The House at the End of the Moor - Michelle Griep

An innocent man wrongly imprisoned; not just wrongly imprisoned, but targeted and accused, in order to stall his work to improve the lives of the poor.  A beautiful opera singer, propositioned with the threat of blackmail, forced to leave her gift behind and live an anonymous life on the barren moor.  A daring escape, an injured stranger, a Constable bent on meting out justice, plots uncovered  - in all of this, what is God's plan? Where is His justice?

There was so much action, redemption, and reconciliation in this book; it was thrilling, heartbreaking, and gripping.  Yet, the dark characters and the violent evil they wrought on undeserving and unsuspecting recipients was harsh and difficult to stomach.  I understand that it highlighted their depravity and lack of understanding of God's mercy and justice, but I felt that it could have been hinted at, but left a bit more off of the page.

I give this book 4 stars; I loved so much of it, it would have easily been a 5-star read without so much violence.

You can find The House at the End of the Moor HERE.
You can find the author HERE. I will definitely be looking to read more from her!

More Than We Remember - Christina Suzann Nelson

Three women, isolated by their separate circumstances, yet oddly united through one terrible tragedy.  How will Addison, Brianne, and Emilia get through their hardships alone? Yet, is there anyone they can trust to help them?  Who else can understand their personal pain?

There were so many stories happening in this book that it took awhile to keep them straight, but the author did a good job weaving them together and having everything tie up in the end.  Tie up in the sense that the reader wasn't left hanging on any of the big questions, but not tied up so neatly that the characters avoided consequences for their choices and actions.  The message throughout this book is that nothing is as easy as it looks on the surface, and everyone's story has bumps in it that you can only find out by getting to know them. 

I give this book 3.5 stars; I think there were still a few hiccups in the story shifts, and there were almost too many characters to get to know, but overall there were a lot of good glimpses of tough situations, and examples of how people could grow through the tough times, especially if they're willing to accept help from others.

You can find More Than We Remember HERE. 
You can the author's website HERE.

I received a digital copy of this book, via NetGalley, from the publisher, in exchange for my honest review.

The Fifth Avenue Story Society - Rachel Hauck

Five people, with only tenuous connections at most, receive mysterious invitations to a Story Society meeting in a special room at the Fifth Avenue Library.  As they struggle to find out what or who could have brought them together, they begin to form relationships and find themselves looking forward to and depending on this strange group more and more.  Could they have been brought together to simply share their stories, or will they find a bigger purpose within the sharing?

This was my favorite Rachel Hauck book in awhile; I'm almost glad I didn't realize it was connected to The Writing Desk, because I didn't love that one.  However, this one was filled with such an amazing cast of characters, all of whom had compelling stories to tell, that I had a hard time letting go of them with the last page.  I found myself equally drawn into almost all of their points of view, and I was eager to see their secrets revealed and their wounds from their pasts healed. 

I give this book 4.5 stars; I still don't love the Gordon Phipps Roth storyline that carried over from The Writing Desk, but it was important to Jett's storyline.  Otherwise, I loved the interplay between the characters, and the tough choices they had to make with revealing the truths in their lives.

You can find The Fifth Avenue Story Society HERE.
You can find the author's website HERE.

I received a digital copy of this book, via NetGalley, from the publisher, in exchange for my honest review.

From Sky to Sky - Amanda G. Stevens

In this follow-up to No Less Days, Zac Wilson has stuck around in town with David Galloway, after connecting with the fellow longevite under terrible circumstances.  While there, he is approached by more people like him, who claim that several more of their kind have been dying. Are they finally aging out, or is something darker happening?

In my review of No Less Days, I mentioned that it would have made a good series, and I was right!  Having this book added to the first makes the story much richer, and watching these characters struggle with their odd balance of humanity and immortality becomes an epic battle rather than a skirmish snapshot.  I questioned how one's faith in God might grow, or stagnate, over several lifespans that didn't result in a face-to-face meeting - that was delved into more thoroughly in this book, and it added so much to the story.  There are still questions hanging out there, and I can only hope that there are more books to come to continue this unusual story of a family knit together by unique circumstances and not necessarily by choice.  I'm so interested to see how they find their way back together, and if they can find peace with what seems to be their lot.

I give this book 4 stars.  I almost didn't pick it up because its description is so odd for a Christian fiction novel, but I'm so glad that I did!  It definitely gives the reader a lot to think about how they handle their small breath of years they get to spend here.

You can find From Sky to Sky HERE.
You can find the author's website HERE.

I received a digital copy of this book, via NetGalley, from the publisher, in exchange for my honest review.

The Dating Charade - Melissa Ferguson

Cassie has had so many bad blind dates that she has a full escape plan in place.  She is ready to walk away from the dating scene when Jett Bentley shows up and decides to pursue her, the girl who he admired from afar in high school.  Each has stated up front that they're not interested in having kids, but it's not quite the whole truth for either of them.  When complicated situations leave each of them with 3 kids in their individual custody, they must decide how to, or whether to, fill the other one in, with the risk of scaring them away for good.

This is one of those cases where I almost let a cover and title keep me from reading a good book; I was expecting the whole book to read like the introduction - a woman running from disastrous dates, a firefighter rescuing old ladies.  While that beginning was humorous, and would have made for a fun light-hearted book, but instead, the story got much much deeper.  Touching on infertility, foster care, child abuse and neglect, and unmet dreams and expectations, Jett and Cassie traveled a very emotional path both separately and together.  With well-placed revelations about each of the characters, the story blended past hurts and current struggles.  My one disappointment was that when Jett and Cassie came to a seemingly impassable argument, there was no real work to resolve it; somehow, it magically became a non-issue. 

I give this book 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.  I loved this book for all of the tough topics it tackled, but I did wish that the characters would have reflected a little more on how to work through some of them.  I have not been closely involved with foster care, but I did appreciate that the book didn't make it all seem perfect and peachy, for either the parents or the children.

You can find The Dating Charade HERE.
You can find the author's website HERE.
(This is her debut novel, and I'm looking forward to more from her!)

I received a digital copy of this book, via NetGalley, from the publisher, in exchange for my honest review.

Lake Season - Denise Hunter

Molly, Levi, and Grace Bennett choose to band together after their parents' tragic death, and put their life plans on hold to open the inn that was their parents' dream.  During the last stages of construction, Molly discovers an unsent letter stuck in the walls, and becomes obsessed with tracking down the writer and intended recipient to try to provide healing or closure.  Meanwhile, Adam Bradford, whose pseudonym is the bestselling author Nathaniel Quinn, comes to Bluebell to find inspiration for his next novel.  With no other rooms available during the busy Lake Season, Adam ends up at the Bluebell Inn, and strikes up a friendship with Molly.  Finding himself drawn to both Molly and the mysterious letter, the two of them work closely together to delve into the small town's past to find what they can about this couple that has stolen their hearts.  How close can Adam get to Molly without revealing his secret identity, who just happens to be Molly's favorite author, or without her feeling deceived if he does reveal himself?  Can he trust her with his insecurities that he doesn't measure up to his own heroes?

This book had all the makings of a great summer read - the lake town, the small inn, the tragic beginning, and an author crush, but it fell just a little shy for me.  I wanted the townspeople, or side characters to play a larger part in filling out the feel of the town and story.  The book was entirely focused on Adam and Molly, with a minimal dual timeline addition to give a bit more weight to the letter plot.  Molly's best friend Skye had so much potential, as did Adam's friend Jordan, and Molly's siblings Levi and Grace.  I believe this is intended to be a series, with each sibling getting their turn at a book, so maybe their stories will start to feel more developed.  However, I spent most of the book feeling like I was missing a prequel, or maybe this wasn't meant to be book one, and that I was supposed to already know these people. 

Since Adam and Molly were the focus of the story, I did feel connected to them, and Adam's battle with his father's memory and the insecurities that stemmed from that, as well as Molly's grief and guilt over her parents' death were heartwrenching.  Lizzie and Ben's story was also very emotional, and while I wished for it to be fleshed out a bit more, I did appreciate how well everything tied together in the end.  Some might say too much so, but I didn't mind the coincidences, when attributed to God's sovereignty.

I give this book 4 stars.  November is an odd choice for a beach-y book to release, but maybe you'll want to hold onto it for next summer!  I do plan to read the siblings' stories as they are available, because I think this family set-up is rich for a good tale.

You can find Lake Season HERE.
You can find the author's website HERE.

I received a digital copy of this book, via NetGalley, from the publishers, in exchange for my honest review.

In the Cradle Lies - Olivia Newport

The Tree of Life series is set in the small town of Canyon Mines, and centers around Jillian Parisi-Duffy's work as a genealogist.  Besides her steady paycheck work of hunting down next-of-kin for insurance companies, she can't help but be curious about the strangers who wander into her town with mysterious backstories.  The Inn at Hidden Run introduces Jillian to Meri, who has run away from her family and doesn't want to talk about it.  In the Cradle Lies brings Tucker Kintzler to town, with his piles of cash and crazy dream to find the Inn's Hidden ski run namesake.  In both novels, Jillian works with her father, a lawyer skilled in mediation and getting people to open up to him, as well as a cast of small-town characters, to dig out enough information to piece together the history these folks need to find peace with their pasts and a path for their futures.

This is such an interesting theme for a series of novels; I love that the small town people we meet continue to tie them together, but a new puzzle for Jillian to solve makes each novel unique.  If you can suspend the question of whether Jillian should be looking into people's pasts who haven't asked, it's engaging to watch the story come together, utilizing a dual timeline to bring their past and current stories together.  Tucker's family history was darker than I anticipated, and I had trouble reconciling the quick tying up of ends with the slow reveal of the atrocities. 

I give both books in this series 3 stars; I enjoy the idea of the genealogical mysteries, and I will likely continue to read the series, but I don't see myself reading these again.

You can find The Inn at Hidden Run HERE.
You can find In the Cradle Lies HERE.
You can find the author's website HERE.

I received a digital copy of this book, via NetGalley, from the publishers, in exchange for my honest review.