The Brickmaker's Bride

I have read a whole lot of Judith Miller's books, and have always found them to be very enjoyable, and time well spent! So I was pretty excited to see that one of her books was up for review!
Without hesitation I have to say this is one of my favorites of hers, I loved the vast differences in her characters, their lifestyles and maturity. And I love that while some were written in with  less than appealing dispositions, that she was able to find redemptive situations for some of them. Plus I really appreciated that she gave us small glimpses into the previous lives of some of the less desirable characters, that gave you a bit of an understanding of why their attitudes developed as they did. It made the story really come to life for me, and gave me a greater appreciation for the story!
Laura is the previous owners daughter with a sentimental interest in seeing the brick yard succeed, so when Hugh and his nephew Ewan purchase the brickyard, she does all she can to help them make it a success.
I really enjoyed this book, it was so well written (Which all of Miller's books are!) and kept me with my nose in the book till the very last page!

Stolen

I have to say, I really do love reading of people who overcome horrific situations within their lives, the strength it takes to move past, and to even speak out about it is inspiring!
We read so much about sex trafficking in other less "developed" countries, but never stop to consider how much of it is happening on our grounds. It really opened my eyes to see how much truly happens that we either don't notice, or continue to turn a blind eye to.
Katariina's story really inspired and impressed me, especially seeing how she kept moving forward after her escape, and to see how she didn't let that stand in the way of developing the life and education she did that contributes to the work she does now with freeing others from the same trap.
I think a book like this should be required reading in our schools and highly recommended in our churches. People need to have their eyes opened and become informed about what is happening in our communities and how we can play a roll to prevent it.
I highly recommend this book!

The Woman Code

I'm not sure fully how I feel about this book, on one hand I fully agree with everything that the book spoke on, however, I think it needs to be viewed as more of a "People" code rather than just for women. I think a lot out there male/female should be reading this book and feel like with it focusing on solely women, that half the audience it could and should reach is being left out.
with that said, I know personally it made a lot of difference to me in  my general day to day life. I specifically liked where Sophia Nelson spoke about lifting other women up as you climb. I think one of the greatest hindrances to true equality between genders is our own desires to put our sisters down, or try holding them back. I could see myself in some of the things she discussed in regards to it, and now make a conscious effort to withhold from falling back into that pattern.
In all, I think this book was fantastic, its a powerful book that really empowers women to stand fully in who they were created to be.
I highly recommend it!

The Patmos Deception

I really enjoyed this book, it was fairly fast paced and really held my attention throughout the entire story. Plus I love that Davis Bunn gave the backgrounds of all the characters, that you got to meet them all before their interaction together happened. It really made the characters seem more real!
Each of the Characters, Nicolas, Carey, and Demitri all were very likable characters, and were kept realistic, which I really appreciated! There's nothing that gets me to dislike a character more than when an author tries to write them in as unrealistically perfect/good. Each of the characters have flaws, failures, and trials that they are facing (Even before the story gets really exciting!) that really make the characters feel more real! I really appreciated that!
In all I think this was a fantastic book, the flow was great and kept me with my nose in the book long past when I should have been putting it down! The story was very well written and well developed,
in all, I would highly recommend this book!

The reason

I first heard of lacey Sturm when watching Billy Graham's "My hope for America" special, and immediately fell in love with her music! It was so heart felt and emotionally filled! So when I saw that I would be reviewing a book by this musician I was pretty stoked!
Lacey writes like she sings, with emotion and passion, holding nothing back even when its something that would leave her vulnerable. I love that she put out a book that showed such vulnerbility and gave her journey in a realistic way, bumps, ugliness and everything. She didn't try to put out a book that made her look good, but instead gave us a book that made us look to the one who is truly good.
I love this book, and I think it'll be one that will be well read in our household!


*Please copy and paste the following notice for all of the books (in it's entirety and without modifying the wording) at the bottom of your review:
 
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc." 

Playing by heart

This book was one of my favorites, I love that Anne Mateer put together such a strong independant  female character, who wasn't simply simpering away for some guy to sweep her off her feet!
I love that the main character (Lulu) was sure of her self in the way of knowing that she had a place in that time in spite of the views against her gender.
Mateer did a fantastic job of writing a Lulu as a strong character while still keeping her personable and likeable! I also loved that Lulu was written with her flaws showing! I always hate it (and tend to dislike main characters) that are written unrealistically perfect. Mateer wrote her characters with realistic attitudes and lifestyles, the book was very well written and I struggled a lot to put it down!!
I'm already a fan of historic fiction, but I think this book will be well loved by many people regardless of their genre preferences!!

*Please copy and paste the following notice for all of the books (in it's entirety and without modifying the wording) at the bottom of your review:
 
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc." 

Your life still counts

This was a great month for great books! Man did I ever love this book too!! I love that in this day and age, the Christian community is finally starting to focus on love and grace, and that past failures do not predict or control our futures!!
Tracie Miles wrote a fantastic book, and one well worth picking up and taking the time to read. I love that her book seemed to have a fantastic formula to it, of healing first of those past failures/mistakes, peace for our present, and the significance of our futures! I think its just fantastic that Tracie Miles didn't just leave things at the healing and peace, but made sure to make sure her readers know that their futures are significant and that their pasts don't have to hinder them!
Again, this will be one book I'll be recommending to our church library and my friends and family.
Its a wonderful, heart felt book that really encompasses the love and grace of God.


*Please copy and paste the following notice for all of the books (in it's entirety and without modifying the wording) at the bottom of your review:
 
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc." 

At Bluebonnet Lake

To be perfectly honest, I'm not generally a huge fan of romances, they just don't suit my personality. However with that said, I've over the years found some books that in spite of their romance genre, are actually quite good! This book, "At Bluebonnet Lake" was one of those books, while I didn't think I'd enjoy it much, I was quite surprised to have really enjoyed and engrossed myself in this novel!
Kate (the main character) gets pulled into a trip by her grandmother to visit a place meaningful to her and her late husband. As she (kate) spends time with her grandmother she starts running across Greg, the handyman of the park, and is surprised to find herself attracted to him.
This was a good book, a cute story and a welcome break in the day. If you're into romances, I imagine you'll really love this book. Even the non romance lovers would find this book enjoyable!!

*Please copy and paste the following notice for all of the books (in it's entirety and without modifying the wording) at the bottom of your review:
 
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc." 

Breathing room

I highly recommend this book especially if you're in ministry, or the spouse of a minister! I think there's so many of us out there that feel like what we do isn't good enough, that are stuck on our failures, and full of self-condemnation, and this book address that head on, and provides some much needed help and insight!!
Leeana Tankersley appropriately named her book, it was like a breath of fresh air, and just gave (me personally at least) some space to breathe in the midst of it all. But she doesn't leave you there, Tankersley provides some great tools to continually walk in the grace that is so freely given to us by God.
Honestly, I think everyone needs this book, not just ministers and their families, too many people out there are walking in condemnation when they don't have to.  I'll be recommending it for our church library and to anyone I come across. Its an awesome book, and one you won't regret buying!!

*Please copy and paste the following notice for all of the books (in it's entirety and without modifying the wording) at the bottom of your review:
 
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc." 

Have a Happy Family by Friday

I read Dr. Kevin Leman's book "Have a new Kid by Friday" and found it had some pretty good insights, so while I'm not normally into these kinds of book (Self-help-ish) I was fairly certain I was going to enjoy and benefit from this one anyway!
I love that the book starts off by pointing out the importance of each family member and their role in the family. Its sometimes disappointing to read these types of books and have them almost brush aside the importance of everyone but the "head" of the household.
I felt that Dr. Leman gave many practical tools to every member within a household, that allowed them to be heard and to hear from others.
I love that Dr. Leman also included his own personal experiences and insights into what helps to communicate to family members, and how to maintain a good attitude and behaviors no matter the situation.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone who would have issues with their families, or anyone who's in a family at all

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

A light in the wilderness

This was, by far, one of my favorite books I have read. It was such an insightful look into what life must have been like for the women of this time, especially women of such diverse cultural backgrounds.
My heart broke for Letitia and the struggles she faced constantly because of the color of her skin, but her inner strength and faith in the Lord was admirable and wonderful to read about! This story had me on edge so many times as all three women in this story faced such difficult obstacles. Letitia facing racism and injustice at the hands of others, Nancy facing her greatest fear/pain, and Betsy trying to pass on the knowledge of her ancestors before it was too late. Each had their own individual struggle that was so different, but each also found a so much in common between them that strong friendships were formed.
This is one of the books that will be retaining its place on my bookshelves for a long time to come! I imagine in the next while, it will get re-read many times!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

What Your heart Needs for the hard days

First off, I have to say I loved the book from first glance, Its adorable! So immediately I was already hoping I would love what was written inside too! (I did!!) I've been really into reading through the Psalms lately, so I was pretty excited to see that there was a devotional book based on them!
I really loved this book, the devotions are short and sweet, but still full of truths! They're long enough to enjoy for a few quiet moments during the day, but are packed with such insights and truths that I really found myself challenged! I love the "What my heart is saying to You/hearing from You parts of the book, found at the end of each devotional. I found they helped me really apply what I was reading in each devotional!
This will be a book that I will be recommending to many of my church friends!!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

The River

I love Beverly Lewis' Amish books, I'm such a fan of them and I love the simplistic and kind way that Lewis writes her characters in. They're easy to get to know, and to understand. While there is some suspense and secrets in their lives, you still are able to get to know the heart of the character while reading!
In her book "the River" we meet Tilly and Ruth, who had left the Amish community for a life among the English. They're modern life is interrupted when they receive a call from one of their brothers inviting them to come to a birthday party for their father. With reservations about being back in the Amish community, the ladies head home again when they hear about the condition of their father's health. Tilly carries a guilt with her that makes being home again very difficult, and again is faced with her past regrets and pain. While Ruth faces memories of her past heartaches, and has a situation that could easily break her heart again.
Both characters were written so well, that I felt like I knew them. It was easy to get into this book and I found it a huge struggle to put down!
I would give this book my highest recommendation, as I would for any book by Beverly Lewis!

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Colliding with Destiny

I had the chance not too long ago to review another of Sarah Jakes books and enjoyed it immensely, I found her writing to be quite  honest and thought provoking! So When I saw this in my review group I was pretty excited to give it a read!
I love that she gave us a deper look into the story of Ruth, I usually feel like the story of Ruth gets such a quick pass over, that people just look at it as a story of a woman's obedience in order to land a husband. I'm so glad that Sarah Jakes took it to such a deeper level. That her obedience was first and formost to God, and that she set forth a legacy for other heroes of the faith as well!
I also appreciate how Jakes takes every aspect of the story she's written about and spells it out in such a way to make those lessons applicable easily to our own lives.
I really enjoyed this book, I found it was so in depth and intuitive! I highly recommend this book!!

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Tried & True

I did enjoy this book, it was very cleverly written, and I generally do enjoy reading books by Mary Connealy. I do have to say however while I appreciated the strong female characters, I was really frustrated with the men in the story and their view of women as weak.  That however would literally be the only complaint I have about this book. I enjoyed the rest of the story immensely, and always do look forward to reading books by Connealy!
In this series, we meet the Wilde family, three girls who are all pretending to be men in order to claim ownership of their ranches in a shorter time frame.  The story focuses a lot more around Kylie Wilde, and the claim she has on her own little piece of land.  Having gained (quite by accident) a prime piece of land that is valuable to some local ranchers, Kylie finds herself at the center of a fight to run her off her land. When the land agent Aaron learns of her true identity, he becomes torn between trying to protect her while remaining honest and loyal to his job.
All in all, I would recommend the book, the complaints I had about it were pretty minor compared to the rest of the story!

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Surviving Henry

This was a hilarious and adorable book! I don't usually like or read animal books, they aren't generally the genre that I enjoy. However I thought this book was fantastic. The stories that Erin Young shared were quite funny and very enjoyable! There were plenty of moments during the book where I would read portions to my son. He loves animal books and really enjoyed the parts I read to him! Plus I loved that there were lessons within this book that the author made it easy to pick up on. I love that even through all the disasters we can see the unconditional love within this puppy and this family.
I think this is a fantastic lesson that many of us can learn, and fortunately we can learn that through this book rather than experience our own boxer puppy disasters!!
I would highly recommend this book, its an excellent family read, and I think would be enjoyed by many different ages!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

Blind Trust

I quite enjoyed this book by Sandra Orchard, this was my first time reading one of her books, and upon checking out her Author page, I found that there is another book in this series! So I'm very excited to hunt it down and give it a read!!
In this book, Kate Adams finds herself in the midst of an investigation after she is caught with counterfeit money from her elderly neighbor. As she works to try and prove her innocence (As well as her neighbors) she finds herself caught up in something much bigger than she expected.  With many twists and turns in this book, it is guaranteed to keep you on your toes. I was surprised at many points in the books, where I thought I'd figured out what was going on, only to be surprised with a new twist! The book was extremely hard to put down, it was so full of suspense that it kept my attention the entire time I was reading it!
Now that I've had the pleasure of reading a book by Sandra Orchard, I will be keeping my eye out for more from her! I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it!!


"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

Miracle in a Dry Season

This is one of my favorite books that I've had the pleasure of reading, at the start of the book, I was sure that I wasn't going to like it! I didn't like the attitude of the main character Casewell Phillips, he really rubbed me the wrong way with his judgments and words! However as the book went on, you could see how God was working in his life and teaching him about forgiveness, love, mercy, and grace.
Perla Long arrives in town to visit with her Aunt and Uncle in order to get away from problems in her own home town. As a drought hits the town however, Perla's giftings from God become more noticable, and the town doesn't know how to handle or understand it. She's faced with judgements and struggles within the town and Casewell is faced with his own faith as he works to understand this woman God has placed in his path.
This book was excellent, I absolutely loved it! Its one of those books that will go straight to the top of my book shelf to be read over and over again!!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Truth Be Told

Carol Cox is another author who I've had the pleasure of reading her books before, so I knew ahead of time that the chances of this being fantastic were pretty high!
We start the book off by meeting Amelia Wagner, who is taking over her father's newspaper. As she continues to carry on the day to day working and reporting of the paper she begins to feel pressured by a company that doesn't appreciate the articles her father has written about them. Amelia begins to feel a struggle between the pressure of these people and her commitment and integrity of the paper to print only the truth. As she dives in to research and find out the story herself she is faced with contrasting emotions about the man assigned (by the mentioned company) to keep an eye on her!
I found this book pretty entertaining, it had enough twists in it to keep me eager to read on, and the characters were quite well written! It was easy to sympathize with them and relate to them as well!
I would highly recommend this book, especially if you enjoy historical christian romances! (even if you don't, this book is well written enough that you'll still enjoy it!)

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

With Every Breath

I have to start by saying how much I loved this book, I love books with strong female characters who don't fall apart and simper over a man. Plus I love that while Camden did make her female character a very strong woman, she didn't take away the emotional personal part of her. So I really did appreciate how well the main Character Kate was written!
I've read a couple of Elizabeth Camden's books so far, and they are always among my favorites! This book did not disappoint!! Kate Livingston, after having a great disappointment, moved on with life and forgot all about her rival Trevor until she is offered a job by him. What starts out as simply a chance to get ahead and a challenge she could face, moves into a deeper understanding of her rival and precarious friendship with him as well. With both characters being strong willed and opinionated, they book play quite well off of each other. I loved the banter between the characters, it was well written and came across as very natural!
In all, I absolutely loved this book, it had a fantastic flow, and was very hard to put down! The characters were quite likable and realistic, and so well written that you felt like you knew them!
I highly recommend this book!!

 "Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Miracle in a dry season

I started out really not liking the main character of the book Casewell, he was bit self righteous and judgemental. So I was quite prepared to really dislike the whole book. However, as I could see the change come over Casewell as he began to recognize his own need for forgiveness, I began to really start liking the book! I thought it was very artfully written, and brought out a huge range of emotions. I went from very much disliking the main character to begin cheering him on as he took on the true evil that was present in the town.
I love that the author allowed there to be troubled times within the book even with the miracles taking place. It made the book so much more realistic to me! Plus I think its a great lesson for the readers about seeing God's hand and miracles in the midst of trials and pain.
I very much enjoyed this book and highly recommend it!!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

One Perfect Spring

I've enjoyed Irene Hannon's suspense/cop style books for a while, so I was pretty interested to see how she would do with a romance type story. I have to say, she seems to be extremely talented in every genre! I really liked this book, I loved the plot of the story and how she brought the main characters together through one small child's letter.
The book was very well written and extremely difficult to put down! I loved reading about Claire's independent spirit, her ability and willingness to do what it takes to get the job done! I also really liked seeing keith's depth of character develop throughout the story. We see him evolve from a workaholic into someone who wants more out of life. It was a great story to get into and a very enjoyable read!
I highly recommend it!!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

Meant to be mine

I have to be honest, while I enjoyed Becky Wade's writing style and found her entertaining, I really found myself disliking her main character, and as a result didn't enjoy the book as much.
I really like stories where the female leads aren't portrayed as weak/clueless/fickle, and while I appreciated that Celia was a strong woman in the sense of raising a child single handedly, I found that after Ty re-entered her life, she automatically seemed to become a rather weak willed, easily manipulated character. It bothered me a fair bit that the female lead was written that way.
So while the book is well written, and had a good flow, it was still a bit hard for me to really enjoy.
I'd recommend the book to those who are really into the romance genre and who don't mind a weaker female character.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Lost & Found

I really enjoy listening to T.D. Jakes speak and I've read some of his books, so I was pretty interested to see if his daughter had the same kind of talent in regards to captivating an audience or reader. I was happy to see that she was more than able to keep my attention and impart a lot of wisdom with her book!  I really appreciated Sarah Jakes book, too many of these kind of Christian books are written without letting the reader see the hard struggles of the author. You get the more mild life problems they face, but they hold back the truly difficult or shameful aspects. I'm so glad that Jakes was so vulnerable in her book, that she was willing to let people really know of her mistakes and able to use those as a way to connect to her reader and show a life lesson. I very much enjoyed her book and feel that I personally gained so much from it! I highly recommend this book!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Until I found you

I'm not a big fan of the romance genre, but I do still enjoy a well written book, so this novel by Victoria Bylin was a very enjoyable read! It had just the right amount of conflict and suspense to make it interesting, but not so much so that it became an unrealistic story. I really found myself liking the writing style of Bylin's, she's got a really great flow to her book that just kept the pages really flowing for me! The story wasn't hard to follow and Bylin gave enough information/knowledge about the characters that it was easy to connect with them emotionally. In this book we're introduced to Kate and Nick, Nick is a new Christian who's walk away from a rougher lifestyle and is working hard to become the man God has called him to be. Kate is a former believer who isn't too sure that God hears her or is even there. As their paths cross in a dangerous moment both find themselves drawn to one another and conflicted as well.
All in all, this was a pretty great book and one I'd recommend especially if you're a fan of the romance genre!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

The Pelican Bride

I enjoyed this book, it was well written, and I think gave a pretty good insite to what life was like for these ladies.
Genevieve and her sister travel from France to the U.S. in order to become brides to the officers and settlers in new forts in remote areas. For the girls, it was a way to escape persecution back in France and to start a new life. But as they arrive they begin to experience hardships and trials that they were never warned about.
given only a few weeks to select a groom, the girls find themselves pulled in separate directions and further apart from each other.
I did really enjoy this book, I do wish we had been able to read more about Genevieve and her sister before they boarded the ship, I think their story before we met them in the book would have been a very interesting read too! (Unless I'm missing a previous book in this series, then by all means, I'll be hunting it out, lol)

All in all, I highly recommend it!!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

What follows After

I absolutely adore Dan Walsh's books, I have yet to read one that isn't absolutely amazing and heart warming. So I was thrilled to see that we had a chance to review another of his!
Honestly, I loved this book! I loved the writing, and the book in general had my attention captured till the very last page. But I hated the topic, and how horrifying it would be for a family to go through a child being kidnapped, an a child to be held in fear by someone he doesn't know.  This was a flat out an amazing read, and since I've come to expect unexpected things from Dan Walsh's books, I wasn't sure how the ending would turn out, and it had me anxious throughout the story!
This is near the top of my favorites of Dan Walsh's books, (its so hard to pick favorites of his, they're all so good) and its one that I'll be recommending very highly!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Hope runs

This is one of those books I'll be recommending for our church library to purchase, it has such a great message and is so heartwarming that I think it will benefit all who read it.
I love stories like these where a simple meeting can suddenly change the lives of all involved, where other people would see a coincidence, we can see that Clair and Samuel's meeting together was ordained by God.
Its hard not to be moved when you read the book "Hope runs" and hear Samuel's story, and know that its such a common history for so many children. But to see the love and hope enter into this story is inspiring, to know that a few simple actions can have such a profound effect on the life of a child is extraordinary.
I highly recommend this book, I know that anyone who reads it will be inspired, its one of those books that you don't remain the same after reading.
One of my favorite verses in the Bible speaks of "spurring one another on towards love", that is what this book does, it encourages you to take the chance on showing love and acting out on that love.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

A Sensible Arrangement

I very much enjoy reading books by Tracie Peterson, in my personal library, I probably have more of her books than any other author. They're always so well written and entertaining!
I did enjoy this book immensely,  as always Peterson's characters were well written, and deep. (Which is something of a trend in Peterson's books, she consistently writes her characters with a depth that we don't often see in women's historical romance novels)
In "A sensible arrangement" we meet Marty, who's trying to run away from the pain caused by her first marriage and subsequent widowhood, by answering a mail order bride ad in a paper from the city, Marty hopes to find peace away from the memories of her late husband.
Jake was spurned by his first marriage and has no desire to wed again and take a chance with his heart, but when his employers at the bank pressure him to take a wife, he come to a companionship agreement with Marty. Both are determined to have a marriage in friendship only, but as hearts begin to open, faith and hope arise and begin to open the way to love.
This was a fantastic book, the only complaint I have about it, was that I feel it ended too early! The story seemed to suddenly drop off without closure, so I'll be looking forward (and hoping) to see more developments with these characters!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

For such a Time

I love reading stories that are based in the 1930/40's, and especially books with characters who are strong and courageous in the face of opposition. So when I noticed that the book "For such a time" was based within that era, I was very excited to read it.
I have to say, it was not disappointing, this is one of the best books I've read lately. It was thought provoking, you have a S.S. Kommandant who you would automatically assume to be the enemy within the novel, but through the book you come to see and know his brokenness. And I love the main character Hadassah, she was a strong woman, I love reading books where the female characters are not simply some simpering lovesick joke, but have a strength of character and integrity.
This modern (ish) day take on the story of Esther was fantastic, I absolutely loved this book.
I highly recommend this book, to Christian and non-Christian alike, it's so through provoking and opens you up seeing so many different points of views.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from BakerBooks, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

Not who I imagined

I love this book, I absolutely love it. Its a great book on the love and grace and mercy of God, and His willingness to accept us right where we are. It was such an encouraging read, and a great reminder of how we don't have to try and measure up or deserve God's grace and forgiveness, that He's freely given them to us. I find that it seems now days that there is so much law preached at us, that lacks grace and the forgiveness for mistakes. It was so refreshing to be able to get into this book and receive such encouragement! I truly enjoyed and got so much out of this book! As a more seasoned Christian, I didn't really feel that I had any kind of problem with understanding how loving God is, but Margot Starbuck really opened my eyes to how much MORE loving God is, how much more gracious, and merciful He is, than I initially understood.
I 100% would recommend this book to any Christian, in any season of life. You will be encouraged, and you will learn so much about the heart of the Father!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from BakerBooks, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

In the Shadow of Jezebel

Mesu Andrews' book "love amid the ashes" is my absolute favorite book that I own, so when I saw that I would be receiving another of her books for review I was totally thrilled. I love that she takes these characters within the Bible (who sometimes aren't as well known) and just brings them to live with her stories. I loved this book, I loved meeting and understanding the characters within the book. Mesu opens our eyes to the possibility of so much more of an understanding with the characters and their back stories. While I realize that her story is based on a Biblical story, but is not entirely held to the true account (since no one knows what the true account is of some of these back stories that aren't developed upon in the Bible) Mesu's story gives us the understanding that these people had lives that shaped them, and people that set their paths for them as well. It really made me look afresh at the story in the Bible!
In this book we're introduced to Sheba, who is brought up as a priestess for baal, but is suddenly packaged off for marriage to a Jewish high priest. I loved watching Sheba's faith develop, and seeing her gain courage as she stands up to her Ima, and begins to follow God. I love the lesson that Sheba's high priest husband teaches, to be "wise without lies".
This book was so good, I highly recommend it!!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

A Heart's Rebellion

Because apparently this is the month of my obliviousness, I did not catch on till half way through that this was a sequel to the book "Moonlight Masquerade"! I was so excited to see the familiar characters in the book, and catch up on what they're doing!
I am quickly becoming a big fan of Ruth Axtell and her books! As true to her other books, "A heart's rebellion" was very well written, easy to follow and a great story!
I loved getting to know Jessamine better (after having only been slightly introduced to her in "Moonlight Masquerade") and seeing/understanding the effect of Rees "breaking up" with her. as we travelled through the story, you could see the heart of Jessamine and could understand (even if you didn't agree) with the choices she made. This story had my up late at night, I could hardly stand to put the book down until the last page! It was so well written and had such a great flow!!
It was such a great book, I highly recommend it!!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

Death by the Book

I had originally started reading Deering's books with "Rules of Murder" so as soon as I saw this one, it was instantly recognizable as one of hers! To be honest, I struggled with this book, maybe its simply that I'm not used to reading they mystery style books, but I really struggled to keep up with and follow where the story was going. For me I felt like I was having to put out a lot of effort to remember what had happened within the story so I could understand where it was going!  I didn't however dislike the book, while there were struggles, I did find myself enjoying the story. I also appreciated how Deering made her characters personalities come to life within her book.
In "Death by the Book" we again read of Drew Farthering, and the mysteries he continually gets caught up in! When a death close to home happens, Drew sets himself in to find out the killer and solve the murder. He is surrounded by intrigue, mystery and suspense, with no one being who they appeared to be.
I think those who are into the mystery genre will really enjoy this book!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Love Comes Calling

I'm a big fan of Siri Mitchell's books, I love her writing style and the flow her stories seems to have! That said, at first I did not like this book at all! I thought it was flighty and the character was ditzy, it wasn't until half way through the book that I began to pick upon the "reason" for her flightiness. Once I caught on, the behaviors and style of the book made a lot more sense! I do have to say though, with the flighty character I did find it hard at times to follow along and keep up with the story line.
However, true to her style, Siri Mitchell wrote a well thought out and heartwarming story, that had elements of danger and surprise throughout it. In spite of the difficulties I had, I still very much enjoyed this book, and I think others will catch on earlier to what I had missed!
In "Love Comes Calling" we read about Ellis, who no matter what she tries, always ends up messing up! As she works hard to do a favor for a friend, Ellis finds herself caught up in a plot against someone she cares about. She works hard to sort out clues and understand what they're trying to tell her!
In all, I really do think people will enjoy this book, I think the issues I had with it were simply my fault, for not paying attention hard enough, or not having an open enough mind. Siri's style of writing seems a bit different to me in this book, I think I'm just too used to her other books!
I would recommend this book, I think people will enjoy the story!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group"

Today is the Day

I really enjoyed and gained a lot from reading Bil Cornelius' book "Today is the Day", his type of book is actually one I tend to stay away from, so I was quite surprised to have enjoyed it as much as I did!! I find a lot of these "Grasping your God given dreams" books to be fairly unrealistic, or mostly hype with very little substance. I was though, pleasantly surprised to find that Cornelius' book was actually full of practical and truly Biblical processes and ideas that bring you steps closer to fulfilling what God has set you aside to do. The way he presented the straightforward steps, (goal setting, focusing, developing talents, prayer) was very practical and very realistic. I found I was easily able to follow what he was saying, and could easily see how it applied to my own life.
In all, I would highly recommend this book, especially if you've got a dream that God has planted in you that has yet to come to fruition. This book gives great steps to completing these dreams!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available at your favourite bookseller from BakerBooks, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

No One to Trust

I am quickly becoming a huge fan of Lynette Eason and her mystery/crime novels! Although I did find the main character Summer a bit flighty at times, I also found her fairly endearing and very smart. I like it when authors don't take the well traveled (and insulting) route of making their main female characters weak and oblivious/less than intelligent! Eason has a style of writing that really does keep my attention and keep me glued to the book till the very last page.  While there were a lot of twists within the book, Eason managed to present a clear path still that didn't confuse the reader! The story line was mysterious but clear and easy to follow. Her characters we well developed and interesting as well!
All in all, I'd recommend this book, it was a pretty great read and truly had me glued till the last page!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.  Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

The Pleasure of His company

I love reading the books written by Dutch Sheets, I appreciate his fearlessness and straightforwardness in talking about God, and His will for our lives. Dutch Sheets just seems to have a way with words that rings well for me, I'm easily able to understand what he's talking about (which is a pretty great accomplishment, lol, I find that many authors of this kind of genre tend to try and fluff their message with a thesaurus full of words in each sentence!). However Mr Sheets is very straightforward in what he's saying, he gives clear Biblical backing in every idea presented in his book.  I love that He's called it a journey to and intimate friendship with God, because that is exactly what this book did. It took me on a journey to know on a deeper level the love of God, and how to get beyond "life" and instead find love and faith in the arms of a loving Father!
I would more than recommend this book, and already have plans to buy a copy for my church's library as well! I think everyone, no matter where they are in their walk with God, would benefit from reading this book.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

All Things Hidden

I absolutely loved this book, my favorite kind of genre is of almost a frontier type book. Where people struggle and overcome rough conditions. I especially like to read books that have a realistic and strong woman as a main character.
This book covered all those! Through the book we can see Gwyn (Daughter of the Alaskan doctor in their small village) show a quiet strength and strong faith even when faced with pain, fear, and struggles. One thing I loved in this book was that the main character Gwyn did have the "bad" things in life happen to her, not everything at the end of the book resolved itself in a happy way. However her faith was unwavering, even in the middle of the trials. I appreciate that the authors kept the book a little more authentic and realistic by allowing the story to not have a complete "story book" type ending. I think that the ending was the perfect ending for this book, and I very much hope to see more books (maybe a series?!?) come out of this Alaskan story!
I highly recommend this book, truly one of the best ones I've read in a long time!

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

The Dancing master

Within the first chapter, I was almost certain I wasn't going to enjoy this book, although I normally love reading books by Julie Klassen, I wasn't overly fond of most of the characters or their attitudes.
Fortunately, this opinion of mine did not last! As the book went on and as the characters developed, I began understanding the initial behavior/attitudes of the characters.
I truly did end up enjoying this book and had was quite disappoint to have finished it!
In this book we learn the story of Julia who's mother is extremely influential (in both opinion and monetary ways) within their township. Julia struggles to find herself amid her father's disdain and her mother's secrets.
When dancing master Alec Valcourt moves into the town, he's surprised to learn that there is a "ban" on dancing, and struggles to find his way (and work) in this small town. Both Alec and Julie find themselves drawn to one another, yet have family members who wish to keep them apart. With many secrets hidden within both families, Julia and Alec slowly learn more about themselves and about their faith.
Over all, I really enjoyed this book, and I would highly recommend it!!
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group".