Dear Mr. Knightley
By Katherine Reay
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Pub. Date: November 5th, 2013
ISBN: 978-1401689681
Pages: 336
Buy Link: http://ow.ly/qDEkp
Blog Tour: http://litfusegroup.com/author/kreay

Review:

I have to admit that I sometimes, well most the time, make my decision whether or not I'm going to review a book based on the book cover. If it isn't eye-catching, I normally look the other way. For the some odd reason when I received the email invitation to review Dear Mr. Knightley, the book cover image didn't upload correctly, so I scrolled down the email and read the book description. After reading that the main character was a book lover too, I had to review it.

In Dear Mr. Knightley, Samantha Moore (she goes by Sam) grew up an orphan and found herself drawn to the magical world of books written by classic authors, such as Austen, Dickens and Shakespeare. Her love of books leads her to become English major. She quotes from her favorite authors, which become annoying to her friends. At the age twenty-three, an anonymous benefactor going by the name Mr. Knightley offers to pay for her education at Northwest University's Medill School of Journalism. Sounds like a dream come true, but there is one little catch, Sam must write letters to the benefactor, detailing how her schooling is going.

Sam follows through with the letters, which at first they are basic, but since she doesn't know who the benefactor is, she opens up to him and reveals her true emotions. For her entire life she has shied away from the world by hiding behind books. Through these letters she can finally confront her problems and be free of them, maybe even find love.

The Christmas Quilt
By Vannetta Chapman
Publisher: Abingdon Press
Pub. Date: October 25, 201
ISBN: 978-1426752773
Pages: 256
Buy Link: http://ow.ly/qKnYD
Blog Tour: http://litfusegroup.com/campaigns/quilts-of-love-the-christmas-quilt-and-aloha-rose
 
Review:

I love Amish fiction, but I can't seem to keep up with all the new releases this year and of course there are several books released in the fall with a Christmas theme. I have several quilters in my family, though I don't quilt myself, I do respect the sewing hobby. When I had the chance to review The Christmas Quilt by Vannetta Chapman, I took it. The book is a sequel to A Simple Christmas Wish, which I don't recall if I have read it or not, though the main character, Annie, does seem familiar. 

Set in Mifflin County, PA, The Christmas Quilt finds Annie marrying Samuel Yoder, her one true love. Two years later, Annie works side-by-side with her husband helping out with the Amish community's minor medical needs. When needed, she assists the local mid-wife, Belinda.

Her best-friend, Leah, has been a little bit moody; as she is due to deliver her first child sometime before Christmas. Annie is looking forward to having a little nephew or niece and she is planning on making a quilt for the baby crib before the little one arrives. At first she thought six weeks was plenty of time to finish the quilt, but God has a way of surprising people. Leah goes into labor a bit earlier than expected.

This is November and I currently have a fan circulating, though I think the news channels mention something about flurries later in the week. When the weather suddenly goes a bit wacky (cold to warm or vise versa), it causes my allergies to go even wackier, resulting in me being sick for the most part of yesterday! I didn't get very much writing done as I would have wanted to, but I did get a few Holiday Gift Guide posts finished.

I use to have a Great Finds weekly post, where I listed my book finds that I found at a local thrift store, but I've been cutting back on buying books, only buying the ones that truly interest me. Over the weekend, I bought three books by author Meg Cabot. She wrote the Princess Diaries books, Avalon High and a couple of vampire novels (I forgot the names, but I did read the first one).

The books I picked up by her are:

Ender's Game and Philosophy: A Genocide Is Child's Play
Popular Culture and Philosophy (Book 80)
Edited By: D.E. Wittkower & Lucinda Rush
Publisher: Open Court
Pub. Date: September 13, 2013
ISBN: 978-0812698343
Pages: 288

Review:

Ender's Game has been enchanting science fiction fans ever since it was first released in 1985, followed by several sequels, novellas and short stories. With this recent release of the big-budget feature film of Ender's Game starring Harrison Ford, there have been a few tie-ins books being released including Ender's Game and Philosophy: A Genocide Is Child's Play.

I'm not the biggest science fiction reader, but I do recall reading the original Ender's Game back in the late '90s. Despite some controversy over the author's beliefs, Ender's Game has been considered one of the greats works in science fiction ever published and is loved many fans worldwide.

Ender's Game and Philosophy: A Genocide Is Child's Play features twenty-five essays written by actual professors and PhD's, which each essay goes into the about the philosophy factors of warfare. If you have read the book or seen the movie, then you would know that Andrew "Enders" Wiggins isn't your typically solider with a gun on a battlefield, but instead he is a kid playing a video game in his mind, well the last battle isn't a video game, it's an actual battle.

Adoring Addie
The Courtship of Lancaster County, Book 2
By Leslie Gould
Publisher: Bethany House
Pub. Date: May 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0764210327
Pages: 352

Review:

I've been fascinated with Amish fiction for over ten years, well, ever since I read my first Beverly Lewis novel. Any time there is an opportunity to review an Amish books, I eagerly sign up. This year has been a little rocky, with a family emergency and a few other things, therefore Adoring Addie got shoved aside for six months, but I finally got around to reading it last month.

In a Romeo and Juliet-type plot, the Cramers and Mosiers families have been bickering back and forth for as long as anybody can remember, which causes a bit of a problem for Addie Cramer, who has fall in love with Jonathan Mosier, whose family just returned to the county. Addie's parents are insisting that she marries the bishop's son, Phillip Eicher, as Amish daughters are suppose to honor their parents' wishes, but Addie doesn't love Phillip at all. Her heart is with Jonathan.

The only chance of any kind of a future for Addie and Jonathan is for them to come up with a scheme to get their families to forgive each other and start anew.

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