Sixty Acres and a Bride

I was privelidged to receive a copy of Sixty Acres and a Bride by Regina Jennings from Bethany House Publishers.  The fabric of this story is as finely embroidered as the clothes the main heroine (Rosa) wears.  Set in post Civil War south Texas, there enough historical flare to keep the story interesting.  You will find the story reminiscent of the Biblical account of Ruth and Naomi, but with enough twists and turns to keep it interesting.  This book is about love and loss, finding one's place in a new community, sticking with friends and family in need, and trusting in the Lord.  I really enjoyed reading it and hope you will give this debut novel a try.

The Captive Heart by Dale Cramer

I received the book The Captive Heart by Dale Cramer from Bethany House for review.  I really enjoyed the first book in this series (The daughters of Caleb Bender) and was super excited to get to review this second book.  It is a series based on true events in which an Amish community moves to Mexico (Paradise Valley) so that their children will not be forced to attend an "English" school.

The Captive Heart picks up right where Paradise Valley  leaves off.  It is just as well written and gives intriguing insight into the lives of the Amish and the Mexicans living around them.  The love stories seem honest and realistic.  The story is thrilling at times and the historical facts seem well researched.

Yet I couldn't love this book as much as the first one.  The whole complete pacifist nature of the Amish tradition began to grate on my nerves after a while.  I don't fault them for standing up for what they believe.  They are a testament of faith even when they are the only ones going in that direction.  I just don't see their point of view in the Bible so it is hard for me to read it without getting annoyed.  Somehow this was not such a major factor in the first book so I didn't mind so much.  And let's face it, self-defending Amish would have been out of place.  I think Mr. Cramer did a good job sticking with the Amish values.  It is just tiring to me to read.

In the end, I give the book 4 stars and still look forward to reading the third one.

2 Good Movies and a Good Book

We recently got back from a vacation in Houston (which I might post about later).  Right before we left last week, I went and saw two good movies and read a good book.  I didn't have time to post about them then so am just now getting around to it.

Good Movie #1- Courageous
If you haven't seen this movie yet and it is still in theaters, I highly recommend it.  The message about dad's standing up and being a man for their kids was really well told.  There were a couple of spots of rough acting, but the crew from Flywheel, Facing the Giants, and Fireproof have come a long way.

Good Movie #2- Captain America
This is a good story about serving your country and self-sacrifice and looking at the heart of a person instead of the outside.  It may be rather scary for littler kids (the villain has a red skull face).  There is also quite a bit of violence because Captain America is a soldier during WWII.  The whole thing makes you want to do something big with your life.

Good Book- Wings of a Dream by Anne Mateer
This is a Christian historical romance that I was given to review by Bethany House.  It is set during the influenza epidemic of 1918.  It is a great story about following the Lord's leading even when he is taking you where you don't think you want to go.  Ms. Mateer does a great job of creating a compelling set of characters.  The story revolves around Rebecca and her thirst for adventure.  She longs to get away from her boring life in a small town in Oklahoma and her overbearing mother.  She is sure that she can see the path that God has laid out for her.  But as with much of real life, God's way leads her to an altogether different adventure than she had in mind.

Even though I really enjoyed this book, I can't give it the full 5 stars.  The ending was too abrupt.  I would have enjoyed a little more of the loose ends tied up.  The book just ends at the climax without much thought to the aftermath of her big decision.

A River to Cross- a disappointment

A River to Cross by Yvonne Harris was a disappointment to me.  I love Christian historical romances, but this one fell flat.

The romance part was too modern.  While nothing immoral happens between Jake and Elizabeth, there is none of the old-fashioned propriety one expects in a love story set in the 1880's.  She even sleeps at his house unchaperoned.  Though this would not seem strange today, it seemed very out of place for the setting.

The romance was also to sappy.  The book made is seem as though everyone falls in love at first sight.  Elizabeth's first husband proposed in only a few days.  Jake proposed to a former fiance on the day he met her.  The two in the story seem "know" as soon as they look into each other's eyes, but at least wait some weeks to get engaged.  It seemed like the relationships were built solely on physical attraction. 

The story opens by introducing Elizabeth as a woman who has come to Texas to help care for her niece when the child's mother passed away.  Yet though the child is later orphaned she is barely mentioned throughout the rest of the story.  So why have the kid in the story at all?  Why not just say Elizabeth went to Texas to visit her brother?  It seemed like the whole niece/aunt angle was woefully underdeveloped.

The plot did not flow to me at all.  It seems like a whole section of the story (involving a beaver dam) served no purpose except to allow the couple to have another life threatening experience together.  The rest of the story seemed fairly disjointed as well.

Though I usually enjoy the books I am given to review by Bethany House, I can only give this book 2 stars.

Vigilante Left Me with a Heavy Feeling

The book Vigilante written by Robin Parrish reminded me something of a Christian batman.  I received this book from Bethany House for review.  I picked it because I generally like action books, super heroes, and don't mind a little violence.  So I thought I would love this book.  Yet as I finished the book, I just felt heavy.  Not sad, mind you.  Just weighed down. 

Maybe that is the point of the book.  Maybe it is supposed to make you think about heavy topics like when is violence as a Christian appropriate.  Maybe Robin Parrish wants the reader to consider the depths to which humanity can sink and ponder what to do about it.  But I read fiction for enjoyment.  I read for fun.  I did not find this book fun to read. 

Even though I didn't really end up liking this book, it will likely appeal to many.  It was well written.  The characters are solid.  And certainly the premise is not boring.  So I ended up giving it three stars. 

Unlikely Suitor by Nancy Moser

I really enjoyed Unlikely Suitor by Nancy Moser.  From the moment I got my review copy from Bethany House yesterday, I couldn’t put it down. 

Before I go on, I really encourage you not to read the back cover.  It gives too much away.  I think you will enjoy the book much more if you just let the story unfold without being really sure of where it is going.  I will attempt to not give too much away either in this review.

This book gives the reader an excellent glimpse into New York City and environs during the late 1800’s.  It takes you from the lowly seamstress to the upper crust in Newport.  The author shows that despite one’s social station there are common threads running through all humanity.  She shows the need to rely on God and yet take the opportunities he gives us. 

This book is very well written and well researched.  There are even fashion plates in the back that fit the descriptions in the book. 

The characters draw you in and make you want to know more about them.  Each brings something to the story.  The epilogue was especially gratifying with a good amount of closure.

 I recommend it to anyone who enjoys Christian historical fiction.  5 stars

Great New Book

I recently received Paradise Valley by Dale Cramer from Bethany House to review. It was one of the best books I have read in a while. I chose it as a book I would like to review because I really respect the Amish. This book is based on events in the 1920’s when the state of Ohio jailed some Amish dad’s for not sending their kids to the government run consolidated school. As a result, some of the Ohio Amish community seek freedom to raise their kids in the Amish way by moving to Mexico. Mr. Cramer shows how they stick to their beliefs and are willing to sacrifice for them. He shows their love of family and their willingness to work hard. After reading this book, I respect the Amish even more.


The story is focused on one family- The Benders. The Benders have been blessed with 13 children (one dead and one mentally challenged) but not all are equally fleshed out in the story. It focuses on the father, Caleb, and his 15-year-old daughter, Rachel. Though these two are the focus of the story you get glimpses in to the thoughts of many of the other characters.

One thing that I liked about the writing was Mr. Cramer’s truthful style. Strengths and weaknesses are given to all of the characters. He doesn’t sugar coat the harsh realities of the struggles the Benders face, yet this isn’t a heavy book that weighs down the soul. It is almost as though he has opened a window to Paradise Valley as it really was.

This is a first book in a new series about Caleb Bender’s daughters. I read the whole thing in a couple of days. I cared about the characters and wanted to see what happened to them. I also wanted to learn why they made the choices they made. I am really looking forward to the next one!

Within My Heart by Tamera Alexander

I just finished reading my review copy of Within My Heart by Tamera Alexander from Bethany House Publishing.

This is a well-told story about overcoming with the help of the Lord. It is something of a sad story; almost all of the characters have suffered some very traumatic experience. The point of the story is that the joy of living and loving is worth the chance that there will be sadness and suffering. And that is true of the book as well. Even though there are some sad parts it is well worth the read, especially since there is a happy ending.

This book seems to be part three of a series called Timber Ridge Reflections. Though this book stands alone, I wish I would have read the other two before reading this one. It is not that you can't follow the story without reading From a Distance and Beyond This Moment. It is just that I got the impression that many of the side characters would have been better understood if the first two books had been read.

This book shows God's presence in the characters' lives without coming across as preachy. I would have liked to have a little more written about the spiritual aspect of the story, but I enjoy books that others label as preachy so the average Christian fiction reader will probably find this book the perfect blend of non-preachy and seeking the Lord in all areas of life.

If you are interested in reading and reviewing Bethany House books, click here. It is a lot of fun and encourages me to read things that expand my horizons.

Vigilante's Bride

I just received a free review copy of The Vigilante’s Bride by Yvonne Harris from Bethany House publishers a couple of days ago and could not put it down. It is a very interesting read set in the Montana territory after the Civil War. It has many elements of a Wild West story. It sheds light on the Crow Indians, how justice was served when there was no law for miles around, and cattle ranching. There are gun fights and a hanging. There is a romance in the story too, but not so much that men would find it sappy. It was more about the cowboy and his decisions and struggles. It is also Christian fiction, but I can’t say that the characters' relationship with the Lord was anywhere near center stage. (I did find that a little disappointing.) All in all, I thought it was a very good read with a good mix of action, suspense, romance, and even a bit of humor.

Sixteen Brides by Stephanie Grace Whitson

I received Sixteen Brides by Stephanie Whitson on Thursday and couldn't put it down the whole weekend. The story revolves around civil war widows who want to make a new life by claiming homesteads in Nebraska. Sixteen women are going west together with train tickets purchased for them by the "Ladies Emigration Society". They find out later that this is not on the up and up.

Before you start to feel overwhelmed at the thought of keeping track of 16 women, the focus is on five of the ladies with glimpes at the others. And if millions of people can keep track of the first season of Lost, you can keep track of these ladies. The story is well worth it.

The five main ladies have to overcome things that are still around today. Ella feels like she is not a real woman because she is tall and "beefy" and not pretty to look at. Sally is overcoming an abusive relationship. Ruth is still grieving the loss of her true love after 3 years. Caroline has been branded a traitor by her family for her choice of husband. And Hettie . . . well you'll just have to wait to the end of the book to find out.

This is a very engaging tale that weaves God in subtly largely through Ella's mother, Zita. I do wish that there was a bit more about the spiritual transformation of the people, but I still give this book a big thumbs up.