Tuesday, March 6, 2018

Review & Giveaway: Beneath the Bellemont Sky by Ranee S. Clark


Heidi Reads... Beneath the Bellemont Sky by Ranee S. Clark

My rating: 5 stars / It was amazing

http://www.amazon.comhttp://www.amazon.comhttps://deseretbook.com/p/beneath-the-bellemont-sky-5201070?ref=Grid%20%7C%20Search-1&variant_id=158037-paperbackhttp://www.goodreads.com

Synopsis

As WWII draws to a close, war widow Vera Larsen Trumbell knows all too well the sacrifices of those left on the home front. Working on her family's farm has sustained Vera and her young children, but she now yearns for a sense of normalcy. The end of the war has been bittersweet for the Larsen clan as they and the residents of their small Wyoming town continue to pick up the pieces of their former lives.

Navigating the complexities of a postwar world, Vera and her family face the changing ideals swirling around them. From rising controversy surrounding women's presence in the workplace to the town's cold reception of the newest member of the family—a beautiful French freedom fighter—the American dream of days gone by has been thrown off balance. Even Vera's own life is set spinning when, despite her better judgment, she feels a growing attraction for the brooding and mysterious local schoolteacher.

As the Larsen family and their neighbors tread on thorny territory, will the people of this small town find the strength to embrace an unfamiliar and extraordinary future?

My Review

I fell in love with the family this book centers around! It's not just about Vera, but is told from various points of view as the issues and relationships of each sibling is explored. I've always enjoyed movies and shows with a strong ensemble cast and this book had the same feel. I love learning about this time period and was especially interested in the women who joined the workforce while the men were fighting the war, and how gender roles shifted as more opportunities opened up for women to support themselves. One of my favorite characters was Andrew's French wife Josette, and I loved seeing how the newlyweds adjusted to their new life together. Highly recommend to fans of historical fiction!

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Book Tour Excerpt & Giveaway: Heart's Desire by Catherine Lanigan


On Tour with Prism Book Tours

***Premiering as Sweetest Heart on the Hallmark Channel March 17th 9 PM ET***
(check your local listings for your air time)

http://amzn.to/2oLfGupHeart's Desire
(Shores of Indian Lake #2)
Catherine Lanigan
Contemporary Romance
Paperback & ebook, 191 pages
August 1st 2014 by Harlequin Heartwarming
Goodreads│Amazon│Barnes & Noble│Harlequin

His homecoming is bittersweet…for both of them

Café owner Maddie Strong is finally ready to take her burgeoning cupcake business to the next level. With the help of handsome businessman Alex Perkins, her future's all mapped out. Until her first love comes home.

At seventeen, Maddie adored Nate Barzonni with her whole heart and soul. But when he asked her to elope, she'd said no—she couldn't let him throw away his dream of becoming a doctor. Then he vanished from her life for eleven years. Now the cardiac surgeon has returned to Indian Lake asking for a second chance, and Maddie has to choose between her new life…and the man she never stopped loving.

Excerpt

     Valentine’s Day,” Maddie whispered. “A moneymaker day.” She smiled, then felt her smile drop off her face like icing off a cake when it’s been sitting in the sun too long. For the first time in over a decade, Maddie remembered that Valentine’s Day was a day for love.
     She’d received beautiful flowers a few days ago, which was a first for her. Alex had even called her last night to make certain they’d arrived.
    “Hey, beautiful. Happy Valentine’s Day tomorrow,” he’d said, his voice filled with anticipation. He spoke in a sultry baritone she’d never heard during their office meetings. Their conversations had always been about profits, projected earnings and potentials.
    “They’re just gorgeous,” she’d gushed. “So exotic. Especially for this time of year.”
   “I like unusual and unexpected things. Were you surprised?”
    “Very. I couldn’t figure out who would be sending me flowers.”
    “Ah. That’s good,” he said. “I wanted you to have something special while I was away...” His voice trailed off as if there was something else he was going to say before he thought better of it.
     “So I don’t forget you? Is that what you were going to say, Alex?
      “You’re going away?”
       “To Dubai. For three weeks,” he’d said, as if in apology.
       “United Arab Emirates,” she’d whispered as her mind flitted halfway across the globe. “That’s a long way.”
      “It is. Listen, I scheduled a meeting for us when I get back. We’ll need to catch up. And I’m hoping to have an investor for you by then.”
     Maddie’s heart had actually tripped a beat. “Investor?”
    “I don’t want to get your hopes up quite yet. But I have someone on the line. I’ll tell you about it when I get back. You take care, Maddie. I’ll try to text you while I’m gone. I hope their cell coverage isn’t as bad as the last time I was there.”
   “You’ve been to Dubai before?”
     “Several times. I’m working on something....” He had a way of leaving valuable information hanging in space like tiny crumbs leading to hidden treasure.
    Remembering their phone conversation, Maddie’s head was filled with thoughts of Alex. He was like a dream to her. He was tall, blond and wide-shouldered, and had a very strong jaw that looked as if it was chiseled from granite and a dimple in his chin. His blue eyes were the color of cornflowers in summer. His smile revealed sparkling white even teeth, and his full lips completed a face so handsome she finally understood why the Greeks invented a god of male beauty. Alex could have been a dead ringer for Adonis.
   The first time she’d met him in his office, she was impressed with his confidence, sincerity and assuredness. He was the kind of man people trusted with their entire life’s savings. He was the kind of executive people turned to when their world was crashing down around them. Maddie’s first impression was that this man was smart enough, savvy enough, to turn around even the worst-case scenarios.
   Now, he’d sent her flowers, and he’d been especially sweet to her on the phone, making her think about things romantic.
   It had been a long, long time since Maddie had had time or room in her thoughts for anything other than her passion for her career.
   Romance was something she’d discarded when she was seventeen, when Nate Barzonni had asked her to marry him and then left town the next day. He’d never called or written. She’d never received an explanation. He’d simply disappeared.
   For over a decade, she’d been heartbroken and very, very angry.
   No, Maddie thought. Romance was something that existed only in her past

Other Books in the Series


About the Author

Catherine Lanigan is the international bestselling and award-winning author of over forty-five published titles in both fiction and non-fiction, including the novelizations of Romancing the Stone and The Jewel of the Nile. Ms. Lanigan’s novels have been translated into over twenty-four languages. Lanigan was tasked by the NotMYkid foundation to pen a collection of compelling and informative true stories of teen addicts. Ms. Lanigan’s SHORES OF INDIAN LAKE series for HARLEQUIN HEARTWARMING includes LOVE SHADOWS, HEART’S DESIRE , A FINE YEAR FOR LOVE, KATIA’S PROMISE, FEAR OF FALLING, SOPHIE’S PATH, PROTECTING THE SINGLE MOM, FAMILY OF HIS OWN, HIS BABY DILEMMA, TOO CLOSE TO THE FIRE (2018) and MY RACING HEART (2019).

The Hallmark Channel will air HEART’S DESIRE on March 17, 2018.

Ms. Lanigan is a frequent speaker at literary functions and book conventions as well as inspiring audiences with her real stories of angelic intervention from her Angel Tales series of books. She is an outspoken advocate for domestic violence and abuse and was honored by The National Domestic Violence Hotline in Washington, D.C. She has been a guest on numerous radio programs including “Coast to Coast” and on television interview and talk show programs as well as blogs, podcasts and online radio interview programs. She writes a monthly blog for Heartwarmingauthors.blogspot.com. Visit her at www.catherinelanigan.com, on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter @cathlanigan, Pinterest, Goodreads and Google+.


Tour Schedule
Tour Giveaway

 

1 winner will receive a $50 Amazon eGift Card
Open internationally
Ends March

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Monday, March 5, 2018

Review: Phoebe's Light by Suzanne Woods Fisher


Book One in the Nantucket Legacy series

Heidi Reads... Phoebe's Light by Suzanne Woods Fisher

My rating: 5 stars / It was amazing

http://www.amazon.comhttp://www.amazon.comhttp://www.barnesandnoble.comhttp://www.bookdepository.comhttp://www.goodreads.com

Synopsis

Phoebe Starbuck has always adjusted her sails and rudder to the whims of her father. Now, for the first time, she's doing what she wants to do: marrying Captain Phineas Foulger and sailing far away from Nantucket. As she leaves on her grand adventure, her father gives her two gifts, both of which Phoebe sees little need for. The first is an old sheepskin journal from Great Mary, her highly revered great-grandmother. The other is a "minder" on the whaling ship in the form of cooper Matthew Mitchell, a man whom she loathes.

Soon Phoebe discovers that life at sea is no easier than life on land. Lonely, seasick, and disillusioned, she turns the pages of Great Mary's journal and finds herself drawn into the life of this noble woman. To Phoebe's shock, her great-grandmother has left a secret behind that carries repercussions for everyone aboard the ship, especially her husband the captain and her shadow the cooper. This story within a story catapults Phoebe into seeing her life in an entirely new way--just in time.

In this brand-new series, bestselling author Suzanne Woods Fisher brings her signature twists and turns to bear on a fascinating new faith community: the Quakers of colonial-era Nantucket Island.

My Review

So rich in historical detail! I loved learning about an era and location in history that I knew pretty much nothing about, and now I'm fascinated. I'm not usually a fan of a dual time-line story, but the author balanced it perfectly, with Phoebe and Matthew's perspectives told in third person POV, and the journal entries of her great-grandmother Mary in first person. The majority of the book is about Phoebe and her growth through harsh trials, which is enhanced by the parallels of Mary's growth in the well-placed excerpts. The pace of the book was rather slow at first, but I've found that with this author's beautiful writing I appreciate the time she takes to build the setting and develop the characters so that when the pace quickens and the plot climaxes, I'm completely enthralled and invested in the outcome. Hard lessons are learned, secrets are revealed, yet Phoebe's stalwart faith supports her and encourages those around her when they need it most. I'm loving this new series by one of my favorite authors and am looking forward to more!

(I received a complimentary copy of the book; all opinions in this review are my own)


Check out the next book in the Nantucket Legacy series . . . 

Book Two

http://amzn.to/2Gcbr26

http://www.amazon.comhttp://www.amazon.comhttp://www.barnesandnoble.comhttp://www.bookdepository.comhttp://www.goodreads.com

Synopsis

Six long years ago, Captain Reynolds Macy sailed away from his bride, looking forward to the day when he would return to Nantucket Island with a ship's hold full of whale oil. But when that momentous day finally arrives, Ren soon discovers that everything has changed in his absence. Everything. "Is nothing on this island as it appears to be?" he whispers in despair.

Unlike most islanders, bold and spirited Daphne Coffin doesn't defer to Ren as an authoritative whalemaster, but sees through his aloofness to the aching heart beneath. She encourages him to return to his Quaker roots and "mind the Light," finding solace in God and community. As Ren becomes the man she believes him to be--honorable, wise, faithful--she finds herself falling in love with him.

But how can she, when her heart is spoken for? Tristram Macy is Ren's business partner, cousin, and best friend--and Daphne's fiancé. Love always comes at a cost, but when is the price too high?
 
Suzanne Woods Fisher welcomes readers back to the Quaker community on Nantucket Island for this riveting love story, full of unexpected moments.



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Saturday, March 3, 2018

Lucky is Reading! Giveaway Hop



A book that I feel lucky to have read is the newest from Carrie Turansky, Across the Blue! I felt like the history really came to life and the characters were great. Enter to win a copy below and check out the other blogs on the hop! Special thanks to Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing for providing the giveaway!

GIVEAWAY! Across the Blue by Carrie Turansky

http://www.amazon.comhttp://www.amazon.comhttp://www.barnesandnoble.comhttp://www.bookdepository.comhttp://www.goodreads.com

Synopsis

Set in Edwardian England and ideal for readers who enjoy Julie Klassen novels, this romance about an English aviation pioneer and the girl who falls in love with him is filled with adventure and faith.

Isabella Grayson, the eldest daughter of a wealthy, English newspaper magnate, longs to become a journalist, but her parents don't approve. They want her to marry well and help them gain a higher standing in society. After she writes an anonymous letter to the editor that impresses her father, her parents reluctantly agree she can write a series of articles about aviation and the race to fly across the English Channel, but only if she promises to accept a marriage proposal within the year. When James Drake, an aspiring aviator, crashes his flying machine at the Grayson's new estate, Bella is intrigued. James is determined to be the first to fly across the Channel and win the prize Mr. Grayson's newspaper is offering. He hopes it will help him secure a government contract to build airplanes and redeem a terrible family secret. James wants to win Bella's heart, but his background and lack of social standing make it unlikely her parents would approve. If he fails to achieve his dream, how will he win the love and respect he is seeking? Will Bella's faith and support help him find the strength and courage he needs when unexpected events turn their world upside down?



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