A-MAY-zing New Releases for Summer

May-be You’d Like to Travel Back in Time

The Noble Servant

The third installment of the Melanie Dickerson’s Medieval Fairy Tale collection tells the story of Magdalen, Avaelina’s confidant in The Beautiful Pretender. Two years have passed, and Magdalen’s family fortunes have fallen further—leaving her with little hope of finding a suitable marriage. When she receives an invitation to come to Wolfberg Castle to marry Steffan, she eagerly accepts. After all, she’s thought about him plenty since she first met him at Thornbeck Castle.

The opportunity to escape from her disapproving mother adds incentive to the plan to marry a man she has only met once. Along the way, unscrupulous servants conspire against her, leaving her penniless and without hope. When she arrives at Wolfberg Castle, she discovers something foul afoot.

Will she ever find true love? Will she ever escape the drudgery of herding geese? Has Staffan really changed so much in two years? Or has something truly evil happened at Wolfberg? You won’t want to miss this fast-paced book with well-developed characters who struggle with universal questions about human relationships.

I can’t say enough good things about Melanie Dickerson and her books! For many of my students, her books have provided the catalyst to read chapter books (all but about two of my students would qualify as reluctant readers who read far below grade level). Though Dickerson bases her characters on classic fairy tales, each one struggles with relationship problems (abandonment, betrayal, overbearing parents, jealous siblings, etc.) that my students struggle with. She writes real characters that today’s teenagers can relate to.

@melanieauthor writes real characters that today's teenagers can relate to. #amreading #thenobleservant Click To Tweet

May-be You’d Like Suspense AND History?

Don't miss out on this suspensful historical by @SarahLaddAuthor #amreading Click To Tweet

A Stranger at Fellsworth

Once again Sarah E. Ladd has crafted a book filled with rich locations, intriguing situations, and characters who struggle to understand their relationship with God in the midst of life’s storms.

A Stranger at Fellsworth might be classified as a Regency suspense book, but what it really does is explore the emotions that accompany betrayal. Betrayal by a spouse, a friend, or a family member—the ones who we expect to have our back no matter what.

 

Contemporary May Releases

Great new #contemporary reads by @FletcherMcHale and @DeniseAHunter. Don't miss out! #amreading Click To Tweet

 

The Sweet Smell of Magnolias and Memories by Celeste Fletcher McHale

A sweet modern romance about a young woman who falls in love on the roof of a house during an epic flood—and then loses the man of her dreams during a rescue accident. They come face to face unexpectedly and spend the rest of the book trying to figure out if their love is for real and how to resolve the other issues in their lives so that they can attempt a happily every after.

A nice blend of flashbacks, humor, witty dialogue, and tender scenes will keep the reader turning pages to find out what happens next.

 

 

Sweetbriar Cottage by Denise Hunter

We all have a deep-down desire for unconditional love, and Josephine is no exception. The tragedy of her life keeps her from fully trusting anyone—including herself. She and Noah marry in haste and divorce just as quickly—or so they think.

When they discover that the divorce has never been finalized, an unexpected snowstorm throws them together in a life-threatening situation where they learn more about each other and how to communicate honestly with each other.

Hunter does a great job of brining up a sensitive topic (adult survivors of childhood abuse) and showing how only true love (from God first and our fellowmen second) can heal those wounds.

Suspense that May Keep You Up Late at Night

Don't miss these two great #christiansuspense novels from @colleencoble and Dee Henderson. #mothersday #amreading Click To Tweet

Haven of Swans

Colleen Coble brings back the picturesque town of Rock Harbor, Michigan, along with Bree Matthews and her search and rescue dog Samson. When a woman without a past shows up with her daughter, the race is on to discover her identity before the person who wants to take her life can identify her location.

Coble weaves together a page-turner that plumbs the depths of our own beliefs about marriage, relationships, and second chances.

 

 

Traces of Guilt
Dee Henderson does it again. There’s nothing like a good who-done-it, and it’s even better when the cases are old and cold. The multiple view points and character development make you feel like you’ve dropped in for dinner with good friends.

Traces of Guilt introduces Evie Blackwell, a cold case investigator for the Illinois State Police. She’d like to settle down and commit to a long-term relationship, but her odd job gets in the way.

When Sheriff Gabe Thane tracks down a crash victim, he discovers that she’s the investigator sent by the state police to assist him in solving a troubling cold case. He also discovers that he enjoys her company.

Oops! I Forgot to Review These in February and March!

If I’m Found by Terri Blackstock

My only complaint about the book is that it ended! The second in a series (If I Run is the first title) picks up right where the first left off (warning—this one will end abruptly making the reader stew for months on end until the next one comes out).

Casey has been accused of a crime she didn’t commit and the victim’s parents have hired a PI to track her down. The only problem? The longer he hunts for Casey, the more convinced Dylan is that she’s innocent. If only Casey could stay hidden until the truth comes out. But she can’t. This time, a haunting encounter with a little girl convinces her that she has to reveal the truth—even if it means her capture.

 

 

 The Polygamist’s Daughter by Anna LeBaron

This gripping memoir takes us inside a polygamist’s cult and tells us the story of what really goes on in day-to-day life from a child’s point of view. I had no idea that the children would be seen as a source of cheap labor, nor that they would be used as bargaining chips.

If you’re looking for a tell-all exposé about Evril LaBaron, you won’t find it here. Rather, you’ll discovery how his ’empire’ of wives and children affected one of his daughters and her self-worth. Even if you’re not part of a polygamist cult, Anna’s story will make you think about how your attitudes and decisions and dictums may affect your own children.

 

 

To the Farthest Shores by Elizabeth Camden

I loved Jenny Bennett and her ability to stand up for herself in an age where women didn’t do that very often (early 1900s). Jenny serves as a nurse at the Presidio in San Francisco—dedicating her life to healing others while trying to heal her own past. When the dashing Ryan Gallagher reappears, Jenny’s past wounds reopen as she struggles to understand his betrayal and disappearance six years before.

The very flawed, but entirely believable characters kept me turning pages to find out how they would resolve their issues.

What books do you plan on reading this May?