Dreams beyond tomorrow, book #81

 

I decided I couldn't resist and started the next book.  And finished it in just a few days since it is so short.  

Ok, I will admit.  This book, this series probably does not have a lot of likes here in the 2010s because it isn't even close to some of the stuff I read, but I still like it.  Yes, they made it to Oregon, but Cole is still gone all the times and poor Rachel starts in imagine if Cole really even does like her, even though every short time he comes home he tells her that.  They finally got to move their marriage to the next level, so to speak, but then he left again.  Star has kept her happy and starting classes has been fun.  Luckily Yolanda finally got her eyes opened to the scoundrel that Julius was, unfortunately it was a lesson she had to learn the hard way.  We think Cole may be home for a while now, at least I hope!  What fun is a pioneer story when the woman -- who already has to work really hard on the trail and at a new place -- and man aren't even together?!?!?  

Will you wear the ring - be my wife, my real wife - forever and ever?... After the long, hard journey, they stood on the little knoll - feasting their eyes on the beauty of Oregon's fertile fields. Rachel Lord, Colby's wife in name only, longs for the chance to finally make their wedding into a marriage. But Cole is a man with a dream which takes him away from the tiny settlement... widening the gap in Rachel's insecure heart. As Rachel strives to keep his dream of a city alive in the minds of the settlers, she is faced with the hardships of pioneer life and the agonies of love so long denied. Cole's trusted friend, Buck, becomes Rachel's much-needed shoulder to lean on. But can he protect her from the mystery behind Superstition Mountain and the threat of hostile Indians? Then it happens. The horrible event which will change the way of life forever in the settlement. Rachel finally realizes only her faith can sustain her and only God can fulfill her...  (description from here and picture from amazon) 

I believe next I will move back to the smaller series from my mom.  

Keep reading!!

O:)
Melissa

Journey to love, book #80

Aaaah, my precious pioneers.  I know most of you all think I am silly but I have to believe there are some of you out there that love pioneer books also!!

Fleeing an alcoholic father who was trying to sell her, Rachel joined a wagon train bound for Oregon and married Colby Lord, a man she met only once when he tried to collect on a loan to her father. Angry and proud at first, Rachel finds her heart changing as the usual disasters strike the wagon train and teach her to put her faith in God.  (picture and description at amazon)

A little confusing and a little unbelievable at times, but since we have no idea what it was REALLY like in those times I think it is hard to say what is and isn't believable.  

This was a short one, so I might have to read the next one instead of skipping to another pile!

Keep reading!

O:)
Melissa

Tiffany girl, book #79

I can't believe I actually finished this book as fast as I did.  Remember me telling you it was thick book?  Yep, 544 pages!  I figured it would take me a good two weeks, but sure enough it was still a week.  I am still not entirely sure how that happened. 

See, 544 pages is a lot to read.  And there were boatloads of big words and descriptive words used for things relevant to the 1890s.  (Made me wish I was reading it on my Paperwhite once again!) But, despite all the details it really is a good story and that is what helped me move along so quickly.

I can already hear what my book club buddies are going to say about it.  "It was a good story, but I couldn't get to it because there were TOO MANY DETAILS!! Who cares about all the intricacies of their clothes or the surroundings!!"  But as always, I'm going to have to stick to my guns and say I LOVE DETAILS!!! To me it just makes the story come alive!  Even if I didn't know half the words used in the descriptions I could use context clues or just make up what I thought it meant.  And with the details, I could not only read the story, but I could SEE the story, I could SMELL the story, I could HEAR the story.  I could EXPERIENCE the story with them!!

As preparations for the 1893 World’s Fair set Chicago and the nation on fire, Louis Tiffany—heir to the exclusive Fifth Avenue jewelry empire—seizes the opportunity to unveil his state-of-the-art, stained glass, mosaic chapel, the likes of which the world has never seen. But when Louis’s dream is threatened by a glassworkers’ strike months before the Fair opens, he turns to an unforeseen source for help: the female students at the Art Students League of New York. Eager for adventure, the young women pick up their skirts, move to boarding houses, take up steel cutters, and assume new identities as the “Tiffany Girls.”
Tiffany Girl is the heartwarming story of the impetuous Flossie Jayne, a beautiful, budding artist who is handpicked by Louis to help complete the Tiffany chapel. Though excited to live in a boarding house when most women stayed home, she quickly finds the world is less welcoming than anticipated. From a Casanova male, to an unconventional married couple, and a condescending singing master, she takes on a colorful cast of characters to transform the boarding house into a home while racing to complete the Tiffany chapel and make a name for herself in the art world. As challenges mount, her ambitions become threatened from an unexpected quarter: her own heart. Who will claim victory? Her dreams or the captivating boarder next door?  (picture and description from amazon)

Up next? Probably time to move on to the pile under my nightstand  and start on a pioneer book!!  

Keep reading!

O:)
Melissa

A side of hope, book #78

While debating whether to start that thick Book Club book or read something else before I start, I remembered I had not read this short novella yet.  It was the perfect thing to pick up after this nutty week of thought provoking movies.  (Age of Adeline, Selma, Still Alice and Interstellar)  

Two years ago in February 2013 we read Krista's first book in the series, Sandwich, with a Side of Romance. The fun continued last fall when we read A Side of Faith.  In October, after reading this book, she came to our Book Club since she is a local author.  It is always a treat to meet the authors, and especially when we find out she is a mom just like us in the throws of everyday crazy life but also an author who has contacts with other famous authors.  She gave us some insight in to the world of Christian Fiction writing and shared a lot about the process, about book contracts, about self publishing, about many things we had no idea!!  It was so interesting to learn some "behind the stage" stuff from these books we just pick up.  

This books ties into the others in that it is the same group of friends, just each books tells one person's story and then another book moves on to another person's story. As with all her books, I loved this one and the way that it IS worth it to hold on to hope, even when you don't realize you are.  


Tilly Davis is meeting her forties head on. Happy and healthy, she doesn't need a man to complete her. But as she blows out her candles, she makes a halfhearted wish for maybe just a little excitement to spice up her life. God must have misunderstood her wish, though, because moments later, He brings her the one person she never wants to see again. Her husband. (picture and description from amazon.)

Now to decide if I have time to read another book or just start in on Tiffany Girl.

Happy Reading!

O:)
Melissa

Lip reading, book #78

So, I decided to go with a medical mystery.  Usually I thoroughly enjoy the books written by Harry Kraus, but this one was not one of my favorites.  For those not familiar with Harry Kraus, his main genre is medical mystery and always includes a tie in to Africa, Virginia, and the medical world.  Why?  Well, because that is what he knows!  He is a doctor who lives in Virginia and travels often to Africa to do mission work.  The other book I read by him is here.

This one, however, was a little too medical for me.  In his other books you could still understand the story without having a medical degree.  I could still get the main gist of the story but if it had of been a little lighter on the medical jargon that would have made me happy too.

She Could Save Millions, or Save Herself

She just needs a little longer. She’s really close. Dr. Rebecca Jackson, a medical researcher, stands on the verge of a breakthrough that will transform medicine. But she soon discovers the reason behind the miraculous progress in her research, and it leaves her with a nearly impossible choice . . . and little time to decide. More than her research is at stake. And more threatens it than this latest revelation. Something she’s tried hard to cover up. There is a high cost to some things in medicine and it’s not always the patient who pays. Can Rebecca find the faith and wisdom she needs to make the right call? The clock is ticking and the pressure is on.  (picture and description at amazon)

Happy Reading!!

O:)
Melissa

 

How to catch a prince, book #77

Ahh, another sweet Rachel Hauck story with our dear friends in Brighton, a mysterious pretend country that sounds  a lot like England.  In the other books in this series, Once Upon a Prince and Princess Ever After, we met the royals of Brighton and their sister island, Hessenberg.  This book just continues, and I think, rounds out her Royal Wedding series. As with all her books, I highly recommend it!!


An American heiress and a crown prince seem destined to be together. Will the devastation of war keep them apart forever?  American heiress Corina Del Rey caught her prince once. But the tragedy of war kept her too long in a fog of grief. Now she’s shifting her life forward, reigniting her career as a journalist. Still, nothing can relieve her of the secret and the love she carries in her soul. Prince Stephen of Brighton is one of the world’s most eligible bachelors and a star rugby player, trying to make sense of his life. His days in Afghanistan with the Royal Air Command will mark him forever. And he can’t shake their dark shadow. But when his brother, King Nathaniel, confronts him with a document the prince thought long buried and forgotten, Stephen is forced to face the pain of his past and the love he left behind. With a little heavenly help, Prince Stephen and Corina embark on a journey of truth. But when the secrets are revealed, can they overcome, move forward, and find love again? (picture and description at amazon.)

Next up? I have no idea!!  But I'm thinking its going be a mystery!

Keep Reading! 

O:)
Melissa

The honorable imposter, book #76

If you will remember, back in January I had this dilemma.  After a few ups and downs and, oh, READING THE BIBLE THROUGH IN 90 DAYS, I got a little off track.  Well, I did read this book from one stack but I haven't had the time to officially start on the rounds.  So, we start again.  (Isn't that how life is?)

This book is from the big stack that follows a family through multiple centuries here in America.  I was quite anxious to read them -- and I still am -- I just realized it is going to take a long time to do so, unless for some reason I get bed-ridden.  

I really did like this book, but on several occasions I was wishing I was reading it on my Paperwhite instead, because it used a LOT of big words.  Most of them were related to the Mayflower boat itself, however Mr. Morris is a very descriptive historical writer and many of the references to clothing, fencing techniques, the homes, etc were words I were not familiar with.  I tried to use context clues as much as possible, but some stuff I just never figured out.  (Like the poop deck people kept going to all the time!)  

So this book starts us out in the early 1600s in England.  The story itself is almost too complicated to explain, I think the description covers it best.  But the story follows the Pilgrims and their move to America via Holland.  It is really an interesting story and he does not gloss over any of the challenges they had.  When the poor folks finally showed up in New England in November, half already dead and half starved, it was a bad bad situation.  But the faith they had and the faith they clung to just put me on my knees.  Most church goers today have no where near the faith these people had to believe that God was on their side despite every thing that happened around them. 

If you are up for the challenge I encourage you to read this!

They had faith, a vision, a dream of freedom that both enthralled and frightened him.  Could he trust them with his future?  Forced by his family to become a minister in the Church of England, Gilbert Winslow is offered a dangerous and challenging task by one of the most powerful nobles in Britain.  Taking the post offers fortune and escape from a life he despises, but Winslow discovers it also means becoming a spy.  His mission is to infiltrate a group of religious separatists and to ferret out the whereabouts of their leader, who is accused of dissension against the King.  In spite of his initial uneasiness, infiltration proves to be an easy matter.  But will the ultimate betrayal be so simple?  With the influences of good and evil, faith and doubt, compassion and selfishness pulling him apart, to whom could he turn? (picture from amazon.)

Happy Reading!

O:)
Melissa