Tuesday, August 24, 2021

Book Review: Chasing Her Dream by Jennifer Slattery

If you enjoy small town inspirational romance, you'll love this new story Chasing her Dream by Jennifer Slattery.


I was drawn in by the abused horses needing a home. Rheanna had just inherited her uncle's ranch when a herd of abandoned horses are sent to her ranch. She wants to help them but is overwhelmed with figuring out her uncle's finances and why the IRS wants money. But she can't turn her back on the horses that have nowhere else to go. Dave agrees to stay long enough to help care for the horses until somoene is hired, but he'd run out on her before. Can she trust him to stay this time? She's used to people leaving her, Dave, her father, her ex-husband. Will this time be different? She'd promised to never let anyone hurt her like that again. But will she learn something about love and trust from the abused horses she's taken in?

Dave is ready to go back to Wyoming. His ranch had been flooded. But he can't leave Rheanna, or her daughter Amelia. He believes God will turn all things to good. He's waiting to see how that will happen. When he has to do the unthinkable to save one of the rescued horses, what will that mean for his future? Will he lose his ranch and the woman he loves?

My favorite scene is when Amelia and Dave are spending time together and they draw kindness hands. Amelia states, "We should teach the horses that word, too. Don't you think, Mr. Dave? That way they can all be friends and won't act mean to one another. We learned that in VBS. That God wants us to use our hands and our mouths to be nice to each other." If only we could all show kindness to one another.

Chasing her Dream is an engaging story of community and love, and seeing how forgiveness can change your life.

I received a free copy in the hope that I would mention/review it on my blog. I was not required to give a positive review, only my honest opinion - which I've done. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.


https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0875T592J/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0


Wednesday, January 13, 2021

Author Spotlight: Mandi Blake

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Mandi Blake! Everyone, say hello to Mandi! Without further ado, let's get to know Mandi and her book Mistaking the Cowboy.


Author Bio:
Mandi Blake was born and raised in Alabama where she lives with her husband and daughter, but her southern heart loves to travel. Reading has been her favorite hobby for as long as she can remember, but writing is her passion. She loves a good happily ever after in her sweet Christian romance books and loves to see her characters' relationships grow closer to God and each other.


Here's Mandi!

My latest release is Mistaking the Cowboy, and I loved writing this one. It’s the third book in the Blackwater Ranch series that tells the stories of the Hardings who own and work the family ranch in northern Wyoming.

Mistaking the Cowboy begins when Haley makes a bold decision to surprise the man she’s been chatting with online. She mistakenly lays a welcome kiss on his brother instead!

This isn’t a love triangle, so you can breathe easier. It’s also packed with quirky banter and some funny moments.

Family is also important in the Blackwater Ranch series, and these characters are finding a forever home in the small Wyoming town.

Check out Mistaking the Cowboy to meet Asher and Haley, or start at the beginning with Remembering the Cowboy to meet the whole family.


Mistaking the Cowboy Blurb

She kissed the wrong cowboy, but what if he was the right one?

Haley Meadows was so excited to meet the man she’d been chatting with online that she greeted him with a kiss only to find out she’d planted a big, messy, passionate wet one on his brother instead! She has to spend the rest of her vacation at Blackwater Ranch pretending that she didn’t kiss the wrong cowboy and like it.

Asher Harding is knocked off his feet by an auburn-haired beauty, but his infatuation is quickly squashed when he finds out she mistook him for his brother. She becomes a staple at the ranch during her visit, and getting to know her only deepens his desire for the one woman he can’t have.

As Haley gets to know the Hardings, she finds herself torn between protecting her heart and giving it away to the man she’s falling for. In the moment of truth, she’ll run for the one who stole her heart. Mistaking the Cowboy is the third book in the Christian Blackwater Ranch series, but the books can be read in any order.

 
Purchase Link and to Connect with Mandi:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08DHY5S31
There are lots of places you can connect with me. You can find all of my social media links here to choose which you like best.

I also have a small-town series that is complete with six books! They mix sweet, swoony heroes with a touch of suspense. Check out the Unfailing Love series here.



Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Mandi Blake and Mistaking the Cowboy.



Thank you so much for joining us, Mandi!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/


Tuesday, January 12, 2021

Author Spotlight: Cate Nolan

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Cate Nolan! Everyone, say hello to Cate! Without further ado, let's get to know Cate and her book Texas Witness Threat.

  

Author Bio:
Cate Nolan lives in New York City, but she escapes to the ocean any chance she gets. Cate loves to leave her real life behind and play with the characters in her imagination. She's got that suspense writer gene that sees danger and a story in everyday occurrences. She particularly loves to write stories of faith enabling ordinary people to overcome extraordinary danger.


Here's Cate!

One of the things authors are often asked is where we get out ideas.

For me, the answer is literally anywhere and everywhere.

I have so many ideas that I’d have to live another century to write them all.

So finding ideas is not the hard part. Turning those ideas into viable stories is where it gets challenging.

For Texas Witness Threat, I had a question in mind – how would it feel if you experienced something, but no one believed you?

That was the nugget, but I needed to turn it into a story with a plot. And since I write for Love Inspired Suspense, there needed to be danger – lots of danger.

So I started with a murder.

Christine is coming from an early morning meeting when a sudden violent storm forces her to seek shelter. The only thing available is an abandoned warehouse – but she soon learns she’s not really alone.

She witnesses a murder – and then the killers realize she saw it so they come after her. She is fleeing them when she slips and falls in the path of a car driven by Texas Ranger Blake Larsen. That turns out to be the best thing that could happen to her.

But I needed more –
Who was murdered?
What happened to the body?
Why was the person murdered?

I love to plot, but I’m bad at outlining. I love to describe myself with a term I learned from romance author Jo Beverly – a mist-er. I write into the mist. I can see what’s just ahead, and I know where I’m going, but there’s a lot in between that I can’t see until I’m upon it.

Sometimes research helps. For this story, I relied on a piece of research that had fascinated me. After Hurricane Ike hit Texas in September, 2008, groups of Amish people from Indiana came down to Texas to help rescue animals, rebuild fences and homes, and generally help out. One person quoted in the article said he “came to help Texas ranchers to return a favor because other volunteers helped his town after a powerful tornado hit in 2007.”
That struck such a chord with me. I mean people helping others and then those folks returning the favor by helping others is a lesson close to my heart.

I started to wonder WHAT IF they liked it and stayed????

Once I had that piece, the story fell into place. I’m not going to say any more about it because I don’t want to give away the plot.  Suffice to say, my hero and heroine have to visit this Amish community to help solve the crime and save Christine. I loved being able to explore the Amish faith element though Christine’s eyes.

Now I’m on to more WHAT Ifs with the next story.

Texas Witness Threat Blurb

She saw something she shouldn’t have…Assistant US Attorney Christine Davis is positive she witnessed a murder, but with no body, the police aren’t convinced. Now someone wants her dead, and Texas Ranger Blake Larsen is the only one who believes her. For Blake, protecting Christine must stay more important than their growing feelings for each other. But can he keep her safe from an unknown enemy who wants her silenced?


Purchase Link and to Connect with Cate:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B089RM8LP6/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i1
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCateNolan
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AuthorCateNolan
Amazon author: http://www.catenolanauthor.com/


Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Cate Nolan and Texas Witness Threat.



Thank you so much for joining us, Cate!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/


Wednesday, December 30, 2020

Author Spotlight: Jan Thompson

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Jan Thompson! Everyone, say hello to Jan! Without further ado, let's get to know Jan and her book Pray for Me.

Author Bio:
USA Today bestselling author Jan Thompson writes in multiple Christian fiction genres, including clean and wholesome contemporary Christian coastal city and beach town romance with elements of women’s fiction, Christian romantic suspense with an air of mystery, and inspirational international technothrillers with threads of sweet Christian romance. Jan’s books are for readers who enjoy stories of faith, family, and friends.

Raised on a tropical island in the Eastern Hemisphere, Jan now lives and writes in the Western Hemisphere. Her international background gives her a unique multicultural and multiracial perspective to her novels and books.

Jan graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science and worked as a database programmer and information technology consultant for years before transitioning from writing software programs to her lifelong dream job of writing fiction books that she wants to read.

When she is not busy writing and publishing, Jan is a wife, mother, family scribe, avid reader, erstwhile sewing student and piano player, occasional artist and potter, and chief of staff to the family cat. And she still sometimes writes computer programs, a nod to her previous career in IT.

Jan’s life verse is John 3:16.


Here's Jan!

Looking for Something Warm to Read?

Do you like to travel? If this year were not what it has been, would you have traveled, and where would you have gone?

What about armchair book travel? Do you like to visit places without having to pack and unpack suitcases? In a year when traveling is difficult or restricted, there is good news for readers who like to read clean and wholesome Christian romance novels set on beautiful beaches and memorable mountains. All we need are books to read!

Today I’d like to talk about my latest Christian romance, Pray for Me (Vacation Sweethearts Book 5), which will be released in January 2021. Before we get to that novel, how about a brief travel tour of the first four books in the series for readers who prefer to read books in sequence?

A Brief Tour of Vacation Sweethearts

My entire Vacation Sweethearts series takes you to sunny places all year round. Even in winter, as it is now in the Northern Hemisphere, I hope that you can still find a story to warm your heart. There are eight books altogether in this collection. The prequel and Books 6-7 will be coming soon.

• Book 0 (Prequel): Time for Me (Coming Soon!)
• Book 1: Smile for Me (Island Romance)
• Book 2: Reach for Me (Romance with Suspense)
• Book 3: Wait for Me (Romance with Suspense)
• Book 4: Look for Me (Romance with Suspense)
• Book 5: Pray for Me (On Preorder)
• Book 6: Care for Me (Coming Soon!)
• Book 7: Cheer for Me (Coming Soon!)


Our first stop is in the Bahamas, where we meet assistant principal Byron Moss and potter Tina MacFarland in Smile for Me (Vacation Sweethearts Book 1), a beach romance set in the hot summer months. Stay in Nassau, where Byron works at Chapel by the Sea Christian School. Follow Tina as she teaches art classes in the summer camp. Visit Moss Cay, a tiny private island with a bay and hammocks under coconut trees.

From sea level in Book 1, we travel to the top of the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee, where Mendenhall Retreat offers a secluded respite. It’s not a resort that you can just reserve. There is a special waiting list, and most of the guests have high-level clearance in this romance with suspense, Reach for Me (Vacation Sweethearts Book 2). There, we meet triple amputee former British special forces soldier Keenan O’Tierney and Misty Mountain resident Phoebe Pace.

From the October mountains of Tennessee, we fly to Alaska in Wait for Me (Vacation Sweethearts Book 3) to a cruise ship sailing through the Inside Passage. Onboard is Logan Urquhart, his ex-wife, Marie Bouchard, and their five-year-old son on a broken family cruise. This is also a romance with suspense as soon as Marie’s real job is revealed.

Crossing the continent, we return to the Atlantic Ocean and meet up with Martin MacFarland on the Florida beaches of Key Largo in Look for Me (Vacation Sweethearts Book 4). We met both Martin and Corinne in his sister’s story in Book 1. Where has Corinne been for four years? Those four years bring the FBI to her door in this romance with suspense.

Just a short flight from Key Largo and Miami, we come full circle back to the Bahamas in Pray for Me (Vacation Sweethearts Book 5). This time, Augustus Moss flies from Nassau in the Bahamas to the landlocked city of Atlanta, Georgia. Other than the summer heat, Atlanta has little in common with Nassau. The city has no ocean, no sea breeze, no Caribbean beaches. Just the perfect place for Gus to get away.

Pray for Me: A Caribbean Summer in Atlanta…

When his ex-fiancĂ©e marries someone else, landscaper Gus takes a vacation away from his Bahamas home, visits his cousin in the USA, and falls in love with a pastor’s daughter. Is it just romance on the rebound? Or is there something serious going on in this friends-to-more travel romance?

After losing Veronique, Augustus Moss III needs a distraction and a change of scenery. He takes a leave of absence from his landscaping job in Nassau and flies to Atlanta, Georgia, to visit his cousin, Byron Moss. When Byron’s whole family catches a cold, Gus ends up staying at Pastor Fitzpatrick’s house and finds himself drafted into serving in some of Midtown Chapel’s summer ministries. He agrees to help because he is a friend of the pastor’s eldest daughter, Tallulah, who seems to believe strongly in charity work.

Women’s Ministry Director Tallulah Fitzpatrick is not only ministering to single moms in the Atlanta area, but she is also on the Midtown Chapel committee to plant a new church in the small town of Lakeside in North Georgia, where her grandmother still lives. Pulled in many directions, she is grateful to have Gus volunteering. Although she has made up her mind to only marry an ordained pastor, she can’t help being drawn to Gus, the landscaper with an MBA.

Are Gus and Tallulah just flirting with each other for the summer, or will the romance last into the winters of their lives? When a problem arises at Midtown Chapel, Gus does something unexpected, surprising even himself. Will he lose Tallulah due to his spur-of-the-moment decision that he can’t follow up with when he returns to the Bahamas?

Thank you for letting me share a brief overview of my Vacation Sweethearts travel romance series. Find me on social media and follow me on BookBub as well as sign up for my newsletter to keep up with my publishing schedule.



Purchase Links:

Pray for Me is available for preorder on Amazon worldwide. You can also use these links to find the other novels in the Vacation Sweethearts series.
• Amazon USA: JanThompson.com/pray-amazon
• Amazon Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B08696S93R
• Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08696S93R
• Amazon Australia: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B08696S93R



• Book News: http://janthompson.com/index.php/newsletter/
• Website: JanThompson.com
• Amazon: JanThompson.com/amazon
• BookBub: JanThompson.com/bookbub
• Goodreads: JanThompson.com/goodreads
• Facebook: JanThompson.com/facebook
• Instagram: JanThompson.com/Instagram


Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Jan Thompson and Pray for Me.



Thank you so much for joining us, Jan!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/


Tuesday, December 29, 2020

Author Spotlight: Jodie Bailey

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Jodie Bailey! Everyone, say hello to Jodie! Without further ado, let's get to know Jodie and her book Fatal Identity.Jody is also giving away a copy of her book to one commenter, so be sure to leave an email address with your comment!


Author Bio:
Jodie Bailey is the CBA Best-selling author of fourteen novels about freedom and the heroes who fight for it. Her second novel, Crossfire, was a RT Reviewers' Choice Award winner and her contemporary romance Quilted by Christmas received the Selah Award and spent two months on the CBA Bestseller List. Growing up in Eastern North Carolina gave her a love for golden sand and the Atlantic Ocean. She started writing stories as soon as she learned how to put sentences together and spent her teen years making her best friends' dreams come true on paper. Jodie is also a speaker and teacher who packs her novels with the knowledge she's gained as an Army wife. She currently lives in North Carolina with her husband, her daughter, and two dogs.


Here's Jodie!

My latest release is Fatal Identity, and I was so excited to write it! When I wrote Fatal Response a couple of years ago, one of the soldiers in the book, Alex “Rich” Richardson, lost his brand new fiancee to a serial killer. After that, he refused to leave me alone. He showed up in Mistaken Twin and Hidden Twin, and in both, he was dealing with his grief and loss. The more I got to “know” him, the more I wanted to give him the chance to “live” out his story. The instant Dana Santiago stepped onto the page in Hidden Twin, I knew I’d found Rich’s match. Both of them are struggling with who they are and who God is in their lives, so their story was one we all tend to struggle with at some point in our lives. I wrote the book with Psalm 139 in mind, about how well God knows us and how He has already planned and prepared for our lives.

Fatal Identity Blurb

Secrets from her family’s past thrust her into the crosshairs. At her partner’s Christmas wedding in the mountains, deputy US marshal Dana Santiago’s almost abducted—and only the quick actions of Alex “Rich” Richardson save her. Now Dana and Rich must work together to figure out why the kidnappers seem willing to go to any lengths to capture her. But to find the truth they must first dig up her family’s long-buried past…

 
Purchase Link and to Connect with Jodie:

Website: https://www.jodiebailey.com/book/fatal-identity/

Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Jodie Bailey and fatal Identity. Be sure to leave an email address with your comment to be entered in the giveaway for a copy of her book!



Thank you so much for joining us, Jodie!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/


Thursday, December 17, 2020

Author Spotlight: Damon Nailer

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Damon Nailer! Everyone, say hello to Damon! Without further ado, let's get to know Damon and his book Revelation Rightly Revealed and Living, Loving, Leading.

Author Bio:
"Multifaceted", "passionate", and "skilled" all describe Damon “DaRil” Nailer. With several hundred speaking engagements under his belt, he has become known as a Renaissance Man, Inspirational Communicator, Gift Guru, and Authority/Expert who is able to provide direction, inspiration, and education to any audience, organization, or company. Mr. Nailer possesses a wealth of knowledge in the following areas: educational, entrepreneurial/business, religious, entertainment, relationships, parenting, and leadership. He shares his insights and wisdom through various means, such as writing, speaking, coaching, and even producing/performing music.

Damon has written 4 books- The Great Taste of Success, A Greater Taste of Success, Revelation Rightly Revealed, and Living, Loving, Leading, produced 6 musical projects- R U Ready, A Jing, Jing Thing, Strictly Divine, Conception & Rebirth, Verseatility, and L.I.F.E, and created an online school- https://rillifeacademy.thinkific.com/

 
Due to his expertise and experience, Damon has been featured over 180 times in various media outlets, including The Huffington Post, Reader's Digest, Goalcast, Thrive Global, MSN, Yahoo, Yahoo Finance, Authority Magazine, Redbook, TV shows, podcasts, radio shows, newspapers, and magazines.


Interesting Tidbit about Damon:

I wear many hats and do a multitude of things.

Revelation Rightly Revealed (R3) Blurb
Revelation Rightly Revealed (R3) conducts a precise yet comprehensive study of John's apocalypse. R3 analyzes and expounds on fourteen major themes found in the book of Revelation. As a result, you are guaranteed to receive dynamic and tremendous insight into the following concepts: The Four Horsemen, The Great Tribulation, Mystery Babylon, The Resurrections, The 7 Seals, 7 Trumpets, and 7 Vials, Eternity, and much more.


Living, Loving, Leading (L3) Blurb
Living, Loving, Leading (L3) is an exhilarating, thought-provoking masterpiece will take you on an epic, inspirational journey while equipping you to become the most effective, highly successful, well-rounded modern-day leader. It offers sage advice about life, love, leadership, purpose, mindfulness, relationships, parenting, success, etc. L3 will broaden your horizons, expand your perspective, empower your inner winner, and give you a more comprehensive, thorough viewpoint of life's amazing journey.


Purchase Links:

Revelation Rightly Revealed- https://rb.gy/cxhm2y
Living, Loving, Leading- https://rb.gy/va3mef

To Connect with Damon:
Website/Social Media
https://www.livinglovingleading.net/
https://www.facebook.com/damon.nailer
https://twitter.com/daril1
https://www.linkedin.com/in/damon-nailer-78932b17/
https://www.daril.org/



Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Damon Nailer and Revelation Rightly Revealed and Living, Loving, Leading.



Thank you so much for joining us, Damon!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/


Monday, December 14, 2020

Author Spotlight: Evelyn M Hill

Hi friends! Today, our author spotlight is on Evelyn M Hill! Everyone, say hello to Evelyn! Without further ado, let's get to know Evelyn and her book Dangerous Deception.

Author Bio:
Evelyn has lived in various parts of the Pacific Northwest, which she uses as inspiration to set her Christian romantic suspense and historical novels. When she's not writing, you can usually find her attempting to persuade her garden to grow, surprising her family with "adventurous" (not their word) meals, or trying to persuade the cat and the dog to grasp the concept of peaceful coexistence.

Here's Evelyn!

What led me to writing this story

This story started with Hannah Upp. She was a schoolteacher in Manhattan. One day, she went out jogging and disappeared. Three weeks later, a Staten Island ferry captain spotted her floating face down in the river. When she was hauled out, she woke up. She had no idea of why she was in the water or where she'd been.

Doctors eventually diagnosed her with a type of retrograde amnesia known as a dissociative fugue. This condition is rare, but there have been documented cases of it.

Typically, people with this disorder leave home and set up a new life with a whole new persona. A reverend became a storekeeper. A man who lived in the middle of the country traveled to the coast and became a sailor. In each of these cases the people came back to their original identity with no memory of the missing time. The reverend knocked on his landlord’s door and asked “Where am I?” Hannah Upp fretted during her hospitalization because she had to go set up her schoolroom for the new school year—which had started three weeks before.

Hannah's story started me thinking. What if a woman were given a drug that suppressed her memory, mimicking this condition? That led me to Rachel..

What's coming next

I'm working on the story of how Rachel and Michael first met. Because I sold Dangerous Deception to Harlequin, I can't legally offer this new story for sale, but Harlequin has no problem with my sharing the story with my newsletter subscribers privately. So, if you'd like to hear how the two first met, here's the link: https://tinyurl.com/EvelynHillNewsletter

Dangerous Deception Blurb

Rachel Garrett has the ideal life in a small town, surrounded by people she trusts—until a stranger arrives and tells her that she is living a lie.

Michael Sullivan's claim that she’s been brainwashed can't be right.

Her life is perfect.

But ever since he's shown up, she's had to deal with people attempting to manipulate, drug, or even kidnap her.

Now Rachel must decide if she believes her closest friends…or the one man who makes her feel truly safe.

Purchase Link and to Contact Evelyn:

Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/y947xjuo
Website: https://evelynhillauthor.com/
Newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/EvelynHillNewsletter
Twitter: https://twitter.com/EvelynAuthor

Friends, I sure hope you enjoyed getting to know Evelyn M Hill and Dangerous Deception.



Thank you so much for joining us, Evelyn!


If you're an author and you'd like to be showcased here, just let me know. Must be inspirational or clean, can be fiction or nonfiction.
Check out my website, connect with me, and sign up for my newsletter. https://sallyshupe.weebly.com/