Book Tour and Giveaway: Jane Avril: The Muse of the Moulin Rouge by M L Malcolm

 

Book Details:

​Book Title: Jane Avril: The Muse of the Moulin Rouge by M. L. Malcolm

Category:  Adult Fiction (18 +),  337 pages

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher:  A Good Read Publishing

Release date:  February 2026

Content Rating: PG +M: Some non-explicit discussions of sex; one subtle yet explicit sex scene and a brief discussion of suicide

Book Description:

Born the bastard daughter of an aristocrat, Jane Avril became the most famous dancer at the most famous dance hall in the world during the "Gay 90's" in Paris: the Moulin Rouge. Beautiful, intelligent, and fiercely independent, she earned a place among the most famous artists, writers, and entertainers of her day, including Henri Toulouse Lautrec, who immortalized her in his paintings and posters. Immerse yourself in the turbulent and fascinating life of a Belle Epoque legend as she struggles out of poverty into the limelight, learning how to live and love as Queen of La Danse.

Buy the Book:

Amazon  

Add to goodreads

Meet the Author:

M.L. Malcolm loves readers! She has visited with over a hundred book clubs all over the country, and is happy to use Zoom or whatever technology is available to connect when a personal visit isn't possible. She's also a history geek, so she loves reading and writing historical fiction.

She began her professional career as an attorney in Atlanta, Georgia. After practicing law for three years, M.L. determined that "she and the law were not meant for each other," and is now a self-described "recovering attorney." 

As part of her recovery strategy, M.L. yielded to her entrepreneurial inclinations and took over a struggling travel agency. She ran the business successfully for several years before selling it to a larger company, then retired from the labor force to spend more time with her children and pursue her life-long ambition to become a writer. She has also amassed an impressive hat collection (and yes, she does wear them). 

M.L. has won several awards, including recognition in the prestigious Lorian Hemingway International Short Story Competition, and a silver medal from ForeWord magazine for Best Historical Fiction Book of the Year. "Heart of Lies" was chosen by the American Booksellers Association as an "Indie Pick" and a "Recommended Book Club Read" selection, and M.L. was selected by Target Stores as an "Author to Watch". She has also worked as a free-lance journalist for newspapers and magazines in Washington, DC and Los Angeles.

She and her family currently live in Washington, DC. M.L. is her nickname. Her full name is Mary Lee Malcolm

connect with the author:  goodreads

Enter the Giveaway:

https://gleam.io/mJu0F/jane-avril-the-muse-of-the-moulin-rouge-by-m-l-malcolm

My Review:

Jane Avril: The Muse of the Moulin Rouge is the first book I have had the pleasure in reading from new to me author, M L Malcolm. After reading this one, it definitely will not be my last. I thought it was a fun and entertaining adventure to hop on. I enjoyed going back in time to Paris, France. The first time I had ever heard of Jane Avril and it was fascinating to find out that she was real person in history. The author's details made me feel as though I was right there and seeing Jane Avril for myself. She was a captivating character that continued to find the strength and courage to survive. I admired her bravery. As someone that has an art degree, I loved meeting some known artists along the way. An overall great story. 

I am going to give Jane Avril: The Muse of the Moulin Rouge a very well deserved five plus stars. I highly recommend it for readers who love to read historical fiction, particularly involving true events and historical figures. I am looking forward to reading more books from the talented M L Malcolm in the near future. I am curious to see where else their imagination takes their characters and fans to. 

I received a paperback copy of M L Malcolm's Jane Avril: The Muse of the Moulin Rouge from the publisher, but was not required to write a positive review. This review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion. 

Spotlight and Giveaway: A Wealth Beyond Riches by Vickie McDonough

 

About the Book

Book: A Wealth Beyond Riches

Author: Vickie McDonough

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: May 12, 2026

She’s searching for a place to belong. He’s haunted by the horrors of war. When danger threatens everything they hold dear, they must trust in God’s plan to find their way home.

Sasha Di Carlo has spent her life in her famous actress mother’s shadow, longing for family and roots. When she learns she has an uncle in Indian Territory, she seizes the chance for a new beginning. Upon arriving at her uncle’s ranch, she finds herself drawn to his quiet carpenter, Jim Conners, even as she struggles to embrace her Creek heritage.

Jim Conners came to Indian Territory hoping to escape the nightmares of his time in the Spanish-American War. Working for kind-hearted Dewey Hummingbird has helped heal his spirit, but Dewey’s beautiful niece stirs long-buried feelings. Just as his discovery of his own Native American ancestry offers the opportunity to build a bridge between them, corrupt oil companies target Dewey’s land. As Sasha and Jim work to protect their loved ones and help struggling oil field widows, they discover that true wealth lies not in riches, but in faith, family, and the courage to love.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Vickie McDonough is the CBA, EPCA and Amazon best-selling author of 54 books and novellas. Vickie grew up wanting to marry a rancher, but instead, she married a computer geek who is scared of horses. She now lives out her dreams penning romance stories about ranchers, cowboys, lawmen, and others living in the Old West. Vickie’s books have won numerous awards including the Booksellers Best, OWFI Best Fiction Novel Award, the Inspirational Readers’ Choice awards. When she’s not writing, Vickie enjoys reading, making cards, gardening, and traveling.

 

 

More from Vickie

If you read Sooner or Later, you met Jimmy when he was a young boy. He’s now grown and struggling with PTSD after fighting in the war. Oklahoma, at this time, was split in two, with the eastern section being Indian Territory and the western half, the Oklahoma Territory. Jimmy has left his family and taken a job building a house for an older Indian man. But he’s soon in for a big surprise.

Blog Stops

lakesidelivingsite, May 20

Sydney Schmied Books, May 21

Simple Harvest Reads, May 22 (Author Interview)

Holly’s Book Corner, May 23

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 23

Texas Book-aholic, May 24

Artistic Nobody, May 25 (Author Interview)

For Him and My Family, May 26

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, May 27

Paula’s Pad of Inspiration, May 28

Guild Master, May 29 (Author Interview)

Books You Can Feel Good About, May 30

Pause for Tales, May 30

Cover Lover Book Review, May 31

Connie’s History Classroom, June 1

Fiction Book Lover, June 2 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Vickie is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon Gift Card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://gleam.io/UnDWs/a-wealth-beyond-riches-celebration-tour-giveaway

 

Spotlight and Giveaway: Blaze of Honor by DM Griffin

About the Book

Book: BLAZE OF HONOR

Author: D.M. Griffin

Genre: Biblical Fiction

Release Date: May 12, 2026

A BLAZE OF HONOR WOULD EITHER CONSUME HIM OR ILLUMINATE THE PATH TO LOVE!

Joram couldn’t pinpoint the burning conviction in his heart, the reason honoring his father felt like the only path to a life that pleased God. He remembered the unheard prayers of a five-year-old whose mother betrayed the sanctity of family and knew well the bitterness in his father’s heart. Whatever the reason, Joram, a man of few words, lived an obedient life. He adopted his father’s wishes and desires as if they were born from his own heart, and with that came his father’s simmering bitterness and ingrained distrust of women.

Driven by a desire for Joram to achieve more than a shepherd’s humble existence, his father pressured him to excel academically, tirelessly seeking the approval of powerful figures. Joram’s life took a dramatic turn when he captured the attention of Parthia’s notorious bandit leaders.

Caught in a dizzying storm of politics and family vendettas, Joram reluctantly accepts a fake marriage, meant to bring a young woman to Jerusalem so she could marry another man. Knowing how his father felt about women, a view he adopted as his own, Joram wasn’t prepared for the transformation that would take place once he began playing the role of a husband for all the wrong reasons.

The treacherous journey, marked by near-death experiences, culminated with them arriving in Jerusalem amidst the vibrant Feast of Weeks. With his knowledge of God ringing hollow as a mere religious duty, Joram divorced his wife and surrendered her to another man, determined to honor his word. But when he stumbles upon the truth and feels the burning intensity of the Holy Spirit descend in a blaze of honor that illuminates far more than he could have ever imagined, Joram has to decide if he is willing to walk the path of love.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

 DM (Demi)Griffin is the author of several novels and has won multiple literary awards. Her novels in The Encounter Series won various Independent Author awards in the category of Religious Fiction.

She writes Christian Fantasy, Biblical, and Historical Fiction. She currently resides in Northern California with her husband of over thirty years. She truly believes that a book that sits on a shelf unread is like a planted seed that never blossoms. Nothing delights her more than sharing a story.

 

 

More from D.M.

My inspiration for writing Blaze of Honor came from a simple lyric in a song. “Be careful, little eyes, what you see.” I had the idea of writing the Spirit Ignited Series rattling around in my head for five years. During my regular Bible reading plan, inspiration sucked me into the scene in Acts 2 when Peter preaches to a crowd on the day of Pentecost. I found myself wondering about the people described as coming from all over the empire. I wondered what had brought them there, and what they had heard. How could I not be fascinated when the church grew exponentially that day? So, the idea for Spirit Ignited grew. I wanted to write four novels about four men who had been in the crowd that day.

As excited as I was to begin writing those stories, other books crept into the queue before I fully developed the characters for Spirit Ignited. I was excited when the first ideas came back to me after five long years of waiting for these men to speak up and inspire me. What was even more challenging was that the stories were begging to be written in first-person from a single perspective. That was a daunting task since I had only written dual-perspective stories up until that point. And, truth be told, first-person isn’t my favorite.

But I obliged and found myself completely captivated by these men. Surprisingly enough, I did not write Blaze of Honor first. Though it is the first to be released in the series, it was the third book I wrote in the Spirit Ignited series.

After hearing the song lyric, I started to wonder about how parents, most specifically troubled marriages, affected children. Joram, a shy character, finally found his voice in my head, and together, we explored a life of unintended scars and how they shape a boy as he becomes a man.

The story’s themes of redemption, forgiveness, and grace underscore the main takeaway: honoring God through loving others. I yearn for readers to grasp this central truth, to feel the depth in the main character’s plight. The narrative delves into the heart of devotion, exploring how easily the concept of honoring God can become contorted in the labyrinth of the mind. After completing the first draft, the realization that this story, with its raw vulnerability, could only be told in the intimate voice of the first person hit me.

I truly hope readers will get as much out of it as I did when I wrote it. Stories that transform as well as entertain are my favorite kind of stories.

Blog Stops

Simple Harvest Reads, May 19 (Author Interview)

Lots of Helpers, May 20

Artistic Nobody, May 21 (Author Interview)

Guild Master, May 22 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, May 23

Fiction Book Lover, May 24 (Author Interview)

The Bookish Ledger, May 25 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, May 25

Vicky Sluiter, May 26 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 27

For the Love of Literature, May 28 (Author Interview)

Leslie’s Library Escape, May 29

Tell Tale Book Reviews, May 30 (Author Interview)

Blossoms and Blessings, May 31 (Author Interview)

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, May 31

Stories By Gina, June 1 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, D.M. is giving away the grand prize of a $25 Amazon gift card and a signed copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://gleam.io/1iGOX/blaze-of-honor-celebration-tour-giveaway

  

Review: Falling Leaves: An Inspector Inoue Mystery by Lea O'Hara

Falling Leaves: An Inspector Inoue Mystery by Lea O'Harra

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Blurb: 

Falling Leaves is a murder mystery divided into two parts. The story begins in the autumn of 1983 in a small coastal town in Japan and describes the abduction of a thirteen-year-old girl on her way home from school. Mei Noguchi has been kidnapped – like many of her compatriots in the late seventies and early eighties – to teach Japanese language and customs to North Korean spies. Her parents spend decades in ignorance of the fate of their beloved daughter.

The second part of the story takes place forty years later. Mei Noguchi’s family has unsuccessfully campaigned for her release for over twenty years while, on another Japanese island, in another small town, the police are called on to investigate the death of Tomoko Gammo, a half-Japanese, half-Korean female university student at the local university found hanged in her dorm room. Interviews with Tomoko’s friends and professors reveal an atmosphere of whispered prejudice, academic pressure, and ideological conflict, with reports the student was bullied because her father was North Korean.

The local police at first suspect suicide, never dreaming that this death could possibly be connected to the fortieth anniversary of Mei Noguchi's disappearance. Chief Inspector Inoue and his trusted team of detective inspectors face their most challenging case yet in a race against time to apprehend the culprit before more lives are lost.

My Review:

I have previously read books from Lea O'Hara, however I had not yet been introduced to her Inspector Inoue Mysteries series. I was honored to have that opportunity by reading the fourth installment, Falling Leaves. Oh my, I thought this was a great ride to take for a few hours. It was like being on a roller coaster with the suspense, twists, and turns. I never knew what was going to happen from scene to scene. I loved getting to know the characters and seeing how they were able to solve the cold case.

I am going to give Falling Leaves five stars. I highly recommend it for readers who love to read crime novels, as well as, suspenseful mysteries. I would love to read the other books within the Inspector Inoue Mysteries series to see what happened prior to this one.

I received a digital copy of Lea O'Hara's Falling Leaves from the author, but was not required to write a review, nor a positive one. This review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion.

View all my reviews

Spotlight and Giveaway: Chase the Light by Suzanne Woods Fisher

 

About the Book

Book: Chase the Light (National Parks Summers Book 2. It can be read as a stand alone.)

Author: Suzanne Woods Fisher

Genre: Contemporary

Release Date: May 5, 2026

When Acadia National Park ranger Scout Johnson discovers a weathered note near a remote lighthouse, she never imagines it will expose a century-old mystery. The cryptic message points to a forgotten shipwreck, a vanished treasure, and a lighthouse keeper’s suspicious death. Seeking answers, Scout enlists Naki Dana, a thoughtful man whose Penobscot heritage provides crucial insights. As they venture deeper into Acadia’s rugged wilderness, their unlikely partnership begins stirring feelings Scout didn’t expect to find. But they aren’t the only ones searching.

Chase Fletcher, a charming local journalist, sees this treasure hunt as his last opportunity to save his failing paper–and finds himself increasingly drawn to the ranger leading the search. With pressure mounting and loyalties tested, Scout must navigate a winding path between history and justice, truth and betrayal . . . and determine who–and what–deserves her trust.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Suzanne Woods Fisher is a bestselling author, Christy finalist, Carol and Selah winner, and two-time ECPA Book of the Year finalist, with over forty books to her name. She writes contemporary, historical and Amish novels. Suzanne lives in California with her husband, where life (and friends) inspire her stories.

 

 

More from Suzanne

If a trip to Acadia National Park isn’t already on your bucket list, it should be—and when you go, don’t miss warm popovers on the lawn at the iconic Jordan Pond House.

The Unofficial-but-Close-Enough Jordan Pond Popover Recipe*

Back in 1895, Nellie and Thomas McIntire bought a Maine farmhouse overlooking the clear waters of Jordan Pond. On their wide green lawn, they served tea and towering popovers to well-to-do summer travelers. In 1928, J. D. Rockefeller purchased the land and later donated it to Acadia National Park. The lawn remains. The view remains. And the popovers? Still iconic.

While the original recipe is famously guarded, this version comes deliciously close.

Makes 6–8 large popovers.

What You’ll Need

• 4 large eggs
• 2 cups whole milk
• 2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• Pinch of baking soda
• 2 tablespoons melted butter

Let’s Make Them

1. Start with a hot oven (and a hot pan).
   Preheat your oven to 425°–450°F. Place your popover pan (or a muffin tin) in the oven while it heats.
2. Whisk the batter.
   Beat the eggs for about 2–3 minutes until slightly frothy. Slowly pour in the milk, then add the flour, salt, and baking soda. Mix just until combined. The batter should be smooth but not overworked.
3. Fill the cups.
   Carefully remove the hot pan from the oven and grease it generously with butter or spray. Pour the batter into each cup, filling them about halfway to three-quarters full.
4. Bake.
   Bake at 425°–450°F for 15 minutes. Then, without opening the oven door, reduce the temperature to 350°F and bake another 15–20 minutes. The high heat creates the lift; the lower heat helps them set inside.
5. Resist the urge to peek.
   Do not open the oven door while they bake. The steam inside is what makes them puff and keeps them tall.

Serve immediately with plenty of butter and strawberry jam.

A Few Tips for Sky-High Popovers

• Room temperature matters. Cold eggs or milk will slow the rise. Let them sit out a bit before mixing.
• Heat is your friend. A properly preheated pan jump-starts the puff.
• No peeking. Steam is everything here. Let the oven do its work.

 

*Recipe adapted from Weston Table.

Blog Stops

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, May 16

Lyssa Loves Books, May 16

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 17

Texas Book-aholic, May 18

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, May 19

The Avid Reader, May 19

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, May 20

Lakesidelivingsite, May 20

For Him and My Family, May 21

Holly’s Book Corner, May 21

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, May 22

EmpowerMoms, May 23

Pause for Tales, May 23

Blogging With Carol, May 24

Lily’s Corner, May 25

Devoted To Hope, May 25

She Lives to Read, May 26

Life on Chickadee Lane, May 27

Cover Lover Book Review, May 27

Simple Harvest Reads, May 28 (Guest Review from Donna)

Lights in a Dark World, May 28

Wishful Endings, May 29

Mary Hake, May 29

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Suzanne is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://gleam.io/f01pi/chase-the-light-celebration-tour-giveaway

 

Spotlight and Giveaway: Frogman Puck Origins: The Rising Tides by Joel Chanaca

 

About the Book

Book: Frogman Puck Origins: The Rising Tides

Author: Joel Chanaca

Genre: Christian Sci-Fi / Action & Adventure (Teen & Young Adult)

Release Date: September, 2025

Frogman Puck Origins: The Rising Tides

The Legends Awaken: A Hero’s Dream Quest

Embark on an exhilarating journey beneath the waves—where dreams awaken, faith is tested, and a new kind of hero begins to rise.

Frogman Puck Origins introduces readers to Puck, an ordinary boy with an extraordinary dream: to explore the hidden world beneath the surface. What begins as curiosity about mysterious scuba gear in a neighbor’s shed becomes a life-changing adventure—one that carries him from the dreamlike stillness of lily pad ponds into the awe-inspiring reality of deep underwater exploration.

As Puck learns to scuba dive, he uncovers hidden strengths, long-buried secrets, and a mission far greater than he ever imagined. With each descent, the boundary between dream and destiny blurs, drawing him into a world of courage, stewardship, teamwork, and biblical truth.

Told through a unique blend of immersive prose and cinematic illustrations, the story visually mirrors Puck’s growth—shifting from the hazy wonder of childhood imagination to vivid, hyper-realistic underwater missions that place readers right beside him.

Perfect for fans of discovery, mystery, faith-based adventure, and clean action storytelling, Frogman Puck Origins: The Rising Tides is the beginning of an illustrated hero’s journey where imagination meets purpose—and the depths hold more than secrets.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Joel Chanaca is a four-time Global Book Awards–winning author whose stories blend adventure, heart, humor, and faith. His work has been recognized across multiple categories, including Humor and Heart, Children’s Books, and Teen & Young Adult Action & Adventure—celebrating storytelling that inspires without compromising imagination or excitement.

Alongside his writing career, Joel serves as a game warden with over twenty-six years of experience in wildlife law enforcement and public safety. His lifelong connection to the outdoors—shaped by years of camping, fishing, canoeing, scuba diving, and animal care—deeply informs the authenticity and spirit of his stories.

Joel is the creator of the Frogman Puck illustrated novel series, a cinematic, faith-based adventure world designed to engage reluctant readers, families, and young adults alike. The series pairs full narrative storytelling with rich illustrations to reawaken wonder, visual imagination, and purpose-driven heroism.

In 2025, Joel also released a newly illustrated edition of Patches the Cat Is a Thief, bringing fresh life to the award-winning story that first captured readers’ hearts.

Whether crafting lighthearted animal tales or epic underwater adventures, Joel’s work consistently reflects themes of character, stewardship, courage, friendship, and hope.

“The elements of design are all around us. If we pause long enough to look, we can see how God has made a place for us. Beyond the wonders of the earth, His plan reaches into eternity.”

Your honest review helps independent, faith-driven stories continue to grow.
Thank you for being part of the journey.

More from Joel

When I set out to write Frogman Puck Origins, I wanted to bring something genuinely new to readers, both those who read constantly and those who sometimes struggle to stay engaged. I envisioned an all-new, fully illustrated novel featuring clean, epic superheroes, told in a way that feels fresh, immersive, and meaningful.
Most superhero stories begin with accidents, mistakes, or powers gained by touching a mysterious artifact. In the world of Frogman Puck, the heroes’ origins are different. Their abilities are forged through purpose, hard work, teamwork, faith, and ingenious design. The story begins with the roots of child-like memories and grows into something much larger, showing how character is built long before power is ever used.
At its heart, Frogman Puck Origins is designed to do two things at once. It invites older readers back to the wonder, curiosity, and imagination of their youth, while encouraging younger readers to dream big, work hard, and plant good seeds that will grow into strong character. It is a story about becoming, not just becoming powerful, but becoming grounded, courageous, and faithful.
The series taps into riddles, adventure, super abilities, and deep friendships, all presented in a format unlike anything else currently on the market. Readers can expect wall-crawling, SCUBA diving, flying, underwater tunnels, octopods, secret labs, personally designed base headquarters, and fierce battles between darkness and light. Every element is layered to reward curiosity and keep pages turning.
Frogman Puck Origins is only the beginning. As the series continues, the world expands, the stakes rise, and the heroes are tested in ways that challenge not only their strength but their values and faith. It is a story built to entertain, inspire, and stay with readers long after the final page.

The Frogman Puck Series is a cinematic, faith-based adventure that grows in depth and intensity with each installment. Origins begins as a dream-driven journey into underwater exploration, where curiosity, mentorship, and imagination awaken a young hero’s calling. Resurgent accelerates into a full-scale action narrative, introducing advanced symbiotic technology, global stakes, and a coordinated enemy operating in the shadows. Reckoning brings the story to its most complex and consequential phase, revealing hidden systems beneath the surface of the world itself and challenging the heroes to confront truth, deception, and sacrifice on a global scale. Across all three books, the series blends illustrated storytelling, clean action, and biblical themes to explore stewardship, courage, faith, and what it means to answer a call—one step, one mission, and one choice at a time.

God Bless, Joel Chanaca

Blog Stops

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, May 15 (Author Interview)

Books Less Travelled, May 16 (Author Interview)

History, Hope & Happily Ever After, May 17 (Author Interview)

Paula’s Pad of Inspiration, May 18 (Author Interview)

The Lofty Pages, May 19

Simple Harvest Reads, May 20 (Author Interview)

Artistic Nobody, May 21 (Author Interview)

Guild Master, May 22 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, May 22

Fiction Book Lover, May 23 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 24

The Bookish Ledger, May 25 (Author Interview)

Vicky Sluiter, May 26 (Author Interview)

For the Love of Literature, May 27 (Author Interview)

Blogging With Carol, May 27

Tell Tale Book Reviews, May 28 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate his tour, Joel is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card and an autographed copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://gleam.io/c1Hae/frogman-puck-origins-the-rising-tides-celebration-tour-giveaway

 

Spotlight and Giveaway: Love Under Construction by Linda Shenton Matchett

 

About the Book

Book: Love Under Construction

Author: Linda Shenton Matchett

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: January 6, 2026

Can two stubborn people tear down the walls of independence to find love?

Nadine Krause took in boarders to help her family climb out of debt after her father’s death. Business has gone well, and she’s earned enough to expand the house. When her brother’s friend agrees to take the job – the only man in town willing to work for a woman – sparks fly. But not the good kind. Or are they?

Looking for something different, Leo Albrecht takes a project working for Nadine Krause, the spunky owner of Cocoaville’s favorite boarding house. An easy job. Then he manages to injure himself and needs her help to finish making it nearly impossible to ignore his growing attraction. Should he break his rule of not mixing work and his personal life?

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Linda Shenton Matchett writes happily-ever-after historical Christian fiction about second chances and women who overcome life’s challenges to be better versions of themselves.

A native of Baltimore, Maryland, she was born a stone’s throw from Fort McHenry (of Star-Spangled Banner fame) and has lived in historical places all her life. She is a volunteer docent and archivist at the Wright Museum of WWII. She now lives in central New Hampshire where she explores the history of this great state and immerses herself in the imaginary worlds created by other authors.

 

 

More from Linda

In 2002, my husband and I purchased a 4,000 square-foot “fixer upper” bed and breakfast in New Hampshire. The building had “good bones,” but a bit of deferred maintenance and poorly executed “Harry Homeowner” repairs and updates provided plenty of projects not including a complete overhaul of the kitchen and adding a bathroom. Here are just a few:

• Wallpaper that had been applied directly to unpainted drywall (for the uninitiated: this means the wallpaper pulls off the paper facing leaving the gypsum core exposed).
• Floral wire used to attach the toilet handle to the flapper in all eight bathrooms which left a pile of floral wire in the bottom of the tanks because that repair was repeated countless times.
• A rotted 12X8X8 sill discovered while painting the outside of the house.
• Windows that had to be locked to remain closed, and windows that had to be set on “chocks” to remain open.
• Floors that sloped because the joists had rotted.
• Walls that had rotted behind wallpaper.
• Replacing the subfloor in one room that had a 12” round hole that had been carpeted over. Good thing it was near the wall, and a chair had been set over the area.
• Discovering a live wire in the basement that had been cut off and stuffed into the wall.

My “favorite” was the pantry that turned out to be propped together. None of the walls or the ceiling were connect/nailed/screwed to anything, so when the shelves were removed, the closet fell in on itself.

We didn’t begin anything new after March because we couldn’t risk getting caught with an unfinished project when season began. Despite the challenges, I loved the historicity of that house, and even though it was much too large for just the two of us after we closed the business, I sometimes miss it. However, not while I’m cleaning!

When I was noodling through possible plotlines for the second book in The Chocolate Chronicles, it didn’t take long for me to realize I could use our experiences for Nadine who operated a boarding house. Add a hunky flannel-shirted (hello Hallmark) hero, and I had the makings of a story. I had fun creating construction problems for the pair as they fought their growing attraction.

Blog Stops

Leslie’s Library Escape, May 14

Stories By Gina, May 15 (Author Interview)

Fruitfully Planted, May 15

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 16

Life on Chickadee Lane, May 17

Books, Books, & More Books, May 18 (Author Interview)

lakesidelivingsite, May 19

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, May 20 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, May 21

Books Less Travelled, May 22 (Author Interview)

Pause for Tales, May 22

For Him and My Family, May 23

Vicky Sluiter, May 24

Paula’s Pad of Inspiration, May 25 (Author Interview)

Connie’s History Classroom, May 26

Holly’s Book Corner, May 27

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Linda is giving away the grand prize of a $25 Visa gift card and a signed copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://gleam.io/qKh62/love-under-construction-celebration-tour-giveaway