Book Review: A Matter of Trust by Lis Wiehl

"When life is murder, who can you trust?"

Wow - this seems as if it is going to be a series I can really sink my teeth into. With this book, book one in this new series, we get to meet Prosecutor Mia Quinn and Detective Charlie Carlson - they seem to be the people we are going to get to know the best as this series progresses.

This book opens with Mia on the telephone with her good friend Colleen, another member of the Prosecutors office. They are chatting about life and the tag sale they are going to be having. Suddenly Mia hears a gunshot, a gurgling and Colleen doesn't speak to her again, then life goes to Hell a little more.

This is a great, well plotted mystery. It did keep me guessing throughout the novel. The characters are fleshed out well and very believable. The novel is fast paced and I didn’t want to put it down. This book kept me turning pages and on the edge of my seat. 

I love that Mia Quinn's life is full of mystery itself. Her marriage, her job, her children, her father have secrets untold. I have some of Lis Wiehl's books and this one so far is my favorite. The protagonist is a single mom (widow) with a teenage son and a preschool age daughter. Her hands are more than full as she tries to work two jobs and be a good mom. On top of that her husband left her with a boat-load of debt. Not everything was resolved in this story leaving room for sequels, which I look forward to! This book includes many aspects I love in story - mystery, law,), danger, and twists and turns. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com  book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: The Sky Beneath My Feet by Lisa Samson

Sky Beneath My Feet  is the story of Beth and what happens to her when her husband shuts himself off in a shed to talk to God for a month.

This is not a bad book, but I don’t feel like I could give it more than three stars. It seems to meander in the first part of the book and I felt as though I would never reach the story’s climax. It finally picked up pace about halfway through, but not enough to make-up for the slow start. 

I also felt the character development lacked a bit. I enjoyed Beth, but never felt a connection with her. I never felt she got under my skin the way other characters have and so I had a harder time relating to her situation. I also found myself enjoying the book’s min-plots better than its main plot. I really enjoyed how Greg’s character was presented. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com  book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: Secretly Smitten

In this sequel to last year's Smitten, authors Colleen Coble, Kristin Billerbeck, Diann Hunt, and Denise Hunter gives us four romantic and at times intrigued-filled tales set in the fictional town of Smitten, Vermont. The plots centers on the three Thomas's sisters, Tess, Clare, and Zoe, along with their mother, Anna, and their grandmother, Rose.

Secretly Smitten is a collection of four novellas which combine to make one romantic mystery novel. The four authors have woven their separate works seamlessly together so that there is no interruption in the storyline. Each novella features a different character, while the secondary characters remain prominently in the plot. Fortunately, each one is unique, making it easy to follow and differentiate between them. Each story is short, under one hundred pages, which makes this compilation a quick read for romance fiction readers. The stories are romantic and heartwarming. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com  book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: The Trouble With Cowboys by Denise Hunter

Nothing feels worse that rushing to a conclusion about someone based off of an old experience and then finding out that not only were you wrong and misjudged that person but you wasted a lot of your time with a wrong opinion. I feel like that is what exactly happens with Annie Wilkerson in The Trouble with Cowboys She had a bad experience with cowboys in her past and then comes to this irrational conclusion that all cowboys are trouble. She thinks she knows what Dylan the cowboy is all about and boy does he get on her last nerves. Even more frustrating than that is that she can't stop this growing attraction to him and she is determined to NEVER date a cowboy!!

If the story seems familiar, all you have to do is read a few pages in to find out Jane Austen is Annie Wilkerson’s favorite author and she is deep into re-reading Pride and Prejudice. The Trouble with Cowboys by Denise Hunter is that novel come to life in Big Sky Country. Annie is Elizabeth Bennet letting her prejudices cloud her feelings for her Mr.Darcy; Dylan Tyler. While it makes the storyline a bit predictable, it is also charming and endearing. Those characters are timeless and seeing them paralleled in a different setting are worth the read.

The most enjoyable part of the book is the dialogue between Annie and Dylan. It’s very well written. The banter and flirting between the two keep the book moving at a nice pace. In return for some romantic advice from Dylan for her new column in a magazine, Annie helps Braveheart, Dylan's horse, to try to cope with blindness... But in the meantime Annie and Dylan each have their own "blindness" that requires a "brave heart" to persevere through while learning to "see" in new ways. It's an enjoyable journey for the reader - but not without its serious struggles regarding misunderstandings, prejudice, and learning to let go.

The best part of The Trouble with Cowboys has got to be the dialogue between Annie and Dylan. Their banter and flirting is just hilarious and kept me smiling throughout the entire book. I also love the forbidden romance idea to it and the secondary store going on with Annie's sister!! Lots of things to keep ya entertained!

If you have not gotten the chance to read anything by Denise Hunter you need to change that and I say starting with The Trouble with Cowboys is a great start! This is a third book in a series but I believe it stands on its own great and it is by far my favorite of the three.

The family angle is easy to relate to, and I found the message about trusting in God to be presented in a moving and inspiring way. The Trouble with Cowboys combines everything I look for in a good, faith –based romance novel - an engaging romance, an interesting setting, great secondary characters, and a faith lesson(without a preachy or condescending tone) that I can take to heart.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com  book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: 10 Christians Everyone Should Know

10 Christians Everyone Should Know by John Perry is a series of mini biographies of great people in history including Saint Patrick, Galileo, Ann Bradstreet, John Bunyan, Johann Sebastian Bach, Jane Austen, D.L. Moody, George Washington Carver, Sargent York, and William F. Buckley Jr.  Each story tells about the person’s life and how their life was affected by the faith.

 

This book is fabulous.  The individual biographies average about 30 pages each, which is a great length.  You can read one in a single sitting, yet they are long enough to include quite a bit of detail. What is so worthwhile about this book is that these 10 Christians were NOT all preachers, pastors, or ministers. Some of them were ordinary, bible-believing, folks that were engaged with their culture through their gifts, careers, and relationships. The most powerful message within each of the individuals' lives is that ANYONE can make an impact for the Kingdom of God. Because of this, God used them to penetrate the darkness with the light of truth & life. This is the main reason why I chose to read & review this book. The world needs to learn about those who have gone before us.

“Two thousand years and still going strong: that’s the story of Christianity. And while the Christian martyrs and saints and orators may have gotten more press, the fact is the faith has been carried through history in the hearts and deeds of believers who—though beloved to us now—were simply living ordinary lives of devotion. “It would be almost impossible to imagine ten people more different from each other than these,” Editor John Perry says.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review: A Path Towards Love by Cara Lynn James

Katherine Osborne, a young widow, has been running the Osborne orange groves since the death of her husband. Exhausted by the strain of money problems and crop failures, she agrees to return to her family's camp in the Adirondacks for the summer. The return, however, comes with strings. In exchange for a loan from her father to get her through harvest, she agrees to accept her mother's social obligations. Unfortunately, her mother's idea of social obligations is to find her a husband, preferably her best friend's son, Randy. Katherine, however, has other ideas including a relationship with Randy's cousin, Andrew.

On the positive side, this book has a Christian theme of forgiveness and wonderful locations: the central Florida citrus groves, and Racquette Lake in the Adirondacks.  On the negative side, Katherine, Randy and Andrew are stereotypes and rather flat. Andrew spends so much time ruminating about Katherine you wonder how he managed to find time to eat and sleep. It becomes tiresome. It's also hard to imagine Katherine having the strength required to run a  business when she can't seem to stand up to her domineering mother.

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."  

Book Review: Heaven In Her Arms

Heaven in Her Arms is a book that takes us on an adventurous journey into Mary’s life. We see her in three different roles throughout this journey: as a young woman, as the mother of Jesus and as the daughter of God. The one constant characteristic that we can find in all of these roles is her complete trust and obedience in her God.

 

The thing that I loved about this book is that the author does such a great job introducing us into Mary’s life, with all of the details that shaped her, with her inner thoughts and struggles. Every detail we can garner from the Bible about Mary's life is brought to the surface in Hickem's book so that we can understand the incredibly important role that Mary had into shaping Jesus as her child and as the Son of God, the Messiah.

And even though she does not play a central role in the nativity story, she was the person that faithfully trusted and obeyed. So her role into the nativity story was rely on God and trust that everything will happen exactly as God planned it to happen.

 

I grew up in the Catholic church, which puts a better emphasis on Mary's role in Jesus' life and celebrates her complete obedience to God than any of the other Christian denominations, in my opinion. This book allowed me to reconnect with the Mary I learned to know and admire growing up and also delve deeper into the story of her life.  I believe that God not only used Mary to be the mother of His son, but He is using her story to teach us women some powerful and important lessons that can help us become women after His own heart.  Mary teaches us how to fully live that perfect plan that God has for each of us.

 

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."