Book Tour: Leaving Liberty by Virginia Carmichael & GIVEAWAYS!!

At eighteen, Daisy McConnell left Liberty, Colorado and never looked back. The only bright spot in a childhood of neglect and loneliness was the town librarian, Marie. Now settled as a teacher in sunny Fresno, Daisy does her best to forget everything about Liberty including her drunk father, her MIA mother, and the town she hated with every beat of her heart.
Lane Bennett’s life as a small town cop is pretty close to perfect. He’s got his dog, a pretty date when he needs one, and plenty of time to fish on the weekends. No other place can compare to his hometown and he’s happy to devote his life to keeping the folks of Liberty safe. When Marie passes away, Lane knows one of the best parts about living in Liberty is gone, along with the old Carnegie library. It needs repairs the city can’t afford and the city managers won’t pay the new flood insurance. It’s too bad, but safety comes first.
When Daisy comes home for Marie’s funeral and hears the only safe place she knew as a child is going to close, she refuses to let it happen. She hatches a plan to save the old library, run the summer reading program, and keep Marie’s legacy alive.
She once vowed never to come home and he’s vowed never to leave. Daisy and Lane discover together that true love happens when you least expect it and you should never say never in Liberty.

PUBLISHER: Gumbo Books

PAGES: 240

GOODREADS  |  AMAZON 

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A huge thanks to Xpresso Book Tours and Virginia Carmichael for giving me an opportunity to read this book! I was given a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion. What a treat! 🙂

I saw that this was a clean romance and I jumped at the chance to read it.

Daisy is a feisty, passionate woman who is dragged back to the town in which she vowed she would never return. After her dear friend Marie, the local librarian, dies, Daisy is forced back to the small town of Liberty, Colorado and makes the acquaintance of a local, handsome cop named Lane Bennett. Then, the local library’s future is put in jeopardy of being shut down. Daisy’s finest childhood memories are of the library and she simply cannot let it close! With the help of Lane, Daisy learns to trust and let her guard down as she fights for the library’s future.

MORAL RATING:

PG: Kissing, but otherwise pretty clean! It’s a Christian Fiction novel. Do the math 🙂

THE GOOD:

First of all, the cover of this novel is so dang cute! Cover Daisy is such a sassy, sure of herself chica. I love it!

This was such a wonderful read. From the relatable characters to the writing style of Carmichael, this book has it all. Genuinely one of the better Christian fiction books I’ve read so far this year. Daisy McConell is a fun heroine. She had a troubling childhood and has a hard time trusting others. She’s grown up paving her own path in life. When Lane makes an appearance in her life, she doesn’t know how to lean on him and allow him to help her. She has to learn to rely on someone other than herself and put her trust in him.

Lane Bennett was an adorable man. I don’t usually call men “adorable”, but Lane was an absolutely adorable character. I loved him! He was so sweet, considerate, and protective of Daisy. At times, I wondered if he understood Daisy better than she understood herself! They were honestly so perfect together.

Virginia Carmichael’s writing style and pacing kept me reading. I didn’t ever feel that this story lagged, and I was constantly dying to know what would happen next. While the ending was predictable, I still felt compelled to keep turning the pages. Daisy and Lane were fun characters and very realistic. I’m looking forward to reading whatever Virginia Carmichael writes next!

Also, despite the Christian aspect of this novel, I never felt like I was being preached down to. All of the mentions of Christianity were well-woven into the plot and the characters’ decisions. That’s a big one for me and Carmichael nailed it.

THE BAD:

There were really no glaring problems for me in this book! It was a nice summer read and made me smile more than a few times. 🙂

SOUNDTRACK:

Daisy’s childhood was tough and she learned to lean on God when she was struggling. When Lane comes into her life, she learns to lean on him, too. Love Britt Nicole!

MY VERDICT:

I’d give Leaving Liberty 4.5/5 hearts! It was a sweet, clean read that kept me turning the pages. Liberty is a town that I wish I could visit!

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Virginia was born near the Rocky Mountains and although she has traveled around the world, the wilds of Colorado run in her veins. A big fan of the wide open sky and all four seasons, she believes in embracing the small moments of everyday life. A home schooling mom of six young children who rarely wear shoes, those moments usually involve a lot of noise, a lot of mess, or a whole bunch of warm cookies. Virginia holds degrees in Linguistics and Religious Studies from the University of Oregon. She lives with her habanero-eating husband, Crusberto, who is her polar opposite in all things except faith. They’ve learned to speak in short-hand code and look forward to the day they can actually finish a sentence. In the meantime, Virginia thanks God for the laughter and abundance of hugs that fill her day as she plots her next book.

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INTERNATIONAL GIVEAWAYS!

Enter below for a chance to win a swag bag of awesome book-themed Etsy prizes!

• Custom self inking books stamp
• Library book necklace
• Dr. Who library quote magnet
• Got Books? necklace
• Library card Love note

Click here for a chance to win an ebook copy of Leaving Liberty by Virginia Carmichael!

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