Stranded by Dani Pettrey

When Her Friend Goes Missing,
Every Minute Counts
Darcy St. James returns to Alaska to join a journalist friend undercover on the trail of a big story. But when Darcy arrives, she finds her friend has disappeared. Troubled by the cruise ship's vague explanation, Darcy uses her cover as a travel reporter to investigate further.

The last person Gage McKenna expects to see during his summer aboard a cruise ship leading adventure excursions is Darcy. And in typical Darcy fashion, she's digging up more trouble.

He'd love to just forget her--but something won't let him. And he can't help but worry about her as they are heading into more remote regions of Alaska and eventually into foreign waters. Something sinister is going on, and the deeper they push, the more Gage fears they've only discovered the tip of the iceberg.

My review:
    Dani Petrey is a fairly new author on the Christian fiction market, having her first book just come out in May of 2012.  In my personal opinion, she is one of the best new authors to have come along in recent years.

    She had me hooked with her first book, Submerged, which is also the first book in this series, Alaskan Courage, and she has only gotten better with each book. This third book, Stranded is the best yet. I like it when an author has the same characters in a series, focusing more on different ones in each book, but using them all. In the last book, she started setting up for this book. In Stranded, she picks up Darcy and Gage's story where she left off in Shattered.

   Stranded has all of the suspense, drama, great plot and characters, and romance Dani has had in her previous novels, but it is even better than the other two. The setting is on a cruise ship, which I think would be more of a challenge, but Dani shows she can write a great book in any setting.

  Dani is one of the authors who is not afraid to make her books Christian and have her characters struggle with issues of faith. I found myself relating a lot to that of Gage in this story, and appreciate her addressing struggles of faith and showing through fiction that not everyone gets it as easily as some of us do.

  This book also addresses an issue we all need to be made more aware of: the human trafficking issue.

  I could not have enjoyed this book any more than I did. I devoured every page and read it through in the same day I received it in the mail. I give it 5 stars out of 5 stars. This is a Christian suspense masterpiece.

About the author:

Dani Pettrey is a wife, homeschooling mom, and author. She feels blessed to write inspirational romantic suspense because it incorporates so many things she loves--the thrill of adventure, nail biting suspense, the deepening of her characters' faith, and plenty of romance. She and her husband reside in Maryland with their two teenage daughters. Visit her website at www.danipettrey.com.

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Stranded is available from Bethany House Publishers.

Thanks to the author and Bethany House for the review copy.

Raw Edges by Sandra Bricker

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Raw Edge Abingdon Press (September 17, 2013) by Sandra D. Bricker

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

For more than a decade, Sandra D. Bricker lived in Los Angeles. While honing her chosen craft of screenwriting in every spare moment, she worked as a personal assistant and publicist to some of daytime television's hottest stars. When her mother became ill in Florida, she walked away from that segment of her life and moved across the country to take on a new role: Caregiver.

The Big 5-OH! was released by Abingdon Press in the Spring of 2010, and the novel was very well-received, garnering a couple of nibbles from Hollywood.

Always the Baker, Never the Bride was released by Abingdon Press in September 2010. With its phenomenal reviews, the novel spawned a series of three more books based on the popular cast of characters at The Tanglewood Inn, a wedding destination hotel in historic Roswell, Georgia. The series cemented Sandie's spot in publishing as a flagship author of Laugh-Out-Loud romantic comedy for the inspirational market.

"Being allowed to combine my faith and my humor with my writing dream," says Bricker, "well, that's the best of all worlds, as far as I'm concerned!"

ABOUT THE BOOK

Grayson McDonough has no use for teal ribbons, 5k runs, or ovarian cancer support groups now that his beautiful wife Jenna is gone. But their nine-year-old daughter Sadie seems to need the connection. When Annabelle Curtis, the beautiful cancer survivor organizing the memory quilt project for the Ovacome support group, begins to bring out the silly and fun side of his precious daughter again, Gray must set aside his own grief to support the healing of Sadie’s young heart. But is there hope for Gray’s heart too along the way?

If you would like to read the first chapter of Raw Edge, go HERE.

Watch the book trailer:

The 40 Most Influential Christians

Learn From the Greatest Teachers and Thinkers in Christian History

The Bible is the bedrock of Christian belief, yet how Christians think and talk about God, the Bible, and faith has been shaped by influential thinkers from the first century right up through the twentieth. In this book, Dr. Daryl Aaron tells the powerful stories of forty who have helped us better understand what we believe and why we believe it.

With insight--and some surprises--Dr. Aaron explores the lives and most important teachings of these giants of church history, from Justin Martyr and Augustine to Martin Luther, John Calvin, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and many others, underscoring how their teaching has influenced the church--for better or, occasionally, for worse.

Let your faith be strengthened as you encounter those who paved the way for us, often risking their lives for the sake of the very beliefs we hold today.

My review:
    I'm not sure I agree with the author on all forty people in this book being the most influential Christians, but it is an interesting read. Each chapter is dedicated to a different person, and most are around six pages in length, though a few are longer.

    Some of the people in the book are people I have never heard of, hence my statement that I am not sure some of them belong in the book. I studied church history and don't remember hearing of some of them, but it was still interesting reading about them and about what they contributed to Christianity. Even with the people I am familiar with, I learned some new things about.

  This isn't a book you would read rapidly through, but one you would read a chapter or two at a time. The author did a great job of compiling information, putting the people in order that they came in

history, and making it and interesting and helpful book.

About the author:
    Daryl Aaron earned his ThM at Dallas Theological Seminary and his PhD at Graduate Theological Foundation. He spent fourteen years in pastoral ministry before becoming a professor of biblical and theological studies at Northwestern College. He lives with his wife in Mounds View, Minnesota.


The 40 Most Influential Christians is available from Bethany House Publishers.

Thanks to Bethany House for the review copy.

Fatal Tide by Lis Wiehl and Pete Nelson

In East Salem, the elite St. Adrian’s Academy is at the nexus of a satanic apocalypse—and the fatal tide is rising.

When Hieronymus Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights is reunited with the pagans who commissioned it, a dark prophecy begins to unfold in East Salem, beginning with a savage double-murder by hellish creatures straight out of the painting itself. The lone survivor of the attack, a seventeen-year-old Brit, finds sanctuary at Tommy Gunderson’s home—and the place is soon surrounded by demons who seem to be biding their time…but for how long?

Tommy’s pond has been contaminated with Provivilan—an insidious drug that could transform New York City’s children into an army of violence-addicted murderers. But for an occult cabal in the upper echelons of Linz Pharmaceuticals, contaminating the water supply is just part of an ancient conspiracy against all of humankind.

As the clouds gather, Tommy and Dani realize they must infiltrate Linz and St. Adrian’s to stop the dissemination of Provivilan. Even then, it could take a tangible eruption of the battle between angels and demons to save humanity from the supernatural evils that have been summoned to East Salem.

My review:
   The three books in this series have been my favorite books that Lis Wiehl has written. They have also been the most Christian, so that may play into why I like them the best. Of the three books in this series, this one was the best and most exciting, in my opinion.

  The authors brought back the same characters from the other two books, and in this book the stakes are higher and the danger more prevalent.

  I took me a few pages to remember what had happened in the last book, but I quickly got caught up. This book brings everything to a head and conclusion, and ends the series in a very satisfying way.

  I really like the combination of these two authors. I have read all of Lis Whiehl's books, and she has used different co-authors, and I think Pete Nelson is her best choice yet. The writing style is better, the plot better and more complex.... I thoroughly enjoyed this series, and especially this last book. As with the other books, there were appearances by angels and demons, and people physically fought some demonic creatures, which I know we don't actually do, but it was a neat way to show that spiritual warfare is very real.

  There were a couple of words in this book that are inappropriate for a Christian book, but they weren't as bad as some I have run onto. Overall, this was an awesome book.

About the authors:

    Lis Wiehl is a New York Times best-selling author, Harvard Law School graduate, and former
federal prosecutor. A popular legal analyst and commentator for the Fox News Channel, Wiehl appears on The O'Reilly Factor and Imus in the Morning, and was co-host with Bill O'Reilly on the radio for seven years.

Pete Nelson lives with his wife and son in Westchester, New York. He got his MFA from the University of Iowa Writers' Workshop in 1979 and has written both fiction and non-fiction for magazines, including Harpers, Playboy, Esquire, MS, Outside, The Iowa Review, National Wildlife, Glamour, Redbook. He was a columnist for Mademoiselle and a staff writer for LIVE Magazine, covering various live events including horse pulls, music festivals, dog shows, accordion camps and arm wrestling championships. Recently he was a contributing editor and feature writer for Wondertime, a Disney parenting magazine. He's published twelve young adult novels, including a six-book series about a girl named Sylvia Smith-Smith which earned him an Edgar Award nomination from the Mystery Writers of America. His young adult non-fiction WWII history, Left For Dead (Randomhouse, 2002) about the sinking of the USS Indianapolis won the 2003 Christopher award as was named to the American Library Association's 2003 top ten list. His other non-fiction titles include Real Man Tells All (Viking, 1988), Marry Like a Man (NAL, l992), That Others May Live (Crown, 2000) and Kidshape (Rutledge Hill, 2004). His novel The Christmas List was published by Rutledge Hill Press in 2004. He wrote, with former army counterintelligence agent Dave DeBatto, a four book series of military thrillers, including CI: Team Red (2005), CI: Dark Target (2006), CI: Mission Liberty (2006) and CI: Homeland Threat (2007) published by Time-Warner. A More Unbending Battle; The Harlem Hellfighters' Struggle for Democracy in WWI and Equality at Home, was published in 2009 by Basic Civitas books. His novel, I Thought You Were Dead, will be published by Algonquin in 2010. He also has two CDs out on the Signature Sounds label, the first entitled The Restless Boys Club (1996), the second called Days Like Horses (2000).


Fatal Tide is available from Thomas Nelson Publishers.

Thanks to Thomas Nelson for the review copy.

Unlimited by Davis Bunn, an interview, and giveaway

Simon Orwell is a brilliant student whose life has taken a series of wrong turns. At the point of giving up on his dreams, he gets a call from an old professor who has discovered a breakthrough in a device that would create unlimited energy, and he needs Simon's help.

But once he crosses the border, nothing goes as the young man planned. The professor has been killed and Simon is assaulted and nearly killed by members of a powerful drug cartel.

Now he must take refuge in the only place that will help him, a local orphanage. There, Simon meets Harold Finch, the orphanage proprietor who walked away from a lucrative career with NASA and consulting Fortune 500 companies to serve a higher cause.

With Harold's help, Simon sets out on a quest to uncover who killed the professor and why. In due time, he will discover secrets to both the worldchanging device and his own unlimited potential.

My review:
   Occasionally I run across a book that sounds good, and upon reading it I find it far better than I had anticipated from the book description, and this is one such book. I have read several of Davis Bunn's books in the last few years and have yet to be disappointed. They are full of action and suspense, and Unlimited was not exception.

   The plot of the book is about people trying to make unlimited energy from unused energy. I loved the characters, setting, and plot for the story, and especially liked the main character, Simon. He is a young man who has made some bad choices in life, and it seems nothing is going right for him, but as the book progresses, we see God can change and save even a misfit like him.

  Davis Bunn did a great job of describing scientific and technological terms in language that is easy to understand and be interesting to the reader. I was far from bored while reading this book. A lot happened, and it was written in a way to be very believable and likely to happen.

  The book has it all: action, suspense, bad guys, good guys, romance, corrupt politicians, and God working things out for those who serve Him.

  Interestingly, this story is based on true events. Davis Bunn has done a great job of putting the events in a fictional novel and coming up with a book definitely worth reading. And as an added benefit, I learned a lot.

About the author: 

Davis Bunn is a four-time Christy Award-winning, best-selling author now serving as writer-in-residence at Regent's Park College, Oxford University in the United Kingdom. Defined by readers and reviewers as a “wise teacher,” “gentleman adventurer,” “consummate writer,” and “Renaissance man,” his work in business took him to over 40 countries around the world, and his books have sold more than seven million copies in sixteen languages.
Unlimited is Davis’s first screenplay to be released as a major motion picture. The book, Unlimited, is a novelization of the screenplay.

The inspiration behind the Unlimited film and novel is Harold Finch's book, Success: Four Keys to Unlock Your Unlimited Potential. Download a free copy of Success here: http://unlimitedthemovie.com/4-keys-book/.


Unlimited is available from Broadman and Holman Publishing.

I received a complimentary copy of Unlimited from B&H Publishing Group in exchange for my honest review.
Read the first three chapters here.

Movie trailer:







Q and A with Davis Bunn
The storyline in Unlimited is inspired by true events. What actual events inspired the story?


Harold Finch was formerly the founder and CEO of the first management-leadership consulting groups in the US. In the mid-seventies he sold the company to H&R Block for over a hundred million dollars—back when a hundred million actually meant something. Answering God’s call, he has spent the past three decades traveling the world, teaching his concepts for free and helping underprivileged children learn that they do indeed have both a purpose in God’s eyes, and the potential to succeed. His experiences form the basis for this story.

What ignited your idea for the characters to create a device that would convert raw wasted energy into useable power?


I actually wrote the screenplay for the film before writing the novel. This happens occasionally—Godfather and Love Story were both conceived in this order. While working on the film script, the producer and Harold and I were discussing what might work as a basis for the story’s suspense element. We were looking for something that had the means of revealing this ‘unlimited’ potential in people. I don’t actually remember who first came up with the idea of wasted energy, but soon as it was said, we all jumped on it.
Simon Orwell, the protagonist in Unlimited, is a brilliant, cynical electrical engineering student who finds danger irresistible. Did you model his character traits after yourself or anyone you know?


Alas, we all know a Simon. These days, this type of person is all too common. An individual with huge potential, who allows himself or herself to become distracted by the multitude of temptations that basically define modern life. And yes, I do know several such people. Some turn this into hugely productive directions, thank goodness. Usually to do so requires divine help, a clarification of focus, and strength they must reach out and ask to receive.

Armando Vasquez and Harold Finch are important mentors in Simon’s life. Who has been a critical mentor in your life, Davis? How has that person encouraged you to push beyond the boundaries of what you thought possible?

There have been several such mentors, for which I remain extremely grateful. One such person is Carol Johnson, who recently retired as editor-in-chief at Bethany House Publishers. Carol has been instrumental in my becoming the best writer I could be, and continues to act as a sounding board for new ideas and characters. Another, I am happy to say, is Harold Finch. His lessons on combining God’s teachings with lifelong aims have been a genuinely rewarding experience with far-reaching results.
Many of the characters in the story are orphans. What parallels do you see between the orphans in the story and real-life spiritual orphans?


A beautiful question. While researching the core components of this story, orphanage leaders repeatedly stressed the need to teach orphans to believe in themselves and their natural abilities. Too often they see themselves as lost, without purpose, without a role to play, without chances, without love. What made this story work, I think, is how Simon Orwell shares these same feelings about himself. And how he comes to realize God is the only one to fill this need.

Many people believe they must wear a mask to hide the parts of themselves they are ashamed of. How is this story about removing that mask?

So much of life remains hidden away. The darker elements of a life without God only amplify this falseness. Simon has spent so much of his life, so much of his energy and time, in hiding. As the story unfolds, he discovers that an essential element of arriving at his full potential is being honest with himself. This is where the mask is most damaging, and also where it is often hardest to release. We seek to hide the truth, even when we know the act is a lie in itself. And the mirror we require to see the truth about ourselves is the one that God offers, in infinite patience, in gentle love.
The title, Unlimited, has multiple layers of meaning. What does that title mean to you?
Unlimited was the title brought to me by the film’s producers. When I first began working on this story, it was just that, a title. But as I grew to know Harold, and heard him teach, and read his lesson plan, and then actually applied what he has come to call his ‘Dynamic Life Retreat’ (see Harold full teachings on his website, HaroldFinch.com) I have come to agree with them in their choice. Bringing God into the equation of life’s direction, success, and reaching full potential does reveal the true meaning of Unlimited.


How can readers find you on the Internet?

My website and blog are at www.davisbunn.com
Subscribe to my blog’s feed (to get my latest posts via e-mail or through your feed reader) at http://feeds.feedburner.com/DavisBunn
Sign up for my e-newsletter (for subscriber-only giveaways and advance notice of my upcoming novels): http://www.davisbunn.com/news.htm
Facebook Author Page: facebook.com/davisbunnauthor
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/davisbunn/ -- check out my “Scenes from Unlimited” board.



Twitter: @davisbunn - http://twitter.com/davisbunn


You could win a $50 Fandango gift card plus UNLIMITED, Davis Bunn's new suspense novel. Ten additional winners will receive a copy of UNLIMITED. Enter right now by clicking this link: http://woobox.com/mp5qew. You can enter once per email address per day. Rack up bonus entries by sharing the contest with your Facebook and Twitter friends! If you don’t have a Pinterest account, enter by filling out the form on the Official Rules page here http://bit.ly/15vTr8u.

Enter on facebook here: http://woobox.com/mp5qew
  

Dangerous Passage by Lisa Harris

She's dedicated her life to ending violence. But has she moved too deep into a treacherous world?
When two Jane Does are killed on the outskirts of Atlanta, Georgia, detective and behavioral specialist Avery North discovers they share something in common--a magnolia tattoo on their shoulders. Suspecting a serial killer, Avery joins forces with medical examiner Jackson Bryant to solve the crimes and prevent another murder. As they venture deep into a sinister criminal world, Avery and Jackson are taken to the very edge of their abilities--and their hearts.

Dangerous Passage exposes a fully realized and frightening world where every layer peeled back reveals more challenges ahead. You'll be hooked from the start.

My review:
   I have only read one book by this author before I read this one, and remember thinking it was OK, but nothing spectacular. Maybe it is because she has more writing under her belt, but this book was a terrific read. In addition to being a great suspense novel, the author tackles the human trafficking issue, which is something we all need to be aware of and learn more about.

  I liked everything about this book: plot, characters, setting. This book is classified as romantic suspense, but that part of the book took a back seat to the action and suspense, and was not overdone at all, and it wasn't all wrapped up in a neat package at the end either. As with many books like this one, I had a hard time putting it down and read it in one sitting.

  This is the first book in a series, and I look forward to reading the other books that will follow. The author has a plot going on that will cover at least one more book, and has me hooked, waiting to see

how it will work out.



About the author:

   Lisa Harris is an award-winning author with more than 400,000 copies of her works in print. She was a 2011 Christy Award finalist for Blood Ransom and lives in Mozambique together with her husband, Scott, and their three children. Visit her website at www.lisaharriswrites.com.
 

Available September 20 from Revell Publishing, a division of Baker Books Publishing.

Thanks to Revell for the review copy.

Fired Up by Mary Connealy

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Fired Up (Bethany House March 1, by Mary Connealy

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Mary Connealy writes romantic comedy with cowboys. She is a Christy Award Finalist, a Carol Award Finalist and an IRCC Award finalist.

The Lassoed in Texas Series, Petticoat Ranch, Calico Canyon and Gingham Mountain. Petticoat Ranch was a Carol Award Finalist. Calico Canyon was a Christy Award Finalist and a Carol Award Finalist. These three books are now contained in one large volume called Lassoed in Texas Trilogy.

The Montana Marriages Series, Montana Rose, The Husband Tree and Wildflower Bride. Montana Rose was a Carol Award Finalist.

Cowboy Christmas—the 2010 Carol Award for Best Long Historical Romance, and an Inspirational Readers Choice Contest Finalist.

The Sophie's Daughters series. Doctor in Petticoats, Wrangler in Petticoats, Sharpshooter in Petticoats.

She is also the author of; Black Hills Blessing a 3-in-1 collection of sweet contemporary romances, Nosy in Nebraska, a 3-in-1 collection of cozy romantic mysteries and she's one of the three authors contributing to Alaska Brides with her Carol Award Winning historical romance Golden Days.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Rollicking Wild West Adventure and Romance from Bestselling Author Mary Connealy

Dare Riker is a doctor who saves lives, but someone seems determined to end his. It may have something to do with the traitors he dealt with during the Civil War, or it might be related to the recent incident with Flint Greer and the ranch. Whoever the culprit is, he or she seems really fired up, and Dare can't let his guard down for a moment, which is a challenge, since right now he's trying to win the heart of the recently widowed Glynna.

Glynna Greer came west as a mail-order bride and ended up in a bad situation. Now her husband, Flint, is dead, and she's determined to care for her son and daughter on her own. She wants to believe Dare Riker is as decent as he seems, but she's terrified to lock herself into another marriage. She plans to support her small family by opening a diner--never mind that cooking is not her greatest talent. The men in Broken Wheel, Texas, are so desperate for home cooking that they seem willing to overlook dried-out beef and blackened biscuits.

Glynna can't help but notice that danger follows Dare wherever he goes. There's the avalanche. And then the fire. But things really get out of hand when someone plunges a knife from Glynna's diner into Dare's back. Are Flint's cronies still plotting revenge? Is Glynna's son engaged in a misguided attempt to protect his mother? Is a shadowy outsider still enraged over past injustices? And can Dare survive long enough to convince Glynna to take another chance on love?

If you would like to read the first chapter of Fired Up, go HERE.

Born of Persuasion by Jessica Dotta

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Born of Persuasion Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. (September 1, 2013) by Jessica Dotta

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Born in the wrong century–except for the fact that she really likes epidurals and washing machines–Jessica Dotta writes British Historicals with the humor like an Austen, yet the drama of a Bronte.

She resides lives in the greater Nashville area—where she imagines her small Southern town into the foggy streets of 19th century London. She oversees her daughter to school, which they pretend is an English boarding school, and then she goes home to write and work on PR. Jessica has tried to cast her dachshund as their butler–but the dog insists it’s a Time Lord and their home a Tardis. Miss Marple, her cat, says its no mystery to her as to why the dog won’t cooperate. When asked about it, Jessica sighs and says that you can’t win them all, and at least her dog has picked something British to emulate.

ABOUT THE BOOK

The year is 1838, and seventeen-year-old Julia Elliston’s position has never been more fragile. Orphaned and unmarried in a time when women are legal property of their fathers, husbands, and guardians, she finds herself at the mercy of an anonymous guardian who plans to establish her as a servant in far-off Scotland.

With two months to devise a better plan, Julia’s first choice to marry her childhood sweetheart is denied. But when a titled dowager offers to introduce Julia into society, a realm of possibilities opens. However, treachery and deception are as much a part of Victorian society as titles and decorum, and Julia quickly discovers her present is deeply entangled with her mother’s mysterious past. Before she knows what’s happening, Julia finds herself a pawn in a deadly game between two of the country’s most powerful men. With no laws to protect her, she must unravel the secrets on her own. But sometimes truth is elusive and knowledge is deadly.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Born of Persuasion, go HERE.

The Machine by Bill Myers

For ages 8 to 14, Truth Seekers is a fast-paced, thoughtful, and funny new series using a 21st century approach to sharing ancient Bible truths.

In book one, The Machine, twin siblings Jake and Jenny have just lost their mother and are not thrilled about moving to Israel to stay with their seldom seen archaeologist dad. They don’t yet understand how “all things work together for good to those who love God.” But they will when a machine their father invented points them to the Truth.

My review:
    This is the first book in The Truth Seekers series, and the first part of it is taken up with setting up the story and giving information about the main characters, twins Jake and Jen.

   I'm obviously an adult, and this book is geared for ages 8-14, but I found the book very entertaining and interesting. I could see my 12 year old nephew loving the story. It is funny, and has a lot of gadgets and wacky inventions that are used in the story. The book also deals with the issue of trusting God, and one of the main characters struggles with that especially.

  This book is a great beginning to what has the makings of being a very good series of books for this age group. I would recommend it.


About the author:

Bill Myers is an accomplished writer and film director whose work has won more than sixty national and international awards including the C. S. Lewis Honor Award. Among his best-selling releases for kids are The Incredible Worlds of Wally McDoogle and The Forbidden Door. He has sold more than eight million books and videos and lives with two cats, two kids, one dog, and one wife near Hollywood, California.

 

The Machine is available from Broadman and Holman Publishing.

 

Thanks to B&B Media for the review copy.

Shades of Mercy by Anita Lustrea and Caryn Rivendara

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Shades of Mercy River North; New Edition edition (September 1, 2013) by Anita Lustrea
and
Caryn Rivendara

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Authentic. That’s the word heard over and over when women describe Anita Lustrea. She is a popular speaker at women’s conferences and retreats, and an amazing communicator as co-host of the award winning Midday Connection radio broadcast. Her deep desire is to communicate freedom to women and help them nurture and care for their soul. Anita is the co-author of “Come to Our Table: A Midday Connection Cookbook” and “Daily Seeds from Women Who Walk in Faith”, a Devotional for women. Her first solo venture as an author releases in November, 2010, “What Women Tell Me: finding freedom from the secrets we keep.” Anita and her husband, Mike Murphy, a pastor, along with her teenage son John live in the Chicago suburbs. When she’s not traveling or speaking, you can find her reading and drinking a venti hot tea at her local Starbucks.

*******

Caryn is a sought-after writer and speaker. She’s the author of four books—Shades of Mercy: A Maine Chronicle (River North, September 2013), Known & Loved: 52 Devotions from the Psalms (Revell, April 2013), Grumble Hallelujah (Tyndale House, September 2011), and Mama’s Got a Fake I.D. (WaterBrook Press, March 2009)–and a regular contributor to Christianity Today’s Her.Meneutics as well as columnist for Re:Frame Media’s ThinkChristian blog. She has written dozens of magazine article. Her work has appeared in such publications as Christianity Today, Relevant, FamilyLife, and Engineering and Mining Journal (you read that right). Caryn leads workshops and speaks at conferences and church groups across the country. She’s also a regular guest on Moody Radio’s Midday Connection with Anita Lustrea and Melinda Schmidt and has been featured on such radio shows as The John and Kathy Show, Changing Worldviews/WOMANTalk with Sharon Hughes, I Thought She Said with Faith Daly, The Paul Edwards Program with Paul Edwards, and Talk from the Heart with Rich Buhler, among many others. Caryn also appeared on The Harvest Show. Caryn earned a B.A. in English from Calvin College and attended the University of Chicago’s publishing program. She lives in the western suburbs of Chicago with her husband, Rafael, her three kids, a rescued pit bull terrier, two hermit crabs, and several tank fulls of who-knows-what-kind-of fish. Caryn and her family are members of Elmhurst Christian Reformed Church in Elmhurst, Illinois, where Caryn recently joined the worship staff.
ABOUT THE BOOK

It's 1954 and the world-even the far Northwoods of Maine-is about to change. But that change can't happen soon enough for fourteen-year-old Mercy Millar. Long tired of being the "son" her father never had, Mercy's ready for the world to embrace her as the young woman she is-as well as embrace the forbidden love she feels. When childhood playmates grow up and fall in love, the whole community celebrates. But in the case of Mercy and Mick, there would be no celebration. Instead their relationship must stay hidden. Good girls do not date young men from the Maliseet tribe. At least, not in Watsonville, Maine. When racial tensions escalate and Mick is thrown in jail under suspicion of murder, Mercy nearly loses all hope-in love, in her father, and in God himself.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Shades of Mercy, go HERE.

Critical Pursuit by Janice Cantore

Officer Brinna Caruso has built a reputation at the precinct as the cop to call when a child goes missing. For Brinna, it’s personal because she was once one of them. Brinna and her K-9 search and rescue dog, Hero, will stop at nothing to find a missing child, no matter the stakes.

Detective Jack O’Reilly isn’t ready to return to his homicide duties, after losing his wife to a drunk driver. He’s on the downside of his career, and bent on revenge, when he’s assigned as Brinna’s partner. While on patrol, Jack struggles between his quest for personal justice and his responsibility to those around him, especially his partner.

Skeptical of Jack’s motives, Brinna isn’t sure she can rely on her new partner, whose reckless abandon endangers the safety of those around him. But when a man surfaces with an MO similar to the criminal who abducted Brinna twenty years earlier, Brinna and Jack must cast aside previous judgments and combine efforts to catch the kidnapper, and finally allow Brinna the peace stolen from her as a child.

My review:
   Janice Cantore is a fairly new author, with this being just her fourth book on the Christian market, but she has quickly become one of my favorite authors. The fact that she was a police officer for several years makes the police action in her books all the more believable.

  As with her other books, this book is full of action, drama, suspense, and police action. It was lacking in romance, though there were signs that may come in the sequel.

  I like it when a Christian author isn't afraid to actually have Christian content and a Christian message in their books, and this one had a great message. The two main characters both struggled in different ways and for different reasons, the question of there being a God, and if there is, why He allows suffering and doesn't always intervene and answer prayers the way that we want Him to. This theme played a big part in the book, and the author did as good of a job addressing that question as she does with writing a great suspense novel. I don't want to give too much away, but one of them is dealing with it much better at the end of the book, and the other one seems more open to it, but it isn't tied up in a neat bow.

  I did read the book in one sitting, and loved it. It dealt with a tough crime: crimes against children, but it wasn't graphic and it was handled well. The book was a great suspense novel worth reading, but it is also a great reminder that there are evil men in this world who are intent on kidnapping and molesting young children, and we can't be too careful with the kids in our life. The book was also a great reminder that God is good, and it is men's evil deeds who cause us pain and harm, not God.

Note: Critical Pursuit was previously published with another publisher under the title Kevlar Heart.

About the author:

Janice Cantore is a retired Long Beach police officer who now writes suspense novels to keep readers engrossed and leave them inspired. Her twenty-two years of experience on the force lend authenticity to her stories. Her Pacific Coast Justice series has met with critical acclaim. Critical Pursuit is the first book in her latest series. Visit Janice's website at www.janicecantore.com and connect with her on Facebook.



Critical Pursuit is available from Tyndale House Publishing.

Thanks to Tyndale for the review copy.

Unlimited by Davis Bunn

Simon Orwell is a brilliant student whose life has taken a series of wrong turns. At the point of giving up on his dreams, he gets a call from an old professor who has discovered a breakthrough in a device that would create unlimited energy, and he needs Simon's help.

But once he crosses the border, nothing goes as the young man planned. The professor has been killed and Simon is assaulted and nearly killed by members of a powerful drug cartel.

Now he must take refuge in the only place that will help him, a local orphanage. There, Simon meets Harold Finch, the orphanage proprietor who walked away from a lucrative career with NASA and consulting Fortune 500 companies to serve a higher cause.

With Harold's help, Simon sets out on a quest to uncover who killed the professor and why. In due time, he will discover secrets to both the worldchanging device and his own unlimited potential.

My review:
   Occasionally I run across a book that sounds good, and upon reading it I find it far better than I had anticipated from the book description, and this is one such book. I have read several of Davis Bunn's books in the last few years and have yet to be disappointed. They are full of action and suspense, and Unlimited was not exception.

   The plot of the book is about people trying to make unlimited energy from unused energy. I loved the characters, setting, and plot for the story, and especially liked the main character, Simon. He is a young man who has made some bad choices in life, and it seems nothing is going right for him, but as the book progresses, we see God can change and save even a misfit like him.

  Davis Bunn did a great job of describing scientific and technological terms in language that is easy to understand and be interesting to the reader. I was far from bored while reading this book. A lot happened, and it was written in a way to be very believable and likely to happen.

  The book has it all: action, suspense, bad guys, good guys, romance, corrupt politicians, and God working things out for those who serve Him.

  Interestingly, this story is based on true events. Davis Bunn has done a great job of putting the events in a fictional novel and coming up with a book definitely worth reading. And as an added benefit, I learned a lot.

About the author: 

Davis Bunn is a four-time Christy Award-winning, best-selling author now serving as writer-in-residence at Regent's Park College, Oxford University in the United Kingdom. Defined by readers and reviewers as a “wise teacher,” “gentleman adventurer,” “consummate writer,” and “Renaissance man,” his work in business took him to over 40 countries around the world, and his books have sold more than seven million copies in sixteen languages.
Unlimited is Davis’s first screenplay to be released as a major motion picture. The book, Unlimited, is a novelization of the screenplay.


Unlimited is available from Broadman and Holman Publishing.

Thanks to B&B Media for the review copy.

Trapped by Irene Hannon

A runaway teen, a desperate sister, and an intrepid PI determined to discover the truth
When Laura Griffith's sixteen-year-old sister disappears on a frigid February day, leaving only a brief note behind, Laura resolves to do whatever it takes to track down the runaway teen. That includes recruiting ATF agent turned private investigator James Devlin to help. Dev knows time is of the essence with runaways--just forty-eight hours can mean the difference between recovery and ruin.

But the deeper he and Laura dig, the more Dev begins to suspect that something sinister is at work in the girl's disappearance. And in the icy winter weather, the trail is going cold . . .

In her latest thrilling read, queen of romantic suspense Irene Hannon outdoes herself with a fast-paced tale of fear, deception, and just the right dose of romance.

My review:
   Christian suspense is my all time favorite genre', and Irene Hannon is one of my favorite authors who writes it.

   This is the second book in the Private Justice Series, and like the first book, it does not disappoint. This book centers on another of the trio of investigators, "Dev". He is investigating the disappearance of a teenager. The book had a slow start, but quickly became the nail biter Irene is known for. It turned out to be an excellent read that kept me turning the pages as fast as I could read them. And when I say it had a slower start, I don't mean it was boring. It just took a while for the stage to be set.

  I liked the fact that the book showed what was going on with the missing girl and those who were looking for her.

  As with all of Irene's books, there was also romance in the book, but it was not overdone and was a secondary part of the story. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, and am looking forward to the third book in the series.

About the author:

Irene Hannon is the author of more than 35 novels, including the bestselling Heroes of Quantico and Guardians of Justice series. Her books have been honored with two coveted RITA Awards from Romance Writers of America, a Carol Award, a HOLT Medallion, a Daphne du Maurier Award, and two Reviewers' Choice Awards from RT Book Reviews magazine. Booklist also included one of her novels in its "Top 10 Inspirational Fiction" list for 2011. She lives in Missouri.

For more information about her and her books, Irene invites you to visit her website at www.irenehannon.com.

Available August 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group

Thanks to Revell for the review copy.

The Promise by Dan Walsh and Gary Smalley

One home, two hearts, and the power of a promise kept . . . For the last five months, Tom Anderson has been without a job, a fact he's been hiding from his wife Jean--and everyone else. He leaves each morning, pretending nothing has changed, and spends his disheartening day rotating through coffee shops and the library, using their wifi to search job listings online. The stress of keeping this secret is beginning to put serious strain on his marriage.

But Tom's not the only one hiding something. Jean Anderson has a secret of her own--one that will seriously complicate their situation. Will the promises they made on their wedding day hold firm?

My review:
   I don't read a lot of Christian fiction books outside of the suspense genre', but Dan Walsh is one author whose books fall into that exception. When faced with the decision to read one of his books or a suspense novel, I'll pick his book any day.

  This is book two in a new series by Dan and relationship expert Gary Smalley. These books aren't simply good fiction. They are filled with great relationship advice.

  The first book, The Dance, centered on Jim and Marilyn Anderson and their failing marriage. This book centers on their oldest son, Tom, and the issues he is facing. I like a series as they usually have the same characters in all of the books and you get to know and love them more, so that alone makes this series appealing. The Promise  deals with more issues in marriage, and also deals with the issues between a father and his children. Through a fictional story, the authors show how a father's action and approval or disapproval can and does affect his children, even as adults.

  I devoured The Promise just as much as if it were a suspense novel. It is a very gripping story and has the ability to change people and help their relationships.

  And there may be a woman on the cover, but this is a book for men and women, and both should read it.


About the authors:

Dan Walsh is the bestselling author of several books, including The Dance and The Promise with Gary Smalley, as well as The Unfinished Gift, The Discovery, and The Reunion. He has won three Carol Awards, and two of his novels were finalists for RT Book Reviews Inspirational Book of the Year for 2011 and 2012. A member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Dan served as a pastor for twenty-five years. He lives with his wife in the Daytona Beach area, where he's busy researching and writing his next novel. Visit www.danwalshbooks.com for more.

Gary Smalley is one of the country's best known authors and speakers on family relationships. He is the bestselling and award-winning author or coauthor of 16 books, along with several popular films and videos. He has spent over 30 years learning, teaching, and counseling, speaking to over 2 million people in live conferences. Smalley has appeared on national television programs such as Oprah, Larry King Live, Extra, The Today Show, and The Sally Jessy Raphael Show, as well as numerous national radio programs. Gary and his wife, Norma, have been married for 49 years and live in Branson, Missouri. They have three children and six grandchildren.


Available August 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Thanks to Revell for the review copy.