Review: Chasing Happy by Ann Lee Miller

Description:
An epic fail with his girlfriend flings Ash from Florida to Arizona and into a war between forbidden desires and God. Samma’s childhood bond to Ash startles awake soon after meeting. But she’s duty-bound by idealism and family to marry her long-term boyfriend.

Ash left a career as a marching band director to guide hikes and and fight his solitary battle. Samma plays country starlet and senator’s girlfriend. But their roots dig through dry dust to tangle in the desert heat.

Even if Ash returns to Florida and Samma says yes to the senator, how will they untangle this time?


My Thoughts:
Ash's dad left his mom because he was gay and he couldn't pretend anymore. After an unpleasant experience with his girlfriend, Ash is now questioning his own sexuality. He has moved to Arizona near his father to figure things out. He meets up with his old childhood friend. Samma is planning to marry a man to please her family as well as continue a career that she hates. Both Ash and Samma are really struggling between what is right and what would make them happy. They both rely heavily on their faith to try to make the right decisions. This is an emotional read. It deals with sexuality and is written from the perspective that homosexual behavior is laid out in the Bible as sin. It is both tastefully and respectfully written. You will feel for both characters. I was a little unsure before I started reading, but I loved it and couldn't put it down.

My Rating: *****
Steam Factor: !!
*Notes: Views on homosexuality that may offend some readers.

My Source: author


Where to get it:

Amazon | B&N | Smashwords


About the author:
Ann Lee Miller earned a BA in creative writing from Ashland (OH) University and writes full-time in Phoenix, but left her heart in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, where she grew up. She loves speaking to young adults and guest lectures on writing at several Arizona colleges. When she isn’t writing or muddling through some crisis—real or imagined—you’ll find her hiking in the Superstition Mountains with her husband or meddling in her kids’ lives.


Where to find the author:

Website | Google + | Facebook  | Goodreads

Review: Tattered Innocence by Ann Lee Miller

Tattered Innocence by Ann Lee Miller

Description:
A tale of passions indulged, denied, and ultimately forgive.

On the verge of bagging the two things he wants most—a sailing charter business and marrying old money—Jake Murray’s fiancée/sole crew member dumps him. Salvation comes in the form of dyslexic, basketball toting Rachel Martin, the only one to apply for the first mate position he slapped on craigslist.

On a dead run from an affair with a married man, Rachel's salvation is shoving ocean between her and temptation.

Rapid fire dialogue and romantic tension sail Jake’s biker-chick of a boat through hurricanes, real and figurative. A cast of wannabe sailors, Rachel’s ex, Jake’s, a baby—go along for the ride.
The many-layered story weaves together disparate strands into a seamless cord. Mother and daughter look eerily alike—down to their lusts. Their symbiotic bond, forged in the blood of childbirth on the kitchen floor and cemented by their secrets, must be cracked open. A son must go home. Sin must be expunged.

Tattered Innocence is for anyone who’s ever woken up sealed in a fifty-gallon drum of their guilt.

My Thoughts:
Rachel and Jake meet when she applies to crew on this boat. Both are escaping their pasts. They are both fresh from bad relationships but work in close proximity, becoming friends. There is a lot about forgiveness here. Forgiving others, forgiving yourself, and forgiveness by God. There are some Christian themes here, but the characters are flawed and make very human mistakes. There are a lot of obstacles to a relationship between these two, both within themselves and from outside forces. Lots of emotion and understandable characters. I know nothing about sailing and don't read a lot of Christian books, but with flawed, believable characters finding their way, Ann Lee Miller's books just sort of grab you.  Definitely worth the read.

This is the second book I've read by Ann Lee Miller. She has four in the New Smyrna Beach series and the characters intertwine, though they stand alone just fine.


My Rating: *****
Steam Factor: !
*Notes: Clean, Christian themes

My Source: author

Where to get it:

Where to find the author:
Website
Twitter
Facebook
Goodreads

Review: The Art of My Life by Ann Lee Miller

The Art of My Life by Ann Lee Miller

Description:
Cal walked out of jail and into a second chance at winning Aly with his grandma’s beater sailboat and a reclaimed dream of sailing charters.

Aly has the business smarts, strings to a startup loan, and heart he never should have broken. He’s got squat. Unless you count enough original art to stock a monster rummage sale and an affection for weed. 

But he’d only ever loved Aly. That had to count for something. Aly needed a guy who owned yard tools, tires worth rotating, and a voter’s registration card. He’d be that guy or die trying.

For anyone who’s ever struggled to measure up. And failed.

My Thoughts:
Cal is pretty much at rock bottom when the story begins. He is not perfect has made a lot of mistakes. Now he is ready to get his life back together and attempt to win back the woman he loves. This book is full of flawed characters making bad choices and trying to find their way, just like real life. Overall the story is about hope and forgiveness and, of course, love. I loved it and highly recommend.

This is the second book in the New Smyrna Beach series. I haven't read the first. Events from that book are referred to, but it is not necessary to have read it.

My Rating: *****
Steam Factor: !
*Notes: Drug use.
My Source: author

Where to get it:
Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Smashwords

Author Bio:
Ann Lee Miller earned a BA in creative writing from Ashland (OH) University and writes full-time in Phoenix, but left her heart in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, where she grew up. She loves speaking to young adults and guest lectures on writing at several Arizona colleges. When she isn’t writing or muddling through some crisis—real or imagined—you’ll find her hiking in the Superstition Mountains with her husband or meddling in her kids’ lives.


Where to find the author:

AnnLeeMiller.com

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