The River by Michael Neale

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through their BookSneeze program.  When Gabriel Clarke was 5 years old he watched his father drown in The River.  His whole life has been spent missing his father and reliving what happened that day.  He has nor really lived since that awful day.  When he is 20 a friend convinces him to go camping at The River.  While Gabriel is there he has a profound experience that changes how he views The River and allows him to start to heal.  This was an interesting story.  I found Gabriel an interesting character.  I felt sympathy for him and wanted him to find a way to thrive.  The supporting characters were interesting as well.  This book was written as an analogy and I felt like the story suffered a little because of it.  Some things didn't make sense as part of the story, but they did as part of the analogy.  Overall I enjoyed the book I would give it 3.5/5 stars.

Twice A Bride by Mona Hodgson

I received a complimentary copy of this book from WaterBrook Publishing as part of their Blogging for Books.  Willow Peterson has just buried her father.  Her husband died four years previously and she descended into a deep despair.   With the help of God and her family she was able to come out of it and is now trying to start a new life.  She has decided to stay in Cripple Creek and start over.  When looking for work she comes across an add asking for a portrait painter to work with a photography studio.  She has always wanted art to be a bigger part of her life, and this is the perfect chance.  I enjoyed the characters in this book.  Willow is a very likable main character.  You can admire her for what she has been through.  She had a hard time, but she worked through it and is now stronger than ever.  She is surrounded by a lot of fun characters as well.   This is the fourth book in a series.  I hadn't read any of the other books.  Hints were dropped of what happened in the previous books, and they sound interesting.   The only problem I had with this book was that some things just seemed unrealistic.  At one point, one of the characters goes into labor.  Her labor lasts about 10 min, before she gives birth to twin girls, and she didn't even have to push either of them out.  She had gone into labor at a family dinner, and her brother-in-law, who is a Dr. is there.   The Dr. decides to wait in the living room and let the three sisters take care of the delivery.  After all, two of them have given birth before and one of them was in the room when someone else gave birth.  This just didn't seem realistic to me.  I would give this book 3.5/5 stars.

Whispers in the Wind by Lauraine Snelling

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bethany House Publishers.  The is the second book in the Wild West Wind series.  I didn't have a chance to read the first book, but I was able to pick up on what had happened in the first book.  In this book Cassie Lockwood is trying to find her place in the world.  She grew up as part of a Wild West Show.  Now that the show has disbanded she needs to find a way to take care of herself and her "family".  She has found her way to the ranch that was part owned by her father.  Her father had not been in contact with his partners for years, and they were surprised when she showed up.  They allow her and her friends to move onto the ranch, and try to help them get a fresh start.  There are many challenges along the way.  Cassie Lockwood seems like a nice enough girl.  She wants to make her own way in the world, and has a hard time accepting help when it is offered.  This was a light read.  The characters were nice.  Most of the characters where very two-dimensional and not very well formed.  There were a lot of plot lines left hanging as there is going to be at least one more book in the series.   I did feel for Cassie, but have a hard time understanding why she feels like she has to do everything for her friends.  They seem like very capable people, and they could help some as well.  Runs like a deer is very knowledge about living off of the land, and Chief and Micah seem very handy and like they could do almost anything.  Cassie, who is the most helpless of the bunch seems to think that she is the only one that can take care of everyone.  A lot of the book is spent on Cassie agonizing about what she is going to do.  I think that I would give it 2.5/5 stars.

The Deposit Slip by Todd M. Johnson

I received a complementary copy of this book from Bethany House Publishers.  Erin Larson's father has died.  When she is going through his things she finds a deposit slip for ten million dollars.  A deposit that the bank says never happened.  Jared Neaton is trying to make it on his own.  He has left the fancy law firm that he started out and is working alone now.  He is given a chance to take Erin's case.  The case is based in his hometown.  He has been avoiding the place since his father betrayed him years ago.  I enjoyed this book.  The characters were interesting, the story was fun.  The story unravels slowly, and the author has a few surprises up his sleeve.   The relationships were interesting as well.  I had a hard time understanding the motives for most of the characters in the book.  I felt that these could have been laid out better.  Why was Jared willing to risk everything to take on the case?  Also, I had a hard time accepting that Jared walked away and let a man die.  I would give this book 3/5 stars.

Touching the Sky by Tracie Peterson

I received a complementary copy of this book from Bethany House Publishers.  The Civil War has just ended and tension is still in the air.   Laura comes from a family that supported the north.  She finds herself drawn to a handsome Captain.  Meanwhile her sister, Carissa is betrothed to a former confederate.  They don't find what kind of man he is until after the wedding.  The book had potential.  I didn't like Carissa or her story line.  This was a large portion of the book.  I find it unbelievable that her family would allow Carissa to be courted by, much less marry the man that she did.  The author paints Carissa as a very needy, spoiled, well-off girl.  As soon as she gets married, this seems to change.  She suddenly cares about what people think (she didn't seem to care before).  There were a lot of things about the book that I found unbelievable.  This made it hard to enjoy the story.  I would give the book 2.5/5 stars.

Surprised By Laughter: The Comic World of C. S. Lewis by Terry Lindvall, PH.D.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through their BookSneeze program.  This book talks about the humor that is found in much of C. S. Lewis's work.  The author is trying to show us why Lewis found laughter so important, and what part it played in his work and in his life.  I was very excited to receive this book.  I have always been fascinated with Lewis.  I thought that this would be a great way to learn more about the man and his work.  I found this book very hard to get into.  The author has a Ph.D. and I felt that it was written more as a scholarly article than a book for the everyman.  I found the writing had to read, and became confused early on.  I was not able to finish the book.  I think that the author knows his stuff, but it was not conveyed very well.  I would give this book 2/5 stars.

Finding Our Way Home by Charlene Ann Baumbich

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Water Book Publishers.  Sasha Davis was the principal ballerina for her dance company until she had a career-ending fall.  Now, she is back home in small town Minnesota alone.  Needing help she hires Evelyn Burt to move in and take care of her.   The both discover much about each other in the time that they spend together.  This was a fun book.  I enjoyed the recovery that was portrayed.  Sasha had not only physical, but emotional and spiritual injuries to overcome.  My heart broke for Donald.  Evelyn also had to go through a rough patch and I liked how she came out stronger than before.  Both Sasha and Evelyn realized that life doesn't always turn out as expected.  Sometimes, when one door is hut, another even better one is opened.  The characters were fun.  The book was well written and I enjoyed reading it.  I would give it 3.5/5 stars.