Free books November 21, 2019

BookBub suggested a FREE book this morning Operation Married by Christmas, written by an author showing up here regularly. It looks like a fun Christmas story, maybe it would even make a good Christmas movie.

Operation Married by Christmas

BookRunes has a suggestion today,  One Thursday Morning, by another regular author on this site. I downloaded this earlier this month but haven’t gotten to it yet.

One Thursday Morning

Currently I’m reading and loving The Trouble in Willow Falls. It is a fun read and has some great characters. It’s still FREE if you haven’t already snagged a copy

The Trouble in Willow Falls

’til tomorrow…

Happy reading!

Free and Bargain books November 19, 2019

Some interesting selections this morning from several sources.

BookRunes has two suggestions Day by Day (FREE) and A Promise for Christmas ($0.99 USD)

This author for Day by Day is new to me and the synopsis(?) is written rather differently, which raises a few questions in my mind about what the book will be like. The first couple of pages, though, portray feisty characters. I voted to take a chance and I’m hoping for a good read.

Day by Day

A Promise for Christmas ($0.99 USD.) This is another author new to me. It does look interesting though. I’m passing on this one purely for budgetary reasons (both time and money), I’ve read and enjoyed other books similar to this one lately. This one will be good too, I’m thinking.

A Promise for Christmas

Author Margaret Daley shared some FREE and bargain books in her email this morning, many of them wrtten by some of her friends. Like these three:

Loving Winter ($0.99 USD) Lyn Cote is on my favorite author list and this story looks good. I have many of her books but don’t have this one yet.

Loving Winter

A Doctor’s Promise (read and enjoyed) was free a while ago and is FREE now too. Happy news.

A Doctor's Promise

Last but not least, from Margaret’s email,  The Justin Hall Spy Thriller Box Set ($0.99 USD) with Ethan Jones. This author is new to me and I’m curious. Set-in-Canada is a drawing card, being Canadian and all, and the language seems to be expletive free, so I’m gong for it. I may not get through all three books but at least I’ll know if I like his style.

The Justin Hall box set

Well, that’s it for today. Not a bad selection at all. We have a fair bit of intriging variety again and I’m feeling pleased. It’s another good day for books.

Happy Reading.

 

 

Free and bargain books November 8, 2019

This mornings BookBub suggestion is a bargain book at $0.99 Christmas Roses. I first met author, Amanda Cabot, in one of my favorite book collection series using five contributors. I really enjoy her writing.

The story line is similar to other books just like it but the style and expression of thought makes it unique. I love it when the first few pages have me hooked.

Christmas Roses

I’m tempted to dive right in but first, The Chain You Forge is crying out to be finished. It is still a bargain at $1.30.

It’s a modern retelling of A Christmas Carol and it works for me. Sometimes retellings don’t seem to work all that well but this one does. It has enough similarities but adds a few new twists and turns to make it feel fresh and real. I’m pleasantly surprised to like it.

The Chain You Forge

Like Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, Benita is miserly and mean; in her business dealings and in the way she does life. Her late father was miserly and mean too and his ghost has visited to demand she change her ways. She will end up in chains like him unless she does. He decrees that the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future will visit her over the next three nights. To show her the truth of her life and what it will look like unless she makes drastic changes. She needs to become a better person.

Scrooge had a happy ending, maybe Benita will too.

BookRunes just came though with a FREE suggestion. Stepping Into The Light. Historical Fiction set in the Scottish Highlands. I’ve read and enjoyed Candee Fick before and expect this one will be a good read too. The first few paragraphs look promising.

Stepping Into The Light

An heir is needed to protect the future of the chiefdom but the prospective young ladies all meet with tragedy. Before they even have the chance to become the needed bride.

Recently, there was a similar sounding book but this doesn’t appear to be it. I enjoyed that one and this one does seem to have some differences, at first glance anyway. I’ll give it a try to see how it stacks up against the other one.

Happy Reading!

 

 

Free books November 4, 2019

BookBub’s suggestion this morning has been free before and is FREE again. A historical novel about life for USA pioneers travelling across the country by wagon train. Wagon Train Baby

Wagon Train Baby

The trip is difficult for anyone but it’s even harder for a young woman travelling alone. The wagon master’s rules say a woman isn’t allowed to travel with his group unless under the protection of a man. Her father planned to make the trip when they booked passage but changed his mind and backed out at the last minute.

She’s desperate to move back home and make a new life for herself. A young man travelling alone sees her distress and offers his protection. At least long enough to make the trip. He’s stepping up to help her out of a guilty conscience. His fiancé was killed in an attack and he’s convinced it was his fault. If he had been there …

She has a another dilemma. She is expecting a baby. A secret she must keep to herself or they will leave her behind no matter how much protection she has.

BookRunes FREE suggestion this morning is Uncommon Ground

I have downloaded several books from this author, Joy Ohagwu, but it’s been awhile and I can’t remember  enough about them to make a recommendation one way or the other. I’m looking forward to a reminder.

Uncommon Ground

Stella is widowed and struggling with a difficult relationship with her teenage daughter when disaster strikes, changing everything.

Searching for her daughter she meets Michael, a man with a mysterious past. Danger seems to follow him everywhere and life takes on unexpected twists and turns with him around.

Happy Reading

Two Free books October 30, 2019

Two FREE books and one recommendation. Well, three free books actually, counting the two today and one from yesterday.

The first one is via BookRunes and the second via an author I follow – Adam Blumer. (It sounds like he lives in an area with a climate similar to ours, it looks like they had a light dusting of snow too.)  The first two books are written by men, something I notice happening more and more in the kind of stories I’m drawn to. Very cool. Kindled Love and Kill Order

The third book is a recommendation, the thriller from yesterday. I wasn’t  sure about it at download but it turns out I’m half-way through and hooked. The way it’s written, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of angst to trigger negative emotional responses in me. I think maybe that’s why I can enjoy it even though the story has them hiding from a killer. It’s still free if you are interested in checking it out. Deadly Alliances

Kindled Love

Kill Order

Recommendation from yesterday

Deadly Alliances

Happy Reading… I hope you are loving it as much as I am today.

Free books October 26, 2019

I think I must be losing it. I’m pretty sure I’ve come across a book by this duo recently, Melanie Wilber author and Kevin Wilber editor. It sticks in my mind because it’s unusual to see credit listed as author and editor never mind that they are a husband and wife team. I’ve searched my download history but come up empty, so far anyway. Bottom line, there is a vague memory of their names but I don’t remember the book itself. If I did read it I  can’t say if I liked it or not. It seems strange their names don’t appear anywhere on the cover.

So, three FREE books today!

BookRunes daily email suggested this book Wildflowers

Wildflowers

Then, while I was trying to figure things out I stumbled across this book by the same authors Home for Christmas

Home for Christmas

If it turns out you like Melanie and Kevin Wilber books, they are a prolific duo on Amazon.

Of course, the search also lead to another book (different author) I recognized from 2015 (it’s lovely that Amazon always tells me the purchase date) so we may as well add it to the list today too. Forever Dreams

Forever Dreams

A New Zealand school teacher arrives on a Montana cattle ranch, secretly searching for her missing father.

Happy Saturday and Happy Reading.

 

Mixed bag of Free books October 21, 2019

Free books this morning comes from a mixed bag of sources. BookBub, BookRunes, and Jennifer Youngblood, author.

Most of the books are written in a style that is, admittedly, not my favorite – lighter romance often involving the rich and the famous. They are well written so can’t be faulted on that level, personal preference is simply the issue here.

Three of the four authors – Jennifer Youngblood, Cami Checketts, and Melissa Storm – are prolific writers and they make good use of Kindle Unlimited. As shown below, a few of their books can be purchased $0.00 right now but I noticed many more can be found read-free on Kindle Unlimited. If you happen to be a subscriber this is good news. If you are interested search by authors name on Amazon and a large number of their books will come up for you.

I’m not sure is this rambling information is helpful at all but, hopefully…

Jenna is more my usual preference and I started reading it last night. It’s great so far.

Jenna

As for the others, The Hot Headed Patriot is one downloaded earlier in the year but the rest are new reads for me. I will check them all out, just in case, you never know when a story will make a connection. Wouldn’t that be a nice surprise. Hope springs eternal!

Happy Monday and Happy Reading!

Free books October 19, 2019

There was one FREE book this morning courtesy of BookRunes daily email. So I decided to cruise Amazon again today because it just seems wrong to quit at only one. I found three more that looked interesting. Several I’ve read before but only one of them is remembered, there will be a re-read in store for me on Texas Roads.

Timothy’s Home

Timothy's Home

I don’t recognize the author but the synopsis looks interesting for this historical novel and I’m looking forward to checking it out.

Hazardous Duty

hazardous duty

I’ve mentioned this book before but it’s free and a fun book so…. here it is again. Give it a try if you like fun mysteries.

A Hero to Keep

A Hero to Keep

This one is totally new to me, both the book and the author. It’s about family drama, someone in need of rescue, and a care-giver not used to asking for help. At least that’s what I gathered with a quick look. I plan to read it to see if I thought wrong.

Texas Roads

Texas Roads

It’s hard for me to find free books I haven’t had before. This one says 2013 for me. I’m sure I’ve read it but will read it again to be sure.

Looking forward to another interesting week-end line up of books. I hope you are too.

Happy Reading!

One free book, and a disappointing review for Her Last First Kiss

One FREE book today, courtesy of BookRunes daily email. It appears I would have read this book when I downloaded it in 2013 but I don’t remember. I’ll check it out again, along with you, to see if I liked it or not.

The nephew's wife

A disappointing book review.

This is good bad example… of a story that really isn’t a story, it’s a vehicle used to fulfill a desired purpose. In my opinion.

Her Last First Kiss

The purpose often seems to be; to meet a need to hear the juicy details of a relationship between a hunky man and a beautiful woman. To be fair, the purpose in this case isn’t to provide erotica. The interaction is clean, if you are making a comparison to other books. My complaint isn’t with behavior, it’s with the fixation on behavior at the expense of the tale I was hoping to hear.

A need to focus on boy/girl interaction is something I’ve never been able to understand. I admit I’m not sure why this is. Maybe it’s because at an early age I lived through my own abusive encounters and that had a negative effect. Or maybe it’s just because that’s who I am. As a teen I had zero interest in discussing boys even though I dated through high school.

I’ve never thought too deeply about why I didn’t care about boy talk, I just know I like what I like and the focus on raging hormones is not it.

I do like to read about relationships that turn into deep love. Marriages built on  kindness and respect. Maybe this is because life modeled for me in my formative years was based on lust, with a lack of either kindness or respect.

It would be easy to believe the bad example lived before me is all there is to life but as an adult I’ve witnessed positive relationships lived out of deep love. Not many of them mind you, but enough to know it is possible.

The main thing here though is – healthy or unhealthy – I don’t need to hear all the gory details. Tell me a good multi dimensional story, including a few appropriate descriptions important to the flow of the story.

In the case of this book; the story line is weak and frustrating. So much so that I called it quits without even going to the end to see how it all turned out. (Scarlett was there to help turn around her ailing grandfather’s struggling ranch. The ranch took a back seat to her love interest.)

So, in the end, I wasn’t offended, just disappointed.

Calling a book good or bad depends on your point of view. Some books are bad, period, no matter what. This book is not one of them.

You may read it, see things in a different light, and like it more than I did.

Happy reading! There is a weekend coming up.

 

Free book October 16, 2019

One FREE book, so far, today maybe there will be more later

Callie comes to us courtesy of the BookRunes daily email.

Callie

This shows up on my Amazon download list as a book from 2015. It definitely looks familiar although I can’t bring up a solid memory of reading it.

The first few paragraphs of the online preview, to refresh my memory, has me sending it to my kindle. I’m hooked with the first page.

I’ve learned that Callie is traumatized over memories surrounding the death of a small child. It happened many years before and for some reason she feels guilty over her part in it. Not sure what yet, but something has happened to resurrect the circumstances of  this tragedy, bringing the fallout forward into her present day.

With reservations for a special dinner out Callie’s husband is encouraged, the ambiance is working just as he hoped it would… a distraction.

In an instant the magical evening is destroyed.  The sight of a man heading to a table across the room has Callie running from the restaurant as if she’s seen a ghost.

This book is next up for me… I need to know what happened.

 

Happy Reading!