I’m a little overwhelmed at the moment with commitments in many areas of my life so this is short and sweet!

Love to hear your thoughts on these books to be released soon from River North ~ any catch your eye or imagination?

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Shades of Mercy by Anita Lustrea & Caryn Rivadeniera

It’s 1954 and the world-even the far Northwoods of Maine-is about to change. But that change can’t happen soon enough for fourteen-year-old Mercy Millar. Long tired of being the “son” her father never had, Mercy’s ready for the world to embrace her as the young woman she is-as well as embrace the forbidden love she feels.

When childhood playmates grow up and fall in love, the whole community celebrates. But in the case of Mercy and Mick, there would be no celebration. Instead their relationship must stay hidden. Good girls do not date young men from the Maliseet tribe. At least, not in Watsonville, Maine. When racial tensions escalate and Mick is thrown in jail under suspicion of murder, Mercy nearly loses all hope-in love, in her father, and in God himself.

September, 2013

Winter in Full Bloom by Anita Higman

Lily Winter’s wings are folded so tightly around her daughter that when empty nest arrives, she feels she can no longer fly. But Lily’s lonely, widowed life changes in a heartbeat when she goes to visit a woman who is almost a stranger to her-a woman who also happens to be her mother. During their fiery reunion, her mother reveals a dark family secret that she’d been hiding for decades-Lily has an identical twin sister who was put up for adoption when they were just babies.

Without looking back, Lily-with her fear of flying-boards a jumbo jet and embarks on a quest to find her sister which leads half way around the world to Melbourne, Australia. Befriended by imprudent Ausie, he might prove to be the key to finding her sister. But her journey becomes a circle that leads her back home to attempt a family reunion and to find the one dream she no longer imagined possible-the chance to fall in love again.

August, 2013

Harvest of Gold by Tessa Afshar

The scribe Sarah married Darius, and at times she feels as if she has married the Persian aristocracy, too. There is another point she did not count on in her marriage-Sarah has grown to love her husband. Sarah has wealth, property, honor, and power, but her husband’s love still seems unattainable.

Although his mother was an Israelite, Darius remains skeptical that his Jewish wife is the right choice for him, particularly when she conspires with her cousin Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Ordered to assist in the effort, the couple begins a journey to the homeland of his mother’s people. Will the road filled with danger, conflict, and surprising memories, help Darius to see the hand of God at work in his life-and even in his marriage?

A hidden message, treachery, opposition, and a God-given success, will lead to an unlikely bounty.

July, 2013

Queen of Sheba by Roberta Kells Dorr

In Queen of Sheba, Roberta Kells Dorr has woven historical and archaeological research with age-old legend to create a riveting tale of ancient plots and passions.

This stirring and epic account of a pagan queen’s search for truth and love paints a captivating portrait of a woman struggling with her passions and responsibilities while it brings to life the ancient Middle East. Dorr tells of a beautiful, intelligent, and independent queen who constantly battles the priests and high lords of her kingdom who resent being ruled by a woman.  Bilqis, the queen of Sheba, is a woman as modern as her story is ancient.

Disillusioned by her own religion, under pressure to marry but finding no suitor who meets her own high standards, and disturbed by the effect of Solomon’s new fleet of ships on Sheba’s precious trade routes, Bilqis travels to Israel to meet the legendary Hebrew king and divert a needless and costly war.

Bilqis is a woman who longs for love but is reluctant to forsake her independence, aware that she has much to lose if she makes the wrong choice.  In Solomon, to her surprise, she finds both love and a new faith – the covenant between man and woman and the covenant between humanity and God. But she is still too independent to let anyone become close to her.  Also, she must return to rule her own people. How Solomon finally wins her, and how this beautiful queen resolves the conflicts among herself, her old religion, and the intrigues of her kinsmen, make The Queen of Sheba an exciting, bold novel of love and faith.

July, 2013

Threads of Change by Jodi Barrows

In 1856, the political unrest is growing in the South. Lucas Mailly gathers his granddaughters and sends them west by wagon with a handful of men to lead them.  He must stay behind to sell their beloved Riverton home and timber mill. The recently widowed Elizabeth Bromont doesn’t want to disappoint her grandfather and pushes her own emotions aside to do what is expected. She takes charge of this band of women on their adventure across the frontier.

With every turn along the wagon trail, these cousins, filled with city social graces and charm must learn how to handle the hardships and heartaches they face. Elizabeth finds herself with an unexpected suitor-her deceased husband’s best friend. Her sister, Megan, encourages her, while keeping a secret of her own. Abby and Emma, the Mississippi cousins that have journeyed west, peel away the emotional layers put there by their heavy-handed plantation owner father and mother.

On the road west, through wagon accidents, total exhaustion, raging storms and wild animals the small band of travelers learn about survival on the prairie and the individuals they need to become to survive.

Relieved to finally arrive at the abandoned military post at Fort Worth, Texas they begin the hard work of establishing a home.  The cousins help build schools and churches, and try to civilize the community with manners. Friendships are mended together around the quilting frame. But, they soon realize it that heartache has followed them. When their strength is put to the biggest test of all, they become true warriors of their heart, mind, and souls.

July, 2013