Middle South by Maya Nessouli Abboushi (Book Promo)

April 19, 2017

About The Book

Layla has recently moved out of her parents’ home in the Atlanta suburbs and into an apartment in the city to assert her independence. Between her job as a feature writer for a small newspaper and her social life, Layla has little time to think about marriage and children, much to the dismay of her Lebanese parents.

On a hilarious journey that takes Layla from the Southeast to the Middle East and back, she finds out a little more about herself and what she is looking for in life and in love.

About The Author

Maya Nessouli Abboushi is a Lebanese American born and raised in the United States. She lives in Atlanta with her husband and three children. This is her first novel.

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A Fragile Hope by Cynthia Ruchti

April 16, 2017

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 Fragile Hope by Cynthia Ruchti was an interesting book, to say the least. I had a hard time getting into the book, but once I reached chapter four, I didn’t want to put the book down. I was so glad that I didn’t give up on the book because once things started to happen in the book, I was hooked and didn’t want to put it down. I also didn’t like Josiah in the first few chapters because I thought he was a jerk and should have paid more attention to his wife. After I was to chapter four though I started to feel bad for him because yes he was disconnected from his wife, I couldn’t help but feel sad because his wife seemed to have been lying to him as well. This book kept me guessing because you aren’t sure what is going on throughout the entire book. It was a book that kept me guessing because just when I thought I figured out what was going on, I soon found out that I was wrong and I love books that do that. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves mystery books. I say that because it is rare that I find books that keep me guessing because I have gotten pretty good at figuring out what is going on. I also wanted to add that I haven’t read a book by this author that I haven’t liked, so she is one that I think most people enjoy the books that she has written.

About The Book

Hope grows when seeds are planted-even in the muddy middle of life.

Josiah Chamberlain’s life’s work revolves around repairing other people’s marriages. When his own is threatened by his wife’s unexplained distance, and then threatened further when she’s unexpectedly plunged into an unending fog, Josiah finds his expertise, quick wit and clever quips are no match for a relationship that is clearly broken.

Feeling betrayed, confused, and ill-equipped for a crisis this crippling, he reexamines everything he knows about the fragility of hope and the strength of his faith and love. Love seems to have failed him. Will what’s left of his faith fail him, too? Or will it be the one thing that holds him together and sears through the impenetrable wall that separates them?

About The Author

Cynthia Ruchti tells stories hemmed in hope through her novels, novellas, nonfiction books, articles and devotionals, drawing from 33 years of on-air radio ministry. Ruchti has written more than 20 award-winning novels, novellas, nonfiction books and devotionals. Her books have received numerous awards and nominations, including the RT Reviewers’ Choice, ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year nominations, two Selah Awards, Christian Retailing’s BEST, was an ACFW Carol Award finalist and a Christy finalist, among other honors. Her latest release is the novel A Fragile Hope.

One of Ruchti’s greatest joys is helping other writers grow in their craft. To that end, she has served as worship and devotions staff and faculty for the Write-to-Publish conference and teaches at other writers’ conferences across the country and internationally as opportunities arise. She also serves as the professional relations liaison for American Christian Fiction Writers.

Ruchti speaks frequently for women’s groups and serves on her church’s worship team. She and her husband live in the heart of Wisconsin, not far from their three children and five grandchildren.

Find out more about Cynthia at http://www.cynthiaruchti.com.

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Our Own Country by Jodi Daynard

April 12, 2017

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.

Our Own Country by Jodi Daynard was an interesting book. This was a very typical historical fiction book, and those tend to get old to me pretty quickly. This was a good book, but it is one that by the time I was done with the book I was just over it. This book took place during the Revolutionary War, and I think that is part of the reason that I got bored with this book. I am finding that I have a hard time getting into books that take place before WWII because they are just too old for me. This book was well written, and I really did enjoy the characters in this book. She also did a great job of making you feel as if you are there with the characters as well. If you love historical fiction books, I am sure you will enjoy this book it just wasn’t right for me.

About The Book

A love affair tests a new nation’s revolutionary ideals.

In 1770s Boston, a prosperous merchant’s daughter, Eliza Boylston, lives a charmed life—until war breaches the walls of the family estate and forces her to live in a world in which wealth can no longer protect her.

As the chaos of the Revolutionary War tears her family apart, Eliza finds herself drawn to her uncle’s slave, John Watkins. Their love leads to her exile in Braintree, Massachusetts, home to radicals John and Abigail Adams and Eliza’s midwife sister-in-law, Lizzie Boylston. But even as the uprising takes hold, Eliza can’t help but wonder whether a rebel victory will grant her and John the most basic of American rights.

About The Author

Jodi Daynard is a writer of fiction, essays, and criticism. Her work has appeared in numerous periodicals, including The New York Times Book Review, The Village Voice, The Paris Review, Agni, New England Review and in several anthologies. She is the author of The Place Within: Portraits of the American Landscape by 20 Contemporary Writers (W. W. Norton). Ms. Daynard’s essays have been nominated for several prizes and mentioned in Best American Essays. She has taught writing at Harvard University, M.I.T., and in the MFA program at Emerson College, and served for seven years as Fiction Editor at Boston Review. The Midwife’s Revolt is the first of a trilogy.

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Season of Hope by Sara Jane Jacobs

April 11, 2017

About The Book

When Amanda Jarvis prays that a special friend will move into the vacant house near her isolated mountain home, she isn’t upset when God sends a boy instead of a girl. But Amanda’s not the only one receiving unexpected answers to her prayers. After fleeing with his mother from an abusive father, Tyler Armstrong finds much-needed love and acceptance with Amanda’s family over the next ten years.

As high school graduation nears, Tyler is shocked when one carefree afternoon with Amanda churns up an inner turmoil he would have never imagined; he’s crushing on his best friend. And for the first time in his life he’s hiding a secret from Amanda. Convinced the timing is all wrong, Tyler pushes his feelings aside as he and Amanda prepare for the future. He will soon begin training to pursue his dream of becoming a Navy Seal, while Amanda makes plans to spend the summer in Manhattan with her aunt and then return home to the community college.

When Amanda’s summer job catapults her into a modeling career, she readily accepts the much-needed distraction. Tyler’s impending deployment is turning her world upside down. Along with the fact that she’s falling for her best friend. And, for the first time in her relationship with Tyler, she’s hiding a secret, too.

Phoebe Garrison, Amanda’s controlling aunt, is thrilled when she is given the power to act on behalf of her underage niece. Bored with her Fortune 500 advertising agency, becoming Amanda’s manager is just what she’s been looking for to rekindle her aspirations. But as Tyler becomes aware of Phoebe’s obsession to push Amanda into supermodel status, tensions rise. As the three of them become entangled in a mass of concealed ambition and desire, each will make decisions that will send ripples of turbulence across their futures.

About The Author

I began writing as a hobby while raising my two children. In 2015, I dusted off my stories and my dreams to see if I could turn my hobby into a career. My first story, Season of Hope, was inspired by summer vacations which always included a trip to Franklin, North Carolina, to visit family and explore The Smoky Mountains. When I’m not writing, I enjoy spending time with family and most anything that involves being outdoors, especially camping and hiking. I currently live along the Emerald Coast of Florida and never complain about the hot, humid summers, because that’s exactly how I like them!

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June by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore

April 5, 2017

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Blogging For Books 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.

June by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore was a weird book, and I still am not sure if that is a good thing or not. There are parts of the book where the house is talking, and that threw my off throughout the entire book. I am sure that was because this is the first book I have read where the house is a big part of the story. I didn’t like Lindie right from the start because she seemed like a person that if they were alive, I wouldn’t get along with because they just get on my nerves. I always have to smile when I end up hating a character because it means that the author did a great job of making me feel like the characters and alive and real people. I did find myself just scanning some of the pages because I felt like there were way too many details and unneeded information in this book. I liked how they went between current times and the 1950’s because it gave me a better idea of what the characters were actually feeling. In the end, I did like most of the book, but there are parts I think they could have left out or cut down.

About The Book

About The Author

MIRANDA BEVERLY-WHITTEMORE is the author of three other novels: New York Times bestseller Bittersweet; Set Me Free, which won the Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize, given annually for the best book of fiction by an American woman; and The Effects of Light. A recipient of the Crazyhorse Prize for Fiction, she lives and writes in Brooklyn.

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A Fine Piece of Chocolate by Jacqueline R. Banks

March 29, 2017

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.

A Fine Piece of Chocolate by Jacqueline R. Banks was a book I had a really time getting through. I always try and find something good about the books that I review but I didn’t like this book at all, and I was glad when it was finally over. I couldn’t stay interested in this book and I was just wishing that it would end quickly. I also felt like this book wasn’t well written and at times it left me confused trying to figure out what was going on in the book. Like I said before I always try and find something good about a book that I am going to review but I can’t think of anything that I liked or enjoyed about this book.

About The Book

Showing that love doesn’t have to be a four-letter word and that redemption is possible, this novel follows three women all involved in the universal search of finding love. Instead, they find lust, betrayal, compromise, and finally, redemption. Banks sends a powerful message through these characters, encouraging readers to know their values, love themselves, and never compromise what is near and dear to them.

About The Author

Jacqueline R. Banks is a native New Yorker who enjoys reading, writing and life in general. Learn life’s lessons and become a stronger person for it, is her life philosophy. Self-described as a lifelong learner, Banks is a product of the New York City public school system and believes that education opens doors. A graduate of both Hunter College and The City College in New York, Banks became a New York City public high school teacher, enjoying a 28-year tenure.

Always having an interest in why people behave as they do encourage Banks to pursue a bachelor’s degree in psychology at Hunter College and a master’s degree in education from the City College of New York. Navigating youth at a tempestuous time in many of their lives and helping to guide them in making wise decisions has been a passion for Banks.

After a brief marriage, which produced one son, Trevor, Banks became an advocate for parents and was ministry leader for the single parent’s ministry at her church, Bethel Gospel Assembly in New York City. Believing in the importance of having a sister circle of friends as well as the male input of “brother friends” to get a complete perspective of life is a way of developing healthy intimate relationships and getting on the path of relationship victory.