"Purgatory Road" Book Review

Two weeks ago my husband and I were on a eastern Caribbean cruise to celebrate our 20th anniversary. Because my husband loves to lounge and read, I assumed he would have packed a number of books and magazines. Oops. Fortunately I had this book stashed away. Once he was done I asked what he thought and he's only comment was, "I don't know. It was weird."

Hmm. Interesting. Good weird or waste of time weird?

His undefined emotions towards "Purgatory Road" by Samuel Parker didn't deter me. If anything, the opposite. And almost immediately, as I started reading, thought, "This is a little weird." But I like a little weird. I enjoy Frank Peretti's work. Ted Dekker is borderline too weird for me.  This book falls right in the middle of these two on the weirdness scale.  There was definitely a spiritual undertone to the book. A couple of the characters are something other than human. What they are exactly is up for your conjecture.

I told my 14 year old daughter I didn't think she should read it because the violence is rather graphic and there are some mature themes. Plus, I didn't think she needed to hear about the almost orgasmic thrill the killer gets from murdering his victims. Having said that, not even once did I think I myself shouldn't be reading it.

I enjoyed this book but only give is 3 out of 4 stars for the following reason. While I enjoyed the author's writing style, the inner struggle of the main character was a theme that got revisited too many time. Then again, overcoming faulty areas of self was the main driving force behind the plot so maybe it was necessary. It just felt a tad cyclical. This one area is more than made up for by the action and unique story line.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc."

"Fatal Frost" Book Review

My teen daughter snatched this one up and read it before I even realized it had arrived in the mail! I wondered why she suddenly disappeared for a couple of hours. Then, she walks into my room, thumps "Fatal Frost" by Nancy Mehl into my hand and declares, "That was so good!" She's a mystery junkie but I must say, her declaration intrigued me. I quickly finished up the novel I was midway through and started in. Fortunately I was staring down a 15 hour back seat car ride so I had plenty of time to dig into it. I finished before we arrived at our destination. And my daughter was right. It was good.

Now admittedly, some plot twists in "Fatal Frost" can be seen a mile away and other parts you have to just dispel with reality in order to believe but not all. And besides, since when does that make or break a story? Plus, call me old fashioned but I was pleasantly surprised to find that this wasn't a story about a lone woman coming to the rescue of 5 male cops who had failed. Instead it was a give and take between the main characters. There was no hero but there were definitely heroes and it's better that way - more realistic. No one can do it all.

There was violence but it wasn't gruesome at all. Normally I like to preview books before my daughter reads them. Now having read it, I am totally fine with her having read it before me. I'm guessing she's waiting for me to be done with it so it can line her extensive shelf of 'favorites'. (She just told me last night she needs more shelves)

"Fatal Frost" was absolutely enjoyable. It would have been enjoyable even if I hadn't been stuck in the backseat of a car for 15 hours.

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.

"Waves of Mercy" Book Review

This just might be the best romance novel I've ever read. It wasn't at all what I was expected but I highly enjoyed it. I don't think I have ever read a romance novel where there might really be no good possible endings. Where, like real life, no matter what choice you make, someone's heart is going to hurt. And I loved that "Waves of Mercy" by Lynn Austin was about true love and not the mushy gushy stuff you so often find in movies and novels.

The author did a masterful job of taking snippets of history and weaving an incredible story around them. It made for a believable tale. It was also neat how the two main plot lines interconnected. I found myself falling in love with the people on the pages of "Waves of Mercy" and ended up going to bed far too late as a result.

Usually there is something that I feel I should warn readers about - either poor moral lessons or disturbing material but "Waves of Mercy" was free of both. Plus, the author doesn't have any bad writing habits that made me twitch.

Another thing I liked about this book was that it mirrored my own feels when faced with overwhelming trials. You want to trust God but how many times can your heart break before you start screaming at Him? And yet, He knows. He heals. And He woes us back.  That is the most romantic story of all.

 "Waves of Mercy" gets two enthusiastic  thumbs up.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc."

"A Lady Unrivaled" Book Review

Do you ever have moments where you think, "How can I be this dense and still be allowed to own a driver's license?"  For the first, say, three chapters of "A Lady Unrivaled", I was pretty lost. Who in the world are all of these people the main characters are talking about as though I should know? It almost made me stop reading. HA! Then I realized - this is book three  in the "Ladies of the Manor" series.

(slightly bows head in shame)

"A Lady Unrivaled" is a romantic mystery that falls prey to one of the most annoying traps which plagues the genre - the heroine falling in love with a grumpy rude handsome noble. And why does this bother me so? Because it sends the message that it's okay, no, it's good to get involved with Mr. Moody because you're sunshiny attitude and love will turn him around. Girls, girls, please hear me. Get involved with someone you can stand to be around now, not someone you hope to change.

Apart from my moral objection to life lessons cast about by fluffy novels, "A Lady Unrivaled" was an easy read whose plot clipped along at a nice pace. There was no smut or grotesque violence.  And as the story went along, it got better and better. (Again, this might be because I didn't know to read the prequels) The ending was satisfying and the characters, for the most part, likable. Even the villains were the correct balance of evil and pitiable.

I think if you were to read book one and two first, you would like this one. The author did a nice job of intertwining a number of subplots and then bringing the characters' stories all together in the end.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc."

"Where Jesus Slept" Book Review and GIVEAWAY

November 1st - my Christmas season has officially begun.  And what better way to kick off the 2016 Christmas season than with a child's Christmas book giveaway?  Yay.  (Comment below before November 10th if you'd like your name in the draw.)

The Nativity story never gets old. Imagine - the fullness of God in the form of a baby. Breathtaking. My kiddies might all be in their teen years, but I still enjoyed "Where Jesus Slept". In fact I still might read it to them on Christmas Eve. (Admittedly, more for my sake than for theirs)

Remember the popular kids' book "Where Was an Old Woman who Swallowed a Fly"? This book is a lot like that. It starts out with the small phrase, "This is the bed where Jesus slept." Each page adds a little more to the sentence. And I'm happy to report that there is a nice lilt to the writing making it a pleasant read.

I have no doubt this one is going to be a favorite of many. The illustrations are cute. Oh, and there aren't too many words on each page which is truly the bane of any parent. You won't be tempted to try and skip pages with "Where Jesus Slept" by Norma Lewis.

Don't forget to comment below for a chance to receive a free copy mailed to your house.

“Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255:  “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”):  Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway.  Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation.  I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.

Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway.  If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller /FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win.  Or if you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again.  Winner is subject to eligibility verification.

"Traces of Guilt" Book Review

Oh Man! Was my mystery loving teen daughter excited to see this one arrive on our doorstep. Fortunately I read it first because she's not. No it isn't gruesome. No it isn't smutty. But it does deal with sexual child abuse and, for better or for worse, I don't want my 13 year old to have to deal with that any more than necessary.

In truth, I thought author Dee Henderson did a good job of dealing with the subject without going into detail. However, I didn't like how it was stated over and over that the victim (who is now an adult) needed other people protecting them - as though they can't think for themselves. Victims of abuse have often been told what to think and how to act - against their will. They don't need us to continue on making their decisions. What they need is for us to support them in their decision making, not treat them like a porcelain doll.

I must say "Bravo!" to Ms. Henderson for writing a mystery with many false starts and mis-turns. This book kept me guessing and I didn't see the ending coming. The characters were believable and the plot moved along nicely.

Unfortunately, there is one aspect of Ms. Henderson's writing that grates my nerves. The characters say each other's names too often. No one talks like that in real life and it makes for every conversation sound harsh - like they are being taught or reprimanded all the time. (Ha, I bet if you didn't notice it before, it'll annoy you now.) My daughter asked how I was liking the book and I mentioned this to her and for fun we spoke to each other, throwing in each other's first name as often as the book does. Hilariously rude sounding. It sounded like we were ordering each other around.

All in all I enjoyed this mystery.

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.

"The Domino Effect" Book Review

Author Davis Bunn uses "The Domino Effect" to bring to light questionable practices financial institutions follow in their never ceasing quest for the next big payoff.  Admittedly, I'm not a numbers guru. My money expertise ends at the age old wisdom of "Pay off your credit card every month."  And truthfully, real life news of Wall Street rarely captures my attention. However, the way Mr. Bunn tied real life events, such as the lead up to the 2008 crash, had me continually having to remind myself that this was indeed fiction.

On the back cover, "The Domino Effect" is categorized as suspense. Umm, I'd say that's a bit strong of a word. In other write ups, it's described as a thriller. Nope. I kept waiting for the action to start and, well, it never really did. That's not to say it was boring. The first two chapters took a mild level of determination to get through. (Again, because I'm not easily engrossed by banking terms.) But I'm not sorry for having read this book. In fact I think I accidentally learned some stuff.  It's just that it's an over sell to call it a thriller. It would be better classed as a financial fiction based on reality-ish.

The writing is clean and the characters memorable though the plot is, well, slightly contrived. The main character's allies are a tad too able. That's okay. Lately I've been needing more sleep so the last thing I need it to get worked up over a fantasy person right at bedtime.

I would give this book 4 stars except that, again, it is being over sold. Just don't go into it thinking it's going to get your heart pounding and I bet you'll like it.  Oh, and for the record, there is no sexual content, course language or violence. However, there is the threat of violence

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc."