Visible Threat

The second book in the Janice Cantore series, Visible Threat was more exciting than the first book in the series. But for readers who are starting to read this two-book series, the first book is a must to read because the characters are introduced from the beginning. 


Readers find out Brinna's past life, her childhood incident with abduction that led her to be an officer that helps finds missing kids who are kidnapped. The second book was thrilling. I could not put the book down. I felt the urge to read till the very end.

Officer Brinna Caruso wants perfection--perfect justice and a perfect world. She wants to save and protect all the innocents in the world, no matter the cost.

Orphaned and struggling to get by, Ivana and her sister left Bulgaria for America with dreams of a better life. But since they arrived in Long Beach, everything they were promised has turned out to be a lie.

After a dead girl is found in the river with a mysterious tattoo on her hip, homicide detective Jack O'Reilly asks for Brinna's help. unaware of the depths of evil that will be uncovered, Brinna finds herself flung into a dangerous situation--an organized ring of human trafficking. 

Parenting the Wholehearted Child

This book lets you see what parenting is like from a humorous point of view. I see many of my friends having kids and I feel like I would want one too, but first I want to read up on parenting first. 

With authenticity, conviction, and a lively sense of humor, Jeannie guides you on a transformative journey into raising wholehearted - not perfect - children, who live from the freedom found in being wholeheartedly loved (and liked!) by God. 

Parenting the Wholehearted Child equips you with biblical wisdom and practical ideas to teach your children that they are fully accepted by God, not because of anything they do or don’t do but because of everything Jesus has already done for them. Woven throughout the book is the good news that it is God’s extravagant grace - not your perfect performance - that transforms the hearts of children.

Storming the Black Ice

When British geologists discover the world's largest oil reserves under the desolate, icy tundra of Antarctica, Britain and Chile form a top-secret alliance for control of petroleum resources that will rival the economic power of OPEC. But when their discovery is uncovered by an Argentinean intelligence officer, a surprise-attack against a secret British outpost in Antarctica triggers a war. Britain and Chile are in a military standoff against Venezuela and Argentina, and when the war escalates, Britain asks America for help. 


For two couples separated by the battle, the outcome will be either love reunited or devastating heartbreak. For a young British boy living with his mother in London, his father’s life is on the line. And for Pete Miranda, an American sub commander detailed on a special military assignment to his father's homeland of Chile, will his fate be a crushing death under the icy-cold waters of the Antarctic Ocean, or a future of life, light, and a second chance for love?

The story seemed like it was set as a journal of some sort but it was fascinating and not at all boring. The plot didn't drag even though I wasn't familiar with all the jargon being used. 

Below the Surface

In the third book in the Code of Silence series, a coming-of-age story that both boys and girls will enjoy, from prolific author and speaker Tim Shoemaker.

Buried fears don’t stay buried for long. Something is wrong with Cooper. He doesn't understand it, and he won’t admit it, but after surviving the trauma of abduction, Cooper is plagued by a deep fear he can’t control. A vacation aboard the restored Getaway with his friends is just what he needs. No drama, no mysteries, just fun, relaxation, and a few well-planned pranks. But trouble follows this crew, and the idea of a carefree vacation soon disappears along with a missing woman. The police think she drowned, but Hiro has her own suspicions and starts investigating, while Cooper keeps busy and hides behind his practical jokes. But fear has a way of rising. A prank gone wrong, a dark water dive, and the four friends find more than they bargained for - just below the surface.

This book was really good and I wished that I could have read the series from the beginning. Too bad this series weren't around when I was younger. It is def. better than Nancy Drew. I can identify with Cooper and his practical jokes to hide behind and not let the problems I was facing get in the way. 

At least when my cousins come over this summer, they have reading material fit for their age group. I really like reading books from this age group too. It lets me go back to the younger age and imagine what it would be like to have friends like those in the book.

It is available on March 25th, 2014! 

The Queen's Handmaid

From the servant halls of Cleopatra's Egyptian palace to the courts of Herod the Great, Lydia will serve two queens to see prophecy fulfilled.

Alexandria, Egypt 39 BC

Orphaned at birth, Lydia was raised as a servant in Cleopatra's palace, working hard to please while keeping everyone at arm's length. She's been rejected and left with a broken heart too many times in her short life.

But then her dying mentor entrusts her with secret writings of the prophet Daniel and charges her to deliver this vital information to those watching for the promised King of Israel. Lydia must leave the nearest thing she's had to family and flee to Jerusalem. Once in the Holy City, she attaches herself to the newly appointed king, Herod the Great, as handmaid to Queen Mariamme.

Trapped among the scheming women of Herod's political family-his sister, his wife, and their mothers-and forced to serve in the palace to protect her treasure, Lydia must deliver the scrolls before dark forces warring against the truth destroy all hope of the coming Messiah.

Biblical fiction is at its best. Since we can't ever go into the imagination station and go back and see it all happen, it's nice to at least imagine how it all went. I really liked the point of view of this author. Makes it feel like you were there with all the action.

This book comes out in March 18th, 2014! 

Distortion

Juliet Cole’s life has been dismantled by the murder of her husband. She doesn’t know who—or what—to trust when everything she has believed to be true about her marriage has been a lie. When Juliet Cole’s husband of fifteen years is gunned down in a dark parking lot before her eyes, she thinks it was a random shooting. Devastated and traumatized, she answers hours of questioning. When she’s finally allowed to return home to break the news to her boys, she hears a voicemail that takes the situation from a random shooting to a planned, deliberate attack. "Mrs. Cole, we know you have access to the supply and the money. If you don't turn fifty million over to us and give us the codes, then you'll be burying more family members."

Suddenly, Juliet realizes that she and her children could be in danger. She teams up with her sisters and PI Michael Hogan to dig into the sham Bob has been living for years. The more she learns, the worse the betrayal. A drug trafficking history, a fortune in cash, and a secret family all emerge to turn Juliet’s belief system on its head, and threaten the things she loves. Are she and her sisters skilled enough as sleuths to get to the truth?

I really like books like this, the plot isn't predictable and there are always new turns. I really like reading Terri Blackstock books because her plots are engaging and readers are never bored. I personally could not put it down and start homework because I wanted to find out what happened next. This book and grad school does not mix! 

If you want to read this book, you must wait until March 11th, 2014 for it to be available to the public. 

The Faith to Make the Sun Stand Still

In Sun Stand Still, Pastor Steven Furtick challenged us to ask God for the impossible—to live, every day, with the same faith in the miraculous that we see in the Bible. In this daily, personal guide Steven leads you deeper into Scripture as you begin to live the life God created and saved us for.

Over the next forty days, you’ll have the opportunity to see what audacious faith can look like in your own life. Through daily scripture readings and teachings, this book will give you the chance to change your perspective on prayer. If you have the ability to ask, God has the ability to act - and transform the ordinary into the extraordinary.

In this devotional, you will learn daily how to develop your faith, walk in the confidence of Christ, and dare to believe God for the impossible.

This devotional challenged me to think of life as another angle. People used to tell me that I should live like Jesus is coming back tomorrow. How do I apply that in my life? I live in a nice suburban neighborhood. I go to classes once a week and work the other days. 

How, then can I live my life to the fullest when I don't go anywhere outside of those mundane things? This book challenged me to do so.

Read this book and it will also change your life!!