The Sea Before Us (Sunrise at Normandy book one)by Sarah Sundin
Published by Revell, February 2018
review copy provided by the publisher, thank you!

In 1944, American naval officer Lt. Wyatt Paxton arrives in London to prepare for the Allied invasion of France. He works closely with Dorothy Fairfax, a "Wren" in the Women's Royal Naval Service. Dorothy pieces together reconnaissance photographs with thousands of holiday snapshots of France--including those of her own family's summer home--in order to create accurate maps of Normandy. Maps that Wyatt will turn into naval bombardment plans.

As the two spend concentrated time together in the pressure cooker of war, their deepening friendship threatens to turn to love. Dorothy must resist its pull. Her bereaved father depends on her, and her heart already belongs to another man. Wyatt too has much to lose. The closer he gets to Dorothy, the more he fears his efforts to win the war will destroy everything she has ever loved.

The tense days leading up to the monumental D-Day landing blaze to life under Sarah Sundin's practiced pen with this powerful new series.

This is the fourth Sarah Sundin title I have read so I knew what to expect going in: a thoroughly descriptive account of World War II maneuvers and the events of the war detailed through the eyes of very likable fictional characters as they eventually form a romantic bond. The author is passionate about her subject matter and it shines through in her characters. This Sunrise at Normandy series focuses on the brothers of the Texan Paxton family who will each have a novel dedicated to their own story as they reach D-Day.

The Sea Before Us introduces us to Wyatt Paxton and the love interest Dorothy Fairfax who portrays a "Wren" as she serves in the Women's Royal Naval Service. Wyatt is struggling with the results of a tragic accident and how he deserted his family to serve in the war efforts. Dorothy is focused on the schoolgirl crush she holds for a local gentleman Lawrence Eaton also serving in the war and she valiantly attempts to become sophisticated in his eyes. Along comes the cute and compassionate Wyatt Paxton and Dorothy only slightly second guesses where her heart should lie. She is starving for attention since her father ignores her at home and she hopes that the dashing and dangerous Lt. Commander Lawrence Eaton can fill the void that she is trying to fill.

This is definitely a Christian Fiction novel, and as such will also be themed with the struggle of understanding and accepting faith as it should apply in one's life. There are biblical quotes and visits to church and then the questioning of faith as a whole. But for those avid christian fiction readers who are strictly against romance and innuendos, this novel may not be a great fit for you. Dorothy finds out some shady things about her family and they were a surprise to me but I felt it was a great twist that I did not see coming. And some of the shallowness of Dorothy could be a little exasperating, but she does come around eventually.

Wyatt Paxton's character was written so that he seemed like a gift from God himself, and I am not quite sure there are actually men like him around any longer. But since the setting is 1944 I will give the author her license to be creative. His willingness to stick around and see Dorothy through all her hard times is a breath of fresh air, and he is easily a man who could be my next Mr. Darcy.

I really enjoyed the historical plot leading up to D-Day and while some specific war maneuvers and places were completely over my head I feel that Sundin has made a name for herself in the subject area of WWII and perhaps she just can't help herself with coordinates, salvos and SFCPs. I feel that she has found a happy length of a book with this one coming in at 375 pages (the last one I read was a long 465 pages) so there were no slow points in the novel.

If you have any interest in World War II and enjoy Christian Fiction, definitely check out Sarah Sundin's books.

Read my other reviews of Sarah Sundin's titles here.

I turned off commenting long ago on the blog but I welcome comments at the Facebook page here.

Fantastic war time details fused with light romance

On Distant Shores (Wings of the Nightingale #2) by Sarah Sundin
Revell, August 2013
Inspirational/Historical Romance
426pp paperback
Burton Book Review Rating: five stars for fabulous prose

Lt. Georgiana Taylor has everything she could want. A comfortable boyfriend back home, a loving family, and a challenging job as a flight nurse. But in July 1943, Georgie’s cozy life gets decidedly more complicated when she meets pharmacist Sgt. John Hutchinson. Hutch resents the lack of respect he gets as a noncommissioned serviceman and hates how the war keeps him from his fiancée. While Georgie and Hutch share a love of the starry night skies over Sicily, their lives back home are falling apart. Can they weather the hurt and betrayal? Or will the pressures of war destroy the fragile connection they’ve made?

With her signature attention to detail and her talent for bringing characters together, Sarah Sundin pens another exciting tale in her series featuring WWII flight nurses. Fans new and old will find in On Distant Shores the perfect combination of emotion, action, and romance.

Read my review of the first book in the series, With Every Letter
It is with a quiet dexterity that author Sarah Sundin fuses together touches of inspiration and times of war in this second installment in her WWII series. In a reprising role, we follow Lt. Georgie Taylor during her journey as a nurse close to the front lines during German aggression overseas, confronting both fears and family members during very difficult times. Characters from the previous novel are present and new ones are introduced, as Georgie meets her new love interest in the Army's pharmacist. The story is focused on both of these characters, and much like the first novel (With Every Letter) this is another emotionally charged but realistically told story of love, friendship and hardship.

The author knows her historical subject matter, and while the reader may not fully comprehend many of the details of the foreign places or the Army lingo, we are still completely at ease and immersed in the eloquent storytelling featuring disasters and air strikes and hope. The tender romance of Georgie and Hutch manages to avoid the stereotypical story arc of inspirational romance, and its evolution is well plotted. On Distant Shores is another fantastic WWII novel that I recommend to readers of the genre.

Sarah Sundin is officially in the running for my personal favorite authors list. With all due respect to lovers of the Christian Fiction genre, I'd say this is perfect for those who would like a little "more oomph" to their inspirational novels. There is not a lot of heated romance, but Sundin steps it up a notch with her attention to detail, and is evident with the slightly longer page count in her novels as compared to other Christian novels. Most of them have been around 320 - 350 pages, and the few Sundin novels I've read have been a hundred pages longer. This gives the author more time to fully develop the characters and the storyline, and lets you become a part of the story. I love it.

Mailbox Monday is a meme originally from Marcia's Mailbox and is being hosted by Caitlin @ chaotic compendiums. The Story Siren also hosts IMM, so we can find some cool YA titles there as well.

Housekeeping: For those of you who get these posts in your inbox, if you ever want to unsubscribe please use the link provided at the bottom of the email. If you mark it as spam, that alerts the newsletter folks and puts me on a watch list, and they could block my site altogether. Please don't do that! That goes for most of the emails from bloggers, but my mailing service MailChimp has just updated their privacy policies, so I wanted to make sure you realized the implications for us poor bloggers if you mark us as spam.

Also, since google reader is going away, you can follow me on Bloglovin'.


I have taken down my Google Reader Button on the sidebar, and added a bloglovin' one instead. 26 followers there so far, woohoo! =)


This week has been quite busy as I posted a few things that may be of interest:

• Review of Submerged by Dani Pettrey (a rare contemporary suspense read for me!)
• Review of Love in The Balance by Regina Jennings (enjoyed this faith based story!)
• A commentary 'To Review or Not To Review'
• A look at some of the out of print  historicals written by Carol Wensby-Scott
• To Post or Not to Post, That is the Question

You'll see that the commentary post on Reviewing did get some attention (over 300 hits as well as folks emailing me off-site about the hot topic), as my Facebook friends and fellow bloggers were eager to chime in with their agreement that we should be able to post reviews no matter if they are negative or critical in nature, regardless of our source of the book. I had written this post as a way to get it off of my chest - to get it out there- that marketers/authors should not have the right to dictate to us how we review a book. If we feel negatively about a book, we should feel free to point out those flaws, and feel free to 'publicly' review books that are worthy of only two stars. I had come across a conversation on facebook yesterday where a reviewer was explaining to the owner of the group that she didn't really like a book she was given for review, and it may not be able to get three stars from her. He then told her to not review it if that was the case (grrr!). I was also part of a group that also says if the book review is not going to show at least three stars, do not review it (I reviewed once for them and left the group). I have also seen other bloggers state they will not review a book if they would have to be critical of it.

Bottom line, if I am taking my time out to review a book, that is exactly what I am going to do, regardless of it being a positive or negative critique. There were some great comments on the post, go and see what your fellow readers and bloggers expect from bloggers such as myself : Honesty.

Someone even copied my post over to their blog as well with some more comments over there, which annoyed me to no end. The blogger took large chunks of my original post and without asking created their own post. I am slightly perturbed, especially since my blog contains a script that will be pasted with whatever they just copied from my blog
"Original from: http://www.burtonbookreview.com/
Copyright BurtonBookReview.com - All Rights Reserved" 
which immediately alerts that blogger that what they are doing is NOT OKAY as they copied the rest of my text.

He responded to my comment with
 "Marie - Do you understand Fair Use?

My use of an excerpt from your site is clearly within the Fair Use provisions of U.S. Copyright Law."

He is moderating comments so don't waste too much of your time posting there. Which is why I created the follow up post questioning his behavior. I ended up having to input a no-right click code, but there are still ways to get around that. I can only do so much to protect my words.

LET'S GET TO BOOKISH FUN!!

In The Mail:
I was very excited to be able to get my hands on this book, as I am just now studying the Gospels, and I love that this is offered in my favorite NKJV:

March 5, 2013

One Perfect Life: The Complete Story of the Lord Jesus by John MacArthur
This gorgeous chunky hardcover is available now from Thomas Nelson Publishers

Read the best news the world has ever been given about the most significant life in all history--Jesus Christ. In "One Perfect Life," Dr. John MacArthur shares with us the complete story of the Eternal Christ from Genesis to Revelation. Using Matthew as the base text, Dr. MacArthur blends the gospels and other biblical material about Jesus into one continuous story that will help you better understand Scripture and grow stronger in your faith. No other harmony of the Gospels includes such extensive study notes to help you unpack the meaning of each verse.
Features include:
Verse-by-verse explanations from one of the most important pastor-teachers of our time 
Every verse connected to Christ from Genesis to Revelation 
A harmony of the Gospels that demonstrates the inerrancy of Scripture
New King James translation

Also for review (squeee!):

April 1, 2013

A Noble Groom by Jody Hedlund (I loved, adored, cherished and favorited her last novel!)
Recently widowed Annalisa Werner has the feeling her husband was murdered but can't prove it. Alone with her young daughter in 1881 Michigan, she has six months left to finish raising the money needed to pay back the land contract her husband purchased, and the land is difficult to toil by herself. She needs a husband. With unmarried men scarce, her father sends a letter to his brother in the Old Country, asking him to find Annalisa a groom.

For nobleman Carl von Reichert, the blade of the guillotine is his fate. He's been accused and convicted of a serious crime he didn't commit, and his only escape is to flee to a small German community in Michigan where he'll be safe. He secures a job on Annalisa's farm but bumbles through learning about farming and manual labor.

Annalisa senses that Karl is harboring a secret about his past, yet she finds herself drawn to him anyway. He's gentle, kind, and romantic--unlike any of the men she's ever known. He begins to restore her faith in the ability to love--but her true groom is still on his way. And time is running out on them all.

David and Bathseba (Song of Solomon #1) by Roberta Kells Dorr
(I am assuming this is a reissue of Bathsheba from 1980)

David and Bathsheba is a spellbinding story of a gifted king and the woman he loved but could not have. Told from Bathsheba's perspective, author Roberta Kells Dorr bring to life the passion that almost cost David his kingdom and tested a people's courage and faith in God. "David and Bathsheba" is colored richly with details of Bible-era Israel - from the details of the everyday way of life to details of the Jewish religion. Dorr brilliantly merges reality with folklore as she tells the story of two great characters of the biblical era. The book starts out with Bathsheba as a young girl and David as a strong willed rebellious military leader. It details the way they meet and follows them all the way through their difficulties.

April 9, 2013

Lighthouse Bay by Kimberley Freeman I was very excited to be offered this one because the last novel I'd read by this author had made it to my favorites/Best of 2011 List.

From the author of Wildflower Hill, this breathtaking novel travels more than a century between two love stories set in the Australian seaside town of Lighthouse Bay.

In 1901, a ship sinks off the coast of Queensland, Australia. The only survivor is Isabella Winterbourne, who clutches a priceless gift meant for the Australian Parliament. This gift could be her ticket to a new life, free from the bonds of her husband and his overbearing family. But whom can she trust in Lighthouse Bay?

Fast-forward to 2011: after losing her lover, Libby Slater leaves her life in Paris to return to her hometown of Lighthouse Bay, hoping to gain some perspective and grieve her recent loss. Libby also attempts to reconcile with her sister, Juliet, to whom she hasn’t spoken in twenty years. Libby did something so unforgivable, Juliet is unsure if she can ever trust her sister again.

In these two adventurous love stories, both Isabella and Libby must learn that letting go of the past is the only way to move into the future. The answers they seek lie in Lighthouse Bay.

FEATURED EBOOK DOWNLOADS:
A Memory Between Us by Sarah Sundin
I've read two of Sundin's other novels which prompted me to find her others.
Major Jack Novak has never failed to meet a challenge--until he meets army nurse Lieutenant Ruth Doherty. When Jack lands in the army hospital after a plane crash, he makes winning Ruth's heart a top priority mission. But he has his work cut out for him. Not only is Ruth focused on her work in order to support her orphaned siblings back home, she carries a shameful secret that keeps her from giving her heart to any man. Can Jack break down her defenses? Or are they destined to go their separate ways?

A Memory Between Us is the second book in the WINGS OF GLORY series, which follows the three Novak brothers, B-17 bomber pilots with the US Eighth Air Force stationed in England during World War II.



Mrs. Tuesday's Departure: A Historical Novel  (Kindle Edition) by Suzanne Elizabeth Anderson
A heart-wrenching historical novel spanning fifty-years, two continents, and a an imagined story that holds the power to create a safe future for a young girl. This page-turning family saga soars to a breathtaking ending that redefines the meaning of love.
When Natalie and Anna, sisters and life-long rivals, hide an abandoned child from the Nazis, their struggle re-opens a star-crossed love triangle, threatening their safety and testing the bonds of their loyalty.
Hungary's fragile alliance with Germany insured that Natalie, a best selling children's book author, and her family would be safe as World War Two raged through Europe. The Holocaust that has only been whispered about until now becomes a terrible reality for every Jewish family or those who hide Jews.
Beautiful but troubled Anna, a poet and university professor is losing her tenuous hold on reality, re-igniting a dangerous sibling rivalry that began in childhood.
The streets of Budapest echo with the pounding boots of Nazi soldiers. Danger creeps to the doorstep where the sisters' disintegrating relationship threatens to expose the child they are trying to protect. In one night, Anna's rash behavior destroys their carefully made plans of escape, and Natalie is presented with a desperate choice.
Interwoven with Natalie and Anna's story, is Mila's. The abandoned child whose future Natalie lovingly imagines in a story about an old woman named Mrs. Tuesday.
Mrs. Tuesday's Departure is an inspirational historical novel spanning two generations, exploring the unbreakable bonds of sisters, and the power of love to create new futures.


The What Are You Reading meme is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey where we keep track of what we are currently reading and plan to read.



Playing catch up will be the theme of my month of April.. (as we prepare for Easter my attentions are elsewhere). I must remember this time next year so that I do not get myself into another reading abyss next year during Lent.

Book one

book two

I did manage to post my review for Dani Pettrey's debut novel Submerged, which means I needed to read book #2 soon! I should finish with Shattered this week. So far this is going to be a four book series following a group of siblings in Alaska. I was pleasantly surprised at the historical tidbit that was added to the climax of Submerged!


 I started reading Shattered as soon as I finished Regina Jennings' Love In The Balance, and you can find my review of Love In The Balance here.This was a story where I wondered if I was going to enjoy it or not, as you needed to really feel empathy for the main character. Molly could come off as a feather-head or a spoiled twit, but I was able to see through that exterior and find the goodness in her heart. I read this one very quickly as it was such a page turner. I love Regina Jennings writing, I am looking forward to book three!

Just in case I wasn't slammed enough, there is a read along starting at Goodreads this weekend of Philippa Carr's Miracle at St. Bruno's. It's an open group with no rules to read along, so come visit if you are a Jean Plaidy/Victoria Holt/Philippa Carr fan! I started reading it since I'm the silly twit who came up with this insane idea, and it reads quite well. My edition is older than me by half a year, it makes me feel young. Ha.

"I was born in the September of 1523, nine months after the monks had discovered the child in the crib on that Christmas morning. My birth was, my father used to say, another miracle: He was not young at the time being forty years of age . . . My mother, whose great pleasure was tending her gardens, called me Damask, after the rose which Dr. Linacre, the King's physician, had brought into England that year."
Thus begins the story narrated by Damask Farland, daughter of a well-to-do lawyer whose considerable lands adjoin those of St. Bruno's Abbey. It is a story of a life inextricably enmashed with that of Bruno, the mysterious child found on the abbey altar that Christmas morning and raised by the monks to become a man at once handsome and saintly, but also brooding and ominous, tortured by the secret of his origin which looms ever more menacingly over the huge abbey he comes to dominate.
This is also the story of an engaging family, the Farlands. Of a fathr wise enough to understand "the happier our King is, the happier I as a true subject must be," a wife twenty years his junior, and a daughter whose intelligence is constantly to war with the strange hold Bruno has upon her destiny. What happens to the Farlands against the background of what is happening to King Henry and his court during this robust period provides a novel in which suspense and the highlights of history are wonderfully balanced.
Here's the link to the read along of the first chapter.


Hope you all have a blessed Palm Sunday! Are you ready for Easter? It's going to be a busy busy Holy week for us, but I hope that I feel peace when I recognize the sacrifices that were made for me.

A richly told account of two souls surviving all odds

Welcome to Mailbox Monday, the weekly meme created by Marcia from A girl and her books (formerly The Printed Page) where book lovers share the titles they received for review, purchased, or otherwise obtained over the past week. Mailbox Monday is now on tour, and June's Host has been rescheduled to BE ME! www.BurtonBookReview.com

(This is a last minute change, as of 11:30 AM Monday, so the linky will go up next week, but feel free to leave your links at the original Mailbox Monday Blog with a new linky just set up.)

(I am posting this a bit early so I can free up the week for Armchair BEA posts. Be sure to follow the blog to be informed of the Giveaways I am holding starting Tuesday! And you'll need a few days to read this massive post anyway!)

Still working on the Mother's Day gift card for HalfPrice books, so I purchased:
Taking the photos from the top, folks..

Within My Heart (Timber Ridge Reflections #3) by Tamera Alexander
Sometimes the greatest step of faith is taken neck-deep in feat.

Determined to fulfill her late husband’s dream, Rachel Boyd struggles to keep her ranch afloat with the help of her two young sons. But some days it feels as though her every effort is sabotaged. When faced with a loss she cannot afford, she’s forced to trust Rand Brookston, the one man in Timber Ridge she wishes to avoid. And with good reason. He’s a physician, just like her father, which tells her everything she needs to know about him. Or so she thinks...

Dr. Rand Brookston ventured west with the dream of bringing modern medicine to the wilds of the Colorado Rockies, but the townspeople have been slow to trust him. Just as slow in coming is Rand’s dream to build the town a proper clinic. When a patient’s life is threatened, Rand makes a choice—one that sends ripples through the town of Timber Ridge. And through Rachel Boyd’s stubborn heart.
{Christy Awards Nominee 2010}


From A Distance  (Timber Ridge Reflections #1) by Tamera Alexander
What happens when the realization of a dream isn't what you imagined... and the secret you've spent a lifetime guarding is finally laid bare?

Determined to become one of the country's premier newspaper photographers, Elizabeth Westbrook travels to the Colorado Territory to capture the grandeur of the mountains surrounding the remote town of Timber Ridge. She hopes, too, that the cool, dry air of Colorado, and its renowned hot springs, will cure the mysterious illness that threatens her career, and her life.

Daniel Ranslett is a man shackled by his Confederate past, and he'll do anything to protect his land, and his solitude. When an outspoken Yankee photographer captures an image that appears key to solving a murder, putting herself in danger, Daniel is called upon to repay a debt. He's a man of his word, but repaying that debt could reveal secrets from his past he would prefer remain buried.

Forced on a perilous journey together, Daniel and Elizabeth's lives intertwine in ways neither could have imagined when first they met from a distance.
{WINNER Christy Award for Historical Romance (2009)}

Halos by Kristen Heitzmann

A Name of Her Own (Tender Ties #1) by Jane Kirkpatrick
{after reading and LOVING Kirkpatrick's latest, my mission is to own all of her work.}
Based on the life of Marie Dorion, the first mother to cross the Rocky Mountains and remain in the Northwest, A Name of Her Own is the fictionalized adventure account of a real woman’s fight to settle in a new landscape, survive in a nation at war, protect her sons and raise them well and, despite an abusive, alcoholic husband, keep her marriage together.

With two rambunctious young sons to raise, Marie Dorion refuses to be left behind in St. Louis when her husband heads West with the Wilson Hunt Astoria expedition of 1811. Faced with hostile landscapes, an untried expedition leader, and her volatile husband, Marie finds that the daring act she hoped would bind her family together may in the end tear them apart.

On the journey, Marie meets up with the famous Lewis and Clark interpreter, Sacagawea. Both are Indian women married to mixed-blood men of French Canadian and Indian descent, both are pregnant, both traveled with expeditions led by white men, and both are raising sons in a white world.

Together, the women forge a friendship that will strengthen and uphold Marie long after they part, even as she faces the greatest crisis of her life, and as she fights for her family’s very survival with the courage and gritty determination that can only be fueled by a mother’s love.

The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley
History has all but forgotten...In the spring of 1708, an invading Jacobite fleet of French and Scottish soldiers nearly succeeded in landing the exiled James Stewart in Scotland to reclaim his crown.
Now, Carrie McClelland hopes to turn that story into her next bestselling novel. Settling herself in the shadow of Slains Castle, she creates a heroine named for one of her own ancestors and starts to write.
But when she discovers her novel is more fact than fiction, Carrie wonders if she might be dealing with ancestral memory, making her the only living person who knows the truth-the ultimate betrayal-that happened all those years ago, and that knowledge comes very close to destroying her...

Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers {this one comes highly recommended, and is on some fellow bloggers' Fave of All Time lists, so I've gotta check this out!}
California's gold country, 1850. A time when men sold their souls for a bag of gold and women sold their bodies for a place to sleep.

Angel expects nothing from men but betrayal. Sold into prostitution as a child she survives by keeping her hatred alive. And what she hates most are the men who use her, leaving her empty and dead inside.

Then she meets Michael Hosea. A man who seeks his Father's heart in everything, Michael obeys God's call to marry Angel and to love her unconditionally. Slowly, day by day, he defies Angel's every bitter expectation, until despite her resistance, her frozen heart begins to thaw.

But with her unexpected softening come overwhelming feelings of unworthiness and fear. And so Angel runs. Back to the darkness, away from her husband's pursuing love, terrified of the truth she no longer can deny: Her final healing must come from the One who loves her even more than Michael does ... the One who will never let her go.



And I made a second trip.. so from the top folks..
Cousin Kate by Georgette Heyer, Sourcebooks reissue of her 1968 novel
Enjoy one of only two Heyer Gothic Regency romances.

Kate, in dire circumstances, is surprised to receive an invitation to live with a distant aunt. Her aunt, uncle, and cousin welcome her to their estate, buy her new clothes, and provide all the amenities a Young lady of quality should have. Slowly, however, as strange events unfold, Kate begins to realize that her aunt's apparent benevolence hides an ulterior motive. To assure succession of the title, her aunt intends Kate to marry her cousin Torquil, until his increasingly bizarre behavior culminates in violence and tragedy. A compelling tale exploring mental illness in the Regency period.

Lady in the Mist by Laurie Alice Eakes (Midwives Series Book 1) February 2011
I really enjoyed Eakes' second stand-alone novel in this series, so I had my eyes peeled for this one.. yay!
By virtue of her profession as a midwife, Tabitha Eckles is the keeper of many secrets: the names of fathers of illegitimate children, the level of love and harmony within many a marriage, and now the identity of a man who may have caused his wife's death. Dominick Cherrett is a man with his own secret to keep: namely, what he, a British nobleman, is doing on American soil working as a bondsman in the home of Mayor Kendall, a Southern gentleman with his eye on a higher office.

By chance one morning before the dawn has broken, Tabitha and Dominick cross paths on a misty beachhead, leading them on a twisted path through kidnappings, death threats, public disgrace, and . . . love? Can Tabitha trust Dominick? What might he be hiding? And can either of them find true love in a world that seems set against them?

With stirring writing that puts readers directly into the story, Lady in the Mist expertly explores themes of identity, misperception, and love's discovery.

Rekindled by Tamera Alexander (Fountain Creek Chronicles #1) March 2006
Comes highly recommended by fellow blogger Farrah at http://tbfreviews.net/
At a different time, in a different place, under different circumstances... could two people fall in love once again?

Ten years ago Kathryn Jennings made a vow. For better or worse. And that promise still holds true, even though her marriage has not turned out as she expected. When her husband fails to return home one stormy winter night, she struggles to keep their ranch, but her efforts are blocked at every turn. After a shocking glimpse into her husband's past, Kathryn uncovers a hidden truth. What she wouldn't give to turn back time and be able to love her husband for the man that he was, not for the man she always wanted him to be.

Larson Jennings has spent his entire life running from a broken past, unable to trust, reluctant to try again. One fateful night, his life takes an unexpected twist, and soon he is forced to make a choice. Whatever he chooses, his decision may cost him his life.

Deep in the Heart by Gilbert Morris (Lone Star Legacy #1) November 2003
 (I also downloaded a few eBooks of his, I am ASTONISHED at how prolific this author is!)

The lame synopsis on Goodreads and Amazon is: The Texas Frontier provides for riveting adventure and inspiring characters as this historical fiction series draws readers into the struggle for freedom.

But here is the back cover, and so I sent this to Audra to see if she can update it on Goodreads:

They came to Texas to make their family whole. They fought for the land they'd come to love. An unforgettable saga of faith, love and loyalty that will find its place deep in your heart.

In the days when Texas was the northern edge of Mexico, when Bowie and Houston and Crockett were men and not yet legends, when the Alamo was still a scruffy mission on the banks of the San Antonio River, this unorthodox family struggled to make a wild but beautiful land their own.

This is the tale of Jerusalem Ann, who is willing to take whatever life dishes out in order to make a life for her family. It's the story of Clay, who finds himself protecting another man's family - and in love with another man's wife. It's about Jake, who loves two women and can't do right by either... and Julie, who'd rather be free than respectable... and Bowie, who can handle war but might not survive his first love. It's the story of Comanches and fiestas, hunting parties and courting parties, of battles and massacres and beautiful calm nights under a canopy of stars.
Wide as the prairies, warm as a San Antonia breeze, spiced with adventure and romance, this Texas-sized saga of faith from a beloved storyteller will quickly find its place deep in your heart.. and never let you go.

A Distant Melody by Sarah Sundin (Wings of Glory #1) March 2010, a bit of a chunkster at 421 pages
I read book three, follows the family of brothers, but separated stories enough that it will be fine for me to go backwards!

Another short synopsis (le sigh)
In this World War II-era romance, Allie is promised to a man she doesn't love. When a furloughed B-17 bomber pilot captures her heart, will she honor her family's wishes or take a chance on true love?

Back cover:
Will a chance meeting in a time of war change her life forever?

Never pretty enough to please her gorgeous mother, Allie will do anything to gain her approval - even marry a man she doesn't love. While Allie has nearly resigned herself to that fate, Lt. Walter Novak - fearless in the cockpit but hopeless with women - takes his last furlough at home in California before being shipped overseas.

Walt and Allie meet and begin a correspondence that will change their lives. As letters fly between Walt's muddy bomber base in England and Allie's mansion in an orange grove, their friendship binds them together. But can they untangle the secrets, commitments, and expectations that keep them apart?
Book 1 in the Wings of Glory series, A Distant Melody is an exciting and tender story of love, courage, and sacrifice during World War II.


 And then I won this eBook from the author:

After the Fog by Kathleen Shoop  (May 8, 2012)
The sins of the mother...
In the steel mill town of Donora, Pennsylvania, site of the infamous 1948 "killing smog," headstrong nurse Rose Pavlesic tends to her family and neighbors. Controlling and demanding, she's created a life that reflects everything she missed growing up as an orphan. She's even managed to keep her painful secrets hidden from her loving husband, dutiful children, and large extended family.
When a stagnant weather pattern traps poisonous mill gasses in the valley, neighbors grow sicker and Rose's nursing obligations thrust her into conflict she never could have fathomed. Consequences from her past collide with her present life, making her once clear decisions as gray as the suffocating smog. As pressure mounts, Rose finds she's not the only one harboring lies. When the deadly fog finally clears, the loss of trust and faith leaves the Pavlesic family-and the whole town-splintered and shocked. With her new perspective, can Rose finally forgive herself and let her family's healing begin?

And another Kindle read .. (someday I'll buy a kindle..) I couldn't resist the $2.99 deal on this one, since I LOVED her first novel:

The House of Velvet and Glass  (April 2012) by Katherine Howe
Katherine Howe, author of the phenomenal New York Times bestseller The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, returns with an entrancing historical novel set in Boston in 1915, where a young woman stands on the cusp of a new century, torn between loss and love, driven to seek answers in the depths of a crystal ball.

Still reeling from the deaths of her mother and sister on the Titanic, Sibyl Allston is living a life of quiet desperation with her taciturn father and scandal-plagued brother in an elegant town house in Boston’s Back Bay. Trapped in a world over which she has no control, Sibyl flees for solace to the parlor of a table-turning medium.

But when her brother is suddenly kicked out of Harvard under mysterious circumstances and falls under the sway of a strange young woman, Sibyl turns for help to psychology professor Benton Derby, despite the unspoken tensions of their shared past. As Benton and Sibyl work together to solve a harrowing mystery, their long-simmering spark flares to life, and they realize that there may be something even more magical between them than a medium’s scrying glass.

From the opium dens of Boston’s Chinatown to the opulent salons of high society, from the back alleys of colonial Shanghai to the decks of the Titanic, The House of Velvet and Glass weaves together meticulous period detail, intoxicating romance, and a final shocking twist that will leave readers breathless.

Can be read as a stand-alone, makes me want to read the others!

Blue Skies Tomorrow by Sarah Sundin (Wings of Glory Book #3)
Revell, August 2011
427 pages, paperback
Christian/Historical
Review copy provided by the publisher via HNR, thank you!
Review originally posted in Historical Novels Review Magazine
Burton Book Review Rating: 3.5 stars

Lt. Raymond Novak prefers the pulpit to the cockpit, but at least his stateside job training B-17 pilots allows him the luxury of a personal life. As he courts Helen Carlisle, a young war widow and mother who conceals her pain under a frenzy of volunteer work, the sparks of their romance set a fire that flings them both into peril. After Ray leaves to fly a combat mission at the peak of the air war over Europe, Helen takes a job in a dangerous munitions yard and confronts an even graver menace in her own home. Will they find the courage to face their challenges? And can their young love survive until blue skies return?

Filled with daring and romance, Blue Skies Tomorrow will capture readers' hearts.

Helen Carlisle is almost the merry widow, until secrets of her heroic husband who died in WWII start coming back to haunt her. Helen was always happiest doing volunteer work, yet she worked for a paycheck which became commandeered by her in-laws. Wanting to leave the stressful situation behind, Helen strives to better herself and her situation. Ray Novak, older brother to the Novak brothers featured in previous Wings of Glory books, is happiest being a pastor. With a war going on, Ray feels obligated to face his fears of combat and signs on for combat duty where things take a drastic turn.

What could have been a wonderful relationship developing between Helen and Ray becomes close to impossible given all the obstacles that continually worked against each of them. As a woman in the forties, Helen faced issues of the times such as the plights of women and black people, while Ray ended up fighting for his life in his enemy's hands. Sundin's writing is fluent and natural, with a story of many facets that is entertaining and emotive. World War II enthusiasts would learn a bit from Ray's experiences, while the romantic reader will enjoy the journey of Helen and Ray. Enjoyable enough to make me want to look up the first two novels in the series.