book review

This week, the

Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing For Pete’s Sake
Book Two of the Piper Cove Chronicles
(Avon Inspire - April 1, 2008)
by
Linda WindsorABOUT THE AUTHOR:Maryland author Linda Windsor has written some twenty-nine historical and contemporary novels for both the secular and inspirational markets, but she is most noted for delivering “The Lift of Laughter and Spirit” in her modern inspirational romances.A Christy finalist and winner of numerous industry awards, Linda has written for Multnomah Publishing (historical fiction and contemporary romances), Barbour Publishing (romcom novella), and Westbow Press (the Moonstruck romantic comedy trilogy). Wedding Bell Blues the first book in her new The Piper Cove Chronicles series, is featured on Avon Inspire’s launch list.

In addition to writing and doing fiction-writing workshops at conferences across the country, Linda continues a music and lay speaking ministry started by her and her late husband, and she is a part-time financial analyst. She also works on “as desperately needed” home improvement projects on the 18th-century-plus house that she and her husband began restoring in 1986. Wallpaper and paint are definitely in her near future.

LINDA WINDSOR LOCAL APPEARANCES: Saturday, April 5th, 2008
Jack’s Religious Gift Shop
701 Snow Hill Road
Salisbury, MD 21804
2:00PM Saturday, April 12, 2008
The Gospel Shop
800 South Salisbury Blvd
Salisbury, MD 21801
11:00 AMABOUT THE BOOKFor Pete’s Sake is a remarkable story about the unlikely live between a grown-up tomboy and the millionaire next door.Ellen Brittingham isn’t sure true live exists until she contracts to do the landscaping of the estate of the sophisticated widower next door, Adrian Sinclair. Adrian has it all—at least on the surface, He’s engaged to a beautiful woman who helped him build a successful business and he’ll soon have a mom for his troubled son Pete.

Yet, from the moment Ellen rescues a stranded Adrian on her Harley, his well-ordered world turns upside down, cracking his thin façade of happiness and revealing the void of faith and love behind it. Even more, his son seems to have his own sites set on Ellen – as his new mom.

As Ellen’s friendship grows with Pete, she realizes that his father is about to marry the wrong woman for the right reasons. And despite her resolve to remain “neighbors only” with the dad, the precocious boy works his way into her heart, drawing Ellen and Adrian closer. Close enough for heartbreak, for Pete’s sake!

But how can her heart think that Adrian Sinclair is the one when he’s engaged to a sophisticated beauty who is everything Ellen isn’t. When Ellen’s three best friends see she’s been bitten by the love bug, they jump into action and submit her to a makeover that reveals the woman underneath her rough exterior and puts her in contention for Adrian’s love.

But Ellen must ask herself whether she’s ready to risk the heart that she’s always held close. Will Ellen be able to trust that God brought this family into her life for a reason? Or will her fear of getting hurt cause her to turn away from God’s plan and her one true chance at love?

My thoughts: I was originally drawn to this book because of the relationship between Ellen and the troubled son, Pete. It turns out Pete has Asperger’s Syndrome which is something I have recently been reading about. A loved one has Asperger’s and I have been trying to find out more about this mysterious syndrome. I loved watching Pete and Ellen’s relationship form. I also had to smile at the amazement Adrian had for his son whenever Pete did something new since I have also experienced that amazement.

All in all For Pete’s Sake is a good read. It has a great storyline and the twist with Asperger’s makes it all the better.

Thank Linda Windsor for letting me be part of her Blog Tour.

Tabitha asked me to write about balance, and that’s something that I’ve found very challenging this past year.

I first started realizing I was totally OUT of balance around summer last year. I had taken on too many things and my writing was suffering—not good! Especially since I was under contract!

But God always provides, doesn’t He? I had a planned vacation to visit my friend Sharon Hinck (she’s an awesome writer—her RESTORER series is way cool and I helped critique her latest release, SYMPHONY OF SECRETS).

Anyway, Minnesota was supposed to have nice weather—oh, except for the thunderstorms that took out power for 6 of the 8 days I was there!

It was actually a blessing in disguise. I couldn’t do much work because the power was out, and so Sharon and I took lots of walks and did a lot of chatting and card-making.

One thing that struck home was that I needed to reestablish balance in my life. I was going crazy. I needed to stop and center myself.

When I went home, I created a Tranquility Corner for myself—a small place in my office with my favorite things in it, so that I could have a central place of good thoughts and tranquil vibes.

During walks with Sharon, I realized that the sound of running water has always soothed me, so I found a small tabletop water fountain to give me the sound of running water. I also put my aromatherapy diffuser there with eucalyptus (for my sinuses) and French lavender (since I grow it and like it). I also put the requisite bowl of M&Ms.

You can see a picture here:
http://camys-loft.blogspot.com/2007/11/new-tranquility-corner.html

I also went through my email and YahooGroups and dropped out of any groups I didn’t read anymore. I unsubscribed from any newsletters that weren’t important to my writing or family life.

I also created a separate email address for non-urgent, non-writing business, which I only check once a day—no more! It made my business email address much less busy, and the fewer emails I got reduced my stress levels.

I also learned to say NO—this was the hardest thing for me. But I started using my iCal calendar program on my computer to schedule everything I had to do, and it made me more aware of how much I was doing.

When my schedule got full, I started telling people no—“No, I’m sorry, I can’t take on any more critiquing jobs through my Story Sensei service at this time because I’m booked through such and such date.” “No, I’m sorry, I can’t volunteer for that church project because I’m already busy with youth group work.” “No, I’m sorry, I can’t judge for that contest because I’m already committed to running the ACFW Genesis contest.”

People were much more understanding about it than I expected them to be!

Now, I work hard to protect my time—my creative writing time, my family time, my time with God. I don’t want to get to that point I was at before where I had so much to do that my brain SHUT DOWN like an overloaded computer.

I hope this helps anybody else who might feel overwhelmed. It’s not a good state to be in, and you need to make the effort to get yourself out of it!

Camy Tang is the loud Asian chick who writes loud Asian chick lit. She used to be a biologist, but now she is a staff worker for her church youth group and leads a worship team for Sunday service. She also runs the Story Sensei fiction critique service. On her blog, she gives away Christian novels every Monday and Thursday, and she ponders frivolous things like dumb dogs (namely, hers), coffee-geek husbands (no resemblance to her own…), the writing journey, Asiana, and anything else that comes to mind. Visit her website at http://www.camytang.com/ for a huge website contest going on right now, giving away five boxes of books and 25 copies of her latest release, ONLY UNI.

Tab here: I have to say that Only Uni (The Sushi Series, Book 2) is my favorite book by Camy Tang…so far. Trish is definitely one girl I can relate to. Oh wait. At times I thought she was me. I have gone through some of the same issues that Trish goes through. Especially in the area of men. I too at one time had to keep telling myself to quit looking and devote myself wholly to God. The similarities were hilarious but also sad because it is an issue that not only I face. Trish’s character is one that I see walking around all the time. I can think of several women who are living Trish’s story. Only Uni (The Sushi Series, Book 2) is not only a good read but has a potent message hidden within it.

Susan May Warren has done it again only instead of being in Russia, she’s bull-riding with Rafe Noble.

In less than eight seconds, he lost his title, his career, and his best friend-all on the dirt floor of a noisy rodeo arena.

Katherine Breckenridge just wants to make a difference by running her mother’s charity foundation. But the mysterious disappearance of a half a million dollars has forced it to the brink of bankruptcy. Her last chance to save it is the annual fund-raiser, an event that’s destroyed by an out-of-control Rafe Noble.

Desperate to rescue the foundation, Katherine heads to the Noble family ranch to enlist Rafe’s help in raising the money he cost her in lost donations. What she doesn’t know is that Rafe is broke-in cash and in spirit-and helping her could end up costing him his life.

Rafe is the kind of man we all dream of. He’s handsome, tough and he knows it. Come on…he’s a bull-rider for goodness sake. What girl wouldn’t fall all over him? Rafe has danger written all over him. For some reason, we women find that attractive in a man. Rafe is the kind of man that our mothers warned us to stay away from…or is he?

Head over to Rafe’s blog to see what he’s up to and to read an excerpt from the book.

About the author: Award-winning Susan May Warren recently returned home to her native Minnesota after serving for eight years with her husband and four children as missionaries with SEND International in Far East Russia. She now writes full-time from Minnesota’s north woods. Visit her website at www.susanmaywarren.com.

This is super cool-watch the book trailer.
Win a steak dinner with Rafe contest!

This week, the

Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
ADAM

(Thomas Nelson April 1, 2008)by
Ted Dekker ABOUT THE AUTHOR:Ted is the son of missionaries John and Helen Dekker, whose incredible story of life among headhunters in Indonesia has been told in several books. Surrounded by the vivid colors of the jungle and a myriad of cultures, each steeped in their own interpretation of life and faith, Dekker received a first-class education on human nature and behavior. This, he believes, is the foundation of his writing.

After graduating from a multi-cultural high school, he took up permanent residence in the United States to study Religion and Philosophy. After earning his Bachelor’s Degree, Dekker entered the corporate world in management for a large healthcare company in California. Dekker was quickly recognized as a talent in the field of marketing and was soon promoted to Director of Marketing. This experience gave him a background which enabled him to eventually form his own company and steadily climb the corporate ladder.

Since 1997, Dekker has written full-time. He states that each time he writes, he finds his understanding of life and love just a little clearer and his expression of that understanding a little more vivid. Dekker’s body of work encompassing seven mysteries, three thrillers and ten fantasies includes Heaven’s Wager, When Heaven Weeps, Thunder of Heaven, Blessed Child, A Man Called Blessed, Blink, Thr3e, The Circle Trilogy (Black, Red, White), and Obsessed, with two more…Renegade, and Chaos to be released later this year.

ABOUT THE BOOK

He died once to stop the killer…now he’s dying again to save his wife.

FBI behavioral psychologist Daniel Clark has become famous for his well-articulated arguments that religion is one of society’s greatest antagonists. What Daniel doesn’t know is that his obsessive pursuit of a serial killer known only as “Eve” is about to end abruptly with an unexpected death-his own.

Twenty minutes later Daniel is resuscitated, only to be haunted by the loss of memory of the events immediately preceding his death.

Daniel becomes convinced that the only way to stop Eve is to recover those missing minutes during which he alone saw the killer’s face. And the only way to access them is to trigger his brain’s memory dump that occurs at the time of death by simulating his death again…and again. So begins a carefully researched psychological thriller which delves deep into the haunting realities of near-death experiences, demon possession, and the human psche.

“As always with a Ted Dekker thriller, the details of ADAM are stunning, pointing to meticulous research in a raft of areas: police and FBI methods, forensic medicine, psychological profiling-in short, all that accompanies a Federal hunt for a serial killer. But Dekker fully reveals his magic in the latter part of the book, when he subtly introduces his darker and more frightening theme. It’s all too creepily convincing. We have to keep telling ourselves that this is fiction. At the same time, we can’t help thinking that not only could it happen, but that it will happen if we’re not careful.”

New York Times best-selling author Ted Dekker unleashes his most riveting novel yet…an elusive serial killer whose victims die of unknown causes and the psychologist obsessed with catching him.

My thoughts: I am a wimp. I don’t like anything that I think might scare me. I actually quote “God has not given me a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and a sound mind” quite often. I’m a wimp, plain and simple and proud of it. Well, maybe not proud…

Anyway, what does this have to do with Adam? Nothing except that it was written by Ted Dekker (who by the way is almost considered a god to some in my region). Ted Dekker. He writes suspense, right? I’m not sure but I saw the movie trailer for Thr3e at church and it was enough to keep me away from him. Never mind that we own Saint and I’ve read part of it and was fine. Thr3e freaked me out and I was staying away from him.

Until Adam. Adam intrigued me. Adam sparked my curiosity. Adam begged me to read it. So I did.

I was scared at times and said my verse over and over. I tried not to read at night which didn’t matter when I read, I still remembered what I had read. I survived Adam. Adam is still twirling in my mind trying to process it. Adam will be with me for several days as I am reliving it, processing it, and filing it away for future use.

I recently had the pleasure of reading Death of a Six-Foot Teddy Bear by Sharon Dunn recently. I had read about Sharon from her posts at Faithchicks.com where she blogs with other Christian authors. Her books looked interesting and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity of reading a mystery involving Bargain Hunters (reminds me of my mother-in-law and her eldest daughter). Besides, with a title such as Death of a Six-Foot Teddy Bear who could pass this up. Part of me wanted to read the mystery and the other part of me wanted to get inside the minds of ladies who are looking for the best bargain (a trait I don’t possess, it must be because I am so impatient).

About Sharon Dunn: Sharon is the author of Death of a Garage Sale Newbie and the Ruby Taylor mystery novels including Sassy Cinderella, which was voted Book of the Year by American Christian Fiction Writers. She earned a bachelor’s in television production and a master’s in history. Sharon lives with her husband and three children.

From the back cover: Ginger and her husband, Earl, are in for a wild ride in Calamity, Nevada, along with the other BHN ladies - college student Kindra, mother-of-four Suzanne, and sassy senior Arleta. They came to town for the Inventors Expo and some outlet shopping, but instead they endure lost luggage, broken air conditioning, and a long line of people angry at hotel owner Dustin Clydell. With the Inventors Expo and the Squirrel Lovers convention both in the same town, the Wind-Up Hotel has somehow overbooked.

Before the night is over, a man in a teddy bear costume is found dead, the Inventors Expo is canceled…and the authorities want to talk to one of the BHN ladies! What else could possibly go wrong? Once again, the Bargain Hunters swing into sleuth mode to solve the murder - and this time, clear one of their own. Along the way, Ginger discovers something even better than a bargain.

My thoughts: Based on the title and description of the book I was looking forward to a light read and laughter so I drew a bubble bath and settled in for some serious reading. Sharon delivered on both accounts. Death of a Six-Foot Teddy Bear had me guessing to the end on who committed the murder and I couldn’t believe how much trouble one woman could get into. Wait. I take that back, I can believe that because I am related to such a person. It was hard for me to imagine Ginger as the main character because I would think of my relative. (That is a compliment by the way.)

One thing that stood out to me is we can become so focused on achieving our dream that we lose focus of God. God can place the dream in our heart but it’s also up to him to deliver through on it. We can’t force our dreams to come true.

Thank you Sharon for letting me be a part of your Blog Tour.

This week, the

Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
My Name is Russell Fink
Zondervan (March 1, 2008)
by
Michael SnyderABOUT THE AUTHOR:Michael Snyder has spent the bulk of his professional career in sales, has fallen in love, and continues to struggle with the balance between art and vocation. He’s never investigated a murder, much less that of an allegedly clairvoyant dog.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Russell Fink is twenty-six years old and determined to salvage a job he hates so he can finally move out of his parents house for good. He’s convinced he gave his twin sister cancer when they were nine years old. And his crazy fiancée refuses to accept the fact that their engagement really is over.

Then Sonny, his allegedly clairvoyant basset hound, is found murdered.

The ensuing amateur investigation forces Russell to confront several things at once-the enormity of his family’s dysfunction, the guy stalking his family, and his long-buried feelings for a most peculiar love interest.

At its heart, My Name is Russell Fink is a comedy, with sharp dialogue, characters steeped in authenticity, romance, suspense, and fresh humor. With a postmodern style similar to Nick Hornby and Douglas Coupland, the author explores reconciliation, forgiveness, and faith in the midst of tragedy. No amount of neurosis or dysfunction can derail God’s redemptive purposes.

This week, the

Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Healing Stones
(Thomas Nelson January 1, 2008)
by
Stephen Arterburn & Nancy RueABOUT THE AUTHORS:Stephen Arterburn is the founder and chairman of New Life Ministries—the nation’s largest faith-based broadcast, counseling and treatment ministry—and is the host of the nationally syndicated “New Life Live!” daily radio…By 1996 Nancy was a full-time writer. The Christian Heritage Series made that possible. She was writing those books from the early 1990’s until 2000.

And then a new opportunity came along–the Lily series. If she ever doubted that she was going to make it as a writer, man, that little red-head put those fears to rest! And, of course, Sophie followed Lily, with some teen and grown-up books in between — plus the non-fiction books designed just for you.

Nancy and her husband live in Tennessee now, overlooking a beautiful lake, lots of sycamore trees, and the rocky Tennessee hills. They have a bright yellow power boat named BANANA SPLIT which you can find us on no matter what the weather. Marijean and her husband live nearby with my three grand-dogs and three grand-cats (and two grand-snakes . . .)

ABOUT THE BOOK

With one flash of a camera, Demi’s private life becomes public news. She doesn’t know it yet, but her healing has just begun.

Christian college professor Demitria Costanas had vowed to end her affair with a colleague. But she gives into temptation one last time…and a lurking photographer captures her weakness for all to see. Quite literally, she’s the woman caught in adultery. And almost everyone–herself included–has a stone to throw.

Enter Sullivan Crisp, a decidedly unorthodox psychologist with his own baggage. He’s well-known for his quirky sense of humor and incorporation of “game show” theology into his counseling sessions. And yet there’s something more he offers…hope for a fresh start.

Reluctantly the two of them begin an uplifting, uneven journey filled with healing and grace. By turns funny and touching, this story explores the ways humans hurt each other and deceive themselves. And it shows the endlessly creative means God uses to turn stones of accusation and shame into works of beauty that lead us onto the path of healing.

An auspicious debut for a candid yet tender series about pain, healing, and God’s invitation for second chances.

My thoughts: What drew me to Healing Stones is the fact that the main character has an affair. Did I mention that she has an affair and is a professor at a Christian College? Oh and the man she has the affair with is a colleague.

I am drawn to books about women having extramarital affairs, what leads them to having the affair, what happens during the affair, and essentially how does it end. Do they stay married? Does the marriage end? Does the woman end up with any of the men?

Healing Stones answers all those questions and more. I couldn’t put the book down because I had to know more about Demitria Costanas and her situation. Great book. I highly recommend it.

This week, the

Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
A Passion Most Pure
(Revell January 1, 2008)
by
Julie LessmanABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Julie Lessman is a debut author who has already garnered writing acclaim, including ten Romance Writers of America awards. She is a commercial writer for Maritz Travel, a published poet and a Golden Heart Finalist. Julie has a heart to write “Mainstream Inspirational,” reaching the 21st-century woman with compelling love stories laced with God’s precepts. She resides in Missouri with her husband and their golden retriever, and has two grown children and a daughter-in-law. A Passion Most Pure is her first novel.

ABOUT THE BOOK

She’s found the love of her life. Unfortunately, he loves her sister …

As World War I rages across the Atlantic in 1916, a smaller war is brewing in Boston. Faith O’Connor finds herself drawn to an Irish rogue who is anything but right for her. Collin McGuire is brash, cocky, and from the wrong side of the tracks, not to mention forbidden by her father. And then there’s the small matter that he is secretly courting her younger sister. But when Collin’s affections suddenly shift her way, it threatens to tear Faith’s proper Boston family apart.

Refusing to settle for anything less than a romantic relationship that pleases God, Faith O’Connor steels her heart against her desire for the roguish Collin McGuire. Collin is trying to win her sister Charity’s hand, and Faith isn’t sure she can handle the jealousy she feels. Full of passion, romance, rivalry, and betrayal, A Passion Most Pure is Book 1 of the Daughters of Boston series.

My thoughts: I couldn’t get enough of this book and I’m not a big romance reader. What drew me to reading A Passion Most Pure was the fact that it took place during the start of World War I and I thought it took place in Ireland (I was wrong about the Ireland part although they did visit for a brief moment).

I loved this book. Seriously, ask Best Friend and she will tell you I couldn’t quit talking about it. What hooked me was the sexual tension between Faith and Collin. Julie was able to take real sexual tension and put it into words without it sounding cheesy (which in my opinion is difficult to do). It’s rare to find sexual tension in a Christian book even though most of us know what sex is and have experienced it. My hat goes off to Julie for delivering a book that is realistic, not only in her characters but in emotions.

Having stayed up till midnight finishing Family Tree by Barbara Delinsky left me with mixed feelings. I had wanted to read this book ever since it first came out. When I saw that the library had it I made a special point of putting aside my other reading so that I could read this book.

The basic premise is that a Caucasian couple have an African-American baby. How can this be possible? Dana, the wife, doesn’t know the history of her father and is pressured by Hugh, her husband, to find him. Hugh knows that their daughter’s coloring couldn’t have come from his side of the family since he could trace his genealogy all the way back to the Mayflower.

Although I am glad I read the book and it talks about some good issues, the conversation was dry at times. I kept wondering what the big deal was in trying to find Dana’s father and who cares about where the “black gene” came from. I had to keep reminding myself that color really does matter to some people and Hugh’s family were “pure blood” and didn’t want to have to deal with the fact that the new baby looked different from them.

One of the reasons I was disappointed was because I expected the book to be a lot deeper than it was. Yes, it discussed some great issues but it didn’t make me “think” like I wanted it to. It was a good story and that’s it, nothing more and nothing less.

I am glad I read the book however I expected more than what was delivered. Is that the author’s fault? No, it just means at the time I wanted more. I could read the book again and get something completely different from it and think it’s the best thing ever written. Just right now I had mixed feelings.