High As The Heavens Review

 

You know every time I read a new book from this author it’s better and better. She is a fine story crafter. High as The Heaves is so very well written. I loved it. I seriously did! It’s a story told in a setting so believably real with characters so well developed you fall for them. The research and the details meticulously done and the book well-written and seamless. I will say gladly this is a must read for those like me who love historical fiction. Even if you don’t, this one may change our mind.

I enjoyed Kate’s other novels, truly, but this one is the high point of her writing career in my opinion. This author just improves and gets better every time.

Eve’s secrets just about undo her, and the plot twists and turns and keeps you guessing. The bad guys are bad and who knows who the good guys are? Who can you trust in war time, occupied by the enemy and surrounded by spies and agents, double agents and a liability every place you turn? Trying to rescue and help those who need help, protecting those who need protection and even trying to protect those who don’t know they need it. The main character in this novel rarely sleeps and that will be your lot too when you get involved with her story- sleepless nights because it’s hard to put this book down.

Of course there’s romance. I can tell you there’s a love story interweaved in a dangerous web of lies and deceit. This is a novel you will want your best friend to read, but you’ll want it back to read again later if you’re anything like me.

Romance, danger, faith, strong characters and a wild ride. What’s not to like?

~~~~~~~~~~

About

A British nurse in WWI German-occupied Brussels, Evelyn Marche spends her days at the hospital and her nights working at a café . . . or so it seems. Eve’s most carefully guarded secret is that she also spends her nights carrying out dangerous missions as a spy for a Belgian resistance group.

When a plane crashes as she’s en route to a rendezvous, Eve is the first to reach the downed plane and is shocked to recognize the badly injured pilot as British RFC Captain Simon Forrester. She risks her life to conceal him from the Germans, but as the secrets between them grow and the danger mounts, can they still hope to make it out of Belgium alive?

Kate Breslin

A Florida girl who migrated to the Pacific Northwest, Kate Breslin was a bookseller for many years. She is the author of For Such a Time and lives with her husband in Seattle, Washington. Find her online at http://www.katebreslin.com.

*I was given this book from Bethany House Publishers in order to review

Summer Livin’

I’m sure some of you spend summers traveling and lolling about in lounge chairs, reading by your pool. Well, lots of people around here do that anyway. It’s hot! I love those things too, and I’m already nut-brown, which is an act of God Almighty for this freckled woman of Irish and Swedish descent; but bound to happen if there’s enough time in the hot desert sun.

 

I’m spending my afternoons reading good fiction, eating campari tomatoes with mineral salts and sublime garlic and rosemary chèvre I’ve made from the milk of my pet goats. I’m feeling very bohemian these days, sipping sun tea or else my own twice fermented berry kombucha.

Evenings are for grilling on the Traegar, watering the flowers and hanging out with the grown up kids or else reading books on writing.

Always there are the myriad of chores required when a person like me owns horses, goats, sheep, chickens, cats, dogs and a goose. Then there’s the Sugar Gliders, tortoise, fish, indoor plants and various ferments on the kitchen counter that all require daily care and feeding.

Once in awhile I clean up the house and do some laundry…so no, I don’t go on vacation. I do mini vacays at home. I live on a ranch surrounded on every side by either more horses or else apple orchards. Many people would pay money to come here and I don’t lose sight of that. A mini vacation for me means brewing up a good goat milk mocha cappuccino and immersing into a good read. Preferably in the sunshine lounging next to the kiddie pool while the little people splash and argue over something stupid. Like a rock. But hey, kids. Maybe we can scratch that last part and describe the vacation with the kids away for the day.

😄

Yes, that’s better.

I’ve always treated myself to as many quiet mornings in my Bible as possible, followed of course by the inevitable milking of the gots and the rest of chores . However, it’s made more palatable by the fact that I know I can either choose to make a cheddar cheese, batch of feta, chèvre or even goat milk soap.

Recently my youngest son and I attended and were even entered (this time) in a miniature dairy goat show. It was something we could do together and help him develop some social skills and livestock showing skills. It turned out to be great fun and we will likely do it again next year. The little red dueling pictured took a 1st and we were surprised and pleased by that.

Come to think of it, I’m still crazy busy, it just seems more relaxing for the afternoons in the sun. Maybe being tan makes me feel like I’ve accomplished more relaxation and self-care than I actually have. Who cares, I’m tan.

Maybe I’ll get a pedicure and that will make it seem like I’m pampering and resting.

 

 

 

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Back In The Saddle Review

Ruth Logan Herne…

What more an I say that I haven’t already said about this wonderful author from my reviews of her other two books in this trilogy?

I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw that Blogging For Books was offering this book up for reviews after already being able to read and review book #2 then #3. It’s so rare to be able to get review copies for an entire series.

I was thrilled because I so enjoyed the others. The books are wholesome and well-written inspiration western fiction romance. How’s that for a mouthful? I don’t even know if I got that in the right order, but whatever. All you need to know is the books are a good escape in a crazy world.

I really enjoyed the story of how Colt and Angelina fell in love. Knowing the characters from the other books, I was pretty curious as to how their romance came about. This book didn’t disappoint. Great characters, a richly beautiful and vibrant setting you can get lost in. I loved this book and all 3 books in the series. If you’re looking for some summer reading, these will definitely do. But you’ll have to get your own. I’ve already lent these to a friend. 🙂

From the Publisher’s website:

About Back in the Saddle

The Prodigal Is Coming Home

It’s been a long time since Colt Stafford shrugged off his cowboy legacy for shiny Manhattan loafers and a promising career on Wall Street. But when stock market manipulations leave him financially strapped, the oldest son of legendary rancher Sam Stafford decides to return to the sprawling Double S ranch in Gray’s Glen, Washington. He’s broke, but not broken, and it’s time to get his legs back under him by climbing into the saddle again.

He doesn’t expect to come home to a stranger pointing a loaded gun at his chest— a tough yet beautiful woman that Sam hired as the house manager. Colt senses there’s more to Angelina Morales than meets the eye, and he’s determined to find out what she’s hiding…and why.

Colt’s return brings new challenges. Younger brother Nick, who’s longbeen Sam’s right-hand man,isn’t thrilled when Colt inserts himself into Double S affairs. And the ranch’s contentious relationship with the town’s people forces  all the Stafford men to reconsider what it truly means to be a neighbor.  As Wall Street recovers, will Colt succumb to the call of the financial district—or stay in the saddle for good?

 

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

She Doesn’t Know Me But

I love this woman at church. I’ve never met her, but I see her every week. She sits in a row in the middle like me, about 3 rows ahead of me. Yes, we are both obviously  creatures of habit; another reason to love her.

I see the back of her head all service, so it’s really her hair that strikes the chord. That amazing, big, teased and sprayed goofy hair. I grew up with women who did their hair just like that. Gramma, mom, and aunts. That hair, teased up to heaven and sprayed was an ungodly sight. It signified fast, loose women who smoked, cultivated dirty minds and flirted and swore like sailors. How I loved and hated them at times, those women. But man, we danced in the kitchen and were baudy and funny.

On good days those women included me in the familial feminine circle, and taught me to apply make-up with a heavy hand and tease my hair. They cooked delicious food when they were motherly and domestic feeling, and made our family a community. A large, dysfunctional, messy group, but we loved each other. Back in those days, when Gramma, her Ronald mcDonald red hair, shampooed and set every friday, and Grampa, the greasy slicked back stuck-in-the-50’s hair- handsome and funny, were the glue that held the family together. Albeit by a tiny, tenuous thread. They’re gone now- Gramma and Gramma, my constants and my champions. But I miss them, and I miss the way the family was then in some respects. We belonged to each other and had each other’s backs, even if the adults were known to stab each other in it once or twice.

So that woman in church, she reminds me of a childhood time when I belonged to a bunch of foul -mouthed women with big hair and kohl-lined eyes. Only they would never step foot in a church. I loved them, so I love her. Don’t stop coming to church lady!