One More Last Chance

One More Last Chance
by
Cathleen Armstrong

MY THOUGHTS:
This is the second book in Armstrong's A Place to Call Home series, and it is every bit as good as the first! If you haven't read Welcome to Last Chance, you wouldn't know this is a second in the series. I was thrilled to see Lainie and some of my other friends from the first book make appearances, but the were reintroduced appropriately.

Armstrong must have an innate sense about people, because she is able to instill honest angst and happiness into multiple characters in a way that feels totally natural. I really enjoy how each character has depth and believability, not stereotypical behavior. I'm definitely looking forward to the third book.

I recommend this book as a great read for a front porch swing and some lemonade or a day on the beach!

ABOUT THE BOOK (from the back cover):
Some things never change. . . and some things change you forever.
Sarah Cooley has come home to Last Chance, New Mexico, for one reason -- because it doesn't change. After a relationship gone bad with a man who wanted to change everything about her, Sarah is more than ready for the town whose motto may as well be, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Chris Reed, on the other hand, wants nothing more than to spark some change in the little town. As the new owner of the Dip 'n' Dine, he's shaking things up to draw folks from all over the Southwest into his restaurant.

As it turns out, the winds of change are blowing into Last Chance --just not in the ways that Sarah or Chris might expect.

With the same evocative writing and charming characters that won fans for her debut novel, Cathleen Armstrong invites you back to Last Chance for a heartwarming, romantic story of two people navigating the twists and turns of life in a small town.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Cathleen Armstrong is the award-winning author of Welcome to Last Chance. Though she lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, her roots remain deep in New Mexico where she grew up and where much of her family still lives. Learn more at http://www.cathleenarmstrong.com

Gathering Shadows

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Gathering Shadows Bethany House Publishers (May 6, 2014) by Nancy Mehl

MY THOUGHTS:
I found this book incredibly interesting. The story line is fascinating, especially with the recent discovery of those who were kidnapped years ago still being held captive. Definitely a good mystery to be solved.

I had a bit of difficulty with the romance thread of the story, though. It felt like the author needed to force a romantic link into the very short time frame of the story. I never felt a real 'spark' between the characters.

That said, I like the concept of the series -- people living in a town where they can be basically free from their past. I'm looking forward to the next book.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Nancy Mehl lives in Wichita, Kansas with her husband Norman and their dog, Watson. She’s authored thirteen books and is currently at work on her newest series for Bethany House Publishing.

All of Nancy’s novels have an added touch – something for your spirit as well as your soul. “I welcome the opportunity to share my faith through my writing,” Nancy says. “It’s a part of me and of everything I think or do. God is number one in my life. I wouldn’t be writing at all if I didn’t believe that this is what He’s called me to do. I hope everyone who reads my books will walk away with the most important message I can give them: God is good, and He loves you more than you can imagine. He has a good plan especially for your life, and there is nothing you can’t overcome with His help.”

She and her husband attend Believer’s Tabernacle in Wichita.


ABOUT THE BOOK

Wynter Evans is a promising young reporter for a television station in St. Louis, but even a bright future doesn't take away her pain over the disappearance of her brother nine years ago. So when she stumbles across a photograph of a boy with an eerie resemblance to him, she can't pass up the chance to track him down. With research for work as her cover, she sets out with one of the station's photogs for the place where the picture was taken: the town of Sanctuary. Almost as soon as she arrives, she meets the town's handsome young mayor, Rueben King, and together they begin to uncover long held secrets that could tear the small town apart and change everything Wynter thought she knew about her life. As the truth of her family's past hides in the shadows, it's clear someone will stop at nothing to keep the answers she's searching for hidden forever--even if the cost is Wynter's very life. If you'd like to read the first chapter of Gathering Shadows, go HERE.

Fatal Exchange

Fatal Exchange
by
Lisa Harris

MY THOUGHTS:
Oh, my, hold on to your seat! This is one action-packed story with no time for distraction. The whole book takes place in just a couple of days, and it is amazing all that can go wrong in that time. I really don't want to tell much of the story because there are so many twists, turns, and surprises that I'm afraid I'd ruin parts.

Just know that this is an amazing book, complex and deceiving, that will keep you turning pages long into the night. It is the second in a series, and while I have not read the first of the series I had no trouble understanding what was going on. I am anxious to go back and read the first book, Dangerous Passage. And, based on the last couple of paragraphs of this book, I can't wait for the third one to be released!

I've added Lisa Harris to my list of favorite authors. Hope you like her books, too.

ABOUT THE BOOK (from the back cover):
Desperate times create desperate people. And desperate people are dangerous....
Though Emily hunt comes from a family of cops, the relatively quite life of a high school teacher suits her just fine She's saving up to buy a house, slowly moving forward after her brother's death, and settlinginto a life she loves. So the last person she wants to spend time with is Mason Taylor.
An undercover cop, Mason is enemy number one as far as her family is concerned. His involvement int he death of Emily's brother is still up in the air, and now he expects her to help him with a case. Mason has been working with one of her students, Rafael Cerda, whose brother has been kidnap-ed by a drug cartel And with time running out to meet their demands, Rafael is getting desperate.
Emily will have to draw on all of her strength to handle what happens next....

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Lisa Harris is a Christy Award finalist and the winner of the Best Inspirational Suspense Novel for 2011 from Romantic Times. The author of more than 20 books, including Dangerous Passage, Harris has spent over ten years living with her family as missionaries in Africa. Learn more at www.lisaharriswrites.com

Thank you to Revell Publishing for providing a copy of this book for review.

One Perfect Spring

One Perfect Spring
by
Irene Hannon

MY THOUGHTS:

I have loved all the suspense/mysteries I've read by Irene Hannon. Perfect Spring is a different type of adventure, and I enjoyed it just as much!

Some characters are easy to love right from the beginning, and others are a bit bristly. But that is a major component of the book. It caused me to stop and think about those folks who are a bit 'unloveable' and to realize there is always something behind the facade. In fact, there is a back story in everyone's life. It is not up to us to conjecture or judge, but to love each person as he or she is, and to know that God is in control. I really appreciated that Hannon has each character evolve in a natural way.

I have always loved stories that allow me to change the perceptions I've formed about a character -- the musical 'Wicked' is a case in point. While this is definitely not a fantasy story, it offers the same opportunity to see behind the scenes and realize people are not all they seem.

ABOUT THE BOOK (from the back cover):
Independent single mom Claire Summers is doing her best to make lemonade out of the lemons life has handed her. Workaholic Keith Watson is interested only in the bottom line -- until a letter from Claire's eleven-year-old daughter reaches his desk and changes everything.
As the executive assistant to a philanthropic businessman, Keith is used to fielding requests for donations. But the girl isn't asking for money. She wants help finding the long-lost son of a neighbor. As Keith reluctantly digs into this assignment in his usual results-oriented style, he has no idea how involved he and Claire will become -- nor how unusual the results will actually be. Who could have guessed that a child's kindhearted request would bring love and hope to so many lives ...including his own?
Through compelling characters and suprising plot twists, fan favorite Irene Hannon offers this tenderhearted story that demonstrates how life is like lilacs -- the biggest blooms come only after the harshest winters.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Irene Hannon is the bestselling author of over forty-five books, including That Certain Summer. Her romance and suspense fiction has won many awards, including two coveted RITAs, a Carol, two HOLT Medallions, a National Readers' Choice, a Daphne du Maurier, a Retailers Choice, and two Reviewers' Choice Awards from RT Book Reviews magazine. In addition, she is a Christy Award finalist, and Booklist included one of her novels in its "Top 10 Inspirational Fiction" list for 2011. She lives in Missouri. Learn more at www.irenehannon.com.

Thank you to Revell Publishers for providing a copy of this book for review.