Books are food for my soul! Pull up a beach chair and stick your toes in the sand as the Jersey surf rolls in and out, now open your book and let your imagination take you away.

Saturday, May 11, 2013

Postcards From Misty Harbor Inn Series: Seaside Harmony (Book 1) / Sunflower Summer (Book 2) by Evangeline Kelley (Book Review / Contest Giveaway)

In association with Litfuse Publicity, Jersey Girl Book Reviews is pleased to host the virtual book tour event for the Postcards From Misty Harbor Inn Series by author Evangeline Kelley!








Postcards From Misty Harbor Inn Series


The Postcards From Misty Harbor Inn series (Guideposts Books) introduces readers to Caroline, Gracie and Sam as they gather for a vacation where they spent the summers as children, and follows their adventures as they fulfill their mother’s dream of opening a bed and breakfast. As the sisters heal from their mother’s passing, they bond in ways they never imagined and discover evidence of God’s hand in the unlikeliest of circumstances. 

A team of four authors come together under the pen name of Evangeline Kelley to bring the unique personalities of each sister to vivid life and welcome audiences to the charming and historic island of Nantucket, complete with cobblestone streets, quaint shops, ferries, sandy beaches and salty air. 


BUY THE SERIES: Postcards From Misty Harbor Inn
Book 1: Seaside Harmony
Book 2: Sunflower Summer
Book 3: Whispers On The Dock - publication date: August 1, 2013



Book Review


Seaside Harmony by Evangeline Kelley
Book 1: Postcards From Misty Harbor Inn Series
Publisher: Guidepost Books
Publication Date: April 1, 2013
Format: Paperback - 333 pages / Kindle - 1344 KB / Nook - 2 MB
ISBN: 0824932463
ASIN: B00BQ0L35O
Genre: Christian Fiction / Women's Fiction


BUY THE BOOK: Seaside Harmony


Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author / publisher in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Litfuse Publicity.


Book Description:

Three sisters, a charming inn, hints of mystery and romance, and a gorgeous seaside setting. Summer reading at its finest!

When Caroline Marris joins her sisters, Gracie Gold and Sam Carter for a Nantucket Island getaway, she has no idea how it will change her life. The sisters stumble upon Misty Harbor Inn, the place their late mother loved so much, and Caroline talks her sisters into buying the beautiful but dilapidated inn. But can free-spirited Caroline stay focused enough to make opening the inn a reality? Hand-drawn old postcards draw the sisters into the mystery of Hannah Montague, the young widow of the original owner. Can the sisters uncover the fate of this woman who disappeared in 1880? As Caroline and her sisters work together to make their mom’s dream a reality, they bond in ways they never expected.


My Book Review:

Seaside Harmony is the delightful tale of three middle aged sisters: Caroline Marris, Gracie Gold and Sam Carter, who reunite in Nantucket after their mother's funeral to revisit fond childhood memories of summers spent on the island. While on the island, they are dismayed to find that their mother's favorite place, the Misty Harbor Inn is now a rundown ramshackle that is on the market for sale. It had once been their mother's dream to own the historic inn, so Caroline talks her sisters into buying and restoring the inn back to its former glory and covert it into a B&B. As the three sisters work together to restore the inn, they reestablish their sisterly bond and close relationship after having drifted apart when they became adults, and along the way they stumble upon a mystery involving postcards from 1880 and the disappearance of Hannah Montague, the young widow of the inn's original owner.

Seaside Harmony is the first book in the Postcards From Misty Harbor Inn series. The story is written in the third person narrative by a team of four authors who weave a wonderful tale that transports the reader to the idyllic island setting of Nantucket and follows Caroline, Gracie and Sam as they reminisce about their childhood memories, work through family issues, reestablish their relationship with each other, and discover a mystery surrounding the inn from 1880. You can't help but become captivated by the sisters' adventures as they work together to make their mother's dream a reality, while also becoming amateur sleuths when they investigate the mystery surrounding the 1880 disappearance of Hannah Montague.

I really enjoyed the storyline's intertwining theme of restoration: from the three sisters learning to reestablish their family bond and relationships, to making their mother's dream a reality in restoring the inn, this is a heartwarming story that readers can relate to. An added bonus of including an intriguing mystery and a touch of romance keeps the reader engaged and wanting to continue to follow Caroline, Gracie and Sam's adventures in the remaining books in the series.

Seaside Harmony is a delightful start to a new series that will captivate the reader's imagination and leave them looking forward to another enchanting visit to Misty Harbor Inn.


RATING: 4 STARS ****




Book Review



Sunflower Summer by Evangeline Kelley
Book 2: Postcards From Misty Harbor Inn Series
Publisher: Guidepost Books
Publication Date: April 1, 2013
Format: Paperback - 269 pages / Kindle - 1084 KB / Nook - 2 MB
ISBN: 0824932471
ASIN: B00BQ0L38Q
Genre: Christian Fiction / Women's Fiction


BUY THE BOOK: Sunflower Summer


Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author / publisher in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Litfuse Publicity.


Book Description:

Misty Harbor Inn officially opens, and Gracie Gold, the middle Marris sister, wrestles with an overwhelming decision. As the sisters learn the day-to-day workings of running an inn, Gracie counsels its first guests, newlyweds whose honeymoon seems to be ending before it begins. Meanwhile, Sam’s discovery of a clue in a secret room sheds unflattering light on Hannah Montague, who vanished from the house more than one hundred years ago. And as Gracie and Caroline welcome guests to the inn, they are delighted to see how God uses it — and them — to deepen relationships and transform lives.


My Book Review: 

Sunflower Summer returns the reader to the idyllic island setting of Nantucket as the story continues with the evolving sisterly relationship of Caroline, Gracie and Sam, and the opening of the restored Misty Harbor Inn.

In Sunflower Summer, the second installment of the Postcards From Misty Harbor Inn series, the story continues as it picks up from the first book with the completion of the inn's restoration and the sisters' preparations for the grand opening of the Misty Harbor Inn. The story follows the sisters' trials and tribulations of running a B&B together, while each sister deals with their own personal issues, in addition to the unfolding story behind their investigation into the mystery of the 1880 disappearance of Hannah Montague.

The authors once again engages the reader to follow along as the three sisters' relationships continues to evolve and change along with the intriguing twists that unfolds from the mystery that is interwoven into the story. Sometimes it is hard for a sequel to maintain the enchantment from the first book in a series, but this is not the case in this book, as the authors seamlessly transports their readers back into the continuation of the story of these enchanting middle aged sisters set on the idyllic island of Nantucket. The reader can't help but get caught up in the lives of Caroline, Gracie and Sam as they learn to run a successful business together, while working out family issues and matters of the heart, along with the ongoing investigation into a century old mystery.

Sunflower Summer is a lighthearted and delightful easy read that leaves the reader with a cliff hanger ending as the conclusion of the mystery will be revealed in Whispers On The Dock, the third installment in the series.

I would not suggest these books as a stand alone read as the reader would miss out on the flowing storyline that evolves from this delightful series.


RATING: 4 STARS ****


About The Author


Evangeline Kelley is the pen name for the writing team of Patti BergPam Hanson, Barbara Andrews, and Camy Tang, the four authors who collaborated to create Postcards from Misty Harbor Inn. Each of them has published novels individually, but this is their first series together.

Patti Berg is a USA Today best-selling author who began penning stories while in elementary school, when she wrote the script for a puppet show she and her friends put on at a local hospital. Thirty years later, one of her dreams came true when the first of her many warm and lighthearted novels appeared in bookstores. Scared of dogs until the age of fifty, Patti now goes out of her way to pet every dog she gets close to and would happily bring home all the puppies in the pound if her less-impulsive husband would only let her. He’s had less success keeping her from saying yes when family, friends and others ask her to volunteer. Patti has been very active and held several offices with the Sacramento Valley Rose chapter of Romance Writers of America as well as Published Authors Special Interest Chapter. She is currently volunteering with the Ada County Sheriff’s Department. Patti lives in southwestern Idaho with her husband and a huggable Bernese mountain dog named Barkley. To learn more about Patti, go to pattiberg.com.

Pam Hanson and Barbara Andrews are a daughter-mother writing team. They have had nearly thirty books published together, including several for Guideposts in the series Tales from Grace Chapel Inn. Pam’s background is in journalism, and she previously taught at the university level for fifteen years. Reading is her favorite pastime, and she enjoys being a volunteer youth leader at her church. She and her college professor husband have two sons. Pam writes about faith and family at pamshanson.blogspot.com. Previous to their partnership, Barbara had twenty-one novels published under her own name. She began her career by writing Sunday school stories and contributing to antiques publications. Currently, she writes a column and articles about collectible postcards. Barbara is the mother of four and the grandmother of eight. She makes her home with Pam and her family in Nebraska.

Camy Tang grew up in Hawaii and now lives in San Jose, California, with her engineer husband and rambunctious dog, Snickers. She graduated from Stanford University and worked as a biologist researcher for nine years, but now she writes fulltime. Camy is a staff worker for her church youth group and leads one of the worship teams for Sunday service. On her blog, she ponders knitting, spinning wool, dogs, running, the never-ending diet and other frivolous things. She loves hearing from readers and encourages them to write her. Keep up with Camy at camytang.com.


Evangeline Kelley - AUTHOR PAGE: LITFUSE PUBLICITY
GOODREADS
GUIDEPOST BOOKS - PUBLISHER WEBSITE
FACEBOOK - GUIDEPOST BOOKS (PUBLISHER)
TWITTER - GUIDEPOST BOOKS (PUBLISHER)



Virtual Book Tour Contest Giveaway

Win A Nook HD


Postcards from Misty Harbor Inn Nook HD Giveaway and Facebook Party on 5/9! Guideposts Books is celebrating the release of their new Postcards from Misty Harbor Inn series with a fun giveaway and a Facebook party on May 9th.

Misty-Harbor-Series-300

One fortunate winner will receive:
  • A Nook HD
  • Seaside Harmony and Sunflower Summer by Evangeline Kelley
Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on May 8th. Winner will be announced at the Postcards from Misty Harbor Inn Author Chat Facebook Party on 5/9. Connect with Patti Berg, Pam Andrews, Barbara Hanson, and Camy Tang (who collaborated together under the pen name, Evangeline Kelley) for an evening of book chat, trivia, and fun! There will also be great giveaways (gift certificates, books, and more) as well as a sneak peek at the next book in the series!

So grab your copies of Seaside Harmony and Sunflower Summer and join readers just like you on the evening of May 9th for a chance to connect with the authors and make some new friends. (If you haven't read the books - don't let that stop you from coming!)

Don't miss the fun. RSVP today and tell your friends about the giveaway via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on May 9th!




No comments:

Post a Comment