Heidi Reads...

Wednesday, September 14, 2022

Review: Courting The Cowboy by Carolyne Aarsen

My rating: 3 stars / I liked it

Synopsis

Meeting the Cowboy's Family

Looking for inspiration, artist Ella Langton rents a cabin in the isolated Porcupine Hills of Alberta. She didn't count on having neighbors, but rancher Cord Walsh and his three children are just a stone's throw away. Still healing from a tragic accident, Ella has no plans of reaching out, but she's having a hard time keeping them out of her yard...and her thoughts. And when little Suzy ropes Ella into helping her with an art project, she can't help her growing feelings for the girl's rugged daddy. With three persistent children, Cord and Ella may find their fenced-off hearts opening up sooner than they thought!

My Review

I took me a bit to understand Ella, yet as each layer was revealed I loved how her journey took her from darkness to light. It was a process for her to embrace a new perspective with the unsolicited help from her overworked neighbor Cord, his friendly children, and his matchmaking father. As an artist I love when the main character is also creatively inclined, and it was interesting to see the various elements and influences of the art world and the pressure on her production and mental health. The pace of the narrative isn't always smooth, and I wished for more development of the romance between Ella and Cord to be shown. Overall it was a sweet read and I loved the happy ending.

Disclosure statement: A complimentary copy of this book was provided from a tour group, publisher, publicist, or author, including NetGalley, OR was borrowed from the library, including OverDrive, OR borrowed from Kindle Unlimited, OR purchased. A review was not required and all views and opinions expressed are unbiased and my own.

Check out the books in the Cowboys of Cedar Ridge series . . .

Review: Montana Groom of Convenience by Linda Ford

My rating: 5 stars / It was amazing

Synopsis

Their Marriage Bargain

Carly Morrison’s father issued an ultimatum: get married or lose her ranch. But while she can rope and ride as well as any man, leading one to the altar is another matter—until newcomer Sawyer Gallagher suggests a marriage of convenience. Their arrangement might be a sensible solution to her predicament, but Carly’s growing feelings are a genuine complication.

Desperate to provide a home for his orphaned sister, Sawyer takes a chance on lassoing himself to headstrong cowgirl Carly. He’s convinced he’s too hardened by life to love anyone…until their union is threatened. Is it too late to turn this practical partnership into a real Big Sky family?

My Review

This is definitely a character-driven story, and I loved how Carly, Sawyer, and his little sister are all strong, yet have hidden vulnerabilities that are slowly revealed as they get to know and rely on one another. Carly's dad is well-meaning but completely manipulative which I didn't care for, and he would have had a much healthier relationship with his daughter learning to communicate rather than manage her life through coercion. That being said, the chemistry and romance are spot-on, turning the marriage of convenience into a genuine friendship and partnership, despite the expectations Carly and Sawyer placed on themselves. Loved this sweet romance!

Disclosure statement: A complimentary copy of this book was provided from a tour group, publisher, publicist, or author, including NetGalley, OR was borrowed from the library, including OverDrive, OR borrowed from Kindle Unlimited, OR purchased. A review was not required and all views and opinions expressed are unbiased and my own.

Check out the books in the Big Sky Country series . . .

Tuesday, September 13, 2022

Review: Mail-Order Christmas Baby by Sherri Shackelford

My rating: 3 stars / I liked it

Synopsis

The Rancher's Special Delivery

The "package" is addressed to him, but rancher Sterling Blackwell certainly didn't order a baby! More scandalous still, he and the town's pretty teacher are named as parents. With gossip running wild, only a marriage of convenience can protect little Gracie and their reputations until her real family is found.

Heather O'Connor is content to be the spinster schoolmarm of Valentine, Montana…until Gracie's arrival stirs her heart. She can't keep the adorable child without Sterling's help, though she promises not to interfere with his life. But staying aloof from her handsome husband isn't easy with a tiny matchmaker in tow. A mistake brought them together, but love might just make them a family by Christmas…

My Review

What a conundrum these two are in! It's kind of a hopeless case of being forced into a situation because of a mystery and the reverend not standing up to gossip. I liked how Heather and Sterling made the best of it, and a true friendship grew. I thought the romance could have been stronger, and I missed the development of that aspect of their relationship. The plot is steady, although the narrative was a bit disjointed, but I was invested in the outcome of the mystery of where baby Gracie came from and who she really belonged to. The author dropped some hints as to the person stirring up trouble, and it was a sad reveal for the family to realize the betrayal. Baggage from the past woven in with faithful friends in the present gave Heather and Sterling plenty to figure out yet a strong support system while they did.

Disclosure statement: A complimentary copy of this book was provided from a tour group, publisher, publicist, or author, including NetGalley, OR was borrowed from the library, including OverDrive, OR borrowed from Kindle Unlimited, OR purchased. A review was not required and all views and opinions expressed are unbiased and my own.

Blog Tour, Author Interview & Giveaway: Forged by Sara Davison

Forged JustRead Blog + Review Tour

Welcome to the Blog + Review Tour for Forged by Sara Davison, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: Forged

Series: The Night Guardians Series #4

Author: Sara Davison

Publisher: Mountain Brook Ink

Release Date: September 5, 2022

Genre: Christian, Romantic Suspense

The one missing person he can’t find

is the one who matters the most.

Private Investigator Jax Rodriguez has been searching for his brother, Diego, for twenty years. When he stumbles upon another lead, he makes an agonizing decision—he will follow this last trail until it grows cold, and then he will marry the woman he loves and abandon his quest once and for all.

Artist Mikayla Grant is terrified of losing another person close to her, but she has to let Jax go after his brother. Given the secrecy surrounding Diego’s disappearance, clearly Jax is heading into danger. When all contact with him is abruptly cut off, can Mikayla trust that God’s promise to never leave or forsake Jax will be enough to bring him safely home, or does she need to take matters into her own hands?

As Jax attempts to survive the dangerous streets of Caracus, Venezuela and then face the myriad of unknown threats in the El Yunque Rainforest in Puerto Rico, he is not the only one following his brother’s trail.

A ruthless drug lord bent on revenge is using all his resources to discover the truth about what happened to Diego. If Jax can't stay one step ahead of his pursuer, then he, like his brother, could disappear and never be heard from again.

INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR SARA DAVISON

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

Sure! I live in Ontario, Canada, about an hour east of Toronto with my husband of twenty-six years and our three mostly grown kids, two 12-year-old cockapoos, and a rabbit.

What do you do besides writing?

Writing is my passion, but I also have an editing business and love mentoring new writers. In my spare time, I love reading, of course, and belong to two book clubs and three writer’s groups. Other favourite hobbies include meeting friends for coffee, walking, watching movies (especially old classics – Jimmy Stewart is my all-time fave!), and going on road trips.

What was your favorite part of researching for this book?

Forged was a lot of fun to research, as it is set in Caracas, Venezuela, and the El Yunque rainforest in Puerto Rico. Although I wrote it during the pandemic and couldn’t actually travel to those places, I watched countless YouTube videos that made me feel as though I was right there. I also read books on Venezuela and Puerto Rico as well as talking to friends of ours who spent a few years in Puerto Rico. It was the next best thing to actually being in these beautiful countries, although some day I definitely hope to do that, especially since the research I did on some of the culinary specialties made me extremely hungry!

Do you have images you can share that come close to how you picture your characters?

Yes, absolutely.

Do you like to find visual inspiration for your characters before or during your writing process?

Sometimes I do and sometimes I don’t. I have written a few books without trying to find images of my main characters, but I do always have a very clear picture of them in my head as I’m writing. For Forged, I actually drew more inspiration by looking at pictures of the places where the story takes place, which helped me to fully immerse myself in the settings.

What message would you like readers to ultimately take away from the book?

The underlying theme of all my books is that whatever we are going through we are never alone. God has promised to never leave us or forsake us, and even when we can’t feel him or it seems as though he is far from us, he is there, watching over us and walking through our trials with us. This theme is especially prevalent in Forged, as there are numerous references to “the fourth man” in the fire with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. The main characters cling to that story and to God’s promise to be with them as they go through their own fiery trials.

What can we look forward to coming from you in the future?

I am currently working on book two in a different series with a human trafficking theme, two sparrows for a penny. Every Flower of the Field, the sequel to Every Star in the Sky, is coming out in February 2023. After that, I will be working on the third book in The Rose Tattoo Trilogy, Sharp Like Glass (book one in that series, Lost Down Deep, won the Carol Award for romantic suspense in 2021). So, lots going on!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sara Davison is the author of four romantic suspense series—The Seven Trilogy, The Night Guardians, The Rose Tattoo Trilogy, and two sparrows for a penny, as well as the standalone, The Watcher. A finalist for more than a dozen national writing awards, she is a Word, Cascade, and Carol Award winner. She currently resides in Ontario with her husband, Michael, and their three mostly grown kids. Like every good Canadian, she loves coffee, hockey, poutine, and apologizing for no particular reason.

Connect with Sara by visiting saradavison.org to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

TOUR GIVEAWAY

(2) winners will receive a paperback copy of Forged and $25 Amazon gift card.

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight September 12, 2022 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on September 19, 2022. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US/CAN only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

Review: Calm in the Mountain Storm by Misty M. Beller

My rating: 4 stars / I really liked it

Synopsis

This epic journey will test his ability to protect his children—and they’re all he has left.

Missionary Elise Lane returns with her team to the Rocky Mountain native tribe they serve to discover the entire village—including the children she’s come to love—has been massacred. A fierce brave standing at the edge of the devastation has taken the only surviving child.

Goes Ahead returns home with his son to find his worst fears have come true—his entire village has been slaughtered, including his wife. Only their infant daughter has survived. But there’s no time for grief or vengeance. He must get his children across the mountains to the protection of his family.

The last thing he wants is help from the white people who’ve brought this disaster on his village, but his babe is not yet four moons old. Her hungry cries prove he can’t make this journey without the white woman already nursing a babe of her own. But she refuses to come without the rest of her group, including the opinionated missionary who thinks she knows best for his children. As winter closes in and the mountains prove treacherous beyond anything Goes Ahead can control, only a strength and love greater than his own can save his children—and the woman he’s come to love.

From a USA Today bestselling author comes another epic journey through breathless landscapes and adventure so intense, lives will never be the same.

My Review

I love the adventures this author takes me on! This time we have Elise and her brother Ben traveling with Lola and White Owl from the previous book in the series. It's devastating to think about the bloodshed from the massacre, but the author moves on and focuses on Goes Ahead and his challenge to take his children across the wintery mountains to the village where he was raised. The group's mission to bring the gospel to the tribes allows them the flexibility needed to travel with him and provide assistance with his nursing baby and his wiggly young son. I loved the perspective of Goes Ahead with single parenting and the struggles with his children that his wife usually dealt with. It brought a level of vulnerability to the strong warrior and opened his heart to the message of faith from his new friends. It took him a while to trust, but their actions proved the intent, and even though the journey was rocky in more ways than one, Goes Ahead and Elise deepened their relationship along the way as they relied on each other and brought out the best in each other. I especially loved the reunion with Goes Ahead's estranged family and the healing that took place.

Disclosure statement: A complimentary copy of this book was provided from a tour group, publisher, publicist, or author, including NetGalley, OR was borrowed from the library, including OverDrive, OR borrowed from Kindle Unlimited, OR purchased. A review was not required and all views and opinions expressed are unbiased and my own.

Don't miss the other books in the Call of the Rockies series . . .

Monday, September 12, 2022

Review: Pumpkin Spice and Not So Nice by Becky Monson

My rating: 5 stars / It was amazing

Synopsis

If I were ever to write a memoir, it would be titled, Jenna Peterson’s Guide to Dating Emotionally Unavailable Men. I’m like a professional at it. I’m so good, I can take any dysfunctional man and turn him into Prince Charming, just in time for him to dump me and then go on to marry the next woman he dates. I’m about ready to give up on loving real men and focus on lusting over fictional men in the Turkish dramas I can’t stop devouring.

But then . . . I find a mysterious fifty-dollar bill with a handwritten note on it that was donated to my family’s pumpkin patch by accident. And wouldn’t you know it, the mystery man it belongs to is emotionally unavailable, albeit freakishly attractive. I keep telling myself to walk away, but there’s something about Aidan St. Claire that makes me want to unravel all his secrets. All I know is he sure can heat up the cozy fall nights. I can’t help but think that maybe this time I’ll get to keep Prince Charming for myself.

My Review

This was a such a fun book to get me in the mood for fall! I loved the farm and pumpkin patch setting that her family runs, with all the quirkiness and "pumpkiny" spirit. Jenna also has her own career during the week and she and Aiden spend time in other locations, but it still had a small-town vibe. Aiden is a bit of a mystery since he's so buttoned-up, and I love how he recognizes that Jenna's personality complements him so well that he feels comfortable opening up to her. She has her own baggage with past relationships that is woven into her humorous narrative, and she goes through her own realizations as she gets closer to Aiden and discovers some hard truths about herself. Because we only get Jenna's perspective in the book, it was fun to guess at Aiden's motivations and when he was attracted to her and feeling more than friendship. They have a great dynamic and I loved their chemistry. There was plenty of delicious anticipation and romantic tension which really made the book for me. I read this before its companion book, A Pumpkin and a Patch, and I was impressed that they provided a simultaneous timeline without being repetitive with dialogue, which made each book stand so well on its own.

Disclosure statement: A complimentary copy of this book was provided from a tour group, publisher, publicist, or author, including NetGalley, OR was borrowed from the library, including OverDrive, OR borrowed from Kindle Unlimited, OR purchased. A review was not required and all views and opinions expressed are unbiased and my own.

Don't miss the companion book by Jennifer Peel . . .

Wednesday, September 7, 2022