The Charlatan's Boy by Jonathan Rogers

This was an excellent book.  Grady is a young orphan boy that has been raised by a huckster named Floyd.  He doesn't know who his parents are or how he ended up with Floyd.  Life is difficult, and it is getting hard to make money, so Floyd decides that they need to create another Great Feechie Scare.  Floyd can be be very calculating, and mean but Grady stays with him because it is the only life that he has ever known.   We get to follow these two through the ups and downs of their trade.  The ending of the book is a wonderful wrap up and also leaves us wanting more.  I am very excited for the future books in this series.  I received a complimentary copy of this book from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Gray Matter by David Levy, MD

Tyndale Media recently sent me an Advance Reader Copy of this book.  I found it fascinating.  Dr. Levy talks about how he started to pray with his patients and the results that he saw from this.  I believe in the power of prayer, and it is wonderful to see a book that tries to portray the wonderful things that can happen with prayer.  We learn about many patients that Dr. Levy has treated and how he has helped their lives.  He doesn't only treat the physical problems of the patients, but he also tries to treat the emotional and spiritual problems as well.  I like that he talks about the surgerys that don't work as well as the surgerys that do.  He shares the struggles that he has and the conclusions that he comes to when things don't work out as expected.  I also found the descriptions of the problems that he treated very interesting.  He keeps it at a low enough level that anyone can follow along.  All in all, I thought that it was a very interesting, insightful book.

A Time to Dance by Karen Kingsbury

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Thomas Nielsons BookSneeze program. Overall I enjoyed the book, but it also had some drawbacks. It is the story of a couple that have been married for over twenty years and have grown apart. They still love each other, but don't know how to come back together. The idea was interesting, and I enjoyed the characters. I felt like the author kept saying over and over how they still loved each other, but it was to late. Several times the husband and wife make it clear that they don't really want to get divorced, but they have already made the decision to do it, and feel like they can't change their minds. It seemed forced. If they really loved each other as much as implied, then they wouldn't have made the decision to divorce in the first place, and if they had then they would be able to take the steps to change their situation. I enjoyed the book, but felt like parts of it were contrived. I would give it a 3 out of 5.

The Secrets Beneath by Kathleen Fuller

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Thomas Nelsons BookSneeze program. I had never read an Amish fiction book before. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. It was a very fun read. It is a mystery, and it definitely kept me guessing. It is written for tweens and teens, but I still found it to be a delightful read. I plan on keeping this book around for my daughter to read when she gets a little older. It was a very clean, well told story. I also enjoyed learning a little more about the Amish way of life. All in all, it was a very fun book!

Run to Overcome by Meb Keflezighi

I recently received a complimentary copy of this book from Tyndale House Publishers. I thought that the book sounded very interesting. I had hoped to learn more about Meb's life before he came to America, but found the information fascination. Meb is a true inspiration. He is an example of how if you are willing to work for it you can achieve anything. It is amazing to see the dedication and hard work that he is willing to put into being the best runner that he can. I also enjoyed learning about the culture Eritrea. I had never even heard of Eritrea before this book, and so found the information very interesting. I enjoyed this book very much, and would recommend it to anyone. Especially to anyone that enjoys running.

A Suitor For Jenny by Margaret Brownley

As part of Thomas Nelson's Booksneeze program, I received A Suitor For Jenny by Margaret Brownley. This was what I would consider a christian romance. You have the love story (several actually), as well as people discovering that they need God in their lives. The story was kind of sweet, but it was very sappy. I will admit that as a teenager I read a lot of christian romance novels, and I still read them when I am pregnant, but I think that I have mostly outgrown the genre. The story was well written, and the characters were fun. It is set in the late 1800's in Texas. After their parents died Jenny felt like she needed to take care of her two younger sisters. She makes some mistakes and feels that she cannot hope for marriage, but is determined to find suitable husbands for her sisters. It is a safe romance, nothing risque. I would give it 2.5/5 stars.

The Lost City of Z by David Grann

I am hosting my book group this month, and this is the book that I decided to read. I thought that it sounded fascinating. It is the true story of Percy Fawcett and his explorations in the Amazon. I thought that the information was very interesting, but I found the lay out of the book somewhat confusing. It starts by following three different expeditions in three different time periods, and then interweaves them throughout the book. I would give this book 3.5/5. I enjoyed it, but I thought that the story could have been told in a better way.