reading

Free and bargain books April 06, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

This is a day for Romance.

BookRunes has a FREE popular author suggestion for us. There are 10 Pepper Basham books in my collection and I’ve read all but two. This is one of the two. It was added in 2018 and sadly I’m on my third reader since then and it was left behind. It has jumped to the head of the line for next up as current read.

Just the Way You Are (A Pleasant Gap Romance Book 1)

Single mom, Eisley Barrett, prefers to keep romance housed within a centuries-old mystery, but when she travels to England to unearth the secret, an actor with a sordid past offers her heart a very different type of discovery.

Wes Harrison has a past he’s ashamed to confess. Suspicious and cynical, he’s managed to avoid romantic entanglements since a tragedy upended his career and life, that is until American Eisley Barrett comes along. Her authenticity and kindness upend his bitter assumptions and send his heart into unscripted territory.

When his past threatens to ruin a second chance at love, can some Appalachian matchmaking and letters from the grave salvage their unexpected romance?

Humor, love, mystery, cute kids, crazy families, and culture clashes make this Britallachian Romance a unique and delightful romantic comedy sprinkled with adventure. A clean and spicy read.

*****************************

1531 Entertainment has a bargain suggestion.

Stay with Me (Misty River Romance, A Book #1)

Loving her is a risk he can’t afford . . . and can’t resist.

When acclaimed Bible study author Genevieve Woodward receives an anonymous letter referencing her parents’ past, she returns to her hometown in the Blue Ridge Mountains to chase down her family’s secret. However, it’s Genevieve’s own secret that catches up to her when Sam Turner, owner of a historic farm, uncovers the source of shame she’s worked so hard to hide.

Sam has embraced his sorrow, his isolation, and his identity as an outsider. He’s spent years carving out both career success and peace of mind. The last thing he wants is to rent the cottage on his property to a woman whose struggles stir his worst failure back to life. Yet can he bear to turn her away right when she needs him most?

****************************

That’s all there is for today, for the moment anyway. I’ll be back later if more shows up.

Happy Reading

Bargain book April 05, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / 3 Comments

1531 Entertainment has an interesting bargain suggestion. Another long time favorite author of mine with a book I’ve not read yet.

Vicious Cycle (Intervention Series Book 2)

Bestselling suspense author Terri Blackstock offers a harrowing look at drug addiction, human trafficking, and the devastating choices that can change lives forever.

When fifteen-year-old Lance Covington finds an abandoned baby in the backseat of a car, he knows she’s the newborn daughter of a meth addict he’s been trying to help. But when police arrest him for kidnapping, Lance is thrust into a criminal world of baby trafficking and drug abuse.

His mother, Barbara, looks for help from Kent Harlan—the man she secretly, reluctantly loves and who once helped rescue her daughter from a mess of her own.

Kent flies to Barbara’s aid and begins the impossible work of getting Lance out of trouble, protecting a baby who has no home, and finding help for a teenage mother hiding behind her lies.

***********************

That’s all I’m seeing for the moment, if anything else shows up I’ll be back.

Happy Reading y’all

Current read April 05, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

Today’s new read has a fresh slant to the family-secrets scenario. Besides that, the author is stingy with clues. At nine chapters in the main thing we know is that we don’t know anything. Who was this man? Famous author, awesomely wealthy, loving husband-father-grand father, frustratingly private. Where did he, or his wife, come from? Why is the first picture in the album their wedding picture? What happened to their childhood?

I’m intrigued with the story but admit to unexplained frustration. Sometimes it’s the writing style that leaves me on edge. That could be it.

There is an abundance of scene description and I’m wondering what importance this has to the story. Admittedly, it is a beautiful house and many will appreciate the word pictures. I guess I just don’t want to spend time figuring out what matters and what doesn’t. Especially when it comes to clothes and furniture.

There are a number of threads in the family dynamics that may or may not matter, as well.

Each member of the family (and their spouses by association) has become wealthy overnight. How will this change their lives and will the changes matter to the story.

Or:

Maybe the secrets once uncovered (if uncovered) will affect their lives more than their sudden wealth.

I’ll have to go back and read the blurb to see if I’m on track with my observations and projections.

The Discovery

Gerard Warner was not only a literary giant but a devoted family man. When he dies he leaves his Charleston estate to his grandson, Michael, an aspiring writer. Michael soon discovers an unpublished manuscript his grandfather had written, hidden from everyone but clearly intended for Michael to find. Michael reads an exciting tale of Nazi spies and sabotage, but this story is very different from all of Gerard Warner’s other books. It’s a love story.

As Michael delves deeper in, he discovers something that has the power to change not only his future but his past as well. Laced with suspense and intrigue, The Discovery is a richly woven novel that explores the incredible sacrifices that must be made to forge the love of a lifetime.

*********************

Yup. Big changes coming!

More free and bargain books April 04, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / 4 Comments

LPC Free Books has FREE repeat suggestions and one new bargain.

Rhapsody in Red (A Preston Barclay Mystery Book 1)

It was a bad day to find a corpse on campus.

Preston Barclay is a self-made recluse (and he likes it that way). Teaching college history allows him time to grieve the loss of his pianist wife and find relief from the musical hallucinations that have been playing in his head since her death.

But when he and a headstrong colleague, Mara Thorn, discover the body of another instructor on campus, Press’s monotonous solitude is shaken up. The preliminary evidence points to Press and Mara. Now they must take some chances, including trusting each other (and bending the rules) to build their own defense. With their unlikely alliance, they must stay ahead of the police, the college’s incompetent administration, and whoever is trying to get away with murder.

If not, they might end up unemployed, behind bars, or worse . . .

**************************

Land of My Dreams

Blessings come when you leave the familiar and take a step of faith.

Alone and betrayed by a former fiancé, American professor Bonny Bryant accepts a position at a small college in Fort William, Scotland. But when she meets a fellow professor, Bonny discovers her wounds may be the scars of healing Kieran MacDonell needs to reach past his own grief. Land of My Dreams spans the distance between New Mexico’s high desert mountains and the misty Scottish Highlands with a timeless story of overwhelming grief, undying love, and compelling faith.

************************

Bent Tree Bride: A Novel

“Romance. Intrigue. Honor. All that and more. I heartily recommend it.”
—Michelle Griep, Christy Award-winning author

Susanna Moore can’t get him out of her mind—the learned lieutenant who delivered the commission from Andrew Jackson making her father colonel of the Cherokee Regiment. But the next time she sees Lieutenant Sam Hicks, he’s leading a string of prisoners into a frontier fort, and he’s wearing the garb of a Cherokee scout rather than the suit of a white gentleman. 

As both Susanna’s father and Sam’s commanding officer, Colonel Moore couldn’t have made his directive to stay away from his daughter clearer to Sam. He wants a better match for Susanna—like the stuffy doctor who escorted her to Creek Territory. Then a suspected spy forces Moore to rely on Sam for military intelligence and Susanna’s protection, making it impossible for either to guard their heart.

***********************

A day with many books is a good day.

Happy Reading

Free and bargain books April 04, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

BookBub has a repeat FREE suggestion. Read and enjoyed.

Invisible (A Mendocino Village Novel Book 1)

When an overweight woman who’s hidden from romance discovers a handsome doctor is in love with her, will she finally risk her heart?

Ellyn–chef, cafe owner, and lover of butter–is hiding something behind her extra weight. While she sees the good in others, she has only condemnation for herself. So when a handsome widower claims he’s attracted to Ellyn, she’s certain there’s something wrong with him.

Sabina–tall, slender, and exotic–left her husband, young adult daughters, and a thriving counseling practice to spend a year in Northern California where she says she’s come to heal. But it seems to Ellyn that Sabina’s doing more hiding than healing. Why?Twila has come out of hiding and is working to gain back the pounds she lost when her only goal was to disappear. When her eating disorder is triggered again, she’s tempted to go back into hiding.

As these women’s lives intertwine, will they dare to come out of hiding?

**************************

1531 Entertainment has a bargain suggestion. Another read and enjoyed.

Key Witness (The Security Experts Book 1)

After witnessing an armed robbery, a woman in danger needs a bodyguard’s protection in this suspenseful romance from USA TODAY bestselling author Christy Barritt, part of The Security Experts series.

When Elle Philips witnesses an armed robbery while standing in line at the bank, she sets into motion a deadly game of cat and mouse. Mark Denton, a security contractor and former Navy SEAL, also witnesses the robbery, and is hired by Elle’s father to keep his daughter safe following the incident. And while Denton’s desire to protect Elle goes beyond professional bounds, he cannot let personal feelings cloud his judgment—judgment he’ll have to rely on when the robbers’ true motives are revealed…and Elle becomes a target in the ultimate plot of revenge.

**************************

More to come in next installment.

Happy Reading.

Current read April 03, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

Willow works with her grandfather searching for and finding unknown or lost descendants, usually to settle the estates of the recently departed. The dead looking for the living. This time the search is commissioned by someone living.

Twenty-one years ago a woman posing as a nurse walked out of her room carrying her newborn daughter. The FBI have never been able to catch a break in solving the abduction. Subsequently, many private investigators haven’t fared any better. Katelyn has faith in Willow’s grandfather and his reputation. He has the uncanny ability to find people others haven’t been able to.

Now, Willow is in a tough place. This is the only case her grandfather had going, and he is not here to carry it out. Several weeks ago he was hit and died while riding his bicycle. Willow is feeling reluctant about her ability to solve this case but her attitude changes when someone tries to kill her. First burning down her home where she should have died and then attempting to destroy her office building with her in it. With these recent developments the accident case is now also under suspicion.

It is unsettling to think someone wants to end her life and even more unsettling to find her grandfather has enlisted unexpected help with the case. A case she knows nothing about. Why is that?

Never Let Go (Uncommon Justice Book #1) 

As a forensic genealogist, Willow Anderson is following in her late grandfather’s footsteps in her quest for answers about a baby abducted from the hospital more than twenty years ago. The case may be cold, but things are about to heat up when someone makes an attempt on her life to keep her from discovering the truth.

Ex-FBI agent–and Willow’s ex-flame–Austin McKade readily offers his help to protect the woman he never should have let get away. Together they’ll follow where the clues lead them, even if it means Austin must face the past he’s spent much of his life trying to forget. And even if it puts Willow’s tender heart at risk.

In this fast-paced and emotional page-turner, USA Today bestselling author Elizabeth Goddard keeps the stakes high, the romantic tension sparking, and the outcome uncertain until the very end.

****************************

I’m not so sure about the fast paced part but it definitely is emotional. I’ll admit to enjoying the read while skipping quickly through many places. More detail than is needed to advance the story.

Check it out if this synopsis appeals to you.

Happy Reading!

Bargain book Saturday April 02, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / 2 Comments

BookBub has a bargain suggestion from a long time favorite author. I’m thrilled, it’s a book I haven’t read.

The Cottage on Lighthouse Lane (Miramar Bay Book 5)

Sometimes life flips the script . . .

Billy Walker is a North Carolina boy whose Hollywood star is beginning to shine. His rough past is in the rear view. Now seeing the world from the back seat of a limousine, Billy has no regrets about what he had to do, and the choices he made, to get there. But all it takes is one death-defying moment for Billy’s world to shift. When an on-set accident leaves him shaken, plagued by haunting dreams, he’s in desperate need of a rest cure. Given keys to a getaway cottage on Lighthouse Lane in Miramar Bay, he’ll regroup, relax, and recover. Yet as Billy’s dreams grow darker and more fearful, his only promise for light is in a stunning, mysterious, and uniquely gifted stranger . . .

And your next act is rewritten  . . .

 Mimi has never forgotten her tragic childhood in eastern Ukraine. Violence, a vanished family, abandonment, and a hard-won struggle to escape. Miramar Bay couldn’t be a more beautiful or unexpected refuge. In yoga and dance, and imbued with a talent to read the unrestful visions of others, Mimi has a seemingly divine ability to comfort.  She may be everything Billy desires, but Mimi knows what Billy needs. He must confront his troubling past—and not just in his dreams. As their connection deepens, Billy finds himself falling in love, and waking up to something he’s never felt before. But when the real world comes calling again, how can he say goodbye to a woman who’s changing his life one illuminating sunrise at a time?

Poignant, powerful, and surprising, this is a love story for every wounded heart that hoped to feel again.

**************************

I’ll be back later if there’s more. Saturday’s are slim on suggestions sometimes.

Happy Reading y’all

Another new current read April 02, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

This one has been on the back burner for a while now, neglected, lost in the shuffle. Over shadowed by the popular crowd. There are three books in the line-up by this author but none of them have had a fair chance at being chosen.

This book didn’t catch for me back when it first joined the list. With this attempt, continuing on from the last page read (which was only the first chapter or two) seems to have been a good choice. I must say it is catching my interest this time around. Maybe I just needed to be in the right mood. Timing is everything sometimes.

Always Look Twice (Uncommon Justice Book #2)

At the advice of her therapist, homicide survivor Harper Reynolds has traded her job as a crime scene photographer for a more peaceful life taking photographs of the natural world. But her hopes for a life surrounded by the serenity of the outdoors are dashed when she inadvertently captures a murder being committed in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. She flees the scene in fear–and loses the camera.

Former Green Beret Heath McKade is a reserve deputy in an understaffed county who has been called in to protect Harper, a childhood friend he is surprised to see back in the area. When Harper learns that the sheriff’s department can’t find any evidence of the murder she witnessed, she is determined to do what she can to see that justice is done. What neither Harper nor Heath could know is how many explosive secrets from the past will be exposed–or how deeply they will fall for each other.

**************************

I’m glad it’s working for me now. I’ll let you now how it all turns out.

It’s at a decent price too if you are interested.

Happy weekend Reading!

Bargain book April 01, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

BookBub has an interesting bargain suggestion for us.

Never Let Go (Uncommon Justice Book #1)

As a forensic genealogist, Willow Anderson is following in her late grandfather’s footsteps in her quest for answers about a baby abducted from the hospital more than twenty years ago. The case may be cold, but things are about to heat up when someone makes an attempt on her life to keep her from discovering the truth.

Ex-FBI agent–and Willow’s ex-flame–Austin McKade readily offers his help to protect the woman he never should have let get away. Together they’ll follow where the clues lead them, even if it means Austin must face the past he’s spent much of his life trying to forget. And even if it puts Willow’s tender heart at risk.

***********************

That’s all there is folks. For now anyway.

Enjoy this beautiful sunny day.

Happy Reading.

More bargains March 31, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

Today’s current read ended with an ad for the book next in the series. Irresistible. We actually met Maddox in newly read book 2.

Maddox (Lantern Beach Blackout: Danger Rising Book 3)

He’s on the case . . . and she’s his prime suspect.

Former Navy SEAL Maddox King’s latest assignment for Blackout is to obtain information on a possible domestic terrorist operation. To do so, he must go undercover as a maintenance man at an estate owned by real estate tycoon Seymore Foggerty.

Taryn Parsons is his prime suspect. The woman was plucked out of obscurity to become Mr. Foggerty’s personal assistant. Beneath her innocent demeanor, does she have ulterior motives and plans to gain from the man’s wealth and connections?

Maddox has trouble believing Taryn is guilty. But someone is trying to kill Mr. Foggerty and has plans for his property. Maddox is running out of time to find answers, and with more suspects than he can count, this assignment may be his most challenging yet . . . for his heart and his skills.

***************************

There were several other bargains crossing paths with us but this one stood above the rest.

It promises fun humor.

Time After Tyme

WITH TIME ALL THINGS ARE REVEALED

Nancy Drew meets Tom Sawyer in this delightful and thought-provoking romp through the third book in The Watch Series of clean mysteries. Secret codes and university intrigue combine to give Kathryn Frasier and Cece Goldman a new and puzzling mystery to solve. But things get dicey when two misguided young girls wander into the middle of the investigation and decide to solve it themselves.

Can Kathryn and Cece decipher the codes and protect the youngsters before the killer strikes again?

“Delightfully clever!” — Jodie Renner, author of the award-winning writing guide Fire Up Your Fiction.

*************************

Enjoy!