"Going Up South"
By Janet W. Ferguson
By Janet W. Ferguson
About the Book
No one told him he had a son.
Actor Dylan Conner is furious. Not only has he been left out of his child’s life, the baby boy has been given another man’s last name. Determined to be a better father than the sorry guy who’d left him and his mother, Dylan fights to ensure a significant place in his son’s life. Unfortunately, his bad-boy reputation overshadows his good intentions. Only one woman in this small town sees beyond his Hollywood image. And he’s falling for her. Too bad she’s the custody mediator.
After her scandalous divorce in the small town of Oxford, Mississippi, attorney Cassie Brooks has no intentions of practicing law again. The humiliating experience left a bitter taste for love, marriage, and her profession.
Now friends need Cassie’s help in a custody negotiation, and her role demands she remain objective. She never expected to be drawn to Dylan Conner—the actor who everyone warns is bad news. Not only is the mediation at stake, but so is her heart.
My Thoughts:
As a voracious reader and lover of books, I am always pleased, however, somewhat hesitant, to review a book by an author new to me. What will I ever do if the book does not appeal to me??? What if I "really" don't like the book??? I am VERY excited and relieved to say that I had NO problems reading "Going Up South"!! After reading the first few pages, I was totally engrossed in the plot and the characters. Definitely, a winner in my opinion!!
The characters were described in a realistic, detailed manner, so that they were easy with whom to identify. Their worries, joys, challenges, fears, became mine! I must admit that Dylan was a "heartthrob"! His dedication to changing his life and love for his newly discovered son was to be admired. The baby's mother deserved every bit of empathy as she dealt with the unexpected. Christian values shine through the characters as they travel a difficult journey through life. God does give second chances, as they all discover. Humans all have faults. The amazing thing is that God can work through them to give us hope in a promising future.
The plot moves steadily towards the conclusion with just enough unexpected twists and turns to keep the reader glued to the page. Again, the theme comes through loud and clear. Only God can plan our future! We can fight it all we want but when it comes down to it, His plan is the best. If only we could believe that sooner in our lives.
Janet Ferguson is a very talented author. I am eagerly awaiting her next creation!!
The characters were described in a realistic, detailed manner, so that they were easy with whom to identify. Their worries, joys, challenges, fears, became mine! I must admit that Dylan was a "heartthrob"! His dedication to changing his life and love for his newly discovered son was to be admired. The baby's mother deserved every bit of empathy as she dealt with the unexpected. Christian values shine through the characters as they travel a difficult journey through life. God does give second chances, as they all discover. Humans all have faults. The amazing thing is that God can work through them to give us hope in a promising future.
The plot moves steadily towards the conclusion with just enough unexpected twists and turns to keep the reader glued to the page. Again, the theme comes through loud and clear. Only God can plan our future! We can fight it all we want but when it comes down to it, His plan is the best. If only we could believe that sooner in our lives.
Janet Ferguson is a very talented author. I am eagerly awaiting her next creation!!
Guest Post from Janet W. Ferguson
Hi, I’m Janet W. Ferguson, and I’m so excited to meet the readers of Celebrate Lit!
I’ve always been an avid reader, but I’ve had an odd career path prior to writing.
With a Banking and Finance degree, I took my first job working at a brokerage firm handling their mutual fund trades. After the market crashed in the late 80s, I took a job managing a large, upscale apartment community. During this time, I married and became a stay-at-home mom and church volunteer. My volunteering eventually led to a staff position as children’s minister. After five years, I felt my calling had changed, and I left the job, not really sure what God had in store. Haphazardly, my husband suggested I apply at our local schools. Not long afterward, I certified in teaching and became the library media specialist at the large public high school near our home. I met so many wonderful young people as children’s minister and high school librarian.
During my times as a librarian, I had a story idea for about seven years, but never made time to try my hand at writing. Finally, after my elderly parents passed away, and I felt it was time. I wrote every evening for three months, and finished my first story which was Leaving Oxford. I spent the next three years learning about the craft of writing and editing that story. Yes, there was much to learn! In the meantime, one secondary character from Leaving Oxford demanded his own story… From that, cameGoing Up South.
I tend to write what I know, and I’m from the peculiar and wonderful state of Mississippi. My first story was set mostly in Oxford, Mississippi. The charming town made the perfect backdrop for book 1. So book 2 is also mostly set in Oxford, although the characters go on a mission trip to Honduras.
The hero of Going Up South, Dylan Conner, is a funny and charming actor that made a number of appearances in Leaving Oxford. From outrageous costumes to intense flirting, he just had a personality as large as the characters he portrayed on the screen. In Going Up South, he realizes that he fathered a child, but he had been left out of the baby boy’s life. Though he’d never planned to have a family, due to his disappointment in his own father, seeing the child, his child, changes his mind.
Dylan’s not sure how he’ll raise a child or what to do, but he finds help in his new friend and custody mediator, Cassie Brooks.
The scripture theme for this series comes from Isaiah 61. This particular book draws on “He binds up the brokenhearted.”
The heroine, Cassie Brooks, is still hurting from her scandalous divorce in a small town. Unlike my last heroine in Leaving Oxford, Cassie had done things the way she’d been taught, avoiding alcohol, drugs, and sex outside of marriage. And her heart was still broken by an unfaithful husband. I wanted to show that life just hands out some tough blows, no matter how hard we try to do the right thing, but God is there in the midst of it all. He does bind up our broken hearts.
I pray that you are uplifted by this story, and whatever hurts life has dealt you, that you find comfort in the arms of our faithful Father. Blessings
]
Blog Stops
July 7: A Reader’s Brain
July 7: Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations
July 8: Bigreadersite
July 8: inklings and notions
July 9: A Greater Yes
July 9: Reviewing Novels Online
July 10: Chas Ray’s Book Nerd Corner
July 11: Pause for Tales
July 12: Cindy’s Book Reviews
July 13: Daysong Reflections
July 14: Blogging With Carol
July 15: His Grace is Sufficient
July 16: Karen’s Krayons
July 17: Christian Chick’s Thoughts
July 17: Quiet Quilter
July 18: Cassandra M’s Place
July 18: A Bakers Perspective
July 19: Texas Book-aholic
July 20: Book Bites, Bee Stings, and Butterfly Kisses
This book was supplied by the author and CelebrateLit , in exchange for a fair and honest review.
To celebrate her tour, Janet is giving away some fantastic prizes including a $50 Amazon gift card! Click here to enter: https://promosimple.com/ps/9e33
This book was supplied by the author and CelebrateLit , in exchange for a fair and honest review.
To celebrate her tour, Janet is giving away some fantastic prizes including a $50 Amazon gift card! Click here to enter: https://promosimple.com/ps/9e33
Thank you so much for the amazing review! I find that I am hesitant about new authors, as well. So much to read, so little time! I thrilled you enjoyed Going Up South :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for a nice review of Going Up South. I'm never sure about new authors either unless highly recommended by others. God bless.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a good one ,Karla. Looking forward to reading it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing
ReplyDelete