 |
by KAREN WITEMEYER, REGINA JENNINGS,
Scroll down for the giveaway!
In this Texas-sized romance novella collection, courting couples, decades apart, leave a permanent mark of their love by carving their initials into the same oak’s bark.
When a young man from her past returns and upends their small town with a new invention, schoolteacher Bella Eden is reminded of the heartbreak she suffered years ago under the old oak tree. When her job is on the line, can she trust the man who disrupted her life to help her fight for a brighter future?
Determined to keep love alive for others, Phoebe Woodward builds an inn that caters to couples. When her father sends a property manager to help make it a success, she finds her whimsical vision thwarted by his stodgy practicality. Finding the right blend of romance and reality is a challenge, and her spinster heart may be in for a surprise.
WWII airman Luke Hampstead found comfort in letters from the sister of a lost compatriot. When he visits Texas to thank her, he discovers her constructing a project with surprising ties to his letters . . . and that she herself is even more surprising. While a promising opportunity awaits him elsewhere, will what they’ve shared be enough to give their future flight?
Abby Brookshire’s world is turned upside down when the historic tree she’s strived to preserve as the head groundskeeper at the Kissing Tree Inn is put in danger of removal. Making matters worse, the only way to protect its legacy is to partner with the man she’s been ignoring since he left town years ago. Will she have the courage to move on from the past and start a new beginning?
“Wishing things were different doesn’t make the truth any less true.”
The Kissing Tree is a delightful and absolutely fantastic collection of novellas set in Oak Springs, Texas. While the four stories are each complete with a beginning, middle, and end, the overall collection flows as one long novel; therefore, reading them in order is essential. Oak Springs derives its name from the large Oak tree with a canopy of branches that offers a safe haven and a somewhat private location for a romantic tryst.
Broken Limbs, Mended Fences by Regina Jennings starts off the collection in 1868, with Bella Eden looking for love in all the wrong places. She has even carved her initials in the Oak tree in the hopes that a certain young man will add his initials above hers. Fate, however, has other plans.
In Inn for a Surprise by Karen Witemeyer, the year is now 1891, and Barnabas Ackerly is sent to Oak Springs to check out the inn that his boss’s spinster daughter, Phoebe Woodward, has established near the Oak tree, now called The Kissing Tree because so many lovers and newlyweds have carved their initials into its sturdy and welcoming bark. Once again, fate steps in.
In From Roots to Sky by Amanda Dykes, it is December 1944, and the end of WWII is still several months away. Luke Hampstead comes to Oak Springs after serving in the war to deliver a package to his late friend’s sister, Hannah Garland. Their unique connection began long before that day, however, and this love story is both gentle and quite sweet.
In Heartwood by Nicole Deese, it is the present day, and Abby Brookshire is the gardener for the wedding destination near the Kissing Tree. An old flame, Griffin, is back in town, but will fate step in once more and bring them back together?
In all four books, the main character is the Kissing Tree. The tree in book one is full grown but still a clean slate until Bella carves her initials. By book four, the tree is filled with many initials, and nothing and no one will ever take that landmark away. As we all well know, fate and nature often have other plans, in both human lives and in the life of a tree that has unconditionally provided a loving place to steal a kiss or two. While the title of the overall book leads the reader to believe love is in the air, which it is, romance is only one element of these four novellas. All the stories go well beyond mere sparks, kissing, and falling in love.
The stories are written by different authors with their own writing styles, but each story seamlessly flows into the next, creating one novel that will touch your heart, make you laugh, and keep you wishing for more. The stories are well written, unique, and entertaining, and the characters are all quite lively and engaging. Treat The Kissing Tree as a single novel that spans decades but enjoy and appreciate each author’s contribution to Oak Springs, Texas, and her own special gift for storytelling.
Enter the giveaway below on or before October 30, 2020, for a chance to win some fabulous prizes.
I received a free copy of this book from Lone Star Book Blog Tours in exchange for my honest review.
Voted
#1 Reader’s Favorite Christian Romance Author of 2019 by Family Fiction
Magazine, bestselling author Karen Witemeyer offers warmhearted historical romance with a flair for humor, feisty heroines,
and swoon-worthy Texas heroes. She makes her home in Abilene, Texas, with her
husband and three children.
Baptist University, with a degree in English and a minor in history. She’s the
winner of the National Readers’ Choice Award, a two-time Golden Quill finalist, and a finalist for the Oklahoma Book of the Year Award. Regina has worked at
the Mustang News and at First Baptist Church of Mustang, along
with time at the Oklahoma National Stockyards and various livestock shows. She
lives outside of Oklahoma City with her husband and four children.
CLICK TO VISIT THE LONE STAR LITERARY LIFE TOUR PAGE
|
10/22/20 |
BONUS Promo |
|
|
10/22/20 |
Review |
|
|
10/22/20 |
Review |
|
|
10/23/20 |
Review |
|
|
10/23/20 |
Review |
|
|
10/24/20 |
Review |
|
|
10/24/20 |
Review |
|
|
10/25/20 |
Review |
|
|
10/25/20 |
Review |
|
|
10/26/20 |
BONUS Promo |
|
|
10/26/20 |
Review |
|
|
10/26/20 |
Review |
I typically don’t read romances, but your review may just tip me that way — it sounds like there is much more than romance, here. Thanks for a great review.