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If you love a good mystery then you should check out this week’s spotlight!

Title: The Enemy at Home by Kevin O’Brien
Publisher: Kensington Books
Genre: Historical, Mystery
Length: 450 pages

Summary:

A serial killer preys on women in WWII-era Seattle in the New York Times bestselling author’s gripping new thriller—a blend of vivid, richly detailed historical fiction and taut suspense.

1943, Seattle. While raging war reshapes the landscape of Europe, its impact is felt thousands of miles away too. Before the war, Nora Kinney was one of countless housewives and mothers in her comfortable Capitol Hill neighborhood. Now, with her doctor husband stationed in North Africa, Nora feels compelled to do more than tend her victory garden or help with scrap metal drives . . .

At the Boeing B-17 plant, Nora learns to wield a heavy riveting gun amid the deafening noise of the assembly line—a real-life counterpart to “Rosie the Riveter” in the recruitment posters. Yet while the country desperately needs their help, not everyone is happy about “all these women” taking over men’s jobs. Nora worries that she is neglecting her children, especially her withdrawn teenage son. But amid this turmoil, a sinister tragedy occurs: One of Nora’s coworkers is found strangled in her apartment, dressed in an apron, with a lipstick smile smeared on her face.

It’s the beginning of a terrifying pattern, as women war-plant workers like Nora are targeted throughout Seattle and murdered in the same ritualistic manner. And eclipsing Nora’s fear for her safety is her secret, growing conviction that she and the killer are connected—and that the haven that was her home has become her own personal battlefield . . .

Goodreads

Purchase Links: Amazon * B&N

Teenage or adult readers who like Young Adult novels might enjoy this week’s spotlight:

Title: The Wrong Kind of Weird by James Ramos
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult
Length: 286 pages

Summary:

Cameron Carson has a secret. A secret with the power to break apart his friend group.

Cameron Carson, member of the Geeks and Nerds United (GANU) club, has been secretly hooking up with student council president, cheerleader, theater enthusiast, and all-around queen bee Karla Ortega since the summer. The one problem—what was meant to be a summer fling between coffee shop coworkers has now evolved into a clandestine senior-year entanglement, where Karla isn’t intending on blending their friend groups anytime soon, or at all.

Enter Mackenzie Briggs, who isn’t afraid to be herself or wear her heart on her sleeve. When Cameron finds himself unexpectedly bonding with Mackenzie and repeatedly snubbed in public by Karla, he starts to wonder who he can truly consider a friend and who might have the potential to become more…

Goodreads

Purchase Link: Amazon * B&N

Teenage or adult readers who like Young Adult novels might enjoy this week’s spotlight:

Title: The Name She Gave Me by Betty Culley
Publisher: HarperTeen
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult
Length: 400 pages

Summary:

A heartbreakingly beautiful novel in verse about adoption, family, friendship, and love in all its many forms, perfect for fans of Robin Benway and Jandy Nelson, from the acclaimed author of Three Things I Know Are True.

Rynn was born with a hole in her heart—literally. Although it was fixed long ago, she still feels an emptiness there when she wonders about her birth family.

As her relationship with her adoptive mother fractures, Rynn finally decides she needs to know more about the rest of her family. Her search starts with a name, the only thing she has from her birth mother, and she quickly learns that she has a younger sister living in foster care in a nearby town. But if Rynn reconnects with her biological sister, it may drive her adoptive family apart for good.

This powerful story uncovers both beautiful and heartbreaking truths and explores how challenging, yet healing, family can be.

Goodreads

Purchase Link: Amazon * B&N

Here are the eBooks for this week’s Winning Wednesday contest:

Title: By Any Other Name by Lauren Kate
Publisher: G.P. Putnam Sons
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 301 pages

Summary:

From # 1 New York Times bestselling author Lauren Kate comes an enemies-to-lovers romance about an editor, her bestselling author, and one life-changing secret.

What she doesn’t know about love could fill a book.

With a successful career as a romance editor, and an engagement to a man who checks off all ninety-nine boxes on her carefully curated list, Lanie’s more than good. She’s killing it. Then she’s given the opportunity of a lifetime: to work with world-renowned author and her biggest inspiration in love and life—the Noa Callaway. All Lanie has to do is cure Noa’s writer’s block and she’ll get the promotion she’s always dreamed of. Simple, right?

But there’s a reason no one has ever seen or spoken to the mysterious Noa Calloway. And that reason will rock Lanie’s world. It will call into question everything she thought she knew. When she finally tosses her ninety-nine expectations to the wind, Lanie may just discover that love By Any Other Name can still be as sweet.

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Title: Edgewater Road by Shelley Shepard Gray
The Rumors in Ross County Series Book One
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 289 pages

Summary:

The first in a new series from New York Times bestselling author Shelley Shepard Gray, Edgewater Road invites us into a world of family mysteries, small-town secrets, and perhaps a little romance along the way.

When Jennifer Smiley’s grandmother, Ginny, leaves her an old farmhouse on Edgewater Road in seemingly quiet Ross County, Ohio, Jennifer can’t pass up the opportunity for a new beginning. Almost immediately she meets a group of men who generously help her move in. When she realizes that they work for Lincoln Bennett, her next-door neighbor, she’s intrigued. Lincoln is gorgeous and has dark, lapis-blue eyes she could get lost in … but he doesn’t seem all that friendly. She’s torn between getting to know him and sticking with the solitude she knows so well. Maybe she could let down some of those walls she’s built around her emotions?

Lincoln Bennett likes to keep his head down and get his work done. He’s been to prison and he knows that a lot of folks don’t take kindly to a man with that kind of history. Plus, he’s busy helping other ex-cons get back on their feet. But when he meets Jennifer, he can’t help but feel an instant attraction. Will she be able to look past his unsavory history? Will she be able to accept the men he’s working so hard to help?

While Jennifer gets to know Lincoln and his friends, she also begins to unravel her grandmother’s story, putting together the pieces from scraps of memories and things she finds in her new home. She soon discovers that Ginny Smiley harbored some dark secrets on Edgewater Road—and that those secrets include both Lincoln and her own absent father. Is learning the truth worth the heartache it could bring?

As the weeks pass and she and Lincoln become closer, Jennifer learns there is a lot to uncover in Ross County—wonderful friendships, darling towns … and more than one secret that might be better left buried.

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Title: One Good Deed Deserves a Lover by Merry Farmer
After the War Series Book Five
Publisher: Oliver Heber Books
Genre: Historical, Gay, Romance
Length: 243 pages

Summary:

Lord Percy Montague is the house guest who just won’t leave. He is vain, entertaining, shallow, lascivious, and a lot of fun to have around. Which is why Lord Anthony Wodehouse is willing to let the man continue to stay. But the good liquor has been locked up, and the footmen have been warned.

Lieutenant Clarence Bond is the last man one would expect to find at a gentleman’s house party. He is gruff, boorish, outspoken, clever, and everything Percy is not. As the son of a wealthy industrialist who purchased his commission, it’s up to Clarence to improve his family’s standing in the world. But so far, he isn’t impressed with the nobility.

When Percy accidentally finds a lost child and ends up lauded as a hero—when his true purpose for being at the beach that morning was not so heroic—everyone in Yorkshire wants to celebrate him. Clarence isn’t fooled for a moment, but he is so amused by Percy’s attempt to play the hero that he goes along with the ruse…because it’s a perfect cover for his own activities.

But what starts as a laugh turns into a chance for growth, true heroism, and deep love as Clarence discovers the real reason Percy hasn’t left Wodehouse Abbey. Can Clarence step up and be the hero Percy needs, or will his own secret dealings catch up with him in the end?

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Wednesday is contest day on Book Reviews and More by Kathy. Three lucky winners will win the eBook of their choice! Here’s how to enter:

You must Do TWO of the Following:

1. Sign up for e-mail updates (below). One email daily with the day’s posts.

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Make sure you have filled out the contest entry form:

4. To be eligible to enter contests on Book Reviews and More by Kathy you MUST fill out the contest entry form (found HERE). This form only needs to be filled out ONCE. Your privacy is important to me, and I will not share your information.

And don't forget to:

5. Fill out the form below by 4 PM Mountain Time Friday afternoon:

The Winning Wednesday eBook Giveaway will be on hiatus while I recover from surgery. The giveaway will resumed March 23rd.

CONTEST OVER

* I am the only person who will have access to info that is submitted to me UNLESS a publisher or author has donated an eBook for the giveaway. For a prize donated by an author or publisher, I will forward your e-mail and format selection to the person responsible for distributing the eBook. Please refer to the privacy page HERE if you have questions about how your information is used. In the event the contest form is not working, please leave your book selection in the comments below.*

It’s that easy! The winners will be selected using random.org. I will e-mail the winners the eBook of their choice in their preferred format. The winners will be posted HERE on Saturday.

***The eBooks in this giveaway have been purchased by Book Reviews & More by Kathy.***

Title: The Highlander’s Pirate Lass by Heather McCollum
The Brothers of Wolf Isle Series Book Two
Publisher: Entangled: Scandalous
Genre: Historical, Romance
Length: 250 pages

Summary:

Eliza Wentworth is no lady. After the notorious pirate Jandeau murdered her family, she vowed to spend the rest of her life at sea, saving others. She’d rather be firing cannons than embroidering pillows—or worse, bowing to the demands of a husband. But when she’s stranded on an island off the coast of Scotland, now she is the one in need of help. And, annoyingly, that help comes not only from a man, but a man she struggles to resist.

Highlander Beck Macquarie has never met a woman like Eliza. He hasn’t met many women, period, thanks to the blasted curse set upon Wolf Isle decades ago. To save the clan, he needs a wife and bairns, and rough-around-the edges Eliza is anything but wife material. She has no intention of staying once she’s able to set sail again. He should let her go. But the desire between them is impossible to ignore.

When she asks Beck to teach her the ways of the bedroom while she bides her time on his island, he can’t say no. As they learn more about each other, though, past trauma and secrets resurface. Now, Eliza must choose between the freedom and comfort of the only life she’s ever known and sacrificing it all to save the people she loves…including Beck.

Add to Goodreads.
Add series to Goodreads.

Purchase Links: Amazon * B&N * Google Play * Apple * Kobo

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Excerpt

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Author Bio

Heather McCollum is an award-winning, historical romance writer. With over twenty books published, she is an Amazon Best Seller and a Readers’ Choice winner.

The rugged beauty and rich history of Great Britain captivates Ms. McCollum each time she visits. The country’s history and landscape have been a backdrop for her stories since her very first book.

When she is not dreaming up adventures and conflict for brawny Highlanders and feisty heroines, she spends her time educating women on the symptoms of Ovarian Cancer. She is a survivor and resides with her very own Highland hero and three spirited children in the wilds of suburbia on the mid-Atlantic coast.

Author Links: Website * Newsletter * Facebook * Twitter * Goodreads * Instagram

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Giveaway

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Title: Glory Road by Lauren K. Denton
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Genre: Contemporary, Women’s Fiction, Romance
Length: 368 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Written in Lauren Denton’s signature Southern style, Glory Road tells the story of three generations of women navigating the uncertain pathways of their hearts during a summer that promises to bring change—whether they’re ready for it or not.

“Glory Road brims with faith and family, second chances, and new horizons.” —LISA WINGATE, New York Times bestselling author of Before We Were Yours

The only thing certain is change—even in a place as steady as Perry, Alabama, on a street as old as Glory Road.

Nearly a decade after her husband’s affair drove her back home to South Alabama, Jessie McBride has the stable life she wants—operating her garden shop, Twig, next door to her house on Glory Road, and keeping up with her teenage daughter and spunky mother. But the unexpected arrival of two men makes Jessie question whether she’s really happy with the status quo.

When handsome, wealthy businessman Sumner Tate asks her to arrange flowers for his daughter’s lavish wedding, Jessie finds herself drawn to his continued attention. Then Ben Bradley, her lingering what-could-have-been from high school, moves back to the red dirt road, and she feels her heart pulled in directions she never expected.

Meanwhile, Jessie’s fourteen-year-old daughter, Evan, is approaching the start of high school and navigating a new world of emotions—particularly as they relate to the cute new guy who’s moved in just down the road. At the same time, Jessie’s mother, Gus, is suffering increasingly frequent memory lapses and faces a frightening, uncertain future.

In one summer, everything will change. But for these three strong Southern women, the roots they’ve planted on Glory Road will give life to the adventures waiting just around the curve.

Review:

Glory Road by Lauren K. Denton is a captivating, multi-generational novel set in rural Alabama.

Ten years ago, Jessie McBride moved home with her now fourteen year old daughter Evan after discovering her husband’s infidelities.  She purchased the property next door to her mother, Gus, and together, they run Twig, a nursery they are struggling to keep solvent. An unexpected opportunity falls into Jessie’s lap when wealthy golf course designer, Sumner Tate, asks her provide the flowers for his daughter’s upcoming wedding. At first reluctant to step back into the high society she left after her divorce, she decides to take the plunge with Gus’s encouragement. Jessie is also somewhat surprised when Sumner takes a personal interest in her. She is at a bit of a romantic crossroads since Ben Bradley, her high school friend and one time crush, has recently returned to town. Other changes are coming her way as Evan transitions into high school and Gus faces a frightening diagnosis.

Jessie is quite content with her life and she is uneasy with change. She works six days a week and spends the majority of her time with Gus and Evan.  Having risked her heart once before, Jessie sees no reason to change the status quo. Although uneasy about Sumner’s wealthy lifestyle, she finds him quite charming and easy to be with. Although their dates are low-key and casual, Jessie remains uncertain about a future with him. Especially since Ben is back in town and she is reminded of how deeply she felt for him before they went their separate ways.  She is also conflicted due to Ben’s situation with his teenage son Nick’s mother. Will Jessie allow herself to take a chance at happiness? Or will her fear of getting her heart broken again prevent her from becoming romantically involved?

Gus is an eclectic and spunky woman who is also quite wise. She is not afraid to speak her mind when she thinks her daughter and granddaughter need her (unsolicited) advice. She is keeping a life-altering secret since she does not want to alarm Jessie or Evan. However, once she can no longer keep the truth from them, Gus remains tightly in control of her future.  No one is more surprised than Gus when her life takes a romantic turn. But will her fears of becoming a burden prevent her from accepting this wonderful yet unanticipated opportunity for love?

Evan is also moving on to the next phase of her life as she transitions into high school. She is also experiencing her first crush. Despite these changes, Evan remains happy to spend time with her mom and grandmother. The three women are quite close but will Evan begin to pull away as she grows and matures?

Glory Road is a heartwarming novel of love, healing and new beginnings. Jessie’s story arc is the most compelling as she tries to find the courage to step out of her comfort zone.  She is also afraid to face the fears that have left her unable to overcome the heartbreak in her past. Evan is a delightful young woman who is excited about the next stage in her life. Gus accepts her diagnosis with dignity and grace and she has definite ideas about how to handle her situation. Lauren K. Denton brings the novel to a uplifting, hopeful conclusion as Jessie, Evan and Gus welcome the possibilities that lie before them. An absolutely marvelous novel that I highly recommend to readers of the genre.