About the Book

Book:  The Dating Charade

Author: Melissa Ferguson

Genre: Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Romantic  Comedy

Release Date: December 3, 2019

Cassie Everson is an expert at escaping bad first dates. And, after years of meeting, greeting, and running from the men who try to woo her, Cassie is almost ready to retire her hopes for a husband—and children—altogether.

But fate has other plans, and Cassie’s online dating profile catches the eye of firefighter Jett Bentley. In Jett’s memory, Cassie Everson is the unreachable girl-of-legend from their high school days. Nervously, he messages her, setting off a chain of events that forces a reluctant Cassie back into the dating game.

No one is more surprised than Cassie when her first date with Jett is a knockout. But when they both go home and find three children dropped in their laps—each—they independently decide to do the right and mature thing: hide the kids from each other while sorting it all out. What could go wrong?

Melissa Ferguson’s hilarious and warmhearted debut reminds us that love can come in very small packages—and that sometimes our best-laid plans aren’t nearly as rewarding and fun as the surprises that come our way.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Melissa Ferguson lives in Bristol, Tennessee, where she is an adjunct professor at King University and pens books that make her laugh and grow. She used to have hobbies like running and backpacking the Appalachian Trail outside her door. Now she and her husband are outnumbered, and her hobbies include diaper changes, chasing toddlers in parking lots, and admiring the Appalachian Trail out her minivan window while singing “Winnie the Pooh.” She survives by Jesus, rom coms, and roughly two espresso shots a day. The Dating Charade is her first novel.

Read an Excerpt

Read an excerpt of The Dating Charade here.

Looking at the cover of the book, I was expecting a fun lighthearted romance. What I didn't expect was the real life issues that children face everyday. The book is a look at two people trying to find their perfect mate.  Cassie and Jett are both good characters but I found it funny that they didn't seem to really fit as a match.  

Cassie has her doubts about using an online dating service but her profile does catch someones attention. Their first date is fun  but will there be another one? There are  a few funny moments in the story that I liked. However for me, the real story is about the children. I know first hand what it is like to know that your parents don't want you. For these children they go through such am emotional journey that my heart broke for them. It was hard to believe that Cassie and Jet find themselves with children at the same time. I couldn't figure out why they felt the need to hide the children from each other. 

Star picked up right away that Cassie acted like she was ashamed to be seen with her. As a teenager what do you think that will do for her self esteem or rejection issues? The story just didn't flow well for me and it was difficult to connect with Jett and Cassie. I began the book with high hopes, but was quickly disappointed in the story because it was more about hiding children from each other than being honest with someone you wanted a relationship with.  The ending was very predictable and the little conflict there was seemed to be skimmed over with an expected fix it solution. I didn't find hardly any faith element in the which disappointed me.  I will be looking for more books from this author with expectations of more quality characters and a story that holds my attention.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.

Blog Stops

A Baker’s Perspective, December 16

Genesis 5020, December 16

Kat’s Corner Books, December 17

Robin’s Nest, December 17

EmpowerMoms, December 17

Reflections From My Bookshelves, December 18

All-of-a-kind Mom, December 18

For Him and my Family, December 18

Carla Loves to Read, December 19

CarpeDiem, December 19

Cultivating Us, December 19

Quiet Quilter, December 20

Through the Fire Blogs, December 20

Christian Chick’s Thoughts, December 21

The Christian Fiction Girl, December 21

SusanLovesBooks, December 21

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, December 22

Texas Book-aholic, December 22

A Reader’s Brain, December 23

janicesbookreviews, December 23

Just Your Average reviews, December 23

Emily Yager, December 24

Vicky Sluiter, December 24

Hallie Reads, December 25

Remembrancy, December 25

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, December 26

Just the Write Escape, December 26

Simple Harvest Reads, December 26 (Guest Review from Mindy Houng)

Locks, Hooks and Books, December 27

Mypreciousbitsandmusings, December 27

Pause for Tales , December 27

As He Leads is Joy, December 28

A Rup Life, December 28

Batya’s Bits, December 29

With a Joyful Noise, December 29

Inklings and notions, December 29

*No Giveaway for this Celebration Tour

WELCOME TO CHRISTMAS BOOK FEATURES PRESENTED BY 

TEXAS BOOKAHOLIC

PERFECT GIFT FOR THE READER IN YOUR FAMILY

Christmas Treasures is the newest boxed set from Paper Gold Publishing. An eclectic collection of eleven stories, it spans historical Christmas stories to contemporary to the future. Through time and space, Christmas remains a holiday filled with the spirit of giving, good cheer and love.

A lonely woman dreams of a family.

In Oregon Territory, a sheriff and saloon owner must leave a dying town.

A storm brings two people together for Christmas.

Christmas in Iceland involves trolls.

A space voyager wants to get home in time for Christmas.

A brother and sister, twins, must navigate magical danger before the holiday is over.

Anxiety and guilt hold a young man prisoner in his home.

A large family must come to grips with the patriarch’s health problems.

A musician who left his small town in the dust returns and his life is changed.

An unlikely pair, a young man and his telepathic cat find Christmas with the help of a space mercenary.

A young woman prepares for the Christmas Ball which may change her life.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Z42ZWNF

WELCOME TO DECEMBER CHRISTMAS BOOKS

 PRESENTED BY TEXAS BOOK-AHOLIC

Looking for something special to give for  Christmas? .

Here is the Amazon link https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1683227190/ref=dbs_

a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2?fbclid=IwAR34s7Rc08SthnzW2g1pRiL-g0-JbBQOKVL_

n9lFvVKSEIr95VSaJTApHTQ

One Golden Ring by C.J. Chase
1855 Devonshire, England
Wounded soldier Tristram Nowell returns home to indulge his mother’s

 wish for a family Christmas—and encounters Marianna Granville. 

Can he forgive the former heiress who jilted him years before?

Star of Wonder by Susanne Dietze
1875 County Durham, England
This Yuletide, Bennet Hett, Lord Harwood, offers Lady Celeste Sidwell 

matrimony and the Star of Wonder diamond necklace, as their fathers arranged. 

When the diamond disappears, will they find a greater treasure?

The Holly and the Ivy by Rita Gerlach
1900 near Washington, DC
A glass ornament. Love letters tied in red Christmas ribbon.

 Lily Morningstar and British antiquities expert Andrew Stapleton

 are drawn into a family secret that binds their hearts together.

Love Brick by Brick by Kathleen L. Maher
1857 Elmira, New York
SarahAnn Winnifred overcomes orphanhood apprenticing

 with pioneering doctors. Rufus Sedgwick, relocating

 his English estate, seeks help for his ailing Mum. Christmas reveals the 

secret wish of both hearts—for love.

A Christmas Vow by Gabrielle Meyer
1899
 Cambrigeshire, England
Lady Ashleigh Arrington is hosting a houseful of guests for 

Christmas when railroad executive Christopher Campbell

 unexpectedly arrives from America with a mysterious agreement

 signed by their fathers before their birth.

The Sugarplum Ladies by Carrie Fancett Pagels
1867 Windsor, Ontario, Canada, and Detroit, Michigan
When Canadian barrister Percy Gladstone finds his aristocratic 

British family unexpectedly descending upon him for Christmas, 

he turns to American social reformer Eugenie Mott and her 

fledgling catering crew for help.

Paper Snowflake Christmas by Vanessa Riley
1837 Framlingham, England
How can widow Ophelia Hanover give her son a perfect

 Christmas when his guardian, the Earl of Litton, arrives

 early to take permanent custody of the boy?

Father Christmas by Lorna Seilstad
1880 Blackpool, England
Widowed harpist Beatrix Kent believes love can only come

 once in a lifetime, but this Christmas, carpenter Hugh Sherman

 hopes to pull on the musician’s heartstrings and prove her wrong.

The Perfect Christmas by Erica Vetsch
1887 London, England
Melisande Verity might be in over her head trying to 

create the perfect Christmas window display, but if she succeeds,

 will she finally attract the attention of her boss, Gray Garamond?

______________________________________________________________________________

WELCOME TO THE UNWILLING PROMISE REVIEW PROMO BLAST 

PRESENTED \BY CELEBRATE LIT

Klarysa Tutko, a young single mother, moves to Caribou, Minnesota, 
where her family is now living, to put her life back in order. All she 
wants is to leave the past in the past; though a family friend has 
other ideas and persuades her to make a promise that she is unwilling 
to keep.

Emily Yager writes Inspirational Romance novels set among the lakes,
rivers, and north woods of Minnesota. Is the author of the Pursuing
Voyageurs series.

When Emily is not writing, she is doodling over her notes, listening
to music, searching for a new history book to explore, or dealing with
the dramas of a bi-polar prima donna canine and writing puppy
sidekick, Xian. She lives on the family farm in northwestern Minnesota.

Social Media Links:

Facebook @emilyyagerauthor (https://facebook.com/emilyyagerauthor/)
Twitter @TheEmilyYager (https://twitter.com/TheEmilyYager/)

Purchase link:

https://amzn.to/2O4Y6ir

The story follows a young Ukrainian woman named Klarysa. She has not been lucky in the love department and finds herself divorced and carrying for her young child alone. Without going into  much of the story she makes a promise to a  dying friend that will be hard to keep.   It was interesting to read about Ukrainian culture and learn words they spoke. That was the highlight of the entire story. 

Sergey is a nice character who makes a promise to his dying wife that finds him uncomfortable carrying out her wish. The story was clunky at times and didn't quite hit the mark. I don't usually say much about grammar or errors in a book, but this one is in desperate need of an editing overhaul. It    lacked the flow you want in a story and was hard to really like the characters.

It had divorce, death, abuse and little to no  faith element in the story. I found it to be predictable and not very entertaining. The author has a good concept but didn't develop her characters well. There were a few funny moments but the drama and sadness outweighed everything that would make the story enjoyable to read. I didn't care for how the two got together and there was too much death in the story for my taste. 

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.

About the Book

Book:  Crown

Author: Nancy Kaser

Genre: Christian Non-Fiction, Biblical Marriage

Release Date: August 20, 2019

Whether you’re in the honeymoon stage or celebrating your fiftieth anniversary, you have never before been in this season of your marriage. Your family dynamics, finances, health, emotional state, location, ministry, employment status—all the factors of your life—are in a perpetual state of transition. As a married woman, you are continually wife-changing. The Scriptures never change, but they can always be freshly applied to every season of marriage.

Crown is a resource that combines solid Bible teaching, humorous and humbling tales from the author’s own marriage journey, and dozens of compelling stories from real women just like you. Based on Proverbs 12:4, “An excellent wife is the crown of her husband,” Crownincludes concrete Scriptural truths and real-life examples that will equip you to be the excellent wife God created you to be. Complex issues such as biblical roles within marriage, physical intimacy, communication, forgiveness, and home management are all addressed with candid honesty, encouragement, and biblical substance. In thirty wife-changing lessons, you will be instructed, challenged, and motivated to walk in obedience to God’s beautiful design for marriage.

Click here to get your copy.

About the Author

Nancy Kaser is a passionate pastor’s wife and veteran missionary. For over twenty-five years, she has taught women’s Bible studies, provided biblical counseling, and been a dynamic women’s conference speaker. Based in Southern California, Nancy teaches literature and history classes at The Writtenburg Door. She and her visionary husband also lead short-term mission trips with the Calvary Chapel movement and run a child-sponsorship organization.

More from Nancy

Closing the church door after my seventh counseling appointment that week, I was overcome with the realization that every appointment had been relatively indistinguishable. The women I counseled from our congregation were generally unsatisfied, disappointed, and disillusioned with their marriages, and some were downright rebellious in their role as wives. The same anxieties, the same troubles, (and the same sins creating the anxieties and troubles) came up in almost every meeting. Though these church ladies may have been well-versed in the scriptures, no one had taught them how to live out biblical principals in their everyday lives.

As a pastor’s wife, I wished I could meet with every married lady in my church and offer practical discipleship with this hope: that a glorious, fulfilling, and God-honoring marriage—to the same guy she is married to right now! —is absolutely possible through obedience to God’s word.  

Crown – 30 Wife-Changing Lessons is a resource that combines solid Bible teaching, humorous and humbling tales from my own marriage journey, and dozens of compelling stories from real women just like you. Based on Proverbs 12:4, “An excellent wife is the crown of her husband,” Crown includes concrete, scriptural truths and real-life examples that will equip you to be the excellent wife God created you to be. Complex issues such as biblical roles within marriage, physical intimacy, communication, forgiveness, and home management are all addressed with candid honesty, encouragement and biblical substance.

Whether you’re in the honeymoon stage or celebrating your fiftieth anniversary, you have never before been in this season of your marriage. Your family dynamics, finances, health, emotional state, location, ministry, employment status— all the factors of your life—are in a perpetual state of transition. As a married woman, you are continually wife-changing. The scriptures never change, but they can always be freshly applied to every season of marriage. In thirty wife-changing lessons, you will be instructed, challenged, and motivated to walk in obedience to God’s beautiful design for marriage.

The beginning of the book drew me in right away. The author talks about salvation in a way that is very clear and concise. I also believe that just because you said the sinners prayers once, doesn't mean you automatically will go to heaven. I loved the acronym she uses for GOSPEL.  I encourage you to write it down somewhere so you can always see it. It is nice to see at the end of each chapter questions that are very useful in the study and helps you dig deeper into the Word.

The author is very upfront about what a Godly marriage is. She lays out exactly two reasons the Bible gives where divorce can be considered-sexual immorality and abandonment. The key here is that the Bible would consider those reasons, not that it is a get out of marriage free card. Many marriages have been through a spouse cheating found their way back and forgiven.

Do you remember saying your vows? I do and know how serious God  takes those as well. We make a covenant with each other and God. We don't get to walk away when the going gets tough. We are to stick by each each in good and bad times. Believe me the enemy will throw temptation at us and if we are not working as one, he will find a way into your marriage.

There is no such thing as a perfect marriage. We don't live like Mrs. Cleaver with pearls on each day, the house in perfect order and home cooked meals everyday. We have busy lives and sometimes are distracted from the importance of spending time with our spouse. The key to any great marriage is communication.  If we can't share our burdens with each other, we need to find out what is stopping us from doing that.

The book is very well written and each chapter is filled with examples, wisdom and encouragement. "The one thing you have to" do is to determine your husband is first in your heart and be intentional about staying connected to him."   I do have to disagree a little with this statement. God should be first in our heart, then our husband. I do agree that our children need to see us honor their father to set a good example for them.  They will learn to respect and honor their spouse when they grow up because they saw the example of that in their home growing up.

I want to mention the part in the book about guarding your tongue. So many women love to say bad things about their husbands. They complain they are lazy, never talk etc. Don't be part of that conversation. I have been know to shut down that type of conversation by these words;" I love my husband and would never say anything negative about him to others. I'm sure you would hope that he is doing the same by saying kind things about you to others." Remember we are to honor our husband and not be part of the "husband bashing" going on in conversations with other people. If someone is saying hurtful things about their spouse pray for them and suggest they speak to their spouse about how they are feeling. Remember communication, trust and respect  is everything.

"As you guard your heart above all else, the rest of your life will be guarded as well."

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.

Blog Stops

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, December 13

Mary Hake, December 13

Inklings and notions, December 14

Artistic Nobody, December 15

All-Of-kind Mom, December 16

Just the Write Escape, December 17

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, December 17

Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, December 18

Texas Book-aholic, December 19

janicesbookreviews, December 20

Simple Harvest Reads, December 21

For Him and My Family, December 21

A Reader’s Brain, December 22

As He Leads is Joy, December 23

Lots of Helpers, December 24

Quiet Workings, December 25

Godly Book Reviews, December 26

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Nancy is giving away the grand prize package of 2 copies of Crown and a $50 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/f23e/crown-celebration-tour-giveaway

About the Book

Book:  Brand of Light

Author: Ronie Kendig

Genre: Christian Fiction, futuristic, space opera,

Release Date: December 3, 2019

There’s a price on her head, and it has everything to do with the brand on her arm.

Tertian Space Coalition has blessed every planet in the quadrants with high technology, save one: Drosero. But in spite of their tenuous treaty with the ruling clans, TSC has plans for the backward planet. And they’re not alone.

After a catastrophic explosion, Kersei Dragoumis awakens in a derelict shuttle, alone, injured, and ignorant of the forbidden technology that has swept her into a nightmare. The brand she’s borne since childhood burns mysteriously, but the pain is nothing to that when she learns her family is dead and she is accused of their murders.

Across the quadrants, Marco Dusan responds to the call of a holy order—not to join them, but to seek a bounty. Gifted—or cursed—with abilities that mark him a Kynigos, a tracker sworn to bring interplanetary fugitives to justice, Marco discovers this particular bounty has nothing to do with justice and everything to do with prophecy. One that involves the hunter as much as the hunted.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Ronie Kendig is an award-winning, bestselling author of over twenty titles. An Army brat, Ronie lives a shot train ride from New York City with her husband, twin sons, and two fur-sons, VVolt N629, a retired military working dog, and Benning the Stealth Golden. Described as an empath by her literary agent, Ronie has used her degree in psychology to write books that have won the coveted Christy Award, Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, HOLT Medallion Award, and more. Her books have also hit the CBA Bestseller List multiple times.

More from Ronnie

In November 2005, I lurched into a story that started with one small element—what if a hero could literally smell fear? And so I delved into the story with the characters, and felt like I’d fallen into the vortex. I wrote over 90,000 words in one month, this story just gushing out of me.

But I was a very new writer. And if you saw the first draft that gushed out of me, you’d snicker. I sure have. It’s appallingly bad writing, yet the story’s bones are healthy and intact. So, I teased the story into shape over the last fourteen years. In 2012, I took a hard look at it and tried to shape up the writing. I’d even gotten to know Kathy Tyers, who wrote for the Star Wars franchise as well as the much-beloved Firebird series (*insert reverent pause here*), and I bravely asked if she would take a peek at the first fifty pages or so. Being gracious as Kathy is, she agreed to take a look.

Um, yikes. Haha. Make no mistake—Kathy is a brilliant writer, and I will never write like her, but I learned so much her feedback and took it to heart. Clearly, I still had a long way to go before that story was ready for the world, so I delved into honing my craft and deepening this story. Honestly, I was afraid show Brand of Light to anyone again, because I love this story so much and did not want to see “her” fail. Nore correctly—I did not want to fail this story.

About three years ago, I sensed a deep conviction that it was time to stop hiding and, as an act of faith and obedience to what God had given me, to send Brand of Light out into the world. As I write this, she is still 1.5 months out from the release, and I’m scared. I want this beauty to be loved, but even if it’s not, *I love this story and know I honored God with my writing and sending her out. I can rest here for a long while, reveling in the gift God gave me with this storyworld and its characters. I’m excited to see her launch out into the deep now. As Marco and the hunters always say, For Honor.

Welcome to a world that collides with the likes of Star Wars and Star Trek. The imagination the author displays is exceptional. I wasn't sure I would like the book since I'm not a big science fiction reader. Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised by the story. It does have its flaws though. The beginning is very slow and the language was something I had to get used to. Like most science fiction /space movies I've seen, they all have a particular language only know to their own species. I did wonder at times if they were cursing or if I was taking the sayings out of context. There were so many characters floating around I had a hard time keeping up.

Now for all the good parts of the book. Without a doubt Kersei is a great character. She can defend herself and doesn't back down from a fight. She is someone you would want on your side. The most predominate part of the story centers around the kidnapping of Kersei. The torture she goes through is hard to read and I felt like there was an unnecessary amount of harm done to her. I would liked to have seen that toned down a little.  I did think her rescuing went on far too long and good have been shortened by several chapters.

Now for my favorite character who is none other than Marco. He is determined to rescue Kersei and has gifts that will help him free her from her captors. His bravery does come with danger and this is where the story really gets good. I loved the scenes when he outsmarted the captors and stayed one step ahead of them. The book does not lack for action or bad guys because there is an abundance of both. I have heard the book referred to as a Space Opera. That does intrigue me and I look forward to the next book in the series. 

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.

Blog Stops

Through the Fire Blogs, December 14

April Hayman, Author, December 14

Hallie Reads, December 14

amandainpa , December 15

Inside the Wong Mind, December 15

Christian Chick’s Thoughts, December 16

Wishful Endings, December 16

Pause for Tales, December 16

A Reader’s Brain, December 17

Faery Tales Are Real, December 17

Simple Harvest Reads, December 18 (Guest Review from Mindy Houng)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, December 18

Where Faith and Books Meet, December 18

Texas Book-aholic, December 19

Mia Reads Blog, December 19

Adventures of a Travelers Wife, December 20

Betti Mace, December 20

Books, Life, and Christ, December 20

Just the Write Escape, December 21

Britt Reads Fiction, December 21

Blogging With Carol , December 22

A Good Book and Cup of Tea, December 22

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, December 23

All-of-a-kind Mom, December 23

The Artist Librarian, December 23

Emily Yager, December 24

mypreciousbitsandmusings, December 24

Bakerkella, December 25

Worthy2Read, December 25

janicesbookreviews, December 26

Tell Tale Book Reviews, December 26

Just Your Average reviews, December 26

Inklings and notions, December 27

Splashes of Joy, December 27

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Ronie is giving away the grand prize package of a Tinted Prose edition of Brand of Light, Galaxy Tumbler, “Kersei” Dio Adorable Candle, 3 Character Cards (to include Marco, Kersei, Tigo), and 2 Maps (to include Drosero and the planetary map)!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/f2e2/brand-of-light-celebration-tour-giveaway