MOST THINGS COMES IN THREE'S

That's right, most bad things happen in three's, but some mixed things do too. Recently, three things have happened in my life, both good and bad.

1. My dear friend Sandi Rog came to visit us and take her oldest daughter to Freed-Hardeman University. My hubby and I attend FHU and we were happy to know that Whitney would be there also. She's even rooming in my old dorm. How good is that? We had a wonderful visit with Sandi, her husband, and children. It was great to renew friendships with hubby and kids. We hated to see them go, but we kept Whitney. She'll be calling our place home for the next four years, and I'm loving it.

2. While Sanid was here, she encouraged me to start Mantle Rock Publishing back up and running. She agreed to be my acquisition editor, and we began soliciting proposals.  It's so hard to be published by the larger publishing houses. So many of them have gone out of business in the last year. We thought this would
be a good opportunity to start the company back up again. We've received several good queries. Sandi has several children's books that we'll be publishing, plus we've received full manuscripts. I'm reading a full right now and waiting for approval from a printing company who will go our books on a national scale.

3. The third thing is the worse. Our internet modem died. It had been failing for some time. A couple of my writer friends came for a few days, and we had trouble getting on the internet. While the Rog's were here, it got worse. Finally, it all but died. I could use it plugged in with the ethernet, but that was all. That left us with only one computer working. My husband is not very good with my computer, he likes his own. Anyway, all these proposals were flying in, and we were limited with our internet. Not good! Finally ATT told us we needed a new modem and send it overnight. We tried to install it ourselves, but finally had to call the tech.

You never know what you will get when you call a tech. The first one sounded foreign with cotton stuck up his nose. I could not understand him, and he finally hung up on me. Not good. I then got an American who didn't know much. It was getting late and I decided to call the next day. I got Derrick. Derrick was a wonderful young man whose birthday is Friday. He stuck with me, and I mean stuck. He called back three times, even apologized when he was late calling. In the meantime, I had to call my computer company because something was wrong with my computer. Got this little guy in India and we did not communicate very well. After about thirty minutes, I got him to listen to what I was saying, and it was fixed. Derrick called me back on Monday, and my internet was fine. I hope Derrick and his son have a wonderful birthday Friday. He lives in Florida. A very good guy. Wish I could get him every time I call.

One last thing. I think I told you I was trying to lose weight. Well, I've lost ten pounds. I have thirty more to go. I'll make it, but it'll be slow. I'd rather do slow than fast. If I keep on my current plan, I'll lose a pound a week. That's what I've been doing so far. By this time next year, I'll be trim and fit.

DANGEROUS WATERS

SOME SECRETS ARE MEANT TO STAY BURIED 

Dangerous Waters is the first in Sandra Robbins' Cold Case Files Series published by Love Inspired Suspense. This is a very suspenseful book with lots of twists and turns.
x years be
There's a lot of tension between Laura Webber and Brad Austin, which adds to the story. They were engaged until Laura broke off the engagement six years before.The story is based around the murder of Laura's parents. Brad is now with the Cold Case Department of the Memphis Police Department.

I loved the way Sandra laid the story out. It was very interesting, but I had to turn to the last page. I suspected the villain from the first few chapters, and I did sneak to see if I was right.

If you read her Okracoke Island Series, you will be familiar with some characters mentioned. Here's the blurb and picture of the book.

Laura Webber is determined to uncover the truth behind her parents' murders. But after being interviewed about the unsolved case, she's abducted and dumped in the Mississippi River with a warning to stop digging up the past. With her life in jeopardy, she knows that her former fiancé, Brad Austin, is the only person she can turn to for help. The cold-case detective has spent years trying to forget Laura, yet he can't turn her away. But before Brad can wrap her in his protection, will their reunion be cut short by a killer threatening to silence Laura forever? 

The Cold Case Files: Uncovering secrets of the past

WAITING FOR SUMMER'S RETURN

Waiting for Summer's Return is an older book by Kim Vogel Sawyer, I received a free copy from Amazon for my Kindle some time ago. When I have books sent to me by authors, I feel they should be read first, so this one was put on the back burner until I finished what I was reading.

The writing in this book is wonderful. I always start out reading to learn from the author until I get engrossed in the book. Then, I'm more involved with the characters and the story and forget to watch for things that will help me in my writing.

Kim Sawyer is a great writer. There's so much we can learn by reading her books. If I read enough, something might sink into my thick skull.

As with most of Kim's books, this one is about the Mennonite faith. She does a good job explaining the kindness and teachings of her beliefs. I loved the book and give it five stars. I hope you enjoy the blurb below. This is still a free book on Kindle, so if you don't have it, you can get it free.



All alone on the Kansas prairie, Summer Steadman has few options. With her husband and children lost to illness, she has no desire to continue on farther west to where she and her husband planned to build their future. Instead, she seeks employment in a small Mennonite community in order to be near the graves of her family.

Widower Peter Ollenburger, the local gristmill owner, needs someone to teach his young son. When he hears of a "learned woman" in town, he believes she is the answer to his prayers. He soon discovers, however, that helping this outsider may have troublesome consequences.

There is little this father will not do for his son, but as the boy begins to look at Summer as more than a teacher, Peter must make a choice. Does he marry this woman to give his son a new mother, or does he marry only for love? 

Will Summer's broken heart ever be able to love again?