The Island Bakeshop by Roseanna M. White - A Book Review

 

 

This second book in Guideposts Island Shop series features Harper Dailey, baker extraordinaire. Baker's hours don't allow much time for a social life, but Harper always makes time for a weekly friends group dinner. It doesn't hurt that Beckett Mills is usually in attendance as well, even if he had shown little interest in her at the dinner or during his frequent visits to her family's bakery. Yet, he immediately intervenes when entering the bakery to find Harper living her worst nightmare.

The Island Bookshop is an intense story dealing with healing from a range of abuses and neglect, but even healed wounds leave scars. Roseanna M. White handles this theme with sensitivity, and a focus on the importance of talking through one's hurts and a reliance on God, the great Healer. Trusting relationships are key. White allows readers the opportunity to get to know her characters, to develop empathy for them. This story is appropriate for romantic suspense fans, and would be equally appropriate for young adult readers who may or may not have yet encountered the signs of a toxic relationship. It might open up an avenue of conversation with a trusted adult.

I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy of The Island Bakeshop from Guideposts via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own.

A Chance for Kallie Mae by Ann H. Gabhart - A Book Review

 

Set in the early 1900s in Rowan County, Kentucky, A Chance for Kallie Mae, immerses readers in Appalachian culture. I imagine many readers, like myself, will be absolutely amazed at what a young, Appalachian woman can accomplish in a day's time without modern conveniences, without even electricity and plumbing. The emphasis throughout the story on the importance of a basic education is something that many may take for granted today. Thankfully, people like Rowan County School Superintendent, Cora Wilson Stewart, never took it for granted, going above and beyond in order to make literacy and mathematics instruction available to all, especially to adults who had previously not had the opportunity. The relationships between the characters are central to the story as are the circumstances that molded those relationships. Ann H. Gabhart is a master of character development. She presents an accurate view of those living in the mountains of eastern Kentucky in the early 1900s without leaning on stereotypes.

I highly recommend A Chance for Kallie Mae and am grateful to have received a complimentary copy from Revell via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own.  

 

The Island Bookshop by Roseanna M. White - A Book Review

  

The Island Bookshop is a sweet dual-timeline story with a touch of romance. Readers will get a real sense of island life in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Avid reads will enjoy the bookish focus in both timelines. The story has a great balance between tragedy and hope. The characters take on flesh and become like neighbors and friends. This book is a quick read and would be perfect to take on a beach vacation.

I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy of this book from Guideposts via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own. 

A Brewed Awakening by Pepper Basham - A Book Review

   

Are you in the mood for a lively rom-com? Pepper Basham has just the thing in her newest book, A Brewed Awakening. He is a coffee lover who is the new owner and chef of an English pub located in Wisteria, North Carolina. She is a lifelong resident of that quaint town, and is the owner and baker of her late grandmother's tea shop located next to his pub. While loving all things English, Daphne Austen thinks she needs to amend that to almost all things after meeting her new neighbor, Finn Dashwood. You know how rom-coms go, and likely anticipate an enemy to lovers trope. Everything follows the typical pattern with lots of humorous verbal jabs back and forth, a slow-burn romance, an adorable child, and a snuggly dog; until, around eighty-five percent into the book, things change and become much more serious when a tropical storm appears on the scene. The author's personal experience of weathering the storm and its aftermath when Hurricane Helene caused an enormous amount of damage in North Carolina in 2024 is certainly apparent in the final chapters of the story. She not only focuses on the devastation, but rejoices in the care and concern of neighbors for one another.

I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy of A Brewed Awakening from Thomas Nelson without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own. 

Home No Matter Where by Nancy Naigle - A Book Review

  

This novel will appeal to women of all ages as they empathize with three generations of the Palakiko women. Rosemary, the widowed grandmother, had moved and made Whelk's Island her home. Nina, her divorced daughter, looking for a way to reconnect with her teenaged daughter and to find peace in her own life, has brought them to stay with Rosemary for the summer. The question now is: Can Whelk's Island work its magic on Nina and Kendra as it had done for Rosemary and her friends.

This delightful book contains a story of hope and reconciliation, but these don't come easily, nor do they arrive all at once. Patience and perseverance are key. The gradual steps toward healing and the building of community are what will keep readers engrossed in this poignant tale. Fans of Grace Greene's books will also love Nancy Naigle's Shell Collector novels of which this is the third.

I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy of Home No Matter Where from Penguin Random House Christian Publishing Group via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own.

The Inklings Detective Agency by John R. Kelly - A Book Review

  

While, admittedly, The Inklings Detective Agency is a work of fiction, it is a masterful work of mystery in the vein of the classic mystery writers of the past, several of whom are characters in the book along with other beloved writers of other genres. John R. Kelly has done his research and utilizes the knowledge he has acquired to weave the personalities and quirks of C.S. Lewis, J.R. Tolkein, and their fellow Inklings along with Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, and even occultist Aleister Crowley among other notables with the atmosphere of Oxfordshire and London of the 1930s to create a delicious murder mystery. While the story includes a secret, occult society, readers can count on C.S. Lewis to keep the story grounded with his Christian influence. This book is indeed a treat, and I most highly recommend it to my fellow mystery lovers.

I give this book five stars and can only hope that John R. Kelly has more mysteries in store for the Inklings Detective Agency to solve. I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy of The Inklings Detective Agency from Penguin Random House Christian Publishing Group via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own. 

Anchoring You by Robin Patchen - A Book Review

  

Anyone who reads my reviews knows that I am a big fan of Robin Patchen's books. While I will admit that Anchoring You is my least favorite of the Wright Heroes of Maine series, I still highly recommend it. The entire series is well worth one's valuable reading time. In this book, as is typical of this series, the intense emotional and physical energy is vividly detailed. The multiple themes are well-developed, especially the focus on reconciliation with God and with oneself, as well as the theme of allowing God to heal the hurts of one's past. Fans of the series will find the story and its ending satisfying not only for Jaz's story, but also for that of Noah and Charlotte.

Anchoring You is the next to last book in this series. So, I not only await the final installment, but eagerly look forward to the beginning of a new series by this incredible author. I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy from the author without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own.