Showing posts with label easy-to-read. Show all posts

Thursday, February 12, 2026

The Doctor’s Convenient Marriage (Second Chances in Harmony Springs Book 3) by Lauralyn Keller

Victoria and Harrison are from Boston Socialite families. In rebellion to their families, they both became doctors and each had a dream. Women were not acceptable as doctors at that time and her father, unfeeling, was determined that she marry a Socialite man who happened to be an abusive cad. How Harrison and Tori escape to Harmony Springs is a satisfying story, as is their difficult love story. Danger, theft and pure struggles unfold. You have to love them both as they work it all out.

I received this book free from the author, publisher and CelebrateLit book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

#TheDoctorsConvenientMarriage #LauralynKeller #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout #CelebrateLit #HistoricalChristianRomance #WildHeartBooks

page-turner, romantic, easy-to-read, wonderful characters, realistic, original

About the Book

Book: The Doctor’s Convenient Marriage

Author: Lauralyn Keller

Genre: Christian Historical Fiction

Release Date: January 20, 2026

She wants the freedom to practice medicine, and he needs a wife. But their bold escape from Boston’s high society rests on a marriage vow neither intended to make real.

Victoria Mountbatten has fought hard to earn her medical degree, but her powerful father uses his influence to block any doctor from hiring her. Faced with an ultimatum—marry a society gentleman or face disinheritance, Tori sees only one path to freedom. She makes a bold proposition to Dr. Harrison Blake, a colleague she’s worked alongside for years: a plan that will take them far from Boston’s stifling society.

Harrison Blake has always dreamed of building a hospital in the untamed West where he can truly help people. But his inheritance comes with a catch—he must marry before his thirtieth birthday. So even though Tori’s proposal is shocking, a marriage of convenience may be the perfect solution for both of them.

In the quiet moments of Harmony Springs, feelings grow and lines blur. Can their partnership blossom into true love, or will the walls around their hearts destroy the fragile trust they’ve built?

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Lauralyn Keller loves to combine history and romance in stories that touch the heart. She lives in beautiful Colorado and is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking, hiking, and reading.

More from Lauralyn

You might have noticed all three books in the Second Chances in Harmony Springs series feature a marriage of convenience. While that was partly for continuity, it also spoke to my own heart.

I love this trope. There’s something beautiful about the type of romance where two people agree to something practical and unemotional, only to slowly discover all the messy, tender, unexpected feelings they absolutely did not plan for. It’s a popular trope because beneath the external circumstances—inheritance rules, social expectations, survival needs—lies a universal truth: sometimes love grows in the unlikeliest places.

For me, the appeal isn’t just the forced proximity or the slow-burn tension, though I love both. It’s the way a practical arrangement forces two people to reveal their truest selves. A marriage of convenience strips away the excitement of courtship and goes straight to the heart of compatibility. The characters must ask: Can we build a life together? Can we rely on each other? Can we trust each other with our hopes, fears, and futures?

Those are deeply romantic questions, even when the relationship begins with a contract instead of a kiss.

In The Doctor’s Convenient Marriage, Tori and Harrison enter their agreement not out of despair, but from determination. Tori refuses to sacrifice her dream of practicing medicine, even as Boston society tries to conform her to their expectations. Harrison is more heart-driven, longing to build a hospital in the untamed West where he can serve those who need it most. Their marriage isn’t about survival. It’s about carving out the freedom to become who they were meant to be.

That mutual ambition changes the dynamic. Instead of one rescuing the other, they rescue each other, and in doing so, they learn to see beyond professional camaraderie into something far deeper and more vulnerable.

What I love most about their journey is the way real affection steals up on them quietly. They start as friends and coworkers, but then things begin to change. Little glances. Quiet confessions. Moments of care neither expected to give or receive.

A marriage forged for convenience becomes a partnership rooted in respect. And that becomes the foundation for love. That’s the irresistible beauty of this trope: the idea that love can flourish not in spite of practicality, but right alongside it.

I hope you love this story as much as I do. It’s a heartfelt conclusion to a series that’s been in the works for years. I’m deeply grateful to all who’ve come along on this journey, and I look forward to seeing where the road takes us from here.

Blog Stops

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, February 3
Texas Book-aholic, February 4
Pause for Tales, February 4
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, February 5
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, February 6
Simple Harvest Reads, February 7 (Guest Review from Marilyn)
Jodie Wolfe, February 7
Bizwings Blog, February 8
For Him and My Family, February 9
Devoted To Hope, February 10
lakesidelivingsite, February 11
Lyssa Loves Books, February 11
Books You Can Feel Good About, February 12
Devoted Steps, February 13
Cover Lover Book Review, February 14
Vicky Sluiter, February 15
Holly’s Book Corner, February 15
Connie’s History Classroom, February 16
Mary Hake, February 16

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Lauralyn is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon Gift Card!!

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

https://gleam.io/pX7ww/the-doctors-convenient-marriage-celebration-tour-giveaway

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Monday, February 9, 2026

Before the Dawn (Brides of the West Book 7) by Erica Vetsch

Exquisitely beautiful and tense. The depth of compassion you feel for Karen and David is deep. I really resonated with Karen when David rejected her after a mine accident blinded him. Quite a journey for the two of them, and the struggles, both mental and physical, keep you riveted till the too short end.

I received this book free from the author, publisher and CelebrateLit book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

#BeforeTheDawn #EricaVetsch #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout #CelebrateLit #HistoricalChristianRomance #WildHeartBooks

page-turner, romantic, easy-to-read, wonderful characters, realistic, original

About the Book

Book: Before the Dawn

Author: Erica Vetsch

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: February 10, 2026

A determined wife and a blind mining engineer—separated by fear, connected by love, and tested by darkness that threatens to tear them apart.

David Mackenzie was the most capable mining engineer in Colorado until a cave-in left him blind and filled with guilt over the deaths of his workers. Now he fears he’ll never be worthy of love or respect again. When his fiancée returns from nursing her sick aunt, he must find the courage to break their engagement before she wastes her life caring for a broken man.

Karen refuses to give up on the man she loves, but David has built a wall between them that grows higher with each passing day. When he tries to call off their engagement, she forces him into marriage through an unconventional lawsuit. Now she must find a way to break through his bitter shell and prove that her love hasn’t changed—before his fears and pride drive them apart forever and she loses not only the man she loves but also her chance at the family she’s always longed for.

When David’s cousin reveals a deadly secret about the cave-in, Karen and David find themselves trapped underground, forced to work together to survive. In the darkness, they must confront the fears that threaten to destroy them both. But even if they survive, can they find their way back to the love they once shared?

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Best-selling, award-winning author of The Debutante’s Code, first in the Thorndike & Swann Regency Mystery Series, Erica Vetsch loves Jesus, history, romance, and sports. When she’s not writing fiction, she’s planning her next trip to a history museum.

More from Erica

My story, Before the Dawn, is set in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. As a girl born and raised in Central Kansas, the first time I visited mountains, I was in awe…and also a little worried. Having grown up in a land where you can watch your dog run away for three straight days, not being able to see very far when in between mountains was a bit claustrophobic.

My children, growing up in SE Minnesota, had a similar experience. We were able to take the kids to Colorado several years ago, which is where I first became interested the history of Colorado Mining.

We took the kids to Idaho Springs, where we toured a mine and ore processing facility from the 1880’s. The Argo Mine was fascinating. When I ask my kids about what they remember, it’s always the panning for gold. My daughter reminded me that I was the first in the family to find any gold in my pan, a few little bright flakes, upon which many an adventurer has wagered his life.

The kids also got to sift through a box of sand and dirt to find colorful stones. As my son was enamored with agates and polished rocks at the time, this was the highlight for him.

When I wrote Before the Dawn, I tried to make the setting a character. The story is so tied to the setting, that if I changed where the story took place, it wouldn’t be the same story at all.

I hope, as you read Before the Dawn, you are drawn into the mountains, that you can feel a bit of the same sense of awe that I felt the first time this prairie girl saw the Rockies.

Blog Stops

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, February 5
Sydney Schmied Books, February 5
Books Less Travelled, February 6
She Lives to Read, February 7
Devoted Steps, February 7
Book Looks by Lisa, February 8
Books You Can Feel Good About, February 9
Lyssa Loves Books, February 9
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, February 10
lakesidelivingsite, February 11
Melissa’s Bookshelf, February 11
Texas Book-aholic, February 12
Locks, Hooks and Books, February 13
For Him and My Family, February 13
Bizwings Blog, February 14
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, February 15
Blossoms and Blessings, February 15
Cover Lover Book Review, February 16
Holly’s Book Corner, February 17
Devoted To Hope, February 17
Pause for Tales, February 18
Simple Harvest Reads, February 18 (Guest Review from Mindy)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Erica is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon Gift Card!!

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

https://gleam.io/QhNDV/before-the-dawn-celebration-tour-giveaway

My reviews

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Sunday, February 1, 2026

Flames of Faith

As told, this is a 1870s guidebook for Thun Switzerland and the areas nearby as well as a beautiful love story. Claire is obsessed with bringing tourism to Thun and is frustrated that Lucas, an engineer who is building the railroad beyond Thun might be taking the focus, and funding, away from her dream. Interesting story unfolds with these areas beautifully described and brought to life and such charming characters too. Wonderful story.

I received this book free from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

#FlamesOfFaith #MargueriteMartinGray #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout #SylvanReads #ChristianHistoricalRomance #CelebrateLit

@MarguriteMartinGray

About the Book

Book: Flames of Faith

Author: Marguerite Martin Gray

Genre: Historical Christian Fiction

Release Date: February, 2025

1870 Switzerland. One year. A mountain of ideas. And a menacing railroad forging the barrier between dreams and reality.

Claire Pennington formulates a bold plan to avoid the pressure of yet another London season. Her parents grant her one year in Switzerland, yet afterward she must return to England and find a suitor. Armed with a notebook and gumption, she determines to make the mountain town of Thun a tourist destination for all classes of society. However, she does not count on an equally determined railroad engineer set on leaving Thun in the dust.

The rugged mountain terrain grants Englishman Lucas Stanley the opportunity to launch his engineering career. The railroad is the answer to modern travel—expedient, efficient, and competitive, yet conquering the section of track from Thun to Interlaken is harder than he originally thought, especially with opposition from a fiery female. Claire confronts him at every turn, using her enthusiasm and people skills to flame local zeal for change and progress in another direction.

Opposing proposals collide as Claire, Lucas, and the citizens of the quaint Swiss town face an avalanche of decisions and compromises sparked by flames of faith—and perhaps love.

Discover romance and faith in 1870 Switzerland through this standalone novel from the Elements of Hope series where fire, air, water, and earth meet elements of the heart.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Marguerite Martin Gray is an award-winning author of a dozen novels and novellas. She enjoys the study of history, especially when combined with fiction. An avid traveler and reader, she teaches French and Spanish online. She currently lives in North Louisiana with her husband and rescue pets. Her two adult children and two grandsons keep her young and up-to-date.

More from Marguerite

I am a tourist at heart and always have been since I was a child growing up in England as a preteen. A castle, a map, a manor house, a museum, a mystery, a myth in any country or state. Flames of Faith was sparked by a recent train ride from Interlaken to Thun, Switzerland where an old turreted castle rose above the lake and village. A perfect setting for a novel. It spurred thoughts of who visited this area as well as how and when since the terrain made it dangerous and tricky to just visit on a whim on a Sunday afternoon.

Have you heard of Thomas Cook (1850s and onward) and his famous travels all over Europe with tourists by horse, carriage, boat, foot, and finally train? He paved the way for the middle-class citizen to see gorgeous venues like Switzerland and the Alps. What an adventure to have been on one of his early tours! A Slow Train to Switzerland by Diccon Bewes cemented what I wanted to express in this novel.

Meet Claire Pennington, my heroine, who encompasses the traits of tourist in all the good senses. She wants everyone to have the opportunity to travel the continent and world as she does. Her bold dream inspires others to possibly regard seeing new sites as a way to refresh and revitalize their own lives.

Hop on board and discover romance and faith in 1870 Switzerland. Be a tourist without leaving your home.

Blog Stops

Simple Harvest Reads, January 21 (Author Interview)
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, January 22
Texas Book-aholic, January 23
Artistic Nobody, January 24 (Author Interview)
Lily’s Corner, January 25
Life on Chickadee Lane, January 25
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, January 26
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, January 27
Guild Master, January 28 (Author Interview)
Pause for Tales, January 28
For Him and My Family, January 29
Devoted Steps, January 30
Fiction Book Lover, January 31 (Author Interview)
Books You Can Feel Good About, February 1
Holly’s Book Corner, February 2
Cover Lover Book Review, February 3

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Marguerite is giving away the grand prize of a $25 Amazon Gift Card and a copy of the book!!

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

https://gleam.io/sMCBM/flames-of-faith-celebration-tour-giveaway

My reviews

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Monday, January 12, 2026

Sean (Garfield, The Next Generation Book 1) by Sharon Srock

Sharon is a truly gifted author who excels at bringing characters to life. It's easy to picture Sean and Monica and to understand the struggles they are going through. It's satisfying to listen to conversations with God and understand the problems underlying as well as be part of two special people coming together. Excellent read, as always.

I received this book free from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

#Sean @SharonSrock #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout #ChristianContemporaryFiction

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Tuesday, January 6, 2026

The Midwife: Salem Village - Book 2 by Pegg Thomas

Taking place during the early Salem Witch trials, this is a very tense story. The characters realistically bring to life what it would have been like to have lived in that area at that time. To live under the pressure of constant accusations going on around you - people whom you know are completely innocent. And knowing the power it gives to those in the village who crave it. There is also the fact that both Quaker and Puritan families lived in this village, and they were wary of each other, yet many tried to get along and share their trades. A blossoming love story carries on the difficulties between them all when a Quaker girl and Puritan boy fall in love and when a midwife to all residents is caught up in her own dilemmas. Plenty to keep you engaged to the very end, and wanting a next one to see how it all pans out for everyone.

I received this book free from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

#TheMidwife #SpinnerOfYarnsPublishingLLC @PeggThomas #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout

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Wednesday, December 31, 2025

These Blue Mountains by Sarah Loudin Thomas

I really enjoyed getting to know and spend time with Hetta, Garland and Fritz as well as their family and friends. Richly told, loosely based on real history, Hetta and Fritz come to America from Germany in 1930s. Fritz as a prisoner of war, Hetta 14 years later looking for her fiancé who had disappeared, after she saw an article with her fiancé's name on a gravestone. Garland is a police officer who got tangled up in it all. Intricate story of love and hope that takes paths that you may not expect. Very intriguing, keeps you turning the pages to see what happened, with history of the wars in Germany mixed in. Excellent choice to spend your time with and add to your library.

I received this book free from the author and NetGalley book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

#TheseBlueMountains #NetGalley @SarahLoudinThomas

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Hearts in Bloom: A Regency Anthology (Regency Anthologies)

Cozy book with 5 stand-alone recency romances. Sweet, clean stories of first loves and the obstacles they encounter along their way to realizing their love. I have a soft spot for the librarian and the town's anonymous Valentine sender, but each tale is special in its own old-fashioned way. A great addition to your library or a beautiful gift.

entertaining, realistic, easy-to-read, page-turner, romantic, happily-ever-after, wonderful-characters, original

@evershirepublishing @KLynSmith @RosanneELortz @CarolineWarfield @GLRobinson

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Monday, November 24, 2025

The Songbird and the Surveyor

Not what I expected but so much more. Lots of depth to Jessie and Genny. She's running for her life; he is determined to help her. Intertwined with his best friend Wade and wanting justice for the killing of his first wife who was Wade's sister, an intricate story unfolds full of raw emotion, faith and a growing romance. Quite an excellent read to get lost in.

I received this book free from the author, publisher and CelebrateLit book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

#TheSongbirdandtheSurveyor #DeniseFarnsworth #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout #CelebrateLit #HistoricalChristianFiction #WildHeartBooks

page-turner, romantic, easy-to-read, wonderful characters, realistic, original

About the Book

Book: The Songbird and the Surveyor

Author: Denise Farnsworth writing as Denise Weimer

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: November 3, 2025

A marriage of protection. A past full of pain. In Georgia’s wild gold country, love might strike when it’s least expected.

Genevieve Gillbard knows she’s no longer safe in the rough-and-tumble gold rush town when she overhears her controlling guardian’s plot to steal gold from a local mine owner. It takes every ounce of her courage to escape, and now she’ll do anything to keep herself safe, even accept a temporary marriage of convenience from a man who clearly wants nothing more than his independence.

After losing his first wife, surveyor Jesse Holden swore never to let anyone close enough to need him again. But when he discovers the woman he knows as the Songbird of Auraria injured and unconscious in the woods, he can’t abandon her, not with the memory of his failure to protect his wife hanging over him. He’ll keep this woman safe until she’s out of harm’s way, even if it means doing the one thing he swore he’d never do again.

As Genny recovers under Jesse’s care, she discovers he’s nothing like the manipulative men of her past. But can she trust him with her heart—knowing he plans to leave as soon as her guardian is brought to justice? And even then, she fears the sham marriage might not be enough to keep her safe from her guardian’s long reach.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

North Georgia native Denise Farnsworth has authored around twenty traditionally published novels and a number of novellas—historical and contemporary romance, romantic suspense, and time slip. As a freelance editor and Acquisitions & Editorial Liaison for Wild Heart Books, she’s helped other authors reach their publishing dreams. A mother of two wonderful young adult daughters, Denise always pauses for coffee, chocolate, and old houses.

More from Denise

A Gold Rush…in Georgia?

Celebrate Lit Blog Post for The Songbird and the Surveyor by Denise Farnsworth

(writing as Denise Weimer)

Did you know there was a gold rush in Georgia that began twenty years before gold was discovered in California? That Georgia gold was purer than any found in the country? Comment below if you did. And I tip my hat to you. I come across many native Georgians who are unaware of this major event in their state’s history.

My first series, The Georgia Gold Series, touched on the Georgia Gold Rush. In the ten years since its release, I’ve written novels set between the Revolutionary War and contemporary times. (I also recently got married. Thus, the name change from Denise Weimer to Denise Farnsworth. I hope you’ll look for my future novels under my new name!) The period of the 1830s is one largely untouched in American history by fiction writers. I always knew I might revisit that decade in more detail. Thus, The Twenty-Niners of the Georgia Gold Rush was born.

Gold was first discovered by white men on Coker Creek in 1827, but it wasn’t until fall of 1828, when Benjamin Parks found a nugget as he returned from filling his cattle’s lick log west of the Chestatee River, that the mining industry exploded in North Georgia. The area was flooded by prospectors who clashed with the native Cherokee people. The land was soon taken from them and divvied up in a lottery of ninety-two districts, with farming plots set at a hundred and sixty acres and gold lots at forty acres. By June of 1832, almost six hundred surveyors from across Georgia were hard at work.

The gold belt stretched from Clarkesville to Canton (the setting of book two), with major concentrations near Dahlonega (the setting of book three). Auraria, located on the mountain ridge between the Etowah and Chestatee rivers, was one of the boom towns that lingered into the twentieth century, although now only a few abandoned buildings remain. Think Wild West before the west went wild. Into this setting I dropped the story of a guilt-haunted surveyor with a dangerous streak of wanderlust and an orphan who’s learned to sing for her life.

Genevieve Gillbard’s neglectful father has died and left her in the care of her guardian, a volatile saloon owner with unwholesome intentions. When she overhears a plot that implicates Charles Martin and one of his employees in a scheme to kidnap her and siphon off a local miner’s gold, Genevieve flees…right into the arms of another man she surely can’t trust.

Blaming himself for the death of his wife, Jesse Holden wants nothing less than being saddled with the wounded songbird he rescued from a drunken miner on his first trip to Auraria. But when he learns that Genny’s guardian is the same man responsible for his wife’s death, he agrees to shelter her to give his sheriff friend, also his former brother-in-law, time to entrap Charles. Neither of them expect to be forced into a marriage in name only—at least until Genny reaches her majority. Despite his efforts to hold his heart at bay, Jesse was raised by his minister-father to treat women right—something so new to Genny, it crumbles her walls. But will the emotional price of trusting Jesse prove higher than the risk to her physical safety?

Although set near raucous boom town of Auraria, The Songbird and the Surveyor is a story of quiet healing and second chances. Of rescues and God’s miraculous redirection. Of learning to spot the real among the counterfeit…and hold onto it for all you’re worth.