I don’t have to tell you that nothing is normal right now! Events are cancelled left and right, including 2021 Mardi Gras! Although Mardi Gras is celebrated across the Gulf Coast, New Orleans is famous for it. I went a few years ago to some family-friendly Mardi Gras events (yes, that’s a thing) and had a great time. New Orleans is one of my favorite places to visit. Despite the dirty streets and less than savory areas, the city is a great gumbo mix of culture, art, food, and fun.
This week’s Top 10 Tuesday is all about books with covers of purple, green, and yellow — the colors of Mardi Gras. Of course I am tweaking the topic yet again, this time with books set in New Orleans. Ranging from colonial times to present day and historical to suspense to women’s fiction, the books capture the New Orleans vibe. There’s even one that has a green/purple/yellow cover 😉 .
This week’s Top 10 Tuesday challenge is to list books with colors in their titles. There are a lot more than I expected! I limited my list to books I have read or that reside on my TBR shelf (Kindle or actual), but the list is still really long 😉 .
New Year. New Decade. New books! In all honesty, new books arrive at my house regardless of the calendar. 😉 But holding with the theme of today’s Top Ten Tuesday, I am highlighting the most recent 10. Some are recent additions to my NetGalley Shelf, while others actually reside on my bookshelves. All look great!
What books have arrived at your house recently?
To find out what other bloggers have recently welcomed home, visit That Artsy Reader Girl.
Top 10 Recent Book Additions
The Chisolm Trail Bride by Kathleen Y’Barbo
Stubborn Hearts Clash on a Cattle Drive
Eliza Gentry’s pursuit of marriage to the son of her family’s sworn enemy has cost her greatly. Furious at his daughter’s choices, her father sends her off with the cattle drive heading toward Fort Worth and the Barnhart ranch, but under the watchful eye of Wyatt Creed, a Pinkerton man he has hired to see to her safety. With danger at every turn—not the least of which to his heart — can Wyatt Creed keep his focus with Eliza Gentry around? Is the Chisholm Trail a place for falling in love or a place to die at the hands of cattle thieves?
Collision of Lies by Tom Threadgill
Three years ago, a collision between a fast-moving freight train and a school bus full of kids led to devastation and grief on an unimaginable scale. But a fresh clue leads San Antonio police detective Amara Alvarez to the unlikely conclusion that one of the children may still be alive. If she’s correct, everything law enforcement believes about the accident is a lie.
With time running out, Amara must convince others — and herself — that despite all evidence to the contrary, the boy lives. And she will do everything in her power to bring him home.
A fresh voice in suspense, Tom Threadgill will have you questioning everything as you fly through the pages of this enthralling story.
Deadly Intentions by Lisa Harris
Research scientist Caitlyn Lindsey is convinced that someone is taking out her team one by one. First, a friend and research partner was killed in a home invasion. Three months ago, her boss died in a suspicious car accident. Four days ago, another partner supposedly committed suicide. And now Caitlyn herself has miraculously survived a hit-and-run. Afraid for her life with nowhere to turn, she reaches out to one of the victim’s husbands, Detective Josh Solomon.
Though initially skeptical about Caitlyn’s theory, Josh soon realizes that the attack that took his wife’s life was anything but random. Now the two of them must discover the truth about who is after Caitlyn’s team–and what their end game is–before it’s too late.
The Fifth Avenue Story Society by Rachel Hauck
Executive assistant Lexa is eager for a much-deserved promotion, but her boss is determined to keep her underemployed.
Literature professor Jett is dealing with a broken heart, as well as a nagging suspicion his literary idol, Gordon Phipps Roth, might be a fraud.
Uber driver Chuck just wants a second chance with his kids.
Aging widower Ed is eager to write the true story of his incredible marriage.
Coral, queen of the cosmetics industry, has broken her engagement and is on the verge of losing her great grandmother’s multimillion-dollar empire.
When all five New Yorkers receive an anonymous, mysterious invitation to the Fifth Avenue Story Society, they suspect they’re victims of a practical joke. No one knows who sent the invitations or why. No one has heard of the literary society. And no one is prepared to reveal their deepest secrets to a roomful of strangers.
Yet curiosity and loneliness bring them back week after week to the old library. And it’s there they discover the stories of their hearts, and the kind of friendship and love that heals their souls.
The Gray Chamber by Grace Hitchcock
Will Edyth prove her sanity before it is too late?
On Blackwell’s Island, New York, a hospital was built to keep its patients from ever leaving. With her late parents’ fortune under her uncle’s care until her twenty-fifth birthday in the year 1887, Edyth Foster does not feel pressured to marry or to bow to society’s demands. She freely indulges in eccentric hobbies like fencing and riding her velocipede in her cycling costume about the city for all to see. Finding a loophole in the will, though, her uncle whisks Edyth off to the women’s lunatic asylum just weeks before her birthday. And Edyth fears she will never be found. At the asylum she meets another inmate, who upon discovering Edyth’s plight, confesses that she is Nellie Bly, an undercover journalist for The World. Will either woman find a way to leave the terrifying island and reclaim her true self?
The House at The End of The Moor by Michelle Griep
What Can a London Opera Star and an Escaped Dartmoor Prisoner Have in Common? Opera star Maggie Lee escapes her opulent lifestyle when threatened by a powerful politician who aims to ruin her life. She runs off to the wilds of the moors to live in anonymity. All that changes the day she discovers a half-dead man near her house. Escaped convict Oliver Ward is on the run to prove his innocence, until he gets hurt and is taken in by Maggie. He discovers some jewels in her possession — the very same jewels that got him convicted. Together they hatch a plan to return the jewels, clearing Oliver’s name and hopefully maintaining Maggie’s anonymity.
The Joy of Falling by Lindsay Harrel
Eva and Angela must learn to live again. One step at a time.
It has been fifteen months since Eva and Angela lost their thrill-seeking husbands in a scuba diving accident. Both women are trying to navigate their way through the grief, but neither one is making much progress. Angela is barely making ends meet, angry at her husband for leaving her to raise three children on her own. Meanwhile, Eva is stuck, unable to move forward after losing the love of her life and her source of inspiration.
But then Eva gets a life-changing phone call. Before Brent and Wes died, they had signed up for a race of a lifetime—an ultra-marathon in beautiful New Zealand. Eva begs Angela to run the race with her in their husbands’ place, and Angela finally agrees, hoping to finally understand her husband’s choices.
Training is exhausting, and the race is even more demanding. Their journey grows more complicated by the presence of two men — Marc is Brent’s best friend who is running the race with Eva and Angela, and Simon King is a writer who is covering their inspiring story. With every step, Eva and Angela must ask themselves questions that they haven’t had the courage to ask before. As the women literally put one foot in front of the other, they wonder: Is it possible to find their way forward in hope?
King’s Shadow by Angela Hunt
Two women occupy a place in Herod’s court. The first, Salome, is the king’s only sister, a resentful woman who has been told she is from an inferior race, a people God will never accept or approve.
The second woman, Zara, is a lowly handmaid who serves Salome, but where Salome spies conspiracies and treachery, Zara sees hurting people in need of understanding and compassion.
Powerful and powerless, Idumean and Jew, selfish and selfless — both women struggle to reach their goals and survive in Herod the Great’s tumultuous court, where no one is trustworthy and no one is safe.
Veiled in Smoke by Jocelyn Green
Meg and Sylvie Townsend manage the family bookshop and care for their father, Stephen, a veteran still suffering in mind and spirit from his time as a POW during the Civil War. But when the Great Fire sweeps through Chicago’s business district, they lose much more than just their store.
The sisters become separated from their father and make a harrowing escape from the flames with the help of Chicago Tribune reporter Nate Pierce. Once the smoke clears away, they reunite with Stephen, only to learn soon after that their family friend was murdered on the night of the fire. Even more shocking, Stephen is charged with the crime and committed to the Cook County Insane Asylum.
Though homeless and suddenly unemployed, Meg must not only gather the pieces of her shattered life, but prove her father’s innocence before the asylum truly drives him mad.
Vow of Justice by Lynette Eason
FBI Special Agent Lincoln St. John is living his own personal nightmare. When the woman he loves, Allison Radcliffe, is killed, he devotes his life to tracking down the killers and making them pay for their crimes. He expected it to be a challenge. What he never expected was to find Allison very much alive shortly after her “murder.” As his anger and hurt mix with relief, Linc isn’t sure how he’s supposed to feel. One thing he does know for sure: he and Allison will have to work together to stop a killer before she dies a second time — this time for good.
Bestselling and award-winning author Lynette Eason closes out her Blue Justice series with a story that will have you tearing through the pages to get to the stunning conclusion.
The next stop on my reading road trip is Louisiana. I love to visit this state. It is a big gumbo of people seasoned with history, mystery, and romance. Louisiana is unique from the rest of the 50 states. Its local government is organized by parishes rather than counties, a throwback to when the French owned this part of the US. Louisiana’s beginnings spice up their language, culture, and cuisine. And don’t forget Mardi Gras, celebrated not just in New Orleans.
I’ve chosen a variety of books set in Louisiana. They include historicals, romances, women’s fiction, and mystery/suspense. It was hard to keep my list under control, so look for a future road trip back to the Pelican State. Enjoy the reading road trip!
Can a former privateer and a determined heiress find lost treasure in 1725? A brand new series for fans of all things related to history, romance, adventure, faith, and family trees.
Pasts Collide in New Orleans when a Treasure Goes Missing . The last time New Orleans attorney Jean-Luc Valmont saw Maribel Cordoba, a Spanish nobleman’s daughter, she was an eleven-year-old orphan perched in the riggings of his privateering vessel proving herself as the best lookout on his crew. Until the day his infamy caught up with them all and innocent lives were lost. Unsure why he survived but vowing to make something of the chance he was given, Jean-Luc has buried his past life so deep that no living person will ever find it—until a very much alive and very grown up Maribel Cordoba arrives on his doorstep and threatens all he now holds dear.
The past can’t stay buried forever Rising author Patti Lacy’s second novel exposes the life of Sally, set amid the shadows of prejudice in Louisiana. Since leaving her home in the South, Sally Stevens has held the secrets of her past at bay, smothering them in a sunny disposition and sugar-coated lies. No one, not even her husband, has heard the truth about her childhood. But when one of her students is violently raped, Sally’s memories quickly bubble to the surface unbidden, like a dead body in a bayou. As Sally’s story comes to light, the lies she’s told begin to catch up with her. And as her web of deceit unravels, she resolves to face the truth at last, whatever the consequences.
Kat Varland has had enough of chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry.
At twenty-six years old, Kat is still living in the shadows of her family in Bayou Bend, Louisiana. Still working shifts at her Aunt Maggie’s bakery. Still wondering what to do with her passion for baking and her business degree. And still single.But when Lucas Brannen, Kat’s best friend, signs her up for a reality TV bake-off on Cupcake Combat, everything Kat ever wanted is suddenly dangled in front of her: creative license as a baker, recognition as a visionary . . . and a job at a famous bakery in New York.
As the competition heats up, Lucas realizes he might have made a huge mistake. As much as he wants the best for Kat, the only thing he wants for himself — her — is suddenly in danger of slipping away.
The bright lights of reality cooking wars and the chance at a successful career dazzle Kat’s senses and Lucas is faced with a difficult choice: help his friend achieve her dreams . . . or sabotage her chances to keep her in Louisiana.
Elle Butler has managed to hold on to her politically-driven husband and her secrets until the unexpected happens. When one phone call rips her world apart, Elle will have to decide if the truth is worth the consequences. Especially when it threatens to destroy the world she’s so carefully built around her life and her marriage.
A murder investigation uncovers sordid secrets and haunting mistakes
The Darkwater Inn stands tall and proud in the French Quarter, the hub of New Orleans. Bourbon Street is bustling, and General Manager Adelaide Fountaine has her hands full with a hotel at capacity. She, along with everyone else, is shocked when a body is found: a hotel guest stabbed with a kitchen knife.
Detective Beau Savoie, Adelaide’s childhood friend, is on the case. As Beau digs into the victim’s past, he unearths a shocking connection between Adelaide and the murdered guest. Beau is hurt that his friend—the woman he’s quietly loved for years—kept the truth from him. To make matters worse, the stress of the investigation has sent Adelaide right into the comforting arms of her coworker Dimitri. But Beau can’t press Adelaide too hard . . . he’s keeping secrets of his own.
Can Adelaide and Beau afford to hide from the truth with a killer on the loose?
Whispers of The Bayou by Mindy Starns Clark
Miranda Miller wasn’t looking for the news the day the letter came. But, trying to survive in troubled circumstances, she welcomes the chance to change her location for a period of time. The letter informs her that her grandparents’ estate is finally about to become hers. She immediately heads down to Louisiana and the old house by the bayou. There Miranda finds secrets that lead to life-changing revelations.
This suspenseful story reminiscent of old Gothic tales has a complex mystery and a vivid sense of the Deep South. It shows how God can take the darkest circumstances and use them to light a bright path leading to the future.
I am a sucker for a series! And when I get into one, I am very impatient to know what happens next. Unfortunately, most authors actually take their time in writing good books, making my waiting time especially long. 😉 Coming Soon is never soon enough. This year there are a number of next books due out, hence my Top 10 List: Anticipated Reads of 2019(the first half). It’s just a matter of a few days or weeks. I. Cannot. Wait!
Favorite color is the theme of Top 10 Tuesday this week, either in title or cover. While looking at covers, I found so many lovely gowns in a rainbow of colors that I couldn’t resist featuring them. So this post goes in a slightly different direction, but don’t you love the dresses featured on these historical romances?! Make sure you visit That Artsy Reader Girl to discover the color favorites of other bloggers.
Can a former privateer and a determined heiress find lost treasure in 1725? A brand new series for fans of all things related to history, romance, adventure, faith, and family trees.
Pasts Collide in New Orleans when a Treasure Goes Missing The last time New Orleans attorney Jean-Luc Valmont saw Maribel Cordoba, a Spanish nobleman’s daughter, she was an eleven-year-old orphan perched in the riggings of his privateering vessel proving herself as the best lookout on his crew. Until the day his infamy caught up with them all and innocent lives were lost. Unsure why he survived but vowing to make something of the chance he was given, Jean-Luc has buried his past life so deep that no living person will ever find it—until a very much alive and very grown up Maribel Cordoba arrives on his doorstep and threatens all he now holds dear.
Join the adventure as the Daughters of the Mayflower series continues with The Pirate Bride by Kathleen Y’Barbo.
RITA and Carol award nominee Kathleen Y’Barbo is the best-selling, award-winning author of more than forty novels, novellas, and young adult books. In all, more than one million copies of her books are currently in print in the US and abroad, and her books have been translated into Dutch, German, and Spanish, to name a few.
Kathleen is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Romance Writers of America. She holds a BBA from Texas A&M University’s Mays Business School and a certification in Paralegal Studies, and is a former member of the Texas Bar Association’s Paralegal Division.
A tenth-generation Texan, Kathleen Y’Barbo has four children of her own as well as seven bonus kids she gladly inherited when she married her own hero in combat boots (read about their real-life romance here!). Kathleen is proud to be a military wife, even if it did mean giving up her Texas drivers license.
To connect with her through social media, check out the links on her website at www.kathleenybarbo.com.
My Impressions:
Join the adventure on the high seas in the latest book in The Daughters of The Mayflower series, The Pirate Bride. Set on the sparkling blue waters of the Caribbean Sea, the quiet beaches of a remote island, and the busy streets of New Orleans, this novel hits all the right buttons for fans of historical romance — an endearing heroine, a truly heroic (and hunky) hero, and fascinating history of privateers of the early 1700s. This one gets a recommended rating from me.
Maribel Cordoba is just 12 years old when she loses her family and is swept up into intrigue and adventure on a pirate ship. At least she believes the young captain of the Ghost Ship is a pirate. He asserts he is doing the King’s business with Letters of Marque signed by the French government. But whether privateer or pirate, Captain Beaumont is a protector of the vulnerable and determines to take care of the adventure-seeking Maribel. However, a bounty on his head puts all in his care in peril.
I liked a lot of things about The Pirate Bride. Its main character, Maribel, is an engaging (and exasperating) young girl, and only a bit less exasperating as a young woman. She steals the heart of the crew in her brief time on the ship, and steals the heart of the captain years later. Of course the dashing ship’s captain is also a favorite, but the supporting characters add a wonderful dimension as well. The story is lightly told, yet filled with action, intrigue, and danger. Twists and turns and surprises abound. The historical setting is interesting — I loved the details the author includes to give the novel an authentic feel. Faith in God, with an emphasis on prayer, is naturally woven throughout the book.
As I was reading The Pirate Bride, I thought what a wonderful beach read for fans of historical romance! A quick and fun book, you’ll enjoy this one next to the pool or on a blanket on the beach.
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Can a former privateer and a determined heiress find lost treasure in 1725?
A brand new series for fans of all things related to history, romance, adventure, faith, and family trees.
RITA and Carol award nominee Kathleen Y’Barbo is the best-selling, award-winning author of more than forty novels, novellas, and young adult books. In all, more than one million copies of her books are currently in print in the US and abroad, and her books have been translated into Dutch, German, and Spanish, to name a few.
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