As Dawn Breaks by Kate Breslin

 

This book is rich in portrayals of the Scottish culture during the WWI time frame.  Rose and her friend Tilly work in a munitions factory.  That's about all I can tell you about the story without giving spoilers, but I highly recommend this book!  It is intriguing and there is a lot of action and suspense included in a sweet story of friendship and family ties and belonging.  It has every element to make this historic novel a great read.

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

A Flicker of Light by Katie Powner

 

This is a beautiful novel showing the relationships and loves of four generations of a family.  The setting is Montana ranch / farm country. Bea and her husband of one year come to stay with her dad, Mitch, a widower, when they suddenly find themselves expecting a child and without jobs.  They plan to stay only 3 months to get back on their feet but life happens.  Mitch's mother, June, is suffering from memory problems and bouts of confusion.  Rand, Mitch's father, is having difficulty taking care of his wife's medical issues.  The family is sweet and loving and interesting from the beginning of the book to the end.  Sometimes they are at odds with each other but no one can deny how much they love each other. Their Christian faith also comes into play.  The way they resolve the issues and their love of "home" is endearing.  

Please read this book.  It's worth putting at the top of your "to read" list.  

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

The Shadow of Memory : A Kate Hamilton Mystery by Connie Berry

 

Kate is an American antiques dealer who is in England helping a British dealer, Ivor with his business. She has become acquainted with local Detective Inspector Tom Mallory and they have become engaged. They are both parents of grown children and they need to decide whether they will live in England or the U.S. after they are married. Meanwhile, someone is murdered nearby and an entity that Ivor and Kate have been hired by to arrange an antiquities auction has some irregularities. It appears that there may be a connection. What develops is a mystery that both Tom, in his official capacity, and Kate in her civilian role work to solve together.

I love these types of stories and this one has all the elements I like. I highly recommend this book to my mystery fan friends.

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

Trust Me by Kelly Irvin

 

Laney's brother, Corey, was murdered ten years ago and Laney's boyfriend and her brother's best friend, Hunter was tried and convicted of the murder. On the day Hunter gets out on parole, another friend (Corey's girlfriend and Laney's best friend) is brutally murdered, also by stabbing. Hunter becomes an immediate suspect but he is determined to find out who did it and who murdered Corey so he can prove to Laney that he didn't do it. Laney's not too sure about whether Hunter was guilty either so they try to find out who the culprit was, much to the chagrin of the officer that had Corey's case and now has the new case.

This is full of questions about who could be responsible, close calls, boiling emotions and just a wonderful suspense read. I really enjoyed this one!

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

Waiting on Love (Ladies of the Lake #3) by Tracie Peterson

 

Elise's father is the Captain of the Mary Elise, a cargo ship on the Great Lakes.  Elise has lived on the boat with her family all her life and now that she is grown up and her mother is deceased, she does all the things her mother used to do, including cooking, laundry and other chores on the ship.  

Nick Parker hires on as the First Mate.  He grew up in priviledge and then followed his heart and became a ship's captain.  After some set backs, and meeting Elise and her father, he asks to be hired on the Mary Elise.  

There are a lot of circumstances that need to be resolved to include sheltering Elise's sister from an abusive husband, a possible murderer on the crew and rough weather.  This is a great story and I am especially happy about the fact that the main characters had strong Christian ethics and a love for God and the Bible.  

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

A Time to Love (The Time Travel Journals of Sahara Aldridge #3) by Tracy L. Higley

 

Part 1  A Tune to Seek

Wow! Just Wow! That's my first reaction. This book is very difficult to put down so I suggest anyone who reads it makes a block of time for it ahead of diving in. The research that was done on this was extensive and in depth. The characters were wonderful. The sense of ancient Egypt history is unbelievable. But the story itself is riveting. Time travel is always a fun concept and it is interesting to see different author's thought processes on how this would work.

Sahara was the daughter of two archeologists whose specialty was Egypt. They disappeared on a trip to Venice when Sharah was 15. Sahara became an archaeologist as well who specialized in Ancient Egypt and became part of digs of the Pharoahs' tombs. She had always wondered what happened to her parents and about the clues she had found in their belongings. She also wondered about unexplainable things that had happened to her. She was about to get some more clues.

 Part 2  A Time to Weep

Sahara Aldridge continues her search for her parents and sister in the annals of time in this time travel story.  No matter how much she tries to make the connection she seems to just barely miss contacting them.  This time it is Rome in the time of the Emperor Nero.  

Part 3  A Time to Love

Sahara's search continues and this time she and her parents and her fiance are all trying to figure out ways they can be together.  

I can't say enough about this series and Tracy Higley's expertise and artistry.  Trace Higley never disappoints and this series is a blockbuster.

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I purchased on Amazon.  All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

The Heart of a Cowboy (Colorado Cowboys #2) by Jody Hedlund

 

I feel the need to repeat a little about book 1 before I review book 2 of this series.  I am anticipating at least 5 books before this series is over and I wish I had them all at hand right now!  This is such a fun saga.  

In book 1, Greta accepted a request from Colorado for a mail order bride hoping the climate would be better for her little sister with consumption.  When she arrived, however the prospective groom was missing.  A fellow traveler who lived in the same town, arranged for Greta to marry Wyatt, a struggling local rancher. 

Wyatt had left a bad situation back at his family farm in the East to try and find a new situation for his mother and younger siblings.  

Meanwhile, (Book 2), Flynn, his next younger brother was left holding the bag on the family farm with an abusive stepfather and an ailing mother and all his other siblings to take care of..  His mother died and his stepfather kicked them off of the family farm that had been in their family for several generations.  The Civil war was heating up and one of his brothers snuck off and joined the Union Army.  Flynn took the other two siblings and headed to Colorado driving some cattle Wyatt had bought.  He met up with Linnea and her grandfather when he saved Linnea from drowning during a river crossing.  Linnea's grandfather and herself and the other botanists who made up their expedition started traveling in the same group with Flynn just for protection from outlaws and Indians and other perils of the trail.  

Book 1 was wonderful and exciting.  Book 2 was even more intrigue and action.  Book 3 should be a dandy along with hopefully a 4 and a 5 if there is one for each sibling.  You  need to read these two and put Jody Hedlund on your favorite authors list so you can keep aware of when the next book in the series will be available..  

I have voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion. 

Foundation of Love by Amy Clipston

 

Crystal Glick is in her 30s and never married because the man she thought she was going to marry moved to Ohio instead of staying and settling down with her. Then her father died and she moved in with her brother and his ever growing family. She was pretty resigned to her lot until Duane Bontrager and his sons came to work on the roofs on her brother's farm. Duane was 14 years her senior but there was an instant connection on both their parts. Crystal has to work through her ex-boyfriend suddenly moving back after 5 years away and trying to restart their relationship, exhaustion trying to keep up with her brothers 8 children -- all young -- two sets of twins, and the input of everyone around her. Duane also has to put up with the opinions of his bishop and his friends and deal with the reactions of his grown sons who are still mourning this mothers death two years earlier. This is a fun book with lots going on. I enjoyed it thoroughly and read right through it in a day.. Amish fiction is getting more diverse and much more fun to read and I especially like Amy Clipston's take on Amish life.

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

A Deep Divide (Secrets of the Canyon, #1) by Kimberley Woodhouse

 

Emma Grace had come to the edge of the Grand Canyon to be a part of the new Harvey House that has opened there.  She has been a Harvey Girl since she ran away from home at 17.  She is trying to escape the people who are looking for her since her father died and left her an heiress who was tied up in legal contracts for marriage to her father's investors which was a major scam. Meanwhile, Ray, a wealthy young gentleman who is trying to please his father so he can take over his father's business.  His father wants him to take pictures of the local sites and do some research for him.  

I love reading about the Harvey House hotels / restaurants in the early 1900s.  This book was especially interesting and there was intrigue and surprises enough to satisfy fans of that genre.  It was well researched and well written.  

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

Every Knee Shall Bow (Constantine's Empire #2) by Bryan M. Litfin

 

Flavia is a nun during the time of the Emperor Constantine.  Constantine became a Christian and started spreading Christianity in Rome and all his Kingdom.  Pope Sylvester used Flavia, an heiress, and her mother and a priest to travel to Constantine to get funding for building Catholic edifices in Rome and creating a Bible for his use after having a council determine which manuscripts should be included for the New Testament.  Flavia and her party get hijacked along the way and pressed into slavery.  Rex, a former soldier for Constantine, who has fallen into disfavor and who was in love with Flavia before all the drama started (see book 1 of this series), has problems of his own but manages to come through and rescue Flavia.  Their adventure continues as we learn some of the problems of the early church and learn about the culture and religious thought.  The Gnostics are part of the "bad guys" and their view is well explained.  I love all the research that went into this book and the author's grasp of this history.  This series is worth having on your bookshelf.  It will help you learn more about early Christianity in a non-boring and very entertaining way.  

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

Love on the Range (Brothers in Arms #3) by Mary Connealy

 

What can I say that I haven't already said about Mary Connealy's books?  She is a master of plot, intrigue and hilarious characters.  This third book in the series ties it all together and is full of surprises and humor.  Ever since Mary Connealy started writing I have been following her series and I am always waiting (rather impatiently) for the next book to come along.  You can't go wrong here.  Put her at the top of your favorite author list!

This one is the story of Wyatt and Molly and makes the Hunt family complete.  If you've read the first two books of the series you have been waiting for this one!  If you haven't read them, go back and get them and catch up on the story and then read this one.  This is one of this author's best series so far.  She doesn't have an actual best because they are all entertaining in their own way.  

I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.