sunnyislandbreezes.com

September 11, 2001

Last Chance Hero

By Cathleen Armstrong

What happens when your heart is intercepted before you even know it’s in play?

The folks in Last Chance, New Mexico, could not be more pleased. Dr. Jessica MacLeod has opened an office right on Main Street and Andy Ryan, the best athlete the little town ever produced, has come home from the NFL to coach the high school football team. Unfortunately, Dr. Jess immediately gets off on the wrong foot with this football-obsessed town when she admits that she’s never seen a football game, isn’t really interested in doing so, and in fact doesn’t know a first down from a goalpost.

Despite having little in common, Jess and Andy find themselves drawn to each other. But when a disagreement over the future of an injured player puts them both on the defensive, it begins to look like this game is over . . .

ISLAND BREEZES

Another visit to Last Chance, New Mexico. There’s a new doc in a town obsessed by football. She could care less about the game. In fact, she doesn’t know the first thing about football.

Andy, a former NFL player prior to an injury, is back in town as the new high school football coach. He and Dr.Jessica get along just fine for awhile. Then she not only sidelines one of his best players due to injury, but also encourages him to give his college aspirations a higher priority in his life.

Is that enough to drive the new doc out of town? It’s certain to mess with any possible relationship between Jessica and Andy.

Thank you, Ms Armstrong, for giving us another chance to revisit Last Chance. I certainly hope this is not the last book in your A Place to Call Home series. I really like this little town and its people.

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

Cathleen Armstrong lives in Orange County, California, with her husband, Ed, and their corgi. Though she has been in California for many years now, her roots remain deep in New Mexico. Her debut novel Welcome to Last Chance won the American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis Award for Women’s Fiction. She is also the author of One More Last Chance and At Home in Last Chance. Learn more at www.cathleenarmstrong.com.

The Mistress of Tall Acre

By Laura Frantz

There can be only one mistress of Tall Acre . . .

The American Revolution is finally over, and Sophie Menzies is starved for good news. When her nearest neighbor, General Seamus Ogilvy, finally comes home to Tall Acre, she hopes it is a sign of better days to come. But the general is now a widower with a small daughter in desperate need of a mother. Nearly destitute, Sophie agrees to marry Seamus and become the mistress of Tall Acre in what seems a safe, sensible arrangement. But when a woman from the general’s past returns without warning, the ties that bind this fledgling family together will be strained to the utmost. When all is said and done, who will be the rightful mistress of Tall Acre?

Triumph and tragedy, loyalty and betrayal–you will find it all in the rich pages of this newest novel from the talented pen of Laura Frantz.

ISLAND BREEZES

The war is now over, but where does that leave Sophie? Her father is a turn coat; her brother is missing and she’s hungry.

When her neighbor, General Seamus Ogilvy, returns he has no news of her brother. But he does have a small, motherless daughter, Lily Cate. Lily Cate and Sophie fall in love with each other. Maybe Sophie is beginning to fall a bit in love with Seamus as well.

Sophie is in danger of losing her home, and Seamus needs a mother for Lily Cate. Need I say more? A marriage of convenience ensues,and the three of them begin forming a nice little family.

 
That is, until another woman shows up on their doorstep and threatens to break up home and family. It’s hard to see any happy ending here.

 
Thank you, Ms Frantz, for keeping my hopes alive in the midst of tragedy and betrayal.

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

Laura Frantz is a Christy Award finalist and the author of several books, including The Frontiersman’s Daughter, Courting Morrow Little, The Colonel’s Lady, and the Ballantyne Legacy series. She lives and writes in a log cabin in the heart of Kentucky. Learn more at www.laurafrantz.net.

Until My Name Is Known

By Sonya Contreras

The Exodus of the Jews from Egypt is a love story between God and His people. God woos His people to Himself as He prepares them to leave. Before leaving, God must fight Pharaoh for possession of His people. See how God changes all people: some for the better, others not. None stay the same. How will He change you? Can you trust a God Who destroyed a nation before your eyes? Would you want Him as your Friend?

See God free His people from Egypt’s bonds before a watching world. Trace His Finger in the lives He touches. The time: 2450 BC. The Place: Old Kingdom of Egypt where Pharaoh is god. His people worship him. Israel’s God arrives. He challenges Pharaoh. His power touches all people. They must change. Some do not concede. They suffer. Others yield. They find freedom.

Until My Name Is Known brings all to see the one true God. Read it to see Him. Today’s historians and archaeologists puzzle over the fall of the Old Kingdom of Egypt, But the world at that time heard of God. The world knew that He is the Lord. His Name was proclaimed in all the earth.

ISLAND BREEZES

The story of Moses confronting Pharaoh and leading the Jews out of Egypt is a story most of us know. But like all historical fiction, it always teaches me something new.

This book brought my focus primarily onto Moses. How must he and his family have felt during this time. Prior to this book, I focused on Pharaoh’s hardened heart and how he allowed his people to suffer, because he refused to let the Jews leave.

In the end Pharaoh loses big time. Ms Contreras also brought insight into just how the suffering of the Egyptians might have played out. I’m looking forward to the second book of the Tell of My Kingdom’s Glory series.

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

Growing up with five sisters, Sonya Contreras asked God many questions, even when she did not like His answers. Graduating from Cedarville University and Institute for Creation Research with a Masters Degree in Science Education did not stop her questions. Marrying her best friend and homeschooling their eight sons, she found that dreams do come true, in spite of unanswered questions.

Find Sonya online: website

Are we living in Babylon? We are in the messiest of times right now. I believe Rabbi Jonathan Cahn is truly a modern day prophet. Please prayerfully watch this video and share it with others. Consider reading Mr. Cahn’s books The Harbinger and The Mystery of the Shemitah. If you want to read only one, The Mystery of the Shemitah is the one to read.

Through Waters Deep

By Sarah Sundin

War is coming. Can love carry them through the rough waters that lie ahead?

It is 1941 and America teeters on the brink of war. Handsome and outgoing naval officer Ensign Jim Avery escorts British convoys across the North Atlantic in a brand-new destroyer, the USS Atwood. On shore, Jim encounters Mary Stirling, a childhood friend who is now an astute and beautiful Boston Navy Yard secretary.

When evidence of sabotage on the Atwood is discovered, Jim and Mary must work together to uncover the culprit. A bewildering maze of suspects emerges, and Mary is dismayed to find that even someone close to her is under suspicion. With the increasing pressure, Jim and Mary find that many new challenges–and dangers–await them.

ISLAND BREEZES

Jim and Mary haven’t seen each other since they were childhood friends. That was when he was not so secretly in love with the beautiful Quintessa. Now they’re both spending time in Boston at the Boston Navy Yard – she as a secretary and he as an ensign.

They pal around a lot and Mary’s feelings begin to be more than friendship. Maybe Jim is beginning to feel the same way. Of course, neither bothers to say anything about these new feelings.

In the meantime there’s plenty of intrigue and sabotage putting both their lives in danger. As they work to discover who’s behind it all, the danger only intensifies.

Top this off with Quintessa’s move to Boston in order to snag Jim. It looks as if once again Mary is ending up on the outside.

As usual, Ms Sundin, you had me on the edge of my seat, unwilling to lay down this book until I finished reading it. I’m really looking forward to the next book in your Waves of Freedom series.

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

Sarah Sundin is the award-winning author of the Wings of Glory and Wings of the Nightingale series. During WWII, her grandfather served as a pharmacist’s mate (medic) in the Navy and her great-uncle flew with the US Eighth Air Force in England. Sarah lives in California with her husband and three children. Learn more at www.sarahsundin.com.

A new tale of romance, family, and taking risks—don’t miss Debra Clopton’s Counting on a Cowboy! After losing everything she held dear, Abby never wants to love again. But a certain cowboy may just spur her to wonder if love might be worth the risk. As Abby throws herself into helping Bo navigate fatherhood, hope sparks between them, revealing that maybe, just maybe, they can navigate their dark pasts and emerge together into a future as bright as the Texas sun itself.

Saddle up with Debra and her new book and enter to win her Love at the Reins prize pack!

One grand prize winner will receive:

• A copy of Counting on a Cowboy
• A $25 gift card to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Starbucks
• A western-inspired bracelet
• A horseshoe heart

Counting on a Cowboy

By Debra Clopton

After losing everything dear to her, Abby never wants to love again. But a certain cowboy spurs her to wonder if maybe love is worth the risk.

Running from a past that haunts her, Abby Knightly is drawn to the homey town of Wishing Springs, Texas, after her favorite advice columnist found love and a home there. Maybe this small town could offer hope and healing and a future for Abby too . . . if she’s brave enough to reach out and take it.

Bo Monahan isn’t interested in the new romantic destination his little town has become—or the women who might be looking at him like he’s their next Mr. Right. Between taking care of his Pops and his growing stirrup business, he isn’t looking for serious romantic commitments. But unexpectedly the young child he never knew about appears on his doorstep and Bo’s world is turned upside down.

This confirmed bachelor might not need a wife, but he sure needs a woman . . . and newcomer Abby Knightly is definitely a woman. When she comes to his rescue to help him navigate fatherhood, he slowly uncovers her own history. And suddenly Bo’s thinking maybe, just maybe, together they can help each other work through the problems of the past to create a future of their own.

ISLAND BREEZES

Abby isn’t interested in a relationship. That’s okay with Bo. Neither is he. Abby relocated to Wishing Springs, Texas after following an advice columnist’s bet with a cowboy. Wishing Springs has become the place to be for women coming to catch a glimpse of a cowboy and maybe something more. Bo detests being on display.

Abby has an accident on her way into town and is rescued by Bo and his brother. Since his steer was the cause of the accident Bo just wants to get her settled at the Sweet Dreams Motel and get her car repaired. Then she’s out of his life.

Sounds good, doesn’t it? We know it’s not going to be that simple. After a little bundle of joy gets dropped off on Bo’s front porch he desperately needs Abby’s help. She helps, but runs any time something starts to look as if either of them have feelings for the other.

Abby knows she’s in love with the little man, but refuses to be in love with the big man. Can he persuade her to take a chance?

Thank you, Ms Clopton, for giving us this cowboy love story. I’m looking forward to Tru’s story.

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

Debra Clopton is a multi-award winning novelist and has written more than 22 novels. Along with writing, Debra helps her husband teach the youth at their local Cowboy Church. Debra’s goal is to shine a light toward God while she entertains readers with her words.

Find Debra online here.

Irish Meadows

By Susan Anne Mason

Faced with an uncertain future, sometimes all you have left is the courage to dream.

Brianna and Colleen O’Leary know their Irish immigrant father expects them to marry well. Recently he’s put even more pressure on them, insinuating that the very future of their Long Island horse farm, Irish Meadows, rests in their ability to land prosperous husbands. Both girls, however, have different visions for their futures.

Brianna, a quiet girl with a quick mind, dreams of attending college. Vivacious Colleen, meanwhile, is happy to marry—as long as her father’s choice meets her exacting standards of the ideal groom. When former stable hand Gilbert Whelan returns from business school and distant relative Rylan Montgomery visits Long Island during his seminary training, the two men quickly complicate everyone’s plans.

As the farm slips ever closer to ruin, James O’Leary grows more desperate. It will take every ounce of courage for both sisters to avoid being pawns in their father’s machinations and instead follow their hearts. And even if they do, will they inevitably find their dreams too distant to reach?

ISLAND BREEZES

Daddy wants both his daughters to marry well – very well – in order to save his horse farm. Brianna and Coleen have other visions of marriage.

Brianna has long loved the young man brought up in the family as her brother. Besides, she wants to go to college and won’t marry anyone who doesn’t take that seriously. Coleen is looking forward to marrying someone with high social standing and wealth – just not the jerk her father has picked out.

It has become a battle of wills. Will Brianna and Coleen stand their ground or cave in to their father’s demands? Can they really walk away while their father is on the verge of losing everything?

Thank you, Ms Mason. Your debut novel has me wanting more. I’m looking forward to the second book in your Courage to Dream series.

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

Susan Anne Mason’s debut historical novel, Irish Meadows, won the Fiction from the Heartland contest from the Mid-American Romance Authors Chapter of RWA. A member of ACFW, as well, she lives outside of Toronto, Ontario, with her husband and two children.

You can find Susan online here.

Hope Harbor

By Irene Hannon

Tracy Campbell never wanted to leave Hope Harbor, Oregon, or the idyllic three-generation cranberry farm where she grew up. But life–and love–altered her plans. Now she’s home again–with a floundering farm to run . . . a tragic secret . . . and a wounded heart. Romance is not on her agenda. Nor is it on Michael Hunter’s. The visitor from Chicago has daunting secrets and devastating regrets of his own. But when Tracy recruits him to help with a project that is close to her heart, winds of change begin to sweep through Hope Harbor, bringing healing, hope, and love to countless lives–including their own.

ISLAND BREEZES

Hope Harbor is truly a place of hope for Tracy Campbell and Michael Hunter. Tracy comes back home to Hope Harbor and Harbor Point Cranberry Farm. Michael came for a quiet time to evaluate his life and goals. Neither of the two are interested in a relationship. They each just want to find some peace.

But they aren’t the only ones in the little community who have found peace to be elusive. Who would have thought that a taco stand proprietor would be the one to get things rolling.

Ms Hannon has done a fine job as she portrays these characters and the gentle unfolding of the happiness they thought was beyond their reach. When I think of Ms Hannon’s books, I think suspense, but her talent spans genres. Thank you, Ms Hannon, for this heart touching book.

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

Irene Hannon is the bestselling author of more than forty-five romantic suspense and contemporary romance/women’s fiction novels, including the Heroes of Quantico, Guardians of Justice, and Private Justice series, along with That Certain Summer and One Perfect Spring. Her books have garnered dozens of honors, including two coveted RITA Awards from Romance Writers of America. She is also a two-time Christy Award finalist.