Showing posts with label inspirational book review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label inspirational book review. Show all posts

Monday, May 28, 2018

Shine Like the Dawn by Carrie Turansky ~ Reviewed

  
 Shine Like the Dawn
Carrie Turansky


Cover Copy:

In a quiet corner of northern Edwardian England, Margaret Lounsbury diligently works in her grandmother’s millinery shop, making hats and caring for her young sister. Several years earlier, a terrible event shattered  their idyllic family life and their future prospects. Maggie is resilient and will do what she must to protect her sister Violet. Still, the loss of her parents weighs heavily on her heart as she begins to wonder if what happened that day on the lake…might not have been an accident.

When wealthy inventor and industrialist William Harcourt dies, his son and Maggie’s estranged childhood friend, Nathaniel, returns from his time in the Royal Navy and inherits his father’s vast estate, Morningside Manor. He also assumes partial control of his father’s engineering company and the duty of repaying an old debt to the Lounsbury family. But years of separation between Nate and Maggie have taken a toll, and Maggie struggles to trust her old friend.

Can Maggie let go of the resentment that keeps her from forgiving Nate—and reconciling with God? Will the search for the truth about her parents’ death draw the two friends closer or leave them both with broken hearts?


Review: 


Shine Like the Sky takes place in the northern Edwardian England, and focuses on a young woman named Margaret Lounsbury. Having lost her parents and sister in a tragic accident four years earlier, she now resides with her grandmother and five year old sister in her grandmother's millinary shop. She holds onto a lot of anger and bitterness, not only at the loss of her family, but at the loss and what she saw as abandonment from the family who employed her father, especially young Nathaniel Harcourt. Nathaniel, however, was not notified by his family of the accident until a week after it happened and was kept from young Margaret. Now, they have been brought back together, and other facts about the accident have come to light which could cause further division between the old friends.

This was a great story. Nathaniel has come to know the Lord during his time away, which helps him in dealing with the difficult situations he is encountering. Meanwhile, Maggie has to learn to let go of her anger and put her trust in the Lord for all things. This was a great read.  by Sarah Meyers


Disclaimer: This reviewer was provided a copy of this novel for the purposes of reviewing. This in no way guaranteed a positive review. These are the honest thoughts and review of the reviewer. In addition, clicking and buying on the link will result in a small monetary gain for this blog through Amazon.

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Life in Chapel Springs by Ane Mulligan ~ Reviewed

Life in Chapel Springs
Ane Mulligan
Paperback: 340 pages
Publisher: Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas (September 5, 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1946016136

Description: 

Is it a midlife pregnancy or ... cancer? Claire will keep her secret until she's sure but it isn't easy. Neither is trying to buy a home pregnancy test without anyone finding out. Between her twins double wedding, the caterer canceling, a looming nationwide art tour and her health, Claire's life is upside down. 

Shy Lacey Dawson was happily writing murder mysteries for the community theater with her eye on Broadway. Then, a freak accident causes her traumatic injuries requiring facial reconstruction. When the bandages come off, Lacey's world is tuned inside out. Will Chapel Springs rally behind its own ... or will life unravel? 

When the mayor announces he has found quartz on his land, the local TV station reports: Where there's quartz, there's gold. Then Mayor Riley discovers Howie Newlander has bought the mineral rights to his land. Howie and his nefarious investors are struck with gold fever and set out to buy all the homes in Chapel Springs and mine the gold. Will life in Chapel Springs become the tailings of a gold mine?

Review: 

Ane Mulligan's little Chapel Springs is a community I want to visit. Maybe for a really long time. Depends on the bugs and snake population. Mulligan has created a group of characters I'd love to spend time with, and a landscape that beckons. 

And the trouble they get into in Chapel Springs. This time, while working on wedding details for the twins and an upcoming art tour and a play, Claire ends up getting intimately involved in the gold fever sweeping the town. Unfortunately, the gold is not what interests the out-of-town big guns, but the quartz. Mining the quartz would nearly destroy the town and an unknown buyer is snatching up mining rights that were somehow not attached to properties, and attempting to get residents or landlords to sell. 

Lacey suffers a painful crisis when she is involved in a freak accident and her life changes radically. The only hope she has is in turning her eyes to God. 

Fortunately, Claire is not responsible for Lacey's accident. The other big crash heard around the hamlet was Claire's fault, but on purpose. She knows what those big ol ceramic pots can do from experience and feels the need to do it. 

Claire and Patsy are friends I'd love to meet with at Dee's. Mulligan sprinkles chuckles on nearly every page as the characters get involved with saving the town, making Lacey's script magical and rocking a wedding and reception. Claire even managed to get through the wedding with both feet on the ground. If you love characters and fun, clean escapism grab this one. If you haven't read the others you should probably buy the whole series.  

Review by Kelly Klepfer

Friday, October 11, 2013

Susan Call's A Search for Purple Cows ~ Reviewed



Purple Cows and Other Miracles
Susan Call
Release Date Jul 1, 2013
Publisher Ideals Publications
ISBN 0824934415

Back Cover:

A wife and mother’s amazing journey out of domestic abuse into a life fully restored. A whimsical comment from a kind stranger, “Be sure to search for purple cows,” brings hope to a woman and her children fleeing from a life filled with trouble. Susan Call reveals how painful a relationship can be when love deteriorates into a cycle of abuse and betrayal. Her moving memoir chronicles how she first met her husband, a handsome, stylish, generous man whom she worked with. Their life seemed idyllic—they had a beautiful home and everything a family could desire. But soon, Call was tormented by her husband’s alcoholism, domestic abuse, and infidelity. God found her in the midst of her pain and showed her that a journey toward Him was possible even in the most unthinkable circumstances.

Review:

A Search for Purple Cows follows Susan Call’s journey to a life of freedom in Christ. It relates how her fears and insecurities trapped her in a spiritual and emotional prison and led her into a dysfunctional, abusive marriage. It also details how, through a budding faith in Jesus, she was able to escape her hopeless life and find wholeness in Him. However, the story doesn’t stop there. Purple Cows goes on to tell how Susan struggled to provide for her children and make a new life for them, and how, as a part of that, she found the strength to forgive her ex-husband. Susan’s testimony is as challenging as it is encouraging, and truly points to the incredible power of God to bring freedom and healing.

This book was simply a pleasure to read. I flew through the 228 pages in a matter of hours, and I will definitely re-read it in the future. The mistakes that led Susan to enter into a manipulative, volatile marriage are so relatable. As a reader, I could totally understand her struggle. The lies that kept her trapped in an abusive relationship were the coping mechanism that she used to survive, and any one of us would likely fall into the same deception. Yet, in spite of how common the trap she fell into was, her escape from it was truly remarkable. God pursued her unrelentingly and proved himself so faithful in her life. He protected her, guided her, and even challenged her as she began to trust more deeply in Him. As the story unfolded, I was reminded that God still performs miracles in our lives, if only we will stop and recognize his hand at work. Susan encourages her readers with the metaphor of “searching for purple cows.” She explains how that phrase has come to mean so much more to her than was originally intended, saying that “Too often in life we limit ourselves to what can be seen, and we define what is possible by the limits we have experienced… Choose to believe with childlike wonder in what lies ahead, rather than focusing on what you’ve left behind. Only then can you in earnest being your own search for purple cows.”

Reviewed by: Shea Nolan