ESV Men's Devotional Bible © 2015 by Crossway; ESV Text Edition: 2011

The print is easily readable with clear font with 8.5-point Lexicon type, two-columns to a page. The devotional readings reflect on biblical text. The placement of the devotions have a footnote leading to the next devotion. They are not dated, but applicable to the Scriptures you are reading. There is a brief introduction to each Book of the Bible. In the back are articles addressing issues of interest to men. There is a dictionary of key terms, devotions index alongside Scripture references. This copy is hardcover.

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Who will you gift this ESV Men's Devotional Bible to

if you are the winner of this one giveaway copy offered

from Propeller / FlyBy Promotions? Here is the Crossway

link with further description and preview of text. Giveaway to residents of the US and Canada. Recipient of giveaway will be drawn in ten days on November 17, 2015.

Here is an excerpt of a devotional reading:

When God Seems Far Away ~ Psalm 88

Psalm 88 is surely the darkest of all the Psalms. Almost every other psalm ends with, or at least includes, some note of hope or praise. Not this one. There appears to be no relief.
   We all experience this at times. Even though, as men, we want to be perceived as strong, we are privately aware of our weakness and frailty. Any deep disappointment or loss, any deep hurt, any prolonged sickness, any betrayal--really, any number of things--can make us feel what this psalmist, Heman, was feeling--lack of strength (Ps. 88:4), helplessness (v. 15), even despair (vv.5-6). The fact is, being in a saving relationship with God through Jesus Christ does not mean that we will escape deep discouragement and even darkness. We will experience hard things, sometimes in waves, and sometimes for prolonged seasons. God has promised that we won't walk through those times alone, but he also hasn't promised that we won't at times feel alone.
   So it's a good thing that God has lovingly included this psalm in his Word. Otherwise we'd be left to wonder if God's sovereign love extended all the way to even our darkest experiences.
   But Psalm 88 doesn't just describe a common human experience; it also provides a "prompt" on what to do during such an experience. Three times the psalmist tells us that he "cried out to God" (see vv. 1, 9, 13). That repetition provides a bit of structure to the psalm, but far more importantly it tells us what this psalm is and what it's here for. Psalm 88 is a turning to God in the darkness, and it calls us to do the same. Psalm 88 is a telling to God of the darkness, and it calls us to do the same. And Psalm 88 is a trusting of God despite the darkness, and it calls us to do the same.
   Right at the beginning of this psalm the writer declares, "O LORD, God of my salvation..." Isn't that a striking statement, given the darkness of this psalm? Yet this is where Heman has put his hope. This is where there is a stake deep down into solid rock, and he has anchored himself to that stake.
   Let's not miss that this psalm is a prayer. God does not belittle the prayer of the deeply discouraged or even despairing man. He wants us to remember that there is both safety and salvation in coming to him.

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 Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.”

A Respectable Actress by Dorothy Love, © 2015

  

Actress Fanny Kemble, the inspiration for A Respectable Actress.

                                     --author Dorothy Love

All the world's a stage and all the men and

women merely players. They have their exits and

their entrances and one man in his time plays

many parts . . .

   --WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

Savannah, Georgia, December 20, 1870

The packed theater is erupted with gunfire as the leading man, Arthur Sterling, goes down.

  Visiting actress, Miss India Hartley, is rushed off to the Chatham County Jail. Theatrical noises during the performance of Suspicion at the Southern Palace Theater could not buffet the sound shattering the night.

   Father had often reminded her that every situation seemed less daunting in the light of a new day...
A Respectable Actress, 3

One moment, one change in the script by house director Cornelius Philbrick, rearranges lives forever.



St. Simons Island, Georgia, January 5, 1871 ~ Indigo Point

Defense attorney Philip Sinclair has been hired by a benevolent socialite to defend actress India Hartley. Mrs. Sutton Mackay has long been an admirer of the theater and wants to divert scandal for Miss Hartley.

   The house was of the West Indies style, built above a tabby basement, with wide, covered verandas and tall windows framed by shutters.
   Ibid., 33

Mr. Sinclair's sister, Amelia, and housekeeper, Mrs. Catchpole, are in residence at their plantation home as they deem to keep it from further decay and ruin since the war. As with her heart, India hopes to keep in the same repair as she faces what the future may bring to her silent, hesitant thoughts, intermingled with hope and assurance that Truth will prevail.

  Returning on the steamer back to Savannah for the trial, would her sanctuary at Indigo Point following the inquest be enough to quench her fears ~ of the unknown beyond her innocence?

~*compounded*~
"From the ruin of her old life had come this love, this priceless treasure."
Would her heart be summoned?

Join this story as secrets become evident and freedom hopeful.




A native of west Tennessee, Dorothy Love makes her home in the Texas hill country with her husband and their golden retriever. An award-winning author of numerous young adult novels, Dorothy made her adult debut with the Hickory Ridge novels. Contact author Dorothy Love: Facebook, Website, Twitter.
***Thank you to author Dorothy Love and to Thomas Nelson for this copy of A Respectable Actress for review. This review was written in my own words. No other compensation was received.***

Luther and Katharina: A Novel of Love and Rebellion by Jody Hedlund, © 2015

"I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess." - Martin Luther

Jody Hedlund has brought fact together with a livelihood of characters that brings us into their daily lives. Such depth in discovery, she has brought her research to the forefront, revealing God's Truth in an era of deluge of irony in princes and peasants, and power asserted over those willing and those placed from a young age, incapable of caring for themselves.

Katharina von Bora assists other nuns as they escape the abbot and convent that has been their home and daily knowledge forging the wall to the other side. Upon pamphlets and writings of Martin Luther brought in and passed from one to another, they risk all they have known to return to the world outside the cloistered gates.

"I'm no more your servant than you are my mistress. One cannot change the natural order of life by wishful thinking."
   Katharina von Bora, Luther and Katharina, 162

Martin Luther has printed Truth of the Scriptures, promoting others to read for themselves. Standing in the middle of the overseers and those under their command, Martin chooses to rid tradition and loyalty to anything save the Holy Word that stands on its own, unobstructed by mankind. Not a popular notion by all, he continues to write, published and distributed from Wittenberg presses.

   "I'm always astonished," he said, "that the songs and praise intended to glorify God have the dual role of benefiting us, of lifting us out of our mire and muck to renew our spirits."
   Martin Luther, Ibid., 167

Uncertain of close contacts to be trusted, Katharina's skills as apothecary and doctoring come in handy. Martin is overcome by maladies and her trusted hand brings him through more than once to the land of the living. His belief that God will provide enriches all of their lives as the quest for freedom prevails.

"... ultimately prayer must come freely from the heart, without any made-up or prescribed words. It must form the words that are burning in the heart."
   reflected from Martin Luther, Ibid., 195

This is not a novel to be read lightly and taken away with a sweet love story. It is a story of growth, determination, and individualized following the path set before them. My most noticeable character is Aunt Lena, a solitary figure that plays greatly in the background of Katharina's life.

                              Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.

                                  --John 15:13
She laid her life down to save Katharina's.

This story covers the Spring of 1523 to the Summer of 1526 in the lives of these noble men and women who sought Truth and to share it with others through their lives.

ISBN 978-1-60142-762-5 release date October 6, 2015

Martin Luther, 1483-1546                 Katharina von Bora, 1499-1552

Back cover:
She was a nun of noble birth. He, a heretic, a reformer…an outlaw of the Holy Roman Empire.
In the 16th century, nun Katharina von Bora’s fate fell no further than the Abbey. Until she read the writings of Martin Luther.
  His sweeping Catholic church reformation—condemning a cloistered life and promoting the goodness of marriage—awakened her desire for everything she’d been forbidden. Including Martin Luther himself.
  Despite the fact that the attraction and tension between them is undeniable, Luther holds fast to his convictions and remains isolated, refusing to risk anyone’s life but his own. And Katharina longs for love, but is strong-willed. She clings proudly to her class distinction, pining for nobility over the heart of a reformer. They couldn’t be more different.
  But as the world comes tumbling down around them, and with Luther’s threatened life a constant strain, these unlikely allies forge an unexpected bond of understanding, support and love.
  Together, they will alter the religious landscape forever.
 
                        author Jody Hedlund
Jody Hedlund is a CBA best-selling author with twelve novels and two novella prequels. Her first novel, The Preacher’s Bride, won the Reader’s Choice Award as part of the RWA Faith, Hope, and Love contest. Hedlund revels in bringing forgotten historic women to life and can usually be found with a book, a cup of coffee and a piece of chocolate. She lives in Midland, Michigan with her husband and five children.

***Thank you to WaterBrook Multnomah Blogging for Books for sending me an advance reading copy for review of Jody Hedlund's historical fiction novel, Luther and Katharina: A Novel of Love and Rebellion. This review was written in my own words. No other compensation was received.***

Book 3 In Print!! Dawn Crandall's The Captive Imposter ~*Giveaway*~ Estella's story

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Rejoice!! Book 3 of The Everstone Chronicles is ready in print for release on November 3, 2015!

Book 3 The Everstone Chronicles

Sent away for protection, hotel heiress Estella Everstone finds herself living undercover as a lady’s companion named Elle Stoneburner at one of her father’s opulent hotels in the mountains of Maine—the one she'd always loved best and always hoped to own one day, Everston. The one thing she doesn't like about the situation is that her ex-fiancé is in the area and is set on marrying someone else. Reeling from her feelings of being unwanted and unworthy, Estella reluctantly forms a friendship with the gruff manager of Everston, Dexter Blakeley, who seems to have something against wealthy young socialites with too much money, although they are just the kind of people Everston caters to.

When Estella finds herself in need of help, Dexter comes to the rescue with an offer she can't refuse. She sees no other choice aside from going back home to her family and accepts the position as companion to his sister. Throughout her interactions with Dexter, she can't deny the pull that's evidenced between them every time he comes near. Estella realizes that while she's been hiding behind a false name and identity, she’s never been freer to be herself than when she's with Dexter Blakeley. But will he still love her when he finds out she's Estella Everstone? She's not entirely sure.

~*~

Did you notice the very top of this posting?? Don't hesitate to enter and miss out on the opportunity to be a winner of book 3 ~ I haven't read yet!! Yippee! 

Book 1 The Everstone Chronicles

Book 2 The Everstone Chronicles

Books 1 and 2 are also now in print ~ all three are in eBook format too

A Christmas Stamp by Cynthia Hickey, © 2015

Kindle copy available for order here.

Just in time for the holidays, but a story that bears telling any time of the year, A Christmas Stamp is a short novella packed full of interesting characters and a budding romance. I liked how the story began and the characters remained genuine throughout as they were just doing their job, or so they thought.
Lilly Tipton's first day on the job as switchboard operator in a small corner of the Noel, Missouri post office, becomes more than she expected as Calvin Monroe comes in to get his rural delivery mail. It is their second meeting, as they run into each other on her way home, that endears her to him. In fact, he has decided to pick her up on his way to keep her out of the weather.

The postmaster has a plan for a contest to design a special rubber stamp just in time for Christmas. Just what is needed to celebrate their little town of Noel: A postmark on outgoing mail to look as if it came from the North Pole!

It gets lively as the whole town shows an interest and volunteers arrive to sort the entries coming from throughout the state. With an unintended extension, what will be decided? Awaiting the selection, there appears to be more results from the contest than one winner. Join Noel, Missouri, as a merry Christmas is sure to arrive.



***Thank you to author Cynthia Hickey for sending me a beta copy of A Christmas Stamp for review. This review was written in my own words. No other compensation was received.***

A Refuge at Highland Hall by Carrie Turansky, © 2015

Edwardian Brides Series, Book 3



A lovely story of hope and love during turbulent times.

Happenstance acquaintanceship builds throughout the story, as those spark a need further on.


1915, World War I

London Airship Raids - Zeppelin 1915

Moved to the countryside at Highland Hall, near Fulton, in Berkshire, a family closes up their Kensington home following blitz bombings throughout London by the Germans, removing women and children out of harms' way.

The childhood home of sisters Kate Foster and Penny Ramsey, they rejoin their cousin Sir William Ramsey and his wife Julia, now overseeing the estate of Highland Hall since the death of the sisters' parents. Julia's brother, Dr. Jonathan Foster and his wife, Kate, have brought their orphaned and abandoned children they rescued from the streets in need of care. Five girls and three boys, ages four to fifteen, the country life has brought them hope and a new experience of being able to play freely on the grounds.

German prisoners are brought in to care for the fields, after the departure of the men going to British war aide. All is not as it seems, as some were children when they arrived with their families from Germany, but because of their parentage they are detained in encampment with guards. Those who had been bankers and other trades, going on with their lives, caring for their families and loved ones. War has brought upheaval to their lives as well, disrupting what they hold dear.

Lieutenant Alexander Goodwin and his sister, Lindy, become reacquainted with hope for a future contact between them. Their parents had divorced, now their father deceased and their mother remarried. It took bravery for Alex to knock on the London home he had not lived in to seek out his welcome and his younger sister separated from him for so many years. Spurned away, he seeks refuge with new friends, Dr. Jon whom he has known since their boyhood in India, on his three-day weekend before returning for pilot training with the Royal Naval Air Service against enemy craft.
Penny and Alex write to each other after he returns to his service. Uplifting for him, gives her a personal interest in the war, as they share encouragement back and forth. 

My favorite part was how Alex spoke into Andrew Ramsey's life by being honest and vulnerable with his own decisions. Young Andrew will one day inherit Highland Hall, as the eldest son. Invaluable imparting wisdom and love by example, Alex will have a huge turn about in Andrew's life choices.

The Edwardian Brides Series includes book 1, The Governess of Highland Hall; book 2, The Daughter of Highland Hall; and book 3, A Refuge at Highland Hall written by author Carrie Turansky.
   

***Thank you to author Carrie Turansky for inviting me to be a part of the review team for this third novel, A Refuge of Highland Hall, and for sending me a pre-release copy from WaterBrook Multnomah. This review was written in my own words. No other compensation was received.***

Click here: http://carrieturansky.com/index.php/a-refuge-at-highland-hall-book-launch-giveaway/
Be sure to check out book launch giveaway through October 24

Lilacs for Juliana by Carrie Fancett Pagels, © 2015

The Christy Lumber Camp Series, Book 3



A lovely story begins of good intentions. How often do we portray who we are, or are we coy, hoping others will interpret our actions? Miss Juliana Beauchamps must find her heart's desire in leaving the past behind and not allowing it to affect her future decisions of who she is truly. Come along as the good intentions are eventually portrayed in a heart that is noble and true. But the story must progress, as our lives, daily ~ not arriving in one big humph and we're there.

Richard "Moose" (as his family and other loggers call him) Christy, has come to nearby St. Ignace in Michigan's eastern Upper Peninsula to set up Christy Lumber Camp at Grand Crossing, readying it for the loggers who will be coming to this new section. With a camp bunkhouse lodge larger than previous camps his father has operated, Richard is hoping to bring in the very best for this new operation. His first agenda is to find cooks to keep the men's bellies full and their enthusiasm up without lack. Cherishing his nurturing time with reading, he sets out to the St. Ignace town library ~ until he finds out his favorite is not only literary. Juliana is the librarian. Five feet to his six-six in height, she already is set to look up to him! So sweet when he comes upon the children's hour storytelling, embellishing Paul Bon Jean, famed woodsman of tales (parallels the giant lumberjack originated by loggers in folklore's oral legend ~ Paul Bunyan).
With Richard unable to tell her of his longings, Juliana seems to slip through his fingers as she travels to Milwaukee for a very long month ahead.

Leaving her home to assist the set up of the personal library of a beer baron in Milwaukee, Juliana has time to consider her past and her future.

Baron James Yost has always been able to persuade with his wealth, charm, and talent. Setting details without inquiring with those he has determined to appeal to his liking, to his credit is his little daughter, Isabelle. As a widower, she is his delight and has such a sweet appealing countenance, you will be uplifted by her lightness in a situation that could be hampering.

Actually, James Yost does Juliana a favor by no choice but to meet her past and resolve it. Offering forgiveness is one thing, actually experiencing it is another.
  How can we twist a person's life by our suggestions. Wait a while; consider this ~ pulling us from our true intent? How it affects others as our decisions appease.
  Wait until you find out the true lilacs of the heart given to Juliana, an heirloom for generations to enjoy.

***Thank you to author Carrie Fancett Pagels for sending me a copy of Lilacs for Juliana, inviting me to be part of the blog tour for book 3 in The Christy Lumber Camp Series. This review was written in my own words. No other compensation was received.***

Book 1 ~ The Christy Lumber Camp Series

Book 2 ~ The Christy Lumber Camp Series

This blog entry concludes the Blog Hop for Carrie Fancett Pagels Lilacs for Juliana. Be sure and go back and comment on at least seven of these blog reviews to be entered for the Grand Prize. A copy of Lilacs for Juliana will be given to one commenter at each blog review, by the author!

Here are the direct links:
September 7th  Heroes, Heroines and History
September 12th  Overcoming with God
September 14th  BookBabble
September 16th  Cheryl B Book Blog
September 18th  D’s Quilts & Books
September 23rd  Sunnie Reviews
September 24th  Buzzing About Books
September 30th  Captive Dreams Windows
October 1st  Singing Librarian Books
October 5th  Perspectives by Nancee
October 7th  Stuff and Nonsense
October 14th  Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations
October 21st  Lane Hill House