Review: The Sara Chronicles Book Three: The Return

Thanks to Reader Spoils and the author for letting me review this one.



About the Book

Braccus had invaded Sara's mind to destroy her.
What he had failed to consider was, as he did so, he had also made himself vulnerable to her...
A golden-haired girl named Sara lies in a deep sleep. It has been four years since the evil Braccus entered her mind, making it impossible to communicate with her friends without pain and nausea; worse, she was absorbing the powers of other children when she came in contact with them. Sara had been afraid and alone when Olie, her good friend and mentor, stepped in to ease her suffering with a sleeping spell.
Many changes have occurred while Sara has been comatose. Some of the members of her small, gifted group of friends-drawn together by their special abilities-have changed and, in some cases, moved on without her. Braccus is still causing trouble and attempting to gain control of the worlds, but Sara has become more powerful and unpredictable while in her sleep state. What powers will she wield when she awakes, and how will Sara deal with becoming a young woman left behind by the world she knew?

For more information about The Sara Chronicles: Book Three please visit L. Hughes' blog.

As always you can purchase a copy of The Sara Chronicles from my Amazon Store.

My Review

This book picks up shortly after book two. Sara's in a "coma" until they can figure out how to wake her without harming her and trying to release Braccus' hold on her spirit. Her friends have continued to grow up and strengthen their abilities all the while their friend sleeps without knowledge that the world around her has gone on without her.

As Sara is in her sleep-like state we're taken into her mind to see where she has been spending her time. The world created for her by her friends is beautiful and full of mystery but Braccus is still in her mind and as she explores this world Braccus' control makes it a bit scary too. It's a true representation that good and evil are all around us. Even in the most beautiful places there is still evil lurking waiting for the moment to strike.

Sara becomes a bit unpredictable in this book. As the story progresses she's doing things that she normally wouldn't do and having feelings that are irregular for her. Most of this stems from the fact that she's been gone for so long that even though she's changed physically her mind is still where it was when she was put into her slumber. The way Sara deals with all these changes is pretty normal. I can't imagine the emotions that  I would experience upon waking up after so long. I think Sara handles herself quite well given all the changes that have occurred with her friends and her world.

This book was written very well. The world created by Hughes both in Sara's mind and the world she returns to are beautiful. The ugliness of Braccus' creatures is described so well that the contrast between the beauty of the world around them is quite vivid. I had a much better picture of this world and all its faucets reading this book than I did with book two. While it's still the same story, the same characters, and the same locations I had a much better connection with this book than with the last one. It's as if the story progressed the ideas Hughes wanted to share were much more concise. I didn't feel as if I was missing anything. And the dialogue was much better with this book.

I'm very drawn into this series now. The characters, new and old, have a place in my life now and I can't wait to see how their journey ends. What I like most about these books is that they've both ended with some finality, but yet there's so much left unanswered that I can't wait to get my hands on the next one to see where the story is going to go.

Literature In the News: Precious Stolen Book Recovered

Here's the article: Swedes Find Stolen Atlas in New York

Photo from: New York Times 

There are a few things about this article that I felt the need to share. First off, most librarians I know of are passionate about literature and preserving the written word. So for a librarian to be the person responsible for stealing rare and historical publications just seems to be so wrong on so many more levels than simply that of stealing. Even if the person(s) he was selling these publications to was avid about preserving literature: having them in a library - accessible to the general public - rather than in a personal collection is a much better way of preserving literature. So shame on the librarian and shame on the buyer for taking something so rare and precious away from the general public.

Then for him to kill himself is just crazy. Not only did he kill himself, but he could have killed other people given that his chosen method involved cutting a gas line that blew up part of his apartment building. I can't imagine ever wanting to kill myself and theft seems to be such a minor offense - at least not worth the taking of a life. But I'm guessing he was pushed into stealing these books, I don't think he just woke up one day and decided I'm going to steal from the library. So maybe he was is much worse trouble with people much worse than the Swedish government.... Who knows - that's a part of the story he unfortunately took with him.

The silver lining to all of this is that now that this book has surfaced maybe more of these precious publications can be returned to their rightful place. The man who purchased the atlas from Sotheby's was refunded his money and Sotheby's returned the atlas to the Royal Library. Yeah to Sotheby's for doing the right thing. But it seems as if a ball was dropped somewhere once the librarian took his life. A list of the stolen books was never published (during the beginning of the investigation - one is out now.) How could anyone know they were selling/purchasing a stolen book if the book was never reported stolen?!?!?!?

This story is kind of sad. It makes me wonder what was going on in that man's life. And how did this go unnoticed for so long? Libraries and the wonderful pieces of history they contain are (in my opinion) one of the greatest assets we have. Stealing books from a library is like removing a piece of history. I wish he would have been caught sooner and I hope that now a published list of stolen items is available these books will be returned. I understand wanting a special book to add to your collection (not that any of mine are worth as much as this atlas, or anywhere near as rare) but to keep something like this for yourself and not let it be shared for all to access and learn from is kind of disheartening.

What do you think about this? Is it a big deal or am I getting worked up over something insignificant?

-Jennifer

Review: Night of the Living Dead Christian by Matt Mikalatos

Thanks to Tyndale Blog Network for letting me review this book.



About the Book

As Christians, believers claim to experience Christ's resurrection power, but they sometimes act like werewolves who can't control their base desires. Yet through it all, they are longing to become fully human, the way Christ intended. "Night of the Living Dead Christian" is the story of a werewolf desperate to find someone who can help him conquer his inner beast before it's too late.

For more information about Night of the Living Dead Christian please visit Matt Mikalatos' website or visit his Facebook page. 

You can also purchase a copy of Night of the Living Dead Christian from my Amazon Store. 

My Review

This book was pretty good. My favorite thing about it was how humorous it was. There were so many great puns, one-liners, and just general humor that even if the story had been bad it would have still been entertaining. And the fact that the story was good made the humor an even bigger plus! 

The story deals with monsters - zombies, werewolves, vampires, the whole kit and kaboodle. Which may not seem "right" in christian fiction, but it worked so well. As the story progresses we meet so many great characters. Each one is a bit quirky and even more unique than the last. There are monsters who don't want to be monsters, people trying to kill monsters, people who are unaware of the monsters, and people who are just trying to stay out of the way of the monsters.

What I got from this story is that no one is perfect. We all have faults, but God loves us anyway. Even trying to live a good life we're going to falter, and that's ok. As long as we understand our relationship with God we will still live in his graces. 

Overall a pretty good book. Very entertaining and a good message! 

Giveaway: Choose which book you want to win

Here's another great giveaway from SaraLee's Deals and Steals!

This Giveaway is done by SaraLee's Deals Steals & Giveaways

Thank to Modern History Press I am able to bring you this giveaway. Three people will get to win their choice of book from the options below:

More True Stories from EMS and the ER

More Confessions shares
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'story behind the story' revelations. Disclosing experiences from both sides of
the gurney, Sherry and other EMS, ER, paramilitary, and firefighter responders
walk you along their fragile line of sanity. Using humor as a life raft during
perfect storms, workers reflect upon how they endure and survive personal and
professional tragedy while trying not to care too much, and what happens when
they fail in that attempt. A graduate student in psychology, Sherry is a
paramedic, trauma nurse, and crisis interventionist who led a national
paramilitary crisis response team and continues conducting crisis management
training throughout the U.S.

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Child Protection Services have been involved with Billy and his mother for some
time now. He has been happily settled in a kinship placement with his
grandmother and enjoys his pet cat, interacting with neighbors and even taking
piano lessons. As the story unfolds, Billy's grandmother has unexpectedly passed
away and so the story of Billy Had To Move begins.



Unfortunately,
Billy's mother cannot be located. Mr. Murphy, Billy's social worker, places him
in the foster home of Amy, Tim, and their baby "Colly." Billy experiences great
loss resulting not only from his grandmother's death, but also the loss of the
life he knew. Billy's inner journey therefore has also begun and with the help
of Ms. Woods, a Play Therapist, there is hope.

Now for the giveaway: Three lucky people will win a copy of the book of their choice from the 3 options. Book can be Hard cover, Nook, Kindle, or Kobo. This is
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Closed: Giveaway: Hana-Lani by Christine Sunderland

Thanks to SaraLee's Deals and Steals for this great giveaway!

This Review & Giveaway is done by SaraLee's DealsSteals & Giveaways

Book Description:

Only opening their hearts will keep them from plunging into the dark
abyss. Old Nani-lei lives in Hana-lani, her family home in rural Hawaii.
She looks after her grandson Henry, 52, and his daughter Lucy, 6, who
have returned to Maui from Berkeley after the death of Maria, Henry's
wife. Henry and Maria, both professors, had been working on A History
of Ethics, and now the grieving Henry struggles to finish it. City girl
Meredith Campbell, 36, fast-paced, self-centered, and beautiful,
believes her body will ensure her happiness. After losing her job and
finding her lover unfaithful, she flies to Maui, sure he will
follow...but her plane crashes near Hana-lani. As their worlds collide
in a natural world both beautiful and dangerous, Henry will be forced to
act on his words, and Meredith will come face-to-face with her own life
choices. A poignant journey that unravels T.S. Eliot's "permanent
questions"- what is goodness, truth, and love? By the author of the
thought-provoking trilogy Pilgrimage, Offerings, and Inheritance.

About the Author:

 Christine Thomas Sunderland (1947-), the daughter of a Presbyterian
pastor, grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and came of age in the
tumultuous Vietnam war years. Her inspirational novels, set in the
present day, reflect the larger questions of our world today: What is
civilization? Why is our past important? How do we understand where we
are going? She is also fascinated with the interaction of matter and
spirit. Her trilogy explores the legacy of Western European culture:
Pilgrimage (OakTara, 2007), tells of a mother's search for healing of
body and soul in Italy; Offerings (OakTara, 2009) tells of a redemptive
journey through France (Bronze Medal winner in the Independent Publisher
Book Awards 2010); Inheritance (OakTara 2009) tells of a life-saving
trip through England. A fourth novel, Hana-lani (OakTara 2010), set in
Hana, Maui, is a love story about the role of family in American
culture. She is currently working on a mystery about Mary Magdalene set
in Rome and Provence.

Christine is Vice-President of the
American Church Union, the publishing house of the Anglican Province of
Christ the King. She has written numerous publications for children,
including the Jeanette Series, novellas set in France and San Francisco,
8+, and has edited the Anglican Confirmation Manual and The American
Church Union Church School Series (http://www.Anglicanpck.org/). She
lives in Northern California with her husband and two incredible cats.

Visit Christine's website at www.ChristineSunderland.com

 

My Take on the book:

I love reading books like these because they remind me of a Life Time movie. I got into the plot of the story and kept wanting to read more so I could get to good part lol I personally could relate to the characters in the story because my husband & I are two different people and a flat tire brought us together. This will be a good read for anyone who reads it.



Now for the Giveaway:  One lucky reader will win a copy of  "Hana Lani" by Christine Sunderland just by filling out
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