Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland by Roseanna M. White

On Christmas Day, I spent one of my two Amazon gift cards. One of the books I purchased was Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland by Roseanna M. White. Now I confess, this book got kind of lost in my to be read tower, given that I had so many friends release books in January and February, not to mention the fact that I was struggling through my own manuscript, thus curtailing my reading time. But finally, finally I got to this one!

I knew I wanted to read this book from the moment I heard it was set in the years following the American Revolution. During college, the American Revolution was my era of obsession. I wrote my senior honors thesis on Abigail Adams. My first ever completed novel (I still love the story line but the story itself needed major work!) was set during the American Revolution. It isn’t an extremely popular time period for novels, however. At least not at the moment. So you can see why I jumped on this title!

And Roseanna didn’t disappoint me in the least! Not only did I love all the history woven into the story, but the characters were memorable and the dialogue was fantastic!


 On the one hand, I wish I would have picked it up right after I bought it. On the other, it was worth the wait so I could enjoy the read. Either way, if you are looking for a fun and interesting historical romance, check out Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed!

Off My Desk

Since you are all probably sick of me complaining about how book #3 has eaten my lunch in the writing of it, you’ll all be glad to know that I got it off my desk on Wednesday. Yes, I finally hit send. I know it isn’t perfect, but it’s better than it was. It will be good to have another set of eyes to see all the weaknesses in the story. By the time I get it back, I’ll be ready to dive into it again. For now, I'm rejoicing in having it off my desk. I can breathe a sigh of relief!

The Mother Road by Jennifer AlLee

What do I love about Jennifer AlLee’s books? Her characters are so real. First The Pastor’s Wife. Now, The Mother Road. (And coming in the fall, A Wild Goose Chase Christmas.)

 

The Mother Road is the story of two estranged sisters who take to Route 66 on a road trip to visit their parents. Besides being 13 years apart in age and miles apart in education, career, and faith, the two woman have in common that both of their lives have taken turns they didn’t expect. Dealing with the fact that their mother has Alzheimer’s adds to the complications in their relationship. 

Like our real life relationships and situations, the issues Natalie and LIndsey face do not have easy solutions. But also like our real lives, the Lord provides others who give grace when things fall apart and support as they try to untangle the knots that bind them. 

The Mother Road is a great read I highly recommend. 

Promise Me This by Cathy Gohlke

Long ago, at the ACFW conference in 2008, I met Cathy Gohlke. She found me in a dark moment, full of tears. The Lord used her to encourage and comfort my heart—and also to change my direction back to writing the historical fiction I loved. I devoured her first two (Christy Award-winning!) books, William Henry is a Fine Name (Civil War Series #1) and I Have Seen Him in the Watchfires.

And then I waited. And waited. And signed my own contract. And waited some more. Finally, this past February, what I’d been waiting for arrived! A new Cathy Gohlke book in my mailbox!

Promise Me This is a sweeping saga of the best kind. Opening in 1912 with the maiden voyage of Titanic, it closes in mid-1919, the world thoroughly changed by war and influenza. But while it is a gripping story of characters caught up in circumstances beyond their control, Promise Me This also presents a beautiful picture of sacrifice and love, one that is particularly poignant as we begin the Passion week. Annie’s and Michael’s journeys on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean will not be quickly forgotten.

I highly recommend this book by this wonderful writer.

The Frontiersman's Daughter by Laura Frantz

The saying “too many books, too little time” has been descriptive of my life these past few years. Once I started attending writing conferences and meeting authors, I found my shelves filled with novels by writers I’d come to call friends. The problem is that there are other writers out there, too. Ones that could eventually become my friends. 

Such is the tale of how I came to read The Frontiersman’s Daughter by Laura Frantz. My sister had gone on a Laura Frantz binge, as had one of my other reader friends. Both highly recommended her novels to me. I had downloaded The Frontiersman’s Daughter to my kindle when it was free, but of course hadn’t read it yet. I remembered that Laura’s books were set in the 1700s, not as popular of a time period but one I have loved since college. So while bored between basketball games, I pulled it up on my phone and started to read. And I was captivated. 

Set in late 1700s Kentucky, this book takes you back to the real frontier, when the “west” hadn’t even reached the Mississippi River. And at a time when the frontier defeated many women, Lael Click finds herself creating her own world there, as woman alone. Of course there are men around. Three that are quite taken with her. I won’t say more because I don’t want to give anything away, but her journey is more than one of romance. It’s a journey to commitment, a journey to salvation, a journey to true love. 

Just at the time I was reading this book and loving the story, I connected with Laura online. (Check out her website www.laurafrantz.net.) Immediately I’d made a new friend! Turns out, our next books are releasing about the same time, and since her publisher, Revell, is under the same Baker Publishing Group umbrella as Bethany House, our books will share space in the fall catalog. Such fun! 

So I found a new author I enjoy reading and, in the process, I made a new friend. If you haven’t read any of Laura’s books, I highly recommend you do!

Heart's Safe Passage by Laurie Alice Eakes

Last year I was captivated by Lady in the Mist, the first book in Laurie Alice Eakes’ series The Midwives. Her words flowed so easily into an entrancing story. I finished the book satisfied and hoping the second book would be about one of the minor characters that intrigued me: Phoebe Lee. 

And guess what? It was! 

Heart’s Safe Passage did not disappoint. You’d not think a story about a midwife could take place mostly on board a ship— ahem, a brig— on the water between the US and England during the War of 1812. And yet Laurie Alice takes us captive there, along with Phoebe Lee and her sister-in-law Belinda. Add in a Scottish captain with a past and a vendetta and we are in for a wild ride! 

What I love about all of Laurie Alice’s books, be they American or British set, is that each one is full of adventure. These are stories where small events have big consequences, stories that keep your heart pounding as you turn each page. And I do love that she brings in English and Scottish heroes even in her “American” books. :)

If you enjoy a good love story with a heavy dose of intrigue and adventure, check out Heart’s Safe Passage and Lady in the Mist. I hope you relish them as much as I have. 

The Rose of Winslow Street by Elizabeth Camden

I have to admit, I was a bit afraid to begin Elizabeth Camden’s new novel, The Rose of Winslow Street, because frankly, her debut novel, The Lady of Bolton Hill, which came out last summer, was so fabulous. I wondered if she could top it. 

 

I needn’t have worried. 

The Rose of Winslow Street is one of the most unique works of historical fiction I have read in a long time, as regards location, characters, and situations. First, the hero is a Romanian immigrant with a mysterious past. Then there is the heroine, who has a “flaw” not often articulated in a heroine. (I’m trying not to give too much away!) Then there is the house— the one that both Michael and Libby lay claim to. 

Fascinating on every level of the story. Of course as a writer of historical fiction myself, I kept having jaw-drop moments realizing how many things Elizabeth had to meticulously research for this story. Amazing. 

But in the end, it’s all about the characters. At least it is for me. And there were some great ones that lived in these pages. 

If you’ve read The Lady of Bolton Hill, you know that Elizabeth Camden can tell a story. And she just proved it again in The Rose of Winslow Street. 

Sixty Acres and a Bride by Regina Jennings

Last year, I opened my inbox to an email from someone I didn’t know. She introduced herself and said she’d just signed her first book contract--with Bethany House. She had some questions, which I tried to answer. We corresponded a few times and when she ended up coming to my area with her family while her husband was here on business, we met for lunch. By the time we parted, I felt as if we’d been friends for years. 

Please allow me to introduce you to my friend, Regina Jennings. She blogs at www.reginajennings.com/blog, where, I have to say, she posts some really funny stuff! But today I want to tell you about her debut novel, Sixty Acres and a Bride. 

This was such a good book for so many reasons. For one, it is a Ruth and Boaz story--and is there anyone who doesn’t love that? Add in the whole Texas ranching element and it just gets plain fun. 

Rosa comes to Texas from Mexico with her mother-in-law, both of them widowed when a silver mine in Mexico caved in. But there’s a ranch waiting for them in Texas. And family. Except the ranch has back taxes owed. And the family? They are headed up by a strong and faithful cowboy bent on protecting his land and his kin, but who still blames himself for his wife’s death five years earlier. 

In spite of curtailed reading time due to writing, I found myself itching to pick the book up in spare moments. I was completely captivated by Rosa, the loyal and faithful daughter-in-law straddling two cultures. 

Sixty Acres and a Bride is a fun, quick read that will remind you again how wonderful it is to have a kinsman redeemer, not only to pay the debts out of our reach but also to save us from ourselves. 

The Ratings Dilemma

So maybe y’all can help me with a dilemma. I really, really, really like the concept of Goodreads, the social networking site for readers. When it comes right down to it, some of the most meaningful conversations start over books. So this concept appeals to me, both as a reader and also as a writer. I mean, how awesome to connect with people who have read your books--and enjoyed them!

So in case you aren’t familiar with the site, here’s a huge simplification. You have a couple of different virtual bookshelves. Books you’ve read and books you want to read. For the books you’ve read, you are supposed to rate them, 1-5 stars. 

I get the reasoning. This way you find people whose reading tastes are like yours and you can judge beforehand whether or not you’d like to a read a title based on their rating. But here’s where things get dicey for me. Rating the books I’ve read. If ratings meant the same to everyone, there wouldn’t be a problem. But they don’t. Some rate a book 5 stars if it holds their attention and elicits an emotion. Some rate a book 5 stars based on the amount of romance between the main characters (even if it isn’t a romance!) Some rate a book 5 stars if it is a book struck a deep enough chord that they intend to keep on their shelves instead of give away or sell to a used bookstore. Some rate a book 5 stars if it is, well, brilliant. As in, a classic, a work of literature that has (or will) stand the test of time. 

Ok, maybe I’m the only one that falls into that last category. Do you see my issue? To me, a 5 star book is along the lines of Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Gone With the Wind, To Kill a Mockingbird, Bleak House, LIttle Dorritt, War and Peace--and even titles like Anne of Green Gables, Secret Garden, and Little Women. And yet, I know that many authors and readers would be appalled if I rated the books I often read in comparison to these. Giving a book 3 stars is almost the equivalent of hating it, or so many authors and readers think. If I want to find people who enjoy what I enjoy, my ratings have to have some correlation with theirs. 

So where do I set 5 stars? How do I rearrange my thinking so as to connect with readers, not alienate my writer friends, and yet still give my honest opinion? It becomes an especially weighty question when I know others are asking these same questions in regards to putting a rating on my books. (This is why I don’t do bookseller site ratings, either.)

For example: one reader gave me 1 star, saying that after only a couple of pages the reader realized the book wasn’t for them. Ok. So that 1 star didn’t mean the book was bad (because it never got read more than a page or two to find out), it just wasn’t what that reader wanted to read. Should they have rated it at all? Or does the 1 star simply serve to show others who have similar reading tastes that my book doesn’t fall into their category? 

Thus is my dilemma. Do I dive into Goodreads, figure out my own rating system (whatever that might be, even if others don’t always understand it) and become a part of a huge reading community? Or do I try to navigate Goodreads without actually rating any of the books I read? Yet I want others to know when there are books I enjoy. And I do enjoy books that aren’t necessarily genius. 

Please help! I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Cherry Blossom Capers

I’m not usually a novella reader. Or a contemporary romance reader. But since two wonderful writers I know--Cara Putman and Gina Conroy--comprised half of the novella collection Cherry Blossom Capers, I figured I’d try it. (I’ll definitely be on the lookout now for Lynette Sowell and Frances Devine, because their stories were great, too!)

Of course it tipped me over the edge when I read that all the stories were set in Washington, D.C., the place where my husband and I met twenty-seven years ago this summer. For me, D.C. will always equal romance. But it was the stories themselves pulled me and wouldn’t let go. 

The first one involved a White House chef and an FBI agent. How could I resist that when my daughter almost has her culinary degree? The second involved two attorneys. Again, right up my alley since I’m married to one! The third story’s heroine worked at Mount Vernon--only one of my favorite historical sites. And the fourth owned a coffee shop and inherited an old house. How could you not like that? 

Add in the fact that every story had it’s own mystery to solve and I thoroughly enjoyed my romantic return to D.C. via the pages of this book. If you’ve never tried a novella collection before, this might be a good one to start with. 

The Maid of Fairbourne Hall by Julie Klassen

It’s no secret that, being the Anglophile I am, I love Julie Klassen’s books. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that her newest release, The Maid of Fairbourne Hall was one of the three books I ordered on Christmas morning after opening my Barnes and Noble gift card from my in-laws. 

When it arrived on my doorstep a few days later, I was giddy with excitement. Of course I had to finish the book I was in the middle of reading, first. But I did. Then I curled in front of the fire ready to enjoy a jaunt into 1800s England. 

As usual, Julie did not disappoint. Margaret Macy, a spoiled rich girl, had to get away from her step father’s attempts to marry her to his nephew in order to gain her inheritance. But Margaret did the unthinkable. She not only ran away, she got hired in a country house as a maid. In the house of the man whose proposal she’s refused two years earlier!

Of course besides all the fun of the peek inside the worlds “above stairs” and “below stairs” there is the constant tension of wondering if Margaret— now Nora Garret— will be found out. 

It was a delightful read, one I had trouble putting down. Well done, Julie! I’m already looking forward to the next one! 

Trying to Make a Good Thing

I thought this book, which will be my third published novel, would go much like the last two. Write a draft, do a couple of extensive revisions in light of my critique partners’ and my editor’s comments, then mark it done. 

Think again.

After slogging through draft number one in November and December, I knew the story had major issues in structure. I still liked the characters. And I could tell the story was in there somewhere, fighting to be set free. But no matter how hard I looked at it, I couldn’t see how to fix it. 

I read books on story structure. Made notes. Looked at my story through new grids. And finally— after asking for and receiving some brainstorming help— things took a turn. I had a plan for the story. The characters became more focused, their journeys more definite. I can’t believe how excited I am now to tell their story— now that I can see it. 

For the next six weeks I’ll hunker down and write, praying that when I look up again I’ll have something decent from which to start those two more extensive revisions before marking the story done. Of course you won’t see the result until, Lord willing, the fall of 2013. But good things come to those who wait. At least I’m trying my best to make it a good thing!

A Lasting Impression by Tamera Alexander

My sister has been trying to get me to read Tamera Alexander’s books for the past couple of years. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, it was just that I had so many new titles to read that I rarely took the time to read an older one. 

Then came the Fall 2011 Baker Books catalog. The minute I saw A Lasting Impression, I knew I had to read it. It didn’t release until November— right as I was in the middle of trying to pound out the first draft of what will be my 2013 release. So I held it until our quick pre-Christmas trip. 

Set in post-Civil War Nashville, most of this story takes place at the Belmont Mansion— a fabulous location that I now can’t wait to see in person. Memorable characters people a story filled with romance, a bit of suspense and some just plain fun. And of course I learned things I didn’t know— like that party planning is not a new profession! 

I can’t even explain all the things I enjoyed about this story. I only know it was one I hated to see end and yet, when I closed the back cover, I felt entirely satisfied. Don’t know what Tamera’s next book will be, but you can bet I’ll read it!

Coming in 2012 part 2

Of course I knew I'd forget some! Ugh!

Here are a couple more I remembered:

Summer of Promise by Amanda Cabot

Firethorn by Ronie Kendig

Coming in 2012

Did you get an Amazon or Barnes and Noble (or other bookstore) gift card for Christmas? I did! And while I’ve already ordered a few titles, I’m saving back some of that money for novels by a few of my favorite people that release in the first half of this year. (This is not an exhaustive list, by any means, just some titles I’m greatly anticipating.) Of course that money won’t cover all of these, but I’m sure I’ll scrape together more! 

The Rose of Winslow Street by Elizabeth Camden (1/1/12)

Sixty Acres and a Bride by Regina Jennings (2/1/12)

Heart’s Safe Passage by Laurie Alice Eakes (2/1/12)

Promise Me This by Cathy Gohlke (2/1/12)

The Mother Road by Jen AlLee (4/1/12)

My Stubborn Heart by Becky Wade (5/1/12)

Stardust by Carla Stewart (5/15/12)

Short-Straw Bride by Karen Witemeyer (6/1/12)

Bees in the Butterfly Garden by Maureen Lang (7/1/12)

Veil of Pearls by MaryLu Tyndall (7/1/12)

(Aren't they all beautiful covers?)

Authors with books due out later the year:

Marybeth Whalen

Laurie Alice Eakes (her second book in the Daughters of Bainbridge regency series)

Jody Hedlund

Tamera Alexander

(I’m sure there are many more that I can’t think of right now!)


Happy Reading in 2012!