What a unique and promising start to Jody Hedlund’s new series!  “Calling on the Matchmaker” is the first book in the “A Shanahan Match” saga, and I am very much looking forward to more installments about this family.   I won’t go into details about the historical backdrop or characters’ heritage, but I would like to point out that the concept of a matchmaker forming the basis for the hero and heroine’s relationship was such a fun and fascinating element in the story.  It had me guessing as to the matchmaker’s motives, and also cheering for him along the way.  Certainly the ..read more

I read Scott Kedersha’s book “Ready or Knot” several years ago, and so I was excited to discover the newly released companion entitled “The Ready or Knot Prayer Guide: 100 Prayers for Dating and Engaged Couples”.  This is a superb little book that will be so helpful for anyone in a serious relationship, and I highly recommend it.   A couple of the things I like most about this book is how it can be ready chronologically, or by topic simply by browsing the table of contents.  I also like how down-to-earth and relatable the writing style is, plus the prayers at the end of each dev ..read more

The Summers sisters return to us in the second book of the “On Devonshire Shores” series.  Emily Summers is the main focus of this novel, although we do get to check in with Sarah as well, from time to time. I greatly enjoyed the history in this book, with much of the story involving the Duke and Duchess of Kent (parents of the future Queen Victoria) and their historic visit to Sidmouth.  Although the visit ends tragically, the history was fascinating, as well as the effect that royal visitors had for the residents of Sidmouth. It was fun reading the quotes at the beginning of each c ..read more

Oh how I love everything about this new Bible study!  “Our Father: A Study of the Lord’s Prayer” by Becky Harling is a 6-week dive deep into the well known verses of Matthew 6:9-13.  Through the lessons of this book, organized into 5 days of study each week, we uncover and discover so much about the heart of God and how He wants and invites us to pray.  Through this we deepen and enrich our relationship with our Heavenly Father. Becky has done such a beautiful job with this book, and I love how her stories relate to the daily teaching.  The questions for study get you think ..read more

“The Warsaw Sisters” by Amanda Barratt is a beautiful story that was, for me, also very unexpected.  It is in the Christian Historical Fiction genre so I thought I knew what I was getting into, but that was not the case.  It is an extremely powerful and well-written tale, that much is certain.  The depth and emotion and historical truth of it is quite astounding, in fact.  But it is also VERY graphic, and the depictions about the horrors of war will likely stay with me for a very long time.  This was the author’s intention, of course, to impress upon our imaginations t ..read more

I always eagerly anticipate the newest release by Jaime Jo Wright, simply because she is a masterful writer with stories of suspense and surprise that are truly unmatched, especially in the Christian genre.  “The Lost Boys of Barlowe Theatre” contains all of her signature trademarks that her fans know and love, yet is still a unique and page-turning story that I couldn’t put down. With a haunted theatre, televised ghost walks, mysterious disappearances, and a fascinatingly interwoven dual-time story, this book is one that will capture your imagination from start to finish.  It’s just ..read more

I enjoyed the first story in Amanda Cabot’s “Secrets of Sweetwater Crossing” series, so it was a given that I’d have to give the second installment a try.  “Against the Wind” tells the story of the youngest Vaughn daughter, Louisa, and her return to the town where she grew up.  Picking up where the last novel left off, we jump right into the thick of things in the aftermath of the town doctor’s death. Will Louisa be able to fill his shoes in caring for the health of the community members, or will the fact that she’s a woman deter them from reaching out to her for help…? As a forever ..read more

“All’s Fair in Love and Christmas” is much as it sounds.  A play on the phrase “all’s fair in love and war,” the title is quite fitting, as we are presented with two workplace rivals, going head to head for a promotion, and the much-needed pay raise that goes along with it.   If you enjoy sweet, gentle Christmas movies, this book will give you the novelized version of just such a film.  I enjoyed how there was a bit of faith sprinkled in, although I would have liked more for a book set in this holy season.  Still, it was nice to see moments of prayer, and learning to trust ..read more

My favourite books are the ones that have a little bit of everything on the emotional spectrum.  A story that captures laughter, tears, love, pain and everything in between are the ones that I remember the most.  “On Moonberry Lake” is definitely one of those. It was, quite simply, a beautiful book.  There are some books that just make you feel good and “lifted up” when you read them.  For me, I found that this book evoked a sense of calm that was just what I needed at the time.  Which, oddly enough, is much like the theme of the story itself.  People come to Moon ..read more

Have you ever read a non-fiction or how-to book where one of the tips or teachings inside just stood out to you, and you were like “if that was the only thing I gained from this book, it would still be totally worth my time and money”?  Well this was the case for me with a new guide to cooking – but I kept saying this same thing over and over and over again about nearly every page!  Which means, basically, that this book is priceless and should be read by everybody who intends to ever cook anything in their lives… “The Cook’s Book: Recipes for Keeps & Essential Techniques to Mast ..read more