A Cowboy's Touch was a simple, romantic read that I zoomed through in an evening.  (Okay, it was after midnight when I finished, but I still read it in one sitting.) Set in one of my favorite places, cattle ranch in western Montana, A Cowboy's Touch had few of the problems usually encountered in city girl/country boy romances. Abigail and Wade's issues went deep.

Abigail Jones, self-proclaimed trueseeker (investigative reporter) is too busy to seek Truth.

Wade Ryan, supposedly settled into his new life as cattle baron, is too busy running to actually live.

How can a romance develop between the two when Abigail is busy sniffing out Wade's secrets?

But it does.  Good romance.  Good God truths.  Good character development. Ending twist that I wasn't expecting, nor completely settled with, but I can't think of any reason you wouldn't enjoy this book if you like romance and cowboys.  And, seriously, who doesn't like romance and cowboys?

This is the first nonfiction I've reviewed here on Seek Truth. Read Fiction.  This book is mainly excerpts from Anita Estes' prayer journal during the hardest years of her son's addiction to alcohol and drugs.  The story runs from September 2006 to January 2009.

I liked the set up of the book.  Journal entries are in a personal, candid style.  Direct prayers. Scriptures. Anita's poems. Neat things that showed various ways to seek God.

Then for the reader she added sections called "Lessons Learned" and "Suggestions" where she would speak from the place she was in when she wrote the book, looking back to that place in the story where she was.  All right.  That didn't make make sense.  Basically, a chapter would cover a time period of say two months, and include elements of journaling and prayer.  Then Anita would step into the present and say, "I didn't know then, but …" and precede to share what God has since taught her about that time in her life.

Then she had suggestions to parents of prodigal children, things to watch for, what you might do differently than she did, etc.

I particularly liked how open Anita was about her mistakes and struggles.  That made her learning journey even more powerful.  She had a simple way of turning the praise and honor back to God, not just for her son's transformation, but for her husband's and herself.

I recommend this book to all my friends with adult children who currently embrace the world more often than the Lord.  It is a story of hope.  But even more so, it is a story of surrender and allowing God to change you through His Word and grace.

So maybe you don't have to have a child who has wandered away from his/her Christian foundation to enjoy this book and gain from its insights.  I don't have a prodigal … but Anita Estes' Letters to God remind me that thankfully God is in the restoration business.

Speculative fiction, definitely.  The Wolf That Was shares the love story of "wise woman" Tirian (though she inherits the role while she is still a girl) and cursed explorer, Bran — a man and a wolf sharing space, though only one body is able to be materialized at a time and both minds stay alert.  The wolf's shifting is dependent on the phases of the moon.

The setting is "the old country" where magic is alive and well — hence wise women and healers and curses on men.  But the world stays roughly the same as we know it — men and women seeking fortune and glory, kid, fortune and glory.  And power.  Always power.

Michelle did such a great job with her secondary characters of evil that I loved to read the scenes between King Fallon and his queen, Sorcha.  Two of a kind, they just couldn't quite grasp what love was all about.

The same couldn't be said for our hero and heroine as they gladly sacrificed, not only for each other, but for the others in their lives whom they loved.

My biggest concern:  How do you earn love? By being loving? I'm not convinced of the possibility.

More books from my stash on Kindle.  The Ill-gotten Insurance and the Duplicitous Divorce are both cozy mysteries/romances by Desert Breeze author, Susanne Marie Knight. There is a first in this series, but I haven't had the opportunity to read it, yet.

Minx Tobin, our heroine and amatuer sleuth, is a personal trainer and aerobics instructor moved to CA from the east coast. She's not too interested in getting into another relationship (recent break) until she meets Lieutenant Gabe Harris (police force).  And even after three books, they are still dancing around their emotions — but getting closer.  I doubt it will take them five seasons as it did for Laura and Remmington Steele.

Again, this isn't a Christian romance and neither of these characters bend toward considering spiritual matters, so I suspect the adult content will preceed the wedding rings, but that's just my guess.

The next in the series, The Virtual Valentine, comes out this month.  I like Minx.  I like Gabe.  I'm routing for them and wondering what sort of trouble Minx will stumble upon next.

I've had Miss Invisible on my to-be-read pile for a while now.  It has a copy right of 2007.  But after reading Invisible about the older lady who felt the world wasn't seeing her any longer, I decided to read Miss Invisible, about a large woman who felt the world looked through her.

Genre-wise this is Women's Fiction with a side dish of romance.  Spiritual-wise it's all about learning to be comfortable in your own skin, size 6, size 16, or whatever.  It's written in first person, but Fredericka Heinz has a fun voice and a dry wit, especially about her eating habits.

Miss Invisible also has an enjoyable cast of supporting characters, the awful and not quite as awful in her dad and her boss, and the mixed bag of friends and potential love interests, and the awesome new friend, who helps Freddie take her first steps to change her life into a more acceptable place.

You probably won't find Miss Invisible in a book store any time soon, but if you find in Ollies, you'll probably want to pick it up.

Invisible is an older book that I picked up on Kindle, a cozy mystery, with a LOL (Little Old Lady) as the heroine.  Ivy Malone is everything Jessica Fletcher is except tall. 

Actually, in this first of the Ivy Malone mysteries, Ivy is just coming into her own as an amateur sleuth.  Having lost both her son and her husband over the years, then her best friend at the beginning of the novel, Ivy begins to realize that she is invisible — drivers, clerks, walkers, police officers, etc. don't even see her until she asserts herself.  So when two mysteries — vandalism at a local cemetary and a missing neighbor — come into her life, Ivy decides to capitalize on her invisibility and investigate.

Delightful, simple, engaging.  I liked the quirky characters.  I liked the not-too-scary mystery.  I liked the subtle romances.  Yep, I enjoyed this book.  If you like cozies, there's no reason you wouldn't like Invisible also.

I won this book by leaving a comment on Barbara Scott's blog … in a drawing.  It wasn't that I'd left an exceptional comment.  But I'd posted because of the blurb that she'd given for West of Heaven that intriqued me.  The heroine inherits a brothal in west Texas and works to teach her new employees other skills to survive without prostitution.

This isn't a Christian novel, but it has some cute characters who grow during the course of their story.

The story opens with our hero, Jean Luc Desloge, with a hangover as he punishes himself for the death of his best friends/employers.  Jean Luc basically worked as the brawn for the brothal.  Our heroine shows up in town because the brothal owner — her unknown mother — has been murdered.  Marcella McGovern soon discovers the world she has been sheltered from all the years of her life.

I thought that the story would be about the various things Marcella attempts to teach her girls to keep them afloat, but that wasn't the case.  Marcella also inherits a herd of cattle from her father that she needs to get to Kansas for market.  The problem?  Her father's widow, a powerful woman in town, keeps the cowhands from joining her cattle drive.  The answer?  Marcella and Jean Luc teach the girls to be drivers, able to get the cattle safely to Kansas.

In the process, Jean Luc and Marcella fall in love, defend each other from harm, and see the women grow into ladies capable of starting new lives.

I missed seeing Jesus have a presence in the created world. None of these characters gave any thought to their spiritual lives, and that was often seen in their actions.

Book 3 of the Blood of Kings series from Marcher Lord Press.

I told you I'd get into this book just as soon as it arrived on my door step.  I did.  And I enjoyed the final segment as much as the first two.  I love the covers.

Okay, all my favorite characters are back and into as much trouble as ever.  The main characters, Achan and Vrell, continue to grow and learn and be tested and grow.  Jill brought in another of my favorite literary devices (remember we've already had girl in disguise as a boy, king in disguise as a peasant, or in this case, a stray,) now we have some amnesia.  I love that as long as it doesn't drag on beyond the need.

There are great spiritual truths.  There are great spiritual themes throughout the novel.  Trust God being the overarching one I picked up. There are some great one-liners and witty quips.  Still, my favorite line is from Achan, during his first blood voicing lesson with the duchess.  Upon realizing that he has traveled from his sick bed, and is looking down upon the castle, past his bare legs, he exclaims to his friend, I am well, Shung.  It's just … She took me into the Veil and … No pants, Shung!  No pants!

Obviously, I highly recommend this series.  Enjoy.  I can't imagine how you wouldn't.

In All Things is part 2 of Jakob and Meri's love story that began in No Other, an ebook I read last year.  I looked forward to seeing the completion of the story, and receiving that great feeling that this couple will have their happily ever after now.

Historical romance, set after World War II, by the time In All Things begins, Meri and Jakob have been in Hollywood for seven years.  Meri is a rising star, just breaking out of her studio contract to become a free agent, but life is still not the dream she imagined it would be.  She has the material "stuff" and the happy children, even the devoted and mostly supportive husband, but life is still empty.

Turns out Jakob dropped the ball as spiritual head of his household while he made sure Meri's career took off, finished his own schooling, and started his own work in architecture and developing.  Then, a Christmas trip to visit his family brings some problems, but also gets him back on track, seeking God with his whole heart once more.

That, of course, doesn't solve all their problems, but now they have something to work toward and the reader can cheer them on.

Clear motivations and struggles.  Honest family dynamics. Even some evil bad guys. Always, hope for the future.

Pick up In All Things from Desert Breeze Publications or wherever you get your e-books.