Top Ten Tuesday: Books to Read Around Halloween

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. 

Each week features a topic that offers the opportunity to spotlight your top ten bookish related favorites.

Topic: 

Halloween Freebie

Best Books To Read Around Halloween

I'm not big on horror, but I do enjoy the fun of Halloween. These books I would recommend during this spooky time of year.

1.Gilt Hallow by Lorie Langdon

2. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

3. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

4. The Price of Privilege Trilogy by Jessica Dotta

5. Storm Siren by Mary Weber

 6. Cemetery Tours by Jacqueline Smith

7. Misery Loves Company by Rene Gutteridge

8. Dead Man's Switch by Sigmund Brouwer

9. Rules of Murder by Julianna Deering

 A good mystery with suspense is awesome for me! I've read almost all of these books and have enjoyed them. Cemetery Tours I still need to read and I'm looking forward to it. 

What is on your list this week? What is your Halloween Top Ten.

Waiting On Wednesday: For Love & Honor

Waiting On Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine. 

Each week offers the opportunity to spotlight an up-and-coming book that you are most excited about!

Waiting On:

Title: For Love & Honor
Author: Jody Hedlund
Publisher: Zondervan
Publication Date: March 7th, 2017

Synopsis:
From GoodReads

Lady Sabine is harboring a skin blemish, one, that if revealed, could cause her to be branded as a witch, put her life in danger, and damage her chances of making a good marriage. After all, what nobleman would want to marry a woman so flawed?

Sir Bennet is returning home to protect his family from an imminent attack by neighboring lords who seek repayment of debts. Without fortune or means to pay those debts, Sir Bennet realizes his only option is to make a marriage match with a wealthy noblewoman. As a man of honor, he loathes the idea of courting a woman for her money, but with time running out for his family’s safety, what other choice does he have?

As Lady Sabine and Sir Bennet are thrust together under dangerous circumstances, will they both be able to learn to trust each other enough to share their deepest secrets? Or will those secrets ultimately lead to their demise?

Why I'm Waiting:
Jody Hedlund is one of my all time favorite authors. I can't wait when there is a new book by her coming out. I loved her first book in An Uncertain Choice series, which was also the first YA book that she wrote. It was fun! I need to catch up and read book 2 so I can be ready for this pretty when it is available.

What are you waiting on this week?

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Characters I'd Name A Pet

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. 

Each week features a book related topic that offers the opportunity to highlight your Top Ten. 

Topic:

Ten Characters I'd Name A Pet

1. Sirius Black (Harry Potter)

2. Jamie (Outlander)

3. Cheshire (Alice in Wonderland)

4. Jo (Little Women)

5. Wilder (Little House on the Prairie)

6. Scarlett (Gone with the Wind)

7. Rhett (Gone with the Wind

8. Katniss (Hunger Games)

9. Crookshanks (Harry Potter)

10. Nym (Storm Siren)

What is your Top Ten names this week?

Review: Kit Kat & Lucy: The Country Cats Who Changed a City Girl's Heart by Lonnie Hull DuPont

Title: Kit Kat & Lucy: The Country Cats Who Changed a City's Girl's World
Author: Lonnie Hull Dupont
Publisher: Revell
Pages: 240
ISBN: 978-0-8007-2732-1
Publication Date: September 6th, 2016

Synopsis: 

After years of vibrant city life in San Francisco, Lonnie Hull DuPont reluctantly trades her three-room apartment on Telegraph Hill for a farmhouse in Michigan. She immediately misses the rhythm and the pace of the city, and the isolation of country living has her longing for something more.

Enter Kit Kat, an obsessive-compulsive tortoiseshell, and Lucy, a playful Russian Blue who can nail a bat right out of the air. These stray cats arrive a year apart and each ask to move into the farmhouse--and ultimately DuPont's heart. From the hysterical process of getting two strange cats to like each other to the exciting years of watching those cats thrive--and inspire DuPont in the process--this book is the heartwarming story of how one woman's world would never be the same.

Review:
It will come as no surprise to anyone who knows me, that I love cats. I begged for cats as pets growing up and then raised kittens when pregnant mommy kitties showed up at the door. I love kitties, they are fun animals. So, when I saw this book come up for review, I had to read it.

I knew upon seeing the cover of this book I would like it, it had a Tortie kitty on the front of it and the baby reminded me of one of my old sweet kitties. My thought on the cover proved true. I really enjoyed this book. Lonnie really opened up her life and in doing so, shared the joys that cats can bring to a life.

This book is one I could relate to. As I read Lonnie's story, I found myself nodding my head in agreement and chuckling as I read on through the pages. Living with a cat is different then a dog. Cats offer such an amazing friendship and connection. I'm not knocking dogs, don't get me wrong, I love those goofballs, but cats are different and Lonnie's story with her two was just spot on.

Kit Kat and Lucy were described several times as gifts to Lonnie and her husband. I couldn't help but think that she was very right. You don't plan for an animal sometimes, but when they are there, they end up being just what you need. Kit Kat & Lucy, though animals, show the unconditional love that is needed.

This book brought on tears, I will say at the end. I know the heartache that can happen when loving a pet, but it was written so well. The love of a pet is an amazing thing and this story captured it beautifully.

Too Read!
5 out of 5

About the Author:

Lonnie Hull DuPont is an award-winning poet, book editor, and writer. She is the author of several books, including five compilations of animal stories under the pseudonym of Callie Smith Grant. A member of the Cat Writers Association, she lives in rural Michigan with her husband and their cats.







Thank you to the publisher, I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review. 

Waiting On Wednesday: The Innkeeper of Ivy Hills

Waiting On Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine. 

Each week offers the opportunity to spotlight an up-and-coming release you are most excited about. 

Waiting On: 

Title: The Innkeeper of Ivy Hill
Author: Julie Klassen
Publisher: Bethany House
Publication Date: December 6th, 2016

Synopsis: 
From GoodReads

First Series from Bestselling Author Julie Klassen!

On a rise overlooking the Wiltshire countryside stands the village of Ivy Hill. Its coaching inn, The Bell, is its lifeblood--along with the coach lines that stop there daily, bringing news, mail, travelers, and much-needed trade.

Jane Bell lives on the edge of the inn property. She had been a genteel lady until she married the charming innkeeper who promised she would never have to work in his family's inn. But when he dies under mysterious circumstances, Jane finds herself The Bell's owner, and worse, she has three months to pay a large loan or lose the place.

Feeling reluctant and ill-equipped, Jane is tempted to abandon her husband's legacy and return to her former life of ease. However, she soon realizes there is more at stake than her comfort. But who can she trust to help her? Her resentful mother-in-law? Her husband's brother, who wanted the inn for himself? Or the handsome newcomer with secret plans of his own . . . ?

With pressure mounting from the bank, Jane struggles to win over naysayers and turn the place around. Can Jane bring new life to the inn, and to her heart as well?

Why I'm Waiting: 
I have really enjoyed Julie Klassen's previous books. They offer an essence of Jane Austen and Bronte. I really enjoyed the gothic and romantic, historical mix. They mesh so well. I can't wait to see what her first series has to offer!

What are you waiting on this week?

Top Ten Tuesday: All About Book Recommendation

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Each week focuses on a book related topic and offers the opportunity to spotlight your Top Ten. 

Topic: 

All About Books You Read Because of Recommendation

My book shelves have started to overflow because of the fantastic recommendations.  I have tried many new and new me authors because of so many fantastic recommendations. All of these books are written by some of my now favorite authors, all thanks to recommendations.

 

1. Becky Wade

2. Jody Hedlund

3. Elizabeth Camden

4. Susan May Warren

5. Lynn Austin

6. Sarah E. Ladd

7. Julianna Deering

8. Katie Ganshert

9. Julie Klassen

10. Denise Hunter

 

All of these authors were recommended to me and I would recommend them to any one!

What is your Top Ten this week?

Review: A Love Transformed by Tracie Peterson

Title: A Love Transformed
Author: Tracie Peterson
Publisher: Bethany House
Pages: 336
ISBN: 978-0-7642-1326-7
Publication Date: September 6th, 2016

Synopsis:

Clara lacks for nothing in her lavish New York mansion--except love.
When her husband, Adolph, dies suddenly, Clara Vesper is stunned. Not grief-stricken, as their marriage had never been a love match, but staggered by what might become of her and her children. For years she designed the sapphire jewelry that made her husband's company a fortune, but she has little money in her own name and soon discovers that she has inherited nothing. Fearing for the welfare of her two small children, she decides to take them to her aunt and uncle's ranch in Montana, the only place she has ever been happy.

But much has changed since she last visited the Montana ranch, both for Clara and for those she was forced to leave behind. And when dangerous secrets from her late husband's past threaten everyone she loves, Clara must fight to remain where she can fulfill her dreams.

Review:
I have long been a fan of Tracie Peterson's books. I have read them for years. I still look forward to her newest releases.

A Love Transformed is the third book in the Sapphire Brides Series. Even though I haven't gotten around to reading the first two books, it doesn't matter. This series can be read out of order without missing a beat or read as a stand-alone.

A Love Transformed was a very quick read for me. It started off quickly and kept the pace going through out the whole story. In the first sitting I read 100 pages without realizing it. The story was a good escape.

I really enjoyed the setting of this book. Not only did it bring you to New York then to Montana, but it focused on a time that is slowly becoming more popular, 1917. The time of WW1 and it was interesting to see the affect of the war over seas to how it affected people here.

Clara lived a rough life. She had everything she ever wanted, materialistic speaking, but not what she wanted for her heart. She was belittled and berated by her mother constantly. She only did things to keep the peace. She left a life she was happy with behind to please her mother, but as she got older, she knows that what she needs to focus on her and her children. Seeing how her mother parent, she knew that she wanted to be a better for her own kids and wanted them to have everything that was best for them. Not things, but confidence and know that they were loved.

Clara and Curtis both damaged from their past in certain, but both strong in their faith were good characters together. However, I really enjoyed Uncle Paul and Aunt Madeline the most. They offered that warm and inviting, homey aspect into the story.

This was a very enjoyable story.

Too Read
4 out of 5

About the Author:

Tracie Peterson is the bestselling, award-winning author of more than 100 novels. Tracie also teaches writing workshops at a variety of conferences on subjects such as inspirational romance and historical research. She and her family live in Montana.

Learn more at www.traciepeterson.com.





Thank you to the publisher, I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

Waiting On Wednesday: For the Record

Waiting On Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine.

Each week offers the opportunity to spotlight an up-and-coming release you are most excited about!

Waiting On:

Title: For the Record
Author: Regina Jennings
Publisher: Bethany House
Publication Date: December 6th, 2016

Synopsis:
From GoodReads

Jennings Offers Another Delightful Blend of History and Romance.

Betsy Huckabee might be a small-town girl, but she has big-city dreams. Writing for her uncle's newspaper will never lead to independence, and the bigger newspapers don't seem interested in the Hart County news. Trying a new approach, Betsy pens a romanticized serial for the ladies' pages, and the new deputy provides the perfect inspiration for her submissions. She'd be horrified if he read her breathless descriptions of him, but these articles are for a newspaper far away. No one in Pine Gap will ever know. 

Deputy Joel Puckett didn't want to leave Texas, but this job in tiny Pine Gap is his only shot at keeping his badge. With masked marauders riding every night, his skills and patience are tested, but even more challenging is the sassy journalist lady chasing him.

 Why I'm Waiting:
Regina Jennings has written several fun and romantic stories that I have enjoyed in the past and I can't wait to read this book! It sounds just as fun as her others. Plus I have to say, the cover is gorgeous and very eye catching.

What are you waiting on this week?

Top Ten Tuesday: All About The Villains

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. 

Each week features a book related topic that offers the opportunity to spotlight your Top Ten. 

Topic:

All About The Villains

Like most everyone, I love a good villain! They can sometimes make or break a story and really add a punch! Today I will be featuring villains that have really been so well written, they make me cringe, while others have been so smooth, you don't know who they really are till it's almost too late. Some villains are not a person, but something that is a personal battle. Then there are the villains that happen in real life and seeing how the person battled them was just nothing short of amazing. 

 1.) The Price of Privilege Series by Jessica Dotta

 2.) The Sentinels of Andersonville by Tracy Groot

3.) The Accidental Empress by Allison Pataki

 4.) Against the Tide by Elizabeth Camden

5.) Gods & Kings by Lynn Austin

6.) In the Shadow of Jezebel by Mesu Andrews

7.) Getting Life by Michael Morton

Who are your top villains this week?