It's me, Charity

  Buckle Up Buttercup, because Sadie Hatley is finally getting her story!!!! And it did not disappoint at all! The only thing I didn't like about this book is that it ended. I could have kept reading for 1000 more pages.  L.J. Evans is a Masterclass in how to write Romantic Suspense (that's not so scary you can't sleep at night) with witty banter, heroines who kick butt (figuratively and literally). Her books are full of real people with real problems. And I think that's one of the things I appreciate the most about her writing. Yes, her books are an escape for me, but they also show that whatever you're going through in life, everyone else is also going through something.  In the case of Sadie and Rafe alot of those issues they contained to themselves and kept the hurt and pain inside of them, in order to be strong for others and what they thought they needed to be. But L.J. shows us that not only is it okay to let people in, but the beauty and redemption that come...

  Unknown Threat is the first book in Lynn H. Blackburn's new Defend and Protect Series. This series focuses on the men and women of the Secret Service and I found it FASCINATING!! I'm a big fan of law enforcement and crime books, and getting to see the innerworkings of things I will never be a part of. So getting to learn a ton about the secret service and how they operate, and even just how their careers work was beyond interesting to me.  Ms. Blackburn always does a phenomenal job of mixing intrigue, murder, danger with romance and God's truth. I highly enjoy the fact that she can write an awesome Christian Romance, that gives you all the feels, but still keeps it clean and Godly and Christ honoring.  She writes flawed individuals who are trying to do their best in following God. She's not afraid to write about the hard stuff or the fact that, GASP, Christians are not perfect! Her books are always spiritually sound and leave you better than before you read the boo...

Justice Betrayed pulled me in from the first chapter. This book is a continuation of her cold case series.  This book focuses on Detective  Rachel Sloan that we met in the previous book. As well as Lt. Boone Callahan. They used to date, but broke up and now work together in the homicide division. Boone is determined to win Rachel back, and she is as determined as he is to NOT fall for him again.  I think we all can see where this is headed. But it was entertaining to be along for the ride! As is the way for these books it goes between two mysteries, one in present day, and one in the past. The present day mystery is several Elvis TRIBUTE ARTISTS, Not impersonators mind you, are being murdered. The cold case mystery is Rachel's Mother whom was murdered several years ago. It delves into Rachel's feelings of what happened that night and the guilt that she has carried with her for years. Are these two mysteries connected? Well, You will just have to read the book to...

(Does anyone else have the song in their head? ANYONE??!) I was SO excited when I saw this book by Victoria Bylin in the monthly book email from Bethany House. I really like her books, but my Library only has a few of them, so when I saw she was coming out with a new one, I hopped on that as fast as I could!! Once again, her writing does not disappoint! I love her books! Christian Romance and Comedy at it's best! The Premise of this book was actually a little different than normal, and I liked it. It is focused around the main character Mia, but also around her younger sister Lucy. Mia is the reliable type A one, and Lucy is the loveable screw-up who has a lot to learn. I thought it was interesting how the author covered Lucy's pregnancy out of wedlock. You don't really see that in a Christian book that much! But she handled it with grace, and I thought it was neat how she showed the ups and downs and the emotional side and effects that choices ...

I love Susan May Warrens Books. The Deep Haven series is a favorite of mine. I have read the previous books in this series and devoured them, but for some reason I really had a hard time getting into this book. I would pick it up. Read a little bit. Set it down, and repeat. That's not my reading style! Usually I pick a book up and read it as much as I can until I have finished it. But I just had a hard time getting fully immersed in this story. I think part of the issue is that there was a lot of carry over from the previous books. (This book is the Third in her Montana Rescue Series) I struggled remembering each couple and their issues, and the mystery(s) that had went through all of the series. I really like it when story lines are wrapped up in one book, and not carried all the way through. I'm guessing she wanted to build interest and make sure people kept coming back for more, but for me, I would have preferred that each story line was wrapped up in one book. Its jus...

Well it's Officially Summer Reading Program time, so I will be reading like a doggone fool until July 31'st, in hopes of winning more awesome prizes from my Library again this year! Today we're going to talk about What Hope Remembers, by Johnnie Alexander. This is Book Three in her "Misty Willows" series, and while I have not read any of the previous books (or any of her other books!) I found that I was able to follow along easily without reading the previous books. She did a good job of introducing the characters that had already been in the books,And summarizing it quickly and easily, which I liked! I did think that the pace of the book was kind of slow. It took me awhile to really get into it, and sink my teeth it. I would have liked things to move along quicker, and perhaps have less descriptive parts, and less of the characters thinking in their heads, between dialogue.  I did like that she wrote characters that were flawed, and actually ha...

Behind the Scenes by Jen Turano This was a rather long book and I enjoyed it more then I thought I would. The main character Permilia Griswold was fun to read about. She was very interesting and was strong in faith. She wanted to do what was right and help others. Her step mother and step sister were not very nice and yet Permilia had a good attitude about things and didn't let how they treated her stop her from doing the right things. Permelia's Dad should of been paying more attention to how his daughter was treated and also not agreed to not have anything to do with how his step daughter was raised. She was horrible with throwing tantrums along with items. She needed to grow up and act decent. Was happy that Permelia found a man who could love her for who she was and not for who society wanted her to be. They made a great couple and I enjoyed reading about their relationship and how it progressed. There was plenty of humorous things in the book wh...

 I.LOVED.THIS.BOOK.  Period. I found myself reading this way past my bedtime, and then contemplating getting up EARLY so I could read before I had to teach. Considering my love of sleep and hatred for mornings this should tell you how GOOD this book was!!! This book centers around a couple who is forced into marriage, without knowing each other or really having met but one time. It's set back in the early 1800's in England, and focuses on the younger Hawthorne brother, Trent.  I love books like these, were strangers or people who barely know each other have to get married and then you eventually watch them fall in love. I think especially since something like this would never happen in our day and time, it's even more fascinating. This book went back and forth between Adelaide and Trent's point of view, and it was so well done! Usually it's hard to go back and forth between two different minds but the author did such a great job, it was seamless. ...

Well it is my goal to do a weekly wrap up each week of this year. We'll see how this goes! Bekah over at Bekahsbits.blogspot.com does a great weekly wrap up, and she has inspired me to try and do my own! So let's get with it!  I got a package in the mail and I loved how they addressed it!!  I made out like a bandit at DG's Christmas Clearance. I bought over 300 Christmas Cards, which means I'm stocked up for next Christmas' Service project. As I was checking out the check out lady said " wow.... you send out a LOT of Christmas cards!!" I had to explain what they were for :)  My Mom got me several new tops for Christmas, and they, along with the gold bar "Choose Joy" necklace my Brother and SIL gave me, have been getting a lot of wear lately! It's nice to wear something different!  Speaking of DG I am officially obsessed with these heart pretzels. I don't even like pretzels all that much, unless they are covered ...

Confession: I tried Really, REALLY hard to like this book.  I thought the premise sounded really interesting, seeing as I'm a fan of Scandal and Madame Secretary, it seemed like it would be right up my alley. A Shady, potentially evil and corrupt President. The Attorney General who has a moral compass and wants to do right. No matter what the cost. It sounded great!! But alas, it was not my favorite. The Book switched off characters point of views in every chapter. I had a seriously HARD time following along, remembering who was who and keeping track of what was happening. This book was also book three of "The Worthington  Destiny" series. Some books you can pick right up in the middle of a series, but for this one I think I really needed to have read the previous books. I think it would have made much more sense to me. And I would have understood what the characters were talking about. They seemed to reference a lot of things that had happened previously, and t...

Fatal Frost by Nancy Mehl   I enjoyed the book and watching the main character, Mercy, come to terms with the things in her life and to see her learn to trust the Lord and let go of the things in the past. Forgiveness is so important in our lives and how we deal with others. Mercy had a hard childhood but worked hard in making a good career in law enforcement.   Reading about the drug culture and how so caught up those who deal and those who take drugs are. So very sad and real. Something that touches so many lives. Choices that some of the characters made in the book and how that impacted their lives from the choice whether it was a good choice or a bad choice helps the readers to see how the choices in our lives make a difference.     Nice to see the good guys win. Some of the evil that was involved with the drugs and the cartel was an eye opener. Had to keep focused on the fact that the battle is already won through Christ and he kno...

Whooo!! Get Excited! It's time for my very first book review! Now, I have never written a legit blog post in review of a book, so I am sure my first time won't be as stellar as others. But good news for me at least, I have signed up and requested several books to review so there are many more to follow! Thanks to Bekah over at Bekah's Bits , my fellow Indiana blogger, I found out you can sign up to revew books for free! Seeing that I love books and reading and free :) I was alll about that! My first book is from Revell, thanks for the copy Revell! "What Matters Most" is by Kellie Coates Gilbert, and it is part of her Texas Gold Series. These books are stand alone books, so you can pick up any one of them and read without needing to read one before another. I have actually read two of her books, "A Woman of Fortune" Which I LOVED, and "Where Rivers Part" which was also really interesting!  I had high hopes for "What Matte...

I love reading. Growing up my Mom always read to us, even after we learned how to read ourselves. We read all of the Boxcar Children, and various other series. To this day I still enjoy listening to my Mom read, only this time it's to my nephews :) Because of my childhood reading I am still a voracious reader to this day. It's something I really enjoy.  Which makes it crazy that I have never done a book list or what i'm reading now post on this blog! These aren't all of the books I've read recently, but some of my favorites! Hopefully it will inspire you to read as well!  I read a LOT of fiction, but I have recently really gotten into non fiction as well. Right now I am FASCINATED by the Kennedy era and his untimely death, so I have been reading many books about the Kennedys.  The above two books are my favorites, next to Killing Kennedy by Bill O'Reily. Clint Hill is the author of both, and he was the Secret Service detail for Mrs. Kennedy. He ...