Share Four Somethings - January 2019

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And just like that, January is over and we're a month into the new year!  And it's time for me to share Something Loved, Something Said, Something Learned, and Something Read during the month. It's been busy, it's been cold, and it's been a good month, so let's see what I can come up with!

Something Loved

I did NOT love the cold, and I really didn't love having church services cancelled because of snow, but I must say I did love the beauty of the snow!

  

Something Said

Everything I set out to do is for the glory of God. That's my purpose in life. My other priorities--staying fit and healthy, working hard and growing in my career in the entertainment business, raising a healthy, happy family--all are in service to this higher purpose.

When I am making a choice, I get to weigh each decision in light of whether it will further my true purpose.

~from Kind Is the New Classy: The Power of Living Graciously by Candace Cameron Bure.

Something Learned

We decided it was past time we updated the decor of our dining room and kitchen, so I'm learning to work around the low-level chaos of having things taken apart and ever-changing as we strip the wallpaper and prepare for painting. And I suppose I'm learning about the process as well - planning the project and all of that.

Something Read

I completed three books in January, and I have three I'm working on right now. You can see more about my reading in my Monthly Bookshelf Review for January 2019.

My Heart Belongs in the Blue Ridge: Laurel's Dream by Pepper Basham
The Alamo Bride (Daughters of the Mayflower) by Kathleen Y'Barbo
Silent on the Moor (A Lady Julia Grey Mystery Book 3) by Deanna Raybourn

  

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Monthly Bookshelf Review - January 2019

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January 's Books Completed and Reviewed

My Heart Belongs in the Blue Ridge: Laurel's Dream by Pepper Basham - Jonathan comes to the Blue Ridge mountains as a mission school teacher and meets Laurel, who dreams of going to college and then coming back to help her people. (Read my full review HERE)

The vision Laurel inspired by her desire to bring education back into these mountains caught fire inside of him -- her purpose, contagious. He'd wandered into this world, half as a runaway and half as a man searching for a purpose, and in over two weeks, he'd seen more passion in a mountain girl with barely anything worldly than he'd seen in anyone.

Silent on the Moor (A Lady Julia Grey Mystery Book 3) by Deanna Raybourn - Lady Julia travels to Brisbane's newly acquired estate in the wilds of Yorkshire, and finds herself in the middle of a sinister mystery even as she tries to uncover some of Brisbane's secrets. (Read my full review HERE.)

"You said the last time we met I was more your equal than any woman you had ever known. Whatever is amiss here, I am equal to it as well. Good night, Brisbane."

The Alamo Bride (Daughters of the Mayflower) by Kathleen Y'Barbo - Ellis Dumont finds a wounded and unconscious soldier on her family's land and as she helps nurse him to health, she must decide whether Clay Gentry is trustworthy and whether he sides with Texas or Mexico in the brewing conflict. (Read my full review HERE.)

Though he claimed to be meeting General Houston or one of his men, what if he was delivering funds to the Mexican army to defeat Houston? That was certainly possible. With battles raging elsewhere and the price of Texas freedom being paid in the blood of its citizens, anything was possible.

During January I started reading:

Humorous Stories and Sketches by Mark Twain - This was required reading for my students in History class. I read most of it before needing to give it to my daughter to read. Now that she's finished I need to get it back and finish!



Dark Road to Darjeeling (A Lady Julia Grey Mystery) by Deanna Raybourn - Lady Julia and Brisbane are nearing the end of their honeymoon trip when they are asked to go to India and discover whether foul play was involved in the death of a friend's husband.

It had occurred to me that if I were to solve the murder of Freddie Cavendish on my own, it might go a long way towards convincing Brisbane of my worthiness as a detecting partner, as well as my ability to have a care for my own safety. 

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte - This is an online book club pick for January, and with the month all but over, I still have a long way to go in reading it.

In love affairs, there is no mediator like a merry, simple-hearted child - ever ready to cement divided hearts, to span the unfriendly gulf of custom, to melt the ice of cold reserve, and overthrow the separating walls of dread formality and pride.

Kind Is the New Classy: The Power of Living Graciously by Candace Cameron Bure - I was intrigued by this book after seeing it mentioned on another blog. The actress explains how kindness - or really, Christ-likeness - is truly classy, lending a grace and elegance that is powerful and enduring.

But I'm here to tell you that godly ambition, ambition that puts God and others above yourself, is at the heart of kindness. Using your gifts and dreams on behalf of others? You can't get more classy than that.

Coming Up in February!

Fervent: A Woman's Battle Plan to Serious, Specific and Strategic Prayer by Priscilla Shirer
American Princess: A Novel of First Daughter Alice Roosevelt by Stephanie Marie Thornton (ARC)
Secrets in the Mist (A Gothic Myths Novel) by Anna Lee Huber


  

This post will be linked at:

The Book Date - January Reading Month in Review
Feed Your Fiction Addiction - January 2019 Wrap-Up Round-Up & Giveaway

©2008-2019 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Wordless Wednesday - Tuning

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One of her duties at work is to make sure all the guitars and ukuleles are tuned. 

This post is linked at Wordless Wednesday, hosted by Life on Chickadee Lane; and at Pictorial Tuesday, hosted by Peabea's Scribble Pad.

©2008-2019 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Recent Reads - The Alamo Bride

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The Alamo Bride (Daughters of the Mayflower) by Kathleen Y'Barbo - Together with her mother and two young brothers, Ellis Dumont is keeping the farm as best they can while her father and older brother are away fighting for Texas. While visiting her grandfather, she sees a company of New Orleans Greys arrive, come to help the Texians in the brewing conflict with the Mexican army. Later she finds a man dressed in the uniform of the Greys injured and unconscious in a pirogue. She and her mother tend to his wounds and keep him sheltered in hopes that he will recover. In his fevered state, the man talks about treasures and maps and meetings. Ellis takes to writing down some of what he says, unsure of where his loyalties truly lie.

When Claiborne Gentry regains consciousness, he finds he is a sort of captive of the beautiful Ellis and her family, but he has very little memory of his past or what his mission in Texas is. As Clay tries to piece together the few details he remembers and make sense of who he is to meet and why, he must also earn Ellis's trust and figure out for himself which side he is on.

Ellis is fiery and headstrong, much like one of her ancestors in this series, and has to keep her impulsive streak under control and be wise when it comes to whether she will trust Clay. For his part, Clay doesn't have much in the way of his own memories to go on, so he wrestles with his purpose and loyalty, and what his responsibilities may be. He has only a vague sense of a mission that he must complete, and his loyalty and affection for Ellis must be weighed against the importance of the mission.

This was an entertaining read for me, although I felt a little unclear about what was happening in the beginning. I had the sense that the first chapter about Clay was a bit disconnected from the rest of the story. It did explain his mission to a certain extent, and since he loses his memory before he meets Ellis, it's important for the reader, but I felt that a shorter prologue establishing that would have been just as effective. The characters were likable and the plot moved quickly but in places was vague. Although this is part of a series, it's not necessary to read the books in order as each stands well alone and are only loosely connected, as the lead characters are all part of a large family tree.

From the publisher:

Will Ellis lose all at the Alamo?

Ellis Dumont finds a man in New Orleans Grey unconscious on Dumont property in 1836. As his fevers rage, the man mutters strange things about treasures and war. Either Claiborne Gentry has lost his mind or he's a spy for the American president-- or worse, for the Mexican enemy that threatens their very lives. With the men of her family away, Ellis must stand courageous and decide who she can trust. Will she put her selfish wants ahead of the future of the republic or travel with Clay to Mission San Jose to help end the war?

Join the adventure as the Daughters of the Mayflower series continues with The Alamo Bride by Kathleen Y'Barbo.

Other books in this series: The Mayflower Bride, The Pirate Bride, The Captured Bride, The Patriot Bride, The Cumberland Bride, The Liberty Bride
Book Seven in the Daughters of the Mayflower series.

By the same author: The Pirate Bride

I received a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley for the purpose of this review.

©2008-2019 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Scripture and a Snapshot - Because of His Mercy

But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

~Titus 3:4-7~

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©2008-2019 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

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Wordless Wednesday - Snow

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This post is linked at Wordless Wednesday, hosted by Life on Chickadee Lane; and at Pictorial Tuesday, hosted by Peabea's Scribble Pad.

©2008-2019 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.