Saturday, November 15, 2014

Book Review: A Sensible Arrangement by Tracie Peterson

Martie Olson is running away. Her past is filled with pain and memories of a dead husband that she loved so much but was taken too early. To escape the memories, she leaves her ranch and heads to Denver in answer to ad for a "Lone Star Bride."
Marriage to a banker seems safe and as far away from the dangers of ranching life that Marty can imagine, and since Jake Wythe is looking only for a "sensible arrangement" and not a match of love, Marty will not have to worry about replacing her first husband in her heart or facing the pain that so much love can bring.
But even banking can be filled with uncertainties of it's own. With missing money, strangers lurking and an economic collapse on the horizon, Marty and Jake's life of ease seems to be precarious. As their friendship grows and their hopes and dreams become known, Marty and Jake will have to decide just how sensible they want their arrangement to be.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story - so much that I read it twice. I really love reading about this time and I love when authors weave real events and history into the story line - it just adds so much depth to the tale. The characters were awesome and I love how Marty is introduced into Denver society and all that comes with it. It didn't even end how I thought it would which is new for me and a great bonus! Usually historical fiction is a bit predictable so I loved having a ending I was not expecting.

Thank you to Bethany House Publishing for a free a copy of this book to review.

Book Review: A Bride in Store by Melissa Jagears

Eliza Cantrell, mail order bride, has decided to come to meet her groom-to-be a week earlier than planned. She hopes that she will be able to be a help to him in running his store and find a friend and companion in this man with whom she has been writing. But her plans go all wrong when her train is held up and all her dowry is stolen.
Arriving in town hurt and dirt poor, Eliza seeks out her fiancee only to find that he is not even in town! His partner at the store, Will, allows her to stay and help around the store until Axel, her intended returns. Will soon discovers that Eliza has a remarkable head for business and soon does amazing things with the store. Working together, Eliza and Will form a friendship with sparks of something a little more underneath. What will happen when Axel returns and choices must be made?

I thought this was a really sweet book and I read it super quickly! I love when stories are not a straightforward boy meets girl, blah blah blah :-) This has enough twists to keep you wondering what is going to happen! I've just now notices that Melissa Jagears has another book previously published and I will definitely be looking it up. If it's anything like this one, it will be a good read.

Thank you to Bethany House Publishers for a free copy of this book to review.

Book Review: Surprised by Love by Julie Lessman

When Megan Mc Clare returns from Paris she is so transformed that even those closest to her barely recognize her. Truly blossomed into a beautiful young woman, Megan has big plans for her life. Accepting an internship at the DA's office is more than she could have hoped for until she realizes she will have to work along side the one man who has inflicted the most pain on her life and yet the one whom she was so attracted to - Devin Caldwell
Bram Hughes has always been Megan's best friend, confidant and rock of support. When Megan turns to him for advice about working with Devin, he is surprised by his jealous reaction and strong feelings toward this woman who has always been like a sister to him. 
As everyone tries to sort out their feelings, more than one person will be surprised by love! 

This was probably one of my favorite stories that Julie Lessman has written. I usually am not a huge fan of her works because they seem to focus so much on the physical attraction between people. While this story does still have a lot of that, I think there seems to be a lot more to her story this time and I enjoyed the back and forth and twists and turns in the characters feelings and actions. I also really liked that it followed more than one person and you felt like you got to know a little more of the family and not just the main characters. 

Thank you to Revell Publishing for a free copy of this story to review. 

Friday, November 07, 2014

Book Review: A Mom's Prayers for Her Son by Rob and Joanna Teigan

Rob and Joanna Teigan have created this amazing resource for praying through every area of your son's life (or really you could use this for anybody). Each "chapter" contains a part of life to pray through for your son, i.e "When he needs self-control," "When he needs to find rest," When he has enemies," "When he needs a good friend." Pretty much any area you could think of is in there!
Each section includes Scripture that talk about that area of life and then a prayer that Joanna has written and prayed for her sons. I do read those, but then I find that I just want to pray through that Scripture in my own words after. I just love having this resource. It will even come in handy as I am choosing Scripture when I need to talk to the boys about a specific area.
I would definitely recommend this to parents of boys (I notice there is also one for daughters too if you don't have boys).

A big thanks to Revell Publishing for a free copy of this book to read and review.