The power of fiction, the beauty of words, and the God who made us to wield them for His glory.

Top Ten Tuesday – Best of 2018 So Far

Happy Tuesday, readers! Today’s topic at That Artsy Reader Girl is Series I’ve Given Up On/Don’t Plan to Finish. Since I found that to be an uninspiring topic, I’m going rogue again, and a couple of events have conspired to convince me that there is no better time to post my ‘best of’ list for January to June: Today is the last Top Ten Tuesday post for the first half of 2018. (I’ll pause for a moment to give you the chance to process that last sentence!) My hubby is going away at the end of the week for a little

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Top Ten Tuesday – Memorable Mothers

Happy Tuesday, reader friends. I’ve gone rogue for Top Ten Tuesday today. This week’s topic with That Artsy Reader Girl is Books I disliked/hated but am really glad I read. I have a grant total of ONE book on that list: Vanity Fair. It probably could have been half of its 800+ pages and still told the same story (which was oddly unsatisfying in the end anyway), but I can say I stuck it out and made it to the end—for what it’s worth. But I’m not sure one book qualifies as a list, so I put my thinking cap on. And

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No One Ever Asked (Katie Ganshert) – Review

~ About the Book ~ When an impoverished school district loses its accreditation and the affluent community of Crystal Ridge has no choice but to open their school doors, the lives of three very different women converge: Camille Gray–the wife of an executive, mother of three, long-standing PTA chairwoman and champion fundraiser–faced with a shocking discovery that threatens to tear her picture-perfect world apart at the seams. Jen Covington, the career nurse whose long, painful journey to motherhood finally resulted in adoption but she is struggling with a happily-ever-after so much harder than she anticipated. Twenty-two-year-old Anaya Jones–the first woman

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Top Ten Tuesday – Books Featuring Trains

Happy Tuesday, readers! This week has been designated a ‘choose your own topic’ week by That Artsy Reader Girl, and since this weekend has been all about steam trains at our house, I thought I would do a train theme for this week. Each year, the Hunter Valley (NSW) has an event called Hunter Valley Steamfest, celebrating steam technology in all its different guises but most particularly steam trains. And it’s the most exciting weekend of the entire year as far as my kids are concerned! So, in celebration, here are my top ten books featuring trains!

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Sneak peek! – No One Ever Asked (Katie Ganshert)

Welcome, book lovers! I have a special sneak peek for you today. Katie Ganshert’s novel No One Ever Asked releases TOMORROW—that’s 3 April 2018—and to whet your appetite, I have a link that will allow you to read the prologue and the first chapter for free! But first, here’s a little bit about the book:

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Best of 2017 – The Emoji Files, Part IV: Got Me in the Feels

Welcome to Part IV of The Emoji Files. So far this week I’ve given you my best of 2017 in the following categories: 😍 The Swoony Awards 😆 The LOL Awards 😮 The WOW Awards Today, I’m giving you a list of books that got me in the feels. Some books are great for escaping into and helping us to forget our daily worries and cares for a little while, and some books confront life’s big worries and cares head on. Perhaps not our specific worries and cares, but the kinds of worries and cares that could be ours one day, or the kinds

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Most Anticipated Books of 2018 – Contemporary Settings (and Top Ten Tuesday)

Welcome, book lovers! I hope you’ve had a wonderful Christmas. I don’t know about you, but I think there’s something almost magical about these days between Christmas and New Year’s Day. It’s like the old year has finished, but the new one hasn’t yet arrived, and you can sit back and imagine the possibilities. What will the new year hold? What new goals will you set? Which new leaves will you turn over? And the most important question, of course—Which new books are you most looking forward to? Today’s post is doubling as a Top Ten Tuesday post, because that’s

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Weekend Book Buzz – 30 Sept/1 Oct 2017

Yikes! The end of September? Where is this year going?! Has the change of season made it to where you are? We’re well and truly into Spring in my part of Australia and I have to say, it’s pretty sweet. Longer days, warmer days. And of course, plenty of books to enjoy. 🙂

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