jessreadsfiction's reviews
84 reviews

Such a riveting story of beauty through redemption! Kissed by Mercy is an action-packed Western drama that explores the highs and lows of life on the frontier. From scenes involving high-stake gangs and outlaws to the exhilaration of claiming and staking land as your own, this novel has everything you could hope for in an old-west novel! Margaret does an amazing job at weaving a beautiful story through the many flawed faces we meet between the pages and there was more than one time I found myself misty-eyed at the goodness and greatness of God! 

This book offers a unique perspective into the faith of some of the characters. Not only do we get to see some strong and steadfast in their faith, no matter what is thrown at them, but we also get to see instances of those who had fallen away from the Lord. Watching the restoration of the main characters was a thrilling adventure that left my heart humming and praising the Lord’s greatness and mercy. These may be fictional characters but the truths wrapped in this beautiful storyline are real and they are for everyone - there is nothing you can do to stop the love of the Lord! 

Thanks to the author’s and publisher’s generosity, I received a complimentary copy of this novel through BookSirens. All opinions expressed in this review are my own; a positive review was not required.

What an amazing and unique story! From the first page, I felt myself drawn in. This was my first read by Tessa Afshar and now I need to go back and read all her previous books. 😂 Miss Afshar writes beautifully and does an amazing job of immersing the reader in the culture and feel of the time. Make sure to read the author’s notes at the end (AFTER you’ve read the story, not before) to get an idea of what is historical vs fictional. I love it when an author can take the real and add their spin in such a fun and captivating way. This was absolutely one of those novels that was so hard to put down!  

The cast of characters in this story was so fun - a unique look at the Biblical times of Esther! I adore our main female character, Roxannah! Her transformation from beginning to end was beautiful. Her struggle to come to faith and to know God was completely relatable and authentic feeling. It was also fun seeing this view of Esther and the turmoil and intrigue that occurred within the Persian court. The love in this story is slow and sweet. I LOVE a good he falls first romance. 😍 I absolutely cannot wait for the next book in this series where we get to view Esther’s world through the lens of someone else within her court! What an amazing start to what I’m sure is going to be a beautiful series!  

Thanks to the author’s and publisher’s generosity, I received a complimentary copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are truly my own and a positive review was not required.

If you grew up obsessed with the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise like I did, you are going to LOVE Across the Ages by Gabrielle Meyer! I quite literally struggled to put it down as Gabrielle Meyer weaved a tale of pirate adventure, intense emotions, hard decisions, faith struggles, and family tension. The characters struggle with very real issues with their faith, especially given the circumstances of our main female character’s life, and it was beautiful to see them realize just how close God is and how faithful and true His love is.

This entire novel moved me in ways I didn’t expect. I was particularly moved by Caroline’s parents in her 1927 St. Paul, Minnesota life. It was such a beautiful look at what a life truly sacrificed to Christ can look like. The grace, forgiveness, and love they portrayed was a beautiful portrait of Christ and left me longing for Heaven even more. At the same time, my heart ached for the characters we met along her path in 1727. I too once felt as if I was too far gone for the love of Christ - so entrapped in my sin with no other way forward than to continue the path I was on. Just like some of our characters in 1727, I was not left where I was and my life too was transformed by the powerful love of the Gospel.

The romance in this novel is so sweet. It included some of my absolute favorite tropes! I was cheering for one particular guy from the very beginning but both sides of her story were fun to read. 

I was pleasantly surprised to run into a familiar face or two and was delighted to learn more about some beloved characters' stories from novels past! The way Gabrielle Meyer weaves her stories and her timelines together is so beautiful and is such a delight to read!

Thanks to the publisher’s generosity, I received a complimentary copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are truly my own and a positive review was not required. 

Cussing and vulgar language. I did a quick flip through and found the use of the F-word. Not for me.

Wow! 😍 The Lost Rose by Victoria Lynn is the medieval, faith-filled, epic adventure fantasy of your dreams. I stayed up way past my bedtime to finish this book because I simply could not put it down! At 560 pages long, it is a formidable read but worth every page turned and hour(s) of sleep lost! This is the third book in Victoria’s Chronicles Of Elira series. While it can be read as a standalone novel, I highly recommend you read the first two to get a better understanding of the side characters and their backstories. This is a non-magical fantasy!

This novel follows three different points of view - Malcolm, Elgon, and Rosalie - and spans over the course of 14 years! Victoria does a fantastic job of keeping the pace and the switch between the three different views only adds depth and richness to the tale. This story takes a delightfully noticeable turn from the previous two novels by adding a larger cast of characters and thrilling and suspenseful action. The romance is very light and is not the main focus of the plot or storyline. If you enjoy excellent character development and depth, Victoria Lynn knocks it out of the park with this one! 😍

This book does not shy away from Christ - faith is a central character in the story. It was both endearing and heartbreaking to read the struggles and growth (some painful) that each of the characters went through at a time when everything in the Kingdom of Elira seemed to be on its head. This novel truly is a testament to the fact that no matter how dark the world may seem, Christ’s light shines brighter still. Victoria does not avoid the ugly truth of sin while wrapping it beautifully with the power and grace of Christ who is the only one powerful enough to overcome. This book tackles hard questions and there was more than one time I found myself questioning how I would have reacted if such a tragedy were to ever occur in my life. This read is both inspiring and convicting. 

Thanks to the author’s generosity, I received a complimentary copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are truly my own and a positive review was not required.

Reach by O McCarthy was a fun, thrilling read! I’m a huge fan of dystopian but a little iffy on sci-fi. When I read the description of this novel, I knew I had to sign up and I am grateful the author trusted me with an advanced e-copy to read and review! This was the perfect blend of dystopian and sci-fi - enough to understand what is going on without being too technical or overly scientific. The romance was light (and not the main focus of the novel) and clean - I highly recommend this for any dystopian or sci-fi-loving teens in your life! 

Reach, our main male character, is a teen thrown into a game he never signed up for. Thrust into confusion and chaos at the age of 14, Reach is torn from the only life he knew. The political intrigue and mysterious circumstances surrounding his very existence make for a thrilling read. The plot twists were great and kept you on your toes! The end does leave us on a cliffhanger and I’ll be (im)patiently waiting for the second novel to arrive. 😂 I grew quite attached to some of the side characters in this novel and I’m anxious to see if we’ll see more of them in future installments.  

There were sections of the middle that were slow for me but I feel they were necessary. They give you a better understanding of what is going on and all that Reach is going through. The author does an excellent job with character development and growth. There were a few twists with some of my favorite characters that I didn’t see coming and I love when I can be surprised! She also does an excellent job with the villain - it's great when a book can make me hate a character! 😅

Thanks to the author, I was given a free advance copy of this novel to read and review. All opinions expressed in this review are completely my own! 

 

A Hope Unburied by Kimberley Woodhouse is the third and final book in her Treasures of the Earth series. Full disclosure: I did not read the first two. 😂 That has been happening a lot to me here lately! That said, this book can be read as a standalone novel. This was my first read by Kimberley Woodhouse and I was absolutely delighted! I consider this a medium-paced read with enough going on to keep you flipping from cover to cover. While this is categorized as a Historical Romance, there was a bit of mystery and suspense with the unique ability to see from the villain’s point of view which was super fun to read. 

Devin and Eliza, our main characters, are such a fun couple! This is a friends-to-lovers novel but for a good chunk of the read, you get to see Devin and Eliza as just best friends. I loved reading how they defied societal norms with their friendship. Also a quick shout-out to Devin’s father, a sweet side character, who gave me all the best fatherly vibes I didn’t realize I needed.

I loved the level of detail in this novel which points to the amount of research the author did for this story! I know next to nothing about paleontology but Kimberley did an amazing job at creating a captivating storyline that was immersive and fascinating. You do not need an understanding of paleontology to enjoy and appreciate all of the tidbits and details present in this book!

The faith aspects of this novel were excellent. They left me examining my own faith, much like Eliza, trying to figure out which areas I'm holding back from God! I love it when a novel can make me examine my own faith. This was a fun, quick read that left me wanting to go back and read the first two in the series! 

Thank you to the publisher’s generosity, I received a complimentary copy of this novel through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are truly my own and a positive review was not required. 

This Life of Mine by Victoria Lynn is the second novel in the Chronicles of Elira series. We get to follow a much beloved and familiar face from the first novel - Marcus! It is a delight when favorite side characters get their own story and the happy ever after they deserve. This novel tackles heavy topics such as prostitution, sex trafficking, and abortion. The author handles these topics with the utmost grace without shying away from the fact that these evils are present in our world.

This novel was a beautiful example of how God redeems everyone regardless of their past. He pursues us with a Holy love that can only come from the One who knows us all and still chose to send His Son to die for our sins. Sin is real and is evil but there is nothing the light of Christ cannot overcome. Marcus and Dilara’s journey to healing, redemption, and eventually love was sweet and heartwarming to read. The overall themes of self-sacrifice, loving thy neighbor, and being the hands and feet of Jesus were well-highlighted and artfully written.

The area where this novel fell short for me was in the pacing. It was a very slow read for me and I found myself having to force myself to read through some parts of the middle. It felt like the story stalled without anything happening to propel it forward or keep me interested. I love strong faith elements in a Christian novel but the repetitive nature of the same internal dialogues with our main characters - them not thinking they are good enough and Christ telling them they are - was a bit draining after a while. After all of the build-up of this very slow-burn romance, it also felt like the moment of the first kiss was hidden from the reader. While not directly stated, it was written as if the first kiss we see on paper was not their first which left me feeling a bit disappointed and anti-climactic.

This book was still an emotional, lyrical read with strong faith elements I love to see in fiction reads!