The Bakers Daughter by Sarah McCoy

Elsie lives in occupied Germany during WW11. Her family owns a bakery and her sister is part of a program to get the specified aryan breed. Many years later Reba, a journalist, is charged with writing a journal piece about what Christmas is like in Germany. Elsie now lives in America and owns her own German Bakery, so Reba goes to her to find out what Christmas was like. With each question both women must confront thier past and Reba must learn to let go of her ghosts. Both women go on a powerful journey that ends up in self discovery.

This book jumps back and forth from occupied Germany to present day America. Its rich with history and events that open your eyes to how german people coped during the Nazi regime. It was well writ and full of feeling. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys history rich novels and love stories.

I recieved a commplementary copy of review from Edleweiss.

The Canary LIst by Sigmund Brouwer

Jaimie is a young girl who has been in the foster care system since she was a baby, but she has a unique gift. She can sense evil hunting her. Crockett Grey is a teacher for kids who have a hard time in school and for some reason Jaimie decides that she can trust him when an evil man shows up at her foster home pretending to be Social Services. This night leads to a series of events that destroy Crockett’s’ life and starts the uncovering of a very large secret kept by the Vatican. But when Father O’Hare needs Jaimie in Rome, Crockett finds himself pulled deep into the heart of the best kept secret with deadly consequences.

This book is a mystery that will have you guessing at every turn of events. It’s masterly written to were the reader can start piecing together their own theories on what is happening and what will happen. I enjoyed reading this book and trying to uncover how everything fit together. Although the ending was not what I had hoped, it leaves you to think on what you have just read and to gather your own conclusions about the motives of Father O’Hare. This book would be great for a book club where it can be discussed, analyzed, and thought over.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

An Amish Wedding by Beth Wiseman, Kathleen Fuller, & Kelly Long

 Rose, Naomi, and Priscilla learn lessons in life and love in this collection of three stories of these three different women. Rose yearns for adventure and starts to question her decision of becoming engaged to a man she finds boring. But when a thief comes to the community Rose learns that the man she thought she knew so well may yet surprise her. Naomi has been in love and has her heart broken, and now she fears letting herself love another man. But when a stranger roles through town she may have to let go of her fears and trust that God has brought him to her for a reason. Priscilla likes everything to be neat and tidy and have everything organized, but with her wedding coming up she is finding it hard to trust that things will be alright. She loves the man she is to marry but when everything that can go wrong does, will she find the strength to trust that everything is in God's hands?

This book has three novels in it that are all connected. They are well written and easily read. Although I was sort of shocked that the authors left the stories when they did it was still an enjoyable read. In the front of the book there is a dictionary of language used throughout the book which was really helpful and fun to learn. Also in the back of the book I discovered that there were several Amish recipes that they had talked to throughout the book. This book was a delight and I suggest this book to anyone who enjoys clean romance novels and who enjoys seeing into different worlds.

I received a complementary copy of this book for review from Booksneeze.

Night of the Living Dead Christian by Matt Mikalatos

Do you know who your neighbors are? In this comic novel Matt finds himself surrounded by monsters that are just in fairy tales. After meeting a mad scientist and his robot, Matt's eyes are opened to zombies, vampires, and werewolves. Luther Martin is a werewolf struggling to be free of the wolf and is convinced the answer lies in Christianity and its up to Matt and his new found friends to explain how it all works, which they find is harder than they expected.

This book takes a serious question and answers it in a way that will have you smiling and raising your eyebrows. Each set of monsters symbolize Christians in their walk with God and shows ways on how to break free and truly live for Him. It was well written and easy to read and understand the plot's twists and turns. It was not hard to grasp what the author was trying to say or to understand the message he was trying to convey. I would strongly recommend this book to any new follower or someone who has found themselves in a rut in their walk with God.

For an author video click here. For author Matt Mikalatos' website click here. For Tyndale House Publisher click here.

GIVE AWAY
If you would like a free copy of this book please let me know either in a comment or via email. I will choose a winner at random and notify you. You will have 48 hours to respond then a new winner will be chosen.

I received a free complimentary review copy of this book from Tyndale House.

The Christmas Singing by Cindy Woodsmall

If you like Amish Fiction or know someone who does the Christmas Singing is the perfect gift idea for this Christmas! Its a story about a girl who gets her heart destroyed and pours herself into her passion of baking. Its a path to self discovery and

For a video description of the book click here or to read the first chapter here.

You can also receive 30% off and free shipping on The Christmas Singing (and any other title) when you use promo code CHRISTMAS11 at checkout on WaterBrookMultnomah.com. The coupon code expires on December 20th, 2011 so be sure to hurry and check it out!

Forever Faithful by Karen Kingsbury

After a terrible accident Hannah loses her husband and her oldest daughter, and is consumed by a terrible hatred for the man responsible. Now all Hannah wants to do is make sure that this man is punished, but while she is throwing herself into the court case she fails to see how her surviving daughter is slowly fading away. Now Hannah must learn to forgive before she can start to heal and make her and her daughter a family again. Jade's mother left her at a young age and her father is terribly distant and cruel. When she meets a long lost child hood friend, Tanner, she is sure things are going to start looking up for her After one magical summer with Tanner, Jade is left an expectant mother and makes the decision to marry a man she does not love. Years later when her husband wants a divorce and is trying to take her only child from her, Jade and Tanner meet again and this time they wonder if they can truly be together. But when tragedy strikes again and again can they find the strength to trust that God has a plan?

This book is both heart breaking and inspiring. This book was well written and held your attention through the chapters. I found myself hoping that the main characters would make it out alright even through the lies, betrayal, and heartbreak. Although this book is a christian novel, the author doesn't preach, and doesn't force you to her opinions. The book i received is a trilogy with all three books in one novel, so you don't have to wait and wonder what will happen next. I would recommend this book to any believer who has suffered a loss and cant find a way to cope through it.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory

Mary is a young wife in the queens court when she catches the eye of Henry VIII. Soon after she becomes his mistress and while preparing to birth her second child her older sister, Anne, steals the king's eye. The girls family has plans for Anne and the king, but she has her own ideas. She convinces the king to divorce his wife so that he could marry her and make her queen. What she doesn't realize is that its one thing to catch the king and quite a different matter to hold him.

This book was exceptionally written and held my attention through the whole story. Although it was a little wordy sometimes it was not hard to understand and get through. The ending was not how i hoped it would be but it was gripping nevertheless. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading history novels or who love betrayal, gossip, and manipulation.