Blog Tour: A Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman

From Julie Lessman’s first book (A Passion Most Pure), I’ve really enjoyed her novels! Plus, she’s a great person. So, it’s my pleasure to review her latest release: A Hope Undaunted. Read on to learn more about her contest and other great ways to connect with Julie.

First, here’s the summary of A Hope Undaunted:

The 1920s are drawing to a close, and feisty Katie O'Connor is the epitome of the new woman--smart and sassy with goals for her future that include the perfect husband and a challenging career in law. Her boyfriend Jake fits all of her criteria for a husband--good-looking, well-connected, wealthy, and head-over-heels in love with her. But when she is forced to spend the summer of 1929 with Luke McGee, the bane of her childhood existence, Katie comes face to face with a choice. Will she follow her well-laid plans to marry Jake? Or will she fall for the man she swore to despise forever? A Hope Undaunted is the engrossing first book in the WINDS OF CHANGE series from popular author Julie Lessman. Readers will thrill at the highly charged romance in this passionate story.

And now, my review:

This book picks up where the Daughters of Boston Series left off, following the happenings of Katie, the O’Connor’s youngest daughter. But one of the best parts of Julie’s books is her inclusion of her cast of characters from her earlier books. She layers in relationships, including romance, sisters, parents, even following the storyline of Katie’s siblings’ continuing lives. This is fun. I’d recommend reading her earlier books to get the most out of this aspect.

One of the elements I liked, too, was that her characters (as heroic as they can sometimes be) were “real,” flawed, imperfect, but in complex ways. She weaves their motivations and stories together in an expert way, which is very satisfying for the reader.

Her spiritual elements of trusting God and waiting on Him were well written in the context of the hero and heroine’s relationship. Which brings me to the romance. Julie is an adept romance writer. I liked her ability to show the budding relationship of the hero and heroine, as well as convincingly present the marital relationships between her other “cast members.” She understands hearts and motivations. Readers pick up one of her hefty tomes *grin* and know they’re in good hands. (Julie once told me she cannot write a short book.) Lovers of historical romance will devour this next offering of Julie’s.

I have a secret hope, speaking of undaunted hope. I wish for Julie’s next book to center on Sean and Emma. Shhh . . . let’s wait and see how that turns out. *smile*

Give yourself some time to read this one (it’s 505 pages!). Sit back with some tea and relax. You’re in for a great read.

Highly recommended.

~~~~~~

And now, here's the promised contest info:

Visit the Roaring 20’s with Julie Lessman in the Technology and Romance KINDLE Giveaway! Julie’s latest series has just ‘shimmied’ it’s way onto the scene with book 1 in The Winds of Change series, A Hope Undaunted! The fun begins September 20th! A Hope Undaunted

Find out more about the book, Julie here.

Enter The Technology and Romance KINDLE Giveaway!

One Grand Prize winner will receive a KINDLE preloaded with Julie Lessman's latest title. The Prize Pack (valued at over $150.00) includes:

* A brand new KINDLE, with Wi-Fi

* A Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman

To enter, simply click on the icons below to fill out the entry form and be sure to tell your friends about the contest. Oh, and enter soon! Winner will be announced on October 7th.

Not only is Julie hosting the fabulous KINDLE giveaway, but also a FACEBOOK PARTY and a BOOK BOMB!!!

Are you ready for PRIZES GALORE??? Then come to the Facebook Party!

How does a gift certificate and a signed book given away EVERY 10 minutes during an hour-long Facebook party sound? (Yeah, we think it sounds pretty great too!) On October 7th at 5pm PST (6:00 MST, 7:00 CST, & 8:00 EST) Julie is inviting you to attend the A Hope Undaunted Facebook Party! She'll announce the winner of the KINDLE and in addition to the prizes every 10 minutes, she'll also be giving away great prize baskets filled with even more Romance and Technology (Netflix, Starbucks, Amazon.com, Champagne body Lotion, Pearls, & more!)!

BUT WAIT … there’s more (and no, this is not an infomercial … it’s WAY better!). If you participate in the Book Bomb on October 7th you’ll be entered to win a $50 gift certificate to Amazon.com. All you need to do to participate is buy a copy of A Hope Undaunted on October 7th and send your receipt (just transaction number from store, store name & date) to amy@litfusegroup.com! Each book purchased equals one entry, buy 10 books get 10 entries!

All this fun begins with Revell’s blog tour SEPTEMBER 19-25, when 122 blogger/reviewers will post reviews about A Hope Undaunted, followed by the Book Bomb and Facebook Party!

So mark your calendars with these important dates:

September 19-25: A Hope Undaunted will be making an appearance on blogs across the country (and beyond!) in Revell's blog tour!

September 20th: The Technology and Romance KINDLE Giveaway launches (contest runs 9/20 - 10/6)

October 7th: Book Bomb Day (where everyone is encouraged to buy the book online at the same time!) and Facebook Party - meet and chat with Julie, win some great prizes & find out who won the KINDLE!

“Available September 2010 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.”

Conference!

Gail Sattler, Dawn Kinzer, myself and Evelyn Ray
(from ACFW conference, last year)

Hey everyone,

Conference was fantastic!! Denver is beautiful, what we saw of it, which wasn't much since we spent days inside the beautiful hotel. :-) The wonderful writers who attended filled the place with love and kindness. God's presence poured out in so many directions as we fellowshiped, took classes together and worshiped as one.

Donald Maass presented a workshop at the beginning of conference. His class was very helpful to both myself and the many writers I talked with about it afterwards. Eye-opening. I came home inspired to work on the nuggets his workshop brought to the surface.

Katie Ganshert attended and it was fun to see her since she's been on Seriously Write, the blog I cohost with Dawn Kinzer. I knew I should know her face! So, when I caught a glimpse of her name badge it hit--she's the one visiting SW on Mondays. Fun!

Got to hug Julie Lessman, Janice Thompson, Rachel Hauck, Susan May Warren, Denise Hunter, Gail Sattler (who travels with us), Betsy St. Amant with her hubby Brandon, and so many others. Rachel Hauck won the Book of the Year for "Sweet Caroline." Julie Lessman won in the debut category for "A Passion Most Pure." Sharon Hinck won for both "The Restorer's Journey" and "Stepping into Sunlight"! All of these authors have visited Net's Book Notes and are friends, so it was such a joy for them to win! What a pleasure to connect with writers I haven't seen in a year and to make new friends, as well. Rene Gutteridge taught on screenwriting and graciously signed my copy of her new book "Never the Bride." Sandie Bricker's beautiful smiling face blessed me often as I kept running into her. She visted a while ago for her book "Love Finds You in Snowball, Arkansas" her very successful romantic comedy--the book which launched the Summerside LFY line. She's also guested at Seriously Write.

It occurred to me this year again that I go to these writers' conferences as a writer, sure, but so much of my enjoyment is as a fan, as well! I run around the booksigning taking pics and asking for signatures. I shoot pics of the bookstore tables, heavily laden with delicious Christian fiction.

When I get a chance I'll post a few pictures. (The pic above is from last year's conference banquet, hope you don't mind. :-)

My To Be Read (TBR) pile doubled, so check back to see reviews of more great Christian fiction coming soon.

Check out the ACFW Conference blog for photos and news! New ACFW member Ted Dekker dropped by to greet fellow members. There's a great picture of him with our AWESOME prez Cynthia Ruchti and marketing specialist Jim Rubart.

Happy reading!!

Welcome!

Hi readers and welcome to my new book review site! This weekend, while at a writer's retreat, it hit me---I need to have a place solely for book reviews since I'm doing so many of them now.

My previous site (Net's Notes) will continue to have past posts for all the books that have come before. Click over there and search the archives for reviews on these and more books:

"A Passion Most Pure" by Julie Lessman
"Taming Rafe" and "Finding Stefanie" by Susan May Warren
"A Constant Heart" by Siri Mitchell
"Searching for Spice" and "Out of Her Hands" by Megan DiMaria
"Sky Blue" by Travis Thrasher

But starting now, you'll find my latest reviews here. I may also talk about publishing and my life as a writer here, too, because this site is all about promoting Christian fiction.

I'm going to keep Net's Notes going with devotionals and life-related stuff. So, there's something for everybody.

Thanks for reading!