Take ten: Books that took me on an armchair adventure

1. Dear Mr. Knightley

This one is such a fun book set in Chicago, a place that I need to make it to.;) I need to re-read this story, since I enjoyed it tremendously the first time through!

2. The Austen Escape

This one is another fun read that takes place in an escape to England and a Regency era estate to re-enact some of the Austen characters.

3. Jane of Austin

This book introduced to me to another American city I would love to visit, Austin!

4. Then There Was You

I love that this book is set in Australia!

5. Close to You

New Zealand and Hobbiton, need I say more?;)

6. Let them Eat Cake

I loved this trip to France!

7.The Next Target


8. The Memory of You


9. The Saturday Night Supper Club

I love that this one is about the Denver restaurant scene!

10. Side by Side


If you are interested in any of the titles, just click the picture to go to the Amazon page for the book. This post contains affiliate links.

The Captured Bride Review and Giveaway!

A war-torn countryside is no place for a lady—but Mercy Lytton is a lady like none other. Raised amongst the Mohawks, she straddles two cultures, yet each are united in one cause . . . to defeat the French. Born with a rare gift of unusually keen eyesight, she is chosen as a scout to accompany a team of men on a dangerous mission. Yet it is not her life that is threatened. It is her heart.
Condemned as a traitor, Elias Dubois faces the gallows. At the last minute, he’s offered his freedom if he consents to accompany a stolen shipment of French gold to a nearby fort—but he’s the one they stole it from in the first place. It turns out that the real thief is the beguiling woman, Mercy Lytton, for she steals his every waking thought.
Can love survive divided loyalties in a backcountry wilderness?

My review:
I loved this story! The attention to historical detail was excellent and I enjoyed getting to read about what it would of been like to live during the French and Indian war as scouts and homesteaders. The characters were wonderful and I really appreciated that Michelle has a lot going on in the story without it being formulaic, like some fiction can be. This is an excellent historical story to pick up this summer!
I received this book from Celebrate Lit in exchange for my honest review.

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About the Author:
Michelle Griep’s been writing since she first discovered blank wall space and Crayolas. She is the author of historical romances: The Innkeeper’s Daughter, 12 Days at Bleakly Manor, The Captive Heart, Brentwood’s Ward, A Heart Deceived, Undercurrent and Gallimore, but also leaped the historical fence into the realm of contemporary with the zany romantic mystery Out of the Frying Pan. If you’d like to keep up with her escapades, find her at www.michellegriep.com or stalk her on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.


Guest post from the Author:
Whether you’re a history buff or don’t have a clue what the French and Indian War was about, there’s a destination in upstate New York that’s fun to visit for the whole family . . .
My husband and I made the trek to this living history site last summer. I had no idea what to expect, other than what was advertised as a “reenactment camp.” For those who don’t know, this is when volunteers who adore history come together to present a particular event, such as a battle. These people usually choose a real person from the era upon whom they fashion their modern day persona. They dress, speak, eat and live as that person might have. Here I am with some of my new friends:
Generally around the 4th of July, the 1759 Battle of Fort Niagara is recreated in a 3-day extravaganza of soldiers, muskets, canons and an entire market place to peruse selling period-related items.
Some of the things that surprised me about stepping back into the mid-eighteenth century were:
How much smoke muskets kick out
Once the battle begins, it’s hard to see who is your enemy or ally
Canons are really loud
Everything wasn’t as black and white as it seems in pictures—gowns and uniforms were very colorful
What makes this event so spectacular is that they take the entire 20 day siege and condense it into 3 days. If you visit every day, you’ll see and experience exactly what happened. You’ll be there to see the British, Colonial regulars and Iroquois allies sneak out of the tree line to shoot at some French soldiers who were pigeon hunting just outside the fort. You’ll hear the war whoops and barrage of angry French epithets roaring on the air. You’ll even get a chance to taste some of their food as you wander around inside the French Encampment set up inside the fort walls.
To experience a bit of the danger, sights and sounds of what Mercy and Elias lived through in The Captured Bride, Fort Niagara really is a fantastic place to visit.

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Giveaway!
The grand prize is a signed copy of The Captured Bride and a $25 gift card to Barnes and Nobles!
Go here to enter.

Justice Betrayed

It's Elvis Week in Memphis, and homicide Detective Rachel Sloan isn't sure her day could get any stranger when aging Elvis impersonator Vic Vegas asks to see her. But when he produces a photo of her murdered mother with four Elvis impersonators--one of whom had also been murdered soon after the photo was taken--she's forced to reevaluate. Is there some connection between the two unsolved cases? And could the recent break-in at Vic's home be tied to his obsession with finding his friend's killer?

When yet another person in the photo is murdered, Rachel suddenly has her hands full investigating three cases. Lieutenant Boone Callahan offers his help, but their checkered romantic past threatens to get in the way. Can they solve the cases before the murderer makes Rachel victim number four?

My thoughts: This was an excellent mystery! I didn't read the first two in the series, but that didn't hinder my enjoyment of the story! There were a few mentions of a previous case, but nothing to give the story away, so I will be able to go back and read the other books.
This story was hard to put down! I loved the pace of it and how the story plays out. It was fun to get a bit of a taste of Memphis during Elvis Week! If you are looking for a well written mystery, then I highly recommend this one!
I received this book from Revell in exchange for my honest review.

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Take ten: Books I decided to not finish too quickly

Or, perhaps it would be better to call this list "books I set aside with the plan to possible return to them. Someday"
If you would like to learn more about the books, just click the image to go to Amazon. This post has affiliate links.

1. The Great Divorce

I love Lewis, and several people have said that this one is one of their favorites by him. I've picked it up at least twice only to put it back down again.

2. If I'm Found


3. If I live

I enjoyed the first one. It would probably be good to find out what happens with the bigger picture the story presented, but I just wasn't super thrilled for it to split between three books. I did like that the secondary mystery was resolved. So, I may return to this series someday.

4. A Grief Observed


5. The Problem of Pain

I feel like these books were just ones that I wasn't in the right place to read. Having lost someone close before her time now would probably make these books something I could better relate to.

6. Where Courage Calls

I was so excited when this series came out, and then I never read past the first book. I may never get back to reading them, but it's more out of a lack of time than anything.

7-9. Restoration Series

The first one was interesting, but I read it right before my daughter was born and never got around to finishing the series. My husband actually read the rest, so I got a few of the highlights from him.;)

10. Kisses for Katie

I probably should figure out what to do about this one, since a friend lent me her copy... (oops!)

What books are on your list? I feel like this was a harder one for me to make! I generally at least skim to the end if a book is decent, or I abhor it and toss it aside, so I had a harder time thinking of titles that I may of been to hasty in setting aside. So, this list had a hard time sticking with the topic!

Together Forever Review and Giveaway

Determined to find her lost younger sister, Marianne Neumann takes a job as a placing agent with the Children’s Aid Society in 1858 New York. She not only hopes to offer children a better life, but prays she’ll be able to discover whether Sophie ended up leaving the city on an orphan train so they can finally be reunited.
Andrew Brady, her fellow agent on her first placing-out trip, is a former schoolteacher who has an easy way with the children, firm but tender and friendly. Underneath his charm and handsome looks, though, seems to linger a grief that won’t go away–and a secret from his past that he keeps hidden.
As the two team up, placing orphans in the small railroad towns of Illinois, they find themselves growing ever closer . . . until a shocking tragedy threatens to upend all their work and change one of their lives forever.

My thoughts:
When I was in school, I devoured any books about the orphan train, since I went through a stage where I was a bit into adoption and being an orphan (I'm not sure why) and thought that the concept of the orphan train was interesting. So, I was thrilled to read this book by a favorite author about something I find fascinating.
While I didn't read the first book in the series (somehow I missed it. I will have to go back and read it now!), jumping into this story was just fine. Jody does an excellent job of bringing the story and time period to life. I fell in love with Marianne and Drew as they work together through triumphs and tragedy. I can't wait to read the next book in the series!
I received this book from Celebrate Lit in exchange for my honest review.

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About the Author:
Jody Hedlund is the author of over a dozen novels, including Love Unexpected, Captured by Love, Unending Devotion, The Preacher’s Bride, and A Noble Groom, winner of the 2014 Carol Award for historical romance. She received a bachelor’s degree from Taylor University and a master’s from the University of Wisconsin, both in social work. She lives in Michigan with her husband and five children. She loves hearing from readers on Facebook and on her blog at www.jodyhedlund.com.

Guest post from the author:

30,000 Abandoned Children
By Jody Hedlund
Imagine a city where 30,000 abandoned and homeless children live on the streets.
Sounds like something from a futuristic dystopian novel, doesn’t it? Or something that might happen after a war or apocalypse or major disaster, right?
This exact thing actually happened in the 1850’s. And the city was New York City.
It’s hard to believe, but an estimated 30,000 homeless children roamed the dirty city streets and alleys of New York City.
30,000. Children. Let that sink in for a minute. That’s the size of a town.
Historians look back on that time and try to make sense what led to such horrific conditions for children. Of course, the influx of immigrants was at an all time high. Jobs and housing were scarce. Diseases were rampant. Hunger and poverty became a norm. (Orphan Train Depot)
As more and more people became aware of the enormous problem within the crowded slums, courageous heroes rose up and attempted to do their part to make a difference.
While we may not always agree with the methods that were used to save the thousands of homeless children, we can admire the men and women who could no longer sit idly by.
The Children’s Aid Society was started by Charles Loring Brace as one such attempt to help the hordes of homeless children. His “Emigration Plan” is better known today by the term “Orphan Trains.”
My latest series tackles various elements of the orphan train movement. Together Forever, releasing in May, highlights the placing agents, those devoted people who rode the trains with the orphans. The agents spent weeks and months on the road caring for the children, all the while trying to place them in loving homes.
(If you’d like to try out the series, start with my FREE novella, An Awakened Heart.)


Like the brave men and women who came before us, may we always strive to do our part to make a difference!

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Giveaway!
The grand prize is a $25 gift card to Amazon!

The Spirit Led Heart

New from Bestselling Proverbs 31 Author Suzanne Eller!

Without realizing it, we've gotten lost in our own little lives. We've settled for "good enough" and days that run together in an unmemorable blur. We long for something to shake us up, but we're exhausted by the thought of it too.

In her warm, vulnerable style, bestselling Proverbs 31 author Suzanne Eller shows how living and loving without limits has nothing to do with your own efforts--and it has everything to do with God's Holy Spirit. Unpacking the promises and teachings Jesus shared with the disciples about the Holy Spirit, Suzanne shows how you can stop settling and start truly living. When you learn to unwrap the gift of his presence, you'll find the world-changing, foundation-shaking, soul-stirring life of passion and purpose God is waiting to give you.

My thoughts: This is a wonderful book about something I feel like we commonly over look, that of incorporating the Holy Spirit into our lives. I love Suzie's thoughts and testimonies that show how we can infuse the same power that the early church had into our every day lives by being spirit led. This is an excellent book that provided a lot of food for thought. I look forward to picking up some of her other books!
I received this book from Bethany House in exchange for my honest review.


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50 Life Lessons for Grads

Fifty young people share the most important lessons and words of wisdom they wish they had when they began life after college
Who better than a recent graduate to help you navigate life after college? With encouragement and advice, fifty young women and men share what they learned the hard way so you can better prepare for the same challenges.
From 'Money Isn't Everything' to 'Real Friendships Take Effort,' these short, but insightful essays address the real struggles, opportunities, and fears that you might face as you finish your education and begin your independent adult life. Following each essay are five bulleted life lessons to encourage and equip you on your chosen path.

My thoughts: I thought that this book was an excellent little gift idea for graduates! I love that it is made up of life lessons that recent graduates have written out. Everything from traveling broadening your outlook on life to the dangers of being a people pleaser. I love that the book is set up to be easy to read a lesson every day, or it's an easy book to read all at once. I highly recommend this book as a gift for the graduate in your life!
I received this book from Worthy in exchange for my honest review.





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