"...one big swoosh of a feeling."

:: devouring so many good stories :: 

:: the falling rain which brings fresh air and comfort :: 

:: hugs coming just at the perfect time :: 

:: unexpected text messages from far away friends :: 

:: convos with friends who understand your unknowns :: 

:: beautiful sunrises on the drive into work :: 

:: being told I'd helped someone feel better ::

:: anticipating time with friends I haven't seen in years ::

:: planning mini roadtrips for the near future ::

:: the quiet of the library ::

:: finding words ::

:: actual convos with authors ::

:: how the quiet of a friend can feel like a hug ::

:: seeing so many reminders of mom that just make me smile ::

:: coworkers who unexpectedly bring doughnuts ::

:: understanding that life is more, much more than just this one single moment ::

:: learning to exhale the yuck and focus on the good ::

:: discovering new favorite songs ::

:: the joy of hearing good news for a friend ::

:: knowing someone else makes you a priority in their life ::

:: fresh, ice cold water to drink on a hot summer day ::

:: finding brave again ::

:: realizing you're not the only one struggling with something big ::

:: finally reading a certain book and falling in love instantly with its characters ::

:: feeling wanderlust when chatting about a friend's big new adventure ::

:: eating a meal with people you realize are incredibly important to your life ::

:: getting the chance to live life every day, even in the hard ::

Review: The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery

Several blogging friends have been telling me for years that I really needed to read this one, they were so right! I had determined that 2016 was the year it would happen, so yay for sticking to my resolution. Because Valancy's story is SO wonderful! :)

The biggest reason I loved this book was Valancy herself. She starts out completely stifled and lost. Her sense of self is pretty much nonexistent, and while she's somewhat self-aware of this fact, she also doesn't know how to change it. Until some devastating news decides her on a new course. I loved her internal dialogues! She's quite funny and smart actually, she's just let fear take over her life and keep that side of her from shining out. As she quietly (mostly) starts making choices in spite of her fears and begins finding her brave, her beautiful heart finally becomes apparent to others. I also loved how she came to know herself better by actively choosing to do something big for someone else. And that leads to new friendships and experiences. She makes a few mistakes, she has so much to learn you know, but always has her imagination to fall back on. Her "blue castle", as she calls it, starts out as just a perfect ideal in her head and ends up becoming very real.

Valancy's journey is populated with several people, most notably her horrible and stiff family, as well as Roaring Abel, his daughter Cecilia, and of course Barney Snaith. Oh what can be said about the notorious Barney Snaith! (I was greatly amused by the fact that he's always referred to by both his first and last names.) Known for doing everything horrible imaginable, true or not, he's quite mysterious and intriguing. So naturally, Valancy is intrigued. (Hamlette pictured him as Michael Fassbender and I find that easy to go along with. :) While we may figure out where their friendship is headed, the actual events to get there happen most unexpectedly. For this is Valancy's story, and while Barney becomes a part of it, her path is so much more than romance. (Although the romance bits are certainly very sweet and adorable!)

Letting go of fear and finding your brave is never easy (certainly not in real life!), so Valancy has several ups and downs. But she pushes on, determined to actually live her life and not let it just happen to her. Which is the ultimate lesson from this story. Life is meant to be enjoyed, not just endured! And if a wonderful little book such as this makes it more enjoyable, then that's just even better. Read this one, friends! Move it up your TBRs, dive in, and be prepared for happiness! :)

Goodreads :: Amazon :: Barnes and Noble

And everyone knew that he was an escaped convict and a defaulting bank clerk and a murderer in hiding and an infidel and an illegitimate son of old Roaring Abel Gay and the father of Roaring Abel's illegitimate grandchild and a counterfeiter and a forger and a few other awful things. But still Valancy didn't believe he was bad. Nobody with a smile like that could be bad, no matter what he had done.

"Oh, but you know we're all dead," said Valancy, "the whole Stirling clan. Some of us are buried and some aren't--yet. That is the only difference."

"A plate of apples, an open fire, and 'a jolly goode booke' are a fair substitute for heaven."

Review: The Lady and the Lionheart by Joanne Bischof

This book, y'all. This book has my heart! Why? Because Charlie. Oh my stars, how I fell for that man! I was SO not prepared for him to worm his way to the very depths of my heart and refuse to ever come out again! I don't know that I can accurately describe with words for you to understand what is so very special about him. I think you just have to meet him and then you'll know. Oh then you'll know, friends! :) His heart is one of the tenderest and purest of any male protagonist I've ever met. While Ella may notice his looks first (who wouldn't?! ;), it's his heart that captures all her attention. And mine!

Do you have any authors who you've seen nothing but lovely reviews for their books, you even own a couple of said books, yet you've not actually read one? Sounds crazy, right? I cannot explain why on earth this particular story was the first I've ever read by Ms. Bischof, but believe me, I plan to pick up her others as soon as I possibly can! Because if this beautiful story is proof of her amazing talent with the pen, then I can only imagine that her other books are wonderful as well. And I think you should do the same. Charlie is so worth meeting, friends! He truly is.

But you need to meet Ella too! And Holland. And Regina. Each character is so vividly described and even the side characters add much to the story! Plus I confess that I'm particularly fond of the setting, considering it's an area I know very well. Virginia is the home of my heart, as I grew up there, and getting a taste of what it must have been like during the Victorian era is fun! As for the circus itself, this is my first time reading about that life. I remember a few things I learned at some point in my past, like the sideshows that were involved, but I'd never truly imagined what those people's lives must have been like. I hurt for them as much as I loved them. And I absolutely loved the way they were their own little family. When you live and work with people for years and years, it makes sense that you'd create strong bonds between you. Bonds that would never go away, no matter the time or distance. Bonds that sustained you through all the hard that inevitably comes in life. Bonds that meant you could truly be yourself with each other, open up and be vulnerable together.

That's what I feel like Ms. Bischof did with this story. The characters so tentatively opened up and were vulnerable to me. They showed the tender sides of their hearts, as if waiting to see what I would do, and then proceeded to gently sweep me into their fold, never to let go. The beauty in what they shared became powerful lessons not to be forgotten! As the hours and days after finishing this story proved, for I still cannot let go. These characters, Charlie especially, have became part of me now. They're in my head, my heart, and there they will stay.

Fellow reader friends, I can only encourage you to read this one! From the first quiet, yet indelibly real and haunting meeting of Ella and Charlie in chapter one, to the final pages where hope reigns no matter the circumstances, this story may capture your heart as it did mine. And I'll never be the same.

Goodreads :: Amazon :: Barnes and Noble

From head to toe she was perfect and there wasn't a single part of her that was less than.

"But there is a part of you that isn't whole."
When she blinked quickly, he reached out and nearly pressed his fingers to where her heart lived. "It grieves me to think of why that is and I can't go another minute without telling you that there is a God. And He loves you so much. He aches for you. He can be a jealous God, and at times even angry. I believe..." with his whole heart... "that He is both of those on your behalf."

Mailbox Monday :: Edition the Second

Do you remember long ago when I participated in this meme for the first (and only) time? You probably don't. It was pretty insignificant really. But! As I went book shopping this weekend, I found a couple beauties and decided now would be the perfect time to join in again! I mean, who doesn't love to add books to their towering TBRs or just admire beautiful covers?

{For any and all info about this meme, please click here.}

So let's get to the pretties...

Firstly, I admit to buying this one purely because of that gorgeous cover! The colors are even more amazing in real life, for the record. :) But it also happens to be the final book of a series that has been on my radar for a few years. I've been impatiently waiting for this one to come out so I could read the series. Y'all know how I much prefer reading an entire series in one fell swoop! Thus, I decided the best option was to purchase the last book first. Great plan, right? Makes perfect sense? ;) Still, perfect sense or not, I am very pleased to have this sitting on my bookshelf in all it's prettiness.

I know a certain someone (*ahem* Emma) is going to be thrilled to see Yankee Stranger in that picture! I have it on my TBR because of her. And you don't know how excited I was to find that copy. The book isn't in print anymore, so this was a huge (and happy!) surprise! :) I already own a copy of The Scorpio Races, but I love that book so much I could not leave it at the store! Perhaps I should have a giveaway for it? (Would anyone actually be interested?) And A Grief Observed seemed appropriate for my life right now. I've always enjoyed C.S. Lewis' books, but I've never read this one.

So! What books have you bought recently?