WHERE TREASURE HIDES by JOHNNIE ALEXANDER

I have just finished re- reading WHERE TREASURE HIDES by JOHNNIE ALEXANDER and can highly recommend the novel as an exciting and heart warming read, and for the strong Christian message. The story takes place during the Second World War, in both England and Holland.
Alison Schuyler received her artistic skill from her father, Pieter, and her love of art from her grandfather, Hendrik, and the people who work with him at the famous Van Schuyler Gallery of Fine arts in Rotterdam. She battles to overcome her father's seeming abandonment, and is afraid that she will never settle down with the man of her dreams because of the dreaded Van Schuyler curse.
Ian Devlin is a member of the British aristocracy and a lieutenant in the British army. He struggles with guilt over his older brother's drowning accident, which happened when they were children. He takes his faith seriously, and battles when he is forced to take a life to try and save a helpless woman and child.
The two meet at Waterloo station, brought together by a young Jewish boy and his violin, and it seems like love at first sight. Will Alison be able to let go of her superstitious fear of the family curse, putting her faith in the God whose perfect love casts out all fear, or will she allow it to ruin her life? Will she ever see Ian again or will he be killed in action?
I love the realistic way the Author describes the situation in occupied Holland. Alison is part of the underground, saving both precious Jewish children and priceless works of art from the Nazis. In spite of the horrors of war, there is an underlying hope, as courageous men and women literally go through hell to make the world a better place. For those of us who love the Jewish people and serve the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, it is a "must read"!
It is a story of courage and faith and of not allowing the past to ruin one's life. This book certainly gives one a great deal of food for thought and is beautifully written.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

WHERE SHE BELONGS by JOHNNIE ALEXANDER

In WHERE SHE BELONGS, JOHNNIE ALEXANDER shows us what really is important in life.
Shelby Kincaid is the daughter of missionaries and has never felt that she really belonged anywhere, excepting at Misty Willow, when she stayed there with her grandparents. Her grandparents had a strong marriage and she wants the same for herself. Recently widowed, she takes her two little girls and goes back to the place that was "stolen" from her grandparents by Sully Sullivan, to make a new life there.
AJ Sullivan doesn't feel the same way about Misty Willow, however, having been left the place by his unkind and unscrupulous grandfather. His grandparents' marriage was anything but idyllic, and neither was that of his parents. He shared a loving grandmother, Joyanna, with his worldly cousins, Brett and Amy. She had a lot to do with the three of them while they were growing up and was sad that the cousins didn't get on. When she died, AJ lost his sense of belonging, as she was the only real stability in his life.
These two unlikely people are drawn together by circumstance and an overlapping history. We follow their story, told against the backdrop of a small and caring community, as they learn to forgive, to love unconditionally, and to discern what really is important in life.
As they cling to the promises God has given them, we are made party to their struggles. It is a beautifully written story with a strong Christian message. I am reading the second novel in the MISTY WILLOW series, which I know I am going to enjoy as well.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

FOR SUCH A TIME by KATE BRESLIN

I have just finished reading FOR SUCH A TIME by KATE BRESLIN and all I can say is WOW! What an incredible book - I literally couldn't put it down!
The novel follows closely the biblical story of Esther and takes place towards the end of the Second World War in and around a prisoner of war camp in Czechoslovakia called Theresienstadt.
Whilst the Author has made no effort to sugarcoat the atrocities of war, and anti Semitism in particular, there is such a message of hope and salvation throughout. We are reminded of the truth of God's Word and His promises to His people. We see incredible courage in the face of horrific adversity.
This novel is one I will read again and that I put "up there" as one of the best books I have read.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

WAVES OF MERCY by LYNN AUSTIN

I have been eagerly waiting for WAVES OF MERCY, LYNN AUSTIN's latest novel, and I have definitely not been disappointed!
It is a story that spans a generation, and when it starts we meet Anna, a wealthy young woman from Chicago who has come to Holland with her mother, hoping to get over a broken engagement. Her fiancé forbids her to attend a church which he feels is full of fanatics and undesirable characters who are making her crazy! However, she cannot keep away and does go back, drawn by the loving God who the preacher obviously knows personally. This church is not fashionable like the dead church that she and William attend with their parents, where God is portrayed as a cold and authoritarian figure.
We meet Geesje, an elderly Dutch woman, who came from Holland to settle in the Holland area fifty years ago with her parents and other members of the Separitist church. They had been badly treated by the government church and left for a new life in America, where they would be able to worship the Lord as they chose.
To put it mildly, they didn't have an easy time of it, and Geesje is very honest when she writes about it all. Her parents never seem to lose faith in the God they serve with their whole heart, but Geesje really battles at times. The novel is full of Scriptures whose truth is well brought out in the story. We get the strong assurance that, no matter what happens, absolutely nothing can ever separate us from the love of God!
Journeys by ship play an important part in this novel. Anna is terrified of boats because of a recurring nightmare she has had since she was a little girl, which becomes more vivid after a rough voyage across the lake from Chicago.
Anna is a lonely young woman. She has a lot of questions about God and life in general and knows she won't get any answers from the people she mixes with in the privileged life she leads. That is why she keeps going back to the "castle" church, and also why she risks her mother's and William's displeasure by making friends with Derk. Derk is a seminary student who is working at the hotel she is staying in, mostly taking tourists sailing on the lake.
Anna is adopted and feels rejected by her birth parents. There is a mystery about her birth mother that she is determined to find out about, even though she loves her adoptive parents dearly.
I really cannot recommend this novel highly enough. It is a heartwarming story that is hard to put down. The Author makes you feel the characters' joys and heartaches. It is also full of biblical truth.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

CROSSROADS BY IRENE HANNON

CROSSROADS by IRENE HANNON is a really good read. Not only is it full of Christian truth, but the story is very relevant to life today. 
Tess Lockwood is a single mother who has moved to a new town in order to start afresh after an abusive relationship with her ex husband. She has a new job, which takes up a lot of her time, and she feels guilty for not spending as much time as she used to with her teenage son, Bruce. 
Since moving to a new neighbourhood and a new school, Bruce has changed. Because he wants to belong, he is moving with the wrong crowd. 
Added to Tess's lack of self confidence, which is the result of her husband's attitude towards her and their son, she feels that she is a terrible mother and a total loser.
Mitch Jackson is the school principal. He feels terribly guilty for something that happened in the past when he was a law enforcement officer. Because of this he became a teacher, wanting to guide young people into making right choices, to keep them away from involvement with drugs and crime. He works long hours, has no social life, and the only person to whom he has ever opened up is his uncle.
It is not only Bruce that is at a crossroad in his life. 
This is a beautifully told story of second chances, of making choices, of redemption and deliverance. I highly recommend this novel.

TERMINAL JUSTICE and TARNISHED IMAGE by ALTON GANSKY

TERMINAL JUSTICE and TARNISHED IMAGE by ALTON GANSKY are two novels that really need to be read in sequence, although the fact that I read the second one first didn't in any way spoil things for me. This author has an amazing 

way with words - he makes you see what he is describing - and an insight into human nature that really makes one think. He tells things as they are in a fallen world, where companies like Barringstone Relief are trying to make a difference for good against all odds.
Dr David O'Neal is a former preacher who left his church after his wife left him for another man and now works for Barringstone Relief - first of all as A J Barringstone's speech maker and then as CEO. As he is exposed to unimaginable disease and poverty, and with the encouragement of both A J and the lovely Kristen LaCroix, his problems pale into insignificance and he regains his faith in God. He is a sensitive and upstanding man, loyal to a fault, and battles with his conscience in Terminal Justice.
In Tarnished Image he is set up by an unknown and unscrupulous enemy and has to fight, not only for his own life, but for the lives of those he loves and for his beloved Barringstones.
There is no simple answer to the problems in the world, largely brought about by selfishness and greed, but in these suspenseful novels we see the darkness being pushed back little by little by men and women who lay down their lives for others. There is a really strong Christian message and I highly recommend these books.




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

TORN ASUNDER by ALANA TERRY

TORN ASUNDER by ALANA TERRY is a beautifully written love story with a very powerful Christian message.
When Simon and Hannah leave the Sterns' Secret Seminary in Yanji, going back into North Korea to spread the gospel, they are told to go separately, but Simon follows Hannah, wanting to protect her, and this puts them in great danger. Going into a country where it is dangerous to be a Christian to distribute bibles, takes tremendous commitment. The Author paints a vivid picture of how Christians are treated there, and what bravery is needed on the mission field.
The characters are very real and are not afraid to voice their doubts and fears - I find this refreshing. There is nothing phoney about them.
We see their courage and their failures, their passion for the Lord and for the spreading of the gospel, their joys and their fears. We see the Lord's faithfulness towards His children in the most horrific situations. We see how Simon and Hannah are sustained by their love for one another and for the One they serve.
The story is exciting and hard to put down. I found it challenging and it has given me a great deal of food for thought. I can highly recommend this novel.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad