Remember this one? The Kinks with their distinctive simple sound that had people rockin' for awhile. Not deep or complex, but it worked.
Father, so many gifts dispersed to your creation. We're grateful for the beauty you give to us in all its wondrous forms. May each one of us recognize who gives us gifts. Thank you for it all. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
Susan Sleeman introduces Fatal Mistake of the White Knights Series, a romantic suspense.
Former SEAL, now FBI Special Agent Cal Riggins, heads up his team of very special agents in search of the killer dubbed "Lone Wolf" after a woman calls to report what looks like bomb making materials in an outbuilding on her aunt's farm. Cal calmly talks her through her terror until she's forced to run into the nearby woods. Following a shooting and the hospitalization of the woman named Tara, the team learns that the killer was her childhood friend. Shortly after her initial recovery, the woman disappears from the hospital, but death follows her.
The team works overtime to figure out why she's gone, what her present connection is to the serial killer, and where they can find them before either Tara or someone else dies at his hands.
The romantic connection between Cal and Tara sometimes overtook the particular serious situations, and their "helplessness" at ignoring their attraction in spite of their determination to do so seemed a bit overdone to me. Plot-wise, I found the first incident between Tara and the killer slightly inconsistent with his overall purpose at the end.
For those readers who like suspense and love romance, Fatal Mistake might be the book for them.
Father, you've given Susan many stories to tell and I pray you would continue to fill her up with more. Bless her life and keep her safe from all harm. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
Matthew 24:36-44 (NIV)
Five miscellaneous things:
Nothing like a good purse. Unfortunately, I wore out two of my favorites and haven't been able to find another one like them.
Enjoying my new laptop (Dell).
A good cobbler or shoe/leather/purse repair person is a great asset.
Experiencing another disappointing venture with a new-to-me author.
Nothing like Mt. Rainier just before dawn out my kitchen window. Breathtaking.
Father, I'm desperate for you. You are the great I AM. You have no equal. You are the ultimate. So very thankful you rescued me. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
(Originally posted on February 2nd, 2011, under Waiting . . . beneath the Night Tree.)
Nicole Baart’s beneath the Night Tree is the third in a series that begins with After the Leaves Fall, followed by Summer Snow, but this novel easily stands on its own, published by Tyndale.
I assume some of the fullness of this story about single mom Julia DeSmit, her rambunctious and ebullient five year old kindergartner Daniel, and her old-beyond-his-years brooding 10 year old half-brother Simon, abandoned by her same loveless mother Julia refers to as Janice, and Julia’s beloved paternal grandmother Nellie, appeared in the previous books. However, we get a fair picture of this 24 year old woman who feels old at times in spite of her heart-pumping relationship with boyfriend Michael who is studying several hours away to be a doctor. We feel her restrained wanderlust which reflects that common desire of many young people to escape burdensome responsibilities that can make them feel like they’ll never accomplish anything worthwhile in their lives and/or that they’ve somehow missed out on just the fun part of being young. We sense it’s something her estranged mother never grew out of and instead forfeited any life with strings attached to pursue her selfish lifestyle.
Julia helps hold the disjointed family together with her dead end job at their small town’s local grocery store while escaping her lack of fulfillment by indulging her photography skills and ventures. Having never had to deal with Daniel’s absentee father since she told him she was pregnant, she’s stunned to receive an email from him after all this time expressing his regrets and asking if he’s a father. In spite of her outrage Julia responds with one affirmative word, and suddenly her life explodes with emotional chaos.
The infusion of anger, the adjustments she’s forced to make, the hope she holds out for her marriage to Michael, and the aging of her grandmother all combine to drive Julia to take refuge in something she hopes will work yet knows it can’t.
I think Nicole did a meaningful job of portraying this young woman even though at times Julia feels older than she is, she also acts that way, but at the same time her youthful emotions and silent tantrums belie her age. The innate angst, defiance, self-doubt and persecution, hopes and dreams, the nagging responsibilities that compose your life at that age when you realize this is the life you’ve made for yourself—all those things combine to force daydreams of running away to assert your fierce independence, but in reality you know you can’t and at the heart of things you really don’t want to anyway. Leaving behind all that you love couldn’t produce anything of value—she only has to look as far as her mother to see that ugly picture.
Even though this story isn’t “new” and is therefore predictable, the beauty of how it’s told makes it a worthwhile journey into the lives of this small family. This is pure women’s fiction adorned with a lovely landscape of words yet still keeping that comfortable, relatable air of honesty and homey quality. The male characters take a backseat to the voice of Julia who fleshes them out with prejudice or favor depending on her mood. I wish the story could’ve been longer in order to expose these characters even more deeply and thoughtfully which I have no doubt Nicole could easily have done well. This is where word counts cut off so much more than they reveal.
The significance of the “Night Tree” appears about two thirds of the way through the story and brings all kinds of symbolism to this reader, but I’ll leave that to the imagination of other readers who choose beneath the Night Tree for their true reading pleasure.
Father, continue to bless Nicole in her public and private life, and I pray, Lord, that you would intensify your relationship with her. Give her stories to tell without limits and the time to tell them. Keep her strong in you and in your mighty power. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
Loving this garden. It has it all, doesn't it?
God, the beauty you've given us is beyond measure. I cannot imagine how extravagant heaven will look without the curse of sin. Thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
A classic instrumental: Theme from "A Summer Place". Love this music.
Father, you've orchestrated some amazing creativity over the centuries. Music came from heaven, but it's been open game for the enemy. Greater are you than he ever hoped to be. Thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
Karin Kaufman opens Cheating Death with the viewing of a seemingly intoxicated resident of Juniper Grove (Brigit Gunderson) viciously stapling notices on every available post on Main Street and duct taping them to storefronts. Curious to understand what constituted the urgency of such postings, mystery writer Rachel Stowe approaches her to find these notices are blatant accusations against her husband for being a cheater.
Turns out Brigit wants Rachel, who the town believes is equivalent to a private eye, to find the woman with whom her husband is having an affair. Although Rachel declines, it later occurs to her and her two friends who compose their "Gang" of mystery solvers, they need to delve into what's happening between this wayward couple and the couple who are their supposed friends.
After reporting a murder to her beau Sheriff Gilroy, Rachel experiences the first of a snippy attitude from him after giving his request that she, for once, stay out of this investigation. Her intentions are good, but information is essential to solutions, and somehow she feels obligated to figure out this bizarre scenario – along with her two accomplices in sleuthing of course.
In the meantime Valentine's Day approaches and the big dance at Townhall has her neighbor Julia madly (literally) helping with decorations while falling for the man who heads the committee. Clueless to Julia's admiration for him, Rachel does her best to run interference, but it's the least likely of particular people who is able to make things happen for them – this of course after the timely solving of two murders.
I reiterate after every episode of the Juniper Grove Mystery installment (this is Book 6), Karin Kaufmann is the Queen of Cozy Mystery writing. She's created meaningful, authentic characters, uses clever wit and humor, knows just how to write them, and gives even the serious thriller readers a good fun release in mystery solving. Bravo, again, Karin.
Father, you know the sorrows and difficulties of late Karin has experienced. I pray you would continue to bring her both comfort and inspiration. Bless her in every area of her life and keep her strong in you and in your mighty power. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
Matthew 25:40-46 (NIV)
Some authors are happy to hand over titling duties of their novels to editors. Others of us don't want anyone messing with our titles.
Some readers pick up a book at the store if the title teases them or read further along in the blurb if they're drawn to a title for their e-book selections.
Titles and covers must speak to the story that awaits on the pages inside the book. If I can't figure out why a novel wears the title, I will search every area of thought to discover the insight. If it's too obscure for me to ascertain the connection, I'm disappointed in either the title or the story. That same connection must exist between the cover and the story or, again, I'm frustrated.
Series covers with the same well-designed themes (i.e. Sibella Giorello's The Raleigh Harmon Mysteries; Karin Kaufman's The Juniper Grove Mysteries) work very well because of established recognition. On my covers of stand-alone novels (except for my first Hope of Glory) I've tried to keep the black color dominant and one other inconspicuous symbolic "emblem" on every cover. (Anyone know what and where it is on each book?)
Arriving at the "perfect title" for each novel isn't guaranteed to please readers, but I know I have to like it. I changed one of the titles for a WIP after I was well into the story. The title no longer fit. The new one does.
I like all kinds of titles if they work. One word titles often jab right at the heart of the story, but phrased titles can too. It all depends on how it appeals to me and if it ultimately meshes with the story.
Do you have a preference?
Father, there are never enough big good meaningful words to thank you for all you do for me. You're too big. You render me speechless because thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
