The Extraordinary Deaths of Mrs. Kip, book #8

 

I had heard rave reviews about this book from various places, so I was excited when it was finally time to read an E book so I could get to it.  The hype was worth every word.  Go read it.

Aidyn Kelley is talented, ambitious, and ready for a more serious assignment than the fluff pieces she's been getting as a cub reporter for the Kansas City Star. In her eagerness, she pushes too hard, earning herself the menial task of writing an obituary for an unremarkable woman who's just entered hospice care.  But there's more to Clara Kip than meets the eye. The spirited septuagenarian may be dying, but she's not quite ready to cash it in yet. Never one to shy away from an assignment herself, she can see that God brought the young reporter into her life for a reason. And if it's a story Aidyn Kelley wants, that's just what Mrs. Kip will give her--but she's going to have to work for it. (description and photo from Amazon)

One of my favorite quotes from the book, one I hope to live by:

Happy Reading!

Melissa

God's Plan for the Unexpected Bride, book #7

 

So, funny story about this book.  Since I am trying to read through the alphabet I was thinking my next book would be an E book, but then our "picker" for Book Club chose this G book.  I debated if I should:

a. Read an E book and F book really fast before I started this

b. Read this first and count it as my G book, I mean who says I have to read the books in alphabet order?

c. Read it as a "freebie" and when I get to G just pick another one.

When I realized it was 436 pages and I had two weeks before Book Club I figured I better ditch (a) and decide later whether I go with (b) or (c).

The book was a little slow at first, but once I got about half way through I was all in.  I recommend it, just make sure you stick with it

His teenage brother places a mail-order bride ad and now Ray is bound to her forever…

Josephine flees from her fiancée, who wants nothing but her father's fortune. Determined to seek redemption and safety, she answers a mail-order bride ad.  Ray is responsible for his teenage brother after their parents' passing. His strictness is tested when Oliver, in an attempt to defy Ray's doubts about his capabilities, places a mail-order bride ad, to prove that he is mature enough to handle marriage.  Deceived by Oliver's lie, Josephine knows she cannot marry an underage suitor, so she grapples with an unexpected solution - to wed his grumpy older brother. Is this God's plan for her?  (photo and description from Amazon)

Now I am on to read my E book, one I have been very excited about reading for a while now!

Happy Reading!

Melissa

Dying to Read, book #6

 

After the "heavy" reading of my last book, this was a light read with a much more humourous tone.  I doubt I will read the others in the series, but it was a cute break.

Cate Kinkaid is just dipping her toe into the world of private investigating until one of the many résumés she has floating around lands her a real job. All she has to do is determine that a particular woman lives at a particular address. Simple, right? When the big and brooding house happens to contain a dead body, this routine PI job turns out to be anything but simple. Is Cate in over her head? (picture and descriptio at Amazon)

As a side note, I just saw that I purchased this in 2014.  Guess it was time I read it!  ;)

Keep Reading!

Melissa

Courting Cate, book #5

 

In my walk through the alphabet, next was C.  I made Roger pick for me again and he again chose a good one!  The first part was fun, the middle took a very odd twist, the end was not quite what I hoped because there were too many questions left undone.  I could probably be talked into reading the other books in the series though, sometime later.

When this couple gets to courting, sparks will fly!  In Paradise, Pennsylvania, Cate Miller is known more for her sharp tongue and fiery temper than her striking appearance. Her sweet and flirty sister, Betsy, on the other hand, seems to have attracted most of the bachelors in Lancaster County!  But the sisters' wealthy father has made one hard-and-fast rule: older Cate must marry first, before younger Betsy can even start courting. Unfortunately, untamable Cate has driven away every suitor--until Pete Treger comes to town, that is.  Prodded by the men of the area, Pete turns his attention to winning Cate's hand. But is his interest true or is there a scheme at play? (picture and description at Amazon)

Stay tuned for what is up next!!

O:)

Melissa

Bright Arrows, book #4

 

Ok, so my B book threw me a little at first.  If you have ever read any of Grace LIvingston Hill's books, you know they are written in and set in the 1940s, so the language was just more proper and dignified.  It begins ...

Eden was sitting in the library of the old house where she had lived all her life.  She was going over some papers in the big library desk.  Her father had asked her to give special attention to them as soon as she would get home from his funeral service and be alone.

She had eaten quietly and conscientiously of the delicious supper that the devoted sorrowing servants had lovingly prepared for her.  She had tried to keep a cheerful face during their ministrations and then had told them that she wouldn't need them anymore tonight and they must go their beds and rest, for they had had a hard day.  They had blessed her for her thoughtfulness and gone off to finish the few remaining household duties.  Then they went silently to their rooms.

But once you get used to the style and try to put yourself in the scene, you can enjoy the story even more.  There were parts that got a little slow, and parts that were a little "spicy" by 1940s standards, but all in all in was a rather enjoyable book. 

Eden Thurston is orphaned and struggling to remain positive as scheming relatives swoop in for a portion of her father’s estate. Then letters she finds written by her mother when Eden was a child give her new hope to face the future, while a handsome young lawyer steps in to help her settle the estate issues.

I will tell you, though, this short summary does not even scratch the surface of all the characters involved in the book, including Ellery Fane, the son of her uncle's wife, but from a different father and his mother Lavira Fane, which are no good thieves who are trying to scam a way to getting into Eden's money.  Then there are Janet and Tabor, the faithful main servants who keep Eden safe from all the troublemakers; Casper Carvel, her childhood friend who changed so much during the war and thought he could just pick up where he left off with Eden; Mr. Lorrimer, that "handsome young lawyer" and the rat Niles Nevin, the brother of Eden's college roommate who just knew for sure she was the one for him.

Happy Reading!

O:)

Melissa

At Bluebonnet Lake, book #3

 

Just finished my first book in my Alphabet Reading Plan.  I made a list of all the ones that start with A, printed them out and cut them in strips, then had Roger pick one out.  He did good, I really enjoyed this one A LOT!!

Marketing maven Kate Sherwood's world is fast-paced, challenging, and always changing. The last thing she wants to do is slow down to a crawl at Rainbow's End, a dilapidated resort in the Texas Hill Country. But she cannot deny her ailing grandmother's request to visit the place where she and her deceased husband spent one glorious week (albeit fifty years ago). There Kate meets Greg Vange, the resort's handyman. But there's more to Greg than meets the eye--billions more, in fact, as he recently sold his successful software company and is at the resort in search of what's next for his life. Kate isn't looking for romance, but she can't deny the sparks of attraction that fly every time she and Greg are together. She even starts to see potential in the rundown resort. Could there be a future there? Or will Kate's long-sought promotion take her back to the big city? Amanda Cabot invites readers to step away from the pressures of the daily grind. They might be surprised by what they find at Rainbow's End.  (photo and description at Amazon)

As tempted as I am to jump into book 2 of this series, I'm sticking to my plan for reading a B book next.  I've got my strips ready for him to pick another good one!

Keep Reading!

Melissa

And so we begin again .....

And so we begin a new year with lots of new books to read!  I *may* to try get some nonfiction in, since Leah & Katie beg me to, but there are so many fiction books already on my Paperwhite .....

The first one I read this year was The Christmas Clue to Finding You, which was actually my one last Christmas leftover book.  It is by Pepper Basham, who I had never heard of until our good author/friend Krista Phillips mentioned her on her Facebook page.  I decided to give her a try and I was not disappointed!  I will probably be adding more of her books to my pile.  

After five years away, Piper Dawson returns home to Kedgewick Creek and is pulled into a Christmas Scavenger Hunt that resurrects a heartbreak from Christmas past she’s not quite ready to mend. Will a matchmaking granny, a little Christmas magic, and a cute guy in a kilt make all the difference to her Christmas yet-to-come? (picture and description at Amazon)

And then we have the new Tamara Alexander book.  It came out in November and I have been not very patiently waiting to read it.  It has been longer than normal for one of her books to release and once I got all caught up with all her other books, I wasn't sure I could wait another minute!  

But, my friends, it was worth the wait!  This is her first book written in modern times and she just went above and beyond.  

Claire Powell’s life is turned upside down when her beloved husband admits to a “near affair.” But when Stephen accepts a partnership with an Atlanta law firm without consulting her and buys a historic Southern home sight-unseen—it pushes their already-fractured marriage to the breaking point. Claire’s world spirals, and she soon finds herself in a marriage she no longer wants, in a house she never asked for.  In 1863, Charlotte Thursmann, pregnant and trapped in a marriage to an abusive husband, struggles to protect her unborn child and the enslaved members of her household. Desperate, she’s determined to right the evils her husband and others like him commit. But how can one woman put an end to such injustice? Especially if her husband makes good on his threat to kill her?  Both Claire and Charlotte discover truths about themselves they never realized, along with secrets long hidden that hold the power to bring God’s restoration—if only they choose to let it. (Picture and description at Amazon)

 

So many good quotes from the book:

I have been at a loss how to always pick a book or how to even try to work through all nearly books on my Paperwhite, but I came up with a small plan for this year.  I'm going to "Read the Alphabet".  So obviously not all the books in alphabetical order, but I am quite sure I will read more than 26, especially since we are reading the Bible through again this year!  But this way I have some direction of which way to go!

I can't wait to see what I read -- and what YOU read too!

Melissa