Reading, Writing & Pondering

  Every year I look forward to Melody Carlson's Christmas novella. Once Upon a Christmas Carol is her latest one and I found it to be another heartwarming book full of Christmas charm. Once Upon a Christmas starts out with Carol Langstrom heading to the Bahamas for the holidays. Carol shares her birthday with Jesus--and so do I, so I could relate to that aspect of the book with Carol's mixed feelings about the holiday and her birthday. Between her birthday and growing up in her dysfunctional family, as the book begins, she feels rather Scroogish about the holidays so she decides to escape on a vacation. However, due to some big storms, Carol gets detoured to Michigan from her home in Seattle. While stuck in Michigan, she meets her Aunt and spends time getting to know her--and some other local folks.  Victor is back at his parents' farm helping his mother take care of his father who has Alzheimer's disease. Victor is a wonderful cook and owned a flourishing restaurant ...

  The Sands of Sea Blue Beach by Rachel Hauck is a mix of the old and the new at Sea Blue Beach in this dual-timeline story. The Sands of Sea Blue Beach goes back and forth between Emery Quinn's teenage year that she visited Florida with her parents and stayed at the Sand Motor Motel. She met Caleb Ransom that summer and romance blossomed. She found out at the end of the trip that her mom had the cancer--and nothing was ever the same. In the current timeline, Emery is back at Sea Blue Beach as editor in chief of the Sea Blue Beach Gazette. Coincidentally, Caleb is also back in town because his mom had a cancer diagnosis and after starting his architectural career in Seattle, he wanted to move home to be closer to his family. I have to start off by saying I am a huge fan of this author. I have enjoyed several of her books in the past. However, The Sands of Sea Blue Beach is not my favorite. The writing is good. I especially like that the former sweethearts reconnect. At the same ...

  Do you like fast-paced Christian fiction? Vanished by Dr. David Jeremiah and Sam O'Neal will surely fit that bill. This thriller recently released from Thomas Nelson Publishers. About this book:   The end of the world . . . As leader of a special military unit charged with stopping potential pandemics before they spread, John “Haggs” Haggerty has a front-row seat to the sharp increase in natural disasters that precede the Rapture–including plagues, earthquakes, famines, wars, and rumors of war. And each crisis is becoming more intense. Meanwhile, his own world feels like it’s falling apart. He’s still caught in the grief of messing up his relationship with his ex-wife, and he’s trying to keep it together so that he can show up for his adult daughter before she wants him out of her life entirely. As both personal and professional situations push him to the brink, Haggs finds himself stretched further than ever in his desire to be the kind of good person he k...

      My son is 23 now but I sure remember the excitement of when I was expecting him. I Dream for You by Kate Wood is a well written Christian children's book that captures the wonder and excitement of having a little one. The prose in this book is nicely written in rhyme. The words go together nicely without sounding forced or hokey. It definitely took me back to the days when I was expecting my son and all the hopes and dreams I had for him as both a baby and a child.  This book is definitely a Christian book as it mentions God. As the cover says, Imagining God's love and plants for your life" is the main subject matter. There are also Bible verses on a full page at the back of the book to pray for your child.  The illustrations are bright and nicely done. I like how they are inclusive of children and parents of all colors.  This is a fairly large children's book measuring a little over 9 by 11 inches in size with 32 pages of content. While the book is a...