CFBA: Greetings from the Flipside by Rene Gutteridge

This week, theChristian Fiction Blog Allianceis introducingGreetings from the FlipsideB&H Books (October 15, 2013)byRene Gutteridge



ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Rene is the author of seventeen novels. She also has extensive experience writing comedy sketches, and worked for five years as the director of drama for a church. She has a degree specializing in Screenwriting, for which she earned the Excellence in Mass Communication Award, and graduated magna cum laude.

She is married to Sean, a musician and worship leader, and has two children. They reside in Oklahoma, where Rene writes full time and enjoys instructing in college classrooms and writers conferences.




ABOUT THE BOOK

Hope Landon has been rewriting other people's greeting cards since she was six years old -- there's always a funnier caption. She's all set to chase those creative dreams with her musician fiance in New York City until he leaves Hope at the altar, deciding he must not really love this girl if he can't write a song for her. That may give her something to write about . . .

Hope disappears alone on what was supposed to be the couple's month long honeymoon. Upon returning she learns of her funeral -- everyone in her life concluded Hope must have killed herself after being jilted. Needing a fresh start more than ever, she heads for the Big Apple only to discover it's not that easy to rent a place when you've been declared dead.

Taking shelter at the YWCA, Hope soon lands a job at a Christian inspirational greeting card company as an assistant to Jake, a guy who shut down his organization's humor department. She has lost her faith in love; he needs to find something or someone that will make him laugh.

Is there anything in the cards for these two? Find out in the truly original Greetings from the Flipside by authors Rene Gutteridge (Boo) and Cheryl McKay (screenplay for The Ultimate Gift).

If you would like to read the first chapter of >Greetings from the Flipside, go HERE.

Blogger's note: I have to say this one sounds fascinating. If my TBR pile didn't rival Mount Everest, I would have requested to review this one.

You've Got Mail Monday

Bet you're wondering where I've been hiding? Well, maybe not. The title of this blog is The Busy Mom's Daily, so you can guess what's happened. Yep, busy as all get out. The Lil' Princess' last regular season soccer game was yesterday. She scored two goals and the team went on to win 3-1. Now we're waiting for the playoff schedule. She also cheered at the last regular football game of the season. Oh, and the local Taste of Greece festival was this weekend, too, so pretty much I had a lot of work to do because I knew I wouldn't be around all weekend.

The mailbox was filled with all kinds of goodies last week. The latest Land's End and L.L. Bean catalogs arrived, as did a catalog from LTD Commodities. I haven't seen one from them in a while. The Lil' Diva found a One Direction throw and pillowcase on one of the pages. Maybe Santa will bring them for her. Also in the mailbox was my latest issues of Health Magazine and Shape, the last of which I still have no idea why I'm getting. The ESPN magazine that also mysteriously appears each month--and gets promptly recycled--also showed up.

What I really want to know is whose mailing list I got on. Six books were delivered last week, only two of which were ones I requested to review. Merry Humbug Christmas by Sandra Bricker and Traces of Mercy by Michael Landon Jr. and Cindy Kelly are books I'll be reviewing at Cheryl's Christian Book Connection. I honestly didn't know Landon was writing novels. This is his second one with Kelly. Traces of Mercy is set at the end of the Civil War, which already makes it appealing to me. And who can resist a seasonal read like Bricker's? The other books were all for kid's, which is great, but I am so far behind on reviews I don't know when--or if--I'll get to them. Here's the list:

• Unhooking the Moon by Gregory Hughes. This book was originally published in the United Kingdom and went on to win the Booktrust Teen Fiction Prize and was shortlisted for the Guardian children's fiction prize. 
• Guinea Pigs Online by Jennifer Gray and Amanda Swift
• Frightfully Friendly Ghosties by Daren King
• Sammy Feral's Diaries of Weird by Eleanor Hawken

These last three are chapter book series launched by Quercus Publishing. 

I'm excited to see all these new books arrive, but I am anxious that I'll get through my ever growing TBR pile.

That's it for now. Hope you have a great week. 

WWW Wednesdays - October 16th

Here's another weekly meme from Should Be Reading. I try to participate every chance I get, but reading time was at a minimum for a while. Hopefully I can keep up the pace I'm moving at now because I have tons of books to review before the end of the year.

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you’ll read next?

What are you currently reading?

It’s five years to the day after dear old Ebenezer Scrooge has passed away and left his thriving firm to his former clerk, Bob Cratchit. However, Bob’s overly-generous benevolence with lending and charity-giving has driven the company into the ground, on the verge of bankruptcy. And so the ghost of Scrooge returns one Christmas Eve to teach Cratchit the true meaning of money, with the help of visitations of three spirits – not all of whom are happy to be there. (It is Christmas Eve, after all, and they have other plans.) Making the swirling journey through Christmases past, present, and yet-to-be all the more of a chaotic ride for Cratchit are the dozens of characters from other Dickens novels woven throughout the story, together for the first time. God bless them, most everyone.

And it’s all augmented with footnotes of letters between Mr. Dickens and his publisher, along with notes from Dickens’s own hand and scholarly research. At least that’s what the editor tells us, though we’re a little skeptical of his honesty.

What did you recently finish reading?

"The Christmas Visitors": For spirited Martha Coblentz and her twin Mary, the snow has delivered the perfect holiday and birthday present to their door—handsome brothers Nate and Bram Kanagy. But when unforeseen trouble interrupts their season’s good cheer, it will take unexpected intervention—and sudden understanding—to give all four the blessing of a lifetime.

"Kissing the Bishop": As the New Year’s first snow settles, Nazareth Hooley and her sister Jerusalem are given a heaven-sent chance to help newly widowed Tom Hostetler tend his home. But when her hope that she and Tom can build on the caring between them seems a dream forever out of reach, Nazareth discovers that faith and love can make any miracle possible.

You can find my review at http://cherylschristianbookconnection.blogspot.com/2013/10/book-review-amish-country-christmas-by.html

What do you think you’ll read next?

From Michael Landon Jr. and Cindy Kelley, authors of The Silent Gift and creators of the hit television film Love Comes Softly, comes an exciting historical romance set in post-Civil War, and filled with suspense and faith-building values. At the war?s end, a young woman suffers an accident that leaves her unconscious and alone. Waking with amnesia, she takes the name Mercy and wants more than anything to find out the truth of her past. But then a handsome stranger arrives, who may hold the key to everything she has forgotten. What he knows could devastate her future, and even end her life. Written by two proven storytellers, Traces of Mercy is perfect for anyone who loves historical fiction, prairie-based tales, or just a good romance.

CFBA: A Bride for Keeps by Melissa Jagears

This week, theChristian Fiction Blog Allianceis introducingA Bride for KeepsBethany House Publishers (October 1, 2013)byMelissa Jagears



ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A Word From The Author:

I am a stay at home mother on a tiny little farm with a fixer-upper house. As much as I love writing and reading about homesteaders, I am so glad I’m a homesteader during an era with modern grocery stores to take up for my slack. I am an ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher by trade, and I still work occasionally in that field along with being my church’s financial secretary and writing novels.

My husband and I have been married since 2001 and have a daughter and two little boys. My husband shares my fascination with traditional living except for being more hands on. He loves blacksmithing, knife smithing, traditional archery, hunting, etc. Generally whatever a mountain man does, he does it or has or wants to attempt it. He comes in handy for research! And of course, the rest of the family gets involved. I have my own blackpowder rifle, named Calvin, that my husband made for me. And I’m pretty sure my daughter is probably one of very few her age who can instruct adults how to shoot a longbow properly. The boy digs random holes in my yard to make “cement” with dirt and water making our yard a tripping hazard. The baby does what babies do.


ABOUT THE BOOK

A Tender Tale of Love on the Prairie Perfect for CBA Readers!

Although Everett Cline can hardly keep up with the demands of his homestead, he won't humiliate himself by looking for a helpmate ever again--not after being jilted by three mail-order brides. When a well-meaning neighbor goes behind his back to bring yet another mail-order bride to town, he has good reason to doubt it will work, especially after getting a glimpse at the woman in question. She's the prettiest woman he's ever seen, and it's just not possible she's there to marry a simple homesteader like him.

Julia Lockwood has never been anything more than a pretty pawn for her father or a business acquisition for her former fiance. Having finally worked up the courage to leave her life in Massachusetts, she's determined to find a place where people will value her for more than her looks. Having run out of all other options, Julia resorts to a mail-order marriage in far-away Kansas.

Everett is skeptical a cultured woman like Julia could be happy in a life on the plains, while Julia, deeply wounded by a past relationship, is skittish at the idea of marriage at all. When, despite their hesitations, they agree to a marriage in name only, neither one is prepared for the feelings that soon arise to complicate their arrangement. Can two people accustomed to keeping their distance let the barricades around their hearts down long enough to fall in love?


If you would like to read the first chapter of A Bride for Keeps, go HERE.

Book Review: An Amish Country Christmas by Charlotte Hubbard and Naomi King

An Amish Country Christmas by Charlotte Hubbard and Naomi King is two romantic seasonal tales wrapped in a beautiful cover.

In "The Christmas Visitors," Nate and Bram Kanagy arrive in Cedar Creek to pick up their new sleigh and courtin' buggy from James Graber. While in town, they catch sight of Martha Coblentz. They soon learn she has a twin sister named Mary. The boys are smitten with the Coblentz twins right away, and the girls invite them to stay at their parents' house to help them celebrate their birthdays. When the girls create a bit of trouble for the Kanagy boys, it will take a heap of grace and some unexpected intervention to put things right.

Then in "Kissing the Bishop," as the season's first snow arrives in Willow Ridge, the residents are in a time of transition. Dealing with the fallout of Hiriam Knepp's actions and his excommunication leaves them considering a new bishop.

Luckily, Nazareth Hooley and her sister, Jerusalem, have agreed to help Tom Hostetler host the bishops' meeting. Preacher Tom enjoys their company, especially Nazareth's; but he knows the laws won't allow him to remarry after his wife left him for another man. Nazareth and Tom's dream of a life together seems out of reach, but perhaps faith and love can bring them a miracle.

Even after I finished the book last night I was unsure what this review would look like. I love this author's work under both her names, so I signed up for all three of her book tours (she has three new releases this fall). With all the books I read and review these days, I usually donate most of them. But these ones I keep because I want to make sure I have both of the complete series. Can you tell I admire her work?

While in most ways this book featuring two crossover short stories remains true to the Amish fiction genre, I also feel the author took a bit of a risk with the content. The physical attraction of these characters to each other plays a more significant role than one may be used to seeing. It is handled within the confines of the genre and not offensive in any way, but it caught me off guard. That said, they are spectacular stories; true displays of what faith, patience, and love can mean to people's lives.

I feel Hubbard/King excelled in portraying very different age groups in one collection and holding it together by that hope for the future. The Kanagy boys and the Coblentz twins are just starting out in life. Bram hasn't even made a commitment to the church yet. In "Kissing the Bishop," however, Nazareth and Jerusalem Hooley are in their fifties, Tom has married children, and Vernon Gingerich is a widower who has known Tom since their younger years. It's nice to see these two age groups alongside each other. I don't feel there are enough romance novels written about Tom and Nazareth's age group, and the ones surrounding characters in their late teens and early twenties can focus too much on the physical side of a relationship.

Though I've read this book out of the chronological order of both the Cedar Creek and Seasons of the Heart series, An Amish Country Christmas did nothing but make me eager to read Winter Wishes by Charlotte Hubbard and Amanda Weds A Good Man: One Big Happy Family by Naomi King even more than I did when I requested them. If you enjoy seasonal romances, you'll want to get your hands on this one, too.


Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Zebra (October 1, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1420131885
ISBN-13: 978-1420131888

I received a copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

You've Got Mail Monday

Oh my gosh, it's been busy around here. I've been finishing off registration for WriteAngles, a local writers conference I attend each fall. The mail carrier delivered the remaining plants for the backyard, which got added to the new flower bed yesterday. I've been taking in the rest of the herbs and freezing them or making herb butter so I have them for the winter. And of course, there is still soccer and cheerleading.

When fall arrives, it's kind of sad to watch as the plants die off, the patio furniture is put into storage, and all the leaves fall down. But it's nice to see the yard looking so clean after we rake up and blow the fallen leaves away and clean up the flower beds and vegetable garden. I'm also making plans for spring, so I have that to look forward to.

Like I said, the mail carrier brought in those remaining plants I was waiting for. The Lil' Diva helped me get these beauties into the ground yesterday. I can't wait to see what this looks like next year. This area is mostly shade, so I stuck with hostas, a brandywine bush, some lilac astilbes, neat-looking black mondo grass, and an ostrich fern.

Through Crowdtap, I received samples of Cottonelle's® flushable wipes, along with two small sample packs to share with neighbors. I'm reviewing these on their site. I have another sample package for Truvia® Natural Sweetener coming soon. I have to say that Crowdtap has been the most successful in the terms of winning prizes and being accepted to try free samples.

My Land's End Kids catalog and the Oriental Trading catalog arrived last week. I usually find value priced Christmas ornaments for my many trees in the OT catalog. Another great book arrived last week, too: Amanda Weds Her Man by Naomi King. I've been following the Cedar Creek series for a while and I'm always thrilled to see a new book release. I'll be reviewing this book at The Book Connection.

That's it for this week. Hope you have a great one.

Sharing Clean Teen Publishing's $100 Giveaway During Bullying Awareness Month

October is National Bullying Awareness Month. Clean Teen Publishing and Crimson Tree Publishing are hosting a series of posts from their authors that discuss bullying. You can subscribe to their blog and come back often during the month of October to participate in their Bullying Awareness Month Events and Giveaways.

For more details, visit http://cleanteenpublishing.blogspot.com/2013/09/100-giveaway-help-stop-bullying-clean.html.