Great Book

The Shade Under The Mango Tree by Evy Journey

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Pump Up Your Book 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.

 The Shade Under The Mango Tree by Evy Journey was a fascinating book.  It has been quite a while since I have read a book like this one,, and I found it really refreshing.  I really enjoyed this author and I can’t wait to read other books by her in the future.  I didn’t find that the plot was anything special but because of the authors writing I fell in love with the characters in this book.  As I was reading this book I never was able to figure out what was going to happen next and I loved that about this book.  I loved that just when I thought I had everything figured out the author would throw a curve ball and I was back trying to figure out what was happening.  This author did a great job of making me feel like I was there with characters.  Some authors go overboard when it comes to describing the settings in the book but this author did a great job of making the places come alive but not so much that you got bogged down in all of the details that you didn’t really need.  If you are looking for a new book to read this winter I would pick up a copy of this one and check it out.

About The Book

Title: The Shade Under the Mango Tree
Author: Evy Journey
Publisher: Sojourner Books
Pages: 330
Genre: Contemporary Fiction

After two heartbreaking losses, Luna wants adventure. Something and somewhere very different from the affluent, sheltered home in California and Hawaii where she grew up. An adventure in which she can also make some difference. She ends up in place where she gets more than she bargained for.

Lucien, a worldly, well-traveled young architect, finds a stranger’s journal at a café. He has qualms and pangs of guilt about reading it. But they don’t stop him. His decision to go on reading changes his life.

Months later, they meet at a bookstore where Luna works and which Lucien frequents. Fascinated by his stories and his adventurous spirit, Luna volunteers for the Peace Corps. Assigned to Cambodia, she lives with a family whose parents are survivors of the Khmer Rouge genocide forty years earlier. What she goes through in a rural rice-growing village defies anything she could have imagined. Will she leave this world unscathed?

About The Author

Evy Journey, SPR (Self Publishing Review) Independent Woman Author awardee, is a writer, a wannabe artist, and a flâneuse who, wishes she lives in Paris where people have perfected the art of aimless roaming. Armed with a Ph.D., she used to research and help develop mental health programs.

She’s a writer because beautiful prose seduces her and existential angst continues to plague her despite such preoccupations having gone out of fashion. She takes occasional refuge by invoking the spirit of Jane Austen to spin tales of love, loss, and finding one’s way—stories into which she weaves mystery or intrigue.

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2020 Margaret Margaret

Snow on the Tulips by Liz Tolsma

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Snow on the Tulips by Liz Tolsma was an amazing book.   This book takes place during WWII which just happens to be one of the time periods in history that I love learning and reading about.  I also loved this book because my grandma’s family is from the Netherlands and she is working on her family history right now so I feel like I know the people.  I loved this book but it was a hard read for me because I knew that this book is fiction but things like this had to have actually happened to people there.  This is a book that I know I will hold on to because the author does an amazing job of telling the story and of making you feel like you are there going through everything with the characters.  I loved the love story as well in this book and I was sad when it finally did come to an end because I love the characters and in the end I felt like I knew them.  If you love WWII and love stories than I know you will love this book!

About Snow on the Tulips

A stranger’s life hangs in the balance. But to save him is to risk everything.
The war is drawing to a close, but the Nazis still occupy part of the Netherlands. After the losses she’s endured, war widow Cornelia is only a shadow of the woman she once was. She fights now to protect her younger brother, Johan, who lives in hiding.
When Johan brings Gerrit Laninga, a wounded Dutch Resistance member, to Cornelia’s doorstep, their lives are forever altered. Although scared of the consequences of harboring a wanted man, Cornelia’s faith won’t let her turn him out.
As she nurses Gerrit back to health, she is drawn to his fierce passion and ideals, and notices a shift within herself. Gerrit’s intensity challenges her, making her want to live fully, despite the fear that constrains her. When the opportunity to join him in the Resistance presents itself, Cornelia must summon every ounce of courage imaginable.
She is as terrified of loving Gerrit as she is of losing him. But as the winter landscape thaws, so too does her heart. Will she get a second chance at true love? She fears their story will end before it even begins.

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About Liz Tolsma

Liz Tolsma has lived in Wisconsin most of her life, and she now resides next to a farm field with her husband, their son, and their two daughters. Add a dog and a cat to that mix and there’s always something going on at their house. She’s spent time teaching second grade, writing advertising for a real estate company, and working as a church secretary, but she always dreamed of becoming an author.
She’d love to have you visit her at http://www.liztolsma.com.

Buy A Copy of Snow on the Tulips!

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2013 Margaret Margaret

Gunpowder Tea by Margaret Brownley

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Gunpowder Tea by Margaret Brownley was a super fun read.  I think the thing I loved most about this book is that it had a very unique plot.    The main character Miranda is and undercover detective in trying to figure out who is the Phantom is.  I have to say that the first chapter had me laughing and I knew from that first chapter I was going to love this book.   This entire book was a cute story and I am going to go on and read the other two books because I love this authors writing.  If you want to read a super cute story than this one is for you.

About Gunpowder Tea

In a case that could change her career, Miranda uncovers a love that will change her life.When Miranda Hunt sees the classified ad for an heiress to the legendary Last Chance Ranch, she knows assuming the identity of Annie Beckman is the perfect cover. As one of the finest agents for the Pinkerton Detective Agency, Miranda has been tasked with apprehending the Phantom—an elusive and notorious train robber thought to be hiding on the sprawling ranch.But she isn’t the only one at the ranch with something to hide. Wells Fargo detective
Jeremy Taggart is working undercover as well. Their true identities may be a secret, but it is impossible for Jeremy and Miranda to hide the sparks flaring between them.
Neither is about to let romance interfere with such a huge case. Besides, Miranda hasn’t removed Jeremy from her list of suspects yet. The closer they get to uncovering the identity of the Phantom, the more dangerous he gets—and no one on the ranch is safe.The longer Miranda and Jeremy spend working together, the harder it becomes to keep their feelings in check. Their careers-and their lives-depend on solving this case. Love will just have to wait.

“In the exquisitely intriguing finale to her Brides of Last Chance Ranch trilogy, Brownley blends faith and romance with a dash of mystery to serve up a cozy, fulfilling story set in the Arizona Territory of the 1890s . . . .This enchanting account of the hardships and wonders of the Old West features many delightful characters. The story stands on its own merits, independent of the first two in the series, drawing readers into a world that is difficult to leave.” —Publishers Weekly

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About The Author Margaret Brownley

Thrills, mystery, suspense, romance: Margaret penned it all. Nothing wrong with this—except Margaret happened to be writing for the church newsletter at the time. After making the church picnic read like a Grisham novel, her former pastor took her aside and said, “Maybe God’s calling you to write fiction.” So that’s what Margaret did. She’s now a New York Times bestselling author and a Romance Writers of America RITA finalist with more than 25 novels to her credit. Her first non-fiction book Grieving God’s Way: the Lasting Path to Hope and Healing has won much critical acclaim. She is currently working on the third book in her Brides of Last Chance Ranch series. Not bad for someone who flunked 8th grade English. Just don’t ask her to diagram a sentence.

Learn more at Margaret’s website: http://margaretbrownley.com

Buy A Copy Of Gunpowder Tea by Margaret Brownley!

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2013 Margaret Margaret

Eventide by Shelley Shepard Gary

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Eventide by Shelley Shepard Gary was a great book.   This is the 3rd and final book in the series and I have to say that I am sad to see the series come to an end.  I did review the second book and if you want to check out that review click here.  I loved the characters and the overall storyline of this series.  I am finding that I really love Shelley’s writing and I can’t wait to check out more books by her.  Anyways lets get back to this book.  This book focus on Elise and her struggles with getting her family to let her live her life and also with trying to find someone to love her even though she is losing her eyesight.  I loved the ending and I was so happy for her and how things worked out.  I loved everything about this book and I can’t wait to check out other books by her in the future.

About Eventide

A young Amish woman harbors a difficult secret. Does she dare share the truth with the man she hopes to marry?

Elsie Keim doesn’t want to be left behind. Her twin sister, Viola, and her older brother, Roman, have both found love and are building lives of their own. But Elsie? She’s still stuck at home, being treated like a child. No one seems to consider her a capable woman-all they see are the thick lenses of her glasses, constant reminders that Elsie suffers from keratoconus and is slowly going blind.

Elsie knows there’s much more to her than her disease. That’s why when a new neighbor, Landon Troyer, shows some interest in her, she doesn’t want anything to scare him away . . . even if it means keeping her condition a secret.

Landon is ready to start a new life and feels like Elsie may just be the right woman to start it with. But when Roman steps in and shares the truth about Elsie’s illness, Landon is floored. His job is demanding and takes him away from home, sometimes for days at a time. How could he keep up with his responsibilities and take care of Elsie?

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About Shelley Shepard Gary

Shelley Shepard Gray is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the “Sisters of the Heart”, “Seasons of Sugarcreek”, “Secrets of Crittenden County”, and Families of Honor series. She lives in southern Ohio, where she writes full-time, bakes too much, and can often be found walking her dachshunds on her town’s bike trail.

Connect with Shelley here:http://www.shelleyshepardgray.com/

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2013 Margaret Margaret

The Quarryman’s Bride by Tracie Peterson

The Quarryman's Bride by Tracie Peterson

The Quarryman’s Bride by Tracie Peterson was a super cute book!  I read this book in a day and a half. I loved the main character Emmalyne and I hoped through the whole book that she would end up with Tavin. From the start of the book I didn’t like her father at all but I hoped that by the end of the book he would see how much he family loves him and let Emmalyne marry Tavin. I felt like I was there with the characters and I understood how Emmalyne felt a lot of the time. I love Tracie Peterson’s writing and this book didn’t let me down. If you love her writing and I know you will love this book as well.

About The Book

The latest book in theLand of Shining Waters series.

Peterson Hits theBestseller Lists Again and Again!

Emmalyne Knox and Tavin MacLachlan were destined to be together . . . until the tragic deaths of Emmalyne’s youngest sisters. Family tradition mandates that the youngest daughter should remain single to care for her parents in their old age, and now that daughter is Emmalyne. Her father unyielding, Emmalyne surrenders to her duty, heartbroken. Tavin leaves town, equally devastated.

Years later, Emmalyne’s family moves, and she and Tavin meet again. Their feelings for each other are as strong as ever, but their painful past and Emmalyne’s father still stand between them. Soon both families are in the midst of the growing conflict rising between theworkers at the granite quarry that Tavin’s father owns and operates. When a series of near-fatal accidents occur, Tavin must figure out who is behind the attacks before someone gets killed.

Bound by obligation, yet yearning for a future together, can Emmalyne and Tavin dare to dream that God could heal a decade-long wound and change the hearts of those who would stand in the way of true love?

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About The Author

Tracie Peterson is the award-winning author of over eighty novels, both historical and contemporary. Her avid research resonates in her stories, as seen in her bestselling Heirs of Montana, and Alaskan Quest series. Tracie and her family make their home in Montana.
Visit Tracie’s Web site at http://www.traciepeterson.com

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2013 Margaret Margaret

Pennsylvania Patchwork by Kate Lloyd

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Pennsylvania Patchwork by Kate Lloyd was a super cute and fun read.  It was another one that once I started reading it I couldn’t put it down.  I loved the characters and I loved watching Kate try and figure out what to do and who was the right person for her to marry.  This was definitely a different book but that made it that much more appealing to me.  I loved how she didn’t grow up amish but that she embraced the lifestyle and loved it.  I am not sure I could do the same thing if I were in Kate’s shoes.  The only thing I didn’t like about the book was who she chose in the end but other than that I can’t say anything bad about this book!

About The Book

Seattle native Holly Fisher is smitten by Lancaster County, its simplicity and her long lost relatives. In the sequel to bestselling Leaving Lancaster, Holly embraces the Amish culture, learning to slow down to see what — and who — really matters.

Meeting the family that her mother had kept hidden from her, Holly comes face to face with her real life and blood legacy. She also falls for the charming Zach, a handsome Mennonite veterinarian who is everything she’s ever wanted in a husband: confident, kind, successful, and authentic. And Zach proposes marriage. Is this too soon? Is this the right choice? Mother and Amish grandmother think she’s rushing into too much of a lifestyle change. Holly is in love with Zach and that precludes everything. Until she meets an attractive Amish man. And an old suitor shows up.

Pennyslvania Patchwork is the moving, richly told story of one woman’s heart, her faith and trust, and the choices she makes. Never easy, but one choice can change your destiny.

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About The Author

Author Kate Lloyd is a passionate observer of human relationships. A native of Baltimore, Katespends time with family and friends in Lancaster County, PA, the inspiration for her novels. She is a member of the Lancaster County Mennonite Historical Society. Kate and her husband live in the Pacific Northwest. Kate studied painting and sculpture in college. She’s worked a variety of jobs, including car salesman and restaurateur.

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Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2013 Margaret Margaret