First Line Fridays: Code of Valor by Lynette Eason

Happy Friday! 

First Line Fridays is hosted by Hoarding Books and participants share the first lines from a nearby book.

Today I'm sharing the first lines from Code of Valor by Lynette Eason:

"The broker rose from his chair and glared at the imbecile standing on the other side of the desk. 'We paid you well to steal that boat. Where is it?'"

What are you reading this weekend?

Have a great weekend! Happy reading!


About the Book:

She's living proof that what you don't know could kill you

What Detective Brady St. John really needs is a relaxing vacation. Unfortunately, just as the sun is setting on his second day at a friend's cabin on Lake Henley, he hears a scream and races to rescue a woman from her would-be killer. When the killer escapes only to return to finish the job, Brady vows to utilize all of his many resources to keep her safe--and catch those who would see her dead.

Financial crimes investigator Emily Chastain doesn't trust many people. And even though she's trying to cooperate with the detective who saved her life, there are some things she doesn't know--and some things you just don't share with a stranger. Little does she suspect that what she doesn't know just might get them both killed.

Book Review: Unscripted by Davis Bunn

About the Book:

Line producer Danny Byrd is well known in Hollywood for being someone who gets things done on time and under budget. But when his reputation takes a beating after his partner--and former best friend--makes off with their investors' money, Danny has but one chance to redeem himself and restore his ruined career.

LA lawyer Megan Pierce has sacrificed years of her life proving herself to impossible bosses, only to find herself disgusted at their snobbery and their specious business practices. When an opportunity to actually make a difference comes her way, she knows she has to grab it--even though she's not entirely clear what "it" is.

Danny and Megan are each other's best hope for redemption. What they never could have imagined was that they might also be each other's best hope for love.


My Thoughts:

Unscripted by Davis Bunn is a stand-alone, contemporary fiction novel. With smooth prose, authentic characters, and a compelling start, Unscripted entices the reader into the glamour and complexity of Hollywood.

The characters in Unscripted are perhaps its brightest star. Megan, one of the main characters, was strong, smart, and easy to admire. Her personality fit flawlessly with her profession and situation. Even the secondary characters perfectly suited their roles and enhanced the story in a meaningful way. Annie, Jennie, Myron, Louisa, and Lane, were just some of the likable secondary characters.  Add to the characters, a mystery and a dash of romance, and you have a good book.

I recommend Unscripted by Davis Bunn to readers who enjoy contemporary fiction with strong characters and an interesting setting. There are subtle Christian values and brief mentions of Megan’s father’s faith, but it’s a light thread, not “preachy” at all.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.

October 2019 Book Giveaway: Searching For You

Time for the monthly giveaway! This month's prize is Searching for You by Jody Hedlund. I loved this book! You can read my book review here. However... I ended up with two copies - one from the launch team and one from my mother-in-law. Since, I only have need of one, I'm giving one away.

Enter using the Rafflecopter below. Entries will be verified. Please don't follow to unfollow. Must be a resident of the US, 18 years of age, and legally able to enter. Book will be shipped via Media Mail. No purchase necessary.

About the Book:

For years, Sophie Neumann has been running from the orphanages of 1850s New York City. Tasked with caring for two younger children, she's determined not to let them be taken from her, and not to abandon them the same way her older sisters did her. But times are growing desperate, and when she falls in with the wrong crowd and witnesses a crime, she realizes fleeing the state is her only option.

Disappearing with her two young charges into a group of orphans heading west by train, Sophie hopes to find safety and a happy life. But when the train stops in Illinois, she faces an agonizing decision as the orphans will be placed in new homes. Afraid she'll lose them forever, she finds help in a familiar face she never expected to see so far from New York.

Reinhold Weiss has finally purchased his own small farm in Illinois. With mounting debts, a harvest to bring in, and past scars that still haunt him, Reinhold is in no position to give his heart away . . . but can he say no when his long-lost friend shows up on a nearby farm pleading for his help?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Spotlight: Edge of Truth by Kimberly Rose Johnson

Welcome to the Blog Blitz and Giveaway for Edge of Truth by Kimberly Rose Johnson, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

ABOUT THE BOOK

 
Title: Edge of Truth
Series: Law Enforcement Heroes  
Author: Kimberly Rose Johnson  
Publisher: Sweet Rose Press  
Genre: Romantic Suspense  
Release Date: August 6, 2019  

Two DEA agents. One undercover mission. Lives changed forever.

The DEA sends two of its best agents, Kara Nelson and Jeff Clark, to Central Oregon, to shut down a major drug ring. Kara and Jeff usually work alone, but Operation Trail Ride throws them undercover together in a way neither of them expected.

A notorious Miami drug lord wants Kara dead. Can these agents pull off the greatest acting job of their lives—and manage the sparks flying between them? Or will they die trying?

Edge of Truth is the first book in the Law Enforcement Heroes series. A romantic suspense series with nail biting suspense and a splash of romance. If you like engaging characters, small-town antics, and page turning suspense, then you’ll love Kimberly Rose Johnson’s Law Enforcement Heroes series.

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

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EXCERPT

The hair on Kara Nelson’s neck prickled as she sat behind the wheel of her car parked near the Miami Beach Marina. Something wasn’t right. If she’d been made...She flung the door open and ran.

A boom sounded, and heat stung her back. Running full speed, Kara tripped and flew through the air, hitting the pavement hard. Her hands smacked the ground first, and she flipped, her legs whipping over her head. She lay face up in the parking lot. Searing pain tore through her wrists, arms, shoulders, and neck.

A second explosion sent a ball of fire into the mid-morning air. Kara covered her head as debris smacked the ground around her. She lifted her head with effort, first looking at her dismantled undercover car then back at the marina. Drug lord, Luis Alvarado’s yacht had moved out to sea and with it, her chances of wrapping up a year-long investigation. Where had the second blast come from? She struggled to sit up. Then the world went black. 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Award-winning author Kimberly Rose Johnson married her college sweetheart and lives in the Pacific Northwest. From a young child, Kimberly has been an avid reader. That love of reading fostered a creative mind and led to her passion for writing. She especially loves romance and writes contemporary romance that warms the heart and feeds the soul. Kimberly holds a degree in Behavioral Science from Northwest University in Kirkland, Washington, and is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. You can sign up for Kimberly's newsletter via her website at: https://kimberlyrjohnson.com/  

CONNECT WITH KIMBERLY: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | BookBub
 

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TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive a $10 Amazon gift card

 

Enter via the Rafflecopter giveaway below. Giveaway will begin at midnight October 7, 2019 and last through 11:59 pm October 14, 2019. Open internationally as long as winner can accept gift card from US Amazon. Void where prohibited by law. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks 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.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

 

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

*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links.

Book Review: When God Says Wait: A Devotional Thought Journal

About the Book:

A job, a true love, a baby, a cure. . .
We’re all waiting for something from God.And the place between His answers can feel like a wasteland where dreams—and faith—go to die.

When we’re waiting, we wonder, “Why?”, “Why me?”, and “How long?”

But the truth? . . .

When God says, “Wait,” He doesn’t tell us for how long. 
When God says, “Wait,” we face one of life’s greatest tests. 
When God says, “Wait,” we have decisions to make. 
When God says, “Wait,” we can control only two things: how we wait, and who we become along the way.

Author Elizabeth Laing Thompson invites you to journal through your personal "wait" and come out on the other side with your faith, relationships, and sense of humor intact. 
This lovely volume will encourage and inspire you in your wait--with meaningful devotional thoughts, scriptural truths, and thought-provoking journal prompts.


My Thoughts:

When God Says Wait: A Devotional Thought Journal coordinates with Elizabeth Laing Thompson’s book, When God Says Wait. Although I have not read When God Says Wait, I did read through this entire journal and I was impressed by the thoughts and questions presented. The questions ring with the authenticity of someone who has walked a hard road, rather than simply observed others on the path.

Each two-page spread of When God Says Wait: A Devotional Thought Journal features a Scripture verses, a devotional thought, and a question designed to spur introspection and personal growth. When open for use, the Scripture verse is at the top of the left page and the devotional thought with journal question is on the right page. Maybe it’s just me, but I wish the pages were swapped with the question on the left page (since it's the first in the spread) and the supporting Scripture on the right. There’s plenty of room to write and a built-in bookmark to hold the page.

I would suggest going through this journal in order. Some topics are grouped together which I assume are correlated with When God Says Wait. A few examples: worship, rejecting lies, God’s character, prayer, friendship, and choosing joy.  I recommend When God Says Wait: A Devotional Thought Journal to any woman in a season of waiting, which is probably most of us. Even without having read its companion book, the journal can provide great benefit to the user.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.

First Line Fridays: Simply Starstruck by Aspen Hadley

Happy Friday!

First Line Fridays is hosted by Hoarding Books and participants share the first line from a nearby book.

Today I'm sharing the first lines from Simply Starstruck by Aspen Hadley:

"It's funny in life how you never recognize a big moment when it's actually happening."

What are you reading this weekend?

Have a great weekend! Happy reading!


About the Book:

Dating isn't just complicated . . . it's confusing!  Especially when you've got a gift for landing yourself in interesting situations.

It's been two years since Kate Evans unexpectedly lost her husband Charlie.  One year since her Aunt Cassandra showed upon her doorstep, said enough was enough, and packed Kate and her son back to Colorado to live in her guest cottage.

Just when Kate is starting to get comfortable in her new reality, three very different men enter her life.  Alec is young, easy going and up for anything.  Nate is a divorced dad who is steady,reliable and everything Kate should want.Jess is quite literally the boy next door, not to mention a real life movie star straight from every girl's dreams.

Is she really ready to jump into the dating scene again?  Or does she stay in the same safe place free from heartache?  From roller skates to croquet games and art galleries, Kate's journey is anything but predictable.  Through it all Kate is forced to confront things she'd rather leave buried, along with the possibility of a new love that is exactly what she needs.

Book Spotlight & Giveaway: Wyatt by Susan May Warren

 

Welcome to the Blog + Review Tour & Giveaway for Wyatt, the fourth book of The Montana Marshalls series by Susan May Warren, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

ABOUT THE BOOK

 

Title: Wyatt 

Series: The Montana Marshalls, Book 4  

Author: Susan May Warren  

Publisher: SDG Publishing 

Release Date: October 2019  

Genre: Christian Romantic Suspense

He’s lost her twice…he’s not going to lose her again...

NHL Hockey Goalie Wyatt Marshall has everything--fame, money and a thriving career. But he’s hiding the two things that matter most...a career-ending injury, and his broken heart. He’s been in love with Coco Stanley since she walked into his life at age fourteen, a foster child for the Marshall family. She stole his heart years later, when, after a secret tryst, she returned to her home country of Russia. But she won’t let him back into her life—and he can’t figure out why.  

She’s harboring a secret that could cost lives...  

Coco Stanley is tired of living her life undercover. Or at least, with an assumed name, always pretending to be someone she’s not. And that’s not the only secret she’s harboring. If Wyatt discovers the real reason she left him, it might just destroy him. She’s resigned herself to loving him from afar...  

But when he discovers she’s in danger...  

Wyatt is horrified when he learns Coco has been shot and left in Russia, her fate unknown. There is nothing—nothing—that will stop him from finding her. So what if he’s not one of his super-heroic brothers, not a Ranger, not a SEAL...Wyatt is a hockey goalie, a special kind of crazy brave. Except, is he brave enough to face the secret Coco is keeping, or will it destroy everything he’s hoped for?  

What will it cost them to save her?  

What Wyatt and Coco don’t know is that revenge is stalking her and bringing her home just might cost them their long-awaited happy ending.  

Continue the breath-taking Montana Marshall series!
 

PURCHASE LINKS*: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

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EXCERPT FROM WYATT

 Chapter 1 

Usually Wyatt, goalie for the Minnesota Blue Ox NHL team, could shrug off his mistakes. Ignore the horn blaring behind his ears, block out the cheering—and occasionally the gloating of the opposing players.

Not today.

Wyatt Marshall hadn’t come all the way to Russia only to fail.

He glanced at the clock overhead, ignoring the sweat coating his body despite the cool breath of the arena, the slap of the puck at the other end of the rink.

Because if he failed, his entire life could be over in twelve minutes and thirty-two seconds.

Okay, he might be a little melodramatic, but it felt that way.

Lives were at stake.

No. One life.

The life of the woman he couldn’t get out of his head.

Especially since he’d made promises. To himself. And had, in fact, blurted out to his entire family that he would rescue Coco Stanley. I promise.

He wasn’t going home without her.

As long as he kept the Polish team from scoring, he bought himself more time in the Far Eastern town of Khabarovsk, where this international tournament was being held, to track down Coco and rescue her from a country trying to kill her.

Okay, maybe that was overstated. Not all of Russia was trying to kill Coco. And in fact, it might be only one very determined assassin by the name of Damien Gustov.

Even that Wyatt wasn’t sure of.

Just that the woman he loved had been shot.

Left in Siberia.

Hadn’t been heard from since.

Taken from Wyatt: The Montana Marshalls by Susan May Warren. Copyright © 2019 by SDG Publishing. Used by permission of SDG Publishing.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

 

Susan May Warren is the USA Today bestselling, Christy and RITA award-winning novelist of over sixty-five novels. An eight-time Christy award finalist, a three-time RITA Finalist, she’s also a multi-winner of the Inspirational Readers Choice award, and the ACFW Carol Award.

A seasoned women’s events speaker, she’s a popular writing teacher at conferences around the nation and the author of the beginning writer’s workbook: The Story Equation.

She is also the founder of MyBookTherapy.com, and Novel.Academy, a school for aspiring novelists.  

CONNECT WITH SUSAN: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

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TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive a signed copy of Wyatt and a Montana Marshalls Magic Mug!

Be sure to check out each stop on the tour for more chances to win. Full tour schedule shown below. Giveaway will begin at midnight October 2, 2019 and last through 11:59 PM EST on October 9, 2019. US only. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

 

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

*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links.