Bekah's Bookshelf: My 2025 Reads So Far

 

Remember last fall when I bought a bunch of used books through the Better World Books website? One of my choices, which had been on my wish list forever was a book called The Pursuit – written by Lori Wick. I cut my writing teeth on Lori Wick and Janette Oke novels as I grew up, and my goal is to own the complete collection of both their libraries, because they so formed who I am as a writer. The Pursuit was the fourth book in one of Lori’s series, and I owned the first three books already. But as I picked up this new-to-me book to read it, I realized I didn’t remember anything about the storyline leading up to book four. So I went back to book one to reread it.

                And that is how The Proposal (not the movie) came to be my first February read. As I told you at the end of January, I needed a lighthearted read after so many “stiff” books, and The Proposal seemed an appropriate February choice. 😊 This book was published back in 2002, so it’s a golden oldie in book years.

                This whole series takes place in England, so I tried to read it in a proper accent. That worked well sometimes and other times, not so much. It also takes place in 1810, so I had to reset my time period clock to embrace the days of yore.

                The book opens by introducing us to a young, eligible bachelor named William Jennings, who most unexpectedly finds himself caring for three young siblings who were recently orphaned following the death of one of his distant relatives. Jennings has always wanted children, but he never got around to it because he wasn’t particularly interested in getting married.

                Raising three children (without warning) isn’t as easy as he thought it might be, so he packs everyone up and heads to his sister’s household for help. Though they’ve been estranged for years, she welcomes him in without question and demonstrates parenting while trying to mend their relationship.

                And then there’s her very pretty, single neighbor who helps out with the children sometimes too…you can probably see where this is going.

                There are many things about the book that are perfect – perhaps too perfect. Jennings throws zero fits at giving up bachelorhood to care for three children. The children have no trauma, considering they’ve just lost both parents and have been sent to live with a stranger. The relationship with his sister glides pretty easily for how distant they’ve been. And his introduction to faith in Christ happens pretty seamlessly compared to what it feels like would have been a reality.

                But minimal hiccups and obstacles were what drew me to this book in the first place, so I didn’t get too upset about it.

                I plan to finish out the series over the next few weeks, though I have several other books that I want to sprinkle in.

                Is the book realistic? No. Is the story believable? Not entirely. Was my mental English accent any good? Not in the least. But is it a feel-good read with a strong faith component? Yes.

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                Though I read in three other books this month, I only finished one of the three. I didn’t give up on the other two. I just ran out of time to finish them in a short month that was heavy in other obligations! Maybe I’ll get to tell you about them next month.

                But my second complete read in February was Wishing for Mistletoe by Robin Lee Hatcher. This book (delightfully) showed up in my mailbox one day – gifted to me by one of you! (Thanks, Shari!)

                Shari read this book, loved it, thought it would be the perfect light read for me, and sent it my way. And she was not wrong at all. I adored it.

                The book is part of a series written by multiple authors, and I’ve not read any of the others. I didn’t feel left out, thought. By glancing at the summaries of the other books, I see that some of the characters I read about appeared in those books, but I didn’t feel like I was behind by just meeting them in this one.

                The series is called Love on Sanctuary Shores, and the setting (Sanctuary Shores) is a duplicate of Mackinac Island. You know how much I love the idea of visiting Mackinac, so it took me about .25 seconds to fall in love with the setting of the book.

                The story is very much a Hallmark movie in a book. It tells the story of fiction writer Ariel Highbridge, who travels to the island in the winter to try to find her creativity again. Ariel’s friend owns a house on the island but doesn’t stay through the winter, so it’s the perfect place for Ariel to hide out and write.

                Right next door to this house is a handsome young widower and his young daughter. Since there aren’t many people on the island in the winter, Tom and Ariel strike up a friendship – and, not surprisingly – a romance.

                The love story is sweet, and I wanted to visit the cupcakery and bookstore, too.

                My only complaint with the book was the very end. I felt like all of the sudden the story just concluded, and I wanted to know a little more! (Maybe I’m just greedy.)

                But oh, how I loved these people, the writer in Ariel, the adorable little island, and the sweetness of the story (which, by the way, has an unashamed faith thread running through it).

                My books this month were lighthearted, but I sure loved them. Just what my weary soul needed!