The Copper Sign by Katia Fox

I must admit that when I received this lengthy tome -630 pages, translated from German- I was wondering why, exactly I had chosen this book to review.  It must have been the book's description: "England 1161: Ellen, a blacksmith's daughter desires to become a swordsmith, but for a girl this male profession is unimaginable...."  You had me at England 1161.  I love all things Middle Ages, historical and fantasy.  I was an avid attender at Renaissance Fairs until my children were old enough that I would have to pay the exorbitant rates. I have a hardback, collector's edition of King Arthur tales.  I was drawn to The Copper Sign.  But, it's size and those fateful words, "translated from German", made me put it to the back of my to be read pile.  So, I finally pulled it out a few days ago and was very pleasantly surprised.

Ellen is a wonderful heroine.  She's brave and bold and a woman living in a man's world.  Her plight captures the reader immediately.  Her misfortune at times seems a bit overdone. But, this is the Middle Ages.  Life was quite dangerous and death a close companion.  Her adventures certainly keep the reader hanging on to know what will happen.  There are some great historical tidbits about the time period and some wonderful glimpses of daily life during the Middle Ages.  And at the end of the story, Ellen has completed not only a physical journey but an emotional one of sorts.  Without giving anything away, I can say she grows as a character,

There were a few things that detracted from the story.  The wording was occasionally very stilted, sounding more like a report than a novel.  I'm pretty sure this was because of the translation.  The author's original work in German may have "felt" very different.  There is quite a bit of graphic violence.  This is typical of the time period.  So, while I would have rather not read it, I can understand why it was there.  There are also a few sexual encounters.  For the most part, these are also related in a dry manner, almost like reporting, and are not very graphic.

I would give this one a 4 star rating and an R for content.

I received a free copy of this book from Amazon for review purposes.  All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

No Greater Love by Levi Benkert and Candy Chand

No Greater Love is a memoir of one man's and one family's journey- physical and spiritual- to Ethiopia to care for unwanted orphans.  When Levi Benkert, a successful businessman, first received a call to travel to Ethiopia to help with an orphanage for "cursed" children who had been rescued from death, he planned to refuse.  Little did he know that not only would he travel to Ethiopia for this short term trip, but his family would also relocate to Ethiopia to work to save the orphans.

Levi Benkert, along with Candy Chand, shares this memoir of his journey.  From struggling in a failing business, to making his own plans, to learning to trust God through all, this is truly a spiritual journey as well as a physical one.  This is a moving retelling of Levi's story.  With an easy, conversational tone, it was easy to read and difficult to put down.  I was moved to hear of the plight of these "cursed" orphans.  I was inspired by the faith of Levi and his wife as they sought to trust God in the midst of some difficult times.  And I was reminded, once again, to listen to hear God's call for my own life.

I give this one a strong 4, inspirational stars and a G rating.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes.  All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Through Rushing Water by Catherine Richmond

I will admit that I started this book with some trepidation.  The last few review books I've read haven't been the greatest.  When I began Through Rushing Water, I didn't think it was going to be that great either.  It seemed sort of dry, the language style somewhat stiff,  I was quickly (and gratefully) proved wrong.

When Sophia is jilted by the future congressman she thinks will become her husband, she leaves the women's college where she is teaching to become a missionary.  That doesn't work out as planned either.  Instead of going to China as a missionary (close to Russia, the land of her birth), she is headed to an Indian agency in Dakota to be a teacher.  Through Sophia's work with the Indians, she learns about trusting God and relying on His plan through her life.  And, she falls in love with Will, the agency carpenter.

Sophia is a wonderful heroine.  She's beautiful and spunky and full of life.  Will is dashing and gentlemanly, but not so perfect as to be unbelievable.  The writing style, almost more like reporting than a story at times, turned me off at first; but I ended up really enjoying it as something fresh and different in a story.  There is a hint of romance, but the book has so much more to offer than just a romance.  This one turned out to be hard to put down and very moving.  The historical fiction buff in me also loved the piece at the end telling the "true" story of this Indian agency and the chief of the Ponca tribe.

I give this one a rare 5 stars.  I'd rate it PG and consider it good reading for most anyone.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  All opinions are entirely my own.

Missed Periods and Other Grammar Scares by Jenny Baranick

Doesn't the title just grab you?  It grabbed me.  I'm an English grammar buff.  I admit it.  Nothing drives me crazier than the whole its/it's or your/you're thing.  I can't stand to see a run on sentence.  And I love proper punctuation.  Yes, I even enjoy diagramming sentences.  So a FUN grammar book was right up my alley.

I will admit the humor here is a little raunchy.  From the title, you can anticipate the sexual innuendo that runs rampant through this unusual grammar book.  But, it is still a humorous look at the ins and outs of English grammar.  With chapters such as "Know Thyself: Spelling" and "I Do : Apostrophes" this grammar guide will charm most college students who will find it's crude humor and edgy attitude very appealing.

If you are a little put off by crude humor and sexual innuendo, avoid this grammar guide and stick with the more traditional college textbook.  But, if you aren't crazy about that grammar class you have to pass, and you're looking for an easy to understand guide that has all the right rules but doesn't take itself too seriously, you can find it here: Missed Periods and Other Grammar Scares.

I give this one a PG-13 rating (unusual for a textbook, I know).  And I'll give it a strong 4 stars for reading quality.  I could recommend this one!

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes.  All opinions are entirely my own.

Firestorm by Lisa Tawn Bergren

Firestorm by Lisa Tawn Bergren is the 6th book in her Full Circle series.  I haven't read the previous books in the series.  I picked this one up because I liked the description and have enjoyed Lisa Tawn Bergren's Christian fiction in the past.

In Firestorm, Reyne Oldre, a fire scientist, meets Logan McCabe, a smokejumper.  Reyne has never desired to have a relationship with a forest fire fighter because Reyne is still fighting her own fears of the forest fires.  She was a captain of a fire team that lost several members in a huge forest fire. But as Reyne and Logan develop a relationship, Reyne has to learn to trust God and come face to face with her fears of the fire.

This was a light easy read.  Don't read it looking for lots of depth.  The characters are enjoyable.  The story is interesting.  I didn't have any problems reading this one without having read the previous books in the series.  I enjoyed Reyne and Logan's relationship. There are some times that things seem to be dragged out.  Just when you think things are resolved for our hero and heroine, it is not to be.  There are some sort of sappy parts.  Logan is quite the romantic and seems a little too perfect sometimes.  But, overall, it is an enjoyable, light read.

At the end of the novel, there is a short novella, Sandcastles.  I thought it was just going to b a preview into the next book.  But, it is infact a stand alone novella.  It follows the story of Matt, one of the secondary characters in Firestorm, as he heads into a relationship for the first time after the death of his wife.  The story moved a little too quickly.  But, I was interested in knowing what was going to happen to Matt and his daughter after Firestorm, so it was a good, quick read.

I give this one a 3.5 stars and a G rating for a good, clean read.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Two for Two: Another Disappointing Review Read

Her Majesty's Will by David Blixt is a (supposedly) humorous, fictional tale of William Shakespeare and his short stint as a spy attempting to protect the queen.  Shakespeare and his friend, Kit (Christopher Marlowe) uncover a plot by the supporters of Mary, Queen of Scots, to kill Queen Elizabeth.  Kit and Will have a rousing adventure while trying to warn the correct people and save the queen.

Not much is known about parts of Shakespeare's life. And the events that have remained a mystery continue to be of interest to Shakespeare fans today. Her Majesty's Will draws on actual events and characters of the day to weave a tale of what might have been.

As a fan of any historical fiction, I was intrigued by what might have been Shakespeare's former life.  I like a tale that attempts to offer a good story woven around actual facts and people.  I'm even okay with a stretch in conjecture.  So, the description of this book drew me in, intrigued me.

Unfortunately, the expectation was better than the reality.  The story used the rambling language common to the times.  Even though it was Modern English and not Elizabethan, the rambling story was sometimes hard to follow.  True to Shakespeare's plays, this tale was filled with crude humor and references.  Perhaps I'm just prudish, but it was a little much.  That, along with multiple references to an intimate relationship between Kit and Will made this a very crude tale.

I did make it through this one.  But, I would give it a two star rating (and that's being generous).  And I would give it an R rating for the language and crude humor.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes.  All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Ship of Dreams by Brenda Hiatt

This read was one of those free Kindle reads that turned out to be a very pleasant surprise.

The story is about Della, daughter of an Irish immigrant living in San Francisco in the early 1900s.  Unjustly accused of a crime, Della flees her home and pretends marriage to the heir of a well off business from New York in order to board a chip to freedom.  On the ship, their relationship begins to develop; but a hurricane will  endanger the ship, posing a threat to their lives and their love.

I had thoroughly enjoyed this read.  Della was a great heroine and Kent and great hero.  The story line was god.  The characters were real and believable.  The action was rousing.  There were a few intimate scenes, but these were not gratuitous and over done.  And then I finished the story, already pretty impressed; and I discovered that the whole thing was based on true, historical facts.  The incident of the sinking of the ship in the hurricane and the wealthy honeymooners all found aboard the vessel were all true!  I love it when I read a book that I feel is a good historical read; and then find, to my surprise, that the event actually happened!

I give this one a strong four stars.  I would give it an R rating for the scenes of intimacy.  But, again, I didn't feel these were gratuitous.  And there were only a few.  I think you could easily read the book for the enjoyment of the historical fiction and overlook those bits.

Crazy Dangerous by Andrew Klavan

Crazy Dangerous is one of those marketed to young adult books that I enjoyed.

The story is told in first person by Sam Hopkins, a preacher's kid. Sam's story is that he got mixed up with some thugs from his high school, befriended a crazy girl, and learned about impending disaster in time to save the whole town.  It's packed with action and a thrill of a ride.

I wasn't sure I was going to like this one.  It was awfully dark to be a young adult book.  With lots of talk of demons and dark prophecies, I had pretty much decided I wouldn't let my young adults read it.  But, there was lots of edge of your seat action and adventure- enough to keep reading to finish the book in one night.  And, even though, the book was quite dark, there were lots of good lessons and conversation points for young adults here.

The characters were well developed and interesting.  The story line was intriguing and catching.  The action was non-stop.  It was an easy read for me and would probably be just the speed for a young adult.  Besides my slight caution about the dark feel of the book, there isn't much negative to say about this one.

I give it a strong 4 stars and a PG-13 rating for some dark subject matter.

I received a free copy of this book from BookSneeze for review purposes. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Giving Up on a Read

There are not many times that I give up on a read- especially one I am supposed to review for a publisher.  But, I will admit defeat on this latest read.

I was reading The Orphanmaster by Jean Zimmerman.  The book's description:

From a debut novelist, a gripping historical thriller and rousing love story set in seventeenth-century Manhattan

It's 1663 in the tiny, hardscrabble Dutch colony of New Amsterdam, now present-day southern Manhattan. Orphan children are going missing, and among those looking into the mysterious state of affairs are a quick-witted twenty-two-year-old trader, Blandine von Couvering, herself an orphan, and a dashing British spy named Edward Drummond.

Suspects abound, including the governor's wealthy nephew, a green-eyed aristocrat with decadent tastes; an Algonquin trapper who may be possessed by a demon that turns people into cannibals; and the colony's own corrupt and conflicted orphanmaster. Both the search for the killer and Edward and Blandine's newfound romance are endangered, however, when Blandine is accused of being a witch and Edward is sentenced to hang for espionage. Meanwhile, war looms as the English king plans to wrest control of the colony.

Jean Zimmerman brings New Amsterdam and its surrounding wilderness alive for modern-day readers with exacting period detail. Lively, fast paced, and full of colorful characters, The Orphanmaster is a dramatic page-turner that will appeal to fans of Hilary Mantel and Geraldine Brooks.

I have to admit that it sounded appealing.  Mystery, intrigue, the early settlers in America, a touch of romance.  I was drawn in.

I made it through the prologue and two chapters.  I just couldn't do anymore.  The book is VERY dark.  Within those first pages, there were 2 descriptions of horrific violence, some mild descriptive violence, 2 descriptions of sexual attack, mistreatment of children...  

I felt like it was a combination of a James Patterson novel and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.  But, at least those have some semblance of normalcy at the beginning usually to draw me in before I'm horrified with the graphic violence.

Call me a prude.  Call me a quitter.  But, I just can't make it through this one.  Sorry.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.  All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

The Search Committee by Tim Owens

I was intrigued by the description of  The Search Committee.  It's the fictional tale of a search committee from a Presbyterian church on the hunt for a new permanent pastor.  But, it is more than just the tale of the adventures they face on the road to find a new pastor.  It's also the tale of each of their individual lives.

There were several things I liked about this read.  It is set in a small town in North Carolina.  I recognized the names of several of the places that the committee visited in their pastor search.  I'm a member of a Presbyterian church, and that was the denomination of the church in this story.  I thought that the selections from the Confessions and Book of Church Order at the beginning of each chapter were a nice touch.  I also like books that take a large group and tell about them as a whole while further telling of the individual members.  That's an interesting style of writing, and I enjoy it.

Unfortunately there were also several things I really didn't like.  It was a little slow at the beginning, and I had a hard time getting into the story.  Some of the characters seemed really well developed, and I really felt as if I knew them, while some remained rather flat-even though they were main characters.  The whole theology of the book was pretty liberal challenging the literal authority of Scripture and tending toward a "feel good" theology.  This may not be a problem for some readers, and if I hadn't picked it up as "Christian fiction," it probably wouldn't bother me.  But, if a book is called Christian, I want it to be Christian.  Otherwise, just market it to the secular market, and don't call it Christian.  It's just a pet peeve of mine.

I would rate this one as a 3 star.  I'm not really sure I'd recommend it, and I'm pretty sure I wouldn't choose to reread it.  I would give it a PG rating for some adult situations that are discussed.

The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis

I love to read C.S. Lewis repeatedly.  No matter how many times I read his writings over and over, I can always seem to pick up something that I didn't catch before.

I had never read The Great Divorce.  So, in my quest to eventually read all things Lewis, I picked up a used copy and read it.

Like some of Lewis's other works, there is enough meat in this read to satisfy a deep theologian with lofty thoughts and enough simplicity so that even the most untrained lay person (meaning more myself) can find nuggets to grasp.  Some of my favorite quotes/passages from the book:




“That is what mortals misunderstand. They say of temporal suffering, ‘no future bliss can make up for it,’ not knowing that Heaven, once attained, will work backwards and turn even that agony into a glory.”


“You cannot love a fellow-creature fully till you love God.”


"There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, in the end, "Thy will be done." All that are in hell, choose it. Without that self-choice there could be no hell."


“There is but one good; that is God. Everything else is good when it looks to Him and bad when it turns from Him.” 


“There have been men before … who got so interested in proving the existence of God that they came to care nothing for God himself… as if the good Lord had nothing to do but to exist. There have been some who were so preoccupied with spreading Christianity that they never gave a thought to Christ.”