Month: March 2018

Blog Book Tour | “Forever A Father” (Book One: Delaneys of Sandpiper Beach series) by Lynne Marshall part of #Harlequin Special Edition

Posted Friday, 2 March, 2018 by jorielov , , , , 2 Comments

Book Review badge created by Jorie in Canva using Unsplash.com photography (Creative Commons Zero).

Acquired Book By: I started hosting with Prism Book Tours at the end of [2017], having noticed the badge on Tressa’s blog (Wishful Endings) whilst I was visiting as we would partake in the same blog tours and/or book blogosphere memes. I had to put the memes on hold for several months (until I started to resume them (with Top Ten Tuesday) in January 2018). When I enquried about hosting for Prism, I found I liked the niche of authors and stories they were featuring regularly. I am unsure how many books I’ll review for them as most are offered digitally rather than in print but this happily marks one of the blog tours where I could receive a print book for review purposes. Oft-times you’ll find Prism Book Tours alighting on my blog through the series of guest features and spotlights with notes I’ll be hosting on behalf of their authors.

I received a complimentary copy of “Forever A Father” direct from the author Lynne Marshall in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I wanted to read this story:

Even before I started reading the story, I appreciated what was being disclosed in the Author’s Note as I love reading all the little ‘extras’ included with stories. Harlequin puts these notes right at the beginning of the books – this way, it feels like you personally know a bit of keen insight about the characters, the setting or the thread of narrative your about to embark inside! Before I mention what warmed my heart about the note itself – I wanted to say, I love reading about families. Either the traditional kind or the unconventional – I love when people come together where love is concerned and where children also play a part in their story.

This novel is about a single Mum and her daughter, Anna whose become smitten with her boss, the doctor; in of itself, this was enough to draw my eye into wanting to read the book! I love second chance romances and new beginnings – those two themes are some of the most uplifting to be reading and this is why I love seeking them out! I also, was thankfully remembering to ‘double-check’ if this was a series in-progress or one which was just about to begin: cheers, dear hearts, Jorie finally finds a ‘first’ of a series for Harlequin! Laughs with mirth.

Now, back to the author’s note – my smile grew as I read Keela is from Ireland and the doctor is one of three brothers of whom has a family who owns one of the hotels at this seaside slice of paradise! I oft wondered what it would be like to live so close to the ocean – of hearing the serenity of that setting as the waves crash and the gulls cry. The saltiness of the air and the fact, your never in wont for conversation as there is a high volume of people constantly coming and going. All in, you can see what was so very tempting for me to be reading this novel!

PS: Isn’t the cover art delightful? You can almost see why Anna felt such a strong kinship with the doctor and he to her – he had a natural instinct for children even if part of him feared he might not yet be ready for fatherhood (per the extract I recently shared).

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Blog Book Tour | “Forever A Father” (Book One: Delaneys of Sandpiper Beach series) by Lynne Marshall part of #Harlequin Special EditionForever A Father

“Will you be my dad?”

Ask me anything but that.

Once upon a time, Dr. Daniel Delaney had it all. But he lost it in the blink of an eye, and he won’t let himself fall again—not even for his dedicated new assistant, Keela O’Mara, and her adorable, lonely little girl, Anna. Resisting a starry-eyed four-year-old is tough enough. Denying her perfect, loving single mom may be more than Daniel can handle…


Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

Find on Book Browse

ISBN: 9781335465641

on 22nd February, 2018

Pages: 218

Published by: Special Edition (@HarlequinBooks) | imprint of Harlequin

Formats Available: Ebook and Paperback

Happily there are more installments for this book series:

Soldier Handyman Family Man by Lynne MarshallReunited with the Sheriff by Lynne Marshall

Soldier, Handyman, Family Man | Synopsis | Pub Day: 20th March, 2018

Reunited with the Sheriff | Synopsis | Pub Day: 17th April, 2018

Converse via: #Contemporary #Romance & #Harlequin

About Lynne Marshall

Lynne Marshall

Lynne Marshall has been traditionally published with Harlequin as a category romance author for more than ten years with over twenty-five books, and more recently with TULE Publishing, she has also gone hybrid with self-publishing. She is a Southern California native, has been married to a New Englander for a long time, and has two adult children of whom she is super proud. She is also an adoring grandmother of two beautiful little girls, a woman of faith, a dog lover, a cat admirer, a meandering walker, a curious traveler, and an optimistic participant in this wild journey called life.

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Posted Friday, 2 March, 2018 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Book Spotlight, Child out of Wedlock, Contemporary Romance, Dating & Humour Therein, Disillusionment in Marriage, Divorce & Martial Strife, Family Life, Indie Author, Life of Thirty-Somethings, Life Shift, Loss of an unbourne child, Prism Book Tours, Romance Fiction, Second Chance Love, Single Mothers, Singletons & Commitment, Small Towne Fiction, Women's Fiction, Women's Health

Author Q&A | Speaking with Jim Turner about his inspiration for reaching out to other ‘disconnected men’ and finding purpose within his message to effect change in others.

Posted Thursday, 1 March, 2018 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

Conversations with the Bookish badge created by Jorie in Canva

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!

You might have remembered a very personal reaction to my readings of “The Disconnected Man”, as not only could I find takeaways which cross-applied to my own experiences of having disconnected men in my family – what was quite interesting as I continued to think about the subject after I finished reading Mr Turner’s book is how it is true – there are some women who are also emotionally disconnected as I had experienced this as well. Therefore, it truly is an inspiring book to be reading – if only to better understand those who see and experience life differently from those of us who are emotionally connected to everything.

I wanted to start a conversation on my blog with Mr Turner which would examine what inspired him to draw the idea of the book together but also, to reach out to him and see if he could explain how this particular topic is not just of an interest of his but how this should be something everyone takes stock of and finds an a reason to become involved with how it affects more lives than you might first imagine it could. I am a strong believer in how books – Fiction or Non-Fiction – are beautiful gateways into encouraging empathy and compassion, of expanding our world-view and of giving us a path towards understanding those who are different from us. Books are a way of understanding something we might feel confused about or something we never truly knew existed until the subject was broached by an author who understood the subject well enough to make it palatable for us to feel a connection with as well. In essence, if we have an open-mind, through reading we constantly learn & grown dynamically throughout our lives.

I wanted to take a moment to have Mr Turner share his thoughts with us as an anchour to revealling my readerly reactions wherein I left behind a personal response as the book was evocative of my own experiences of striving towards better patience & humility to better understand how & why men who are disconnected need us to take extra measures to not allow our frustrations to turn to feeling bitter or left behind. You’ll have to read my ruminative thoughts to better understand why I connect to the message of The Disconnected Man – however, today, it is Mr Turner who is imparting a bit of clarity about how he approached writing his book.

I look forward to reading your responses & I am thankful I could chat with Mr Turner giving you an insightful conversation to read! Remember: brew a cuppa & enjoy your visit!

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Mr Turner did not disappoint me with his frank and earnest approach to piecing together this condition of being emotionally removed from all aspects of a lived life – except to say, no one is keenly that far removed from their experiences – it’s simply a matter of how each of us approaches how to process our experiences. Of how we shape our emotional reactions and if we choose to share those bits of ourselves with others – there are layers of vulnerability not everyone is comfortable with revealling to the outside world – this in effect is one cause of disconnection.

At the end of Chapter Two is a beautiful pause of thought in how to approach the men who are disconnected in your own life. From my own experiences – leading into a conversations head-on about something that is affecting a loved one’s life hasn’t been the best approach to be honest! If anything, it’s been the wrong way round completely! I take after my Mum and the rest of the women in my family – we like a more direct approach – of understanding what is going on and how we can focus our energies on either fixing it or repairing it – depending on what it is exactly that is affecting us. We’d rather know what we can ‘do’ rather than sit and wait to see how things will resolve without taking action. This isn’t just physical action – it’s also through our own walk in prayer and our own conversations with God. Of seeking out our internal wellness even if we’re working on a physical bout of unwellness – yet, I’ve noted that not everyone likes to know exactly what is wrong or how something they are afflicted with actually has a definition and ‘name’. Some take the longer approach to resolving whatever it is they are conflicted with and that in of itself is also (at times) frustrating for others in the family.

This is a beautiful primer for women who are frustrated with the men in their lives who are not translating their emotions into their conversations and are not being ‘present’ in their lives in an emotionally connectable way. For men, I think it might take them a bit longer to accept the message and to consider the implications – of how staying disconnected truly isn’t advantageous to them because it allows them to live superficially removed from the people who are important in their lives.

As I was reading the story about Mr Turner, I was cross-comparing his journey with those men in my lives I know this condition relates to directly. There are commonalities and there are differences as everyone is individually unique unto themselves and of course, on a different path from one another as well. What was pivotal and insightful is how he presented the case for disconnection becoming the mainstay in our society and how there are more disconnected men than there are connected men.

-quoted from my review of “The Disconnected Man”

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Author Q&A | Speaking with Jim Turner about his inspiration for reaching out to other ‘disconnected men’ and finding purpose within his message to effect change in others.Author Q&A (The Disconnected Man)
Subtitle: breaking down walls and restoring intimacy with him

THE DISCONNECTED MAN tracks the journey of one man's surprise discovery of his own disconnectedness and his desire to help other men, and the women who love them, before it is too late.

Disconnected men hide out in plain view: in our churches, in our families and in our communities. They are competent, capable men who quietly 'do their duty' and attract little attention. They are fairly happy guys, relatively unemotional and capable of carrying heavy loads of responsibility, but are very difficult to get to know beyond superficial friendship. A closer examination inside their marriages reveals a desert strewn with emotionally emaciated spouses. While their competence may build the church, organize a group, or run a company, they haven't the slightest notion how to connect intimately with those they love. Their wives suffer, usually in silence, while the church and culture press past this couple secretly falling apart.

Jim Turner was that disconnected man going about his life, happily fulfilling his duty within his own self-protective bubble, until God suddenly burst it in a most horrific way. His story starts when that devastation left him clinging precariously to the remaining shreds of his broken marriage. Jim longs to share with other disconnected men what he learned through that ordeal, to help them understand their disobedience and show how they can achieve real connection with those they love.


Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Find on Book Browse

ISBN: 9781478975649

on 12th December, 2017

Published by: FaithWords (@FaithWords)
an imprint of Hachette Book Group, Inc. (@HachetteBooks) via Hachette Nashville

Formats Available: Hardcover, Audiobook & Ebook

Converse via: #INSPYbooks, #NonFiction #SelfHelp & #TheDisconnectedMan

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What did you initially do to change your disconnected life from the moment you realized this was something which was going to adversely affect the rest of your life?

Turner responds: I wish I had a really clever answer to this question. I mostly fumbled around in a blank haze initially. I didn’t know what to do. Once the fog started lifting and I had spent enough time praying and asking God to help me, I started with my adult children. I sat them down and asked them for help. I told them what I had discovered about myself, that I really didn’t know how to do relationships, and asked them to teach me, keep me accountable, and even rebuke me when they saw me fail. It was one of the best things I’ve ever done. My kids have taught me a great deal about relating and being emotionally available!

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Posted Thursday, 1 March, 2018 by jorielov in 21st Century, Balance of Faith whilst Living, Blog Tour Host, Christianity, FaithWords, Family Life, Inspirational Fiction & Non-Fiction, Modern Day, Spirituality & Metaphysics