His Steadfast Love - Fiction, Historical

His Steadfast Love  - Fiction, Historical

By Golden Keyes Parsons (One of my favorite authors)

A nation torn apart by Civil War.  Lovers torn apart by family conflict.  Can their love survive? 

Amanda Belle is a lady of Southern upbringing, charged with caring for younger siblings after losing her mother.  Kent Littlefield is a Union army officer, quickly rising in rank.  The two meet just before the Civil War and quickly fall in love.  However, when the war starts, Kent must take his place in the Northern army – taking him away from the woman he loves.  Amanda’s own brother soon joins the Southern Rebel army – tearing her allegiances: family and slavery; or true love and freedom?  When the war ends, will Kent come for Amanda and win the blessings of both families for marriage?  What will become of Amanda’s brother, her siblings, and her convictions? 

I loved this story told superbly by Golden Keyes Parsons.  This book gave me a small glimpse of the heartbreak of our nation torn apart by war.  I was moved to tears several times as I read about the horrors of the war – brother fighting brother, families torn apart.  Many details of actual events were seamlessly woven into the story.  The story flowed from beginning to end.  Really, this could have been a 2 or 3 book series with all the years covered.  I give this book an A – read it and love it!

The publisher provided a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.  Thanks BookSneeze.com!

Judgment Day - Fiction, Modern

Judgment Day – Modern Fiction

By Wanda L. Dyson

Suzanne Kidwell is an investigative reporter with shoddy research tactics who is about to get herself in major trouble.  She finds herself framed for murder and stuck in jail.  Suzanne’s lawyer recommends hiring an excellent private investigator to look for evidence to prove Suzanne innocent and find the person responsible for the murder.  It turns out the best PI for the case is Suzanne’s ex-fiancé, Marcus Crisp and his family fortune heiress partner, Alex Fisher-Hawthorne.  As the investigation begins, they uncover pieces of a black-market operation that puts all of their lives in danger.  Will they survive long enough to interlock the puzzle pieces and bring the perpetrators to justice?  “I’m Suzanne Kidwell.  And this is Judgment Day.”

I thought this story was well written and entertaining; however I didn’t find myself engrossed in the book.  I found the character development to be a little lacking which I think contributed to the detachment from the book.  The storyline was understandable with twists and turns.  I think faith in God should have been a much bigger focus in the book.  It was mentioned here and there, but not expounded upon.  The main character Suzanne is pictured as an egotistical woman who is totally self-reliant.  Toward the end of the book she has a slight change of heart, but I feel the author missed an opportunity to have her find real faith in God.  Overall, I would give the book a B -  good read, but not a must read.

I received a free e-book copy of this novel from the publisher for my honest review of the book.