Blog Book Tour--Allon

Allon by Shawn Lamb

I am always looking for good books for my sons to read. There is a lot of fiction out there these days. There is a lot of "Christian" fiction out there. I cannot always say that the secular fiction is "good" and I cannot always say that the Christian fiction is "exciting." But when Glass Road Public Relations offered me a chance to read Allon by Shawn Lamb, I thought it would be worth taking a look.

I am so glad that I did.

Enter the world of Allon. Once a beautiful land, now a battle between good and evil rages on. The hope for Allon's future lies in a prophecy that a new king will come and defeat the powers of darkness that are at work dividing the people, causing pain and suffering. He will have a queen who will unite the people with the Guardians, the care takers of Allon who have been limited and bound for a long time.

There is a young man who the dark forces are trying to capture and destroy. There is a young woman who the Guardians are trying to protect. Are these these the promised heroes who will save Allon?

Ms. Lamb wrote Allon for her daughter, Briana, who wanted a fantasy story. She uses metaphor and allegory quite liberally and with a wonderful result. The layers aren't too deep for a young reader to comprehend. Allon is a reminiscent blend of King Arthur, Narnia, Lord of the Rings and Bible history. But at the same time it is a new story, thoroughly enjoyable--a good read for both boys and girls.

Read an excerpt of the book here.

Thank you to Glass Road Public Relations for offering me the opportunity to receive and read Allon. I enjoyed the journey!

Blog Book Tour--How Do You Tuck in a Superhero?

How Do You Tuck in a Superhero? by Rachel Balducci

My son stole my copy of this book!

I had to hunt him down to get it back. It wasn't too hard to find him. All I had to do was follow the laughter. He snitched this a couple times from me and I found him either hiding behind a closed door or up on the top bunk under a mass of covers in hopes that I wouldn't want this back. Fat chance.

What book is so funny that it has a 46 year old woman and a 12 year old boy in a tug-of-war over it? Well...a book about boys. Five boys to be precise. Rachel Balducci of Testosterhome fame published this book chronicling the adventures of a mom of five. Five boys.

Now I only have two, and two with some unusual pursuits, it is true. But How Do You Tuck in a Superhero speaks to moms of sons, be it a single son to a tribe of ten. From discussing food--there is never enough, to discussing attire--there is rarely agreement between parent and child, to things you never thought you'd hear yourself say; Rachel's been there, done that and has a few t-shirts as souvenirs.

I love Rachel's matter-of-fact, conversational tone. She tells the tales, much like my friends and I swap "Can you believe______" stories of our children. I'd love for her to be my neighbor. I might send my boys down there for a bit...she might not notice!

This is a laugh-out-loud book that you might want to hide from your family if you want a chance to read it. Also checkout the blog that inspired it all. And recently the Testosterhome family welcomed a new addition--number 6!! to the family. And what do you know?? They need to get some pink paint!

As always, I am appreciative to Revell/Baker Publishing Group for the chance to read and review, yet another great book. How Do You Tuck in a Superhero? is available April 2010 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Blog Book Tour--In Harm's Way

In Harm's Way by Irene Hannon

Last fall I had a chance to review An Eye for an Eye, the second book in Irene Hannon's romantic suspense Heroes of Quantico series and enjoyed it immensely. So when Revell/Baker Publishing offered the chance to review the third book in the series--In Harm's Way, how could I pass it up?

Once again Irene Hannon creates characters that made me care and drew me into the story quickly. Rachel Sutton, a music teacher, a child of the foster care system is lead, inexplicably, to a Raggedy Ann doll stuck in a pile of ice in a parking lot. Touching the doll evokes fear and terror from Rachel, emotions so deep that she cannot just toss the doll aside. She ends up taking Raggedy Ann to the FBI and risks looking like a fool or worse.

Fortunately she ends up in the office of Agent Nick Bradley. Nick, who also grew up an orphan, just can't seem to write Rachel off as crazy or worse. Is the child who the doll belongs to in danger? Why can't he do what his co-workers say and toss the doll in the trash and forget about Rachel? The story is fast-paced with several unexpected twists and turns that kept me up late turning the pages so I could finish.

I appreciate that once again Ms. Hannon intertwines faith in the LORD into her story. She allows her characters to be human and have real doubts and questions. Both Nick and Rachel have very different faith journeys.

Read an excerpt of the book here.

A hearty, "Thank you!" to Revell/Baker Publishing for furnishing me with a copy of this book for review. In Harm's Way is available April 2010 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.