Tree Swing Reading

Review of "They Almost Always Come Home" by Cynthia Ruchti

Description:

When Libby's husband Greg fails to return from a two-week canoe trip to the Canadian wilderness, the authorities soon write off his disappearance as an unhappy husband's escape from an empty marriage and unrewarding career. Their marriage might have survived if their daughter Lacey hadn't died.and if Greg hadn't been responsible. Libby enlists the aid of her wilderness savvy father-in-law and her faith-walking best friend to help her search for clues to her husband's disappearance.if for no other reason than to free her to move on. What the trio discovers in the search upends Libby's presumptions about her husband and rearranges her faith.

My Thoughts:

Another new author that I'm really liking!  Thanks to Ruchti's poetic-like prose, I was able to be right with Libby and experience the combination of fear, frustration, and longing that she was feeling as she waits and then searches for her husband. Some of her self-loathing about the state of their marriage is a bit heavy to cope with, but feels very honest to her experience at the time.  I know that if my husband went missing, I would be rehashing every conversation and wishing I could undo every hurtful thing I ever said.  Libby's journey, both physically and spiritually, is powerful and emotional. I didn't want the book to end.

Book Bullets:

• My rating: 5 out of 5 stars
• Genre: suspense
• Themes: loving each other, forgiveness
• Part of a Series: no
• Publication year: 2010
• Publisher: Abingdon Press
• Other books I've read by this author: this is the first
• Author's website: http://www.cynthiaruchti.com/

Review of "Someone to Blame" by C.S. Lakin

Description:

In the wake of heartrending family tragedies, Matt and Irene Moore and their 14-year-old daughter, Casey, move to a small Pacific Northwestern town. When young drifter Billy's arrival in Breakers parallels a series of hateful crimes, unexpected circumstances entangle his life with the Moores. Will they all find grace and healing in unlikely ways?

My Thoughts:

I'd been seeing a lot of praise for this book, so I was excited to read it.  They were right. It was a good book. There is a grit to the story. A raw pain from the characters that's grabbed me and wouldn't let go. There was an undercurrent that things were not as they seemed that made me keep reading even when I was supposed to go make dinner last night.  I appreciated the shifting points of view and the movement of the plot. 

One of my favorite parts of the book is when Irene describes the peace that finally comes to her as something forceful and strong; not the expected weak and mellow sensation. I can really appreciate a forceful peace in the tumultuous life that she was living. Here's my favorite line about the peace: "It flattened everything around it into submission, like an atomic explosing blasting out in all directions and leveling the ground for miles around." (page 359)  Love that imagry! Of a peace so powerful it levels the worries into submission.

Book Bullets:

• My rating: 5 out of 5 stars
• Genre: contemporary, some suspense
• Themes: moving forward, peace in hard times, misconceptions
• Part of a Series: no
• Publication year: 2010
• Publisher: Zondervan
• Other books I've read by this author: this is the first
• Author's website: http://www.cslakin.com/

 

 

 

TBR Reading List: Updated

Hi Friends!

I am having trouble getting the blog sidebar to look how I want it to with my list of books from my TBR pile that I'm hoping to read, so I'm listing them here with a link in the sidebar instead!  My list has grown a bit now too, after reading other bloggers' lists of favorites from 2010 I had to add some to my list.

1. Walking on Broken Glass by Christa Allen

2. The Noticer by Andy Andrews

3. The Heart Mender by Andy Andrews

4. As I Have Loved You  by Nikki Arana

5. The Forsaken by Stephen Arterburn

6. While We're Far Apart by Lynn Austin

7. The Moment Between by Nicole Baart

8. An Unlikely Blessing by Judy Baer

9. Covenant Child  by Terri Blackstock

10. A Pagen's Nightmare by Ray Blackston

11.-14. Treason, Hostage, Defiance, Black Sea Affair by Don Brown

15. Code Triage by Candace Calvert

16. Crystal Lies by Melody Carlson

17.-21 A Quarter for a Kiss, A Penny for Your Thoughts, Don't Take Any Wooden Nickels, A Dime a Dozen, The Buck Stops Here by Mindy Starns Clark

22.-25 Distant Echoes, Black Sands, Dangerous Depths, Midnight Sea by Colleen Coble

26. Anathema by Colleen Coble

27. Dark Pursuit by Brandilyn Collins

28. A Promise to Remember by Kathryn Cushman

29. Waiting for Daybreak by Kathryn Cushman

30. Leaving Yesterday by Kathryn Cushman

31. The Silent Order by Melanie Dobson

32. Less Than Dead  by Tim Downs

33. The Ends of the Earth by Tim Downs

34. Wonders Never Cease by Tim Downs

35. Don't Look Back by Lynette Eason

36. Lucky Baby by Meredith Efken

37. Ruby's Slippers by Leanne Ellis

38. Facelift by Leanne Ellis

39. Raising Rain by Diane Fuller Thomas

40. Tomorrow We Die by Shawn Grady

41.-44 Pink, Jade, Tangerine, Turquoise by Marilynn Griffith

45. Grace a Low Tide by Beth Webb Hart

46. Forget Me Not by Vicki Hinze

47. The Debt by Angela Hunt

48. The Pearl by Angela Hunt

49.-51 Mending Places, Saving Grace, Finding Faith by Denise Hunter

52. Sweetwater Gap by Denise Hunter

53. Nightshade by Ronie Kendig

54. Salty Like Blood by Harry Krause, MD

55.Someone to Blame by C.S. Lakin

56. Pieces of Silver by Maureen Lang

57. Somewhere, Carolina by Tamara Leigh

58. Beaded Hope by Cathy Leggitt

59.-60. Code Blue, Medical Error by Richard Mabry

61.-63. More Than Conquerors, No Greater Love, Red Ink by Kathi Macias

64. The Mountain Between Us by Charles Martin

65. Where the River Ends by Charles Martin

66. This Heavy Silence by Nicole Mazzarella

67. White Picket Fences by Susan Meissner

68. In All Deep Places by Susan Meissner

69. Long Time Coming by Vanessa Miller

70. Something Beyond the Sky by Siri Mitchell

71. Moon Over Tokyo by Siri Mitchell

72.-73. Sweetgum Knit Lit Society, Knit for Love by Beth Pattillo

74. Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart by Beth Pattillo

75. Amy Inspired by Bethany  Pierce

76. To Dance in the Dessert by Kathleen Popa

77. Stars in the Night by Cara Putman

78. One Lane Bridge by Don Reid

79.-80. Her Mother's Hope, Her Daughter's Dream by Francine Rivers

81. Rooms by James Rubart

82. They Almost Always Come Home by Cynthia Ruchti

83. Tristan's Gap by Nancy Rue

84. Church Ladies by Lisa Samson

85. Club Sandwich by Lisa Samson

86. Songbird by Lisa Samson

87. Straight up by Lisa Samson

88. The Living End by Lisa Samson

89. Tiger Lily by Lisa Samson

90. The Cross Examination of Oliver Finney  by Randy Singer

91. Just As I Am by Virginia Smith

92. Act Two by Kimberly Stuart

93. Stretchmarks by Kimberly Suart

94.-96. Fools Rush In, Swinging on a Star, It Had to Be You by Janice Thompson

97. Out of the Devil's Mouth by Travis Thrasher

98. The Lord is my Shepherd by Debbie Viguie

99.-101. Everything's Coming Up Josie, Chill Out Josie, Get Cozy Josie by Susan May Warren

102. The Mailbox by Marybeth Whalen

103. Face of Betrayal  by Lisa Whiel

104. Wounded by Claudia Burney

Some Teen Fiction and non-fiction are on my list too! I'd add them, but I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed right now. Of course there will be other books I read besides these. But these are the ones I have right now that I haven't read and want to. I hope I can do these and more!