The Splendor of Ordinary Days by Jeff High

I love the Mitford Series books by Jan Karon, so when I saw this book compared to this series I was very excited. I honestly didn't think that the cover of this book was very eye-catching and I'm not certain I would have picked up this book if  I hadn't read a review on it.

I really liked the small town story of Watervalley. I had not read any other books by Jeff High, but I was definitely intrigued enough by this small town that I would like to read the beginning story of Watervalley, More Things in Heaven and Earth. I was hooked from the very first chapters of this book and came to love each character within this small town. Even ornery Luther grew on me and became one that I looked forward to seeing within the story.

The biggest surprise of the story to me is the relationship some of the people have with the Mennonite community that was so close to Watervalley. That put an interesting twist into the story that I wasn't really expecting..

One thing that I loved about the Mitford series that is also true about this book is that the story isn't rushed or packed full of action. In fact, it's the slow revelations on the little things or personalities of certain characters that make the book move along, instead of constant action. It's one of those nice, relaxing stories that leave you wanting more when you close the book for the final time.

Read more reviews on this book by going to http://litfusegroup.com/author/JHigh.

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The pastoral charm of small-town Watervalley, Tennessee, can be deceptive, as young Dr. Luke Bradford discovers when he’s caught in the fallout of a decades-old conflict.
After a rocky start as Watervalley’s only doctor, Luke Bradford has decided to stay in town, honoring the three-year commitment he made to pay off his medical school debts. But even as his friendships with the quirky townsfolk deepen, and he pursues a romance with lovely schoolteacher Christine Chambers, several military veterans’ emotional wounds trigger anger and unrest in Watervalley.
At the center of the clash is the curmudgeonly publisher of the local newspaper, Luther Whitmore. Luther grew up in Watervalley, but he returned from combat in Vietnam a changed man. He fenced in beautiful Moon Lake, posting “Keep Out” notices at the beloved spot, and provokes the townspeople with his incendiary newspaper.
As Luke struggles to understand Luther’s past, and restore harmony in Watervalley, an unforeseen crisis shatters a relationship he values dearly. Suddenly Luke must answer life’s toughest questions about service, courage, love, and sacrifice.
Learn more and purchase a copy.

Jeff High

After growing up on a farm in rural Tennessee, Jeff High attained degrees in literature and nursing. He is the three-time winner, in fiction and poetry, of an annual writing contest held by Vanderbilt Medical Center. He lived in Nashville for many years, and throughout the country as a travel nurse, before returning to his original hometown, near where he now works as an operating room RN in open-heart surgery. He is the author of the Watervalley novels, including "More Things in Heaven and Earth" and "Each Shining Hour."

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I received this book from Litfuse Publicity Group and New American Library in exchange for my honest opinion of this book. 

Whitney Miller's New Southern Table Cookbook by Whitney Miller

This cookbook was everything I hoped it would be and more. I absolutely love the beautiful pictures inside and the stories of reminiscing and Whitney Miller's own personal thoughts on certain dishes. Each recipe begins with this wonderful introduction, which made me immediately want to invite some people over and start cooking.

It's not often when I get a new cookbook and I want to cook every single recipe inside. In fact, I think there may be only 1 or 2 that I have cooked everything out of it. This book is going to be added to that shelf. There was not one recipe that didn't churn up some memories or excitement for me. As I was going through it, I was already planning ahead for Thanksgiving and making a list of some wonderful dishes to try.

Another wonderful thing about this cookbook is that there are several gluten-free recipes included, as well. I appreciated that sensitivity to those with different diets who need an alternative but would love to eat some good food.

The recipes are made from a list of ingredients that I actually keep in my pantry. There wasn't anything extra special about the ingredients, which I love! The steps are simple and makes it so easy and quick for the home cook to follow. This makes cooking so much more fun and not quite a burden with a list of steps to follow that are difficult or time-consuming.

We tried the Seared Beef Tips and the Not Your Grandma's Roast. These were delicious! I have pretty much made my entire weekly meal plan from this cookbook. I can't wait to try all of these dishes--from breakfast to dessert, I'm anxious to see what my kids like!

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I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishing in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.

Promise to Keep by Elizabeth Byler Younts

I absolutely love history now that I'm older. I find that I gravitate a lot towards fictional books that include history. However, I still love my Amish fiction. Usually those two genres don't go together, so that is what has endeared this series to me. I finally have my two favorite genres joined together! I read a lot of books and I can't really think of an Amish series that includes more of the historical setting of WWII. It may be out there, but I haven't ran across it yet.

What makes this book so interesting is because the author is interesting. She was Amish and still has Amish family, even though she is not Amish anymore. She also married a man in the Air Force. Fascinating! So she writes with a lot of knowledge of the Amish community and the military.

As a music therapist and someone who is partially deaf in one ear, and someone who loves sign language, the characters in this book spoke to my heart. I loved watching Joe learn to interact and communicate with his daughter.

This book stirs up many emotions that the characters have to deal with. There's risk, loss, fear, frustration, anger, and lastly, love. Daisy may bring Joe and Esther together, but they ultimately have to decide if love is more than the loss they have and will experience in their lives.

I'm sad that this series is ending. I really hope she continues to blend history and Amish fiction together. It really sets her books apart and makes them very memorable to her readers.

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I received this book free from Howard Publishers in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.

Promise to Keep by Elizabeth Byler Younts

I absolutely love history now that I'm older. I find that I gravitate a lot towards fictional books that include history. However, I still love my Amish fiction. Usually those two genres don't go together, so that is what has endeared this series to me. I finally have my two favorite genres joined together! I read a lot of books and I can't really think of an Amish series that includes more of the historical setting of WWII. It may be out there, but I haven't ran across it yet.

What makes this book so interesting is because the author is interesting. She was Amish and still has Amish family, even though she is not Amish anymore. She also married a man in the Air Force. Fascinating! So she writes with a lot of knowledge of the Amish community and the military.

As a music therapist and someone who is partially deaf in one ear, and someone who loves sign language, the characters in this book spoke to my heart. I loved watching Joe learn to interact and communicate with his daughter.

This book stirs up many emotions that the characters have to deal with. There's risk, loss, fear, frustration, anger, and lastly, love. Daisy may bring Joe and Esther together, but they ultimately have to decide if love is more than the loss they have and will experience in their lives.

I'm sad that this series is ending. I really hope she continues to blend history and Amish fiction together. It really sets her books apart and makes them very memorable to her readers.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A Word from the Author:

I’m Elizabeth, a blessed child of The King. I’m a middle-born daughter, military officer’s wife, homeschooling mama, writer, closet DIYer, and, dare I say it, Downton Abbey addict. May I also mention that I love both my history and my coffee rich.

I am formerly Amish and my heritage is very dear to me and thankful to be so accepted among my still Amish family. I can still speak PA Dutch, too! You can learn more about my Amish family in my first book Seasons: A Real Story of an Amish Girl.

My three book series with Howard Books (a division of Simon & Schuster) is a dream come true. The series is titled The Promise of Sunrise. In this series you will live through World War 2 from an Amish perspective and experience their unique struggles as conscientious objectors during wartime. What happened if one of their members enlisted? What was it like to serve at the Civilian Public Service Camps for years with almost no compensation? How did Amish women and families cope when a son or father was drafted? I look forward to taking you back into the richness of these years of Amish history through fiction.

ABOUT THE BOOK

World War II Marine Joe Garrison returns home from war longing to be a father to his deaf daughter, Daisy, only to find that she is attached to Esther Detweiler, the Amish woman who has raised her since his wife’s death in this touching historical romance.

Orphaned as a child, Esther Detweiler is used to caring for herself and her ailing grandmother. They made the best out of a hard life and poverty without asking for help. They even take in her shunned cousin’s deaf daughter, Daisy, when her mother dies and her father goes off to war. When Esther’s grandmother dies, Daisy is all she has.

When war veteran Joe Garrison returns, all he can think about is recovering from the horrors of war and building a relationship with his seven-year-old daughter. Daisy, however, is unwilling to leave Esther, whom she loves. Joe and Daisy get to know each other again, but Joe struggles with nightmares and fatherhood is proving to be more difficult than he imagined. Esther loves Daisy and despite her Amish ways, Joe finds himself drawn to her as a woman and not just a caregiver.

As their love blossoms, Joe decides to send Daisy away to a school for the deaf which propels their lives into turmoil and a battle for love and family.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Promise to Keep, go HERE.
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I received this book free from Howard Publishers and CFBA in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.

Pass It On by Jim Burns & Jeremy Lee

I was really excited to read this book after I heard Jeremy Lee speak on this a few years ago. I had never thought about the different experiences I could give my children that would help pass my faith on. I loved how this book leads to intentional parenting. It keeps Jesus at the center of the focus of parenting.

I also love the idea of doing rites of passage for my children throughout their different stages of life. I'm not certain I will do every year as they are growing up, but who knows! I've already started thinking about how I will do our first one. I know my children will absolutely love it and I pray it will be something that they will always look back on and remember.

This book will be one that I consult a lot through the years. I can even see this given to several of my friends at their baby showers. We tend to think our faith will be passed on without us even talking about it, but I love how this book reminds parents of the importance of being intentional with passing our faith no. We can't just assume that they know why we believe what we do or even what exactly we do believe. It offers parents a chance to be transparent with their child and to really have those heart-to-heart conversations. And who knows... maybe your child will pass their faith on with these special moments, as well.

Read more reviews on this book by going to http://litfusegroup.com/author/burnslee.

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Pass It On (David C. Cook, September 2015)
Parents often experience a “freak out” moment when they realize their children’s view of God will primarily come from what they learn at home.
Most parents spend more time helping their kids succeed at academics or athletics than infusing shared spiritual experiences into the rhythm of everyday family life.
While the idea of strategically passing down our faith can seem intimidating, the annual Rites of Passage Experiences contained in Pass It On make it easy for your family to celebrate milestones from kindergarten through high school graduation. Forever change the direction of your family’s spiritual legacy . . . starting now!
Learn more and purchase a copy.

 

Jim Burns and Jeremy Lee

Jim Burns is president of HomeWord and executive director of the HomeWord Center for Youth and Family at Azusa Pacific University. He has more than 1.5 million resources in print and a radio broadcast heard on 800 stations a day. Jim resides in Southern California with his wife Cathy and their three daughters. *** || *** Jeremy Lee is the founder of ParentMinistry.Net, a subscription-based service for children and youth ministry workers. He was on the writing team for the Simple Truth Bible from Group Publishing and the Ignite Study Bible from Thomas Nelson Publishers. Jeremy lives in Nashville with his wife and children.

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I received this book free from David C. Cook and Litfuse Publicity Group in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.

Just Show Up by Kara Tippetts and Jill Lynn Buteyn

I was privileged to be able to walk with my grandpa on his cancer journey. I learned so much about what it mean to have a couple of people "just show up" for me. Most of them were not local people, so they would send a text or call. My mom experienced people showing up for her physically, whether by bringing meals by as she cared for my grandpa, or meeting her for lunch, or bringing her coffee. It was those small things that meant so much to our family. We so desperately wanted someone to acknowledge how crappy cancer is. I currently am thankful to walk with a close friend on her cancer journey with her son who has cancer. Because I saw how people showed up for me, I am able to show up for her. It was a trial not wasted. Not one I ever wanted to go on, but one that helped open my eyes to the long journey of cancer and how so many people forget to include you or call or even to bring up the subject.

This book should be in any church that has a care groups or has anyone wanting to know how to walk through suffering with someone. You're heart will hurt, you will be left wordless so many times, and you will cry so many tears on behalf of someone else. However, you will be blessed by the journey and by the relationships formed.

Just Show Up is full of a beautiful story of a community of women reaching out even in the suffering. It wasn't always beautiful and lots of grace was needed for the times when things were said that could cause hurt feelings, but it was a community that could come together to help meet most needs for Kara before and after her death. One friend was able to help her plan her funeral so her husband and family didn't have to do that. Another friend took care of the kids and another stocked her freezer full of food.

I could relate to so much in this book that I kept telling my friend that she just had to read this book! There were times with my grandpa when my heart was so broken that all I could do when praying was to say "Lord, Lord." I didn't even know how to finish my prayer or what to ask for. I was so thankful to see that Jill did too! And after getting so much devastating news from Kara, I can relate to the sleepless nights and lots of tears. I feel like I text my friend so much with "I have no words. Praying,." It feels so small, but I know it's all I have.

I can not possibly say too many wonderful words about this book. I love the little perspective from Kara placed at the end of each section by Jill. How beautiful! She was a lady that I think so many people loved to be around and her loss has probably made a giant hole in the lives of so many people.

I highly recommend to everyone to read this book. It is a giant book of grace--extending grace to yourself and the one suffering. I also thanked how she talked about insecurity. I can definitely relate to that!

Read more reviews on this book by going to http://litfusegroup.com/author/TippettsButeyn.

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Just Show Up (David C Cook, October 2015)
Kara Tippetts’s story was not a story of disease, although she lost her battle with terminal cancer.
It was not a story of saying goodbye, although she was intentional in her time with her husband and four children. Kara’s story was one of seeing God in the hard and in the good. It was one of finding grace in the everyday. And it was one of knowing “God with us” through fierce and beautiful friendship.
In Just Show Up, Kara and her close friend, Jill Lynn Buteyn, write about what friendship looks like in the midst of changing life seasons, loads of laundry, and even cancer. Whether you are eager to be present to someone going through a difficult time or simply want inspiration for pursuing friends in a new way, this eloquent and practical book explores the gift of silence, the art of receiving, and what it means to just show up.
Learn more and purchase a copy.

Jill Lynn Buteyn and Kara Tippetts

The late Kara Tippetts was the author of "The Hardest Peace" and blogged faithfully at mundanefaithfulness.com. Cancer was only a part of Kara’s story. Her real fight was to truly live while facing a crushing reality. Since her death in March 2015, her husband, Jason, is parenting their four children and leading the church they founded in Colorado Springs, Colorado. ***||*** Jill Lynn Buteyn is the author of "Falling for Texas," an inspirational novel, and a recipient of the ACFW Genesis Award for her fiction work. She has a bachelor’s degree in communications from Bethel University. Jill lives near the beautiful Rocky Mountains with her husband and two children.

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I received this book free from David C. Cook Publishers and Litfuse Publicity Group in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.

Firefly Summer by Kathleen Y'Barbo

I was intrigued by this story when I read the synopsis on the back of the book. I'll admit that once I started reading the first chapter, I was head over heels for that little boy of Sessa's. I mean, who wouldn't love that rodeo-loving boy with the red hat?!  The Chambers were walking through a nightmare, but Sessa was trying her hardest to give her son what he needed. However, it wasn't enough. She loved Jesus, she did all the "right things" that we as Christian parents try to teach our kids, yet it didn't turn out the way she had hoped. Her prodigal son never returned back to her. Yet she still has a small piece of him that showed up on her doorstep. She has a choice of what she wants to invest her life in. Which is great, except she has several things she wants to invest in, including her job.

This isn't the only huge issue in Sessa's life right now, either. She has to come to terms with forgiveness and understanding. Dr. Brown's life was changed the same day that Sessa's son's was. His reputation has been tainted and starting over isn't easy. I couldn't help but like Dr. Brown. When I realized who he was and the connection, I didn't want to like him. But after hearing his story, I came to really like that man.

This book speaks to overcoming the past, forgiveness, and I really think, investing in lives. Sessa's life wasn't tied up in pretty bows. It was messy. It was just like all of our lives. Firefly Summer reminded me that my plan for my life and God's plan for my life may be completely different at some stages in my life. Will I surrender my will to His? Sessa had to do that and it was a battle, just as most of us experience.

I enjoyed the story, but would have loved to have seen the first 4 chapters not span such a wide time. I felt like I was jumping time for a bit. I appreciated the back story, but I wonder if it could have somehow been done differently. Doing it once wouldn't be so bad, but twice left me wondering how many more times I was going to be jumping through.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

RITA and Carol award nominee Kathleen Y’Barbo is the best-selling, award-winning author of more than forty novels, novellas, and young adult books. In all, more than one million copies of her books are currently in print in the US and abroad, and her books have been translated into Dutch, German, and Spanish, to name a few.

Kathleen is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Romance Writers of America. She holds a BBA from Texas A&M University’s Mays Business School and a certification in Paralegal Studies, and is a former member of the Texas Bar Association’s Paralegal Division.

A tenth-generation Texan, Kathleen Y’Barbo has four children of her own as well as seven bonus kids she gladly inherited when she married her own hero in combat boots (read about their real-life romance here!). Kathleen is proud to be a military wife, even if it did mean giving up her Texas drivers license.

ABOUT THE BOOK

A new cowboy romance from award-winning author Kathleen Y'Barbo.

Trey’s biggest challenge isn’t performing surgery…it’s restoring Sessa’s heart!

Artist Sessa Chambers may never recover from losing her prodigal son. Even as she grieves the tragic decisions that led to his death, and left her with a toddler to raise, she’s asked to work on her dream project—restoring carousel horses for the Smithsonian. But she can’t do it on her own…

Dr. Trey Brown can’t pick up a scalpel again. Yes, he acted in self-defense, but the events of that awful night haunt him. He was trained to save lives, not take them. When he goes to the young man’s widowed mother to apologize, she’s not at all what he expected. For one thing, she’s not as alone as he thought—not with the fearsome ladies of the Pies, Books, and Jesus Book Club in her corner. For another, she’s beautiful, and being in her presence is more jolting than any eight-second bronco ride from his former rodeo days. Before he knows it, she’s captured his heart as easily as they capture the fireflies gracing Sessa’s Texas ranch.

How can they overcome their past to embrace a future together?

If you would like to read the first chapter of Firefly Summer, go HERE.

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I received this book free from Hometown Romance and CFBA in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.