The Dream Dress - A Review

Publisher - Revell Books, a division Baker Publishing House, available February 2014

Series - Weddings by Design book 3

Author - Janice Thompson

Title - The Dream Dress

Format - ebook, paper

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Gabi Delgado longs to be more than just a "material girl" at the high end bridal shop on Galveston Island. She spends her nights sketching and creating her own designs of bridal gowns. Unfortunately for Gabi, her boss only sees her as an alterations specialist. When a handsome reporter from Texas Bride magazine arrives at the bridal shop to do a feature story on the designs created by Gabi's boss, he soon discovers Gabi's talent and decides to feature both Gabi's designs and her boss's. The more time that Gabi spends with Jordan (the reporter) the more that sparks fly between them. Not only is Gabi attracted to him, she's drawn to his faith. Add in Bella Neeley, the Splendora Sisters, two best friends, and a Spanish grandmother, Gabi soon finds herself willing to take a chance and soar on her own.

As always, I know I'm in for a humorous adventure anytime I pick up one of Janice Thompson's books. This one is no exception. I loved all of the characters, especially Gabi. I also loved all of the Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers references and quotes. Janice has a way of creating characters that yearn for something more, and then gently delivering a solid faith message.

Jordan was such a sweet heart. I loved that Gabi kept thinking of him as Prince William. I also loved the constant references to Cinderella. I know fairy tale retellings are a big thing right now, and this is not one. But I could still see the elements of a simple Cinderella story. I wish the Club Wed, the Parma John's pizzaria, Scarlet's bakery were real spots on Galveston Island that I could visit on my next trip to the Island. But they're not. I have to content myself with visiting them over and over through both the Weddings by Bella series and this one, Weddings by Design. I am eagerly looking forward to book 4.

I received the kindle version of this book for free from Revell Books via NetGalley for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of chick lit, romantic comedy, Janice Thompson, Rachel Hauck, Becky Wade, Melissa Tagg, Abby Gaines

Rating - 4 stars

Bible Stories for His Beautiful Princess - A Review

Publisher - Tyndale House Publishers, January 2014

Title - Bible Stories for His Beautiful Princess

Author - Sheri Rose Shepherd

Format - Hardcover

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A collection of beautifully illustrated Bible stories that will delight any little girl. Each story is short and has a prayer and "princess jewel" as part of it.

I love it when Tyndale offers a Biblestory book for review. And my best friend loves it too as her daughters benefit from it once I've reviewed it.

This one is beautifully illustrated. The pictures are sweet. I love the fact that there are crowns and jewels on every page! The stories are short. Only one or two pages in length. I think that is a great length for a small child's attention span. I also love the fact that each story has a short prayer and a princess jewel at the end. The princess jewels are little tidbits of advice to the young princess.

The only thing I didn't really care for was that the stories were not written in an engaging rhyme. That's probably the only reason I'm not ranking it 5 stars.

I received the hardcover of this book for free from Tyndale House Publishers for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to parents of young daughters, Sunday School or Children's Church Teachers, homeschoolers

Rating - 4.5 stars

Unspoken - A Review

Publisher - Bethany House, October 2013

Author - Dee Henderson

Title - Unspoken

Format - paper, hardcover, ebook, audio

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Kidnapped as a child, Charlotte Graham has never spoken of the years she was held captive. A very independent woman, she seeks privacy and avoids the media spotlight at all costs - even to the point of having her twin sister speak out. Yet when Charlotte inherits a massive estate from her grandfather that requires liquidation, she realizes that her sheltered life may soon be over. As part of the estate, there are millions of dollars of coins that she seeks to move. Bryce Bishop owns a very successful coin shop in Chicago. A phone call from the head of the Chicago FBI begins his relationship with Charlotte. Bryce agrees to buy the coins from her. As he gets to know her, he's more and more fascinated by this very private woman. But he's concerned that her past will hold her back. Will she find the way to at least speak of those events from when she was kidnapped?

I've read every one of Dee Henderson's books, and have thoroughly enjoyed each and every one. With this one, the back of the book leads the reader to expect something other than what this book is actually about. While I found the first half of the book to be very tedious and boring, the second half reminded me of what I came to expect from a Dee Henderson book.

 In the first half of the book, the reader gets a very deep education on the ins and outs of trading rare coins. I feel that that section and the massive amounts of detail on the coins could have been cut by 75-100 pages and the story would have moved along nicely. As it was, I struggled quite a lot to wade through those pages and chapters. Sure, it was interesting - for the first several pages, but after that, I felt that it was tedious and caused the story to drag. While I'll admit that I found the detail of the coins fascinating, at first, because of my father's coin collection, I really did have to struggle to get past all of the details and what seemed to be repetition. She has coins. He buys them. He sells them. Repeat many times over.

The second half of the book felt much more like what I've come to expect from a Dee Henderson book. The action was fast paced and storylines collided into a dramatic conclusion. There was also the aspect of Charlotte finally speaking about the events that happened to her while she was kidnapped. For me, that provided a closure that she definitely needed.

Still, the book was good. Just hang in there through the first half which deals with the coins in extreme detail. Also, ignore the back cover as it implies that the reporter's story about the kidnapping is very important to the story - it's not. This was different than Dee's other books because of the relationship depth she develops between Charlotte and Bryce. It's not the best one Henderson has written by any means. And I'd also not recommend starting with this book unless you've already read some of her other works.

I read this book for pure pleasure. My thoughts and opinions are my own.


Recommended to fans of romantic suspense, Dee Henderson, Irene Hannon, Lynette Eason

Rating - 3.5 stars - It would be a 4 star rating if the part involving the coins was not so tedious.

Echoes of Mercy - A Review

Publisher - Waterbrook Press, January 2014

Author - Kim Vogel Sawyer

Title - Echoes of Mercy

Format - paper, ebook, audio

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When an accident at the Dinsmore Chocolate Factory takes the life of an undercover Labor Commission agent, Caroline Lang is sent undercover to investigate. Caroline gets the job of toter, which is toting the trays of chocolates to the packagers. Her questions draw more attention than she wants. Both the manager, Gordon Hightower, and the young janitor, Ollie Moore have taken notice of her. Ollie has a secret himself - he's really the son of the owner. As Caroline and Ollie began to form attachments to each other, a complication arises in the form of three children needing care. Caroline feels strongly that the children belong in school and not working. Ollie doesn't understand why. But as they join forces to care for the children, will they reach an understanding on their very different viewpoints? Also will she find the truth behind the death of her fellow agent?

I've read others of Kim Vogel Sawyer's in the past and found them to be rather slow moving. This one intrigued me. First it's set in a chocolate factory. That alone was enough to garner my interest. But the fact that both of the main characters were undercover made it even more interesting for me. I enjoyed their interactions and how each respected the other's opinion - even when it didn't match with their own.

I found that the "villian" in the story was a man who wanted wealth but went about it the wrong way. I felt a little sorry for him to be honest.

The way that Carrie lived her faith and depended on it was something that caught my eye. She was genuine. To the point that when Ollie asked her what was different, she was able to say her faith.

I received this book for free from Waterbrook/Multnomah's Blogging for books program for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of Tracie Peterson, Beth Wiseman, Amanda Cabot

Rating - 4 stars

Please rank my review.

February Bride - A Review

Publisher - Zondervan, January 2014

Author - Betsy St. Amant

Title - A February Bride

Series - A Year of Weddings Novella

Format - ebook

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Allie Andrews has left the love of her life at the altar. Wearing her grandmother's dress, she ran from the church. Now her best friend, who happens to be the sister of the man she was going to marry, has asked Allie to be the maid of honor in her Valentine's Day wedding. Allie agrees, even though she knows she'll be put in close contact with her ex-fiancee, Marcus. Marcus didn't understand what happened to cause Allie to run out. Yet as they're constantly thrown together with his sister's wedding, he finds reason to hope that things between them aren't totally over. Will these two find their happily ever after?

This was such a fun novellla! I don't think I've ever read any of Betsy St. Amant's books before, but I think that will be remedied after this one. Full of humor, I loved Allie as the "runaway bride." I also loved that she wanted to change who she was in regards to her family and their history of failed marriages so much that she loved Marcus enough to let him go. I loved how she searched to find out who she really was.

I loved loved loved Marcus's mother. I thought that she was a great voice of reason and gentleness that Allie needed to hear at times.

I received this book for free from Thomas Nelson/Zondervan/Harper Collins as part of the Booklook Blogging program for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of Love Inspired, novellas, contemporary romance

Rating - 4 stars

January Bride - A Review

Publisher - Zondervan, December 3013

Title - A January Bride

Author - Deborah Raney

Series - A Year of Weddings Novella

Format - ebook

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When Madeleine Houser needs a quiet place to write that's not in the midst of a construction zone, her neighbor sends her to the bed & breakfast on the other side of town. The B&B is run by a widowed professor, Arthur. Madeleine soon finds herself being very productive in the quiet have of the B&B and leaves the owner a note. He replies, and soon both look forward to the notes. Both have started to fall for the person writing the notes, but what will happen when the pair finally meets in person?

This is part of the Year of Weddings novella collection. I read this in about 2 hours. I found it to be a sweet story. I personally loved the mistaken identities each of the two main characters had of the other. And I loved the letter/note writing. It reminded me of an old Judy Garland movie In the Good Ol' Summertime.

While it was sweet and a good story, overall I found this to really be just ok. I didn't love it, but I didn't dislike it either. Truthfully I felt kinda blah about this book.

I received this book for free from Thomas Nelson/Zondervan/HarperCollins Booklook Blogging program for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of Love Inspired, weddings, novellas, contemporary romance

Rating - 3.5 stars

Princess Ever After - A Review

Publisher - Zondervan, February 2014

Series - Royal Wedding Series, Book 2

Author - Rachel Hauck

Title - Princess Ever After

Format - paper, ebook, audio

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Regina Beswick is happy with her simple life. She owns her own business - or restoring classic cars - and loves life. She doesn't know she's a princess. Or the one person who can save a country. When Tanner Burkhardt from the Grand Duchy of Hessenberg shows up at her garage and informs her that she's the long-lost heir to the throne, she really thinks someone is playing a joke on her. Yet when her father confirms at least part of Tanner's claim, Reggie finds herself at a crossroads. Should she give up everything she loves to rule this tiny island nation? Or should she give up being a princess? Even though she's unsure, Reggie travels to Hessenberg to at least visit the country and see where her great-grandmother grew up. But while she's there, she and Tanner discover a plot that could mean the end of the small country. Will Reggie accept her birthright? And how will she deal with her feelings for Tanner?

Last year when I read Once Upon a Prince, I absolutely adored it. This sequel to it was equally delightful. I loved Reggie's character. She's such a down to earth girl. And the way that she rolled with the things that came up showed me that she had spunk. I also loved catching a brief glimpse of Nathaniel and Susanna from the first book.

I thought Tanner showed promise. I didn't like him at all at first. I thought he was stuffy. But as I kept reading, I discovered just how much hurt he was hiding and I grew to love him. I really loved the glimpses of the past through Princess Alice's journal entries.

To me, this reminded me a lot of the Princess Diaries (both the movies and the books). And I loved the Princess Diaries! I also found this to be a very light-hearted, engaging, and entertaining read.

I received this book for free from Thomas Nelson/Zondervan/HarperCollins BookLook Bloggers program. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of fairy tales, happy endings, Princess Diaries, Karen Witemeyer, contemporary romance

Rating - 5 stars - another sigh-worthy book