This is a great series that I think everyone would be blessed to read. The first and third one are my absolute favorites, but if you haven’t read this series, I highly recommend that you do so!
These novels will teach you a thing or to about the importance of prayer and how it can change a nation…it has before!
Happy Friday!
Just a few days after she gives birth alone in the Northwoods, a recently widowed young Ojibwe woman stumbles into a nearby lumber camp in search of refuge and sustenance. Come summer, the camp owner sends Skypilot, his most trusted friend, to accompany Moon Song and her baby on the long and treacherous journey back to her people. But when tragedy strikes off the shore of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula wilderness, Moon Song and Skypilot must depend on each other for survival. With every step they take into the forbidding woods, they are drawn closer together, until the tough questions must be asked. Will she leave her culture to enter his? Will he leave his world to enter hers? Or will they walk away from a love that seems too complicated to last?
With evocative descriptions of a breathtaking landscape, Under a Blackberry Moon will sweep readers into a wild realm where beauty masks danger and only the truly courageous survive, even as the sweet love story along the way tightly grips their hearts.
When his friend is murdered, illusionist Jevin Banks is determined to find out what really happened. Drawn into a web of conspiracy and top-secret research on human consciousness, Jevin won’t stop digging until the truth is revealed. Soon he uncovers a dark secret–one that could change the very fabric of human life on the planet.
Bristling with mystery, suspense, and intrigue, Singularity is the second riveting book in The Jevin Banks Experience. Readers will devour this scientific thriller, flipping pages late into the night until the final shocking page
Happily Ever After …Or Happily Nevermore?
Gisela’s childhood was filled with laughter and visits from nobles such as the duke and his young son. But since her father’s death, each day has been filled with nothing but servitude to her stepmother. So when Gisela learns the duke’s son, Valten—the boy she has daydreamed about for years—is throwing a ball in hopes of finding a wife, she vows to find a way to attend, even if it’s only for a taste of a life she’ll never have. To her surprise, she catches Valten’s eye. Though he is rough around the edges, Gisela finds Valten has completely captured her heart. But other forces are bent on keeping the two from falling further in love, putting Gisela in more danger than she ever imagined.
Charlotte Graham is at the center of the most famous kidnapping in Chicago history.
The task force of FBI and local cops found her two abductors, killed them, rescued her, but it took four very long years. The fact she was found less than three miles from her home, had been there the entire time, haunts them. She’s changed her identity, found a profession she loves, and rebuilt her life.
She’s never said a word–to the cops, to her doctors, to family–about those four years.
A family legacy has brought her back to Chicago where a reporter is writing a book about the kidnapping. The cops who worked the case are cooperating with him. Her options are limited: Hope the reporter doesn’t find the full truth, or break her silence about what happened. And her silence is what has protected her family for years.
Bryce Bishop doesn’t know her past, he only knows she has coins to sell from her grandfather’s estate–and that the FBI director for the Chicago office made the introduction. The more he gets to know Charlotte, the more interested he becomes, an interest encouraged by those closest to her. But nothing else is working in his favor–she’s decided she is single for life, she struggles with her faith, and she’s willing to forego a huge inheritance to keep her privacy. She’s not giving him much of an opening to work with.
Charlotte wants to trust him. She needs to tell him what happened. Because a crime cops thought was solved, has only opened another chapter…
Are there any that you can’t wait for? They all look so good!
In this beautifully rendered, affecting novel, a young widow’s world is shattered when she meets her late husband’s identical twin—and finds herself caught between honoring her husband’s memory and falling in love with his reflection.
Haley’s whirlwind romance and almost three-year marriage to Sam, an army medic, ends tragically when he is killed in Afghanistan. As she grapples with widowhood and the upcoming birth of her son, her attempts to create a new life for herself are ambushed when she arrives home one evening—and finds her husband waiting for her. Did the military make an unimaginable mistake when they told her that Sam had been killed?
After a twelve-year estrangement, Stephen hopes to make things right with his brother—only to discover Sam died without revealing Stephen’s existence to Haley. As Haley and Stephen struggle to navigate their fragile relationship, they are inexorably drawn to each other. Haley is unnerved by Stephen’s uncanny resemblance to Sam, and Stephen struggles with the issue of Haley loving him as Stephen—and not as some reflection of his twin. How can Haley and Stephen honor the memory of a man whose death brought them together—and whose ghost could drive them apart?
Somebody Like You reminds us that while we can’t change the past, we have the choice—and the power through God—to change the future and start anew.
From the bestselling author of It Happened at the Fair comes a historical love story about a lady doctor and a Texas Ranger who meet at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair.
Saddled with a man’s name, the captivating Billy Jack Tate makes no apologies for taking on a man’s profession. As a doctor at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, she is one step closer to having her very own medical practice—until Hunter Scott asks her to give it all up to become his wife.
Hunter is one of the elite. A Texas Ranger and World’s Fair guard specifically chosen for his height, physique, character, and skill. Hailed as the toughest man west of any place east, he has no patience for big cities and women who think they belong anywhere but home…
Despite their difference of opinion on the role of women, Hunter and Billy find a growing attraction between them—until Hunter discovers an abandoned baby in the corner of a White City exhibit. He and Billy team up to make sure this foundling isn’t left in the slums of Chicago with only the flea-riddled, garbage-infested streets for a playground. As they fight for the underprivileged children in the Nineteenth Ward, an entire Playground Movement is birthed. But when the Fair comes to an end, one of them will have to give up their dream.
Will Billy exchange her doctor’s shingle for the domesticated role of a southern wife, or will Hunter abandon the wide open spaces of home for a life in the “gray city,” a woman who insists on being the wage earner, and a group of ragamuffins who need more than a playground for breathing space?
To those who matter in 1950s Hollywood, Lena Scott is the hottest rising star to hit the silver screen since Marilyn Monroe. Few know her real name is Abra. Even fewer know the price she’s paid to finally feel like she’s somebody.
To Pastor Ezekiel Freeman, Abra will always be the little girl who stole his heart the night he found her, a wailing newborn abandoned under a bridge on the outskirts of Haven. Zeke and his son, Joshua—Abra’s closest friend—watch her grow into an exotic beauty. But Zeke knows the circumstances surrounding her birth etched scars deep in her heart, scars that leave her vulnerable to a fast-talking bad boy who proclaims his love and lures her to Tinseltown. Hollywood feels like a million miles from Haven, and naive Abra quickly learns what’s expected of an ambitious girl with stars in her eyes. But fame comes at an awful price. She has burned every bridge to get exactly what she thought she wanted. Now, all she wants is a way back home.
In this riveting and highly anticipated tale of temptation, grace, and unconditional love, New York Times best-selling author Francine Rivers delivers big-canvas storytelling at its very best.
When an Amish woman falls for the New York crime writer who buys her family farm, she must decide whether to follow the longings of her heart or the rules of her faith.
When Hope Yoder loses her husband, she is left trying to support her two small children—and one on the way—any way she can. She ends up taking a job as a part-time housekeeper to the English man who has bought the farm that once belonged to her family.
Logan Parker is a bestselling crime fiction writer from New York City who accompanies his fiancée on a trip to Holmes County, Ohio, but the trip takes a strange turn when he sees an Amish farmhouse for sale. Intrigued by a strong sense of familiarity, he enters the house and is overcome with a feeling of deep peace. He’s never been to Ohio before, but something in this house feels right, and he purchases the farm to use as a writer’s retreat. Something about the peacefulness of the house frees him the crippling writer’s block that threatens to ruin his career, and something about the quiet Amish woman who comes to clean his home makes him less and less excited about returning to New York and the woman he is supposed to marry.
Slowly, Logan and Hope are drawn together, and when they discover that they share a strange past, they must decide how that affects their future. Will Hope overcome her fear of embracing love again?
A courageous young noblewoman risks her life to hide French resistance fighters; seventy years later, her granddaughter visits the family’s abandoned chateau and uncovers shocking secrets from the past.
Gisèle Duchant guards a secret that could cost her life. Tunnels snake through the hill under her family’s medieval chateau in Normandy. Now, with Hitler’s army bearing down, her brother and several friends are hiding in the tunnels, resisting the German occupation of France.
But when German soldiers take over the family’s château, Gisèle is forced to host them as well—while harboring the resistance fighters right below their feet. Taking in a Jewish friend’s baby, she convinces the Nazis that it is her child, ultimately risking everything for the future of the child. When the German officers begin to suspect her deception, an unlikely hero rescues both her and the child.
A present day story weaves through the past one as Chloe Salvare, Gisèle’s granddaughter, arrives in Normandy. After calling off her engagement with a political candidate, Chloe pays a visit to the chateau to escape publicity and work with a documentary filmmaker, Riley, who has uncovered a fascinating story about Jews serving in Hitler’s army. Riley wants to research Chloe’s family history and the lives that were saved in the tunnels under their house in Normandy. Chloe is floored—her family isn’t Jewish, for one thing, and she doesn’t know anything about tunnels or the history of the house. But as she begins to explore the dark and winding passageways beneath the chateau, nothing can prepare her for the shock of what she and Riley discover…
With emotion and intrigue, Melanie Dobson brings World War II France to life in this beautiful novel about war, family, sacrifice, and the secrets of the past.
Are there any books you’re looking forward to more than others? I know I can’t wait to read Deeanne Gist and Beth Vogt. Francine Rivers book does not sound terribly interesting, but I’ll be the first to tell you she is an excellent writer so hopefully I’ll be surprised.
Eden Christiansen never imagined her role as her younger brother Owen’s cheerleader would keep her on the sidelines of her own life. Sure, it feels good to be needed, but looking after the reckless NHL rookie leaves little time for Eden to focus on her own career. She dreamed of making a name for herself as a reporter, but is stuck writing obits—and starting to fear she doesn’t have the chops to land a major story. If only someone would step up to mentor Owen . . . but she knows better than to expect help from team veteran and bad-boy enforcer Jace Jacobsen.
Jace has built his career on the infamous reputation of his aggressive behavior—on and off the ice. Now at a crossroads about his future in hockey, that reputation has him trapped. And the guilt-trip he’s getting from Eden Christiansen isn’t making things any easier. But when Owen’s carelessness leads to a career-threatening injury and Eden stumbles upon a story that could be her big break, she and Jace are thrown together . . . and begin to wonder if they belong on the same team after all.
Regina Beswick is all about restoring old cars. But when Tanner Burkhardt asks her to restore an old nation, she must decide which destiny to follow. Regina Beswick never dreamed of faraway places. She is happy with her life as a classic car mechanic and owner of a local restoration shop. But the fairytale book, drawn by her great-grandma, makes her wonder if she’s destined for greatness. Tanner Burhardt, Minister of Culture for Hossenberg, believes Miss Beswick is the least likely candidate to be his country’s long-lost princess. It’s up to him to transform the strong-willed Southern girl into a reigning royal if he wants to save his nation. As Regina and Tanner return to Hessenberg to fulfill their destinies, Regina quickly learns that someone playing princess isn’t what’s needed. This is a full-time role for a nation on the brink of financial destruction. Unprepared for the responsibilities of running a country, Regina must look deep into herself and trust God if she is to fulfill her true destiny.
Jade returns home to Chapel Springs after years of protecting her fragile heart. Then along comes Daniel, making her long to dance again.
Creative and complicated, Jade McKinley felt like a weed in a rose garden growing up in Chapel Springs. When she left, she thought she’d never look back. But now, pregnant, alone, and broke, she has no other choice but to return.
The mayor of Chapel Springs, Daniel Dawson, has been an honorary member of the McKinley family for years. While his own home life was almost non-existent, Daniel fit right into the boisterous McKinley family. He’s loved Jade for years, but she always saw him as a big brother. Now that she’s back, his feelings are stronger than ever.
As Jade attempts to settle in, nothing feels right. God seems far away, she’s hiding secrets from her family, and she’s strangely attracted to the man who’s always called her “squirt.” Finding her way home may prove more difficult than she imagined.
Beowulf—a hulky, brindle-coated bullmastiff—is the only “boy” for Timbrel Hogan. And she has a history to remind her why. But when Timbrel, a handler at A Breed Apart, embarks on a mission to detect WMDs in Afghanistan, she reunites with Tony “Candyman” VanAllen and her no-other-man philosophy is challenged. While tension mounts between Timbrel and Tony, the team comes under fire after Beowulf gets a “hit.” When tragedy threatens Tony’s career and Timbrel’s courage, they must maneuver through an intricate plot and a mission like no other. . . .
Spunky Allison McClare is determined to be a fearless, independent woman, resorting to a mammoth hat pin for protection on her way to and from the school where she teaches. But when she takes a notion to explore the wild Barbary Coast she quickly discovers she is no match for rum-soaked brute strength.
Detective Nick Barone would rather do almost anything than teach this petite socialite jiu-jitsu, but it seems he has little choice in the matter. Sparks fly every time the two meet until a grudging friendship develops into something deeper. But when Nick suddenly leaves town, Allison realizes he’s a fraud just like all the rest of the men she’s cared for. Does she dare love again?
The lushness of the glorious Gilded Age beautifully showcases Lessman’s passion as a writer in this engaging love story written with humor and heart. From the glamour of San Francisco’s Nob Hill to the seedy gambling dens of the Barbary Coast, Dare to Love Again is a journey to find a love that never fails. Fans will love revisiting the world of the cousins McClare, and new readers will seek more of Julie’s passion-filled novels.
Are there any you’re looking forward to in particular? I want to read all of them, but Beowulf is on my radar right now!
Trish Perry is not only a phenomenal writer, she is hilarious! I promise if you read her books you will be laughing the whole time. Here are some of my favorites:
I remember I read the back of this book and was pretty ambivalent about it. But let me tell you, so worth reading!
Hilarious!
In the previous novels, there is one character who is so annoying. Trish Perry turned around and gave her, her own romance and made her an unforgettable heroine!
This novel isn’t all romance, but the storyline is fantastic!
A great series that had me laughing in the bookstore (for the record, I don’t do that anymore…read books in the bookstore :)).
If you haven’t tried Ms. Perry than you should. She has a great blend of reality, humor, and romance that will just make your day. Anyone have a favorite of hers?
Lately I’ve been thinking about adding to my reviews a scale that indicates how much romance their is in a novel and if it is a good romance. I will rate the romance on a scale of 1 to 10 and perhaps of a sub-category rating the hero. It’s a bit odd, but quite honestly, I love romance novels. Thoughts? Have any ideas for other items that you think should be rated in novels?
Here’s a basic format of my rubric:
10-Pure romance
9-
8-
7-
6-
5- There is romance
4-
3-
2-
1-No romance
Depending on the interactions of the hero and the heroine will lead to 2-4, or 6-9. So, let’s see how this works out!
It’s a little past the halfway mark of 2013…isn’t that amazing! I thought that I would share some of the best books I’ve read this year so far. There is no particular order!
Patrick Carr’s: A Cast of Stones & The Hero’s Lot
Melanie Dickerson: The Fairest Beauty
Tessa Afshar: Harvest of Gold
Beth Vogt: Catch a Falling Star
Ronie Kendig: Talon
Becky Wade: Undeniably Yours
Dani Pettrey: Shattered
Deeanne Gist: It Happened at the Fair
Jody Hedlund: A Noble Groom
Julie Lessman: Love at Any Cost
Stephanie Morrill: The Revised Life of Ellie Sweet
Jill Williamson: Project Gemini
Have a few you think I should add?
I’m so excited about these books that are coming out, I decided to share some of these covers today.
Pink was not what Eleanor Braddock ordered, but maybe it would soften the tempered steel of a woman who came through a war–and still had one to fight.
Yet as the construction project continues, Marcus and Eleanor find common ground–and a love neither of them expected. But Marcus is not the man Adelicia has chosen for Eleanor to marry, and even if he were, someone who knows Marcus’s secrets is about to reveal them all.
Finding himself the man of the family, and with no other options, London dancing master Alec Valcourt moves his mother and sister to remote Devonshire, hoping to start over. But Alec is stunned to learn the village is controlled by a wealthy widow who has prohibited all dancing, for reasons buried deep in her past.
Alec finds an unlikely ally in Miss Julia Midwinter, the widow’s daughter. While initially wary of Julia’s reckless flirtation, he comes to realize her bold exterior disguises a vulnerable soul–and a hidden sorrow of her own.
Julia Midwinter is instantly intrigued by the handsome dancing master–a man of whom her mother would never approve. She cannot fathom why he would leave London–or why he evades questions about his past.
Together, can Alec and Julia bring new life to this quiet village–and to one woman’s hardened heart?
The train to Garber, Texas, is supposed to bring Nicholas Lovelace to the next victory in his life and career. Instead, it gets held up by robbers who are thwarted by the last person Nick ever expected–Anne Tillerton from back home in Prairie Lea.
Anne’s been working as a buffalo hunter and hiding from polite society. She’s only coming to town to talk their runaway cook into returning. Instead, the woman flees–and leaves Anne with her infant son. With Nick the only person she knows in town who can help, the two form an unlikely team as they try to figure out what to do with the child.
Both soon find themselves stuck in complicated situations. To care for the child, Anne’s forced into polite society–and it’s not going well. Meanwhile, Nick is being pressured on all sides of his business, and being seen with Anne isn’t helping his reputation. Still he can’t quite seem to forget her and must make a choice between the leading of his heart and his plans for the future.
In 1944, blonde and blue-eyed Jewess Hadassah Benjamin feels abandoned by God when she is saved from a firing squad only to be handed over to a new enemy. Pressed into service by SS-Kommandant Colonel Aric von Schmidt at the transit camp of Theresienstadt in Czechoslovakia, she is able to hide behind the false identity of Stella Muller. However, in order to survive and maintain her cover as Aric’s secretary, she is forced to stand by as her own people are sent to Auschwitz.
Suspecting her employer is a man of hidden depths and sympathies, Stella cautiously appeals to him on behalf of those in the camp. Aric’s compassion gives her hope, and she finds herself battling a growing attraction for this man she knows she should despise as an enemy.
Stella pours herself into her efforts to keep even some of the camp’s prisoners safe, but she risks the revelation of her true identity with every attempt. When her bravery brings her to the point of the ultimate sacrifice, she has only her faith to lean upon. Perhaps God has placed her there for such a time as this, but how can she save her people when she is unable to save herself?
Ellis Eaton has always felt she’s been a disappointment to her stuffy, traditional Boston family. Her sights are set on something entirely different: Hollywood. Though she’s captured the eye of Griffin Phillips, she knows that “dutiful wife” is one role she can’t picture herself playing–even if he makes her head spin and her heart quicken. Besides, Ellis seems to make a mess of any situation, despite her good intentions. She’s simply not worthy of an up-and-comer like Griff.
When a look-alike childhood friend begs Ellis for a favor, Ellis finds herself working shifts at the city telephone exchange. At first Ellis believes this will be the acting practice she needs to prepare for life in the movies, but the job is far more complicated than she’d ever imagined, and Ellis finds herself in her usual scrapes. After accidentally overhearing a call that makes her blood curdle, Ellis fears for Griff’s safety. Then handsome policeman Jack Flanagan comes to the scene, adding to the mayhem. With her job on the line and her heart all a-muddle, Ellis unexpectedly discovers what might be her role of a lifetime.
Are there any you looking forward to more than others? I know I’m looking forward to Tamera Alexander since she didn’t have a book come out yet this year. Julie Klassen’s novel sounds a bit…unique, but her books are so fabulous I still cannot wait!
They say if you marry in June, you will always be a bride-Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
I happen to love all things bridal, and I’ve always wanted Jennifer Lopez’s job in The Wedding Planner. Alas, it was not meant to be. But June is often referred to as the month of weddings. Here are some fun covers with brides:
I’ve read all of these except Sandra Bricker’s novels and the new anthology with Margaret Brownley, Debra Clopton, Mary Connealy and Robin Lee Hatcher. Any favorites? Any other titles that should be on here?
P.S. Tried to include Janice Thompson’s Picture Perfect and Beth Vogt’s Wish You Were Here, but the internet…..nuff said.
Um…You cannot be a true Christian fiction reader if you haven’t read a Francine Rivers novel, so here are some of my favorite:
This is the first one I ever read by Ms. Rivers and….it was mind-blowing. I went from Jannette Oke to Francine Rivers. It’s like going from Anne of Green Gables to Harlequin; only they are both women who love God and are able to convey the need for a deep relationship with him. But one is a bit more risque than the other.
This is the next book I read by Ms. Rivers. All of her books I have recommended to my family members and though Redeeming Love was intense, my cousins are unanimous, this is one of the best ones. It’s been borrowed so much I have pages falling out.
I hesitantly picked up this series…and was completely changed forever. I cried like a baby with the first one and dragged my mom to the library to pick up the rest. I don’t have a ‘favorite’ novel because that spot changes on a regular basis. But, if I had to choose one, it would be A Voice in the Wind. I mean, that is what a romance novel should be and Hadassah was such an example of Christ that is resonates with me till this day.
Now, I really liked this one, but it felt a bit incomplete to me. I always wished there was a book two. Otherwise, a very good read.
This book deals with some serious issues and I usually run from those, but Ms. Rivers handled it so wonderfully that I was glad that I read it. Again, she writes the best romance stories. Loved the hero in this one.
These are my favorites! I have read her other novels, but these stand out in my mind and my heart the most. Which one is your favorite? Haven’t read her? Start tod
remaininhislove 