Carol Moncado

Set during the Industrial Revolution and the Great Exhibition of 1851, Follow the Heart is a “sitting-room romance” with the feel of a Regency-era novel but the fashions and technological advances of the mid-Victorian age.

From the acclaimed author of To Die For comes a stirring novel told that sheds new light on Elizabeth I and her court.Like Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir, Sandra Byrd has attracted countless fans for evoking the complexity, grandeur, and brutality of the Tudor period. In her latest tour de force, she poses the question: What happens when serving a queen may cost you your marriage–or your life?

In 1565, seventeen-year-old Elin von Snakenborg leaves Sweden on a treacherous journey to England. Her fiance has fallen in love with her sister and her dowry money has been gambled away, but ahead of her lies an adventure that will take her to the dizzying heights of Tudor power. Transformed through marriage into Helena, the Marchioness of Northampton, she becomes the highest-ranking woman in Elizabeth’s circle. But in a court that is surrounded by Catholic enemies who plot the queen’s downfall, Helena is forced to choose between her unyielding monarch and the husband she’s not sure she can trust–a choice that will provoke catastrophic consequences.

Vividly conjuring the years leading up to the beheading of Mary Queen of Scots, Roses Have Thorns is a brilliant exploration of treason, both to the realm and to the heart.

I think I liked this book best of the three Sandra Byrd books. Partly because I LOVE seeing the “after” in a Happily Ever After. Elin/Helena marries more than once and finds true love early on. Of the three leading ladies, she is the most “historically real” rather than “based on historically real.” Maybe that’s why I liked it better. I understand the delaying of love/marriage in the others, but for me, that aspect was the most satisfying in this one – even though they went through many ups and downs as most marriages are wont to do.

Elizabeth I – the Virgin Queen – and the 9th longest serving monarch in English history [3rd longest queen after Victoria and Elizabeth II] is responsible for many of the explorations that lead to the U.S. [Virginia anyone?] and the defeat of the Spanish Armada [though God and the weather played a role there as well].

The glimpse into her inner court was a wonderful one. I felt her pain – and understood her choice to remain single, even as I wished for her happiness with the love of her life. I longed for a more peaceful reign than her father, or her brother, or her older sister – Bloody Mary. In many ways, it was, though it wasn’t without strife. Many of the things we saw in the first two books [the reformation, the translations of Tyndale and others of the Bible into English, etc] come to fruition in Roses Have Thorns.

As always with a good book, I didn’t want it to end, but I was glad to have a long, satisfying story with both Elizabeth and Helena. My favorite part? The “E” ring. I loved that and how it related back to To Die For and Elizabeth’s mother – Anne Boleyn.

The only thing I wish? That there were more coming, but, alas, I don’t think there are.

Overall Rating: 8.75 out of 10 stars

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ecopy in exchange for my honest review.

The author of To Die For returns to the court of Henry VIII as a young woman is caught between love and honor.  

Juliana St. John is the daughter of a prosperous knight. Though her family wants her to marry the son of her father’s business partner, circumstances set her on a course toward the court of Henry VIII and his last wife, Kateryn Parr.

Sir Thomas Seymour, uncle of the current heir, Prince Edward, returns to Wiltshire to tie up his concerns with Juliana’s father’s estate and sees instantly that Juliana would fit into the household of the woman he loves, Kateryn Parr. Her mother agrees to have her placed in Parr’s household for “finishing” and Juliana goes, though perhaps reluctantly. 

For she knows a secret. She has been given the gift of prophecy, and in one of her visions she has seen Sir Thomas shredding the dress of the king’s daughter, the lady Elizabeth, to perilous consequence.

As Juliana learns the secrets of King Henry VIII’s court, she faces threats and opposition, learning truths about her own life that will undo everything she holds dear.

Henry VIII wasn’t someone I knew much about before reading these two books by Sandra. Other than the whole “blame his wives for having girls then chopping off their heads” thing. And the “Henry the Eighth I am, I am, Henry the Eighth I am” thing.

After reading To Die For: A Novel of Anne Boleyn, I thought I knew what to expect from Henry in this novel and I wasn’t terribly disappointed. I did wish for Kateryn to have more of a chance at happiness once Henry passed and she became the Dowager Queen [no spoilers here – only what is pretty commonly known].

Julianna doesn’t just live through the turmoil of being close to one of Henry’s wives, but also through personal experiences I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. She survives it all with grace and as much dignity as she can muster.

Her knight in shining armor [literally? ;)] Jamie is wonderful and the resolution with their relationship is enough to make a girl give a waffy sigh and revel in the ending for a few minutes before getting back to the “real world.”

Not long after I finished this one [less than an hour actually], I started the next one – look for it tomorrow.

Overall rating: 8.5 out of 10 stars

To Die For, is the story of Meg Wyatt, pledged forever as the best friend to Anne Boleyn since their childhoods on neighboring manors in Kent. When Anne’s star begins to ascend, of course she takes her best friend Meg along for the ride. Life in the court of Henry VIII is thrilling at first, but as Anne’s favor rises and falls, so does Meg’s. And though she’s pledged her loyalty to Anne no matter what the test, Meg just might lose her greatest love—and her own life—because of it. 

Meg’s childhood flirtation with a boy on a neighboring estate turns to true love early on. When he is called to follow the Lord and be a priest she turns her back on both the man and his God. Slowly, though, both woo her back through the heady times of the English reformation. In the midst of it, Meg finds her place in history, her own calling to the Lord that she must follow, too, with consequences of her own. Each character in the book is tested to figure out what love really means, and what, in this life, is worth dying for.

Though much of Meg’s story is fictionalized, it is drawn from known facts. The Wyatt family and the Boleyn family were neighbors and friends, and perhaps even distant cousins. Meg’s brother, Thomas Wyatt, wooed Anne Boleyn and ultimately came very close to the axe blade for it. Two Wyatt sisters attended Anne at her death, and at her death, she gave one of them her jeweled prayer book—Meg.

I’ve had this book and the one following, The Secret Keeper: A Novel of Kateryn Parr, sitting in my TBR stack for a long time – I mean – check out those covers! I offered to review the third in the series, Roses Have Thorns: A Novel of Elizabeth I, knowing it would mean I’d have to read the first two ;). Look for reviews of the other two coming soon.

Sandra sucked me into the world of England, in a time period I don’t think I’ve ever read before. Romance and intrigue. Treason and loyalty. Faith and fear. All come together as she weaves a masterful tale surrounding one of Henry VIII’s wives – one who ultimately lost her head*. Literally.

Meg spends her life in service to Anne, doing her best to keep her dear friend safe from those who would do her harm. Anne leads the charge – as much as a woman with the ear of the king can – away from Catholicism and into a reformation that, eventually, leads to others separating from the Catholic Church [and the Church of England] and into denominations as we know them today. She is instrumental in seeing the Holy Writ translated into English so everyone can read it, not just the priests.

Though I already knew the outcome, the romantic in me loved the relationship between Anne and Henry, until it started to devolve, of course. My heart broke for Meg. Deep inside, she wanted nothing more than to be free to love Will Ogilvy – her childhood sweetheart and only love. Will has become a priest and Meg serves Anne and has no dowry, leaving their love as secondary to their other pursuits, no matter how much they might have wished otherwise.

Despite all the mayhem and death, beheadings, seemingly false accusations of adultery and treason, Sandra manages to give something of a happy ending in a way that very pleasantly surprised me, but I won’t spoil it here :D.

Reading The Secret Keeper has already commenced and will be reviewed shortly – and after that Roses Have Thorns, the story of Elizabeth I – daughter of Anne and Henry. I only hope Meg makes an appearance or two :).

Overall rating: 8.5 out of 10 stars

*The story is based on a true one, so no need for a spoiler alert there ;).

Winsome and Romantic–the Perfect Summer Read!

When Meg Cole’s father dies unexpectedly, she becomes the majority shareholder of his oil company and the single inheritor of his fortune. Though Meg is soft-spoken and tenderhearted–more interested in art than in oil–she’s forced to return home to Texas and to Whispering Creek Ranch to take up the reins of her father’s empire.

The last thing she has the patience or the sanity to deal with? Her father’s thoroughbred racehorse farm. She gives its manager, Bo Porter, six months to close the place down.

Bo’s determined to resent the woman who’s decided to rob him of his dream. But instead of anger, Meg evokes within him a profound desire to protect. The more time he spends with her, the more he longs to overcome every obstacle that separates them–her wealth, his unworthiness, her family’s outrage–and earn the right to love her.

But just when Meg begins to realize that Bo might be the one thing on the ranch worth keeping, their fragile bond is viciously broken by a force from Meg’s past. Can their love–and their belief that God can work through every circumstance–survive?

It’s no secret that I absolutely loved Becky’s debut novel, My Stubborn Heart. If you haven’t read it, you should. It was one of my top five books last year – it’s too hard to decide which is number one ;). And hey – you can get it for $5.60 on Amazon right now :). Her sophomore effort doesn’t disappoint. One of the things I told her on Facebook:

I have four more words for you.

Not nearly long enough.

That is all.

Plus Jake best get a story. If he doesn’t for realz, I’ll hunt you down in Indy and have you make one up over lunch.

Meg and Bo are FABULOUS! Undeniably Yours jumped to the top of my reading pile when it arrived, because I absolutely could not wait. Bo is one of those heroes you sigh happily over and wish you could write as well [at least, if you’re a writer like I am]. Meg is a wonderful heroine, scarred and scared, wanting only to make her late father proud but feeling completely over her head.

Plus Bo is a cowboy. What more do you need?

The romance is wonderful. The writing better – drawing the reader into the story world and making her [or me anyway ;)] wish it would last forever. The upside of the ending [if there is such a thing], there’s at least two more books in this series with the stories of Bo’s brothers. The down side? As always, the time between books :(.

Don’t start Undeniably Yours unless you have time to finish – you won’t want to put it down! I know I didn’t – and I can’t wait to reread it!

Overall rating: 9.75 out of 10 stars

Thanks to Becky and her publisher for an influencer copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

In Always the Baker, Never the Bride, readers fell in love with Emma Rae and Jackson, and they’ve gotten more acquainted with them in the two books that followed. 

But now it’s time for the diamond to meet the road as Jackson fields an offer to sell The Tanglewood, a move that will uproot this high-flying family act once and for all. Get reacquainted with all of the lovable and quirky characters from the first three books as your favorite diabetic baker figures out if she’ll achieve her greatest goal of all: Will Emma, at last, become FINALLY the Bride?

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the Emma Rae Creations series! I do wish I would have gone back to reread the other three before starting this one [that whole “horrible with names” thing], but it wasn’t long before it all came flooding back to me – in a good way ;). If you haven’t read the first three, I don’t think it’s necessary, but I do think it would be very beneficial.

Jackson has an offer to buy Tanglewood. He and Emma, as they finalize plans for their wedding, try to decide what to do – what is best not only for them, but also for everyone else at Tanglewood who are family – literally or figuratively.

But between new babies, Emma’s health, and the pressure of trying to create the perfect cake for their wedding, it’s all too much.

Sandy does a wonderful job of pulling us back into the Tanglewood world and leaving us wishing it was real. We’re staying in the area next month and I so wish we could stay there!

And Hildie – I LOVE Hidlie! Oh how I wish we’d get to see more of her!

A wonderful final installment of the Emma Rae series, and a wonderful read besides! One thing I love? I’ve already got an advance copy of Sandra’s next offering waiting to be read :D.

Overall rating: 9 out of 10 stars

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ecopy in exchange for my honest review.

Five years ago, Keelyn Blake’s armed, mentally ill stepfather took her family hostage in their house in rural Colorado. She and her half-sister Raven made it out alive, but others did not. Authorities blamed the father’s frequent hallucinations about a being named Lucent, but in the end, even the best of the FBI’s hostage negotiators failed to overcome the man’s delusions and end the standoff peacefully.

Now, Lucent is back, and he’s no hallucination. In fact, he is a very real person with dangerous motives. He has kidnapped Raven’s daughter, and–Keelyn worries–maybe has hurt Raven as well. Though she is estranged from her sister, Keelyn feels the immediate need to find Raven and save what family she has left. But when others who were involved in that fateful day start dying, some by mysterious circumstances, Keelyn wonders if she can emerge unscathed a second time.

Can I say how much I LOVE the covers of Jordyn’s books? So much cover-love out there these days! [I have three more book reviews to write today – one of the covers is good – I like it a lot, but the other two? LOVE them!]

Poison picks up about five years after Proof leaves off. If you’ve read Proof, I’d recommend a quick reread or scan of reviews/synopses just to remind yourself of who is who, but if you haven’t you’ll be just fine. I have a hard time remembering names in real life and in fiction and then find myself going, “who is that again?” instead of just reading, so a reread would have been a good plan.

Keelyn is still scarred from the day her step-father killed her mother and most of the rest of her family. Only two escaped – Keelyn and Raven. She tried to get custody of her younger sister, but young and without good income, it simply wasn’t possible. Now, Raven’s daughter has been found abandoned outside the restaurant where Keelyn and her fiance, Lee, are having lunch – and her step-father’s psychiatrist dead in the front seat.

Keelyn and Lee must work together – along with Nate and Lilly from Proof – to figure out who’s killing all the people involved in that fateful day. Other police officers (Lee was on the scene and Nate was the FBI negotiator) are dying. Doctors. Psychiatrists. Is Lee next? Keelyn? Is Raven safe? And what about the man claiming to be Lucent – the supposed hallucination that “forced” him to kill his family?

It’s a race against time when people start dying and the threats get closer and closer to Keelyn and her niece, Sophia – and to Lee and Nate. Can they figure it all out in time? And can Keelyn and Lee’s relationship stand the tests – and the secrets – coming their way?

Once again, Jordyn hits it out of the park. A fast paced thrill ride that keeps you on the edge of your seat from page one until the resolution at the end. Don’t read this at night for two reasons – random noises in the yard will make you jump as you’re immersed in the story world and you’ll be up way too late.

Book three, sadly the last book in this series, is too far away.

Overall rating: 8.75 out of 10 stars

Thanks to Jordyn and the publisher for an influencer copy in exchange for my review.

NOTE: AS OF 4/23 – STRAND OF DECEPTION IS 1.99 ON KINDLE!!!!!!!!! No idea how long it will last so double check before clicking buy!!

When Gina Ford, the daughter of a prominent Tennessee politician, goes missing from the University of Memphis a week after another girl was murdered on the same campus, police call in the FBI. Nick Hagar, married to his job as Special Agent in Charge, is assigned to the case, and when Gina’s body is found, her father demands justice.

Maddie Baxter is the forensic expert running DNA tests from the crime scene. When they come back without a match, Nick asks her to do a familial DNA run that yields a shocking result: the prime suspect is Adam Alexander, the very same guy who broke Maddie’s heart when she was in college.

But do scientific advancements tell the whole story? Strand of Deception offers romance, suspense, and a lively debate about the impact of DNA testing, for better or worse, on the United States justice system.

The third in Robin’s Justice Seekers series brings closure to the third Baxter sibling. You do not need to have read the first two in order to enjoy this one, but I recommend it anyway ;). Reviews can be found on this site.

It’s a page turning [or right arrow pushing] novel, hooking you from the opening page until the last waffy sigh. With twists and turns worthy of a good NCIS episode [or maybe Castle is more appropriate?], I was kept guessing the whole time. The person who did it was on my radar, then off, then on, then off. And I don’t think I ever guessed the truth – something I’m usually pretty good at.

I loved Maddie and Nick and wished we’d get to see them again in the future, but as this is the last of the series, that’s unlikely. :/

The main plot revolving around the death of Gina Ford is a great one, but just as good is the subplot about a man Maddie helps set free when the evidence simply isn’t there to uphold his conviction*.

I know Robin is working on some other projects, but I look forward to another romantic suspense!

Overall rating: 8.75 out of 10 stars

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ecopy in exchange for my honest review.

*Random aside: It made me think of the Ryan Ferguson case and wonder when he might finally get to go free since there’s no physical evidence he was there…

In 1882, Sarah Whittier dreams of opening an art studio run by immigrant women. She plans to use the house left to her by family friend Josiah Cady as collateral for her studio. But will all be lost when the inheritance is challenged by an angry man claiming to be Josiah’s son and legal heir? Rumor of gold nuggets hidden in the house, place Sarah’s life in danger. Her future uncertain and her safety threatened, Sarah has nowhere to turn. That is, unless she can soften a vengeful man’s heart–and they both learn that love is finer than any gold.

Ms. Herriman’s sophomore effort is every bit as good as her first. In fact, it’s a bit more my speed as it’s set in the US rather than the British Isles. I thoroughly enjoyed Irish Healer, but I loved the foray into San Francisco.

Both Sarah and Daniel have reason to distrust each other and to stay as far away from each other as possible. Rumors of treasure left by Josiah – Daniel’s long-absent father and Sarah’s employer/father figure – brings out the worst in many people, including the two of them from time to time.

A brilliant cast of characters comes to life as the streets of San Francisco become the backdrop to a love story that overcomes all odds. Daniel has his twin ten-year-old sisters to take care of and Sarah wants nothing more than to help immigrant women better their lives

With a twist at the end you have to read to believe [be careful reading Amazon reviews – someone gave it away :(], the two struggle to reconcile reality with their perceptions and set aside preconceived notions to see what might be between the two of them.

I look forward to Ms. Herriman’s next offering!

Overall rating: 8.5 out of 10 stars

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ecopy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Jilted by a fortune hunter, cowgirl Cassidy McClare is a spunky Texas oil heiress without a fortune who would just as soon hogtie a man as look at him. Hoping a summer visit with her wealthy cousins in San Francisco will help her forget her heartache, Cassidy travels west. But no sooner is she settled in beautiful California than Jamie McKenna, a handsome pauper looking to marry well, captures her heart. When Jamie discovers the woman he loves is poorer than he is, Cassidy finds herself bucked by love a second time. Will Jamie discover that money can’t buy love after all? And can Cassidy ever learn to fully trust her heart to a man?

With delectable descriptions and a romantic sensibility, bestselling author Julie Lessman brings the Gilded Age to life in this sumptuous new series. Readers will faithfully follow Lessman to the West Coast for more romance, passion, and surprising revelations found in Love at Any Cost.

It’s no secret to anyone who knows me that I adore Julie Lessman. She’s utterly adorable, so sweet, and such a wonderful encourager.

Even if she does make me cry.

At least two Facebook status updates, the day I read this, railed at Jules for that fact. I already had a headache [stupid weather system coming through], but I trust Julie [and Pepper Basham had already assured me it all ended up good in the end].

In Julie’s first departure from Boston and the O’Connor family, she finds a winner in San Francisco and the Cousins McClare.

Cassie is a spunky cowgirl, reminiscent [in a great way] of a Mary Connealy heroine, uprooted from her Texas ranch and transplanted to Nob Hill. Jamie is an up and coming lawyer, working three jobs at times to pull himself, his mother and his crippled sister out of Barbary Coast and into respectability.

From page one, sparks fly and they find more in common than either could have imagined. But the one thing that drives them apart is faith in God – Cassie’s faith and Jamie’s lack.

Jamie convinces Cassie to open her heart to the possibility of an “us” while she convinces him to open his heart to the Creator of the universe.

But when things are looking good, something happens to rip them apart. One thing after another. One obstacle is overcome and another thrown in their path. The obstacles don’t feel forced or like Julie sat around and said “Huh, what else can I throw at them?” but organic to the story.

Can Cassie truly open her heart, let Jamie earn her trust? Can Jamie look at his past in the light of shocking revelations and realize that God’s hand has been in his life all along?

Tears of joy, tears of sorrow and God’s plan through all of it. A Julie Lessman novel through and through.

Oh – did I mention the secondary story? Cassie’s aunt Caitlin and her late husband’s brother, Logan? They made me cry as much as Cassie and Jamie did. But, stinker that Julie is, their story is going to span all three novels in the Cousins McClare series. It irritates me to no end that I have to wait for them ;). I may have to go find her and coerce the rest of the story out of her with cookies.

The good thing about this series? The books are coming more often than Julie’s last two series. The bad thing? It’s still nine months until the next one. Sigh.

Overall Rating: 9.25 out of 10 stars

Available April 15, 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Thanks to Revell and NetGalley for an ecopy in exchange for my honest review.