The Christy Award is a "Christian fiction award to recognize
novelists and novels of excellence in several genres of Christian
fiction." The nominees for this year were announced recently and the
winners will be announced June 24. Every year I make it my goal to read
all the books that are nominated for the Christy Award. I also give
them away!
I will giveaway the books by category while I am reading the books nominated in that category.
To enter to win any/all of these books, please do the following:
1. Post a comment indicating which book/books you would like to be entered for in the featured category.
2. Enter by the date indicated. For this category, please enter by JUNE 29, winners announced on June 30.
3. Respond within 10 days should you receive an email indicating you won a particular book.
4. Come back TOMORROW for the next category giveaway!
Today's category is: "Suspense" and the books are:
Book 1: Downfall by Terri Blackstock
Description:
Emily Covington has turned her life around after a drug addiction, but
her family still has trouble trusting her. Though Emily has committed
herself to a year-long treatment program and has been sober for almost a
year beyond that, even her mother walks on eggshells around her,
fearing she'll relapse. After her behavior during her drug years, Emily
realizes she has a lot to prove. When police discover a homemade bomb
under Emily's car, and she then learns the wife of one of her friends
was murdered that same morning, she knows things are deadly serious. But
who wants Emily dead? And why? A conversation she had with two men, an
Alfred Hitchcock movie, and a plan for a double murder all conspire for
one explosive ride ... and Emily is the only one who can identify the
killer and save the life of the next potential victim. As she
frantically works to solve this ever more complicated puzzle, Emily
finds herself playing right into the killer's hands.
Book 2: The Last Plea Bargain by Randy Singer
Description:
Plea bargains may grease the rails of justice, but for Jamie Brock,
prosecuting criminals is not about cutting deals. In her three years as
assistant DA, she’s never plea-bargained a case and vows she never will.
But when a powerful defense attorney is indicted for murder and devises
a way to bring the entire justice system to a screeching halt, Jamie
finds herself at a crossroads. One by one, prisoners begin rejecting
deals. Prosecutors are overwhelmed, and felons start walking free on
technicalities. To break the logjam and convict her nemesis, Jamie must
violate every principle that has guided her young career. But she has
little choice. To convict the devil, sometimes you have to cut a deal
with one of his demons.
Book 3: Rare Earth by Davis Bunn
Description:
Marc Royce stares down from the helicopter on the Rift Valley slashing
across Africa like a scar. Tribal feuds, drought, and dislocation have
left their devastation. And he sees a new wound--a once-dormant volcano
oozing molten lava across the dry landscape-and clouds of ash obscure
his vision. His undercover assignment is similarly obscured. Supposedly
dispatched to audit a relief organization's accounts, Marc finds himself
amid the squalor and chaos of Kenyan refugee camps caught in a
stranglehold of corruption and ruthlessness.
But his true task
relates to the area's reserves of once-obscure metals now indispensible
to high-tech industry. The value of this rare earth inflames tensions on
the world's stage as well as among warring tribes. When an Israeli
medical administrator, Kitra, seeks Marc's help with her humanitarian
efforts, they forge an unexpected link between impoverished African
villages and another Silicon Valley rising in the Israeli desert.
Precious metals and inventive minds promise new opportunities for
prosperity, secure futures, and protection of valuable commodities from
terrorists. As Marc prepares to report back to Washington, he seizes a
chance to restore justice to this troubled land. This time, he may have
gone too far.
Book 4 (four books because there was a tie): Submerged by Dani Pettrey
Description:
A sabotaged plane. Two dead deep-water divers.
Yancey, Alaska was a quiet town...until the truth of what was hidden in the depths off the coast began to appear.
Bailey
Craig vowed never to set foot in Yancey again. She has a past, and a
reputation--and Yancey's a small town. She's returned to bury a loved
one killed in the plane crash and is determined not to stay even an hour
more than necessary. But then dark evidence emerges and Bailey's own
expertise becomes invaluable for the case.
Cole McKenna can
handle the deep-sea dives and helping the police recover evidence. He
can even handle the fact that a murderer has settled in his town and
doesn't appear to be moving on. But dealing with the reality of Bailey's
reappearance is a tougher challenge. She broke his heart, but she is
not the same girl who left Yancey. He let her down, but he's not the
same guy she left behind. Can they move beyond the hurts of their pasts
and find a future together?
