Saving Cicadas by Nicole Seitz

Janie is an eight-year-old girl surrounded by a dysfunctional family. Her mother carries an unwanted child, her grandmother is the meanest person she knows and her sister, Rainey, has Downs Syndrome and struggles to understand. The crisis pregnancy leads to a road trip that changes Janie's life, as she knows it, forever. From the mountains to dirty motels to a dream house, the trail Janie learns she must walk is not easy, but it has the chance to save lives.

It's hard to write a review of this book and not give any spoilers. I think the author did an excellent job at creating a tale filled with a mystery that is not resolved until the end. Although there are hints throughout the story, they only serve to pique interest, they do not blatantly reveal all the is going on involving the characters. I admired that the author wrote the story in such a way that although she was revealing hints all along the way, the reader could easily miss those hints until the end. I confess, I did that and found myself going back to make sure that everything really did line up and make sense. I was pleasantly surprised that it did.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from BookSneeze.com 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 Commision's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Reunion by Karen Kingsbury and Gary Smalley

The day Elizabeth Baxter found the lump in her breast changed the Baxter family forever. As Ashley and Landon, plan for their wedding, Elizabeth plans a family reunion. She knows God is going to heal her body and let her grow old with her family, but just in case, she wants to see them all again. As the time and cancer progresses, Elizabeth finds herself drawn to the oldest secret that she and her husband have kept. A secret she's still not willing to tell. When it seems that none of her prayers will be answered the way she wants to them too, she surrenders all her hopes and dreams to God, only too find that all her dreams have been fulfilled – just not in the way she expected.

Reunion, the fifth and final book in the Redemption Series, by Karen Kingsbury & Gary Smalley was by far the most potent of all the books and is my personal favorite of the Redemption series. I loved this book though at times, it made me cry. I confess that if there were no books to follow this one, I would have hated the ending. However, as I understand it, The Firstborn Series, follows this series and continues with the life and struggles of Dayne Matthews. I'm looking forward to checking those out from the library soon. Kingsbury did an excellent job of introducing the new characters into this book which I understand will be featured in later book series.

Rejoice by Karen Kingsbury & Gary Smalley

Peter and Brooke West are both successful doctors with two lively, beautiful daughters. On the outside, things seem fine. But behind the doors of their home, their marriage is struggling. When Hayley,their youngest daughter, is the victim of a drowning accident, everything seems to be falling apart. As Hayley struggles for her life, their marriage disintegrates. Both Peter and Brooke struggle with feelings of guilt towards themselves and each other. Peter relieves his pain in illegal ways and Brooke finds that she must surrender all to her God – her daughter, her marriage, even her life – if there is to be any hope of a future for their family and any reason to rejoice.

Rejoice is the fourth book in the Redemption Series by Karen Kingsbury and Gary Smalley. I didn't like this book in the beginning, but once I got about a fourth of the way through it, I started loving it. It's not a book to read if you are depressed, but as with all the books in this series, I admire the authenticity that the authors used when creating the characters and the plot.

Nanowrimo Update

I have a confession. I have failed horribly at my attempt to participate in Nanowrimo and write an complete novel this month. I would like to blame it all of the fact that is has been a trying month: the death a family member, being busy and stressed at work, and dreading the holidays. But, it can't all be blamed on my circumstances. Some of it was just me. For some reason, I'm afraid to really try. In mind my mind, I know this isn't logical. Afterall, I could write a whole novel, never tell anyone about it, and never have to worry that I'm not good enough. But, deep inside, there's a fear that I haven't been able to beat. The fear of being a failure. I already feel like a failure in so many ways. What if I can't succeed at the one thing I think is really God's calling on my life? It's scary. Perhaps, I'll try again in December, perhaps not.

Healing Sands by Nancy Rue & Stephen Arterburn

Healing Sands by Nancy Rue and Stephen Arterburn is a story of surrender to God. When photojournalist, Ryan Coe finds herself in a desperate situation that she can not control, solve, or manipulate, she is forced to realize her insufficiency and anger. Her marriage has ended in divorce and her son, who refuses to speak to her, is arrested for attempted murder on a Hispanic teen. When it looks as if she will lose it all, including her sanity, she turns to Healing Choices counseling looking for a quick fix to all of her problems. What she finds is a need that is deeper than she ever imagined.

This book was so authentic that at first I did not like it. I look for authenticity in all books that I read, no matter the genre, but I was a bit unprepared for the deep authenticity that the authors used in this book. Rue and Arterburn did not gloss over life's problems with a layer of sugar and a sweet happily ever after. Instead, they opened up all of Ryan's pain and anger and scooped it all out to be dealt with and healed. How often in life do we prefer to gloss the pain over and ignore it? This books reaches into the heart of the reader and reminds them that ignoring issues do not make them disappear. At the same time, it offers healing from the Great Physician. The book may be fiction, but it is authentic enough to minister to hurting souls in this very real, painful, non-fiction world. I must confess that I was a bit disturbed that there was on very obvious situation between two people that was never resolved. Perhaps the authors plan to address it in another book in the series? If not, I would be disappointed.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from BookSneeze.com 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 Commision's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Redemption by Karen Kingsbury with Gary Smalley

Redemption, by Karen Kingsbury with Gary Smalley, is as it's name suggests, a story of redemption. Kari Baxter Jacobs is hurt and angry after one fateful phone call exposes her husband's affair. Her husband, Tim Jacobs, is anything but remorseful and when Kari's old love moves back to town, Kari is faced with choices that will determine her future and the futures of those around her.

I've never been a humongous fan of Karen Kingsbury, but I did find this book to be exceptionally well-written. It is the first book in the Redemption series which features five books based on the Baxter family. The characters were so real and the situations were so authentic that I felt as if I was really right there in their minds and circumstances. To be honest, I wasn't expecting this book to be such heavy reading. It isn't the kind of book that you read when you want a happy bit of fluff. No, this book is so real. The situations are exactly the type of situations that people face in real life. I especially liked how all the characters were personally addressed even though the book centered mainly on Kari.