By Your Side

I used to be a huge fan of Grey's Anatomy but since some of the story lines have changed that don't fall into things I agree with, I have given it up. I am thankful for authors like Candace Calvert who write incredible medical fictions like her Crisis Team Series, and By Your Side is just the latest that I've had the pleasure to read.

ER nurse, Macy Wynn and Deputy Fletcher Holt find themselves meeting in unremarkable ways, the first being that they happened to be on the scene of an active freeway shooter who was taking shots at vehicles and caused what a traffic accident that thankfully didn't claim any lives. Macy was tending to a child who was thrown from a van and Fletcher just happened to be on the freeway heading home when the situation developed. Seeing themselves at odds, even though neither is there on official duty, they bump heads in dealing with their respective situations.

Macy won't leave her victim even though she wasn't dispatched, and Fletcher needs to ensure the safety of everyone while the shooter is located even if it means stepping on Macy's toes. He makes matters worse when the man Macy arrived with appears to have been drinking and he want's to perform a DUI field test on a man well connected with politics. Macy knows things are going to get out of hand and heated if she can't find a way between them. Fletcher eventually ends up letting Macy drive them both home. But it doesn't end there.

As the shooter remains at large, his targets grow increasingly larger, from a police dog at a school to victims at a local bank. The one common factor besides the area of his aggression is Macy. Fletcher isn't sure just what the connection is, but when Macy is one again at the scene of another shooting, both her employer and Fletcher wonder just what is going on even though Macy assures them she is completely innocent on all accounts. Aside from all this both Macy and Fletcher are dealing with their own personal crisis while trying to keep their growing attractions for one another at bay.

I received By Your Side by Candace Calvert compliments of Tyndale House Publishers for my honest review and did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review. The opinions contained in this review are strictly my own. I absolutely was engaged in this storyline from the first page and Candace does an exceptional job at keeping the action moving forward and the reader interested until the final page. For me, this marks the sign of a great novel, one in which the reader takes a personal interest in the characters and one that they don't lose interest in the storyline along the way. For me, that makes this one a 5 out of 5 stars in my opinion. I love that things are nicely tied up with a bow as these two interact and life complicates their romance at times because that is believable. I can't wait for more from this author in the very near future. This is the first novel in the Crisis Team Series!!!

For more information about By Your Side, Candace Calvert or where you can pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

By Your Side by Candace Calvert

You can find Candace Calvert on Facebook to stay up to date on all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on By Your Side, please visit Tyndale House Publishers website. 

Saving Grace

"There's no such thing as old-fashioned values. There are just values. Right has always been right and wrong has always been wrong. Old-fashioned really has nothing to do with it. People have just lost sight of what's truly important." ~ Garrett Anderson.

Just when you think all the romance books out there have lost their true appeal and sense of "Ah!" when it comes to the storyline, think again. J.M. Hill has managed to create what I would consider a remarkable blend of romance coupled with a great deal of action and suspense while managing to keep it clean. I've lost my interest in so many books either due to profanity, content or subject matter, but I feel blessed when I was asked by J.M. Hill personally to read this one. I wanted to give this one a true standing ovation. I think we might be kindred spirits of the sorts based on the premise behind this novel.

We are immediately introduced to a vague scene in the opening of the book of a man who appears to have been murdered and then tossed into the story of meeting Grace Burke, and her cousin, Kate who live at the end of a lonely street. While the house across the street has remained dilapidated over the years and unlived in, Grace and Kate are more than curious when moving vans and soon vehicles appear as they peer out their blinds to check out the new neighbors like Lucy and Ethel from I Love Lucy. I can complete relate to this myself. When the new neighbors are three brothers who they soon find out are single and incredibly good looking, Kate offers to make the first move of being neighborly.

When an oversized, but good natured man by the name of Garrett opens the front door, we meet the first of the Anderson brothers, who are in their own family construction business. Kate becomes immediately interested in Miles. Their younger brother, Michael, is often referred to as the "stunning one!" and one that Grace finds herself a bit tongue tied just trying to talk to. The five of them find common ground being neighbors as well as interested in football and a great meal. As Kate and Grace get to know each of them a bit more, they soon are befriended by the brothers with Garrett taking an active role as big brother to Kate and Grace. Over time the relationship grows between Kate and Miles, but the real story develops between Grace and Michael who find themselves attracted to one another but afraid to make the first move.

You find yourself falling in love with each of the brothers as you move through the story. First with the need to watch over and protect the girls with Garrett, Miles is your quiet silent type and Michael is struggling with the need to keep his business relationship with a client from getting too personal and fighting his attraction to Grace as he becomes her running partner. Like all great romance stories, it begins with an attraction, then friendship and soon a bit of conflict to force the two together, but all done in such an amazing way, you simply won't be able to put this one down until the end.

The best part of this book besides its characters that J.M. Hill has breathed life into is there will be another one! That made me super excited and now can't wait to read that one. There's even a bit of suspense thrown in to keep the reader engaged. I love how Kate and Grace have an incredible relationship despite their own family tragedy that kept them together and how they form such a loving bond not only with the Anderson brothers but also their parents. There's such an simply humility to Grace's character and that's perhaps why you can find yourself relating to her as you read this wonderful heartwarming book! If you're looking for a fantastic romance without all the unnecessary stuff thrown in to make a book sell, then trust me, grab this one! It's for hopeful romantics everywhere that hope to be rescued by a handsome man in the end. I personally rate this one a hands down 5 out of 5 stars and hope to be included in the sequel to this one!

I received Saving Grace by J.M. Hill compliments of the author for my honest review and have not be compensated in any other way to provide a favorable review. She is now on my favorite author watch list for upcoming books! For more information about Saving Grace, J.M. Hill, or where to pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Saving Grace by J.M. Hill

You can also find J.M. Hill on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest books.

After All

In the final book in the Hanover Falls Series, After All by Deborah Raney provides the reader with a sense of closure in one instance and a moving forward and new beginnings in another. Susan Marlowe is beginning to pick up the pieces of the life she knew that was destroyed in ashes just eighteen months ago, when her husband David and four other firefighters were killed in an accidental fire at Grove Street Shelter.

She was the one responsible for running the homeless shelter despite her husband David's misgivings about wondering if the shelter was doing more harm than good to the cities residents. Yet when fights, and threats began to break out there, David felt that Susan was opening herself up for more trouble than it was worth and their marriage began to take a turn for the worse, with each of them spending more time at their jobs than at working on strengthening their marriage.

Now that Susan has begun to rebuild the Grove Street Shelter in a building across from where the former one stood, she is once again making the headlines in the local paper, The Courier. Seems now that Bee Quinton, feels its her responsibility to seek the answers for two letters to the editor about the homeless shelter and its purpose in bringing out the worst criminals to the city. When Susan takes the bait in defense of the good the shelter offers families in need a place to stay over sleeping in their car, she does more harm than good in feeding Bee just what she needs to make the front page.

Fortunately for Susan, not everyone believes the homeless shelter is a bad thing for the city when Chief Peter Brennan speaks out in her defense reminding the citizens of Susan's diligence in having fire alarms and smoke detectors installed. Now if only he can keep his mind on the tasks of running the local fire station instead of romantic thoughts about Susan. However Peter finds himself the source of competition between Susan and fire inspector Andrea Morley, a first in his life since his previous wife Lana left him when they couldn't have children.

Just what type of closure will After All bid for its readers in this series conclusion? You'll have to pick up the book and find out. Even though this is the third and final book in the series, there is enough back story for the reader that this one can be read as a stand alone, but trust me, if this is the first book you've had the pleasure to read from Deborah, you'll definitely want to pick up the other two.

I received After All by Deborah Raney compliments of Glass Road Public Relations for my honest review and LOVED it! Just the perfect amount of suspense and romance to keep the reader entertained and turning pages til the end. If you love Christian Romance novels or have a spark for firefighters, then this is a MUST read for you! I rate this one a sizzling 4.5 out of 5 stars.

For more information on this book, the author and where to pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

After All by Deborah Raney

You can also find Deborah Raney on Facebook by clicking here or visiting her website.

The previous two novels in this series are Almost Forever and Forever After for those of you looking for the entire series to enjoy!

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Howard Books; Original edition (May 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416599959
• ISBN-13: 978-1416599951
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches

Code of Justice - Giveaway and Review

Special Agent Heather Sloan and her sister Kit are taking a scenic helicopter tour of Mount Hood when suddenly their chopper loses control and crashes killing everyone inside except for Heather. As she lay dying, her sister Kit tells her to "Follow the drugs!"

Unsure of just what that means, Heather attempts to recover in the hospital with a torn ACL and her knee in a brace, an unknown man slips into her room mumbling, "Put the tube in the line. The get the fix."

Unable to fend him off, she watches in horror as he slips a vial of unknown substance in her arm which immediately begins burning so badly she realizes she is screaming. At that point, Sheriff's deputy Jeremy Latham is looking for Heather's room to ask her some questions regarding the helicopter crash and instead finds himself coming to Heather's rescue.

In the latest novel Code of Justice by Liz Johnson, we find ourselves working side by side with Heather and Jeremy as they both try to solve the case of Kit's errie final message and wonder if the accident wasn't an accident at all. In the midst of solving the crime, they both learn God's important message of taking vengeance into your own hands and the simple act of learning to forgive yourself. This book is available in paperback and eBook formats.

I received the book compliments of Liz Johnson for my honest review and literally consumed it in a few short hours. It's that great! Suspense and mystery lies within every single page as you wonder just how it will all end. This one rates a 5 out of 5 stars and comes with a must read recommendation.

For more information about the book, the amazing author and where you can get a copy of her book, click on the link below:

Code of Justice by Liz Johnson

Thanks to the generosity of Liz, she has offered a giveaway copy to one lucky reader. Here's all you have to do to enter.

1. Be a follower of my blog, Reviews From The Heart.

2. Be a resident of the US and No P.O. Boxes please.

3. I must have a way to contact you so please include your email address along with your comment. You can use the words (at) or (dot) instead of the symbols.

4. Leave a comment and let me know why you'd love to win a copy. The giveaway will end on March 8th. I will notify the winner by email at that time.