Swept Away by Mary Connealy
Trouble in Texas Book 1

BACK COVER:
Swept away when her wagon train attempts a difficult river crossing, Ruthy MacNeil isn't terribly upset at being separated from the family who raised her. All they've ever done is work her to the bone. Alive but disoriented, she's rescued by Luke Stone... so unfortunately, there are more chances to die in her immediate future.
 Like is on a mission to reclaim to reclaim the ranch stolen from his family. But the men currently on the property won't let it go without a fight. Luke plans to meet up with friends who will  help him take back the land, and since he can't just leave Ruthy in the middle of nowhere, she's going to have to go with him.
But the more time Luke spends around the hardworking young woman, the more he finds himself thinking of things besides revenge. Will Ruthy convince him to give up his destructive path and be swept away by love?

A PENNY FOR MY THOUGHTS???
 Another great book from Mary Connealy!!! Once you get into this book, you'll realize that it is an off shoot of her series the Kincaid Bride's, Seth's wife is the sister of Luke Stone. ( I thought this was pretty awesome personally :))
 Ruthy MacNeil was taken in by a family when her parents died, and she's been living with them ever since. They work her to the bone, and do nothing for themselves. So when they decide to head out west, she of course has to come with. She's planning her escape until they come across a river that will send her going in a different direction than she had planned.
 Luke is coming home to reclaim his ranch. And along the way, he finds a filthy girl floating in the river. Good conscience doesn't allow him to just leave her, and any town would be taking him to far out of his way from getting home. So the girl goes with him.
 Little do both of them know that Ruthy is wading into the fight right along side Luke. And Luke doesn't want her there. He can't deny that she is a hard worker, and basically just as good as him in the tracking and shooting departments. But she's a woman, and can't be put in danger right?? :) wrong...she helps anyway. Will her stubbornness ruin the love that can bloom here? Or will it make this team that much stronger?




To the FTC and whomever else it may concern, I received this book Bethany House Publishing. In return, I have promised to review the book but have been given the freedom by Bethany House to give my honest opinions whether they be positive or negative.

Forsaken Dreams by MaryLu Tyndall

BACK COVER:
THEY LEFT EVERYTHING BEHIND TO BUILD A NEW SOUTHERN UTOPIA...
Colonel Blake Wallace has seen enough death to last a lifetime. Weary and disillusioned, he slumps beneath the weight of defeat and loss. With his entire family murdered by the North and his name appearing on a list of officers wanted for war crimes, Blake organizes a shipload of southerners who, like him, long to escape the horrors of war and start a new life in a verdant land called Brazil.
Eliza Crawford can barely remember the days of her youth spent in opulence and comfort at her Georgian home. She can't help but wonder how different her life would be had she not met her late husband. Stanton Watts, a general in the Northern army. Now a war widow, Eliza is rejected by both the North and South. Desperate to keep her marriage a secret and escape her past and pain, she hopes to start over again in Brazil.
But once the voyage begins, troubles abound. Dangers at sea and enemies from within threaten to keep Blake and Eliza from the new life-and love-they long for.

A PENNY FOR MY THOUGHTS?
 I love the fact that all the characters from this book are from Georgia! (I happen to be from there) It is so much fun to hear about towns and traditions that I have grown up around, and love. And this story is not an uncommon one, in that this happened a lot after the war between the states. Once the North won, the Southerners became 'prisoners' in their own towns. And there were groups that tried to escape from this by sailing away to Brazil. This is why I love historical fiction, You get a great story, but you also get to know a little more about your heritage.
Eliza Crawford. The poor thing, disowned by her family for marrying a Northerner, and once her husband died, disowned by the family that never really accepted her. She has sworn off marriage, and has decided to use her medical experience to help others in Brazil. But can she keep her secret of being a Yankee's Widow for long? And what if someone recognizes her? And what of her heart that isn't listening to her head when it comes to the Colonel?
Colonel Blake Wallace. A Wanted man for his service in the War, and a man running from the war and the horrors found there. His entire family murdered, and now there's a price on his head. And instead of just taking himself and fleeing, he decides to help other Southern families escape from this 'new life'. So he advertises a expedition to Brazil, he arranges everything. A pastor, doctor, nurse, ect. He makes sure that the colony would have everything that it needs to thrive. And a place for him to hide out without having to worry about using his heart...or so he thought.

To the FTC and whomever else it may concern, I received this book MaryLu Tyndall. In return, I have promised to review the book but have been given the freedom by MaryLu to give my honest opinions whether they be positive or negative.

The Tutor's Daughter by Julie Klassen




BACK COVER:

Emma Smallwood, determined to help her widowed father when his boarding school fails, accompanies him to the cliff-top manor of a baronet and his four sons. But soon after they arrive and begin teaching the two younger boys, mysterious things begin to happen. Who does Emma hear playing the pianoforte at night, only to find the music room empty? And who begins sneaking into her bedchamber, leaving behind strange mementoes?

The baronet's older sons, Phillip and Henry Weston, wrestle with problems-and secrets-of their own. They both remember the studious Miss Smallwood from their days at her father's academy. But now one of them finds himself unexpectedly drawn to her....

When suspicious acts escalate, can Emma figure out which brother to blame and which to trust with her heart?

A PENNY FOR MY THOUGHTS?
 This was a really great book! I wasn't completely sure about it at first. But once I got into it, I was really surprised. Emma, grew up with her mother and father who's house was an academy for boys. They would take the wealthy family male heirs, and get them ready for college. Being one of the only girls in the house, Emma was the brunt of many pranks and jokes. Including ones from Henry Weston. 

The Breath of Dawn by Kristen Heitzmann

BACK COVER:
Corporate turnaround specialist Morgan Spencer, dubbed the 'success guru' has a Midas touch in business. But losing his wife sent him to the brink, and his two-year-old daughter, Livie, is all he's living for- until they encounter a woman whose trouble just might draw him out of his own.
Four years ago Quinn Reilly did the right thing. Now the man her testimony put in jail is getting out. Though she has put up barriers to protect herself and those around her, she has come to care for the Spencer family, especially the winsome Livie and her mercurial father. Unwilling to put them at risk when the threats begin, she requests something she hopes the super-successful Morgan might be able to deliver.
Fixing problems is what Morgan does best, but his counter proposal takes them in a direction neither is equipped to handle. Determined to confront the past, will they survive to build a future?


A PENNY FOR MY THOUGHTS?
 This was  a GREAT book!!!! I couldn't put it down. Literally! I started reading it before going to bed, thinking I'll just read a couple of chapters and then go to bed....next thing I knew, it was 3 in the morning, and I had to be up the next day for church. So what did I do, I got up, hurried through getting ready, and read some more, and I read some on the way to church, and finally finished it on the way home from church. :) lol, it really was an edge-of-your-seat kind of book. The suspense was killing, and the romance was good. I loved how she made it so real. It wasn't the normal 'mushy-gushy' stuff that you mainly get in romance novels. She had them have many ups and downs, and admitting to not really being able to love, but that they were willing to give what they had to give. (which in and of itself is a testament to love)
 Quinn is on the run, and she hopes that she has found a place where she can live in peace, until the very thing that she was running from, gets out of jail, and contacts her.
 Morgan is also on the run...emotionally and spiritually to an extent. He is grieving and doesn't want anything to do with women other than his daughter...until he helps a girl move a piece of furniture. Little did he know he would be helping her with much more than that.
 I'm not going to mention much more of the actually story, because I think it's put together to wonderfully to be told anyother way other than the way the author has written it. So sit back, (make sure you have time to read the whole thing in one sitting) grab your favorite blanket, form of caffeine, and curl up with this book. I promise you wont be disappointed.




To the FTC and whomever else it may concern, I received this book Bethany House Publishing. In return, I have promised to review the book but have been given the freedom by Bethany House to give my honest opinions whether they be positive or negative.

A Home in Drayton Valley by Kim Vogel Sawyer
click on photo to look inside!

Back Cover:
Hoping to escape the poor conditions of 1880 New York, Tarse Raines and her friends Joss and Mary Brubacher and their two children set off for Kansas aboard an unusual wagon train. But when tragedy strikes on the trip across the prairie, Tarsie is thrown into a partnership with Joss that leave them both questioning God and their plans for the future.
As their funds dwindle and nothing goes as plans  will they give up and go their separate ways? Or will God use their time in Drayton Valley in a way they never expected?

A PENNY FOR MY THOUGHTS?
  It opens with Mary being sick, and Tarsie thinks the only way she could possibly get better is by getting out of the city. But Joss is against the idea. He doesn't want to leave the city and life he knows, until one day he finds himself backed into a corner and the only way he can get out, is by heading to Kansas with his family...and Tarsie.
 Tarsie would never of guessed that her friend and confidant would die before they reached Kansas, the place that they thought would be a new beginning for all of them...together. But will Mary's last dying request put Tarsie in an awkward situation? Will she be able to fulfill it?
 This was a good book, I think it's a fun read, that you can pick up on one of those lazy rainy afternoons. Kim always has a way of doing these period pieces with such fun and interesting twist and turns in the plot.




To the FTC and whomever else it may concern, I received this book Bethany House Publisher. In return, I have promised to review the book but have been given the freedom by Bethany House to give my honest opinions whether they be positive or negative.