May - 2009

This month has really been filled with the unexpected.

Announcements

To celebrate the release of two books this month, I’ve chosen two winners of free books for April. They are Janetta McGovern of Vacaville, California and Jane Squires of Wasola, Missouri. Click on the View Complete Profile link in the right hand column to find a link to my email. Send me your mailing address.

Readers, if you want a chance to win one of my free books, please sign my Guest Book on my website - http://www.lenanelsondooley.com/ . The winners are chosen from those who do. But remember to check back in the next month’s newsletter to see if you won.You can sign up at the top of the right hand column of this blog for Feedblitz. Then the newsletter will feed into your Inbox. I will only post a newsletter once a month. I also occasionally post an announcement on this blog.

Want more free books. We also give away a minimum of 12 free books a month on my blog: http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com/. Most months we give away more than that.

You can read about The Prairie Romance Collection by going to my blog, where I interviewed myself. Readers have been asking me to do the interviews when my books release.

This month I’ll be interviewing these authors:

Brandilyn and Amberly Collins - Always Watching
Bonnie Leon - Enduring Love
Roxanne Rustand - Deadly Competition
Robin Jones Gunn - Coming Attractions
Amy Wallace - Enduring Justice
Patricia Pacjac Carroll - Two writing related books on CD
Lisa Harris - Wild Prairie Roses
Jane Kirkpatrick - A Flickering Light
Patti Lacy - What the Bayou Saw
Deborah Raney - Yesterday’s Embers
Debra Ulrick - Deja Vu Bride
Deborah Vogts - Snow Melts in Spring
Ramona Richards - The Taking of Carly Bradford
Stuart Stockton - Starfire
Jill Elizabeth Nelson - Witness to Murder
Latayne Scott - Latter-Day Cipher
Linore Rose Burkard - The House on Grosvenor’s Square

Check out my Fan page on Facebook:http://www.new.facebook.com/pages/Lena-Nelson-Dooley/42960748768?ref=ts


Calendar of Events

May 9, 2009 – Speaker for "Gifted for His Glory Seminar" at Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship, Dallas, Texas

May 2009 – Release of The Prairie Romance Collection

May 2009 – Release of Wild Prairie Roses

June 13, 2009 – Speaker for DFW Ready Writers – La Hacienda Ranch Restaurant, Colleyville, Texas

July 2009 – Release of Cranberry Hearts

July 18, 2009 – Speaker for CenTex Chapter of ACFW, Austin, Texas

July 31, 2009 – Meet the Christian Authors Night, WoodsEdge Community Church, Gosling - The Woodlands, Texas

September 2009 – Release of Wild West Christmas

September 2009 – Release of Christmas Love at Lake Tahoe

September 11-12, 2009 – Speaker at North Texas Christian Writers Conference, Roanoke, Texas

September 17-20 - American Christian Fiction Writers National Conference - Denver, Colorado

Summer 2010 – Release of Love Finds You in Golden, New Mexico

　
Book Reviews

Evidence of Murder
By Jill Elizabeth Nelson
ISBN 978-0-373-44327-7
Love Inspired Suspense
Contemporary

Back Cover Copy:

The Proof is in the Pictures

The photographs Samantha Reid uncovers in her new store are shocking. Horrifying. And dangerous. This new evidence could reopen a decade-old multiple homicide case that someone wants desperately to keep closed. And when the evidence comes out, a reluctant Samantha is drawn striaght into the spotlight. All the attention is wrecking her business--and drawing the killer's eye straight to her.

Then she meets Ryan Davidson, the last surviving member of the murdered family. In spite of herself, she's drawn in by his need to find the truth. Together, they work to unravel the mystery, while the killer works to keep the secrets buried--forever.

My Review:

I loved all three of Jill's previous suspense books. I wondered how she would handle this shorter format.

This book lived up to my expectations and then some. The tightly drawn plot and multi-faceted characters made for a real page-turner in every sense of the word.

I highly recommend this wonderful suspense read.

　
A Taste of Murder
By Virginia Smith
ISBN 978-0-373-44311-6
Love Inspired Suspense
Contemporary

Back Cover Copy:

Killer Contest

Who murdered a small-town beauty-pageant judge--in a very strange way? Jasmine Delaney must find out. Because she's taken the victim's place. She came to the Kentucky Bar-B-Q festival for a wedding, eager to meet the bride's handsome brother, Derrick Rogers. Yet she's suddenly surrounded by pint-size contestants whose competitive parents will do anything to ensure the crown. Even kill? Derrick fears she's the killer's next target and promises to keep a close eye on her. Yet someone is already watching Jazzy's every move. Someone who's had a taste of murder. And is hungry for more.

My Review:

This is the first suspense novel I've read by Virginia. I loved it.

Fast paced. Plenty of suspects. Quirky characters. A delicious romance. What's not to love?

　
Spring Creek Bride
by Janice Thompson
ISBN 978-0-373-82810-4
Love Inspired Historical

Back Cover Copy:

Marry me, Ida!

Can't Ida Mueller walk to town without being harangued by rowdy railroad men? The formerly lovely town of Spring Creek, Texas, has been overtaken by saloons and disorderly conduct. So when a handsome stranger arrives with plans to open a gambling hall next to her family's mercantile store, Ida makes plans of her own: to foil his! Someone has to save Spring Creek. And since Ida's convinced marriage isn't in her future, the Lord's work will be! But after one look into Mick Bradley's eyes--and heart--the plucky beauty might start hearing wedding bells.

My Review:

I've read books by Janice for years, and loved them. She's a good author who can write about anything. But now that she's writing romantic comedy, she's found her true voice. This book is a delightful example.

The reader really experiences the setting--the noise, the smell, even the taste of Spring Creek--through the book. But more important than that, the reader falls in love with her quirky characters. Janice gave us a whole cast of them to love while staying true to the time period.

This is a wonderful read. I highly recommend it.

　
Chasing Charity
By Marcia Gruver
ISBN 978-1-60260-206-9
Barbour Publishing
Historical Romance

Back Cover Copy:

Two Men Discover They Are Nothing. . .Without Charity

When Charity Bloom's fiance, in full view of family and friends, leaves her stranded at the altar and takes off with her best friend, Charity is humiliated. How weill this raven-haired beauty ever recover form losing both her betrothed and best friend on what was supposed to be the happiest day of her life?

When a tall, handsome stranger named Buddy Pierce finds oil on Charity's mama's land, he hopes to free the blooms from their poverty-stricken state. But will Buddy discover that the real treasure lives above ground--in the form of Charity Bloom?

Ruing the day he left his finacee for Emily Dane, Daniel Clark is determined to recapture Charity's affection. But can he remove the three things that stand in his way--a manipulating mama, a spurned lover, and the stranger at his ex-fiancee's side?

When Daniel re-stakes his claim on Charity's heart, tongues wag and minds speculate amid schemes and scandals in Humble, Texas. Whom will she choose--the handsome roughneck or the deceitful rogue?

My Review:

When Marcia Gruver burst on the Christian fiction scene with her first novel, DIAMOND DUO, I knew she was a rising star. Her unique voice gives life to people and settings that come alive. Readers will laugh. . .and tears will come to their eyes while reading this book. The depth of emotion will take them to heights and depths before bringing them to a satisfying conclusion.

The worst thing about this book is that I have to wait so long to read the sequel.

You won't want to miss reading this one. And if you didn't read DIAMOND DUO, go buy that to read first. Although they are sequels, each story can stand alone. I just like to read them in order. Preferably, close together.

　
May Book Releases

Happy May! Check out all these new releases! Fifteen MUST READS.

1. A Bride of Honor by Ruth Axtell Morren from Steeple Hill Love Inspired Historical. An impoverished preacher from the working class falls in love with a young lady of the London ton and risks all including his reputation to save her honor.
2. A Prairie Romance Collection by 12 multi-published authors from Barbour Publishing. Relive History On The American Great Plains.
3. Beyond Corista, Shadowside Series - Book 3 by Robert Elmer from Zondervan. In the last book of the trilogy, Oriannon and Sola set out to take the word of Jesmet beyond their planet, but are captured by traders, who hold the girl as a pawn in an interplanetary struggle.
4. Bittersweet Memories by Cecelia Dowdy from Barbour Heartsong Presents. Karen's fiancé has disappeared after embezzling money from their large mega-church; can she learn to love again?
5. Enduring Love by Bonnie Leon from Revell. John and Hannah have lived by faith. When all seems lost they must continue to believe in a God who can do all things.
6. Lethal Lasagna by Rhonda Gibson from White Rose Publishing. Lethal Lasagna is a cozy romantic mystery.
7. Love Finds you in Liberty, Indiana by Melanie Dobson from Sommerside Press. A Quaker woman risks everything to operate a station on the Underground Railroad in 1850.
8. Rose House, by Tina Ann Forkner from Waterbrook Press. A vivid story of a private grief, a secret painting, and one woman's search for hope.
9. So Not Happening by Jenny B. Jones from Thomas Nelson. Isabella Kirkwood had it all: popularity at a prestigious private school in Manhattan, the latest fashions, and a life of privilege and luxury. What's a girl to do when God gives you the total smackdown?
10. The Lyons Den, 3rd book in the Shelton Heights Series by Kendra Norman-Bellamy from Urban Books (Urban Christian). With his and his family's life placed in danger by a stalker who only identifies himself as "Dr. A.H. Satan," Stuart Lyons has to somehow maintain his faith in God.
11. Tour de Force by Beth White from Zondervan. Gilly Kincade, rising star in a premier NYC ballet company, and Birmingham artistic director Jacob Ferrar wrestle with ordering the priorities of building a relationship, pursuing artistic dreams, and serving God.
12. Trail to Justice Susan Page Davis from Heartsong Presents. A police dispatcher and a veterinarian compete in a 100-mile horse race for fun, but find intrigue and romance, along with an injured champion and a wrecked airplane.
13. What the Bayou Saw by Patti Lacy from Kregel Publications. Sally Stevens, Mary's Southern friend in an Irishwoman's Tale, grapples with her own memories, buried beneath the murky waters of a Louisiana bayou.
14. Wild Prairie Roses by Lena Nelson Dooley and Laurie Alice Eakes and Lisa Harris from Barbour Publishing. Elusive dreams unite three couples.
15. Who Made You a Princess, All About Us #4 by Shelley Adina from Hatchette Faithwords. Will Shani Hanna choose the boy next door or a real-life handsome prince?

　
Musings

This month brought several unexpected things into my life.

I was asked to speak at a Mother-Daughter tea in Burleson Texas on April 25. I accepted.

While James and I were in Madisonville on April 18, he developed a strange rash with swelling on his face and a large lump, larger than a golf ball under his chin. He insisted he was feeling okay, so I taught the workshop for the Madison County Writers Guild.

We left Madisonville, and it soon became apparent that he shouldn’t be driving. I took over and drove the speed limit back to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. On the way, I felt impressed that I should take him straight to the Emergency Room instead of going home. I belief that was a prompting from God.

When we arrived the ER doctor told us it was a good thing we came when we did. He had a serious infection, cellulitis, that was spreading. They hooked him up to IV antibiotics, then took a couple of days doing a battery of tests before he had emergency surgery. He was in the hospital for a whole week.

During that time I contracted strep and couldn’t go see him. My doctor put me on a strong antibiotic, and I got well in time to do the tea on Saturday morning and bring him home in the afternoon. However, we first had to go to the Infectious Disease doctor for me to be trained to give him IV antibiotics at home.

All of this was unexpected. But even in the crazy times, I felt God’s presence guiding all of us. He kept James alive until we got to the hospital. And He guided us all since then.

Several times, I felt His presence as large openings appeared in heavy traffic so I could go where I needed to go.

So remember. Look for God’s presence in the things we don’t usually consider as coming from Him. He will never leave you!!