"The Carnelian Legacy" Review {Giveaway}

I am so excited to review The Carnelian Legacy, not just because it is an amazing book, but because the author is pretty amazing as well. I met Chery Koevoet while we were both serving as volunteers for MOPS International and I am blessed to call her my friend. (And I am not just saying that because she let me read her book early!

About the book: 

Marisa MacCallum always believed the man of her dreams was out there somewhere. The problem is—he’s in a parallel universe.

After the death of her father, eighteen-year-old Marisa’s life is on the verge of imploding. She seeks comfort on her daily ride in the woods of Gold Hill but when a mysterious lightning storm suddenly strikes, Marisa is hurled into the ancient alternate dimension of Carnelia.

There she meets the arrogant but attractive nobleman, Darian Fiore. With no hope of returning home on her own, Marisa must join Darian on a risky mission to negotiate peace with his cousin and archenemy, Savino da Roca. As she struggles to survive a world teeming with monsters, maniacs and medieval knights, Marisa sees a softer side of Darian and begins to fall in love. But when she discovers he is locked into an arranged marriage, her heart shatters.  

After Savino falls for her charms and demands her hand in marriage in exchange for peace, Marisa is faced with an impossible choice: marry the enemy of the man she loves or betray them both and become the catalyst for a bloody war.

My thoughts: 
To be completely honest with you, I wasn't sure what to expect with this book. Sure, I had a friend who had a book published and I was thrilled for her and I loved the cover, but life has been super crazy over the past year and I am just trying to stay above water... 

Let me tell you: I was blown away with the first few chapters! I noticed right away that Cheryl's writing style is different than what you see every day. I have been wracking my brain trying to figure out who to compare her to, but there is really no comparison! She is incredibly gifted and writes in such a descriptive way, it makes everything come alive in vivid detail. Now I know, this is a fantasy book, but I was so drawn in and involved that the whole book became completely real and believable. 

The Carnelian Legacy is a modern day fairy tale, with a surprising twist! It will keep you reading long into the night (way after you should be in bed!) and you won't want to put it down. I can't wait to share it with my teenage daughters. (Can I say - major bonus that it is something I can let my teenagers read without worrying what they will encounter.) 

I can honestly say it is the best book I have read and is my new favorite. I fell in love with Carnelia and her people and I cannot wait to read book two!
 

About the author:

Cheryl Koevoet was born in a suburb of Portland, Oregon. She began a lifelong love affair with books the same day she entered kindergarten when her teacher read The LollipopDragon out loud.

From an early age she developed a craving for books that wove magical tales about faraway lands, the distant past, and futuristic worlds. Among her favorite stories growing up were The Chronicles of Narnia, the Little House on the Prairie series, the poems of Shel Silverstein, Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little and anything penned by Roald Dahl. 

Cheryl’s wanderlust continued when she traveled to Los Angeles to study Art History at BIOLA University and later continued her education at Portland State University. She met and married a Dutch national and moved to The Netherlands where she still lives today with her husband and four teenagers near The Hague. Her day job and experiencing life in a foreign culture are both unending sources of inspiration for writing energetic stories than enthrall, inspire and entertain.

The Carnelian Legacy is her debut novel and she is nearing completion on its sequel, The Carnelian Tyranny. A third book in the trilogy, The Carnelian Sovereignity as well as a prequel book, The Carnelian Dynasty are both scheduled for release in 2014.

Her next project, The Bulb of Greet Prys is a historical novel about life in Holland in the Golden Age during tulipmania.

For more information, visit Cheryl's website. 

The fine print:
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. The opinions expressed are all mine and I was not required to give a positive review.

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"Wounded Warrior, Wounded Home" Book Review

Some Facts: 

• 1.5 million troops have fulfilled 3 million deployment billets to Iraq & Afghanistan with most service members serving at least two and some as many as nine combat tour of duty.

• Between 30-40 percent of returning veterans today show symptoms of PTSD or report conditions of TBI.

• Since 2000, over 180,000 service members have been diagnosed with TBI.

• Each service member’s war experiences and injuries directly impact at least three and as many as 10 immediate family members and friends. This means that at least 4.5 million and as many as 15 million close family members and friends are deeply impacted by combat stress, PTSD and/or TBI from the war in Iraq and Afghanistan alone. This figure doesn’t include the lingering effects of war on the families of WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War or the first Persian Gulf War veterans.

About Wounded Warrior, Wounded Home: Hope and Healing for Families Living with PTSD and TBI:

When a combat veteran struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and/or traumatic brain injury (TBI), every member of the family experiences the effects. Spouses, parents and children must undergo changes on the home front, a process that resembles the phases of grief. Confusion, hurt, anger, guilt, fatigue and fear lie behind their brave smiles and squared shoulders. 

Wounded Warrior,Wounded Home gives hurting families a look inside the minds and hearts of wounded warriors and guides them in developing their own personal plan for physical, emotional and spiritual wholeness in the wake of war.

My thoughts:
As you have already guessed, this is not my usual light-hearted, fun read. It was, in all honestly, probably the hardest book for me to sign up to review. It meant acknowledging that I needed this book. Our family is one of the thousands damaged by the effects of war. And it wasn't an easy read either. To be totally honest, there are some places I skimmed though because I am simply not in a place to take them any deeper. 

The authors have done a great job covering topics like grief, compassion fatigue, finding a new normal and forgiveness. They talk about things that only someone who has been there can know: the pain, the exhaustion, the fear...

Interspersed in the pages are comments from real people, trying to live in the midst of the mess and being real and transparent. It is great to know that you are not alone, not the only one who has felt those feelings or thought those thoughts. 

Included at the end of each chapter are questions for reflection, a chance to go deeper with yourself and with God. 

Where will this journey end and what will it look like when we get there? I don't know. But thankfully, God does. And I will learn to be content with that... 

About the authors:

Marshele Carter Waddell served with her husband, CDR (ret) Mark Waddell, a career Navy SEAL, for 26 years around the world. Together with their three children, the Waddells have endured many lengthy separations and frequent deployments for combat duty, special operations training and real world conflicts. Today, her husband is a disable combat veteran with PTSD and multiple TBIs. Her son is currently serving in Afghanistan. 

Waddell is the founder of Hope for the Home Front and a frequent media guest on military issues. She has been featured in Time magazine, the BBC, the LA Times, the Washington Post, Fox News, the Armed Forces Radio Network and Focus on the Family's radio broadcast.
 

When Marshele’s husband retired, they moved to Colorado Springs where she began seeing Kelly Orr, a clinical psychologist and Vietnam veteran, as her therapist. Kelly has his Ph.D. from Biola University and completed a fellowship in Clinical Health Psychology in 1993.

If you are a spouse of a Wounded Warrior, find out about Hope for the Homefront and what they offer at their website.

The fine print: 
Wounded Warrior, Wounded Home is available March 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. The opinions expressed are all mine and I was not required to give a positive review. 

Note: Sorry, but there won't be a giveaway this time! Due to lack of funds, I cannot continue to mail books out. Hopefully in the future, I can do a big giveaway to clean off my shelves. If you have a minute, would you please pray for a job for our family? Thanks!

"Moonlight Masquerade" Book Review

Congrats to the latest winner!
Hannah will be receiving a copy of Fear, Faith and a Fistful of Chocolate by Debora Coty. Thanks for entering!

I love Regency novels and it is hard to find ones by Christian authors, so I was thrilled to get my hands on Moonlight Masquerade. I had just recently finished Her Good Name by this author and knew I was in for a treat!

About the book: 

Lady Celine Wexham seems the model British subject. French by birth but enjoying life in 1813 as a widowed English countess, she is in the unique position of being able to help those in need--or to spy for the notorious Napoleon Bonaparte. When Rees Phillips of the British Foreign Office is sent to pose as the countess's butler and discover where her true loyalties lie, he is confident he will uncover the truth. But the longer he is in her fashionable townhouse in London's West End, the more his staunch loyalty to the Crown begins to waver as he falls under Lady Wexham's spell. 

My thoughts: 

If you like mystery, suspense and intrigue, then you will thoroughly enjoy Moonlight Masquerade! From the very beginning, the suspense will keep you on the edge of your seat. The twists and turns in the story were enough to keep me reading late into the night. Who is the real spy? What happens if they find out Rees isn't really a butler? Can he pull it off? Moonlight Masquerade is a delightful Regency novel of love, spies and a romance that will tug your heart strings!

About the author: 

Ruth Axtell is the author of thirteen novels, including Wild Rose, one of Booklist's Top Ten in Christian Fiction. Currently a resident of Downeast Maine, Axtell has lived in the Canary Islands, Miami, and the Netherlands.

The fine print:

Moonlight Masquerade is available March 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group. I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. The opinions expressed are all mine and I was not required to give a positive review.
 

Note: Sorry, but there won't be a giveaway this time! Due to lack of funds, I cannot continue to mail books out. Hopefully in the future, I can do a big giveaway to clean off my shelves. If you have a minute, would you please pray for a job for our family? Thanks!