Book: Always on my Mind

I have read other books in this series about the Christiansen Family and expected to enjoy this one like I have the others. I was not disappointed!  Today I'd like to tell you about book 4 called Always on my Mind by Susan May Warren.

About the book:After a failed dig in Honduras, aspiring archaeologist Casper Christiansen heads home to Minnesota to face his unresolved feelings for Raina Beaumont, the woman of his dreams. But when he arrives unannounced on her doorstep, he receives the shock of a lifetime: Raina is pregnant with someone else’s baby.

Heartbroken, especially when he discovers the identity of the baby’s father, Casper tables his dreams and determines to be dependable for once, helping his older brother, Darek, prepare the family resort for its grand reopening. Casper longs to be the hero of at least one family story, but a never-ending Deep Haven winter and costly repairs threaten their efforts—and the future of the resort.

Worse, one of Casper’s new jobs constantly brings him into contact with Raina, whom he can’t seem to forget. A tentative friendship begins to heal fresh wounds, but can they possibly overcome past mistakes and current choices to discover a future together? 

My thoughts:

I have enjoyed all the books I've read by Susan May Warren.  Her characters seem so real, and I enjoy her writing style.  I appreciate the close-knit family of the Christiansens and how they seem like a realistic family with real problems and struggles.  

In this book I liked the mystery/treasure hunt that Casper and Raina work on together.  I saw a deeper meaning than just the treasure hunt on the surface though; both Casper and Raina were looking for their own treasures even though they may not realize it.  I thought the author did a good job of weaving these two characters' stories together in a believable way.  They both have such pain in their heart because of their pasts.  

If you have read other books in this series, you will see those main characters pop up throughout this book as well which I like. This book can be read alone if you haven't read the others though.  I look forward to the next book in the series!  

Thank you to Tyndale House Publishers for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book.
Have a day of blessings!
 

When I Fall in Love

I have (finally) finished When I Fall in Love by Susan May Warren. It took me a while to finish because of everything going on lately. The book was a fabulous story that I recommend to you. I've read others by this author and enjoy her characters and writing style. This book is "a Christiansen family novel."

About the book: 

Come home to the Christiansens—where faith and family meet real life.
Hawaii was the last place Grace Christiansen ever imagined she’d vacation, much less fall in love. But when her family surprises her with a cooking retreat in paradise, she is pulled—or maybe yanked—away from her predictable, safe life and thrown headfirst into the adventure of a lifetime.

Maxwell Sharpe may make his living on the ice as a pro hockey player, but he feels most at home in the kitchen. Which is why he lives for the three-week culinary vacation he takes each year in Hawaii. Upon being paired with Grace for a cooking competition, Max finds himself drawn to her passion, confidence, and perseverance. But just when Grace dares to dream of a future beyond her hometown, Max pulls away.

Wrestling with personal demons, Max fights against opening his heart to a love he knows he should never hope for. And as his secrets unfold, Grace is torn between the safe path in front of her and what her heart truly desires. If love means sacrificing her ideal happily ever after, Grace’s faith will face its toughest test yet. 

My thoughts:

Grace and Max grow close through their cooking classes. I liked both of these characters and wanted them both to make the "right" decision about their relationship. I could see them growing in this story. Grace was very fearful at the beginning and it was a stretch for her to even leave her hometown for this vacation. It was nice to see the changes she experienced throughout the book. 

Others of the Christiansen family are included in this book, and I am looking forward to see what happens with those characters and their problems in future books. I liked how these characters were weaves into Grace and Max' story. 

Another plus of this book was the setting. It was fun to read about the sights and foods of Hawaii. 

I hope you will check out this book and others by this author. I look forward to the next release in this series. 

Thank you to Tyndale Blog Network for sending this book to me for my review. 

Have a day of blessings!

Take a Chance on Me

 

Today I have a book called Take a Chance on Me by Susan May Warren.  I recently read another book by this author and was glad for the opportunity to review this book in this new series.  (Apparently I left this in draft mode.  It was supposed to publish the 18th.)

About the book:
Darek Christiansen is almost a dream bachelor—oldest son in the large Christiansen clan, heir to their historic Evergreen Lake Resort, and doting father. But he’s also wounded and angry since the tragic death of his wife, Felicity. No woman in Deep Haven dares come near.

New assistant county attorney Ivy Madison simply doesn’t know any better when she bids on Darek at the charity auction. Nor does she know that when she crafted a plea bargain three years ago to keep Jensen Atwood out of jail and in Deep Haven fulfilling community service, she was releasing the man responsible for Felicity’s death. All Ivy knows is that the Christiansens feel like the family she’s always longed for. And once she gets past Darek’s tough exterior, she finds a man she could spend the rest of her life with. Which scares her almost as much as Darek learning of her involvement in his wife’s case.

Caught between new love and old grudges, Darek must decide if he can set aside the past for a future with Ivy—a future more and more at risk as an approaching wildfire threatens to wipe out the Christiansen resort and Deep Haven itself.

My thoughts:  This was a very enjoyable book to read.  The characters are interesting and it seems easy to relate to them becuase of their problems.  They each have struggles with doubting God cares for them, unforgiveness, hatred, and anger.    I enjoyed getting to know the Chistiansen family in this book and look forward to reading more in future books in this series. 

Author Q & A: 
1. This is the first installment in a brand new six-book series. Can you give us a bit of background on this series?
I love stories about families – watching the members interact and grow together through challenges and victories – and I conceived this series as I watched my own children begin to grow up and deal with romance and career and futures. I love Deep Haven, and it’s the perfect setting for a resort, so I crafted a family, much like the families I know, who run a resort. They want to pass on their legacy to their children…but their children don’t know if they want it. It’s sort of a parallel theme to the legacy of faith we instill in our children. As they grow older, they need to decide whether it is their faith too. It’s a saga about family and faith and what happens when those collide with real life.

2.  This Christiansen Family series is set in Deep Haven, Minnesota. Tell us about this setting.
Deep Haven, Minnesota is based in a small vacation town in northern Minnesota where I spent my childhood. It’s located on Lake Superior, surrounded by pine and birch and the sense of small town and home. Populated by everyone from artists to lumberjacks, it’s Mitford, or perhaps Northern Exposure gone Minnesotan. Quaint, quirky and beautiful, it’s the perfect place to escape for a vacation.
3. What was your inspiration for this particular book and the main character Darek Christiansen?
As I started to put together this series, I began to think about our culture and our children today. I started to take a look at the big questions we are faced with as parents – and as young people; the issues that affect us as a culture, as well as personally. I wanted these books to go beyond family drama, beyond a great romance to raise bigger questions and stir truths that we might pass along to others. This story is about our propensity in our culture to blame others for what goes wrong in our lives – and how this alienates us from each other, and ultimately, God. Darek is the oldest brother in the family; the leader and a real hero. He’s a wildland firefighter and a widower who’s had to give up his job to come home and run the resort and care for his young son. Darek doesn’t realize he has a problem – he lives with anger on his shoulder, hating the man who killed his wife (his best friend). His real problem is that he can’t forgive himself. In this first story, readers meet the family, hang out at the resort and discover that God can redeem even a heart of stone, if we take a chance on Him.

4. What lessons or truths will your readers find in the pages of this novel? This book is for the person who feels they just can’t get past the anger they have for someone else to live in joy again. It’s for parents who see their children making bad choices and don’t know where to turn. It’s for people who believe that no one will ever really love them because of who they are, or the things they’ve done. It’s for people who need the courage to take a second chance on love and faith and family. I’m hoping readers walk away with a sense of how much God loves them, and that yes, He can heal the angry and broken-hearted.

5. How do you expect this new series to resonate with your audience? How do you want your books to make them feel? Great question! I love a story that brings me on an emotional journey from anger to laughter to hope. But most of all, I want readers to be wrapped up in joy, that feeling we get when watch our football team win, or when we’re hands up in a convertible on a hot summer day, or digging our feet into a sandy beach, or hugging our loved one when they return home. Ah. The sense that, just for a moment, all is right in the world and everything tastes and feels delicious. I write romances, and in the end it’s worth the journey to the happily ever after.
6. As a writer, what did you particularly enjoy about crafting this story?
I loved Darek’s transformation. His relationship with his son is so precious, but when he truly lets go of his anger, he becomes the hero I always knew he could be. I love writing about broken heroes who find healing.
7. What advice do you have for budding novelists?
Read! Then write the book you’d like to read.  But, along the way, learn the craft. In fact, a good writer never stops learning.

8. What is the best advice or encouragement that you have received?
Just keep writing. If you want to be a career novelist, you just have to keep writing.
9. In your writing career, what are you most proud of?
After over forty novels, I’m always striving to keep the stories fresh and unique; so I guess I’m proud that every book is bathed in prayer, has a message singular to that story, and has unique characters and journeys. Every story is a new adventure for me, and the reader.

Click here for Chapter 1!  Find out  more about the book here.

Thank you to Tyndale House Publishers for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book.

Have a day of blessings!

You Don't Know Me

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About the book:
To everyone who knows her, Annalise Decker is a model wife and mother. She’s a permanent member of the PTA, never misses her kids’ sporting events, and is constantly campaigning for her husband’s mayoral race.

No one knows that Annalise was once Deidre O’Reilly, a troubled young woman whose testimony put a dangerous criminal behind bars. Relocated through the Witness Security Program to the sleepy town of Deep Haven, Deidre got a new identity and a fresh start, which began when she fell in love with local real estate agent Nathan Decker. Twenty years later, Annalise couldn’t be more unprepared for her past to catch up with her. When Agent Frank Harrison arrives with news that the man she testified against is out on bail and out for revenge, Annalise is forced to face the consequences of her secrets. Will she run again, or will she finally find the grace to trust those she loves most with both her past and her future?

My thoughts:
I saw this book reviewed over at Mocha with Linda.  I found it at our library and checked it out to read myself.  I just now got around to reading it and didn't want to put it down.  I really enjoyed this story.  This was my first time to read Susan May Warren, and I will definitely watch for more from this author.

I could not imagine Annalise's life or how she kept her secret for twenty years.  I enjoyed the story and how the characters developed through the book. One character I found as an interesting addition to the story was Tucker, who was the boyfriend of Annalise's daughter.  Annalise did not like him because she saw her own self in how she thought her daughter was acting.  She didn't want her daughter to make the same mistakes she did and ended up judging Tucker based on what she thought she saw or knew about him. 

I would like to leave you with this line I liked like from when the family attended a church service together..."Do not let your circumstances define God's love for you. He loves you. Period."

Have a day of blessings!