The Glory of Light by Hannah Hood Lucero

Book description: 
 He’s had everything handed to him. She built her life from nothing.

From growing up on the treacherous streets of New Orleans to being captured by terrorists in Syria, there’s not much Iris Sullivan hasn’t faced in her twenty-six years. When a mysterious operative asks for her help countering a growing threat on the home front, Iris heads to unfamiliar circles in the all-too-familiar city that shattered her carefree childhood and built her unconquerable spirit.

Barrett Jones was the life of the party until news of his twin brother’s death upended his picture-perfect life. Junior year at Tulane and an intriguing new classmate offer a distraction from his grief until Barrett discovers his own connection to the scandals and secrets surrounding Jonny’s death. Can he unravel the web of lies that destroyed his brother before it ensnares the woman he loves as well?

Will the darkness of the past destroy Iris and Barrett’s future, or will they breach their differences and fight together for the light of truth that can set them free?

My review:
   I rarely review a book on my blog that was not given to me to review. Occasionally, I find a book such a great read that I take the time and effort to leave a review here on my blog. 

  This book deserves that. Man, what an excellent book.

  The author was new to me until back in April. She was recommended in a Facebook group I am in. I read her 4 book series The Sons of Vigilance, and loved them. I did a blog post about the series. Link here. 

  But this book may outshine those. It is that good.

Main characters:
Barrett Jones. Wealthy frat boy living in a frat house. He lost his twin brother when he became radicalized by Islamic terrorist groups and was killed in the Syria by the US military. That changed him, and he quit his partying ways and got serious about God.

Silas Landry. Barrett's best friend and room mate. Also a Christian, he was adopted by a great family, having been in the foster system part of his life. 

Iris Sullivan (Sully). Christian, and foster sister of Silas, Marine, and sent to the same college her foster brother and Barrett attend. Her mission is to investigate why and how so many students are being radicalized by Islam. She has not seen her foster brother for several years, and they had no idea they would meet up at the college.

  There was a different element in this story than most Christian fiction. It is not uncommon for the guy to be older than the female. In this story, Barrett is 20 years old, and Iris is 26 years old. 

 It is a military romance, but the developing relationship between Barrett and Iris was quite entertaining. There is the age difference of course, and they were so totally opposite. He was raised in wealth - she teasingly calls him a 1 percenter - and she grew up on the streets and in foster care. This is not a lighthearted romance, but one where the characters have depth and have to get really serious about life and their relationship. 

 It is hard to explain why this was such an awesome read. The relationships between Barrett, Iris, and Silas were great. Watching Barrett slowly change was part of it. When the book starts, he has quit his partying ways, and is living for God....but still not overly mature. That changes over the course of the book, due to losing his twin brother Johnny, and falling for Iris from the get-go.

 There are terrorists, fighting, a voo doo chick who is queen of her area of the city, and tons of suspense and drama. There were guys I thought were bad, but turned out to be good, and guys I thought were good that turned out bad. 

 And the truth about Johnny and his death. I guessed part of it, but was totally surprised at the truth about him.

 This was seriously an amazing book, and one of the best I have read this year. And I have read 514. 

 This is an author to watch, and she has already become one of my favorite authors. 

About the author:

HANNAH HOOD LUCERO is a wife, mom of three, Army veteran, and self-proclaimed word-slinger. While it is the brackish waters of the Mississippi Sound that flow through her veins, western North Carolina holds her heart. Her love for storytelling is the fruit of a lifetime of cultivation in the vibrant cultures of the Gulf Coast and the Blue Ridge Mountains. She currently resides in South Mississippi with her husband and three children on their ten-acre homestead. They have one dog, thirteen chickens, and at least fifty species of mosquitos, depending on the month of the year. When she isn’t in the garden, at the stove, or homeschooling, she can be found at her computer—just follow the sound of frenetic typing. Her motto is, “Draft, edit, read, repeat.” 

Check out her website: HannahHoodLucero.com

A non-exhaustive list of Christian juvenile fiction

 There's a Christian fiction Facebook group that I am where people often ask for book suggestions in specific genre's or specific topics. (Avid Readers of Christian Fiction). One popular one is juvenile fiction. I am going to list as many as I can come up with, and  it will definitely not be an exhaustive list. 

Some of these are books I have read. Don't look at me weird....there is some really great juvenile fiction on the Christian market. 😊

And if an adult wrote it, why can't an adult read it? 😉

Of course there is the ones that were around when I was a kid - Danny Orlis and The Sugarcreek gang....but there are newer and more up to date books out there that are just as good.

There are some that I have an idea of the age level, but I will mostly post what Amazon has for the recommended age. And most will be around the age of 12 and up, depending on what I run across. 

And I don't know if they are all Christian, or if they are just good for kids. A lot of them are books and authors recommended in the Avid Readers of Christian fiction Facebook group. I also got some authors from another Facebook group, Teen/YA Christian fiction bookshelf. I will do my best to indicate if I got authors from those groups.

I also mostly featured authors that had more than one book, or has more coming in the start of a series. 

And if you are interested in joining the Avid Readers of Christian Facebook group, or the Teen/YA Christian fiction Bookshelf Facebook group, I linked to the groups in the names of the groups. 

1) Jennifer and Albrey Arrington. I assume this is a husband and wife writing duo. She recommended their books in the Avids FB group. There are two books so far in their Apex Adventures series. Ages 8-12. According to the Amazon listing, there will be 7 books total.

2) Rob Baddorf. I am not familiar with this author at all, and he has a lot of books for kids. There are a couple of his series labeled as Christian, and they look good. In fact, I put the first one in the Sneaky Inc. Spy Adventure series on my Kindle to read. That series has three books, and are labeled Christian. Amazon says ages 8-16, but the title of each book says 10-16 in it. His I Fly Spaceships is also labeled Christian fiction, and has the same ages listed. He has several other books that are not labeled Christian, but I assume are, or are at least safe to read.

Update: I read the first two this past week, and liked them. Yeah, kind of farfetched, but very entertaining. 

3) Wayne Thomas Batson. I know nothing about this author, but he was recommended in the Avid group. Most - or all  - of his books look like they are for kids. Amazon says ages 9-13 for at least his Door Within Trilogy. They are fantasy.

4) Sarah Beran. She is another author who promoted her books in the YA/teen group. She has several books in print in a few different series of her own, and also has books in a few multi-author series, including the 20 book Hope Ever After Series,  which most of  - if not all - are retellings of fairy tales. The 7-book The Order of the Fountain and the 4-book series Tales of Eukarya are both series that she wrote all of the books in.  The latter one is also retellings of fairy tales. The recommended age for at least some of her books is 12-18. All of her books appear to be fantasy.

And some of them look really good. I am intrigued.

5) Chuck Black. I read his Wars of the Realm Series (3 books), and it was really good. Ages 12-17 according to Amazon. He has some other series for kids which I have not read, including The Starlore Legacy (6 books.)

6) Tabitha Bouldin. This author has several Christian fiction novels for adults, and one juvenile fiction series recommended in the YA/teen group. Beyond Wonderland. There are two books, no age rec.

7) M. Liz Boyle. A YA/teen group rec. This author has a 3 book series out titled Off the Itinerary, which are wilderness adventure books. There is no age mentioned, but the main character is a 15 year old girl. I assume the series is more for girls.

8) Nadine Brandes. This author was recommended in the Avids group for young adults. The only books I thought looked YA by her is the Out of Time Trilogy. Fantasy, and no recommended ages given, but I would guess teens.

9) Katherine Briggs. Briggs is an author recommended in another FB group I am in, Teen/YA Christian fiction bookshelf. They are fantasy, and I am guessing teens and young adult given the FB group name.

10) V Romas Burton. Author promotion in the YA/teen group. She has two series that are fantasy recommended for ages 14-18.

11) Ashley Bustamante. No recommended age for her books, but I would guess young adult/teens. She has 4 books out. There is a 3 book series titled Color Theory, and she did a book about The Phantom of the Opera.

12) Kathryn Butler. Avids Rec. Butler has a 5 book series geared for ages 8-12, The Dream Keeper Saga. Fantasy.

13) Tabitha Caplinger. Another author who was promoting her books in the YA/teen group. I found a recommended age on one of her books, 14-18, so I assume all of them are for that age. She has 6 books for teens, including a 3 book series titled The Chronicles of the Three. All of her books are fantasy.

14) Melody Carlson. Carlson has written a ton of books, and I have been reading and reviewing her yearly Christmas novellas for several years and always enjoy them. She has written some books for kids.

I am familiar with her 15 book series Diary of a Teenage Girl, ages 12-18. Looking through her books - 383 according to Amazon - I found a couple others for teens: The 8-book series Carter House Girls, and a multiple author series The Naturals. 

15) Jess K Chavez. Fantasy series aimed at ages 13-18. There is one book out so far in her Tales of the Four Horsemen Series, with a second due out in February.

16) Vincent Christopher. I am not familiar with this author, but his books popped up as a suggestion. They are either based on movies, or movies are based on them: Mount Hideaway Mysteries. Three books so far, and they look like they are for teens. I have not read any yet, but they look really good. Amazon says ages 13-18.

17) Hannah Currie. She is another author recommended in the YA/teen group. I cannot find any recommended ages, but I am guessing teens since it was in that group. She has 8 books out, and they all look like they are fantasy.

18) Mike Cutis. This author has one series, The Noland Kids Adventure Series. Four books, age rec 10-17. I am not familiar with the books or author, but the pictures and descriptions of the books make this non-kid want to read them. 😎

19) Stephanie Daniels. This author has one book out so far in her Uncertain Riches Series, The Uncertainty of Fire. Recommended ages 12-16.

20) Bryan Davis. Davis has a lot of books for kids, and the ages are all over the map. I will focus on a couple of his series: Echoes From the Edge (3 books), ages15 and up, and Dragons In Our Midst (4 books), ages 12-18. Most of his books are fantasy.

21) A. M. Daylin. This author only has one book, but it is the first in series. Published in July of this year, there should two more on the way. The book is Where Darkness Cannot Follow, #1 in the Luminors Trilogy. I am not much for fantasy, but it sounds really good and got a great recommendation in the Teen/Young adult FB group.

22) Ted Dekker. Known for his books for adults, he also has a few series for kids. According to Amazon, ages 9 and up. Journey to Impossible (3 books), Dragons Among Us (3 books), The Dream Traveler's Quest (4 books), World of Impossible Things (3 books). Some are co-written with his daughter, Kara.

23) Courtney Denelsbeck. Another author promotion in  the YA/teen group. She has a 3 book fantasy series titled The Red Fairy and Fox. Recommended ages are 12-18, and it looks like it would be for girls.

24) Melanie Dobson. I have not read anything by her, but I have seen her books recommended. She has just one kid's series that I know of: The Magic Portal Series, a fantasy series that has two books so far, and is recommended for ages 7-13.

25) Amanda Cleary Eastep. Avids rec. This author has a 5 book series for ages 8-10: The Tree Street Kids Series. 

26) Sara Ella. I have seen a couple of her books discussed on line, and heard good things. She has a 2 book series: The Curious Realities, a 3 book series: The Unblemished Trilogy, and a stand alone novel. They are all fantasy, and recommended ages are 13-18.

27) Robert Elmer. I am not going to list all of his kids books, but just mention a couple of his series I am most familiar with: The Promise of Zion (6 books), and Adventures Down Under. His books are recommended for ages 8-12. 

28) Faithgirlz. Ok...there are so many of these books, and a lot of series connected....so I am just going to mention the books in very general terms. There are also multiple authors. Definitely for girls, and the age seems to be around 8-12 or so. 

29) Miralee Ferrell. Most of her books are for adults, but she has one series for kids. At least that is the only one I ran across: A 6 book series titled Horses and friends. Recommended age is 9-12, and they look like they are for girls.

30) Thomas Freel. Thomas was promoting his 2 book Silver Thread Chronicles Series in the YA/teen group. Fantasy series that says ages 11-18.

31) Shay Lee Giertz. A rec from the YA/teen group. Shay has 4 books, which I think are all juvenile fiction. I couldn't find recommended ages on all of them, but one had 15-18.

32) Jenny Glazebrook. She appears to have books for adults and kids. Her 5-book series Aussie Skies was recommended in the YA/teen group, but I cannot find a recommended age on those. One of her other books says 13-18, so I assume that applies to all of her books that are not for adults

33) Emily Golus. According to the author when she promoted her books in the YA/teen group, her books are fantasy geared for ages 12-14, though older kids read them also. She has two books in her World of Vindor Series, and one book in the muti-author  9 book series, A Classic Retold. Her book, Crack the Stone: A Retelling of Les Misérables, is second in that series.

34) B.R. Goodwin. This author has 7 books out, and they all seem to be for ages 10 and 11-18. Recommended in the YA/teen group. There is one romance series, and the two book series description is below:

When Vala Lee's family is deemed a threat by the government because of their beliefs, her life is dramatically shifted from that of a normal seventeen-year-old girl, to a life on the run.

Along with a group of friends, Vala embarks on a journey to find her captured brother, discovering more about her parents than she ever knew before, and learning to trust the one who has seemingly led her through the wilderness all along.

35) James Hannibal. Hannibal has written some great Christian fiction for adults, and also for teens. He has two series: Section 13, which is a 3 book series. The main character is 13 years old, so I am guessing its geared for around that age. His other series is The Lightraider Academy, which has 3 books so far. There may be others coming in that series. And I would guess it is geared for the same age. And I would say his books, especially the Lightraider Series is more for boys.

36) Jody Hedlund. Hedlund has some medieval books that I believe are geared for teen girls. I have read several of her adult novels, and have enjoyed them. I am not familiar with the ones for teens.

37) Jerry Jenkins. Jenkins has a few kids' series, and I think all are co-written. He did the Left Behind kids series with Tim Lahaye, and also did a couple of series with Chris Fabry: The Wormling (5 books), ages 10-14, and the 15 book series Red Rock Mysteries, ages 8-12. 

38) Rashad Jennings. Avids Rec. This author has a 4-book series geared towards ages 9-12: The Coin Slot Chronicles. 

39) Aaron Johnson. Avids rec. Johnson has a series for kids titled National Park Mystery Series. This series has 5 books, ages 8-11. 

40) Kathryn Jordan. The author was promoting her series in the YA/teen group. There is no recommended age, but her 6 book Keepers of the Light Series are all over 500 pages, so I am assuming late teens. Fantasy.

41) Andrew Klavan. Klavan has written several adult fiction books and non-fiction books, and has also written some juvenile fiction. Two series: The Homelanders (4 books), and The Mindwars Trilogy, and he has a handful of stand alone novels. He has not written any juvenile fiction for 9 years. Here's the thing about his books: they were published by a Christian publisher - Thomas Nelson - but there really isn't anything Christian in most, or all of them. They are definitely clean with a Christian worldview. I thoroughly enjoyed them, as did my nieces and nephews. I would say ages 12 or so up through teens. The easiest way to find his juvenile fiction is to look his books up on Christianbook.com.

 42) Melissa Knight. Recommended in the YA/teen group. She has 7 books out. One is a devotional, and the rest are fiction for teens. Amazon says 12-18, and I would say girls. She has a 5 book series High School 101, plus one other title.

43) Kim Kouski. A YA/teen group rec. Kim has two books out in the Chronicles of the King Series. Fantasy for ages 12-18.

44) Rachel Kovaciny. Recommended in the YA/Teen FB group. Most of her books are geared for teens - possibly all - but at least her Once Upon a Western Series. There are 6 books in the series, and they look to be Westernized fairy tales. Recommended ages 12-18.

45) Carolyn Leiloglou. Her two books in the Restorationists Series were recommended on Avids. Age recommendation is 9-12. Fantasy. 

46) C.S. Lewis. Of course I can't do this post without mentioning C.S. Lewis and his Chronicles of Narnia Series. I don't even need to say anything about them, they are so well known. 

47) Robert Liparulo. This is another author who wrote both adult and juvenile fiction. His juvenile fiction series is the six book The Dreamhouse Kings Series. It is a really good series - not sure what age - and kind of fantasy. This family moves into a house and it has rooms that take you to another time and place, and there is at least one bad guy who comes through and tries to grab the kids. The books are different, but really good. My nieces and nephews also loved this series. 

48) A. S. Mackey. This author was recommended in the Avids group, and she seems to have 4 books out. the age recs for three of them fall between 8 and 14, and there was none for the 4th. Augustus Blue and the Black Opal's Curse was said to be like a  Jesus centered Hardy Boys

49) D. Marie. This is an Avids rec. The 3 book series is titled simply Journey Books of Faith and Family, and is for ages 8-12, though the main male character is married with a baby in the third book. 

Series description:
Will faith sustain the soul in the time of need? Take a journey back in time, 400 years ago where the lives of two families become forever intertwined. One family is royalty and the others are farmers. The royal's duty is to govern the Kingdom of Christana, but the farmer's three sons become something they never imagined in the Kingdom of God. Faith and family prevail when crises arise. By leaning on prayers and scriptures, they learn of the Lord's provision. Putting one's complete trust in God is the goal, but it wasn't always easy. Follow this inspirational journey and see what King Albert's and Ari's families chose to do. What will you do while you're waiting for your prayers to be answered?

50) Susan K Marlow. Avids rec. Marlow is an author I never heard of til I saw her mentioned on Facebook. Her books are for different ages, depending on the series. I'll mention two of the series here:

Goldtown Adventures. Six books, ages 8-14.
Circle C Milestones. Six books, ages 12-17. It follows a girl age 14 up through marriage. 

51) Victoria McCombs. A YA/teen group rec. I think all of her books are for around the same age, 13-18. Fantasy.

52) Miller Brothers (Christopher and Alan). This is another Avids recommendation. The two brothers have two series, one is for kids 6-8. The other - The Codebearer Series - is for ages 10-14. 

53) Laura L Morgan. This author seems to have just two books out: Redemption at Dead Man's Hole and Forgiveness at Skeleton Cove. Both are in the Adventures of Rogan Chaffey Series. No recommended ages, but the main character is a boy in 9th grade, so I would guess 12-early teens or so.

54) Gilbert Morris. Best known for his Christian fiction for adults - he wrote A LOT of books - he also wrote a couple of series for kids. I don't think I ever read any of his kid's books, but I am sure they are all great reads. 

He has one series, Bonnets and Bugles (10 books), that is set during the Civil War, and two other series: The Seven Sleepers (10 books), and The Lost Chronicles (7 books). The last two series are fantasy.

55) Bill Myers. Myers has a ton of books that are for kids. I don't think I have ever read any, but am most familiar with his Forbidden Doors series, and the Wally McDoodle series. He and other authors have written a series titled Harbingers. Other authors in the series include Frank Peretti, Angela Hunt, and a couple of other authors.

56) Terry Overton. Her books are all over the place age-wise, even some for adults. I'll mention what seems to be her two main series: The 6-book Underground Book Readers Series. Amazon says ages 9-18. The other series is a 3-book series, The Newton Chronicles, ages 8-12.

57) Donita K Paul. This author has three fantasy series for kids, ages 13-18 according to Google. Realm Walkers (2 books), Dragon Keepers Chronicles (5 books), and Valley of the Dragons (3 books).

58) Frank Peretti.  Peretti is known for his kind of weird adult novels, but he also has written several books for kids and teens. His 8-book Cooper Kids Series is his best, in my opinion. Amazon says ages 8-12, but I was no 8-12 when I read them. 😊

His two book series The Veritas Project were also very good.

59) Andrew Peterson. Another recommendation from the Avid FB group. I am a little familiar with his Wingfeather Saga books, but have never read any. They are very popular. Ages 8-12.

60) H.A. Pruitt. I cannot find an age for these, but they were recommended in the YA/teen group, so I assume teens. She has a few nonfiction books, and the series recommended for teens: the 3 book Anelthalien Series, which is fantasy.

61) Mark David Pullen. David has two books out so far in his Oasis Chronicles Series. I read and reviewed the first one, and it was good. Middle age readers, fantasy.

62) Jonathan Rogers (and co-authors). This author has some other books, but this series for ages 9-13 seem to be his most popular. Advertised as a fresh take on the life of King David, these were recommended in the Avid FB group.

63) Matthew Runals. Author promotion in the YA/teen group. He has one book out so far in the A Nation Found Series. The series is fantasy, and recommended ages are 10-18.

 64) Priscilla Shirer. This author has written other books, but her kid's series is very popular: The Prince Warriors. Fantasy that I think would be more for boys. Amazon says ages 8-12. They do look and sound really good. 

65) Tim Shoemaker. This author wrote the 3 book series Code of Silence 12 years ago. It is an excellent series that I enjoyed, along with my nieces and nephews. I would guess around 12 and early teens. He has a standalone novel Easy Target that is about bullying, and has a current series he is still writing High Waters. The 5th book released last month. I have read two of them so far, and they are really good. Fairly long for juvenile fiction, coming in around and over 400 pages. The main character is 14 and 15 in the first two books. They are really, really good. I have the third on my to read shelf, and plan on buying the other two soon.

66) Sofia Simpson. Another author promotion in the YA/teen group. Her books are fantasy aimed at ages 14-18, including the 3 book series Elemental, with a 4th coming in June.

67) Grace Soto. She has a 3 book fantasy series out titled The Tiding Bearer Series. There is no recommended age, but it was a YA/teen group rec.

68) Christopher D Smith. An author recommended in the Teen/YA group. He has 3 books out, all part of The Bonvida Trilogy Series, which is fantasy.

69) Taryn Sounders. An Avids rec. This author has 5 books out. Three are for ages 10-12, and the other two are picture books for much younger. Two of the books look like mysteries, and none of the books appear to go together.

70) Angela Ruth Strong. Avids Rec. Strong usually writes Christian fiction for adults, but I saw this series for kids recommended: Fun4Hire Series. 4 books. They look pretty funny...I may have to check them out. 

71) Sam L Sullivan. One of this author's books was recommended in the Avids FB group, No Easy Redemption, which is a book about a teen pregnancy from the guy's viewpoint. Sullivan has 3 other books, and they all seem to be geared towards teens. No Easy Redemption says ages 17-18, but the others may be for younger teens. He has no Amazon author page, so there's no info about him on there.

72) Kara Swanson. Her two book series Heirs of Neverland has gotten a lot of positive feedback and reviews, and is a series that intrigues me. She has a couple of other books out, including a non-fiction one. I can't find a recommended age for her novels, but I would guess teens.

73) Luke and Jake Thone. Their parents are more well known and famous, but their two sons have written a few adult and juvenile books. One juvenile series is their 7 book series The Last Chance Detectives. Amazon says ages 8-12. The books are a little older, and were done with Focus on the Family. I heard good things about them. They also wrote The Baker Street Detective Series, which appears to have 4 books.

                                                               

74) Marylu Tyndall. I have read several of her books for adults, and she is a great author. Especially if you like books about pirates. According to someone in the YA/teen group, she has a series for teens, the 3 book Protectors of the Spear Series. No specific ages listed, but for some age in the teens. And I would say the series is definitely for girls.

75) Loren G. Warnemuende. Avid recommendation. This author has a 3 book series The Daughter of Arden. For girls ages 12-18. Fantasy.

76) C.C. Warrens. Warren has been writing Christian fiction for adults for a while, but recently turned her pen to writing kids books. She has two books out so far in the Mysteries, Mischief, and  Marshmallows Series. One book says ages 8-18, and the other says 7-11. I am pretty sure the 7-11 is more accurate. (Her books for adults are awesome, btw.)

77) Jill Williamson. She has at least two series for teens. One is definitely for girls, and the other is more for boys, which I own and have read: Mission League. It is a great series about a teenage boy who gets recruited to a Christian spy organization. There are 6 books total: 1-4, and 1.5 and 2.5.

She also wrote a three book series with her teenage son, Luke: Robo Tales

78) Jared C. Wilson. This author seems to have just one juvenile fiction book that is written for teens: Echo Island. I have a copy, but have not read it yet.

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