Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar

As a young woman who grew up in the shadow of her father, a master of making purple dye, Lydia is competent in dye making. Yet her fear holds her back from embracing the complete process without her father's help. After her father is injured, Lydia must face her fear and fulfill customer orders alone. Once recovered, Lydia's father entrustes her with his precious formula secrets. Far too soon, Lydia finds herself on her own with few assets other than dye making knowledge. Through past connections and ambition, Lydia restarts with a dye business of her own in Phillippi. Yet fear follows Lydia to her new home, until one man brings an astounding message of freedom. Read more in Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar.

Bread of Angels is the latest stand-alone fiction novel by Tessa Afshar. I enjoyed the small tie-in to her previous novel, Land of Silence, but reading Elianna's story is not necessary to enjoy Lydia's. I felt that Afshar held closely to the narrative regarding Lydia in the New Testament book of Acts though the back story of where Lydia came from and why she eagerly embraced Christianity is fictional.

I enjoyed Lydia's thorough character development and commend the author for bringing Lydia to face her fear rather than concocting an escape. As usual, Tessa Afshar's writing style was beautiful and the plot flowed well. I especially enjoyed the post-conversion part of the book when it seemed the author really focused in on themes regarding fear and the power of the work that Jesus accomplished for all believers. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around some of the excellent messages in this book. I recommend Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar to fans of Biblical fiction. 

Read an excerpt from Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar on the publisher's website and see the video below to watch the author talk about who Lydia was.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Taming the Wind by Tracie Peterson

Carissa Lowe's first marriage ended with a disaster that would have taken her life if not for the heroic actions of Tyler Atherton. Little more than two years later, Carissa finds herself living near attractive, vengeful Tyler. As Tyler struggles with his father's murder, Carissa is bound by fear and mistrust. Although drawn to each other, their inability to move forward with their lives holds them apart. It will take a cattle drive, the danger of the Texas frontier, and a miracle to hold them together. Read more in Taming the Wind.

Taming the Wind by Tracie Peterson is the third book in the Land of the Lone Star Series. Somehow, I read the first book, Chasing the Sun, but missed the second book, Touching the Sky. Taming the Wind worked reasonable well as a stand alone novel since some background information was given. However, even with that information, I felt a disconnect from the main characters. Perhaps it would have been different if I had previously read the second book.

To me, Tyler Atherton was the shining character of the book. When the romance element of the story seemed to stagnate, Tyler's personal struggles and the resulting development kept the story moving. In addition to the romance and character development, there was an element of suspense. Unfortunately, during the height of the suspense, I put the book down and didn't read it for several days. The plot just never hooked me and when I should have been glued to the story, there was no pressure drawing me back to the book. I do love the gorgeous cover of this book, but for the aforementioned reasons, I recommend renting it from the library before buying.

Click here to read an excerpt from Taming the Wind by Tracie Peterson.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

When a Woman Lets Go of Her Fears by Cheryl Brodersen

Fear comes in many forms. Avoiding a potentially dangerous situation represents a healthy fear. However, unhealthy fears like fears of rejection or loss often cause women to live with worry, stress, and without confidence. In her book, When a Woman Lets Go of Her Fears, Cheryl Brodersen shares stories from her own struggle with fear, exposes fear and its effects, and shows women how to move past fear into faith and victory.

When a Woman Lets Go of Her Fears is not the type of book to sit down and read from beginning to end in four hours. It took me several months to read this book as I read only a few sections each day. While not everyone would want to read it as slowly as I did, I recommend reading no more than a chapter a day. Reading each day about the same topic has a way of enforcing the information and spiritual lessons into one's memory.

Though I think the book could have used a bit more humor, the author effectively connects with the reader by sharing her personal struggles. I loved the story of the “pity biscuits.” I won't give away any spoilers, but it was a situation that I could completely relate to.

Brodersen packs information, doctrine, and plenty of encouragement into the book. I found the content of the book to be Biblically correct. The questions at the end of each chapter were relevant and thought-provoking. I recommend this book to any woman struggling with fear and lack of confidence.

Click here to read an excerpt from When a Woman Lets Go of Her Fears.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Harvest House Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Within My Heart by Tamera Alexander

Rachel Boyd's husband died two years ago, and ever since then, life has been a struggle. Her love for her late husband has not diminished, but reality has taken its toll. The dream of owning a ranch begins to be far less appealing without him and raising two boys alone is quite difficult. She is not interested in remarrying for any reason other than love - even if it might make things easier financially. But at the same time, she is not interested in falling in love. The possibility of losing another beloved spouse is terrifying to her. Doctor Rand Brookston has few fears of his own and happens to be sweet on Rachel. His profession as well as her fear help her to keep him at a distance, but when circumstances draw them together, both discover they must confront their fears. Lives are at stake.

Within My Heart is a romance. But ultimately, it is the story of characters finding courage to do things for the sake of love despite their fears. As I read the story, I was reminded of the verse that says: “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.” (I John 4:18, KJV) I enjoyed the plot and the length of this book. At one part it seemed like things were coming to an ending and I thought, 'There's still a third of the book left. I hope it doesn't drag!' Fortunately, there was a twist or two and the book did not drag for me at all. This is one book I definitely plan on keeping.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Rain Song by Alice J. Wisler (Revised)

Nicole Michelin lives in fear. She avoids airplanes, motorcycles, her past and Japan – the land where her mother died. She lives in fear of her grandmother's death and only finds solace in her fish and her writing. Her online column at the Pretty Fishy Website attracts the attention of one Harrison Michaels. As Nicole and Harrison correspond, he reveals that he knew her as a child and that their parents were friends. Nicole is intrigued, but very hesitant when Harrison suggests that she visit him in Japan. After all, that would require riding in an airplane. Ultimately, this story is about confronting fear and experiencing liberty.

I quite liked the main character narrating the story. The author gave her a unique and pleasing sense of humor. Unfortunately, I was quite dissatisfied with the book. I try to not be overly critical in my book reviews, but there were some issues that bothered me. The synopsis of this book made it sound like a romance. There was little to none. There was potential in the concept, but the author chose not to execute it. Also, I noticed at that author slipped from present tense to past tense writing at points where it should not have been done. I can understand the change if the the narrator were to begin recounting an event from her past. However, this particular slip was not made at such a point. This made for uncomfortable reading. But my biggest complaint about the book is that it stopped right in the middle of her visit to Japan. There was no epilogue, no sequel. Just a bunch of openness and things that were unresolved. (Her relationship with Harrison, her relationship with her father, etc.)