A Bridge to Love - A Book Review

SYNOPSIS

Widow Kate Chilton bravely raises two young sons alone, drawing on memories of her happy marriage to give her strength. When she discovers that her marriage was not what it seemed, her world is shattered. In her own unique revenge, Kate decides to spend one night with a man and then forget him. She finds the perfect candidate in notorious womanizer Randall Johnson. Magnetically attractive, he has a reputation for loving and leaving. But Randall's reputation is about to change.... Randall Johnson clawed his way up the ladder of success from a dirt-poor childhood. With no time for the complications of love, he prefers women who understand his rules. When Kate invites herself to dinner, his curiosity is piqued. When she kisses him, his self-control goes up in flames. And when she tells him he's just a one-night stand, he refuses to take "no" for an answer. Originally published by Berkley Books, Penguin Group USA

REVIEW

I was invited to read the first novel in one of Nancy’s new series’ here recently and fell in love with her and her style of writing.  Although she is a little outside of my normal staid, literary brand of book that I have fallen into reading and reviewing in the last few months, I found her work to be a breath of fresh air.  Stop.  Let’s correct that. Her work tends to make me catch my breath at the most in-opportune moments and take my breath away, sigh, like coming up for air.

When I saw this new delight hit the market, I snapped it up and lost a night of sleep plowing through the story of a widow who was too afraid to love again, only to find out that she had been crossed and double crossed by the man she thought had loved her in death.  Even though the steamy scenes made my heart pitter-patter a bit, and were rather steammmy(!!), those scenes were icing on the cake.  The real story lay all around those scenes and much deeper.

WHAT???, you say?  A good sexy, steamy story with a deep meaningful story beneath the surface?  Yup!  It is that story that captured my heart.  It is the story of the young widow and her devotion to her two children.  No matter what a horrid person her husband (dead and buried) turned out to be.  She did not allow his image of the devoted father diminish in the eyes of her children.  She retained the “family” throughout her own personal crisis and no matter what horrid things were going on with men in her life (good and rotten), she managed to keep her children lives on an even keel – not an easy feat.

This is not to say she and her husband, and then later, she had not done a fantastic job of establishing good moral and family ethics and values for the boys. What I also really appreciated was the tone Nancy set of the female character’s determination to establish her independence and to be able to care for herself and her family.  What really ticked me off was just how manipulative and nasty (low-down) the men who worked to dominate her life were, including the “hero”, before he got his act together.  Sometimes you just wonder why men cannot figure it out. (Excuse me guys, I know not all of you are like that.)

Now, the real question is, how is an author able to write a really good novel that has really hot steamy sex scenes in it (more than just a few) and still have a central core theme about the values of family, ethics, and morals?  Well Nancy Herkness managed to make this reviewer feel that this book is good enough for a romance award nomination.  You will have to read Bridge to Love to find out how she did it, for yourself.

I rated this book FIVE STARS for my review.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nancy Herkness is the author of the award-winning Whisper Horse series, published by Montlake Romance, as well as several other contemporary romance novels. She is a two-time nominee for the Romance Writers of America’s RITA® award. Her new series, Wager of Hearts, follows the romantic adventures of three very wealthy men who make a life-changing bet.

Nancy is a member of Romance Writers of America, New Jersey Romance Writers, and Novelists, Inc. She has received many honors for her work, including the Golden Leaf Award, the Maggie Award in Contemporary Romance, and the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award. She graduated from Princeton University with a degree in English literature and creative writing.

A native of West Virginia, Nancy now lives in suburban New Jersey with her husband, two mismatched dogs, and an elderly cat.

For more information about Nancy and her books, visit www.NancyHerkness.com.

Social media links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nancyherkness
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NancyHerkness
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/nancyherkness/

Havoc Rising - Good Tales Book Tour Cover Reveal

BY Brian S. Leon
  Publication Date: June 2015
Genre: Urban Fantasy

SYNOPSIS
  Eternal life. Eternal battle. Steve—Diomedes Tydides to his Trojan War buddies—just had a bad day on his charter fishing boat in San Diego, but when the goddess Athena calls on her faithful warrior for another secret mission, he’s ready. The bomb that exploded inside the Metropolitan Museum of Art isn’t the crime American authorities think it is. Someone also stole the Cup of Jamshid, and Diomedes knows its fortune-telling abilities won’t be used for anything benign. Though Diomedes recovers the Cup from a determined shaman holed up beneath Central Park, when he finds his allies slain and the Cup taken once more, he knows he’s up against a truly powerful enemy. Over a millennium has passed since Diomedes last contended with Medea of Colchis, deranged wife of Jason the Argonaut, but neither her madness nor her devotion to Hecate, goddess of witchcraft, has waned, and she intends to use the Cup of Jamshid to release across the world a dark brand of chaos unseen in human history. Immortal since the Trojan War, Diomedes must once again fight for mortals he understands less and less, against a divine evil he may never truly defeat.

  Author Bio: Brian S. Leon is truly a jack-of-all-trades and a master of none. He began writing in order to do something with all the useless degrees, knowledge, and skills–most of which have no practical application in civilized society–he accumulated over the years. His varied interests include, most notably, mythology of all kinds and fishing, and he has spent time in jungles and museums all over the world, studying and oceans and seas across the globe chasing fish, sometimes even catching them. He has also spent time in various locations around the world doing other things that may or may not have ever happened. Inspired by stories of classical masters like Homer and Jules Verne, as well as modern writers like J.R.R. Tolkien, David Morrell, and Jim Butcher, combined with an inordinate amount of free time, Mr. Leon finally decided to come up with tales of his own.

Stillwater Rising - A Book Review

By

Steena Holmes

SYNOPSIS

After losing her son in an elementary school shooting that devastates the tight-knit community of Stillwater Bay, Jennifer Crowne finds herself unable to settle back into her role of perfect stay-at-home mom and committee organizer. Meanwhile, her best friend, Mayor Charlotte Stone, struggles to keep the town together, and Charlotte’s husband, the school principal, may not be the hero everyone thinks him to be.

As they try to heal from this irrevocable trauma, Jenn and Charlotte find themselves at a crossroads—within the town and within their friendship. For Jenn, broken and grieving, there is no going back, and she demands that the school be closed so that she can bury the past. Yet Charlotte is equally desperate to hold the town together, fighting the school closure and helping the shooter’s mother regain her place in the community. Jenn and Charlotte’s relationship is put to the ultimate test as each weighs her own interests against the bonds of their friendship.

REVIEW

Not every author is willing or has the compassion and heart to take on the subject matter of a school shooting.  Even more so, a school shooting from the view point of a mother’s heart.

Steena Holmes did just that.  When I picked up the book, I did so with great trepidation and an XXL box of Kleenex.  Was I ready to read a story about great traumatic loss?  Was I ready to watch families melt down into ash as the events of the frightful day took its toll on their lives and the lives of the town in which they lived? 

Maybe I need to insert a codicil here.  I am married to a retired Law Enforcement Officer.  He was shot in the line of duty and survived, but we spent the rest of his years on the force, and the years after he retired working with other families who’s LEO didn’t survive.  I know traumatic death.  I have lived it.  I have dealt with it.  With this said, I knew this story could possibly bring up deep emotions and nightmares.

Within pages I realized that this story was not a graphic novel.  Ms. Holmes was not out to tell a story of blood and gore.  She was sharing a story of grief and loss.  A story of darkness that could pull a soul down. 

The story centered around three mothers.  One mother who was on a long slow slide into the darkness of loss.  One mother, the pastor’s wife, who was forgiving and so focused on helping other deal with their pain, she locked hers away, even from herself.  The third mother was the mother of the shooter.  She too, was slowly falling into the morass of dark despair.  Her ostracization by members of the community with vandalism to her home added to her downward spiral.

The slow dance of sorrow was punctuated by interactions of well meaning (and some not so well meaning) neighbors and towns people. As within any well written book, and as it is in real life, no man is an island.  These women did not suffer alone. Their suffering was just a single layer of the many layers of pain that spread and over-lapped in the small community.  Each point of pain affecting another and each point of strength drawing from those around, as they sought to reach up towards the light of hope.  As the view point pulled out, the reader could see that intimate story of these ladies’ sorrow was woven into the story of families, and an entire town trying to recover from this great crisis among their people. 

Sniggling through the wonderful story line, much like a jagged gouge winding through the edges of the story, there is a second hidden agenda, a second story line begging for attention.  But can we find the threads?  Can we find the clues to unravel the mystery before it is too late and causes all the hard work towards recovery to come unglued?

Steena Holmes was masterful in her presentation of such delicate material.  For material such as this is sure to wrench every mother’s heart.  Her characters’ pain and despair was authentic and compelling and left this reader reaching for the box of Kleenex on more than one occasion.  The attention to the small detail that only a mother in pain would notice, like the small memorial on the side of the road with some toys and toy boats, just like her son used to play with brought both the main character and me to our knees with the force of sorrow that tore at our soul.

I would give Stillwater Rising a full FIVE STARS and THREE BOXES OF KLEENEX for one of the most heart wrenching reads I have read in a long time.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

    Steena Holmes

NY Times & USA Today Bestselling Author!

Growing up as a small town Canadian girl, there wasn't much to do but ride your bike, hang out with friends on the beach and daydream. I always wanted to write but never dreamed it was something I could do as a career. I love to travel and fell in love with the sheep covered hillside, old castles and romantic history of Scotland and England. I dream about waking up in Tuscany and touring small town shops in the south of France with my husband, of placing my toes in the ocean and experiencing history first hand. As a mother with three daughters, I'm learning that teaching them to pursue their dreams is a lasting legacy. I love to wake up to the Rocky Mountains, will forever enjoy the taste of coffee and chocolate and can't imagine the day when a story doesn't unfold in my heart. Living a life with passion and pursuing dreams is a life well lived.

The Ruby Brooch - A Review

By

Katherine Logan

SYNOPSIS

As a child, I fell in love with history, then later as a young adult, I started reading historical fiction. A passion for history and a fascination with mysteries and time travel led to writing time travel romance.  

One of my favorite writing experiences happened a few years ago during the Christmas holidays. I was working on the stampede scene in THE RUBY BROOCH and I needed gun information. So I went to a local store. My first visit ever! The store was crowded with holiday shoppers. I stood at the door not knowing what to do. The cashier asked if he could help me. I said, "I need a gun that will kill as many cows as possible in the shortest amount of time." The store went completely silent. The men stared at me. I had a lot of explaining to do. After they discovered I was a writer, everyone wanted to give me gun advice. 

From the Inside Flap

From the white-plank fenced pastures of Lexington, Kentucky, to the Bay of San Francisco, The Ruby Brooch, a saga steeped in family tradition and mystery, follows a young woman's amazing journey as she tries to solve the murder of her birth parents 160 years in the past.

REVIEW

I love a good historical romance, but throw in Western Historical Romance, and I am a sucker.  I grew up teething on Louis L’Amour.  Despite the preconceived notions that he is a men’s cowboy author, his novels were full of rich western history and were filled with actual magical locations throughout the West.  He was also not afraid of a heavy dollop of romance and believed very much in “happily ever after”.

I feel that I have found another magical spinner of western romance in Katherine Logan, plus the added aura of just a touch of fantasy with the fun of time travel as her story whisks the reader back and forth between the mid-1800’s and the current day twenty-first century.  The characters that Ms. Logan introduced us to were bigger than life, as all western heroes should be, when the heroine found herself back in the 1800s.  What was fun was that those bigger than life heroes were quite ready for the strong headed, thoroughly modern heroine that was doing her best to fit into a more docile role of the 1800’s woman, and not quite making it. 

It was easy to fall into the story and fall in love with the hero as the storyline rocked along on the Oregon Trail on the un-cushioned seat of the heroine’s buckboard.  Being the brilliant woman that she was, she brought taboo items from the 21^st century back with her to make sure she could survive the wilds of the Wild West and in doing so saved lives of others around her.  Her training as a volunteer Paramedic definitely came to her rescue on more than one occasion, too.

As with any great western there were Villains, and the Villains in The Ruby Brooch were the ones responsible for killing the heroine’s parents…or were they?  The mystery of the letter left to the heroine, along with the Ruby Brooch that transported her between centuries left the heroine with few clues and an agonizing need to find the answer to who she was…

Like the giant of western writers, Ms. Logan painted fantastic scenery displays of the west that the wagon train traveled through, providing the reader with glimpses of the beauty of an untarnished land as she painted her landscapes in bright colored strokes across the pages.  Likewise, she spent equal time developing the personalities of the main characters giving us glimpses of the many layers of who they were and who they longed to be. 

The love story was not a disappointment.  Like a good loaf of homemade bread, Ms Logan introduced all the necessary ingredients and then added them to the mix as needed, adding the yeast of yearning for love to mix in and a large dollop of sugar to feed the love and help it to grow and infuse through the rest of the mixture.  As time and the story moved forward, she message and kneaded the growing attraction and love, then laid it aside to perk and rise.  Later she brought it out and pounded that love flat with a beating of stress and strife as the story went through stressful period… For as with any love, love grows and is beat down, but true love grows back, sweeter and better than before.  In the end, her final presentation was as deliciously sweet and comforting as a freshly baked loaf of bread, fresh from the oven. 

By the time I had finished consuming the novel, much like a freshly baked loaf of bread (smile), I was longing for another fresh loaf, hot out of the oven.  I hope we are not long in waiting. 

This novel was a wonderful FIVE STAR RATING. Katherine Logan will be an author I will be re-visiting and looking to read again.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Katherine grew up in Louisville, Kentucky and attended college in New Jersey, where she earned a BA in Psychology and a minor in Criminal Justice. After attending the Philadelphia Institute for Paralegal Training, she returned to Central Kentucky and worked as a real estate and tax paralegal. Katherine is an avid reader, a marathoner, and lives in Lexington, Kentucky.

Website: www.KatherineLLogan 
Blog: www.KatherineLowryLogan 
Facebook: Katherine Lowry Logan, author
Twitter: @KathyLLogan

A Sparrow in Terezin

By

Kristy Cambron

SYNOPSIS

Bound together in time, two women will discover a powerful connection with one survivor's story of hope in the darkest days of a war-torn world.

Present Day--With the grand opening of her new art gallery and a fairy tale wedding just around the corner, Sera James feels she's stumbled into a charmed life--until a brutal legal battle against fiancé William Hanover threatens to destroy the perfectly planned future she's planned before it even begins. Now, after an eleventh-hour wedding ceremony and a callous arrest, William faces a decade in prison for a crime he never committed, and Sera must battle the scathing accusations that threaten her family and any hope for a future.

1942--Kája Makovsky narrowly escaped occupied Prague in 1939 and was forced to leave her half-Jewish family behind. Now a reporter for the Daily Telegraph in England, Kája
discovers the terror has followed her across the Channel in the shadowy form of the London Blitz. When she learns Jews are being exterminated by the thousands on the continent, Kája has no choice but to return to her mother city, risking her life to smuggle her family to freedom and peace.

Connecting across a century through one little girl, a Holocaust survivor with a foot in each world, these two women will discover a kinship that springs even in the darkest of times. In this tale of hope and survival, Sera and Kája must cling to the faith that sustains and fight
to protect all they hold dear--even if it means placing their own futures on the line.

REVIEW

The Sparrow of Terezin is the sequel to Kristy Cambron’s The Butterfly and the Violin.  I was unaware of the first book when I opened the pages of Sparrow but found myself immediately swept away in a spellbinding mystery of intrigue as the bridegroom is escorted away from the alter in handcuffs by the FBI.  The mystery surrounding the bride and her groom with impending doom of prison for fraud was a great story line unto itself.  Even though, it would have been to my benefit to have read the first novel for some of the backstory, the events of the current story were strong enough to keep the reader on track.  Interwoven with this story of love, angst, and despair was a second theme and storyline.

It was the second theme and storyline that truly stole my heart and carried the weight of the novel from the opening segue that took the reader back to the very start of WWII in Czechoslovakia, as Hitler was entering and Jews were fleeing.  Kristy allowed us to see the horrors of the conflict of WWII through the eyes of a young Jewess as she survived the bombings of London and returned to Czechoslovakia during the thick of the war to rescue her parents and ended up in a concentration camp. 

I have read Schindler’s List, Diaries of Anne Frank and so many other great and heart-wrenching books about this period of time.  Each one has reached out and touched on the horrors that happened during that time.  Each book has spoken to the injustice inflicted on not just one race of people, but also towards the innocent and the helpless.  The Sparrow of Terezin has done a beautiful job of once again opening our eyes to a new group of innocents who needed to be spoken for, whose voice needed to be heard, even these many years hence. 

Kristy presented the story with heart.  It was riveting, it was heart-stopping at times, as the story set the nerves on edge, waiting for the other shoe to drop.  But, Kristy also is a romantic at heart.  She tells a beautiful story of love that survives the worst of conditions.  That true love never fails.   This was found to be true in both story tracks, as they wound through the book.   In both tales, though seemingly unrelated, the two heroines needed to believe in the love of what could not be seen but was essential to their sanity.

There were times the box of Kleenex came out, for I knew the reality of the story behind the story for Terezin.  It was in those darkest moments that the heroine would look up and see the sparrow fly across the sky above and be reminded of His love for even the sparrow.  It is with that strength that she could carry on another day. 

As with any good author, Kristy was able to take the threads of her stories and weave them together so that by the final page a beautiful portrait was spread out before the reader.  It left this reader reflecting back over the story and how those threads were woven and how the story was laid out all along for us, the reader to see.  I look forward to going back to read the first book in this series and the next offering that Ms. Cambron has to offer.

The Sparrow of Terezin received top ratings this week from this reviewer.  Four Stars for a wonderful job on such a difficult topic and presenting it in such a riveting, but caring way.  Three Boxes for Kleenex and the heart strings that it struck as I read it.  A must read for anyone who loves WWII history.

I was supplied a review copy of this book by NetGalley.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

“Kristy Cambron has been fascinated with WWII since hearing her grandfather’s stories. She holds an Art History degree from Indiana University and has 15 years industry experience as a corporate learning facilitator and communications consultant. Kristy writes WWII and Regency fiction. She makes her home in Indiana with her husband and three football-loving sons. Website: www.kristycambron.com Twitter: @KCambronAuthor Facebook: Kristy-L-Cambron-Author”.

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | KOBO

Maximus

By

Richard L Black

SYNOPSIS

Maximus has never known peace. In command of one of Rome's finest legions, he and his closest friend, Androcles, have fought side by side to uphold the glory of the empire.

But at the end of a long and bloody campaign, Maximus begins to question his purpose, his past, and the gods he has been taught to believe in.

When word reaches Rome of a man named Jesus who is causing a stir in faraway Judaea, Maximus and Androcles are sent, disguised as Jews, to ascertain the truth of the situation: Is this Jesus merely a radical preacher, or is he instigating a revolution against Rome?

As Maximus immerses himself in Jewish culture, he must confront questions that could change his life: Is it possible this carpenter from Nazareth is the Son of God? Is it possible for a man of war to live a life of peace?

REVIEW

When I read the synopsis for Maximus, my first thoughts were of the classic novel that I have read and has been memorialized in celluloid, The Robe by Lloyd C. Douglas.  I remember this story of the roman soldier and his discovery of “the Christ”.  Maximus, is of much the same premise, but instead of a tribune, this time the Roman soldier is none other than a decorated General, who has come to investigate the rumors and stories of this Jesus of Galilee who some claim to be the Messiah, and a pretender to the throne of Judea.

The great general of the Roman army, who has led a legion of war hardened men, has three short weeks to transform himself and his commander (and best friend) into passable Jewish merchants, so that they can go into the back country of Judea and mingle with the crowds without raising eyebrows and learn more about this “upstart”. 

Through the cover of bringing the two “converts” up to speed, Ezra (the Jewish merchant and Rabbi) provides them with a brief history of the Jewish people, from creation to the claims of Jesus of Nazareth being of the linage of the House of David.  

I enjoyed how Mr. Black worked the two “Roman Jews” into the very fabric of the last few weeks of Jesus’ ministry.  Because of Maximus’ position of reporting to Pilate on Jesus, he found himself in Pilate’s presence at critical times when the Sanhedrin leadership was pushing for Jesus’ arrest and death.  Watching both men struggle with their inner demons and at the same time, the discovery and wonderment of the Jewish Jehovah was interesting.  These sections were thoughtful and well written, especially the scene where Maximus comes to grip with his own acceptance of God. The theological message was well presented between the folds of action, as the two men sought answers to who Jesus was, for both the Roman Empire, and finally for themselves.

My only drawback and the only issue I have with this book is that I feel that in the zeal to present his theological message, though a very good and sound one, Mr. Black dropped the ball in other areas of import.  The storyline is an excellent one.  The love story, within the story is delightful.  But, I felt there were shortcuts taken on researching the historical aspects of the novel.  I feel that with a little more work, this good novel could become a great novel.  All the parts are here.  There are just some areas that need to be corrected, filled out, and finished.

Because of this, it has been difficult to rate this novel.   If I were to rate it on the story and what Mr. Black did with it, I would give it a good 4.5 stars for the story.  But in the area of application of research and demonstration of knowledge historical and cultural  subject matter, I would rate the novel with 3 stars for technical issues.  

INTERVIEW

Hello Richard, thank you for coming by Shade Tree Book Reviews.  It was interesting that you worked the story of the final days of Christ from both a Jewish sideliner’s point of view and from a Roman’s point of view.   

How were you able to resolve the issue of such divergent thought and philosophy of these two cultures to come to such a cohesive work?

First of all let me explain that I wanted to make sure that the story portrayed within the pages of Maximus was true to events within the KJV New Testament. I have read the New Testament many times and am familiar with the stories and the attitudes of the various peoples represented within its pages. The Jewish perspective was easy. We have many examples in the NT of disciples and non-disciples perspective. Not all non-disciples were “anti” Jesus of Nazareth; they simply didn’t “hear the voice” or comprehend the message or the messenger. The detractors were also portrayed many times in the New Testament. They were described as vehement in their persecution and zeal to find a crack in the armor of Jesus. Their poisonous attitude was spawned from jealously, guilt, ignorance and fear. There were even those that believed His message but were unwilling to make the sacrifice necessary to commit to discipleship - e.g. Nicodemus, and the wealthy young lawyer.

The question of gentiles (non-Jews) is less defined. I did what I suppose most authors do, I closed my eyes and asked the question – If I were there and knew nothing of this Nazarene, or of God for that matter, simply stumbled across Jesus of Nazareth and observed his actions, what would I think? What would I do? How would I feel? Would I be sympathetic or apathetic? I had to take a step back from my own knowledge and belief and ask myself – what if this were me?

Maximus was in that place that a lot of men find themselves; dissatisfied with his life and current situation. But he was humble and receptive to new ideas and looking for change, so Jesus’ message and example hit a chord deep within him. Also, the family of Jershon and the mentorship of Ezra had an illuminating affect on him. He had no idea when he accepted the assignment from Emperor Tiberius and boarded the Egyptian ship to Judea what he would encounter, but he put himself in a position to receive inspiration. Many of us want change in our lives but are unwilling to take the risk of abandoning our preconceptions and pride and opening our hearts and minds to real lasting change and then committing to the work and sacrifice that change may demand from us. Maximus found himself in the “Bermuda Triangle” of life changing opportunity and committed to the change.

How did you come up with the idea for an undercover Roman soldier investigating the supposed Christ in Judea?

The word “undercover” has a contemporary feel to it. There were certainly spies mentioned in the Bible. Moses sent “spies” into the Promised Land before sending the children of Israel to inhabit it. There were Roman and Roman conscripts throughout Judea at the time of Christ. But my thinking was that a Roman soldier would have less access and not be able to get as close to the center of the storm as a simple Jew would. Maximus and Androcles by virtue of their disguise were able to have unprecedented and equal access to these events without raising suspicion – it seemed logical to have them pose as common Jews and add a deeper dimension of discovery to their mission. 

Do you plan on a sequel to this story?  A continuing story of the early church?

Hopefully the book, like a good rock-concert, ends with the concert-goers/readers clamoring for more – at least this is my hope. My own wife when she read the ending said, “That was abrupt.” But in my heart it was time to end the story with a “hopeful” conclusion. There are a thousand questions the reader could ask and it lends itself to a second book. I have begun to jot down thoughts, as they come to me, about that story. But it all really depends on the success of Maximus.

 Tell us a little about yourself.  What are some of the things you enjoy doing for fun? 

 I love good books and good movies. I love seeing at the end of a movie the tagline – Based on the Novel by -----. I love to travel and I love the ocean. I grew up in San Diego. The ocean invigorates me. It inspires me. It heals me. It makes me think bigger thoughts. It makes me want to throw off my self-imposed limits of thinking and accomplishment. It makes me want to be better, grow, succeed, reach-out, expand, create. I am a creative hands-on person. I really shouldn’t be in sales; I should be a carpenter or an auto-mechanic. I love working on cars with my four sons. It is the highlight of my Saturdays during the summer – diving into some broken car. I’ve recently enjoyed building bookcases and furniture for my children and myself. Of course, who can deny the joy I receive from being with my 3 grandchildren – that truly is a glimpse of Heaven.

What types of books do you enjoy readings? Who are your favorite authors?

Historical Fiction. I cut my teeth on Michener, Wouk and Clavell. I also like Michael Crichton, I wish he were still with us. I like the way he makes you think. Crichton had an incredible gift of imaginative storytelling. I like to walk away from a book having learned something. It is my hope that readers will walk away from Maximus having learned something. That would be very gratifying to have someone say that about the book. 

I also read a lot of non-fiction, particularly about World War ll and Wall Street; disparate subjects for sure.   

Richard, thank you for stopping by Shade Tree Book Reviews and Blog and spending some time with us today.  We wish you and Maximus the best in the coming days as your novel is discovered by our readers.  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Richard L. Black is a writer with a background in the software industry who has worked closely with Department of Defense and intelligence community, an experience which informs his writing style which shows a flair for undercover mystery and intrigue. A native of San Diego, he now lives with his family in the Southwest and is an avid car enthusiast and guitar player. This is his debut novel.

I received a reading copy of Maximus from Net Galley in exchange for a fair review of this book.

The Fifth Gospel

By

Ian Caldwell

Publish Date

March 3, 2015

SYNOPSIS

In 2004, as Pope John Paul II’s reign enters its twilight, a mysterious exhibit is under construction at the Vatican Museums. A week before it is scheduled to open, its curator is murdered at a clandestine meeting on the outskirts of Rome. That same night, a violent break-in rocks the home of the curator’s research partner, Father Alex Andreou, a Greek Catholic priest who lives inside the Vatican with his five-year-old son. When the papal police fail to identify a suspect in either crime, Father Alex, desperate to keep his family safe, undertakes his own investigation. To find the killer he must reconstruct the dead curator’s secret: what the four Christian gospels—and a little-known, true-to-life fifth gospel known as the Diatessaron—reveal about the Church’s most controversial holy relic. But just as he begins to understand the truth about his friend’s death and its consequences for the future of the world’s two largest Christian Churches, Father Alex finds himself hunted down by someone with a vested stake in the exhibit—someone he must outwit to survive.

REVIEW

I have read all of the Dan Brown books.  I read all the books the pre-dated Dan Brown, such as Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose, and David Morrell’s The Fraternity of the Stone, and many more that fed my insatiable appetite for the great religious mystery and thriller of what happened to the great relics of Christ. Even Ian’s first novel, The Rule of Four ranked as one of the more tantalizing works that sent me seeking for more info and left me with more questions than answers at the end. Some of the best of these books left me wondering just how much access they were able to acquire to the great vaulted and guarded stacks of the Vatican Library.  Others reached so far into the improbable, that they pushed even “literary license” to its’ limit. 

The Fifth Gospel was a book that, according to Ian Caldwell, was ten years in the making.  The journey took many turns and twists and hit many snags as he struggled to bring the tomb to production.  It is my humble opinion that his labor was not in vain.  I could not put the book down.  We are talking about my most revered subgenre of subgenre.  I read every archeology journal article, every book on every new finding, anything new I come across about the subject of the historical Christ and what new has been discovered in an archeological dig, or buried in a library. 

This all aside, Mr. Caldwell took the premise of the story back in time to just before Pope John Paul’s death.  His greatest wish was to bring the two great churches back together again – The Greek Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church.  This story is told through the eyes of two brothers who worked at the Vatican.  Both brothers were of Greek descent. One brother had converted to Roman Catholicism.  The second brother was part of a very little known small group of priests in the church who are married and who are Greek Catholic priests.  These two brothers and a lay museum curator become the nucleus around which there is a great secret that can make or break John Paul’s great hope for the Church before he dies. 

What can they know or find in the process of preparing for a great Vatican Museum show that would rock the Church world and could cost people their lives?  In the process, Ian lays out the beautiful story of the Shroud of Turin.  New details that I have never heard before are revealed in the story…how much of this is factual?  How much is literary creation? 

As an “outsider”, I do not claim to know and understand the workings of the Catholic Church, nor its politics.  But will attest to the fact that not all Men-of-God are Godly men  (nor on the other hand are all Godly men, Men-of-God).  The trappings and robes that one must wear does not speak of the heart of the man beneath the robe.  This does not hold true for just the Catholic Church, but for all organized religion, in general. Even with this knowledge, it was not much assurance or help, as you tried to figure out who the bad guys were, or if there were bad guys as you careened through the pages of the novel.  Even with this seeming subterfuge and mafia style activity going on, you never felt like anyone was taking potshots at the Vatican.  This small kingdom just happened to be the location of this top rate action thriller, and because of its’ location, the fever pitch went up a notch or two.  

The sub-narrative and story is a wonderful touching story of the young priest who is trying to raise his four year old son on his own inside the Vatican grounds after his wife abandoned them shortly after the birth of his son.  One never thinks of the idea of a family growing up inside the Vatican.  But I was taken in by the simple scenes of a stressed and exhausted father sitting over a very late supper table with a son who is happy to eat the pro-offered bowl of cereal and milk for his supper, while he tries to explain why his uncle is not coming home tonight.  The sweet innocence of the child juxtaposed against the terrorizing battle going on in the mind of the “father” of the child sitting next to him at the table…in the safety of the Vatican. Layers on layers on layers. 

Ian took the time and care to develop his characters. His central characters had layers to them like an onion.  Just as you thought you had a character figured out, you discovered you had him wrong.  He paid just as close attention to the supporting characters.  The plot and sub-plot to the story were so entwined, that it took a while to realize that there were actually two plots and three story lines.  Ian just kept taking the reader back to the table.  We had to look at the facts again and again, each time we would see something new had been added or had been missed. 

Like the intimate touches of the kitchen scene, it was the minute details of the novel that make the book so believable.  You can get the sense and feeling of living in the hallowed space of the most Hallowed kingdom on earth.  
I would give this work a well earned FIVE STAR rating.  In the fast paced competative world of cutting edge religious thrillers, Ian has shown his mettle and has earned the right to challenge the wits of the most ardent literary thrill seeker.   
A copy of The Fifth Gospel was provided to Shade Tree Book Reviews and Blog in exchange for a book review.  

Ian Caldwell, author of 'The Fifth Gospel', takes us inside one of the most mysterious places in the world to reveal some little known facts about The Vatican.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ian Caldwell is the coauthor of The Rule of Four, which spent forty-nine weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, sold nearly 2 million copies in North America, and was translated into thirty-five languages. He lives in Virginia with his wife and children.

One Last Thing

By

Rebecca St. James

There is nothing like the weeks before the wedding, especially one that has been years in the making.  All the “I’s” have been dotted, the “T’s” crossed.  Everything is set and you are finally going to marry the man of your dreams, then suddenly, harshly, everything you thought you knew about your fiancé turns out to be a sham.  He is not the man he has put himself to be.  Your world comes tumbling down around you into tiny shards so small, even Humpty Dumpty’s army could never pick it up and put it all back together again.

To make matters worse, you have promised not to speak of why to anyone, not ANYONE. So now this has become your burden, your shame, and you must carry it alone.  Why?  You have suddenly become the bad guy, and the hole gets deeper and darker. 

What is different about this story is the point-of-view.  We hear how Porn affects men and tears their relationships apart and destroys their lives.  But this story is focused, not on “his” story, but on “her” story.  It is about the great harm it does to the woman and her lonely isolated battle of shame, denial, silence, and depression that often draw her down as she is shamed into helping to keep the secret for any number of reasons.

This One Thing is a poignant story of a young lady faced with the startling revelation that her fiancé of great moral stature is in fact in the clutches of Pornography.  Her story is the shared story of so many women who face the shame and despair of dealing with a significant other or spouse who find themselves stuck in the cycle of porn by a family member.  They most often find themselves hiding it from family, friends, and society.

This book is a message of hope for women who are hurting.  It is a book of encouragement to seek support and assistance in the face of ridicule, for that is where true help and healing will be found.  Most of all, in reaching out as women, we find that we are not alone. 

This is not an easy book to read because of the subject matter, but I strongly recommend the book as a good resource and encouragement.  I am thankful for Rebecca St. James having the courage to tackle such a difficult subject and do justice to the subject matter while maintaining the integrity of a wonderful storyline that was full of hope.

Christian Fiction  Five Stars

One Last Thing was provided by Net Galley to read for this review.

Rebecca St. James is a Grammy and Dove Award recipient and a best-selling author whose books include Wait for Me and What Is He Thinking? Her leading role in the film Sarah’s Choice won critical acclaim. A passionate spokesperson for Compassion International, more than 30,000 children have found sponsorship through her worldwide concerts. Twitter: @RebeccaStJames Facebook: RSJames

Dancing in the Shadow of Love

By

Judy Croome

Synopsis: (from Amazon)

Lulu is different from the others. Once, she believed, she had a friend to love her. Then that friend betrayed her and Lulu learned that hate is safer than love. When she begins her new life at the Court of St Jerome in the Old Sea City, she finds people who must fight their personal demons of hatred, ambition and greed. Embraced in St Jerome's fold, Lulu learns to trust again, perhaps even to love. 
Nothing, however, is as it seems and Lulu discovers that love doesn't always wear the face of the one you yearn to call beloved. 
Lyrical and atmospheric, buoyed by touches of magical realism, this compelling spiritual story explores the sacrifices people make in the pursuit of their dreams. Lulu's quest, and that of Jamila and Zahra too, is to find the divine love that will fulfil their hopes and save their souls...if they can recognize the masks of those who seek to lead them astray.

Kokebumi Forest, Naembia

Review:

Dancing in the Shadows of Love was different from most of the literature that I normally read and review for this blog.  What sets this novel apart is that it is not just a novel.  It is an allegory.  This, combined with some cultural references and usages meant that I took my time reading the story.  This is a story that needs to be read and then read again to fully appreciate the many layers that lie within the pages and within the lives of its’ characters, for such is the way with an allegory.  It demands thoughtful consideration.

At first glance, this novel is the telling of the story of three women who come from broken backgrounds and how they deal with the brokenness and love.  Their handicaps in life were varied.  One came from a home where her father was abusive.  One had a sexually abusive father.  One was an albino child in a parochial school and was abused and rejected by even those that should have reached out to protect.  Their stories and their lives cross paths through the years and they come to know each other over time.

Each of the women were very real in their search.  Each longed to love and be loved and accepted, but the path that Lulu, Jamila, and Zahra all took while seeking this peace and craving this love and acceptance was varied.  Even as others reached out to offer safety, love, and security to each of them throughout their lives, many times they found that it was either not what they truly sought or came with chattel too heavy to bear.

The introduction of a “Christ” like figure into the story was what truly gave it the haunting allegorical flavor. He was not a Messianic figure, but the one that quietly came among the people and was the “True Love” that accepted each of the women with no hidden agendas.  Even then, he held first Zahra, and then Jamila, back when they first approached him.  They were drawn by his powerful pure love, but He knew they were not ready to receive what He had to offer yet.  

Other characters within the novel went out into the world to battle evil and to combat what was bad in the world.  Some won, some were lost to the cause, but the battle for good against evil rages on.

In the end, it was how each of the three women found peace and accepted or turned away from the true love that was offered to them that was the story.  It is the story of each of us.  It is the allegory of life.

A rating of FIVE STARS.

INTERVIEW:

Over the last couple of months, I have had opportunity to visit with Judy Croome about her book.  Based on those conversations, I had several questions that she answered that provided a more in-depth picture of this priceless story.  

Can you give me a brief synopsis of the story?

I wrote that book “Dancing in the Shadows of Love”, so long ago, I hope I can remember! BTW it was written as part of my thesis for my Master of Arts degree).  

Zahra was from a poor family with a sexually abusive father whom she eventually shot to escape the abuse. Jamila was also from a poor family and abused by her father but not sexually. - You might have them mixed up because I deliberately paralleled their stories to a large degree because I was showing how different people react to events of their childhood. (I did.)  Ultimately by the end of the book Zahra, despite her snobbish outer self, has taken over her Grace’s role as helping the poor & needy.  

Jamila is one of the strays she helps. Jamila however despite her goody, goody appearance has no hesitation in selling Lulu out to achieve her personal goal of social acceptance.  So despite their similar childhoods Zahra grows through her suffering into a person transcends it but Jamila sees herself as a victim. 

What is the one most important message in your book? What is a message you think a lot of readers "just miss"? And in doing so, really miss out on the beauty between the words?

Judy:“We are all one, with God and with each other.” That’s the point too many readers don’t find between the lines of this story. That, despite our external differences — of nation, race, religion, gender, whatever the difference is – beneath the skin (in our souls) we are all children of God, whatever we perceive or call our God.
This is a novel about regaining faith in a Divine Being, in our God, and realizing that we carry Him inside ourselves – Grace knew that (“Our hearts are one and the same, dear,” she says to Zahra, “despite the unfortunate differences the world imposes.”) and eventually Zahra, and then Lulu learnt that lesson – Jamila, the most overtly “religious” of the women, didn’t learn it.
But as Zahra and Lulu learn, when we find a connection to God within our souls, then no matter how much we have been hurt, no matter how much we’ve been betrayed, we can choose to show compassion (agape, Divine Love) towards others and thus become instruments of Divine Peace, rather than make war all the time (greater war, like the one which killed Zahra’s son and grandson, or small wars like family feuds or fighting with a friend).
No matter how ordinary we are, no matter how impossible a task creating world peace seems, if we all look to God, if we all regain that knowledge that we seem to be losing that God exists in some form or other, we can make a difference in this world. Grace, Zahra and Lulu all made a difference by choosing to change the way they behaved, to rise above their sufferings and understand the other person’s point of view. Jamila could not, she stayed trapped in her perception of herself as a victim of others, and so she ended up betraying Lulu. The novel ends on a hopeful note, though, because through her example of being kind to the very woman who hurt her, Lulu gives Jamila a chance of redemption.
So like Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once said, "If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man's life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility." When we’re hurting or angry or betrayed, and we can still find the inner strength to tap into that Divine compassion (God’s Love) within our soul and so disarm our hostility towards the external differences we see in others, then we have made the dream of transcendental love, that Heavenly Peace which passes all understanding, a reality in this world we live in.

Dancing in the Shadows of Love is filled with symbolism.  Can you tell us anything about it?

There is extended section on the symbolism of the book on my website.  Visit me there. http://dancingintheshadowsoflove.blogspot.com/p/symbolism.html - there are tabs along the top to the other pages.

Biography

Judy Croome lives and writes in Johannesburg, South Africa. Shortlisted in the African Writing Flash Fiction 2011 competition, Judy's short stories and poems have appeared in various magazines and anthologies, such as the Huffington Post and the University of the Witwatersrand's Itch Magazine. 

Judy loves her family, cats, exploring the meaning of life, chocolate, cats, rainy days, ancient churches with their ancient graveyards, cats, meditation and solitude. Oh, and cats. Judy loves cats (who already appear to have discovered the meaning of life.)