The Song by Chris Fabry

Jed King’s life has been shaped by the songs and mistakes of his famous father. He wants to sing his own song, but the words and melody are elusive. Haunted by the scars inflicted by his broken family, Jed’s dreams of a successful music career seem out of reach . . . until he meets Rose.

As romance quickly blooms, Jed pens a new song and suddenly finds himself catapulted into stardom. But with this life of fame comes temptation, the same temptation that lured his father so many years ago.

Set in the fertile mid-South, this quest for success leads Jed and Rose on a journey that will force them to deal with the pain of loss, failure, and the desire to be who God created them to be.

Lyrical and deeply honest, The Song asks the hard questions of love and forgiveness. When even the wisest of men are fools in love, can true love persevere?

Wait For Me by Jo Huddleston

Can Julie, an only child raised with privilege and groomed for high society, and Robby, a coal miner’s son, escape the binds of their socioeconomic backgrounds? Set in a coal mining community in West Virginia in the 1950s, can their love survive their cultural boundaries? This is a tragically beautiful love story of a simple yet deep love between two soul mates, Robby and Julie. The American South’s rigid caste system and her mother demand that Julie chooses to marry an ambitious young man from a prominent and suitable family. Julie counters her mother’s stringent social rules with deception and secrets in order to keep Robby in her life. Can the couple break the shackles of polite society and spend their lives together? Will Julie’s mother ever accept Robby?

A Sparrow in Terezin by Kristy Cambron--Review

                                   

Two women, one in the present day and one in 1942, each hope for a brighter future. But they'll both have to battle through their darkest days to reach it.

Today. With the grand opening of her new gallery and a fairytale wedding months away, Sera James appears to have a charmed life. But in an instant, the prospect of a devastating legal battle surrounding her fiancé threatens to tear her dreams apart. Sera and William rush to marry and are thrust into a world of doubt and fear as they defend charges that could separate them for life.


June 1942. After surviving the Blitz bombings that left many Londoners with shattered lives, Kája Makovsky prayed for the war to end so she could return home to Prague. But despite the horrors of war, the gifted journalist never expected to see a headline screaming the extermination of Jews in work camps. Half-Jewish with her family in danger, Kája has no choice but to risk everything to get her family out of Prague. But with the clutches of evil all around, her escape plan crumbles into deportation, and Kája finds herself in a new reality as the art teacher to the children of Terezin.


Bound by a story of hope and the survival of one little girl, both Sera and Kája will fight to protect all they hold dear.

You can find it at these retailers and many more!

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About the Author

Kristy Cambron has been fascinated with WWII since hearing her grandfather's stories. She holds an Art History degree from Indiana University and has 15 years industry experience as a corporate learning facilitator and communications consultant. Kristy writes WWII and Regency fiction. She makes her home in Indiana with her husband and three football-loving sons. Website: www.kristycambron.com Twitter: @KCambronAuthor Facebook: Kristy-L-Cambron-Author

My thoughts:Suspense, romance, love, friendship and forgiveness all of these things and more are found in this book! Kristy takes you on a ride to the past and brings it to life like nothing I have seen before. The vivid pictures she brings to your mind through each seen will leave you wanting the next chapter and then the next. This was my first time reading one of Kristy's books and I couldn't put it down. Her characters are so lifelike and I felt as if I were right there in the middle of every scene and every place that the book takes you. This book spoke to my heart and desire to know more about the holocaust and World War 2. I was overcome by grief, joy and love all in what seemed like the same chapter! The lives of Kaja and Sera intertwine beautifully throughout the book. This book is the second book in the series but it reads well as a standalone. I understood the hints about the first book easily and it only made me want to read the first book more. You will definitely not be sorry for buying this book. It's well worth the money. 

I received this book through the booklookbloggers.com blogger program in exchange for my review. A positive review was not required.

Review for Adrianna's Secrets by Cheryl Colwell

Adriana's Secrets
Book Two in The Secrets of the Montebellis series

Tragedy strikes the mountain town of Mont Castello, the home of Adriana Montebelli. Orphaned in 1888, Adriana's life is swept along at the whim of forceful men who decide where she will live and who she will marry. Instead of breaking her, their cruel deceptions toughen her resolve to take control. Though she rises to manage the vast Van Buren estate, she wonders if her broken heart will have the strength to love again.

Follow Adriana's journey as she navigates the challenges of woman's suffrage, union violence, and the tragic hardships of love and loss, while struggling to cling to her faith.

This book is available at the following online retailers:

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My Thoughts: The book begins in 1917 at the end of a horrible cabin fire that leaves the main character distraught and ready for vengeance. We then travel back in time to 1888 to begin our journey through the life of Adrianna Montebelli. An orphaned girl who seems to always be thrown around by the men in her life. She longs so much for a man who is strong and gentle like her Papa, but can she find him? Will she be able to have the man she longs for? This book was well written and somewhat intriguing. It was a little bit of a slow start for me, but once I got to the meat of the story, I couldn't stop reading. I enjoyed the suspense element of the book and was very pleased with the romance also. Each aspect of the book was believable and entertaining.  I really couldn't believe how sad this book became. This book has several tear jerking moments, which I didn't expect.  It definitely added to the entertainment value of the book. This book is the second in a series, but not having read the first book I feel this book could most definitely be read as a stand alone. Adrianna's Secrets has so many different elements involved in it, that no matter the genre you enjoy reading it is bound to delight. I was so pleased with the ending of the book. I felt Cheryl completed the story very well and I didn't feel as if it was open ended or unfinished. This book is a must read for anyone who loves fiction or romance or suspense! 

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through the BookCrash.com book review program, which requires an honest, though not necessarily positive, review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Review For Finding Love in Bridal Veil, Oregon

Amidst a backdrop of thievery and murder in historic Bridal Veil, Oregon, a schoolteacher is torn between the memories of a distant love and the man who could be her future. Margaret Garvey had given her heart to Nathaniel, but he left town six years before. Now she’s giving love another chance, but her decision to build a new life with Andrew is shaken when Nathaniel steams back into Bridal Veil on a riverboat to work at the nearby sawmill. When disaster strikes the town and threatens the welfare of its citizens, Margaret will be faced with the most important choice of her life.

Miralee and her husband Allen have been married over 40 yrs. They live on 11 acres in the beautiful Columbia River Gorge in southern Washington State, where they love to garden, play with their dogs, take walks, and go sailing. Miralee also rides her horse on the wooded trails near their home with her grown daughter who lives nearby. She’s an avid reader and has a large collection of first edition Zane Grey books, which inspired her desire to write fiction set in the Old West. When she started writing fiction Miralee believed that she’d always stay with women’s contemporary, but has since branched out to historical romance. Her first two books were women’s contemporary with Kregel Publications, The Other Daughter, and Finding Jeena.

Miralee served as president of the Portland, Oregon, chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) for five years and currently serves on the board as an adviser, and she belongs to several other writing groups. She speaks at women’s groups, libraries, and churches about her writing journey, and has taught at both writers’ and library conferences.

Her fourth historical romance with Summerside Press in their Love Finds You series, Love Finds You in Sundance, Wyoming, released summer of 2011.  It won the Will Rogers Medallion for Excellence in Western Fiction. Mission Pictures is considering this book as a made-for-TV family movie. Universal Studios was considering The Other Daughter as a family movie at one time as well.

Miralee is currently under contract with David C. Cook for a three-book series of historical romance novels, set in Oregon. The first, Blowing on Dandelions, released in June 2013, book two, Wishing on Buttercups, released February 1, 2014., a novella, Forget Me Not (published by the author), released April 1, 2014, and the final book in the series, Dreaming on Daisies, released Oct 1, 2014.

Some of her books have a suspense thread as well as romance, and three have a higher degree of action with a decided Old West slant. Her current Love Blossoms in Oregon series will be somewhat of a women’s fiction/historical romance combination, with the emphasis on well-developed characters and plot.

Miralee is branching out into something new, a series of middle-grade girls’ horse novels titled Horses and Friends. The first book, A Horse for Kate, releases March 1, 2015, with each succeeding book releasing every three months after. These books will have an emphasis on friendship, horses, adventures, and will contain high moral values and lessons for kids woven into the story line. Watch for the titles–book two: Silver Spurs, book three: Mystery Rider, book four: Blue Ribbon Trail Ride.

Miralee is also published with Barbour–Shilo Run Press, with three novellas either in print or under contract.

My thoughts: I loved this book. There are plenty of twists and turns, and some romance but actually I found it almost more suspenseful. The romance aspect was well done. It wasn't cheesy or overdone. It was very realistic and believable. I enjoyed all of the characters. Each character was believable and realistic and very well done. I enjoyed Miralee's writing style and she did and excellent job with the historical aspect of the book. I also really liked the information she gave in the beginning of the book about Bridal Veil, Oregon. I was also very intrigued with the information she gave about family members from that time period that she incorporated into the book. Miralee has done an excellent job with this book on all levels and I cannot wait to read something else from her. 

This book is a re-release of the book Love Finds You in Bridal Veil, Oregon. Miralee is re-releasing it within the next few weeks. Be sure to pick up a copy.

I received a free copy of this book from Miralee to review/proof. A positive review was not required.   

My Top Five

Ok so I know I have posted a lot this week but I came up with this idea to give y'all a top five of the best books I have read. I thought I might do this ever so often, to give y'all some options to fill your reading lists. I am going back to my younger years with these. These are the books that first turned me on to adult Christian fiction.


1)  Love Comes Softly by Janette Oke

This book was probably the first adult christian fiction that I read growing up and to this day this is probably still my favorite. Here is a complete list of this series:

1) Love Comes Softly

2) Love's Enduring Promise

3) Love's Long Journey

4) Love's Abiding Joy

5) Love's Unending Legacy

6) Love's Unfolding Dream

7) Love Takes Wing

8) Love Finds a Home

2) Roses For Mama by Janette Oke

This is another one of my favorites and yes it is by the same author. This one touched my heart as a sister with younger siblings and again still one of my all time favorites.

3) Nana's Gift by Janette Oke

Same author I know, but once you start reading her stuff you won't be able to stop!

4)  Saint Ben by John Fischer

Get your Kleenex box out for this one! This is an amazing story of true friendship and learning how to fill the Jesus shaped hole in our hearts. Be for warned you will cry! There is also a second book to this called The Saints and Angels Song, which is also a good read. I had trouble finding his online so if you find it, snatch it up!

5) Seasons of Grace Series by Beverly Lewis 

This is a fantastic series by Beverly Lewis. I read this within the last year or two and I couldn't put it down. I was at my library everyday trying to get the next one, because I wanted so much to see what was going to happen. This is a three book series. The Titles are:

1) The Secret

2) The Missing

3) The Telling

These are some awesome books I hope you will try as I know I have several friends searching for new books to read. The best part about all of these books is you don't have to wait for the next in the series to come out. These are oldies but goodies and they are sure to please.

Happy reading, y'all!