Month: August 2016

August 19, 2016

Fetching Sweetness

In Fetching Sweetness, standing between Stephanie and her dream is one hundred pounds of lovable trouble.

About Fetching Sweetness

It should have been so simple for Stephanie Pink: Meet up with Agnes Wharton in a small town in California, retrieve the reclusive author’s valuable new manuscript, and be promoted to a full-fledged literary agent.

But Agnes’s canine companion, Sweetness, decides to make a break for it before Stephanie can claim her prize. Until Agnes has Sweetness safely back at home in Eagle Cliff, Washington, Stephanie will never set eyes on the manuscript she needs to make her dreams come true.

When Stephanie tracks the runaway mutt to a campground, she meets Rhett Hastings—a man also on the run from a different life and a costly mistake. Rhett agrees to help Stephanie search for the missing dog thus launching a surprising string of adventures and misadventures.

Once Sweetness gets added to the mix, it’s a recipe for love and loss, merriment and mayhem, fun and faith in the backwoods of the Pacific Northwest.

My Thoughts

A funny romantic story with such a deeper meaning. We have our two main characters both of whom are suffering from a loss (each from different reasons) who are forced together by a very unsuspecting character, Sweetness (a furry friend who constantly manages to make and find trouble).

Stephanie is living the life she always dreamed of with her brother (well not quite) – a literary agent. She is tasked with retrieving a manuscript from an author, whose first book changed her life as a child. She is in awe and can’t wait to meet the woman, even though she is quite eccentric! But Agnes refuses to give her the manuscript unless she can bring her Sweetness home. Now Stephanie must go on quite the adventure in order to rescue the furry animal (and one she has never laid eyes upon!) all before her nemesis arrives to try to steal the manuscript before she gets her hands on it!

This is when she meets Rhett, a very rich and famous young man who has turned his back on it all. He has hurt others and been hurt in turn and wants to make amends for what he has done. You can see how much he is trying and your heart goes out to him. You want him to learn to trust again but you can see the internal struggle he is facing.

Both of our characters are slightly flawed which makes them that much more loveable. They are honest, real and moving. They are struggling like many of us have in life and together with Sweetness they learn many life lessons. You will laugh, cry and be happy throughout this well written novel. You watch as they grow and learn that what they thought they wanted out of life was a dream that may not have been their own to begin with. A definite must read!

You can find more reviews on the Litfuse Blog tour page. You can purchase a copy of the book here.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Dana Mentink lives in California, where the weather is golden and the cheese is divine. Dana is an American Christian Fiction Writers Book of the Year finalist for romantic suspense and an award winner in the Pacific Northwest Writers Literary Contest. Her suspense novel, Betrayal in the Badlands, earned a Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award. Besides writing, she busies herself teaching third and fourth grade. Mostly, she loves to be home with her husband, two daughters, a dog with social anxiety problems, a chubby box turtle, and a feisty parakeet.

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

August 18, 2016

Ace Collins’ ‘Service Tails’ Take-Your-Dog-to-the-Park Pack

Fall in love with these remarkable service dogs and their stories of courage, faith, and loyalty in Ace Collins’ new book, Service Tails. Their training was intense, their loyalty unquestioned and each step of the way they constantly adapt to better serve those they lead. These unforgettable dogs are more than heroes; they are models from which we can learn how to love and serve unconditionally.

Celebrate the release of Service Tails with Ace by entering to win the Take-Your-Dog-to-the-Park Pack!

One grand prize winner will receive:

A copy of Service Tails
A copy of Man’s Best Hero
A dog blanket
A dog leash
A dog-cape towel
A dog bandana
A dog toy
Dog treats

Enter today by clicking the icon below, but hurry! The giveaway ends on August 30. The winner will be announced August 31 on the Litfuse blog.

August 18, 2016

Haven Book Review

In Haven, Princess Haven was never meant to be Queen. She was not prepared for the role but she now finds herself fighting a seemingly impossible foe.

About Haven

Her immortality has saved her time and time again, but when the last of her royal family dies at her feet, she is next in line to rule a nation on the brink of war. With no formal training on how to be Queen, she must rise to the occasion with the help of her best friends, and personal guard, or risk losing everyone she has ever loved.

With war to the West, and no escape to the East, the evil tyrant Kadia sets her sights on the six kingdoms. Her neighbors are quick to fall under the swords of Kadia’s shadow soldiers, leaving a sea of bodies and a clear path to Haven’s only home. Haven must make a choice; take her people and flee to the foreign Republic across the sea or lead a last stand against a powerful dictator.

My Thoughts

An exciting novel from start to finish that I thoroughly enjoyed! It mixes adventure with magic and an immortal Queen. Haven is our main character, a Queen who never thought she would be one with so many in her family. But time was not kind to her and when her whole family is gone, she is left to deal with the Kingdom alone. I loved watching her evolve as not only a person but as a Queen. She is strong, brave and independent.

I loved how the evil Queen Kadia was placed into the book with her mysterious powers. She uses her powers for evil but somehow she almost seems like a victim herself when we get to know her better. We even find that there may be a strange connection between the two powerful Queens.

Haven is a well written, thought out novel that young adults and adults alike will fall in love with. We have a strong female lead who battles her own wars in order to save her people. We watch her grow in strength, bravery and in her role as a Queen. The novel is definitely one that you will not want to put down in fear of missing what happens next!

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository and Chapters.

Rating: 4.5/5

About the Author

Katherine Bogle’s debut young adult novel, Haven, came second in the World’s Best Story contest 2015. She currently resides in Saint John, New Brunswick with her partner in crime, and plethora of cats. You can connect with her on her website, Twitter and Facebook.

The Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

August 16, 2016

The House of Kane

In The House of Kane, Aislinn is hired to discover how manuscripts keep going missing and are suddenly published by Kane Publishing House’s competitors.

About The House of Kane

Aislinn Marchánt, a writer and editorial consultant, is hired by the major New York publishing company, Kane Publishing House, to help determine why several submissions sent to them have mysteriously disappeared only to be published later by another publisher. Are the editors at Kane simply not being diligent enough with the in-coming material, or is there something more sinister going on? Working from her West Palm Beach home, Aislinn quickly becomes involved with the House of Kane as well as with Caldwell Kane, the man who hired her.

As Aislinn works toward uncovering the various layers of truth of her former husband, her elderly neighbor, and Kane Publishing House, she continues to research her own novel, the story of a love between two people that becomes fractured because of the misunderstandings created by two different cultures. Her research takes her to abotanica where a Santerian priest reveals the truth in her own life and a destiny that is joined to that of Caldwell Kane.

My Thoughts

Missing submissions, fierce competition, lies and deceit are found throughout this fantastic novel by Barbara Casey. This novel showed an inside look at the publishing world while mixing mystery, deceit and a tad bit of romance that makes you not want to put the book down (literally could not stop reading this book!). Not to mention, I was totally jealous of her awesome job!

Aislinn uncovers quite a mystery at Kane Publishing house not to mention the underlying stories of her ex-husband, new boss, her neighbour and her own novel – it was quite an exciting time for Aislinn! While the mystery seems a bit obvious half way through, the twist on it was unbelievable and was not what I was expecting! It was very impressive the way the characters were tied into the story (especially one that you thought was just there to add a little extra into the story but played a role in the grand plot).

I loved not only the plot (which is very unique and one of the best parts of this book) but also the hints of a romance that could develop between Aislinn and Caldwell Kane. While an age difference exists and Aislinn does still have a strong relationship with her ex husband, a romance between these two would be perfect. Their personalities and interests compliment each other perfectly.

The House of Kane is a well thought out, written novel that will keep you guessing and reading to the last minute. You will fall in love with the characters, their connections and ties to the story. I loved every moment of this novel.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Barbara Casey is a partner in Strategic Media Books, and president of the Barbara Casey Agency, representing authors throughout the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Japan. She is also a manuscript consultant and the author of numerous articles, poems, and short stories.

Her award-winning novels have received national recognition, including the Independent Publishers Book Award. Her novel, The House of Kane, was considered for a Pulitzer nomination, and The Gospel According to Prissy, also a contemporary adult novel received several awards including the prestigious IPPY Award for Best Regional Fiction. Her most recent young adult novel, The Cadence of Gypsies, received the Independent Publishers Living Now Award and was reviewed by the Smithsonian for its list of Best Books.

Ms. Casey makes her home on the top of a mountain in northwest Georgia with her husband and three dogs who adopted her: Benton, a hound-mix, Fitz, a miniature dachshund, and Gert, a Jack Russel terrier of sorts. You can connect with her on her website.

The Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

August 15, 2016

The Loyal Heart

In The Loyal Heart, Robert came to Galveston to fulfill his promise to a dying man and look after his widow. He didn’t expect to find love in the unlikeliest of places.

About The Loyal Heart

Robert Truax, former Second Lieutenant and Confederate officer in the Civil War, made a promise to his comrade Phillip Markham. If anything happened to Phillip, Robert would look after his beloved wife, Miranda. She was his life, his world, his everything.

After the war, Robert is left to pick up the pieces and fulfill his pact. When he arrives at Miranda’s home in Galveston, Texas, things are worse than he imagined. Phillip’s name has been dragged through the mud, everyone in town believes him to be a traitor, and his widow is treated as an outcast. Even more disturbing is her emotional well-being. Miranda seems hopeless, lost, and so very alone.

Robert had thought his duty would be simple. He would help Miranda as quickly as possible in order to honor a promise. But the moment Robert laid eyes on her, his plans changed. He’s mesmerized by her beauty and yearns to help her in any way he can. He makes it his duty to protect Miranda, turn her reputation around, and to find some way to help her smile again. But it doesn’t prove to be an easy task—Robert knows something about Phillip that could shake Miranda to the core and alter her view of the man she thought she knew so well.

My Thoughts

In a time when many young men lost their lives and left widows and children to fight to make their way in a world that didn’t see them as individuals – Robert made a promise to his comrades, if anything were to happen to any of them they would take care of that person’s family. Robert would have never have known how quickly that this would come into play when his friend Phillip dies in captivity.

Phillip’s love of his life, Miranda, has been left alone to transfer their home into a lodging and suffers from being an outcast as Phillip has been marked a traitor. Robert is livid at the thought of his friend being named a traitor but can not because of the secret nature of Phillip’s role during the war. This is when a great mystery develops as Robert begins to try to uncover who is destroying Phillip’s name and who is the root cause of Miranda’s pain. Every time I thought that I knew who could be the culprit for spreading such awful lies, a new twist is added and I realize I am wrong.

As Robert tries to solve the mystery, he quickly falls for the lovely Miranda as he struggles to understand his loyalty to his friend who has passed away and this lonely young woman. Both characters are perfect for each other but struggle through their internal war with themselves with the notion is this relationship okay to develop? I completely understood their struggle but felt that Phillip would have been happy to know that the two people he loved the most would have found happiness and love in each other.

A fantastic novel from start to finish – I did not want to put this one down! It was well written, developed at a great pace and always kept you guessing at what/who is the culprit for hurting Phillip’s name and Miranda’s life. A definite must read!

You can find more reviews on the Litfuse blog tour page. You can purchase a copy of the book here.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Shelley Shepard Gray is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, a finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writers prestigious Carol Award, and a two-time HOLT Medallion winner. She lives in southern Ohio, where she writes full-time, bakes too much, and can often be found walking her dachshunds on her town’s bike trail.

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.