Cover Reveal-Love's Refuge by Sandra Leesmith

Love’s Refuge will be released November 2013. Visit Seasons of Humility that month for more information about the book’s release and the blog tour.

What do you think of the cover design? I think Lena Goldfinch does a marvelous job on her covers. They capture the story and they are so pretty. I loved Sandra Leesmith's book Love's Miracles and am looking forward to reading Love's Refuge.

About the Book

Skye Larsen loves her peaceful life on Leeza Island in Puget Sound – the tranquility, the friendly neighbors, and especially the safety from big-city dangers. So when cruel pranks start to escalate and changes threaten to overtake the island, Skye is determined to fight for her haven. The presence of a handsome vacationer and the unexpected feelings he awakens can’t distract her from her goal.

Danny Fraser doesn’t realize how desperately he needs a rest until he meets Skye. By allowing him to glimpse her simple way of life, she helps him reorient his priorities – and steals his heart in the process. But his work and home in Seattle keep Skye at bay. 

An isolated island girl with painful memories. A dedicated city boy with a wild past. What will it cost for them both to find a refuge from their storms? 

About the Author

Sandra Leesmith loves to travel in her RV and explore all of nature’s beauty, discover America’s history, and fellowship with the wonderful people she meets while on the road. She enjoys reading, writing, hiking, swimming, and pickleball. Learn more about Sandra and her books at www.sandraleesmith.com.

 

About the Cover Designer

Lena lives in a scenic small town in Massachusetts with her husband, two kids, and a very spoiled Black Lab. She writes fiction for young adults, mostly light fantasy with a healthy dose of "sigh-worthy" romance. You can visit her online at www.lenagoldfinch.blogspot.com.  

 

Rafflecopter Giveaway:

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Freebie Offer

Love’s Miracles – Sandra’s May 2013 release – is FREE for Kindle today (September 20^th) only, in honor of the Love’s Refuge cover reveal. Click HERE to download your copy!

Go HERE for my review of Love's Miracles and download it for free on Amazon today!

 

Double Exposure by Susan Sleeman

It has been years since Jennie Buchanan walked out of Ethan Justice's life taking his heart with her. Jennie is getting ready to open a showing of her photographs to raise money for her charity Photos of Hope. Someone is determined that she not open her show and has threatened to kill Jennie. Ethan Justice and his siblings have been hired to protect Jennie.

Having spent years trying to forget her, Ethan's family is worried that he will once again have his heart ripped out and they are not going to let that happen again. From the beginning Jennie tries to keep the walls up around her heart but is it time to let her guard down and allow people to care for her?

As the threats on Jennie's life increase Ethan realizes that he is willing to do whatever it takes to protect her and that his heart never stopped caring for her. Will his love and skill be enough to keep Jennie safe and to show her what Christ's forgiveness is all about?

This is the first in the Justice Agency books and as usual it seems for me I have read the series backwards! I read the 3rd one first, then read the 4th book and now have read this one. Thankfully each story can stand alone although having read the last two books I did know who Ethan would end up with. I really liked this story in that it has a lot of suspense, but it also has a great message of God's forgiveness along with our need to also forgive ourselves. The story was well developed and fast-paced and I never found myself ready to put the book up for the night. I read this during vacation so unfortunately I did have to put it up at times but was eager to pick it back up and get immersed in the story once more. In fact my husband had to do without my company for several miles of our drive today so I could finish! I'm looking forward to reading book 2 Dead Wrong soon.

My review of book 3:

No Way Out

Book 4 Thread of Suspicion comes out October 1, 2013. My review will be up October 2, 2013.

I purchased my copy of Double Exposure from Amazon and was not required to give a review.

Nominated for the Liebster Award

Melanie at Christian Bookshelf Reviews nominated My Favorite Pastime with the Liebster Award last week. Sorry Melanie that it has taken me a while to get to it!

The rules:
- Link back to the blogger that tagged you.
- Nominate ten others and answer the questions from the blogger who tagged you.
- Ask ten questions for the bloggers you nominate.
- Let your nominees know of their award.


My Answers to Melanie's Questions:


1. Who is your favorite author and why?

There are so many! But if I see any of these names on a book I am going to grab it:
Julie Lessman
Dee Henderson
Lori Wick
Lisa T. Bergren
Ally Carter
Marissa Meyer

And so many many more!
2. What made you want to become a blogger?
I became a blogger because I was an assistant in a middle school library. The librarian(my friend Karin) and I would keep track of the books we read for the students. She has always been the one to push me where social media is concerned. She got me hooked on texting, blogging, facebook etc. etc. If it was new she had me signing up too! Basically my blog is for my own purposes of reminding me of what I have read. If others read my blog that makes me happy! I've met several authors and bloggers through blogging that have truly blessed my life so that is a bonus. And lots and lots of FREE books is always a plus!
3. Is there a book you didn't think you'd like, but you ended up loving it?
You will laugh, but YES! Again my librarian friend Karin up to her old tricks! When I first moved from working in an elementary school library to a middle school library Karin kept talking about this book called TWILIGHT. She kept talking about vampires blah blah blah. Finally I said to her "you do know that there are no such things as vapires right?" She slapped the book in front of me and told me to read it and then we'd talk. I read it, I was hooked and YES it is a guilty pleasure of mine to read it at least once a year. And yes, I do own all of the movies.
4. What would be your ideal vacation spot?
One year my parents rented a house on the ocean. It was absolutely beautiful! My husband and I had the upstairs suite and each morning we woke up to this incredible view of the ocean out of these HUGE picture windows. I want to do that again someday...but stay longer!
5. How many books are on your TBR shelf?
Enough to give me heart palpitations every time I look at it! I am a person that wants to cross things off of my list and looking at that pile of books that never seems to shrink causes me much stress. Not to mention all of the books on my Kindle. Being an adult and having responsibilities really stinks when all I want to do is read! My house gets neglected a lot, and sometimes dinners are pretty lame. I'm afraid though that having a huge TBR pile is going to be a fact of life for me for a long time to come.
6. Where is your favorite spot to read?
Isn't everybody's favorite spot their bed? Mine is! Also my recliner in the living room if the TV is off and I can sit in quiet.
7. Which blogger has been your biggest inspiration?
Oh I kind of like to do my own thing. I love other blogs, but not to imitate. I want to read what I want to read, do things the way I like to do them. That's not to say that I don't have my favorites that I visit on a regular basis. They know who they are because I comment ;)
8. Do you prefer stand-alone novels or series?
I'm a series fan. But I also like there to be an ending to the series. I'm thinking 6 books in a series is pretty good. After that my bank account is crying because I just have to have the WHOLE series!
9. What are your other hobbies (besides reading)?
I crochet. You can check it out at http://myotherpastime.blogspot.com. I have grandchildren now that recently moved near us so I get to have my daughter, her husband and the kids over for meals(our standing evening per week is Thursdays). I like crafts, I just don't have time for them like I used to, sewing, cross-stitch, ceramics, scrapbooking have all gone by the wayside in recent years.
10. What's one of your biggest book pet peeves?
 Never ever never fold the corner of the page to mark your spot! That is just wrong! Treat a book with love, I dislike it when books are folded backwards. Yes, I was a library dragon! I have seen books kicked down the hall, stepped on, abused and it drives me crazy! Typo's drive me crazy, you would think I would be used to them since I get so many books from NetGalley. But in my opinion by the time they get there you should pretty much have all of the glitches out of them.  Now if I am proofreading for an author that is a different story. I am happy to read and point out mistakes if asked to do that. :)

Part of the "rules" is to pass the nomination on to 10 other blogs. But as always I'm going to cheat. If you would like to answer any or all of these questions feel free to do so in the comments or link to your blog and I'll go and read there. I think this one has been passed around pretty well to all of the bloggers I know. Thanks once again Melanie for the nomination!

The Last Present by Wendy Mass

Grace, Connor's sister has gone into a catatonic state and nobody knows why. Connor has no idea about Angelina D'Angelo's interaction with some of his friends in Willow Falls. Angelina has given every child born in Willow Falls words to keep them safe throughout their life. When Grace was born though she was unable to speak the entire set of words because she was interrupted. Angelina has tried for 10 years to make the situation right and has failed. Now Angelina has called on Amanda and Leo to go back in time to each of Grace's birthday parties to find out why Angelina's attempts have failed.

Amanda and Leo find out more about Angelina's past and begin to understand all of the secrets that she keeps from them. In THE LAST PRESENT Amanda, Leo and their friends are now 13 and relationships are starting to change. Amanda and Leo are moving from being best friends into exploring a new relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend.

I've enjoyed all of Wendy Mass's books that I have read, but I did miss the book before THE LAST PRESENT which was 13 GIFTS. I'm afraid I was a bit lost in this book, but I did go buy 13 GIFTS and am looking forward to reading it. THE LAST PRESENT reveals Angelina and Willow Falls history and answers many questions for the reader as well as for Amanda and Leo. I've loved reading this series and reading about the friendships that have developed. Add in a bit of time travel and you have a fun/sweet series that made me smile.

I received my copy from the publisher Scholastic through NetGalley.

Stranded by Dani Pettrey-Sweepstakes and Review

Summary:
In Stranded, Book 3 in author Dani Pettrey’s acclaimed Alaskan Courage series, reporter Darcy St. James knows something is wrong when her friend vanishes from her job on a cruise ship. Everyone else believes Abby simply left of her own accord, but something isn’t lining up, and Darcy knows the only way to find the truth is to put herself in Abby’s position.

Gage McKenna has taken a summer-long stint leading adventure excursions for the passengers of various cruise lines that dock in Alaska for a few days of sightseeing. He’s surprised to find Darcy onboard one of the ships, working undercover as a reporter.

Something sinister is going on, and the deeper they dig, the more they realize they’ve only discovered the tip of the iceberg.

To celebrate the story, author Dani Pettrey and Bethany House Publishers are pleased to present the ALASKAN ADVENTURES Sweepstakes, and your chance to win one of three fabulous prizes connected with the story!

 This giveaway starts September 2, 2013 and ends September 19, 2013 @ 11:59 pm (PST). Winners will be selected Friday, September 20, 2013, and announced at DaniPettrey.com.

How to Enter:

Go to http://www.danipettrey.com/alaskan-adventures-sweepstakes/ and complete the entry box, anytime between September 2 and September 19.

Book Info & Sample Chapter:
Can be found at http://www.danipettrey.com/books/

 My Review:
Darcy has left undercover investigative journalism. But when her friend Abby calls her to come help her in her investigation of a cruise line Darcy cannot turn her down. Before Darcy gets a chance to meet up with Abby she disappears. Darcy is now determined to find what has happened to her friend. 

Gage and his family have been hired to lead adventure tours for the same cruise line that Darcy is now investigating. Gage and Darcy have not seen each other in several months. Gage is determined to not lose his heart to Darcy. Still bitter about his former wife and the loss of his son, Gage wants nothing to do with God or a woman who has no problem lying and deceiving others to gain the information she needs. 

Reluctantly pulled into Darcy’s investigation in order to protect her, Gage finds his heart softening both towards Darcy and the God whom she serves.  Darcy knows her heart has chosen Gage, but she has doubts that Gage will ever turn to God and she fears that she has fallen in love with a man that will never share her faith. 

The closer that Darcy and Gage get to what has happened to Abby the more they learn the evils that some people will succumb to for money. 

My Thoughts:

Once again Dani Pettrey has written an excellent novel filled with suspense and romance. I loved Gage and Darcy’s story! Even when Gage is determined not to care for Darcy he still can’t help but protect her. Darcy manages to get herself into some scary situations in order to find Abby, and each step of the way Gage is there to help her through. I’m now looking forward to the next book in the series which I hope will feature Kayden and Jake. We learned a bit about Jake in STRANDED and now it is time for these two to have their story.

I received my copy of STRANDED from the publisher through NetGalley. This is my honest opinion.