Abbie's Reading Corner

Once Upon a Prince by Rachel Hauck

Posted on June 14, 2013 by

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Once Upon a Prince by Rachel Hauck

Published: 2013

Publisher: Zondervan

Series: Royal Wedding Series(Book 1)

Goodreads Summery: Once Upon a Prince, the first novel in the Royal Wedding series by bestselling author Rachel Hauck, treats you to a modern-day fairy tale.
Susanna Truitt never dreamed of a great romance or being treated like a princess—just to marry the man she has loved for twelve years. But life isn’t going according to plan. When her high-school-sweetheart-turned-Marine-officer breaks up instead of proposing, Susanna scrambles to rebuild her life.
The last thing Prince Nathaniel expects to find on his American holiday to St. Simon’s Island is the queen of his heart. A prince has duties, and his family’s tense political situation has chosen his bride for him. When Prince Nathaniel comes to Susanna’s aid under the fabled Lover’s Oak, he is blindsided by love.
Their lives are worlds apart. He’s a royal prince. She’s a ordinary girl. But everything changes when Susanna receives an invitation to Nathaniel’s coronation.

I admit I almost did not read this book. Fairy tale stories like these can be so predictable but this book I really enjoyed. The author took a much used story-line and made it fun.

What I liked: I really liked the characters. Both Susanna and Nathaniel came across as real people. Nathaniel really made this book stand out. He was a prince who would be king but he is also a man who has fears and wants of his own and he must struggle with them like anyone else yet his steaks are higher as his country depends on him. Susanna is a down to earth woman who finds herself dumped by her long running boyfriend yet finds herself realizing she had been on the wrong track all along. As the two of them start to interact there is humor and apprehension as Susanna learns who Nathaniel really is. God is also front and center in both of their lives and I loved how the author incorporated that into the story. We all need to trust in God, it doesn’t matter if we are rich or not. Yet we still get the happy ever after story you would expect from such a story.

What I did not like: There is a lot of talk about an agreement that was made between Nathaniel’s and another country many centuries ago. I found myself getting confused about what was being said and it seemed it took a while before it was explained in terms I understood. I kind of felt like I needed to do my homework in historical law a few times.

Over all I loved this book. Yes it’s a princess kind of book and if you don’t like these kind of books don’t read it. Yes its going to be far fetched but its well written and just a great book. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series. I love the family and hope it follows them which I think it might or possibly the other country I mentioned above. I highly recommend this book!

Book Rating

This book also gets my

I give this award out to books that stand out from others I have read.

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DISCLOSURE: I was provided a free copy of this ebook from the publisher through NetGalley to review it. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions I have expressed are my own.

Posted in 2013 Reviews, 5 Stars, Buring the Midnight Oils Award, Contemporary Fiction, NetGalley, Rachel Hauck, Romance, Royal Wedding Series, Series, Zondervan |

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Follow the Heart by Kaye Dacus

Posted on June 6, 2013 by

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Follow the Heart by Kaye Dacus

Published: 2013

Publisher: B&H Publishing

Series: The Great Exhibition(Book 1)

Goodreads Summery: Kate Dearing’s life is turned upside down when her father loses everything in a railroad land speculation and she and her brother are shipped off to their mother’s brother, Sir Anthony, in England with one edict: marry money.
Though their uncle tries to ensure Kate finds matrimonial prospects only among the highest echelon of British society, her attentions stray to the one of the least eligible people at her uncle’s home—the garden designer.
Trying to push her feelings for the handsome—but not wealthy—man aside, Kate’s prospects brighten when a friend of Sir Anthony’s, a wealthy viscount, shows favorable interest in her. But will marrying for the financial security of her family be the right thing to do, when her heart is telling her she’s making a mistake?
Mandates . . . money . . . matrimony. Who will follow the heart?

Kate and her brother are sent to England to live with a relative and find a rich spouse to keep the family from being penniless due to a railroad deal gone bad. Kate is older and knows that her age and the fact she does not have a dowry is going to make it harder to find someone to marry. What she does not expect is to find a handsome garden designer who shares her love for plants. When a viscount shows interest in her as well she must choose her family or her heart.

This is the first in a new series that takes place in the mid 1800’s.

What I liked: The story was interesting and I liked the characters for the most part. Though I found the story about her brother and the governess more interesting at times then the main story. I also liked hearing about The Great Exhibition and the description of the glass building was quite impressive.

What I did not like: The story was slow at times and even though the story line was interesting it also felt a little weak. Maybe its just hard for me to understand needing to marry for money to keep the family happy. Her father made a bad choice and expecting his kids to bail him out seemed silly.

Over all it was an okay book. I really liked the ending and felt the last 25% of the book made up for the slow beginning. I am interested to see if the next book in the series has any ties to this book. If you like historical fiction you might like this book.

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Posted in 2013 Reviews, 3 Stars, B&H Publishing, Historical Fiction, Kaye Dacus, Romance, Series, The Great Exhibition |

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Katie’s Choice by Amy Lillard

Posted on May 29, 2013 by

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Katie’s Choice by Amy Lillard

Published: 2013

Publisher: B&H Publishing

Series: Clover Ridge Series(Book 2)

Goodreads Summery: Katie Rose Fisher loved Samuel Beachy with an intensity that shook their Amish district. No one doubted they would one day marry, until Samuel turned his back on the church and joined the world of the English.
Alone now in Clover Ridge, Katie Rose dedicates her life to God and the school children she teaches each day. Although she secretly longs for more, Katie knows God’s hand is at work, and she is happy.
News correspondent Zane Carson never even knew Oklahoma had an Amish community until he got the chance to live among them and learn about their day-to-day activities. Their simple way of life is intriguing, but not half as much as the young teacher.
Katie Rose is flattered over the attention she receives from Zane, but she has resolved to never marry. Even if she were to entertain the idea, it surely couldn’t be with an outsider like Zane.
Never one prone to the restraints of organized religion, Zane finds a comfort in the rituals and blessings in the day to day righteous living of this small Amish community. He finds himself, God, and love with Katie Rose.
But as Zane draws closer to Katie Rose, Samuel comes back to repent his ways and return to his place at her side. Can Zane convince Katie Rose that he is committed to adapting to her way of life, or will Samuel win her affections back for himself once again?

This is book two in the series and it again deals with an English person coming into the Amish community and dealing with how that can go. I found it a so so book.

What I liked: I liked both Katie and Zane. Zane needs to slow down and get a handle on his life and coming to Amish country helps him do that. Katie is still dealing with being dumped by her almost husband and when Zane starts to break through the wall she has put up around her heart she also starts to see life still has a lot to offer her yet. I also liked how we got to go a little deeper into the family and learn more about Katie’s mom and her battle with cancer which we first learned about in book one.

What I did not like: Honestly this book is really not very believable. Yes I know this is fiction and it does not have to be, but after reading this genre for a few years this story-line just did not sit well with me. Giving up everything to live with the Amish would be a huge commitment and it just seems to far fetched in this book.

Over all this was an okay book. I did enjoy the story just felt the idea of Zane considering becoming Amish was to easy. But its well written and I am interesting to see where the third book will take this story and to see how Katie’s mom is doing now that her cancer treatments are over.

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Posted in 2013 Reviews, 3 Stars, Amish Fiction, Amy Lillard, B&H Publishing, NetGalley, Romance, The Clover Ridge Series |

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Johanna’s Bridegroom by Emma Miller

Posted on May 23, 2013 by

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Johanna’s Bridegroom by Emma Miller

Published: 2013

Publisher: Love Inspired

Series: Hannah’s Daughters

Goodreads Summery: Will You Marry Me? Bold widow Johanna Yoder stuns Roland Byler when she asks him to be her husband. To Johanna, it seems very sensible that they marry. She has two children, and he has a son. Why shouldn’t their families become one? But the widower has never forgotten his long-ago love for her; it was his foolish mistake that split them apart. This could be a fresh start for both of them. Until she reveals she wants a marriage of convenience only. It’s up to Roland to woo the stubborn Johanna and convince her to accept him as her groom in her home and in her heart.

Johanna has been a widow long enough that she knows its time to remarry but after being in a abusive first marriage she is not sure she wants to remarry at all. The one man she can see herself with is the man who broke her heart as a teen. Instead of marrying for love she proposes to Roland as a marriage of convenience but Roland will have none of that. He still loves Johanna after all these years and his former marriage was not a marriage of love first and he will not do that again. Can he convince Johanna that love is worth it after all?

I enjoyed this book and really like this series.

What I liked: I liked both Johanna and Roland. The way the story unfolded you get little bits of information about what happened to them when they where dating as teens and it keeps you guessing. I also liked Johanna’s family. Most of them have now had their own books and so it makes it fun to see how some of the others are doing and how they interact.

What I did not like: Johanna was so upset with Roland with what happened when they where teens that I was expecting something horrible and when it finally came to light what he had done I was like that’s it?? I also thought there could have been a little more development about the fact that Johanna’s first husband was a abuser and her feeling about that and moving on. There was some talking about it but it seemed like a bigger deal to me then it was given in the book.

Over all I enjoyed this book. I really like the family and hope this is not the last book. Unfortunately I did not get to read the book before this one so I was a little lose about Grace but the author did a good job of recapping the story. This book can be read as a stand alone but your going to want to go back and get to know the other sister after you read this book! A good read if you enjoy Amish fiction.

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There are six books so far in this series so instead of posting a picture of everyone just click on the series link above and you can look through the other books.

Posted in 2013 Reviews, 4 Stars, Amish Fiction, Emma Miller, Hannah's Daughters, Love Inspired, NetGalley, Series |

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The Message on the Quilt by Stephanie Grace Whitson

Posted on May 15, 2013 by

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The Message on the Quilt by Stephanie Grace Whitson

Published: 2013

Publisher: Barbour Books

Series: The Quilt Chronicles(Book 3)

Goodreads Summery: When Emilie Rhodes convinces her newspaper editor father to assign her to interview the speakers at the 1890 Chautauqua series, she meets and falls in love with “The Man of Many Voices.” But Noah Shaw’s professional life is only one reason he’s in Nebraska. Noah is on a quest to find answers. . .but will a treasured quilt bear a message of brokenness—or hope and healing?

Emilie loves to write and wants more then anything to write articles for her fathers paper but her parents are not keen on the idea and after getting herself in trouble for helping with the print press she is not even allowed to write the local goings on column. She is left with a great idea for a story and the competition paper to write for. Noah has come to Nebraska for a job but also to see if he can find out answers about his mother. All he has is her stories and the quilt she made him when he was a boy. When these two cross paths love begins to bloom but when Noah finds out some things about his past that shake him to the core and Emilie’s story causes family problems can they find a way to make it work?

This is the final book in the series and I really liked it.

What I liked: I really liked Emilie. She was frustrated with her parents but still loved them. Her three cousins where also quite likable. Noah was a interesting character and I liked the mystery that came from his past. I also found the big fair they all where a part of quite cool to learn about and it was fun to imagine being there.

What I did not like: As much as I liked the story about Noah and his father I thought it was a little over the top on his reaction. I know it was a time period thing but how that ended was kind of lukewarm. I also thought that Emilie and her parents worked out their issues about her writing way to easily and I was kind of left going really that’s how that ends?

Over all I really liked this book and its easily my favorite of the series. I wish the cousins could have had a chance to have a book as well because I really liked them. I also thought it was neat how the quilt helped Noah learn about his past. This book can easily be read as a stand alone no need to read the first two books. I highly recommend it.

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The series over all was good. The three books did not really tie together at all but each book had something to do with a quilt. The first two books where good but kind of dark and even a little sad. I liked the change of pace with the 3rd book and how it was not as heavy a read but still really enjoyable. Of the three I liked the 1st and last one the best and the 3rd book was my over all favorite. I also really like the covers of each of the books. If you enjoy historical fiction and like a heavier read then this series is for you.

Series Rating

Posted in 2013 Reviews, 4.5 Stars, 5 Stars, Barbour Books, Historical Fiction, NetGalley, Series, Stephanie Grace Whitson, The Quilt Chronicles |

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Sundays in Fredericksburg by Lynette Sowell , Eileen Key, Connie Stevens, Margie Vawter

Posted on May 7, 2013 by

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Sundays in Fredericksburg by Lynette Sowell, Eileen Key, Connie Stevens, Margie Vawter

Published: 2013

Publisher: Barbour Books

Series: Romancing America

Goodreads Summery: Come on down to Fredericksburg, Texas, where four generations of couples encounter romance in Sunday Houses. Having become a schoolteacher to avoid marriage, Amelia Bachman finds her resolve crumbling before a smitten carpenter. Determined not to fall in love, Mildred Zimmermann carefully nurses an army medic crippled in love and war. Somewhat of a homebody, Trudy Meier isn’t sure she has the courage to love a roving reporter. Gwendolyn’s beautiful wildflower field is threatened by a geologist’s search for knowledge. Will these four women risk their hearts for the love a stranger?

This book contains four stories that take place in Fredericksburg, Texas and spans from the 1800’s to present day. Back in the 1800’s they had what was called Sunday houses and farmers who lived many miles out of town would own a small weekend house so that they could come into town for Church each week. The Sunday homes serve as the back drop for the stories and follow a few families through out the years.

What I liked: I liked how this book started with historical stories and worked towards the present and for the most part followed some of the characters from earlier stories. I like when they do this as it makes the short stories feel more like one book and its easier to get into each story when they share some details.

What I did not like: The last two stories where okay but I did not enjoy them as much as the first too.

Over all this as an enjoyable book and a solid add to the Romancing America series.

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