"Dangerous Illusions," by Irene Hannon

"Dangerous Illusions," by Irene Hannon

Trish Bailey is on overload trying to deal with a demanding job, an ailing mother, and a healing heart. When a series of unsettling memory lapses leads to a tragic death--and puts Trish under police scrutiny--her world is once again thrown into turmoil.

Detective Colin Flynn isn't certain what to think of the facts he uncovers during his investigation. Did Trish simply make a terrible mistake or is there more to the case than meets the eye? As he searches for answers, disturbing information begins to emerge--and if the forces at work are as evil as he suspects, the situation isn't just dangerous . . . it's deadly.

This book has a bit of everything in it; romance, mystery, murder, suspense and great characters.  I love the way Irene writes and this book certainly kept you on your toes.  What was different though, was she kept feeding you information throughout the book, so it made it easier to figure out certain aspects of the story.  However, I was still left thinking; "well I didn't see that coming."

There were so many twists and turns in the book, that you had to keep on reading as you needed to know what was going to happen next.  This book is the first in the Code of Honor series and I can't wait to read the next one.

Stars out of 5 : 5 A really good book, that drew you in right from the beginning.  I didn't want it too end as I was enjoying it so much.  Well worth the read.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.

Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell , a division of Baker Publishing Group".

"All She Left Behind," by Jane Kirkpatrick

"All She Left Behind," by Jane Kirkpatrick

Already well-versed in the natural healing properties of herbs and oils, Jennie Pickett longs to become a doctor. But the Oregon frontier of the 1870s is an unforgiving place--especially for a single mother. To support herself and her young son, Jennie finds work caring for an older woman. When her patient dies, Jennie discovers that her heart has become entangled with the woman's widowed husband, a man many years her senior. Their unlikely romance may lead her to her ultimate goal--but the road forward is uncertain. 

I am a big fan of Jane Kirkpatrick's books.  Add in the historical factor and it is based on a true story, I knew this book would be good.  One thing it brought to light for me was how women's views and rights were not taken into consideration back in the late 1800's.  It touched upon many subjects including dyslexia, domestic abuse and alcohol and drug abuse.  The details in this book make it more life like and you can visualize things so clearly with the way Jane has described everything.

I did find the story a bit slow going to start with, but once you got settled into the book it got more and more interesting.  I found the character list at the front of the book very useful and referred to it often.  The authors notes were really interesting as were the list of Jennie's herbs and oils, both well worth reading.  The story brought to light the hard life the people in the West of the United States had in the late 1800's.  

Stars out of 5 : 4 I found the book a little hard to get involved in at first, but once I was a couple of chapter's in the story got more interesting for me.


"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.

Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".

"These Healing Hills," by Ann H Gabhart

"These Healing Hills," by Ann H Gabhart

Francine Howard has her life all mapped out--until the man she loves announces his plans to bring home an English bride from war-torn Europe in 1945. Devastated, Francine seeks a fresh start in the Appalachian Mountains, training to be a nurse midwife for the Frontier Nursing Service.

Deeply affected by the horrors he witnessed at war, Ben Locke has never thought further ahead than making it home to Kentucky. His future shrouded in as much mist as his beloved mountains, he's at a loss when it comes to envisioning what's next for his life.

When Francine's and Ben's paths intersect, it's immediately clear that they are from different worlds and value different things. But love has a way of healing old wounds . . . and revealing tantalizing new possibilities.

As a huge fan of the Appalachia region and it's history I was really looking forward to reading this book and I was not disappointed.  The way Ann described the area, was spot on and the way she described the people of the region made you feel as though you were standing by them.  I had not heard of the Frontier Nursing Service, so that made the book even more interesting learning about them.

Add to that leading character's that you can relate too and all in all you have a super story and book too read.  It's not a hard read, but it does keep you interested with all that is going on.  Make sure you read the reader's notes at the end, very interesting. You can read more about Frontier Nursing Service here.  Also just in case you have forgotten how the song "Froggie Went A Courtin," the song featured in this book goes here is a link.

Stars out of 5 : 5 Loved this book, a bit of history, a bit of a love story and a lot of real living, my kind of book!!.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.

Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".

"The Proving," by Beverly Lewis

"The Proving," by Beverly Lewis

"Mandy, you are to inherit the farmhouse, including the business of the inn."

She could scarcely find her voice to respond. "Ach, this must be a mistake," she told him, shaking her head as she talked into the phone, feeling befuddled. "The house . . . and everything related to the inn . . . shouldn't that go to Arie Mae?"
After five years as an Englisher, Amanda Dienner is shocked to learn her mother has passed away and left her Lancaster County's most popular Amish bed-and-breakfast. What's more, the inn will only truly be hers if Mandy can successfully run it for twelve months. Reluctantly, Mandy accepts the challenge, no matter that it means facing the family she left behind--or that the inn's clientele expect an Amish hostess! Can Mandy fulfill the terms of her inheritance? Or will this prove a dreadful mistake?

I have read many Beverly Lewis books over the years and have generally enjoyed them.  They tend to follow the same pattern, beautiful settings, family secrets, and redemption.  This was no different in that it followed the same pattern but I will say it was one of Beverly's weaker novels. I knew what was going to happen before it happened in the book.

One of the highlights of this book was all the delicious food items that were mentioned.  It was a shame one or two recipes were not included at the back of this book.  The main characters soon became familiar to you and you could easily keep track of their individual stories.

Stars out of 5 : 3.5  I did feel as though I have read similar books by Beverly before.  It's an easy read with a pleasant story line.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. 

Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group".