Swept Away By Mary Connealy Book Review

// S w e p t   A w a y // 

B y    M a r y    C o n n e a l y

T r o u b l e   I n   T e x a s    S e r i e s

B o o k  # 1

 

R e v i e w    B y    M a d i 
 Title: Swept Away
Author: Mary Connealy
Source: Review Book
Number of Pages: 318
ISBN: 9780764209147
Publisher: Bethany House
Publication Date: 2013
My Rating: 4 Out Of 5 Stars

Description (Taken From Goodreads):

 "Laughter, Romance, and Action Abound in This New Series from Mary Connealy
Swept away when her wagon train attempts a difficult river crossing, Ruthy MacNeil isn't all that upset at being separated from the family who raised her. All they've ever done is work her to the bone. She prayed for a chance to get away, and then came the raging flood. Alive but disoriented, she's rescued by Luke Stone...so unfortunately, there are more chances to die in her immediate future.
Luke is heading home to reclaim the ranch stolen from his family. But the men who killed his father are working hard to ensure Luke doesn't make it alive. He has no choice but to keep moving. Still, he can't just abandon Ruthy, so she'll have to come along.
His friends--a ragtag group of former Civil War soldiers--take a fast interest in the pretty gal. Luke thinks that's rather rude--he's the one who found her. And the more time he spends around the hard-working young woman who is a mighty good cook, the more he finds himself thinking beyond revenge and toward a different future. For the first time in a long time, Luke is tempted to turn from his destructive path and be swept away by love."

 M a d i ' s   R e v i e w ::

I adored this book.

This was actually my second time reading it. It's so refreshing! It's not like most Christian/western/romance novels. This book had some major suspense, and a lot of twist and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat. That's the reason I gave it four stars. The only reason that I didn't give it five is because though I love Christian Westerns, they aren't my FAVORITE genre. But if you like good clean Southern stories (who doesn't?) then this book is definitely for you.

 Just to give you a little idea on what this book was about, the main characters name was Ruthy MacNeil (Or Rosie). In the beginning of the book Ruthy is on a wagon train going who knows where with a family that isn't her own. She was orphaned at a very young age and a low-down family named the Reinhardt's took her in and raised her as their "daughter". Actually they just used her as a slave. She worked from sun up to sun down and then some. And to make matters worse they were forcing her to marry her "brother" Virgil. And yes, since they never legally adopted her this was completely legal. Life was looking bleak. Then they hit a wall. A wall of water, that is. Her "Pa" decided to cross a rising river against Ruthy's better judgment. Guess if he would have listened he might have lived. Anyway, instead of drowning. Ruthy gets caught on a piece of wood and floats for a while instead of drowning. That's when Luke Stone finds her.

Luke is on his way home to reclaim his home from a thief that killed his father, and he wasn't taking no for an answer. He didn't know what he was gonna do with a fiery redheaded (not to mention unconscious) woman, but he couldn't just leave her there to die. But regardless of her presence, he wasn't gonna let her distract him from his goal. Luke and his friends had a plan, and it better work.

 After this everything is a whirlwind. And a good one. I would definitely recommend this book to just about anyone.

Unbreakable By Nancy Mehl Book Review

// U n b r e a k a b l e //

B y   N a n c y   M e h l

R o a d    T o   K i n g d o m    S e r i e s

B o o k  # 2

 

R e v i e w   B y   M a d i

Title: Unbreakable
Author: Nancy Mehl
Source: Review Book
Number of Pages: 330
ISBN: 978-0-7642-0928-4
Publisher: Bethany House
Publication Date: 2013
My Rating: 4 Out of 5 Stars

Description (Taken From Good Reads):

"Gentle and unassuming Hope Kauffman has never been one to question or try to make changes. She quietly helps her father run Kingdom Quilts and has agreed to the betrothal her father arranged for her with the devout but shy Ebbie Miller.
Despite Hope's and other Kingdom residents' attempts to maintain the status quo, changes have already begun to stir in the small Mennonite town. The handsome and charismatic Jonathon Wiese is the leader of the move to reform, and when one of Kingdom's own is threatened by a mysterious outsider, Jonathon is one of the first to push for the town to arm itself. Hope's fiance, Ebbie, is at the forefront of those demanding the town stay true to its traditions of nonviolence.
When strange incidents around town result in outright attacks on several townspeople, Hope can't help but question what she's always been taught. As the town that's always stood so strong together is torn apart at the seams, Hope is caught between opposing sides, both represented by those she has come to care for. With tensions high and lives endangered by an unknown threat, Hope fears Kingdom can never survive in one piece."


M a d i ' s   R e v i e w ::

This was a pretty interesting book!

When I got "Unbreakable" by Nancy Mehl, I really wasn't sure what to expect. I didn't really know what it was about or anything, so I really didn't go into this with any expectations (good or bad). Turns out Bethany had already read it, and she said it wasn't bad, so I was glad to hear that since we have similar reading taste. After the last book that I reviewed, I'm pretty sure the only place this could go was up anyway. So on to the review.

Just to give you a little bit of a back story, "Unbreakable" is about a Mennonite girl named Hope Kauffman. Hope lives in a small, mostly Mennonite town called "Kingdom", where she runs a quilt shop with her father Samuel. Rumors have been spreading around about vandalism and bodily harm coming to Christians, Church's, and homes of Christians. Hope thinks that since Kingdom is so secluded that it wasn't really anything to be concerned about. What could a band of bad guys want with them anyway, right? Wrong. Hope is attacked twice and a friendly neighbor is killed due to other's carelessness. Didn't see that one coming.

Pros ::

• It was suspenseful
• It never gave me time to get bored. Something new was always happening.
• Good morals were supported

Cons ::

•  Sometimes it had a little TOO much going on. Two disasters would happen on the exact same page. You got run off the road and almost killed? So did your neighbor. He died. Your neighbor died? You get his dog. You get his dog? Your dad is closing the family business. I just think it would have enhanced the story if these events were a little bit more spread out.

 

Overall though, this was a very good book and I'm glad to have it on my bookshelf. If you like fast moving stories, then this is definitely a book for you. If you don't, it still may be the book for you. It just depends on your reading taste.

Fortress of Mist By Sigmund Brouwer Book Review

// F o r t r e s s    o f    M i s t  // 

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B o o k  # 2

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Author Bio

Title: Fortress Of Mist
Author: Sigmund Brouwer
Source: Review Book
Number of Pages: 224
ISBN: 9781400071555
Publisher: WaterBrook Press
Publication Date: 2013
My Rating: 1 out of 5 Stars

Description (Taken From www.amazon.com):

“Full of surprising twists, shocking betrays, and baffling mysteries. But at it’s heart it’s about courage, wisdom, and hope…”—Robert Liparulo, author of The 13th Tribe, The Judgment Stone, and the Dreamhouse Kings series. The throne is redeemed, but the battle is just beginning.

In the dark corners of an ancient land, evil lurks in the shadows. Powerful druids haunt the spaces of their lost territory. Double-minded noblemen fight for domain and influence. Invaders from the north threaten the kingdom of Magnus. This land of promise and redemption is mired in deceit and corruption.

The Orphan King, once victorious in conquest, appears to be losing his grip on his seat of power. Thomas rules Magnus, but does not know whom he can trust. His enemies anticipate his every move, thwarting him at each turn. Something is not right.

Under attack, both in the supernatural and natural worlds, Thomas must reach back into the secret layers of his past to find the strength and wisdom to fight his battles. When the mist clears, who will stand with him?"


Madi's Review ::
My first thought after finishing this book was "Well, I'm glad that's over."

It usually takes me about a day to read a book of this length, and it took me EIGHT. This book was a hot mess. Everything good about it was totally demolished in the end! And in all honestly it didn't have a lot going for it to begin with it.

Basically Thomas is just trying to keep his castle. He makes friends and foes (mostly foes), and in the end, none of it matters. It was just a long and drawn out way of saying "these people are dangerous, but I don't care". That's about what I got from it. His two romantic interest turns out to be the same person, and, surprise surprise, the deformed girl isn't deformed. There were no plot twist, every little detail was handed to me on a silver platter. 

I wish I had something nice to say about this book, but I just can't think of anything. There wasn't even a happy ending! It ended with Thomas banishing Katherine. 

Now, just because I didn't like it, doesn't mean that everyone would feel that way. I get the feeling that my little brother would love this book. It doesn't require a lot of thinking or use of the imagination, and it has a few battle scenes (not well staged battle scenes, but they were there). It didn't offer a lot of suspense or intrigue, but it would make a decent children's book.

*Disclaimer*I received this book from Waterbrook Publishers and all thoughts were one hundred percent completely my own. I was not paid to do this review.