Hello, Sisters!
Sorry that I've not kept up the Reading Circle!! It's been a rather insane few months trying to get some things done around here. And I spent a lot of time working on that SS cookbook from Cycle 4! Boy! That ended up taking up a whole lot more time than I'd thought it would. Anyway......
the garden is planted, the flowers potted and the first day of summer is here! So, even though I should be outside weeding and working on a couple other projects, I've decided that I really wanted to come and share some reading treasures I have just finished up! I'm also going to share some suggestions that I think some of you would really enjoy should you find yourselves wanting to find something to read while on vacation or just taking a day to 'veg'! My hope is that you all will add your own suggestions and that you'll help me keep this post going over the coming months. I'm thinking perhaps we'll revive our monthly book choice and discussion once the cooler weather chases everyone indoors again come Sept. or Oct. Whaddayathink?
This time of year, most of my reading is done late at night. There is just too much other stuff going on to find time to read during the day. Unless, of course, it is really hot and humid! Then it's just too much work to do anything much but sit down with a nice tall glass of ice tea and enjoy losing myself in the pleasures of a great book. Having said that, let me share 2 absolute treasures I just finished in the last 2 weeks! I'd be hard pressed to tell you which of these I recommend over the other. They were both that good, IMHO! So here you go.....
1 ~ "The Seat Beside Me" by Nancy Moser
I've talked here before about this author and I have strongly recommended readin ANY of her books. HOWEVER - I have to say that this is one of the most powerful books I have read in quite some time. Yes, she is a Christian writer and always has a message! But the way she gets her message across is so powerful that I absolutely have her at the very top of my recommendation list! I finished this book over the weekend and I have thought about little else since then. I'll share a blurb I found on the internet that does a much better job of describing this book than I ever could. Just know this. Once you sit down and start reading this one, you won't be able to turn the pages fast enough for wanting to know HOW the lives of these people changes. Here's the blurb and a little of what Nancy shared about writing the book -
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THE SEAT BESIDE ME:
Ten strangers are seated next to each other on a plane. When take-off
is delayed, they become acquainted over small talk and pretzels. But
then their lives are linked forever when the plane crashes in an icy
river. Some die---and some don't. And one of them becomes a hero. Is it
chance or divine design? Multnomah Publishers | |
BEHIND THE STORY: I finished the final edit of this book the
Friday before 9/11. Though this book is not about terrorism, the
heroics and challenges of the survivors are the same. Yet the
message-life-lesson readers take from the book is not what I thought
they’d zero in on. What will you take from it? By the way, this is the
book of my heart. I’ve sent it to Denzel Washingon, wanting him to
direct and star in it. Hey, what have I got to lose?
I will tell you that at one point toward the end of this book, I cried my eyes out! The 'Hero's' widow is paid such a wonderful compliment as the plane taking her to identify her husbands remains lands. I, too, wanted to stand and applaud this very gracious woman and what her husand did. I had to remind myself that is was JUST a story! BUT, it could truly be about someone we encounter as we travel along life's paths! Absolutely a MUST read!!
I have strongly recommended Nancy Moser's books to you in the past. 'The Mustard Seed' series was my introduction to this wonderful author. A month or so ago, I finished the 'Sister Circle Series' and highly recommend it, too. I know ONE of you had mentioned that series earlier. Sorry that I can't remember WHO suggested it! If you recognize yourself as that person, THANK YOU, very much! Awesome books!!! Last night I started another of her books called 'Crossroad'. I know it's going to be another great read! I discovered a family in this book that I was first introduced to in the 'The Mustard Seed Series'!! What a shock that was. NO where is it mentioned that old characters from a previous book will appear! Here's the link to her books and where I found the blurb I posted!
http://www.nancymoser.com/books.cfm
2 ~ "They Shall See God" by Athol Dickson
Here is another author I have recommended to all of you in the past! The book I recommended then was called "River Rising". I love it when, in the back of a book, they list some of the author's other novels. In this book, I saw the title "They Shall See God" and I was so sure I'd read it before. I even thought I had it in my own collection. Not!! I wanted to have another look at the book to refresh my memory and so I headed up to the library. My library doesn't have a copy but were more than happy to find one for me. Well, I knew as soon as I read the back cover I had NOT previously read it! Wow! How I ever missed this book is beyond me! It is awesome!! Here's a blurb -
Little Katie O'Connor is a Christian. Her very best friend Ruth Gold is a Jew. The girls' eyewitness testimony sends a Jewish man to Louisiana's infamous Angola prison for the murder of an evangelist.
Now it's twenty-five years later, the killer is out, and people are dying again in the strangest ways. Will Kate and Ruth be next?
Torn apart in childhood by ancient animosities beyond their understanding, Ruth has become an embittered rabbi and Kate a lonely widow. After cowering for a quarter century behind secret walls of fear and anger, they can no longer elude the past's unfinished business.
To survive, these very different women must reach out to each other in spite of mayhem and mistrust that
shrouds one vital truth: Sometimes the most dangerous of enemies crouches just inside the human heart.
You will NEVER guess how this book ends!! And what a life lesson we can all learn from it! This author has such a wonderful and unique style of writing and I am definitely going to be reading ore of HIS books over the summer! Here's a link to find his books so you can read more about them -
http://www.atholdickson.com/books.html
3 ~ 'Amber Morn' by Brandilyn Collins
'The whole thing couldn’t have taken more than sixty seconds.'
'Bailey hung on to the counter, dazed. If she let go, she’d collapse—and the twitching fingers of the gunman would pull the trigger. The rest of her group huddled in frozen shock.'
'Dear God, help us! Tell me this is a dream...'
'The shooter’s teeth clenched. "Anybody who moves is dead."'
'On a beautiful Saturday morning the nationally read "Scenes and Beans" bloggers gather at Java Joint for a special celebration. Chaos erupts when three gunmen burst in and take them all hostage. One person is shot and dumped outside.
Police Chief Vince Edwards must negotiate with the desperate trio. The gunmen insist on communicating through the “comments” section of the blog—so all the world can hear their story. What they demand, Vince can’t possibly provide. But if he doesn’t, over a dozen beloved
Kanner Lake citizens will die...'
I'm not sure if I've ever mentioned this author to any of you in the SS Reading Circle. I stumbled across one of her books a couple years ago and was won over immediately. She's a mystery writer and her Christian messages are a tad more subtle. But definitely powerful! 'Amber Morn' is the last of her 4 book 'Kanner Lake' series! The first series I read by her was the 'Chelsea Adams' and the second was 'Hidden Faces'. Each of these series of books will literally keep you sitting on the edge of your seat and you'll wonder if there is any way to read faster so you can turn the pages faster! roflol Again, I'll post a link to her other books so you can read more!
http://www.brandilyncollins.com/suspense.html
OK ladies! I realize this is a very, very long post! But I do hope some of you might be able to find some truly enjoyable summer reading in this list! ANY of these books is a treasure. Of course, that is just MHO!!
Now it's your turn!! Tell us what YOU are reading and what YOU would recommend for some summer relaxation!!
I'll be back with more recommendations as I happen upon them!
Happy Reading!!!!