Book Review

Here to Stay by Melissa Tagg ~ Sharing My Review

/ Dora Hiers
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About Here to Stay ~ After playing nomad for five years, Blake Hunziker has finally had enough of adventure. Not sure what reception he’ll get from everyone back in Whisper Shore, he’s stunned at not only a warm welcome from his hometown but also a job offer. The job is his if he can successfully pull off the annual Christmas Festival. If only he knew the first thing about coordinating events…

If there’s one thing Autumn Kingsley knows, it’s Whisper Shore. For years, she’s been stuck running her family’s inn when all she wants is to see the world. Now she has a visit scheduled from a potential investor who could take over the inn, as well as a dream job offer in Paris. But with just two weeks to whip the inn into shape, her chance at escape is a long shot.

The Hunzikers and the Kingsleys may not get along, but Blake knows Autumn’s the only one who can help him. She agrees to a trade–she’ll help with the Festival and he’ll help with inn repairs. But what was meant to be a simple deal quickly becomes much more than that when the guy who’s done running away joins forces with the girl who can’t wait to leave.

Sharing My Review~
Oooh, I loved this book. Everything from the ornery secondary characters to the quaint town of Whisper Shore to the funny little “happenings.” And, oy, the romance…

From the very first page, I could almost feel the chilly lake breeze and picture the “pale ribbon of beach, where the turquoise waters of Lake Michigan tussled with the shore.” I got Autumn’s frustration with her predicament, owning and loving Kingsley Inn, but the lack of tourism has drained her bank account. Autumn carries around the weight of a dreamer father who put the lust for Paris in her heart. 


Adventurous Blake, who’s wandered the globe seeking peace, finally returns home to face his past. He worries about how he’ll fit in the small tight-knit community, and if his parents and friends will still blame him for his brother’s death. Understandable since he still blames himself.
It doesn’t take long for Autumn to question what she really wants and for Blake to realize what’s really important.

“We shared an awareness that life’s greatest adventure is love. Loving each other, loving others. And being loved-first by God, then by each other. There’s no better purpose.” ~ Mrs. Satterly


The bad blood between the two families, the Kingsley’s and the Hunziker’s, is almost a modern day Montague-Capulet story, and keeps ramping up the conflict. Tagg balanced some weighty stuff with grace and humor. One minute I was chuckling, the next I was reaching for a tissue. Here to Stay has it all: awesome characters, zippy dialogue, realistic emotions, great story line. If you enjoy romance (not just inspirational!), you’ll want to scoop this one up. 


Oh, and Blake also appeared in Tagg’s first book, Made to Last as the fake hubby of Miranda Woodruff, who makes an appearance here. Totally loved that book, too. If you haven’t read it, you’ll definitely want to pick that one up first. 

Disclaimer: Sending a big thank you to Bethany House Publishers and NetGalley for allowing me the privilege of reviewing Here to Stay and for the free copy I received in exchange for my fair and unbiased review. This opinion is my own, and I received no compensation.

Meant to Be Mine by Becky Wade ~ Sharing My Review

/ Dora Hiers
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About the book~

Ty Porter has always been irresistible to Celia Park. All through high school–irresistible. When their paths cross again after college–still irresistible. This time, though, Ty seems to feel exactly the same way about Celia. Their whirlwind romance deposits them at a street-corner Las Vegas wedding chapel. 


The next morning they wake to a marriage certificate and a dose of cold reality. Celia’s ready to be Ty’s wife, but Ty’s not ready to be her husband. He’s a professional bull rider, he lives on the road, and he’s long planned to settle down with the hometown girl he’s known since childhood. 
Five and a half years pass. Celia’s buried her dreams so that she can afford to raise her daughter. Ty’s achieved all of his goals. Or thought he had, until he looks again into the eyes of the woman he couldn’t forget and into the face of the child he never knew he had.
How much will Ty sacrifice to win back Celia’s trust and prove to her that their spontaneous marriage can still become the love of a lifetime?
Sharing my thoughts~
Bull Rider Ty Porter is confident, flirtatious, and determined to marry his long time girlfriend, Tawny, as soon as she dumps her current boyfriend. After all, they’d grown up together and everybody believed they were meant for each other. Celia Park has loved Ty since high school, when she dreamed of marrying him and opening a coffee shop. Years later, she’s working as a sous chef when she reconnects with Ty after a rodeo in Vegas. Drunk and freshly broken up with Tawny, Ty sweet talks Celia into a hasty wedding ceremony. The next morning, sober and serious, he confesses that he’s still in love with Tawny, and that their marriage was a mistake. One spectacular night together changes the course of her life. Not so much, his. At least, not for a few years. 
Normally, I don’t reach for a book where the couple is married already, but a friend’s review enticed me to scoop up Meant to Be Mine. I’m glad I did. The dialogue is real, the banter is flirty, and zingers constantly fly between Ty and Celia. 

“I’ve been looking for you.”

“I can’t imagine why.”

“I went to your house. Your car was there but you weren’t, so I figured you’d come to the square.”

“Your mental powers rival Einstein’s.”

He laughed. “You’re rude as ever.”

“I prefer to think of myself as charmingly feisty. Why were you looking for me?”

“I missed you, sweet one.”

During the opening chapter, Celia’s heartbreak is actually tangible, so real and raw, her pain practically seeps from the pages. It was hard to like Ty at first, but even the morning after, the author paints a picture of a repentant Ty. It doesn’t take long for him to prove himself faithful and trustworthy, and he only wants what’s best for Celia and Addie, even if that isn’t him. Their journey to romance is fraught with emotion and obstacles, including ex-girlfriend, Tawny.
It took Celia much prayer and practice to forgive Ty, but Celia wasn’t totally off the hook here. More than a romance, this is a story of forgiveness, and how two people found their way back to each other, but maybe their hearts had never been that far away in the first place. I enjoyed everything about this book, and I think you will, too.
Disclaimer: Sending a big thank you to Bethany House Publishers and NetGalley for allowing me the privilege of reviewing Meant to be Mine and for the free copy I received in exchange for my fair and unbiased review. This opinion is my own, and I received no compensation.

Whisper Goodbye by Myra Johnson ~ Sharing My Review

/ Dora Hiers / 4 Comments
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About the book~
Crippled both physically and emotionally by his war injuries, First Lt. Gilbert Ballard struggles to find himself again in civilian life. After breaking his engagement to Annemarie Kendall, he has found solace in the arms of Mary McClarney, a spunky Irish immigrant nurse he met at the Army and Navy Hospital in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Yet Mary’s love for Gilbert goes unreturned.

If it’s not Gilbert’s insane jealousy over his former fiancée’s new marriage, it’s his addiction to pain killers and gambling that thwarts Gil’s own happiness. Worse, Gilbert’s mother, Evelyn, continually reminds him of what he lost when he pushed Annemarie away. Under Evelyn’s critical eye, Mary fights to believe in her worth, wondering if she will ever be enough.

As Mary longs for the day when Gilbert will finally let go of the past and learn to love her as she loves him, she realizes that the only way to open Gilbert’s heart is to whisper her goodbyes . . . and pray God will bring them back together.

Sharing my review~
After being introduced to both Gilbert and Mary in When the Clouds Roll By, the first book in Myra Johnson’s Till We Meet Again series, I couldn’t wait to get my greedy hands on the second book, Whisper Goodbye. Wounded war veteran First Lt. Gilbert Ballard was a character I couldn’t forget after finishing When the Clouds Roll By. He’d treated his former fiancee and best friend dreadfully, but it was so hard to be upset with him. He was a casualty of war, broken and bitter, floundering without purpose, minus a leg, and nursing a morphine addiction for constant pain. See what I mean?

If he could drive far enough, fast enough, he might outpace the unrelenting emptiness that had haunted him since the war. ~Gilbert


Without the morphine, sweet Mary’s soothing touch was the only way to relieve the blinding phantom pain cursing his missing leg, but Mary soon tires of Gilbert’s obsession with his ex-fiancee and refuses to be second choice. Toss in Gilbert’s mother, Mrs. Ballard, who reinforces Mary’s sense of unworthiness, and you have one unhappy heroine. When it seems like Mary and Gilbert will never find their happy place, Gilbert finally acknowledges that he can’t mend his broken spirit on his own and determines to win Mary’s affections with a job and hard work, but even that came at a cost. I appreciate how each of the characters had to find their own way, to their faith and to each other.

With a sweet secondary romance to savor, characters you can’t help but cheer for, and nuggets of historical tidbits tucked inside, Whisper Goodbye is sure to please historical and contemporary readers alike. Another 5-star worthy book by Myra Johnson!

I’m looking forward to reading the third book in the series, Every Tear A Memory, starring Gilbert’s brother, Thomas. If you missed my review of When the Clouds Roll By, you can read it here, but trust me when I say you’ll definitely want to read these books in order. 🙂

Disclaimer: Sending a big thanks to Myra Johnson and Abingdon Press for sending me an advance review copy of this book in exchange for my fair and unbiased opinion. This review is my opinion, and I received no compensation.