The End is not Really The End...

This past Monday I figuratively typed "The End" on my latest manuscript, Love Will Find a Way, and sent it off to my editor. I didn't really type "The End," but typing that last period on the last sentence for the last time is a great feeling.

Of course after that page, I had to add a few recipes since my character is still cooking up a storm as a chef, followed by a teaser for the last book in the series, Loves Reward, and then tweaks on my bio.

It won't be the last I'll see of that manuscript. I'll be getting edits and maybe rewrites, but for now I'm busy cleaning up and organizing my office space. Ever since February I've been rather oblivious to most things around me. If I wasn't writing, I was working on the ACFW Genesis writing contest. So things sat. I have a new storage cabinet on order to hide away a lot of what is sitting out and once that arrives and is put together, everything will look so much better.

This week is set aside for getting my house in order and then its on to researching and gathering information to put together a three-book proposal set in my home area of Lake Geneva, this time in the 19th century and early 20th century. I'm very excited about the ideas flying around in my head. Then it's on to plotting Love's Reward.

But at least my office will be organized.

Blog Tour: Waiting for Sunrise - Awesome Summer Read!

For years, one of my author friends, Fay Lamb, has raved about Cedar Key, Florida—a small island off the west coast of Florida close to where the coastline bends to become the Florida Panhandle. Fay has described the place as a wonderful haven for writers to find their muse and spend sun-splashed days writing, beach combing and eating great seafood has made me want to go there. But, so far, I never have.

Thanks to author Eva Marie Everson’s Cedar Key series, however, I am able to vicariously enjoy this little spot of heaven on earth.

A while back, I devoured the first book in the series, Chasing Sunsets, and now Revell Publishing is releasing the second book, Waiting for Sunrise. I devoured that story as fast as I did the first.

Waiting for Sunrise begins in the forties and carries the reader through the fifties and into the sixties. I love that time period for stories, and because of that, I am always able to find nit-picky misused details in stories that are not of that era. In this case, Everson did her homework well.

 

But more than that, it’s a study in how one person’s bad decision can sometimes affect others for years to come. Or maybe it’s not so much a bad decision, but one reluctantly made because the person feels they have no choice.

Patsy Milstrap’s mother had to make such a decision regarding Patsy when Patsy was old enough to remember. Patsy wants to erase her past forever, and tries to stuff it down and ignore it, but the pain remains. Her husband hears about Cedar Key and in a kind gesture, takes Patsy there for a few days of escape. There on Cedar Key Patsy comes face to face with a familiar face from her past, and she can find no way of escape.

Everson weaves a story of healing and forgiveness, lacing it with Southern charm that keeps you turning the pages until you get to the last. Then you want to say, “More please.”

So go get yourself a copy, settle onto a porch swing with a big glass of sweet tea at your side, and give it a read. You won’t regret it!

And to encourage you to look into this book even more, Eva Marie is running a contest to win a free Kindle Fire. Go to her website at and sign up!

A copy of this book was provided to me by Revell Publishing for purpose of review. The opinions expressed here are totally my own.

ACFW Authors Bring Good Reads to Start the Summer!

Hi all,

With June comes the question, "What books are you taking to the beach, cabin, or maybe just your own back deck, to read this summer. Here's a feast of new June releases from ACFW authors to start you on the right track.

More in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website.

Lily (Song of the River) by Diane Ashley and Aaron McCarver -- Desperate for financial independence, Lily Anderson has embarked upon a riverboat venture. Will she learn to trust God's leading or head into disaster? Lily's partner, Blake Matthews, is initially stymied, then smitten by the Mississippi miss. Can he anchor her heart, or will Lily fall for another man's wiles? (Historical from Barbour).

A Promise for Miriam by Vannetta Chapman -- Miriam King loves the children of Pebble Creek and is content teaching in the one room schoolhouse, then Gabe Miller steps into her life and everything changes. (Contemporary Romance from Harvest House).

Sophie's Daughters Trilogy by Mary Connealy -- The little girls from Petticoat Ranch are all grown up with love stories of their own...you didn't think Sophie's Daughters would grow up to be quiet little things, did you? (Historical Romance from Barbour).

Love in Disguise by Carol Cox -- When Ellie Moore wins a job as an undercover Pinkerton operative, she finds that playing a part in real life is far different than acting out a role onstage. Will the man who captures her heart still care for her when he learns the woman he's fallen in love with doesn't exist? (Historical Romance from Bethany House).

A Dream of His Own by Gail Gaymer Martin -- Quinn O'Neill feels to blame for his family's death and longs to release the guilt he feels, and when he meets Ava Darnell life takes a positive turn as he helps Ava earn his trust...but suspicion nearly undermines their relationship while he perseveres to encourage Ava to have faith that dreams of healing and family just might become reality. (Contemporary Romance from Love Inspired).

End of the Trail by Vickie McDonough -- Brooks Morgan won Raven Creek Ranch in a poker game, but when he goes to claim what's his, he finds a woman with a shotgun living in his house-and she claims she isn't leaving. (Historical Romance from River North (Moody Publishers).

Proof by Jordyn Redwood -- What does a victim do when DNA testing sets a guilty criminal free? (Medical Suspense from Kregel).

Walks Alone by Sandi G. Rog -- A Cheyenne warrior bent on vengeance. A pioneer woman bent on fulfilling a dream. Until their paths collide. (Romance from White-Fire Publishing).

The Hidden Life by Adina Senft -- An Amish spinster finds love where she had given up hope in the second book of the Amish Quilt trilogy. (Contemporary from Faith Words (Hachette).

Winning the Widow's Heart by Sherri Shackelford -- When Texas Ranger Jack Elder stormed the isolated Kansas homestead, he expected to find a band of outlaws. Instead, the only occupant is a heavily pregnant woman-and she's just gone into labor. A loner uneasy with emotion, Jack helps deliver widow Elizabeth Cole's baby girl and can't get back on the trail fast enough. The robber and murderer he's after killed one of Jack's own, and he vows to catch the man. But when he returns to check on Elizabeth and her little one, he discovers that she may hold the key to his unsettled past-and his hoped-for future. (Historical Romance from Love Inspired).

Double Exposure by Susan Sleeman --When photographer Jennie Buchanan unknowingly captures a drug-cartel meeting on film and the cartel tries to kill her, her ex-boyfriend risks everything to expose the truth-about the drug smugglers, the past and the future together he still wants. (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired).

The Director's Cut by Janice Thompson-- Full of the humor and crazy family dynamics Janice Thompson fans have come to love, this colorful story gives you an inside look at Hollywood and a healthy dose of romance. (Contemporary Romance from Revell).

Short-Straw Bride by Karen Witemeyer -- All he ever cared about were his brothers and his land, but when a good deed goes awry, Travis Archer is stuck with a bride who endangers both. (Historical Romance from Bethany House).