Courting Misfortune by Regina Jennings

 Calista York needs one more successful case as a Pinkerton operative to secure her job. When she's assigned to find the kidnapped daughter of a mob boss, she's sent to the rowdy mining town of Joplin, Missouri, despite having extended family in the area. Will their meddling expose her mission and keep Lila Seaton from being recovered?

When Matthew Cook decided to be a missionary, he never expected to be sent only a short train ride away. While fighting against corruption of all sorts, Matthew hears of a baby raffle being held to raise funds for a children's home. He'll do what he can to stop it, but he also wants to stop the reckless Miss York, whose bad judgment consistently seems to be putting her in harm's way.

Calista doesn't need the handsome pastor interfering with her investigation, and she can't let her disguise slip. Her job and the life of a young lady depend on keeping Matthew in the dark.  

All Calista wants to do is be a Pinkerton agent.  One last successful assignment is all she needs to prove herself.  The only problem is that she is sent to Joplin where she has lots of family and Joplin is a wild town.  How can she remain incognito when she runs into family at every turn.  Then there's Matthew.  He's trying to keep her from entering into the den of iniquity.  

This is a good book that I recommend.  Who knew that Joplin had such shady beginnings.  

I was given this book by Bethany House Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any way.

The Kissing Tree

 Bestselling novelist Karen Witemeyer joins award-winning authors Regina Jennings, Amanda Dykes, and Nicole Deese for this Texas-sized romance novella collection. Each of the authors' unique voices is on display in stories where courting couples leave a permanent mark of their love by carving their initials into the same oak's bark.  

In Regina Jennings' Broken Limbs, Mended Fences, a small-town teacher has her credentials questioned by a traveling salesman.

In Karen Witemeyer's Inn for a Surprise, two opinionated collaborators with conflicting visions must turn a doomed business venture into a successful romantic retreat.

From Roots to Sky by Amanda Dykes follows a young WWII naval airman who heads to Texas to meet the sister of a lost compatriot.

Heartwood by Nicole Deese is a modern-day romance about the groundskeeper of a historic inn who's reunited with someone from her past while she fights to save a town landmark.

This is a collection of stories centered around a tree.  Known at the Kissing Tree.  The stories are generational.  They all flow one into the other but by different authors.  This is a good book to take to the beach or seat in front of a fire on a cold winter day.  

I was given this book by Bethany House Publishing via NetGalley for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any way. 

Nothing Short of Wondrous by Regina Scott

 It is 1886, and the government has given the US Cavalry control of Yellowstone. For widowed hotelier Kate Tremaine, the change is a welcome one. She knows every inch of her wilderness home like the back of her hand and wants to see it protected from poachers and vandals.

Refused a guide by Congress, Lieutenant William Prescott must enlist Kate's aid to help him navigate the sprawling park and track down the troublemakers. But a secret from his past makes him wary of the tender feelings the capable and comely widow raises in him. As they work together to protect the park and stand firm through injustice and tragedy, they may just find that two wounded hearts can share one powerful love when God is in control.

This is the second book in the American Wonders Series.  It is not necessary to read the first book in the series to read this book.  

Kate's only means of support is her hotel in Yellowstone National Park.  She has to convince the government representative to give her a 10 year lease.  Lt. Prescott is there to keep trouble makers and poachers out of the park.  This is Kate's journey to find love again and Lt. Prescott to find forgiveness for past actions.

This is a good clean book.  I recommend it to all ages.

I was given this book by Revell Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any way.  

The Escape by Lisa Harris

 US Marshals Madison James and Jonas Quinn are thrust into a high-profile case when they are called on to transport two prisoners across the country on a private plane. But when the plane experiences engine trouble en route from the Pacific Northwest to Colorado, the pilots crash-land the aircraft deep in the heart of the sprawling Salmon-Challis National Forest. 

When Madison and Jonas regain consciousness, they find both pilots and one prisoner dead--and one fugitive on the run. They'll have to negotiate the rugged and remote backcountry through Idaho, Wyoming, and Colorado while tracking a murderer who is desperate to disappear--and will do anything to stop them.

This is an action packed book starting with a plane crash.  The pilots are dead, one of the prisoners is dead, one prisoner escapes.  Two US Marshals, Madison James and Jonas Quinn survive the plane crash and are on the hunt for the prisoner.  Madison has been a widow for five years and Jonas has recently broke up with his fiancee.  Neither one of them are looking for a relationship.  But the tension between them is something they can't ignore.  There is another story going on at the same time.  Who killed Madison's husband.  Some one leaves a black rose on his grave every anniversary of his death.  This year they got into Madison's house and left a black rose on her bed.  

This book is action packed as Madison and Jonas track down the escaped prisoner.  I recommend this book to all mystery lovers.  I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

I was given this book by Revell Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any way.

What You Said to Me by Olivia Newport

 When 15-year-old Tisha Crowder gets caught shoplifting, attorney Nolan Duffy tries to protect her from consequences that could rattle her already troubled life. His daughter, Jillian, feels like she’s the one being punished instead—by having Tisha assigned to work with her on a backlog of genealogy files. Tisha doesn’t seem interested in taking the job seriously, and Jillian’s patience wears thin. Besides, everyone in Canyon Mines knows the Crowder family has experienced generations of brokenness. Then a sliver of hope turns up in long-ago words in plain sight, challenging shrouded assumptions about Tisha’s family. Now Jillian is the one who can walk with Tisha back to 1893 and uncover where everything went wrong in the first place—and save her from the past. 

This is the fourth book in this series.  It's not necessary to read the first three to read and understand this book.  This book continues with Jillian doing research for her genealogy business.  Along comes Tisha who got into trouble for shoplifting.  Nolan has persuaded Jillian to have Tisha work for her in order to complete community service hours.  The problem is that Tisha has no desire to work for Jillian and everything that Jillian has her do is only half done or not done at all.  Then Tisha finds something out about her family background.  A switch seems to have been turned on for her.  Meanwhile Jillian is trying to find time to spend with her boyfriend Drew.  We were introduced to him in the last book.  

This is a good clean book that has a little bit of mystery.  

I was given this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any.  

Autumn Skies by Denise Hunter

When a mysterious man turns up at Grace’s family-run inn, it’s instant attraction. But she’s already got a lot on her plate: running the Bluebell Inn, getting Blue Ridge Outfitters off the ground, and coping with a childhood event she’d thought was long past.

A gunshot wound has resurrected the past for secret service agent Wyatt Jennings, and a mandatory leave of absence lands him in Bluebell, North Carolina. There he must try and come to grips with the crisis that altered his life forever.

Grace needs experience for her new outfitters business, so when Wyatt needs a mountain guide, she’s more than happy to step up to the plate. As their journey progresses, Grace soon has an elusive Wyatt opening up, and Wyatt is unwittingly drawn to Grace’s fresh outlook and sense of humor.

There’s no doubt the two have formed a special bond, but will Wyatt’s secrets bring Grace’s world crashing down? Or will those secrets end up healing them both?

A great conclusion to A Blue Bell Inn Romance.  Each book can be read independently but it would be helpful to read them in order to get the back story of the siblings.  Wyatt is trying to bring closure to the death of his mother that happened years ago.  He was a child when it happened and was there when she was killed.  He thinks it's fault since he didn't do anything to stop it.  Grace and Wyatt try to find the spot it happened at.  Grace has secrets of her own.  Unbeknown to her, her secret is connected to Wyatts.

There's no great mystery in the book.  But it is a good clean romance with a tad of mystery thrown in.  This is a great cozy read and I recommend it.

I was given this book by Thomas Nelson Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  I was not  compensated in any way.  

The Christmas Swap by Melody Carlson

 All Emma Daley wants this holiday season is a white Christmas. But the young teacher and struggling musician sure can't find that in sunny Arizona. Luckily, there's someone living in a perfect mountain home in the Colorado Rockies looking to make a vacation trade this year.

Tyler Prescott is an in-demand songwriter and talented musician who put his own singing career on hold to write songs for celebrity acts to perform. When his mother convinces him to do a vacation trade for Christmas, he never imagined one of the houseguests would be so sweet--or so strikingly pretty. Naturally, he decides to stick around, and, to get better acquainted, he poses as the house's caretaker. But when Emma's friend Gillian discovers his true identity and sets her sights on him, things
get . . . messy.

This is a cute story that takes place at Christmas.  Tyler forgets his music when he leaves to go to Arizona for Christmas.  When he goes back to his house he runs into the people he swapped with.  He introduces himself as the caretaker because he doesn't want them to know who he is.  He is instantly attracted to Emma and her to him.  While Gillian thinks he's just the caretaker, she treats him like an underling.  When she finds out he's famous, her entire attitude changes and she goes after him.  It's a typical Hallmark type movie with the main characters having a misunderstanding toward the end and then a happy ending.

I recommend this book to all who like a feel good Christmas book.

I was given this book by Revell Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  I was not compensated in anyway.