One More River to Cross | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK

In 1844, two years before the Donner Party, the Stephens-Murphy-Townsend company left Missouri to be the first wagons into California through the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Mostly Irish Catholics, the party sought religious freedom and education in the mission-dominated land and enjoyed a safe journey--until October, when a heavy snowstorm forced difficult decisions. The first of many for young Mary Sullivan, newlywed Sarah Montgomery, the widow Ellen Murphy, and her pregnant sister-in-law Maolisa.

When the party separates in three directions, each risks losing those they loved and faces the prospect of learning that adversity can destroy or redefine. Two women and four men go overland around Lake Tahoe, three men stay to guard the heaviest wagons--and the rest of the party, including eight women and seventeen children, huddle in a makeshift cabin at the headwaters of the Yuba River waiting for rescue . . . or their deaths.

Award-winning author Jane Kirkpatrick plunges you deep into a landscape of challenge where fear and courage go hand in hand for a story of friendship, family, and hope that will remind you of what truly matters in times of trial.

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: September 3, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? #68

Hosted weekly by The Book Date.

Happy Monday!

I mentioned a couple times last week that I am so happy that autumn is here. I'm enjoying the cooling temperatures (even though they usually bring more homework) and getting ready for some mysterious, spooky October reads.

The Spice King | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK

Gray Delacroix has dedicated his life to building his very successful global spice empire, but it has come at a cost. Resolved to salvage his family before it spirals out of control, he returns to his ancestral home to save his brother and sister before it's too late.

As a junior botanist for the Smithsonian, Annabelle Larkin has been charged with the impossible task of gaining access to the notoriously private Delacroix plant collection. If she fails, she will be out of a job and the family farm in Kansas will go under. She has no idea that in gaining entrance to the Delacroix world, she will unwittingly step into a web of dangerous political intrigue far beyond her experience.

Unable to deny her attraction to the reclusive business tycoon, Annabelle will be forced to choose between her heart and loyalty to her country. Can Gray and Annabelle find a way through the storm of scandal without destroying the family Gray is fighting to save?

Publisher: Bethany House

Release Date: September 3, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book

The Hobbit | First Line Friday + The Friday 56

The Friday 56 is hosted weekly by Freda's Voice.
First Line Friday is hosted weekly by Hoarding Books.

Happy Friday!

It just so happened that my reread of The Hobbit coincided with Tolkien Week, started by Hobbit Day on Sunday, so I figured I should feature it today. Especially because I loved it.

The Witness Tree | Guest Post + Giveaway

ABOUT THE BOOK

To gain his wife, he must break her heart.

Past betrayal has turned John Kliest’s passion to his work as a builder and surveyor in the Moravian town of Salem, North Carolina. Now, to satisfy the elders’ edict and fulfill his mission in Cherokee Territory, he needs a bride. But the one woman qualified to record the Cherokee language longs for a future with his younger brother.

Clarissa Vogler’s dream of a life with Daniel Kliest is shattered when she is chosen by lot to marry his older brother and venture into the uncharted frontier. Can she learn to love this stoic man who is now her husband? Her survival hinges on being able to trust him—but they both harbor secrets.

Publisher: Smitten

Release Date: September 16, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Fountains of Silence | Waiting on Wednesday

Hosted weekly by Breaking the Spine 

to spotlight eagerly-anticipated upcoming releases.

(Similarly, Can't-Wait Wednesday is hosted by Wishful Endings.)

Happy Wednesday!

I'm always intrigued to learn more of Spanish history, and when coupled with the talents of author Ruta Sepetys, I'm sure it will give me all the feels.

Ford | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK

Family… country… or the woman he loves…

Navy Seal Ford Marshall isn’t the kind to stand by and let a woman get hurt—especially when it involves his twin sister, RJ. So, when she makes the news, accused of sparking an international incident, he doesn’t care what it takes—he’s going to find her and bring her home.

But he might need a little help, so he calls on the woman who has had his back during the last three years—Petty Officer Scarlett Hathaway, former communications expert-turned Rescue Swimmer candidate. She’ll help him get into the country, watch his back, and…well, they might be able to have one last mission together before she leaves for a new life, a life he very much wants to be a part of now that she is off his team. Maybe he can convince her to give them a chance to kindle the spark that’s simmered between them for years.

Scarlett Hathaway isn’t sure what future she wants—not when she suddenly has to care for her little brother. Maybe she should quit the Navy and start a life with the man she can’t seem to get out of her heart. So yes, she’ll help Ford find his sister. And maybe, along the way, figure out if they have a future.

But finding RJ somewhere in the vastness of Russia with the FSB chasing them will push Scarlett beyond even her courage and make her question everything she thought she wanted…including Ford. What will it cost her to love a man who saves the world?

And when Ford is asked to choose between saving his sister, saving the world from a war, and rescuing the woman he loves…can he live with his decision?

Publisher: September 3, 2019

Release Date: SDG Publishing

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES

Knox

Tate

Wyatt

Ruby Jane

Books on My Fall TBR | Top Ten Tuesday

Hosted weekly by That Artsy Reader Girl.

Happy Tuesday!

Yay, it's fall! I am so excited for a season of cooler weather and changing colors, hot beverages and chili and candy corn—and of course, cozying up with this exciting (and ambitious?) mix of review books, spooky reads, neglected Mount TBR choices, and Christmas stories.

The Girl Behind the Red Rope | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK

Ten years ago, Grace saw something that would forever change the course of history. When evil in its purest form is unleashed on the world, she and others from their religious community are already hidden deep in the hills of Tennessee, abiding by every rule that will keep them safe, pure--and alive. As long as they stay there, behind the red perimeter.

Her older brother's questions and the arrival of the first outsiders she's seen in a decade set in motion events that will question everything Grace has built her life on. Enemies rise on all sides--but who is the real enemy? And what will it cost her to uncover the truth?

For the first time, bestselling authors Ted Dekker and Rachelle Dekker team up and deliver an intense, tightly focused ride through the most treacherous world of all.

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: September 3, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? #67

Hosted weekly by The Book Date.

Happy Monday!

It's been a good, long, busy, tiring, relaxing week, and I am so glad it's fall.

When Mountains Sing | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK

When the truth cost her everything, she thought there was nothing left to lose.

Mikayla Gordon loves nothing more than sleeping under the stars, reeling in the “big one,” and long hikes in the wilderness. A medical crisis reveals a 30-year-old secret that turns everything she’s known and believed upside down, unraveling her dreams and her identity.

In search of answers, she follows a trail from Minnesota to Colorado and discovers more unwelcome secrets even as she falls in love with the majestic beauty of the Rocky Mountains, and a wilderness camp leader who shares the greatest secret of all.

Knowing her life can never go back to what it was, she must make decisions that will impact far more than just her future.

Publisher: His Image Publications

Release Date: August 7, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Guest Post

Reunited in the Rockies | Book Review + Giveaway

ABOUT THE BOOK

A fresh start…and an old love reignited?

A Rocky Mountain Heroes romance.

For widow Kayla Bradshaw, restoring a historic Colorado hotel means a better life for her and her soon-to-arrive baby. But she needs construction help from Jude Stephens, the love she lost through a misunderstanding. Working with Kayla, the police officer finds himself forgiving her—and longing to rebuild her shattered confidence. But can they trust each other enough to forge a future together?

Publisher: Love Inspired

Release Date: August 20, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES

Their Ranch Reunion

The Deputy's Holiday Family

Her Colorado Cowboy

Her Rocky Mountain Hope

Eyes on Me | First Line Friday + The Friday 56

The Friday 56 is hosted weekly by Freda's Voice.
First Line Friday is hosted weekly by Hoarding Books.

Happy Friday!

I'm racing library due dates with a few of my current reads, and Eyes on Me by Rachel Harris is one of them. Fingers crossed, I'll have time to finish it this weekend.

The Words Between Us | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK

Robin Windsor has spent most of her life under an assumed name, running from her family's ignominious past. She thought she'd finally found sanctuary in her rather unremarkable used bookstore just up the street from the marina in River City, Michigan. But the store is struggling and the past is hot on her heels.

When she receives an eerily familiar book in the mail on the morning of her father's scheduled execution, Robin is thrown back to the long-lost summer she met Peter Flynt, the perfect boy who ruined everything. That book--a first edition Catcher in the Rye--is soon followed by the other books she shared with Peter nearly twenty years ago, with one arriving in the mail each day. But why would Peter be making contact after all these years? And why does she have a sinking feeling that she's about to be exposed all over again?

With evocative prose that recalls the classic novels we love, Erin Bartels pens a story that shows that words--the ones we say, the ones we read, and the ones we write--have more power than we imagine.

"Alternating between flashbacks and the present day, The Words Between Us is a story of love found in the written word and love found because of the written word. It is also a novel of the consequences of those words that are left unsaid. Bartels' compelling sophomore novel (after We Hope for Better Things, 2019) will satisfy fans and new readers alike."--Booklist

"Erin Bartels drew me in with a unique premise and held me there with her strong storytelling and complex characters. . . . Bartels has given her readers a novel to read slowly and contemplate. It shows a true love for literature that all book-lovers will enjoy and a deeply rich storyline that will keep you engaged until long after the final page is closed."--Life Is Story

"The Words Between Us is a story to savor and share: a lyrical novel about the power of language and the search for salvation. A secondhand bookstore owner hiding from a legacy of scandal, tragedy, and heartbreak must unlock the secrets of the past to claim her happiness. I loved every sentence, every word."--Barbara Claypole White, bestselling author of The Perfect Son and The Promise Between Us

"Erin Bartels has done it again. She's created a story that has set up camp in my mind and now feels more like a memory, something I lived, than a piece of fiction. The added benefit is that it's a story about books, some of the best ones ever written. If you are the kind of person who finds meaning and life in the written word, then you'll find yourself hidden among these pages."--Shawn Smucker, author of Light From Distant Stars

"Vividly drawn and told in expertly woven dual timelines, The Words Between Us is a story about a woman who has spent years trying to escape her family's scandals and the resilience she develops along the way. Erin Bartels's characters are a treat: complex, dynamic, and so lifelike I half expected them to climb straight out of the pages."--Kathleen Barber, author of Are You Sleeping

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: September 3, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book

Always & Evermore | Book Review + Giveaway

ABOUT THE BOOK

A fierce elite guard. A loyal lady in waiting. They must work together to save three princesses from certain death.

On the verge of dying after giving birth to twins, the queen of Mercia pleads with Lady Felicia to save her infant daughters. With the castle overrun by King Ethelwulf’s invading army, Lady Felicia vows to do whatever she can to take the newborn princesses and their three-year old sister to safety, even though it means sacrificing everything she holds dear, possibly her own life.

Gravely wounded in battle and knowing all is lost to his enemy, the king of Mercia tasks Lance, one of his fiercest elite guards, to protect his family along with keys to an ancient treasure. As Lance makes plans to sneak the princesses out of the capital city, he doesn’t need or want Lady Felicia’s help.

With the dark enemy in pursuit, Lance and Felicia must put aside their differences to outrun King Ethelwulf and prevent him from killing the princesses. In a desperate attempt to hide the young girls, Lance and Felicia agree to a marriage of convenience, a decision that will change their lives—and hearts—forever. 

Publisher: Northern Lights Press

Release Date: August 13, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

An ancient key. A secret treasure. And a princess destined to use them both to fight evil and restore peace.

Raised by a noble family, Lady Adelaide has always known she’s an orphan. Little does she realize she’s one of the lost princesses and the true heir to Mercia’s throne…until a visitor arrives at her family estate, reveals her birthright as queen, and thrusts her into a quest for the throne whether she’s ready or not.

Unable to tolerate King Ethelwulf’s cruelty and lawlessness, Christopher Langley left Mercia years earlier, training a group of rebels in neighboring Norland. When he returns home after his mother’s death, he discovers that not only is Adelaide all grown up, but she’s also the rightful queen of Mercia.

When King Ethelwulf discovers Adelaide’s location, he’ll stop at nothing to capture her and the key she holds to the ancient treasure. Christopher is just as determined to protect Adelaide so she can lead the growing rebellion. When feelings ignite between the two old friends, forces threaten to destroy their love and rip them apart forever.

Publisher: Northern Lights Press

Release Date: August 27, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES

Foremost

Hereafter

Dead End | Waiting on Wednesday

Hosted weekly by Breaking the Spine 

to spotlight eagerly-anticipated upcoming releases.

(Similarly, Can't-Wait Wednesday is hosted by Wishful Endings.)

Happy Wednesday!

I read Fire Storm last week, and now, I'm ready for more Kaely Quinn.

Favorite Reading Snacks | Top Ten Tuesday

Hosted weekly by That Artsy Reader Girl.

Happy Tuesday!

I love to snack while I read (though certain snacks are more suited to page-flipping than others). Here are the snacks I'm favoring currently:

The Gryphon Heist | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK

Talia Inger is a rookie CIA case officer assigned not to the Moscow desk as she had hoped but to the forgotten backwaters of Eastern Europe--a department only known as "Other." When she is tasked with helping a young, charming Moldovan executive secure his designs for a revolutionary defense technology, she figures she'll be back in DC within a few days. But that's before she knows where the designs are stored--and who's after them. With her shady civilian partner, Adam Tyler, Talia takes a deep dive into a world where only criminal minds and unlikely strategies will keep the Gryphon, a high-altitude data vault, hovering in the mesosphere.

Even Tyler is more than he seems, and Talia begins to wonder: Is he helping her? Or using her access to CIA resources to pull off an epic heist for his own dark purposes?

In this Ocean's Eleven-meets-Mission Impossible thriller, former tactical deception officer and stealth pilot James R. Hannibal offers you a nonstop thrill ride through the most daring heist ever conceived.

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: September 3, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES

Chasing the White Lion

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? #66

Hosted weekly by The Book Date.

Happy Monday!

It's been a good, chill week. My roommate and I finally watched the third season of Stranger Things (so good!) and caught up on Bachelor in Paradise, of course (so dramatic!), and I finished Four Weddings and a Funeral (so charming!). Though I had plenty of homework to do the rest of the time, I still managed to do some excellent reading (and spend some non-TV time with people, ha), too.

Strands of Truth | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK

Harper Taylor is used to being alone—after all, she grew up in one foster home after another. Oliver Jackson finally took her under his wing when she was a runaway teenager, and now Harper pours her marine biology knowledge into Oliver’s pen shell research. But she’s never stopped wishing for a family of her own.

So when a DNA test reveals a half-sister living just two hours away, Harper is both hopeful and nervous. Over warm cinnamon rolls, Harper and Annabelle find striking similarities in their stories. Is it just a coincidence that both their mothers died tragically, without revealing Harper and Annabelle’s father’s name?

Oliver’s son Ridge still sees Harper as a troubled teen even all these years later. But when Oliver is attacked, Ridge and Harper find themselves working together to uncover dangerous secrets that threaten to destroy them all. They must unravel her past before they can have any hope for the future.

Suspense, romance, and generational secrets meld in this engrossing new novel from USA TODAY bestselling author Colleen Coble.

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Release Date: September 10, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book

You Belong With Me | Book Review

ABOUT THE BOOK

Realtor Hannah Thornton has many talents. Unfortunately, selling houses in the town where her family name is practically poison isn't one of them. When a business tycoon determines to raze historic homes in the small town of Heritage, Michigan, and replace them with a strip mall, Hannah resolves to stop him. She sets about helping Heritage win a restoration grant that will put the town back on the map--and hopefully finally repay the financial debt Hannah's mother caused the town. But at first no one supports her efforts--not even her best friend, Luke.

Luke Johnson may have grown up in Heritage, but as a foster kid he never truly felt as if he belonged. Now he has a chance to score a job as assistant fire chief and earn his place in the town. But when the interview process and Hannah's restoration project start unearthing things from his past, Luke must decide if belonging is worth the pain of being honest about who he is--and who he was.

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: September 3, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christian Book

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES

P.S. Goodbye

I'll Be Yours | First Line Friday + The Friday 56

The Friday 56 is hosted weekly by Freda's Voice.
First Line Friday is hosted weekly by Hoarding Books.

Happy Friday!

Well, it's football season again, so I couldn't resist a football-featuring throwback today. I'll Be Yours is a fun, sweet YA romance.

Fall Flip | Guest Post + Giveaway

ABOUT THE BOOK

She knows how to flip a home. What happens when he flips her heart?

The tragic death of Shelby Dodson’s husband—her partner in a successful Home Network house flipping business—stole love, status, and career. Now a bungalow redesign thrusts Shelby into the company of a new contractor. Scott Matthews remembers high-and-mighty Shelby from high school, and her prissy, contemporary style goes against his down-to-earth grain. When the house reveals a mystery, will its dark secrets—and their own mistakes—cost them a second chance at love?

Publisher: Candlelight Romance

Release Date: August 30, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

As the Light Fades | Excerpt + Giveaway

ABOUT THE BOOK

Sometimes we’re placed in the strangest of circumstances for the most important reasons.

After her carefully constructed life crumbles, Liz Carlisle finds herself back on Nantucket, picking up the pieces. With the family estate under renovations, the solitude she craves seems out of reach.

Matthew Stone intends to steer clear of his new tenant. She’s carrying a load of baggage, but as long as she pays the rent, he’ll let her be. He’s got enough to deal with caring for his wayward niece, Mia.

Liz doesn’t have time for teenagers and her track record with men is abysmal, but an unlikely friendship forms between the three.

When her former boyfriend is charged with assault, Liz is called to testify against him. But he knows the darkest secrets of her life—secrets she’d hoped to keep buried forever, and he’s ready to reveal them. Telling the truth is the right thing to do, but it may cost her everything she’s worked so hard for, and all she’s come to love.

Release Date: September 10, 2019

Goodreads | Amazon