Ellen Gable's Blog, page 92

Sunday Snippets – February 9

Image copyright Ellen Gable Hrkach

It’s time to join up again with other Catholic bloggers at RAnn’s Place for Sunday Snippets.

Just one post this week:

7 Quick Takes Friday Snow, a short Lent video, Ronald Reagan on abortion, a cartoon and other things…

7 Quick Takes Friday – Volume 58

It’s Friday again and time for 7 Quick Takes at Conversion Diary.

1. Another Snow Day

My two youngest sons are happily home from school (and still sleeping at last glance). Buses were canceled today since we’re in the midst of another snowstorm. Truth be told, I like both the fact that my boys are home AND the snowstorm (especially if I don’t have to drive in the snow!)

2. Lent is Coming!

In anticipation for Lent, I’d like to share a few of my favorite Lent books:

Welcome Risen Jesus by Sarah Reinhard

Bring Lent to Life by Kathleen Basi

Bringing Lent Home with Mother Teresa - Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle (New!)

3. Cool Two Minute Lent Video

Want to learn what Lent is all about in two minutes? Check this out. (The purple wording is hard to read, but otherwise a short and to the point video!)

4. Valentine’s Day!

Valentine’s Day is the second day of Lent this year. All next week (Feb. 12-16), my book Come My Beloved: Inspiring Stories of Catholic Courtship will be FREE on Kindle. Read about how some famous and not-so-famous Catholic couples met and fell in love.

5. Excellent Article

Excellent article by Jen entitled “Those Catholic Women Who Use Contraception.’

6. Ronald Reagan on Abortion

7. Intimate NFP Humor

Copyright 2013 Ellen Gable Hrkach

Cartoon image copyright James and Ellen Hrkach

In Name Only Free Today Through Thursday

My second gold-medal winning novel, , is FREE today through Thursday (February 5-7) on Amazon Kindle. In Name Only is a Catholic historical romance, and is not a formulaic or Harlequin-type romance.

Synopsis: Caroline Martin’s life has finally taken a turn for the better. After years of hard work, she has met a virtuous and wealthy man whose love seems to promise the kind of life realized only within the comforting novels she keeps on her night table. Tragedy, however, will teach Caroline of the complexity with which God Himself authors the lives of those who turn towards Him. Gold Medal Winner in Religious Fiction, 2010 IPPY Awards, Amazon Kindle #1 Bestseller (February-March 2012).

Reviews:

“If you love romance but hate smut, pick up this beautiful story and let it carry you away. The characters are believable, layered, human and humorous even in the midst of tragedy. The reader never loses hope and is rewarded on every page with little gems of character behavior, dialogue, plot twists and romantic intrigue. I was so very sorry when it ended!”

Lisa Mladinich, author, “Be An Amazing Catechist: Inspire the Faith of Children”

“This is the best book I’ve read in a long time. It has all the qualities that make for an outstanding memorable novel – and it’s Catholic as well. I highly recommend it!”

Therese Heckenkamp, author, Past Suspicion, Traditional Catholic Novels.com

“There aren’t too many historical romance novels that appeal equally to men and women, but Ellen Gable pulls it off admirably with In Name Only. It’s great to read a Catholic novel that’s not overly “sanitized,” realistic enough to make you wonder if it’s really fiction, and yet not at all offensive. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!” Gerard Webster, author, “In Sight”

“Gable has skillfully crafted this intriguing novel… which conveys the beautiful Catholic teachings on conjugal love, and shares both a pro-life story and a conversion story.”

Jean Heimann, Catholic Fire

To download the book for free on Kindle, click here:

Sunday Snippets – February 2

Image copyright Ellen Gable Hrkach

Today is the Feast of the Presentation, Candlemas! We just returned home from a beautiful candle-lit Mass.

It’s also the day we meet up at RAnn’s Place for Sunday Snippets.

I only posted once this week (still trying to finish the first draft of my fifth book!)

7 Quick Takes Friday – Volume 57 A cartoon, a recipe, thoughts on the March for Life, novel updates and more!

7 Quick Takes Friday – Volume 57

Please join me and other Catholic bloggers at Conversion Diary for 7 Quick Takes Friday.

1. Come My Beloved: Inspiring Stories of Catholic Courtship

Looking for a great Valentine’s Gift for your spouse or sweetheart? My book,Come My Beloved: Inspiring Stories of Catholic Courtship is a celebration of faith and enduring love. This compilation contains 12 courtship/dating stories which will inspire, captivate and entertain readers. Some of the stories include: a widow with eight children meets a widower with six children; a man asks his live-in girlfriend “what if we stopped having sex,” and is greeted with tears of joy; an atheist falls in love with her Catholic Prince Charming; a woman prays to God for a husband and years later finds herself falling in love with a seminarian; a sailor prays a novena to marry the right girl. What these and all the stories illustrate is that God is the ideal matchmaker. It’s available in print or on Kindle.

2. Prayer Intentions

Continued prayers for Jen and Fulton, as well as a few other special intentions.

3. March for Life

An estimated 650,000 marchers joined the March for Life in Washington, DC last week, although if you were only watching secular news shows, you wouldn’t know that more than half a million braved the cold to stand up for life. Thank God for EWTN.

4. A Subtle Grace

My novel is progressing well. Word count is presently up to 124,000 and I’m still polishing the initial draft. I’m hoping to send it to the editor within two weeks.

5. Ida’s Salad

One of my dearest friends (Ida) has asked me to write her life story. Ida is a short, feisty, 87 year old. Over the past year and a half, we’ve been meeting at her house. I’ve been enjoying her tasty lunches and she’s been sharing her story with me. Here’s the recipe for her very tasty salad:

(Serves two)

iceberg and/or romaine lettuce (enough for two)

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/4 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

one slice of red onion, chopped

2 tbsp poppyseed dressing

Toss and serve

6. Reading Shelf

Here are the books currently on my “To Read” Shelf:

Two Statues – Brian Kennelly

Aram – A.K. Frailey

Mission Libertad – Lizette Lantigua

Catholic Spiritual Practices – Colleen M. Griffith and Thomas H. Groome

7. Down to Earth Cartoon

Cartoon copyright James and Ellen Hrkach/FQP

Copyright 2013 Ellen Gable Hrkach

Sunday Snippets – January 27

Image copyright Ellen Gable Hrkach

It’s the weekend so it’s time to join other Catholic bloggers at RAnn’s Place for Sunday Snippets.

Here are my posts for the week:

The Life I Dreamed by Kari Burke (Book Review)

A Subtle Grace Book Cover (my upcoming book cover; tentative release is set for Fall, 2013)

7 Quick Takes Friday – Volume 56 (a cartoon, March for Life, frigid temps, reading shelf)

Copyright 2013 Ellen Gable Hrkach

7 Quick Takes Friday – Volume 56

Join me and other Catholic bloggers at Jen’s Conversion Diary for 7 Quick Takes Friday.

1. March for Life and Other Prayer Intentions

Prayers to all those participating in the March for Life today! Keep warm! (I’m glad the Canadian March for Life is in May!)

Check out this wonderful pro-life article by Jen Fulwiler.

Also, continued prayers for Jen and Fulton.

2. No Wheat!

I’ve been on a “no wheat” diet and, so far, I haven’t missed it. I love pasta, but when I make pasta for the family, I make rice for myself. My favorite “wheat” product is soft pretzels and, thankfully, I live in Canada where soft pretzels are few and far between! (I will have to exercise extreme self-control when I visit my family in New Jersey, though!)

3. Brrrr!!!

It has been bitterly cold this week here in the Ottawa Valley. For the past three days, the low has been minus 38 Celsius and there’s been a frostbite warning. I’m thankful that we have a wood stove although we’re burning about four logs an hour!

4. The Abolitionists

Over the past three weeks, I’ve been watching a PBS Series called “The Abolitionists.” Riveting docu-drama about the long fight to end slavery.

5. Backup Cartoon!

6. Reading Shelf

The Good Sinner – Elizabeth Schmeidler

Book of Jotham – Arthur Powers

Finding Grace – Laura Pearl

7. A Subtle Grace Book Cover

In case you missed the blog and Facebook posts about my upcoming novel’s cover, here it is! A Subtle Grace is the sequel to In Name Only, although the books have been written to be read independent of the other. (For a richer reading experience, it’s better to read both…) Tentative Release Date is Fall, 2013. To see both covers check out yesterday’s blog post.

copyright 2013 Ellen Gable Hrkach

Thermometer photo from iStock

A Subtle Grace Book Cover

Drum roll, please! Here’s the cover of my upcoming Catholic historical novel, A Subtle Grace:

A Subtle Grace is the sequel to my second novel,

What do you think?

Image copyright 2013 Full Quiver Publishing

The Life I Dreamed by Kari Burke

“Human life is precious because it is the gift of a God whose love is infinite; and when God gives life, it is for ever.” John Paul II October 1979

A new baby, created in love, growing in his mother’s womb is indeed is a great gift, an eternal gift. With that gift, comes a huge responsibility: the responsibility of caring for the child in the womb and for bringing up that child, seeing to his needs and giving him the gift of faith. It’s not an easy job; in fact, it’s the most difficult and challenging job a parent will ever have to face. With the challenges, though, also comes joy.

“The Life I Dreamed” by first-time novelist, Kari Burke, is a beautifully moving and realistic novel that illustrates these pro-life attitudes and truths.

This is the story of Emmy O’Brien, a young wife who knows in her heart that motherhood is a gift, that children are a blessing and that marriage is a sacrament. However, after having four children close together along with the overwhelming demands of motherhood, Emmy becomes dissatisfied and critical. Her husband eventually receives a phone call from a 16 year old unwed pregnant girl who needs a place to stay. It takes this young unwed mother to help Emmy rediscover the fundamental belief that love is a decision, that sacrifice is an essential part of that love and that every life is an eternal gift from loving God.

I know many young mothers like Emmy. In fact, I saw a lot of myself in her.

It’s easy to say that you’re pro-life. It’s quite another thing to live the pro-life message on a day-to-day basis. I remember times that I was so tired and overwhelmed that I sat on the edge of my bed and cried. I’ve also lived the pro-life message when several of my pregnancies turned dangerous and the doctors urged either my husband or me to become sterilized (which we refused and instead, used NFP). Motherhood is challenging and difficult and while it is most certainly a sacrifice, it is equally a joy to raise these “eternal gifts.” And, as many saints have reminded us, we are not alone in our struggles. God is there with us.

The characters in Kari Burke’s book are believable and well-defined. The story is not a fairy tale story with superficial one-dimensional characters who ride off into the sunset. This story is believable, painfully so at times. The main character, Emmy, complains frequently throughout the novel, although we see a major transformation of her character near the end of the book that shows a great deal of maturity as well as a few “light bulb” moments on her part.

The edition I read contained some minor editing issues and, as an editor, I found that distracting.

Overall, however, this was a great read and I thoroughly enjoyed it! To find out more about this novel, check out the book’s website:

FREEBIE ALERT!!!The Life I Dreamed Kindle Edition is FREE today through Wednesday, January 23rd.

Copyright 2013 Ellen Gable Hrkach

Sunday Snippets – January 19

Image copyright Ellen Gable Hrkach

Please join me and other Catholic bloggers at RAnn’s Place for Sunday Snippets, where we share posts from the previous week.

Digital, Print or Both (latest Catholic Writers Guild Blog post)

Facing Infertility – The Catholic Approach (Book Review)

7 Quick Takes Friday (latest cartoon and other fun stuff)

Copyright 2013 Ellen Gable Hrkach