Archive | September 2017

Infected By Alana Terry

Sep8

Not A Sparrow Falls

Infected by Alana Terry is a Christian thriller which I really enjoyed. It is the sixth book in the Kennedy Stern series but can be read as a stand-alone.

I have read all the books in the series so far and it was great to catch up with familiar faces. I was completely engrossed in the action with its twists and turns. The ending caught me completely by surprise.

God is at the centre. There are old and new Christians. The new ones question all the time – both eager to grow and wondering why being a Christian does not guarantee a smooth ride through life.

The prosperity gospel was discussed and dismissed. Our faith has nothing to do with the size of our wallet and everything to do with the state of our heart.

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Copycat by Alex Lake

Sep7

Chilling

Copycat by Alex Lake is a chilling contemporary psychological thriller. It messes with the minds of both the characters and the reader. As I read, I was unsure – what was reality? What was imagined? What was really going on?

Copycat was marvellously written. It had an incredible plotline. The reader heard a voice from ten years earlier, witnessed the story being told in the third person and heard the menacing first person voice. As I read, I searched for clues – who was the menacing one? Male? Female? Real? Imagined? More questions than answers.

The reader is drawn into the world of the main character. We ‘see’ and ‘experience’ life through their eyes, all the while questioning their sanity? Are we witnessing a slow decline? Is the person really who they say they are?

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Wheresoever They May Be by Terri Wangard

Sep7

No Choice

Wheresoever They May Be by Terri Wangard is an epic Christian novel covering the war years 1943- 1945. As a historian I really enjoyed reading it. As a reader I loved getting to know the characters.

The novel covers many aspects of the war as it roams from America to Europe to the Pacific. Life on the home front, life in the navy, life in the air force, life for the WAC’s – the reader experiences life on the factory floor, in the skies, on the seas and on the land. Everyone suffers. There are no winners in war. Mothers lose sons on all sides. There is only one constant. “People may let me down… But God is a constant.”

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Mercy Triumphs by Jana Kelley

Sep6

Living Free

Mercy Triumphs by Jana Kelley is a powerful contemporary Christian story of the difficulties of being a Christian in a Muslim country. It is the third book in the Door To Freedom series which has been absolutely cracking.

There are many themes in the novel including obedience and trust. Muslim women are supposed to be obedient to the male head of the household but there is One who deserves our obedience more. “She wouldn’t give up Isa… she wouldn’t deny the truth.” To trust and follow Jesus in the Sudan brings shame to a Muslim family. To follow Jesus means to trust Him completely because apart from Him, you will be alone. Death of a daughter is seen as preferable to your daughter becoming a Christian.

Our comfortable lives in the west contrast with those in the Sudan. We have so much stuff and choice, and yet people are dying in Africa for lack of the basic necessities.

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