Tag: 2023 Release

Turning thirty isn't The End. At least not of my actual life. Just of my hopes and dreams.

Book Review | The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley by Courtney Walsh

Researcher Isodora Bentley is turning thirty, and life has not turned out how she’d planned. Although she has a solid job that makes use of her intellect, she has not taken the world by storm, and she’s surviving rather than thriving.

When she sees a magazine article giving 31 steps to happiness, she decides to follow the steps so she can prove the author wrong. But her plans go awry after she meets her next-door neighbours and is assigned a new project at work.

Isodora a is a brilliant character in more ways than one.

She’s intelligent (I am always a sucker for intelligent heroines. And heroes.) She’s also a brilliant character in that she is likeable and sympathetic and compelling, the kind of character I want to get to know better in fiction (because the fictional Isodora shares more about herself than her real-life equivalent would).

I loved watching Isodora develop relationships with Marty, Darby, Delilah, and her handsome colleague, Dr. Cal Baxter.

All are wonderful characters who willingly help Isodora complete her “list”.

The novel is written in first person from Isadora’s point of view. She has a strong and unique voice made stronger by her habit of interrupting herself to give third-person observations of her own behaviour in the style and voice of David Attenborough. It’s a technique that adds to the story by showing us some of Isodora’s quirks.

The other character worth mentioning was ten-year-old Delilah, who is a twenty-years-younger version of Isodora, the answer to a long-ago prayer. While the Christian elements of the plot are not given a lot of emphasis, they are definitely there.

The Happy Life of Isodora Bentley mixes the quirky-colleagues vibe of All’s Fair in Love and Christmas by Sarah Monzon with The Secret to Happiness by Suzanne Woods Fisher (but without the awkward treatment of mental health).

It’s an excellent novel for anyone looking for workplace romances, or romances with characters with ADHD or similar.

Thanks to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About the Author

Courtney WalshCourtney Walsh is a novelist, theatre director, and playwright. She writes small town romance and women’s fiction while juggling the performing arts studio and youth theatre she owns with her husband. She is the author of thirteen novels. Her debut, A Sweethaven Summer, hit the New York Times and USA TODAY bestseller lists and was a Carol Award finalist. Her novel Just Let Go won the Carol in 2019, and three of her novels have also been Christy-award finalists. A creative at heart, Courtney has also written three craft books and several musicals. She lives in Illinois with her husband and three children.

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About The Happy Life of Isodora Bentley

She’s out to prove that there’s no such thing as choosing happiness.

Isadora Bentley follows the rules. Isadora Bentley likes things just so. Isadora Bentley believes that happiness is something that flat-out doesn’t exist in her life—and never will.

As a university researcher, Isadora keeps to herself as much as possible. She avoids the students she’s supposed to befriend and mentor. She stays away from her neighbors and lives her own quiet, organized life in her own quiet, organized apartment. And she will never get involved in a romantic relationship again—especially with another academic. It will be just Isadora and her research. Forever.

But on her thirtieth birthday, Isadora does something completely out of character. The young woman who never does anything “on a whim” makes an impulse purchase of a magazine featuring a silly article detailing “Thirty-One Ways to Be Happy”—which includes everything from smiling at strangers to exercising for endorphins to giving in to your chocolate cravings. Isadora decides to create her own secret research project—proving the writer of the ridiculous piece wrong.

As Isadora gets deeper into her research—and meets a handsome professor along the way—she’s stunned to discover that maybe, just maybe, she’s proving herself wrong. Perhaps there’s actually something to this happiness concept, and possibly there’s something to be said for loosening up and letting life take you somewhere . . . happy.

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First Line Friday

First Line Friday #301 | No Matter How Far by Sara Beth Williams

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. No Matter How Far by Sara Beth Williams is the seventh book in the Trinity Lakes multi-author contemporary Christian small-town romance series.  Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Dylan Mackay set his ski poles firmly in the soft snow to keep himself from sliding down the hill.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

 

About No Matter How Far

He ran away to escape his fear. She faces her fear every day.

After the death of his late wife, associate professor Dylan Mackay never thought he’d fall for another woman, until the stubborn and beautiful Jocelyn rescues him from the top of a ski slope—though he needed no such rescuing. The blissful whirlwind week spent together at Trinity Lakes Ski Resort is one of the happiest in recent memory.

After a messy breakup followed by her parents’ sudden divorce, local Trinity Lakes paramedic Jocelyn Monroe had sworn off dating, until she is forced to rescue an injured Australian against his will while volunteering for the mountain ski patrol. Dylan is stubborn, handsome, intelligent and honorable, with a swoony Aussie accent to boot and she finds herself falling head over heels before the week is out.

Once down the mountain, the spontaneity and carelessness of their rushed relationship comes full circle in devastating blows. Each one grapples with life-altering decisions that would result in moving out of Trinity Lakes—her a short distance away, him across the world. Neither one wants to leave the other, nor do they want to leave the charming town itself. Can they lean on God and trust that He will hold onto them no matter how far they go?

A second chance, opposites attract, small town Contemporary Christian romance.

Find No Matter How Far online at:

Amazon | Goodreads

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Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

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Did they deceive people? Now and then, perhaps. But mostly they were dedicated to discovering truth. And they did so to protect their family.

Book Review | A Beautiful Disguise (Imposters #1) by Roseanna M White

Roseanna M White’s historical fiction has ranged from Biblical fiction to Gilded Age America to Edwardian England. My favourite stories are her romantic suspense stories set in England and which feature spies or investigators.

I’m thrilled to see her new series is back in my favourite sub-genre.

A Beautiful Disguise is the first in the Impostors series, and features Lady Marigold Fairfax, her brother, Lord Yates Fairfax, and the rest of their ragtag household. They make up the Impostors, a group of incognito private investigators who use their position in society–and their unconventional skills and talents–to ferret out information people need to know.

They are commissioned by Lieutenant Colonel Sir Merritt Livingstone to discover who Lord Hemming is corresponding with in Germany, England’s enemy and why.

We’re dropped straight into the story, as Marigold and Yates use their acrobatic skills to eavesdrop on a conversation that solves their current case, and the pace never lets up, taking us from London to a rugged coastal home with some unexpected residents.

Lady Marigold is my favourite kind of heroine.

She’s intelligent and brave and will do anything for her family and friends. She has a range of unusual skills, including the curious ability to be both the centre of attention and barely noticed. Sir Merrit notices her, and for all the right reasons. I’m always a fan of a man who notices and values the heroine’s intelligence, personality, and faith, rather than her looks and station in life.

But Marigold is obviously hiding a secret, so there’s the ongoing tension of if and how Merrit will find out, and how he will react. I have to say I thought that was brilliantly done, and spoke will to both their characters.

I thoroughly enjoyed watching these two characters fall for each other, and I am looking forward to the next story in the series.

A Beautiful Disguise has all the same strengths as White’s Shadows over England and Codebreakers trilogies: a closeknit group of friends and family working together to serve their country, and finding love along the way.

Recommended for fans of historical Christian romantic suspense, and circuses.

Thanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Roseanna M White

Roseanna M WhiteRoseanna M. White pens her novels beneath her Betsy Ross flag, with her Jane Austen action figure watching over her. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two children, editing and designing, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna has a slew of historical novels available, ranging from biblical fiction to American-set romances to her new British series. She lives with her family in West Virginia.

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About A Beautiful Disguise

In Edwardian London, not all that glitters is gold as a lady and an intelligence officer’s secret mission take them from the city’s dazzling ballrooms to its covert intelligence offices.

Sir Merritt Livingstone has spent a decade serving the monarch in the field, but when pneumonia lands him behind a desk in the War Office Intelligence Division just as they’re creating a new secret intelligence branch, he’s intent on showing his worth. He suspects an aristocrat of leaking information to Germany as tensions mount between the two countries, but he needs someone to help him prove it, so he turns to The Imposters, Ltd. No one knows who they are, but their results are beyond compare.

Left with an estate on the brink of bankruptcy after their father’s death, Lady Marigold Fairfax and her brother open a private investigation firm for the elite to spy on the elite. Dubbed The Imposters, Ltd., their anonymous group soon becomes the go-to for the crème of society who want answers delivered surreptitiously. But the many secrets Marigold learns about her peers pale in comparison to her shock when she and her brother are hired to investigate her best friend’s father as a potential traitor.

Lady Marigold is determined to discover the truth for her friend’s sake, and she’s more determined still to keep her heart from getting involved with this enigmatic new client . . . who can’t possibly be as noble as he seems.

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I’ve been trying so hard to remember, I never thought about the repercussions when I do. Will it all be worth it?

Book Review | With Every Memory by Janine Rosch

I am a sucker for amnesia plots, and this is one of the best I’ve read. While amnesia is serious, many of the novels I’ve read have taken more of a rom-com approach, literary equivalents of Fifty First Dates. With Every Memory is more serious, although there are humorous moments.

Lori lost her memory ten months ago in the car accident that killed her teenage son.

Now she’s heading home after rehab to a sterile house she doesn’t remember, a distant husband, a rebellious teen daughter, and friends she no longer knows. What she does know is that the happy marriage she remembers has disappeared, and she has no idea why.

Avery lost her twin brother in the accident and has been lost ever since.

She’s flunking school and now the principal has threatened that she won’t be able to graduate with her class. He suggests a tutor—the annoying Xander, her brother’s best friend and the guy who put gum in her hair as well as a bunch of other stuff.

With Every Memory is written in first person point of view from Lori and Avery’s points of view. Two characters in first person does take a little getting used to and turns the story into a mix of women’s fiction (Lori’s story) and YA romance (Avery’s story).

Both women’s voices are equally strong in their own way, which is great.

I often find I prefer one character over another in stories like this. Lori’s story is strong, because it’s the amnesia story, and we get to see her gradually recovering her memories and rediscovering herself. Avery’s story is poignant, but also has touches of needed humour.

My favourite character was Xander, Austin’s best friend and Avery’s unwanted tutor, the guy who’s had a crush on her for half of forever. He sticks by Avery even when she’s pushing him away with her words and her actions. I admired him even while I felt sorry for him, because he understood (perhaps better than Avery) that her actions were borne out of grief. Xander wears his heart on his sleeve and is just plain wonderful—the guy any mom would want for their daughter.

Michael, on the hand, is more reserved, and is a workaholic. He justifies himself by saying he’s providing for his family, but Lori can’t help wonder if there’s something more, especially given what her friends say. that adds a tension to their relationship that kept me reading and made the book impossible to put down.

Overall, I loved With Every Memory, and it’s one of those books I’ll enjoy even more the second time through because I’ll know the ending so I’ll be reading with a different mindset.

However, it won’t be right for everyone. It is written in first person, and that’s not everyone’s cup of tea. Also, Lori’s grief over losing her son (and Avery’s grief over losing her twin brother) is a big part of the story, and some people won’t want to read that. There is also a reference to sexual assault.

But forewarned is forearmed, and it’s definitely worth reading for a story of enduring love even in the most difficult times.

Thanks to Revell and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Janine Rosche

Janine Rosche - author photo
Janine Rosche is the author of the Madison River Romance and Whisper Canyon series of novels. Prone to wander, she finds as much comfort on the open road as she does at home. This longing to chase adventure, behold splendor, and experience redemption is woven into her stories. When she isn’t traveling or writing novels, she teaches family life education courses, produces The Love Wander Read Journal, and takes too many pictures of her sleeping dogs.

Find Janine Rosche online at:

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About With Every Memory

Is the Life She Can’t Remember One She’d Rather Forget?

One year after her family was in a tragic car accident that killed her teenage son, Lori Mendenhall returns home with a traumatic brain injury that has stolen the last eight years of memories from her. She is shocked to find that the life she was leading before the accident is unrecognizable. Her once-loving husband, Michael, is a distant workaholic she isn’t sure she can trust and her once-bubbly daughter, Avery, has spent the last year hidden away in her room.

For Avery, life stopped when she lost her twin. Now, if she wants to graduate high school, she’ll have to accept help from Xander Dixon, her brother’s best friend and the boy who relentlessly teased her for years. And if Lori wants to reconnect with her husband, she’ll have to grapple with information her brain is trying to keep secret. With every memory that returns, she can’t help but wonder if the life she can’t remember is one she’d rather forget.

Find With Every Memory online at:

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For a long time, she had refused to accept and feel her emotions. Self-control and goodness had been her protection.

Book Review | Where Our Hearts Lie (Trinity Lakes #6) by Jenny Glazebrook

Where Our Hearts Lie is the sixth novel in the Trinity Lakes Romance series, and it’s my favourite so far—I inhaled the entire story in one sitting.

Hallie is an easy character to like, and many readers will relate to her.

She grew up as “the genius missionary kid”, and has never felt like she fit in. The older I get, the more I realise I even the teens in the “cool crowd” sometimes felt like they didn’t fit in. I could relate to Hallie and I’m sure many other readers will as well.

Josh is a little harder to relate to.

He suffered a head injury which left him unable to read. As a reader, that’s something I’m happy I can’t relate to, but which I can sympathise with. Even if I wasn’t a keen reader, I would sympathise, because the ability to read is so central to modern life.

Josh, understandably, tries to hide his disability. He works a minimum wage job in a grocery store, which means a lot of people look down on him because they think he should be doing something better (like being a preacher, like his father). But Josh is hiding other secrets that remind us that God measures using a different standard to man (or woman).

A bad relationship causes Hallie to lose trust in herself, in her judgement, and in men in general. She wants openness and honesty in relationships, not secrets. That, of course, puts her on a collision course with Josh and his secrets. But Hallie has secrets of her own …

I loved the way Jenny Glazebrook has combined two hurting characters and brought them together into the Biblical threefold cord.

Where Our Hearts Lie reminds us that God needs to be at the centre of our relationships, and that all things are possible with Him in charge.

Recommended for fans of small-town contemporary Christian romance with a strong Christian message.

About Where Our Hearts Lie

Can two hurting hearts find where they belong?

Hallie Hollaway is the daughter of missionaries and a child prodigy who desperately wants to fit in. When her first meeting with an internet boyfriend goes horribly wrong, she escapes to her childhood home of Trinity Lakes. The only place she has ever felt safe and loved.

Josh Ladan is the pastor’s kid who once dreamed of following in his father’s footsteps. Until one tragic summer in Australia changed everything. Now Hallie, his clever childhood friend, is back in Trinity Lakes. Josh is closely guarding a secret that he fears will disappoint Hallie, but he is determined to prove himself to her.

Hallie is drawn to Josh, but holds herself back, believing she is unworthy of love. Can Hallie and Josh allow God to work in their hearts and lives to restore trust and hope for a future together?

Find Where Our Hearts Lie online at:

Amazon | Goodreads

About Jenny Glazebrook

Jenny GlazebrookJenny Glazebrook is an Australian author of inspirational Christian fiction for young adults. She and her husband Rob have four children and live in the country town of Gundagai with their many pets.

Jenny had a difficult childhood struggling with medical issues (including a cleft lip and palate and type 1 diabetes) and she came to a point of complete brokenness when she was 13. It was at this point God reached in, showed His love for her through Jesus, and gave her a reason to live. Jenny is now passionate about helping people understand what it means to have a deep and real relationship with God and sees writing fiction as an enjoyable way to show others how to live with joy and purpose in this broken world.

Several of Jenny’s novels have been finalists in the CALEB awards for faith inspired writing.

Find Jenny Glazebrook online at:

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Rachel was judging the book by its cover, she’d admit, but she’d seen a lot of books like Dominic in her time and the covers tended to match the story inside.

Book Review | Until I Met You by Lara Van Hulzen

Until I Met You is part of The Endicotts of Silver Bay series. I haven’t read the first two books in the series, which must be Chet and Meg’s story, but didn’t feel I was missing any information. That’s always a plus when reading a series out of order—there can be a fine balance between boring readers by rehashing the first/previous books, vs. ignoring them and leaving the reader feeling like they’ve gatecrashed a private party.

I loved the initial meeting between Rachel and Dominic.

So did Dominic … more than Rachel did, at least. There’s an initial attraction between the two (not my favourite trope), so I was happy to see their relationship was built on a growing friendship rather than on the initial attraction. I loved the dialogue and banter between the two as they work together on a fundraiser for the town community centre, where Rachel works.

Rachel also had a role as a volunteer chaplain for the local fire department and hospital. That sounded fascinating, and I would have liked to have seen more of her chaplaincy role—it’s not something I can recall seeing in Christian fiction, which feels like a gap.

Until I Met You is a fairly slow burn romance (my favourite kind) that hits all the right notes for a sweet, easy small-town romance read.

Recommended for small-town contemporary romance fans, especially those who like opposites attract or billionaire tropes.

Thanks to Tule Publishing for providing a free ebook for review.

About Until I Met You

When his parents move to Silver Bay, California, Dominic Endicott, ever the dutiful son, packs up his life and heads to the small town. He sees it as temporary, appeasing his mother and making sure his dad’s health is stable while Dominic keeps the family business running. Dominic planned on keeping his head down, focused only on working and spending time with his family. Until a beautiful brunette forces him to look up.

Local Chaplain and community center employee Rachel Anderson loves her little town that she’s called home for the past year. Silver Bay is a far cry from her life growing up in LA, and that’s perfectly fine with her. When she mistakes newcomer Dominic for her friend, Chet, her simple, curated life becomes complicated.

Thrown together to work on raising money for the town’s community center, the sparks between Rachel and Dominic are too strong to ignore. But Dominic represents everything Rachel has been running from, while Rachel has Dominic rethinking his entire life plan. Can these two bridge the gap between their worlds and give love a chance?

Find Until I Met You online at:

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About Lara Van Hulzen

Lara Van HulzenWriting stories since she was a young girl, Lara’s dream of being a novelist became a reality with her Men of Honor series. An avid reader, she worked as a book reviewer for 18 years with various organizations. She has a BA in Journalism and a Masters of Divinity in Chaplaincy. Lara loves tea, baseball and living in Idaho with her husband and Great Dane.

Find Lara Van Hulzen online at:

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Ladies of the Lake cover image

Audiobook Review | Ladies of the Lake by Cathy Gohlke

Ladies of the Lake begins in 1935, with the headmistress of Lakeside Ladies Academy in Connecticut calls to personally invite Mrs. Murray to her daughter’s graduation, even though it is over 800 miles away. Mrs. Murray refuses, and that is the first big question: why?

The story then skips back to 1905, when twelve-year-old Adelaide MacNeill’s parents drown, her older half-brother sends her away from her beloved Prince Edward Island and sends her to the Lakeside. There she is befriended by Dorothy, Ruth, and Susannah, and they refer to themselves as Ladies of the Lake.

The story flip-flops between Adelaide’s growing-up years at Lakeside and the present, where she continues to refuse to travel to the USA. We see her graduate, start work … and fall in love with the same man as Dorothy, her best friend. A man who happens to be a German-American in World War I … yes, there is every indication this isn’t going to end well.

The mystery unfolds as we move further into the novel, particularly as the past story comes closer and closer to the present. There was plenty of tension as I wondered when the present characters would work out what the listener has known from the beginning: that Adelaide is alive. But there were also a couple of unexpected twists, one that was revealed close to the end, providing the piece de resistance to an already excellent story.

The narrator did an excellent job.

The first few minutes felt a little stilted, as the story opened with a letter. But once she got into the regular dialogue and action of the novel, the narration moved smoothly. I was particularly impressed with her ability to portray the different voices–child, teen, and adult, male and female.

I’m not always a fan of audiobooks, mostly because they feel slow—I can read a novel in half the time it takes to listen to the audiobook (and I can’t take the audiobook reading speed much past 1.25 times or I start literally losing the plot). But Ladies of the Lake had plenty of mysteries and secrets to keep me engaged and did a masterful job of unravelling the secrets at the perfect pace to keep me engaged and listening.

Of course, the one weakness of audiobooks is that I can’t underline and share any of the great writing or lines I found particularly meaningful. You’ll just have to trust me: there were many.

Recommended for historical fiction fans, particularly Anne of Green Gables fans.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing a free audiobook for review.

About Cathy Gohlke

Cathy GohlkeCathy Gohlke is the three-time Christy Award-winning author of the critically acclaimed novels Secrets She Kept (winner of the 2016 Carol and INSPY Awards), Saving Amelie (winner of the 2015 INSPY Award), Band of Sisters, Promise Me This (listed by Library Journal as one of the best books of 2012), William Henry Is a Fine Name, and I Have Seen Him in the Watchfires (listed by Library Journal as one of the best books of 2008), which also won the American Christian Fiction Writers’ Book of the Year Award.

Cathy has worked as a school librarian, drama director, and director of children’s and education ministries. When not traipsing the hills and dales of historic sites, she, her husband, and their dog, Reilly, divide their time between Northern Virginia and the Jersey Shore, enjoying time with their children and granddaughters.

You can find Cathy Gohlke online at:

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About Ladies of the Lake

When she is forced to leave her beloved Prince Edward Island to attend Lakeside Ladies Academy after the death of her parents, the last thing Adelaide Rose MacNeill expects to find is three kindred spirits. The “Ladies of the Lake,” as the four girls call themselves, quickly bond like sisters, vowing that wherever life takes them, they will always be there for each other. But that is before: Before love and jealousy come between Adelaide and Dorothy, the closest of the friends. Before the dawn of World War I upends their world and casts baseless suspicion onto the German American man they both love. Before a terrible explosion in Halifax Harbor rips the sisterhood irrevocably apart.

Seventeen years later, Rosaline Murray receives an unsuspecting telephone call from Dorothy, now headmistress of Lakeside, inviting her to attend the graduation of a new generation of girls, including Rosaline’s beloved daughter. With that call, Rosaline is drawn into a past she’d determined to put behind her. To memories of a man she once loved . . . of a sisterhood she abandoned . . . and of the day she stopped being Adelaide MacNeill.

Find Ladies of the Lake online at:

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First Line Friday

First Line Friday #294 | The Christmas Box by Jessica Wakefield

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. I’ve just bought The Christmas Box by debut Australian author Jessica Wakefield. It’s three novellas featuring three of my favourite tropes: friends to more, forced proximity, and fake relationship. Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Change was coming. Amy Franklin hated change.

I only have to read that much to know I’m going to love Amy 🙂

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

About The Christmas Box

Three Christmas Novellas: Can Christmas be saved by a mysterious box? Join three couples across three decades as they find love in places they least expected it.

1995: Braving Christmas

Amy Franklin is in love with her best friend. Years of family rejection have left her unable to tell Chris Lawrence how she feels for fear of history repeating itself. But as she becomes the key to saving his family’s Christmas tree farm, she realizes teaming up with Chris permanently might just be worth being brave after all.

2005: Risking Christmas

Holed up in a cabin in Connecticut during a blizzard, chef Josh Keller is looking to finish a proposal for his new restaurant. But he didn’t count on getting snowed in with Nicole Abbot, the very food critic who derailed his career faster than you can say master chef. As the days drift by, Josh and Nicole form a tentative truce that might just turn into more.

2015: Faking Christmas

Antonia Katsaros needs a fake boyfriend to attend her sister’s Christmas-themed engagement party, or she’ll never hear the end of it from her meddling family. In the mall, she meets Dylan Matthews, a guy more than ready to help the woman who helped his niece. Can their fake relationship turn real just in time for the holidays?

Find The Christmas Box online at:

Amazon | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

I believe with all my heart romance makes a book—every book—better. And romance makes readers—every reader—happy.

Book Review | Dedicated to the One I Love by Beth K Vogt

It’s been a while since I read a novel by Beth Vogt. She’s mostly been writing women’s fiction, and I didn’t read her last few releases. I’m sure they were excellent—after all, Beth has won several notable writing awards—but the covers just didn’t appeal to me. Yes, I judge books by the cover.

Dedicated to the One I Love is Beth Vogt’s return to romance.

I was immediately attracted by the cover—I love cartoon covers, and what’s not to like about that cute old-fashioned typewriter?

I was also intrigued by the book description. Veronica Hollis is the pen name of Kylie Franklin, a bestselling author who hasn’t been able to write since her husband died in an accident three years ago. Tate Merrick is the pen name of Joe Edwards, a successful thriller author whose publisher decides his books would be all the better for a strong romance thread. The publishers arrange for Joe to co-write with Veronica Hollins, but Joe is not happy with the idea … so there’s a recipe for conflict.

Kylie and Joe have been emailing almost daily since connecting on a game app, but haven’t shared much information about their personal lives … like the fact they are both authors. When Kylie and Joe arrange to meet and discover they are Tate and Veronica, their relationship heads sharply downhill, despite the great first meeting (not), the witty banter, and all the other evidence that they are perfect for each other (because this is a romance, right? They have to be perfect for each other. That’s the rule).

Once I started reading, it was hard to stop.

I loved a lot of things about Dedicated to the One I Love.

I loved the banter between Kylie and Joe, even when they weren’t friends. I loved their friends, especially Joe’s friends, who supported Kylie and Joe but weren’t afraid to deliver a few hard truths where needed (and Joe certainly needed a few hard truths at times). I loved the writing, which made it obvious these two were meant for each other, even while they seemed unable to have a civil conversation. I especially loved Kylie’s quote about romance—something I 100% agree with.

I think my only criticism is that the book could have been longer—I would have liked to have seen a little more of Kylie and Joe after they made up. Hopefully I’ll get that in a sequel (hint hint).

Recommended for fans of contemporary Christian romance with a rom-com bent, from authors such as Kara Isaac, Becky Wade, Courtney Walsh, Meredith Resce, and Sarah Monzon.

About Beth K Vogt

Beth K VogtBeth K. Vogt is a non-fiction author and editor who said she’d never write fiction. She’s the wife of an Air Force family physician (now in solo practice) who said she’d never marry a doctor—or anyone in the military. She’s a mom of four who said she’d never have kids. Now Beth believes God’s best often waits behind the doors marked “Never.” As a contemporary romance novelist, Beth is a 2016 Christy Award winner, a 2015 RITA® Finalist and a three-time ACFW Carol Award finalist. Her 2014 novel, Somebody Like You, was one of Publisher’s Weekly’s Best Books of 2014.

Beth enjoys writing contemporary romance because she believes there’s more to happily-ever-after than the fairy tales tell us. An established magazine writer and former editor of Connections, the leadership magazine for MOPS International, Beth is also part of the leadership team for My Book Therapy, the writing community founded by best-selling author Susan May Warren. She lives in Colorado with her husband Rob, who has adjusted to discussing the lives of imaginary people, and their youngest daughter, Christa, who loves to play volleyball and enjoys writing her own stories.

Find Beth K Vogt online at:

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About Dedicated to the One I Love

She doesn’t believe in love anymore. He doesn’t either.

They’re perfect for each other.

Beloved romance novelist Kylie Franklin walked away from her pen-name career as bestselling and award-winning Veronica Hollins the day her husband died. Her loyal readers are eager for the final book in her sensational series. But Kylie’s given up on love, both fictional and in real life. Behind her back, Kylie’s agent contrives a way to get her writing again.

Joe Edwards has made a name for himself with his popular military suspense novels under the pen name Tate Merrick. Yet he can’t quite break onto the bestseller list. What his books need, his publisher suggests, is some romance. Joe flat refuses. However, his publisher is determined and hires Veronica Hollins to save the day—and his career.

Veronica and Tate quickly realize they’re Kylie and Joe, good friends who connected online via a popular word game and their mutual love of trivia. Surely they can wrangle their alter egos into this literary collaboration. But as the deadline looms, their differences threaten the romance developing off the page.

Find Dedicated to the One I Love online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

New Releases in Christian Fiction

New Releases in Christian Fiction | July 2023

We’re halfway though 2023 already … and it’s summer for those of you in the northern hemisphere, and winter Down Under. Either time is great for a good book!

I’ve already read three of this month’s new releases, and all are excellent: Plagues and Papyrus by Christine Dillon looks at a familiar story from a new perspective, Uncharted Grace by Keely Brooke Keith is the next in her unique spin on futuristic romance, and Dedicated to the One I Love by Beth K Vogt is a contemporary romance with a fun twist.

What are you reading or planning to read in July?

More in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website.

Contemporary Romance

Dial S for Second Chances by Linda Shenton Matchett — Jade Williams agrees to be on the high school reunion committee because the-one-that-got-away is out of the country and won’t be home in time to attend the festivities. Now, he’s not only home but joined the committee. Is it too late to back out or can she set aside forty-five years of regret and pretend she isn’t to blame for her broken heart? One of the downsides of being rich means fielding requests for money and favors. But when an old high school buddy contacts Derek Milligan to be on the reunion committee as just one of the gang, no strings attached, he can’t resist. At the first meeting, he’s dismayed to find himself sitting next to his former high school sweetheart. He should be angry. Instead, he’s attracted. Can he risk his heart a second time? (Contemporary Romance from Shortwave Press)

Fire and Ice
by Carolyn Miller — Hannah Wade’s heart might’ve once been touched by a rancher’s son, but her real passion has always been sports. Years later, when her sports career is cut short by injury and an opportunity arises to be one of Calgary’s first female sports analysts, she jumps at the chance. Trouble is, some of the old dinosaurs she works with think she’s only there to look good, add ratings, and stir controversy among the fiercely loyal hockey fans. She longs for the chance to prove herself, so when an opportunity comes along to interview newly traded defenseman Franklin James, she meets him. Or, more accurately, re-meets him. With disastrous effect. Can these two overcome prejudice and find a way forward? And what has faith – or the lack of – got to do with anything? (Contemporary Romance, Independently Published)

Sweet Romantic Fiction Editors’ Choice Christmas Collection by Barbara Britton, Renee Blare, Anne Greene, C.E. Hilbert, Susan Lyttek, and Dixie Jarchow — An editors’ choice collection of Pelican Book Group’s Christmas stories. Join the fun at Christmas and all the year through. (Contemporary Romance from White Rose Publishing (Pelican)

General Contemporary

Room for Love by Marguerite Martin Gray — God gave her peace then; maybe He’ll do it again. When Amy Lee’s son heads off to college, the bed and breakfast owner finds life even lonelier and emptier than she had after losing her husband. She needs something to occupy her mind and heart while she reinvents her life again. What more could she ask for than an after-school program for local children and a renewed interest in painting? Then the arrival of a professor of archeology shakes her world and makes her yearn for the way things were only a few short months ago. Still grieving the loss of his beloved wife, and ignoring the warnings and protests of his grown children, Professor Walker Standish escapes on a six-month sabbatical. His heart, barely beating these past months, jerks to. (General Contemporary from Celebrate Lit Publishing)

General Historical

Rebecca by Shannon McNear — Born the daughter of a Powhatan chieftain and a woman of unknown origins, Mato’aka enjoys a carefree life. When strange men from across the eastern waters appear near her home, she regards them at first as a mere curiosity. Soon, though, she finds herself torn between friendship with one of their leaders and the opinions and politics of her elders. Drawn to a young Englishman, John Rolfe, who has lost a wife and baby daughter, she shares his griefs. . .and perhaps something more. Could she have a future among the English of Jamestown, accepting their ways and even changing her name? Could her fate be a part of the lasting legacy of the Lost Colony of Roanoke? (General Historical from Barbour Publishing)

Historical Biblical

Plagues and Papyrus: Egyptians by Christine Dillon — What if life is built on the wrong foundation? Kheti and his family have farmed papyrus along the Nile for generations. He’s confident the gods of Egypt and the harmony maintained by the divine Pharaoh are the sources of his prosperity. Then he watches his beloved river turn to blood, his crops fail, and his nation descend into chaos. The Hebrew God wants his people released from slavery. When the gods remain silent and Pharaoh is powerless to stop the carnage, Kheti wrestles with which way to turn. Replant his flattened crops and cling to Egypt’s gods? Or forsake his roots to follow new friends and a new faith to a distant land? Could there be a place in God’s family for an Egyptian who kept God’s people as slaves? (Historical Biblical from Links in the Chain Press)

Historical Romance

A Summer at Thousand Island House by Susan G. Mathis — She came to work with the children, not fall in love. Part-nanny, part entertainer, Addison Bell has always had an enduring love for children. So what better way to use her creative energy than to spend the summer nannying at the renowned Thousand Island House on Staple’s Island? As Addi thrives in her work, she attracts the attention of the recreation pavilion’s manager, Liam Donovan, as well as the handsome Navy Officer Lt. Worthington, a lighthouse inspector, hotel patron, and single father of mischievous little Jimmy. But when Jimmy goes missing, Addi finds both her job and her reputation in danger. How can she calm the churning waters of Liam, Lt. Worthington, and the President, clear her name, and avoid becoming the scorn of the Thousand Islands community? (Historical Romance from Wild Heart Books)

Hoping for Treasure by Bettie Boswell — A few months after Ginny and Scott’s marriage begins, tragedy strikes when a miscarriage dashes their hopes of starting a family. As Ginny seeks comfort through a manuscript about her great-grandparent’s unlikely post-WW 2 romance, she discovers secrets about her family and the Woodson House’s hidden room. Ginny found the manuscript about her great-grandmother’s romance hidden in a secret compartment in an old wooden desk, along with poems about Missy’s life after the Civil War. When researching her musical, Ginny wondered if Samuel and Missy’s romance led to marriage, but how did her grandmother come into possession of the poetry? As she and Scott read through the story, they find some comfort until Ginny’s teaching position is threatened, if a tax levy doesn’t pass. Scott helps campaign, but finds his own tenure threatened by the distraction. Can Scott and Ginny survive the trials that face them in their young marriage? (Historical Romance from Mt. Zion Ridge Press)

Over the Horizon by Penny Zeller — A most unusual proposal…Alone in 1870s Idaho Territory, Paisley Abbott has nowhere to turn. With no other options, she finds herself consenting to an unconventional, but mutually beneficial agreement. During an unplanned return to his family’s farm, prodigal Tyler Shepherdson inherits three orphans. When Tyler finds a woman hiding in the back of his wagon, an idea begins to form and he makes a rash decision that results in perhaps one of the most spontaneous marriages of convenience ever. Despite an unorthodox beginning to their marriage, will Paisley and Tyler trust God as they forge ahead to create a home for three children? Will love arise from a desperate situation? (Historical Romance from Maplebrook Publishing)

Uncharted Grace by Keely Brooke Keith — An inherited orchard offers a fresh start in a new village for social butterfly Caroline Vestal. She believes Good Springs is where she will finally find a soulmate, but building a genuine relationship means being honest—even with the family secret that could ruin her new life before it begins. With his relaxed manner, professional expertise, and dapper appearance, physician Jedidiah Cotter makes a good first impression in his new village. Once the Good Springs elder council officially titles him, he can establish his career and be safe from the obligation to return to his crooked family’s business back home. But when the council unexpectedly stalls the process, Jedidiah must discover the cause and quickly find a cure. Though Caroline is smitten with the dashing new physician who lives across the road from the orchard house, his attraction to her drives him to ask questions she isn’t prepared to answer. If she trusts the wrong person with the shocking truth about her family’s past, she could lose the inheritance and the man she loves. (Historical Romance from Edenbrook Press)

Romance

Sweet Romance for Every Season by Felicia Ferguson, Hope Bolinger, Renee Leonard Kennedy, and Lori Z. Scott, — So many sweet romance stories always take place over Christmas. We love an adorable kiss in the flurries of gentle snow. But it’s time some other holidays get a little love too. Set during every month of the year, this collection of sweet romances will have you swooning from early January to summer solstice to New Year’s Eve. Proving that a happily ever after can take place at any time of the year. An anthology from End Game Press authors, we are very proud to bring you their excellent stories! (Romance from End Game Press)

Romance Mystery

Like Honey for the Bones by Brandy Heineman — Present Day. Solveig Borja fled Virginia to escape the guilt of one reckless night, and once she settles the family estate, she’s Norway-bound and never looking back. Meanwhile, Kyle Benton has come seeking asylum from past sins—which Solveig shatters even as their hopeless romance blooms. But when they discover a skeleton at Rice Caverns, its century-old mystery holds startling links to the here-and-now. 1919. The Great War is won. Gussie Rice longs for her beau’s return from France, until she learns he’s confined at a stateside hospital and her closest confidant is part of the secret. Her bid for love sparks a confrontation that ricochets through time…Bad blood and escalating threats swirl around Solveig, and Kyle’s new life proves no haven from the old with his brother’s killer trolling the shadows. As the past rears up, the cavern’s hidden places beckon with power to light their hope or to swallow them in utter darkness. (Romance Mystery, Independently Published)

Romance Novella

His to Adore by Z. Peabody — Elise Montgomery has always wanted to be a professional singer. Becoming one of the world’s greatest Gospel singers of all times, is more than a dream, it’s one of her life’s goals. Elise would sing for her supper in almost any venue she could, to pay her dues. Now comes her big break, to join a Gospel tour in New York. When Elise has a five-hour layover on her way to an awards show, Elise gets side-tracked by a tall, handsome cowboy. That night Elise makes one of the hardest decisions of her life when she walks away from her handsome cowboy. But that decision will come back full-circle four-years later. (Romance Novella from Z. Peabody Publishing)

His to Honor by Z. Peabody — Braun Hartgrove, is a retired Army Ranger and detective with the Cody, Wyoming police department and a happy bachelor. After ten-years of serving his country, Braun is happy to settle into his life in his childhood town, enjoy his bachelorhood, and enjoy some nights with his military family at his favorite place, The Caverns. While attending his future brother-in-law’s bachelor party, Braun gets an unexpected surprise, one that he will later figure out, too late is his greatest blessing. Now the bachelors’ life doesn’t seem so enjoyable. But Braun needs to wait to claim his blessing, and wait he will, because what is his, only God can take away. (Romance Novella from Z. Peabody Publishing)

Science Fiction/Time Travel:

A Gilded Age Getaway by Stephania McGee — Can one magical night of glamour in the past save their future? When Fiona Robinson imagined her life with Tyler, she dreamed of a grand adventure. Together. But after a decade of marriage, suburban seclusion, and stress from his job, she’s let the strain of being a stay-at-home mom of two toddlers squeeze all the fun out of their relationship. With pressure mounting at work and his homelife growing stale, Tyler’s fighting to recapture the joy in his marriage. But he can’t seem to do anything right, his job’s drained his energy, and his wife no longer resembles the fun-loving girl he married. Then Fiona’s mother presents them with an anniversary weekend getaway at a seaside B&B, and they hope it can rekindle their romance. But they never could have imagined their room would transport them to the Gilded Age in New York! Now, can one night at the famed Vanderbilt ball reignite their spark, or will they be stuck in a future neither of them expected? (Science Fiction/Time Travel, Independently Published)

Thriller/Suspense:

A Mountain Too Steep by Robin Patchen — A car accident that might not be an accident at all. A murderer bent on revenge. And a woman desperate to keep her family together. She’s already lost her soul mate. She’ll do anything to protect her children. For the sake of her kids, Camilla Wright managed to survive after her husband’s murder. When she’s awakened in the night with the news that her teenage son and nephew have been in a horrific car accident, she rushes to the hospital in a haze of shock and panic. The boys were supposed to be skiing in the mountains east of Salt Lake City. What were they doing so far west? More alarming, the wreck might not have been an accident at all. While Jeremy fights for his life, Camilla is running out of time to discover who lured her son and her nephew into the desert. With each new clue, the terrifying truth becomes clearer. Her husband’s killers are closing intenure threatened by the distraction. Can Scott and Ginny survive the trials that face them in their young marriage? (Thriller Suspense, Independently Published)

Thriller/Suspense/Crime

No Child of Mine by Kelly S. Irvin — When the remains of a young girl are found near the site of a foster child’s kidnapping, two colleagues risk their lives to bring one home and find justice for the other. The day a colleague’s eight-year-old foster child is kidnapped at a wedding reception, homicide detectives Deborah Smith and Alex Luna find the bones of a little girl not far from the abduction site. Both are determined to save the boy and solve a five-year-old murder, even as Deborah struggles to hang on to her newfound sobriety while Alex works to get a foothold in her life. The two detectives travel from the seamy underside of San Antonio’s drug-dealing gang territory to the back roads of rural America where secrets fester in simple country homes. Their investigation rips off the bandage that covers the cracks in an overburdened, understaffed foster care system and reveals the painful reality that children are all too often battered, terrified victims of the people who should love them Deborah and Alex must risk everything–even their lives–to bring a little boy home safely and unmask a child’s murderer. (Thriller/Suspense/Crime from Ally Press)

Romantic Suspense

Defending the Witness by Sharee Stover — To catch a killer…She must trust her protectors. After witnessing a murder at the hands of a notorious gang leader, Ayla DuPree is a marked woman sent straight to witness protection. But when her handler is killed and her safety compromised, she has no choice but to run—forcing US Marshal Chance Tavalla and his K-9 to chase her. Can Chance keep Ayla alive long enough to find safety and justice? (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired/Harlequin)

Frozen in Jeopardy by Melanie D. Snitker — A routine stop turns deadly. When Police Officer Gabe Harrison and his K-9 partner, Loki, investigate a stranded vehicle during the fury of a winter storm, they unexpectedly uncover evidence of a drug shipment. Suddenly, gunfire erupts from the tree line, and Loki is hit. Gabe is forced to shoot the attacker before taking him into custody. With Loki in need of urgent medical care, Gabe races to the veterinarian, praying he’ll get there in time. As the storm of the century howls through Destiny, Dr. Paige Wade decides to stay at her clinic to care for any animals that need help. Her quiet night takes a turn when her longtime friend brings in a prisoner along with his beloved dog suffering from a gunshot wound. Despite all the distractions, she’ll do everything in her power to save Loki’s life. With the storm raging outside and a violent gang intent on freeing the member Gabe has captured, Gabe and Paige must race against the clock to protect the clinic–and each other–until help arrives. (Romantic Suspense, Independently Published)

Unseen Danger by Jerusha Agen — This woman and her K-9 protect others. Now who will protect them? After a brutal attack, it took Nevaeh Williams six years to rebuild her life. Now a security specialist at the Phoenix K-9 Security and Detection Agency, she faces danger nearly every day. But when an old friend is targeted, her fragile stability begins to crumble. Celebrity bodyguard Branson Aaberg could lose more than his career if he fails to end the mysterious threat against his client. Soon he’s more concerned with rescuing the tough but vulnerable woman who joins his security team. Nevaeh is there to protect her friend, but what if she needs protection? What if the feeling she’s being watched isn’t the result of her traumatized imagination? If the danger is real, Nevaeh’s only hope for survival may be the God powerful enough to defeat her worst enemy—the one she doesn’t see before it’s too late. (Romantic Suspense, Independently Published)

Plus check out these recent additions to Fiction Finder published within the past month:

Dedicated to the One I Love by Beth K. Vogt — She doesn’t believe in love anymore. He doesn’t either. (Contemporary Romance)

Gypsy for God by Yvonne M. Morgan — Kathleen is a middle-aged woman who loses her job, which leaves her doubting herself and fearing the future. (General Contemporary)

Love’s True Calling by Lori DeJong — Harper Townsend, has finally found her true calling … and her true love. (Contemporary Romance)

New Embrace by Cindy E Huff — Can these two broken people heal into one whole love? (Contemporary Romance)
The Coyote and a One-Armed Man by B.D. Lawrence — Failure means his death and her enslavement. (Thriller/Suspense/Crime)
Three confess by Luana Ehrlich — When Silas McKay crosses paths with a killer, a man who’ll stop at nothing to achieve his objective, he has only one thing on his mind—stop the killer before he destroys his family. (Romantic Suspense)