Lacey’s Star by Kay DiBianca (A Lady Pilot-in-Command Novel #1)

About the Book

Book: Lacey’s Star: A Lady Pilot-in-Command Novel

Author: Kay DiBianca

Genre: Christian Mystery and Romance

Release Date: October 23, 2023

Private pilot Cassie Deakin lands in the middle of an unwanted adventure when she discovers her beloved Uncle Charlie has been attacked and seriously injured by thieves.

But Cassie has a problem. She doesn’t know who she can trust. Still, she’s determined to solve the mystery behind the assault on her uncle, so she reluctantly agrees to team up with Deputy Frank White, a man she definitely does not trust, to find the culprits.

But as Cassie and Frank peel back the layers of one mystery, they uncover a deeper and more sinister crime: the murder of an eight-year-old girl decades earlier. Armed with only a single, cryptic clue to the death of young Lacey Alderson, Cassie makes a crucial discovery that lands her in the crosshairs of a murderer.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 My Review: 

The book has suspense, mystery, action, romance, and it's very interesting. Cassie planned to rescue her uncle, but she wound up in so much more. The mystery and the romance are well-balanced. Frank is smart and frankly, addictive as a character and a detective. So much self sacrifice and love is shown in this book. I didn't want to put it down. It really does have everything you hoped for in this kind of book, and it's a series, so we will get more! Faith was never left out and I thoroughly enjoyed this story.

Thanks to Celebrate Lit for my digital copy of this book. This review is my own and a positive review is never required.

5 Stars 

About the Author

Kay DiBianca is a former software developer and IT manager who retired to a life of mystery. She loves to create webs of intrigue for her characters to untangle as they search for the truth while dealing with the ongoing challenges of faith and family.

In addition to her latest book, Lacey’s Star, Kay has three published novels in The Watch Mystery Series: The Watch on the Fencepost, Dead Man’s Watch, and Time After Tyme. Her published short stories include Lady Pilot-in-Command, The Clutter Busters, and The Money Tree. 

Kay is a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, Sisters in Crime, and the Collierville Christian Writers Group. She is an instrument-rated pilot and a regular contributor to the Kill Zone Blog. An avid runner, she can often be found at a nearby track, on the treadmill, or at a large park near her home

Kay and her husband, Frank, live, run, and write in Memphis, Tennessee.

Enjoy an Excerpt!

I do not like handsome men. Not that I have much experience with them, but in my opinion, they’re self-absorbed and untrustworthy. Like the one sitting in the passenger seat of my Cessna 172 while I did the run-up prior to takeoff. Frank White.

Frank and I have shared only two experiences in the short time we’ve known each other. In the first one, I saved his life. In the second, he invited me to dinner and stood me up.

Now I’m not generally a person to hold a grudge, but being stood up is on my short list of unforgivable sins. So, when the company I worked for informed me I had to fly Frank to a meeting at my uncle’s farm a couple of hundred miles away, I turned my face into stone and took the assignment.

If Frank noticed my icy silence as I did the pre-flight check, he didn’t let on. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the little smirk on his face while he scrolled on his phone, his dark hair hanging down on his forehead. He needed a haircut.

The Newton Airport tower called down. “Cessna Three One Four Bravo Charlie, you’re cleared for takeoff on runway three-six.” After a brief pause, he added, “Have a nice flight, Cassie.”

Frank adjusted his headset when he heard the call from the tower and winked at me. I gave him a look I reserve only for the lowest forms of human life and focused my attention back on the flight panel.

“Roger that,” I said and repeated the instructions back to the air traffic controller. Then I added power and maneuvered Scout onto the end of the runway. Scout is the name I use for the little blue and white Cessna that was my father’s pride and joy. He taught me how to fly when I was a young girl, and he left the plane to me when he died.

My frustration evaporated as my aircraft responded to full power and accelerated down the runway. When we reached sixty knots, I gently pulled back the yoke, the nose lifted, and in one breathless moment, we were free from the earth.

This was a feeling I could never get enough of—the thrill of release as I watched the ground drop away. We climbed over the end of the runway, and meadows of goldenrod waved goodbye as we soared into blue heaven.

Blog Stop

Book Reviews From an Avid reader, February 6

Pause for Tales, February 7

Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, February 8 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, February 8

Betti Mace, February 9

Locks, Hooks and Books, February 10

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, February 11

Texas Book-aholic, February 12

An Author’s Take, February 13

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, February 14

Life on Chickadee Lane, February 15

Blogging With Carol, February 16

For Him and My Family, February 17

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, February 18 (Author Interview)

Mary Hake, February 18

Lily’s Corner, February 19

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Kay is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card and an eBook copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2a0c6/lacey-s-star-celebration-tour-giveaway

Rescuing You: Secrets and Spies in Shadow Cove by Robin Patchen (The Wright Heroes of Maine Book 2)

 

About the Book

Book: Rescuing You

Author: Robin Patchen

Genre: Christian Romantic Suspense

Release Date: January 9, 2024

A heart-pounding tale of danger and devotion, the riveting second installment of the Wright Heroes of Maine series by a USA Today bestselling author.

CIA agent Michael Wright’s world crumbles when his girlfriend, Leila, is snatched off the street and later seen in the grasp of a terrorist he’s been tracking, Michael blames himself. Keeping his identity secret from her clearly didn’t protect her. Now he must defy the Agency and fly to Iraq to rescue her.

Leila Amato escaped Iraq a decade earlier, only returning in her worst nightmares. But those nightmares have come true when she finds herself captive and all alone, or so she thinks until she sees her identical twin sister.

Michael tracks Leila to a desert compound, but his rescue mission goes awry when he discovers her sister needs to escape as well. His detailed strategy can only ensure one woman’s safety. Now they’re on the run, trying to get out of the country before their enemies track them down.

But Leila’s kidnapping is only one small part of a larger plot—one that endangers thousands of lives—and now he can’t trust anyone. Not even the woman who’s stolen his heart. A woman who’s been keeping secrets of her own…

A high-stakes international chase full of romantic suspense, spies, and a ticking time bomb that will keep you reading all night long.

 

Click here to get your copy!

My Review:

I couldn't skip this book because of the title, and the author. This book has a lot of action, I mean lots! It's also pretty gripping. It tends to captivate me and I lose track of time. It has a lot of depth and so many strong characters. I love the twist and how things take off from the point of kidnapping. I felt like I was all over the Middle East, and that's not a bad thing. This book was thrilling, emotional, and strong. I would recommend it and this author.

5 Stars 

About the Author

Robin Patchen is a USA Today bestselling and award-winning author of Christian romantic suspense. She grew up in a small town in New Hampshire, the setting of her Nutfield Saga books, and then headed to Boston to earn a journalism degree. After college, working in marketing and public relations, she discovered how much she loathed the nine-to-five ball and chain. After relocating to the Southwest, she started writing her first novel while she homeschooled her three children. The novel was dreadful, but her passion for storytelling didn’t wane. Thankfully, as her children grew, so did her writing ability. Now that her kids are adults, she has more time to play with the lives of fictional heroes and heroines, wreaking havoc and working magic to give her characters happy endings. When she’s not writing, she’s editing or reading, proving that most of her life revolves around the twenty-six letters of the alphabet.

More from Robin

I spent a week this year serving refugee women on the Greek island of Lesvos. Along with helping to distribute food and clothing, I gave hand massages. It seems like such a little thing, but it was powerful.

Many didn’t speak English, and I found it difficult to connect even with those who did. What do I have in common with women escaping war or oppression?

But I could perch on a tiny stool at their feet and rub lotion on their hands. I didn’t know their stories, but God did. So while they chatted with friends in languages I couldn’t understand, I prayed silently. As I did, God stirred in me a deep love for each one.

Imagine the courage it must take to leave everything you know—your home, your community, in some cases, even your family—to seek freedom. Imagine how desperate or afraid or, frankly, hopeful a person must be to attempt it.

The heroine in Rescuing You did just that. An Iraqi who came to Christ as a teenager, Leila feared her family would discover her secret and felt she had no choice but to run away. Resettled in Germany, away from her mother, father, and twin sister, she built a life for herself and fell in love.

And then someone snatched her back to Iraq.

Rescuing You is about a man determined to save the woman he loves. It’s about a woman willing to risk everything for the freedom to…

…Love the man she chooses

…Live a life of purpose, and mostly…

…Worship the One True God

It’s easy to take our freedom for granted—and to forget that true and lasting freedom isn’t political or social but spiritual. Christians are free in Christ no matter what their society looks like.

But what an incredible blessing to live in a free country.

Rescuing You barely scratches the surface of the refugee crisis. It’s mostly about a man and a woman and whole bunch of terrifying villains. Even so, I pray it’ll stir in you a deep love for refugees seeking freedom worldwide. Pray for them and for the nations they’ve escaped. Our world needs Jesus.

Blog Stops

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, February 3

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, February 4

The Lofty Pages, February 4

Betti Mace, February 5

Blossoms and Blessings, February 6

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, February 6

Locks, Hooks and Books, February 7

An Author’s Take, February 8

Pause for Tales, February 8

Texas Book-aholic, February 9

Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, February 10 (Author Interview)

Mary Hake, February 10

For Him and My Family, February 11

Book Looks by Lisa, February 12

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, February 13

Life on Chickadee Lane, February 13

Blogging With Carol, February 14

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, February 15

Holly’s Book Corner, February 15

Lakesidelivingsite, February 16

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Robin is giving away the grand prize package of a paperback copy of Running to You and a $75 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2a0c0/rescuing-you-celebration-tour-giveaway

A Storm of Doubts Epic Book Launch!

 

A Storm of Doubts Epic Book Launch

 

About the Book

Book Title: A Storm of Doubts

Author Name: JPC Allen

Genre: YA Cozy Mystery

Release Date: March 1, 2024

 

Her dad said nothing could hurt their relationship. But what if he isn’t her dad? 

Summer gets off to a rocky start for twenty-year-old Rae Riley when the ex-wife of family friend Jason Carlisle claims their youngest child isn’t his and Rae’s con man uncle Troy returns to Marlin County, Ohio. Rae is already at odds with her father, Sheriff Walter “Mal” Malinowski, over her desire to help people in trouble. When she extends that help to Troy and Jason’s ex-wife, Ashley, she and Mal clash even more. 

Then Ashley disappears, and Jason and his brother Rick are the main suspects. As Rae and her aunt Carrie, a private investigator hired to protect Jason’s kids, work to discover what really happened to Ashley, Rae wrestles with Troy’s insinuations that she may be calling the wrong Malinowski “Dad.”

 

Book Excerpt

As I threw the paper towel away and turned to the door, she grabbed

me by both arms, her smile erased. "I have to talk to Jason. Things are such a mess." Tears rose in her eyes, and she swallowed. She would have alarmed me if I hadn't been certain I could flatten

her with one blow.

         "My kids don't even recognize me. And I wouldn't hurt them. Jason didn't need a professional bodyguard." She took a big sniff. "Jason's blocked my number. Could you tell him to unblock it so I can call him?"

         "But—but—” Her 180 spin in behavior made me dizzy. "You don't want to use your lawyers?"

         "I don't want to talk about Sylvie and Steve. It's—” She bit her lip. "I have to talk to him."

         Dad would yell until the roof blew off if I got involved.

         "Please." She released my arms. "Please tell me you'll do it. I have to get back before Steve gets suspicious."

         I studied her, searching for a false note in her request. How could I believe her when she'd changed her tune so quickly? "Are you afraid of him?"

         Her eyes widened, but she was silent, as if she had to either process my question or manufacture an answer. "Please tell me you'll give Jason my message."

 

 

Missed Any Excerpts, Go Here

 

Excerpt One: http://kid-lit.library-lady.blog/epic-book-launch-and-excerpt-a-storm-of-doubts-young-adult/

Excerpt Two: https://blossomsandblessings.blogspot.com/2024/02/a-storm-of-doubts-by-jpc-allen-epic.html

Excerpt Three: https://moments-of-beauty.blogspot.com/2024/02/epic-book-launch-storm-of-doubts-by-jpc.html

Excerpt Four: https://carolkeen.blogspot.com/2024/02/a-storm-of-doubts-epic-book-launch.html

Excerpt Five: https://storiesbygina.com/2024/02/12/a-storm-of-doubts-epic-book-launch-with-celebrate-lit-publicity/

Excerpt Six: https://www.artistwriterandstudentohmy.com/posts/a-storm-of-doubts-epic-book-launch/

Excerpt Seven: https://coverloverbookreview.blogspot.com/2024/02/a-storm-of-doubts.html

 

About the Author

JPC Allen started her writing career in second grade with an homage to Scooby Doo. She’s been tracking down mysteries ever since. Her Christmas mystery “A Rose from the Ashes” was the first Rae Riley mystery and a Selah-finalist at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference in 2020. Her first Rae Riley novel, A Shadow on the Snow, released in 2021. Online, she offer tips and prompts to ignite the creative spark in every kind of writer. She also leads workshops for tweens, teens and adults, encouraging them to discover the adventure of writing. Coming from a long line of Mountaineers, she’s a life-long Buckeye.

Water's Break by Sophia Hansen

 

About the Book

Book: Water’s Break

Author: Sophia Hansen

Genre: YA sci-fi

Release Date: January 9, 2024

What if fear itself is the deadliest undercurrent of all? 

Nica would do anything to avoid the hassles of her sister’s bonding ceremony—the wrap fittings, hairstyles, and braided fire coral—but she never imagined that the waters covering her planet would be broken. As the heavens rained fire and stone, mountains erupted from the sea and dry ground was birthed on the Deep, dividing the water—and the Olomi people—for the first time in their history.

In the wake of her world’s violent re-formation, Nica’s family is shattered. When the rookie Guardian leaves the safety of the Deep to find her sister, she is abducted by strange landwalkers who possess strength and technology beyond her imagination. Nica realizes that the disaster from above was by their design—a calculated plan to terraform the water planet and conquer her people. All Nica wants to do is find her sister and swim home to safety, but with the landwalkers closing in, escape may not be possible. And if Nica can’t save herself, how can she hope to save her sister—or her people?

 

Click here to get your copy!

 My Review:

WOW! This is a fantastic read. It's full of fear, and hope. It's full of land and sea, and well-written world-building. It has about everything a Sci-Fi Fantasy fan could want in a foreign world. It's brutal and gritty, and yet amazing. Nica was a very good character and I hope this will be a series. It just covers so much, like loss of home, and identity and feeling powerless to help those you love, dealing with things so much bigger than yourself, these are all just a part of this story. It also combines some history as well. I am going to be following this author and hoping for more stellar reads from her soon. 

5 Stars 

About the Author

Sophia L. Hansen, raised in the melded cultures of Korea and America, understands not fitting into society’s boxes. Born on a tiny island in Alaska, then growing up in New York City and Boston, she now resides in the Southeast, writing and editing between fresh(ish) cups of coffee and slices of crisp bacon. She embraces life with her husband, their adulting children, and her new grandson, but her favorites are Jesus, family, coffee, and dark chocolate, mostly in that order.

More from Sophia

Once upon a time, there was a mom.
A mom with many children.
She was a very busy mom.
One day the pastor’s wife asked her to write something for the Christmas program.
“Why would you ask me?” she replied. “I’m just a mom.”
“Because you love words,” was the quiet answer.
When the mom heard this, she realized it was true. And so, she began to write.

The Beginning

~

Stories don’t grow in a vacuum. Neither do they flourish in a pressure cooker. Our ideas are like seeds; full of potential but needing time and space to germinate. My season of writing started after more than a decade of birthing, raising, and educating my children. We had five at the time and I was full up. There was little space in church activities for attached moms whose children didn’t nursery well, and I spent more of my Sunday mornings in the playground rather than the pews. Then, finally, a friend invited me to a study in her home, and all children were welcome.

As my soul feasted on the fellowship, Bible study, and sharing, I felt like a child sitting down to a holiday meal. I’d been so busy taking care of others that I didn’t remember what it was like to have an oxygen mask for myself. It had been far too long since my spiritual self had been nourished. Out of that beautiful season the seeds of my words, long dormant, began to sprout, including my what ifs about what would become the world of Water’s Break.

Water’s Break dives into Nica’s world, a water-covered planet inhabited by amphibian people. When disaster strikes, landmasses rise from the seabed, separating the water and its people for the first time in their history. Nica’s family is devastated: her father is gravely injured, her sister is missing, and her mother, grief-stricken. Nica, a rookie Guardian, is determined to find her sister and bring her home, even if it means she must venture out of the Deep. But no one knows what lies in wait abovewater.

I hope your hearts are encouraged as you join Nica’s fight to survive in a sea of oppression. And when survival is not enough, will she risk everything to choose life?

Blog Stops

Texas Book-aholic, January 30

Exploring the Written Word, January 31

Blogging With Carol, February 1

Artistic Nobody, February 2 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, February 3

Locks, Hooks and Books, February 4

Guild Master, February 5 (Author Interview)

Becca Hope: Book Obsessed, February 5

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, February 6

Beauty in the Binding, February 7 (Author Interview)

Tell Tale Book Reviews, February 8

Wishful Endings, February 9

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, February 10

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, February 11 (Author Interview)

The Lofty Pages, February 11

Simple Harvest Reads, February 12 (Guest Review from Mindy Houng)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Sophia is giving away the grand prize package of a signed hardcover with swag (bookmark, stickers, character cards)!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/29b05/water-s-break-celebration-tour-giveaway

Avian The One Truth By Kayla E. Green

About the Book

Book: Aivan: The One Truth

Author: Kayla E. Green

Genre: Young Adult Christian Fantasy

Release Date: July 23, 2022

Two young people from opposite sides of the Great Continent must make sense of their life.

Rune has grown up all of her life in the mountainous northern nation of Kansanai. As granddaughter of the Senior Elder, she has been a devout believer of the Vihishki gods her whole life. Yet, when a prophet challenges the Vihishki gods against his Aivan, the One Truth, everything she thought she knew is turned upside down. Will she be able to let go of the life she thought she deserved for something far greater than what she could have ever imagined?

Rolf goes through the motions of everyday life in the southern nation of Etalentin. Yet, his routine is disrupted when a voice claiming to be the one true God speaks to him. Listening to his heart, he follows Aivan, but he is thrown temptation after temptation on his journey. Will Rolf be able to resist the temptations in order to fulfill Aivan’s plan for him?

Aivan: The One Truth is a story about self-discovery, identity, and faith.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 My Review:

Here's a story with two POV's. One is from Rune's and one is from Rolf's take on things. They are in a world full of gods, all kinds of gods, not too unlike some of our own world's past history. Rolf has grown up knowing the one truth, Avian, but Rune hasn't. It's a very fast read, that's quite engaging. 

As a well-done parallel to Christ and there's a lot of pulling from Bible stories worked into this short read that's a faith-themed story. Who you believe in, what happens with misplaced faith, and much more. I enjoyed the characters and their story and I'm hoping for more in the next book. This has so many ways it can go with their story, so I hope to read the sequel to learn more. 

5 Stars 

About the Author

Kayla E. Green is a school librarian, speculative fiction author, and poet who adores her husband and their furbabies. When she isn’t writing, reading, or taking photos for her bookstagram, she loves singing loudly and off-key to KLove Radio, napping, and pretending she’s a unicorn. Her award-winning YA fantasy novella, Aivan: The One Truth, and her inspirational poetry collection, Metamorphosis, are now available through book retailers. Kayla also has stories and poems featured in various anthologies, contest-winning stories published with Clean Fiction Magazine, and several flash fiction stories available online through Havok Publishing.

More from Kayla

Working in education, it often is disheartening to see how much darkness bombards today’s youth. With Aivan: The One Truth, the forthcoming Chronicles of the One Truth series, and all my writing, my primary goal is to offer young readers a beacon of hope in this dark world. Alluding to many stories and lessons found in the Old Testament, Aivan is a fast-paced novella designed to capture young readers and pull them into the world of the Great Continent. It is my biggest prayer with this book that Rune and Rolf’s journey in this fantasy narrative will serve as a guiding light to lead readers of all ages to seek truth in our reality—the truth that can only be found through our one true God.

One of my current projects is developing a companion devotional for Aivan: The One Truth as well as the full-length novels that will be part of the complete Chronicles of the One Truth series (which will be released at a later date). The devotional would be a tool for parents, teachers, and pastors to use along with the book to help young readers understand the themes and biblical parallels.

Two major themes within the novella center around identity and purpose. Rune’s struggles with disappointment with shattered dreams and the heartache of feeling lost, alone, and unfulfilled are struggles that are arguably universal. In looking at Rune’s journey, young readers as well as adult readers can recognize the real-world challenges of identity: Who exactly are we? In today’s world, there is a constant battle between God and society. How can one embrace their identity as a child of God when the world demands us to rage and rebel against that title?

In Exodus 3:11 (NIV) Moses asks God, “Who am I?” after he is told to go to the Pharaoh to rescue the Israelites. God tells Moses, “I am with you,” (Exodus 3:12, NIV). Similar to Moses’ walk of faith, Rune, like us all, must learn to accept the truth. Like Aivan in the fantasy novella, our God, the one true God, is always with us. We may not immediately—or ever—understand His plan; however, through Him we are whole, redeemed, and loved. And in that, we have great purpose.

I pray that whoever reads Aivan: The One Truth finds parallels to our own world and finds solace knowing that we are because God is the great “I Am.”

In my upcoming companion devotional, I will explore the concepts of identity and purpose from a biblical perspective. Anyone who wants updates on this, should follow my blog and subscribe to my newsletter to be the first to know!

Blog Stops

Splashes of Joy, January 11 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, January 12

Blossoms and Blessings, January 13 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, January 13

Artistic Nobody, January 14 (Author Interview)

For the Love of Literature, January 15 (Author Interview)

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, January 16

Tell Tale Book Reviews, January 17

Locks, Hooks and Books, January 18

Tell Tale Book Reviews, January 19 (Author Interview)

Book Butterfly in Dreamland, January 19

Pause for Tales, January 20

By The Book, January 21 (Author Interview)

Blogging With Carol, January 22

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, January 23 (Author Interview)

A Reader’s Brain, January 24 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Kayla is giving away the grand prize package of a paperback of Aivan: The One Truth, a paperback of Metamorphosis, an Aivan inspired booksleeve, Rune and Rolf character art cards, and a $50 Barnes and Noble gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2958a/aivan-the-one-truth-celebration-tour-giveaway