SADIE-IN-WAITING by Annie Jones

This was a lighthearted story that dealt with a difficult issue, set in the small town of Wileyville, Kentucky. There are 3 sisters involved in this story and their "quirkie" father who no one can seem to keep track of and who is forever "making a name for himself" in this small town. The sister in this story is Sadie, who is finding herself in a real "slump" and doesn't know how to get out of it. She is trying to keep her family functioning, get along with her sisters and try to handle her Dad. And in the process trying to learn that, "God sees the bigger picture. And if her prayers are not answered as fast or as fully as she wants, that doesn't mean God isn't listening." Sadie sees herself as many of us sometimes do, which is why we can all relate to her at times in this story. She sees herself as ". . . flawed. A great big bundle of unresolved issues and complaints and confusion and bad habits and big hips and a smart mouth and...and...enough faith to remember that You love me anyway." I had to laugh at this family at times, but also tried to understand Sadie and cheer her on to a better mental health attitude. The whole issue of post-postpartum depression was something I did not totally understand how devastating it can be for some women and you will find out in this story just how far reaching this was in this family.

BETRAYED by J.M. Windle

This story will take you deep into the heart of Guatemala. You will feel like you are walking the streets of Guatemala City and journeying into the jungles of this vast and dangerous, but beautiful country.

Vicki Andrews finds herself landing in Gautemala City to do her job working for Children at Risk Foundation, researching a children's home there in the city. She meets up with her sister, Holly, who is also working in the country with the Wildlife Rescue Center deep in the "cloud forest" of Gautemala. When Vicki finds her sister left for dead in the city's large "garbage dump" she sets out to finds out why and who is responsible. There were more questions than answers and Vicki has a hard time figuring out who she can really trust. There is alot of intrigue and mystery; there is killing and fear among many. And what Vicki uncovers about the parents she cannot remember is very heartwarming. I found myself at times wondering who the bad guys really were and near the end I couldn't read fast enough to see how the fast action scenario was going to play out.

It is also a story about having to put your faith in "Someone far greater and better that yourself to be in charge of this universe and its outcome". Vicki must come to terms with her thinking: "It's not that I don't see the good and the beauty. It's just that I see so much more ugliness and suffering and pain and killing. I just. . . can't understand a God who could create someting so unbelievably beautiful and let the bad guys win." She will discover in the end that even though she couldn't see God and didn't want to believe in Him, He was still there and caring and loving her. And that she really could trust her heart to the one man who helped her see the real truth.
This book caught my attention at the very beginning and with all the action and intrigue kept me interested all the way through! I have never been disappointed by this author and her writing.

THERE YOU'LL FIND ME by Jenny B. Jones

This was my first time reading anything by this author, but it won't be my last. I found this to be a very good story with a great message weaved throughout the book, with a great conclusion to that message at the end. Although the cover intrigued me, I didn't feel like it captured the story line really well. I laughed and enjoyed the "banter" that went back and forth between the two main characters, Finley and Beckett, and also loved the way Finley and Mrs. Sweeney "got along". There was alot of different emotions going on with me throughout the book and it was a story that was hard for me to put down, until I read how the author was going to end this one.

Finley finds herself on a plane to Ireland, trying to find the places her brother wrote about in his journal (before he died tragically overseas). She wants to get her life, her faith and her music back, which she lost when he died. "Where was God when my brother died? Where was God when I was at rock bottom" - these are the questions Finley keeps asking herself. She finds herself sitting by movie star heart-throb, Beckett Rush on the plane and the fun begins with their constant "baiting" each other in their conversations. Beckett and Finley are thrown together alot while he works on a movie and she is going to school and that whole part of the book was very well written. I really liked Beckett's advice to Finely at one time in the story when she couldn't understand her feelings towards God, he said, "Maybe you should stop going by what you feel. And start going by what you know is truth." Finley also runs across another lady at the school who continues to give her good advice, Sister Maria, like "the world can be ugly, but your heart doesn't have to be."
Then there is also a old lady, Mrs. Sweeney, who Finley has as an assignment at school, she must spend time with her and get to know her. This is a lady who has had a miserable past. She also gives Finley some great advice and the one I liked the best was, "Don't hang on to old hurts. You can spend your years blaming God, blaming other people, but in the end it was a choice". The book was filled with gems like this throughout this story and I loved it. I have many more good quotes highlighted in my book, but I won't continue to give them all away; but I hope folks will read this story and find more gems for themselves, and find out if Finley can piece back together her life with God's help. It really had a good message to it and a good story line. Well worth reading!! Good job Jenny B. Jones!
A special thanks goes to Thomas Nelson Publishers who through NetGalley provided me with this book to read and review.

Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (October 4, 2011)
ISBN-10: 1595545409
ISBN-13: 978-1595545404

STRANDED by Wendy Davy

This was a very short story, but filled with a good message. Grant was a man who bought an island to escape people because he couldn't live with his "survivor's" guilt. He was a man of faith who had always known God loved him but there was something in his past he couldn't let go of. Savannah gets caught on the sea with a motor boat that doesn't work and finds herself drifting to an island - Grant's island. She will learn that "even accidents happen for a reason" and Savannah turns into "trouble" for Grant, but "exactly the kind of trouble" he needed.

You wouldn't think an author could get so much accomplished in so few pages, but Wendy Davy creates an inspiring message in these few short pages of her book.

A RIVER TO CROSS by Yvonne Harrie

This was a really enjoyable western romance with alot of action and adventure taking place in the Rio Grande of Texas. I was instantly attracted to the book just by the cover alone and the title of the book, after reading it, was very appropriately named. I always enjoy reading about the Texas Rangers and the job they do and Texas Ranger Jake Nelson was one likeable guy. He had a job to do and was focused, but he also had a heart of gold and when he went after Elizabeth Evan's to rescue her, he finds himself smitten.


The beginning pages finds you experiencing a battle, a killing and a kidnapping by Mexican renegades who have crossed the river into El Paso. Jake finds himself crossing into Mexico to save Elizabeth and get her back across the border alive. There was never a dull moment in this story and it had its fast-action moments and its slow and easy times also; and it always kept me interested and enjoying myself. Yvonne Harris is good at catching your attention and holding it and makes you come away glad that you took to the time to immerse yourself in another story and enjoy yourself all the way through.

ATTRACTED TO FIRE by DiAnn Mills

This book goes in my "keeper" pile of books! It kept my heart pounding and my mind trying to figure it all out till almost the very end. It is a story of Secret Service Agents who are trying to keep a rebellious and mixed up daughter of the Vice President safe, when they are not sure who the real enemy is. Meghan and Ash are two of the Special Agents and they are united in their commitment to protect Lindsay Hall, even though at times you don't think she is worth the effort. This story I believe shows the "dedicated, highly-trained, diverse, partner-oriented workforce" that we have in our United States Secret Service.

I like it when I can't figure out the ending until the very end. It keeps me guessing who the "bad guys" really are. I also liked the way Special Agents Meghan and Ash started out "dueling" with one another with their words and how their relationship gradually changed from respect, to much more! Then you have the whole breach of security, the deadly conspiracy and the escalating threats on Lindsay's life. This book had it all and kept me reading into the wee hours of the night to finish and find out how it ended. DiAnn Mills is a "bestselling author" and this book is one of the reasons why.

This was a great romantic suspense story and I want to thank Tyndale House Publishers for providing me this complimentary copy for review.

Paperback: 416 pages
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. (September 16, 2011)
ISBN-10: 1414348649
ISBN-13: 978-1414348643

SHADOWS IN THE SAND by Gayle Roper

This was a story that took me by surprise. There was romance, intrigue, danger, suspense and a town full of "twitter" people that made me laugh. It started up as a story of a cafe owner, Carrie, who sees Greg Barnes every day in her cafe, but who never gives her the time of day, even though Carrie would love to be the object of his affection. Then the author takes the story to another level I wasn't expecting. You meet so many characters in this cafe and they all seem to have a story to tell and it is somehow all intertwined together throughout this story. You learn the backgrounds of these people and it makes you appreciate them all the more having seen what they have come through and they are survivors. This story made me laugh, it made me sad and mad at times. It was very well written with a tender love story taking place in the midst of alot of mystery and danger.

AMANDA by Debra White Smith

If you liked the movie, "Emma", and I did, then you are going to really enjoy this more modern version of the same story (and someday I hope to read the book, "Emma" by Jane Austen). Amanda Priebe is a great friend to her secretary, Haley, and only wants the best for her and she feels she needs to help her find her perfect match. Amanda has great intentions, but is clueless on men in general and their intentions.

Nate Knighton has been Amanda's best friend, and visa versa, for years and their ability to "banter" back and forth with each other is cute, but Nate suddenly realizes his feelings for Amanda go much deeper and he has fallen in love with someone who only seems to see him as a "big brother". I loved the thought process the author shared with us on Nate. He was a man struggling to overcome feelings that he could not get under control, as hard as he might try.

This was an endearing story to read and brought a smile to my face. It was lighthearted story with a message of "all things working together for good" even when we sometimes try to "fix" the problem ourselves, instead of waiting on the Lord's timing.

A TEXAN'S PROMISE by Shelley Gray

This story had me from the very first scene in the book, when Clayton Proffitt, the foreman of the Circle Z Ranch finds Vanessa Grant crying in the barn late one night. When he realizes how cruel her stepfather really is, he knows he must get Vanessa away to safety. Clayton had always been a patient and kind man to Vanessa as she was growing up. He always had time for her when no one else did. His opnion mattered more to her than anyone else and he always had a Bible verse for her when she wanted his advice. That is the kind of man he was. Now they both find themselves fleeing West, where her stepfather can never harm her again.

I really enjoyed the obvious deep feelings both Clayton and Vanessa had for each other. It was a sweet relationship that grew into much more, but the way they have been thrown together in this story tests their feelings for each other and makes for some very emotional and heartbreaking scenes in this story. You feel for Vanessa and all she is going through and you also feel for Clayton and the huge responsibility that is upon his shoulders. There were many other close friends and relatives in this story that really kept it interesting all through the book and left it wide open for the sequel, which I will really enjoy reading. A Texan's Promise is the title for this story and it was very aptly named. I had a hard time putting this western romance down.

I liked the way the author intertwined Bible verses into this story in a very real and natural way. The journey and trials Clayton and Vanessa faced led them to realize that their future is really in God's guiding hands. Good job Shelley Gray. And thanks goes to Abingdon Press via NetGalley for sending me this book to read and review. I thoroughly enjoyed immersing myself in this story.

Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Abingdon Press (October 2011)
ISBN-10: 1426714599
ISBN-13: 978-1426714597

THE LADY'S MAID by Susan Page Davis

The was an enjoyable read for me but not a book that kept me glued to the page, waiting to see what happens next. It is about two British ladies, Elise and her British mistress, Lady Anne Stone. They set off to America to find Lady Anne's Uncle so he can claim his inheritance and find themselves joining a wagon train west to Oregon. They of course know nothing about joining a wagon train and the scout, Eb Bentley, is disgusted with them for wanting to join. But these "ladies" soon tackle whatever they need to to make it own their own and gain the admiration of Eb. There is someone though who is following them and hoping they don't make it to Oregon. Eb ends up doing his best to protect them and see they arrive safely.

This was a story filled with adventure and romance, but also determination to do what needs to be done and not giving up. I admire these two ladies abilities to leave their "prim and proper" ways behind them, but at the same time remain true "ladies".
Thanks goes to Barbour Publishing via NetGalley for sending me this book to review.

Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Barbour Books (October 1, 2011)
ISBN-10: 161626439X
ISBN-13: 978-1616264390

LONELY HEARTS by Amanda Stephan

"One lonely mother. Two matchmaking kids. Three eligible bachelors. What could possibly go wrong? ~*~
This is one of the descriptions given to this book and it is so "right on"!

This story was a delight to read and one I had a hard time putting down until I finished it. This is the second book by Amanda Stephan that I have read and she is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.

Becky Callis is a widow who has just arrived in town with her 2 children and are seeking to make a home for themselves in this small town. She finds new friends and old friends and eventually finds herself taking on a housekeeping/nanny type position at Pierce Morgan’s ranch. You can feel the attraction they both have for each other, but neither one comes out and really tells the other how they feel. There was a point in this story when I wanted to pull my hair out waiting for Pierce to “get his act together” when it comes to the decisions he was making.

I loved the way these two main characters “danced around” each other and couldn’t read fast enough to see how the author was going to finally bring them together. I also enjoyed the sensitivity of her two children and the wise old ranch hand, Curly. This was a quick read, filled with enjoyable characters. A fast moving story filled with romance and I had a really good time reading it. I want to thank the author, Amanda Stephan for sending me this story to review. It was a pleasure to read!

THE ROAD HOME by Denise Jackson

This was such a refreshing and good little devotional book to read. Denise Jackson, as it says on the cover, deals with faith, hope and love and does it with an honest and open way and always brings it back to the importance of relying upon the Lord and His word. She has gone through some tough times in her life, but she has grown in her walk with her Lord and I enjoyed reading what she learned in that growing process.

The book itself was very well put together. I even enjoyed the layout and the way the pages looked. She had good quotes and Bible verses throughout her book and I am going to be passing this one on to my "girls" so they can hopefully glean things from this book the way I did. Thank you Denise Jackson for opening your life up to us all and letting us see how the Lord is working in you and through you.