contemporary women’s fiction

Facing the Dawn by Cynthia Ruchti

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by Sandra Merville Hart

A page turner!

Mara Jacobs is hanging on by a thread. Trying to raise three children on her own while Liam, her husband, is in Africa on a four-year mission has stretched her to the breaking point. He’s digging wells to provide clean, healthy drinking water to villages where none was available while she struggles to keep her head above water.

He has offered to come home several times, especially when their son was arrested. Mara assured him that she was capable of handling the situation on her own.

Only she wasn’t. Then tragedy strikes.

The author uses deep point of view in a story told entirely from the main character’s perspective. It allows readers to experience her emotions, her thoughts, and her grief.

This multi-layered story was difficult to read. The first third of it was especially hard to get through—very emotional, negative.

I’m glad I stuck with it because the story gripped me soon after. I couldn’t put it down. Lots of surprising twists and turns snagged my interest and didn’t let go.

This isn’t the first novel I’ve read by this talented author. I will look for more. Recommend!

Christianbook.com

A Fork in the Road by Shelia Stovall

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by Sandra Merville Hart

A Weldon novella

The author was giving this novella away as part of a promotion and I was happy to read her new book. I have grown to love the characters in this series and this short novella was no exception.

Dr. Sparky Compton has returned to her Kentucky hometown of Weldon, but she’s basically passing through. She’s been asked to work in the local doctor’s practice. That won’t happen as she intends to accept a research position.

Newcomer Carson Williams is the most eligible bachelor in town. Suffering from PTSD, the handsome stranger just wants to be left alone.

Fate has other plans.

This was a quick, easy read that took me to a place I’m learning to love—Weldon.

The Trouble in Willow Falls by Pat Nichols

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Willow Falls Series Book 2

Willow Falls is a quaint town in North Georgia. Unfortunately, that town is dying.

Emily Hayes, mother of twin baby girls, has difficulty finding time to rewrite her recently rejected novel. Her husband doesn’t know how long he can keep their store open with dwindling numbers of customers.

Rachel Streetman, Emily’s twin, pursues an acting career in nearby Atlanta.

Emily and Rachel both agree to put aside their careers to write and direct a play that just might bring tourists back to Willow Falls.

This story is filled with twists and turns that I didn’t anticipate, bringing constant challenges to the townspeople. Minor characters add depth and dimension in a refreshing way. So much effort is spent to save the dying town that the town itself almost seems like another character.

I am a fan of small towns, especially those that feel their heyday is in the past. Sometimes all it takes is a few people to believe in the possibilities and that is what this book demonstrates. I was pulling for the characters and the town throughout the novel.

I enjoyed this novel by Pat Nichols and am wondering what may happen in Book 3.

-Sandra Merville Hart

Amazon

Between Us Girls by Sally John

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Book 1 of Family of the Heart Series

There are a lot of characters in this book. The story is told in the viewpoint of several of them, making it initially difficult to bond with them or understand how they all fit together.

A tornado destroys Jasmyn Allbright’s Illinois home and everything she owns. She makes some big decisions too soon that turn folks in her home town against her.

She takes a vacation in sunny California where her rental car is stolen with everything she owns inside the car.

Little does she know how fortunate she is to have her possessions stolen outside the Casa de Vida Cottages. The owner, Liv McAlister, gives her a temporary home and takes her under her wing.

As Jasmyn’s heart becomes entangled with the residents, Illinois still keeps calling her back. Should she stay or should she go?

Once my interest was snagged, I couldn’t put the book down for long. So many of the characters tugged at my heart that I had to know what happened next.

So happy to learn that this book is a series! I want to see what happens next. Well-written book by a new-to-me author.

-Sandra Merville Hart

Christianbook.com