Category Archives: Book Talk

To Win Her Heart By Karen Witemeyer

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To Win Her Heart by Karen Witemeyer

What will people say? Have you ever hesitated about associating yourself with someone with a questionable past because you were worried about your own reputation? Have you ever worried about what other people would think, instead of helping/befriending someone less fortunate because you didn’t want it to tarnish your good-standing within the community? That’s one question that ran through my mind while reading this book. Leave your responses to these questions in the comments.

Spinster Eden Spencer runs her own library out of her home. She’s wealthy and since she’s been painfully jilted in the past, she doesn’t have any romantic relationships. Instead, she finds solace amoung her book stacks. She also loves reading stories to children every week and she loves flowers.

However, Eden’s non-romantic life changes when tall, strong, and handsome Levi Grant comes to town, hired as the new blacksmith. Levi has some ghosts in his past, he’s just gotten out of prison, and he used to be a prize fighter. It’s a life he’s left behind and he finds himself smitten with Eden and her library. Born with a shaming lisp, Levi takes his time with his speech, choosing to use words that do not have the S sound. Eden mistakenly assumes Levi is dim-witted since he speaks so slowly. Can these two overcome their differences and learn to love one another?

This book dealt with the issue of helping those with unfortunate pasts. In one part, Levi rescues a prostitute’s daughter, Chloe. Levi brings Chloe to Eden since she doesn’t have anyplace to live. Eden hesitates, not wanting to mar her repuation by hiring a prostitute’s daughter to do her housework. Levi convinces her to do the right thing and, as a result, she’s ostracized in the town. The town exhibited very un-Christian behavior in spite of their regular church attendance, which is sadly, very realistic behavior for a lot of Christians.

I enjoyed this novel and felt that the blacksmith/librarian romance added a fresh twist to this romance novel.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Book description:
Eden Spencer has sworn off men, choosing instead to devote her time to the library she runs. But when the town’s new blacksmith captures her interest, she steels herself against the attraction he provokes. As his hesitant manner and hidden depths break her resolve, will she allow a tarnished hero to win her heart?

And The Shofar Blew By Francine Rivers

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Yesterday’s blog post about The Ambition made me think about another book. The Ambition reminded me about the Francine Rivers novel, And The Shofar Blew, a little bit. I read Shofar several years ago. I recall it being a page turner and the book portrayed a church that had gotten huge and the church was no longer focused on Jesus or the Gospel. Also, if I remember correctly, the pastor of the huge church used to be a humble preacher who wanted to preach the gospel to his small flock – but all of that changed once his church became large and popular. That’s about all I can recall about the story, and I really enjoyed it.

Have you read And The Shofar Blew? If so, did you like it?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

In the Old Testament, God called his people to action with the blast of the shofar, a ram’s horn. God still calls his people today. In this relevant and timely contemporary novel, dynamic young preacher Paul Hudson is committed to building his church—but at what cost? As Paul’s zeal and ambition build, he loses sight of the One who called him. As Paul and those around him struggle to discern what it truly means to live out their faith, they must ultimately choose between their own will or God’s plan.


Catching Katie By Robin Lee Hatcher – From The Blog Archives

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Yesterday’s review of A Great Catch

made me think about another title that I read a long time ago. If you think the storyline of A Great Catch is appealing because of the woman’s suffrage issue, then you should read Robin Lee Hatcher’s

Catching Katie. It was recently re-released as an e-book, but I reviewed it on my blog back in 2007.

Have you read Catching Katie? If so, did you like it?

Here’s a brief summary of the Catching Katie:
Katie Jones is committed to fighting for the cause of women’s suffrage. She has no time for romance, especially not with her best friend Ben Rafferty. But when Katie’s column in Ben’s newspaper, The Homestead Herald, stirs things up, sparks begin to fly. Ben is set on winning Katie over, but Katie is just as determined to stay true to her 1916 feminist ideals. With such strong obstacles in the way, their relationship can’t possibly progress. Unless somehow love finds a way…


~Cecelia Dowdy~

A Great Catch By Lorna Seilstad

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A Great Catch by Lorna Seilstad

Woman’s suffragist Emily Graham doesn’t need a man in her life. She’s committed to fighting for the cause and having a husband would slow her down. She wants to make her own decisions and she really wants to fight for the right for women to vote. In spite of some townsmen objections to her actions, she’s still committed to her cause. However, her life takes an interesting turn when she literally slams into baseball player Carter Stockton. Carter is an old friend of her brother’s and she has not seen him in awhile. There is an old feud brewing between the Stockton and Graham families, and Emily’s aunts object to her spending so much time with Carter.

In spite of her objection to marriage, Emily is attracted to Carter. When she’s determined to prove that a woman can do whatever a man can do, she arranges a baseball game between an all women’s team and Carter’s Manawa Owls baseball team. As a result, Carter has to teach clumsy Emily how to play, which proves to be a delightful and funny lesson on the rudiments of baseball.

This book was sweet, charming and endearing. There was also an unusual combination between baseball and woman’s suffrage that you won’t usually find in a novel. I also enjoyed the thread of mystery involved in the story. Carter is hired as Emily’s grandmother’s bookkeeper. However, he finds some discrepancies in her records – is Carter’s family’s bank at fault for the discrepancy? The book also shows how families can be divided over issues. Carter wants to be a baseball player, and, in spite of his family’s objections, he refuses to work in the family banking business.

If you like a sweet, warm, light-hearted story with a thread of mystery, then this book is for you. I also think you’ll find it interesting when you read about how baseball was played during that time period.

Many thanks to Baker/Revell for providing me with a free review copy.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

From the Back Cover
She wants to change the world.
He wants to change her mind.

It’s the beginning of a new century at Lake Manawa resort in Iowa, but some things never change. When Emily Graham’s meddlesome aunts and grandmother take it upon themselves to find her a husband among the resort guests, the spunky suffragist is determined to politely decline each and every suitor. She has neither the time nor the need for a man in her busy life.

Carter Stockton, a recent college graduate and a pitcher for the Manawa Owls baseball team, intends to enjoy every minute of the summer before he is forced into the straitlaced business world of his father.

When their worlds collide, neither Emily nor Carter could have guessed what would come next. Will Carter strike out? Or will Emily cast her vote for a love that might cost her dreams?

The perfect summer novel, A Great Catch will enchant you with its breezy setting and endearing characters.

The Big 5-0h

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The Big 5-0h by Sandra D. Bricker

This book was a light and funny story about Liv, a cancer survivor who’s dreading her 50th birthday. Liv is downtrodden, she’s survived cancer and now she needs a spark of…something to rejuvenate her depressive state of mind. Her friend Hallie suggests that Liv do a home swap – use Hallie’s mother’s Florida home since Hallie’s mother will be vacationing with Hallie and her family and her house will be empty. Liv agrees and once she sets foot into the beautiful tropical state of Florida, things take a turn for the better. She meets an eclectic assortment of people, the most important person being Jared, a hunky doctor who lives nearby. Jared is smitten with Liv and Liv is attracted to Jared too. But, both people are cautious, perhaps too cautious, to take a leap of love. Both of them need to learn to rely on God and to trust their instincts about their feelings for one another.

Liv also wonders if this Florida trip is just what she needs to break her birthday curse. Every year, a tumultuous event happens that marks Liv’s birthday. She doesn’t want to see what’ll happen on the day that she turns fifty.

I enjoyed this novel because of the light-hearted humor, and I also enjoyed the fact that the characters were older. Seldom do I see a romance novel with the main characters who are around fifty years old.

I got this book as a free Kindle download awhile ago, and I’m glad that I did. Nice, heartwarming story and I encourage you to purchase the book and give this story a try.

Why do you think that publishers fail to release more romance novels with older characters? Is romance a subject that is usually linked to a younger crowd?
~Cecelia Dowdy~

Product Description
Olivia Wallace has a birthday curse . . . or so she thinks. It was a broken heart on her 16th, a car accident on her 21st, pneumonia on her 30th, and a fall down a flight of stairs on her 35th. There were Ohio blizzards on her 38th, 39th, and 40th; and six days before her 45th, she lost the love of her life to a heart attack. Numbing grief stole that birthday and a couple more to follow and, on the morning of her 48th birthday, she received the call she’d dreaded ever since losing her mom so many years ago…she was diagnosed with stage-3 ovarian cancer. The doctors didn’t hold out a lot of hope, but Liv survived and maintained her faith. Months of surgeries and chemotherapy and radiation treatments followed.

But now, as her 50th birthday creeps up the icy Ohio path toward her, her hair has grown back, her energy level is up, and she is officially cancer free. It makes her nervous. After everything she’s gone through, Liv hates the idea of driving on icy roads and returning to work as an O.R. nurse in a local Cincinnati hospital.

Her best friend Hallie knows just the thing to break Liv out of the winter doldrums, while providing a safe haven of warmth, sunshine, and a time to regroup: a holiday in the Florida sunshine!

The Outsider By Ann H. Gabhart

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The Outsider by Ann H. Gabhart

I enjoyed this novel. I enjoyed it as much as Gabhart’s other Shaker novels. Since I’ve reviewed her other Shaker books, I’m not going to go off on a tangent about my negative opinions about the cultic (although peaceful) traits of the Shakers.

Gabrielle has a prophetic gift of seeing events before they occur – she’ll know when something has happened. This gift has been with her during her entire life and having this gift can prove to be unpleasant at times. After “losing” her father as a youngster Gabrielle and her mother make a new life for themselves at the Shaker village. The atmosphere of the village is strange since there is no romantic love between the members since matrimony is considered a sin – according to their founder, Mother Ann. However, when one of the male Shaker members is burned in a fire, the Shakers need to call upon the help of Brice, the local “worldly” doctor in town. While Brice nurses his young patient back to health, he finds himself smitten with young, beautiful Gabrielle – Gabrielle was chosen to assist the doctor in nursing his young male patient. Gabrielle finds that she has feelings for the doctor, feelings that she is not able to act upon if she wants to enjoy her salvation. Gabrielle struggles with her feelings because, according to the Shakers, if she marries, she’ll give up her right to eternal life from her sin.

The writing of this book was really good and you have a great sense of what life was like in the Shaker village. I did find myself getting unnerved when reading about the cultic Shakers, but was glad that Gabrielle found herself rightfully questioning the Shaker beliefs.

I also enjoyed reading about the different tasks that this religious group performed to make their living. They made jams and jellies, picked berries, farmed, ran a school, worked in the kitchen – cooking food to be consumed in the biting room, etc. They show their love for the Lord through their “works” – the tasks outlined above. However, they seem to worship Mother Ann moreso than Jesus Christ. This is a good book to read, especially if you want to know more about the Shaker way of life and to learn more about the time period. I’ve enjoyed all of the books in this series, but I didn’t read them in order. I believe this is the first one. I got it as a free Kindle download awhile ago.

~Cecelia Dowdy~Product Description
For as long as she can remember, Gabrielle Hope has had the gift of knowing–visions that warn of things to come. When she and her mother joined the Pleasant Hill Shaker community in 1807, the community embraced her gift. But Gabrielle fears this gift, for the visions are often ones of sorrow and tragedy. When one of these visions comes to pass, a local doctor must be brought in to save the life of a young man, setting into motion a chain of events that will challenge Gabrielle’s loyalty to the Shakers. As she falls deeper into a forbidden love for this man of the world, Gabrielle must make a choice. Can she experience true happiness in this simple and chaste community? Or will she abandon her brothers and sisters for a life of the unknown? Soulful and filled with romance, The Outsider lets readers live within a bygone time among a unique and peculiar people. This tender and thought-provoking story will leave readers wanting more from this writer.

Crossing Oceans By Gina Holmes – A Book Review

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Crossing Oceans by Gina Holmes
Not many people can throw on a cape and save the world. Isabella, however, I could rescue. This was my final chance to be a hero, even if I was the only one would ever know it.
Jenny Lucas promised herself the day she left home, pregnant and alone, she’d never look back. But life has a way of upending even the best-laid plans. Now, nearly six years later, she returns to her sleepy North Carolina town to face the ghosts she left behind. While she still can, she’s determined to have a say in who will raise her little girl when she’s gone—the father she hasn’t spoken to since she left or Isabella’s dad—who doesn’t yet know he has a daughter.
The remarkable story that unfolds will bring a family back together again to discover the kinds of love that save us when nothing else can.
==
What would you do if you found out today that you had less than one year to live?

Jenny Lucas left home years ago, pregnant and alone. Now a life-altering medical condition brings her back to her hometown. Her childhood house brings back painful memories – including memories of her deceased mother. As she struggles to connect with her estranged Dad and becomes reacquainted with her oxygen-tank-dependant grandmother, she makes some important decisions about the future of her child. Jenny needs to find someone to raise Bella, her five-year-old daughter. Her time is short and drama ensues as she struggles to get along with Bella’s father, David and David’s wife. David didn’t realize he had a daughter, and Jenny’s world tilts when she finds herself smitten with Craig, a high-school friend and boarder in her father’s home.

This story will tug at your heartstrings. I believe a lot of us can relate to Jenny’s struggle in rebuilding her familial relationships. You also feel sympathy for Jenny as she searches for the best person to raise her daughter. This story also gives a poignant view of tying up loose ends in your life in the face of death while still struggling to keep God at the center of your life.

You’ll need a box of tissues when you read this one…a very well-written story with strong characters.

If you read this book, did you like it? Leave a comment with your opinion.

Also, I’ll top off this blog post by repeating this question…respond in the comments:
What would you do if you found out today that you had less than one year to live?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Courting Trouble By Deeanne Gist

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Courting Trouble by Deeanne Gist

This book was amazing! It’s probably the best book I’ve read so far in 2011! If you haven’t read this book then I think you should go and purchase your copy today!

Essie is an old maid – she’s just turned 30 and she wants a husband right now! Her desire for a mate spurns her to do a number of things to catch a man: she keeps a list of all of the town’s eligible bachelors along with their positive and negative traits. She offers help to the owner of the general store – hoping her employ will develop into a relationship with the shopkeeper. Her impulsive behavior continues with other men, resulting in her making some dreadful mistakes that haunt her throughout the story.

Essie is wild, carefree, and she loves to ride her bicycle! I never knew that riding a bike could prove so scandalous back in historical times. She loves the outdoors and she loves snakes and bugs and all sorts of things. Her behavior is not one most men would consider for a mate.

I found myself carried back in time and I really felt for Essie and her desire to have a husband. Back then, most people married young, and she was considered an outcast because she was a scandalous old maid and although she has admiration from many of the males in the town, she doesn’t receive many offers of marriage.

I felt the characters in this book were so well-developed and the dialogue was superb! The shopkeeper Hamilton, the cowboy Adam, and Ewing – the nemesis from her childhood, all have a unique role in Essie’s life. I also loved how Essie really cared for people – she has a soft spot for Harley, an orphan in the story, and there were other things she did that showed that she really cared about people.

The book is funny, entertaining and the story just draws you in. I savored every word of this book and after I was finished, I found myself going back, reading certain passages that stuck with me – it is EXTREMELY RARE for me to do this! This is the first book I’ve ever read by this author and I’m anxious to read more stories by Deeanne Gist! I have the sequel on my to-be-read pile. I’ve had this book for a few years now, but never got around to reading it until last weekend and I’m so glad I did! What a pleasant way to spend my time!

Have you read this novel? If so, what did you think about it?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Product Description
Tired of Waiting for a Match-Made-in-Heaven,
She’ll Settle for One Made in Texas

Whether it’s riding bikes, catching snakes, or sliding down banisters, Essie Spreckelmeyer just can’t quite make herself into the ideal woman her hometown–and her mother–expect her to be. It’s going to take an extraordinary man to appreciate her joy and spontaneity–or so says her doting oil-man father.

Unfortunately such a man doesn’t appear to reside in Corsicana, Texas.

It’s 1894, the year of Essie’s thirtieth birthday, and she decides the Lord has more important things to do than provide her a husband. If she wants one, she needs to catch him herself. So, she writes down the names of all the eligible bachelors in her small Texas town, makes a list of their attributes and drawbacks, closes her eyes, twirls her finger, and … picks one.

But convincing the lucky “husband-to-be” is going to a bit more of a problem.

Join Deeanne Gist for another unforgettable tale and find out whether Essie’s plan to catch a husband succeeds or if she’s just Courting Trouble.

The Rhythm Of Secrets By Patti Lacy

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The Rhythm Of Secrets by Patti Lacy

Since 1955, Sheila Franklin, a talented musician, has perfectly performed the role of devout pastor’s wife, locking away her past as Sheba Alexander and Sylvia Allen. Her carefully constructed façade crumbles with a single phone call from a young Marine named Samuel, the illegitimate son she secretly put up for adoption. Samuel begs Sheila to use her government contacts to get his fiancé, Mali, a Thai prostitute, into America. A dangerous mixture of love and guilt spurs her to help her only child even though it devastates her husband Edward and exposes her questionable past. After a quarrel with Edward, Sheila and Samuel board a C-130 for Thailand and then search Bangkok’s steamy streets for a Madonna-faced prostitute. The two whisk Mali from a brothel but are seized by a warlord who considers Mali his “number one girl.” In a teak “ghost house,” Sheila discovers God’s grace and gains the freedom she needs to find her own identity—Sheila, Sylvia, and Sheba. A framed story, this novel has roots in the bohemian 1940s New Orleans French Quarter and spans three decades, including the turbulent Vietnam era.
This was a powerful, enjoyable book that I highly recommend. Sheila has secrets – secrets that she’s never exposed to her husband, a big-time pastor. He doesn’t know about her mixed parentage, or parents’ background, or about the fact that she has an illegitimate son with dark skin.

This book shows how one simple, single mistake can haunt you for years and years. I know we’re supposed to accept God’s grace for our sins, but, even when/if we do this, our sins and our bad choices can still affect our lives for a long time.

This novel also shows that it’s best to tell the truth, especially to those that you love. Don’t hide secrets, what if they come out to bite you later, causing turmoil in your current relationships?

This book also has a pretty deep inspirational message – showing that no matter how tough things get, even if it appears that we may lose our lives, it’s best to call upon the Lord, our creator, during times of trouble.

I loved the way the author truthfully showed how judgmental we can be as Christians. You know, this book had me thinking about how some Christians are quick to punish, judge, make others feel unworthy, not following the example that Christ set forth for us in the Gospels. When Sheila, the main character in Rhythm of Secrets, loses her parents and goes to live with her grandmother Mimi, she’s forced to suffer from Mimi’s judgmental attitude towards her. This attitude partially stems from Sheila’s parentage. Yet, Mimi is a Christian? Sadly, the church is filled with Mimis and it’d be great if, the next time we find ourselves judging others for their mistakes, then we should stop, and take a hard look at ourselves. What sins have we committed in our own lives?

I guarantee that this book will get a strong emotional response out of you. For me, the most emotional part happens when Sheila is forced to give up her baby, a baby that she loves fully and unconditionally. Her son’s dark skin doesn’t bother her, as her baby’s complexion is a result of her mixed parentage.

Give this book a try. If you’ve read it, let me know what you thought about the story.

I’ll top off this blog post with a question: Have you experienced a lot of judgmental Christians in your life? Did the judgmental actions affect your faith?

Many thanks to Kregel for providing me with a free review copy.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

The Artist’s Granddaughter By Robin Bayne

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The Artist’s Granddaughter by Robin Bayne

This book was a charming, light-hearted read about unrequited high school love. Megan has to obtain her grandfather’s last painting in order to keep it in the family, plus, it was her father’s dying wish for her to do so. However, her high-school boyfriend, Michael, stunningly appears at the auction, outbidding her. Megan has never gotten over Michael whom she dated when she was fifteen. He left, abandoned her, and has made no contact with her since he went away to college and law school, pursuing a law career afterwards. Megan doesn’t know if she believes Michael’s reasons for abandoning her and never attempting to make contact with her over the years – she’s never left the town, so she would have been easy to find.

Meanwhile, Megan’s made a name for herself in the community as a gemologist. She designs jewelry for her clients and enjoys her job immensely.

Their love is re-kindled, in spite of their disagreement about what should be done with her grandfather’s last painting. Michael has some hard lessons to learn about his career, and knows he’s made a mistake in abandoning his beloved Megan all those years ago. Michael’s reappearance causes a bit of disharmony within the small town of Carrolton, especially since he was a bad boy in high school, and his name is linked to a well-known theft. Was he the person who stole Megan’s grandfather’s murals several years ago?

This book was a quick, enjoyable read set in a small town. The characters faced obstacles in which most people could relate, and the writing will draw you in, making you appreciate the feelings that these two lovebirds share for one another. You should give this book a try and it’s available on Amazon’s Kindle.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

When Megan bids on her grandfather’s painting, the last thing she expects is to be outbid by Michael Kirk, her first love. He left town years ago leaving her reputation–and her heart–in tatters.

She must keep her grandfather’s final legacy in her family, but Michael claims to need it for his career. He also claims to want Megan back in his life, and her betraying heart doesn’t mind the idea…but does Michael want her or the painting?