Janet Sketchley's Blog: Tenacity, page 100

Review: The Devil Walks in Mattingly, by Billy Coffey

The Devil Walks in Mattingly, by Billy Coffey (Thomas Nelson, 2014)

Jake and his wife, Kate, live under long-held regrets centering around one of their high school classmates, Phillip. Phillip’s death 20 years ago was ruled a suicide, but Jake and Kate each believe they killed him.

Jake is sheriff of the small mountain town of Mattingly, VA. He took the job because he’s desperate for peace, not because he’s strong like his father was. When violence rocks his town, Jake is out of his depth.

Chara...

Interview: Valerie Comer, Farm Lit author

Valerie Comer is a Canadian author with a passion for local food, faith, and fiction. We’re talking today about her new novel, Wild Mint Tea, and also about healthy eating.

Janet: Welcome back, Valerie, and congratulations on the release of your new novel. The Farm Fresh Romance series features three friends: Jo, Claire and Sierra. This is Claire’s story, right? What do we need to know about her?

Valerie: Thanks for having me back, Janet! Yes, this is Claire’s story. She’s a chef who specialize...

What’s in the Heart

“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”
Matthew 12:34b, NKJV*

Other translations essentially say, “what’s in the heart is what comes out.” I like the imagery of abundance here, because we have good and bad and all manner of in-between things in our hearts.

As Christians, we work on guarding what comes out of our mouths. We’ve read the passages in James about controlling our tongues, and we understand the danger of harsh or inappropriate words.

Choosing our words with care isn’t...

Review: Wild Mint Tea by Valerie Comer

Wild Mint Tea, by Valerie Comer (Choose NOW Publishing, 2014)

Claire Hadford and two friends have bought a farm in Northern Idaho with the goal of turning it into a hands-on demonstration of sustainable living. They’ve built an interesting straw-bale house (efficient, warm and dry, and far better than the mouse-infested trailer they started out in) and are ready to begin hosting events.

All three women share the grounds-keeping and gardening work while holding down outside jobs to help with exp...

Heaven’s Prey Giveaway

Some of you know that in order to keep my spirits up on the long road to publication, I celebrate my characters’ “birthdays” each March.

My earliest notes forHeaven’s Prey are dated March 1994, which makes this the big 2-0.

And this time, I’m celebrating not just the fun I’ve had with my imaginary friends, not just what I’ve learned about writing and about life, but the fact that I’m actually a published novelist. Complete with silly, dream-come-true grin.

So I’m giving away a print copy ofHeave...

My Favourite Genre

This was my summer-reading stack a few years ago… some are still waiting…

Back to the biweekly writers’ blog hop again… this week we’re chatting about our favourite genres.

I love writing Christian suspense. Good thing, with two more books planned for the Redemption’s Edge series! I’ve dabbled in speculative fiction too, and that’s another genre I want to pursue. Still have those three characters sitting in a corner of my brain waiting for a science fiction plot.

But I thought Ruth L. Snyder‘s q...

Light in the Tunnel

Even though I walk
through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Psalm 23:4-5 NIV*

I’ve always thought of Psalm 23 as a progression. There are the green pastures, the quiet waters, the paths of righteousness, the dark valley, then the feasting.

But I wonder… many translations broaden the KJV’s “valley of the shadow of death...

Review: Riptide, by Eric E. Wright

Riptide, by Eric E. Wright (Harbourlight Books, 2014)

Vacationing on St. Simon’s Island to revive their marriage, Ashlyn and her husband, Craig, are in church when he hands her an envelope of divorce papers and walks out of her life. Betrayed and bewildered, Ashlynn soon finds out it’s worse than she thinks. The FBI has frozen her and Craig’s assets and seized their house in an investigation into Craig’s alleged money-laundering.

Ashlynn is a respected marriage counsellor. How can she face her...

Sixth Blogoversary!

This month markssix years since this blog started. Anyone remember what I called it back then? Among the other things I’ve posted, God has given me a weekly devotional to share. Sometimes it didn’t crystallize until the night before, but by now I don’t worry when that happens. He’s done it so far, and when He stops, I’ll know I’m being redirected.

Six years of devotional posts… I’ve chosen my favourites on the topic of prayer and compiled them into a short ebook. Most posts are here somewhere...

Remember, and Give

Don’t for a minute forget that you were once slaves in Egypt and God, your God, redeemed you from that slave world.
Deuteronomy 15:15a, MSG*

Context: Moses instructs the people to release any Hebrew slaves after six years of service. They could only be slaves in the first place if they had fallen on hard times and sold themselves.

Moses says the owner is not only to set the slave free after this period, but to send him or her off well-provisioned from the owner’s personal wealth.

Today’s verse t...