Book Blog Tour – Book Review & Author Interview

About the Author

USA Today’s bestselling author Nancy Naigle whips up small-town love stories with a dash of suspense and a whole lot of whose many contemporary romance novels include The Shell Collector and the Adams Grove, Boot Creek, and Christmas in Evergreen series. Several of her novels have been adapted to the television screen, airing on Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, including the popular Christmas Joy and The Secret Ingredient. Nancy makes her home in Virginia.

It’s Q & A Time!

#1 What is your book about?

He’s a commitment-phobic professional bull rider with one thing on his mind – that gold buckle.

She’s trying to unbraid herself from her past following her divorce.

Neither is looking for love.

A few good twists and turns, wonderful friendships, and saying yes to new opportunities bring this story full circle.

Working at a little shop on Main Street in a small town is exactly the break that executive Merry Anna Foster needs following her divorce. She’s made a bet with her ex-husband that she can live on the amount of money she’s giving him in alimony. If she can do it, then Kevin will have to stop complaining and leave her alone. But after three months of this new life, will she even want to leave Antler Creek? 

Adam Locklear, a bull rider and owner of the local feed store, is having the best year of his rodeo career. He’s also a bit distracted by the pretty new neighbor living in his old bunkhouse. But Adam has no time for matters of the heart. He’s got his future all mapped out, and that future doesn’t involve a woman just yet. It doesn’t involve parenting a little girl either. However, Carly Fowler still suddenly leaves five-year-old Zan—the daughter Adam didn’t know he had—in his care. 

Is it possible that the future holds a life even better than what Merry Anna and Adam had each dreamed of? One that includes both tenderness and even love—not just for each other but for Zan too. Readers who want to test drive the story can grab the first chapter free, and lots of other activities and downloadables at www.nancynaigle.com/whatremainstrue

#2 What inspired you to write your book?

I knew I wanted to revisit the sweet mountain town of Antler Creek again someday. The characters and town from Christmas Angels had just found a forever home in my heart. So, as soon as I had a chance to pitch another book set there I did it. I wasn’t sure who or what it was going to be at first, but once I sat down and started thinking about it the professional bull rider with a softer side too came to mind, and then Merry Anna and her journey to heal following her divorce quickly came together. Her bet with her ex is the foundation of her whole character arc. Neither hero nor heroine has any intention of falling in love anytime soon, but then that’s always famous last words in a romance, isn’t it? I love the secondary characters in What Remains True and I’m just now finishing up another proposal for a third book set in this town. I hope readers will let me know who or what they’d like to see in Antler Creek in the future after reading it!

#3 If you have a business related to the book, tell us about it.

I don’t have a business related to this book, however, I fell in love with painting barn quilts while writing these Antler Creek books. The first was Christmas Angels back in 2018. I loved that little town with the barn quilt trail. When I moved back to Virginia our county has a great barn quilt trail and that’s when I took my first barn quilt class, years after writing that book. I’ve painted lots of them now and have shared my love for that craft with lots of readers and friends.

#4 What is a typical day like for you? 

I’m not an early bird. My body clock prefers to start my day at nine o’clock. I tend to waste most mornings on social media and email. In the afternoon I start getting my plan of to-dos in order. Not too many days go by that I don’t fit in a nice nap. I love naps and get lots of ideas when my eyes are closed. I get my best writing done after ten or eleven o’clock in the evening when the world seems to finally get still and quiet.

#5 What do you most enjoy about what you do? 

I love the flexibility it gives me to adjust my schedule to make time for family and embrace opportunities when they come my way. Writing is hard work but working in your pajamas in the recliner with your pets at your feet is a pretty sweet work environment too.

#6 What are some favourite books you’d recommend to your readers?

Oh gosh, there are so many, and all of my best friends are authors too, so choosing is hard. How about a couple of old favorites that I read over and over? Time is a River by Mary Alice Monroe (Empowering) Hissy Fit by Mary Kay Andrews (Laugh Out Loud Funny) Beach Rental by Grace Greene (Pass the Kleenex) The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks (Dog Lovers Will Adore It).

#7 What would people be surprised to learn about you?

They might be surprised to learn that I’d never aspired to be an author. I was a Senior Vice President with Bank of America and I was a voracious reader, but I never thought about writing as a career option. In fact, I never even thought of writing a book until I turned 40. That year was a big year of change and soul searching for me. I wanted to do something “good” and meaningful. I came to the conclusion that books were the best gift I’d ever received. Novels got me through tough times, and good times and were my happy place. I thought if I could just write one book to help one gal through one lousy day…that would be a wonderful thing. I had no idea that one decision would change the entire landscape of my future ten years later! And now 20 years later (I’ll be 60 this month!) I’ve got 32 novels, seven Hallmark movies, and another book-to-movie deal on the horizon. Life is full of unexpected turns.

#8 What’s next for you?

On September 6^th, Mission Merry Christmas will release in kindle and paperback formats. On December 6^th, The Wedding Ranch comes out in digital, paperback, and audio. It’s a beautiful small-town story about family and forgiveness and it’s all set against the backdrop of this beautiful Wedding Venue in the country. It’s up for preorder now.

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After going through this interview with Nancy I definitely feel like she’s one of ‘my people’ and I want to be her when I grow up (which needs to happen sooner rather than later, haha!) I went to look at The Wedding Ranch on her website and I CAN’T WAIT to read it! It’s only coming out in December though (crying). If like me, you are interested to see all of Nancy’s other books and the movies from her books, I’m going to add the list below for ease of reference.

Single Title Novels
o The Wedding Ranch (Dec 22)
o What Remains True (May 22)
o The Shell Collector
o The Christmas Shop
o A Heartfelt Christmas
o Christmas Angels

Novels that are also Movies 🎬
o The Secret Ingredient
o Sand Dollar Cove
o Christmas Joy
o Hope At Christmas
o Christmas in Evergreen
o Christmas in Evergreen: Letters to Santa
o Christmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy

ADAMS GROVE NOVELS
o Sweet Tea and Secrets
o Out of Focus
o Wedding Cake and Big Mistakes
o Pecan Pie and Deadly Lies
o Mint Julep and Justice
o Barbeque and Bad News

BOOT CREEK NOVELS
o Life After Perfect
o Every Yesterday
o Until Tomorrow

Seasoned Southern Sleuth Cozy Mysteries
o In For a Penny
o Collard Greens & Catfishing
o Deviled Eggs & Deception
o Fried Pickles & A Funeral
o Wedding Mints & Witnesses

Novella romances tied to this series
o Christmas Cookies & a Confession
o Sweet Tea and Second Chances

See the full list at http://www.NancyNaigle.com.

What Remains True – Book Review

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Pages: 336
Genre: Women’s Fiction / Chick Lit / Romance / Christian Fiction / Christian Romance
Published:

Book Summary

(From Goodreads)

Working at a little shop on Main Street in a small town is exactly the break that executive Merry Anna Foster needs following her divorce. She’s made a bet with her ex-husband that she can live on the amount of money she’s giving him in alimony. If she can do it, then Kevin will have to stop complaining and leave her alone. But after three months of this new life, will she even want to leave Antler Creek?

Adam Locklear, a bull rider and owner of the local feed store, is having the best year of his rodeo career. He’s also a bit distracted by the pretty new neighbor living in his old bunkhouse. But Adam has no time for matters of the heart. He’s got his future all mapped out, and that future doesn’t involve a woman just yet. It doesn’t involve parenting a little girl either. However, Carly Fowler still suddenly leaves five-year-old Zan–the daughter Adam didn’t know he had–in his care.

Is it possible that the future holds a life even better than what Merry Anna and Adam had each dreamed of? One that includes both tenderness and even love–not just for each other but for Zan too.

Rating

5/5

You may also like:

• A Heartfelt Christmas Promise by Nancy Naigle
• Trust in Me by Lea Coll – Book Review
• Something Borrowed by Louisa George – Book Review

My Thoughts

This is the second blog tour that I’ve done for Nancy Naigle and it will hopefully not be the last. Nancy’s writing style is easy to read and leaves you with all the feels. I became committed to the story from the start because I wanted to know what was happening with Merry Anna. I knew that it would be something interesting.

The storyline gave me, all the same, feels as the previous book that I read by Nancy, which was ‘A Heartfelt Christmas Promise’. Her stories always have this really awesome twist towards the end. Nancy seems to love small towns and cowboy types but if we are honest here, who doesn’t? They make the best stories.

There were a lot of surprises in the story and it helped keep me glued to the book. The little town that Nancy wrote the story in sounded so beautiful and it made me want to be there. She didn’t do too much world-building but you could imagine the place she was living in and her surroundings and that was good enough for me. I think too much world-building can become boring. After all, the story is about the people, not the place.

Merry Anna sounded like a lost little rich girl which is always a good story when they have to find themselves and who they are without their money or job. It’s one of my favourite tropes. I always enjoy reading about how a woman finds her inner strength, worth, and will to fight for her rights. The dialogue was easy to read and follow. I didn’t have to guess who was talking or what they are trying to say.

The characters were all wonderfully written and I enjoyed how they added to the small-town feel. I didn’t like certain characters for the role they played, like Kevin, which means they were written successfully and helped round the story out nicely. Zan was so cute and I loved all her little comments. What remains true is a feel-good romance and an enjoyable read. It is a stand-alone book and not part of a series. Nancy has quickly become one of my favourite authors and now I want to read all her books!

I would recommend this book to anyone that wants a comfortable and cosy read. Those that love Chick Lit, Women’s Fiction, and Romance, will love it like I did.

Book Links: 

🍓 Amazon
🍓 B&N
🍓 indieBound
🍓 GooglePlay
🍓 iBooks
🍓 Kobo
🎧 AUDIBLE
🍓 Goodreads

Author Links:

Nancy Naigle
Facebook
Goodreads Author

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