Overcoming Fear by Dawna De Silva

Book Description

Fear, anxiety, and stress motivate us more than we realize. Our need to control situations can leave us feeling overwhelmed. But God has given us a biblical strategy to battle anxiety, stress, and panic. With practical and activating steps, Dawna De Silva, founder and coleader of the International Bethel Sozo Ministry, shows you how to

- identify the fears, patterns, and lies that harm your connection with God
- resist fear by taking ownership over its influence
- find healing and liberation through the Word and the Spirit

When you master power, love, and self-discipline, you will elevate yourself above the enemy's attacks and be released from fear into abundant, healthy living. You will experience the true healing that can come only from God. Fear, anxiety, and stress motivate us more than we realize. Our need to control situations can leave us feeling overwhelmed. But God has given us a biblical strategy to battle anxiety, stress, and panic. With practical and activating steps, Dawna De Silva, founder and coleader of the International Bethel Sozo Ministry, shows you how to

- identify the fears, patterns, and lies that harm your connection with God
- resist fear by taking ownership over its influence
- find healing and liberation through the Word and the Spirit

When you master power, love, and self-discipline, you will elevate yourself above the enemy's attacks and be released from fear into abundant, healthy living. You will experience the true healing that can come only from God. 

My thoughts:

I don't read too many non fictions books but this one caught my eye. The author is new to me, the cover is lovely but the subject matter was the most appealing to me.

The book is divided into five sections:

Fear

Power

Love

Self Discipline

Application

Each of the topics are discussed which I liked and then putting them into practice was easy enough once I set my mind to it.  Now, I have to admit that I tend to worry and want to be more in control of things but I also needed a reminder that no matter what, there are several things that are not in my power and I needed that reminder.

So combined with reading my bible and this book, I will find inspiration and break free of fear.

I recieved a copy of this book from the publisher.  All opinions are my own.

Rouge Blog Tour

Rouge by Richard Kirschenbaum

Publication date :  June 25th, 2019

 Buy here

Book Synopsis

Like Swans of Fifth Avenue and Truman Capote’s Answered Prayers, Richard Kirshenbaum's Rouge gives readers a rare front row seat into the world of high society and business through the rivalry of two beauty industry icons (think Helena Rubenstein and Elizabeth Arden), by the master marketer and chronicler of the over-moneyed.

Rouge is a sexy, glamorous journey into the rivalry of the pioneers of powder, mascara and rouge.

This fast-paced novel examines the lives, loves, and sacrifices of the visionaries who invented the modern cosmetics industry: Josiah Herzenstein, born in a Polish Jewish Shtlel, the entrepreneur who transforms herself into a global style icon and the richest woman in the world, Josephine Herz; Constance Gardiner, her rival, the ultimate society woman who invents the door-to-door business and its female workforce but whose deepest secret threatens everything; CeeCee Lopez, the bi-racial beauty and founder of the first African American woman’s hair relaxer business, who overcomes prejudice and heartbreak to become her community’s first female millionaire. The cast of characters is rounded out by Mickey Heron, a dashing, sexy ladies' man whose cosmetics business is founded in a Hollywood brothel. All are bound in a struggle to be number one, doing anything to get there…including murder.

My thoughts:

I was in the mood for a different kind of read when I signed up for this blog tour and I hadn't heard of this author so I'd give this book a chance.  It did sound interesting with the pioneers of the makeup industry.

There were certain aspects that I enjoyed such as how hard Josephine and Constance worked to make better lives for themselves and the author describes in great detail about their lives before they became known for their brand. Once they became well known he goes into great detail about the process of making the product even down to the packaging they used.  Which is all good and well but unfortunately I just didn't connect to any of the characters because I found them to be so ruthless.  I understood the rivalry, it was the hatefulness  and underhandedness that bothered me.

Having said that, I cant say that this book is all bad because some of it was to my liking and I enjoyed getting to see the opulent lifestyle they lived and their travels.  I also liked seeing how each person rose from their humble beginnings to their ultimate goal of reaching the top even if I disagreed with their means of getting there.

I received a copy from the publisher trough Netgalley and was under no obligation to write a favorable review.  All opinions are my own. 

About the Author

RICHARD KIRSHENBAUM is CEO of NSG/SWAT, a high-profile boutique branding agency.

He has lectured at Harvard Business School, appeared on 20/20, was named to Crain’s New York
Business’s “40 under 40” list, and has been inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame.

He is the author of Under the Radar, Closing the Deal, Madboy and Isn't that Rich? and the New York Observer, "Isn't that Rich?' column.  He lives in New York City with his wife and three children.

Andrew (The Petersheim Brothers #1) by Jennifer Beckstrand

Book Description

Andrew, Abraham, and Austin Petersheim's family business has earned them the nickname The Peanut Butter Brothers. But if their matchmaking younger siblings have their way, all three may soon bear another title: husband . . .

Handsome, hardworking, and godly, Andrew Petersheim has always been sure of his place in his Wisconsin Amish community. He'll be a welcome catch for the local girl who finally captures his heart. Mary Coblenz certainly isn't that girl. 

Two years after "jumping the fence" for the Englischer world, she's returned, unmarried and pregnant. Yet instead of hiding in shame as others in the community expect, she's working at the Honeybee Farm, ignoring the gossips--and winning over Andrew's eight-year-old twin brothers . . .

For all Andrew's certainty about right and wrong, it seems he has a lot to learn from Mary's courage, grace, and resilience. She's changing his notions about forgiveness and love, but will she in turn accept the challenge of starting over and choose to stay--with him?

My thoughts:

Returning to the Honeybee Farm is always delightful especially when the first person who greets you is Bitsy Weaver.  We met the unconventional, sassy but sweet Bitsy in the Honeybee Sisters series and I absolutely adored her and I still do. However, there are two new equally adorable characters who stole my heart in this book, Alfie and Benji, 8 year old twin boys who had me laughing at their antics throughout.

They are extremely busy little boys, they help as much as they can in the family peanut butter business, they are devising a plan to get their room back after having to sleep in the cellar to make room for their grandparents which leads them to try their hand at matchmaking so they can get their room back.  Because cellars are apparently quite frightening with the darkness and spiders, so obviously they cannot possibly stay down there for very long.

So, they decide to set up their older brother, Andrew with Mary who happens to be staying with Bitsy, what could possibly go wrong?  Pretty much everything including but not limited to encounters with Bitsy,her cats, confusion as to why Mary isn't welcomed with open arms by some members in their community and their desire for everything to be secret, when things really aren't such a secret.  They are such comical little boys with pure hearts.  Mary is a wonderful young lady who made a mistake by leaving her community for the English world but when she comes back (as an unwed expectant mother) she is treated poorly by several people.  There are a few times when Andrew came to her defense that made me love him but then there were times when I wanted to shake him and tell him to stop being so judgmental.

As much as I loved the humor in this book, I loved the message of family, faith and forgiveness even more. I am looking forward to the next book in the series  because I have a feeling if the twins are successful at marrying off their older brothers, they will each have their own rooms and can sleep soundly far away from the cellar.

Overall,  this highly entertaining and well crafted novel is one that I absolutely loved.  The characters are well developed, the pace is perfect and this is what I consider quality Amish reading. I suggest settling in your comfiest seat with a cold beverage and a snack because once you start reading this book you wont want to stop. You will laugh, you will get a little teary but you will be glad you chose to spend time with The Petersheim Brothers and their friends. 

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley and was under no obligation to write a review.  All opinions are my own.

  

  

The Storyteller's Secret by Sejal Badani

Book Blurb

Nothing prepares Jaya, a New York journalist, for the heartbreak of her third miscarriage and the slow unraveling of her marriage in its wake. Desperate to assuage her deep anguish, she decides to go to India to uncover answers to her family’s past. Intoxicated by the sights, smells, and sounds she experiences, Jaya becomes an eager student of the culture. But it is Ravi—her grandmother’s former servant and trusted confidant—who reveals the resilience, struggles, secret love, and tragic fall of Jaya’s pioneering grandmother during the British occupation.

Through her courageous grandmother’s arrestingly romantic and heart-wrenching story, Jaya discovers the legacy bequeathed to her and a strength that, until now, she never knew was possible.

Publisher:  Lake Union

Release date:  September 2018

Amazon.ca     Barnes & Noble    Amazon    Books-a-Million    Book Depository    Indiebound

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My thoughts:

I was intrigued by the cover and description of this book plus this is a new to me author so I decided to read it.  I thought it was an enjoyable read even though it took me awhile to get interested in the storyline.  

I sympathized with Jaya although I have never been in her situation so I cannot say how I would feel given her heartache over having three miscarriages but I thought the author wrote that part of  the story quite well.  I love time-slip novels so I was excited when Jaya went to India to learn more about family.  As much as I thought Jaya would be my favorite character, unfortunately she wasn't.  Ravi became my favorite almost immediately, maybe because he shared the story of her grandmother, Amisha with her which is the time the storyline became interesting to me.

I knew a little about India such as the food, and some of the customs from friends and coworkers, but the author truly brought so much more in her descriptive writing.  

I received a copy of this book form the publisher and was under no obligation to write a favorable review.  All opinions are my own.

Meet the author

A former attorney, Sejal Badani left the law to pursue writing full time.

She is a USA Today, Washington Post & Amazon Charts bestselling author, Goodreads Fiction Award Finalist and ABC/DISNEY Writing Fellowship Finalist.

Connect with the author

Website     Twitter      Facebook      Pinterest      Instagra

The Secrets of Paper and Ink by Lindsay Harrel

Book Synopsis

Lindsay Harrel presents a powerful story of healing, forgiveness, and finding the courage to write your own story.

A year after the death of her abusive fiancé, domestic violence counselor Sophia Barrett finds returning to work too painful. She escapes to Cornwall, England--a place she's learned to love through the words of her favorite author--and finds a place to stay with the requirement that she help out in the bookstore underneath the room she's renting. Given her love of all things literary, it seems like the perfect place to find peace.

Ginny Rose is an American living in Cornwall, sure that if she saves the bookstore she co-owns with her husband then she can save her marriage as well. Fighting to keep the first place she feels like she belongs, she brainstorms with her brother-in-law, William, and Sophia to try to keep the charming bookstore afloat.

Two hundred years before, governess Emily Fairfax knew two things for certain: she wanted to be a published author, and she was in love with her childhood best friend. But he was a wealthy heir and well out of her league. Sophia discovers Emily's journals, and she and William embark on a mission to find out more about this mysterious and determined woman, all the while getting closer to each other as they get closer to the truth.

The lives of the three women intertwine as each learns the power she has over the story of her life.

Paperback, 326 pages

Published February 26th 2019 by Thomas Nelson

My thoughts:

The Secrets of Paper and Ink is an artfully written time-slip novel with characters who have lingered in my mind long after I finished reading it.  The three female characters stories are woven together and each of their POV is told seamlessly. I usually love the past storyline more than the present but that wasn't the case in this book because I genuinely cared about Sophia, Ginny and Emily equally and wanted to know as much about them as I could. 

 This is a gripping and emotional story in which the characters suffer through abusive relationships  and rejection while learning so much about themselves along the way. I love how strong the ladies were as much as I loved the heroes who showed them what love, patience and understanding in a relationship is . I could easily imagine Sophia and Ginny in the bookstore as they worked together and became friends just as I could imagine finding a cozy spot to sit and choose which books I would purchase to enjoy during my stay in Cornwall. 

Ms. Harrell touched my heart in this captivating story and this is already one of my favorite books of 2019.  I look forward to reading more of her work but in the meantime, I will read this again at some point.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and was under no obligation to post a review.  All opinions are my own. 

Thimbles and Threads: 4 Love Stories Are Quilted into Broken Lives

About the book

Love Stitched into Four Women’s Lives
Enjoy four historical romances that celebrate the arts of sewing and quilting. When four women put needle and thread to fabric, will their talents lead to love?

Bygones by Mary Davis
Texas, 1884
Drawn to the new orphan boy in town, Tilly Rockford soon became the unfortunate victim of a lot of Orion Dunbar’s mischievous deeds in school. Can Tilly figure out how to truly forgive the one who made her childhood unbearable? Now she doesn’t even know she holds his heart. Can this deviant orphan-train boy turned man make up for the misdeeds of his youth and win Tilly’s heart before another man steals her away?

The Bridal Shop by Grace Hitchcock
Charleston, South Carolina, June 1886
Alice Turner, the owner of one of Charleston’s finest bridal shops, is determined never to be dependent on a man for anything after the disgrace of her father’s prison time. When her best friend requests Alice to be her maid of honor, she reluctantly sets aside her feelings on marriage and dons a stylish bridesmaid’s gown, never intending to catch the eye of the handsome groomsman. Will he be able to convince her to open her heart again and finish the quilt once intended for her father?

Mending Sarah’s Heart by Suzanne Norquist
Rockledge, Colorado, 1884
Sarah doesn’t need anyone, especially her dead husband’s partner. With four brothers to mentor her boys and income as a seamstress, she seeks a quiet life. If only the Emporium of Fashion would stop stealing her customers and the local hoodlums would leave her sons alone. When she rejects her husband’s share of the mine, his partner Jack seeks to serve her through other means. But will his efforts only push her further away?

Binding Up Wounds by Liz Tolsma
Regent, Wisconsin, 1865
Melissa Bainbridge is a quirky designer of rag dolls who raises raccoons and never really fit into the small farming town. When Lance Witherspoon arrives in town to thank her for the Sanitary Commission quilt she made that saved his life, she is shocked to learn Lance is a Confederate. Can she and Lance confront the town’s prejudices – along with their own?

My thoughts:

Thimbles and Threads is a wonderful collection of historical romance stories!  I have read novels by Grace Hitchcock and Liz Tolsma but Mary Davis and Suzanne Norquist were new to me authors but after finishing this book, I can honestly say that I am in a fan of these four ladies.  

Heartwarming stories of faith and forgiveness are some of my favorites but when there are touches of humor like, The Bridal Shop by Grace Hitchcock my reading experience is complete.  Each author penned a beautiful and heartfelt story with compelling characters who I will remember fondly for a very long time.  

I thoroughly enjoyed this collection and recommend it reader of all ages.  Yes, even your mothers, grandmothers, and younger daughters will find this these novellas enjoyable. I don't quilt or sew but boy did I love reading about those ladies who did.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and was under no obligation to post a review.  All opinions are my own.

Refuge at Pine Lake Book Review + Giveaway

On Tour with Prism Book Tours

About the book

Refuge at Pine Lake
By Rose Chandler Johnson
Christian Contemporary Romance
Paperback & ebook, 384 Pages
March 6th 2019 by Chanson Books

Robin Lancaster, a twenty-six-year-old former kindergarten teacher, has her summer and her life all figured out. She’s ready to be on her own, writing and illustrating her children’s stories at her family’s beloved lake house. Once there, she intends to rekindle a romance with Caleb Jackson, the area’s top hunting and fishing guide, and bag him for herself.

Complications arise from the start when Robin finds out her mother has rented the lake house to a man they know nothing about.

Matthew McLaughlin, forty-year-old widowed university professor and author from California, shows up at Pine Lake in crisis. A sabbatical might be his only hope to save much more than his career. He needs a place of refuge. Sharing the lake house with a lighthearted young woman and her dog is the last thing on his mind.

Caleb Jackson has his own plans. He’s used to things going his way, but a man staying in Robin’s house presents unforeseen challenges. When paths unavoidably tangle for these three, hearts are on the line.

Goodreads       Amazon

My thoughts:

Rose Chandler Johnson is a new to me author but it was the cover that caught my eye and after reading the description, I immediately knew it would be a book that I would enjoy reading. What I thought would be an enjoyable book actually became a book that I loved!

Robin Lancaster is a charming character although at first I had my doubts about her when she's determined  to move to the family lake house for the summer knowing her mother had rented it to  Matthew McLaughlin. I understood why Robin would want to spend her summer there since she was writing and illustrating her children's series.  There was another deciding factor in her decision by the name of Caleb Jackson who she wanted to reconnect with.

Matthew the professor who is on a sabbatical quickly became one my favorite characters and his first few interactions with Robin are so sweet it just melted my heart.  It isn't just the three main characters who made this such a good and fast read but the secondary characters were well developed, too.  Did I like all of them?  No ,I did not but they were interesting and important to the storyline.  One of my other favorite characters was Charlie who became a good friend to Matthew and I looked forward to the time they spent together just as much as they did.

Overall, I loved this wonderfully crafted story with likeable characters and thought it flowed at a nice pace.  I genuinely like the authors writing and will read more of her work and for those reasons, I recommend this book.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Prism Book tours.  I was under no obligation to write a favorable review.  All opinions are my own.

                                       About the Author

Rose Chandler Johnson is known for her heartwarming, inspirational writing. In addition to works of sweet contemporary fiction, her devotional journal, God, Me, and Sweet Iced Tea: Experiencing God in the Midst of Everyday Moments won the Georgia Author of the Year Finalist Award in 2014.

In her novels, Rose brings to life fascinating characters with compelling relationships embracing family, community, and faith. In distinctive southern settings, Rose creates memorable stories that will stir your heart. Readers often say her writing warms the soul as it reaffirms belief in love and wholesome goodness. Don’t be surprised if you sigh with pleasure as you savor the final pages of her stories.

​

Rose has lived in a suburb of Augusta, GA for thirty plus years. Before retiring from Georgia’s school system, she taught English, French, and ESOL. Currently, she is an English instructor at a community college. In addition to reading and writing, Rose enjoys cooking, sewing, gardening, and spending time with her six children and her beautiful grandchildren.

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Follow the Tour

                                   Tour Giveaway

- One winner will receive a signed print copy of Refuge at Pine Lake plus a $20 Amazon gift card

- One winner will receive a signed print copy of Refuge at Pine Lake

- US only

- Ends July 10, 2019

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