LEGACY RESTORED by ROBIN PATCHEN

LEGACY RESTORED by ROBIN PATCHEN is not just a romantic suspense novel which will keep you reading long into the night, but it is a sensitively told story about real people who are struggling to overcome the past. There is a theme of restoration and redemption running through it, and the strong Christian message is an integral part of the book.
Angel Rossi is a rehabilitated thief and con woman, who has one more hurdle to overcome before her slate is wiped clean and she is free. If she does not help the police put a murderer and thief behind bars, she will be put in prison herself.
Donovan Gilcreast is an artist who is living in Jack Rossi's beautiful old house, restoring it for him. Donovan has become a recluse, cutting himself off from people and hardly talking, due to his sorrow and guilt over his sister Katie's death from a drug overdose. His inspiration has gone and his paintings lack life.
I will leave you there, not wanting to spoil the read for you.
I really enjoyed the book and recommend it highly.


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PROMISED LAND by ROBERT WHITLOW

Publication date 14/1/20.
PROMISED LAND by ROBERT WHITLOW follows on from Chosen People.
The novel can stand alone, but it will mean more to you if you read Chosen People first. It is a legal thriller, full of intrigue, suspense, and life and death moments. It is also a story about relationships, especially with regard to trusting the Lord and one another, and has a beautiful Christian message running through it.
Hana Abboud and Daud Hasan are newly married and living in Atlanta, where Hana works for a prestigious Jewish law firm. She is fluent in Arabic and Hebrew, which makes her extra valuable, as they have many Middle Eastern clients.
Daud is a former Shin Bet operative and now works in setting up security for businesses in America and the Middle East. He also does some undercover work for the CIA.
The story takes place largely between America and Israel. Hana and Daud ask the Lord where their promised land is - should they stay in Atlanta or move to Jerusalem? Because of Daud's past, both places are dangerous for them. My favourite words in the book describe Hana, when she finally overcomes her constant fear that something is going to happen to Daud - "The promised land within her soul had become conquered land, and those who lived in conquered land could be at peace. More than ever, Jesus was her Prince of Peace."
It is a story of reconciliation, and, when Hana is asked by her Jewish boss to speak at an interfaith forum on Israel, she is prepared to tell her story as a Christian Arab whose family has lived in Israel for four hundred years, close to Nazareth where Jesus grew up.
I found the book most inspirational, exciting, and altogether enjoyable. It is a book that I will read more than once and I cannot recommend it highly enough.



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IF FOR ANY REASON by COURTNEY WALSH

Publication date 3/2/20.
IF FOR ANY REASON by COURTNEY WALSH is a "double romance" novel, beautifully written, poignantly sad in parts, but full of hope throughout.
Emily Ackerman comes to Nantucket in order to repair her grandparents' holiday home, which her grandfather has left to her. She was largely brought up by her grandparents, who gave her and her mother, Isabelle, all that money and prestige could provide.
There is something very mysterious about her mother's death in a car accident, and Emily is determined to find out the truth. Life changed for her that day when her grandparents whisked her off the island, never to return.
Emily has never settled down. She has a collection of letters her mother wrote her when she was growing up, which she has clung to, believing all that her mother has written and trying to fulfill her mother's dreams. After a successful career as a child star on television and appearing on Broadway, she makes some foolish decisions and arrives on the island broke.
Hollis McGuire and Emily come from opposite ends of the social scale, but they were childhood friends. When he arrives on the island with his daughter, Jolie, he is a broken man who is trying to get to know the twelve year old who he has largely neglected, also due to some bad decisions. Emily feels strongly about this, as she has never known who her father was and thinks that he never wanted her, running away when he found out her mother was pregnant.
We see snobbery at its worst with the country club set, of whom the Ackermans are virtually the king and queen, who treat the McGuires and JD as lesser human beings. We see both Isabelle, and then, Emily bucking the system and wanting to live a normal life with normal people as friends.
We see how Jolie's hero worship of Emily and her longing to act restores Emily's love for the theatre.
I do not want to tell you any more except to say that relationships play a huge role in this book, and the author's understanding of human nature shines right through. It is a story of second chances as we see how the Lord takes hurting people, making them whole, often through the ministrations of other broken people.
It is altogether a lovely book, with a strong Christian message and a really good story, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.




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AIMING FOR LOVE by MARY CONNEALY

Publication date 1/10/19.
AIMING FOR LOVE by MARY CONNEALY tells the lovely story of the three beautiful and wild Nordegren sisters, who have lived their whole lives hidden away in the mountains, and the Warden family, gentle giants who have come up Hope Mountain to find grazing for their cattle.
With no experience of the outside world or anyone other than their deceased parents and grandparents, the sisters' reactions range from Jo's excitement and curiosity to Ursula's fear and outright hostility.
I really love the characters - they are beautifully portrayed, with the sisters' rather unusual view of parts of the Bible, the scriptures which they quote word for word, and their understanding of helping their neighbours, all the while being afraid of being infected by them, and the Wardens' with their close family ties and down to earth ways.
I highly recommend Aiming For Love as an enchanting read, humorous in parts and with a really good Christian message.




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