Five Fall Favorites: Monday – Books I’ve Recommended (2025)

Welcome to the 10th annual Five Fall Favorites blog party! Kate Willis and Rebekah Morris are the hosts of this fun yearly event. This is my first year joining the FFF party, and I’m excited to be here with you all today! I’m an American (USA).
This year FFF has 28 hosts! That’s amazing, and I’m looking forward to seeing all the wonderful book recs and sharing the fun with you all!

This year the FFF participants were split into teams. I’m on team Walnut along with a a handful of other blogs.

Also on my team are:
Skai

Madisyn

Abigail

Bethany

Kelsey

Kate

---

_{This post includes affiliate links, which simply means that if you click on one of them and make a purchase, I’ll also make a small percentage at no extra cost to you.}

---

Monday’s Prompt: Books I’ve Recommended

Today’s prompt was supposed to be for books that we’ve recommended in past FFFs, but this is my first year. I ended up using some of the alternatives for later in the week though, so…I’m just going to share a few of the books I’ve recommended recently for today’s post. I ended up with all 2025 releases, so none of these would have shown up on past FFF posts, but they were each so good that I couldn’t resist talking about them a bit more.

1. Finding Home Again by Katlyn Grace –

Running away from home as a young adult is only a small sliver of Elizabeth Taylor’s dreadful past. A dreadful past she’s determined to blot from her memory, until an unexpected call from her mother beckons her home to Alton, Illinois. Returning home isn’t a risk she is willing to take, especially when she’s returning with a seven-year-old daughter no one knows about.

Head Detective Richard Blake is fearless and confident when it comes to his profession. However, an incident involving his best friend’s death still doesn’t sit well with him, no matter how many years pass. When the case emerges to the surface as Ms. Taylor arrives back in Alton, curiosity gets the best of Blake.

Richard is drawn to the single mom struggling with a past she can’t forgive. While Elizabeth is leery of him, her daughter is all for the handsome detective and the help he is willing to offer. What will happen in the little city of Alton with Elizabeth Taylor’s return? And will Richard discover his past intertwining with Elizabeth’s?

---

Finding Home Again by Katlyn Grace is a delightful take on the prodigal son story. I loved seeing both Lizzie and Richard learn to grow and let go of last hurts as they seem to discover what really matters.

2. These Wild Dreams of Ours by Carly L. Carlson –

An unconventional young woman, a disenchanted scout, and a journey more difficult than anyone could imagine.

Kate McGrath and her family join a wagon train heading to the open spaces and promises of the American West. She is eager for a life of adventure free from society’s suffocating conventions, but those expectations follow her out into the wilderness. Kate faces storms, stampedes, and swollen rivers with courage and steadfast faith, but is set adrift when her daydreaming heart is captivated by a handsome scout.

Jacob Munroe is scouting for a wagon train yet again, but his wandering ways have lost their appeal. When he meets the McGrath family, Jacob is drawn to the peace they possess despite their hardships. Especially Kate. She is full of intriguing wild and strong, yet kind and gentle. She is a balm to his angry heart and restless soul, but brings with her a faith in a God whom Jacob is convinced doesn’t care.

Then tragedy strikes. Kate’s faith is tested and Jacob’s world is shattered, and they both face impossible choices.

Will their journey across the wilderness bring them peace or tear their worlds apart?

---

This book! Ahh, I waited for months knowing that I was eager to read it when it came out, and I was not disappointed! I loved this one so much! June was an emotional month for me this year, but also a month filled with amazing reads, and this one definitely tops my list of amazing books of 2025 so far!

3. Shadows of the Valley by Britt Howard –

Wounded and retired veteran Kasey Carterwalks alone.

But when the one person she’s tried the hardest to push away begs for her help, she can’t resist the call of duty and devotion. Thrown on a path more dangerous than she expected, she’ll do anything to protect the people she loves, even if that means hiding out for months in the forested mountains of Cascade Valley, Montana.

When a nosy—and handsome—local rancher stumbles across her hiding place, she’ll have to decide if she can risk trusting him or if she’ll have to walk through the shadows alone in a battle to survive.

Rancher Dean McCade is used to devoting himself to protecting the people and the land he loves.

When a chance encounter brings him face-to-face with a mysterious woman living in the woods, he can’t stop thinking about her. Probably because the woman won’t stop putting him in her rifle sights every time they meet. It’s obvious she’s running from something, but her fiercely guarded secrets keep him at a distance.

As he works to earn her trust and the truth unfolds, he knows God put him in her path. But as his feelings grow and the danger lurking in the shadows collides with their hope for a future, the right choice might mean loving her enough to let her go.

---

This was another one I was excited for. I loved Song in the Valley, but this one is wonderful too! I read the first book a couple years ago, and was excited to hear that a sequel was expected soon. This one is a balanced blend of contemporary romance and romantic suspense, and I loved how it turned out!

4. What Brings Us Joy by Teresa Wells –

In 1895, eighteen-year-old Delia Truitt’s world is shattered when circumstances force her family to leave their comfortable life in Georgia and relocate to a ramshackle Texas farm. Determined to help her parents dig out of their impoverished state, she plans to open a dressmaker’s shop—if she can win the county fair quilt contest and fund her business with the prize money. Delia sets her sights on success—until her heart takes an unexpected detour when she meets handsome Clarence Parker.

Determined to uphold his reputation, Clarence refuses to let his troubled past overshadow his pursuit of happiness, especially when he falls for the spirited and fearless Delia Truitt. His hopes are soon shattered when headlines reveal that his former gang members have escaped prison and are headed his way, driven by a ruthless desire for revenge. Though Clarence has no regrets about testifying against the outlaws, he fears his future with Delia is at risk. To protect her from the lurking danger, he’s willing to risk everything—his safety, his reputation, and their happiness.

Can Clarence keep her safe from the killers? And will Delia still love him once she learns the truth about his past?

---

Do you know what a crazy quilt is? I hadn’t heard about them before reading this one, but after meeting Delia and reading the fun historical snippets about them at the start of every chapter, I can say that they’re an interesting phenomenon! This is another of those stories that grow on me while I read them, and I quickly came to love the characters in this story.

5. Meeting Me, Loving You by Abigail Nadine –

She dreams of leaving Maple Lake. His greatest desire has always been to come back. Can their hearts cross somewhere in the middle?

When her family moves away from Maple Lake, Juliet buries her loneliness under grad school studies and hospital shifts. Fun and games are the last thing on her mind when Cameron Dunne suddenly enters her life.

The handsome, bearded teacher—resembling a lumberjack, rather than a math nerd—is determined to be the friend Juliet needs, encouraging her to let loose despite the schedule that consumes her life. The two of them soon embark on a mission to experience their hometown through fresh eyes.

Together, they rediscover Maple Lake as if seeing it for the first time, embracing its beauty in the same way as the tourists who visit. From hiking through the mountains, to studying for Juliet’s nursing exams, their attraction is undeniable.

Will they surrender to love, or let old wounds dictate their future?

---

This one isn’t a Christian Fiction, but it is clean. There are a couple of heated scenes, one while a character is recovering from an accident (nothing happens) and a quick make-out (sort of) towards the end, but for the most part this is clean and is also a slow-burn. The characters take a fun trip through each season doing seasonal activities in their small town from the perspective of tourist. I have loved this idea for a while, and always wanted to try it, but haven’t heard of it being done in a book before. I adored seeing it in Meeting Me, Loving You! I think these were the perfect characters to have this sort of adventure with.

---

Giveaway Time:

This year, thanks to having so many contributions, and to celebrate this being the tenth anniversary, the giveaway will have two winners!

Rafflecopter giveaway

---

FFF is a yearly bookish blog party hosted by:

---