The start to the semester has been hectic, but I’m back…with Fiction Friday. I’ve squeezed in time to read some really good books, and in classic Cara fashion, they are from a wide variety of genres. Truly something for every reader.

Diamond in the Rough is a great example of why Jen Turano is a go-to for me. I spent so much time laughing out loud that my husband grabbed the book from me to see what had tickled my funny bone. I inhaled the antics of the characters over the weekend. Poppy has mayhem following her around her first season in NYC, and her grandmother hires a British traveling companion to help Poppy become a diamond of the first water. This gentleman has secrets of his own. There’s a sliver of mystery, a cup of fun, and a romance that is slow to bloom, but it all comes together for the perfect recipe. Loved every page.

Here more about Diamond in the Rough: To save her family from financial ruin, Miss Poppy Garrison accepts an unusual proposition to participate in the New York social season in exchange for her grandmother settling a family loan that has unexpectedly come due. Ill-equipped to handle the intricacies of mingling within the New York Four Hundred, Poppy becomes embroiled in one hilarious fiasco after another, doomed to suffer a grand societal failure instead of being deemed the diamond of the first water her grandmother longs for her to become.

Colleen Coble is back with her best book yet. Strands of Truth has a complex plot tied to an interesting concept: Sea Silk. Add in murders from a generation ago that tie to today, and this is a book you won’t be able to put down. Such a good read. Intense. Romantic. With a puzzle from the past that is colliding with today. A page–turner of a read.

Here’s more about Strands of Truth:  Strands of Harper Taylor’s childhood are resurfacing—but will the truth save her . . . or pull her under? 

Harper Taylor is used to being alone—after all, she grew up in one foster home after another. Oliver Jackson finally took her under his wing when she was a runaway teenager, and now Harper pours her marine biology knowledge into Oliver’s pen shell research. But she’s never stopped wishing for a family of her own.

So when a DNA test reveals a half-sister living just two hours away, Harper is both hopeful and nervous. Over warm cinnamon rolls, Harper and Annabelle find striking similarities in their stories. Is it just a coincidence that both their mothers died tragically, without revealing Harper and Annabelle’s father’s name?

Love and Other Mistakes is Jessica Kate’s debut novel. This book is a romance with depth. Unlike a typical romance, there are more character perspectives than simply the hero and heroine, and those added a depth to it. This also leads to a host of supporting characters, and not all issues are cleanly resolved. But this novel is a romance rooted in real issues and real growth. It shows people’s brokenness, that answers aren’t easy, and yet that there is the hope of change and redemption. I enjoyed every page.

Here’s more about Love and Other Mistakes: Jessica Kate’s hilarious, romantic debut novel proves that love comes in God’s own time.

Natalie Groves once had big dreams. But soon after her fiancé, Jeremy Walters, inexplicably broke off their engagement and left town, her father was diagnosed with cancer. Now tasked with keeping her family afloat, Natalie’s grand plans have evaporated . . . and God feels very far away.

Fast-forward seven years, and Jeremy is back in Charlottesville with an infant son and years of regrets. When his niece, Lili, lands on his doorstep in need of a place to stay, Jeremy needs help—and fast.

As we sink into fall days, I’m giving away a copy of Carrie Stuart Parks’ latest novel Fragments of Fear. You can enter via the form below. I love Carrie’s books and think you will, too!

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