The Delusion by Laura Gallier

Do unseen forces of good and evil actually exist? It’s a question that haunts Owen Edmonds. Literally.

By March of Owen’s senior year, eleven students at Lincoln Forest High School have committed suicide. Amid the media frenzy and fanatical onlookers, Owen remains levelheaded—that is until he encounters his own near death experience and wakes to a distressing new reality.

Everyone he sees appears shackled and enslaved.

While frantically seeking to cure his crazed hallucinations, Owen’s delusions become even more sinister when he witnesses what appears to be an unseen army of hideous, towering beings. These Creepers, as he calls them, are preying upon people, including his classmates and girlfriend, tormenting and inciting humanity to self-destruct.
Owen eventually arrives at a mind-bending conclusion: He’s not merely imagining forces of evil at work. Everyone else is blind to the evil that is.

He must warn others and rescue those he loves, but this proves to be no simple mission. He’s hard pressed to get anyone to believe him.

Experience life through Owen Edmonds’ eyes and decide for yourself: has he lost his mind or have we?

My review: 

    When I was contacted about reviewing this book, I read the description of it and watched the book trailer, and thought it sounded really good. After reading it, I can say it did not disappoint. The book is written for teens, but as I can attest, adults will enjoy it also.

      Frank Peretti has become a standard to compare Christian fiction that has supernatural themes to, and this book would fall into books similar to his earlier books, though different in ways. The main character starts to see people wrapped in chains, with labels on the chains of what binds them. He also sees angelic beings and evil beings he calls "creepers." I have never been a fan of the first person point of view, but this is the type of book that it works very well for, and possibly better than the third point of view would have worked. In this case, most of everything that happens is through the main character, Owen's, eyes, so the first person point of view works great.

   The book is very well written, has a great plot, and a very likable main character. I really enjoyed it and found it a hard book to put down, so I didn't. I settled in my chair and read it through in one evening, and it is a normal sized paperback, 337 pages. As I said, it is juvenile fiction, but any adult that enjoys reading this type of book will enjoy it. It is not a "dumbed down" book. The main characters just happen to be teenagers.

   The book does have a few language issues, which always bothers me in a Christian novel, but especially in one geared for teens. There were a few cases of God's name taken in vain, and also of hell being used as an expletive.

   The book is still worth reading, and is a great start into the fiction genre' for this author.

Check out the site for the book here.

About the author:


As a teenager and young adult, Laura appeared to be an outgoing young lady with a bright future. In reality, she was ashamed, confused and broken as a result of her sexually active lifestyle. It wasn’t until she experienced an unplanned pregnancy, followed by a rushed marriage and subsequent divorce, that she came to the realization that God’s biblical plan for sex and marriage is for our protection. She repented for her past and determined that, by God’s grace, she would live a sexually pure life.

Laura eventually met Patrick, and they honored Christ throughout their dating relationship and became husband and wife in January of 2001. They began serving together in student ministry, and Laura soon discovered that she possesses a unique ability to connect with teenagers and communicate in a way that resonates with young people. In time, the Lord placed an intense passion in her to clearly explain what the Bible has to say about sex and relationships. Realizing that purity training is most effective when parents take the lead through meaningful at-home discipleship connections, Laura authored a parent-teen purity study in 2009. Two years later, she developed a resource for parents and elementary-age children that lays a foundation for a life of purity.Laura continues to write books that bring a biblical perspective to issues surrounding sexuality, romance and relationships and frequently speaks to a variety of audiences including parents, singles, young adults and teens.

Patrick and Laura have an adventurous home life that consists of four children: a teen young man who loves to play football, a teen girl who “gags” at the thought of watching football, an elementary-age girl who thinks she’s a teenager, and an energetic little boy, whom Patrick lightheartedly says “brings balance to the force.” The Galliers live in Cypress, Texas, and attend Champion Forest Baptist Church.

Check out her website.


Thanks to the author for the review copy.

Book trailer:



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Mystery of the Heart by Jillian Kent

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Mystery of the Heart Realms (January 8, 2013) by Jillian Kent

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jillian Kent is a busy writer and the alter ego of Jill Nutter, a full-time counselor.

Jill spent the first semester of her senior year of college at Oxford studying British Literature, where she fell in love with England. During this season, she came to appreciate the written word, the rich imagery of romantic poetry like The Highwayman, and historical novels of many types, including Jane Austen and all things Regency.

Jill received her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Bethany College in West Virginia, and her Masters Degree in Social Work from WVU, and she brings her fascination with different cultures and societies into her writing.

Jill has always been a romantic at heart, so readers will find a good dose of romance woven through each of her novels. Jill, her husband Randy, and children Katie and Meghan are animal lovers. They currently own two dogs, Boo-Boo and Bandit and a menagerie of cats, Lucky, Yuma, Snow, and Holden. Critters of all assortments make their appearance in her stories.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Lord Eden is intrigued when he discovers Lady Mercy Grayson’s secret, but how can he hope to gain her heart when he is forced to betray her?

Lady Mercy Grayson longs be a physician like her big brother, Devlin, Lord Ravensmoore. However, society would never tolerate a female physician, let alone one who is a noblewoman. So Mercy takes matters into her own hands, disguising herself as a man to get through medical school. But then a male colleague discovers her secret, which is only the beginning of Mercy’s problems that could destroy her dreams forever.

The Prince Regent is awaiting the return of Vincent St. Lyons, Lord Eden, whom he sent on a secret voyage to locate and bring back a relic that some believe possesses the power to heal. St. Lyons discovers Mercy washed up on England’s shore upon his return and agrees to give her safe passage to London aboard a ship of men practicing African Vodun. Both must face treacherous circumstances, difficult decisions, and a growing attraction to one another that could forever change the course of their lives.

As the final installment in the series, the theme of this book is God’s plans for our lives. “Whatever the hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might” (Eccles. 9:10).

If you would like to read the first chapter of Mystery of the Heart, go HERE.

Path of Freedom by Jennifer Hudson Taylor

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Path of Freedom Abingdon Press (January 2013) by Jennifer Hudson Taylor

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jennifer Hudson Taylor is an award winning author of historical Christian fiction set in Europe and the Carolinas and a speaker on topics of faith, writing and publishing. Her debut novel, Highland Blessings, won the 2011 Holt Medallion award for Best First Book. Jennifer's work has appeared in national publications, such as Guideposts, Heritage Quest Magazine, Romantic Times Book Reviews, and The Military Trader. She serves as the in-house Publicist at Hartline Literary Agency and co-owns Upon the Rock Publicist. Jennifer graduated from Elon University with a B.A. in Communications. When she isn't writing, she enjoys spending time with family, long walks, traveling, touring historical sites, hanging out at bookstores with coffee shops, genealogy, and reading.



ABOUT THE BOOK

2nd in the Quilts of Love series

When Quakers Flora Saferight and Bruce Millikan embark on the Underground Railroad, they agree to put their differences aside to save the lives of a pregnant slave couple. With only her mother’s quilt as a secret guide, the foursome follows the stitches through unknown treachery.

As they embark on their perilous journey, they hope and pray that their path is one of promise where love sustains them, courage builds faith, and forgiveness leads to freedom.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Path of Freedom, go HERE.

Watch the book trailer:

Hurt by Travis Thrasher

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Hurt David C. Cook; New edition (January 1, 2013) by Travis Thrasher

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

After college, he targeted working in the publishing industry and was fortunate to find a job early after graduation. He worked as Author Relations Manager for Tyndale House Publishers, the publisher of his first two novels.

The thirteen years he spent working in author relations taught him the business of publishing as well as the psyche of writers.

Early on, he made a deliberate choice of not wanting to be boxed in by a brand or a genre. Instead, Travis has chosen time and time again to write the stories that mean something to him at that moment. He views his first ten years of being published as training and practice. Those novels in many ways were written for himself.

The four years of writing full time have taught him the discipline and determination necessary to make it as a novelist. They’ve also served to close the chapter on what is hopefully just one era in his writing journey.

The stories continue to fill his head like they did when he was in third grade. The only difference is that Travis now knows what to do with those stories. His goal continues to be to tell stories that move him as well as his readers. He wants to continue to experiment and take risks, but more than anything he wants to provide readers a satisfying experience.

The dream remains the same. To try and write something magnificent. To make up wild worlds full of wonderfully rich characters. To make sense of the world through the stories he tells. And to try and inspire hope with the words he writes.

ABOUT THE BOOK

His Rebellion Will Soon Turn to Hope

When Chris Buckley first encountered the mysteries of creepy Solitary, North Carolina, he had little idea how far he would fall into the town’s shadows. After losing the love of his life, Chris tried to do things his way. He hunted answers. Then he gave up trying to find them.

But now Chris comes back to Solitary knowing there’s a purpose for his being there. As he watches his place in a twisted and evil bloodline become clear, Chris waits for the last battle—and wonders who will be left when he finally makes his stand.

My review:

   This is book 4 and the final book in a series. I received the other three books in the mail before Christmas - I think I won them - so I was able to read all of the books and catch up on the story for when I had to read and review this book.

   This series is weird, but in a good way. There is a lot of creepy stuff that goes on in them, and the reader is left wondering about a lot of things. However, this final book brings everything together and makes sense of it all. They are all suspenseful and a lot happens in them, but especially in Hurt. The main character, Chris, has to decide if he is going to give in and let evil win, or if he is going to fight, no mattter what the cost to himself.

   I enjoyed the whole series, but especially this last book. It was a great read, and left me wishing there was one more book.

   One thing bothered me about the whole series: The series is intended for teens, and there is a lot of partying going on in the book, the kind of parties where teens are drinking, doing drugs, etc. The author may not have intended it that way, but it came across as the norm. I wish he had somehow written it so that the teenage reader wouldn't feel it was normal, but bad, and not something to be involved in. The main character also was pretty focused on sex, and even after becoming a Christian, it wasn't made clear why its bad before marriage.
















If you would like to read the first chapter of Hurt, go HERE

Vanished by Irene Hannon

A tenacious reporter. A skeptical PI. And a secret that will shatter lives.

Reporter Moira Harrison is lost. In the dark. In a thunderstorm. When a lone figure suddenly appears in the beam of her headlights, Moira slams on her brakes-but it’s too late. She feels the solid thump against the side of her car before crashing into a tree on the far side of the road.

A man opens her door, tells her he saw everything, and promises to call 911. Then the world fades to black. When she comes to, she is alone. No man. No 911. No injured person. But she can’t forget the look of terror she saw on that face in the instant before her headlights swung away. And she can’t get anyone to believe her story-except maybe a handsome ex–homicide detective turned private eye, who reluctantly agrees to take on the case.

As clues begin to surface, it becomes obvious that someone doesn’t want this mystery solved-and will stop at nothing to protect a shocking secret.

My review:

     Sometimes you'll read a book and think "man, that was an awesome plot!" Such was the case with this book for me. I'm a big fan of Irene Hannon's books, and have read - and I think reviewed -  every one she has written since joining Revell's writing team. I've enjoyed all of her books, but this one seemed even better than her usual. The plot had something to do with it: a woman hit by a vehicle, then disappearing, along with a good Samaritan that stopped to help, with no trace of either being left behind. But even that aside, the book was a great read. I like the characters in this new series, and the idea of writing it around a private detective agency, something different from Irene's other books.

    There was a lot of suspense and mystery in the story, which I love, and I had to keep reading until the end of the book, and as with any Irene Hannon book, it came to a satisfying conclusion and left me wanting more. I am looking forward to reading more books in the Private Justice Series, and highly recommend this one.

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

Thanks to Donna from Revell for the review copy.

Questions of Life by Nicky Gumbel

What is the point of life? What happens when we die? Is forgiveness possible? More than 16 million people around the world have now attended Alpha, the Christian introductory course pioneered by Nicky Gumbel. In this international bestseller based on the Alpha Course, Nicky Gumbel addresses some of the big issues that challenge us all. Packed with humour, anecdotes, wisdom and profound teaching from the Bible, Gumbel introduces the person of Jesus Christ and invites the reader into a world of discovery that has fascinated human beings for two thousand years.


My review: They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, and that is true. This one doesn't look like much if you judge it by the cover, though I do like green. The book has 15 chapters, each of them a different question such as: Who Is Jesus, Why and how do I pray?, How can I resist evil, and more. The author addresses each question thoroughly, Biblically, and often with humor. There are even amusing cartoons scattered throughout the book.

   This is one of those books that isn't a long book, coming in at 203 pages, but there is a lot of helpful insight and advice packed into the book. I found the whole book interesting and helpful, and no matter where you are on your spiritual walk, there is something it doesn't hurt to brush up on some of these things.

About the author:


Nicky Gumbel has written a number of best selling books. Questions of Life - the Alpha course in book form - has sold more than a million copies worldwide. The booklet Why Jesus? and its sister publication Why Christmas? have sold more than four million copies.

Nicky is also Vice President of Tearfund, a UK Christian relief and development agency working with a global network of local churches to help eradicate poverty and transform lives.
Nicky Gumbel is married to Pippa. They live in central London and have three children, Henry, Jonathan and Rebecca.

Thanks to B&B Media for the review copy.

The Way of Grace by Cathy Bryant

In pursuit of justice, in need of grace . . . A justice-seeking perfectionist pursues her dream of a perfect life in her hometown of Miller's Creek, Texas. Sidetracked by her desire to be a prosecuting attorney, Grace Soldano launches into uncharted waters, making herself over to please her boss and mentor. Then a disheveled free spirit turns her perfectly ordered world upside down, challenging the concept of personal goodness. A fall from perfection leaves her teetering between vengeance and grace, caught in a deadly crossfire that leaves her dreams in a heap of ashes. Can she learn to joyfully accept the life God has given her--far from perfect--but one completely immersed in His grace?


My review:

    I rarely read books that are just romance. Other genres with romance are OK, but I just don't read books that are romance much. The author of this book emailed me a while back and asked if I'd be interested in reviewing her upcoming book, #3 in her Miller's Creek Series, The Way of Grace. She said it had some suspenseful elements to it, so I decided to go for it. Right after that, the first two books in her series were free for the Kindle on Amazon, so I grabbed them and read them in preparation for the third book. There was no suspense in them, but I loved them. Excellent books.

   This is a review of the third book, however, so on to it. Cathy outdid herself on this one. First off, there is some suspense in it, but not so much to scare away the faint of heart. She brought back the characters from the other two books, which I always like an author to do, and introduced a new one, and brought a character from book two, Matt, to the forefront.

   One thing I dislike in a romance book, is it usually is totally from the woman's point of view. This one was pretty equal on the guy and the girl. I found myself identifying with both of the main characters, and found myself liking them even more than the characters from the previous two books.

    A mark of great Christian fiction, is to not just tell a story, but to get across some truth or encouragement, and this book did just that in a great way. Grace is in the title of the book, and is a major theme of the book. Woven throughout the book amid dialogue and interactions, the message of grace came through loud and clear, and in a non-preachy way. A couple of other messages of the book: the importance of trusting God, that one can get too hung up on perfectionism and worrying about how others view us, instead of how God views us, and that we shouldn't judge people by outward appearance. The person we may tend to disregard because of their not so perfect appearance or dress, might be the one with the better Christian experience and insight. I came away from the book wishing I was a lot more like Matt in the book, and a lot less like myself.

   And don't worry, even with these great truths and lessons the plot is great and the book is an excellent read, one that you won't be able to put down.

   The first two books will again be free for Kindle on January 25-26, and I will try to remember to post a reminder.

   Warning about these books: There is a lot of eating of Mexican food in the book and they may cause craving for Mexican cuisine. ;-)

About the author: 

Cathy’s desire is to write heart-stirring stories about God’s life-changing grace. Her first novel, Texas Roads, was a 2009 American Christian Fiction Writers’ Genesis finalist. Her second novel, A Path Less Traveled, was published in 2010. The Way of Grace, the third book in the Miller’s Creek novels was released in 2012. A native Texan, Cathy currently resides in the beautiful Ozark mountains of northwest Arkansas with her husband of thirty years, and near the world’s cutest grandson

Check out Cathy's website at CathyBryant.com

Thanks to Cathy for the review copy.