Top Ten Books On My Fall TBR List!

These are in no particular order!

Finding Mercy by Michael Landon Jr and Cindy Kelley

A Most Peculiar Circumstance by Jen Turano

Wonderland Creek by Lynn Austin

The Selection by Kiera Cass

The Headmistress of Rosemere by Sarah E. Ladd

The Butterfly and The Violin by Kristy Cambron

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and  Margaret Stohl

The Icing on the Cake by Janice Thompson

Airs Above The Ground by Mary Stewart

Undercover Marriage by Terri Reed

Hidden in the Stars by Robin Caroll (CFBA)

This week, theChristian Fiction Blog Allianceis introducingHidden in the StarsAbingdon Press (September 16, 2014)byRobin Caroll

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:




Born and raised in Louisiana, Robin Caroll is a southerner through and through. Her passion has always been to tell stories to entertain others. Robin’s mother, bless her heart, is a genealogist who instilled in Robin the deep love of family and pride of heritage—two aspects Robin weaves into each of her books.




When she isn’t writing, Robin spends time with her husband of twenty-plus years, her 3 beautiful daughters, 2 precious grandsons, and their character-filled pets at home—in the South, where else?

ABOUT THE BOOK



Following an attack that killed her mother and stole her ability to speak, 21-year-old Sophia Montgomery has no choice but to accept her estranged grandmother’s offer to return to their family home. Although detective Julian Frazier is working hard on the case, Sophia unknowingly frustrates him because her inability to speak thwarts her eyewitness evidence. The fact that Julian is undeniably attracted to Sophia doesn’t help either, so Julian hides his feelings as concern for a trauma victim and focuses instead on finding the killer.



Little do they know, the clues to solving the case may be right in front of them, displayed in Sophia’s mother’s “special” quilt design. Who will realize the secret Sophia’s unwittingly been hiding in plain sight? When the truth comes to light, will Sophia find her voice again? Or will the murderer—still at large—silence her forever?





If you would like to read the first chapter of Hidden in the Stars, go HERE.






My Thoughts:

5 Stars!
I've been wanting to try out Abingdon press's Quilts of Love series for a while now, but none of them really caught my interest at all, that is until I got the opportunity to review this book, something about the description of this book totally captured me and I knew I had to read it! I've heard a lot of amazing things about this author, but since this was my first time reading her work I wasn't quite sure what to expect, I'm delighted to report that I was not disappointed! I loved this book! I was so inspired by the main character Sophia, even through everything that happened to her she still kept trusting that God had a plan for her, even when it was extremely difficult! I know I will definitely be using her character in my own life as a reminder to trust God, especially when I'm tempted to wallow in self pity. A brilliant example of the power of story! I really liked Julian as a hero, I liked how much he cared for Sophia, some of the things he did for her were so sweet, and I loved that the struggles in his life were realistic and resolved in a beautiful yet believable way. I loved the role the quilt played in the story! I found it to be such an interesting and unique angle that for most of the book Sophia was unable to speak, that definitely made it difficult for her to communicate for a while. I loved that this book was set in Arkansas, because not very many novels are set there and I loved that I was able to use it for my fifty states reading challenge. There were a few things that I didn't like about this book, like when things seemed to be repeated unnecessarily, and there were times when I kind of wished the main characters would have figured out pieces or the puzzle a little bit sooner, mainly because I already had them figured out. I also wish there had been an epilogue, mostly just because I wanted more of the story and also because I would have loved to see how the characters were doing a year or two down the road. However since these were mostly small things, I'm overlooking them and giving this book 5 stars because I feel like it deserves it!
I highly recommend Hidden in the Stars and I am looking forward to reading more books by Robin Caroll in the future!



I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via CFBA in exchange for an honest review. The above is my honest opinion. All thoughts and opinions are one hundred percent my own.

#TackleTBR Wrap Up!

The last two weeks ended up being way busier than I was expecting so I didn't manage to reach my goal of reading 5 books. I only got two and a half books read, but I loved all of them so I'm still pretty happy with that! And I had a blast participating! I just added up my page totals and discovered that I read 1,028 pages during this read-a-thon, wow didn't realize I'd read that many!

The books I read were:

#TackleTBR Dream Character Challenge!

Instructions:

1. Pick your favorite character from a book.

2. List the name, the book he/she is from, and why that was your choice.

3. Pick a celebrity or picture of who you would dream cast for that character.

4. Post or link that picture (or leave the name of the celebrity) with the character's info.

For this challenge I chose one of my all time favorite characters, a character that I haven't really felt like I could put a face to until recently! The character is... (Drumroll please!) Patrick Bowers from the Patrick Bowers Files by Steven James. I love this series so much and I just love Patrick as a character, I love everything about his personality and he's just such a great hero! I've always kinda realized that I didnt have a clue what Patrick Bowers looked like, but recently my brother and I have discovered the 90's movie "Speed" and it just hit me one day that Keanu Reeves when he was in "Speed" is exactly how I picture Patrick. Besides looks, Patrick and Jack (Keanu Reeves' character in the movie Speed) are both in law enforcement, they both track down killers for a living, and they both end up with a killer who is after them specifically! Their personalities and the way they react to challenges and crises by taking action no matter how high the odds are stacked against them! I don't know, I'm really bad at casting my favorite characters but this was my best attempt, I hope you enjoyed it!

(Photos borrowed from Google Images)

*GIVEAWAY* Meant to be Mine by Becky Wade

 

I absolutely loved this book! And I ended up with an extra copy so I decided to give all my lovely blog readers a chance to win it! This giveaway is for 1 (One) paperback copy, has been read once but is still in perfect condition. The giveway will run for ten days, from September 17 at 12:00 am to September 27 at 12:00

U.S. Only, sorry! 

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

#TackleTBR Mid-Point Check In!

Last week ended up being a lot busier than I was expecting, between work, rescuing a lost horse, getting my entries ready for the fair, and then going to the fair, I didn't end up having much reading time until yesterday, I've only read one and a half books so far during this read-a-thon. But I'm hoping this coming week will be less busy and I'll have more free time to read!

I read the last half of:

And I read this one from start to finish:

#TackleTBR Book Cover Opposites Challenge!

Instructions:

1. Find two books whose covers or titles are opposites.

2. List or make an image of the books and post somewhere (Twitter, Facebook, your blog, Instagram, etc.)

3. Then come back here and leave a link to where you posted in comments (so we can all see) and in the rafflecopter for the giveaway.

I decided to do two ones that were both cover opposites, and to make it a little harder I also chose to limit myself to only using books that are on my TBR list!

  Blue Vs. Pink

---------------------------------------------

Women Vs. Men 

Review: Nowhere To Turn by Lynette Eason

5 Stars!

Yet another excellent romantic suspense from Ms. Eason!

I loved both Dani and Adam but I think my favorite character was Simon, Dani's twelve year old son. He was just so sweet and vulnerable that there were times my heart ached for him so much that I just wanted to hug him! And I loved how protective he was of his Mom! Another thing I loved was that the main characters of the previous book played a fairly large role in this book!

I don't think this is my favorite of Lynette Eason's books but with that being said the suspense was still really good, I was hooked from the first page and was completely absorbed until the last word of the breathless, adrenaline pumping ending!

Another thing I love about Lynette Eason's books is that she sets almost all of them in her home state of South Carolina, in cities that she knows well. And because of that as well as her amazing writing, even though I know that I'm reading about a big city it really feels like a small town! Much like my hometown, which is why I love that her books have that feel to them!

Nowhere To Turn also has a wonderful message about God's love for us, and learning to put our trust in Him alone!

If you enjoy Christian romantic suspense, I highly recommend Nowhere To Turn, though I think you might want to read No One To Trust first. 

I was honored to receive a review copy of this amazing book from Revell publishers in exchange for my honest review! 

Tackle Your TBR Read-A-Thon Sign Up and Goals!

So since I saw that a couple of my wonderful blogging friends had signed up for this read-a-thon, I couldn't resist signing up too! 

I will be tweeting my updates (@CaitlynSanti) using #TackleTBR

My goal is to read at least 5 books during this read-a-thon. This is the list I will most likely be choosing from though it is subject to change depending on what book from my TBR strikes my fancy at any given time! These are in no particular order!

Deceived by Irene Hannon

A Promise To Protect by Patricia Bradley 

 A Distant Melody by Sarah Sundin

The King by Steven James

Wonderland Creek by Lynn Austin

Singularity by Steven James

The Selection by Kiera Cass 

The Headmistress of Rosemere by Sarah E. Ladd

The Butterfly and The Violin by Kristy Cambron

The Sunflower Award!

I was nominated for this award back in June by my friend Melanie @Christian Bookshelf Reviews, and I just hadn't around to doing it until now! Sorry it took me so long! 

Melanie's Questions

1. What's the last book you bought? Raptor 6 by Ronie Kendig. The last thing I needed was another book but the ebook was only 79 cents on ChristianBook.com, and I just couldn't resist!

2. What's the last movie you watched? On DVD: a made-for- TV movie from the 1970's called Young Pioneers which was great. And on Netflix: an amazing movie called Finding Faith which I highly recommend!

3. What's your all-time favorite book cover? You mean besides all of Dani Pettrey's? :) There are two others (See photos below), A Broken Kind of Beautiful by Katie Ganshert-I can't explain what it is about this cover but it's just absolutely gorgeous and it captured me from the first moment I saw it. The wonderful thing is that the story inside is every bit as beautiful as the cover- 

And Deadly Pursuit by Irene Hannon-This is my favorite book by this author, there are so many reasons why I love this cover. The models look exactly like how I pictured Mitch and Alison. I love the colors and how the dark clouds give such a deep feeling of foreboding. I love that the railroad tracks (A key part of the story!) are pictured. And lastly I love the publisher's attention to detail, if you look really closely at a copy of the book you will see that the badge on Mitch's belt actually does say Detective, St Louis County. :)

4. What's your favorite summer activity, besides reading? ;) Riding my horse, and standing near a beautiful waterfall on a hot day are my top two!

5. What is one of the worst/most-boring movies you've seen? Remember Me. Anyone who loves this movie please don't hate me! But aside from laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of most of the actors, I was bored out of my mind! Needless to say, I won't be watching this one again. 

6. If you could spend a week anywhere in the world, where would you choose? Either Ireland or Italy. Actually I would probably end up spending a few days in each country because it would be impossible for me to choose one over the other! :)

7. Sneakers or sandals? Sneakers

8. The beach or the pool? The beach

9. What's the last book that made you cry or laugh-out-loud? The last book that made me laugh out loud (Several times!) was Full Steam Ahead by Karen Witemeyer. Books don't usually make me cry so the last time one did was over a year ago, Undeniably Yours by Becky Wade for some reason that ending just made me tear up. In a good way!

10. What's your favorite candle scent? Lilac

11. Do you have a favorite B&W movie? I have two: Christmas in Connecticut and Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House 

My friend Abbi @Christian Novels also did this tag and nominated anyone who wanted to take part so I decided to answer her questions as well! Mainly because I just love to answer questions!

Abbi's Questions

1. What is one of your favorite books to reread? "Oh, Those Harper Girls!" by Kathleen Karr

2. Is there a Christian genre that you refuse to read? Yes, what I consider chick lit!

3. What is the biggest turn off for you in a book? Graphic sexual content. I don't really mind violence, and language doesn't bother me that much as long it's not excessive. But I do not tolerate sex scenes. Fortunately I'm very picky about the books I read so I almost never come upon scenes like that.

4. What is your favorite cover feature (i.e. dresses, bold font, cute couple, etc)? Hmm, I don't know. I never really thought about it before... I guess there is just something about certain covers that captures my attention, don't really know what it is though.

5. What is your absolute favorite musical? It's a three way tie between Les Mis, Oklahoma, and Cats!

6. Do you prefer online shopping or going to an actual bookstore? Online, but I love to go to a brick and mortar bookstore on special occasions like my birthday.

7. Where is the oddest place you have taken a book to read? I don't know. I've read while hanging out on my trampoline before, does that count? :)

8. If you could choose a fictional family to join, which one would it be?  No question, The McKenna Family! :)

9. What are some of your favorite TV shows to watch? MACGYVER, The A Team, Sue Thomas F.B.Eye, and Mcleod's Daughters.

10. What would be your dream job? Being a riding instructor. I love teaching kids and adults how to ride and care for horses!

11. How many books do you own? I've never counted but probably close to a hundred hard copy books. And I think there are somewhere around 130 on my Kindle.

Most of the people I know have already been tagged for this award so I nominate YOU! Anyone who is reading this post and wants to take part! I'm feeling lazy right now and think of any new questions so feel free to answer any or all of Melanie and Abbi's questions that I answered! 

Oh and by the way here are the two book covers that I mentioned above! Forget to include them earlier in this post!

The TBR Tag

Hosted by Dana @Danasquare & Rachel @ A Perfection Called Books

QUESTIONS

How do you keep track of your TBR pile? I love to write lists, and every once in a while I hand write a list of the TBR books that I own. I love putting a check mark next to one when I finish it! 

Is your TBR mostly print or ebook? I'm not sure of the exact number but I think I have somewhere around 70 TBR books on my Kindle, and I currently only have around 15 books in my print TBR pile. So mostly ebook!

How do you determine which book from your TBR to read next? If I have any review books I always read those first. Next in line are any books that I am buddy reading with friends. And for the others, it's mostly just what strikes my fancy at any given time.

A Book That's Been On Your TBR List The Longest. Wonderland Creek by Lynn Austin

A Book You Recently Added To Your TBR. Airs Above The Ground by Mary Stewart

A Book In Your TBR Strictly Because Of Its Beautiful Cover. There aren't any!

A Book On Your TBR That You Never Plan on Reading. I plan on giving most of them a try, but the one I would be most likely to never read would be A Passion Most Pure by Julie Lessman

An Unpublished Book On Your TBR That You’re Excited For. 

There are several, here are just a few!

Sabotaged by Dani Pettrey

Always on My Mind by Susan May Warren

Spy of Richmond by Jocelyn Green

Deceived by Irene Hannon

A Promise To Protect by Patricia Bradley

An October Bride by Katie Ganshert

How A Star Falls by Amber Stokes

And Many More...!

A Book On Your TBR That Basically Everyone’s Read But You. A Most Peculiar Circumstance by Jen Turano, but I'm hoping to remedy that very, very soon!

A Book On Your TBR That Everyone Recommends to you. The Icing on The Cake by Janice Thompson

A Book On Your TBR That You’re Dying To Read. The King by Steven James

How Many Books are on Your Goodreads TBR Shelf? 

64

Review: What Your Heart Needs For The Hard Days by Holley Gerth

5 Stars!

I had heard lots of amazing things about this author but this was my first time reading a book of hers so I didn't really know what to expect! 

I absolutely loved this book! The words on these pages spoke volumes to my heart, in fact there were moments when it felt like the author had read my mind and knew exactly how I was feeling at that moment in time! This may be a little book but the truths it holds make a huge impact! I just can't say enough good things about this book, it's a book every woman should read! I love that at the end of each chapter the author gives you the beginning of a prayer pertaining specifically to the message of that chapter which is super cool but what is even more awesome is that there is a space for you to customize the devotion to whatever your heart needs and is saying that day! And below that they give you a place to write down what God is saying to your heart! 

This was an amazing book that I know I will read again many times in the future!

I highly recommend this book to every woman.

I was honored to receive a review copy of this amazing book from Revell publishers in exchange for my honest review!