The Sweetest Thing by Elizabeth Musser

This is the story of the friendship that forms between Mary Dobbs Dillard, the daughter of an evangelist from Chicago and Perri Singleton, an Atlanta debutante daughter of a prominent banker, when Dobbs comes to Atlanta to live with her Aunt and go to school during the Depression. The book begins with Dobbs’ arrival in Atlanta, followed closely by Perri’s father’s suicide. As the story unfolds, we learn more about Dobb’s father’s past in Atlanta and subsequently and about what transpired to cause Perri’s father to take his own life. All comes out in the end and all evildoers meet their just reward. The story, however is about the friendship that forms between these two very different young girls. It is also about God’s provision even during the most difficult and trying times. It’s about Faith and questioning one’s Faith. And all that is interwoven so masterfully into the story that you never feel like you are receiving a sermon or being led down a primrose path. The characters are interesting and compelling, and the setting of 1930s Atlanta provides a history and culture lesson about our country’s not too distant past. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes historical fiction or a good mystery. There’s some romance in there too for those so inclined.

Desert Gift by Sally John

This book is about Jillian Galloway, a successful marriage expert, writer, radio show host etc. and her podiatrist husband, Jack. Just as they are leaving on her book tour, Jack announces that he is not going and furthermore, he wants a divorce. This is how the story begins. By the end of the first chapter I was ready to run screaming hysterically in the other direction. I was convinced I would be bored to tears by this book and frankly, I didn’t understand their problem. But I persevered. The further into the book I got, the more intrigued I became. It eventually got to the point where I read most of the rest of the book in one sitting. This book is about relationships, not the least of which is our relationship with God.

Family relationships, three generations worth, were dealt with in this book and all in a very interesting and connected way. This isn’t one of those books where there are three or four very separate storylines going on. These all meshed together, part of the whole. The story has some twists and turns and some very interesting moments but I will leave those for other readers to discover for themselves. Tyndale gave me this book to review and I am glad they did because I would never have picked it up on my own and I am very happy to have discovered this story. I highly recommend it – I couldn’t put it down and other readers will, I am sure, be in the same boat. Thanks Tyndale for introducing me to an author I had not heard of before but hope to see more from in the future!

Abby Johnson's Unite for Life webcast!

Go to: http://uniteforlifewebcast.org Starting Friday, May 13, 2011 and continuing through Tuesday, May 17, 2011 (the day of the webcast).

Larkspur Cove by Lisa Wingate

Lisa Wingate is well on her way to being on my short list of favorite Christian fiction authors. Her latest book, Larkspur Cove, is her best book yet.

Two people whose fondest childhood memories were spent at Moses Lake, TX, return when circumstances in their adult lives require healing.

Mart McClendon is now a Game Warden at Moses Lake, fleeing the pain of loss of two brothers and a nephew to tragic circumstances.

Andrea Henderson has suffered a betrayal and a divorce and moves to her parents’ cabin at the lake to heal and to pursue her new career as a psychologist working with Social Services on difficult cases in the area.

As Matt and Andrea work together to help a little girl who has been dropped off with her grandfather, a man who has some mental deficiencies but a genuine love for his granddaughter, they find themselves spending more and more time together off the clock.

Andrea’s teen-aged son is also trying to adjust to his losses and his struggles are interwoven into the story. Add to this a bunch of folk who hang around the local bait shop / café and are part of the local flavor and a helpful reverend from the local church, as well as the people in Andrea’s office and you have a lot of interesting interaction. All the characters are very likable and very believable. The reader becomes drawn into the characters’ lives and genuinely concerned about their outcomes.

I received this book from Bethany House for review and enjoyed it immensely.

Now I Walk on Death Row by Dale Recinella

This book will change your life if you read it. Dale Recinella was a high powered attorney making big Wall Street deals and living the high life when he and his wife encountered the living God. What he began to realize from the encounters was that all that he was doing was benefitting him nothing. The family began a journey into service to their fellow man that led them through many experiences and opportunities for service but ultimately led Dale to minister to inmates on Florida’s death row.

This book is not a prison expose, although it certainly does reveal some things about death row and the death penalty. It is the story of how a man and woman gave their lives over to God’s leading and the extraordinary paths their lives took as a result.

Reading this book changed the way I look at my life and clarified some details of my life. I would recommend it to anyone who is not afraid of any change that may occur as a result. Bethany House gave me a copy of this book to review and I will forever be grateful.

Family Tree Maker Deluxe by Ancestry.Com

I was excited when I got the opportunity from Amazon Vine to review this product. I thought that the latest version of this software would have a lot of new bells and whistles. What I found was a program that is almost identical to the program that I have used for years in its various versions. There is really nothing new or different in the Family Tree Maker Deluxe. The format the information is displayed in is a little different from my program and I really think I like mine better but it really is a nice format that displays the information. The software comes with a companion guide and a Family History toolkit to use in conjunction with it. It also comes with 3 months of free access to Ancestry.com. This sounds wonderful and it would be if you didn’t have to give them your credit card info to get the 3 months free access. I have played this game before and what happens is there is no apparent way to remove your credit card information or to tell them not to charge your credit card at the end of the 3 month period and you end up with a huge charge on your card and they refuse to remove it. While, I would love 3 months of free access I am not falling for this game again. So, the bottom line is, this is a wonderful program and a must for anyone wanting to manage their genealogical data and is comparable to other programs on the market.

Voyage with the Vikings by Paul McCusker

How wonderful! The great Adventures in Odyssey stories are now being extended to early reader chapter books. First in the new series is Voyage of the Vikings. In this story two children are transported by the Imagination Station back to Greenland at the time of the Vikings. As always, a wonderful adventure ensues. You will enjoy the book so much you will more than likely read it all in one setting. Our family has loved to listen to Adventures in Odyssey in the car for years and having these books come along is just icing on the cake. My granddaughter is eagerly awaiting the next book in the series. Tyndale gave me a copy of this book to review. Thanks, Tyndale, it’s another home run!