Leslie Gould

Courting Cate

When Amish farmer Pete Treger moves to Paradise Township, Pennsylvania, seeking a better life, he meets sisters Cate and Betsy Miller. Both are beautiful, but older sister Cate is known more for her sharp tongue and fiery temper than her striking appearance. Betsy, on the other hand, is sweet and flirty--and seems to have attracted most of the bachelors in Lancaster County!

However, the sisters' wealthy father has made one hard and fast rule: elder sister must marry first, before the younger can even start courting. Unfortunately for poor Betsy, and for the men who want to court her, her older sister, Cate, doesn't have any suitors--until Pete comes to town, that is.

Though he finds both sisters attractive, something about Cate's feisty demeanor appeals to him. Soon the other bachelors in the district convince Pete to court Cate. She hardly seems receptive to his overtures, though. Instead, she's immediately suspicious of his interest.

Adoring Addie

When Addie Cramer's mutter and daed decide Phillip Eicher is the man for her to marry, they claim she must honor them by obeying their wishes. But then she falls in love with Jonathan Mosier--part of the family with whom the Cramers have a long-held grudge.

With the help of others in her community who long to see the quarrel healed, Jonathan and Addie struggle to continue their relationship against both sets of parents' wishes. But when one of Addie's vengeful brothers harms a member of the Mosier family, Jonathan intervenes and is banished from Lancaster County.

A distraught Addie determines to find the true reason for the grudge between the two families, hoping to tear down the animosity of the past. Can their love for each other bridge the divide between their families? Or are they destined to remain apart forever?

Minding Molly

Capable and optimistic Molly Zook has a slight issue with control: She doesn't like giving it up. So she's chafing against her mother's wish that, to save the family farm, she marry Mervin Mosier--especially after she meets Leon Fisher. He's from Montana but is working in Molly's district, training horses at a nearby ranch. He is tall and muscular, with a confident demeanor. Molly has never met anyone like him, and he seems to feel the same about her.

Determined to let nothing get between them, Molly decides the best course of action is to get Mervin to fall back in love with her best friend, Hannah. Molly organizes a weekend camping trip hoping to bring them together, but things quickly go awry and it seems Leon and Hannah might be falling for each other instead. Will Molly keep struggling to control everyone and everything around her? Or will she learn to let God handle the twists and turns of her life?

Janice Thompson

Weddings by Design Series

by Janice Thompson

Picture Perfect

 Feisty wedding photographer Hannah McDermott has dealt with her share of difficult brides. But none can compare to the ultimate Bridezilla she's dealing with now. Still, she's trying desperately to impress Bella Neeley, Galveston Island's most sought-after wedding planner, so she can take the top spot in Bella's list of recommended photographers--a spot currently occupied by her arch-rival, Drew Kincaid. What she doesn't count on, however, is falling head over heels for the competition.

With her contagious humor and cast of quirky characters, Janice Thompson gives readers more of the bridal business drama they want in a brand-new series all about those long-suffering people who make beautiful weddings happen. Readers are desperately waiting for more of Bella and this new series brings her back in a big way, while introducing new characters fans will love. Fans will laugh out loud as they experience this breezy and entertaining novel from a great storyteller.

The Icing on the Cake

Scarlet Lindsey's aunt Wilhelmina may be Texas's most popular cake baker extraordinaire, but she's also getting on in years. When Scarlet decides to take on the role of cake decorator at her cranky aunt's bidding, it's just the beginning of a series of misunderstandings and mishaps that will lead her to compete in a cake challenge on national television--and might even lead her to finding true love.

Fan favorite Janice Thompson is back with more wit, more weddings, and more of what her readers love best--bridal business drama. Bella and the gang are all here and readers will fall in love with the newest quirky characters straight from the creative mind of a fantastic storyteller.

The Dream Dress

A seamstress at a swanky bridal boutique, Gabi Delgado dreams of doing more than ripping out seams and fitting dresses to doe-eyed brides. She wants to see her own dress designs gracing the young women of Texas. When Jordan Spencer, the editor of Texas Bride magazine visits the shop to do a feature, Gabi is devastated to lose her job in his very influential presence. Convinced she'll never get her dreams off the ground now, Gabi needs lots of encouragement--especially from her friend Bella Neeley--to take a chance and start her business. And as she gets to know Jordan, she discovers that she may have to take a chance on love as well. Could it be that she'll have to design her own wedding dress soon?

As always, Janice Thompson delivers fun, laughter, and romance as she takes readers back to Galveston, Texas, to spend more time with their favorite quirky characters along with fabulous new ones.

A Bouquet of Love

Cassia Pappas has found herself in a nearly impossible situation. She wants to spend her time immersed in her new job at a Galveston Island floral shop, arranging blooms and brightening occasions with her lovely creations. But her huge Greek family--especially her father--has other ideas. They've all relocated to Galveston to open up a new family restaurant location on the Strand-- directly across the street from the Rossis' popular pizza place--and they want Cassia's full participation.

To make matters worse, as Cassia is trying to develop a strong professional relationship with Galveston's premier wedding coordinator, Bella Neeley, her own father is intent on stealing all of the Rossi family's faithful customers. Not exactly the best way to get into Bella's good graces!

Still, at least Alex, that hot delivery guy from the nursery, is always hanging around the flower shop . . .

Fan favorite Janice Thompson gives readers one more romp with Bella, Galveston, and the bustling wedding biz in the final installment of her popular series. Anyone who loves quirky families, loads of laughter, and tender romance will find themselves hooked.

Weddings by Bella Series

Fools Rush In

Bella Rossi may be nearing thirty, but her life is just starting to get interesting. When her Italian-turned-Texan parents hand over the family wedding planning business, Bella is determined not to let them down. She quickly books a "Boot Scoot'n" wedding that would make any Texan proud. There's only one catch--she's a country music numbskull because her family only listens to Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. Where will she find a DJ on such short notice who knows his Alan Jackson from his Keith Urban? When a misunderstanding leads her to the DJ (and man) of her dreams, things start falling into place. But with a family like hers, nothing is guaranteed. Can the perfect Texan wedding survive a pizza-making uncle with mob ties, an aunt who is a lawsuit waiting to happen, and a massive delivery of 80 cowboy boots? And will Bella ever get to plan her own wedding? Book one in the Weddings by Bella series, Fools Rush In is fun, fresh, and full of surprises. Readers will love the flavorful combination of Italian and Tex-Mex, and the hilarity that ensues when cultures clash.

Swinging on a Star

Bella Rossi's life is nearing perfection. She's got the perfect guy, she's running a successful business, and she's about to plan her most ambitious wedding yet, a Renaissance-themed fairy tale come true, complete with period costumes and foods, horse-drawn carriages, and even a castle. There's just one hitch. The best man just happens to be Brock Benson, Hollywood's hottest and most eligible bachelor. Oh, and did we mention he's staying at the Rossi house to avoid the paparazzi? With all the pressure surrounding this wedding, Bella's not sure she's going to make it through. Add her starstruck sister, her feuding aunt and uncle, and a trio of large, sequined church ladies with even bigger personalities, and you've got a recipe for disaster--and a lot of laughs. This hilarious romantic comedy is sure to delight both fans and new readers alike.

It Had to be You

Bella couldn't be happier that her long-feuding Aunt Rosa and Uncle Lazarro have finally admitted their love for one another and are getting married. Their forties-style wedding is sure to be a night to remember. But when the Rossi house begins to fill up with family from Italy--and an old mobster from New Jersey--life starts to get complicated. Will Lazarro's friend from the past drive the happy couple apart once more? And will Bella ever have time to think of her own rapidly-approaching wedding amidst the chaos? Full of laugh-out-loud humor, plenty of Italian passion, and a bit of Texas gumption, It Had to Be You is the satisfying conclusion to an entertaining series.

Mona Hodgson

The Quilted Hearts

Three Novellas in One

by Mona Hodgson

Like a beautiful patchwork quilt, the three novellas in The Quilted Heart tell stories of lives stitched together with love and God's unending grace.
Once a week, Elsa Brantenberg hosts the Saint Charles Quilting Circle at her farmhouse on the outskirts of the riverside town of St. Charles, Missouri. The ladies who gather there have all experienced heartache related to the intense hardships of the Civil War, and together, they are facing their painful circumstances with friendship and prayer. Can the tattered pieces of their hearts be stitched together by God's grace?
 
Dandelions on the Wind
When Maren Jensen took a job on Elsa Brantenberg's St. Charles, Missouri farm, she never expected to call the place her home. As she grows to love Mrs. Brantenberg and her granddaughter, Gabi, Maren is transformed from a lonely mail-order bride-without-a-groom to a beloved member of the Brantenberg household. But when Gabi's father, Rutherford "Wooly" Wainwright, returns to the farm unexpectedly, everything changes for Maren, and she feels compelled to find another job. Are her choices in obedience to God, or is she running from His plan?

Bending Toward the Sun
Dedicated to her education and to helping her father in his general store, Emilie Heinrich is convinced she doesn't have time for love. But when a childhood friend returns to St. Charles, Missouri, after serving in the Civil War, his smile and charm captures Emilie's eye and her heart. Will she be forced to choose between honoring her father and a future with a husband and family of her own?

Ripples Along the Shore
Change is brewing in St. Charles. A group of brave souls are preparing to head west on the Boone's Lick Wagon Train, led by the mysterious and handsome Garrett Cowlishaw, who served as a Confederate soldier in the war that killed Caroline's husband. Despite her dislike for him, Caroline is tempted to join the wagon train and start fresh somewhere new, but when Mr. Cowlishaw forbids her - a single woman - to travel with them, will one man's prejudice destroy Caroline's hope for a new future? Or will the ripples of God's love bring the answer she needs?

Separate books are available only as e-books

Dandelions on the Wind

Tattered relationships and broken hearts, like a quilt, can be pieced together by God's love.                                                                                     
When Maren Jensen took a job on Elsa Brantenberg's St. Charles, Missouri farm, she never expected to call the place her home. As she grows to love Mrs. Brantenberg and her granddaughter, Gabi, Maren is transformed from a lonely mail-order bride-without-a-groom to a beloved member of the Brantenberg household.

But when Gabi's father, Rutherford "Wooly" Wainwright, returns to the farm unexpectedly, everything changes for Maren. Despite the failing eyesight that caused her suitor to reject her, she can see that Wooly desperately needs to reconnect with the family he abandoned when his grief sent him running toward the army - and into the Civil War. She also senses there could be something more between the widower and herself, if either can move beyond their past hurts. 

Comforted and counseled by the wisdom of the women in her beloved quilting circle, Maren begins to discover the cost such decisions demand of her heart. Are her choices in obedience to God, or is she running from His plan? Is it too late for love to be stitched into the fabric of her life?

Bending Toward the Sun

Can the Divine Quilter stitch together the torn pieces of Emilie's heart?
Divided between the love of her father and the desires of her heart, Emilie Heinrich must rely on the love and wisdom of the women in her quilting circle for support. Since Emilie is dedicated to her education and to helping her father in his general store, she is convinced she doesn't have time for love. But when a childhood friend returns to St. Charles, Missouri, after serving in the Civil War, his smile and charm captures Emilie's eye and her heart.

Quaid McFarland has a gentleness and humor that causes Emilie to question her indifference toward romance. But her German father sees only one thing when he looks at the young man: an Irish teamster. And Johann Heinrich is not about to let such a man court his beloved daughter.

Her father's prejudices test Emilie's faith in God's ability to mend the patchwork pieces of her life. Will she be forced to choose between honoring her father and a future with a husband and family of her own?

Ripples Along the Shore

Can a War Widow Escape Her Grief - and Find God's Promise - on a Wagon Train West?
When Caroline Milburn steps off the boat and back into her hometown of St. Charles, MO, part of her wishes she could step right back on board and sail away. St. Charles, though home to her beloved friends and quilting circle, hasn't felt like home since the death of her husband. And living with her sister, Jewell's family hasn't provided much balm for her grieving heart. Caroline knows something needs to change - but for now she's stuck sharing her sister's home, and enduring the anger and bitterness of her brother-in-law.

But change is brewing in St. Charles. A group of brave souls are preparing to head west on the Boones Lick Wagon Train, led by the mysterious and handsome Garrett Cowlishaw. Despite her dislike for Mr. Cowlishaw, who served as a Confederate soldier in the war that killed her husband, Caroline is tempted to join the wagon train and start fresh somewhere new.

When the lovely young widow makes her intentions to travel west known, Garrett Cowlishaw forbids her - a single woman - to travel with them. Will one man's prejudice destroy Caroline's hope for a new future? Or will the ripples of God's love bring the answer she needs?

A Match Made in Texas Novella

A Match Made in Texas Novella

by Karen Witemeyer,

Mary Connealy,

Carol Cox and

Regina Jennings

Four novellas in one volume

In Dry Gulch, Texas, 1893, a young woman with a tender heart that longs to help those in need takes it upon herself to meddle in the affairs of three acquaintances who are in dire straits. Wanting to stay anonymous, she relies on unusual methods to hire men and women of good character who she thinks can solve the problems facing her "targets." How was she to know that her meddling would turn into a cupid's arrow? And what will she do when her friends turn the tables on her with a matchmaking scheme of their own?

Suspense & Intrigue of 2014!!!

Butterfly Palace

by Colleen Coble

When Lilly Donnelly arrives at the Cutlers' famed Butterfly Mansion in 1899, the massive house and unfamiliar duties threaten to overwhelm her. Victorian Austin is lavish, highly political, and intimidating, but with the help of the other servants, Lilly resolves to prove herself to her new employers.
Then, while serving at an elegant dinner party, Lilly recognizes one distinguished guest as Andrew, the love of her life, who abandoned her without a word back home. He seems to have assumed a new identity and refuses to acknowledge her, leaving her confused and reeling.



Undetected


by Dee Henderson




After an unexpected breakup, Gina Gray focuses all her attention on her ocean science research. Discovering abnormalities that could potentially affect submarine warfare, she seeks navy commander Mark Bishop's perspective. With tensions escalating in the Pacific Rim, will they have time to diffuse a highly dangerous situation---and acknowledge their growing attraction---before it's too late?



Gathering Shadows

by Nancy Mehl




Wynter Evans, despite her current position as a promising young reporter for a television station in St. Louis, Missouri, has never gotten over the disappearance of her brother nine years ago. But when she stumbles across a photograph of a boy with an eerie resemblance to her missing brother during an assignment to investigate unusual places in the state, she can't pass up the chance to find out what may have happened. Under the cover of research for her job, she sets out for the place where the photograph was taken: the primarily Mennonite town of Sanctuary.

Upon her arrival, she meets Rueben King, the town's handsome young mayor, and together they begin to uncover long-held secrets that could not only tear the small town apart but also change everything Wynter believes about her own life. As the truth of her family's past hides in the shadows, it soon becomes clear someone will stop at nothing to keep the answers she's searching for hidden forever--even if the cost is Wynter's very life.



The Reconciled Hearts Trilogy

by Doris Elaine Fell




Romance and mystery weave together the destinies of three unlikely couples. Vienna violist Kerina Rudzinski and American Ashley Reynolds are separated by an ocean but united by secrets. Sydney Barrington is caught between the love of two men in the Cotswolds. And Rachel McCully returns to England's Lake District---and the man who loved her years ago. 880 pages, softcover from Barbour.



Silenced

By Dani Pettrey



A relaxing day of rock climbing takes a disturbing turn when Kayden McKenna's route leads her face to face with a dead climber. Is it a terrible accident or something sinister? When the case is handed to the overburdened sheriff, he turns to Jake Westin. With Jake's past now revealed, he's ready to use his talent for investigation again--but he could never prepare for where the case will take him.

Kayden and Jake soon realize that the death was no accident. And worse, it seems the killer is on to them. When strange things begin happening in Yancey, Jake is terrified that once again his world may put someone he loves in danger. But the truth is far worse than he could ever imagine.




Blind Trust

by Sandra Orchard




Kate Adams had no idea she was carrying counterfeit money, and she can't believe that it came from her sweet neighbor. Or that it lands her in the middle of another one of Detective Tom Parker's investigations. Determined to prove her neighbor's innocence, Kate stumbles into a pit of intrigue that is far deeper than a two-bit counterfeit operation--and strikes too close to home for comfort. As family secrets come to light, her world--and her budding romance with Tom--begin to crumble. To Kate, it's clear that she won't be safe until she uncovers all of Port Aster's secrets. But is it too late for her and Tom?


Murder at the Mikado

by Julianna Deering



Just as Drew Farthering thinks his life has found smooth waters, Fleur Landis, an old flame, reappears in his life. She's married now, no longer an actress, and he expects she'll soon disappear--until she comes to him in dire need. The lead actor in her old troupe's production of The Mikado has been murdered, and Fleur is the police's number one suspect.

Drew would love nothing more than to just focus on his fiance, Madeline, and their upcoming wedding, but he can't leave Fleur in the lurch--even if she did break his heart once. As Drew, Nick, and Madeline dive into the murder, they discover more going on behind the scenes of the theater troupe than could ever have been imagined. Nearly everyone had a motive, and alibis are few and far between. It's Drew's most complicated case yet.




Thief of Glory

by Sigmund Brouwer




At 70 years old, Jeremiah Prins is seeking redemption by journaling about everything he could never share with his children---including his time in a Japanese POW camp and his abandoned marriage engagement. But when an online encounter puts Jeremiah in touch with his wartime fiancee, his secrets risk destroying everything that he loves. 288 pages, softcover from Waterbrook.




Friend Me

by John Faubion




Scott and Rachel's marriage is failing. Neither feels loved or respected, so they both secretly go online to find what they're missing. What they don't realize is that they're both talking to the same brilliant---and insane---woman. When their digital indiscretions start having real-world consequences, is it too late to save their marriage and their lives?



Fatal Exchange

by Lisa Harris



Emily Hunt might come from a family of cops, but she never goes looking for an adrenaline rush. She lives the quiet--well, relatively quiet--life of a teacher and thrives on making a difference in the lives of her students. But she'll have to draw on a well of strength and savvy she didn't know she had as student Rafael Cerda takes her class hostage for ransom money to save his brother's life.

Undercover cop Mason Taylor has been working with Rafael to find his brother and bring the cartel thugs who hold him to justice. Can he talk Rafael down from his impulsive actions? And is there something more sinister at work here than he realizes?



No One to Trust


by Lynette Eason



Summer Abernathy wakes up one morning to find her husband missing, three men in her home intent on finding him, and the life she's been living based on a lie. Which Kyle Abernathy did she marry? The computer programmer she met in line at the bank? Or the one who was apparently using that image as a cover story?
The search for her husband--and answers--takes Summer ever deeper into a world of organized crime where people are used one moment and discarded the next. And with her deepest relationship of trust already shattered, Summer doesn't know who to believe.

Patricia Bradley

Logan Point Series

by Patricia Bradley

Shadows of the Past

Book 1

Publisher's Description

Psychology professor and criminal profiler Taylor Martin prides herself on being able to solve any crime, except the one she wants most desperately to solve--the disappearance of her father twenty years ago. When she finally has a lead on his whereabouts, Taylor returns home to Logan Point, Mississippi, to investigate. But as she is stalking the truth about the past, someone is stalking her.

Nick Sinclair pens mystery novels for a living, but the biggest mystery to him is how he can ever get over the death of his wife--a tragedy he believes he could have prevented. With his estranged brother the only family he has left, Nick sets out to find him. But when he crosses paths with Taylor, all he seems to find is trouble.

Join the chase as this determined duo search the murky shadows of the past for the keys to unlocking the present and moving into a future filled with new hope and love. Readers will be swept into the sultry South in this debut novel from a promising and already award-winning writer.

Emma of Aurora: The Complete Change and Cherish Trilogy by JANE KIRKPATRICK

Emma of Aurora:

The Complete Change and Cherish Trilogy:

 

1. A Clearing in the Wild

2. A Tendering in the Storm

3. A Mending at the Edge

 

by

Jane Kirkpatrick

 

 

Product Description

A Clearing in the Wild
When Emma's outspoken ways and growing skepticism lead to a clash with the 1850s Bethel, Missouri colony's beloved leader, she finds new opportunities to pursue her dreams of independence. But as she clears a pathway West to her truest and deepest self, she discovers something she never expected: a yearning for the warm embrace of community.

A Tendering in the Storm
Determined to raise her children on her own terms, Emma suddenly finds herself alone and pregnant with her third child, struggling to keep her family secure in the remote coastal forest of the Washington Territory. As clouds of despair close in, she must decide whether to continue in her own waning strength or to humble herself and accept help from the very people she once so eagerly left behind.

A Mending at the Edge
As a mother, daughter, sister, and estranged wife, Emma struggles to find her place inside-and outside-the confines of her religious community. Emma reaches out to others on the fringe, searching for healing and purpose. By blending her unique talents with service to others, she creates renewed hope as she weaves together the threads of family, friends, and faith.

 

Author Bio

Jane Kirkpatrick is a writer, speaker, teacher and mental health professional. Her award-winning essays, articles, and humor have appeared in over fifty publications such as Decision, Country and Daily Guideposts. The inspiration for A Sweetness to the Soul grew from a fifty-year old essay a Depression-era schoolboy wrote about his distant ancestors - the Sherars.

A lively and humorous speaker, Kirkpatrick is a frequent keynote presenter for conferences, women's retreats, and workshops. In addition to her historical fiction which dramatizes pioneer life, Homestead relates, with love and laughter, her own family's modern-day struggle to catch a dream in the Oregon Territory.

 

 

MY REVIEW 
 

　
Set in the 1850s and based on actual people and events of the tiny community of Bethel Missouri and its people, by novelist Jane Kirkpatrick is the engaging story that centers around Emma Wagner,a young woman who is part of the Bethel colony, a close-knit religious community ruled by a charismatic and autocratic leader, Dr. Wilhelm Kiel.

In the first book A Clearing In The Wild, we discover that young 17-year-old Emma Wagner of the community is in love and ready to tie the knot with Christian Giesy, 20 years her senior and only a year younger than her father. The leader of the religious colony, Father Keil, is against the match, and his word is usually law among the group. After having to wait they are finally able to marry but their marriage is not what they had hoped for.

A Tendering in the Storm is the second book in the series, and the one that broke my heart.As the story continues from book one, newly married Emma and Christian travel from their home in Missouri to the new frontier - Willapa Bay.When Christian is taken away from Emma, and she has to survive with 2 small children, pregnant with her third, there are many events that unfold that are exciting and fascinating to read about. Because of Christian's death Emma has even turned her back on God determined she doesn't need Him either. During her grieving time only one man proposed marriage to pick up where Christian left off and that was the strange Jack Giesy.

A Mending at the Edge finishes Emma's story. She has escaped from her abusive second husband Jack, back to the repressive Bethel colony. Although offering her shelter and work at the colony, its leader, Wilhelm Keil has made it clear that Emma must do what she can to reconcile with Jack.

This unpredictable story, based on a true one, has it all - adventure and survival in a new frontier, history, love, hate, compassion, cruelty, family, friendship, struggles with faith. I loved the way issues with God and faith were presented and with characters fully developed to portray each with their strengths and weaknesses, beauty and ugliness, regardless of their degree of faith. This series was captivating, keeping my interest and desire to find out what was going to happen next.

***I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. All opinions are my own.