Claiming Mariah by Pam Hillman

Mariah Malone finds herself solely in charge of the family ranch after her father dies and caretaker for her grandmother and blind sister. Slade Donovan and his brother arrive and claim ownership of the ranch. Mariah, believing the evidence presented, signs the ranch over to Slade. As they wait for Slade's mother and sisters to arrive, Mariah and Slade get to know each other and many secrets about the past and about the management of the ranch are revealed.


This book was so well written that I did not want to stop reading to get on with my life. I enjoyed this book so much and was surprised to find out it is only the second book by this author. I'm now in pursuit of book one and anxiously awaiting book three (please tell me there will be more from this author)! I love reading about this time period and this book will stay on my shelf in my "favorites" section.


I received a complimentary copy of this book from Tyndale for review.

Prepared for a Purpose by Antoinette Tuff

When I got this book I thought, how can they make a whole book out of an incident in the news that only took a few hours and how did they get it out there so fast after the fact? This is the story of Antoinette Tuff who was sitting at the reception desk of the school where she worked in Atlanta while the regular receptionist went to lunch. While she was sitting there, a gunman entered the room and threatened everyone in the school. Ms. Tuff spent a very long time alone with the gunman. In an unusual state of calm which she says was totally from God, she managed to talk him down. No one was injured in the standoff.

I found this book difficult to put down. I read it rather quickly. Not only does she take us through the events of the day, she gives us the testimony of her life that led her up to this point. She was dealing with some very difficult life situations on that day, but she still managed to hear God's voice and do and say all the right things to calm the gunman down. She is a true hero and a wonderful person. I am praying that all the situations she was dealing with get resolved for her.

This book was very well written. I know she had a co-author, Alex Tresniowski, but the story is her own and she was very brave to put it all out there for the world to see.

I received a copy of this book from Bethany House for review. I did not received any compensation for the review and the opinions expressed here are my own.

The Redcoats Are Coming! Focus on the Family's Imagination Station Book #13 by Marianne Hering and Nancy I. Sanders

This series puts the long-running and very popular Focus in the Family's Adventures in Odyssey into books for young children. This particular book is about American history, specifically Paul Revere. What a great way to learn about our country's history in a fun, exciting format! Patrick and Beth visit history through the "Imagination Station" to assist Paul Revere in warning the people that the British were coming during the outbreak of the Revolutionary war. They meet Paul Revere, Samuel Adams and John Hancock and play a hand in the events of history.


This book is well written and illustrated and at a level for understanding of young elementary aged children. They offer a download for a nominal fee of a curriculum to go with the story for homeschoolers and Christian schools. This is my preferred method of teaching history to my elementary aged granddaughter. She is a visual, hands-on learner and has loved Adventures in Odyssey all her life. She is enjoying this book along with another current related story for children that is making the rounds right now. I am so thrilled to have this resource available to make history fun to learn.


I received my copy of this book from Tyndale for review. I received no compensation for my review and all opinions are my own.

The One Year My Princess Devotions Preschool Edition by Karen Whiting

What a wonderful devotional books for little girls! Each individual date has a full page in this book. On each page is the title (theme) and 4 sections: Royal Words (a scripture verse), Princess Thoughts (a synopsis of the scripture), A Prayer for the King (a short prayer regarding what has been read), and Princess in Action (an activity that can put words to action).


For example, on March 6, the title is "Sharing With Jesus." The scripture is John 6:9 about the loaves and fishes shared by a little boy with the large crowd. The Princess in Action is a suggestion to ask parents for cans of food to give to a food pantry to help Jesus feed the hungry.


I love the entry for December 25. It is called "The Birthday Boy" and invites the child to bring her focus back to the true meaning of the day.


This is an attractive, hardback book with lovely illustrations. The inside front and back covers are whimsical flights of ladybugs. Any little girl would love to own this book. My little granddaughters are going to have to share because they all love this book.


I received my copy of this book from Tyndale for review. I received no compensation for my review and all opinions are my own.

The Wayfinding Bible

This is the most interesting looking study Bible I have seen in a long time. It is chock full of pictures, maps, diagrams, exploration and observation points. There are three different routes to take on your journey through this Bible. 1) Flyover, 2) Direct Route and 3) Scenic. Each one comes with a different colored arrow that leads you through the story from start to finish. This makes it ideal for an individual to read through the whole Bible and get a good solid picture of the whole through their own most comfortable method. I have always been a fan of the "scenic route" when traveling and I always like all the extra info I can get on a subject so that is the path I am taking. Yes, it will take longer but I will get all the meal, not just a taste. All the extra helps in this book make Bible study even more fun.

You can get a preview HERE.

I received a copy of this book from Tyndale for review. I received no compensation for my review and all opinions are my own. I am hiding my copy from my granddaughter until I can obtain another copy because I know she will want her own the minute she sees mine!

His Treasure -- Gems of Love from Your King by Sheri Rose Shepherd

This is a small book of daily devotions for women. Each two facing pages section has a "Treasure of Truth," a scripture, and a letter from God. These are very moving and thought-provoking. I am not a fan of other people speaking for God, even though well-intentioned. It makes me uncomfortable for them to put words into His mouth even though they are basing those on the scripture. It is a pretty little book and would make a nice gift and if you are comfortable with letters from God in a book other than the Bible, you might find this an interesting little book.

I received a copy of this book from Tyndale for review. I received no compensation for my review and all opinions are my own.

How to Talk to a Skeptic by Donald J. Johnson

This book arrived for me at a very opportune time. Our pastor is doing a series on witnessing. Mr. Johnson helps you avoid the pitfalls of arguing "the small stuff" first. He recommends that you first talk about the big picture: your Biblical world view. Stir up the big questions like Why are we here? How did all this get here? Is there a beginning? Is there an end? How can "nothing" exist? Is this all there is -- this repetitive day in and day out of our earthly lives? What is the point? Those are my interpretation of the questions not direct quotes from the author. Once you lay some groundwork and establish that all this couldn't have come about by chance, that there had to be a Creator, you can continue on to more specific issues. The author gets to some of those questions too and tells the reader how to approach the discussion of them, but spends a great deal of time cautioning the reader not to jump into those somewhat trivial issues first. Yes, there are hypocrites in the church, yes there is evil in the world, yes Christianity has some similarities to ancient pagan religions, yes the Church doesn't always get it right etc.

This is a very thoughtful and thought-provoking book and has aided me in my quest to become better at explaining my faith to others and doing what God intends for me to do -- fulfill the Great Commission. I recommend this book to all Christians who want to be a more effective witness.

I received a copy of this book from Bethany House for review. I received no compensation for my review and all opinions are my own.