Thankful Thursday ~ 1/9/20

 

Here are some things that made me smile this week:

 

~Little Women!  Laken and I went to see the new Little Women movie at the theater.  Little Women is one of my all time favorite books and I loved the older version of the movie.  This newer version comes in a close second but that might be because I'm partial to the older, more-to-the-book version.  This new movie has flashbacks and moves at a totally different pace.  I loved it :)

~Goodreads Challenge 2019!  I finished up the Goodreads Challenge 2019 on December 30, 2019 with 26 books read.  I was cutting it down to the wire!  For 2020, I'm once again setting my goal at 26 books but I've already read 2 books toward my goal and am "secretly" hoping to read 52 books this year:  1 a week :)

~Christmas Cleanup!  I love Christmastime, don't get me wrong, but when all the decoration are put away and everything cleaned up I truly feel like a New Year is upon us with all things clean and fresh :)

~Skipbo with the Hubby!  I was bored one evening during break and talked the hubby into playing Skipbo with me.  Just the two of us.  The first hand I dealt 30 cards and the hubby one ruthlessly!  The second hand I only dealt 10 cards and I won ruthlessly!  It was fun to spend some quality time :)

~Back at It!  I'm full speed ahead on my health, fitness and wellness goals.  I'm tracking my food and getting in the exercise.  Tuesday was so pretty that Kaylee and I went outside to walk.  It was still a bit chilly but the sun was shining and I was soaking in the Vitamin D!  When the weather doesn't permit a walk outside, I've been using the new-to-me treadmill that I got for $50 :)


What made you smile this week? 

Colletta

Book Review ~ The Colonel's Lady by Laura Frantz

 

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Title:  The Colonel's Lady by Laura Frantz

Series:  N/A

Pages:  406

Date Published:  August 1, 2011

Publisher:  Revell

 

 Blurb:

 

In 1779, when genteel Virginia spinster Roxanna Rowan arrives at the Kentucky fort commanded by Colonel Cassius McLinn, she finds that her officer father has died.

 

Penniless and destitute, Roxanna is forced to take her father's place as scrivener. Before long, it's clear that the colonel himself is attracted to her. But she soon realizes the colonel has grave secrets of his own—some of which have to do with her father's sudden death.

 

Can she ever truly love him?  

My Thoughts:

 

It has been quite a while since I've read a historical romance novel.  I have so many on my TBR (to-be-read) shelves and spent longer than I wanted trying to decide which historical book to read.

 

I picked "The Colonel's Lady" because I absolutely love the cover and the blurb sounded very interesting.  (probably why I got the book to begin with).  I've had this book on my TBR shelf for a few years.  It was published in 2011, so who knows how long really.

 

I found this book to be quite epic and very patriotic!  It put me in mind a bit of the movie "The Patriot" with Mel Gibson.

 

I absolutely adored the characters and the way the author wrote them.  Cass was quite the hero but had many faults as did Roxie.  I loved them anyway!

 

The novel was full of twists and turns and turncoats.  It was also full of drama, suspense and treachery.  All this is what made it such a good read.  I especially like how the author created a battle of Biblical proportions and miracles.

 

With this book, I'll be ending out the year 2019 reading wise.  I finished it just in time to make it my 26th book of the year and complete my (adjusted) Goodreads Challenge 2019.  I wasn't sure I was going to make it, but I did :)

 

I'm excited to read where 2020 will take me!

 

Onto the next book!

  



Colletta

Book Review ~ Sabotaged by Dani Pettrey

 

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Title:  Sabotaged by Dani Pattrey

Series:  Alaskan Courage Book Five

Pages:  325

Date Published:  February 3, 2015

Publisher:  Bethany House

 

 Blurb:

 

Growing up, goody-two-shoes Kirra Jacobs and troublemaker Reef McKenna were always at odds. Now paired together on Yancey's search-and-rescue canine unit, they begin to put aside old arguments as they come to see each other in a different light. Then a call comes in from the Iditarod that will push them to their limits.

Kirra's uncle, a musher in the race, has disappeared. Kirra and Reef quickly track the man, but what they discover is harrowing. Frank's daughter has been kidnapped. In order to save her, the man must use his knowledge as a mechanical engineer to do the kidnapper's bidding or she will die. Kirra and Reef, along with the entire McKenna family, are thrown into a race to stop a shadowy villain who is not only threatening a girl's life, but appears willing to unleash one of the largest disasters Alaska has ever seen.  

My Thoughts:

 

It had been months since I'd last read a fiction book.  For some reason I was in a fiction slump so I was concentrating on nonfiction books.  With this wintry weather we've been having here in Pennsylvania, I got the urge to pick up a fiction to give it a try.

 

I decided to pick a wintry book off of my TBR shelf.  I could tell be the cover of "Sabotaged" that it would be full of snow and ice.

 

Let me tell you:  Dani Pettrey does NOT disappoint!  I loved this book!

 

I've now read ALL the Alaskan Courage series and loved them all.  Dani Pettrey is currently one of my very favorite authors.

 

It was so much fun to read Reef's and Kirra's story as well as be visited by the other McKenna clan.

 

The story was very fast paced with lots of action, travel, danger and romance.  Not to mention snow and ice :)

 

For the first time in a while, I'm excited to read my next fiction!  It is a good thing too, because I signed up for the Mount TBR Challenge and I have a ton of fictions on my TBR shelf.

 

Onto the next book!

  



Colletta

Book Review ~ Chameleon by Jillian Kent

 

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 Blurb:

 

How much can you really know about someone?

Lady Victoria Grayson has always considered herself a keen observer of human behavior. After battling a chronic childhood illness that kept her homebound for years, she journeys to London determined to have the adventure of a lifetime.

Jaded by his wartime profession as a spy, Lord Witt understands, more than most, that everyone is not always who they pretend to be. He meets Victoria after the Regent requests an investigation into the activities of her physician brother, Lord Ravensmoore.

Witt and Victoria become increasingly entangled in a plot targeting the lords of Parliament. Victoria is forced to question how well she knows those close to her while challenging Witt’s cynical nature and doubts about God. Together they must confront their pasts in order to solve a mystery that could devastate their future.

 

My Thoughts:

 

I picked this book up at Ollie's for $1.99!  I love Ollie's!

But...I can't say that I loved this book :(

I found certain parts of the book difficult to follow as it skipped around a bit.  There were times that I had to reread certain parts to figure out where the next section was going and where it came from.

There were also some coincidences that were just a bit much.  For instance, Victoria just happened to be looking out her window (at least twice) and see someone in danger or the wings of the falcons.  In all of London, it just happened to occur in front of her bedroom window?

All that being said, I learned a lot about mental health issues in the early 1800's and how they were handled.  All I can say is "thank God for modern medicine"!

This book was the 2nd book in the Ravensmoore Chronicles.  I read the first book back in 2012 according to Goodreads but I couldn't find a review for it.  After reading this book, I don't think I'll be searching out book 3.



Colletta

Book Review ~ A Respectable Actress by Dorothy Love

 

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 Blurb:

 

When the illustrious India Hartley is accused of murder, she has to uncover the deceptions of others to save herself.

India Hartley, the famous and beautiful actress, is now alone in the world after her father’s death and embarks upon a tour of theaters across the South. Her first stop is Savannah’s Southern Palace. On the eve of the second night’s performance, something goes horribly wrong. Her co-star, Arthur Sterling, is shot dead on stage in front of a packed house, and India is arrested and accused of the crime.

A benefactor hires Philip Sinclair, the best—and handsomest—lawyer in Savannah to defend India. A widower, Philip is struggling to reinvent his worn-out plantation on St. Simons Island. He needs to increase his income from his law practice in order to restore Indigo Point, and hardly anything will bring him more new clients than successfully defending a famous actress on a murder charge.

Because India can’t go anywhere in town without being mobbed, Philip persuades the judge handling her case to let him take her to Indigo Point until her trial date. India is charmed by the beauty of the Georgia low country and is increasingly drawn to Philip. But a locked room that appears to be a shrine to Philip’s dead wife and the unsolved disappearance of a former slave girl raise troubling questions. Piecing together clues in an abandoned boat and a burned-out chapel, India discovers a trail of dark secrets that lead back to Philip, secrets that ultimately may hold the key to her freedom. If only he will believe her.

 

My Thoughts:

 

I picked this book up at Ollie's for $3.99.  The cover drew my attention and then the blurb sealed the deal for me even though I'd never read a book by this author before.

This book is filled with great information about the history of theater.  While that didn't interest me completely, the murder mystery that wound around it did!

I loved the time that India stayed at Indigo Point and all the mysteries shrouded there as well.

I don't know if I've ever read a book that was based on a lawyer-client relationship and it was fascinating.

I really liked India's and Philip's characters.  The romance was so cleverly wound around everything that was going on that I didn't completely know how it was going to end up.

Dororthy Love did a great job on "A Respectable Acress" and I look forward to reading more of her books!

If you haven't read this book, stop here!  If you've read the book or don't mind major spoilers, keep reading!

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I COULD NOT believe that Laura, Philip's "wife" was still alive!  What a plot twist!

Her whole storyline was so disturbing with the murder of Hannah June just so she could fake her death!

Creeped me out a bit that someone could be so twiested!  lol



Colletta

Book Review ~ Rising Darkness by Nancy Mehl

 

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 Blurb:

 

Sophie Wittenbauer left her strict Mennonite hometown under a cloud of shame and regret. After a rough childhood, her teenage poor choices harmed others, leaving her with no choice but to change her life. Her entry-level writing job at a newspaper puts her in the right place at the right time to overhear office gossip about a prisoner who has information on a decades-old unsolved crime. While the other reporters write off the tip as the ravings of an angry criminal, Sophie can't ignore it because she knows the name of this prisoner from her old life.

Upon learning from the man that one of the other suspects is hiding out in the Missouri town of Sanctuary, she takes on a false identity to investigate and meets the young pastor of a local church--the very man she'd loved as a troubled teenager. As she gets closer to finding the suspect, will the truth of her own past come out before she discovers the identity of the criminal--or the very person she's seeking puts a fatal stop to her investigation?     

 

My Thoughts:

 

Nancy Mehl is a wonderful mystery/suspense/romance author.

This book had it all!

I really enjoyed Nancy's series about Kingdom, Kansas where Sophie and Jonathan were from.  Although I didn't read the first two books of this series, Finding Sanctuary, I felt like I was picking up right where I left off.

At times Sophie seemed a bit naïve, but I think a lot of that could have been that she was fairly young and grew up in a Conservative Mennonite town.

It was fun getting to read about Jonathan again and the changes he had made to his life.

Although there was some light reading about Church Potlucks, etc., the author also wrote about some pretty tough issues in this book.  I don't want to give too much away so I'll leave it at that.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable book and makes me want to read the first two books in the series just to visit Sanctuary again :)



Colletta

Book Review ~ Dawn at Emberwilde by Sarah E. Ladd

 

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 Blurb:

 

Isabel Creston never dared to dream that love could be hers. Now, at the edge of a forest filled with dark secrets, she faces a fateful choice between love and duty.

For as long as she can remember, beautiful and free-spirited Isabel has strained against the rules and rigidity of the Fellsworth School in the rolling English countryside. No longer a student, Isabel set her sights on a steady yet unexciting role as a teacher at the school, a safe yet stifling establishment that would provide her a steady environment to care for her younger sister Lizzie, who was left in her care after her father’s death.

The unexpected arrival of a striking stranger with news of unknown relatives turns Isabel’s small, predictable world upside down, sweeping her and her young charge into a labyrinth of intrigue and hidden motives.

At her new family’s invitation, Isabel and Lizzie relocate to Emberwilde, a sprawling estate adjacent to a vast, mysterious wood rife with mysterious rumors and ominous folklore—along with whispers of something far more sinister. And perhaps even more startling, two handsome men begin pursuing Isabel, forcing her to learn the delicate dance between attraction, the intricate rules of courtship, and the hopes of her heart.

At Emberwilde, Isabel will discover that the key to unlocking the mystery of her past may also open the door to her future and security. But first she must find it—in the depths of Emberwilde Forest.     

 

My Thoughts:

 

Sarah E. Ladd has fast become one of my go-to authors.  I have loved every book I've read by her but Dawn at Emberwilde was one of my very favorites.

Isabel's character was lovable from the first page.

Colin Galloway was the perfect hero with his tragic past and hero-y heroics.

I loved the imagery the author used to describe Emberwilde and even the Black Wood Forest sounded beautiful.

Regency romances were where my love of reading started so anytime I can pick up a good, clean regency romance with some mystery and intrigue packed in, I'm all for it :)

Dawn at Emberwilde is the 2nd book of the "Treasures of Surrey" series but it was excellent as a stand-alone novel.  I look forward to reading the other books of the series!



Colletta

Book Review ~ Close To You by Kara Isaac ~ GIVEAWAY!!

 

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 Blurb:

 

Allison Shire (yes, like where the Hobbits live) is a disgraced academic who is done with love. Her belief in “happily ever after” ended the day she discovered her husband was still married to a wife she knew nothing about. She finally finds a use for her English degree by guiding tours through the famous sites featured in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies. By living life on the road and traveling New Zealand as a luxury tour guide, Allison manages to outrun the pain of her past she can’t face.

Jackson Gregory was on the cusp of making it big. Then suddenly his girlfriend left him—for his biggest business competitor—and took his most guarded commercial secrets with her. To make matters worse, the Iowa farm that has been in his family for generations is facing foreclosure. Determined to save his parents from financial ruin, he’ll do whatever it takes to convince his wealthy great-uncle to invest in his next scheme, which means accompanying him to the bottom of the world to spend three weeks pretending to be a die-hard Lord of the Rings fan, even though he knows nothing about the stories. The one thing that stands between him and his goal is a know-it-all tour guide who can’t stand him and pegged him as a fake the moment he walked off the plane.

When Allison leads the group through the famous sites of the Tolkien movies, she and Jackson start to see each other differently, and as they keep getting thrown together on the tour, they find themselves drawn to each other. Neither expected to fall in love again, but can they find a way beyond their regrets to take a chance on the one thing they’re not looking for?  

 

My Thoughts:

 

Reading this book was an adventure!  It took me to New Zealand, then a pit stop in Iowa and a lovely trip to England.

The majority of the book takes place in New Zealand on a LOTR (Lord of the Rings) guided tour of the filming sets.  It was a completely intriguing look into the LOTR books and movies along with drama and, of course, romance.

The book is written in two POV's (my favorite!), that of Jackson and of Allison.  Their characters were amazing!  They started off hating each other.  Actually, through quite a bit of the book they couldn't stand either other.  The back-and-forth banter was hilariously amusing.

The quirky characters on the tour made the book even more delightful to read.

This book was an amazing trip to the other side of the world!

This was the first book I've read by Kara Isaac, but I hope not the last.

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I loved this book so much that I'd like to give my gently read copy to one of my readers!

SO....

To Enter:

1 Entry ~ Leave a comment telling me if you enjoyed the LOTR series (whether books or movies) and an email to contact you if you win

2 Entries ~ Follow my blog (GFC, email, facebook, etc) and let me know how you follow in the comments

The giveaway will be open until Monday, January 21, 2019 at 12PM EST.



Colletta

Book Review ~ Amelia and the Captain by Lori Copeland

 

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 Blurb:

 

The three wily and beautiful McDougal sisters can swindle a man in less time than it takes to lasso a calf. But their luck is running out, and they're about to be hauled off to jail. When the wagon carrying them falls under attack, each sister is picked up by a different man.

Fortunately for Amelia, she finds herself hanging on for dear life to the dashing figure of Union Captain Morgan Kane. But when she confesses she's running from the law, he drops her off in Galveston, only to come to her rescue later, in more ways than one.

No sooner does Amelia arrive at the Port of Galveston than she falls into the clutches of a shadowy villain intent on selling her to the highest-bidding privateer. Taken aboard a ship with ten other female captives destined for slavery, can Amelia count on the cunning Captain Kane to swoop in and save her...again? And if she somehow survives, what becomes of her heart?

Only God has the answers that Amelia seeks, but is her faith strong enough?

 

My Thoughts:

 

I'm so exited to be writing my first book review of 2019!

This book is the 3rd book of the Mercy Flats series by Lori Copeland.  I have not read the first two books and it didn't hinder my enjoyment of Amelia and Morgan's story.

There were times when I thought Amelia was an absolute "ninny" (Elizabeth's word for Amelia!).  She was so naïve at times and reckless!  But her heart was always in the right place.

Captain Morgan Kane (a Union spy) was the epitome of a hero.  Always in the right place at the right time.

I enjoyed getting to know the other women that were being rescued with Amelia and also the crew of the Mississippi Lady.

"Amelia and the Captain" was a fun, quick, silly read.  Perfect for getting started on a new year!



Colletta

52 Books in 52 Weeks Challenge ~ 2019

I've decided to join a book challenge in 2019!

52 Books in 52 Weeks

Sign up HERE.

It lends really well to the 2019 Goodreads Challenge where I'm also going with a goal of 52 books in 2019.

I'll be keeping track of my books read over at Goodreads.

What bookish challenges are you participating in next year?

Colletta