25 Book Reviews

Friday, September 28, 2018

Diane Craver's Writes Another Winning Novel!! Don't forget to enter the author's generous giveaway!



"Priscilla's Escape"
By Diane Craver

About the Book:

Genre: Amish Romance, Contemporary
Release date: March 23, 2018
When faith and freedom collide, mistakes made in the past may decide the future.
Twenty-year-old Priscilla King is unsure about joining the Amish Church and wants to use her rumspringa freedom to paint beach landscapes. She’s been offered a two-month-long nanny position in Siesta Key, Florida by an author on a tight writing deadline. The opportunities presented are more than a little tempting for Priscilla, even if it means disappointing her parents and leaving her new boyfriend.
Stephen Hertzler grew up in an Amish family, but, like Priscilla, he’s undecided about joining the church. He loves Priscilla and wants to marry her, though he knows she’s not ready to decide about anything other than her summer plans. His biggest worry is that she’ll meet someone else in Florida and forget him.
When Priscilla’s parents sabotage her part-time job at a local fabric store to dissuade her from following a “worldly lifestyle” in taking the nanny position in Florida, Priscilla is distraught. She knows she would regret not taking this chance. Leaving a note, she sneaks out in disobedience of her parents’ wishes.
Free to paint, dreams she’s never fully envisioned before seem within reach…but at what price?
 Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Author:
Diane grew up on a farm outside Findlay, Ohio, and she often acted out characters from her own stories in the backyard. In high school Diane would read during classes and hide a novel in front of her in a propped-up textbook. After her high school graduation, she attended Ohio State University. Then Diane became a schoolteacher and play director. She met her husband while teaching at an orphanage, and they married three years later. It took her that long to convince him she was the one for him! While raising their family in southwestern Ohio, Diane started writing nonfiction and was published. Later she decided it would be a nice escape to write fiction. Diane was blessed with five daughters and one son. Two daughters were born with Down syndrome and live with Diane and her husband. Their other children live close by in Ohio so that’s wonderful. They also have four precious grandchildren. Diane published through a variety of houses. Several years ago, she decided to self-publish her books, so requested the rights back to her previously published stories. From the beginning, she enjoyed self-publishing her Amish romances. Diane gives thanks to God daily for her many blessings.
My Thoughts:
Diane Craver has quickly earned a position on my list of favorite authors with her series entitled "The Bishop's Daughters". I have thoroughly enjoyed each one. I have to say that I believe that this third book,
"Priscilla's Escape" is the best yet!! When I read a series, I always am somewhat apprehensive about whether the next book will meet my expectations. This book was certainly no disappointment!!  I loved following  the King family and felt that once again I was meeting up with old friends. This book deals with issues that are extremely difficult for the Amish community. When the young people decide to go off, against parents' wishes, it is often heartbreaking and disastrous , however, in this case, it becomes an issue of healing past hurts and opening hearts to one another. 
The characters are so vividly and accurately described that the reader cannot help but become totally involved in their lives. It was a rocky path of life with many hills and valleys as Priscilla followed her heart. Both she and Stephen had to make decisions that would determine their future. I felt every hurt, challenge and fear as this young couple grew in their relationship .  Family and faith are so important, as they learned. 
The plot moves steadily with just enough twists and turns to keep the reader fully engrossed from the first to last page of the book. Many events were surprising as the tale unfolded. This is very different from the norm in the Amish fiction genre. Dealing with frowned upon talents, disobeying a parent, living in an Englisch household, all gave this story depth and feeling. The strong sense of faith and use of scripture throughout reminded one of the power of  God and His forgiveness.
I would highly recommend this book to those who love Amish fiction. It is truly a  heartwarming sweet romance!
This book was a gift. The thoughts and opinions expressed are honest and my own.

Guest Post from Diane
Hello, Reader Friends,

Priscilla’s Escape is Book 3 in The Bishop’s Daughters Series. This story features Priscilla King, and she is the fourth child born to Amos and Lillian King. You may remember meeting Priscilla in my Dreams of Plain Daughters Series. After I finished writing this series, I decided to continue to write about the Amish and English characters living in Fields Corner, Ohio. They became family and real to me.
The King family have six children with only one son. That is like our Craver family because we have five daughters and one son. Through the years, our family has faced certain challenges with two daughters being born with Down syndrome. Although Priscilla doesn’t have any siblings with special needs, she feels overlooked in her family. It’s like she’s invisible to her parents, especially to her father. He doesn’t understand her passion for painting but favors Molly’s talent for quilting. Everyone needs a cheerleader in their corner at times, and Priscilla is no different. Fortunately, her new boyfriend, Stephen, listens to her dream to paint beach pictures. He even understands her desire to wait to join the church.
All families suffer some type of hardships. It does seem like some more than others. A family’s faith in God gives them hope in their daily lives. Whatever the level of the pain, staying close to God and listening to his voice, gives us the strength to survive. The King family have their share of tragedies, but their faith reminds steadfast. When Priscilla leaves their close-knit unit, they all reach out to her by letter and phone calls. Her siblings even tell their father that he needs to share his secret with Priscilla.
I hope you will enjoy reading Priscilla’s Escape. There is a lot happening in the King family, so you can catch up with your favorite romantic couples in this novel. If you love going to the beach as much as I do, I think you’ll love reading about Priscilla’s beach experiences – some are good, and others are not.

Blog Stops

The Becca Files, September 22
The Avid Reader, September 22
Vicky Sluiter, September 23
D’S QUILTS & BOOKS, September 24
Mary Hake, September 24
Splashes of JoySeptember 25
Inklings and notionsSeptember 26
Maureen’s Musings, September 27
Luv’N Lambert Life, September 27
KarenSueHadleySeptember 28
Quiet Quilter, September 29
Bibliophile Reviews, September 30
Carpe Diem, October 1
Texas Book-aholic, October 3
BigreadersiteOctober 5

Giveaway


To celebrate her tour, Diane is giving a grand prize that includes a $25 Amazon Gift Card & The Bishop’s Daughters: A Three Book Collection – Amish Baby Snatched, A Plain Widow, and Priscilla’s Escape (paperback or eBook)!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter. https://promosimple.com/ps/d35a/priscilla-s-escape-celebration-tour-giveaway

14 comments:

  1. Great review, Karla. I agree Priscilla's Escape is fabulous and each one of Diane Craver's books just gets better and better. I always enjoy reading her books, as she's one of my favorite authors, too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Marilyn! I'm always happy to hear this from you and others. Blessings to you for your support. And more importantly, thanks for your prayers for me. I pray before I write but I feel your prayers definitely help my inspiration from God too.

      Delete
  2. Oh, Karla,
    I am very touched by your fantastic review! God bless you for writing such a thoughtful review for PRISCILLA'S ESCAPE. I'm happy you have enjoyed The Bishop's Daughters Series. The fourth book will be about Anna. Have a terrific weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love this review and I think I am going to love reading this ! Diane, I am new to your writing but I think I will truly enjoy it !
    Linda Marie Finn
    Faithful Acres Books
    www.faithfulacresbodysoulspirit.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Linda Marie,
      This is one of the many reasons I love Celebrate Lit Blog tours because readers learn about new authors to them. I'm happy you are taking time to visit my blog stops!

      Delete
  4. Great review.
    Diane, I have this series on my ever growing TBR list. My mother would enjoy them as reading Amish fiction is her favorite. Thank you for the contest.

    Blessings, Tina

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tina,
      Thank you so much for having my The Bishop's Daughters books on your TBR list. I'm glad you stopped by here.

      Delete
  5. Nice review! Sounds like a great book. It is on my TBR pile.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Becky,
      Thank you for your comments! I'm happy you have PRISCILLA'S ESCAPE on your TBR list!

      Delete
  6. By the way, I have a newsletter and hope all of you sign up for it. The form is on my website's home page. Thanks ahead!

    ReplyDelete
  7. a new author that i discovered! I am looking forward to reading your books!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Great Review! Thank you for sharing and being a part of the tour! :D

    ReplyDelete
  9. This sounds really good! Thanks for introducing me to this author; she's new to me :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. awesome review, a must read! Beautiful cover

    ReplyDelete

Another Fantastic Read by One of My Favorite Authors, Vannetta Chapman!

An Amish Proposal for Christmas  By Vannetta Chapman Synopsis: Her deepest Christmas wish will bring more than she imagined…in this novel by...