Showing posts with label #christian #fiction #review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #christian #fiction #review. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 4, 2020

Nine by Rachelle Dekker



Synopsis:

Zoe Johnson spent most of her life living in the shadows, never drawing attention to herself, never investing in people or places. But when a wide-eyed, bedraggled teenager with no memory walks into the diner where Zoe works, everything changes. Now, against her better judgment, Zoe, who has been trying to outrun her own painful memories of the past, finds herself attempting to help a girl who doesn't seem to have any past at all. The girl knows only one thing: she must reach a woman in Corpus Christi, Texas, hundreds of miles away, before the government agents who are searching for her catch up to them.

Award-winning author Rachelle Dekker throws you into the middle of the action and keeps the pressure on in this page-turning story that, asks Are we who the world says we are--or can we change our story and be something more?


My Thoughts:

Action packed!  A must read!  Sometimes I hesitate on reading some Christian fiction because its just too fluffy! I need a dose of reality.  I mean sure, God performs miracles all the time, but sometimes it really has to hurt before we feel the joy. Also, there’s violence in the world. When a book bypasses that reality it just feels so fake to me and I lose interest.  Not with Rachelle’s books though. She is her own person and earned her following. This book, like Rachelle’s others definitely held my attention from beginning to end. I’d love to see more of this world in the future. Dekker is phenomenal at writing a series.


Tuesday, January 14, 2020

The Way of the Brave
by Susan May Warren
Published by Revell Publishing House



Synopsis:

Former pararescue jumper Orion Starr is haunted by the memory of a rescue gone wrong. He may be living alone in Alaska now, but the pain of his failure--and his injuries--has followed him there from Afghanistan. He has no desire to join Hamilton Jones's elite rescue team, but he also can't shirk his duty when the call comes in to rescue three lost climbers on Denali.

Former CIA profiler and psychiatrist Jenny Calhoun's yearly extreme challenge with her best friends is her only escape from the guilt that has sunk its claws into her. As a consultant during a top-secret mission to root out the Taliban, she green-lighted an operation that ended in ambush and lives lost. When her cathartic climb on Denali turns deadly, she'll be forced to trust her life and the lives of her friends to the most dangerous of heroes--the man she nearly killed.

Her skills and his experience are exactly what's needed to prevent another tragedy--but in order to truly set Orion free from his painful past, Jenny will have to reveal hers. They'll have to put their wounds behind them to survive, but at what cost?

Leap into action with this high-octane, breakneck new series from bestselling author Susan May Warren.


My Review: 

Wow, I had no idea that I could become more attached to a Susan May Warren series than I did with the Montana Rescue Me series, but Orion and Jenny's story has blew me away. The start of the story had me a little anxious because there was a lot of background information on ice climbing with terminology and tools that I did not understand at all, but pushing past that initial intro of information is well worth it.  The story itself takes off for each of these characters separately and intertwining at just the perfect moments.  



The world building of snowy mountains and ice ledges was designed perfectly for the images played out well in my head.  The descriptive action scenes were my most favorites parts of the story.  I held my breath quite a few times, unable to tear my eyes away from the pages, even when my husband or son started to talk to me.  I had to hold a finger up, begging for a just another few minutes. I am so excited for next installment and cannot wait to see how the lives and relationships unfold in the rest of this powerful and exciting series.

This story is strong, powerful and moving. You will laugh. You will tear up or cry. You will find yourself holding your breath!  Did I mention I want to go to Alaska?! 




Susan May Warren












Friday, July 19, 2019

Mosaic Collection - Author Spotlight and Giveaway!!


Welcome to the Blog Blitz for The Mosaic Collection, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!
ABOUT THE COLLECTION
For His glory...
The Mosaic Collection is an international community of women authors who use faith-based fiction to touch hearts with the good news that Christ's finished work on the cross has made us one family, and to nurture affection for the people God has placed within our circles of influence, so that the grace and glory of God may become visible and personal to everyone we meet.
...and our good
We are sisters, a beautiful mosaic united by the love of God through the blood of Christ. We have experienced the redemptive, restorative power of God's grace in our marriages and families, and we believe our God is able to heal, restore and redeem our brokenness. His love fills us with the courage to persevere, and to offer others a Christ-like compassion that is full of His wisdom and grace.
Visit the Mosaic Collection Website to stay posted on each new release & follow the collection blog for meaningful posts from the authors!


ABOUT THE AUTHOR



ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Regina Rudd Merrick is a writer, church musician, wife, mother, former librarian, and grateful follower of Jesus Christ. Having lived most of her life in Western Kentucky, she dreams of the sound of crashing waves and sandy beaches. Married to her husband of 35+ years, she is the mother of two grown daughters, and the keeper of a 100-year-old house where she lives in the small town of Marion, KY. She is the author of three books: Carolina Dream (Apr. 2017), Carolina Mercy (July 2018), and Carolina Grace (February 2019) in the Southern Breeze Series.

CONNECT WITH REGINA: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest

Cornerstone message from the collection: 
Trust God and do the next right thing.

I want my readers to know that they are not alone, and that what they’re going through is not unique to them. Life isn’t a series of obstacles to overcome, but a series of events that point us to Jesus, who loves us more than we can imagine.

Fun Facts about Regina!

Favorite place to read: In my bed - okay to be honest, on a balcony overlooking the beach, but reality . . . 

Favorite book character from childhood: Laura Ingalls Wilder - I know, she was a real person, but she made me want to be a pioneer so badly!!

Favorite movie: Tough one. I have several: You’ve Got Mail, Sahara, How the West was Won, Notorious, Star Wars. How’s that for variety?

Favorite quote or Bible verse: Psalm 37:4. “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”

Favorite splurge/treat: Anything with hot fudge on it. :) 

Favorite character you’ve created: Lucy Dixon. She was so much fun to write!

Last 3 great books you read:  “A Bound Heart” by Laura Frantz, “Justice Delivered” by Patricia Bradley, “Where Treasure Hides” by Johnnie Alexander

Dream vacation: A month on an island off the coast of SC, GA, or FL, doing nothing but soaking up the sun, eating, walking, and reading.

Hidden talent/little-known fact: 

Plotter or pantser: Plantser

In no particular order, ten of your favorite things (i.e. hot cocoa, a warm breeze, the sound of my kids’ laughter, etc.) : The ocean, chocolate chip cookies, a new computer, shopping for shoes, planning a vacation, decorating a house, my instant pot, hugs from my girls, my new wedding band, walking on the beach

TOUR GIVEAWAY



(1) winner will receive a $50 Amazon eGift Card & an ebook prize pack*!
Winner will receive an ebook of:
  • Where She Belongs
  • Pieces of Granite
  • Lifelines
  • Christmas on a Mission
  • Vigilant
  • Other Side of the River
  • The Third Grace
  • Carolina Grace
  • The Benefit Package (a devotional)
  • Dance of Grace
  • When Love Calls
Full tour schedule linked below. Giveaway will begin at midnight July 10, 2019 and last through 11:59 PM EST on July 24, 2019. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. Open internationally, but international winner will receive a gift card only *(may be substituted for a Book Depository gift card if winner cannot accept from US Amazon)
Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.




See tour landing page for a complete list of authors & book release dates.
Follow along at
JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!


*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links.


Saturday, July 13, 2019

The Mosaic Collection - Author Spotlight and Giveaway


Welcome to the Blog Blitz for The Mosaic Collection, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!
ABOUT THE COLLECTION

For His glory...
The Mosaic Collection is an international community of women authors who use faith-based fiction to touch hearts with the good news that Christ's finished work on the cross has made us one family, and to nurture affection for the people God has placed within our circles of influence, so that the grace and glory of God may become visible and personal to everyone we meet.

...and our good
We are sisters, a beautiful mosaic united by the love of God through the blood of Christ. We have experienced the redemptive, restorative power of God's grace in our marriages and families, and we believe our God is able to heal, restore and redeem our brokenness. His love fills us with the courage to persevere, and to offer others a Christ-like compassion that is full of His wisdom and grace.

Visit the Mosaic Collection Website to stay posted on each new release & follow the collection blog for meaningful posts from the authors!



ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brenda S. Anderson writes gritty and authentic, life-affirming fiction. She is a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, and is Past-President of the ACFW Minnesota chapter, MN-NICE, the 2016 ACFW Chapter of the Year. When not reading or writing, she enjoys music, theater, roller coasters, and baseball (Go Twins!), and she loves watching movies with her family. She resides in the Minneapolis, Minnesota area with her husband of 31 years, their three children, and one sassy cat.

CONNECT WITH BRENDA: Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Goodreads

Cornerstone message from the collection: 

Listen...

Everyone has their own life story that brings them to where they are in life and molds their beliefs and opinions. The problem is, we live in a reactionary world where we don't stop and listen to what others are saying, and too often we're not willing to really hear the other person's side of the story. Rather, we react to their statement or opinion by pointing fingers, and we’re quick to not only say, "You're wrong" but we often resort to name calling. We don’t stop and listen to this person whom God loves.

In each of my books, God has placed heroes/heroines on my heart that I would normally struggle with and want to tell them, "You're wrong!": a pro-choice woman, an arrogant businessman, a bully, mugger, collection agent, to name a few. With each character, God has told me, "I love them. I want you to see the heart that I see." And that's what I've tried to convey in my books. Open up our ears and our eyes to see who God sees, hears, and loves.


Some Facts About Brenda:

Favorite place to read: It doesn’t happen often, but sitting by the shore of Lake Superior. That’s my favorite place, period!

Favorite book character from childhood: Trixie Belden - I loved how real and relatable she was. She was far from perfect, yet she was loyal to family and friends.

Favorite movie: This is ever changing. Right now it’s Avengers: Endgame. I LOVE the Marvel movies!

Favorite quote or Bible verse: This is also ever changing! Right now my favorite verse is Isaiah 43:19a “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?”

Favorite splurge/treat: Fannie May candies. Unfortunately (or maybe it’s fortunately …) there are no longer any stores near us.

Favorite character you’ve created: The main character in my first release and series, Richard Brooks. I loved his journey from broken man to bold Christ follower. Though his series is complete, he still makes random appearances in subsequent books because I just can’t say goodbye!

TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive a $50 Amazon eGift Card & an ebook prize pack*!
Winner will receive an ebook of:
  • Where She Belongs
  • Pieces of Granite
  • Lifelines
  • Christmas on a Mission
  • Vigilant
  • Other Side of the River
  • The Third Grace
  • Carolina Grace
  • The Benefit Package (a devotional)
  • Dance of Grace
  • When Love Calls
Full tour schedule linked below. Giveaway will begin at midnight July 10, 2019 and last through 11:59 PM EST on July 24, 2019. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. Open internationally, but international winner will receive a gift card only *(may be substituted for a Book Depository gift card if winner cannot accept from US Amazon)
Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.



See tour landing page for a complete list of authors & book release dates.
Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!


*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links.

Friday, July 12, 2019

The Mosaic Collection


Welcome to the Blog Blitz for The Mosaic Collection, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!
ABOUT THE COLLECTION
For His glory...
The Mosaic Collection is an international community of women authors who use faith-based fiction to touch hearts with the good news that Christ's finished work on the cross has made us one family, and to nurture affection for the people God has placed within our circles of influence, so that the grace and glory of God may become visible and personal to everyone we meet.

...and our good
We are sisters, a beautiful mosaic united by the love of God through the blood of Christ. We have experienced the redemptive, restorative power of God's grace in our marriages and families, and we believe our God is able to heal, restore and redeem our brokenness. His love fills us with the courage to persevere, and to offer others a Christ-like compassion that is full of His wisdom and grace.


Visit the Mosaic Collection Website to stay posted on each new release & follow the collection blog for meaningful posts from the authors!


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Deb Elkink lives with her long-time husband in a cottage beside a babbling creek in rural Alberta, Canada. She grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and studied in Minneapolis–Saint Paul (B.A. Communications), publishing a dozen or so short stories and articles as a young adult. She spent the next twenty years as a rancher’s wife and homeschooling mom (rounding up cattle on horseback, cooking for huge branding crews, earning her private pilot’s license, readying kids for high school).

Graduate studies (M.A. Theology) then prepared her for editing a professional quarterly magazine, doctoral dissertations and scholarly articles, and an online expository Bible study. Today she writes and edits, travels like mad, drinks lots of creamy decaf with friends, and speaks to women’s groups about the Christian faith.

Her debut novel (The Third Grace) received Canada’s prestigious Grace Irwin Prize in 2012, and her literary work on the fiction of a late-Victorian British writer (Roots and Branches: The Symbol of the Tree in the Imagination of G.K. Chesterton) was published in 2015. Her upcoming novel is a contemporary women’s fiction with a historical/theological twist: Eat, Pray, Love and The Wizard of Oz meet the Book of Hebrews in showing that “home” is a state of soul, a state of inner rest.

CONNECT WITH DEB: Website | Facebook

Cornerstone message from the collection: 

Look for God in the Bible. Everything (art, literature, fashion design, engineering, philosophy, travel, cooking, health, romance, community, fitness . . .) can be a way to express or illustrate God’s action on our world, but only the living and breathed-out Word of God can give us knowledge of the Father our hearts are longing for. Only the mind of God revealed to the minds of mortals by the Holy Spirit through Scripture can bring us into alignment with the Person of Jesus Christ. In today’s increasingly pagan culture, “spirituality” has become a buzzword for any belief but the truth—the more mystical the better. But the Holy Book of God is the only source containing all we need for salvation and spiritual life. 


Some Cool Facts About Deb...

Favorite book character from childhood: Nancy Drew--so poised, so brainy, and so gullible all at the same time. She led me into and through many mysterious plots that stimulated my curiosity about dude ranches and treasure maps and old attics. It’s funny I didn’t become a mystery writer.

Favorite movie: Usually psychological thrillers (with no spiritistic thread) like Gone Girl or The Game, or any movies I can read theology into such as Chocolat or Father Brown. Currently, however: When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story 

Also Phil 1:9-11: And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.


Favorite splurge/treat: Chocolate! Dark, bittersweet, enveloping rustic candied ginger or cherries or salted caramel

Favorite character you’ve created: Mary Grace (renamed Aglaia after a Greek goddess), who ran from her rural background searching for herself (and love) in the arts. Or maybe Ebenezer MacAdam, the old Scottish sage full of truth. No, I take that back--better Libby Walker, who’s been walking away for all her life and finally finds her way home. That said, my current antagonist, Sybil Tansey, travels from one exotic international “sacred place” to the next for yet another thrill--gotta love the misplaced verve.  

Last 3 great books you read: All the Light You Cannot See (Doerr); Walking with God Through Pain and Suffering (Keller); Hebrews (the Holy Spirit)

Dream vacation: A Japanese ryokan (traditional inn) in Kyoto during cherry blossom season 

Hidden talent/little-known fact: I can hear the (silent to most) shriek of an armed but not activated high-frequency alarm in some shops--yikes, drives me bats!

Plotter or pantser: Definitely plotter

In no particular order, ten of your favorite things (i.e. hot cocoa, a warm breeze, the sound of my kids’ laughter, etc.) : Exotic perfume; Chinese brush art (ink on sepia paper); Mennonite food (especially vrenekje with schmontfat--look it up); deep red silk velvet; prairie thunderstorms; a huge church choir singing old hymns of praise beneath the vaulted ceilings of a cathedral; my sewing machine; a crisp sheet of blank superwhite paper and a new roller pen; my hot tub in a snowstorm; a warm hug

TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive a $50 Amazon eGift Card & an ebook prize pack*!
Winner will receive an ebook of:
  • Where She Belongs
  • Pieces of Granite
  • Lifelines
  • Christmas on a Mission
  • Vigilant
  • Other Side of the River
  • The Third Grace
  • Carolina Grace
  • The Benefit Package (a devotional)
  • Dance of Grace
  • When Love Calls
Full tour schedule linked below. Giveaway will begin at midnight July 10, 2019 and last through 11:59 PM EST on July 24, 2019. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. Open internationally, but international winner will receive a gift card only *(may be substituted for a Book Depository gift card if winner cannot accept from US Amazon)
Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.




See tour landing page for a complete list of authors & book release dates.
Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!


*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links.


Book Review: Winning Over the Baker by Danielle Thorne

  Welcome to the Takeover + Review Blitz for Winning Over the Baker by Danielle Thorne hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours !                ...