While this book took a bit to pull me in, once it did, I was completely immersed. The book is a dual timeline story, with most of the same major characters in each timeline. The earlier timeline occurs leading up to and during the First World War, the second during the Second World War. Young Charlotte longs for freedom from society's expectations, including the right to marry outside of one's class. The more mature Charlotte has raised a strong, independent daughter who has many more freedoms and choices available to her. Young Amos Darby, a tenant farmer may not agree ..read more

    Set in 1895 Tulsey Texas, The Songbird of Hope Hill is a five star historical fiction novel that will rest in readers' hearts for long after the last page is read. It is a story of hope, healing, forgiveness, and restoration. It is also a story of living sacrificially, putting God and His kingdom first. Kim Vogel Sawyer has written characters who realize and demonstrate that we are all sinners for whom Christ died, and one sin is not any more or any less forgivable than another. Readers will also be encouraged to persist in prayers for the lost, relying on God's timing. I hi ..read more

    This is the eleventh Jaime Jo Wright book that I have read, and it is my very favorite! Both the 1901 tale and the present day tale get five stars for eeriness and suspense. They are filled with things that go bump in the night, dark secrets, unsolved murder, and fear. One would definitely have to think about the wisdom of reading this book late into the night. While Jaime Jo Wright always serves up a wonderfully spooky story, she also provides fodder for thought at a deeper level. In this novel it is on the theme of fear, not the type of fear her stories ignite, but the fea ..read more

    It's been about one and a half years since we were last treated to a story about Jackson and Kit Forge. Jackson is now an over-worked chief inspector, and Kit is trying to balance motherhood and opening a new detective agency with her father. All of Kit's growing maternal instincts and feelings make it impossible to turn down the first case that comes to the new detective agency, that of a missing child, in spite of her father's objections. This lively story has more than its own share of chaos and mayhem. Even Kit and Jackson's close friends and colleagues get pulled into t ..read more

     The Codebreakers has been my all time favorite Roseanna M. White series, but I think it is going to have to move over and make room for The Imposters. I have so enjoyed reading the first two books about the lovable, quirky characters that make up the investigation team known as The Imposters. This second book in the series has two very interesting storylines. The first is, of course, the case that they are currently investigating, a kidnapping case involving a ten-year-old boy, a case of mistaken identity. The second, a sad yet poignant story of a loving couple whom circ ..read more

   Set in Stone is the second book in Kimberley Woodhouse's Treasure of the Earth series. It is the character that remains in the shadows for most of the story that holds the reader's attention. A serial killer lurks in their midst and Martha Jankowski is completely unaware. Martha is focused on fulfilling her lifelong dream of becoming a full-fledged paleontologist. In those efforts, Martha is leading a dig in competition with another for the right to display a full dinosaur skeleton in a Denver museum. While rules are in place to keep the competition above board, someone is pulling ..read more

    I am a long time fan of Lynn H. Blackburn's writing, and this novel is my favorite thus far. The romance between two wounded souls gives the story the emotional element that bonds characters and readers. The intense suspense is what grasps the readers' attention and keeps them highly engaged. While some elements are likely only to occur in books or movies, it doesn't spoil the heart of the story. Never Fall Again is a multi-themed book focusing most on emotional healing, healthy familial relationships, and honoring God. These themes are well-developed within this gripping ..read more

   I read the second book in Barbour Publishing's A Day to Remember series, and was so touched by it that I had to go back and read the first book in the series, When the Waters Came. Like the second book, When the Waters Came had me searching online for the details of the disaster, this one a flood that struck Johnstown, Pennsylvania on May 31, 1889. The story includes several historical characters including Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross and Doctor Hamilton, Surgeon General of the United States along with Henry Clay Frick and Andrew Carnegie, members of the South F ..read more

    July 6, 1944 was a day to remember, but not for a happy reason, but rather for a tragedy. It was on this day that 168 people died and more than 700 were injured in Hartford, Connecticut as a fire spread and brought down a Ringling Brothers, and Barnum & Bailey Circus big top. As horrible asa that was, it could have been so much worse at 6,000 to 8,000 people were in attendance. While Rhonda Dragomir tells the story around her fictionalized characters, her research is evident as she includes the events of that day, and honors some of the victims by including parts of thei ..read more

   With dozens of books to her name, surprisingly Dana Mentink is a new-to-me author. I will be on the look out for her titles in the future. Trapped in Yosemite is a wonderful suspense novel. I don't usually like books in which the romance develops too quickly, in this book that wasn't an issue as Von Sharpe and Stella Rivers has once been engaged. That ended eighteen months before an earthquake and a murderer threw them back together. Finding their way in extreme circumstances and adjusting to the changes that had occurred in their lives over their time apart both helped and hinde ..read more