Monday, October 4, 2010

Book Review - In Every Heartbeat

In Every HeartbeatIn Every Heartbeat
BY: Kim Vogel Sawyer
PUBLISHED BY: Bethany House
PUBLISHED IN: 2010
ISBN: 978-0-7642-0510-1
Pages: 346
Reviewed by Billy Burgess

In Every Heartbeat is about three friends, Libby Conley, Pete Leidig and Bennett Martin. They grew up in an orphanage. When they became adults, they went their separate ways. Bennett Martin pledges into a fraternity and just wants to have fun. Pete wants to become a minister, and Libby wants to be a famous journalist.

Libby finds it hard to be a writer in the early 1900s. Editors keep telling her to write romance stories and leave the news journalists to the men.

Pete decides to track down his birth parents and learns that his younger brother has been charged with murder. With the help of Libby, they try to set his brother free.

I have read several novels by Kim Vogel Sawyer and found this novel to be different from the others. I liked that the book was set in my home state, Missouri. I enjoyed the character Libby the most, since she is a struggling writer. There is a little mystery plot thrown into the story, and a little romance. It is a good read.

*I would like to thank Bethany House for sending me a copy to review.

Review - Draw the Dark by Ilsa J. Black



An orphaned seventeen-year-old named Christian was orphaned is now being raised by his Uncle Hank, the deputy of Winter, Wisconsin. Christian loves to paint. His favorite thing to paint is the portrait of his mother.

Christian is accused of painting on the Eisenmann’s barn. Mr. Eisenmann owns most the town and always gets his way. Even though Christian said he did not paint the barn, he has to repaint the barn and start going to a shrink.

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Book Blogger Hop

Jennifer from Crazy for Books has created this meme.

If you'd like to participate, here's Jennifer's instructions:


Every day I seem to find another book blog that I start following. In the spirit of the Friday Follow, I thought it would be cool to do a Book Blog Hop to give us all bookies a chance to connect and find new blogs that we may be missing out on! It will also give blog readers a chance to find other book blogs that they may not know existed!


So, if you'd like to participate, just repost this on your blog, sign MckLinky and check out other blogs in MckLinky! Let's connect and make new book bloggy friends!! So, if you consider yourself a book blogger, come join the fun!

Question of the week: How do you spread the word about your blog?


My answer: I use social networking sites, blog directories, message boards, and book tours.

Thursday Ramblings


I am back online after having some internet problems this week. My writing has been a little slow, but I had time to brainstorm on a few plot ideas.

Iron Man 2 (Single-Disc Edition)
 I watched Iron Man 2 a few nights ago. It was okay, about the same as the first movie.

I finished reading The Fall by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan. I am currently reading In Every Heartbeat by Kim Vogel Sawyer.

Within My Heart (Timber Ridge Reflections, Book 3) In the mail this week, I received the book Within My Heart by Tamera Alexander.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Book Review - The Vigilante's Bride by Yvonne Harris

The Vigilante’s Bride
BY: Yvonne Harris
PUBLISHED BY: Bethany House
PUBLISHED IN: 2010
ISBN: 978-0-7642-0804-1
Pages: 297
Reviewed by Billy Burgess

With no other choice, Emily McCarthy is on a stagecoach to marry an older man, Bartholomew Axel, which she has never met before. Luke Sullivan robs the stagecoach and kidnaps Emily. On the other hand, is it more of a rescue? Luke knows that Bartholomew Axel is a horrible man and Emily does not want to marry someone that she does not love. Bartholomew soon discovers who has stolen his bride-to-be and wants to retrieve her.

The Vigilante’s Bride is a fast-paced western romance. I thought that it was odd that the book came out in August. It should have come out in December since the book is set around Christmas. The book has a simple plot with likeable characters, which makes it a fast and enjoyable read. Western lovers will enjoy the take on the dying genre and romance lovers will enjoy the love story between two main characters.

*I would like to thank Bethany House for sending me a copy to review.

Review - The Legacy of Croft Castle by Jean Barrett

The Legacy of Croft Castle
BY: Jean Barrett
PUBLISHED BY: Harlequin
PUBLISHED IN: 2004
ISBN: 0-373-22804-X
Pages: 249
Reviewed by Billy Burgess

Set on a small island off England, ghost hunter Meredith Allen, along with private eye Jackson Hawke, investigates the strange occurrences happening at the Croft Castle. Of course, this castle is your typical haunted castle with secret passages, eerie lights and ghosts.

Jackson is a non-believer of the supernatural and believes that a human is responsible for the strange happenings at the castle. At first, Meredith wants nothing to do with Jackson, but this is a romance novel, so she falls for him. They explore the castle and uncover a dark mystery.

This was an easy fast read for me. One thing that really bothered if Meredith was suppose to be a ghost hunter, why didn’t she have any ghost hunting gizmos with her? The book cover says this is a gothic romance. Beside for being set a castle, I never really got the feeling that this was a gothic novel. Overall, I enjoyed the novel because of its fun characters.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Review - Where Hearts Are Free by Golden Keyes Parsons

Where Hearts Are Free
BY: Golden Keyes Parsons
PUBLISHED BY: Thomas Nelson
PUBLISHED IN: 2010
ISBN: 978-1-59554-628-9
Pages: 350
Reviewed by Billy Burgess

As a young child, Bridget Barrington witnessed a murder. As a teenager, Philippe Cavell came to live with the family, but as a servant. Bridget was instantly in love with him.

Six years passes by and Philippe’s servant days with the family are soon to be over. Bridget wants to finally tell him that she is in love with him, but instead, she tells her parents. Her parents are outraged over the matter, they end Phillip’s contract as servant a few weeks early. They announce Bridget that she will be married to Edward Moorehead, an older man.

Edward is not the right match for Bridget and he has a secret of his own. Bridget’s dark past comes back to haunt her, as she struggles to forget Philippe.

There have been countless historical Christian novels over the years with the same plot - Two loves separated by their religion. I was surprised that the author added a mystery subplot to the novel. Overall, I enjoyed reading the book. If you like, historical romance books then check this book out.

*I would like to thank Thomas Nelson for sending me a copy to review.