Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar

  Bread of Angels melts in your mouth.  This is the fictional story about Lydia mentioned in Acts 16.  Once again Afshar's biblical knowledge breathes life into a person from the Bible.  I gobbled up the book and felt completely satisfied upon finishing the book.  If you love Biblical fiction with a touch of romance this book is a must read.

In a world dominated by men, Lydia learns the trade of  dying material to the precious purple that people demand.  She learns this craft from her father.  She is wise enough to keep the important secrets of the beautiful dye to herself.  This saves her when a betrayal makes it necessary for her to leave her home.   Lydia makes her way to Philippi, where she once again establishes herself as a preeminent dyer of purple.

Afshar always touches on some struggle in life that we all have.  This book deals with fear and how it can immobilize a person.  Lydia had many things to fear, and yet through her encounter with Paul she learns to bring her fears down to a manageable size.  These lessons that Lydia learns are things that I take with me and reflect on in my own life.  I love the little lessons that are woven throughout the book that resonate in my own life.  Thank you for the lesson of the tree and the legend of the patient stone.  They will stick with me for many years to come.

My thanks to Netgalley and Tyndale House Publishers for the e-copy of the book to read and review.

Thread of Suspicion by Dee Henderson

   This is the second Evie Blackwell story, and I was a bit disappointed.  This book didn't hold my attention as well as other books written by Henderson.  While I have read the previous book, I didn't feel as connected to the characters.

Evie Blackwell has been assigned to the Missing Persons Task Force.  She is partnered with David Marshall to solve two cold cases from the same county but are thought to be unrelated.  Evie's case is about a young college co-ed who turned up missing after a concert.  David's case is about a missing private detective.  Through many twists and turns of the plot, Evie and David find clues to link these cases together.

David and Evie work diligently to solve their mysteries.  After pulling on different strings, the right one is found that unravels the mystery.  There are things in both David and Evie's lives that need to be resolved, so you know there is at least one more book to be written.

While the characters are fully developed, the story didn't move fast enough for me.  I was able to put the book down and walk away from it.  Usually I can't put the book down, and I finish it over two days.  This book is about solving some mysteries, without the romance.  Yes there are couples in the book, but they are maintaining a relationship instead of building one from scratch.  I missed this.  Henderson still has her characters struggling with issues.  David's girlfriend isn't a believer, but we see her questioning if God is real at the very end of the story.  She hasn't made a decision yet, so that may come in the next installment.  Evie is close to accepting a proposal, but again it isn't for sure before the book comes to a close.  Hopefully the next book will bring about some of these resolutions.

While this book isn't going into one of my favorites, I look forward to the next installment to see if I like that book better than this one.

My thanks to Netgalley and Bethany House Publishers for the free e-copy of the book in exchange for this review.