Family by Karen Kingsbury

Family is the 4th book in the Firstborn series. I have been reading the last three books straight through, that is why the only reviews I have been doing are on this series. They are just too good to put down. I am bummed I cannot borrow the next book on the Kindle like I had hoped and I cannot find it at the library! AGH! I'm going to go through Baxter withdrawls!

In Family, it continues just months after book three, Found ends. In the first book, Fame of this series Katy and Dayne found themselves being attacked by a crazy fan! Now in book four they are brought back together once again in court with their attacker. Dayne and Katy's feelings are always growing stronger but when they try to spend time together they are chased by paparazzi. In the end they have to decide if going any further in a relationship is worth it.

In the mean time Dayne is continuing to struggle with his faith, the faith of the roots as well as his birth family and what he should do. His fame status is so public he wants to protect those he cares about, even if it's at the loss of his happiness.

The Baxter family learns about a family secret that is thirty years old. How will they take the news?

This book was really good. It had so much going on and I wanted to keep reading. The only hard part with me was Katy's back and forth. She would change her mind so many times. It's easy to say what you would do if you were in the same situation but you can understand what she is going through.

I am so exited to read book five, if I can find it!

Forgiven by Karen Kingsbury

This is the second book in the Firstborn series by Karen Kingsbury. If you have not read the Redemption series first you must start there. Karen Kingsbury has 3 or 4 series that you read in a row to follow through the history of each family that she introduces as you progress. Firstborn is the second series that follow the Redemption series.

I absolutely loved the Redemption series and when I read the first book of the Firstborn series I wasn't as thrilled. It reminded me a lot of the first book in the Redemption series. It took me about a month or more to finally pick up book two, Forgiven and I LOVED it! The first quarter of the book took time to set up the story line but once it got going I couldn't put the book down. When I was done I immediately started reading book three!

***SPOILER ALERT!

In Forgiven, Dayne Matthews is starting the filming for his new movie that he was casting for in the first book Fame. He is going back to Bloomington where a past is waiting for him but is just out of his reach.

Dayne is at a crossroads in his life. He is living with his leading lady but is not happy, he is searching for something to believe in and doesn't know what to do with his feelings. Following his heart Dayne finds more than what he expected.

This book also continues to follow the Baxter family, who you fall in love with in The Redemption series.

I highly recommend you read these series! I can't wait to see how things unfold in the lives of all those involved in these stories!

Illusion by: Frank Peretti

Okay, I am a HUGE lover of Frank Peretti's writing. His earlier books, Piercing the Darkness and This Present Darkness are some of my all time favorite books. It has been quite awhile since he has written any books and I was so excited to read it.

As I saw new reviews coming out they were mixed on whether people liked it or not, some were even disappointed. I still kept an open mind and hoped that I would feel differently. Unfortunately that did not happen for me. I am not a fan of Illusion.

To start out I grew up being told that any type of magic was bad. It wasn't something you did or watched. Now as I've grown up I realize that that is not the case. Magic is just an Illusion (thus the title of the book). With that said it was still hard to wrap my mind around the Illusions that occured.

To start off Mandy and Dane are a very famous married couple who do traveling magical shows. When traveling one day they are hit by a car Mandy is killed. Dane is left to move to their new home, Mandy's home town, all alone to start a new life.

Mandy then wakes up. To her she is 19 years old but the year is 2010 (the day, year she died). Nothing is the same from when she lived in her hometown at 19 years old. She has to create a new identity to survive. She is doing street magic when she runs into Dane but does not know who he is. Her mind has been erased back to age 19. Though Dane recognizes something in her. Eventually they create a friendship and Dane mentors Mandy to be a better magician.

Dane is beginning to feel like he is going crazy because of how he is drawn to the younger Mandy and Mandy is confused with who she is. In the mean time she develops the ability to travel through time to create amazing Illusions that no one can believe.

The story talks about how she died and woke up at age 19, talks about Dane and Mandy's marriage. Many describe the book as a romance but it's not so much that for me. Sometimes it was hard to follow how her ability to travel through time worked and you very much have to pay attention to what your reading when things really get going.

The story is definitely a new concept it was just hard for me to get passed my initial issues with magic in general. I will not write off Frank Peretti and will look forward to the next book that he publishes. I just wish I had enjoyed this one as much as I have other ones.

Pearl in the Sand by Tessa Afshar

I am so excited to finally cross a book that I liked so much again! It's been awhile since I read a book that I was really into. I picked this one again from the many free kindle downloads and I'm so glad I downloaded it!

Pearl in the Sand is a fictional story about Rahab. It's a great portrayal of her life, though all speculation. From her living in Jericho and her life there, to hiding the Israelite spies, to being spared by God and joining the Israelite's people!

It's amazing to see how God can use us and how God allowed Rahab to be in the the lineage of Jesus!!! Praise God for his mercy on our lives!

I defiantly recommend this book! If you have it, read it!

From Ashes To Honor by Loree Lough

I haven't been reading much lately. I have so many free kindle books on my daughters Kindle Fire so I picked one and went with it.

From Ashes to Honor is more post 9/11 rather than pre or during 9/11. Austin has regrets from that day and has been dealing with trying to heal from them ever since. Years later someone from his past enters his life again and together they try to start over. But there are many factors that lay in their way.

I didn't want to spoil the book by adding too many details, though you can find out more details when you look up the book on Amazon!

I like this book for the most part, it just isn't one that will stick out as one of my favorites. I did find about 5 times where there were grammatical errors, which surprised me. Especially knowing that there is a 2nd book in this series. I would think that wouldn't happen. Knowing there was a 2nd book  helped at the end of the story as well. You know there is more to come. It's a be continued type of ending rather than a conclusion.

One of the major part of the story was that Austin deals with a relationship where she does not believe in God. The book spends lots of time on him deciding what to do. You want her to see the miracles God is doing around her but she never does. I guess I need to read the second book to find out what happens. Especially now that I've invested time into the characters.

The Vow by Kim and Krickitt Carpenter

This book is actually really well written. The book is written by Kim, the husband telling the story of how Krickitt, his wife and him met. About them falling in love and getting married.

Kim then tells about the accident that changed their lives. I wasn't sure what their story would be like since I watched the movie, The Vow, but they are nothing alike.

The movie, which Kim talks about a little at the end of his book, is based on their story. The story of a married couple in a accident and the wife doesn't remember her husband. Beyond that nothing is the same. From the family dynamics, to the actual accident, her recovery, etc. They are all different.

The one big thing missing from the movie is also their faith. The carpenters are strong Christians! The amazing thing is that Krickett stayed in the marriage because she knew in her head that she was married despite the fact that she didn't know Kim anymore! She held onto her faith to fall in love with her husband again!

With God all things are possible!!! This story is a very easy read. I read it in one day. Kim's writing is very well done and he keeps you going. I recommend to pick this book up and be inspired. It's encouraging for those of us who struggle in marriage (everyone) how God can help you through the toughest of times!

The Secret Life of Copernicus Stringfellow

This story wasn't what I expected. I had not heard of this book before I was asked to read and was willing to give it a try.

The main character was quite interesting. Super smart, rich and giving. The beginning had me intrigued to find out what Nick or Copernicus Stringfellow was all about. I felt, as the reader, I was in the dark for much of the beginning until one of the characters in the book digs into Nick's past. I kept waiting for there to be a reason behind why Nick's character had the "superhero" powers he did. There was mention of God but no real reason behind it. You never find out if Nick believes in God or not. Nick is a very giving but a mysterious character. Mysterious in that you never truly discover his purpose other than that he does good.

Nicks relationship with some of the characters seem to jump time. There are pieces missing in the growth of relationships that make you wonder how much time lapse there was between events.

I wasn't a fan of all the descriptive parts of some of the storyline. There was so much detail on what was happening in the human body that there were paragraphs that I would skim over because I didn't know medical jargon. There were many large words used through out the book that I found myself using my kindle dictionary quite a bit.

My favorite part in the book was the banter during the car chase between Nick and another character. But then was disappointed in the decision that Nick made with the perpetrator they were chasing after. Another point to wonder if the character believed in God or not. I am not sure this book was written as a Christian fiction as I have not found any classification thus far. But I do think that this book does target more of a young adult age group because of the type of fantasy written.

With all this said I do think there is potential. The end of the book does lead to believe that there may be more stories to come and adventures to follow. Maybe if more books do proceed, more holes will be filled that add to the depth of the story that I feel are still missing. And a series will create a bigger character as you read about Nick's adventures.

I was given a free copy of this book from the author to write a review about this book. I posted this same review on Amazon.com. I was very excited to be able to do this! It's awesome to hear from authors since I would love to be one! :)