Passionate thoughts about the world of writing and the Power of God
One of the best versions of this legendary tribute to Jesus: Little Drummer Boy. Talented group. Amazing rendition.
This one is so beautiful it made me cry out loud. Hope you enjoy these as we enter the Christmas Season. Jesus Is the Reason for the Season.
Thank you, Jesus. May all that come to you rejoice! In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
I was reflecting upon one of my greatest Christmases. One of them occurred in grade school when I received an illustrated storybook of Black Beauty and my full-size blue Schwinn bicycle.
I couldn't find a suitable picture for the style of my Schwinn bike. My friends and I rode our bikes everywhere in our neighborhood. Good times.
Do you have favorite Christmases?
Father, you know how much I love Christmas and how grateful I am for all of what you've done for me in my life. Thank you, Jesus, is never enough. Thank you for so many good memories. May each year provide more wonderful memories of Love come to earth to save us all – if we're willing. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you are highly favored! The Lord is with you."
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary. you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, his kingdom will never end."
"How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"
The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God."
"I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.
At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judah, where she entered Zechariah's home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! Buy why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!"
Luke 1:26-45 (NIV)
On Wednesday I asked you to name some of your favorite characters. Today I'm going to give you five of my favorite characters that I've written. If you've read these particular novels of mine and know them, be sure to tell me what you think of them.
In no particular order:
Joey Parr — Joey is the lovable loner who is "discovered" and through experiencing an intense look at life and love finds what he was always seeking. I love Joey. The Famous One
Stone — One of my very favorite because he's intense in his suffering, his craft, his love of the military, and so passionate when things in his life change drastically and come to an abrupt halt. Then . . . you
"Grams" — She's an amazing woman, tough as nails, tender as a soft touch, perceptive, humorous, and sold out to Jesus. Destination
Bonita — She can be totally unlikable because of her horrid background, but when she meets Micah who is determined to help her, her vulnerability is exposed and watching her heart change is heartwarming. Seeing . . .
Micah Jones — Micah's known the Lord since childhood and has been given a special spiritual gifting. Meeting Bonita is life-changing for him and watching him tackle the gamut of emotions and frustrations she evokes in him is both challenging and rewarding. He's a noble but humble character. Seeing . . .
Father, you are the Creator of all things. Thank you is never enough for sharing your creativity and giving inspiration. Please continue to give me characters and stories to tell. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
For this Throwback Thursday as we approach the Christmas season, I'm giving you a review of the third book in the Atticus Priest Series by Mark Dawson. You really can't miss for your mystery-loving friends or relatives when you purchase this series, but, please, give them the first book because they're all connected. Mark Dawson is also an excellent thriller writer as you will find in his John Milton Series.
Posted as: A view of . . . The Red Room
As the current trendy expression says, “It’s been a minute” since the second book in the Mark Dawson series (An Atticus Priest Mystery) A Place to Bury Strangers debuted, and since many, many novels have been read since that one, I found my memory to be a little rusty in recalling previously dead characters. I remember the discoveries that led to The Red Room, the ominous conclusion to that second book in the series. Mark Dawson is a creative and prolific author, marketer, and promoter of his work so it’s not surprising when some books take a little more time than others to get to his waiting readers.
I’ve been somewhat patiently waiting for The Red Room, both knowing and dreading the subject matter. Before I get into the actual review, I want to commend Mark Dawson and other authors who’ve tackled this abhorrent topic in their novels. More and more people are becoming aware of the children/young people/adults being sex-trafficked, bought and sold for perverse pleasures until they’ve served their purpose and are disposed of like so much garbage. After Epstein’s Island was exposed, the list and tapes of clients and encounters still concealed for purely political reasons, The Red Room stands as a poignant example of this centuries-old practice celebrated by those who worship the devil. Although that facet of this particular practice is not addressed in this story, it’s at the heart of this evil.
Atticus Priest, a former police detective, is one of the most uniquely attractive characters in Mark Dawson’s extensive repertoire and may be my favorite. His gift for perception of people’s most disguised personality and character traits along with his genius-level intellect, makes him an incredible private investigator and police consultant when his girlfriend DCI Mackenzie Jones (“Mack”) can interject him into a murder investigation. He pursues puzzles like a pugnacious pugilist. Unrelenting even when Mack tells him he must back off due to higher-ups in the chain of command’s disdain for Atticus. He never fails to out-perform them and solves their mysteries.
This story explodes when a favorite local man takes a deadly dive off the top access to the Salisbury Cathedral where he’s worked for many years. In the process of making a film from that horrific height, the gruesome splat of his body is discovered on the pavement below. Accompanying his shocking death, a video tape arrives at a local newspaper that shows this well-respected man compromised with a minor boy years before.
There are more deaths and more tapes which lead Atticus to suspect an online acquaintance “Jack” with whom he plays chess. Jack seems to know far more about Atticus than he should, and when Jack makes implications about these murders, Atticus is determined to discover who he is and what Jack’s motive is.
As with all of Mark’s work, the mystery is complex, disturbing, and full of distractions. The final twist which is shared only between Jack and Atticus reveals a great deal about things the reader hadn’t considered until now.
Well written, sad and disturbing, Mark presents a plain picture of how this sordid, demonic “business” operates. Again, I commend Mark for tackling this poignant subject. The more people who realize its perverse reality, hopefully the more can be done to effectively curtail the horror for those victims of it.
I gave the book 5 stars because of the way Mark dealt with this subject matter: carefully but boldly proclaiming the utter demonic practice of enslaving children/young people/adults to those who wish to pursue their perverse lusts and have the money to indulge them.
Father, you know Mark's heart, his every need, his talents and gifts that you've given him. I pray you would continue to bless his life and lead him in your ways. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
Okay, it's Wednesday so let's do something a little bit different today.
Please name your favorite characters and what genre/book they're in. You can name as few or as many as you like.
Tell me why they're a favorite.
Do it. It'll be fun, and it might help others figure out some new novels to read or to buy for gifts.
Father, I thank you continually for your authors/writers. What a treasure. Thank you for giving the gifts/talents in every field of endeavor. Thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
Yeah, baby. Sing it, Percy! A classic!
Father, thank you for creating us. We don't deserve your great and magnificent love and yet you pour it out on us. Thank you for true love between a man and a woman. Thank you, Jesus. Make us better, help us to love better, Lord. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
As the title suggests I have a request. IF you've read any of my novels, I would really appreciate you leaving a one-word comment that encompasses your opinion of the book (or books) you've read. You would be doing a personal favor for me, and if I can reciprocate in any way, please let me know.
I sincerely thank you in advance and appreciate your thoughtfulness.
That's it for Monday!
Breath of Life: Petrino-Salter, Nicole: 9781632320872: Amazon.com: Books
Hope of Glory: Nicole Petrino-Salter: 9781593521240: Amazon.com: Books
Father, apart from you I can do nothing. And thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
"Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book."
I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. But he said to me, "Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book. Worship God!"
Then he told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near. Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy."
"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
"Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
"I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star."
The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" and let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon."
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen.
Revelation 22:7-21 (NIV)
Talking novels of course. And you can't go novel shopping without also doing some author shopping. So let me facilitate your author and related genre shopping to help you with your Christmas book buying.
First of all, the very popular genre of Cozy Mysteries is wonderfully handled by these two terrific writers who happen to excel in this genre:
Karin Kaufman (the Queen of Cozy Mysteries) and Heather Day Gilbert (the Princess of Cozy Mysteries). These ladies have more than one series in the genre.
Next, let's look at Thrillers. The obvious old and new to name a few:
The late, great Vince Flynn (who created the iconic Mitch Rapp Series, with the latest in the series written by Kyle Mills and soon to be Don Bentley)
Jack Carr (the James Reese Series), Mark Dawson (the John Milton Series), Brad Thor (the Scot Harvath Series), J.B. Turner
(the Jon Reznick Series)
Now let's take a look at my favorite Romance writers for your lovers of good romance:
Francine Rivers, who does biblical fiction too, but she writes beautiful love stories and totally understands the beauty and intensity of romance.
Becky Wade, writer of several romance series. And, yes, she gets romance.
Kristen Heitzman, author of several contemporary novels, not all of which are just romances, but she's a great and unique writer of romance.
And we're just about done: Women's Fiction
Brenda S. Anderson, her "Life-Affirming Fiction" will always touch your heart.
Normandie Fischer, her novels with that southern setting will take you sailing away.
Finally: Love Stories with a Passion – Raw Romantic Redemptive:
Amazon.com: Nicole Petrino-Salter: books, biography, latest update
Go buy some book gifts and treat yourself to at least one from the list above.
Father, thank you for writing and authors. I can never thank you enough for inspiration, words, and stories. Please help me to continue writing love stories with a passion. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
Into the Fire 