Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For by Paula Peckham

 

Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For by Paula Peckham
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Derek Norton is the lead singer for the rock band The Assassians. They've had a good 20+ year run but if they want to keep going, some things are going to need to change. Derek is told that a journalist will be joining them on this tour to help boost their social media presence and hopefully bring new life to their fan base. After the last journalistic fiasco, this is the last thing that Derek wants to do.

Andi Thompson is a recent divorcee and a newly empty nester. Wow, what a time in her life! Andi has been a journalist for years but her work has been underpaid and underappreciated. She gets an opportunity to tour with one of her favorite bands, The Assassians, and write a piece on them to help boost their audience and bring some new life to their music. However, with Andi, it's bombshell after bombshell in her life and she questions whether she should really do this or not. Trusting her gut on this one, she decides to jump in with both feet, not having any idea how she will be met.

Let's just say that the the initial meeting of Andi and the band was a bit frigid. It takes awhile to thaw out old thoughts and feelings, especially when you feel that this is so unnecessary. Time will prove some things actually are much different though. Will The Assassians be able to hang on to their current record deal and continue to build a fan base? Will Andi get the promotion she's been searching for?

I really enjoyed this story. It was billed to me as an inspirational romance, to which I agree that it is. However, there were some lines that got a little blurry for me in terms of the spiciness of this book. I would not hand this to a younger reader due to the nature of some of the content. As far as inspirational, yes it definitely has a focus on religious thoughts and quotes Bible verses. It is also a clean read in terms of their not being any inappropriate language (save the spiciness and being a little more graphic than most books of this genre tend to be). I don't believe I've read anything by this author before but I will be going back and checking out some of her other titles.

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The Celestial Shot (A True North Murder Mystery #3) by A.J. Ullman

 

The Celestial Shot by A. J. Ullman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A.J. Ullman does it again with another great true-crime style book. The setting is in Ohio in the 1970's and there is a murder at a diner where our favorite detectives are trying to enjoy a celebratory meal. So much for that! It's another fabulous who-dun-it story with action, adventure, and so much more!

Be sure to check out the other books in the series too! While each can be read as a standalone, you'd be cheating yourself to just read this one!

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Miz Country Goddess: A Cozy-Spicy, Second-Chance Country Music Romance by Cat Treadgold

 

Miz Country Goddess: A Cozy-Spicy, Second-Chance Country Music Romance by Cat Treadgold
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A country music romance for a county music lover for myself was just what I needed. I was looking for an escape for a bit and walking down this road with Henry and Rina was perfect. Also, I'm a lover of second chances!

This book is a bit on the spicy side at times, just like a good country song sometimes happens to be. The ups and downs of the industry are hard on relationships and that's brought out in this story too.

Overall, an enjoyable read that I didn't really have to think too much about other than to just listen to the music the pages were providing.

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The Adventures of Curtis the Long-Necked Turtle: An Austrailian Wildlife Adventure About Bravery, Friendship, and Standing Up to Bullies by Sturt McEwan

 

The Adventures of Curtis the Long-Necked Turtle: An Australian Wildlife Adventure About Bravery, Friendship, and Standing Up to Bullies by Sturt McEwan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Curtis is setting out to explore the Austrailian Bush. He has so much to learn along the way and meets up with and makes some new friends who help him. He runs across some not so nice bullies along the way too but it's a learning lesson for him as well.

This is a great book to encourage kids to be brave, stand up for themselves, and to be kind to others.

The illustrations in this book are amazing as well!! The cover alone is eye-catching and gorgeous and just wait until you see the rest of the book!


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Her Own Legacy, Her Own Revolution, Her Own War (Château de Verzat #1-3) by Debra Borchert

 

Her Own Legacy by Debra Borchert
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the first book in a new series. This author has extensively reseached this time period and it's very evident!! Before we talk about the book though, can we all just take a few minutes and soak in the beauty of the cover? Oftentimes that's why I pick up a book and this was no exception.

Countess Joliette de Verzat would much rather be out and about and managing the family's vineyards and leave all the politics behind. Everyone depends on her for the family's fine wines but she's really got no stake in the inheritance unless her husband dies and leaves her a widow.

The women start to march during the Revolution and it's during this time that the rightful owner of the vineyards is located. Joliette's life is in danger. Can she count on being saved?

Such a great book full of rich history!! I loved every page of this story!!

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Her Own Revolution by Debra Borchert
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the second book in this series but it can easily be read as a standalone. Why would you want to do that though when this author has done massive amounts of research to make this story, while still a work of fiction, as historically accurate as possible? Don't cheat yourself out of another good read!

Women's rights are pretty non-existent in this man's world time. Geneviève doesn't care though and bends rules to attend University dressed as a man. Talk about a risky move, but especially when her father is the Prosecutor, responsible for sending people to the guillitine. A man she believes to be innocent is added to the execution list but doesn't stay on there long thanks to the help of Geneviève. Her life is now at risk but how many can she save?


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Her Own War by Debra Borchert
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The amount of research that has gone into creating and writing this series is phenemonal!! It's one reason that this author stands out in her genre of historical fiction. She is truly a master of details, to the point that you feel like you are living in that time period while reading this story.

Geneviève LaGarde is being forced to make some of the hardest decisions of her life. Every choice she makes impacts the lives of hundreds of others along the way. Napeleon is in charge and being the tyrant that he is, life is beyond miserable for most alive. Land is confiscated, people are forced into servitude, and that's just the beginning. Geneviève isn't going to let him have his way anymore if she can do anything to help it.

A great story of love, determination, and a powerful woman coming up against a horrible government.

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The Architect of Deception by Debbie Baldwin

 

The Architect of Deception by Debbie Baldwin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a new-to-me author so I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I sat down to read (actually devour) this book. I planned to sit and read for a couple of hours and take a break for life but found myself reading this one all in one setting.

It starts off slow, simply because there is a lot of background information to be laid. Kinda like a real life murder investigation...it has to start out slow but also with a sense of urgency so that the culprit doesn't get away. However, when it picks up, WOAH NELLIE!!! I wasn't quite ready for that roller coaster ride just yet. I was still warming up but these characters were like, Nah, we're going!

I made a list, checked it a few times for my suspects and I was still wrong. Every time. Every turn of the page came a new revelation that had me second guessing everything. There are plot twists you never see coming, a couple were suspected, and the story is not near what I thought it would be. It was so much better than that!!

Read this one and thank me later. It does contain R rated content, so keep that in mind when picking this one up. I wasn't aware that it would be like this. If you can block all of that out, it's still a great story overall.

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The Wrong Time for Love (The Anderson Sisters Book 3) by Jennifer Raines

 

The Wrong Time for Love by Jennifer Raines
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I've enjoyed every story that has been woven by Jennifer Raines so far. This is a shorter read and like most of her stories, I found myself wanting her to write just one more chapter or two in this story. She writes very authentic, emotionally gripping stories that have you feeling like the characters are your friends or members of your own family. The story of Helen and Bluey is no different.

Both Helen and Bluey have experienced devastating losses in their lives. They aren't doing the best with coping with these losses, as is the case in many situations. Helen is trying to keep her head and her farm above water while Bluey is working to ease the pain. They find common ground but at what expense to their families?

Buckle up and plan on reading this one all in one sitting!!

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