Review of The Saturday Night Supper Club by Carla Laureano

About the Book ~

Denver chef Rachel Bishop has accomplished everything she’s dreamed and some things she never dared hope, like winning a James Beard Award and heading up her own fine-dining restaurant. But when a targeted smear campaign causes her to be pushed out of the business by her partners, she vows to do whatever it takes to get her life back . . . even if that means joining forces with the man who inadvertently set the disaster in motion.

Essayist Alex Kanin never imagined his pointed editorial would go viral. Ironically, his attempt to highlight the pitfalls of online criticism has the opposite effect: it revives his own flagging career by destroying that of a perfect stranger. Plagued by guilt-fueled writer’s block, Alex vows to do whatever he can to repair the damage. He just doesn’t expect his interest in the beautiful chef to turn personal.

Alex agrees to help rebuild Rachel’s tarnished image by offering his connections and his home to host an exclusive pop-up dinner party targeted to Denver’s most influential citizens: the Saturday Night Supper Club. As they work together to make the project a success, Rachel begins to realize Alex is not the unfeeling opportunist she once thought he was, and that perhaps there’s life―and love―outside the pressure-cooker of her chosen career. But can she give up her lifelong goals without losing her identity as well?

For more information about Carla Laureano and her books, check out her website here!

My Thoughts ~

Everyone has that favorite food or dish (and coffee counts) that makes their heart smile whenever they think of it. That's what it's like when you read The Saturday Night Supper Club by Carla Laureano.

Don't believe me? Read it. I dare you. ;-)

This adorable foodie novel made me hungry the entire time I read it, and I still don't know if that's a pro or a con. ;-) The descriptions of the food are scrumptious and delectable, but you don't have to be into cooking to enjoy it - thank goodness! Haha! Sometimes foodie novels can feel a tad pretentious (but I may be inferring that thanks to my own inferior cooking skills), however, The Saturday Night Supper Club felt like one of those novels where you are catching up with a close friend. Carla Laureano did a marvelous job describing the Denver food scene, including using real restaurants to inspire the ones in the story!

I loved Alex and Rachel! Alex is a hunky writer (nonfiction, but I won't hold that against him). *swoon* His passion for serving God in such a pure way challenges you, and I loved his Russian heritage. My family has a special connection with Russia, so I loved gleaning those cultural titbits! Rachel is a talented, driven woman with a painful past and a timid love for God. You just want to hug her and be her friend.

And I got to say that I loved the angle social media played in this story. For me, it was refreshing to see how social media can be used for not only good, but also how people use it to harshly judge and do battle over skewed comments, something that's important to keep in mind. But ultimately, this is a story about savoring the joys God has given you, including your own uniqueness.

Five Stars ~ This fun and flirty foodie novel makes the perfect weekend read!! The Saturday Night Supper Club is the first book in Carla Laureano's delicious new Supper Club Series. I can't wait to devour the next book, Brunch at Bittersweet Café, available the spring of 2019! *drools with anticipation*

I received a copy of The Saturday Night Supper Club by Carla Laureano published by Tyndale from the Tyndale Blog Network. All opinions expressed are my own.

See you next time, and God bless you guys!!!

Hugs!

~V. Joy Palmer

V. Joy Palmer is the author of Love, Lace, and Minor Alterations and a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. She is also an avid blogger and co-founder of Snack Time Devotions. In her spare time, Joy is an unprofessional chocolate connoisseur/binger, and she loves acting crazy and drinking coffee with the teens she mentors. When Joy isn’t urging the elves that live in her computer to write, she’s hanging out with her husband, their adorable baby girl, and their socially awkward pets.

Review of A Light on the Hill by Connilyn Cossette

About the Book ~

Though Israel has found relative peace, Moriyah has yet to find her own. Attempting to avoid the scorn of her community, she's spent the last seven years hiding behind the veil she wears. Underneath her covering, her face is branded with the mark of the Canaanite gods, a shameful reminder of her past captivity in Jericho and an assurance that no man will ever want to marry her.

When her father finds a widower who needs a mother for his two sons, her hopes rise. But when their introduction goes horribly wrong, Moriyah is forced to flee for her life. Seeking safety at one of the newly established Levitical cities of refuge, she is wildly unprepared for the dangers she will face and the enemies--and unexpected allies--she will encounter on her way.

For more information about Connilyn Cossette and her books, check out her website here!

My Thoughts ~ 
 
I just...I can't...I can't even BEGIN to tell you how much I absolutely, utterly, completely ADORED A Light on the Hill! Prepare for a gushfest!
 
A Light on the Hill tells Moriyah's journey after the events of Wings of the Wind, the third book in the Out From Egypt Series. I squealed, shrieked, and did a little dance when I found out Moriyah was going to have her own story! Seriously. No shame. Her story could just not be over, and now, after finally getting the rest of her story, I'm having a hard time accepting it because I want more!

*silently screams*

*regains composure*

Anyways, the twists and turns (no spoilers here!) of this girl-on-the-run story will have the pages flying by you faster than you can drink your coffee. A Light on the Hill is told entirely from Moriyah's perspective, and my heart just wants to hug her. Many a heart will relate to her struggles with being in a prison of her own making, only to find spiritual freedom in what so many consider a physical prison. Your soul will rejoice as Moryiah looks past the mark on her face, finally seeing the woman God sees.

AND THE ROMANCE! OH. MY! *SWOONS* And yes, it was necessary to capitalize all that. The romance was one of the most beautiful, breathtaking, swoony romances that I've ever read! And I know romance, my friends. <3

One of the unique aspects of Connilyn Cossette's Biblical Fiction stories is that they are not retellings (which I also love!), but they are stories with relatable characters set in Bible days. The author does a lot of research so that her stories are Biblically accurate and true to the culture. In her Author's Note, she shares some of her research and places where she may have had to take artistic license.
 
Five Stars ~ A stunning start to what I'm sure will be a stunning series! A Light on the Hill is the first book in Connilyn Cossette's new Cities of Refuge Series! Waiting for the next book, Shelter of the Most High, is going to be very hard! *impatient squealing* If you are new to Connilyn Cossette's novels, then you can/should check out my review for Shadow of the Storm, the second book in her Out From Egypt Series. While A Light on the Hill builds on what happened in the third book, Wings of the Wind, it is not necessary to read the Out From Egypt Series first. I think it's more fun if you do, but to each their own... ;-) 

I received a copy of A Light on the Hill by Connilyn Cossette from Bethany House Publishers, a division of Baker Publishing Group. All opinions expressed are my own.

See you next time, and God bless you guys!!!

Hugs!

~V. Joy Palmer

V. Joy Palmer is the author of Love, Lace, and Minor Alterations and a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. She is also an avid blogger and co-founder of Snack Time Devotions. In her spare time, Joy is an unprofessional chocolate connoisseur/binger, and she loves acting crazy and drinking coffee with the teens she mentors. When Joy isn’t urging the elves that live in her computer to write, she’s hanging out with her husband, their adorable baby girl, and their socially awkward pets.

The Story Behind the Story

I've always been a romantic.

Lacy wedding dresses, first kisses, winks, and secret smiles - they all make my heart swoon!

So it wasn't just natural for me to write stories with some serious romance vibes, it was like breathing - natural and necessary. Honestly, I could write a whole other post about the God-given beauty in romance. Maybe another day... ;-)

While Love, Lace, and Minor Alterations is not an exclusive tell-all, let's just say that there are definitely some themes that were draw from my own experiences in the romance department. And one of the key ingredients to Love, Lace, and Minor Alterations is trust in God, something I excel at. Not.

When I started writing this story, I was very single. I tended to binge-watch Say Yes to the Dress and fret about my lack of love life. And I loved this guy. We'll call him "Luke." And Luke cared about me, too. Had for years. Be we had never pursued a relationship because we went to a small Christian school where dating was a capital offense. The unofficial plan was that we would pursue a relationship once we had both graduated. That day came, went, and many months few from the pages of the calendar. I thought this was God's plan, but nothing was happening. I had a lot of those, "God, come on!" moments. One day I started venting my frustration writing, and Izze, my main character, started chattering in my head. I'd always been obsessed with weddings, and the idea of a single woman in the wedding business who wanted to get married and was fed up with the leading man seemed to be right up my emotional alley.

I started and stopped and rewrote this story many, many times. During one of the "stopped" phases, this guy FINALLY asked me out. But it was really awkward and weird. However, I was still sure this was just a dead squirrel on the path to Happily Ever After.

Three days later, Luke said we should just be friends.

Naturally, I binge-ate a lot of chocolate.

What followed was a particularly confusing and painful season for me. God and I may have exchanged some angry words... Okay, they were my angry words. But the more I turned to God, the more He whispered this message to my heart of hearts: I needed to trust Him.

This was SOOO not easy, especially when Luke started volunteering at the youth group where I was a youth leader, so I had to see him even more. I tried bargaining like, "God, if I trust you, then You need to do this for me." Shocker, but that didn't work out so well. I just needed to trust God and put Him first in my life. He would sort out the details. And He showed me again and again that He was - and is - trustworthy.

Today, that guy and I are married, and we have a beautiful little girl.

 

I don't regret our separation. In fact, I'm actually glad it happened because it taught me to rely on God in a way I never had before those hard days. My husband went through a similar journey with God, and I believe we are stronger together because we learned to trust God when we were apart.

When people read Love, Lace, and Minor Alterations, I hope they laugh a lot and enjoy Izze and Miles' story. But most importantly, I hope they see that they can trust God with their hearts. Because He has the very best in store for them. He loves to give us beauty for ashes.

Isabel “Izze” Vez, bridal consultant extraordinaire, has been helping brides find The Dress for years. She loves nothing more than helping make wedding dreams come true…but sometimes the happy endings grate on her. How many times can a girl discover someone else’s gown without dreaming of the day it’ll be her turn to wear one?

When James Miles Clayton walks into her life, he represents everything Izze can’t handle: change. He’s determined to bring the Ever After Bridal Boutique into the black…and to prove to Izze that she should give him a chance.

But if there’s anything Izze handles worse than change, it’s trust. She may have a few issues—fine, she knows she does. But will they keep getting in the way of any chance of her own Happily Ever After? She wants to trust God to give her those dreams of love and lace, but that’s going to require some…minor alterations.

 

Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Books-A-Million!

  

P.S. My apologies if you've read this story before, as this is an updated post from last year. I wanted to be able to refer and share this story with my amazing bookish people without referring them to a post with an event that has ended. I may be a bit twisted, but I'm not that cruel. ;-)

 

God bless you, my friends!

 

Hugs! <3

 

~V. Joy Palmer

V. Joy Palmer is the author of Love, Lace, and Minor Alterations and a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. She is also an avid blogger and co-founder of Snack Time Devotions. In her spare time, Joy is an unprofessional chocolate connoisseur/binger, and she loves acting crazy and drinking coffee with the teens she mentors. When Joy isn’t urging the elves that live in her computer to write, she’s hanging out with her husband, their adorable baby girl, and their socially awkward pets.

 



Review of The Lost Castle by Kristy Cambron

About the Book ~

Ellie Carver arrives at her grandmother’s bedside expecting to find her silently slipping away. Instead, the beloved woman begins speaking. Of a secret past and castle ruins forgotten by time. Of a hidden chapel that served as a rendezvous for the French Resistance in World War II. Of lost love and deep regret . . .

Each piece that unlocks the story seems to unlock part of Ellie too—where she came from and who she is becoming. But her grandmother is quickly disappearing into the shadows of Alzheimer’s and Ellie must act fast if she wants to uncover the truth of her family’s history. Drawn by the mystery surrounding The Sleeping Beauty—a castle so named for Charles Perrault’s beloved fairy tale—Ellie embarks on a journey to France’s Loire Valley in hopes that she can unearth its secrets before time silences them forever.

Bridging the past to the present in three time periods—the French Revolution, World War II, and present day—The Lost Castle is a story of loves won and lost, of battles waged in the hearts of men, and of an enchanted castle that stood witness to it all, inspiring a legacy of faith through the generations.

For more information about Kristy Cambron and her books, check out her website here!

My Thoughts ~

Kristy Cambron has written a fairy tale that should go down in history! Who cares that this particular story is fiction? History books, you've been warned. *deadpan stare*

The Lost Castle weaves together a present day search into the past, all the drama of a girl-on-the-run World War Two story, and the angst of the French Revolution. The modern storyline built more off of the World War Two storyline, but you see beautiful hints of the French Revolution storyline peppered throughout them, too. The heroines are spunky and endearing. While I especially loved Quinn, each of the heroes are dashing and worthy of a good swoon in their own unique ways. The gorgeous romance takes your breath away, and you may find yourself tearing up before you've reach the end of the novel.

As a fan of all things vintage, I've thoroughly enjoyed Kristy Cambron's novels and her vintage writing flare! The Lost Castle was no exception! The end result of these equally enchanting stories will have you blotting your eyes with the soul-deep knowing that something powerful, beautiful, and strong can stand the test of time. That God was, is, and always will be the Master Builder of our walls. <3

Four Stars ~ The Lost Castle is breathtaking, bittersweet, and beautiful! The Lost Castle is a timeslip novel, and make note (grab some paper!) that you will want to devour the author's other vintage novels immediately! Check out my review for her pervious novel, The Illusionist's Apprentice, if you don't believe me. Amazing!

I received a copy of The Lost Castle by Kristy Cambron published by Thomas Nelson from BookLook Bloggers. All opinions expressed are my own.

See you next time, and God bless you guys!!!

Hugs!

~V. Joy Palmer

V. Joy Palmer is the author of Love, Lace, and Minor Alterations and a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. She is also an avid blogger and co-founder of Snack Time Devotions. In her spare time, Joy is an unprofessional chocolate connoisseur/binger, and she loves acting crazy and drinking coffee with the teens she mentors. When Joy isn’t urging the elves that live in her computer to write, she’s hanging out with her husband, their adorable baby girl, and their socially awkward pets.