Book Reviews

One Fine Day by Carrie Padgett & Rachel Hauck

About the Book

Title: One Fine Day
Series: Hearts Bend Collection #1
Authors: Rachel Hauck with Carrie Padgett
Genre: Contemporary Christian Romance
Publisher: Sunrise Publishing
Release Date: May 24, 2022

All she wants is a fresh start…

Chloe Beason LaRue left Hearts Bend after high school, determined to never look back. She shed her unrequited crush on Sam Hardy, moved to Paris, went to pastry school, found a good job, fell in love, and got married. She was happy in France. Then her husband tragically died. Now, Chloe just wants to move forward…but when her mom’s health is in jeopardy, Chloe heads right back to Hearts Bend where she’s hired as head baker for Haven’s, the premier bakery in town. She has no idea that moving home will push her right into the arms of the man who broke her heart.

He’s not looking to fall in love…

Tennessee Titans quarterback Sam Hardy has too many broken memories in Hearts Bend to Return. But when he’s sidelined by an injury, he desperately needs to invest in something to safeguard his future. Haven’s Bakery is up for sale—and his business partner believes the deal is too good to pass up. He has no idea that the owners have hired the one girl he can’t seem to forget…and the last thing he expects is to be her boss.

But it’s a recipe for romance…

Back in Hearts Bend for the first time in ten years and thrown together at Haven’s Bakery, Chloe and Sam have a second chance at first love. Indeed, the more time Sam spends selling pastries, the more he sees a new future. But when Paris beckons Chloe back, where does her heart belong? Can they find the recipe for leaving regrets behind and start something new?

Escape to Hearts Bend for a sweet story of romance, faith, and an unexpected happy ending.

Grab your copy here!

About the Authors

New York Times, USA Today & Wall Street Journal Bestselling author Rachel Hauck writes from sunny central Florida. A RITA finalist and winner of Romantic Times Inspirational Novel of the Year, and Career Achievement Award, she writes vivid characters dealing with real life issues. Readers have fallen in love with the quaint and lovable small town of Hearts Bend, TN introduced in the NYT bestselling The Wedding Dress, which launched her Wedding Collection novels.

Connect with Rachel: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Bookbub

Carrie Padgett is a second generation native Californian married to a third generation native. She’s lived in northern, central, and southern California and declares them all wonderful places. Carrie writes contemporary fiction with romance. She believes in families, fun, and happily ever after. She and her husband live in Central California with their cat and dog and within driving distance of their grand-children.

Connect with Carrie: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Bookbub

My Review

One Fine Day
by Rachel Hauck with Carrie Padgett
Book 1 in the Hearts Bend Collection
Rating: 4.5/5

Wow. What a way to launch a new collection featuring Hearts Bend, TN. Rachel Hauck has cultivated this vibrant and charming small town and now readers get to continue falling in love with more characters. As a huge fan of Rachel Hauck, I was super excited to see her partner with Carrie Padgett as a mentor through Sunrise Publishing to produce another story. I devoured this book in a few hours (I’m not ashamed to say I may not have gotten done what I was supposed to do today) and the book did not disappoint. I also appreciated the map of Hearts Bend at the beginning of the book. Who doesn’t love a good book map?

First, how cute is the cover? It brings up warm and fuzzy small town vibes and it’s just perfect. The style of the artwork is brilliant and now, I want a cupcake. LOL.
Second, who doesn’t love stories about second chances? Friends-to-lovers? Who hasn’t felt the sting of regret from an unspoken crush? Oh how I love fiction. The story is well written and plotted out. The authors did a great job working together to produce a lovely story.
Third, the main characters are perfectly flawed and need healing. They are dealing with their own serious issues and emotions, which make them very relatable and sympathetic. Their chemistry is also swoon worthy 😉
Fourth, the Touch of the Divine and the message of God’s love is woven throughout and doesn’t shy away from the tough subjects.

Highly recommend this charming small town story with so much heart and soul.

P.S. LK and Ruby are some of my favorite characters. Watch out for that cookie recipe.

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May 24, 2022 by Kim Book Reviews

The One Who Loves Me by Joan Embola

On Tour with Prism Book Tours

The One Who Loves Me
(Sovereign Love #2)
By Joan Embola
Christian Contemporary Romance
Paperback & ebook, 340 Pages
May 21, 2022 by Love Qualified Press

IS GOD SOVEREIGN OVER LOVE STORIES?

Amara Ikezie is a new grad nurse who is thrilled to start her dream job in Atlanta’s biggest children’s hospital. But when her best friend gets engaged, Amara is faced with the looming pressure from her mom to find her own man. Determined to escape the pressure to marry, Amara takes on a task to find the ‘perfect’ man who ticks all the boxes on her list.

Raymond Aderinto is a pediatric cardiologist with a wall of accolades and a string of failed relationships. After his fourth girlfriend dumps him, Raymond vows to get confirmation from God first before entering into his next relationship—even though he’d love to find his bride before turning thirty.

When Raymond spills coffee on Amara’s scrubs, he becomes certain she’s the woman God wants to be his wife. But unfortunately for him, Raymond doesn’t tick Amara’s boxes, and worst of all, Amara is sure her Igbo mom would never approve of a marriage to a man from the Yoruba tribe.

Despite Amara’s efforts to stay away from Raymond and convince herself he is not the one for her, her growing attraction for his character, values, and vision gives her more reasons to wonder if she was wrong about her prejudices toward him. When another doctor walks into Amara’s life who ticks all her boxes and shows interest in her, she is caught between running into his ‘perfect’ arms, or going with Raymond who is turning out to be more perfect than she thought.

The One Who Loves Me, book two in the Sovereign Love series, is a beautiful standalone novel about surrender and learning to take comfort in the sovereign goodness of a loving God who writes the best love stories.

(Affiliate links included.)

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

Other Books in the Series

The One Who Knows Me
(Sovereign Love #1)
By Joan Embola
Christian Contemporary Romance
Paperback & ebook, 318 Pages
July 21, 2021 by Love Qualified Press

IS GOD SOVEREIGN OVER TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY?

Bullies and family disasters have left eighteen-year-old Teeyana Sparks filled with anxiety and doubt. She feels pressured to believe in God, but as she embarks on her college journey in the hope of one day working at Google as a graphic designer, the only thing she believes in is controlling her own life. Things change when she meets Jayden Williams—the guy with a charming smile and kind heart.

Struggling with grief and recovering from a season of depression, nineteen-year-old Jayden is determined to help Teeyana believe in God’s goodness again. But when yet another tragedy strikes close to home, Teeyana’s response exposes Jayden’s unhealed wounds and tips him into a mental health relapse.

With the looming possibility of not getting her dream life, Teeyana is caught between holding on to her illusion of control and surrendering to a God she’s rejected. And as Jayden strives to break out of his despondency, he has to face that letting God in may involve him letting go of his friendship with Teeyana. Teeyana and Jayden must wrestle with uncomfortable truths, and the pride in their hearts, in order to face their biggest giant—God’s sovereignty over both triumph and tragedy.

The One Who Knows Me, book one in the Sovereign Love series, is a heart-warming standalone novel about hope and learning to take comfort in the sovereign goodness of a loving God who knows all things.

(Affiliate links included.)

Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

About the Author

Joan Embola is a UK-based Cameroonian-Nigerian Christian author who is passionate about spreading God’s love one word at a time. She is a Bible teacher, a blogger, a YouTuber, a podcaster, a dancer, and a poetess. Her book Outpourings Of A Beloved Heart; a 30 day poetry devotional about God’s love, is available for purchase and her debut contemporary Christian Fiction novel–The One Who knows Me released on September 10th 2021.

My Review

The One Who Loves Me
by Joan Embola
Book 2 in the Sovereign Love series
Rating: 4/5

I always enjoy discovering a new author to read and this book was no exception. Joan Embola weaves a fun tale of dating mishaps on a journey to self-discovery and God’s love. Though this book is part of a series, I believe you can definitely read each book as a standalone. However, I want to go back and read the first book.

First, the book cover is fun and introduces the characters at a glance.

Second, the premise was interesting – if not frustrating at times. I always get frustrated when love triangles are involved lol.

Third, I liked the journey the characters go on. The messages of hope and love are beautiful and heartfelt. For a series that’s called Sovereign Love, the author is not afraid to bring up her beliefs and acknowledge God’s plan and purpose when it comes to finding your life partner.

Fourth, I like to read books with characters from different cultures and the author gives this book a very authentic edge with the dialogue. The author provides translations of different words and phrases which was very handy.

Highly recommend this fun and flirty romantic comedy.

My thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an ARC of the book. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own. No positive review was expected and no compensation received.

Tour Schedule

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One winner will receive a $25 Amazon e-gift card (open internationally)

Ends June 1, 2022

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May 23, 2022 by Kim Book Reviews Giveaway

Fatal Code by Natalie Walters

About the Book

Title: Fatal Code
Series: Snap Agency #2
Author: Natalie Walters
Genre: Christian Romantic Suspense
Publisher: Revell
Release Date: May 3, 2022

In 1964, a group of scientists called the Los Alamos Five came close to finishing a nuclear energy project for the United States government when they were abruptly disbanded. Now the granddaughter of one of those five scientists, aerospace engineer Elinor Mitchell, discovers that she has highly sensitive information on the project in her possession–and a target on her back.

SNAP agent and former Navy cryptologist Kekoa Young is tasked with monitoring Elinor. This is both convenient since she’s his neighbor in Washington, DC, and decidedly inconvenient because . . . well, he kind of likes her.

As Elinor follows the clues her grandfather left behind to a top-secret nuclear project, Kekoa has no choice but to step in. When Elinor learns he has been spying on her, she’s crushed. But with danger closing in on all sides, she’ll have to trust him to ensure her discoveries stay out of enemy hands.

Natalie Walters sucks you into the global race for space domination in this perfectly paced second installment of her SNAP Agency romantic suspense series.

Grab your copy here!

About the Author

Natalie Walters is the author of Lights Out, as well as the Harbored Secrets series. A military wife, she currently resides in Texas with her soldier husband and is the proud mom of three. She loves traveling, spending time with her family, and connecting with readers on Instagram and Facebook. Learn more at www.nataliewalterswriter.com.

My Review

Fatal Code
By Natalie Walters
Book 2 in the SNAP Agency series
Rating: 4/5

Wow. Who doesn’t love a thrilling adventure with mystery and intrigue and a whole lot of swoon worthy romance?! Natalie Walters delivers another heart-pounding story filled with code breaking and scientific advancements that could change the world forever. Even though this is book two, it can definitely be read as a standalone novel.

First, I love the cover and color scheme.
Second, I loved the characters especially Kekoa. As an Asian American who has visited Hawaii multiple times and almost went to school there, I loved how the author did her best to include Kekoa’s culture and cuisine into the book. She definitely did her research and I was always pleasantly surprised when she mentioned different foods and phrases. She captured his longing for home really well along with his inner turmoil regarding his tragic past. He was both a strong and vulnerable man who was intelligent and compassionate. Elinor was a very sweet character who had more grit than I initially expected. She was smart and capable and I was definitely rooting for her.
Third, the plot was well thought out and moved quickly. There are some faith elements included but it wasn’t too “in your face”.

Highly recommend if you enjoy clean romantic suspense with international spies and code breaking.

My thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an ARC of the book. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own. No positive review was expected and no compensation received.

Also Available

May 13, 2022 by Kim Book Reviews

Inside the Wong Mind: Reading is my therapy

Hello. This blog is all mine and I will do my best to post what interests me and what books I read with honest reviews. I am a lover of good Christian fiction with a touch of romance, mystery, intrigue, humor, fun, etc. I invite you to join me as I read my way through books and life. I am currently pursuing my residency training as a family medicine physician!!! I have to carefully choose what I want to read for fun. My name is Kim and you are entering the Wong Mind.