Available in paperback at Walmart, or online from your favorite audio or eBook retailer.
Title: The Gathering Table by Kathryn Springer
Publisher: Love Inspired Trade
Genre: Contemporary, Christian, Women’s Fiction
Length: 332 pages
Summary:
From USA TODAY bestselling author Kathryn Springer comes a tale of starting over when life takes an unexpected turn.
Winsome Lake, Wisconsin, is postcard-pretty, but for chef Jessica Keaton it’s also a last resort. Fired from her dream job, Jess is starting over as a live-in cook and housekeeper. When she arrives, she finds her new employer is in rehab after having a stroke, and Jess expects she’ll be all alone in Elaine Haviland’s quaint house. A chef with no one to cook for.
But instead, she encounters a constant stream of colorful visitors who draw her back into the world. As Jess contends with local teenagers, a group of scrappy women and a charming football coach, Elaine faces some battles of her own that extend past her physical challenges. For both of them, all the ingredients for a fulfilling life are within reach, if they’re willing to take a leap. And maybe Jess will start to see that it’s not just what’s on the table that matters—it’s the people gathered round it.
A must-read novel from Love Inspired: Stories to Uplift and Inspire.
Read my review HERE.
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Purchase Links: Amazon * B&N * Harlequin
Excerpt #5
A week ago Jess would have believed her.
Gwyneth Donovan’s annual, by-invitation-only Fourth of July bash had exceeded her expectations. And Jess’s, too. The guests raved about the food, demanded to know when Jess was going to share her talent with the rest of the world.
Soon, she’d wanted to say.
And then, a few hours later, her world had fallen apart.
Jess’s hands fisted at her sides and she felt the edges of the key dig into her palm. She winced and loosened her grip before it made an imprint as deep as the image of Ian Holden’s expression when he reached for her…
A car rolled past, but the driver appeared more interested in Jess than the road.
One of the many reasons she avoided small towns. Everyone knew who belonged…and who didn’t.
Jess waited until the vehicle rounded the corner before she followed the cobblestone path to Elaine Haviland’s front porch. A pair of wicker chairs rocked in the breeze, but two things stopped Jess from setting up camp there while she considered her next step.
The lack of privacy and the need for a bathroom.
She pulled in a breath, fit the key in the lock and gave it a turn. The door opened into a tunnel of wallpaper roses. A straw hat crowned the top of an old-fashioned coatrack, and an eclectic collection of jackets dangled from its spindly arms.
A mental picture of Elaine Haviland began to form in Jess’s head. She followed the hand-hooked rug, a faded yellow brick road, down the corridor and turned right into the living room.
Jess expected dark paneling, crocheted doilies and dusty knickknacks. The baby grand piano that took up half the space stopped her in her tracks. The furnishings, out of deference to the piano, were minimal. Not a porcelain figurine in sight. A small sofa and chair shrouded in ivory muslin curved around the brick fireplace like a smile.
And just when Jess was beginning to think that first impressions weren’t always accurate, she stepped into the kitchen.
Author Bio
Kathryn Springer grew up in a small town where her parents published a weekly newspaper. As a child, she spent hours sitting at her mother’s typewriter, plunking out stories, and credits her parents for instilling in her a love of reading – which turned into a desire to tell stories of her own.
Kathryn has written over thirty books and lives and writes on a lake in northern Wisconsin. She enjoys long walks in the woods and the change of seasons (although sometimes she wishes the “change” between winter and spring didn’t last quite so long!) When Kathryn isn’t at the computer, she’s spending time with family and friends, paging through cooking magazines or sitting in the sun. A really, really good day includes all three!
Author Links: Website * Facebook * Goodreads * Instagram
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