Category: Monday Book Review

I’m so fortunate to have Julie in my ACFW critique group. I actually met her in an elevator and we’ve been friends since. She graciously has allowed me to interview her for my blog.
Leave a comment and you may be the ONE who gets a free copy of her book A Passion Redeemed! Contest ends midnight Nov. 5! Please leave your email address for me, in case you win I have to be able to contact you!

DLB: Some days the writing and reviews can get to you. What do you do to escape and recharge?

Julie: Are you kidding??? I read!!! I love nothing better than carrying a book around in my purse when I’m out and about or leaving it in the powder room on days that I’m home, stealing wonderful moments here and there in another world altogether. One of my favorite times of the day is at bedtime, when I can snuggle in with my hubby for twenty minutes or so and read while he watches TV—ahhhh, sheer bliss!

DLB: Name 3 favorite writing books.
Julie: Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maas (the workbook is AWESOME!), The Synonym Finder by J. A. Rodale (my writer’s Bible!), and Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King.

DLB: Pen or Pencil? Why?
Julie: Pencil because I … uh … tend to edit a lot!

DLB: What do you feel was your biggest mistake when you started writing?
Julie: My biggest mistake when I started writing was head-hopping—I was clueless about point of view. But I had a paid critique at an ACFW Conference with top author, Tracie Bateman, and she set me straight pretty quickly, thank God (and thank, Tracie!).
My 2nd biggest mistake was trying to get published on my own, without an agent. I garnered some 39 rejections and wasted three years of my time before I finally got an agent who then sold me in six months.

DLB: Do you listen to music when you write? If so who gets your fingers moving on the keyboard?
Julie: NOOOOoooooooooo!!!! I have to have COMPLETE and utter quiet, which is a real pain the tush for my sweet husband. You see, he is an artist who HAS to have music on when he works, a real dilemma in the evenings when we sit in back-to-back chairs in our cozy office. So, the man is a saint because he now wears a headset when he has a project, which works out nicely because I tend to talk to my characters and read lines out loud all the time!

DLBL: Do you have a favorite quote or bible passage that you’d like to share?
Julie: Gosh, I have so many, but one of my favorites (which I also pray everyday) is the last paragraph in Psalm 139, verses 23-24, which I’ve listed below. But a word of warning—don’t pray it unless you mean business, because God will definitely nail you to the wall on a few things! 
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

DLB: Where would you like to travel to if money were available?
Ooooooo … Ireland, of course! Then England and a sandy beach in the Caribbean—in that order.

DLB: What do you like best about the O’Conner women?
Julie: Grin. Oh man, I love how EMOTIONAL they are, which is pretty much how I am, so what do you know—I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree! But most of us are pretty emotional deep down, it’s just that a lot of people don’t show it. I love how Faith is emotional (or passionate) about God, and how Charity is so emotional about love. It’s this deep-seated fire that burns inside of both of them (and ALL of the O’Connors) that I truly love to write about.

DLB: What’s your perfect day like?
Julie: Early to rise, treadmill with worship music, Bible/prayer, e-mails, then WRITING till my sweetie comes home!! Doesn’t get any better than that!

DLB: Fill in this statement “I’d love to overhear the conversations of and .”
Julie: Rhett and Scarlett, from Gone With the Wind. I’m a romance writer, after all!

DLB: What would you say to yourself as a beginning writer?
Julie: Basically the same advice that published authors gave to me:
1.) Get involved in a writing network by joining a writers group (for instance, as a romance writer, I joined ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers, http://www.americanchristianfictionwriters.com/), FHL (Faith, Hope & Love, http://www.faithhopelove-rwa.org/), and RWA (Romance Writers of America, http://www.rwanational.org/), both to get connected with other like-minded writers and to learn a lot about my craft.
2.) Take a fiction-writing class or attend a writing seminar or conference.
3.) Join a critique group.
4.) Purchase and study writing books such as Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King or Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maas, AND invest in a great thesaurus such as The Synonym Finder by Rodale Press.
5.) Enter contests for valuable feedback, to build your confidence, AND to sometimes get your work in front of publisher/agent judges.
6.) Go for an agent first, publisher second. Then query agents like crazy and even some publishers if you like.
7.) Submit stories or articles to magazines to build name recognition and a resume, to provide encouragement, and to acquire networking contacts.
8.) Then pray your heart out and put it in God’s hands.

 

 

Stepping into the Sunlight by Sharon Hinck

Penny Sullivan finds herself in a new neighborhood, her husband is deployed, and her support system not yet in place when she finds herself witnessing a shocking crime. Unable to leave her home even to purchase food for her young son she knows she has to get better, but how? She has her faith or does she? And if she has faith why can’t she move forward?

I can’t remember the last time an author reached inside of me and pulled out my story. Hinck has done just that, while I’ve never been in a holdup I’ve been a prisoner of anxiety. I was on those pages with Penny Sullivan, holding hands with her praying she would be able to take each step.

I finished this book with a huge ‘take away.’ God wants my best, even if my best is only the smallest thing I can do that day. I wish I had read this book four years ago. I’m finally coming out of my dark corners and I know this book, while a work of fiction has the power to heal. Thank you Sharon for writing it.

 

 

 

Review for A Passion Redeemed by Julie Lessman

You know how you feel when you get a piece of really good chocolate? Not the stuff you get at the service station, but the kind from the specialty candy shops. You unwrap that piece and savor every bite, letting the rich flavor melt on your taste buds, and when it’s gone, you want more, just one more piece, please. That’s what it’s like to read A Passion Redeemed by Julie Lessman. This book is filled with characters that will linger long after the book is finished.

Charity O’Connor—misguided in the past by her emotions, lack of faith and confusion about a father’s love will steal your heart. You’ll soon be cheering her on as she discovers what real faith, real love and living real is all about.

Mitch Dennehy—has had a rough road too, dumped by Charity’s sister, Faith (A Passion Most Pure) has left him raw and hurting, but Faith left him with a strong faith of his own.

Once again, Lessman has found a place on my KEEPER shelf. This book will be reread again and again. This writer knows how to turn a phrase and keep the pages turning.

 

 

I’m reading Six Prayers God Always Answers by Mark Herringshaw and Jennifer Schuchmann. One of the chapters is about our questions of ‘Why God?’

I’ve asked that question so many times in my life. Why did all three of my brothers have to die? Why did my dad leave us? Why did my husband die? Why did it have to be so hot today? Why aren’t more of my books being bought? Why? Why? Why?
Herringshaw and Schuchmann brought it to my attention that God won’t answer those whys because there isn’t enough time. Or rather, as they put it think of a two year old and all they why’s they ask. As a parent you know each why leads to another why. Even Job asked why and God said (my words here)…not enough time and your attention is way to short to follow the reasons. Instead of asking why Herringshaw and Schucmann suggest we ask what now, God? How do I proceed?

I like that. It’s a simple thought. Even if I could understand the why of all my questions I can’t change any of those things. Maybe I wouldn’t even want to. For instance would it have been in my families best interest if Danny and David were still alive but not well? No, and it wouldn’t have been good for them either. In that case the what now becomes should my children undergo genetic testing before having children? That’s up to them. I took a chance and had all boys, the odds are good I haven’t passed on the genetic problems of my family.

I know this is a bit of a ramble. This week is the one year mark of my mother-in-law and father-in-laws passing and I found myself asking why again.

Since I can’t change the past I’ve decided it’s best for me to trust that God really does know what He’s doing and in the end I will understand the why when I get to heaven.

Interested in learning more about this book? It’s available at amazon.com

 

Whispers of the Bayou by Mindy Starns Clark

I didn’t think it was possible to bring back the feeling of being young, a library book in my hands

Clark has found a fountain of youth. At least for me with Whispers of the Bayou she transported me back to my youth, where I spent my summers devouring every Daphne Du Maurier the library had on their shelves. Clark’s book had me gasping, quivering in terror and when the story ended I didn’t want to read another book for several days. I just wanted to savor the glorious feeling of having read a well-written suspense story.

Kudos to Clark I will be purchasing her other books soon. And my copy of Whispers of the Bayou will not be lent to anyone, so don’t ask. This is a keeper!

Seriously this book didn’t let me go to bed. I stayed up until I finished the last page.

Here’s the back cover copy:

Swept away from Louisiana Bayou Country as a child, Miranda Miller is a woman without a past. She has a husband and a child of her own and a fulfilling job in a Manhattan museum, but she also has questions–about the tragedy that cut her off from family and caused her to be sent away, and about those first five years that were erased from her memory entirely.

Summoned to the bedside of Will Pedreaux, the old caretaker of her grandparents’ antebellum estate, Miranda goes back for the first time, hoping to lean the trust of her past and receive her rightful inheritance. But Will’s premature death plunges Miranda into a nightmare of buried secrets, priceless treasure, and unknown enemies.

You just have to read this book! That’s me not the back cover!

 

A Passion Most Pure by Julie Lessman the first in the series of The Daughters of Boston is Faith O’Conner’s story. Faith and her sister Charity share more than a last name. They both love the same man. The twists and turns in this book have you turning pages at a fast pace to discover who Faith will marry in the end. Is it the childhood friend, Collin? Or the charming Irishman Mitch? Which man Faith wants so does her sister Charity.

How Lessman pulls this off is pure pleasure for readers. Lessman’s writing has the edginess of Kristen Heitzmann, and depth of Jodi Picoult. Go ahead, pick this one up and fall in love with the entire O’Conner family. Just make sure you have a lot of time to read because this is one book you don’t want to read a little bit at a time.

If you’d like to know more about Julie Lessman here’s a link to my interview with her. Julie Lessman

The Restorer by Sharon Hinck is one of the most thought provoking books I’ve read in awhile. I found it on my Powell’s trip and remembered meeting her at Mt. Herman at a writing conference. I had to have the book. I needed something to distract me on the plane trip back from Oregon. I don’t like to fly.

I identified with Susan, the main character right away. She knows she has a great life but longs for something just a bit better, to help others and she’s depressed. Yep, could have been me in the book. I settled into my seat at the airport, this would be a good comfortable read.

Wrong. This book was fascinating, character driven, with a plot that twisted like spaghetti on a fork.

By the time we were in the air, Susan had left her home and traveled to a place that doesn’t exist in our world. I read, turned pages and read more, the air miles went by and soon we landed in Kansas City. I didn’t relish having to stop living in this magical world where soccer moms can use a sword! Still I had to deplane and wait for the connecting flight to St. Louis. As soon as I could respectfully ignore my husband and read, I yanked that book back out of my bag.

What makes this book so special to me is the idea of how dangerous one thought can be. At first when I read this book I thought Hinck very clever to use an evil thought to throw a community into chaos. A week later I’m identifying thoughts of my own that are leading me in the wrong directions. Thank you, Sharon for helping me to see how poisonous those wrong thoughts can be.

Would I buy the next two books in this series? You bet. I can’t wait for them to arrive.

Here is the book blurb:

Meet Susan, a housewife and soccer mom whose dreams stretch far beyond her ordinary world. While studying the book of Judges, Susan longs to be a modern-day Deborah, a prophet and leader who God used to deliver the ancient nation of Israel from destruction. Susan gets her wish for adventure when she stumbles through a portal into an alternate universe and encounters a nation locked in a fierce struggle for its survival. Now stranded in a strange culture filled with poisonous enemies, Susan must overcome tremendous odds to deliver a desperate people and restore hope to a world far from her own.

Get it at Amazon!

Welcome to my blog, Mary Lu. I just finished reading
The Restitution.
It’s great. Will there be another book following this one?

Hi Diana! Thanks for having me on. No, I’m sorry to say, there will not be another book in the pirate series at this time. I do get a ton of emails asking for more books, so perhaps in the future, there will be another “Legacy of the King’s Pirates.”

Pirates are fascinating to read about but how do you do your research?

Not being able to go back in time and join a pirate crew really limited my research! LOL. Although I doubt I would have made a good pirate (I still have all my teeth) and they would have probably made me walk the plank or something else equally hideous! I use a variety of research methods. I read many books, both fiction and non-fiction, watched as many pirate movies as I could get my hands on (Go Errol Flynn!) and made a trip to the Florida keys to sail aboard a real pirate vessel. I love this job!

I’ve always wanted to know what really happens to pirate treasure. After it’s taken and they store it in massive trunks in the bottom of the ship how do they turn their spoils into money?

Aye, the treasure! It all be about the treasure! Pirates did what all thieves do, even to this day, they spent what they could easily spend (the Spanish doubloons, the Pieces of Eight, the gold and silver coins) and they sold the rest of the things (jewels, coffee, tobacco, pearls) for money—which they promptly turned around and spent!. Pirates were notorious for spending every penny they stole. Rarely did they ever bury their treasure anywhere, as most of us have heard in pirate stories.

How does the captain keep his crew from taking from the stolen treasure? Do they each have a trunk and it gets filled from the spoils each time?

When any man joins a pirate crew, he must sign the Pirate Articles for that ship. These are rules made up by the captain and enforced on penalty of death. One of those rules would always be that any man caught stealing more than his share of the plunder would be killed (in some heinous way which I won’t describe here). Normally that was enough to deter any of the pirates from stealing treasure that wasn’t theirs—especially since not only just the captain would be angry but the whole crew of violent miscreants would be after him as well.

I think of pirates as homeless but in Redemption you mention the ships must be taken out of the water every few months to scrape the sides and bottom so were there pirate safety islands were everyone gets along while the ships are cleaned? Did pirates during this time period have a home besides their ships?

Normally, the ships were the only homes the pirates knew. They spent so much time at sea, that they didn’t feel “at home” on land. Many of the pirates had a “home” port that they would return to where they were usually welcomed among fellow pirates and where they could spend their “hard-earned” money on food, rum and women. The careening of a ship only took a few days and was often preformed on some secluded island away from any civilization. This was a very vulnerable time for any pirate because if he was caught during this time, he would lose his ship, and possibly his life as well.

What difficulties have you had in getting your books published since pirates are not known to be God loving men?

Surprisingly, None. The three book series was picked up only a month after my agent submitted it. Yes, I see your mouth hanging open. I was just as shocked. That’s why I really believe it was a God thing. The timing, the movies just coming out.. everything just fell into place.

Thank you for spending time here today. Is there anything you would like to share with my readers?

I pray you do not let the “pirate” theme dissuade you from picking up my books. Though there are indeed some nasty pirates, there are wonderful swashbuckling heroes and daring, alluring heroines. These stories are filled with romance and adventure, all interwoven with a strong message of God’s love and His power to changes lives. My one and only purpose in this life is to glorify God in whatever I do—to show others that He is on the throne and He loves us and has a grand adventure planned for every one of His children.

Thanks to all of you, and God Bless!

Weclome to my blog, MaryLu. I just finished reading The Restitution. It’s great. Will there be another book following this one?

Hi Diana! Thanks for having me on. No, I’m sorry to say, there will not be another book in the pirate series at this time. I do get a ton of emails asking for more books, so perhaps in the future, there will be another “Legacy of the King’s Pirates.”

Pirates are fascinating to read about but how do you do your research?

Not being able to go back in time and join a pirate crew really limited my research! LOL. Although I doubt I would have made a good pirate (I still have all my teethl) and they would have probably made me walk the plank or something else equally hideous! I use a variety of research methods. I read many books, both fiction and non-fiction, watched as many pirate movies as I could get my hands on (Go Errol Flynn!) and made a trip to the Florida keys to sail aboard a real pirate vessel. I love this job!

I’ve always wanted to know what really happens to pirate treasure. After it’s taken and they store it in massive trunks in the bottom of the ship how do they turn their spoils into money?

Aye, the treasure! It all be about the treasure! Pirates did what all thieves do, even to this day, they spent what they could easily spend (the Spanish doubloons, the Pieces of Eight, the gold and silver coins) and they sold the rest of the things (jewels, coffee, tobacco, pearls) for money—which they promptly turned around and spent!. Pirates were notorious for spending every penny they stole. Rarely did they ever bury their treasure anywhere, as most of us have heard in pirate stories.

How does the captain keep his crew from taking from the stolen treasure? Do they each have a trunk and it gets filled from the spoils each time?

When any man joins a pirate crew, he must sign the Pirate Articles for that ship. These are rules made up by the captain and enforced on penalty of death. One of those rules would always be that any man caught stealing more than his share of the plunder would be killed (in some heinous way which I won’t describe here). Normally that was enough to deter any of the pirates from stealing treasure that wasn’t theirs—especially since not only just the captain would be angry but the whole crew of violent miscreants would be after him as well.

I think of pirates as homeless but in Redemption you mention the ships must be taken out of the water every few months to scrape the sides and bottom so were there pirate safety islands were everyone gets along while the ships are cleaned? Did pirates during this time period have a home besides their ships?

Normally, the ships were the only homes the pirates knew. They spent so much time at sea, that they didn’t feel “at home” on land. Many of the pirates had a “home” port that they would return to where they were usually welcomed among fellow pirates and where they could spend their “hard-earned” money on food, rum and women. The careening of a ship only took a few days and was often preformed on some secluded island away from any civilization. This was a very vulnerable time for any pirate because if he was caught during this time, he would lose his ship, and possibly his life as well.

What difficulties have you had in getting your books published since pirates are not known to be God loving men?

Surprisingly, None. The three book series was picked up only a month after my agent submitted it. Yes, I see your mouth hanging open. I was just as shocked. That’s why I really believe it was a God thing. The timing, the movies just coming out.. everything just fell into place.

Thank you for spending time here today. Is there anything you would like to share with my readers?

I pray you do not let the “pirate” theme dissuade you from picking up my books. Though there are indeed some nasty pirates, there are wonderful swashbuckling heroes and daring, alluring heroines. These stories are filled with romance and adventure, all interwoven with a strong message of God’s love and His power to changes lives. My one and only purpose in this life is to glorify God in whatever I do—to show others that He is on the throne and He loves us and has a grand adventure planned for every one of His children.

Thanks to all of you, and God Bless!

Allison! Welcome to Pencildancer.com! I have a few questions for you.

What do you do when you aren’t writing?

Oh gosh, a ga-zillion things! Currently, I’m doing a lot of packing as we are moving at the end of this month from Minnesota to Texas! However, I love to garden in the warm season (very short here in MN) and reading and going to the movies are BIG favorite pastimes of mine. I could take off for the nearby Cineplex and watch 3 movies, back-to-back with no trouble at all! I’m a movie-holic!

What other creative outlets do you have?

When I have time (make time) I love to scrapbook. I’m also somewhat of a teacher at heart, I love to encourage other writers, and to that end I’ve begun to produce a series of Teleseminars for writers, with bestselling author Randy Ingermanson. Your readers can find out more about these online MP3 workshops here: http://www.boomerbabesrock.com/eventsteleseminars.html

When did you realize there was a need for baby boomer fiction?

I read a lot. Especially what is known as “chick-lit.” But the typical “chick-lit” is written for a 20-30 year old target market. The protagonist is usually single, and struggling with her faith, career, family, love-life and things young women often struggle with. In my books, I wanted to approach the issues that baby boomers are dealing with, things like the empty nest syndrome, aging parents, a change in career, retirement, menopause, and other health issues. I wanted to look at women in the prime of their life who were suddenly stepping out in faith to achieve the dreams of their heart. Women who weren’t afraid to take risks—who had the chutzpah to dare to dream big. That’s how “Boomer-Lit” was born.

Are you leaving God Allows U Turns behind to write fiction?

Not at all! I have a passion for sharing the true stories of how God turns people around. In fact, we are currently accepting true short stories for three new volumes in the acclaimed series. Your readers can check out the Writer’s Guidelines here: http://www.allisonbottke.com/writersguidelines.htm My co-editor, Cheryll Hutchings, is collecting the stories and our submission deadline is December 30th.

You’ve written a lot of books and you’re so young! When did you start writing? How long does it take you to write a book start to finish?

Young? God bless you! (Where do I send your check? Ha-Ha) I’m 52 years old! I’ve been writing since I could hold a pencil—it’s how I best communicate. However, I was 45 years old when my first book was published—volume one in the God Allows U-Turns series. It takes us about 9 months to compile and edit a volume in the compilation series. It takes me about a year to write a novel. Alas, I’m not very fast.

As a young baby boomer, I just turned 50. I look to my older sisters to see how they are handling the aging process. Many of them are turning to plastic surgery. What are your thoughts on that?

Okay, I’m going out on a limb here, but if a person can afford plastic surgery, and it’s being done for the right reasons, I’m all for it! For your readers who read my debut novel, A Stitch in Time, they know my lead character had gastric bypass surgery and lost a great deal of weight. She had a lot of plastic surgery. Well, the fact is that I had gastric bypass surgery in October of 2000 and I’ve lost 120 pounds. I’ve had plastic surgery to remove excess skin as a result of that weight loss. I say this only because there are so many stigmas in “Christian circles” regarding plastic surgery. Weight loss surgery and plastic surgery gave me back my life, I’m a big proponent of both. But again, for the right reasons.

When you look back at your twenties what do you wish you would have known then that you know now?

I’ve heard it before but it rings very true now…I should never have spent so much time sweating the small stuff! I should have chosen my battles better…and not made mountains out of molehills.

Who are your favorite three Christian music artists?

Without a doubt I am a huge fan of Bonnie Keen (from the band First Call.) Bonnie helped me to get all the musical info correct in One Little Secret. I also love Sandy Patti – what a vocal range! And Mark Schultz is amazing, his gift for story telling is amazing.

What blog or website do you try and visit every day?

FOX News and Glen Beck.

Allison, is there anything you’d like to share with readers before you go?

I encourage your readers to tell me what they think about One Little Secret. I really do want to hear reader feedback. I’m working on my next novel to release in summer of 2009 and I take to heart reader comments. They can reach me here: AB@AllisonBottke.com and please, I’d love to invite everyone to participate in the Hollywood Casting Call Contest where a lucky winner can win an all expense paid trip to Hollywood! Visit my web site and select the actors and actresses you think would make the best lead characters in One Little Secret! Check it out here: http://www.boomerbabesrock.com/bookcontests.html

And …we have a monthly newsletter that we call a “Dream-Zine,” I’d love to invite your readers to subscribe: http://www.boomerbabesrock.com/dreamzine.html

And one final thing, we have a co-authored blog with six best selling authors blogging each and every day – BOOMER BABES WITH BRILLIANT DREAMS: http://www.boomerbabesrock.com/blog/ I think that’s it – thanks for having me!

Thank again Allison for blogging today.
Dear Readers, if you’d like to ask a question or leave a comment please click the comment button it should bring up a box for you to type a message.