A Season For Tending

Book One in Cindy Woodsmall's newest series,  Amish Vines and Orchards, is a book you won't want to put down until you have finished it.

In a community where conformity flourishes, seeds of Rhoda’s odd behavior were planted long ago. Can she cultivate her relationships with the same care and tenderness that she gives her beloved garden?

Old Order Amish Rhoda Byler’s unusual gift and her remarkable abilities to grow herbs and berries have caused many to think her odd. As rumors mount that Rhoda’s “gift” is a detriment to the community, she chooses isolation, spending her time in her fruit garden and on her thriving canning business. 

Miles away in Harvest Mills, Samuel King struggles to keep his family’s apple orchard profitable. As the eldest son, Samuel farms with his brothers, the irrepressible Jacob and brash Eli, while his longtime girlfriend Catherine remains hopeful that Samuel will marry her when he feels financially stable. 

Meanwhile, Samuel’s younger sister Leah is testing all the boundaries during her rumschpringe, and finds herself far from home in Rhoda’s garden after a night of partying gone badly. But Leah’s poor choices serve as a bridge between Rhoda and the King family when a tragic mistake in the orchard leaves Samuel searching for solutions.
Rhoda’s expertise in canning could be the answer, but she struggles with guilt over the tragic death of her sister and doesn’t trust herself outside her garden walls. As the lines between business, love, and family begin to blur, can Rhoda finally open up to a new life? And what effect will this odd, amazing woman have on the entire King family? 

Ms. Woodsmall has found a wonderful way to bring two families together to help each other and just maybe find some love.

I loved the characters, I learned so much about apple orchards, and I completely lost myself in this book. My only complaint - I have to wait until next Spring for the next book!

Highly recommended.

Jody

My copy of this book was graciously provided by WaterBrook MultNomah for my honest review.

Band Of Sisters

Maureen O’Reilly and her younger sister flee Ireland in hope of claiming the life promised to their father over twenty years before. After surviving the rigors of Ellis Island, Maureen learns that their benefactor, Colonel Wakefield, has died. His family, refusing to own his Civil War debt, casts her out. Alone, impoverished, and in danger of deportation, Maureen connives to obtain employment in a prominent department store. But she soon discovers that the elegant facade hides a secret that threatens every vulnerable woman in the city.

Despite her family’s disapproval, Olivia Wakefield determines to honor her father’s debt but can’t find Maureen. Unexpected help comes from a local businessman, whom Olivia begins to see as more than an ally, even as she fears the secrets he’s hiding. As women begin disappearing from the store, Olivia rallies influential ladies in her circle to help Maureen take a stand against injustice and fight for the lives of their growing band of sisters. But can either woman open her heart to divine leading or the love it might bring?

Cathy Gohlke has written a fascinating story about life for an immigrant in the United States and the pitfalls women faced alone in a new country. A thought provoking, page turner that will keep your light on well into the night. Highly recommended.

Please visit the author's website at http://authorcathygohlke.com/.

Jody

My copy of Band of Sisters was provided by Tyndale House Publishers for my honest review.

Over The Edge

The third book in Mary Connealy's Kincaid Brides series is just as enchanting as the first two books.

This book centers on Seth, the third Kincaid brother.

Seth Kincaid survived a fire in a cave, but he's never been the same. He was always a reckless youth, but now he's gone over the edge. He ran off to the Civil War and came back crazier than ever.

After the war, nearly dead from his injuries, it appears Seth got married. Oh, he's got a lot of excuses, but his wife isn't happy to find out Seth doesn't remember her. Callie has searched, prayed, and worried. Now she's come to the Kincaid family's ranch in Colorado to find her lost husband.

Callie isn't a long-suffering woman. Once she knows her husband is alive, she wants to kill him. She's not even close to forgiving him for abandoning her.

Then more trouble shows up in the form of a secret Seth's pa kept for years. The Kincaid brothers might lose their ranch if they can't sort things out. It's enough to drive a man insane--but somehow it's all making Seth see things more clearly. And now that he knows what he wants, no one better stand in his way.

Revisit with Rafe and Julia, Ethan and Audra and get to know Seth and Callie and a few other new characters. And maybe we'll even find out what happened to the fortune Julia's father is supposed to have hidden before he died.

Highly recommended - but be sure to read the series in order as they do build on each other.

Jody

My copy of this book was graciously provided by Bethany House Publishers for my honest review.

The Bride Wore Blue

The Bride Wore Blue by Mona Hodgson continues the story of The Sinclair Sisters of Cripple Creek. Headed toward a fresh start but tethered by her past, Vivian longs to break free, to find forgiveness and love. At last, the sisters are reunited! The youngest Sinclair, the family“ baby”, is moving from Maine to Cripple Creek, Colorado and joining Kat, Nell, and Ida. But Vivian is a young woman with a will of her own, and made some decisions back in Portland that have begun to haunt her. Will she be able to live up to the expectations of her three perfect and now happily-settled sisters? The sisters warmly welcome Vivian to the mountain west, but the wild-and-woolly mining town isn’t ripe with opportunities for a respectable young woman. The youngest Sinclair sister is determined to make her own way, so when she’s off ered a job as a hostess in a sporting house, she takes it, thinking the position is appropriate for a tainted, unlovable woman like herself. Although she’s convinced she’ll never be asked to entertain privately, Vivian keeps her employment a secret from her sisters, knowing they’d be mortified—as will Carter Alwyn, the kind and godly sheriff ’s deputy who’s sweet on her. Vivian is descending into a life of secrets, lying to the very people who love her and could help her heal from her mistakes. Will an outpouring of grace remind her that she is still God’s beloved and that her past can be washed as clean as Rocky Mountain snow? This is a great follow up to the two previous books. While this book does center on Vivian, we do get a glimpse into the lives of her older sisters and updates on what has been happening with them. And Vivian has an interesting story of her own to tell also. Jody My copy of this book was graciously provided by Waterbrook/Multnomah for my honest review.

The Anniversary Waltz

At their sixtieth anniversary party, Adam Carlson asks his wife, Elizabeth, for their customary waltz. After the dance they gather the family and share their story—a story of love and courage overcoming adversity and thriving in the face of overwhelming odds. It’s the summer of 1946, and Adam has just returned from the war to his home in Reunion, Montana. At a town festival he meets Elizabeth Baxter, a young woman going steady with his former high school rival and now influential banker, Nathan Roberts. When Adam and Elizabeth share a waltz in a deserted pavilion one evening, their feelings begin to grow and they embark on a journey, and a dance, that will last a lifetime. This was a simply fabulous book. I was enchanted by the characters, the setting and the premise. I felt as though these folks could have been my friends. Slide under a quilt, get cozy, open the cover and let the story carry you away. You won't want to put it down until you finish it. Jody My copy was graciously provided by GlassRoad Publications for my honest review.

After All

After All is the third book in Deborah Raney's Hanover Falls Triology and the final book of the series does not disappoint. Susan Marlowe lost her husband and four other firefighters when the homeless shelter she started burned to the ground eighteen months ago. And she's finally beginning to heal. That is until she learns a secret David took with him to the grave. For the sake of their sons, can Susan forgive the unforgivable? Peter Brennan carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. As Hanover Falls' fire chief, he was responsible for the brave firefighters who lost their lives that awful November night. Can he ever shake the feeling that he should have somehow prevented the tragedy? As he tries to rebuild the team at Clemens County's Station 2, it seems he might find comfort in the arms of the woman he least expected. Touching, romantic and suspenseful, After All has it all. A love triangle, a mysterious chain of events, and real characters only Deborah Raney can bring to life. What a great opportunity to visit with some old friends and get some updates on their lives and the circumstances surrounding the fire that altered so many lives. A very satisfying conclusion to a great series. Jody My copy of After All was graciously provided by Glass Road Publications for my honest review.

Farm Fresh Southern Cooking Straight from the Garden to Your Dinner Table

Is there anything better than a kitchen countertop spread with the spoils of a Saturday morning at the farmers’ market? Every trip yields some new assortment of old favorites and newfound treasures. One week, you’re tempted by the sun-warmed heirloom tomatoes and the Mason jars brimming with orange blossom honey. Another week, it’s the slabs of milky Havarti cheese and the Red Haven peaches heavy with juice, enticing you to spend just a little more than you planned. Kentucky pole beans, silky ears of sweet corn, and sacks of stone-ground buckwheat flour may find their way into your basket on another visit.

Whether you shop with a list or purely on impulse, you’ll always find the truest taste of home at the local farms, roadside stands, and produce markets in your community. These are the places that offer up the native flavors of the South and all its seasons. They are your portal to the fields, the waters, and the vines where your food is cultivated. Get to know the origins of what you eat and the people who produce it. Tammy Algood’s Farm Fresh Southern Cooking celebrates this experience with delicious recipes that will enhance the natural flavors of your latest market haul and stories of the South’s most dedicated growers and culinary producers.

This great cookbook is chock full of delicious recipes and little tips with each recipe regarding serving options or how the recipe came about. But what I enjoyed the most were the stories mixed in amongst the recipes about the places where the author picked up fresh food items.

Highly recommended.

Jody

My Kindle copy of this cookbook was graciously provided by BookSneeze for my honest review.