Blogging With Carol: March 2012

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Storm Tossed and Walk the Land - Memoirs in March!

Today we cover the final two books for the Carried Away --- Memoirs in March! For a few days you can download copies of these books for yourself for FREE!

Amazon Kindle versions are at the following links from March 29 - Apr.2

STORM TOSSED : How A U.S. Serviceman Won the Battle of Sex Addiction

WALK THE LAND : A Journey on Foot through Israel

Israel fascinates me. I suppose it can't help but to fascinate me, beacuse when Jesus was in flesh like we are, he lived there. Walk The Land is a memoir of one lady's journey WALKING through and in Israel. What she learned, what it changed in her, and the things that became more real through her experiences.

Storm Tossed - This one I am still reading. I have been very close to someone I cared a great deal for who had some horrible sex addictions. That is a term that gets hidden or buried in most churches. People don't know how to cope if you say you or your friend has a spouse who has this kind of addictions. This is one man's story of overcoming ALL things through Christ.

I think you will enjoy these books! Carol

STORM TOSSED: How A U.S. Serviceman Won the Battle of Sex Addiction by Jake Porter
WALK THE LAND: A Journey on Foot through Israel by Judith Galblum Pex.

A good memoir brings a single life sharply into focus; when that life illuminates a turbulent historical context, the results can be enthralling." ~ Kathryn Atwood.

We have been "getting carried away" with MEMOIRS. this month. These true stories can give us inspiration to live more fully and faithfully.

All these stories show God at work in our world, walking with individuals through the fires of tragedy, terror, war, and abandonment; giving them stories to tell of God's intervention, comfort, and victory.

These international memoirs happened in Africa, Israel, China, Taiwan, Western Europe, Russia, Southeast Asia and America.

Each week we have offered up-to-date author interviews, follow-up stories, photos, slide shows, videos, free eBook offers, blog tours, and even international recipes.

"Get carried away" with us as we watch for April showers.

Jake Porter, author of STORM TOSSED and other Navy crew aboard the "USS America" in the Persian Gulf during Desert Storm

Watch video interview of Judy Pex, author of WALK THE LAND:

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Night Of The Living Dead Christian by Matt Mikalotos -Third Post!

Alrighty Folks,

Tonight is the 3rd installment of my review and thoughts about Matt Mikalotos's newest book, Night Of The Living Dead Christian. There is so much in this book to cover, that I can't give it all proper justice. So for this post, I am going tell you my thoughts on anything else about this book that comes to mind. (That is a good bit - so you have been warned!)

I want to say that I was grateful for how the author showed off his wife in this book, and the time he spent with her and his children. I appreciated that balance he was showing and working on in his life. It made a very nice contrast to Luther, who has lost his wife, Lara who is an ex-wife twice over, and Hibbs 3000 who is dating a potential wife/mate. My heart broke repeatedly for Clarissa and Renata as well.

While not my only focus for this post, I must cover the Zombies. This (image below) is not exactly the kind of Zombies in this book. Thought dead to sin and alive in Christ is great, we have other issues. Please keep on reading.

This is more like the Zombies in this book.

Before you scream that you don't understand, we need to talk, and you need to read this book! The Zombies in Night Of The Living Dead Christian are Zombies because they are the ones that do not think for themselves.They don't go seek God for an answer, they fall into something that is almost cult like, yet still considered completely Christian. (There is something wrong with that picture!)

I have never been this kind of monster. I don't think in the box like the others. When I was young and in church, and the Pastor said... every one raise your hands... I held back. When the stand up and shout, sit down and sing-- or whatever it was that rolled was issued I just sat there! This caused me some grief because there were those who thought I was- GASP - rebellious!

Meanwhile, I sat and I watched, and I listened. I watched the dear sweet sheep in the room with me do *whatever* the Pastor said with out thinking, with out praying, they just did. It was then I was scared that maybe I was lost and wasn't close enough to Christ because I was NOT comfortable with following the crowd even if that crowd was my own "home" church. I soon sorted out that it wasn't that I was lost, it was that I was working so hard to hear God for myself that automatic actions just because "Simon" said were not going to cut it for me. It I didn't feel it in my heart, then I wasn't going to do it just because everyone else did.

I am more like Matt the character in this book, winding up with a few of my own "pet zombies" that I have worked hard to pray with and help them not be a non-thinking Zombie. I was taught young that if I didn't have myself prayed up and have enough discernment that when the false prophets came with signs and wonders that I wouldn't know the fakes from the real deal. I decided when I was young that I would NEVER be a "Zombie" if I could help it. Things like 2 Timothy 4:3 have always affected me: "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths."

I know some other Monsters, and I think the Monster Index at the end of the book was great. I can't tell you what kind of Monster I am- other than I have worked my entire life to not be one. I can tell you that I know I am a child of God, a cracked damaged vessel being molded into what I am suppose to be. That work is still in progress. But that is the great thing about the REAL Christians. We are a mixed up lot, but when we are real and listening we are able to come together. The Zombies, Werewolves, Androids, Mad Scientists, Vampires and others and be made new and whole so that we are Monsters no more but instead we are becoming reflections of God's love. (Yes ---- even toward's Monsters!)

Carol :)

Here is an interview with the author, or the character, himself!

About the Book:

What does a transformed life actually look like? In his follow-up to the critically acclaimed Imaginary Jesus, Matt Mikalatos tackles this question in an entertaining and thought-provoking way: with monsters! As Christians, we claim to experience Christ’s resurrection power, but we sometimes act like werewolves who can’t control our base desires. Or zombies—90 percent shambling death and 10 percent life. Yet through it all, we are longing to become fully human, the way Christ intended . . . we just can’t seem to figure out how. Night of the Living Dead Christianis the story of Luther, a werewolf on the run, desperate to find someone who can help him conquer his inner beast before it’s too late. By turns hilarious and heartbreaking, this spiritual allegory boldly explores the monstrous underpinnings of our nature and our quest for Christlikeness.

In conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour, I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
(Which I am thankful for!)

Book link - http://www.amazon.com/Night-Living-Dead-Christian-Ferociously/dp/1414338805/
Author’s Web site - http://www.mikalatos.com/
Participants’ links are below so you can read more than just my thoughts.

Gillian Adams
Julie Bihn
Red Bissell
Thomas Clayton Booher
Thomas Fletcher Booher
Keanan Brand
Beckie Burnham
Morgan L. Busse
Theresa Dunlap
Amber French
Tori Greene
Nikole Hahn
Ryan Heart
Bruce Hennigan
Janeen Ippolito
Becky Jesse
Jason Joyner
Carol Keen
Leighton
Shannon McDermott
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Nissa
Joan Nienhuis
John W. Otte
Crista Richey
Sarah Sawyer
Chawna Schroeder
Rachel Starr Thomson
Steve Trower
Fred Warren
Shane Werlinger
Nicole White
Dave Wilson

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Night Of The Living Dead Christian by Matt Mikalotos - Second Post!

Hi Everyone!

Yesterday I wrote day one of three days of posting covering the book Night Of The Living Dead Christian, by Matt Mikalotos. In my last post, found by clicking here, I told you about Luther and how I know people like him, or worse than him. This time I want to talk about a character whos' role and story didn't come out as much until later in the book.

Her name is Lara and apparently, Matt went to high-school with her. Well, at least in the book he went to high school with her, since "Matt" (yes the author of this book) is also one of the characters in his books. This is a trait of his work that I really enjoy. It brings to mind Alfred Hitchcock and Stephen King, who also have cameos or play rolls in their own work. Matt however, uses himself as a character in his books to help readers understand that no matter how far-fetched the story might seem, these are real life problems we are dealing with.

Lara is the pretty girl in high-school, the one most people envy, but so few get to know. She is the one that seems popular in school, work and church, but is actually alone and insecure. Twice divorced, and alone again Lara just hurts. Worse yet, all this has made Lara a Vampire. (I think I just heard you tilt in your seat out here, so get something to drink and stay with me here, this is important!) Life, and pain, and not being snugged up close enough to the real and living God who loves us have changed Lara into something she once wasn't. Where as Luther became a werewolf as a teen-ager, he figures he was born with this problem. Lara, on the other hand, was a changed into a monster.

Lara married the "wrong" man. Like so many people we know, she didn't see the warning signs or any major problems until after it was way too late. Charming and witty he was, until the night she upset him too much, and instead of just a werewolf coming out --- Lara got bitten, and beaten. Even after her brutal attack, she was unable to leave her first abuser. I know women right now, friends who I love who are in this very same situation. It is heart and gut wrenching, and yet they are not strong enough to leave the situation because before they know it they are changed too. They believe the lies that they are damaged, incomplete, unworthy, not whole. Thus a cycle of abuse has been established in their relationships. The strong attacking the weak, and the weak then getting strong enough to go attack someone who is yet weaker. I am not going to tell you all of Lara's story, because I want you to read this book!

Being the kind of Vampire in this book can take more than one form. (No I don't mean just fangs or no fangs.) These Vampires are the people that we know, and might even love, that just are emotional empty pits. I have long called them "energy vampires". They are the reverse of the energizer bunny! Some of them are sent by the enemy, and some are just so needy that they don't realize they are sucking the life out of everyone around them. They have to plug into the only blood source that can make them whole again - Jesus! Many of these people aren't knowingly sucking the life out of the people they care about, they just haven't figured out how to fill up on what matters. Another word that describes them is co-dependent.

It takes nothing short of Jesus to change us, and we have to work at it. We can't be Christ like.. like Christ with out Him working in us on a daily basis. It isn't easy, it doesn't happen overnight. Transformation, freedom takes time. It is a process, and all process take time. Killing the monsters that are in our sinful nature takes dying to ourselves daily sometimes. It can be painful, slow, and requires that we know to the innermost of our core that we don't have control, but that if we are following Christ and He is in control, then we can tame and become free from the beasts of our innermost (sin) nature.

Stay tuned for my third post! I still have more to share!
Carol :)

About the Book:

Monday, March 26, 2012

Night Of The Living Dead Christian by Matt Mikalotos

Hello Everyone,

My first book by Matt Mikalotos that I read was Imaginary Jesus. You can find my review of it by clicking HERE. For reasons I don't understand this same book has been renamed to My Imaginary Jesus. I find that kind of sad, because I think the book title was correct the first time. This is the author's second book and it is called Night Of The Living Dead Christian. I knew as soon as I heard the title, I wanted to read this book!
It might first help, since you haven't read this book yet probably, for me to tell you that the Zombies, Vampires and Werewolves in this book are parallels for certain types of people, or certain things folks get sucked into.

Night Of The Living Dead Christian focuses a good bit on a man named Luther, though there is much much more to this book. Luther, alas, is also a Werewolf. His horrible raging, his uncontrollable werewolf behavior have cost him everything he held most dear. His father is a pastor of a church, but he and his dad have been on the outs for a long time. Ever since his teen years when the rage and wolfing began, Luther feels he has had nothing but scorn and rejection from his Dad. Luther is sick and tired of the struggle. The war between good and evil raging through his very veins, but Luther is SO not alone! There are others like him, and Vampires, and Zombies too - but I can cover them later.

Werewolf found on net that is just what I see in my mind.

Luther's struggle is one I have seen up close and personal in some people I love dearly. To quote Mark 14:38- the second half (in an easy to read version): "The spirit is indeed willing, but the flesh is weak." Those times when I have watched the primal rage of the werewolf also matched with the draining of the Vampire have made life long imprints on my mind and my soul as well. It isn't that Luther doesn't know of Christ, or God, he does. In fact, his Dad named him Luther Anne Martin, so that no matter what he does he can't escape from his background. Yet background does not create a personal thriving relationship with the One who created us. Sometimes all folks get from it is a formula, or an empty religion and not a relationship with the God who loves us enough to die for us.

This book deserves 3 days of posting, so I am going to try again tomorrow. There is FAR to much encompassed in these pages to get it even sort of covered in one post. I will say this just in case you don't read the other posts, though I think you will. This book is every much as important for church members to read as Imaginary Jesus, and I still think that one should be mandatory reading.

Carol :)

About the Book:

The Chase by DiAnn Mills

Here is the first review for today!

The Chase might had had a stronger title if it were named Cherished Doe, even though I can see why it isn't named that. Why you asked? Well New York Times best seller Kariss Walker has decided to stop writing romance novels, and break into a new field of writing - suspense. To do this she has to get out of the "box" she is in and team up with an FBI agent to get enough of the day to day working and case solving skills to be able to make this book realistic. This pairs Kariss up with FBI Special Agent Tigo Harris. He isn't her type, but she is drawn to him, and he too her. As a former news anchor, she has skills, guts and she thinks well on her feet.

Kariss is completely dedicated to solving the Cherished Doe case, which is a very cold 5 year old murder mystery. This little girl starved to death, and her body was dumped and no one knows anything at all. But that is never the case, so Tigo and Kariss keep searching for answers. This is not Tigo's only case, but will his new "sidekick" get killed in the process, or just get them both killed? Kariss must find where she left God out of her life before it is too late to do so. How far will one woman go to fulfill her dreams, and what cost will be the ultimate price?

Carol

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing The Chase Zondervan (March 27, 2012) by DiAnn Mills

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

DiAnn Mills believes her readers should “Expect an Adventure.” She is a fiction writer who combines an adventuresome spirit with unforgettable characters to create action-packed novels. Her books have won many awards through American Christian Fiction Writers, and she is the recipient of the Inspirational Reader’s Choice award for 2005, 2007, and 2010. She was a Christy Award finalist in 2008 and a Christy winner in 2010.

DiAnn is a founding board member for American Christian Fiction Writers, a member of Inspirational Writers Alive, Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, and is the Craftsman Mentor for the Christian Writer’s Guild. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops.

DiAnn and her husband live in Houston, Texas. Visit her website or find her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/diannmills

ABOUT THE BOOK

To the FBI it's a cold case. To Kariss Walker it's a hot idea that could either reshape or ruin her writing career. And it's a burning mission to revisit an event she can never forget. Five years ago, an unidentified little girl was found starved to death in the woods behind a Houston apartment complex. A TV news anchor at the time, Kariss reported on the terrifying case. Today, as a New York Times bestselling author, Kariss intends to turn the unsolved mystery into a suspense novel. Enlisting the help of FBI Special Agent Tigo Harris, Kariss succeeds in getting the case reopened. But the search for the dead girl's missing mother yields a discovery that plunges the partners into a witch's brew of danger. The old crime lives on in more ways than either of them could ever imagine. Will Kariss's pursuit of her dream as a writer carry a deadly price tag? Drawing from a real-life cold case, bestselling novelist DiAnn Mills presents a taut collage of suspense, faith, and romance in The Chase.

Watch the book video!

If you would like to read the first chapter of The Chase, go HERE.

The book link is: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0310333172

Friday, March 23, 2012

Missing by Shelley Shepard Gray

Hi There!

Tonight I am going to tell you about Missing by Shelley Shepard Gray. I know Mrs. Gray is a prolific writer, but I haven't read but a few of her books so far. Missing starts out with a murder mystery. Not just a common one, one in an Amish community. Perry is dead, and not just dead, murdered. Everyone though he left, and his secrets that some of them carried had gone with him. However, they were wrong. Perry has been murdered. And where there is a crime, there is someone who knows something about that crime.

Lydia is Amish, and Walker is English. They both knew Perry, and cared about him. They both know more than they are sharing about the path that Perry was on. But trusting isn't easy, and pain runs so deeply. Soon Perry's death is bringing Lydia and Walker closer together. That is good, and bad because Walker isn't Amish, even though his Grandparents are. And worse yet, Walker's little sister is one of the ones that found Perry's body. It has, quite understandably, shaken her world.

Missing is well told, and has lots of good characters. We were just getting to know a few of them better when the book ended, leaving the mystery UNSOLVED, but clues being tracked down. I guess that is why I will have have to read the next books. I HATE open endings. They mess with me in ways that most people don't understand. I know they can be useful, but if a book has an open ending, then for me it is better to wait till the whole series is out and read them all at one time.

Carol

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Missing Avon Inspire; Original edition (March 20, 2012) by Shelley Shepard Gray ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Since 2000, Shelley Sabga has sold over thirty novels to numerous publishers, including HarperCollins, Harlequin, Abingdon Press, and Avon Inspire. She has been interviewed by NPR, and her books have been highlighted in numerous publications, including USA Today and The Wall Street Journal.

Under the name Shelley Shepard Gray, Shelley writes Amish romances for HarperCollins’ inspirational line, Avon Inspire. Her recent novel, The Protector, the final book in her “Families of Honor” series, hit the New York Times List, and her previous novel in the same series, The Survivor, appeared on the USA Today bestseller list. Shelley has won the prestigious Holt Medallion for her books, Forgiven and Grace, and her novels have been chosen as Alternate Selections for the Doubleday/Literary Guild Book Club. Her first novel with Avon Inspire, Hidden, was an Inspirational Reader’s Choice finalist.

Before writing romances, Shelley lived in Texas and Colorado, where she taught school and earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education. She now lives in southern Ohio and writes full time. Shelley is married, the mother of two children in college, and is an active member of her church. She serves on committees, volunteers in the church office, and currently leads a Bible study group, and she looks forward to the opportunity to continue to write novels that showcase her Christian ideals.

When she’s not writing, Shelley often attends conferences and reader retreats in order to give workshops and publicize her work. She’s attended RWA’s national conference six times, the ACFW conference and Romantic Times Magazine’s annual conference as well as traveled to New Jersey, Birmingham, and Tennessee to attend local conferences.

Check out Shelley's Facebook Fan page

ABOUT THE BOOK

In the first book in her new Secrets of Crittenden County series, Shelley Shepard Gray delivers another page-turning romance set in Amish country.

Perry Borntrager had been missing from the quiet Amish community of Crittenden, Kentucky, for months when his body was discovered at the bottom of an abandoned well. Everyone had assumed Perry left Crittenden on his own, seduced by the wider world he discovered during his rumspringa, but now the truth has thrown this once-peaceful town into chaos. The first death from mysterious circumstances in Crittenden in more than two decades has invited the scrutiny of the outside world: a police detective arrives to help their local sheriff with the investigation. His questioning begins with Lydia Plank, Perry’s former girlfriend, and Perry’s best friend, the Englisher Walker Anderson.

Lydia and Walker know they didn’t have anything to do with Perry’s death, but they both hold secrets about his final days. Do they dare to open up about the kind of man Perry had become? In the oppressive shadow of these dark times, they discover strength in a most unlikely companionship that offers solace, understanding, and the promise of something more.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Missing, go HERE.

The book link is: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0062089706

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Hostage In Taipei: A True Story of Forgiveness and Hope by McGill Alexander ~ Carried Away Memoirs In March

Welcome back to Memoirs in March! It is time to get carried away again!

Well, due to life being what it is this week I am still reading!

This is RIVETING! I haven't quite finished but you can see why this made National Geographic in a full TV production! WOW--- God is so good!

Carol :)

This week we are featuring Hostage in Taipei: A True Story of Forgiveness and Hope by McGill Alexander.

For 5 days, starting today, we are offering a(free) download of the Kindle edition:http://amzn.com/B007B6QRYY

About the Story:

A Christian family were taken hostage by Taiwan's most-wanted criminal, Chen Chin-hsing. Mac Alexander, a South African diplomat, and his family were held at gunpoint and seriously wounded in crossfire with the police. Demanding justice for his imprisoned wife, Chen threatened to commit suicide once his mission was accomplished. Besieged by media and police, confusion ensued; but several heroes rose above the danger; and through God's miraculous intervention, the Alexander's faith overcame and grasped the heart of Chen Chin-hsing. The Alexander's showed the world a stunning example of Christ's forgiveness in the midst of violence and revenge.

Mac Alexander was serving as South Africa's military attaché in Taipei, Taiwan in 1997, when he and his family were taken hostage in their home by the most feared and dangerous criminal on the island: Chen Chin-hsing. Using Mac and his oldest daughter as human shields in shoot-outs with the police, Chen brought them to the brink of death, as both were shot in the crossfire. But the family responded with love and forgiveness by leading Chen to Christ – and everlasting life – before his execution.

Watch the National Geographic video reenactment of this family’s hostage takeover, read an interview with Anne Alexander, Mac’s wife, visit the blogs listed on the blog tour and find other tidbits offered during Memoirs in March athttp://cladach.com/Hostage-In-Taipei.html.

"You did a good deal of justice to the most fascinating news story Taiwan had seen in a decade or more.

I also appreciate your honest, even-handed criticisms of both the police and the media, and straightforwardness

in proclaiming your faith to God." ~ David Frazier, features editor, The Taipei Times

Read this amazing testimony and get "carried away" with us. Anyone interested in current events, true-experience thrillers, and God's amazing deliverance will enjoy this book!

Author Video:

Watch the TV docudrama of the Alexander's story here:

Interview with Anne Alexander:1. Hello, Anne. Your husband, Mac, wrote Hostage in Taipei. But, of course, you were very much a part of the story. Since many readers of this blog are women, I'm sure they would like to hear from the woman's viewpoint: What was it like to be taken hostage by a ruthless killer (Chen Chin-hsing) in your own home?
I am an optimist and a person who does not panic easily. I had a sense of God's angels all around and I knew that he was with us. With his help I managed to stay calm throughout the nightmare ordeal.
2. Your husband and then one of your daughters, Melanie, was used by Chen as a human shield in his shoot-out with the Taipei police. In the storm of bullets Melanie was near-fatally shot. What was it like to watch your family in mortal danger and be helpless?
It was frightening when I saw all the loss of blood from Mac. Melanie had no external bleeding, so I assumed she had not been seriously injured [though her wound was much worse internally), I immediately went across the room and tied Mac's necktie around his leg (where he had taken the bullet) to stop the bleeding.
3. Your rescue and release are a wonderful story of God's intervention and the heroism of a police chief. But you went way beyond just being a survivor. You later visited your hostage-taker in prison and shared the Gospel with him. Tell us about that visit and the outcome of it?
I was approached by one of our church members and asked if I would go with him to visit Chen in prison. It was my 50th birthday and I agreed. After some wrangling with the authorities we were allowed to see him for 5 minutes. I presented a Taiwanese Bible to him and told him we were on our way back to South Africa; and that we were fine and had forgiven him. Also that God loved him and if he confessed his sins God would forgive him. A few months later I was notified that he had become a Christian through the prison ministries. [Later, Chen was executed.]
4. Do you think this experience caused trauma and/or lasting effects for you and your family?
It did cause trauma as we were never given trauma counseling afterwards. Six months later I was diagnosed with severe depression - something I had never suffered from before. It had a more lasting effect on our two daughters. One still harbors great bitterness towards Chen and doesn't understand how we could have forgiven him. Our youngest daughter, a child at the time, developed untold problems during her teen years.
5. Your husband is an impressive man of many accomplishments. You've been a great support to him, but have there been challenges?
As a soldier's wife I learned to spend many months alone with the children while he was away fighting a war, never knowing when I would see his commanding officer at my front door with bad news. I had learned to put everything into God's hands.
6. During the hostage crisis all of Taiwan was glued to their TVs. It was described as one of Taiwan's biggest news stories ever. You were thrust into the limelight with TV, radio, and newspaper interviews. Was that a trial or a blessing?
The subsequent limelight was very exhausting as we were in the process of packing up to come home [to South Africa]. We were literally hounded by the press. We realized, however, that God was using what happened. Our Christian testimony and response was presented to an entire nation. We felt that we had to respond to media requests and be there for interviews.
7. Your family's hostage story was the basis of a National Geographic TV episode. The TV producers flew to South Africa to interview you and Mac and your daughters. For the drama parts they chose actors who resembled you. They even took crews to Taiwan to re-enact scenes of the hostage-taking. How did you feel when you first watched the TV episode?
It was very accurate! It made us realize once again how great is our God. We have had comments from many Christians who have watched it - from the U.S., UK, Spain, Italy, and even India.
8. Thank you, Anne, for visiting with us. Is there anything else you or your husband would want to say to readers today?
God can use the most unusual circumstances to bring his love through to others. We were just one small spoke in the large wheel. Never underestimate God!

The Amazon Kindle version is FREE March 22 - 26 here.

http://amzn.com/B007B6QRYY

Read Excerpt:

here.

http://www.cladach.com/HITexcerpt.pdf

Review Quotes:

"The Alexander family sowed seeds of love in hatred, forgiveness in harm." ~ Baptist Mass Communications

"People were amazed how each member of this family could have acted so nobly, courageously and lovingly towards this most notorious criminal." ~ Jennifer Sun, Campus Magazine

About the Author:

McGill Alexander is a career soldier who served as Brigadier General in the South African Army. From 1996-97 he was on assignment in Taipei, Taiwan as South Africa's military attache. Mac and his wife, Anne, are the parents of three daughters and have several grandchildren.

Author Photo:

CLADACH Publishing

http://www.cladach.com

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

The Dog That Talked To God by Jim Kraus

Hey There!

You know I would have to read it, because it is a dog... and he is talking to God. Hence the book name The Dog That Talked To God. Rufus is a toy or miniature Schnauzer. (A breed that I have a hard time spelling their name!) The start of this book starts out with Mary. I need to tell you that because for a while I wasn't sure exactly who was telling this story. Dogs, and my dogs are one of my passions. Thus I have to enlighten you a few things first before I continue about this interesting book.

I knew Jim Kraus had done his research on how most AKC breeders tend to place their dogs because of all the details he put in this book. Being among those who carefully raise and screen new owners for my pups I feel it important to tell you that gone are the happy days when we could let people come to our homes. The sin that destroys so many has leaked over into even this realm. So if you are ever getting a puppy, be it AKC or anything else, please do not be upset if the breeder tells you that you can't come to their house. That aside, all is quite well. You simply must adjust this story to being in a bit of a day-gone-by when it was still safe to let a possible new owner come to your home and meet the parents of the puppies and see your home, etc. To anyone who thinks this is a safe practice in today's world - think again! Now back to Rufus.

Mary soon finds out that Rufus (who she had fixed!) can talk. He talks to her, and he talks to God. Naturally, of course, our animals talk to God. Did anyone ever really doubt that, or did that though never cross their minds? God has sent Rufus into Mary's life to help her find her way out of where she has been. She has been in grief, despair, separated from God, close to compromise and much more. Mary is in the worst darkest, most lost period of her life. Being a writer with published books is a cold comfort to waking up alone with your husband and son gone. It is even colder if you feel like you can't talk to God because He allowed your family to leave Earth. But a dog's perspective isn't quite the same as ours. Rufus's conversations with Mary have great impact on her life, but is Rufus really talking to God, or is Mary just loosing the last bit of her sanity?

The ending was good, but left me a bit sad. That is my only other "complaint."
O.k. I am up way to late, I had to bath a few of my own canines tonight and I feel a deep need to hug my dogs while I pray.

Carol

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing The Dog That Talked To God Abingdon Press (March 2012) by Jim Kraus

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jim Kraus grew up in Western Pennsylvania and is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh. He attended the Paris-American Academy in 1971 and has spent the last twenty years as a vice-president of a major Christian publishing house. He has written more than 20 books and novels (many with his wife, Terri). His book, The Silence, was named as one of the top five releases in 2004 by the Christian Book Review website. He is also an award-winning photographer. He and his wife and 14-year-old son live outside of Chicago with a sweet miniature schnauzer and an ill-tempered Siberian cat.

ABOUT THE BOOK

A wonderfully quirky, heart-breaking, heart-warming and thought-provoking story of a woman's dog who not only talks to her, he talks to God.

Recently widowed Mary Fassler buys a miniature schnauzer, Rufus, and her world is turned sideways in the midst of her grief. It seems that Rufus speaks. And not just to her. He also talks to God.

Mary has no choice except to believe Rufus, the miniature schnauzer, who claims to speak to the Divine.

The question is: Will Mary follow the dog's advice, and leave everything she knows and loves? Is this at the urging of God? Or is it something else?
Will Mary risk it all or ignore the urgings of her own heart?

If you would like to read a chapter excerpt from The Dog That Talked To God, go HERE.

The book link is: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1426742568

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Love’s Sacred Song By Mesu Andrews

Hey Readers,

I don't want you to miss this one! Love's Sacred Song is only the second or third book I have read that is based on Biblical charactors's lives. This book opens with a young woman who's name is Arielah. It is a tiny bit confusing until you read for a bit. Abba is her Father, and Ima is her Mother. Once you get that sorted out so that you aren't thinking Abba Father God when you read, it helps! That is probably just me, but I went back and read the list of names 3 times trying to be sure I hadn't missed something.

Arielah is hated and abused by her two brothers, and loved and cherished by her Abba and Ima. She knows she has a strong God called future, to be the treaty-wife of Prince Solomon. Then, King David dies. Now Abba knows when she marries Solomon, he will be the reigning King of Israel. Her town is already up in arms that King David took a young girl from their town to warm his bed, but not as a wife or concubine.

Arielah wonders if her new upcoming position is going to help or hinder, but she trusts God and her Abba's decisions. Arielah he has loved Solomon since she first saw him on a trip to the City of David when she was 7 years old, and Solomon was about 12. After all, life in the politics of a palace following the aclaim of Israel's favorite King isn't going to come easily with out a struggle, and Solomon's task is to bring peace to a war ravaged land.

And this dear readers, just covers the first parts of the book mostly! Mesu Andrews has plenty of research to keep things focused in the right time period, and none of her writing makes you feel that any of the Bible parts of this story were diminished or misused. I have not totally finished the last part of this book, and I can tell you I am very pleased with this book! I was shocked to check and find that Mesu Andrew's name is hard to find on the net, and that very few reviews of her work exist so far. I think I might have to work on fixing that!

Carol

About the Book:

For young King Solomon wisdom came as God’s gift, but sacred love was forged through passion’s fire.

Standing in the overpowering shadow of his famous father, young king Solomon wavers between fear and bravado, longing for a love that is true and pure—a love that can be his cornerstone.

A shepherdess in the northern city of Shunem, Arielah has known since she first laid eyes on Solomon that it was her destiny to become his bride. When her father secures a promise from King Solomon to marry Arielah as a treaty bride to help unite the kingdom, it seems her dreams will come true.

But how can this simple shepherdess live as part of Solomon’s harem? Can Solomon set aside his distractions to give himself completely to just one woman? Or will he let duty, deception, and the daily routine divide his heart?

Book Trailer:

About the Author:

Mesu Andrews is an author and speaker who has devoted herself to passionate study of Scripture. Harnessing her deep love for God’s Word, Andrews brings the biblical world alive for her audiences.
Mesu and her husband, Roy, have two grown children and (Praise God!) a growing number of grandkids. They live in Washington, where Roy teaches at Multnomah University. They have a Rottweiler-pitbull named Bouzer who keeps Mesu company while she writes.

She’s published two books, Love Amid the Ashes and Love’s Sacred Song. Two more are scheduled for release with Revell in March of 2013 and 2014.

Love's Sacred Song is available March 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

The book link is:
http://www.amazon.com/Loves-Sacred-Song-Mesu-Andrews/dp/0800734084

Author's age about Love's Sacred Song:
http://www.mesuandrews.com/books-by-mesu-2/loves-sacred-song/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/MesuAndrews
Web Site: http://www.mesuandrews.com/

Paper Poppies AND Faithful Friends - Carried Away March Memoirs!!!

Hello Everyone!

Today is another installment of being Carried Away by Memoirs in March! I tell you I have gone and done it now, because I am so carried away with reading that I am behind a bit on my reading and a few other things too! LOL! So while we are carried away, this ONE post will be covering TWO books. My short comments are not enough here, but here they are! Paper Poppies is a moving true life story of a woman searching for God and answers in Russia. Communist, rather Godless Russia at the time. How great God's love is for us!!! Then Faithful Friends shows vividly how God uses his creatures to comfort and remind us that He is with us always!

For 5 days, starting today, we are offering a free download of the Kindle e-books:

http://amzn.com/B007BV7XMO (Paper Poppies)

http://amzn.com/B005HMH4D2 (Faithful Friends)

Read on and find out more information!
Carol

PAPER POPPIES : A Memoir

by Marianna Vekhova

*AND*

FAITHFUL FRIENDS : Holocaust Survivors' Stories of the Pets who Gave Them Comfort, Suffered Alongside Them and Waited for Their Return

by Susan Bulanda

These two books give gripping accounts of children torn from the safety and comfort of their homes and families in World War II Europe. We, the readers, can gain inspiration, wisdom and empathy from reading their eloquent memoirs.

The child in Paper Poppies was a crippled orphan with TB whose body was strapped to a hospital bed in Siberia, but whose mind and heart were on an amazing and memorable quest for Truth. Marianna sifted through the myriad of beliefs that filled empty souls during the Communist years in Russia: Soviet atheism, old folklore and superstitions, and empty religious traditions. When, in her pain and loneliness, one Christian dared to share her Christian faith with Marianna, a seed was planted that later led her to Christ.

The stories in Faithful Friends are by Holocaust survivors who were children during the Holocaust in several European countries. They tell of separation, betrayal and terror, and the comfort and hope God provided through the companionship and loyalty of their pets.

Ordering Info:

176 pages

Price: $12.99

Available through Amazon.com and other online retailers, or through bookstores anywhere.

The Amazon Kindle version is FREE March 15 - 19 here

http://amzn.com/B007BV7XMO

Read Excerpt:

http://www.cladach.com/Paper-Poppies-Excerpt.html

Review Quote:

"The story of a spiritual journey, this book will allow you to enter the struggle of the Russian soul like no other." ~ Pamela Brunson, World Witness

About the Author:

Marianna Vekhova is a graduate of Moscow State University, School of Journalism. She worked as an editor for a children's publishing house, then wrote scripts for children's radio and television. She has published children's books in Russian. She also has volunteered at a Moscow mission evangelizing street children.

Author Photo:

Author Video:

BOOK TWO TODAY:

Ordering Info:

144 pages

Price: $12.99

Available through Amazon.com and other online retailers, or through bookstores anywhere.

The Amazon Kindle version is FREE March 15 - 19 here

http://amzn.com/B005HMH4D2

Read Excerpt:

http://www.cladach.com/F-F-Excerpt.html

Review Quote:

"Each riveting chapter, headed by a brief explainer of Germany's occupation of a specific European country (seven total), segues into an emotional, detailed memoir of a writer's bond with his/her pet and the never-ending angst associated with leaving it behind to an uncertain fate. Each narrative connects powerfully to the reader, detailing a glacial, soberly reflective journey that taxes the human-animal bond to the ultimate." ~ Renny Green, SeattleKennelClub.org

About the Author:

Susan Bulanda is a recognized and accomplished dog trainer and animal behaviorist. She holds a B.A. in Psychology and a M.A. in Education, and is an adjunct professor at Kutztown University. She is the author of many published books, including God's Creatures: A Biblical View of Animals. Sue and her husband reside in Pennsylvania.

Author Photo:

Interview with Susan Bulanda:

1. How did Faithful Friends come to be? What made you think of compiling stories such as these? How did you connect with the families who told their stories? How long did it take?

I thought of doing this book because in the movie The Diary of Anne Frank, they risked their lives to hide a cat with them. I wondered how many other people had stories to tell. I ran ads in magazines, both hard copies and on line to find people. The fact gathering took me quite a few years because the stories came in very slowly.

2. What did you, both as a Christian and as an animal behaviorist, hope to achieve by compiling stories about the pets during the holocaust of WWII?

My main objective for writing the book was to teach people in general 51; and specifically today's youth 51; about the Holocaust and counter some of the rumors that the Holocaust did not exist.

3. What is the greatest impact you have seen come about from the publishing of these stories?

The most rewarding aspect of doing this book was that it gave the contributors closure after so many years. That meant the most to me

4. What is the accomplishment that you are most proud of in your life?

I have had such a blessed life because God has given me a number of gifts, so it is hard to pick one major accomplishment. Some people would consider a strong, lasting marriage an accomplishment, successfully raising a son who is proud to have served as a Marine, and helping so many people with their pet problems. I am very proud of all of the years my husband and I ran canine search and rescue units as volunteers.

5. Writers are usually lifelong readers. When you were a child what were your favorite books?

Without a shadow of a doubt, I was an Albert Payson Terhune fan.

6. What do you like to do in your down time?

I do not have down time so to speak. I am one of those people who is doing something most of the time. I sew, garden, bird watch, and I like to bake.

7. Where on the Internet can we find you?

At www.sbulanda.com