The Sea Before Us (Sunrise at Normandy #1) - Sarah Sundin

This is the first book in a new series about three brothers: one in the Navy, one in the Army Air Corp and one a Ranger.  This first book is about Wyatt, who is part of the Navy.

Dorothy is part of the Women’s Royal Naval Service, helping prepare for D-day.  Her childhood crush walks back into her life, and she’s determined to be the woman she knows he wants.  Even though she’ll have to change just about everything about herself to be that person, she’s determined to do what it takes to win his affections.

Wyatt is an American on the run, from his past and his mistakes.  After a tragic accident, he disappeared from his family’s life and took his brother’s college money with him.  Feeling like he’ll never be forgiven, he throws himself into his work.  When he meets Dorothy, she convinces him that he should reach out to his family.

Both characters are dealing with home troubles.  Wyatt refuses to contact his family until he’s collected enough money to repay his brother, and Dorothy is worried about her father, even though the man doesn’t seem to notice, or appreciate, her presence.  Wyatt is truthful about his past and becomes a friend to Dorothy and her father, but Wyatt is attracted to her.  Unfortunately, she’s only got eyes for that childhood crush.

As usual, Sundin seamlessly adds well-researched details to an engaging story.  I read this in two days, it was so enjoyable.  And I have to say, I always love when there’s a shout out to the B-26 Marauder.  My grandfather flew one of those, and it seems to be an overlooked aircraft in most WWII novels I read.

On the horizon (literally), Adler’s story will be told in The Sky Above Us in 2019.  Then, Clay’s follows in The Land Beneath Us in 2020.  I can’t wait!  Great Book!

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

Keturah (Sugar Baron's Daughters #1) - Lisa T. Bergren

Keturah is a broken woman.  After her failed marriage to her abusive husband, she’s vowed never to be under the control of a man ever again.  She’s decided to travel from England to Nevis to turn around the family’s sugar cane plantation.  Her two sisters make the decision to travel with her, and they leave their old lives behind.

Once they arrive at Nevis, things are much harder than Ket anticipated.  She’s been offered help from her childhood friend, Gray, but she’s reluctant to let any man have any control in her life.  She’s also made an unexpected discovery at the plantation, and she doesn’t have enough slaves or even a foreman.

This book was a bit of a roller coaster for me.  It’s definitely a journey of healing for Keturah, but there’s some hard moments in there.  The treatment of the slaves and abuse of them, while accurate to the time period, are hard to read.  Also, there’s recollections of the abuse Ketrah suffered at the hands of her husband and some of the things the sisters have to deal with as females trying to run their own plantation can be troubling.  There’s beatings and attempted rape.  Just something to be aware of if those things bother you.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, but I had a problem with the pacing.  For the first third of the book, I was reading about Keturah’s journey on board the ship.  It just seemed like she’d never get off the ship.  The thing that redeems it for me is the characters.  I want to find out what happens to Verity and Selah, Keturah’s sisters.  I want to read more of this family and look forward to the next book.  Good Book!

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

The View from Rainshadow Bay (Lavender Tides #1) - Colleen Coble

This is the first in a new series.

Shauna lost her husband a year ago and is trying to put her life back together.  She wants nothing to do with Zach, the man she blames for her husband’s death.  Her young son needs a father figure for an upcoming nature hike, and as much as she hates the idea, she breaks down and asks Zach for help.

Zach lives with the guilt of what he’s done, but he’s also had to grieve alone.  When Shauna asks him for help, he readily agrees, hoping it will lead to a renewal of their friendship.  After a mutual friend is murdered, Zach fears for Shauna’s safety and asks her to move in with him for safety.  As the danger increases, Zach fears he won’t be able to keep Shauna and her son safe.

This was a good book, with plenty of little twists and turns in there.  I liked the characters, and the story line was interesting.  I didn’t enjoy it as much as some of Coble’s other works that I’ve read recently, but I can’t quite pinpoint why.  I was able to put this one down and I wasn’t anxious to get back to it.  Don’t get me wrong, I liked it a lot, it just wasn’t 5 stars to me.

I have a feeling the rest of the series may have something to do with Shauna’s long-lost siblings.  If it doesn’t, it will be somewhat disappointing, since I’m curious to know what happened to them.  I look forward to the next one.  Good Book!

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

Keep the Home Fires Burning: The Complete Novel - S. Block

If you've watched the show Home Fires, the cliffhanger of season 2 coupled with the cancellation of the series probably frustrated you.  I know it did that to me.  When I heard the creator of the series planned to keep going, I was intrigued.  The thought was, if books can turn into shows, why can't it go the other way around?  I promised myself I would read this, if only to find out what happened after the Spitfire hit the village.

This book has all four short stories in it (around 100 pages each) that make up the first installment of the continuing story of the women of Great Paxford.  The stories can each be bought separately and are called: Spitfire Down!, A Woman's Work, Strangers Among Us, and A Soldier Returns.

The writing style is what I expected of someone used to dealing with actors and scripts.  The point of view will switch from one person to another and back again without warning or transition.  In the beginning, I think I was just so glad to find out what happened, I didn't care.  After that, I seemed to get used to it.

I think a lot of my enjoyment of this book hinged on the fact that I already loved the characters.  Later in the book, I was getting a little disappointed that I didn't get more Steph, Sarah and Claire.  There was way more of Pat and Teresa than I was expecting (and they were repetitive) , and after a while I skimmed/skipped their chapters.  The other two that seemed to get the most exposure were Erica and Frances.  Overall, I liked Erica's story line the best.

Something to be aware of - there's a bit of language and a few sexual descriptions.  Nothing graphic, but more detail than I wanted.  Personal preference.

Unfortunately, there's also a bit of the cliffhanger at the end of the book, but there's another book planned for October 2018.  For myself, I enjoyed finding out what happened and wish more cancelled shows were able to pull this off (I'm talking to you, Mercy Street!).  Thinking over the book as a whole, I would've been satisfied had I read Spitfire Down! and stopped after that.

*The cover here is different from the one I have.  Not sure why...

Where Treetops Glisten - Tricia Goyer, Cara Putnam, Sarah Sundin

Honestly, I had the best intentions this year.  I picked this book up last year, and I was going to read it for Christmas this year.  Well, factor in time hanging out with the family, and I haven't gotten a lot done (including watching things like laundry pile up).  So, today is December 30th, and I just finished my Christmas book.  NOT because it was hard to read.  Because...life!

This collection can be broken down into a prologue, 3 novellas, and an epilogue.  When I read these collections, I will write my review for each story after I finish it, then I evaluate the book as a whole.  So...here we go!

Prologue – Winter Wonderland - Sarah Sundin

Great intro.  Just reading these few pages, I was already in love with this family.  It sets up the stories for Pete, Abigail and Meredith in such a fun, interesting way.  I want to read more about Louise and her grandchildren.

White Christmas – Cara Putnam

Abigail’s heart is sore.  After losing her boyfriend at Pearl Harbor, she’s given up.  Loving people is too risky and hurts too much when they leave.  She decides her schoolwork and her job are enough, she doesn’t need love.  Her determination fades a bit after she meets Jackson, a man who’s dealing with the possible loss of his family home.  Abigail offers him help and so much more.

I loved the characters in this one.  I sympathized with Abigail’s desire to guard her heart, sometimes the “safe” way seems tempting even though there’s no such thing.  Grandma Louise imparts her wisdom, and she’s a neat character.  A well-developed story that I recommend.  4.5 stars

I’ll Be Home for Christmas – Sarah Sundin

The last person Grace wants to see is Pete Turner.  He tormented her when she was a child, and she blames him for an event that was trying for her family.  But when Grace’s daughter, Linnie, disappears (again), Pete comes into their lives.  Linnie thinks she’s found her new father, but Grace only sees the bully from her past.  Can she get past that and see the changed man in front of her?

This is a great story about forgiveness and trusting those who have hurt you.  There was such a sweetness to all the interactions between the characters that I found myself getting a bit choked up at times.  That doesn’t happen to me often, but this story was touching for me.  There’s a bit of continuation with Abigail, so that’s neat and connects the stories in a nice way.  Merry (Meredith) also comes home, so she’s introduced.  5 stars.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas – Tricia Goyer

Meredith left her joy behind when the man she loved disappeared.  She believes he left to fight for the Germans, but little does she realize he’s been fighting against them.  Now that she’s stationed in the same small village, she has a chance to find forgiveness and peace for herself, and possibly a future.

David regrets the way he left, but he doesn’t doubt his decision until he hears that Merry is a nurse at the American hospital a short distance away.  David isn’t sure it’s safe for him to reveal himself, but he doesn’t have much time to decide.  Is this the second chance he’s been dreaming of?

Another great story.  The main characters don’t have much interaction overall, but it feels like they do since they’re always thinking about each other.  4.5 stars.

I’ve been disappointed in the past when I’ve read this kind of collection and there’s no closure for after the war.  This story ended before the war did, BUT then there’s the…

Epilogue - Let It Snow, Let it Snow – Cara Putnam

A great ending to the collection.  The war is over, there’s updates on all the family, and everything gets wrapped up in a neat little bow.  This is the way novella collections should be.  Stories that blend together comfortably in writing style and character relationships.  Loveable characters that I cared about.  Enough drama and conflict to keep me coming back for more.  This is probably the best overall collection I’ve read.  There’s even four recipes for cookies in the back!  Highly recommended, especially if you enjoy this time period.  Great Book!

A Daring Escape (London Chronicles #2) - Tricia Goyer

This is the second book in the London Chronicles series.  The first book was called ASecret Courage.

This book is set around WWII, and children in Czechoslovakia need help getting out of the country before the Germans take over.  Amity is a tutor to the daughter of an English writer.  Even though she’s American, she’s in England to be close to her brother, who works for the British government.  When Amity’s brother sends her a telegram around Christmas, her life is going to take a turn she’d never have imagined.

There’s also another plot to follow, revolving around a Jewish family and the German soldier who is (sometimes) tracking them for a treasure he obviously never finds.  I say sometimes because there are stretches of time where that plot ends up pushed to the side as we read about Amity and her plight.

Anything dealing with the horrors of WWII is going to have a somber tone to it, and that’s understandable.  But as a result, I was more interested in the plight of the children than the romance between Clark and Amity.

When I picked this book to read, I didn’t realize I’d read the first book in the series.  I wasn’t a huge fan of that one, and most of the issues I had with the first book would apply to this one.  There’s one exception, and that’s the fact that this one feels like a complete story, so I ended up liking it more.  This book isn’t connected to A Secret Courage, so you could read these out of order or alone.  The book wasn’t as depressing as it could have been, and I did enjoy it overall.  I give it 3.5 stars.

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

Holding the Fort (Fort Reno #1) - Regina Jennings

I’ve enjoyed this author in the past and looked forward to reading this book.  It’s the first in a new series, and the summary had me interested.

Louisa has lost her job at the saloon where she was a singer.  She decides to go check on her troublemaker brother at Fort Reno.  She thinks she can promote herself as entertainment for the troops, but she ends up with the job of governess to the major’s children instead, a position she’s unqualified for.  She decides to go along with it, maybe she can change her life after all.

Daniel knows Louisa is hiding something, but he gets the wrong idea when he sees her paying attention to Bradley, who is actually her brother.  His thoughts take a dark turn, and he’s determined to prevent Louisa from making a mistake by spending time with the man.

I really wanted to like this book, but I had some issues with it.  I think my favorite character was Bradley, and I didn’t read near enough about him.  I felt like Louisa was a coward (especially at the end), and her behavior made her somewhat unlikable for me.  So much was made of Daniels’ need to know everything and how important the truth is to him, but he never pursues the truth about Louisa, the woman in charge of his children.

Sadly, this one's a pass for me, and I'm sorry for it.

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