"Leota's Garden" by Francine Rivers

Touching Christian Fiction

Leota's Garden by Francine Rivers is very good about an old lady, Leota, who was totally misunderstood by her kids and her granddaughter (Annie) and a college student (Corey) who met her through a sociology project because he needed a case study. While using Leota as his case study project, Corey got to know her as a person and gained a better understanding of the elderly. Leota had an overgrown garden which she couldn't take care of because her arthritis was so bad, but was delighted that Annie decided to restore it for her. There's a lot of tension between the mothers and daughters which makes this such a sad story. The grandmother is feisty and loves her visits from her granddaughter who is a college student, and hopes to set things right between herself and her children before she dies.

I liked Leota's Garden very much because Leota was such an interesting character. This novel gives insight into the issues of aging and caring for the elderly in an amusing and touching way. It's an emotional read that I had a hard time putting down.

Other books I liked by Francine Rivers:
Redeeming Love
The Scarlet Thread

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!

"The Age of Miracles" by Karen Thompson Walker

Imagine if you woke up one day and found out that the rotation of the earth has slowed, causing the days and nights to be longer?  That is what happens in The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker  A young girl named Julia describes how her family and everyone else is coping with this and also the usual other things life always seems to throw at us.  I enjoyed this book a lot and got into it right away.  For her first book, this is extremely well done!
(Gerard's review, rating 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!

"One Breath Away" by Heather Gudenkauf

Her Best Yet!

In One Breath Away by Heather Gudenkauf, a lone gunman takes over a small classroom holding the teacher and pupils hostage.  What made this book so good in my opinion is that it is told by five people as the novel is ongoing.  I got to know their thought and background to understand what led up to this point.  The writing is superb.  If you want riveting, this is it!  I could hardly put it down and kept saying how good it was while reading it.  Oh, and good luck trying to figure out who the gunman is—I was completely surprised!  To sum it up, it doesn’t get any better than this—don’t let this one get past you! 
(Gerard's review, rating 5 stars)

One Breath Away by Heather Gudenkauf is really, really good!  It is fast-paced and realistic contemporary fiction with characters that are very believable.  It grabbed my attention right from the start and never let me go!  The hostage situation at the small school in a fictional small town in Iowa is described so well, I could feel what the characters were feeling.  It kept me guessing who the gunman was right until he was revealed.  I’m sure because this story is told from five different people, there is at least one that you will identify with.  For me, I identified with the teacher—determined to protect her students from the gunman while thinking about her husband.  The teen girl’s unwavering desire to protect her brother was both touching and heartwarming.  It shows how a crisis can bring families closer.    I highly recommend One Breath Away—it even has a dog in it!
(Karen's review, rating 5 stars)

Other books we've read by this Heather Gudenkauf:
These Things Hidden
Weight of Silence

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!

"Amped" by Daniel H. Wilson

Amped by Daniel H. Wilson is about people who get implanted with an amp. This amp gives them more power than the average human and a conflict grows. I thought this was pretty good but it took me awhile to get into it. The last 100 pages really saved it and makes it one I recommend!
(Gerard's review, rating 4 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!

"The Face of Heaven" by Murray Pura

The Face of Heaven by Murray Pura is historical Christian fiction about an Amish man and woman who feel strongly enough against slavery that the man joins the union army and the woman volunteers as a nurse on the battlefields of the Civil War. There is the romance story line too but the majority of the book is about the Civil War through their eyes. Nathaniel and Lyndel must endure shunning from their families and community when they join the war effort, but believe it is what God would have them do. I learned from reading this book that it is not the custom of the Amish to wear wedding bands and that a married woman wears a white knapp, but a single woman wears a black knapp.

Parts of this book were very intense and so gripping that I missed my bus stop while reading it coming home from work on the bus one day. Other, parts dragged a bit, but overall it was good. I also read The Wings of Morning by this author and liked that one even better.
(Karen's review)

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!

Do I Give Away Too Much?

Reading in our backyard with our dog, Abby.

Writing book reviews is a bit tricky for me to know how much of the story to share without spoiling it for someone.  Recently, I got two replies to a couple reviews on Amazon that I shouldn't include spoilers in my reviews.  Honestly, I didn't think I did; however, the fact that these readers thought so made me question it.  On this blog, my husband and I both review the books we read and have very different styles.

Gerard tends to focus more on what he thought of the book and are generally very short reviews.  On the other hand, I give a short synopsis of what happens in the book without giving away the ending.  Sometimes I'll share a part I especially liked if it's a book I really enjoyed.  When I finish a book that makes me go "Wow!" and that I want to discuss it with someone, it's difficult for me not to share some details. 

So, I'm asking our blog readers, what do you think?  Do I give away too much.  Does Gerard give you enough?  In general, I am asking for constructive criticism here so we can improve our reviews.

Happy Reading!

Tuesday Teasers: Historical Amish Fiction and a Mystery

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
• 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:

When they arrived at the second landing, the man shoved him forward down the final set of stairs and the slave landed with a cry of pain on top of Nathaniel. Immediately behind, Moses came tumbling down the steps after him.

Taken from page 25 of The Face of Heaven by Murray Pura. (Historical Christian Amish Fiction)

Gerard's:

"It's nothing I can't work out," he stated flatly. "We'll find Paul Everett, Ms. Gleason. If he's alive, we'll find him."

From page 21 of The Line Between Here and Gone by Andrea Kane. (Finished this one yesterday, click the link for the review.)

Here's a link to Our Favorite Reads For July.

If you have reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"The Line Between Here and Gone" by Andrea Kane

The Line Between Here and Gone by Andrea Kane is about Amanda’s son who needs a donor and fast! His father is a match but must be found, if he is alive. His car was found all bloody but he was not in it. Amanda hires a forensic team to find him but will it be in time or is he dead? This book moves fast but I would have liked more action. It is good though so gets 4 stars from me.
(Gerard's review)

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!

"Homer" by Elisha Cooper Made Me Smile!

Our Abby Dabby Doo agrees this is a happy dog story!

Homer by Elisha Cooper is a cute children's full-page picture book with very little writing about a dog, Homer, and how he is content and loyal.  It's a happy little book that we both enjoyed.  It made us smile.  It took longer to look at the pictures than it did to actually read the book.
(Gerard and Karen's review)

If you are a dog lover, you might like to see what our dog, Abby Dabby Doo, is up to lately:

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!

"The Secret" by Beverly Lewis

The Secret by Beverly Lewis is an interesting read about a secret an Amish wife keeps from her whole family and after some 22 years of marriage, finally chooses to deal with it.  Her oldest daughter, Grace, has to step up and takes on the responsibility of cooking and holding the family together.  Heather, another non-Amish girl who is working on her thesis is also keeping a secret from everyone and hides out in Amish country.  This is the first in the Seasons of Grace series which of course leaves loose ends for the second book.  It’s okay, but not anything exciting—mostly a lot of inner turmoil and relationships that I think would appeal to women more than men.   
(Karen's review)

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!

"The White Horse" by Alex Adams

The White Horse by Alex Adams is the first of a series with incredible twists and turns! Zoe works at Pope Pharmaceuticals. When she finds out that people are dying from White Horse and the mice are dying too at her company, she knows it is trouble. Zoe wants to save herself and her loved ones so heads to do just that. This book goes back before White Horse overtook the land and afterward with a Ultra Fantastic Ending!! What exactly is White Horse you ask? You will have to read the book to find out. Can’t wait for book 2! I’m not sure this book is for everyone, but I enjoyed it a lot!
(Gerard's review, rating: 5+)

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!

"Tell The Wolves I'm Home" by Carol Rifka Brunt

Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt tells the story of a young teen girl whose beloved uncle passes away.  Then, she finds love and understanding from the last person she would think she would.  I loved the byplay between the two sisters which I think is the best part of the book.  This is a feel good story that you may enjoy.
(Gerard's review) 

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!

"Unspeakable" by Sandra Brown

Unspeakable by Sandra Brown is an interesting novel because it has three main story lines and I only guessed the ending of one of them.  The first is the two escaped convicts Carl and Myron, who can’t even stay out of trouble until meeting up with Carl’s brother.  This bunch is mean!  Another interesting story line is about the newly retired policeman, Ezzy and his preoccupation with an unsolved crime from 22 years ago.  The third is about a deaf/voluntary mute widow, Anna, and her 5-yr-old son, David who live with her father-in-law on a ranch.  Shortly after Carl and Myron escape from prison, John Sawyer, a drifter, suspiciously arrives to offer to be their ranch hand.  Although he is a good worker and eventually Anna begins to fall for him, something just seems off about him.

This book is very well written too; it was easy to follow the different story lines and keep characters straight.  I liked the character development which gave this book a realistic flavor and the fact that everything was explained in the end and there are no loose ends.  Unspeakable is packed with humor, action, suspense, romance which mix together making this a really good read that kept my attention throughout!    I highly recommend it.

Sample of humor:  Ezzy, the forced retired cop’s description of a cruise:

She also had mentioned a cruise.  He couldn’t think of anything worse than being stranded on a ship with a bunch of strangers and a hyperactive crew determined to see that he had a good time doing things he didn’t want to do.

Sample of mean:  They had left the sisters resting in peace at the bottom of their water well with bullets in their heads.

Sample of action and suspense:  Jack grabbed David’s hand and thrashed through the shallow water to shore.  “Quick, put your shoes on.  Get your clothes.”  Jack scrambled into his jeans and picked up his boots.  The triangle had stopped clanging, but Anna wouldn’t have used the emergency signal just for the hell of it.   

Sample of romance:   His arms tensed, tightening the embrace.  Then, pressing her lips with his, he kissed her.

He thought Oh, Lord, oh, Lord, because her mouth was very soft and so sweet and temptingly receptive.

Moments later, it was he who initiated the exchange of tongues, but she responded favorably.

(Karen's review)

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: "Between the Lines"-"Unspeakable"

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
• 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.   

Gerard's:

"You may be real, but you're still stuck in a book."

"That's why I need you're help."

From page 57 of Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer  (Gerard's review was posted yesterday)

Karen's:

Her skin had looked soft and smooth, a striking contrast to his hairy chest and legs. He had felt like a gorilla hulking over a butterfly.

From page 259 of Unspeakable by Sandra Brown. (This book has romance, action and suspense so was hard to choose a teaser--I went with the romance one.) My review of it should be posted tomorrow nigh.

Happy Reading! We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Between The Lines" by Jodi Picoult/Samantha Van Leer

Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer is a fun fantasy read. Did you ever read a book and think to yourself "I wish that character was a real person I could talk to"? Sure you have. Well, in this book a young teen girl reads a children's fairy tale book and falls hard for the young prince. Together they hatch a plan to meet! Yes, I said together. How is that possible? You will have to read the book to find out. I got into this right away and especially liked the conversations between the girl and the prince. I enjoyed this one very much!
 (Gerard's review, rating: 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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Kill Decision" by Daniel Suarez

Unmarked drones are attacking America, causing many deaths and havoc to take place.  This leads to an unlikely alliance between Odin, a special force Sargent and a woman who studies warrior ants--I kid you not!  This book isn't as good as his first, Daemon, which I loved, but did keep me interested all the way with good twists and turns.  I recommend i!
(Gerard's review, rating 4 1/2 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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Unlocked" by Karen Kingsbury is Inspirational Christian Fiction

Great Christian Fiction--Favorite read for July!

Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury is an inspirational and heartwarming read that I truly enjoyed!  It's a love story about an Autistic high school boy, Holden, with a kind heart and a high school girl who is kind to him and notices his interest in music.  I especially liked Holden's prayers and the faith He has.  He became Autistic (quirky and uncommunicative) when he was three years old and his parents feel as though they lost the real Holden and want him back! 

This book deals with bullying, suicide, friendship and family struggles.  This is Christian fiction at its best, showing how Christians can make a difference! I highly recommend this one to teens and parents.
(Karen's review--read on Kindle)

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!  

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Some Kind of Fairy Tale" by Graham Joyce

I loved Some Kind of Fairy Tale by Graham Joyce! Tara has been missing for 20 year; then on Christmas morning, she shows up at her parents house. When she tells her story about where she has been, her parents and brother don't buy it. Her old boyfriend, who everyone figured did her in 20 years ago, is thrilled she still has feelings for him. When she goes for counseling at her brother's request, we get some answers . . . or do we? Is this girl really Tara or an imposter? Great writing, good page-turner. (Gerard's review, rating: 5 plus 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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

Tuesday Teasers: ""The Deep Zone" and "Unlocked"

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
• 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.   

Gerard's:

You're doing a bad thing here, Mr. Rhodes. Sooner or later, we all pay for the bad things we do.

Taken from pg. 64 of The Deep Zone by James M. Tabor. (Thriller)

Karen's:

Holden had responded to them better than anything else regarding his communication, and now the cards were a part of his daily therapy.  It wasn't what Tracy wanted, but it was an improvement over the years of not knowing anything about what he was thinking or feeling or needing.

Taken from pg. 50 of Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury. (Christian fiction about an Autistic boy)

Happy Reading!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Afterwards" by Rosamund Lupton

In Afterwards by Rosamund Lupton, Jenny covey is in the school when a huge fire takes place. Her mother, Grace, rushes into the school to try to rescue her. Both of them are pulled out in very critical condition. Adam, Jenny's brother and Grace's son is being accused of starting the fire. Do I have your interest yet? This book is a page turner for sure. It is told by Jenny and Grace as they watch what all unfolds after the fire. This book is just as good as Rosamond's first one, Sister. I think you should read this, I'm glad I did!
(Gerard's review)

Afterwards by Rosamund Lupton is narrated by the spirit of a mother and daughter who were both seriously injured in a school fire.  While their bodies are in the hospital in comas, their spirits are following around their loved ones and the investigators of the case to piece together all the pieces to figure out who the arsonist was and also who Jenny's stalker was.  It is a complicated story line to follow and at times I had difficulty determining who was talking.  Afterwards, I was glad to finally be done with it!  I really didn't care much for this one, but was surprised at the ending.  I admit I was fooled and did not pick the right person as the stalker or the arsonist.
(Karen's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"The Deep Zone" by James M. Tabor

An Action Packed, page turning thriller!

The Deep Zone by James M. Tabor is a page turner with tons of action about an infection that is killing our soldiers in Afghanistan. The cure is located in a deep cave. Five people are chosen for a team to go get it and bring it out.

You talk about good books, this one is great! There is action in and out of the cave and a very good ending. I'll be looking for more books by James M. Tabor for sure.
(Gerard's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"The Affair" by Lee Child (GIVEAWAY WINNER)

The Winner:  Sheri at Shut Up And Read

The Affair by Lee Child has a strong, likeable main character in Jack Reacher, a military cop who is told to go undercover to investigate a murder of a young woman. Once he gets to town, he befriends the local sheriff and together they try to solve the crime.

I really enjoyed this book because Reacher is so awesome and it has a good ending!
(Gerard's review--rating 5 stars)

Manny Boy (cat in picture above) chose our winner.  I just threw all the entries in the air between our two cats who were lying next to each other and the first and only name touched was by Manny which was Sheri.
I won this from our library's summer reading program and would like to pass it on to one of our blog readers if someone would like to have it. Leave a comment letting us know you are interested in receiving this book with an email so we can contact you. The winner will be chosen Saturday, July 21.


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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

Tuesday Teasers: "The Affair" (Giveaway), "I Hunt Killers," "One Moment"

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
• 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.   

Gerard's:

I turned and Deveraux pulled up right alongside me, neat and smooth. A short moment later I was in her front passenger seat, with nothing between us except her holstered shotgun.

From page 203 of The Affair by Lee Child, A Reacher novel. [We will give this one away so if you'd like it, let us know in the comments with an email so we can contact you for your address should you win.  Gerard's review of it will be posted tomorrow and we'll choose the winner Saturday, the 21st].

Jazz wouldn't let himself believe it. Not everyone has a killer inside. Not everyone is like me.

From page 162 of I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga. (Teen book--Click the link for Gerard's review)

Karen's:

. . . all it takes is one moment for your entire world to turn upside down. One wrong decision, and it's over.

From page 116 of One Moment by Kristina McBride. (teen--Click the link for Karen's review.)

Happy Reading! We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"I Hunt Killers" by Barry Lyga

I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga is about Jazz, the young son of Billy Dent, a serial killer.  Billy told his son all about his killings.  With Billy in prison, Jazz tries to help the cops catch a copy cat serial killer.  I enjoyed this book a lot.  Jazz is awesome and tells the story very well.  I'm not sure I would call this a page turner, but it moves along at a good pace.  Read and enjoy.
(Gerard's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Starters" by Lissa Price--Fun Read full of Surprises

Starters by Lissa Price takes place in the future but isn't too far out that it is unbelievable. After a war, people lived longer, 150 to 200 years old was common and Prime Destinations developed a way for old people to rent the body of a young person, usually a teen. I loved the idea of the old people getting a new body but keeping all their experience and knowledge. Callie decides to rent out her body for a big sum of money that would be enough to provide a home for her and her little brother who is also sickly. After three rentals, she'd get paid; however, the third rental didn't work quite right and she found herself in a terrible situation and is not sure who she can trust.

I enjoyed this book very much because of all the unexpected things that happen to Callie and the interesting concept. I thought it was a fun read and definitely recommend it! (Karen's review)

Starters by Lissa Price:  WOW!  You will meet Callie, a young girl whose parents are dead, and her 7-yr.-old brother, Tyler, is very sick.  Her only hope to get money is to rent her body out to old people to use.  She really doesn't want to do it but gives in to help her brother.  Everything goes fine at first, but then takes a turn for the worse!  I devoured this book in just two days; kept those pages turning to see what would happen next.  Can't wait for the second book to come out in December!
(Gerard's review)

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! We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"What Comes Next" by John Katzenbach

What Comes Next by John Katzenbach is an outstanding and remarkable book!  Jennifer wants to escape her mom and her small town by running away, but her plan is foiled when a man and woman kidnap her off the street.  Jennifer is now number four and the kidnappers set up a website people can watch while they torture her!  There was one witness to the kidnapping, an old professor who is near death and speaks to his dead family members. 

I liked reading Jennifer's thoughts while going through this experience and the people watching it online.  This is an outstanding read that was very hard to put down!  I couldn't help but think to myself, "Would I be watching this if it were real?"  Would you?  What comes next is you reading this gripping novel--you will love the powerful ending!
(Gerard's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"One Moment" by Kristina McBride

One Moment by Kristina McBride captures the intricacies of teen love and friendship and the heartache of an early death of a friend.  Maggie learns that "all it takes is one moment for your entire world to turn upside down.  One wrong decision, and it's over." (p. 116)  This story is about a close group of high school juniors who knew each other since kindergarten and promised never to rat each other out.  Even within their tight group though lies betrayal, jealousy and lies.  I enjoyed this book because of the mystery involving Joey's death and the truth finally coming out.  I really liked the ending!  If you like teen romance, I recommend this.
(Karen's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Curve Ball--The Year I Lost My Grip" by Jordan Sonnenblick

A good read for guys!

Curve Ball--The Year I Lost My Grip by Jordan Sonnenblick centers on Peter, a young teen who is just entering High School and has to deal with the following:  (1) he blows out his pitching arm just before school starts; (2) has girl problems; (3) his best friend thinks he will play because Peter has not told him how bad his injury really is; (4) he pursues photography that his grandpa taught him, then his grandpa takes a turn for the worse.  Interested yet?

I enjoyed this book a lot!  Peter's friends are as interesting as he is, especially his "girlfriend" who I think steals the show from Peter.  It's a quick read with no bad language with a really good ending! 
(Gerard's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Heartbroken" by Lisa Unger

Heartbroken by Lisa Unger is what I call a woman's book, but this 59-yr-old man enjoyed it very much!  There are lots of good plot lines that kept me interested to the max!  When all the characters are in one place, the action explodes!  This is a page turner for sure that I think would make a real good "Lifetime" movie.  Make time to read this one; you will be glad you did!
(Gerard's review) 

Karen's review:

Heartbroken by Lisa Unger was a disturbing read for me because Emily continues making bad decisions over and over to protect, Dean, the man she loves, who is an ex-con.  Things go very wrong when Brad, his “friend” from prison, shows up demanding money.  Her life completely falls apart when she realizes she has nothing and isn’t even who she thought she was.  Then there is another family with strained relationships and secrets from the past.  When Kate, a new author who wrote a fiction book based on family journals, takes her daughter and her girlfriend, Lulu to Heart Island to visit her 75-yr-old mother, Birdie, for their annual family vacation, it turns into a horror show and is the worst vacation they ever had!  Normally, Birdie and Joe are the only ones on the island and it is very peaceful and relaxing.  Joe, however, left because the silence got to him and he needed a break from his wife, Birdie.  When intruders arrive, the action really picks up and secrets are revealed. 

This was an interesting read because of the various colorful characters and the different story lines going on simultaneously.  As I read, I got an ominous feeling about Heart Island and its history.  My favorite part was the excitement when Kate, Birdie, Chelsea and LuLu were beating off the bad guys.

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

Tuesday Teasers: "Gone Missing" and "Starters" and "Boy 21"

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
• 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:

All children are innocent, but Amish children possess a particular kind of innocence. They believe the world is a good place, that their parents never make mistakes, that everyone they meet is their friend, and that if you pray hard enough, God will answer your prayers. It's particularly shattering for an Amish child when she realizes none of those things are true. 

From page 50 of Gone Missing by Linda Castillo. (an Amish thriller)  

Gerard's:

"It's even worse, didn't you hear her?" I said to Helena.  "The body bank's going to cherry-pick the prettiest kids and start using them.  We have to stop this."

From page 201 of Starters by Lissa Price.  (YA science fiction)

"My father was number twenty-one in high school, and he's monitoring me from outer space.  I promised I'd always wear number twenty-one for him, so long as I played ball."

From page 114 of Boy 21 by Matthew Quick.

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Boy 21" by Matthew Quick (Updated)

Boy 21 by Matthew Quick is a great fast teen read.  It's about a young boy and his girlfriend who are both very good at basketball.  It's their ticket out of their small town.  Another boy comes along and the two boys become unexpected friends.  When life throws these young people a curve ball, they have to come together or the dream dies.  I enjoyed this book a lot!  The writing is good and the ending is really, really good!  This is not just a basketball book and not just for teens.  Read and enjoy!
(Gerard's review)

Boy 21 by Matthew Quick is a teen romance involving friendship, basketball, poverty and the Irish mob.  It delves into deep issues like dealing with grief, love of family and love.  I was surprised at how good this story was, the ending brought tears to my eyes.  It’s a very moving story and shows how life can be so unpredictable.  It was heartbreaking when Finley turned his back on basketball to be with his girlfriend at the hospital who was in a hit-and–run accident only to be told she didn’t want to see him.  In an unexpected turn, the boy Finley was asked to help wound up being a good friend to Finley.  I enjoyed this quick, touching read about friendship and love. 
(Karen's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Gone Missing" by Linda Castillo is an Amish Thriller

Gone Missing by Linda Castillo is about a police investigation involving several missing Amish teens.  The cops don’t know if they just left on their own or if foul play was involved.  Some disappearances are cold cases but some are recently and they wonder if they are all related.  Talking to the victims’ families is tough because of the Amish’s general reluctance to trust anyone outside their own community.  Kate Burkholder, having grown up Amish, the chief of police for a small Amish community is called in on the case as a consultant and is excited about working again with a State Agent, John Tomasetti, who she really hit it off with. 

This book focuses on parent-teen relationships and is an interesting read because it not only gives some insight into the Amish, but is told from Kate’s perspective and includes both her job as a cop and her personal life as a woman.  The last 67 pages are full of suspense and action that made me keep turning the pages.  The ending is very unsettling and quite shocking!  This book has some foul language but it is much less than some of her other books I’ve read and was easy to overlook.  This is a good mystery!
(Karen's review)

 

Other books I liked by Linda Castillo:  Sworn to Silence (gruesome), Pray for Silence (very good) and Breaking Silence (thrilling)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"The Chalk Girl" by Carol O'Connell is Very Good

The Chalk Girl by Carol O'Connell tells the story of a gang of bullies in grade school who go after other kids.  One day they go after an adult and kill him.  The person who did the killing is fingered by someone.  Flash forward years later and the killer seeks revenge against his fellow gang members.

This is a page turner that doesn't reveal the killer until the final few pages.  I give this book 4 1/2 stars just because I liked it a lot, but it was very slow in some places and left me wanting more action.  It is very good though and well worth your time to read it.
(Gerard's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"172 Hours on the Moon" by Johan Harstad (UPDATED)

Wow, oh wow! 172 Hours on the Moon by Johan Harstad is awesome! This novel is the story of three teens who are selected to travel to the moon by NASA to get people excited by the space mission again. The first 200 pages are good and the last pages from 201 to the end (351 pages total) are a page turners to the max! Once the teens got to the moon the action really picked up! I enjoyed this book very much!! Put this on your TBR for sure--it's worth it! (Gerard's review)

172 Hours on the Moon by Johan Harstad is a depressing science fiction read that is an ominous adventure.  This book takes place in 2019 when a crew of five astronauts and three teens blast off to spend a week on the moon.  Once there, some very strange things happen and they regret going.  If you think you’d like to go to the moon, you may have second thoughts after reading 172 Hours on the Moon.  I was enjoying this book until the end came which made no sense.  I really hated the ending!
(Karen's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

Tuesday Teasers: Christian Fiction and Non-fiction

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
• 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:

Oh God, she prayed frantically.  If you're really there, don't let Alex do this to me.  Put stumbling blocks in his way.   

From pg. 35 of The Scarlet Thread by Francine Rivers


Gerard's:

"She's okay now," the brothelkeeper announced, rolling away some cooking pots he'd knocked on top of her in his haste to extinguish the fire." Alive, no problem!"

From page 95 of Behind the Beautiful Forevers-Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo

See Our Favorite Reads for June

Happy Reading! We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Behind the Beautiful Forevers" by Katherine Boo

Behind the Beautiful Forevers--Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo is the true story of people who live in the slums of India. The book focuses on Abdul who makes a living by sorting through garbage the rich people throw away. One day he is falsely accused of killing a disabled woman and must stand trial. This was an eye opening book for me. I did not know about the slums of India. It's not pretty.

Most of the story was very good but it bogged down some in parts so I give it 4 stars. I think it is worth reading! (Gerard's review)

 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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Redeeming Love" by Francine Rivers

Great read for book clubs and historical fiction fans!

Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers was excellent! One of the best I ever read. About a beautiful little girl, sold into prostitution with no decent role models who learns what real love is when Michael Hosea decides to marry her and take her out of the brothel no matter what. Slowly, very slowly her walls come down and she learns to trust people, even to love. She leaves Michael for 3 years because she knows he wants children and she can’t have any, ever. Told her best friend to have his children and make him happy but Michael chose Angel. Angel is transformed when she finally trusts in Jesus as her personal Savior.

This is a historical Christian romance that held my attention all the way through and provided a lively discussion for our book club. It starts out very sad, depressing and raunchy but ends on a very positive note and shows Angel's journey to love and acceptance. It's a marvelous story based on the book of Hosea. I liked this book so much, I actually bought it!
(Karen's review-read in 2006)

Click this link to See What I Won at the Library 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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"The Scarlet Thread" by Francine Rivers is a Must Read!

Great book on relationships--must read!

The Scarlet Thread by Francine Rivers is contemporary fiction about God’s sovereignty and faithfulness.  After 13 years of marriage, Alex decides on his own to leave his steady job for an opportunity in California as a video game designer.  His wife, Sierra, does not want to move and becomes angry and bitter.  I particularly liked reading the part about the issues in the contemporary marriage.  The couple has four times as much money but becomes very unhappy and Alex asks for a divorce.  Sierra’s Godly mother gives her an old journal and a quilt of one of their pioneer ancestors, Mary Kathryn, who also had to move against her will back in 1847.

The author beautifully combines this contemporary fiction novel with historical fiction by showing the parallels between Sierra’s and Mary Kathryn’s journeys, women from two different time periods.  They both are bitter and resentful towards God at the beginning but as he works in their lives, they come to see his love, faithfulness and goodness.  Great writing with a wonderful message and a great ending!  I think this would be an excellent book club read because of the marriage issues and the spiritual journey.  It even has discussion questions in the back!  This is my favorite read for June and balances out Gerard's dark books of late!
(Karen's review)

Other books I liked by this author:  Redeeming Love and Leota's Garden

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Dark Places" by Gillian Flynn

Dark Places by Gillian Flynn is a winner! WOW, this is good! Libby Day, age 7, survives a night when her mom and two sisters were murdered by their brother in "The Satan Sacrifice of Kinnakee, Kansas." Libby testifies to this in court. However, 25 years later, the money she inherited runs low so when she is offered money to sell family mementos, she agrees but begins to have second thoughts if her brother was the murderer.

I liked the writing and lots of twists and turns with a surprise ending. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy suspense and murder mysteries. I also loved GONE GIRL by Gillian Flynn.
(Gerard's review)

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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Alone" by Lisa Gardner

Alone by Lisa Gardner is a page turner that had my attention from the first page all the way to the end. It's about Bobby, a police sniper who responded to a domestic violence hostage situation and killed the husband who had his finger on the trigger of a gun pointed at his wife, Catherine, and 4-yr-old son, Nathan. Afterwards, he felt terrible about killing a man. His life got complicated when the man turned out to be a high court judge's son and learned he may be charged with murder! The judge files for custody of his grandson, claiming Catherine is a bad mother who is out to kill him by starving him to death. Catherine feels alone as she tries to protect her son, Bobby feels alone as he deals with his career problems and chooses to help Catherine when she tells him there was an intruder in her house.

This book psychological thriller is filled with suspense, manipulation, murder, family secrets, domestic violence and interesting characters. I had a hard time putting this one down and recommend it. (Karen's review) 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! We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Into The Darkest Corner" by Elizabeth Haynes

You just have to make time to read Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes —it's awesome!! It tells the story of young pretty Catherine Bailey. She was in a very abusive relationship with Lee. The thing that makes this book so good is that it follows her and Lee's relationship but also three years later as she is trying to recover and get back to being normal again. You get two stories at once! The writing is superb and the ending shocking! This is a page turner that is hard to beat. It doesn't get any better than this! Must read! (Gerard's review: Rating (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!

Related Post:  See another review of this at Tiffany's Bookshelf

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"A Dog's Purpose" by W. Bruce Cameron

A Dog’s Purpose by Bruce Cameron is touching and at times funny. The dog narrator will made me question how my dog feels how good a dog owner I am. The dog has several different lives with various owners throughout this book, but is loyal to the end to the boy, Ethan. I especially enjoyed reading about the dog’s life as Ellie, the search and rescue dog and laughed when the dog said the cats he lived with had no purpose. The dog’s relationship with Ethan shows how loyal dogs are and was heartwarming. This is an emotional read because when some people mistreated the dog, I felt a lot of anger rise up in me. Although the dog dies, it’s not too sad because it is reincarnated as another puppy and gets another life! I recommend this book to any dog lover. (Karen's review 6/27/12)

 I really enjoyed A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron. This is told by a dog who knows he needs to find a purpose for his life. He meets a boy named Ethan, then he becomes a search and rescue dog with a fantastic and touching ending! If you are a dog lover, you will love A Dog’s Purpose. I sure did! I highly recommend you read this book! (Gerard's review 7/27/10)

 Other book by this author that we both liked is A Dog's Journey 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!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

Tuesday Teaser: teen science fiction and thriller

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
• 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.   

Gerard's:

The Mia the world has known is going to leave Earth now. And when I come back, everything will be different.

And she was more right about that than she knew.

Taken from page 141 of 172 Hours on the Moon by Johan Harstad

Karen's:

The man still had his gun aimed at the woman's head, but was now rounding the bed, fast, furious. She didn't say a word, didn't budge a step. Then the man was right there, yelling ferociously and, with his left hand, tugging at the child.

From page 21 of Alone by Lisa Gardner.

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

We Have Our Giveaway Winner! By Default (Updated 7/11/12)

Congratulations Heather, LUCKY LADY, Meow!

UPDATED 7/11/12: Well, it's been over two weeks since we contacted Heather for her address and we have not heard back after trying three times so will award the book to the next commenter who wanted it--Lucky Lady over at Country Pictures. Hope you enjoy the book!

I threw all 5 entries on the floor by Manny and the first one he touched was Heather so she is our winner.  Congratulations Heather, hope you enjoy Gone by Cathi Hanauer as much as we did!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.