BREAKING NEWS
Showing posts with label Christian Romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christian Romance. Show all posts

Friday, March 25, 2022

Counterfeit Love by Crystal Caudill (Review and Giveaway!)

Counterfeit Love

Crystal Caudill's debut novel is filled with non-stop action, intrigue, romance, and mystery. 

Book Details:

Title: Counterfeit Love by Crystal Caudill
Category: Adult Fiction, 336 pages
Genre: Historical Romance
Publisher: Kregel Publications
Release date: March 15, 2022
Content rating: PG-13 (violence related to a gang of thieves and counterfeiters)


Book Description:

Can this undercover agent save the woman he loves--or is her heart as counterfeit as the money he's been sent to track down?

After all that Grandfather has sacrificed to raise her, Theresa Plane owes it to him to save the family name--and that means clearing their debt with creditors before she marries Edward Greystone. But when one of the creditors' threats leads her to stumble across a midnight meeting, she discovers that the money he owes isn't all Grandfather was hiding. And the secrets he kept have now trapped Theresa in a life-threatening fight for her home--and the truth.

After months of undercover work, Secret Service operative Broderick Cosgrove is finally about to uncover the identity of the leader of a notorious counterfeiting ring. That moment of triumph turns to horror, however, when he finds undeniable proof that his former fiancé is connected. Can he really believe the woman he loved is a willing participant? Protecting Theresa and proving her innocence may destroy his career--but that's better than failing her twice in one lifetime.

They must form a partnership, tentative though it is. But there's no question they're both still keeping secrets--and that lack of trust, along with the dangerous criminals out for their blood, threatens their hearts, their faith, and their very survival.

To read an excerpt of Counterfeit Love click here.


My Review:
Reviewed by Laura Fabiani

Crystal Caudill's debut novel is filled with non-stop action, intrigue, romance, and mystery. I enjoyed it for the most part but I did have some issues with it. Theresa Plane is an orphan who lives with her curmudgeon grandfather. She is engaged to Edward Greystone but it becomes clear she does not love him when Broderick Cosgrove comes back to town and gets her heart pounding again after six years of not seeing each other. There is backstory here, but it's not clear what exactly happened between the two of them because the author only reveals bits and pieces of it throughout the story, and this made the beginning somewhat hard to follow.

Broderick Cosgrove is an operative in the Secret Service and he is working undercover to try to uncover the leader of a counterfeiting ring. Unfortunately, Theresa's grandfather is involved and this puts Theresa in danger and she becomes a suspect for the Secret Service. There are twists and turns, a slew of characters, and enough action to almost label this a thriller, rather than a Christian historical romance. Not a bad thing. However, the amount of action came at the cost of underdeveloped characters, such as that of Edward and Nathaniel. The pacing was great though, and it kept me turning the pages.

Theresa is strong-willed and fiercely independent but she threw herself into dangerous situations that made her seem foolish and naive. I had a hard time liking her when she was engaged to one man but pining over another. I also have a hard time with books whose characters do illegal things and questionable activities in the name of service to their country and expect God to listen to their prayers even while they disregard His moral standards.

Apart from this, fans of historical fiction will enjoy the added historical notes from the author at the end of the book that gives more details on the history of the Secret Service, counterfeit bills, route ciphers, and the devastating flood of 1884.


Disclosure: Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

Buy the Book:


About the Author:


Crystal Caudill is the author of "dangerously good historical romance," with her work garnering awards from Romance Writers of America and ACFW.

She is a stay-at-home mom and caregiver, and when she isn’t writing, Caudill can be found playing board games with her family, drinking hot tea, or reading other great books at her home outside Cincinnati, Ohio.

Learn more at crystalcaudill.com. You can also find her on Facebook and Instagram.


Enter the Giveaway!
Ends April 12, 2022





a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thursday, November 4, 2021

Every Word Unsaid by Kimberly Duff (Book review)

Every Word Unsaid

With its exotic setting and feminist themes, this novel will appeal to fans of historical fiction looking for something different.

Book Details:

Book Title: Every Word Unsaid by Kimberly Duffy
Category: Historical Fiction, 368 pages
Genre: Christian Romance
Publisher: Bethany House
Release date: Nov 1, 2021
Tour dates: Nov 1-14, 2021
Content Rating: PG

Book Description:

Augusta Travers has spent the last three years avoiding the stifling expectations of New York society and her family's constant disappointment. As the nation's most fearless--and reviled--columnist, Gussie travels the country with her Kodak camera and spins stories for women unable to leave hearth and home. But when her adventurous nature lands her in the middle of a scandal, an opportunity to leave America offers the perfect escape.

Arriving in India, she expects only a nice visit with childhood friends, siblings Catherine and Gabriel, and escapades that will further her career. Instead, she finds herself facing a plague epidemic, confusion over Gabriel's sudden appeal, and the realization that what she wants from life is changing. But slowing down means facing all the hurts of her past that she's long been trying to outrun. And that may be an undertaking too great even for her.


My Review:
Reviewed by Laura Fabiani

Augusta Travers is a traveler photographer and writer for a woman's magazine in the late 19th century. She is known as Miss Adventuress and she is fearless. She feels smothered by the expectations of her family and that of New York Society so she escapes by traveling across America and even manages to elude her investigator Uncle who has the task of tracking her. Rather than be proud of her accomplishments, her family is disappointed in her. This hurts Augusta deeply to the point where she always feels the need to run. She feels unloved. She ends up going to India where her childhood friends live and discovers she can be more than just a superficial writer of adventures. 

The author succeeds in bringing India to life, a country I have always wanted to visit. I liked that Augusta is a strong female character and unconventional for her day, although there were times when the story had a modern feel to it. I liked the secondary stories, especially the one based on the historical figure Pandita Ramabai Sarasvati, a women's rights and education activist and a pioneer in the emancipation of women in India. 

Although this is labeled as a romance, this is the story of a young woman finding her calling in life. The romantic aspect of the story was lighthearted, sometimes juvenile, with liberties in conduct that made it feel like I was reading a contemporary novel. There was a scene where Gabriel is sick with a cold, hacking and coughing and then... it turns into a romantic scene? Besides being a doctor who feared taking risks, I didn't really know much about Gabriel, Augusta's love interest. So as far as romance goes, I was not enamored.

With its exotic setting, feminist themes (and that gorgeous cover), however, this novel will appeal to fans of historical fiction looking for something different.


Buy the Book


About the Author:

Photo Credit: © Laura Hicks Photography

Kimberly Duffy (www.kimberlyduffy.com) is a Long Island native currently living in Southwest Ohio, via six months in India. When she's not homeschooling her four kids, she writes historical fiction that takes her readers back in time and across oceans. She loves trips that require a passport, recipe books, and practicing kissing scenes with her husband of twenty years. He doesn't mind.

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | PINTEREST | INSTAGRAM | GOODREADS






Monday, April 12, 2021

The Indebted Earl by Erica Vetsch (Book Review and Kindle Giveaway!)


The Indebted Earl is the third book in the Serendipity & Secrets series by Erica Vetsch. I loved all the books and this one ended up being the best one for me. Check out my review and enter the giveaway to win a Kindle HD Fire!

Book Details:

Title: The Indebted Earl by Erica Vetsch
Category: Adult Fiction, 288 pages
Genre: Historical Romance, Regency Romance, Christian Fiction
Publisher: Kregel Publications
Release date: March 2, 2021
Contact Rating: G

Book Description:

Can Captain Wyvern keep his new marriage of convenience all business--or will it turn into something more?

Captain Charles Wyvern owes a great debt to the man who saved his life--especially since Major Richardson lost his own life in the process. The best way to honor that hero's dying wish is for Wyvern to escort the man's grieving fiance and mother safely to a new cottage home by the sea. But along the way, he learns of another obligation that has fallen on his shoulders: his uncle has died and the captain is now the Earl of Rothwell.

When he and the ladies arrive at his new manor house in Devon, they discover an estate in need of a leader and a gaggle of girls, all wards of the former earl. War the new earl knows; young ladies and properties he does not. Still wishing to provide for the bereaved Lady Sophia Haverly, Charles proposes a marriage of convenience.

Sophie is surprised to find she isn't opposed to the idea. It will help her care for her betrothed's elderly mother, and she's already fallen in love with the wayward girls on the Rothwell estate. This alliance is a chance to repay the captain who has done so much for her care, as well as divert her attention from her grief. When Wyvern returns to his sea commission, she'll stay behind to oversee his property and wards.

It sounds so simple. Until the stalwart captain is arrested on suspicion of smuggling, and Sophie realizes how much he's come to mean to her. Now she'll have to learn to fight, not only for his freedom but also for his love.

My Review:
Reviewed by Laura Fabiani

The Indebted Earl is the third book in the Serendipity & Secrets series by Erica Vetsch. I enjoyed the first book The Lost Lieutenant and I loved the second book The Gentleman Spy and this third one was the best out of all three for me. Such a great story! The books are all stand-alone so you can enjoy them in whatever order you read them.

This engaging historical romance features Lady Sophia Haverly, the sister of Marcus, the main character from the second book, who makes a short appearance in this one too. Sophia's fiancé Rich dies overseas of battle wounds. His naval captain and friend, Charles Wyvern, returns to England after the war ends and visits Sophia to fulfill his promise to Rich that he would take care of her and his mother. Charles unexpectedly inherits an earldom and becomes guardian to three young girls. Sophie and Charles agree to a marriage of convenience and their life suddenly becomes filled with so much possibility.

I loved the premise of this story that had not one dull moment in it. Vetsch does such an amazing job bringing both the main characters and the secondary characters of the girls and Mamie, the mother-in-law to life. Such good character development, with bits of humor interspersed throughout. The characters are realistic, flawed, and grow with the arc of the story. I was touched by several scenes in this book. 

Vetsch writes very well with a good knowledge of the era and its language. The story moved along at a good pace and I could not help but want to read it quickly. I enjoyed it thoroughly from beginning to end. 

A feel-good marriage of convenience tale that is sure to please fans of historical romance with a touch of Christian elements. I'm a fan of Erica Vetsch and eagerly look forward to her next book!


Buy the Book:





About the Author:



Erica Vetsch is a New York Times best-selling and ACFW Carol Award–winning author. She is a transplanted Kansan now living in Minnesota with her husband, who she claims is both her total opposite and soul mate.

Vetsch loves Jesus, history, romance, and sports. When she’s not writing fiction, she’s planning her next trip to a history museum and cheering on her Kansas Jayhawks and New Zealand All Blacks.

A self-described history geek, she has been planning her first research trip to England.

Learn more about Erica Vetsch and her books at www.ericavetsch.com. She can also be found on Facebook (@EricaVetschAuthor), Instagram (@EricaVetsch) and Pinterest (Erica Vetsch).


Enter the Giveaway!
Ends April 20, 2021





Visit Us Today

Visit Us Today
iRead: getting your book in the hands of readers
 
Back To Top
Copyright © 2009-2017 Laura Fabiani Library of Clean Reads . Designed by OddThemes OddThemes