Sunday, March 10, 2024

About the Book

Book: Forever Free

Author: Hope Toler Dougherty

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Release Date: January 24, 2024

Phoebe Sinclair combines her love of flowers and teaching to nurture a cut flower business on her grandfather’s land. She’s got her hands full growing the farm, growing her customer base, and dealing with her growing attraction to the aloof man who’s volunteered to help make her farming dream come true.

Can she focus on her main job, or will a pair of yearning eyes and a hurting heart divert her worthy goals?

Heath Daniels has resigned himself to a life of singleness as he watches his siblings couple up and set wedding dates. Tracking their happiness, however, is more difficult than he expected. A real struggle, in fact.

Feeling the old troubles from his college years creeping back to tempt him, he’s propelled to volunteer for manual labor, leaving him exhausted, but out of danger, at the end of every day. His additional hours of agri-business, however, lead to different struggles with an intriguing farmer.

Does he have the strength to resist old temptations as well as a beautiful new one too?

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Hope Toler Dougherty holds a Master’s degree in English and taught at East Carolina University in Greenville, NC, and York Technical College in Rock Hill, SC. Her early novels are Irish Encounter, Mars…With Venus Rising, and Rescued Hearts. Her Forever series includes Forever Music, Forever Home, and the novella, “A Hatteras Surprise,” which is featured in Candy Cane Wishes and Saltwater Dreams.

A chronic volunteer, she’s a member of ACFW, NC Writers’ Network, and Triangle East Writers. She and her husband live in North Carolina and look forward to visits with their two daughters and twin sons.

More from Hope

A few years ago, I decided to write a series since readers enjoy reading stories with familiar characters. Four siblings came to mind, perhaps because I have four children, and the Daniels family from Charlotte, North Carolina, burst onto my computer screen.

I’ve loved spending time with Ben, Heath, Sam, and Josie for the past several years and sharing how three of them found their happily ever after. One, however, always appeared on the fringe of the story, participating, yes, but always a bit set apart from the family.

Heath Daniels is the second oldest sibling, the middle brother between Ben and Sam. Readers will discover him first in Forever Music and then in a larger role in Forever Home, but he never disclosed too much about himself in those stories.

Before I began the series, I didn’t know to plan key plot points and goals for each story as well as the whole series. As a panster, I wrote each story as it came to me or as I needed to like, for instance, the novella, “A Hatteras Surprise.”

When it came time to write Heath’s story, I hardly knew him. I wasn’t sure about his backstory, his occupation, tastes…nothing. He grudgingly released those missing pieces bit by tiny bit.

At the beginning of Forever Free, Heath feels like the black sheep in the family. In the high achieving Daniels clan, he’s the one who dropped out of college, the one who struggled with substance abuse, the one who feels less than. With all his siblings coupling up, he’s staring at a single future because of old misguided beliefs.

Guilt from an early tragedy along with bad choices play important parts in Heath’s personality. Phoebe Sinclair has her hands full nurturing her cut flower farm, plus she has to deal with a cute, but distant employee, the mysterious Heath.

I enjoyed getting to know Heath and watching his growth from the sullen, misunderstood character to the confident businessperson who wants Phoebe to achieve her dream. I hope you’ll enjoy his story, too.

Here’s a recipe Phoebe bakes for her grandfather in Forever Free. I’m not sure why it’s called Swedish Nut Cake, but I’m sure it’s delicious.

Swedish Nut Cake

Ingredients for cake:                                       Ingredients for icing:
2 C flour                                                          1 8 oz pkg creamed cheese
1 ¾ C sugar                                                     1/2 stick butter
2 eggs                                                              1 t vanilla
2 t baking soda                                                1 ½ C powdered sugar, sifted
1 t vanilla
½ chopped nuts
1 20 oz. can crushed pineapple with juice

Directions:
Mix all ingredients for cake and bake in a greased 9×13 pan at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. For icing, mix all ingredients and frost the cooled cake. Store in the refrigerator.

MY REVIEW

This is a beautiful story of redemption and forgiveness . I adored learning more about running a farm filled with flowers that bring beauty to the world. The characters oh my are they good. Phoebe and Heath are dynamic together. The author is very well versed in creating depth to her characters.

Phoebe has this dream to make Honeysuckle Farm a place to teach about flowers as well as sell them. It is hard work but she gets joy from hard work and being around her grandpa. I liked how she is persistent in making the farm a success yet she has flaws of being a bit unsure of herself. Her confidence is lacking but along the way maybe someone will be able to help her out.

Heath is not really a complicated character just has this guilt he carries around. An accident that happened years ago still affects him even today. He refuses to allow anyone to get close to him for fear of losing them. As he volunteers at Phoebe’s grandpa’s farm, they start to build a friendship. Heath needs to keep busy so he won’t slip back into drinking again.

I liked how Heath used his business background to help Phoebe develop programs to bring people to the farm. I would love to be there as the food truck set up and feel the excitement from the families as they get ready to watch fireflies dance in the sky.

What I like best about this story is how the author illustrates how our guilt can keep us locked up in depression, being alone and bottling up anger. Heath is harsh towards Phoebe at times which causes friction between the two. Surrendering to God is the only way to be free. The ending is sweet and shares how God can heal a broken heart while allowing forgiveness to happen.

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

Blog Stops

Pause for Tales, March 6

Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, March 7 (Author Interview)

Simple Harvest Reads, March 8 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 8

For the Love of Literature, March 9 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, March 10

Tell Tale Book Reviews, March 11 (Author Interview)

Life on Chickadee Lane, March 12

Blossoms and Blessings, March 13 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, March 14

Artistic Nobody, March 15 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, March 16

Back Porch Reads, March 17 (Author Interview)

The Lofty Pages, March 17

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, March 18

Where Crisis & Christ Collide, March 19 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Hope is giving away the grand prize package of a $75 Amazon gift card and a set of the 4-book Forever Series!!

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/2a551/forever-free-celebration-tour-giveaway

Friday, March 8, 2024

About the Book

Book: Guardian

Author: Cathy McCrumb

Genre: Science Fiction

Release Date: February 20, 2024

The Recorder’s fate has been sealed, but the Consortium is not the only enemy.

Labeled an aberration by the Consortium, the Recorder is not yet free. Time is running out as an engineered bioweapon wreaks havoc on friend and foe alike.

Stopping both the biological agent and the people who created it is no easy task, especially since the Recorder and her friends are trapped on a research station infested with behemoth insects. Without Consortium technology, the probability of neutralizing the threat falls to nothing. In order to save her allies, the Recorder must activate a drone, but her success might destroy any hope for freedom, a future, and a name.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Cathy McCrumb graduated from Biola University with a degree in English Literature and a love for stories. She and her husband, whom she met while writing letters to soldiers, have five children and currently live within the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. While writing is one of her favorite things to do, she also enjoys reading, long hikes and long naps, gluten-free brownies and raspberries, and crocheting while watching science fiction movies with friends and family.

More from Cathy

Someone asked me recently why I wrote Guardian. My answer was that the whole Children of the Consortium trilogy is my love song to people who feel left out.

In the first novel, the Recorder—a young woman with no name, no family, and no friends—doesn’t see her life as valuable. As she discovers friendship and love, however, she realizes that every person in the system is unique, and this by definition must include her, too.

How often do we doubt our own value and that of the people around us? In a world that prioritizes youth, beauty, health, and success, many people are on the outside, looking in. I suspect that deep down, a lot of us wrestle with who we are and how we fall short of this external measuring tape.

The truth, however, is very, very different from the lie of worthlessness. While we have names (and don’t usually encounter two-meter insects, for which I am extremely thankful), we frequently forget that as humans, even though we are fallen, we are made in God’s image. Furthermore, as Christians, we have been both called and adopted.

Zephaniah 3:17 says that the Lord is with us. He takes “great delight” in us and rejoices over us. What an amazing, beautiful, and comforting image. The One who formed the stars, who breathed life into every human on the planet rejoices over YOU.

My prayer is that you find hope and joy in the midst of darkness, whether or not you find friends in the pages of these novels. Look to the Lord and hold fast to the fact that you are unique and valuable. Because even when you feel like you’re on the outside looking in, you are never alone.

MY REVIEW

I have loved this series so much and hate to see it end. Recorder is my favorite character and I have enjoyed following her journey. From the beginning she felt unwanted but slowly she begins her rebirth as a valuable asset to many. I loved how we experience her emotions. Get ready for many characters from the previous books to join this epic ending. Oh how I loved that a name is revealed that opens up a new world for one very important character.

A virus is threatening lives while the ones who can get rid of this threat is stuck on a research station with creepy bugs. I could feel bugs crawling in me as I read this part. Yikes! So many questions surround Recorder about this virus that has been released. What about the bugs and cats running around the station? It sounds a bit chaotic at times which adds to the excitement in this story. The final assignment is here and with it comes twists, danger old friends and an exciting ending. I’ll miss this series but hope the author is working on a new one.

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

Blog Stops

Locks, Hooks and Books, March 7

Through the Fire Blogs, March 8 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, March 9

Splashes of Joy, March 10 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, March 11

Artistic Nobody, March 12 (Author Interview)

Guild Master, March 13 (Author Interview)

A Reader’s Brain, March 14 (Author Interview)

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, March 15 (Author Interview)

Wishful Endings, March 15

Simple Harvest Reads, March 16 (Author Interview)

Blossoms and Blessings, March 17 (Author Interview)

The Lofty Pages, March 17

Fiction Book Lover, March 18 (Author Interview)

Blogging With Carol , March 19

Vicky Sluiter, March 20 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Cathy is giving away the grand prize of a copy of Guardian!!

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/2a552/guardian-celebration-tour-giveaway

Wednesday, March 6, 2024

About the Book

Book: Reverence in the Wilderness

Author: Andrea Byrd

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: March 5, 2024

She’s desperate to save the homestead she’s poured her life into…but is a marriage of convenience with him the answer?

Alone in the Kentucky wilderness, Keturah Elliot finds herself bereft of family and facing the looming threat of losing all she has left. After toiling alongside her demeaning father for two years, she cannot bear losing the homestead they built with their own hands. Keturah has no choice but to trust the Lord’s urging—she must marry to protect all she holds dear. But when a candidate presents himself in the form of a wealthy dandy from back East, can she find enough redeeming qualities to accept him?

Haunted by his mother’s death and a lifetime of failure and isolation, Daniel Scott sees little hope of a better situation when he’s sent to a remote Kentucky station. But when he meets a captivating Scottish woman in need of a husband such as he, he’s determined to break the cycle and prove himself once and for all.

Brought together by circumstances beyond their control, can these two opposites overcome their challenges to build the future they both crave?

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Andrea Byrd is a Christian wife and mom located in rural Kentucky, who loves to spend time with her family in the great outdoors, one with nature. Often described as having been born outside her time, she has a deep affinity for an old-fashioned, natural lifestyle.

With a degree in Equine Health & Rehabilitation gathering dust and a full-time job tethering her to a desk eight hours a day, Andrea decided it was time to show both herself and her children that it is truly possible to make your dreams come true. Now with over 1,000 contemporary novellas sold, Andrea is pursuing her passion of writing faith-filled romance woven with a thread of true history.

More from Andrea

In many ways, Reverence in the Wilderness is deeply personal for me.

To read about Daniel Scott is to receive a glimpse at my own husband. Dark hair and a golden-brown gaze…and my complete opposite in nearly every way. He is also talkative, entertaining, and gentlemanly. He definitely shares Daniel’s fun-loving and caring nature. Just as God blessed Keturah with Daniel, God blessed me with a man who perfectly complements me while keeping life interesting.

And, not to provider spoilers, but the miscarriage was drawn from one of my own experiences. During my most recent pregnancy, I experienced a threatened miscarriage. I just knew without a shadow of a doubt that I had lost my baby, and in that moment, I glimpsed the hopelessness one would face during a miscarriage. Thanks to the prayers of others and the good Lord above, I was blessed with a healthy pregnancy from then on out and now have a beautiful, healthy baby boy. However, there are so many women who must face that grief and loss in full force. And for always, my heart will break for them. As soon as I returned home from the hospital that night, I knew I had to represent their plight within these pages.

This book is dedicated to every woman who has ever experienced a miscarriage or threatened miscarriage.

MY REVIEW

This has been an unforgettable emotional journey with a young woman who tries to keep her homestead. Keturah is brave while she seeks answers in what to do. I wasn’t expecting the marriage of convenience with so much drama. It seemed to be the norm in this time period but the chance of it working out was not very favorable at times.

Daniel is just what Keturah needs at the moment. Watching their relationship develop was filled with a few twists. For Daniel maybe this marriage will benefit him as well. The author does give us a few surprises in the story but it is strong in faith and that for me was the best part of the story. No matter what these two went through faith was their foundation.

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

Blog Stops

Madi’s Musings, March 5

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 6

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, March 6

Texas Book-aholic, March 7

Books You Can Feel Good About, March 8

She Lives to Read, March 9

Locks, Hooks and Books, March 10

For Him and My Family, March 10

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, March 11

Lighthouse Academy Blog, March 12 (Guest Review from Marilyn Ridgway)

Betti Mace, March 13

lakesidelivingsite, March 13

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, March 14

Cover Lover Book Review, March 15

Jeanette’s Thoughts, March 15

Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, March 16 (Author Interview)

Mary Hake, March 16

Holly’s Book Corner, March 17

The Lofty Pages, March 17

Pause for Tales, March 18

Life on Chickadee Lane, March 18

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Andrea is giving away the grand prize of 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/2a550/reverence-in-the-wilderness-celebration-tour-giveaway

About the Book

Book: Protecting the Mountain Man’s Treasure

Author: Misty M. Beller

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: February 6, 2024

In the wild mountains of the Montana Territory, the Coulter ranch is a place of family, loyalty…and a hidden fortune.

Jude Coulter is far more comfortable in his family’s sapphire mine tucked in the Montana mountains than the bustling streets of New York City where he’s been sent to deliver a shipment of gems. His relief at boarding the train for the first leg of his journey home is short-lived when an accident renders him unconscious.

Angela Larkin worked hard to earn this assignment for the Treasury—an undercover mission to determine the source of the sapphires brought each year for auction in the city. When an accident causes her target to lose his recent memory, Angela jumps at the opportunity to create the ideal ruse. Jude seems surprised to learn the two of them had married and were returning from a glorious wedding trip, but he doesn’t question too strongly.

Yet when an unexpected threat arises, they find themselves dependent on the other to navigate the treacherous journey home. As the danger mounts, so too does an attraction neither of them anticipated. But can this love withstand the revelation of their tangled beginnings?

From a USA Today bestselling author comes a mountain family saga filled with a pretend marriage, amnesia, undercover agents, and a love worth treasuring far more than riches.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Misty M. Beller is a USA Today bestselling author of romantic mountain stories, set on the 1800s frontier and woven with the truth of God’s love.

Raised on a farm and surrounded by family, Misty developed her love for horses, history, and adventure. These days, her husband and children provide fresh adventure every day, keeping her both grounded and crazy.

Misty’s passion is to create inspiring Christian fiction infused with the grandeur of the mountains, writing historical romance that displays God’s abundant love through the twists and turns in the lives of her characters.

Sharing her stories with readers is a dream come true for Misty. She writes from her country home in South Carolina and escapes to the mountains any chance she gets.

More from Misty

In my latest release, the hero and heroine travel up the Missouri River in a steamboat, and I loved the research for that portion of the story!

Traveling on a steamboat in 1869 was an experience like no other, and took about two months to travel from St. Louis, Missouri to Fort Benton in the Montana Territory. Passengers would step aboard these floating palaces to find ornate decorations, plush accommodations, and the promise of new scenery at every bend in the river. Despite the occasional discomforts of travel—such as noisy engines and the ever-present risk of boiler explosions—passengers reveled in the novelty and the relative speed of steamboat travel.

The Missouri was notorious for its shifting channels, snags, and sandbars, which could easily ensnare even the most experienced pilot’s vessel. Navigating this river required an intimate knowledge of its capricious nature, and the river pilots were worth their weight in gold.

River towns along the Missouri thrived thanks to the steamboats. These towns became hotbeds of economic activity, where goods were loaded and unloaded, and stories from faraway places were exchanged. The arrival of a steamboat was an event, often met with fanfare and excitement by the local populace.

I pray you love the peek at steamboat life in Protecting the Mountain Man’s Treasure! J

Blessings!

Misty

MY REVIEW

This is a great addition to a wonderful series by this talented author. I love reading about the travels during this time period where trains were used to go to different places. I couldn’t imagine being on a dusty train for days with no privacy. The way the author brings Angela and Jude together is quite ingenious. Poor Jude doesn’t remember anything when an accident aboard the train takes his memory. It’s the perfect opportunity for Angela to step in and put her plan into action.

Their journey takes them deep into danger while secrets keep Jude in the dark. Angela has this need to prove herself because she has been treated unfairly throughout her life because of her heritage. I liked how Jude never wavered from his faith and wondered why he would marry Angela who didn’t believe in God.

As Jude starts to get his memory back, he suspects that Angela was not who she said she was. Why was she so determined to keep secrets from him? Watching her try to decide what to do, she begins to think about God. She can’t believe that God would want someone like her who is deceitful. As her story unfolds sympathy rises in Jude. This woman has been through a hard life losing her brother and trying to find a better life for herself. Working with the Treasury Office she had hoped to prove herself worthy. Now all her lies have been exposed. Can Jude forgive her?

The story picks up speed as danger gets too close to Angela . Angela is in over her head and Jude must step in to save her but will she finally tell him the truth? As they travel through the mountains Jude has time to explain about God more to Angela. We see a side of Angela that has been lingering just at the surface. She has never felt she was good enough. I love how the author illustrates redemption and forgiveness in this story. Angela has been lost for so long, but now she wants to know God. As they travel through the mountains her heart begins to soften.

The journey to reach home is long and filled with bumps in the road but Jude finally sees his family. He has much to share with them but most importantly he has brought Angela with him. Their story is emotional and one that shared how forgiveness can bring freedom to someone who once thought they were not worthy.

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