A Nest in the Rocks

Building a nest on the rocks of faith and family

book review

“Becoming Bea” by Leslie Gould

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Beatrice Zook knows God wants her to learn patience toward others. When assisting a family overwhelmed by triplets proves surprisingly successful, her confidence in dealing with others, both young and old, grows.

One person she’ll never be able to find peace with though is Ben Rupp. They’ve known each other forever, and Ben understands precisely how to antagonize her. What neither she nor Ben will admit is that beneath all their bickering, attraction awaits. When friends decide to try and bring the couple together, will the pair be able to find true love? Or will they damage their relationship beyond repair?

Becoming Bea is a true delight.  Painfully honest with herself, Bea struggles to interact comfortably with others.  Gould writes the story in such a way that this problem becomes easy to relate to, and as Bea overcomes this issue, others take its place so that the tension continues to build throughout the story.  I loved the ebb and flow in Becoming Bea!

The overall message is an important one – too important for me to spoil by sharing here.  Gould builds into it with her fantastic ebb and flow technique, however, and it highlights the spiritual lessons that Bea is learning, in addition to the interpersonal ones.  These are all things that we all must learn at one time or another, whether in as toddlers or teens, and I appreciate seeing these added into a story about adults.

Amish books often portray life through rosy lenses, but Bea faces personal issues on all fronts, and some of them are the stuff of today’s newspaper headlines.  I appreciate the honesty and blunt look at life from an Amish perspective – because it can’t all be stars and hearts all the time.  This edginess made the story more realistic and refreshing to read, because while I wouldn’t wish problems on anybody, there are things to learn from overcoming problems, and Bea definitely grows from hers.

I loved Bea, and I loved her story.  I love that it continued Cate’s story, and I loved the balanced drama, romance, and life lessons shared along the way.  Becoming Bea is just a solidly great book, and I think you’ll like it, too.

Read other reviews on this bloggy hop here, or click here to purchase your own copy now.

Leslie Gould is the coauthor, with Mindy Starns Clark, of the #1 CBA bestseller The Amish Midwife, a 2012 Christy Award winner; ECPA bestseller Courting Cate, first in the Courtships of Lancaster County series; and Beyond the Blue, winner of the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice for Best Inspirational Novel, 2006. She holds an MFA in creative writing from Portland State University and has taught fiction writing at Multnomah University as an adjunct professor. She and her familyl live in Portland, Oregon.

Find Leslie online: website, Facebook, Twitter
 
I received a free copy of Becoming Bea from LitFuse Publicity in exchange for an honest review.

“Where Treetops Glisten” – Fantastic WWII Romance

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The crunch of newly fallen snow, the weight of wartime
Siblings forging new paths and finding love in three stories, filled with the wonder of Christmas
Turn back the clock to a different time, listen to Bing Crosby sing of sleigh bells in the snow, as the realities of America’s involvement in the Second World War change the lives of the Turner family in Lafayette, Indiana.
In Cara Putman’s White Christmas, Abigail Turner is holding down the Home Front as a college student and a part-time employee at a one-of-a-kind candy shop. Loss of a beau to the war has Abigail skittish about romantic entanglements—until a hard-working young man with a serious problem needs her help.
Abigail’s brother Pete is a fighter pilot hero returned from the European Theater in Sarah Sundin’s I’ll Be Home for Christmas, trying to recapture the hope and peace his time at war has eroded. But when he encounters a precocious little girl in need of Pete’s friendship, can he convince her widowed mother that he’s no longer the bully she once knew?
In Tricia Goyer’s Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Meredith Turner, “Merry” to those who know her best, is using her skills as a combat nurse on the frontline in the Netherlands. Halfway around the world from home, Merry never expects to face her deepest betrayal head on, but that’s precisely what God has in mind to redeem her broken heart.
The Turner family believes in God’s providence during such a tumultuous time. Can they absorb the miracle of Christ’s birth and His plan for a future?
 
Where Treetops Glisten is the most cohesive, exciting anthology I’ve read in years.  You know how it goes – you pick up a book set written by your favorite authors, only to find that it’s really just short stories bound in a single edition.  Not so with this one!
 
Where Treetops Glisten follows several members of a single family during WWII.  The characters from each story mingle with each other throughout the entire book.  The details are accurate – no favorite foods changing from one story to the next – and the setting is clear and alive.  It’s hard to believe that this was not written by a single author! It reads much more like a single novel than a mini-series bound as one.
 
Actually, it was so well done that I don’t think I can pick a favorite story.  They blended together with superior clarity – so much so that I read the entire book in one series, not ready at any point to put this family and their stories down.
 
The stories themselves were inspirational as well as historically accurate.  Never do they minimize the risk or the dangers of the war – and yet they’re able to leave the reader with hope and encouragement.  Now that’s tricky!
 
This is how these books should be written.  Goyer, Putnam, Sundin – you’re masters.  I hope you work together again.
 
 
 
TRICIA GOYER is a prolific author of nearly forty books, including Chasing Mona Lisa, and a speaker and blogger. 
 
CARA PUTMAN is the author of twenty books including Shadowed by Grace. She is the winner of the 2008 Carol Award for historical fiction. 
 
SARAH SUNDIN is the critically-acclaimed author of the Wings of the Nightingale series, the Wings of Glory series, and the forthcoming Waves of Freedom novels.

Website, Facebook, Twitter

 
I received a free copy of Where Treetops Glisten from LitFuse Publicity in exchange for an honest review.

“Deceived” by Irene Hannon

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Product Details

For three years, Kate Marshall has been grieving the loss of her husband and their four-year-old son in a boating accident. But when she spots a familiar-looking child on an escalator in the mall, she is convinced it is the son she thought was dead. With police skeptical of her story, she turns to private investigator Connor Sullivan. The former Secret Service agent is dubious but agrees to investigate. Digging into the case he discovers that the incident may have been no accident at all. But if Kate’s son is alive, someone is intent on keeping him hidden–and may be willing to go to lethal lengths to protect a sinister secret.

Kate Marshall is my kind of lead character.  She’s had a rough time of it, but she’s doing her best to make the best of things.  Kate’s not afraid to admit her mistakes and knows her own limitations – including when to ask for help. 

Kate’s tragic past is more than any one person should have to handle, and that combined with her personality gave the book high marks in my book.  The fact that the action mixed with the emotional drama to create high energy and suspense only ratcheted those marks higher. 

I flew through this book in a single day because I couldn’t put it down.  I knew what I wanted to happen, but would it?  I couldn’t wait to find out, and so I turned page after page, eagerly trying to figure the ending before I reached the last page.

In the end, only one detail left me disappointed, and that was the end.  In typical Hannon fashion, she included a prologue that ended the story after a few months had passed, and in this way she filled in the end of a certain character who’s journey I wanted to know.  This particular ending was for the best, I’m sure; but still, the details fascinated me, and I’d like to know more.  I suppose, however, that this is another mark for a fantastic writer – that even though a satisfying conclusion has been reached, I’m nevertheless hungry for more?

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“A Lady at Willowgrove Hall” by Sarah E. Ladd

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Cecily Faire carries the shame of her past wherever she treads, knowing one slip of the tongue could strip away everything she holds dear. But soon after accepting the position of lady’s companion at Willowgrove Hall, Cecily finds herself face-to-face with a man well-acquainted with the past she’s desperately hidden for years.

Nathaniel Stanton has a secret of his own — one that has haunted him from birth and tied him to his father’s position as steward of Willowgrove. To protect his family, Nathaniel dares not breath a word of the truth. But as long as the shadow looms over him, he’ll never be free to find his own way in the world. He’ll never be free to fall in love.

When the secrets swirling within Willowgrove Hall come to light, Cecily and Nathaniel must confront a painful choice: Will they continue running from the past . . . or will they stand together and build a future without the suffocating weight of secrets long suffered?

Last week a friend challenged me.  She spoke about why she doesn’t believe in romance stories of any kind, and it really made me think about the value that I find in Christian ones.  Then I read A Lady at Willowgrove Hall, and the timing was perfect – because if we’re going to read romance stories, this is exactly the kind that we should read.

Why?

Because just like we can learn valuable history lessons from historical fiction and gain neat science ideas from sci-fi stories, we can learn some important lessons from romance stories, too.  No, not the ‘hurry-up-and throw-off-your-clothes’ kind, but these Christian ones make good points.

Which ones can be found in this story?  Here are a few:

  • God can redeem our mistakes.
  • God’s timing is perfect.
  • Romance – and/or love – shouldn’t be rushed, because again, His timing is perfect.
  • His boundaries where love are concerned are there for our protection.
  • Relationships are not easy.  Developing and maintaining them both take work from both parties.
  • Communication is important.
  • The way that we treat other people shouldn’t change based on their behavior.  We’re to show His love all the time – we never know what other people are dealing with.
  • Family is important.

I loved this story.  I couldn’t put it down.  I loved that Cecily grew and matured throughout the story.  I loved that she took responsibility for her actions and worked hard. I love the details that Ladd used to bring the setting to life.

The setting wasn’t the only lively aspect of the book, though.  The way that Nathaniel’s sisters contrasted with the silence at Willowgrove Hall spoke volumes about their relationships, and their interactions made me want to know them more.  I’d love to read a story following one of them!

A Lady at Willowgrove Hall is a great addition to this series, and I hope there are more!

Click here to read other reviews on this bloggy hop or here to purchase your own copy now.

 
About the author: 
 
Sarah E. Ladd has more than ten years of marketing experience. She is a graduate of Ball State University and holds degrees in public relations and marketing. The Heiress of Winterwood was the recipient of the 2011 Genesis Award for historical romance. Sarah lives in Indiana with her amazing husband, sweet daughter, and spunky Golden Retriever.
 
Find Sarah online: website, Facebook, Twitter
 
I received a free copy of A Lady at Willowgrove Hall from LitFuse Publicity in exchange for an honest review.

“The Promise” by Beth Wiseman

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Mallory Hammond is determined that no one will stand in the way of her goal—to save a life. She had that chance years ago, and she failed to take it, leaving her adrift and in search of the real meaning of her life. Finally, she meets a man online from a volatile corner of the world who offers her the chance to find that purpose. But she will have to leave everyone she loves behind in order to take it.
Tate Webber has loved Mallory for many years. He understands that Mallory will never be happy with him until her deepest heart’s desire is satisfied. When Mallory decides to travel across the world to fulfill her dreams, Tate begs her not to go but tries to give her the space she needs. Mallory embarks on her dangerous journey only to discover how swiftly and easily promises can be broken. And Mallory can only pray that she will make it out alive.
Inspired by actual events, The Promise is a riveting love story that asks the question: how far will we go for love?
 
I love books. I love all kinds of books – sci-fi, romance, adventure, mystery. I love escaping into someone else’s life, someone else’s mind, and ‘living’ vicariously through the main character. Sometimes those experiences are things that I’m interested in but will never do, like skydiving, or want to learn more about, like pioneer life. I love the journey. These journeys aren’t always easy, and they aren’t always fun, but the very best ones are those that won’t leave your mind after the last page has been turned.That’s the very thing that makes The Promise stand out.I’ve turned the last page, and my mind won’t leave this journey alone. Unlike all the others, though, this is a journey I have no interest in repeating.

That Beth Wiseman could write a story that I could adamantly dislike and yet not get out of my head is a mark of her talent.

In any genre, I want to read about one basic type of lead character: someone likeable with a fatal flaw who must learn to overcome this big issue in whatever way possible.

Mallory doesn’t fit either of those qualifications. Firstly, I did not like her, and that for a few simple reasons. Mallory isn’t completely honest. She isn’t honest with herself or with her boyfriend about her faith – or lack thereof. She doesn’t understand it, and she really tries to sweep it under the rug and not deal with it. This is a believable issue, and would make a great story in itself, except this was only a subplot to the real one. It’s never fully developed. Mallory has some sort of history with her family and a tenuous relationship with them, and while part of it is explained, much of it is not. Fleshing this out more would have made many of her actions more realistic, because finally, Mallory is described as smart, only she isn’t. She’s naïve, innocent, crazy, an easy mark. She may be intelligent book-wise, but she isn’t wise – she doesn’t listen to sage advice, do research, or try to determine possible consequences when faced with a major decision. She has the kind of false security that most of us Americans have, only we’re never called on it. Being called to the carpet on this issue is what moves the story along – but it only made me angry with her for her continued blindness, and if not for this review, I would have put the book down.

While the pull between Islam and Christianity is a driving force in this story, I didn’t find Mallory’s faith journey credible.  She based a major life decision on a desire and a Bible verse shared by her Islamic friend – and Mallory didn’t understand the scripture.  Neither did she try to find out (and it didn’t exactly fit).  She researched Islam, she befriended Islam, she read the Qur’an, and she took her ties to her Islamic friends more seriously than those of her Christian ones; yet in a crisis, suddenly she had a Christian revelation. Could God work this way? Totally. Did it feel real? Not to me. Having a searching Mallory explore both faiths would have felt more realistic to me, as well as possibly answering questions for believing and non-believing readers on their own faith journeys.

Both Mallory and her boyfriend and her Islamic boss and his girlfriend had serious physical relationships. While the details were not spelled out in the book, this undermined the Christian’s credibility and was not redeemed in the story. It put the devout Islam, the devout Christian, and the two lukewarm people all on the same playing field, and there was no redemption for this issue within the story. I have no problem reading about physical relationships, if handled well; it’s rampant within our culture and needs to be addressed, however, in was not dealt with in The Promise. It left me with the feeling that there was nothing wrong, and that’s certainly not a message I agree with.

Sexual relationships before marriage were not my only cultural issue in The Promise. A marital arrangement, legal only, with a quick divorce following is an action that a character intends to take. Since this character is not a person of faith – and does have humanistic, helpful intentions – it is oddly logical; however, the few faithful people in the story raise no objections to the morality of the divorce or discuss the sanctity of marriage. Both are taken lightly in American culture, but I see no reason for Christians to do the same. Again, had a character raised concerns, not only to the location of the marriage, but to the morality of the divorce, it would have added another layer and important depth to the story.

The Promise sheds light on an American-Islamic problem: immigration by devious methods. Wiseman shares that Islamic (Pakistani) men are trying to trick American women into marrying them to pave the path for their visas to be issued to gain passage onto American soil. This is something I know nothing about, and so if it is the big issue that Wiseman implies, then it most certainly must become known. Books can be great vehicles for social change, or at least social awareness. I don’t know what Wiseman’s motivation was in writing this story: if it was to wake up Americans to an international problem, then it succeeds. The immigration issue was well developed, and marriage laws in Pakistan were described, but I think that going deeper into Sharia law would have made the danger more explosive and the plight of Pakistani women more clear.

I have read many of Wiseman’s books. I loved the first few Amish ones that I read, and the most recent contemporary fiction story did a fabulous job of making me connect to the main character (something I missed in this book). Like all of Wiseman’s work, The Promise is well written with smooth transitions, a great vocabulary, and clear descriptions. This is the first that I have adamantly disliked, and yet I can see purpose in it. The Promise is quite provocative about all of these issues: marriage laws, the sanctity of marriage, abuse within marriage, how to handle money, interfaith friendships, and organ donation, just to name a few. There is much food for thought within these pages, and so I can see a book club having much to discuss after reading this story.

So – will you read it?

 
Beth Wiseman is the best-selling author of the Daughters of the Promise series and the Land of Canaan series. Having sold over 1.3 million books, her novels have held spots on multiple Bestseller lists. She was the recipient of the prestigious Carol Award in 2011 and 2013. In 2013 she took home the coveted Holt Medallion. Her first book in the Land of Canaan series–Seek Me With All Your Heart–was selected as the 2011 Women of Faith Book of the Year. Beth lives in Texas with her family.

 
Find Beth online: website, Facebook, Twitter
 
 
I received a free copy of The Promise from LitFuse Publicity in exchange for an honest review.
 

“Keepers of the Covenant” by Lynn Austin

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In one life-changing moment, the lives of the Jewish exiles in Babylon are thrown into confusion and despair when a decree arrives from the king’s palace in Susa. It calls for the annihilation of every Jewish man, woman, and child throughout the empire on the thirteenth day of Adar, in less than one year. Ezra, a quiet Jewish scholar and teacher, is suddenly called upon to lead the community as they seek God for a reason for this catastrophe. When a second decree arrives, authorizing them to fight back, Ezra is thrust into the role of military leader as they defend themselves against their enemies.

When the battles come to an end, Ezra’s brother Jude is dead and Ezra is required by the Law he so diligently studies to marry Jude’s widow, Devorah, and provide an heir. Fatherhood changes Ezra, and he asks God to make a way for him and the other exiles to leave Babylon for good and return to Jerusalem. His prayers are answered and the exiles move to Judea to revitalize worship at the temple—but the fight to keep God’s Law is never easy. As more and more of his community are tempted, a new battle emerges . . . this one for the survival of God’s covenant and the souls of His chosen faithful.
 
Austin brings the Bible to life once again in her newest book, Keepers of the Covenant.  Who knew the Old Testament could be quite this exciting?  This powerful look at the second wave of Jews who leave Babylon and return to Jerusalem is reconstructed as never before.
 
It’s hard to picture those Old Testament people sometimes.  It’s hard to understand them.  They may not have had their own personal Bibles to carry with them, but they were living in the time when it was all happening!  When God might show up at your tent door for lunch – and so their decision to turn their backs on His World has never made sense to me – until now.  Austin puts the time period, the situation, and the cultural clashes all into perspective.  I could see why these parents were tempted to let obedience to the Law slide.  I could see why living in another land presented such a religious and racial problem.  I could see how easy it would have been to get obedience to the Law confused – and suddenly it was all real.  I was there.  I was wondering which decision I would make if it were me.  How these choices have been handed down through the centuries.  How these choices would translate today.
 
I can’t say that Ezra has ever been my favorite man from the Bible – but I can’t wait to get my Bible out and read about him now.  Keepers of the Covenant should definitely go on your ‘must-read’ list.
 
 
About the Author: 
 
Bestselling author Lynn Austin has sold more than one million copies of her books worldwide. She is an eight-time Christy Award winner for her historical novels, as well as a popular speaker at retreats and conventions. Lynn and her husband have raised three children and live near Chicago.
 
Find Lynn online: website, Facebook
 
I received a free copy of Keepers of the Covenant from LitFuse Publicity in exchange for an honest review.

“The Brickmaker’s Bride” by Judith Miller

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Yearning for a fresh start, Ewan McKay travels with his aunt and uncle from northern Scotland to West Virginia, promising to trade his skills in the clay business for financial assistance from his uncle Hugh. Hugh purchases a brickmaking operation from a Civil War widow and her daughter, but it’s Ewan who gets the business up and running again. Ewan seeks help from Laura, the former owner’s daughter, and he feels a connection with her, but she’s being courted by another man—a lawyer with far more social clout and money than Ewan. Besides, Ewan has resolved he’ll focus on making the brickmaking operation enough of a success that he can become a partner in the business and be able to afford to bring his sisters over from Scotland.

But when Hugh signs a bad business deal, all Ewan’s hard work may come to naught. As his plans begin to crumble, Laura reveals something surprising. She and her mother may have a way to save the brickworks, and in turn Ewan may have another shot at winning Laura’s heart.
 
The Brickmaker’s Bride is a unique love story filled with plot twists and unbelievable generosity.  It’ll keep you guessing the outcome until the very last page.  Hugh’s gambling habits and bad business dealings affect Ewan and Laura throughout the entire story.  He derails Ewan’s hard work time and time again, making it difficult for Ewan to make plans with Laura or to establish a home for his sisters.   He makes a great villainous character as he continually frustrates the plot and adds wrenches to plans.
 
On the flip side, I loved Laura.  Her sweet, gentle, wise nature contrasts a bit with the stereotypical female of the day, and her compassion is inspiring.  Ewan, too, is a great character.  I’m fascinated with he Irish, and his immigration story, family history, and knowledge of the brickworks all collided to tell an unusual story of post-Civil War American life. 
 
As much as I loved this story, however, there were a few problematic holes.  Ewan had real concerns about a possible relationship with Laura, and while he thinks about them several times, they’re never actually dealt with.  Problems don’t really disappear, as much as we’d like them to, and this was an important plot twist that demanded answers.  Books featuring this era seem to gloss over the logistics of relationships often, and while that was not done completely in The Brickmaker’s Bride, some issues are worth the time to dissect and answer them.  I think the book would have been more complete had this one been hashed out.
 
With that said, however, I did love the story.  It was a bit rosy, but the unique perspective and colorful characters more than made up for that.  Miller’s writing was smooth, as always, and drew me into the story from the very beginning.    The Brickmaker’s Bride is definitely a historical fiction worth reading.
 
 
About the author: 
 
Judith Miller is an award-winning author whose avid research and love for history are reflected in her bestselling novels. When time permits, Judy enjoys traveling, visiting historical settings, and scrapbooking the photographs from her travel expeditions. She makes her home in Topeka, Kansas.
 
Find Judith online: website, Facebook, Twitter
 
I received a free copy of The Brickmaker’s Bride from LitFuse Publicity in exchange for an honest review.

“Joyful” by Shelley Shepard Gray

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Joyful by Shelley Shepard Gray

Randall Beiler is doing his best to put his family and the farm’s needs first, even forsaking love. But though he tries, Randall knows he needs help caring for his younger siblings and keeping the house together.

When his brother offers pretty Elizabeth Nolt a job taking care of the house and cooking for the family, Randall is furious—and guilty about the way he once broke Elizabeth’s heart. But when he learns that Elizabeth and her grandmother are struggling to make ends meet, he knows the offer, no matter how painful, is the right thing for everyone.

Elizabeth wants to refuse—to stay far away from the man who hurt her—but she needs the money. Though she vows to protect her heart, spending time in the Beiler household makes Elizabeth realize that, while she’s older and wiser, her love for Randall still burns strong.

Randal, too, seems to want something more. But does he want Elizabeth because he truly loves her—or because he needs a housekeeper? If Randall sincerely wants something more, he must find a way to show Elizabeth—or risk losing his chance at love forever.

I love Gray’s writing style.  Smooth and dramatic, with clear, vivid descriptions, Gray’s stories play out like a movie inside my head.  I can see everything happening, and it pulls me into the story.

Unlike the other books in this series, however, it wasn’t all sunshine and roses.  Usually I’m cheering hard for Gray’s characters, but this particular pair was a bit different.  They were particularly … well … thick, it seemed, right from the beginning.  The obstacle to their love didn’t feel like much of an obstacle to me, and instead felt as if it should have been the answer to their problems.

As the story developed, however, Gray added more depth to the choices that Randall made at the beginning of the story. She made his decisions more understandable and easy to relate to.  While I still don’t think I would’ve made the same choice that he did, I could finally see his position – and that made all the difference in the world when it came to being able to connect to the characters.

As for Elizabeth, she didn’t have the same type of confusing decisions to make as Randall, but she did need to do some growing up, and the depth that the in-between years give her make her a much more likeable character.

Gray really used nuance and tone in this story, more so than any of her others.  The characters had a much more emotional and dramatic journey than in others, and the wisdom contrasted between Elizabeth’s grandmother and the young romantics really highlighted this.

Generally, I prefer to read about people I like, and I didn’t like Randall in the beginning; but despite his orneriness, Gray kept me engaged with this story from Page One.  It takes an extremely talented writer to make emotional drama interesting and exciting, and that’s exactly what Gray is. 

If you want to read a romance that’s more than butterflies and cupids, this is the book for you.

Click here to read other reviews in this bloggy hop or here to purchase your own copy now.

Shelley Shepard Gray

Shelley Shepard Gray is a two-time New York Times bestseller, a two-time USA Today bestseller, a finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writers prestigious Carol Award, and a two-time Holt Medallion winner. 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.

Find out more about Shelley at http://www.shelleyshepardgray.com.

 

 

I received a free copy of Joyful from LitFuse Publicity in exchange for an honest review.

“Tried and True” by Mary Coneally

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Kylie Wilde is the youngest sister—and the most civilized. Her older sisters might be happy dressing in trousers and posing as men, but Kylie has grown her hair long and wears skirts every chance she gets. It’s a risk—they are homesteading using the special exemptions they earned serving in the Civil War as “boys”—but Kylie plans to make the most of the years before she can sell her property and return to the luxuries of life back East.

Local land agent Aaron Masterson is fascinated with Kylie from the moment her long hair falls from her cap. But now that he knows her secret, can he in good conscience defraud the U.S. government? And when someone tries to force Kylie off her land, does he have any hope of convincing her that marrying him and settling on the frontier is the better option for her future?
 
Kylie Wilde is a winning character with a hidden past – and you’ll want to read all about it.  Being forced by her father to masquerade as a man, Kylie wants nothing more than to be a proper lady, and I loved the dichotomy between the two, especially in the Wild West.  You would almost think that Kylie is a damsel in distress, but just when her boots are quaking, her spine stiffens and her manner changes.
 
Those changes make for an exciting story, because Kylie lives a dangerous and action-packed life.  She has a lot to be afraid of.  I’ve always wanted to live on the prairie, but I’m not sure that I’d feel any differently than Kylie if I had to live in these conditions.  The suspense and the danger is high, and I couldn’t put the book down.
 
I’ve enjoyed every Mary Connealy story I’ve read, and this one is no exception.  It was a great read, and Tried and True is a great beginning to this new series.  I’m sure that the other Wilde sisters will make great leading ladies, and I can’t wait to read the next books in this series.
 
Click here to read other reviews on this bloggy hop or here to purchase your own copy now.
 
Mary Connealy writes fun and lively “romantic comedy with cowboys” for the inspirational market. She is the author of the successful Kincaid Brides, Lassoed in Texas, Montana Marriages, and Sophie’s Daughters series, and she has been a finalist for a Rita and Christy Award and a two time winner of the Carol Award. She lives on a ranch in eastern Nebraska with her husband, Ivan, and has four grown daughters.

Find Mary online: website, Facebook, Twitter
 
I received a free copy of Tried and True from LitFuse Publicity in exchange for an honest review.

Jan Karon’s “Somewhere Safe with Somebody Good” Review & Giveaway

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Somewhere Safe with Somebody Good: The New Mitford Novel

In SOMEWHERE SAFE WITH SOMEBODY GOOD, Mitford’s engaging locals are back, from retired Episcopal priest Father Timothy Kavanagh and his intuitive wife Cynthia, to his loyal canine companion, Barnabas, and an eclectic mix of friends, neighbors and long-lost family. Now a few years into retirement, seventysomething Father Tim is feeling a bit unsettled, “trying to hammer out what retirement is for” while struggling with the realities of this new role. After a lifetime devoted to fixing things, he’s at loose ends and afraid he’s lost his passion. 

But thanks to his earnest, forward-thinking wife and the town’s colorful residents, he discovers that there is still much to be done in Mitford, even if his job status has changed. His adopted son Dooley needs guidance as he and his fiancée learn to live with the scars of the past and forge a new life together. Dooley’s younger brother Sammy, still angry over his mother’s abandonment, is one stumble away from disaster. And the uncertainty of taking the offer of another pulpit sends Father Tim in another direction entirely. Happy Endings bookstore owner Hope Murphy urgently needs the priest’s helping hands in her shop as well as his deepest prayers for a healthy, happy ending to a dangerous pregnancy. 

But above that, what each of them wants and needs is the very thing a wounded young Cynthia Kavanagh had yearned for years earlier: to be somewhere safe with somebody good. Her prayers were answered when a hard-working sixty-two-year bachelor priest proposed during a spectacular sunset.  Mitford’s residents ask for nothing less as they navigate life’s twists and turns, offering powerful lessons for us all.

Part love story, part calming character study, SOMEWHERE SAFE WITH SOMEBODY GOOD is an enchanting reminder of the shared values that hold communities together—if we open our hearts and embrace them.

 I’m Jan Karon’s newest fan.  I’ve never read any of the Mitford books until now, but I’ve been missing out.  Mitford is a small, close-knit town with a very colorful cast of characters, and they have absolutely hilarious interactions.  Father Timothy makes a wise, kindly daddy figure for much of the town as they go about their days, often turning to him for advice or a reaction to the latest disaster.  The father himself tries to be proactive and helpful in the town, through charity work and generally being a good neighbor, all of which put him in the perfect position to lend a helping hand or a listening ear.

Of course, that often means ensuing hilarity, mixed in with sage book quotes, wise advice, and the kind of plot that feels too real to be a fictional story.  I really loved Somewhere Safe with Somebody Good – Father Timothy is wise enough to make the plot thoughtful and the townspeople’s actions zany enough to add levity to the story.  I also appreciated Cynthia’s relationship with Father Timothy and the faith sprinkled throughout, for this really took the drama to a different level and set this story apart from most other dramatic stories.

I’ll be looking up the rest of the Mitford novels soon.  I can’t wait to read the rest.  

What about you?  Have you been to Mitford yet?  Read on to find out how to win your own copy of his book!

Jan Karon is the author of the bestselling series of nine Mitford novels featuring Father Timothy Kavanagh, an Episcopal priest, and the fictional village of Mitford. She is also the author of thirteen other books, including adult fiction, a cookbook and several books for children. She lives near Monticello, Virginia.

Jan Karon Giveaway

I received a free copy of Somewhere Safe with Somebody Good in exchange for an honest review.

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