Wednesday, September 28, 2011

There You'll Find Me by Jenny B Jones

I so wish Jenny B Jones would quit her day job so she could spend more time writing. Seriously. Those teens don't need her as a teacher. One or two books a year just isn't enough from this lady.


There You'll Find Me is the latest from Ms Jones. In this novel she crafts a story based on a minor character from a previous book, Save The Date. Finley Sinclair shines as a main character and solidifies that this author is one that I will read as long as she writes.

Finley Sinclair is a hotel empire heiress whose antics have garnered media attention. She's changed her ways though and plans to spend most of her senior year studying in Ireland. On the flight over she has a chance encounter with film star Beckett Rush. She's a little more than unimpressed by him and is happy to walk away from him when the plane lands. She arrives in her new town to the family that she's staying with, in a B&B. High school is pretty much the same for her there as it was in the states. Snobby girls are everywhere (it's universal!) One seems to have it out for her when she realizes that Finley is staying in the very B&B that Beckett is staying in.

Beckett has his own set of issues to deal with. He's got a wild child party image and is in the tabloids weekly with his exploits.

This book has so many layers in it and it's all woven together so well that when I finished it I let out a little satisfied sigh.

If you only read one YA book this year, please pick this one! Jenny B Jones has made her mark in the YA arena and while this novel isn't as snarky as some of her others it's sweet and heartwarming. Perfect.

Thanks Jenny, for this CLEAN READ.

This book was provided for review by Booksneeze & Thomas Nelson.

Purchase it here beginning on Oct 4th.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Wings of Promise by Bonnie Leon


It was a long wait, but Bonnie Leon is back with the second book in the Alaskan Skies series, Wings of Promise. I'm more in love with her writing after this volume than ever before. If you're looking for a book with love, loss, forgiveness, reunions and more then this is for you. We meet up again with female Alaskan bush pilot Kate Evans. Her reputation precedes her and she's still trying to break down walls as a female in a male dominated profession. Her relationship with Paul grows into something more serious and life seems almost too perfect for Kate.

We all know that when it seems perfect is when the bottom falls out. Kate is shaken to the core and has to make decisions that will push her forward or send her packing back to the mainland.

From the back cover:
Her spunk has always gotten her through tough times. But does she have what it takes to go the distance?
Kate Evans may be a woman in a man's profession, but as Alaskan bush pilots go, she's one of the best. If only her personal life wasn't so complicated. Torn between her affection for fellow pilot Mike Conlin and doctor Paul Anderson, Kate longs for clarity in her heart. But when a terrible tragedy occurs, her mind may be made up for her.
Full of high-flying adventure and tender personal moments, Wings of Promise will sweep you away to the Alaskan skies.
****

It's true! Heart pounding action is in the pages of this book. This was very hard to put down and I recommend it 100%

Thanks, Bonnie, for this CLEAN READ.

Purchase this book here
Learn more about Bonnie here

This book was provided by the author and Revell in exchange for my opinion of it. (And I love it!!)

Race Against Time by Kimberley and Kayla Woodhouse

Kimberley & Kayla Woodhouse write as a mother-daughter team different than any you've heard of before. Kayla is a young teen. Intrigued? Read on.

Kimberley Woodhouse is a wife, mother, writer, and musician approaching life with a positive outlook despite difficult circumstances. Her previous book, Welcome Home: Our Family's Journey to Extreme Joy, chronicles her daughter's extremely rare health issues and how the Woodhouses received an amazing gift through the ABC television program Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Kim and her husband have two children and live in Colorado.

Kayla Woodhouse is a teenage author whose life-altering medical condition (a nerve disorder that prevents her body from regulating its temperature or sensing pain) has not stopped her love for swimming and other activities.

About the book:
Anesia Naltsiine has made mistakes that have cost her--and her 13 year old daughter, Zoya--dearly. But no more. She will prove her worth as a mother and as a breeder of champion sprint racing dogs. Her kennel is so successful that buyers come from all over the world. So why does she still feel worthless?
Zoya misses the dad she never knew. All she wants is to follow in his footsteps as a champion sprint dog racer. But when she witnesses a murder in their town of North Pole, Alaska, she finds herself thrown into dangers and emotions she can't begin to understand.
Enter Sean Connelly, a new employee at the kennel with demons of his own. When he discovers macro-chips bearing military secrets implanted in the Naltsinne's dogs, a puzzle tracing back to the murder unfolds. Then strange accidents start happening; clearly someone wants Zoya silenced. Anesia tells her daughter it's not safe to race, but Zoya, angry with the world--and against God--takes off across dangerous Alaskan territory alone. Anesia and Sean must race against time to save the girl and themselves.

You can read more about this book and watch a video for it here. You can also pre-order it as it doesn't release for a few more weeks.

Thanks Kimberley and Kayla for this clean read and for this ARC copy.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Playing Hurt by Brian Goins

Playing Hurt by Brian Goins is a marriage book for men. Since it's geared towards men and is all about sports I don't feel that I can review this one without being biased against it. I hate sports. I mean REALLY hate sports. I opened this and was lost on the first page. Lost, not like confused, but lost like my mind immediately wandered elsewhere (oh hey, I should really paint my nails....is it time to start dinner yet?....I wonder if any of my stuff sold on eBay in the last half hour?). I could not focus on it at all. It's like my mind has an auto-shut off when it comes to sports.

That being said, I'll just tell you what the back of the book says and then you can decide for yourself if your man should read this one.



Back cover:
We admire people who play hurt, who finish the game when injured, sick, or falling apart. So why--when it comes to marriage--are we so quick to throw in the towel?

Playing Hurt is a Biblical playbook for marriage that will challenge ou to push forward even when your wife hurls an insult, hurts your pride, or disrespects you. Combining replays from Scripture, questions at the end of each chapter, and stories from his own marriage, Brian Goins inspires you to live out Ephesians 5:25 and "love your wife as Christ loved the church"--even if it means giving yourself up for her. Like a coach shouting from the sidelines, Goins demonstrates a never-give-up attitude that will motivate you to action and show what it means to play hurt so you can win at marriage.

By Kregel Publications, this book was provided for review by Litfuse.

Sweet Sanctuary by Sheila Walsh & Cindy Martinusen Coloma



Sweet Sanctuary is new from Thomas Nelson and is written by Sheila Walsh and Cindy Martinusen Coloma.


~From the back cover:

In tiny Cottage Cove, on the coast of Maine, Wren Evans is raising her gifted son, Charlie. A single mom, she's fought hard to give Charlie a stable, secure home life. When a prestigious music academy in Boston expresses interest in Charlie's talent, Wren is willing to move them again to make his dreams come true.


But Wren doesn't know that Charlie has been praying for her. And the answer to her son's prayers will change both of their lives. As Wren plans their move to Boston, life in Maine begins to fall apart. Her job is threatened with budget cuts, and Wren's grandmother, Ruth, arrives unnanounced, with an outlandish request.


Ruth wants the family gathered together one last time, at the summer home, where, years before, an accident shattered Wren's peaceful childhood. In the tumult, Wren finds a friend in handsome, kind-hearted local, Paul Callahan.


When the family gathers in Cottage Cove, old wounds will be healed, new love will blossom, and the innocent prayers of a child will be answered in a most unexpected way. ~


I've tried for over a month to get into this book. I can't do it. The story is almost too sappy and I can't connect with the characters. If I can put a book down and not think about it at all then it's one that I don't wish to continue reading.


This book was provided for review by the Booksneeze program.

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Blue Skies Tomorrow by Sarah Sundin

Blue Skies Tomorrow is the third in Sarah Sundin's Wings of Glory series. This volume takes us into the circa WWII life of Helen Carlisle, a war widow who's more happy than sad that her husband died in combat, but puts on the face of a grieving widow because she feels it's what's expected of her. When she meets up with Ray (the guy she crushed on for years when she was younger), she doesn't think anything could ever come of it. Her self esteem is shot because she was a victim of polio when she was a child and because her deceased husband was physically abusive to her. Helen lives with her in-laws and her almost-three year old son. Helen and Ray start dating and get a little hot and heavy, she ends it and he enlists in the army and heads overseas.

That's the beginning of the book. Parts of it were a little slow and other parts were a little fast (and heated). Parts of it were a little hard to pay attention to, like when there were "quotation marks" around "certain words" that didn't "need" to be there. It really slowed the reading down. Thankfully this only lasted a few chapters. Other parts of this book were loaded down with technical terms pertaining to war and aircrafts. I appreciate that the author did her research, but this information didn't add to the story at all and may have been best unwritten.

While I sympathized with Helen and the abuse that she lived through, I felt that she was too much of a doormat and wished she'd stand up for herself more in the beginning of the book. She seemed a little flaky, even while she was beginning a relationship with Ray.

I didn't really enjoy reading this book. It didn't seem real enough for me.

This book was provided for review by Litfuse and Revell.