Shaken by Kariss Lynch

★★★★★

When her world is shaken, will her foundation survive?

Idealistic and sheltered with a passion to change the world, Kaylan Richards leaves her comfortable life in Alabama to serve in poverty-stricken Haiti. Despite her inexperience and the opposition of a voodoo priest, Kaylan develops a love for the country and the Haitian people. But something deadly is about to strike.

It is the worst earthquake the country has ever seen, and in its aftermath bodies, buildings, and broken lives litter the streets. People she cares about are dead, and Kaylan is caught in the middle of the destruction, questioning a God who said He was good.

Navy SEAL Nick Carmichael never planned to find a girl he loved more than his country. Now she is a world away, trapped in a deadly situation nothing could have prepared her for. Can Nick’s love help Kaylan heal and show her the God who never abandoned her, or will tragedy shake even the most rooted faith?

Kariss Lynch’s first Heart of a Warrior novel, Shaken, offers a powerful and emotional story of adventure and romance. Kaylan Richards heads to Haiti after graduating college - and just before the earthquake that shook up the country. Learning to trust God and follow His plan, Kaylan strives to make an impact on the Haitian people in the face of the challenges and disaster and simultaneously navigate her complex relationship with Nick Carmichael. Overall, I enjoyed this well-written, interesting and hopeful novel that left me wishing for the second novel in the series, Shadowed. I would certainly recommend it to fans of contemporary inspirational fiction.

Thanks to Booketeria, I received a copy of Shaken and the opportunity to review it honestly. I was not required to provide a positive review, and all the opinions expressed are my own.

A Windswept Promise by Brandi Boddie

★★★★★
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Pampered town belle Sophie Charlton has always secretly enjoyed the attention of cowboy Dusty Sterling, a hired worker on her family’s farm, even though she’d never tell him so. But can she go against the will of her family, who insist that she make a good match in Assurance’s most eligible bachelor?

Following The Preacher’s Wife in Brandi Boddie’s Brides of Assurance, A Windswept Promise revisits Assurance, Kansas for another sweet small-town romance. Sophie and Dusty, two characters who made appearances in the previous novel, now have their chance at love, yet encounter no shortage of obstacles in their way. As this couple decides whether love is worth the required risks, I really enjoyed this leisurely-paced, entertaining story Boddie tells and couldn’t wait to see how Sophie and Dusty would reach the ending. A Windswept Promise is a book I would recommend to fans of historical romance (and it can be read as a standalone, though The Preacher’s Wife is also a good read).

Thanks to Booketeria, I received a copy of A Windswept Promise and the opportunity to review it honestly. I was not required to provide a positive review, and all the opinions expressed are my own.

Love Never Fails by Martha Rogers

★★★★✩
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At odds over their beliefs and separated by the war, Molly and Stefan must learn to depend of God.

In book three of the Homeward Journey series, Daniel and Sally Delaney’s daughter Molly finishes school and returns to her home to teach. When old friends of her parents come for a visit with their son, Stefan, Molly is attracted to the young man, but all he is interested in is talking about his position in the army. When he leaves to rejoin his regiment, Molly is both relieved and saddened. Can they overcome their differences and find love?

The third novel in Martha Rogers’ Homeward Journey series, Love Never Fails is another enjoyable historical romance. It easily follows the previous two novels, telling the story of two characters who must reconcile their desires for the future with their growing love for each other. Once again, within this story, Rogers offers peeks at the lives of previous characters - Manfred and Sally, Micah and Hannah. It’s a delightful and heartwarming romance - and my only problem was the repetitive comments about their need to contain and deny their feelings. But all in all, Love Never Fails is a great read for fans of the previous novels and I would recommend it.

Thanks to Booketeria, I received a copy of Love Never Fails and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

Threads of Faith by Andrea Boeshaar

★★★★★
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Can Julianna and Daniel start a new life in a new country?

Julianna Wayland is running for her life! She hides in a crate on London’s dock, only to be loaded onto a ship bound for America. During the voyage she meets Captain Daniel Sundberg, and by the time they reach New York’s harbor, she is certain she’s in love with him. The only problem is Daniel has plans for himself – plans that don’t include her.

As Julianna struggles to find her way in a new world, will trouble from her past derail the life she is looking for?

Threads of Faith is the first novel I have read by Andrea Boeshaar, even though it is the second book in her Fabric of Time series, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Boeshaar creates two very likable and dynamic main characters and brings them together in an adventurous chance encounter aboard a ship. As they interact, Boeshaar easily weaves romance within the adventure and tells a wonderfully engaging story. I was captivated from beginning to end, and now, I can’t wait to read more from Andrea Boeshaar – I will certainly be making time for the other Fabric of Time books in the future. And I recommend Threads of Faith to readers who enjoy historical romance – it won’t disappoint.

Thanks to Booketeria, I received a copy of Threads of Faith and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

Love Finds Faith by Martha Rogers

★★★★★
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Why can’t people see what is on the inside?
 
Hannah Dyer has just moved to Texas to help her brother-in-law in his medical practice. Despite her handicap of having one leg much shorter than the other, she is a great nurse whose skills help make the practice the most successful in the area.
 
When Micah Gordon returns home after some shady escapades, his father hopes he will settle down to ranch life. Hannah is smitten by his good looks and roguish ways, but because of her leg, she has no hopes of attracting his attention.
 
After Micah suffers a tragic loss, he loses his faith and almost loses his ranch. Can Hannah’s care and staunch faith help him on the road to recovery with a new hope, new faith, and a new love?

Martha Rogers, with Love Finds Faith, offers another sweet, historical story. This one begins several years after Love Stays True, the first novel in the Homeward Journey series, and follows Sally’s younger sister, Hannah Dyer, and the characters she encounters upon moving to Texas. I definitely liked this second novel even better than the previous one, as it had more action and dimensional characters – and the nice added peeks at the married life of Sally and Manfred Whiteman. A classic story of a prodigal returning home and finding faith, family and love, Love Finds Faith is sweet and heartwarming, though, at times, of course, frustrating. Many challenges and obstacles stand in the way of love, and a few of the characters do take their time in learning the necessary lessons. Still, I enjoyed Rogers’ Love Finds Faith and recommend it to readers who either enjoyed the first novel, like me, or are looking for an enjoyable historical romance. When I have the chance, I know I’ll be picking up the next book, Love Never Fails, of this delightful series by Martha Rogers.

Thanks to Booketeria, I received a copy of Love Finds Faith and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

Love Stays True by Martha Rogers

★★★★✩
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Can Sallie and Manfred overcome the distance that the war has put between them and find love?

In April 1865, the day following the surrender at Appomattox, Manfred McDaniel Whiteman and his brother, Edwin, are released in an exchange of prisoners. They are given a few provisions, and they begin a long journey to their home in Bayou Sara, Louisiana.

At home Sallie Dyer is waiting word of her beloved Manfred. Though just a young girl when Manfred left, Sallie has grown into a caring young woman who is determined to wait for her love – despite her father’s worries that she is wasting her life on someone who may never come home.

On their journey Manfred and his brother encounter storms and thieves and are even thrown in jail. Will he make the journey home before someone else claims Sallie’s hand?

Within the pages of Love Stays True, Martha Rogers tells a sweet, historical love story: the Civil War separates childhood sweethearts, Sallie and Manfred, for several years, but with the fighting coming to an end, they soon discover whether their love endured through the complications and obstacles of war. With surprisingly very little action, thoughts and emotions almost entirely keep the plot moving, as Sallie and Manfred wait and hope for the chance to be together. The novel’s pace is slow and leisurely, without much urgency.

Throughout the novel, I found it easy to like and root for these main characters – although I must say they do lack depth. Manfred, a soldier released from a war prison, seems entirely unaffected by the horrors he saw in war and easily relies on his faith in God to keep him safe. While both admirable and honorable, the simplicity of his conflict-free thought processes make him appear a bit one-dimensional. Sallie, on the other hand, easily doubts her faith in God (and Manfred’s love) after one night requires her to do a harsh, burdensome act to protect her family. I understand why the event is traumatic for her, but the way her same thoughts seem to repeat without any change until the very end make her, too, one-dimensional.

Still, Love Stays True is a perfectly enjoyable read. It is nice and simple with a clean, heartwarming romance, so I recommend it to readers looking for just that. Thanks to Booketeria, I received a copy of Love Stays True and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

The Preacher's Wife by Brandi Boddie

★★★★★
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Can this small-town girl trade her tarnished past for a respectable life?

During the hot, windy summer of 1870 in the burgeoning prairie town of Assurance, Kansas, Marissa Pierce is fed up with her abusive boss. She longs to start a new life and is growing weary of convincing townsfolk that she is most certainly not a prostitute.

Civil War veteran and preacher Rowe Winford arrives in town intent on leaving the tragic memories of his deceased family behind. Although Rowe has no plans to fall in love anytime soon, the plans of God rarely match those of man.

Faced with adversity and rejection from the town and Rowe’s family, can Marissa overcome her past, renew her faith, and experience the life of love that God has planned for her?

Brandi Boddie’s The Preacher’s Wife is a sweet romance. The characters are charming, though stubborn, and their predicaments are a bit perplexing. With both the hero and heroine towing heavy burdens of the past, arriving at a happily-ever-after ending proves to be quite a trek. Admittedly, the concept behind the plot is not anything particularly new and I easily guessed at the ending – but I am not complaining at all. Boddie’s novel is an enjoyable venture across the plains of Kansas and I am happy to have read it. Perfect for a bit of light afternoon reading, I recommend it to those who enjoy historical, inspirational romance, and I cannot wait to pick up the second book in the Brides of Assurance series when it comes out this fall.

Thanks to Booketeria, I received a copy of this novel and the opportunity to review it honestly. I was not required to provide a positive review, and all the opinions expressed are my own.