Wiser Than Serpents, Bringing Social Issues To Light In A Thriller!

I read a book last month that drew me into the world of modern day slavery and into the main character's (Yanna) world. She's out to rescue her sister, as you'll read more on below. When the chance to review this book came about, I jumped right away, I knew I'd want to read it.

I hadn't given any thought to human slavery and the world of sex-trafficking until this year. My son, Cody, has been involved with a group aimed at bringing awareness to this very issue and even gave a presentation about it at our church this past Winter. And, as life sometimes does, God further placed this issue on my heart last month, even after I had this book in my hands. When I went to the CBF in Memphis, one of the most dynamic speakers I've ever heard in my lifetime spoke about the sex-trafficking issues through Lauren Bethell. She knocked my socks off with her message of hope, acceptance, and her ability to be Jesus to the women who have fallen pray to this horrendous trade. So in my mind, it was providential that I get the opportunity to read and post information about this book.

A Note From Susan:

Did you know that there are 27 million people around the globe held as slaves today – more than 80% of them women and children, and up to 50% minors. In fact, there are MORE slaves today than were in the time of William Wilberforce. That leaves me horrified, and it was those stats that compelled me to write a story with a human trafficking plotline.

Wiser than Serpents (buy here)is a continuation of the Mission:Russia series, a thriller about Yanna, whose sister is snatched through a Russian dating service, and disappears. Yanna enlists the help of Delta Force Captain, David Curtiss to find and rescue her. Readers who’ve read, In Sheep’s Clothing and Sands of Time will recognize Yanna as the tech expert, and David as the solid Christian of the group. (Read the 5-Rose Review here!)

The book is written from the point of views of the rescuers, not the victims, and offers hope and empowerment, instead of feelings of helplessness. It raises awareness without lowering the standards of Christian fiction. (Our reliance on God and how he can bring us through is woven throughout this book.)

Susan is giving away 15% of the royalties from this book to International Justice Mission, check out their site when you get the chance. I like knowing part of my purchase, combined with everyone else's, will make a great difference in lives.

About Susan:

Susan May Warren is the award-winning author of seventeen novels and novellas with Tyndale, Steeple Hill and Barbour Publishing. Her first book, Happily Ever After won the American Fiction Christian Writers Book of the Year in 2003, and was a 2003 Christy Award finalist. In Sheep’s Clothing, a thriller set in Russia, was a 2006 Christy Award finalist and won the 2006 Inspirational Reader’s Choice award. A former missionary to Russia, Susan May Warren now writes Suspense/Romance and Chick Lit full time from her home in northern Minnesota.

About Wiser Than Serpents:

When her sister vanishes into a human slave ring, FSB agent Yanna Andrevka is determined to rescue her. Unfortunately, she's in over her head, with no way out, especially after destroying the undercover operation of Delta Force Operative David Curtiss, who is deep undercover in the Twin Serpents crime syndicate. David has his hands full trying to save Yana, and his operation--on that could rescue hundreds of women from the Serpent, or cost he and Yana their lives. The thrilling next chapter of the Mission: Russia series!

Susan is giving away three sets of this Mission:Russia series, so if you're like me and want to dive into a great series this summer, head over to Susan's blog and leave a comment. Not just any comment, but tel her about the mission organizations you currently support and why it is you support them. I'm headed over now to do just that! Good luck, and happy reading.

You Won't Soon Forget This One......

I've been given the honor of sharing a fascinating book with you--and I jumped at the chance to be part of this blog tour. If you're an avid reader like myself and you heart fiction that doesn't forget God's hand in our lives, then you've probably heard of Tricia Goyer already. Maybe you've read some of her books, Life Interrupted, My Life Unscripted, From Ashes to Dust, and so many more. She's got a clear grasp on hunting down historical details, adding characters that are intertwined and drenched with energy and hope, then placing those characters into a plot that's going to keep you turning pages all night long!

A Whisper of Freedom is the third book in her Spanish Civil War Series. Here, you'll catch up with Sophie's heart and her hair raising adventure right from the beginning. It's hard to imagine how heart-wrenching it it was to be caught up in the Spanish Civil War, but Tricia's attention to detail combined with her story telling talent gives us a glimpse. Not only that, here she writes far more than a book, but captures a story of faith not to be forgotten.

If you're feeling as drawn into the series as I am, you can win the entire three book series in the Chronicles of the Spanish Civil War Series. And in entering, you get a fun meme to post on your own blog. This meme gives you an opening to share missions and/or charities you have a heart for. Oh...and to sweeten the pot just a little, they're throwing in gourmet chocolate coins too. You know.... reading chocolate. I read better with chocolate in one hand and a book in the other!

Copy the meme questions below and answer the questions, then head over to Tricia's place and let her know your meme is up. That's it! It's almost as easy as getting lost in an amazing Christian novel while popping gourmet chocolate coins into your mouth. Click HERE to grab the questions off Tricia's blog and let her know you're playing.

1. List three things you would do with a chest full of gold (assuming you got to keep it!)

1. Update the nursing home my friend John resides in and hire employees worthy of working with the beautiful aging residents.
2. Bring Gervasio to the US to study medicine.
3. Pay our debts and the debts of all our friends and family (assuming it's a big chest).

2. List three charities/missions/organizations you support (and why).

1. Cornerstone Church....they are my family.
2. MiracleWord.net because the concept is so simple yet so incredible...read Scripture and come to know the miracle within those pages.
3. Compassion International...we sponsor two beautiful children, Catherine and Gervasio.

3. List three ways you have volunteered your time/services

1. I used to be a candy striper (loved loved loved the jumpers, lol)
2. Visiting elderly at the nursing home.
   
3. Church--wherever I'm told to go.
   

4. List three things you keep "hidden" when company comes over.

1. My kids! (Okay I'm kidding, but sometimes I wish I could)
2. My sewing room--it's downright dangerous if you don't know what you're doing!
3. That's about it, honestly, my friends know I'm not pulled together all the time. And when I finally decided to let them see the real me, suddenly I was free to welcome my friends anytime!
   

5. List the last three things you've lost.

1. My bank card.
2. My gold nugget necklace.
3. Is my mind too cliche?

6. List the last three things you've found.

1. My bank card (car).
2. My gold nugget necklace (where it belongs, pshh last place I look!)
3. $5.00 in my jacket--love that!
   

*There's MORE! Tricia has set aside five signed copies of A Whisper of Freedom for you, my friends, to win. If you want to win your own signed copy (and I know you do), just sign up for her newsletter HERE!

What Do YOU Want?

I devoured this book pretty much the day I received it in the mail. This is FANTASTIC! The little tag line on their blog says 'Buy it today and start on the journey!'. It's true, I keep coming back to it to re-read some of the chapters that meant so much to me. It's a Christian based book that is just what the title says it is. The two authors, Lisa T. Bergren and Rebecca Price, have asked just that question and compiled a journey worth taking.

If I had to take one chapter out of the book to call my favorite, it has to be Chapter Four, Soul Sisters. And they recognize we all want deep friendships with other women, it's so important to our well being, in my opinion. They break this into the Whitewater Classes of Friendship, with Class I being acquaintances and Class V being friends who have weathered the whitewater and came out on the other end still friends. I like that....I think many of you know I find great joy and comfort in my friendships with other women and am so grateful I have such wonderful friends (blogfriends included). It wasn't always like that for me, I was a 'keep your distance' kind of woman. Until my family fell apart and I realized if I was ever going to have the closeness and security I had with my sister, I was going to have to be vulnerable and let my friends in. I did and I have been blessed beyond my wildest imagination. I could have used this chapter to navigate the path.

I'm thinking of getting a group of friends together every other week or so just to read the chapters and get a good discussion going. I can use the accountability AND I could use the support. We all do. Some of the other topics you'll find include:

• Peace/Contentment in your life (would be nice!)


• Your relationship with God (the most important relationship)


• Finding purpose in your life

AND then Part 2, all the chapters that include how God satisfies these wants. It's such an innovative way to do a book like this!

Okay enough of my excitement, of course there is a contest! If you tell them about your sister of the heart and email it to amy@litfusegroup.com you'll get this story published on their blog ( http://www.satisfiedheart.com/blog/) . Okay it gets cooler...the story with the MOST comments will win a copy of this incredible book, a soundtrack of your choice for your 'sister of the heart' AND will be entered to win $15 at Starbucks. Let me know if you do this, I'll be sure to go over and comment.

You can check out the Five Minute Survey HERE, and check out Chapter One HERE.

If you do nothing else, at least consider the book for your next Bible study...I think there's more than one topic that will impact everyone in your group. Click the photo of the book and it'll take you straight to Amazon.com. I honestly think it would make a great Mother's Day gift too. This book is geared for women of EVERY age.

A Mother's Heart Knows....And Two Giveaways Too!

When I tore open the package that contained my copy of A Mother's Heart Knows, I was pleasantly surprised. I found stunning and poignant illustrations on every page...and nestled in between the pages are all the things we as children, as mothers, aunts, godparents...know a mother's heart knows.

I went through the book several times and couldn't help lingering on this one: "A mother's heart knows and wants to understand". Oh my...if that isn't written just for my daughter and me, I don't know for whom!

To buy this book is to help support WINGS, a program offering their services to homeless and abused women and children. I looked at the site and found their mission statement to share with you:

Our Mission: The mission of WINGS is to provide a continuum of integrated services in an effort to end domestic violence and homelessness one family at a time

ALL of the royalty proceeds to to this program in addition to supporting a student missionary scholarship fund. The way I see it, to buy this book is to support two great causes AND at the same time give your mom or special mom-figure in your life, a book that is for certain going to put tears in her eyes. If you click here, HERE you can purchase the book online in plenty of time for Mother's Day.

Okay it gets even better! Want to win a "My Favorite Mom" spa basket? Maybe for yourself or maybe to give away? Here is what you do:

Go on over to Margaret's blog and share your favorite story about your mother or someone who is like a mother to you and you will be entered. I KNOW you have some, I've read them and I'm certain Margaret will want to hear them as well. She'll share them on her blog (with your permission) and enter you for the contest. AND if you comment on the post I've linked you to, you'll not only get a blog tour schedule, but you'll be entered to win a copy of this book for yourself. I like book tours like this, great giveaways. Let me know if you enter, I'd love to read your story on Margaret's blog.

Gen X Giveaway Time

*Yikes, I come back here tonight and re-read what I wrote here and OH.MY.GOODNESS! I read that third paragraph and am sooo embarrassed. I don't know what in the world I was typing when I wrote about Angela being accomplished. I couldn't expect you to figure out what that was code for, so just in case you came by and clicked out shaking your head and tsk tsk tsk-ing, what I wanted to say was that Angela is an accomplished writer herself. She's out of town, so she may not even read this for awhile, much to my relief. It's the direct result of the lack of sleep I've been getting lately. Tonight, another very late night, I'm afraid, so I need to get gone! Oh, wait...I finally got that third column up, but haven't got the standard template replaced. The digi blog template is still in limbo, too. Next time I should wait until I have enough time to do things properly. Sigh.

All things must come to an end, and sometimes that's a good thing. A very good thing! Especially when the end refers to the drawing for the two very amazing GenX books by Tricia Goyer. I don't have the GenX Parenting book, but because I devoured the marriage book and honestly enjoyed it thoroughly, I'm going to order my own copy this week.

However, one very lucky reader doesn't need to do that, she's going to receive BOTH books because her number was the eXtra-special number. I did the random number generator early in the morning but didn't get it posted...in fact I'm on a very old decrepit laptop as I type this, my computer is disconnected for a good part of today, so I'm sorry I can't even access my GenX photos quickly and I have an appointment soon, so trying right now isn't an option for me!

Okay, as the screenshot below indicates, Angelawd, YOU won! I'm very happy for her--Angela is an accomplished was much as I did. If you've got some time, consider heading over there and telling her hello, she's got a great enthusiasm for life, she's a mom of teens (I love that!) and very inspiring. Angela, I'll email you for your contact information and send that onto Tricia's publicist for you, congrats!

Thanks for your hellos--I'm very sorry I didn't get around yesterday much, I had to work. I'll check in later--but now I need to get ready for my guests--actually just Chuck my pastor and Ethan the youth pastor, we're working on a PowerPoint I'll tell you all about soon (be excited, I know!). And given who they are, I need to shower and shove things under couches, in behind closed doors, you know, typical special company stuff!

For those who are asking about that third column, I'm sorry I misled you there...it's actually a third column on my digi scrap site. I thought I'd start there...most of my hits there are only there to grab the freebie, they might never notice! Check it out if you can, I'd love your input!

Hope For A Gen-X Girl Married To A Baby Boomer Boy

It's here! My turn at the Generation NeXt Marriage blog tour has arrived. Reading this book has evoked many feelings: sadness, guilt, excitement, hope and so many others.

I took a chapter that hit close to home (they all did, it was hard choosing ). In Chapter 7, Against All Odds/Media Matters, Tricia hit on some issues that I struggle with. She uses Psalm 101:3 in making a point here: "I will set before my eyes no vile thing". I wish! While I watched less television now than ever, I know the impact of the television shows I watched reaches far into my childhood and encompasses my marriage even now. In an email interview with Tricia, I asked this:

TV was where I gleaned a large part of my “worldly experience”. Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Three’s Company and even soap operas. It gave me a very unrealistic view of adult life but compared to my parents’ distant marriage, was so appealing. I believed what I watched was how the real, normal world lived. Have you found this as well? If so, how have these unrealistic relationships impacted our marriages?

Tricia's response:

I completely agree that this "pretend" relationships molded our thinking. I remember as a young teen being fascinated by Bo and Hope's love affair on Days of Our Lives. They slept together--I thought that's how you showed love! And ... then I did that in my relationships only to find myself heartbroken.

During our formative years it was hard for us to separate reality from television drama. I found myself acting very dramatic over little stuff. I also expected John to act like those romantic guys on television. Forget the fact they are PAID actors who have scriptwriting telling them what to say and directors telling them how to act.

I really helped me to "think through" my expectations.

1. Where did I get ideas from?
2. Are they realistic?
3. What SHOULD my expectations be?
4. How can God help me?

I found that asking God go back and do some "spring cleaning" on all those influences really helped. Life is not drama ... and thank goodness for that!

Asking God to do a spring cleaning of the influences in our lives! I hadn't thought of it that way, and I like it. I always imagined when I was married, I'd wake up in my penthouse apartment, head to my job as a hotel manager (loved that show!). When I got home (still looking as good as when I woke up with all my makeup on) we'd have a martini and head for our vacation. We flew in a little private plane to our secluded island where...well, you know, it's just a fantasy. And while I exaggerate a little, I honestly did think it would be magical all the time.

In this book, Tricia touches on all the biggies, arguing, money, past relationships (ohh the baggage we bring), just to mention a few. Throughout the book she keeps it real, and doesn't tell her readers she has the cure. Each chapter begins with an 80s song, you gotta love that! I couldn't not ask her...which was her favorite? Rick Astley's "Whenever You Need Somebody".

If you haven't already, be sure and click the button on my sidebar, it'll take you to my post with the giveaway. She's letting me give away two of her books, Generation NeXt Marriage and Generation NeXt Parenting--just leave a comment and you're in.

It's not over, oh no. There's more! Tricia wants to hear your stories. How did you meet your husband? Do you have a picture to share? If yes, head over to Love, Gen X Style and fill her in. She'll not only print it on her blog, but the winning story will be published on her newsletter AND you and hubby will be be treated to a dinner for two at a restaurant you pick, up to $50.

Two Books One Lucky Winner Giveaway!

The tour is revved up and hitting the road! I'm pretty excited to share my take on Tricia Goyer's book, Generation NeXt Marriage. I devoured it quickly, relieved I wasn't the only one bringing obstacles to the marriage table. But more about that later when it's my turn on the tour (April 7). Until then, I want to get this fantabulistic giveaway going on! I get to give away both Generation NeXt Parenting and Generation NeXt Marriage.

What do you have to do? Not a lot...just leave a comment on this post letting me know you want to be entered. Using fantabulistic won't get you an extra entry this time, but it will make me smile. On April 10th, I'll use the good old random number generator and draw a lucky reader. If you win, I'll email you so you can let me know where you'd like your two books sent! That's it! Even I could do this. Probably.

For more information on the tour dates, click HERE! And, of course, good luck!

**You know, this would be a great way to come out of lurking and say hello! I'd love it!