by admin | Apr 21, 2008 | Books
This month the Christian Science Fiction & Fantasy Blog Tour features The Begotten by Lisa T. Bergren. The Begotten is the first volume in The Gifted series.
Like most good speculative fiction, The Begotten is based on the question, “what if?”. What if there were lost letters of the Apostle Paul that prophesied a group of people with extraordinary spiritual giftings? What if divine appointments brought these people together at the chosen time for a divine purpose?
Lisa T. Bergren masterfully weaves a story of good and evil, intrigue and conflict, weakness and strength. Set in medieval Italy during the Inquisition, The Begotten explores the challenges and choices ordinary people are called to make when chosen by God and brought together to fulfill His purpose.
I was totally captivated by The Begotten and definitely plan to read the rest of the series. It is a book that I would recommend and will certainly read again.
Lisa’s Web site – http://www.lisatawnbergren.com/home.html
Participants’ Links:
Brandon Barr | Jim Black | Justin Boyer | Jackie Castle |
Karri Compton | CSFF Blog Tour | Gene Curtis |
D. G. D. Davidson | Jeff Draper | April Erwin | Karina Fabian |
Beth Goddard | Marcus Goodyear | Todd Michael Greene |
Michael Heald | Christopher Hopper | Joleen Howell | Jason Joyner |
Kait | Carol Keen | Mike Lynch | Terri Main | Margaret |
Melissa Meeks |Pamela Morrisson | John W. Otte | Rachelle |
Steve Rice | Ashley Rutherford | Chawna Schroeder |
James Somers | Rachelle Sperling | Stuart Stockton |
Steve Trower | Speculative Faith | Robert Treskillard |
Laura Williams | Timothy Wise |
by admin | Apr 16, 2008 | Books
A Tendering in the Storm is the second book in Jane Kirkpatrick’s Change and Cherish series. In this sequel to A Clearing in the Wild, Emma Giesy continues her quest to be recognized as an individual in a community where women are often overlooked. In the wake of personal tragedy, Emma fights for independence rather than accepting the aid of family and community because of her misguided fear of being beholden to the others. Her desperation causes her to make poor choices that worsen her situation rather than ease it. Emma’s painful journey finally leads her to the beginnings of wisdom and spiritual peace.
I enjoyed reading more about Emma’s pioneer life, her joys and her struggles. At times I grew frustrated with her choices (even though I knew the book was based on a true story); but realized the lessons Emma learned as a result of her choices. I look forward to the next volume, hoping that Emma will find herself and God, and in doing so, find peace.
I highly recommend A Tendering in the Storm, especially for those who love historical fiction.
by admin | Apr 15, 2008 | Books
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
My Soul To Keep
(Multnomah Books – February 5, 2008)byMelanie WellsABOUT THE AUTHOR:
A native of the Texas panhandle and the child of musicians, Melanie Wells attended Southern Methodist University on a music scholarship (she’s a fiddle player), and later completed graduate degrees in counseling psychology and Biblical studies at Our Lady of the Lake University and Dallas Theological Seminary.She has taught at the graduate level at both OLLU and DTS, and has been in private practice as a counselor since 1992. She is the founder and director of LifeWorks counseling associates in Dallas, Texas, a collaborative community of creative therapists.
When the Day of Evil Comes is her first published work of fiction, and the first of a three-book series. The second work, The Soul Hunter was released in May, 2006. Melanie lives and writes in Dallas.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
As nasty as I knew Peter Terry to be, I never expected him to start kidnapping kids. Much less a sweet, funny little boy with nothing to protect him but a few knock-kneed women, two rabbits and a staple gun…
It’s psychology professor Dylan Foster’s favorite day of the academic year…graduation day. And her little friend Christine Zocci’s sixth birthday. But the joyful summer afternoon goes south when a little boy is snatched from a neighborhood park, setting off a chain of events that seen to lead nowhere.
The police are baffled, but Christine’s eerie connection with the kidnapped child sends Dylan on a chilling investigation of her own. Is the pasty, elusive stranger Peter Terry to blame? Exploding light bulbs, the deadly buzz of a Texas rattlesnake, and the vivid, disturbing dreams of a little girl are just pieces of a long trail of tantalizing clues leading Dylan in her dogged search for the truth.
“Like water rising to a boil, My soul To Keep’s suspense sneaks up on you…before you know it, you’re in the thick if a frightening drama…Superbly crafted.”
—ROBERT LIPARULO, author of Deadfall, Germ, and Comes A Horseman
“Written with passion, a good dose of humor and, dare I say it, soul, this novel reminds us that we all, with grace and good fortune, bumble our way toward salvation.”
—K. L. COOK, author of Late Call and The Girl From Charmelle
MY REVIEW:
Having read and enjoyed both When the Day of Evil Comes and The Soul Hunter, I was not disappointed to find that My Soul to Keep was true to the pattern already set. Although I was sometimes frustrated with Dylan’s frequent cluelessness (at least it seemed that way to me), I think that very trait made the story that much more believable. All in all, My Soul to Keep is a humorous but suspenseful read that will keep you engrossed to the end. I look forward to more books from the imagination of Melanie Wells.
by admin | Apr 9, 2008 | Books
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Trouble the Water
Thomas Nelson (March 11, 2008)byNicole Seitz
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Nicole Seitz is a South Carolina Lowcountry native and the author of The Spirit of Sweetgrass as well as a freelance writer/illustrator who has published in numerous low country magazines. A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Journalism, she also has a bachelor’s degree in illustration from Savannah College of Art & Design. Nicole shows her paintings in the Charleston, South Carolina area, where she owns a web design firm and lives with her husband and two small children. Nicole is also an avid blogger, you can leave her a comment on her blog.
Seitz’s writing style recalls that of Southern authors like Kaye Gibbons, Anne Rivers Siddons, and Sue Monk Kidd, and this new novel, which the publisher compares to Kidd’s The Secret Life of Bees, surely joins the ranks of strong fiction that highlights the complicated relationships between women. Highly recommended, especially for Southern libraries.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
In the South Carolina Sea Islands lush setting, Nicole Seitz’s second novel Trouble the Water is a poignant novel about two middle-aged sisters’ journey to self-discovery.
One is seeking to recreate her life yet again and learns to truly live from a group of Gullah nannies she meets on the island. The other thinks she’s got it all together until her sister’s imminent death from cancer causes her to re-examine her own life and seek the healing and rebirth her troubled sister managed to find on St. Anne’s Island.
Strong female protagonists are forced to deal with suicide, wife abuse, cancer, and grief in a realistic way that will ring true for anyone who has ever suffered great loss.
“This is another thing I know for a fact: a woman can’t be an island, not really. No, it’s the touching we do in other people’s lives that matters when all is said and done. The silly things we do for ourselves–shiny new cars and jobs and money–they don’t mean a hill of beans. Honor taught me that. My soul sisters on this island taught me that. And this is the story of true sisterhood. It’s the story of Honor, come and gone, and how one flawed woman worked miracles in this mixed-up world.”
“…a special sisterhood of island women whose wisdom and courage linger in the mind long after the book is closed.”
–NEW YORK TIMES best-selling author SUSAN WIGGS
by admin | Apr 7, 2008 | Books
Book Review:
A Clearing in the Wild is the first volume of Jane Kirkpatrick’s Change and Cherish Historical Series and is based on a true story.
Emma Wagner was an outspoken young woman who lived in the Utopian separatist community of Bethel, Missouri during the 1850’s. As a newlywed, she elected to accompany her husband Christian Giesy as he led a group of scouts to find new land for the community in the Oregon territory.
A Clearing in the Wild chronicles the trials and tribulations of the Bethel group during their journey and after their arrival and attempt to establish a new community. Emma’s struggles with blindly following the autocratic leader of Bethel, her well-intentioned but sometimes foolish choices, and the couple’s spiritual growth and love as they learn to depend on the Lord and each other are described honestly and believably.
I enjoyed reading A Clearing in the Wild and would recommend it to anyone who loves historical fiction.
I will review the next volume of the series A Tendering in the Storm next Monday, April 14 and the final volume A Mending at the Edge along with a book giveaway on Monday, April 21.
About the Author:
Jane Kirkpatrick is the best-selling author of two nonfiction books and eleven historical novels, including Oregon Book Award Finalist A Name of Her Own and the acclaimed Kinship and Courage series. Her award-winning essays and articles have appeared in more than fifty publications, including Daily Guideposts and Decision. A winner of the coveted Western Heritage Wrangler Award, Jane is a licensed clinical social worker as well as an internationally recognized speaker and inspirational retreat leader. She and her husband, Jerry, ranch 160 acres in eastern Oregon. (from the Random House website)
by admin | Apr 7, 2008 | Books
My Review:
Beyond the Reflection’s Edge is the first book I’ve read by Bryan Davis. After reading it, I can see why his other books have had such wide appeal. The book is a well written fantasy with enough details to be believable. The power of music is beautifully illustrated as well as descriptions of nature. The reader follows Nathan and Kelly on a wild journey from one dimension to another as they endeavor to find the answers to the murder of his parents and to complete the mission left to them. The teens learn to rely on each other and their faith while discovering the importance of love and sacrifice. The book concludes with some resolution but still enough unanswered questions to look forward to the next volume.
I would recommend this book for fairly mature youth only as it has a good bit of violence.
About Beyond the Reflection’s Edge (from back cover)
Enter a fantastical world where even mirrors tell lies.
This fast-paced adventure fantasy trilogy starts with murder and leads teenagers Nathan and Kelly out of their once-familiar world as they struggle to find answers to the tragedy. A mysterious mirror with phantom images, a camera that takes pictures of things they can’t see, and a violin that unlocks unrecognizable voices …. each enigma takes the teens farther into an alternate universe where nothing is as it seems.
Sixteen-year-old Nathan Shepherd has a great life traveling where the careers of his father, an investigator, and mother, a renowned violinist, take him … until his parents are found murdered.
Left with only a mirror and notes from his father’s last case, Nathan goes into hiding at the remote country home of Tony, his father’s college buddy, and Tony’s teenage daughter, Kelly. The mysterious mirror must be a clue to what happened to his parents, and when images appear in it – people and things that don’t exist – Nathan and Kelly painstakingly gather evidence. But the killers want the mirror too, and danger threatens the teens at every turn.
About the Author
Bryan Davis is the author of the Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire series, contemporary/fantasy books for young adults. The first book, Raising Dragons, was released in July of 2004, followed by The Candlestone, Circles of Seven, and Tears of a Dragon. Eye of the Oracle launched the Oracles of Fire series and hit number one on the CBA Young Adult best-seller list in January of 2007. Book number two, Enoch’s Ghost, came out in July and will be followed by Last of the Nephilim in the spring of 2008.
Bryan is the author of several other works including The Image of a Father (AMG) and Spit and Polish for Husbands (AMG), and four books in the Arch Books series: The Story of Jesus’ Baptism and Temptation, The Day Jesus Died, The Story of the Empty Tomb (over 100,000 sold), and Jacob’s Dream. Bryan lives in Western Tennessee with his wife, Susie, and their children. Bryan and Susie have homeschooled their four girls and three boys.
Bryan was born in 1958 and grew up in the eastern U.S. From the time he taught himself how to read before school age, through his seminary years and beyond, he has demonstrated a passion for the written word, reading and writing in many disciplines and genres, including theology, fiction, devotionals, poetry, and humor.
Bryan is a graduate of the University of Florida (B.S. in Industrial Engineering). In high school, he was valedictorian of his class and won various academic awards. He was also a member of the National Honor Society and voted Most Likely to Succeed.
He continues to expand his writing education by teaching at relevant writing conferences and conventions. Although he is now a full time writer, Bryan was a computer professional for over 20 years.
