FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Litfuse in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
A Letter From Lancaster County by Kate Lloyd was a good book. I wasn’t sure that I was going to like this book, but in the end, it is a sweet story and one that I could see reading again in the future. At times I got bored while reading this book because there were parts that I think had too many details in it but that could just be me. I loved watching the relationship between Rose and Angela change throughout the book because it made the characters more relatable. I also liked that this book things from the Amish and Mennonite communities because I am a sucker for those types of books. I love that this book covered both worlds and I am sure that is one reason I enjoyed this book as much as I did. If you love contemporary fiction books, I am sure that you will enjoy this book as much as I did.
About The Book
Two sisters get a second chance at life and love
Angela—Her mother’s untimely death, a struggling marriage, a strained relationship with her sister, Rose, and regrets over what might have been haunt her. Despite being a wife and mother, she feels she has little to show for her life.
Rose–Still single, she longs for a husband and children. But Angela has all that and still isn’t happy. Rose wants to be closer to her older sister, but she and Angela couldn’t be more different. Both strong women, will their sibling rivalry ever end?
* * *
When a letter arrives from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Angela and Rose decide to visit Aunt Silvia, their mother’s Mennonite sister, in the heart of Amish country. This vacation could provide the opportunity both sisters need to sort out their issues. And yet instead of finding a new way of connecting with each other, Angela and Rose discover surprising family secrets that add to their strife and threaten Rose’s romance with a new beau.
Through it all, the two sisters must find the faith necessary to face their personal problems and allow God to restore hope and healing to their hearts and relationship as only He can.
About The Author
Kate Lloyd is a bestselling novelist whose books include “A Portrait of Marguerite” and the Legacy of Lancaster trilogy. A native of Baltimore, she enjoys spending time with friends and family in rural Pennsylvania and is a member of the Lancaster County Mennonite Historical Society. She now resides in the Pacific Northwest with her husband.
FTC: I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
Healing Love by Jennifer Slattery was a sweet story. It was predictable during parts of the book, but that is pretty typical for me because I have read so many books like this one. I love reading these types of books when I just want to read a book that is a sweet story and doesn’t really have any bad parts in it. When I say that I mean, I usually read thrillers and mystery books and these books are nowhere on that spectrum so I read them so I can get a break from thrillers that I love. I have never read anything by this author, so I was interested in reading her book and seeing if she is an author that I would want to read more books by her in the future. I think I would likely pick up another book by her in the future. This book also only took me a few days to read which I love as well. If you love Christian romance novels than I think you would enjoy this book as well.
About The Book
A news anchor intern has it all planned out, and love isn’t on the agenda.
Brooke Endress is on the cusp of her lifelong dream when her younger sister persuades her to chaperone a mission trip to El Salvador. Packing enough hand sanitizer and bug spray to single-handedly wipe out malaria, she embarks on what she hopes will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
But Brooke is blindsided by the desperation for hope and love she sees in the orphans’ eyes. And no less by the connection she feels with her handsome translator. As newfound passion blooms, Brooke wrestles with its implications for her career dreams.
Ubaldo Chavez, teacher, and translator, knows the struggle that comes with generational poverty. But he found the way out – education – and is determined to help his students rise above.
When he agrees to translate for a mission team from the United States he expects to encounter a bunch of “missional tourists” full of empty promises. Yet an American news anchor defies his expectations, and he finds himself falling in love. But what does he have to offer someone with everything?
About The Author
Jennifer Slattery is the founder of Wholly Loved Ministries, and in that capacity, helps women embrace and live out who they are in Christ, find healing and restoration in His unfailing love, and enjoy the deep emotional and spiritual freedom only He can provide. (Go HERE to learn of upcoming Wholly Loved events.) She loves interacting with women and women’s group on a personal level and speaks locally and nationally on topics pertinent to women juggling all the demands and uncertainties in today’s fast paced, ever-changing culture. (You can find out more about her speaking endeavors HERE.)
After a relationship gone bad, Hilary Matthews felt unsure about where she belonged or what to do with her life. Cue Zach Collins, a love ‘em and leave ‘em, no strings attached type of guy. The perfect distraction for her wounded heart. Just one problem. Zach isn’t some random stranger. He’s her brother’s best friend, and more than that, he’s practically family. And to complicate matters, just when things start to heat up between them, she learns there’s more to Zach than he let on.
Zach’s job as assistant to an A-list actor allows him the luxury of women, travel, freedom and fun. But things changed the moment Hilary made her move, completely altering his world. Hilary is his fantasy come to life, his dream woman in the flesh…and his best friend’s little sister. Stepping over the line with her would not only ruin his friendship, but possibly alienate him from the only family he’s ever known.
The pressure mounts as truths are exposed. Embroiled in betrayal, lies, guilt, and heartache, Hilary and Zach must decide if the biggest emotion of all is worth the turmoil. With so much at stake, the repercussions from a promise broken would cause the battle of their lives.
About The Author
Anissa Garcia resides in Austin, Texas and earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Speech Communications and English. She has held an array of jobs including Public Relationship Manager for Barnes and Noble. Wanting a change of pace, she moved to Los Angeles where she attended The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and trained full-time in theatre. After working in Hollywood, she returned to Texas where she has written articles for Cosmopolitan and Lady Couture. When not writing stores, watching movies, or drinking a latte, she loves to daydream about romantic fictional men. You can find her online at http://www.anissagarcia.com.
FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Providence Book Promotions in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
Practicing Normal by Cara Sue Achterberg was a great book at first, but after I was about halfway through the book, I was super annoyed with most of the characters in the book. I say that because I have very little patience for people when they act like Kate does. I also couldn’t stand her husband Everett because he is just a straight up jerk and I also don’t like people or characters like him either. I felt awful for JT & Jenna because going up in a situation like they did isn’t a good thing. As you can tell the author did a great job of making you think that the characters are real people and I was able to get so wrapped up in the story that even though I was annoyed I didn’t want to stop reading it because I had to know how it all worked out. I would love to read more books by this author in the future, and I think pretty much everyone would enjoy this book.
About The Book
Book Details
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Published by: The Story Plant
Publication Date: June 6th, 2017
Number of Pages: 336
ISBN: 1611882443 (ISBN13: 9781611882445)
The houses in Pine Estates are beautiful McMansions filled with high-achieving parents, children on the fast track to top colleges, all of the comforts of modern living, and the best security systems money can buy. Welcome to normal upper-middle-class suburbia.
The Turners know in their hearts that they’re anything but normal. Jenna is a high-schooler dressed in black who is fascinated with breaking into her neighbors’ homes, security systems be damned. Everett genuinely believes he loves his wife . . . he just loves having a continuing stream of mistresses more. JT is a genius kid with Asperger’s who moves from one obsession to the next. And Kate tries to manage her family, manage her mother (who lives down the street), and avoid wondering why her life is passing her by.
And now everything is changing for them. Jenna suddenly finds herself in a boy-next-door romance she never could have predicted. Everett’s secrets are beginning to unravel on him. JT is getting his first taste of success at navigating the world. And Kate is facing truths about her husband, her mother, and her father that she might have preferred not to face.
Life on Pine Road has never been more challenging for the Turners. That’s what happens when you’re practicing normal.
Combining her trademark combination of wit, insight, and tremendous empathy for her characters, Cara Sue Achterberg has written a novel that is at once familiar and startlingly fresh.
About The Author
Cara Sue Achterberg is a writer and blogger who lives in New Freedom, PA with her family and an embarrassing number of animals. Her first novel, I’m Not Her, was a national bestseller, as was her second, Girls’ Weekend. Cara’s nonfiction book, Live Intentionally, is a guide to the organic life filled with ideas, recipes, and inspiration for liv- ing a more intentional life. Cara is a prolific blogger, occasional cowgirl, and busy mom whose essays and articles have been published in numerous anthologies, magazines, and websites. Links to her blogs, news about upcoming publications, and pictures of her foster dogs can be found at CaraWrites.com.
FTC: I received a free copy of this book from BookLook in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
Beyond Justice by Cara Putman was an okay mystery book. I love mystery books but I tend to get bored with ones that are written by Christian authors because they just stay on the surface and they don’t usually include anything that is super gross in them. Since this genre is my favorite I tend to like the books that have tons of details and go in deep when they are describing things. Like I said before I liked this book but I got bored because of how it was written which I am sure makes me in the minority. With that being said if you love mystery books and hate the ones that have tons of details in them you will love this book. I also like to pick up books like this when I have been reading a ton of super heavy books because it is nice to read books that a book that doesn’t go so deep from time to time.
About The Book
Hayden McCarthy is on track to become the youngest partner in her prestigious D.C. law firm . . . if the case she’s just been handed doesn’t destroy her first.
Hayden McCarthy knows firsthand the pain when justice is not served. It’s why she became an attorney and why she’s so driven in her career. When she’s handed a wrongful death case against the government, she isn’t sure if it’s the lucky break she needs to secure a partnership—or an attempt to make sure she never gets there. She keeps the case alive through sheer determination and more than a little creativity, but then she’s fired by a partner with a vendetta.
Further complicating matters, Hayden keeps finding herself completely distracted by Andrew, her roommate’s cousin. But his father is a Congressman and she’s currently taking on the government. Could the timing be any worse?
The longer she keeps the case active, the higher the stakes become. Unknown enemies seem determined to see either the case—or her—die. Should she fight alone for the dead young man by launching her own unfinanced firm, or abandon the case in order to save her own life?
About The Author
Cara C. Putman lives in Indiana with her husband and four children. She’s an attorney and a teacher at her church as well as lecturer at Purdue. She has loved reading and writing from a young age and now realizes it was all training for writing books. She loves bringing history and romance to life.
An honors graduate of the University of Nebraska, George Mason University School of Law, and Krannert School of Management, Cara left small town Nebraska and headed to Washington, D.C., to launch her career in public policy.
Cara is an author chasing hard after God as she lives a crazy life. She invites you to join her on that journey. She’s currently writing her 25th book with more on the way. Please check out her website to learn more about her books and read first chapters.
FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
Looking Glass Lies by Varina Denman was a hard book for me to get and stay interested in this book. I had a hard time with this book because I have never struggled with what Cecily was so I couldn’t understand or even feel like I could relate to what she was going through in her life. I know that women who do go through things like this would probably relate and get more out of the book than I did. I just found myself annoyed and not able to understand what she was going through during this book. I did like how you got to see as she grew throughout this book because I think that it give others hope who are dealing with the same things. I am sure that this book would be perfect for people who do go through things like this, but it just wasn’t the right fit for me.
About The Book
A poignant and relatable novel, Looking Glass Lies captures the war women wage against themselves, and the struggle to see beauty reflected in a mirror not distorted by society’s unrelenting expectations.
For most of her adult life, Cecily Ross has compared herself to other women—and come up short. After a painful divorce from her emotionally abusive husband, Cecily returns to her hometown of Canyon, Texas, looking to heal.
But coming home isn’t what she expects. In a town as small as Canyon, her pain is difficult to escape—especially with her model-perfect ex–sister-in-law working at the town’s popular coffee-shop hangout. With help from her father, a support group, and an old friend who guides her to see her own strengths, Cecily may have a shot at overcoming her insecurities and learning to love again.
The true test comes when tragedy strikes, opening Cecily’s eyes to the harmfulness of her distorted views on beauty—and giving her the perfect opportunity to find peace at last.
About The Author
Varina Denman writes stories about the unique struggles women face. Her award-winning Mended Hearts series, which revolves around church hurt, is a compelling blend of women’s fiction and inspirational romance. Her latest novel, Looking Glass Lies, releases in May. A native Texan, Varina lives near Fort Worth with her husband and five mostly grown children. Connect with Varina on her website or one of the social media hangouts.
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