The Victory Club by Robin Lee Hatcher ~ review

My Review: The Victory Club is a book that follows four different women during WWII, each with different stories. The choices they make will change their lives. Will they each chose to lean on the their Creator for strength or will they turn away?

This is only the second book I've ever read by Ms. Hatcher, but I'm already a fan. Her books have a depth to them that make them each timeless. (At least the 2 I've read). The focus of the book is each individual woman's relationship with God and how they deal with the many trials that come their way.

What I enjoyed about this book was the shortage of frills and do-dads. Ms. Hatcher told the story with a realness and rawness that should be appreciated, without boring me to death - in fact, just the opposite. It was very hard to put down.

The book was well written as well as at times heartbreakingly realistic. No fluff here :) I would recommend this to people who want to read a book that they can relax with, yet has substance to it. Ms. Hatcher's fans are sure to enjoy it. If you aren't a Robin Lee Hatcher fan I highly recommend picking up one of her books, you won't regret it.

Overall, a very well done book, that will draw you in to each of these women's personal struggles. I picked this book up at my church library, but I'm sure it's not that hard to find. This is my honest opinion. Thanks!

Blue Skies Tomorrow by Sarah Sundin ~ review

My review: Blue Skies Tomorrow is in my opinion everything that a book should be. The emotional depth, the romance, the plot, the action, and adventure, is fantastic.

The plot alone makes this book stand out, I could go on and on for hours about how well done this book was plotted out. The historic settings were rich, and authentic. The history was woven into the story with great care. I think Ms. Sundin got the balance perfectly. The writing and dialog were excellent, I lost myself in the story. There were no over done, mind boggling descriptions, or unwieldy words that can at times jog me from the spell of a story. The focus was wholly on the story and conveying it in a straightforward and natural manner, that swept me back to another time and place.

The characters were so realistic in all their raw emotions. The whole cast shone, not just the main characters, Helen and Ray. I really liked Esther Jones, who though a character with a small role, stood out as a strong woman who loved her husband and stood for what was right.

This book had me on the edge of my seat, staying up way past midnight to find out what would happen next. There were times when I was sure that there was no way out, but Ms. Sundin surprised me many times over. I kept telling myself, "I'll go to sleep when I find a stopping place." The only problem was that there weren't any "stopping places!"

Overall, this was one of the best historical fiction books that I have read in a long time. There were some violent scenes that had to do with Helen's troubled past, and Ray being a soldier in WWII, so that's just a heads up. Also I wanted to say that I haven't read the first two books in the series (but I plan to in the future), and I found this to be a stand alone novel that could be easily picked up out of order and fully enjoyed. I really enjoyed this book, and I hope that you decide to give it a shot. It's worth it! Thanks so much :)

ISBN: 978-0-8007-3423-7

“Available August 2011 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.”

Thanks so much to Donna Hausler and Revell Publishing company for providing this book to me free of charge in exchange for an honest review.

The next two weeks

Hey there!
I thought I should let you know that I will have limited Internet access during the next few weeks, but do not fear. I promise to post :) Unless I fall off a cliff and end up in the hosipital or something. But I should be fine. Next week I have some book reviews planned which I am really excited to post, because I read some pretty awesome books, that I think ya'll will love hearing about. I have them already read and written, but I can only post them at certain times. I'll see ya'll soon!

So that's the heads up for the next two weeks! Thanks :)

All the Flowers by Tom Milton ~ review

My Review: All the Flowers is a work of literature, that has a magnetic lilt to it that pulled me in.  At first I thought this book overly telling and not enough showing, but as I read I came to the conclusion that I didn't really mind the style of the writing. The writing and flow of the story was told beautifully.

This book asks serious questions like, is war morally wrong? Is war ever right? Set in the confusion and turmoil of the 60's two lovers, Andre and Teri,  are united by their mutual love of classical music. Teri is very much against the war, but her twin brother Tim wants to go over there to prove his bravery. Andre and Teri get swept into the anti-war effort, but will their choices turn to tragedy?

I honestly, didn't enjoy this book at all. I really wanted to, but I couldn't. There was an undertone throughout the story that I didn't really agree with, I can't put my finger in it, but it really bothered me. Also there was alot of crude language in this book and that ruined the lilted flow of Mr. Milton's writing for me. There were so many f-bombs that I stopped counting after six, some 3-letter A words, 4 or 5 uses of the 4-letter S word, a couple of uses of the 4-letter H word (as a curse), and some crude remarks about a the human anatomy. There were also a time when God's name was taken in vain, though God was not capitilized in that instance.

As for other content, an unmarried couple lives and sleeps together, even thought they know it is wrong, though they refrain from intimacy.

The theme of this book is pacifism, and how when taken to far it has serious consequences. So overall, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone that I know, and I wouldn't catagortize it as a Christian book,  but I admire Mr. Milton's command on the art of writing. He is very gifted. I'm sorry that I couldn't give this book a positive review, but this is my honest opinion. Thanks :)
ISBN: 978-0-9794579-3-7

Buy the Book Here!

Disclosure of Material: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookCrash.com book review program, which requires an honest, though not necessarily positive, review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s CFR Title 16, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

What I've been up to

Now I can sit back and relax because the fair is over! For a week anyway. I'll be packing up for a before-school-starts-vacation pretty soon here. But to all ya'll reading my blog thanks so much for reading :)

Something I have been wanting to ask ya'll is if you would like more book reviews from me or more researched posts, for example an essay on a poem that I read. Something more smart sounding, like a report on events in history or about the legend of Robin Hood. I would love your feedback.

I have been busy lately, so yes, my writing has taken a backseat.

I have gotten together with some friends and we started a youtube channel. I'm also getting ready to send things to the state fair. Not to mention reading alot of fun books :) I can't wait to post my reviews!

I hope to post one very soon! I have other ready, but they have special days when they have to be posted. But you'll get to read them soon!

Here's a video that my good friend Andrea made to promote Teen Bible Quizzing.

The Inheritance by Hilda Stahl ~ review

My Review: I'm not sure how many of you have heard of the Sadie Rose Series, by Hilda Stahl, but I grew up riveted to the adventures of Sadie Rose and her best friend/crush Levi. And lately I've been reading her adult series, and not much is changed, except the book length and that the characters actually get married at the end. So I thought, I'd review this book.

The Inheritance is the 2nd in the White Pine Chronicles, but it's the kinda of series where you can read them out of order and it won't kill you. Though reading them in order is recommended as some of the bad guys return a generation later, or rather their children do.

I enjoyed this book thoroughly and it was really hard to put down, as there was almost alot of action. When there wasn't action there  was conflict. Lulls in activity were non-existent.

The one thing that I think might bother some people is the way Ms. Stahl head hops every now and then, or a day passes with out a page break sign. It's a bit startling at first but you get used to it. This isn't a particularly deep book, mostly an easy book that is great to pass the time with. I found it really hard to be distracted from this book, like when I was at a really loud grandstand concert, waiting for the performers to come out, (they were blasting rock music that I couldn't understand), I read this book and found myself amazingly focused. Which for me is rare with loud music blasting. I like quiet to read my books. But I was totally immersed in this book. I know this book won't be for everyone, because if you're looking for a  really deep historical read, with historical figures and facts, this might not be the one for you. I totally understand. But when I'm in the mood to relax and sit on the edge of my seat (yeah, I realize those things don't really go together well, but it's true), dying to find out what happens next, Hilda Stahl books are where I turn. The fact that this book is currently out of print might be a drawback for some, but I've found that the ones written in the 90's are really good, and some of my favorites. I love out of print books!

Thanks so much!

Buy the book HERE

I own this book and reviewed it of my own free will, just in case you wanted you to know ;) Thanks to the library that discarded this treasure so I could buy it for less than 10 cents, I'm very grateful :)

Written on Silk by Linda Lee Chaikin ~ review

My review: Lush with rich historical details, brimming with action, and romance, Written on Silk will not easily disappoint. Fans of Linda Lee Chaikin will welcome her second novel in The Silk House Series.
I would recommend reading the first book in the series, first. This series is written sequentially, and some important things happen in  the first book and the full result is shown in the the second book, without a full explanation of what happened first.

I really enjoyed this book, but I might not have if I had not read the first book before devouring this one. I love how Ms. Chaikin brings the tumultuous historical setting of Catherine de Medici's court to life, vividly depicting characters, fictional and real alike. The pages of this book turned steadily for me, but not with a fierce urgency. I wasn't exactly staying up late past 2 a.m. for this book, but that's totally okay, I need my sleep ;)

I really like the way Ms. Chaikin combines the fictional characters with the non-fictional ones so flawlessly. I felt no difference in the depth of the characters and how I responded to them, which is something that happens occasionally with Historical Fiction. Sometimes the fictional characters are more real than the real-life historical figures, but not in this book. Ms. Chaikin does a fabulous job of perfectly finding that balance, which is one of the many things that make this story great!

This book made me think about how thankful I am to have a Bible in my own language. We have often heard stories of Tyndale and his translation of Greek and Hebrew into English, but this is a tale of the Huguenots and their fight for the French Bible. I learned alot.

I would recommend this book to people who enjoy historical intrigue. Also, I should warn you that this book has some elements to be aware of as it deals with a mass massacre of many Huguenots, the violation of a young lady, and the immorality if the French court at that period of time. All handled very well by Ms. Chaikin, in a non-graphic way that made it easier to read without too much detail. But overall a satisfying read.

ISBN: 978-0-310-26301-2

Buy it HERE

Thanks so much to Bridgette Brooks and Zondervan Publishing for furnishing me with a review copy of this book free of charge in return for an honest review.

I've been busy...

I'm sorry that this week has been kinda of empty of posts, you see I'm a 4-Her and as such I'm down at the county fair almost everyday! Meaning, that  there's not much time for posting.

I did well in 4-H with a constructed clothing win in Fashion Revue, and purples on all but one project in the static division. (I was the only person in the Constructed Clothing Category in Fashion Revue, which might have something to do with the win ;)

I'll try to post  review this week, if I get time to finish the book :)

Thanks!

In Between by Jenny B. Jones ~ review

My Review: I loved this book! I've never read anything by Ms. Jones before, but I'd heard so many good things about her books that I thought I'd give her a shot. And I was blow away! I laughed till my sides hurt and well past midnight!

Katie was far from perfect character, she wasn't an especially troubled one, with severe problems either (the kind that don't make any sense). She is a normal girl, whose mom is in prison for selling drugs, who has been put into foster care by the state. Katie tries to make sense of her life, and fit in with her new family and friends. She makes a  couple wrong turns along the way, but Katie Parker is finding her way!

I loved the way that Ms. Jones made Katie Parker, and the other characters so 3-D. I felt like I knew the characters after reading his book, really knew them. And that doesn't happen that often for me.
One of my favorite characters was Maxine, Katie's Foster Grandma, she was one of the main reasons I laughed as much and as hard as I did. Maxine had this way of "just saying it," that made me chortle incessantly.

This is a book for teen girls that is a head and shoulders above the hand full of other books I have read from this genre. I would mostly recommend this book to teen girls, because it's pretty obvious from the cover and everything else that it is a teen girl book. I don't think members of the opposite sex would dare to read it!

The story was engaging a hard to put down, (sometimes I had to put it down because I was laughing too hard). I found Katie very relatable, and the dialog was out of this world GREAT! Katie has this  amazing dry humor, even if you're not typically a dry humor person, (I'm not) you'll find yourself laughing along with her adventures.

Katie learns important lessons about fitting in, and about who God is, in this fast paced. lighthearted, read from Jenny B. Jones. I highly recommend this book! I chortled well into the night, so much, that my parents threatened to take it away so that I could sleep! You don't want to miss it!

ISBN-13: 978-1-60006-098-4

Buy it HERE

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from NavPress Publishers as
part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The
opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal
Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and
Testimonials in Advertising."

Special thanks to Erin from Navpress Publishers & Navpress Publishers for providing me with this book for the review.

Already Compromised by Ken Ham, Greg Hall & Britt Beemer ~ review

About the book: Just how Christian is the the Christian college that you are considering going to, or sending your kids to? That's what Ken Ham, Greg Hall and Britt Beemer want to know. And through extensive research they find their answer. And it's probably not the answer you want to hear! These gentlemen did a study of the Christian schools in our nation and found shocking results. Read this book to find how schools are Already Compromised and what you can do to protect your children, or yourself from an Already Compromised college.

My Review: I was so excited to get a chance to review this book, because I am a huge fan of Ken Ham and Answers in Genesis. I have read many books by him and enjoyed them all. This book was no exception. Since I'm at the age where I'm starting to think about college and where I want to go, I was so happy to been so well informed before I make a huge decision. But the thing is the truth is really sobering, and I am so blessed to have read this book BEFORE I go to college. I was shocked to learn how compromised Christian colleges have become in the last few years, it just blew me away.

The research was well done, and you can tell that it was very thorough. I was pleased with how they interpreted the statistics, not adding anything that wasn't there or making the results look a certain way. They were very open and honest about how they had ideas about why they might have gotten the results they did, but they admitted that they really don't know why certain people answered questions they way they did. Not only did they ask questions, they asked the same basic questions multiple times with different wording, and the results were drastically changed! This is the way statistics should be done!

Not only did this book warn parents and students about the sorry state of colleges these days it also, talked about finding a good college, and how you can't expect perfection from any college. There was also a special chapter for students, that was very encouraging, saying that no matter where you go to college the most important thing is the strength and stability of your faith. No matter where you go to college.

The appendix of this book was jam-packed full of goodies! And definitely worth reading. Such as an article on the new world of "Newspeak" the scary new double talk that is taking over our culture. And ones about understanding worldview and another affirming that Moses really did write the books that he is traditionally credited with.

In all this is a must read, no matter your age, we must all be aware of the radical changes in the culture around us so that we can fight against it and win!

ISBN 13: 978-0-89051-607-2

Buy it HERE

Thanks to New Leaf Publishing, who provided this book for review in return for an honest review. Thanks!

Daughter of Silk by Linda Lee Chaikin ~ review

Okay, first of all I wasn't planning on reviewing this book but since I signed up to review the sequel, I decided to read the first book, first so I wouldn't be confused. Now, if you can decipher that last sentence (I'm really sorry, I realized it's confusing), which I hope you did. Please keep reading!

My review: First of all let me say that I am a huge fan of Ms. Chaikin, so I was totally stoked to receive the sequel to this lovely book, Written on Silk  to review. But upon finding that it was a sequel I opted to read the first book first.

Rachelle is a lovely young Huguenot grisette, dressmaker in the court of Catherine de Medici, or Madame Serpent, as she is called for her snake-like eyes. Rachelle catches the eyes of the handsome Marquis Fabien, a controversial courtier who's loyalties are questioned. Rachelle becomes a maid of honor for Catherine's daughter Marguerite, and is swept into a world of religious intrigue. As a Huguenot, Rachelle position is precarious at best. Royal intrigues swirl, and betrayal lurks in the house of de Medici.

This book is the whole package. Excellent for fans of suspense in a rich historical setting. The book was peppered with French words, that simply "took me there." I admit that it did interrupt the flow of the book a bit to be flipping back and forth to the glossary to find out what French word meant what. But my overall opinion is that it enriched the experience. The historical setting was well researched and the characters were well developed. I shivered whenever Catherine de Medici entered the scene, she was absolutely chilling!

This is a book for those among who like suspense, tension, betrayal, and twisting plots. I would caution you though that the setting of this book is not exactly conducive to a morally clean setting, but Ms. Chaikin handled it very nicely. It was just mildly suggested that some of the ladies at court were not very reputable.

To be completely honest with you though, this book kept me up late at night, steadily flipping the pages trying to find a "good stopping place," which I couldn't find!

I believe that fans of Gilbert Morris, will really like this book. (I'm a huge Gilbert Morris fan).

I actually bought this book for myself, just so ya'll know. And this is my honest opinion. Keep a lookout for my review of its sequel, Written on Silk! Thanks!