LitFuse Publicity Blog Tour: My Foolish Heart

Here's a description of the book:
"Unknown to her tiny town of Deep Haven, Isadora Presley spends her nights as Miss Foolish Heart, the star host of a syndicated talk radio show. Millions tune in to hear her advice on dating and falling in love, unaware that she’s never really done either. Issy’s ratings soar when it seems she’s falling in love on-air with a caller. A caller she doesn’t realize lives right next door.

Caleb Knight served a tour of duty in Iraq and paid a steep price. The last thing he wants is pity, so he hides his disability and moves to Deep Haven to land his dream job as the high school football coach. When his beautiful neighbor catches his eye, in a moment of desperation he seeks advice from My Foolish Heart, the show that airs before his favorite sports broadcast.

Before he knows it, Caleb finds himself drawn to the host—and more confused than ever. Is his perfect love the woman on the radio . . . or the one next door?"

My Rating: Summer

My Review:

My Foolish Heart is a winning combination of You've Got Mail, Sleepless in Seattle, and Susan May Warren's great characters and beautiful romance!

Like in the movie You've Got Mail, Isadora and Caleb find themselves falling in love online (and on the air) without realizing who exactly the other person is--and how different romance in action can be from romance through words. Also, like Tom Hanks, Caleb is the one who figures out who Miss Foolish Heart really is before Isadora figures out who Boy Next Door really is.

Instead of feuding book store owners, however, Isadora and Caleb are two people with conflicting fears. One is afraid to leave the safety of her house due to a horrible memory, and the other is afraid of dependency (especially on God) due to the debt he feels he owes for his very life. But the new NY152 and ShopGirl have a sweet romance all their own in this football-themed book that will have you cheering them on!

Isadora's radio show is also reminiscent of Sleepless in Seattle, but as I mentioned earlier Warren has created a unique story with two romances instead of one and enough authentic emotion to inspire you and leave you sighing with satisfaction. Add in a beautiful message about the amazing, incomprehensible love of God, and you've got a wonderful and moving read!

*With thanks to the publisher for providing me a copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinion, to be shared during the LitFuse Publicity Blogging tour.*

About the Author:

"Susan May Warren is an award-winning, best-selling author of over twenty-five novels, many of which have won the Inspirational Readers Choice Award, the ACFW Book of the Year award, the Rita Award, and have been Christy finalists. After serving as a missionary for eight years in Russia, Susan returned home to a small town on Minnesota’s beautiful Lake Superior shore where she, her four children, and her husband are active in their local church.

Susan's larger than life characters and layered plots have won her acclaim with readers and reviewers alike. A seasoned women’s events and retreats speaker, she’s a popular writing teacher at conferences around the nation and the author of the beginning writer’s workbook: From the Inside-Out: discover, create and publish the novel in you!. She is also the founder of www.MyBookTherapy.com, a story-crafting service that helps authors discover their voice.

Susan makes her home in northern Minnesota, where she is busy cheering on her two sons in football, and her daughter in local theater productions (and desperately missing her college-age son!)

A full listing of her titles, reviews and awards can be found HERE."

To Buy the Book: click HERE

Blog Tour Schedule: Check out all of the other reviews scheduled by clicking HERE.

Contest:

Susan May Warren is thrilled to announce the release of her latest Deep Haven book, My Foolish Heart!

Read what the reviewers are saying here.

To celebrate this charming novel about a dating expert who's never had a date, Susan has put together a romantic night on the town for one lucky couple. One grand prize winner will receive a Miss Foolish Heart prize package worth over $200!

The winner of the Romantic Night on the Town Prize Pack will receive:

* A $100 Visa Gift Card (For Dinner)

* A $100 Gift Certificate to a Hyatt/Marriott Hotel

* The entire Deep Haven series

To enter just click one of the icons below. But, hurry, the giveaway ends at noon on June 16th. The winner will be announced that evening during Susan’s Miss Foolish Heart Party on Facebook! Susan will be chatting with guests, hosting a book club chat about My Foolish Heart, testing your Deep Haven trivia skills, and giving away tons of great stuff! (Gift certificates, books, donuts, and more!) Don't miss the fun and BRING YOUR FRIENDS!

My Review of Praying for Your Future Husband

Here's a description of the book from Waterbrook Multnomah:

"Have you ever thought about praying for your future husband?
Will it make a difference?
There's only one way to find out…

From when we were small girls, most of us dream of “The One,” our future husband. We think about what it would be like to be a bride. We wonder who that special guy is and when we'll find him. The great news is that what you do now can make a difference in your life and the life of your future husband!

Authors and good friends Robin Jones Gunn (Christy Miller series) and Tricia Goyer (author and former teen mom) believe God answers women's prayers for husbands—even husbands they may not meet for years. They invite young women to pray boldly for their future mate … while also asking God to prepare their own hearts.

In Praying for Your Future Husband, Robin and Tricia share their two vastly different experiences, including the things they did right and the mistakes they made on the path to meeting and marrying their husbands. Each chapter includes helpful Bible verses, prayers, and practical application, along with true stories of women who prayed for a husband and how God answered in remarkable ways.

God has a beautiful romance prepared for you. Prayer is the key to unlocking the love story … with your future husband and with God, the lover of your soul."

My Rating: Summer

My Review:

Before reading Praying for Your Future Husband, I thought the cover was pretty with its bold but soothing colors and the peaceful image of a girl soaking in the sun. But it wasn't until I read the book that I realized just how fitting the cover really is.

For you see, the feelings portrayed by the girl on the cover matched my own. This book caused me to look up, to soak in the comforting and life-giving Light of the Son of God. In these pages I wasn't told that I needed to pray hard for a man to enter my life. I was told that with or without a husband, I can live an abundant life filled with the hope of God's sovereignty and love for me.

Praying for Your Future Husband is a book of true love stories, mainly from the lives of author Robin Jones Gunn and Tricia Goyer. It is a book designed to encourage the reader to trust in God's plan and timing in regards to her own love story, as well as to use one's season of singleness (whether that season last for a few short years or a lifetime) to seek God.

I love how this book is organized, with chapters that include anecdotes, prayer suggestions, and discussion questions--all wrapped up in a lovely package. And I love how there are prayer suggestions not only for a girl's future husband, but also for the girl herself to grow in love for God, patience, understanding, trust, loyalty and faithfulness, strength, character, contentment, and commitment.

This is a wonderful, inspiring book that has much to offer any woman who longs to seek God's best for her life and the life of her husband, whether she is already married or hopes to be married someday. From cover to cover, Praying for Your Future Husband is beautiful!

*With thanks to Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing Group for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinion.*

Would you consider ranking my review? Thank you!

Back from the Happiest Place on Earth!

Hello, everyone! I just got back from a most wonderful vacation in Disneyland!! I'm sure I'll be posting more pictures and sharing some stories soon, but for now I simply wanted to let you know that I haven't dropped off the face of the planet. ;)

Next week I plan on sharing quite a few book reviews with you. And drum roll please...the next Contentment Reading Challenge Book Swap is headed your way soon!!

Hope you all are having a great summer so far!

P.S. If you would like to read my review of To Win Her Heart by Karen Witemeyer, stop by the Radiant Lit website!

Review of Love Finds You in Prince Edward Island

Here's a description of the book from Summerside Press:

"In the summer of 1860, Prince Edward Island is astir. Its citizens eagerly anticipate the arrival of the first member of the British royal family to visit the island. Molly Orland is too poor to be invited to the ball, but she and several other local young women are thrilled when they’re hired as extra staff at the lieutenant governor’s house, where the young Prince of Wales will be a guest.

Peter Stark has arrived a few days in advance of the royal party to make sure arrangements are suitable for the prince. He is attracted to the beauty of the island—and to a young local girl named Molly, whom he’s determined to shield from the notorious antics of the playboy prince. When Peter and Molly discover a long-buried secret that could bring shame to his royal employer, will he remain a loyal servant—or help Molly’s family get the justice they deserve?"

My Rating: Fall/Spring

My Review:

As the lovely cover suggests, Love Finds You in Prince Edward Island, Canada is a charming book. While the story is set in the same beautiful place as Anne of Green Gables, it stands on its own, unique and sweet.

Like Cinderella, Molly is a young lady who wins the heart of the Prince and attends the ball despite her position as a maid in the lieutenant governor's household. But in an interesting twist, it's not the Prince who catches Molly's fancy--it's Peter Stark, attendant to an earl, with a complicated past.

The plot starts out slow, but the cute romance and the interesting details regarding the setting and the events for the Prince make this a quick read. While this book is not very deep, I enjoyed the fun summer trip to one place I really, really want to visit someday!

Disney Birthday Bash Finale!

Thank you to my guests, as well as my dear readers, for helping me celebrate my birthday this week! It's been a lot of fun discussing all things Disney. Today I'll announce the winners first, and then I'll add my two cents' worth to the Disney discussion! ;) I'd also love to hear your thoughts on any of the questions!

The winner of Yesterday's Tomorrow by Catherine West is...

Missy!

And the winner of Gallimore by Michelle Griep is...

Renee C!

Congratulations, ladies! Be on the lookout for my e-mail!

And now here's my Q & A with myself regarding Disney:

Question: Since this week’s theme is “Disney,” could you share with us your favorite Disney movie and why it’s your favorite?

Answer: OK, I don't think we bloggers realize how difficult our questions are until the roles are reversed! Definitely hard to pick a favorite Disney movie. Some of my favorites have already been mentioned by others this week, including Tuck Everlasting, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Beauty & The Beast. But one of my other favorites is Brother Bear 2. The first one was very good, as well, but I just love the sweet romance, as well as the music, in the second movie. The theme of love overcoming fear and sacrificing for others is wonderful!

Question: Have you ever been to Disneyland or Disney World? If so, do you have a fun memory you could share with us about one of the rides/attractions?

Answer: Yes, I have! I've been to Disneyland twice so far, with this next week marking my third vacation there. (I haven't yet been to Disney World, but it sounds awesome!) As for a fun memory, I like sharing the one about meeting my "twin" at Disneyland. When my family and I were attempting to get an autograph from the Mad Hatter, he assumed that another girl who was the same height as me, with the same color hair (about the same length), and wearing glasses like me, was a member of my family. (Or maybe he just thought it was funny we looked alike--I don't know!) He put an arm around each of us and we ended up getting a picture together, even though we had never met! ;)

Then there was the time I got to play Jafar at Aladdin's storytelling place... That was interesting!

Question: Which Disney character from any of the Disney movies do you most identify with?

Answer: I'm going to be a copycat and say Belle. I love to read, I have brown hair, and "I want adventure in the great, wide somewhere." What can I say? ;)

I'll also say Cinderella, because for my senior prom in high school a couple of years ago I got to wear a blue poofy dress and be Cinderella for one special evening. It was so fun to dress up and dance the night away like a princess!

Question: Have any of the Disney movies reminded you of a spiritual truth? If so, could you share an example?

Answer: One somewhat recent example is from The Princess and the Frog. When Tiana is in the graveyard with the villain, he tries to get her to give up the talisman she's holding by tempting her with the fulfillment of her dream--her own restaurant, just like she and her dad had always wanted. But when Tiana thinks about her dad, she realizes that even though he didn't have what he wanted, supposedly, he had what he needed. He had love.

The difference between wants and needs is something I really need to take heart. With God, we have everything we could ever need. He provides for us, and in Him we find an all-encompassing love. Sometimes He gives us our wants, but sometimes He knows that what we need doesn't match up with what we want. So may we have what we need (according to God), rather than what we want.

Question: What do you love the most about Disney movies?

Answer: I love how Disney movies are positive in general. They encourage people to love others and to really live life--a life full of dreams, adventure, and hope. As they quote in Meet the Robinsons: "Keep Moving Forward."

(Brother Bear 2 picture is from IMDb.com, and The Princess and the Frog picture is also from IMDb.com.)

Disney Birthday Bash with Ashley!

Today's guest is a dear blogging friend, Ashley from After All, Tomorrow is Another Day. It's a pleasure to host her here, and I think you'll love her responses to this Disney-themed interview!

Amber: Thank you so much for joining us today! Since this week’s theme is “Disney,” could you share with us your favorite Disney movie and why it’s your favorite?

Ashley: Hands down, Tuck Everlasting has to be my fave Disney movie. Because, it’s the saddest movie you’ll ever see, yet you can’t help but watch it again and again. It’s romantic without being oushy-goushy and there is the element of adventure and wonder that comes with the thought of living forever, that sucks you in from the very beginning.

Amber: Great choice--I love that movie, as well! Have you ever been to Disneyland or Disney World? If so, do you have a fun memory you could share with us about one of the rides/attractions?

Ashley: I’ve actually been to both parks, and they’re both amazing, however the memory that stands out the most for me is when: my sister, my mom and I were at Disneyland, in Story Bookland (any place about books has to be good, right?), where there is this boat ride that takes you down a river and through the mouth of the whale that swallowed Pinocchio. On the banks of the river are miniatures of several of the Disney character’s houses. Before, my family and I got to board the boat, the operator of the asked if my sister and I could sit in the front and be the shark watchers. At the time, I was only 5 yrs. old, and I truly thought there were man-eating sharks in the water. But luckily, none decided to attack that night.

Amber: Hahaha, very cute! ;) Which Disney character from any of the Disney movies do you most identify with?

Ashley: I know we all will say Belle, and now that I’m older, I totally understand wanting more to read a good book, then to spend time with an arrogant (if handsome) and insufferable man like Gaston. However, when I was younger, I always fancied myself to be more of a Sleeping Beauty type. I loved the thought of having long golden hair, the ability to understand animals, and three fairy Godmothers, dressed in green, red and blue. But never yellow, mind you, for that would be a crime of fairy fashion.

Amber: That's sweet! Have any of the Disney movies reminded you of a spiritual truth? If so, could you share an example?

Ashley: In the beginning of Beauty And The Beast, where the prince refuses the rose from the old “hag” and turns her away with hateful words, that really reminded me of how Jesus was treated here on earth. He came to offer us such a simple, but beautiful gift, and we not only didn’t want it, we crucified Him for it. We are all ugly beast without Jesus’s love. We may not look like one on the outside, but in the inside, our hearts are vile, and riddled with sin like cancer. But there is a Beauty that is constantly showing us love and our need to be loved by the King of Creation, all we have to do is except that love for now and eternity.

Amber: That is beautiful, Ashley! So glad you shared that with us, and I completely agree. So, what do you love the most about Disney movies?

Ashley: That no matter what’s going on in your life, the moment you turn a Disney movie on, you can believe for a moment that dreams really are wishes your heart makes and that with a wonderful thought, some faith and pixie dust, you can fly.

Thank you so much Amber, for the fun interview and I pray you have a blessed and magical birthday this year.

Amber: Thank YOU, Ashley, for visiting us today and for your wonderful responses!!

(Tuck Everlasting picture is from IMDb.com; Sleeping Beauty picture is from IMDb.com; and rose picture is from Families.com.)

Disney Birthday Bash with Michelle Griep!

Our second guest this week is Michelle Griep, author of Gallimore and Undercurrent, two amazing time travel romance stories! Earlier this week I posted my review of Undercurrent on The Borrowed Book blog, if you're interested in reading my thoughts on this great book. Read on to learn more about Michelle and find out how you can win a copy of Gallimore!

Amber: Thank you so much for joining us today! Since this week’s theme is “Disney,” could you share with us your favorite Disney movie and why it’s your favorite?

Michelle: Wow. That’s like asking my favorite kind of pizza. Tough call! So I’ll totally cheat and pick a favorite non-animated and a favorite animated…

George of the Jungle is my favorite ‘real people’ Disney flick. I could look at Brendan Fraser’s abs all day long. Seriously. Besides that, though, the story itself is cute and romantic.

Tangled is my favorite animated movie and I can sum up why in two words: Flynn Rider. What a hero! Headstrong and cocky, yet entirely teachable and loyal. The other bonus to this movie is the humor. Hilarious. I rarely laugh out loud, but I almost peed my pants watching this one.

Amber: Those are both very fun movies! Have you ever been to Disneyland or Disney World? If so, do you have a fun memory you could share with us about one of the rides/attractions?

Michelle: I went to Disneyland when I was 7. Being the youngest kid by about 15 years, I was basically an only child. Translation: spoiled rotten. I remember going on the teacup ride, the one with a wheel-type gadget in the middle that is used to spin the cup around. It was my dad’s goal to make me barf. Yes, my family certainly knew how to put the ‘fun’ in dysfunctional. He whipped that teacup around as fast as a tilt-a-whirl on steroids. But ol’ ironsides (my gut) was impossible to break. My dad wasn’t though. He felt pretty woozy by the time we exited.

Amber: "Ol' ironsides," huh? Hahaha, that's a great story! So, which Disney character from any of the Disney movies do you most identify with?

Michelle: Belle from Beauty & The Beast. No, I don’t look that fabulous in a yellow ballgown, and I don’t even know how to waltz. I relate to her because she’s always got her nose stuck in a book, re-reading her favorites and on the lookout for more. Now that’s a kindred spirit!

Amber: I totally understand! Have any of the Disney movies inspired your writing (ie: characters, plot, etc.) in any way?

Michelle: Not an entire movie, but a character: Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean. He’s always doing and saying things that are unexpected, kind of out-of-the-norm for what you’d expect a pirate to be like. Outwardly he looks the epitome of the roguish swashbuckler, but there are so many layers to him that don’t fit the typical pirate stereotype. I use that template when creating my characters. Define who they are and then throw in idiosyncrasies that are quirky and endearing.

Amber: Very cool! Gotta love Jack Sparrow. ;) What do you love the most about Disney movies?

Michelle: Happy endings. I can’t think of one that doesn’t have a feel good finale.

Amber: Great answer! So glad to host you here today, Michelle!

Readers, if you would like a chance to win a copy of Gallimore, just leave a comment for Michelle along with your e-mail address! (U.S residents only, please.) A winner will be announced on Friday, June 3rd.

P.S. Doesn't Gallimore's cover fit so well with the Disney/castle theme this week??

(Teacup ride picture from AllEars.Net, and Pirates of the Caribbean 4 picture from IMDb. com.)