I'm excited about this new series by Becky Wade! What a fun, classy cover on this book, don't you think? I love the font too.

This is a contemporary christian fiction romance. Nora starts off the book a bit mousy. She dresses in large, bulky sweaters and focuses on her business and genealogical pursuits. Nora is smart and I loved her passion for those things.

John is Nora's complete opposite in almost every way but he has need of her professional help and knowledge with genealogy. As they begin working together, Nora finds herself a bit enamored with John but he has a girlfriend and of course, Nora suffers from a bit from a lack of self confidence when it comes to men. Luckily she has good sisters to help her navigate some of the unfamiliar waters she finds herself in. I loved how the friendship between Nora and John progressed so naturally and normally. They slowly gained trust in each other and it felt solid and real.

I'm excited to read about Nora's sisters in future books. This book set the stage for some stories to come!

Content: Moderate Christian elements throughout. Light romance.

- I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. A positive review was not required and all opinions expressed are my own.

From the very first page to the very last I found myself drawn into the story and enveloped in the story of Nora & John. A perfect blend of light-hearted fun, and deep thoughtful pros, this fantastic book has something for everyone.

The true to life struggles of the characters brought them closer to God, and I appreciated how you could see God’s hand working in their lives. The text at the end of the book was a fantastic choice “Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.” Jeremiah 32:17

True To You was such a delightful read, I didn’t want it to end. I am eagerly anticipating reading the next book in this series.

(I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.)

So enjoyable! Some hard subjects were addressed, but there were also fun entertaining moments. Nora meets John while volunteering at a hostage training exercise. Once he finds out she is a genealogist, he hires her to help him find his birth mother so he can find out his medical history. Over the course of the search to the two become friends, but the journey has some surprises in store for them. How will they deal with what’s to come? They learn about trusting God, the importance of communication, how to forgive and finding their identity.

I found it easy to relate to Nora. First off what avid reader can’t relate to a character who says “Who had time to watch football when there were so many fantastic books in the work yet unread?” (I loved this line and couldn’t resist including it in the review.) Nora is the middle sister and feels she doesn’t compare to her sisters. She was heart-broken when her engagement was called off and feels like she has now become content with her life, however when John comes along she begins to realize that she may have be protecting herself rather than letting God take control of her life.

Some of my favourite moments were when the sisters were together. You could tell they were close, really cared about one another and tried to help Nora see things inside of her that she was unable to see in herself. The grandmother was entertaining. She can find negativity in everything, which could be very annoying for those dealing with it directly, but as a reader I was entertained at the comments she came up with.

Sneak peeks of Willow and Britt’s relationships are given and I look forward to seeing what happens for them. I can’t wait for book 2 to come and spend more time with this family.

True to You is the first book in the Bradford Sisters Romance Series. Becky is one of our long-time favorite authors; we love her writing and were eager to dive into her new series!

But, before you begin, it is a good idea to read the prequel: Then Came You. While not essential to this new series, it provides very helpful background.

Storyline
In the story, we find three Bradford sisters; Willow the oldest, Nora in the middle and finally Britt, the youngest.

Nora has struggled to find her place in this world.
Willow is a model and turns heads wherever she goes.
Britt, the youngest, is incredibly talented.

As a result, Nora long ago decided she would be the smart one! Becoming a geologist and historical village owner, she fills her home with books, books and more books. Three years ago, she was left heartbroken and now is content living in her fictional world, a world much safer than what the real world has to offer.

John Lawson, former Navy Seal, has all the qualities of a strong and focused man. But he's been dealt a blow from his doctor that has left him shaken. Learning he has an inherited condition - but having been adopted - he now must seek out his birth mom to learn any information he can.

John is convinced Nora can offer him the assistance he needs to find his birth mom, so the two of them start the search and find themselves in each others company quite often. Nora is enamored by this striking man whom she can only dream of dating - far better to stay focused on her fictional characters as they won't break her heart! Besides, he has a girlfriend. John and Nora are extreme opposites, but they may both soon see that opposites do indeed attract.

Depth
This particular story of Becky's seems to take the reader on a roller coaster ride of emotions. The book actually starts off at a slower pace, picks up with excitement, slows down again and then ends with a pop! Becky deals with some heavy issues that both characters have had to deal with in the past, are still dealing with presently and will likely continue to deal with in the future. She also adds lighthearted, funny moments to the story as well.

Faith
Throughout the book we see that God is part of both characters' lives. However, near the end of the book, they both come to rely heavily upon who they are in Christ. They must rely on their faith and trust God is who he says he is. His plans may not always make sense, but ultimately it is best when we surrender our lives fully to Him.

Love Story
Sometimes we find it hard to root for our two main characters to fall in love when one is already dating someone else. As the story begins, John is dating Allie and we really did not want to see sparks fly between him and Nora just yet. However, Becky dealt with this issue quite remarkably and realistically. Yes, John started to feel something for Nora but then felt very guilty for feeling so. He didn't race to break up with Allie, yet he gave it time to see what his heart longed for. Once these two are free to have feelings for each other (sorry for the spoiler) we were happy to cheer them on. They have some speed bumps to overcome and we enjoyed the theme that Becky presented: The past can be hard, and the future unsure, but all we have now is the present to fully live in!

Overall
This book took us on a journey of peaks and valleys. It was not our favorite book of Becky's, but we enjoyed getting to know all three sisters and are eager to read more about Britt and Willow's stories in future books.

Bookworms, Jane Austen Fans, anyone who loves a good story—this book is for you! True to You by Becky Wade is the first book in the Bradford Sisters Romance series. It is a great start to the series, introducing us to the three sisters who have very different personalities and career paths. The sisters are quirky and love each other and future books should be interesting. As the first book in this series, I did find it a little slow at times as the author introduced the characters and the community. This first book is Nora’s story. She is a genealogist and the director of a historical village and museum. John, a former navy SEAL, asks for her help in tracking down his birth mother. After a hurtful breakup, Nora spends most of her time in the fictional world of a BBC regency series. John’s presence in her life is a sudden revelation and forces her to examine the reality of man in her life. Overall, this is a fun read and I would recommend it! I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

True to You by Becky Wade is a book I have been waiting for since I heard it was coming out. While I had high expectations I think they were the wrong expectations for this book.

I found the opening chapter of this book interesting. I enjoyed the volunteer roles Britt and Nora were in and how that scene played out. I found the introduction of John to fit well with this and to be uniquely written.

As the story progressed, I started to lose interest. While there were interesting aspects to the story, it didn’t have enough to keep me excited about the book.

I found the addition of genealogy research to be something I haven’t really read about much in a fiction book, but I may have found out why. I found the genealogy aspects to be dry and unexciting. Maybe this was just me, but I just couldn’t get excited about it. This was disappointing because I was working on family genealogy as I read this book. I guess doing it and reading about someone else doing it bring on two different levels of excitement.

The novella of this book was written in epistolary form, which I have recently found to be a new writing style that I enjoy. While this book wasn’t written in that form, there were aspects of the story written that way. I’m not sure if this worked well for me or not.

Overall this book just didn’t meet my expectations. I’m thinking my expectations were off when I went into this story and I just had a hard time getting into the book. Maybe the novella would help me better understand the story and connect more with the characters. I’ll still think about reading the next book in the series, but it isn’t one I’m highly anticipating.

This is the first of the Bradford series and it focuses on Nora the middle sister. I would recommend the novella Then Came You which gives more background about the family. Nora works as a librarian and genealogist for the town of Merryweather. She loves her job and loves to read novels and best of all she loves the PBS show Northamptonshire. She is approached by the handsome John Lawson about finding his birth parents. He was recently diagnosed with a condition and Nora is determined to help him locate them. There is definitely an attraction on Nora’s part at first and over time John sees the attraction in the quirky things she does. Through this process, the feelings for one another grow and they can’t deny it. John is able to find his birth mother and when he asks about his birth father… PLOT TWIST!! I honestly could not believe it when I read it. It ties so much into Nora and her life, it had to be a coincidence. There is a Christian theme throughout the novel and the end does leave you wanting more. I am assuming it will pick up in the next series. Overall a novel of forgiveness, and letting Christ be our guide.

I had read the novella to this book and loved it. It was written completely in epistolary form giving the background of the Bradford sisters parents. So when I saw the first book was available as an advanced reader copy from NetGalley, I requested and received a copy.

Nora is the middle Bradford sister. She runs a historical village and helps people with genealogical research. That is how she and John become connected.

There are many story lines present: the genealogical search, Nora’s only transformation, dealing with individual characters’ backgrounds, even the two other Bradford sisters’ potential and past romances.

The spiritual aspects were well done; presented through the natural character development and thoughts. This did make it a pretty introspective novel. Many truths were presented in an understandable way.

Wade tried to keep the epistolary feel of the novella going with having texts or Facebook messages at the end of each chapter. This seemed a little clunky to me at times. At other times, they were a great addition.

It was a quick, easy read. I wouldn’t say it was really absorbing or super engaging though.

There was a surprise I didn’t expect. So that really earns it a 2.5 instead of a straight 2.

A lot of the issues I had with the book – the very speedy romance ramp up and the not quite edgy but almost emotions and scenes – made a lot more sense when I read the author info and learned Becky Wade wrote secular romance before turning her pen to Christian romance. So if you’re a reader who likes secular romances, I think you’d enjoy this book more than I did.

Love this new series -- can't wait to read the next one!

True to You instantly appealed to me as I work as a librarian in genealogy/local history department. The plot involves an adopted adult looking for his birth parents, and the librarian helps with the research. It's also the story of opposites attract as the two main characters are a Navy Seal and a bookish librarian. This was my first novel by Becky Wade, and I was overly impressed as she turned the subplots into a surprise twist and a story of redemption and forgiveness. I went into this book thinking it is a typical cheesy romance, but found that the story had much more depth. Stay with it to the end as Wade is an amazing storyteller.

Sweet, almost toothachingly sweet at times but a fun little read.

Nora is a librarian. As such, she has a vivid imagination that can conjure up all kinds of trouble, has more relationships with fictional characters than with humans, and seems stuck in a different era. When her sister talks her into playing a hostage in a training exercise to “further the cause of world peace,” she can’t refuse. She is chagrined when she freezes in fear and has to be carried out by the handsome instructor, John.

John is a war hero who desperately needs to find his birth mother to get some answers to his questions. With Nora’s help, he starts tracking down leads and finds that Nora helps him in more ways than he expected. She makes jokes and uses ridiculously big words and makes him forget his troubles. With her, he can breathe.

Nora has two interesting sisters that are sure to be featured in their own books but my favorite character was Grandma. Grandma “must have excused herself to use the restroom right at the moment when the Holy Spirit handed out the fruit called joy” (Location 665). She is cranky and opinionated and doubts the salvation of good-looking men. HA I hope she figures prominently in the books to come.

I really enjoyed the story and Nora’s relationship with her family. It is nice to see sisters who support and encourage one another and aren’t in competition with each other. There are a lot of quirky moments and plenty of humor. There are some big twists that totally caught me off guard. I laughed and I cried. All those things make for a winning combination for me. I’d recommend this book and will look forward to the next book in the series.

Thank you to Bethany House for providing me with a free e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

I just finished this book and loved it!!! I was drawn to this story because of the mention of genealogy in the description and the adorable cover, I am definitely a sucker for a beautiful cover! This is a sweet, sweet story that isn't all saccharine and syrupy, there is some angst and mystery going on. There is also a twist toward the end that I certainly did not see coming. The topic of the twist is a very touchy topic to be broached, but the author handled it in a sensitive way that was respectful and kind. Nora and John have some great chemistry, I loved them together and was so happy to just realize that this is the first of a series. I bet the other books will be about Willow and Britt, Nora's sisters. Having two sisters myself made this book all the more fun for me to read, I liked their interactions and the respect they had for each other. I just finished this book and loved it!!! I was drawn to this story because of the mention of genealogy in the description and the adorable cover, I am definitely a sucker for a beautiful cover! This is a sweet, sweet story that isn't all saccharine and syrupy, there is some angst and mystery going on. There is also a twist toward the end that I certainly did not see coming. The topic of the twist is a very touchy topic to be broached, but the author handled it in a sensitive way that was respectful and kind. Nora and John have some great chemistry, I loved them together and was so happy to just realize that this is the first of a series. I bet the other books will be about Willow and Britt, Nora's sisters. Having two sisters myself made this book all the more fun for me to read, I liked their interactions and the respect they had for each other. I highly recommend this book and am looking forward to looking up more books by this author that I can read while I'm waiting for the next book in this series.

True to You

by Becky Wade

Bethany House

Bethany House Publishers



Christian

Pub Date 02 May 2017

I am voluntarily reviewing a copy of True To You through Bethany House Publisher and Netgalley:

Nora Bradford historical village owner, and Genealogist decided after heartbreak three years prior that burying herself in her work and her books is safer than romance in the Here and now. John Lawson is a former Naval Seal who is a hero to many, and soon Nora Bradford finds herself looking at him in a way she hadn't seen men in a long time.

Does John feel the same way about Nora? Is it safe to allow John into her heart?

Can John and Nora find their happily ever after? Find out in True to You.

Five out of five stars.

Happy Reading.

I loved this book. It was hard to put down for something like…my job.

The chemistry and teasing between Nora and John is intense and fun, respectively. Nora’s quirky habits are endearing and make her character even more loveable while John’s steadfastness is the perfect complement to the middle Bradford sister.

This story deals with some painful topics—loss of a parent, a future you can’t control, finding an adoptive parent, and a couple more heart-wrenching issues. But there is a perfect balance of lighthearted moments. Whether they come from Nora’s sisters or grandmother, John, or Nora herself, the timing of these events is impeccably woven into the fabric of this book.

I loved the comradery between the sisters. If you’ve read “Then Came You,” the novella that precedes this book, you know their history. If not, you’ll get it in “True to You.” I loved that readers get peeks into what Nora’s sisters have in store for them. I loved that there was a connection to the Porter series (it was small and you might miss it, but it’s there.

In fact, my only complaint about this book is that Nora’s parents weren’t in it. Thankfully, there are a couple more books coming that will give them an opportunity to make an appearance.

A solid first in the Bradford Sisters series, I look forward to what’s next from Becky Wade.

Disclosure statement:
I receive complimentary books for review from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including Netgalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.

I love Becky Wade's books. I've read every one and truly cannot wait for book two in this series. I was quite thrilled with Nora's profession in this book. I find researching family history quite intriguing and have spent a fair amount of time pouring through old letters of my own Great Grandfather so watching her help John with his history. I also loved the work she was doing in her community as well.

I appreciated that both Nora and John had some flaws because at times they both almost seemed too good to be true. But I was glad to see them both have to learn about relationship, communication, and forgiveness throughout the book. Their struggles made their lives easier to relate to. I also enjoyed the family dynamics especially with Nora and her sisters in this book. I cannot wait to get to know the other sisters better in their books.

I really loved that Wade dropped a huge surprise in this book. The book was pretty carefree and then all of a sudden there was a flip turn upside down moment. It changed everything and made me almost cry. I love it when an author pulls that off!

I highly recommend reading the prequel novella, Then Came You, so that you have a better understanding of this book. It isn't necessary but will make you appreciate many parts of this book even more.

The publisher through NetGalley provided me an advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Classic, unassuming & focused, Nora Bradford is the middle sister. Since her childhood, she has felt that she didn't have the beauty or the creativity of her older and younger sisters. She's created her own niche, and is quite content in her existence. Or so it appears.

American hero, John Lawson is quite the opposite from those Nora would consider 'her' people. She is a local genealogist who runs the local historical village. He is an ex-Navy SEAL, who has received the prestigious Medal of Honor. He has started a security training company, and their paths cross as she volunteers as a hostage in one of his exercises. Star struck and swept away in her crush, she secretly dreams of what it would be like to be noticed by him. John, recently diagnosed with a debilitating disease that he discovers is hereditary, needs to find his birth mother and the family he knows nothing of. Adopted as a baby, he has no medical history and desperately needs help to find his genetic family roots. Its a search he can't do alone. When he finds out that Nora has the resources to help, he makes her an offer she cannot refuse.

Alas, John has a girlfriend and all dreams of an idyllic future with him must come to a screeching halt. Neither one of them expect chemistry. Neither one of them want to become the stereotypical 'cheating' partner. Nora has suffered heartbreak like this before, and she has no desire to become the other woman. Similarly John has held fast to his standards his entire life, and is not about to change them now.

Their journey for answers, though slow at first leads along a path neither of them expected. Will they be able to handle what is coming?

There is a free ebook novella prequel 'Then Came You', to this brand new series from Becky Wade. If you read it, it will give you plenty of back story behind the Bradford family. However, Becky does a great job of explaining the necessary parts as she goes through 'True to You'.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Nora is so relatable as a character. I'd guess many of us feel the commonly felt feeling of being 'overlooked' by society. Nothing special, or stand out from the crown personality. Those that know her, see that there is far more to her than she sees in herself. I loved the relationship of the three sisters, who share the same father, but each have a different mother (that is explained in 'Then Came You'). They are close and treasure each other in a way that I also can relate to with my own sisters.

I'm really excited to read Willow & Britt's stories, which we have been given a sneak peek into, cleverly weaved into the pages here. I also noticed the cameo appearance of Gray, from 'Her One and Only'. Awesome!

Thank you to Netgalley & Bethany House for the eARC. This is my honest review.

I am a fan of Becky Wade's other books, but this one I found disappointing. The first half was slow with so much exposition. It picked up the second half. But overall, not my favorite.

Nora is a quiet and bookish yet indomitable leading lady, who loves big words and uses them regularly in casual conversation. She anchors her family. She’s fabulous. I adore her. She’s my spirit animal. 

Nora thrives on nerdy pastimes, helping people, her sisters and nostalgia. She’s the “smart one,” a genealogist and a historical village owner. When Navy SEAL-turned-security expert John Lawson comes to her for help finding his birth mother, Nora is the perfect gal for the job. Neither of them expects the romance that soon develops— thud.

Sorry, I swooned there for a second. Popping back up and dusting myself off now. Where was I? Ah, yes. John and Nora are just the sweetest pair! She crushes on him from their first meeting, and he adores her and her fascination with ridiculously big words. The subtle humor between them is charming. I wasn’t sure if Wade could pull off that last plot twist. But I just stayed up past midnight to finish TTY and silently fangirl-screamed over John+Nora at the end, so…

I’m a little in awe of the imagination that dreamed up this story. This story is complex, it’s redemptive, it’s heartbreakingly intense, it’s whimsical, and it’s indubitably and uncommonly courageous. A definite must-read!