By Sarah Sundin

Allie has never felt pretty enough to please her beautiful Mother.  But Allie will do whatever it takes to make her Mom happy even if that means Allie marry a man she does not love and feels she may never love.  Allie has been asked to be part of a friends wedding and has gone to CA for the wedding and some time to think.  On her train ride to CA Allie meets Lt. Waker Novak, a handsome, sweet, pilot also on is way to CA to take his last furlough and help a friend who is getting married.

Little do Allie and Walter know that this short  train trip is going to turn into friendship the begins to grow as more.  Walk and Allie soon realize that have much in common including their love for music.  Allie and Walt build a friendship so tight that once Allie returns home and Walt returns back to war they continue to write and keep connected, by letters and by spirit.

But Allie soon has a tough decision to make and she knows that if it is the wrong one her Mother will never forgive her.  So will Allie marry the man she has no feeling for or will she take a leap of faith not knowing if Walt shares the same feelings Allie has.

A Distant Melody is the first of the Wings of Glory Series.

This is one book that I seriously could not put down and ended up staying up late into the night to finish.  I could not put the book down and had to know what was going to happen next.  Sarah Sundin grabs your attention at the beginning of the book and never lets it go.  Even once you finish the first book you can’t wait for the second book to come out so you can pick up where you left off.

The Lost Hour

By Karen White

Piper Mills returns to her grandparents home after a near death accident while chasing her dreams to become a Olympic equestrian.  Not only is she depressed from no longer being able to ride but now her depression deepens with the loss of her grandfather and not being able to reach her grandmother who is lost deep in her own mind due to Alzheimer’s.

Piper is given a beautiful but mysterious charm, a charm that once belong to her grandmother.  Curiosity gets the best of her and Piper begins running into many more unexplained objects, including a letter begging for forgiveness and a photo of three girls, her grandmother and two of her grandmother’s childhood friends.  And if that is not enough she finds a secret room in her grandparents house.

Piper decides to dig up a box that her and her grandfather buried 10 years before.  There she finds even more unexplained mysteries.

All these mysteries lead piper to Asphodel Farm and Lilian Harrington-Ross, the last of the three best friends that can actually answer Pipers questions.  There she opens doors to secrets and pain the three best friends buried deep in their hearts.  While Piper is solving mysteries, she also might just be reclaiming her life.

By Michael Baron

Just a few months before, Gerry Rubato’s life was complete and happy. He was completely and compassionately in love with his wife of 20 years, a beautiful, bright daughter, and a son on the way. Then Gerry’s whole life is turned upside down without a moments notice. His daughter runs away with her older boyfriend, who Gerry does not approve of, with no explanation. Then just a month ofter their son is born Gerry’s wife dies unexpectedly.

Gerry struggles now to be a father and a mother to his son, while he is dealing with the death of his wife and his teenage daughter still missing. But to make things even more stressful a women comes into his life. He can feel something more then friendship building between the two of them. But is Gerry ready for a relationship? Can Gerry handles this new found friendship/relationship while chasing leads from his daughter’s?

Michael pulls you into this book in the very first chapter and does not release you until finish the book. This is the first book Michael and I can’t wait until the next one comes out. Michael could easily become one of my favorite authors.

In Just one night Elizabeth’s whole life turned upside down.  With no notice at all her father becomes suddenly ill and was gone by the next morning.  Elizabeth did not know what to do now that she was responsible for her younger brother and sister, with no money, and no way to earn a living.  Elizabeth was told that if she married Colton Linley that he would forgive the debt that her father owed for living in Mr. Linley’s cabin all this time and all her Father’s debt would be erased.  But Elizabeth fears Colton and refused to marry him.  After burying their Father and much praying Elizabeth is giving the only answer she thinks will save them.  To go live the Shaker’s life.

Elizabeth’s father told her how peaceful he felt when he visited the Shakers on Harmony Hill.  Elizabeth knew they took in all orphans because they did not believe in Marriage, but would Elizabeth be able to become a true shaker and follow the Shaker way.  But more important would Hannah her little sister be able to be timid and calm.  And would Payton ever forgive her for taking them to Harmony Hill?

Elizabeth finds much more at Harmony Hill, then just all new beliefs and the Shaker way.  She finds love that is forbidden.  Shakers are to love one another and brother and sister not as man and wife.

As Elizabeth struggles with her feeling for Ethan, a young shaker who washed up on the river bank 16 years ago and found by a shaker brother, Ethan also struggles with the same forbidden feeling for Elizabeth.  But to make things even more difficult trouble has followed Elizabeth to Harmony Hill and will not leave until she agree’s to marry him.

44 Cranberry Point is the fourth book in Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove Series.

Peggy Beldon owns a beautiful bed and breakfast at 44 Cranberry Point in Cedar Cove, Washington. Peggy loves living in Cedar Cove but recently strange things have been happening.  Like Fidning a man named Max Rusell dead in one of thier B and B rooms.  With no idea whey Max was in Cedar Cove and even worse who killed him Peggy is iching for someone to solve the case soon.

But you know small towns.  The murder is not the only news floating around.  Jon Bowman and Maryellen Sherman are going to be getting married soon.  And Maryellen’s Mom Grace has a couple men chasing after her since she became a widow. But Grace does not know who she is going to choose.  She feels love for both men and they both have there own wonderful qualities.

There is much more gossip going on in Cedar Cove but you just need to read the book to find out all the rest of the great juicy gossip.  Debbie does a wonderful j0b of picking up where where 311 pelican Court leaves off and continues her story.  This is book for in the series of Cedar Cove Series.  Debbie keeps the mystery and romance going through each book in the series and makes you feel like you are right there in Cedar Cove living and listening to the daily gossip.

• Friends
• Fun
• Fabulous You!
• Family
• Faith

It includes a little of something and makes me smile and be joyful as I read each page.  Any Christian women should own this book.

Deidre Knight

Eternity is Ajax Petrakos’s prison.  Centuries later after Ajax and his Spartan brothers made a bargain to become immortal, Ajax is struggling to keep himself disciplined.  He only has one true source of strength and that is that he will one day find is other half Shay Angel.

When Ajax finally finds his soul mate he realizes he is not the first to find her.  Ajax enemy finds her first and that begins the story of a bond that can’t be broken.

Shay is the youngest of a demon-hunting family and wonders if her angel hero is a angel or a demon.  As the story goes on Ajax continues to have to rescue Shay until the tables are turned and it is up to Shay to rescue her angel in disguise.

As Ajax and shay rush to solve the mysterious prophesy, a prophesy that will lead to Ajax’s death if they don’t succeed, they begin to fall deeper into love and Shay soon realizes that she can not live without her Ajax.

Deidre kept me turning the pages and I got to the point where I could not put the book down because I had to know what happened next.  There is adventure, passion and mystery in the book and that is just the type of books I love to read.  The best part is that this is the first book in the series A God of Midnight Novel.

Book two Red Kiss Came out June 2009

Bernice Hausman

The author draws on her own personal experience as a mother who went to great lengths to breastfeed her children as well as on her vast knowledge of the breastfeeding research literature. She opens up a discussion of modern breastfeeding issues and controversies and explores why breastfeeding is not a cultural norm in the United States. She also discusses the values of the La Leche League, who promote breastfeeding and offer lactation support. In her book she also talks about well known breastfeeding advocates who are pushing for breastfeeding to be culturally accepted in the US.

The American Academy of Paediatrics’ recommendation suggests that infants should be breastfed exclusively for the first six months in their life. However, the reality in the US is that only about 14% are exclusively breastfed for the first six months. In her book, the author examines the conflict that exists between the recommendations by the AAP, the philosophy of the LLL and the issues associated with working mothers and the modern world.

The author also discusses the different views of feminists and breastfeeding mothers and tries to open a dialogue between the two sometimes conflicting parties to achieve a balance between the baby’s and mother’s needs in terms of breastfeeding and the constraints a working mother faces.

This book is a must-read for anybody who is interested in breastfeeding issues. It will give women the opportunity to make an informed choice about the health and cultural issues associated with nursing a baby. The author advocates that breastfeeding is a natural part of every mother’s being, but because of external conflicts women face nowadays, this natural part has to be relearned.

Bride on the Loose

Jason Manning love living the bachelor life, he loves sports, loves not having to pick up after himself. Then one of his tenents daughters decides her mom needs some companionship, so she decides she is going to get her Mom Charlotte and Jason to fall in love.

Jason refuses to have anything to do with this whole game that Charlotte’s daughter is playing, but soons finds himself wanting to spend more time with Charlotte.  Jasons feelings grow deeper but he is not sure he is ready to take the next step.  Will Jason land his bride on the loose?

I love this story.  I love how Jason is in love one minute and the next minute is pretending he does not want anything to do with Charlotte.  Debbie captures the true nature of a man falling in love and a single mom not wanting to get involved.

Same Time Next Year

At one time James Wilkens was about to marry a Manning Sister. But with his broken engagement in his past he decides to spend New Year’s Eve in Las Vegas.  While wondering around Las Vegas he meets Summer Lawton. She is broken hearted and to make things even worse she has been betrayed. James makes her a promise that she will be over it within a year and to make sure that he is serious he also tells her he will meet her back there same time next year.

During that year they being to contact and comminucate with each other more and more and by the time they meet again on New Year’s Eve the following year they are having more then a date.  They are getting married.

This is a wonderful story about love at first sight and how a friendship can blossom into so much more.  I love how Debbie shows the reader that a relationship can be so much more if there is a friendship first.

In the book Essentials of Smart Parenting they combined their knowledge to produce a guide book for all parents. Parenting is one of life’s greatest adventures. It can be difficult, scary, sad, stressful but also a very happy experience. In their book the two authors provide parents with the tools and advice that improves their parenting skills and at the same time reduces the stress associated with raising a family.

The book is written in a very easy to read style and takes into account not only the parents’ needs but also the needs of the children. By implementing the given strategies, harmony in the house will improve and raising the children will be more fun. In their book, the authors talk about the main principles, which are:

• United we stand
• ABC or always be consistent
• Give yourself a time-out
• Act, don’t react
• Pick your battles
• And more

The book offers parents easy to implement strategies and advice on how to make parenting a much happier and less stressful experience for both parents and children alike.