{{contact.first_name}} here's your Fab Fiction Friday
Oct 13, 2023 2:39 pm
HELLO ,
Here is a lineup of what you will find in this week's newsletter.
- Life update
- Writing update
- How you can grab a FREE ebook
- Spotlight read on @tawnisbookshelf
- Join my reader group on Facebook
Welcome back to Fab Fiction Friday where I share books and authors I think you'll love as well as update you on my writing journey! Basically it's the same newsletter I've been sending but with a fun nickname.
LIFE UPDATE
I'm sorry it's been a couple of weeks since I've reached out. The new school year has already hit my family with sickness multiple times which throws any semblance of structure straight out of the window. LOL.
Thankfully the sickness seems to be slowing down, so hopefully we're on a healthier path than we were last year at this time. It felt like I was at the store every three days to buy medicine or cough drops.
I hope and you are staying healthy this year, too!
WRITING UPDATE
I am still chugging along writing Rhett & Dana's story. It's kind of crazy how different this rewrite is going...Dana and Rhett's attitudes and situations have basically been switched. But I'm loving this version even more. I promise NO ONE is going to say Rhett is too perfect because...well...you'll just have to wait and see why. 😉
This story is going to come with a bonus my subscribers will receive as a gift that goes along with this story and I am SUPER excited about it! The book is still going slower than I'd like, but I want to make sure I am telling the story how God is calling me to and in doing so staying true to the characters and what they have to share. So, I appreciate your patience as I keep on typing along.
SNAG A FREE BOOK
This year, I have partnered with several other sweet/clean/Christian romance authors where I will be sharing links to their free books! All you need to do is sign up for their newsletter and boom, you get a free book sent over to your kindle or preferred reading device!
This month's author is NR Emerald
Forgiveness… Redemption… Love
Ana, a hardnose, tough businesswoman, had no time for love or for God. She was all about making a profit. As a teenager, Ana rejected God and the church. Was it possible for her to find true healing and her way back to God?
Taking over from the retired pastor, Lucas now had to deal with the enormous debt Hope Church owed to their landlord. Ana, the landlord, saw only two options: payment or eviction.
Was there a third option? Maybe Ana would come to realize she owed an even bigger debt than the church did—one she could never repay.
As Ana and Lucas chase their goals, they might find something they never expected.
You can sign up for her newsletter and snag that free book here:
TAWNISBOOKSHELF
This is the place where I'll share some Christian romance books that I've read and recommend. Recently, I've created a "BookTok" and "Bookstagram" specifically for book recommendations so I can focus on my books on my author social media platforms.
If you're on TikTok and interested in seeing all my recommendations:
If you're on Instagram and interested in my recommendations and reviews:
FICTION SPOTLIGHT
Emryn's loved Brooks Montgomery since she was six, and he proposed with a strawberry Ringpop on the playground.
Twenty-two years, a real marriage, and a three-year-old daughter later, she still loves him, but no one warns you how hard marriage is, even if you are in love.
Emryn’s lost herself in being a wife and raising their daughter. Unheard. Unseen. Looked through. That’s what love and marriage look like for her now.
And Brooks—well, he’s too busy trying to provide for his family to recognize the problems in his marriage. So when Emryn offers an ultimatum- counseling or divorce, he feels blindsided. Sure, he’s been distracted lately, and yeah, maybe he lets his past haunt him more than he should, but that’s life. None of that means he doesn’t love her.
They are sinking into a quicksand of pride, anger, resentment, and fear. They have lost sight of their vows to each other and God. Will the quicksand win, or will they make their way to a firm foundation built on their faith, respect, and love for each other?
MY REVIEW
This book was a phenomenal read. The emotions Bell pulls out of you in regards to these characters is so deep and heartfelt.
At first you really don't like Brooks because he appears to be the stereotypical self-centered modern man who's only focus is his career and himself. But soon you come to find out why he's so absorbed in work--and it's more selfless than selfish. Immediately, you sympathize with Emryn who seems to give all of herself to her family every day without any appreciation or acknowledgement. Every time she tries to talk to her husband, he gives her half-hearted responses--if any response--and you can tell that their marriage has spiraled into the roommate stage. But Emryn doesn't give up. She does, however, move out with their daughter and in with her parents which was exactly the wake-up call Brooks needed to see the fractures in his family.
Faith is woven through the plot as both characters find their way back to God and a way to put Jesus at the center of their marriage. Their healing journey was slow and realistic as they worked with a counselor and found a way to communicate openly and authentically through letters. We get to see both sides of their relationship and the places where they've failed each other. Emryn and Brooks come to see their own failures and shortcomings and work on bettering themselves for their marriage and daughter.
In a side plot we see Brooks's challenging relationship with his father Kip and the complicated feelings he has toward him. Kip plays a part in how Brooks and Emryn find their way back to each other and I thought Bell did an incredible job of weaving that storyline into the main plot of the book.
Brooks and Emryn's book is a raw and honest story full of hope, faith, and a couple's second chance at a beautiful marriage in their happily ever after.
I gave this book 4.5 stars. My only "complaint" and reason why it wasn't an outright 5 stars was that it needed a little bit heavier faith to tighten the seams and make it into a truly flawless story. But I still 10/10 recommend this book.
JOIN MY READING GROUP!
Are you in my Facebook reading group yet?
I share sneak peeks, run polls, and include additional giveaways. It's an easier way to interact with me real-time if you'd be interested in that!
I hope you have a fabulous day!
Have you read all my books?
Secrets, Lies, and Deadly Ties
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. But please know I will never recommend a book in my newsletter that I haven't personally read and enjoyed.