Be Still My Soul by Joanne Bischof

Gideon O’Riley is a man who is used to having girls fall at his feet, but when he steals a kiss from Lonnie Sawyer, her father forces them into a marriage that neither of them wants. Gideon did not want a wife and is not willing to take on the responsibilities that a wife brings.

Lonnie is used to not being loved, as her father has been abusive her entire life. She had hoped to escape her abusive life when she turned 18, but with the forced wedding, she gives up hope of ever being loved. She relies on her faith in God to help her deal with her new life. Can her groom ever find faith in her God and learn to love her?

For this being the first book that Joanne Bischof has written, I was really impressed. I was so engrossed in this book that I couldn't put it down. I read it in two days just because I received the book after I got home from work and I had to go to sleep some time so I could go to work the next day. It was really difficult reading how Gideon treated Lonnie in the beginning. The story really focuses on Gideon growing, both spiritually and mentally, and Lonnie's faith and steadfastness in God.

 In the beginning of the story, Gideon has no thoughts for anyone but himself. He didn't want a wife and now that he is stuck with one, he blames her for everything that goes wrong in his life. As the story moves along, he is slowly but surely learning what it means to be a husband and that he has greatly fallen short. He learns that he must seek God and change himself before he loses Lonnie.

Gideon O’Riley is a man who is used to having girls fall at his feet, but when he steals a kiss from Lonnie Sawyer, her father forces them into a marriage that neither of them wants. Gideon did not want a wife and is not willing to take on the responsibilities that a wife brings.

Lonnie is used to not being loved, as her father has been abusive her entire life. She had hoped to escape her abusive life when she turned 18, but with the forced wedding, she gives up hope of ever being loved. She relies on her faith in God to help her deal with her new life. Can her groom ever find faith in her God and learn to love her?

Lonnie finds that married life isn't much better than the life she spent with her abusive father. She had hoped that she would find love with Gideon over time, but soon finds that Gideon's only love is himself. She copes just like she has always coped, looking to God for guidance and just accepting her fate. As they grow closer, she finds that she is starting to fall in love with her husband, but she is scared to give her heart to a man who doesn't love her.

I enjoyed this book very much. I would definitely recommend it to all my friends. It does have some difficult content dealing with death of children, but other than that, it was a great read.

I received this book in exchange for my honest review from the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group. I was not required to write a favorable review.

The Widow of Saunder's Creek by Tracey Bateman

The Widow of Saunders Creek by Tracey Bateman is the story of Corrie Saunders, a woman recently widowed when her husband, Jarrod, died a hero’s death in Iraq. When Corrie moves to her late husband’s ancestral home, she thinks she can sense his spirit in the house. Jarrod’s cousin, Eli, who is helping Corrie fix up the house, has strong beliefs against ghosts and spirits and he believes that it is not Jarrod who is returning to the house, but a dark spirit that has lived there for years. As Corrie tries to make sense of what is happening in the house and her life, she leans on Eli, who, in turn, is trying to get her to rely more on the God he serves.

I found this book quite surprising. It was much deeper than I thought it would be. It brought up a lot of questions about spirituality and if ghosts and spirits exist. It delved deep into showing how someone dealing with grief would try almost anything to connect with the person they lost.  Corrie is grieving so much and is so lost that she goes against a part of her upbringing just to see if there was a chance that Jarrod had returned to her. At first, you don’t know what the author’s viewpoint on ghosts is, but towards the end, the author’s opinions become clear.  She allows the reader to come up with their own opinions before she makes hers known. The book can be slightly unsettling since it does have scenes of a spirit moving around the house and causing doors to slam shut, and objects to fall over. Overall, the author does a great job with creating a romance story while adding a little bit of intrigue.

To read a free preview of this book please follow this link:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/93984589/The-Widow-of-Saunders-Creek-A-Novel

I received this book from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing Group in exchange for my review. I was not required to write a positive review.

Garden of Madness by Tracy Higley

Garden of Madness, by Tracy Higley, is a historical fiction novel set in Babylon during the days of King Nebuchadnezzar. It takes place during the king’s seven years of madness and tells the story of his daughter Tiamat. It begins when Tiamat is about to be married to Shealtiel, the son of the captured king of Judea and then skips ahead seven years to when Shealtiel died and Tia is caught in the middle of her plans, her mother’s plans for her, and the plans of an evil man to take over the kingdom. Tia must learn to trust in God and surrender her control in order to save her father and his kingdom.

I found this to be a very interesting book. I haven’t read that much about King Nebuchadnezzar and this was a different point of view than I had previously read. I had known that King Nebuchadnezzar went mad for seven years, but I had never thought about how his kingdom fared during that time. This book offered an interesting, albeit, fictional, look at what might have transpired during those seven years. I was fascinated by the politics and undercurrents of the court. Tia started out being a very naïve princess who thought that she had power and control, to finding out that she was just a pawn and was expected to surrender to her fate like a good princess. She was trying desperately to control her own life and control everything around her, thinking only she was able to change her fate.  As she grew in maturity, and in her understanding and faith in God, she started to realize that she wasn’t in control and that she never could be. She needed to trust in God and surrender all her plans for the plans that He had for her. I would definitely recommend this book. It was an excellent read.

I received this book from Booksneeze for my honest review.  I was not required to write a positive review.

Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore

Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore, is about a girl named Brielle who has just returned home from school after experiencing a tragedy. Her best friend was killed and she considers it to be her fault, that she could have prevented it. When she goes back to school in her hometown, she meets a mysterious boy named Jake who opens her eyes to a world that she did not realize existed.

I thought that this was a very well-written book. I found the story line very intriguing and it definitely kept my interest. I always like to read books that are about how angels and demons actually exist and are locked in a spiritual battle. I thought that this book had a very interesting take on spiritual warfare. ***spoiler alert***The one thing that I didn’t really like about the book was that the author didn’t seem to make a big deal about Ali being a unwed, pregnant teenager. It almost seemed accepting about it since she and Marco were planning on getting married. I know that Ali was not a Christian and that is probably why it wasn’t made more of, but when Brielle talked about seeing her in heaven one day, Jake said that was between her and God and left it at that. For a book geared toward teenagers, I would have liked to have seen more said about it and how it wasn’t right.

Overall, though, I thought this was a great book and I can’t wait to read the next one.

I received this book from Booksneeze in exchange for my review. I was not obligated to write a favorable review.

The Bride Wore Blue by Mona Hodgson

Vivian Sinclair, the youngest of the Sinclair sisters, has finally joined her three older sisters in Cripple Creek, Colorado. She hopes that her sisters will see her as a grown, independent woman and not just as the baby of the family, but she has no confidence in herself since she made an irreversible mistake back in Maine. She now sees herself as having to make her way in the world without the benefit of a husband in the future. When every job that she applies for falls through, she feels like she has no choice but to accept a job as a hostess in a sporting house. As her life continues to spiral out of control, she learns that she should no longer rely just on herself, but put her life in God's hands.
I really enjoyed this book. I have not been able to read the second book in The Sinclair Sisters of Cripple Creek series, but I did read the first one and this book was just as good as that one was. I thought that the character of Vivian Sinclair was very well written. She had a lot of depth to her struggles and she seemed more relatable than many other characters I have read. She made a mistake and felt that because of this mistake, she could never have the life she had dreamed about. She was no longer worthy to even be on the same level as her sisters. She felt like a hypocrite and that God would never forgive her for what she had done. The author did an excellent job with showing that no matter what someone does, God is always willing to forgive and you can move past your mistakes. I also really like how the author integrated an adoption story in the book. Adoption is something that is close to my heart and I really enjoyed reading about one in a fictional story. Overall, this was a great story and I am looking forward to the next book by Mona Hodgson to read more about the Sinclair sisters.

Chasing the Sun by Tracie Peterson

Hannah Dandrige was a tough girl. When her stepmother died in childbirth, in his grief, her father moved her, along with her little brother and her baby sister from Virginia to Texas. Hannah was in charge of bringing up her younger siblings and taking care of the house. When her father received a letter saying that his mother was dying, he decided to travel back to Virginia to see her. While her father is gone, Mr. Lockhart, her father’s business partner, tries to persuade Hannah into a marriage of convenience. Further trouble occurs when William Barnett returns to his family ranch to find that it has been given to Hannah’s family. He and his family had been considered traitors when they decided to fight for the Union. Complications abound and both William and Hannah have to learn to rely on God to show them the way.

I thought this was a pretty good book. I thought that the ending seemed a little abrupt, but as this is the first book in a series, and I don’t know what the other books will be about, more of the storyline may be brought out in the other books. The character of Hannah was very well-developed and my favorite character in the book. I loved how she would follow the Lord’s promptings even if it meant going against the norm or making her look foolish. She also stood up for herself and didn’t cave under the pressure that she was being put under. Overall, I was very pleased with this book and would definitely recommend reading it.

I received this book from Thomas Nelson Publisher for free in exchange for my honest review. I was not obligated to post a positive review.

Giveaway!!!!!! Illusion by Frank Peretti

So, I am conducting my first blog giveaway. I was given an extra copy of Illusion by Frank Peretti for a giveaway on my blog. For my review of the book, please look at the previous post. If you would like to see other reviews, there are more on Amazon.com. I have decided to make this competition have a beneficial effect. I have a heart for the orphans of the world, especially the ones on the Reece's Rainbow site. As much as I would love to have everyone to donate to help with these children's adoptions, I understand that not everyone can.
So, here are the rules. I only ask that you visit the Reece's Rainbow site and look at the waiting children and commit to praying for one of them. Please leave a comment with the name of the child that you are committed to praying for and after two weeks, I will pick one name randomly to receive a free copy of Frank Peretti's new book, Illusion. If you do decide to donate to one of the children, please leave me another comment telling me you donated and you will receive another entry.
Good Luck!!!!!!!

Please visit this link: http://reecesrainbow.org/new-family/thechildren