New Release - Deeanna Gist

Dear Readers,

Deeanne Gist burst onto the Christian fiction scene a few short years ago with a wonderful spin on the historical genre.  She added humor, lots of it.  It made for a delightful read and one that just added to the pleasure of losing yourself in a light and easy read. 

Sadly I have to admit I have not read all her books, but the ones I have I have completely enjoyed.  They are full of quirky and fun characters that make it an engaging time spent in the past.  It is the perfect way to spend an afternoon.

It Happened at the Fair is Deeanne’s most recent release and once again she uses an usual setting and gives us a bit of a history lesson while charming us with the characters.  Cullen McNamara has an invention that he has bet the family farm on.  He sets up at the Chicago’s World Fair in 1893 to show it off.  When he can’t hear what potential buyers are saying, he hires Della to teach him the art of lip reading.   The problem is Cullen has a hard time concentrating on his lessons, Della is quite a distraction. 

To help you get the feel of the world’s fair, Deeanne has added pictures of different inventions, displays and even the giant Wheel that Mr. Ferris brought to show off.  It adds to the story see what people were excited about at the World’s Fair.  Things that we will either find common place or even silly, it just helps the story to be an even more complete picture.

Happy Reading.

Angela Hunt

Dear Readers,

I was hoping to have my summer reading suggests for you today.  That did happen in that I am still trying to get it written, but all the really good books that have come out in the past months, the list kept getting longer and longer.  So hopefully by next week I will have it all set and ready for you.  Sorry for the delay.

Instead I just wanted to talk about a book that I read a few years ago called the Shadow Women by Angel Hunt.  I was reminded of it a couple different ways in recent weeks.  First when I saw it sitting on the shelves in the used book department.  I loved the book when I read it back in 2002 and have mentioned it to a few people when I saw it on the shelves back there.  Secondly because of another book I am reading right now that is causing a little stir in the fiction market because of who and what it is about.  

Shadow Women is the story of the women who were part of Moses’ life.  His mother, sister and wife, and it is not necessarily the story you would expect.  While Angela did a great job sticking to the Biblical story, she also did a great job at making sure we see Moses as a human also.  He did great things and followed God’s plan for his life, and yet wasn’t perfect.  He struggled with many different parts of his life. 

One part of his story I have often wondered about is his royal upbringing.  What was it like for him in the palace of Egypt?  How soon did he know that he was adopted?  All questions I would like to ask him someday, but in the mean time it was interesting to speculate with Angela and try to understand more about Moses and the women who loved him.

I am sorry to say the book itself if out of print and I am unable to order you a copy, but if you are quick, I have one used copy here.

Happy Reading

New Release - Rachel Hauck

Dear Readers,

Once Upon a Prince by Rachel Hauck is exactly what it sounds like, a modern day fairy tale.  What little girl at one time or another did not dream of meeting Prince Charming just like in Cinderella.  He would see her true beauty and rescue her from the drudgery that was her everyday life and fall in love to live happily ever after.  (Let’s all collectively sigh now.J)

Rachel believes in that can happen.  She is a romantic at heart and it shows up in her books and writing.  She also knows that reality comes in and sometime true love doesn’t win.  Duty does call and life just doesn’t go the way we want, but what fun is that in a book.

Susanna was expecting a proposal from her longtime boyfriend.  Instead he broke up with her and broke her heart in the process.  She is struggling to regain her life and move on.  Prince Nathaniel never expected to find love while standing under a tree labeled Lover’s Oak, but that is what happens when he meets Susanne.  The problem is that they are both from very different worlds; they can never be together because duty calls. 

I can already see the Disney people writing a lovely happy movie for this book, but until then, pull up your nearest royal chair, your tiara, maybe a spot of tea and enjoy a fairy tale written for the little girl alive and well in all of us.

Happy Reading

New Release - Donna Fletcher Crow

Dear Readers,

An Unholy Communion by Donna Fletcher Crow is the third book in the Monastery Murders.  #1 is A Very Private Grave and book 2 is Darkly Hidden Truth.  This has been a fun series to read, it has a different feel to it because it is set in England written by someone very familiar with the culture of the church in England.  Donna has written more than 35 novels with most of them set in England, even though she lives in Idaho.

Once again we join Felicity and Antony as they try to solve a murder that lands right at their feet.  Hwyl Pendry is a former student of Antony and when his body lands at Felicity’s feet after what appears to be a suicide jump, they and the police let the case go.  That is until Hwyl’s widow convinces them otherwise.

There is something very appealing about these books.   They are more of a straight up mystery and that makes them a pleasure to read.  It is fun to just track along and see if I catch all the clues left by Donna, which I usually don’t.  Mysteries in and of themselves and just an enjoyable read, they engage your brain and yet offer you an escape. 

Happy Reading

New Releases May 6 - 11

Dear Readers,

I was having a conversation with a fellow employee the other day and we were talking about how many books we have read at one time.  It dawned on me that at that moment I had 5 books going at once.  One on my nightstand, one by the bathtub, one on my desk at work, one I read on lunch at work and one non-fiction that I have been reading at various points of the day over the weekend. 

I also hate to admit there is a 6th book that I had read over the weekend while sitting outside in the sunshine.  I think that is the most I have ever had going at once.  Thankfully they are all very different so I am not getting to confused, but maybe I should finish a couple before I start another one.

What is the most number of books you have had going at once?

Happy Reading

An Unholy Communion - Donna Fletcher Crow - #3 in the Monastary Mysteries - As voices are lifted on Ascension morning, Felicity's worship is turned to horror when a body lands at her feet.  The police think it is suicide, but Felicity and her fiance' Father Anthony know otherwise and set out to solve the mystery.

Angelguard - Ian Acheson - Not all the spirits are good.  A corrupt business man and the evil spirits he has sold his soul to are trying to bring the G8 nations to their knees.  Jack and his angelguard are all that stand between thema and sucess.

Once Upon a Prince - Rachel Hauck - A modern day fairy tale.  Susanna is expecting to be engaged, not broken up with.  Prince Nathaniel is not expecting to find love under a tree on St. Simon's Island.  But it happens, but their two different lives will not allow them to love each other.

Chasing Francis - Ian Morgan Cron - Pastor Chase loses his faith and the church elders encourage him to go away - far away.  He ends up in Italy following in Fancis of Assisi's footsteps.

A Most Peculiar Circumstance – Jen Turano – This is Jen’s third novel.  They are not listed as a series, but they have characters running through all three books. (The second book is a free novella available on-line only)  Miss Arabella Beckett returns home with trouble in tow.   Theodore Wilder is hired to make sure she gets there, the only problem is they continue to run into each other whether they like it or not.

Stealing the Preacher – Karen Witemeyer – Crockett just wants to be a preacher, Joanna just wants a preacher for her town’s church.  When they meet she thinks he is an answer to prayer, but he is there against his will.

It Happened at the Fair – Deeanne Gist – Cullen is looking to sell his newest invention at the Chicago’s World Fair.  The noise makes it hard to here if anyone is interested in buying, until he takes lip-reading lessons from the fair Della Wentworth.  

Katie's Choice - Amy Lillard - A Clover Ridge Novel #2 - When Samuel turns his back on the church and Katie, she decides to dedicate her life to God and the children at the small community school.  Zane learns a lot about the Amish when he is sent to live among them for a news story.  The most intriguing thing he finds is the young school teacher.

Sweet Dreams - Carla Stewart - Dusty Fairchild didn't want to go to  finishing school, she wanted to go to college.  She didn't want to learn about party planning and poise.  She wants independence and adventure.  The only upside it her best friend Paisley, that is until they both fall for the same man.

New Release - S. Dionne Moore

Dear Readers,

The latest Quilts of Love novel is A Heartbeat Away by S. Dionne Moore.  Because this series has such a unique look at something that is very much part of the tapestry of America’s history, this series is doing quite well.  Each new book is highly anticipated and readers are asking for them, even before they are available.

Once again we return to the Civil War in A Heartbeat Away where we meet Beth.  She a Union – loyalist until she meets Joe a wounded Confederate soldier and hides him from her pacifist parents.   When she tells her parents that she is going to become a wartime nurse, she knows that she maybe bidding her parent’s good bye for the last time. 

He mother gives her a stack of quilt blocks for her to sew together as a farewell gift, which leave Beth wondering why.  But as she works on the quilt she finds her mother’s message of love.

Each of these books has a different way of looking at the story of the quilt.  They weave a lovely story of America and how we are all united in our different lives.

Happy Reading

Barbara Cameron

Dear Readers,

Abingdon Press entered the fiction market just a short while ago.  (Not sure how long but in the last couple of years.)  Their books were easy to recommend as they seemed to be making an effort to find good authors with interesting stories to tell.  They had several different genres available and were looking to do something new and exciting.

Abingdon wanted their fiction to be so much more than just a story.  Now to be perfectly honest I wasn’t so sure about this when I first heard about it because I have seen publishing houses do this before and the fiction is lost in the author’s attempt to teach us something.  Very few people read fiction for the knowledge they will gain, they read it for the pure enjoyment of it, if we happen to learn something, well then all the better. .

I was asked to join the blog tour for Her Restless Heart by Barbara Cameron.  It is the first book in her Stitches in Time series.  It is actually the second book that Abingdon has centered a Bible study on, the first being the Shining Waters series by Melody Carlson.  

Understand I did not read the fiction book first, as the study says you don’t need to read the book to do the study.  I wanted to see if it was confusing, if it made me want to read the book or wish I had read the book.   Now those of you who read my blog regularly know that Amish fiction is not my favorite, but I am willing to give it a try.  It all made for a very interesting adventure for me.

This Bible study will work for you whether you have read the books or not.  I had no problem following the storyline and keeping up with what was going on.  Barbara and Abingdon Press did a good job of including enough of the story to make it clear.  The questions are interesting and don’t just focus on the fiction story, they are very much about the Bible story and how it is still so much a part of our lives today.

The videos would be a nice way to open a group meeting; now I was doing the study by myself at home, but Barbara’s interviews and insights made for what I felt would be a good launching place for a group discussion.  If you had done all the homework throughout the week, you would have no problem keeping up doing a group session.

I think the only thing that I would warn groups about is there is homework and you do have to keep up or you lose the train of thought of the story and how it relates to the topic that is being discuss that day.  Sometimes between the reading and answering the questions I felt a bit overwhelmed by the work.  But overall I enjoyed the experience and I think Abingdon has a neat concept.

Happy Reading.