Book Review ~ A Dangerous Legacy by Elizabeth Camden

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Title:  A Dangerous Legacy by Elizabeth Camden

Series:  Empire State #1

Pages:  334

Date Published:  October 3, 2017

Publisher:  Bethany House

 Blurb:

Telegraph operator Lucy Drake is a master of Morse code and has made herself a valuable asset to the Associated Press news agency. But the sudden arrival of Sir Colin Beckwith at rival British news agency Reuters puts her hard-earned livelihood at risk. Colin is talented, handsome, insufferably charming—and keeping a secret that jeopardizes his reputation.

Despite their rivalry, Lucy can't deny that Colin has the connections she needs to give her family an edge in the long legal battle they've been waging over their rightful inheritance. But when she negotiates an unlikely alliance with him, the web of treachery they dive into proves to be far more dangerous than they ever could have known.    

My Thoughts:

I absolutely adore Elizabeth Camden as an author!  (I don't exactly know her personally, now do I?)  Every book I've read by her has been AMAZING in writing, content and history.  I love that I feel like I've learned more about history after reading one of her novels!

"A Dangerous Legacy" was spectacular!

The book was set in New York City, for the most part, at the turn of the 20th century.  I learned so much about plumbing, newspapers, Morse Code, telegraphy, asylums, PTSD, the Panama Canal, shooting competitions, homing pigeons and even a snippet about the Boer War!  I was sucked right in from the comfort of my new bed pillows :)

At first I didn't know if I was very fond of either Lucy OR Colin.  They both had characteristics that weren't very appealing.  Lucy was obsessed with suing her uncle and Colin was obsessed with marrying into money.  The author deals nicely with both of these issues and finishes the book off with a "bang".  By the end of the book I loved both the main characters and was sad to leave them.

I stayed up late to finish this book!  That tells you how good it is!  I like my sleep, but I liked this book more :)

I'm so excited that I have the second book of this series on my TBR shelf!  I like to alternate between contemporary and historical reads, so it won't be my next read but it will be soon!

If you'd like to read a few of the lines from the book click HERE!

Onto the next book!

  



Colletta

Book Review ~ Fetching Sweetness by Dana Mentink

 

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Title:  Fetching Sweetness by Dana Mentink

Series:  Love Unleashed Book #2

Pages:  224

Date Published:  August 1, 2016

Publisher:  Harvest House

 

 Blurb:

 

Standing Between Stephanie and Her Dream
Is One Hundred Pounds of Lovable Trouble

It should have been so simple for Stephanie Pink: Meet up with Agnes Wharton in a small town in California, retrieve the reclusive author's valuable new manuscript, and be promoted to a full-fledged literary agent.

But Agnes's canine companion, Sweetness, decides to make a break for it before Stephanie can claim her prize. Until Agnes has Sweetness safely back at home in Eagle Cliff, Washington, Stephanie will never set eyes on the manuscript she needs to make her dreams come true.

When Stephanie tracks the runaway mutt to a campground, she meets Rhett Hastings—a man also on the run from a different life and a costly mistake. Rhett agrees to help Stephanie search for the missing dog...thus launching a surprising string of adventures and misadventures.

Once Sweetness gets added to the mix, it's a recipe for love and loss, merriment and mayhem, fun and faith in the backwoods of the Pacific Northwest.        

My Thoughts:

 

I read the first book of the "Love Unleashed Series", "Sit, Stay, Love" back in April 2016 and really enjoyed it so when I saw "Fetching Sweetness" on www.cbd.com for just $0.99 I snatched it up.  Well, I put it in my cart and then anxiously awaited its delivery :)

 

I loved that the Leading Lady was a book nerd!  Stephanie loved all things literary and couldn't stand to be without a book.  She learned so much about herself on the adventure and came to realize that maybe she was chasing someone else's dream and not her own.

 

Rhett evolved into the quintessential Hero.  He started out quite harsh but along the way became a big old softy.

 

I can't forget Sweetness as he was as important to the story as Stephanie or Rhett.  In fact, there would have been no story without him.  He was a spatula-loving, big, old lump of love. 

 

Within the story was the main idea of learning to listen to God and letting Him direct your path and more importantly your plans.

 

I must mention that I was very surprised and excited that a blessing my Mom taught me when I was little was featured in the book and that it was Rhett that said:

 

"Thank You for the world so sweet.

Thank You for the food we eat.

Thank you for the birds that sing.

Thank You, God, for everything."

 

"Fetching Sweetness" was possibly the sweetest book I've ever read!  I adored this novel.

 

Onto the next book!

  



Colletta

Book Review ~ A Secret to Die For by Lisa Harris

 

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Title:  A Secret to Die For by Lisa Harris

Series:  N/A

Pages:  327

Date Published:  September 18, 2018

Publisher:  Revell

 

 Blurb:

 

Psychologist Grace Callahan has no idea that she has a secret--one worth killing for. But when she finds out one of her clients has been murdered, she quickly realizes that the computer security specialist wasn't simply suffering from paranoia.

Detective Nate Quinn has just been cleared for active duty after a bombing killed eighteen people, including his partner, and left him dealing with PTSD. His first case back on the job involves the murder of Stephen Shaw, and his only lead turns out to be an old friend, Grace Callahan--and her life is in grave danger. Someone believes Shaw gave his psychologist information before he died. Information they are willing to kill for.

With her signature pulse-pounding suspense, Lisa Harris takes readers deep into the heart of fear in this race against the clock.     

My Thoughts:

 

This was my first book of 2020!

 

I decided to read an inspirational suspense novel next and Lisa Harris is one of my favorite authors for this genre.  I really enjoy her writing.

 

The fate of the Nation was resting in Nate's and Grace's hand and they didn't even know why!  It was definitely a mystery that needed solving and a murderer who needed brought to justice.

 

 Nate and Grace were both suffering from forms of PTSD and past hurts.  Somehow they found a way to push through their struggles and, of course, solve the case!

 

There was a lot of technical jargon in a few places that was a bit hard to follow and had to be read very carefully to understand but to some it would probably be easy to follow.  I'm no coding expert!

 

The conclusion was a bit surprising as far as who the "culprit' was.

 

I was also a bit surprised...spoiler...that the "l-word" was used after Nate and Grace were re-united for only a few days.  A few action-packed days, granted, but none-the less...

 

This was a totally enjoyable book that I was able to read at a fast pace and am now ahead of my reading goal for the year!  Whoohooo!

 

Onto the next book!

  



Colletta

Thankful Thursday ~ 12/19/19

 

Here are some things that made me smile this week:

 

 

~Organization!  I decided not to wait until January to start getting organized.  So far I've organized my budget for 2020, my paid bills cabinet and cleaned out my desk drawers.  I can't believe how long it had been since cleaning out my desk.  The drawers were so jammed packed that I couldn't even get them all the way open!  I found things that I forget I had.  It is now nicely organized with a proper place for everything :)

~Snickerdoodles!  Kaylee (daughter #1) requested Snickerdoodles this year for Christmas.  First, it took me forever to find Cream of Tartar in the market.  Second, they turned out flatter than a pancake!  They tasted wonderful though :)

~Christmas Gift Exchange!  I participated in a Christmas Gift Exchange hosted by Carol at Slaters' Funny Farm.  I receive a lovely package from Patti at This Beautiful Life.  You can go see what I received on my post from Tuesday :)

~Mount TBR Challenge!   I don't usually participate in many reading challenges because sometimes my reading can be sporadic.  However, I have a whole bookshelf of books TBR (to be read) and thought this would be a simple Challenge to finish.  Here's hoping :)

~Luke!  I finished reading the Book of Luke!  My goal was to read once chapter of Luke a day for the month of December until Christmas Day.  Some days I read more than one chapter and then on Tuesday I finished the 24th chapter.  I definitely think this could become a tradition for December!  What book of the Bible do you think I should read next?   :)

What made you smile this week? 

Colletta

Mount TBR Challenge 2020

 

My Reader's Block is once again hosting the Mount TBR Challenge for 2020.

 

I decided to join in as I have way too many books on my TBR shelf and plan (at this time) to only read from those books this coming year.

 

Here are the Challenge Levels:

 

Pike's Peak: Read 12 books from your TBR pile/s
Mount Blanc: Read 24 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Vancounver: Read 36 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Ararat: Read 48 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Kilimanjaro: Read 60 books from your TBR pile/s
El Toro: Read 75 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Everest: Read 100 books from your TBR pile/s
Mount Olympus (Mars): Read 150+ books from your TBR pile/s

 

 

I decided to climb Mount Blanc at 24 books from my TBR shelf.

 

If I reach Mt. Vancouver or Mt. Ararat:  Yay Me!  But I'll stick with Mount Blanc for now.

 

 

Happy Reading!

 

Colletta