The Blue Cloak by Shannon McNear

The Blue Cloak by Shannon McNear
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I am enjoying the True Colors Series, reading about history in a fictionalized story is so interesting and historical fiction has always been my favorite genre. The twist here is the story is based on an actual crime or criminals, so it gives it a fascinating twist.

The Blue Cloak starts out ominous with the wedding of Sally to one of the Harpe brothers. Rachel, Sally's friend has a weird feeling as she shares her fear from just one look from the other Harpe, giving us the idea this isn't going to end well. This story is based on a gruesome murdering spree performed by these brothers (or cousins) that begins in the frontier of Tennessee in 1797.

The details about the time period and the setting were so well done I could picture the places and the scenery as well as getting a feel for the way of life at the time.

Rachel helps tend her parents store and meets Ben Langford, whose cousin was just a murdered along the trail and it's suspected at the hands of the Harpes. Ben was coming to join his cousin and then is thrown in to seeking justice.

The refreshing bits of tenderness and beginning romance of Ben and Rachel always comes at time you need that in the book.

I loved the story despite the gruesome details and it's shocking that this actually happened. I appreciate the details of the story despite not really wanting to know them, but to keep true to the facts it had to be told, just enough detail to feel the heinousness and fear and to feel what it was like to live at that time.

What kept Rachel going was her prayer, realizing that God hears us in all things, she prays for her friend Sally thrown into this awful life with no way of escape, and for the safety of Ben.

Definitely a good read, kept me on my toes wanting to know how and when the violence would come to an end.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.

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The Inn at Hidden Run by Olivia Newport

The Inn at Hidden Run by Olivia Newport
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Inn at Hidden Run is the first book in a new series by Olivia Newport. I really enjoyed this book as it's told in split time. Two storylines, a present-day & a long ago event are tied together in this book. In the present day storyline we have Jillian Parisi-Duffy, a genealogist and her father Nolan, a lawyer who live in Canyon Miles, CO who meet Meri, a girl clearly running from something. As Meri takes a job at the local B&B, they try to help her. They find that Meri is running from her own family, a line of Doctors, and this is what is expected of Meri. She says this is not her dream.
As they delve into Meri's past and her genealogy we are taken back to 1878, Memphis TN, the year of a Yellow Fever epidemic. We meet Eliza. I loved this storyline and the facts and information, as my favorite genre is historical fiction!
The two stories eventually intertwine and how they are tied together is fabulous! I can't wait for the next book!
I received an ARC edition of this book but was under no obligation to review.

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One Summer in Paris by Sarah Morgan

One Summer in Paris by Sarah Morgan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh my this book was incredible! I really felt every emotion, I found myself crying for Audry and Grace, just as I laughed out loud at other times. I felt disgust and hate toward David, but then I found myself rooting for him. Such a crazy emotional journey! But I honestly cried at the train scene. What I liked about this ending was everyone found out something about themselves, that took away the idea that someone was to blame and learned to love each other and themselves. It ended on such a high and happy place, full of possibilities!
The entire story was so easy and comfortable to read, I was compelled to pick it up all the time, because I just needed to know what would happen next.
Follow the story of Grace, her entire life is turned upside down, and on her 25th wedding anniversary. What could be lower. Life in a small town doesn't give you much privacy and time to heal, everyone knows, everyone judges. Grace decides to take the summer trip to Paris that she purchased for her and David for their anniversary.
Audrey lives a lonely life, a roller coaster of emotions, always on the edge and ready to assist her alcoholic mother. She's been taking care of her mother her entire life. She's about to graduate and has been saving all her tips and money earned for a summer in Paris. She has to get away, but will she be able to leave her mother?
Grace and Audrey meet on the first day of their trips. The friendship that develops is so much fun, it's endearing, it's heartwarming, and it's funny. I loved their relationship and how it developed.
How did Audrey think she was going to work in a bookstore in Paris without any language skills! She is tough and gritty and I loved that about her, but I also liked seeing her allow herself to trust and to let her guard down.
This book was just fantastic! I received a copy from the publisher but was under no obligation to write a review.

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Becoming Us by Robin Jones Gunn

Becoming Us by Robin Jones Gunn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed Becoming Us, there is something in this story for everyone. We have all, as adults, faced fears and lost confidence in ourselves, just like the couple in this book. It was refreshing to see real life problems and how God can work them out, lean on him like Emily and Trevor, and let him work out the details.
Emily and Trevor have moved across the country, with their daughter Audra, to get a fresh start. When things aren't working out financially they begin to doubt that the move was the right thing to do. All the reasons they made the move are becoming less clear as they aren't sure they can make it. Beyond the financial challenges, they are facing all the things everyone faces, lack of close friends, family is far away, and they are learning to lean on each other and on God.
Making a new life, having the confidence to make new friends, and feeling like they belong, these are things we all face in our daily life. I loved watching their journey to Becoming Us, and how being away from family expectations gave them the freedom to define what Becoming Us actually will be.
I face some of their difficulties and I enjoyed how they worked together and relied on God. This is full of scripture-based lessons. I loved watching Emily become Emily, away from the predefined Emily she felt like she needed to be. Really an enjoyable story that leaves you with plenty to consider!
I received an uncorrected proof copy to read from the publisher but was under no obligation to provide a review.

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California Girls by Susan Mallery

California Girls by Susan Mallery
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

California Girls by Susan Mallery was such a fun book! I loved the sisters, each one was so different that it made the story real. I loved meeting them and getting to know them. You find yourself pulling for them all in the end.
As the story opens we meet Finola, she is the host of a popular local show. She's filming her last segment before a well-deserved vacation with her husband. When he walks on the set the last things she expects to hear is him telling her he is having an affair.
Next we meet Zennie, an OR nurse who is content to be single, she doesn't need to be paired with a man. The man she's been on a date or two with picks up on this and tells her he sees she isn't that into him, so...
Lastly we meet Ali, she is engaged, waist high in wedding plans. When she arrives home one night she sees her fiancee's brother waiting for her. That's odd as they never seemed to hit it off. He said his brother decided he didn't want to marry her but didn't have the decency to tell her.
Three sisters, all 'dumped' at the same time.
How will they all get through this drama & heartbreak, and more forward. Enter other characters, including an unusual mom with a story of her own!
This book was fun to read, each sister has to figure out what is best for her and what she learns about herself, and how they re-connect with each other.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher but was under no obligation to post a review.

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Midnight at the Wandering Vineyard by Jamie Raintree

Midnight at the Wandering Vineyard by Jamie Raintree
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! We have Mallory headed home for a big planting party on her parents vineyard in California! She graduated from college and landed a job in NYC and hasn't been home much in the past decade. She's doing what she thinks she should be doing and what she thinks makes her parents proud of her. She also has an unresolved problem, an unsettled fight with her best friend, Kelly, now a decade-old, and she wants to make amends, be forgiven. She hasn't been able to move forward.
The two were inseparable growing up, from childhood and through high school, that last summer before college was going to be their best one. They created a bucket list to work through. But Mallory's father has hired a marketing guru, Sam, and Mallory was slated to be his assistance. This changed everything for Mallory and Kelly.
Now that Mallory is back, she has a week to make things right between Kelly and her. She doesn't know that her father has asked Sam to attend the big party. Will Kelly and Mallory make any headway to erase the hurt, or will Sam drive a wedge between them again?
The story is written so beautifully, Mallory discovers things she has forgotten about herself, what makes her happy, how can she go back to New York? She is a free-spirit and feels the most alive on the back of a horse. What else has she forgotten about herself?
Such a great read, it reminds us to never stop remembering who we are, what we love! I received a complimentary copy from the publisher but was under no obligation to post a review.

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The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer

The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer was, to me, an incredible story. An amazing slice of history woven into the story of a modern-day family. This book is told with alternating timelines, it begins with a wedding in a camp in 1942. We don't know who is getting married, we don't know her story. We then meet modern day mom, Alice, her special-needs son is having a meltdown in the grocery store, she needs to get to the hospital to visit her grandmother.
Alina Dziak lives on her family farm in Poland. She is in love with Tomasz and they are planning to be married once she is old enough and once he returns from University. Hearing rumors about the Nazi soldiers getting closer to her village doesn't necessarily concern her, but who could imagine what was to come. We all know the stories now, how it happened, what atrocities occurred but back in the 1940's who could have imagined such things could occur. The world wasn't equipped like it is now with 24/7 news coverage.
I loved the different perspective of the holocaust, told from a non-Jew, from a young Polish woman, what she saw, how she survived, and forced to see the destruction of her country. It is unfathomable to this day.
What made this book so good was the weaving of the two women's stories, how she intertwined their stories, and how it was triumphant in the end.
I couldn't put this one down, I needed to know how it ended. Did she get out, did her and Tomasz reunite and get their happily ever after.
How did their story affect the next generations, and how did Alina's story finally get out and reach her family.
Alice is asked one last favor by her grandmother, Hana. She must go to Poland, send her back pictures, and resolve what is haunting her. How can Alice leave her family and begin this quest when she doesn't even know what she is to find, what are Hana's questions? Hana can't speak after a stroke, so her request is limited to a few words, words that don't make sense.
This book moved me, it speaks of horrors one still can't begin to imagine, the way it's written you feel it and see it. It also speaks of the modern-family, how we can get lost in the day-to-day, and not see the bigger picture of the world and ourselves.
I was sent a complimentary copy by the publisher but was under no obligation to post a review.


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