Taken By Dee Henderson

Hey, Just finished reading Taken by Dee Henderson , The story is about Private Investigator Matthew Dane whose daughter was abducted at age 8 and was found 8 years later, He helped his daughter recover from the experience and to get back to living a normal life. That is why Shannon Bliss sought him out just days after her freedom. Shannon was abducted at the age of 16 and had just escaped after spending 11 years with her captors. All Shannon desperately wants is to try and get back to living a normal life, Matthew quickly discovers that just because she escaped her captors does not mean that she is free yet, As Shannon slowly reveals the events that occurred in the past 11 years,  Matthew finds himself determined to make sure that she gets the life that she dreams of and that her captors are brought to justice.  Though a kind of sad and heartfelt story You see how her faith in God helped keep her determined to survive and how with the help of friends she can recover from her tragedy and be able to have the normal life that she is hoping for.

 I thought that the overall storyline was good but it seemed like it went on forever, I thought that Shannon was a very likeable character and her strength was to be admired but I found that she barely seemed traumatized by the events of the past eleven years. She seemed worn out, dazed and she slept a lot, Sort of depressed, but she did not show any weakness, any sign of a breakdown. She never really said exactly what happened, just that some people died and it was because of Flynn ( a member by marriage to the family that abducted her ) that she was still alive and that she was able to escape. You also see the story from only Matthew's point of view, I would have loved to have seen the story from Shannon's point of view, Maybe some flashbacks or pages of her diary/journal so that we would have a better understanding of her story. Overall it was a good story , but I really missed a big, dramatic ending, Something exciting.  I rate it 3 stars.

Check out other books written by Dee Henderson, Just click on the link below to find out more.

Books by Dee Henderson

  I would like to thank Net Galley and Bethany House for allowing me to read and review this book in return for a free copy and I was not asked to write a favorable review, Just a honest one.

After A Fashion by Jen Turano

Hey, Sorry I have not written in awhile but I've just been so incredibly busy... Anyway Happy Mother's Day to any Moms out there and especially My Mom who is AWESOME!!!  I just finished reading Jen Turano's newest book After a Fashion and I LOVED it! It is the story of Harriet Peabody, A independent working lady and a orphan that works as a "Hat Lady". On her 23rd Birthday she asks God the same request that she asks Him every year, That He would give her something wonderful for her birthday.When she gets to work she is told that she has to a run an errand for her employer.Things take a turn for the worst when her customer freaks out about something that was in no way Harriet's fault and gets her fired. Mr Oliver Addleshaw one of the richest men in New York was present at the time of the incident  that was mentioned earlier between Harriet and her customer. Oliver feels responsible for Harriet losing her job, so he offers her a position as his paid companion. Her only jobs, To buy new dresses, Look pretty and to charm the Duke so that Oliver can get a business deal with him. After much persuasion Harriet accepts Oliver's job offer and goes about pretending to be his "girlfriend". Things get all messed up when Oliver tells someone that Harriet is his fiance, Then Harriet's Aunt Jane who is a thief  comes to town and tries to blackmail Harriet. Harriet is having trouble with all of the balls and fine dinners she has to attend, Not to mention wearing the clothes that people in high society wear,  she knows that she will never fit into Oliver's world, If only her heart would listen to her head! Now Oliver starts to feel something for Harriet as well, but refuses to say anything to her about it. could their arranged business proposal turn out to be the "Something wonderful" that Harriet prayed for or is it just a recipe for disaster? You will have to read it to find out! Just want to say that I Love all of Jen Turano's books and would recommend them to everyone!



Check out other books by Jen Turano, Just click on the link below!


http://jenturano.com/category/books/

Butterfly Palace by Colleen Coble

So I just read Butterfly Palace by Colleen Coble and was pleasantly surprised by the story. I read the back of the book when I purchased it and the storyline seemed OK, Not really anything to write home about, But when I actually read the book I just could not put it down!
The story is about Lily Donaldson, Whose Father dies in a fire along with her fiance's Father. Andy ( her fiance) Leaves her for reasons that are not apparent until later in the story (I don't want to ruin the story by giving spoilers) Four years later her Mother dies, She than finds herself employed as a maid at The Butterfly Palace. While serving at a dinner party she sees Andy. She's puzzled as to why he is a distinguished guest when he used to be one of her Fathers helpers and why he has changed his name to Drew. When she prevents the murder of a young servant, it appears that she becomes the Murderer's next target. The Plot thicken when someone steals Mr. Marshall's ( Her Employer) prized Butterfly, There is a murder that occurs in the Butterfly room and Lily uncovers an assassination attempt on Mr.Marshall with the help of an unlikely ally. Lily and Drew (aka Andy, remember I told you he changed his name) have to work together to find the murderer before Lily becomes the next victim and Mr Marshall is assasinated. The story is filled with twists and turns that make it hard to determine the ending and will have you second guessing who the murderer is,  I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did! Well on to the next book...



Oh, Don't forget to check out other books by Colleen Coble,  Just click on the link below

Books by Colleen Coble

Safe In His Arms by Collen Coble

I just finished reading Safe in His Arms by Colleen Coble, It is the story of Margaret O'Brien  who is not really like any lady in town , She thinks her hair is too red, her feet are too big and that she is way too tall.  So when her father decides that she needs to act more like a lady and not a rancher, He hires Daniel Cutler, a stranger with a mysterious past. Margaret's father also invites her Cousin Lewis to help run the ranch,  further taking any responsibility of running the ranch from her.  Immediately it becomes clear that Daniel likes Her, but Margaret has had her heart broken before and is very guarded around men, and has no problem showing her dislike of Daniel because he took over her job on the ranch. When she overhears a conversation between Daniel and another man outside of her window. she finds out that he's a bank robber.  She then makes it her mission to try and help Daniel turn his life around. But when Her father is killed, Lewis disappears and someone tries to shoot her, She works with Daniel to find out who wants her out of the way  and what is it that he is hiding about his past. I liked the book very much, It did have a few spots where the plot twindled a little making it slightly boring but it did have a surprising ending. it also had a lot of romance( nothing inappropriate, just the characters kissing... Several times. A little too much for my taste. ) and some action  ( What would a western story be without cowboys, guns, bank robbers, daring escapes on horseback, you know the things that make a western story exciting  ) but nothing graphic. Overall it was a very good book. It is part of  the series Under Texas Stars,but I read it as a stand alone book. So take a look for yourself and tell me what you think!


Hey! Check out other books by Colleen Coble  by clicking on the link below.

Books by Colleen Coble

Exciting News!

I'm so excited! I just received an email from Bethany House Publishers that I am now a Christian Fiction Blogger Reviewer for their books. They have some amazing authors like Dee Henderson, Julie Klassen, Jen Turano and even Janette Oke.  So definitely keep watch for my upcoming reviews on their books, They will be marked with the icon,

                                                    

                    

The Tutors Daughter by Julie Klassen

So while I am reading my newest book, Let me tell you about one of my favorite books. It is The Tutors Daughter by Julie Klassen. It is the story of  Emma Smallwood whose Father's academy just closed. She agrees to go with him as he becomes a tutor to two young boys whose older half brothers who were taught by her Father. When Henry Weston and his brother Phillip (the ones who used to attend her Fathers school) come home she finds that she is drawn to one of them, but is not sure that she can trust him because she notices that they are very secretive about something but is unsure of what they are hiding. Then unexpected things start happening like music being played in the middle of the night but  no one is in the music room or having her journal disappear only to be returned a couple of days later with pages torn out and a horrid illustration drawn on it, she cannot help wondering which brother to trust and which one wants her to leave, After surviving  a life threatening situation, she finds out that there is a God who loves her and that the one person that she didn't think she could trust, was the one person that held her heart. Full of mystery, suspense and a little bit of romance (at the end) . This book is one of my favorites because the plot keeps you intrigued until the very last page.  Well I hope that you enjoying reading it as much as I do!



 You can click on the link below to check out other books by Julie Klassen.



Lists of books by Julie Klassen

A Change of Fortune By Jen Turano

So here is my latest read,  A Change of Fortune by Jen Turano. It is the lively tale of Lady Eliza Sumner whose fortune was stolen after the untimely death of her Father. She then travels from England to New York in search of her fortune after hearing that the man who stole it was hiding there, When she gets to New York, She disguises herself as Miss Eliza Sumner and disguises herself as a governess. After being hired by the Watsons, she finds the mischievous Agatha Watson who is always getting into trouble. At a dinner that she was tricked into attending, She meets Hamilton Beckett,one of the most sought after, eligible, gentleman in New York , that just happens to be investigating a mystery of his own, After several hysterical mishaps, one of which lands both Agatha and herself in jail, She begins to learn that maybe, the most important things in life are not how much money you have, but  having family and friends that love you for who you are and not how much money you have in the bank. This book had me smiling and laughing all the way to the end ( which was probably why I was getting funny looks from my co-workers while I was reading it on my lunch breaks at work ) Absolutely one of my favorites. Well on to my next book.




Don't forget to see what other books are by Jen Turano,  Just click on the link below to check them out!


http://jenturano.com/category/books/