Saturday, September 29, 2012

Mini Review and Blog Tour: Proverbs Prayers

Proverbs Prayers by John Mason

Release Date: August 1, 2012
Publisher: Summerside
Genre: Devotional
Pages: 160
Format: Paperback
Buy It: Amazon
Experience God’s wisdom as never before and find encouragement, peace, answers, and a better life through this devotional prayer book. Many people read a chapter a day from the book of Proverbs as a regular devotional practice. They consider it their favorite book in the Bible because its daily practical guidance offers tools to make the right choices and have the inner strength to stand against pressure, size up a situation and know how to respond, make fewer careless mistakes, and avoid unnecessary trouble. In these pages, readers will find a chapter from Proverbs followed by a heartfelt prayer that includes all of the insights from that chapter. In a mere thirty-one days they can pray all of the wisdom of Proverbs for their lives.
Proverbs is my favorite book in the Bible, so I jumped at the chance to review this devotional. Each day you read one chapter, and then it gives you a response prayer portion based on the chapter to apply to yourself. They're nice and short, which I appreciate in devotionals. I like having shorter ones for the morning when I first wake up, just enough to get my day off to a good start, and I save the longer ones for evening right before I go to bed. This one fit in perfectly! I loved the prayer response portion because they got me thinking on each specific verse and how to apply it to myself, without getting too deep or heavy with meaning. This is one of the best devotionals I have ever read!

I received this book free for review from LitFuse Blog Tours. I was not required to post a positive review, simply an honest one.

Monday, September 24, 2012

Uncontrollable launch!

Yay! Uncontrollable is out today!

Uncontrollable is the second book in "The Nature of Grace" series by S.R. JohannesUntraceable, the first book in the series, has won and been nominated for several awards including Winner of the 2012 IndieReader Discovery Award (YA), 2012 Georgia Author of the Year (YA Nominee), and a finalist in The Kindle Book Review's "Best Indie Book of 2012 (YA)".

Kirkus reviewed Untraceable as "A thrilling story is a dramatic entanglement of mystery, deception and teen romance.  The action flows like a brisk mountain stream interspersed with rapids, holding suspense to last page."

If you like a page turner, you will love this series!

Head over to Mundie Moms for a Big Uncontrollable Launch Party with tons of prizes and then over to SR Johannes blog for even more.

To continue on with the blog tour, check out the line up! Where SR talks about anything from marketing to writing to her books to personal interviews and giveaways.

Book Summary

As 16-year-old Grace recovers from tragedy, her science class is chosen by Agent Sweeney at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to help with research on the new "Red Wolf Reintroduction Program". 

While she’s excited about helping with the conservation of the endangered wolves, Grace knows this means being outdoors in the worst winter recorded, in a place she no longer feels comfortable. It also means working closely with Wyn (her ex) and his annoying girlfriend (Skyler), a girl whose idea of getting close to nature is picking silk plants and growing fake plants. 

After a couple of wolves show up dead, Grace almost quits. However, when a fellow project team member goes missing, Grace continues the assignment under a renewed suspicion that someone might be sabotaging the conservation program. She quietly begins to hunt for clues. 

Little does she know, she is being hunted too. 

On Sale Now! 


Uncontrollable is on sale in paperback and ebook at all major
booksellers including Amazon, iBooks/Apple (coming soon),
 Smashwords, and B&N.

If you haven't read Untraceable, you can get it in paperback and ebook
at all major booksellers including AmazonAppleSmashwords,
and B&N.

Author Bio

S.R. Johannes is the author of award-winning and Amazon bestselling Untraceable (a teen wilderness thriller) and new tween paranormal, On The Bright Side. She has also published short novelettes as well as a teen romance anthology with 16 other authors titled, In His Eyes.  Uncontrollable, the sequel to Untraceable, is scheduled for September 2012.

S.R. Johannes is a winner of the 2012 IndieReader Discovery Awards (Young Adult) and was also recently nominated for 2012 Georgia Author of the Year (Young Adult). Untraceable was also recently named a Finalist in The Kindle Book Review's Indie Book of the Year (YA)

After earning an MBA and working in corporate America, S.R. Johannes traded in her expensive suits, high heels, and corporate lingo for a family, flip-flops, and her love of writing.  She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her dog, British-accented husband, and the huge imaginations of their little prince and princess, which she hopes- someday- will change the world. 


Connect!

Follow S.R. online on her websiteTwitterFacebook, and Pinterest

You can also sign up for her newsletter to keep up on author or book news.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Review and Blog Tour: When a Woman You Love Was Abused

When a Woman You Love Was Abused by Dawn Scott Jones

Release Date: July 23, 2012
Publisher: Kregel Publications
Genre: Christian Non-fiction
Pages: 208
Format: Paperback
Buy It: Amazon

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports that 80 percent of childhood abuse victims later suffer from at least one abuse-induced psychological disorder. It's proven that the effects of childhood abuse follow women into adulthood. Yet few men are prepared to deal with those effects, even when their own wife is the one who is suffering. And their wife's suffering becomes their own suffering as their needs aren't being met by a wife who is powerless to control her inner turmoil.
Author, pastor, and survivor Dawn Scott Jones candidly shares her own abuse experience to help husbands understand the varied emotions, fears, distorted thoughts, and triggers that hold their wives captive. In practical and accessible language, Jones explains the stages of the healing journey (processing denial, asking for help, grieving, expressing anger, learning to forgive, and finding resolution). Building on that knowledge, Jones then moves to an honest discussion of what husbands can do to help. Whether it's creating a healing environment, understanding the need for control, building trust, or even just praying for healing, a husband plays an active role in helping his wife survive and thrive despite her past abuse.

Offering hope for a healthy marriage relationship, When a Woman You Love Was Abused answers the questions men have and offers the advice they need to help their wives finally find peace.
I would like to start with a disclaimer: I have never dealt with sexual abuse. However, I have dealt with verbal and emotional abuse. Reading this book, I was shocked at how many different reactions to abuse there can be, and how any abuse victim can be an exhibitor of the reaction. This book helped me to see what my reactions tend to be, and how I can chance those to keep from hurting others. If you know of anyone in your life who was affected by any abuse, definitely read this book!



I received this book free fir review from LitFuse Blog Tours. I was not required to post a positive review, simply an honest one.


Monday, September 17, 2012

Review: The Jesus Experiment

The Jesus Experiment by Bill Perkins

Release Date: September 23, 2011
Publisher: Tyndale Momentum
Genre: Christian Devotional
Pages: 272
Format: Paperback
Buy It: Amazon
If you loved The Purpose-Driven Life and One Month to Live, then you’ll love The Jesus Experiment. Popular author and speaker Bill Perkins challenges you to spend twelve weeks discovering what it really means to live like Jesus. More than a book, it’s an invitation for you to try becoming like him in your feelings, thoughts, words, and deeds. Each week, you’ll focus on a different aspect of Jesus’ life, including how he faced his fears, how he talked with God, and how he helped others. As you examine your own life in light of the Lord’s, you’ll be amazed at how your mind and heart will change to more closely reflect his.
I was very much looking forward to reading this book, because it sounded so wonderful! Don't get me wrong, it was a great book. But it wasn't quite what I expected. It focuses on one aspect of Jesus' personality each week, and then breaks it down on how He displayed it and how we can display it in our own lives. I really like the concept, as that is what the Bible calls us to do. However, I felt like they were very vague aspects of His personality; ones that we should be displaying anyway. This is still a great book, and I do recommend it for those who are looking to shake up their faith a little!



I received this book free for review from Tyndale's Book Blogger program. I was not required to post a positive review, simply an honest one.

Sunday, September 16, 2012

IMM/Mailbox Monday: 09/16/12

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by the wonderful Kristi at The Story Siren, and Mailbox Monday is hosted by a group of bloggers! We share books we received this week, whether we bought them, got them in the mail or checked them out from the library.

YouTube isn't liking my webcam right now... and I can't get Photobooth to flip my video so it's not backwards. So no video this week. Sorry!

For Review:
Dear Teen Me by various authors

Swag:
Zest Books bookmark
EBC 100 Year Anniversary bookmark

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Mini Review and Blog Tour + Giveaway: Forsaken

Forsaken by Kristen Day

Release Date: July 18, 2012
Publisher: Self-published
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Daughters of the Sea #1
Pages: 268
Format: Ebook
Buy It: Amazon
Once you’ve been touched by darkness, it never leaves you…

Abandoned by her parents as an infant; seventeen year old Hannah spent her childhood wading through countless foster families until being adopted by the Whitmans three years ago. Unfortunately, Atlanta’s high society wasn’t quite ready for Hannah…or the strange events that plague her.

Chilling visions of murder, unexplained hallucinations, and a dark, mysterious guy who haunts her nightmares all culminate to set in motion a journey of self-discovery that will challenge everything she’s ever believed; not to mention her sanity.

Sent to live at The House of Lorelei on Bald Head Island, NC for ‘kids like her’, Hannah quickly realizes things are not what they seem. Her fellow ‘disturbed’ teens are actually the descendents of mythical Sea Gods and Goddesses. And so is she.

But when Finn, the ghost from her dreams, appears in the flesh; her nightmares become reality and her dark visions begin coming true. Inexplicably drawn to him, she can’t deny the dangerous hold he has on her heart. The deadly secrets he harbors will ultimately test her courage and push the boundaries of her love.

She must decide if she is ready to embrace the ancient legend she is prophesized to be a part of. The fate of all the descendents will forever depend upon it.
This book. Oh my goodness! It hooked me from the first page. I already had a pretty good idea I would love this book because I love books about mermaids. But this book surpassed my expectations. I could barely put it down! I was drawn to Finn as much as Hannah was, and every twist and turn had me wondering what small clue we would learn next and what was going to happen. If you love other mermaid novels, I highly recommend this book!

I received this book for review from YA Novel Reader Blog Tours. I was not required to post a positive review, simply an honest one.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday, September 3, 2012

Review: Passages


Passages by Brian Hardin

Release Date: November 28, 2011
Publisher: Zondervan
Genre: Christian Non-fiction
Pages: 224
Format: Paperback
Buy It: Amazon
Many Christians feel guilty when they think of reading the Bible. Though they want to love reading Scripture, they rarely have time for more than a few verses on the run. But the Bible is not meant to be a burden. It is the story of God's passionate love for His children. It is also not a book of mystical incantations. It is a best friend offering counsel and companionship. And it is not a distant relic, but something very near. Near enough, in fact, to be every reader's story. So how do Christians delight in this story rather than see it as a source of failure? The founder of the immensely popular Daily Audio Bible, Brian Hardin shows readers how reading through the Bible in a year will change their life and the lives of others. Passages shows readers how to read the Bible and offers practical ideas for immersing themselves in God's life-giving words. Here readers will discover that reading the Bible can be a breathtaking adventure.
This book was a great guide for how to get daily Bible reading into your life. It gives tips on how to make it enjoyable, so you don't have to drag your feet to get reading! It also have a few different reading plans for how to start reading through the Bible in one year. For me, this book helped to discourage my dislike of the Old Testament parts of the Bible that I find boring and tend to want to skip. If you're having any doubt about reading the Bible consistently, check this book out!



I received this book for review from LitFuse Blog Tours. I was not required to post a positive review, simply an honest one.

Sunday, September 2, 2012

IMM/Mailbox Monday: 9/2/12

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by the wonderful Kristi at The Story Siren, and Mailbox Monday is hosted by a group of bloggers! We share books we received this week, whether we bought them, got them in the mail or checked them out from the library.


Bought:
Princess Academy: Palace of Stone by Shannon Hale
Embers of Love by Tracie Peterson
The Secret by Beverly Lewis
The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2012 by Bob Sehlinger
Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys by Steven Barrett

For Review:
Proverbs Prayers by John Mason
Graceful by Emily Freeman
 
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