Against the Tide, Elizabeth Camden

I have a new favorite author! Elizabeth Camden. Wow!  I was drawn in by the beautiful cover and intriguing title – then instantly captivated on the first pages of her book – There is not a minute of the story that you are not begging to know what will happen to Lydia!  A true heroine!  Braving a loss and hardship – pulling herself up – learning several languages, working and earning and saving.  The story has twits and turns – mysteries to be solved – adventures to be had – difficulties to conquer – a perfect weekend read.  The romance part of the book – is slim and slight – just the right amount to pull the characters together to fight for each other. The pull of the agnostic Lydia to want to feel God is powerful – in most stories the whiney leading lady is wishing Christ on her Man – it is the opposite here, strong quiet men show Lydia how to pull through an addiction she doesn’t even recognize. I could go on – I just give this a Two Thumbs Up and know that I will be looking for other titles from Elizabeth Camden. Great, Great read for sure!

From the Publisher:

Against the Tide by Elizabeth Camden

Lydia Pallas has carved out a good life for herself in Boston, where she has landed an enviable position as a translator for the U.S. Navy. When her talents bring her to the attention of the mysterious Alexander Banebridge, he hires her to translate a seemingly innocuous collection of European documents.
    But Lydia soon discovers this job is more than it appears. Bane is driven by a secret campaign to end the opium trade, compelled by his troubled past. When Bane’s enemies gain the upper hand, can Bane and Lydia—and the love growing between them—survive the forces that are conspiring against them?

I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House in exchange for a review on my blog and on a retailer’s site. I ask for books that I think I will enjoy from Bethany House and am free to post my full opinion.

The Deposit Slip, Todd M. Johnson

Wow! What a ride! 

It has been a long time since I’ve read a legal thriller.  Am I GLAD that I took a chance on this book!  The Deposit Slip starts quickly as Erin looks through her father’s safety deposit box and finds a Deposit Slip for over 10 million dollars.  A small town farmer – where would this have come from.  The bank is refusing to acknowledge the receipt, and the more that Erin looks into the matter, the more harm comes to her farm. People in town are not talking – and blame her for even wanting to pull 10 million dollars from the town bank.  I’ll save the story for you to read, each page builds on it’s characters, broadens the story, piece by piece – I LOVED it! 

Although there is a part in the beginning where you might think there is a cross with a romance fiction – that is not the case. You do get to hear what the attorney thinks of his client and legal assistant, but that is never the focus of the story – once you know how he feels, the story moves on. I really enjoyed that part – just enough for us to know about the characters, but this story is all about the case – and not about romance.

Very Well Written, I already have it loaned out to the next person to read it – and it will be my ‘must read’ recommendation for the rest of the summer!

 

I received a free copy of The Deposit Slip from Bethany House in exchange for an honest review.

The Deposit Slip by Todd M. Johnson
Erin Larson is running out of options. In the wake of her father’s death, she found a deposit slip for an unbelievable ten million dollars. But the bank claims it has no record of the deposit and stonewalls her attempts to find out more. Her lawsuit only leads to intimidation and threats.
Lawyer Jared Neaton is her last chance. But when digging deeper unleashes something far more dangerous than threats, they will both have to decide how far they are willing to go to discover the truth.