Book Notes: December 13, 2023 - Contemporary Romance Reviews

 Welcome to the scenic route! I'm glad you joined me today. I've got a couple of book reviews to share with you, as well as a creative word prompt for those needing a little inspiration. Are you ready to check them out? Here we go!

Book Review: Promise of Love (Holiday Family Romance Series, #1) by Tamie Dearen

Promise of Love by Tamie Dearen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Good Novella

Well-written and full of interesting characters, this novella kept my interest fairly well. I'm not a fan of love triangles and I was annoyed with several of the heroine's decisions. I'm glad she grew throughout the book.
From the faith standpoint, there were a few things I admired, like the heroine being determined her spouse share her faith. And there were some things I thought she did which were opposite that faith making her look hypocritical. She was definitely written well.
If you enjoy sweet romance, love triangles, and happy endings with a dash of inspiration, you might enjoy this story.

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Book Review: Her Expiration Date (Guardians of Lavender Creek Book 1) by Jenna Kattric

Her Expiration Date: by Jenna Kattric
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Nice Surprise

This is a new author for me. I enjoyed the story, but felt there was some repetition which slowed the reading down a bit. I didn't get why the heroine made such drastic choices. She was a little hard to relate to. And the hero was definitely a hero. I think anyone else wouldn't have bothered trying to figure out what was going on. Still, it was a fairly good story. The characters both showed some growth. It's clean and inspirational, and the author kept me guessing until the villain was revealed, though my initial guess was correct. If you love that kind of story, give this book a chance.

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Just Keep Writing: Wednesday Whimsy

If this is your first time participating in this kind of writing exercise, you're in for a treat. If you've done this with me before, just keep scrolling for the prompt.

Rules:

1. You can use any/all of the words and/or the photo in the prompt below to create a unique written work. Fiction or nonfiction, poetry or prose, even lyrics are acceptable.  
2. Please keep the material you write clean (i.e. nothing R-rated or worse) if you wish to share the link to your work here, as well as if you link back to my site. I strive to keep my site free of such things. My readers know and expect this. I respect your right to write whatever you feel you need to write. And you're free to use my prompts. But if your material is graphic, I'd rather not view it, and most of my readers will not wish to. 
3. Have fun! This type of exercise is perfect for growing in the writing craft, or for helping through a rough patch in your current WIP. If you're looking to push your author limits and you normally write in nonfiction prose, try a whimsical collection of lyrics. If you normally write poems about real life events, try your hand at a fanfic. Give yourself some room to explore.

Don't forget to leave a link to your creation (unless you're writing graphic material) so my readers and I can check out your work. I'd appreciate a link back to this post to help me reach more readers, but it's not required. 

This should be a fun challenge. What do you think? 

Thank you so much for stopping by today! I hope you found something new to add to your reading list. I also hope you found the word prompt useful. If you did, tell me your thoughts in the comments. Also, please visit again and bring a few creative friends with you. There'll be another word prompt tomorrow!

Until next time,
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