Click here to purchase your copy!

​​When Tori and Derek get involved in building a local women’s shelter, the extra time together stirs more than an ember of attraction. Haunted by the fear of exposure, each must wrestle with the chains of their pasts to experience freedom, love, and the full depths of God’s grace.

​Unbound by Grace is the first book I’ve read by Michelle Massaro. It is an excellent contemporary Christian romance novella that is well-written and touches on the theme of our pasts and trusting God with His plan for our lives.
 
Tori Bishop is our main character, and she comes from a wealthy and well-connected family. When the book opens she is between jobs and living with her parents. Tori’s experiences growing up in a rich family makes her wary of people’s intentions. She knows she can never be sure if people like who she is or if they want her connections.
 
Derek Miller is the opposite of Tori. He grew up in a poor area of town, his mother suffered physical and emotional abuse, and he is an ex-convict. Derek struggles with feeling inadequate because of his upbringing and his time in jail.
 
Both Tori and Derek are believers when the story begins, and each is struggling with what God is calling them to do. What we want to do is not always what God wants for us, and the disconnect causes us to struggle.
 
One of the aspects I appreciated the most about Unbound by Grace is that Tori and Derek both struggle with their different upbringings. How each of them were raised and how they lived informs a large part of their current upbringing and it rings true. We are all shaped by our life experiences and Tori and Derek are no different.
 
Though this book is well-written and Tori and Derek each have distinctive voices, the descriptions and settings are not well-detailed, and it is difficult to get a sense of place in a lot of this novella. The secondary characters are well-developed and have worries and troubles of their own. None of the secondary characters felt shoe-horned in or superfluous to the story. 
 
I give Unbound by Grace 4/5 stars and recommend it to anyone who enjoys a sweet romance and themes of forgiveness and not letting our past experiences cause fear to override our trust in God’s plan.
 
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author through CelebrateLit. All opinions are my own.**

When I sit down to write a new story, I tend to gravitate toward some pretty deep emotions. The raw kind we all have known at one point or another. It’s what connects us all as human beings, no matter how different we are on the outside. If we can learn to see ourselves in others I believe that’s where compassion is born, as well as some self-revelation. Like King David hearing the story of the rich man stealing the poor man’s lamb and realizing he was that man!

In Unbound by Grace, I was approaching the story of two super fun characters I had introduced in my first novel, Grace in the Flames. In that book, they were side characters. But I always adored writing their scenes. They were both so entertaining! And the chance to put these two together and give them their own book was just too delicious an idea to pass up.
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I got to put them into some interesting surroundings (anyone been to watch a horse race lately?) and take them to some very exposed, vulnerable places as well. Through them I was challenged to get inside someone else’s skin, and understand. Plus, they kept me smiling as well! This story was a blast to write, and I hope you enjoy these fictional friends of mine as much as I do.
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It’s such a pleasure to meet new readers. I hope to hear from you soon!

​Real World Bible Study, September 20
Godly Book Reviews, September 20
Among the Reads, September 21
The Power of Words, September 21
Bibliophile Reviews, September 22
A Baker’s Perspective, September 23
Fiction Aficionado, September 24
Faithfully Bookish, September 25
Reading Is My SuperPower, September 26
Carpe Diem, September 27
Lis Loves Reading, September 28
proud to be an autism mom, September 28
Simple Harvest Reads, September 29 (Guest post from Mindy Houng)
Janices book reviews, September 30
The Mimosa Blossom, October 1
Books, Books, and More Books., October 1
Texas Book-aholic, October 2
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, October 3
Bigreadersite, October 3

​To celebrate her tour, Michelle is giving away a grand prize package that includes a notebook, a mug, a bookmark, a pen, a signed copy of Grace in the Flames, and an Amazon Gift Card ($40)!!
​
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries! Click the link below to enter. https://promosimple.com/ps/d3a6/unbound-by-grace-celebration-tour-giveaway

​Keturah never intends to put herself at the mercy of a man again, but every man on the island seems to be trying to win her hand and, with it, the ownership of her plantation. She could desperately use an ally, but even an unexpected reunion with a childhood friend leaves her questioning his motives.
 
To keep her family together and save the plantation that is her last chance at providing for them, can Keturah ever surrender her stubbornness and guarded heart to God and find the healing and love awaiting her?

​“…all God asks of us is to do our best, from morning to night. He does not expect us to that things that only He can accomplish, only what we’ve been given to do, and to trust Him with the rest.”
 
This summarizes one of the major themes of Keturah, by Lisa T. Bergren and is a large part of why I enjoyed this book.
 
She has written an excellent work of historical fiction that takes place in Georgian England and the Caribbean with well-developed characters, intriguing themes, and a sweet and believable romance. This is the first book I’ve read Ms. Bergren and is the first book in her new series, The Sugar Baron’s Daughters.
 
Keturah Banning Tomlinson is the hero, the oldest of the Sugar Baron’s daughters. They receive word that their father has passed away and in an effort to earn money to pay off creditors, Keturah and her sisters decide to move to the sugar plantation her father ran on the island of Nevis and take over the operations. Keturah is a great character. She is a widow and suffered emotional and physical abuse from her first husband. This has understandably made her hesitant to trust in God, reluctant to rely on others, especially men. She’s also headstrong, determined, and just a touch naïve. Keturah’s journey to overcome her past is my favorite arc in the book.
 
Gray Covington is our other main character, and he is also wonderful. He is a younger son and spent his childhood and early adult years as a flighty character. He is also a childhood friend of Keturah’s. When the book opens, Gray is dedicated to rebuilding his own family’s sugar plantation and has overcome his earlier “indiscretions” of flirting and kissing a lot of women. Gray is definitely changed himself for the better and works hard at being the best person he can be.
 
Often when a physical journey is involved, the trip itself takes too long and then the “destination” part of the story is resolved too quickly. Luckily Ms. Bergren works out the correct proportion of prior, during, and after the trip from England to Nevis and none of those sections feels unbalanced.
 
The romance between Keturah and Gray developed at a nice pace and I understood both of their motivations for wanting a relationship and reasons why they were leery of being in one. Hopefully we will get to see more of them in the next books in the series!
 
Learning to rely on others, God, and overcoming difficult pasts are themes that are handled well in this book. I appreciated that Keturah’s abuse at the hand of her first husband was not glossed over, nor are the lasting effects it has on her. Secondary characters are also well-drawn, and both of Keturah’s sisters are well-developed with motivations and desires of their own.  
 
One minor aspect of this book that I trouble with is it feels like it disregards the fact that Keturah and her sisters are slave owners. We expect slave owners to be portrayed as over the top evil and there are some in the book like that, but we are also supposed to be okay with Keturah and Gray owning slaves. It is historically accurate but I want to make sure other readers are aware of this.
 
I give Keturah 4/5 stars and recommend it to those interested in learning more about the sugar growing process, the Caribbean, and those who enjoy books about overcoming our pasts.
 
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher, Bethany House. All opinions are my own.**

Click here to purchase your copy!

​Red Sky Over America is the first book I’ve read by Tamera Lynn Kraft and is the first book in the Ladies of Oberlin series. And it definitely won’t be the last!
 
Ms. Kraft has written an excellent story about the years before the American Civil War, seen through the eyes of two young abolitionists: America, the daughter of a slave owner, and William, a minister. I was excited to read this book as it is hard to find stories about the years just prior to the Civil War, and it does not disappoint!
 
America Leighton is our main character, and she is a great one. She struggles with trusting God, her belief that slavery is wrong, and her love for her father, who sees nothing wrong with slavery. The family dynamics that Ms. Kraft creates are handled well. We often find ourselves not believing the same way as our families and that causes friction, as it does here between America and her father.
 
William Woods is the other main character, and I will admit I struggled to like him at first. In one of their first scenes together, he is judgmental toward America because she doesn’t behave how he expected when interacting with two of her family’s slaves. Over the course of the book, however, we see William’s deep commitment to abolition, his faith, and his calling as an overseas missionary, and I liked him more as the book continued.
 
Trying to control his daughter, Colonel Leighton arranges a suitor for her, a local mill owner. America reluctantly agrees to the courtship despite the fact he owns slaves, as he promises he will free them if they are married. This is where she struggles between her overseas missionary calling and her abolitionist views, because she believes him. Needles to say, there is a lot more to Harland than meets the eye and I feel this plotline was settled satisfactorily.
 
Though the writing is simplistic at times, this story is engaging and well-researched. I was so engrossed in the story I hardly stopped reading to take notes! Red Sky Over America is not an easy book to read, as there are detailed descriptions of beatings and violence against slaves and allusions to rape.
 
This book has a wonderful balance of romance, suspense, and Christian themes. I appreciated America’s struggle between her faith, her family and what she’d known growing up, and what is morally right. I give Red Sky Over America 4/5 stars and recommend it to anyone interested in learning more about this time frame just before the Civil War.
 
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author through CelebrateLit. All opinions are my own.**

​Tamera has been a children’s pastor for over 20 years. She is the leader of a ministry called Revival Fire For Kids where she mentors other children’s leaders, teaches workshops, and is a children’s ministry consultant and children’s evangelist and has written children’s church curriculum. She is a recipient of the 2007 National Children’s Leaders Association Shepherd’s Cup for lifetime achievement in children’s ministry.

100 Steps to Freedom

by Tamera Lynn Kraft

Before the Civil War, Ohio had the largest Underground Railroad of any state in the Union. It is believed that every county in Ohio had a route. Many slaves would escape over the Ohio River and through Ohio on their way to Canada. This was a dangerous undertaking because, even though Ohio was a free state, the Fugitive Slave Law made it so anyone helping escaped slaves could be fined and jailed.

One small town, Ripley, Ohio, is believed to have helped more slaves escape than any town in Ohio. Ripley is located on the banks of the Ohio River across from Mason County, Kentucky.

One man who helped slaves escape was a freed black man named John Parker. Parker was educated by his master in Virginia and eventually bought his freedom. He traveled to Ohio and opened a foundry on Front Street facing the Ohio River. He was the first black man to earn a patent for one of the inventions he used in his foundry. At night, he would search the Ohio River looking for escaped slaves and helping them find their way to an Underground Railroad Station.

Rev. John Rankin, a Presbyterian minister, owned a house on top of a hill in Ripley. He built one hundred steps to the house that could be seen on the other side of the river. At night, he would light a lantern and hang it from the porch to signal slaves that it was safe to cross. It is estimated that over 2,000 slaves escaped through the Rankin House. None of them were ever recaptured. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote her famous novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, about the escape of the slave, Eliza, after hearing the story from Rev. Rankin.

Rev. John Rankin’s house is in my novel, Red Sky Over America. John Parker also is introduced as a minor character. The story takes place on the Ohio River in Kentucky across from Ripley where all these exciting events happened.

Oberlin College: A School Ahead of Its Time

My current novel series, Ladies of Oberlin, is about 3 women roommates who graduated from one of the most amazing colleges in American history, Oberlin College. Book 1, Red Sky Over Americafocuses on America, a woman attending Oberlin who is an abolitionist studying to become a missionary. The problem is her father is a slave owner. Here’s a little bit about this amazing college.
Oberlin College, founded in 1833 in Northern Ohio, was a college ahead of its time in many ways. In 1835, it became the first college in the United States to regularly admit African Americans. It’s also the oldest co-educational college in the US. In 1837, it admitted four women, three of whom graduated and earned a college degree. Mary Jane Patterson, another Obeberlin graduate, became the first African American woman in 1862 to earn a Bachelor of Arts college degree.

One of Oberlin’s founders once bragged that “Oberlin is peculiar in that which is good”. Oberlin was peculiar in many ways in advancing the causes of the time. Charles Finney, the second president of the college, helped it earn its controversial reputation. He was the fiery evangelist of the Second Great Awakening, a Christian revivalist movement in the early and mid 1800s.

Oberlin College was the hotbed of abolitionist activity and a stop for the Underground Railroad before the Civil War. It was once called “the town that started the Civil War” because of its participation in the Oberlin Wellington Rescue in 1858. Slave catchers came to Oberlin to capture an escaped slave and return him to Kentucky. Most of the town came to the slave’s aid and rescued him. For their trouble, over twenty were arrested and put on trial for violating the Fugitive Slave Act. During the raid on Harper’s Ferry by John Brown, three men from Oberlin participated.

Oberlin College was also well known for the women who graduated from the college and participated in the suffrage and prohibition movements. Lucy Stone, considered a pioneer for the women’s movement, graduated from Oberlin College in 1847.
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Oberlin was also very well known in the missionary movement of the late 1800s. Between 1860 and 1900, 90% of missionaries sent overseas by the American Missionary Society were graduates of Oberlin College. Between 1899 and 1901, thirteen missionaries from Oberlin were martyred during the Boxer Rebellion of China. An arch in Tappan Square at the center of Oberlin pays honor to their sacrifices.

​Carpe Diem, May 29
Books, Books, and More Books., May 30
proud to be an autism mom, May 30
Genesis 5020, May 31
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 31
Janices book reviews, June 1
Mary Hake, June 1
proud to be an autism mom, June 2
Jeanette’s Thoughts, June 2
History, Mystery & Faith, June 3
ansel book blog, June 3
Artistic Nobody, June 4 (Spotlight)
Bigreadersite, June 4
Christian Author, J.E.Grace, June 5
Simple Harvest Reads, June 6 (Spotlight)
Reading is my Super Power, June 6 (Interview)
Two Points of interest, June 7
margaret kazmierczak, June 7 (Interview)
A Baker’s Perspective, June 8
Pause for Tales, June 9
Red Headed Book Lady, June 9
Bibliophile Reviews, June 10
Texas Book-aholic, June 11
Have A Wonderful Day, June 11

To celebrate her tour, Tamera is giving away a themed basket with autographed books of Resurrection of Hope, Alice’s Notions, Red Sky Over America, a copy of Uncle Tom’s Cabin (the book is mentioned in the novel) and a copy of Then Sings My Soul (stories about the hymns), plus a $10 Amazon Card!!
​
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/cebb/red-sky-over-america-celebration-tour-giveaway

​But danger lurks where one never expects it.
 
Can her passion for cooking help Gina survive and thrive in this world of privilege, pleasure and menace?

​Sugar and Spice and All Those Lies is the first book I’ve read by Evy Journey, and I’m not sure if I will read another one.
 
Ms. Journey has written a book that begins with a bang in a prologue where the main character is on a hospital gurney in danger, but the rest of the book doesn’t live up to the excitement of that first scene.
 
Gina is the main character, and the story is entirely told through first person point of view. This book is written in the present tense, which is difficult for a novel, and Ms. Journey doesn’t always manage the POV well. Gina is an interesting character.  She grew up poor, and worked hard for where she is now, as a chef at a fancy restaurant.
 
She meets Leon at the restaurant. Leon is a rich businessman, though what type of business is never mentioned. His family is wealthy and he’s expected to take over the entire business once his father decides to retire. He’s also creepy. He sends flowers to Gina at her home (she hadn’t given him the address) and almost immediately declares himself in love with her.
 
The third part of the love triangle is Brent, a police detective. In comparison to Leon, he is completely normal. He’s nice and works hard. However, he, like Leon, also falls quickly in love with Gina. It felt a little unrealistic!  
 
Ms. Journey has filled this book with a ton of dialogue and introspection, and very little scene setting. This book could really take place anywhere! This book also includes non-explicit sex scenes, so if you do not enjoy that in a story, I would avoid this one!
 
Themes that are hinted at are classism, snobbery, family expectations/loyalty, but this story could’ve delved deeper into all those themes.
 
These characters read more like teenagers/college students than grown adults. I probably would’ve liked this book more if it was Young Adult/New Adult fiction. There is also a mystery plot involving Gina that happens quite late and appears out of nowhere, and I was blindsided by it.
 
I give Sugar and Spice and All Those Lies 3/5 stars. The themes that Ms. Journey touches on, especially classism, family duty, and love, have the potential to form into an interesting story but it is not executed well.  
 
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author through Loving the Book. All opinions are my own.**

 Excerpt 1:

​Prologue:
I’m alive. I’m dead. I’m in-between. In that limbo where my vital signs hover just above death. I rise above my body and look down on it, lying on a gurney. Hospital staff are rushing me along the brightly-lit hallway to the operating room. One of them holds an oxygen mask on my face. Another, a bag of intravenous fluid connected to my veins by a tube.

I’m not ready to die yet. These good people anxious to rescue me don’t know that my resolve is the only thing that is keeping me alive. No, I’m not ready to die—I’ve only just begun to live. I have yet to prove to myself, to the world, that I have what it takes to prevail.

My family—now on their way to the hospital—doesn’t know yet exactly what happened to me. And except for one detective, neither do the police. I see him now by the foot of the gurney, keeping pace with the nurses. He’s scowling, his lips pressed into a grim line.

A tall, taut, and solitary man, he has deep-set gray eyes clouded by too many images of violent death and a lower lip that hangs perpetually open in disgust or despair. So much darkness he has already seen in his thirty odd years in this world. He needs to piece together the facts that constitute the attempt on my life, events that may have led to it, and various fragments of my past to understand what brought me to this point.

The first time I met him, I fell in love with him. There was something primal about him, some paternal, animalistic instinct to save hurt or fallen victims. Like me, maybe. It gave him power and it made him irresistible to me.

But fate is fickle. It teases. It entices. One day, something quite ordinary happens to you. Yet, you sense that that ordinary something can change your life. Not necessarily for something better, but for something new. Fate is dangling before you the promise of a world that, before then, was totally out of your reach. How can you not seize it?

Now, of course, I see the end of that promise. And it’s not where I want to be.

It’s tragic, don’t you think, that the end of that promise should be right here on a gurney, with me fighting for my life? It certainly is not what I hoped for.
​
How could it end this way? I embraced life, took chances, but half-dead on this gurney, I wonder: Am I paying with my life? But, like I said. I’m not ready to die yet

​Judah’s Wife: A Novel of the Maccabees is the second book in The Silent Years series. I’ve enjoyed previous books by Angela Hunt and was excited to have an opportunity to read more. The Silent Years series are not connected to each other, so you don’t need to read the first one prior to Judah's Wife, though I recommend it as Ms. Hunt writes excellent Biblical Fiction.
 
Ms. Hunt brings the story of Judah and his wife Leah to life in a well researched and well-written book that anyone who wants to learn more about the Maccabean Revolt will appreciate.
 
Judah’s Wife alternates first person point of view between Leah and Judah and that can be difficult to pull off, but Ms. Hunt manages it deftly. Leah’s and Judah’s voices are very distinct from each other and it is easy to feel the differences in their characters.
 
The title character is Leah, who is raised in an abusive household. She has an encounter with Judah where he saves her from harm and is intrigued, as he is so different from her own father. Judah is also intrigued by her and their fathers arrange a marriage. Judah is twenty-four and Leah fourteen when the marriage takes place.
 
Based on her childhood, Leah’s desire for a safe, pleasant, untroubled life is understandable. Judah’s lack of interest in violence makes her happy and they begin to fall in love. Yet when the Maccabean Revolt begins and Judah believes he is called to fight, she begins to fear he is violent like her father and draws away from him. However, it takes longer than I would have liked for Judah and Leah to talk with each other about this. 
 
Judah struggles with what he feels God is calling him to do (leading the Revolt) and his love for Leah. His characterization is not as deep as Leah’s but I understood his emotions and feelings, and was pleased with this character development. Judah’s chapters spend a lot of time recounting battles and at times they read like a textbook, but Ms. Hunt writes so well that the chapters are enjoyable and propel the story forward.
 
The themes that Ms. Hunt develops include listening for God’s voice instead of our own. Both both Leah and Judah struggle with their callings and their own ideas about what they want out of life. Ms. Hunt also touches on the conflict between following God and submitting to governments if they are demanding we do not follow God. 
 
One of the things that Leah struggles with regarding her faith is not understanding who God is. She also doesn’t think she is special enough for God to speak to her. That is a point a lot of Christians struggle with.
 
Judah’s Wife is a well-written, well researched work of Biblical Fiction. Leah and Judah are both great characters and the journeys they undertake together and separately are worth the read. The other characters aren’t fleshed out as well, though none feel superfluous or unimportant to the story.
 
I will definitely read more books by Ms. Hunt and the other books in this series. I give this book 4/5 stars and recommend it for anyone who enjoys Biblical Fiction.
 
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bethany House, the publisher. All opinions are my own.**

​Major Daniel Adams has his hands full at Fort Reno, especially raising two adolescent daughters alone. If this new governess doesn't work out, his mother-in-law insists she'll raise the girls herself--far away from the fort. Miss Bell bears little resemblance to Daniel's notion of a governess--they're not supposed to be so blamed pretty--but he finds himself turning a blind eye to her unconventional methods. Louisa has never faced so important a performance. Can she keep her act together long enough to help her brother and to secure the respectable future she's sought for so long?

​Holding the Fort is the first book in the Fort Reno series, and the first work I’ve read by Regina Jennings. It definitely won’t be the last!
 
Ms. Jennings has written a great book with underlying themes of honesty, grace, and overcoming our pasts. It is unexpectedly humorous as well, but never at the expense of the characters. You are laughing with them and never at them.
 
Our heroine, Louisa, is a dance hall singer with a unique upbringing. This is generally not an occupation for the protagonist in Christian fiction, and Louisa’s perception of what others think of her job is the main cause of her internal conflict. Louisa is a great character. She’s fun, smart, and resourceful. Louisa does spend most of the book embroiled in deception, though she never feels at ease with it, and that makes her more sympathetic.
 
Daniel, an Army major, is the hero, and he’s trying to raise two daughters while in charge of Fort Reno, which is in Indian Territory. He’s quick to realize something isn’t quite right with the story that Louisa is telling him, but she is able to connect with his daughters. Because of this, he’s willing to overlook the inconsistencies in Louisa’s story.
 
Ms. Jennings’ writing brings the characters to life and the setting is perfectly realized. I really did feel I was in the Indian Territory! Holding the Fort’s themes, including overcoming your past through grace, never feel preachy or out of place, and are one of the best parts of this book.
 
One part of the story that impacted my enjoyment of the book is that Louisa and Daniel make a lot of assumptions about each other in the beginning, and indeed almost to the end. The manner in which the truth about Louisa is revealed to Daniel disappointed me.
 
Despite the above, I do believe in the HEA and the development of the relationship. I’m hoping that Louisa and Daniel reappear in the other books in the Fort Reno series.
 
I give this book 4/5 stars and recommend it to readers who enjoy unusual settings, well-developed characters, and a lovely and sweet romance.
 
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher, Bethany House. All opinions are my own.**

Click here to purchase your copy!

​Saved in the Jesus Movement of the seventies, Chris DuPré connected with countless Christians across the world. Yet too many of those Christians, Chris discovered, have years later lost the fire and stepped back from living out their faith. Why? Because they got stuck—stuck in rejection by others, stuck in fear of the unknown, stuck in loving a comfortable life, stuck in scores of similar ruts. What can set them free from their internal prisons? And what could Christians accomplish if we all just got unstuck?

​Unstuck: Hope for Christians in a Dead-End Job, Dead-End Faith, or Some Similar Soul-Shriveling Rut is the first book I’ve read by Chris Dupré. And what a book it is!
 
Mr. Dupré has written an excellent book that provides insight and help for those struggling with their place in life. It is full of stories, quotes, and while the conclusions seem simple, they are difficult to solve if we remain “stuck” in our routines. The style is informal, almost as if Mr. Dupré is having a conversation with his readers. It is a quick and meaningful read and one that I will most likely reread over and over.
 
The chapter on comfort zones was one of my favorites. It is easy for humans to fall into them and are difficult to get out of. Fear is the driving force behind leaving our comfort zones and Mr. Dupré devotes a chapter to fear as well. I will say that reading this book helped solidify a life change I had been praying about for a while and I’m sure I’m not the only one!
 
The chapter on character demonstrates a profound understanding of human nature. People know when you are not being truthful about who you are. We want people to have integrity and are often disappointed when they prove they do not, and the author delivers his conclusions on character perfectly.
 
I also appreciated the idea presented that it is usually not one thing in our lives that can make us “stuck” in place. Moments in our lives build on each other and make us who we are, and trying to pin down what caused us to become complacent or fearful of leaving our comfort zones can be disheartening or even create bigger problems in our lives.
 
The emphasis on listening to God instead of others, even those who love us and want the best for us, is present throughout the entire book. Scriptures used by Mr. Dupré are abundant and relevant to the topic at hand.
 
I give this book 5/5 stars and recommend it to anyone struggling with feeling “stuck” in their lives. Those wanting an easy to read, informative book that will stay with you long after you’ve finished reading it should also read this book. You will not be disappointed in Unstuck!
 
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher, Whitaker House, through CelebrateLit. All opinions are my own.**

​Originally from Upstate New York, Chris moved to Kansas City to work alongside Mike Bickle in establishing the International House of Prayer. Chris recently served as Associate Pastor at Grace Center Church in Franklin TN, and is now an associate pastor of Life Center in Harrisburg, PA. A pastor, teacher, worship leader, traveling speaker, and spiritual father to many, Chris may be best known for his song “Dance With Me.” He has produced eight albums and published three books, including The Wild Heart of God (Whitaker House, 2016) and The Lost Art of Pure Worship with James Goll. Parents of three daughters and grandparents of four grandchildren, Chris and his wife, Laura, reside in Harrisburg, PA.

I grew up in a small town about 30 miles east of Rochester, NY. Winters there could be brutal. One year, I received beautiful new pair of boots which I loved, particularly for the joy with which they enabled me to engage in the marvelous sport of puddle jumping. One day when the ice and snow had begun to melt, I eyed a nice puddle and jumped in the middle sending a freezing splash in all directions. But wait, something was wrong — this was no ordinary puddle! This one was made to capture people, and I was captured! Frantic, I pulled one foot out, but no matter how much I tried, the other foot would not budge. My boot was stuck. I was stuck! I pulled and pulled until finally my foot came free in a soggy sock. My beautiful boot had been left behind, buried beneath the slush. My little mind was faced with a choice. Did I care enough about to do something? It only took a second to act. I loved those boots. I found a stick and began to fish. After what seemed like an eternity, I finally pulled out my boot. That’s the first time I ever went fishing and was glad to catch a boot instead of a fish.
​
My desire with this book is to address some of those “stuck” moments we all face. I want to provide keys that will hopefully open a door or two that have held you back on the incredible journey of life. I say a door or two, or even three, because it’s almost always more than one thing that gets us stuck. Ah, but God—He is the change factor in all of this and in Him we can break free.

​Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, December 28
Mary Hake, December 28
A Reader’s Brain, December 29
Carpe Diem, December 29
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, December 30
A Baker’s Perspective, December 31
New Horizon Reviews, January 1
proud to be an autism mom, January 2
Books, Books, and More Books., January 3
Kristin’s Book Reviews, January 4
A Greater Yes, January 5
Texas Book-aholic, January 6
Blossoms and Blessings, January 7
Janices book reviews, January 8
Bigreadersite, January 9
Pursuing Stacie, January 10

​​In honor of the tour, Whitaker House is giving away

Grand Prize: Unstuck: Hope for Christians in a Dead-End Job, Dead-End Faith, or Some Similar Soul-Shriveling Rut by Chris DuPré; The Wild Love of God: A Journey That Heals Life’s Deepest Wounds by Chris DuPré;” Covenant” Pillar Candle scented with ancient biblical fragrances from Abba Jerusalem, and a Whitaker House Grown-Up Coloring Book.

First Place Prize: Unstuck: Hope for Christians in a Dead-End Job, Dead-End Faith, or Some Similar Soul-Shriveling Rut by Chris DuPré; The Wild Love of God: A Journey That Heals Life’s Deepest Wounds by Chris DuPré;” “Man of God” Ceramic Mug, CTAInc.com; and a Whitaker House Grown-Up Coloring Book.

Second Place Prize: Unstuck: Hope for Christians in a Dead-End Job, Dead-End Faith, or Some Similar Soul-Shriveling Rut by Chris DuPré; and The Wild Love of God: A Journey That Heals Life’s Deepest Wounds by Chris DuPré”.
​
Click the link to enter! https://promosimple.com/ps/c457

Click here to purchase your copy!

​Hope Travels Through is the debut novel by Loni Kemper Moore. It begins in October 1976 and culminates with the events of and immediately following December 13, 1977, when the plane carrying the University of Evansville’s men’s basketball team crashes.
 
Ms. Moore has written a nice book that has a great message about figuring out your place in the world after its been turned upside down, trusting in God even when tragedy and grief strike, and the importance of relationships in our lives, whether they are romantic, platonic, or familial.   
 
Our main characters are TeJae, who is a flight attendant, and Mikel, an Army Reserve chaplain. TeJae and Mikel are both characters I related to, for different reasons, and I enjoyed the development of their relationship.
 
The book is descriptive, with all the cities, hotels, and places coming alive on the page. Secondary characters have motivations and lives of their own, though one of them is nearly an over the top “villain” with a pretty weak justification for it.  
 
The short snippets that take place in each chapter with shifting POVs often made it difficult to track the events happening in the story. The chapters are often days, weeks, or months apart and so the story feels simultaneously slow and quick because of the time jumps.
 
The back-cover copy is a little misleading and it sounds like the book is going to be about the tragedy that takes places on December 13, 1977 and the aftermath, but most of the book is before that.
 
The themes and message in Hope Travels Through means I can recommend it, though I give this book 3/5 for the disjointedness of the small snippets and how the pacing of the story felt excruciatingly slow and lightning fast at the same time.
 
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author through CelebrateLit. All opinions are my own.**

​When she’s not writing, she’s an entertainer, technical support analyst; mom of a teenager named Adam; traveler with Robert, her dear “Hugsband,” stepmom to University of Evansville alumna Becca and her husband, Anthony; and spender of way too much time on Facebook. With her experiences of learning to trust God through tragedy, being employed by travel agencies and Delta Air Lines, and attending University of Evansville graduate school, she’s the best person to tell this story.

​What Made Me Write Hope Travels Through?
The weathered orthopedic surgeon shook his head and stared at the x-rays. Without making eye-contact, he said, “I usually work on Olympians and professional athletes. This doesn’t look good. She’s going to have arthritis and limp for the rest of her life.”

I hadn’t had anything stronger than Tylenol since the entire weight of my 128 (at the time) pounds crunched my left ankle, 24 hours earlier.

Robert, aka Dear Hugsband, had told me, so very graciously, when we arrived at Skate City, “Once you’re over 50, you shouldn’t roller skate.” But our son, Adam was 10 and I wondered how many more years he’d want me to hang out with him, so I’d strapped on the skates and joined the crowd of skaters. I avoided landing on the body of the five-year old who cut me off. Didn’t that count for something?

However, none of that mattered at that moment. I needed drugs, and Robert agreed to whatever that surgeon said to get my prescriptions.

One afternoon, my stomach growled on a gurney as I waited in the surgery center with IVs in my hands until a perky nurse announced, “The doctor will need to reschedule because something came up.”

REALLY? After waiting 10 days, he no-shows?

I’ve never loved Robert’s New York attitude more than the next day when by 7 pm that evening I was at Red Robin, post-surgery, eating a celebratory French Onion soup. Thanks to a nerve blocker the new, cute surgeon had provided after rebreaking bones and inserting pins.

Adam was able to complete his homeschool work with little interference from my drug infested brain and I occupied my time by flipping through decades of accumulated diaries. The story of a woman surviving tough times percolated in my brain and I remembered my mother saying, “Everyone has a Great American Novel in her. You just need to take time to write it.”

As my leg healed leaving no arthritis nor limp, I returned to the million things life demands, including a visit to our Becca at the University of Evansville, where I’d done my graduate work. As she showed us the Weeping Basketball, my protagonist informed me the story began in 1976, not 2011. The story climaxed when the university’s men’s basketball team plane crashed, but I was too busy to spend much time on it.

Three days before Christmas that year, my younger sister passed away from Lyme complications, I could barely breathe. I’ve seen it a dozen times someone’s busy life prevents her from taking care of herself until something stops them in their tracks and they cannot move on. That happened to me.

At the time, Dear Hugsband programmed Coca-Cola’s Freestyle machine (you’re welcome), so Adam and I joined him in Atlanta for several months. During that time without the cooking-cleaning-requirements and Adam insisting he preferred independence of his homeschool curriculum with minimal input from me, I processed my grief by putting the story that became Hope Travels Through on my computer.

“In a weak moment, I have written a book.” Margaret Mitchell – Gone With The Wind

Dear Hugsband loved his project with Coca-Cola and enjoyed everything about working in Atlanta except the humidity, the traffic and the commute. Typically, he worked in Georgia every other week, and was home every weekend.

But occasionally, he’d be forced to stay in Atlanta over the weekend and tried to find something to entertain himself. One weekend, after seeing every movie running, he decided to go to the Margaret Mitchell House Museum where one of my favorite books, Gone With The Wind, was written.
He bought me a mug with the above quote on it which he said was to encourage me in my writing, along with several commonalities between myself and the famous author.


She was short—I am 5 feet tall, if I stretch;
Her husband was over 6 feet tall—mine is 6’3 1/2”;
She started writing her novel, after an ankle injury– I started writing after I a similar injury;
She used a typewriter—I use a computer;
Her mother gave her the quotes she used about how to survive in an upside-down world – my mom had a Bible verse for every occasion. I think her favorite was Ephesians 4:32 “And be ye kind, Loni to whomever…”;
It took Margaret ten years to complete her novel – I’m not far behind, at nearly eight years.


Obviously, I don’t have one commonality with Margaret, in that she died at the age of 48 in a traffic accident, but his conclusions are precious.
​
I’m well aware the odds of my little novel being successful, without the industry connections Margaret had, are low, but it’s been a fun journey even if no one buys a copy!

​Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, December 16
Karen Sue Hadley, December 16
Jami’s Words, December 17
Quiet Quilter, December 18
Reading Is My SuperPower, December 18
Inspiration clothesline, December 19
Texas Book-aholic, December 19
Radiant Light, December 20
Carpe Diem, December 21
Avid Reader Book Reviews, December 21
A Reader’s Brain, December 22
A Greater Yes, December 23
Blogging With Carol, December 23
Books, Books, and More Books, December 24
SusanLovesBooks, December 25
Remembrancy, December 26
Mary Hake, December 26
Janices book review, December 27
The Power of Words, December 28
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, December 29
Just Jo’Anne, December 29

​To celebrate her tour, Loni is giving away a grand prize of a $50 Amazon Card!!
​
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! 
​https://promosimple.com/ps/c5be

Click here to purchase your copy!

​As these women join forces to search for Joey’s father–a Rockland area pastor, no less– Emily learns compassion for a woman who just wants the best for her son and can’t quite imagine that Jesus wants anything to do with her.

Each day, Davia weakens until Emily isn’t confident she’ll find the boy’s father in time–if at all. Doubts form. Should she look? Is it right to risk destroying a family like this–an entire church? The weight of that responsibility crushes her as Davia wastes away before her eyes.

A mother’s love. A boy’s confidence. A family’s faith. A preacher’s failure. Is redemption even possible anymore?
​
Christmas Embers: a story of love, failure, and redemption.

​Christmas Embers by Chautona Havig is a difficult book to get through and for me, a difficult book to rate. I settled on the higher rating because of the writing and the handling of the tough subject matter despite slight dissatisfaction with the end of the book.
 
This is the first book I’ve read by Ms. Havig. She is an excellent writer, and both main characters are well-rounded, flawed individuals. Christmas Embers is also what I like to call an “internal” book—one that consists of character’s thoughts and interactions, so there are no long descriptions of the setting.
 
Emily and Sean, a married couple, are our main characters. Infidelity and adultery is rarely addressed in Christian fiction, and Ms. Having handles it well. She doesn’t shy away from the impact it has on the adulterer, the spouse, family members, the church, and friends. The themes of sin, love, hate, temptation, and forgiveness permeate the book and make it rich and rewarding.
 
One of the aspects of the story that didn’t work for me was the flashback to the actual adultery—it’s not explicit. However, by that time in the story I knew the information the flashback conveyed and felt it interrupted the flow of the story.
 
I couldn’t put Christmas Embers down. One reason is I was never a hundred percent certain which way the relationship between the adulterer and the cheated-on spouse would go. Ms. Havig writes this broken relationship so well I didn’t know if they would stay together or divorce. And I think I would have been able to accept either decision because of the way Ms. Havig presented the relationship.
 
However, I would have appreciated a few chapters detailing what happened between Emily and Sean after the decision (I won’t spoil) instead of skipping to the epilogue.

I give Christmas Embers 4/5 stars and recommend it for those looking for a read that will make you think about sin and forgiveness. I thought it dealt with a tough topic well and appropriately, and despite the excellent writing and the deftly handled subject matter, the lack of story after the decision about their relationship struck me as odd.

**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author through CelebrateLit. All opinions are my own.**

Infidelity to the Tune of Adeste Fideles

“I think my husband is having an affair.”

An explanation followed. Look, I tend to be one who assumes the best of others—to a fault even. I read the “evidence” and frankly could see it going either way. It’s hard to tell across thousands of miles. While others on the message board saw red flag after red flag—and frankly, I did, too—I also saw perfectly innocent explanations for things. It’s a curse sometimes—that ability to see both sides of an issue. I cautioned against assumptions no one would want other people to make of themselves. And I prayed she was wrong.

She wasn’t.

It wasn’t the first time I’d come face to face with infidelity. As a child, there was an extended family member. As a newlywed, one of my wedding party—then another. Then another. The excuses, the justifications. Friends and I went to confront a sister in Christ on her affair with her husband’s best friend. We foolishly asked “what happened?” regarding her marriage. Her words: “We drifted apart.”

I wanted to scream the words that battered my brain and heart. “Then row back together!”

But over the years, it just grew worse. One by one, wives and husbands tossed aside vows made to a brother or sister in Christ—vows made before the Lord—in favor of what sometimes were serial affairs. Abuse. Horror.

I’ve prayed women I love through court cases, medical visits, and disclosures from children no mother should ever have to hear. I’ve prayed for men I didn’t even like because of the pain their wives inflicted each time she left them alone with the kids. He knew. He always knew.

Adultery is real. It’s ugly. And there’s absolutely a cure for it. Jesus. 100% surrender to Jesus. But as long as we rely on those little loops on the back of our boots instead of the saving, healing, strengthening power of Jesus, we’re just as vulnerable as the next person.

And that’s why I wrote Christmas Embers. I took every heartbreaking story I’d observed over the years and put in each character for a reason. Every scene, every plot point, every twist—I put them exactly how and where they are for a reason.

They’re there as a warning.

This isn’t your lighthearted Christmas novel. Some have suggested I shouldn’t have set it at Christmastime. But you know what? Over half the disclosures I’ve ever heard of happened between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. I couldn’t get the idea of Joey’s story out of my head. And to write his story, it had to be at Christmas.

Let me say it again. While Christmas may not seem like the optimal time for a hard-hitting book like this, I had to do it. Adultery is reaching epidemic proportions in the church. There’s a solution. His name is Jesus. 

​Carpe Diem, December 5
A Baker’s Perspective, December 5
Mary Hake, December 5
Moments Dipped in Ink, December 6
D’S QUILTS & BOOKS, December 6
Daysong Reflections, December 6
Fiction Aficionado, December 7
A Simply Enchanted Life, December 7
Genesis 5020, December 7
Blogging With Carol, December 8
The Power of Words, December 8
Bigreadersite, December 8
Reading Is My SuperPower, December 9
A Greater Yes, December 9
Radiant Light, December 9
Just Jo’Anne, December 10
For The Love of Books, December 10
Book Bites, Bee Stings, & Butterfly Kisses, December 10
Aryn the Libraryan, December 11
A Reader’s Brain, December 11
The Fizzy Pop Collection, December 12
Books, Books, and More Books., December 12
Quiet Quilter, December 13
Seasons of Opportunities, December 13
Christian Book Devourer, December 13
Allofakindmom, December 14
Texas Book-aholic, December 14
Pursuing Stacie, December 14
Pause for Tales, December 15
Reader’s cozy corner, December 15
margaret kazmierczak, December 15
Red Headed Book Lady, December 16
Purposeful Learning, December 16
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, December 16
Janices book reviews, December 17
Christian Bookaholic, December 17
Karen Sue Hadley, December 18
Remembrancy, December 18
Blossoms and Blessings, December 18

​​To celebrate her tour, Chautona is giving away a grand prize of a 6 month Kindle Unlimited Subscription!!
​
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/c512

Click here to purchase your copy!

​Hunter Lewis is intrigued by the new woman staying at his friend’s Amish inn. Annie appears to be what she claims, but she’s secretive and won’t open up. He’s been burned by a woman before and can’t tolerate deception. But his interest in Annie is growing, and the attraction seems to be mutual—until something happens that makes Hunter question everything he’d thought was real. Dare he risk his heart, when he’s certain Annie is keeping secrets?
 
Can their new romance withstand the pressure, or will Ann choose to run again?

​Runaway Romance is a contemporary romance by Miralee Ferrell set in an inn near a small Amish town and is the first of a series. This is not the first book I’ve read by Ms. Ferrell and I was pleased to get a chance to read another one. However, I am not sure I will read the next book in this series.
 
Ann “Annie” Stanway is the main character. At the beginning of the book, she is the girlfriend of a reality show star and appears on the show as well. She’s likable and is blindsided when she discovers her relationship will be ending to improve the show’s ratings. Annie is kind and as a celebrity, is worried about other people finding out where she’s from, so she doesn’t share details about herself when she breaks down near an Amish inn after running away from Los Angeles.
 
Hunter Lewis is the other main character, and he’s nice. He’s nice to Annie, to Sarah the innkeeper, to Carla the homeless woman, to everyone. And he hates liars as he’s been in relationships before with women who lie and manipulate. His personality is basically reduced to these two characteristics.
 
And once Hunter stated he could stand liars, I knew exactly what the “misunderstanding” that would hamper Hunter and Annie’s fledgling relationship was going to be. Hunter finds out about Annie’s real identity and doesn’t let her explain why she felt the need to keep it secret. There’s even the “you’re just like all the other liars” argument before he leaves.
 
This book is predictable in other ways, as well. I knew who was going to reveal Annie’s identity fairly early in the book, and the setup for the next book in the series was painfully obvious. The writing style itself is fine, though the dialogue is stilted. It makes sense for our Amish characters but awkward for the worldly main characters. I was never able to completely immerse myself in the story and would have appreciated more descriptions of the settings.
 
The book’s message of learning to trust God in our lives is an important one and is handled well. The characters make frequent references to their beliefs and all struggle to live their faith when their own desires clash with what they feel called to do.
 
The story involving Carla, the homeless woman, is very touching and I’m glad it was included. However, I felt more emotion when her plot was resolved than I did with the main characters throughout the entire book, which I’m sure was not the intent of the author.
 
I’ve enjoyed previous books by Ms. Ferrell. However, I am disappointed to say that I cannot recommend Runaway Romance due to the lack of emotional connection I felt with the main characters and the predictability of the plot. I want to be surprised, and nothing about this book surprised me.
 
I give Runaway Romance 2/5 stars.
 
**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author through Celebrate Lit. All opinions are my own.** 

​I started writing shortly after I turned 50, and discovered I loved it so much I don’t want to stop. I have 15 novels out & a five book set of horse novels for middle-grade girls. I write both women’s contemporary fiction, historical & contemporary romance, and horse/mystery novels for girls. One of my Western romances, Love Finds You in Sundance, WY, was awarded the Will Rogers Medallion for Western Fiction, three books have been optioned as movies, and several books have been on the ECPA best seller list.

​You can find out more about me and my books at www.miraleeferrell.com.

​In the spring of 2015, I received an email from a Hollywood producer, followed by a phone call. Imagine my surprise when she asked if I’d be willing to write a book for them. They were no longer producing the Love Finds You books into movies and were working on a different project for UP TV, a possible three-movie series, and she hoped I might be able to work with them. She explained that she’d optioned Love Finds You in Sundance, Wyoming, two or three years earlier, and loved it. Of the thirty-five or so titles she’d read of the line, that was her favorite. However, UP TV didn’t want to make historical or old west movies, so she’d shelved it for now.

During that time period, I’d gotten my rights returned to all of my LFY books and had retitled them Finding Love in Last Chance, California, Finding Love in Tombstone, Arizona, and Finding Love in Bridal Veil, Oregon. Sundance became Outlaw Angel, and all four are still in print.
​
Here’s the amazing part. I came very, very close to turning down that contract offer with Summerside for Sundance. I was disappointed in the advance and royalty rate, and shortly after they released it, they sold the line to Guideposts, and that company didn’t continue the line much longer. Understandably, sales waned on their final releases, and I was disappointed with my sales from that final book as my others had done quite well. For a long time, I wished I hadn’t taken that contract and instead held out for one with another company for a three-book series. However, had I done that, I doubt Runaway Romance would ever have been written. It was Sundance that grabbed Chevonne’s attention and caused her to contact me. And the rest, as they say, is history.

​Blogging With Carol, November 28
Reflections from my bookshelves, November 28
Janices book review, November 29
Books, Books, and More Books., November 29
Books n baubles, November 30
Blossoms and Blessings, November 30
Have A Wonderful Day, December 1
Inklings and notions, December 1
Christian Chick’s Thoughts, December 2
Texas Book-aholic, December 2
History, Mystery & Faith, December 3
Bigreadersite, December 4
The Power of Words, December 4
Kat’s Corner Books, December 5
Reading Is My SuperPower, December 5 (Interview)
Baker Kella, December 6
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, December 6
Splashes of Joy, December 7
Karen Sue Hadley, December 7
Quiet Quilter, December 8
Red Headed Book Lady, December 9
Just the Write Escape, December 9
Cafinated Reads, December 10
Remembrancy, December 11
Carpe Diem, December 11

​In honor of her tour, Miralee is giving away a grand prize of a Kindle Fire! Click the link below to enter! Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/c31a