tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-154927812024-03-07T01:16:19.784-05:00My Life in Words....and BooksChristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.comBlogger95125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-3985384384781694542012-01-23T22:37:00.001-05:002012-01-23T22:38:58.146-05:00This is the old home of Critty Joy...visit me at my new home! Just click on the image below!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.crittyjoy.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i113.photobucket.com/albums/n202/cmaemac/CJsimplesmaller.png" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-65866764661501510312009-07-18T00:08:00.001-04:002009-07-18T00:08:48.177-04:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764205951">Through The Fire</a></span></center><br /><center>Bethany House (July 1, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.shawngradybooks.com/">Shawn Grady</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK8taD2sxwxtxWuElA8P9M-FT-jV8rEcGwGF01L0wdK_eHYRoGrPQE7jZOtUi4DZb8AuUFfb1QvDV4rvWPnlALYjSLQSxFxtA2Zpc01KL4VzyQT__0L9BwgYN58OJhulV90Rwk/s1600-h/shawnphoto2.gif"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 253px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK8taD2sxwxtxWuElA8P9M-FT-jV8rEcGwGF01L0wdK_eHYRoGrPQE7jZOtUi4DZb8AuUFfb1QvDV4rvWPnlALYjSLQSxFxtA2Zpc01KL4VzyQT__0L9BwgYN58OJhulV90Rwk/s400/shawnphoto2.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5359413748473547346" /></a>Shawn Grady signed with Bethany House Publishers in 2008. He was named “Most Promising New Writer” at the 39th Annual Mount Hermon Writers Conference. Through the Fire is his debut novel.<br /><br />Shawn has served for over a decade as a firefighter and paramedic in northern Nevada. From fire engines and ambulances to tillered ladder trucks and helicopters, Shawn’s work environment has always been dynamic. The line of duty has carried him to a variety of locale, from high-rise fires in the city to the burning heavy timber of the eastern Sierras.<br /><br />Shawn attended Point Loma Nazarene University as a Theology undergrad before shifting direction to acquire an Associate of Science degree in Fire Science Technology as well as Paramedic licensure through Truckee Meadows Community College.<br /><br />Shawn currently lives in Reno, Nevada, just outside of Lake Tahoe. He enjoys spending time in the outdoors with his wife, three children and yellow Labrador.<br /><br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNZkPwlu4ecd7MSaItdeEhKaCwJYaI0TP5BYVOPzQs_A_YZ1t8LunADjh9ZG2YahSnswcweKDRia5wZlBBJ4qejAS7-0-luni4VDFdpq1eGyr9ga8Q2ZGSKgHnWOTnnkgJCsWz/s1600-h/throughthefire.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 157px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNZkPwlu4ecd7MSaItdeEhKaCwJYaI0TP5BYVOPzQs_A_YZ1t8LunADjh9ZG2YahSnswcweKDRia5wZlBBJ4qejAS7-0-luni4VDFdpq1eGyr9ga8Q2ZGSKgHnWOTnnkgJCsWz/s400/throughthefire.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5359413987688077010" /></a>Firefighting burns in Aidan O'Neill's blood. The son of a fireman, O'Neill has a sixth sense about fire and often takes dangerous risks. When one act of disobedience nearly gets a rookie killed, O'Neill is suspended. His weeks off are supposed to be a time to reflect but instead he escapes to Mexico, where another rash act of bravery actually kills him. But only for a few minutes. <br /><br />Called back to Reno, he's now haunted by visions of hell and paralyzed in the face of fire. And at the worst time, because an arsonist is targeting Reno. With a growing love interest with one of the investigators complicating everything, Aidan must discover where his trust rests as the fires creep ever closer. <br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764205951">Through The Fire</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/07/through-fire-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-51914398244227748282009-04-29T01:35:00.002-04:002009-04-29T01:36:27.984-04:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1414313128">Nothing But Trouble</a></span></center><br /><center>Tyndale House Publishers (May 1, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.susanmaywarren.com/">Susan May Warren</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggKB-wLnpxte9RtudveXkujnYcxFMVoG_Oo4UTfrXZ8fR3mLzzcglNDAtaBL6KAyZW7lNvG__U31MEWAQ0yYNW96dmlF2qiD-94IWiYsb3cJzdy9OJ-piAiS_1oDZC0IigvcBi/s1600-h/susan+may+warren.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5046457455835861458" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggKB-wLnpxte9RtudveXkujnYcxFMVoG_Oo4UTfrXZ8fR3mLzzcglNDAtaBL6KAyZW7lNvG__U31MEWAQ0yYNW96dmlF2qiD-94IWiYsb3cJzdy9OJ-piAiS_1oDZC0IigvcBi/s320/susan+may+warren.jpg" border="0" /></a>Susan grew up in Wayzata, a suburb of Minneapolis, and became an avid camper from an early age. Her favorite fir-lined spot is the north shore of Minnesota is where she met her husband, honeymooned and dreamed of living. <br /><br />The north woods easily became the foundation for her first series, The Deep Haven series, based on a little tourist town along the shores of Lake Superior. Her first full-length book, Happily Ever After, became a Christy Award Finalist published in 2004 with Tyndale/Heartquest.<br /><br />As an award winning author, Susan returned home in 2004, to her native Minnesota after serving for eight years with her husband and four children as missionaries with SEND International in Far East Russia. She now writes full time from Minnesota's north woods and the beautiful town that she always dreamed of living in.<br /><br />You can sample a chapter of each and every one of Susan's novels, on her website, <a href="http://www.susanmaywarren.com/novels.html">HERE</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWJIbBIBeziMsneuhpoCraSuF6BS876M2yoi_C25MAtkALq9aENScqQcVG-gC7lUM5RmRKlhlzdXj58yqjZPinWY4gCmiPOm2GmIdm4iBrsG-j6qnSmZ0h-vuEGOXKo9XdlnBO/s1600-h/nothingbuttrouble.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 159px; height: 242px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWJIbBIBeziMsneuhpoCraSuF6BS876M2yoi_C25MAtkALq9aENScqQcVG-gC7lUM5RmRKlhlzdXj58yqjZPinWY4gCmiPOm2GmIdm4iBrsG-j6qnSmZ0h-vuEGOXKo9XdlnBO/s320/nothingbuttrouble.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329928048130822786" /></a>PJ Sugar knows three things for sure:<br /><br />1) After traveling the country for ten years hoping to shake free from the trail of disaster that's become her life, she needs a fresh start.<br /><br />2) The last person she wants to see when she heads home for her sister's wedding is Boone-her former flame and the reason she left town.<br /><br />3) Her best friend's husband absolutely did not commit the first murder Kellogg, Minnesota, has seen in more than a decade. <br /><br />What PJ doesn't know is that when she starts digging for evidence, she'll uncover much more than she bargained for-a deadly conspiracy, a knack for investigation, and maybe, just maybe, that fresh start she's been longing for.<br /><br />It's not fair to say that trouble happens every time PJ Sugar is around, but it feels that way when she returns to her home town, looking for a fresh start. Within a week, her former teacher is murdered and her best friend's husband is arrested as the number-one suspect. Although the police detective investigating the murder—who also happens to be PJ's former flame—is convinced it's an open-and-shut case, PJ's not so sure. She begins digging for clues in an effort to clear her friend’s husband and ends up reigniting old passions, uncovering an international conspiracy, and solving a murder along the way. She also discovers that maybe God can use a woman who never seems to get it right<br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1414313128">Nothing But Trouble</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/04/nothing-but-trouble-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-88694489434483677132009-04-24T17:49:00.000-04:002009-04-24T17:50:03.650-04:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764205609">Elisha's Bones</a></span></center><br /><center>(Bethany House March 1, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.donhoesel.com/">Don Hoesel</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVF4pSNr-RHoEjrMPuBtwHhSlT3e_geaVd6Mfhzqrr6JnG3VnvTJ58XSE0-4aCVMIgVKDcuyiuRtDfimGjyy-agd7hlgiTf1etUQdwDBXzBe0nK6sHWD25C8O9KWM988TAWCSX/s1600-h/donhoesel.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 223px; height: 293px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVF4pSNr-RHoEjrMPuBtwHhSlT3e_geaVd6Mfhzqrr6JnG3VnvTJ58XSE0-4aCVMIgVKDcuyiuRtDfimGjyy-agd7hlgiTf1etUQdwDBXzBe0nK6sHWD25C8O9KWM988TAWCSX/s320/donhoesel.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327333886015099442" /></a>Don Hoesel was born and raised in Buffalo, NY but calls Spring Hill, TN home. He is a Web site designer for a Medicare carrier in Nashville, TN. He has a BA in Mass Communication from Taylor University and has published short fiction in Relief Journal. <br /><br />He lives in Spring Hill with his wife and two children. <br /><br />Elisha's Bones is his first novel.<br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioGgXKcaTJAwUaObKHa9pMSZSLmBxRRIR13V6ZAnYMB37j5JxMMyn5hteELT8Vt9hGFEblegrhPtBLGRDsdf2k3Zcknw7DeqLDvfFn11KpdxKGkdKvlFHiszfX7LkP9hFyY4iR/s1600-h/elisha'sbones.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 159px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioGgXKcaTJAwUaObKHa9pMSZSLmBxRRIR13V6ZAnYMB37j5JxMMyn5hteELT8Vt9hGFEblegrhPtBLGRDsdf2k3Zcknw7DeqLDvfFn11KpdxKGkdKvlFHiszfX7LkP9hFyY4iR/s320/elisha'sbones.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327328917977481298" /></a>Every year, professor of antiquities Jack Hawthorne looks forward to the winter break as a time to hide away from his responsibilities. Even if just for a week or two. But this year, his plans are derailed when he's offered almost a blank check from a man chasing a rumor. <br /><br />Billionaire Gordon Reese thinks he knows where the bones of the prophet Elisha are--bones that in the Old Testament brought the dead back to life. The bones of the prophet once raised the dead to life... but they vanished from history in a whisper.<br /><br />Bankrolled by a dying man of unlimited means, Hawthorne's hunt spans the globe and leads him into a deadly conspiracy older than the church itself. A born skeptic, Jack doesn't think much of the assignment but he could use the money, so he takes the first step on a chase for the legendary bones that will take him to the very ends of the earth. <br /><br />But he's not alone. Joined with a fiery colleague, Esperanza Habilla, they soon discover clues to a shadowy organization whose long-held secrets have been protected . . . at all costs. And he soon discovers those sworn to keep the secret of the bones will do anything to protect them. As their lives are threatened again and again, the real race is to uncover the truth before those chasing them hunt them down. <br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764205609">Elisha's Bones</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/04/elishas-bones-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-7473610185799361072009-04-21T01:07:00.002-04:002009-04-21T01:08:06.197-04:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/160260150X">Reluctant Cowgirl</a></span></center><br /><center>Barbour Publishing (April 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.christinelynxwiler.com/">Christine Lynxwiler</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBS19Lp1ztCix-8rBtD6LsXm3rkR2TzMItmCnHhXq0jfM5M9UslmkT0CqtYZ3JUlNKnuKX_x9nJ6_wuLqC8LEvH89M6_GCjdXPpp7l0nUfrYhxElaefkpAkfTtx4xFJ1_tKFf-/s1600-h/christineNEW.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 116px; height: 145px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBS19Lp1ztCix-8rBtD6LsXm3rkR2TzMItmCnHhXq0jfM5M9UslmkT0CqtYZ3JUlNKnuKX_x9nJ6_wuLqC8LEvH89M6_GCjdXPpp7l0nUfrYhxElaefkpAkfTtx4xFJ1_tKFf-/s320/christineNEW.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326581449549186898" /></a><br />Chrisitine lives with her husband and two precious daughters in the foothills of the beautiful Ozark Mountains in her home state of Arkansas. Her greatest earthly joy is her family and, aside from doing God’s will, spending time with them is her top priority.<br /><br />She recently took a break from writing romance to pen a Christmas story with a twist. Her Mom Lit novella, <i>My True Love Gave to Me</i>, is part of a 2 in 1 anthology from Barbour entitled <i>All Jingled Out</i>. It’s also included in <i>Simply Christmas</i>, a 4 in 1 Barbour anthology. One of my holiday highlights was seeing Simply Christmas at Sam’s Club a few weeks before Christmas.<br /><br />She has written two other novellas, both romance, which are included in Barbour anthologies, <i>City Dreams</i>, and <i>Prairie County Fair</i> and a serial for the Heartsong Presents book club newsletter – <i>The Carousel Horse</i>. The Carousel Horse can be read in its entirety on the <a href="http://www.heartsongpresents.com/">Heartsong website</a>, and you can read excerpts from all of her other books on her website, <a href="http://www.christinelynxwiler.com/books/main.html">HERE</a><br /><br />In 2003, Christine was honored by being voted #2 Favorite New Author by the Heartsong Presents Book Club members!<br /><br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWuaOlVMWEJhK_7ynXnpkfximTpGSNMDQ29bkhkcJH29zo7EQzZ6nJjajmgPKFIt2KjdQ4Tv-fEjCqG35nVLuVzutFDopRYijq_iGD-sR1_U116DenjT5FdMYyng03bv7Vhyphenhyphenkz/s1600-h/reluctantcowgirl.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 159px; height: 244px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWuaOlVMWEJhK_7ynXnpkfximTpGSNMDQ29bkhkcJH29zo7EQzZ6nJjajmgPKFIt2KjdQ4Tv-fEjCqG35nVLuVzutFDopRYijq_iGD-sR1_U116DenjT5FdMYyng03bv7Vhyphenhyphenkz/s320/reluctantcowgirl.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326576599019363826" /></a>Actress Crytal McCord gave up the closeness of her big family in order to make a name for herself on the New York City stage. But when life in the Big Apple turns sour, she follows a country road back to her parents Arkansas ranch.<br /><br />The last thing she expects to find in cowboy country is a new leading man. Still, she can't help but imagine handsome rancher Jeremy Buchanan in the role. <br /><br />Unfortunately, Jeremy's been burned by Crystal's type before. Or has he? Every time he thinks he knows her, the multi-faceted woman surprises him. Will the reluctant pair allow their hearts to guide them, or will their common stubborn pride keep them miles apart?<br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/160260150X">Reluctant Cowgirl</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/04/reluctant-cowgirl-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-91880002362723053182009-04-18T01:52:00.000-04:002009-04-18T01:52:00.828-04:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1599951959">Boneman's Daughters</a></span></center><br /><center>Center Street (April 14, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.teddekker.com/">Ted Dekker</a></span></center><br /></span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdVkOHeWmBB_vFG66XIxlbDgch5qRYZBCmZewJIsws_VOtYvGUSmBF_48hRLB0v3ysR9hBJF-w_1CnRrwe6y4wdbheBMYMEHu1-1dJMjQbqeS5Y4VCoNIW3rfXYCRGaNwhTcw1/s1600-h/ted_dekker.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290161788619072994" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 139px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdVkOHeWmBB_vFG66XIxlbDgch5qRYZBCmZewJIsws_VOtYvGUSmBF_48hRLB0v3ysR9hBJF-w_1CnRrwe6y4wdbheBMYMEHu1-1dJMjQbqeS5Y4VCoNIW3rfXYCRGaNwhTcw1/s200/ted_dekker.jpg" border="0" /></a>Ted is the son of missionaries John and Helen Dekker, whose incredible story of life among headhunters in Indonesia has been told in several books. Surrounded by the vivid colors of the jungle and a myriad of cultures, each steeped in their own interpretation of life and faith, Dekker received a first-class education on human nature and behavior. This, he believes, is the foundation of his writing.<br /><br />After graduating from a multi-cultural high school, he took up permanent residence in the United States to study Religion and Philosophy. After earning his Bachelor's Degree, Dekker entered the corporate world in management for a large healthcare company in California. Dekker was quickly recognized as a talent in the field of marketing and was soon promoted to Director of Marketing. This experience gave him a background which enabled him to eventually form his own company and steadily climb the corporate ladder.<br /><br />Since 1997, Dekker has written full-time. He states that each time he writes, he finds his understanding of life and love just a little clearer and his expression of that understanding a little more vivid. Dekker's body of work encompassing seven mysteries, three thrillers and ten fantasies includes Heaven's Wager, When Heaven Weeps, Thunder of Heaven, Blessed Child, A Man Called Blessed, Blink, Thr3e, The Circle Trilogy (Black, Red, White), Obsessed, Renegade, and Chaos.<br /><br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmcZQUu8g3szILQJ1OZKeoyGKQ86zaFxM7i84ETVgNBWJUddwgfPHDAsHKyNP_IU0B4XznNhyphenhyphennzBVFaClJmhfDrBJnL1ufi63wFKsElYZIgAZ7Vnf5WU1v-TiDMhNWZPJYA6Am/s1600-h/boneman'sdaughter.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5325473157425048162" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 159px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 238px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmcZQUu8g3szILQJ1OZKeoyGKQ86zaFxM7i84ETVgNBWJUddwgfPHDAsHKyNP_IU0B4XznNhyphenhyphennzBVFaClJmhfDrBJnL1ufi63wFKsElYZIgAZ7Vnf5WU1v-TiDMhNWZPJYA6Am/s320/boneman'sdaughter.jpg" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:#003300;"><i>Would you kill an innocent man to save your daughter?</i></span></span><br /><br />They call him BoneMan, a serial killer who’s abducted six young women. He’s the perfect father looking for the perfect daughter, and when his victims fail to meet his lofty expectations, he kills them by breaking their bones and leaving them to die.<br /><br />Intelligence officer Ryan Evans, on the other hand, has lost all hope of ever being the perfect father. His daughter and wife have written him out of their lives.<br /><br />Everything changes when BoneMan takes Ryan’s estranged daughter, Bethany, as his seventh victim. Ryan goes after BoneMan on his own.<br /><br />But the FBI sees it differently. New evidence points to the suspicion that Ryan is BoneMan. Now the hunter is the hunted, and in the end, only one father will stand.<br /><br /><br />If your an avid Dekker fan, and would like wallpaper and counters for your blog, go <a href="http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/features/dekker/wallpaper.html">HERE</a>.<br /><br />You can listen to an audio clip <a href="http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/_swf/hbg_audioplayer.swf?mediaPath=/_swf/audio/adults/BoneMansDaughters_WebClip.mp3&imgPath=&titleVar=Listen%20to%20an%20Excerpt&">HERE</a><br /><br />Watch the VIDEO:<br /><br /><object height="295" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ENXcws4_jtI&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ENXcws4_jtI&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1599951959">Boneman's Daughters</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/04/bonemans-daughters-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-89552565190066401262009-04-16T23:52:00.001-04:002009-04-16T23:52:22.613-04:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764205714">The Secret</a></span></center><br /><center>(Bethany House May 1, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.beverlylewis.com/">Beverly Lewis</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij5PI3ZOer4mqHfj6Q_jR7EgmsXXFvyJNUxnv5e1aTJ6khYAG5tdNnuYSkv4bv5xiUWPwEi18F49Fqepz6QZmSp63w2lH6w0pwYguZ5QOqz1qSb60hd8BTCP2xHmj_ZE4zALwX/s1600-h/bev-homepage.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 98px; height: 133px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij5PI3ZOer4mqHfj6Q_jR7EgmsXXFvyJNUxnv5e1aTJ6khYAG5tdNnuYSkv4bv5xiUWPwEi18F49Fqepz6QZmSp63w2lH6w0pwYguZ5QOqz1qSb60hd8BTCP2xHmj_ZE4zALwX/s320/bev-homepage.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324735931676389250" /></a>Not until her own children were well into middle school did Bev seek to publish her work, first in magazines such as <i>Highlights for Children, Dolphin Log</i>, and <i>Guideposts for Kids</i>. Her first book followed in 1993—<i>Mountain Bikes</i> and <i>Garbanzo Beans</i>—presently retitled <i>Big Bad Beans</i> (book #22 in the popular CUL-DE-SAC KIDS series of chapter books—see list of Bev's children's books). <br><br />Beverly's first venture into adult fiction is the best-selling trilogy, THE HERITAGE OF LANCASTER COUNTY, including <i>The Shunning</i>, a suspenseful saga of Katie Lapp, a young Amish woman drawn to the modern world by secrets from her past. The book is loosely based on the author's maternal grandmother, Ada Ranck Buchwalter, who left her Old Order Mennonite upbringing to marry a Bible College student. One Amish-country newspaper claimed Beverly's work to be "a primer on Lancaster County folklore" and offers "an insider's view of Amish life." <br><br />Booksellers across the country, and around the world, have spread the word of Bev's tender tales of Plain country life. A clerk in a Virginia bookstore wrote, "Beverly's books have a compelling freshness and spark. You just don't run across writing like that every day. I hope she'll keep writing stories about the Plain people for a long, long time." <br><br />A member of the National League of American Pen Women, as well as a Distinguished Alumnus of Evangel University, Lewis has written over 80 books for children, youth, and adults, many of them award-winning. She and her husband, David, make their home in Colorado, where they enjoy hiking, biking, and playing with their three grandchildren. They are also avid musicians and fiction "book worms." <br><br><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTqDkQTS8Ma9wRgj8mM9PZHhpUbYNlO3H4APGuZPBn2CP-MNTTDCDRysR0NPRWEJak6p8YyrEQ2LVj6nzNRBI36Yaw_GAP7yoMrJL6lW_GDFcbSKH_hEkWH6ynLpN4zPM0kMgJ/s1600-h/the+secret.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 159px; height: 253px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTqDkQTS8Ma9wRgj8mM9PZHhpUbYNlO3H4APGuZPBn2CP-MNTTDCDRysR0NPRWEJak6p8YyrEQ2LVj6nzNRBI36Yaw_GAP7yoMrJL6lW_GDFcbSKH_hEkWH6ynLpN4zPM0kMgJ/s320/the+secret.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324735095644457858" /></a>In the seemingly ordinary Amish home of Grace Byler, secrets abound. Why does her mother weep in the night? Why does her father refuse to admit something is dreadfully wrong? Then, in one startling moment, everything Grace assumed she knew is shattered. <br /><br />Her mother's disappearance leaves Grace reeling and unable to keep her betrothal promise to her long-time beau. Left to pick up the pieces of her life, Grace questions all she has been taught about love, family, and commitment. <br /><br />Heather Nelson is an English grad student, stunned by a doctor's diagnosis. Surely fate would not allow her father to lose his only daughter after the death of his wife a few years before. In denial and telling no one she is terminally ill, Heather travels to Lancaster County-- the last place she and her mother had visited together. <br /><br />Will Heather find healing for body and spirit? As the lives of four wounded souls begin to weave together like an Amish patchwork quilt, they each discover missing pieces of their life puzzles--and glimpse the merciful and loving hand of God. <br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764205714">The Secret</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/04/secret-prologue-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-16093930365345996832009-04-12T01:32:00.001-04:002009-04-12T01:32:41.094-04:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1602602069">Chasing Charity</a></span></center><br /><center>Barbour Publishing (April 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.marciagruver.com/">Marcia Gruver</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjclFzVwyFetm6cYAlYVw5stjtFSl0HThwIyOpps-HeJrRXK1OLjXClo0Hqm_A1JdnYh1_nSsVIeg6F7T_GWNGNdtfsPeDgbOXQyTwOwS0gLEEJRVjYUBHhvxEdbma_7X9VIIcG/s1600-h/marcia.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 175px; height: 148px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjclFzVwyFetm6cYAlYVw5stjtFSl0HThwIyOpps-HeJrRXK1OLjXClo0Hqm_A1JdnYh1_nSsVIeg6F7T_GWNGNdtfsPeDgbOXQyTwOwS0gLEEJRVjYUBHhvxEdbma_7X9VIIcG/s320/marcia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322139263583499650" /></a>Marcia Gruver is a full time writer who hails from Southeast Texas. Inordinately enamored by the past, Marcia delights in writing historical fiction. Her deep south-central roots lend a Southern-comfortable style and a touch of humor to her writing. <br /><br />Awarded a three book contract by Barbour Publishing for full-length historical fiction, Marcia is busy these days pounding on the keyboard and watching the deadline clock. Diamond Duo, the first installment in the trilogy entitled Texas Fortunes, is scheduled for release in October 2008.<br /><br />Marcia won third place in the 2007 ACFW Genesis contest and third in the 2004 ACFW Noble Theme contest. Another entry in 2004 finished in the top ten. She placed second in the 2002 Colorado Christian Writer’s contest for new authors, securing a spot in an upcoming compilation book. “I Will Never Leave Thee,” in For Better, For Worse—Devotional Thoughts for Married Couples, was released by Christian Publications in January 2004. <br /><br />She’s a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Fellowship of Christian Writers, and The Writers View—and a longstanding member of ACFW Crit3 and Seared Hearts, her brilliant and insightful critique groups. <br /><br />Lifelong Texans, Marcia and her husband, Lee, have one daughter and four sons. Collectively, this motley crew has graced them with ten grandchildren and one great-granddaughter—so far. <br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb70xpiwMdFkkZR__3wrEx2UO-XVupiSG7TzuqaWrP1lWzgeI5Piq6XzVgybqSW0aZCQQKm0bRvQQUuxFPHxKa6veNTfJnVM6HfnZ7aBwg5JfWYp-pvPRC7LnAmcmKzfKEo8sq/s1600-h/chasingcharity.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 159px; height: 242px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb70xpiwMdFkkZR__3wrEx2UO-XVupiSG7TzuqaWrP1lWzgeI5Piq6XzVgybqSW0aZCQQKm0bRvQQUuxFPHxKa6veNTfJnVM6HfnZ7aBwg5JfWYp-pvPRC7LnAmcmKzfKEo8sq/s320/chasingcharity.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322161815832538978" /></a><br />When, in full view of family and friends, Charity Bloom's fiance leaves her stranded at the altar and takes off with her best friend, Charity is humiliated. How will this raven-haired beauty ever recover from losing both her betrothed and best friend on what was supposed to be the happiest day of her life?<br /><br />When tall, handsome roughneck Buddy Pierce finds oil on Charity's mama's land, he hopes to free the Blooms from their poverty-stricken state. But will Buddy find the real treasure lies above ground-in Charity herself? <br /><br />Ruing the day he left his fiancee for Emily Dane, Daniel Clark is determined to recapture Charity's affection. But can he remove the three things that stand in his way-a manipulative mama, a spurned lover, and the stranger at his ex-fiancee's side?<br /><br />When Daniel re-stakes his claim on Charity's heart, tongues wag and minds speculate amid schemes and scandals in Humble, Texas. Whom will she choose-the handsome roughneck or the deceitful rouge?<br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1602602069">Chasing Charity</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/04/chasing-charity-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-27149636235291361432009-03-25T11:34:00.000-04:002009-03-25T11:34:00.185-04:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0310276985">Turning The Paige</a></span></center><br /><center>Zondervan (March 1, 2009) </center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.laurajensenwalker.com/">Laura Jensen Walker</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-xF6-et0pXIEMK9bigYf1AJELwyOkPOM5HX8zdGdMvt0siwwRCDUs0tvbqrcYlR-J8jtB224YKeYpkIrOELhGJeLexUsILGd6Rekqj2WORF6r6bpySZboDpvKaInXuzWYzeo/s1600-h/lauraheaderimage2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 196px; height: 260px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-xF6-et0pXIEMK9bigYf1AJELwyOkPOM5HX8zdGdMvt0siwwRCDUs0tvbqrcYlR-J8jtB224YKeYpkIrOELhGJeLexUsILGd6Rekqj2WORF6r6bpySZboDpvKaInXuzWYzeo/s320/lauraheaderimage2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316954691111561154" /></a>Laura Jensen Walker is an award-winning writer, popular speaker, and breast-cancer survivor who loves to touch readers and audiences with the healing power of laughter.<br /><br />Born in Racine, Wisconsin (home of Western Printing and Johnson’s Wax—maker of your favorite floor care products) Laura moved to Phoenix, Arizona when she was in high school. But not being a fan of blazing heat and knowing that Uncle Sam was looking for a few good women, she enlisted in the United States Air Force shortly after graduation and spent the next five years flying a typewriter through Europe.<br /><br />By the time she was 23, Laura had climbed the Eiffel Tower, trod the steps of the Parthenon, skied (okay, snowplowed) in the Alps, rode in a gondola in Venice, and wept at the ovens of Dachau. She’d also learned how to fold her underwear into equal thirds, make a proper cup of English tea, and repel the amorous advances of a blind date by donning combat gear and a gas mask.<br /><br />Laura is a former newspaper reporter and columnist with a degree in journalism who has written hundreds of articles on many subjects ranging from emu ranching and pigeon racing to goat-roping and cemetery board meetings. However, realizing that livestock and local government weren’t her passion, she switched to writing humor, which she calls a “total God-thing.” <br /><br />Her lifelong dream of writing fiction came true in Spring 2005 with the release of her first chick lit novel,<em> Dreaming in Black & White </em>which won the Contemporary Fiction Book of the Year from American Christian Fiction Writers. Her sophomore novel, <em>Dreaming in Technicolor </em>was published in Fall 2005.<br /><br />Laura’s third novel, <em>Reconstructing Natalie</em>, chosen as the Women of Faith Novel of the Year for 2006, is the funny and poignant story of a young, single woman who gets breast cancer and how her life is reconstructed as a result. This book was born out of Laura’s cancer speaking engagements where she started meeting younger and younger women stricken with this disease—some whose husbands had left them, and others who wondered what breast cancer would do to their dating life. She wanted to write a novel that would give voice to those women. Something real. And honest. And funny. <br /><br />Because although cancer isn’t funny, humor is healing.<br /><br />A popular speaker and teacher at writing conferences, Laura has also been a guest on hundreds of radio and TV shows around the country including the ABC Weekend News, The 700 Club, and The Jay Thomas Morning Show.<br /><br />Another book in this series is <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0310276969">Daring Chloe</a> <br /><br />She lives in Northern California with her Renaissance-man husband Michael, and Gracie, their piano playing dog<br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzJaiEozDI_MxHBZKL2WIJUH1Evjb0_eyuzWNbcVF8oMc4fsfHYkr2lllQXD5CYFy_BUiNYSCB0biPLhBGp5yRcR2_7tX02URxayXi2dQvlZsXFnKpu402EqCqFBdlC2s6XohY/s1600-h/turningthepaige.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzJaiEozDI_MxHBZKL2WIJUH1Evjb0_eyuzWNbcVF8oMc4fsfHYkr2lllQXD5CYFy_BUiNYSCB0biPLhBGp5yRcR2_7tX02URxayXi2dQvlZsXFnKpu402EqCqFBdlC2s6XohY/s320/turningthepaige.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316951768155361954" /></a>At 35, Paige Kelley is feeling very "in between." She's still working her temp job after two years, still not dating three years after her divorce, and still melting at every chubby-cheeked toddler she sees while her biological clock ticks ever louder. Paige even moves back home to help her ailing, high-maintenance mother.It's not exactly the life she'd dreamed of! <br /><br />When her Getaway Girls book club members urge Paige to break free and get on with her life, she's afraid. How will her mother react? How can Paige honor her widowed mother and still pursue her own life? The answers come from a surprising source. <br />A trip to Scotland and a potential new love interest help launch an exciting new chapter in her life, and lead Paige to discover that God's plan for her promises to be more than she ever imagined. <br /><br />This latest release in the Getaway Girls collection delivers a smart, funny, and warm account of one woman's challenge to reconcile who she is - a dutiful Christian daughter - with the woman she longs to be.<br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0310276985">Turning The Paige</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/03/turning-paige-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-84338497057721234282009-03-21T12:12:00.001-04:002009-03-21T12:13:53.963-04:00Still reading this one and it is GOOD! (sorry this is late...blogger and I have been having some issues!)<br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0800733207">Michal</a></span></center><br /><center>Revell (March 1, 2009) </center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.jilleileensmith.com/">Jill Eileen Smith</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixwAwGKv_nOJ2y5z1WAL8V0xGFKCOCB9vbvPIyVJ7B4LWydDzUjrrGv7-7SQ-fP9qIAAD2vOFZAwpPPl6hAvaNpofHopStcJfLYU_Yg409B3avPt4LzRyEfCw0qCKk8KPf3_YK/s1600-h/jill01.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 252px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixwAwGKv_nOJ2y5z1WAL8V0xGFKCOCB9vbvPIyVJ7B4LWydDzUjrrGv7-7SQ-fP9qIAAD2vOFZAwpPPl6hAvaNpofHopStcJfLYU_Yg409B3avPt4LzRyEfCw0qCKk8KPf3_YK/s320/jill01.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314339118692588290" /></a>Jill Eileen Smith is the author of several articles, poems, and stories, and her unpublished novels have placed in five writing contests in the past five years. A children’s story, which she wrote for her church led her youngest son to faith in Christ several years ago; much like a gospel tract led her to the Lord at a similar age. <br /><br />That story, “Seeking Treasureland,” is now available. Jill is a member of several online writing groups and helps promote fellow authors’ works through monthly interviews on the "Spotlight" page of her website. She, along with her husband and children, are active members in their local church. A stay-at-home mom, she homeschooled the couple’s three sons for twelve years through high school, seeing them go on to higher education. <br /><br />In her spare time, Jill teaches piano, reads, does picture scrap-booking, and enjoys trying out new recipes, especially those that include dark chocolate. Jill and her family make their home in Southeastern Lower Michigan.<br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibZt2KuvEClZnQ2rJpHF0WGOV6FXMTMHNKcXpC8ShLG3C1dZSs9T_DgUCbR7vgvqodueQXNUeC3R6I82ppSbF1Fhf2XjjrgGlxRZ26OAaV2Xa9SA0FSy6BJAdc75BJunncFhrO/s1600-h/michal.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 155px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibZt2KuvEClZnQ2rJpHF0WGOV6FXMTMHNKcXpC8ShLG3C1dZSs9T_DgUCbR7vgvqodueQXNUeC3R6I82ppSbF1Fhf2XjjrgGlxRZ26OAaV2Xa9SA0FSy6BJAdc75BJunncFhrO/s320/michal.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314335523412850914" /></a><strong>Can their epic search for true love survive a father's fury? </strong><br />The daughter of King Saul, Michal lives a life of privilege--but one that is haunted by her father's unpredictable moods and competition from her beautiful older sister. <br /><br />As a girl, Michal quickly falls for the handsome young harpist David. But soon after their romance begins, David must flee for his life, leaving Michal at her father's mercy in the prison that is King Saul's palace. <br /><br /><strong>Will Michal ever be reunited with David? Or is she doomed to remain separated from him forever?</strong> <br /><br />Against the backdrop of opulent palace life, raging war, and daring desert escapes, Jill Eileen Smith takes you on an emotional journey as Michal deals with love, loss, and personal transformation as the first wife of King David. Jill Eileen Smith has more than twenty years of writing experience, and her writing has gathered acclaim in several contests. Her research into the lives of David's wives has taken her from the Bible to Israel, and she particularly enjoys learning how women lived in Old Testament times.<br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0800733207">Michal</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/03/michal-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-77266291805439827912009-03-11T01:03:00.001-04:002009-03-11T01:03:22.861-04:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0800733096">Journey To The Well</a></span></center><br /><center>Revell (March 1, 2009) </center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.dianawallistaylor.com">Diana Wallis Taylor</a></span></center><p><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_cHDuSpk1rhf2K5_fQROtv2sXtxXhLcgJe6oFBZVmT5uXb6g-_M_Y-74JKzcotxjOGVDLPbrVnKKUFt-Pwi7qPDzxal3ZneY-0GWUBoP5Sw-Wvp9IAeP5ASyq7xAva4RFVhT5/s1600-h/dwt6.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 174px; height: 219px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_cHDuSpk1rhf2K5_fQROtv2sXtxXhLcgJe6oFBZVmT5uXb6g-_M_Y-74JKzcotxjOGVDLPbrVnKKUFt-Pwi7qPDzxal3ZneY-0GWUBoP5Sw-Wvp9IAeP5ASyq7xAva4RFVhT5/s320/dwt6.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311754565767890866" /></a>Diana Wallis Taylor, San Diego resident, is an award-winning Christian author and speaker who shares her personal testimony to women’s groups. The Lord gave Diana a desire to write a book about the woman of Samaria who encountered Jesus at Jacob’s Well. It was at the edge of the well where the woman of Samaria found the living water of Jesus.<br /><br />A native Californian, Diana Wallis Taylor graduated from San Diego State University. She has had many occupations; elementary and junior high school teacher, bookshop owner, and conference director for a Christian college. A poet since the age of 12, she published a book of poems, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1414107749">Wings Of The Wind</a>, in 1994, now republished with watercolor illustrations in 2006. She has received awards in songwriting and poetry and her writing contributions appear in various books and magazines. The author speaks on the woman at the well in conjunction with her own testimony. She also speaks on <em>A Walk in the Darkness</em>, on her family involvement in the occult and how it affected her life.<br /><br />Diana lives with her husband Frank in San Diego, California and between them they have six grown children and ten grandchildren. In addition to her speaking and writing, she serves on the board of the San Diego Christian Writer’s Guild and is active in Christian Women’s Fellowship.<br /><br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXafOhKd1UukX4g9ML1IXG5A1DvTVRcdgu2CR3WZ2bqoqF6l2iZeWwal2zq748u5E-jjejRojmgQXBKeOaBMjWKJ8wiG_kkJhIEuHrXJpCTiEY979w4FPfZVnnVjY2FsbHIXvS/s1600-h/journeytothewell.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXafOhKd1UukX4g9ML1IXG5A1DvTVRcdgu2CR3WZ2bqoqF6l2iZeWwal2zq748u5E-jjejRojmgQXBKeOaBMjWKJ8wiG_kkJhIEuHrXJpCTiEY979w4FPfZVnnVjY2FsbHIXvS/s320/journeytothewell.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311752683558406482" /></a><em><strong>She went to the well for water. What she found there would change her life forever. </strong></em><br /><br />Marah is a young girl in love with her childhood friend, Jesse. When she is forced to marry an older man, she must abandon her dreams of happiness. At the mercy of men who are often only interested in using her, Marah must fight for survival. Will she ever meet a man who can save her?<br /><br />The story of the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well is one of hope, redemption, and a life changed in an instant through a remarkable encounter. Jesus told her "everything she'd ever done," but we are left to wonder at the circumstances that led her life on such a tragic path to begin with. Now from the creative mind of Diana Wallis Taylor comes the full story of the woman at the well.<br /><br /><span style="color:#660000;">This well-researched portrayal of a woman's life in the time of Jesus opens a window into a fascinating world. Taylor's rich descriptions of the landscapes, lifestyles, and rituals mesh easily with the emotional and very personal story of one woman who desperately seeks to rise above the difficult circumstances of her life. </span><br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0800733096">Journey To The Well</a>, click <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/03/journey-to-well-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-51336932212884415512009-02-25T01:22:00.001-05:002009-02-25T01:22:45.716-05:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0310278368">Daisy Chain</a></span></center><br /><center>Zondervan (March 1, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.marydemuth.com/">Mary DeMuth</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWUjGo5-kVTxBpbycPj2FPhoapWyz1mAHTckF5JhWbEr4IGoZDjKDE1Xg0W6ZWYTZzhpB2IlLida5FAXZQhyoMNCp1VDFbMPk6tfLe24tzDxY-ifNwpvR3vL289mjqsG3gvYrh/s1600-h/mary.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 190px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWUjGo5-kVTxBpbycPj2FPhoapWyz1mAHTckF5JhWbEr4IGoZDjKDE1Xg0W6ZWYTZzhpB2IlLida5FAXZQhyoMNCp1VDFbMPk6tfLe24tzDxY-ifNwpvR3vL289mjqsG3gvYrh/s320/mary.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306570183875738210" /></a>Mary E. DeMuth is an expert in Pioneer Parenting. She enables Christian parents to navigate our changing culture when their families left no good faith examples to follow. <br /><br />Her parenting books include Authentic Parenting in a Postmodern Culture (Harvest House, 2007), Building the Christian Family You Never Had (WaterBrook, 2006), and Ordinary Mom, Extraordinary God (Harvest House, 2005). <br /><br />Mary also inspires people to face their trials through her real-to-life novels, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1576839265">Watching The Tree Limbs</a><br /> (nominated for a Christy Award) and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1576839532">Wishing On Dandelions</a> (NavPress, 2006). <br /><br />Mary has spoken at Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference, the ACFW Conference, the Colorado Christian Writers Conference, and at various churches and church planting ministries. Mary and her husband, Patrick, reside in Texas with their three children. They recently returned from breaking new spiritual ground in Southern France, and planting a church.<br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifmp0ZCMNpDjNtJfXqxqiJpdoiEipd0xRCIJA0Ey3S1reV-pWZ3X_P8RakFDqrhCs53o7rfV6GUHsZCmXph0h6_ULjliCY1KSQWlCbEUWdM37MnWl4X3uVZTlUG-hFrEIz8c7g/s1600-h/daisychain.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 157px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifmp0ZCMNpDjNtJfXqxqiJpdoiEipd0xRCIJA0Ey3S1reV-pWZ3X_P8RakFDqrhCs53o7rfV6GUHsZCmXph0h6_ULjliCY1KSQWlCbEUWdM37MnWl4X3uVZTlUG-hFrEIz8c7g/s320/daisychain.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306567461282114946" /></a>The abrupt disappearance of young Daisy Chance from a small Texas town in 1973 spins three lives out of control—Jed, whose guilt over not protecting his friend Daisy strangles him; Emory Chance, who blames her own choices for her daughter’s demise; and Ouisie Pepper, who is plagued by headaches while pierced by the shattered pieces of a family in crisis. <br /><br />In this first book in the Defiance, Texas Trilogy, fourteen-year-old Jed Pepper has a sickening secret: He’s convinced it’s his fault his best friend Daisy went missing. Jed’s pain sends him on a quest for answers to mysteries woven through the fabric of his own life and the lives of the families of Defiance, Texas. When he finally confronts the terrible truths he’s been denying all his life, Jed must choose between rebellion and love, anger and freedom. <br /><br />Daisy Chain is an achingly beautiful southern coming-of-age story crafted by a bright new literary talent. It offers a haunting yet hopeful backdrop for human depravity and beauty, for terrible secrets and God’s surprising redemption. <br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0310278368">Daisy Chain</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/02/daisy-chain-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-49264415329000725352009-02-10T19:01:00.001-05:002009-02-10T19:01:24.688-05:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/080073310X">Against All Odds</a></span></center><br /><center>Revell (February 1, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://irenehannon.com/">Irene Hannon</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjatrhzX9UHBGhJLGPweBAcbEzZBVeYuWvh0sumypSb6zpveoUvt98tuyrJaq68XJMW-xMDQ-Hw-RbrFebvWyDhyphenhyphen4rtscFjif54yi2Y0tFosKC7vYNxWRokm-nvPeci5Pb2vQZO/s1600-h/irene.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 175px; height: 274px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjatrhzX9UHBGhJLGPweBAcbEzZBVeYuWvh0sumypSb6zpveoUvt98tuyrJaq68XJMW-xMDQ-Hw-RbrFebvWyDhyphenhyphen4rtscFjif54yi2Y0tFosKC7vYNxWRokm-nvPeci5Pb2vQZO/s320/irene.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300624438885465378" /></a>Irene Hannon is an award-winning author who took the publishing world by storm at the tender age of 10 with a sparkling piece of fiction that received national attention.<br /><br />Okay…maybe that’s a slight exaggeration. But she was one of the honorees in a complete-the-story contest conducted by a national children’s magazine. And she likes to think of that as her “official” fiction-writing debut.<br /><br />Since then, she has written more than 25 romance and romantic suspense novels that have sold more than 1.5 million copies. Her books have been honored with the coveted RITA award from Romance Writers of America (the “Oscar” of romantic fiction), the HOLT Medallion and a Reviewer’s Choice award from Romantic Times BOOKreviews magazine. <br /><br />Irene, who holds a B.A. in psychology and an M.A. in journalism, juggled two careers for many years until she gave up her executive corporate communications position with a Fortune 500 company to write full. She is happy to say she has no regrets! As she points out, leaving behind the rush-hour commute, corporate politics and a relentless BlackBerry that never slept was no sacrifice.<br /><br />In her spare time, Irene enjoys hamming it up in community musical theater productions. A trained vocalist, she has sung the leading role in numerous musicals, including “South Pacific,” “Brigadoon,” “Oklahoma” “The King and I” and “Anything Goes.” She also regularly performs with a six-person musical review troupe and is a cantor at her church (where she does NOT ham it up!).<br /><br />When not otherwise occupied, Irene loves to cook and garden. She and her husband also enjoy traveling, Saturday mornings at their favorite coffee shop and spending time with family. They make their home in Missouri.<br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdfUTQ9XI0a4bA4hGoyRmBMIycN7VSv_IPaXeH_qIsnV_BFv303LHJMHvWT1a5YehewMu2GOhy-1UVbmEGZilAG2RFGTgpaxEOs8OmOsueDo1umji-NYfZZN7S9xOE8RhbO9Cg/s1600-h/againstallodds.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 212px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdfUTQ9XI0a4bA4hGoyRmBMIycN7VSv_IPaXeH_qIsnV_BFv303LHJMHvWT1a5YehewMu2GOhy-1UVbmEGZilAG2RFGTgpaxEOs8OmOsueDo1umji-NYfZZN7S9xOE8RhbO9Cg/s320/againstallodds.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300622981254102930" /></a>For FBI Hostage Rescue Team member Evan Cooper and his partner, dignitary protection duty should have been a piece of cake. Unfortunately, Monica Callahan isn’t making it easy. Estranged from her diplomat father, who is involved in a sensitive hostage situation in the Middle East, she refuses to be intimidated by a related terrorist threat back in the States…until a chilling warning convinces her that the danger is very real—and escalating. As Coop and his partner do their best to keep her safe, David Callahan continues his work—triggering an abduction that puts his daughter’s life at risk. And with every second that ticks by, Coop knows that the odds of saving the only woman who has ever managed to breach the walls around his heart are dropping. Because terrorists aren’t known for their patience—or their mercy.<br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/080073310X">Against All Odds</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/02/against-all-odds-prologue-and-chapter-1.html">HERE</a><br /><br /><br />WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING:<br /> <br /><blockquote>4 ½-star, “Top Pick” rating from <strong>Romantic Times BOOKreviews</strong>!</blockquote> <br /><blockquote>"Brava! Award winner Hannon debuts the heroes of Quantico series with a wonderful<br />array of believable characters, action and suspense that will keep readers glued to each page. Hannon’s extraordinary writing, vivid scenes and surprise ending come together for a not-to-be-missed reading experience.”<br /><strong>~Romantic Times BOOKreviews~</strong> </blockquote><br /><blockquote>“I found someone who writes romantic suspense better than I do. I highly recommend Against All Odds as one of the best books I've had the privilege of reading this year. This is a captivating, fast-paced, well written romantic suspense destined for my keeper shelf. I loved this book, and highly recommend this author."<br /><strong>~Dee Henderson~</strong> Author of the <em>O’Malley Family Series</em></blockquote>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-25174831225192417142009-02-04T01:39:00.001-05:002009-02-04T01:39:14.630-05:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764204912">Word Gets Around</a></span></center><br /><center>Bethany House (February 1, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.lisawingate.com/">Lisa Wingate</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtoowlBuyJykoI8hxhxSIhVaJ2UEXmWGB-EV26BNfYy3O5nsqTl1qFfz1MGEyXJHPyVdY-nGvOXFOZsSum5vmaiaJCCZq0C9nJspQMYyMDH-SQahJUMzy0Sw1tlSDwok5aXp3w/s1600-h/lisawingate.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 254px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtoowlBuyJykoI8hxhxSIhVaJ2UEXmWGB-EV26BNfYy3O5nsqTl1qFfz1MGEyXJHPyVdY-nGvOXFOZsSum5vmaiaJCCZq0C9nJspQMYyMDH-SQahJUMzy0Sw1tlSDwok5aXp3w/s320/lisawingate.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298770473918506610" /></a>Lisa Wingate lives in central Texas where she is a popular inspirational speaker, magazine columnist, and national bestselling author of several books. Her novel, Tending Roses, received dozens of five-star reviews, sold out ten printings for New York publisher, Penguin Putnam, and went on to become a national bestselling book. Tending Roses was a selection of the Readers Club of America, and is currently in its tenth printing. <br /><br />The Tending Roses series continued with Good Hope Road, The Language of Sycamores, Drenched In Light, and A Thousand Voices. In 2003, Lisa’s Texas Hill Country series began with Texas Cooking, and continued with Lone Star Café, which was awarded a gold medal by RT BOOKCLUB magazine and was hailed by Publisher’s Weekly as “A charmingly nostalgic treat.” The series concluded with Over the Moon at the Big Lizard Diner.<br /><br />Lisa is now working on a new set of small-town Texas novels for Bethany House Publishers. The series debuted with <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764204904">Talk of The Town</a> and continued with <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764204912">Word Gets Around</a>. A new series is also underway for Penguin Group NAL, beginning with A Month of Summer (July 2008), and continuing with The Summer Kitchen in July, 2009. Lisa’s works have been featured by the National Reader’s Club of America, AOL Book Picks, Doubleday Book Club, The Literary Guild, American Profiles, and have been chosen for the LORIES best Published Fiction Award.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxVjmnbWkpUZQkEHoPHZzQx00vMKpUnEomdmO7RMRETuS2h05D3OmWMsLb2Q7SkmhNmXdSVRlhQOR-1UmiqlVjSsdFzDENrA1o7ShuIbnmDIQOTJHMAap4pp7gEY8i3kP4WpuK/s1600-h/wordgetsaround.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 157px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxVjmnbWkpUZQkEHoPHZzQx00vMKpUnEomdmO7RMRETuS2h05D3OmWMsLb2Q7SkmhNmXdSVRlhQOR-1UmiqlVjSsdFzDENrA1o7ShuIbnmDIQOTJHMAap4pp7gEY8i3kP4WpuK/s320/wordgetsaround.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298769437308381282" /></a>When Romance Is In the Air, Word Gets Around Lauren Eldridge thought she'd wiped the dust of Daily, Texas, off her boots forever. Screenwriter Nate Heath thought he was out of second chances. Life's never that predictable, though. Cajoled by her father, Lauren is back in town helping train a skittish race horse set to star in a Hollywood film. But the handsome screenwriter gives her more trouble than the horse. And Nate is realizing there's a spark of magic in the project--and in the eyes of the girl who is so good with horses. Daily, Texas, has a way of offering hope, healing, and a little romance just when folks need it most. <br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764204912">Word Gets Around</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/02/word-gets-around-chapter-1.html">HERE</a><br /><br />What people are saying:<br /><br /><blockquote>"Lisa Wingate writes engaging stories that strike the heart. God has gifted her with a marvelous talent and I, for one, am most grateful."<br />—<strong>Debbie Macomber</strong>, New York Times #1 bestselling author</blockquote><br />Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-65098362751537201232009-02-02T02:30:00.001-05:002009-02-02T02:30:20.428-05:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0061373419">Desires Of Her Heart</a></span></center><br /><center>Avon Inspire (February 10, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.booksbylyncote.com/">Lyn Cote</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXCMbM8O0gbNsVUqZz4OB3khV2lZQPxCNOVgE_Vmbveqe9RAN215k6VshVQf7gpzV-HPYqYcHdcoV_kPCvTyMMq9W08YoGGBu9XhlGd2Rao_OXpj9USzdgwqCKd5hKSiLhuI-k/s1600-h/Lyn2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 225px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXCMbM8O0gbNsVUqZz4OB3khV2lZQPxCNOVgE_Vmbveqe9RAN215k6VshVQf7gpzV-HPYqYcHdcoV_kPCvTyMMq9W08YoGGBu9XhlGd2Rao_OXpj9USzdgwqCKd5hKSiLhuI-k/s320/Lyn2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298006385180523122" /></a>Lyn Cote married her real-life hero and was blessed with a son and daughter. She loves game shows, knitting, cooking, and eating! She and her husband live on a beautiful lake in the northwoods of Wisconsin. Now that the children have moved out, she indulges three cats: V-8 (for the engine, not the juice), Sadie, and Tricksey. In the summer, she writes using her laptop on her porch overlooking the lake. And in the winter, she sits by the fireplace her husband installed with the help of a good neighbor during their first winter at the lake. <br /><br />Lyn's inspirational novels feature American women who step up to the challenges of their times and succeed in remaining true to the values of liberty and justice for all. The story of America is one of many nationalities and races coming together to forge our one nation under God, and Lyn's novels reflect this with accurate historical detail, always providing the ring of authenticity. Strong Women, Brave Stories. <br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj04Yq9P8asA8qBVyAplZTANtpWnrCq410TW3nfo-X53D3tEnCm4elAe_B-TqjSINYs3OjMPbrsYUkrlJpOVU7HZW0PfbfhfrpjvngIFh-SeAQN41bWpu-ai4_oQ7OsnL6Bix9p/s1600-h/desiresofherheart.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 210px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj04Yq9P8asA8qBVyAplZTANtpWnrCq410TW3nfo-X53D3tEnCm4elAe_B-TqjSINYs3OjMPbrsYUkrlJpOVU7HZW0PfbfhfrpjvngIFh-SeAQN41bWpu-ai4_oQ7OsnL6Bix9p/s320/desiresofherheart.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298002930315869650" /></a>A New Orleans lady and a half-breed frontiersman become unlikely allies as they travel the wilds of texas. <br /><br />In 1821, when circumstances make it impossible for her to remain in New Orleans, Dorritt and her family head west to join Stephen Austin's settlement and recoup their fortune in Texas. <br /><br />Quinn is a man of the frontier who has made a name for himself as a peerless scout. But as he and Dorritt's party begin a grueling trek across untamed Texas, the success of their journey is in grave doubt. Mexico has broken with the Spanish Crown, and armies from both countries—plus marauding Comanches—roam the pine forests and prairies. And one of the party is plotting destruction. <br /><br />Now, with their lives joined in a virgin land fraught with peril, can Dorritt and Quinn put all their trust in God and receive the desires of their hearts? <br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0061373419">Desires Of Her Heart</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/02/desires-of-her-heart-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-47210478683803136452009-01-22T07:11:00.001-05:002009-01-22T07:11:36.558-05:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764205145">The Centurion's Wife</a></span></center><br /><center>Bethany House Publishers (January 1, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"> <a href="http://www.davisbunn.com/home.html">Davis Bunn</a> and <a href="http://www.janetteoke.com/ME2/Sites/Default.asp">Janette Oke</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHORS:</span><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ3pD8M6QQMYi66G9hf70N5w7IwYc1TUEZEA8-XvaYSypk5R0bX7wpI0edjFbjHAmq_kpomdR5psw4_Vs2hHdPyU49cjEinFx0niS7SdRHq5yrbKK1Jftl6v_g24HbPQjmB921/s1600-h/davisbunn.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ3pD8M6QQMYi66G9hf70N5w7IwYc1TUEZEA8-XvaYSypk5R0bX7wpI0edjFbjHAmq_kpomdR5psw4_Vs2hHdPyU49cjEinFx0niS7SdRHq5yrbKK1Jftl6v_g24HbPQjmB921/s320/davisbunn.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5231229945836233410" /></a>Davis Bunn is an internationally acclaimed author who has sold more than six million books in fifteen languages. His audiences span reading genres from high drama and action thrillers to heartwarming relationship stories, in both contemporary and historical settings. <br /><br />Honored with three Christy Awards for excellence in historical and suspense fiction, his bestsellers include My Soul To Keep, and Full Circle. A sought-after lecturer in the art of writing, Bunn was named Novelist in Residence at Regent's Park College, Oxford University.<br /><br />He and his wife, Isabella, make their home in Florida for some of each year, and spend the rest near Oxford, England, where they each teach and write.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5QfzpMT5DHkyHXLtGFeaxWqc_uQgHNkHWdMyZ5zANuxEt4zXYZZTPxUmwYO28zrFLy72wvcagjyyRq1yBDZpIcPoW0X9i6YgW-1Uat1JwDxsPCFSIM3O0RdyTWoNF5R3pPt6h/s1600-h/janetteoke.gif"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 131px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5QfzpMT5DHkyHXLtGFeaxWqc_uQgHNkHWdMyZ5zANuxEt4zXYZZTPxUmwYO28zrFLy72wvcagjyyRq1yBDZpIcPoW0X9i6YgW-1Uat1JwDxsPCFSIM3O0RdyTWoNF5R3pPt6h/s320/janetteoke.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5293573069740776034" /></a>Her first novel, a prairie love story titled Love Comes Softly, was published by Bethany House in 1979. This book was followed by more than 75 others.<br /><br />After Love Comes Softly was published, Oke found her readers asking for more. That book led to a series of eight others in her Love Comes Softly series. She has written multiple fiction series, including The Canadian West, Seasons of the Heart and Women of the West. Her most recent releases include a beautiful children's picture book, I Wonder...Did Jesus Have a Pet Lamb and The Song of Acadia series, co-written with T. Davis Bunn.<br /><br />Janette Oke's warm writing style has won the hearts of millions of readers. She has received numerous awards, including the Gold Medallion Award, The Christy Award of Excellence, the 1992 President's Award for her significant contribution to the category of Christian fiction from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, and in 1999 the Life Impact Award from the Christian Booksellers Association International. Beloved worldwide, her books have been translated into fourteen languages. <br /><br />She and her husband live nearby in Alberta, Canada. <br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4oq6chjAE0ehZFKTP2nupyGbQQt-Vpw69Zk4SMeIH0xUV5TtvbQCC8XYWO_totcls6k4jYj9euCR-EZrawu7n0v4siZk_GY9ShUXGon4jOILF-NjPt9G47JZY4utZdg8siuFw/s1600-h/centurionswife.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 208px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4oq6chjAE0ehZFKTP2nupyGbQQt-Vpw69Zk4SMeIH0xUV5TtvbQCC8XYWO_totcls6k4jYj9euCR-EZrawu7n0v4siZk_GY9ShUXGon4jOILF-NjPt9G47JZY4utZdg8siuFw/s320/centurionswife.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5293568499365083570" /></a>Janette Oke has dreamed for years of retelling a story in a biblical time frame from a female protagonist's perspective, and Davis Bunn is elated to be working with her again on this sweeping saga of the dramatic events surrounding the birth of Christianity...and the very personal story of Leah, a young Jewess of mixed heritage trapped in a vortex of competing political agendas and private trauma.<br /><br />Caught up in the maelstrom following the death of an obscure rabbi in the Roman backwater of first-century Palestine, Leah finds herself also engulfed in her own turmoil--facing the prospect of an arranged marriage to a Roman soldier, Alban, who seems to care for nothing but his own ambitions. <br /><br />Head of the garrison near Galilee, he has been assigned by Palestine's governor to ferret out the truth behind rumors of a political execution gone awry. Leah's mistress, the governor's wife, secretly commissions Leah also to discover what really has become of this man whose death--and missing body--is causing such furor. <br /><br />This epic drama is threaded with the tale of an unlikely romance and framed with dangers and betrayals from unexpected sources. At its core, the story unfolds the testing of loyalties--between two young people whose inner searchings they cannot express, between their irreconcilable heritages, and ultimately between their humanity and the Divine they yearn to encounter. <br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764205145">The Centurion's Wife</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/01/centurions-wife-chapter-1.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-77989445122137510032009-01-19T02:02:00.005-05:002009-01-19T02:17:32.841-05:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1602602883">Stand-In Groom</a></span></center><br /><center>Barbour Publishing, Inc (January 2009) <br /></center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://kayedacus.com/">Kaye Dacus</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtGKdoyFLsYgPaYNOsk1r3dpeLA_RN5uaj8kvCPmiPcWnBPMBXrXERQkaSYLqz-ENnU9UiY_e-Np1mfoKBcP5ZwInGCUFk8U-NaGYuk4ljL9aCn592xZBTmFgDDy-AZpkb6NnV/s1600-h/kayedacus.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 174px; height: 160px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtGKdoyFLsYgPaYNOsk1r3dpeLA_RN5uaj8kvCPmiPcWnBPMBXrXERQkaSYLqz-ENnU9UiY_e-Np1mfoKBcP5ZwInGCUFk8U-NaGYuk4ljL9aCn592xZBTmFgDDy-AZpkb6NnV/s320/kayedacus.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5292836262755600002" /></a>Kaye Dacus is an author and editor who has been writing fiction for more than twenty years. A former Vice President of American Christian Fiction Writers, Kaye enjoys being an active ACFW member and the fellowship and community of hundreds of other writers from across the country and around the world that she finds there. <br /><br />She currently serves as President of Middle Tennessee Christian Writers, which she co-founded in 2003 with three other writers. Each month, she teaches a two-hour workshop on an aspect of the craft of writing at the MTCW monthly meeting. But her greatest joy comes from mentoring new writers through her website and seeing them experience those “aha” moments when a tricky concept becomes clear.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcB35rZvNub55TkuZep85Gk9fIS32gZcfDcVzblig96EL3bPY1MVCIUxM1-zpKkU9cduXBDwTsRavBIc6zsAOFJg6oqMYlS_E6pxZcDEJXHzsYRkgEDOoxJpthGwfHjWjGe7Bj/s1600-h/standingroom.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 157px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcB35rZvNub55TkuZep85Gk9fIS32gZcfDcVzblig96EL3bPY1MVCIUxM1-zpKkU9cduXBDwTsRavBIc6zsAOFJg6oqMYlS_E6pxZcDEJXHzsYRkgEDOoxJpthGwfHjWjGe7Bj/s320/standingroom.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5292834361389568770" /></a>When wedding planner Anne Hawthorne meets George Laurence, she thinks she's found the man of her dreams. But when he turns out to be a client, her "dream" quickly turns into a nightmare. Will Anne risk her heart and career on this engaging Englishman? <br /><br />George came to Louisiana to plan his employer's wedding and pose as the groom. But how can he feign affection for a supposed fiancee when he's so achingly attracted to the wedding planner? And what will happen when Anne discovers his role has been Stand-In Groom only? Will she ever trust George again? Can God help these two believers find a happy ending?<br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1602602883">Stand-In Groom</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/01/stand-in-groom-chapter-1.html">HERE</a><br /><br />What they're saying about it:<br /><br /><blockquote>“Dacus pulls off a delightful story that places readers in the heart of the South with the debut of the Brides of Bonneterre series. Readers will enjoy this look at how lives are transformed through devastating events and how forgiveness is the key to a promising future. Nothing is as it seems in this heartwarming story.”<br />–<strong>Romantic Times</strong>, 4-Star Review</blockquote><br /><blockquote>“Absolutely delightful! I enjoyed Stand-In Groom from cover to cover! Ms. Dacus’s clever story and wonderful prose will draw you away to a place deep in the heart of Louisiana, surrounding you with the scents, sounds, and sights of the deep south. A story filled with romance and intrigue, betrayal and forgiveness, I found myself laughing, crying and rejoicing right along with the characters.”<br />–<strong>M.L. Tyndall</strong>, author of <em>The Falcon and the Sparrow </em>and the award-winning <em>Legacy of the King’s Pirates</em> series</blockquote><br /><blockquote>“Stand-In Groom is as sweet, beautiful, and chaotic as a perfectly planned wedding. Anne is a bright and wounded heroine you’re going to care about for a long time. George is a hero to capture your heart. Kaye Dacus will take you along for a fun, poignent ride in Stand-In Groom.”<br />–<strong>Mary Connealy</strong>, author of the <em>Lassoed in Texas series </em>and <em>Of Mice...and Murder</em></blockquote><br /><br />********************************************<br /><br />My Review:<br /><br />This book is one of my new favorites. Kaye Dacus does a fabulous job of creating flawed but likable characters with real dilemmas. I found that I saw a great deal of myself in her main character and heroine, Anne. I also fell for the hero, George, and could not help but root for him as he pursued the heroine! The plot was a surprise and had several twist that I did not see coming. I also enjoyed getting to know Anne's family and found myself wishing that the whole family each had a book of their own! Not only does Kaye Dacus create likable characters but she creates characters with dimensions and feelings. Anne deals with issues that a lot of women deal with today. And the way her character deals with the issue of trust is worth picking up this book. Kaye Dacus allows her characters to hurt and to be hurt, just as we are in real life. And she does not gloss over the realities of some of these issues. She deals with them in a real way, and in a healing way. <br />Another reason I really enjoyed this book is that it is not some easy love story of a young couple. Both Anne and George are in their 30's and have real life problems, you know the ones, family, friends, work... And the author does not make the ending easy. She continues with the emotions she has built up just as it would be in real life. And the ending is not tied into some neat little bow...you know the characters still will have struggles and battles along the way...but they do have love.<br /><br />So if you are interested in a real book with characters that are likable and flawed I would suggest The Stand-In Groom! There are plenty of laughs and plenty of tears in this well written book!Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-65740024633922289882009-01-14T00:22:00.001-05:002009-01-14T00:23:44.220-05:00Oh. MY. I am half way through this book and it is GOOD. It has everything a good book needs! I cannot wait to see what happens at the end :)<br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1595544704">KISS</a></span></center><br /><center>Thomas Nelson (January 6, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"> <a href="http://www.teddekker.com">Ted Dekker</a><br> and<br> <a href="http://www.erinhealy.com/">Erin Healy</a></span></center><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdVkOHeWmBB_vFG66XIxlbDgch5qRYZBCmZewJIsws_VOtYvGUSmBF_48hRLB0v3ysR9hBJF-w_1CnRrwe6y4wdbheBMYMEHu1-1dJMjQbqeS5Y4VCoNIW3rfXYCRGaNwhTcw1/s1600-h/ted_dekker.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 139px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdVkOHeWmBB_vFG66XIxlbDgch5qRYZBCmZewJIsws_VOtYvGUSmBF_48hRLB0v3ysR9hBJF-w_1CnRrwe6y4wdbheBMYMEHu1-1dJMjQbqeS5Y4VCoNIW3rfXYCRGaNwhTcw1/s200/ted_dekker.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290161788619072994" /></a>Ted is the son of missionaries John and Helen Dekker, whose incredible story of life among headhunters in Indonesia has been told in several books. Surrounded by the vivid colors of the jungle and a myriad of cultures, each steeped in their own interpretation of life and faith, Dekker received a first-class education on human nature and behavior. This, he believes, is the foundation of his writing.<br /><br />After graduating from a multi-cultural high school, he took up permanent residence in the United States to study Religion and Philosophy. After earning his Bachelor's Degree, Dekker entered the corporate world in management for a large healthcare company in California. Dekker was quickly recognized as a talent in the field of marketing and was soon promoted to Director of Marketing. This experience gave him a background which enabled him to eventually form his own company and steadily climb the corporate ladder.<br /><br />Since 1997, Dekker has written full-time. He states that each time he writes, he finds his understanding of life and love just a little clearer and his expression of that understanding a little more vivid. Dekker's body of work encompassing seven mysteries, three thrillers and ten fantasies includes Heaven's Wager, When Heaven Weeps, Thunder of Heaven, Blessed Child, A Man Called Blessed, Blink, Thr3e, The Circle Trilogy (Black, Red, White), Obsessed, Renegade, and Chaos.<br /><br /><center>*******************</center><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjPw2kLyRaseuwimt1rV80obzuU9MaZZ1d8_SSD9ZxuxROI7ayDBerGckXgE6iM2JoAt_Y8Q8syplwcZGoqxHUQ4vGITkhrHjrEzTI8LEbPh4HkxKik9WR14Egvm67xieeiVOT/s1600-h/erinhealy.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 140px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjPw2kLyRaseuwimt1rV80obzuU9MaZZ1d8_SSD9ZxuxROI7ayDBerGckXgE6iM2JoAt_Y8Q8syplwcZGoqxHUQ4vGITkhrHjrEzTI8LEbPh4HkxKik9WR14Egvm67xieeiVOT/s200/erinhealy.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290162262936021442" /></a>Erin Healy is an award-winning fiction editor who has worked with talented novelists such as James Scott Bell, Melody Carlson, Colleen Coble, Brandilyn Collins, L. B. Graham, Rene Gutteridge, Michelle McKinney Hammond, Robin Lee Hatcher, Denise Hildreth, Denise Hunter, Randy Ingermanson, Jane Kirkpatrick, Gilbert Morris, Frank Peretti, Lisa Samson, Randy Singer, Robert Whitlow, and many others. <br /><br />She began working with Ted Dekker in 2002 and edited twelve of his heart-pounding storiesbefore their collaboration on Kiss, the first novel to seat her on "the other side of the desk."<br /><br />Erin is the owner of WordWright Editorial Services, a Colorado-based consulting firm specializing in fiction book development. She and her husband, Tim, are the proud parents of two children<br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhww7a6SCn_9CIP0B-jwu_vSb3_iNKeAIpNqIkMqKzdKk2SMPyM9XfFO499Kqq3oMNQ-pcdLm4JHy0a69HqoPGd_4nx5C03rR5jNictttNNJEVI8AGKHDhkv3EEr9YZSXrXWabh/s1600-h/kiss.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 131px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhww7a6SCn_9CIP0B-jwu_vSb3_iNKeAIpNqIkMqKzdKk2SMPyM9XfFO499Kqq3oMNQ-pcdLm4JHy0a69HqoPGd_4nx5C03rR5jNictttNNJEVI8AGKHDhkv3EEr9YZSXrXWabh/s200/kiss.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290153368548189458" /></a><em><strong>Let me tell you all I know for sure. My name. Shauna.</strong></em><br /><em>I woke up in a hospital bed missing six months of my memory. In the room was my loving boyfriend-how could I have forgotten him?-my uncle and my abusive stepmother. Everyone blames me for the tragic car accident that left me near death and my dear brother brain damaged. But what they say can't be true-can it?<br /><br />I believe the medicine is doing strange things to my memory. I'm unsure who I can trust and who I should run from. And I'm starting to remember things I've never known. Things not about me. I think I'm going crazy.<br /><br />And even worse, I think they want to kill me.<br /><br />But who? And for what? Is dying for the truth really better than living with a lie?</em><br /><br /><strong>Sometimes dying with the truth is better than living with a lie. </strong><br /><br />After a car accident puts Shauna McAllister in a coma and wipes out six months of her memory, she returns to her childhood home to recover, but her arrival is fraught with confusion. <br /><br />Her estranged father, a senator bidding on the White House, and her abusive stepmother blame Shauna for the tragedy, which has left her beloved brother severely brain damaged. Leaning on Wayne Spade, a forgotten but hopeful lover who stays by her side, Shauna tries to sort out what happened that night by jarring her memory to life. Instead, she acquires a mysterious mental ability that will either lead her to truth or get her killed by the people trying to hide it. <br /><br />In this blind game of cat and mouse that stares even the darkest memories in the face, Shauna is sure of only one thing: if she remembers, she dies. <br /><br />If you would like to read the first chapter of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1595544704">KISS</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/01/kiss-prologue.html">HERE</a><br /><br /><center>Watch the Video Trailer</center><br /><center><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/mxxcrqrW_HE&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/mxxcrqrW_HE&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><strong>What people are saying about KISS:</strong><br /><blockquote>“The human brain could actually be the real final frontier—we know so little about it and yet it drives the world as we know it. So when authors like Erin and Ted bravely explore these mysterious regions, going into complex places like memory and soul and relationships, I become hooked. The creativity of this suspenseful story is sure to hook other readers as well. Very memorable!”<br /><strong>~Melody Carlson</strong>, author of <em>Finding Alice </em>and <em>The Other Side of Darkness</em></blockquote><br /><blockquote>“Dekker and Healy prove a winning team in this intriguing, imaginative thriller.”<br /><strong>~James Scott Bell</strong>, bestselling author of<em> Try Darkness</em></blockquote><br /><blockquote>“Kiss by Erin Healy and Ted Dekker is a superb thriller that hooked me from the first sentence. The original plot kept me guessing, and I may never look at a kiss the same way again. I’ll be watching for the next book!”<br /><strong>~Colleen Coble</strong>, author of <em>Cry in the Night</em></blockquote> <br /><blockquote>“The writing team of Erin Healy and Ted Dekker has taken me through a page-turner with Kiss. It’s one of those books that you think about when you’re not reading it. I highly recommend it, especially if you don’t mind staying up late because you can’t put the book down!”<br /><strong>~Rene Gutteridge</strong>, author of <em>Skid</em> and <em>My Life As a Doormat</em></blockquote>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-85965853136982264072009-01-05T00:07:00.001-05:002009-01-05T00:07:36.406-05:00<div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0061474460">Wanted</a></span></center><br /><center>Avon Inspire (January 6, 2009)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.shelleyshepardgray.com/">Shelley Shepard Gray</a></span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-WwWO9eGfpL32LKU3WLLk4KIFGMn_t1D3HAxRnYmaf7PHywvgRilehMggQ4BqSVbV355rQiSaNtXzU-uIUwjHoIe_Pt8_Wpl5vWySuDC4OF8Aao79JGZDiD1C3aJ66TLIyh87/s1600-h/shelley.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-WwWO9eGfpL32LKU3WLLk4KIFGMn_t1D3HAxRnYmaf7PHywvgRilehMggQ4BqSVbV355rQiSaNtXzU-uIUwjHoIe_Pt8_Wpl5vWySuDC4OF8Aao79JGZDiD1C3aJ66TLIyh87/s320/shelley.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5217511067708303618" /></a>Hidden is Shelley’s first foray into inspirational fiction. Previously, Shelley lived in Texas and Colorado, where she taught school and earned both her bachelors and masters degrees in education. She now lives in southern Ohio where she writes full time. Shelley is an active member of her church. She serves on committees, volunteers in the church office, and is part of the Telecare ministry, which calls homebound members on a regular basis. Shelley looks forward to the opportunity to write novels that showcase her Christian ideals.<br /><br />This is the second book in the <i>Sisters Of Heart</i> series. The first was <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0061474452">Hidden</a>. <br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipq_Z5ICF8h86PlvIanGaBTSEbJ-ZfQmJzC-v1mJU2SxwccAip7EVjeJpKmYhaih8eQ-kpDLhEuUy3HyHilmXqX-88r5YzXMGXFKhzSOxZBPmiiuPYraR2D-h9wA_pr4KYf2US/s1600-h/wanted.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 132px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipq_Z5ICF8h86PlvIanGaBTSEbJ-ZfQmJzC-v1mJU2SxwccAip7EVjeJpKmYhaih8eQ-kpDLhEuUy3HyHilmXqX-88r5YzXMGXFKhzSOxZBPmiiuPYraR2D-h9wA_pr4KYf2US/s200/wanted.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287173245702640690" /></a>Twenty-year-old Katie Brenneman has always quietly fancied Jonathan Lundy. So when the brokenhearted widower asks her to help him take care of his two young girls, Katie knows it will be a trying time-yet she cannot pass up a golden opportunity to get to know this man better. <br /><br />Just as she's settling into her new life, a message arrives from Katie's past, threatening to expose her darkest secrets. During her Rumspringa, her running-around years, she experimented with activities forbidden in the Amish way of life. Frightened by how far she'd strayed from her values, Katie ran back home, vowing to cut all ties with the outside world. Now her transgressions are coming back to haunt her, just as Jonathan seems willing to welcome her into his heart. <br /><br />Will the past destroy Katie's chances for love? Or will Katie finally allow herself to accept God's love, forgive her past...and receive everything she's ever wanted? <br /><br />If you would like to read an excerpt of Chapter 1 of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0061474460">Wanted</a>, go <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2009/01/wanted-chapter-1-excerpt.html">HERE</a>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-84431409054004285002008-05-28T23:40:00.000-04:002008-06-28T23:45:18.844-04:00I have a new home...<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.crittyjoy.wordpress.com">Critty Joy (my new blog)</a><br /><br /><br /><br />So come on over and visit me there :o)Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-88209173793288970832008-05-16T19:05:00.000-04:002008-05-17T19:06:12.481-04:00Check out my post as part of Tricia Goyers Whispers of Freedom blog tour here:<br /><br />http://crittyjoy.wordpress.com/2008/05/17/a-whisper-of-freedom-blog-tour/Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-75937440160803903022008-05-13T01:28:00.001-04:002008-05-13T01:29:01.026-04:00Hi All...<br /><br />Sorry I am just now posting...life has been a bit well hard lately...<br /><br />Enjoyed this book :o)<br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/076420274X">The Warriors</a></span></center><br /><center>(Bethany House April 1, 2008)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;">Mark Andrew Olsen</span></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgccd-LLKF-8iCyMGek2I18qePmHR3zVii32XmI0b-6aQOAgNryMwAhb2Go-3QNyXbT4POXULSD701PFrT7xxUL-khMcaTfgZCIi4vLHV3Xd2O9BbcyrbDAKM3t3xx3FXsGcr-z/s1600-h/Olsen.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5038267195393364146" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgccd-LLKF-8iCyMGek2I18qePmHR3zVii32XmI0b-6aQOAgNryMwAhb2Go-3QNyXbT4POXULSD701PFrT7xxUL-khMcaTfgZCIi4vLHV3Xd2O9BbcyrbDAKM3t3xx3FXsGcr-z/s200/Olsen.jpg" border="0" /></a> MARK ANDREW OLSEN whose novel <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/076422817X">The Assignment</a> was a Christy Award finalist, also collaborated on bestsellers <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764229435">Hadassah</a> (now the major motion picture: <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0430431/">One Night With the King</a>), <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764203371">The Hadassah Covenant</a>, and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764202006">Rescued</a>. His last novel was the supernatural thriller <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764228188">The Watchers</a>. <br /><br />The son of missionaries to France, Mark is a Professional Writing graduate of Baylor University. He and his wife, Connie, live in Colorado Springs with their three children.<br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5HYFxl3XzHqK1Jwrt63JF0EQByxqlxNbq8XGtloIRosYe342Txr85bh4uvuixCH_5H_05DPbokFgL-xwt1u4XC2XnfgskYIckMSwW1QgM5ODXhNmfnDOI-bFxMWk3UcRtLMKO/s1600-h/202742_1_ftc_dp.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5HYFxl3XzHqK1Jwrt63JF0EQByxqlxNbq8XGtloIRosYe342Txr85bh4uvuixCH_5H_05DPbokFgL-xwt1u4XC2XnfgskYIckMSwW1QgM5ODXhNmfnDOI-bFxMWk3UcRtLMKO/s400/202742_1_ftc_dp.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5196755898044679506" /></a>A failed recon mission deep in the tunnels of Afghanistan has provoked a demonic onslaught that had been brewing for centuries. The mission's sole survivor is reformed black ops assassin Dylan Hatfield, and he once again teams up with Abby Sherman, now at the helm of the Watchers, an ancient spiritual force. Uncovering and preventing a secret wave of death whispered across cyberspace and threatening to be unleash against civilization will require another level of spiritual power and expertise--the Warriors. <br /><br />Journeying across the Alps of Europe through the multilayered history of warfare in the unseen world, Dylan and Abby uncover an age-old stone engraving that rouses the church's Warriors to action, placing them dead center in one of the fiercest spiritual battles of their time! <br /><br />And once again they are reminded: This is all part of a vast and perpetual war, a war beyond all human conflicts, one that has engulfed heaven and earth since before the dawn of history.... <br /><br />Abby Sherman is headed back to Israel, where a Watcher, the Sentinel of Jerusalem, lies dying. In her last breaths the old woman tells Abby of an ancient document prophesying humanity's full-scale entry into the ongoing conflict between armies of heaven and fallen angels. <br /><br />Dylan Hatfield has decided to answer a summons from his old boss and join a secret operation, its mission to reconnoiter the Afghani tunnel complex from which Osama bin Laden escaped in 2001. What he discovers sears his very soul and likely will end his life. <br /><br />Abby learns of the peril facing Dylan, and she sends out a call for intercession on his behalf. Her frantic email message sets in motion a series of harrowing events, propelling the two on a new mission and quest--one where the stakes are the lives of millions! <br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/076420274X"><em>The Warriors</em></a> is packed with high-octane action, featuring exotic international locales, with characters in a clash against spiritual "principalities and powers" with eternal consequences, The Warriors is a story that will enthrall, enlighten, and engage its readers. <br /><br />If that piques your interest, you can read the first chapter <a href="http://thestorybeginnings.blogspot.com/2008/05/warriors-chapter-1.html">HERE</a><br /><br /><blockquote>"Olsen, one of the better writers in this subgenre, delivers powerful, action-packed plots that delve into mystical paranormal worlds." <br />~<strong>Library Journal</strong>, Feb. 2008</blockquote><br /><blockquote>"Olsen delivers an entertaining thriller likely to be enjoyed especially by fans of the spiritual warfare genre."<br />~<strong>PUBLISHERS WEEKLY</strong></blockquote>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-63206696325032624652008-04-25T15:40:00.000-04:002008-04-25T15:41:01.934-04:00<p><div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764201646">Winter Haven</a></span></center><br /><center>(Bethany House April 1, 2008)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.atholdickson.com/index.html">Athol Dickson</a></span></center><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_A4qzd1FC2Xxdv9p7-a6youCnCJ3oE9HLmAwSIsE_JaVZb7ByN-Qz8uWClqLHuriHKg2_hYCnE2hA3yRWtQ8m2AHO8dX3S1fOiaB3-9ex6x9bdIPw_7aKTLS-IiGOkoiUaw-R/s1600-h/atholdickson.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5192259535437202642" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_A4qzd1FC2Xxdv9p7-a6youCnCJ3oE9HLmAwSIsE_JaVZb7ByN-Qz8uWClqLHuriHKg2_hYCnE2hA3yRWtQ8m2AHO8dX3S1fOiaB3-9ex6x9bdIPw_7aKTLS-IiGOkoiUaw-R/s400/atholdickson.jpg" border="0" /></a>Athol Dickson's university-level training in painting, sculpture, and architecture was followed by a long career as an architect then his decision several years ago to devote full time to writing.<br /><br />Athol Dickson’s writing has been favorably compared to the work of Octavia Butler<br />(Publisher’s Weekly), Daphne du Maurier (Cindy Crosby, FaithfulReader.com) and FlanneryO’Connor (The New York Times).<br /><br />His <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0842352929">They Shall See God</a> was a Christy Award finalist and his <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/076420338X">River Rising</a> was a Christy Award winner, selected as one of the Booklist Top Ten Christian Novels of 2006 and a finalist for Christianity Today's Best Novel of 2006.<br /><br />He and his wife, Sue, live in Southern California. Visit AtholDickson.com for more information.<br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSJG1MGSHqMcHZ8ihWP-EYntvB2BkM0yOoS6c896O2x_L6xFFc8-HSgRU3uYDMswqu-joTxns1w83KVtNsmhVIi76g1VscfIa1t43wmOozvYqHWckijyTlAQMXz6m9GLooAWiC/s1600-h/winterhaven.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5192259879034586338" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSJG1MGSHqMcHZ8ihWP-EYntvB2BkM0yOoS6c896O2x_L6xFFc8-HSgRU3uYDMswqu-joTxns1w83KVtNsmhVIi76g1VscfIa1t43wmOozvYqHWckijyTlAQMXz6m9GLooAWiC/s400/winterhaven.jpg" border="0" /></a><em><span style="color:#663300;">Boys who never age, giants lost in time, mist that never rises, questions never asked...on the most remote of islands off the coast of Maine, history haunts the present and Vera Gamble wrestles with a past that will not yield. Will she find refuge there, or will her ghosts prevail on...</span></em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764201646"><strong>Winter Haven</strong></a><br /><br />Eleven years ago, Vera Gamble's brother left their house never to be seen again. Until the day Vera gets a phone call that his body has been found...washed ashore in the tiny island town of Winter Haven, Maine. His only surviving kin, Vera travels north to claim the body...and finds herself tumbling into a tangled mystery. Her brother hasn't aged a day since last she saw him.<br /><br />Determined to uncover what happened in those lost years, Vera soon discovers there are other secrets lurking in this isolated town. But Winter Haven's murky past now seems bound to come to light as one woman seeks the undeniable and flooding light of truth.Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-73237993788212033782008-04-18T22:39:00.000-04:002008-04-18T22:40:01.951-04:00<p><div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1590524284">My Soul To Keep</a></span></center><br /><center>(Multnomah Books - February 5, 2008)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.melaniewells.com/">Melanie Wells</a></span></center><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;"><strong>ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</strong></span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6U32uWwKjf1MU30oM4cCtxBIiSRedTiDkA1fHzhG3DcvmmcF3GUNDHFKX7Jww-zsTozGSs-9LOLPfv58EVLNEjkgHoHbYw-5eZgcyUjXvZ_h2HTga3hiwQTpklMAXVM3dOdQq/s1600-h/mwells-140-Wellsauthor.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189660902434583666" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6U32uWwKjf1MU30oM4cCtxBIiSRedTiDkA1fHzhG3DcvmmcF3GUNDHFKX7Jww-zsTozGSs-9LOLPfv58EVLNEjkgHoHbYw-5eZgcyUjXvZ_h2HTga3hiwQTpklMAXVM3dOdQq/s400/mwells-140-Wellsauthor.jpg" border="0" /></a>A native of the Texas panhandle and the child of musicians, Melanie Wells attended Southern Methodist University on a music scholarship (she's a fiddle player), and later completed graduate degrees in counseling psychology and Biblical studies at Our Lady of the Lake University and Dallas Theological Seminary.<br /><br />She has taught at the graduate level at both OLLU and DTS, and has been in private practice as a counselor since 1992. She is the founder and director of LifeWorks counseling associates in Dallas, Texas, a collaborative community of creative therapists.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1590524268"><em>When the Day of Evil Comes</em></a> is her first published work of fiction, and the first of a three-book series. The second work, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1590524276"><em>The Soul Hunter</em></a> was released in May, 2006. Melanie lives and writes in Dallas.<br /><br /><span style="color:#003300;"><strong><span style="font-size:100%;">ABOUT THE BOOK: </span></strong></span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX-ds-jumvRUi6c8rTzPLeZ_zd7djMgauSzd9B315TsuBajICh95NeMTE9WhLEcUMFtdvfmxxwz7jPxv8VhATqRQLfTj3vDnwyC3SYANFhufP7Z-6QSBsgdbxiWtUa5gzjweOp/s1600-h/Soul.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189662135090197634" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX-ds-jumvRUi6c8rTzPLeZ_zd7djMgauSzd9B315TsuBajICh95NeMTE9WhLEcUMFtdvfmxxwz7jPxv8VhATqRQLfTj3vDnwyC3SYANFhufP7Z-6QSBsgdbxiWtUa5gzjweOp/s400/Soul.jpg" border="0" /></a><em><span style="color:#663333;">As nasty as I knew Peter Terry to be, I never expected him to start kidnapping kids. Much less a sweet, funny little boy with nothing to protect him but a few knock-kneed women, two rabbits and a staple gun…</span></em><br /><br />It’s psychology professor Dylan Foster’s favorite day of the academic year…graduation day. And her little friend Christine Zocci’s sixth birthday. But the joyful summer afternoon goes south when a little boy is snatched from a neighborhood park, setting off a chain of events that seen to lead nowhere.<br /><br />The police are baffled, but Christine’s eerie connection with the kidnapped child sends Dylan on a chilling investigation of her own. Is the pasty, elusive stranger Peter Terry to blame? Exploding light bulbs, the deadly buzz of a Texas rattlesnake, and the vivid, disturbing dreams of a little girl are just pieces of a long trail of tantalizing clues leading Dylan in her dogged search for the truth.<br /><br /><blockquote>“<em>Like water rising to a boil, My soul To Keep’s suspense sneaks up on you…before you know it, you’re in the thick if a frightening drama…Superbly crafted</em>.”<br />---<strong>ROBERT LIPARULO</strong>, author of <em><strong>Deadfall, Germ,</strong></em> and <strong><em>Comes A Horseman</strong></em></blockquote><br /><blockquote>“<em>Written with passion, a good dose of humor and, dare I say it, soul, this novel reminds us that we all, with grace and good fortune, bumble our way toward salvation</em>.”<br />---<strong>K. L. COOK</strong>, author of <strong><em>Late Call </em></strong>and <strong><em>The Girl From Charmelle</em></strong></blockquote>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15492781.post-69931799379444096052008-04-11T22:38:00.000-04:002008-04-11T22:39:24.397-04:00<p><div align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/1600/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5500/1432/320/CFBAreviewer_gif.0.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;">This week, the</span></center><br /><center><a href="http://www.christianfictionblogalliance.com/"><span style="font-size:100%;">Christian Fiction Blog Alliance</span></a></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:100%;">is introducing</span></center><br /><center><span style="font-size:150%;color:#993300;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1595544003">Trouble the Water</a></span></center><br /><center>Thomas Nelson (March 11, 2008)</center><br /><center>by</center><br /><center><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><a href="http://www.nicoleseitz.com/">Nicole Seitz</a></span></center><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ff6600;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHe_qLNd11JotW_yI9xCzwHEFd2Y2YUk9_MPnIJbXQY8t8CmWK4NUhKkGWjaGa5OOTURGIH22a30PShMkdRpws-qdhNjSizSi1Acwv_TKOiXqx2MpLNzf8q2ACFjb8hCvRF4GJ/s1600-h/nicole+seitz.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5186355842770778690" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHe_qLNd11JotW_yI9xCzwHEFd2Y2YUk9_MPnIJbXQY8t8CmWK4NUhKkGWjaGa5OOTURGIH22a30PShMkdRpws-qdhNjSizSi1Acwv_TKOiXqx2MpLNzf8q2ACFjb8hCvRF4GJ/s320/nicole+seitz.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Nicole Seitz is a South Carolina Lowcountry native and the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1591455065">The Spirit of Sweetgrass </a>as well as a freelance writer/illustrator who has published in numerous low country magazines. A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's School of Journalism, she also has a bachelor's degree in illustration from Savannah College of Art & Design. Nicole shows her paintings in the Charleston, South Carolina area, where she owns a web design firm and lives with her husband and two small children. Nicole is also an avid blogger, you can leave her a comment on her <a href="http://nicoleseitz.blogspot.com/">blog</a>.<br /><br />Seitz's writing style recalls that of Southern authors like Kaye Gibbons, Anne Rivers Siddons, and Sue Monk Kidd, and this new novel, which the publisher compares to Kidd's The Secret Life of Bees, surely joins the ranks of strong fiction that highlights the complicated relationships between women. Highly recommended, especially for Southern libraries.<br /><br /><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:100%;color:#ffcc00;">ABOUT THE BOOK:</span></strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbtMaigJONY7f1D-SpsxMZ_V1jDJtn0E_dtZpMsDYEuAR7K89aWPDV-0deygX5Zn_sl1UiCKfRKQuos5fDJhJc9ZxGm24sFDLcc_0HjPiPw4X5kWg6IYXqbZiahJssZC2Lrfoq/s1600-h/TroubletheWaterCover"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5186355924375157330" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbtMaigJONY7f1D-SpsxMZ_V1jDJtn0E_dtZpMsDYEuAR7K89aWPDV-0deygX5Zn_sl1UiCKfRKQuos5fDJhJc9ZxGm24sFDLcc_0HjPiPw4X5kWg6IYXqbZiahJssZC2Lrfoq/s320/TroubletheWaterCover" border="0" /></a>In the South Carolina Sea Islands lush setting, Nicole Seitz's second novel <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1595544003">Trouble the Water</a> is a poignant novel about two middle-aged sisters' journey to self-discovery.<br /><br />One is seeking to recreate her life yet again and learns to truly live from a group of Gullah nannies she meets on the island. The other thinks she's got it all together until her sister's imminent death from cancer causes her to re-examine her own life and seek the healing and rebirth her troubled sister managed to find on St. Anne's Island.<br /><br />Strong female protagonists are forced to deal with suicide, wife abuse, cancer, and grief in a realistic way that will ring true for anyone who has ever suffered great loss.<br /><br /><span style="color:#330099;"><em>"This is another thing I know for a fact: a woman can't be an island, not really. No, it's the touching we do in other people's lives that matters when all is said and done. The silly things we do for ourselves--shiny new cars and jobs and money--they don't mean a hill of beans. Honor taught me that. My soul sisters on this island taught me that. And this is the story of true sisterhood. It's the story of Honor, come and gone, and how one flawed woman worked miracles in this mixed-up world."</em><br /></span><br /><br /><blockquote>"...a special sisterhood of island women whose wisdom and courage linger in the mind long after the book is closed."<br />-<strong><em>NEW YORK TIMES</em></strong> best-selling author <strong>SUSAN WIGGS</strong></blockquote>Christyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094782736213422830noreply@blogger.com0