Rooms by Jim Rubart

Book description:

On a rainy spring day in Seattle, young software tycoon Micah Taylor receives a cryptic, twenty-five-year-old letter from a great uncle he never knew. It claims a home awaits him on the Oregon coast that will turn his world inside out.


Suspecting a prank, Micah arrives at Cannon Beach to discover a stunning brand new nine-thousand square foot house. And after meeting Sarah Sabin at a nearby ice cream shop, he has two reasons to visit the beach every weekend.


When bizarre things start happening in the rooms of the home, Micah suspects they have some connection to his enigmatic new friend, Rick, the town mechanic. But Rick will only say the house is spiritual. This unnerves Micah because his faith slipped away like the tide years ago, and he wants to keep it that way.


But as he slowly discovers, the home isn’t just spiritual, it’s a physical manifestation of his soul, which God uses to heal Micah’s darkest wounds and lead him into an astonishing new destiny.

My review:

This could be a challenging book review to write. I loved this book - really loved it, but it is the type of book that I can't tell too much about or I could give too much away, but here goes....

As the book description says, the main character, Micah Taylor, is given a house on the beach. The more time he spends there, the more bizarre things happen to him. It turns out that the house's weird rooms are "rooms" in his heart.

I liked and enjoyed the main character. I found myself identifying with him and his struggles, defeats, and victories. At times, I found myself misty-eyed, other times smiling. The plot was awesome. The author has to be really talented and also guided by God to write this type of book. It could have been a weird book, but he does an excellent job of showing the battles in a man's soul by using rooms in a house, and instead of the book coming off as weird or bizarre, it comes off as inspiring, challenging, and even convicting.

 This book was one of those "read-in-one-sitting" books I mention occasionally, and suspenseful in the way that it was a definite page-turner. I was quickly drawn into the story, and was eager to see where the story would go, and I was not disappointed.

On the cover of the book, is an endorsement: "An extraordinary read. Part The Shack, part C.S. Lewis. I thoroughly hated The Shack and consider it heretical, but this book has some similarities, but it is so much better. There are no weird depictions of the Trinity in this book or other heresies. This is one of those Christian fiction books that will really make you think, and I often recommend books I review, but I very highly recommend this. If you want a book that will cause you to do some self-examination of your spiritual state and priorities, this book is for you. It is definitely worth reading, and could be one of those life-changing books that are talked about.

About the author:

James L. Rubart is a professional marketer whose Jr2 Marketing company clientele has included ABC, AT&T/Cingular, and Clear Channel Radio. He is also a professional speaker, writes recurring columns for Christian Fiction Online Magazine and Christian Women Online, and is on the board of the Northwest Christian Writers Association. Jim and his wife and their two teenage sons live just outside Seattle, Washington.

Rooms is available from Broadman & Holman Publishers.

Thanks to the Broadman & Holman for the review copy.

Check out the author's website at jimrubart.com.

Enemies Among Us by Bob Hamer

When undercover FBI agent Matt Hogan totals three vehicles in an out-of-policy Beverly Hills pursuit of a fleeing Arab drug runner, he incurs the wrath of the Bureau hierarchy. To avoid an almost certain suspension, he accepts a new assignment tracking terrorist cell groups while posing as a volunteer at a nonprofit charity. What he doesn't know is the ripples of danger from this case will threaten not only his life but the safety and security of the entire nation.

This is the kind of book I love. It has terrorist plots, undercover FBI work, great plot, and likable and believeable characters. Woven within the plot was also a strong Christian message. I really liked the main character, and hope the author does more books with him as the central character/hero of the story.

The story was made all the more believable and enjoyable for me knowing that the author is a former FBI agent who also did his share of undercover work. I highly recommend this book by a new fiction author, and though you women might enjoy it, I would recommend it more for men.

And one last thing I'd like to add: this book was curse-free and clean. I had a Christian fiction author defend curses and some other inappropriate content in a book of this style by saying in this type of book you have to have that - you do not have to, and this author proves that.

First chapter here.

About the author:

Bob Hamer spent twenty-six years as a "street agent" for the FBI, many of them in an undercover capacity. In assignments lasting anywhere from a day to more than three years, he successfully posed as a drug dealer, contract killer, fence, pedophile, degenerate gambler, weapons dealer, and white-collar criminal.

Bob worked undercover against such diverse groups as La Cosa Nostra, the Sicilian Mafia, Mexican Mafia, Russian Mafia, Asian organized crime groups, and Los Angeles-based street gangs. His successful infiltration of NAMBLA (North American Man/Boy Love Association) resulted in the arrest of what one defendant called eight members of the "inner circle."

He received numerous awards throughout his career including the FBI Director’s Award for Distinguished Service, four United States Attorney Awards for Distinguished Service, and numerous letters of commendation including one from then U.S. Attorney Rudy Giuliani.

Now retired, he is a member of the Writers Guild of America and the Writers Guild of Canada and has written for TV. He also worked as the technical advisor for The Inside and Angela's Eyes and has consulted for Law & Order: SVU and Sleeper Cell. He appeared as a guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Sean Hannity Show, Laura Ingraham, and other national and local TV and radio programs to discuss his role in the NAMBLA investigation.

In 2009, The Last Undercover was named as the Fifteenth Annual San Diego Book Awards Association, Best Memoir, General Interest.

A Marine Corps veteran and law school graduate, he is married and has two children.

Enemies Among Us is available from Fidelis Books, an imprint of Broadman & Holman Publishing.

Thanks to Broadman & Holman for the review copy.

If we're just passing through......

A guy on a blog I follow posted this on his blog. Worth reading: http://peterpollock.com/2011/01/if-were-just-passing-through-why-do-we-try-so-hard-to-settle-in/

Journey To Riverbend by Henry McLaughlin

Michael Archer is nothing if not a man of his word. Though he was unable to save Ben Carstairs, Michael is determined to carry out Ben’s dying wish: to be reconciled with his father. Unfortunately, Sam Carstairs, one of the most ruthless businessmen on the frontier, has no use for his own son, much less a man of God seeking reconciliation.


Soon after arriving in Riverbend, Michael meets and falls for the stunning Rachel Stone while waiting for Sam to return from a business trip. Beautiful yet guarded, Rachel seems to be running from a past as dark as Michael’s.


When word reaches town that Sam has been kidnapped on the stagecoach home, Michael offers to join the search party formed by the local sheriff. With a budding romance behind him and a dangerous rescue ahead of him, he sets out on the trail, determined to complete his journey no matter the cost.
 
My review:
Henry McLaughlin is the 2009 winner of the Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writers Guild Operation First Novel Contest. The winner wins cash and their first book published for free from Tyndale Publishing. This is his first novel, the result of winning that contest.
 
For a debut novel, this was a great one. It is set in the Old West, though I wouldn't call it a western, though it could be considered one. I liked his characters. They weren't perfect. The main two had had bad pasts, done their share of sinning.
 
The main theme of the story was reconciliation. A man trying to reconcile a man with his dead son. This novel is definitely  Christian, yet showed the imperfections and flaws of the characters. This may not be intended to be a story of hope, but it is. Though the characters are fictional, it brings home the truth that God can save anyone, no matter what their past was like, and make them a new person.
 
I enjoyed the novel, and got caught up in the story. I would liked to have seen some loose ends tied up at the end, but it still had a good ending. Though written by a man, and it is a book that men would enjoy, I think a lot of women would enjoy it also.
 
Read the first chapter here.
 

About the author:
Henry McLaughlin is the 2009 winner of the Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writers Guild Operation First Novel Contest. He has a master's degree in social work and spent many years working in the public child welfare system. It was in this role that he first honed his writing skills in preparing concise and accurate court reports and petitions. He retired from that career in 1999 to work with Kenneth Copeland Ministries.


To improve his craft, Henry belongs to several Christian writer organizations; attends writers conferences, workshops, and retreats; and participates in online and local critique groups. He completed the Christian Writers Guild Craftsman course in April 2010.

Henry and his wife, Linda, have been married for over forty years and live in Saginaw, Texas. They have five children, the oldest of whom is in heaven, and one grandchild. Visit his website at henrymclaughlin.org

Journey To Riverbend is available from Tyndale Publishing

Thanks to Tyndale for the review copy.

Threatened by Hell.....

"The Lord just impressed on me that for someone in this service, it will be their last chance to come to an altar and pray."

Ever been in a church service where something like that was said? I have been - more than once. I was raised in a very conservative church - and still attend one - and have been in many revival services and camp meetings where the preachers thrived on telling horror stories to get people to the altar.

There is the one that was a favorite for a while about a man that stole some kind of chemical from his job that when it came into contact with water, would burst into flames. He was using it to impress some buddies and got careless. The chemical got all over him - and water. His body kept bursting into flames no matter what the doctors did - for his sweat kept triggering the chemical. They eventually had to peel his skin off to stop it. It made a lovely story to impress the horrors of Hell upon the listeners.

There were others. Stories of people who didn't go to the altar and were mowed down by a car when they stepped out of the church. OK, not that bad, but almost.

I am reading a book right now that a good friend of mine suggested I read - or more like it, bugged me until I bought it. :-) The book is He Loves Me by Wayne Jacobson. I have read three chapters so far, and it is definitely a book I need to read. The third chapter is where I got the title of this blog post: Threatened by Hell. Even before I read it, I was having similar thoughts as to what he wrote, and have made comments about it on my blog before.

Looking back over my life, all too many of my trips to the altar were because I was scared into going. Sure, I may have felt conviction and God's urging to go, but what would usually result in my going was a scary story told by the minister.

Sad to say, most of my life, I have tried to be a Christian to escape Hell - and to make my family happy. Never have I served God out of love for Him, or because He loved me. Is it any wonder I am so messed up?!

There are a lot of people who would say it doesn't matter how you get people to the altar, as long as they go - but is that really true? Can people truly have a relationship with God if they have been scared into it? Going back to the book I mentioned, the author used this illustration: of telling someone you know that you'd enjoy spending more time with them and becoming better friends. Then adding - "and if you don't, I will hunt you down and torture you." What kind of friendship would that be? Or to take it another direction, asking someone to marry you and tell them if they refuse, you will torture them beyond imagination. They might marry you, but what kind of marriage would that be? (That one was my idea!)

Sound absurd? Maybe, but is it any more absurd than scaring someone into a relationship with God? A relationship where you feel if you digress in the least that God is waiting to throw you into Hell? Is that really going to work? Maybe for some people.

I might be wrong, but I would wager a guess that a lot of the people who are scared into going to the altar and pray do not get a lasting relationship with God. And given some time, they have gone back to where they were in the first place. That happened to me. Over and over again.

How much better if people came to pray because they felt and believed that God loved them. No matter what they have done - or will do.

There are churches that tell you that you can live as you want, and go to Heaven. That its all covered. Their God is so loving that He overlooks all sins and welcomes you into Heaven.

I think there needs to be balance. Yes, God is a God of judgment, and maybe that needs to be pointed out occasionally, but He is also a God of love, and that is what will truly win people to Him. That is what needs to be the basis of any relationship, including the one with God.

The author of the book I mentioned made an interesting point in the same chapter about hell: If the only reason I'm even responding to Him is to serve my own self-interest and escape a fiery eternity in hell, am I really loving Him, or myself? Good question. And I would say it is the latter.

Jesus Himself told some scary stories - the rich man in hell wanting Lazarus to bring him a drop of water, the wedding guest without a wedding garment.... but He told many more that weren't like that.

So, any thoughts? Is it a bad thing to scare people to the altar? Should we have many messages on hell?

Rhythm of Secrets

This week, theChristian Fiction Blog Allianceis introducingRhythm of SecretsKregel Publications (December 22, 2010)byPatti Lacy
 ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Patti Lacy, Baylor graduate, taught community college humanities until God called her to span seas and secrets in her novels, An Irishwoman's Tale and What the Bayou Saw. She has two grown children and a dog named Laura. She and her husband can be seen jog-walking the streets of Normal, Illinois, an amazing place to live for a woman born in a car. For more information, visit Patti's website at http://www.pattilacy.com/, her blog at www.pattilacy.com/blog, and her Facebook daily Artbites.



ABOUT THE BOOK

Sheila Franklin has masqueraded as the precocious daughter of avant-garde parents in colorful 1940s New Orleans, a teen desperate for love and acceptance, and an unwed mother sent North with her shame.

After marrying Edward, Sheila artfully masks her secrets, allowing Edward to gain prominence as a conservative pastor. When one phone call from a disillusioned Vietnam veteran destroys her cover, Sheila faces an impossible choice: save her son and his beloved…or imperil Edward’s ambitions.

Inspired by a true story, The Rhythm of Secrets intermingles jazz, classical, and sacred music in a symphony trumpeting God’s grace.

Endorsements:

“A vibrant journey across time in search of the greatest truth of all: grace.”—Tosca Lee, author of Havah: The Story of Eve and Demon: A Memoir

“No longer a ‘well-kept secret,’ Patti Lacy is a master storyteller who speaks to the soul with a powerful and unique rhythm, weaving a tale so emotionally rich that story and reader become one.”—Julie Lessman, author of The Daughters of Boston series and A Hope Undaunted

“Patti Lacy pens another beautifully written story in The Rhythm of Secrets. I couldn’t put it down!”—Melanie Dobson, award-winning author of The Black Cloister

“The Rhythm of Secrets is a stirring story of faith and endurance that will keep readers turning the page until every last secret is revealed.”—Tina Ann Forkner, author of Ruby Among Us and Rose House



If you would like to read an excerpt of Rhythm of Secrets, go HERE.

A Trail of Ink by Mel Starr

Some valuable books have been stolen from Master John Wyclif, the well known scholar and Bible translator. He calls upon his friend and former pupil, Hugh de Singleton, to investigate. Hugh's investigation leads him to Oxford where he again encounters Kate, the only woman who has tempted him to leave bachelor life behind, but Kate has another serious suitor. As Hugh's pursuit of Kate becomes more successful, mysterious accidents begin to occur. Are these accidents tied to the missing books, or to his pursuit of Kate?


One of the stolen books turns up alongside the drowned body of a poor Oxford scholar. Another accident? Hugh certainly doesn’t think so, but it will take all of his surgeon’s skills to prove.

My review:
I like this series of books. They are totally different from the suspense/mystery novels I read. This series is set in the 1300's, which requires methods of detecting and investigating than what we have today.

The main character is Hugh de Singleton, who is both a surgeon and bailiff. As I commented on an earlier book in this series, I find the methods of surgery and doctoring in that day fascinating.

This book, Trail of Ink, starts off a bit slowly, but then picked up and grabbed my interest. The story involves stolen books, and I figured it wasn't going to be a story involving murder and mayhem, but I was wrong. Thought it may have been slower getting to the suspenseful moments than the two books that preceded this one, it has a lot of suspense in it also, and even some romance thrown in - although that is also a lot different than modern day romances.

The author has studied medieval surgery and medieval English, and that comes across in the book. Reading his books are like stepping into medieval times. He paints a great picture of what life was like in that day, and adds mystery and suspense to make it even more enjoyable.

I have one complaint about the book. There is a glossary in the front of the book to define some of the unfamiliar words in the book, but there are still several used that are not in the glossary. I would have liked a definition of those also.

I highly recommend this series. No, it isn't like reading a fast paced suspense novel set in modern times, but this book, and the other two in the series, make an enjoyable read and you won't be disappointed.

About the author:

Mel Starr was born and grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He graduated from Spring Arbor High School in 1960, and Greenville College (Illinois) in 1964. He received a MA in history from Western Michigan University in 1970. He taught history in Michigan public schools for thirty-nine years, thirty-five of those in Portage, MI, where he retired in 2003 as chairman of the social studies department of Portage Northern High School.

Mel married Susan Brock in 1965, and they have two daughters; Amy (Kevin) Kwilinski, of Kennesaw, GA, and Jennifer (Jeremy) Reivitt, of Portage, MI. Mel and Susan have seven grandchildren.

A Trail of Ink is available from Monarch books, an imprint of Kregel Publications.

Thanks to Kregel for the review copy.