Harvest Moon

Beginning with a plane crash that leaves a tiny girl orphaned and working through an accident that kills his son, Gavin Robinson is in a dark hole in his soul.  When he finds that he and his ex-wife, Laurel, have been named guardians of the little girl, Emma, he has to face his past and fight for his future.  

This is the darkest, saddest book I've read in a long while, and I truly can say I only enjoyed the last quarter of the book.  The rest of the plot was overwhelmingly too sad for me.  I couldn't handle it.  The redemption of the book came in the court case very near the end of the book.  

After having read the first two books in the series, I was rooting for Gavin and his prospects for love.  I knew he was a wounded soul that needed to find his healing and to find the ONE for him.  

Denise Hunter used flashbacks as a way to build the chronology of the relationship between Gavin and Laurel.  She also dealt with dysfunctional families, the incredible heartbreak of Alzheimer's Disease, and the hopes and dreams we all have for our lives.  

One of the more aggravating scenes for me is at a family dinner when Gavin and Laurel plan to announce that they are going to seek to be named co-parents for Emma.  Before they can make their announcement, Wes and Avery announce their engagement.  After the oohs and ahhs  and congratulations are exclaimed, Gavin makes his announcement that turns Wes and Avery's moment to dust.  In order to resurrect the light moment, Cooper and Katie announce their pregnancy.  Everyone seems to be stepping on the others in order to gain a moment in the spot light of the family.  It's like no one has learned the concept of reading the room. 

This is a three star book.  

Thomas Nelson provided the copy I read for this review.  All opinions expressed are solely my own. 

 

Pockets of Peace

I read at least one of the books in this series by Laurie Stroup Smith, and I truly enjoyed it.  This one was a quick read but didn't hold the same enjoyment for me.  

Lydia Byler gave birth five years ago under rather unpleasant circumstances.  She felt she had no other alternative but to give her baby up for adoption to a couple who were really good friends.  In the intervening five years, she was not living at home and was working in another friend's hardware store.  

When the opportunity came for Lydia to go to Pinecrest. Florida, to help another friend with her bed and breakfast while she recovered from a knee replacement, Lydia jumped at the chance.  For the last five years, she's been in a long-distance relationship with Wesley Hochstetler. Wesley is thrilled at being able to renew his relationship with Lydia.  The only thing is that Wesley doesn't know about Lydia's son. 

Again, Laurie used the romance novel formula, but this time it seemed too abrupt.  It is not a long novel to read, and it has its fun moments, but it's not as good as the other one.  It is easy to read in one sitting, and there are a few familiar characters to make the reading seem like settling in with a great friend. Four stars

Vinspire provided the copy I read for this review.  All opinions expressed are solely my own. 

 

Where the Road Bends

First, I'm going to define a trope:  A trope in literary terms is a plot device or character attribute that is used so commonly in the genre that it's seen as commonplace or conventional.  Rachel Fordham used many tropes in her newest novel, so much so that I felt I'd read the book before.  

Here are some of the tropes Rachel used in Where the Road Bends: 

• Norah King finds a man on her farm who has been beaten within an inch of his life and abandoned there.  She drags him back to her house and nurses him back to health.  
• Norah is engaged to a man who promises to help save her farm, but he breaks it off right before the wedding because she helped to nurse  the man she found on her farm. 
• Two years later, the man, Quincy Barnes, finds a street urchin and takes him in, hoping to give the boy a better life than the one he had growing up.  At the same time that Quincy finds the boy, he also finds Norah in less than optimal circumstances and rescues her as well. 
• The man who was mistreating Norah comes back for her and Quincy again rescues her from his clutches. 

When my mother was a teacher, she taught in a small school district that put on a junior and a senior play every year.  Usually the plays were melodramas with bad guys, good guys, damsels in distress, and a few throw-away characters. In some ways this book reminded me of those plays.  That is not to say the book wasn't enjoyable.  It was.  I could engage with the characters, the humor that is woven into the plot is subtle and understated.  It seemed that everyone in the town where the majority of the story takes place is somewhat of a match-maker.  That just added to the fun of the book.  If the novel wasn't so trope-heavy, it would be a five-star book.  Four Stars.

Revell Publishing provided the copy I read for this review.  All opinions expressed are solely my own. 

 

The Heart of the Mountains

Anything by Pepper Basham is worth reading, and this book is just as worthy as any of her other books.  Pepper is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors, primarily because her writing is tight, compelling, engaging, and enjoyable.  Her plots are easy to follow, but not always predictable.  Her characters have a realism to them that make the reader engage with them.  Okay, enough gush. 

Cora needs to escape an unwanted marriage and does so by running away from England to North Carolina where her brother is a doctor and her uncle is a circuit-riding preacher. The area in North Carolina where Cora's brother lives is primitive in a way that hearkens back to a life style in a previous century.  It is a bit of an adjustment for Cora to live in her new surroundings. She is hoping to be of assistance to her brother because of her nursing experience during World War I.  

Jeb McAdams is a vet struggling with the demons he witnessed during the war, including losing his best friend. His friend left behind a widow and a child, and Jeb thinks he needs to marry her so that he can provide for her. The kink in the relationship is that he is attracted to Cora.  After rescuing her from a fall that could have meant her sure demise, he finds her fascinating and her caring nature compels him even further. 

Cora encounters the people of the mountains in trial-by-fire situations that call on all of her inner resources to help the people out.  She comes across alcoholism, abuse, poverty, and folklore healings, and in each case, rises to the challenge with the help of Jeb, Granny Burcham, and others.  

This was such a satisfying novel to read.  The romance between Cora and Jeb was quiet and understated, but grew out of a respect and friendship.  Other matches in the book were organic and natural as well.  Definitely a Five Star, Two Thumbs Up, and acceptance by a people closed off to the outside world. 

Barbour Books provided the copy I read for this review.  All opinions expressed are solely my own. 

 

The Inn at Wild Harbor

On Grace Worthington's website, she claims she writes sweet romances, and she does.  The Inn at Wild Harbor is a sweet read that engages the reader from the very first pages.  

Aspen has been in love with Matt forever, but she believes he is unattainable. When her Aunt Lizzy dies and leaves her inn to Aspen and her sister, Matt continues the work he'd been doing for Aunt Lizzy in maintaining the inn and the grounds. Unbeknown to Aspen, Matt has loved her almost as long as she's loved him, but both do such a good job of hiding their feelings for the other, it creates a tough hurdle to overcome.  

Aspen dreams of being a photographer and has submitted some of her photos at her job that get used without crediting her or remunerating her for them.  When she reaches her tipping point of no longer being able to withstand the abuse her boss and the clients give her, she stands up, makes a general announcement to the rest of the office and walks out the door.  One of the last things she sees before she leaves the office is an advertisement for a photo contest of "Hometown Heroes."  Now that she has no income for the foreseeable future, she decides she wants to enter the contest, and her subject of choice is Matt.  Getting him to pose for the picture is another challenge Aspen must face, but she does it with persistence and aplomb. 

This is the fourth book in a series, but it doesn't read like a series--it can stand alone with no confusion for the reader.  The setting had me confused at first, primarily because I didn't read the jacket blurb to know that it takes place in Michigan.  It could be set in North Carolina, or any coastal state, and still have the same impact.  Still the book is a sweet read that won't take up too much time for the reader.  

Four Strong Stars. 

Poets and Saints Publishing provided the copy I read for this review.  All opinions expressed are solely my own. 

 

By the Book

 

I have not been captivated by a book like this one did for a long time.  This is a modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast, with a bit of underhanded sneakiness thrown in for good measure.  I've read several adaptations of the Beauty tale and enjoyed them all, but this one has that certain je ne sais quoi and joie de vivre intertwined to make a thoroughly enjoyable read that is hard to put down.  

Izzy is working for the Tales As Old As Time Publishing company as assistant to the editor.  When she goes to a book/publishers convention in California with her boss, she hears her boss talk about one of her problematic authors who is dragging his feet about getting his manuscript in.  Izzy volunteers to beard the lion in his den and convince him to get his story written.  When she gets to Beau Towers' house, she is greeted by his housekeeper, Kettle, who tells her that Beau refuses to see her.  Then Kettle (aka Michaela), escorts Izzy back to her car, trips, and sprains her ankle, so Izzy helps her back to the house.  Her first face to face encounter with Beau is him blasting her into the next galaxy with his anger, and she gives back just as good as she gets.  Beau allows her to stay and help him with his memoir.  It's not love at first sight, it is uncovering hurts and anger, making amends, working past defenses, and finding there has been something to love all along. 

Jasmine Guillory is so good with her craft that it is easy to see the amount of work that has gone into writing such a fine novel.  Her settings are breath-taking, her characters are real people with flaws the reader can relate to, and the plot pacing is perfect.  

Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a homemade pastry for breakfast. 

Hyperion Avenue provided the copy I read for this review.  All opinions expressed are solely my own. 

Veil of Winter

Dastardly intrigue, greed, envy, lust (to a small extent), and general meanness populate the plot of this book.  It's a picture of our world today without the presence of Christ.  

Sir Gerard is a man in tune with God who hears a call for help and heeds it.  His sister had received a letter from her friend, Princess Elyce of Montciel, requesting aid to thwart an evil scheme her father has entered into with the king of Valkfeld.  Sir Gerard sees Elyce in a dream and knows that she needs his assistance in breaking this alliance and in fighting the enslavement of her people.  

Melanie Dickerson has taken several fairy tales, fleshed them out into novel-length tales that hearken back to the reader's childhood, but also touches something in the reader's adulthood.  For someone who has loved reading since an early age, I felt this book hit a  lot of notes with my inner child.  

There were times when the plot dragged a bit too much for my liking, but those were few and far between.  The characters were well fleshed-out.  I got particularly perturbed when Elyce's companion, Ysabeau, deserted her in her time of need.  I understood Ysa's motivation, but it still made me a bit mad, nonetheless. 

Four Strong Stars

Thomas Nelson Fiction provided the copy I read for this review.  All opinions expressed are solely my own.