by admin | Sep 10, 2014 | Amish, Books, Contemporary Fiction, Mennonite, Romance
MY REVIEW:
I actually hesitated to accept “A Season of Change” for review. I may be one of the few readers of Christian fiction who has grown a bit weary of Amish fiction and sometimes wonder how long this trend can last. I was pleasantly surprised by a unique tale featuring an unlikely romance between an old order Amish widower and a young woman whose career in the circus has come to an end.
“A Season of Change” is a heart-warming story set in Pinecraft, an actual Amish/Mennonite community near Sarasota, Florida. It was interesting to read about the relaxed atmosphere of the community that is is such contrast to the Amish lifestyle I usually read about. The characters are well developed and the narrative held my interest quite well. I loved how Jacob’s children played an integral role. I also liked the fact that Jacob and Natalie were able to find a compromise for their differences. I usually find it difficult to believe when an Englisher converts to the Amish faith – even if it is for love.
A good story with a surprise or two, “A Season of Change” is sure to please those who enjoy Amish fiction and possibly even a few readers such as myself.
This book was provided for review by the Amazon Vine program.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Amish widower Jacob Miller believes it was a mistake to visit the Amish village of Pinecraft for winter vacation, especially after his daughter is struck by a car. Stranded in Sarasota until his daughter recovers, Jacob grows increasingly wary of events that unfold in his unfamiliar surroundings—including the strange curiosity of Englischer Natalie Bennett.
Natalie never thought her circus career as an aerial silks artist would end with a blown-out knee at the age of 25. She also never knew her late mother had a secret—that she was once Amish.
When Natalie meets the Millers at the Sarasota hospital, she is attracted to their warm hospitality and simple ways—and soon wonders if they can help her find her mother’s family. As Jacob and Natalie fall in love, their worlds collide. Will their differences tear them apart? Or will their love be strong enough to blend their clashing cultures?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Lynette Sowell is the award-winning author of over 15 titles for Barbour Publishing, Harlequin, and Abingdon Press. Lynette was born in Western Massachusetts in the shadow of the Berkshire Mountains, raised on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, but makes her home on the doorstep of the Texas hill country. She loves reading, cooking, watching movies, and is always up for a Texas road trip. When she’s not writing fiction, she works as a reporter for her city newspaper and has a weekly column called My Front Porch.
by admin | Sep 9, 2014 | Author Interviews, Books
Welcome author Janice Thompson. Janice is the author of over 100 books for the Christian market, (mostly inspirational romantic comedies). She’s joining us today to share about her mother-of-the-bride cozy mysteries, “The Bridal Mayhem” series.
Janice, can you tell us a little about this series?
Sure! The Bridal Mayhem series was birthed (partly) out of my own experience! I have four daughters and they all got married within four years of each other. The first two weddings (in 2004) were only four and a half months apart! What a crazy period! Shortly after that one of my editors approached me and asked if I’d ever written cozy mysteries. I had not, but was perfectly willing to give it a try! In the writing biz they tell us to “write what you know” and I knew weddings! I’d been mother of the bride twice in a row, after all. So, I mapped out my story ideas with Annie Peterson, mother-of-the-bride, as the reluctant sleuth, solving crimes on her way to the wedding(s).
Sounds like fun! So, these books released a few years back? If so, why are you just now talking about them?
They released in print form between 2005 and 2007 and then released in eBook form with Spyglass Lane. Recently, the rights reverted back to me (the author) and I was given the opportunity to create new covers and upload them to kindle. I’m offering the first book free for a week to stir up interest in the whole series.
Can you tell us about the first book?
Of course! The first book is The Wedding Caper. It’s free on kindle this week (September 9th – 13th). In that story, both of Annie’s daughters get engaged, one right after the other. So, it’s weddings times two! At about that same time, $25,000 goes missing at the bank where Annie’s husband, Warren, works. She begins to suspect him of stealing the money to pay for their daughters’ weddings! Of course, she knows nothing about crime solving, but sets out to figure out whodunit before daughter #1’s big day. Did Warren take the money to pay for the weddings? Read The Wedding Caper to find out: http://amzn.to/1rUUI9T!
So, this is a series? What are the other books about?
Book two (Gone with the Groom) offers readers a rollicking good time! In this story, Annie’s future son-in-law goes missing two weeks before the big day. Does he have cold feet, or are there more sinister forces at work? In book three (Pushing up Daisies) a local florist passes away shortly before daughter Candy’s big day. Can Annie figure out who would want to murder a florist before her daughter’s wedding day? In book four (The Perfect Match) the local dating service goes up in flames. Annie’s in the thick of it, trying to figure out whodunit. In book five (Catering to Disaster) over 120 wedding guests end up with food poisoning after a wedding. Did the caterer slip up have they all been sabotaged?
There are five books in the series?
So far! Book six (Don’t Rock the Boat) is currently being written. In this story, Annie and her best friend Sheila are on a Caribbean cruise. An onboard bride goes missing just before her big day. Does she have cold feet? Has someone thrown her overboard? Did she re-board the ship after a recent excursion ashore? Annie has to figure this out so that the bride can have her big day!
You used your personal life experiences for this story?
In part! As I said, I was mother of the bride four times over, so I know what it is to be in that frenzied state of mind in the weeks leading up to your daughter’s wedding day. And though I’ve never solved a crime (to my knowledge) I enjoyed doing so through my characters. And speaking of characters: Annie’s best friend Sheila (wacky, crazy, colorful, fun) was based on my own BFF, Kay Malone. My sweet Kay passed away in May of 2013 from pancreatic cancer. The Wedding Caper is dedicated to her memory. As I mentioned above, The Wedding Caper was written in 2005, long before Kay’s cancer diagnosis. I was stunned—when reading back through the story—to see that one of the characters is battling pancreatic cancer. I’d forgotten all about that. Ironic and bittersweet, for sure.
Thanks for being with us, Janice. Any last thoughts?
Don’t forget to laugh. Life is hard, but laughter brings healing. I try to remember that when I’m having a tough day: there’s always something to laugh at, even if it’s through the tears.
www.janiceathompson.com
Facebook: Janice Hanna Thompson
Twitter: booksbyjanice
by admin | Sep 8, 2014 | Books, Contemporary Fiction, Love Inspired, Romance, Suspense
MY REVIEW:
“Sunken Treasure” is the third novel in Katy Lee’s Love Inspired Suspense series set on Stepping Stones Island. A modern-day pirate tale, the plot is fast paced and filled with danger, suspense, and adventure as well as the requisite romance. The setting of Stepping Stones Island is perfect with its rich and mysterious history.
Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time! Rachelle Thibodaux found herself right in the middle of a high-stakes race to find a sunken ship that also involved revenge. Plenty of action, drama, and a few surprises kept me reading the entire book in one sitting. Realistically portrayed circumstances in Rachelle’s life made her character well-rounded and believable. I loved seeing how she slowly broke out of her self-imposed isolation and realized that her friends and neighbors did not blame her for the sins of her father. I really liked the characters and their connections to the previous books in the series.
“Sunken Treasure” is another riveting tale from Katy Lee and I highly recommend it and all her novels.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Danger on the High Seas
Shipwreck diver Gage Fontaine is used to modern-day pirates chasing after his boat and the buried treasure he salvages. But when he unknowingly leads a dangerous criminal to the waters off Stepping Stones Island, he puts a beautiful fisherwoman in grave danger. Rachelle Thibodaux has spent the past year hiding on her boat to avoid the town’s censure for her father’s crimes. But when she comes face-to-face with a gun-wielding pirate, she becomes a new kind of target. To save her own life, she’ll have to work with Gage to find the treasure before the pirates do.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
As an Inspirational Romantic Suspense author, Katy Lee writes higher-purpose stories in high-speed worlds. Through her writing, ministries, and teaching, she dedicates her life to sharing tales of love, from the greatest love story ever told to those sweet romantic stories of falling in love. Katy and her husband are born New Englanders, but have been known to travel at the drop of a hat along with their three children. But is where you can find Katy anytime.
by admin | Sep 7, 2014 | Books
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Thief of Glory
WaterBrook Press (August 19, 2014)
by
Sigmund BrouwerABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Sigmund Brouwer is the best-selling author of nearly thirty novels, with close to 4 million books in print. Based on his inspiration for Thief of Glory, which Sigmund wrote as a way to learn and honor the his parent’s stories, especially of his father’s boyhood in a Japanese concentration camp, Sigmund leads The Chapters of Our Lives memoir seminars across the United States and Canada. Sigmund is married to recording artist Cindy Morgan and has two daughters.
Learn more about Sigmund and his books on his Website .
ABOUT THE BOOK:
A boy coming of age in a time of war…
the love that inspires him to survive.
For ten year-old Jeremiah Prins, the life of privilege as the son of a school headmaster in the Dutch East Indies comes crashing to a halt in 1942 after the Japanese Imperialist invasion of the Southeast Pacific. Jeremiah takes on the responsibility of caring for his younger siblings when his father and older stepbrothers are separated from the rest of the family, and he is surprised by what life in the camp reveals about a woman he barely knows—his frail, troubled mother.
Amidst starvation, brutality, sacrifice and generosity, Jeremiah draws on all of his courage and cunning to fill in the gap for his mother. Life in the camps is made more tolerable as Jeremiah’s boyhood infatuation with his close friend Laura deepens into a friendship from which they both draw strength.
When the darkest sides of humanity threaten to overwhelm Jeremiah and Laura, they reach for God’s light and grace, shining through his people. Time and war will test their fortitude and the only thing that will bring them safely to the other side is the most enduring bond of all.
If you would like to read the first chapter of Thief of Glory, go HERE.
