Sewn With Joy

GIVEAWAY

GOYER, TRICIA
GORE, SHERRY
SEWN WITH JOY

Sometimes dreams come together one piece at a time

Joy Miller wanted nothing more than to be a wife and mother -- especially now that her relationship with Matthew Slagel, the bishop's son was deepening. But when a television crew rolls into Pinecraft, Florida, to film a new show about the Amish, tension threatens to rip apart their relationship...and the entire Amish community.

Joy is initially hired to sew costumes for the show, but she soon finds herself becoming increasingly involved in the production -- a fact that upsets Matthew and his father. Yet the more Joy befriends the Englisch production crew, the more she senses God working in their lives through her. Can she turn her back on this opportunity to share God's love? Will she and Matthew somehow be able to stitch together their dreams for the future?

Experience love, heartbreak, and hope in this sweet story of two worlds uniting in unexpected ways.

My Review:

I adore this series and I sure hope that there are more novels to come because there are still two Miller sisters who need to have their stories told. No worries if you haven't read the first two books in The Pinecraft Pie Shop series -- this reads well as a standalone though, of course, there are carry over characters that I was thrilled to get reacquainted with. Like seventy-year old quilt shop owner, Elizabeth who contributes snippets of simple wisdom that rocked my world. Like this: "If God brings me a person who needs a taste of God's Word, I'm not going to send them away hungry." (p 210) She's such a source of strength to Joy as her carefully ordered world spins out of control in unexpected ways.

Life is good for Joy. She's working at a job she loves, enjoying the excitement of the pending weddings of her two sisters, and it looks like she will be following in their footsteps as her courtship with the Bishop's son progresses. Joy knows exactly what each day will bring...until the film crew rolls into town and she somehow ends up in the middle of a hotly debated controversy among the close-knit Pinecraft Amish community.

What follows is a captivating look at community, the intricacies of human nature and how living ones faith affects it all. This story is chock-full of inspirational wisdom -- so many great quotes that I had to stop reading and take notes. Like when Joy tells Englischer friends, "God's Word is often called a light, and sometimes when light shines into places that have been dark awhile, it's hard to face what's hidden there." (p.217)

A delectable companion to Made With Love and Planted With Hope and like the first two books, this one includes some authentic Amish recipes interspersed throughout the story.

Giveaway Opportunity:

If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of Sewn With Joy please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadAT yahooDOT ca. If you post a comment and add your email address please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so it's easier for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday March 26 2017. Offer open to international readers. Good luck!

Planted With Hope

GIVEAWAY

GOYER, TRICIA
GORE, SHERRY
PLANTED WITH HOPE

When Hope Miller is offered a plot of land behind her sister's pie shop to start a garden, she jumps at the chance. Finally -- some space away from her four sisters! But everyone in town seems to have an opinion about what she should grow and how she should grow it.

When the widowed schoolteacher, Jonah Sutter, asks if his students at the Amish school can help turn the plot into a community garden, Hope wonders if she will ever find the peace and quiet she craves. But God has a different plan for Hope -- a plan that will open her heart to all the blessings in front of her.

My Review:

Two green thumbs up! I can so relate to Hope's introverted ways and her love of growing things. In fact, this book combines two of my favourite pastimes -- reading  and gardening -- so call me a happy camper.

Moving to Pinecraft, Florida has been a difficult transition for this farm loving girl. Hope is all about the four seasons: the anticipation of spring planting, the summer nurturing of a garden followed by the autumn harvest. Not to mention the bliss of winter planning for the following spring. Only a gardener can understand the way these cycles can ground a person. I totally get Hope. She hasn't quite found her footing in Florida so when the chance to garden crops up, she thinks she might have found a haven at last...until the garden takes on a life of its own!

Widower Jonah and his motherless daughter, Emma, are delightful distractions but also provide a new set of challenges. I loved the sweet, hesitant romance that develops -- so tenuous because of the need to protect little Emma from further heartache.

An unexpected connection with Victory Gardens of the second world war thrilled me right to my toes! And at the heart of it all is the witness of  God's desire for us to build community. Hope is forced out of her comfort zone and has to learn to place her trust in God in order to navigate her present so there is hope for her future.

This is the second book in The Pinecraft Pie Shop series and it is supremely delightful. Love all the little intricate extras that make these books stand out from the rest. Clever title tie-ins are one of those details, each a play on the heroine's name -- Made With Love, Planted With Hope and coming out in September, Sewn With Joy. And, like the first book, the authors have included recipes as well as interesting wartime gardening and household management tidbits throughout. A true gem of a book.

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of Planted With Hope please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you post a comment and add your email address, please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in the address to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so that it's easy for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday August 21 2016. Offer open to international readers. Good luck!

Made With Love

GIVEAWAY

GOYER, TRICIA
GORE, SHERRY
MADE WITH LOVE

Lovina Miller should be thrilled. Pinecraft, Florida has everything a young Amish woman could ask for: sun, sand, volleyball games, and evening singings in the park. But Pinecraft lacks the one thing Lovina desperately wants -- a pie shop of her own. She longs for a place to gather with the community and serve the treat she loves.

A young carpenter named Noah Yoder strolls into her life and offers a way to make her dream come true. But before Noah and Lovina can build a shop -- and a life -- together, they must each face heartaches from the past. Is their new love stronger than their regrets?

My Review:

For some reason, I am utterly captivated by the village of Pinecraft which is in the heart of a bustling city. Made With Love is the first in the promising Pinecraft Pie Shop series. Lovina has four sisters so I'm hoping they each get their very own book! And there's an extra bit of authenticity since one of the authors lives in Pinecraft.

Love the dynamics between Lovina and Noah. She's a misunderstood dreamer and he becomes a surprising ally who is able to transform her dream into reality. An unexpected friendship develops but a deeper relationship is fraught with complications. Noah's trying to leave a difficult past behind, but he's infamous within the larger Amish community thanks to the widely read Amish newspaper, The Budget. And while the Amish are encouraged to forgive, many seem to struggle with the concept of forget.

The authors have created a thought-provoking inspirational thread about the deeper meaning of forgiveness. About walking alongside a person instead of holding back in judgement. I got so frustrated on Noah's behalf -- especially with Lovina's mother. Gah! I do so love becoming righteously indignant on a character's behalf!

And a special bonus -- Made With Love is chock-full of original Amish recipes -- makes for a delicious combination of fact and fiction (pun intended)!

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

 If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of  Made With Love please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you post a comment and add your email address, please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in the address to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so that it's easy for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday August 7 2016. Offer open to international readers. Good luck!

The Memory Jar

GIVEAWAY

GOYER, TRICIA
THE STORY JAR

Every year, 30–40 young Amish men descend on the cozy little town of West Kootenai, Montana, arriving in the spring to live there for six months and receive “resident” status for the hunting season in the fall. They arrive as bachelors, but go home with brides!

Sarah Shelter has lived in West Kootenai for the last ten years and wonders if she will ever fall in love. Since the tragic death of her best friend, she carries her memories in a jar along with the small items connected to them. For just as long, she’s also been carrying around her emotions instead of allowing them to penetrate deep into her heart.

Now she’s met a kind and gentle man who may be able to break down the wall. But can Sarah risk her heart to finally achieve her dreams?

My Review:

Published in 2012, The Memory Jar  is the first book in the wildly popular Seven Brides for Seven Brothers series. I love the concept of a memory jar -- collecting tangible prompts for important memories. That's the way that Sarah chooses to hold tight to special moments. I really enjoyed the flashbacks that included her friend, Patty, as they were growing up. They reveal a lot about Sarah and the reasons for the way she is in the present day. She's somewhat tenuous, carrying a burden she can't bear to share with anyone...until Jathan.

He arrives in West Kootenai with his own share of troubles. Their friendship quickly hints at something deeper but Sarah and Jathan have a lot of growing to do before their happily-ever-after is secured.

"In math, two halves made a whole. But in life -- and with relationships -- two halves offered up from broken souls seemed a poor way to begin something wonderful." (p. 127)

These 'broken souls' struggle with family expectations and it isn't until they learn to trust -- in God and each other -- that their future becomes clear. In fact, the impossible dreams they have longed for don't become possible until they join forces and make them a reality together.

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of  The Memory Jar please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you post a comment and add your email address, please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in the address to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so that it's easy for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday January 3 2016. Offer open to international readers. Good luck!

Where Treetops Glisten

GIVEAWAY

GOYER, TRICIA
PUTMAN, CARA
SUNDIN, SARAH
WHERE TREETOPS GLISTEN

The crunch of newly fallen snow, the weight of wartime 
Siblings forging new paths and finding love in three stories,
filled with the wonder of Christmas

Turn back the clock to a different time, listen to Bing Crosby sing of sleigh bells in the snow, as the realities of America’s involvement in the Second World War change the lives of the Turner family in Lafayette, Indiana.

In Cara Putman’s White Christmas, Abigail Turner is holding down the Home Front as a college student and a part-time employee at a one-of-a-kind candy shop. Loss of a beau to the war has Abigail skittish about romantic entanglements—until a hard-working young man with a serious problem needs her help.

Abigail’s brother Pete is a fighter pilot hero returned from the European Theater in Sarah Sundin’s I’ll Be Home for Christmas, trying to recapture the hope and peace his time at war has eroded. But when he encounters a precocious little girl in need of Pete’s friendship, can he convince her widowed mother that he’s no longer the bully she once knew?

In Tricia Goyer’s Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Meredith Turner, “Merry” to those who know her best, is using her skills as a combat nurse on the frontline in the Netherlands. Halfway around the world from home, Merry never expects to face her deepest betrayal head on, but that’s precisely what God has in mind to redeem her broken heart.

The Turner family believes in God’s providence during such a tumultuous time. Can they absorb the miracle of Christ’s birth and His plan for a future?

My Review:

What?! I can see your minds whirling in confusion. A Christmas book already? It's only September. To which I say, it's never too early for Christmas fiction when it is as exceptional as this one! The collaboration of three talented authors of this calibre promises immense satisfaction. Rest assured,  they deliver in this stunning novella collection that celebrates the real meaning of Christmas.

I can't pick out my favourite story. In fact, each novella is so well meshed with the others that Where Treetops Glistens reads as fluidly as novel. The continuity in the Turner family and the town they live in is seamless. Gave me the feel of getting to read a three book series one after the other. Talk about reader gratification!

The Word War II setting brings a special poignancy to each story. I don't know if it's because so much of my Christmas traditions are anchored in classic movies from that era, but the hope of Christmas seems more magical somehow. The romance stirs me more. Life in general seems more vibrant because so many lives are in peril. Goyer, Putnam and Sundin deliver compelling stories that honor the season and the brave Americans who lived their lives to the fullest despite crushing odds. Where Treetops Glisten is the kind of read that will herald in the warmth of the season and leave you basking in its glow right through to Christmas.

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of Where Treetops Glisten please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you post a comment and add your email address, please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in the address to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so that it's easy for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday September 21 2014. Offer open to international readers. Good luck!

My thanks to Litfuse Publicity Group and Waterbrook Press for a review copy of this book.
http://litfusegroup.com/author/glisten

The Promise Box

GIVEAWAY

GOYER, TRICIA
THE PROMISE BOX

Every year, young Amish men descend on the cozy little town of West Kootenai, Montana, arriving in the spring to live there for six months and receive 'resident' status for the hunting season in the fall. They arrive as bachelors, but go home with brides! In The Promise Box, the second book of best-selling author Tricia Goyer's Seven Brides for Seven Bachelors series, Lydia Wyse, a book editor from Seattle who grew up Amish, returns to the small community of West Kootenai to give comfort to her father after her mother's death. She is drawn back to the familiar Amish ways after finding her mother's most precious possession, a Promise Box of prayers and scripture. What her publisher sees, though, is an opportunity for a sensational 'tell-all' book about the Amish. Lydia soon finds herself falling in love with Amish bachelor Gideon Hooley. She wants nothing more than to forget her past and look forward to a future as an Amish bride. But will the pain of her childhood---and her potential betrayal of her community---keep her from committing her whole heart?

My Review:

Goyer fans will be thrilled to find some familiar faces within the pages of her latest book. That's a bonus to an already winning read. I just love the concept of a promise box and found it a great catalyst for Lydia's faith journey.

This is a sweet romance that develops between two hesitant people who are struggling with childhood hurts. I thought Goyer did a realistic job of portraying the way both Lydia and Gideon held onto unrealistic feelings of responsibility because of their past. Even though it appears irrational to an observer, it is very real to them and does colour their actions as adults which creates an interesting tension as their romance develops.

The Promise Box is an inspirational romance that will inspire and encourage readers even as it entertains.

Giveaway Opportunity:
If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of The Promise Box, please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you post a comment and add your email address, please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in the address to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so that it's easy for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday August 25 2013. Offer open to international readers. Good luck! 

Chasing Mona Lisa

GOYER, TRICIA
YORKEY, MIKE
CHASING MONA LISA

August 1944. Paris is on the cusp of liberation. As the soldiers of the Third Reich flee the Allied advance, they ravage the country and steal countless pieces of irreplaceable art. In fact, Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring will stop at nothing to claim the most valuable one of all—the Mona Lisa—as a postwar bargaining chip.

But the woman with the mysterious smile has some very determined protectors. Can Swiss OSS agents Gabi Mueller and Eric Hofstadler rescue Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece before it falls into German hands?

With nonstop action and intrigue, Chasing Mona Lisa is sure to get your adrenaline pumping as you join the chase to save the most famous painting in the world. From war-ravaged Paris to a posh Swiss chateau, the race is on--and the runners are playing for keeps.

My Review:

Steeped in history and packed with action, this historical novel was an eye-opener. The authors managed to capture the emotion and atmosphere at the end of the war with gritty realism. French politics and the various factions in the resistance provide a tumultuous backdrop for a cloak and dagger story filled with intrigue.

Told from multiple points of view, Chasing Mona Lisa doesn't seem to have a clear hero or heroine. There are so many characters that none of them take precedence over the others. Definitely not Eric and Gabi, though the back cover blurb leads the reader to believe that this is their story. They definitely have a role to play, but so do many others and this left me feeling on the outside looking in. I felt like I was spectator not a participant in the story and that result failed to engage my emotions.

Something that surprised me was the lack of an inspirational thread. The few token comments made by characters about their belief in God seemed to have been slipped in so that the book would fit the CBA market.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

Along Wooded Paths

GIVEAWAY!

GOYER, TRICIA
ALONG WOODED PATHS

All she wanted was a simple Amish life . . .

But now Marianna Sommer finds herself depending on Englisch neighbors. Although proud of living apart from the world, she and her newly relocated Amish family have discovered that life in the remote mountains of Montana requires working together.

As Marianna begins helping those different from herself—and receiving their help—her heart contemplates two directions. She’s torn between the Amish man from Indiana whom she has long planned on marrying and the friendly Englischer who models a closer walk with God than she’s ever seen before.

Who should have young Marianna’s heart? What is God asking her to sacrifice? Her traditions? Her community? The answer is found along the wooded paths.
 
MY REVIEW:
 
Rich, vibrant, descriptive writing and a profound depth to the storyline make Along Wooded Paths an incomparable read. This is the kind of book you can happily lose yourself in and I certainly did. It packs an emotional punch too and I admit to reading with trepidation at times. I was as torn as Marianna was between Ben and Aaron and I ached for both men who obviously loved her. Goyer had me squirming a time or two and I'd love to participate in a book club chat about the romantic angles in this book since I can't here without posting spoilers.

What touched me the most though was Marianna's spiritual growth -- her awakening to a deeper understanding of her relationship with the Lord. It's definitely something any Christian could parallel in their own life and for that reason I'd say that this is more than an Amish romance. I still loved the Amish setting though, and the way Along Wooded Paths shows a community of Englisch and Amish who interact more than in most.

Goyer has posted a teaser from the next book in the series that has me on edge and anxiously waiting the its release. I'm glad she isn't through with Marianna and the Sommer family!

Giveaway Opportunity:

If you would like to win a copy of Along Wooded Paths, please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. Remember to add the title to the subject line. The draw will be held and the winner announced on Sunday October 23. Good luck! Open internationally.

Beside Still Waters

GOYER, TRICIA

BESIDE STILL WATERS

On the night Marianna Sommers was born, a freak accident shattered her family. Even as she came into the world, her two sisters left it for heaven. She's spent her life making up for that loss, being to her family and their Indiana Amish community all that her sisters would have been. Her only dream: a simple life married to Aaron Zook, the one she's loved since childhood. Then her father says they are moving -- to Montana of all places! Of course it's to keep her younger siblings far from their oldest brother Levi, who left the Amish way of life, but the move will destroy Marianna's dream. She pleads to stay, to no avail. As Marianna leaves her home -- and Aaron -- she's sure her heart will never heal.

But Montana holds surprises.

The mountains, trees, and still waters open Marianna's heart to God as never before. Still, it troubles her that the small, Amish community is so interwoven with their Englisch neighbours. Especially woodworker, Ben Stone. If only Ben didn't do everything right! He's there in times of need, and his love for God is so clear. But giving in to the feelings he stirs in her would carry a terrible cost...

Everything she believes in and loves.

My Review:

This one has all the markings of a new epic Amish series. Goyer fills each page with emotion and does an amazing job of depicting Marianna's conflict. I could feel the angst! Actually woke up this morning at 3:15 contemplating her dilemma! (I know, I know, I have to get a real life!) This is the kind of book that would work wonderfully well in a book club because there are such rich issues that we all deal with.

I think part of my love of Amish fiction comes from being able to parallel their struggles to remain unique and apart from the world with my own Christian journey. In essence I am trying to do the same thing. Marianna's personal growth presses her to both question and defend aspects of her faith once she is removed from the close-knit Amish community she has grown up in. I think it's her struggle to find a balance and the wonder of opening herself up to God that resonated most with me.

Truly a remarkable book. I am eagerly looking forward to reading the book two of the Big Sky series which comes out in October 2011.

Reminder: If you would like a chance to win a copy of Beside Still Waters by Tricia Goyer, leave a comment below. A draw will be held on Sunday April 24 for all the books I read between April 11 - 23. For more information about the Giveaway check out April Showers Bring Reading Hours blog posted on March 31.