New Release: Bathsheba

Book Title: Bathsheba
Author: Angela Hunt
Publication Date: August 25, 2015
Publisher: Bethany House

Description:
One of Ancient Israel's Most Famous Women--
As You've Never Looked at Her Before

One of the Bible's most misunderstood and misjudged women, Bathsheba comes to life in this new biblical reimagining from Angela Hunt. Combining historical facts with detailed fiction, this is an eye-opening portrait that will have you reconsidering everything you thought you knew about her.

After receiving God's promise of a lifelong reign and an eternal dynasty, King David forces himself on Bathsheba, a loyal soldier's wife. When her resulting pregnancy forces the king to murder her husband and add her to his harem, Bathsheba struggles to protect her son while dealing with the effects of a dark prophecy and deadly curse on the king's household.

My Review:
The story of David and Bathsheba is pretty well known to everyone. I thought I knew the story almost by heart but reading Angela Hunt's, Bathsheba made me realize how little I really knew about it. What I love most about Hunt's books is the way she sticks to the truth. I learned so many new details about Bathsheba that I hadn't known before but they weren't just made up.

Reading this book made me look at the story of David and Bathsheba in a whole new light. Actually, it made me look at a bunch of things differently. Like why Absalom, and the rest of David's children, turned out the way they did, what life in the palace might have really been like, how it must have felt being one of David's many wives,..

The scenes were well-written and full of vivid detail. The plot was enthralling, you couldn't just stop with one chapter. Every aspect of this book was great...definitely a thumbs-up in my opinion.

My Rating:⭐⭐⭐⭐
Note: I received this book through NetGalley. http://netgalley.

New Releases: Until the Dawn

Book Title: Until the Dawn
Author: Elizabeth Camden
Publication Date: December 1, 2015
Publisher: Bethany House

Description:
Fascinated by Dierenpark, an abandoned mansion high atop a windswept cliff in the Hudson River Valley, Sophie van Riijn sees no harm in setting up a rooftop weather station for her work with the newly established Weather Bureau. While the villagers are suspicious of the mysterious estate and its tragic history, Sophie has come to see it as her own enchanted piece of paradise.

The first Vandermark to return to the area in sixty years, Quentin intends to put an end to the shadowy rumors about the property that has brought nothing but trouble upon his family. Ready to tear down the mansion, he is furious to discover Sophie trespassing on his land.
Instantly at odds, Quentin and Sophie yet find common ground when she is the only one who can reach his troubled son. There's a light within Sophie that Quentin has never known, and a small spark of the hope that left him years ago begins to grow. But when the secrets of Dierenpark can no longer be kept in the past, will tragedy triumph or can their tenuous hope prevail?

My Review:
After reading an excerpt of this book I knew that I just had to read the whole thing! A romance between a woman and the man who's about to destroy everything she holds dear...totally irresistible. Also, being a big fan of all of Elizabeth Camden's books I figured I was guaranteed to love it!

Sophie van Riijn is probably one of my favorite book heroines. I loved her! She had such a sweet spirit and yet a determination to make her dreams a reality. Quentin, at first a miserable grump, can't help but be affected by Sophie's optimism and cheerfulness. I appreciated the strong Christian message throughout. A self-proclaimed atheist and firm believer in science, Quentin is persuaded by Sophie's influence to see Christianity in a whole new light.

I also found it interesting to get a glimpse of weather forecasting in it's earliest stages. You might not think it's that interesting of a time period to base a book on but Elizabeth Camden did a wonderful job creating a completely invigorating book.

My Rating:⭐⭐⭐⭐
Note: I received this book through NetGalley. http://netgalley.

Read an excerpt of Until the Dawn HERE

New Releases: Love in the Details

Did you know that Thanksgiving is ranked as the third most celebrated holiday in America? (Christmas and Halloween being first and second) Most people just think of the food but the word thanksgiving actually means: a day set apart for giving thanks to God. This is what the day was originally created for in 1621 and how we should still celebrate it today. After all, when you've been blessed with so much (salvation, eternal life, family, friends...) isn't it only right to thank the one responsible?

Today, I am especially thankful for gift of speech. It may seem a weird thing to be thankful for but I recently came down with laryngitis and not being able to talk is AWFUL! I never realized what a blessing it is to have a voice until I lost it. It always works that way, doesn't it?

What is one thing that you are thankful for today?

This quote is available as an iPod Wallpaper HERE

Book Title: Love in the Details
Author: Becky Wade
Publication Date: October 27, 2015
Publisher: Zondervan

Description:
Holly ended things to give him a better life, but she was the future he’d always dreamed of.

Eight years have passed since Holly last saw her high school sweetheart, Josh. Now the wedding of Josh’s best friend has brought him back to Martinsburg, Texas.  His duties as best man and Holly's as the church's volunteer wedding coordinator link them together.  As they work behind the scenes to plan a beautiful November wedding for their friends, they're forced to confront painful reminders of what might have been.

Holly broke up with Josh all those years ago in an attempt to ensure his future success. However, she never told him the true reason behind her actions and now must decide whether to keep her secret hidden.  She's terrified of letting herself fall for him because she barely managed to piece her life back together after losing him the last time.

Not a day's gone by since Josh parted from Holly that he hasn't thought about her.  The pain of the past eight years has been too much to bear and he doesn't want to make himself vulnerable to her again. But the more time he spends with her, the harder it is to deny the love he still has for her.

Will Josh and Holly risk their hearts on the hope that God's timing really can be best?

My Review:
For being a novella this book was very well-written. It takes a talented author to be able to write all the necessary details and characters' backgrounds in so few pages. Many novellas I find don't have the depth a full length novel has but Love in the Details was just as entertaining of a read.

I liked how the story portrayed Holly and Josh as already having a romance in the past. The previous love helped move the story along without it feeling rushed. Holly, was an engaging character and I liked her from the beginning. Josh wasn't my favorite guy but he was still likable. That was probably the only thing I didn't care for in the book and it wasn't that big of a deal for me.

"If you're looking for a short romantic read this is the novella for you"

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Note: I received this book through NetGalley. http://netgalley.