Contemporary

Can’t Wait Wednesday – Shine the Light

March 6, 2019 by Suzie Waltner Leave a Comment

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally, they’re books that have yet to be released. It’s based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine. If you’re continuing with WOW, feel free to link those up as well! Find out more here.

Happy Wednesday! How is March treating you so far? Are you ready for Daylight Savings Time this coming Sunday? I am. It will be wonderful to leave the office and still have an hour or so of daylight to enjoy! I just realized this, but the book I chose to highlight this week is all about light!

April McGowan’s Hold the Light was an absolute favorite of mine in 2017. In April, we get to read the story of the best friend!

The Secret of Willow Inn by Pat Nichols – Review & Giveaway

February 7, 2019 by Suzie Waltner 5 Comments

Welcome to the Blog Tour & Giveaway for The Secret of Willow Inn by Pat Nichols, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: The Secret of Willow Inn
(Willow Falls #1)
Author: Pat Nichols
Publisher: Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas
Release Date: January 10, 2019
Genre: Inspirational Contemporary Fiction

Two women fighting for their dreams, one who’s long lost hers, are united by tragedy and a long-held secret.

Pregnant with her first child, Emily Hayes is eager to help her mother finish transforming an estate into the Willow Inn and write a novel about Willow Falls’ colorful history. A tragic event threatens her parents’ plans to refurbish an abandoned hotel and transform the obscure Georgia setting into a tourist destination.

Sadie Lyles left Willow Falls a murderer who’d killed the town hero. She returns as a despised felon and seeks solace in the town’s café. Emily struggles to unite the close-knit community and becomes Sadie’s biggest advocate. She strives to uncover the truth about the crime and save her town from dying.

To appease her father, Rachel, a VP in his Atlanta real-estate-development firm, relegates her acting dream to secret performances for imaginary audiences. After meeting charming, flirtatious Charlie Bricker, manager for Willow Falls’ future vineyard, she vows to break free from her father’s control.

The tragedy and Willow Inn’s secret past launch Emily and Rachel on a collision course with destiny and truth.

Catching Christmas by Terri Blackstock – Review, Guest Post & Giveaway

December 18, 2018 by Suzie Waltner Leave a Comment

About the Book

Book: Catching Christmas
Author: Terri Blackstock
Genre: Christian Fiction, Romance, Christmas

Release Date: October 9, 2018
This Year, Christmas Comes Just in Time
As a first-year law associate, Sydney Batson knows she will be updating her resume by New Year’s if she loses her current court case. So when her grandmother gets inexplicably ill while she’s in court, Sydney arranges for a cab to get her to the clinic.
The last thing cab driver Finn Parrish wants is to be saddled with a wheelchair-bound old lady with dementia. But because Miss Callie reminds him of his own mother, whom he failed miserably in her last days, he can’t say no when she keeps calling him for rides. Once a successful gourmet chef, Finn’s biggest concern now is making his rent, but half the time Callie doesn’t remember to pay him. And as she starts to feel better, she leads him on wild goose chases to find a Christmas date for her granddaughter.
When Finn meets Sydney, he’s quite sure that she’s never needed help finding a date. Does Miss Callie have an ulterior motive, or is this just a mission driven by delusions? He’s willing to do whatever he can to help fulfill Callie’s Christmas wish. He just never expected to be a vital part of it.

Click here to purchase your copy.

Silent Days, Holy Night by Phyllis Clark Nichols – Review & Giveaway

December 10, 2018 by Suzie Waltner 1 Comment

Let’s all get in the mood for Christmas with this blog tour and giveaway for Silent Days, Holy Night by Phyllis Clark Nichols, hosted by JustRead Tours.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: Silent Days, Holy Night
Author: Phyllis Clark Nichols
Publisher: Gilead Publishing
Release Date: October 30, 2018
Genre: Contemporary Women’s Fiction/Christmas

The sounds of Christmases past echo through a silent house…

Everyone in town knows Emerald Crest, the green granite mansion atop the highest hill: the legendary, lavish Christmas festivities that used to light up the nights— and the silence that followed when the parties abruptly stopped many years ago. And everyone has heard whispers about the reclusive, mysterious master of the manor, Henry Lafferty the Second . . .

When eleven-year-old Julia Russell steps into the great house for the first time and meets Mr. Lafferty, the entire course of her life is altered. She meets a man who is nothing at all like the rumors she’s heard from neighbors and classmates. He’s kind and extraordinarily talented—he also happens to be deaf and uses a wheelchair. And when she overhears a secret about him, Julia decides it’s time for the town to bring Christmas back to Emerald Crest—an act that will change them all forever.

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | CBD | Book Depository

IN MY OPINION

This book is one that embodies what the Christmas spirit should be in each of our lives. Love, acceptance, giving, friendship, family, and so, so much more.

Young Julia Russell is full of curiosity, gumption, and questions—lots and lots of questions. The moment she meets Henry Lafferty is one that defines her young life. Everything about this man is interesting and she longs to know more. She’s not deterred by his deafness or the age/generation gap. Henry has a story and Julia wants to learn it.

As Julia and Henry (or H as she thinks of him) form an unlikely friendship that is defined by an ability to communicate with each other beyond mere words. That friendship teaches Julia about herself and life at a young age: Kindness comes from the heart. There is good in everyone and everyone needs a friend. With a little effort, a can’t can be turned into a can.

Phyllis Clark Nichols gives readers a Christmas story to warm hearts and expand minds. It only takes one person to make someone else’s life better—and that often has a ripple effect into other lives. You definitely don’t want to miss this story.

My Rating:

I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Phyllis Clark Nichols’s character-driven Southern fiction explores profound human questions using the imagined residents of small town communities you just know you’ve visited before. With a strong faith and a love for nature, art, music, and ordinary people, she tells redemptive tales of loss and recovery, estrangement and connection, longing and fulfillment . . . often through surprisingly serendipitous events.

Phyllis grew up in the deep shade of magnolia trees in South Georgia. Born during a hurricane, she is no stranger to the winds of change: In addition to her life as a novelist, Phyllis is a seminary graduate, concert pianist, and cofounder of a national cable network with health- and disability-related programming. Regardless of the role she’s playing, Phyllis brings creativity and compelling storytelling.

She frequently appears at conventions, conferences, civic groups, and churches, performing half-hour musical monologues that express her faith, joy, and thoughts about life—all with the homespun humor and gentility of a true Southern woman.

Phyllis currently serves on several nonprofit boards. She lives in the Texas Hill Country with her portrait-artist husband.

CONNECT WITH PHYLLIS: website | Facebook | Twitter

TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive (US only):

a print copy of Silent Days, Holy Night by Phyllis Clark Nichols
a print copy of Sleigh Bells Ring by various authors

Enter via the Rafflecopter giveaway below. Giveaway will begin at midnight December 10, 2018 and last through 11:59pm December 17, 2018. US only. Winners will be notified within a week of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

Reason to Breathe by Deborah Raney – Review & Giveaway

December 3, 2018 by Suzie Waltner 12 Comments

We are excited to introduce Deborah Raney’s new series with a blog tour and giveaway for book #1 – Reason to Breathe – hosted by JustRead Tours.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: Reason to Breathe
Series: Chandler Sisters #1
Author: Deborah Raney
Publisher: Gilead Publishing
Release Date: October 23, 2018
Genre: Contemporary Women’s Fiction/Romance

Phylicia thought life was passing her by, but maybe this was love’s plan all along. . .

At twenty-nine, Phylicia Chandler put her life on hold to care for her dying mother with her sisters, Joanna and Britt. Now Mom is gone and their father stuns them all by running off with a woman young enough to be their sister. Life is moving forward all around her, but Phylicia feels stuck—until her father’s protégé, Quinn Mitchell, presents the sisters with an intriguing business opportunity to purchase a trio of cottages just outside of Langhorne, Missouri. Joanna and Britt are convinced the three of them should launch a vacation rental venture, but Phylicia remains skeptical.

To complicate matters, Quinn soon finds himself falling hard for Phylicia. But how can he pursue this beautiful, talented woman twelve years his junior when she’s still reeling over her father’s hasty engagement to a younger woman? Quinn is determined to give Phylicia her happily-ever-after. But first, he must help her come to terms with her discovery of long-held family secrets and persuade her that true love can transcend their differences.