Monday, June 30, 2014

Fast Paced Action Packed!

The book Firewall (FBI: Houston 1), by Diann Mills grabs your attention right from the start.  The story centers on the lives of Taryn Young, a computer wizard who has just gotten married after a whirlwind romance and is about to take off on her honeymoon, when a bomb kills many people and she becomes a prime suspect. 

Enter FBI agent Grayson Hall, who is assigned to determine who is the prime suspect and who committed this crime.  He wants to believe Taryn, and the book takes many twists and turns and is very action packed.  The book is also focuses on Taryn’s 3 year old godchild who is kidnaped. 

I don’t want to go into more of the story, but suffice it to say this was a book that was very difficult to put down and not want to keep reading.  We get a little peak at the workings of the FBI and the faith that Taryn struggles with in light of her many difficulties and strange events in her recent life. 

The book is very believable based on current situations occurring in our world today.  If you like action packed books, then this book is certainly for you.

I was provided this book by Tyndale House Publishers in exchange for an unbiased review.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Great Fatherly Advice!

Dear Son; A Father’s Advice on Being a Man was written by Dave Bruskas.  Dave is the father of four daughters.  So, it seemed a stretch that he had much to say about raising a son, but Dave lost a son 20 years ago to a congenital heart defect.  Besides the fact that Dave can also write about the man he would like to see his daughter’s marry.

This book covers a multitude of topics as the chapter titles are ~
Christian
Son
Brother
Young Man
Provide Citizen
Member
Husband
Father
Vessel
Mortal.











Here is a youtube clip of Dave speaking about his son.  Click here
 

This book is written from the heart.  It’s very personal as the style is conversational, as Dave is writing letters to his son.  He is asking the question, “What lessons would I teach my son about being the man God wants him to be?”  He touches on a myriad of subjects, from dating, purity, holiness, jobs, graduating, careers, parenthood and more.  This is not a sad book, but an encouraging book and one which will help you to raise your son, or find values you would like your daughter to find in her future husband.

I would highly recommend this book.

I received this book from Tyndale Press at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review.


Fun, Easy and Great Book!

What a crazy, comical and great book!  In this book, filled with stories and anecdotes about the presidents in our history, Daniel O’Brien gives us a fact filled - crazy, truth stretching view of our presidents.  The title of the book is a little irreverent, How to Fight Presidents: Defending Yourself Against the Bad***es Who Ran This Country.   And if you can through some of the rougher language, the book is a gem.  O'Brien does not hold back on his thoughts and words he uses to describes the presidents and their exploits.  The book helped me see the presidents as real people who had struggles they overcame.

O’Brien helped the various presidents to come alive a little more as he told stories about each, most of them were positive, although a few were about the negative exploits.  If you have someone who loves U.S. history; and thinks they know everything about the presidents, this would be a great present.  Sit back and listen to their stories.

I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.

Blogging for Books - Free Books in Exchange for an Honest Review

Friday, June 27, 2014

RIVETING!!

I literally could not stop reading this book.  I have never been to war, but gained a greater appreciation of a different aspect of war.  Dr. W. Lee Warren has written an amazing book, with an equally revealing title, No Place to Hide: A Brain Surgeon's Long Journey Home from the Iraq War.

The book focuses on Dr. Warren’s time in Iraq as a neurosurgeon.  He writes with a vulnerability and power about his experiences and his emotions and thoughts about the various trials he experienced.  He also speaks openly about his marriage which would ultimately end in divorce, his feelings about his children and what it meant to serve his country.

Dr. Warren openly discusses through personal stories the struggles he had sleeping and the toll the war took on his entire being; spiritual, emotional, physical and mental.  The book is about good and evil, hope and victory juxtaposed with despair and loss.

The title says it all, there was no place to hide during his time in Iraq.  You don’t want to miss this book.  It’s riveting!  If I could, I would give this 10 out of 5 stars!

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson 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.

Monday, June 23, 2014

Great Resource

This was a great opportunity to get familiar with books which are coming out.  What a great resource to have.  I wish others would do the same.  This would take so much guess work out of buying books I don't want.  This is an excellent tool to help me to know which books I want to request through Netgalley or from the publishers directly for review.

This reminded me of reading a Readers Digest version.  There are all excerpts of books.


Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Very Inspiring from Pope Francis

I was not sure what I was going to receive when I requested this book.  The book, Lumen Fidei - The Light of Faith is a a short, but very deep reading from Pope Francis.  I thought it would be good for me to read this and I found his writing to be both personal and rich in theology.

This writing is called a Papal encyclical.  A Papal encyclical, is a letter, usually treating some aspect of Catholic doctrine, sent by the Pope.  Papal encyclicals usually take the form of a Papal brief due to their more personal nature as opposed to the formal Papal bull. Papal encyclicals are so famous that the term encyclical is used almost exclusively for those sent out by the Pope. The title of the encyclical is usually taken from its first few words.

The title of the encyclical is The Light of Faith and Pope Francis seeks to teach us about the life of Jesus, who is the light of the world.

This was a good read, which can be used as a devotional as well.

I received this book for free through the Blogging for Books program, in exchange for an honest review.

Blogging for Books - Free Books in Exchange for an Honest Review

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

An Exciting Book for Teen Boys

Below the Surface is the third book in the Code of Silence series, created by author, Tim Shoemaker.  While this is the third in the series, and I had not read the previous books, this was easy to read and follow without thinking I was missing something. 

This series fits into an important genre, middle school boys adventure books.  As such, Tim Shoemaker has done an excellent job of weaving life and Christian principles into the story, not making it preachy, but a book filled with life lessons. 

The story focuses on four youth about to enter high school, Gordy, Hiro, Lunk and Cooper.  They go on a vacation and a prank goes bad and they think they have witnessed a murder.  And the adventure begins.  The book moves at a fast pace and Shoemaker does a good job helping us to know each of the characters and their needs. 

This would be a good book for boys to read, along with the first two books in the series, Code of Silence and Back Before Dark.

I received this book for free from BookLookBloggers in exchange for an honest review.

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Excellent Raw Book!

Luke Wordley has scored with his debut novel called, The Fight.  This is a story about boxing, but it goes much deeper than that.  It’s a story about grace, forgiveness, redemption, anger, loss and the power of God through prayer holds all this together.

The book focuses on a young man who has a troubled childhood.  His father died and his mother became an alcoholic and trouble began for Samuel Pennington.  People could see great potential in him, and just as he was about to hit his stride, Sam would be his own worst enemy; and trouble would meet him head on.

Then Sam meets Jerry Ambrose, a professional boxing trainer.  He and his wife Gloria are Christians and seek to help Sam.  Although Jerry and Gloria have a history which is not all bright and rosy. 

In the end, this is a story about redemption for so many different characters and in so many different ways.  This was book was difficult to put down.  I really enjoyed the book; and the book was not focused solely on boxing.  That was just a product of the story. 

The end of the book comes as a surprise, but I must admit I thought the book had an abrupt ending, which I didn’t care for.  But overall, this was an excellent book!  This would be a great Father’s Day present and a great book for young adults and teens.

I received a copy of The Fight from it's publisher, Tyndale House, in exchange for a review. I was not required to write a positive review.

Friday, June 06, 2014

Surprisingly Good Read!

Maybe that's a strange title to a book, Surprisingly Good Book!  But, I was very pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed and benefited from reading this book.  I am not a diet person nor one who lives a more natural lifestyle, yet there was something about this book that intrigued me.  John Durant has written a very informative book entitled, The Paleo Manifesto. 

I was totally unaware of the paleo diet movement, so I felt it this book would either be liked or I would find it very boring.  I liked it.  So, if you are looking for a book on how to diet, this is not for you.  Durant divided his book into three parts ~

1.  Origins (the past)
2.  Here and Now (the present)
3.  Visions (the future)

I appreciated the way John spoke about diet, not making it sound like a diet and nutrition book.  He opened my eyes to some of my misconceptions about certain foods.  Of course, his comments about the protein and benefits of eating insects will not move me to insect eating (unless that’s the only choice).

I enjoyed sections about fasting, counting calories, eating earth (yum) and exercises.  Even his discussion about thermoregulation was fascinating. 

Overall, if you are interested in learning more about being healthy from a more natural standpoint, this would be a good starting read.  It was not as difficult to read as I expected.  d it!

I received this book free of charge from "Blogging for Books" in return for an honest review.

Blogging for Books - Free Books in Exchange for an Honest Review

Fun Kids Devotional

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