Friday, February 10, 2023

The Lumberjills: Stronger Together by Joanna Foat

1940. When the war started the UK didn't have much lumber stockpiled. A resource that they badly needed, so they opened it up for women to apply. Thousands did. These girls are tough beyond tough in this group. Man did they fight one another. Most had it tough at home growing up. A few of the girls' backgrounds come out here. Excellent read that keeps you engaged to the end. I could have done without some of the language but overall, it was mild.

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

#NetGalley #TheLumberjills #JoannaFoat #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout #HistoricalFiction

My reviews

Thursday, February 9, 2023

The Confession Musical

Wonderfully done! Excellent acting. Musical numbers are very good, some are especially touching and so beautiful. I think the story almost has more meaning and depth with the musical numbers.

Even though I'd read the book some time ago and I knew how it was going to go, I laughed and cried and sighed. This stage play really brought out the story and has been updated to this generation.

It's a Christian story about love and adoption, devotion to one another through everything. Did I mention Katie's fiancé who was believed to have drowned? The Mothers song with Katie joining in made me sob. So much beauty. There are wonderful messages about salvation and forgiveness embedded. And the comedy is great. Chonda somewhat stole the show at times, excellently.

Even though it puts you through the wringer emotionally, it makes you feel better for having watched it.

Many thanks to Blue Gate Musicals for providing a sample of the product for this review. Opinions are 100% my own.

#TheConfessionMIN and #ConfessionMusicalMovie #ChristianFiction #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout #FiveStarMovie #ChondaPierce #JohnSchneider

"The Confession Musical” is in theaters for one night only on February 20th!

The Confession Musical” is based on the New York Times best-selling book series “The Heritage of Lancaster County,” written by Beverly Lewis and written for the stage by Emmy-Nominated screenwriter Martha Bolton.

Katie Lapp, a young Amish girl, discovers her parents have been keeping a secret from her… she is adopted. Katie decides to seek her birth mother, defying the rules of her Amish village and risking a shunning. Meanwhile, her wealthy birth mother, Laura Mayfield, battling an illness that might take her life, begins searching for her long-lost daughter to bequeath her inheritance before it is too late. Secretly plotting against her is the gold-digging husband Dylan (played by John Schneider), who is scheming to make sure he inherits her fortune. With the help and prayers of her Christian maidservant (played by Chonda Pierce), they try to foil Dylan’s plan and reunite Katie and Laura. And then there's Katie's lost fiancé and the mystery around him.

• Blog Post from Beverly Lewis: LINK

• Buy tickets today to see THE CONFESSION musical movie exclusively in theaters February 20th!

Movie Website: https://confessionmusicalmovie.com/

Buy Tickets Link: https://www.fathomevents.com/events/The-Confession-Musical

Giveaway: $10 Amazon gift card

(Note: This is limited to US winners only. Winner chosen randomly from comments to this post by 2/22/23. I will need the winner’s full name and email address.) (There will be no spam!)

Tuesday, February 7, 2023

The Sharecropper's Sister by Martha Hutchens

Missouri 1942. Dot is doing her best to try to run her brother's farm while he's away serving in the war. But she needs help. She's never run the tractor before. Nate came and offered to teach her, but she couldn't imagine why, since Landowners didn't mix with Sharecroppers. She and her brother grew up as sharecroppers, but her brother purchased this farm with a loan at the bank. A bank with a filthy rotten dirty no good superior acting nephew making calls. And so the story starts. Sweet romance with loveable characters. I felt right at home. Excellent read - I didn't want to see it end.

This was a gift from Martha Hutchens for signing up for her newsletter. Link here.

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The Inn at Cherry Blossom Lane

Quick read. Contemporary. Alex and Claire work together after being separated for several years. She had been married and had a little girl. After her divorce she moved back to her grandmother's, and they started building a bed and breakfast. Interesting story with romance and a bit of danger. Keeps you interested till the end.

Sunday, February 5, 2023

What I Would Tell You by Liz Tolsma

Enriching, inspirational story that can be hard to read. It's heartbreaking. The timeslip format makes it easier with Tessa learning about Mathilda, her family and friends, gradually unfolding the story. Complicated life in 1941 Salonika, Greece, especially after the Nazis took over Greece. Pulls your heart strings right to the end. It's so well written that you forget it's a book, no surprise with Liz Tolsma.

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

#WhatIWouldTellYou #NetGalley #LizTolsma #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout #ChristianHistoricalFiction #christianbooksandcoffee

About the Book

Book: What I Would Tell You

Author: Liz Tolsma

Genre: Christian Fiction / Romance / Historical Fiction

Release date: January 1, 2023

DNA Test Unlocks a Family Mystery

Sephardic Jew Mathilda Nissim watches in horror as the Germans invade her beloved city of Salonika, Greece. What angers her most is the lack of resistance her people put up to their captors. In secret and at great risk to her life, she continues to publish her newspaper, calling her people to action. She doesn’t trust God to help them. When she and her husband find out they are expecting a child, Mathilda may have to resort to desperate measures to ensure her daughter’s survival.

Three generations later, college student Riley Payson and her cousin take a popular DNA test only to discover they don’t share any common ancestors. In fact, the test shows Riley is a Sephardic Jew from Greece. This revelation shakes Riley’s tenuous faith and sends her on a journey to discover what happened to her great-grandmother and how all this relates to her faith and her life today.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Liz Tolsma is the author of several WWII novels, romantic suspense novels, prairie romance novellas, and an Amish romance. She is a popular speaker and an editor and resides next to a Wisconsin farm field with her husband and their youngest daughter. Her son is a US Marine, and her oldest daughter is a college student. Liz enjoys reading, walking, working in her large perennial garden, kayaking, and camping. Please visit her website at www.liztolsma.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter (@LizTolsma), Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest. She is also the host of the Christian Historical Fiction Talk podcast.

More from Liz

Take a Trip to Greece with Me

I was privileged to travel to Greece last year to research my upcoming WWII novel, What I Would Tell You. God orchestrated it so beautifully. Because of Covid, we weren’t sure my daughter would be able to travel there for the summer internship she had applied for. Eight weeks before her scheduled departure, Greece reopened to foreign visitors. Around that same time, I sold What I Would Tell You, which is set in Thessaloniki, Greece, to Barbour Publishing. I had to go and visit!

Greece is a beautiful country. The pictures you see don’t do it justice. And to someone like me, the history is one of the best parts. My daughter and I explored the old city wall, built in the 1400s, many churches that predated the Ottoman Empire, and many excavated Roman ruins that have been dug up in the city’s process of putting in a subway system.

Because this is a WWII book, we also spent a great deal of time learning about the history of the Jews in the city. The Kapani Market, just down the street from our apartment, was a vibrant mix of colorful fruits, fragrant spices, and a cacophony of languages. I could well imagine what this old Jewish market was like prior to the war with people hawking olives, fish, and oregano.

We wasted no time in visiting the Jewish museum. I was shocked by the heavy security presence with armed guards outside of the building. Once inside, we had to show our IDs and were required to turn in our phones. Antisemitism is alive and well in Greece. But what a place. There were displays after displays tracing the history of the Jewish people in Thessaloniki from 1492 until WWII. The most breathtaking was the room with stone-covered walls, the names of all 48,000 Salonikan Jews killed in the Holocaust carved into the marble. There’s an entire scene in the book that deals with this room.

What saddened me most was what we saw when we visited the trainyard where the Jews were herded into cattle cars and shipped to Auschwitz. Before we got to where the station once stood, there was a wall on which someone had pained a mural covered with black-and-white figures in their striped uniforms, their eyes and mouths wide in horror. As if that weren’t difficult enough to view, what sickened me was the blue swastikas someone had painted over them.

We also trekked to the other side of the city to visit what had once been the Jewish cemetery, now the grounds of Aristotle University. All that remains to testify that half a million people were once buried here is a small, ill-kept memorial. There were two dead Christmas wreaths placed there. We visited in August.

In addition to a moving and thought-provoking story, I hope to also introduce you to the amazing city of Thessaloniki and give you a peek into the people and the culture of this amazing place. If you ever find yourself in Greece, plan some time in Thessaloniki. Many Americans miss this gem, but it’s packed with charm and history.

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Liz is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 Amazon e-gift card and 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/23ccb/what-i-would-tell-you-celebration-tour-giveaway

Blog Stops

CELEBRATE LIT BLOG TOUR - Check out other reviews!
Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, January 28
Texas Book-aholic, January 28
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, January 29
Blogging With Carol, January 29
Genesis 5020, January 30
Tell Tale Book Reviews, January 30
Where Faith and Books Meet, January 30
Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, January 31
For Him and My Family, January 31
Cover Lover Book Review, February 1
Lily’s Book Reviews, February 1
Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, February 2
deb’s Book Review, February 2
Betti Mace, February 3
Connie’s History Classroom, February 3
Paula’s Pad of Inspriation, February 4
Locks, Hooks and Books, February 4
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, February 5
Books You Can Feel Good About, February 5 (You are here)
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, February 6
Holly’s Book Corner, February 6
Bigreadersite, February 7
Blossoms and Blessings, February 7
Mary Hake, February 7
Labor Not in Vain, February 8
Pause for Tales, February 9
A Good Book and Cup of Tea, February 9
Little Homeschool on the Prairie, February 10
Southern Gal Loves to Read, February 10
Lights in a Dark World, February 10

My Reviews

Thursday, January 26, 2023

Yesterday's Tides by Roseanna M. White

Timeslip Christian Historical largely set in Ocracoke Island on the NC Outer Banks. In WW2 it was where “Torpedo Junction” was and English fishing vessels were turned into protectors for America’s East Coast. It timeslips with families in WW1. There are many twists and turns and mysteries that are interesting to unravel, and wonderful characters to get attached to. I didn't want it to end.

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

#YesterdaysTides #NetGalley #RoseannaMWhite #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout #ChristianHistorical

My reviews

NetGalley

Sunday, January 22, 2023

Wagons West by Caryl McAdoo

1849 I generally love wagon train stories, but this wasn't as much about the travelling as it was about a few families who went on the trek across country to California. And they all, yes all, seem to have only one thing on their mind. It's different, told with multiple narrators. One of the characters is also schizophrenic with four personalities who switch back and forth. It's classified as Christian, and the author uses Christian doctrine to solve problems. Each character has depth.
I received this book free from the author, publisher and Celebrate Lit. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

#CelebrateLit #WagonsWest #CarylMcAdoo #BooksYouCanFeelGoodAbout

About the Book

Book: Wagons West

Author: Caryl McAdoo

Genre: Historical Christian Romance

Release date: November 22, 2022

In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.

Besides the God-fearing, decent folks seeking new beginnings, adventurers, miners, risk-takers, fugitives, perverts, and runaways alike—even royals—comprise a few of the characters in book one of the ‘New Beginnings Family Saga’ titled WAGONS WEST. The two-thousand-mile journey is wrought with danger, trials, troubles and tragedies, deprivations, and of course, romance, but the lure of gold and a fresh start urges the sojourners on to the Promised Land!

Blaire Beechy, a widow with two almost grown daughters, Adeline and Beatrice, and a twelve-year-old son Tucker sells everything to go for the gold only to discover the rules of wagon master Ambrose Lee forbids them to join his wagon train, but the widow is determined. Though the disgruntled and handsome widow turns his head, the man deals with troubles of his own. His train isn’t full, he has yet to hire a scout, and his integrity thrusts him into saving a troubled young woman called Birdie. The journey is an arduous undertaking, but he’s done it before and is up to the task.
Wagon Ho!

This story was first published in episodes at Kindle Vella, Season One, by the same name. Season two SETTLERS & TOFFS continues the story and episodes are now being published and are available at Kindle Vella.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Award-winning author Caryl McAdoo prays her story brings God glory, and her best-selling stories—over sixty published now—delight readers around the world. The prolific writer also enjoys singing the new songs the Lord gives her; you may listen to a few on YouTube. Sharing four children and twenty-four grandsugars (six are greats), Caryl and her high-school-sweetheart-husband of fifty-four years Ron live in the woods south of Clarksville, seat of Red River County in far Northeast Texas. The McAdoos wait expectantly for God to open the next door.

More from Caryl

What a fun, new adventure writing WAGONS WEST! Ron and I stepped up to try a new program Amazon offered authors called Kindle Vella where we’d write episodes rather than chapters. In a year’s time, WAGONS WEST had thirty-five episodes and was over one hundred thousand words, about four hundred pages.

We continue to write Season Two of the “New Beginnings Family Saga” SETTLERS & TOFFS, with the same characters going into the following year, 1850, scattering into three settings: those from Season One’s wagon train who decide to settle Auburn, California, those just starting the sojourn west with Emmerson Pierce, scout in Season One, now wagon master, and we sail the Atlantic to England when the son of the Earl of Farnsworth receives word of his older brother’s death.

The characters in WAGONS WEST made it so special for me, and I believe you’re sure to love them as well. Robert E. Lee’s older brother Ambrose is our wagon master and the story’s main hero. As all my heroes (thanks to Ron’s part of our collaboration) he is strong but flawed.

Our matriarchal heroine Blaire Beechy, recently widowed, has sold everything and uprooted her three children—two almost grown daughters Adeline and Beatrice and their twelve-year-old brother Tucker—only to discover Captain Lee’s idiotic rules forbid an unmarried woman from traveling in his wagon train. Why must there be a man at the head of each family?

WAGONS WEST offers readers adventures with a colorful cast of characters who support, cause trouble, act a bit crazy, and play ball to make the story one you just can’t put down. All along the way, God is questioned, given praise, denied, and surrendered to, saving sojourners again and again—not only in the spiritual realm.

It’s a story I’ve certainly enjoyed writing, and I’m hoping you’ll enjoy reading WAGONS WEST as much!

As always, I’m ‘Praying my story gives God glory!’ Hallelujah! There is no one like Him! He alone is the Great King over all the earth! Not a man that He could lie, but worthy to receive all glory and all praise!

Blessings, y’all!