The Suspect’s Daughter has it all – romance, suspense, great characters, skilled writing, and some quite spectacular kisses. I thoroughly enjoyed each aspect of this novel and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to fans of historical fiction, particularly the Regency era. If you like Julianne Donaldson, Julie Klassen, or Sarah E. Ladd, then you will want to read Donna Hatch’s Rogue series for sure!
This week’s topic for Top Ten Tuesday is “New-to-me Favorite Authors I Read for the First Time in 2015”. The great thing about starting a book blog this year is that I have been introduced to books by so many wonderful authors I hadn’t read before now! Narrowing down to 10 this week is difficult, so for brevity’s sake I didn’t include debut authors from 2015 in this list.
Usually when you have this many different authors in one place, there are bound to be a couple of stories that I don’t like. That was not the case in The 12 Brides of Christmas. I have my favorite novellas of the group, certainly, but each story was very well-written with solidly developed & engaging characters and emotionally-satisfying plots. My only wish is that each novella had been its own full-length novel so that I could have more of the delightful characters.
There are several great giveaways going on over at Goodreads right now for some of my favorite books!
One of the problems that occurs when you maintain an active book blog is that, thanks to review schedules and deadlines, you don’t always have time to read the books you normally would have read by now. As such, I found myself woefully behind when it came to Patricia Davids’ books and made some time this past week to play catch-up. Rather than inundate y’all with numerous posts, I decided to just do mini-reviews of each one at once.
In February, one of my favorite people in the world – Melanie Dickerson – is releasing the first book in her new Regency Spies of London series. I mentioned it Tuesday in the list of 2016 debuts I’m excited to read. I already love every fairy tale retelling she writes and cannot wait to see what she does with a regency setting… and spies!
The cover is so gorgeous!! I mean… major cover love from me!
While this is the 6th book in the Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill series by Jennifer Beckstrand, it can easily be read as a stand alone. But I can just about guarantee you will want to go back and read the other books in the series as soon as you’ve finished Huckleberry Hearts because you will fall in love with Anna and Felty and Cassie and Zach and well, MOST of Cassie’s extended family đ Written with much talent and warmth, Huckleberry Hearts is a new favorite and I highly recommend it to fans (and non-fans) of Amish fiction, Jen Turano, and Cynthia Ruchti.
Erin Healy’s engaging writing voice and the riveting suspense will make the book difficult to put down. But the lack of redemptive development and the plethora of difficult-to-like characters may leave you dissatisfied once you’ve turned the last page. Still, I have no problem at all recommending it to fans of suspense, especially people like me who enjoy Diane Chamberlain or Kristen Heitzmann. It’s a well-written book, just not my favorite đ
Susan Sleeman takes a small amount of space and fills it up with high-caliber action, suspense and romance until you forget you are reading a shorter-length novel. Her First Response Squad reminds me in all the best ways of Dee Henderson’s O’Malley family (there’s a crossover idea for a publisher somewhere!). I just can’t say enough good things about these books – get them. read them. You’ll love them.
The Wedding Chapel entranced me from the very beginning. The dual timeline added an element of intrigue that kept me turning the pages and inhaling the words as quickly as possible. I especially loved the fact that readers get to see the story from various perspectives as the focus alternates between the four main characters. To me, this kept the plot flowing and the emotional investment strong.
After an injury derails Poppy Peters’ ballet career, she gathers the courage to follow in her grandmother’s footsteps and attend Calle Pastry Academy in a small-town in Georgia. Poppy has her work cut out for her not only fitting in with her charming (and not-so-charming ) Southern classmates but also proving her worth to her teachers after her first publicly humiliating attempt a making the school’s famous peach pie. But Poppy’s pastry problems go from bad to worse when she’s suddenly accused of stealing expensive black truffles, and her attempt to clear her name goes awry…resulting in her finding a dead body instead! If Poppy’s going to survive this culinary experience, she’ll need to find the missing truffles and track down a killer, all while honing her baking skills to compete in the school’s dessert competition for a coveted pastry internship in Paris. Can Poppy prove she’s one tough cookie? Or is her life about to crumble?
This week is all about those first novels by new authors, specifically the ones coming up in 2016 that we just can’t wait to read! I’ve picked some of the debut novels I’m most excited about – and then also some books by established authors who are starting either a new series or a new direction.
If you’re a fan of Irene Hannon and Lynette Eason, then you need to be reading Susan Sleeman’s books as well. Top-notch suspense, well-developed characters, and breath-stealing romance all wrapped up in a quick read that maintains the quality of a longer-length novel.
‘Tis the season for Christmas books, and Melody Carlson is back with another heart-warming holiday story.
I had been meaning to read some of Nancy Mehl’s books for a while now. But… well… my TBR pile is so out of control I fear it will never be tamed. So when the opportunity came along to review Rising Darkness, the third in her Finding Sanctuary series, I took the time to read the first two books as well.
I’m so glad I did!
Environmental activist Serena Myss has a reputation for not shying away from difficult situations, yet memories of her brotherâs death and Austinâthe man whoâd failed to save himâhave kept her from returning home for years. But when she hears that the tree she and Austin once carved their initials in and shared their first kiss under is getting cut down by Thanksgiving, she has a new fight on her hands. That oak and the fields around it are a centuries old wildlife habitat, but if she canât bring herself to admit that the tree and land arenât the only things worth fighting forâŠshe stands to lose more than just memories.
In honor of the upcoming holiday, I am dedicating this week’s Top Ten Tuesday to the fictional families I would most like to join for Thanksgiving. So, grab a plate, pile it high with all your favorite foods, and settle in for my dream invite list.
Such love and warmth and laughter and friendship emanated from this novella, courtesy of Cynthia Ruchti’s talented pen. Such love and warmth and laughter and friendship emanated from this novella, courtesy of Cynthia Ruchti’s talented pen. Grandma Dodie and Grandpa Wilson are just the absolute sweetest and cutest couple ever! I want to be like them when I grow up.
For as much as I had tears in my eyes while reading An Endless Christmas, I also laughed out loud just as frequently.
On tour with Prism Book Tours. We’ll be highlighting 13 FREE short stories by beloved Harlequin Heartwarming authors that will be available from Harlequin during November. All Heartwarming titles are 30% OFF during November from Harlequin as well! Use code HEART1115. TODAY’S FREE SHORT STORY: Autumn at Jasper Lake by Carol Ross War […]
I love cute bookmarks.
One of my favorite finds lately has been the craftedvan shop on etsy & their adorable magnetic bookmarks.
I ordered the mini 5-pack of the New York set earlier this year and immediately fell head over heels for them!