Release Day! Road to New Beginnings by Ashley Farley ~ My Thoughts #RoadToNewBeginnings

 Happy Release Day!

Congrats Ashley

on the release today of

Road to New Beginnings!

Road to New Beginnings by Ashley Farley

Series: Hope Springs #5

Women's Friendship Fiction, 278 pages

Published March 8, 2022 by AHF Publishing

The staffers at Hope Springs Farm greet guests with smiles. But trouble brews beneath their calm demeanors. Stella faces her first crisis as an adoptive mom when a second-grade bully wreaks havoc on Jazz’s life. When their beloved teacher is suspended on bogus charges, Stella takes on the principal and the president of parents’ association.

Ollie experiences crippling panic attacks as she struggles to cope with her parents’ death. While she loves her new friends at Hope Springs, her job as wellness center manager is a pit stop on her journey of life. Her hopes soar when she discovers a vineyard for sale in the nearby town of Lovely. But there’s a catch. Why is the price of the property so low? Does it have to do with the current owner’s ancient feud with his neighbor.

Cecily is falling in love with Parker. But she’s worried it’s too soon after breaking off her engagement. Lyle begs for another chance, but Cecily isn’t interested. Lyle’s advances become increasingly more aggressive, placing Cecily’s life in danger.

Presley’s baby is due in a few short weeks. But she’s heard nothing from her country music star husband in months. Is it possible the rumors are true? Could Everett be having an affair with his attractive young co-star? Or is he hiding a more serious problem?

The exciting conclusion of the bestselling Hope Springs series where some journeys are ending while others are just beginning.

My thoughts about Road to New Beginnings ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)

First lines—"Standing at my front door, I stare across the street at Hope Springs Farm, the historic inn and surrounding buildings my grandfather built in the early 1920s."

Road of New Beginnings is the final story in the Hope Springs series. And what a wonderful ending it was. I have loved this whole series and all of the wonderful, caring characters. They became like family to me—if not family, then at least very good friends. I loved every minute I spent in Hope Springs and at the Inn.

Ashley's stories just get better and better with each one that she writes and I always am excited when she has another one coming out. Honestly, it is a little bit sad that this series is ending but I know that whatever she is working on will be just as good, if not better.  

And with the title of Road to New Beginnings, there just has to be someone's new beginning coming up for all of us, right? I can't wait to see what it is!

I highly recommend Road to New Beginnings, as well as this whole series! 

I received a copy of Road to New Beginnings from the author and this is my honest opinion.

The series on Amazon

About the author

Ashley Farley writes books about women for women. Her characters are mothers, daughters, sisters, and wives facing real-life issues. Her bestselling Sweeney Sisters series has touched the lives of many.

Ashley is a wife and mother of two young adult children. While she's lived in Richmond, Virginia for the past 21 years, a piece of her heart remains in the salty marshes of the South Carolina Lowcountry, where she still calls home. Through the eyes of her characters, she captures the moss-draped trees, delectable cuisine, and kindhearted folk with lazy drawls that make the area so unique. For more information, visit www.ashleyfarley.com ~ Goodreads

Connect with Ashley

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram

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Release Day! Campfire Confessions by Kristine Ochu ~ My Thoughts #CampfireConfessions

Happy Release Day!

Congrats Kristine

on the release today of

Campfire Confessions!

Campfire Confessions by Kristine Ochu

Literature & Fiction, 324 pages

Published March 8, 2022 by Books Fluent

Can you ever really hide a secret from your best friends?

Annie, Sondra, and Jo were the best of childhood friends—but they haven’t seen each other in far too long. To the outside world, their lives are perfect. But appearances can be deceiving…

Married to a pastor in a small town she’s never left, Annie’s devoted her life to family and the church. Most people consider her a saint—but they don’t know she’s hiding a big secret. Sondra’s living it up married to one of the richest men in L.A. and appears to have it all—beauty, brains, and a successful career. But when a real estate deal becomes more than just a transaction, she quickly realizes she’s in over her head. Jo is four years sober and struggling through a divorce. After a one-night stand takes an unexpectedly comic turn, she’s forced to reckon with a lifetime of bad choices.

When Annie’s secret catches up with her, Jo and Sondra rush to her side, escaping on a hilarious canoeing trip that turns into a soul-searching, death-defying adventure. Lost in the woods as one thing goes wrong after another, they find themselves sharing their deepest secrets around the campfire. But as each new revelation unfolds, one thing becomes clear: it will take more than a night of true confessions for the three of them to find their way back home.

My thoughts about Campfire Confessions ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)

First lines—"Anne clasped her hands together, pressed them firmly against her heart. One more deep breath."

I love reading stories about women's friendships that show the bonds that women share, especially women who were childhood friends. Those are the people who know you the best and know how to get it all out of you—they know when you are hiding something. 

Campfire Confessions is about three women who come together when one of them reaches a dangerous point in her life. The two friends rush to her side. But all three have deep issues and secrets that they need to deal with and a camping trip is the getaway that they need to try to get their heads on straight. 

The trip starts out good enough, then one thing after another happens and as they work to get out of each predicament, secrets and confessions start spilling out. Each woman bares their soul as the other two help them see the answers they are seeking. 

This story really has it all—friendship, support, adventure, a bit of steamy sex, drama, soul-searching, religion, family, love, and forgiveness—a little bit of something for everyone. I enjoyed the adventure and am impressed by this debut novel by Kristine Ochu. I'm excited to see what she writes next. 

I received an ARC of Campfire Confessions and this is my honest opinion.

About the author

Kristine is the founder of “The Night of a Woman’s Soul – Creating Your Amazing Life" workshops and is a former Human Resource Executive with a MAIR from the University of Minnesota. She is a member of the Global Women’s Club, Women in Film and Video New England, Harvard Square Script Writers, and community groups. 

A former log-rolling champion, she still log-rolls along with being an avid hiker, kayaker and explorer. Having previously written screenplays and a children's book, Kristine incorporates her love of nature and adventure into all her stories. She lives with her husband and their rescue golden retrievers, and splits her time between Hayward, Wisconsin and Amelia Island, Florida.  ~ Goodreads

Connect with Kristine

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram

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It's Monday! What Are You Reading? March 7, 2022 IMWAYR

      

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are! 

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Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a good week. 

Happy reading!

What I'm currently reading

The Book of Cold Cases

by Simone St. James

Pub date ~ March 15

I love this author's stories!

The Nightingale

by Kristin Hannah

Narrated by Polly Stone

What I recently finished

Shore Road

The Seaside Saga #14

by Joanne DeMaio

Released March 1

I love this series! My thoughts will be posted soon.

Campfire Confessions

by Kristine Ochu

Pub date ~ March 8

My thoughts will be posted tomorrow.

The Bad Place

by Dean Koontz

 Narrated by Carol Cowan & Michael Hanson

What I am going to read next

The Next Thing You Know

by Jessica Strawser

Pub date ~ March 22

I really love my reading life!

What are you reading this week?

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This OR That #Giveaway Week 50 ~ What She Found in the Woods by Josephine Angelini OR Dark Tides by Philippa Gregory #WhatSheFoundInTheWoods #DarkTides

  

I have sooooo many books!

The This or That Giveaway! feature that I post every Saturday is a way for me to clear my shelves and to share some of the many books I have. It's a way for me to cull my collection and give someone else the chance to enjoy these treasures.

Good luck and be sure to stop back next week!

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What She Found in the Woods

by Josephine Angelini

ARC ~ Published July 2019

A thriller about Magda, who's desperate to get over a scandal at her New York private school.

This is Magda's last chance. Recovering from a scandal at her elite New York City private school that threw life into a tailspin, she is shipped off to live with her grandparents in the Pacific Northwest for the summer.

Medicated and uninspired, Magda spends her days in a fog wandering the forest behind the house. But then she stumbles upon Bo. He's wild and free, and he can see the real her. Magda starts believing she might be able to move on from her past and feel something again.

But there's more to this sleepy town than she thought. And what Magda finds in the woods near Bo's forest home is the beginning of a whole new nightmare.

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Dark Tides

The Fairmile #2

by Philippa Gregory

ARC ~ Published November 2020

Midsummer Eve 1670. Two unexpected visitors arrive at a shabby warehouse on the south side of the River Thames. The first is a wealthy man hoping to find the lover he deserted twenty-one years before. James Avery has everything to offer, including the favour of the newly restored King Charles II, and he believes that the warehouse's poor owner Alinor has the one thing his money cannot buy—his son and heir.

The second visitor is a beautiful widow from Venice in deepest mourning. She claims Alinor as her mother-in-law and has come to tell Alinor that her son Rob has drowned in the dark tides of the Venice lagoon.

Alinor writes to her brother Ned, newly arrived in faraway New England and trying to make a life between the worlds of the English newcomers and the American Indians as they move toward inevitable war. Alinor tells him that she knows—without doubt—that her son is alive and the widow is an imposter.

Set in the poverty and glamour of Restoration London, in the golden streets of Venice, and on the tensely contested frontier of early America, this is a novel of greed and desire: for love, for wealth, for a child, and for home

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a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Reading My TBR Piles ~ March 2022 Edition #TBR

  

 YIKES!!

Look familiar? This is sometimes how my TBR piles/shelves feel to me. I have decided to make a more concerted effort to whittle down my TBR books. These will be books that on not on my review stack, but books that I own. These could be print, e-book, or audio-books., just books that I have been wanting to read. So, on the first Wednesday of each month I'm going to post the books that I read the previous month with the goal to clear off my TBR shelves.

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See any books here that on your own TBR pile?

Print

Pieces of Her

by Karin Slaughter

Wanted to get this one read before it came out on Netflix.

Glass Heart

Cold Kiss #2

by Amy Garvey

Used this one for a challenge prompt.

Audio-book

Leverage in Death

In Death #47

by J.D. Robb

Working my way through the series.

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