Dangerous Mercy by Kathy Herman

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Dangerous Mercy
(David C. Cook - October 1, 2011)
by
Kathy Herman

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Suspense novelist Kathy Herman is very much at home in the Christian book industry, having worked five years on staff at the Christian Booksellers Association (CBA) in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and eleven years at Better Books Christian Center in Tyler, Texas, as product buyer/manager for the children’s department, and eventually as director of human resources.

She has conducted numerous educational seminars on children’s books at CBA Conventions in the U.S. and Canada, served a preliminary judge for the Gold Medallion Book Awards of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association , and worked as an independent product/marketing consultant to the CBA market.

Since her first novel, Tested by Fire, debuted in 2001 as a CBA national bestseller, she's added sixteen more titles to her credit, including four bestsellers: All Things Hidden, The Real Enemy, The Last Word, and The Right Call.

Kathy's husband Paul is her manager and most ardent supporter, and the former manager of the LifeWay Christian Store in Tyler, Texas. They have three grown children, five almost-perfect grandchildren, a cat named Samantha. They enjoy cruising, deep sea fishing, and birdwatching—sometimes incorporating these hobbies into one big adventure.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. —Matthew 5:7

When eighty-five-year-old Adele Woodmore moves to Les Barbes to be near the Broussards—and her namesake, their daughter—she wants nothing more than a comfortable, quiet life. Employing men from Father Vince’s halfway house for the homeless to do odd jobs and landscaping, she delights in the casual conversation she has with them, the fledgling friendships, and the idea that she is helping them get back on their feet.

A series of murders in Les Barbes has cast a pall over the town and, in fact, one of Adele’s handymen becomes a person of interest to the police. But Adele cares for these young men, she knows them, and continues to show them kindness in spite of her friends’ concern. And then one day a murderer walks through Adele’s defenses, sits down at her kitchen table...and they begin to talk...

MY THOUGHTS:

Kathy Herman is back with her signature suspense in the second venture into the Roux River Bayou. While I did figure out who the perpetrator was fairly early, there was more than enough depth in this story to keep me occupied in putting the puzzle pieces into place to determine the 'why's and wherefore's' of the mystery, and a couple of twists at the end left me more than satisfied.

I love how Kathy also tied the term "Dangerous Mercy" into the story. All mercy involves risk...and her character Adele exemplified this very well, in spite of the reticence of many of her closest friends. When I closed the back cover of this book, Matthew 5:7 came to mind, especially in light of the twists at the end..."Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy." (NIV)

If you would like to read the first chapter of Dangerous Mercy, go HERE.

Miss E's Fall into Reading List

Last week as I was putting up my list for the Fall into Reading challenge hosted by Katrina at Callapidder Days, I asked my soon to be 11 year old daughter (Miss E)if she would like to put a list together to challenge herself this time around. Miss E agreed to put together a list for me to post. She has a busy year at school with her studies and Honor Choir, but I'm confident she'll do her best to complete her list.

Miss E's Fall into Reading List

Stolen Words - Amy Goldman Koss
Mackenzie Blue - Tina Wells
The Secret Crush - Tina Wells
Mixed Messages - Tina Wells
Mary Anne Saves the Day - Raina Telgemeier
With the Might of Angels - Andrea Davis Pinkney
Pie - Sarah Weeks
Hound Dog True - Linda Urban
The Spaghetti Detectives - Andreas Steinhöfel
The Great Mogul Diamond - G P Taylor

Mark Twain Award Nominees (Past & Present)
-this list will probably be added to-
The Mysterious Case of the Allbright Academy - Diane Stanley
The Secret of Zoom - Lynne Jonell
Mudville - Kurtis Scaletta
Captain Nobody - Dean Pitchford

The Mallory Series by Laurie Friedman
Mallory on the Move
Happy Birthday, Mallory!
Mallory's Super Sleepover
In Business with Mallory
Heart to Heart with Mallory
Mallory on Board
Honestly, Mallory!
Campfire Mallory
Step Fourth, Mallory!
Happy New Year, Mallory!
Mallory Goes Green!
Mallory's Guide to Boys, Brothers, Dads and Dogs

Fashion Kitty Series by Cherise Mericle Harper
Fashion Kitty
Fashion Kitty versus The Fashion Queen
Fashion Kitty and the Unlikely Hero
Fashion Kitty and the B.O.Y.S. (Ball of Yellow String)

Larry Boy Series
Larry Boy and the Emperor of Envy - Sean Gaffney
Larry Boy and the Awful Ear Wax Attacks - Bob Katula
Larry Boy and the Sinister Snow Day - Sean Gaffney
Larry Boy and the Yodelnapper - Kent Redeker
Larry Boy in the Good, the Bad, and the Eggly - Kent Redeker
Larry Boy versus the Volcano - Doug Peterson

Bonus Books
Jahanara: Princess of Princesses - Kathryn Lasky

*Titles in BOLD PRINT indicate that the book has been read.

Happy Fall...and Happy Reading Everyone!

Fall into Reading 2011

It's that time of year again...when leaves are falling, the air is starting to chill, and books are begging to be read! Yes...it's time for FALL INTO READING 2011, hosted once again by the marvelous Katrina at Callapidder Days. If you're interested in joining the challenge (which runs from today until December 21st), get all the pertinent info here.

This year is the first year that I will not have any children at home during the daytime hours, so I'm hoping to get plenty of reading time and make some progress on reading books from my infamous buckling bookshelves. Here's the list I've put together, separated by different headings...and like always I'll have a running list of BONUS BOOKS that I finish above and beyond (or instead of) my initial posting.

Happy reading, everyone!

BOOKS FROM THE LIBRARY:
Sketchy Behavior by Erynn Mangum
Dangerous Mercy by Kathy Herman
Attracted to Fire by DiAnn Mills
The Trial of Alex Lord by Ray Blackston
Lie for Me by Karen Young

BOOKS (SOME OLD/SOME NEW) ON MY SHELF:
To Die For by Sandra Byrd
Perfectly Invisible by Kristin Billerbeck
Throw the Devil off the Train by Stephen Bly
Carrying Mason by Joyce Magnin
Patchwork Dreams by Laura V Hilton
Falling to Pieces by Vannetta Chapman
A Wedding Blunder in the Black Hills by Kim O'Brien
A Bride's Portrait of Dodge City, KS by Erica Vetsch
The First Gardener by Denise Hildreth Jones
Rest in Peace by Frances Devine
The Perfect Match by Janice Hanna
Blown Away by Nancy Mehl
Died in the Wool by E Ludwig/J Mowery
Burying the Hatchet by Chris Well
The Camera Never Lies by Elizabeth Goddard

BOOKS ON MY KINDLE FOR PC:
Chop, Chop by L N Cronk
Shattered: A Daughter's Regret by Melody Carlson
Delivery by Diana Prusik

CHRISTMAS THEMED BOOKS:
A Dog Named Christmas by Greg Kincaid
Blame it on the Mistletoe by Joyce Magnin
I'll Be Home for Christmas by Julie L. Cannon
A Marriage Carol by Chris Fabry & Gary Chapman
The Christmas Singing by Cindy Woodsmall
Love Finds You on Christmas Morning by D Mayne/T Perry
Remembering Christmas by Dan Walsh
Christmas in Sugarcreek by Shelley Shepard Gray

BONUS BOOKS:


*Titles in BOLD PRINT indicate that the book has been read.

Naomi's Gift by Amy Clipston

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Naomi's Gift
(Zondervan - September 12, 2011) by
Amy Clipston

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

From Amy:

A native of New Jersey, I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. I often joke that my fiction writing “career” began in elementary school as I wrote and shared silly stories with a close friend.

In 1991, I graduated from high school, and my parents and I moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia. My father retired, and my mother went to work full-time. I attended Virginia Wesleyan College in Norfolk, and I graduated with a degree in communications. I met my husband, Joe, during my senior year in college, a few days after my father had a massive stroke. Joe and I clicked instantly, and after a couple of months we started dating. We married four years later.

After graduating from VWC, I took a summer job with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk District, which turned into an eleven-year career. I worked in the Public Affairs Office for four years and then moved into Planning as a writer/editor.

One day while surfing the Internet for a professional editor’s group, I accidentally found a local fiction writing group, Chesapeake Romance Writers. I attended a meeting and I met writers in all stages of their careers. The group helped me realize that I did want to be an author, and it was my dream to see my name on the cover of one of my novels. Through Chesapeake Romance Writers, I learned how to plot, write, and edit a novel, and I also learned how to pursue an agent. I signed with Mary Sue Seymour at the Seymour Agency in 2006, shortly before Joe and I moved my parents and our sons to North Carolina.

My dream came true when I sold my first book in 2007. Holding my first book, A Gift of Grace, in my hands was exhilarating and surreal.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Take a trip to Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania, where you'll meet the women of the Kauffman Amish Bakery in Lancaster County. As each woman's story unfolds, you will share in her heartaches, trials, joys, dreams ... and secrets. You'll discover how the simplicity of the Amish lifestyle can clash with the 'English' way of life---and the decisions and consequences that follow. Most importantly, you will be encouraged by the hope and faith of these women, and the importance they place on their families. Naomi's Gift re-introduces twenty-four-year-old Naomi King, who has been burned twice by love and has all but given up on marriage and children. As Christmas approaches---a time of family, faith, and hope for many others---Naomi is more certain than ever her life will be spent as an old maid, helping with the family's quilting business and taking care of her eight siblings. Then she meets Caleb, a young widower with a 7-year-old daughter, and her world is once again turned upside-down. Naomi's story of romantic trial and error and youthful insecurities has universal appeal. Author Amy Clipston artfully paints a panorama of simple lives full of complex relationships, and she carefully explores cultural differences and human similarities, with inspirational results. Naomi's Gift includes all the details of Amish life that Clipston's fans enjoy, while delivering the compelling stories and strong characters that continue to draw legions of new readers.

If you'd like to read the first chapter of Naomi's Gift, go HERE.