Q: When did you first begin writing stories?I began writing short stories in my senior English class, but it was until 2010 that I started writing with hopes of publication. Q: What was the name of your first book?Living Lies, the first in my Harbored Secret series. Q: How did you get into the romantic... Continue Reading →
Q: When did you first begin writing stories?I was around ten when, inspired by the Hardy Boy mysteries I read, I decided to write a mystery starring me, my sister, and my cousin as the detectives to solve the crime. The book, still and forever unfinished, is on a shelf around here somewhere. I’ve been... Continue Reading →
Q: When did you first begin writing stories?My eighth-grade English class thought it would be cool to skip over the same old lectures aboutRomeo and Juliet and instead have us tackle the task of writing our own children’s books. Theywere right, it was super cool. I partnered with a girl who loved to draw, and... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: When Meg Whitaker's father decides to sell the family's lobster-fishing business to her high school nemesis, she sets out to prove she should inherit it instead. Though she's never had any interest in running the small fleet--or even getting on a boat due to her persistent seasickness--she can't stand to see Oliver Ross take... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Headstrong Coraline Baxter has worked all her life to be more than the spoiled socialite others expect. When her fellow suffragettes in Tacoma, Washington, suggest that she should climb to the top of Mount Rainier to prove that a woman can do anything, she instantly resolves to do it. And if she can climb... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Restless with the familiarity of her Alabama home, Ellie Fields accepts a teaching job in a tiny Louisiana town deep in bayou country. Though rightfully suspicious of outsiders, who have threatened both their language and their culture, most of the people in tiny Bernadette, Louisiana, come to appreciate the young and idealistic schoolteacher as... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: In 1975, three thousand children were airlifted out of Saigon to be adopted into Western homes. When Mindy, one of those children, announces her plans to return to Vietnam to find her birth mother, her loving adopted family is suddenly thrown back to the events surrounding her unconventional arrival in their lives. Though her... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Kentucky packhorse librarian Tansy Calhoun doesn't mind the rough trails and long hours as she serves her Appalachian mountain community during the Great Depression. Yet she longs to find love like the heroines in her books. When a charming writer comes to town, she thinks she might have found it--or is the perfect man... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: After a rough mission in Rome involving the discovery of a devastating bioweapon, Company spy Ben Calix returns to Paris to find his perfectly ordered world has collapsed. A sniper attack. An ambush. A call for help that brings French SWAT forces down on his head. Ben is out. This is a severance--reserved for... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Former CIA sniper Kadance Tolle possesses a special set of skills and a rare pedigree. She comes from a family of assassins, and by saving Lyndon Vaile's life she risks being found by them. Despite the danger, Kadance feels compelled to help Lyndon discover who is after him--and his research that seems to prove... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Former FBI Special Agent Jack Tanner is working as a detective in Montana when he comes across a body in the national forest during a search and rescue mission. He's committed to finding the killer, even if it means working alongside his old flame, US Forest Service Special Agent Terra Connors.When Terra discovers that... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: In her eventful lifetime, Miriam was many things to many people: protective older sister, song leader, prophetess, leper. But between the highs and the lows, she was a girl who dreamed of freedom, a woman who longed for love, a leader who made mistakes, and a friend who valued connection. With her impeccable research... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: US Secret Service Special Agent Luke Powell is lucky to be alive. Three of his fellow agents have died in unusual circumstances in the past ten weeks. Luke is devastated by the loss of his friends and colleagues, and his inability to locate the killer feels like a personal failure. He's an expert at... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Haunted by her sister's mysterious disappearance, Lucy Wilson arrives in Rowan County, Kentucky, in the spring of 1911 to work for Cora Wilson Stewart, superintendent of education. When Cora sends Lucy into the hills to act as scribe for the mountain people, she is repelled by the primitive conditions and intellectual poverty she encounters.... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: It is 1886, and the government has given the US Cavalry control of Yellowstone. For widowed hotelier Kate Tremaine, the change is a welcome one. She knows every inch of her wilderness home like the back of her hand and wants to see it protected from poachers and vandals. Refused a guide by Congress,... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Radio talk show host Eve Reilly is used to backlash from her pot-stirring on-air commentary and interviews, but now it seems a disgruntled listener is resorting to more than angry words to express their displeasure. When a suspicious package arrives on her doorstep, Eve turns to law enforcement for help. Police detective Brent Lange... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Zoe Johnson spent most of her life living in the shadows, never drawing attention to herself, never investing in people or places. But when a wide-eyed, bedraggled teenager with no memory walks into the diner where Zoe works, everything changes. Now, against her better judgment, Zoe, who has been trying to outrun her own... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: In the fine tradition established by her Southern grandmama, Aurora Daughtry has recently orchestrated the marriage of her eldest sister and facilitated her middle sister's engagement. She also rejoices in her part in transforming the family's dilapidated plantation manor into a luxurious and lucrative resort hotel. Just when it seems there is nothing left... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Betty Sweet never expected to be a widow at 40. With so much life still in front of her, she tries to figure out what's next. She couldn't have imagined what God had in mind. When her estranged sister is committed to a sanitarium, Betty finds herself taking on the care of a 5-year-old... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Trudi Coffey only realizes that she hasn't seen Samuel Hill in weeks when the FBI shows up asking questions about him. After a strange encounter with an armed man demanding her help and an attack by a member of the Boston mob looking for someone named Dream, Trudi manages to find Samuel--or rather, he... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Celebrity chef Maxwell Cavanaugh is known for many things: his multiple Michelin stars, his top-rated Culinary Channel show To the Max, and most of all his horrible temper. Hadley Beckett, host of the Culinary Channel's other top-rated show, At Home with Hadley, is beloved for her Southern charm and for making her viewers feel like family.... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: For Madison Grayson, life is good. Newly licensed as a marriage and family therapist, she can't wait to start her practice. Despite the unfortunate shortage of eligible bachelors on the island--they're all too young, too old, or too weird--Maddie feels like she's finally found her sweet spot. Not even one panic attack in the... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: A year ago, ex-Delta Force operator Steven Roark left the rigors of combat behind to run fishing charters in Hope Harbor, decompress, and talk some sense into his kid brother. Business is good--but making peace with his past is more challenging than he expected. First-grade teacher Holly Miller leads a quiet, low-profile existence--until she's... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: The Natchez Trace National Parkway stretches 444 miles from Nashville to Natchez, the oldest town on the Mississippi River. It's the perfect road for a relaxed pleasure drive. Unfortunately for park ranger Luke Fereday, lately it's being used to move drugs. Sent to Natchez to infiltrate the organization at the center of... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: When FBI agent Jack Shannon arrives in Corpus Christi, Texas, he is focused on one thing: find the man who has been selling encrypted government secrets to the Chinese through online birding chat rooms. But when a senator is shot during a hunting trip and the woman he was with is abducted,... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Home is the place to heal, right? At least, that's what Dillon Michaels is hoping as she leaves her disappointing career and nonstarter love life behind to help her grieving and aging grandfather on his small Oregon farm. The only problem? Her eccentric mother beat her there and has taken over Dillon's old room.... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: In an effort to complete a war his father had planned to win, King Xerxes calls every governor, satrap, and official in his vast kingdom to his palace in Susa to strategize and feast. When they finally leave, he decides on one more week of frivolity, which ends in the banishment of his favorite... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: A single "no" from someone close to us can crush our dreams. You can't . . . You'll never . . . You're kidding yourself . . . In contrast, a single "yes" can sustain our dreams despite the setbacks we're sure to encounter. Yes, you can! Yes, I'm here for you!With passion and... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Back and broke in Stoney Ridge, Jimmy Fisher has coasted as long as he could through life on charm, good looks, and deep-set dimples. They always worked just fine for him--until they didn't. His smile has no effect on the violet-eyed beauty he met at the Bent N' Dent, the one with that stunning... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Scripture says "be anxious for nothing," yet most of us find ourselves increasingly worried and anxious--about our families, our jobs, our finances, our security, and so much more. We're even worried about our level of anxiety! Integrating both the psychological and spiritual aspects of anxiety, therapist Jean Holthaus offers this research-driven and faith-informed approach... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Unflinching and plainspoken, Tessa Swan is not your typical 18th-century woman. Born and bred on the western Virginia frontier along with her five brothers, she is a force to be reckoned with. Quiet and courageous, Clay Tygart is not your typical 18th-century man. Raised by Lenape Indians, he returns a hero from the French... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Young CIA officer Talia Inger has reconciled with the man who assassinated her father, but that doesn't mean she wants him hovering over her every move and unearthing the painful past she's trying to put behind her. Still, she'll need him--and the help of his star grifter, Valkyrie--if she hopes to infiltrate the Jungle,... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Former pararescue jumper Orion Starr is haunted by the memory of a rescue gone wrong. He may be living alone in Alaska now, but the pain of his failure--and his injuries--has followed him there from Afghanistan. He has no desire to join Hamilton Jones's elite rescue team, but he also can't shirk his duty... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Four nail-biting novellas in one! Lethal Homecoming Nolan Tanner never got over Kallie Ainsworth's sudden, unexplained departure. Now when he comes to her rescue after an attempt on her life, all the old feelings come rushing back. Lethal Conspiracy When professional fundraiser Lillian Maloney sees her father's campaign manager commit murder, she goes on... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Someone wants Honor McBride dead, but the mother of five children is determined to outwit the killer. With only her smarts and a GPS system, she and her kids head for Tanner Hollow where they arrive to claim the home left to Honor by her great aunt. A flat tire right in the middle... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: As a professional fundraiser for charitable organizations, Lillian Maloney, is used to sweet talking people into seeing things her way. But when she sees her father’s campaign manager murder a woman in the parking garage of his office building, no amount of sweet talking can save her. Now, she’s Lilly Peterson, and on the... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: What's the worst you've ever faced as a parent? An all-out tantrum at the mall? A son who won't take out his earbuds to listen to you? A daughter who's failing at school and won't do her homework? A teen who constantly breaks curfew? A call from the police? Whatever you're dealing with, Raising... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Ruby Weaver's curly red hair isn't the only thing that sets her apart from her Amish community in 1863. Twenty-eight and single, Ruby doesn't believe a woman needs to be married in order to be happy. Her ailing friend Lovinia Fischer, however, has other ideas and wants Ruby to promise to marry her husband... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Three years ago, a collision between a fast-moving freight train and a school bus full of kids led to devastation and grief on an unimaginable scale. But a fresh clue leads San Antonio police detective Amara Alvarez to the unlikely conclusion that one of the children may still be alive. If she's correct,... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Independent and tenacious journalist Vivian DeMarco is back in Walton, Georgia, for one reason -- to do her job and get out. When her boss suddenly dies under suspicious circumstances, Vivian's only hope for finding the truth -- and the next big story -- is small-town law enforcement's lanky poster boy, Deputy Ryan... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: When we get out of bed in the morning, we don't know what the day ahead holds. It could be routine. It could be amazing. It could be devastating. No matter what each day holds, one of the biggest influences on the direction our days take is our own attitude. We can... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: When we get out of bed in the morning, we don't know what the day ahead holds. It could be routine. It could be amazing. It could be devastating. No matter what each day holds, one of the biggest influences on the direction our days take is our own attitude. We can... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Every one of us has tremendous power to either build others up or tear them down through the words we speak every day, and nowhere is this more evident than in our marriages. Are you being purposeful in how you use the power of your words to speak encouragement, strength, and love--breathing... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Every one of us has tremendous power to either build others up or tear them down through the words we speak every day, and nowhere is this more evident than in our marriages. Are you being purposeful in how you use the power of your words to speak encouragement, strength, and love--breathing life... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: No Better Mom for the Job is for any mom who has ever felt inadequate--who loves her kids fiercely but sometimes thinks another mom would do a better job in her shoes. Becky Keife knows the ups and downs of motherhood. And she has learned along the way and from other mamas that... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Every mother wants her daughter to love the skin she's in, to be free of insecurity and poor body image. But no matter how much we try to tell our daughters that they are beautiful and lovable as they are, words are not enough. And if we're honest, we don't always... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: When a spunky photographer wrangles her way onto an 1871 survey crew of the Grand Canyon she thinks nothing can stand in her way. But her mind changes when she finds out she'll be working alongside the one man she doesn't want to fall in love with. Rating: 5-stars Review: A Distance... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Young line producer Danny Byrd is well-known in Hollywood for being someone who gets things done on time and under budget. But when his reputation takes a beating after his partner--and former best friend--makes off with their investors' money, Danny has but one chance to redeem himself and restore his ruined... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: While photographing the Grand Tetons, Harper Reynolds unwittingly captures a murder on film. But when she loses the camera fleeing the scene, can she and rancher Heath McKade find the camera and solve the murder before the killer makes her his next victim? Rating: 4-stars Review: Always Look Twice by Elizabeth... Continue Reading →
Synopsis: Detachment had worked well as a life strategy for horse trainer Sam Schrock. Until he met Mollie Graber . . . New to Stoney Ridge, schoolteacher Mollie has come to town for a fresh start. Aware of how fleeting and fragile life is, she wants to live it boldly and bravely. When... Continue Reading →
Urban Book Reviews 