Review ~ A Pursuit of Home (Haven Manor #3) by Kristi Ann Hunter

About the Book

When she learns the family she thought dead might be alive and in danger, Jess Beuchene knows her secrets can only stay buried for so long. Desperation brings her to Derek Thornbury, an expert in history and artifacts, to help her decipher the clues in an old family diary. Will their search to uncover the truth of the past lead to a future together?

Paperback, 376 pages
Publisher: Bethany House, Nov 5, 2019

Purchase:
Amazon
B&N

CBD

About Kristi

Award winning author Kristi Ann Hunter had been losing herself in stories since before she could read them herself. Now she has the privilege of transporting readers into the Regency-set world of her own creation. With ten books published since 2015, including the acclaimed Hawthorne House series, Kristi has had a busy few years. When she isn’t writing, she hangs out with her children and husband in Georgia watching Marvel movies, trying to learn how to play Minecraft, and eating what some might consider an excessive amount of dark chocolate.

Links:

https://www.kristiannhunter.com/

https://www.kristiannhunter.com/BookPage/APOH

My Review

5 STARS!!!

‘Diaries were incredible windows into the past…He wanted that diary. The question was, did he want it badly enough to deal with her?’

Jess has been an enigma since the first book in this incredible series, A Defense of Honor. She’s cantankerous and intensely private. I was intrigued to read her story and taken completely by surprise. Jess has a sharp tongue but she is funny. Oh the dialogue between her and Derek was downright hilarious at times. He’s marvelous, by the way. A man of God who desires to help others makes him the perfect counterpart to Jess’s prickly exterior.

I enjoyed this book and didn’t want it to end. Hunter has once again given Regency fans a series to read over and over again, making it a modern ‘classic’. I can’t wait to see what is next in her repertoire of book ideas.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher. No review was required. No compensation received.

Review ~ Misleading Miss Verity (Regency Brides: Daughters of Aynsley #3) By Carolyn Miller

Published November 26th 2019 by Kregel Publications

Paperback, 352 pages

Verity Hatherleigh has a mind of her own—but her actions do not impress her viscount papa. When she gets into one scrape too many, he sends her off to the wilds of Scotland to rethink her headstrong ways.

Anthony Jardine relished his role as curate, but his new duties as laird of Dungally aren’t always to his liking. Though he thought his new inheritance would be a blessing, somehow he’s finding nothing but trouble on these estates. And the intelligent, compassionate, feisty lass who was sent to rusticate in his territory is one of the biggest problems. He’s falling in love with her, but she doesn’t share the faith that’s his foundation—not to mention he’s been lying to her about who he really is. For the truth-loving Verity, that may be unforgivable.

The tangled web these two have woven may spell disaster for their happiness—and for the tenants of Dungally. 

Purchase:

CBD

4 STARS!!!

It’s not often a book sinks as deeply into my subconscious as Misleading Miss Verity. Miller always provides aesthetically pleasing visuals but that’s not what stood out to me this time. Verity is a character that I regret to say I could sadly identify with on many levels. She’s always known she was a disappointment to her parents because she wasn’t a boy, and thus she was always compared to others and treated as less than. I’ll clarify here my own mother never made me feel this way. But Verity’s mom is a real piece of work. I didn’t like her in the first two books and still don’t like her one iota.

Verity’s defining moment comes when she is surrounded in darkness and fear is overtaking her. She calls out to God and it’s a moving moment. But later when she realizes her worth is not in her parent’s expectations, that through Christ she is a new creature, spotless before God, and it is Christ who makes her worthy, it is powerful.

Once again, Miller has proven she has a compelling ability when it comes to storytelling.

I do want to mention I sort of lost respect for Verity’s sisters in this book. They didn’t seem to do anything to encourage her when they were around. And I really liked them in their own stories. Ha! The Chisholm family is great though. I’d like to see James get his own story one day.

I received an early copy from the publisher. My opinion is my own. No compensation has been received.

COMING Jan 2nd!!!

On Wings of Devotion by Roseanna White About the Book

Against Every Warning, She’s Drawn Ever Closer to the Man Known as “Black Heart” All of England thinks Major Phillip Camden a monster–a man who deliberately caused the deaths of his squadron. But he would have preferred to die that day with his men rather than be recruited to the Admiralty’s codebreaking division. The threats he receives daily are no great surprise and, in his opinion, well deserved. As nurse Arabelle Denler observes the so-dubbed “Black Heart,” she sees something far different: a hurting man desperate for mercy. And when their families and paths twist together unexpectedly, she realizes she has a role to play in his healing–and some of her own to do as well. With Camden’s court-martial looming, an old acquaintance shows up, intent on using him in a plot that sends the codebreakers of Room 40 into a frenzy. With their fragile hopes for the future in the cross hairs, Arabelle and Camden must hold on to hope–and to each other–if they want to survive. Purchase Links: RoseannaWhite.com

Review ~ Ruby Jane (Montana Marshalls 5) by Susan May Warren

She loved...and lost.

Ruby Jane never thought she'd meet the man of her dreams while running from the police in Russia. That he'd steal her heart on a train to Siberia. But loving a former CIA officer comes with a price...a life of danger. A life of high stakes.

A life where he simply disappears...

He has no memory of the man he was.

Mack Jones has no memory of his past...just the dark sense that he is hiding. And, he wants to stay that way. Mack likes the life he's built in a small tourist town, tucked away beyond the mountains, and has no desire to dig around in the gray areas of his memory.

When his place of business catches fire and Mack rescues the owner, he makes the news, which of course alerts the past he's hoping to outrun.

The only person who can help him is a mysterious woman he doesn't remember.

But a woman he desperately needs.

The surprising, thrilling conclusion to the Montana Marshall series. 

Purchase:

Amazon (Kindle)

My Review

4.5 STARS!!!

“The fire is supposed to burn away everything but our faith and character.”

Every now and then I read a book that when I close the last page, I just sit there. In silence. Contemplating. Ruby Jane was that kind of book for me. A smashing conclusion to the Montana Marshalls series, Warren brings it on with plenty of action, intrigue, romance, and a theme of regeneration that had me in tears. Her ability to show how a person who is utterly tarnished by their actions, words, and thoughts, and yet through the power of the Holy Spirit can be reconciled to God left me praising Him for his mercy and grace toward me!

“You have to believe that no matter what happens, you’re going to be okay. That God’s grace is enough.”

Without any doubt, SMW is the best builder of a fictional family I have read. Each and every character is pivotal to the storyline and I didn’t want to miss a single moment with any of them. I didn’t connect with Ruby Jane in the way I expected but I think it’s because I was acutely focused on York. He is an amazing character and completely stole my heart.

The Montana Marshalls must be read in order to get the full effect and enjoyment. Literally each book picks up where the other leaves off. It’s an excellent binge read!!

I received an early copy from the author. My opinion is my own. No compensation has been received.

A Thanksgiving Thought...

Today is a hard day for many people. 

I'm reminded to pray diligently for those who are suffering loss whether it's through death, distance, severed relationships, or all of the above. 

I pray each one of us feel God's mercy and compassion. That we realize his unfailing love and respond to his gentle persuasion to place our heartache in his hands where comfort resides. 

Grace and peace to you all!

*image:  https://pixabay.com/users/tsukiko-kiyomidzu-1850874/