AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT - Laurel Osterkamp

 Good morning, friends!

As you read this week's posts I will be on my way home from a junk journal retreat. I craft and do admin. stuff during the day and work on my books in the late afternoon/ evening. I've shared this in my 4/9/26 post so if you missed that, click the dated link.

This week I'm sharing author Laurel Osterkamp with you.

Here's a bit about Laurel:

Laurel Osterkamp writes smart, emotionally rich fiction about messy relationships, creative reinvention, and the kind of love that leaves a mark. She’s the award-winning author of nearly a dozen novels, including Favorite Daughters and the #1 Amazon bestseller Beautiful Little Furies. Her newest novel, The Side Project, blends second-chance romance with literary flair—perfect for fans of Emily Henry, Annabel Monaghan, and anyone who loves bookish love stories with bite.

In addition to her novels, Laurel’s short fiction has appeared in literary journals across the web. When she’s not writing (which is rare), she teaches adult ESL and middle school enrichment classes, goes running with twisty audiobooks in her ears, and educates her daughter on the cultural importance of Beverly Hills, 90210.

She lives in Minneapolis with a family that loves to argue and cats that love to hiss. Ramona Quimby is her spirit animal.

While you wait for tomorrow's review of Let Me Count the Ways, please check out her links below:

WEBSITE   FACEBOOK   GOODREADS

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

GOOGLE PLAY   AUDIBLE

All my best!

~ Angela

THOUGHTFUL MONDAY

 Good morning!

I'm enjoying creative time. I hope these quotes and the Friday Photos are inspiring you.

All my best!

~ Angela

FRIDAY PHOTO

 Good morning, friends.

If you're a fantasy writer, I thought this picture would give you the feels.

Courtesy of Peter Schmidt on Pixabay

All my best!

~ Angela

REVIEW WEDNESDAY - An Early Spring

Good morning, readers. 

I hope you took a few minutes to check out our author for this week, JoAnn Durgin

AMAZON

BLURB:

Small-town charm and rediscovered dreams are always in season in Dogwood Creek, Tennessee!

Investigative journalist Ryan Hartmann is living his best life. Based in his hometown of Atlanta, Georgia, he gets the prime assignments and travels the world. When he finally takes a break to visit his Grandpa Luke in a tiny mountain town in Tennessee, Ryan encounters a gorgeous fireball of a woman at the local diner before he even steps foot in his grandfather’s house. After a case of mistaken identity and a wacky run-in at the local bookmobile, these two are off and running!

Jennifer Collins moved into her grandmother’s mansion in Dogwood Creek five years ago. Her Grandma Ellie has plenty of room and, as a successful playwright, she needs an assistant. Also a part-time actor at the nearby Smoky Mountain Playhouse, Jennifer slides effortlessly into both roles. What she doesn’t expect is a handsome man from Atlanta with mesmerizing eyes, surprising transparency, and a witty sense of humor who comes to town and challenges her at every turn. When a long-held, fiercely guarded family secret is leaked to the public and the press, who has the obvious motive? Who can be trusted?

Join the fun among the dogwoods where love is always in bloom. Toss in a bit of mystery, a group of lovable matchmakers, and the perennial possibility of small-town hijinks. Where the ordinary becomes extraordinary and everyday citizens step out of the shadows as heroes. Who knows, there might even be a knight in shining armor among them!

I knew going in this was Christian fiction. I have read and reviewed them here many times. However, An Early Spring is really high on the subject. God is mentioned at least once on nearly every page, they live their life according to God, and she backs up some of the discussions by having the characters quoting verses. I get all of that, and I know that's what readers of Christian fiction want. I'm not going to ding her on any of those points.

The good news is, Jennifer and Ryan's story is truly heartwarming. I got multiple chuckles with the bantering between Ryan and his grandfather. Jennifer's grandmother is the epitome of where Hollywood legends go when they walk away from the industry. I loved how JoAnn sprinkled in some of the classic actors that would have been a part of her grandmother's day. I love a classic Hollywood movie. I wonder if there is a story similar to her grandmother's final picture.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I think you will too. I'm giving An Early Spring...

You'll find out more about JoAnn Durgin in the links below:

WEBSITE   FACEBOOK   GOOD READS  BOOK BUB

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE   

All my best!

~ Angela

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT - JoAnn Durgin

Good morning, readers!

Totally flip the script from last week. This week we get to know Christian author, JoAnn Durgin.

Here's a bit about JoAnn:

JoAnn Durgin is a USA Today Bestselling Author named one of the "35 Essential Christian Romance Authors" in 2018 by Family Fiction Magazine. A former estate administration paralegal, she is the author of more than forty contemporary Christian romantic fiction novels ranging from novellas to supersize novels over 500 pages! JoAnn is unapologetic about sharing the hope, grace, and mercy to be found in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

JoAnn is best known for the beloved LEWIS LEGACY SERIES. The series is complete with 12 books plus the accompanying novel, PRELUDE. Other popular series include the STARLIGHT CHRISTMAS SERIES, the WONDROUS LOVE SERIES, and the TREASURED VOW SERIES as well as a number of standalone novels. JoAnn also writes contemporary Christian romance under the pen name of Julianna Desmond.

I'll be sharing Book 2 in the Dogwood Creek Matchmaker's series tomorrow. In the meantime, please check out her links below:

WEBSITE   FACEBOOK   GOOD READS  BOOK BUB

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE   

All my best!

~ Angela

 

THOUGHTFUL MONDAY

 Good morning!

I'm am scheduling all of the blog posts for the rest of the month. I leave on Friday for a Junk Journal retreat and won't be checking in until I return end of the month. Bob is going to hold down the fort while I'm gone. I hope you'll continue to check in. ~ Thank you!

All my best!

~ Angela

FRIDAY PHOTO

 Good morning!

We had a semi-feral MainCoon I'd named Fluffy (for obvious reasons). just showed up in our yard one day. He spent eighteen months getting to know me before I could pet him, eventually hold and love on him. He loved to be brushed. 

About a month ago another male showed up. A tuxedo tabby. Very territorial and ran fluffy off. I miss my ginger kitty. This picture reminds me of him.  Is there a cat in your story? 

courtesy of y20221225-cat-9169528_640 on pixabay

All my best!

~ Angela

REVIEW WEDNESDAY - Spring Trip

 Good morning, readers.

I have to let you know up front this is not the type of book I would normally read, but the book is only 96 pages and I was intrigued about what the author, Sage Donnell, would accomplish in such a limited number of pages. Let's dive in!

AMAZON

BLURB:

Spring break is coming up and high school teacher Kade could not be more excited to spend the week with her girlfriend, Aiesha. The two haven't seen much of each other since their Valentine's trip thanks to their long distance relationship and generally busy lives, but this will give them the opportunity to spend the whole week together.

Will friends, surfing, and a few communication issues get in the way?

Features an ace-spectrum character.

While I've read Lesbian romances, the aspectrum character was new to me. Sometimes, authors forget that regardless of gender, or sexual preferences, the core of the relationship is the same. Are they compatible and can they work within those challenges and come together?

Sage Donnell did this masterfully. There is no gratuitous sex in the book. It's very clean, behind closed doors (or at least out of site since they're sleeping in a loft). SPRING TRIP is all about finding your way in a new, budding relationship. She shows Kade's struggle and growth masterfully as well as Aiesha's understanding of Kade's struggle and patience to let things grow naturally between them. 

Again, while this isn't my normal read, I enjoyed the story. Isn't that why we read books? For the stories?

I'm giving SPRING TRIP...

Remember to check out Sage Donnell's links below.

GOODREADS   X-TWITTER  AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

All my best!

~ Angela

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT - Sage Donnell

 Good morning, friends!

As you'll see from her photo, water is Sage's happy place. Here's more about her:

BIO:

Sage grew up in Colorado, spent most of her adult life in Portland, Oregon, and now resides in Ajijic, Mexico. She is trying to improve her Spanish and has found that even in Mexico, she's still her. 

She is a not-too-serious hiker, a voracious reader, a lover of games, and an enjoyer of a good water-based activity on a hot day. Although her beloved dog only agrees with the first two activities.

I'll be reviewing her book, Spring Trip, tomorrow. In the mean time, you can find more about Sage and follow her through the following links:

GOODREADS   X-TWITTER  AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

All my best!

~ Angela

THOUGHTFUL MONDAY

 Good morning!

I hope everyone had an enjoyable weekend. Spring is taking a roller coaster ride. Near freezing temperatures the past two nights. Now, we're to warm up again. I just keep asking, 'is it fall yet?' 

All my best!

~ Angela

FRIDAY PHOTO - On Saturday

 Good afternoon!

If you're seeing this on Saturday, I have been so busy setting up for Q2, I totally spaced Friday. So, this week is a day late but still gives you inspiration for your Easter weekend:

Courtesy of Andy on Pixabay

All my best!

~ Angela

REVIEW WEDNESDAY - Lucky In Love

 Good morning, readers!

No, this is not a repeat post nor is it an April Fools joke. Today's book really is titled "Lucky In Love".

AMAZON

BLURB:

She trusts lists. He trusts luck. The town is about to test both. 

Molly O’Rourke runs her bakery—and her life—the same way: carefully planned, perfectly measured, and safely predictable. Surprises are for other people. Preferably far away from her ovens. 

So when a broken neon LUCKY sign, a last-minute festival crisis, and a charming traveling repair contractor all arrive at once, Molly knows one thing for certain: 

The universe is up to something.

Declan Byrne fixes problems for a living. Loose wires, broken generators, collapsing setups—he’s seen it all. What he hasn’t seen is someone quite like Molly: steady, capable, and determined to keep chaos at arm’s length… even when he keeps showing up inside it. 

Between glitter catastrophes, parade emergencies, and one almost-kiss that changes everything, Molly starts to realize that not all surprises are disasters. 

Some might be exactly what she didn’t know she needed. 

Lucky in Love is a warm, funny, feel-good romantic comedy novella 

I really enjoyed this story. First off, it's short and I love novellas. They fit in my reading time, time I can immerse myself in a story without feeling like I'm letting something slide. 

I also loved the characters, including Molly's assistant.  Declan was that quiet, solid man every woman needs in their life. They had chemistry but let it slowly come to the surface. Brynn brought this about without giving us filler just to make a wordier book. Like Molly, the author took care of business with efficiency and care.  My other favorite character was the Mayor. If you're a Good Witch fan, then I think you'll agree there are definite similarities in the mayor characters. As soon as she all but burst into the bakery, My mind started running pictures of the Mayor from Good Witch. Let me know in the comments below if you had the same experience.

I'm giving LUCKY IN LOVE...

In the mean time, please remember to check out Brynn Winslow's links below and her other books on Amazon.

INSTAGRAM   GOODREADS

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

All my best!

~ Angela