Northargyle Abbie by Janelle Leonard Review

 

I greatly enjoyed Northargyle Abbie, the first book in the Royally Austen series and debut novel by Janelle Leonard. I wasn't quite sure what to expect, as I have never read Northanger Abbey, or any Austen book. But I loved the idea of a romance that somehow was going to include royalty. 

I loved that there was a mystery, yet not one that included suspense and murder. Don't get me wrong, if you follow what I read and review, you know I enjoy suspense and mysteries. But I love so many other genres as well. And it is rare that I find a mystery that doesn't include murder. 

Northargyle Abbie includes a mystery that revolves around a ring, a shawl, and a inheritance which includes a deed to a cottage on the other side of the world. Which leads to an adventure for Abbie as she leaves her comfort zone to discover how her grandmother, who supposedly never left the USA, suddenly had a cottage to leave her in Australia. 

There are friendships made and betrayals. We meet a couple of different men who are interested in Abigail, or is it that they are interested in her possessions and the connection to a decades old mystery? And somehow, someone is a royal or related to royalty (I mean, the series is "Royally Austen.") But, I don't want to give away details. 

I loved being inside Abbie's head, as it is written in first person. She has a habit of daydreaming and going into her headspace. And I loved reading the selections from "Abigail's Notebook of Silly Placards." 

Family and faith are very important in this story. I love reading about the relationships Abigail has with her brothers and her parents and her aunt. Abigail is a pastor's daughter and is a Christian, but there was growth in her faith and learning to trust the Lord's plan for her life. 

I can't wait to read more from this author.

I received an e-copy of this book as a member of the review team and was not required to write a favorable review. These are my own honest thoughts.

Friday Fun - April 18, 2025

Welcome to my Friday Fun post. This is where I share with three different book parties that post on Fridays: Book Beginnings on Fridays, the Friday 56, and First Line Friday.

This week I have one book to share with you.

I'm currently reading Northargyle Abbie by Janelle Leonard as a member of the review team.

        Book Beginnings on Friday     

(Please join Gilion Dumas for Book Beginnings every Friday to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name.)

and

First Line Friday

(Please join Carrie for First Line Friday.)

Here is my Book Beginnings/First Line Friday selection:

 Northargyle Abbie by Janelle Leonard:

"My life's trajectory of scraped knees, shower aversions, and sports scholarships came to a screeching halt when Grandma Brown moved in next door on my fifteenth birthday."

I had to wonder why her grandmother moving next door would change her life so much.. 

Now for:

The Friday 56 

The Friday 56 is normally hosted over at Freda's Voice. But Anne from My Head is Full of Books is taking over for a while. 

Rules:

*Grab a book, any book.
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
(If you have to improvise, that's ok.)
 *Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.
*Add your (url) post below in Linky. Add the post url, not your blog url. It's that simple.

Here is my Friday 56 selection:

Northargyle Abbie by Janelle Leonard:

 

"I lean my head back and twist the Argyle diamond ring, wondering at all these things pointing to a connection between Gran and Austrailia."

Reviews:

Last week I shared one book in my Friday Fun post. Here is the link to my review:

The Target by Cali Black 

The Target by Cali Black Review

 

The Target is another wonderful story from Cali Black. And this time it's a romantic suspense, which is my favorite genre.

The book grabbed me from the start and wouldn't let go. Lots of action and danger and suspense and intrigue and twists. And then there was the added romance between Henley and her primary bodyguard Talon Jax. 

I admit, I wasn't sure if I wanted to see them end up together for a while, but their relationship grew on me.

There was a lot going on in this book. It went from Talon and his team protecting a political person to them protecting Henley from a stalker, but then learning that there was so much more to the situation. 

A couple of warnings, as I usually read and review Christian fiction. Though the author is a Christian, this book is not considered CF, like some of her other books. I'm NOT complaining, just wanting to make sure people are aware of this. There is a bit of language that is more crass than what I'm used to reading, and though there are not any real descriptive sexual scenes, there is a bit more sensuality than what I usually read.

No, I did not have an issue with this.The book was awesome, with wonderful characters and a gripping story. Oh one other warning, it does end on a cliffhanger. So, hopefully book 2 won't take too long. lol. I'm invested and NEED to know what's going to happen

Friday Fun - April 11, 2025

Welcome to my Friday Fun post. This is where I share with three different book parties that post on Fridays: Book Beginnings on Fridays, the Friday 56, and First Line Friday.

This week I have one book to share with you.

I'm currently reading The Target by Cali Black as a member of the launch team. This book released today.

        Book Beginnings on Friday     

(Please join Gilion Dumas for Book Beginnings every Friday to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name.)

and

First Line Friday

(Please join Carrie for First Line Friday.)

Here is my Book Beginnings/First Line Friday selection:

 The Target by Cali Black:

"A drop of sweat ran down Talon Jax's forehead."

Had to wonder why he was sweating. 

Now for:

The Friday 56 

The Friday 56 is normally hosted over at Freda's Voice. But Anne from My Head is Full of Books is taking over for a while. 

Rules:

*Grab a book, any book.
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
(If you have to improvise, that's ok.)
 *Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.
*Add your (url) post below in Linky. Add the post url, not your blog url. It's that simple.

Here is my Friday 56 selection:

The Target by Cali Black:

 

"She pressed her arms even tighter to her body and looked out the window, ignoring him.

'And wait a minute. What do you mean the snail mail and the phone calls? Your file only mentioned email and drive-bys. Plus, the package. There's more?'
She twisted her lips but refused to look at him.
This was turning out to be much more complicated than he thought. Exhaustion hit him like a ton of bricks. He needed to sleep before he tried to unravel the puzzle."

Reviews:

Last week I shared two books in my Friday Fun post. Here are the links to my reviews:

Specters in the Glass House by Jaime Jo Wright

Whatever it Takes by Sarah Hanks 

It's been a while since I shared the following book on my Friday Fun. I actually finished the book last month, but just hadn't had time to finish my review. 

Heart of Courage by Penny Zeller 

Heart of Courage by Penny Zeller Review

 

Heart of Courage is another wonderful Christian historical romance by author Penny Zeller. I was drawn right into the story and fell in love with the characters. 

LilyBeth is a young widow trying to take care of her young son Otis. With her meager funds, she boards a train bound for Montana territory and a new start away from the devastating events of her past. She finds herself in Hilltop, Montana territory, determined to make a living and support her son with her dressmaking skills. She's just not exactly sure how she is going to go about reaching that goal.

She meets Barrett MacCallum when she arrives in town and ends up renting a store front from him, a place where she can open her dress shop. We also meet his "adoptive" loving grandparents Etta Mae and Vann, and Mrs. Jowett the owner of the home where she boards with hers son when she first gets to town. These characters, along with others in the town, rally around LilyBeth and show her that yes, even though she has always felt unloved, she is very much loved. 

I was very much invested in Lily Beth's story. I was in tears multiple times reading what she had dealt with in her past and the thoughts she had about herself. I loved seeing her growth in faith and in learning to trust others and let herself be loved. All was defiitely not rosy in her life even after she arrived in Hilltop. She had her share of adversity to deal with even there. 

I also love Barrett and how he gave LilyBeth a chance and had patience with her. Little Otis was such a cute little guy. And I loved the dog named Cow. 

All in all, definitely a book I recommend.

 I received an e-copy of this book as a member of the launch team and was not required to write a favorable review. These are my own honest thoughts.

Whatever it Takes by Sarah Hanks Review

 

Whatever it Takes by Sarah Hanks is the third book in her Sisters in Arms series. Each of the books in this series is a dual timeline with the historical timeline taking place during the Civil War, focusing on a woman who secretly joins the army disguised as a man. And there is something that then connects the story to the present day timeline. 

In the historical timeline of Whatever it Takes, Henrietta joins the Confederate army so she can earn money to provide necessities for her family as their mother passed away and their father is injured. She is persistant and determined to stick with it, even through the dangers that come her way, from the danger of being discovered, to the danger of being killed on the battlefield. 

The present day timeline in this book focuses on two sisters, Everly and Ivy, both of whose points-of-view we get to see. The sisters are very different from each other, but love each other very much. Emery promised their dying mother that she would watch out for and protect Ivy, so that is what she has done all these years. But now there are some devastating circumstances that are really putting their relationship to the test., as well as their marital relationships.

I fell in love with the characters in this book and was invested in their stories. I love the way the author wove the past with the present. All of the main characters were dealing with such difficult circumstances. It was a very moving story, so many emotions. And it is a story where faith played an important part. 

I loved that we were reunited with a character from book one, A Battle Worth Fighting. It has been a while since I'd read it, and I completely forgot that Henrietta appears in book one. So, now I really need to reread the entire series. 

I didn't use to be a fan of dual-timeline stories, but this author is one that has made me fall in love with them. 

I received an e-copy of this book as a member of the launch team and was not required to write a favorable review. These are my own honest thoughts. 

Friday Fun - April 4, 2025

Welcome to my Friday Fun post. This is where I share with three different book parties that post on Fridays: Book Beginnings on Fridays, the Friday 56, and First Line Friday.

This week I have two books to share with you.

I read Specters in ther Glass House by Jaime Jo Wright for one of my March reading challenges.

I'm currently reading Whatever it Takes by Sarah Hanks as a member of the launch team. The book releases next week on April 9th.

        Book Beginnings on Friday     

(Please join Gilion Dumas for Book Beginnings every Friday to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name.)

and

First Line Friday

(Please join Carrie for First Line Friday.)

Here are my Book Beginnings/First Line Friday selections:

 Specters in the Glass House by Jaime Jo Wright:

"Death had always been fashionable."

I was quite intrigued and wanted to know where the author was going with that sentence.

Whatever it Takes by Sarah Hanks:

"'Smile, Everly, it's not a funeral." Ivy's cheery tone masks the lapse of judgment in choosing her words."

I wondered why the mention of a funeral was relevant.

Now for:

The Friday 56 

The Friday 56 is normally hosted over at Freda's Voice. But Anne from My Head is Full of Books is taking over for a while. 

Rules:

*Grab a book, any book.
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
(If you have to improvise, that's ok.)
 *Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.
*Add your (url) post below in Linky. Add the post url, not your blog url. It's that simple.

Here are my Friday 56 selections:

Specters in the Glass House by Jaime Jo Wright:

 

"Too much had changed already. The Arnold name was tarnished in Milwaukee. A brewery gone under because of Prohibition, and now a man was hanged in what remained of the estate?"

Whatever it Takes by Sarah Hanks:

"Muted background noises of phone calls and beeping monitors pepper the room. A few seats from me, an elderly man with an oxygen tank, the only other person in the area stares blankly ahead. Awkward silence swirls around us. I should say something, but what? I hardly know my btother-in-law."

Reviews:

Last week I shared two books in my Friday Fun post. I ended up having to set both of those books aside, but I hope to be able to share the links to my reviews next week.

Two weeks ago I shared two books in my Friday Fun post. I previoiusly shared the link to the one, here is the link to the other:

These Long Shadows by Jennifer Mistmorgan