Contemporary Fiction

Picture Perfect Love by Melissa McClone

Book Review

Picture Perfect Love by Melissa McClone was a sweet story.  This is a novella so I was able to read it in a few hours which I am sure by now you all know that this is my favorite kind of  book.  That being said I did love these characters enough that I wished it had been longer but I still liked it this way.   I loved watching how Jenna worked through her emotions having to deal with Ashton.  I loved how she leaned on her new church as she got through everything she had to do as well.  This is the first book I have read by this author and I have added her on my list of authors to check out more books by them.

Picture Perfect Love

About The Book

Picture Perfect Love (Zondervan, May 2015)

When image becomes everything, it’s up to love to refocus the heart.

Photographer Jenna Harrison wants every bride and groom to look picture perfect on their special day, putting her heart into every wedding to give the couple memorable images of their love. But her own heart is still broken, the unworn wedding dress hanging in her closet a reminder that relationships aren’t always as perfect as they look through her camera lens. But Jenna has faith that she will find true love. Until then, she must be patient and trust in God’s plan and His perfect timing.

Attorney Ashton Vance is the one that got away. When an embarrassing Photoshopped picture of put an end to his political aspirations, he blamed Jenna. So what if the photo led to his being offered a dream job and changing his life for the better? Jenna betrayed his trust, and two years later, Ashton’s heart still hasn’t recovered.

It was me. His younger sister’s three words turn Ashton’s world upside down. He must ask Jenna’s forgiveness, but can he risk his heart a second time? Even if Jenna can forgive him, dare he hope for a second chance at her love?

Melissa McClone

About The Author

Melissa McClone has published more than thirty novels with Harlequin and Tule Publishing Group. She has also been nominated for Romance Writers of America’s RITA® award. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, three school-aged children, two spoiled Norwegian Elkhounds and cats who think they rule the house.

Find Melissa online: website, Twitter, Facebook

Buy Your Own Copy

Add On Goodreads

Find More Reviews Here

FTC3

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret

Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor by Melanie Dobson

Book Review

Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor by Melanie Dobson was an amazing story.  I was confused through the first part of the book but once I caught on to what was going on and who was who it was better.  I was confused about who was who and how they were related to each other.  Even though I was confused through part of the book I still didn’t want to put it down and because I loved the characters and the whole premise of this book was amazing.  I loved Libby from the first time she appears right up until the end of the story.  I think I loved her because she was so innocent and I loved that quality about her.  I loved seeing the all the different generations and how they dealt with a lot of the same things that the older generations went through.  I loved Maggie and how she tried to keep her daughters from going through the same things she went through and even though she tried her children dealt with the same things that she did.  If you are looking for a book that makes you think than I know you will love this book as much as I do.

Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor

About The Book

Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor (Howard, June 2015)

When Heather Toulson returns to her parents’ cottage in the English countryside, she uncovers long-hidden secrets about her family history and stumbles onto the truth about a sixty-year-old murder.

Libby, a free spirit who can’t be tamed by her parents, finds solace with her neighbor Oliver, the son of Lord Croft of Ladenbrooke Manor. Libby finds herself pregnant and alone when her father kicks her out and Oliver mysteriously drowns in a nearby river. Though theories spread across the English countryside, no one is ever held responsible for Oliver’s death.

Sixty years later, Heather Toulson, returning to her family’s cottage in the shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor, is filled with mixed emotions. She’s mourning her father’s passing but can’t let go of the anger and resentment over their strained relationship. Adding to her confusion, Heather has an uneasy reunion with her first love, all while sorting through her family’s belongings left behind in the cottage. What she uncovers will change everything she thought she knew about her family’s history.

Award-winning author Melanie Dobson seamlessly weaves the past and present together, fluidly unraveling the decades-old mystery and reveals how the characters are connected in shocking ways.

Set in a charming world of thatched cottages, lush gardens, and lovely summer evenings, this romantic and historical mystery brings to light the secrets and heartaches that have divided a family for generations.

Melanie Dobson

About The Author

Melanie Dobson is the award-winning author of thirteen historical romance, suspense, and contemporary novels. Two of her novels won Carol Awards in 2011, and Love Finds You in Liberty, Indiana won Best Novel of Indiana in 2010. Melanie lives with her husband Jon and two daughters near Portland, Oregon.

Find Melanie online: website, Twitter, Facebook

Buy Your Own Copy

Add On Goodreads

Find More Reviews Here

 

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret

Blue Wide Sky by Inglath Cooper

bluewideskybanner

Blue Wide Sky by Inglath Cooper was a great story.  This was an easy read and I love how short the chapters were because it makes it easy for me to read.  One of the things I loved most about this book was  the fact that part of the story has to do with international adoption and I follow blogs that have adopted kids with special needs so it was something that I loved right from the start of the book.  I liked all the characters in this book so that made reading it super easy and fun for me.   I can’t wait to read other books in this series because the author does an amazing job of making you feel as if you are right there with the characters and I loved that.  If you are looking  for a sweet summer romance novel than I know you will love this story.

SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE SERIES-2

About The Book

Title: Blue Wide Sky

Author: Inglath Cooper

Genre: Contemporary Romance
First love. . . forever love.

Sixteen-year old Gabby Hayden wasn’t the kind of girl who gave a hoot about boys. She had a few real loves. Water-skiing, going out on Smith Mountain Lake with her dad and her dog. Anything else ranked a distant second. Until the summer smart, caring, gorgeous Sam Tatum gave her his heart. It had been the most wonderful time of her life, lazy days hanging out at the dock, skinny-dipping at midnight, staring up at the stars from the back of Sam’s truck.

They are planning their future together when Sam’s father is transferred to South Africa. Devastated, Gabby and Sam promise to wait for each other during the two years before he returns for college. But lonely and angry, Sam makes a mistake that will change the course of both their lives.

Years later, an unexpected diagnosis brings Sam home to his parents’ house on Smith Mountain Lake where he believes he can find peace and acceptance. What he finds, however, is the girl he once loved, now a woman unwilling to lose him again, a woman who will make him realize that both love and life are worth fighting for.

FullSizeRender-6

About The Author

RITA AWARD WINNING AUTHOR INGLATH COOPER writes books that aim to give her readers a mini-vacation. A stretch of time during which they can visit other places and other people’s lives. Her books have reached the top 100 Amazon Kindle Bestseller list, with Truths and Roses hitting #11.

Inglath Cooper’s Nashville series became a reality after she spent time in Music City, writing lyrics with other songwriters. She fell in love with the community and gets to revisit regularly through her characters.

 

Buy Your Own Copy

Excerpt

(more…)

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret

Her Sister’s Shoes by Ashley Farley

iRead Book Tour Logo Medium

Her Sister’s Shoes by Ashley Farley was a great book & a great story.  I loved getting to know the sisters and their backgrounds as well as seeing them change throughout the book.  I felt so bad for Faith throughout most of the book because of what her husband has done to her.  I wasn’t a huge fan of Sam’s son Jamie but I know that is just because he is a teenager and I dislike teenagers in really life as well.  I did feel bad for him because of what he must have been through and he must feel because of what happened to him.  I loved watching the sisters come together and help each other deal with the things in their own lives that was going on.  If you love contemporary women’s novels than I know you will love this amazing story.

Her Sister's Shoes

About The Book

Set in the South Carolina Lowcountry and packed with Southern charm and memorable characters, Her Sister’s Shoes is the story of three sisters—Samantha, Jackie, and Faith—who struggle to balance the demands of career and family while remaining true to themselves.

Samantha Sweeney has always been the glue that holds her family together, their go-to girl for love and support. When an ATV accident leaves her teenage son in a wheelchair, she loses her carefully constructed self-control.

In the after-gloom of her dreaded fiftieth birthday and the discovery of her husband’s infidelity, Jackie realizes she must reconnect with her former self to find the happiness she needs to move forward.

Faith lacks the courage to stand up to her abusive husband. She turns to her sisters for help, placing all their lives at risk.

In the midst of their individual challenges, the Sweeney sisters must cope with their mother’s mental decline. Is Lovie in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, or is her odd behavior normal for a woman her age? No one, including Lovie, understands her obsession with a rusty key she wears around her neck.

For fans of Elin Hildebrand, Her Sister’s Shoes is a contemporary women’s novel that explores and proves the healing power of family.

Ashley Farley

About The Author

Ashley Farley is a wife and mother of two college-aged children. She grew up in the salty marshes of South Carolina, but now lives in Richmond, Virginia, a city she loves for its history and traditions.

After her brother died in 1999 of an accidental overdose, she turned to writing as a way of releasing her pent-up emotions. She wrote SAVING BEN in honor of Neal, the boy she worshipped, the man she could not save. SAVING BEN is not a memoir, but a story about the special bond between siblings.

When she’s not working on her next novel, HER SISTER’S SHOES, scheduled for release in July of 2015, she can be found book blogging atwww.chroniclesofavidreaders.com

Buy Your Own Copy

 Amazon   ~   Barnes & Noble

FTC3

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret

Summer’s List by Anita Higman

Book Review

Summer’s List by Anita Higman was a great book for the summer.  I loved following along with Summer as she goes through the list of things her grandma wants Summer to complete before her grandma passes away.  This was such a unique story which I love because after reading a ton of books I feel like all the stories are basically the same and they follow the same pattern.  Now this story did follow a pattern but I was still intrigued because the plot was unique.  I have read several other books by Anita Higman and I have loved them all.  This is another author that I am pretty sure I would love anything they wrote because she is an amazing author.   I loved watching Summer & Martin work through the list together.  If you are looking for a great summer  book to read please check this one out and let me know what you think when you finish the book.

Summer's List by Anita Higman

About The Book

Summer’s List (River North, June 2015)

A dying wish alters the course of a young woman’s life.

Life hadn’t been easy for Summer Snow. In acts of selflessness—caring for her ailing parents and running her grandmother’s bookstore—she had forfeited her youth and dreams for the needs of others. And the only tries she had at love . . . didn’t turn out. She had the bookstore, she had her beloved granny, but she was missing something—or someone.

Opportunity strikes when Granny sends Summer on an unexpected adventure with one Martin Langtree, a kind but gangly young man from Summer’s past. A childhood friendship is rekindled, a romance is sparked, and mysteries are solved in one magical Texas summer. Will Summer strike out on love again, or will things finally go her way?

Anita Higman

About The Author

Best-selling and award-winning author, Anita Higman, has over thirty books published (several coauthored) for adults and children. She’s been a Barnes & Noble “Author of the Month” for Houston and has a BA degree, combining speech communication, psychology, and art. Anita loves good movies, exotic teas, and brunch with her friends.

 

Add On Goodreads

FTC3

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret

Firefly Summer by Kathleen Y’Barbo

Book Review

Firefly Summer by Kathleen Y’Barbo was a great book.  I loved this book from the start right up until the end of this book.  I love when books have meaning and things that you can learn from while you are reading and this book does that.  I loved watching the characters grow throughout this story and see how they grew.  This was a super easy book to read and one that I recommend to everyone this summer.  It was a sweet story and a very easy read.  If you read this book please let me know what you think of it.

Firefly Summer

About The Book

Artist Sessa Chambers may never recover from losing her prodigal son. Even as she grieves the tragic decisions that led to his death, and left her with a toddler to raise, she’s asked to work on her dream project—restoring carousel horses for the Smithsonian. But she can’t do it on her own…

Dr. Trey Brown can’t pick up a scalpel again. Yes, he acted in self-defense, but the events of that awful night haunt him. He was trained to save lives, not take them. When he goes to the young man’s widowed mother to apologize, she’s not at all what he expected. For one thing, she’s not as alone as he thought—not with the fearsome ladies of the Pies, Books, and Jesus Book Club in her corner. For another, she’s beautiful, and being in her presence is more jolting than any eight-second bronco ride from his former rodeo days. Before he knows it, she’s captured his heart as easily as they capture the fireflies gracing Sessa’s Texas ranch.

How can they overcome their past to embrace a future together?

Kathleen Y'Barbo

About The Author

While wearing her publicist’s hat, Kathleen has secured interviews with radio, television, and print media for clients at NavPress, Hatchette, Integrity, Barbour Publishing, and Broadman & Holman, to name a few. She also brings her own unique blend of Southern charm and witty prose to the more than 350,000 award-winning novels and novellas currently in print. Her novels have been nominated for American Christian Fiction Writers Book of the Year in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2006; and 2007 will see the release of her 25th book.

Kathleen is a tenth-generation Texan and a mother of three grown sons and a teenage daughter. She is a graduate of Texas A&M University. Kathleen is a former treasurer for the American Christian Fiction Writers, and is a member of the Author’s Guild, Inspirational Writers Alive, Words for the Journey Christian Writers Guild, and the Fellowship of Christian Authors. In addition, she is a sought-after speaker, and her kids think she’s a pretty cool mom, too…most of the time, anyway.

Buy Your Own Copy

FTC3

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret