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Monday, August 26, 2024

My Thoughts - The Enchanting of Miss Elliot (Aprons and Veils: Book Three) Author: Grace Hitchcock


About the Book

Book: The Enchanting of Miss Elliot (Aprons and Veils: Book Three)

Author: Grace Hitchcock

Genre: Historical Romance

Release date: July 29, 2024

She thought he was her forever—he had other plans.

Of all the dares Lorna Elliot had accepted, becoming a Harvey Girl waitress was by far the dumbest—and she’d pulled some pretty foolhardy antics. Her back was sore. Her feet were swollen. And she had done it to herself in a fit of pique over a Texas Ranger who was mooning over another woman. Lorna had longed for distraction at the time, but after weeks of training, she might keel over and die in the middle of the dining room floor with a plate of apple pie in one hand and a pot of coffee in the other. But, she’s an Elliot. And Elliot’s never quit. The only thing she’d ever quit was attempting to win Ranger Reid and now that he’s the new sheriff in her hometown, it’s going to be impossible for her to move on unless she takes control of her heart—for better, or for worse.

Sheriff Reid had never wanted to settle down until he had fallen hard for a runaway mail-order bride turned Harvey Girl who chose another. When news of an outlaw’s escape lands on his desk, he eagerly rides out in pursuit all the way to Topeka and overhears the outlaw’s plans that revolve around the wealthy Elliot family and their daughter, Lorna. It’s up to Reid to see his childhood friend safe . . . despite Lorna insisting that she can protect herself without him.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Grace Hitchcock is the award-winning author of multiple his­torical novels and novellas, including the American Royalty, True Colors, and Aprons & Veils series. She holds a Master’s in Creative Writing and a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in History. Grace lives on the Northshore of New Orleans, with her husband, Dakota, sons, and daughter in a cottage that is always filled with the sounds of sweet little footsteps running at full speed. When not writing, or chasing babies, she’s baking something delightful and can usually be found with a book clutched in her fist.

 

 

 

More from Grace

Q & A with Grace Hitchcock

Q: What is your favorite trope to read? Which of your books have that trope?

To name a few, I love stories about marriage of convenience, fake dating, mail-order brides, runaway brides, and enemies to lovers. In my books, I do have some of those tropes, but I adjust them to fit my story

My Harvey Girl books by tropes:

Runaway BrideThe Finding of Miss Fairfield

Mail-Order BrideThe Pursuit of Miss Parish

Friends to Lovers/Fake Dating: The Enchanting of Miss Elliot

I’d love to write an enemies-to-lovers trope in the future!

Q: Have you ever been asked to spice up, or down, a kissing scene? How did you do it?

For my May release, To Catch a Coronet, the editor challenged me to make the kissing scene longer and more romantic. Haha it took me my entire writing session that day to make the short scene two paragraphs longer in order to make the kissing more swoon-worthy, while still staying true to the level of affection I have in my books. With that critique in mind, I attempted to add a bit more “swoon” in The Enchanting of Miss Elliot as well.

Q: What historical novel has most impacted you? How?

Grace: I feel like every season, there is a novel that touches me. The one that stuck the longest has to be Tracie Peterson’s Westward Chronicles (a Harvey Girl series). They are moving, unique tales that inspired me to write my own Harvey Girls series! I re-read the Westward Chronicles every few years.

Q: How does your faith integrate into your writing in practical ways? 

Grace: No matter how subtle my theme or short the verses, my stories will always point the reader to the Lord. Usually, whatever I am personally learning spiritually while writing impacts my heroine/hero in some way.

For The Enchanting of Miss Elliot, the heroine, a firm believer, is despairing that God will not give her the desires of her heart and sets out to find a new future and a re-directing of her heart. It’s a very realistic struggle, and the reader can see through the story the beauty of trusting God in our daily walk and with our biggest dreams.

Q: What’s your life like outside of writing?

Grace: Besides reading at least one to two books a week, I love to take long walks to the park with my family, exercise on my bike, plan the family’s next travel adventure, and try new baking challenges. As a wife and mama of three, I usually have some happy recipients for the new recipe.

Q: Will there be more Harvey Girl books from you?

Grace: Yes! I am currently working on Book Four in the Aprons & Veils series, The Vanishing of Miss Victoria. It will release mid-2025.

About The Vanishing of Miss Victoria:

Love got her into this mess—never loving again would get her out.

Corinna Victoria Roberts had never been lucky—not in her choice of husband, or her lot in life after the man she’d eloped with had promptly abandoned her, taking her gold and jewels with him. When her husband’s thieving, lawless relatives show up at her door announcing his death and demanding that her late father’s restaurant empire be signed over to them, her life is in danger. She flees to take a position no one expects of her—as a Harvey Girl waitress in New Mexico.

Tanner Sterling has hunted his last bounty. As the new foreman on his friend’s ranch, he wasn’t expecting to rescue a Harvey Girl from a raging river his first day. He is intrigued by the shy beauty and becomes friends with Corinna over many meals at the Harvey House. But, when a picture of her on a wanted poster with a massive bounty arrives in Tanner’s mail, everything he knows about Corinna shifts. If he doesn’t claim the bounty on her head, he knows far less honorable men who would love to ride off with the stunning Harvey Girl. Despite wanting to hang up his past along with his gun belt, Tanner will do anything to protect Corinna from the coming storm.

My Thoughts 

The Enchanting of Miss Elliot  is book three int he Aprons and Veils series that is written by  Grace Hitchcock. I have read the whole series, but they can be read as stand alone. This one might be the best one yet. Lorna Elliot accepted a dare and found herself as a Harvey Girl waitress. She was trying to put some distance between her and and old flame, but she is not sure she made the right decision. 

Lorna is a phenomenal roper and a great shot. She can outrage and shoot most men on her dad's ranch. Her personality just oozed off the pages, and had me smiling throughout the whole story. She has had a crush on childhood friend, Sheriff Reed. However, he has always seen her as a friend. 

Sherriff Reed is on the trail of an outlaw, when he overhears talk of the Elliot Family, and most importantly, Lorna. He knows that he has to keep her safe. Seeing the two interact now as adults was heartwarming. 

The book moves at a comfortable pace, the author will have you laughing and smiling. I absolutely love the Harvey Girls and how the author writes her scenes. I literally felt like I was standing there watching Lorna stumble around. 

Thank you to the author, publisher and Celebrate Lit for allowing me to read a copy of this book - all thoughts are my own. 


Blog Stops

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, August 16

Pens Pages & Pulses, August 16

Melissa’s Bookshelf, August 17

Karen Baney Reviews, August 17

Bizwings Book Blog, August 18

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 18

Texas Book-aholic, August 19

Devoted To Hope, August 19

lakesidelivingsite, August 20

Hannahbandanarama, August 20

Locks, Hooks and Books, August 21

Happily Managing a Household of Boys , August 21

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, August 22

Books You Can Feel Good About, August 22

Betti Mace, August 23

Book Looks by Lisa, August 23

Simple Harvest Reads, August 24 (Guest Review from Donna Cline)

For Him and My Family, August 24

Jeanette’s Thoughts, August 25

Mary Hake, August 25

Connie’s History Classroom, August 26

Labor Not in Vain, August 27

Cover Lover Book Review, August 28

Holly’s Book Corner, August 28

Pause for Tales, August 29

Lights in a Dark World, August 29

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Grace is giving to two winners an autographed copy of The Pursuit of Miss Parish each!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2ddaa/the-enchanting-of-miss-elliot-celebration-tour-giveaway


Wednesday, August 21, 2024

My Thoughts - Joann: Apron Strings Book Five Author: Donna Jo Stone


About the Book

Book: Joann: Apron Strings Book Five

Author: Donna Jo Stone

Genre: Inspirational Historical (1960s) Romance

Release date: May 15, 2024

One cookbook connects them all…
Joann ~ Book Five in a string of heartfelt inspirational stories, featuring different women throughout the decades from 1920 to 2020.

Twenty-four-year-old Joann Kincaid’s life ambition is to one day run the family’s general store in Pecan Grove, Louisiana. It’s 1965 and the times may be a-changing, but Joann’s father is stubbornly hanging on to old-fashioned views about what he wants for his daughter. She’s just as determined to prove she’s a capable businesswoman.

In the past, she entertained romantic dreams alongside her vision for the store but discarded those notions when her high school sweetheart, Nathan, left for college. Now he’s back to reestablish his family’s farm—and a relationship with Joann. She still loves him but isn’t sure she can trust him.

As the conflict in Vietnam escalates, there’s a real possibility Nathan could be drafted. Should Joann pursue her lifelong dream to continue her family’s legacy? Or give Nathan a chance to prove he’ll be her true and committed love before it’s too late for them?

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Donna Jo Stone writes southern-flavored novels for the inspirational and general market. Her stories are often about people facing tough times. Not all of her books have romance but when they do, the romances are sweet. No graphic language, sex, or violence, just plenty of heart-tugging emotion with endings that leave readers with a sense of hope.

 

 

 

 

More from Donna

Joann: Apron Strings Book 5 is part of the Apron Strings series, a multi-author project. When Jenny Knipfer, the organizer behind the project, approached me about joining the lineup of authors, I was immediately intrigued. An old cookbook passed down each decade to a new character? Small towns? Romance? Sign me up!

The books in this inspirational series are connected by one single cookbook, Mrs. Canfield’s Cookery Book, as it passes from character to character. The cookbook contains more than recipes. Through time, women have penned encouraging words, quotes, and scriptures in the margins. There are eleven books in the Apron Strings series—one for every decade from 1920 to 2020. My novel, Joann, takes place in the 1960s.

One of Joann’s specialties is a popular 60s favorite, Jello with Dream Whip. No recipe needed there. Joann uses recipes from Mrs. Canfield’s Cookery Book, but she would’ve relied on a cake mix every now and then, such as in the recipe at this link, Joann’s Easy Blueberry Pound Cake.https://donnajostone.wordpress.com/2024/04/24/from-the-apron-strings-kitchen-joanns-easy-blueberry-pound-cake/

Another name for this should be Disappearing Blueberry Pound Cake, because that’s what happens when I make it! This cake has become a family favorite. As far as how Joann’s cooking attempts using Mrs. Canfield’s Cookery Book come out, you’ll have to read the novel to see. In the back of my novel there’s another recipe, one that would’ve appeared in Mrs. Canfield’s Cookery Book. All of the Apron Strings books have a recipe or two (or more) in the back.

Parts of Joann’s story are fun and lighthearted, but she also faces serious issues during uncertain times. I hope readers enjoy reading Joann, but also hope they come away from her story with a deeper understanding of the comfort that comes from trusting God with the future.


My Thoughts

Joann is book five in the Apron Strings series. This story is written by Donna Jo Stone. I have not read the other books in the series, they can all be read as stand alone and are all tied together by the cookbook theme. In this story, the author transports us to small town, Louisiana in 1965. Joann is content with being single. She has dates sometimes with her childhood friend, Nathan. She works in her families store and has dreams of taking it over with her sister. 

Then big world problems start to trickle into Joann's content life. Vietnam is looming. She also suddenly realizes that her sister does not have the same plans as she does, to take over the store. Nathan also seems to want more than just a casual date here and there. She finds herself upset and panicked. 

The author wrote realistic characters. Characters that are flawed and that have tough choices to make. She captured the time period beautifully. I loved getting to see a glimpse into their small town life. 

Thank you to the author, publisher and Celebrate Lit for allowing me to read a copy of this book - all thoughts are my own. 

Blog Stops

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 14

Stories By Gina, August 15 (Author Interview)

Mornings at Character Cafe, August 15

Texas Book-aholic, August 16

Simple Harvest Reads, August 17 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, August 18

For the Love of Literature, August 19 (Author Interview)

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, August 20

Tell Tale Book Reviews, August 21 (Author Interview)

Connie’s History Classroom, August 22

Blossoms and Blessings, August 23 (Author Interview)

She Lives To Read, August 24

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, August 25 (Author Interview)

Pause for Tales, August 25

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, August 26

Guild Master, August 27 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Donna is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 Amazon gift card and a copy of the book!!

(Paperback for a US winner only. eBook if winner is international)

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2dda6/joann-celebration-tour-giveaway

Tuesday, August 20, 2024

My Thoughts - Covering Grace (The CaƱon City Chronicles Book Six) Author: Davalynn Spencer

 


About the Book

Book: Covering Grace (The CaƱon City Chronicles Book Six)

Author: Davalynn Spencer

Genre: Historical/Western Romance

Release date: July 11, 2024

Grace Hutton defied the shadow of her ranching brothers, Cale and Hugh. Always the tagalong little sister who tried to best them at everything, she signed on with the Buffalo Bill Cody Wild West Show to prove herself. After three years of trick-riding and roping, she returns home to CaƱon City, Colorado, with a world of experience, Harley the Wonder Horse, and a broken heart. It’s 1912, and the first thing she needs is work and a place to live. The last thing she needs is romance.

Dan Waite is caring for his invalid father and trying to keep their hat business in the black. Showing up in the wake of an assault at the boarding house, he helps Grace Hutton rescue the elderly owner. But he doesn’t have time for the two women, especially when Grace asks him to spend a day with the widow. Grace turns out to be more than he bargained for, and when her trick-riding ways put her in danger, he risks more than his time intervening. He risks his heart.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Author of the beloved, award-winning series, The CaƱon City Chronicles, internationally acclaimed novelist and Will Rogers Gold Medallion winner, Davalynn Spencer writes historical Western romance set along the Front Range of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains. She is a Publisher’s Weekly and ECPA bestselling author, an award-winning rodeo journalist and former crime-beat reporter. As a member of the Colorado Humanities CBA Speakers Bureau, she also teaches writing workshops, plays on her church worship team, and loves bacon and chocolate. But not together.

 

 

 

More from Davalynn

Harley the Wonder Horse

 

He was a beautiful, chocolate-colored gelding with an easy gait, and my friend called him  Harley.

“Harley the Wonder Horse,” she said, bona fide Rocky Mountain breed. “Everybody loves him.”

I sure did after a day of riding up around Brush Hollow in the hills not far from my home.

It’s a very short trip via horseback to the fictional world of my characters in the CaƱon City Chronicles. I knew Harley had to be in the next and final book in the series, Covering Grace.

Grace Hutton had been hanging around in my head for three years—ever since I wrote about the younger of her twin brothers, Cale (Book 4, A Change of Scenery). He talked about his sister who could out-ride any of the cast in the Selig-Polyscope flickers being filmed in and around CaƱon City.

When the older (by a minute) twin, Hugh, got his own story (Book 5, Hope is Built), he also mentioned their little sister, Grace. How could they not, with her never-say-die approach to life, and stick-like-flypaper perseverance. When they were all growing up, she was never far behind the boys, showing she was just as good as they were.

Trouble was, she was better, and her skills earned her a place in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. That’s where she met Harley, and when she came home, he came with her.

And there you have it, the story-behind-the-story of Harley the Wonder Horse. Now understand that real-life Harley is not a trick-riding horse, but I have a long-time friend, Linda Scholtz, who is a real-life trick rider. I’ve watched her do some mighty fine stunts, so fine that she instructs would-be trick riders how to be real trick riders.

A few other things from my life play into this book, like the setting. Is there anywhere more beautiful than the Rocky Mountains as a storm blows in quicker than your breath? Or the aspens that shiver in the slightest breeze and pour gold down the gullies and ravines in autumn? And what of sitting before a crackling fire in the woodstove or fireplace as fall runs in ahead of winter?

Join me for a ride in the final book of The CaƱon City Chronicles, Covering Grace. It may just be more than you expected.


My Thoughts

Covering Grace is book six in  The CaƱon City Chronicles Book Series that is written by Davalynn Spencer. This book grabbed my attention as soon as I started reading, and did not let go throughout the whole story. Set in the Wild West era, I love the attention to detail that the author put in. 

Grace Hutton  signed on with the Buffalo Bill Cody Wild West Show to prove herself. She always tried to be the best when it came to her siblings. She performs for  three years. She performs with a variety  of trick-riding and roping, she returns home to CaƱon City, Colorado, with a world of experience, Harley the Wonder Horse, and a broken heart. I really loved her character. She has made some mistakes, and has felt pain and defies some of the social standards in 1912. 

Dan Waite is caring for his invalid father and trying to keep their hat business going. He is hoping to help his father through the healing waters. He and Grace cross paths after an assault at the boarding house. This causes Grace to want to care for the elderly boarding house owner. 

I really liked the way the friendship was built. The author wrote the story with a perfect build and did not rush interactions. I really enjoyed this book, and all the details that the author put into it. 

Thank you to the author, publisher and Celebrate Lit for allowing me to read a copy of this book - all thoughts are my own. 

Blog Stops

Stories By Gina, August 8 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 8

Holly’s Book Corner, August 9

Texas Book-aholic, August 10

Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, August 11 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, August 12

Back Porch Reads, August 13 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, August 14

Pause for Tales, August 15

For the Love of Literature, August 16 (Author Interview)

Devoted To Hope, August 16

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, August 17

Artistic Nobody, August 18 (Author Interview)

For Him and My Family, August 19

Connie’s History Classroom , August 20

Cover Lover Book Review, August 21

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Davalynn is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 Amazon gift card and a signed copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2d2ff/covering-grace-celebration-tour-giveaway


Monday, August 12, 2024

My Thoughts - THE WITCH OF THE BRETON WOODS Written By: Jennifer Ivy Walker

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THE WITCH OF THE BRETON WOODS

Jennifer Ivy Walker



About the Book

Traumatized by horrors witnessed during the Nazi invasion of France, a young woman retreats to the dense Breton woods where she becomes a member of the clandestine French Resistance. When she finds a critically injured American paratrooper whose plane was shot down, she shelters the wounded soldier in her secluded cottage, determined to heal him despite the enormous risk. Ostracized by villagers who have labeled her a witch, she is betrayed by an informant who reports to the Butcher-the monstrous leader of the local paramilitary organization that collaborates with the Germans. As the enemy closes in, she must elude the Gestapo while helping the Resistance reunite the American with his regiment and join the Allied Forces in the Battle of Brittany. Can true love triumph against all odds under the oppressive Third Reich?


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About the Author

Jennifer Ivy Walker

Enthralled with legends of medieval knights and ladies, dark fairy tales and fantasies about Druids, wizards and magic, Jennifer Ivy Walker always dreamed of becoming a writer. She fell in love with French in junior high school, continuing her study of the language throughout college, eventually becoming a high school teacher and college professor of French.


As a high school teacher, she took her students every year to the annual French competition, where they performed a play she had written, "Yseult la Belle et Tristan la BĆŖte"--an imaginative blend of the medieval French legend of "Tristan et Yseult" and the fairy tale "Beauty and the Beast", enhanced with fantasy elements of a Celtic fairy and a wicked witch.


Her debut novel, "The Wild Rose and the Sea Raven"--the first of a trilogy-- is a blend of her love for medieval legends, the romantic French language, and paranormal fantasy. It is a retelling of the medieval French romance of "Tristan et Yseult", interwoven with Arthurian myth, dark fairy tales from the enchanted Forest of BrocƩliande, and otherworldly elements such as Avalonian Elves, Druids, forest fairies and magic.


Explore her realm of Medieval French Fantasy. She hopes her novels will enchant you.


Website: https://jenniferivywalker.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JenniferIvyWalker

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenniferivywalkerauthor/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jenniferivywalker

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/bohemienneivy/amour-in-avignon/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/bohemienneivy


Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Witch-Breton-Woods-Jennifer-Walker/dp/B0D3MDHMJ2/ref=sr_1_1





Excerpt:


Low, agonized moaning interrupted Yvette’s nightmarish reverie.


That’s a man’s voice. And it’s coming from over there. 


She followed the deep groans through a copse of trees to find an American soldier impossibly tangled in a nylon parachute. Suspended from a high branch of a massive oak tree, he was dangling upside down, hanging by an obviously broken leg. A sharp bone protruded from the torn, blood-soaked pants of his khaki uniform, and dried blood—which must have leaked from under his helmet-- covered half of his contorted face. His pitiful wails pierced her heart.


I can’t lower him to the ground by myself. He’s twice my weight. And if I cut the ropes, he’ll plummet headfirst. He already has a head injury, judging from the gore all over his forehead. Please, God, let him hang on until I get back.


“I’ll go get help. I promise to come back soon.” She called up to him, hopeful that he could hear her. 


And that he understood French.



MY THOUGHTS


The Witch of the Breton Woods is the first book that I have read by Jennifer Ivy Walker. I loved how the author transported us back in time and we see how far one would go to help another. As a military historian I always love reading historical stories where the author has gone to great lengths to have the story as realistic as possible.

Yvette lives in France and deep in the woods. She tries to keep a low profile, but is part of a resistance group that is helping to push back the Germans. She is a healer and spends a lot of time learning what different herbs and plants do. She has seen great horror in her lifetime, especially when her village was overtaken. She has to move silently along and trades with other neighbors so that they can survive, for the rations that they have been given are not enough. One day, she finds an American Soldier injured and hanging from a tree. She needs to get to him before The German spies do. She enlists the help of the other resistance fighters and they are able to get him safely to her cottage.

Beau is also a strong character. I loved the way their dialogue grew - despite the language barriers. Seeing the romance start to blossom even though if he is found, both will be executed. Yvette is determined to nurse him back to health, but what happens then?

Another thing that I appreciated is the realistic view of wartime France. The other writes great descriptions where you can code your eyes and imagine the scenes unfolding around you.

The story is well written, this is an enjoyable read. I hope to read more from this author. Thank you to the author, publisher and Goddess Fish Promotions for allowing me to read a copy of this book - all thoughts are my own.

Tour Giveaway

Jennifer Ivy Walker will award a randomly drawn winner a $25 Amazon/BN gift card.