Faith challenge book review: Cafeteria Covenant by Dee Emeigh

Cafeteria Covenant - the voice, the choice, and thechallenge

Dee Marvin Emeigh

c. July 2012

 From the publisher:

 

Cafeteria Covenant is a come-back story in many ways. The powerful little book may well be the antidote for those who have been impacted by abuse, hypocrisy and doctrinal error, as well as those suffering through difficult times in other ways.

Yet, the book is also important for those in church leadership who dare to hope for reform. Well-written, concise and compelling, Cafeteria Covenant: the voice, the choice, and the challenge encourages readers to hear God’s voice for themselves. It could well be used for small group study and discussion, providing documentation to more than forty resources.

Dee Marvin Emeigh relates one authentic and compelling story after another of her experiences over forty years. But far from leaving the reader impounded in bitter despair, Emeigh delivers a message of faith, hope, and love, along with insights into the character and nature of God. Readers will walk through calamity to find love, through devastation to find encouragement to rebuild. A talented singer-songwriter, Emeigh tells the stories behind many of the songs on her 2011 CD project, Well Seasoned.

 

My review:

Cafeteria Covenant comes from the thought “I will gladly feast on all he has given his life to give me…” This little book is not an easy or sweet read, it’s a tale of why the author ended up flitting from congregation to congregation, “A participating visitor at many area churches.” This is the story of more than a series of unfortunate events; it’s a challenge for readers to become a mission of encouragement in today’s church life.

Was it better for us when there were few choices of what church to attend? I don’t know. I’ve only changed congregations one time in my married life of thirty years, but once I read what the author had been through in her worship and relationship experiences, I was able to “hear” what some of my other friends had known as well. Was it simply unfortunate choices, or was it an expression of today’s fallen world? Some of each.

An opening message from the book during a high school English class lesson: don’t go along with things just to be accepted – assert yourself” has a great analogy in Chapter 9: “Before we look with disdain and horror on the custom of another culture (foot-binding in China), albeit one from the past, let us take a closer look at what kept this tradition alive for so long. The women were crippled in order to provide their husbands with peace of mind that they were chaste and unable to compete with them as providers. Another word for this is helpless.”

The author candidly shares her experience, her journey toward richness in a life that follows the truths of Christ; of fulfilling the ministry to which you’ve been called no matter other voices that try to intrude; of being the light and appreciating the sacrifice to allow us to come to the feast.

Great for those who have experienced hard places in life in general, as well as in their faith life.

Book Review: Soldier's Heart by Tamera Lynn Kraft

Soldier’s Heart

Tamera Lynn Kraft

Historical novella, American Civil War

See more information here

Series: Murray Pura's American Civil War Series - Cry of Freedom , #13

ebook - .99
Kindle
Nook

 

From the publisher:

After returning home from the Civil War, will his soldier’s heart come between them?
Noah Andrews, a soldier with the Ohio Seventh Regiment can’t wait to get home now that his three year enlistment is coming to an end. He plans to start a new life with his young wife. Molly was only sixteen when she married her hero husband. She prayed every day for him to return home safe and take over the burden of running a farm.

But they can’t keep the war from following Noah home. Can they build a life together when his soldier’s heart comes between them?

My review:

In July 1864 Noah Andrews is on his way home to Ohio after a three-year stint in the army of the North. A young man who’d married his sweetheart before leaving for war, he’d chosen not to reenlist. The last dreadful battle in the mountains of Georgia had been a nightmare he’d vowed to put behind him.

Trying to live down the hero’s welcome, Noah and Molly go to their farm, which she’d kept up during his absence. It was her home, too, a comfortable place where Noah had grown up. But something terrifying came home with Noah after the war. They called it soldier’s heart, and Noah’s shame at being unable to be the hero everyone considered him might be their undoing.

Phrases like, “they all tried to leave the train in one clump, as if…determined never to march in file again…” puts a face on often nameless facts and figures from this horrifying time in our history. In keeping his journal, Noah bled words onto the page…great writing!

Kraft’s careful attention to detail of events during the period, real-time additions of fact, add depth to this beautiful fictional account of a young soldier who makes it home, back to his bride and a new life, but has the fiercest battle yet to face. Recommended for those who love history of the creative non-fiction type.

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Introducing Buffy Andrews: Author, Journalist, Social Media Maven

Meet Buffy Andrews!

 

She's an author, blogger, journalist and social media maven.

By day, she’s a journalist, leading an award-winning staff at the York Daily Record/Sunday News (York, Pennsylvania, USA), where she is Assistant Managing Editor of Features and Niche Publications and social media coordinator.

By night, she’s an author, writing women’s fiction, young adult and middle grade.

In addition to her writing blog, Buffy’s Write Zone, she maintains a social media blog, Buffy's World.  She is also a newspaper and magazine columnist and writes middle-grade, young adult and women's fiction. Check out her author page.

She lives in south central Pennsylvania with her husband, Tom; two sons, Zach and Micah; and wheaten cairn terrier Kakita.

Her Books:

The Yearbook Series: Gina and Mike

The Moment Keeper

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Christmas Violin

 

Upcoming titles:

The Yearbook Series: Sue and Tom (coming soon)

The Lion Awakens YA (2014)

Ella’s Rain YA/crossover (2014)

Freaky Frank MG (2014)

 

Five quick questions with Buffy

Q. What do you do when you need to think or are stuck in your writing?

A. I run. For some reason it frees my mind and I often find that it provides the clarity and direction I need.  

Q. Are you one of those people who stop writing while you know what’s coming next?

A. Absolutely. Just like Hemingway. Does it always work out? No. But it’s what I aim for.

Q. First person or third?

A. It depends. I write in both. And sometimes, as in The Yearbook Series, I write alternating POVs.

Q. Coffee or tea?

A. Coffee -- a lots of it!

Q. What are you most proud of?
A. My sons and the fine young men they have become.

 

 

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Book review: Treasures of Darkness by Trish Jenkins

Treasures of Darkness: A Prison Journey

Trish Jenkins

Publisher: Trish Jenkins (Seasonz Pty. Ltd. Trading as Trish Jenkins)

www.speakertrishjenkins.com

 

ISBN: 978-0-646-56039-7

 

 My Review:

Australian author Trish Jenkins shares her love for the Lord in an entirely accidental prison ministry. I have often wondered whether rehabilitation of persons actually takes place through a prison sentence. Trish’s heartfelt story confirmed much of my opinions.

 

Caught up in an investment trade operation that went wrong, Trish, who’d been a successful real estate investor, was caught using funs improperly when her partner couldn’t make his payments. It was later determined this partner had been a fraud, and Trish was charged with breaching the (Australian) Corporations Act. Eventually a domino effect and oddly (or Godly?) financial circumstances made it impossible for her to rectify the issue. An eight-month prison sentence was the result.

 

In the book about her experience, Trish, a Christian, tells the story of her incarceration through letters written and received, her journal entries, and observations after the fact. It’s a real prison journey dealing with other inmates in various settings as well as personnel in the system. I had to go back and read the beginning again after I finished the book, and really commiserated with her: “Each day felt like a week; each week, a month.”

 

Trish never denied her guilt. Being ignorant or naïve was not an excuse for what she’d done, as she learned many stories from other inmates who’d committed crimes that seem rather harmless. Hers was not harmless, and she accepted that. Using her faith to keep herself together, as well as reach out to others, both inmates and staff, became her lifeline. She learned to understand what it was like to live without the privileges she’d become used to “outside.” The emotional and spiritual impact of learning how to “be” after her sentence was wrenching.

 

Who gains the most from imprisonment? Those who are truly repentant before they go in, and never, ever want to return.

Eric Price: Unveiling the Wizard's Shroud Giveaway

 

Unveiling the Wizards’ Shroud

By Eric Price

MuseItUp Publishing

November, 2013

About the Book:

As the only son to King Kendrick, Owen despises the idea of being king one day. Magician may be the only career he’d like less. He has dreaded the days leading up to his fifteenth birthday, when his father will certainly declare Owen heir to the throne. But at the birthday celebration, his father falls ill. The only person in the kingdom that may be able to save him is a magician–the very same magician Owen holds responsible for the death of his mother.

Owen and his companions will have to travel the continent of Wittatun in search of the cure for King Kendrick. On the journey, they will battle strange beasts and harsh climates, befriend extraordinary magicians, and meet a dragon before returning to Innes Castle–where much has happened in the days since he departed.

 

The Giveaway:

Unveiling the Wizards’ Shroud comes out November 22. It’s available to pre-order now on the Muse It Up Publishing website. If you pre-order it, save your confirmation number and enter it into the rafflecopter giveaway for a chance to win a T-shirt featuring the beautiful cover art by CK Volnek. I’d even scribble my name across the shirt, if you so desire.
Available in all sizes. For US mailing addresses only, sorry. Non-US readers, if you pre-order, keep your confirmation number as well. I have more giveaways planned for after the release.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

I asked Eric what he loved about this book:
What I love about Unveiling the Wizards’ Shroud is the surprises. With my publisher, authors go through at least six rounds of edits. Three with the content editor to make sure the plot elements stay consistent and the narrative is written in an active voice, not passive. Two rounds with a line editor to fix grammar mistakes and to weed out overused words. And one round with a format editor to make sure it transfers from a word processor file to the eBook format without any errors. Each time I read through the story, I discovered elements I forgot I’d included, from witty comments by the characters to subtle bits of symbolism. I once read, “If you don’t surprise yourself, you won’t surprise your readers.” I hope my readers will find a lot of surprises.

 

Read an Excerpt:

 

Chapter One

The Festival

             The late afternoon sun glared in the young warrior's eyes. Squinting, he could only see his opponent’s outline. His ever tightening leg muscles cried for a reprieve with each step, yet he continued to circle, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. After a long day of sword dueling with little downtime between rounds, Owen's whole body screamed for a rest.But he wanted nothing more in the world, at this precise moment, than to win the championship bout.

His opponent must also be tired. They had each fought four previous matches, and every contestant entered in the tournament presented a worthy challenge. Edward, Shield of the King—the commander of the King's Sentry, the strongest army in all of Wittatun—received continual praise for his skill with a blade. Owen, having already defeated two Sentrymen earlier in the day, hoped to beat one more. But to overcome the King’s Shield would require more skill than besting a Sentryman of lesser rank.

The fighters continued to circle one another. Sunlight gleamed off Edward's brilliant metal chest plate and helm. Now facing the westering sun, the Shield of the King squinted. The younger fighter saw his opportunity and sprung. He feigned a slash toward the commander's shield hand. When Edward raised his shield and braced for impact, Owen redoubled his assault.

He spun and sliced his blade at his opponent's neck. The loud clang of steel on steel resonated throughout the courtyard as Edward raised his sword to parry. The vibration transmitted up Owen’s arm, but he finished his compound attack by kicking the Sentryman in the chest plate. The judge blew a whistle to signify the landing of the first blow in the best-of-three veney.

The experienced warrior wasted no time mounting his counterattack by gaining the measure and reestablishing just distance. He made several quick jabs at Owen's head and chest, which the defender parried away with ease and countered with a testing jab. Edward sidestepped, moved back in line, and raised his sword to the en garde position. The younger fighter noticed Edward’s shield drop ever so slightly. The tiny gap in defense may provide the opening needed to finish him.

Owen lunged. He recognized the move as a mistake, but his forward motion could not be stopped. The tip of Edward’s sword slid between the hinge where the chest plate met the shoulder guard and dug into muscle. Sharp pain shot through his left shoulder, and he barely heard the judge blow the whistle through the anguish. Edward had lowered his shield as an invitation for a strike. When the younger fighter took the offering, the elder's stop-thrust found the only weak point of the armor.

Owen, large for his age, still stood six inches shorter than the Shield, whose muscular forearms resembled Owen’s thighs. The chainmail armor on his forearm, form fitting on most soldiers, clung tight to Edward. His muscles rippled as he pushed the sword tip a little deeper into the meat. A stream of blood trickled down the blade and dripped to the ground.

Edward sneered. Red drops splattered the trampled grass. “I wish we fought to first-blood. I hope the king doesn't put me to death for injuring his son.”

  

About the Author:

Eric grew up in central Illinois. He now lives in northwest Iowa with his wife and two sons. He began publishing in 2008 when he started writing a quarterly column for a local newspaper. His first short story, “Ghost Bed and Ghoul Breakfast,” a spooky children’s tale about a haunted bed and breakfast, came out later the same year. He has published more than 30 nonfiction articles/columns, four short stories, and a poem. Three of his short stories have won honorable mention in the CrossTIME Annual Science Fiction contest. This is his first novel.

 



Book Review, The Roman's Quest, Anne Baxter Campbell

The Roman’s Quest (The Truth Trilogy) book review

By Anne Baxter Campbell 

Helping Hands Press

Oct 2013

Historical fiction

 

Kindle book: $4.99

From the publisher:

Centurion Julius has eyes for a young Jewish woman, but a Roman is not what her father intends for her. Miriam is a pious Jewish girl, determined to do the right thing by her God and her parents, and she bows to her father’s wishes to betroth her to a Jewish fisherman, James ben Zebedee. Her heart yearns for the Roman, but their love is impossible. Miriam’s mother lies close to death, and her last wish is to see her daughter wed. The marriage has to take place before it’s too late.

My review:

Anne Baxter Campbell’s debut novel is an exciting look back in time, from two perspectives that are atypical – that of a young Jewish woman being wooed by James, who later became an apostle of the Christ, and a Roman centurian.

While it’s true that Julius Saturnus is more respectful than others of his ilk in that he can patiently wait upon his desires for the Jewish woman Miriam, he also discovers a deeper desire within, one that he has trouble understanding. The strangeness of the Baptizer’s words and actions touches him, and with help from the Greek doctor, Loukas, begins the journey of a proselyte—a non-Hebrew who wishes to learn the Jewish faith.

Most of Miriam’s friends are married, and she wonders what it would be like to be a wife and mother. Though she returns the attraction of the courteous Roman, her father would never agree to such a match. Her mother’s illness forces a wedding announcement to James…who surprises them all with an unusual request. Will Miriam and Julius overcome all the obstacles to achieve their heart’s desires? They soon learn that a possible relationship is the least of their troubles.

Touching and well-researched debut, told in both Miriam and Julius’s perspectives. Packed with quirky figures, like Julius’s slave, Cyril. Those who enjoy Biblical history will like this story. I look forward to the others in the series.