Book Reviews

Vengeance by Cody Clark

/ kellyfbarr / 2 Comments

I received this ebook free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program.  When I read the blurb about the ebook, I thought the story would be very much like a couple of Frank Peretti’s well-know books, but it turned out to be quite different than I thought it would be.  Vengeance is a short story about spiritual warfare.  It is told in a very interesting way, moving back and forth between our known world where a man is struggling over the death of his son, and the spiritual realm where the angels and demons battle for the man’s soul, so to speak.

I enjoyed the story, though it moved more quickly than I liked, but, of course, that’s to be expected to create a short story.  In the beginning it was difficult to route for the main character. It took quite a while for me to care enough about the main character to route for him.  The battle between angels and demons is impressive.  I always struggle, though, when angels are described as having wings because the Bible doesn’t say that the angels have wings.  It speaks about angels appearing to people in the Old Testament, but wings are not mentioned in any of those passages.  It mentions heavenly host appearing to the shepherds in the fields, and, I guess because they are in the air, we assume they have wings, but only cherubim and seraphim are described as having wings, and yes, they are technically angels, but they are a certain type of angels.

I did like the story.  I cared about the angels from the very start and cheered for them, although I knew they couldn’t lose.  I did finally begin to care about the human man in the story and want him to do the right thing as well.  I really liked the ending and the way Cody Clark wrote the ending and brought it all together.  The story was very moving and inspirational.  It also challenged me, personally, in my faith and in my thoughts and attitudes toward others, especially someone who may have caused me pain.  I recommend this story to anyone who enjoys a good, inspirational story, and to anyone who may be struggling with the idea of forgiveness.  This story has a powerful message of forgiveness.

I am always amazed when a writer can create a great short story because good story elements require good characters and a good plot line with conflict, and to pull all of that off in a short story takes a lot of talent and hard work.  Congratulations Cody Clark on writing a good short story that includes the required elements of story.  I look forward to reading something written by you in the future.

Breaker’s Reef by Terri Blackstock

/ kellyfbarr / 1 Comment

I have been a Terri Blackstock fan for some time.  Her books always keep me turning pages and Breaker’s Reef was no exception.  I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program, and I must admit that when I received the book and saw that it is book four of the “Cape Refuge Series”, I thought I might be lost because I hadn’t read the first three books in the series.  However, that was not the case.  I’m sure that many of the characters are part of the first three books as Cape Refuge is a town, but Ms. Blackstock wrote this book in such a way that I could read it and not feel like I was reading a book from a series where I had missed a lot of important information.  She gave enough information on the characters that I understood them and the connections between them, and the plot line seemed independent.

Breaker’s Reef is the story of Sadie, a young lady who has lived a difficult life, whose mother has recently straightened out her own life though she has a secret that is soon revealed — she had another daughter before Sadie, one she gave up for adoption. When a murder takes place, Sadie’s mom thinks she may have information as to who may have done it.  Then, another young girl turns up dead and another missing.  Danger seems to lurk around every corner as Sadie decides to try to find the missing girl.  In between all of the murders and abductions, the Police Chief is trying to propose to the woman he has loved for a long time, but the case seems to grow more tangled and time consuming every day.

Breaker’s Reef is suspenseful and gripping with a touch of humor and romance.  It definitely kept me turning pages.  The young ladies in this book were impressive characters in the way they showed compassion and wanted to help other young girls in trouble.  They encouraged others to take a step to change their lives.  The story and its characters were inspiring.

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a good mystery with an inspirational message.  If you love a story that grabs your attention and holds it until the very end, Breaker’s Reef is a book you’ll want to read.  I can’t wait to read the first three that came before Breaker’s Reef in the “Cape Refuge Series”.

A Disappointing Giveaway and What’s New for the New Year

/ kellyfbarr / 4 Comments

I must say that I am stunned!  My giveaway posts earned me some new followers, and to all of you who are now following me, I extend a hearty welcome!  I hope you will find many posts here that you will find enjoyable, inspirational and/or helpful.  However, the requirements for a winner for the giveaway was that people were supposed to leave comments on my giveaway post letting me know how long they have been a follower on this blog and what they would like to see more or less of, and, to my chagrin, the giveaway post received not one single comment.  Therefore, I am disappointed to announce:  the winner is . . . No One!

Maybe it was the books I chose to give away.  Maybe they were too old.  Maybe no one who reads this blog is a fan of Mary Higgins Clark.  Maybe you don’t read Christmas mysteries.  I don’t know what happened, but I never thought that “giving something away” — for free would fail.  But alas, it has.  I will, however, try not to take it personally and will attempt to have another giveaway at a much later date.

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Now for the happier, more positive item — What’s New for the New Year?  Well, I know I did this a couple of weeks before the new year, but my blog has a new look.  I think it’s cleaner, crisper and sharper.  I hope you all like it too!  Also, the photo in my blog header, behind by blog title box, is one I took while we were on vacation on Chincoteague and Assateague Islands in October 2014.  I thought it went well with the new look.

Also, if you scroll down the page and look at the things listed on my right sidebar, you will notice a button for BookLook Bloggers.  I have decided that since I love to read so much, and reading and writing go hand-in-hand, AND since I enjoy writing book reviews anyway, that I would join BookLook Bloggers.  I should be receiving my first book soon, so I hope you will look forward to upcoming book reviews here at Kelly F Barr.

I was excited to receive a year-end report from WordPress on my blog.  I don’t believe I received such a report at the end of 2013, so this must be new as well, and I found it very helpful to see what my readers (you) like to read.  I hope to use this information to keep you all reading here.

I was also shocked and thrilled to look at my follower count today.  The last time I was here, my follower count was just under 90, and I was hoping to hit 100 by 2015, and here it is, January 1, 2015, and my follower count now says 198!  I am not sure if that’s due to the fact that I updated some settings and have the blog automatically connected to my other social media sites now, instead of me simply posting links to all of my posts on Facebook and Twitter, or if the follower counter could somehow be wrong.  But, I hope that it’s accurate and that the count continues to climb.  I don’t worry too much about numbers, but I don’t look at my followers as numbers — I look at them as my readers; readers I hope will come to love what I write and spread the word that what I write is worth reading, because, as a writer, my desire is that others would find value in what I write.

In 2015, I will also continue to keep you up-to-date on my writing journey.  In the past month, I have submitted two nonfiction short pieces for consideration; one to a children’s/family devotional magazine and one for possible publication in an upcoming book of inspirational short nonfiction stories.  I will keep you posted on any response I receive for these submissions.  Just having submitted a couple of things makes me feel like a real writer and it motivates me to keep writing.  I have a few more short nonfiction pieces I want to write and submit to other locations soon, and I will certainly keep writing my fiction.

I saw a friend on Monday who asked me if I’m still writing.  I told her that yes, I am, and that, as a matter of fact, I had recently begun submitting things, hoping to gain some recognition and maybe earn a little money for my writing as well.  I was so blessed by the next words that came out of her mouth, “Well, I don’t know why someone wouldn’t pick you up.  You’re good.”  Such words of encouragement are a light to my writer’s soul.

Love Unexpected by Jody Hedlund

/ kellyfbarr / 2 Comments

I recently read Jody Hedlund’s ebook Out of the Storm.  It is a novella and I enjoyed it very much.  Included at the end of that ebook novella were the first five chapters of Love Unexpected by Jody Hedlund.  I read those first five chapters and couldn’t wait to get my hands on the book so that I could read the rest of the story.

My friend Lisa, Living Echoes, read the book and did a review on it, and last Saturday, she asked me if I would like to read it because I had commented on her review that I had never read a book by Jody Hedlund (I had read the ebook novella since making that comment).  I was so happy, when she handed me the book.  I couldn’t wait to dig into it.  I began reading it that evening and finished it this afternoon.

Love Unexpected by Jody Hedlund is about a young woman who is traveling on a boat with her brother.  Pirates attack the boat and Emma, the young woman, and her brother, Ryan, are rescued by the Presque Isle lighthouse keeper.  Presque is a remote place in Michigan.  There are only two other woman on Presque Isle when Emma and Ryan arrive, an older woman and her daughter-in-law.

Ryan is taken in by a family because he can work for the man, but Emma is not really welcome to stay with them.  An unlikely solution presents itself when the lighthouse keeper arrives in town.  His wife has just passed away and he is having difficulty caring for his two-year-old child and the lighthouse.  A traveling preacher suggests that Emma marry the lighthouse keeper as a solution to both of their problems.  She hastily agrees and finds herself unprepared for parenting an exuberant toddler and managing a household.

The story is suspenseful and romantic.  I fell in love with Emma and Patrick, the lighthouse keeper, quickly and longed for them both to find happiness with each other.  Jody Hedlund created such rich characters in Emma and Patrick that I couldn’t help but love them and route for them throughout a well-written plot; a plot that constantly created problems and emotional upset in their lives.

The story was spiritually inspiring, as Patrick lived a life of faith and had already learned some difficult lessons in his life.  I was challenged by something that Patrick shares with Emma on page 94. (You’ll have to read the book to find out what those words are.)

This is the first book in a new series by Jody Hedlund; a series called “Beacons of Hope” and I look forward to reading each one as it becomes available.  I highly recommend this book to adult women who enjoy well-written historical fiction stories that include good, clean romance.

I wrote this book review on my own.  I did not write it for a publisher and I did not receive a free copy of the book.  I simply borrowed the book from a friend, but I enjoyed it so much and loved the characters so much that I wanted to write a review and encourage others to read it.

Those of you interested in writing may also want to check out Jody Hedlund’s blog:  Jody Hedlund.  She does a great job encouraging writers.  I’ve been reading her blog for months.