Christmas Roses

Since everywhere I look everyone seems to be in the Christmas mood, I was really excited to read Christmas Roses by Amanda Cabot. This was a cute, short story that looked at Celia Anderson and her daughter Emma in the year 1882. Celia recently lost her husband, and she seems to be the most eligible bachelorette in her small community in Wyoming. As the local boardinghouse owner, she gets the opportunity to meet new people in the town. Unfortunately, there aren’t too many residents at her business, so she serves dinner to some local bachelors and takes care of a young child to earn money.

When Mark Williams comes into town looking for his father, he saves Emma’s life with his quick-thinking after she contracts Croup. He quickly becomes a part of their family. As Mark and Celia’s friendship grows, Celia receives marriage requests from two men who are interested in marriage for practical reasons. She thinks it would be best for her daughter to have a family, but she does not want to give up the notion of finding true love: a kind of love where someone would bring her Roses for Christmas. Mark, meanwhile, continues on his mission of finding his father who left him at a young age.

I really liked this book, and thought it was the perfect read for a cold winter night! I liked seeing the relationship between Celia and Mark grow, and I also liked the focus on Mark coming to terms with his past and reconnecting with his faith. The connection Mark and Celia’s daughter Emma had was also great to read about. Although Mark was not Emma’s birth father, he truly cared for her and was concerned about her health and well-being.

“Available September 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.”

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Revell as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

 

The Christmas Pony

 

The Christmas Pony by Melody Carlson follows Lucy Turnbull during Christmas in 1937. Her father is no longer living, and her mother made their home a boardinghouse as a way to provide for her young daughter. When Lucy meets a young couple in town and hears about their car breaking down, she believes it is an answer to prayer as a way to help her family earn money through their rental of rooms at their home. She is also hopeful for the fulfillment of two other prayers: a pony and to have her mother’s smile return. As Lucy spends time with the young man, George, and woman, Veronica, she learns more about their true character.

 

This was very quick read, and it was a cute book that got me ready for Christmas! I think this would be a good book for a family to read together before the Christmas Season. The book focused on the real reason for the holidays, and the Christmas play at the local Church was a perfect way to focus on Christ’s birth rather than just presents. I’m glad I had the opportunity to read the book, and I can’t wait to share it with others.

 

Available September 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

 

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Revell as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

 

Flight of Fancy

Flight of Fancy is the second book in The Daughters of Bainbridge House series of books by Laurie Alice Eakes. Cassanda Bainbridge is engaged to Geoffrey Giles, who ultimately becomes the Earl of Whittaker after the death of his brother. When Cassandra calls off her engagement due to an accident which causes her to have burns, she travels to the country where she focuses on her other love, ballooning. Even before her accident, she was more interested in reading about ballooning than doing the typical girl things, like sewing and attending a party. As could be imagined, her ex-fiancee Geoffrey would rather her keep her feet on the ground in order to stay safe.

 

Cassandra and Geoffrey were both characters I liked, although I think I liked Geoffrey more than the heroine. He really cared for Cassanda regardless of the scarring she experienced due to her accident. He was also a great boss with an interest in doing what was best for the factory workers. I read the first book in this series, but even if I had not read the book, I would have been able to follow the story of Cassandra and Geoffrey.

 

Available October 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Revell as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

American Patriots

Being from Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum is a name everyone knows. That’s why I could not wait to read his book American Patriots: Answering the Call to Freedom. It was a very easy read and is the perfect book to randomly pick up and read short stories about forgotten heroes from the time of the Revolutionary War. I also liked the fact that this book was very Patriotic and written in a way that anyone can understand, even young teenagers. Also, the way it is written teaches you about history without being dry like some history books tend to read.

 

Each of the 25 chapters is dedicated to a particular individual who had certain characteristics of a Patriot. As well as being a book about America’s history, it had a Biblical focus as each chapter contained a well-known Bible Verse to tie together the story from the particular chapter.

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Tyndale House Publishers as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."  

A Light in the Window

Julie Lessman’s books are quickly becoming some of my favorites since reading the Winds of Change Series which follows the O’Connor family. When I was given the opportunity to read her newest E-Book, A Light in the Window, I could not wait!! A Light in the Window tells the story of Patrick O’Connor and Marceling Murphy, the parents of the O’Connors in the Winds of Change Series and also the Daughters of Boston Series. In 1895 Marceline Murphy moves back to Boston, Massachusetts after her father is laid off from his job in New York, where they lived for the past 5 years. Marcy is now in her last year of high school, and her beauty has attracted the attention of Sam O’Rourke, her childhood crush and older brother of her best friend Julie. Not only is Sam showing her attention, but Patrick O’Connor is also drawn to her kind and caring nature. Both Sam and Patrick are known throughout their Boston community as rogues, who spend their time in a local bar with many different local women. Rather than ruin their friendship, they flip a coin to determine who will be given the chance to date Marcy.

Set amid the backdrop of planning a Christmas play, the love triangle between Marcy, Patrick, and Sam plays out in a way that would keep any reader interested. Marcy was not the typical type of girl either of Patrick or Sam would have normally dated, but it was great to see that she did not change her morals for a relationship with either of them. Marcy was very strong in her faith, and she allowed it to be an example to others. Although I do think at some points she was a bit too harsh toward Patrick. She pre-judged him based on past experiences with a family member wronged by her fiancée who reminded Marcy of Patrick. When her friend reminded her that she needed to show Christ’s love to all people, she seemed to reevaluate her attitude and give Patrick the chance for friendship that he deserved. I loved Patrick’s trait of being the protector of others. He befriended many of the youth who were involved in the Christmas play, as well as the elderly people who would come to the community center for meals. Even though his background was checkered, in terms of past relationships, he truly wanted to turn his life around, in part because of Marcy but also because of his new-found faith.

Once again, Julie Lessman wrote a book that had me interested from page 1 to finish. I cannot wait to go back and read her Daughters of Boston series and any other books she puts out in the future. This would definitely be a great book for anyone to read who is interested in not only historical books, but also books about romance, faith, family, and friendship.     

Also, check out Julie Lessman's website to see details about the contest she is running with the release of her new book!! http://www.julielessman.com/contest/

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

A Promise to Love

After reading some of the other books by Serena B. Miller, I was very excited to read her newest book A Promise to Love. Ingrid Larsen is a Swedish immigrant in Michigan in the year 1871. Ingrid has, for all intents and purposes, an arranged marriage with Joshua Hunter, a widower who may lose his 5 children if he does not find a bride. Ingrid seems like the perfect homemaker and is able to restore order to his home, but he cannot love his new bride after losing his wife of 13 years. Although Ingrid is hurt deeply by his lack of romantic feelings, she continues to work to keep his home in order and to grow a relationship. In addition to the romance contained in the book, there are facts which come out regarding Joshua’s first wife, and a battle with his in-laws to regain custody of his young child.

I really like the characters in this book. Ingrid was very caring, and it was clear that she felt strongly about all of the people in her life. I also think it was very interesting that the book mirrors the life of Serena Miller’s grandmother. Any time a book is based on a real person’s life, I always feel more invested in the book and the characters. I also liked the secondary characters who helped fill in the book by adding humor and showing Ingrid’s relationship and interactions with her new family.  

"Available October 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group."

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Revell as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Twice Promised

 

Twice Promised: The Blue Willow Brides, is the most recent book by Maggie Brendan. The book beings with Greta Olsen travelling to Colorado as a mail-order-bride after her fiancée, Bryan Gifford, was killed in a battle. Little does she know, there are two mail order brides who think they will be marrying Jess Gifford. To add to the problems, Jess doesn’t even know there are any mail order brides coming to his home. Unbeknownst to Jess, his brother Zach was corresponding with the women in the hopes of helping him find a wife.

 

I really enjoyed this book, and I liked the characters of both Cora and Greta. They could have been rivals because of the circumstances when they met, but I was glad they formed a friendship. It shows that even good can come out of bad situations.  

 

"Available October 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group."

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Revell as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."