REVIEW:

I feel so limited with only 5 stars! When I Last Saw You by Bette Lee Crosby is one of those books that certainly deserves more than a five star rating. There is not one thing I didn’t like about it. 

Bette’s writing has a cadence that I really enjoy. I never have to re-read a sentence or paragraph. Her story just flows allowing you to immerse yourself in the pain, joy and sorrows of her characters. While we are talking characters, there were eight children in this story I wanted to hug. I can’t imagine the hardships they went through and the love they shared between them. I have to tell you, I couldn’t put this book down. I constantly wanted to know what was happening. 

When I finished the book, I had a book hangover. I couldn’t move on. I felt like I closed the book on my past and my friends. 

This book had history of a time period from the late 1800’s until 1968. It had a few love stories, family love and love of neighbors. At times it was a hard story to read but in the end it was so worth it. If you haven’t obtained a copy yet, do it now. You won’t regret that decision! 

I received this book from a #Goodreads giveaway. I was a lucky girl! Thank you. 

SYNOPSIS: From USA Today Bestselling Author Bette Lee Crosby comes a powerful southern saga based on a true story… Betrayal and secrets tore her family apart decades ago, now a lonely widow must search for the pieces of her broken childhood.

WHEN I LAST SAW YOU

Georgia, 1968 – Margaret Rose McCutcheon has just buried her husband and must now name a beneficiary for their estate in case of her demise. She is hard-pressed to do so because there is no one. No children. No family. At least none to speak of. At one time, she had two sisters and six brothers, but the lot of them were scattered to the four winds, with no one knowing where the others went. In the hope of finding at least one of her siblings, Margaret hires a detective and sets off on a journey to uncover the truth of why the family broke apart as it did.

West Virginia, 1901 – When Eliza Hobbs gives birth to her sixth child, her husband is not there to welcome his daughter into the world. No surprise, because Martin is seldom there. He works in Charleston and returns to Coal Creek only when he has a mind to. Yes, he sends money on occasion, but seldom enough to make ends meet. Although Eliza believes each new child a blessing, he sees them as yet another responsibility on his already overloaded shoulders. When he discovers another child is on the way, he demands she get rid of it. he stops returning home and there is no more money.

REVIEW: I am a big Historical Fiction nut and Love, Joanah by Julie Mitchell hit the nail on the head for me. Don’t let the genre of Young Adult scare you off. I think the only reason for the clarification is the book doesn’t have explicit love scenes. That is OK by me. In my opinion love scenes don’t make or break a book. 

I love that it takes place during the Revolutionary War. I don’t think I’ve read much on that time period so, I learned some things I didn’t know before. Some families were asked to house prisoners of war because of overcrowding in the jails and the lack of food. The prisoners worked in the fields and the harvest went to the government with a percentage to the family. Did you know that? I didn’t. The Bryant family in this book was one of those families. 

The author did a great job developing her characters. I could easily identify with them even though I didn’t live in their time period. This is a great book to share with a young adult and will be a good read for all ages. If you love history or not, this book will be a good way to get a taste of historical fiction. 

This is the author’s debut novel and is an excellent novel out of the starting gate. I’ll be looking forward to reading more from Julie Mitchell! 

I received a copy of this book from the author for a fair and honest review. Thank you! 

SYNOPSIS: Joanah Bryant knows she is in love with Thomas Davis, but he is away fighting British redcoats on the front lines with General Washington. When her family is forced to host prisoners of war at their family home, Joanah’s world changes in ways she never imagined and she knows life will never be the same.

When the four British prisoners arrive, Joanah doesn’t know what to make of them, especially the intriguing Andrew Welch. Filled with fear, compassion, and curiosity Joanah’s relationship with the young soldier Andrew unfolds.

Joanah is trying to folow the two paths of her heart. Will she make the right choice?

Perfect for readers ages 13-18 and adults who enjoy historical romances. 

A classic tale of young love.

REVIEW: There’s a new author in town! Her name is Casey Dembowski and her debut book is called When We’re Thirty. If this is just her beginning, I can’t wait to see what the future holds for her and her readers. 

The book is based on a pact two college students made at graduation. If neither one of them were married when they turned thirty, they would marry each other. Will shows up at Hannah’s door and the rest is history. Or…is it? This was such an enchanting premise and as you can guess, there were some bumps along the way. 

I really came to care about Will and Hannah. The characters and plot were developed in a way that allowed you to insert yourself into their circumstances. Most of the secondary characters were just that. They weren’t as well developed so, I didn’t feel as close to them. I’m alright with that and didn’t feel anything was missing. 

If you like a story that is on the surface fun and carefree but, has some heavy topics underneath to stretch your mind, this is a book for you. It hooked me from the first couple of page and wouldn’t let me go. If my husband didn’t want to go fishing in the morning I would have finished it in one day. 

I received a copy of this book from #Red Adept Publishing and #Netgalley for a fair and honest review. Thank you! 

SYNOPSIS: Two friends. One pact. The performance of their lives.

Hannah Abbott is stuck in a dead-end relationship and at a job she loves but that barely pays the bills. The four walls of her tiny New York City apartment have never seemed so small. She’s barely toasted her thirtieth birthday when her old college friend Will knocks on her door with an unexpected proposal.

Will Thorne never forgot the marriage pact he made with Hannah, but he also never imagined he’d be the one to initiate it. One ex-fiancée and an almost-career-ending mistake later, however, he finds himself outside Hannah’s door, on bended knee, to collect on their graduation-night pinky promise.

With both of their futures at stake, Hannah and Will take a leap of faith. Now, all they have to do is convince their friends and family that they’re madly in love. As long as they follow the list of rules they’ve drafted, everything should go smoothly. Except Will has never been good with rules, and Hannah can’t stop overthinking the sleeping arrangements. Turning thirty has never been so promising.

REVIEW: My brain is like a slot machine! Ding ding ding… I’ve won the jackpot! I have been most fortunate to be on the review team for Kiersten Modglin. Her new book called The Missing is fabulous. The twists and turns are not as fast in this book. It’s a lot of mini climaxes until the final one at the end.

I’ve told you that she doesn’t have an outline she follows. Not one of her books are the same. When I started this one, I had the feeling it was going to be like The Perfect Getaway. Nope. Wrong again. It is nothing like that at all and once again she has provided a new and completely different story. I’m a little worried about how Kiersten’s mind works. She is so….I don’t have words. 

Her characters are all likeable to some extent. Maybe. In this book I found myself vacillating between like and hate. I think like the characters themselves, my emotions were being yanked back and forth like a yoyo. Kiersten always keeps me guessing and I NEVER know how the book ends until the end. In this book it was the very last sentence. 

Thank you Kiersten Modglin for yet another story that kept me engaged and on my toes. You are making a name for yourself and when you are a number one bestseller, I’ll be proud to say I knew you from the early days. 

I received a copy of this book from the author for a fair and honest review. Thank you! 

SYNOPSIS: They disappeared…

That was just the beginning.

When five strangers are abandoned on an island without any idea where they are or whom to trust, their nightmarish new reality begins to unfold.

Someone is lying.

Someone is hiding a terrible secret.

They’d all do anything to get home… Wouldn’t they?

As the group struggles to uncover the truth about their mysterious whereabouts, only one thing is certain: every choice they make on the island will affect the others.

And when they uncover a strange note with a chilling revelation, the group begins to question everything they thought they knew. If they want to make it off the island alive, they’ll have to discover who brought them there and why…before it’s too late.

REVIEW: Honored. I feel so honored to be able to read and review the new ARCs by Ashley Farley. Her new book coming out is Lowcountry On My Mind. It is book 3 of the Palmetto Island Series. Muddy Bottom is book one and it is free! If you haven’t downloaded it and read it yet, you don’t know what you are missing! It is a heartwarming series of friendship and love of long time friends. 

I have loved everything I’ve read by Ashley Farley. She writes wonderful Women’s Fiction. In this installment Max is accused of Arson when there is a fire in her hotel. Amelia has lost her mother and is planning an escape from her abusive husband. Birdie’s Cafe is expanding to offer fine dining at night so, all of the friends have a lot on their plates. There are some new characters and more planned for the next installment named Sail Away. 

There is a little suspense, some mystery, a little danger and a new relationship or two budding. I love this series and hope it doesn’t end for several more books. Time will tell. I highly recommend downloading the free book and then reading the next two before May 11 when Lowcountry On My Mind comes out. You will thank me for the advice! 

I received a copy of this book from the author for a fair and honest review. Thank you, Ashley Farley! 

SYNOPSIS: “An element of suspense along with the right amount of romantic sparks.”

Childhood friends reunite in an explosive tale of family dysfunction and romance gone wrong.

Amelia has been plotting to escape her abusive husband for years. When her mama’s untimely death provides an unexpected opportunity, she hops on the next bus to the South Carolina Lowcountry. Her husband will eventually come for her. But she’s prepared. Her freedom has given her confidence to face her uncertain future. She settles in at her family’s oceanfront estate to await her destiny. But a visit from Amelia’s past presents danger in a different form.

After a string of disastrous blind dates, Max falls for the first guy who expresses an interest in her. As the weeks wear on, her attraction to Ron wanes. But he’s living in her apartment. And he won’t be so easy to get rid of.

Jump on board for a wild ride of adventure with the continuation of the bestselling Palmetto Island Series. Be sure to download Muddy Bottom, the series novella prequel, for FREE.