Historical Fiction

Among the Fair Magnolias

Book Review

Among the Fair Magnolias was a fun story to read.  This is another  book where there are 4 different stories in the same book and each story is written by a different author.  I love all the stories in this book but if I had to pick one that was my favorite it would have to be the first story.  I think it is because I related most to the characters in the first story more and any of the other characters.  I also love that all the stories are short because I don’t feel bad if I read one of the stories and then put the book down for awhile.  This stories all take place during the years of the civil war so it was nice to get a glimpse of what like was life for people who had money.  If you are looking for an easy read than I would for sure check out this book.

Among the Fair Magnolias

About The Book

Among the Fair Magnolias (Thomas Nelson, July 2015)

In the most turbulent decade of our nation’s history, four Southern women—destinies forged by birth, hearts steeled by war—face near impossible choices on their journeys in life . . . and in love.

To Mend a Dream by Tamera Alexander
Savannah Darby would do almost anything to revisit her family home. So when new owner, Aidan Bedford, a Boston attorney and former Union soldier, seeks to redecorate the house for his fiancée, Savannah jumps at the opportunity. But the clock is ticking. Can she find the box her father supposedly hid there during the war before her assignment is completed? And before she sees yet another battle lost on the home front. This time, one of the heart.

An Outlaw’s Heart by Shelley Gray
When Russell Stark returns to Fort Worth, he’s determined to begin a new life. But when he arrives at his mother’s homestead, he discovers she’s very ill, and the woman he loved is still as beautiful and sweet as he remembered. With time running out, Russell must come to terms with both his future and his past.

A Heart So True by Dorothy Love
Abigail knows all too well what is expected of her: to marry her distant cousin Charles and take her place in society. But her heart belongs to another. A terrible incident forces Abby to choose between love and duty.

Love Beyond Limits by Elizabeth Musser
Emily has a secret: She’s in love with one of the freedmen on her family’s plantation. Meanwhile, another man declares his love for her. Emily realizes some things are not as they seem and secrets must be kept in order to keep those she loves safe.

Authors

About The Authors

Tamera Alexander is the best-selling author of numerous books including A Lasting Impressionand The Inheritance. Tamera is a two-time Christy Award winner, two-time RITA winner, and a recipient of the prestigious Library Journal Award. A native of west Tennessee.
Dorothy Love makes her home in the Texas hill country with her husband and their golden retriever. An award-winning author of numerous young adult novels, Dorothy made her adult debut with the Hickory Ridge novels.

Shelley Gray is the author of The Heart of a Hero series. Her Amish novel (written as Shelley Shepard Gray), The Protector, recently made the New York Times best seller list.

Elizabeth Musser, a native of Atlanta, Georgia now living in France, is a novelist who writes what she calls ‘entertainment with a soul.’ For over 25 years, Elizabeth and her husband, Paul, have been involved in mission work with International Teams.

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret

A Heart’s Promise by Colleen Coble

 

Book Review

A Heart’s Promise by Colleen Coble was a great addition to this series.  If you have missed the other 4 reviews I have them listed right below this review so you can check them out.  You do have to read the books in this series in order because these books were originally one book that they broke them up into 6 different books.  Anyway lets get to the review of this book.  I think this may be my favorite book in this series so far.  I think I love these characters the most out of any of them.  I loved this series so much that I read the last book in the series so I know how the series ends but I will get into the ending next month.  I still felt so bad for Emmie because of everything that she has to go through and the things that have happened to her.  I have to say that I am still not a fan of Jessica and I really wish that she wasn’t in this book but I understand why she was and what not.  If you are looking for a great series of books than I would for sure recommend this book to you.  They are all about 100 pages so they are super quick and easy reads.

Here are the reviews on the other 4 books in case you missed them.

Book 1-A Heart’s Disguise (A Journey of the Heart, #1)

Book 2-A Heart’s Obsession (A Journey of the Heart, #2)

Book 3-A Heart’s Danger (A Journey of the Heart, #3)

Book 4-A Heart’s Betrayal (A Journey of the Heart #4)

A Heart's Promise

About The Book

A Heart’s Promise (Thomas Nelson, July 2015)

Emmie makes a promise to her friend that, if fulfilled, could mean the end to her dreams of a future with Isaac.

Emmie Croftner let Isaac Liddle go to avoid telling him about her past. But Isaac remains determined to win Emmie’s heart and hand. Though Emmie resolves to keep her heart in check, it hurts when she sees that another woman has set
her bonnet for Isaac.

Then Emmie’s dear friend extracts a costly promise: if anything happens to her in childbirth, Emmie will marry her widower and raise the baby herself. And it seems Emmie may have to fulfill that promise. But can she live happily without Isaac?

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About The Author

Colleen Coble has sold over 2 million novels worldwide.Seagrass Pier, the third installment in her acclaimed Hope Beach series, marks a new highpoint for emotion and complexity in Coble’s addictive brand of romantic suspense.

 

Find Colleen online: website, Facebook, Twitter

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret

No Good Deed by Mary D. Brooks

 

Historical Romance / Lesbian Romance
Date Published: July 1, 2015

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Eva and Zoe Lambros are back in the fifth novel of the historical lesbian romance Intertwined Souls Series. They have left Greece and Germany behind, taking their secrets and their love back to Australia to finally settle down for that normal life they so desire.
Eva is offered a new job and it looks like they’re finally ready to settle down into a contented life. Fate has other plans for both women when Eva is involved in a life-threatening accident that reveals a shocking secret from Eva’s childhood.
Zoe finds out their wish for children will soon be fulfilled when she finds out she’s pregnant but she has to contend with the possibility of losing the woman she loves.
Eva’s accident reveals yet another family secret. A decision taken by Eva’s mother to protect her child has major repercussions. Eva’s wish for an uneventful life is shattered by the accident and the revelation. She must now accept the gifts that are her destiny.
Truly, no good deed goes unpunished.
About the Author


Mary D. Brooks lives in Australia and has been writing for forty years including short fiction stories for various Australian magazines and some non-fiction articles. Mary published her first novel “In the Blood of the Greeks” in 2001 and that soon became evident that there was more to the characters and their story that needed to be told so the Intertwined Souls Series was born. Mary works as a web and graphic designer in addition to being the chief editor and owner of the AUSXIP News and Multimedia Network of sites. When she’s not writing, reading, creating art or designing new sites, Mary travels when the travel bug hits and is always on the lookout for new adventures. You can find Mary’s sites at http://www.ausxip.com and her official author site at http://www.nextchapter.net
Contact Links
 
Twitter
Purchase Link
 

 

 

 

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret

A Bride At Last by Melissa Jagears

Book Review

A Bride At Last by Melissa Jagears was a great story to read.  Now that I am done with this book I have to say that I love Anthony the most out of all the characters which makes me smile because he is just a child in this book and most of the time I love the female characters. I think I liked him the most because I had a rough childhood and he reminded me a lot of myself when I was younger.  I also really like Silas as well and to be honest I am not 100% sure why I liked him so much but I did.  The book was stressful at times because of the whole custody case and me wondering who will get Anthony and how will this all work out in the end.  I loved the dynamic between all of the characters and it was a book I didn’t want to put down because I had to know it ended and how things worked out for all of the characters.  If you love historical novels that have a love story throw in than I know you will love this book just as much as I did.

A Bride at Last

About The Book

Silas Jonesey’s life in Salt Flatts, Kansas, has not followed the course he imagined. After his mail-order bride, Lucinda, abandoned him, it was an uphill battle to recover from a pattern of poor choices and sour moods. Now his prayers for reconciliation have finally come true; his estranged wife has contacted him after ten years of silence to tell him of her whereabouts.

Kate Dawson was supposed to be a mail-order bride, but after realizing she had been deceived about her intended groom she never went through with the marriage. Settling into life as a schoolteacher, she’s spent her spare time the past few years helping her student, Anthony, and his sick mother. When Lucinda passes away, Kate is ready to fulfill the woman’s wish that she take care of nine-year-old Anthony–until a man shows up in town asking about Lucinda and claiming he was married to the woman ten years ago.

Silas and Kate disagree over who should raise young Anthony, who has opinions of his own about his future. After being forced to come together for the good of Anthony, Silas and Kate begin to see another side to each other and the possibility of a united future despite all that stands between them. When Kate’s past comes to light, Silas’s feelings about women who abandon their grooms immediately throw the walls right back up between them. Can Silas, Kate, and Anthony’s wounded souls bind them together as a family, or will past hurts and new resentments leave them lonely forever?

Melissa Jagears

About The Author

Melissa Jagears, an ESL teacher by trade and the author of A Bride for Keeps and A Bride in Store, is a stay-at-home mother on a tiny Kansas farm with a fixer-upper house. She’s a member of ACFW and CROWN fiction marketing, and her passion is to help Christian believers mature in their faith and judge rightly.

Find Melissa online: website, Facebook

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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

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret

Beyond The Ashes by Karen Barnett

Book Review

Beyond The Ashes by Karen Barnett was an interesting book.  I did review the first book in this series so if you want to check out that review you can click here and it will take you to it.  You don’t have to worry about reading that book first because they don’t have to go in order like the other series I am currently reading which is always nice.  I love reading historical fiction books because it gives you a peek into the lives of people who lived then and even though I know they aren’t really people I know there had to be people like the characters back then.  I loved following along with Ruby and she how she changes after she goes to San Francisco after her husband passed away.  This book takes place after the earthquakes and fires that happened in San Francisco in the 1900’s.  I loved this story because it allowed me to check back in with the characters I love so much from the first book and it also gave me more characters to love.  If you love historical romance novels than I would recommend this book to you.

Beyond The Ashes by Karen Barnett

About The Book

Beyond the Ashes (Abingdon Press, June 2015)

Where better to rebuild and face one’s fears than in 1906 San Francisco, a city rising from the ashes?

Ruby Marshall, a young widow, is certain she’ll discover new purpose assisting her brother Robert with his cancer research, but she doesn’t anticipate finding new love.

Dr. Gerald Larkspur dreams of filling his empty home with family, but he’d always hoped it would be a wife and children. In the aftermath of the great earthquake, the rooms are overflowing with extended family and friends left homeless by the disaster. When Robert’s widowed sister arrives, the close quarters seem close indeed.

Ruby and Gerald’s fledgling romance is put at risk when Gerald develops symptoms of the very disease they’re striving to cure. Together they must ask—is it worth a second chance at love when time might be short?

Karen Barnett

About The Author

Karen Barnett is the author of Beyond the Ashes, Out of the Ruins, and Mistaken. Named the 2013 Writer of Promise by Oregon Christian Writers, Karen lives in Albany, Oregon, with her husband and two kids. When she’s not writing novels, she loves speaking at women’s events, libraries, and book clubs.

 

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Margaret Margaret