Summer's List

I can't imagine the pain of losing someone you love. Fortunately for me, I haven't had to deal with it, but watched many go through it. It's not easy, especially when they are your last connection to family, no more exist outside of them and when their gone, you're left all alone. That is what Summer Snow is facing after learning that her Granny is dying of congestive heart failure and only has about six months to live. She makes Summer to promise to take some time off from running her grandmother's bookstore and follow a small list of what she believes Summer gave up to take care of those she has loved in her life from her parents to her grandmother.

She knows it won't take long and has promised to do what she can to be around for Summer when she is finished, but is making no promises as God can call her home at anytime, but she promises to do whatever she can to help. The first item on her list is also one her grandmother requires she must involve in completing the remainder of the items on the list with, her childhood friend, Martin Langtree. She just isn't sure what his status will be like after being apart for twenty years, but after her grandmother tracks down his address she agrees to go and at least ask for his help. What could it hurt?

Yet she finds Martin, dealing with his own issues. His parents have gotten a divorce and departed ways separately leaving Martin and his two brothers Desmond and Ivan to live in their sprawling home with their inheritance but also never to contact them again. While Martin has attempted to live within his means, his two spoiled younger brothers felt the need to never change the lifestyle they were accustomed to, like country club memberships, servants, extravagant spending sprees on unnecessary items for the home and clothing, they come to a realization that all of Desmonds investments have gone horribly wrong and they now need Martin's help and his money or they risk selling their family home. What will they do now?

I received Summer's List by Anita Higman compliments of Litfuse Publicity and River North Publishing for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed here are my own. I love the idea that one of our childhood friends might just be the love of our life, we might have missed growing up simply because we weren't focused on finding love over friendship. Who hasn't had a person in their past that they wonder, what might have happened if things had worked out differently, where would they be now if they had! It's a way to live vicariously through the characters of Martin and Summer who tackle a wonderful list of things I myself might have to do before this life ends as well. Definitely one you want to make sure winds up on this summer's reading list. I would give this one a 4.5 out of 5 stars!

For more information about Summer's List, Anita Higman or where you can find out where to pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Summer's List by Anita Higman

You can find Anita Higman on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on Summer's List, please visit Litfuse Publicity's Book Tour Page. 

Feast for Thieves - Review and Giveaway

I have to begin by telling you that no matter how hard I tried to keep this novel in its current time period of 1946, for some reason during parts of it I kept envisioning later 1800's during the Wild West period. I think that was in part to the reference of taverns and dance hall girls which is reminiscent of the Old West. However, this is such an exceptional story and one you won't want to miss due to the powerful nature of second chances and forgiveness for anyone.

In Feast for Thieves by author Marcus Brotherton, Zearl "Rowdy" Slater is returning home from World War II, seeking to find his place in the world. But for a man with no money, no job, a record, and a personality that tends to be, well, a little on the eccentric side, settling down presents a bit of a challenge.

Desperate to scrap together some cash, Rowdy robs a bank alongside his friend, Crazy Ake, in the backwoods and backwards - town of Cut Eye, Texas. But, after nearly getting caught, something changes inside and he finds himself walking into the sheriff's office to return the money, but never admitting his role in its disappearance. Suspicious that Rowdy had more to do with it than he admits, the sheriff gives him a crazy proposal - serve one year as the minister at the Cut Eye Community Church or head for the slammer.

Seeing it's either ministry or a jail cell, Rowdy gets to work. But he soon discovers that there's more to being a minister than meets the eye. Between learning about the work from the former pastor, the beautiful Bobbie Barker, visiting parishioners, fist fighting with the bar crowd to get more men to attend, or trying to figure out how to write a sermon (his first - how to skin a squirrel - didn't go over very well), Rowdy is in over his head but working hard to carve out a new life.

I received Feast for Thieves by Marcus Brotherton compliments of Side Door Communications and River North Publishing for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and received a complimentary copy of the book to review. This is such a great novel, because of the humor you find when Rowdy attempts to go straight from his first sermon to his unique way of getting more people to church by taking on all the men who would rather frequent the tavern on Friday night than attend church. It's truly about a man finding his true identity and not the one everyone see's from the outside. It's about finding true forgiveness and second chances where you'd least expect to find them and getting your fill of more than just great food. It's message has a more powerful delivery being told as a fiction than as a non fiction and one that will last long after you finish the final page. I'd rate this one a 4 out of 5 stars in my opinion.

For more information about Feast for Thieves, Marcus Brotherton, or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Feast for Thieves by Marcus Brotherton

You can also find Marcus Brotherton on Facebook to stay up to date on all his latest novels.

To read more reviews on Feast for Thieves, please visit River North Publishing.

Thanks to the generosity of Side Door Communications and River North Publishing, they are offering a giveaway copy to one lucky follower of my blog, Reviews From The Heart. Here are your guidelines to enter:

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

2. "Like" Marcus Brotherton's Facebook page. While you're there leave him a comment.

3. Be a resident of the US or have a US shipping address. Please No P.O. Boxes.

4. Leave me a comment below telling me why you'd love to win a copy. Don't forget to include your email address so I can notify you  if you're the winner when this giveaway ends on September 16th. You can use the words (at ) and (dot) instead of the symbols.

I will notify the winner by email on September 16th, so please be sure to include it below with your comments.

In The Field of Grace

If you have read some of the stories of the Bible, you get a broad sense of what happened. But like so many times we are missing some of the finer points, the motivations and those are found in the details. My newest favorite genre this year is Biblical Fiction. Taking a story we all know and love straight from the Bible and enhancing the details of 'what could of been!' It is never meant to take the place of those beloved stories but simply a way I believe to draw you deeper. To bring you right in the forefront of the action and make you believe you are there actually witnessing the events.

This is my second novel from author Tessa Afshar, and with it comes the retelling of the story of Ruth. If you are familiar with the story than you know that Naomi, Ruth's mother-in-law, decides to return to Israel after losing both of her sons. But before deciding to uproot Ruth from her own family roots, she relives her of any burden to stay with her along her to journey back to her home. Ruth vows that no matter what happens in life, she will always stay by Naomi side and so begins their adventure to Naomi's home. We learn that the harvest has been plentiful and even gleaners, are having success with picking up enough left over grain that they will not go hungry. Ruth decides to venture out to take care of their needs and finds her way into the fields of Boaz.

She first has to learn how to glean and being a Moabite woman, she is considered an outcast in town. With no one to help her, she decides to linger behind and take the leftovers if she can find them. But soon she garners the attention of Boaz, the owner of the field, who is smitten with her looks as well as her quiet presence. When he learns she is the daughter of Naomi, his cousin, he realizes he must offer to help but not in the way to embarrass her. He warns his men to offer her protection while working in his fields and to ensure that each day, she takes home more than enough to feed them both.

While they are both learning lessons along the way, dealing with grief, accepting God's will in both of their lives, and slowly falling in love along the way, we can see the same example being laid out before each of us. How God so lovingly romances all of us and shows us in innumerable ways just how much He loves us. I love the part of the novel where Boaz it trying to describe what the world is like to an unborn baby and he gets a lesson from God in the process in dealing with the grief and loss Boaz feels when he loses his wife Judith and their unborn child.

"Then the Lord asked me, 'Do you think he understands? Do you think he knows what your world is like now?'
"No, Lord,' I replied, 'How could he? He only knows his mother's womb. His world is too small. I could use every word the world has to offer and he would still not perceive our world. He has to be in it to understand it.'
"'No more can you understand My kingdom,' He said to me. 'No more can you perceive where your wife and daughter and newborn son reside now. Yet that world is no less real than your own.'" (pg 124).

I received In the Field of Grace by Tessa Afshar compliments of River North Publishing and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed here are strictly my own unless otherwise notated. This is such a beautiful love story not only between Ruth and Boaz but also between God and us.. There are just so many wonderful take aways from this novel I simply can't list them all. For those that have experienced loss and are looking for answers, I would encourage you to check out this novel and then follow it up with the story of Ruth from the Bible. It simply is breath-taking and full of life in many ways. I easily rate this one a 5 out of 5 stars and can't wait to go back and pick up the other novels Tessa has written that I haven't been blessed to enjoy yet.

For more information about In the Field of Grace, Tessa Afshar or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

In the Field of Grace by Tessa Afshar

You can also find Tessa Afshar on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on In Field of Grace, please visit Christian Fiction Blog Alliance's book tour page. 

Yankee in Atlanta

Some of the best historical novels I've read are built around historical facts with some liberties taken to enhance the story to gain the reader's heart and soul and that is just exactly what Jocelyn Green does in the latest novel, Yankee in Atlanta. This is the third novel in her Heroines Behind the Lines Series which I have been a part of since the beginning. This time she utilizes the American Civil War as her setting and places our heroine Caitlin McKae at the forefront of the battle where she was disguised as a man and enlisted in the Union army. Little did she believe that she would be shot by the enemy. When she wakes up from her injuries, she is immediately questioned as being a spy since when would a woman want to disguise herself as a soldier and go to war. This is based on the fact that hundreds of women did just that by disguising themselves as men and enlisting in the army on both sides of the war.

Noah Becker represents another minority, the German immigrant living in the Confederacy with more of them fighting on the North than on the South. His relationship with Caitlin is to hire her as a governess for his children before he heads off to war. Yet before he leaves, he cautions Caitlin to assist any women or children in Atlanta that need help as war refugees remembering what that was like for him in Germany. It is his way of paying it forward. But just like Gone with the Wind, soon soldiers find their way into the house and soon take what they need from food, fuel and animals not caring what the women or children need. This is war, and everything must be done to ensure their side has an advantage in the war.

The best part about this novel is that is defines for the reader by involving them in the story of Noah and Caitlin, how difficult it was for families that were torn apart by the war, from often times fighting against one another and then coming to terms with not knowing what happened to those that were left to fight, not knowing if they were wounded or killed or even if they were coming home at all. For those that love American history and novels involving the Civil War, then this is the perfect novel to settle down with. The characters and their stories are enough to gain your sympathy and have you turning pages as fast as possible to learn their fate as soon as it is revealed. There is a great section at the end where the author shares how she formatted the basis for this novel and the historical facts from the Civil War as well as a compelling discussion guide that is perfect for book clubs!

I received Yankee in Atlanta by Jocelyn Green compliments of River North Publishing and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation and the opinions expressed here are strictly my own. I would rate this Historical Christian Novel a 4.5 out of 5 stars and this is the third novel in the series with Wedded to War and Widow of Gettyburg being the first two in the Heroines Behind the Lines Series. Word has it that a fourth novel is coming soon!

For more information about Yankee in Atlanta, Jocelyn Green or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Yankee in Atlanta by Jocelyn Green

You can find Jocelyn Green on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on Yankee in Atlanta, please visit Christian Fiction Blog Alliance's book tour page. 

Rise and Shine

I couldn't imagine waiting a lifetime to get married to the perfect man that I had fallen head over heels in love with even as he put his wealthy upbringing behind him to marry me. Spending a blissful honeymoon in Fiji, getting prepared for diving and then waking up 10 years later and not remembering a thing but fragmented bits and pieces of your life. That is just what has happened to Shannon Malone. For the last 10 years, she has been faithfully cared for by her husband Edmund in the Draper Long Term Care facility until cancer took over his life and left her a widow in her comatose state. Now as she tries to make sense of what happens she learns that her attending physician Dr. Daniel Petros has been waiting for just this moment to happen. Not every one wakes up, but Shannon is that exception and miracle that her entire family has been waiting for.

Now as she tries to understand the implications of what happened and how she can pick up and attempt to move forward in her life, Daniel attempts to fill in the blanks for her. Being Edmund's best friend until he passed away, he shows her just how much Edmund believed that Shannon would one day wake up. Being a huge lover of fairy tales, she is Sleeping Beauty in real life, only there was no kiss to wake her from her slumber. If there was, surely Edmond would have made sure to try that. But when everyone else seemed to lose faith and hope that one day she would wake, Edmond's dedication and Daniel's belief she would one day wake up, has proved to be 100% true.

But how do you simply wake up from one life and begin another? How do you stop loving the man you love now that that life is over and he isn't around? How do you stop the implications of Edmond's sister Millicent who believes their family is entitled to everything that belonged to Edmond including her home and wedding ring? Is is possible to find a happily ever after in the wake of a living nightmare?

I received Rise and Shine from author Sandra D. Bricker compliments of Christian Fiction Blog Alliance and River North Publishing for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own. I love the introduction to a modern day fairy tale that introduces each new section of the novel that is a reference to Shannon's new life. She finds solace in being a different person that when she went into her coma when it comes to remembering her lost love in Edmond and how deeply he went to such great lengths to see to her care, even when he was facing his own death without her. Daniel's dedication to her medical care comes through when he realizes just how wonderful Shannon's life was with Edmond and how easily it can be to fall in love with her. This is such a wonderful novel that I can easily give a full 5 out of 5 stars to and love all the creativity that went into creating this modern day fairy tale! It reminded me of While You Were Sleeping with actress Sandra Bullock.

For more information about Rise and Shine, Sandra D. Bricker, or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Rise and Shine by Sandra D. Bricker

You can also find Sandra D. Bricker on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on Rise and Shine, please visit Christian Fiction Blog Alliance's book tour page. 

The Turning

What happens when a random collection of five ordinary people respond to God's calling from all over the United States? You gain the premise to the latest novel from best selling author Davis Bunn in The Turning. John Jacobs was simply an assistant manager for the Midwest depot of the nation's largest shipper of fresh produce but during a church service, he answered God's call to "Take the turning, and walk the unlikely road." For Alisha Seames, she lead one of the world's largest gospel choirs who were called back every single year to share in a gospel choir concert and she knew God has spoken to her, and that was a fact. After a lifetime of praying, it had actually happened, and she dreaded what was coming next. Because as soon as God had said, "Take the unlikely road," Alisha had known just exactly what that turn was. She didn't want to do it. She hated the very idea of what was coming next. But God had said He would meet her there. And that left her with no choice. None at all.

Jenny Linn had to make restitution with her parents before she could answer the calling. Not something easily done when both her and her father Richard Linn had iron wills and strong Chinese traditions of honor to your parents. Neither one wanting to bend to make things right between them, but this time, Jenny knew what God had called her to do. She was to restore the relationship with her parents because she would need them as allies in her walk of faith with Christ. Now drawn to New York, they will meet with John and Alisha in a coffee shop where they will connect with Ruth Barrett, wife of one of the great evangelists of the twentieth century. Since her husband's death, she had become well known in her own right, speaking and writing about Christians maintaining a strong prayer life. An olive skinned manYussuf Alwan from Damascus, introduced himself to the group as he told them he was drawn here by reasons that he didn't understand. And that he can only hope that it is my Savior's voice I've been hearing.

Now that God has called them together, He will begin to put a plan in place to work against the rising tide of corruption to stem from the media giant Mundrose Global Communications. It is a collection of businesses including its own television studio, movie studio, magazine company, advertising and marketing division, music recording company, book publishers and electronic gaming division. Now working with an idea that Trent Cooper has that will utilize all the divisions working together to create a new trend that will literally make them millions. It appeals to the generation Xers and Millennials who often lose interest in new trends after a short time, but this idea is guaranteed to last longer than anyone would ever dream possible. It is to simply instill a simple idea in their minds that Hope is Dead. Now is the time to take care of yourself at all costs and there is nothing anyone can do to stop this rising trend!

I received The Turning by Davis Bunn compliments of Edify Media Inc and River North Publishing for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed are strictly my own. This is a chilling look at what may in fact be our very near future if a mega corporation decides to take on Christianity and religion and garner the world's attention that we don't need God any longer. That bad things happen and God doesn't seem to care about anyone. Now working as one under the leadership of Trent Cooper, they gain momentum to take over the world by claiming our younger generation first and in doing so hope to crush the spirit of God's hope once and for all. I rate this book a 4 out of 5 stars and a Bible study will be available soon online at TheTurningBook.com.

For more information about The Turning, Davis Bunn or where you can preorder up a copy of this book today that is due for release on April 1, 2014, please click on the links below:

The Turning by Davis Bunn

You can also find Davis Bunn on Facebook to stay up to date with all his latest novels.

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: River North; New Edition edition (April 1, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802411681
• ISBN-13: 978-0802411686
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches

Threads of Change

For Elizabeth Bromont, her life has been as changing as the quilts she works so hard to create. Now at the crossroads of a new life for her and her three cousins as well as her young son Luke, she has made a decision to leave her family home in Louisiana and head out west to Fort Worth, Texas. She's strong and determined, raised that way by her grandfather Lucas Mailly after losing her husband Caleb in a logging accident. Lucas has managed to convince Liz that with the possibility of a war erupting in the South with the recent tensions surrounding slavery, their hope for the future lies in selling the family timber mill and taking everything they own and head to a new life and fresh start.

Liz and her three cousins, Emma, Abby and Megan arrange to pack up all the family's belonging into six wagons and take the journey west while her grandfather waits on the sale of the land and mill before joining them. He has managed to convince a couple of his best mill workers, John and Blue along with a close family friend, Thomas to join the women and ensure they make it through Indian Territory safe and sound. Thomas was Caleb's best friend when they first came to Lucas for work and it was due to his stubbornness that he sat back and waited too long, while Caleb stole the love of his life right out from under him. All these years he's sat back and waited for Liz to get over grieving for Caleb before telling him how he has felt all these years. He believes that is one of the reasons Lucas is so willing to allow Thomas to join the Mailly family on their trip to Texas.

However the trip isn't as smooth sailing as any of them would have liked the trip to go. From unexpected storms, being lost in the wilderness and being stalked not only by Indians but a wild and deadly panther as well, it is surprising that any of them manage to make it to Texas intact and in one piece. One thing is certain, life on the wild frontier in the mid 1800's was a wild as it comes and soon that future that the Mailly family had hoped for would soon undergo the greatest test of the family's faith yet.

I recieved Threads of Change by Jodi Barrows compliments of River North Publishing and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review. Being a huge western romance fan, this one really spoke to my heart and soul of just how hard life was not only for people living in the 1850's but how difficult it was for a single woman raising a young son as well. We always wish for more simple times and often times forget just how hard women had to work back in those days and how young they were when death came to greet them. This is the first novel in the Quilting Series and I, for one, am thoroughly looking forward to reading the next one. This one rates a 4.5 out of 5 stars in my personal opinion.

For more information on Threads of Change, Jodi Barrows or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Threads of Change by Jodi Barrows

You can also find Jodi Barrows on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest books.

To read more reviews on Threads of Change from the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance Book Tour, please click here. 

• Series: Quilting Story
• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: River North; New Edition edition (July 1, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802409377
• ISBN-13: 978-0802409379
• Product Dimensions: 0.6 x 5.5 x 8.3 inches

Wedded To War

"No one knows, who did not watch the thing from the beginning, how much opposition, how much ill-will, how much unfeeling want of thought, these women nurses endured. Hardly a surgeon whom I can think of, received or treated them with even common courtesy. Government had decided that women should be employed, and the army surgeons - unable, therefore, to close the hospitals against them - determined to make their lives so unbearable that they should be forced in self-defence to leave. It seemed a matter of cool calculation, just how much ill-mannered opposition would be requisite to break up the system.

Some of the bravest women I have ever known were among this first company of army nurses. They saw at once the position of affairs, the attitude assumed by the surgeons and the wall against which they were expected to break and scatter; and they set themselves to undermine the whole thing." ~ Geogeanna Woolsey, written in 1864

Anyone who has benefited from the Red Cross owes a nod of gratitude to the United States Sanitary Commission, the forerunner of one of today's most recognized charitable organizations.

The Sanitary Commission set up supply stations and hospitals, hired nurses, collected donations, sent inspectors to Union hospitals (to evaluate hygiene conditions that directly affected men's health), and taught troops in camp how to cook food properly to prevent the spread of disease. They also organized and staffed a fleet of hospital ships both in the eastern and western theaters of war.



Though Wedded to War by Jocelyn Green is a work of fiction, the story inspired by one Sanitary Commission nurse, Georgeanna Woolsey, whose letters and journals, written 150 years ago, offer a thorough look of what pioneering women nurses endured during those turbulent times. Charlotte Wavely is only 28, hardly of age to apply for the nursing program she had seen an advertisement for in the paper, but since trying to find a husband has proved futile, she longs for a way to contribute to the war efforts besides merely gathering medical supplies. While she knows her mother would not approve, she applies for the program anyway and is more than surprised to be accepted by Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell, one of the first women to become a doctor.

Phineas Hastings however, has plans to wed Charlotte and when he proposes, he expects her not only to accept his proposal but to also give up the notion to join the nursing program and learn to be a proper wife. So when Charlotte refuses to accept, he seems convinced to win her at any cost.

Caleb Lansing has been a close childhood friend to Charlotte and even helped her care for her ailing father when he came down with cholera until he passed away despite all their best efforts. Now after he has completed all his medical training, he has joined in the war in an effort to keep Charlotte off his mind, but no matter what he does, he can't give up the notion that he is truly in love with her. His only hope is the written letters Charlotte sends him to remind him a bit of the life he has left behind and learns she is training to become a nurse. While one man demands his way, another one encourages her to use the gifts God has given her, yet her heart is torn between the two. Will Charlotte's heart, survive the war long enough to find true love?

I received Wedded to War by Jocelyn Green compliments of Christian Fiction Blog Alliance and River North Publishing for my honest review. I am a huge fan of history and never before really understood just how difficult it was for women to help out in the war simply by becoming nurses, something you would think men would whole heartily accept since they are natural caregivers, but through the historical research Jocelyn Green did, you learn that this wasn't an easy path for women to follow. It took more than strong stomachs to endure the horrors of what they had to deal with along with a strong determination to stand their grounds against male stereotypes that did their best to discourage them in ever way possible. I rate this one a 5 out of 5 stars and a must read for anyone interested in the roles women played during the Civil War. Even though this is a fictional novel, it's a real as it gets based on the facts and research Jocelyn did to make this one as believable as if you were right there in the trenches with them.

For more information on Wedded to War, Jocelyn Green or where to pick up book 1, in the Heroines Behind the Lines Series, click on the links below:

Wedded to War by Jocelyn Green

You can also read more reviews from this book tour, by clicking here.