Summer 11 Book Giveaway- Cleaning Out My Shelves

Oh goodness is it time to clean out my bookshelves and share these titles! I have read all of these books and while they were all good, I either have multiple copies or know I won't re-read them. 

I want people to enjoy reading and I want to share great books with those who haven't read them. 

Some storylines stick with you or make you think differently.  A book can have an impact when you least expect it. 

Here are the titles included: 

 

 

 

This giveaway is for the U.S. only and one winner will be randomly picked. 

These are all in paperback and I will ship them all in one package to the winner.

Enter below and thanks so much for stopping by! Ends August 9th.

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A Bride In Store Book Review

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 About the Book

"Mail-order bride Eliza Cantrell is on her way to meet her intended groom and help him grow his general store business when her train is held up by robbers and she loses her dowry. She's further thwarted upon arriving in Salt Flatts only to find Axel, her groom, away on business.
Hoping a wife would push Axel to become a better business partner, William Stanton had encouraged him to seek a mail-order bride. With Axel gone, Will feels responsible for Eliza, so he finds her a place to stay and lets her help in the store.
Working together isn't what they'd expected, and when Axel is further delayed, neither can ignore the sparks that fly. But Eliza is meant for Axel and is set on a future with the store, while Will is biding time until he can afford medical school.
Their troubles are far from over when Axel returns to town, however, and soon both Will and Eliza must decide what they're willing to sacrifice to chase their dreams--or if God has a new dream in store for them both.(Goodreads)

 My Review

I really enjoyed the first book in the Unexpected Brides series. I had high expectations for this book and I suppose I shouldn't have. I knew this book would be a love story, I just felt like it was so predictable. I honestly finished the book thinking I had read the exact same story line in a different book. I so wanted this book to be unique because even typical love stories can be unique! I really didn't connect with Eliza or William at all and I felt a loss of depth of character. I felt like I didn't really get to know who they were. While I did enjoy the slight twist that happens in the middle of the book, this just was not my favorite book. 

I like Melissa's writing and I enjoyed the first book so I will be reading her next!

For a light mail-order bride story you will enjoy this book.

"I received this book from Bethany House for free in exchange for an honest review."

A Bride for Keeps Book Review

Picture Credit

About the Book

A Tender Tale of Love on the Prairie Perfect for CBA Readers!

Although Everett Cline can hardly keep up with the demands of his homestead, he won't humiliate himself by looking for a helpmate ever again--not after being jilted by three mail-order brides. When a well-meaning neighbor goes behind his back to bring yet another mail-order bride to town, he has good reason to doubt it will work, especially after getting a glimpse at the woman in question. She's the prettiest woman he's ever seen, and it's just not possible she's there to marry a simple homesteader like him.

Julia Lockwood has never been anything more than a pretty pawn for her father or a business acquisition for her former fiance. Having finally worked up the courage to leave her life in Massachusetts, she's determined to find a place where people will value her for more than her looks. Having run out of all other options, Julia resorts to a mail-order marriage in far-away Kansas.

Everett is skeptical a cultured woman like Julia could be happy in a life on the plains, while Julia, deeply wounded by a past relationship, is skittish at the idea of marriage at all. When, despite their hesitations, they agree to a marriage in name only, neither one is prepared for the feelings that soon arise to complicate their arrangement. Can two people accustomed to keeping their distance let the barricades around their hearts down long enough to fall in love?

If you would like to read the first chapter of A Bride for Keeps, go HERE.

My Review

This was not a book I was very excited about reading. Little did I know the story hidden inside! I really enjoyed the characters in this book and getting inside their little world. Julia frustrated me at times but her story was very realistic. I read some reviews and people have said that they didn't like the book as much because it took forever for the main two to "fall in love". I like this book because it's realistic and different. Julia had a difficult past and the author was not going to speed up the process to make it a picture perfect sappy romance. Mail order bride books are so common it's difficult for an author to write something new. This book had a twist that I really enjoyed and reminded me slightly of a Deeanne Gist book, with it's humor and historical aspects.

Historical fiction lovers will enjoy this delightful read!

"I received this book from CFBA for free in exchange for an honest review."

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing A Bride for Keeps Bethany House Publishers (October 1, 2013) by Melissa Jagears

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A Word From The Author:

I am a stay at home mother on a tiny little farm with a fixer-upper house. As much as I love writing and reading about homesteaders, I am so glad I’m a homesteader during an era with modern grocery stores to take up for my slack. I am an ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher by trade, and I still work occasionally in that field along with being my church’s financial secretary and writing novels.

My husband and I have been married since 2001 and have a daughter and two little boys. My husband shares my fascination with traditional living except for being more hands on. He loves blacksmithing, knife smithing, traditional archery, hunting, etc. Generally whatever a mountain man does, he does it or has or wants to attempt it. He comes in handy for research! And of course, the rest of the family gets involved. I have my own blackpowder rifle, named Calvin, that my husband made for me. And I’m pretty sure my daughter is probably one of very few her age who can instruct adults how to shoot a longbow properly. The boy digs random holes in my yard to make “cement” with dirt and water making our yard a tripping hazard. The baby does what babies do.