Woman of Courage

A Quaker woman dare the unknown to be a missionary.  This statement was one of the reasons I picked this book for review.  Normally, I am not a huge historical reader but the author was Wanda Brunstetter and I knew she writes good books.  This books actually drew me in throughout the story and kept me guessing just how Amanda would survive and make it to her destination.

Amanda Pearson was jilted by her fiance' and decides to pick up and embark on a three-thousand mile journey in 1837. She wants to follow the Rev. and Mrs. Spalding into the western wilderness to minister to the Nez Perce' Indians along with her father.  The trail is long and difficult and there are many dangers and tragedies that Amanda has to overcome. She faced a near death experience but God showed her the people she was sent to help and minister to even before she got to the Spalding Mission. I felt that was the key to this story-her obstacles and her courage to go on.  Amanda also has no desire for any relationship but a certain man enters her life as he guide but he has no desire to help anyone who claims Christ as their lord.  How can Amanda reach the Indians if she cannot reach anyone around her for Christ.  As the journey continues, it becomes life changing for her and those she meets.  The choices she has to make are almost unbearable.

This was a really good book laced with scripture and and forgiveness by some of the characters.  I received this book from Barbour Publishing free for my honest opinion.

Firewall

Just finished Firewall by Diann Mills and it was superb!!.  This author is one of my favorites and she never lets me down when it comes to suspense and romance in the stories.

Taryn Young is a genius software developer who has a great job, a man who loves her, and a brand new marriage. Disaster strikes before the honeymoon can begin when an airport bombing injures her and her husband disappears. She is suspected of being involved in the death and destruction.  FBI Special Agent Grayson Hall does not believe Taryn is involved with what happened and begins to investigate her and her missing husband.  Fingers are pointed in several directions, but as the truth comes to light, so does more danger for Taryn and Grayson.  When a child is kidnapped, the two must work together to stop evil in its tracks. The story changes with a possible mole in the FBI office and when they learn what the bombers are really after, they are trying to stop a massive attack on the US and unravel the plot against national security.
This story is a skillful blend of suspense, romance and spirituality, this book's intricate storyline will keep you guessing all the way through.

Thanks to Tyndale Publishers for this free copy just for my honest opinion.

Silenced

I love to read, especially suspense fiction and Dani Pettrey is masterful  in that category.  This is my fourth book that I have read in her Alaskan Courage series. Each book takes a character in a family and builds stories that are extremely good.  All the books have the family characters interwoven throughout which reminds me of Dee Henderson's O'Malley series. This books deals with Kayden McKenna who finds a climber dead and she must find out if it was an accident or murder.  Jake Westin is back in town and is asked by the sheriff if he will help investigate. These two will clash with her personality being very closed, strong and  independent and fearful.  Jake, on the other hand, is a charming, patient, and willing to go after what he wants.  The story blends the best of suspense, romance and the classic-who did it. Along with just being a terrific story, I learned a lot about rock climbing.

This book has it all-mystery, romance and how God will win in the end with Kayden and her fears.  The author blends God's hope, mercy and grace throughout the storyline and characters which makes her books so enjoyable for me.  Loved the plot, characters, Alaska and am eagerly awaiting book #5 dealing with Reef. If you are interested in suspense and romance books, Dani Pettrey and her Alaskan Courage series will not disappoint you.  You will enjoy them immensely.

Thank you goes out to Bethany House for this free copy just for my honest opinion.

Heart Wide Open

When I pick out the books I want to read there are various things that make a book standout to me and this  statement did it for me "You believe in God.  You're trying to serve him.  But do you know how to truly love Him and let Him love you"?,   This statement is from Shellie Tomlinson in her book Heart Wide Open which she lays her heart open in eight chapters.  She says "Jesus, I know I don't love You like I should, but I want to want to love You". That is where my heart is and where all our hearts should be-loving Jesus more and more each day.

I loved so many things about this book; the author's humor, her honesty, her truth in her search for a deeper relationship with God.  She instilled in me some valuable tools to make that relationship become deeper for me and how to make my faith become "more alive". I enjoyed how she used lessons from her own life and sprinkled her writing with Scripture to enhance each chapter with easy to understand teaching.  She had a great chapter on bible study-I suppose cliff notes are out. This chapter game me some new ideas on how to approach scripture reading. "Every single choice we make to take hold of Scripture provides another opportunity for Scripture to grab hold of us".

This is one book I am glad I chose to review.  This is a book you want to read slowly and have a highlighter ready to mark up the pages.  There are many nuggets you will want to go back and re-read again and again. Enjoy your new pursuit of Jesus.

Thanks to Blogging for Books for allowing me to review this free book just for my honest opinion.

http://www.belleofallthingssouthern.com/
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http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/author-spotlight.php?authorid=184028

A Stillness of Chimes

A Stillness of Chimes is Meg Mosley's latest book which I was very eager to read.  She has become a favorite author of mine with her two previous books.  She always gives the reader a different kind of storyline which makes her writing so interesting.

Laura comes home to Prospect, Georgia to go through and get ready to sell her mother's house after her death..She has been gone for a long time and now the town is full of rumors about her father who disappeared twelve years ago in the lake.  Different people claim to have seen him.  Since his body was never found, Laura firmly believes he is alive and sets out to find him.  This is one of the story lines which Laura enlists the help of Sean ( her high school boyfriend) to help her find her father.  Laura's father was a mentor to Sean but he is afraid to help her, since he has his own reasons for letting her father's disappearance stay that way.  They do uncover the truth in the Blue Ridge Mountains that surround Prospect, but you will be very surprised with the facts they uncover.  The ending completely surprised me.  Can't tell you more, since you need to find out for yourself what I am talking about.

This book has romance, intrigue, second chances, memories, family secrets and great, believable characters. I really enjoyed the book but felt, at times, the story dragged with too much page fillers. Meg Mosely still writes beautiful stories and I look forward to her next book.

This book was provided by Blogging For Books  free for my honest opinion.

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 http://megmoseley.com/
 http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/author-spotlight.php?authorid=123046
 http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/catalog.php?work=218208
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Visible Threat

Since I have read all of Janice Cantore's books up to now, I was excited to review her newest book-Visible Threat. This is the second book in her latest series  There are authors that you just know their books will be good and she fits into that category for me.  Being a retired Long Beach police officer adds so much credit to her writing.  As I read her books I am thinking this was a case she may have investigated which makes reading more interesting for me.

As with the first book we are following Brinna Caruso as she wants justice and to save the innocent from the evil predators that inflict pain on their victims.  The storyline follows two sisters arriving from Bulgaria being promised a better life in America.  Unfortunately that was a lie and they were not the only ones being coerced by the evil of human trafficking.  A body is found in the river and Jack O'Reilly needs help from Brinna. As they uncover the identity of the victim, they hunt for the sister and the story explodes from there.  A lot of times Brinna does not go by the book and does things her way which lead to another storyline in the book.  Brinna was kidnapped at age 6 and was rescued two days later, which is why she has such an interest and such an emotional attachment to this case.  There is also Brinna and Jack as they find the traffickers but also as Brinna learns from Jack.  "If he is a good God, why would he stop something in your life that will make you stronger, make you a better person?"  "Just because bad things happen doesn't mean that God isn't good"

 The story is at times hard to read, forgetting that this in happening now all over the world. It is not just a growing problem worldwide but in our own backyard.  The author did a great job of making it real but not
being too graphic.

Wayfinding Bible

Life is so good when you get a Bible to review. The Wayfinding Bible is one of Tyndale Publishers latest Bible to come on the market. The NLT if my very favorite translation, so this was right up my alley of reading. This Bible is so unique and the many features will help you navigate God's Word in a new and refreshing way. The Bible offers you three distinct routes to travel through it-talk about interesting. The three routes are: the flyover route which will cover the most important events in the Bible in 50 readings. The next route is direct and covers more of the story throughout history in 200 readings. Last is the scenic route which explores in more depth with 400 readings. Whether you are looking for the big story, trying to read straight through, or prefer to wander, this innovative Bible is for you. They have also included a visual guide that leads you through God's story in human history using the route you choose.

 This amazing concept was difficult for me to decide which route I would take. I love reading through the Bible but usually can not do it in a years time. I also don't want to miss anything important so as I start this Bible in January, it will be the scenic route. There are so many cool features in this Bible; lots of pictures, historical markers, side trips, book introductions along with extra information on each page. The observation point and exploration point are on each page and provide additional knowledge about what you read on that page-my personal favorite. My NLT Life Application Bible has been my all time favorite, but the Wayfinding Bible could give it a run for it's money. I already see this Bible as birthday gifts for the family this next year. Best gift to give is a Bible and this one is worth it.

 Thanks to Tyndale Publishers for this free copy just for my honest opinion.

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