by admin | Mar 30, 2019 | Books, Historical, Mystery, Romance, Western
MY REVIEW:
When You Are Near is a rousing introduction to Tracie Peterson’s new Brookstone Brides series. What’s not to like about an all-girl wild west show, trick horseback riding, murder and mystery, wrapped with with a bit of romance?
The Bookstone Wild West Extravaganza is a family owned and operated show that travels from town to town in railroad cars. The Brookstone family car was parked on a side rail during their stay in each town and housed the family. It was fun to imagine life on the rails with this family as I read their story. I also found details about trick riding and the work involved to be of interest. The characters were mostly likeable with the exception of a couple of true villains. I enjoyed seeing how many of them relied on their strong faith even in the midst of difficult trials. Plenty of action, conflict, and various relationship developments including a possible love triangle helped to hold my interest throughout the entire book.
Once again Tracie Peterson has managed to grab my attention and hold it through the entire book. Not only that but she has me eagerly awaiting the next installment of this series.
I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by Celebrate Lit. A favorable review was not required. All views expressed are my own.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
| Book: When You Are Near
Author: Tracie Peterson
Genre: Christian Historical Romance
Release Date: March 5, 2018 |
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After her father’s death, Lizzy Brookstone, a trick rider in the all-female Brookstone Wild West Extravaganza, wants nothing more than to quit her role as the star of the show and live a quiet life on her family’s ranch. But returning home would bring Wesley DeShazer, the ranch’s foreman and the man who broke her heart, back into her life. In addition, the Brookstones’ new manager fears that Lizzy’s departure could doom the already cash-strapped show.
Hope grows in Lizzy during a stopover at Fleming Farm. Ella Fleming not only has a natural talent for trick riding and could easily replace Lizzy, but she’s eager to join the show to flee a forced betrothal. However, while there, one of the show’s wranglers is killed in a manner Lizzy finds suspicious. And during her escape from the farm, Ella stumbles across a secret that could affect all of their lives, as well as the future of the Brookstone Extravaganza.
Click here to purchase your copy.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Tracie Peterson (www.traciepeterson.com) is the bestselling, award-winning author of more than 100 novels. Tracie also teaches writing workshops at a variety of conferences on subjects such as inspirational romance and historical research. She and her family live in Montana.
GUEST POST FROM TRACIE:
Introducing…When You Are Near!
I’m excited about the new Brookstone Brides series and had so much fun researching for the various characters and locations. This is a story about a fictional Wild West show with all female performers. Prior to the rodeos we see today, the Wild West shows traveled throughout America and Europe to entertain people and give city dwellers a taste of what the American frontier was like. At least their version.
Buffalo Bill Cody was famous for his shows, which brought Native Americans and their culture into the world of people who might otherwise never have even seen an “Indian.” Pawnee Bill was another entertainer who sought to keep these shows alive.
For the fictional show in my novels, I wanted to focus on three female characters who became a part of the Brookstone Wild West Extravaganza for varying reasons. Lizzy Brookstone is the heroine in book one, When You Are Near, and as the daughter of one of the show’s owners, she has enjoyed a starring role as a trick rider.
For research I went to Pueblo, Colorado to the ranch of Karen Vold, a famous trick rider and rodeo star. Linda Scholtz, a famed trick rider, was teaching a clinic there along with Karen at the Red Top Ranch Trickriding School.
These are two remarkable Christian trick riders who have long worked to keep the sport alive. I spent three days getting to know them and what they do and learned so much. And just to prove that we weren’t all work and no play, I thought I’d share my attempt at trick riding. What I won’t do for research!
The series will have three books, as usual, and each book will focus on a different lady and her skills. Mary is a trick shooter like Annie Oakley, and Ella is a Roman rider who stands on the backs of two horses for her part in the act. It was so interesting learning about each of these types of performers, and I hope you’ll get a chance to read all three and enjoy the stories of the Brookstone Wild West Extravaganza.
| Among the Reads, March 26
The Power of Words, March 26
Christian Author, J.E. Grace, March 26
Inklings and notions, March 26
The Meanderings of a bookworm, March 27
Chas Ray’s Book Nerd Corner, March 27
Library Lady’s Kid Lit, March 27
Vicky Sluiter, March 27
Carpe Diem, March 28
The Avid Reader, March 28
Genesis 5020, March 28
The Lit Addict, March 29
Jeanette’s Thoughts, March 29
Back Porch Reads, March 29
Just the Write Escape, March 30
Splashes of Joy, March 30
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, March 30
Emily Yager, March 31
Daysong Reflections, March 31
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, March 31
Life of Literature, April 1
EmpowerMoms, April 1
For the Love of Literature, April 1 |
Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, April 2
Through the Fire Blogs, April 2
Stephanie’s Life of Determination, April 2
For Him and My Family, April 3
Remembrancy, April 3
Inspiration Clothesline, April 3
Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, April 4
Locks, Hooks and Books, April 4
Pause for Tales, April 4
Older & Smarter?, April 5
Stories By Gina, April 5
Book by Book, April 5
Bigreadersite, April 6
Book Bites, Bee Stings, & Butterfly Kisses, April 6
Connect in Fiction, April 6
Godly Book Reviews, April 7
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, April 7
Texas Book-aholic, April 7
Blossoms and Blessings, April 8
janicesbookreviews, April 8
A Reader’s Brain, April 8
The Becca Files, April 8 |
GIVEAWAY:
To celebrate her tour, Tracie is giving away a grand prize of When You Are Near, Tracie’s A $25 Barnes and Noble Gift card, and the three books in The Heart of Alaska series and three other winners will receive a copy of When You Are Near!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.
https://promosimple.com/ps/dcdd/when-you-are-near-celebration-tour-giveaway
by admin | Mar 27, 2019 | Books, Historical, Romance, Western
MY REVIEW:
Another wonderful book from Ruth Logan Herne, A Most Inconvenient Love takes up where The Sewing Sisters’ Society leaves off. Also set in Second Chance, North Dakota, this book features Rachel Eichas who has recently taken a job in town as the school teacher. Seb Ward is a businessman who comes from a wealthy family in Minnesota but is estranged from his father whose personal and business transgressions go against everything Seb stands for.
Seb has kept his distance from the townspeople as he worked hard to grow his business. When a young boy arrives on a train who Seb learns is is brother, changes are in store for both Seb and Rachel who bonds quickly with the boy. Each has a difficult past to overcome in order to learn to trust enough to love but young Eli might just be what it takes to help them.
I loved this excellent book with its strong theme of forgiveness and trust and moving past the wounds inflicted by others. Plenty of surprises as well as just the right touch of humor make this book a very enjoyable read. I do hope that more Second Chance books are in store for Herne’s readers.
I voluntarily reviewed a digital copy of this book provided by Just Read Tours. A favorable review was not required. All views expressed are my own.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Sober businessman Seb Ward may have come from a wealthy lumber-baron family in Minnesota, but he knows that appearances can be deceiving, and that his illustrious family is pretty dysfunctional. Being in another state has provided the buffer he sought from his father’s misdeeds, but when a little boy shows up on a train… a little boy who looks enough like Seb to be his own child… Seb’s faced with a dilemma. Raise the boy as his own, or let his mother suffer the embarrassment of “a brother by another mother.” And when the boy takes a shine to the Rachel Eichas, the newly contracted school teacher, Seb can’t help but do the same. But Rachel was raised by an unloving, business-first father and there’s no way she’s looking for those same qualities in a husband. Can she see through Seb’s focus and drive to find the loving man within?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Best-selling, multi-published, award-winning author Ruth Logan Herne is the author of nearly fifty novels and novellas through traditional publishers and her own independent works. She loves God, her family, country, coffee, chocolate and dogs, and wishes possums would leave the cat food on the side porch alone. And yet… they don’t. With over a million books in print, Ruthy is living her dream of touching hearts and souls by writing the kind of books she likes to read.
She lives on a pumpkin farm in Western New York where they grow all kinds of cool things for fall from sumptuous squashes and veggies to gorgeous stacking pumpkins. Ruthy’s farm is quickly becoming the place to be every September and October!
CONNECT WITH RUTHY: website | Facebook | Twitter
by admin | Mar 27, 2019 | Books, Historical, Romance, Western
MY REVIEW:
The Sewing Sisters’ Society is a warm-hearted collection of novellas set in Second Chance, South Dakota. The name of the town is a pretty good hint about the kind of people who make up its population, especially Hattie McGillicuddy who seems to always be on the lookout for someone else to help. She is all about second chances at life.
Books include The Pastor Takes a Wife, Second Chance Christmas, and Second Chance at Love. Each one features a different young woman desperately in need of a home and a job but mostly someone who cares. Hattie manages to work her magic on Macy, Nellie, and Ann with a bit of subtle nudging in the right direction toward the very young men who need them in their lives.
I loved these books, especially the lovable and unique characters. Hattie was a dear who couldn’t help getting involved in other’s lives, but in a good way. No gossip from her! The book contained just the right blend of drama, humor, and romance to make it a perfectly light-hearted read yet was also filled with a wonderful story of faith and redemption. You can’t go wrong with this novella collection!
I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by Just Read Tours. A favorable review was not required. All views expressed are my own.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Hattie McGillicuddy might not look like your typical matchmaker, but Hattie makes things happen in the little town of Second Chance, South Dakota. With the arrival of the railroad and official statehood, Hattie’s determined to bring brides west, and not just any brides. Brides who need the wide open prairie as much as the prairie- and the prairie men- need them! Three pioneer stories of unlikely love are woven around a little town full of homespun characters that take us back to another place and another time but with the same faith, hope and love we cherish today.
Macy can’t sew a lick, and she’s come to town with a sacrifice and a secret, but when Hattie’s first apprentice is attracted to the pastor of the only church in town—the man raising her illegitimate son— will the truth set her free? Or make her leave the town and her son behind? (The Pastor Takes a Wife)
Unjustly accused, Nellie comes west to escape the law. She has a way with tucks and gathers, and every Western town could use more tucks and gathers. She’s determined to improve the drab look of the prairie and manages to brighten hearts as well. But will her quick speech and firm ideas of women’s suffrage draw Levi Eichas closer or send the somber carriage maker running? (Second Chance Christmas)
Grief has robbed Ann Hazel, but when her aunt pushes her to go west and help an ailing Hattie McGillicuddy turn hems, Ann’s shamed into it. She’s managed to avoid life for awhile, but when Sol Eichas’s nanny comes down sick, Ann reluctantly agrees to help. As she winds her way around Sol’s heart and home, can the two troubled souls leave the past behind to embrace a future together? (Second Chance at Love)
PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Best-selling, multi-published, award-winning author Ruth Logan Herne is the author of nearly fifty novels and novellas through traditional publishers and her own independent works. She loves God, her family, country, coffee, chocolate and dogs, and wishes possums would leave the cat food on the side porch alone. And yet… they don’t. With over a million books in print, Ruthy is living her dream of touching hearts and souls by writing the kind of books she likes to read.
She lives on a pumpkin farm in Western New York where they grow all kinds of cool things for fall from sumptuous squashes and veggies to gorgeous stacking pumpkins. Ruthy’s farm is quickly becoming the place to be every September and October!
CONNECT WITH RUTHY: website | Facebook | Twitter
by admin | Mar 22, 2019 | Books, WWII
MY REVIEW:
What a delightful book! I have not previously read anything by this author but will definitely be on the lookout for her books in the future. By the end of the book, all the characters were as familiar as old friends, each with a distinctive personality of his/her own.
Dolly Chandler’s boarding house is filled to the brim with people who have come from all over the country to her little corner of Alabama for work. All strangers, their lives become intermingled under the influence of Dolly and her husband as well as some of their neighbors on “the loop”. The old house has a few secrets of its own, especially the rumor of the former owner who disappeared with his wife on their wedding day never to be seen again. It was also rumored that the owner was a pirate who had stashed his treasure on the property before his apparent untimely death.
Almost Home is a story of faith, hope, and healing that is rife with the mysterious and surprises. I enjoyed the way some of the home’s history was related through some old journals. Then there was the big surprise at the end but you’ll have to discover that for yourself.
I loved this book and look forward to reading more by this talented author!
I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group. A favorable review was not required. All views expressed are my own.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
The things that tear us apart can also bring us together
With America’s entrance into World War II, the town of Blackberry Springs, Alabama, has exploded virtually overnight. Workers from all over are coming south for jobs in Uncle Sam’s munitions plants–and they’re bringing their pasts with them, right into Dolly Chandler’s grand but fading family home turned boardinghouse.
A struggling young couple from the Midwest, unemployed professors from Chicago, a widower from Mississippi, and a shattered young veteran struggling to heal from the war are all hoping Dolly’s house will help them find their way back to the lives they left behind. But the house has a past of its own.
When tragedy strikes, Dolly’s only hope will be the circle of friends under her roof and their ability to discover the truth about what happened to a young bride who lived there a century before.
Read an excerpt HERE.
Purchase a copy HERE.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Valerie Fraser Luesse is the bestselling author of Missing Isaac and is an award-winning magazine writer best known for her feature stories and essays in Southern Living, where she is currently a senior travel editor. Specializing in stories about unique pockets of Southern culture, Luesse has published major pieces on the Gulf Coast, the Mississippi Delta, Louisiana’s Acadian Prairie, and the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Her editorial section on Hurricane Katrina recovery in Mississippi and Louisiana won the 2009 Writer of the Year award from the Southeast Tourism Society. She lives in Birmingham, Alabama.
