Holidays at Crescent Cove

Holidays at Crescent Cove

About the Book:

Thanksgiving and Christmas are all about friends, family, and good food. But this year, the holidays will truly bring the residents of Crescent Cove home.

Thanksgiving At Crescent Cove

Amidst visions of turkey and pumpkin pie, sweet Grace is ready to greet Thanksgiving in a quiet celebration of home and heart. But things don't go according to plan. Her father—to whom she hasn't spoken in years—comes walking through the door, expecting a reunion and her help. And of course this is the exact moment her friend Jake has finally decided to make a declaration. Will the spirit of Thanksgiving be enough to help Grace accept her family and her friend's love?

Christmas At Crescent Cove

It's Christmas, and Bri never expected to find a handsome stranger sleeping in her barn. But she never expected to be living in Crescent Cove again with her two adopted daughters. Since 'tis the season to open your home to those in need, Bri decides to let David spend the holidays with her new family, and he gives her and the girls a precious gift—the true meaning of Christmas.

My Comments:

These two short romances set in a beach town were a fun way to pass a few hours.  Nothing serious, nothing  thought-provoking, nothing unexpected, and no intimate scenes.  Grade:  B.  

I'd like to thank the publisher for making a review copy available via NetGalley.  

Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival

Hello, and welcome to Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival. We are a group of Catholic bloggers who gather weekly to share our best posts with each other. To participate, go to your blog and create a post titled Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival. In it, discuss and link to your posts for the week--whether they deal with theology, Catholic living or cute Catholic kids. I'm mostly a book blogger so my posts are generally book reviews, some Catholic, some not. Make sure that post links back here. Once you publish it, come back here and leave a link below.

We also have a yahoogroup; signing up for it will get you one weekly reminder to post.  Click here to sign up.

The only post I have this week is a review of a Kindle freebie romance.  

I'd like to ask you all for prayers.  Back in the late 1990's when I first got online I discovered AOL message boards.  One in particular was a favorite--a Catholic Moms board.  Those of us who posted regularly were generally 30 something moms with young kids, and over the years a core group of us has stuck together and we now have a private group  on facebook.  Now we are generally the parents of teens, or in many cases, grandparents.  A few of us even still have young kids.  A few months ago, one of the "anchors" of the group, a woman with great wisdom and compassion, a woman who always seemed to know what to say to pull us together when we started to fuss and bicker, announced that she had lung cancer.  Kathy is in her mid-fifties, will become a grandmother for the first time this spring, and is the mother of a teen with special needs.  She is also the wife of a man who has a non-cancerous brain tumor (but don't think non-cancerous means non-harmful).  This week she received news that the cancer has spread to her liver.  Please pray for her and her family.  

Congratulations to Sunday Snippets regulars Kate Basi and Christian LeBlanc and new reader Seth Peters who won Jesus Christ The Infancy Narratives.  

Kindle Freebie: Santa Wore Combat Boots

Santa Wore Combat Boots

About the Book:

Emma Turner feels like her life ended with the death of her husband. Three years later she’s doing the best she can for her children and moving through life on autopilot. She doesn't believe true love can happen twice in a lifetime. As a matter of fact, she doesn't believe in much anymore. Putting her trust in one honest man might be just what she needs to move forward.

Bound by duty Jake Nicklaus never imagined he’d cross the line and fall in love with the woman he swore he’d watch over. If only he’d died on that chopper instead of her husband, she wouldn't be hurting. The only way to heal her heart is to show her how to live again. Finding the magic in Christmas is the perfect way to start.

Will one kiss under the mistletoe change their lives forever?

**This story was chosen as Best Holiday Short Story by the Syracuse Post Standard**

My Comments:

I grabbed this when it was an Amazon freebie and decided tonight that a short sweet read fit my mood completely.  Honestly, my expectations for Amazon freebies are pretty low, unless they are backlist books from authors about to publish new books.  In this case, those expectations were exceeded.  Not only did I not finish the book thinking "this could really use an editor", I really enjoyed this novella.  It was a clean read but there was plenty of attraction between Emma and Jake.  The only thing that might bother someone about this book is that Emma's late husband/Jake's friend appears in the story as a ghost, and Emma is seeking a medium to allow her more communication with her late husband.  Still, its a Christmas story, so in the end...  Grade:  B-.  

Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival

Hello, and welcome to Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival. We are a group of Catholic bloggers who gather weekly to share our best posts with each other. To participate, go to your blog and create a post titled Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival. In it, discuss and link to your posts for the week--whether they deal with theology, Catholic living or cute Catholic kids. I'm mostly a book blogger so my posts are generally book reviews, some Catholic, some not. Make sure that post links back here. Once you publish it, come back here and leave a link below.

We also have a yahoogroup; signing up for it will get you one weekly reminder to post.  Click here to sign up.

Only one post this week. I reviewed a Catholic romance novel, which was recommended by Sunday Snippets regular Ellen Gable Hrkach.  The title is is Angela's Song and the hero is a 50ish bachelor; the heroine a widow with three kids.  Question for those who read religious fiction or fiction with religious themes:  How much is too much?  In a book not explicitly about a character's religious life/conversion, how much religious content is too much?  Do you prefer books with subtle themes or those which explicitly try to make their point?  Do you like to read sermons or lessons in your fiction?   

I'm going to link to a few old posts that may be of interest, though I will tell you that I haven't taken a look at them  lately and have no idea if the links are still current:
Advent for Families with Children, Keep Christ in Christmas Activities,  and  Celebrate Epiphany. 

Also, don't forget my giveaway of the Pope's recent book.  Jesus of Nazareth, The Infancy Narrative.  I got my book this week and I'm enoying it.  Giveaway ends Sunday night.