Daybreak by Shelley Shepard Gray

daybreak2The first thing you will notice about Daybreak is the beautiful cover. It will capture your attention with the vibrant colors and make you want to jump right into the story. Well it did to me at least. Admittedly, I would have read this regardless of what the cover looked like because with a Shelley Shepard Gray book I know what is in store for me; a page turner that will keep me up late at night and leave me super antsy for the next installment! The cover scene adds an air of mystery to the book. I wonder who or what they are looking at off in the distance. We are introduced to the Keims of Berlin, Ohio, who are an Amish family with one too many secrets that have been buried for years. One particular secret involving the family matriarch is exposed and leaves the family reeling with shock. This in turn opens the door for even more shocking revelations. Each family member is left to deal with the realization that all is not what it has appeared to be. Such drama, indeed! Shelley takes us on quite the adventure or I should say a whirlwind of emotions. You will laugh, maybe shed some tears, be swept up in a budding romance but most of all you will be fascinated with the not so simple life of one very unique Amish family. A family that sure looks perfect and plain to outsiders except sometimes the “simple life” is not so simple after all.

This book was provided to me from Harper Collins Publishing for review purposes.

Shelley Shepard GrayShelley writes Amish romances for Harper Collins’ inspirational line, Avon Inspire as Shelley Shepard Gray, writes historical romances for Abingdon Press as Shelley Gray, and has also written for Harlequin American Romance as Shelley Galloway. Since 2001, she’s published almost 40 titles.

Along the way, her books have been Holt Medallion winners, Reviewers Choice Winners, and been highlighted in Time Magazine, the Philadelphia Enquirer, and USA Today. She’s been interviewed on NPR as well as multiple regional and national radio stations.
Shelley’s books have also hit the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists.

Before writing romances, Shelley lived in Texas and Colorado, where she taught school and earned both her bachelor’s degree in English literature and elementary education and later obtained her master’s degree in educational administration. She now lives in southern Ohio and writes full time. Shelley is married, the mother of two college students, and is an active member of her church.

 

Visit with Shelley!

http://www.shelleyshepardgray.com/

https://www.facebook.com/ShelleyShepardGray?fref=ts


Love Comes to Paradise

love paradiseLove comes to Paradise and with it a rather precarious situation for Nora King. If you remember, Nora fled from Harmony, Maine in search of the one and only Elam Detweiler. She has found herself in Paradise, Missouri hoping to fit in and maybe just maybe tame the rebel Elam. Of course things do not go as planned….enter into the picture Lewis Miller who decides to track Nora down because he kind of has a thing for her. Hmm…what could possibly go wrong with this situation?

I was so anxious to read Love Comes to Paradise because I was such a fan of Nora from Living in Harmony, who was a little bit rebellious. Nora certainly does a lot of growing up through the course of this book and she comes to realize the world does not exist around Nora King’s problems. Mary Ellis’s characters are real people with real problems who happen to be Amish. She does a fantastic job making the reader care about the people of Paradise whether they are the scene stealer or the one who really irritates you, they will keep you entertained for sure. A well written book should keep us engaged, interested, and in my case wanting to skip ahead to see what is going to happen next. Love Comes to Paradise fulfills these requirements and then some. No, I did not skip ahead. I just read really quickly! Overall I think you will absolutely enjoy your time in Paradise…..I mean come on….who doesn’t want to go to Paradise?

 

This book was provided to me from Harvest House Publishers via NetGalley for review purposes.

A Home for Lydia

lydiaLet me start off by saying I loved this book.  Why you may ask….because Vannetta Chapman’s books are like a breath of fresh air in a crowded elevator, that’s why! She describes her work as “fiction full of grace” and she embodies this with perfection. I always rack my brain trying to come up with the right thoughts to express when trying to describe how much I enjoyed reading a particular book. Sometimes it’s not easy simply saying “buy this book” or “you won’t be disappointed” because I think authors who write awesome books for us deserve a little more. As I stated, Vannetta’s books are like a breath of fresh air and A Home for Lydia fits the bill perfectly. You know what I mean….when a book flows so effortlessly it makes you feel as though you can’t get enough like breathing in fresh clean air. I am a country gal so hopefully you know what I mean. With each turn of the page, I came to realize just how much I had grown to like the characters and I wanted them to succeed. I like a book to have an engaging story-line along with strong characters and this book delivers especially in the character department. The main characters are great and also there is a very like-able supporting cast which I think is extremely important because it adds depth to the overall story. I have to be able to connect with at least one character from a book, if not I have a hard time finishing it.There is no chance in not liking anyone from A Home for Lydia! I know you will love Lydia and be very happy to catch back up with Miriam, Gabe, and Grace.Yes, I would say character development may be Mrs. Chapman’s forte because the residents of Pebble Creek will keep you thoroughly engrossed and may just steal a little piece of your heart…..

This book was provided to me from Harvest House Publishers via NetGalley for review.

 

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Vannetta Chapman writes inspirational fiction full of grace. She has published over one hundred articles in Christian family magazines, receiving more than two dozen awards from Romance Writers of America chapter groups. She discovered her love for the Amish while researching her grandfather’s birthplace of Albion, Pennsylvania. Her novel, Falling to Pieces, is a 2012 ACFW Carol Award finalist. A Promise for Miriam earned a spot on the June 2012 Christian Retailing Top Ten Fiction list. Chapman writes Amish fiction for Abingdon Press, Zondervan, and Harvest House. She lives in the Texashill country with her husband.

 

Visit with Vannetta!

www.VannettaChapman.com

http://vannettachapman.wordpress.com

www.facebook.com/VannettaChapmanBooks, and

http://pinterest.com/vannettachapman

 


Two Book Giveaway and Blog Hop

Starting last week the wonderful book Love Finds You in Glacier Bay, Alaska by Tricia Goyer and Ocieanna Fleiss was released. You can purchase it at either of these retailers: Amazon.com~Barnes and Noble~Christianbook.com

Singer Ginny Marshall is one signature away from the recording contract of her dreams—a deal that would guarantee success for the former foster child, who still struggles to bury the memories of her painful childhood. But Ginny needs advice from the one person who will look out for her best interests—her former fiancé, Brett Miller. She travels to the remote town of Glacier Bay, Alaska, where the town’s colorful characters and stunning scenery provide respite from LA’s pressures.
In Glacier Bay, Ginny discovers a box of old letters and is swept up in the love story between Clay, an early missionary to Alaska Territory, and Ellie, the woman who traveled there to be his children’s governess. When Ginny is reunited with Brett in Glacier Bay, will she discover—as Ellie did—that healing and love are sometimes found in the most unexpected places?

But this week each blogger (listed in the linky below) is giving you a chance to win the book (and a few have even more prizes) so after you are done entering my giveaway please hop on to the next blog.

This giveaway will start on January 8th, 2013 at 12am EST and run until January 14th, 2013 at 11:59pm EST.

You can read my review HERE.

My prizes are: A copy of Love Finds You in Glacier Bay Alaska plus a copy of The Memory Jar straight from Tricia Goyer!

Love Finds You In Glacier Bay Alaskamemeory-jar

To enter simply leave a comment on this post…..Good Luck!

Now hop on over to these other wonderful blogs to enter to win a book!