Lock,Stock and Over the Barrel by Melody Carlson

Melody Carlson has always been one of my favorite authors if you are looking for a enjoyable easy read and her new series about Daphne did not disappoint.
Daphne has always dreamed big and when she went to New York City 10 years previous she had thought she was going places,fast forward 10 years and she is working the same job for the New York Times writing about weddings.All of that changes when her Aunt Dee passes on and leaves Daphne everything,but they come with some strange stipulations. What ensues is Daphne trying to figure out more about her mysterious Aunt Dee and wondering if she will be able to meet the stipulations before her year runs out.

I found the book to be really enjoyable and easy to read.I really like the character of Daphne and cannot wait till the next book in the series comes out! The only thing I found slightly unrealistic is that after having only one guy interested in 10 years all of the sudden she has a bunch of guys after her,but that did not take away from the book too much.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys a good chick flick with a heartwarming message.

Burning Sky by Lori Benton

"Burning Sky" is the debut book by Lori Benton and what a wonderful debut it was. I found Mrs. Benton's writing style to be rich in detail and easy to read.
The story is about Willa Obenchain who has spent nearly half of her life among the Mohawk Indians, she is finally able to make it back the where she was raised only to find that much has changed. As Willa tries to piece together who she is and where she belongs her life is made more complicated by the arrival of a injured young Scottish man who is a botanist.  When her friend Tames-the-horse comes will she be able to decide which life she wants to live and who she wants to spend it with?

I really enjoyed all of the characters,they were engaging and interesting with a lot of depth to them.I thought the plot was interesting,the only down side was it a was a bit drawn out and could of been a hair shorter. Overall I really enjoyed the book and look forward to reading some of the author's future books.

I received a copy of this book free from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.

Faking Grace by Tamara Leigh

This humorous entertaining read by Tamara Leigh was a delightful,enjoyable read. I had not read any of Tamara Leigh's books before,but after reading this book, I look forward to reading some of her other works!
When Maizy Grace Stewart is trying to get her big break in the journalist world,but in the meantime she is trying to pay the bills so she gets a job at a local church and despite not being a Christian claims she is one in order to get the job.Thus ensues a hilarious as Maizy learns a lot more about grace.

I found Ms. Leigh book to have likable, realistic characters and she had a good story line and great dialogue. I highly recommend her book to anyone who wants a nice, enjoyable read!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher but this is my honest opinion

The Hero's Lot by Patrick Carr

Ever since finishing "A Cast of Stones" I have been anticipating the 2nd book in the Staff and Sword series,and the book did not disappoint! I find with many series that I adore the first book,but the other books fall flat in comparison,but that was not the case with "The Hero's Lot" and I found myself liking this book even better than the first one,which is saying a lot!

Errol Stone has come a long ways from being the village drunk to a powerful pawn in the hands of the church.Still,there are some days where he wishes he was still the village drunk as life was less complicated. Now Errol finds himself under a compulsion to kill Sarin Valon which seems like a suicide mission. Meanwhile Martin,Luis and Cruk go to Errol's birthplace to try to figure out the significance of Errol and how it will affect the future of the nation.

Some things I was not as crazy about: I thought the romance between Errol and Adora was lacking,there wasn't much build up or development to it,to be honest I liked the secondary characters romance better.
Another problem was that the book started out a bit slow,it took me a bit to get into it,but once I got into it I consumed the book as quickly as I could.

Some of my favorite things about this book: I really love how Patrick Carr has a complex,fascinating story line that he has developed,does it get confusing at times? Yes, and sometimes it is hard keeping all of the characters straight,but you have appreciate the fact that there really is a great story going on and that it is well thought out and deep.
I also love how Patrick Carr actually developed secondary characters,so many authors don't do anything with other characters,which really makes books very dull, but Patrick Carr did a fabulous job developing various characters and not just focusing on one person which made the book all the more delightful!

I highly recommend this book and cannot say enough how I am beyond thrilled with the series so far and am greatly anticipating the final book in the trilogy, due out early 2014!

I received a copy of this book from Bethany House publishing for my honest opinion.

Greater by Steven Furick

This is the first book by Steven Furtick and it was a good, inspiring read. In the book "Greater: Dream bigger.Start smaller. Ignite God's vision for your life" the author talks about how God's dreams are much greater than we can dream for ourselves and how we need to ignite that God's vision for our lives and not our own.
I found the book to be well written,engaging and interesting.I thought Mr. Furtick used a wonderful blend of scriptures, personal stories and humor to make it a read that would engage most people.
I liked how he talked about so often we are just living and not dreaming big,not living up to our full potential.

For anyone in need of encouragement and insight this is a great read!
I received a copy of the book from the publisher for my honest opinion.

A Most Peculiar Circumstance by Jen Turano

This is the 2nd book by Jen Turano I have read,and to be quite honest I am not a fan of her writing.This books centers around Arabella Beckett who wants to help the downtrodden women of America. Unfortunately along the way she falls into all sorts of trouble and her brother's friend
Theodore Wilder who is a private investigator is loathe to help her. Along the way they fall into all sorts of scrapes and just when things get dire,they might just be falling in love.

Overall I would not rate this book very highly as I found the storyline to be VERY predictable, the characters not horribly likable and the writing style was not very engaging.I think this book was a vast improvement from Jen Turano's previous books,but she still has a long ways to go till she is a author that I will enjoy reading.

I received a copy of this book from Bethany House in return for my honest opinion.

Misery loves company by Renne Gutteridge

I had never really read any books by Christian mystery/suspense author Rene Gutteridge,but after reading this book I am going to check out some of her other books! I literally read this book in a day as it was that engrossing with likeable characters and enough action to make it a page turner.
The story is about Juliet Belleno who has become reclusive since the death of her husband who was a cop. The only link Juliet has to the outside world is her blog where she shares about her life and blogs about her favorite authors. When Juliet disappears it is up to her husband's best friend Chris and her Father to find out if her favorite  author Patrick Reagan has anything to do with it or not.

This book was well written and interesting.The mystery could of had possibly more to it,but it made for a engaging, easy read.I found the characters likable, it could of had a bit more interaction between some of the main characters,but overall I found it very enjoyable and am looking forward to checking out some of Mrs. Gutteridge other books.