Monday, February 12, 2018

"Amish Sweethearts" by Amy Clipston



About this book:

   “Love is in the air in these four sweet romances!”


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“Love and Buggy Rides” by Amy Clipston:

About this book:

  “Janie Lantz is a cashier at Lancaster Souvenirs and Buggy Rides, where Jonathan Stoltfuz is a buggy driver. A frightening accident brings Janie and Jonathan together in a blossoming friendship, yet daunting obstacles stand between them and something deeper. Can love kindle into flames that burn away fear and regret—and lead them to a life together?”


Spiritual Content- A couple Prayers; Talks about God & His will; A couple mentions of Scripture verses; Mentions of prayers, blessings over food & thanking God; Mentions of church & services; A few mentions of Amish beliefs; A couple mentions of faiths; A couple mentions of blessings; A couple mentions of sins; A couple mentions of youth groups; A mention of a miracle; A mention of a devotional. 


Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘dumb’; A buggy accident & remembering it (up to semi-detailed); An attempted robbery & a gun is aimed; Mentions of blood & injuries (barely-above-not-detailed); A couple mentions of Halloween.


Sexual Content- a not-detailed kiss and a semi-detailed kiss; Touches, Embraces & Nearness (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to kiss & touch; Noticing & Smelling; Mentions of a romantic buggy ride; Mentions of dating, heartbreak & relationships; A couple mentions of jealousy; Love, falling in love & the emotions.

-Janie Lantz, age 20
-Jonathan Stoltfuz, age 29
                                         P.O.V. switches between them
                                                        100(-ish) pages

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Pre Teens-

New Teens-

Early High School Teens-

Older High School Teens-

My personal Rating-

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“A Home for Lindsay” by Amy Clipston:

About this book:

  “From Amy Clipston’s beloved Kauffman Amish Bakery series comes Lindsay Bedford’s story. Lindsay is happily looking forward to the day she becomes Matthew Glick’s wife and is excited for the plans he has for the house he will build her. So, when Matthew suddenly calls off the wedding, she is blindsided. She knows there is more to the story than what he is telling her, but will he open up and let her in on his own heartbreak?”


Spiritual Content- Prayers; Church going; Talks about God & His will; Mentions of God & His will; Mentions of prayers, praying, & blessings over food; Mentions of churches, church going, services, & hymns; Mentions of faiths; A couple mentions of blessings & being blessed; A mention of the Christian thing to do; A mention of a Christian novel;


Negative Content- Mentions of debts; Mentions of Matthew’s father who abandon his family;


Sexual Content- a cheek kiss and two semi-detailed kisses; Touches & Embraces (barely-above-not-detailed); Some noticing; Mentions of dating, girlfriends, boyfriends, & breakups; A few mentions of falling and being in love; A mention of a cheek kiss; Love, being in love & the emotions.

-Lindsay Bedford, age 19
-Matthew Glick, age 20
                                         P.O.V. switches between them
                                                        100(-ish) pages

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Pre Teens-

New Teens-

Early High School Teens-

Older High School Teens-
My personal Rating-
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“Where the Heart Is” by Amy Clipston:

About this book:

  “Tobias Smucker is back home, and it’s no secret he and his father are still not on the best of terms. But what is surprising is that his little sister’s best friend, Mariella, has been harboring her own secret feelings for Tobias. With her help, he begins to unravel a family mystery and learns that everyone has their own hidden depths, including his father.”


Spiritual Content- Church going; Prayers; A few mentions of God; ‘H’s are not capital when referring to God; Mentions of God & His plan; Mentions of prayers, praying, & blessings over food; Mentions of churches, church going, services, sermons, hymns, & a bishop; Mentions of sins & confessing; Mentions of blessings & being blessed; Mentions of the Amish church & beliefs; A few mentions of thanking God; A few mentions of youth groups; A couple mentions of faiths; A couple mentions of Amish books.


Negative Content- Mentions of alcohol, drinking, former alcoholics/drunks (including Tobias), & getting help (rehab); A few mentions of an accident & death; A couple mentions of lies & lying;
            *Note: A mention of a car brand.


Sexual Content- two semi-detailed kisses; Touches, Warmth, & Sparks (barely-above-not-detailed); Noticing (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of dating, girlfriends, & boyfriends; Mentions of crushes & blushes; Love, falling in love & the emotions.

-Mariella Ebersol, age 23
-Tobias Smucker, age 24/25
                                         P.O.V. switches between them
                                                        100(-ish) pages

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Pre Teens-
New Teens-
Early High School Teens-
Older High School Teens-
My personal Rating-
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“Love Birds” by Amy Clipston:

About this book:

  “While Ellie Lapp and her mother are still mourning the loss of her brother, Seth, Ellie starts working at one of the gift shops in town. Seth’s friend Lloyd is talented at carving wooden birds, but his father disapproves and expects him to take over the family farm someday. Ellie sees the beauty in Lloyd’s creations and insists Lloyd sell the birds in the gift shop where she works. As Ellie and Lloyd spend more time together, they begin to develop feelings for one another, but she accidentally betrays his trust. Will she lose any hope of a future with him?”


Spiritual Content- Prayers; Church & Youth gatherings; Talks about God, talents & pride; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Many mentions of Prayers; Mentions of Church & Youth gatherings; A mention of a Christian novel.


Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘stupid’; Mentions of an accident and death (barely-above-not-detailed).


Sexual Content- a not-detailed kiss and a semi-detailed kiss; Touches (up to semi-detailed); Noticing & Smelling; Mentions of crushes & girlfriends; A couple mentions of jealousy; Love, falling in love, and the emotions.

-Ellie Lapp, age 19
-Lloyd Blank, age 24
                                         P.O.V. switches between them
                                                        100(-ish) pages
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Pre Teens-
New Teens-
Early High School Teens-
Older High School Teens-
My personal Rating-
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Pre Teens-
New Teens-
Early High School Teens-
Older High School Teens-
My personal Rating-
I’ve been very excited to read this Amy Clipston-only novella collection! Since two of these novellas have been in previous novella collections that I reviewed in 2016, I copied my original content review of them to this review as well with some addition thoughts. :)
Love and Buggy Rides  (previously published in An Amish Harvest):
When I read this novella in August of 2016, I said it was a sweet and fluffy read like cotton candy! I still feel like that’s a pretty good description over how sweet it is! It moves a bit fast, but not too rushed like some other author’s novellas.
A Home for Lindsay:
The novella in this collection I was most anticipating! After finally finishing the Kauffman Amish Bakery series last month, it was just in time to read this one! While reading this novella, I did find it very dramatic and wanted to bop Matthew on the head a few times (just being honest!), but I did still enjoy it, albeit not as much as I was expecting.
Where the Heart Is:
Oooh, I think I really liked this one the best! I liked seeing Ariana & Jesse again, but this time seeing her brother doing well was very nice. Mari was a sweet heart encouraging him, which I really liked. Their story was sweet as well.
Love Birds  (previously published in An Amish Market):
Reviewed in early 2016, I found this novella to be so cute! I really like it being connected to the Amish Heirlooms series. I still love this couple and their story! :)


See y’all on Wednesday with a new review! :)


*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
*I received this book for free from the publisher (Zondervan) for this honest review.


Friday, February 9, 2018

"Happy Camper" by Renee Riva



About this book:

  “Allie Jaskie, recent fashion school graduate, needs a job.
  Charlie Braun, editor of Happy Camper Magazine, needs a field reporter.
  The clock is ticking for an article about summer snow camping on Mount Rainier. Allie is not fond of camping, much less, snow. But she's down to her last can of tomato soup. What's a hungry girl to do?
  She changes her name to Sage Forester, and shows up for an interview in a comical ensemble of old camping attire, courtesy of Goodwill. Something about Sage Forester doesn't quite add up, but Charlie is intrigued enough to give her a chance.
  When Sage returns from Mount Rainier with her article: “Fashions in the Forest,” the editorial staff roars hysterically—until their boss says “run it.”
  Sage is an instant hit with the ladies. Who would guess so many would love the idea of trading in their army green camping gear for pink tents, and bright hiking attire?
  Sage's celebrity continues to soar—until Charlie discovers that Sage Forester is not who she says she is, nor is she spending those invigorating nights sleeping in the snow, as all were led to believe.
  Readers of all ages are in for an avalanche of fun in this heartwarming adventure as Sage and Charlie battle it out in Paradise on Mount Rainier.”


Series: Book #1 in the “Mountain View Inn” series.


Spiritual Content- Philippians 4:8-9 are referenced at the beginning; Prayers; Talks about God; Mentions of God & His creation; Mentions of prayers & blessings over food; Mentions of a church mission trip; A few mentions of churches & church going; A couple mentions of faiths.


Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘crud’, an ‘omigosh’, a ‘shut up’, a ‘stupid’, a ‘what the heck’, a ‘wimp’, five forms of ‘dumb’, and five forms of ‘idiot’; A bit of sarcasm & eye rolling; Mentions of an accident & death (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of deception, lies, & lying; Mentions of hunting & those who kill animals for a sport; A few mentions of threats; A few mentions of creepy stalkers; A couple mentions of a (fictional) dog that died; A mention of drunks;
             *Note: Mentions of Girl Scouts & Boy Scouts; Mentions of paranormal romance, werewolves, & vampires.


Sexual Content- a nose kiss, a barely-above-not-detailed kiss, and a border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed kiss; Touches (barely-above-not-detailed); Noticing; Mentions of jealousy; Mentions of dating, dates, & girlfriends; A few mentions of blushes; A couple mentions of cute girls; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: Mentions of a server at a restaurant that neither Allie nor Charlie know is a “he” or a “she”; A mention of a unisex bathroom.

-Allie Jaskie, age 22
-Charlie Braun
                                P.O.V. switches between them & a couple others
                                                        164 pages

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Pre Teens-
New Teens-
Early High School Teens-
Older High School Teens-
My personal Rating-
“What an oxymoron. Happy and camper in the same sentence.”
I’d like to say I fully agree with Allie’s thought there about 10,000 times.
I’m so not a camper.
So the overall idea of this book really intrigued me and I know it would be a fun read since Renee Riva wrote it. (It was. ;) )
I threw my head back in laughter (that sounds painful, but y’all know what I mean) many times at Allie/Sage’s comments and personally love the mistaken identity plot, so it really was a humorous read.
I will say that I wasn’t a fan of the mentions of paranormal romance or the mentions of Allie & Charlie trying to figure out if a server is a male or female. Those parts felt odd to me.
Liza was a cutie, though, and I thought the ending was sweet. :)


See y’all on Monday with a new review!


*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
*I received this book for free from the Author for this honest review.