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A Stitch in Crime

By Cathy Elliot

About Quilts of Love: Quilts tell stories of love and loss, hope and faith, tradition and new beginnings. The Quilts of Love series focuses on the women who quilted all of these things into their family histories. A new book releases each month and features contemporary and historical romances as well as women’s fiction and the occasional light mystery. You will be drawn into the endearing characters of this series and be touched by their stories.

Thea’s first quilt show is coming apart at the seams!

Thea James has accepted an assignment as co-chairperson for Larkindale’s first quilt show extravaganza. Juggling the new assignment with running her antique business, she’s already feeling frayed when things start to unravel.

Mary-Alice Wentworth, a much-loved town matriarch, respected quilt judge, and Thea’s dear friend, is covertly conked on the head during the kick-off Quilt Show Soiree, throwing suspicion on her guests. It also appears that a valuable diamond brooch has been stolen during the attack. The family is furious. But is it because of their mugged mother or the missing diamonds?

When a renowned textile expert goes MIA and the famous Wentworth heritage quilt disappears, Larkindale’s reputation as a tourist haven is at risk. Thea attempts to piece the mystery together and save the town’s investment in the quilt show before Mary-Alice is attacked again . . . with far worse results.

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It was supposed to be a smooth running, well organized quilt show. Well, that’s if the co-chair would actually help.

It’s been interesting to see how Thea could work through one mess after another to try to pull off this quilt show. She has to keep pulling it back from the brink of disaster.

Ms Elliott has stitched subterfuge and danger in this quilt lover’s read. I’m looking forward to reading more of her books.

***A special thank you to litfuse for providing a review copy.***

Author and speaker Cathy Elliot nourishes her night-owl habit by creating cozy mysteries and more on her trusty laptop in Anderson, California. Like the protagonist in her new mystery, Cathy is an avid quilter. Besides collecting (too much) cool fabric, she also enjoys hunting for antique treasures.

Love Gently Falling

By Melody Carlson

Rita Jansen is living her dream as a hairstylist in Hollywood when her father calls with news that her mother has suffered a stroke. When she gets home to Chicago, Rita finds her mother is healing but facing a long recovery. Worse, without being able to run their family-owned salon, her mother could lose the business. Rita decides to help, but she only has until Valentine’s Day to come up with a plan.

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Rita has to take a leave from her job working with stars and celebrities to return to Chicago until her mother’s health improves. While waiting for her mother to finish rehab, Rita is helping out at her mother’s hair salon.

Rita discovers that her mother’s business is in worse shape that her mother. While looking at some pictures of the salon’s early days and then while cleaning out the storage room there, Rita has a brainstorm. She comes up with a plan to revive the salon’s business before heading back to L.A. Her goal is to have a grand reopening to coincide with the opening of the skating rink in the center of the mall where the salon is located.

During all this makeover, Rita finds herself falling for one of the janitors who cares for the salon. Will a janitor keep her in Chicago? Get real. She has her dream job waiting for her.

I’ve always enjoyed Melody Carlson’s books. This one was no exception. Thank you, Ms Carlson. I’m looking forward to your next book.

***A special thank you to Katie Connors for providing a review copy.***

Over the years, Melody Carlson has worn many hats, from pre-school teacher to youth counselor to political activist to senior editor. But most of all, she is a writer who loves to write! She is a bestselling and award-winning author of more than 200 books for children, teens, and adults–with sales totaling more than six million. Carlson’s passion for ‘true to life’ fiction has had great success for both the young adult and women’s markets. Informed and aware of the challenges and struggles facing teens today, she writes young adult novels that she hopes will change lives and women’s fiction to which women of all ages can relate. Her popular series, Diary of a Teenage Girl (Multnomah), has sold more than 775,000 copies and her popular Christmas novellas have sold over 590,000 copies combined. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband. They enjoy skiing, hiking, gardening, camping and biking in the beautiful Cascade Mountains.

Hidden Agenda

By Lisa Harris

His cover is blown. Now his enemies are on his heels and closing in.

Michael Hunt is alive–and on the run. Presumed dead by friends and family, the undercover assignment he’s been working for the past eight months has just been blown. With a hit out on his life and corruption inside the Atlanta police department, Michael finds himself hunted by both the cartel and the law. His only hope is Olivia Hamilton–the daughter of the man who wants him dead.

This nonstop chase from Christy Award-winning Lisa Harris will leave you breathless.

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Michael is dead. Or is he? If you read Fatal Exchange it left you wondering. Lisa Harris follows up on Michael’s death in this book.

This is the story that gives you understanding of the grief his family is living through.

It’s also the story of what happened from a different vantage point – that of Michael. It’s why he had to die, and how he managed to survive his second death sentence.

Ms Harris once again skillfully weaves the danger and adrenalin in a book that grabs a person from beginning to end. She’s one of the authors whose books leave me no sleep until I’ve turned the last page.

I’m looking forward to your next book. I certainly hope you’ll have it out to us soon.

***A special thank you to Lanette Haskins for providing a review copy.***

Lisa Harris is the award-winning author of more than twenty books, including the Christy Award winner Dangerous Passage and Fatal Exchange. Winner of the Best Inspirational Suspense Novel for 2011 from Romantic Times, Harris has spent over ten years living with her family as missionaries in Mozambique, where she leads a women’s group and runs a nonprofit organization that works alongside their church-planting ministry. Visit www.lisaharriswrites.com for more

Romancing Your Better Half

By Rick Johnson

Expert advice to keep the fire burning in your marriage

If you’ve been married more than a few years, you probably know how it goes. You start out in the throes of passionate romance only to have the fire cool over the years–especially when kids come along or life gets too busy. But keeping the romance alive is easier than most people think. Now the author of Becoming Your Spouse’s Better Half shares the secrets of pursuing romance that won’t quit.

With wit and wisdom, Rick Johnson shows you how to communicate effectively with your spouse, recapture the feeling of young love, incorporate romance and intimacy into everyday life, understand each other’s unique sexual needs, and more. The useful insights and solid advice in this practical book will strengthen your marriage now and into the future.

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Marriage is not one big party. Even if you don’t admit it, you all know that. Marriage is work – sometimes really hard work. Mr. Johnson knows it’s work, and wants to help us rekindle that young love and fire we once had.

It’s not such a young love anymore, but the more mature, deeper love can be so much more satisfying. In this world it’s so much easier to say, “I give up,” and head to the divorce court. Right now my husband and I are separated, but have plans to end that nonsense.

With Mr. Johnson’s help, I anticipate getting back in the zone instead of being zoned out. He has some very good advice for bringing romance back into a marriage. Thank you, Mr. Johnson, for your well thought out advice.

***A special thank to Lanette Haskins for providing a review copy.***

Rick Johnson is a bestselling author of Becoming Your Spouse’s Better Half, How to Talk So Your Husband Will Listen, That’s My Son, Becoming the Dad Your Daughter Needs, and Better Dads, Stronger Sons. He is the founder of Better Dads and is a sought-after speaker at many large parenting and marriage conferences across the United States and Canada. Rick, his wife, Suzanne, and their grown children live in Oregon. To find out more about Rick Johnson, visit www.betterdads.net.

The Financially Confident Woman

By Mary Hunt

You have what it takes to take control of your money

Have you ever felt that you lack the know-how to take control of your financial life? You’re not alone. But it’s not a lack of savvy that’s the problem, says personal financial expert Mary Hunt; it’s a lack of confidence. And Hunt is here to help you develop a can-do attitude toward money so that you can take control of your finances.

Using the lessons she’s learned from her own hard-fought battle with debt, Hunt empowers you to cultivate nine essential money habits, including

· giving

· saving

· investing

· rejecting unsecured debt

· preparing for emergencies

· getting what you pay for

· and more

She also includes a six-week action plan to help you get started right away.

You’re smart, you’re capable, and you’re just a few steps away from a positive, confident financial future.

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Mary Hunt always has good financial advice. In the not so good old days the men took control of the money. That left the woman high and dry if she became widowed or her husband decided to trade her in for a newer model.

Many women today are single, working women. Many are in marriages where the man still controls the money. Ladies, it’s time to let Mary help you to become a financially confident woman. She has a six-week action plan to get you there. We all need this, especfially when there are so many of us who weren’t taught how to deal properly with finances when we were young. I certainly know how easy it is to mess up without that knowledge.

We are intelligent. That often means admitting we don’t know everything. Ms Hunt has taught me a lot. I’m working through her plan. You should, also.

Thank you, Ms Hunt, for sharing your experiences with us.

***A special thank you to Lanette Haskins for providing a review copy.***

Mary Hunt is an award-winning and bestselling author, a syndicated columnist, and a sought-after motivational speaker who helps men and women battle the epidemic of consumer debt. She is founder and publisher of the interactive website Debt-Proof Living, which features financial tools, resources, and information for her online members. Her books have sold more than a million copies, and her daily newspaper column, Everyday Cheapskate, is nationally syndicated through Creators Syndicate. Hunt speaks widely on personal finance and has appeared on shows such as NBC’s TODAY and Dr. Phil. She and her husband live in Colorado. Find out more at www.debtproofliving.com.

Gooseberry Island

By Steven Manchester

They met at the worst possible moment…or maybe it was just in time. David McClain was about to go to war and Lindsey Wood was there at his going-away party, capturing his heart when falling for a woman was the last thing on his mind. While David was serving his country, he stayed in close contact with Lindsey. But war changes a person, and when he came home very little had the same meaning that it had before – including the romance that had sustained him. Was love truly unconquerable, or would it prove to be just another battlefield casualty?

Gooseberry Island is the most nuanced, dramatic, and romantic novel yet from a writer whose ability to plumb the depths of human emotion knows few peers.

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A guy, a gal and a war. Is it possible to fall in love at first sight? Why does it have to be the night before shipping out?

Lindsey lives with her father and his PTSD from his war experiences. Now the man of her dreams is in Afghanistan. I’m wondering if David is going to return to Gooseberry Island with the same problems.

We both know he is going to come home a changed man, and his relationship with Lindsey is bound be different. The question is, how different. Will David run from her or to her?

David is killing their love and just might kill himself in the process. Sometimes it’s just easier to die than to live.

Can Lindsey deal with having two men with PTSD in her life?

People, you know I’ve never met a Steven Manchester book I didn’t like. All I have to say is you’d better have that box of tissues handy unless you want to drown your Kindle in salt water and snot.

***A special thank you to the author for providing a review copy.***

Steven Manchester is the author of the #1 bestsellers, Twelve Months and The Rockin’ Chair. He is also the author of the award-winning novel, Goodnight, Brian, as well as the critically-acclaimed novels, Pressed Pennies and Gooseberry Island. He has also written A Christmas Wish (Kindle exclusive), Wilbur Avenue (novelette), Just in Time (novelette) and The Thursday Night Club (novella), while his work has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, CBS’s The Early Show, CNN’s American Morning and BET’s Nightly News. Three of Steven’s short stories were selected “101 Best” for Chicken Soup for the Soul series. When not spending time with his beautiful wife, Paula, or their four children, this Massachusetts author is promoting his works or writing. Visit: www.StevenManchester.com

Jesus Daily

By Aaron Tabor, MD

Based on the major themes found on the most active Facebook page in history, JESUS DAILY is a 365-day interactive devotional that goes beyond even the fan page to create a deeper experience and cultural movement that celebrates your redemption in Christ. JESUS DAILY presents a devotional thought but also challenges you to respond to each daily reflection using a variety of social media tools.

JESUS DAILY is a worldwide revolution in how you can connect, share, and worship the Father personally and with other believers.

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Dr. Tabor has written a unique book of devotions. These devotions are more than a Bible verse and reflection. You are encouraged to follow through with an action – often one which takes you to JesusDaily.com.

An example is today’s interaction to today’s verse.

The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives. NRSV The interaction is: Shine the light of God’s love on someone who may be struggling in darkness right now. Send them a favorite verse, e-Christmas card, or online gift card.

Check out this book at hachettebookgroup.com. The book is a compact size which can be easily tucked into a purse, large pocket or backpack. Take it with you and refer to it daily. Then make the suggested connection. It’ll do your heart good.

***A special thank you to Katie Connors for a review copy.***

Aaron Tabor, MD, started the Jesus Daily Facebook page in 2009. He is the President of Gene Facelift, a gene therapy biotechnology company developing anti-aging and wound healing drugs. Dr. Tabor is a graduate of The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Swept Away

By Laura V. Hilton & Cindy Loven

About Quilts of Love: Quilts tell stories of love and loss, hope and faith, tradition and new beginnings. The Quilts of Love series focuses on the women who quilted all of these things into their family histories. A new book releases each month and features contemporary and historical romances as well as women’s fiction and the occasional light mystery. You will be drawn into the endearing characters of this series and be touched by their stories.

Sara doesn’t think she wants love. But her grandmother has other plans.

Sara Jane Morgan is trying to balance teaching with caring for her ailing, stubborn grandmother. When school lets out for the summer, the plans are for Grandma to teach Sara Jane to quilt as they finish up the Appalachian Ballad quilt Grandma started as a teenager. But things don’t always go as planned.

Andrew Stevenson is hiding from his past—and his future. He works as a handyman to pay the bills, but his heart is as an artisan, designing homemade brooms. When Sara Jane’s grandmother hires him to renovate her home, sparks fly between Drew and his new employer’s granddaughter.

Still, it doesn’t take Sara Jane long to see Drew isn’t what he seems. Questions arise, and she starts researching him online. What she discovers could change her life—and her heart—forever.

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School teacher Sara Jane is no match for her scheming grandmother. Mrs. Morgan has decided to hire handy man Drew to fix up her house (and marry her granddaughter). Of course, she conveniently times his chores with the times Sara Jane is at the house. She manages that by getting Sara Jane to help her finish her ballad quilt.

Sara Jane dismisses Drew as a John-the-Baptist- wannabe with his unkept hair at beard. Eventually she begins to see beyond all that hair to the man underneath who makes artisan brooms and hiked the Appalachian Trail. But can she get past everything to see the pain he’s suffered?

That’s questionable since she’s busy concentrating on her grandmother’s memory loss and wondering how to keep her safe. She also has to figure out where she stands with God. Does He really love her?

Ms Hilton and Ms Loven have written a book with characters you’d like to have a friends. They also taught me about ballad quilts. I’d like to read more stories with these characters.

***A special thank you to litfuse for providing a review copy.***

  Cindy Loven  Laura V. Hilton

Laura V. Hilton is an award-winning author and a professional book reviewer. A stay-at-home mom and home school teacher, Laura lives with her family in Horseshoe Bend, Arkansas. Cindy Loven is active in the church and writes from her home in Conway, Arkansas, where she lives with her husband and their son.

Masterpiece Marriage

By Gina Welborn

About Quilts of Love: Quilts tell stories of love and loss, hope and faith, tradition and new beginnings. The Quilts of Love series focuses on the women who quilted all of these things into their family histories. A new book releases each month and features contemporary and historical romances as well as women’s fiction and the occasional light mystery. You will be drawn into the endearing characters of this series and be touched by their stories.

He wants to save his business. She wants to be a professor. But are they asking for more than they can really have?

After a flood damages the looms at Zenus Dane’s Philadelphia textile mill and the bank demands loan payment, Zenus turns to his aunt for help repurposing his textiles. Trouble is . . . his aunt has already been hired by the lovely yet secretive Englishwoman Mary Varrs.

Eager to acquire his aunt’s quilt patterns, Zenus attends the summer Quilting Bee, a social event his aunt has uniquely designed with the secret purpose of finding Zenus a wife. However Zenus only has eyes for Mary, but Mary has no such desire for him.

Though his aunt is determined to design a masterpiece marriage, both Zenus and Mary will have to overcome their stubborn ways. Can he realize that love requires stepping out of his routine? And will she recognize that following her heart doesn’t mean sacrificing her ambition?

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Mary is house sitting in Belle Haven while waiting on an appointment that would lead to an academic position at a nearby college. She spent two years in research with photographs included with her application. Now she’s learned that only drawn illustrations are acceptable. Does that spell the end of her dreams since she can’t draw?

Meanwhile Zenus has to deal with the losses and water damage left behind in the textile mill he owns. Thinking he could salvage some of the fabric by selling to quilters, he decides to go grovel before his Aunt Priscilla in order to get a quilt pattern to include with his fabric scraps.

Both Zenus and Mary end up with Priscilla’s help. In addition to drawing, Priscilla seems to be doing some matchmaking, too, but not between those two who really cannot stand each other.

Life isn’t being too kind to this pair. Mary needs her plant illustrations asap while Zenus has to continue to bow and scrape before his aunt in order to receive one of her quilt patterns.

Life does get interesting in Belle Haven. Thank you, Ms Welborn. I really enjoyed this book.

Tissue alert. You’d better have that box handy by the time you get to chapter 18.

***A special thank you to litfuse for providing a review copy.***

Gina Welborn is the author of several novels and novellas, including The Heiress’s Courtship. Gina now lives in Cache, Oklahoma, with her pastor husband and their five children.

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