Category Archives: Book Reviews

Book Review: A Cup of Dust by Susie Finkbeiner

Book Reviews,

Title: A Cup of Dust
Author: Susie Finkbeiner
Publisher: Kregel Publications
Published: October 2015
Series: Pearl Spence Novels
Genre: Historical Christian Fiction

About the Book: (from the publisher’s Web site)

Where you come from isn’t who you are.

Ten-year-old Pearl Spence is a daydreamer, playing make-believe to escape life in Oklahoma’s Dust Bowl in 1935. The Spences have their share of misfortune, but as the sheriff’s family, they’ve got more than most in this dry, desolate place. They’re who the town turns to when there’s a crisis or a need–and during these desperate times, there are plenty of both, even if half the town stands empty as people have packed up and moved on.

Pearl is proud of her loving, strong family, though she often wearies of tracking down her mentally impaired older sister or wrestling with her grandmother’s unshakable belief in a God who Pearl just isn’t sure she likes.

Then a mysterious man bent on revenge tramps into her town of Red River. Eddie is dangerous and he seems fixated on Pearl. When he reveals why he’s really there and shares a shocking secret involving the whole town, dust won’t be the only thing darkening Pearl’s world.

While the tone is suspenseful and often poignant, the subtle humor of Pearl’s voice keeps A Cup of Dust from becoming heavy-handed. Finkbeiner deftly paints a story of a family unit coming together despite fractures of distress threatening to pull them apart.

My Thoughts:

This tale of the dust bowl made vivid to me a place and time in history I previously knew little about. I read this one what feels like a long time ago and never got around to writing a review. But since I’ve recently been reminded just how much I enjoyed reading it, I’ve gone back over my notes and decided it’s time to share.

This is a young girl’s story, told in her own uniquely quirky voice. Readers are taken on an emotional journey, in turns heartbreaking, terrifying, and humorous, by a character who is somewhat paradoxically both naïve and wise beyond her years.

Our young heroine Pearl makes some great observations every now and then. For example, early in the story (pages 24-25) she notes: “That was when I learned that kindness could break a heart just as sure as meanness. The difference was the kindness made that broken heart softer. Meanness just made the heart want to be hard.”

Pearl’s story touches on some big and discussable themes like love and sacrifice and the true meaning of family. But the aspect that stood out for me was the way the author used different characters’ competing views on the nature of God and His role in their situations. Through these different viewpoints, readers are challenged to consider what we believe and why. This is a story that could foster some great discussion in a book group setting. Highly recommended, particularly to readers up for a literary coming-of-age story with a touch of mystery and suspense.

Thank you to the publisher for providing a complimentary copy of the book. I was not required to write a review, but I wanted to.

Quick Links: About the Book | About the Series | Author’s Site

Audiobook Review: If I Run by Terri Blackstock

Audiobook Reviews, Book Reviews, , ,

Title: If I Run
Author: Terri Blackstock
Print Publisher: Zondervan
Audio Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Narrator: Nan Gurley
Published: February 2016
Series: If I Run, Book 1
Genre: Suspense, Christian Fiction
Length: 6 hours, 41 minutes. Unabridged.

About the Book: (from the publisher’s Web site)

Casey knows the truth. But it won’t set her free.

Casey Cox’s DNA is all over the crime scene. There’s no use talking to police; they’ve failed her abysmally before. She has to flee before she’s arrested . . . or worse. The truth doesn’t matter anymore.

But what is the truth? That’s the question haunting Dylan Roberts, the war-weary veteran hired to find Casey. PTSD has marked him damaged goods, but bringing Casey back can redeem him. Though the crime scene seems to tell the whole story, details of the murder aren’t adding up.

Casey Cox doesn’t fit the profile of a killer. But are Dylan’s skewed perceptions keeping him from being objective? If she isn’t guilty, why did she run?

Unraveling her past and the evidence that condemns her will take more time than he has, but as Dylan’s damaged soul intersects with hers, he is faced with two choices: the girl who occupies his every thought is a psychopathic killer . . . or a selfless hero. And the truth could be the most deadly weapon yet.

My Thoughts on the Book:

If I Run makes a fabulous kick-off for Terri Blackstock’s suspense series by the same name. The first person point of view draws you in and gets you thinking about the what-ifs behind the premise. What would you do in Casey’s shoes? In Dylan’s? Overall, this story has a great premise, relatable characters, suspenseful action, and high stakes. I especially love how well matched Casey and Dylan are as adversaries… and potentially allies? At first, I wondered what could possibly be Casey’s reason for running, but as the story unfolds, it all makes an unfortunate kind of sense. I’m impressed, and I must read more!

Specific to the Audio Edition:

Nan Gurley’s narration does justice to the characters’ personalities and voices as written. She takes us into the characters’ heads and beautifully portrays the emotions and challenges they’re going through. I look forward to a repeat performance in Book 2, If I’m Found. It’s going on my must-listen list.

I borrowed this audiobook from my local library. I was not expected to write a review, but wanted to share how much I enjoyed the book.

Quick Links: About the Audiobook | About the Series | Audio Sample | Author’s Site

Audiobook Review: Fraying at the Edge by Cindy Woodsmall

Audiobook Reviews, Book Reviews,

Title: Fraying at the Edge
Author: Cindy Woodsmall
Print Publisher: WaterBrook Multnomah
Audio Publisher: Recorded Books
Narrator: Stina Nielsen
Published: August 2016
Series: The Amish of Summer Grove, Book 2
Genre: Amish Fiction
Length: 12 hours, 6 minutes. Unabridged.

About the Book: (from the publisher’s Web site)

Family, community, faith, and love. These “quilt blocks” sewn together made Ariana’s beautiful life. When they are pulled to pieces, will anything familiar remain?

The Old Order Amish life Ariana Brenneman loved vanished virtually overnight with the discovery that she was switched at birth twenty years ago. Now she’s immersed in the Englischer world, getting to know her mother and under the authority of her biological father, an atheist intellectual with resolute plans to expand Ariana’s worldview. Only Quill Schlabach, a childhood friend living Englisch, can steady the tilting ground between Ariana’s two worlds, but can she trust him after so many betrayals?

 At the same time, Skylar Nash is forced to choose rehab or spend several months with her true relatives, the large Brenneman family and their seemingly backward life—no electricity, no technology, no fun. What the young woman can’t leave behind is her addiction to illegal prescription drugs and a deep emptiness from the belief that she doesn’t belong in either family.

New ties are binding Ariana and Skylar to the lives they were meant to have. Can they find the wisdom and strength they’ll need to follow God’s threads into unexpected futures?

My Thoughts on the Book:

If you read my review of the first book in The Amish of Summer Grove series, you know that Amish fiction isn’t my usual cup of tea, but that I particularly enjoyed the start of this series. Enough that I had to know what would happen next. Well, the story of the switched-at-birth Ariana and Skylar, and their friends and families, continues with Fraying at the Edge, and in my opinion, it does not disappoint.

This is a satisfying middle-of-the-series read, picking up where the previous book left off, shaking up our characters’ lives in new ways, and answering some questions, while leaving others to be addressed in a future book. Ariana and Skylar both grow and change for the better over the course of this story, but their futures remain unresolved. And I for one, cannot wait for the next book…though I guess I’ll have to.

I found this story very thought provoking. In particular, I was fascinated by the closer look it takes at what the Amish believe and why, as compared to the “Englisch” world I’m more familiar with. The story also takes something of an oblique look at nature vs. nurture as we see similarities and differences between the girls and their biological and non-biological families. And it was interesting to see each girl react to challenges to her belief system.

I would recommend this book to fans of Amish fiction, as well as to book groups and to anyone who enjoys a good thought-provoking read.

Specific to the Audio Edition:

This audiobook was recorded by the same narrator who read the first book in the series, and I’m happy to report that this encore performance is just as well done as the earlier one. The narrator does a great job at giving different voices to the various characters within dialog and expressing their emotions in her reading.

I borrowed a copy of this audiobook from my local library. I was not expected to write a review. But I wanted to.

Quick Links: About the Book | About the Series | Audio Sample | Author’s Site | Narrator’s Site

Audiobook Review: Ties That Bind by Cindy Woodsmall

Audiobook Reviews, Book Reviews,

Title: Ties That Bind
Author: Cindy Woodsmall
Print Publisher: WaterBrook Press
Audio Publisher: Recorded Books
Narrator: Stina Nielsen
Published: September 2015
Series: Amish of Summer Grove, Book 1
Genre: Amish Fiction
Length: 11 hours, 55 minutes. Unabridged.

About the Book: (from the publisher’s Web site)

Ariana’s comfortable Old Order Amish world is about to unravel. Will holding tightly to the cords of family keep them together—or simply tear them apart?

Twenty-year-old Ariana Brenneman loves her family and the Old Ways. She has two aspirations: open a café in historic Summer Grove to help support her family’s ever-expanding brood and to keep any other Amish from being lured into the Englisch life by Quill Schlabach.

Five years ago Quill, along with her dear friend Frieda, ran off together, and Ariana still carries the wounds of that betrayal. When she unexpectedly encounters him, she soon realizes he has plans to help someone else she loves leave the Amish.

Despite how things look, Quill’s goal has always been to protect Ariana from anything that may hurt her, including the reasons he left. After returning to Summer Grove on another matter, he unearths secrets about Ariana and her family that she is unaware of. His love and loyalty to her beckons him to try to win her trust and help her find a way to buy the café—because when she learns the truth that connects her and a stranger named Skylar Nash, Quill knows it may upend her life forever.

Ties That Bind is the first novel in the Amish of Summer Grove series.

My Thoughts on the Book:

I don’t read a lot of Amish fiction. It’s not that I dislike it, or anything, but there are other genres I tend to gravitate toward first. That said, I loved this story and these characters, and I’m looking forward to reading more from this series.

Ariana is a sweet and likeable young Amish girl, and I found myself rooting for her to achieve her dreams, even as complications arose to throw those dreams into disarray and cause her to question her own identity, purpose, and family ties.

Skylar is a young woman with a lot of hidden pain, and while her story seems only to have started in this book, I am very curious to see how her life might be changed within a future book in this series.

Quill is a particularly interesting character, and one whose perspective I can appreciate on a number of issues, particularly his perspective on faith. I will be very curious to see what the future holds for him. Hopefully something good!

This book has a number of romantic threads running throughout, and I’m curious to see if I’m right about who’s going to wind up with whom. But at the same time, I liked the fact that the story takes a broader perspective than many romances, looking at a variety of relationships within and outside families. It raises many thought provoking questions on issues of identity, religion and more, leading me to wonder how I would respond if I found myself in a situation similar to the ones these characters are facing.

This novel’s ending leaves me more than ready to find out what will happen with these characters in the next book. Thankfully Fraying at the Edge is already available. I just need to track down a copy.

Overall, it’s a book/audiobook I would gladly recommend, but don’t go into it expecting to read just one! This story reaches a comfortable stopping point, but there are a lot of unanswered questions remaining to be addressed.

Specific to the Audio Edition:

Stina Nielsen does a great job narrating the audio edition of Ties That Bind. With quite a few viewpoint characters, this story must have been quite a challenge to narrate, but she makes it seem effortless! Male and female voices are well done and distinct, and characters’ emotions are clearly portrayed in the reading. I am very happy to see that the next book in the series has been recorded by the same narrator.

I listened to a copy of the audiobook that was borrowed from my local library.

Quick Links: About the Audiobook | About the Series | Author’s Site | Narrator’s Site

Christian Fiction Audiobooks, New for Summer 2017

Audiobook Reviews, Featured Reads, New Releases

I love Christian fiction! But you knew that, right?

And I love audiobooks. Big surprise? 😉

So with “June is Audiobook Month” rapidly coming to a close, I want to take a moment to feature some of the fabulous new Christian fiction audiobooks scheduled to release this summer. Without further ado, here are the twelve titles I’m most excited about listening to, chosen from among dozens of upcoming new titles.

June Releases

High as the Heavens by Kate Breslin
Read by Renee Ertl
Historical Romance from Oasis Audio
Also available in print from Bethany House

God Bless the Broken Road by Jennifer Dornbrush
Read by Lauren Ezzo
A novelization of the upcoming movie by the same name
Also available in print from Howard Books

Love Story by Karen Kingsbury
Read by January LaVoy and Kirby Heyborne
The Baxter Family, Book 1
Romance from Simon and Schuster Audio
Also available in print from Howard Books

July Releases

The Writing Desk by Rachel Hauck
Read by Windy Lanzl
Romance from Brilliance Audio
Also available in print from Zondervan

Just Look Up by Courtney Walsh
Read by Matilda Novak
Romance from Blackstone Audio
Also available in print from Tyndale House

August Releases

Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar
Read by Rendah Heywood
Biblical Fiction / Historical Romance from Recorded Books
Also available in print from Tyndale House

Chasing Secrets by Lynette Eason
Read by Rachel Dulude
Elite Guardians, Book 4
Romantic Suspense from Tantor Media
Also available in print from Revell

Sandpiper Cove by Irene Hannon
Read by Therese Plummer
Hope Harbor, Book 3
Romance from Recorded Books
Also available in print from Revell

Threads of Suspicion by Dee Henderson
Read by Johanna Parker
Evie Blackwell Cold Case, Book 2
Suspense / Thriller from Recorded Books
Also available in print from Bethany House

True to You by Becky Wade
Read by Stephanie Cozart
Bradford Sisters Romance, Book 1
Contemporary Romance from Recorded Books
Also available in print from Bethany House

Wild Montana Skies by Susan May Warren
Read by Cynthia Farrell
Montana Rescue, Book 1
Contemporary Romance from Recorded Books
Also available in print from Revell

Gathering the Threads by Cindy Woodsmall
Read by Stina Nielsen
Amish of Summer Grove, Book 3
Amish Fiction from Recorded Books
Also available in print from WaterBrook

So those are my top picks for summer listening. Which books and audiobooks are you most looking forward to?

Audiobook Review: Annabel Lee by Mike Nappa

Audiobook Reviews, Book Reviews, ,

In case you didn’t already know, June is Audiobook Month! In case you’re thinking of celebrating by listening to an audiobook, here’s one worth considering.

Title: Annabel Lee
Author: Mike Nappa
Print Publisher: Revell
Audio Publisher: Oasis Audio
Narrator: Romy Nordlinger
Published: Print: March 2016; Audio: August 2016
Series: Coffey & Hill, Book 1
Genre: Christian fiction, Mystery, Thriller
Length: Unabridged. 10 hrs, 36 mins

About the Book: (from the publisher’s Web site)

Fourteen miles east of Peachtree, Alabama, a secret is hidden. The secret’s name is Annabel Lee.

She doesn’t know why her enigmatic uncle has stowed her deep underground in a military-style bunker. He’s left her with a few German words, a barely controlled guard dog, and a single command: “Don’t open that door for anybody, you got it? Not even me.”

Miles away in Atlanta, private investigator Trudi Coffey is visited by a mysterious older man calling himself Dr. Smith. He’s been trailing a man for a decade–a man she met through her ex-partner Samuel Hill–and the trail has led him to her office. The last thing Trudi wants to do is to contact Samuel. But it will take both of them to unravel this mystery–before it’s too late.

My Thoughts on the Book:

Mike Nappa’s Annabel Lee strikes me as an unusual novel with uniquely interesting characters. Its plot is quite suspenseful, with ever-present danger and an intriguing mystery to be solved. But be aware, it can also be quite violent at times, so if you’re especially squeamish about blood, consider yourself warned.

In my opinion, Annabel Lee, the Mute, and Dog pretty much stole the show from the series’ lead characters Trudi Coffey and Samuel Hill. Annabel’s uniquely child-like yet mature voice and way of looking at the world combined with Mute’s and Dog’s unique lack of voice (yet interesting personalities nonetheless) kept me turning the pages more than anything else. Well, okay, there was also that nagging curiosity about WHY Annabel was in this situation in the first place. And whether everything would turn out okay in the end.

Trudi and Samuel have more than their fair share of baggage as ex-spouses and ex-business-partners, which I presume they’ll continue working through in future installments of this series. I am interested to see where the author will take their relationship in the future, but I have to admit to being a bit annoyed by some of their more petty moments and occasional tactical blunders in this book. I’m hoping to see them get their act a bit more together in The Raven. Which, by the way, has what sounds like another intriguing storyline.

The Christian thread in Annabel Lee seems subtle and well thought out, with a lot of the deeper story coming to fruition within the Epilogue.

Overall, a delightfully unusual offering in this market, and one that I would recommend to fans of mystery and suspense.

Specific to the Audio Edition:

The narrator, Romy Nordlinger, does a fabulous job portraying the voice of a young girl, complete with accent, as well as voicing a variety of male and female characters with nuance and emotion. If you can get a copy of the audiobook, listening will be a treat.

My copy of the audiobook was borrowed from my local library.

Quick Links: Audio Sample | Audible | Author’s Site | Narrator’s Site

June is Audiobook Month, 2017

Audiobook Reviews

In celebration of June is Audiobook Month and because I #LoveAudiobooks, I’m featuring audiobooks on my blog, pretty much all month long. In fact, I’m so excited about celebrating audiobooks, I even put together this display at the local library where I do my librarian-ing.

june_is_audiobook_month

The audiobooks are already disappearing. Pretty cool, huh?

Anyway, I thought I’d kick off the month by drawing attention to some of the things happening online this audiobook month, including:

And please, don’t forget to check back here for more audiobook fun, including reviews of some Christian fiction audiobooks I particularly enjoyed, as well as my list of the upcoming audiobooks I’m most looking forward to this summer.

Meanwhile, I’d love to hear from you in the comments! Are you an audiobook listener too? Know of any must-check-out audio-themed events or promos going on this month?

Happy listening!

Audiobook Review: Moving Target by Lynette Eason

Audiobook Reviews, Book Reviews, ,

Title: Moving Target
Author: Lynette Eason
Print Publisher: Revell
Audio Publisher: Tantor Audio
Narrator: Rachel Dulude
Published: January 2017
Series: Elite Guardians, Book 3
Genre: Suspense
Length: 8 hours, 19 minutes. Unabridged.

About the Book: (from the publisher’s Web site)

Intensity. Skill. Tenacity. The bodyguards of Elite Guardians Agency have it all.

When Maddy McKay and Quinn Holcombe don’t show up for Quinn’s birthday party, his friends know that something is very wrong. Their search turns up little beyond evidence that Quinn and Maddy have vanished. And it soon becomes apparent that they did not leave of their own accord.

Maddy awakens in a cement room with no idea where she is. But it’s not long before she realizes she’s in the clutches of a madman who exacts revenge through games–hunting games. His prey of choice? Humans. Now Maddy and Quinn must run for their lives and outwit their killer when their game begins.

Because if they don’t win this game . . . they die.

My Thoughts on the Book:

The Elite Guardians series is sooo good! If you haven’t read Always Watching and Without Warning yet, check out my reviews. Each book can be read independently, but I recommend reading them in order for continuity from one storyline to the next. Best of all, each book in the series is as unique as its lead characters, so you won’t get bored or feel like you’re reading variations on the same book repeatedly.

Moving Target is Book 3 in the series and I found it as fresh and enjoyable as I did Books 1 and 2, in its own unique way. I found the villain and the whole “game” scenario, particularly creepy. Maddy and Quinn face a cunning adversary, who packs the book full of action and suspense. Meanwhile, our hero and heroine are working through issues of their own and coming to grips with what the nature of their relationship actually is and what they want it to be. I liked the fact that both hero and heroine in this story were professionals and treated each other accordingly, even as they watched each other’s backs and protected and supported one another. They make a really great team on multiple levels!

It was nice to meet up with the other ladies of the Elite Guardians agency again, even if they played a smaller role than in earlier books. I’m very much looking forward to reading Haley’s story next in Chasing Secrets.

Specific to the Audio Edition:

Narrator Rachel Dulude is very good at what she does, and I appreciate the consistency she brings from one book to the next in this series. I’ve already said so many great things about her narration of the earlier two books, I feel like no matter what I say, I’ll be repeating myself. So can I just use the word “excellent” and leave it at that? Those readers who enjoy a good and suspenseful audiobook will not be disappointed.

Thank you to Tantor Audio for providing a complimentary copy of the audiobook for review purposes.

Quick Links: About the Book | About the Series | Audio Sample (Audible) | Author’s Site | Narrator’s Site

Book Review: Forest Child by Heather Day Gilbert

Book Reviews

Since today is International Viking Day, and the title I’m reviewing this week seemed a particularly good thematic fit, I’m posting this week’s blog post a day earlier than normal. Happy International Viking Day!

Title: Forest Child
Author: Heather Day Gilbert
Publisher: WoodHaven Press
Published: October 2016
Series: Vikings of the New World Saga, Book 2
Genre: Historical Fiction, Christian Fiction

About the Book: (from the author’s Web site)

Viking warrior. Dauntless leader. Protective mother.

Determined to rise above her rank as the illegitimate “forest child” of Eirik the Red, Freydis launches a second voyage to Vinland to solidify her power and to demand the respect she deserves. She will return home with enough plunder to force her brother, Leif, to sell her the family farm in Greenland.

But nothing can prepare her for the horrors she must confront in Vinland…and nothing can stand in her way when her family is threatened.

In her race to outrun the truths that might destroy her, Freydis ultimately collides with the only enemy she cannot silence—her own heart.

Historically based on the Icelandic Sagas, Forest Child brings the memorable, conflicted persona of Freydis Eiriksdottir to life. This immersive tale is Book Two in the bestselling Vikings of the New World Saga.

My Thoughts:

It was a long wait between the release of the first and second books in Heather Day Gilbert’s Vikings of the New World Saga, and then it was a while more before I could make the time to squeeze that second book into my reading schedule. But now that I have read it, I can say that Forest Child is so worth the wait.

If you have read and enjoyed God’s Daughter, then you’ll definitely want to find out what’s going on with Freydis, a colorful secondary character in that tale, who takes center stage in Forest Child. If you haven’t, then I have one word for you:

Vikings.

Yep. These two historical novels are based upon The Saga of the Greenlanders about the Vikings’ exploration of North America. I would recommend starting with God’s Daughter and reading the whole series through at once, though Forest Child could be read as a stand-alone, if you really want to.

Freydis, the lead character in Forest Child, is a strong woman who doesn’t trust easily, and who alienates a lot of people. But with her as the first person viewpoint, the readers know her motivations for the things she does, and we can empathize with her feelings and her reasons, even as we cringe at many of the decisions she makes along the way. And with the story told in the present tense, there’s an unusual level of immediacy, naturally drawing the reader in to experience the story’s vivid descriptions and historical details as if it were all happening right now.

Themes of marriage, motherhood, and family ties give this story many layers, but for much of the plotline, I wasn’t sure where the Christian element would fit in. We don’t start out with a strong Christian character like we did in God’s Daughter. But looking back on it now, I can see how the twists and turns in Freydis’s journey were leading her to a point where she could come to an important realization and make some much needed changes in her life. That’s where the Christian element fits in, and in my opinion, this kind of redemptive story is very much worth telling and worth reading.

Highly recommended. Particularly for those fascinated by Viking history, as I am.

Thank you to the author for providing a complimentary electronic copy of this ebook for review purposes.

Quick Links: About the Book | About the Series | Author’s Site

Book Review: The End Begins by Sara Davison

Book Reviews

Title: The End Begins
Author: Sara Davison
Publisher: Ashberry Lane
Published: September 2015
Series: The Seven Trilogy, Book 1
Genre: Christian Fiction, Speculative, Romance

About the Book: (from the back of the book)

When your beliefs are at war, does love stand a chance?

Bookstore owner Meryn O’Reilly and Army Captain Jesse Christensen are on opposite sides of a battle. After a series of terrorist attacks in 2053, martial law has been declared in Canada and the military has taken over. When a radical Christian group claims responsibility, Jesse and his platoon are sent to Meryn’s city to keep an eye on the Christians and ensure they are not stepping outside the confines of the law.

Fiery and quick-tempered, Meryn chafes under the curfew and other restrictions to her freedom. Jesse is equally amused, intrigued, and terrified by her spirit. She could find herself in prison if she shows defiance to the wrong soldier, namely Lieutenant Gallagher.

Jesse watches out for Meryn when possible, although she wants nothing to do with him. His worst fears are realized when she commits a crime he cannot protect her from. Now they both face an uncertain future and the very real threat of losing everything, including their lives. With time running out, Jesse works feverishly to convince the authorities to show leniency to Meryn. And to convince her that love can overcome any barrier that lies between them.

My Thoughts:

The End Begins is first in Sara Davison’s The Seven Trilogy, and it’s one of those stories that doesn’t really fit neatly into any one category. It has elements of romance, suspense, and political thriller, but it also has significant speculative elements, and is set in a dystopian future (2053) Canada. The storyline raises some very interesting religious and ethical questions, and makes the reader pause to think about what could happen in real life, given certain political pressures and government responses.

On the romance front, there’s a fair amount of coincidence (or God’s nudges?) involved early on in repeated meetings, and at first I didn’t fully get why they were so drawn to each other, given how little they seemed to have in common. As the story progressed however, and Jesse and Meryn opened up to each other, the emotional aspects totally clicked and I felt the pull. You know that emotional connection to the characters that makes you need to finish the story and see how it ends? That’s how I felt about this one.

There is one place at the end of Chapter 29 where the hero does something in an emotional moment that I really wish the author had left out of the story. It does a great job showing his emotional reaction to what he’s going through, but I think it also weakens his character and makes him less of a hero, and I felt it wasn’t really necessary to the plot or his character development. So, yeah, I went on to enjoy the rest of the story by ripping that page out (okay, not literally; I am a librarian) and pretending it never happened.

On a side note, I loved Meryn’s book store and enjoyed the idea of a resurgence of print books due to continuing technological changes and challenges. Very clever.

Fans of Amanda G Stevens’ Haven Seekers series (see my review of Seek and Hide) will likely take a particular interest in this series. The two series feature similar political situations resulting in persecution of Christians, though the characters and direction each series takes differ.

This book includes some really thought-provoking discussion questions in the back, and I think its content would lend itself to a fabulous book group discussion.

I received a free copy of this book, without any expectation that I would write a review. However, since I make a habit of blogging reviews, I decided to write one anyway. :)

Quick Links: About the Book | Author’s Site