Saturday, January 2, 2016

Quarterly Round-Up: October-December

        Here is a list of all of the books I have read the past three months! It isn’t as many as I would like, but hopefully I will be able to read more next quarter! I’m just going to highlight a little about the book and whether I liked it or not; to see the full review of each novel just click on the highlighted titles in the text.

 
The Midwife’s Tale
        The Midwife’s Tale is the first book in Delia Parr’s At Home in Trinity series, and is the novel that has gotten me completely hooked on both Delia’s writing and this series. It was definitely one of my more enjoyable reads of the quarter, and I know that I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

 
Healer of Carthage
        Healer of Carthage is the first book in Lynne Gentry’s Carthage Chronicles series, and is the first book I ever read by her. It quickly got me hooked on her writing, however, and I am glad to say it is a novel I definitely enjoyed.

 
At Bluebonnet Lake
        At Bluebonnet Lake is the first book in Amanda Cabot’s Texas Crossroads series, but was not one of the better books I’ve read the past few months. While I enjoyed the storyline to a certain degree, many parts of the novel were just a little too cheesy/cliché for me, and I felt that the ending fell a little flat.

Beautiful Star of Bethlehem
        Beautiful Star of Bethlehem by Lori Copeland was a sweet novel, but it definitely wasn’t one of my favorites of the quarter. Although I still awarded it with all five bookshelves, it was so completely different from anything I expected or have read before that I don’t really know what I think of it. That could be a good thing or a bad thing, but right now, I’m leaning more towards the latter.

 
An Endless Christmas
        An Endless Christmas by Cynthia Ruchti may be only the second Christmas novella I’ve ever read, but it definitely is the best novella I’ve read, Christmas or otherwise. It was so sweet, wonderful, and unforgettable that I know I will want to read it again soon, so I am really glad I own a copy of this one.

The Golden Braid
        The Golden Braid by Melanie Dickerson is one of the many fairy-tale retellings she has written and I have read and, although it isn’t my favorite, it is definitely a wonderful novel that I love and that is another great example of what a talented author Melanie is. This novel is one of my favorites I’ve read this quarter, and I know I will most likely be reading it again soon.

 
Love Without End
        Love Without End is the first book in Robin Lee Hatcher’s King’s Meadow Romance series, and was also the first book I had ever read by her. I enjoyed this novel immensely, and have since added Robin to my list of favorite authors.

Whenever You Come Around
        Whenever You Come Around is the second book in Robin Lee Hatcher’s King’s Meadow Romance series—coming after Love Without End—and is by far my favorite of the two. While I really did enjoy the first book, this novel was just so, so wonderful it really blew that one away. But, no matter which one was better, I have become a fan of Robin’s writing, and I have fallen in love with this series.

 
Gabriel’s Atonement
        Gabriel’s Atonement is the first book in Vickie McDonough’s Land Rush Dreams series, and was the first full length novel I had ever read by her. I thoroughly enjoyed this story, and I quickly fell in love with it and all of the characters involved.

Joline’s Redemption
        Joline’s Redemption is the second book in Vickie McDonough’s Land Rush Dreams series, coming after Gabriel’s Atonement, and is definitely my favorite of the two. Although I definitely really enjoyed the first novel, there was just something about this second one that put it over the top.

 
Secrets of Sloane House
        Secrets of Sloane House is the first book in Shelley Gray’s Chicago World’s Fair Mystery series, and is the beginning of my favorite series that I read this year. Although this didn’t end up my favorite novel of the three, that’s just because each one was even better than the first, even though this one was wonderful enough to make it onto my all-time favorites list.

Deception on Sable Hill
        Deception on Sable Hill is the second book in Shelley Gray’s Chicago World’s Fair Mystery series, coming after Secrets of Sloane House. While I absolutely loved the first novel, I enjoyed this one even more, although it isn’t my favorite either. It is one of my favorites I’ve read this year, however.

 
Whispers in the Reading Room
        Whispers in the Reading Room is the third book in Shelley Gray’s Chicago World’s Fair Mystery series, coming after Secrets of Sloane House and Deception on Sable Hill. This, by far, is my favorite novel of the series, and is one of my top five books I’ve read this quarter. It is absolutely amazing.

A Thousand Shall Fall
        A Thousand Shall Fall is the first book in Andrea Boeshaar’s Shenandoah Valley series, and is the first book I ever read by her. It is also the novel that caused me to add Andrea to my list of favorite authors. This book was another one of my top five, and I cannot wait to read more in the series.

 
The Mountain Midwife
        The Mountain Midwife by Laurie Alice Eakes is the first book I ever read by her, and was definitely a novel that I enjoyed. It was also one of my favorite novels I read this quarter.

 
Petticoat Detective
        Petticoat Detective is the first book in Margaret Brownley’s Undercover Ladies series, and is also the first novel I ever read by her. It quickly became one of my favorite books of all time, and I also added Margaret to my list of favorite authors. This novel was wonderful enough to do that.

 
The Trouble with Patience
        The Trouble with Patience is the first book in Maggie Brendan’s Virtues and Vices of the Old West series, but cannot be the first novel I read by her because I didn’t actually finish it. Although I hate to give a bad review to anyone’s hard work, I just couldn’t finish this novel because it was a little too slow for my tastes.

Hearts Made Whole
        Hearts Made Whole is the second book in Jody Hedlund’s Beacons of Hope series, coming after Love Unexpected. Although I really, really enjoyed the first book, I absolutely LOVED this novel that much more.

 
Irish Meadows
        Irish Meadows is the first book in Susan Anne Mason’s Courage to Dream series, and is the first book I have ever read by her. It is a wonderful novel that I thoroughly enjoyed, and I cannot wait to read more by Susan in the future.

The Inn at Ocean’s Edge
        The Inn at Ocean’s Edge is the first book in Colleen Coble’s Sunset Cove series, but isn’t the first novel I’ve read by her. I have been a huge fan of Colleen’s for a while now, so I was extremely excited when I got the chance to read another one of her books. I absolutely LOVED this one, and cannot wait to read more of her work!

 
The Painter’s Daughter
        The Painter’s Daughter by Julie Klassen is her latest release, and was the only book she has ever written that I hadn’t read, until I finished it only a few days after it came out. it was by far one of my favorites of her books…but then, I love all of her novels.

        So, those are the books I’ve read this quarter!

        Happy reading!



To see where I'm linking up, check out my Where I Party page.

All credit for the wonderful pictures go to my sister Allie, whose blog you can visit here.

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