Monday, August 27, 2018

Fascinating! ' The Amish Quilter' - The Women of Lancaster County 5 - by Mindy Starns Clark & Leslie Gould

The Amish Quilter

About the book:

A gifted young quilter… a successful artist… the life-changing revelation that threatens to tear them apart…
Linda Mueller lives an orderly, uneventful existence, content to divide her time between creating the beautiful quilts for which she is known and working at an Englisch fabric shop.
Idealistic to a fault, Linda has never found a man worth marrying—until she meets Isaac Mast, a newcomer to Lancaster County and a talented painter. As they bond over their respective crafts, Linda is drawn to Isaac’s kind ways, humble spirit, and intriguing personality, and soon the seams of her carefully-constructed world begin to loosen.
With Isaac’s help, she explores the story of her late grandmother, also a gifted artist. But when an astonishing truth comes to light, Linda faces a grave decision, one that could destroy any hope of a future with Isaac. Will their dreams of a life together completely unravel? Or can she find some way to stitch them back together again?

My review:

This was a fascinating book that was hard to put down!  I love anything to do with genealogy so following Linda on this journey as she tries to find out about her grandmother's past, her art and why she stopped painting was so interesting.  I love that family members Linda's family has been out of touch with for years or that Linda's never even met come back into their lives.  I liked Linda for the most part but I did feel she was somewhat immature and I felt a little impatient and frustrated with her for how she treated Isaac.  Isaac seemed like a wonderful guy, maybe a little too perfect.  The story was told in the first person from Linda's perspective so we get to know her a lot better than Isaac; the first person style isn't used nearly as often as the third person so it was a refreshing change, though I did miss Isaac's viewpoint.  I really liked that grace was emphasized and the gospel was explained.  It's also pointed out how unforgiveness and skewed theology can damage a person.  I liked that depression was addressed.  It was also interesting to see characters with autism and how the Amish view that.  There was a little bit of romance.  This worked well as a stand-alone, though characters from previous books do show up.  Overall, this was a wonderful story if you like Amish or genealogy stories!

I received a  copy of this book from Harvest House Publishers.  I was not required to write a positive review and have not been compensated for this.  This is my honest opinion.

Meet the authors

Mindy Starns Clark

Mindy Starns Clark

Mindy Starns Clark is the bestselling author of more than 20 books, both fiction and nonfiction, with over a million copies sold. Mindy and her husband, John, have two adult children and live in Pennsylvania. www.mindystarnsclark.com
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Leslie Gould

Leslie Gould

Leslie Gould, a former magazine editor, is the author of numerous novels, including Beyond the Blue and Garden of Dreams. She received her master of fine arts degree from Portland State University and lives in Oregon with her husband, Peter, and their four children. www.lesliegould.com
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Tuesday, August 21, 2018

Enjoyable! 'As the Tide Comes In' - by Cindy Woodsmall & Erin Woodsmall

37804070

About the book:

When an unthinkable loss sends Tara Abbott's life spiraling out of control, she journeys from North Carolina to Georgia's St. Simons Island. Although confused and scared, she hopes to find answers about her past - her life before the years of foster care and raising her two half-brothers as a young adult. Will she find steady ground on the island, surrounded by an eccentric-but-kindhearted group of older women called The Glynn Girls and a determined firefighter? Or will the truth splinter what's left of her identity into pieces?

My review:

I really enjoyed this quirky story set on a charming southern isand.  I have enjoyed every Cindy Woodsmall book I've read in the past and this was no exception!  I loved Tara, who I met in the Woodsmalls' previous book together called "The Gift of Christmas Past."  I was glad we got to know her better here as I really admired her for raising her half-brothers and for the person she became after all of the loss and hardship she'd endured from childhood.  She seemed like a fun person in normal life, however for much of the book she's grieving and confused.  I really felt for what she was going through.  I also liked going on the journey with Tara as she tried to understand why God let the tragedy happen and what her purpose is now.  There were some great spiritual truths to digest.  Gavin was amazing as he was so understanding and patient as she tried to figure things out.  He was another great character who really took care of the people he loved.  A really cool element you don't see often in fiction is a glimpse into Heaven and that was a very cool part in this book.   One thing I thought was odd was that Luella, one of the Glynn Girls, did ghost tours, yet apparently didn't really believe in ghosts.  It just seemed like doing those would feed the whole misconception that ghosts are real.  I did really like Luella because of her love of history and travel and for her humor.  There were some sweet romantic moments for two couples.  I would recommend this story if you're looking for a book with a little more meat to it, yet still has humor, romance and charm.

I received a copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah. I was not required to write a positive review, and have not been compensated for this. This is my honest opinion.

Wednesday, August 1, 2018

The Girls' Guide to Conquering Life: How to Ace an Interview, Change a Tire, Talk to a Guy, and 97 Other Skills You Need to Thrive - by Erica & Jonathan Catherman

Cover Art

About the book:

Everything you need to know to be prepared, confident, and successful
As you grow up and make your mark on the world, you're going to run into plenty of situations that require you to be confident and capable. But it's hard to be either when you don't know what you're doing! If you want to have it all together, The Girls' Guide to Conquering Life is your go-to resource. With great illustrations and step-by-step instructions for almost everything a young woman needs to know, this book shows you how to

· introduce yourself
· change a flat tire
· respectfully break up with a guy
· leave a tip
· apply for a job
· ask for a promotion
· behave during a traffic stop
· create a personal budget
· wash your face
· clear a clogged drain
· iron a shirt
· wear a scarf
· shoot a basketball
· and much more

The world needs women of character who don't wait for others to do what needs to be done. With The Girls' Guide to Conquering Life, you'll be well on your way to impressing everyone around you with your skill, confidence, and grace under pressure.

My review:

This is a wonderful guide with tons of great advice!  It's especially great for girls and teens that might not have had a good role model or someone teaching them helpful things to know, such as how to introduce yourself or how to budget.  This book covered pretty much every aspect of life, from guys to work to money to food to fixing stuff.  I wanted to review it because I figured there would be some items I could use help with, especially in the fix-it area.  There was a lot of great information!  I liked how each chapter was very clearly laid out with what you would need, the steps to achieve your goal and an interesting trivia fact or piece of wisdom.  There were also interesting true stories about real people at the beginning of each section.  I would highly recommend this book for tween and teen girls!

I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher. I was not required to write a positive review, and have not been compensated for this. This is my honest opinion.

           The Authors

  1. Erica Catherman

    Erica Catherman

    Erica Catherman has spent more than twenty years mentoring young women as a coach to middle school, high school, and college students. Committed to raising up the next generation to be kind, confident, and capable, Erica has served as a youth group...
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  2. Jonathan Catherman

    Jonathan Catherman

    Jonathan Catherman is the author of the bestselling The Manual to Manhood and The Manual to Middle School. An award-winning cultural strategist and a leading education trainer specializing in the character and leadership development of youth,...
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