#BookReview: STEPPING TO A NEW DAY by Beverly Jenkins

Oh to live in a town where everyone knows your business and loves or accepts you anyway, even if you're the former mayor who terrorized the town and your wife with a 600 lb. hog. Henry Adams, Kansas is indeed a forgiving town, a land of second chances. When Riley Curry blows back into town stirring up trouble, the town's residents have to look deep into their hearts to forgive him, but it's going to take some time.

Genevieve Gibbs has finally gotten herself back together financially after Riley's prized pig destroyed her house. Living with her best friend has been fun, but there's a new man in town who's caught her eye. After dealing with Riley, Gen isn't sure that she's ready to get involved with anyone. If she does, she'd like to keep it under wraps and it's hard to keep secrets about her new romance while living in such close quarters.

The children of the town are growing up and some of them are starting to see the boy or girl next door in a different light. And while Henry Adams is an idyllic place to live, it's time for some of the kids we've met along the way spread their wings. But just as they can always come back home to Henry Adams, so can readers.

Some series get stale after awhile, but Beverly Jenkins has a way of keeping characters and storylines fresh. Introducing new characters introduces new perspectives and new storylines. In seven books, I have yet to get tired of Henry Adams, its people or the Blessings series.

If you're just hearing about the Blessing series and like what you hear, be sure to go back and read the previous titles.  All of the books can stand alone, but reading them in order gives you a more complete view of who is who and the history behind why things are the way they are.

Book 1: Bring on the Blessings
Book 2: A Second Helping
Book 3: Something Old, Something New
Book 4: A Wish and A Prayer
Book 5: Heart of Gold
Book 6: For Your Love

304 p.
Published: June 2016
Disclaimer: Copy of book received from publisher, opinions are my own.

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#BookReview: FOR YOUR LOVE by Beverly Jenkins

As the sixth book in the Blessings series opened, I wondered if Beverly Jenkins would still be able to draw readers into the imaginary town of Henry-Adams, Kansas in For Your Love.  I shouldn't have wondered because Beverly Jenkins is a master at what she does.  As always, she combines historical fiction with modern times, entertaining readers while teaching them.

For Your Love focuses on returning characters like Trent July, the mayor of Henry-Adams, and his wife Lily, as well as the town owner, Bernadine Brown.  Jenkins also introduces us to a few new characters, including Trent's mother and a family of newcomers.

Friends of Crystal's from her previous life, Bobby and Kelly are a young family she knows from her days on the streets in Dallas. A former gang member and the product of a foster home, Bobby trusts no one except for Kelly.  When Crystal offers the young couple and their twins a chance to leave the hard knock life of Dallas and move to Kansas, they're hesitant.  I absolutely loved watching Bobby mature as Trent and the other men in town mentored him in various ways.  The people of Henry-Adams show time and time again what community looks like.

Watching some of the women's reactions to Rita Lynn return to the small town is interesting.  It gives us a glimpse into what Henry-Adams looked like over forty years ago.  Grudges and mistrust from decades ago kick up their ugly heads, but Jenkins likes a happy ending, so you already know everything will work out before the book ends.

If you're just hearing about the Blessing series and like what you hear, be sure to go back and read the previous titles.  All of the books can stand alone, but reading them in order gives you a more complete view of who is who and the history behind why things are the way they are.

Book 1: Bring on the Blessings
Book 2: A Second Helping
Book 3: Something Old, Something New
Book 4: A Wish and A Prayer
Book 5: Heart of Gold

Purchase Links: Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

About Author

Beverly Jenkins is the author of thirty historical and contemporary novels, including five previous books in her beloved Blessings series. She has been featured in many national publications, including the Wall Street Journal, People, the Dallas Morning News,Vibe, and many other publications.

Find out more about Beverly at her website and connect with her on Facebook

#BookReview: Something Old, Something New - Beverly Jenkins

Readers of Bring on the Blessings and A Second Helping will be happy to know that the residents of the fictitious town of Henry Adams, Kansas are back.  In Bring on the Blessings, we learned of this town that had been founded by freed slaves after the Civil War.  When the mayor put the struggling town up for sale on eBay, Bernadine Brown, the ex-wife of a multimillionaire purchased it and began to turn the town around.  With Bernadine's help, town residents were able to foster and adopt needy children from around the country and bring them to a place filled with love and history.

In A Second Helping the residents and kids prepare for the adoption process and readers are treated to a history lesson about an August 1st parade.  If you're as unfamiliar with it as I was when I first read about it, here's some background.   Most of us are familiar with Juneteenth, which is celebrated on June 19 to commemorate the abolition of slavery in Texas, the last state to free their slaves in 1865. August 1st celebrates the abolishment of slavery in the British empire in 1834 and was celebrated throughout towns in the United States up until 1927. To this day it is also celebrated in Barbados, Bermuda, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica, Anguilla, The Bahamas, Turks & Caicos and the British Virgin Isles.

With Something Old, Something New the town is preparing for the wedding of mayor Trent July and his high school girlfriend, Lily Fontaine and a few of the adopted children are starting to wonder about their birth parents.  As Lily and Trent move forward with wedding plans, they're challenged with assisting their foster kids with making the transition from the new home life they've come to love to being an extended family.  And, as is the case with everything in Henry Adams, Kansas, the whole town is involved.

What did you like about this book?
Beverly Jenkins always has a lesson to teach and in this book, she treats readers to lessons about Seminole and Cherokee traditions.  I always look forward to reading her work because I'm sure to learn something.

What didn't you like about this book?
Very rarely do things not end perfectly in a Beverly Jenkins book.  While I can appreciate a happy ending, it's not realistic to believe that things always work out so well.  It would be more than okay if things didn't turn out as well as expected.

What could the author do to improve this book?
I'd like to see a book that focuses more on Tamar, Trent's grandmother.  There's a lot of history that swirls around her and it would be interesting to maybe see a prequel or something that focuses more on her back story. 

352pp
Published June 2011

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