Two F-R-E-E ebooks from a friend! 💌
And kitchen and kitten pics...
Hello, lovely reader!
I hope you and those you love are happy, safe, and well. I'm praying for God's peace and love to rest on the world, and on you, too.
I’m sending a day late this week, partly because most of yesterday I was travelling back to the UK (ten hours door-to-door), but mainly because my dear friend has a special book sale that starts today!
As always, it’s hard to leave the Bulgarian house. It feels so much as if God brought us there for a reason — it’s my heart-home in this world. And hubby, a city boy who never imagined he could be happy with a house in a small rural village, feels the same. Unfortunately it’s a tough year for the local people there, many older, on low incomes, and dependent on growing their own food. Not only was there a late cold snap in spring that killed ALL the fruit and nut buds, it was followed by a drought, with no rain for months, so the vegetable crops are also late and producing far less than usual. Thankfully, it did rain while I was there, which should help provide a better harvest.
I was able to make some progress on the kitchen renovations, finishing the wood framing around a door off the kitchen, starting work on an old wooden window in slightly better shape than the rest that hubby wants us to try to keep, and organising some more storage. We won’t have a big electric cooker, we’ll have a wood cookstove for winter heat and cooking, plus smaller appliances like an air fryer and Instant Pot. Eventually, I’d like to set up a summer kitchen, a summer patio to cook and preserve food outside in the hot weather. Storage space is an issue in the indoor kitchen. It’s a smallish room, with the main entrance plus two other doors opening off it. And because the ceiling height is so low at the only place the cabinets can go, wall cabinets aren’t an option, open shelves are needed. Good thing I like the cluttered farmhouse kitchen look, though I know it’s a lot more work to keep clean! It’s still a work in progress, finding the right arrangement to make the most of the space I have. I’ve already moved a few things around since taking this photo!
And on to the book news!
A whole-series sale from one of my closest author friends
If you enjoy clean, faith-filled romance with a touch of humour and an edge of suspense, Alexa Verde’s Escape to Cowboy Crossing series could be just what you’d love to read next! Foster-sisters bonded by their painful pasts full of secrets and mystery, hiding out in a small town. And the cowboy brothers from the ranch next door who see their hurting hearts and vow to help protect them when danger threatens…
I’ve read and loved all these stories, and the complete series is now reduced for a limited time! Books 1 and 2 are F-R-E-E on Amazon almost everywhere until July 29. Books 3, 4, 5, and 6 are 99c until July 31, but in the US and UK only.
Book 1: No Fake Dating for a Cowboy F-R-E-E!
Book 2: No Mistaken Identity for a Cowboy F-R-E-E!
Book 3: No Second Chance for a Cowboy
Book 4: No Marriage of Convenience for a Cowboy
Book 5: No Best Friends for a Cowboy
Book 6: No Mistletoe Kiss for a Cowboy
Or for an extra bargain or if the books aren’t reduced in your region, consider her Escape with a Cowboy set. The entire series plus a bonus novella is priced at just 99c or local equivalent in all regions on Amazon!
This week’s group book promos!
CLEAN & CHRISTIAN ROMANCE EBOOKS
This group promo features seventy clean and Christian romance ebooks! Includes my sets Chapel Cove Romances (five linked stories set in a small Oregon town), That Sunflower Summer (four family saga/ romance stories in England, Wales, and Italy), Sweetapple Falls Books 1-3 (romances in a small rural Oregon town), and Together for Christmas (four Christmas romances).
Though the organiser specified that all books should be genuinely clean, I can’t say for sure they all are, so please choose carefully!
Pet news
Because when I first visited our hoped-for retirement house in Bulgaria the previous owner’s ancient cat still lived there, I started putting cat food down for him. But cats being cats, we’ve ended up feeding a lot more local cats, too, some feral or semi-feral, some homed, including mother cats living with the neighbours on each side. You saw one set of kittens in previous newsletters, the gingers my husband fell in love with, including this adorable little one.
They were around a lot the first couple of days I was there, and have now all been rehomed. But I wasn’t left without kittens! My favourite cat there, my lovely neighbour’s tabby and her three babies spent a lot of time playing in my garden. They’re such pretty kittens. One tortoiseshell and white, one tabby, and the cutest tiny one with patches of tabby spots, ginger spots and white. They all love climbing and made the grapevines outside the living room window their personal climbing frame.
What it doesn’t show is that these two are at least seven feet off the ground, right at the top of the tall grapevine arbor. Watching them try to work out how to get down again was comical, and yes, they did manage it safely!
Do you have a pet or other critter you'd like to see featured in my newsletter? Wild visitors to your place are welcome, too. Just reply to this email with a photo or two, some information, and add that you give me permission to share with my readers. I'd love to show off your pet!
This week's randomly chosen ebook winners are Olamide, Erin, Susie, catlover, and LuAnn. If your first name or the name in your email address matches one of the winners' names in the list above, reply letting me know which of my solo ebooks (sorry, sets are not included) you'd like as a free Bookfunnel download. You can see them all here. His Tender Mercy and Heart in Hiding aren't yet released, so if you opt for one of these, you'll be added to a wait list and get a copy when your choice is finally reader-ready.
This week's give.away — five subscribers who click any link in this email by Sunday, July 27, 2025 will be randomly chosen to win their choice of my ebooks and will be named in next week's newsletter.
Until my usual email next Thursday, I'm praying you and those you love are happy and healthy, with many precious moments of peace and joy to brighten your days.
Blessings, and happy reading,
Glad you made it home safe! I hope you and hubby can move there soon. I am praying for you and that the rains will bring a good harvest even if later in summer and early fall for these people.
Praying for your Bulgarian neighbors. Loved the photo of the cats and your kitchen.
We just returned home. Our cats were glad to see us.