"A Light in the Window" Book Review {Giveaway}

*The October book giveaway winners have been announced! Congrats and thanks so much to everyone who visited and entered.*

In case you are new here, I will say it again: I am a huge fan of Julie Lessman! After reading both her Daughters of Boston and Winds of Change series, I am so excited she decided to write the prequel – Marcy's story...

A Light in the Window
One Woman. Two Men.
One stirs her pulse and the other her faith.
But who will win her heart?

Marceline Murphy is a gentle beauty with a well-founded aversion to rogues. But when two of Boston's most notorious pursue her, she encounters a tug-of-war of the heart she isn’t expecting. Sam O’Rourke is the childhood hero she’s pined for, the brother of her best friend and a member of the large, boisterous family to which she longs to be a part. So when his best friend Patrick O’Connor joins in pursuit of her affections, the choice seems all too clear. Sam is from a family of faith and Patrick is not, two rogues whose wild ways clash head-on with Marcy’s—both in her faith and in her heart.

While overseeing the Christmas play fundraiser for the St. Mary’s parish soup kitchen—A Light in the Window—Marcy not only wrestles with her attraction to both men, but with her concern for their spiritual welfare. The play is based on the Irish custom of placing a candle in the window on Christmas Eve to welcome the Holy Family, and for Marcy, its message becomes deeply personal. Her grandmother Mima cautions her to guard her heart for the type of man who will respond to the "light in the window," meaning the message of Christ in her heart. But when disaster strikes during the play, Marcy is destined to discover the truth of the play’s message first-hand when it becomes clear that although two men have professed their undying love, only one has truly responded to “the light in the window.”

 

My thoughts:  
Even if I had never heard of Julie Lessman before, just the fact that this book is labeled "An Irish Christmas Love Story" would have been enough to make me pick it up...

Writers amaze me. As someone who can't keep up with what is going on in my own life, I don't know how they keep all the characters and facts straight. Going 'back' and writing the love story that started two series? Julie Lessman is a genius!
  
I absolutely loved A Light in the Window! These characters have already become real to me over the past several books, so reading their love story was icing on the cake. Like anything Julie writes, you will go through tons of emotions. She has a way of writing that provokes you to feel what they are feeling and that is a gift. I find myself smiling, laughing, crying and yelling when reading her stories. 

Marcy's story did not disappoint me at all. It is filled with depth and emotion and even though (as someone who has read all the other books) I knew how it would end, it kept me guessing all the way to the end!

Thanks Julie and please (please, please!) write Gabe's story, too!

Note:

A Light in the Window is the prequel to The Daughters of Boston and Winds of Change series. If you have never read anything by Julie Lessman, start with this book. And I am sure I don’t have to say… if you have read EVERYTHING by Julie, you will have to read it!

About the author:
Julie Lessman is the popular author of A Passion Most Pure, A Passion Redeemed, and A Passion Denied, as well as A Hope Undaunted, which was one of 2010's Booklist Top Ten Inspirational Fiction winners, and A Heart Revealed. Lessman has garnered several writing awards, including ten Romance Writers of America awards. She lives in Missouri.

The extras:
Check out Julie’s website for more great information, book excerpts and contests!

Don’t miss my reviews of Julie’s A Heart Revealed and A Love Surrendered.

The giveaway and fine print: 
The winner will receive a digital Kindle copy of Julie Lessman’s A Light in the Window.

A Light in the Window releases on November 9^th, pre-order your copy now! If you pre-order and then are chosen as the winner, I will send you an Amazon gift certificate instead.

I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. The opinions expressed are all mine and I was not required to give a positive review. 

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