Relentless by Nancy J Alexander

Book Description:

"The little girl lay under the hay stack scarcely breathing. Sweat poured down her face and dripped into her eyes; her heart pounded through her thin chest. Tiny flecks of hay clung to her wet skin, making her itch. She squeezed her nose tightly afraid she'd sneeze. Eyes clamped shut, she lay there. Flies buzzed around her, crawling on her. She didn't move. She didn't know how long she'd been there in the loft. She didn't care how long she stayed. She couldn't move. Not yet."

Nearly a lifetime after a childhood filled with misery and abuse, Gina, now a successful doctor, finds herself thrown back into a terrifying world where her nightmares become far more than just a dream. With the help of an unconventional therapist with secrets of her own, the hunt is on and Gina fights for her life in this harrowing tale of cat and mouse.

Buy the Book:   Amazon  ~  Audible

Author's Bio:

Love of the mystery/thriller genre combines with psychotherapy training and experience to produce an emotionally supercharged dramatic novel. Nancy Alexander has devoted much of her professional life to helping survivors of childhood trauma; their distress has been ingrained and works to create characters who give voice to their plight. To analyze the evil minds that prey on others and the intricacies of law enforcers who pursue them seemed a natural interlacing of professional, literary and creative interests.

Connect with the author:  Website  ~  Twitter  ~  Facebook

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My Review

 Relentless by Nancy J Alexander was an amazingly well written and well read audio-book. I really enjoyed listening to it on audible. The voice actor did a great job with getting the mood of the story correct and the dialogue flowed together perfectly. There were no awkward pauses or speed reading. The reader really pulled me into the story. The voice acting was done so well that I actually believe that I enjoyed the audio version better than I would have liked the print version.

The story itself had a somber tone to it with Gina's past, but I liked the fact that she was able to become a Doctor and how much her career really meant to her. Gina's character was told perfectly in a mix of present day and flashbacks to her childhood. I really felt myself like Gina and her determination. 

There were definitely some parts of  Relentless by Nancy J Alexander that made a few tears leak out of my eyes. One such part was when Gina was a child and her mother would not believe her about the abuse she was suffering instead her mother would only blame Gina.

Overall while the book was somber it was still an interesting book to read and I really enjoyed it!

Junie B. Jones

when I was a child I was an avid reader of Junie B. Jones and as an adult when I saw the musical addition I wanted to give it a shot as I thought it might be fun to try with the kids at my school. It was a big hit, though it was much more of a hit with the girls. The boys all found it to be rather boring. I'll have to bring in something more boy like next month. The voice acting was spot on and the music was great. I could not be more pleased.

God's Gift by Lee Ann Mancini

God's Gift by Lee Ann Mancini

In God's Gift, Christian and his sister Mary believe they get more presents at Christmas. However, Jacob and Jeremiah believe they get more presents on Hanukkah. The children learn that Christmas and Hanukkah are about celebrating the gift God has given to His children. It's not about how many presents are under the tree at Christmas or the eight days of presents for Hanukkah. It's about God's provision for those He loves. God gives the gift of the Messiah to the Christians and the gift of Light to the Jews. The true gift from God is learned in this colorful holiday story! 

Beautifully illustrated hardcover book designed for children ages 3 – 8.

My Review

God's Gift by Lee Ann Mancini is a well written holiday book for children who celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, or both holidays because it shows that it is not the gifts that truly matter (though they are nice), but the people, God, and the feelings involved.God's Gift by Lee Ann Mancini has adorable pictures and uses words that children will be able to read, understand, and comprehend to teach important lessons that apply no matter if the child is Christian or Jewish. I personally liked how it made both equal to each other. This would literally be perfect for children who are growing up with one Christian and one Jewish parent. The characters are all very cute and they are young enough that young children can truly understand them. In my mind this book would be best for children ages three through six. 

Where Does Love Hide?

• by Mary Manz Simon

In Where Does Love Hide? children are reminded that they not only receive love but have the opportunity to share love. Looking under the fun, lift-a-flap feature, children will see examples of everyday love opportunities. Each page includes a memory verse and an example of a way to share God’s love. In life, children hear the words “I love you” repeatedly, often beginning before birth. However, because love is an abstract concept and young children are concrete thinkers, they must gradually learn to understand love by what they experience. In Where Does Love Hide? children are given the opportunity to see love in action and learn what love looks like.

Review

Where Does Love Hide? is an amazing book that truly teaches children about Love; not just what it is, but how it is and why it matters. This book teaches children valuable insight into love while pulling them in with adorable pictures and heart warming words. The fact that this is a board book only makes it better for young children as it allows them to handle the book without a parent watching for page rips or damage. It would also make a great first reading book for young children learning to read.

God Made You Nose to Toes By Leslie Parrott

Book Description

Help little ones understand that God created each part of their bodies so they can enjoy life and everything in it. In this delightful padded cover board book by well-known author and family therapist Leslie Parrott, children can follow along with Toucan––with a great big nose––as he helps them learn God loves each one of them completely.

God Made You Nose to Toes By Leslie Parrott is an adorable book for young children. It is both well written and well illustrated with cute pictures and catchy words. The book is perfect for young children learning about God as it shows them that they are both unique and perfect the way they are because that is how God made them.

Life outside the Box: The Extraordinary Journeys of 10 Unique Individuals, Second Edition by Marilyn R. Wilson

Life outside the Box: The Extraordinary Journeys of 10 Unique Individuals, Second Edition by Marilyn R. Wilson

his second edition offers new content added to each and every chapter - personal author reflections from behind the scenes. 

Book Details:

Book Title: Life Outside the Box: The Extraordinary Journeys of 10 Unique Individuals, Second Edition
Author: Marilyn R. Wilson
Category:  Adult non-fiction, 236 pages
Genre:  Inspiration / biography / fashion
Publisher:  Real People Real Lives Press
Release date:  Oct 27, 2016
Tour dates:  Dec 5 to 23, 2016
Content Rating:  G

Book Description:  

This second edition offers new content added to each and every chapter - personal author reflections from behind the scenes. 

Get inspired to step out of your box and embrace your potential. From the corporate world, to the arts, to working with the disenfranchised, the message is clear: there is no such thing as a normal way to live your life and no one right solution to any problem. Selected from over a hundred interviews, the stories shared here open a window on the journeys of seven women and three men who have charted their own paths, including Ruthie Davis--top US luxury shoe designer and the winner of the 2014 AAFA Footwear Designer of the Year award; and Geir Ness whose perfume is a staple in Nordstrom, Disney World, and on Disney Cruise Lines. Enjoy a glimpse behind the scenes into the unique ways these individuals have chosen to deal with life's challenges and how they define success in their careers.

Buy the Book:  Amazon  ~   Barnes & Noble

Meet the author:

Marilyn R. Wilson is a freelance writer and speaker with a passion for interviewing. Her career as a writer began in an unusual way, by answering a Craigslist ad. It was while conducting her first interview the world shifted - she had found her passion. Since 2006, she has interviewed over 150 people from as near as her hometown of Vancouver, Canada, and as far away as South Africa.

Whether through a random encounter on the New York subway or via a one-on-one interview with an internationally recognized artist, the goal is the same-to give wings to the unique journeys of inspiring individuals. This goal first led the author to co-launch a successful, innovative magazine focused on professionals working in the fashion industry paired with photography and illustrations by local artists. Then in 2015, Wilson took her passion to a new audience with the release of her first book, the first in a series featuring the lives of real people living real lives.

Connect with the author:  Website  ~  Twitter  ~  Facebook  ~ Instagram

The Woman At the Well: A 4-Week Spiritual Journey to Freedom

Book Details:
Book Title:  The Woman At the Well: A 4-Week Spiritual Journey to Freedom
Author: Rachel Tucker
Category:  Adult nonfiction,  101 pages
Genre:  Bible Study
Publisher: Createspace
Release date:  September 2016
Tour dates:  Dec 12 to 30, 2016
Content Rating:  G (It is a Bible Study. It's all scripture)

Book Description:
Are you ready for a rigorous spiritual bootcamp? This 4-week intensive Bible Study is about a journey of self discovery. One that will incite and ignite something amazing and wonderful in you. This is the story of how one person's transformation can create a massive wave of change for Jesus Christ in the world. 
Buy the Bible Study:  Amazon
Buy the Leader Guide: Amazon

Watch the Trailer:

Meet the Author:

Rachel was born in Dayton Ohio to a already large family of 5. She was the baby of the family, and literally about killed her Mother on her entrance into the world. Rachel was the 5th child to a school teacher and truck driver and soon found herself as a child of a single Mom of 5 who was forced to work 3 jobs to support her children. So Rachel is no stranger to seeing and living what it means to be a virtuous woman, as she watched her Mother do it, and continue to do it. Rachel is a devoted wife, Mother of 4 and Founder of Women at the Well Ministries. She is an author and currently writing her first in-depth Bible Study. She has been the key note speaker at Mother’s of Israel conference, and several of her local churches women’s events.

Her passion is studying scripture and then teaching those lessons to others, with the goal that they will then turn around and pay it forward. Her #each one #teach one philosophy is her mission. She is passionate about helping women by giving them tools to help them break strong hold’s so they can pursue whatever the Lord has for them. So, training them up for the call! That is what spurred her ministry.

She knows that God didn’t create women to just sit around and get pedicures and swap recipes and tackle the dust bunnies everyday, but to be side by side with the men in fighting the war against evil and taking as many people to heaven with them as possible.
She now does life with her best friend, her husband Curt and will tell you, her children are the best kids on the earth. They love to do Bible studies together and love traveling with their family.

If she isn’t at home with her family, you will find her checking something off her bucket list! Her biggest so far would be competing in figure competitions, competing at the Arnold class in fitness, being in a beauty pageant representing her county as Mrs. Miami County in the Mrs. Ohio America pageant, and authoring a 30 day bible study devotional. And, she is only getting started.

She loves to weave her own personal stories in with her message, because she believes she is living her calling day by day, and sometimes it gets pretty funny!

Connect with the author:  Website  ~  Twitter  ~  Facebook  ~  Instagram

The Woman At the Well: A 4-Week Spiritual Journey to Freedom by Rachel Tucker

Book Details:

Book Title:  The Woman At the Well: A 4-Week Spiritual Journey to Freedom
Author: Rachel Tucker
Category:  Adult nonfiction,  101 pages
Genre:  Bible Study
Publisher: Createspace
Release date:  September 2016
Tour dates:  Dec 12 to 30, 2016
Content Rating:  G (It is a Bible Study. It's all scripture)

Book Description:

Are you ready for a rigorous spiritual bootcamp? This 4-week intensive Bible Study is about a journey of self discovery. One that will incite and ignite something amazing and wonderful in you. This is the story of how one person's transformation can create a massive wave of change for Jesus Christ in the world. 

Buy the Bible Study:  Amazon
Buy the Leader Guide: Amazon

Watch the Trailer:

Meet the Author:

Rachel was born in Dayton Ohio to a already large family of 5. She was the baby of the family, and literally about killed her Mother on her entrance into the world. Rachel was the 5th child to a school teacher and truck driver and soon found herself as a child of a single Mom of 5 who was forced to work 3 jobs to support her children. So Rachel is no stranger to seeing and living what it means to be a virtuous woman, as she watched her Mother do it, and continue to do it. Rachel is a devoted wife, Mother of 4 and Founder of Women at the Well Ministries. She is an author and currently writing her first in-depth Bible Study. She has been the key note speaker at Mother’s of Israel conference, and several of her local churches women’s events.

Her passion is studying scripture and then teaching those lessons to others, with the goal that they will then turn around and pay it forward. Her #each one #teach one philosophy is her mission. She is passionate about helping women by giving them tools to help them break strong hold’s so they can pursue whatever the Lord has for them. So, training them up for the call! That is what spurred her ministry.

She knows that God didn’t create women to just sit around and get pedicures and swap recipes and tackle the dust bunnies everyday, but to be side by side with the men in fighting the war against evil and taking as many people to heaven with them as possible.
She now does life with her best friend, her husband Curt and will tell you, her children are the best kids on the earth. They love to do Bible studies together and love traveling with their family.

If she isn’t at home with her family, you will find her checking something off her bucket list! Her biggest so far would be competing in figure competitions, competing at the Arnold class in fitness, being in a beauty pageant representing her county as Mrs. Miami County in the Mrs. Ohio America pageant, and authoring a 30 day bible study devotional. And, she is only getting started.

She loves to weave her own personal stories in with her message, because she believes she is living her calling day by day, and sometimes it gets pretty funny!

Connect with the author:  Website  ~  Twitter  ~  Facebook  ~  Instagram

Silence Interrupted by Sania Shaikh

Book Details:

Book Title:  Silence Interrupted
Author: Sania Shaikh
Category:  YA Fiction,  205 pages
Genre:  Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Lanier Press
Release date:  November 14, 2016
Tour dates:  Dec 5 to 23, 2016
Content Rating:   PG + M

Book Description:

Two months before Troye Saavedra’s senior year of high school, his father’s drinking problem skyrockets. When Troye’s parents make an impulsive move to Georgia in order to “help” him finish high school on a positive note, he is forced to leave behind everything he knows. Things couldn’t get worse for Troye. That is, until he meets three enigmatic teenagers: Adelaide, an independent violinist with radical ideas; Zaidan, fiercely loyal and always funny; and Arabella, a girl who harbors secret struggles. Together, the four friends try to pick up the jagged pieces of their lives without getting hurt themselves. An insightful tale of perseverance, Silence Interrupted is a young adult novel about the beauty and peril of traversing the world as a teenager.

Buy the Book:  Amazon

Meet the Author:

Sania Shaikh is a junior at Cambridge High School. Inspired to write from a young age, she worked on Silence Interrupted, her debut novel, starting in eighth grade.

Connect with the author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Dreaming Sophia

Book Description:

Dreaming Sophia is a magical look into Italy, language, art, and culture. It is a story about turning dreams into reality and learning to walk the fine line between fact and fantasy. When tragedy strikes, Sophia finds herself alone in the world, without direction and fearful of loving again. With only her vivid imagination to guide her, she begins a journey that will take her from the vineyards in Sonoma, California to a grad school in Philadelphia and, eventually, to Italy: Florence, Lucca, Rome, Verona, Venice, and Val d’Orcia.

​Through dreamlike encounters, Sophia meets Italian personalities—princes, poets, duchesses, artists, and film stars— who give her advice to help put her life back together. Following a path that takes her from grief to joy, she discovers the source of her creativity and learns to love again, turning her dreams into reality.

Buy the Book:  

Amazon – print

Amazon / Kindle – ebook

Create Space

I-tunes – Apple Store-ebook

Barnes & Noble – ebook

Inktera-ebook

Author's Bio:

Melissa Muldoon is the Studentessa Matta-the crazy linguist! In Italian, "matta" means "crazy" or "impassioned". Melissa has a B.A. in fine arts, art history and European history from Knox College, a liberal arts college in Galesburg, Illinois, as well as a master's degree in art history from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. She has also studied painting and art history in Florence.

Melissa promotes the study of Italian language and culture through her dual-language blog, Studentessa Matta (studentessamatta.com). Melissa began the Matta blog to improve her command of the language and to connect with other language learners. It has since grown to include a podcast, "Tutti Matti per l'Italiano" and the Studentessa Matta YouTube channel. Melissa also created Matta Italian Language Immersion Tours, which she co-leads with Italian partners in Italy.

Dreaming Sophia is Melissa's first novel. It is a fanciful look at art history and Italian language and culture, but it is also the culmination of personal stories and insights resulting from her experiences living in Italy, as well as her involvement and familiarity with the Italian language, painting, and art history.

As a student, Melissa lived in Florence with an Italian family. She studied art history and painting and took beginner Italian classes. When she returned home, she threw away her Italian dictionary, assuming she'd never need it again but after launching a successful design career and starting a family, she realized something was missing in her life. That "thing" was the connection she had made with Italy and the friends who live there. Living in Florence was indeed a life-changing event! Wanting to reconnect with Italy, she decided to start learning the language again from scratch. As if indeed possessed by an Italian muse, she bought a new Italian dictionary and began her journey to fluency-a path that has led her back to Italy many times and enriched her life in countless ways.

Now, many dictionaries and grammar books later, she dedicates her time to promoting Italian language studies, further travels in Italy, and sharing her stories and insights about Italy with others. When Melissa is not traveling in Italy, she lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is married and has three boys and two beagles.

Melissa designed and illustrated the cover art for Dreaming Sophia. She also designed the Dreaming Sophia website and created the character illustrations that can be found in the book and on the Dreaming Sophia websites.

Connect with the Author:  

​Website  ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Youtube ~ Pinterest