Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Plunge into Darkness by Kristin N. Spencer

I am glad that I finished this book during daylight hours.  I am positive if I read this at night I would have had trouble going to sleep.  This isn't a book to be taken lightly.  It was upsetting to me but I knew there was an important message between the covers.

Ever and Dawn.  Two little girls.  They both spent time in the DARKNESS. Would they be able to see the light?

2 Corinthians 4:6
For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

I received this free to review.

About the Book

Plunge into DarknessTitle: Plunge into Darkness
Author: Kristen N. Spencer
Release Date:February 27, 2018
Genre: Fantasy
Two girls.
A village with a dark secret.
Their only hope is a mythical figure Ever Morena has only read about in her father’s lone book.
Ten years ago Ever’s best friend disappeared without a trace. Though the loss of her friend only came close to killing her then, the truth of what happened might finish the job now—just when her future as the village healer is looking bright.
Ever must risk everything she loves in order to plunge into darkness on an impossible journey in the middle of the Concealed Forest.
Never before has redemption been so costly.
Please note: This book contains subject matter which some may find troubling as it spotlights helping those who have experienced abuse. I tried to handle this topic as delicately as I could, keeping the reader’s experience in mind.

Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Author

Kristin SpencerKristin N. Spencer spends part of each day imagining up new worlds and beings when she isn’t busy taking care of her three children and writing partner husband T. E. Spencer. When she’s not writing you can find her working in full time ministry, sewing cosplay costumes, or watching geekesque movies. She writes whatever genre she wants including but not limited to Non-Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Sci-Fi, Space Fantasy, and traditional Fantasy. Kristin studied Comparative World Literature at California State University, Long Beach and received a Bachelors, which she fondly calls a degree in reading. Her favorite movie is Sabrina (the Julia Ormond version) and her favorite person is Jesus.


Guest Post from Kristin N. Spencer

Life is messy because people are messy. While I was missionary in Athens, Greece I spent a lot of time around profoundly broken people who were making brave choices to change their lives and the lives of their children. Human trafficking creates a unique kind of broken, and the people that minister to people who have survived this difficult journey also have to reach an understanding of what the people they’re ministering to have been through. After a while serving in a ministry that works with women who have been rescued out of prostitution, the founder and director sent me a message. She said she wanted to have a sit down talk so we could get to know each other. As I nervously tapped my foot on the plastic metro floor on my way to the meeting, a picture came into my head. I saw a young woman sitting next to a dark pond filled with sledge, and knew instantly that something that could help her was inside there, and the only way to help her was to jump into the sledge and find it… to experience the darkness as a witness as a way to understand it. When I got to my meeting with the director, I told her about the picture I had seen on the metro. She said it was a perfect illustration for the work we do as advocates for survivors of sexual abuse. It was then that I thought, “This is more than a picture… this could be a story to illustrate how sometimes the only way to help hurting and broken people is to go through the darkness—though to a lesser degree of course—ourselves.”
When you have a friend or acquaintance that is healing from a difficult ordeal, one of the best ways for them to heal is to be able to talk about it. The simple truth is, hearing about someone being raped is horrific and uncomfortable. But imagine how much more horrible it is to actually be raped, and then never feel like anyone wants to let you talk about it. Not only are you reeling from the sexual assault, but also from the society imposed silence everyone expects you to keep.
Enter Ever, Dawn, and the Man of Sorrows. I don’t want to give too much away, but if you read the story, you will see the clear implications of how what I’ve just described came to be crafted into a fantasy story that deals directly with the character of man versus the character of an all loving, creative being. I hope you love this book and it leaves you wanting more even though the topic is a difficult one.

Blog Stops

Multifarious, June 8
Bigreadersite, June 8
Reading is my Super Power, June 10 (Interview)
Carpe Diem, June 14
Pause for Tales, June 15

Giveaway

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To celebrate her tour, Kristin is giving away a grand prize of a $25 Amazon Gift Card, ‘Plunge Into Darkness’ Paperback, Minimalism Art Classic Notebook Journal, and Huhuhero Fineliner Color Pen Set (10 Pack)!!
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/d070/plunge-into-darkness-celebration-tour-giveaway

Sunday, June 10, 2018

Joey by Jennifer Bleakley

I had no idea that this was a true story. I was completely surprised as I finished this book and discovered that Joey did exist.  children

I have heard about how horses could be used in therapy.  But reading about the impact Joey and the other  horses had with the children and staff were inspiring and so touching.

Others might have looked at Joey as flawed or past his prime.  Joey had so much to give despite his blindness.  His heart shined through so that others could heal.  GOD is a waster of none.  Joey was a gift from GOD.  

I highly recommend this book.  It was uplifting.  It was sad.  It was a joy.  

I received this free to review.

About the Book

Title: Joey
Author: Jennifer Marshall Bleakley
Genre: Inspirational, Memoir
Release Date: May 8, 2018
978-1-4964-2174-6The heartwarming true story of a blind horse named Joey.
At the height of his show career, this beautiful Appaloosa’s majestic stature, strength, and willingness to work made him the perfect partner. But when an injury cost Joey his show career, he moved from one owner to the next, ultimately experiencing severe abuse and neglect. A rescue group found Joey nearly dead from starvation—and blind.
Then he came to Hope Reins—a ranch dedicated to helping hurting kids who had been abused, emotionally wounded, or unwanted. By teaching these children to care for rescued animals, the Hope Reins staff were convinced they could reach kids with love and hope and show them that we are never forgotten by God.
But could the financially struggling ranch afford to take care of a blind horse that no one else wanted? Could Joey somehow learn to trust people even though the world had hurt him so badly? And what would happen—to Joey, the kids, and Hope Reins—if they failed?
A true story of friendship destined to become a classic, Joey will touch your heart and reveal the power of finding light in the darkness.

Click here to purchase your copy.

More Information About This Book

  • When a blind horse named Joey meets a struggling ranch owner dedicated to helping troubled kids, the result is a story of friendship, faith, and overcoming–and ultimately, a tale of how God always cares for the cast aside and uses them for His glory.
  • Joey is an inspirational memoir-like read that delights readers with a story about finding healing and restoration in the unlikeliest of places.
  • What a blind horse can teach you about overcoming your past and living fully in the life God has called you to have.
  • An unlikely story of God using a blind horse to bring healing and restoration to hurting children.
  • A percentage of the author’s proceeds from her book, Joey, will go to supporting Hope Reins which pairs hurting kids with rescued horses.
  • God said “you’re worthy” when the world said “you’re worthless.” Joey, an inspiriting story of finding healing and restoration in the unlikeliest of places.
  • The Hope Reins ranch set out to save these horses, but in the end, the horses saved them.
  • How the story of Joey saved the ranch… and taught the most valuable lesson.
  • Joey… your family’s next read
  • Let God wake you up to life lessons learned in unexpected places!




About the Author

Jennifer BleakleyJennifer Bleakley graduated from Florida Southern College with a degree in biology and was planning to apply for medical school when her best friend’s father died of pancreatic cancer. Walking through that experience with a family she had loved for so long left a permanent mark on her heart, and she soon realized that God was calling her to stand alongside other families facing similar heartbreak and loss. Jennifer earned a master’s degree in counseling from Nova Southeastern University and began working at the local hospice in St. Petersburg, Florida, as a child and family grief counselor. It was a job she loved deeply and one she continued doing until she and her husband started a family.
When her husband’s job required the family to relocate to Raleigh, North Carolina, God began awakening in Jennifer a long-forgotten passion for writing. She began journaling—recording evidences of God’s hand at work in her new season of motherhood. Her journal morphed into a blog, and she still writes regularly about glimpsing God’s grace in her daily life at jenniferbleakley.com.
Jennifer now writes curriculum and devotionals for her local church, is a contributing author for Treasuring Christ curriculum and She Believes online Bible studies, and leads a community women’s Bible study. She loves introducing children at her church and in the community to Jesus, helping them discover his goodness. Even though she once asserted she was much too introverted to be a public speaker, Jennifer has found that God’s grace is big enough even for lifelong introverts, and she now delights in speaking to audiences about his extraordinary grace at work in our ordinary lives.

Guest Post from Jennifer Bleakley

One October evening I stared into the eyes of the most unusual looking horse I had ever seen—his black and white spotted coat resembled that of a Dalmatian; his soft pink lips were chewing at some invisible morsel; and his charcoal eyes seemed to peer into my very soul.
And although I’m not what anyone would describe as a horse person, I was completely captivated by this horse.
I inched closer to him, compelled forward by some unseen force, until only a thin rail separated us. He stared at me. I smiled. Can a horse register a human smile? I had no idea, but I smiled anyway. The founder of the horse ranch was telling our small group about the ministry she had started—a ministry that pairs rescued horses with hurting children to help them find true hope and real healing. I listened to her words, but my eyes never moved from the horse. He looked at me as if he could read my every thought. As if he knew exactly why I was at the ranch that night. That I had been feeling a bit lost, struggling to find myself—my calling—in the midst of a new season of life. That I was on this tour in the hopes that I might find answers here—maybe even a purpose.
He bent his head toward the railing just inches from my resting hand. His eyes now level with my own, the setting sun reflecting brilliant hues in the depths of his eyes.
How beautiful, I whispered as my fingers reached toward him.
“And our Joey here is completely blind…” I heard the woman say. “He was a former champion…injured…sold…abused…abandoned….
The fragmented sentence floated around the picturesque scene, but the words just didn’t make sense. Surely the woman wasn’t talking about this horse? Not the one who could see into my soul. Not the black and white beauty who knew all my secrets with just one look?
The woman handed Joey a carrot. His greedy lips taking the treat from her hand, leaving it free to scratch him behind the ear.
“But Joey was rescued and now he lives here,” she continued, “Where every day his determination and blind faith, point hurting kids to hope. Kids who have also known abuse and abandonment. Kids who see Joey choosing to live, choosing to learn, choosing to trust, and realize that maybe, just maybe they can too.”
Tears flowed down my face as I watched the horse nuzzle the woman’s hand. A blind horse leading people to see hope. The phrase swirled around my mind, before settling in my heart.
I had gone to the ranch that day looking for a purpose. Thinking that I could volunteer—use my long forgotten counseling degree in some way. Thinking that time spent here would ease the transition from full-time mommy to mother of school-age children. However, days after meeting the horse his eyes still haunted me. His story still captivated me. And so in spite of knowing very little about horses, and having never attempted anything like writing a book before, I sat down to write about a horse named Joey. A blind horse who was helping me find my way home….

Blog Stops

Carpe Diem, June 4
Mary Hake, June 9
margaret kazmierczak, June 10 (Interview)
Bigreadersite, June 12
Artistic Nobody, June 13 ( Spotlight)

Giveaway

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To celebrate her tour, Jennifer is giving away a grand prize of a beautiful hope necklace!!
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/cca4

Thursday, June 7, 2018

I am my Beloved

What a wonderful gift that Ms. McAdoo gave me in this book.  A treasure.  


As I turned one page after another, I thought of this Bible passage:

Jeremiah 29:11 New International Version (NIV)

11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Abishag questioned why she was childless and why she was the Virgin Queen.  But GOD had plans.  Abishag had so much to give and she loved with everything she had.  She gave all of herself to King David and King David treasured this gift.  He, in turn, gifted his son, Solomon, with Abishag upon his death.

Her role to both Kings was much more valuable than sharing their beds. Her grace and beauty impacted all that knew her.  Her knowledge and intelligence was appreciated.

GOD had plans for Abishag.  God has plans for each one of us. 

I received this free to review.

About the Book

I am my beloved
Title: I Am My Beloved
Author: Caryl McAdoo
Genre: Biblical Fiction
Release Date: April, 2018
The wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. How could the wisest man ever to live turn away from following God? The key is in Ecclesiastes and the Song of Songs that King Solomon wrote after his return to the Lord. Who was the Shulamite? And why did he call her his sister spouse? Only God knows all the answers, but the King Solomon left clues. You will never forget reading this anointed story of love and may find yourself setting it down to wipe tears away or simply worship the great I AM.
Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Author

Caryl McAdooCaryl McAdoo prays her story brings God glory, and a quick scroll through her novels’ rankings by Christian readers attests to the Father’s faithfulness. She loves writing almost as much as singing the new songs He gives her—look her up on YouTube to hear a few. Her high school sweetheart husband won her heart fifty-two years ago, and now they share four children and seventeen grandsugars. Ron and Caryl live in the woods south of Clarksville, seat of Red River County in far Northeast Texas, waiting expectantly for God to open the next door.



Guest Post from Caryl McAdoo

I AM My Beloved is a story unlike any I’ve ever written in that it moved me so. Not saying all my stories don’t move me, they do—to tears and laughter. Just today I got all teary writing a scene in my WIP for next September. But I AM My Beloved moved me to worship. I literally would stop typing, bask in God’s presence, and worship.
I believe that it is anointed and of course, as always, pray it will give God glory. I pray that His children will be blessed and drawn closer to the Father reading it. It’s a romance, yes, but nothing like any proverbial historical romances you’ve ever read.
It’s the story of Abishag. Have you ever heard of her? Her name is mentioned only five times in the Bible, all in 1Kings. “So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the coasts of Israel, and found Abishag a Shunammite, and brought her to the king.” Kings 1:3 They brought her to King David. To keep him warm during his dying days.
Scripture tells us the she cherished David, and also that he never knew her—his virgin queen. You’ll love her heart, creativity, attitudes, intelligence, and spirit of submission. It’s like all God’s beloved daughters can identify with her. Writing her story was akin to writing a love letter to Jesus. So often, it was Him and me, not these characters of olden days brought to life in I AM My Beloved.
This love story of what happens to Abishag after David’s death when Solomon, heir to the Throne becomes King of Israel. And perhaps, you’ll get a whole new take on the wisest man ever to live, as he takes on building the Temple of God, foreign wives, follows after their gods, then returns to serve the One True God and write Ecclesiastes and the Song of Solomon.
At its end, is a section I call “Search the Scriptures” that point out and explain the clues that led to its writing. I hope you’ll enjoy it!

Blog Stops

Novels Corner, June 3
Mary Hake, June 4
Carpe Diem, June 11
Bigreadersite, June 14

Giveaway

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To celebrate her tour, Caryl is giving away
GRAND PRIZE : $50 Amazon Gift Card
1st Prize: TWO novels–Choice-of-Caryl’s Titles (print or ebook)
2nd-4th: (three winners) ebook of I AM My Beloved
5th-7th: print copy VOW UNBROKEN!!
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/ceba/i-am-my-beloved-celebration-tour-giveaway

Sunday, June 3, 2018

John David's Calling

I haven't read every book of the previous series but I have read quite a few of them.  I was familiar with the characters and was anticipating the enjoyment I would receive reading this.


John David had a calling and he was determined to not let anything stand in his way.  He loved Hannah but loved GOD more.  He knew what he was called to do but Hannah made it difficult for him. 

Have you ever been determined to do something but you were steered off course?  Did you listen, really listen to what GOD wanted you to do?  John David did what we all need to do.  He prayed to GOD ALMIGHTY for the answers.  I think this is something so many of us fail to do.

Mark 11:24
Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.

Two more books are promised regarding John David and Hannah.  I would love to see how their journey plays out.

I received this free to reviee.


About the Book

John David's calling
Title: John David’s Calling
Author: Caryl McAdoo
Genre: Historical Romance
Release Date: May, 2018
When much is given, much is required.
Everything comes easy to David Nightingale. The favored son of Cypress Springs comes of age in the Texas Hill Country with one foot in PawPaw’s Church of Christ and the other in Gramp’s Holiness Church. He loves tilling the soil, traipsing the back woods varmint hunting, and most of all Hannah Claire. But the Lord calls him to leave everything. Will he choose to follow or succumb to his love for Hannah? If he stays, can he have it all?

Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Author

Caryl McAdooCaryl McAdoo prays her story brings God glory, and a quick scroll through her novels’ rankings by Christian readers attests to the Father’s faithfulness. She loves writing almost as much as singing the new songs He gives her—look her up on YouTube to hear a few. Her high school sweetheart husband won her heart fifty-two years ago, and now they share four children and seventeen grandsugars. Ron and Caryl live in the woods south of Clarksville, seat of Red River County in far Northeast Texas, waiting expectantly for God to open the next door.

Guest Post from Caryl McAdoo

At just one-year-old, David John Prescott sat on the hip of his mother, Sandra Louise Harris Prescott in the end of CHIEF OF SINNERS, book ten (and last) of my Texas Romance Family Saga series. His biological father, Buddy Nightingale walked away from them both, choosing obedience to God over the love of his life and his son.
Staunch Church of Christ believers, his mother’s parents took in the baby while her guilt took her to Dallas and eventually France to oversee the care of her mentally deranged husband Harry Prescott. So David grew up in the Texas Hill Country, well loved and cared for, with his mother visiting as often as she can.
David’s paternal grandfather, Nathaniel Nightingale (from Texas Romance’s book eight and nine COVERING LOVE and MIGHTY TO SAVE)—once a famous tent preacher with a healing ministry—has been close, quitting the road to pastor a nearby Holiness Church. As David grows, he sees him occasionally when his father Buddy visits from Alabama and Gramps always came to watch him play sports.
From a long line of people who love the Lord, I thought to write a trilogy titled THE REVIVALIST. JOHN DAVID’S CALLING is book one.
At fourteen years of age, David stepped in to rescue a little third grader being bullied and instantly became her hero. As Hannah Claire grew, doting on him, making him gifts and cards, swooning, she won him over, and PawPaw allowed him to visit her church one Sunday a month.
The second book in the Trilogy will be HANNAH’S WILDERNESS, and then I’ll wrap up their stories with book three, KING DAVID’S TABERNACLE.
I’ve so enjoyed these characters—the Buckmeyers, Baylors, and Nightingales—I find it hard put them on the shelf. They’re like family. I’ve even got one story started that’s a contemporary called THE KING OF TEXAS, with Patrick Henry the III as hero.
As all are written to stand alone, it’s never necessary for readers to know all the ancestors to enjoy JOHN DAVID’S CALLING or any of the series really—though I’m pretty certain reading the Family Saga in order would be the best! So if you love David’s book, you might want to go back to VOW UNBROKEN, book one and read all ten. I think you’re sure to love them all!
One thing I love about this JOHN DAVID’S CALLING is that it takes place in my days. I graduated high school in 1968, same as David, so he lives through the same times as me! That’s really been fun. But I must say I do resent it being called a historical a little J LOL
As always, I pray my story gives God glory and that its readers will be drawn closer to Him through it. He blesses me and highly favors me daily. I cannot thank or praise Him enough! Thank you for reading my stories!

Blog Stops

Quiet Quilter, May 25
Simple Harvest Reads, May 28 (Spotlight)
Bigreadersite, May 31
Artistic Nobody, June 5 (Spotlight)
Carpe Diem, June 6

Giveaway

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To celebrate her tour, Caryl is giving away
GRAND PRIZE : $50 Amazon Gift Card
1st Prize: THREE Choice-of-Caryl’s Titles (print–US only or ebook)
2nd-4th: ebook of JOHN DAVID’S CALLING
5th-7th: print copy VOW UNBROKEN
8th-10th: $5 Amazon gift cards!!
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/cee1/john-david-s-calling-celebration-tour-giveaway

Highlands by Chautona Havig

Quite interesting and different from anything I have read before.   It turned out to be a lovely story of a young man,Tony, and his search of self.


We don't always have the answers.  We don't always know why.  Tony didn't know how he landed up in Highlands.  But while there, he learned about what really matters in your life.  He became the man GOD wanted him to be.

Tony didn't always agree with the residents of Highlands.  But the beauty of the story is how they united in their differences.  They taught each other.  They were respectful and kind.  This is rare in today's world.  You can agree to disagree.  You can learn from each other.  You can accept differences without being vindictative.  

I enjoyed the story.  I loved the people of Highlands.  I loved the support and love they gave each other. It was a joy to read.

I received this free to review.

About the Book
Title: Highlands
Author: Chautona Havig
Genre: Contemporary Fantasy
Release Date: October, 2015
highlandsIntrospection–this place invites it. I’ve never allowed myself the time to pause and get to know myself. My father taught me it was weak. Focus on the prize–eyes off yourself. The goal matters. You are just the instrument to get you there.
Here… Is this what that goal was and I never knew it? The peaks above, the trees that stand tall beside me as if my own personal bodyguards.
I am alive–maybe for the first time in my life–and I think it’s because I’m dead.
A Journey of Dreams
Welcome to a new world: the world of Highlands.
When Tony Frazier arrives in Highlands, he must come to grips with a world that embraces birth defects as beautiful and to be celebrated–even those easily corrected. Balancing the beauty of utter acceptance and the wisdom of when to alter the “workmanship of God” creates tension between Tony and the Highlanders.
The Journey of Dreams series explores themes in the Christian life from a different perspective–from a world that can’t exist anywhere but in the dreams of the people who live there.
Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Author

ChautonaThe author of dozens of books in a variety of genres, Chautona Havig lives and writes in California’s Mojave Desert where she uses story to nudge her readers to the feet of the Master Storyteller.






Guest Video From Chautona Havig



Blog Stops

Mary Hake, May 27
Carpe Diem, June 3
Bigreadersite , June 4
Simple Harvest Reads, June 5 (Spotlight)
Artistic Nobody, June 6 (Spotlight)
Quiet Quilter, June 7

Giveaway

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To celebrate her tour, Chautona has put together a fun giveaway!
Grand Prize: I picture cool mornings in the mountains of Highlands. So, I’ve put together an early morning reading package for our grand prize winner. Even if it’s July, just crank up the AC, grab a lightweight throw (a scarf would even work!), brew up a cup of this delicious tea, and see what happened to Jessa (Prairie) and Tony (Highlands) when they woke up having received the desires of their hearts directly from the Lord in these contemporary fantasy novels. Happy reading!
Over a $50 value including:
Fearfully & Wonderfully Made Mug from Etsy
Tin of Tea
Paperbacks of the first 2 books in the Journey of Dreams Series!!
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/cebc/highlands-celebration-tour-giveaway

The Women

I didn't know what to expect when I started this book. It was a page turner.  Every chapter is gut wrenching.  I was too young to rememb...