Summer Plans and Other Disasters by Karin Beery

A complimentary review copy was provided to me.

Fall has definitely struck. The days are crisp and blustery, the nights are cold. All the more reason to curl up with a blanket and a good book. This week I had the opportunity to read of another season...Summer Plans and other disasters by Karin Beery. This is the debut book by Karin Beery (and thus the first one that I have read).

Told from multiple points of view, the book focuses on Callie's summer in Michigan at the light house. She is a teacher off for the summer who heads home to work and live with her brother and hopes to rekindle an old romance (in an attempt to answer some what-if questions that she has encountered). I love that Callie is a planner but as you know (or might have guessed from the title), plans don’t always work out the way we want. Sometimes things turn out better than your plans would have, but other times they don’t. Between the challenges of her plans, the need for her to manage outside of a plan and her perpetual klutziness (and perhaps a bit of ditziness), the book provides a lighthearted story that also provides for some great lessons for the characters.

The author brought the characters to life through their own thoughts and the eyes of the other characters as she shifted telling the story from each of their views. I enjoyed getting to know Callie, a talented musician and teacher; Jack, her protective and loving brother; Ryan, her brother's best friend; and Stacey, a friend of Jack's that Callie becomes friends with. Through the course of the story, there were challenges, inner turmoil and reflection, long-standing and newly developing friendships, family, faith and humor. I wish I could have been on the beach reading this, but snuggled on my couch under a blanket, the author was able to transport me to the summer scene of the shore of Michigan. This was an enjoyable and fun book to read. I look to future books by this author, especially a sequel (please), so I can be part of the next chapter of this group's lives.

About the book

Elementary school music teacher Callie Stevens thinks she’s finally figured out God’s plan for her life—she even made a list to keep her on track.

Moving in with her brother and reconnecting with her ex-boyfriend are at the top of the list. What’s not on the list is running into her childhood crush, Ryan. God wanted her to connect with Kyle, right?

Trying to figure out God’s plan is hard enough. But a dating-averse older brother, the young blonde who adores him, a pregnant best friend, and Callie’s continual mishaps make her wonder whether her best laid plans were truly God-inspired.

Now available from Elk Lake Publishing!

About the author

Karin wrote her first novel in 2007 to cope with her husband’s cancer diagnosis (no worries – he’s cancer free now!). With the support and encouragement of her family, she submitted that manuscript. That particular manuscript has not been published yet, but Summer Plans and Other Disasters, her first published book, releases in September 2018.

Karin writes contemporary and speculative fiction stories with a healthy dose of romance, but she’s also expanded her repertoire: she writes feature stories for the local paper, copy material for businesses, and blog posts for herself and others. She even edits (offering copy editing, fiction editing, and critiques through Write Now Editing Services) and teaches (she’s the Substantive Fiction Editing instructor for the PEN Institute and can be found around the country teaching writing and editing courses at conferences and at her local college).


When Karin’s not reading, writing, or editing, she enjoys cooking and baking. She plays the piano and sings (the key of E, please). She kayaks with her husband in the summer, watches football in the fall (Go Blue!), and enjoys Christmas lights all winter long. Shy but extroverted, Karin adores her nieces and nephew and loves spending time with her family. Learn more about Karin at: karinbeery.com.

You can also follow her on:

Facebook - www.facebook.com/authorkarinbeery/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/karinbeery

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/karinbeery/

No compensation was received for this review. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family. A complimentary review copy was provided to me.

Fit to Be Tied by Debby Mayne

A complimentary review copy was provided to me.

Fall is upon us. It has meant busy weekends and evenings, filled with back to school and fall sports. When I wasn't at one of the schools or the field for a game, I found some time to catch back up with the Bucklin family in the second installment of the Bucklin Family Reunion Series, Fit to Be Tied by Debby Mayne.

Fit to be Tied was a well-written enjoyable story told from the viewpoint of five of the family members, some by birth, others by marriage. I really enjoy this style of writing and how the use of multiple viewpoints can engage the reader and provide additional insight into the family and their tales. The characters were relatable and enjoyable to get to know and the story was filled with a real perspective and a good balance of humor. The multiple points of view led to short chapters, which made it easy to ready in short or long installments.

It seems that everyone outside the family is yearning to go and experience a Bucklin Family reunion, which unlike your typical family reunion, occurs on a multiple times a year basis. What balances that nicely is that it seems sometimes that there is a reluctance of the family to attend the reunion...but not wanting to miss out or be the topic of conversations, brings them all together. They certainly do family reunions on a grand scale, this one was multiple days and included lots of food and even a trip to the hospital.

You can jump right into this second book in the series with no problem, as the author does a great job introducing the characters and building on their stories. But having read the first one, I really enjoyed hearing the continuing stories of the characters I met in the first book, while getting to know more members of the family.

I look forward to the next reunion story in this series to see what new adventures await this family.

Fit to Be Tied
by Debby Mayne
Bucklin Family Reunion series: Book 2


The Bucklin family loves each other too much to stay away. . . but not enough to behave

Being rich is fine, but when wealth comes from striking oil, it's a slippery mess for a family who doesn't know what to do with it. The Bucklin cousins are all together again, and this family reunion is shaping up to be another disaster.

Coralee falls for the police officer who pulls her over. Sally has finally found a guy, but now she's not sure a relationship is even worth the bother. No matter how hard Brett tries to avoid trouble, he somehow stumbles right back into the thick of it. And Marybeth and Bucky continue to fumble and bumble as they learn how to handle being rich.

The Bucklin family is known for drama—and Bucklin family drama knows no bounds.


Meet the Author
Debby Mayne writes family and faith-based romances, cozy mysteries, and women's fiction and is the author of more than 60 novels and novellas-plus more than 1,000 short stories, articles, and devotions for busy women. Debby is currently an etiquette writer for The Spruce.

Debby grew up in a military family, which meant moving every few years throughout her childhood. She was born in Alaska, and she has lived in Mississippi, Tennessee, Oregon, Florida, South Carolina, Hawaii, and Japan. Her parents were both from the Deep South, so Debby enjoys featuring characters with Southern drawls, plenty of down-home cooking, and folks with quirky mannerisms. High Cotton is the first book in the Bucklin Family Reunion series.

Learn more about Debby and her works on her site.

You can purchase a copy here.

No compensation was received for this review. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family. A complimentary review copy was provided to me.

Lethal Legacy by Carol J. Post

A complimentary review copy was provided to me.

It's been a while since I sat down and read a whole book in just two days. As a mom of two active kids with a full-time job, simply having that many hours to myself can be a feat. But, when you read a book that has a suspenseful, action-packed, fast-paced story that keeps you wondering what would happen next and it leaves you unwilling to put the book down once you start, it is very easy to do. From the very first page, I was pulled into the story in the recent release from Carol J. Post, Lethal Legacy. The pace of the story never slowed, even as the author provided the details necessary to develop the characters and share the back story.

This book is the second one set in Murphy, North Carolina featuring a group of friends. This book follows Bryce's story. Andi's family has owned the house next door to Bryce's family home for generations and her dad and her would come up and stay when she was a kid. It had been 12 years since they saw one another when she came back following her parent's tragic death. When she arrives at the house, she finds that someone has broken in. Finding a cryptic note from her father in one of his books as she cleans up and then learning that her dad had been planning to visit Bryce to talk to him about something, leaves Andi wondering what the secret was that had been weighing on her dad. There seems to be danger lurking everywhere and she soon realizes that whatever her dad's secret, someone seems to be targeting her as a result. I found myself hoping that she would find more clues and solve the mystery, so that she could be safe. But, did like that with the break-ins and unexplained accidents and Bryce being a sheriff deputy, and generally feeling the need to protect her, they find themselves spending more time together and becoming friends again.

I enjoy the way that Carol brings the characters to life, sharing about them as the story progresses and by telling the story from multiple points of view. The characters in this story are the type of people that I could easily be friends with. The story line was great and with the suspense, intrigue and a touch of love story, it was a very enjoyable read that I simply didn't want to put down.

If you enjoy suspense stories, you should definitely check out this book and the others by Carol J. Post.

About the Book:
Someone wants her family secrets buried

He’s her only chance to survive

Andrea Wheaton thought her parents’ tragic deaths were accidental—until she’s attacked during a burglary at their home. Now she’s also being targeted. Her ex-sweetheart Sheriff Deputy Bryce Caldwell insists on protecting her, though she refuses to trust him again. But with a killer closing in, can she and Bryce uncover her family’s secrets before it’s too late for them both?



About the Author:
From medical secretary to court reporter to property manager to owner of a special events decorating company, Carol's resume reads like someone who doesn't know what she wants to be when she grows up. But one thing that has remained constant through the years is her love for writing. She started as a child writing poetry for family and friends, then graduated to articles which actually made it into some religious and children's publications. Several years ago (more than she's willing to admit), she penned her first novel. In 2010, she decided to get serious about writing fiction for publication and joined Romance Writers of America and her local RWA chapter.

Carol lives in sunshiny Central Florida with her husband of thirty-two years, who is her own real-life hero, and writes her stories under the shade of the huge oaks in her yard. Besides writing, she works alongside her music minister husband singing and playing the piano and holds the position of church treasurer. She enjoys sailing, hiking, camping, almost anything outdoors. Her two grown daughters and grandkids live too far away for her liking, so she now pours all that nurturing into taking care of three fat and sassy cats and one highly spoiled dog.

You can learn more about the author on her blog.

No compensation was received for this review. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family. A complimentary review copy was provided to me.