Sunday Words of Encouragement March 10, 2013

Our pastor continued the theme of "change" this morning. He shared several scriptures that point out that, in a world that seems always to be changing, God does not change His love for us. He has a plan and appointed times for each one of us.
Isaiah 55:8-9
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts."

We tend to try to design our own lives and make our own plans. We are not always patient to wait for God to make His plans clear for us. That is often when we make a mess in our lives as Abraham and Sarah did when they allowed Abraham to get a son, Ishmael, through the handmaiden when that was not the son of God's promise, Issac. The strife of those brothers continues to this day.

We need to train ourselves to wait on God's time and His program. The plans of man will often seem good but they go astray. But we can always trust God's plan. As we wait we should be cheerful rather than frowning and grumbling as the Israelites tended to do even as God was leading them from slavery to the Promised Land.

God has a season for all things and 

He will make it right and beautiful In His Time.

A Verse for Today:
2 Peter 3: 8-9 (NIV)
8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

Thank you Lord for a plan that is richer than I can even imagine. And thank you, I trust you, for making all things beautiful in YOUR time.

Winner of X Marks the Scot

 Congratulations 

to the Winner of

Giveaway Ended March 8, 2013

ARC Giveaway: X Marks the Scot. 

WANDA

Wanda Please fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me at mesreads AT gmail.com to confirm the win and I will mail the book.  Please reply within 72 hours!
Thank you to all who entered these giveaways.

Sharing Beyond Books #90 Comment Giveaway March 9, 2013

Hello, Welcome to SBB.
I hope everyone is good this week. Time for daylight savings here tonight so I have to be careful not to stay up too late as we lose and hour. :-)
Thank you to all who shared last week.

Ther most popular cakes are chocolate, chocolate and chocolate! Then ice cream cake, cheesecake and Angel food. A few have unusual tastes like Tres Lech for Bookhishqueen, white cake for LindaK and red velvet for Dione.  And Happy Birthday to miki whose BD must be coming up. :-)

Everyone agreed that we have books languishing except for Sarah who just finished hers! About a half dozen might do a challenge but a couple wouldn't be ready for April. I may do one that spreads over two months. Or maybe one in April and another in June. I'll take a week or so think about it.

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The Winner from SBB #89 comments is: #10 LindaK, who can make a book choice from the ARC/Review titles, Christmas titles or Love titles - all linked near the end of the post. Please let me know your choice by completing the WINNER FORM.

WEEK #90 Questions

Q1. Nrlymrtl asks: If you could design your personal library, with endless resources, what would be the 3 most important things about it??

A:  I suppose smoky rooms might not be good for a library but I do love our warm fireplace in our den which has multiple bookshelves. I have put the books on the shelves at the end farthest from the fire.  I would want a really comfy chair and good light. And then I would add a good computer system for researching. Hmmm - I guess that is four things. :-)

I don't think this one has a fireplace but I love the use of space!

Image found at Home Library Design.

Q2. My non-bookish Question this week: What is your favorite bird??

A: If I had to pick one favorite I guess it would be the hummingbirds. I love to watch them zip to the feeder and chase each other away. Sometimes they stop a few feet away and stare at us. They are sooo cute. My second choice would be the cardinals. We have a family that has a nest and we have three or four young cardinals playing in the back yard trees when they are big enough. I love the sound of their sweet whistle in the morning. 

This is one of the little hummers at our house! 
I hope to get better pictures this year.

Thanks to those who are sending in Questions. DON'T BE SHY! Surely everyone has a Q or two you'd like to ask. Input suggestions in this Suggested Question Form. At the end of each month I draw from the suggestions I used during the month and that person will get a book choice or GC. I thank everyone for submitting questions. Thanks for sending in questions! We can always use fresh questions.

Your turn to share:

1. Nrlymrtl asks: If you could design your personal library, with endless resources, what would be the 3 most important things about it??

2. My non-bookish Question this week: What is your favorite bird??

SBB Comment Winners can choose a selection from the new Valentine and "Love" books  or the new Christmas Giveaway Books. Also I have added the Updated ARC/Review List now.
 
SBB Rules:
a) Must be a follower.
b) Share a comment on any (or all) of the two/three questions above.
Open internationally and an international winner may get a smaller book or a $5.00 GC if I decide the mailing is too much.

I will pick a Comment winner from all comments made by Friday, March 15, 2013 at 10 PM central.

Book Review and ARC Giveaway: Lady Eve's Indiscretion by Grace Burrowes

This is a delightful romance, filled with horse knowledge as a bonus!
Lady Eve's Indiscretion
by Grace Burrowes

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca (February 5, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402263805
• ISBN-13: 978-1402263804

Genre: Historical Romance
My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0

Book Description
Release date: February 5, 2013
"Burrowes delivers red-hot chemistry with a masterful mix of playfulness and sensuality."—Publishers Weekly Starred Review
Lady Eve's Got The Perfect Plan
Pretty, petite Evie Windham has been more indiscreet than her parents, the Duke and Duchess of Moreland, suspect. Fearing that a wedding night would reveal her past, she's running out of excuses to dodge adoring swains. Lucas Denning, the newly titled Marquis of Deene, has reason of his own for avoiding marriage. So Evie and Deene strike a deal, each agreeing to be the other's decoy. At this rate, matrimony could be avoided indefinitely...until the two are caught in a steamy kiss that no one was supposed to see.

Review:
Lady Eve loved horses and the stable as a young girl. She soaked up knowledge about horses and developed a touch for them. Her family recognized her special gift with the horses but they realize that a scoundrel stablehand was romancing her. The demeaning experience at age sixteen left her feeling ruined. To make matters worse she suffered a terrible tumble from her horse as she escaped the rogue. The doctors said she wouldn’t walk again but Eve proved them wrong. However, she hasn’t touched a horse since and she is determined that she can never marry because of the secret she has never revealed.

Eve’s parents have set their sights to find good mates for Eve and her younger sister. Eve has always had attentive suitors but has managed to dodge them. Now she may have to select an appropriate, suitable, but disinterested mate.

Lucas, the new Marquis of Deene, is the last of his line except for an older cousin who has served as the family steward for years. Neither of them is particularly interested in siring heirs but the duty must be done. Lucas is resigned to marrying but his real interest is on thwarting his low brow, Irish brother-in-law, Dolan, and getting custody of his niece. Lucas believes that his sister was forced into an unwanted marriage and that Dolan is responsible for her death.

Lucas has always been friends with Eve’s brothers and is inclined to keep an eye out for her welfare. He steps in to deflect a few arduous suitors and offers a deal to Eve. He’ll help her find an appropriate mate and she can fill him in on the suitability of the marriageable ladies. They begin to spend time together, both trying to forget, but actually wondering, about the delicious kiss they once shared under the mistletoe.

Surprisingly Lucas abruptly gets Evie to take the reins of his curricle. Then he lures her to his stable to meet his prize stallion. Eve helps to deliver a foal and Lucas’ admiration for the petite, strong woman grows. Eve initially refuses Lucas’ kind proposal of marriage.  She wants a ‘white’ marriage with no intimacy and he needs an heir.

An unexpected visit catches them in a compromising situation and forces marriage on them. Once they are together Eve’s feelings begin to grow but she fears that Lucas will reject her if he discovers her secrets. Meanwhile Lucas is keeping secrets of his own and the discovery will cause trouble for their budding marriage.

I enjoyed the reluctant romance of these two characters. It is hard to fully appreciate Eve’s trauma but it makes sense from her societal view. Lucas is an absolute gem in his handling of Eve. Their biggest obstacle is failing to be truthful as they enter into the marriage. There is a bit of intrigue and wonderful horse racing to flush out the plot. I loved the wealth of horse knowledge shared through the story. Ms. Burrowes’ writing is as lively, warm and delightful as always. If you love horses and are a fan of historical romance I encourage you to read this story and more in the series.

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Lucas is thrilled with Eve’s success:

When she was ebullient, when she was in roaring good spirits with her recent accomplishment, kissing her was... beyond description. Her confidence pulled him in; her joy pulled him under. Page 186.

Eve knows there is trouble in not trusting:

She fell silent. The word trust was too explosive, a Congreve rocket of issues lay therein, and not all on Deene’s side of the marriage.  Page 353.

I received this book from Sourcebooks for an honest review.

ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY FOR ARC COPY.

ENTRY FORM HERE

For 3 Extra Bonus entries Visit the author's website and tell me something you find of interest.

* This contest is open US and Canada Only.
* This contest will close 10 PM (Central) on March 22, 2013.
The winner will be randomly selected from all entries.
WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED on March 23, 2013.
Winners are asked to respond by email or the linked winners form within 72 hours of the announcement.

Saturday Snapshot (March 9, 2013) A Few Hawaii Bathers

Here are some more pictures during our December visit with our son and daughter-in-law in Hawaii.

I loved the many birds on their back porch and the birds loved the sprinklers!
These were shot through the glass and screen doors so they are not quite as clear as I would like.
Every time I tried to get closer they would fly away of course.

A black cardinal surprised me our first morning.

This fellow has a pretty red chest and face.

Here the birds begin to gather in the shower.

Isn't this guy handsome?

On this evening I caught a whole group of sprinkler bathers!

This yellow-eyed guy looks like he is eying me!

Humph! He turned tail and stalked away. :-)

Thanks again to all the nice people who have commented on my Saturday pictures. I am so sorry I have only been able to return the visits at the end of the week. :-(

To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post in the Mister Linky hosted by Alyce of At Home With Books. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don’t post random photos that you find online.