Inside the Wong Mind

Curvy Girls Can’t Date Princes by Kelsie Stelting

Disclosure: Bear in mind that some of the links in this post are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase I will earn a commission. Keep in mind that I link these companies and their products because of their quality and not because of the commission I receive from your purchases. The decision is yours, and whether or not you decide to buy something is completely up to you.

About the Book

Title: Curvy Girls Can’t Date Princes
Series: The Curvy Girl Club #9
Author: Kelsie Stelting
Genre: YA Clean Romance
Release Date: October 29, 2021

Our foreign exchange student is a prince.

A real-life prince. Like of a country. And he’s not one of those ugly ones with big teeth that girls only like because he’s royal. No, he’s hot. On fire. I’m drooling just thinking about him.

But that’s the problem, because the only reason my parents took him in is because they don’t think there’s any way a guy like him could crush on a girl like me.

I’m going to prove them wrong. I don’t know how. But I’m going to figure out a way to make Leopold Williams fall for me before I cross the graduation stage.

Curvy Girls Can’t Date Princes is an exhilarating royal romance in The Curvy Girl Club that will have your heart beating fast and butterflies dancing in your stomach. Read like a queen and grab your copy today!

Purchase your copy here!

About the Author

Kelsie Stelting is a body positive romance author who writes love stories with strong characters, deep feelings, and happy endings.

She currently lives in Colorado with her high school sweetheart and three sweet boys. You can often find her writing, spending time with family, and soaking up too much sun wherever she can find it.

Visit www.kelsiestelting.com to get a free story and sign up for her readers’ group!

My Review

Curvy Girls Can’t Date Princes
by Kelsie Stelting
Rating: 4.5/5

Kelsie Stelting does it again! She writes a powerful story about self-love and acceptance that made me laugh and cry. As a huge fan of this series, I have enjoyed every story. Each one is truly transformative when it comes to body-positive issues plus identity as a growing young adult. I really enjoyed reading about Faith’s journey and her love story with Leo. I am a huge fan of adoption but I have talked with adoptive parents before who wondered if what they did was truly the best for the child. The author really hits those poignant moments hard and asks the reader to question the motives of those who adopt children. Adopting someone into your home and life is a great thing but it also can come with childhood trauma from being torn away from your family and a hole in your heart. I applaud the author for addressing the issues that the parents and the adoptee have to deal with.

As someone who is a total romantic, I loved the idea of Leo falling in love with Faith. I loved his honesty and his passion. He himself was on a journey of self-discovery where Faith helped lead him.

“Everyone deserves to have someone to sit with at lunch.”

I also loved that the author also focused more on Tatiana. Real life. Real backgrounds. Real issues. Real insecurities. So good. Who doesn’t love a story of redemption?

Highly recommend this inspirational story about young love, adoption, and parental dynamics that will make you believe in unconditional love.

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

October 31, 2021 by Kim Book Reviews

Charming Artemis by Sarah M. Eden

About the Book

Title: Charming Artemis
Author: Sarah M. Eden
Genre: Regency Romance
Publisher: Covenant Communications
Release Date: October 4, 2021

Charlie Jonquil is mild-mannered and kind―except when it comes to his one true adversary, Artemis Lancaster. Though Charlie has a brilliant mind for mathematics, Artemis poses a problem he can’t seem to comprehend: how can one be so lovely and so infuriating? A party in London brings him into the company of the maddening young lady, and it is clear that Charlie’s disdain is mutual. But when an unfortunate incident between the pair involving Charlie’s jacket and a glass of raspberry shrub leads to scandal, the sworn enemies are left with only two options: be ruined or be married.

So it is that Artemis finds herself in a most outrageous predicament: she must wed a gentleman she’s hated for years―and she pledges to avoid him at all costs. But it is only when they enter into this mockery of a marriage that Charlie and Artemis learn things are not as simple as they once appeared. As their tentative ceasefire leads to friendship, it seems their marriage born of desperation might lead them to a love that was destined to be.

Purchase your copy here!

About the Author

Sarah M. Eden is a USA Today best-selling author of witty and charming historical romances, including 2020’s Foreword Reviews INDIE Awards Gold Winner for Romance, Forget Me Not, and 2020 Holt Medallion finalist, Healing Hearts. She is a two-time “Best of State” Gold Medal winner for fiction and a three-time Whitney Award winner. Combining her obsession with history and her affinity for tender love stories, Sarah loves crafting deep characters and heartfelt romances set against rich historical backdrops. She holds a bachelor’s degree in research and happily spends hours perusing the reference shelves of her local library.

My Review

Charming Artemis
by Sarah M. Eden
Rating: 4.5/5

Wow. What an incredible ending! This book made me cry and laugh and fall in love with the Lancaster and Jonquil families. Can I be a part of these families? I must admit that I’ve never read any of the other books and now must go back to discover all the details that I’ve missed. However, I definitely believe the book can be read by itself but the other stories definitely would be helpful to read in order. In the back of the book, there was a suggested reading order which I will have to follow in the future. My TBR list just keeps getting longer and longer lol.

Charlie and Artemis are quite the characters with their own insecurities and flaws but with hearts that just want to be loved and accepted for who they are. I felt Artemis was very unlikeable at times but the author tried her best to explain why she was the way she was. I loved the Charlie could see right through Artemis’ facade immediately upon meeting her and wouldn’t let her get away with it. Who doesn’t love an enemies-to-lovers romance? The chemistry between the two was swoonworthy and the process was believable. Artemis’ Papa was an interesting mystery (though a bit creepy at first) to start the book with. I guessed it halfway through and was interested to see how it all played out. I loved the Gents and Layton was probably the favorite lol. I’m wondering if there’s more about the Gents and their stories? I’ll have to research more. I loved Adam’s character too and am interested in learning more (I’ll have to read the previous books).

Highly recommend if you enjoy a Regency enemies-to-lovers romance that’s clean, heartwarming and makes you want to believe in the Divine.

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.

Follow along on the Blog Tour!

Books And Socks Rock Oct 25
LDS and Lovin’ it Oct 26
Getting Your Read On Oct 26
The Reading Mamas Oct 27
Bookworm Lisa Oct 27
Min Reads and Reviews Oct 28
Literary Time Out Oct 29
Why Not? Because I Said So! Oct 29
Inside the Wong Mind Oct 30
My Book a Day Nov 1
Holly’s Book Corner Nov 1
Books Are Sanity Nov 2
Life Is What It’s Called Nov 3
Heidi Reads Nov 4

Giveaway

WIN a PAPERBACK copy of Charming Artemis by Sarah M. Eden (US addresses only)

Enter the Giveaway here: Raffle link

October 30, 2021 by Kim Book Reviews Giveaway

Carved in Ebony by Jasmine L. Holmes

Carved in Ebony JustRead Blog Blitz
Welcome to the Blog Blitz for Carved in Ebony by Jasmine L. Holmes, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: Carved in Ebony
Author: Jasmine L. Holmes
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
Release Date: November 2, 2021
Genre: Christian History / Biography

Through the lives of Elizabeth Freeman, Nannie Helen Burroughs, Amanda Berry Smith, Mamie Till, and others, author and speaker Jasmine Holmes shares the significant role that Black women have played in the formation of our faith–and are playing in our formation as modern-day women of faith.

As these historical figures take the stage with Holmes, you will be inspired by what the stories of these women can teach us about education, birth, privilege, and so much more. Carved in Ebony will take you past the predominately white, male contributions that seemingly dominate history books to discover how Black women have been some of the main figures in defining the landscape of American history and faith.

Come along on Jasmine’s journey and be encouraged by the powerful and persuasive Black women of our past so that you can help inspire a better, more inclusive future.

EXCERPT

Chapter 8 – “A Refined Negro Woman: Lucy Craft Laney” from Carved in Ebony by Jasmine Holmes, pp. 135–136, 237 words (edited)

From the age of fourteen, Lucy Craft Laney knew what she wanted to be: a teacher. And she spent her entire life in dogged pursuit of this goal. Her focus was on the uplift of the Black youth of Augusta, Georgia, and she threw herself so completely into that focus that she lived on the campus where she taught. She operated within her small corner of the world with a faithfulness that we would do well to emulate, even if our different corners seem further reaching than hers.

Lucy is a testament to what it looks like to faithfully stick to a task. Although she was involved in activism as well as education, the bulk of her time was spent in the classroom and in facilitating the classroom experiences of other teachers. She does not have a host of speeches that I can pull from to illustrate her faith in Christ, but perhaps more than any other woman in this book, she has the testimony of the people who knew her and saw her service up close.

What an incredible testimony of God’s faithfulness this woman was. From enslaved parentage to a thorough education lived out in quiet, humble intellect and service to others.

What a legacy she left, not only for her students, but for every person who picks up her story.
What a legacy she has left me.
What a legacy she has left you.

Excerpt from Carved in Ebony by Jasmine Holmes provided by Bethany House Publishers, a division of Baker Publishing Group. Copyright Oct. 12, 2021. Used by permission. http://www.bakerpublishinggroup.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jasmine L. Holmes

Jasmine L. Holmes has written for The Gospel Coalition, Desiring God, Fathom Mag, Christianity Today, and The Witness. Jasmine is the author of Mother to Son: Letters to a Black Boy on Identity and Hope, and contributor for Identity Theft: Reclaiming the Truth of Our Identity in Christ, and His Testimony, My Heritage: Women of Color on the Word of God. She teaches humanities in a classical Christian school in Jackson, Mississippi, where she and her husband, Phillip, are parenting three young sons.

CONNECT WITH JASMINE: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive a copy of The Happy Crab by Layla & Kevin Palmer, Prepare Him Room by Susie Larson, and Make Their Day by Karen Ehman.

Full tour schedule linked below. Giveaway began at midnight October 27, 2021 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on November 3, 2021. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links.

October 29, 2021 by Kim Blitz Giveaway

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.