Well not really OLD, like ME, but not the newest releases either. I want to share them first…then I will tell you a little about their newest releases. I used to be a tunnel vision reader. I only read one writer and I read one genre. I had no idea what I was missing! I remember thinking all Christian books were going to be the same…like “Christy” by Catherine Marshall, sweet and perfect characters. That is a classic in Christian literature. It didn’t have edge or real charcters that I experienced in life. I realize life was different back then, not harsh like it is now. I wanted a book that left me thinking about it long after the last page was finished. I discovered Terri Blackstock…every word she penned was exciting! She wrote in a series, and that made me rush out to buy the next book as soon as it was released. Her “Restoration” series dealt with events that could really happen anyday, and asked us what we would do. If you lost all power, transportation, financial systems, stores, etc. and was forced to go back to real basics (No running water! No indoor toilets!) what would you do? People kill for food when they are hungry. She opened up our eyes to the dangers of the internet in “Predator”, and dealt with drug addiction in “Intervention”. Suspense comes natural for Terri Blackstock, and so does edgy characters we can relate to. I will introduce you to her collections in detail later.
Quite by accident I discovered Loree Lough one day when a friend gave me a book that she thought I might enjoy centered around a local wolf sanctuary. I love wolves and eagerly jumped into it not realizing it was a romantic fiction from the “Love Finds You” series…LFY in Paradise, Pa. I would have NEVER chosen a romance book…I am too old and far too ugly to relate to romance books anymore! But guess what! There was a real message inside that wonderful book! THERE WAS A CHALLENGE! What are you willing to do to be more Christlike? There was twists I didn’t expect, and tears that made me personally involved in the story she told. It changed my life.
A friend sent me a copy of one of her books and I turned up my nose…a western? No way! Men read westerns. My days of Gunsmoke were over. I had no desire to ride the plains on horseback. Out of courtesy I opened the first page and read a few lines….then a few more…then I couldn’t put it down! The stagecoach was headed down the mountain and the brakes wouldn’t stop it, and there was another coach laying on its side just ahead with a woman laying in the road!!!! If they weren’t careful they would be going off the edge and down the mountainside, and if they were… they would run over the woman and smash into the other stagecoach! I was hooked on Mary Connealy’s “Doctor in Petticoats”. I rushed out to find “Wrangler in Petticoats” and “Sharpshooter in Petticoats”. Mary Connealy is the queen of cliff-hangers! Her women are strong and before their time. Adversity is only a minor setback when you have their strength and endurance. “Deep Trouble” is one of her latest releases and it just keeps getting better!
Did you love the days of the All-American sitcom? Then you will love Janice Hanna Thompson! I started with “Fools Rush In” and fell in love with two families tht reminded me of “Little House on the Prairie meets My Big Fat Greek Wedding”. It has charm, wit, cliche’ expressions, and fun just like the old days of “I Love Lucy”. Janice has a long list of titles to choose from, with a colorful aray of characters to make you laugh out loud.
If you like historical fiction you will want to read Laurie Alice Eakes’ “The Glassblower”, or “Jersey Brides”. My daughter fell in love with Melanie Dickerson’s “The Healer’s Apprentice” and Roseanna White’s “Jewel of Persia” about a side of Esther we never heard about in the Bible.
The list is endless, and we hope to take you through these exciting worlds and introduce you to the people who wrote them in future posts…just as soon as I learn how to navigate this boat! Stick with us in coming blogs and watch us grow. Thanks for stopping by!
christianfictionreview 