Tag Archive | book review

Mercie’s Secret by Michael Garrett

Sep16

Evil Walks Amongst Us

Mercie’s Secret by Michael Garrett is an exciting and chilling Christian suspense. It is a book that will consume you. And not one to be read alone and in the dark!

Michael Garret explores the theme of evil walking amongst us. Evil is not always readily recognised. Sometimes a smiling face hides a black heart. Evil can take many forms. It walks silently amongst us, waiting to devour its next innocent victim.

How do we defeat evil? By faith. Shine the light of God and watch the darkness flee. “The light doesn’t fear darkness – it exposes it.”

God ‘speaks’ to His children. We would be foolish to ignore Him. She “ignored the still, small voice of her heavenly Father, who had whispered warnings into her conscience that she was drifting too far, too fast.” We need to be rooted in Christ, and keep our eyes firmly fixed on Him.

When we mess up, we need to tell our heavenly Father. “Mercie wanted to tell her father everything… but fear kept her silent.” Just as her earthly father would want to help Mercie, how much more would her heavenly Father want to? We mustn’t let fear stop us from seeking help. No matter how far down the wrong path we have travelled, it is never too late to make a U-turn.

Fear and faith cannot co-exist. “I let fear overtake my faith.” When we look at sin and not at our Saviour, we are in trouble.

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The House For Lost Children by Marty Wingate

Sep16

Belonging

The House For Lost Children by Marty Wingate is a powerful historical novel that I enjoyed.

The novel is set during World War II in a large manor house in Suffolk. Following a bomb blast in London, children have been made homeless and are orphans. The kind hearted Lady Louisa Brightman opens her large house to the orphans and their two teachers.

Relationships are strained at first as assumptions and prejudices are made. Characters need to get to know each other in order to be able to work together. First impressions are not always correct. The way that life has treated people affects the way they treat others.

We witness the dreadful effects on one small girl, six-year-old Gracie, of being buried alive for two days, holding onto her dead mother’s hand. This was during the air raid that flattened her London home. She needs love, care and kindness to begin to heal. A beautiful bond is formed with Miss Moffet, the family cat. Giving her a purpose and something to love will help her heal.

Life in the countryside is not without risk as the odd stray German plane threatens to undo months of love and care as old traumas are re-visited.

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The Liar by Louise Jensen

Sep12

Superb

The Liar by Louise Jensen is a totally gripping psychological thriller that I read in just two sittings, pausing only to sleep.

Louise Jensen is masterful at the psychological suspense. Whenever I pick up one of her books, I know that I will be highly entertained.

The action is seen through various alternating points of view, in both the first and third person. The time periods are present day, recent past, and significant past events. Apart from the watcher paragraphs, the reader is told whose voice it is.

We join a social worker, her daughters, and her elder daughter’s friend and small son. They are a close unit, knitted together by a mother’s love. “Families aren’t always perfect and that doesn’t matter. It’s love that counts.”

The women in the novel are strong characters. They are closely woven together, standing united in the face of cruelty, abuse or indifference from various male characters.

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The Life She Could Have Lived by Laura Pearson

Sep12

A Sliding Doors Moment

The Life She Could Have Lived by Laura Pearson is a most delightful offering. It is set over a number of years as we follow the life of lead character Anna.

This is a sliding doors novel as we alternate chapters between ‘yes’ and ‘no’ to the question of having a baby. We see the difference that one decision can have to the rest of a life.

Along both paths, there are similarities and differences as Anna meets the same characters but at different points in her life. Different choices produce different outcomes.

In ‘yes,’ was see Anna balancing motherhood and her job. In ‘no’ we see her job taking her further afield before returning home. Which lifestyle do you think is most suited to Anna? You must read the book and decide.

We see the value of a good friendship. It is a friendship that supports through thick and thin, in good times and bad.

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