war

More read and enjoyed. March 27, 2023

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

Just now finished this one. It’s another 5 star read and to my great disappointment it ended much too soon. It could have easily gone on a few more chapters.

There were strong elements of the story that were familiar enough to make me think I had read this before. On the other hand there were also unfamiliar elements. Mostly, I think it was a new story but I’m not one hundred percent sure about that. I loved the story anyway and I’m glad to have read it, either way.

Searching for Anna: (Love in Lansing Book 1)

As the Great War rages in Europe, Anna Gibson struggles to make ends meet as a seamstress in a small dress shop in Lansing, Michigan. She is content with her life. Or, so she thinks. However, a handsome suitor from her former life unexpectedly reappears, and she finds herself questioning her future when he begins to open doors to her past.

Warren Mallory has never taken life too seriously…until now. Suddenly, he is very serious about finding the amber-eyed beauty that has haunted his thoughts since she left him standing alone on that street corner. And once he has, he doesn’t plan to let her vanish again.

But even as fate draws them together, the sparks of chemistry are doused when a mysterious package and a long-hidden secret threaten to drive them apart. Can Anna forgive the past in order to be with Warren, or will pride and misconceptions make her walk away from the only man she has ever loved?

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

This next one did not rate as high in my estimation. I gave it four stars. The story was enjoyable, I had no complaints there. It just couldn’t hold my attention as well as the previous book. When I consider the reason for that, it comes down to the writing, or maybe more fairly, it comes down to the editing. Many of the lines shaking my attention were easily fixable and I so wanted to do it. It wasn’t a waste of time though, I did enjoy the story…

Two life changing events have adversely affected Jade’s work performance and her boss insists she take all of her three months accumulated vacation time to grieve and recuperate.

Returning to the scene of happier days and deep regret, Daniel is at the end of his rope, hoping somehow to make things right.

Beach House Promises (Brighton Beach Retreat Series Book 1)

Jade Brighton can’t take much more. Her life has already been upended, leaving her and her daughter in desperate need of recovery time. So they pack their bags and head to the family beach house to recharge and recover.

Daniel Barnhill has spent his life lamenting the one who got away. In a desperate attempt to escape his father, Daniel heads for the small town of Blackstone Cove. Not only is he surprised to find her again, but he also can’t believe she has a child.

Can Jade and Daniel rebuild what they once had or has time and life pushed them too far apart?

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

I thought I had my next read picked out but if I did it’s disappeared. Maybe it would be good to try another partially started World War II story. Hopefully it will work for me this time, some stories are just tough to get into. If it doesn’t work, I will at least read the ending, I can do that much.

Shadowed by a Spy (Suspicious Shores Book 2) 

When Lexie Smithfield boards the early morning Long Island train to Manhattan in 1942, she feels safe having left the threat of danger behind her at Jekyll Island. Little does she know, the four men who boarded the train with her are Nazi spies sent to wreak havoc in the United States.

Did the so-called Smithfield family curse follow her to New York?

What will happen to Lexie when she innocently befriends one of the spies and gets involved in the spy ring? And with her fiance Russell overseas, who will protect her?

Free book January 20, 2023

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

We have a FREE book.

From an author new to us. And a story set in World War 1 this time.

Reading the reviews it looks like a good read and I’m going to give it a try. BookRunes gets the credit for today’s recommendation.

In the Shadow of Your Wings (Northshire Heritage (WW1 Inspirational Fiction)) 

A past she can’t escape. A future he wants to make his own. A war that comes between them. She’s a spy in love with the enemy. 

Leila Durand, an elite German spy charged with infiltrating the home of British icon Thomas Steele, hopes to use the war to move beyond the pain of her shattered past. But everything changes when she falls in love with Thomas’s son, Malcolm. Is there a way to reconcile her love for Germany and her love for the enemy?

He’s a son who wants to break free. Malcolm, wealthy heir to Northshire Estate, wants nothing more than to be free of his father’s rules. When his father forces him to choose between his social status and the woman he loves, Malcolm makes a choice that threatens to bring the Allied world to its knees.

In the Shadow of Your Wings presents inescapable truth that resonates across the past century. Then as now, the struggle for faith is real. Then as now, there is a refuge for all who come beneath the shadow of God’s wings.

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

This seems to be a popular genre right now. More and more books keep popping up.

I’m not seeing anything else interesting at the moment but I’ll be back if any others show up.

Happy Reading!

Bargain books Part Two January 17, 2023

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

As promised. Here is Part Two with more good reads. These were all found while browsing.

Sadly, we are down by one, it wasn’t what I first thought. I haven’t found a replacement yet either but I will keep my eyes open just in case something else shows up.

I’ve enjoyed the recent reads from this first author.

When Twilight Breaks: A World War 2 Spy Fiction Book

Munich, 1938. Evelyn Brand is an American foreign correspondent as determined to prove her worth in a male-dominated profession as she is to expose the growing tyranny in Nazi Germany. To do so, she must walk a thin line. If she offends the government, she could be expelled from the country–or worse. If she fails to truthfully report on major stories, she’ll never be able to give a voice to the oppressed–and wake up the folks back home.

In another part of the city, American graduate student Peter Lang is working on his PhD in German. Disillusioned with the chaos in the world due to the Great Depression, he is impressed with the prosperity and order of German society. But when the brutality of the regime hits close, he discovers a far better way to use his contacts within the Nazi party–to feed information to the shrewd reporter he can’t get off his mind.

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

I’m always happy to see another book from this next author.

Narrow Escape (Vanishing Ranch Book 9)

This has a very big blurb to go with it. Book Description Coming Soon

Oh well. I’ve enjoyed the other eight in this series and they had interesting situations and characters so I guess we will trust this one to be worthwhile too.

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

I found another one to make three. It’s looking good from the beginning too.

The Element of Love (The Lumber Baron’s Daughters Book #1) 

She mixed danger, desperation, and deception together. Love was not the expected outcome.

With their sharp engineering minds, Laura Stiles and her two sisters have been able to deal with their mother’s unfortunate choice in husband until they discovered his plans to marry each of them off to his lecherous friends. Now they must run away–far and fast–to find better matches to legally claim their portion of their father’s lumber dynasty and seize control from their stepfather.

During their escape, Laura befriends a mission group heading to serve the poor in California. She quickly volunteers herself and her sisters to join their efforts. Despite the settlement being in miserable condition, the sisters are excited by the opportunity to put their skills to good use. Laura also sees potential in Caleb, the mission’s parson, to help with gaining her inheritance. But when secrets buried in Caleb’s past and in the land around them come to light, it’ll take all the smarts the sisters have to keep trouble at bay.

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

And one more with a little different twist from the others. I haven’t decided if I’m going to read it but just in case I want to …

Mail-Order Bride Mommy (Montana Mail-Order Brides Book 1)

Matt Shannon lost his fiancé to a tragic accident. He does not want anything more to do with love and marriage. But he is now guardian to four-year-old Lindy. Desperate for a woman to mother the little girl, he arranges for a mail-order bride. The agreement is for convenience only, but Gwen’s kindness and good nature threaten his barred heart.

Gwen Humber is willing to do anything to guarantee herself a permanent home…even travel west for a marriage in name only. She’ll become mother to a little girl. She instantly loves the delightful child, but loving Matt is not part of the deal. Can she keep her heart under control?

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

It has been a good day.

This might be it for the rest of the week. That would be too sad, so we hope not.

Happy Reading y’all.

This and that December 13, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

What are my favorite physical activities you ask? Hmmmm. Well, I like to walk and read since I discovered I could. I don’t do it outside very often because it wouldn’t be safe. Losing myself in a story is risky, for a number of reasons.

I do enjoy losing myself in a book while circling my long, oval, dining room table. It’s easy to find myself on auto pilot, forgetting I’m still walking. That’s what you call good muscle memory keeping me on track without killing myself.

The other thing I like to do in the spring to get back in shape after an inactive winter is dig in my flower beds and clean up the debris of winter. The added bonus to restored muscle tone is the pleasure of a job well done. Everything looks so much better and it gives me joy.

It takes a deliberate effort to pay attention, remembering to move around more often.

I’ve been considering getting a device to count my steps maybe that would be motivate me to do better.

So the reason for this little conversation was the story prompt that’s been appearing lately at the top of each new post. This is my first attempt to take a stab at it. I am out of ideas and could use a little help getting the creative juices. That’s what happens by reading all the time, your mind zones out staring at words floating by.

I’m trying to finish up with my current read. The tension is getting to me and I want to be done. I did go to the beginning of the second last chapter to see if I would be ok with staying there to finish up, skipping over the rest. Nope. Had to go back to where I left off. At least I know they will make it home so I’ve gone back to where I left off.

The tension is because it’s World War Two, they are acquaintances, both Americans living in occupied France where Germany has taken over but they are not yet at war with the Americans.

He is a widow with a four year old daughter, she is a single woman, a ballerina turned bookstore owner having left the ballet to help out a friend.

Over time a friendship develops as Paul and his daughter frequent the bookshop. Inadvertently, they each become a quiet part of the resistance movement. It would mean prison or loss of life if they were ever found out.

To make a long story short, with new discoveries about each other they knew they had to be ready with an escape plan. It wouldn’t be if it was needed, it would just be a matter of when.

Pearl Harbor has been bombed, the US has entered the war and it’s time to flee occupied France to avoid interment camps. A nerve wracking feat made worse by having to split up for safety reasons. Lucie and little Josie will pass in their disguise as French mother and daughter but Paul still sounds like an American. This fact could put them and everyone around them in danger. Not acceptable.

That’s as far as I’ve gotten, at least I know they eventually made it to America, at least the ladies did.

At the moment they are still having to face armed soldiers at the many checkpoints. I will be happy when they finally board a ship bound for America.

Here is the visual for what I’m reading.

Until Leaves Fall in Paris

As the Nazis march toward Paris in 1940, American ballerina Lucie Girard buys her favorite English-language bookstore to allow the Jewish owners to escape. Lucie struggles to run Green Leaf Books due to oppressive German laws and harsh conditions, but she finds a way to aid the resistance by passing secret messages between the pages of her books.

Widower Paul Aubrey wants nothing more than to return to the States with his little girl, but the US Army convinces him to keep his factory running and obtain military information from his German customers. As the war rages on, Paul offers his own resistance by sabotaging his product and hiding British airmen in his factory. After they meet in the bookstore, Paul and Lucie are drawn to each other, but she rejects him when she discovers he sells to the Germans. And for Paul to win her trust would mean betraying his mission.

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

I’m sure I have been guilty of spoilers, giving too much of the story away but hey, I doubt there are tons and tons of you waiting to read this book. Just a feeling I have, you know.

I’ve looked at the stats, I think we are safe.

Time is flying, must go. Morning comes early.

Not sure I’m awake enough to have avoided major editorial pitfalls.

No new books today but maybe tomorrow.

Happy reading.

Free and bargain books December 12, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

We have an interesting line up today. Nothing too serious, I don’t think so anyway. No murders and dead bodies this time. A number of new authors for us too.

First up, BookBub has a Christmas offering for us. We’ve seen Dan Walsh often lately.

Keeping Christmas

For the first time since their children were born, empty nesters Judith and Stan Winters spent Thanksgiving alone, without the kids and grandkids. It’s looking like Christmas will be the same.

Judith can hardly bear the thought and struggles even to decorate the house. But soon some wonderful and totally unexpected events turn things completely around, starting with that box of “ugly ornaments” (as Stan calls them). Could they be the key to rescuing their Christmas this year?

A “beautifully written story” for the holiday season, or any time of the year.

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

LPC Free Books has a suggestion for us. Tis the season for Christmas stories. This is an author we have not seen so this will be a surprise.

The Ornament Keeper: A Novella

Award-winning author Eva Marie Everson wraps up a Christmas story of hope, love, and forgiveness just in time for the holidays. 

The Ornament Keeper, a contemporary Christmas novella, features Felicia and Jackson Morgan who are spending their first Christmas apart after twenty years of marriage. But a lifetime of gifted ornaments helps Felicia piece together the story of their marriage and the one mistake of unforgiveness she made before they said, “I do.”

Can these memory-filled ornaments reunite this family before Christmas? Only time will tell.

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

Browsing, I discovered an offering from an author new to me. It’s always nice to meet someone for the first time.

Promise Kept (Harland Creek Series Book 1)

Lying on her job application wasn’t the best way to kick off her fresh start in a small town, but Heather Smith is out of options. She desperately needs the job, or she will soon be without a place to live. Even so, Heather truly likes Elizabeth Harland, the old woman who hired her as her caregiver, and is eager to work hard and prove she’s right for the task.

Now, if she could just figure out why a local farmer keeps casting suspicious glares her way...

Sure, Grayson McCade has his hands full with his farm. That doesn’t change the fact that he considers the residents of Harland Creek family, and he takes time to look out for them all. The second he learns a newcomer has been hired to care for Elizabeth, he worries the kind-hearted old woman is being scammed.

Acting on what he believes to be the best of intentions, he sets out to uncover the truth about Heather’s past. Will the secrets revealed tarnish Heather’s new start before it even begins? Or will Grayson help make Harland Creek the home her heart longs for?

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

Another author new to us. Beautiful cover. I have high hopes for the story too.

Where the Last Rose Blooms (Heirloom Secrets)

“Tender and true, this novel draws you in from the first page.”–SUSAN MEISSNER, bestselling author of The Nature of Fragile Things

Alice runs a New Orleans flower shop alongside her aunt, but thoughts of her mother, who went missing during Hurricane Katrina, are never far from her mind. After getting off on the wrong foot with a handsome yet irritating man who comes to her shop, Alice soon realizes their worlds overlap–and the answers they both seek can be found in the same place.

In 1861 Charleston, Clara is known to be a rule follower–but the war has changed her. Unbeknownst to her father, who is heavily involved with the Confederacy, she is an abolitionist and is prepared to sacrifice everything for the cause. With assistance from a dashing Union spy, she attempts to help an enslaved woman reunite with her daughter. But things go very wrong when Clara agrees to aid the Northern cause by ferrying secret information about her father’s associates.

Faced with the unknown, both women will have to dig deep to let their courage bloom.

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

A good day for new an interesting stories.

I’m enjoying the fascinating characters in my current read. It’s historical fiction and I think the main characters will turn out to be spies for the good guys. Haven’t gone far enough yet to discover how that all works though. It’s still a bargain if you hurry.

Until Leaves Fall in Paris

As the Nazis march toward Paris in 1940, American ballerina Lucie Girard buys her favorite English-language bookstore to allow the Jewish owners to escape. Lucie struggles to run Green Leaf Books due to oppressive German laws and harsh conditions, but she finds a way to aid the resistance by passing secret messages between the pages of her books.

Widower Paul Aubrey wants nothing more than to return to the States with his little girl, but the US Army convinces him to keep his factory running and obtain military information from his German customers. As the war rages on, Paul offers his own resistance by sabotaging his product and hiding British airmen in his factory. After they meet in the bookstore, Paul and Lucie are drawn to each other, but she rejects him when she discovers he sells to the Germans. And for Paul to win her trust would mean betraying his mission.

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

It has been an excellent book day. I’d better get reading if I expect to keep up. Maybe have supper along with it. My favorite way to eat.

Happy Reading!

Bargain books December 10, 2022 Part two

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

Another irresistible bargain book showed up as I was snooping around. More historical fiction, this time involving a different war with ships on the high seas. And definitely with romance.

A Heart Adrift: A Novel

A Virginia chocolatier and a privateering sea captain collide once more after a failed love affair a decade before. Will a war and a cache of regrets keep them apart? Or will a new shared vision reunite them?*****

It is 1755, and the threat of war with France looms over colonial York, Virginia. Chocolatier Esmée Shaw is fighting her own battle of the heart. Having reached her twenty-eighth birthday, she is reconciled to life alone after a decade-old failed love affair from which she’s never quite recovered. But she longs to find something worthwhile to do with her life.


Captain Henri Lennox has returned to port after a lengthy absence, intent on completing the lighthouse in the dangerous Chesapeake Bay, a dream he once shared with Esmée. But when the colonial government asks him to lead a secret naval expedition against the French, his future is plunged into uncertainty.

Will a war and a cache of regrets keep them apart, or can their shared vision and dedication to the colonial cause heal the wounds of the past? Bestselling and award-winning author Laura Frantz whisks you away to a time fraught with peril–on the sea and in the heart–in this redemptive, romantic story.

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

Another intriguing book showed up in the suggestion strip and after reading the whole sample I’m hooked. This one will be my next read, unless I’m distracted and forget about it. It’s been known to happen.

Expecting Danger (Small-Town Guardians Book 2)

Kate has been on the run from the men who killed her husband and left her for dead—which isn’t easy considering she’s eight months pregnant—but now they’ve found her. Again. Still reeling from her late husband’s betrayal, the last thing Kate wants is the help of a handsome stranger.

Security expert, Jacob Jones, is still grieving the loss of his pregnant wife, and he’s not ready to move on. But when he thwarts an attempted abduction of the beautiful Kate, he finds himself inexplicably drawn to her. Despite her reluctance, he’s determined to do whatever it takes to save her, including giving up his own life.

Kate’s only option is to take a leap of faith and allow Jacob to help her. But can she trust him to keep her and her unborn baby alive? Or will he fail her like everyone else in her life?

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

Book one in this series is still a bargain too. I see I’ve read this one already. They are standalone stories so it’s safe to read them out of order.

Hidden Danger (Small-Town Guardians Book 1)

All Maggie Jones wants to do is sell her late father’s property and get out of Whitehaven, Texas as fast as possible—before she runs into the one man she’s spent the past six years avoiding. Someone has other plans for her, though. Sinister plans. And when a seemingly harmless act of vandalism turns into a series of menacing threats, she has no choice but to turn to last person on earth she wants to see for help.

Sheriff Cody Smith never expected to see Maggie again, especially after he’d broken her heart all those years ago. Maybe this is the second chance he’s always wanted. But when he realizes Maggie’s in grave danger, he intends to keep her safe at all costs. With lines from an old nursery rhyme as their only clue, he needs to find out who’s behind this deadly game before the rhyme ends and Maggie’s time runs out. Can he protect her, catch the bad guy, and make amends for past wrongs? Or will old wounds get in the way?

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

That’s it for tonight.

Happy Reading!

Bargain book December 10, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

It has been a good day. Family has arrived for the Christmas season and life is good.

Not only that but we have an interesting bargain suggestion today.

At dinner tonight family wanted to know if bargain books were worth reading and I assured them that the ones I choose are. I figure that with thousands of books read over the last decade and a half that makes me an experienced and discerning reader. I share what I am willing to read and I can say it has to be a book that is worth my time to make it on to my reading device.

Cheap doesn’t necessarily mean poorly written.

Many authors use price breaks as a way to attract buyers for their books. Usually it will be one of the books in a series, to get us hooked so we will buy the rest. Over time another book in the series will be offered as incentive too so patience works well.

I’m always on the look out for 4 and 5 star books and mostly that’s what we get. Occasionally one of them will be a disappointment but I keep track of author experiences and try to avoid future disappointments.

It’s kind of like food, where you discover awesome restaurants and ever after make you dining choices based on those experiences. I know a good book when I see it and avoid the not-so-great books as much as possible. There are many talented writers out there that are worth our time and money.

I can guarantee (most of the time) quality writing for a good experience.

What I can’t guarantee is a genre you will love every time. There is no accounting for taste (as they say) and we all love differently. Sorry about that.

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

Today’s suggestion from BookBub looks interesting. It’s historical, set during war time, a theme we have seen often lately. This story looks to have a fresh approach and so I’m inclined to give it a try.

Until Leaves Fall in Paris

As the Nazis march toward Paris in 1940, American ballerina Lucie Girard buys her favorite English-language bookstore to allow the Jewish owners to escape. Lucie struggles to run Green Leaf Books due to oppressive German laws and harsh conditions, but she finds a way to aid the resistance by passing secret messages between the pages of her books.

Widower Paul Aubrey wants nothing more than to return to the States with his little girl, but the US Army convinces him to keep his factory running and obtain military information from his German customers. As the war rages on, Paul offers his own resistance by sabotaging his product and hiding British airmen in his factory. After they meet in the bookstore, Paul and Lucie are drawn to each other, but she rejects him when she discovers he sells to the Germans. And for Paul to win her trust would mean betraying his mission.

Master of WWII-era fiction Sarah Sundin invites you onto the streets of occupied Paris to discover whether love or duty will prevail.

Happy Reading

Free and bargain books August 01, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / 2 Comments

LPC Free Books has a Free historical romance/mystery suggestion for us. This is book two in the series, we read and enjoyed book one several years ago.

I’ve added links as suggested by one of my followers, I hope it helps. Let me know in the comments.

Shadowed by a Spy (Suspicious Shores Book 2)

When Lexie Smithfield boards the early morning Long Island train to Manhattan in 1942, she feels safe having left the threat of danger behind her at Jekyll Island. Little does she know, the four men who boarded the train with her are Nazi spies sent to wreak havoc in the United States.

Did the so-called Smithfield family curse follow her to New York?

What will happen to Lexie when she innocently befriends one of the spies and gets involved in the spy ring? And with her fiance Russell overseas, who will protect her?

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

1531 Entertainment has a FREE suggestion. We’ve read and enjoyed this author but this is the first book we’ve seen in this series.

A Grave Secret: A clean police procedural full of action, mystery and suspense! (Star of Justice Series Book 3) 

How many college students will die before CJ stops the deadly menace?

Moonshine and fentanyl are wreaking havoc on her campus. One student already paid the ultimate price. As assistant chief of police, it’s up to CJ to rid the campus of the lethal threat. In the meantime, the body count goes up in nearby communities.

While CJ and her team work to discover the source of the illicit substances, another body is found. The murder points to a calculating drug lord from CJ’s past… and he plays for keeps. The name that’s haunted her dreams ignites her worst fears.

His deadly reign must end, but will the cost be more than CJ’s willing to pay?

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

There is also a bargain suggestion from an author new to us.

Of Horse and Rider: Hearts Unlocked Series 

Plans overheard, a bargain to devise…but is it playing with fire?

In 1849 Mercer County, Kentucky, beautiful Clara Stanton loses her sight, freedom, and fiance after a horse-riding accident. In the throes of her desperation, her family leaves her to recover in the capable hands of an elderly widow while they travel to England without her.

New minister, Daniel Merrick, weary from scandal, is unwittingly led by blind Clara into the most important mission of his life. But will she dare to soar beyond the limits those around her deem safe?

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

One thing led to another and we have a bargain pre-order book by the same author. I’ve not read this author but would like to take a chance on her.

Of Pens and Ploughshares: Hearts Unlocked

In a duel of words, the son and daughter of opposing politicians go head-to-head until their hearts collide…

At one time, Rachel Enger thought she loved Warren Kendrick, except he left without responding to a single letter. Now he’s returned home to help his father win the mayoral election opposite her father and that means war.

Their battle spills from the Op-Ed section of the local newspaper to engulf the town. Sparks fly, eggs thrown, and mayhem ensues. Not to mention Mrs. Taylor’s rampaging goose is on the loose. Desperate for a measure of peace, the community leaders give the pair an unexpected ultimatum: work together until the election.

Can Rachel and Warren unify the town or will their divide continue to break it apart?

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

This has turned out to be a good book day after all.

I hope some of these appeal to you too.

Enjoy and Happy Reading.

Free and bargain books July 04, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

Happy July 4th to our American friends and relatives.

BookRunes has a FREE suggestion for us.

Songbird (The War Song Series Book 1)

When the travesties and social changes of World War II confront a small southern town, faith, family, and love sustain the lives of one young woman and her family. Can those left behind endure?

“I’m waiting for my life to begin. Waiting for the train to come in,” Ava Stilwell, a young woman eager for life, sings a popular song with the big band that reflects her heart. In the midst of a world at war, Ava has found love, a passion for her music, and new opportunities, but the war still looms over her, threatening to take it all away.

It’s 1943 and World War II has gripped the nation, including the Stilwell family. Rationing, bomb drills, patriotism, and a changing south barrage their way of life. Neighboring Fort McClellan has brought the world to their doorstep in the form of young soldiers from all over the country and German POWs from half way around the globe. As the travesties and social changes of the war confront this small southern town, faith, family, and love sustain them.

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

A bargain book showed up in the course of today’s search. It’s on pre-order and is the next book in a series we were introduced to a few weeks ago. Both books are still at bargain prices.

The new book…

As Silent as the Night (Strike to the Heart Series)

He can procure anything, except his heart’s deepest wish. She might hold the key, if she’s not discovered first.

Chicago, 1933―Lucia Critelli will do anything for her ailing grandfather, including stand in a breadline to have enough food to make him a St. Nicholas Day meal. When she catches the eye of a goon who threatens her grandfather, she discovers the end of Prohibition doesn’t mean the end of the mafia’s criminal activity.

Retired Marine Scout Giosue “Gio” Vella can find anything, especially if it helps a fellow Italian immigrant, so he has no doubt he can locate his neighbor’s granddaughter, who has gone missing from a local church. Keeping her safe is another matter. Especially when he chooses to hide out with his Marine buddy in Eagle, Wisconsin, the site of a barely-held truce among striking dairy farmers.

Will Christmas bring the miracle they all need or will Gio discover there are some things even he can’t find, particularly when he stumbles upon the most elusive gift of all: love.

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

Book 1… I’ve read part of it.

A Strike to the Heart 

Wisconsin, 1933—When a routine mission becomes an ambush that kills his team, Craft Agency sniper Miles Wright determines to find the persons responsible and protect the woman he rescued. But the fierce independence that led Lily Moore to leave her family’s dairy business for the solitary life of a dog trainer and the isolation of her farm don’t make that easy. Neither does his unwanted attraction to her. Meanwhile, escalating incidents confirm that she’s far from safe.

Lily fears letting the surprisingly gentle retired marine into her life almost as much as she fears whoever is threatening her. As Wisconsin farmers edge toward another milk strike, one that will surely turn violent, it becomes clear that the plot against Lily may be part of a much larger conspiracy. When the search for her abductor leads close to home, she must decide whether to trust her family or the man who saved her life.

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

My current enjoyable read.

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

Happy Reading y’all

Read and enjoyed March 08, 2022

/ For the Love of Books / Leave a comment

I haven’t read much from this author and wasn’t sure how I felt about his writing. This book turned out to be an excellent read and now I’ve added Robert Whitlow to my favorites list of authors.

I’m also happy to have stayed with my decision to read to the end. My initial reluctance was due to the genre. Sometimes I feel like I’ve read more WWII novels than I can handle. I was back to experiencing a spark of interest and it paid off.

This one had unique elements to draw the reader in and that was a game changer. His story treatment was a mixture of old and new with a twist. I loved his characters too, except for the ones he wanted us to hate.

I loved this read.

The whole book was a surprise and I gave it five stars.

The Witnesses 

Young lawyer Parker House is on the rise—until his grandfather’s mysterious past puts both of their lives in danger.

Parker House’s secret inheritance is either his greatest blessing . . . or his deadliest curse. The fresh-faced North Carolina attorney shares his German grandfather’s uncanny ability to see future events in his mind’s eye—a gift that has haunted 82-year-old Frank House through decades of trying to erase a murderous wartime past.

While Parker navigates the intrigue and politics of small-town courtroom law, Frank is forced to face his darkest regrets. Then, a big career break for Parker collides with a new love he longs to nurture and the nightmares his grandfather can no longer escape. Sudden peril threatens to shatter not only Parker’s legal prospects but also his life and the lives of those dearest to him.

Two witnesses, two paths, an uncertain future.