Monday, June 30, 2014

Seagrass Pier by Colleen Coble


Colleen Coble never disappoints and Seagrass Pier delivers the mystery and intrigue that we've come to expect from her. While these characters didn't have strong Godly pursuits as I've seen in other books by this author, they were moral and the book is a clean read as usual. I enjoyed the readings from the diary more than any other part of the book and would have liked to have known more about Georgina (maybe she could have her own book?)
I do enjoy how Colleen Coble works conniving people into her novels, she shows the good side of people and the bad side of humanity. 

From the back cover:
Elin Summerall was one of the lucky ones. Not only did she get a heart transplant, but the donor was a perfect fit. A miraculously perfect fit.
But when Elin begins having violent flashbacks--and vivid dreams of being strangled--she realizes that she has been the recipient of more than just a new heart...Elin is remembering her donor's murder.

Her strange affliction has attracted some unwanted attention: from the press, from the authorities...and from the killer himself. Now, living alone with her young daughter and aging mother, Elin is being stalked--by a man she's met only in her nightmares. 
The police are dubious of her story, but one off-duty FBI agent is eager to help her: Agent Marc Everton, the father of Elin's daughter.
Of course, he doesn't know about that. Yet.
Now, in a remote cottage on Hope Island, Elin and Mark must probe the secrets buried in her borrowed heart. And there's no time to waste. One man is desperate to silence her--before she remembers too much.
Don’t miss Colleen Coble‘s latest release in the Hope Beach series, Seagrass Pier. The book releases July 1st, and Colleen's publisher is offering the ebook at a special pre-order price of just $4.99 between now and 6/30 everywhere ebooks are sold.

PLUS . . . between 6/9 – 6/30 Colleen will be hosting a Kindle giveaway.
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One winner will receive:
  • A brand new Kindle Fire HDX
  • Seagrass Pier and the rest of the Hope Beach series by Colleen Coble
Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on June 30th. Winner will be announced on Colleen's blog on July 1st.

Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning and be sure to stop by Colleen's blog on July 1st to see if you won!


This book was provided for review by LitFuse.

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Blind Trust by Sandra Orchard

 Blind Trust is the second book in the Port Aster Secrets series by Sandra Orchard. You do need to read the first book to know what's going on in this one, it is not a stand alone novel. It's been a while since I read the first one and I was still a little lost. 

The book started out a slow and about halfway through it it picked up pace and gained my interest. It took me a little longer to get through this book than I like (about five days). There are a lot of characters and I kept getting confused as to who was who.

Overall I thought it was a good book. I do wish though that I had the entire series in front of me to read it all at once, it is hard to remember characters and story lines (and this has a lot of subplots) from release date to release date.
This book was provided for review by Revell

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Sarah's Choice by Rebecca St James and Nancy Rue

 Sarah's Choice is the second collaboration of internationally known Rebecca St James and author Nancy Rue (who chose that as her pen name because she loved Nancy Drew as a child). While the book didn't captivate me, it was an easy read and I finished in just over two hours. It deals with a lot of topics that may be too intense for some readers. I found that my favorite part was the friendship between Sarah and her co-worker Audrey. I loved the way Audrey gently guided her and let her tell her story until it was all out. Audrey was the perfect example of a person sharing the love of Christ with someone who has been hurt by "christians".
Another part of this book is reminiscent of A Christmas Carol. There was also the choice that Sarah had to make, whether to have an abortion or to keep her baby.
There was a lot going on  but it was woven together well.

Here's the back cover:  
This book was provided for review by Thomas Nelson's BookLook program.

Thursday, June 5, 2014

A Woman of Fortune by Kellie Coates Gilbert

 A Woman of Fortune by Kellie Coates Gilbert was a story that was interesting to think about but also one that took me almost an entire week to read. I'm a fast reader and when a book grabs me I can finish it in two days. This one felt like it went on and on and on. There were some parts of it that I loved but most of it I didn't. 
Here's the back cover if you'd like to know more about it.
This book was provided for review by Revell.

Happy to be Alive, Because by Chelsea Jacobs

 Happy to be Alive, Because by Chelsea Jacobs
From the back cover:
Avery is a seventeen-year-old girl whose reality has just been shattered by the death of her mother. Feeling a desperate need to flee from what has become her life, she follows a travel plan mean for her mom and her that leads her to the little beach town where her mom grew up. 
It's there that she meets a group of three adventurous friends who adopt her into their circle, allowing her to experience a summer she never thought would be possible after suffering such a great loss. Unfortunately, her summer full of experiences threatens to end abruptly when she realizes that one of the three has a secret that causes her to question everything about the new life she has been building.
Avery must learn to balance her grief and her desire for a future in order to achieve her mother's final wish for her: That she would be happy to be alive.
My thoughts:
Unfortunately I could tell from the first chapter that this was a self-published book. I wanted to like it but the writing was just not good. The story idea is a good one, the journaling is a beautiful idea. The way it was written is not. The dialogue was uninteresting and hard to read. I didn't make it through the entire book and ended up skimming it just to see how it all ended. The "big secret" wasn't that big. 
Since this is YA fiction I do think that the younger audience will enjoy it more than an adult reader. I can see junior-high girls really liking this book.

For YA fiction I prefer Jenny B. Jones and Melody Carlson.

This book was provided for review by LitFuse.


Sunday, June 1, 2014

The Heart's Pursuit by Robin Lee Hatcher


Robin Lee Hatcher's latest novel, The Heart's Pursuit, is receiving critical praise: "The Old West lives again in this inspirational romantic adventure. . . . Themes of forgiveness, justice and mercy dominate the story and add to the characters' depth. Hatcher treats readers to a rich sensory experience—you can taste the desert dust and smell the smoke and stench of a crowded gambling hall." (Publishers Weekly)

Robin is celebrating the release of her novel by giving away a $200 "Romantic Weekend Getaway."
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  One winner will receive:
  • A $200 Visa cash card (Get away for the weekend with that special someone!)
  • The Heart's Pursuit by Robin Lee Hatcher
Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on June 8th. Winner will be announced June 9th on Robin's website.

Don't miss a moment of the fun; enter today and be sure to stop by Robin's blog on June 8th to see if you won.




I have loved Robin's books for well over a decade now, but this one I could not get into. I tried reading it and it never grabbed my attention. I was unable to finish this one as I was just not interested.

Here's the back cover so you can see if you'd like to read it. I think I prefer her contemporary fiction to her historical fiction.




this book was provided for review by LitFuse

MOMS' NIGHT OUT and other things i miss.... AND Moms' Night Out by Tricia Goyer

 Surely you've heard of the Moms' Night Out movie by now. I haven't seen the movie but I read the book and ohmygoodness it was so funny! Tricia Goyer did a great job of writing the story based on the screenplay. I especially liked the role of the pastors wife, she cracked me up and I saw a lot of myself in her. I think every mother could relate to the things in this book. 
This was well written and grabbed by attention from the first page. It had me laughing so much that I was afraid I'd fall off of the treadmill (I multitask). It took a little under two hours to read so would make a great vacation book too.
Here's the back cover:
 Another exciting book to go along with this one and the movie is the little Moms' Night Out devotional book. This is filled with side-splitting insights and tender stories that will refresh, encourage, and let you know that you are normal and you are not alone.
Here's the trailer for the devotional book:


These were provided for review by LitFuse