Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Queen of the Rockies by Angela Breidenbach

About the Book

Book: Queen of the Rockies

Author: Angela Breidenbach

Genre: Historical Romance

Release date: September 1, 2021

What will her courage cost?
1889 (Helena, MT): As the gold rush era ends in the most elegant and modern city in the world and Montana emerges as a state, one woman must decide if social pressure will prevail over her own beliefs. Calista Blythe enters the first Miss Snowflake Pageant celebrating Montana at Christmastime to expose the plight of street urchins. But hiding an orphan could unravel Calista’s reputation, and her budding romance with pageant organizer, Albert Shanahan, if her secret is revealed. Will love or social pressure prevail? Courage is choosing to do the right thing regardless of the cost… Romantic, comedic adventure set in picturesque Helena, Montana written by a bestselling author who is also a professional genealogist.

My Thoughts:

Oh this is a good historical romance read. I loved that the author obviously did a lot of research and incorporated that into this story. Montana is a new state and there is a lot of stuff I didn't realize about the time period that were surprising to me. The orphan trail was a shock and heartbreak for me.

I liked Calista and Albert and their story was really good. Montana has always been a place of wonder for me and I've always wanted to visit and maybe even stay, so this particular story caught my attention partly because of that. It is a good, clean romance that shows the heart of a kind woman, but also how society can dictate things and interfere. Overall it was a good story and I enjoyed watching it unfold.

4/5

Thank you to the author/publisher for the review copy of this book via Celebrate Lit. I received this book in exchange for an honest review and the opinions stated above are 100% mine.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Angela Breidenbach is a professional genealogist, media personality, bestselling author, and screenwriter. She’s also the Christian Authors Network president. Angie lives in Montana with her hubby and Muse, a trained fe-lion, who shakes hands, rolls over, and jumps through a hoop. Surprisingly, Angie can also. Don’t miss her show and podcast, Genealogy Publishing Coach! Find her on social media: @AngBreidenbach

More from Angela

Queen of the Rockies captured my imagination and my interest in the originality of Montana’s entrance into the United States of America. The people of Montana are quite varied, a true but much unknown fact. People here come from around the world, completely different genealogical origins as well as backgrounds. The influence of gold mining, transportation, and entrepreneurship as well as the exploration of the wild and beautiful lands inspired amazing creativity for both survival and communities.

From completely uncivilized mining camps to stunning old world know-how of the native peoples to about 100 different immigrant nations brought Montana to statehood. Today, many of those descendants still are here farming, mining, doing business. Many of those languages are still spoken. We have immigrant populations that have continued to come. So though Montana is thought to be nearly all white Americans, that’s not anywhere close to the real Montana. Don’t believe everything you see on TV 😉 Come see for yourself.

Vibrant wildlife, dangers of the wilderness and weather, and the opportunity partnered with intensely hard-working conditions created more millionaires in one place than had ever been before. But that didn’t mean everyone knew how to handle that new wealth. Vigilantes, including a sheriff who robbed those he was supposed to protect, ran the ranges for years. The women who brought civilization tamed the men who couldn’t quite keep themselves under control. It’s these incredible women who braved the elements and the hardships that are the stars in my books. Come and meet them. They continue to inspire me today!

Touring and researching through Montana and especially the three original capitals (finally ending up with Helena) fascinated me. There’s so much to do year-round here. I enjoyed it so much that I wrote short travel articles at the back of each book for my readers. I really hope those articles will intrigue people to come and visit the ghost towns, living history towns, hot springs, mountains, and small cities. Each book in this 6-book series will share something special that may not be well-known but will be unforgettable for you as a tourist.

I hope the stories are fun, full of historic entertainment and romance, but also that you’ll have a fresh view of Montana that fires you up to come and visit our beautiful state.

Please remember to pop over to my website and send me a note through the contact page if you’d like an autographed bookplate for all of your copies of the Queen of the Rockies series. If you’re an eBook fan, I’ve heard of the brilliant idea to keep an album of your favorite authors bookplates. I’d be happy to send you those for an album as well.

Best wishes,

Angela Breidenbach

Blog Stops

lakesidelivingsite, January 17

Austen’s Angle: Jane Austen’s Influence in Modern America, January 17

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, January 18

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, January 19

Joanna Bair Author, January 19

Texas Book-aholic, January 20

Betti Mace, January 20

Inklings and notions, January 21

Connect in Fiction, January 21

Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, January 22

For Him and My Family, January 22

deb’s Book Review, January 23

Blossoms and Blessings, January 23

Locks, Hooks and Books, January 24

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, January 25

Pause for Tales, January 25

Connie’s History Classroom, January 26

Tell Tale Book Reviews, January 27

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, January 27 (Spotlight)

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, January 28

Stephanie’s Life of Determination, January 28

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, January 29

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, January 30

Mary Hake, January 30

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Angela is giving away the grand prize 20-minute genealogy consultation to a winner via Zoom!!

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/17c5b/queen-of-the-rockies-celebration-tour-giveaway

Monday, January 24, 2022

Abbie's Woods: Defending the Nest by Susan Thogerson Maas

About the Book

Book: Abbie’s Woods: Defending the Nest

Author: Susan Thogerson Maas

Genre: Middle Grade

Release date: December 15, 2021

Twelve-year-old Abbie Keegan loves spending time in the woods behind her house and watching the silly-looking baby robins as they grow. The woods are a retreat from her parents’ constant bickering and from her sweet, but needy, little brother.

Then Abbie sees two boys breaking pop bottles in the pond. She refuses to allow such harm to “her” woods. However, every attempt she makes to stop the boys only provokes them to greater destruction. Her retreat becomes a place of fear instead of peace. A feud is born, and Abbie feels helpless to stop it. At home, her parents seem close to divorce and her brother’s asthma is getting worse. How can Abbie protect the people and places she loves?

My Thoughts:

This is a cute book that is good for younger kids. The author does a great job making the characters relatable and dealing with real life situations. I liked the sanctuary Abbie chose and how the author describes it. It truly is her get away and place she can talk to God.

The other characters in the book are good and well written. I liked the overarching theme of conservation and keeping the world clean. I also liked how Abbie's family was described and how they weren't perfect but she and her brother were so concerned. I really think it is a good book for middle schoolers.

4/5

Thank you to the author/publisher for the review copy of this book via Celebrate Lit. I received this book in exchange for an honest review and the opinions stated above are 100% mine.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Susan Thogerson Maas grew up in the rainy, green state of Oregon. She loved to wander through the woods, discovering new wildflowers and birds. Her second favorite place was the cool grass of the front yard, lost in a book about nature or faraway lands. She still loves camping and hiking, as well as traveling to places she’s never seen before. Life should always be an adventure.

More from Susan

Abbie’s Woods: Defending the Nest, in its original version, was the first book I ever wrote. Although I had sold a number of short articles and children’s stories, it was my first attempt at a whole book. Being a busy mother and volunteer (den leader for seven years, Sunday school teacher, etc.), homeschooling our boys, growing a big garden for freezing and canning, and all that kept me busy. But my dream since third grade had been to write children’s books. My sweet aunt had paid my way to summer writing conferences, and my shelves were filled with books on writing.

So I began, one slow chapter at a time. I set the story in the woods that lay behind our property when I was a child. “The Wonderful Woods” I called it in the first article I ever sold—sent by my sixth grade teacher to The Horn Book. My book was filled with details about the plants and birds of the woods. I added in symbolism because this would be my masterpiece. After maybe three years, the book was complete. And it was terrible. I showed it to a couple of editors, but the responses told me it was not ready. I was not ready.

I put Abbie’s Woods aside and wrote two chapters books, which now sleep peacefully in old files on my computer. Then came Picture Imperfect, published in 2015 by Ashberry Lane. (now owned by WhiteFire Publishing) After years of study, practice, and critique groups, I finally wrote a book good enough for publication. It even won a couple of awards. And so I thought, why not give Abbie’s Woods another try? I began all over again, changing the characters, adding subplots, and dropping the stilted symbolism. And now here it is!

What do I like most about Abbie’s Woods? Well, for one thing, the woods. That woods is now preserved as part of the Springwater Corridor in the Portland, Oregon area. I learned to identify plants there, including the first flower whose scientific name I learned: arenaria macrophylla. I have no idea how I can still remember that! I especially loved the birds. As a teen, I often roamed the woods with binoculars around my neck and bird book in hand. I learned to recognize bird calls: the Steller’s jay’s screech, the cheerful chickadee’s call, the “chweee” of the towhee as it scratched for seeds in the undergrowth. And the robin’s song, so peacefully filling the air on warm summer evenings. Robins were always special, and robins play an important role in Abbie’s Woods.

But the book is about more than nature. It’s about a girl trying to preserve her little world, only to learn her best efforts often backfire, that many things are not under her control. Can she learn to let go of her pain and forgive those who hurt her? And can she learn to trust God for the things she cannot control? Abbie’s struggles are not so different from those many people face, whether children or adults. I have certainly acted in ways I thought would make things better, only to find the opposite result. I have also tried to control things that are better left in God’s hands. Although the story is entirely fictional, in many ways Abbie is also me, trying to follow God but often getting lost along the way.

Yet, for Abbie as for me, no matter how dark the day, there is always light behind the clouds, always the hope that tomorrow will be better. That hope is the foundation of my faith and a thread through everything I write.

Blog Stops

Bigreadersite, January 19

Lots of Helpers, January 19

Inklings and notions, January 20

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, January 21

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, January 22

Texas Book-aholic, January 23

Mary Hake, January 23

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, January 24

For Him and My Family, January 25

Girls in White Dresses, January 26

Cats in the Cradle Blog, January 26

Locks, Hooks and Books, January 27

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, January 28 (Spotlight)

Lights in a Dark World, January 28

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, January 29

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, January 30

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, January 31

Splashes of Joy, February 1

deb’s Book Review, February 1

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Susan is giving away the grand prize package of $50 Amazon gift card and a 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/186b6/abbie-s-woods-defending-the-nest-celebration-tour-giveaway

Sunday, January 23, 2022

Elise Whitmore by Amy Lynn Walsh

About the Book

Book: Elsie Whitmore

Author: Amy Lynn Walsh

Genre: Contemporary Sweet and Clean

Release date: March 16, 2021

Elsie Whitmore, a teacher from the small town of Oak Hills, Pennsylvania, is shocked when one of her YouTube videos goes viral, drawing the attention of the famous actor Graham Thurston. When Thurston seeks to cast her in a film that he is directing, Elsie is conflicted: Should she give up teaching, a career she finds deeply fulfilling, for her childhood dream of becoming an actress? Join Elsie Whitmore as she travels down the bumpy road of being cast in a film production and falling in love with a movie star while being homesick for her family, friends, and students back home in Oak Hills. Will Elsie return to teaching and her close-knit community, or will she pursue her love for Graham Thurston and acting for Proscenium Studios in the Brooklyn Navy Yard?

My Thoughts:

This was a truly great book. I was wondering about it at first because I was afraid it was going to move slowly and leisurely, not the case. I fell in love with Elise. She is an absolutely wonderful character that I adore.

Her relationship with Graham was wonderful. I enjoyed the twists and turns of the story, especially how she achieved what others didn't believe she could. She stayed true to her roots and I liked that while she changed, her values didn't. Just a really great, clean romance.

5/5

Thank you to the author/publisher for the review copy of this book via Celebrate Lit. I received this book in exchange for an honest review and the opinions stated above are 100% mine.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Amy Walsh is a 5th-grade teacher who loves teaching children about what she loves to do
herself: reading and writing. She enjoys outdoor activities, especially hiking and camping with her Scouts BSA Troop. Amy also appreciates opportunities to share her faith through singing, teaching and writing for her church family. Amy and her husband, Patrick, have three children: Bree, Spencer, Liz, and a son-in-law, Kyle. Amy and her family love to spend time together celebrating special occasions, listening to great music, swimming and kayaking, and having occasional ping pong tournaments.

More from Amy

The Creation of Elsie

Elsie Whitmore came into being on Election Day 2020. I needed a little escape from the reality of being an urban public school teacher in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and all the political turmoil in the United States. I decided it was time to take on a big writing project.

Wanting to create a “happy escape” for both myself and readers, I put the best of two worlds that I love into the settings of the novel: farm life in northeastern Pennsylvania and drama in New York City. I created a character who had already overcome childhood anxiety, and in the process of conquering her painful shyness, she had grown strong, wise, and firmly grounded in what she considers important. Elsie had also long ago given up her dream of becoming an actress in order to pursue the more “realistic” career of teaching, which she finds quite fulfilling. But sometimes life has some unexpected twists and turns….

Mrs. Whitmore’s Upsidedown Apple Sticky Toffee Cupcakes Recipe

Graham is so determined that Elsie will give him and his film production a chance that he pulls out all the stops with a lovely dinner after her day of screen tests at Proscenium Studios in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. He even goes so far as to google the most delicious dessert in the world so that his housekeeper can create the perfect end to the meal: English Sticky Toffee Pudding.

Eventually Elsie’s mother puts her own Pennsylvanian spin on this delicious dessert in an Oak Hills sequel. She substitutes apples for dates, adds some molasses and ginger, and makes them into smaller portions perfect for a church concession stand at the county fair.

Here is her recipe:

Dice apples and place them in the bottom of a greased muffin pan. (You may prefer to slice the apples for a fancier look, but that will increase baking time.)
Heat ¼ cup of salted butter, ¾ cup of brown sugar, ½ tsp of ground cinnamon, and 1 tsp of vanilla extract. (Mrs. Whitmore just throws everything into a frying pan, quickly stirs once everything has melted, and then turns off the stove as soon as the mixture begins to bubble.)
Cover the apples with the hot mixture. (Mrs. Whitmore uses a gravy ladle to scoop the toffee sauce into the muffin pan.)
Melt 1 stick of salted butter in a mixing bowl.
Add 1 and ½ cup of flour, 1 tsp baking powder, ¼ tsp baking soda, ¾ cup of light brown sugar, 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract, 2 eggs, 3 tbsp of molasses, ¼ tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger.
Mix the ingredients with a spoon like you would mix pancake batter — no need to beat. The consistency will be more like biscuit or cookie dough than cake batter.
Put a scoop of the dough on top of apples and toffee in the muffin pans.
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 – 25 minutes. (The top of the cake should look dry.) If you are using regular cupcake pans, you can make 12 and they should be done in 15. If you are using larger muffin pans, you can make 8 and they need to bake for about 20 minutes. If you are baking multiple items in the oven, it will take closer to 25 minutes.

Sometimes the toffee comes up the sides of the cake, so it is best to put a larger tray on the rack underneath or line the bottom of the oven with foil. (Elsie forgot to do this the first time she followed her mother’s recipe. Graham, being a bit over-protective, made her evacuate due to the smoke coming from the oven.)

Immediately after taking out of the oven, turn the muffin pan upside down on a tray, waxed paper, or cookie sheet. Tap the top of the pan and then lift up. Mrs. Whitmore uses a small spatula to collect any apple and toffee still in the pan and puts it on the cakes.
Serve while still warm, with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Sometimes, Mrs. Whitmore makes a smaller batch and then puts the rest of the dough in a bread pan to bake. She warms this up the following night and serves with warm lemon pudding and whipped cream — which is very much a northeastern Pennsylvania county fair treat.

Blog Stops

Locks, Hooks and Books, January 22

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, January 23

Texas Book-aholic, January 24

Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, January 25

Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, January 26 (Author Interview)

deb’s Book Review, January 26

Inklings and notions, January 27

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, January 28

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, January 29

For Him and My Family, January 30

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, January 31 (Spotlight)

Pause for Tales, January 31

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, February 1

Wishful Endings, February 2 (Author Interview)

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, February 3

Stories By Gina , February 4 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Amy is giving away the grand prize package of $50 Amazon gift card along with the eBooks of three novels, A Cursed Enchantment, A Misplaced Beauty, and Elsie Whitmore: A Star from Oak Hills!!

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/186bb/elsie-whitmore-celebration-tour-giveaway

Friday, January 21, 2022

Crown of the Warrior King by Henry O. Arnold

About the Book

Book: Crown of the Warrior King

Author: Henry O. Arnold

Genre: Biblical Fiction

Release date: December 1, 2021

The desire of Israel…

the first to wear the crown is the warrior king

For decades the nation of Israel had no rest from her enemies. The people cried out, “Give us a king to lead us, to go out before us, to fight our battles.” And Yahweh hears the cries of the chosen. He plucks a king out of the tribe of Benjamin, the smallest of the tribes—Saul, son of a herdsman. The prophet Samuel anoints him as Israel’s first warrior king.

Under the banner of the wolf, the symbol of his tribe, Saul rises to prominence, winning the hearts and minds of the people of Israel with his success on the battlefield and benevolent leadership.

But when the nation of Israel cries out, “For the love of Israel. For the glory of Yahweh. For the honor of the king,” the praises of the people turn the humble heart of the warrior king into one filled with pride—a pride that has fatal consequences.

In this tale of triumph and tribulation, deepest love and burning rivalries, the new epoch is given a voice…and it is a Song of Prophets and Kings.

My Thoughts:

I'm always a bit hesitant when I read Biblical fiction because some authors change what truly happened to fit in whatever story they are writing, not so in this case. The author did a great job with keeping to the true story while making up a story for how some things went down. The vivid descriptions were great, I felt like it was there.

I haven't said yet, but this is the story of Saul and oh what a story it is. It was a new way of looking at some scriptures that I had not thought of and I like having a this could have happened this way or maybe this is why he did that. A really good book.

4/5

Thank you to the author/publisher for the review copy of this book via Celebrate Lit. I received this book in exchange for an honest review and the opinions stated above are 100% mine.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Chip - 1 Henry O. Arnold has co-authored a work of fiction, Hometown Favorite, with Bill Barton, and nonfiction, KABUL24, with Ben Pearson. He also co-wrote and produced with Steve Taylor (director) and Ben Pearson the film The Second Chance starring Michael W. Smith, the screenplay for the authorized film documentary on evangelist Billy Graham, God’s Ambassador, and the documentary film KABUL24, based on the book which is the story of western and Afghani hostages held captive by the Taliban for 105 days. He lives on a farm in Tennessee with his lovely wife Kay. They have two beautiful daughters married to two handsome men with three above-average grandchildren. For more information please visit: www.henryoarnold.com

More from Henry

After the golden age of theatre in the Greek and Roman times, the theatre went dark, very dark as in Dark Ages, and for centuries it was thus. But it was the church that brought the theatre back to life by staging passion plays on biblical subjects. Since most people could not read at the time, it was a great way to tell the folks some Bible stories. The world has certainly improved its literacy skills since then. The delight I have in reading and writing stories from the Bible or on biblical themes has been with me for a long time.

When I formulated the concept of retelling the stories of the first three kings of Israel and matching them with the leading prophets of that age, the title of the series, The Song of Prophets and Kings, was a perfect match for the biblical/historical fiction genre. The first volume in this series, A Voice Within the Flame, was released last year and features the life of the prophet Samuel up to and including the anointing and coronation of Saul as the first king of Israel. Now it is time for the second volume, Crown of the Warrior King. This second novel picks up where the last one left off.

Whether the reader or listener is familiar with the biblical stories or not, I have written these novels in such a way that makes these ancient stories come to life in the modern world. When the reader/listener dives into stories that are 3,000 years old, it will be surprising how we all can see ourselves in these characters.

These are biblical stories that I grew up with and have read and studied all my life. It is a joy to get to share them with you in this series, The Song of Prophets and Kings.