Tag: Contemporary Romance

First Line Friday

First Line Friday | Week 202 | All at Once by Lindsay Harrel

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 All at Once by Lindsay Harrel, the first book in her Walker Beach Romance series. Here’s the first line from Chapter One:

Surely this was a cosmic joke. There was no way Gabrielle could be assigned to partner with Tyler Baker.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

About All at Once

She loved him once—and he broke her heart.

Letting herself fall again would just be foolish.

When Gabrielle and Tyler are paired together as leaders for a weeklong kids summer camp, they interact for the first time in a decade—and she realizes the immature boy who left so long ago has become a man.

A very muscular, all-too-handsome man who still has the ability to make her swoon.

But no matter how much chemistry between them, the problem remains—Tyler lives three thousand miles away in New York City, where he runs a nonprofit he’s passionate about. Meanwhile, Gabrielle’s heart is rooted in their small hometown of Walker Beach, California, where she takes care of the only family she’s got left.

It seems the only answer is to buckle down, ignore the sparks between them—and simply survive the week. If only they could get their traitorous hearts on board …

You can find All at Once online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

Click the button to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today:

 

You can then click the link which will take you to the master page of all this week’s #FirstLineFriday posts.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

 

And don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

No one was bad at math. Many people didn't respond well to the way math was taught in school.

Book Review | Let It Be Me (Misty River Romance #2) by Becky Wade

Leah Montgomery is a child prodigy who gave up a full-ride scholarship to Princeton to complete her PhD so she could stay home and raise her seven-year-old brother after her mother decides she needs to explore the Amazon (or something. Their mother was an off-stage character, and that’s probably for the best). Anyway, Leah is 100% logical–for better or worse.

Pediatric heart surgeon Sebastian Grant meets Leah at a local farmer’s market, and recognises her as the angel who came to his rescue six months ago when his car crashed. Unfortunately, he finds Leah is the teacher his best friend, Ben, has been in love with for the best part of a year. Not that Ben’s ever asked her out, but still … man-code means she’s off limits.

When a mail-in DNA test shows Leah isn’t the biological child of either of her parents, she knows she must have been switched at birth with another baby (as her unmaternal mother would have grieved a stillborn baby, but certainly wouldn’t have adopted one). Logic says she needs to find the answer, and Sebastian – who works in the hospital where she was born.

What intrigued me most about Let It Be Me were the quirky but likeable characters.

Leah is almost certainly somewhere on the autistic spectrum: she’s brilliant at math, responsible, and hard-working. But she’s not good with relationships, especially romantic relationships. In fact, she’s made it to twenty-eight without having any romantic feelings. The result was that I really liked her character voice, which pulled me through the story.

Sebastian is also an overachiever with his own personality quirks. As a medical doctor, he also understands math and physics and other logical, scientific disciplines. He’s loyal, a good friend, and willing to put his own feelings for Leah aside. He also helps Leah to discover the mystery behind her birth.

As such, this was an unusual yet compelling romance with unique characters and plenty of quirky humour—another winner from Becky Wade.

Let It Be Me is the second book in Becky Wade’s Misty River Romance series.

The stories feature members of the “Miracle Five”, who survived an earthquake as teens, an experience that has brought them together and shaped their lives. Each book is the romance of one of the Five (although one was already married when the series started). While the books are each standalone novels, they feature the same setting and many of the same characters – my idea of a perfect series.

Thanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Becky Wade

Author Photo Becky WadeBecky is the Carol and Christy award winning author of heartwarming, humorous, and swoon-worthy contemporary inspirational romances.

During her childhood in California, Becky frequently produced homemade plays starring her sisters, friends, and cousins. These plays almost always featured a heroine, a prince, and a love story with a happy ending. She’s been a fan of all things romantic ever since.

These days, you’ll find Becky in Dallas, Texas failing to keep up with her housework, trying her best in yoga class, carting her three kids around town, watching TV with her Cavalier spaniel on her lap, hunched over her computer writing, or eating chocolate.

You can find Becky Wade online at:

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter

About Let It Be Me

The one woman he wants is the one he cannot have.

Former foster kid Sebastian Grant has leveraged his intelligence and hard work to become a pediatric heart surgeon. But not even his career success can erase the void he’s tried so hard to fill. Then he meets high school teacher Leah Montgomery and his fast-spinning world comes to a sudden stop. He falls hard, only to make a devastating discovery–Leah is the woman his best friend set his heart on months before.

Leah’s a math prodigy who’s only ever had one big dream–to earn her PhD. Raising her little brother put that dream on hold. Now that her brother will soon be college bound, she’s not going to let anything stand in her way. Especially romance . . . which is far less dependable than algebra.

When Leah receives surprising results from the DNA test she submitted to a genealogy site, she solicits Sebastian’s help. Together, they comb through hospital records to uncover the secrets of her history. The more powerfully they’re drawn to each other, the more strongly Sebastian must resist, and the more Leah must admit that some things in life–like love–can’t be explained with numbers.

You can find Let It Be Me online at

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

First Line Friday

First Line Friday | Week 182 | Let It Be Me by Becky Wade

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 Let It Be Me by Becky Wade, the next book in her Misty River Romance series. Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Mom and Dad are not my biological parents.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

About Let It Be Me

The one woman he wants is the one he cannot have.

Former foster kid Sebastian Grant has leveraged his intelligence and hard work to become a pediatric heart surgeon. But not even his career success can erase the void he’s tried so hard to fill. Then he meets high school teacher Leah Montgomery and his fast-spinning world comes to a sudden stop. He falls hard, only to make a devastating discovery–Leah is the woman his best friend set his heart on months before.

Leah’s a math prodigy who’s only ever had one big dream–to earn her PhD. Raising her little brother put that dream on hold. Now that her brother will soon be college bound, she’s not going to let anything stand in her way. Especially romance . . . which is far less dependable than algebra.

When Leah receives surprising results from the DNA test she submitted to a genealogy site, she solicits Sebastian’s help. Together, they comb through hospital records to uncover the secrets of her history. The more powerfully they’re drawn to each other, the more strongly Sebastian must resist, and the more Leah must admit that some things in life–like love–can’t be explained with numbers.

You can find Let It Be Me online at

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

Click the button to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today:

You can then click the link which will take you to the master page of all this week’s #FirstLineFriday posts.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

And don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

First Line Friday

First Line Friday | Week 180 | Kinsale Kisses by Elizabeth Maddrey

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 Kinsale Kisses by Elizabeth Maddrey, which I picked up after listening to an episode of the Story Chats podcast.

Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Rachel Sullivan hitched up her backpack, tugging the shoulder strap tighter to fix it in place and dragged her suitcase through the automatic doors of Ireland's Shannon Airport.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

About Kinsale Kisses

She wants stability. He wants spontaneity. What they need is each other.

Colin O’Bryan cashed out of the software company he founded and started a new life in Ireland. Content to wander from town to town as a traveling musician, he had no goals beyond healing from the betrayals that led to his career change, and finding his next gig.

After the death of her parents, Rachel Sullivan hoped her aunt’s B&B on the Southern coast of Ireland would be a place for her to settle and start a new life. Though she can’t deny the sparks in Colin’s touch, his lack of concern for hearth and home leave her torn. Can this free-spirited minstrel win her heart or will Rachel choose roots and stability over love?

This gentle inspirational romance will take you on a journey to Cork County, Ireland and give you a glimpse of Kinsale, Charles Fort, Blarney Castle, and Cobh as Rachel and Colin undergo their own journey of self-discovery as they learn that God’s plans are bigger than their own and that waiting on Him is worth the insecurity it brings.

You can find Kinsale Kisses online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

Click the button to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today:

You can then click the link which will take you to the master page of all this week’s #FirstLineFriday posts.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

And don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

She'd spent more time crafting social media posts to make it look like she was flourishing than she'd invested in actual flourishing.

Book Review | Stay With Me (Misty River Romance #1) by Becky Wade

Eighteen years ago, Genevieve was one of five miracle children who survived days trapped in rubble in San Salvador, after an earthquake hits the during their junior high mission trip. Now, she’s an online celebrity, a famous author of Bible studies for women. And she’s hiding a prescription drug addiction that could destroy her career, and wondering what secrets her family is hiding. Because there is definitely something, if the anonymous letter she received is any indication.

But she knows something has to change after she wakes up in a stranger’s house with no memory of how she got there. But she can’t go to rehab. That would mean the end of her career. And there is also the question of how her parents will react, especially her overprotective mother.

Sam Turner is an Australian American who owns his own coffee shop and is a big advocate of healthy eating and healthy lifestyles. (Okay, so the one thing I’m not convinced about is a man who voluntarily eats kale, but there you go.) Anyway, Sam agrees—against his better judgment—to help Genevieve detox.

Stay With Me is a strong romance with excellent characters. It’s strong Christian fiction, because faith is central to both Genevieve and Sam’s lives. But the real strength is the way it deals with Genevieve’s addition, an issue that’s rarely discussed in Christian fiction, and the subtle warning against putting other Christians—especially Christian leaders—on pedestals.

Stay With Me by @BeckyWade is a great start to a new series, a Christian novel that isn't afraid to ask tough questions about faith and life. #BookReview #ChristianRomance Click To Tweet

Stay With Me is a great start to a new series, a Christian novel that isn’t afraid to ask tough questions about faith and life. Recommended.

Thanks to Baker Publishing and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Becky Wade

Author Photo Becky WadeBecky is the Carol and Christy award winning author of heartwarming, humorous, and swoon-worthy contemporary inspirational romances.

During her childhood in California, Becky frequently produced homemade plays starring her sisters, friends, and cousins. These plays almost always featured a heroine, a prince, and a love story with a happy ending. She’s been a fan of all things romantic ever since.

These days, you’ll find Becky in Dallas, Texas failing to keep up with her housework, trying her best in yoga class, carting her three kids around town, watching TV with her Cavalier spaniel on her lap, hunched over her computer writing, or eating chocolate.

You can find Becky Wade online at:

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter

About Stay With Me

A mysterious letter alluding to a secret in her parents’ past brings Genevieve Woodward back to her Blue Ridge Mountains hometown, but she’s also in need of a break from a high-profile career that has left her dangerously burned out and concealing a powerful secret of her own. When she wakes inside an unfamiliar cottage to find the confused owner staring down at her, she can no longer ignore the fact that she needs help.

Sam Turner has embraced his sorrow and his identity as an outsider. The solitary, disciplined life he lives on his historic farm is the life he’s chosen for himself. The last thing he wants is to rent his cottage to a woman as troubled as she is talkative. Yet, he can’t force himself to turn her away right when she needs him most.

As Genevieve researches her family’s history and her and Sam’s emotions deepen, they will have to let go of the facades and loneliness they’ve clung to and allow light to illuminate every hidden truth.

Find Stay With Me online at:

Amazon | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

And don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

All the stories have been written, including mine.

First Line Friday | Week 14 | Lu by Beth Troy

It’s Friday, which means it’s time to open the book nearest you and share the first line

Today I’m sharing from Lu by Beth Troy:

All the stories have been written, including mine.

Intriguing! I enjoy first person novels, especially when the voice is as interesting as Lu promises to be.

About Lu

“There’s great hope where the road meets the sky – maybe even an answer. But this road leads home. Just home. I thought I’d finished writing that story years ago, but then yesterday’s story happened – the one about the boy who cheats and the girl who leaves.”
Lu Sokolowski never planned to return to her small hometown of Dunlap’s Creek, but it’s the only place she can think of to go after her boyfriend cheats on her. Moving back in with her family lets her run away from her problems, but it also means suffering their attempts to reassemble her failed life, including arranging a job as the wedding beat writer at the local paper and setting her up with Jackson, the divorced pastor of her family’s church. Unexpected success and friendships restore Lu to the family and faith she’d left behind. But when the small-town life Lu never intended shakes up, will she run again?
Lu’s story is a journey of a woman back to her family, her faith, and herself. It’s about second chances and the unchosen circumstances that press the point of who we are and what we believe. Are we the sum of our successes and failures, or does our identity rest in a greater hope?

Find Lu online at:

Amazon US | Amazon AU | Amazon UKGoodreads

Click the button to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today:

Yes, rather each blogger listing each of the other bloggers—which is getting to be a longer and longer list each month—we’ve got our own site. It’s just sharing FirstLineFriday posts for now, but who knows what the future holds?

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!