Deployed by Mel Odem

This book releases today, October 1st. 

Let's begin with the summary:

Sergeant Lance Corporal Bekah Shaw joined the United States Marine reserves to help support herself and her son when her ex-husband, Billy Roy, decided they were no longer his responsibility. But when her team is activated and sent to Somalia on a peacekeeping mission, Bekah struggles with being separated from her son and vows to return safely.

Once a successful Somalian businessman, Rageh Daud has lost everything. Determined to seek revenge on the terrorists who killed his wife and son, he teams up with a group of thieves, killers, and others displaced by war. Despite his better judgment, Daud becomes the protector of a young orphaned boy—who becomes a pawn between the warring factions.

To defeat the terrorists and bring peace to the region, Bekah and her team must convince Daud that they are on the same side.

My husband, Paul, read the book for review. Here are his thoughts:

Mel Odom’s page-turner Deployed drew me in and held my attention to the end. As a military novel with tight plotting, it was thoroughly enjoyable, but unlike some in this vein, Deployed offers a little extra for the Christian action/suspense reader looking for more depth and challenging themes with believable and interesting characters. In a male-dominated world of combat, having the lead be female provided a unique perspective that by itself would have made the book worth picking up. But the author’s convincing portrayal of this woman’s story was augmented by equally stunning complex and believable supporting characters who make a lasting impact on you. I’d recommend this book to anyone who appreciates a good, well-written military suspense story. 

(paperback)     (e-book version)

The Stars Shine Bright by Sibella Giorello

Welcome to the blog tour for The Stars Shine Bright by Sibella Giorello. Read on for contest information!

Let’s begin with the summary:

Sent undercover to a thoroughbred horse track, Raleigh takes on a double life to find out who’s fixing the races. But when horses start dying and then her own life is threatened, Raleigh realizes something bigger—and more sinister—is ruining Emerald Meadows.

She’s never felt more alone.

Her one contact with the FBI is Special Agent Jack Stephanson, a guy who seems to jump from antagonistic to genuine friend depending on the time of day. And she can’t turn to her family for support. They’re off-limits while she’s undercover, and her mother isn’t speaking to her anyway, having been confined to a mental hospital following a psychotic breakdown. Adding insult to her isolation, Raleigh’s fiancé wants them to begin their life together—now—precisely when she’s been ordered not to be herself.

With just days left before the season ends, Raleigh races to stop the killing and find out who’s behind the track’s trouble, all the while trying to determine if Jack is friend or foe, and whether marrying her fiancé will make things better—or worse.

Raleigh is walking through the darkest night she’s faced, searching for a place where the stars shine bright.

And now, my review:

I haven’t read Sibella’s work before, but I’ve been curious for a while, so I was grateful to get a chance to read this book for review. 

Her novel was very well researched! By her author letter, we learn she isn’t a closet geologist, but she truly had me fooled. Amazing details! Sometimes her passages on rocks and dirt were very, very involved (read: lengthy). But overall, I think they lent realism to the story. Also, since I’ve been reading this book, I’m looking at horses differently too. Great research on the horses involved in racing at Emerald Meadows (obviously representing Emerald Downs near Seattle). 

Speaking of Seattle, I loved the setting of this book.  As someone who spent 23 years there, I delighted in the beautiful setting. I will say I’ve been on a multitude of ferry runs to and from Bainbridge Island, and they’ve never blown the horn for departure or arrival. They make announcements and riders know by when the engines cut back when they’re approaching arrival. Thought that was interesting. But otherwise, her descriptions were great!

Her descriptive passages throughout were delicious! From the afternoon light, to the scent of mud, her wordsmithing deserved many highlights in my Kindle. And I was glad to be reading on my Kindle because I was able to swiftly look up all the vocabulary words. But I liked that too—learning more about geology than I ever planned too. :)

I also liked that she wrote this in first person. I would have loved to see more of a romance between the heroine and her FBI handler since a romance between them was insinuated a few times. But since I haven’t read the other books in the series, I didn’t hold too tightly to that expectation. (It sounded like there was more of a romance in the earlier books.) 

The heroine has to deal with some tough issues where her mother is concerned, not to mention other trials she faces. And though I could see her struggling, I couldn’t feel her pain. The POV, though first-person, wasn’t deep enough, didn’t contain an emotional anchor for readers to connect and feel her emotions with her. But Sibella did a great job of layering the characters, and I did sympathize with our heroine.  

This was a great read—a very enjoyable suspense novel.

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For your convenience, links to purchase:

(print version) (e-book version)

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Contest info!!

Novelist Sibella Giorello is celebrating the release of the latest book in her praiseworthy Raleigh Harmon series by giving away a Kindle Fire! 

Find out what the reviewers are saying here!

One grand prize winner will receive:

• A brand new Kindle Fire
• The entire 5-book Raleigh Harmon series.

Hurry, the giveaway ends on 8/25/12. The winner will be announced on 8/27/12 on Sibella's blog!

Just click one of the icons below to enter. Tell your friends about Sibella's giveaway on FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning.

7 Hours - Post 5 - Whole Pieces by Ronie Kendig

We're back to our series of reviews for the novellas in the 7 Hours series. Let's look at Ronie Kendig's Whole Pieces. Here's the summary:

After a brutal attack left him without a limb and his team dead, former Green Beret Haytham “Hawk” Wilson is angry at life and God. Bitter, he pushes everyone out of his life. Every day he relives his decision to send the Afghan boy home rather than following orders to kill any who came upon his hidden team. So when on his deathbed at age 36, eaten alive by grief and regret, he’s offered the chance to relive any seven hours, Hawk is determined to go back, kill the boy, and save his team. The decision is simple . . . until he gets there.

And now, my review:

I read this one in a single sitting because I couldn’t put it down. Ronie raises the tension until you’re frantically flipping screens to see what choices her character will make. 

She has drawn Hawk (the main character) so well—his regrets, his competence, his doubts, fears, and choices. You’ll feel almost personally invested in the outcome as you read. 

I liked her hinting that we aren’t always correct to believe our doubts. She included the theme of our choices affecting the world (not just us or those immediately around us), and how going back in time and choosing differently also affects the world, but she did it with a different twist (you’ll have to read to find out). 

She explored more of the concept of time, of being suspended in time, and of seeing alternate “strains” of time—very interesting. And I like how she softened a familiar character in the end. Readers of the series will see that as well.

Overall, her theme (and that of others in this series) is that God is sovereign over time. So what if we go back and try to fix something (if we could)? God decides the final outcome. 

Like with so many of the contributors to this series, I haven’t read any of Ronie’s earlier work. Now, I’ll have to. She’s onto something!  

Highly recommended.

   Learn more about this series and the individual books at www.7hoursbooks.com

Falls Like Lightning

Shawn Grady is on my list of authors to watch. If you've read his work, you understand why.

Let’s begin with the summary:

When hotshot smoke jumper Silas Kent gets his own fire crew, he thinks he's achieved what he's always wanted. But a lightning-sparked fire in the Desolation Wilderness of the Sierra Nevadas has his team in a plane before they can even train together.

Pilot Elle Westmore has been called up to drop the crew into the heart of the forest infernos. A single mother of a mysteriously ill six-year-old, she can't imagine her life getting any more complicated.

It doesn't take long for things to go very wrong, very quickly. A suspicious engine explosion forces Elle to make an emergency landing. Silas is able to parachute to safety but soon discovers his crew can't be trusted. They're hiding something, and now Silas is on a race to save himself and Elle from the flames--and from a more dangerous threat: his own team.

And now, my review:

I like Grady’s voice. His ability to keep the pace going. His obvious knowledge of his subject matter. He’s so knowledgeable (both in deep POV and smokejumping) I was lost a couple times. But that didn’t bog the reading down for long. We spent a tad more time setting things up on this novel, but I liked the pace there too, the relational focus.

Suspense readers will enjoy this book. I break from my usual preferred genres whenever this author comes out with a new work. And from about 2/3rds in, I had to read to the finish, even though it was pushing 1:00 a.m. Really love a reading night like that.

With this subject, you’d expect men to enjoy this read. But there’s something here for everyone. Moms will relate with Elle as she wants to help her daughter through her illness. She’s heroic in her own right. There are mysteries to solve, including that of how Elle’s father died. Not to mention, who’s taking advantage of the fires. Oh, and there’s money involved. Big surprise. Overall, an enjoyable read. I’ll be watching for more from this author.

  

Tomorrow We Die by Shawn Grady

After reading Shawn Grady's debut novel, Through the Fire, and loving it, I could hardly wait for his sophomore offering. This book does not disappoint.

Let's begin with the summary:

Jonathan Trestle is a paramedic who's spent the week a few steps behind the angel of death. When he responds to a call about a man sprawled on a downtown sidewalk, Trestle isn't about to lose another victim. CPR revives the man long enough for him to hand Trestle a crumpled piece of paper and say, "Give this to Martin," before being taken to the hospital. The note is a series of dashes and haphazard scribbles. Trestle tries to follow up with the patient later, but at the ICU he learns the man awoke, pulled out his IVs, and vanished, leaving only a single key behind. Jonathan tracks the key to a nearby motel where he finds the man again--this time not just dead but murdered. Unwilling to just let it drop, Jonathan is plunged into a mystery that soon threatens not only his dreams for the future but maybe even his life.

And now, my review:

I was barely a teenager when I started volunteering at our local hospital, then held paying jobs there after I turned sixteen. As an adult, I became a medical transcriptionist. So, I’m drawn to medical stories, so long as they aren’t too gory. Now, this book may assault some sensitivities, at times, but I enjoyed it and highly recommend it. And for the record, I found a good balance between story building and edge-of-your-seat pacing. Also, I loved the romantic interest thread.

When it comes to emergency response, Grady obviously knows his stuff; he has served as a firefighter and paramedic for over ten years. So, when he takes you into fictional crisis situations, you feel like you’re right there, on the sidewalk beside the guy who’s dying. Compelling writing.

But you also get a sense that Grady is a wordsmith. He seems to enjoy toying with our language and presenting things in new ways. The dreaded malady of clichés do not infect his writing.

And I love that, at least so far, Grady writes in first person point of view. Readers feel like they’re in the hero’s mind and heart. Speaking of which, Jonathan (the hero of TWD) has one. Immediately we relate with this broken guy whose life is dedicated to being able to help people in emergencies (with good reason). We feel his regrets over the past and his caring for his father who can’t seem to move on. I liked how Grady painted a “real” person who is himself a hero, but mostly unaware of that truth.

Readers of suspense, and those who enjoy medical themes, will love this book. Highly recommended.