Saturday, July 23, 2016

Belonging, book #16

Oops!  Forgot about this one I read before the other!  I really liked this one also!

In the high desert town of Frenchman’s Bluff, Idaho, Felicia Kristoffersen has set out to create a future for herself that is better than her painful past. Alone in the world with only her faith to sustain her, she must prove herself as this tiny community’s new school teacher. She cannot, must not, fail. But, there are those who never wanted her there to begin with. Five years after the death of his wife, local merchant Colin Murphy cares about just one thing: raising his daughter, Charity. Colin wants to give her the educational advantages he never had. The new schoolmarm’s inexperience doesn’t sit well with him, and if this teacher up and marries like the last one did, Charity’s heart will be broken once again. A woman who hasn’t known love. A man who lost the love he had. In the midst of the wide, sage-covered plains, each is about to discover that life’s bitterest circumstances truly can work together for good. Tender, evocative, and beautifully written, Belonging is a journey about love after loss, and about two hearts destined to become one—despite their stubbornness! (picture and description from amazon)

Happy reading!

O:)
Melissa


Grounded, book #15

Fun Fun quick read.  Again, like the Amish book I just read, I was reading part of this on our bizarre flights home and I would look at the flight attendant and think to myself, "Hhm, I am getting a peek into your world!" Of course, you could tell how the book was going to end half way through, but it was still fun to see sub plots come together.

Also loved all setting of Beulah's house, a large farm "in Kentucky" somewhat near Lexington.  I could so see Beulah just like Grandma Campbell and her big old farm .... made me almost want to pack up everything and go back to claim the farm, but Annie had the luck of having Beulah teach her how to plant, how to garden, how to harvest, and how to can.  I'm not sure I could do it with just my BFF "the internet" ..... 

New York City flight attendant Annie Taylor is grounded, putting a halt to weekends in Rome and her jet-setting lifestyle. Soon her noncommittal boyfriend’s true nature is revealed, and to top it all off, she loses her apartment.
With nowhere else to go, Annie leaves the city for the family farm in Kentucky, a place she’s avoided for years. She finds a shotgun-wielding grandmother, a farm in disrepair, and a suspicious stranger renting the old stone house. The country quiet haunts Annie with reminders of a past that can’t be changed. She tries persuading her grandmother to sell the farm, but is met with stubborn refusal? Yet in the midst of her crashing life, Annie sees a glimmer of hope for a second chance.   Jake Wilder is contemplating jumping off the corporate ladder to follow his passion for sustainable farming. He’s almost ready to propose to Camille, a girl who wants more, not less. Annie believes Jake is about to make a terrible mistake, but does she have the right to tell him? As the summer heats up, so do Annie’s unexpected feelings for Jake and her interest in the land. When a sudden phone call comes from New York, Annie is forced to choose between coming to terms with her past or leaving it all behind. (picture and description from amazon)


Happy reading!

O:)
Melissa 


Monday, July 11, 2016

Falling to pieces, book #14

Book Club read for July.  It was a nice, easy read that I did enjoy.  A little cheesy at times, but what was interesting is that as I was reading this up in Philly I saw several Amish people at the hospital.  And in my mind I was like, "Hey, I'm getting another peek into your world."  Maybe because I'm just weird like that ...

In this first book of a three-book series, author Vannetta Chapman brings a fresh twist to the popular Amish fiction genre. She blends the familiar components consumers love in Amish books—faith, community, simplicity, family—with an innovative who-done-it plot that keeps readers guessing right up to the last stitch in the quilt. When two women—one Amish, one English—each with different motives, join forces to organize a successful on-line quilt auction, neither expects nor wants a friendship. As different as night and day, Deborah and Callie are uneasy partners who simply want to make the best of a temporary situation. But a murder, a surprising prime suspect, a stubborn detective, and the town's reaction throw the two women together, and they form an unlikely alliance to solve a mystery and catch a killer. Set in the well-known Amish community of Shipshewana, Falling to Pieces will attract both devoted fans of the rapidly-growing Amish fiction genre, as well as those who are captivated by the Amish way of life.  (picture and description from amazon)

Happy Summer Reading!!
O:)
Melissa