Review: The Guest Book by Marybeth Whalen

My rating: 3 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

When Macy Dillon was five years old her father encouraged her to draw a picture in the guestbook of a Carolina beach house. The next year, Macy returned to discover a drawing by an unidentified little boy on the facing page. Over the next eleven years the children continue to exchange drawings ... until tragedy ends visits to the beach house altogether. During her final trip to Sunset, Macy asks her anonymous friend to draw her one last picture and tells him where to hide the guest book in hopes that one day she will return to find it---and him. Twenty-five years after that first picture, Macy is back at Sunset Beach---this time toting a broken family and a hurting heart. One night, alone by the ocean, Macy asks God to help her find the boy she never forgot, the one whose beautiful pictures touched something deep inside of her. Will she ever find him? And if she does, will the guestbook unite them or merely be the relic of a lost childhood?

My Review

This was a bit of a messy all-over-the-place book for me. Macy was dealing with (or avoiding dealing with) several issues, including grief over her father's death, her relationship with her mother, disapproval over her mother's way of dealing with grief, her brother's partying, being a single mother, dealing with her ex who had abandoned her with a newborn coming back to town after five years... and that's just the first few chapters. As the novel progresses, add on four men who are pursuing her each of which she is strongly attracted to in some way. The scenes jump from one guy to the next, and each help her move on in an important way, including turning back to God. The ending was just as messy, however all the chaos, lack of communication, and uncertainty felt very realistic and eventually it all came together.

 (ARC provided via Netgalley for unbiased review)

Review: Wishing on Buttercups by Miralee Ferrell

My rating: 4 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

Can Love Survive When Secrets Collide? She’d kept her secrets safely hidden—those from her past, and those in the present. Some things, Beth Roberts knows, a lady simply doesn’t share, even in the 1880’s West. The townspeople would never understand. No one ever has. Jeffery Tucker, a handsome young writer, has kept his own secrets. He doesn’t have a right to pry into Beth’s affairs but finds himself strangely drawn to her and intrigued by the whiff of mystery surrounding her. Beth knows that one day someone will unravel the threads of her past. And when two men from her past arrive, the truth might just hurt . . . Beth’s future and her heart. As shadowy memories surface, Beth sketches the scenes she sees and is shocked by what—and who—her illustrations reveal. Dare she risk her heart again?

My Review

This is the sequel to Blowing on Dandelions. I'm glad I read them in order since the characters from this book are introduced in the first, but it could be read as a stand-alone as well. I enjoyed reading about characters living in a boardinghouse, since it put everyone in closer proximity. The drawing talent of Beth added an interesting element to her personality, as well as the mystery surrounding her childhood. I was surprised when there were two "villains" introduced, but each had a separate role to play. Jeffery and Beth's friendship suffered from lack of communication at times, but the ending was sweet.

(ARC provided via Netgalley for unbiased review)

Review: Made to Last by Melissa Tagg

My rating: 4 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

Miranda Woodruff, star of the homebuilding show "From the Ground Up," will do anything to keep the job she loves. Due to a painful broken engagement and a faith she's mostly forgotten, she's let her entire identity become wrapped up in the Miranda everyone sees onscreen. So when she receives news that the network might cancel her program, she must do the very thing she fears most: let the spotlight shine on her closely guarded personal life. The only problem? She's been living a lie--letting viewers believe she's married--and now she's called upon to play wife to a sweet, if a bit goofy, pretend husband to boost ratings.

Desperate to help his family and prove he's not a total failure, reporter Matthew Knox is looking for a breakout story. When he's offered the opportunity to do an online serial feature on Miranda Woodruff, he jumps at the chance, even if celebrity reporting isn't really his thing. But as soon as he meets Miranda, he knows she's keeping secrets.

When Miranda's former fiance suddenly appears on the scene again, she doubts her life could get more complicated. Juggling three guys, an on-the-rocks television show, and the potential exposure of her deception is way more than she bargained for. Can the woman who makes things look so good onscreen admit it's time to tell the truth about who she is? And if she does, will the life Miranda's built come crashing down just as she's finally found a love to last?

My Review 

The entire time I was reading this book I kept thinking, "How on earth is she going to get herself out of this?!" It's one doozy of a pickle. The dialogue throughout the book is great, as well as the developing relationship between Miranda and Matthew. The main thing that bothered me was how lightly she treated her moral decisions- living with her past boyfriend and lying about her pretend husband. She acknowledges that they are wrong, but doesn't let that stop her from doing what she wants to get what she wants. The story is well-written, and eventually Miranda faces her regrets and makes things right.

(ARC provided via Netgalley for unbiased review)

$1.99 e-book sale for An Amish Kitchen

An Amish Kitchen e-book is on sale for $1.99! I enjoyed this compilation of three novellas- you can read my review here. Grab it on Amazon before the price changes!