GIVEAWAY! A Reluctant Courtship by Laurie Alice Eakes!

First of all, I'd like to announce the winners from my Elusive Hope Pre-release Party last month.
The winner of the final book is: Tamara Wilkins
The winner of the Brazilian goodies which include: Chocolate covered Brazil nuts, Brazilian coffee, and a Body Shop Brazilian nut Body Butter  is: Mallori!!!!

Congratulations to all the winners!!  My heartfelt thanks to all who left comments and helped me celebrate the release of yet another book! I wish I could have given you all a prize! I hope you had as much fun as I did.

Now, onto today's guest!!  Laurie Alice Eakes is one of my TOP Favorite Authors!  She's also a good friend, which means I get to read her books early.  Laurie Alice is giving away a copy of her latest release, A Reluctant Courtship, so please give a hearty welcome today to Laurie Alice!!

“Eakes has a charming way of making her novels come to life without being over the top,” writes

Romantic times of  bestselling, award-winning author Laurie Alice Eakes. Since she lay in bed as a child telling herself stories, she has fulfilled her dream of becoming a published author. To date, she has sixteen books in print with five more under contract for release over the next two years. Eight of her books have been published in large print editions, one as a Crossings Bookclub hardcover edition, and one book has been put into Braille.

A graduate of Asbury University with a degree in English and French, and Seton Hill University, with a masters degree in Writing Popular Fiction, she also writes articles in writers publications, teaches writing workshops, and gives inspirational talks.

She lives in Texas with her husband, dogs, and cats. She enjoys long walks, all too rare rainy days, and knitting—rather badly—while watching movies or listening to music.

Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/LaurieAEakes

Read excerpts from her books at: http://www.lauriealiceeakes.com

A woman without a prospect. A man without a homeland. Can love give them a future?

Honore Bainbridge has been courted by two men, one of whom turned out to be a traitor, the other a murderer. Banished to her family’s country estate, where she will hopefully stay out of trouble, she finally meets the man she is sure is exactly right for her: Lord Ashmoor. Tall, dark, and handsome—what more could a girl ask for?

But he too is under suspicion because of his American upbringing and accusations that he has helped French and American prisoners escape from Dartmoor Prison. If he’s to keep out of a British prison himself and secure his place in British society, Lord Ashmoor needs a wife beyond reproach—something the vexingly beautiful Honore certainly is not. Yet he may be honor-bound to court her because of a promise made in haste.

For the sake of her heart, Honore determines to prove Ashmoor’s innocence—even if doing so risks her own life.

Available at Christianbook.com, Amazon, BarnesandNoble.com, Family Christian, Lifeway, Parable, Books-A-Million and your local bookstore.

MaryLu Here!!  I LOVED this book! I think it's one of Laurie's best. Here's my quick review:
   I can't put my finger on exactly what it was about this story that had me captivated, but captivated I was! Maybe it was the gorgeous location.. the countryside in England with rolling green pastures, magnificent country homes, steep white cliffs and rolling turbulent seas! But I imagine it had most to do with the fascinating characters.. both hero and heroine outcasts from society, one for nothing but an improper perception, the other for the unconvicted crime of a relative, both thrown together against their wills and against the dictates of a society that deemed lineage and propriety above all else. Laurie Alice Eakes left me hungry for more as she always does... Excellent read. :-)

Beyond the Romance

By Laurie Alice Eakes

A Reluctant Courtship is a romance, a Regency romance to be specific. I make no claims to writing anything literary or intellectual. I am an entertainer.

And yet I am an entertainer who uses what gifts God has given me to minister to His people and grow His kingdom. Through the lives and events that unfold within the pages of my books, I pray over every
word I write in the belief that, through the story that entertains my
readers for a few hours also speaks to their hearts.

With this in mind, I began to write A Reluctant Courtship about a year
and a half ago. After her eldest sister Lydia (A Necessary Deception)
had to deal with issues of putting the past behind and embracing the
future that God has for her, and then the second sister, Cassandra (A
Flight of Fancy) had to learn about forgiving herself for her
mistakes, I found myself with Honore, the spoiled darling of the
family turned the black sheep.

She has had a little problem with falling in love with men who used
her for their own ends and, in the end, ruined her reputation to the
point she has been exiled to her family estate in Devonshire. And here
is where the story steps beyond the ensuring romance.

Honore’s past has exiled her from love—the love of her family, the
love of the man she is supposed to marry, and, consequently, the love
of Jesus. Her isolation symbolizes how we allow ourselves to be exiled
from God’s love through letting our errors in judgment, the judgments
of the world, and our own hearts reject it.

Prisoners are also escaping from Dartmoor, a stone edifice built to
house prisoners of war from the French wars and, by this time, the war
with America. They are not criminals; they are men trying to get back
to their homeland. … Just like Honore.

Honore wants nothing more than to find a welcoming home, love, acceptance.

Even without reading this story, can you relate to Honore’s plight?
What, if anything, has made you feel isolated from others or the Lord?

I’d love for you to share, and it’s not necessary. Simply comment with
your contact information if you prefer, for a chance to win a copy of
any of the books in the Daughters of Bainbridge series. (Note:
Paperback versions only available for those living in the contiguous
48 states. Outside the lower 48, I can offer an e-book only.)

MaryLu Here again!  Thank you so much, Laurie Alice, for being my guest today!!  Ladies, please leave a comment with your email address and I will pick a winner next Friday, the 15th.  You don't want to miss this book!  I suggest you check out the rest of Laurie Alice's books as well. If you haven't read her writing yet, you're in for a real treat!


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