Carol Moncado

Sometimes everything you ever learned about yourself is wrong
 
Fashion is a fickle industry, a frightening fact for twenty-four year old model Ivy Clark. Ten years in and she’s learned a sacred truth—appearance is everything. Nobody cares about her broken past as long as she looks beautiful for the camera. This is the only life Ivy knows—so when it starts to unravel, she’ll do anything to hold on. Even if that means moving to the quaint island town of Greenbrier, South Carolina, to be the new face of her stepmother’s bridal wear line—an irony too rich for words, since Ivy is far from the pure bride in white. 
 
If only her tenuous future didn’t rest in the hands of Davis Knight, her mysterious new photographer. Not only did he walk away from the kind of success Ivy longs for to work maintenance at a local church, he treats her differently than any man ever has. Somehow, Davis sees through the façade she works so hard to maintain. He, along with a cast of other characters, challenges everything Ivy has come to believe about beauty and worth. Is it possible that God sees her—a woman stained and broken by the world—yet wants her still?

(Let the book reviews begin! I’ve been on a reading spree since SpeedBo ended a couple weeks ago and here they come! To celebrate Katie’s release day – and tax day – here’s number one!)

I’ve looked forward to each of Katie’s books and squeed a bit each time one shows up on my doorstep. This time was no different.

A Broken Kind of Beautiful takes us each to that spot deep inside where we know we’re not good enough. We’re too broken. Too messed up. We’ve done too much wrong. We’ve been cruel or judgmental or gone out and broken almost all of the Ten Commandments (most of us manage to avoid the “thou shalt not kill” one).

Ivy is no different. Her outside is beautiful, unspoiled, perfect. Her insides look like one of those mid-winter car accidents on an Interstate with dozens of cars involved and traffic at a standstill for miles – for hours. She’s broken and afraid and believes herself to not only be unloved but unlovable.

Davis is the same. His circumstances are different. The things he punishes himself for are unique to him. While he believes in God’s power to forgive and redeem, he also believes what he did to be unforgivable and unredeemable.

Of course, they’re both wrong.

A Broken Kind of Beautiful is the two of them, along with Ivy’s step-mom, struggling to understand God’s unconditional love and grace and forgiveness, even when – or perhaps most especially when – we don’t deserve it.

Overall rating: 8.75 out of 10 stars

Thanks to Katie and the publisher for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

In a kingdom controlled by cruel and manipulative women, one princess will discover the power of truth and love.

Trained as a priestess in the temple of Baal, Princess Jehosheba strives to please the demanding Queen Athaliah, daughter of Jezebel. But when a mysterious letter from the dead prophet Elijah predicts doom for the royal household, Jehosheba realizes that the dark arts she practices reach far beyond the realm of earthly governments.

Forced to marry Yahweh’s high priest in order to further Athaliah and Jezebel’s power plays, Jehosheba enters the unfamiliar world of Yahweh’s Temple. Can her new husband show her the truth and love she craves? And can Jehosheba overcome her fear and save the family–and the nation–she loves?

 

 

(My note: This was supposed to have posted weeks ago the day after my last blog. I was so sick and didn’t notice that it never posted :(. My most sincere apologies to Mesu and Revell.)

I have sort of mixed feelings about this book. I enjoyed it, but not as much as I have some of Ms. Andrew’s other offerings and not as much as I have some of the other Biblical fiction I’ve read in recent years.

Well researched and well written, Ms. Andrews delves into life during the reign of Jezebel’s sons in both Israel and Judah. She goes behind the curtain, literally, in the Temple, showing us the life of the high priest and his second. She also shows us life in the palaces. The intrigue, the danger, the desperation to hold onto power [Machiavelli was right – even if he hadn’t lived yet].

The characters were well-rounded and well developed. But for whatever reason, I had difficulty connecting with them. :/ It may well have been my own issues – such as the significant amount of time stuck indoors with disrupted schedules due to our winter mess or the amount of sickness winding its way through my family more times than I care to admit – but I just never really brought myself to care all that much :(. I did like how Jehoiada took care of  Jehosheba after the abuse she endured at the hands of pretty much everyone in her life, especially the women. I hate saying that as I love Ms. Andrew’s books in general, but for me, this one just wasn’t quite as good.

Overall rating: 6.5 out of 10 stars

Thanks to the publisher for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

As I prepared this blog, I took an unintentional trip down memory lane, looking for a particular picture to illustrate the opening portion of it. I’m sure I’m not the only one with Wal-mart bags full of old pictures. No? I am? Erm… moving on… But instead of the one I was looking for (which apparently may not exist), I found pictures of at least six weddings (Steve/Ginger, Ivan/Liz, Greg/Leann, and some whose names I don’t remember), Chick-fil-A parties (I might get some blackmail out of those ;)), births of my first three children (we’d gone digital by the fourth), birthday parties, children’s sleepovers, pictures of my nephew I swore were my son, pictures of my son I swore were my nephew (they’re almost a decade apart), my now-married niece when she was two and eating a SweetTart sucker in the front seat of my husband’s 1980 Datsun (that didn’t show rust because it was rust colored to start with), graduations, soccer games, and so much more.

But not the picture I wanted.

Ah well.

This post is about new memories, with a bit of a look back at old ones.

Valentine’s Day is a special day for a lot of people. For us, it’s not usually met with a lot of fanfare or expensive gifts or lavish dinners out. We teach at a community college and go two months between our last fall check and our first spring one – and Valentine’s Day is too close to the end of that time period to do much. At least most years.

That’s not to say we don’t do anything special. My husband always does something like this:

It started in 2001 when we said we weren’t going to do anything. We were both in grad school and just about flat broke. But Matt cleaned the whole living room and while I slept, put a trail of Hershey’s Kisses down on the floor from our room and an “I <3 U” on the coffee table along with a card that said, “Now that I’ve kissed the ground you walk on, will you be my Valentine?”

Talk about making a girl’s heart go pitter pat!

What’s an unprepared wife to do?!

Why, take a pregnancy test, of course ;).

Sure enough it came back positive and we learned our oldest child was on her way. You can find the whole story on the Reflections in Hindsight blog I did a few years ago.

Two years later, we found out #2 was coming.

Then came a long stretch of pretty regular Valentine’s Days.

Until a few weeks ago. That first picture? That’s from this year. The kids were home from school (again :p – 17 of the last 18 weeks, I’ve had at least one kid home at least one day every week – and the one week they were all in school was the week before Christmas with parties and errands and all that stuff) and they were probably fighting.

Then the phone rang.

When the caller ID clicked in, my stomach dropped. In a good way. Like right before you go down the first hill on a roller coaster. Not the kind right before the sickening crunch of metal on metal you can do nothing to stop.

Murray, Tamela.

As in… Tamela Hancock Murray. Agent extra-ordinare with the Steve Laube Agency.

Now, when I first started looking at agents, the Steve Laube Agency caught my eye because, let’s face it, he’s from Phoenix. I used to shop in his Berean book stores years ago. But when I began querying in earnest, it was Tamela who piqued the most interest. I’d heard great things about her from everyone I talked with and a number of people told me they thought we’d be a good fit. I tended to agree.

A query after the 2012 ACFW Conference led to a phone call and a bunch of emails back and forth but didn’t end up with an offer of representation for a number of reasons. Some mine. Some hers.

The timing just wasn’t right.

But at ACFW 2013, I actually had a chance to sit down for a meeting with her. Our first real face-to-face convo and it was confirmed.

I wanted her to be my agent.

She requested a proposal – with the full manuscript (thanks, in part, I’m sure to an editor who had done the same – at least the full manuscript part rather than the more typical partial request). I sent it out in November.

And waited.

A series of emails flew through cyberspace earlier this year, culminating in that Valentine’s Day phone call.

And the offer of representation!

I won’t mention the manuscript name (or the hero’s, though his name is part of what makes it special) because it’s entered in Genesis, but I’m so excited this is the one that made it through. It’s a story near and dear to my heart for many reasons I can’t explain at the moment without running the risk of contaminating the Genesis judge pool. If (when?) I sign a contract with a publisher then I’ll tell all.

It took another phone call last week to clarify a few things, a phone call that had been put off longer than either of us would have liked due to circumstances beyond our control, to solidify the decision in my mind. That phone call came on a tough day for me – my mom’s 68th birthday. And the contract signing? Yeah. On the 28th anniversary of my mother’s last breath on earth.

But once I had the contract in hand, I knew it was the perfect day. A way to have something perpetually good on a day that is all-too-often perpetually bad.

I’ve often said writing can be like American Idol – especially when those contest entries come back with harsh comments on them or you open that email from an editor or agent and you think you can read between the very polite lines and you wonder… “Am I like that person where all of America cringes and thinks, WHY didn’t your mother/brother/sister/best friend/random stranger tell you that you. just. can’t. sing.”

But sometimes, writing can also be like The Voice. It’s my favorite. My kids love it. We love Shakira and Usher (we like Ceelo and Christina but not as much; the energy and camaraderie and banter with Shakira and Usher is much better, in our opinions). Adam and Blake’s bromance certainly seems genuine. But more than that, they’re coaches. Not judges. COACHES. Sure, there’s a judging aspect involved, but their main goal is to help those contestants succeed, not just choose which ones to eliminate. In fact, some non-winners have gone on to go on tour or at least open for their former coaches.

Have you ever watched Carson Daly when he’s backstage with the family and friends during the Blind Auditions? He’s just as excited – or just as disappointed – as the relatives and friends when the button gets pushed – or doesn’t. And it seems so very genuine, not like some producer somewhere said, “Hey – Carson – act like you mean it.” With his hands on his knees and eyes glued to the monitor, he urges the coaches from afar, saying things like “Come on, Blake! What are you waiting for?!”

If you make it to the Blinds, you deserve to be there – even if a chair doesn’t turn. There is no, “Sweetie, go home and only sing in your car or the shower” on The Voice. There’s advice and encouragement and “try again next year – make sure you come back.” And more than one of those who came back have gotten a chair to turn when they try again.

With this partnership, I feel like I’ve made it to the Blind Auditions. I deserve to be here, just like all of those folks on The Blinds the last few weeks. It feels almost like the agent, in this case Tamela, is like Carson Daly. Cheering, encouraging, seeking out talent. More than one singer has made it to the Blinds because friends bombarded Carson’s Twitter feed with links.

Will this collaboration with Tamela lead to contract offers galore for this manuscript and many others? To “chairs turning”? That’s the goal of course. But knowing that a respected member of one of the most respected literary agencies in the business believes my work and, more importantly, believes in me?

Well, that’s priceless.

Jade returns home to Chapel Springs after years of protecting her fragile heart. Then along comes Daniel, making her long to dance again.

Creative and complicated, Jade McKinley felt like a weed in a rose garden growing up in Chapel Springs. When she left, she thought she’d never look back. But now, pregnant, alone, and broke, she has no other choice but to return.

The mayor of Chapel Springs, Daniel Dawson, has been an honorary member of the McKinley family for years. While his own home life was almost non-existent, Daniel fit right into the boisterous McKinley family. He’s loved Jade for years, but she always saw him as a big brother. Now that she’s back, his feelings are stronger than ever.

As Jade attempts to settle in, nothing feels right. God seems far away, she’s hiding secrets from her family, and she’s strangely attracted to the man who’s always called her “squirt.” Finding her way home may prove more difficult than she imagined.

I’ve enjoyed Denise Hunter’s books for quite some time and when I saw this one available to review, I jumped at it. I read the previous book, Barefoot Summer, and loved it. I was so glad to see Jade and Daniel back to have another shot.

Except Jade didn’t know it was another shot.

She’s just about the only one not in on the secret though, it seems.

Coming home, pregnant with no father in the picture (I won’t say why here), she needs support from someone outside of her close-knit family. Daniel is there, supporting her, quietly loving her,even before he knows the full story. I loved him and his desire to protect Jade at all costs, despite her pregnancy by another man.

A tale of reconciliation and forgiveness and understanding God’s plan isn’t ours but is always used for the greater good, Dancing with Fireflies is a story I’ll reread time and again.

Overall rating: 8.75 out of 10 stars

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

I <3 NaNoWriMo and I love SpeedBo [Seekerville’s version of NaNo]. My goal this month is a full first draft of a new manuscript. So far this month, I’m just over 12K in and I’m so loving this hero. He’s misunderstood [or will be] by the outside world but not the heroine. He wants to protect her from a relationship with him which he believes would be bad for her. She knows better.

Plus he’s a stand up comic of sorts. Literally. What’s not fun about that?

So my word counts this month:
Mar. 1: 2004
Mar. 2: 3006
Mar. 3: 4025
Mar. 4: 3021
Total: 12056

I don’t have strings of days like these often outside NaNo and SpeedBo, but when I’m in “creation” mode, there’s nothing like the high that comes from seeing that number flip over to a new 1000 or typing furiously and realizing just how much spewed out in how short a period of time.

I’m starting new word count widgets [which I didn’t do for NaNo]. One is over there in the right hand column and the other is the link up there that says “Fun Word Counters” or something. Last year, I finished a full first draft [72K words] in 13 days. A total God thing. And exhausting. I don’t know that I’ll manage that this year, but I am further ahead than I was this time last year.

Last year:
Words: 9069
Done: 12.96%
To Go: 87.04%

This year:
Words: 12056
Done: 16.07%
To Go: 83.93%

Last year, I had two Saturdays with over 10K before the 13th. I won’t this year [there aren’t two Saturdays left ;)]. And 7 days over 6K starting March 5th. So tomorrow may show me whether or not this could happen this year. I doubt it. And I’m okay with that.

But the rough draft will happen.

And I’m really okay with that :D.

More importantly, though. Today would have been my mother’s 68th birthday. I wish she could have been here to see this. To see me grow up. To see my kids. She didn’t and Saturday is another kind of anniversary, a much sadder one. So today, besides writing, I’m also making a birthday cake.

Happy birthday, Mom. I love you.

A seamstress at a swanky bridal boutique, Gabi Delgado dreams of doing more than ripping out seams and fitting dresses to doe-eyed brides. She wants to see her own dress designs gracing the young women of Texas.

When Jordan Spencer, the editor of Texas Bride magazine visits the shop to do a feature, Gabi is devastated to lose her job in his very influential presence. Convinced she’ll never get her dreams off the ground now, Gabi needs lots of encouragement–especially from her friend Bella Neeley–to take a chance and start her business.

And as she gets to know Jordan, she discovers that she may have to take a chance on love as well. Could it be that she’ll have to design her own wedding dress soon?

 

 

 

Anyone who knows me or who has been around this blog very long knows I adore Janice Thompson to pieces. She has been a good friend and adviser to me, always patiently answering questions and loving me even when all I wanted to do was cry.

I impatiently tap my foot waiting for each new Janice-fic to come out, watching my mailbox anxiously when I know it’s on its way. Cracking open the brand new spine as soon as time permits [and sometimes sooner] when it arrives.

The Dream Dress was no exception. Once again, Janice swept me off to Galveston, to a world with Bella Neely and the Splendora Sisters playing supporting roles for a zany cast of characters.

I loved Gabi and Jordan. She’s talented and he’s not what you’d expect from a wedding magazine reporter. The secondary cast of characters were wonderful. From the Rossi-Neely family to the Splendora Sisters to Gabi’s family – her grandmother, in particular, was wonderful.

The only problem with The Dream Dress, as with so many others particularly Janice’s? Not long enough. They never are. Fortunately, Bouquet of Love will be out in August and more Rossi-Neely-Splendora entertainment is coming after that – followed by a new wedding series I can’t wait to read!!!!

Overall rating: 8.5 out of 10 stars

Thanks to Janice and the publisher for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

A year’s worth of novellas from twelve inspirational romance authors. Happily ever after guaranteed.

Susanna has found her true prince, and their happily ever after is just around the corner. But when Nate asks her to give up something precious to her, Susanna can’t help but wonder if it’s a sign that their love is not meant to be.

Susanna Truitt (Once Upon A Prince) is three weeks from royalty. She’ll soon marry King Nathaniel II of Brighton Kingdom. But when the government insists she renounce her American citizenship before the wedding, coupled with the lack of involvement by family and friends, Susanna’s heart begins to doubt whether this marriage is God’s plan for her.

Nathaniel would do anything for his bride-to-be. But he knows his position requires that she give up a lot to be with him. Her life will never be her own—right down to her very identity. When she travels home to St. Simon’s Island, Georgia, right before the wedding, Nathaniel fears she won’t return. Gathering his courage, he devises a plan to win his bride all over again, and together they seek out a kingdom to treasure above all.

It’s no secret that I loved Once Upon a Prince and have been looking forward to A March Bride since I first heard about it.

Once again, Ms. Hauck does not disappoint.

Though much shorter than either Once Upon a Prince or Princess Ever After, she weaves a complete tale. There is no “will they fall in love?” question to answer as we already know they have, but life conspires against the king and his fiance. A new twist to the law allowing Nathaniel to marry Susanna requires her to give up the last thing she has of herself: her US citizenship.

Susanna feels isolated, separated from all she loves. None of her friends and few of her family are going to be able to come to her wedding. She can’t wear the dress she’s always dreamed of. And this citizenship is the last straw.

Nathaniel would do anything for his soon-to-be bride, but sometimes there’s only so much he can do. Tough choices, political opponents, and a busy, exhausting, schedule conspire to keep them apart.

In the end, the happy ending made me smile after the troubles made me cry. Rarely does a novella suck me in enough for actual tears to fall, but this one did. Perhaps that could be partially attributed to the fact this is a sequel with the same characters I’ve already gotten to know and love, but regardless of the reason, it did.

Overall rating: 8.25 out of 10 stars [only because it’s too short ;)]

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

Blaine Donovan has a secret, but so far his plan to keep the rest of the world in the dark about who he really is and what’s really going on in his life has worked. If he can just finish school before the demons catch up with him, he knows he can make life make sense once again. However, when he runs into Melody Todd, a semi-friend he had thought was long-gone, life takes a turn Blaine wasn’t at all expecting. 

Still hurting from watching her best friend marry someone else, Melody Todd has given up on dating, guys, and herself. In fact, when Blaine shows back up in her life, she does what she always does with the eligible guys who look her way—she sets him up with someone else. But Blaine soon proves to be much different than he at first seems. Too many things are not adding up the way they are supposed to, and the more Melody digs, the more she sees that the Blaine she knows is not the real Blaine at all… 

We met Blaine in book 2 of this series and had an opinion about him and who he was from the beginning.

From just about page one of this book, those assumptions are blown out of the water.

In many ways, it’s a lesson about “judging a book by it’s cover” or at least its first impression.

Blaine especially, isn’t who he seems at first and he goes to great lengths to keep Melody from seeing the truth. She discovers it anyway and they work together to solve the problem that keeps presenting itself.

Through it all, he helps Melody overcome the pain from watching her best friend [AJ from White Knight] with his new wife.

Staci weaves a story about honesty, reserving judgement, and helping those in their time of need. And allowing God to set you on the path He wants when the time is right.

I loved the epilogue, bringing all three couples together one last time to give us a hint about where they’re headed in the future.

Overall rating: 8.25 out of 10 stars

Thanks to Staci for a copy in exchange for my review.

To save others’ lives, they will risk their own…

Houston firefighter, Jeff Taylor is a fireman’s fireman. He’s not afraid of anything, and no situation is too dangerous to keep him on the sideline if lives are at stake.

Lisa Matheson runs a semi-successful ad agency that’s on the brink of falling apart. Her employees are incompetent, and her schedule has become exhausting. When she takes on a client with a brilliant idea for a big conference, she thinks that maybe, finally this is her lucky break. However, the fire station wasn’t what she had in mind for finding conference speakers. When she falls for a handsome but shy firefighter, it’s possible that life might just be going her way for a change. The only problem is she can’t control Jeff and the death wish he seems to have…

I’ve been looking for an excuse to read this series by Staci for some time – ever since I picked this book up for free a couple years ago. But those of you who frequent this blog know… I read a lot. But almost all of what I read, I read because I’m reviewing it which doesn’t leave a ton of time for “just because” books. So when Staci asked for reviewers for book 3, I jumped at it.

From page 1, Stacy sucked me in. Drawing me into the world of Lisa’s marketing and Jeff’s firefighting. Jeff and his firefighting buddies are exactly what you’d expect from a group of firefighters. Hunky and protective. And always willing to go the extra mile for their friends.

Lisa and Jeff have to work their way toward each other. Lisa needs to learn to let go of her perfectionism and Jeff needs to realize he doesn’t control life or death, no matter his skill as a firefighter.

The technology – especially with Eve – did throw me a bit in this series until I realized they came out several years ago. Once I realized that, it was all good ;).

Overall rating: 8 out of 10 stars

Beautiful Rachel wants nothing more than for her older half sister Leah to wed and move out of their household. Maybe then she would not feel so scrutinized, so managed, so judged. Plain Leah wishes her father Laban would find a good man for her, someone who would love her alone and make her his only bride. Unbeknownst to either of them, Jacob is making his way to their home, trying to escape a past laced with deceit and find the future God has promised him.

But the past comes back to haunt Jacob when he finds himself on the receiving end of treachery and the victim of a cruel bait and switch. The man who wanted only one woman will end up with sisters who have never gotten along and now must spend the rest of their lives sharing a husband. In the power struggles that follow, only one woman will triumph . . . or will she?

The third in the Wives of the Patriarchs series focuses on Jacob and Rachel – and Leah, Rachel’s much-despised older sister. The two women don’t like each other very much, and never have. Half-sisters, Leah is older, but Rachel’s mother is Laban’s favorite. Plus Rachel is by far the more beautiful of the two.

When Jacob arrives, he and Rachel are immediately smitten with each other and he agrees to work for Laban for seven years in exchange for Rachel as his wife. We all know the story. Laban and Leah tricked Rachel and Jacob, with Jacob marrying Leah instead.

Ms. Smith, obviously, uses her imagination along with meticulous research to fill in the blanks. Rachel and Leah, sharing a husband. Jacob loving one of them. Or can he learn to love both? Can they learn to get along?

To an extent, I was disappointed the book ended before Joseph was sold off to Egypt, but a girl can dream Ms. Smith might write that story someday too ;).

My heart ached for all three of them. Leah just wants to be loved but has little hope of that as she ages (though she’s certainly not old by today’s standards). Jacob intended to marry only one woman and be with her for life, but ended up married to not only two sisters, but eventually, two of their maids as well. Rachel had to share her husband, though she had more of him than any of the other women.

I’m saddened this is the end of the Wives of the Patriarchs series, but I look forward to her next project (which, I believe, is a series of novellas – The Wives of King Solomon).

Overall Rating: 8.75 out of 10 stars

Thanks to the publisher and author for a copy in exchange for my honest review.