The Applause of Heaven by Max Lucado ★★★★★

You are a child of a King!

Non Fiction – Adult – Christian/Self Help

224 pages

Publication Date: 1990

 Max Lucado shows that The Beatitudes are more than just a teaching on the mountain, but that Jesus was actually showing us a way to grasp peace and joy to live a fulfilling life.

The inspiring writing – as always with Max Lucado – in this modern Christian classic is compelling and beautifully phrased.  He utilizes amazing examples to highlight his message.  Now, I have always thought of the Beatitudes as a list to check off – you know like, 70% or better is a passing grade, but Mr. Lucado shows that is actually a step-by-step progression to rebuild a believer’s heart.  And honestly his way makes a lot more sense and is way more productive than my checkup list.  He provides ways to overcome the road blocks between you and Jesus.  With the focus on changing your heart and attitude so that you may have a more fulfilling relationship with God, it allows you to defeat the world and those critical voices in your head with the truth.  You are a worthy child of a King and by remembering that and giving yourself over to God you can face anything with the confidence that Jesus is always in your corner. 

When I get bogged down in the ugliness of myself and the world, I reread this book to remind myself what really matters.  I savor it, and let the message soak into my soul like a soothing balm.  It is a reminder that I am precious to God, that he can even use me - flawed, broken and weak - for his purposes.  And in those moments when I truly believe and can see past myself, that is when I am at peace and resting in the arms of Jesus.   

When Mr. Lucado speaks of God and his delight in us it reminds me of my Grandma.  Grandma J is engaging, passionate, and energetic, and when she talks with you, you feel like she genuinely wants to hear about your life and there is nothing more important she would rather do.  She hurrays the good, mourns the sad, calls you on your mistakes, but has the faith that no screw up is too big to overcome.  Everyone leaves her feeling like they are her favorite.  This is the kind of relationship God would like to have with us.

The Reformed Vampire Support Group by Catherine Jinks ★★★★☆

Offbeat and Lovely

Fiction- YA –Urban Fantasy/Mystery

Grade 7 and Up

384 pages

Publication Date:  2009

Literary Awards:  ALA's Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults (2010)

Nina Harrison, wishes being a vampire was glamorous like in the movies instead of the reality of monotonous boredom and support group meetings.  So when a chance to investigate a killing of one of their own presents itself Nina is hot on the case.

After a rather surprising start the story rolls on quickly, breaking down preconceived notions.  This story is not your stereotypical paranormal. I love the typical sexy vampire (Buffy forever), but I have to say the lack of glamorization of vampires in this story was such a breath of fresh air.  The premise was great and well thought out with an engaging plot that kept my guessing – which doesn’t happen very often.  The characters were well crafted with elaborate back stories and eccentricies.  Ms. Jinks has a real talent for turning a phrase and deliciously layers in dramatic details and word pictures into her writing.  It is also incredibly funny, but not belly laugh kind of funny, more of a quirky funny that really appeals to me (see every book Jasper Fforde ever wrote). 

Written as a first person story, Nina tells it as something that already happened.  Nina is a surprising take on vampires compared to either the lone wolf suppressing their evil or the ones who embrace it.  Nina has never really accepted herself as a vampire, somewhat because it doesn’t live up to her ideas of what it should be and because she has never really felt like a vampire.  She desperately wishes she were stronger like the character she created, Zadia Bloodstone, instead of weak and pathetic.  I love how weak and human she is, but still striving to do the right thing even with all of the things against her.  Eventually Nina decides to redefine herself, and her ideas of what a hero is.  Which is the main point of the story, taking control of your circumstances and empowering yourself. 

In the book blurb there were hints toward romance so I kind of expected it to rear its ugly head around every corner.  But in the end it was really an appropriately small part.  Also, how great is it to have a priest not vilified?  Thank you Ms. Jinks.  And one of my favorite things of all was having a satisfying conclusion to the story.

Frankly, I heart it!

The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan ★★★☆☆

A few quality issues

Fiction-YA/Juvenile-Medieval

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

249 pages

Publication Date: 2004 

Ranger's Apprentice #1

Literary awards: Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award Nominee (2008)

When 15-year-old Will is picked as a Ranger’s apprentice he is disappointed, but with the menace of the Lord of the Mountains of Rain and Night readying for battle he quickly learns that Rangers are the greatest protectors the kingdom can have.

The book world is very authentic, with great multi-dimensional characters and rich detail.  The writing was rhythmic and a have very few complaints other than at times it was a bit amateurish.  The book was easy to get through and kept me wanting to know what would happen next.  The prologue creates a great platform for the rest of the story to be set on.   The focus of this book swings back and forth between Ranger’s apprentice Will and Battle School apprentice Horace, two very different characters.

Okay, now the other side.  I may have been betrayed by my own expectations, but I anticipated a whole lot more suspense and excitement.  The story was fairly slow moving and not big into subtlety.  Also, I have to say Horace not showing up in the climax seemed really weird and I was disappointed not to see him.  My investment of him just didn’t give the payoff that was expected, particularly since he was such a focus in the book.

Now, while I might seem a bit negative I have to say I really do see the potential of this series and have purchased the next two in the series already.  I haven’t given up on it.

Sacrifice at Sea by Susan Wingate ★★★☆☆

Fiction - Mystery

240 pages

Bobby's Diner Series #3

I received this ARC free from the author in exchange for a fair review.

Georgette Carlisle, finally can get a little of regular life and sort out her relationship with her new man, Willard Cleary, while relaxing during her Caribbean cruise.  Just as she thinks she is finally on even footing a murder on the ship causes their vacation to turn into a life and death situation.

While I am new to this series I found it fairly easy to get acquainted with.  This book was a quick and effortless read; rich in descriptions, observations and a mostly realistic tone.  Though, I have to say the dialogue, not exactly thrilling.  The characters were superbly crafted and the story was well developed.  This is not the typical action packed mystery so be open in your interpretation of what mystery can mean.  A majority of the action and story line is focused on Georgette’s inner life and her trying to adapt to a new relationship with Will.  I also applaud Ms. Wingate for having heroine outside of the 20-30 year range.  A lot life happens beyond early adulthood and I think it should be celebrated. The cruise ship was a great setting and I felt that Ms. Wingate used it to its best potential, exploring how a new place and situations can bring out different aspects of the characters’ personalities.  I will only say one thing about the climax and then leave it at that, shocking.

I debated long and hard on how to approach this one.  I guess I just never realized how hard it is to know the author a real person.  Me being me, I constantly reevaluated my opinions to make sure they were accurate.  While I stand by the 3 stars I gave Sacrifice at Sea, I do want to add something.  In the end, even though it had almost everything going for it and I appreciated a lot of things about it, I found myself still not enjoying the story or the writing style.  I didn’t hate it or have any strong feelings connected to it and frankly, I am chalking this up to a matter of preference.  It just wasn’t for me.  On the other hand I can understand how it would appeal to other people and why they might be willing to invest time into reading the series.