It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. Today I’m sharing from The Dwelling Place by Elizabeth Musser, the second book in her Swan House series. Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:
What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?
About The Dwelling Place
In a family of successes, she’s the embarrassment, still defiantly refusing to color inside the lines.
Perhaps being a server at a trendy Atlanta restaurant isn’t a dream career, but it’s her work. She has friends, she has neighbors, she has causes. But Ellie has never fit in. When her artist mother’s fight with cancer takes a bad turn, Ellie is forced to reenter her family’s perfect world to help care for her.
As the two women struggle to reconnect, Ellie begins to understand that her family might not be as unblemished as it seems. As her mother’s condition worsens, Ellie embarks on a journey toward forgiveness, hope, and healing. Is there a place of peace for her? And like her mother, must she travel halfway around the world to find it?
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Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!
Unfortunately, time doesn’t allow me to read all the books. Oh, to have Hermione Grainger’s time turner!
Instead, I’ll have to content myself with the novels I know about … which isn’t many. I do know some of my favourite authors have books releasing in 2021, such as:
Laura Hannon was kidnapped by a gang of thieves, who have now been captured. She’s living in the doctor’s house in Settler’s Fort and helping care for Aaron, one of the kidnappers – the one who tried to help her, and who she accidentally shot. She feels guilty about Aaron, and nervous around Nate, Aaron’s brother, who visits regularly.
Nate was also part of the gang, but turned away and is now working in the local mine and saving every spare penny to repay the money the gang stole. But after meeting Laura at a hidden cave, he also wants to spend more time with her, especially after the discover two Native Americans living in the cave who need help.
Nate is an excellent character—someone who has done wrong in the past (although for what he thought were good reasons), and who has now become a Christian and who is trying to make up for his past misdeeds. Unfortunately, that’s not always easy.
Faith’s Mountain Home is the third book in Misty M Beller’s Hearts of Montana series. I read and reviewed the first book in the series (Hope’s Highest Mountain), but haven’t read the second.
While Faith’s Mountain Home worked well as a standalone novel, there were times when I felt I didn’t understand some of the character’s history because I hadn’t read Love’s Mountain Quest. At least, I assume the kidnapping and Nate’s subsequent conviction and redemption was part of the previous story. That unknown backstory was the one thing that annoyed me in Faith’s Mountain Home, and I would have enjoyed it more if I’d better understood what came before.
Apart from that, I enjoyed the story. I very much like Misty M Beller’s writing. She does an excellent job of writing Christian characters who feel like real people, and puts them in stories that have plenty of conflict but still allow for a happy ending. Her stories are easy to read, engaging, and a perfect way to relax.
Recommended for Christian historical romantic suspense fans.
Thanks to Bethany House Publishers and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.
About Misty M Beller
Misty M. Beller writes romantic mountain stories, set on the 1800s frontier and woven with the truth of God’s love. She was raised on a farm in South Carolina, so her Southern roots run deep. Growing up, her family was close, and they continue to keep that priority today. Her husband and daughters now add another dimension to her life, keeping her both grounded and crazy.
God has placed a desire in Misty’s heart to combine her love for Christian fiction and the simpler ranch life, writing historical novels that display God’s abundant love through the twists and turns in the lives of her characters.
Writing is a dream come true for Misty. Her family—both immediate and extended—is the foundation that holds her secure in that dream.
Nate Long has always watched over his identical twin brother, Aaron, even when it put him on the wrong side of the law. When Aaron is wounded in a shootout, the brothers are taken to Settler’s Fort to recover. As Nate works to make reparations for their past, he marvels at the nursing Aaron receives under the care of a woman with all the reason in the world to resent him. Laura Hannon knows what it is to start over, and she knows Nate’s newfound faith is real. What she can’t look past is how far he allowed himself to be led astray by his brother’s weaknesses. As a fledgling trust grows between Nate and Laura, they stumble upon a mysterious cave in the mountains that may not be as uninhabited as it seems. While working together to unravel the secrets surrounding the cave, will the new lives they seek for themselves include love, or does too much stand between them?
Good question! I don’t keep a track of my reading by month, so I don’t actually know whether I read more books in summer or in winter.
I know I read a lot of books during the summer,
I love spending a warm summer day at the beach, reaching on my Kindle between dips in the ocean.
I also know I read a lot of books during the winter months.
In winger, you can usually find me curled up by the fire with the cat in my lap while my husband watches TV. Reading is my preferred form of personal entertainment. I do watch a handful of TV series, but I’d usually rather read a book (or, in the case of TV or movie versions, I’ve usually read the book already).
And I read a lot in spring and autumn.
We have a spa pool (aka hot tub), and I do read in the pool in spring and autumn, but only paperback books (I don’t want to risk dropping my Kindle in the water, or having the steam cook the device). My pool reading therefore tends to be books on the to-read pile, as my recent purchases ten to be the Kindle version.
So do I read more in summer or winter? I suspect I read fairly evenly through the year, as work and weather permit.
What about you? Do you read more in summer or in winter?
It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. Today I’m sharing from Dreams of Savannah by Roseanna M White. Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:
What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?
About Dreams of Savannah
Cordelia Owens can weave a hopeful dream around anything and is well used to winning the hearts of everyone in Savannah with her whimsy. Even when she receives word that her sweetheart has been lost during a raid on a Yankee vessel, she clings to hope and comes up with many a romantic tale of his eventual homecoming to reassure his mother and sister.
But Phineas Dunn finds nothing redemptive in the first horrors of war. Struggling for months to make it home alive, he returns to Savannah injured and cynical, and all too sure that he is not the hero Cordelia seems determined to make him. Matters of black and white don’t seem so simple anymore to Phin, and despite her best efforts, Delia’s smiles can’t erase all the complications in his life. And when Fort Pulaski falls and the future wavers, they both must decide where the dreams of a new America will take them, and if they will go together.
Today I’m delighted to welcome author Kathleen Denly to share about her upcoming release, A Reason to Sing. Welcome, Kathleen!
Do you enjoy traditional hymns or do you prefer more modern worship songs?
Personally, I love both. Growing up I attended a variety of churches that sang a mixture of both. Some of my favorite childhood memories, however, are of the times when the older women in my extended family would gather around the nearest piano and begin singing hymns together. I wish we’d had smart phones back then. I’d love to have a video of those beautiful women praising God together in that simple way.
These spontaneous moments of worship from my childhood played a large part in the development of my novel, Sing in the Sunlight. Even as a child, I understood what a gift their voices were and as a writer I wondered what might have happened had one of them lost the ability to praise the Lord in this way. I considered writing a character who’d lost her voice, but that didn’t feel right for this story. So I continued playing with the idea. Eventually, I found my way to a character who didn’t lose her voice, but instead had lost her hope—her reason to sing.
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.
We all know that classic worship song, now a favorite in many Sunday School classes. In my novel, I explore the idea of what happens when a person’s light is hidden beneath the “bush” of tragedy, hurt, and confusion. When the singer believes God doesn’t care about them, what is there to sing about? Only when we are basking in the light of our heavenly Father’s love do we truly have reason to sing.
God has blessed me with many reasons to sing. One of those reasons is my daughter, Ava. We adopted her when she was sixteen months old, but before that Ava suffered a horrific tragedy. Not only did she lose her birth family, but an event transpired which left her with numerous scars. Many of those scars are on her arm and face. I’m grateful that she was too young at the time to remember what transpired, but being an author I wondered how her life might be different if the event (or something like it) had transpired at an age when she could remember. How might that have changed her life? When I combined this question with the treatment of visibly different people in the nineteenth century, I found the inspiration for my heroine, Clarinda.
This photo of the moment when I first met my daughter August 20, 2017, reminds me of how we all face the choice of whether or not to trust our Heavenly Father.
By the grace of God, Ava, is a happy, healthy child who loves to sing, dance, and “make a joyful noise” with her Fisher Price piano, but Clarinda’s joy has been lost. So she seeks it in places she shouldn’t and encounters consequences she never anticipated. Thankfully, our Lord is loving and mighty and works all things together for good for those who love Him. So He sends a special man into Clarinda’s life to point her back to the One who’s been with her all along—to remind her of her reason to sing.
What are your reasons to sing? Do you prefer contemporary or traditional worship songs? Let me know in the comments below!
Giveaway
To celebrate the upcoming release of Sing in the Sunlight, the second book in her Chaparral Hearts series, Kathleen is offering a giveaway!
Enter the rafflecopter for a chance to win a digital copy of Waltz in the Wilderness (book 1 in the Chaparral Hearts series), a custom set of Sing in the Sunlight gold vinyl stickers and 2 bookmarks made and signed by Kathleen Denly.
Open to U.S. and International winners, void where prohibited. Entries open until midnight on January 19, 2021 Winner will be announced on Kathleen’s Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram accounts and must contact Kathleen with your mailing address within seven days of announcement.
About Kathleen Denly
Kathleen Denly writes historical romance stories to entertain, encourage, and inspire readers toward a better understanding of our amazing God and how He sees us. Award winning author of the Chaparral Hearts series, she also shares history tidbits, thoughts on writing, books reviews and more at KathleenDenly.com.
Richard Stevens isn’t who he thinks he is. Neither is the woman who now claims his last name.
Disfiguring scars stole Clarinda Humphrey’s singing career, her home, and her family, but she refuses to let her appearance steal her future. While attending The Young Ladies Seminary in 1858 Benicia, California, she finds a man who promises to love and cherish her. Instead he betrays her, leaving her with child, and Clarinda must take drastic measures to ensure her child doesn’t suffer for her foolishness.
Richard Stevens’s life hasn’t turned out as he expected, and when a shocking letter turns even his past into a mystery, he travels to San Francisco in search of guidance. On the way, he encounters a mysterious young woman hiding beneath a veil. That night he experiences a dream that sends him on a quest to find the bride God has chosen for him. He never imagines she’s already told everyone they’re married.
Unwilling to lie, nor accept a marriage of mere convenience, Richard wants the real thing. Yet Clarinda’s not interested in love, only a chance to save her child. Can he help her rise above the pain that runs deeper than her scars to accept a love worth every risk?
Watch Kathleen Denly read Chapter One of Sing in the Sunlight.
Sing in the Sunlight releases on 21 March 2021 from Wild Heart Books.
In celebration of this second book in her Chaparral Hearts series, Kathleen’s offering preorder bonuses. These include a set of exclusive coloring pages (hand drawn by Kathleen for this novel), and an MP3 recording of the hymn referenced in the book (God Moves in a Mysterious Way) performed by Kathleen’s wonderful mother.
Anyone who preorders Sing in the Sunlight no later than February 28, 2021 can register to receive their preorder bonuses. To register, email your proof of preorder purchase to kdpreorderbonuses@gmail.com no later than February 28, 2021. A proof of purchase is typically a screenshot of your receipt.
Please do not include any personal information such as physical mailing address or account numbers when submitting your proof of purchase. Preorder bonuses will be emailed on the day of the book’s release to all who register.
I’ve signed up to read 150 books this year through the Goodreads Reading Challenge.
I don’t see at as much as a challenge as a way of keeping track of what I’ve read (helped by the fact that most new books I read are on Kindle, which automatically marks a book as Read at Goodreads).
I’ve also signed up to the Mt. TBR Challenge again, in the never-ending attempt to reduce the number of unread books I own. I’ve done this challenge for the last four or five years, usually aiming for 48 books per year. I actually aimed for 60 last year, but only got 48 so that’s the level I’ve chosen this year. Now to read books I own and not buy new ones!
I set myself the challenge of reading 30 books by new-to-me authors in 2020, and I achieved 47!
My rationale for this challenge was that I want to be able to support debut authors. The problem is that if I focus too much on debut authors, I don’t have time to read new books from favourite authors. So while I will still record how many new-to-me authors I read this year, I won’t be aiming for a specific number.
Another personal challenge was to read 50 independently published books last year. I managed 45. This is another figure I’ll continue to track, but won’t set a specific goal. I want to focus on content, not how the book was published. The reality is that the books I buy tend to be independently published, because they’re cheaper (yet the author receives a similar royalty per copy sold).
I also aimed to read 12 writing books and 12 marketing books last year.
I actually read 12 writing books (win) but only 4 marketing books. My focus this year is going to be on writing, so I’m going to ignore all the unread marketing books and focus on the writing books (and the writing).
So my Reading Challenge targets for 2021 are:
150 books
48 books off my to-read pile
12 writing books
What about you? Have you set a 2021 reading challenge? If so, what is it?
Welcome to the cover reveal tour for Harmony on the Horizon, book three in the Chaparral Hearts series! Collect all the passwords and enter for a chance to win the grand prize!!!
Harmony on the Horizon
Chaparral Hearts series book 3
Her calling to change the world may be his downfall.
On the heels of the Great Rebellion, Margaret Foster, an abolitionist northerner, takes a teaching position in 1865 San Diego—a town dominated by Southern sympathizers. At thirty-seven years of age, Margaret has accepted spinsterhood and embraced her role as teacher. So, when Everett Thompson, the handsomest member of the School Board, reveals his interest in her, it’s a dream come true. Until her passionate ideals drive a wedge between them.
After two decades of hard work, Everett Thompson is on the verge of having everything he’s dreamed of. Even the beautiful new teacher has agreed to his courtship. Then two investments go south and a blackmailer threatens everything Everett has and dreams of.
As Everett scrambles to shore up the crumbling pieces of his life, Margaret unwittingly sets off a scandal that divides the small community and threatens her position as teacher. With the blackmailer still whispering threats, Everett must decide if he’s willing to risk everything for the woman still keeping him at arm’s length.
Now available for preorder! CLICK to grab your copy!
Releases January 2022!
Fighting Fire AND Each Other
Did you know that before fire departments were taken over by local governments, private fire companies used to compete to reach a fire first? In some cities the competition even became violent. Competing firemen would fight each other while the structures they were meant to be saving continued to burn. San Francisco’s fire fighters were generally well behaved until the 1860s when their competition reached a boiling point that led to street brawls. One such altercation is included in Harmony on the Horizon. Eventually the private companies were dissolved in favor a public fire department. On the day the last private company closed, there was a huge ceremony held which had the overtones of a funeral.
Click HERE to view a sneak peek of the cover and collect the password for this stop!
Remember to write your passwords down so you can enter the giveaway on the final cover reveal page!!!
Hairstylist Nicole Applegate is a single mother and vegan with a social conscience.
But her friends think she should have a man, so set her up on what turns out to be a bad blind date. She is rescued by Drew, who she knows socially, but who she is not interested in romantically. Ha. Famous last words, because this is their romance story.
Nicole finds Drew is the assistant coach for her daughter’s football team.
My initial thought was that football meant soccer, but no. It meant American football, and Sierra is the team’s quarterback–and the only girl on the team. But she’s her mother’s daughter, so that doesn’t phase her at all.
Despite being a doctor, Drew always has time for football practice, friends, and for Nicole. I’m not sure how realistic that, but it made for a good story. It meant that there were plenty of opportunities for Drew and Nicole (and Sierra) to spend time together, and to overcome Nicole’s hesitance about another relationship.
Nicole is the third book in Sarah Monzon’s Sewing in So-Cal series. I’ve read the first (Molly), but haven’t read the second (Jocelyn, although it’s on my Kindle to-read pile). However, I don’t think I missed anything in Nicole from not having read Jocelyn. After all, they’re romantic comedy. We know the hero and heroine are going to end up together. We’re reading to be entertained as we watch them get their happy-ever-after.
And Nicole is certainly entertaining.
The writing is funny without bringing in the cringe factor, the characters are excellent, and the story touches on relevant contemporary issues, such as taking a knee in sport (something this non-American 100% doesn’t understand. Isn’t kneeling supposed to be a sign of submission?). I also loved seeing a main character on the plus-size side of humanity, but who wasn’t continually wishing she was a size 2.
Recommended for anyone who enjoys a good romantic comedy with a little bit of real life thrown in.
Thanks to the author and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.
About Sarah Monzon
A Carol award finalist and Selah award winner, Sarah Monzon is a stay-at-home mom who makes up imaginary friends to have adult conversations with (otherwise known as writing novels). As a navy chaplain’s wife, she resides wherever the military happens to station her family and enjoys exploring the beauty of the world around her.
Who has time to date when she’s trying to raise a miniature human by herself AND save the planet from its irresponsible inhabitants? Not to mention my winning personality (snort) and my curves-have-curves figure (eyeroll) don’t exactly attract the opposite sex. Unfortunately, none of these reasons have stopped my best friends and SoCal sewing sisters from taking on the archaic role of matchmakers, and they’re not beneath a little bribery if that’s what it takes to get my cooperation. Let’s just say everyone has their weak spot, and donations to my favourite charities is mine.
If I were to consider a romantic relationship, my dream guy certainly wouldn’t be immature, everything-is-a-game Dr. Drew Bauer. The man raises my body temperature faster than global warming does the Earth’s! But life seems determined to keep throwing us together, especially now that one of my SoCal sewing sisters is engaged to his best friend, in which case there can only be one of two outcomes:
1. I kill him in a fit of annoyance.
2. My common sense escapes me, and I fall in love with him.
It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. Today I’m sharing from Hidden in Her Heart by Milla Holt—yes, I’m on a Milla Holt binge 🙂
Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:
What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?
About Lessons Learned in Love
The boss’s daughter is off-limits. Especially when she steals the job that should have been his.
Vanya has never measured up to her parents’ demanding standards. After a crushing humiliation at her last job, she jumps at the chance to prove herself when her father entrusts her with a leadership role in his company.
Tendo has had nothing handed to him on a silver platter. The son of a refugee, he’s had to claw his way up every rung of the career ladder. Then the CEO’s daughter swoops in to take the job that should have been his. Tendo wants to resent the pampered princess, making his growing attraction unexpected—and entirely unwelcome.
Vanya feels grossly unqualified to manage the brilliant and ambitious Tendo, especially when she realizes that she’s beginning to admire him for a lot more than his professional qualities. And although he knows he’s falling hard and fast, Tendo is proud of being a self-made man. A relationship with the boss’s daughter is exactly the sort of special treatment he despises.
But as Vanya’s and Tendo’s worlds collide, they discover the power of honesty, grace, and trust—and the possibilities of a future built together.
Misty M. Beller writes romantic mountain stories, set on the 1800s frontier and woven with the truth of God’s love. She was raised on a farm in South Carolina, so her Southern roots run deep. Growing up, her family was close, and they continue to keep that priority today. Her husband and daughters now add another dimension to her life, keeping her both grounded and crazy.
Cordelia Owens can weave a hopeful dream around anything and is well used to winning the hearts of everyone in Savannah with her whimsy. Even when she receives word that her sweetheart has been lost during a raid on a Yankee vessel, she clings to hope and comes up with many a romantic tale of his eventual homecoming to reassure his mother and sister.
Kathleen Denly writes historical romance stories to entertain, encourage, and inspire readers toward a better understanding of our amazing God and how He sees us. Award winning author of the Chaparral Hearts series, she also shares history tidbits, thoughts on writing, books reviews and more at 
A Carol award finalist and Selah award winner, Sarah Monzon is a stay-at-home mom who makes up imaginary friends to have adult conversations with (otherwise known as writing novels). As a navy chaplain’s wife, she resides wherever the military happens to station her family and enjoys exploring the beauty of the world around her.
