Wednesday, May 15, 2024

JustRead Tours Blog Tour: Healing of the Heart by Heidi Gray McGill

Healing of the Heart JustRead Blog + Review Tour

Welcome to the Blog + Review Tour for Healing of the Heart by Heidi Gray McGill, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

Title: Healing of the Heart
Series: Discerning God's Best #4
Author: Heidi Gray McGill
Publisher: Heidi Gray McGill Books LLC
Release Date: May 10, 2024
Genre: Christian Historical Romance, Post-Civil War, Inspirational Fiction

He’s sworn to heal others, but at what cost to himself?

Step into the bustling streets of post-Civil War Philadelphia, where cultural injustice and class disparity run rampant. Amidst this chaos, Thomas, an aspiring doctor from the wilds of Missouri, struggles to find his place in a society to which he is unaccustomed. But when he meets debutante Emmaline Whitaker, she teaches him more than the social graces - she holds the key to his future. Only it is the independent, fun-loving Theodora Morse who holds his attention.

As Thomas navigates the complexities of high society, he must also confront his inner turmoil. When devastating news comes from home, Thomas is forced to use his waning faith to determine the desire of his heart. Will Thomas stand by his convictions and fight against the malaise of those around him, or will he choose the safety and comfort of his new life?

In this powerful Christian historical fiction, award-winning author Heidi Gray McGill weaves a poignant tale of love, sacrifice, and redemption in the City of Brotherly Love.

For Misty M. Beller, Lacy Williams, and Linda Ford fans, this standalone novel in the Discerning God’s Best series will capture your heart and leave you breathless. You’ll love this book if you enjoy gripping historical drama and compelling characters. Binge-read the entire series on Kindle Unlimited.

Christian Historical Fiction is a favorite genre of mine. Matters of the Heart by Heidi Gray McGill is Book 4 in the Discerning God's Heart series. I have read the first 3 books in this series and was excited to read this book!

WOW, this storyline really reeled me in and kept my attention throughout the entire book. The setting is the 1870's in Philadelphia, PA and also Shumard Oaks, MO. I LOVE how the author takes us on the journey of Thomas Shankel from boy to Adulthood. Thomas is now a Dr. in his hometown of Shumard Oak, MO. Thomas and many of the characters in this book live in a Boarding House. I really enjoyed their friendships and encouragement to one another. Thoma's faith grew throughout the book, especially when others tried to persuade him in areas he didn't want to be a part of. The Book is Faith-Based and I appreciate how the author makes that the center of this book. The book is one of Healing, Trusting God, Faith and Friends. FANTASTIC BOOK!

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub

More Books in This Series

Heidi Gray McGill

Heidi Gray McGill is a distinguished author acclaimed for her impactful Christian fiction works. Her Discerning God’s Best series has earned numerous awards. Despite facing challenges, such as blindness, Heidi has authored eight compelling books, showcasing her versatility as both a traditionally and independently published author of both historical and contemporary fiction. Heidi’s writing is purposeful, skillfully interweaving God’s love and wisdom into relatable characters and captivating narratives. Based in a charming town near Charlotte, NC, Heidi shares her life with her devoted husband of over three decades. Beyond her literary pursuits, she finds joy in cherished moments with family and immersive adventures through the pages of books.

Connect with Heidi at heidigraymcgill.com to follow her on social media and sign up for email updates.

(1) winner will win a $20 Amazon Gift Card and a signed copy of Healing of the Heart!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight May 14, 2024 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on May 21, 2024. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only for print. If winner is outside the US, an ebook will be provided instead. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

Enter Giveaway

Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

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Celebrate Lit Blog Tour: Gimme Some Sugar: 90 Devotions to Sweeten Your Day in a Godly Way by Linda Kozar

Book: Gimme Some Sugar: 90 Devotions to Sweeten Your Day in a Godly Way

Author: Linda Kozar

Genre: Devotional Book, Nonfiction

Release date: April 2, 2024

A perfect start to a joyful heart.

Good things from God can calm the soul and fill you with confidence. In Gimme Some Sugar, award-winning author Linda Kozar brings her southern wit and wisdom to sweeten your life with spiritual nourishment to ponder, perspective to pray about, and a touch of joy to put a smile on your face. This 90-day devotional will encourage you to set your heart and mind on God’s Word while having fun along the way. Each devotion includes

an engaging saying,
inspiring insights from Scripture,
practical advice for daily life, and
a sprinkle of homespun humor.

Brighten your day with a spoonful of biblical encouragement and reminders of God’s enduring love, hope, and peace.

Click here to get your copy!

Devotionals are a big part of my daily life. I do a devotional every day and I am always looking for new devotional books. Gimme Some Sugar: 90 Devotions to Sweeten Your Day in a Godly Way by Linda Kozar is the most recent Devotional that I am going through.

I have been really enjoying this easy to read Devotional. The Devotionals are short but they are very scripturally based! Each Day is 2 pages long and includes a Quote, a Bible Verse to go along with the quote, personal stories and commentaries. I really like the "Sweet Spoonful" that ends each day. The "Sweet Spoonful" is how to apply the devotional to everyday life and what you thought of the devotion for the day. I also like that is small and compact and can be easily taken anywhere!

I have been extremely encouraged in my Christian faith through this devotional. I believe this Devotional book would make a GREAT Gift for someone or even to be discussed in a group setting. BEAUTIFUL and ENCOURAGING BOOK!

Linda Kozar is an award-winning multi-published author of traditional and indie-published fiction and nonfiction books with a Southern flair. Linda and her husband Michael live in The Woodlands, Texas and enjoy spending time with their two grown daughters, their wonderful son-in-law, two grands Eden and Wesley, and Gypsy their rascally Jack Russell Terrier.

More from Linda

The Southern life is simple, savory food, sweet tea, and family. Whether you have a twang or a drawl, or nothing at all, if you’re Southern at heart these devotions will perk you up, give you a scriptural truth to ponder, and a spoonful of inspiration to sweeten your day.

—Linda Kozar, Author of Gimme Some Sugar

Good Gracious! Company’s Coming Cheese Straws

Ingredients:

1 pound (4 cups) freshly shredded sharp cheddar cheese (gotta be sharp!)

1 cup salted butter (yes to salted)

1-1/2 teaspoons salt

4 cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon smoked paprika

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon onion powder

1/8 teaspoon black pepper (or white if preferred)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line your baking sheets with parchment or silicone sheets. Break out your box grater and go to town grating that sharp cheddar cheese on the fine side of the grater. When finished, (usually when your arm starts to hurt), cover and let it come to room temperature.

Add the butter and cheese to a stand mixer bowl and paddle beat for about ten minutes until creamed together.

Add salt, flour, cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and pepper l and mix on medium speed until fully combined.

Transfer dough to a cookie press fitted with a star tip (if you want your straws to look fancy). Or you can hand-roll long thin strips and cut into uniform lengths (about 3 inches) with a knife.

Bake for 12-14 minutes until lightly-browned. Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Its Mama Safe, May 2
She Lives To Read, May 3
Lighthouse Academy Blog, May 4 (Guest Review from Marilyn Ridgway)
Artistic Nobody, May 5 (Author Interview)
Mary Hake, May 5
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 6
Locks, Hooks and Books, May 7
By The Book, May 8 (Author Interview)
Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, May 9
Texas Book-aholic, May 10
Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, May 11 (Author Interview)
Cover Lover Book Review, May 12
Tell Tale Book Reviews, May 13 (Author Interview)
Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, May 13
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, May 14
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, May 15

To celebrate her tour, Linda is giving away the grand prize package of a $75 Amazon gift card and a hardcover copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2b581/gimme-some-sugar-celebration-tour-giveaway

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Monday, May 13, 2024

Celebrate Lit Blog Tour: Do You Have the Courage to Be You? by Jenny Williamson

Book: Do You Have the Courage to Be You? 10^th Anniversary Edition: A Guide to Discover Your Unique Identity and World-changing Destiny

Author: Jenny Williamson

Genre: Nonfiction Christian Living: Personal Memoirs/Personal Growth

Release Date: September 30, 2023

There is no one else like you.

You are an exceptional work of art.

You are special, unique, and original.

If all this is true, then why do we strive so hard for most of our lives to look and act like everyone else? We spend more time trying to reinvent ourselves than we do getting to know ourselves. It is critical to know you, love you, and value you so that you can be and do all you were created for.

Did you know there is somebody on this earth waiting for you to be you? When you are being you . . . the you God created you to be . . . lives will be changed, history will be made, and prayers will be answered. If you don’t dream it, create it, write it, tell it, sing it, or build it, it will never be done. Lives are literally at stake.

Part memoir and part self-help book, Do You Have the Courage to Be You? tells the story of Jenny Williamson and how she left her ordinary, comfortable life to start an international nonprofit that creates safe homes for children being sold for sex. Her journey of purpose guides readers to find their unique identity and uncover their passion, calling, and mission for life. What does it mean to have the courage to be you? What thought patterns or belief systems keep you stuck? What will you need to face the challenges? Jenny answers these questions in this revised edition of this powerful book. Reading it might just set you on the path to fulfilling your destiny.

Click here to get your copy!

Christian Non-Fiction books are one of my favorite genres to read. I feel they are encouraging and tell a real story. Do You Have the Courage to be You? by Jenny Williamson is the latest in this genre that I have read.

I really enjoyed this book. Jenny Williamson tells how she went from not knowing what God's plan for her were to being a woman who found that rescusing and helping children who were being sold for sex. She tells the story how she really saw that God led her to the nonprofit work and the lives that were saved through her organization. The book also shows the reader how they can be the person that God intended them to be. The book has many scripture references that will encourage the reader. I feel that Jenny's book and story are very encouraging. Her writing style is very clear and easy to understand. We can BE the person God has intended us to be if we seek God's plan! I HIGHLY recommend this book to anyone needing encouraging and direction in following God's plan. GREAT BOOK!

Jenny Williamson is the Founder and CEO of Courage Worldwide, an international nonprofit that builds Courage Houses for children recovered from sex trafficking around the world. Jenny is known for her contagious energy, her motivational speeches, and her passion for changing the world. She is an international speaker and courageously is and does all God created her for and absolutely refuses to settle for less. She encourages everyone she meets to do the same. Jenny and her family live in Northern Nevada.

More from Jenny

I wrote this book because, for most of my life, I believed I was created without talent, gifts, or any special ability to offer this world. Growing up, I was told I was too loud, too bossy, too stubborn . . . and too much! I didn’t believe God had created anything special in me, and I certainly didn’t believe I had a water-walking, giant-slaying, history-making destiny. I so wanted to matter—to make a difference in this world, but I didn’t believe I had anything special to offer . . . until I began reading my Bible—for myself!

Though I was raised in the Bible Belt of the South, went to church five times a week, am a seventh-generation Christian, and have a mother who speaks King James (any question you ask my mother about anything, she will answer you with a Bible Verse), I never had read the entire Bible cover to cover. I didn’t have to. I knew all the stories. They start teaching them in “Sunday School” every year and then repeat them the next. These stories didn’t “wow” me because I knew how they all ended. Abraham does have a son. Joseph does get out of the pit and prison. David does become King. Daniel doesn’t get eaten by lions, and Jesus doesn’t stay in the grave.

However, in my search for meaning and purpose, I picked up my Bible and started reading it from the beginning—word for word. In that search, I found the most astonishing thing: God uses the most ordinary people, often dysfunctional, without great talent, to literally change the world! In that journey of reading, a tiny spark was lit inside of me that turned into a burning flame of desire to be and do all God created me to. It was then I heard the whisper, “Do you have the courage to be you—you I created?” I embarked on the life-changing journey of discovering first who I was and what I was created to do. When I discovered those two things, I wanted to share this truth with everyone who crossed my path!

You, too, have been created on purpose for a water-walking, giant-slaying, history-making purpose. Mine led me to help children who were being sold for sex. I wonder where yours will lead you? I pray this book encourages you on that journey!

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, May 3
Simple Harvest Reads, May 4 (Author Interview)
Mary Hake, May 4
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 5
Artistic Nobody, May 6 (Author Interview)
Texas Book-aholic, May 7
Splashes of Joy, May 8 (Author Interview)
Locks, Hooks and Books, May 9
Beauty in the Binding, May 10 (Author Interview)
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, May 11
Guild Master, May 12 (Author Interview)
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, May 13
A Modern Day Fairy Tale, May 14 (Author Interview)
Fiction Book Lover, May 15 (Author Interview)
An Author’s Take, May 15
Tell Tale Book Reviews, May 16 (Author Interview)

To celebrate her tour, Jenny is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 Amazon gift card and signed copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2b35e/do-you-have-the-courage-to-be-you-celebration-tour-giveaway

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Celebrate Lit Blog Tour: Scandals and Mercies by Kathleen Rouser

Book: Scandals and Mercies

Author: Kathleen Rouser

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: April 23, 2024

He’s a reporter determined to uncover the truth, but the secrets he finds could crush her family—and their second chance at love.

Taken from her family’s farm to be raised by her wealthy aunt and uncle, Nora Armstrong has accepted that not only will she never realize her dream of becoming a teacher, she’d also rather be a spinster than submit to her cruel aunt’s society selection of a suitable husband. The one man who caught her eye betrayed her best friend. And she’s got enough on her hands, hiding her sister’s shameful secret from her aunt.

When the local home for unwed mothers burns down, the arson investigation brings big-city reporter James Cooper back to Stone Creek—and back into Nora’s life. James also has a meddling aunt who raises more questions than she answers about his past. Not to mention, he can’t figure out why Nora constantly rebuffs him. When his reporting casts aspersions on the local church and lays the blame for the fire and a series of robberies at the wrong feet, he risks losing his new position at the paper.

As they seek to unravel the town’s mystery, rescue endangered mothers and children, and navigate their own family secrets forced to light, James and Nora increasingly turn to each other for help. But can they overcome James’s lack of faith and the disapproval of Nora’s guardians to find a second chance at love?

Click here to get your copy!

I really enjoy Christian Historical Romance books. Scandals and Mercies by Kathleen Rouser is the latest in this genre that I have read. It is Book 3 in the Stone Creek Brides series. I have read the first 2 in this series and have been anxiously waiting for this book to be released.

We are back in Stone Creek, Michigan in 1902. The 2 main characters in this book are Nora and James and their story was very intriguing. Nora Armstrong has been raised by her Aunt and Uncle in Stone Creek. She has dreams of being a teacher, but she doesn't see that happening. Her Aunt would love to see Nora get married, but Nora's heart was shattered when a man she had eyes for, betrayed her best friend. James Cooper, a journalist from the big city has come home to Stone Creek to cover a story of the Arson at the Unwed Mothers home in town. James and Nora have a "love hate" relationship. James is the man who Nora adored at one time. Nora is very strong in her faith, James is not a Christian. They both have family secrets that they are now being revealed. The more time they spend together they more they both feel they are falling in love. Will James and Nora solve the mystery of Arson at the Unwed Mothers home? Can they overcome the secrets and differences and have a relationship?

WOW, this story captures the readers attention immediately. I LOVE that Nora has a strong faith and knows what she wants in life. She also stands firm to her aunt when her aunt keeps trying to get her a husband. James is a GREAT character and is serious about his Journalist job. I LOVE how Nora and James opened up to each other as they worked together to solve the mystery of the Arson. The growth in their relationship was amazing and heartwarming. The book is one of Forgiveness, Faith, Second Chances and more. I HIGHLY recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Christian Historical Romance. WONDERFUL BOOK!

Kathleen Rouser is a multi-published, award-winning author of historical and contemporary Christian romance. She is a longtime member of American Christian Fiction Writers and a member of Faith, Hope and Love Christian Writers. She resides in southeast Michigan, a location which she often uses in her novels, with her hero and husband of forty-some years and two sweet cats who found a home in their empty nest.

More from Kathleen

Writing Scandals and Mercies: A Personal Spiritual Journey

By Kathleen Rouser

Scandals and Mercies has been my hardest story to write thus far. It seems that as I work through issues in my life it may come out in my characters. And I can relate to Nora Armstrong, my heroine. I can understand some of her struggles, her tender heart toward the Coping children, and figuring out who she is in Jesus. The challenges I had in writing this book are reflected in the theme which came through as I wrote it—identity in Christ. Then I became more purposeful in exploring the theme. Nora felt alone and had doubts at the beginning, but then she learned what it meant for her to trust in God despite her difficulties.

Though I’d been a believer for nearly forty years when I began writing Scandals and Mercies, I was—and still am—going through some difficult trials that forced me to really think about what my identity in Christ is. Who am I in Him? Will I depend on Jesus through one of the worst trials of my life? Or will I become bitter? I think of when Jesus said some hard things and many of His disciples deserted Him. He said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?” And Peter said, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

Jesus is truly the only One who has the answers, the words of eternal life. Where else would I turn? And when He doesn’t directly answer, especially the way I want, it’s for me to trust in Him.

And it’s also about sharing in the fellowship of His sufferings, not that we can add anything to our salvation, but that trials and suffering are a part of the Christian life, meant to mold us and grow us in our faith. And if we allow it, to be changed more closely into the someone who projects the image of Christ to others. My husband likes to say we are “Jesus with skin on” for each other.

Working through all of that while writing how Nora grew in her faith took a lot of emotional energy, but God strengthened me and I finished her story, while He is still writing mine!