"The Shadow Within" by Karen Hancock (2004) - REVIEW

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"The B.B. Weekly Review"

The next few weeks will feature one of my (and my Husband's) favourite series of novels called "Legends of the Guardian King" by Karen Hancock. The second book in the series is "The Shadow Within". You can also see my review of the first book "The Light of Eidon".

Back Cover Blurb:

Four years after his legend-spawning defeat of Beltha’adi, Abramm returns to Kiriath to claim the crown he thought he would never wear and prepare his people for the inevitable attack of the resurrected Armies of the Black Moon.

 Though fiercely opposed by his own kin and reluctant to cast Kiriath into civil war at the worst possible time, he nevertheless believes this is the destiny Eidon has laid upon his life. And Kiriath’s only hope of salvation.

In the midst of this turmoil a headstrong princess from a neighboring realm endeavors to uncover Abramm’s secrets—including his heroic exploits as the White Pretender and the fact that he wears a golden shield upon his chest. Is she friend or foe, and will her interference bring Abramm closer to his destiny or destroy any chance he has of maintaining his rightful place as King?

Review: The second book in Karen Hancock's "Legends of the Guardian King" series is actually the first book my husband and I read from this compelling series. It was awesome! Masterfully put togeter, weaving a beautiful picture of everyone's internal and external struggle to overcome 'the shadow within' and embrace God's love completely. Suspensful, action-packed and insightful, this book is hard to put down for long! Wonderfully appropriate for all ages and highly recommended!

My Rating: 5/5

Have you read "The Shadow Within" by Karen Hancock? I would love to know what you thought!
Want to read it? Find it on Amazon!

Happy Reading!

"The Light of Eidon" by Karen Hancock (2003) - REVIEW

Goodday and welcome to

"The B.B. Weekly Review"

The next few weeks will feature one of my (and my Husband's) favourite series of novels called "Legends of the Guardian King" by Karen Hancock. The first book in the series is "The Light of Eidon".

Back Cover Blurb:

Abramm Kalladorne has dedicated the last eight years of his life to becoming worthy to touch and tend the Sacred Flames of Eidon, and he expects to be blessed for his devotion and sacrifice. But on the eve of taking the vows that will irrevocably

separate him from the life he was born to—as fifth son of the king of Kiriath—he is betrayed by his spiritual mentor and sold into slavery by his brothers Swept along by the winds of a new destiny, Abramm is forced to compete in the gladiatorial games of his new masters. When the oppressed masses rally around his successes, he discovers his suffering has molded him into something greater than he ever thought possible—to serve a purpose he never imagined.

Set in a world of swords and cloaks, of glittering palaces and mystical temples, of galley ships and ancient mist-bound cities, The Light of Eidon is the first volume of the new epic series, LEGENDS OF THE GUARDIAN-KING.

Review: My husband and I read the other three books in this sreries before we found the first book. After several months and having to special order it in, we finally had book number one! We were not dissapointed.The first book in the "Legends of the Guardian King" series by Karen Hancock was well worth the effort and of course it was good to finally understand all of the 'past' mentioned in the other three novels. Though less engaging than the other three novels, we thoroughly enjoyed this book and read it outloud together while driving. I would reccomend the entire series to anyone who likes to read history, fantasy, and a little bit of romance.

My Rating: 5/5

Have you read "The Light of Eidon" by Karen Hancock? I would love to know what you thought!
Want to read it? Find it on Amazon!

Happy Reading!

"Redeeming Love" by Francine Rivers (1997) - REVIEW

First of all I would like to wish a very big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my Sister Lydia!! Check out her blog Style Independent as I'm sure she will have a brilliant birthday outfit to share!

Goodday and welcome to

"The B.B. Weekly Review"

Back Cover Blurb:

California’s gold country, 1850. A time when men sold their souls for a bag of gold and women sold their bodies for a place to sleep.  Angel expects nothing from men but betrayal. Sold into prostitution as a child, she survives by keeping her hatred alive. And what she hates most are the men who use her, leaving her empty and dead inside. Then she meets Michael Hosea. A man who seeks his Father’s heart in everything, Michael Hosea obeys God’s call to marry Angel and to love her unconditionally. Slowly, day by day, he defies Angel’s every bitter expectation until, despite her resistance her frozen heart begins to thaw. But with her unexpected softening come overwhelming feelings of unworthiness and fear. And so Angel runs. Back to the darkness, away from her husband’s pursuing love, terrified of the truth she can no longer deny: Her final healing must come from the One who loves her even more than Michael Hosea does…the One who will never let her go.  A life-changing story of God’s unconditional, redemptive, all-consuming love. Over 1 million copies sold!

Review:
 I loved this book! It was absolutely beautiful, heart wrenching, soul cleansing...and so much more! This book truly shows the beauty of God's redeeming love! I sobbed throguh at least half of the book, laughed and audibly panicked throughout the rest. A wonderful read that was worth every minute. This novel will make you think about your life, but more importantly, the lives of those around you. Who are you condemning unjustly? This is the retelling of the story of Hosea, the Old Testament Bible Prophet. Definite recommendation, although the subject matter is for a more mature audience.

My Rating: 5/5

Have you read "Reedeming Love" by Francine Rivers? I would love to know what you thought!

Want to read it? Find it on Amazon!

Happy Reading!

"The Five Love Languages" by Gary Chapman (1992) - REVIEW

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"The B.B. Weekly Review"

This book would make a FABULOUS Christmas present!

Review: Incredible!! "The Five Love Languages" by Gary Chapman is a book that should be in every home's library. This book deals with learning how to love your spouse, from a Christian point of view, whether you have been married for a long time or not! Chapman thoroughly explores the five love languages; 'Words of Affirmation', 'Quality Time', 'Gift Giving', 'Acts of Service' and 'Physical Touch', detailing how to love your spouse in his or her primary language. 'Emotional Love' keeps the 'Love Tank' full and your marriage strong and growing. A book for anyone and everyone who wants to love those are them in the most effective way. The Five Love Languages can also be applied to children and friends, but this specific book is geared towards spousal love. We also have this book in the "Men's Edition"...but I have not read this version. :)

My Rating: 5/5

Have you read "The Five Love Languages" by Gary Chapman? I would love to know what you thought!

Want to read it? Find it on Amazon!

Happy Reading!

"The Chrysalids" by John Wyndham (1955) - REVIEW

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"The B.B. Weekly Review"

Review: "The Chrysalids" by John Wyndham brings to light the ridiculous importance that humans put on conforming to the 'norm.' 'Think pictures' and 'thought-shapes' enable a small group of individuals to communicate using only thought in a backwards world that is desperately trying to eliminate anything that deviates from the 'norm.' The book follows the life of a young boy who hides his mind powers in order to fit in to a world of harsh judgement and cruel treatment. He finds others like himself and the story unfolds to show that there are many people who simply do not fit into the perfect mold that their society demands. This work of 'Logical Fantasÿ' is brilliantly crafted.
It is a very eye opening and thought provoking book, especially with regards to the importance that humans put on trivial defects. My husband and I read this book together and both thoroughly enjoyed it!

My Rating: 5/5

Have you read "The Chrysalids" by John Wyndham? I would love to know what you thought!
Want to read it? Find it on Amazon!

Happy Reading!

"The Day of the Triffids" by John Wyndham (1951) - REVIEW

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"The B.B. Weekly Review"

SPOILER ALERT: This review may contain some slight spoilers.

Review: "The Day of the Triffids" by John Wyndham is a strangely moving novel. It is also very encouraging as you see normal people continue to persevere even after the near destruction of the human race. It is very true to life and compelling. Such a devestated and diffferent world is hard to imagine, but Wyndham makes it appear very real and (in a strange way) almost desirable.
The book follows the life and struggles of a man who can see in a world where everyone is suddenly blind and man-killing plants roam freely, causing mass destruction and chaos. Survival becomes a daily struggle and hard moral choices must be made. *Spoiler: It is very "fantastic" throughout, until you realize that the reason for the destrction is due to humanities rising knowledge and increased weapons research: self inflicted destruction of humanity.*
I enjoyed every minute of this book as my husband and I read it out loud.

 My Rating: 5/5

Have you read "The Day of the Triffids" by John Wyndham? I would love to know what you thought!

Want to read it? Find it on Amazon!

Happy Reading!

"The Family Nobody Wanted" by Helen Doss (1954) - REVIEW

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"The B.B. Weekly Review"

Review: "The Family Nobody Wanted" (1954)  by Helen Doss has been my favourite book since I first picked it up at the local homsechool lending library at the age of eight. I have read and re-read the book countless times. I never tire of the children's antics, or Helen and her Metholodist Minister husband, Carl Doss. After finding out that they can not physically have children of their own, they begin the long and arduous process of adoption. After struggling with their first adoption, and not wanting an only child, they decide to adopt "just one more baby" whihc turns into eleven more children in the next ten years! The rambunctious brood of twelve is made up of mixed race children that "nobody else wanted" to adopt. The book is filled with humorous tales of the children and their parents and is a heartwarming true story of one family who made a difference in so mnay people's lives.

My Rating: 5/5

Have you read "The Family Nobody Wanted" by Helen Doss? I would love to know what you thought!

Want to read it? Find it on Amazon!

Happy Reading!

"Oryx & Crake" by Margaret Atwood (2003) - REVIEW

A GREAT BIG HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL MY CANADIAN FOLLOWERS!!! Welcome to today's edition of

"The B.B. Weekly Review"

For this week's review, I have chosen one of my favourites... "Oryx & Crake" by Margaret Atwood. I will be reviewing several Atwood books over the next few weeks... so stay tuned!

Review: "Oryx & Crake" by Margaret Atwood (2003) will change the way you look at humanity. Some of the seemingly ridiculous 'discoveries' and 'inventions' in the novel are scarily close to what is happening today. It makes one feel that humanity is heading towards its own destruction, faster and faster. Atwood does not shy away from edgy topics that many Authors would rather allude to, or keep 'hush-hush'. If you like edgy/sci-fi fiction, you will enjoy Atwood's novel "Oryx & Crake". Thought inspiring and compelling throughout, I definitely couldn't put this book down for long. This is one of those books you will keep coming back to and you will never stop asking questions.
For a mature audience.

My Rating: 5/5

Have you read "Oryx & Crake" by Margaret Atwood? I would love to know what you thought!
Want to read it? Find it on Amazon!
Want to read a more thorough review of the book? Check it out at The Book Stew

Happy Reading!

"Alas Babylon" by Pat Frank (1959) - REVIEW

Goodday and welcome to

"The B.B. Weekly Review"

This week I have chosen to review the book "Alas Babylon" by Pat Frank.

Review: "Alas Babylon" by Pat Frank (1959) was a fantastic read!As a novel, it was easy to read and kept me interested from cover to cover. More than that, however, it really makes you stop and think; what if nuclear warfare began to destroy the world? Would people be able to survive? What would they do? Would they revert back to base animal instincts, or be "civilized" to the end?
This novel details the daily lives of a family learning to survive in a new world after a nuclear disaster hits the world. When this book was written, people were still a lot more self-sufficient than they are today. Reading from a Twentyfirst Century view point, I think most people would be a lot worse off than Pat Frank makes them appear to be in the mid-Twentieth Century.
 Compelling and real, I couldn't put the book down until it was finished. I read this book out loud to my husband while we were driving and we both thoroughly enjoyed it. I would recommend this book to anyone.

My Rating: 5/5

Have you read "Alas Babylon" by Pat Frank? I would love to know what you thought!
Want to read it? Find it on Amazon!

Happy Reading!