My reading choices for 2012 are starting out well.  Shadowed in Silk is another great historical romance read.  Set in India in 1918, this story is filled with flavors and textures, life in a different time and culture, touches of historical figures, and fictional characters who are memorable by the love they show others.  Yep, I enjoyed this one.

The story opens with Abby Fraser heading to India to rejoin her husband now that the war has ended.  Though she has a 4-year old son with the man, it turns out she doesn't have much more except a dream of what being married to the love of her life could be — since she spent precious few days with the man before he returned to his military post.

Major Geoff Richards is also on his way to India, but he is grieving over the loss of his Indian troops during their campaign in France.  Whoa.  Entering another man's point of view, (other than Abby's husband), was a huge clue to this romance reader that things weren't going to go well for Abby's dreams.  POV in a romance novel practically screams, "I'm either the hero or the villain."

So when life goes from bad to worse for Abby in her new home, with her new husband, it doesn't surprise me.  But I respect her for trying to build a new life and rekindle her old love.

All the political intrigue of the era keeps the plot moving.  The secret identity of the bad guy was a cool diversion. The restrained affection between Abby and Geoff played out for me perfectly.  (It reminded me of Jane Austen or Agatha Christie, and how men were gentlemen especially in the midst of love's angst.)

I recommend this book to all romance readers who like to learn — history, interesting facts, and the nuances of human nature.

Oh, my favorite line in Shadowed in Silk was when Abby laid down her demands to her husband, and concluded with, "Remember whose daughter I am."  Though she didn't mean it prophetically at the time, I knew that by the book's end, she would know that she was a daughter of the King of kings.

Stealing Jake is an historical romance set in 1874 in a small town south of Chicago. The romance element is simple, opening with a delightful scene in which the heroine, Livy O'Brien, picks a young pickpocket to return the deputy sheriff's stolen pocket watch — without any of the players realizing she was involved. The deputy is, of course, our hero, Jake Russell.  The pickpocket, Luke, has the supporting role, though he's no more than twelve and carrying the sins of the world on his tiny shoulders.

I liked a lot about this novel.  Clean writing style. Characters easy to care about and cheer on.  A developing love story that had some spark and was believable in the characters getting to know one another. And enough going on in the story to keep me turning the pages.  But what I really liked was the basis of the plot — street kids from Chicago sold into slavery in sweatshops.

Of course, I don't like that this happened then or in other forms still happens today.  But I liked that reading this romance made me aware.  Woke me up.  Challenged me to pray more diligently for widows and orphans.

And I liked that it had a happy ending.  I thought it would.  The story's entire tone was hope and improvement.  But nonetheless, I'm glad that it had more than just a happy love story ending.

Plus, it hit on one of my favorite spiritual themes.  Forgiveness and God's grace, and living in the knowledge of who we are in Christ — new creatures.

All good stuff.  I cannot think of any reason that you wouldn't enjoy this romance.

Book 1 — Nothing but Trouble

After ten years of running from her past, PJ Sugar is lured home by her sister who is remarrying and needs PJ to care for her four-year-old son while she is on her honeymoon.  PJ is a sucker for being needed.

First day back, she witnesses a fight that leads to murder … and runs into her old boyfriend who was the cause of her disgrace ten years earlier.  And things move into more trouble from there.

Susie has an entire cast of colorful and wacky characters who keep PJ busy — her mom, her sister's new in-laws, Davy, the nephew, and then the men in her life. The men in her life caused more unease in this romance reader's soul than the mystery.  Boone, PJ's first love and highschool sweetheart, has been keeping the torch burning for her all these years.  The physical spark is still there.  What is going to keep them from getting together?

Enter PI Jeremy Kane.

Book 2 — Double Trouble

PJ Sugar continues to get into trouble (really, it isn't her fault, nor is it trouble in the sense of causing it — but after so many years of getting blamed, PJ has trouble distinguishing the difference.)

Now she works for Jeremy Kane while she is training to get her own PI license.  Boone has proposed, and she's not sure what holds her back from accepting.  Thankfully another mystery needs solved.

Book 3 — Licensed for Trouble

PJ hasn't received her PI license yet, so she intends to solve a mystery all on her own to fulfill the requirements and become a professional.  But in this hunt to find out if she can actually amount to more than trouble, PJ inherits the "mushroom house," an ancient Kellogg estate that instead leads her into a hunt of her own heritage.

Both Jeremy and Boone remain in the picture, but it's now obvious where her affections rest.

This theme of trouble … of living messy lives before God … is interesting. Susie gives the easy answer of "know God and know who you are in Christ," but PJ has a long journey to be able to even begin to grasp those truths.  She needs to learn how to distinguish her old self before Christ with the new one she now is in Him.  She needs to be able to separate her old life in Kellogg from the new life she now wants to live.  She needs to extend grace and forgiveness on so many levels (her mom, Boone, her biological family) before she is free to see where God wants her next.  And she needs to learn to let go of the familiar (PJ Sugar = trouble), before she can grasp her new life, which truly cannot be separated from her past.

All good stuff.

The writing was easy to read and the stories easy to follow.  The characters were funny, tender, and broken.  The mysteries were convoluted enough between the main mystery and side mysteries to keep me guessing to the end.  (Well, except a few points that I figured out before PJ, especially in book 3.)  My only style complaint was a few flowery discriptions that reminded me I was reading a book rather than living in PJ's skin.  I have yet to be disappointed in a Susan May Warren book and this series is no exception.

I'm sure you could find a copy if you are interested.  I don't think you'll be disappointed either.

Okay, so I read this story two weeks before Christmas and then didn't get around to a review in a timely manner.  I read it on my Kindle and that remains a different reading experience for me than paperback.

This story was a simple Amish slice of life, except we add in one heroine who went out into the world as a teenager, got a degree, became a nurse, and might well have pushed through her Christmas season homesickness to continue on in her half "English" lifestyle … if her father hadn't been in an accident and nearly died.

So Anne returns home and finds herself working with Samuel, an Amish man who doctors the Amish with basic medical needs. Though they begin with a rocky start when caring for Anne's father, they find common ground in working together at the medical clinic and delivering a baby.  Their love deepens over the month of December.

Simple.  Amish.  Christmas.

Sweet romance.

Season of Danger is two shorter stories in one Love Inspired Suspense novel.  The first Silent Night, Deadly Night by Hannah Alexander has one of the characteristics that I believe is often important for the success of a romantic novella — the main characters know each other and are already in love when the book begins.  Of course neither of them have admitted to their feelings.

Both Tess Vance and Sean Torrance work at a homeless shelter where they are used to the rough neighborhood, but someone is after Tess, and has already struck once, resulting in the hit-and-run death of Tess' fiance.

The mystery behind this novella kept me guessing to the end and was a surprise when it was revealed.  The love relationship between Tess and Sean had developed slowly and just needed brought into the open as circumstances allowed the two characters to share more of their thoughts and feelings with one another.  Simple, tender romance.

The second novella was Mistletoe Mayhem by Jill Elizabeth Nelson.  Here, the two main characters met for the first time in the opening scene, but the story held a "year later" epilogue to show they didn't rush into marriage from the madness of their holiday love. (That's tongue-in-cheek for those of you who don't know me personally.)

I thoroughly enjoyed the research Jill put into this story.  I had no idea mistletoe was poisonous or that it was used to treat cancer.  I liked the uniqueness of the hero being a health inspector.  Both main characters came across mature and level-headed even as all kinds of dangers broke out around them.

I did figure out the bad guy in this mystery before the end of the story, but Jill added a twist to his/her motives and an accomplis that I wasn't expecting, so that was a joy as well.

Theme:  Words can kill.

If you are still looking for some light reading for the busy Christmas season, grab a copy of Season of Danger.

Holiday Hideout, a Christmas Love Inspired Suspense, is about 80% suspense and 20% romance.  Which is fine.  I'm just giving my opinion on the flavor.  The gist of the suspense is that Abby Sullivan is running from her brother-in-law who is angry and grieving over the loss of his wife, Abby's sister during childbirth.  Being a doctor, Abby likewise blames herself for not being able to save her sister's life, but that doesn't mean she wants to be killed, or even professionally destroyed.

Circumstances find her in Rose Mountain, North Carolina, on the MacIvers' ranch recuperating, then hiding, and finally healing during the Christmas season.

Cal MacIvers doesn't want to fail another damsel in distress as he did his cousin when she was dealing with spousal abuse.  So he is prepared to guard Abby regardless of the dangers to himself and family.

The story moves quickly from one attempt on Abby's life to the next, mixing the sister plot with the something is wrong at the office plot until everything comes together at the end.

The lack of romance was emphasized by the fact that Abby didn't trust Cal with her secrets for the majority of the book so it kept any real connection between them from developing.

That said, Holiday Hideout was a quick, easy read.  Enjoyable.  Beautiful cover and great for a holiday treat.

This is one of the books that has been on my "to be read" pile for quite a while. I certainly wasn't putting it off because I don't like Suzie's books, because I do, very much.  And I enjoyed Finding Stefanie, too.

Suzie Warren puts together a tight novel, tying in internal and external conflicts, setting, and spiritual theme. Stefanie Noble, younger sister of two brothers (heroes of previous books) put her life on hold to care for her father and the family ranch.  Now that her older brother is back, she's beginning to dream about the plans she'd once had for her life.

Adventure acting star, Lincoln Cash has his own secrets and concerns. When he'd met Stefanie briefly the year before, he'd thought they had a connection. When he moves in as her neighbor with big plans to remodel and put their ranch town onto the map as the next Hollywood hot spot, he's surprised to find her resistant.  (He's not really an idiot.)

Add in some homeless kids, a psycho stalker, Multiple Sclerosis, and child abuse, and Finding Stefanie becomes an engaging, emotional read.

I enjoyed The Rancher's Reunion, a Love Inspired that deals with some serious issues such as the dangers of missionary nursing and Huntington's Disease. Yet the characters are never down, are actually humorous and teasing of each other to the point of drawing my laughter on several occasions.

Anne E. Harris was raised as Will Sullivan's little sister on the Sullivan ranch in Oklahoma.  After college she realized she couldn't stick around when she was so obviously in love with Will and he so obviously NOT in love with her.  She became a missionary nurse in Kenya.

While she's gone, Will goes through some changes and decides to partner with an older couple who run KidCare an international children's ministry consulting firm. Will is turning the Sullivan Ranch into a dude ranch rather than a working cattle ranch to keep ahead of the bills.  But he remains haunted by the possibility he could have Huntington's Disease — the illness that took his father's life. Also, he remains adamant that he will never marry.

Secondary characters, Ed and Margaret Reilly of DayCare were exceptionally well drawn. As was vet Ryan Jones, understated and yet loveable in his heartbreak.

As silly as it sounds, I particularly liked how slow Will was to realize he was in love with Annie.

The big lesson in The Rancher's Reunion?  Trust God for the future.