Sunday, April 30, 2017

"A Plain Widow" by Diane Craver Book Tour and Giveaway




 
Click here to purchase your copy.

About the Book



Book: A Plain Widow  

Author: Diane Craver  

Genre: Amish romance  

Release Date: March 10, 2017

Molly Ebersol’s life changes in a few minutes when an arsonist torches their barn. Her husband, Caleb, rushes inside the burning barn to save his horses. Although Amish firefighter, Jonathan Mast, tries to save Caleb, he fails. Suddenly Molly becomes a widow.

A month later, an anonymous person gives money to cover the lumber and food expenses for the barn raising. One late night more money is left for Molly on the porch. The fire investigator wonders if the arsonist feels guilt about Caleb’s death and is responsible for the money gifts.

During the continued investigation, it’s learned that Caleb had secrets he kept from Molly. She is crushed by what Caleb did before meeting her. How could the love of her life kept his English past from her?

Her new neighbor, Jonathan, helps her to make the difficult transition from wife to widow. Although Molly develops feelings for Jonathan, can she ever trust him to be truthful to her? She isn’t sure she can fall in love again. Her trust in relationships is shattered because of Caleb’s past actions.

My Review:

"A Plain Widow" by Diane Craver is a good read!  It is about an Amish family that loses a father and husband in a barn fire.  But who started the fire and why?

"A Plain Widow" by Diane Craver  is a mystery and also a book about forgiveness and a second chance at love.

"A Plain Widow" by Diane Craver is the 2nd book in (The Bishop's Daughters) series, I think this book could be read as a standalone and the reader could enjoy and not feel like you were missing part of the story line but I recommend reading the first book in the series as well because things that happened in the book1 are mentioned briefly in "A Plain Widow"

This book was kinda of sad for me to read because of the death of Caleb. ( no this isn't a spoiler alert, read the description of the book. This book shows how the Amish and the English can be friends and still be true to their own beliefs. 

I hadn't read any of this arthur's books before but now her other books are on my to be read  list.

A Plain Widow" by Diane Craver  is a 5 star read.

I was given a complimentary copy by Celebrate Lit. These opinions are my own. 

About the Author



Diane grew up on a farm outside Findlay, Ohio, and she often acted out characters from her own stories in the backyard. In high school she would read during classes and hide a novel in front of her in a propped up textbook. After Diane graduated from the Ohio State University, she became a schoolteacher and play director.

She met her husband while teaching at an orphanage, and they married three years later. Diane says that it took her that long to convince him she was the one for him! While raising their family in southwestern Ohio, she started writing nonfiction and was published. Later, Diane decided it would be a nice escape to write fiction. They were blessed with five daughters and one son. Two daughters were born with Down syndrome and live at home. Their other children live close by. Diane has four adorable grandchildren. Her favorite vacation is going to the beach with the whole family.

Non-fiction articles of Diane’s have been published in Woman’s World Weekly, The Catholic Telegraph, Virtue, Down Syndrome Today, WritersWeekly.com, and other publications. Several of Diane’s books have been a reviewer’s top pick from Night Owl Reviews as well as receiving 5 star reviews and A Joyful Break (Dreams of Plain Daughters) received the CTRR Reviewer’s Recommend Award from Coffee Time Romance and More.

Diane gives thanks daily to God for all her blessings.

Guest Post from Diane Craver

Back in 2012, when I told our adult children I had written my first Amish book, they looked surprised. In the past I had written contemporary Christian romance, but I had never mentioned anything about researching the Amish faith for my future books. My great-grandfather was a Mennonite minister, but I never knew him. My mother shared stories about his faith and his strictness in raising children. With many similarities between my great-grandfather’s faith and the Amish beliefs, I was drawn to learn more about the Plain life.

Another influence came from my father. While growing up in Findlay, Ohio, my father respected and enjoyed talking with the Amish from Kenton, Ohio. As a farmer, he used both work horses (something he had in common with his Amish acquaintances) and a tractor. In my book, A PLAIN WIDOW, my character, Jonathan Mast, is from Kenton. Unfortunately, my children never knew my father, but they learned how precious he was to me from reading my book, A GIFT FOREVER.

Now several books later, I am still writing Amish fiction. I feel blessed that God directed me on this writing path. A wonderful aspect of writing in this genre is finding Amish recipes to prepare in my kitchen. One of my favorite recipes is also my character Molly’s specialty in my new release. This Amish recipe is an easy bread to make and takes around twenty minutes to prepare.  

Delicious Amish Cinnamon Bread

(Makes 2 loaves)

Batter:

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 cups buttermilk or 2 cups milk plus 2 tablespoons vinegar or lemon juice

4 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

Cinnamon/sugar mixture:

2/3 cup sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

Cream together butter, 2 cups of sugar, and eggs. Add milk, flour, and baking soda. Put 1/2 of batter (or a little less) into greased loaf pans. (Basically pour 1/4 of the total batter into each pan.)

Mix in separate bowl the 2/3 cup of sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle 3/4 of cinnamon mixture on top of the 1/2 batter in each pan. Add remaining batter to pans; sprinkle with last of cinnamon topping. Swirl with a knife. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 min. Or until toothpick tester is clean.

Cool in pan for 20 minutes before removing from pan.

Blog Stops

April 20: Lighthouse Academy
April 21: A Reader’s Brain
April 22: cherylbbookblog
April 25: Pause for Tales
April 25: Bigreadersite 
April 29: Just Commonly
April 30: A Greater Yes 

Giveaway


To celebrate her tour, Diane is giving away:
GRAND PRIZE: Diane is giving away a set of the Dream of Plain Daughters Series (4 book series) and a $20 Amazon gift card. If the winner is outside of the US, ebooks will be substituted.
RUNNER-UP: A copy of AMISH BABY SNATCHED, the first book in The Bishop’s Daughters Series and a $10 Amazon gift card.
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries!
https://promosimple.com/ps/b54a

13 comments:

Diane Craver said...

Debbie,
Thank you so much for reading and reviewing my book. Also I appreciate you featuring me on your lovely blog. Have a blessed and wonderful Sunday!

Wendy Newcomb said...

A great contest, thank you so much for bringing these books to my attention!

wfnren at aol dot com

Deana said...

Really enjoyed your review.

Deanna Stevens said...

This was such a good story & I enjoyed your thoughts!

Connie Porter Saunders said...

Thanks for a great interview. I am looking forward to this book!
Connie
cps1950(at)gmail(dot)com

Diane Craver said...

Hi Wendy,
Thanks so much for visiting on Debbie's blog and for commenting. I hope you get a chance to read my books sometime. Have a terrific evening.

Diane Craver said...

Hi Deana,
I'm glad you commented and that your enjoyed Debbie's review! Have a pleasant evening!

Diane Craver said...

Hi Deanna,
Thank you for taking the time to visit here and to share what you thought of A Plain Widow. I loved your review, too, and am thankful to have this tour with Celebrate Lit.

Diane Craver said...

Hi Connie,
I'm glad you enjoyed the post and thanks so much for commenting. I'm thrilled you're interested in reading A Plain Widow.

Dina said...

Diane, I am very much enjoying your blog tour

Jan H said...

I would love to read this series. I became a widow nine months ago yesterday. The recipe sounds amazing.

Ally Swanson said...

Excellent post! This book sounds like such an interesting and intriguing read! Looking forward to checking it out!

Debbie Curto said...

So sorry for your loss! I pray that you feel God's love