Sarah Holman's Blog, page 83

Adventure Between the Pages: With Every Breath

Buy it Here Age Appropriate For: 16 and up for romance and thematic elements,  Best for Ages: 16 and up
Description: In the shadow of the nation's capital, Kate Livingston holds a respectable position as a government statistician when she encounters a rival from her past, the insufferable Trevor McDonough. A Harvard-trained physician, Trevor never showed the tiniest flicker of interest in Kate, and she's bewildered at the way he suddenly seeks her out. Surprising even herself, Kate agrees to Trevor's entirely unexpected and risky proposal to work side-by-side with him in his quest to rid the world of tuberculosis, a contagious and deadly disease. As Kate begins to unlock the mysteries of Trevor's past, she realizes there is much more to him than she could have imagined. His hidden depths may fascinate her, but his most closely guarded secrets and a shadowy enemy lurking in the background carry a serious threat to their future. When the truth of the past comes out, threatening to destroy everything they hold dear, how will Trevor and Kate ever overcome all that stands in their way?
I am always impressed by the diversity of Camden’s characters. There are very few of them that are alike in any way, and each of them has unique backstories and problems. With Every Breath introduced two people who have been competing with each other since they were in school. This story plunges you into the world of fighting tuberculosis, which makes it intriguing from the very beginning.
While I enjoyed the story, there were two drawbacks for me. First was the whole scene where Kate found Trevor with his shirt off.  It could have been just a funny accident that was quickly over with, but it was drawn out to the point it felt dirty. The second was a personal taste thing: I just find it irritating when gown people are arguing like children. It was part of what made the characters who they were, but they did not endear themselves to me.
I really enjoyed the hospital where people are working so hard to fight a disease that, at the point this book was set, was not understood and was greatly feared. Put this in Washington DC and add a political angle, and things really come to life. The settings really make Camden’s books stand out from the crowd.
While Kate and Trevor were not my favorite characters that Camden has written, they felt very real. I did really appreciate how complicated their romance was and how it was resolved. Kate wants to love but is afraid when things get hard. She has to learn not to let fear control her.
I highly recommend this book to those who love historical fiction, romance, and superb writing.

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Onscreen Adventure: Matthew

Buy it HereAge Appropriate For: All AgesBest for Ages: All AgesDescription: Experience The Visual Bible's Matthew. This powerful and entertaining film is taken word for word from the text of the New International Version translation. This multi-million dollar production appeals to all ages, and it offers educational, spiritual and entertainment value. "The goal of The Visual Bible is to put the entire Bible on film using only Scripture to tell the story." Filmed on location in Tunisia, Morocco and South Africa, Matthew features a cast of thousands, historically accurate costuming and award-winning directing. The film stars Emmy award-winning actor Richard Kiley as Matthew, and introduces Bruce Marchiano as Jesus.
Why is this my favorite movie of all time? The first reason is it shows the greatest story of all time. Second, it uses the words of scripture to tell the story, not Hollywood's version of the Bible. Third, they didn't try to Americanize Jesus, instead putting a lot of the Jewish culture into the story. 
This is by far the most powerful version of the life of Christ I have ever seen. Marchiano (who played Jesus) captured the joy and love of Christ, without sacrificing the other emotions. In fact, I think one of the most powerful scenes in the entire movie is when he is shouting at the woes against the Pharisees, and then at the end, cries as he tells Jerusalem that they cannot escape the coming wrath. You see his anger and compassion and it is beautiful.
The settings are wonderful, and feel like somewhere where Jesus would have walked. Nothing in the film felt like a fake Hollywood set or an artificial landscape. It is only of the reasons I loved it so much, if felt very real.
The hardest part of the film is the death of Jesus. After coming to love Jesus for the first three hours of the film, to see the horrible way he died brings tears. To see his suffering is hard, especially for young children. However, the resurrection is made even more amazing.
The music is beautiful and will probably stick with you. It is a nice backdrop to the whole film and fits perfectly.
This whole film was created not only about Jesus, but also for His glory and I think that comes through. I highly recommend this film for everyone.

Onscreen Adventures: Top Ten Christian Films

I grew up watching McGee and Me, Donut Man, Last Chance Detectives, and The Buttercream Gang, all of which were strongly Christian. It was hard as I got older to discover that they weren't making Christian films of that same quality for adult Christians, at least not that I could find. I tried to find them but after poorly made movie after gag-y movie, I gave up. Until one day I started to give them another chance when I started hearing some friends rave about a couple. Here are my favorite Christian films.


1. Matthew
2. Beyond the Mask
3. Mom’s Night Out[image error]
4. Polycarp

5. Pendragon: Sword of His Father[image error]
6. Sight and Sound Theater Joseph
7. The Encounter: Paradise Lost[image error]
8. Sight and Sound Theater Ruth[image error]
9. Island of Grace
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10. Overcome

In the next month, I will be sharing reviews and other fun bits about my favorite Christian films so stay tuned!
How many of these have you watched? What are your top ten Christian films?

Welcome May

Today is the first day of May, and I have a cold. Not a great way to start the month, but my siblings are always sharing with whatever they have *wink*.

April has been a busy month, not only on my blog but off of it. Here are some of the highlights:

I finished four months of teaching at a homeschool co-opI wrote 40,000 words in a bookI worked a lot on editing the first book in the Kate's Case Files series

Some things to look forward to in May:
Celebrating my Mom's birthday (which we did today)
Going to see a stage play at the end of the month
Completing (hopefully) the editing of my first Kate's Case Files
Writing some film reviews

This coming month, I am going to focus on some of my favorite Christian films, while still posting some of my regular stuff.

Z is for Zale

Have you enjoyed this month? I know that I have. I don't think there is any more fitting way to end this series off, then by ending it with a bit about a the narrator of the Tales of Taelis series as his story will (if God allows me to complete the series) be the final installment a few years in the future.
(click here to see what I think he looks like)
Here are some things you might like to know about Zale:~ He was raised by priests
~ His father went insane
~ His mother saved his life by hiding him
~ He is a trained warrior
~ He is much younger than most people realize
~ He is wise for his age, as he has been through much
~ He has an older brother
~ He does not wish to share his tale, because it is a sad one, but he will
~ While his pen is always busy, his mouth does not open often.




Now, to end everything off, you have a chance to win a signed copy of Brothers and Betrayal.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

W is for Waltz

“Amelia!”
I swung around at my father’s voice. He stood atop the sand dunes, waving to me. I hoped he was not coming to take me home.
“Father! Come and join me. This water is lovely!” The seawater swirled about my ankles, and the sand squished between my toes. I didn’t want to leave.
My father threw back his head. I could hear his laugh even though he was far away.
“I thought you might rather persuade another to join you!” He yelled.
“Who? Cynthia perhaps?” Even the name of my dear friend, who was a servant on the neighboring estate, brought a smile to my face. Being a rather odd girl, I didn’t have many friends. Cynthia was my senior by a full ten years. She had taken me under her wing when my mother had died shortly after my birth. Cynthia was a good friend and understood the deep attachment I had to my father. She, however, did not understand my love for the ocean. She feared the waves almost as much as I loved them.
“I was thinking you might prefer Alex’s company this day.” I could almost see my father’s eyes dancing.
“He is here?” I lifted my skirts and ran as fast as I could in the sand.

Win a piece of jewelry with a quote from Waltz into the Waves!a Rafflecopter giveaway

V is for Vision

I have big plans and dreams for the future of my writing. Here are some of those things~ To complete the Tales of Taelis series (which will be 25 books long).~ To publish the Kate’s Case Files series (an 11 book series)~ To write and publish a book about Quint’s early years~ To publish several short stories every year~ To have each book have a valuable lesson of faith embedded in the story~ Not to publish anything that would fail to bring glory to God

The vision and dreams I have are very important to me. I love sharing my passion for stories with others, and that is why today, I am going to be giving away, to one lucky person, my short story bundle. This isn’t just a bundle of the short stories that are currently published, but the promise that the winner will get each of short stories I will publish this year.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

U is for United States

My journey from Warren’s home on Hanover Street to my own on Back Street was a silent, joyless trip. I had not guessed how hard Joseph would take the news of the port closing. It was apparently a heavy blow to the cause he so firmly believed in. I had been wrong to say that he did not care what his cause did to the people of Boston. He had politely sent me on my way and departed his home while I was still in sight. No doubt he had rushed off to tell his radical friends the news.
Any eagerness I might have had at returning home seemed to drain out of me. My conversation with Warren made me realize that I was returning to a Boston more deeply divided than the one I had left. Everyone seemed to have taken sides in this struggle between Great Britain and her unruly American colonies. Now, the insolence of one side would punish all the inhabitants of Boston. The harbor was the livelihood of nearly all the inhabitants. Without the constant comings and goings of ships in the harbor, Boston might cease to exist.
Win a Digital copy of A Different Kind of Courage
a Rafflecopter giveaway

T is for Thomas Jefferson

Nope, this isn’t about the president, it is about the character in my upcoming book series Kate’s Case Files. Can you tell that I am a little excited? Here is a little sample for the day.  “Patrick, there you are.”
Patrick peered over the brim of his Styrofoam coffee cup at Thomas.
Thomas turned to a mirror that had been placed in the police station break room. “We need you to play the good cop to Kate Mayfield.”
Patrick set his coffee down on the table. “I thought you said you had this handled.”
Thomas adjusted his felt cap before turning to Patrick. “I do, and my way of handling it is to put you in as the good cop.” He motioned for Patrick to follow him.
Patrick reluctantly got up from the table, tossing his coffee cup and the reminder of its contents into the nearby trash can. He stuffed his hands into his jacket pockets and matched Thomas’s stride.  “So what is going on?”

“She figured out from the questioning that we were after more than just what she might have seen that night.  If you ask me, the cop really blew it.”

S is for Street Team

Not that long ago, I started a street team. The street team has been an amazingly wonderful blessing. The members have helped with blog tours, reviews, and much more. As part of the street team, they help promote my books and in exchange they often get free copies of my books and entered into exclusive giveaways. Does that sound like something you are interested in? Well, for the next week, if you join my street team, you will be entered to win a digital bundle of all my currently published books. Here is what you will need to join:

~ An active blog
~ A Facebook account (as the street team uses a Facebook group to communicate)
~ A Goodreads account
~ A Amazon account

Are you ready? You can join here a Rafflecopter giveaway