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.

Shadow of the Storm - Connilyn Cossette

  Shadow of the Storm is the second book in Out of Egypt series.  You must read the first book, Counted with the Stars, in order to understand this story.

Cossette is bringing to life what life might have been like for those refugees at the foot of Mount Sinai.  Shira was a part of the Exodus.  Her family trade is weaving beautiful cloth.  Shira's compassion for people leads her to train as a midwife.  She has a natural talent for this position, and it brings a fight for power with another apprentice.  During a delivery, things go awry.  The mother dies, but the baby girl lives.  The mother's dying request is that Shira makes sure that this baby girl lives.  It seems to be a strange request to Shira, but she makes the promise to care for this new little one.  She soon discovers that this girl is a part of a dreaded Levite family.  When she meets the father, there is another shock as he is someone who is familiar to her.

Cossette brings a part of history that has no details other than, they lived at the foot of Mount Sinai.  Her thoughts and characterization is beautifully written.  While I enjoyed this book, I wish there would have been a little more detail that brought out the first story.  It had been so long since I read the first book, that I had forgotten details of the previous book.  So I felt a bit lost in the story.

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

Wild Montana Skies by Susan May Warren

SAR Rescue second generation.  I was so excited to read about characters that felt like they have been sitting in my mind since the Team Hope Series.  It felt like coming home.  I loved the action of the rescue team, and the family feel of this team that reminded me of the Christiansen family.  All set in the beauty of the Montana mountains, which of course leads to the need for a rescue team.

Ben King is a country music star, who left his heart back home in Montana with his high school sweetheart.  Kacey Fairing is an American hero, who put her life back together after becoming a teenage mom.  This love story draws you in as you read how these two get a second chance at love and finally becoming a family with their beautifully talented daughter.

Warren draws you in to her characters who are flawed and trying to do the best they can with life.  We see how God extends His grace to each of us through our mistakes, and yet can bring healing if we will let Him.  I love the foreshadowing Warren brings, so that the future books about minor characters leave you wanting more.  I can't wait for the rest of the series to find out about each character and learn from them.

My thanks to Netgalley for the complimentary ebook in exchange for my review.

Delilah by Angela Hunt

  Delilah was an interesting read.  Hunt has done her research, and brought out some interesting possibilities as to her back story.  While the story was well written and held my attention, I wonder if this is really her back story.  This is Hunt's third book in the Treacherous Beauty series.

We all know the story of Samson and Delilah.  Hunt writes this as a first person tale from both Samson and Delilah's viewpoints.  This was interesting, but at the start of each chapter, my brain had to shift thinking about the story line and whose voice I was hearing.

The story starts with:  "No woman sets out to be wicked."  So what makes a woman wicked and what are her circumstances that lead to wickedness?  Hunt takes us on the adventure to find out.  We learn about Delilah's family life, and how family can set our course of life.  Hurts and fear set Delilah on a quest to hide away from life.  Delilah finds a quiet life in the desert and learns a trade.  Later when fear comes roaring back into her life, we pick up the familiar Biblical story line to the conclusion of the book.

Samson's first line:  "You think she lives here?"  Introduces us to Samson's greatest weakness... beautiful women.  We are introduced to this Nazarite  judge, who does things in his own way.  I like the way Hunt presents Samson's selfish, spoiled ways. She also brings out the loving father as Samson befriends and teaches Delilah's son the ways to be a man.

While the characters are strong, and writing well researched, I found that my heart wanted a more traditional view of Delilah's backstory.  My thanks to Bethany House Publishers and Netgalley for the complimentary copy of this book for my review.

Sins of the Past Novella

  This novella jumps out at me because of one of my favorite authors.

Missing by Dee Henderson pulls you into the the suspense from the first page.  I feel like I am picking up the phone and finding a close friend on the other end of the line.  You slip into the story and get acquainted with new and old friends instantly.

John's mother has disappeared.  So John returns to Chicago to find her.  Being a former gang detective and current Chief of Police in Wyoming only muddies the waters of who has taken his mother and why would they do it.

Sharon is the lead investigator for this case.  She immediately impresses John with her professionalism and the team she puts together to work this problem.  John and Sharon work to figure out where his mother is, and why was she taken.  The story takes some unexpected twists, but that is what makes it suspenseful.

Shadowed by Dani Petry
A competitive long distance swimmer, swimming in the freezing waters of Alaska.  Petry takes you back in time to the Cold War era with a timeless story.  Libby is the swimmer, and Ben is the Alaskan fisherman, turned tour guide, turned defender.  A dead body in the water opens up a world of intrigue for Libby and Ben.  They are sucked into a world that turns crazy at every turn.  They find their center in God and each other.

I was totally taken in by this story.  I forgot that it was written in the past until Petry would bring out gentle reminders of a time gone by.  Petry does a masterful job writing about the cold war era.  Yet the relationships and problems are timeless.  You end up caring for the characters and learn a little more about the Alaskan frontier.

Blackout by Lynette Eason
Macey Adams can't remember things and someone is trying to kill her.  Her neighbor, Chad, is a homocide detective that is protective of this good looking woman.

The action starts form the first scream and doesn't let up until the last shot is fired.  Eason takes you on a mysterious, action-filled thriller.  Her use of flashbacks is masterful.  I finished the story wanting more.

This is a great introduction into the world of romantic suspense by these three authors.  I look forward to reading more from each of them.

My thanks to Netgalley and Bethany House Publishers for the complimentary e-book to read and review.

Henderson at her best!

  Traces of Guilt by Dee Henderson

Explosive for Henderson fans.  First time readers will be pulled into the story very quickly, but the impact won't be the same.  Henderson continues Ann and Paul Falcon's story as they take up the role of secondary characters in Traces of Guilt. The main characters are Evie Blackwell and the Thane family.

Evie Blackwell arrives in the small town of Carin, Illinois, thinking that she will solve 2 cold cases.  Instead she has an unfortunate accident with a buck, that scrambles her plans and her brain.  Gabriel Thane is the sheriff of Carin county, and heads out to take care of the deer accident.  He meets up with Evie Blackwell, and learns about her mission to solve a couple of cold cases.  Gabe gives his full cooperation and even suggests a better place to work than the house Evie rented for 2 weeks.

Evie works hard at her job, and the Thane family quickly surrounds her with love and support.  As the story unfolds, we see the family step up to help, love, and do whatever they can for Evie as the investigations get into the messy parts of life. I love the way that this family sticks just like the O'Malley family sticks through the good and bad parts of life.

I loved getting to know Evie and the Thane brothers.  Each of them have interesting stories to tell, along with potential future story lines to be told.  I love that Henderson simply hints at a romance between Evie and Gabe.  There are romantic hints for Gabe's two brothers as well.  Henderson leaves a breadcrumb trail of future cold cases for Evie to solve, as she will take over a new task force for the state solving cold cases.

Once again, Henderson has left me wanting more.  I love that I get to be reacquainted with the Falcons, while getting to know the Thanes.  New readers will want to be sure and read Full Disclosure to get to know Paul and Ann's story. I want to go back and re-read this story to see what new things I pick up on that make this newest installment from Henderson more colorful and interesting.

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