The Perfect Fool ~ Review

The Perfect Fool
By Bethany Zohner Herbert

The Perfect Fool is a perfectly delightful story.  "Little Thief" is growing up on the streets of Gridian when he picks the wrong person to "borrow" from.  This decision brings him to the court where he apprentices as a court jester, a fool.  Fools generally enjoyed greater freedoms than anyone else and in Gridian the fools had a unique position where the king was concerned.  As Little Thief grew in his abilities he became Farrago.

Growing up Farrago had a few close friends - first was Fendral, who took him in and trained him as a fool. Then there was Leofrick, who played the mandolin for the court.  King Giles was also among Farrago's circle and he often advised the king in matters of state.  And then there was Thea, a scullery maid whom was much more than she appeared to be.  

And when Thea's true identity is revealed Farrago is determined to win his true love's heart.  After all what fool would let a little thing like being queen of a neighboring nation stand in his way.  But winning Thea's hand might be a bit difficult when only those of noble bloodlines could seek to win her hand.  But this fool is nobody's fool, at least he hopes so.

But his efforts just might bring the nations to the brink of war especially when his quest to "win" Thea's hand makes him a target.  But for love even a fool will take risks.  But what will be the final cost?

I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review and tour participation.

About the book:

Plucked from the streets to become a court jester, Farrago’s life couldn’t be better, especially now that he’s flirting with scullery maid Thea. But when Thea turns out to be a queen in disguise, Farrago may become as much a fool in love as in his occupation. This medieval tale is filled with romance, humor, and twists that will keep you guessing to the last page.

About the author:

Bethany Zohner Herbert was born in Salt Lake City, and aside from a short amount of time living in England and the South, she is back in her native Idaho where she grew up. She has been a fan of books since before she could write. She earned her Bachelor’s in creative writing from BYU-Idaho and her Master’s in literature and writing from Utah State University. When not coming up with weird stories, she likes participating in and teaching Zumba, making crafts (silly ones like puppets) reading, and dating her husband.

The Legacy ~ Review

The Legacy
The Restoration series 4
By Dan Walsh
     and Gary Smalley

The Legacy is the concluding book in the Restoration series.  This is one family's journey to rediscovering the lives that they should be living as not only a family but as believers.  The Legacy focuses on the youngest Anderson son Doug who is now on his own at college.

But Doug is living two lives - one that his family thinks he's living and the one he's living at college.
But living in two worlds isn't possible for long and Doug is about to discover this all to suddenly when an incident brings his two worlds into contact.  Will this be the catalyst that finally drives a wedge into the family that can't be breached?  Or will this be the dose of reality that will help Doug find his way home?

The Legacy is a powerful lesson in the pain in loving a child who is determined to do it their own way, no matter the cost.  As Jim and Marilyn struggle with dealing with Doug's situation they find themselves reaching out again for advice from Uncle Henry and Aunt Myra.

Still dealing from Jim's years of inattentive parenting, Doug seems to be the last unresolved situation and learning to deal with it in a way that doesn't drive him further away offers hope to other families going through a similar situation.  All to often we try to force those we care about to change - to become who we know they should be, but in the process we actually hinder them by further driving them away.  The prodigal son is an interesting theme that runs throughout this story in a couple of unique ways.

This is a powerful conclusion to a moving and thoughtfully written series.  Though I'm sure each could be read individually to get the full impact and powerful message the series should be read in order.

I was provided a copy of this book by Revell through their Revell Reads blogger program in exchange for my honest review.

One young man is about to discover the true cost of independence

For years, Doug Anderson has been drifting slowly but steadily away from both his family and his faith. His parents have been trying to reach him before he falls too far. His friend Christina hopes what she is seeing online isn't true. But sometimes you have to hit bottom before you're ready to grow up.

Just as things begin to settle down a bit, Doug's life takes a turn that requires every bit of faith and patience for both his family and Christina--whose growing feelings for Doug, a man who writes her off as not worth his time, keep her off balance. Will Doug's crisis finally clear his vision and help him focus on what he has right in front of him?


The emotionally gripping conclusion to the series critics are calling . . .

"Captivating."--RT Book Reviews

"Emotional."--Booklist

"Uplifting."--Library Journal

"Satisfying."--New York Journal of Books


Dan Walsh is the bestselling author of many books, including The Dance, The Promise, and The Desire with Gary Smalley. He has won three Carol Awards, and three of his novels were finalists for RT Book ReviewsInspirational Book of the Year. He lives with his wife in the Daytona Beach area, where he's busy researching and writing his next novel.

Gary Smalley is one of the country's best-known authors and speakers on family relationships and has appeared on national television programs such as Oprah, Larry King Live, and TODAY, as well as numerous national radio programs. He is the bestselling and award-winning author or coauthor of many books, including the Baxter Family Redemption series with Karen Kingsbury. Gary and his wife, Norma, have been married for 50 years and live in Missouri.

April CSFF Blog Tour ~ Storm Siren Day 3

Welcome to the 3rd and final day of the April CSFF Blog Tour

This month's featured book is

Storm Siren by Mary Weber

Nym (Nymia) is an Elemental.  But unlike most Elementals she is not male, which is why she escaped execution at birth.

But what is an Elemental?

Storm Siren is an intriguing title and I decided to look into the meaning of this title in relation to how it relates to Nym as an Elemental.

Storm =  a disturbance of the atmosphere marked by wind and usually by rain, snow, hail, sleet, or thunder and lightning
or a serious disturbance of any element of nature
Siren =  a mythical creature that's female and lures men to their deaths 

And then I decided to look up the meaning of Elemental, also in reference to Nym.

Elemental = of, relating to, or resembling a great force of nature

One can assume from these definitions that Nym is indeed a great force of nature who can summon men to their deaths by her ability to effect disturbances in the natural elements of the atmosphere.

With book 2 Siren's Fury due in June I'm interested to see where the series goes next.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher in conjunction with this CSFF Blog Tour in exchange for my honest review and tour participation.

Book Description

"I raise my chin as the buyers stare. Yes. Look. You don’t want me. Because, eventually, accidentally, I will destroy you."

In a world at war, a slave girl’s lethal curse could become one kingdom’s weapon of salvation. If the curse—and the girl—can be controlled.

As a slave in the war-weary kingdom of Faelen, seventeen-year-old Nym isn’t merely devoid of rights, her Elemental kind are only born male and always killed at birth—meaning, she shouldn’t even exist.

Standing on the auction block beneath smoke-drenched mountains, Nym faces her fifteenth sell. But when her hood is removed and her storm-summoning killing curse revealed, Nym is snatched up by a court advisor and given a choice: be trained as the weapon Faelen needs to win the war, or be killed.

Choosing the former, Nym is unleashed into a world of politics, bizarre parties, and rumors of an evil more sinister than she’s being prepared to fight . . . not to mention the handsome trainer whose dark secrets lie behind a mysterious ability to calm every lightning strike she summons.

But what if she doesn’t want to be the weapon they’ve all been waiting for?

Set in a beautifully eclectic world of suspicion, super abilities, and monsters, Storm Siren is a story of power. And whoever controls that power will win.

Be sure to visit all the other stops over that were part of this 3 day tour.

Julie Bihn   Lauren Bombardier   Beckie Burnham   Vicky DealSharingAunt 

George Duncan   April Erwin   Carol Gehringer   Victor Gentile  Ryan Heart 

Timothy Hicks   Janeen Ippolito   Carol Keen   Emileigh Latham   Simone Lilly-Egerter 

Jennette Mbewe   Shannon McDermott   Meagan @ Blooming with Books 

Rebecca LuElla Miller   Joan Nienhuis   Nissa   Jalynn Patterson   Audrey Sauble 

Chawna Schroeder   Jojo Sutis   Steve Trower   Phyllis Wheeler   Michelle R. Wood

Learn more about the book and author at:

 Mary Weber.com 
 Mary Weber's Facebook page

Available for purchase at

Amazon 

Have Gavel Will Travel ~ Review

Have Gavel Will Travel
By Robert Braithwaite

If you'd like to take a look at what the life of a judge or magistrate is truly like you need to read Have Gavel Will Travel.  Covering a variety of situations that require a judgement, Robert Braithwaite takes you through the legal process.  Some cases are heart-breaking while others are completely unbelievable.

I agree with his assessment of Perry Mason, as my sisters and I have recently discovered these reruns. Why would the non-charged guilty individual always come undone at the end of the show, declaring before everyone not only their guilt but how they committed said crime.

I loved the bonus material at the end of the book where real world descriptions of legal terms are given.  It is amazing how these terms are archaic in regard to the modern usage of  words.  And how many people know what a Pro Hac Vice is?

The legal system is explained through various case examples taken from his career.  And the falsies of the fictional televised courtrooms are touched on.

If you want to read something that is entertaining and outside of your normal fiction fare take a look at Have Gravel Will Travel.  Though I haven't read her books some might be interested to learn that Robert Braithwaite is the father of Ally Condie (New York Times best-selling author of several YA books), whom is referenced a few times in the book as just Ally.

I was provided a digital PDF ARC file of this book by the publisher in exchange for my honest review and tour participation.

About the book:

What happens in a national park doesn’t stay in a national park. It often ends up in Robert Braithwaite’s courtroom—or sometimes on his kitchen table. Over a lifetime of administering justice, he saw everything from canoodling nudes to sheep hunters with drones to downright dangerous drug cartels. This collection of cases is so outrageous and bizarre you’ll have to read it to believe it.

About the author:

Robert Braithwaite currently resides in Cedar City, Utah. He attended Southern Utah University and the University of Utah, graduating in 1973 with a B. S. in Political Science in 1973. He graduated from the University of Utah School of Law with a Juris Doctor degree in 1976. As an attorney he maintained a private practice and served as City Attorney for Cedar City, Parowan and Springdale. He also served for eight years as a member of the Utah Air Conservation Committee, the statutorily-established body regulating pollution emissions in the state.

In a twenty-seven year career as a judge, Robert Braithwaite has been a circuit judge, a district judge, a juvenile judge, a pro tem Utah Supreme Court judge and is now a U. S. magistrate judge. While a state judge, he served on the Utah Judicial Council, the governing board of the Utah state judiciary, and served as chairman of its Policy and Planning subcommittee. As a part-time magistrate judge he now hears criminal cases arising in the southern half of Utah, usually occurring in National Parks and Monuments, National Forests, and federal lands. Needless to say, he rides a circuit, hearing cases in four diverse locations at St. George, Big Water, Moab, and Salt Lake City.

His wife is an artist and art professor. Together they have raised four children.

CSFF April Blog Tour ~ Storm Siren Day 2

Welcome to Day 2 of the April CSFF Blog Tour

This month's featured book is

Storm Siren 

Storm Siren
The Storm Siren Trilogy 1
By Mary Weber

Enjoy this short book trailer from Thomas Nelson

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher in conjunction with this CSFF Blog Tour in exchange for my honest review and tour participation.

Book Description

"I raise my chin as the buyers stare. Yes. Look. You don’t want me. Because, eventually,accidentally, I will destroy you."

In a world at war, a slave girl’s lethal curse could become one kingdom’s weapon of salvation. If the curse—and the girl—can be controlled.

As a slave in the war-weary kingdom of Faelen, seventeen-year-old Nym isn’t merely devoid of rights, her Elemental kind are only born male and always killed at birth—meaning, she shouldn’t even exist.

Standing on the auction block beneath smoke-drenched mountains, Nym faces her fifteenth sell. But when her hood is removed and her storm-summoning killing curse revealed, Nym is snatched up by a court advisor and given a choice: be trained as the weapon Faelen needs to win the war, or be killed.

Choosing the former, Nym is unleashed into a world of politics, bizarre parties, and rumors of an evil more sinister than she’s being prepared to fight . . . not to mention the handsome trainer whose dark secrets lie behind a mysterious ability to calm every lightning strike she summons.

But what if she doesn’t want to be the weapon they’ve all been waiting for?

Set in a beautifully eclectic world of suspicion, super abilities, and monsters, Storm Siren is a story of power. And whoever controls that power will win.

Be sure to visit all the other stops over the 3 day tour ~ April 14 - 16, 2015.

Julie Bihn   Lauren Bombardier   Beckie Burnham   Vicky DealSharingAunt 

George Duncan   April Erwin   Carol Gehringer   Victor Gentile  Ryan Heart 

Timothy Hicks   Janeen Ippolito   Carol Keen   Emileigh Latham   Simone Lilly-Egerter 

Jennette Mbewe   Shannon McDermott   Meagan @ Blooming with Books 

Rebecca LuElla Miller   Joan Nienhuis   Nissa   Jalynn Patterson   Audrey Sauble 

Chawna Schroeder   Jojo Sutis   Steve Trower   Phyllis Wheeler   Michelle R. Wood

Learn more about the book and author at:

 Mary Weber.com 
 Mary Weber's Facebook page

Available for purchase at

Amazon 

The Creole Princess ~ Review

The Creole Princess
Gulf Coast Chronicles 2
Beth White

This is the second book in the Gulf Coast Chronicles series. Several generations of the Lanier family have come and gone between the two books.  The Pelican Bride was set during the founding of Mobile and The Creole Princess is set during the early days of the American Revolution and its impact on the residents of the Gulf Coast region specifically Mobile and to a lesser extent New Orleans. 

Lyse Lanier is considered socially unacceptable to much of Mobile's elite society, though the Lanier blood flows through her veins.  Her father, instead of marrying into a family of equal social status, found his heart captured by a slave.  Caught between two  worlds and considered neither black nor white Lyse must find her place in a world being torn apart by revolution.


It is into this world that Don Rafael Maria Gonzales de Ripparda enters, bringing even more turmoil into Lyse's life.  Here is a man who could very well win her heart and crush her spirit in the winning. He is first man to ever give her the attention befitting a lady, but can he be trusted?

The Creole Princess is a step into the past, where prejudices and harsh inequities rule.  Bloodlines and money reign and those who are found lacking have no hope, but that which the promise of revolution brings.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher Revell through their Blogger Program in exchange for my honest review.

About the Book:

Torn between loyalties to family and flag, one young woman is about to discover that her most important allegiance is to her heart.

It is 1776, and all along the eastern seaboard the American struggle for independence rages. But in the British-held southern port of Mobile, Alabama, the conflict brewing is much quieter--though no less deadly.

Lyse Lanier may be largely French in heritage, but she spends most of her time in the company of the ebullient daughter of the British commander of Mobile. When a charming young Spanish merchant docks in town, Lyse is immediately struck by his easy wit and flair for the dramatic. But is he truly who he makes himself out to be? Spies abound, and Spain has yet to choose a side in the American conflict. Is Lyse simply an easy mark for Rafael Gonzalez to exploit? Or are his overtures of love as genuine as Spanish gold?

With spectacular detail that brings the cultural gumbo of the Colonial Gulf Coast alive, Beth White invites you to step into a world of intrigue and espionage from a little-known slice of the American Revolutionary War.


About the Author:
Beth White is the award-winning author of The Pelican Bride. A native Mississippian, she teaches music at an inner-city high school in historic Mobile, Alabama. Her novels have won the American Christian Fiction Writers' Carol Award, the RT Book Club Reviewers' Choice Award, and the Inspirational Reader's Choice Award. Learn more at www.bethwhite.net.

CSFF April Blog Tour ~ Storm Siren Day 1

Welcome to Day 1 of the April CSFF Blog Tour

This month's featured book is

Storm Siren 

Storm Siren
The Storm Siren Trilogy 1
By Mary Weber

Storm Siren is the first book in a trilogy of the same name and in a word - WOW!

Nym, which is short for Nymia, is a slave and has been since her parents violent death.  But Nym can't keep an owner and she is about to be sold to her fifteenth master.  But there is a secret about Nym, a secret that leaves destruction in her wake.  She is an Elemental who can't control her powers.  And she shouldn't exist, but she does.  And her very existence may change the course of war that the small island kingdom of Faelen has been in for 100 years.  A war that is not going in Faelen's favor.

But first Nym must agree to train as a weapon, learning to control the power that seemingly controls her.  If she doesn't accept this opportunity she faces death...  Nym accepts this challenge, though she doesn't believe control of her powers can be achieved.  But she hasn't met Eogan the man tasked with training her in the mastery of her curse.

But even greater danger awaits as her new owner Adora watches her every move and threats lie beneath the surface of every command.  And worst of all Nym doesn't know who she can trust.

I was totally swept up in this story.  It had a draw and I literally couldn't put it down as I read it in one afternoon.  There was a beauty in this story that was always present just as Nym's goodness was hidden beneath the surface and yet there.  Her guilt at the deaths she caused was real.  As she struggles to find who she really is and was meant to be one struggles with her.

I like that Storm Siren seems complete until the very end and then the trap is sprung and you are left wondering What????  And then your next thought is Poor Nym, what's she going to do?

My only complaint is I want to read book 2 now. But as the old saying goes Books don't grow on trees... (Yes, I know it is actually money but books would be better.)

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher in conjunction with this CSFF Blog Tour in exchange for my honest review and tour participation.

Book Description

"I raise my chin as the buyers stare. Yes. Look. You don’t want me. Because, eventually, accidentally, I will destroy you."

In a world at war, a slave girl’s lethal curse could become one kingdom’s weapon of salvation. If the curse—and the girl—can be controlled.

As a slave in the war-weary kingdom of Faelen, seventeen-year-old Nym isn’t merely devoid of rights, her Elemental kind are only born male and always killed at birth—meaning, she shouldn’t even exist.

Standing on the auction block beneath smoke-drenched mountains, Nym faces her fifteenth sell. But when her hood is removed and her storm-summoning killing curse revealed, Nym is snatched up by a court advisor and given a choice: be trained as the weapon Faelen needs to win the war, or be killed.

Choosing the former, Nym is unleashed into a world of politics, bizarre parties, and rumors of an evil more sinister than she’s being prepared to fight . . . not to mention the handsome trainer whose dark secrets lie behind a mysterious ability to calm every lightning strike she summons.

But what if she doesn’t want to be the weapon they’ve all been waiting for?

Set in a beautifully eclectic world of suspicion, super abilities, and monsters, Storm Siren is a story of power. And whoever controls that power will win.

Be sure to visit all the other stops over the 3 day tour ~ April 14 - 16, 2015.

Julie Bihn   Lauren Bombardier   Beckie Burnham   Vicky DealSharingAunt 

George Duncan   April Erwin   Carol Gehringer   Victor Gentile  Ryan Heart 

Timothy Hicks   Janeen Ippolito   Carol Keen   Emileigh Latham   Simone Lilly-Egerter 

Jennette Mbewe   Shannon McDermott   Meagan @ Blooming with Books 

Rebecca LuElla Miller   Joan Nienhuis   Nissa   Jalynn Patterson   Audrey Sauble 

Chawna Schroeder   Jojo Sutis   Steve Trower   Phyllis Wheeler   Michelle R. Wood

Learn more about the book and author at:

 Mary Weber.com 
 Mary Weber's Facebook page

Available for purchase at

Amazon