Book Review of 'I'll Be Home' by Sara Davison, Darlene L. Turner, Helena Smrcek, and Melanie Stevenson

Happy November Bookworms!

I can't believe the holiday season has officially begun! I hope that everyone had a safe and happy Halloween yesterday. Our family tradition is to stay home, watch movies, and eat candy, which is exactly what we did, and it was wonderful! I'm fighting a pretty bad cold, so it was exactly what I needed. To me, as soon as Halloween is over is when the holiday season kicks off. I decorate even more for fall and this kicks off my holiday reading for the season, so get ready for more holiday goodness!

To kick of the festivities, I have another Christmas anthology to feature so I hope you enjoy this Contemporary Christmas Anthology and don't forget to scroll to the bottom of this post and enter the amazing giveaway from JustRead Tours!

Welcome to the Blog Tour for I'll Be Home by Sara Davison, Darlene L. Turner, Helena Smrcek, and Melanie Stevenson, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

About the Book

Title: I'll Be Home
Authors: Sara Davison, Darlene L. Turner, Helena Smrcek, & Melanie Stevenson
Publisher: Independent (Fab Four Press)
Release Date: October 29, 2024
Genre: Contemporary Christmas anthology

With chaos and confusion all around them, can they find their way home this Christmas?

The people in these four stories are all searching for something—an escaped convict, a job promotion from a love interest, connection to a lost parent, answers across time.

Christmas should be a time of wonder and celebration, but the obstacles each faces seem insurmountable. Even, at times, life-threatening.

Perhaps they will find what they are seeking during this season of miracles and hope. Or maybe, with God’s help, they will discover that the longing of their hearts takes them to places—and people—they didn’t even know they’d been searching for.

I’ll Be Home is a collection of four stories of faith, hope, love, (and trains) that will warm your heart, encourage your soul, and draw you home this Christmas.

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub

My Review

As we’re flying down the fast track towards the holiday season why not slow down for a minute and take a trip home with four Christmas stories that are full of faith, hope, and trains!

This anthology starts with a cozy mystery, Mistletoe and Mayhem in the Rockies by Darlene L. Turner. I honestly don’t know if I’ve ever read a Christmas murder mystery before, and the change of pace was pretty nice. It’s a crazy juxtaposition to have all of these traditional Christmas activities parallel a murder and criminal investigation but it somehow works! The characters are great, and all of the holiday activities really got me excited about the upcoming season.

Love Across Time by Helena Smrcek is the second book in the anthology and is a dual timeline that connects a present home renovation with a World War II love story. Both stories connect in such a beautifully poetic way, and I loved seeing everything tie together in the end. This book was more on the somber side, I think because of what Beth and Gabriel go through in the past, and Nick’s attitude in the present storyline. HIs negativity, compared to Joy’s sunshine, was grating at times, but seeing his growth was also pretty satisfying. I’m always down for a good dual-timeline and redemption and this one was quite nice.

The third book in the anthology is Where My Heart Belongs by Melanie Stevenson, which is a big change of pace from the first two stories, mostly because of the narration. Porsha talks to the reader like they’re sitting across from one another at a coffee shop, which was charming and a tad confusing at the same time. When Grant enters the picture is when this story shot to one of my favorites of the series as this man sounds too good to be true! I wish I could spoil it for you, but you MUST read Grant and Porsha’s holiday together. It was so utterly charming that I smile even as I’m writing this.

Just a Gilbert Blythe Kind of Girl by Sara Davison is the final installment the I’ll Be Home anthology and talk about charming! This story has the most whimsy, which is exactly what I love about most Christmas stories. I also loved that it sparked my adoration of an old classic and has me adding a new place on my bucket list to visit. It’s been awhile since I’ve read Anne of Green Gables but after reading Just a Gilbert Blythe Kind of Girl, I am itching to read it again! The chemistry between Lucy and August is the sweetest, and their pairing was my favorite in the entire anthology. What can I say, I am a sucker for a handsome woodworker with a heart of gold. This story was the perfect end to a highly entertaining anthology that was the perfect way to get me into the holiday spirit and officially kick off my season reading.

My Rating: ★★★★

Also Available

About the Authors

Sara Davison is the author of The Night Guardians, The Rose Tattoo, two sparrows for a penny, and In the Shadows series, as well as the standalone, The Watcher. A finalist for more than a dozen national writing awards, including the Christy Award, Davison is a Holt Medallion, Cascade, and two-time Carol Award winner for romantic suspense. She lives in Ontario with her husband, Michael. Like every good Canadian, she loves coffee, hockey, poutine, and apologizing for no particular reason.

Connect with Sara by visiting saradavison.org to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

Darlene L. Turner is an award-winning and a Publishers Weekly best-selling author and lives with her husband, Jeff in Ontario, Canada. Her love of suspense began when she read her first Nancy Drew book. She’s turned that passion into her writing and believes readers will be captured by her plots, inspired by her strong characters, and moved by her inspirational message.

Connect with Darlene by visiting darlenelturner.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

Helena Smrcek is an award-winning author, screenwriter, public speaker and writing coach. She is known for her thrilling and heartwarming stories. Her career began as a high school freelancer, leading to three decades in publishing. She co-founded Write!Canada and The Word Guild and has graduated from multiple writing programs.

Connect with Helena by visiting helenasmrcek.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

Melanie Stevenson is an award-winning author and lives in Ontario, Canada, surrounded by her husband and four children. She attended the University of Waterloo and obtained her Bachelor of Fine Arts. Melanie's first book, One More Tomorrow, was shortlisted in the Word Alive Press publishing contest out of over two hundred entries across North America and was published in 2019. In 2020, she won Best Romantic Fiction for One More Tomorrow and Best New Canadian Author at The Word Awards—Canada's top Christian literary awards. Her mission is to create stories of excellence that impact hearts and lives. Paper, canvas, and dirt are her favorite blank pages.

Connect with Melanie by visiting melaniestevenson.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

Tour Giveaway

(1) winner will receive a $25 Amazon card plus a paperback copy of I'll Be Home!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight October 29, 2024 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on November 5, 2024. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US/CAN only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

Enter Giveaway

Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!