A Portrait of Emily Price by Katherine Reay

My Thoughts:  I was so excited to receive A Portrait of Emily Price in the mail!  I've had the privilege of reading Katherine Reay's novels....The Bronte Plot, Dear Mr. Knightley and Lizzy & Jane.  Of course, each of these novels have love and laughter!

A Portrait of Emily Price just made my heart sing.  Sometimes, there is just that one book that makes you laugh and smile.

Emily Price is a fix-it kind.of.girl.  She can fix almost anything but when it comes to love . . . well, not so much.

Soon Emily meets Ben who has come to help his aunt and uncles' restaurant, to bring a little new life to fading place.  When Ben and Emily meet Ben is smitten with Emily.  He tries hard to win her heart and low na behold, he does.  Emily, to everyone's surprise, accepts Ben's proposal.  

So Emily and Ben head to Italy where Emily does not become part of the landscape instead she gets into everyone's business and creates some havoc.  Sometimes one just can't fix.it.all!

A funny and somewhat lighthearted read about differences and acceptance with a lot of grace and mercy interwoven into the pages. And probably my most favorite reads this year!  

*This book was provided for review by BookLook*

About the Author:  

Katherine Reay has enjoyed a life-long affair with the works of Jane Austen and her contemporaries -- who provide constant inspiration both for writing and for life. Katherine’s first novel, Dear Mr. Knightley, was a 2014 Christy Award Finalist and winner of the 2014 INSPY Award for Best Debut as well as Carol Awards for both Best Debut and Best Contemporary. She is also the writer behind Lizzy & Jane and the The Bronte Plot – all contemporary stories with a bit of "classics" flair. Katherine holds a BA and MS from Northwestern University and is a wife, mother, runner, former marketer, avid chocolate consumer and, randomly, a tae kwon do black belt. After living all across the country and a few stops in Europe, Katherine and her family recently moved back to Chicago.

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• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (November 1, 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0718077911
• ISBN-13: 978-0718077914

WOW {Warm Oven Wednesday}

Creamy Chicken and Rice Bake...Another great recipe from Pinterest!

Ingredients:

• 1 can (12 fl. oz.) NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk
• 1 pkg. (3 oz.) cream cheese, softened
• 1 can (10 3/4 fl. oz.) cream of chicken soup
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 bag (16 oz.) frozen broccoli, cauliflower and carrot medley, thawed
• 2 cups cubed, precooked chicken
• 1 1/2 cups uncooked instant white rice
• 1/2 cup (2 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions:
PREHEAT oven to 350° F. Grease 13 x 9-inch baking dish. 
COMBINE evaporated milk and cream cheese in baking dish with wire whisk until smooth. Add soup, water, garlic powder and pepper; mix well. Add vegetables, chicken and rice. Cover tightly with foil. 
BAKE for 35 minutes. Uncover; top with cheese. Bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and mixture is bubbly. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. 
FOR FREEZE AHEAD:
PREPARE as above; do not bake. Do not top with cheddar cheese. Cover; freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in refrigerator.
PREHEAT oven to 350° F.
BAKE, covered, for 45 to 55 minutes. Uncover; top with cheddar cheese. Bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and mixture is bubbly. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

{Fiction Guild} Twilight at Blueberry Barrens (A Sunset Cove Novel) by Colleen Coble

My Thoughts:  Another favorite author, Colleen Coble, has written another great read, Twilight at Blueberry Barrens!

Of course, this book isn't just about blueberries but here is a little fact that I looked up to understand blueberries:  "The glacially formed "barrens", vast rolling plains of sandy soil, are perfect for raising wild, lowbush blueberries. Thus, the growing, harvesting and processing of the blueberry is a major industry in Washington County. Nearly a quarter million acres of barrens yield an average of 30 million pounds of blueberries annually, all of which are canned within the county."

Now, you may have a better idea of what Kate Mason's job entails as she cares for the family's blueberry barrens.  As much care and time that Kate has given to the blueberry barrens...they aren't producing fruit so Kate must take on another job to make ends meet.  

So, when Drake comes to her looking for a place to rent and a nanny for his two girls Kate rents them a cottage and cares for the two girls.

But there is a mystery in this novel too that involves Kate's uncle and a stalker.   And will Kate's blueberry barrens eve produce fruit again?!?!

Loved this read!!

*This book was provided for review by Fiction Guild/BookLook*

• Series: A Sunset Cove Novel
• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (September 20, 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401690300
• ISBN-13: 978-1401690304

{Fiction Guild} A Love Made New (An Amish of Birch Creek Novel) by Kathleen Fuller

My Thoughts:  Poor Abigail.   Her heart has been betrayed by the man she thought she loved and whom she thought loved her.  She has no one to love and now it seems that everyone is pairing up and getting married....everyone except her.

And Abigail feels like fine china, she could crack at any moment but then she finds chocolate in the pantry.  Gotta love Abigail.  A woman after my own heart.  Chocolate can mend a broken heart.  I love this about Kathleen Fuller's novels she puts "the real" right in the story and makes the characters feel like real people going through real trials.

Asa Bontrager doesn't like lack for feminine company.  And then he feels that God is calling him to pursue Abigail.  Abigail seems to rebuff him.  Maybe God's not calling him, maybe he just likes Abigail.

A fun Amish read.  I loved this story because it's just a "tiny bit" off the beaten Amish storytelling path.  Kathleen brings out the very human heart of love.

*This book was provided for review by Fiction Guild/BookLook*

• Series: An Amish of Birch Creek Novel
• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (September 13, 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0718033205
• ISBN-13: 978-0718033200

the Forgotten Recipe by Amy Clipston

Book Description: After losing her fiancé in a tragic accident, Veronica Fisher finds solace in the old recipes stored in her mother’s hope chest—and in a special visitor who comes to her bake stand to purchase her old-fashioned raspberry pies.

Veronica Fisher knows how lucky she is to be marrying her best friend. Seth Lapp is kind, hardworking, and handsome—but most importantly, he loves Veronica.

When an accident on the job steals Seth away from her, a heartbroken Veronica is certain she will never love—or be loved—again. Yet when she discovers a batch of forgotten recipes and opens a bake stand to sell her Mammi’s raspberry pies, Veronica picks up a regular customer who gives her heart pause.

Jason Huyard was with Seth when he lost his life—a memory that haunts him still. So when he seeks out the grieving fiancée to convey his condolences, the last thing he expects—or wants—is to fall in love. Nonetheless, Jason soon finds himself visiting Veronica’s bake stand every week . . . and it’s for more than the raspberry pies.

Now, as Veronica’s heart thaws, Jason can’t bring himself to tell her he was there when Seth died. Can he ever reveal where he was on the day her life derailed? Or will his secret rob them of the second chance at love they both want?

My Thoughts:  Amy Clipston is one of my favorite authors.  She writes with words that makes the reader feel as if she is in the story.  And once again, she writes a sweet love story about an Amish young lady who is dealing with feelings of misgivings as she tries to sort out her love life.  This is also the first book in the Amish heirloom series.

Veronica Fisher knows about pies and she bakes great pies...one can almost smell the heavenly aromas arise from the pages of the book.  But Veronica has lost her fiancee and plans to marry another man until that fateful day when she finds her Mammi's forgotten recipes.  Veronica bakes a raspberry pie from one of the forgotten recipes and takes it to the stand to sell.  

Jason Huyard comes to her stand and becomes a regular customer of he loves her raspberry pies.  Jason doesn't want to fall in love but as life would have it he meets Veronica at her stand and love begins to bloom. But he holds a secret...and this secret could destroy their relationship.

This is a story for the reader who enjoys Amish fiction, pies and sweet romance.  Also, don't forget Christmas is right around the corner and this book would make a great for that reader on your list.

A wonderful read!

• Series: An Amish Heirloom Novel
• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan (December 8, 2015)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031034199X
• ISBN-13: 978-0310341994

COTT {Clash of the Titles}

Guest Post: The Bad Date Challenge

Guest post By Janet W. Ferguson 

Back in my single days long ago, I went on a few bad dates. How about you? What if you were the queen of bad dates? My heroine in Blown Together, Elinor Bosarge, has had more than her share of really bad dates. So much so that she rather stick to writing her romance novels than try her luck in the real world of dating again.

Then comes Sam Conrad, a sort of jaded hero with his own string of bad luck at romance. The battle was on. Who had endured a more pathetic dating history?
A bunch of my friends and I had a blast brainstorming funny dates we’d experienced ourselves or we’d heard about. It is fun years later to laugh about those strange or even horrendous experiences. Not so much at the time.

I’m not sure what it says about me or my friends, but we came up with so many bad dates, I couldn’t use them all in the novel.

Here’s a few we left out.

• When a guy’s wife interrupts your date… didn’t tell you he was married…
• On your first date, your date confides he has PTSD, and sometimes thinks violent thoughts…
• The chain cigar smoker…
• The date who talks in a loud voice to you all during a movie…
• The first date with a guy who picks you up wearing white overalls and no shirt…

And there were more.
Let me confess, I’m likely someone’s bad date story. None of us are perfect, right?

I hope you enjoy reading Blown Together and maybe even laugh as you remember a bad date of your own!

Have you heard a funny dating story? NO NAMES of the offenders please.


About the Author: 
Janet W. Ferguson grew up in Mississippi and received a degree in Banking and Finance from the University of Mississippi. She has served her church as a children’s minister and a youth volunteer. An avid reader, she worked as a librarian at a large public high school. Janet and her husband have two grown children, one really smart dog, and a few cats that allow them to share the space. 

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About the Book:

When love storms in…

Wealth manager Sam Conrad is accustomed to his domineering father ordering him around, especially at the bank where they both work. But when his father demands that Sam manage the inheritance of his bossy ex-fiancée, Sam has finally had enough. He leaves in search of a new life, and attorney Big Roy Bosarge from Mobile, Alabama agrees to mentor Sam on his quest for direction. Sam didn’t expect to be thrown together with Big Roy’s eccentric and opinionated daughter.

Storm damage forces lonely romance writer Elinor Bosarge and her hairless cat, Mr. Darcy, out of her Fort Morgan Beach cottage. She plans to take refuge in the boathouse on her parents’ estate, but finds the place already occupied by one of her father’s “projects.” She’s shocked her father would allow another young man onto the property after his last mentee robbed her family and broke her heart. And from the moment she meets Sam Conrad, they disagree about everything from her cat to how to best renovate a local nursing home.
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Between her mother’s health issues and the hurricane brewing in the Gulf, Elinor feels like her life is being ripped apart. It doesn’t help that she’s falling for the man she’s determined not to trust. Sam finds himself drawn to Elinor, wanting to help her and this new family he’s grown to love. But can he overcome the barrier she’s built to keep him out? When the storm rages and the two of them are blown together, can Elinor find the faith to open her heart again?

The Silent Songbird (Hagenheim #7) by Melanie Dickerson

My Thoughts:  Ahhh!  I think these stories that  retell the fairy tales by Melanie Dickerson are so neat and unusual. And I was excited to receive the next Hagenheim "series" book!

The Silent Songbird is a retelling of The Little Mermaid.    We loved the Disney Little Mermaid so I was interested to read about Evangeline or Eva in this happy retelling of a fairy tale.

However, one won't find the ocean as the backdrop in this story even though there is a water rescue and Eva has a beautiful singing voice.

Eva wants freedom from King Richard II of whom she is a ward.  So, she takes matters into her own hands when King Richard II insists that she marry an older man.

So, Eva with her maid, Muriel (a nice play on a name), runs away to "play" the life of a servant.  She and Muriel meet Wesley.  As the story continues, Eva doesn't want to tell Wesley who she is...Eva is afraid Wesley will no longer like her/trust her.

An intersting twist to a beloved fairy tale.  

*This book was provided for review by BookLook*

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (November 8, 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0718026314
• ISBN-13: 978-0718026318