A Table by the Window

Juliette's recently deceased grandmother left her the prep table from her kitchen, which held a book of memories for Juliette.  She was the perfect person to hand it down to.  She had spent years working in the bakery with her grandmother and was the keeper of her grandmother's recipes.  On a sleepless night when she is trying to decide if she wants to open a restaurant with her brother, Juliette finds a photo of a young man who looks much like her brother if he had lived in her grandmother's era tucked away safely in a favorite recipe book inside the inherited table.  Who is this man who definitely isn't her grandfather?  As Juliette begins to piece together her grandmother's story, her own chance at romance comes along.  Across the generations, Juliette's grandmother still plays an important role in her own future and decisions.

A Table by the Window  by Hillary Manton Lodge is a wonderful light-hearted story of family ties with a bit of mystery thrown in and is "sprinkled" with delicious looking recipes throughout. However, many of those recipes do contain spices or ingredients not usually found in my kitchen so would require a trip to the grocery.  The book appears to be the first in a series since Juliette's choices are not completely revealed even at the close of the book which ended rather abruptly. I typically prefer to read series after all are released but was unaware this was book 1 when I ordered it.  Any attempt to have a strong Christian message wasn't part of this book.  While the family is completely honest and behave in a manner that is Christ-like, the only mention of anything God that I recall is that they went to church.  I did enjoy the relationships between the siblings, with their bantering, teasing, ups and downs.  They are a family who laughs together and works together.  All that to say, I enjoyed the book a lot but didn't love it. It does make a fun, light read--perhaps at the beach this summer?

I had never read anything by Ms. Lodge but will be looking for others by her, particularly book 2 in this series to see how Juliette turns out.  I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Noah and the Mighty Ark

Rhonda Growler Greene has recently written and release a new children's re-telling of Noah and the ark.  The text is rhythmic and somewhat sing/song, one that any child will enjoy over and over.  The illustrations by Margaret Spengler are bright and colorful and created with an interesting effect, sometimes a bit of a blur.  In my search to find a picture of the cover to share on my blog, I am making an assumption that this is a reprint on a book originally printed in 2007.  The release of the current edition is slated for 4/28/14.  Grandparents, parents, children from birth through young readers, and librarians will find this copy one to add to their collection to teach children about God's love.  I loved it!

I did receive this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  I was in no way obligate to leave a positive review.

101 Bible Stories

From creation to Revelation, 101 Bible Stories takes some of the most well known and loved stories from the Bible (with scripture references if you want to read the story in its entirety within context) and puts them into an easy to read and understand format for children with some beautifully created and detailed illustrations by Dan Andreasen.  The text is designed to be read by children who are independent readers with my recommendation starting at about 2nd or 3rd grade due to the complexity of some of the wording.  However, each story is just one page or a bit more so could effectively be used with both readers and a read aloud to non-readers alike.

I can still see the book my mother read to my little sister every single night before bed.  I feel strongly that every child should have the tools to discover God's Word for themselves. I am torn about the format of the book's appearance looking more like one that I would read to a non-reader and yet the publisher is advertising it to be designed for independent readers.  I would encourage you to look at the book yourself to determine if your reader child would think it looks too much like a younger children's book but I would definitely use it as a read aloud bedtime story resource.

I did receive the book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review and was in no way obligated to leave a positive review.

Meg Moseley's latest

Eighteen years ago, best friends Laura, Seth, and Cassie pledged to be there for each other no matter what. Not long afterward, Laura's father drowned in a nearby lake. Life has taken them in different directions but when Laura returns to their hometown to go through her mother's belongings after her death, all three find themselves together again. Rumors are beginning to circulate throughout town about Laura's father. Is his body really at the bottom of the lake or are the rumors that he has hidden out all these years and been spotted around town really true?

A Stillness of Chimes by Meg Moseley is set in small town Prospect, Georgia where everyone knows everyone else and life seems simpler. The story is one of mystery, secrets, friendships, lost love, and second chances. The characters live a life easy to relate to as a reader but I finished the book with some unanswered questions about some of them, specifically Cassie. Perhaps the author is considering another book to follow with some of the same characters that might clear up some of those questions.

I must be drawn to books about "ghosts". The last two I have read open up with suggesting there are ghosts which takes me back a bit in Christian fiction. All that to say, I really did enjoy the story. It is a quick read and each chapter leaves you hesitant to put the book down. It isn't all that predictable either which adds to its appeal. A Reader's Guide is included in the back of the book for book discussions.

I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was in no way obligated to write a positive review. Check out another of Meg Moseley's books, Gone South.

Runaway Saint

Sara Drexel and her husband, Finn, own their own agency specializing in letterpress printing, website design, and creating cards and stationary. Out of the blue, Sara's Aunt Bel is back in town after serving over 20 years as a missionary in Kazakhstan and Sara offers her a place to stay. Aunt Bel left for a summer when Sara was four and just never came back.  Why did she leave, what happened to Bel all those years, and why is she hiding a lifetime of secrets? Trying to reconnect with Bel and figure her out stirs up parts of Sara that startle her.

Well, probably opening up the book with "I'm thirty years old and I still believe in ghosts. I believe in ghosts because I have one....." was probably not the opening I was looking for that would compel me to continue reading but I did so because I have always trusted Thomas Nelson to publish materials in line with Christian thinking. I will also admit that there was just a hint of inappropriate language as well which disappointed me.

 The relationships are a bit odd and quirky.  Sara's mother brings to mind someone out of the hippie movement of the 60's but Sara's husband, Finn, is the character I loved. He rounds Sara out so beautifully and loves her unconditionally, realizing he can't be the one who heals her wounds.  The church they attend isn't traditional which is fine but there were questions surfacing after attending one of the services such as "is that your Jesus"? I think I get what the author was trying to say but I think it could be unclear to readers who may lean toward Jesus being who you make him to be and not who God says he is. Filled with secrets and things which haunt from the past, relationships, and healing, Runaway Saint by Lisa Samson was an interesting read and one that made me want to see how it all turned out.   Anyway, I did enjoy the book but would be cautious who I recommended it to.

I did receive this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was in no way obligate to leave a positive review. 

One of her best

This isn't the life Allison had planned but things don't always turn out as you plan. Her daughter is a grown woman and lives far away and her alcoholic husband left her even though she was certain God would heal their marriage, so Allison moves into the old log cabin home in the mountains of Idaho left to her by her Great Aunt Emma several years back. Allison has never been much of a collector nor has she kept memorabilia from her life. Emma left Allison box after box of items in the attic that reveal Emma had much more in common with Allison than she ever realized. Can Allison still be comforted and learn from the content of those boxes and the heartache her aunt had experienced? Healing comes from a number of unexpected places.

In some ways, there are two stories going on at the same time. Emma's story, which primarily takes place in the 1920s and 30s, and Allison's current day journey of healing, from her pain and disappointment, and her return to trusting God. The transitions between the time periods and the connection between the two are expertly done and easy to follow.

I have always enjoyed reading Robin Lee Hatcher's writings but she has addressed something in this novel that I don't know has been hit head on so well before. Allison felt certain God had promised to heal her marriage and then she felt God telling her to let go of her marriage. Why had God not kept his promise? Had she misunderstood either his promise or his direction?  Everyone has certainly felt that way at one time or another and the author does an excellent addressing that question. Knowing that Ms. Hatcher used experiences from her own life in this novel , walking a path similar to Allison's, makes it even a more compelling story.

One of her best yet, A Promise Kept addresses alcoholism, divorce, and searching for God through a beautiful story. I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review and was in no way obligated to write a positive review.

Carolina Gold

The Civil War is over.  Her father is gone.  Charlotte Fraser has only her rice plantation and an island cottage her father left her.  She is determined to put the pieces of her life back together in spite of the fact that little is left of her former life, her father's slaves are now free, and little help to be found.  She may just be able to make it if she can grow the rice her father was famous for, Carolina Gold.  So many obstacles stand in her way and she has a loan to repay or risk losing Fairhaven so Charlotte agrees to tutor two neighbor girls to help pay the taxes and loan but gets more than she bargained for.

I selected this book simply because of the Charleston, SC area setting, never remembering having read any other novels by Dorothy Love but I wasn't disappointed.  What I found was an author whose pen brings history to life and makes the reader feel as if she is part of the story as one who is learning to live in the aftermath of the Civil War when the southern way of life was totally turned upside down.  Ms. Love is an author I will be looking for in the future as historical fiction is my favorite.  I did receive this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review and was in no way obligated to leave a positive review.