"Sweet Mercy" by Ann Tatlock

Sweet Mercy by Ann Tatlock is an historical fiction book set during the great depression, notorious criminals and prohibition.  The main theme is that no one is all bad or all good and that we all need mercy.   Eve tells her grandson about her memories at the lodge which is about to be torn down that was owned by her family and that is the whole story of the book.  When she moves from St. Paul Minnesota where many criminals reside, she is thrilled to live with her Uncle Cy at his lodge in Mercy, Ohio.  She learns that not everything is as it seems and Love covers a multitude of sins (I Peter 4:8), as her father always taught her. 

The story is both interesting and sweet.  It’s a coming-of-age story with a bit of romance weaved into it and is an enjoyable read.  Although Eve is self-righteous and judgmental at the beginning, she learns a surprising truth about herself as she learns of a certain bootlegging operation.  It has lots of varied characters and I loved the ending!  I recommend this to anyone who enjoys historical fiction! 

(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Other books I also liked by this author:  Promises to Keep and The Returning

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"Big Brother" by Lionel Shriver

Big Brother by Lionel Shriver is a novel about a sister and her brother. When her brother comes to visit, she does not recognize him because he gained so much weight. When his visit becomes too long, she suddenly has to choose between helping her brother or staying with her family and letting her brother go on his own. What does she do? Does her brother lose weight? It doesn’t get much better than this. I read this because it was People Magazine’s pick for book of the week. Loved it!
(Gerard’s review, 5++ stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"Accidents Happen" by Louise Millar (GIVEAWAY)

A Thriller For You by a new author

Accidents Happen by Louise Millar is about a mother who is determined to keep her son, Jack, and her safe using extreme measures. But, is it enough? This book kept my interest throughout with very good writing and a twist at the end. Great book, I enjoyed it!  Give this new author a try.
(Gerard's review, 5+ stars)

If you reside in the U.S.A. and would like this book, just leave a comment saying so with an email address so we can contact you for an address. (The Winner is Susan, I just flipped a coin Thursday night.)

(We got a free copy to review for no compensation. This did not affect my review in any way.)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

Tuesday Teasers: Four For You

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should  Be Reading. Anyone can play along, so I thought  I  would play for fun! Just do the following

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page (well, we cheat and choose specific ones)
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on  that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away!   You don’t  want  to  ruin the  book for others!)
• Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can  add the book to their TBR  Lists  if they  like your teaser.   

Karen's:
"They're just a couple of men trying to feed their families, and they got no other way to do it except to sell spirits to people who want an occasional drink. If it's between making moonshine and letting their kids starve, they're right to choose moonshine, and you're wrong to judge them."
From page 68 of Sweet Mercy by Ann Tatlock. (Historical Christian fiction)

Do not be a hypocrite. Do not be jealous or speak evil of others.
From I Peter 2:1, (Int'l Children's Bible) non-fiction

Gerard's:
Your brother eats us out of house and hone and smashes up the furniture, and who gets raked over the coals? Me. For selfishly cycling too much.
From page 131 of Big Brother by Lionel Shriver.

And with that, she marched out the door of her house--her house--cross that she had to explain it all.
From page 11 of Accidents Happen by Louise Millar.

Happy Reading!

Riveting Memoir: "The Blood Of Lambs--A Former Terrorist's Memoir of Death and Redemption" by Kamal Saleem

The Blood of Lambs by Kamal Saleem  tells the true story of his life and his change from being a follower of Allah to being a follower of Jesus Christ.  At the age of 7 he was trained to become an Islamic terrorist!  It is a fascinating read.  I didn't know how they train these people, but I do now and it is very scary!  The story of how he became to speak out against terrorism is mind-blowing.  You have to read it to believe it!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

WOW! That's the word that kept coming into my mind as I read The Blood of Lambs--A Former Terrorist's Memoir of Death and Redemption by Kamal Saleem with Lynn Vincent. It is the most interesting memoir I have ever read!  I was fascinated by what the Muslims believe and have a better understanding of how Muslim terrorists think.  Kamal was abused and bullied as a kid, and found acceptance and protection when recruited as a boy soldier.  All his life he was raised to hate and at age 7, attended a terrorist training camp where they trained with live ammunition.  This man had a vast number of experiences that were completely new to me, including many near death experiences.  His childhood is heartbreaking and even after he came to America and was converted to Christianity, his bravery continues as he publicly shares his story and warns the U.S. to wake up to what the Jihad is up to.  His life is always in danger!

I learned so much from reading this book!  I am not into politics at all so thought this book might be boring and read like a history text book, but I was so wrong!  It is a very interesting and captivating read because wanting to know what happened to bring about this terrorist's conversion to Christianity kept me turning the pages.  This is not the kind of book I normally would read, but it was recommended to me by a friend in an email that went into detail about it which piqued my interest.  Now I am recommending it to you!    
(Karen's review, 5 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!