The Elusive Miss Ellison (A Legacy of Grace #1) - Carolyn Miller

This is the first book in the series.  The other two are The Captivating Lady Charlotte and The Dishonorable Miss DeLancey.

Nicholas never expected to take on the responsibilities of having a title.  But circumstances have thrown him into that position, and he learns early on that he's not doing good enough thanks to the outspoken Miss Ellison.  He already feels the guilt of his past weighing on him, and even though he tries to please Lavinia, she never seems satisfied.

Lavinia witnessed her mother's tragic death and blames Nicholas for being a part of it. She sees him and immediately makes assumptions about his character and takes it upon herself to be the one to change him.  She eventually learns to forgive him, but will she ever be able to trust him?

This starts out a bit like Pride and Prejudice.  You have the untitled young woman and the strikingly handsome titled gentleman who would never consider her suitable, even if her forthright manner is intriguing.  You even have the awkward visiting clergyman putting himself forward as a suitor.  But there are differences in there, and if you can get past the mini sermons, it's a pretty good book.

The heroines in the second and third book are introduced in this story, but there isn't much depth to them, making me lean toward saying you could read these alone or out of order and not feel like you're missing much.  Good Book!

A Stranger at Fellsworth (Treasures of Surrey #3) - Sarah E. Ladd

This is the third book in this series.  The first two are The Curiosity Keeper and Dawn at Emberwilde.  You can read these alone or out of order.  They don’t have any obvious connections to each other.

Annabelle has had enough.  After the death of her parents, her fortunes have changed, and she’s being pressured by her brother to marry a man she hates.  Her mind grasps a long-shot: flee to her uncle in Fellsworth.  A previous encounter leads her to ask a man she barely knows for help.  He agrees, and she escapes in the early morning, taking only a few things and her maid, Crosley.

Owen feels like he’s failed his late wife, and seeing Annabelle's problems, he feels compelled to help her.  Once she arrives at her uncle’s home, it's not all smooth sailing, and Owen always seems to be there when she needs something.  There’s also a murder in London and poaching in Fellsworth.  Both problems need to be solved before Owen and Annabelle can be together.

I liked the story, and how Annabelle had to learn to deal with her struggles, they didn’t just magically go away.  She had to grow, as did Owen.  He had to forgive his own past to move forward.  The characters were interesting as well.  I loved Hannah, Owen’s daughter, and Mrs. Pike, the ornery house servant.  Good Book!

*I received a copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Noble Servant (Medieval Fairy Tale #3) - Melanie Dickerson

This book is the third in the Medieval Fairy Tale collection.  The first book is The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest, and then The Beautiful Pretender.  Magdalen is a close friend of Avelina (The Beautiful Pretender), and the initial meeting between Magdalen and Steffan occurs at a gathering in Thornbeck.  If you want to see how everyone connects, I recommend checking out my post on the way the Dickerson tales intersect with each other - HERE

Magdalen has gotten a letter asking her to travel to Wolfberg and marry the Duke.  She met him two years ago and thought he was interesting.  On the way, she is forced to change places with her maidservant.  When they arrive at Wolfberg, Magdalen is forced to work as a lowly goose girl.

Steffan is returning home after studying in Prague when he is attacked.  Fearing his uncle is behind the attempt on his life, he sneaks back home and ends up working as a shepherd.  He comes across Magdalen and figures out who she is, and while she has her suspicions about Steffan, she’s not certain who he really is.

These two have to find a way to prove who they are while keeping safe from those who would wish them harm.  It isn’t going to be easy.  They also have their growing feelings to deal with.  Magdalen feels hurt when Steffan flat out tells her he had no intention of marrying her, and he ignores his feelings because he’s afraid of loving someone so much, he’d be destroyed when something happened to them.

I liked this book, it was well written.  You can read these out of order without much trouble.  While Avelina and Reinhart show up, it isn’t in such a way as you feel like you’ve missed something.

Apparently, this is based on the Grimm tale, The Goose Girl, but I’ve never heard of it.  Maybe I’ll read it in the future though and see how it connects, besides the geese, that is.  As usual, a great tale!  Good Book!

*I received a copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Canteen Dreams (Cornhusker Dreams #1) - Cara Putnam

This is the first book in a WWII series.  The second book is called Sandhill Dreams, and the third is Captive Dreams.  These are older titles revived for Kindle.  The original series was called Nebraska Brides.

We start the day before the bombing of Pearl Harbor, when Audrey meets the man with chocolate eyes, Willard.  The bombing changes everything for both of them: Willard's brother is missing, and Audrey throws herself into helping out at the Canteen, where soldiers coming through the train station can get a drink and a quick bite before their train pulls back out.

Audrey and Willard have an on again off again kind of relationship, when they actually have one. A lot of the book seems to focus on them as individuals and what they're dealing with, and when they spend time together, they end up bickering and fighting.  I wasn't sure why these two were attracted to each other.

I wanted to like this one, the time period is one that I usually enjoy, but I felt like the book made Willard seem "selfish" for wanting to enlist and praising Audrey for backing away from her volunteer work.  I didn't think she had the wrong motives, she enjoyed the work and felt like she was making a difference..  I was also confused by their relationship.  I just didn't enjoy it as much as I'd hoped.

Trusting Grace (Virtues and Vices of the Old West #3) - Maggie Brendan

This is the third book in the series.  The first two were The Trouble with Patience and A Sweet Misfortune.

Grace is lonely.  Her husband died a few years ago, leaving her with a farm to run and an ailing father.  Her friend in town encourages her to get out more and wants her to look for happiness.  Grace gets introduced to an attorney, but she's also got another man in her life: Robert.

Robert is desperate.  He lost his own farm, and when his wife died, he discovered she had three children she'd never told him about.  Disgraced, he left town for a fresh start. When he hears about a chance to work on Grace's farm, he sees it as an opportunity to get back on his feet.  Grace is kind to him, but he's not interested in getting duped by another woman.

This was a sweet story with lovable characters.  There's a bit of drama, but this is mostly a romance.  When I read the first book, I had a slight issue with the end dragging out a bit, and there was a lull toward the end in this one as well.  Also, the timing of the "rescue" seemed a bit unrealistic, but I still liked the book.

I wasn't able to read the second book in the series, but none of the main characters from the first two books appear in this one, so you can read them alone or out of order. Overall, it's a good story that I enjoyed.  Good Book!

*I received a copy of this book from Revell through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Haven of Swans (A Rock Harbor Novel) - Colleen Coble

This is a Rock Harbor novel.  That there was enough to grab my attention.  And then as I was reading, I saw Bree from the original Rock Harbor books, and I was hooked.

A woman shows up in Rock Harbor, injured and scared.  She can’t remember who she is or what she’s running from.  All she knows is that she needs to protect her child.  Bree finds her and wants to help.  Nick is on the trail of a serial killer named Gideon, who is murdering women on his mission of cleansing the world from abominations.  Nick’s personal ties to the case will eventually lead him to Rock Harbor.

I’m purposely not going to say much about the plot, because I don’t want to ruin any of the wonderful surprises and plot twists.  There’s oodles of them in there, and they’re expertly written.  Even the end was just amazing.

I highly recommend this book.  I could feel the tension, especially in the beginning.  Getting reacquainted with the folks in Rock Harbor was also a real treat.  You’re not going to be lost if you haven’t read the original series, but it was an additional treat for me.  There’s another Rock Harbor book coming up, out in July 2017.  I can’t wait!  This was one of the best books I’ve read in months.  Good Book!

*I received a copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Firstborn (Descendants of the House of Bathory #2) - Tosca Lee

This is the second book in the series.  I think it’s important to read The Progeny before reading this one, it’s a continuation of that story.  There is a little summary at the beginning to remind the reader of where we’re at, but I don’t think it’s quite enough if you haven’t read the first book.

We’re continuing on with Audra’s quest to save her kind and those she loves.  The stakes are raised, and there are some major twists and turns in there.  Audra isn’t sure who she can trust, but she has to choose someone once in a while and just hope she isn’t betrayed.  I won’t say too much, it’s such a good story, and I don’t want to spoil anything.

This was an awesome book.  It’s a page-turner.  It’s written in the first person, which is normally hard for me to get into, but this was brilliantly done.  I had trouble putting this one down, it was so intense!  Not everyone gets a happy ending, but there IS a happy ending in there.

It seems like this is the end of this series, everything seems wrapped up in a neat little bow at the end, but I don’t know for certain.  I always look forward to Tosca Lee’s novels, and this one didn’t disappoint.  Great book!

*I received a copy of this book from Howard Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.