Crazy Dangerous By Andrew Klavan

Crazy Dangerous by Andrew Klavan revolves around a young man named Sam Hopkins who is a PK (preacher’s kid).  Sam narrates the book from his point of view the majority of time and is an easily likable character.  Tired of being treated differently because of his Preacher’s Kid status he inadvertently falls in with the wrong crowd of shady, misfit gangsters.  Sam soon realizes that he doesn’t fit in with this group of troublemakers after seeing how they brutally tease and slap around fellow classmate Jennifer.  Jennifer has quite the reputation of being a crazy girl known for her demonic hallucinations.  But are they really hallucinations or something else?...something bigger?  Definitely something bigger, and to find out what that is I suggest checking out the book.  This book has everything – violence, horror, suspense, mental illness, bullying, and there’s even some funny moments thrown in there.  It’s a quick, easy, entertaining read that I will definitely recommend to my fellow reading buddies.  This is the first novel I’ve read from Andrew Klavan and I look forward to checking out his other books.  I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com  book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255

Need You Now; By: Beth Wiseman

This book revolves around Darlene, her husband Brad, their three kids and their recent move from big city Houston to small town Round Top. Darlene’s always been a stay at home mom, but now that her kids are getting older she decides she wants to get a job and have some extra spending money. She gets hired as a teacher’s aide at a school for special needs children. During her time at the school she develops a unique bond with one of her students and inadvertently gets a bit too close to the student’s father. After a few weeks of working, Darlene discovers that one of her daughters is having a hard time coping with the move and has taken to harming herself. Darlene leaves her job and faces the task of keeping her marriage together, making sure her daughter gets the appropriate help, and helping her movie star next door neighbor through some difficult times. I thought this book was beautifully written and did a great job touching the issues of everyday life…even issues that people don’t like to talk about. The end of the book had me in tears and heard somewhere that there will be second book to this series. I sure hope so because I can’t wait to read it! I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze® book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

The 13th Tribe By: Robert Liparulo

The premise of this book caught my attention immediately. A group of immortal individuals who have been around since the days of Moses, how could that not interest someone? The immortals are called the 13^th Tribe and they are on a mission to end their mortality and join God in heaven. The story revolves around The 13^th Tribe and Jagger Baird along with his wife and young son.

After a car accident caused by a drunk driver kills his best friend and amputates his arm, Jagger has lost his faith, his hope and is angry at God. Thinking it will be good for him and his family to get away for a while, Jagger takes a job as head of security for an archeological dig near Mt. Sinai. As he tries to rebuild the pieces of his life, he and his family unintentionally get involved with the Tribe and that’s when the action starts. This book was a little slow in the beginning, but it picks up speed quite fast and is filled with lots of action. I would recommend to anyone for a good read and I look forward to more great books from the author. I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

Bittersweet Surrender, By: Diann Hunt

I received this book from BookSneeze in exchange for my honest opinion. Bittersweet Surrender by Diann Hunt is about Carly Westlake finally getting her life back after dealing with a bad divorce and a battle with breast cancer. Business at her chocolate spa is starting to pick up, and her childhood crush, Jake, (who is also her brother's best friend) is moving back into town and he is ready to move full speed ahead with the Internet relationship they've had going on. Her best friend, Scott, who has always been there for Carly and helped her through her hard times of divorce and cancer always goes above and beyond being there for Carly. Carly is nervous about Jake's return. She is uncomfortable about her weight and her body after the mastectomy she had. Scott helps her feel better about herself and encourages her to go running with him. Jake arrives into town and is the typical man-jerk and not at all how Carly remembered. She tries to make it work, but soon realizes her heart just isn't in it. Meanwhile, after Scott has seen Carly with Jake he begins to get jealous and soon realizes that he has romantic feelings for Carly. As far as stories go, this one is pretty predictable, but definitely a feel good "chick flick" story. The first few chapters were hard for me to get into, but as the characters developed I found myself liking the book way more than I anticipated. I would recommend to a friend.

Ascent from Darkness, By Michael Leehan

I received this book free from the publisher through the Booksneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255. Ascent from Darkness chronicles the life of author Michael Leehan. Michael has been a full on Satanist for 20 years and as lived life in the dark side which included channeling evil spirits, self mutilation rituals, animal sacrifices, possession, infiltrating churches, leaving satanic bibles in places of worship, and even an assignment from Satan to assassinate a pastor. Things get so bad for Michael that he decides to take his own life and even writes several suicide letter to his family and kids, but God had other plans for him. Eventually, as the title indicates, Michael ascends from the darkness into the light, and accepts Jesus into his life. Accepting Jesus into his life was no easy task for him, but luckily God provided him with a fantastic Christian support group of friends who never gave up on him. I can't say enough good things about this book. I was completely drawn in and had a difficult time putting it down and it definitely sparked some great conversation topics about faith and how God works. I encourage everyone to read this book, you will not be disappointed. This book will have you in tears at the end...tears of joy!

The Encounter by Stephen Arterburn

I received this book from BookSneeze in exchange for my honest opinion. The Encounter by Stephen Arterburn is about a wealthy businessman named Jonathan Rush who travels back to his home town of Fairbanks Alaska to figure out why his mother abandoned him and left him at an orphanage when he was just four years old. During Jonathan's journey back home (at the encouragement of his pastor) we learn a lot about his character including how confused and resentful he is of his mother. He is haunted by the fact that his mother abandoned him, but he soon learns that things are never what they seem and how important forgiveness is. After many dead ends to finding his mother he reluctantly teams up with a press journalist who helps him out in a big way. This was an incredibly easy read that I finished in a couple sittings. It could have used a little more background and character development because I felt like the story moved a little too fast for my taste and I found myself wanting to know more information about the characters. The overall message was very inspiring and I would definitely recommend this book to a friend. I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Surprised By Oxford: A memoir by Carolyn Weber

Carolyn "Caro" Weber's memoir is truly an inspiring read. I'm not a big memoir reader, but boy am I glad I decided to read this book. I can easily relate to the author and her journey for faith. Caro arrives in Oxford on a scholarship, but leaves with much more than her educational experiences. While in Oxford she begins pondering God and faith and befriends a great man named TDH (aka Tall Dark & Handsome) who is a devout Christian and true gentleman. Caro and TDH have several intense conversations about faith and what being a Christian is all about. Caro begins her search for Christ and along the way deals with family and friends who don't quite understand her search and how important it is to her. This includes her mom, sister and fiance. The author does an excellent job describing Oxford and her educational experiences there. I thoroughly enjoyed the anecdotes of literature throughout the book and am glad that Caro shared her story with us. Easily one of the best memoirs I've ever read. This book was a quick read for me due to the fact that I had a hard time putting it down. I will definitely be recommending this book to my family and friends. I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.