Thursday, March 27, 2014

The Soldier's Secrets

The more I read Love Inspired books, the more I like them.

Let's just say this book REALLY made me want to read the first one in the series, Sanctuary for a Lady. It is now on my TBRRN list. (That's "to-be-read-right-now" for those who didn't know. *wink*) And I JUST heard from Naomi that her third book in the series comes out in January of next year!! Yeah!!

Book Rating: Best of the Best

Holy smokes!! This story was excellent. Naomi is a truly gifted writer and she really knows how to hook you into every scene. There's a lot of excellent action, great history (you know I love history!!) and seriously, there's a kiss in this book that is--well, it's perfect.

Bridgett Dubois, the heroine, is very wonderful. Tough, sweet, generous, thoughtful--I really liked her. She is a widow with several children and works hard to make sure they are safe--which isn't an easy task. Her father-in-law is blackmailing her--and what he's forcing her to do could ruin everything. (Don't want to give too much away here, ladies, but it's pretty exciting!!)

Jean Paul (our beloved hero--really, REALLY fabulous) is haunted by his actions during the French Revolution--even though he had acted in the name of liberty. When he meets Bridgett, he finds that perhaps he can open his heart once again, but he fears what she will think of him when she discovers the truth of what he's done.

The emotions that were woven into these characters were very real and at times, extremely touching. One of things that I found especially interesting was the history. The extent of my knowledge about the French Revolution comes from The Scarlett Pimpernel and Les Mis. Not super great. So, this really opened my eyes on some things I had no idea about.

You can't wait to read it, can you?? *teehee*

Congratulations, Naomi, on another wonderful story! I know readers are going to love it, just like I did!!

Happy Reading!
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Monday, March 10, 2014

No Place for a Lady

I was very excited to start this book thanks to a recommendation by my very dear HCR friend, Candy!! Candy has great taste and we have very similar "likes" in books, so I knew I would enjoy this one--and I did!!

Overall, I'm a big Maggie Brendan fan. I've read several of her books, though not all. This particular novel was intriguing enough, but I picked up on a few writerly things that made the story less fabulous than it might have been otherwise . . .

Allow me to explain.

Book Rating: Somewhere between Up All Night'er and Here a little, there a little

Maybe being a writer taints me as a reader, I don't know. But when I started this book I noticed right away a few things that turned me away from the story no matter how engaging it was. I won't spend much time on those things, but let it suffice that I found the actual writing passive and telling a lot of the time which pulled me out of the story.

The basic plot--girl with no family goes to a Colorado ranch and ends up needing to run the place. Honestly, even though there are almost too many of these plots to count, I still like them! There's great conflict, and just so many fabulous opportunities for romance, don't you think? *grin* The premise and setting were intriguing enough to keep me interested, but honestly it was the characters that I found less so . . .

The heroine, Crystal, didn't really come alive to me. I didn't get to know her and "feel" her emotions and struggles as I would have liked, but I think that might have been due to the writing style. Again, this is just my opinion. As for the hero, it's hard not to fall for a cowboy--am I right?! In this case, Luke is pretty great. However, even though their relationship just didn't have to spark I was looking for. But again, that might have been due to the writing style--or maybe it's just an Amber thing.

There were some really great scenes that I don't think I've ever really seen in another book--won't say what they are cuz I don't want to give it away . . . but in that repsect, I found it a very enjoyable read.

Thank you, Cathy for this fabulous recommendation! And please, if any of you ever have a recommendation please let me know--I'm always excited to learn about new books!

Happy Reading!
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Saturday, March 1, 2014

The Ransom

Imagine me 13 years younger, in a cute blue and white cheerleader outfit with a smile the size of Montana.... and don't you dare laugh! ....OK, maybe you can laugh a little bit.

Give me an "A": A!
Give me an "L": L!
Give me an "E": E!
Give me an "X": X!

Gooooooooo, ALEX!!! WOOOO!!!!! (Jumping up and down, waving pom-poms kicking--etc, etc.)

Well, I can tell you couldn't imagine such a thing without rolling on the floor, IN TEARS from laughter, but seriously--you will do the same thing when you read MaryLu's new book The Ransom. It is definitely one of THE BEST!

Book Rating: Best of the Best

I knew I was going to love this book. I am a HUGE MaryLu fan--in fact I can't think of a single one of her books that I didn't devour in a matter of days--or hours in some cases! This book was no different.

Juliana Dutton is not unlike many heroine's you have read about--but that doesn't stop her from being fabulous! Stubborn and brave, Juliana is determined to continue her mother's legacy of caring at the orphanage and run her dying father's business no matter what anyone says--or does to stop her! If only she can get that dashing--and frighteningly mysterious--Pirate Earl out of her mind.

Alex Hyde is just about one of the most dashing heroes I have ever read, ladies. (Hence the cheering at the beginning...) The thing I really enjoyed about this hero was his struggle to find himself and his eventual "coming to Christ".  Not only were his good looks (think Chris Hemsworth in Snow White and the Hunstman...) and charm enough to make any woman stay up until three in the morning, you get to enjoy several FABULOUS rescue scenes, and we KNOW ladies love a damsel in distress, right?! *teehee* At least I do....

There are so many fun twists and mysteries in this book, I don't want to say much more for fear of giving anything away. But I will say this--the setting, Port Royal, Jamaica was enchanting! MaryLu can always make you feel, taste and smell everything around you. Let's just say, as much as I loved it, I wouldn't have wanted to visit there! Yikes! (Read it and you'll know what I mean!)

Thank you so much, MaryLu, for allowing me to read this as an influencer! I loved every word and can't wait for more!!

Here's where the GIVEAWAY comes in! If you are interested in being entered to win, please comment below and tell me which of MaryLu's books is your favorite! Don't forget to leave your email addy. This giveaway will be open for two weeks. Tell your friends! Believe me--you'll want to read this!

Can't wait to hear what you think about this one!

HUGS ALWAYS!


Happy Reading!!
BUY IT! (Just FYI, right now it's only available in ebook, but in a few days it will be available in print as well!!)