A Time to Dance by Karen Kingsbury

Karen Kingsbury is an amazing Christian author who writes stellar fiction, and in A Time to Dance, she does not disappoint! Marriage, and relationships in general, can be both rewarding and challenging. It is often tough to navigate the path from young, fresh, newly married and “in love,” to a long-term, mundane, everyday married life with challenges, children, work and activities. Kingsbury shows us the importance of putting first things first ~ God, then marriage, then family and so on. It is far too easy to take our marriage and our spouse for granted, rather than to continually focus our time and energy into keeping it fresh and thriving. The truth is that even “perfect” couples have issues, problems and struggles in their marriages.

Can a marriage be saved? Does blaming ever get us anywhere? Can one person make a difference? Can pain, loneliness, distrust and anger be overcome? Does any of it really matter? Marriage takes work. It takes commitment. It takes active (not feeling) love. Kingsbury shows us deftly that it takes all of these and more. It takes forgiveness – forgiveness of others and sometimes self. And it even takes A Time to Dance.

This book was provided to me for review by Thomas Nelson Publishers.

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A Time to Dance

Karen Kingsbury

Karen Kingsbury’s celebrated series that shows the depth, passion and power of marriage.

A Time to Dance - John and Abby were the perfect couple with the perfect family. But on the verge of an affair, John is no more the man Abby married than she is the bride of his dreams. So they decide to divorce. But when they gather their children to tell them the news, their daughter announces she’s getting married.

Determined not to ruin Nicole's happiness, Abby and John agree to postpone their divorce. But as the wedding nears, they wonder: is it possible to still find joy and perhaps the time…to dance?

Love on a Dime ~ by Cara Lynn James

If you’re looking to add to your summer or beach reading list, this book should definitely be on it! Author Cara Lynn James has written a positively delightful debut novel, and Love on a Dime is the first in the Ladies of Summerhill series. It was fun, light, humorous and easy, but it was also well written and had great object lessons. The characters were well-developed and likeable. The story was charming and intriguing, and moved along at a comfortable, yet quick pace.

Love on a Dime was thoroughly enjoyable. I simply did not want to put it down. I really liked the characters and was even a bit disappointed when it ended, because I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to them. I can’t wait to meet them again in the other books of the series, and am eagerly anticipating the release of the other books in the series! Cara Lynn James is definitely an author to keep an eye on for future good books. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical, Christian, romantic fiction. I assure you, it does not disappoint!

This book was provided to me for review by Thomas Nelson Publishers.

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Love on a Dime

Cara Lynn James

Turn of the century novelist Lilly Westbrook learns that being faithful to her calling means more than just putting pen to paper.

It's the summer of 1899 in Newport, Rhode Island, and Lilly Westbrook is struggling to conceal her career from family and friends because of the stigma attached to dime novels. Lilly feels good about her secret—after all, she’s enlightening working class girls with her books and honoring God by using her talents to His glory.

But her secret is threatened when Jackson Grail, a former suitor, becomes Lilly's new publisher. He's determined to revive his floundering publishing house by maximizing their most promising--and most secretive--author. His plan? Find “Fannie Cole” and convince her to go public.

When a gossip columnist discovers Lilly’s true identity, she finds that being faithful to her calling involves more than just putting pen to paper. It requires that she stand up for her faith and for herself, no matter the consequences.

They Almost Always Come Home ~ by Cynthia Ruchti

This is a blog tour of a fantastic book, by first time novelist Cynthia Ruchti. They Almost Always Come Home is a stellar debut novel. It is deep, thought provoking, humorous and wonderfully complex. It is one of those rare books that is a page turner and it will stay with you long after you finish. I highly recommend They Almost Always Come Home and look forward to more books from this talented author.

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About the Book:

(Wausau, WI) – At the foundation of each relationship resides the need to know love can survive even when feelings fade. In Cynthia Ruchti’s debut novel, They Almost Always Come Home, readers feel the desperation of this foundational yearning in a marriage clearly pulling loose from its moorings. Compounded by other issues—an unrewarding career and mismatched dreams—it’s enough to drive a man into the arms of the Canadian wilderness. When Greg Holden doesn’t return home from a wilderness canoe trip, his wife Libby wrestles with survivor guilt, a new layer of grief, and the belief that she was supposed to know how to fix her marriage. She planned to leave him—but how can she leave a man who’s no longer there? He was supposed to go fishing, not missing.

Libby has to find him before she can discover how their marriage ends. She plunges into the wilderness on an adventurous and risky manhunt, unsure what she will do if she finds him…or if she doesn’t. She expects to meet hardship, discomfort, and danger in the wilderness. She doesn’t expect to face the stark reality of her spiritual longing and a faint, but steady pulse that promises hope for reviving her marriage. If Greg’s still alive.

They Almost Always Come Home provides a glimpse into common, however uncomfortable, marital conflicts. Cynthia weaves a page-turning story, suspense building scene by scene. Her characters mirror ordinary people, living real-to-life situations, allowing readers to relate and sort through a myriad of emotions and life decisions. If fiction can contain adventure, riveting self-awareness, and romance all between the same covers, this is the book!

About the Author:

Cynthia Ruchti writes stories of “hope that glows in the dark.” She writes and produces The Heartbeat of the Home, a syndicated drama/devotional radio broadcast, and is editor for the ministry’s Backyard Friends magazine. She also serves as current president of American Christian Fiction Writers. Cynthia married her childhood sweetheart, who tells his own tales of wilderness adventures.

The Interview:

1. How would you describe your book?

The tagline for the book is “She’d leave her husband…if she could find him.”

When Libby’s husband Greg doesn’t return from a two-week canoe trip to the Canadian wilderness, the authorities write off his disappearance as an unhappy husband’s escape from an oatmeal marriage and mind-numbing career. Their marriage might have survived if their daughter Lacey hadn’t died and if Greg hadn’t been responsible. Libby enlists the aid of her wilderness-savvy father-in-law and her faith-walking best friend to help her search for clues to her husband’s disappearance. What the trio discovers in the wilderness search upends Libby’s assumptions about her husband and rearranges her faith.

It’s my prayer that this fictional adventure story and emotional journey will reveal its own hope-laden clues for those struggling to survive or longing to exit what they believe are uninspiring marriages. How can a woman survive a season or a lifetime when she finds it difficult to like the man she loves?

2. How were you different as a writer and as a person when you finished writing They Almost Always Come Home?

This book changed me in a profound way. It forced me to take a more honest look at myself and my reactions to crises so I could write Libby’s character with authenticity. Libby is a composite of many women. I haven’t experienced what she did, but I identify with some of her struggles and longings, as I hope my readers will. I see my friends in her eyes and know that her tears aren’t hers alone. Her shining moments feed my courage. Libby speaks for me and for many others when she discovers that she is stronger than she realized and weaker than she wanted to admit.

Writing her story was a journey for the author as much as for the character.

3. What did you feel the tug on your heart to become a writer?

My journey toward a lifetime of writing began by reading books that stirred me, changed me, convinced me that imagination is a gift from an imaginative Creator. As a child, I read when I should have been sleeping…and still do. I couldn’t wait for the BookMobile (library on wheels) to pull up in front of the post office in our small town and open its arms to me. Somewhere between the pages of a book, my heart warmed to the idea that one day I too might tell stories that made readers stay up past their bedtimes.

4. What books line your bookshelves?

My bookshelves—don’t ask how many!—hold a wide variety of genres. The collection expands faster than a good yeast dough. I’m a mood reader, grabbing a light comedy one day and a literarily rich work the next. Although I appreciate well-written nonfiction, I gravitate toward an emotionally engaging contemporary women’s fiction story.

Something Extra From the Author’s Heart:

Ten years ago, my husband almost didn’t come home. His canoe adventure with our son Matt soured on Day Two when Bill grew violently ill from what we presume was either pancreatitis or a gall bladder attack. He’s an insulin-dependent diabetic, so any grave illness is a threat. One in the middle of the Canadian wilderness is morgue material.

With no satellite phone with which to call for help, Matt took turns caring for his father and watching the shore for other canoeists happening past their hastily constructed campsite. The few other canoes were headed deeper into the remote areas of the park, not on their way out. None had a satellite phone. And none of them were doctors.

As my husband grew sicker, his diabetes went nuclear. He couldn’t eat, yet needed insulin because his liver thought it should help out by dumping vast quantities of sugar into his system. Even in a hospital setting, the situation would have been difficult to control, and the nearest hospital was light years away across vast stretches of water and woodland, through peopleless, roadless wilderness.

Our son stretched a yellow tarp across the rocks on shore and wrote S.O.S. with charcoal from a dead fire. He scratched out countless notes on pieces of notebook paper torn from their trip journal:

Send rescue! My dad is deathly ill.

Read the rest of the story at the KCWC BLOG

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There is a giveaway drawing to be held for this blog tour. Please leave a comment to be entered in the drawing. The blog tour giveaway includes:

North Pak 20 inch cinch sack (lime)

Day Runner journal

Canoe Brand wild rice

Canada's brand blueberry jam

Coleman 60-piece mini first aid kit

Wood canoe/paddle shelf ornament

Six original photography notecards from video trailer

"Hope" hanging ornament

Mini Coleman "lantern" prayer reminder

Raising a Modern-Day Princess ~ by Farrel and Hanna

As I go about the daunting task of raising my daughter, I am grateful for sound, moral and godly advice that I can glean from others through various resources. The book Raising a Modern-Day Princess by Pam Farrel and Doreen Hanna is just such a resource. It tackles the importance of training up our daughters to be strong and principled, full of purpose, grace, kindness and good self-worth. We are encouraged to raise them up confident in the knowledge that they are our much beloved daughters, and also much beloved daughters of the King.

The author’s do a great job of sharing stories from their own lives, and also share stories from the lives of others. They expound key concepts including how valuable the father-daughter and mother-daughter relationships are, but in different ways, the significance of mentors, and how important and special a “coming-of-age” celebration is to a young lady.

Raising a Modern-Day Princess is a great resource for those who have daughters, for fathers and mothers, or for those who work with, spend time with, or want to have a good influence on girls (teachers, youth leaders, family members, neighbors, etc.) Got girls? Get this book!

This book was provided to me for review by Tyndale House Publishers.

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Raising a Modern-Day Princess

Pam Farrel and Doreen Hanna

In the same tradition as Raising a Modern-Day Knight, this book is designed to equip parents to cultivate strong relationships with their adolescents. Raising a Modern-Day Princess stresses the importance of creating a rite of passage for teen girls—a defining moment in which girls can be blessed by significant adults in their lives, and a call for their families and communities to celebrate and support them as they enter womanhood. This book offers practical help in raising a generation of women to see themselves as God sees them—as daughters of the King.

Shattered ~ by Frank Pastore

This was a great book! I must confess, I’d not heard of Frank Pastore previous to being offered to review his book Shattered, but it looked interesting so I took it. It’s a memoir, sports story, inspirational book, self-improvement manual and romance novel all rolled into one! Travel with Frank as he journeys from brokenness to wholeness, from pudgy and awkward boy to professional athlete, and from success to failure and back to success again. The journey is filled with drama, betrayal, dysfunction, love, joy, peace, excitement, hard work and do-over’s. It is a thrilling ride from life in professional sports, to life in ministry, to life in radio.

Shattered will speak to anyone who’s been hurt by family, in school, by friends, in ministry, or simply in life. It will resonate with anyone who’s been broken and beat down by life, then lovingly and beautifully restored by God. It is an easy read, a bit of a page turner, and thoroughly enjoyable.

This book was provided to me for review by Tyndale House Publishers.

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Shattered: Struck Down, but Not Destroyed

Frank Pastore

With Ellen Vaughn

Like its author, Shattered is “fun, fast, and real” and an intriguing mix of paradoxes. Frank Pastore was a physically awkward kid who became a professional athlete. An okay student who goes on to earn two masters degrees in philosophy. A former atheist who ends up hosting the biggest Christian radio talk show in America.

Shattered is part sports book, because you’ll go on road trips, enter clubhouses, and walk on the fields of professional baseball. It’s part romantic novel, because you’ll journey with two young kids who fall in love and eventually elope, evading not only her family, but the law as well—for she was only 16.

It’s also a story of brokenness, betrayal, and burn-out. If you were raised in a dysfunctional family, if you’ve ever had your dreams fall apart, been betrayed by close friends, or hit the psychological “wall” in your professional career, this is your book too. But, most of all, this is an uplifting story of how an unpredictable God can surprise any of us with His goodness and love when we allow Him to make beautiful the shattered fragments of our lives.

Anatomy of the Soul ~ by Curt Thompson, M.D.

The brain, or mind, is wonderfully complex, mysterious and amazing. And despite what science has attempted to prove throughout the (recent) ages, neurology and spirituality are connected. Dr. Thompson does a great job of communicating the complexities of this subject in a way that is not difficult for the average person to understand.

We all have pasts, and those pasts have helped to shape our present time. Many times in a negative way and we don’t even realize it. By rewiring our brains, we can become happier, have more peace and experience more freedom. It can radically change our lives and our relationships. Dr. Thompson uses Scripture and science to show how it works together. He helps us to realize how much God loves us, and how to become more like the person He created us to be. With this book it is easy to see how truly fearfully and wonderfully made we are.

This wonderful book is a great tool to have and to use. Dr. Thompson includes examples and exercises to be used to help us to apply the material to our own lives. I liked it very much.

This book was provided to me for review by Tyndale House Publishers.

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Anatomy of the Soul

Curt Thompson, M.D.

Do you want to improve your relationships and experience lasting personal change? Join Curt Thompson, M.D., on an amazing journey to discover the surprising pathways for transformation hidden inside your own mind. Integrating new findings in neuroscience and attachment with Christian spirituality, Dr. Thompson reveals how it is possible to rewire your mind, altering your brain patterns and literally making you more like the person God intended you to be. Explaining discoveries about the brain in layman’s terms, he shows how you can be mentally transformed through spiritual practices, interaction with Scripture, and connections with other people. He also provides practical exercises to help you experience healing in areas where you’ve been struggling. Insightful and challenging, Anatomy of the Soul illustrates how learning about one of God’s most miraculous creations—your brain—can enrich your life, your relationships, and your impact on the world around you.

Bringing Up Girls ~ by Dr. James Dobson

It is a scary time to be bringing up a child. Nonetheless, we are doing it. So I was thrilled when I had the opportunity to read and review Bringing Up Girls by Dr. James Dobson. In his long awaited and highly anticipated follow-up to Bringing Up Boys, Dr. Dobson tackles the issues that are plaguing girls today. He discusses the importance of safe, healthy and nurturing familial relationships (with an emphasis on mothers and fathers in different ways) and the ways we can help our daughters to grow up well in this oftentimes difficult and dangerous world.

Girls today are dealing with drugs, alcohol, bullying (emotional, physical and cyber), immodest and immoral behavior, clothing and expectations, and for the most part, an over-sexed and largely morally bankrupt society. By default, many of their hero’s are celebrities who at best are out of touch with reality and at worst are immoral, shallow and typically “bad girls” who appear to be hell-bent on their own destruction. Adolescence (and even pre-pubescence) for many girls is a cesspool of pain and trauma. In their pain they drink and do drugs, have eating disorders and are involved in cutting or other self-mutilation tactics. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Dr. Dobson shines light on the issues and offers sound advice. He reassures the reader that we as parents are not without control. We have more power than we may realize and our children love and listen to us. He offers statistics and cites other great sources to back up his claims. In addition to his own book, he offers parents many other resources to refer to – some that are his, some that are not. His words are real, sometimes somber and other times humorous.

If you have a daughter, this book will speak to your heart and offer you wisdom and encouragement – especially when it comes to dealing with emotions and hormones! It will help you to navigate the murky waters of feminine maturation. If you don’t have daughters, but know someone who does, this would be a great gift that may be appreciated more than you could even know.

This book was provided to me for review by Tyndale House Publishers.

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Bringing Up Girls

By Dr. James Dobson

Bringing Up Boys by parenting expert and best-selling author Dr. James Dobson was, and continues to be, a runaway hit, selling more than 2 million copies to date. Now, Dr. Dobson presents his highly anticipated companion book: Bringing Up Girls. Based on extensive research, and handled with Dr. Dobson’s trademark down-to-earth approach, Bringing Up Girls will equip parents like you to face the challenges of raising your daughters to become healthy, happy, and successful women who overcome challenges specific to girls and women today and who ultimately excel in life.

The Heart Mender ~ Andy Andrews

A true story told as fiction equals FANTASTIC! What a wonderful (and enlightening) story this is! The Heart Mender is the latest book by celebrated author Andy Andrews. He admits in the Author’s Note, that this story, for the most part, is true. And he admits that it is both his favorite of the books he has written, and that it is his greatest disappointment. It was previously released as Island of Saints and for some reason was not well received at all. This time is far different.

It is a provocative and engaging story, with tragedy and triumph, hate and love, anger and forgiveness, despair and hope, as well as drama and peace colliding in the way that only real life can. It is also informative: I had no idea that during WWII, German U-boats patrolled the Eastern Seaboard of the U.S. and the Gulf of Mexico, sinking supply ships and disrupting commerce and the supply chain for Allied troops (I suspect many people don’t know this as it’s not widely reported or taught about). It is a story about the power of love and forgiveness between God and people, and people and people, and how that power can overcome the worst of situations. Great book, great story, great job, Andy!

This book was provided to me for review by Thomas Nelson Publishers.

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The Heart Mender

By Andy Andrews

A unique blend of historical fact and engaging fiction showing the power of forgiveness.

While digging up a withering wax myrtle tree beside his waterfront home on the Gulf coast, author Andy Andrews unearths a rusted metal container filled with Nazi artifacts and begins an intriguing investigation that unlocks an unspoken past that took place in his backyard . . . literally.

In 1942, as the country gears up for a full-scale commitment to WWII, German subs are dispatched to the Gulf of Mexico to sink U.S. vessels carrying goods and fuel. While taking a late-night walk, Helen Mason-widowed by war-discovers the near-lifeless body of a German sailor. Enraged at the site of Josef Landermann's uniform, Helen is prepared to leave him to die when an unusual phrase, faintly uttered, changes her mind.

Set in a period simmering with anger and suspicion The Heart Mender offers the very real chronicle of a small town preparing itself for the worst the world has to offer. As cargo from torpedoed ships begins to wash up on the beach, Josef and Helen must reconcile their pasts to create a future.

Blending his unique style of historical accuracy with unparalleled storytelling, New York Times best-selling author Andy Andrews offers a tale of war, faith, and forgiveness illuminating the one principle that frees the human spirit.

Previously released as Island of Saints. Now includes a Reader's Guide and a Where are They Now? section.

Does God Exist? Kit ~ by Focus on the Family

Recently I had the opportunity to review the DVD Does God Exist? Kit: Building the Scientific Case, produced by Focus on the Family, and featuring Dr. Stephen Meyer. I’m so glad that I did! There are two DVD’s with ten 30-minute lessons (plus a bonus extra: The Toughest Test in College), along with a 64-page color booklet with discussion questions. Topics discussed are: Faith and Reason, The Big Bang theory, DNA, Intelligent Design, The Return of the God Hypothesis, and The Moral Necessity of Theism.

For decades now, our society has been embracing intellectualism and the climate is growing increasingly hostile to faith. This series is geared toward young people, to help answer questions (that we all have) and then be able to defend their faith. It is perfect for those who are college-bound, but it is also perfect for those who don’t go to college. It can be taught in a home-school environment, in youth groups or small groups, or even simply as family viewing and learning together. It is not a finished set. There are two additional kits planned for the future. It is a wonderful resource to have and to use.

This kit was provided to me for review by Tyndale House Publishers.

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Does God Exist? Kit: Building the Scientific Case

Focus on the Family

Del Tackett and Stephen Meyer

In this first DVD set of the TrueU series, Dr. Stephen Meyer plays a “philosophical survival game,” pitting four worldviews against one another in the quest to decide which one gives the best answers. Dr. Meyer examines the evidence and provides the tools needed for students to defend their faith and make it their own. This is the perfect resource for students preparing to enter college and a culture that may be hostile to their faith. Additional discussion guides can be purchased separately, either in singles (978-1-58997-115-8) or in a 10-pack (978-1-58997-116-5).

The Bride Collector ~ by Ted Dekker

Gripping, intense, suspenseful, thrilling, fast-paced and page-turning, describes the latest book by the always amazing Ted Dekker! The Bride Collector takes the reader on a roller-coaster ride that leaves them nearly breathless. From the very beginning it is difficult to put down. It takes us to a depth of darkness that most of us, if we’re lucky, will never know. It speaks to the reality of the horrors of abuse and trauma and how deeply and permanently they can twist the mind. But in true Dekker fashion, we’re shown that there can be freedom and healing. In this life, there is a power struggle between good and evil, between light and darkness, but we have the blessed hope that in the end, Good and Light will win. The Bride Collector further solidifies Dekker as a master of suspense. Great read!

This book was provided to me for review by Center Street Publishers.

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The Bride Collector

By Ted Dekker

FBI Special agent Brad Raines is facing his toughest case yet. A Denver serial killer has killed four beautiful young women, leaving a bridal veil at each crime scene, and he's picking up his pace. Unable to crack the case, Raines appeals for help from a most unusual source: residents of the Center for Wellness and Intelligence, a private psychiatric institution for mentally ill individuals whose are extraordinarily gifted.

It's there that he meets Paradise, a young woman who witnessed her father murder her family and barely escaped his hand. Diagnosed with schizophrenia, Paradise may also have an extrasensory gift: the ability to experience the final moments of a person's life when she touches the dead body.

In a desperate attempt to find the killer, Raines enlists Paradise's help. In an effort to win her trust, he befriends this strange young woman and begins to see in her qualities that most 'sane people' sorely lack. Gradually, he starts to question whether sanity resides outside the hospital walls...or inside.

As the Bride Collector picks up the pace-and volume-of his gruesome crucifixions, the case becomes even more personal to Raines when his friend and colleague, a beautiful young forensic psychologist, becomes the Bride Collector's next target.

The FBI believes that the killer plans to murder seven women. Can Paradise help before it's too late?