Full Steam Ahead by Karen Witemeyer

Nicole Renard must provide a son in law and heir for her father and is shipping business.She has a family treasure, Lafitte the pirates dagger as her dowry. Unfortunately the Jenkin family claims the dagger as their own and will stop at nothing to get it back. With her father ill, Nicole flees Galveston for New Orleans to search for a husband.
Darius Thornton, heir to a large shipping company, has retreated to a Texas plantation to study boilers following a boiler explosion on a Riverboat he was traveling on.
Can these two discover what they need in each other before another disaster occurs?
Full Steam Ahead is a thoroughly entertaining novel by Karen Witemeyer. She has a wonderful way of weaving a story with romance, some humor and faith. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to sit back and relax with a good tale.

The Hesitant Heiress by Dawn Crandall

Dawn Crandall's debut novel The Hesitant Heiress had a slow start, but soon became quite engrossing. Amaryllis and Nathan are an interesting couple. He spends his time trying to attract the attention of Amaryllis, the one woman who wants nothing to do with him. This story takes place during the social season in the late 1800's. Everyone is trying to make the most advantageous match in order to secure their fortunes. It is hard to tell if anyone is marrying for love or just to preserve their inheritance. I grew quite attached to the characters and look forward to book 2 The Bound Heart. I believe that we will be hearing much more from Dawn Crandall!

I was given this novel by the author in exchange for my honest opinion,but I was not required to give a favorable review.

Lynne Gentry's novel, The Healer Of Carthage, is one of the freshest stories I have read this year. Lisbeth is a first year , overworked medical student. he switches patients at the request of her fiance with tragic results. At the same time she receives a letter from her archeologist father, demanding she come to him at the site where her mother disappeared many years ago. Fearing for her father's sanity , she drops everything and joins him at the Cave Of The Swimmers. What happens next is a fantastic story that will drag you in and cause the loss of sleep. I found myself stealing whatever time I could in order to find out what happens next.
Gentry's descriptions bring ancient Carthage to life, I could all but smell the horrid conditions she describes. She carefully weaves history and fiction to keep her readers enthralled. My only problem is that the book ended and now I must wait until next year to continue the adventure!

Captured By Love

Captured By Love is an excellent read. I love historical fiction and Jody Hedlund has done a wonderful job of capturing the feel of life on Michilimackinac Island during the War of 1812.She has based the story on actual events, but has added romance in the form of a love triangle. Jody is very good at drawing a person into the emotions of the characters.I found myself having a difficult time choosing if Angelique should follow her promise or her heart. To complicate matters the two men involved are brothers...so the other will always be a part of her life. Jody has also managed to share her Christian faith, without being 'preachy'. I love Jody's writings and cannot wait for her next book.

I was given this book by the author for my honest opinion.

The Auschwitz Escape

The Auschwitz Escape by Joel Rosenberg grabs your attention from the first page and continues to hold it until the end. Mr. Rosenberg dramatically tells the story of the men and women of Auschwitz and how a few managed to escape to let the world know what was happening in the death camps of Hitler's Germany. Based on the Auschwitz Protocol,written by actual escapees, he has successfully blended the facts into a fast paced novel that draws one in and is sure to cause lack of sleep as you must find out what happens next.I also enjoyed the mild romance that runs through the book. Although the subject matter is unpleasant, I recommend this book as a must read.

The Dancing Master by Julie Klassen

The Dancing Master is a Regency novel told from the male POV. Alec Valcourt , a Dancing and fencing master, suddenly finds himself as the head of his small family. Having lost the family dancing academy in London,he moves his mother and sister to his uncle's home in Devonshire. His hopes of starting a new academy are dashed  by the local gentry, who withhold their patronage from anyone who dances. To complicate matters the daughter of the woman who forbids dancing wishes to learn.
The Dancing Master is full of mystery and suspense. I enjoyed reading this book,even though I enjoyed Julie Klassen's other books more.

The Sisters Weiss by Naomi Ragen

Naomi Ragen is one of my favorite novels. I enjoy her views of Hassidic Jewish life. The Sisters Weiss is a story of two Hassid sisters who live a very structured and sheltered life. but now are faced with choices. They must make choices they can live with no matter what anyone else says. Many secrets are uncovered along the way. So sit back and another world.

From Amazon: 

Powerful, page-turning and deeply moving, Naomi Ragen's The Sisters Weiss is an unforgettable examination of loyalty and betrayal; the differences that can tear a family apart and the invisible bonds that tie them together.

In 1950's Brooklyn, sisters Rose and Pearl Weiss grow up in a loving but strict ultra-Orthodox family, never dreaming of defying their parents or their community's unbending and intrusive demands. Then, a chance meeting with a young French immigrant turns Rose's world upside down, its once bearable strictures suddenly tightening like a noose around her neck. In rebellion, she begins to live a secret life – a life that shocks her parents when it is discovered. With nowhere else to turn, and an overwhelming desire to be reconciled with those she loves, Rose tries to bow to her parents' demands that she agree to an arranged marriage. But pushed to the edge, she commits an act so unforgivable, it will exile her forever from her innocent young sister, her family, and all she has ever known.

Forty years later, pious Pearl's sheltered young daughter Rivka suddenly discovers the ugly truth about her Aunt Rose, the outcast, who has moved on to become a renowned photographer. Inspired, but nave and reckless, Rivka sets off on a dangerous adventure that will stir up the ghosts of the past, and alter the future in unimaginable ways for all involved.

About the author:

Naomi Ragen is the author of many novels, including several international bestsellers, and her weekly email columns on life in the Middle East are read by thousands of subscribers worldwide. An American, she has lived in Jerusalem for the past forty years and was voted one of the three most popular authors in Israel.