Janet Sketchley's Blog: Tenacity, page 95
June 30, 2014
Review: Miranda Warning, by Heather Day Gilbert
Miranda Warning, by Heather Day Gilbert (Heather Day Gilbert, 2014)
After the depth of character, plot and setting of Heather Day Gilbert’s Viking historical novel, God’s Daughter, I had high expectations for her new novel, Miranda Warning. This one’s a contemporary suspense set in the mountains of West Virginia. Different characters, different issues, different voice. Same skill that drew me to keep reading.
Miranda Warning tells two stories in one, tying them into one satisfying ending. Tess...
June 27, 2014
Character Interview: Nikki Jo Spencer
Heather Day Gilbert
Regular readers of my blog may recognize Heather Day Gilbert as the author of the epic Viking historical, God’s Daughter. Heather also writes mysteries, including the recently-released Miranda Warning, a contemporary Appalachian suspense novelset in West Virginia.
Today, one of the characters from Miranda Warning joins us for an interview. Meet Nikki Jo Spencer. Nikki Jo, welcome. I hear the mountains of West Virginia are beautiful. Could you help us imagine being there?
Nikk...
June 25, 2014
In Stress, Remember God
God’s strong name is our help,
the same God who made heaven and earth.
Psalm 124:8, MSG*
This psalm is a celebration of God rescuing Israel from their enemies. They had no other hope, no chance. Without God, they’d have been destroyed.
We have life-or-death crises too. More often, we have lesser struggles that can still overwhelm us. This verse offers two strategies to help us hold onto God by faith.
Remember God’s strong name. His name reveals His character. It’s who He is. Healer. Provider. Rule...
June 23, 2014
Review: Perilous Cove, by Rich Bullock
Perilous Cove, by Rich Bullock (RichWords Press, 2014)
The night after her husband’s funeral, 39-year-old Natalie Clayton barely survives an arsonist’s fire only to discover she’s the target of a killer. Her bank account is empty, there’s a new life insurance policy in effect for her—all the evidence points to her deceased husband, Jack.
Jack’s controlling ways have cut Natalie off from friends, and her family is dead. And he changed his life insurance policy to benefit his mother, leaving his...
June 20, 2014
What I Brought Home from Write Canada 2014
I love going to Write Canada because it’s like three events in one: professional development, a getaway with friends, and a spiritual renewal.
Here are some of the highlights:
The Word Awards Gala: Heaven’s Prey was a finalist in the suspense category, and while it didn’t win, being chosen as a finalist is good affirmation. And I got to cheer for a number of my friends when their work won. (Winners’ list here)
Writing: R.J. Anderson gave me a broader understanding of the ways my individual roots...
June 18, 2014
Helper AND Ruler
You who fear God, trust in God!
—trust your Helper! trust your Ruler!
Psalm 115:11, MSG*
You’re likely more familiar with this verse in other versions of the Bible. The NIV, NLT and KJV all use the words “help/helper” and “shield”.
Usually I gravitate to descriptions of God as our refuge, fortress, shield. That may say something about fear and a need for security, who knows? But when I found this verse in The Message, the names “Helper” and “Ruler” stopped me. Prompted a question.
Do we focus too...
June 16, 2014
Review: Moon over Maalaea Bay, by H.L. Wegley
Moon Over Maalaea Bay, by H.L. Wegley (Harbourlight Books, 2014)
Moon over Maalaea Bay is book 3 in the Pure Genius series, and it picks up hours after the end of book 2 (On the Pineapple Express). If you plan to read this series from the beginning, stop here or you’ll find out more than you want to know about plot points from the earlier books.
Still with me? Okay. Brilliant and beautiful Jennifer Akihara and her fiancé, Lee Brandt, were instrumental in breaking open one arm of an internationa...
June 13, 2014
He Can Do it Again
He stands motionless in the dim light, his back to the door. The fashionable linen shirt droops from his tired shoulders, heavy with grime. We can almost taste the air that he breathes: dank and foul… steeped in the aroma of unwashed bodies, mouldy walls and accumulated filth… heavily spiced with fear and hopelessness.
This time, it looks like the end. Have his enemies finally triumphed?
Tension mounts, but we’re sure he’ll come up with a plan. He’s the Scarlet Pimpernel, nemesis of all that is...
June 11, 2014
God Isn’t Finished With Us Yet
Listen! The Lord’s arm is not too weak to save you,
nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call.
Isaiah 59:1, NLT*
Last week I posted about the need to draw apart for quiet moments with God. As sometimes happens, Godwas speaking to my friend Ginny Jaques about the same thing: see her post, Meeting God Under the Fig Tree.
Where my need was to sit with God and be still with Him, remembering our relationship and His power, Ginny needed a “fireside chat” with Him to pour out her concerns for our culture...
June 9, 2014
Review: The Pregnant Pause of Grief, by Brenda J. Wood
The Pregnant Pause of Grief, by Brenda J. Wood (Word Alive, 2013)
“I’ve trusted God and His promises for years. Will they hold true in widowhood? I don’t know yet.” [p. 4]
So begins Brenda J. Wood’s poignant account of her “first trimester of widowhood” after the loss of her beloved husband, Ron. The book is written as a series of journal entries, in a conversational style as if Brenda were talking with the reader via email.
She writes about whatever’s on her mind that day, from spontaneous tear...
