Thicker than Blood by C.J. Darlington (Book Review)

Title: Thicker than Blood
Author: C.J. Darlington
Publisher: Tyndale Fiction

My synopsis: Christy Williams had left her family when she was just 18. Her family consisted of her 15 year old sister May and her Aunt Edna. Her parents were killed in an alcohol-related car accident coming home for her 18th birthday. For 15 years she tries to live her life, not liking that she has become an alcoholic like her parents, and not wanting her sister May to find out and be disappointed in her. For this reason, even though she lives just a couple of hours away, she does not let May know where she is.

For the last 4 years Christy has worked in a used bookstore at a job that she really loves. She has always had a kinship with books, not just reading them, but learning and enjoying their history. Hunter, her manager, has been taking her on buying trips and for the first time is letting her do the bidding. She is amazed that he trusts her enough for this important task. Unfortunately, her euphoria is short-lived.

Vince, also an employee of the book store and Christy's ex-boyfriend refuses to let her go. He knows about her drinking problem and also about some of the underhanded things she did for a rival bookstore when she first started working for Hunter. He is not against using all of that against her to try to win her back, even if it means getting her fired. When Christy's apartment is burned she hits rock bottom. With no job and no where to live, she heads for home and her sister May.

May has been co-owner of a cattle ranch for a few years. The last couple have been tough and her and her partner have missed some payments. The bank has called in the entire loan amount now and if they can't come up with the money they will lose their ranch. May cannot think of anything worse. For as long as she can remember she has wanted to live on and run a ranch. Normally she would turn to her Aunt Edna for words of wisdom, but her aunt has just passed away. She is trusting in God that he knows what is going to happen and that he has some plan in mind.

My thoughts: I really enjoyed reading this book. You know how some books just feel good in your hands - this was one of those books. It wasn't too heavy and the pages were smooth. Sometimes when reading a paperback I feel like I am breaking the spine to get the book open far enough to be able to read it. Does anyone else know what I am talking about?

Anyway, almost instantly I felt bonded with Christy. Not that I am an alcoholic, or that my parents were, or that I am estranged from my family, but just that I think we have all been on that hard road and felt like things were spirally out of our control - and that we just wanted to be around family, no matter how long it has been. I was cheering for her to really achieve something with her job and was booing Vince as soon as he came into the picture.

This book presents accepting Christ in a very down to earth way - and makes it relatable to all readers, no matter their walks of life or current faith. I did not feel it was preachy in any way, it just was there, take it or leave it and showed that sometimes (I would say most times) accepting Christ is not just a flip of a light switch. It isn't like you go to church one day and say - Yeah - this is what I need - OK - sign me up! It is more of a process of God working on softening your heart until you are ready to admit that you need Him. When you do, He will be there.

~I was provided this book for review by Title Trakk Blog Tours.~


About the Author:
C. J. began writing the story that would become Thicker than Blood (her first novel) when she was a fifteen-year-old homeschool student. She has been in the antiquarian bookselling business for over a decade, scouting for stores similar to the one described in the novel before cofounding her own online bookstore. Thicker than Blood was the winner of the 2008 Christian Writers Guild Operation First Novel.

C. J. co-founded the Christian entertainment Web site TitleTrakk.com with her sister, Tracy, and has been actively promoting Christian fiction through book reviews and author interviews. She makes her home in Pennsylvania with her family and their menagerie of dogs and cats. Visit her website www.cjdarlington.com for more info.

QUICK LINKS:

• The 1st chapter of Thicker than Blood
• The "Story Behind the Story" of Thicker than Blood
• More endorsements from Jenny B. Jones, James Scott Bell, Susan Meissner, and more!
• Our interview with C.J. at TitleTrakk.com
  
• Buy Thicker than Blood at Christianbook.com
• Buy Thicker than Blood at Amazon.com
• List of the other 85+ Thicker than Blood blog tour participants!

See my early post about this blog tour also.

Thicker than Blood
Publisher/Publication Date: Tyndale House Publishers, Dec 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4143-3448-6
400 pages

Thicker than Blood Blog Tour (Jan 18-24)

TitleTrakk.com Blog Tours Presents:

Thicker than Blood
by C.J. Darlington
Published by Tyndale House

Winner of the
2008 Christian Writers Guild Operation First Novel Contest!

Christy Williams finally has her life on track. She’s putting her past behind her and working hard to build a career as an antiquarian book buyer. But things begin to unravel when a stolen Hemingway first edition is found in her possession, framing her for a crime she didn’t commit. With no one to turn to, she yearns for her estranged younger sister, May, whom she abandoned after their parents’ untimely deaths. Soon, Christy’s fleeing from her shattered dreams, her ex-boyfriend, and God. Could May’s Triple Cross Ranch be the safe haven she’s searching for? Will the sisters realize that each possesses what the other desperately needs before it’s too late?

Watch for my review later this week!

With careful attention to detail, emotion, and scene-setting, C.J. Darlington scores with her debut effort. Here is a special writer you won’t want to miss.
--Jerry B. Jenkins, New York Times best selling author

If you love a good read filled with adventure and ultimately redemption, I encourage you to brew the tea, settle into your favorite chair and pick up the page turner that is C.J. Darlington’s imaginative new novel of a modern day sisterhood that triumphs over separation and the raw challenges of life to find the real endurance of both family ties and God’s amazing grace.
--Rebecca St. James, Grammy award winning Christian singer and bestselling author

With Thicker than Blood, C.J. Darlington proves she's a novelist for the long-haul, a strong new voice in Christian fiction. This book speaks to the heart, from the heart, about the heart. Readers will not soon forget it.
--Sibella Giorello, Christy award-winning author of The Rivers Run Dry & The Clouds Roll Away

Mailbox Monday/In My Mailbox 12-14-2009

Mailbox Monday is hosted at The Printed Page or In Your Mailbox at The Story Siren. Please stop by those posts and take a look at what packages everybody else got this week!

Thicker than Blood by C.J. Darlington

Christy Williams has lived a troubled life but finally seems to have things back on track. She's working hard to build a career as an antiquarian book buyer. Things begin to unravel when a stolen Hemingway first edition is found in her possession, framing her for a crime she didn't commit. Soon Christy's fleeing from her shattered dreams, her ex-boyfriend, and God.

With no one to turn to, Christy yearns for her younger sister she left behind fifteen years ago. May's Triple Cross ranch could be the safe haven Christy is searching for, but will the sisters realize that each possesses what the other desperately needs before it's too late?

Dare to Surrender by Lilli Feisty

He Meets His Match.
She Meets Her Master.

Art gallery curator Joy Montgomery has never liked her body's generous curves. And she's always been too shy to explore her wild side. But tonight, everything is going to change. . .

Desperate to save her job, Joy approaches bad-boy artist Ash Hunter and asks him to exhibit his erotic work at her gallery. Ash agrees on one condition: Joy must pose as his model. But business soon turns to pleasure, as Joy experiences a passion beyond her wildest imaginings. . . and Ash finds more than just inspiration in his voluptuous new muse.

Ecstasy Unveiled by Larissa Ione

A Demon Enslaved

Lore is a Seminus half-breed demon who has been forced to act as his dark master's assassin. Now to earn his freedom and save his sister's life, he must complete one last kill. Powerful and ruthless, he'll stop at nothing to carry out this deadly mission.

An Angel Tempted

Idess is an earthbound angel with a wild side sworn to protect the human Lore is targeting. She's determined to thwart her wickedly handsome adversary by any means necessary -- even if that means risking her vow of eternal chastity. But what begins as a simple seduction soon turns into a passion that leaves both angel and demon craving complete surrender.

Torn between duty and desire. Lore and Idess must join forces as they battle their attraction for each other. Because an enemy from the past is rising again -- one hellbent on vengeance and unthinkable destruction.

A Black Tie Affair by Sherrill Bodine

Suited For Seduction

Fashion curator Athena Smith will do anything to get her perfectly manicured hands on the Clayworth family's celebrated couture collection for her exhibit. So when she's called in to make sure the gowns are the real deal, she's ecstatic. . . until a dress she's examining turns out to be loaded with toxins (talk about killer threads!) and Athena faints, only to wake up face-to-face with the One That Got Away, notorious Chicago bachelor Drew Clayworth.

Drew still believes Athena betrayed him all those years ago, and he's sure he can't trust her. But when the priceless gowns go missing, she offers to help track them down. Reluctantly allied in the quest, Drew and Athena are soon stunned by the barely restrained passion still sizzling between them. . . and memories both bitter and sweet. Is their new partnership just a business arrangement? Or is this something more than. . . A Black Tie Affair

Seduced by a Rogue by Amanda Scott

Flaxen-haired and beautiful, Lady Mairi Dunwythie is heiress apparent to the wealthy nobleman blocking Clan Maxwell's attempt to control much of southwest Scotland. Her first meeting with handsome Robert Maxwell ignites an attraction that is immediate, intense, and almost irresistible -- until she learns he is asking her father to submit to the Maxwell demands.

Rob is a warrior, a man of action. So when Mairi's father stands defiant, Rob daringly abducts her. As clan tensions mount, passion escalates between the lovers, tempting them beyond reason. Soon they must choose between loyalty and love. . .before the eruption of all out clan war.

Sleep No More by Susan Crandall

Danger Never Rests

The night was always Abby Whitman's enemy. As a young girl she walked in her sleep, and one night, she started a fire that scarred her sister for life and left Abby with unbearable guilt. . . and a loneliness that echoes within her.

And Evil Never Closes Its Eyes

Now Abby has begun blacking out again -- with apparently fatal results. A car accident has killed the son of a prominent family. Even though the evidence seems to exonerate her, Abby is plagued by doubts -- and soon by mysterious threats. Psychiatrist Dr. Jason Coble is intrigued by Abby and offers to help her explore the dark recesses of her mind. Through this terrifying journey, Jason's interest turns to passion, and he yearns to give her the love she craves. But first, Abby must trust him -- and shed light on secrets that will rock this Southern town and reveal a danger that threatens them both.

Countess of Scandal by Laurel McKee

Book One in the Daughters of Erin Trilogy

As children, Eliza Blacknall and William Denton ran wild over the fields of southern Ireland and swore they would be friends forever. Then fate took Will away to England, while Eliza stayed behind to become a proper Irish countess.

Years later, Will finally makes his way home -- as an English soldier sent to crush the Irish uprising. When he spies the lovely Eliza, he is captivated by the passionate woman she has become. But Eliza's passions have led her to join the Irish rebel cause, and Will and Eliza now find themselves on opposite sides of a dangerous conflict.

When Ireland explodes in bloody rebellion, Will's regiment is ordered to the front lines, and he is forced to choose between his duty to the English king and his love for Eliza and their Irish homeland.