Wishing on Willows: A Review

I just loved Robin in Katie Ganshert's first book (Wildflowers from Winter), and I had high expectations for this book. It lived up to every one. 

It's been over four years since Robin's husband died, leaving her pregnant. In book one, she begins the long grieving process by building a cafe, a dream she and her husband had first thought of on their honeymoon. Now, the small town is struggling, and the mayor wants to build condos on the land where her cafe is....with the help of the charming Ian, the contractor who makes her feel things she hasn't felt in years. Will Robin have to give up her heart and soul's work to help the town? 

Although I know the author is happily married, she captures grief so well. I felt like I was in Robin's heart as she dealt with the loss of her husband and now the possible loss of her cafe. At first I was thrown off by the random chapters written in first person, giving glimpses into Robin's past, but after the second one, they were some of my favorite parts, like the character was letting us in on her secrets. I could go on and on about how much I like Robin. She's a beautifully layered character.

Ian is just as wonderful, and Ganshert does a great job humanizing the guy who has come to take away Robin's cafe. The secondary characters are fantastic, and it was nice to catch up with Bethany and Evan from book one. Amanda, Robin's roommate, is an intriguing character, and I hope we'll see a book about her soon.

Despite the hard events in the book...death, cancer, unfulfilled dreams....the book offers a glimmer of hope in Christ even you don't get what you thought you wanted.

I received this e-book in exchange for my review, but I also ordered my own copy too. It's that good. 

Please take a minute to rank my review.

Giveaway!

Today, I'm giving away a copy of A Noble Groom by Jody Hedlund. I LOVED this book. 

To enter to win, tell me what you think makes someone noble. To me, a noble person is someone who does the right thing because it's the right thing, a person of moral principle.

Get a second entry by following the blog. (Be sure to leave a comment telling me you follow. I know that's annoying sometimes, but it's the easiest way to keep up with the number of comments/entries.)

I will pick a winner (via random.org) next Thursday. 
I can only ship to the US. 
Be sure to leave an email address so that I can contact you.

Congrats to Juli for winning Secretly Smitten. I sent you an email asking for your address.

Happy Resurrection Day Sunday. So thankful for Jesus and a light in this dark world. 

The Rancher Next Door: A Review

Although the premise is very similar to the author's last book (overprotective dad and a woman who helps him loosen up and be a real dad), I enjoyed this book because I really liked the characters. Brady and Caley are both interesting and well-developed, but the daughter Ava may be my favorite of the three.

The plot lags in the middle, but there was an great bull-on-the-loose scene at the beginning and a satisfying conclusion to even out the plot. I would have liked to see a little more of Caley in action on her job as a firefighter...to really know why she loved that career and to add a little action to the middle. I enjoy St. Amant's writing style and felt she captured the nuances characters and their professions perfectly.

Total side note...Caley doesn't really like Max, Brady's best friend and ranch hand. However, I found him intriguing and would love to see him get his own story. Hint, hint!

Overall, this is a sweet, enjoyable read, and fans of the Love Inspired books will want to check it out.

A Noble Groom: A Review

You know a book is great when you stay up past 1:00 am to finish despite the fact that you have to wake up a few hours later for work. This book is worth the lack of sleep.

In the year 1880, few women held on to dreams of a fairy tale life. Annalisa may tell her daughter all the stories, but she knows she'll never experience that kind of love. When her husband dies, leaving her to try to save their farm alone, Annalisa's father writes the family in their native land, asking for a husband for her. When Carl Richard arrives to help until Annalisa's intended  can come (and run from his past), Annalisa comes to care for him...despite the fact he's not the man she's to marry.

Although the summary sounds like it's mainly a romance, this book offers so much more: family, the harsh farming life, murder, and family loyalty vs. love.
I enjoyed the realistic look at farm life, which included some lice scenes that made my head itch.
The relationship with Annalisa and her extended family, especially her brother Uri, was strong and more complex than it first appeared. I was certainly thrown for a loop by a twist at the end with her sweet brother...I wish that twist would have been developed a little more.
Finally, I loved the characters of Annalisa, her daughter, and Carl. They are each unique and well-developed. I liked the way the old fairy tales/folk tales were woven throughout the story.

This has been my favorite book (so far) by this author. Fans of Christian fiction will enjoy this book. Perhaps just start it early enough in the day that you can finish by bedtime.

I received this book in exchange for my review. My thoughts are my own.

The Survivor: A Review

When she was a girl, Dr. Amy Garrett was attacked and left for dead. Although the assailant was never caught, Amy is ready to tell her story, and she asks author Kariss Walker (from book one in the series) to write her story. Amy's attacker comes out of the shadows at the news of the book, and Kariss just might have to turn to Tigo, her ex-boyfriend, for help when her life's on the line. 

The Survivor picks back up where the first book left off: full of adventure, suspense, and romance. 
First, the mystery: Although parts of the book are from the attacker's point of view, the readers aren't quite sure who it is, and Mills drops a few clues but keeps the identify as one of the final twists. The sideplot of the car bombing keeps the book moving along at a quick pace and makes the reader want to keep going.
Second, the romance: Kariss ended things with Tigo, but the feelings didn't stop. This book delves a little more into the characters, and there's a nice conclusion to Kariss' lingering questions about Tigo.

My only complaint was that there seemed to be a couple loose ends wrapped up a little too smoothly at the end or not really resolved at all (like Amy's brother). 

Overall, fans of Christian suspense will enjoy this addition the series. I do recommend reading them in order though!

I received this book in exchange for my review.

Name Suggestions Please

When I wrote my first manuscript, I knew the main character's name before I typed a word. Now that I've started my second story, I have a mental picture of my main character and what she's like, but every time I try a name, it doesn't feel right.

She's an ordinary girl in every way, the overlooked sidekick to a popular, beautiful girl. She's into photography, and everyone knows her as Natalia's friend instead of her name. So, I want her to have a good name, but I just can't think of it. In fact, I don't plan on saying her name pretty late in the book.

Any suggestions?

Giveaway!

I haven't done a giveaway in a while, so here we go. Today, I'm giving away Secretly Smitten, which is a cute, fun read. 

To enter to win, leave a comment about something that you are smitten about lately. I have two things: cookie dough and my first little garden. I say garden, but it's just four plants...three cucumbers and one broccoli. (Two broccoli plants were tipped over and destroyed....I'm blaming squirrels even though I have no evidence of this.)

To get a second entry, follow the blog and leave a second comment letting me know you follow.
Please leave an email address.
I'll pick a winner next Thursday.
I can only ship to the US.

Round One of Bluebonnet Books: Reviews

I'm excited about the new list of Bluebonnet titles for the 2013-2014 school year. The Bluebonnet List is a list of 20 books compiled by students/librarians/etc. Students in grades 3-5 across Texas read at least five books and then vote in January for their favorite. The winning book is announced at the Texas Library Association's conference in April.


(I must confess that in previous years, I haven't read all the books on the list....pathetic for a librarian, right?) This year, I plan to have them ALL read before the new school year in August.

So, here goes.

I was excited to read this book. David Shannon is huge in elementary libraries. The kids love the David books, and I know I can always get a reluctant new reader to check them out. 

Now, I must preface this by saying this book is on the 2013-2014 Bluebonnet List, which is a list for Texas students in grades 3-6, where they read the books and vote across the state for a winner. So, I was reading this book while keeping my students in those grades in mind. I like the idea of a mystery fish that no one can catch and the secret of the one person who did. However, I just didn't enjoy the book. I thought the story was a little corny and the pictures too dark. 

I'm eager to see how the students like it, but I don't think it will be a favorite. I'll probably stick to the David books for a Shannon read-aloud.

I have to admit I had never heard of Barnum when I picked up this book, but I enjoyed the tale of a man who had a gift for sniffing out dinosaur bones. 

Although biographies can often be dry reads, this book moves quickly with Barnum's finds and puts a personal perspective on the fossils that fill our museums. The illustrations convey the excitement Barnum and his colleagues must have felt when they found the bones. 

This book is on the Texas Bluebonnet List, a list voted on by 3rd-6th graders across the state, and I'm eager to see if they like this tale. Hopefully, it will prompt them to follow their dreams wherever they may take them. 

A Matter of Trust: A Review

As prosecutor Mia Quinn chats with her co-worker, she hears gunshots and listens to her friend's last breaths. Teaming with Charlie Carlson, Colleen's murder is linked to another prosecutor's unsolved murder. Will Mia be next?

Mia Quinn has a lot on her plate: grieving her husband's recent death, going back to work after being a stay-at-home mom, and now this. I think these added subplots add to the book because instead of just telling a murder mystery (which is exciting), the author also develops a complex and intriguing character in Mia. Charlie is just as interesting, and I am excited about seeing these characters in future books. 

The plot moves quickly, with each page adding to the suspense. Although the murder is the central plot, the book tackles bullying and the secrets those we love keep, making A Matter of Trust a little more thought-provoking than just a great mystery.

Combined together, the great characters and fast storyline make for a great read. 

I received this book in exchange for my review. My thoughts are my own.

Truth Stained Lies: A Review

When Jay gets an email from his soon-to-be ex-wife asking him to come over to work out the custody arrangement for their son, he rushes over.....just to be set up for her murder. Will his family be able to clear his name before his son is the next target?

With her latest, Blackstock gives readers another thrilling read, full of action, suspense, and character development. The action starts in chapter one when Jay finds his ex-wife dead and a clown fleeing from the scene and the action continues until the last page where hints of book two are revealed. 

The fact that this is the start of a new series is exciting to faithful fans like myself because it's the characters and their relationships with each other that make this book stand out in the suspense (with a hint of romance) sea of novels. Jay's sisters each have their own hangups, and I hope the next few books give us more insight into their pasts as we read about their future. 

Fans of Christian fiction will enjoy this latest novel by the fan favorite Terri Blackstock. 

I received this book in exchange for my review. My thoughts are my own.