NetGalley

Starting from Scratch by Kate Lloyd

/ kentuckybooklover / 1 Comment

scratch.jpg

Pages: 354 (eBook)

Publisher: Harvest House Publishers

Published: April 3, 2018

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Eva has become an old maid at the age of 29 or so she thinks. During her rumspringa she has made some choices that has caused unsavory rumors to be spread. When her brother’s family moves into the family home she finds herself needing to find a job and a place to live. She finds both at the local plant nursery managing their café. There she meets Stephen, a Mennonite and starts asking herself if life would be better living in the English world. Shortly after starting her new job she learns the love of her life, Jake, is back to help his dad run the farm after a terrible accident. Will true love overcome past obstacles?

Eva, Eva, Eva. I liked her character but at the same time I wanted to shake her. She was so timid and meek it made me furious at her. I wanted to reach in the novel and tell her to grow a back bone. She let too many people, relatives and friends included, walk all over her. Starting with the day her sister-in-law, Marta, moved in. At 29 Eva should be able to stand up for herself but she rarely did until almost the very end of the novel. She had very little self respect for herself. I know the Amish are not to be proud and are non confrontational but I don’t think you are to let everyone run over you.

I don’t want to give the ending away but I don’t think Eva made the best choice in men. I was very disappointed in the ending due to that one fact alone.

Even though I was disappointed in the ending this was a great book and I enjoyed reading it. You don’t always get the ending you want in life or in the books you read.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Harvest House Publishers through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Sound of Freedom by Kathy Kacer

/ kentuckybooklover / Leave a comment

the sound of freedom.jpg

Pages: 256

Publisher: Annick Press Ltd.

Published: March 27, 2018

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

It is 1936 in Krakow, Poland and Hitler is making his move on the Jewish families. Anna has always led an idyllic and mostly happy childhood going to school and listening to her father play his clarinet in the Krakow Philharmonic Orchestra. As Hitler starts enforcing his reign outside of Germany her family understands it is time to move. Bronislaw Huberman is taking auditions for his new orchestra in Palestine, a city that is safer for Jewish families. Will Anna’s father get a spot and the family get their travel visas before it is too late?

I am a big reader of World War 2 fiction at it doesn’t matter if it is an adult book or a children book I want to read it. The Sound of Freedom was extremely interesting as it was a story from a different country than Germany. I was also interested as it based loosely on a true story as Bronsilaw Huberman really did start an orchestra in Palestine and go to Poland auditioning people for spots and provided thousands of travel visas for families. I would like to read more about him.

The view point from Anna is very relatable for children in grades 4-7 as she talks about the things that are important to her at that age and those things are important to every child no matter the year or surroundings. She thinks about leaving her friends and how she will feel. She thinks about what to leave and what to take. She thinks about making new friends in a country that she does not know the language. Anna also shows how to gather courage and lets the reader know that each one of us is stronger than we think.

I hope to see this book in school libraries very soon.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Annick Press Ltd. through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Plain Confession (An Amish Mystery #5) by Emma Miller

/ kentuckybooklover / Leave a comment

plain confession

Pages: 304 (eBook)

Publisher: Kensington

Published: March 27, 2018

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

As Rachel is finalizing her wedding plans to State Trooper Evan she learns that a local man’s death may not have been an accident. Daniel was an Amish man that the town had nothing bad to say until his death then stories started circulating that he was not whom he seemed. Will Rachel focus on her wedding plans so this time the wedding will go off without a hiccup or will she find herself in the middle of the investigation and losing sight of her future?

I have been wanting to read this series for several years as my mom has read a few of them and raves how good the stories are in her opinion. I have to agree, after reading the 5th book in the series it is now on my summer TBR list. I instantly liked Rachel. She is ex-Amish but still tries to follow her life as she was raised. She runs a local inn with the help of her cousin who is in her rumpsringa (a time when Amish youth get to live in both worlds). Since moving back to her hometown she has found herself in the middle of several murder investigations. This time it is two weeks before her wedding. Her wedding has been postponed once already.

On the surface Daniel appeared to be everything an Amish man should be but as Rachel starts questioning his death at the request of his mother-in-law she learns he was quite the opposite. Moses, Daniel’s brother-in-law, has confessed to killing Daniel but no one except for the English law system believes he really did it. Rachel is almost certain he is autistic and had he been diagnosed properly years ago he would be better understood. The more she investigates the more dead ends she runs into.

Two of the side characters are really amazing characters that I hope I see more of as I catch up on this series. There is Chuck, a doomsday prepper, who has seen more death and tragedy serving in the war than one should ever experience and Salome, the elderly midwife and herbalist, who knows everyone’s stories and secrets. Both turned out to be true friends to Rachel.

If you are interested the series in order is:
1. Plain Murder
2. Plain Killing
3. Plain Dead
4. Plain Missing
5. Plain Confession

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Kensington through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Promise by Susan Lantz Simpson

/ kentuckybooklover / Leave a comment

promise

Pages: 352 (eBook)

Publisher: Kensington

Published: March 27, 2018

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Nineteen year old Phoebe wants to raise alpacas and takes every opportunity to learn about their sweet tender nature. Her mom, sisters and her attend a Saturday market in town and while learning about the alpacas her baby sister, Naomi, is kidnapped. Both her and her younger sister, Martha, feel responsible. Phoebe has struck a deal with God that if her sister is returned she will marry Micah Graber even if she doesn’t love him and he does not share her dream of owning alpacas.

Ben has moved to the area to help his aging grandparents run their farm and is excited to learn about the alpacas at a neighboring farm. He hopes to be able to convince his grandfather to add the sweet animals to his menagerie of animals. Ben meets Phoebe at the alpaca exhibit at the market and falls in love. Can he help Phoebe during this difficult time and save her from making a lifelong mistake?

I was very excited to read an Amish book set in Maryland as I have visited the area and that makes books even more interesting to me. I can recall the smells and feel the weather like I am right there with the characters.

Phoebe – You have a sweet love story going on in the background while a terrible tragedy is unfolding. Phoebe is trying to come to terms with her part in the kidnapping of her baby sister. She keeps herself busy with chores around the house to the point of exhaustion. You really get a sense of how strong the Amish are physically and mentally. I admire Phoebe’s mental strength as I am not sure I could keep it together one little bit.

Micah – JERK. The nicest term I can use. I have never disliked an Amish character as much I do Micah. He is arrogant, cruel, and a bully. He treats others like the dirt on the bottom of his show. I cringed every time I read his name.

Martha – Phoebe’s 13 year old sister who Phoebe asked to watch the younger two sisters and decided being with her friends was more important. You make think 13 years old is too young to be in charge of the younger siblings in such a public place but we have to remember that the Amish teach their children to responsible from a very young age. Martha is a very spoiled brat and tends to be extra whiney when she should be helping around the house. At one point I wanted to have Micah court her just to teach her a lesson but he was way too old for her. I do think she learned from mistake by the end of the book.

Ben – He is the main every little girl dreams of marrying one day. Patient, kind, soft spoken and caring. He would do anything to make Phoebe happy.

I can’t wait for The Mending to be released in August of this year.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington for a copy of the book to read in exchange for my honest review in my own words.

As the Christmas Cookie Crumbles (A Food Lovers Village Mystery #5) by Leslie Budewitz

/ kentuckybooklover / Leave a comment

cookie.jpg

Pages: 288 (eBook)

Publisher: Midnight Ink

Published: June 8, 2018

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The snow is falling and the Christmas spirit is rising in Jewel Bay, Montana. Oh so one thinks. Erin, the Merc, manager has befriended the two pariah, Merrily Thornton. Almost twenty years ago her family shunned her when she pled guilty to taking money from her place of employment. She has comeback trying to make amends with her family and finds herself dead on her parents property. Erin cannot resist sticking her nose into the investigation but will she live to see her Christmas dream wedding come true?

This is the fifth book in the Food Lovers’ Village Mystery series but my first and I am hooked. I already want to start looking for the first four books in the series. Erin, the main character, is a perfect amateur sleuth for me. She is feisty, sweet and loves her family. I have been reading a lot of cozy mysteries where the sleuth is not close with her/his family so I found this a great twist for me. I love the Sunday family dinners her family has. Her mother would drive me crazy just popping in and taking over her house but I understand why she does.

One of my favorite things about the book is their is not a love triangle. Erin is perfectly happy with her fiancé and he is not a jerk. Sometimes I find the love triangle over takes the story in cozy mysteries. With the main character already in love and pretty much settled we can focus on the mystery.

As the Christmas Cookie Crumbles may be a Christmas book but I believe you will enjoy it anytime of the year. Grab your warm blanket, a hot cup of yumminess and sit back and relax and get to know the residents of Jewel Bay. You will be glad you did.

Thank you to NetGalley and Midnight Ink for a copy to read in exchange for my honest review in my own words.

 

Carbs and Cadavers (Supper Club Mysteries #1) By Ellery Adams

/ kentuckybooklover / 3 Comments

carbs.jpg

Pages: 298 (eBook)

Publisher: Beyond the Page

Published: February 20, 2018

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

James Henry moved back to Quincy’s Gap to become the librarian when his mom passed away and left his dad with no one to take care of him. He befriends the local high school are teacher and she convinces him to join her diet club she has started with a group of friends. He is excited as maybe this will be a way to make some friends in his hometown. At their first meeting they name the club the Supper Club and get hooked into solving the murder of the local playboy at he town’s best pastry shop. Can James and his friends solve the murder and lose weight or will the murder derail their weight loss plans before they start?

How can you resist a main character that loves cheese doodles? I was craving them by the end of the book and wanted them as much as James did. I felt for James at every turn of the page. I understood how he felt and want he wanted out of life. Ellery Adams writes her characters with such feeling that you feel like you personally know them. You want to hop inside the pages of the book and be James’ and his Supper Club friends friend. You want them to know you understand their feelings but at the same time you want to let them now they are perfect they way they are and real friends see past the chubbiness.

I am excited to read a book about a librarian as the main character as I’m always looking for new things to add to be extensive TBR pile. I get excited thinking “oh, my favorite character has read this”. I cannot wait to read the second book “Fit to Die” and revisit my new friends.

No matter what your type of cozy mystery you like, Ellery Adams has a series you will enjoy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Beyond the Page for a copy to read and review based on my own honest words and opinion.

 

The Family Next Door by Sally Hepworth

/ kentuckybooklover / 1 Comment

the family next door.jpg

Pages: 352 (eBook)

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Published: February 6, 2018

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

What do you get when you mix a little Desperate Housewives with Big Little Lies? You get The Family Next Door! This is a jaw-dropping, twisty tale that will have you gasping at every page.

Ange, Fran, Essie, and Essie’s mom, Barbara all live on Pleasant Court. The ladies are friendly but not too friendly so they know each other’s business. That is until Isabelle moves in the house across the street from Essie. Isabelle is single and gorgeous. The ladies are skeptical at first that she may try to steal their husbands but then they are convinced she is gay. Why else would a single, beautiful lady move onto a street full of families?

As Essie and Isabelle’s friendship deepen the secrets start to unravel and come out much to everyone’s surprise. Is the darkest secret of all the one most hidden or the one hidden in plain sight?

Come for a visit to Pleasant Court and find out for yourself.

I have this on my to-be-read shelf for months and am kicking myself for waiting so long. I found myself up way too late night and getting up extremely early just to finish this book. I’ve heard Sally Hepworth compared to Liane Moriaty and the critics are right. I can see this made into a mini-series for TV.

The story starts out with Essie leaving her newborn baby, Mia, in her pram in the local park. Essie comes home after having coffee at the local coffee shop and her mother Barbara asks where is the baby. Thankfully Mia is ok but Essie is not and spends some time in the hospital healing from post-partum depression. Essie fears this will return when she has her second baby, Polly. The story picks up from here and goes in a direction I never expected. My jaw flopped open at one point of the book and I am not sure I closed it until after I closed the book.

If you are looking for something to read until Big, Little Lies comes back on the air you need to pick up this book from you favorite bookseller or library. You will be happy you did.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a copy in exchange for a review in my own honest words.

 

 

Phoebe’s Light by Suzanne Woods Fisher

/ kentuckybooklover / 1 Comment

phoebes light

Pages: 352 (eBook)

Publisher: Revel

Published: February 6, 2018

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Phoebe has been the one to take care of her fortune hunting scheme of a father since the death of her mother several years ago. Phoebe has come to the crude realization that her father will mortgage anything and everything, including the roof over their heads to fund his business inventions and the like. She has always had her eyes set on the handsome, older gentleman Captain Foulger and takes advantage of hooking her line to him and marrying him against everyone’s wishes. What she does not realize is that the Captain is only interested in an old journal that she has just became the owner. The journal is her great-grandmother’s, one of the first settlers of Nantucket. In it there is a secret that could change the life of whomever reads it.

As Phoebe sets sail on the Fortuna with her new husband, the Captain, she tries to avoid a childhood friend, Matthew. He has joined the crew as the cooper but really has joined as a favor to Phoebe’s father to watch over her. AS the days wear on and Phoebe comes to realize that her marriage is not everything she thought it to be, her friendship with Matthew grows deeper.

Will Phoebe be able to save everything near and dear to her or will life play a cruel joke on her instead?

I am a fan of Suzanne Woods Fisher and have enjoyed the fresh eyes she gives to Christian fiction. Normally I am not a big reader of Quaker fiction but I opted to try this novel due to her being the author. I almost gave up after reading at it for two days because of the Old English language of “thee” and “thy”. I’ll be the first to tell you that I do not like reading books written in that style. I am so glad I stuck this one out though. The story of Phoebe and her great-grandmother are exciting. You not only get to learn about the Indians that lived on Nantucket in the late 1600s but you also get to learn how Nantucket was settled by the Americans. As you are reading you get to leave the island and sail to the tropical islands and experience life at sea all the while going back to the 1600s.

I was pleased to learn that we do not get to finish reading the journal and that it will make appearances in the other books of this series. I am fascinated to see how it transforms others lives in the family.

I suggest you pick up this book with an open mind to the Old English language and give yourself plenty of time to get into the book during your first read. You might be like me and find that you cannot put it down because you have become so invested in everyone’s story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Revell for a copy to read in exchange for my honest review written in my own words.

Lethal Licorice (An Amish Candy Shop #2) by Amanda Flower

/ kentuckybooklover / Leave a comment

lethal licorice

Pages: 353 (eBook)

Publisher: Kensington Books

Published: February 27, 2018

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Bailey has stayed in Harvest, OH after the death of her Daadi (grandfather) to her Maami (grandmother) run the family candy shop, Swissmen Sweets. Her grandfather was to participate in the highly competitive Amish Confectionery Competition and the judges have allowed Bailey to take his place. On the first day of the competition Bailey has a run in with a rival Amish candy shop owner, Josephine Weaver. Also, the town’s beloved polka-dotted pig, Jethro, has gone missing and his owner, Juliet, is distraught with worry. As Bailey looks for Jethro she unfortunately finds the body of Josephine. Will the police, particularly Aiden, be suspicious of her once again?

Whenever I am stressed I like to turn to cozy mysteries and Amish fiction. When you put the two of them together I am one happy reader. Amanda Flower has perfected the craft of writing Amish cozy mysteries. You are instantly transported to Harvest, OH into Bailey’s world as soon as you open the book. The details are rich with beauty and flavor. You can almost taste the candy Bailey and the others are making. It is a guarantee you will be craving whatever Bailey and her grandmother are making. Right now I want licorice and taffy. YUM!

Not only is there a murder mystery going on there is also a young Amish girl that Bailey meets that is trying to decide her path in life, stay Amish or leave or faith. The care and compassion shown from Bailey and her grandmother is the true spirit of helping one another. You will be moved like I was.

There is a small romance between Bailey and Aiden brewing but it does not take over the main story. They are both taking their time until they move to the next step. Aiden seems like the perfect match for Bailey. He lets her explore but is always around to help her pick up the pieces.

I cannot review the book without a blurb about Jethro. Who can resist a polka-dotted pig? This pig lives the perfect life. He is doted on like a king by his mom, Juliet and she just so happens to be Aiden’s mom and one of Bailey’s close friends in Harvest, OH. I found myself worrying about Jethro being lost in the dark and cold even when I was not reading. I absolutely love how Amanda Flower gives true personality to her animal characters. To me that shows she has a beautiful heart.

I am very excited to see the next adventure of Bailey and friends and to see where the romance is headed. Hurry and get your copy today from your favorite bookseller. If you have not read the first book, Assaulted Caramel, you should buy it also. Make it a sweet weekend of reading.

A Mother’s Love by Charlotte Hubbard

/ kentuckybooklover / Leave a comment

a mothers love

Pages: 368 (eBook)

Publisher: Kensington Books/Zebra

Published: February 27, 2018

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Rose has suffered a terrible year full of tragedy. First, her dad and husband die in a fire at the family mill, her mother’s breast cancer comes back after being in remission for thirty years, as her mother lays dying she confesses to Rose that Rose was adopted and her birth mother’s letters are in the dresser. Rose is determined to move forward after her mother’s death for the sake of her daughter, Grace and has accepted a job in a nearby town cooking for the senior center. As she starts her job and gets acclimated it seems God has his own plans when it comes to meeting her birth mom and finding romance.

I absolutely loved that this book talked about the forbidden subject of having a baby out of wedlock. It shows that the Amish are just like us “Englishers” and have forbidden feelings before marriage. Yes, I am old fashioned and believe one should wait but I am in touch with the times and knows it happens. Unfortunately, I see it everyday taking my son to high school. Babies are never mistakes, sometimes they just come earlier than one would like. It was heartwarming to read how wonderful her life was with her adoptive parents. Never in her thirty years did she guess she was adopted. They treated just like she was their own and my wish is every adopted child was able to experience that kind of love.

Rose’s determination to not depend on her church district and on herself was admirable. She had the option to let them take care of her for as long as needed but she wanted to be self-sufficient. What a beautiful trait to show her daughter. You can be true to your faith and to raising your kids as you want and still be able to work and provide for what is needed. You may not always be able to get what you want but your needs are met.

I hope you pick up a copy of this beautiful book and enjoyed it as much as I did. It is a wonderful “gut” book to show love and devotion. It is the perfect gift for the mothers in your life.

Thank you to Kensington Books/Zebra and NetGalley for a copy to read in exchange for my honest review written in my own words.