This book was quite a surprise to read. From the front cover and description, I immediately assumed this was going to be another mommy-lit book where the wife has the unruly children and the husband seems to be oblivious to his wife’s struggles. Luckily though I was in for a treat as this was not the case. Yes, there is a pregnant mom trying to juggle her kids and her life but there’s a twist. She’s a working mom and not a SAHM . Essie is a character that you immediately like as you read about her tackling life out in the work force and how to take care of the kiddies back at home. Meanwhile she has to watch her husband face a midlife crisis as he actually goes out and buys the stereotypical Porsche. An incredibly funny scene happens when Essie comes home one day and finds her beloved SUV replaced by a hulking Hummer. The story is also about Jack’s estranged father Hamilton and how his life has become unfulfilled. He’s had numerous wives that have come and gone. His new catchphrase could be “I’m on a boat!” as that has become his permanent home. He has found out that his so called easy way of life has completely alienated himself from getting to know his only son’s family. It’s interesting how living on the boat is a metaphor for how unstable and unpredictable Ham has made his life.

The story is very entertaining and it’s filled with lots of humor. There were times when I would get a bit miffed with Jack and his lack of concern for Essie’s life at times. However their marriage is quite healthy and it’s refreshing to see a family who actually enjoys spending time with each other. I believe this is the author’s first novel and I really enjoyed reading it. It’s fun, light, non preachy and teaches one what’s meaningful in life. I’ll be looking forward to reading the rest of Majorie’s books.

I’m always a big fan of stories set in spas. The setting just seems so relaxing to read about massages, facials, and being in total luxury. I haven’t had the chance to go to one in a while, so reading about it is the next best thing. Love Inspired Suspenses can be hit or miss, as some of the stories don’t really have good suspense plots. This book, however, has a very good mystery, people actually do die, and there is a romance. This may sound surprising, but there have been some LI Suspenses where the mystery is non existent and there is more emphasis on the romance. A successful book in this series would blend the two together with more focus on the mystery. That is what this book does. I was immediately sucked into the story and tried unsuccessfully to guess who the culprit was. I know a mystery is good when I pick out a background character to be the murderer and I’m totally wrong.

Something I found incredibly funny is that Naomi’s sisters are named Monica and Rachel. I’m half surprised Naomi wasn’t named Phoebe! (That’s a “Friends” joke if you didn’t get it). Also Devon’s last name happens to be Knightley, a sly reference to a certain leading man in a famous Regency book. I also appreciated how the author has made the lead character half-Asian, but treats her as a normal person. Other than initial descriptions so the reader is aware of her ethnicity, there is no stereotypical descriptions. I really hope this is a series so that way there can be more about the Grant family and more adventures from the spa. Yes there was a murder, but I still came away totally relaxed. This was a really fun book to read and as always Camy Tang has written a winner.

The Diary of Teenage Girl series is, in my opinion, one of the best series out there for teens, Christian or not. There have been four girls spotlighted throughout the series and each has been different yet enjoyable to read. Some girls I’ve liked more than others and I will have to say that Maya’s series is my favorite. I like Maya because she asks the questions that challenge Christians who think they know everything and isn’t afraid of what others might think of her. In this book Maya feels that she’s starting to become a normal teenager and is able to escape the jumbled life she used to live.

I really liked Maya’s reactions to the Christian girls from her youth group. I have felt that Amanda and Brooke represent a good deal of real Christians teens who are two faced. They act like they are the perfect Christians while they are at church but then in real life they condemn everyone but back down when challenged. They also seem to throw themselves at boys a lot. I’ve experienced this treatment myself and the way Maya reacted was realistic. If she had just immediately forgiven the girls and let them walk over her, I would have been very disappointed in this book and would stop reading. However, she challenges them, gets irritated and tries to seek justice for the wrongs they caused. I really liked the way that everything got worked out involving the incident between Brooke and Maya. It’s not neat and tidy and obviously Brooke needs to work on her attitude but it’s an ending that I can accept because it’s not sugar coated with fake Christianity. Also the situations with her and her boyfriend were handled tastefully and realistically as well.

Throughout the book Maya shares tips on saving the planet. Maya’s green tips are great and I’ve tried several of them myself (although the tip about the car and not using the air conditioner or even opening the windows won’t really work during summer). They really make you think about saving the environment but they are not trying to push an agenda. The only thing I would have liked would have been a response from Caitlyn to Maya’s questions about being green and being vegan. It would have just been interesting to see what she would have to say or what most Christians think about that subject. This series is a favorite of mine and I’m looking forward to the rest of Maya’s adventures.

Nom nom nom. That’s all I could say after reading this book. If I could eat what I read, this entire series would make me gain so much weight. This book features pies, and lots of them. I would have loved to help out Charlotte and her pie making business, although I will admit I might have been one of those sneaking away bites during the cooking process! Charlotte sounds like a wonderful cook who does enjoy cooking, although probably not for such high numbers with a deadline.

This book is a great combination of food, family, and friendship. Even with the fourth different writer contributing to the series, there is still continuity and flow within the books. Honestly, except for little tweaks here and there, I would not have been able to tell this book had been written by a different author. The characters’ personalities remain the same as are the feelings and struggles they face. While the author has put his personal touches here and there, it’s still very nice to read about the family and still have that same familiarity. Once again I appreciate that the teens in the family are portrayed with respect towards what real teens go through and are not treated as cardboard characters.

The only thing that really bugged me was the fact that Charlotte could not seem to say no to anyone. I understood that she wanted to help out everyone and didn’t want to disappoint anybody. However there comes a time when you have to realize you can’t please everyone and you can’t do everything. It just took Charlotte a long time to realize this. I also don’t understand why the townsfolk didn’t seem to think that this could possibly be overwhelming for Charlotte. I would have thought in a small town this would have been easily noticeable. It was just a bit disheartening to see close friends seem to take advantage of Charlotte. Other than this, there’s nothing to complain at all about this book and this entire series. Once again this is an excellent addition to the Heather Creek saga and I enjoyed spending time with the family. Looking forward to returning for another adventure!

This book reminded me very much of the movie “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Instead the message is that we don’t know how much time we have left, and that any minute we could be taken away. Cherish the time you have with your family and don’t take them for granted. Throughout the first half of the book, I just wanted to keep screaming at Sarah for the flippant way she was treating her family. I understand that her job was important, but the fact that she couldn’t see how it was affecting her relationships really bugged me. I appreciated that the book did not try to make it seem that it was condemning women who work outside of the home and being away from their children. I have read some Christian fiction books that seem to make that point and it always annoyed me at how chauvinist it seemed that the women was supposed to stay at home while the man is the one that does all the work.. In this book however, the story is not blaming Sarah for wanting to work, just how she happened to handle everything.

I think the harshest moment in the book was the fact that Sarah has sacrificed everything for her boss and the company, and has pretty much died trying to do things for them. Yet it doesn’t seem to matter at all. Her boss, after finding out about her death, pretty much dismisses it and is already looking to replace her with no sympathy at all. Another heart wrenching aspect of the story is when Sarah realizes why her mother treated and acted the way she did towards Sarah her entire life. While it still doesn’t give her the right to act that way towards her daughter, Sarah’s mother becomes a more sympathetic character when we find out about her past.

If there’s anything I didn’t like about the book, it would have to be the ending. I just thought it was too “let’s tidy up everything” and seemed rather predictable. I thought it would have had a better effect if the unexpected had happened. Other than this, I enjoyed the book and thought it was a good read with a strong message. It makes you see life in a whole new way.

This was one of the most wonderful stories I have read in a while. It’s been a while since I’ve been to see a ballet live and I really miss it. There’s nothing like watching the beauty, grace and elegance of the dancers on stage and seeing the wonderful performance right before your eyes. This book made me feel like I was watching a carefully choreographed dance with words. Gilly and Jonathan had wonderful chemistry together and I could picture both of them dancing together on both stage and in real life. They were characters that grew throughout the book and their transformations were intriguing to read. I enjoyed learning about the ballet and how hard it is to be a dancer and the struggles one has to go through to make it to the top.

While the book has a strong faith based message, it is not preachy. It handles topics such as abortion and homosexuality with grace and tactfulness and does condemn those that choose those lifestyles. I really enjoyed seeing how the situation with Alexandra was handled. Too often in Christian fiction, there’s always a cop-out ending with people getting away with things wrongfully. However, this time I was delightfully pleased with how everything played out, there was enough to satisfy mysnarky side with forgiveness and mercy being displayed as well. It’s always nice to see authors putting in recurring characters in their books for their long time fans. I enjoyed seeing Laurel and Cole make appearances in this book. It’s like seeing long lost friends again. This is another wonderful book from Elizabeth White and I’m looking forward to reading her next book.

Ghostwriters are interesting characters as it’s hard to imagine the thought of working hard on something and then letting another person take all the credit for it. This story manages to grab the reader from the get go, with material that pushes the edge and makes you cringe and squirm but keeps drawing you in. One thing I really did enjoy about this book was the tidbits it told about what life is like for an author. Just all the daily going ons of writing, touring, marketing, fan mail were very interesting to read and it made me wonder how many authors are struggling with these issues every day. The story builds up slowly but once it does it’s like a non stop roller coaster.

I’ve been reading other reviews and have seen that other readers have found this book too gory, very dark, and quite scary. To be honest, I didn’t feel that way at all. I have read other Christian fiction books that are way more gorier than this one. In fact, compared to books I’ve read that have people being gored up on doors or having their skin peeled off, this book paled in that factor. I will admit the storyline is very creepy. Cillian’s character is one that gets under your skin and makes you very uncomfortable due to his obsession with having Dennis tell the truth. However on the other hand Dennis is also a character that you could despise because of his actions. To me that is more the horror of the story, the fact that you get so desperate that you do anything to save someone you love, even if it means going against everything you believe in.

A funny note: when I first picked up the book and flipped through it, the first thing I saw was Dennis Shore’s bibliography. I was immediately confused and thought the publisher had inserted the wrong page from another book inside this one. Luckily though, I turned that page and all was made right.

I really enjoyed reading this book as it is a page turner and kept me on the edge of my seat. If you’re in the mood for a thriller and you’re looking for a new author to try, you must read this book. I’m looking forward to reading Travis’ back list and whatever new he’s cooking up.

This book was probably one of the most interesting law suspense novels I’ve ever read. It’s a book that really makes you think about why you believe in certain things and how you came to have that viewpoint. In our country, the debate about gun control is highly controversial and is always a major topic during political elections. When one hears about a shooting, it’s always easy to want to place the blame on someone. The immediate need is to bring someone and have justice done to make they pay for what has happened. In this case the widower of the murdered newscaster wants to bring down the gun manufacturer. The two young lawyers in this book have to face the hard questions being thrown at them about who is really at fault and who should take the ultimate blame. I really found the mock jury trials and selections very interesting. It makes one think about how controlled our judicial system really is and what goes on behind closed doors. It’s also very scary to think about how lawyers can be manipulated by outside forces which can throw off an entire case. Since I’m from the Hampton Roads area, it was nice seeing a book set in Virginia Beach. It’s always fun to see a book set in a location that I’m very familiar with and you can point out the places that really do exist. For example, The Purple Cow really does exist!

I felt that the ending seemed a bit rushed. I just felt that there was a lot of buildup in the entire book and the finale seemed a tad flat. I know however that readers chose this ending after watching video clips, so I’m not sure what to make out of that. However, my only true qualm was that Lisa was not the only victim of the fatal shooting, yet I didn’t seem to recall any other family members of the other victims as part of this trial. This just struck me as very odd that no one else seemed to care except for her husband.

This was my first book by Randy Singer that I’ve read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. This book is on par with other law thrillers such as those by John Grisham . In fact, this book reminded me of “Runaway Jury” with it’s premise, just minus the strong language. I’m looking forward to going back and reading the rest of Singer’s books and will be on the lookout for his new ones.

This book continues the story of the Gallatin sisters and this book focus on Beth, the sister with the romantic dreams and wishes. She’s an avid reader of dime store novels and seeks to find that storybook romance in her real life. Unfortunately for her, it’s not as easy as for her to find true love as it is for the heroines in her books. Beth is the type of character I’m not really too fond of in books. I really don’t like heroines that can’t make up their minds about what they want. It’s ok to be have goals and hope to attain them one day, but I despise wishy-washy folks. I did though enjoy reading about Beth’s adventures with her sisters. It’s nice to read about families that are still close even when they are adults. The historical bits are fun to read, and I still like reading about how they are running the house as a stop for travelers.

The romance in this book is very much there although slightly rushed. I thought the wedding in this book came rather abruptly, it seemed like it came out of nowhere. Obviously the signs were all there, but I just thought there would be more build up and growth of a relationship. The biggest thing that really bugged me about the book was the fact that the sisters did the whole laudanum trick again, this time on an entire saloon. I honestly cannot believe that they did not learn from their previous time doing this with their now brother-in-law, that this is very dangerous. It’s played off for laughs but I just can’t believe that they thought this was a smart idea. To be honest the whole book I felt sorta lackluster while reading it. I enjoyed it, as I always do Tracie’s books. It was just that with this book, I felt that everything in the story has been written before in other books. There wasn’t really anything that stood out to me to make this one special. Perhaps my problem is that since I’ve read all of Tracie’s books, I can easily spot when a storyline gets reused. For a new fan, this won’t be a problem and it is a very enjoyable book. Hopefully the third book in the series will be a little better for me.

This was another excellent read from Noel Hynd. I had thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the series due to its fast paced action sequences and very impressive and engaging storyline. The second book in the series lived up to my expectations and brought me on another thrill ride. This time, Alex is taken from her vacation to go back into the force and finds herself on another mission that could possible harm her life. Once again, the historical research and details in this book are top notch. I learned a lot about art history from this book. Also of interest was the history of the Spanish Civil War. That is a topic that is usually never brought up in history classes and I’ve only read about it one other fiction series, so to see it here was a delightful surprise. If only for the historical facts alone, this book is a gem. I really like how the author uses current events to develop the story without having to resort to using pop culture references that go out of date almost immediately. The locales in this book are exotic and I really enjoyed reading about the history of Spain. It made me feel like I was actually there. A lot of the conversation deals with political issues, which can possibly get boring at times, but if you want to learn while you read, this is a fun and exciting way to get some knowledge.

There is, again, quite a bit of violence in this book. There’s nothing gory, but the action sequences are very intense and there are many of them. The scene near the end is quite nail biting and a bit terrifying. There is some language but it’s been bleeped out. The only thing in the book I did not seem to get was Alex and Peter’s relationship. One minute Peter’s the good guy, the next he’s the bad guy and by the end of the book I still couldn’t tell which side he was on. It made me wonder if Alex was able to tell as well. As I finished this book, all I could think was that Noel Hynd has become one of my new favorite suspense authors. I’ve honestly never really enjoyed reading a book more. This series is on par with mainstream books and would hold up to all the major suspense kings of literature. I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book in the series. HIGHLY recommended.