tweet tweet

I still don't really get Twitter, but I've started using it more. Come follow me if you wish.

Exposure

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Exposure
Zondervan (June 1, 2009)
by
Brandilyn Collins


About the Author:

Brandilyn Collins is an award-winning and best-selling novelist known for her trademark Seatbelt Suspense. These harrowing crime thrillers have earned her the tagline "Don't forget to b r e a t h e . . ." Brandilyn's first book, A Question of Innocence, was a true crime published by Avon in 1995. Its promotion landed her on local and national TV and radio, including the Phil Donahue and Leeza talk shows. Brandilyn is also known for her distinctive book on fiction-writing techniques, Getting Into Character: Seven Secrets a Novelist Can Learn From Actors (John Wiley & Sons). She is now working on her 20th book.

In addition to Exposure, Brandilyn’s other latest release is Always Watching, first in The Rayne Tour series—young adult suspense co-written with her daughter, Amberly. The Rayne Tour series features Shaley O’Connor, daughter of a rock star, who just may have it all—until murder crashes her world.

About the Book:

When your worst fear comes true.

Someone is watching Kaycee Raye. But who will believe her? Everyone knows she’s a little crazy. Kaycee’s popular syndicated newspaper column pokes fun at her own paranoia and multiple fears. The police in her small town are well aware she makes money writing of her experiences. Worse yet, she has no proof of the threats. Pictures of a dead man mysteriously appear in her home—then vanish before police arrive. Multisensory images flood Kaycee’s mind. Where is all this coming from?

Maybe she is going over the edge.

High action and psychological suspense collide in this story of terror, twists, and desperate faith. The startling questions surrounding Kaycee pile high. Her descent to answers may prove more than she can survive.


To read the first chapter, go HERE.

My Review:

This is the first suspense novel I've read by Brandilyn Collins, and I really enjoyed her earlier Bradleyville series. Exposure had a fast pace and kept me turning the pages and racing to the end. One of the little clues dropped somewhere in the middle of the story gave away part of the plot, so I saw the big reveal coming quite a while before the book's conclusion. It was still a good mystery and a great summer read!

on blogging and writing real letters

I've been such a bad blogger lately. I have a bunch of photos to turn into a slideshow, so I'll try to get that up this week. Here's something that might be of interest that I wrote in response to "What are you reading?" on an online writer's group I'm involved in. Hey, instant blog post!

I'm currently leading a book club discussion of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. It's a wonderful epistolary novel, and I'm intrigued by all the historical details and impressed by the depth of characterization that the authors were able to achieve using only a series of letters.

The letters make me regret that I have all but abandoned writing real letters in favor of emails, Facebook messages, and blogging. Not long ago my grandma gave me a stack of letters that I wrote to her while living in Australia on an exchange program for grad school. I'm so glad that I wrote such detailed letters about that time in my life--and that she saved them for me! They're as precious as the photos I took. I'm going to take the time to write some real letters this week!

Scared: A Novel on the Edge of the World

Scared: A Novel on the Edge of the World

by Tom Davis

I previously reviewed Tom Davis's nonfiction book Red Letters: Living a Faith That Bleeds and was impressed by his passion for serving the least of these and the practical ideas he shares for taking action and effecting change. Tom serves as president/CEO of Children's HopeChest, which is dedicated to taking care of orphans and widows in their distress through care points and other efforts in Africa and Russia. In his first novel, Scared, Tom tells a compelling, thought-provoking tale about life in a small village in Swaziland through the eyes of an orphan and the jaded, broken American journalist whose life she changes.

Scared is not an easy book to read, and it realistically shines a spotlight on atrocities that many people would rather not think about: poverty, starvation, AIDS, rape, brutality, and unspeakable suffering. As the publisher's note says, "Some scenes will grip and haunt you, some passages you will want to run away from--but this is real life."

The main character, Stuart Daniels, was inspired by the story of photographer Kevin Carter, who committed suicide soon after winning a Pulitzer for his horrifying photo of a starving child in Sudan. Stuart is haunted by the images of human suffering and brutality that he has photographed and won recognition for. On a last-ditch effort to save his career, he takes an assignment in Africa, where years before he witnessed and survived a massacre by rebel troops in the Congo. He begins to see hope and find a purpose where he least expects it.

Adanna is a young Swazi girl who suddenly finds herself responsible for herself and her younger siblings when their mother dies of an illness that no one dares to name. She is a poet and finds comfort in her gift and her dreams, and she is also a teacher. As a mother of two daughters who aren't much younger than Adanna, I'm unable to think about her without tearing up, especially knowing that she too was inspired by a real person and that there are so many other real, flesh-and-blood girls in the world who have experienced the same suffering as this fictional character.

Tom's style of prose is straightforward and direct, occasionally with more telling than showing, but he does well with his first foray into fiction. He successfully weaves a compelling, heart-breaking story with memorable characters and a powerful message that will stay with you long after the book's conclusion. You can see the promo video for Scared below.

Tom doesn't preach at you, hit you over the head with his message, or try to make you feel guilty. He does inspire you to take action, but he doesn't leave you hanging and feeling hopeless and miserable about the situation. An appendix includes practical ideas for taking action.

I recommend Scared and encourage you to read it for yourself and find out more about Children's HopeChest. I especially challenge you to read Scared if you're afraid it will be too sad or make you uncomfortable. The publisher, David C. Cook, is offering Scared FREE until July 10! Click the image below to sign up to receive a PDF download of this important, potentially life-changing book for you and 3 friends.

Related Resources:

• Tom's books
• Tom's blog
• Children's HopeChest
• 5 for 50
• Silencing the Roar article

electrical storm

We missed the hail and most of the rain, but it was quite a light show to the north.


And since I can't get the song out of my head now...

Spring Reading Thing Wrap-Up

I haven't blogged much lately, but I have been reading a lot! I had 8 books on my Spring Reading Thing list and got off to a great start. Alas, though I did make more progress on my reread of The Screwtape Letters, I have not yet returned to Middle Earth, so I couldn't cross off all the books on my list.

All of the books on my challenge list are good books (including the two I haven't finished yet), though I wasn't quite satisfied with the ending of either The Fountainhead or Brave New World, for opposite reasons (one's happy ending seemed unrealistic and inconsistent with the rest of the book, and the other's tragic ending was depressing and void of hope). I loved The Hunger Games and can't wait for the sequel.

Same Kind of Different As Me was much more moving than I expected, and it's an incredible book. I started telling someone about it and teared up. It really packs an emotional punch and makes you think about the difference your life can make on others, and I know now why I've seen it on so many others' reading lists.


*The Screwtape Letters (CS Lewis)
*The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
*The Return of the King (JRR Tolkien)
*Good News for Those Trying Harder (Alan Kraft)
Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
Coraline (Neil Gaiman)
The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins)
Same Kind of Different As Me (Ron Hall and Denver Moore)

Thanks to Katrina at Callapidder Days for hosting the Spring Reading Thing 2009!

Sisterchicks in Wooden Shoes

Sisterchicks in Wooden Shoes

by Robin Jones Gunn

About the Book:
When a mammogram result comes back abnormal, midlife mama Summer Finley makes a snap decision to relegate fear to the back burner and fulfill a lifelong dream. Summer heads for Holland where she meets up with tulips, wooden shoes, and her best friend, Noelle.

Pen pals since fourth grade, Summer and Noelle have never met face-to-face. Through decades of heart-level correspondence, they have sustained a deep friendship. A week of adventure helps both women trade anxiety for a renewed and deeper trust in God. When Summer confides in Noelle about the abnormal medical report, Noelle finds the freedom to share a long-held heartache, and both women discover they needed each other more than they realized.

Women ages 35 and up, readers of Christian Boomer Lit, and fans of books such as The Yada Yada Prayer Group will enjoy Robin Jones Gunn’s humorous and uplifting style. True-to-life characters and moments of poignancy bring a deeper understanding of the value of life and the gift of true friends. Readers guide and bonus material included.

About the Author:
Robin Jones Gunn is the best-selling and award-winning author of over seventy books, including the Glenbrooke, Christy Miller, Sierra Jensen, Katie Weldon, and Christy and Todd: The College Years teen series. The Sisterchicks series has sold more than 300,000 units, bringing her total sales to more than 3.5 million books worldwide. A Christy Award winner, Robin is a popular speaker, both at home and abroad, and is frequently interviewed on radio and on television.

My Review:
I've read all of the Sisterchicks books, and Sisterchicks in Wooden Shoes is probably my favorite one to date! I enjoy the armchair travel and the books' focus on female friendship. Some might hear the word Sisterchick and mistakenly assume that the books are fluffy and lack depth. Although they're fun and often humorous, Robin has a way of sharing profound spiritual truths in a meaningful way, and her strong female characters are endearing--and sometimes irritating, just like in real life!

When Summer gets a scary phone call from the doctor's office requesting further tests, instead of doing what she knows she should do and scheduling an appointment immediately, she decides there's no time like the present to finally do what she has wanted to do for many years: visit her BFF Noelle, whom she has never met in person. Throughout the spontaneous trip to the Netherlands, Summer essentially puts her fingers in her ears and sings "La, la, la!" whenever thoughts about what awaits her when she returns home enter her mind. Noelle has issues of her own that she doesn't want to acknowledge. Through their sightseeing treks around Holland both solemn (Corrie ten Boom's Hiding Place) and silly (stuck on a runaway boat shaped like a wooden shoe), the duo both learn about trusting God and facing their fears.

It's a lovely book, and I found it quite encouraging and uplifting. I also learned a few things about Holland, and I always enjoy looking at Robin's photos and travel notes that are included at the back of the book. Sisterchicks in Gondolas won a Christy Award in 2007, and Sisterchicks Go Brit! is up for one in 2009. Any of the books would make great summer reads, so give one a try!

I have a copy of Sisterchicks in Wooden Shoes to give away! If you're interested in participating in the drawing, just leave a comment (and some way to contact you if you aren't a blogger) and I'll choose a winner at random this Friday, June 12. Check out my giveaway for Saints in Limbo here.

UPDATE: Congratulations to lucky #7--Susan, who left a comment on my Facebook page.