Where I share my love of books with reviews, features, giveaways and memes. Family and needlepoint are thrown in from time to time.

Friday, March 27, 2009

Yesterday's Embers by Deborah Raney (Book Review)


Title: Yesterday's Embers
Author: Deborah Raney
Publisher: Howard Books/Simon & Schuster
Genre: Christian Fiction
Available: Now
Read for First Wild Card Tour

First sentence(s): "You sure you guys'll be okay?" Doug Devore leaned over the sofa to plant a kiss on his wife's lips. (go here to read the first chapter)

Doug Devore loses his wife Kaye and daughter Rachel, tragically, on Thanksgiving Day. He doesn't know how he is going to raise his remaining five children - ranging in age from Harley at age 2 to Kayeleigh who was 12. He was already working two jobs and Kaye had worked part-time. Together they had just barely covered the bills.

Mickey Valdez is the director at Doug's daycare. He becomes habitually late in picking up the kids and so she offers to bring them home one night. Doug invites her to stay for the take-out he had picked up for dinner. The kids seem thrilled to have her there and Doug is reminded what it is like to have a woman in the house.

Mickey and Doug next meet outside of daycare at a wedding in town. Doug had only gone at the insistence of his daughter Kayeleigh, who wanted to wear the pink dress her mom had made for the Christmas program. A program that she never attended. He hadn't done any socializing since his wife had died 2 1/2 months earlier. He preferred living in his grief-stricken fog - only surfacing for his job and his kids.

Well-meaning townsfolk pushed the two of them together for a dance. This led to them spending most of the evening together dancing and Doug taking Mickey home afterwards. This was all very upsetting to Kayeleigh. She did not want to see her dad laughing and dancing with anyone like he used to with her mom.

After a few weeks Mickey and Doug are seeing each other regularly - but it has only been a few months since Kaye died. As they grow closer, Kayeleigh continues to pull farther away. Is the spark between Doug and Mickey really love? Or is it taking the place of something else?

I enjoyed this story very much. It was very realistic with characters that were full of warmth and feeling. It pulled at my heartstrings when Doug lost his wife and daughter. I struggled with him as he tried to go on with his life and help his kids adjust to their new reality. I felt as anxious as Mickey when they began "courting". Wondering if it was too much of a good thing too soon. I wanted Mickey and Doug to come through everything as a couple - but you must read the book yourself to see what happens!

Friday Fill-Ins 3-27-2009



I asked my 4 year old to help me out with these this morning as he didn't have school today! Here are his answers!


1. "In a hole in the ground there lived a chipmunk."


2. "The computer mouse but that ain't no matter."


3. "After dark the rain began to fall again, and there was thunder and lightning."


4. "Cars came from the hold of the Spanish galleon."


5. "There was a hand in the darkness, and a body."(maybe he is going to like thrillers like his mom!)


6. "Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, so they should wear diapers and use bandages." (wearing diapers cracked me up here!)


7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to dinnertime, tomorrow my plans include taking Lexi back to school (wonder how she is going to feel going to school on Saturday!) and Sunday, I want to play cars!



Go visit Janet at Friday Fill ins and play along!

The Friday 56 3-27-2009


Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.
She followed him, half angry, half amused. 'Look here, I admit I owe you a debt of gratitude for not making trouble the other night, but that doesn't give you the right to force your presence on me. Please go. (From Why Shoot a Butler? by Georgette Heyer p56)

Friday Finds 3-27-2009

The winner of last week's Friday Finds giveaway - Trail of Crumbs by Kim Sunee is DEB from Deb's Desk! Congratulations Deb - I am sending an email your way! She correctly told me that all of the books had Ireland in common.
Now for this week's Friday Finds!

Bad Girls Don't Die by Katie Alender


(found at Books by Their Cover - not available until 4/21/09)





Alexis thought she led a typically dysfunctional high school existence. Dysfunctional like her parents' marriage; her doll-crazy twelve-year-old sister, Kasey; and even her own anti-social, anti-cheerleader attitude.


When a family fight results in some tearful sisterly bonding, Alexis realizes that her life is creeping from dysfunction into danger. Kasey is acting stranger than ever: her blue eyes go green sometimes; she uses old-fashioned language; and she even loses track of chunks of time, claiming to know nothing about her strange behavior. Their old house is changing, too. Doors open and close by themselves; water boils on the unlit stove; and an unplugged air conditioner turns the house cold enough to see their breath in.


Alexis wants to think that it's all in her head, but soon, what she liked to think of as silly parlor tricks are becoming life-threatening--to her, her family, and to her budding relationship with the class president. Alexis knows she's the only person who can stop Kasey -- but what if that green-eyed girl isn't even Kasey anymore?












Godmother: The Secret Cinderella Story by Carolyn Turgeon


(found at Living Read Girl)


From Publishers Weekly: This retelling of Cinderella follows the oft ignored character of the fairy godmother, who may or may not be a mentally ill New Yorker. Lil, as this godmother is known, is now living in New York City, broke and employed at a bookstore, years after being exiled from the kingdom of fairies for betraying her charge. Condemned to live as an old woman, her wings bound to her back as penance, Lil is overcome by longing for what she has lost, slipping in her recollections of her idyllic past into the harsh present. When she meets Veronica, a young woman perpetually dogged with man problems, Lil sees an opportunity to redeem herself. But as the narrative progresses, cracks in Lil's story (and psyche) emerge. Needless to say, readers expecting magical carriages and glass slippers will be surprised by the novel's morose tone, and though the surprise conclusion doesn't quite work, Turgeon's takes on nostalgia and regret are surprisingly clear-eyed given her narrator's unbalance. (Mar.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.






Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston


(found at The Book Zombie)



Since the dawn of time, the Faerie have taken. . . .


For seventeen-year-old actress Kelley Winslow, faeries are just something from childhood stories. Then she meets Sonny Flannery, whose steel-gray eyes mask an equally steely determination to protect her.


Sonny guards the Samhain Gate, which connects the mortal realm with the Faerie's enchanted, dangerous Otherworld. Usually kept shut by order of icy King Auberon, the Gate stands open but once a year.


This year, as the time approaches when the Samhain Gate will swing wide and nightmarish Fae will fight their way into an unsuspecting human world, something different is happening . . . something wondrous and strange. And Kelley's eyes are opening not just to the Faerie that surround her but to the heritage that awaits her.


Now Kelley must navigate deadly Faerie treachery—and her growing feelings for Sonny—in this dazzling page-turner filled with luminous romance.


Wondrous Strange is a richly layered tale of love between faerie and mortal, betrayal between kings and queens, and magic . . . between author and reader.







The September Sisters by Jillian Cantor

(Isn't this a beautiful cover?)


Abigail Reed and her younger sister, Becky, are always at each other's throats. Their mother calls them the September Sisters, because their birthdays are only a day apart, and pretends that they're best friends. But really, they delight in making each other miserable. Then Becky disappears in the middle of the night, and a torn gold chain with a sapphire heart charm is the only clue to the mystery of her kidnapping. Abby struggles to cope with her own feelings of guilt and loss as she tries to keep her family together. When her world is at its bleakest, Abby meets a new neighbor, Tommy, who is dealing with his own loss, and the two of them discover that love can bloom, even when it's surrounded by thorns.


This exquisitely written first novel illustrates life as it truly is—filled with fear and danger, hope and love, comfort and uncertainty.

What great books did you find this week?? Stop over at Should Be Reading and share yours!

*all descriptions this week were from Amazon


First Wild Card Tours - Yesterday's Embers

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!


Today's Wild Card author is:


and the book:


Yesterday’s Embers

Howard Books (March 24, 2009)


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:




Deborah Raney is the author of several novels, including Nest of Sparrows and the RITA Award-winning Beneath a Southern Sky. Her novel A Vow to Cherish was made into the highly acclaimed Worldwide Pictures film of the same name. She lives with her husband and four children in Kansas.

Visit the author's website.

Product Details:

List Price: $13.99
Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Howard Books (March 24, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1416593098
ISBN-13: 978-1416593096

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:



The parade of taillights smoldered crimson through the patchy fog hovering over Old Highway 40. Mickey Valdez tapped the brakes with the toe of her black dress pumps, trying to stay a respectable distance from the car in front of her.

The procession had left the church almost twenty minutes ago, but they were still barely two miles outside Clayburn’s city limits. The line of cars snaked up the hill––if you could call the road’s rolling incline that––and ahead of her, the red glow of brake lights dotted the highway, flickering off and on like so many fireflies. Cresting the rise, Mickey could barely make out the rows of pewter-colored gravestones poking through the mist beyond the wrought-iron gates of the Clayburn Cemetery.

She smoothed the skirt of her black crepe dress and tried to focus her thoughts on maneuvering the car, working not to let them stray to the funeral service she’d come from. But when the first hearse turned onto the cemetery’s gravel drive in front of her, she lost it. Her sobs came like dry heaves, producing no tears, and for once, she was glad to be in the car alone.

The line of cars came almost to a standstill as the second hearse crept through the gates.

The twin black Lincolns pulled to the side of the gravel lane, parking one behind the other near the plots where two fresh graves scarred the prairie. The drivers emerged from the hearses, walked in unison to the rear of their cars, and opened the curtained back doors. Mickey looked away. She couldn’t view those two caskets again.

When it came her turn to drive over the culvert under the high arch of the iron gates, she wanted desperately to keep on driving. To head west and never turn back. But Pete Truesdell stood in her way, directing traffic into the fenced-in graveyard. Mickey almost didn’t recognize Pete. He sported a rumpled navy double-breasted suit instead of his usual coveralls. How he could see through the tears welling in his eyes, Mickey didn’t know.

Her heart broke for the old man. She wondered if he was related to the family somehow. Seemed like everybody in Clayburn was related to at least one other family in town. Everybody but the Valdezes.

Pete waved the car in front of her through the gates and halted her with his other hand.

Maybe if she stayed in the car until the procession left the cemetery. She didn’t want to walk across the uneven sod. Didn’t want to risk the DeVore kids seeing her…risk breaking down in front of them. What would she say? What could anybody say to make what had happened be all right?

She didn’t know much about carbon monoxide poisoning, but she’d heard that Kaye and Rachel had simply drifted off to sleep, never knowing they would wake up in heaven. She wondered if Doug DeVore found any solace in that knowledge. Maybe it was a small comfort that his wife and daughter had left this earth together.

But on Thanksgiving Day? What was God thinking?

She’d never really gotten to know Kaye DeVore that well. They’d exchanged pleasantries whenever Kaye dropped the kids off at the daycare on her way to her job at the high school, but usually Doug was the one who delivered the children and picked them up at night when he got off work at Trevor Ashlock’s print shop in town.

The DeVore kids were usually the last to get picked up, especially during harvest when Doug worked overtime to keep his farm going. But Mickey had never minded staying late. It wasn’t like she had a family of her own waiting for her at home. And she loved those kids.

Especially Rachel. Sweet, angel-faced Rachel, whose eyes always seemed to hold a wisdom beyond her years. Mickey had practically mourned when Rachel started kindergarten and was only at the daycare for an hour or two after school. Now she forced herself to look at the tiny white coffin the pallbearers lifted from the second hearse. She could not make it real that the sunny six-year-old was gone.

Through the gates, she watched Doug climb from a black towncar. One at a time, he helped his children out behind him. Carrying the baby in one arm, he tried to stretch his free arm around the other four kids, as if he could shelter them from what had happened. How he could even stand up under the weight of such tragedy was more than Mickey could imagine. And yet, for one shameful, irrational moment, she envied his grief, and would have traded places with him if it meant she’d known a love worth grieving over, or been entrusted with a child of her own flesh and blood. She shook away the thoughts, disturbed by how long she’d let herself entertain them.

She dreaded facing Doug the next time he brought the kids to the daycare center. Maybe they wouldn’t come back. She’d heard that Kaye’s mother had cancelled her plans to winter in Florida like she usually did. Harriet Thomas would remain in Kansas and help Doug out, at least for a while. Wren Johanssen had been helping with the kids and house, too, when she could take time away from running Wren’s Nest, the little bed-and-breakfast on Main Street. Wren was like a second grandma to the kids. Thank goodness for that. Six kids had to be—

Mickey shuddered and corrected herself. Only five now. That had to be a handful for anyone. The DeVores had gone on vacation in the middle of April last year, and with their kids out for a week, the workload was lighter, but the daycare center had been deathly quiet.

Deathly. Even though she was alone in the car, Mickey cringed at her choice of words.

She started at the tap on the hood of her car and looked up to see Pete motioning her through the gates. She put the car in gear and inched over the bumpy culvert. There was no turning back now. She followed the car in front of her and parked behind it next to the fence bordering the east side of the cemetery.

A tall white tombstone in the distance caught her eye and a startling thought nudged her. The last time she’d been here for a funeral had also been the funeral of a mother and child. Trevor Ashlock’s wife, Amy, and their little boy. It would be five years come summer.

As if conjured by her thoughts, Trevor’s green pickup pulled in beside her. Mickey watched in her side mirror as he parked, then helped his young wife climb out of the passenger side. Meg walked with the gait of an obviously pregnant woman, and Trevor put a hand at the small of her back, guiding her over the uneven sod toward the funeral tent.

Mickey looked away. Seeing Trevor still brought a wave of sadness. Because of his profound loss, yes. But more selfishly, for her own loss. She’d fallen hard for him after Amy’s death—and had entertained hopes that he might feel the same about her. That she might be able to ease his grief. But he was too deep in grief to even notice her.

Then Meg Anders had moved to town and almost before Mickey knew what happened, Trevor was married. He and Meg seemed very much in love, and Mickey didn’t begrudge either of them an ounce of that happiness. But it didn’t mean she was immune to a pang of envy whenever she saw them together.

This day had to be doubly difficult for Trevor. It must be a comfort to Doug having Trevor here––someone who’d walked in his shoes and still somehow managed to get up the next morning––and the next and the next.

Again, she had to wonder what God was thinking. Where was He when these tragedies struck? How could He stand by and let these terrible things happen to good men…the best men she knew, next to her brothers? None of it made sense. And the only One she knew to turn to for answers had stood by and let it all happen.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Thursday Thunks 3-26-2009

Thursday Thunks is a fun meme hosted over at - where else? Thursday Thunks!

1. What is your favorite type of soda (if you drink soda)? This is a tough one - I like more than one! Root beer for root beer floats! Mt. Dew if I need the caffeine. Wild Cherry Pepsi or Dr. Pepper just to drink!

2. Do you believe in astrology? If so, what does your sign say about you? I don't believe in astrology but I am an Aries (yeah...b-day in 5 days!)

3. Who is John Galt? ok - I had to google this one! He is the male hero from Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

4. What is the last thing you do before you go to sleep at night? Snuggle with my honey

5. Who's your Daddy? See question 4

6. Jelly beans or Jelly Bellies? Jelly Bellies!

7. What do you think about yellow car? Why car manufacturer actually made yellow cars? Remind me of school buses!

8. Holding on or Letting go? Letting go

9. What kind of underwear, if any, do you wear? Jockey for women!

10. Who is your daddy and what does he do? since it is daddy here and not "Daddy" - my dad has passed away - his last job was as a Frito Lay truck driver though!

11. Spring - is it here yet?? NO! and I am trying to be patient. . .

12. Does Google Streetview scare you? Wow - I didn't know this existed! It is scary - especially when I see our truck sitting in front of our house and I had no clue! Big Brother IS watching!

13. What is your favorite brand of ice cream? Schwan's

14. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream? Peanut Butter Chocolate

15. Do you ever get tired of your everyday routine? Yes! But then my little 4 year old will tell me he loves me and it makes it all better!

16. What inspires you? Good music, good book, great sermon on Sundays!

17. It’s springtime-do you spend more time outdoors? We spend a lot of time in the backyard - or going for walks to the park.

18. When do you think Bud will let us see the DVD of him and the french twins? Would I want to see this video?

19. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you, and why? At this season of my life I am very content where I am at - would like to retire somewhere warm though!

20. Why do you blog? To keep track of books that I have read and to change up my daily routine!

21. What are electrolytes and why are they good for us? Electrolytes are found in our body and they help to keep everything running as it should!

22. Do you twitter? Why or why not? Just started twittering - I have seen an increase in my RSS feed since - so that is a good reason for me!

23. What did you dream last night? I don't remember. . .

24. What is the strangest thing you've eaten? I am not a big food explorer - my ex-husband ate eggs that had been buried in the desert sun when he was overseas though - YUCK

25. What was the last picture that you took? It was of my blog area for a feature at Scene of the Blog

26. what is your favorite part of spring? Planting new flowers

27. what is one thing that you did this past week that no one knows about? I'd tell ya - but then I'd have to kill ya.

28. What kind of bandages do you typically have in your household? Whatever kind has cartoon characters on them.


I have giveaways ending soon in my sidebar - be sure to check them out!

First Wild Card Tour: Deadly Charm

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!



You never know when I might play a wild card on you!


Go here for my review of this book!


Today's Wild Card author is:







and the book:




Deadly Charm (Amanda Bell Brown Mystery Series, Book 3)

Howard Books (March 24, 2009)




ABOUT THE AUTHOR:








Claudia Mair Burney is the author of numerous novels and the popular Ragamuffin Diva blog. She lives with her husband and their seven children in Michigan.



Visit the author's website and blog.



Product Details:



List Price: $13.99

Paperback: 400 pages

Publisher: Howard Books (March 24, 2009)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 1416551956

ISBN-13: 978-1416551959



AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:






Rocky showed up at my apartment door with an offer that, in his words, I “no coulda refuse.” Or maybe those were Marlon Brando’s words. I couldn’t be sure. My blond, dreadlocked former pastor slash ex-boyfriend locked me into a stare with those big, brown puppy eyes. He’d puffed out his jowls to utter the Godfather’s most famous line, while grazing his cheek with the back of his fingers—an excruciatingly amiss imitation. I’ve seen newborn babies’ smiles more intimidating.



“You look more like a hamster than a mobster, Rock.”



“Hamsters are cool.”



“But less compelling, you must admit.”



Rocky grinned and wagged his finger at me, “Never underestimate the power of a furry little creature.” He twitched his nose and started making hamster noises.



“Amen!” I said.



I thought of my vicious, former pet sugar glider, Amos. Although he’d become my friend and hero, I had to give him away to another nocturnal creature—otherwise, I’d never sleep again. My husband’s best friend, Souldier, had taken the murderous marsupial. Now Amos happily shreds his drapes.



“Come on in, my not-so-furry friend,” I told Rocky, mostly so he would stop making weird rodent sounds.



I moved aside so he could enter my little slice of paradise: shabby chic meets Africa is what Jazz, my husband called it. Rocky loved my funky, eclectically furnished place, too. He just didn’t describe it as aptly as Jazz did.



Who was I kidding? Rocky didn’t do anything as aptly as Jazz did. I had lost them both six weeks ago, and now here was Rocky, surprising me by showing up at my door like unexpected grace.



“Welcome back, Rocky,” I said. I know how lame I sounded, but I wanted him to know I was glad he’d come no matter what the reason.



He muttered a shy, “Thanks.”



We stood in my foyer exchanging reticent glances until I got bold enough to take a long look at him. I’d missed him so. He wore a typical Rockyesque uniform underneath his white down jacket—khaki pants and a long-sleeved Batman T-shirt. A cupid earring dangled in his right ear. Every year about this time he wore it to remind me to come to the Saint Valentine’s Day feast.



Without thinking I blurted out. “I see you and Cupid are still advertising our—” I bit my tongue. There’d be no “our” Saint Valentine’s Day feast this year for prodigal Bell. “Sorry,” I muttered.



“No problem,” he rushed to say, and then an awful silence descended on us like a cold, grey fog.



When I was still a member of his church, aptly named the Rock House, I never missed the event. Rocky would tell stories of the historical Saint Valentine; we’d eat candy conversation hearts, listen to live music, and share abundant amounts of food and laughter. It was Rocky’s way of making sure the lonely hearts wouldn’t spend the evening alone. There with my church family, not only did I get heaps of love, I could give out some from my meager supply.



That and we always had a chocolate fountain.



What was I going to do now?



I tried not to think about the sting of Rocky kicking me out of his church. I didn’t want to think about anything that had happened six weeks ago. Still, I figured whatever brought him to my door had an olive branch attached to it, and whatever he asked, short of sin, I’d be willing to do to reconcile with him.



Rocky hung up his jacket, kicked out of his Birkenstocks, and headed over to my rose-colored velvet sofa and sat. I followed, plopping down beside him.



“So, what’s the offer, Godfather?”



He stared at me. “Did you gain weight?”



Because I know it’s rude to kill your loved ones, I let that one slide and gave him a polite smile, but I did grab a mudcloth throw pillow and cover my expanding waistline.



“So, what’s the offer, Rocky?”



He gushed in a most un-Godfatherly like way. “I want you to go to a meeting with me. It’s only going to be the way-coolest event you’ve been to in forever.”



I cuddled the pillow and eyed him cautiously. He didn’t mean the Valentine’s Day feast. I braced myself. Rocky’s idea of way cool could get scary. “Can you be a little more specific?”



He didn’t answer. Just reached out and touched my hand, rubbing his thumb across my knuckles. “I really missed you.”



Oh, man. That small gesture—him touching the hand nobody held anymore—that tiny movement had the effect of a pebble in a pond, creating ripples of unexpected sadness that circled out of my soul. Lord, have mercy. I didn’t fling myself at him, begging like a rhythm-and-blues singer for him to keep loving me, to not give up on me, but something in me wished I could.



I didn’t want to marry Rocky, or even date him. He had never been the love of my life. In that moment I simply wanted to banish the nearly incarnate loneliness that had been dogging my heels as a solemn, maddening companion, shuffling me through all those days with no best-friend Rocky.



And with no husband Jazz.



I gazed up at him with my own version of puppy eyes. “I missed you too, Rocky.”



We let a bit of silence sit between us on the sofa like a third and very quiet presence. Our heads hung low. Apparently we both still smarted over our mutual pain of separation.



Minutes passed, our hands still clasped together, but Rocky’s merciful presence soothed my dry soul patches like olive oil.



Thank God. Thank God for every kind soul I don’t deserve in my life who loves me anyway.



“Rocky.” I made my voice as soft and small as a baby’s blankie.



He turned to me, his face as open and vulnerable as that blankie’s little owner.



I squeezed his hand. “I’m so sorry I hurt you.”



Those puppy eyes shone with the compassion I knew like the backs of my freckled hands.



“I’m sorry for the things I did, too, babe. For the things I said that night.”



“Don’t call me babe.”



He chuckled. “Some things never change.” Again, those gentle peepers bore into me. “Why didn’t you tell me you married Jazz?”



“At the time I didn’t seem too clear on it myself. Things happened pretty fast, and the next thing I knew, I was a wife.” I paused, the weight of that statement shifting just a bit since Rocky had shown up to help bear my burden. “He’s mad at me.”



“Duh-uh. You were kissing your blond boy toy.” He nudged me with his tattooed arm. “What’s going on with the two of you now?”



“I’ve seen corpses on Carly’s autopsy tables more involved than our marriage.”



I wondered if I’d ever get over what I’d lost with Jazz.



“I can only imagine what his parents think of me. I guess they’d say I’m the nightmare that took his ex Kate’s place.”



He regarded me with the care and concern I’ve seen him lavish on the fortunate souls he counseled as a pastor. Rocky may be only twenty-seven years old, but he’d been a pastor for two years. Two good years. He didn’t have the life experience an older pastor would, but God had given him an extraordinary shepherd’s heart.



“You’re not a nightmare,” he said. “You jumped into a marriage with no spiritual or emotional preparation.”



Like I, the clinician, needed him to tell me that.



I sighed. “Yet another psychologist heal thyself thing.” I looked away from him, guilt gnawing at me. “Maybe Jazz and I just aren’t meant to be, Rocky.”



“Have you talked to him?”



I shrugged. “Just once. He came over for a few minutes on Christmas Eve. I let him know I wanted him in a way I knew he’d understand. And then I waited. He never came back.”



“Why didn’t you go to him?”



“The same reason I didn’t come to you. I wanted to give him some space to feel whatever he felt and then to decide on his own.”



“But, maybe he’s not like me, babe.”



“Ya, think? And don’t call me babe.”



“Maybe he needs you to help him decide. Like, some extra reassurance or something.”



“That’s crazy, Rock.”



“It’s not so crazy, babe.”



I took back every nice thing I’d just thought about him. What did he know? Yes, he pastors a church of more than two-hundred members. He did missions work. He had a shepherd’s heart. He took pastoral counseling classes in seminary, but, honestly! His voice sounded just like Patrick’s on Sponge Bob.



Rocky glared at me. “Babe. . . .”



“Don’t call me babe.”



“Babe! You gotta go to him.”



“But he yells. Sometimes he cusses like a fish wife.”



“What’s a fish wife?”



“I don’t know, but my great-grandmother used to say that and it stuck with me. Maybe only females cuss like fish wives. Maybe he cusses like the fish.” Now I sounded like Patrick!



“Fish don’t cuss.”



“Okay, I know I should have reassured him.”



He sighed. Looked at me with those eyes. Squeezed my hand. “Will you ever let anyone love you?”



“People love me, Rocky. My sister. My secretary. Sasha.”



“I have doubts about Sasha.”



I thought about that and chuckled with him. “You may be right. My mother has done a few things that make me wonder. Now I’m really depressed.”



“I want to see you happy.”



“I want to see you happy, too. Speaking of which, how are you and Elisa?”



He grinned, reddened, looked away.



“What? Did you marry her in six weeks? My goodness!” For the first time, I didn’t feel jealous that someone was interested in Rocky. Well, not much.



“No. I’m not married. I’m . . . .”



“You’re what?”



“She’s really special, but it hasn’t been that long since she left creepy cult dude. I’m not sure I should be involved.”



“How involved are you?”



“I’m involved, babe.”



“You’re in love?”



He wouldn’t say anything, but his goofy grin spoke for him.



“Rocky?”



He nudged me, “Cut it out, babe.”



So, Rocky was really in love. Wow. I always knew it would happen, but I didn’t realize I’d still have the teensiest bit of pain knowing he’d moved on from me for good. I could see a flower of astonishing beauty blossoming between them when I saw them together, even though it nearly killed me at the moment. But God knows Rocky deserved the biggest, juiciest love he could find. He needed to look beyond the non-existent us. And he still calls me babe.



“Just take it slow, Rock. Trust me. The cost of moving too fast is astronomical, even if you are in love.”



I could tell he didn’t feel comfortable talking to me about Elisa. I decided to let their love blossom without my tending, pruning, or pulling up weeds. I got back to the business at hand. “Are you ever going to tell me what your offer is?” I eased into the lush upholstery of my sofa.



Rocky’s face lit up. Honestly, if that guy had a tail to go with those puppy eyes, it’d be thumping my sofa with joy.



“It’s gonna be awesome, ba— I mean, Bell.”



Apparently our little chat about Elisa made him correct himself.



“You think everything is awesome, Rocky.”



“I don’t think everything is awesome.”



“You said my Love Bug is awesome. You said Switchfoot’s new CD is awesome. You said my new zillions braids are awesome, and you said the ice-cream at Cold Stone Creamery is awesome.” Okay, the ice-cream at Cold Stone happened to be awesome for real. Lately I’d craved it like the blind crave sight.



“But, babe . . . ”



There he goes again. Honestly! A holy war couldn’t make that man stop calling me babe.



He went on. “Those things are awesome.”



“God is awesome, Rock. Awesome meaning the subject inspires awe, as in reverence, respect, dread.”



“You reverence your tricked-out VW Beetle,” he said, “And I respect Switchfoot, especially Jon Foreman, and your way-cool, African-goddess hair inspired me to get dreads.”



I stared at him. Comments like these coming from Rocky tended to render me temporarily speechless.



He filled the silence with his proposal. “I want you to go see Ezekiel Thunder with me.”



My eyes widened. Electroshock therapy wouldn’t have given me such a jolt. “Ezekiel Thunder?” I screeched. I jerked up from my slouch. I’d heard the un-right reverend wanted to hit the comeback trail, taking his miracle crusade with him.



Rocky gave me a wicked grin and settled himself smugly into the soft folds of my sofa. He knew I’d left Thunder’s particular brand of Pentecostal fire many years ago and had no desire to go back.



Rocky bobble-head nodded, as if his physical movement would affect a change in my attitude.



“Stop all that nodding!”



“I’m just trying to encourage you.”



I did not feel encouraged.



“It’ll be fun,” he said, blasting me with the full puppy-eyes arsenal. Oh, those eyes. Powerful! Mesmerizing! Like a basket full of cocker spaniel puppies wearing red ribbons. I could feel myself weakening.



“Rocky, that meeting will torture me. It will torture you!”



“No, it won’t. Ezekiel is my friend.”



“Your friend?”



“He led me to Christ.”



“Ezekiel Thunder led you to Christ?”



“I told you I came to Christ at a Bible camp.”



“Yes? And?”



“It was a Sons of Thunder Bible camp. I’m a Thunder Kid!” He beamed with what I hoped wasn’t pride.



“You never told me that!”



Honestly! You think you know somebody! He was my ex-boyfriend for goodness’ sake. We’d talked about marriage. I couldn’t believe I had no idea he was close friends with the infamous Ezekiel Thunder!



“You can be kinda judgmental about guys like Ezekiel.” He went on. “I didn’t mean to upset you or trigger bad memories of your tongues-talking days.”



“Then don’t ask me to go see him.”



“He’s a different man. He and his family want to buy a house in Ann Arbor. He’s living at the Rock House house until one comes through for him. ”



“God forbid!”



“He needs support. People to show up and cheer him on.”



“Cheer him on? We should stop him!” Had Rocky forgotten that Ezekiel Thunder had fallen as hard as many of his televangelist contemporaries in the eighties—and for a tawdry little tryst with a young intern? May it never be!



“How hard would it be for you to sit there and listen? Maybe say a few prayers for him.”



“God bless you as you do that for him.”



“I was there for you, supporting Great Lakes Seminary when they were struggling and going to lose their building. I did it because of how much you love Mason May.”



“Rocky! That’s not even comparable. Mason is a fine theologian training good men and women for powerful, effective ministries. He’s not a snake-oil peddler.”



“It’s not snake oil. It’s miracle prosperity oil.”



I stared at him. He’d stunned me to silence once again. I waited for Rocky to fill the silence with testimonies about the healing properties of miracle prosperity oil. Thankfully, he refrained. But he didn’t look like he’d let me off the hook.



I tried to reason with him. “You shouldn’t ask me to do this. You’re Emergent, Rocky, not a dyed-in-the-wool charismatic.”



“You don’t like post-modern, post-denominational, Emergent folks either.”



“I like them more than Ezekiel Thunders.”



“What’s that thing you say about the Emergent Church?”



“This is not about the Emergent Church. I’d go to an Emergent meeting with you anytime. You name the place: Mars Hill, Ann Arbor Vineyard. How ‘bout Frontline Church? ”



He didn’t budge. “Come on, babe. He’s like a dad to me.”



“A dad?”



“You always say Mason is like a dad to you.”



“But Mason has a PhD. He doesn’t sell ‘miracle prosperity oil’.”



“Ezekiel doesn’t sell it, either. He gives it away for a love offering.”



“A considerable love offering, if I remember! It’s plain olive oil he’s pushing to gullible babes in the faith who don’t know any better. How can I support his money-lusting schemes?”



“Ummm. By going with me?” Hope burgeoned in his voice as if I hadn’t just accused his mentor of being a hustler.



“Did you hear what I said, Rock? Ezekiel Thunder is everything I walked away from.”



“You walked away from a lot more than that, babe. And you’ve been known to hang out with people with worse theology than his. People way more dangerous.”



He had a point.



“Rocky . . . .” I didn’t want to go. Please, God, don’t make me go.



“He’s changed, babe. Give him a chance. For me.”



The eyes again, and a smile with an invisible tail wag.



I grumbled.



He grinned.



I gave him a dramatic sigh. “What time are we leaving?”



“If you’re not busy, and you’re not, we can leave in a few hours. I’ll pick you up at six.”



“How do you know I don’t have plans?”



“Because you have antisocial tendencies.”



“Don’t hold back, Rock. What do you really think about me?”



“Don’t worry,” he said, ignoring my insolence. “You’re gonna fall in love with Ezekiel.”



I rolled my eyes. “Not likely.”



He put his face right in front of mine until we were eye to eye. “You are feeling veeeeeery tired. You’re getting sleepy. You’re going to enjoy yourself at the crusade.”



“No fair,” I said, “Those eyes of yours are potent hypnotizers.”



“You are going to love Ezekiel Thunder.”



“I am going to love Ezekiel Thunder.”



Rocky got out of my face. “You’ve gotta admit, babe. This will be safer than sleuthing.”



No, it won’t, a disembodied voice--also known as the still, small voice of God--informed me.



I tried to ignore it. Maybe this Spirit prompting was speaking figuratively.



Couldn’t ignore it.



What, Lord, am I some kind of trouble magnet?



Don’t answer that, God.



I started rationalizing immediately to take the edge off what I truly hoped was not a prophetic warning. Maybe I could fall in love with the guy and respect him. Maybe he could even heal the egg-sized growth on my lower abdomen that scared me to death each time I ran my index finger across it. Maybe I could even find the keys to unlock the little room inside my heart where all the Ezekiel Thunders I’ve ever known were locked. I’d stored them there to keep me safe from the particular brand of harm only they could inflict.



I could feel my defenses shoot up as if a rocket propelled them.



Fall in love with Ezekiel Thunder?



I wished.



I shouldn’t have wished. My great-grandmother and namesake Amanda Bell Brown use to say, “Be careful what you wish for, baby. You just might get it.”



She ain’t never lied.


Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Deadly Charm by Claudia Mair Burney (Book Review)



Title: Deadly Charm (an amanda bell brown mystery)
Author: Claudia Mair Burney
Publisher: Howard Books/Simon & Schuster
Genre: Christian Fiction
Available: Now

First sentence: Rocky showed up at my apartment door with an offer that, in his words, I "no coulda refuse."

Dr. Amanda Bell Brown, or Bell to her friends, has been pretty lost without her husband Jazz. He had left her the day after they got married when he found her kissing her ex-boyfriend Rocky. Well, actually Rocky had kissed her. He did not know that she had gotten married and she was trying to let him know without causing more hurt.

Rocky was the pastor of the Rock House. Ezekial Thunder and his family were staying with Rocky while Ezekial was trying to jump start his ministry again. He had made a shambles of it a few years back when he had an affair with an intern. Since then his wife had passed away and he had married the intern, Nikki. Together they had a little boy, almost 3, by the name of Zeke or Little Zeekie. Ezekial had other children - all of whom were named some form of Ezekial.

Bell does not really care for Ezekial and Nikki, especially after her "exorcism" of her "interracial dating and adultery" demon at Ezekial's Crusade. It had ended badly with her vomiting right at the feet of Ezekial. This episode made it on CNN when they began covering the Thunders after Little Zeekie accidentally dies while taking a bath at Rocky's. Or was it an accident?

Bell decides that it is up to her to find out. She teams up with her detective husband, Jazz, whom she is still separated from, to try to find out the truth.

I really enjoyed reading this book. Bell was full of quick wit and a sarcastic tongue which brought a smile to my face quite often. I loved the banter between Jazz and Bell. They clearly loved each other but were both very proud and independent. Here is an excerpt of that banter:

I didn't move. "What are you doing?"
"Opening the door for you."
"Why didn't you drive over to where your car is?"
"I'm not ready to leave yet, Bell."
"What if I've had enough of you for one day?"
"Oh, I happen to know you can take more of me than that." He said this with a wicked grin.
"Is your head always in the gutter?"
He leaned toward me, his arm resting on the top of the Love Bug. "Get out of the car, baby."
"No."
"I know you're mad. We can talk inside."
"I don't want to talk to you."
"You asked me to look into this for you, and that is what I did. Will you get out of the car so I can tell you whatI accomplished this evening?"
I took a peek at him. "You were just working?"
"I was."
"You're not attracted to that Cruella De Vil stick figure?"
"Hardly"
"And you don't think I'm too fat?"
"Bell, get out of the car. It's cold out here."
"You were supposed to say something romantic that made me believe you don't think I'm fat."
"Bell, if you don't step out of the Love Bug right now, I'm going to drag you upstairs."
"That fell way short of romantic, not to mention you still haven't said I'm not fat."
He sighed and rake his fingers through his hair. "You're not fat. I think you're stunning. You're so hot that I can hardly resist you, even though I'm still mad at you."
I grinned. "You think I'm hot?"
"Perhaps you should focus on my saying I'm still mad at you."
"You'll get over it. About me being hot. . ."
"You'll be hotter inside your apartment."
"Do you want to ravish me?"
"No. I want to throttle you. Please get out of the car."
I stepped a leg out. "I'm only letting you inside so you can report what happened with your girlfriend Nikki."
He moved back, took my hand, and helped me out of the car. "Fine."
"I don't want you getting fresh just because you're my husband. We're separated."
"You grill me about whether or not I want you, and now you insist that I not flirt with you."
"I have my standards." (pg 135-137)

This goes on all the way through the book. It cracked me up because I could so see arguing like this with my husband. Come back tomorrow for the First Wild Card Tour and read the first chapter!

Waiting on Wednesday: Blind Sight

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:
Blind Sight by Terri Persons

Publisher: Doubleday

Available: May 26, 2009

Description:
Terri Persons takes her third thriller featuring FBI
agent Bernadette St. Clare to a whole new level, as
she brings spine-tingling suspense together with elements
of the supernatural in a murder investigation
that’s as chilling as a Minnesota winter.


The deer hunter braving the icy conditions of the
Minnesota woods gets much more than he bargained for
when he makes the grisly discovery of a young girl’s body. The
condition of the body is shocking: the girl had been pregnant,
but the fetus was removed from her womb and an inverted
pentagram was drawn on her forehead. After the girl is identified
as the daughter of a high-powered senator, the FBI is
called in to find the murderer—and the missing baby.


The case becomes increasingly complex as Bernadette and
Tony Garcia’s personal relationship heats up, and the investigation
is hampered by the many lies that lead them on a circuitous—
and deadly—route to the truth. Through dogged
police work and Bernadette’s unique power of second sight,
they close in on the killers on a frigid night in the snowy
woods, and try to save the tiniest victim of the toughest crime
they’ve ever solved.

And while you are here - don't forget to check out my giveaways in the sidebar!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Award Round-up

I have been blessed with a few awards in the last month and have been very remiss in acknowledging them and passing them on! So now that I finally have a free minute I am going to try to do just that!





I received the Your Blog is Fabulous award from both Tonya at Storytime With Tonya and Sharon at Sharon Loves Books and Cats. You should go check out both of their blogs as they were awarded this Fabulous award also and they truly are!



The rules are to write 5 things that I am addicted to and then pass then on to 5 deserving bloggers -



So, in no particular order - my current addictions:




  1. Cadbury Eggs - I am glad they only sell these a few months out of the year!

  2. ARC's - I love getting these books! They have greatly varied my reading choices!

  3. Twitter - I am just nosy that way!

  4. Popcorn after school with my son - This is our alone time were we get to talk about what happened during the day and usually watch Spongebob!

  5. My Honey - Without this addiction, none of the others would mean as much!


The blogs that I think are deserving of this award are (drumroll please)




  1. Deena at A Peek at My Bookshelf

  2. Melissa at Book Nut

  3. Julia at Booking Mama

  4. Zoe at Zoe's Book Reviews

  5. Wrighty at Wrighty's Reads


So if you haven't visited these blogs you should really go check them out!

I also received the Premio Dardos Award from Alyce at At Home With Books.

This award acknowledges the values that every blogger shows in his or her effort to transmit cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values every day.

The rules to follow are:

1) Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award and his or her blog link.

2) Pass the award to 15 other blogs that are worthy of this acknowledgment. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

Wow - now for 15 other blogs -

  1. Mari at For the Love of Books
  2. Staci at Life in the Thumb
  3. Rebecca at Lost in Books
  4. Mo at Unmainsteam Mom Reads
  5. Kitten at The Bookkitten
  6. Mary at Books, Gardens and Dogs
  7. Kim at My Book Reviews and More
  8. Shannon at Confuzzled Books
  9. Taylor at For the Love of Books
  10. Sandra at Fresh Ink Books
  11. Sheri at Bookopolis
  12. Yan at Books By Their Cover
  13. Amy at Passages to the Past
  14. Mrs. Cuddles at Cuddles on the Couch
  15. Stormi at Mystery, Suspense and God, Oh My!

These blogs also deserve a visit if you haven't been there yet!

(Please check out the giveaways in my sidebar!)




What's on your Nightstand? 3-24-2009


This is my first time doing this post - so it will probably evolve over the next few months as I figure out what it is I actually want to say and keep track of here. This is a cool meme hosted by Jennifer at 5 Minutes for Books.

The books that I have finished this month: (These were all arcs)
  1. This Side of Heaven by Karen Kingsbury - I really like Karen Kingsbury books - especially if I am in need of a good cry. They are always tear jerkers for me. My review is here.
  2. The Kingmaking by Helen Hollick - Great fiction book about a young King Arthur and Gwenhwyfar. My review is here.
  3. The Stones by Eleanor Gustafson - This is a fictionalized account of the life of King David - it does a great job of filling in the details of how it might have been during this time. My review is here.
  4. Marked by Passion by Kate Perry - This was my first paranormal romance and I loved it! This is also the first book of a series and I can't wait for the next one. My review is here.
  5. Diamonds in the Shadow by Caroline B. Cooney - YA book about a refugee family from South Africa. It was a quick read. My review is here.
  6. Scream by Mike Dellosso - Loved this Christian suspense book. It kept my attention throughout and I will be looking for more books by Mr. Dellosso! My review is here.
  7. Katt's in the Cradle by Ginger Kolbaba an Christy Scannell - Cute fiction book about pastor's wives and what they deal with. It was book 3 in a series and I hadn't read the first 2 - would recommend reading them first. My review is here.
  8. 10 Things I Hate About Christianity: Working Through the Frustrations of Faith by Jason T. Berggren - I unfortunately could not get into this book. Wasn't a bad book - just didn't really see some of his points. My review is here.

I am currently reading these books -

  1. Deadly Charm by Claudia Mair Burney - reading for First Wild Card Tour that starts tomorrow.
  2. Yesterday's Embers by Deborah Ramey - reading for First Wild Card Tour that starts Friday.
  3. A Lever Long Enough by Amy Deardon - reading for a past First Wild Card Tour
  4. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - listening to this one in my car. I absolutely love this series on audio!

Coming up:

  1. Lady Anne and the Howl in the Dark by Donna Lea Simpson - reading as an ARC for Sourcebooks.
  2. An Offer You Can't Refuse by Jill Mansell - also reading as an ARC for Sourcebooks.
  3. Rachel's Tears by Beth Nimmo and Darrell Scott - reading as an ARC for Thomas Nelson Books.
  4. The Boneman's Daughter by Ted Dekker - reading as an ebook ARC through Net Galley
  5. The Lost Hours by Karen White - will be hosting this author on April 20th.

I also have the following give aways going on my blog -

  1. Jantsen's Gift - ending March 31 -
  2. Do - Over - ending April 20
  3. Trail of Crumbs - ending Mar 27 - must read my Friday Finds and answer a question.
  4. 10 Things I Hate About You - ending after I receive 10 entries

That's it for me! Can't wait to see what everybody else did this month!

Teaser Tuesday 3-24-2009


TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:
Grab your current read.
Let the book fall open to a random page.
Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
Please avoid spoilers!

Nikki, however, had better watch hers, because if what I was beginning to think about her was true, I'd personally take her down. She'd be in a black wedding gown, all right. But she'd take my husband with her over my dead body. (p255, Deadly Charm by Claudia Mair Burney) - (ok, I know, I gave you 3 sentences - but I just had to include that last one!)

If you like this teaser, be sure to come back Thursday the 26th for the First Wild Card Tour!
Check out my book giveaways - I currently have 4. Trail of Crumbs is ending 3/27 - must read my Friday Finds and give me an answer to my question, Jantsen's Gift is ending 3/31, 10 Things I Hate About Christianity is ending when I get 10 entries, Do-Over is ending 4/20.

Monday, March 23, 2009

BOOK GIVEAWAY: 10 Things I Hate About Christianity: Working Through the Frustrations of Faith by Jason T. Berggren (Book Review)

Title: 10 Things I Hate About Christianity: Working Through the Frustrations of Faith
Author: Jason T. Berggren
Publisher: X-Media LLC
Genre: Christian
Available: Now

First sentence(s): I'm wrong. I usually am.

From the back cover: My dad never let me use the word hate. He said it sounded too violent. But it was often the only accurate description of how I felt. Part of me understood, but another part of me rebelled.

We can all feel hate. Even in the good, productive, and meaningful aspects of life, there's frequently a level of frustration that overwhelms us when we are facedwith trying to achieve certain goals - like getting in shape, making the grade, or straightening out our finances.

This is where I got stuck in my spirituality. Within these pages are the 10 things I've hated about Christianity over the years and how I've worked through my frustrations. I call it the intersection of real life, simple faith, and raw emotion.

Maybe you'll see yourself here too.

Mr. Berggren took 10 things (faith, prayer, the Bible, sin, rules, love, hell, answers, church, Christians) and devotes a chapter to each. He tells you why he struggles with each individual item and what strides he has made to change or overcome those struggles. This sounds like it has been a lifelong process for him as he continues to strive for answers.

I couldn't relate to a lot of what was in this book. In my experience, it is easier for a woman to have faith and trust that there is a God who is in control - but for men it is tougher to let someone else be in control. My faith helps me to not struggle with a lot of the other questions he has in this book. Maybe this makes me too trusting or naive - or as he writes in his dedication - maybe I am just not courageous enough to search out different answers.

I would like to offer this book to another reader -someone who meets the description in his book dedication: This book is dedicated to those who continue to doubt, are curious about spiritual ideas, and are courageous enough to search them out. I consider you friends.
If you feel that this is you - please leave a comment with your email address. I will have a drawing after I get 10 entries. Thanks!

Musing Mondays 3-23-2009


Bookstores is the subject of today's Musing Mondays.
How many bookstores do you frequent?
Do you have a favorite? If so, which one and what makes it so?
I really only frequent the nearest Borders - or there is a Borders Outlet in the mall near here. I do buy books in a lot of places though - Goodwill, Library sales, Target, Sam's, Amazon, etc.
I would love to find an independent book store - so if anyone knows of one in the northern suburbs of Chicago - please let me know!

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Mailbox Monday 3-23-09


Before you look at the books that I got - make some books appear in your mailbox! Check out the memoir giveaways from Hachette either in my right sidebar or here and here.

Here are some books from my mailbox!

Katt's in the Cradle by Ginger Kolbaba and Christy Scannell was received for a First Wild Card Tour. It has already been read and reviewed here.







Deadly Charms by Claudia Mair Burney was also received for a First Wild Card Tour. I have started this book and will be posting my review on Thursday - come back and check it out.

Description: When the ominous Thunders roll into Dr. Amanda Bell Brown's town, the sassy sleuth sees a storm brewing. Disgraced playboy preacher Ezekiel Thunder and his seductive first lady, Nikki, are on the comeback trail, but Bell is less than charmed by the pair. When their toddler, Baby Zeekie, is found dead from an accidental drowning, forensic psychologist Bell suspects foul play in the fatal family, especially after the mama in mourning flirts with Bell's estranged husband, Jazz. Bell is sickened by the woman's behavior and the thought of someone murdering an innocent child -- or is it morning sickness that's plaguing her? Between babies and bodies, she pushes past the limits to discover the deadly truth.






Yesterday's Embers by Deborah Raney was received for a First Wild Card Tour that is happening on Friday. Come back and see my review then!

From book cover: He never thought he'd be widowed. . .with five young children.

She never thought she'd be thirty and still single.

But is falling in need the same thing as falling in love?

On Thanksgiving Day, Douglas DeVore kissed his beloved wife good-bye, unaware that it would be the last time he'd see her-or their precious daughter Rachel. Left with five kids to raise on his own, and already juggling two jobs to make ends meet, Doug wonders how he'll manage moment by moment, much less day after day, without Kaye's love and support.

When Mickey Valdez, a daycare teacher, hears of the tragedy, she offers to lend a helping hand. After all, it isn't like she has a family of her own waiting for her at home. Her brothers are all happily married, but love seems to have passed her by.

Then a spark ignites. . .but will the flame be too hot to handle.





Hunger: A Gone Novel by Michael Grant was received from Harper Collins/Teen through Shelf Awareness.

The food ran out weeks ago. Kids are starving, but no one wants to come up with a solution. And each day, more and more kids are evolving, developing supernatural abilities that set them apart from the kids without powers.

Tension rises, and when an unthinkable tragedy occurs, chaos descends upon the town. It's the normal kids against the mutants. Each kid is out for himself, and even the good ones turn murderous.

But a larger problem looms. The Darkness, a sinister creature that has lived buried deep in the hills, begins calling to some of the teens in the FAYZ. Calling to them, guiding them, manipulating them.

The Darkness has awakened. And it is hungry.







The Lost Hours by Karen White I received after posting about it in a Waiting on Wednesday post. I am going to be hosting the author here around April 20th. So please come back and meet her!

Every woman should have a daughter to tell her stories to. Otherwise, the lessons learned are as useless as spare buttons from a discarded shirt. And all that is left is a fading name and the shape of a nose or the color of hair. The men who write the history books will tell you the stories of battles and conquests. But the women will tell you the stories of people's hearts.

Surviving the tragic accident that killed her parents has always made Piper Mills feel invincible. That is, until fate strikes again and a near-fatal fall from a horse destroys her dreams o becoming an Olympic equestrian. Feeling more fragile than ever, Piper returns to Savannah, and to the home she inherited from her grandparents, to retreat, recover, and reflect on all that she has lost.

It's during her recuperation that Piper discovers a secret room and torn pages from an old scrapbook that allude to a tragedy in her grandmother's past. Determined to untangle the mystery, Piper tracks down her grandmother's childhood friend, a woman named Lily, who clearly knows he truth - and the dark secrets hidden in the house. But Lily has secrets f her own - secrets she believes are better left forgotten. And for Piper to unearth the truth, she will have to be willing to open her heart to new relationships, heal the heartaches of the past, and find the courage to embrace the future.





And the last one I have time for tonight - When Skateboards Will Be Free by Said Sayrafiezadeh. I received this from Random House through Shelf Awareness.

With a profound gift for capturing the absurd in life, and a deadpan wisdom that comes from surviving a surreal childhood in the Socialist Workers Party, Said Sayrafiezadeh has crafted an unsentimental, funny, heartbreaking memoir.

Said's Iranian-born father and American Jewish mother had one thing in common: their unshakable conviction that the workers' revolution was coming. Separated since their son was nine months old, they each pursued a dream of the perfect socialist society. Pinballing with his mother between makeshift Pittsburgh apartments, falling asleep at party meetings, longing for the luxuries he's taught to despise, Said waits for the revolution that never, ever arrives. "Soon," is mother assures him, while his long-absent father quixotically runs as a socialist candidate for president in an Iran about to fall under the ayatollahs. Then comes the hostage crisis. The uproar that follows is the first time Said hears the word "Iran" in school. There he is suddenly forced to confront the combustible stew of hi identity: as an American, an Iranian, a Jew, a socialist. . .and a middle-school kid who loves football and video games.

Poised perfectly between tragedy and farce, here is a story by a brilliant young writer struggling to break away from the powerful mythologies of his upbringing and create a life - and a voice - of his own. Said Sayrafiezadeh's memoir is unforgettable.

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