Carol Moncado

Hannah Gregory is good at many things, but that list doesn’t include following rules. So when she is forced to apply for a job as a telephone switchboard operator to support her two sisters, she knows it won’t be easy. “Hello Girls” must conduct themselves according to strict–and often bewildering–rules. No talking to the other girls. No chatting with callers. No blowing your nose without first raising your hand. And absolutely no consorting with gentlemen while in training.

Meanwhile, young lawyer Lincoln Cole finds himself in the unfortunate position of having to enforce the bank’s eviction of the three Gregory girls from their parents’ home. He tries to soften the blow by supporting them in small ways as they settle into another home. But fiery Hannah refuses his overtures and insists on paying back every cent of his charity.

When one of Hannah’s friends finds himself on the wrong side of a jail cell, Hannah is forced to look to Lincoln for help. Will it be her chance to return to her dreams of studying law? And could she be falling in love?

With historic details that bring to life the exciting first decade of the twentieth century, Lorna Seilstad weaves a charming tale of camaraderie and companionship that blossoms into love. Readers will get lost in this sweet romance and will eagerly look forward to championing each sister’s dreams.

What I realized as I was getting the above set up is that the series is “The Gregory Sisters” which means… SQUEEE! There’s more to come! And since I loved the two little sisters… it’s all good ;).

Lorna sucked me in to the world of the early 1900s and the invention of the telephone and the motorcar! Poor Hannah and her sisters are being evicted after the death of their parents and lack of mortgage payments.

Poor Lincoln had no idea that was the situation when he was sent to hand over the eviction notice. He comes back to help them move and sparks fly.

Hannah is a modern woman, not afraid to speak her mind. She’s doing her best to care for her little sisters in their new rental home, but life is taking a toll. She had to give up law school in order to find a job, but she matches wits with Lincoln and helps with the defense of her childhood friend, Walt, when he’s accused of arson.

One thing I would have loved would have to do with her parents’ bedroom furniture. I’ll leave it at that for now, but as we’ll be seeing Linc and Hannah in the future [with the sisters’ books] it’s a possibility.

I’ll have to ask Lorna when the next one is coming out, but as for me, I can’t wait.

Overall rating: 8.5 out of 10 stars

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

Unassuming young seminary professor Augie Knox finds himself drawn into a frantic race to rescue a friend in Rome who has supposedly discovered the archeological find of the century. Antiquities thieves conspire to steal the treasure through trickery or violence. Channeling Indiana Jones but sans creepy critters, Augie must sift through motives and lies as ancient as the manuscript discovered in the caves beneath the Eternal City. Will the memoir of Paul the Apostle prove genuine, or is Augie risking his life for a fraud? More than anything, this suspenseful tale proves the storytelling mastery of Jenkins (Left Behind series). He and MacDonald intertwine Augie’s modern race against time with Paul’s measured 1st-century journey from prison to executioner’s block. Two strengths emerge from this setup: first, by alternating between modern and historical scenes, the authors balance out the frenetic pace of one with the quiet stillness of the other, all the while ratcheting up tension. Second, Paul’s “memoir” paints a vivid, plausible picture of his early years and conversion. While this work won’t create the frenzy of a real biblical memoir, it does offer an entertaining and ultimately uplifting experience.

In keeping with yesterday’s Biblical fiction review…

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this as it’s been a while since I read anything by Mr. Jenkins and never anything like this, but I was pleasantly surprised. About 3 chapters in, I was forced to put it aside for a while, but even in my head, kept coming back to it.

The modern day story line deals with Augie and a dear friend of his who is in a life or death struggle concerning an ancient artifact uncovered in the ruins of the jail where Paul spent the end of his life. Brought into this struggle are Augie’s friends and family back home in Texas – including his nearly estranged and dying father – and his fiance and her antiquities dealing father from Greece. This story is fast-paced and suspenseful – right up until the last moments and the satisfying conclusion.

The historical story line deals with Paul in his last days in prison before being beheaded for his faith. Luke visits him on a nearly daily basis, helping transcribe letters and Paul’s memoir [which is uncovered in the modern story line]. Though it lacks the life and death, whodunit aspects of the modern side of the story, there is no lack of intrigue. I would imagine the authors did their due diligence with their research and while the characters maybe fictional, much of what happens during that time period is not. From the burning of Rome to Saul’s conversion to Paul to the persecution of Christians, it’s all there.

Overall, a book I enjoyed and read quickly when I was able to get back to it.

Overall rating: 8 out of 10 stars

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

She was a widow, a businesswoman, an adulteress.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ecopy and Wynn-Wynn Media for a paper copy in exchange for my review – not quite sure how I ended up with both…

Gideon O’Riley has been given another chance at a life with Lonnie. But will the fight for her heart risk it all over again?
  
After finally finding love with his sweet bride Lonnie, Gideon’s heart was torn when a woman from his past claimed to be his true and rightful wife, forcing him away from his family. God’s merciful hand saw Gideon through the heartache, and with Cassie’s blessing, he is able to return home. But his journey back through the Blue Ridge Mountains will hold a trial he never anticipated.
 
Meanwhile, Lonnie determines to seal off her heart from Gideon, convinced he is lost to her forever. Strengthening her resolve to move on is her growing fondness for the handsome Scotsman, Toby McKee—the young reverend she has come to care for deeply. His proposal of marriage offers a bright future for her and her young son. 
 
Yearning to allow joy back into her life, Lonnie must put aside the broken pieces of her heart that still love Gideon. When he returns to find her betrothed to another, he has to place his hope in God, trusting that the One who redeemed their love once can do it again.

This is the third book in the Cadence of Grace series. I went into the first one [Be Still My Soul] not getting what I expected. But I had to know what happened and so along came book 2: Though My Heart is Torn. Knowing what I was getting into, I liked it MUCH better.

And book 3? I couldn’t wait. [I read it MONTHS ago, as soon as I got it, but the review got lost in conference prep :p.] I had a chance to talk with Joanne while at the ACFW conference and am still hopeful that we’ll get a fourth, related book for the boy that didn’t get the girl.

Because Lonnie’s going to have to choose. Between Gideon, who she fell in love with after their very difficult start. And Toby, the man who helps take care of her broken heart when Gideon is forced to return to his first wife – one he thought he’d been divorced from for some time [annulled? divorced? one].

Gideon is free to come home – to find Lonnie and their son, but the trip takes much longer than expected and when he gets there, she’s already engaged to Toby.

Toby is a good man. He loves Lonnie and her little boy. But so does Gideon. As much as I wanted Lonnie and Gideon back together, I wondered if Joanne wouldn’t take the less expected route and put her with Toby. I would have been okay with that, too.

Joanne kept me riveted through the entire book and I was happy and satisfied with the ending [I’m pretty sure she made me cry more than once again :p]. I do hope she gets to write a fourth book for the other man, but I haven’t heard for sure if it’s going to happen or not.

Overall rating: 8.5 out of 10 stars

Thanks to Blogging for Books for a copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

A solitary artisan. A legacy of bread-baking. And one secret that could collapse her entire identity.

Liesl McNamara’s life can be described in one word: bread. From her earliest memory, her mother and grandmother passed down the mystery of baking and the importance of this deceptively simple food. And now, as the owner of Wild Rise bake house, Liesl spends every day up to her elbows in dough, nourishing and perfecting her craft.

But the simple life she has cultivated is becoming quite complicated. Her head baker brings his troubled grandson into the bakeshop as an apprentice. Her waitress submits Liesl’s recipes to a popular cable cooking show. And the man who delivers her flour—a single father with strange culinary habits—seems determined to win Liesl’s affection.

When Wild Rise is featured on television, her quiet existence appears a thing of the past. And then a phone call from a woman claiming to be her half-sister forces Liesl to confront long-hidden secrets in her family’s past. With her precious heritage crumbling around her, the baker must make a choice: allow herself to be buried in detachment and remorse, or take a leap of faith into a new life.

Filled with both spiritual and literal nourishment, Stones for Bread provides a feast for the senses from award-winning author Christa Parrish.

This book was well-written and well-researched. I read it quickly, but didn’t enjoy it as much as I wanted to.

I’m not quite sure why this is. Maybe I was expecting a bit more romance and I think it qualifies more as Women’s Fiction. It’s not chick-lit – too serious for that. I’ll admit to skimming sections of it. Each chapter began with a recollection from the main character’s childhood [though they were mostly chronological up through her mid-20s, all but one or two of them were age 16 and under]. Those didn’t hold my interest as much as the current storylines. Most chapters had a bread recipe of some kind and/or a section [up to 2 pages???] on the history of bread. I didn’t read any of the recipes, though I’ll likely at least look at them again for ideas and possibly to use, but after the first one or two, I barely skimmed the history sections.

Though I’m sure they were interesting, they did nothing for me here.

As for the main, “present day” story… It wasn’t BAD, but it didn’t suck me in and not let go like I prefer my books to do. It took quite a while for me to get into it without being easily distracted. Once I did, I sped through it. I would have liked more on the relationship between Leisl and her love interest, particularly at the end.

There’s a Very. Bad. Thing. That happens to one of the characters. I liked the character, but felt little more than “eh” when it happened. Normally, I would have expected tears :/.

I know this sounds like it was an awful book. It wasn’t. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t hate it. It’s quite possible my own current sense of “blah” about life in general plays a role in my perception of the book. I wish I could give it a better rating, but I just can’t. I’ll give other books by Ms. Parrish a try and see if it’s just this one or if she’s just not for me.

Ugh. I hate writing reviews like this especially for books I really wanted to like.

Overall rating: 6.5 out of 10 stars

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

At least for me. For now.

I feel a bit like I cheated. See, I’m a NaNoWriMo purist. 50K words on a new manuscript in November. When I went to bed last night, I had about 4K to go. When I woke up this morning, I had a stomach bug that left me, to quote my husband, looking like hell (he even changed his travel plans to tomorrow instead of tonight).

So how did I cheat? I wrote over 5K on another manuscript at the beginning of the month. Between the two, that puts me at 52K. NaNoRebels do this on purpose. I joined the NaNoRebel ranks today because I had to.

I did legitimately write over 50K and if I’m feeling up to it will try to get that other 4K in tonight, but I’m okay with not. I literally don’t remember the last time I was this sick. I’m feeling somewhat better but have either been puking or asleep all day so I’m not holding out much hope for getting 4K in.

I’m okay with it. I don’t think I have any NaNo purist friends who will berate me for it, but if you are one, keep your opinion to yourself, please.

Thanks to those who encouraged me all month (I know I’ll forget some):
Jan Glaze Christiansen, Janice Hanna Thompson, Melanie Dickerson, Laurie Tomlinson, Ginger Venturoni, Joanna Davidson Politano, Jerenda Ford, Pam Jernigan, Karen Thompkins, and that’s where the stomach flu forgetfulness takes over…

(And I totally stole this post from the one I put on Facebook. Deal with it. ;))

Because it’s very, very am on the 30th… Hubs is going out of town by mid-afternoon/early evening and the kids’ll be in bed earlier tomorrow…

NaNoWriMo today: 2002 [better…]
NaNoWriMo total: 46026
NaNoWriMo deficit: 3974 [Needed to finish]
NaNoWriMo WPD to finish on time: 3974 [See how those numbers are the same?]

Busy day with the fam etc today. Not much writing :(. Here’s hoping for a better tomorrow… Like a 4k day tomorrow…

NaNoWriMo today: 758 [even less than yesterday :(]
NaNoWriMo total: 44024
NaNoWriMo deficit: 4319 [Yeah – dunno that I see that happening on Friday – sigh]
NaNoWriMo WPD to finish on time: 2988 [at least it’s under 3K…]
NaNoWriMo current anticipated finish date: 12/3/2013 [at least that didn’t change… Sigh]

Sigh. House. Cleaner. Turkey prepped. Etc. Words?

Notsomuch.

Sigh.

NaNoWriMo today: 788
NaNoWriMo total: 43266
NaNoWriMo deficit: 3410 [that’s what I need to write on Thursday to catch up – possible… but unlikely]
NaNoWriMo WPD to finish on time: 2245 [up 12 words a day]
NaNoWriMo current anticipated finish date: 12/3/2013 [a day later… sigh]

We did get the basement mostly cleaned though and I did surpass the minimum daily count for generic NaNoers. I *almost* passed the amount *I* need to finish on time.

Almost.

I will have to find more time to write tomorrow, though I don’t know when, not with all the Thanksgiving prep…

NaNoWriMo today: 1819
NaNoWriMo total: 42479
NaNoWriMo deficit: 2530 [that’s what I need to write on Wednesday to catch up – definitely possible and less than yesterday]
NaNoWriMo WPD to finish on time: 1881 [up 12 words a day]
NaNoWriMo current anticipated finish date: 12/2/2013 [unchanged… which is kinda nice]