{Fiction Guild} A Time to Stand by Robert Whitlow

Book Description:  In a small Georgia town where racial tensions run high and lives are at stake, can one lawyer stand up for justice against the tide of prejudice on every side?

Adisa Johnson, a young African-American attorney, is living her dream of practicing law with a prestigious firm in downtown Atlanta. Then a split-second mistake changes the course of her career.

Left with no other options, Adisa returns to her hometown where a few days earlier a white police officer shot an unarmed black teen who is now lying comatose in the hospital.

Adisa is itching to jump into the fight as a special prosecutor, but feels pulled to do what she considers unthinkable—defend the officer.

As the court case unfolds, everyone in the small community must confront their own prejudices. Caught in the middle, Adisa also tries to chart her way along a path complicated by her budding relationship with a charismatic young preacher who leads the local movement demanding the police officer answer for his crime.

My Thoughts:  The new fall book releases are quite good this year.  And Robert Whitlow has a new story.

Interesting how an author will write a fiction story about a current event in our world.  I think authors like to voice their opinions through a story.  

In any event, this is quite an tine resting story.

Adisa Johnson is a young African-American attorney who enjoys living her dream of practicing law in Atlanta.

However, Adisa returns to her small Georgia hometown where racial tensions are flying high because a white police officer shot an unarmed black teen who is comatose in a hospital.  But Adisa must consider what she believes/stands for because she is to defend the police officer who shot the teen.

And she is in a budding romance with a charismatic young preacher who is demanding that the local police officers make this a crime and punish the police office who shot the black teen. 

This story is more about emotions and how people, no matter what the skin color, can be racist.

This is a think.about.it.read . . .  what one really values and what one really believes is right no matter what ones skin color may be.

*This book was provided for review by the Fiction Guild*

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (September 12, 2017)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0718083032
• ISBN-13: 978-0718083038

The Gift Of Christmas Past: A Southern Romance by Cindy Woodsmall & Erin Woodsmall

Book Description:  Arson wasn't the only fire that ignited between them.  

Promises shattered.  

Lies spoken. 

She was arrested.  

He returned to the safety of his wealthy parents.

Almost ten years later, Hadley and Monroe are both specialists in the field of speech therapy. They meet again . . . thrown together to help a four-year-old-girl rendered mute after being rescued from a fire. 



My Thoughts:  Cindy Woodsmall has branched out into a different genre other than Amish reads.  And this time she has a coauthor, Erin Woodsmall, who has edited, brainstormed and researched books with Cindy. 

Hadley and Aaron are friends and then the fire!  The fire changes things.

Hadley was arrested but Aaron went home to his wealthy parents.  

Ten years later they meet again.   And they are both specialists in speech therapy.  They are to put there knowledge together to help a sweet little four-year-old who was traumatized by a fire.

As Hadley and Monroe work together secrets, hurts and something more comes out in their relationship.

This is quite a story!  The lives, loves and secrets of Hadley and Monroe take the reader on a journey of compassion, mercy and grace.

Sometimes life isn't all about us.  Sometimes it includes others and extending mercy to them.

A great story!

*This book was provided for review by the author*

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Stonewater Books; New edition (October 10, 2017)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0998753807
• ISBN-13: 978-0998753805

WOW {Warm Oven Wednesday}

I love fall and I absolutely LOVE pumpkin spiced latte.  However, I don't live near a Starbucks or any coffee place so when I found this recipe on Pinterest I was so happy!  

I love this recipe!  However, I simply add 1/4 cup water and 1 cup milk (2%), then I warm in the microwave for 2 minutes in a glass measuring cup.  I use all the listed ingredients and mix well with a spoon.  Don't skimp on the whipped topping (smile).  You may want to follow this recipe exactly.  It is so good and it's so much cheaper to make your own.

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups hot whole milk 4 teaspoons white sugar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

6 ounces double-strength brewed coffee 3 tablespoons sweetened whipped cream 3 pinches pumpkin pie spice

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Combine the hot milk, sugar, vanilla extract, and pumpkin pie spice in a blender; blend until frothy. Pour the mixture into 3 coffee mugs to about 2/3 full. Pour 2 ounces coffee into each mug. Garnish each mug with whipped topping and pumpkin pie spice.

Life In Chapel Springs by Anne Mulligan

The Story BehindLife in Chapel Springs

by Ane Mulligan

The most asked question I get is what prompted this story. Why Lacey? Why the accident and reconstruction? I’m a visual writer, so I need photos. When I start out with a new book (in this case the series), I find photos of people who look like the character I’m imagining. I use magazines and keep files of faces I’ve torn out of them. While looking for Lacey, I came across two photos appearing almost like a before and after of the same woman.

The resemblance was striking and sparked the “what if” that became Lacey’s story. Many women have life-altering surgery, whether elective, emergency, or life-saving. My research included interviewing a plastic surgeon and a psychologist, so I could be sure I had the psyche right and the surgery results correct. You see, often—more often than not—women have a difficult time with the results of these life-altering surgeries. A high percentage dislike the “new” self. It doesn’t match the image we women tend to carry inside us.

I still had one problem. The character Lacey was a shy, quiet young woman—so shy and quiet, she wasn’t even talking to me! I had to sit on her story for three years. Finally, after two more Chapel Springs books, Lacey “talked” to me. I understood her and could write her story. Maybe she was ready to tell it. 

What both Lacey and I both hope women will take away from her story in Life in Chapel Springs is that each of us is uniquely made by God, and as Great Aunt Lola used to say, “God don’t make no junk.”

About Life in Chapel Springs:

Life in Chapel Springs has turned upside down and inside out.

Shy Lacey Dawson was happily writing murder mysteries for the community theater with her eye on Broadway. Then, a freak accident results in traumatic injuries requiring facial reconstruction. When the bandages come off, Lacey’s world is tuned inside out. Will Chapel Springs rally behind its own … or will life unravel?

Is it a midlife pregnancy or … cancer? Claire will keep her secret until she’s sure—but it isn’t easy. Neither is trying to buy a home pregnancy test without anyone finding out. Between her twins’ double wedding, the caterer cancelling, a looming nationwide art tour and her health, Claire’s life is upside down. 

Gold has been discovered in Chapel Springs and the ensuing fever is rising. Then Mayor Riley discovers someone has bought the mineral rights to his land. A stranger and his nefarious investors set out to buy all the homes in Chapel Springs and mine the gold. Will life in Chapel Springs become the tailings of a gold mine?

About Ane Mulligan:

While a large, floppy straw hat is her favorite, award-winning author Ane Mulligan has worn many: hairdresser, legislative affairs director (that's a fancy name for a lobbyist), CEO of a Community Theatre group, playwright, humor columnist, and novelist. She firmly believes coffee and chocolate are two of the four major food groups. Ane resides in Sugar Hill, GA, with her artist husband. You can find her on her website, Amazon Author page, Novel Rocket, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Google+.

Peace on Earth {A Christmas Collection} by Mary Engelbreit

Book Description:  I surely wish with all my heart, This day of Jesus' birth, That peace and love and happiness Soon cover all the earth. Mary Engelbreit rings in the holiday with a Christmas collection that includes many of her favorite carols, the story of Jesus' birth, and beloved poems that touch the heart and celebrate the miracle of the season.

My Thoughts:  I absolutely Mary Engelbreit's artistry!  So, I was excited to receive this beautiful, hardback book where every page is filled with  Mary Engelbreit's beautiful art! 

The book is full of Christmas poems, Christmas carols and the Christmas story from the book of Luke.  It is suppose to be for kids ages 4-8 but it's SO sweet and unique that this "big" kid loves it, too!  This is an all things beautiful about Christmas book!

It's a keepsake book that should be saved, read at Christmastime and handed down to the next generation.  It's a book that many adults would like to read and look at too!  

The art work is fantastic and ever so colorful!  A wonderful addition to any Christmas tradition.  

I love this book!  It would also make a great gift...to be opened on Christmas Eve.

• Age Range: 4 - 8 years
• Hardcover: 40 pages

WOW {Warm Oven Wednesday}

Another GREAT recipe from Pinterest and it's not only delicious it doesn't stick to the hips!

Ingredients:

• 2 ripe bananas
• 1 1/2 cups almond flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla
• pinch of salt
• 2 eggs- whisked
• 1/4 cup coconut oil-melted
• 1/3 cup pecans or walnuts
• 1 or 2 tbs raw honey, depending on how ripe your bananas are and how sweet you like it
• 1/2 cup Enjoy Life brand mini chocolate chips
• Silicone muffin cups – if you have them

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl smash the bananas.
2. Add eggs, vanilla, coconut oil and honey. Blend together.
3. In a larger bowl combine dry ingredients: almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
4. Pour wet ingredients into dry mixture and blend well.
5. Add all but a couple of tablespoons of your chopped nuts.
6. Add chocolate chips.
7. Blend together.
8. Pour into silicone muffin cups.
9. Sprinkle remaining nuts on top of muffins.
10. Bake at 350 degrees for about 22-25 minutes.
11. Store covered in fridge or freeze for an on-the-go snack!

Book Description: Callie Hoffman has a good life in Kingdom, Kansas. She's engaged to Levi Housler, the new pastor of Kingdom Mennonite Church, and she spends her days working with Lizzie Housler, her friend and soon-to-be sister-in-law, at the town cafe. 

When a body is discovered on the road outside Kingdom and the deceased turns out to be the victim of a serial killer, the new county sheriff begins questioning Kingdom residents. Unsettled at the prospect of a killer in Kingdom, Callie is desperate to find answers for herself, especially when her own fiance seems to know more about the murder than he's telling. 

As the town battles an entirely unforeseen danger and Callie's very life is threatened, the stakes are as high as they've ever been and the people of Kingdom must learn anew to put their trust in God alone. 

My Thoughts: Another favorite author,Nancy Mehl, writes a fantastic novel in Unforeseeable!

I read the first two books in the Road To Kingdom series by Nancy Mehl and loved them!  So, again, I waited ever so {im}patiently for book 3.

Now Callie has a great life in Kingdom, Kansas and is engaged to Levi, the new pastor of Kingdom Mennonite Church.  

As the story begins the reader is hoping that Callie is on the road to a better life. And it seems like all is going well and, then, a body is discovered on the road outside of Kingdom. It seems that there is a serial killer in town.

Now Callie feels compelled to find the answers about the murders and it seems that her fiancee is "hiding" something from her.  Does he know more than he is telling?  The unforeseen danger of murder is like a milestone around the sweet town of Kingdom.  Can Callie help before the killer strikes again?  Especially when her own life is at risk?

What a read!  Full of light romance, mystery and suspense! 

The first two Road to Kingdom reads were great stories but this is by far my favorite!  

The first two reads in the Road to Kingdom:

• Series: Road to Kingdom (Book 3)
• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Bethany House Publishers 
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764209299
• ISBN-13: 978-0764209291