I Can Do This On My Own

By Kelly Bridgewater

A couple of months ago, our church had a meeting with the parents of little children. Our church was thinking of starting Awana's. Currently, our church does have Wednesday night service for our elementary kids, but it is only about four months out of the year. I didn't go to the meeting; my husband did. But we discussed it when he came home. He wanted to see what I thought. I believed Awana's would be good for our young children.

The church I grew up in, Eagle Creek Grace Brethern Church, in Indianapolis, Indiana had a program for young girls called Little Sister (K-2 grade) and Amigos ( 3-5 grade). We had these books with verses, Romans road, and the books of the Bible. Every time we could cite something to the leader, it was marked off. In May, there was an award ceremony where we earned pins that correlated with our accomplishments. I put all my pins on a pillow. I still have that pillow with all the pins on them.

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Not only did that time give my parents a break, but it also gave me a firm foundation in my faith. I believe accountability is good for younger kids. My husband and I have tried a lot of churches in our hometown, and most of them aren't teaching the children the basics anymore. They want to be cool and hip.

But how is that going to make them strong enough to stand up to the world?

I think Awana's would be a great way to give my boys some accountability and disciple with their faith. I watched the show The American Bible Challenge with my boys. I knew majority of the answers, and my oldest son was in awe. He asked how I knew so much about the Bible.  I replied with telling him that I spent every day reading something in my Bible. I know, as a family, we talk about what we learned in church, and I bring the Bible up everyday in my boys life, but I don't force them to memorize scripture everyday like I do.

Why not?

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In writing, it is my passion, but do I really spend a lot of time reading craft books by authors I respect? Do I study the master's who are published? Do I spend time every day at the computer, typing away at another creative piece?

Right now, I don't have an accountability partner. Maybe that is why some mornings I wake up and decide not to do any writing, so I don't. When I join NaNoWriMo for November and Speedbo for March, I am held accountable for how much writing I get done. It is nice to have that sense of someone caring how much writing I actually get done. Or if I'm writing at all.

So I am more productive then.


We all need someone to make sure we're on the straight and narrow whether it is writing or studying God's Word.

Do you have an accountability partner? Any suggestions on how to find one? If you have one, what is your favorite or least favorite part of their involvement in your success?

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WINNER!!!

Last week, I had a giveaway for one copy of two books to one lucky person. The books were In Perfect Time and Through Waters Deep by Sarah Sundin. 

The Winner is . . .

RAECHEL KELLY

Congratulations!!!!

I will get in touch and ship both of those books!

Thanks for everyone who entered!

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Lisa Harris: Missing

By Kelly Bridgewater

Nikki Boyd Enters the Deadly World of Counterfeit Drugs to Find a Missing Woman

Nikki Boyd isn't usually called in on homicides; her forte is missing persons. But when a case with two murdered and two missing pops up on a quiet suburban street, she's ready to start the investigation and find missing homeowners Mac and Lucy Hudson. When the first clues lead her to the boat of her friend Tyler Grant--and another dead body--Nikki must untangle what ties Tyler to the Hudsons. The clues pull her into a deadly maze of counterfeit drugs and a killer who will stop at nothing to silence anyone who threatens his business--including Nikki.

From Amazon

My Review:

Romantic suspense is a great genre because of the non-stop action usually featuring a cop, marine, detective, etc . .  who is trying to solve a crime or murder. In Lisa Harris' second installment to her Nikki Boyd Files Missing, I am taken on a ride to hunt for Lucy Hudson, a kindergarten teacher who is missing. Harris understands what a romantic suspense should have, and Missing completes all those requirements.

First, there has to be a suspenseful action that takes the story through the pages. In Missing, Nikki, the detective who works for the missing person unit, needs to find Lucy Hudson before the bad guys. I enjoyed following Nikki with her partner Jack as they try to follow the trail of clues to see what happened to Lucy's husband Mac and where Lucy went. I really enjoyed coming back to Nashville to a familiar setting that Harris used in the first book. It was comforting and helped cement me to the story right away. Missing is definitely a hard book to put down. With the amount of research Harris went into to make the action believable, I did not have a hard time believing what she wrote. When Nikki did something, I believed that was what most detectives do when trying to solve a case.

I really enjoyed reading the romance in Missing. In the first book Vendetta, I learned about the feelings Nikki has toward Tyler, but Harris doesn't make them fall in love by the first book's end. In the second installment, a similar romance occurs. It is not tidy and wrapped up in a bow by the end of Missing. Just like in real life. So much better.

While the idea for Missing is really not that original, I do like how Harris executed the storyline. It had many twists that I did not see coming. For instance, I did not figure out who the bad guy was. I had a suspicion early on, but Harris went another direction. Now that it what I call writing a good story.

In true romantic suspense fashion, Lisa Harris crafted together a story with the right amount of research, a tenseful plot, and a romance that left me begging for the next book. I really can't wait to see the next book in the Nikki Boyd Files. 

I received a complimentary copy of Missing from Revell Publishing and the opinions stated are all my own. 

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Would you read a romantic suspense novel where the romance is not tied up in the first book, but allows you to be dragged through the series, waiting to see how the romance is played out?

Christy Barritt: Wait Until Dark

By Kelly Bridgewater

A woman grieving broken dreams. A man struggling to regain memories. A secret entrenched in folklore dating back two centuries.

Antiquarian Felicity French has no clue the trouble she’s inviting in when she rescues a man outside her grandma’s old plantation house during a treacherous snowstorm. All she wants is to nurse her battered heart and wounded ego, as well as come to terms with her past. Now she’s stuck inside with a stranger sporting an old bullet wound and forgotten hours.

Coast Guardsman Brody Joyner can't remember why he was out in such perilous weather, how he injured his head, or how a strange key got into his pocket. He also has no idea why his pint-sized savior has such a huge chip on her shoulder. He has no choice but to make the best of things until the storm passes.

Brody and Felicity’s rocky start goes from tense to worse when danger closes in. Who else wants the mysterious key that somehow ended up in Brody’s pocket? Why? The unlikely duo quickly becomes entrenched in an adventure of a lifetime, one that could have ties to local folklore and Felicity’s ancestors. But sometimes the past leads to darkness . . . darkness that doesn’t wait for anyone.

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/wait-until-dark-christy-barritt/1123906125?ean=9781534601260

 My Thoughts:

What is better than a hunt for hidden treasure? Nothing, of course. In Christy Barritt's latest mystery novel Wait Unit Dark, Barritt takes me on a journey through an old, long forsaken house in North Carolina. Felicity, the heroine, is struggling with the hurt of her past, which has stopped her from reaching her dreams. She has grown up her entire life listening to her grandma and aunt preaching about their relationship to Blackbeard. Of course, she never listened. Until the night of the big snowstorm, which is where the story starts. Enters Brody. A well-trimmed man with no idea what brought him to Felicity's humble home. With footprints and tire tracks across the  far away home, Brody and Felicity are instantly in a mystery. The pace of the story was perfect. Most chapters ended in a cliff hanger, so I wanted to find out what was happened, so of course, I would flip to the next chapter and read. I literally couldn't put the book down. I LOVED this story. Something about a mysterious house with the hunt for treasure.

Full of mystery and hunt for Blackbeard's treasure, Christy Barritt captured my interest and didn't let go in her latest book Wait Until Dark. I definitely will be returning to this book sometime soon.

I received a complimentary copy from Christy Barritt and the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Do you enjoy reading mysteries that take place in old house with a hunt for some diary, treasure, or some unknown object? Why or Why not?

You Know You're A Writer If . . .

By Kelly Bridgewater

I read a Seekerville blog post back in March by Debby Giusti entitled "You Know You're A Writer If . . ." I LOVED her blog post, so I wanted to bring it back to my blog.

So Here We GO:

dedicatedtoheroes.blogspot.com

You Know You're A Writer IF . . .

When you plan your vacation, you hunt for local bookstores and decipher how to include them in your travels. . .

Legal pads, journals, and planners excite you . . .

Different color pens in all shapes and sizes excite you . . .

You buy a book even if you have it on your Kindle . . .

Hard to pass up another set of your favorite books . . . (I have five complete Harry Potter series in my house alone. That way no one has to share :).  )

 Buying books is an addiction . . . A Happy Addiction that you don't want to give up.

If you hoard your books, especially the ones autographed by your friends. . .

When you meet a writer that you admire your books, you become all fangirl and gush while she autographs your book . . . ( I have done this. Next month, I will get to meet Ted Dekker. SOOO happy!)

Your Facebook friends list looks like the library card catalog . . . (Yes, I have met and talked with each one.) 

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Your bookshelf is filled with books by friends . . .

You're to-be-read (TBR) is a towering mountain, but you still buy more books. (It's an addiction. I tell you.)

You analyze every movie by 3 acts, the inciting incident, and can identify the Dark Moment.

Your search engine on Google might make your husband nervous . . . (Why do you have ways to poison someone? Honey, I promise it's for my latest novel.)

You actually enjoy talking to your characters. Ahem, yourself . . . when others aren't around, sometimes even when others are around.

When I walk my dogs, I talk to myself, usually trying to work on some aspects of my novel that has got me frustrated. 

You go to work in your PJ's. Sometimes, if feeling really motivated, in jeans and a t-shirt.

You spend a lot of time trying to figure out the struggles you're characters are going through while the kids have cereal for dinner. AGAIN.  

Going to a writer's conference is the one place where you feel like you can act like yourself. Weird and all. They completely understand you!

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 Now it's your turn, Post your favorite line below.

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Giveaway:  

Okay, my reader friends, don't miss this opportunity to win TWO books. I am generously offering two paperback copies, In Perfect Time and Through Waters Deep, by Sarah Sundin to one person (limited to U.S. residents only). Leave a comment, posting your favorite line to continue this discussion. The contest runs until Thursday, July 7th at midnight. I will pick a winner on Friday, July 8th and announce it here on the blog.  :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Mike Dellosso: Kill Devil

By Kelly Bridgewater

Jed Patrick is convinced he’s doing all it takes to keep his family safe―new names, new location, new identity. But just when he thinks he finally has his life back, trained men claiming to be CIA agents break in and threaten his wife and daughter, proving once and for all his family will never truly be safe until he eliminates the agency dead set on hunting him down.

Not knowing if Karen and Lilly are better off by his side or in hiding, Jed is determined to protect them while finding a way to use the classified information that he possesses to dismantle the Centralia Project. But he soon learns that eliminating Centralia may require compromising his own values. As danger escalates, Jed isn’t sure whether there’s anyone or anything he can trust―including his own senses.

From Amazon

 

My Thoughts: 

I enjoy stories and movies that are fast paced and non-stop action, so when I heard about Centralia, I couldn't wait to read it. Centralia has ever thing I liked in thriller. Characters I cared about, running from danger, and the threat of impending doom. So I expected the same thing with Kill Devil, the second installment of the Jed Patrick series. While it does feature non-stop action, this one didn't grab my attention as much.

First, I was dropped right back into Jed Patrick's run from the government with his wife, Karen, and daughter, Lily in the first chapter. As the story progressed, I actually found moments that I wanted to put the book down. Not that the action didn't stop, but it felt forced. What I mean is that it seems Dellosso tried to put Jed through everything horrible over and over, but it wasn't necessary for that many bad things to happen in such a short time. Even watching the Bourne or Fast and Furious movies, there was moment of breaks. Dellosso didn't include many.

Jed Patrick in the second installment seemed more of a cardboard character. In the first one, his motivation was to save his wife and daughter. In this book, Jed believes his wife is with him without any question even though he told his wife to run away to a safe place right after a bad incident. He still worried about his daughter, but it didn't seem top priority for him.

Kill Devil is a fast, paced original yet predictable, to me, novel. There is a number of settings because of the nature of the story, so it was not a setting that could relate and feel comfortable in. The writing is top notch. I had no problem following Jed Patrick on his run to save his daughter.

Fans of the Bourne Identity and the Fast and Furious will enjoy Mike Dellosso's newest installment of the Jed Patrick series. With non-stop action and a race to create treason, Jed Patrick creates a moving target of how much your memory can hold.

I received a complimentary copy of Kill Devil from Tyndale Publishing and the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating:  3.5 out of 5 Stars

Do you like the Bourne movies? What aspect of the stories appeal to you and draw you into the movies? If not, what keeps you from watching thme?

Q and A with Mike Dellosso:

1. Kill Devil is the sequel to Centralia. How are the two books

connected?

First and foremost, they are connected by Jed Patrick and his family.

Kill Devil picks up where Centralia left off. With the conclusion of

Centralia, we left Jed and Karen and Lilly headed to Idaho where they would assume new identities and a new life far from any government agency’s reach or knowledge. They would become obscure and live in safety, albeit secluded. But somehow, some way, they are found

and in Kill Devil we see the results of that. There is also a continuation of the story behind the Centralia project, a ghost agency buried deep within the labyrinth of Washington politics. Jed is still battling this foe and continues to battle the enemy within himself as well, his memories and mysterious past.

2. How did you come up with the concept for the Jed Patrick series?

From Mike Dellosso

It started with my obsession with the Jason Bourne series and character. I love the whole concept. I’ve also been interested in government conspiracy theories, cover-ups, black-ops, that whole sort of “underworld” that exists in the shadows. I’m also quite a family man. So that got me thinking about what it could look like if those two worlds collided. What if a family man discovers that he has a past he has no memory

of and that the mysterious past involved conspiracy, cover-ups, black-ops and him being a super soldier? Then to top it off I wanted to put a unique spin on it and infuse elements of faith into the story. That alone set the concept apart and opened a whole new world of possibilities for the storyline.

3. You don’t shy away from violence in your novels. How do you handle

writing those situations as a Christian author?

I handle them carefully. I know it may not seem like it to some readers but I do put a lot of thought into how I handle violence in my books. I want the reader to feel the gravity of the situation, the intensity of the moment, but I need to draw the line onhow much I describe and finding where that line should be is a challenge at times. I’m sure I’ve crossed the line at times for some readers but for me, I’m careful to stay on the side that gives the reader the information he or she needs without glorifying the violence or glamorizing it.

4.What role does faith play in the lives of some of the main characters—

Jed, his wife Karen, daughter Lilly, Tiffany, and Jack?

Faith plays a huge role in all of their lives. In spite of everything they’ve been through, especially Jed with all the brainwashing and torture, their relationship with God has remained the one thing that has gone unchanged. Yes, Jed doubts it at times and had to rediscover it totally, but if there is one ribbon of hope that runs through their lives, it’s faith. Lilly’s faith is the strongest of the three of them, so childlike and unwavering. Jed draws strength from her and in Kill Devil learns that he needs to

make her faith his own, he needs to stop channeling strength through her and find his own very real connection with God. Like all of us, their faith development and maturity is a journey with ups and downs and setbacks and growth spurts, but they move forward, learning more, discovering more, and being challenged more and more to simply trust.

5.  What is next for you, writing-wise?

I have some ideas for a third Jed Patrick novel and am bouncing them around to see which one fits best. I also have an idea for a stand-alone thriller. Other than that I’ve written a couple short stories featuring Jed Patrick and a bunch of articles and guest posts to promote Kill Devil.

Thanks for sharing, Mike Dellosso! Below I have included the book trailer for Kill Devil. I hope it wets your appetite for the book. Enjoy!

Beth K. Vogt: Almost Like Being in Love

By Kelly Bridgewater

Winning an all-expenses paid Colorado destination wedding might seem like a dream come true for some people—but Caron Hollister and her boyfriend Alex Madison aren’t even engaged. How is she supposed to tell him she’s won their wedding and honeymoon when he hasn’t asked her to marry him? Being “perfect for one another” seems like the absolute best reason to get married. But what if their supposedly faultless relationship is merely a safe place to protect his secrets and a way to keep their families happy? After quitting her job, Caron accepts her best friend’s offer to visit Colorado. She needs to catch her breath. Who knows, maybe visiting the destination wedding site will make a future with Alex seem like a reality.

Kade Webster just landed the biggest deal of his life with his company, Webster Select Realty, participating in the Colorado Springs Tour of Homes. He never imagined he would run into the woman who broke his heart—Caron Hollister—right when his career is taking off. Seeing her again, Kade can’t help but wonder why Caron walked away from him years ago, leaving him with no explanation. When Kade learns his home stager won’t be able to help with the Tour of Homes, he vaults past all the reasons he should stay away from Caron, and offers her a temporary job helping him on the project. This time, their relationship is purely business.

Spending time with Kade has Caron questioning everything. The man intrigues her—at times infuriates her—and reminds her of what she lost. Has she been settling for what everyone expects of her? Just because others believe she and Alex are an ideal couple, does that mean they should get married? And how can Caron say “I do” to one man when she’s wondering “what if?” about another?

From Barnes and Nobles

My Thoughts:

Beth K. Vogt is a master at creating stories that grip the heart. Of the two stories of hers that I have read, I really enjoy how she chooses topics that are totally relateable. A good story, in my humble opinion, has to have rememberable characters, an unique plot, and a wonderful story world.

I enjoyed getting to know Caron, Kade, and Alex. Caron is a young woman who is determined to please her father and earn his approval. But God works on her heart and makes her rethink her choices in life. Next, Kade knows what he wants to do with his life. From his job to his heart. He works really hard and keeps straight on that path. Finally, Alex seeks the help to remove his self from all the secrets he has been keeping in his life and move on with his whole life. I rooted for the characters as they learned their path in life.

I really like the question that Vogt raises: Is anyone truly perfect for someone else? I disagree. Everyone is going to butt heads with someone, even after being married for fifteen years myself, I love my husband, but we argue over things too. But where it really matters, money, God, and family, we are on the same page. God places the desire for love in all of us. That is why we search for a relationship with our Heavenly Father.

In conclusion, Beth K. Vogt's latest book Almost Like Being in Love has a wonderful cast of characters, an interesting plot that kept me spellbound for a couple of hours while I read the book. 

This is a great book for everyone to read. It makes me want to read Vogt's other books.

I received a complimentary copy of Almost Like Being in Love from Howard Books and the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Purchase Almost Like Being in Love

Dorothy Love: Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Gray

By Kelly Bridgewater

A general’s wife and a slave girl forge a friendship that transcends race, culture, and the crucible of Civil War.

Mary Anna Custis Lee is a great-granddaughter of Martha Washington, wife of Confederate General Robert E Lee, and heiress to Virginia’s storied Arlington house and General Washington’s personal belongings.

Born in bondage at Arlington, Selina Norris Gray learns to read and write in the schoolroom Mary and her mother keep for the slave children, and eventually becomes Mary’s housekeeper and confidante. As Mary’s health declines, Selina becomes her personal maid, strengthening a bond that lasts until death parts them.

Forced to flee Arlington at the start of the Civil War, Mary entrusts the keys to her beloved home to no one but Selina. When Union troops begin looting the house, it is Selina who confronts their commander and saves many of its historic treasures.

In a story spanning crude slave quarters, sunny schoolrooms, stately wedding parlors, and cramped birthing rooms, novelist Dorothy Love amplifies the astonishing true-life account of an extraordinary alliance and casts fresh light on the tumultuous years leading up to and through the wrenching battle for a nation’s soul.

From Barnes and Nobles

My Thoughts:

Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Gray is a forty year narrative from the perspective of Robert E. Lee, the leader of the Conferedate Army during the Civil War, wife and one of her slaves, Mrs. Gray. Dorothy Lee research is well done. I really enjoyed learning more about the woman behind a leader during a horrible time in our nation's history. Even though their relationship was frowned by so many people, Lee and Gray kept their relationship strong even after death. I have heard the story about Robert E. Lee but to see him as a loving husband and father shows a loving man behind his actions. I enjoyed traveling the decades with Lee and Gray and watching their relationship change from a nine and twenty-one year old to fifty and seventy-one year old. The story shows their changing relationship even among the tension rising in the country. The story features both women's perspective, so I could understand and empathize with each individual character. Letters, however, is another form of telling the story for Love. The theme of enduring friendship shined from every page in this novel. Even though, I usually don't read books written in the nineteenth century, I really enjoyed this book.

I received a complimentary copy of Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Gray from Thomas Nelson and the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Purchase Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Gray