Among the Fair Magnolias

Among The Fair Magnolias is a new book containing four novellas telling tales about women during the tumultuous times of the Civil War!

First, you start off with A Heart So True by Dorothy Love.   You meet Abigail Clayton, who is caught between her father's strong wish that she marry her cousin Charles Kittridge and her own heart's desire for Dr. Wade Bennett!  Will her father's mind be changed after Charles takes a swing at Abigail?  
You will be surprised to discover which direction wins Abigail's heart in the end!

Next, you meet Savannah Darby in To Mend a Dream written by Tamera Alexandra.  When her parents and older brothers are lost during the war, Savannah has been left with her younger brother and sister to raise on her own.  When she is asked to redecorate her family home for a man from the North, it is the final straw for her!  When she meets the new owner, Aidan Bedford, she is surprisingly drawn to him. 
Will she be able to keep her real identity a secret until she can find what her father has left hidden for his family? 

In Love Beyond Limits written by Elizabeth Musser, you learn the story of Emily Derracott.  She is living in Wilkes County, Georgia, during the early days of the beatings and murders of the Ku Klux Klan!!!!!  After the Klan hangs and kills Washington, an older black man from her father's plantation, Emily cannot make sense of her world.  Will she follow after her feelings of a forbidden love for Washington's brother, Leroy,  or will she follow her parent's wishes for her to marry her childhood friend, Thomas McGinnis, who she suspects is part of the Klan?
Hang on to see where the Lord leads Emily with all the questions she has about her changing world!

Finally, you are introduced to Russell Champion in An Outlaw's Heart by Shelley Gray.  Russell ran away from home as a seventeen year old boy.  Now, he has returned seven years later to find everything changed!  His mother is near death and Nora, the girl he still loves, has taken up with a man that Russell has a bad feeling about!   
Watch and see if Russell is able to save Nora again from a bad situation!!!


I received this book from Thomas Nelson in exchange for my unbiased review

Drops of Gold

Drops of Gold is the second book in Sarah Eden's Jonquil Brothers series.  You meet Marion on her way to Farland Meadows to begin her new job as a governess.  Marion is in a desperate state as her father has recently died and she is left with nothing to live on!

When Marion finally meets her charge, Caroline Jonquil, she immediately falls in love with this four year old little girl.  Marion begins to transform this home shadowed by the death of Caroline's mother by bringing in light and laughter!  Caroline's father, Layton Jonquil, seems to be the greatest victim in this dark place!

Hold on tight as you see the deep secrets of both Marion and Layton brought into the light!

Friends and Foes

Friends and Foes, the first book in Sarah Eden's Jonquil brothers series, introduces you to the eldest brother of the family, Philip Jonquil, the Earl of Lampton.  Philip's work (investigating crimes as an agent for the Foreign Office) leads him and a fellow agent to a small, out of the way inn.  As they are discussing their plans to locate a French spy, named Le Fontaine, their private discussion is suddenly interrupted by a beautiful, young English woman, looking for her walking stick!

This young woman's name is Sorrel Kendrick and when Sorrel and Philip end up at the same party in the country at the home of Philip's best friend, you know fireworks are bound to happen!  After their previous meeting, Sorrel and Philip have declared war with each other.  As you watch them interact with friends and family during this party, you also see sparks forming between Philip and Sorrel!

Philip is still looking for Le Fontaine and when he learns that he is in the area, he knows he must go out on the hunt.  Big trouble arises when Sorrel gets involved with the hunt, as well!

I Hope You Dance: A July Wedding Story

Robin Lee Hatcher continues the tale she began in Whenever You Come Around in her latest novella, I Hope You Dance.  On the first pages of this novella, you meet Skye Foster, a young woman in town, who teaches dance to any interested! 

Buck and Charity are making their wedding plans.  They hire Skye to give dance lessons to their wedding party.  Quickly, Skye meets one of their groomsmen, Grant Nichols.  When Skye realizes he needs private lessons, she is immediately excited.  Skye had sensed something exciting between them!

When Grant and Skye discover their feelings are leading them towards a potential marriage, they quickly discover that their thoughts on family do not mesh.  Grant comes from a family of eleven children and he wants none for himself.  This does not connect with Skye's desire for a large family herself.  What will they do!

Wait and see what Grant and Skye decide to do about this critical difference in their hopes for the future!


I received this book from Zondervan in exchange for my unbiased review

The Wonder of You

In Susan May Warren’s latest novel, The Wonder of You, Amelia Christiansen returns from her time in Europe, a woman with a broken heart!

Amelia met Roark St. John during her travels in Prague.  At first, he seemed like her dream come true; however, when Amelia sees him in the arms of another woman, all she could do was run home to safety, back to the arms of her family in Deep Haven!

When Roark shows up in Deep Haven in an attempt to reconnect with Amelia, he finds challenge, both from her family and from her former boyfriend, Seth.  Slowly, Roark works his way back into the good graces of her family; however, the challenge of the hometown boy against a refined European man must be played out!

You will discover who wins this battle in the final pages of this tale, but you will also see our great God at work in both Amelia and this man’s heart!

I received this book from Tyndale House Publishers in exchange for my unbiased review.

The Kiss of a Stranger

I just finished reading The Kiss of a Stranger by Sarah Eden.  This book follows along the lines of Jane Austen's novels.  This is a prequel for The Jonquil Brothers series.  I cannot wait to read this entire series!

You are initially introduced to Crispin, Lord Cavratt, when he ends up at a country inn, trying to avoid an undesirable lady of the ton.  He surprises himself and this lady when he grabs someone he assumes is a servant and soundly kisses her.  He discovers he actually kissed Miss Catherine Thorndale, when her uncle demands that they immediately marry!

This tale gets very complicated when the couple returns to Crispin's home in London (you don't want to miss the surprise entrance of his best friend, Philip Jonquil).  As Crispin helps Catherine attempt to fit into his high society world, they both begin to develop feelings that do not fit with attempting to annul their marriage!

Hang on to the end of this tale.  It is definitely worth the ride!

Now and Forever

Now and Forever is the latest book from Mary Connealy in her Wild at Heart series.  This book tells the story of the second Wilde sister, Shannon, who is trying to make it on her own in the wild west!

You meet up with Shannon at the beginning of this book, after she has thrown herself and Matthew Tucker off a cliff to escape a grizzly bear.  They end up heading down the Slaughter river, which is as dangerous as the name implies.  They survive this ordeal, only to find themselves forced to marry!

Newly-wed Shannon and Tucker finally return to Shannon's homestead,  only to discover that someone is trying to drive the settlers off their land by burning them out.  This man picks the wrong person when he begins to focus on Shannon's land!

This tale is filled with a bit of mystery and tons of action as you try to discover who this evil man is who is behind all this destruction!  This book leaves you looking forward and excited to read the final book in this series!


I received this book from Bethany House in exchange for my unbiased review.


 

Picture Perfect Love: A June Wedding Story

You are introduced to Jenna Harrison and Ashton Vance in Picture Perfect Love, the latest book written by Melissa McClone.  Two years ago, Ashton had left Jenna alone at the altar; now suddenly, he is appearing at her front door!  Ashton has two reasons for coming: first, to finally apologize to Jenna for leaving her and second, to ask her to fill in as a photographer at his sister's upcoming wedding!

After placing her faith in an awesome God and leaning on the support of her new Christian friends at her new church, Jenna is finally beginning to find her place again.  She is at a loss to know how to respond to Ashton's sudden appearance.  When he learns how much Jenna had to pay for their cancelled wedding, he offers to pay her back with interest and to pay double her going rate, if she will take on his sister's wedding!

Once Jenna decides to take on this job, it is an interesting journey to watch as Jenna and Ashton deal with their feelings from the past and discover that there might be the possibility of a second chance for a new and improved relationship.  Watch and see where God will lead these two next!


I received this book from Zondervan in exchange for my unbiased review

 

Never A Bridesmaid: A May Wedding Story

Janice Thompson begins Never A Bridesmaid with Mari learning that her younger sister is getting married.  She hears the news that her sister, Crystal, did not choose her to be the maid of honor in her upcoming wedding; instead, Mari will be the last of the five bridesmaids chosen!

Mari soon learns that Crystal's future mother-in-law had a large part in picking Sienna, who is the daughter of her good friend, as the maid of honor.  Disappointed with this turn of events, Mari is determined to still be there to help Crystal with whatever is needed.  The bridesmaid are all sent into a tizzy when the best man is introduced as Derrick Richardson, a professional baseball player for the Houston Astros.  What can be done when Sienna's attention is set on catching Derrick, instead of on her duties as the maid of honor!

Mari has to step in time after time to help with the wedding details.  She does not seem to gain a friend in Sienna when Derrick's attention is fully set on Mari.  Hang on tight to see whether the events of this big day fall into place!


I received this book from Zondervan in exchange for my unbiased review