Buried Treasures

Boy, I would not want to be driving in that storm! 

Her husband was killed in a church? Poor thing! No wonder she doesn't want to go. 

Such an adorable little girl. 

So they are both widowed. 

Paul is a good young man. 

Now I'm hungry for Italian food. 

I like his sneaky approach to fixing her house. 

Lemonade from a mix sounds gross. 

Poor man. He was caught between a rock and a hard place. He had to do this for his friends. His wife should have understood. The blame for her death lies as much on her shoulders. 

I want Paul to paint my room. 

Oh, Paul. I want to give you a big hug. Alcoholism is a disease. 

It's good to give Paul tasks to keep him busy in a crisis like this. 

I like Julianna's idea of heaven. 

Girl, you gotta work on your excuses. 

Kids bounce back so easily sometimes. 

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Cute, easy romance. The side characters were just as enjoyable as the hero and heroine. There isn't anything super special or different. If you enjoy a sweet romance with a single parent, pick it up!

This was a cute a romance.  If you are looking for a book to read on a rainy day I would recommend this one.  Once I started it I didn't want to put it down.

Buried Treasures By Mary Manenrs
*****5 stars Reviewed by Patti Boepple

This is a sweet story with an emotional roller coaster to go along with it.
It begins with Matt Carlson and Paul his nephew cleaning and patching up a neighbor’s home that Matt had promised he would do. The neighbor Nora has since passed but Matt knows that he promised and promises are worth keeping. Caroline Lafollette and her daughter Callie are on their way from Chicago to live there but what Matt doesn’t know they are almost there, as in right then. Nora left her house to Caroline in her will.  Caroline and Callie arrive just as a storm unleashes its fury on the countryside. She had driven twelve hours and all night so that Callie would sleep and they were both exhausted. Since the murder of her husband Caroline feels so alone. Matt understands that all too well. His wife and child died in a car accident that he feels was his fault, so he knows the meaning of feeling alone.

Matt’s nephew Paul is talented in drawing and he promises Callie that we will draw a princess on her newly painted bedroom wall. Paul and Callie grow close in a brother/sister kind of way.  Matt is a skilled carpenter and he helps Caroline find there are treasures in people as well as things. He helps her fix up the old house her aunt left to her as well as do the jobs his company has. Matt and Caroline grow closer as time goes on and start to fall in-love. Time has a way of changing things just like the leaves on a tree in the fall.  They begin to rebuild their lives with a fresh newness and it starts to feel like they are coming home.  The people in the little community she has moved to are full of loving-kindness something she is not used to.
A life and death situation happens to Matt that brings Caroline to the brink of desperation? She is scared to love again so she makes a bargain with herself, if Matt lives then she will just leave. She can’t handle a broken heart again.
What happens to Callie that brings Caroline to her knees as the community gathers together to find her? Callie tells her mama that the angels told her Matt would find her and that is how Stormy found her. Who is Stormy?  This story is like a scavenger hunt and if you don’t read it then you will miss out on the buried treasures this author has written just for you.

I, was given this book, by Netgalley.com for review purposes.

A truly inspirational story of loss, forgiveness and above all God's love and redemption...and the true treasures in our lives. Matt and Caroline's story shows us just how much a heart can endure when we trust God to guide us through life's trials. The author has created memorable cast of characters who have so much compassion for each other and through the community of their Church are able to bring healing to a mother and her little girl. 

This book was provided by the Publisher and Netgalley for my honest review.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. 

After the murder of her husband, Caroline moves into the house her  This is a very sweet book about love, loss, moving on, and trusting yourself and your heart.  There was a major Christian religious undertone to the book, which is not really my thing.  However despite this, it was still a heartwarming book with lovable characters.  I did feel as if the author could have developed the relationship between the two main characters more - it seemed they went from zero to thirty without much in-between except for the help Matt had been giving Caroline around the house and a few looks between them.  Maybe it was the genre, being more of a rated G book, however even without too much 'raunchy' details, they could have been built better as a couple. 

However, if you're looking for a sweet easy read, this is a good book - it just wasnt fully my cup of tea.

http://saraslibrary.blogspot.com/2016/08/buried-treasures.html

An inspirational story about finding yourself after a tragic loss. Caroline and Matt have lost their spouses and carry a lot of emotional baggage from their deaths. This sweet story shows that there can be healing through God.

What a fantastic story! This author really knows how to write well developed characters and a great story line to keep you wanting more and more. I am very excited to read more from this author.

Caroline is on the run from the past she feels like she can out run her feelings and her emotions and with the passing of her aunt and her aunt leaving her a house she knows thats where she will be headed. When her and her 6 year old daughter Callie land in Moutainview she's so broken and just needs to start over and find the healing she's looking for. Matt his dealing with some of his own loss and he is doing it while raising his 15 teen your old nephew. He need to keep this kid on the straight and narrow and get his neighbors house ready for when her niece and great niece. When he continues to try and help her he is not what she expected and he's not what she expected. When trouble seems to find them will they be able come together to get through it or will the just grow further apart?
I really loved this book it was just the sweetest love story. I really loved how Callie, Paul and Andie played just as big as a role as Caroline and Matt did. I really loved Callie's little personality and how she just had such a spitfire personality. I really enjoyed that this was a clean cut book. There was nothing I didn't like about this book. I was a short and very quick read. You really can not go wrong with this book its so worth the read.

This was a good book. Love comes softly to the main characters and the little girl was perfect.

Caroline is running from her life in Chicago to escape the brutal memories of her late husband. She packs up her 6 year old daughter and moves to Mountainview, Tennessee when her Aunt Nora passes and leaves her with a rundown house after she passes. Caroline needs to focus on raising her daughter and protecting them both from ever experiencing the devastating loss again. She certainly doesn’t need the distraction of her neighbor, Matt Carlson who is a local builder and keeps coming by to help her fix up the home. Matt is struggling with his own issues of blame and guilt after losing his wife on top of raising a hardened teenage nephew for his alcoholic sister. He doesn’t have time for a relationship with the mountain of responsibilities he has but he can’t help the pull he has towards Caroline. Both have issues from their past that are keeping them from moving forward but can they overcome their fears and be there for each other when they need it the most?
This book was not what I had expected it to be but I thought it was okay. I think from the summary I went into this book thinking it was going to be a certain way and then it turned out a little different from what I expected. For starters, this story kind of revolves around religion and has a strong church background, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If that aspect isn’t an issue for you, then this book was a good, quick read. The tone and writing style seemed a little dated for my taste but wasn’t too overwhelming. Overall this was a sweet and quick read.

Buried Treasures
By Mary Manners

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Caroline and her daughter 6-year-old Callie leave Chicago looking for a fresh start in a small town in Tennessee where she inherited an old house from her Aunt Nora. She is trying to raise and protect her daughter so that neither of them are hurt again.
Matt is tasked with raising his teenage nephew and keeping a promise to Nora to fix up the old house for her niece.  He is struggling with guilt over the death of his wife and raising a teenage boy.
Caroline is feisty and struggles with accepting help from others; while Matt is determined to keep his promise to fix up the old house.  Both struggling with their own issues are drawn together.
This is a great and easy read with a happy ever after ending.

I enjoyed reading this book.  It was  a good story and I was entranced by the characters.  It was a good romance!

Caroline was still struggling to cope with her husband's murder when she ran from Chicago to Mountainview, Tennessee. She had inherited her Aunt Nora's home there and was hoping for a fresh start for her and her young daughter, Callie. She didn't expect to show up at her new home during a terrible storm and find Matt Carlson there. He had been asked by her aunt, before her death, to fix up her home for Caroline's arrival.

As Caroline and Matt got to know each other better, she began to see him as her guardian angel; someone who could protect her. But, she wasn't sure she could ever love again. She was still struggling with the grief from her husband's tragic death. Matt was struggling with his own guilt and grief over the death of his wife and unborn child.

Would these two be able to overcome the devastating events of their past lives and be able to see a future together? You'll just have to read this book to find out.

I loved that I was able to really connect to the characters in this book and their emotions. They felt like old friends, people I would normally want to be friends with. This was definitely a Christian-based romance with a clean storyline.

I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a story of love and loss of renewal and gain.  It is about trusting GOD and each other, and by doing that we have to trust GOD first.  Realizing that she has such a tremendous loss to herself and her daughter she packs up and moves to Mountview TN., where she meets Matt, who is also going through some rough times of his own by taking on the parentship of his nephew.  He gives his troubled nephew a caring stable GODLY home., and a new beginning. There are lessons learned and unexpected tragedies, healing, trust, and forgiveness., brought through the loving kindness of others like friends and neighbors and family but the main place is JESUS, where it should come from to their hearts..  Matt's nephew is reborn, Matt is alive again and his heart is afresh, Caroline can trust again an her daughter is happy again, but she still feels the loss but O D has it in HIS hands  They are so supported by all those around. Them all.  Me Manners is one amazing author who can bring out such great thoughts and feeling from not only the main characters but the side characters as well.

Very enjoyable novel. Dialogue is snappy without being trite. Good character development. The little 6-year old daughter is precious. I liked her character the best. 

Story development was a bit slow. It seemed to me to be more like a series of events than a deeply thought out story. However, the writing is good enough to warrant reading more books by her.

What a great and sweet love story cant believe this is the first book ive read by this author cant wait to read more loved it

This is a Christian based book but one that doesn’t beat you over the head with it, every other word.  This deals with real life situations and issues you are.  Most of all believable. 
     Caroline La Fofollette a widow and a young mother of a five-year-old girl Callie.  They move from Chicago to Mountainview, Tenn.  When her aunt Nora passes away and leaves her the old home and pond on the property to she finally decides to move when the trial for her murdered husband is about to begin.  She’s glad to have it because she doesn’t think she can handle the trial.
     You see her husband was murdered in their home church.  Although, her faith in God had not failed but her faith in those that managed his house sure had because the lock for the door had been busted for a long time and the person that was to fix it did not have experience and because of that lock a thief was able to get in and killed her husband.
     This is a book about faith more so than religion. And about moving forward after tragic losses.  You see Matt Carlson lost his wife Mandy and their unborn child in a car accident.  It had been two years for him.  He was now caring for his soon to be sixteen-year-old nephew, Paul.  Who was filled with resentments toward his alcoholic mother who abandoned him.  She is Matt’s sister.  Making things touchy for Matt.
     The two, Matt and Caroline, had hurdles to face and emotions to overcome.  After their first unsteady meet and greet friendships grew.  A faith in God just not in his four walls at first.  Once that was overcome things started to gel.  Until, Matt could understand the puzzle pieces that solved why she was retreating emotionally.  They were estranged after getting to the dating phase of the relationship then she wanted nothing.  See if he can solve it.  Or if God had a way of putting the puzzle piece to use.
     I give this 5++++ stars.  Provided by netgalley.com.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com.