This Book Room

Josephine Dronberger was a scared teenager when she left her baby in the care of an Old Order Amish couple. But seventeen years have passed and Josie longs to reconnect with her daughter. Linda -- as the couple named the child -- is promised to Stephen Ebersol, the bishop's grandson. They plan to marry in the fall. But when her birth mother comes to Paradise, Linda is drawn to a world she's never known.

Additional notes: This is the fourth book in the Plain, or Daughters of the Promise, series. You can read my review of the first book here, the second book here and the third book here. This series has five books and is, so far as I know, ongoing.

My thoughts: I really like Amish Christian books, but I'm not such a huge fan that all of them are the sort-of classic boy meets girl, boy likes girl, conflict ensues, then boy and girl live happily ever after. Most of Beth's books are like this, but this one stands out because it's more about the mother-daughter relationship than a boy-girl relationship.

Alicia Black Sullivan swore to never repeat her father's mistakes: she would never break any promises, she would never be unfaithful. And most important of all, when she got married, it would be for good. And she really does love Phillip, the assistant pastor of her father's church. She just happends to love money and the things it can buy as well. Alicia was born to the good life, she's entitled to the best, and she'll do anything to get it. Even if it means denying to everyone even herself that her love of shopping has gotten way out of control. Before long, Phillip begins to wonder if marrying the woman of his dreams was a huge mistake. Alicia has similar thoughts. Deep down, though, she knows a whopper of an emotional bill is coming due. And all the regrets in the world won't change the fact that she may be more like her infamous father than she could have imagined or feared.

Additional notes: This is the sixth book in the Reverend Curtis Black series. You can read my review of the second book here, third book here, the fourth book here and the fifth book here. This series currently has eight books and is, so far as I know, ongoing.

My thoughts: The plot centering around Alicia was a nice surprise! Although, I have to say that it seems all the women are the same and the men are the same. Not a lot of character development, but still, the series is interesting!

The average American family spends 10 to 15 percent of its take-home pay on groceries. Cut Your Grocery Bill in Half gives them a sure-fire opportunity to reduce that number forever. With the proven plan in this book, the average family can save more than $3,000 a year on its grocery bill. "Can cutting coupons do that?" a consumer might ask. Of course, these money-saving experts teach coupon-clipping strategies, but they don't stop there. Readers learn how to plan their shopping to save big bucks, effectively store food and save cash, identify products that save time and money, beat the grocer at pricing games, and more! The Economides learned to deliver healthy, tasty food to their family of seven on $350 a month. In this authoritative manual, the average family can follow their lead and fill its grocery cart without emptying its wallet.

Additional notes: The Economides family has a first book, The America's Cheapest Family Gets You Right on the Money. You can read my review of that book here.

My thoughts: The best tip I gained from this book was to start a sales binder. Record when items you regularly buy go on sale, so you can somewhat anticipate when they will be on sale again. This will help you to buy appropriately during the sale so you have enough until the next sale. I will definitely be doing this for Suave shampoo (it is the cheapest shampoo I have found when it's 11 bottles for $10 at Meijer). Overall, I knew everything in this book, but I find these sorts of books are worth the time to read even if I learn only one new thing, plus the information reinforces what I know and encourages me to keep doing what I'm already doing.

In A Promise of Hope, the second book in the Kauffman Amish Bakery series by Amy Clipston, an Amish widow with newborn twins discovers her deceased husband had disturbing secrets. As she tries to come to grips with the past, she considers a loveless marriage to ensure stability for her young family … with her faith in God hanging in the balance.

Additional notes: This is the second book in the Amish Bakery series. You can read my review of the first book here. There are currently three books in the series with the fourth slated to release this year. This series is scheduled for six full-length novels and two Christmas novellas, which are both out now.

My thoughts: If you read my review of the first book, you know how much I loved the first book. This book was still good, but more about the classic boy-girl relationship (see my review of Beth's book above). I hope the others are about other things and not just this...

The horrors of the Tribulation are over, and Jesus Christ has set up his perfect kingdom on earth. Believers all around the world enjoy a newly perfected relationship with their Lord, and the earth itself is transformed. Yet evil still lurks in the hearts of the unbelieving. As the Millennium draws to a close, the final generation of the unrepentant prepares to mount a new offensive against the Lord Himself--sparking the final and ultimate conflict from which only one side will emerge the eternal victor.

Additional notes: This is the final and last book in the Left Behind series. You can read my review of the tenth book here, the eleventh book here and the twelvth book here.

My thoughts: While I loved this series, I'm certainly glad it is now over! That took me many years to read the series. I really enjoyed this book, although I didn't really like that the book basically covered one year of the 1,000-year reign, then just sort of skipped to the end. I felt the plot, in that sense, wasn't well thought out. However, I credit this series with my love for Jesus as an adult. I really recommend this series to everyone and will always keep this series in my permanent library (which is kind of saying a lot - my permanent library mostly consists of cookbooks and craft books).