Tuesday, March 30, 2021

A New Love for Charlotte (Wells Landing #11) by Amy Lillard


 

Renewed faith and happiness await three generations of women in this heartwarming series from Amy Lillard, set in the Oklahoma Amish community of Wells Landing . . .
 
With her daughter newly married, widow Charlotte Burkhart should have been content to find a companion for her later years in Amish widower Glenn Esh. Yet, Charlotte longs for more than life has offered her thus far. When she discovers a baby on her doorstep, the child seems like the miracle Charlotte’s been praying for.  Unfortunately, Glenn doesn’t feel the same way. What’s a single woman aching to experience motherhood once more to do?
 
From the moment Paul Brenneman sees Charlotte Burkhart with a new baby, he senses his lovely neighbor and the sweet child are meant to be. Which is why he offers to marry Charlotte and make her adoption dreams come true. No stranger to heartache himself, the stalwart widower knows second chances don’t happen every day—especially not with a woman like Charlotte, the first woman in a long time who has him taking a leap of faith that happily-ever-after is still possible.

Amazon  


About The Author


I'm a wife, mother, and bona fide Southern belle. Published author, expert corn bread maker, and Squirrel Princess.

I live in Tulsa, though I was born in Mississippi. I moved to the Sooner State when I was seventeen and met my soul mate and best friend not long after. I’ve retained a little of my Mississippi accent though most people think I’m from Texas. (?)  Rob and I have been married for over twenty-five years and have a son–a mom proclaimed prodigy, of course!

I love homemade tacos, nail polish, and romance novels–not necessarily in that order. I’m a big fan of classic country music, a staunch proponent of saving the Oxford comma, and I’m shamefully obsessed with all things Harry Potter.

I dislike people trying to convince me to read the Twilight series (I’ll get to it or I won’t, either way I’m good with it), gratuitous violence, and strawberry ice cream. (I know I’m alone on this last one, and again, I’m good with it.)

Favorite movies–(besides HP) French Kiss, Maid of Honor, A Lot Like Love, Just Married, and Sweet Home Alabama. Oh, and Miss Congeniality, Sabrina (both versions) and a 1940’s movie called Dear Ruth. If you haven’t seen it, you should! A-dorable. Anything with Doris Day and most all of Marilyn’s and Audrey’s.

Website 

 

My Review


This is the 11th book in the Wells Landing series, but this can be read alone. My opinion of Charlotte was much better with this read, she is impulsive, but caring and has a lot of love to give.
Her daughter Jena is back along with her husband Buddy, and yes they each had their own book, along with her mother-in-law Nadine.
We meet Charlotte new loves, and yes there are more than one, and more than two, but you will have to turn the pages to see them.
I am hoping for more in this series, and I love being updated on past reads with the recurring characters.
Come and join Charlotte as she tries to find a purpose for her life, and ends up with more than she expected!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Kensington, and was not required to give a positive review.


Animals by Will Staples

 


The debut novel from acclaimed Hollywood screenwriter Will Staples.

"This is more than a story about the fate of wildlife—it's a story about the fate of the earth. As an animal lover, I highly recommend this book." — Arnold Schwarzenegger

When rhino poachers kill two of his fellow rangers in Kruger Park, South African Defense Force veteran Cobus Venter reaches his breaking point. Quitting his job, he embarks on a vigilante mission to take down the animal-trafficking syndicate from the inside. Meanwhile, in Florida, insurance investigator Randall Knight is called to a private roadside zoo, where a new tiger cub of suspect lineage brought a virus that wiped out all the zoo’s tigers. The disease is just one species jump away from erupting into a deadly global human pandemic. What starts as a simple insurance claim leads Knight to discover a shocking new evolution in the business of illicit animal trafficking. Both men’s journeys take them from the darkest corners of Southeast Asia to the VIP gambling rooms of Macau, where they must stay alive long enough to stop a vicious international triad from ending wildlife as we know it.

Animals is set in the world of global animal trafficking and follows converging story lines into a dark maze of corruption and organized crime, and through the journeys of the main characters, the novel explores the factors driving the exploitation and ruin of the natural world.

Though the story is fiction, the characters, locations, and plot points are almost entirely rooted in fact. They are the product of hundreds of conversations with everyone from Jane Goodall to the CIA, to Damien Mander (an ex-mercenary turned animal activist). To experience the issue firsthand, Will Staples took a month-long research trip spanning three continents and seven countries. The journey was a profoundly transformative, life-altering experience.

The author’s goal with this novel is to expose this issue to as many people as possible. To that end, all his income from this book will be donated to nonprofit organizations dedicated to protecting wildlife.

Amazon 

 

About The Author

 



 Will Staples writes books, as well as scripts for movies, TV, and videogames. His work includes the MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE franchise, the upcoming movie WITHOUT REMORSE, the JACK RYAN and SHOOTER television series, and adapting Tom Wolfe's book THE RIGHT STUFF as a TV series for Disney+. In 2011, Will wrote the videogame CALL OF DUTY: MODERN WARFARE 3--at the time, the largest entertainment release in history.

 

My Review


 
A story that had me in tears, so much brutality and waste of life, so senseless. The more you know about what is happening the more you want to do something, it is such a helpless feeling.
Poor people who kill animals to feed their family, and why do the animals have to die, for their horns, feet, disgusting and so the men in charge get richer.
When you think of the horns of a rhinoceros is really like toenails, and people believe they cure cancer? I know different cultures have different beliefs, but this is bad.
I am so glad that the author is bringing awareness with this book, and he is donating the proceeds to help fight and bringing this issue to the forefront.
This is a fictional read, that is filled with facts, with the hope of bringing awareness!
I received this book through Net Galley and Blackstone Publishing, and was not required to give a positive review.

A Wish for Home (Secrets of Bliss Valley #1) by Jo Ann Brown

 


Caught between who she is…and who she was.

Lauren Nolt hasn’t forgiven the Amish community of Lancaster County for shunning her parents. But returning as a successful Englischer working for large developers is just what she needs to get a promotion and give her parents the life they deserve. Coming face-to-face with her childhood bully, Amish widower Adam Hershberger, is the last thing she wants. Yet when her world’s shaken by a shocking discovery, Adam’s the only one she can confide in…

Adam’s never forgiven himself for the part he played in Lauren’s past, nor what drove him to do it. But as developers threaten his great-grossdawdi’s farm, she’s the only one who can help. And with his little girl determined to bring him and Lauren together at every turn, keeping his distance is impossible. Now they must learn to trust each other—even as their secret feelings grow stronger. But is love enough to bridge the gap between their very different worlds?

Amazon 

 

About The Author


Jo Ann Brown has been creating characters and stories for as long as she can remember. Her first stories were populated with her friends and sisters. She wrote her first novel in high school, and it happily resides in the forgotten depths of her file cabinet. Fast forward through college, serving in the US Army as a quartermaster officer, getting married, and increasing her blessings with three children...and Jo Ann sold her first book in 1987. Since it was published in 1988, she has sold over 100 titles and has become a best-selling and award-winning author. Romantic Times called her “a truly talented author.” She writes romance, mystery, and YA under a variety of pen names. Now she is writing Amish romances for Love Inspired and Annie’s Fiction as Jo Ann Brown.

Her books have been translated into nearly a dozen languages and are sold on every continent except Antarctica. A sought-after speaker, she has been teaching creative writing for over 20 years, and she established several popular fiction courses at Brown University. She resides in Florida with her husband and about a zillion little lizards in her yard.

Website 

 

My Review


 I enjoyed this story, it is really about forgiveness, and there are a lot of surprises that unfold.
Can you go home again? Well, with circumstances from her job and raging snow and ice storm, and a big pot hole, end up bringing Lauren Holt home! To make matters worse her worst nemesis comes to her rescue.
Adam Hershberger a single father raising a four year old daughter, taking care of his aging Great Grandfather, and helping with his orphaned teenage cousins. He also has a small engine repair, and works part time at an auto repair, along with becoming a fire fighter. Talking of fires, there has been an abnormal amount of them lately.
Come and see the love and surprises that open up here. Including where Lauren ends up staying! How Adams’s daughter winds everyone around her thumb, and how Adam deals with all that is on his shoulders.
I am now looking forward to the next book in this series!

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Harlequin, and was not required to give a positive review.

Night Fall (The Quantico Files, #1) by Nancy Mehl

 


Now that Alexandra "Alex" Donovan is finally free of her troubled upbringing, she's able to live out her childhood dream of working for the FBI. But soon after she becomes a member of the FBI's elite Behavioral Analysis Unit, authorities in Kansas and Missouri contact them about bodies found on freight trains traveling across the country--all killed in the same way.

Alex never expected to be forced to confront her past in this new job, but she immediately recognizes the graffiti messages the killer is leaving on the train cars. When the BAU sends her to gather information about the messages from her aunt in Wichita, Kansas, Alex is haunted by the struggles she thought she'd left behind forever.

In a race against time to solve the case while battling her own weaknesses, Alex must face how far she'll go--and what she's willing to risk--to put a stop to the Train Killer.

Amazon 

 

About The Author


 Nancy Mehl lives in Wichita, Kansas with her husband, Norman, and her very active puggle, Watson. First published in 2001, she has now authored nine books, including an omnibus mystery collection, Cozy in Kansas, which contains three of her previously published Ivy Towers mysteries. Book three in the series, For Whom the Wedding Bell Tolls, won the American Christian Fiction Writers Mystery Book of the Year award. Nancys main writing interests lie in mystery although her new Harmony Series leans more toward the romantic suspense genre. Nancy runs a HUD program for the city of Wichita and is president of a volunteer organization, Wichita Homebound Outreach. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Kansas Authors Club. 

Website 

 

My Review


 
Nancy Mehl has done it again, this is a riveting read, and once you start you won't want to put it down, not without answers.
We are given two examples of what happens to us as children, forms us into the adults we become, and it can go either way, good vs evil.
Our girl has chosen good and now a Behavior Analysis, you will cringe at what happened to her as a child, but she has now gifted her talents to the FBI. Now, the evil one has made this one even more personal, and most of mankind is counting on her and others to save them.
There was one person that I had suspicion about, but put in the back of my mind, so it was a wow, when they appeared on the side of the evil one.
As the murder count mounts, will Alex and the other agents succeed in thwarting the destruction that is planned, and will she begin trusting God? Answers come, and we hope they are what we are for good!
This book is part of a new series, and now I can't wait for the next read!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bethany House, and was not required to give a positive review.

A Patchwork Past (Plain Patterns #2) by Leslie Gould


 When wild child Sophie Deiner--the daughter of an Amish bishop--is forced to return to Nappanee, Indiana, quilt-shop owner Jane Berger is one of only a few who welcome her back. It's the last place she wants to be, but Sophie's recent illness requires that she recover for a while.

As Sophie heals, she befriends a group of migrant workers and is appalled to learn of the wretched living conditions they're forced to endure. Sophie begins advocating on their behalf, but soon finds herself opposed by an ex-boyfriend who is the farm foreman.

Jane begins relating the story of an Amish couple who rescued survivors of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, many of whom were Irish immigrants. And Sophie is more convinced than ever that she needs to fight for the powerless. But when digging deeper makes conditions even worse, has she chosen a fight she can't win?

 

About The Author


Leslie Gould is the #1 bestselling and Christy Award-winning author of thirty novels. She received her MFA from Portland State University and teaches writing at Warner Pacific University. Leslie enjoys traveling, hiking, and history. She and her husband, Peter, are the revolving-door parents of four children and two cats. Visit her at http://www.lesliegould.com/.

 

My Review


I read the first book in this series and loved it, this one left me want to leave before I finished. I did finish, and was happy how the book wrapped up, but if I had know it was so political I never would have chosen to read it.

Again, Jane the local historian tells a story, and this is part of the book I did like, we we get to experience the great Chicago fire, and those who helped.

When all is said and done, I like that we are given an epilogue, and know how things turned out.

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bethany House, and was not required to give a positive review.

 

Not My Mother by Miranda Smith

 

What if the person you trust most in the world is lying to you?

I’d heard of the Baby Caroline case, of course. When a baby is snatched from her mother’s arms, the whole country knows about it. I knew about the parents left lying by the swimming pool, the open window in the nursery. But I never dreamed it had anything to do with me.

Today, my beautiful daughter turned one. We were unwrapping gifts and blowing out candles when the knock came at the door, and they took my mother away.

The police say she’s not really my mother. That she stole me, thirty years ago.

When I visit her, desperate for answers, she looks me in the eye, and says nothing. I can barely breathe. Is my whole life a lie?

I have to find out, but the more I learn, the more scared I become. And soon I start to wonder, am I losing my grip on reality or is my own daughter in terrible danger?

Amazon 

 

About The Author

 


Miranda has been a staff writer at a local newspaper and a secondary English teacher. When it comes to fiction, Miranda writes about complicated women, dark impulses and Southern settings.

She lives in East Tennessee with her husband and three children.

Website 

 

My Review


 From the beginning to the very end this book kept me page turning, and feeling sorry and then anger at some of the characters.
This story is so real, and you can see yourself reading the papers and feeling the pain of this poor mother. Baby Caroline was stolen over thirty years ago, her father murdered and her mother attacked, and never found, until now!
I loved the twists, turns, and unfortunately betrayals, it is also fast pace, and I was quickly finished with this book, of course, I needed the answers!
I will be looking for more books by Miranda Smith.
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bookoutour, and was not required to give a positive review.

Pine Creek Courtship (Pine Creek #1) by Amity Hope

 

Love may be right around the corner in the heartwarming, sweet, and gentle Pine Creek series from Amity Hope.

After the death of her beloved father, Emma Ziegler just wants to keep her family’s maple syrup farm afloat and raise her two young siblings. But when her meddling aunt’s first choice of a husband for her turns out to be Emma’s last choice—Pine Creek’s most notorious bachelor—Emma grows desperate. Her aunt won’t listen, no matter how much she tries to tell her the man in no way embodies the Amish values of faith or hard work.

Kind and industrious Levi Bontrager has always wanted to protect his best friend Emma, even after a secret from their youth left them growing apart. Which is why he steps in to claim that Emma cannot wed anyone else, as she is currently courting him. Yes, the small lie leaves him feeling guilty, but Levi’s hope is that if he can win back the beautiful Emma’s trust, he can also win over her heart...for real.

But can a courtship that began just for show ever blossom into a true romance that could save both their futures?

Amazon 

 

About The Author



Amity lives in beautiful northern Minnesota with her two sons and a couple of cats.

She has a degree in elementary education and worked in that field for ten years before deciding to self-publish.

Her first self-published novel, Twisted, was listed by Amazon as a Top 100 Kids & Teens Kindle Book of 2012. It hit Amazon's Teen & Young Adult Contemporary Romance Best Sellers List in several countries. Truths and Dares held the #1 position on Amazon's Best Sellers in Teen & Young Adult Contemporary Romance eBooks in the UK.


If she's not writing, or spending time with her boys, she's most likely reading.

 

My Review


As I read this book I couldn’t help but reflect on all Emma Ziegler has been through in her young life, she has given her all, helped raise her siblings, one from birth, and worked to help the family make a living.
You can almost feel how broken she is when her aunt decides to marry her and let someone buy her Dad’s farm. She has just buried her father, and wants to keep her family together, but to marry someone she really doesn’t care for?
When her neighbor hears this he steps in and declares he is courting, more truth than poetry here, but will Emma accept him.
Will Emma’s pride and determination get in the way of happiness, or will she be able to accept help from others? There are answers here, and we journey along with the author for answers!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Entangled Publishing, LLC, and was not required to give a positive review. 

Saturday, March 27, 2021

Celebrate Lit Presents: A Tapestry of Light by Kimberly Duffy

A Tapestry of Light

About the Book

Book:  A Tapestry of Light

Author: Kimberly Duffy

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release date: March 16, 2021

TapestryofLight-cover final 

Calcutta, 1886.

Ottilie Russell is adrift between two cultures, British and Indian, belonging to both and neither. In order to support her little brother, Thaddeus, and her grandmother, she relies upon her skills in beetle-wing embroidery that have been passed down to her through generations of Indian women.

When a stranger appears with the news that Thaddeus is now Baron Sunderson and must travel to England to take his place as a nobleman, Ottilie is shattered by the secrets that come to light. Despite her growing friendship with Everett Scott, friend to Ottilie’s English grandmother and aunt, she refuses to give up her brother. Then tragedy strikes, and she is forced to make a decision that will take Thaddeus far from death and herself far from home.

But betrayal and loss lurk in England, too, and soon Ottilie must fight to ensure Thaddeus doesn’t forget who he is, as well as find a way to stitch a place for herself in this foreign land.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

4Kimberly Duffy is a Long Island native currently living in Southwest Ohio, via six months in India. When she’s not homeschooling her four kids, she writes historical fiction that takes her readers back in time and across oceans. She loves trips that require a passport, recipe books, and practicing kissing scenes with her husband of twenty years. He doesn’t mind.

 

More from Kimberly

When I set out to write a new novel, I plan the entire thing from start to finish. I write down each scene on an index card and know exactly what’s going to happen when I sit down for the day’s work. I’m meticulous that way.

But I never plan my characters’ spiritual arcs. Because I want their faith journey to be organic to the story. I want it to feel authentic. It’s such an important part of each of my books and I recognize that some things just refuse plotting and need to develop in a more natural way.

My debut novel, A Mosaic of Wings, features a heroine steeped in science. Nora loves the natural world and so her faith was encouraged by studying the wings of a butterfly or examining an interesting plant. She’s not particularly sentimental or emotive so the faith element of that story had to be presented in a way that made sense for her. Nora’s faith arc is subtle.

Not so for A Tapestry of Light. I had no intention of writing a book that delved into my own struggle with doubt. But that’s what Ottilie required. And it wrung me dry.

Then built me back up.

My faith story is a twisted kind of one. Raised a Christian, I went into ministry, firmly attached myself to the faith of my childhood, and thought it would never waver.

I was wrong.

Oh, how it wavered. For whatever reason, when I hit about 30, it seemed everything I had always believed no longer made sense. It was devastating. Terrifying. And it broke me.

But brokenness is its own sort of beauty and when you recognize there is no way for you to pick up the pieces yourself, God can come in and fill those cracks and shattered places.

Those five years of doubt and questioning and facing the reality that even though I’d always loved Christ, I didn’t really know Him (and didn’t really know why I believed in Him), were some of the most painful I’ve experienced. But I believe with every bit of my being that God is in the business of redemption. Of restoration. Of filling up so that we can pour out.

And he took my own very personal struggle and helped me turn it into a story that, I hope and pray, might encourage others. I gave Ottilie my questions. I gave her my doubt. I gave her my fear and desperation and, in the end, I gave her my hope.

There’s a little piece of me in each of my books, but this one contains my heart.

Blog Stops

Life of Literature, March 27

Through the Fire Blogs, March 27

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 27

Texas Book-aholic, March 28

Breny and Books, March 28

By The Book, March 29

Genesis 5020, March 29

Inklings and notions, March 29

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, March 30

Mypreciousbitsandmusings, March 30

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, March 31

Mia Reads, March 31

Reflections from my bookshelves, March 31

Connie’s History Classroom, April 1

Remembrancy, April 1

For Him and My Family, April 2

Rachael’s Inkwell, April 2

Vicky Sluiter, April 2

deb’s Book Review, April 3

Batya’s Bits, April 3

Locks, Hooks and Books, April 4

Godly Book Reviews, April 4

Pause for Tales, April 4

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, April 5

Simple Harvest Reads, April 5 (Guest Review from Mindy Houng)

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, April 6

A Baker’s Perspective, April 6

Labor Not in Vain, April 6

She Lives To Read, April 7

Betti Mace, April 7

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, April 8

To Everything There Is A Season, April 8

Mary Hake, April 8

Wishful Endings, April 9

Bigreadersite, April 9

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Kimberly is giving away the grand prize $25 Amazon gift card along with a signed copy of either A Mosaic of Wings or A Tapestry of Light!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/109d5/a-tapestry-of-light-celebration-tour-giveaway

 

Mrs. Lincoln's Sisters by Jennifer Chiaverini

 


In May 1875, Elizabeth Todd Edwards reels from news that her younger sister Mary, former First Lady and widow of President Abraham Lincoln, has attempted suicide. 

Mary’s shocking act followed legal proceedings arranged by her eldest and only surviving son that declared her legally insane. Although they have long been estranged, Elizabeth knows Mary’s tenuous mental health has deteriorated through decades of trauma and loss. Yet is her suicide attempt truly the impulse of a deranged mind, or the desperate act of a sane woman terrified to be committed to an asylum? And—if her sisters can put past grievances aside—is their love powerful enough to save her? 

Maternal Elizabeth, peacemaker Frances, envious Ann, and much adored Emilie had always turned to one another in times of joy and heartache, first as children, and later as young wives and mothers. But when Civil War erupted, the conflict that divided a nation shattered their family. The Todd sisters’s fates were bound to their husbands’ choices as some joined the Lincoln administration, others the Confederate Army.

Now, though discord and tragedy have strained their bonds, Elizabeth knows they must come together as sisters to help Mary in her most desperate hour. 

Amazon

 

About The Author


Jennifer Chiaverini is the New York Times bestselling author of several acclaimed historical novels and the beloved Elm Creek Quilts series, as well as six collections of quilt patterns inspired by her books. A graduate of the University of Notre Dame and the University of Chicago, she lives with her husband and two sons in Madison, Wisconsin. About her historical fiction, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes, "In addition to simply being fascinating stories, these novels go a long way in capturing the texture of life for women, rich and poor, black and white, in those perilous years.

Website 

 

My Review


 
I really enjoyed this in-depth look at the life of Mary Lincoln, the author did an awesome job of giving a glimpse into the personal life of the former First Lady.
Such heartbreak, no wonder some of the things that went on in her life happened. How to deal with such grief, enough to break almost anyone.
We meet and get to know a lot of Mary’s family, and of course, her sisters. Now her Dad had two wives and so there is quite a bit of family. We get to meet and know most of them, and how they come in time of need.
I cringed at her feelings for her son Robert, but keep reading. We also see the love, hate relationship of sisters, and then a war that puts siblings on separate sides.
I was quickly drawn into this story, and although fictional, it is rich with history!

Friday, March 26, 2021

Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours Presents: Rest, Relax, Run for Your Life (Ooey Gooey Bakery Mystery) by Katherine H. Brown

 


Rest, Relax, Run for Your Life (Ooey Gooey Bakery Mystery)
by Katherine H. Brown

About Rest, Relax, Run for Your Life


Rest, Relax, Run for Your Life (Ooey Gooey Bakery Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Katherine Brown Books
Original: March 1, 2019; Re-edited and released Jan 2021
Paperback: 280 pages
ISBN-10: 1733725806
ISBN-13: 978-1733725804
Digital ASIN: B07P1P5N2K

Two best friends & a bakery!

Piper and Samantha are in heaven. Well, close. More like a long weekend at the O Heavenly Day Spa.
A few mysterious notes start appearing everywhere, things get uncomfortable. As spa treatments go awry things get dangerous. A threatening message convinces Piper and Sam that they have to find out who is behind all of these disasters. When the smoke alarms go off and the spa erupts into panic, the chaos separates the friends and Piper stumbles into trouble. Will someone help her before it is too late?

About Katherine Brown

Katherine H. Brown is a Texas author with a love of reading and chocolate chip ice cream. Book lover and weaver of words, Katherine always has several projects going at one time but is most recently occupied with a new baby born April 2020. Katherine loves to hear from readers and often gets input from them through newsletter polls to help choose character names or book titles.

Author Links

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B078J72H8M

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Katherine-Brown-Katie-Author-1007999836006370/

Website www.katherinebrownbooks.com

Instagram www.instagram.com/katherinebrownkatie

GoodReads  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18681694.Katherine_Brown

BookBub https://www.bookbub.com/authors/katherine-h-brown

Purchase Links

Audiobook

Ebook / Paperback / KU 

Box set books 1- 4

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TOUR PARTICIPANTS

March 22 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT

March 22 – #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog – SPOTLIGHT

March 23 – I’m All About Books – SPOTLIGHT

March 23 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

March 24 – Novels Alive – GUEST POST

March 24 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

March 25 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW

March 25 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

March 25 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

March 26 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

March 26 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT

March 27 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW

March 27 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT

March 28 – Literary Gold – CHARACTER GUEST POST

March 28 – Wickedly Romance – CHARACTER GUEST POST

March 29 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW

March 29 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW

March 30 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – GUEST POST

March 30 – Novels Alive – REVIEW

March 30 – BookishKelly2020 – SPOTLIGHT

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Celebrate Lit Presents: Wait for Me by Marguerite Martin Gray

Wait for Me

About the Book

Book:  Wait for Me

Author: Marguerite Martin Gray

Genre: Christian Historical  Romance

Release date: February 9, 2021

wait for me cover 

A town besieged by the enemy with just one Sovereign order: wait.

Charles Town, South Carolina, 1780

With the inevitable occupation of Charles Town by the British pounding at the gates, Louis Lestarjette braces for possible imprisonment or worse. How can he provide for his growing family with the evil chains of the enemy binding his source of existence? The scenarios of imprisonment and starvation force him to realize he has no control over the outcome of the stronghold of the British. All that remains is a sense of survival at almost any cost.

Elizabeth Lestarjette faces looming confinement with both a drive to protect her children and a desire to do her part to undermine the enemy.  They must thwart the British plans to imprison more men, but how?  Who can they trust?

Just how long will Elizabeth’s confidence in justice withstand the constant battering of war and circumstance?
Discover the destiny of the Lestarjette family in the final book of the Revolutionary Faith Series as they hope and wait upon deliverance from a world under siege.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

margueriteMarguerite enjoys the study of history, especially when combined with fiction. An avid traveler and reader, she teaches French and Spanish and has degrees in French, Spanish, and Journalism from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas and a MA in English from Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene. She has two grown children and currently lives with her husband in north Louisiana. She writes historical fiction.

 

More from Marguerite

Thank you for stopping by the Wait for Me tour. I’m so excited about the release of this novel, the finale of the Revolutionary Faith series,

I have always been fascinated with the ordinary—the simple acts from day to day. When an historical event is added, I surround my fascination with questions. What did they wear or eat? Why did they marry? Did they have children? Where did they shop? What is incredible or surprising to me about the historical event or activity was at one time ordinary to the characters whether in fiction or nonfiction.

The ordinary that I like to encounter and write in historical fiction includes how the characters dressed. I even had the dress pictured here made for me just in case I want to present in costume!

Also, I like to explore the food my characters ate. I found a wonderful recipe for a beefsteak pie in an American Girl cookbook. I’ve made it several times. Yummy!

The ordinary activities such as going to church or to the market or mercantile make the characters real. Their lives have depth in their interaction with society. My simple faith in God’s provisions and promises flow into the lives of my characters. What makes the story exciting is the historical element linked with the dramatic background of war.

Thank you for continuing the journey with Wait for Me, rooted in the ordinary from two centuries ago.

Blog Stops

Connie’s History Classroom, March 26

Artistic Nobody, March 27 (Guest Review from Joni Truex)

Locks, Hooks and Books, March 28

For the Love of Literature, March 29 (Author Interview)

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, March 29

deb’s Book Review, March 30

She Lives To Read, March 31

Betti Mace, March 31

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, April 1

Splashes of Joy, April 2 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, April 3

Texas Book-aholic, April 4

Inklings and notions, April 5

For Him and My Family, April 6

Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, April 7 (Author Interview)

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, April 7

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, April 8

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Marguerite is giving away the grand prize package of a print copy of all five books in the series and a box of Charleston Plantation Tea!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/109d4/wait-for-me-celebration-tour-giveaway

 

Celebrate Lit Presents: Love at First Flight by Linda Shenton Matchett

 

Love at First Flight

About the Book

Book:  Love at First Flight

Author: Linda Shenton Matchett

Genre: Christian Historical  Romance

Release date: September 15, 2020

LAFF cover 

Can two people emerge from the clouds of past hurt to find a silver lining of love?

Evelyn Reid would rather fly than do anything else, so when war engulfs the U.S., she joins the Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron. One of the program’s top pilots, she is tapped for pursuit plane training…the dream of a lifetime until she discovers the instructor is her ex-fiancé, Jasper MacPherson.

Collecting enough points to rotate stateside, fighter pilot Jasper MacPherson is assigned to teach the WAFS how to fly the army way. Bad enough to be training women, but things take a turn for the worse when his former fiancée shows up as one of his students.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Linda Matchett Head ShotLinda Shenton Matchett writes about ordinary people who did extraordinary things in days gone by. She is a native of Baltimore, Maryland and was born a stone’s throw from Fort McHenry. Linda has lived in historic places all her life, and is now located in central New Hampshire where her favorite activities include serving as a volunteer docent and archivist for the Wright Museum of WWII, exploring historic sites, and immersing herself in the imaginary worlds created by other authors.

 

More from Linda

Dear Readers:

 

It’s all I can do to parallel park my car…well, actually I can’t. I’m terrible at that sort of thing, which is why I’m so impressed with the Women’s Air Service Pilot who served during World War II. Created in August 1943 by merging the Women’s Flying Training Detachment and the Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron, the WASP was a civilian organization that came under the authority of the Air Force and freed male pilots for combat or other duties. Their leader was the intrepid Jacqueline Cochran, an award winning pilot who set and broke numerous records during her career.

 

Qualifications for the program were stringent, and of the more than 25,000 women who applied, only 1,800 were accepted. Of that number, 1,074 completed the program. These women flew over sixty million miles and transported every type of military aircraft from the ninety-nine foot long B-29 Bomber that weighted over 100,000 pounds to the P-51 Mustang that could fly at over 400 miles per hour.

 

The WASP also towed targets for live anti-aircraft gun practice, simulated strafing missions and transported cargo. Thirty-eight WASP members lost their lives and one disappeared while on a ferry mission, her fate still unknown. Disbanded in December 1944, the WASP did not receive military status or benefits for their service. However, after nearly three decades its members were granted veteran status, and in 2009 they were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal.

 

It is my hope that Love at First Flight honors these brave women in some small way.

 

Blessings,

Linda Shenton Matchett

Blog Stops

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 24

Texas Book-aholic, March 25

Genesis 5020, March 25

Inklings and notions, March 26

Betti Mace, March 27

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, March 27

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, March 28

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, March 29

Jeanette’s Thoughts, March 29

Hebrews 12 Endurance, March 30

For Him and My Family, March 31

Connect in Fiction, March 31

She Lives To Read, April 1

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, April 2

deb’s Book Review, April 2

Connie’s History Classroom, April 3

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, April 4

Blossoms and Blessings, April 4

Locks, Hooks and Books, April 5

CarpeDiem, April 6

A Novel Pursuit, April 6

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Linda is giving away the grand prize package of an autographed paperback edition of Love at First Flight, eco-friendly reusable shopping bag with image of Women’s Air Service Pilots, stuffed WASP bear, Norman Rockwell notecards, VJ Day book mark, and I {heart} Spam socks!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/109d2/love-at-first-flight-celebration-tour-giveaway


Thursday, March 25, 2021

Not Without My Sister by Marion Kummerow

 

1944, Germany. Two sisters seek to overcome impossible odds to be reunited, in this utterly devastating and unforgettable novel about sisterhood, courage and survival.

All they had left was each other. Until the Nazis tore them apart.

After years of hiding from the Nazis, Rachel Epstein and her little sister Mindel are captured by the Gestapo and sent to the concentration camp at Bergen-Belsen. The only ray of light for either girl is that they are together.

But on arrival they are separated. As she’s seventeen and deemed an adult, Rachel is sent to work in a brutal factory whilst four-year-old Mindel is sent into the so-called “star” camp for Jewish prisoners. All on her own, Rachel knows her sister will have no chance of survival—unless she can find someone to take care of her.

Working in the windowless, airless factory—filling munitions casings with chemicals that burn her fingers and make her eyes sting—the only thing that keeps Rachel going is the thought of her little sister. Because if there’s even a chance Mindel is alive, Rachel knows she must try to save her.

But, separated by barbed wire, and treated brutally by SS guards who do not even see them as human beings, can either of the orphaned sisters ever dare to hope that they’ll find their way back to each other? And to freedom?

Amazon 

 

About The Author


USA Today Bestselling author of historical fiction.

Her books are filled with raw emotions, fierce loyalty and perpetual resilience.
She loves to put her characters through the mangle, making them reach deep within to find the strength to face moral dilemma, make difficult decisions or fight for what is right. And she never forgets to include humor and undying love in her books, because ultimately love is what makes the world go round.

Marion Kummerow was born and raised in Germany, before she set out to "discover the world" and lived in various countries. In 1999 she returned to Germany and settled down in Munich where she's now living with her family.

After dipping her toes with non-fiction books, she finally tackled the project dear to her heart. UNRELENTING is the story about her grandparents, who belonged to the German resistance and fought against the Nazi regime. It's a book about resilience, love and the courage to stand up and do the right thing.

Website

 

My Review


 
This story is a page turner, but not in the usual sense, I wanted to know if they survived the terror that they ended up in.
Of a family of five, we follow two of them as they journey to survive the evil that is taking place in Germany during WWII. Two sister’s one seventeen and one four at the time they are placed in the Concentration Camp, and they are there because of a religion.
The author makes this read so very real, and the horrors of what happened during this time, linger.
Books like this one make me realize how fortunate we are, and we should not forget, and all the while you keep wondering if these girls will survive, most don’t.
Keep reading as there is an epilogue at the end, and I loved the updates!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bookoutour, and was not required to give a positive review.

Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours Presents: Cats, Carats and Killers (Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries) by T. C. LoTempio

  Cats, Carats and Killers (Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries) by T. C. LoTempio About Cats, Carats, and Killers Cats, Carat...