Spotlight on 'Beauty in the Bittersweet' by Jessica Stone

Happy Tuesday Bookworms!

Spring is finally here and with that comes severe weather, particularly in my neck of the woods, which is in torndao alley. For those that don't know I am a huge weather bug and at one time even considered a career in meterology. Though my life took a different path my eyes are often to the skies, especially when rough weather is in the forecast. It's been a crazy few weeks weather-wise and we have more coming. I hope if you too are dealing with severe weather that you heed the warnings and stay safe.

I hope you enjoy the novel that I am featuring today, including a wonderful excerpt, 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 Beauty in the Bittersweet by Jessica Stone, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

About the Book

Title: Beauty in the Bittersweet
Series: A Thornbush and Juniper Story
Author: Jessica Stone
Publisher: Story Architect
Release Date: May 5, 2025
Genre: Women's Contemporary Fiction (Christian) with romance

If checking off lists were all it took, Elle Reed could keep her life from crumbling around her. But her husband betrays her trust, her best friend’s recent diagnosis reveals a hidden trauma, and a secret Elle has been keeping from her mother has wrecked their Gilmore Girls-esque relationship. Her career may be the one thing she has control over, and she holds it tightly with both hands.

Then she gets a call she never expects—her mother has passed away suddenly, taking any hope of reconciliation with her. Discovering Catherine’s collection of devotional journals while packing up her home provides an opportunity to glean the wisdom she so desperately misses. But the journals reveal that her mother had secrets of her own, leaving Elle wondering if anyone in her life is who they say.

When an upheaval at work rips away the only stability Elle has left, she has to face her biggest fear. What will it take for her to surrender control to The One who’s had it all along?

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Jessica Stone Stories | Amazon

Excerpt

Dust floated high in the air, illuminated by midday sunshine refracting through the stained glass that drew my gaze. I focused on the particles, willing myself to rise and dance among them, leaving this heaviness behind. If only it were so simple. Instead, my fantasy was sharply disturbed by the squeal of the podium microphone as my only remaining relative adjusted it to her liking.
“Today is a day I never imagined would come. It doesn’t seem possible that such a brilliant light could just be blown out like that—in an instant.”
The same ubiquitous breath capable of snuffing out a life lifted the hairs from my skin, and I rubbed my arms.
“Each of you made my sister’s life richer by being a part of it, whether Catherine was your counselor, a friend…your mom.” Aunt Jan looked down at me in the front row before seeking out others in the pews farther back, then continued, “Despite being less than five-and-a-half feet tall, she was larger than life. Perhaps that’s why she’s gone so soon.” There were some titters at this, mixed in with the sniffling. My aunt’s attempt at levity fell flat for me, however, and I shifted my weight on the unforgiving pew.
“Catherine survived harsher tragedies than most people will ever face, although I know there are exceptions in this very room. Yet, for all her heartbreak, I still envied her, in a way. She seemed to have an innate grasp of what was truly important. She didn’t hold ill will toward anyone, though she certainly could have. Instead, her pain became her purpose—her passion and motivation for helping others.”
I might not have known names or faces, but I’d recognized the scattering of single-parent households as I’d passed them by on my way down the aisle. Their posture, the way they huddled, trying to somehow make up for the space between them. Partial families like mine had been—torn apart by violence.
Aunt Jan’s voice thickened with unshed tears. “She may have been my baby sister—she will always be my baby sister—but she was also my touchstone. She wouldn’t want us to spend too long mourning her. No, not Catherine. She would remind us that she is in heaven surrounded by all the love she could ever ask for, so we should pour that love into those who need it here. That’s exactly what she lived to do—give love to those who didn’t have enough.”
As the congregation stood, the air rustled, dispersing the dust into parts unknown. And I gazed upward, wishing it would take me too.

About the Author

Despite her start as a journalist for a faith-based news publication two decades ago, Jessica Stone has always loved fiction. She believes that her testimony and message come most clearly through storytelling, and she loves the process of developing deep—and deeply flawed—characters who find redemption and learn to accept grace, just as she is herself. Jessica and her husband reside in Raleigh, North Carolina, near her parents and other family. This story—and her confidence to write it—were inspired by her own Gilmore Girls-esque relationship with her daughter, who is living out her dreams as a fashion designer in Paris. Beauty in the Bittersweet is Jessica’s debut novel and the first in her A Thornbush and Juniper Story series.

Connect with Jessica by visiting jessicastonestories.com to follow her on social media and subscribe to email newsletter updates.

Tour Giveaway

(3) winners will receive a print copy of Beauty in the Bittersweet plus a sticker/bookmark, journal and pen set!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight April 29, 2025 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on May 6, 2025. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. No shipping restrictions. 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!