EmpowerMoms

“At Love’s Bidding” is book 2 of the Ozark Mountain Romance Series.

This story follows the characters Miranda and her grandfather as they go out west after purchasing a new business opportunity. They are hoping to find a painting they accidentally sold, but instead they find lots of cattle and chaos.

I liked the romance and friendship that Miranda and Wyatt develop, but I felt like this story was too slow and not much of a plot to keep my interest. I had a hard time wanting to finish this book.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bethany House in exchange for an honest review on my blog and social media-all opinions are my own.

Book Description:
After helping her grandfather at their Boston auction house, Miranda Wimplegate discovers she’s accidentally sold a powerful family’s prized portrait to an anonymous bidder. Desperate to appease the furious family, her grandfather tracks it to the Missouri Ozarks and makes an outlandish offer to buy the local auction house if they promise not to sell anything until he arrives.

Upon their arrival, however, they discover their new business doesn’t deal in fine antiques, but in livestock. And its manager, ruggedly handsome Wyatt Ballentine, is frustrated to discover his fussy new bosses don’t know a thing about the business he’s single-handedly kept afloat. Faced with more cattle than they can count–but no mysterious painting–Miranda and Wyatt form an unlikely but charged partnership to try and salvage a bad situation getting worse.

About the Author
Regina Jennings is a graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University with a degree in English and a history minor. She is the author of A Most Inconvenient Marriage, Sixty Acres and a Bride, and Caught in the Middle, and contributed a novella to A Match Made in Texas. Regina has worked at the Mustang News and First Baptist Church of Mustang, along with time at the Oklahoma National Stockyards and various livestock shows. She now lives outside Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with her husband and four children and can be found online at www.reginajennings.com.

LIMITED TIME ONLY!! I can’t find an ending date, so this may only be for today so act quickly if you are interested in any of the exercise dvds below. Most of them I already have, but this is a great deal!

LESLIE SANSONE:

Walk to the HITS Party Songs


Walk Off Fat Fast


The Tone Every Zone Walk

5 Boosted Miles

JILLIAN MICHAELS:

Killer Buns & Thighs

One Week Shred

Ripped in 30


Killer Arms & Back

YOGA:

Element: 5 Day Yoga


Element: Cardio Conditioning Yoga

Flow Yoga for Beginners


Fat-Blasting Yoga

Day 5 Challenge here:
https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/the-new-healthier-you-fitness-plan-day-5-try-something-new/

Day 6 Challenge here:
https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/the-new-healthier-you-fitness-plan-day-6-play-date/

Day 7 Challenge here:
https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/the-new-healthier-you-fitness-plan-day-7-rest/

“Power of the Matchmaker” is a prequel novella (short ebook 58 pages long) to introduce the matchmaker who I assume will be a part of the next upcoming books in this 2016 series.

Mae Li assumes the local matchmaker will match her and Chen Zhu in marriage; and when she recommends another woman for him, Mae Li is devastated and leaves the village. She has always loved him and can’t bare to see him marry another woman.

She finds out that life can be hard outside the village and almost gets forced to work in a prostitution house. She ends up dedicating her life as a Matchmaker after a woman saves her life and trains her.

I found this short story very emotional and well written. I cried towards the end of the book because I wished Pearl could have had her “happy ending” with Chen.

This was a great idea to introduce Pearl as the matchmaker before the series starts, and I’m looking forward to reading the other books in this series. Knowing the matchmakers back story will make all the other stories in this series more “real” to me.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review on my blog and social media-all opinions are my own.

Book Description:
A prequel novella to the POWER OF THE MATCHMAKER Series
Mystical . . . Beautiful . . . Romantic . . .

Read the matchmaker’s story to find out where it all starts . . .

Mae Li has been in love with Chen Zhu for years, and he with her. But when the matchmaker arrives at the Zhu family home, she recommends another village girl for Chen.

Heartbroken, Mae Li watches as Chen does his duty by marrying another. Mae flees her village with the clothes on her back and her only possession—a pearl embedded comb, given to her as a goodbye gift from Chen Zhu.

Upon Mae’s arrival in Shanghai, she quickly learns that she’ll starve within days unless she sells her prized comb or joins a courtesan house. She goes to the Huangpu River and promises the River God that she’ll always be selfless if he will save her from becoming a prostitute . . . Her wish is granted when Ms. Tan, the matchmaker of Shanghai, finds Mae. But Mae must completely change her future and her name if she is to become the next matchmaker.

**Join us for the POWER OF THE MATCHMAKER SERIES**
12 novels by 12 bestselling authors

Released once a month in 2016:

Broken Things to Mend by Karey White (Jan 2016)

Not Always Happenstance by Rachael Anderson (Feb 2016)

If We Were a Movie by Kelly Oram (March 2016)

Love is Come by Heather B. Moore (April 2016)

Four Chambers by Julie Wright (May 2016)

O’er the River Liffey by Heidi Ashworth (June 2016)

Chasing Fireflies by Taylor Dean (July 2016)

Between Earth and Heaven by Michele Paige Holmes (Aug 2016)

How I Met Your Brother by Janette Rallison (Sept 2016)

To Move the World by Regina Sirois (Oct 2016)

King of the Friend Zone by Sheralyn Pratt (Nov 2016)

The Reformer by Jaima Fixsen (Dec 2016)

I have read all three books in the Tangerine Street Romance series. They are all stand alone books, but the characters and places are mentioned in all three stories, which I really like.

I love that these authors have come together to write about a town’s different stores. They are all very descriptive which makes me feel like I’m right there along side them.

The Mariposa Hotel is written by 3 authors in 3 novel parts. Each short novel features different characters and stories all centered around the hotel.

Part 1: Ghost of 913 (17 chapters)
Mari works at the hotel and meets a hotel guest who she calls the “ghost” because he’s really clean. She later finds out he “sort of” works in law enforcement. I really liked this story! I found it sweet and interesting.

Part 2: Butterfly Kisses (9 chapters)
This was my least favorite story of the 3 three novels. I felt it had way too much drama and petty misunderstandings between the characters. Brooke was upset towards the end because she felt that Ridley wasn’t honest with her about his job, but she didn’t tell him about her job and volunteer work either. That was just one of the misunderstandings. The story had alot of good parts though.

Part 3: Dreams Come True (15 chapters)
I really liked this story as well. Raegan is the hotel events coordinator and meets a guest, Kevin who is a high profile movie producer. She helps his family and along the way they fall in love. A little bit of drama in this one, but lots of fun and romance.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review on my blog and social media-all opinions are my own.

You can buy a copy here:

The Mariposa Hotel: A Tangerine Street Romance
(a novel in three parts)
by Julie Wright, Melanie Jacobson, Heather B. Moore

Book Description:
Welcome to Tangerine Street

Tangerine Street is a must-see tourist stop with a colorful mix of one-of-a-kind boutiques, unique restaurants, eclectic museums, quaint bookstores, and exclusive bed-and-breakfasts. The Mariposa Hotel, a new resort, has revitalized Seashell Beach, bringing new life to the sleepy beach town. In the charming gardens of the hotel sits a three-hundred-year-old wishing well transported from Mexico. One toss of the coin, a sincere wish, and lives are changed forever…

Other books in the Tangerine Street Romance series:
The Fortune Café
The Boardwalk Antiques Shop