With Every Letter (Wings of the Nightingale #1) - Sarah Sundin

Ever since I came across this author, I know that her books are something to look forward to.  I've had this one on my Kindle for some time, because I knew that once I started it, I wouldn't want to put it down.  Now that the kids are back in school, I was ready to dive into this book.  I've read her first series, Wings of Glory, in the past and really enjoyed them. That series included A Distant Melody, A Memory Between Us, and Blue Skies Tomorrow.

In this series, we're learning about the flight nurses in WWII.  Mellie is an outcast that has never learned how to make friends.  When she is convinced to join in a letter writing exchange, Mellie gets to be herself without having to worry about the man on the other end judging her by her looks or her awkwardness.  Mellie doesn't fit in with the other nurses and it puts her place on the squad in jeopardy.

Tom has been judged his entire life by the actions of his father.  His father was executed for murdering two people and there's even a children's rhyme that immortalizes the fact. To compensate for his father's past, Tom, an engineer, doesn't lead his men, he bribes them with rewards for getting their work done.  His leadership skills are coming into question because of his constant need to convince everyone that he is not his father.  He enjoys writing Mellie anonymously because he can be himself and not be judged.

A chance encounter causes Mellie to figure out who Tom is and she holds that information to herself.  She believes that if she tells him who she really is, he will reject her and he won't be able to be as open as he is in his letters.  As Tom struggles with his feeling between letter-Mellie and the real Mellie, he pushes to meet the letter writer and take his chances.  Mellie resists.

As with her other books, the author has obviously done her homework.  It is evident in the amount of detail you read in the scenes.  If you've read my review of A Distant Melody, you'll know that I am really interested in WWII history because of my grandfather.  I have to say that I was happy to see an honorable mention of the B-26 in the book, the plane my grandfather piloted, even though his service was a little later in the war than when this book is set.  I almost give myself eye strain reading Sundin's books.  There's a great balance of history and romance and I highly recommend them.  The second book in this series came out on August 1 and is called On Distant Shores.  It tells the story of Georgiana and I anxiously await a price drop! Remember to read these in order for the best read.  Great Book!

Diary of a Real Payne #1 - Annie Tipton

I don't normally read too many children's books, but I saw this one pop up on Netgalley and wanted to give it a chance.

These days there is a trend of diary books.  Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Dork Diaries, etc.  I was intrigued by the idea of a Christian themed series of the same type.  My kids love diary books so finding more books they will read is always something I’m watching for.

Emma Jean (EJ) – is the daughter of a minister and a second-grade teacher.  She has a little brother and all the problems of a 10-year-old.  She thinks that she’s going to have the worst year ever with her fourth grade teacher Ms. Picky and avoiding her arch-nemesis, CoraLee.

This book isn’t all diary.  The chapters start out with a diary entry and then we hear EJ’s story.  The copy that I read didn’t have all the little pictures that make these types of books so appealing to children.  For a sample of those, I used the sneak peek at amazon that lets you look inside.

Overall, this book is a winner.  Having read some of my daughters’ diary books, I had something to compare this book to.  If I had one complaint, I think it would be some of the people that EJ uses when she has her head in the clouds.  While I can stretch my imagination to understand how a 10-year-old would know who Jacques Cousteau is, I couldn’t come up with a reason someone that age would know who Donald Trump is and what he does.  My children haven’t heard of either person.  To the author’s credit, she makes sure that those people are explained in the story.

This is the start to a new series and I look forward to picking this one up for my girls and looking for more.  Great start to a new series for kids!

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Dawn of a Dream (At Home in Beldon Grove #3) - Ann Shorey

Looking back at my review of Where the Wildflowers Bloom, I see that I have read the first book in this series in the past.  I also noticed that I wasn't overly fond of it.  So what inspired me to pick this one up, I'm not sure.  I paid $1.99 for it and hoped to enjoy it.

Luellen is a married woman who discovers that her husband is already married.  As she pursues a divorce, she jumps at the opportunity to go to school and get her teaching certificate.  Once she's there, she is so determined to finish school that she won't let anything get in her way.  When she finds out that she is pregnant, she needs to find a way to hide it from the school.

I won't say much about the plot, I don't want to give too much away should you decide to read it.  I just felt like this woman was the most selfish character I have read about in a long time.  She doesn't seem to care about anyone but herself.  Her parents are ill, and she wonders about being able to return to school.  When I was reading about how she was ignoring symptoms related to her baby, I was disgusted with her.

I held out a hope that she would come around, but I didn't hear her even mention being selfish until about 86% in.  She acts like the world revolves around her and when things don't go her way, she wallows in self-pity.  The way she treats her friend makes me wonder why the woman was nice to her.  If she's not hiding something, then Luellen is trying to boss her around and tell her what's best for her.  The "happy" ending didn't strike me as happy, because I felt bad for Wade being stuck with such a selfish manipulative woman.

Yes, it's fiction, but I want to enjoy my time reading.  I made sure I didn't have the other book in that series on my watch list, because if I didn't enjoy the first or third, I'd probably not enjoy the second one either.  I'm not giving up on this author, I still have the second book in the Sisters at Heart series, When the Heart Heals, on my watch list.  The third book, Love's Sweet Beginning, is scheduled to come out in February.  This one is definitely a pass for me.

Rosemary Cottage (Hope Beach #2) - Colleen Coble

This is one of my favorite authors.  The first book in this series, Tidewater Inn, was a great read and I looked forward to reading this one.

Amy has come to the island to investigate the death of her brother.  Most of her friends and family are telling her that it was a horrible accident, but Amy has gotten an email telling her there is more to the story.  Determined to get to the truth, Amy moves to the island and decides to set up business as a midwife.

Curtis works for the Coast Guard and has been taking care of his sister's daughter.  His sister was killed by a boat and now that Amy is on the island, his aunt is pushing him to tell Amy that the child's father was her brother.  Both families come from money, so once Amy tells her parents, a custody battle begins, which also threatens the growing feelings between Amy and Curtis.

Overall a great read.  There are plenty of twists and turns, although I had some of it figured out.  This book explores the dangers of setting people on pedestals, especially seeing family members as incapable of any wrong.  The characters from book 1, Libby and Alec, show up but in a minor role.  It would be okay to read these out of order.  What I love about series written by Colleen Coble is the fact that you can read them out of order and still get a great read.

As of now, I couldn't find the title of the next book in this series, but I believe that there will be at least one more.  Her series come in groups of three most of the time.  The next book I found coming out is called Butterfly Palace and comes out in January.  From the sounds of it, this will be part of the Under the Stars series, but I can't say for certain.  Rosemary Cottage was a great read and I look forward to the next release from one of my favorite authors! Good Book!

A Claim of Her Own - Stephanie Grace Whitson

I've read Sixteen Brides in the past and really enjoyed that book.  I had a few of her other books on my watch list and was able to get this one for $3.99.

In this book, we're following two different relationships.  We're following Swede and Tom, but we're mostly focused on Mattie.  She has escaped her past and has come to find her brother and start over.  Unfortunately, things don't really pan out the way she wants and she needs to come up with a different plan.  As she rebuilds her life, she becomes friends with a preacher and starts to ask questions about God.  With her past catching up, there's the anticipation about how things will end.

Aron is a reluctant preacher, but he is living out what he preaches.  His past hasn't been stellar and he readily admits to his problems.  The other characters that we follow are Tom and Swede - they work together to open a store in Deadwood.  Swede is used to pushing merchandise up the trail by oxen while Tom runs the store back in town.  Swede longs to leave the hauling life behind, but she's not sure what to do about her feelings for Tom.

While I liked this book, I was a little confused at the end.  So much time was spent building the anticipation of when Jonas would catch up with Mattie, I felt that it was not as detailed as it could have been.  I'm still not sure what exactly happened.  I also felt that the relationship between Aron and Mattie could have been explored a little more and the end not as rushed.  I still liked the book, but I just felt that the end could have been better.  All in all, a nice read.  As of now, I still have A Most Unsuitable Match on my watch list.  Good Book!

Always Remembered (American Tapestries) - Janelle Mowery

I was able to pick this one up for $1.99.  In the past, I have read a few of this author's books, including Showdown at Barncastle Inn and the entire Colorado Runaway series: When All My Dreams Come True, When Love Gets in the Way, and When Two Hearts Meet.  I enjoyed all these titles, so it was a no-brainer for me to pick this one up.

This story revolves around the battle for the Alamo in Texas.  At this point, it's a war between the Mexicans and the Americans that have developed the land.  Rosa's father had come to the land and been killed.  Now she has to deal with her stepfather, who feels that the Americans need to leave.  His passion for helping his side of the cause pushes him to use Rosa to gain information about the fort.  While she doesn't want to betray the men in the fort, her stepfather uses her mother to force her to get the information he wants.

Miles has watched Rosa from a distance and has finally stepped forward and gotten noticed.  While there are other men that are looking for Rosa's attention, Miles catches her eye.  He is supposed to be finding out who is leaking information about the fort to the Mexican president's troops and it sounds like Rosa's family is in the middle of it.

This was an unusual book for me.  Most of the time, I look at the interaction between the characters romantically, but this time, I was more interested the history in the book.  I applaud authors that take on historical events, because it is so easy to do it in such a way that you offend every historian that knows their stuff.  The way this book was written, I just had to keep reading and find out what happens to Miles.  The Alamo wasn't a happy ending event, so I was curious how this was going to pan out.  I was drawn to Miles' character more than Rosa's, and I almost felt like the relationship between the two was in the way at times.  I was more interested in the information leak and how Miles was going to solve the problems that surrounded him.

This book is part of a series called American Tapestries.  These books are all written by different authors and focus on different times in American history.  I noticed the Oregon trail, the Titanic, the American Revolution and some others.  Due to the variety involved in both topic and authors, I don't have any of the others on my list.  I did like this book, though and recommend it to get some perspective on the Alamo.  Good Book!

Fancy Pants (Only in Gooding #1) - Cathy Marie Hake

I was so glad when this book popped up for free.  In the past, I've been able to read Forevermore, Whirlwind, and Letter Perfect.

Sydney is facing a dilemma.  She has come to America to meet the man she is supposed to wed.  Unfortunately, the man is hardly interested in her as a person.  He wants her more for her connections.  Sydney tries to tell him that they won't suit, but he doesn't care if they would or not.  Determined not to marry a man she doesn't love, Sydney decides to run away to her uncle's ranch.  From the sounds of it, her uncle isn't interested in meeting a woman, and since Sydney is desperate, she heads to the ranch dressed as a man.

Fooling Tim isn't going to be easy.  It's harder to hide her gender than she thought and the work is hard.  Since her uncle is gone, Tim is in charge of the ranch and has his hands full trying to turn this "Fancy Pants" into a real man.  They end up being good friends. When Sydney's secret is revealed, it changes everything.  Tim feels betrayed and is convinced that their friendship will never be the same.

I really enjoyed this book.  The interactions between Sydney and Tim were amusing, and I loved the way they worked together.  It was a great read and I had trouble putting it down. Book 2 in the series is Forevermore and book 3 is Whirlwind.  I don't have book 4, That Certain Spark, or book 5, Serendipity, but I would like the chance to read them in the future.  Good Book!

Blue Moon Promise (Under Texas Stars #1) - Colleen Coble

I had been waiting for quite a while before this book dropped in price.  I have read the second book in the series, Safe in His Arms, and looked forward to the opportunity to read this one.  Coble is one of my favorite authors.

When she loses her job and is on the verge of eviction from her home in Indiana, Lucy feels desperate.  In an effort to keep her brother and sister with her, she takes a man up on his offer to marry his son.  The man has documentation that allows him to act as his agent and the marriage is accomplished without Lucy setting eyes on her groom.  When she arrives in Texas, she encounters a justifiably upset groom.  Rather than allow her small stature to cower in fear, she is determined to make the marriage work and be the woman that Nate needs on his ranch.

Nate can’t believe what his father has done to him now.  Although he starts out resenting Lucy's presence, Nate quickly comes to see the four of them as a family.  He and Lucy get along well enough, and with danger following Lucy’s family, he has his work cut out for him taking care of them.  When he finds out that the death of Lucy’s father may not have been an accident, the stakes become higher.

This is another great read from this author.  I've always been able to pick up one of Colleen Coble’s books and not be disappointed.  As usual, this one was great from beginning to end.  I couldn't find any evidence of another upcoming book in this series, but book 2 just came out in January and she just had the release of Rosemary Cottage, part of the Hope Beach series, in early July, so I'll keep my eyes out.  I'm hoping the third one might be about Fanny, Lucy's cousin who pines away for her lost love, but I can't remember if she's mentioned in book 2. Good Book!

Light of My Heart (Silver Hills Trilogy #1) - Ginny Aiken

After reading book 2, Song of My Soul, and book 3, Spring of My Love, I was anticipating reading the story of Dr. Letty Morgan.

When Letty witnesses the death of a woman she could have possibly saved, she realizes Philadelphia will never accept her as a doctor and decides that she needs to head west. She reads a letter asking for a doctor in Hartville, Colorado, and takes it upon herself to answer the letter.  She feels that God has placed this opportunity in her path.

Eric is mourning the loss of his wife and child.  They died two years ago when his wife was in labor and refused to see a male doctor.  Now he feels that he needs to control everything he can.  He has asked for a female doctor to heal the women and children of Hartville.  He didn't count on headstrong Letty healing all the women and children, including the poor and the soiled doves in town.  Eric tries to warn her that her choices are going to alienate the town, but she is determined to follow her calling, no matter the consequences.

I'm sorry to say that I didn't enjoy this book at all.  After liking the other two, I was expecting a nice story.  Instead, I ended up being confused.  There were points where I ended up going back and reading pages again to try and figure out what was going on.  It started in the beginning where Letty assumed that Eric was married.  I wasn't sure why she thought that or why she would ask him where his wife was.  Overall, it seemed like there were too many parts where the author assumed the reader had some background knowledge.  I also wasn't fond of Eric.  He was controlling and wallowed in self-pity most of the book.

I don't like to write bad reviews because I know that the authors take a great deal of time and effort writing them.  Unfortunately, this book was a miss for me.  If I had picked it up first, I don't think I would have finished it.  I have a couple other books on my watch list by this author, but at this point, I'm not sure whether I will leave them there or not.  This one was disappointing for me.

A Change of Fortune (Ladies of Distinction #1) - Jen Turano

A Change of Fortune is the first book in the Ladies of Distinction series.  There's a novella that is basically a prequel to this series called Gentleman of Her Dreams.  In that book, we get acquainted with Mr. Hamilton Beckett, who is one of the main characters in this book.

Eliza's life has changed drastically.  Her family dead, her fortune gone, she is now on a mission to see her father's reputation restored along with the family fortune.  To achieve this goal, she has made her way to New York in pursuit of the man who took it all away. Since all her "friends" and her so-called fiance turned their backs on her once her fortune was gone, she is working as a governess and keeping her true identity a secret.  When she is thrust into a dinner party, her life is about to change again.

Hamilton is intrigued by the woman who ends up sitting next to him at dinner.  She is wearing a hideous gown and has a great sense of humor.  It is obvious that she is more than a governess, but he has trusted in the past and been disappointed.  Unfortunately, his intentions to keep his distance disappear when she ends up losing her job and he ends up helping her on her quest for justice.

I really enjoyed this book.  I loved the depth of the characters and how you get to know them.  The story line was something that I'm not sure is all that realistic, but it doesn't bother me.  I personally liked the story.  There is another book out in this series, A Most Peculiar Circumstance, which tells the story of Theodore Wilder, someone we see a lot of in this book.  That being said, you don't really read anything about his love interest in this book so I think it's a great stand-alone.  The third book, A Talent for Trouble, comes out in October.  I can't wait to read more from this author.  I recommend this book.  It definitely gets a Good Book! review!

Dark Road Home (Edge of Freedom #2) - Elizabeth Ludwig

After almost giving up on No Safe Harbor back in March, I wondered what this next book in the series would bring.

This story surrounds Eoghan, Cara’s brother from book 1, and Ana, who lived at the boardinghouse with Cara.  Since it’s more of a continuation of the previous book, I would read No Safe Harbor before reading this one.

Eoghan (pronounced Owen) still feels that his sister betrayed him.  His main focus now is getting back in good graces with the Fenians.  Circumstances bring him to the last place he feels he needs to be: a church.  He does chores and becomes friends with the Sisters and Father Ed.  Meeting Ana causes him to rethink his plans to dedicate his life to the Fenians.

Ana also doesn’t think that she should ever set foot in a church again.  Her traumatic childhood has caused her to turn her back on God.  When her friend asks her to volunteer there, she grudgingly agrees to give it a shot but doesn’t promise anything.  When she recognizes Eoghan as being Cara’s twin, she now has to decide what to do with that information.

Behind the scenes, Ana’s uncle has discovered that she survived the fire that took the lives of her family years ago and he’s determined to finish the job.  The Celt is back and doing his deeds behind the scenes, like a puppet master placing everyone where he wants them.  With both Eoghan and Ana’s lives in danger, they need God and each other to make it through.

I really enjoyed this book.  To think if I had given up on the first book, I would have missed out on a great series.  The unusual thing about this book is that both Eoghan and Ana have turned their back on God.  Normally the books I read, at least one person of the couple has a foundation in faith.  I liked the uniqueness of having them both find their way back to God.

Be prepared for another book in this series.  We get the happy ending that we’re looking for with Eoghan and Ana, but there’s still the matter of The Celt to be dealt with.  Again, these need to be read in order to understand them fully.  Good Book! 

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Into the Whirlwind - Elizabeth Camden

I have read a few books written by Elizabeth Camden including The Rose of Winslow Street and The Lady of Bolton Hill.  I really enjoyed those, so choosing to read this was easy.

Mollie is the owner of a fine watchmaking company in Chicago.  She has taken over the 57^th Illinois Watch Company that her father left her.  Working for her are members of her father’s infantry unit, mostly the crippled men that had nowhere else to go.  When an offer to buy her out arises, Mollie has to consider what all the implications would be for her and for the lives of the men who rely on her for their well-being.

Zack is a lawyer that is negotiating the deal, but he has adored Mollie from afar for three years.  Revealing his feeling for Mollie would mean the death of his career, but certain circumstances make him rethink his priorities.  The Chicago fire of 1871 affects Mollie and her business.  Her father’s deed for a piece of land comes between Zack and Mollie.  She ends up not trusting him even as he does his best to win her love.

This book was great.  It only took me two days because I simply couldn’t put it down.  The interactions between Zack and Mollie had me frustrated and hopeful at the same time.  There were tons of details in the book about watchmaking and also about the fire.  I was impressed with the focus being on the aftermath of the fire.  It caused me to think about how people come together when there’s a tragedy, like this fire, and then as time goes by, the effects fade from our memory even as there are people still rebuilding.

Her only book out that I haven't read is Against the Tide and I was able to pick it up today for free!  I hope to read more from this author in the future.  She’s becoming one of my favorites and I anticipate reading her novels.  Good Book!

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Against the Tide by Elizabeth Camden - FREE

This Thursday and Friday, Bethany House is offering up Against the Tide for FREE!  I have really enjoyed books by this author and was quick to snatch this one up.  Check it out!!

Link to Against the Tide on Amazon.

Irene Hannon's first book in Guardians of Justice series, Fatal Judgment is also free.

Link to Fatal Judgment on Amazon.