Top 10 Books I Recommend
I love reading, and have an "addiction" to books. As you can see from the picture I have a five self bookcase and it is full, the bottom shelf is very disorganized and thats why the sleeping bags are there because they are holding the books in :) This is not even all of my books I have a shelf in my armoire that is strictly for my travel books and then I still have 1 or 2 tubs at my parent's house full of books. I find that I have a really hard time getting rid of books if I really enjoyed it. However when I do decide to get rid of books I almost always send then to our local Hospice Resale Shop because all the profits go to the local Prince George Hospice Society.
So because I have a deep love of reading I thought that I would make this post about my Top 10 books, these are my favorite books and I constantly go back and reread them. I will only generally read something historical or romance just because that's what I like, although most of my books are historical romance there are a few exceptions and they are usually books that I really enjoy. These are not in any order they are just listed.
The Other Boleyn Girl
Author: Philippa Gregory
Pages: 664
ISBN: 978-0-7432-2744-5
Genre: Novel
Fiction
I personally love this book and have almost all the books that Philippa Gregory has written but this was the first one of her's that I picked up and I love it.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
Two sisters competing for the greatest prize: the love of a king
When Mary Boleyn comes to court as an innocent girl of fourteen, she catches the eye of Henry VIII. Dazzled, Mary falls in love with both her golden prince and her growing role as unofficial queen. However, she soon realizes just how much she is a pawn in her family's ambitious plots as the king's interest begins to wane and she is forced to step aside for her best friend and rival: her sister, Anne. Then Mary knows that she must defy her family and her king and take her fate into her own hands.
A rich and compelling novel of love, sex, ambition, and intrigue, The Other Boleyn Girl introduces a woman of extraordinary determination and desire who lived at the heart of the most exciting and glamorous court in Europe and survived by following her heart .
The Mistress of Tall Acre
Author: Laura Frantz
Pages: 395
ISBN: 978-0-8007-2044-5
Genre: Novel
Fiction
I really love this book I just recently discovered the works of Laura Frantz and I am glad that I did.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE MISTRESS OF TALL ACRE......
The American Revolution is finally over, and Sophie Menzies is starved for good news. When her nearest neighbor General Seamus Ogilvy, finally comes home to Tall Acre, she hopes it is a sign of better days to come. But the general is now a widower with a small daughter in desperate need of a mother. Nearly destitute, Sophie agrees to marry Seamus and become mistress of Tall Acre in what seems a safe, sensible arrangement. But when a woman from the general's past returns without warning, the ties that bind this fledgling family together will be strained to the utmost. When all is said and done, who will be the rightful mistress of Tall Acre?
Triumph and tragedy, loyalty and betrayal--- you will find it all in the rich pages of this newest novel from the talented pen of Laura Frantz.
A Bride's Dilemma in Friendship, Tennessee
Author: Diana Lesire Brandmeyer
Pages: 316
ISBN: 978-1-61626-571-7
Genre: Novel
Fiction
I recently discovered this book at my local public library and enjoyed it so much that I purchased a copy for myself so that I could reread it whenever. While this book does have a religious angle (I personally am not religious) to it, it is very well written.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
HEAVEN'S STOLEN HIS HEART
After witnessing the ravages of the Civil War, Travis Logan vowed to give up doctoring. But when fellow steamboat passenger Caleb Wharton collapses at his feet, Travis knows he must lend his aid. As the old man lies dying, he makes Travis promise to take care of his land and find Heaven. Travis can't help but wonder what Heaven has to do with a real place, so he head's to Caleb's farm to fulfill his promise.
Weeks of facing marauders and caring for her father's home have finally taken their toll on Heaven Wharton. When an unknown young man charges the house, Heaven attempts to fire a warning shot but ends up shooting the man instead. Shocked, she and her sister, Angel, drag a semi-conscious Travis into the house and nurse him back to health.
As Travis and Heaven both struggle to control their destinies, will they learn that only a heart that follows God can ever find peace on earth?
The Olden Days Locket
Author: Penny Chamberlain
Pages: 198
ISBN: 1-55039-128-3
Genre: Novel
Fiction/ Juvenile Fiction
While this is Juvenile Fiction (basically written for 9-12 year olds) I love this book. I love that this book brings the history to life and last year I actually visited the Point Ellice House in person and having read this book made the experience even better.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
From the moment she first steps off the school bus, 12-year-old Jess is intrigued by Point Ellice House. She feels she somehow knows what is around every corner and behind every door of the beautifully preserved Victorian home. Her interest and repeated visits impress the guide in charge, and before long Jess has a volunteer summer job at Point Ellice House.
Jess begins having visions of a girl named Rose, visions that take her back in time to a terrible streetcar accident. Now it's up to Jess to solve a mystery and to see the troubled spirit who has haunted the area for so long.
Inspired by the history of Victoria's Point Ellice House and the worst recorded streetcar disaster in North America, The Olden Days Locket is a spellbinding read from the very first page.
Barkerville Beginnings
Author: A.M. Westerling
Pages: 323
ISBN: 978-1-7729976-4-4
Genre: Novel
Fiction
I was sent this book to review and I fell in love. You can read my review here.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
Faced with financial ruin and the loss of her good name, Rose Chadwick decides to make a new start for herself and her young daughter Hannah in the rough and tumble gold rush town of Barkerville, British Columbia. However, making a new life is not so easy when it's built on lies. And, long suppressed emotions within her are stirred when she meets a handsome young Englishman.
Viscount Harrison St. John knows he's expected to marry well to bolster his family fortunes. Instead, he leaves England to pursue riches in the gold fields of a frontier town in the far off wilds of Canada. Soured on love because of a betrayal by his former fiancé, Harrison resists the attraction he has for Rose. Particularly considering she appears to be a happily married woman with a daughter of her own.
Will dark secrets from Rose's past keep them apart? Or will the find love, happiness and a new life together in the bustling town of Barkerville?
The Frontiersman's Daughter
Author: Laura Frantz
Pages: 413
ISBN: 987-0-8007-3339-1
Genre: Novel
Fiction
I really love this book I just recently discovered the works of Laura Frantz and I am glad that I did.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
One woman searches for love--- and herself--- in a wild land.
Lovely and high-spirited, Lael Click is the daughter of a celebrated frontiersman. Haunted by her father's ties to the Shawnee Indians and her family's past, Lael comes of age in the fragile Kentucky settlement her father founded. As she faces the many trials of life on the frontier, Lael draws strength from the rugged land. But the arrival of a handsome doctor threatens her view of her world, her God, and herself. Can the power of grace and redemption break through in this tumultuous place?
This epic novel gives you a glimpse into the simple yer daring lives of the pioneers who first crossed the Appalachians, all through the courageous eyes of a determined young woman who would not be defeated.
H.R.H.
Author: Danielle Steel
Pages: 383
ISBN: 978-0-440-24204-8
Genre: Novel
Fiction
While I am usually not a fan of Danielle Steel (sorry) I really enjoyed this book.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
Princess Christianna is a young woman of her times: born in Europe, educated in America, responsible beyond her years. Her father, the Reigning Prince of a European nation that takes its royalty seriously, has ironclad plans for his only daughter's life, a burden that for Christianna is almost unbearable.
After four years at Berkeley, life in her father's palace cannot distract Christianna from what she sees outside the kingdom- the suffering of children, the ravages of terrorism and disease. Determined to make a difference in the world, she persuades her father to let her volunteer for the Red Cross in East Africa, and a journey of discovery, change, and awakening begins.
Christianna plunges into the dusty, bustling life of an international relief camp, finding a passion and a calling among the brave doctors and volunteers. She struggles to keep her identity a secret from her new friends and coworkers- even from Parker Williams, the young doctor who works alongside Christianna and shares her dedication to healing. But as violence approaches and invades the camp, and the pressures of her royal life beckon her home, Christianna's struggle for freedom takes an extraordinary turn. In one shocking moment, her life is changed forever.
From the splendor of a prince's palace to the chaos of war-torn nations, Danielle Steel takes us into fascinating new worlds. Filled with unforgettable images and a remarkable cast of characters, H.R.H. is a novel of the conflict between old and new worlds, responsibility versus freedom and duty versus love.
Romancing the Duke
Author: Tessa Dare
Pages: 370
ISBN: 978-0-06-224019-4
Genre: Novel
Fiction
I also recently found Tessa Dare's books at my local library and now have 8 of her books.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
In the first in Tessa Dare's captivating Castles Ever After series, a mysterious fortress is the setting for an unlikely love...
As the daughter of a famed author, Isolde Ophelia Goodnight grew up on tales of brave knights and fair maidens. She never doubted romance would be in her future, too. The storybooks offered endless possibilities.
And as she grew older, Izzy crossed them off.
One by one by one.
Ugly duckling turned swan?
Abducted by handsome highwayman?
Rescued from drudgery by charming prince?
No, no, and... Heh.
Now Izzy's given up yearning for romance.
She'll settle for a roof over her head.
What fairy tales are left over for an impoverished twenty-six-year-old woman who's never been kissed?
This one.
Echoes
Author: Danielle Steel
Pages: 347
ISBN: 0-440-24078-6
Genre: Novel
Fiction
This was the first Danielle Steel book that I read and I absolutely loved it.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
For the Wittgenstein family, the summer of 1915 was a time of both prosperity and unease, as the guns of war sound in the distance. But for the eldest daughter Beata, it was a time of awakening. By glimmering Lake Geneva, the quiet Jewish beauty met a young French officer and fell in love. Knowing that her parents would never accept her marriage to a Catholic, Beata followed her heart anyway. as the two built a new life together, Beata's past would stay with her, and when Europe faces war once again, Beata must watch in horror as Hitler's terror threatens her family- even her daughter Amadea, who has taken on the vows of a Carmelite nun.
As family and friends are swept away without a trace, Amadea is forced into hiding. Thus begins a harrowing journey of survival, first in the Nazi death camps, and then as she escapes into the heart of the French Resistance and finds a renewed sense of purpose. In the darkest moments of fear, Amadea will feel her mother's loving strength as the voices of lost loved ones echo powerfully in her life. She will meet an extraordinary man, British secret agent Rupert Montgomery, who will help her discover her place in an unbreakable chain between generations...and between her lost family and her future.
From the elegant rituals of Europe's prewar aristocracy to the brutal desperation of Germany's death camp's, Danielle Steel draws us into a vanished world, weaving an intricate tapestry of a mother's love, a daughter's courage...and the unwavering faith that sustained them- even in history's darkest hour.
Gentle Rouge
Author: Johanna Lindsey
Pages: 426
ISBN: 978-0-380-75302-4
Genre: Novel
Fiction
This was the first book of Johanna Lindsey's that I read and now I have 21 of her books and love them all.
Summary {taken from the back of the book}:
Heartsick and desperate to leave her sorrows on England's shores, innocent Georgina Anderson seeks passage on the "gentleman's ship" Maiden Anne, disguised as a cabin boy. The captain, however, is no gentleman; he's the ex-pirate and irrepressible rake, James Malory.
The black sheep of a proud, tempestuous family, Malory soon sees through Georgina's masquerade and is enchanted by the courageous, high-spirited lady he has forced into intimate servitude. But though he has sworn he will never be enticed into matrimony, Captain Malory has finally met his match on the high seas- undone by the passionate heart of one remarkable beauty whose love of freedom and adventure rivals his own.
So those are my top 10 books. Have you read any of them? Do you have any suggestions for me to try? I am always willing to try a good book.
See you next time :)