My Ridiculous, Romantic Obsessions- Becca Wilhite

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May 262010
 

Hey Friends- It’s me, Hillary

Just in case you were wondering, my blog, It’s me, Hillary is up and running! http://itsmehillary.blogspot.com

This week, I bring you Becca Wilhite’s “My Ridiculous, Romantic Obsessions, ” a newly released romance by Shadow Mountain.

The story tells of self-described, plain Sarah who leaves home to head to college. Sounds pretty ordinary until you get to know Sarah. I love that she considers herself average. The thing that made this story different, was that the supporting characters didn’t necessarily dispute it, but they don’t come right out and tell you that. She uses experiences from the past to put that claim together.

She has a class where she meets Ben, who she literally calls “Adonis” by accident. They start to hang out for a study group, and as time progresses, his interest shows. Well, to him anyway. Sarah has a hard time understanding and believing he truly cares for her.

Sarah was so real to me. The only thing she was missing was the thin, straight hair instead of thick and curly. I had flashbacks to high school and college dating, along with the memory of emotional struggles that went along with it. Becca Wilhite put into writing what I think goes through a lot of us “ordinary” girls’ heads. Can he really like me? Should I put myself out there? How bad will it hurt if he rejects me? Can I do this yet again? I thank her for writing a book that has been missing from the market. A book where the “average” girl learns that sometimes you really can have a romantic obsession, and live it too.

This is my new favorite romance for the year, and has made my top ten. The book doesn’t have the “early-twenties” feel to it, where you sometimes roll your eyes with how the characters act, or the situations they are in. Sarah and her friends had a maturity that made you forget they were young. The romance was realistic, hopeful and tender. There is fabulous romantic angst, and a perfect insightful scene when you get to see through Sarah how Ben feels about their relationship. Fabulous!

A big “THANK YOU” to Shanda, who assured me that I wouldn’t regret purchasing it. She was absolutely right.

Until next time!

Hillary

Ftc-fyi= purchased copy

My Review of "The Golden Spiral" by Lisa Mangum

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May 212010
 

Book: The Golden Spiral


Author: Lisa Mangum

Publisher: Shadow Mountain

Published: 2010

ISBN # 978-1-60641-635-8

Hardcover: 369 pages

Reviewed by : Sheila

FTC FYI: I borrowed the book from the library, but I
am planning on buying my own copy soon!




His eyes. His touch. His kiss. Dante was unlike anyone Abby had ever met. Now he’ s gone, and Abby will do anything to get him back . . . The hourglass door has closed behind Dante, sending him back in time to hunt down Zo, Tony, and V. Abby knows that Dante, as a Master of Time, is the only one who can stop them from destroying time itself. She also knows that he will need her help. But almost immediately, things start to change, and Abby s worst fears are realized when Zo begins targeting her past specifically. As Abby s world fractures around her, she must face a terrible truth: either Dante didn’ t make it through the door, or he is lost forever. So with Dante s blueprints in hand, she begins construction on a new door, a new time machine that will either save Dante or doom him. With each new change that ripples into her present, Abby s life continues to spiral out of control. Her relationships with Jason, Natalie, and even her family are threatened to the breaking point and beyond. Zo s power is greater than Abby ever imagined, but as she struggles to free Dante, she receives help from an unexpected and unlikely ally. The bank is eroding. The barriers are thinning. And time is running out.


Wow! That is the first thing I said after reading “The Golden Spiral”. It is the sequel to the very popular, “The Hourglass Door” by author Lisa Mangum, that came out last year. The third book in the trilogy, “The Forgotten Locket” will be coming out Summer 2011.



When I first started reading I was very confused. In the prologue I was desperately trying to remember all of the characters and what they had done in book one. I highly suggest that you re-read “The Hourglass Door” again before reading “The Golden Spiral”. Once you get to chapter one, things start making sense again.

As in the case of most series written, I enjoyed reading the second book more. It comes down to the fact, that the first book usually establishes characters and storyline. In the following books the author can do more with the characters. You already know the characters, how they will react to something; you either really like them, such as main characters Abby and Dante, or you really hate them such as the character of Zo.


Abby carries the storyline in this book. She is strong, confident and brave. Her devotion to the man she loves makes you sigh. There is a lot of romance in the story that female readers will love! I am not sure the male readers will react as favorably to that as women, but I am glad that the romance is there. The romance shows why Abby would sacrifice everything for the man that she loves. You have to understand this in order to appreciate the lengths that Abby goes to so she can save Dante. Speaking of Dante, he is a very yummy, Italian man. You can understand why Abby would do anything and everything to have him in her life.

I love how Lisa shows time travel in her books. It is unique and believable, as far as time travel goes. The whole idea of a river of time, that controls all of our lives and how it can change when someone disrupts the flow, is brilliant to me. “The Golden Spiral” has a lot of action and mystery. You are constantly wondering, what in the world will happen next?

There is an important lesson at the end of the book that the character Zo talks about.

“I’ve learned lot since I’ve started traveling at will through the river. I’ve made some mistakes, sure, but I’ve tried to learn from them. One of the things that fascinated me about the whole process of changing events is seeing how people’s choices can change what happens to them. The chain reactions are fascinating. Sometimes things work out exactly as I planned…sometimes I have to improvise.”

In point #9 in the reading guide it says, “The book touches on the importance of making choices of our own free will, of shaping your own destiny and future. Are there choices you have made that have changed the course of your life?'”I think that this question applies to adults as well as the young adults who this book was mainly written for.

So, I recommend this book to all people that like speculative fiction, a nice, clean romance, lots of action and surprises thrown in throughout the book…read “The Golden Spiral”. The book ends in a way that will make you wait anxiously for next Summer and “The Forgotten Locket”. Way to go Lisa Mangum! I really loved this book.

Rating: 4 stars

Recommend this book? Yes, 100%

Read it Again? You can count on it

Finding Daylight: How The Lord Works Through Our Disappointments

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May 142010
 

Title: Finding Daylight: How The Lord Works Through Our Disappointments


Author: Kimberly Webb

Publisher: Deseret Book

Published Date: 2007

ISBN#: 10:1-59992-038-7

Hard Cover; 90 pages

If you are a book-a-holic like I am, you may have the same habits that I do. For example, there are some books I may see and I will buy it even though it is not applicable to my life at the time. Then when something does happen, I have the help I need already sitting there on my bookshelf. This is the case with the book I am blogging about today.


Finding Daylight: How The Lord Works Through Our Disappointments,
by KimberlyWebb. It was first published in 2007 by Deseret Book.

Here is the blurb about the book:

“Life is filled with detours and dead ends. Oft-times our sincere desires to choose the right have led us down the path of failure. Sometimes even things we felt spiritually prompted to pursue can end in disappointment. Why is that? Are we meant to be discouraged? Do we even have the capacity to succeed?

The truth of the matter is that sometimes it suits God’s purposes to let us fail. Out of the rich soil of spiritual yearning and disappointment can come some of life’s most enduring victories. Instead of inglorious defeats, in God’s hands these disappointments can become stepping-stones to deeper understanding, renewed commitment, and more meaningful successes.

They can also represent sacrifice to the Lord, who is willing to try our faith and sound the depths of our commitment. Whenever they occur, they lead us in directions we could not have anticipated without the Lord’s guidance.

Finding Daylight is filled with deep spiritual insights gleaned from a careful reading of the scriptures and a prayerful examination of the Lord’s hand in the author’s personal experiences.”


Though this book is only 90 pages long, it is powerfully packed with great spiritual insight. On the back cover of the book is a scripture that shows you the theme and spirit of this book,

“Therefore, continue your journey and let your hearts rejoice; for behold,and lo, I am with you even unto the end.”…..D&C 100:12

The chapter titles also can show you what you will find in this book:

1. Stepping-Stones: When Failure Points the Way

2. Awaiting the Harvest: When Success is Delayed

3. “The Darkness is Past”: When Failure Brings Change

4. A Holy Sacrifice: When Failure is Success

5. Walking on Water: Success through the Son of God


I found this book to be a good tool in working through problems in my life.It also showed me that so many things that happen to us are for our own good. At times it is hard to see this as we are going through our trials. I feel that great miracles can happen in our lives when we allow the Lord to help us.

I would like to end with a quote from the book:

“As mortals we develop our faith and capacities line upon line. A few successful steps followed by a fall are hardly failure-experience carries us forward. As we cry for the savior to rescue us, He will. He knows our level of faith, and He does not look way in disappointment at our weakness.As Elder Holland said,’Considering the incomprehensible cost of the Crucifixion, Christ is not going to turn His Back on us now.” (Trusting Jesus, Deseret Book, 2003, 67)

Yes, there is daylight at the end of our dark hour. I am for grateful for the many things along the way that help me see and understand this.

Rating: 4 stars

Would I Recommend this Book? Yes

Will I Read it Again? Yes I will!



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