Category: Litfuse blog tour

A Sister’s Wish Book Review

Litfuse Book Tour

In Shelley Shepard Gray’s third book in her Charmed Amish Life series, A Sister’s Wish, a respectable young woman finds herself falling for an Amish man from the wrong side of the tracks.

A Sister's Wish

About A Sister’s Wish

Amelia Kinsinger is the perfect Amish woman—at least according to her neighbors. And while Amelia takes pride in her role as homemaker, she’s also harboring a secret: She’s been in love with bad boy Simon Hochstetler for as long as she can remember. Too bad he’s about as far from “perfect” as an Amish man could get . . . but that’s exactly why she’s so drawn to him.

Life hasn’t been kind to Simon. He ran away from an abusive home at fifteen and things went downhill from there. Eventually, Simon landed in prison. But the experience changed him. Now back in Charm as a grown man, he’s determined to make a new life for himself and not think too much about his wild past . . . unless it pertains to Amelia.

He’s loved Amelia for years. To him, she represents everything good and kind in the world. When he realizes that she returns his affections, he starts calling on her in secret, even though her older brother Lukas—who just happens to be Simon’s best friend—has made it perfectly clear that Amelia deserves better. Simon disagrees and believes he’s the only one who can truly make her happy.

But when Amelia gets hurt, it sets off a chain of events that forces them to consider their future together—and face their past mistakes. There’s a chance for love . . . but only if Simon dares to trust Amelia with the secrets of his past.

My Thoughts

I have always loved Amish fiction stories. They are sweet, full of hope, forgiveness, love and faith. This story by Shelley Shepard Gray is all of that and more.

Amelia is a sweet, kind and loving young girl in her family who takes care of a lot more than her family cares to admit. She is charge of the household, the chores and so much more. She never complains and she loves her job but nor does anyone quite realize all she does and the young woman that she has become. Her long time crush, Simon, returns to their small town. Simon had suffered greatly as a child and it led him down a destructive past. Simon had to go through these hardships in order to become the young man he is today. They helped him with his faith and his understanding of others but it is also a secret he keeps tucked away afraid to show the world. He has always been in love with Amelia but never felt good enough for her. When he realizes she returns his feelings, he feels blessed. Except no one in her family sees how much this relationship means to her.

When Amelia is hurt and the family has to come to the realization that she is now a grown woman who has been looking after a lot more than they expected, it forces them to look at themselves and their way of thinking in ways that no one wants to. No one wants to have admit they are wrong nor do they want to go about fixing it. Thus begins a struggle for understanding, trust, acceptance and faith in each other.

A Sister’s Wish is well thought out, well written and a beautiful story from start to finish.

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

Rating: 4/5

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 copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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‘The Devoted’ iPad Mini Giveaway

Litfuse Book Tour
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You’re invited back to Stoney Ridge for a story of dreams deferred and hopes fulfilled in The Devoted.

Bright, curious, and restless, Ruthie Stoltzfus loves her family but is stuck in a sea of indecision about her future: Should she stay Amish? Or should she leave? She’s done all she can to prepare to go–passed the GED, saved her money–but she can’t quite set her journey into motion.

Patrick Kelly is a young man on a journey of his own. He’s come to Stoney Ridge to convert to the Amish and has given himself thirty days to learn the language, drive a buggy, and adapt to “everything Plain.” Time, to Patrick, is of the essence. Every moment is to be cherished, especially the hours he spends with Ruthie, his Penn Dutch tutor.

Ruthie’s next-door neighbor and cunning ex-boyfriend, Luke Schrock, is drawn to trouble like a moth to a flame. Rebellious, headstrong, defiant, Luke will do anything to win Ruthie back–anything–and Patrick Kelly is getting in his way.

Suzanne is celebrating the release of The Devoted with a special giveaway!

One winner will receive:

  • A copy of The Devoted
  • An iPad Mini 2 16GB

Enter today, but hurry! The giveaway ends on November 2. The winner will be announced November 3 on Suzanne’s blog.

Enter to win by filling out the giveaway widget below, or click the graphic above to enter to win.

 

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God Bless Us Everyone Book Review

Litfuse Book Tour

In God Bless Us Everyone, Charlene Dixon—called Charlie by family and friends—is devastated at the recent loss of her job.

God Bless Us Everyone

About God Bless Us Everyone

For the last five years, the twenty-seven-year-old has blossomed as the activities director of an exclusive all-girls school. But when a misunderstanding with the headmistress leads to a pink slip right before the holidays, Charlie packs up her dreams and returns to her grandmother, Sis, who raised Charlie as her own in the mountains of North Carolina.

When Charlie arrives–broken and confused–Sis immediately puts her granddaughter to work behind the scenes of the local school’s Christmas play, A Christmas Carol. Charlie prickles at working with Dustin Kennedy, the drama teacher and her old crush from schooldays, but is even more put out at that the choice of the Dickens’ classic for the holiday performance. When she discovers her estranged father’s involvement her world turns on its head once more. But when Sis and Dustin encourage her to take a deeper look at the story behind A Christmas Carol, Charlie learns about trust, faith, and forgiveness and the needs of people in their own community.

My Thoughts

A sweet Christmas tale about trust and forgiveness, God Bless Us Everyone will have you smiling and leave you with a warm tug on your heart. Our story starts off with Charlie losing her dream job all over a clash of personalities over modern versus the classics. She is forced to return to her hometown to her Grandmother. When her Grandmother finds out the whole truth of her situation, she puts her to work on the school play to keep her busy.

And this is when the story really gets interesting! When Dustin enters the picture, we learn more about Charlie’s past; the pain and hurt she went through in her childhood and how she ended up living with her Grandmother. Your heart just goes out to her, you understand exactly why she struggles so much with trust and forgiveness. Throughout the chapters you really watch her struggle with herself and her beliefs. She wants to forgive and trust but finds it so difficult – which is something many of us can relate to after we have been hurt.

As the story evolves, we watch Charlie develop as a woman and a daughter. We watch her struggle, feel her pain and hope for her. God Bless Us Everyone is a truly sweet tale that will put you in the spirit of forgiveness and trust, especially right in time for Christmas!

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

Rating: 4/5

About the Author

Eva Marie Everson is an award-winning speaker and author of The Road to Testament, Things Left Unspoken, This Fine Life, Chasing Sunsets, Waiting for Sunrise, Slow Moon Rising, and The Potluck Club series (with Linda Evans Shepherd). She is the president of Word Weavers International, Inc., a member of AWSA, ACFW, RWA, the director of Florida Christian Writer’s Conference, and the contest director for Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writer’s Conference. She and her husband make their home in Casselberry, Florida.

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

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Starving Hearts Book Review

Litfuse Book Tour

In Starving Hearts, Miss Annette Chetwynd has been plagued by nightmares and worries about an arranged marriage.

Starving Hearts Book Review

About Starving Hearts

She yearns to find her anonymous rescuer. Unfortunately, her health and intellect prevent it. Both repel suitors and cause Annette to doubt God’s existence, at least until He answers her prayers in an unusual way.

Mr. Peter Adsley is joining the clergy, and he desires a godly wife by his side. After a failed attempt to obtain one, he engages in a clandestine meeting with the bewitching young woman who keeps crossing his path. But she is so unsettling.

Destined for disappointments, Peter and Annette both endure disgraceful situations. Will Peter’s faith sustain him through overwhelming setbacks? Can Annette overcome her doubts? Or will their starving hearts yield to the machinations of a mad man?

My Thoughts

A fantastic novel with two main characters that you can’t help but love. Annette is a strong young woman who speaks her mind, is educated and well versed in a time where women were encouraged to not have opinions or speak their mind. While this has had some negative consequences on her (not being really accepted into society nor finding a match), I think it works to her advantage. She needs someone with a strong personality who can appreciate her brilliance. You can see that this would be Peter but Peter has a different idea for his life. He wants to become a clergyman and needs the “ideal” wife, something that Annette’s brilliant personality may not fit.

When Janine throws in a vile man who is trying to take revenge for the past that he truly does not understand and a family business that threatens to destroy a family, you have the makings of an excellent historic tale. You never really see what is coming next! This made me fall in love with the novel that much more, you just never want to put it down for fear of missing what is coming next. The ending was beyond spectacular and nothing that you could have ever imagined coming from the first page of the book.

Starving Hearts is a unique story of hope, faith and forgiveness. The characters move through dark moments in the story to find their own identify and faith. It is well written and paced. I couldn’t put this one down and couldn’t wait to re-read it again!

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

Janine Mendenhall teaches teens English, of all things! Sometimes she sleeps, but most nights she reads, writes, or watches movies like Pride and Prejudice and claims she’s researching her next book. Splickety Love and Splickety Prime have published her flash fiction. She and her husband, Tom, live in North Carolina where they and their two golden retrievers help gratify the needs of their five children and two cats.

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

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Janine Mendenhall’s ‘Starving Hearts’ Prize Pack Giveaway

Litfuse Book Tour

Will Annette’s search for love and acceptance replace the loss and hurt in her heart? Find out in Janine Mendenhall’s book one, Starving Hearts, of the Triangular Trade Trilogy. Since her assault, Miss Annette Chetwynd has been plagued by nightmares and worries about an arranged marriage. But she yearns to find her anonymous rescuer. Unfortunately, her health and intellect prevent it. Both repel suitors and cause Annette to doubt God’s existence, at least until He answers her prayers in an unusual way. . . .

Join in the search for love and acceptance with Janine and Starving Hearts by entering to win the Delightful Heart Gift Pack Giveaway.

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One grand prize winner will receive:

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Enter today by clicking the icon below, but hurry! The giveaway ends on September 12. The winner will be announced September 13 on Janine’s blog.

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