The Harvest of Grace - a Waterbrook Multnomah review

Harvest of Grace by Cindy Woodsmall is the third book in the Ada's House series. This Amish fiction book was a pleasant read, and even at 354 pages, it doesn't feel like a long read. It is full of action, but I'll warn you that you'll probably want to read the first two books in this series before you try to read Harvest of Grace, because there are a lot of characters in this one whose stories are told in the first two books.

Sylvia Fisher and Aaron Blank are the two main characters in this story. You will also find a continuation of the stories of Cara Moore and Ephraim Mast as well as Lena Kauffman and Grey Graber.

Sylvia Fisher has left her home where her sister has betrayed her and married the man that Sylvia had promised to marry. Knowing that she needs to remove herself from Elam's gaze so that her feelings will fade for him, she moves to a dairy farm where she works tirelessly from dawn till nearly dusk.

Aaron Blank returns home after he's become sober, and the reception that he'd hoped he would get from his parents was not there. Hoping to gain his parents' merit and get them to sell the dairy farm so that he can open a store, Aaron finds that his task will not be easy when he lays eyes on the hard-working Sylvia Fisher.

The characters in this story are developed so beautifully. I truly enjoy a book whose characters I can see differing personalities. It's hard to peg characters, and sometimes they all seem to have the same type of personality, but Cindy does a good job with the individual character qualities of these characters.

Once I finished reading the book, I was sad to find out that this is the final book in the series. Too much was left open to me. I like an ending--a flat-out "that's-it-and-they-lived-happily-ever-after" story. What happens to Grey and Lennie? Are they able to have children? I'd like to see more of Cara and Ephraim as well. So sad that these folks' stories are through!


I received The Harvest of Grace as a complimentary gift in exchange for review from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishers. My comments and opinions are my own.

Saving Hope

Saving Hope is a book right up my alley. Margaret Daley is an author whose books I've read in the past, so when I saw that she had a new book coming up, I wanted to snag it in a hurry!! If you love suspense and romance wrapped up in a Christian novel, this book won't disappoint!

This book is first in the series titled Men of Texas Rangers, so if you like Saving Hope, you'll want to keep looking for more from this series.

Kate Winslow, the director of Beacon of Hope, a shelter for teenage girls who have been caught up in prostitution rings, discovers that the shelter van is missing, along with one of her girls.

Wyatt Sheridan is a widowed father of teenage Maddie and is also a Texas Ranger. He has personal reasons for becoming involved with trying to break up the local teenage prostitution ring. When he and Kate Winslow come together to seek answers, Wyatt gets too close to finding the solution and Maddie becomes at risk for kidnapping by none other than the King of the ring himself.

This book is quite a lengthy story (a hefty 336 pages), but it doesn't feel like a lengthy read. It's a fast-paced story that will leave you breathless at times! If you're interested in reading a sample of this title, Margaret Daley currently has a sample on her website.

I'm grateful to have been given the opportunity to read and review Saving Hope through NetGalley and Abingdon Press. My opinions are my own.

Need You Now Part 2 - a BookSneeze review

This is Part Two of my reviewing of Need You Now, a novel by Beth Wiseman. If you've not read my review of Part One, you can do so here.

The first half of Need You Now left me feeling as if the storyline hadn't been set in stone yet. In some ways, that's off-putting to me, but in some ways I guess one could consider it good because of the "what's-going-to-happen-next" thoughts. However, the story felt too up in the air for me at the halfway mark, so I was a bit concerned for the second half of the book.

The second half continued to develop, though, and during the last 20 percent or so a climax quickly resulted. (I think the climax was a little too fast-paced.) The story included a struggle with Layla that I hadn't anticipated, and I felt that Beth did a great job with that portion of the story. (I like surprises.)

Darlene, stay-at-home-mom and her husband Brad continued with their marital struggle. Darlene misunderstood a phone conversation Brad had with another woman which caused her to act on an emotion that she shouldn't have. Feelings of guilt resulted, which compounded all of the other things going on in her life at that time. Her oldest daughter Grace was recovering from her issues with cutting, and her husband worked long hours. But it took an unfortunate accident to right the family's situation.

I've been an avid reader of Beth's Amish fiction, and Beth's breakaway from that mold to write a more contemporary novel was a fair transition, I feel. However, at times the conversations felt unreal or forced. I also felt that there were a whole lot of large issues that didn't get good fleshing. Grace's cutting problems seemed too easily resolved, as did the kissing episode with Dave. Ansley's character, I felt, could have easily been left out because she had little part in the story. I didn't feel a connection with the characters like I normally do, and when I saw I was at the last page of the book, I didn't have a feeling of "resolution". As beautifully as the last page was written, it felt disjointed.

I will praise Beth, though, on her writing of Darlene's job with Cara, the autistic child. I felt that that was well-written and Cara's character was sufficiently captured. Beth captured some very interesting ideals though (teen issues such as cutting, issues with infidelity, childhood and spousal loss, etc.), and I wish that these things would have been more developed. She could have easily made this one book into three or four or perhaps into a much larger series, encapsulating Layla's story, Dave's story and Darlene's. Perhaps Beth can still do that. I would enjoy a more developed story of these characters--I really think they've got super duper potential!! Flesh them out some more, Beth--I'd like to see these people in the future. ;)

I am a member of BookSneeze, a fabulous program through Thomas Nelson. BookSneeze sends members free books to read and keep in exchange for written reviews on a blog and on a major retailer's website (such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble).

Heaven in Her Arms - a BookSneeze review

Heaven in Her Arms: Why God Chose Mary to Raise His Son and What it Means for You is a new non-fiction book by Catherine Hickem, who (from her website) is a "speaker, author, coach, and relationship expert." I've reviewed another of her books--Regret Free Parenting--so when I saw she had another one out with emphasis on Mary, my curiosity was piqued.

Heaven in Her Arms uses Mary as an example for all of the fears and emotions that we as mothers go through. Chapter focuses include (but are not limited to): God looks at the heart, embracing fears, coming to God during times of need, reaching out for help and encouragement, having faith, praise, letting go, and trusting.

Catherine states in the prologue that God could have chosen anyone to carry and give birth to His Son, but He chose Mary. Why Mary? She was from the contemptible Galilean town called Nazareth, you know. God saw something uniquely special about her. Her faith must have been strong, she obviously must have trusted the Lord with her heart and leaned on Him for understanding. And just as God chose Mary to carry and nurture His Son, He also chooses us to carry our own and love them into His kingdom.

We as mothers struggle with a lot during our parenting years. Catherine reaches out to mothers who face insecurities, fears, and trust issues.

The book concludes with a study guide that you can use with your church women's group or in a book discussion setting.

If you're a mom, or striving to be a mom someday, this book will encourage your heart.

This book is due for release on April 17.

I am a member of BookSneeze, a fabulous program through Thomas Nelson. BookSneeze sends members free books to read and keep in exchange for written reviews on a blog and on a major retailer's website (such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble).

The Christmas Singing - a WaterbrookMultnomah Review

I loved this book. The Christmas Singing by Cindy Woodsmall is an Amish novel set in Amish towns in Ohio and Pennsylvania. The main character Mattie Eash moved to Ohio after her childhood love broke off their relationship. Determined to make a new start, she opens her own cake shop and her creativity flourishes. With a successful business, Mattie has it all--even a promising beau, safe and loyal.

But when her shop goes up in flames and she's forced to return to Pennsylvania at her elderly parents' request, she dreads what she knows will happen--seeing her ex-boyfriend Gideon.

Gideon Beiler has his reasons for breaking up with Mattie. In spite of her suggestion that he cheated on her, Gideon did not do that. But for him, it was easier to allow her to think that way instead of telling her the truth. Gideon's Mattie Lane, as he always called her, lived in Ohio but it didn't keep him from making visits every now and then to check up on her, in secret. When Gideon hears that Mattie Lane has returned to Ohio for a few weeks, he can't help but feel those old feelings stir up so strongly. But he must hold them to himself, because he knows she can't find out the truth.

This book was incredible. Cindy did a great job writing the story, and Gideon's secret kept me on the edge of my seat! This is a great story for the Amish enthusiast. I highly recommend this one! It's a keeper!

If you're interested in reading an excerpt, go to Cindy's website.





I received The Christmas Singing as a complimentary gift in exchange for review from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishers. My comments and opinions are my own.

Need You Now Part 1 - a BookSneeze review

Beth Wiseman is an author I've been reading for a while. I've really enjoyed her Amish books, and so when I was given an opportunity to review Part One of Need You Now, a non-Amish novel of hers, I was a willing participant! However, there's just something missing. The characters seem a little forced, and with every press of the button on my e-reader, I kept thinking that I'd find climax of the story or some kind of development in the characters' lives. Halfway through the book's finish (i.e. Finished reading Part 1), I'm curious to find out what happens to the characters. So far it seems that there are too many puzzle pieces that are left cluttering the table.

Darlene is a mother of three, has been a stay-at-home mom for many years. Now that her children are adolescents and are able to be fairly self-sufficient, she feels the desire to branch out. Her husband, a staunch provider, doesn't like the idea of Darlene getting a job outside the home, but supports her anyway. After Darlene gets a job as a teacher's aid at a school for special students, things start to fall apart in her family.

There are several other characters thrown into the story--the mysterious lady neighbor next door who has her own ranch but looks like a supermodel, the father of her student who develops feelings for Darlene, and friends of her children.

The story feels like it's coming together, but like I've said, it's just missing some "oomph." I'm excited to read the second half of the story to see what happens!

I am a member of BookSneeze, a fabulous program through Thomas Nelson. BookSneeze sends members free books to read and keep in exchange for written reviews on a blog and on a major retailer's website (such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble).

The Accidental Bride

The Accidental Bride, written by Denise Hunter, is a contemporary Christian romance novel. Set in a Montana town called Moose Creek, divorcee and single mom Shay Brandenberger finds herself face to face--at a wedding altar!--with the man who left her 14 years ago on the courthouse steps in her wedding dress. They had been high school sweethearts, but when Travis McCoy got cold feet and headed South to Texas to be a national rodeo champion, he left Shay's heart broken.

What they both didn't realize was that an elderly lady in town would try her hand at match making during the town's Founder's Day Wedding re-enactment. When Shay saw that her acting groom was none other than Travis, she knew she was stuck and had to go on with the act in front of the whole town. But when she and Travis found out that their old wedding license had accidentally gotten thrown into the minister's paperwork, got signed, and became a validated marriage, their world turned upside down.

If it wasn't for the fact that Shay's ranch was about to be lost, she'd never have agreed to stay married so that Travis could help. But what she didn't know was that Travis had more than saving her ranch on his mind!

This was a refreshing novel with some good, light-hearted romance thrown in. The book includes characters from another book called A Cowboy's Touch.

I'm grateful to have been given the opportunity to read and review The Accidental Bride through NetGalley. My opinions are my own.