A Few Of My Favorite 2014 Reads

My aim was to post this list at the first of the year, but I'm 13 days late! Better late than never, as they say. This is a list of some of my favorite reads of 2014. You may not have heard of many of these books because I typically only read books my friends have written and they all qualify as Christian Fiction. These aren't in any particular order, but I do recommend every one of them!

 The Circle Girls: Once Upon A Witch, By: Anya Novikov

God will give you blood to drink. An ordinary teenager finds out what witch-hunting is all about—in her own everyday world. Deliverance “Delli” Willis, a normal, almost-sixteen-year-old, finds herself dreaming wild dreams about a girl in 1692 who is also named Deliverance. And then, to Delli’s amazement, the stuff of dreams appears in her classroom unit on the Salem Witch Trials! It will take lessons from her dreamscape and a stand against bullies to tighten Delli’s faith in God and pull her through some trials of her own.

Homeschooling Can Be Murder, By: Susan Lyttek

When army wife and homeschooling mom, Jeanine Talbott’s husband’s transfer orders come through, she lets him pick out the new house while she and the kids wrap up the life they’ve grown to love. She arrives at their new residence to discover he bought a charming fixer-upper complete with strange neighbors—a graveyard full of Civil War veterans and one fresh dead body. Suddenly, the Talbotts have two mysteries on their hands: who killed the treasure hunter, and what secret was he trying to uncover at the tomb of town hero, Captain Cooperton?

That Wasn’t Chicken – Linda Kozar 

Murder, mystery meat and morning sickness! Hudson and Lovita are expecting and she’s having trouble keeping food down for the first time in her life. Her best friend, Sue Jan is busy juggling mommy-hood. And the Crown of Glory Beauty Salon and Boutique is busier than a one-toothed man in a corn-on-the-cob-eating contest. Things are great until a handsome law intern disappears after an argument with their top stylist’s once-upon-a-time wayward son. So Lovita and Sue Jan put down their forks and pick up the trail to solve the mystery before Jolene’s son has to trade in his chef’s uniform for prison stripes. But the super-sized sleuths soon discover something very unusual about a popular new barbecue restaurant in town. Does everything taste like chicken, or did they risk it eating brisket?

Unlikely Praise, By: Carla Rossi

A tattooed rocker and an uptight music teacher-who says God doesn't have a sense of humor? Candi has been the worship leader at her church since the doors opened. So when the church explodes into mega-church territory, Candi is sure she'll be the one to take her team to the next level. But, church leadership has other ideas. She's given a partner, a one-time rocker with zero praise and worship experience? Recently saved Samuel, "Shade" is new to the church scene and is convinced it’s just what he needs. The Ex-Dead Lizard rock guitarist is shocked when the pastor suggests he might be just what the worship team needs. But could God really want him? And what about his less-than-Godly lifestyle to this point-not the least of which is a baby girl he's never seen? Worship practice has never been this interesting as Candi and Shade work their way towards each other-and Unlikely Praise.

Worth The Wait – Laura Jackson
Ellie Lansing has a picture-perfect life with a close-knit family and the perfect boyfriend. But her world is suddenly knocked off center when her drool-worthy boyfriend cheats, and her always-has-it-together mother is diagnosed with cancer. Ellie doesn't get it. She always does the right thing - doesn't God owe her a happy life? Through her heartache, Ellie learns that sometimes what seems like the end is really just the beginning and that what God has for us is always worth the wait. 

 Adventures With Vinnie – Donna Winters

Fred and Donna Winters, a retired couple from Michigan cares a great deal about shelter animals. After the loss of one of their dogs they decide to give an older dog a chance to have a ‘forever’ home and chose Vinnie from the Upper Peninsula Animal Welfare Shelter. Adventures With Vinnie is the true story of the Winters’ life with their not-so-trainable, Doberman Lab mix named Vinnie.

A Cry From The Dust, By: Carrie Stuart Parks

In the shadow of the Mormon Church, a 19th-century conspiracy is about to be shattered by a 21st-century forensic artist. In 1857, a wagon train in Utah was assaulted by a group of militant Mormons calling themselves the Avenging Angels. One hundred and forty people were murdered, including unarmed men, women, and children. The Mountain Meadows Massacre remains controversial to this day—but the truth may be written on the skulls of the victims.

I've Had An Epiphany

It’s January 6^th, that means it’s Three Kings Day! Or you can call it Epiphany if you like. I don’t know anyone who celebrates this holiday, but I do know that it’s a big deal in Mexico. People on the Gulf Coast celebrate too, particularly in South Louisiana as it is the kick off of the Mardi Gras season.

In some parts of Mexico this is the day gifts are received. Not from Santa Claus, but it’s the three wise men who leave presents by the shoes of small children.

Another fun part of Three Kings Day is the “Rosca de Reyes’ or King Cake. There’s a lot of symbolism built into this cake. Notice the round or oval shape, like a king’s crown. The colors are symbolic too. The purple represents justice. The green represents faith and the gold represents power.

The cake has one more surprise. Baked inside is a small plastic baby Jesus figurine. The tradition is that whoever finds Him hosts the next feast party on February 2^nd.

So why is baby Jesus hiding in the cake? He’s hiding from evil King Herod of course!

I ((Heart)) Lighthouses!

Welcome to the second week of Lighthouse Love, aka Friday Light Day! Today's two lighthouses have a bit of interesting history that goes along with them.

There wasn't a name attached to this first lighthouse so we'll call it, The Abandoned!






The Communist Party of the Soviet Union built a chain of lighthouses, powered by small atomic reactors. These lights had to be totally autonomous because they were located hundreds of miles away from anyone capable of running them. The purpose of the lighthouses was to guide cargo ships through the complete darkness of the Polar Circle. After the collapse of the Soviet Union the lighthouses eventually went dark. The huge warning signs posted at the area touting the danger of going near the radioactive lighthouses did nothing to deter looters. The thieves ignored the signs to steal copper, contaminating themselves and the whole area. Silly Russian robbers...now you won't need the lighthouse to glow!

Next is the Fire Island Lighthouse on the Fire Island Inlet, Long Island, New York

Originally built on the Fire Island Inlet in 1826, this light used whale oil, lard, mineral oil and kerosene to fuel the lamp. Electricity eventually reached the light in 1938, only to be knocked out the very same month by a hurricane. The light was decommissioned in 1973, but in 1982 a group of supporters was formed to raise money and the lighthouse was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The light was restored and by 1986 it was relit and reinstated as an official lighthouse! Great job New Yorkers!

A Cry From The Dust - By: Carrie Stuart Parks

In 1857, a wagon train in Utah was assaulted by a group of militant Mormons calling themselves the Avenging Angels. One hundred and forty people were murdered, including unarmed men, women and children. The Mountain Meadows Massacre remains controversial to this day—but the truth may be written on the skulls of the victims.

The above is a portion of the back cover copy from the book I bought at the ACFW Writers Conference in September. A Cry From The Dust is a thrilling suspense mystery based around the disjointed life of a recently divorced forensic artist, Gwen Marcey. While working on a facial reconstruction to be displayed at a new interpretive center being built at the site, she finds herself in the middle of a cover up plot concerning the Massacre.

I've been interested in this "true" account in Mormon history after seeing a movie concerning the massacre. Carrie Stuart Parks really did her research, making the book a very interesting and fun read with tons of historical documentation. Loved the book and would highly recommend it! Oh and did I mention there's a dog in the story? You'll have to read it to find out what kind!

Crazy For Lighthouses!

I was recently blessed to receive a literary contract for my historical fiction, Northern Light. The novel takes place at a "very real" historic lighthouse on the Texas Gulf Coast. I can attest to how much people love lighthouses by the number of sites devoted to them on the web. I'm guilty...I love lighthouses too! So to share that love with you, I've created something called...FRIDAY LIGHT DAY! Every Friday I will post a picture of a lighthouse and give a little blurb of information about the light. Since I started Friday Light Day on Facebook a few weeks ago, I've got some catching up to do. I'll post two lighthouses each Friday until I get caught up. 

The first lighthouse on the list is the Santa Cruz Breakwater Lighthouse at Santa Cruz, CA, also called the Walton Lighthouse. This is a very young lighthouse having only been in service since 2001. The light is called the Walton, because Charles Walton contributed a large amount toward the construction cost in memory of his late brother Derek. I visited Santa Cruz once while on a trip to the Mount Hermon Writers Conference. Me and three friends took a break from the conference and drove to the coast. What a gorgeous part of the country.

Walton Lighthouse

On week two the news was inundated with pictures of the frozen tundra up North from lake effect snow, brrr! So today I chose the Muskegon South Pierhead Lighthouse in Michigan. It stands guard over Muskegon Lake before emptying into Lake Michigan. Fun fact, in 1837 Muskegon Township was established and nicknamed the "Lumber Queen of the World." In the 1800s it was home to more millionaires than any other town in America and its lumber helped rebuild Chicago after the great fire of 1871. Either big or small, it seems there's a story behind every lighthouse.

                                        Muskegon South Pierhead Lighthouse

Another great book from author and friend, Donn Taylor

Lightning On A Quiet Night is the latest release from author, Donn Taylor, and his first historical novel. The book is set early in the post WWII period. Here's what the book's cover looks like and a description of what the book is about.

A town too proud of its virtues has to deal with its first murder...

The Northeast Mississippi town of Beneficent, population 479, has never had a murder and expresses its complacent pride in the motto "A town as good as its name." But on January 9, 1948, a high school cheerleader is found murdered. The town's attempts to maintain its self-image and deny local guilt are woven into two narrative threads. One is a contentious romance between the local farmer Jack Davis and Lisa Kemper, newly arrived from Indiana. He holds an idyllic vision of the town. She is repelled by everything in it, yet struggles to understand it on its own terms. The town's good and bad characteristics, its combination of astute perceptions and surprising blind spots, are revealed chiefly through their eyes. In a second thread, the sheriff's attempts to find the murderer reveal further insights into the town. Subplots extend the novel's emotional range with both comedy and pathos. The two narrative threads and the subplots eventually merge in shocking revelations which result in repentance and spiritual reconciliation of the town's internal contradictions and conflicts.

All of Donn's books can be purchased through this link:

Donn Taylor's Amazon Author Page

Hurry up and buy it today while it's on sale!!

The Stages of Signing A Book Contract By: Annette O'Hare

This blog post is one I've been waiting to write for a long, long time. I'm proud to announce that my historical romance novel, Northern Light, has been picked up for publication by White Rose Publishing. Below is what I'd like to call, the phases of signing a book contract, by Annette O'Hare.

Stage 1 - The "Bliss" stage. You've received the e-mail informing you that you're novel has been accepted by a honest to goodness publishing company. Hubby takes you to a nice restaurant to celebrate...life is good!

Stage 2 - The "This Is It" stage. You're ready. The contract is spread out in front of you. The pen you hand-picked has been swirled around on scratch paper so many times to make sure it works that it's almost out of ink. This is it...you're ready to sign.

Stage 3 - The "Contemplative/Okay Now I'm Ready" stage. You were ready to sign, but you stop, withdraw your pen from the contract and contemplate for a moment. Wow, a real book contract. God has really poured out His blessings on me. It's finally happening. Okay, now I'm ready!











Stage 4 - The "Wait Just One Minute" stage. Before opening a vein and drawing out fresh blood to ink your name on the page, you stop. Wait just one minute! Am I really going to sign over my baby to people I don't even know? What was I thinking? How do I know they're going to take care of it like I have? Maybe this isn't such a good idea after all!
 

Stage 5 - The "Hurry Up And Sign The Darn Thing Already" stage. This is the final stage because your husband said so! He's tired of taking pictures and he's said more than one time that he's ready to order. The time has come. It's now or never. You put ink to paper and with the stroke of the pen you join countless others who have gone down the path to becoming a published author!