Bring Me Home For Christmas - Robyn Carr

From Barnes and Noble:

"This year, Becca Timm knows the number one item on her Christmas wish list—getting over Denny Cutler. Three years ago, Denny broke her heart before heading off to war. It's time she got over her silly college relationship and moved on.

So she takes matters into her own hands and heads up to Virgin River, the rugged little mountain town that Denny calls home, as an uninvited guest on her brother's men-only hunting weekend. But when an accident turns her impromptu visit into an extended stay, Becca finds herself stranded in Virgin River. With Denny. In very close quarters.

As the power of Christmas envelops the little town, Becca discovers that the boy she once loved has become a strong and confident man. And the most delicious Christmas present she can imagine."

I love Robyn Carr. I forgot just how much until I read this book. This is part of her Virgin River series and I was so glad to get to read a bit about all the folks in town that I've grown to love in the last 13 books.
One of the reasons that I love her so much is because she gives her characters real problems that real people have in the real world. There are no beautiful super models and jamming rock stars that just can't make their relationship work. Alot of her characters are somehow connected to the military and I love that too.
This book we meet Denny again. He did two tours with the Marine's. He lost buddies and his mom along the way. He was dealing with alot of issues and along the way that contributed to his and Becca's relationship.
We see them both grow up as a result. I love the long lost love stories and this one didn't disappoint. I love that she doesn't feel the need to use bad language and doesn't get too tacky with the love scenes. She makes sure to put most of her emphasis and words to the story line instead of to things that don't add much to it. I like her alot and after this one I will continue to.



Hello there!

So last year I totally sucked at updating the book blog. I am going to New Year's Resolution this thing and get it back up and running.
I'll start by linking you to my latest review, American Sniper. It's a great book and I apparently had alot to say about it!

Anywho, I wanted to give you a few resources that I use quite a bit when it comes to picking books.

Fantastic Fiction is a Fantastic resource. Don't be put off by the look of the site. It lacks that professional look in the design. In fact the first few times that I used it I was a bit put off and scared that the info wasn't correct because of how the site feels. Get.over.that. At the library, I used this site all day, every day. Let me tell you a few things I love about it.
First of all it has every author that I have ever had to look up. Seriously, I cannot remember ever looking up someone and they weren't in that database. Each person has a page and it does a little blurb about them. Then you have the books this person has written. Each book also has a page. Then at the bottom of the author page if gives you a list of authors that this author recommends AND a list of authors that read similar to that author.
The main reason that I use this site is that they have an up-to-date and correct list of the order you read books in a series. That was a big hassle at the library, which book you read first in a series. Fantastic Fiction is my go to place for this. I choose that even over the author's website, here's why. On most author website's they list their books in order of publication. That is not always the order in which you should read the series. Something like the Silence of the Lamb series. You don't watch those in the order they were made because the LAST one is actually the beginning. That's why I use FF for the series listing. I can get lost all day on this site.

Baker and Taylor is the company that we used to order books. I know that there are other companies out there, but this is the one that I'm most familiar with. They put out tons of magazine's each month to keep you up to date on what's going on in the book world. You can look at these magazine's online :) The link that I sent you to is to their magazine Forecast. That is the magazine that will generally give you the main stream fiction and non fiction. This let's you see what debut authors are causing a stir and what new things your favorite's are working on. This magazine is generally what I use to make out my "To Be Read" list.

Always Time To Die by Elizabeth Lowell

From Barnes and Noble:

"The powerful Quintrell family of New Mexico has spent decades in the public eye. Now the recent death of the clan's patriarch, a former U.S. senator, has placed his son, Governor Josh Quintrell, squarely in the spotlight as he prepares his run for the highest political office in the land. It is not a good time to be rattling skeletons in the family's closets.

Researching personal histories isn't just Carolina "Carly" May's profession, it's her passion. When the governor's eccentric Aunt Winifred invites Carly into the Quintrells' private Taos compound to compile a genealogical record of the illustrious residents, she can hardly believe her good luck. But digging into the past is raising troubling questions about the would-be president's private life, his late father and catatonic mother, and the grisly street crime that left his notorious drug-addicted sister dead. And it soon becomes frighteningly apparent that the motivation of the dotty old woman who hired Carly might be something more akin to revenge -- and that someone is determined to remove the inquisitive genealogist from the picture by any means necessary.
As a dark world of twisted passions and depraved crimes slowly opens up before Carly, she realizes that there is no one whom she dares to trust -- perhaps least of all Dan Duran, a dangerous and haunted mystery man who's somehow tied to the Quintrells' past. But she will need an ally to survive the terrible secrets a father carried to the grave and an even more devastating evil that lurks among the living -- because following the bloodlines of the wealthy and power-hungry can be a bloody business ... and some dead secrets can kill. "

I like Elizabeth Lowell. I usually can't wait for her to come out with another book. Most of them are connected in some way but you don't have to really read them in any order. I feel like I can generally see an author progressing with each new book. Sometimes it's a good progression, sometimes not. This is an older book by Lowell and it was good, but not nearly as good as her newer ones.
I like it when things progress that way. I see it oddly as a child that has grown when I see an author getting better with each passing book.
I like how Lowell lets you meet the characters. All their good and bad. Their impatience and grumpiness. Every little thing.
This was a fast paced book that gave me plenty of suspense and romance. I liked it. Not my favorite ever, but it was good.



The Rescuer by Dee Henderson

From Barnes and Noble:

"Stephen O'Malley is a paramedic who has been rescuing people all his life. His friend Meghan is in trouble: Stolen jewels are turning up in interesting places, and she's in the middle of it. Stephen is about to run into a night he will never forget—a kidnapping, a tornado, and a race to rescue the woman he loves.
Introducing the O'Malleys, an inspirational group of seven, all abandoned or orphaned as teens, who have made the choice to become a loyal and committed family. They have chosen their own surname, O'Malley, and have stood by each other through moments of joy and heartache. Their stories are told in CBA best-selling, inspirational romantic suspense novels that rock your heart and restore strength and hope to your spirit.  "

What a great conclusion to a good, feel good series.
Henderson did a great job rounding out the series and finishing it all off. I would like to see Tom later, but overall this ending was great.
I loved that Meghan had a few moments of pity and tiredness (like we all would) but she bucked up and moved on.
I love that Stephan got settled and found what he was looking for.
I loved that it was Kate that had a baby.
I had a great time reading this series, Henderson did a great job with it.

The Healer by Dee Henderson

From Barnes and Noble:

"Rachel O'Malley works disasters for a living. Her specialty? Helping children through trauma. When a school shooting rips through her community, she finds herself dealing with more than just grief among the children she is trying to help. One of them saw the shooting, and the gun is still missing.

Introducing the O'Malleys, an inspirational group of seven, all abandoned or orphaned as teens, who have made the choice to become a loyal and committed family. They have chosen their own surname, O'Malley, and have stood by each other through moments of joy and heartache. Their stories are told in CBA best-selling, inspirational romantic suspense novels that rock your heart and restore strength and hope to your spirit.  "


What a great book. It did justice to the folks we've met so far.
I was very impressed with alot of things that Henderson tackled in this one. She tackled school violence and children's trauma. She also handled someone being overwhelmed by their job even though they are good at it.
I can't spout off statistics but I know that burnout's in fire fighters and ems are fairly short. I can't say I know alot about Red Cross psychologist, but I could imagine they are much the same.
I loved watching Cole and Rachel come together. It was such a sweet and easy development.
It was sad that Jennifer died, but the way she handled it was beautiful.
This book was a very bittersweet thing. 

The Protector by Dee Henderson

From Barnes and Noble:

"Jack O'Malley is a fireman who is fearless when it comes to facing an inferno. But when an arsonist begins targeting his district, his shift, his friends, Jack faces the ultimate challenge: protecting the lady who saw the arsonist before she pays an even higher price.

Introducing the O'Malleys, an inspirational group of seven, all abandoned or orphaned as teens, who have made the choice to become a loyal and committed family. They have chosen their own surname, O'Malley, and have stood by each other through moments of joy and heartache. Their stories are told in CBA best-selling, inspirational romantic suspense novels that rock your heart and restore strength and hope to your spirit.  "


I like books with firefighters. They are a group of people like none other. Henderson has done a great job of grasping how the fire industry works. She did a great job of getting the general feel that you feel around the fire family.
I had been looking forward to meeting Jack. I totally get the person that most people don't take very seriously. He uses his humor to defuse situations that would normally be painful or stressful.
I liked Cassie alot. She is just getting over the physical part of a fire accident. She's been struggling with the emotional part too. But whereas Jack struggles with faith, Cassie does not.
As she has been doing this series, Henderson has tackled with different reasons why the character's don't believe. Instead of just going with a generic "I don't believe," she has had these characters struggle with specific reasons behind their lack of belief. I really like that.
Yes, it's fiction. But I learn alot from fiction. I take some small piece with me from every book I read. These books have been full of scripture and real like instances that I feel like I've learned from.
I feel like after reading them I am a better witness. I can better answer questions because of them.

Truth Seeker by Dee Henderson

From Barnes and Noble:

"Women are turning up dead, and Lisa O'Malley has a habit of walking into crime scenes, curious. She's a forensic pathologist, and mysteries are her domain. U.S. marshall Quinn Diamond has found loving her is easier than keeping her safe. Lisa's found the killer, and now she's missing too.

Introducing the O'Malleys, an inspirational group of seven, all abandoned or orphaned as teens, who have made the choice to become a loyal and committed family. They have chosen their own surname, O'Malley, and have stood by each other through moments of joy and heartache. Their stories are told in CBA best-selling, inspirational romantic suspense novels that rock your heart and restore strength and hope to your spirit."

Oh good! We got back to getting to know the nitty gritty of a person. I feel like Lisa's story meant more somehow, because we caught a glimpse into her past to see just how far she had come.
We also got to know what makes Quinn tick. Seeing his patience and steadiness was great. I liked getting to know him a bit better.
These two were perfect for each other. It's always awesome to see two people that get each other so well.
It was good to see the O'Malley's coming together so much for Lisa. She had a hang up about people leaving her, so the O'Malley's work extra hard to make her see that they love her. That had the ability to be annoying, but it wasn't.