"The Farthest Shore" Book Review

It was so cute. My daughter, 14, grabbed this book out of my hand and went running to find a corner when she saw the author's name. She loves everything Elizabeth Camden writes. In her mind, "To The Farthest Shores" completely lived up to her expectations.  The next day she returned it and said, "Mom, didn't you love it!"  To which I could only reply, "When would I have read it? You stole it as soon as it arrived."  Funny gal.

Shortly thereafter, my life got ridiculously busy which meant no time for reading. But like clockwork,  every couple of days, she would say, "Have you finished it yet? Wasn't it amazing?"  And each time I had to inform her that I hadn't even started it yet, her face became a mixture of shock and unbelief.  How in the world was I choosing to do anything over reading a book by Ms. Camden?

Thankfully life calmed down and I finally got to crack the pages.

"To The Farthest Shores" is a sweet romantic tale of a couple who both have to overcome mistakes in their past as well as learn to communicate in the present. The characters are lovable. The 'harrowing moments' are not upsetting at all making this a good bedtime read.

My only criticism was that sometimes it felt like the main couple were fighting the same fight over and over. While I know this is often true in life and was the author's way of showing that they hadn't come any further to resolving past issues, it made it feel ever so slightly cyclical.  However, to say it like that makes it sound boring. It wasn't at all a boring book.  I found myself caring about the characters and felt satisfied with the ending.  It was a tidy ending but not so tidy as to be unbelievable.

If you have young teen daughters, they will love this book. (if my daughter's reaction was any indication)  I too enjoyed it. It's always nice to be able to confidently place a book in my daughter's hand knowing there won't be any smut or profanity. Thank you Ms. Camden for that!

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

"Recruits" Book Review

This was a doozy! Author Thomas Locke (aka Davis Bunn) created a fast paced sci-fi fantasy novel that's had me hooked. It's the story of twin brothers who find they have powers they didn't know they possessed. And with those powers comes the realization that the universe is much more populated than previously thought.

I think part of what makes this book so intriguing is that we all have an unspoken desire for more. It's like our inner self knows we were meant for greatness. So to read a story of young men who have their greatness realized feels like a book written about ourselves except it hasn't happened yet in our own lives.

The plot moved along as a great pace and the dialogue was concise, not cyclical (always a bonus). I still didn't quite feel like I knew the characters intimately by the end of the book but knew them well enough to form an opinion about whether they were friend or foe.  And for the most part, I could make a clear mental picture of the scene unfolding based on what was written. The final battle was a little hard to visualize but not impossible.

The only downside to "Recruits" (which isn't really a downside) was that it was a couple of teens saving the universe.  And that is so often the story. Cops and military can't get the job done so let's hand everything over to two teens with no life experience.  Please don't take this 'downside' too strongly though. After all, these particular teens had unusual powers. And as we all know from Marvel and DC Comics, that changes everything.  :)

I highly recommend "Recruits". It was enjoyable. A couple of times I had to put it down because I was just starting to get scared and I don't like to read anything scary at bedtime.  Having said that though, this isn't a scary book. It just has a couple of intense moments.

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

"Words of Grace" Book Review

I love the concept of this book!  A devotional with an adult coloring page for day. Brilliant. When I was a child, I loved to color but I have yet to get on the adult coloring bandwagon solely because I think I would find it stressful. The perfectionist in me wouldn't be able to handle it. However, those who like it, LOVE it and this little book would make a perfect gift for them.

"Words of Grace" is a 30 day devotional. Each day has one page of reading and then one page to color. Here's a shot of day 7.

I love how the illustrator, Dee Arrand, incorporated a verse into each coloring page. The idea is that you meditate on the verse and the encouragement you just read while you color. The readings are to encourage you and remind you of how much God loves you. They aren't heavy. No Greek or theological debating here. If that's your cup of tea then this book isn't for you. But if you are intent on simply enjoying your Savior's presence with pencil crayon in hand, then I can think of no better book than "Words of Grace" by Jacqui Grace.  It is sure to delight many.  My sister's birthday is tomorrow. She loves adult coloring and God. (Not in that order) I'm excited to give her this book.


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

"Justice Delayed" Book Review

Patricia Bradley I applaud you. "Justice Delayed" was fantastic. Like most people, I'm addicted to my phone. I'd rather scroll through Facebook than watch a movie but this mystery novel managed to get me to put my phone down and leave it down. That, my friend, is a mini miracle.

Okay, maybe I'm being dramatic but it find a mystery novel that has a nice blend of romance and intrigue is lovely. Throw in action sans gratuitous violence, and you've got yourself a winner. Admittedly, I kind of saw the ending coming but there was still enough of an "Aha!" moment that I was satisfied.

My one tiny complaint about the book (complaint is too strong a word) is that the men around the main character, a woman, always feel the need to come to her rescue and to treat her like a child. Granted, our heroine does dive head first into danger repeatedly but it made the book feel a little too much like so many romance novels where the knight in shining armor comes to the rescue of the helpless fair maiden.  Can they not ever be equal partners?  Oh well, I like fairy tales. And again, to call it a complaint is too strong a word.

"Justice Delayed" is a faith based novel but the author did a great job of weaving it in so that it didn't come off sounding like you were reading a sermon. Just a touch here and a dab there.  I happily gave this novel to my teen daughter to read because I know it will entertain her and there's nothing that was too mature or possibly disturbing. Plus, the small mentions of God brought out the message that He is good - even when life is bad.

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

"Conspiracy Of Silence" Book Review

It says "Conspiracy of Silence" by Ronie Kendig is book 1 of "The Tox Files" series. In truth there is a 0.5 prequel novella. I'm guessing that should have been called book 1. At least I'm assuming. Hoping. Because as I was reading, I kept checking the cover to see if it was in fact book 1. The author wrote as though I knew story background that I didn't. It made it hard to keep the characters and plot straight.

I also felt lost during the battle scenes. Maybe I'm just not a huge military enthusiast but as soon as our hero's band of fightin' men entered a foray, I could no longer form a picture in my mind of the action. Seeing as how this is a military based novel with numerous conflicts, it happened frequently.

My favorite part was how the author based the story on an event from the Bible. Unfortunately the way it's portrayed isn't exactly accurate.  However it does set the imagination swirling.

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

"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.