Genre: Historical Fiction Rating: Five out of five hearts ♥♥♥♥♥= excellent! Book one in the Fort Reno series Description: Former saloon singer Louisa Bell (otherwise known as the "Lovely Lola Bell") has nowhere to go. Fired from her job, she decides to turn to Fort Reno, where her brother is a cavalry soldier with a knack for getting in trouble- maybe she can put...

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Genre: Historical Fiction Rating: Three out of Five hearts ♥♥♥ About:  Gertrude Cadwalader is just about fed up with the antics of her employer, Mrs. Davenport. One of these days she is going to land Gertrude in a lot of trouble- which is just what happens. Caught red-handed, no one will believe Gertrude's innocence. No one, that is, except for rich (but known...

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Genre: Historical Rating: Four out of five hearts ♥♥♥♥ About: All of England seems to be enamored with a mysterious author, known only by the pseudonym "Nathaniel Droll". What no one knows is the author is really a man who has been in debtor's prison since his daughter, now an adult, was a baby. And no one knows that that man has just...

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Genre: Self-Help/Creativity/Inspirational My Rating: Five Hearts 30 Days to Joy is an inspiring little book meant to teach its participant what real joy is, and how to have it in their own life. You can doodle, journal, write in poem-form your answers- or whatever else you can think of! There's no right or wrong way (my entry for day one shows several doodles,...

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Genre: Historical Fiction My Rating: Four and a half out of five hearts ♥♥♥♥ About:  Lucy Drake's mastery of Morse code has made her a valuable asset to the American news agencies as a telegrapher. But the sudden arrival of Sir Colin Beckwith at rival British news agency Reuters puts her hard-earned livelihood at risk. Newly arrived from London, Colin is talented, handsome,...

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At the beginning of this year, I gave myself a challenge- to read 100 books (or more) before 2018. I'd thought it was going to be pretty easy, but so far it's turned out slightly harder than I'd anticipated! Anyway, right now I'm reading what will be book number 74, and while I wasn't sure I'd make it to a hundred before my...

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Genre: Historical Fiction Rating: Three out of Five Hearts ♥♥♥ Book four in the Hawthorne House series About: Griffith, head of the Hawthorne family, has always prided himself on being in control- to the point that he's already picked out the suitable woman for himself to fall in love with. Despite this, however, he finds himself more and more interested in the woman's...

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I've been terribly behind lately in updating my blog, and for those of you who may have ever checked out my "Reviews" page and found that it hadn't been updated in quite a while, I apologize! I'm going to try to keep it orderly and up-to-date from now on. And I've also updated my design a bit. I felt like doing something new,...

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Genre: Juvenile Fiction Rating: Three and a half out of five hearts ♥♥♥ About: Best friends Cassie Callahan and Nick Barton were happy their parents were in love and engaged- life was good. But then something happened, and it tore everything apart.  Now Nick, his younger sister and dad have moved away and Cassie's mom has left to work in California. Cassie is...

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 Genre: Historical Fiction Rating: Five out of five hearts ❤❤❤❤❤  Series: Book one in the Shadows over England series About Rosemary Gresham lives the only way she knows how- by being a professional pickpocket and thief. She's one of the best at this profession, and needs the money she gains from it to help support the only family she's had for years- her...

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Genre: Historical Romance Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ Series: Book two in the Ladies of Harper's Station series- you can read my review of book one, No Other Will Do, here About: Telegraph operator Grace Mallory has spent the last few months sequestered away in the women's colony of Harper's Station, hidden from the man she believes killed her father. She finds that her hiding place has been...

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Genre: Historical Fiction Rating:❤❤❤❤❤  Series: Book two in the Teaville Moral Society series- Engaging the Competition (a novella) and A Heart Most Certain (book one) About: Evelyn Wisely has a heart for the orphans of Teaville and works at a local mansion that rescues children out of the town's red-light district and gives them a place to live. But her desire to help...

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                                Genre: Historical Fiction Series: Book one in the Apart from the Crowd series Rating: Three out of five hearts ❤❤❤ About: Miss Permilia Griswold never asked to be thrust into society, with all its rules and regulations. In fact, she knows more about guns and swordplay than...

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Genre: Historical Romace My Rating: Two out of Five hearts ♥♥ About: Book one left the Boden family after a tragedy as well as a victory, and book two, Long Time Gone, picks up where it left off. Trouble seems determined to entrap the Bodens and take over the Cimarron ranch, but it's a struggle to figure out exactly why. And through all...

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Baking and cooking are two things I really enjoy, so I thought I'd start sharing different recipes I've recently tried or really liked. Enjoy! First off is Easy(er) Sour Cream Biscuits. I made them for supper several weeks ago, and deviated off the original recipe a bit. 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 2 teaspoons sugar 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar ...

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Genre: Historical Romance My Rating: Four and a half out of five hearts  ♥♥♥♥ About the Book: Alice-Ann Branch is just your normal country girl growing up in 1940's Georgia, but she's got a secret- she's in love with her brother's friend, Mack. When she finally gets to tell him how she feels, he's about to leave to do his part in the...

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