the need for faith?”

Don’t miss this exciting conclusion to the Daughters of the Lost Colony Series! Expect a few surprises!

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit and Netgalley. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own. 

Notable Quotables:

“But love is as much a choice as it is a feeling. Mayhap more.”

“Perhaps the difference lies in a counterquestion. What is your present commitment to Christ and to His ways? It matters not if you were born and reared a Christian, if you abandon your faith upon reaching your majority.”

“Their coming to the New World, they said, ’twas more than uprooting in body and soul and trying to make a home in a completely different country. There was a clash between old ways and new ways, between old gods and the one true God, a conflict not just of thought and ideals but of spiritual forces. How many times had she heard Master Johnson and others read the verse about not wrestling with flesh and blood but with principalities and powers? And yet … she had never truly comprehended.”

My Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Magnificent!! I will long be mulling over the McNear-based possibilities of The Lost Colonies!!

Blog Stops

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, October 4

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, October 4

Locks, Hooks and Books, October 5

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, October 6

To Everything There Is A Season, October 6

Devoted To Hope, October 7

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, October 8

lakesidelivingsite, October 9

Texas Book-aholic, October 9

Betti Mace, October 10

Melissa’s Bookshelf, October 11

Becca Hope: Book Obsessed, October 11

Books You Can Feel Good About, October 12

Tell Tale Book Reviews, October 13

Bizwings Book Blog, October 14

Cover Lover Book Review, October 15

Lights in a Dark World, October 15

Holly’s Book Corner, October 16

Sylvan Musings, October 17

Pause for Tales, October 17

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Shannon is giving away the grand prize of a $25 Amazon e-Gift Card and a print copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/00adcf5458

BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Favorite, Kindle, Purchase

Once upon a Courtship by Collection

Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Book: Once upon a Courtship

Authors: Kit Morgan, Chautona Havig, Tricia Goyer, Marylu Tyndall, Regina Scott, Marlene Bierworth, Linore Rose Burkard, Camille Elliot, Louise M. Goudge, Lisa M. Prysock, Teresa Slack, Marilyn Turk

Genre: Historical Christian Fiction

Release date: October 22, 2024

Once Upon a Courtship: A Sweet Historical Romance Collection
A Limited-Time Collection of 12 books from 12 beloved Christian authors spanning rustic landscapes, elegant ballrooms, rugged cowboys, enigmatic spies, and daring pirates! Delight your romantic heart with Colonial, Regency, Victorian, Western, and Gilded Age Romance and preorder your copy today!

Mail-Order Millie by USA Today Bestselling Author Kit Morgan
Imagine mail-order bride Millie’s surprise when she finds out her so-called husband is really a spy working for the president.

Courting Miss Darling by USA Today Bestselling Author Chautona Havig
Muriel Darling thought her heart rode off with a cowboy, but when his boss writes letters, maybe romance is in Miss Darling’s future after all.

The Privateer’s Prize by Christy Award Finalist Author MaryLu Tyndall
Left at the altar, a woman must rely on the man who broke her heart to deliver a message to change the course of the Revolutionary War.

Grace in the Storm by USA Today Bestselling Author Tricia Goyer
As hurricane winds howl, a feisty pirate and a captivating tavern owner find their destinies changed by the storm’s fury.

Leftover Mail-Order Bride by Publisher’s Weekly Bestselling Author Regina Scott
When mail-order bride Victoria’s groom left her at the altar, she vows to find love, but meets Jack, seeking help on the ranch, love optional.

Clara’s Compassion by Critically Acclaimed Author Marlene Bierworth
Clara’s compassion for workers on the frontier of the Canadian Rockies proves conflicting for railroad boss, Graham, in matters of the heart.

Miss Spencer Meets Her Match by Multi-Award-winning Author Linore Rose Burkard
Miss Spencer attends a Cinderella Ball unwillingly, not knowing the “prince” is in disguise.

Lissa and the Spy by USA Today Bestselling Author Camille Elliot
Seeking a marriage of convenience, plain Lissa becomes entangled with enigmatic Lord Stoude and a secret mission for the Crown.

Abiding Faith, Freedom’s Call by Multi-Award-Winning Author Louise M. Gouge
A pacifist Quaker widow and a prisoner of war officer risk their lives. Will the gap between peace and the American Revolution be a chasm too wide?

Jory’s Story by USA Today Bestselling Author Lisa M. Prysock
When a spy and local adversaries descend, can a governess protect the duke’s children and her heart?

Priscilla’s Promise by Award-Winning Author Teresa Slack
Priscilla Channing wants to honor her father by marrying the man he chose. But he’s not the same man, nor she, the same woman.

The Gilding of Minnie Tucker by Multi-Award-Winning Author Marilyn Turk
A Biltmore maid opens the wrong door and stumbles into a guest whose mutual attraction could be their doom.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Authors

Twelve authors bring you stories that span from the Colonial era, through Regency, Victorian, Western, and into Edwardian and the Gilded Age.

More from Chautona

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to write historical fiction?  Here’s a “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” version that sorta shows how it can go.

If you give an author a historical assignment, she’ll want to choose an era for it. If she chooses Colonial, she’ll need to research what that period included.

She’ll research it and discover that there were lots of places colonized by lots of countries.

She’ll pick one. If she picks American, she may discover how big of a role ships played in that period. A pirate might appear.

If a pirate appears, she’ll jump the Colonial ship for a swashbuckling one and buy an eyepatch—just to get into character.

While learning of how lawless the open sea could be, pictures of a lawless Old West with cowboys and sheriffs might tempt her to leave rolling sea waves for waving prairie seas.

She’ll buy a covered wagon. If she buys that wagon, her HOA will demand she get it out of her front yard. She’ll settle for spurs. The cat will not be amused.

If her cat protests too much, she’ll decide to get him a girlfriend. She’ll go online and order one. That will remind her of mail-order brides.  She’ll begin researching. The idea of dip pens and beautiful paper and wax seals will make a serious hit to her budget. She’ll justify it as “research.”  If she goes overboard, she might start a story-by-mail service with a new letter sent each week. Reams of paper fill her front yard.  The HOA will send a sternly-written letter.

But the deadlines loom on the horizon. She’ll pray for help.  Thinking about prayer will remind her that her (not-as-yet-to-be-put-on-paper) fictional town needs a church.  And some civilizing.  If she prays and all that happens… she’ll research more.

While researching, she’ll remember she meant to do a story from earlier in the century. She’ll buy a ball gown—Regency style. What’s a ball gown with nowhere to wear it?  She needs a ball!

If she wants to go to a ball, she’ll need to know how to dance. She’ll sign up for English country dance lessons and learn that the waltz of that time is very different from ours.

She’ll research how it evolved. If she studies well, she’ll learn how scandalized folks were and decides to move her story forward. She likes the waltz.  To prove it, she’ll buy vinyl albums of Strauss’ waltzes and play them nonstop.

If she plays the music too late, her neighbors will call in a noise complaint.  The HOA will call an emergency meeting. She’ll miss it. She’s too busy deciding between that mail-order bride and an antebellum miss (and stuffing a thousand envelopes to mail tomorrow).

Pictures of waltzes at balls with hoopskirts and satin prompts her to order her own.  If she puts it on, it threatens to get stuck when she tries to walk out the front door.

If she gets stuck, she’ll shimmy out of the dress (good thing it was a little big) and lets it sit there as décor.

The HOA comes armed with pitchforks and scissors. Fascinated, she wonders where they got the pitchforks. The gown does not survive.

Her indignation prompts her to reconsider and write something more Gilded Age—the long, close-fitting gowns (except for bustles as big as those hoopskirts!).  If she puts one of those on and walks out the front door, she’ll find a man there. Gaping. She may think she looks stunning. If she thinks that, he might pull out a stungun—along with a court order to appear and pay a fine.

When she sees that fine, she may swoon (or it could be she didn’t know how to lace the corset correctly).  He’ll catch her and help her to her couch (it’s not a fainting couch).

When he brings her a drink, she may tell him the whole story.

And if she tells him the whole story, he might suggest writing Sci-Fi would be safer.

After a long nap and a weird dream, she decides he’s right. She’ll write about people in space.  And chances are, if she researches writing about people in space, she’ll discover that it’s just another Colonial story.

(Oh, and she’ll need a new home. She had to sell hers to pay the HOA fines. Anyone want to subscribe to her story letters?)

My Impressions

Once Upon a Courtship is an anthology of twelve different novellas by different authors. All are Christian-themed, sweet, and clean. They range from the Colonial to the Gilded Era. I read a sampling of four authors’ works: MaryLu Tyndale, Regina Scott, Marlene Bierworth, and Chautona Havig. 

MaryLu Tyndale’s story, The Privateer’s Prize, was just as enjoyable as her other pirate stories I’ve read. Jilted at the altar by Isaac, Thea encounters him as a hostile privateer as she attempts a journey North as a spy during the Revolutionary War. Attempting to force Isaac to band to her wishes, Thea’s actions cause damage that is hard for Isaac to forgive, even as he attempts to keep her safe. As the two struggle to stay ahead of their pursuers, they begin to see themselves as they had been years earlier, with flaws that would have torn them apart. Even now, God is refining each of them. 

Isaac regrets the way he treated Thea in the past, 

“He had not only broken her heart, but he had pushed her away from God, a far worse condition than being jilted.”

Even as Isaac realizes a deeper, truer love for Thea( and she for him) he still holds one possession firmly in his fisted hands. 

“Isaac had turned back to God, had committed his life to Him, but he had never fully given Him everything. He had never put Him first. How could he justify such selfishness when Jesus had given His all, His very life, for Isaac?

***********

“Humility. One more item to add to the list of characteristics Mrs. Dalrymple expected Victoria’s husband to possess, along with patience, faithfulness, fiscal responsibility, kindness to animals, and frequent tithing. He would have to be an absolute paragon among men. She’d never find a groom to match.”

In Leftover Mail-Order Bride by Regina Scott, Victoria Milford has traveled west in 1870s Washington Territory to be the answer to a mail-order bride ad. Upon finding the gentleman already married when she arrives, Victoria must find work or a husband. Her hostess, Mrs. Dalrymple, fancies herself a matchmaker. Will Victoria follow Mrs. Dalrymple’s advice or her own heart? What happens when the gentleman who most appeals, Jack Willets, only wants a wife who will be an assett to the ranch?

***********

In Clara’s Compassion by Marlene Bierworth, a young woman travels West to the Canadian frontier, the Rockies, and the end of the current railroad. By marrying the railroad master there, Clara can still teach like she wants and receive her inheritance that may soon be lost. But will her compassion for all people, no matter their origins, blend with that of her husband-to-be, whose railroad exploits these same people? 

When confronted about her activities that offend the self-righteous townspeople, Clara avers, 

“Compassion for the needy holds no boundaries where God is concerned.” What will it take to make these two hearts like-minded and the townspeople willing to accept both Clara and her husband-to-be?

Notable Quotables:

“Does being accepted by the majority make ignoring the minority acceptable?”

“You are like my conscience taking bodily form.”

*************

 In Courting Miss Darling, Chautona Havig does it again! She at once amuses me, admonishes me, teaches me, and entertains me. Muriel answers a letter of introduction and begins corresponding with a Dakota Territory rancher. We follow the correspondence of these two lonely people as they slowly reveal who they are on paper. I really admired Muriel for her strength, wisdom, and love she shows teaching the Casper, Wyoming children. Pete also has many good qualities, one being an ability to remember a “conversation” and ask more questions about someone in connection to that. That was one quality that endeared him to Muriel, and it was a real-life quality that endeared my hubby to me as we corresponded for awhile during our long-distance dating. 

I enjoyed reading Pete’s mom’s admonition about self-confidence:

“you are a son of the King of Kings. That means you are to be humble, for you are not the King Himself, and confident because your Father is the King and will protect you against all manner of things.”

Ms.Havig leads the her characters on a very twisted path to matrimony. But, oh, the lessons they and you, the reader will learn as you journey together!

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.

My Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Magnificent!

Blog Stops

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, September 13

Book Looks by Lisa, September 13

Melissa’s Bookshelf, September 14

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, September 15

Texas Book-aholic, September 16

Locks, Hooks and Books, September 17

Stories By Gina, September 18 (Author Interview)

Lots of Helpers, September 18

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 19

Devoted To Hope, September 20

For Him and My Family, September 21

Holly’s Book Corner, September 22

Jeanette’s Thoughts, September 23

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 24

Books You Can Feel Good About, September 25

Madi’s Musings, September 26

Giveaway

To celebrate their tour, the Authors are giving away the grand prize of a $50 Barnes & Noble gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/00adcf5441

BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Kindle, Love Inspired Suspense

The Garden Girls by Jessica Patch Review and Giveaway

Babbling Becky L

Blog Stops

Book Looks by Lisa, September 5

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, September 6

Inspired by Fiction, September 7

Stories By Gina, September 8 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, September 8

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, September 9

Texas Book-aholic, September 10

Locks, Hooks and Books, September 11

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 12

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 13

Simple Harvest Reads, September 14 (Guest Review from Mindy Houng)

Blogging With Carol , September 15

For Him and My Family, September 16

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, September 16

Holly’s Book Corner, September 17

Just Your Average reviews, September 18

About the Book

Book: The Garden Girls

Author: Jessica R. Patch

Genre: Thriller

Release date: April 23, 2024

On a remote Outer Banks island, a serial killer collects his prized specimens. And to stop him, an FBI agent must confront his own twisted past.

FBI agent Tiberius Granger has seen his share of darkness. But a new case sets him on edge. It’s not just the macabre way both victims—found posed in front of lighthouses—are tattooed with flowers that match their names. There’s also the unsettling connection to the woman Ty once loved and to the shadowy cult they both risked everything to escape.

Bexley Hemmingway’s sister has gone missing, and she’ll do anything to find her—including teaming up with Ty. That may prove a mistake, and not just because Ty doesn’t know he’s the father of her teenaged son. It seems the killer is taunting Ty, drawing everyone close to him into deeper danger.

As the slashing winds and rain of a deadly hurricane approach the coast of North Carolina, the search leads Ty and Bex to an island that hides a grisly secret. But in his quest for the truth, Ty has ignored the fact that this time, he’s not just the hunter. Every move has been orchestrated by a killer into a perfect storm of terror, and they will need all their skills to survive…

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Jessica R. Patch is a Publishers Weekly bestselling author known for her dry wit, signatures twists, and complex characters. She loves reading true crime books, discussing cold cases over chips and salsa with her girlfriends, and hunting down serial killers in her romantic suspense novels and psychological thrillers.

Jessica loves to encourage and inspire people to forward living devotionals through her monthly email newsletter. You’re invited to join the Patched In community at her website: http://www.jessicarpatch.com and receive a FREE short thriller, Nobody Has to Know.

She resides in the Memphis area with her husband and her spoiled tri-color Shetland Sheepdog since becoming empty nesters. Jessica is represented by Rachel Kent of Books & Such Literary Management.

More from Jessica

Does Dark Subject Matter Belong in Inspirational Thrillers?

Spoil alert! Yes.

I am often asked why I write thrillers with darker subject matter and should I? My answer is easy and it’s biblical.

In the Bible, you’ll find all sorts of twisted, dark subject matter. Simply read the book of Judges. God didn’t sanitize the Bible or the people, which include sexual immorality, murder, gruesome violence against women and even cannibalism and child sacrifice (you won’t find child sacrifice in my books, so rest assured). He didn’t approve of these things nor did He condone them, but He also didn’t edit it out for easy reading pleasure. It was important to reveal the dark human condition and what happens apart from God; many heinous things were perpetrated by God’s people as they edged away from their faith into disobedience.

Reading this darker subject matter is hopeful because it reminds us of who we, too, can become apart from God actively in our lives and that God can still accomplish His redemptive purposes in the midst of that darkness. Light shines and is a beacon of hope. Of salvation.

So I don’t shy away from the underbelly of humanity whether it’s through an unbeliever or a believer who has run off the rails and needs brought to repentance and restoration. Light always shines in my books—God rescues, redeems, reconciles and redirects. I’m willing to go there in my stories because I know that it doesn’t stay dark. It doesn’t stay hopeless because we are never without hope.

In The Garden Girls, I wanted to explore that darkness but not with pointy horns and pitchforks. I think we all run from blatant evil that isn’t hiding or masking itself. But what about when evil masquerades as an angel of light? What about when it’s charming, smells good, offers pleasure, and seems harmless? Like a shiny lure that is attractive but when bitten, hooks and binds the unsuspecting victim. Biblical principles and truths weave through the story and in at the heart, it’s a redemptive story. One that takes hurricane force to bring a man to Truth, and choice to bow his heart and yield to sacrificial love.

My Impressions

“I don’t believe anything in our life is wasted. This shell is chipped and broken. Been tossed by the waves. No control and yet it’s here on this beach. It’s not so far destroyed that I can’t recognize what it’s meant to be or find the beauty in it. I think the broken shells have stronger, richer stories than those I find that are in mint condition.”

Jessica Patch has penned another very memorable thriller, The Garden Girls. While Book 3 in FBI: Strange Crimes Unit, Garden Girls stands well on its own.

Young women are disappearing, without a trace until tattooed bodies begin appearing by lighthouses in North Carolina. The Special Crimes Unit is activated and sets up a home base in the Outer Banks. Returning there id difficult for one of their members, Ty Granger. Years ago, he escaped a religious cult based there in the mountains. Plus, his former girlfriend, Bexley Hemingway, lives in the area. 

I liked how the Special Crimes Unit is like a family. They look out for each other. Especially in Ty’s case, the members are closer to him than his real family. Yet, his real family with its twisted past has left an indelible mark on Ty. He may have escaped the cult. He may be the religious behavioral analyst on the team, but he refuses to go from belief in one over-controlling religion to faith in God, which he considers another controlling religion. While several of Ty’s teammates are believers, Ty feels they are in a cult just as dangerous as the one of his youth. 

This is a very gritty novel that explores the darkness of man’s depravity without God. We see how dark the mind of the seri*l kill*r is. We even see how dark is the hopelessness that Ty experiences when that same mastermind has almost totally outwitted him. “This went far deeper than a killer wanting revenge. This was a killer who wanted complete dominion over Ty.” Ty begins to lose all hope. Will  God step in and begin to show up for him?

“Without hope, there was no meaning in life. The ocean was vast and shadowy, always reminding her that darkness lurked and was immense, terrifying and unpredictable, but when dawn peeped over the horizon it brought light to the darkness and color. Vibrant and beautiful. That was hope—light piercing the darkness, overwhelming it with its glory and majesty, bringing a new day and fresh mercy. Light chased away shadows and sparkled on the shores, beckoning one to come and stand in its presence with outstretched arms and to be wrapped in its warmth. Yielding to hope was possible.” Ty has been self-sufficient for so long. Finally, the terrifying hurricane and the fiend Ty and his team are chasing bring Ty to the end of himself. Will he give up or let go and let God?

I always like to write down a guess mid-way through the book when I’ve figured out the culprit. I missed it by a mile. Patch does a great job of tangling the clues together like knotted fishing line. 

I recommend this book for those who are fans of the NCSI series and its spin-offs. I received a copy from Celebrate Lit. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own. 

Notable Quotables:

“And the truth of drawing near to God rang true. He didn’t have to ask. He only had to draw.”

“He needed renewed strength. Not his own strength but something far greater and powerful—more powerful than this hurricane—to allow him to continue. Owen was right.

My Rating

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Great!

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Jessica is giving away the grand prize package of a paperback copy of Her Darkest Secret, a paperback copy of A Cry in the Dark and a $35 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/00adcf5432

BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Favorite, Kregel, New-to-Me Author, Purchase

Justice Delayed by Sarah Hamaker Review and Giveaway

Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Book: Justice Delayed

Author: Sarah Hamaker

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Release date: May 15, 2024

Journalist Brogan Gilmore had been a rising star when an unethical shortcut on a story leads to his fall from grace. A chance encounter with convicted murderer Melender Harman a few months after her release from prison provides Brogan with a chance for career redemption—if he can land an interview with her.

After serving her 17-year sentence, Melender has one objective: To uncover the truth about what happened to her cousin the night the toddler disappeared. When Brogan pursues her for an exclusive story, she reluctantly agrees if he’ll help her reexamine the original investigation into Jesse’s presumed kidnapping and murder.

While re-investigating the case, Brogan struggles to keep his objectivity as he begins to believe Melender is innocent of the crime—and starts to envision a possible future together. Then a shocking discovery throws their relationship—and investigation—into turmoil.

As Brogan and Melender come closer to solving what happened to Jesse, will their budding relationship survive the truth?

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

An award-winning and best-selling author of inspirational romantic suspense, Sarah Hamaker loves writing books “where the hero and heroine fall in love while running for their lives.” She’s an AWSA certified writer and speaker coach, and podcaster of “The Romantic Side of Suspense.” Sarah lives in Virginia with her husband, four children and three cats.

More from Sarah

When Stories Teach Us Valuable Lessons

As a rather shy child, books became both my friends and teachers. While I had a few close friends, I spent hours of my childhood and teen years reading a plethora of books. I visited far away places and long ago times. I met famous people and viewed historical events. I solved my share of mysteries and wept with the characters over losses. I fell in love with heroes and rooted for heroines to save the day.

Researchers have discovered that literary fiction can improve your capacity to understand what others are thinking and feeling. Literary fiction also teaches us about social behavior, including how to view the world through other people’s eyes. In other words, reading fiction helps us develop empathy as well as allows us to experience the ups and downs of someone else’s life and thus become more able to handle similar situations in our own lives.

While I didn’t set out to write Justice Delayed with this research in mind, early reviews of the book have touched on that theme. For example, one reader said, “One of my favorite quotes is when [Melender, my heroine] defends her action of true forgiveness to [Brogan, my hero], ‘It was for my good and His eternal glory that I went to prison for a crime I didn’t commit. That didn’t mean I gave up trying to find justice in this world-it meant I didn’t despair when justice didn’t come.’ Wow! What a lesson in forgiveness and letting go of bitterness which in turn provided a peace that cannot be matched. She never allowed bitterness to take hold of her heart.”

Another reviewer said this: “Greed, politics and outright evil are a part of story, but the truth and goodness shine through it all as the walls start crumbling down, and you learn what truly happened that night. This was one of the best inspirational suspense books that I have read in quite some time. It left an impression on me, even if the message came from a fictional character.”

And another pointed this out: “Not only did Melender teach those around her how to forgive, but Melender taught me that lesson at well.”

While I had written Justice Delayed five years ago, I recently finished reading the late Tim Keller’s last book, Forgive, which touched on themes I explore in my book. Today, we so often ignore forgiveness as being too hard, too messy to offer and much too difficult to receive. Melender’s story is one example of how you can extend forgiveness even when it’s not been requested and to live a life of forgiveness in extremely arduous circumstances. Keller’s book has challenged me in many ways to forgive more without strings attached.

What have you learned from a book recently?

My Impressions

“Sometimes, the path to redemption takes some strange turns,” she said softly.”

“Brogan, I believe with all my heart God graciously put me in circumstances designed to strengthen my faith.”

Where do I start gushing about Delayed Justice by Sarah Hamaker?  I totally identified with Melender, the 35-yr-old woman, who claims complete innocence of the heinous crime of which she’s been tried, convicted, and served her complete sentence. I also totally understood the thoughts of the disgraced, reformed investigative reporter, Brogan Gilmore, who agrees to help Melender for his own gain. Yet, as he investigates the past with her, more doubts, dangers, and inconsistencies arise. Is this woman he’s falling in love with, as innocent as she claims?

At times, due to Hamaker’s skillful and honest characterizations, I even felt empathy and sympathy for each of the angry, vindictive family members who want nothing more than to ruin the rest of Melender’s life. What amazed me, though, was Melender’s ability to forgive. 

Grandmother Sudie, long dead, is a veritable influence for Jesus’s perfect forgiveness that Melender clings to in prison and lives out. “Child, when we allow anger over wrongs done to us to take root in our hearts, we’re saying to God Almighty that crimes committed against us are worse than crimes committed against Jesus. Our crimes against Jesus were nailed to the cross. How can we hang on to unforgiveness when our Savior does not?”

I understand these words in my head. I have repeated them, and used them in my  own life. But… could I really draw on His power to employ them against such extreme evil done against me by those that should have my best interest at heart?! I am challenged to check my heart against the little foxes, so if there ever is a time when something this extreme were to happen, it will require no big change in my heart. 

Life lessons, drama, fear, ( um, terror, should I say) very even pacing of suspense all the way through the novel had me enthralled. I only put down the book when life forced my hand. This was my first Sarah Hamaker novel, but I am thrilled to see it is also the first in its series! Hamaker’s combination of all the above factors with glorious reminders of life-changing truth could easily elevate romantic suspense to one of my fave categories!! Well done, Ms. Hamaker!!

Fave secondary character? The already passed away great-grandmother Sudie for her great wisdom, and spiritual admonitions given with heaping helpings of love and approval! 

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own. 

Notable Quotables:

“Find a young man who loves the Lord more than he loves you, and you won’t go wrong.”

“It was for my good and His eternal glory that I went to prison for a crime I didn’t commit. That didn’t mean I gave up trying to find justice in this world. It meant I didn’t despair when justice didn’t come.”

“life isn’t fair, especially to those who haven’t the ability to ensure an equal playing field.”

“Child, just when you think the Almighty has forgotten about our needs, He sends someone or something to remind us of His provision and His promise to never leave us nor forsake us. You remember that when you feel abandoned by Him.”

My Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Magnificent!! Justice Delayed just knocked out other fantastic romantic suspense novels for my fave in this category that I’ve read in 2024!!

Blog Stops

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, September 4

Inspired by Fiction, September 4

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, September 5

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, September 6

Texas Book-aholic, September 7

Locks, Hooks and Books, September 8

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 9

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 10

For Him and My Family, September 11

lakesidelivingsite, September 12

Holly’s Book Corner, September 13

Pause for Tales, September 14

Cover Lover Book Review, September 15

Paula’s Pad of Inspiration, September 15

Lights in a Dark World, September 16

Stories By Gina, September 17 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Sarah is giving away the grand prize package of a $75 Amazon Gift Card, a print copy of Justice Delayed, and the following Justice Delayed-themed swag: Canvas Tote, Notebook and pen, Drink Coaster, Bookmark, and Sticker!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/00adcf5431

BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Kindle, Purchase

Weaving Roots by Heather Wood Review and Giveaway

Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Book: Weaving Roots

Author: Heather Wood

Genre: Christian Historical Fiction with Romance

Release date: June 25, 2024

Baltimore, 1828

Spinning. Turning flax to fine linen thread for her family’s weaving business keeps Betha’s hands occupied all day, but it’s the concerns spinning in her heart that never truly rest. How can she give her nephew Henry a secure, loving home when his father remains indifferent? How can she guide the boy who calls her “Ma” to know and follow the Lord for himself? And when past secrets and future changes collide, will she lose Henry altogether?

Colm Gallagher is passionate about teaching boys using innovative educational methods. But is his kind and thorough instruction enough if he is not allowed to give his students the ultimate truth of God’s Word? Confronted by his student Henry Young and the boy’s lovely but determined aunt, Colm considers if he has allowed practical considerations to outweigh his deepest-held beliefs.

Even as Betha and Colm are drawn to each other, family loyalties, financial pressures, and personal uncertainties push them further apart. Will the threads of their lives unravel or become knit together into something stronger?

Weaving linen is her family’s legacy. Weaving roots of truth and grace is her calling.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Heather Woodgrew up in the Chicago suburbs, loving history, classic literature, writing stories, and Civil War reenacting. After obtaining her bachelor’s degree in Bible/Theology from Appalachian Bible College, she settled in Virginia with her husband David. Her early passions fuel her writing today, although she spends most of her days now working to infuse her love for God and good literature into the hearts of her four children.

More from Heather

I’ve gone through a lot of phases in my life. I’ve been involved in different hobbies and activities, only to have them fizzle out after a few years. So when I started writing, I thought it was the same thing—that it was another short-lived hobby and soon I would get back to my regular life.

My third book was about to be released when one day, it felt like God turned a light bulb on in my mind: This is what I’ve been preparing you to do all along. When I look back at my parents, my education, and the experiences of my life, I realized that God had specially equipped me to do exactly what I was doing: write Christian historical fiction about real American church history.

The epiphany was more scary than exciting. I’m a “one idea at a time” kind of author. I don’t have multiple projects going at once. I had no idea, as I went to publish my third book, if I would even be able to come up with a plot and characters for a fourth. Would I announce to my friends that this writing thing was here to stay only to find I never got another story idea? What about the sacrifices it would require of my husband and kids?

That was just in 2022. Releasing this summer is Weaving Roots, my fifth book and the first in a whole new series with entirely new characters. I’m looking forward to seeing how the rest of the series unfolds from the idea seeds God has planted! I regularly offer my writing up to God, willing to walk away if He were ever to ask me to do so. Until then, I will work diligently and trustingly at the work He has given me to do.

You see, while each book does start with an idea seed, it’s watered by real history. As I take my spark of inspiration to the history books, I delight in finding out what God was doing in the time and place I’m writing about. My plots grow up around the real people He used and the work He was doing (although I usually make people who really lived into minor characters at best. Most often, I merely refer to them off the page while using what I do know about them to inspire my characters). I always try to drop vivid characters into the world as it really existed and watch and see how they respond. I dig into Scriptures and the theologians and Christian thinkers of their era or the one before to round out my themes and take the book’s message deeper. As a result, I am always the first one who is convicted and challenged by the message God brings to my stories.

Weaving Roots introduces us to the father of the siblings in my Finding Home series when he was just ten years old in 1827. He’s a second-generation Irish immigrant in a family of linen weavers in Baltimore, more than a decade before the Irish Great Famine. To the best of my knowledge, no one in either Christian or general market fiction has written about this time, place, and people group. Not everything on the page will be what you expect, as this generation between Colonial and Civil War/ Victorian Americans was very unique in their beliefs, struggles, and priorities. Henry Young is brought to Baltimore by his father, who is looking for a fresh start for his son and himself. Henry soon finds that his new schoolmaster is not what he expects and his father has more major changes coming into his life.

I can’t wait to share Weaving Roots with you and see how God uses His words to bless and encourage you!

My Impressions

“God has a good plan bigger than our mistakes, and He chose you to be His before you were born. He created you out of His good purpose to be smart and gentle and brave and so I’d have reason to smile every day.”

Heather Wood’s novel, Weaving Roots, is as much about matters of the heart and the choices people make as it is about actions or events. 

Betha struggles as she mothers her young nephew, desperate to guard him from gossip and hurt. She very much wants him to follow God, and prays that her brother will take his father duties seriously. Nothing can keep her from striving to protect Henry. 

Henry has such a difficult life with his father, and life gets exponentially worse for him. Wood makes me hurt for him, and I feel Betha’s burden for him, too. 

Colm, the schoolteacher and a good friend, reminds Henry that they can’t make him trust God, and there are no guaranteed outcomes. He has to trust God for himself: “All we can do, really, is point you to a God bigger than all of it and let you know you’re not swimming this current alone.” How I love Colm and his wisdom! 

Colm has inner struggles of his own. When he finally chooses one course of action, he finds peace with God but struggles with the school board. Colm reasons with them, “would you have me withhold from my students the most effective resources I have to help them in life? This is a free school; do I have the right to educate as my conscience and experience dictate while the students have the right to pursue education elsewhere if they don’t like it?” (Storm’s a-comin’ here! )

I also enjoyed seeing the relationship between Colm and his brother, Patrick. They are so tight, yet when trouble comes, their differences threaten to tear them apart. Will there be any way to repair the camaraderie they once enjoyed?

It was interesting to learn about such things as camp meetings, the start of Sunday Schools, and the Lancaster method of education. Author notes at the back are always appreciated! 

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own. 

Notable Quotables:

“When faith is passed down through so many generations, sometimes we can lose sight of the urgency of it.”

“The Bible wasn’t a neutral book, and the words in it didn’t leave room for a passive response. If a heart wasn’t changed by it, it very likely would find itself in sharp opposition to it.” 

My Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Great!

Blog Stops

Vicky Sluiter, August 17

Stories By Gina, August 18 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, August 18

Locks, Hooks and Books, August 19

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, August 20

Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, August 21 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 21

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, August 22

Devoted To Hope, August 23

Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, August 24

Batya’s Bits, August 25

For Him and My Family, August 26

Labor Not in Vain, August 27

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, August 28

The Sacred Line, August 29

Books You Can Feel Good About, August 30

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Heather is giving away the grand prize package of a paperback of Weaving Roots, a special handstitched bookmark and a sticker designed especially for Weaving Roots, a copy of The Virginia Housewife, an 1820s cookbook referenced in Weaving Roots, and a $15 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2ddab/weaving-roots-celebration-tour-giveaway

BLOG, Favorite, Kindle, LibraryThing Early Readers, NetGalley, PB, Purchase, Revell

The Song of Sourwood Mountain by Ann H. Gabhart Review

Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Title: The Song of Sourwood Mountain

Author: Ann H. Gabhart

Publisher: Revell

Genre: Southern Historical Romance

Released: May, 2024

While the century began with such promise, it is 1910 when Mira Dean’s hopes of being a wife and mother are dashed to pieces. Her fiancé dead from tuberculosis, Mira resigns herself to being a spinster schoolteacher–until Gordon Covington shows up.

No longer the boy she knew from school, Gordon is now a preacher who is full of surprises. First, he asks Mira to come to Sourwood in eastern Kentucky to teach at his mission school. Second, he asks her to marry him. Just like that. And all at once the doors that had seemed firmly shut begin to open, just a crack.

With much trepidation, Mira steps out in faith into a life she never imagined, in a place filled with its own special challenges, to serve a people who will end up becoming the family she always dreamed of.

From the pen of bestselling author Ann H. Gabhart comes a heartwarming story of the unexpected blessings that can come when we dare to follow the Lord’s leading.

About the Author

Ann H. Gabhart caught the writing bug at the age of ten and has been writing ever since. An award winning author, she’s published many books for both adults and young adults. Her books cover several genres from historical to small town family stories to cozy mysteries (mysteries published with author name A.H. Gabhart). Her ideas are sparked by events in Kentucky history and by experiences in her own family. Her first Shaker novel, The Outsider, was a finalist for the ECPA Christian Fiction Book of the Year. Love Comes Home won the Selah Book of the Year award, and These Healing Hills was the Faith, Hope & Love Readers’ Choice Women’s Fiction Book of the Year.

Ann lives on a Kentucky farm not far from where she was born. She and her husband have three children and nine grandchildren. Ann enjoys hiking on her farm with her grandkids and her dogs, Frankie and Marley. See more about her books at http://www.annhgabhart.com or join the conversation on her Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/anngabhart.

My Impressions

“‘Would you consider marriage, Miss Dean? To me’…He not only had said the words, he was implying the Lord wanted him to do so.”

*Sigh.* There is something so romantic about the turn of the century (early 1900s) and the people who lived in the hollers and mountains of Kentucky. 

Ann H. Gabhart spins her tale, The Song of Sourwood Mountain, and soon you are caught up in its melodic web. The heart and soul of the people of that era rise hauntingly to the forefront of a hard life. The people are hard-working, fiercely independent, and suspicious of strangers who are “ brought in” from the outside. They rally around their own and protect secrets that shouldn’t escape the hills and hollers. 

It is into this world that Mira Dean, a young teacher, enters, very reluctantly, as part of a marriage of convenience. Gordon Covington has started a church and a school. He is the pastor, but he desperately needs a teacher. And he thinks God is telling him Mira, a former acquaintance, is the one. 

Mira tries to run away from the idea, but boy, does she resemble Jonah of the Bible as God places roadblock after roadblock in her path, until finally, as Mira consults her erstwhile landlady, Miss Ophelia, Mira tells the woman Gordon’s approach to the issue and faith in general: “He claims that sometimes the Lord expects a man to step onto a path that is thick with the fog of the unknown. A path where he has to simply take the next step without knowing if there is a firm path there.”

I enjoyed the stern, no-nonsense- approach to life of Miss Ophelia. Surprisingly, she provides several laughs!

What a not so propitious start to a marriage! Can Mira and Gordon make a go of this marriage, as Gordon believes?

“I can’t marry you. I don’t love you.” She looked directly into his eyes. “You don’t love me.” “But I love the Lord. You love the Lord. I believe he will honor that love, and with a common mission in both our hearts, the Lord will grow love between us as he did so many of those he brought together in the Bible.”

Ada June broke my heart and captured it at the same time. I wondered if I would have had the wisdom to deal with her many fears and her difficult past?

Don’t miss Joseph, Elsinore, and Bo! And the connections within the community were amazing! People are very complex in this novel, just as in real life, and a couple threw me for a loop! 

Song… can be reminiscent of Catherine Marshall’s Christy, yet it is different. Making one’s heart desires those that please God is one of the main themes. God, in turn, gives us happiness in those desires. This beautiful novel is covered by a fantasticly colorful and appealing scene that begs you to read the book.

I received a copy of the book from Revell and Library Thing Early Readers via NetGalley. I also bought a pb copy for myself and one to give away. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own. 

 Notable Quotables: 

“Ours would be a mission school with our own rules for the position of teacher. A teacher chosen by the Lord.”

“When I see a bluebird, I can’t help but think of the love with which the Lord surely formed that first bird. Through that love, the Lord gifted us with joy and hope whenever our eyes delight in its sight. May this little bird help you remember not only my love but the Lord’s as well. A bluebird of happiness.”

“One doesn’t have to know everything about one’s destination when one begins a journey.”

“What were the desires of her heart? She had a ready answer. To teach them. To let her light shine. Sometimes she would quote the next verse to them. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. That was her way of letting them know that the Lord would, as her mother always said, provide. He would plant the proper desires in their hearts and show them the way to reach those goals in life. Had she taught that and never truly believed it?”

“He isn’t my young man, and I haven’t received a call to be a missionary.” “Are you sure? I think that is why you ran away this morning. You are afraid of the call you are feeling. Fear has a way of paralyzing us, coloring our thoughts, making us want to believe we know more than God.” 

“Do you want me to live out your dream?” “No.” Miss Ophelia shook her head. “I want you to live out your dream. One the Lord appears to be pushing you toward.”

“Don’t we all have choices?” “We do, but sometimes until we walk the same paths as others, we can’t understand the choices they make. It’s a hard life.”

“Pain on the outside helped her not feel the pain on the inside that never went away.”

“Do more than hope. Pray.”

“The Lord doesn’t limit our prayers. He’s ready to answer abundantly if it is in his will.”

“I’m not in the reforming business. Just the spreading the gospel business. I let the Lord do what reforming he thinks needs doing.”

“Sometimes niceness was just a coating like moss on a wet rock that was slippery if a body depended on stepping full on it.”

“We often think we know the best way and have a sure idea of what should happen, without considering if those ways we want to choose will delight the Lord. What we should do, what I feel the Lord wants us to do, is let him plant those desires in our hearts.”

ARC, BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Kindle, NetGalley, Purchase

Rocky Mountain Journey by Misty Beller Review and Giveaway

Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Book: Rocky Mountain Journey (Sisters of the Rockies: Book 3)

Author: Misty M. Beller

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release date: June 18, 2024

Masquerading as a man, Faith Collins embarks on a perilous journey through the untamed wilderness of the Rocky Mountains in search of the Peigan Blackfoot woman who once saved her father’s life. She joins a group of trappers who may be able to lead her to the place the woman is hiding, but keeping Faith’s identity a secret proves more difficult than she imagined.

Grant Allen is searching for his younger brother, who was separated from him when their parents died many years ago. After receiving word that his brother went west to the Rockies, he unites with a group of trappers, hoping they can lead him to his brother’s location. Soon Grant realizes there’s a woman hiding among the men, and he’s determined to find out who she is, what she’s hiding, and how he can keep her safe in this country of wild animals and even wilder men.

In this rousing conclusion to her Sisters of the Rockies series, Misty M. Beller embarks on an adventurous journey where loyalty, love, and sacrifice intertwine amid the unforgiving frontier.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

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

A HEROINE DISGUISED AS A MAN

I love a heroine in disguise! It’s one of my favorite tropes, but I don’t often get to write stories with that plot. It adds so many fun and funny moments to the storyline.

In Rocky Mountain Journey our heroine goes undercover as a “man” to travel with a group of trappers so she can reach her destination safely. Numbers meant a better chance of survival back in those days. I love that Grant, our hero, was the only man in the trapper group who looked close enough at the young “man” riding with them to realize things weren’t what they seemed at first glance.

One challenge that definitely arises in a story where the heroine is pretending to be a man is the development of the romance between her and the hero. In this case, Faith was pretending to be her (fictitious) brother Frank. Grant had met Faith in an earlier chapter before she took on the disguise, and he immediately noticed the resemblance between “Frank” and the woman whose memory still lingered with him, even days later. Every time he looks at “Frank” while they’re traveling with the trappers, he recalls the memory of Faith by the waterfall…and the attraction to that woman grows a little more every time. What a shocking surprise when he discovered she’s riding just ahead of him on the trail the entire time!

I pray you love Faith’s stint “in disguise” in Rocky Mountain Journey!

Blessings!

Misty

My Impressions

“How many other times in her life had she received direction from God, and simply hadn’t recognized it? And then she’d blamed Him in her heart for not answering—every time.”

Misty Beller brings us yet another story of one of the Collins sisters in Rocky Mountain Journey. I have come to appreciate Beller’s great storytelling of the 1800s American West, almost always centered around beautiful Rocky Mountain scenery and horses in some capacity. Another outstanding mark of Beller’s novel is that Rocky Mountain Journey and other of her novels tell about trust in God. Neither Faith nor Grant, the couple the story focuses on, possess faith when the novel starts, but both slowly realize that their need dictates a second look at their attitude towards God. It’s rather unusual that Grant, who has yet to believe, at one point tries to call Faith back to her original belief. “What your sisters have is real. It can be real for you too. I don’t know how to find it, but I think if your heart is open . . . if you ask Him, God will be there. He’ll answer you. Every time. It might not be in ways you expect, but it will be Him answering.”

I really became curious about another couple and their romance, so I hope that Beller is laying the foundation for the fourth sister’s story.

The other aspect of Beller’s novels that I especially enjoy is that there is often a good intercultural connection. There are a couple different ones in this novel, and I must say, White Horse and Steps Right are my fave secondary characters.

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit via NetGalley. I also bought my own copy . No positive review was required and all opinions are my own.

Notable Quotables:

“It is only a possession. It carries memories, yet if it is lost, we have not lost the memories. We carry them within ourselves.”

“God was the only one who could keep any of them truly safe.”

My Ratng

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Great!

Blog Stops

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, June 18

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, June 18

Life, Love, Writing, June 19

Book Looks by Lisa, June 19

Wishful Endings, June 20

Lighthouse Academy Blog, June 20 (Guest Review from Marilyn Ridgway)

Texas Book-aholic, June 21

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, June 22

Devoted To Hope, June 22

Locks, Hooks and Books, June 23

Happily Managing a Houeshold of Boys, June 23

Betti Mace, June 24

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, June 24

lakesidelivingsite, June 25

Books You Can Feel Good About, June 26

Mornings at Character Cafe, June 26

Life on Chickadee Lane, June 27

Tell Tale Book Reviews, June 27

Cover Lover Book Review, June 28

For Him and My Family, June 29

Jeanette’s Thoughts, June 29

Holly’s Book Corner, June 30

Blossoms and Blessings, June 30

Lily’s Corner, July 1

Pause for Tales, July 1

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Misty is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2c068/rocky-mountain-journey-celebration-tour-giveaway