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BOOK REVIEWS: D-Titles |
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Click on the reviewer's name below each title to access reviews Shop for the best in Christian fiction here
A DAD-SHAPED HOLE IN MY HEART Laura V. Hilton 11/2005 Can anything fill the aching void left by a distant, absent, or abusive father? A trusted counselor, H. Norman Wright offers hope that the "missing piece" can be restored by God, our heavenly parent. Written especially for women whose needs were unmet by their dads in childhood, here's a much-needed guide toward healing and restoration. (Inspirational/Nonfiction) A DADDY AT HEART Laura V. Hilton 01/2002 From the moment the handsome lawyer showed up at her women's shelter, checkbook in hand, Glory Weston sensed that he wasn't just another stone-hearted businessman seeking a tax write-off. But that didn't mean she had to fall for him. (Inspirational/Contemporary/Romance) DANDELIONS IN A JELLY JAR Laura V. Hilton 09/2004 Mae Morgans flamboyant art teacher sister, Trudy Ploog, moves to the quiet, rural town of Lake Emily, Minnesota, to be closer to Bert Biddle, her shy, unassuming farmer boyfriend. Everything is perfect and then...the school board cuts the Gifted and Talented program and rumors of more cuts fly. Outraged, Trudy kicks up a whirlwind, beginning with a letter to the paper that questions the very foundation of small-town life--high school sports! Soon the whole town is talking, and Trudy and Bert are put to the test. (Inspirational/Women/Fiction) DANA'S VALLEY Laura V. Hilton 08/2001 Erin Walsh is ten years old. Life is perfect. She lives in the perfect neighborhood. What could go wrong? But life does go on, and changes, even when you don’t want it to. (Inspirational/Contemporary/Fiction) DANGEROUS DEPTHS Anne McDonald 11/2006 Laura V. Hilton 10/2006 When a friend dies diving, Bane Oana, naval oceanographer, and his old flame Leia Kahale suspect foul play. Bane's faith and his heart are taken to dangerous depth when a massive hurricane gathers force and threatens to sweep away everything he loves. (Inspirational/Romantic/Suspense) DANGEROUS SEASON Laura V. Hilton 07/2007 As sheriff of his Wisconsin hometown, Keir Harding hoped to finally put his troubled past behind him—until a vindictive arsonist threatened the seaside community's summer season. Determined to catch the criminal, Keir enlisted the aid of Audra Blair, a woman close to the two teen suspects. Starting her own business had taken a leap of faith, and Audra was proud of her bustling waterfront café. Keir's quiet Christian beliefs and strong presence tempted the single mother to believe in the healing power of love. With the arsonist's sights set on Audra, she might pay the ultimate price for getting involved with Keir. (Inspirational/Romantic/Suspense) DARK DIAMOND REEL Laura V. Hilton 02/2006 Everybody in Fraserton, Missouri knows about the corpse Constancy Stafford stumbled over in May. Battered by the subsequent loss of her teaching job, the lingering gossip and a recent death in the family, Constancy is beginning to think she’ll never return to any kind of normal life. Even her impulsive engagement to Zared Fraser, her own distant cousin and one of the town’s leading citizens, isn’t helping. Then it gets worse. Who is following her? Who searched her apartment and Gram’s house, and for what? Who deposited the dead body at her kitchen? Officer Danny Egan could advise her, but he has made it all too clear that he wants no distraction from his job—especially not one named Constancy. Hoping that Zared’s rare, dark diamond ring will be armor enough against any lingering feelings she has for Danny, she makes the call. Her plea for help plunges them both into a perilous dance with death. (Inspirational/Fiction/Cozy Mystery) THE DARK FOUNDATIONS Barbara Warren 03/2007 On the faraway planet of Farholme, humans live in peace under the gentle rule of the Assembly. War and evil are ancient history. But suddenly, almost imperceptibly, things begin to change. Slowly a handful of men and women begin to realize that evil has returned and it must be fought. (Inspirational/Fantasy) DARK HOUR Karri Compton 09/2006 Barbara Warren 08/2006 Matricide. Patricide. Infanticide. Athaliah would do anything to take the throne, just as Jehoshebeth would do anything to protect it. (Biblical/Fiction) DARK TO MORTAL EYES Venessa Ng 01/2005 A gripping tale of supernatural suspense, this novel illustrates the powerful truth that even buried secrets and generational sins can be broken through spiritual vision and redemption. (Inspirational/Suspense/Supernatural Thriller) DARK WATER Barbara Warren 08/2007 PI Jake Rikker has been retained to find a stalker, a challenge that could help redeem his life-if he doesn't lose it first. A private investigator, kayak adventurer, and whale watching tour guide who specializes in salvage operations based out of an old, purple church, Jake is caught off guard by the request of his new client. Up-and-coming jewelry designer Elise St. Dennis wants him to find not a valuable object, but the menacing ex-con who has traced her to the small town of Fog Point. (Inspirational/Suspense) DATED JEKYLL, MARRIED HYDE
Anne McDonald 03/2005
A lighthearted romp with the absolutely serious point of helping you laugh together. And live happily ever after. The author skillfully dissects the oddities of both men and women directionally impaired wives, chick logic, the eating habits of human males and females, the female nagging gene, and the relational value of GI Joe collections and black velvet Elvis paintings. The next time your spouse does something irritating, have a good chuckle. Unless he forgets to put the seat down. Then you can just deck him. (Inspirational/Nonfiction/Humor/Love/Marriage) DAUGHTER OF LIBERTY Laura V. Hilton 01/2005 Vickie McDonough 11/2004 Mystery. Intrigue. Mistaken identities. Twenty-year-old Elizabeth Howard is living a life of secrets and lies. Torn between her parents, her loyalty to the opposition against the repressive policies of the British colonial ministry, and the love of a British Major, Elizabeth learns to follow the leading of her Lord instead of her own willful heart. (Inspirational/Historical/Romance ) Vickie McDonough 05/2003 The mill town of Lowell, Massachusetts, comes to life with the skill and creativity of this writing team. Young women at the end of the 19th century seek employment from driven men intent on transforming America's textile industry. With intrigue, drama, and memorable characters, this book promises to be an entertaining read for historical fiction lovers. (Inspirational/Historical/Romance) A DAUGHTER'S QUEST Barbara Warren 12/2006 Laura V. Hilton 12/2006 Constance Miller is on a mission. As he lies dying, Constance’s father asks her to seek out a troubled friend of his from the war and tell him about God’s love. Although she would rather stay with those she has known all her life, Constance obeys her father’s wishes. She leaves her home in the mountains of Arkansas on a quest to find Jim Mitchell, reportedly living in Iowa. Constance soon discovers that locating Jim will not be as easy as she had hoped, especially if she wants to avoid raising suspicions among the townsfolk of Browning City. And for reasons that escape her, the local blacksmith, Hans Van de Kieft, seems to take her on as his special concern, shadowing her every step. Will Constance find Jim, or will her quest lead her instead to a destiny prepared by her heavenly Father, one that she would have never envisioned on her own? (Inspirational/Historical/Romance) DAWN OF A THOUSAND NIGHTS Laura V. Hilton 09/2006 Barbara Warren 08/2006 Daniel Lukens has two great loves: combat flying for the Army Air Corps and Libby Conners, a female pilot he met while stationed in Hawaii. Libby is a flight instructor, and their budding romance is put to the test when Dan is transferred to the Philippines. Mere months after their parting, Pearl Harbor is bombed by the Japanese. Eight hours later, Clark Field on the Philippines is also bombed, propelling the Americans into the war and forcing the U.S. military forces on the island to fight with limited food, weapons, and supplies. Dan and the other soldiers bravely fight, only to soon find themselves prisoners of the Japanese. (Inspirational/Historical/Fiction) Vickie McDonough 08/2002 In her second novel in the dramatic Baxter series, Kathy Herman unleashes a kidnapper's unresolved anger and explores the honest depths of a believer's anger at God. Sinister messages threaten the lives of two teenage girls while the citizens of Baxter struggle to cope with the evil that plagues this once-peaceful town. How will they react when they learn who's responsible? Can anything break their cycle of bitterness? (Inspirational/Contemporary/Suspense)
DEAD AS A SCONE
Vickie McDonough 01/2005 When Dame Elspeth falls over dead, presumably poisoned by a suspect creme brulee, can two pretentious prima donnas work together to solve this classically English crime--or will they end up victims of a tainted high tea themselves? (Inspirational/Mystery) THE DEAD DON'T DANCE
Laura V. Hilton 10/2004 As Dylan and Maggie Styles wait expectantly for the birth of their first son, events take a tragic turn in the delivery room. Through friends and grace-filled moments of insight, the defenses around Dylan slowly break away, but it will take a second tragedy--and an anxious period of wrestling with God--to truly awaken him from his stupor and open him up to a new life. (Inspirational/Contemporary/Fiction) DEAD OF NIGHT
Laura V. Hilton 11/2005 Vickie McDonough 07/2005 Peg Brantley 07/2005 Robert Peterson 06/2005 Eileen Key 05/2005 The Redding, California, area is terrorized by a serial killer with an unusual method for murder. Annie Kingston is called in to draw sketches of the victims' faces so they can be identified. As the body count rises, the pressure increases to find this heinous killer. The Sheriff thinks he's close--maybe too close. How can Annie--and her son-- stay safe, as the killer closes in? Book Three in the Hidden Faces Series. (Inspirational/Suspense) DEAR ENEMY
Laura V. Hilton 06/2007
Nurse Annie Mitchell, after seeing firsthand the atrocities of war, has concluded, along with most of her fellow Americans, that the enemy is inhuman and thoroughly depraved. But when a rogue rescue mission ends in tragedy, a bereft Annie finds herself in the middle of Belgium's Ardennes Forest, behind enemy lines—and captured. What transpires in the bitter cold of the following days, however, is impossible for Annie to reconcile with her preconceived ideas about the enemy. Her captor, Karl Hausmann, doesn’t fit the stereotype she has embraced—and the encounter changes everything for her. Tested by prejudice and the separation of time and continents, Annie must build on this awakening if life and love are ever to hold any true meaning for her again. (Inspirational/Historical/Fiction) DEATH BENEFITS
Barbara Warren 08/2007 An exotic Hawaiian vacation was what Ginger Carpenter had planned. What she got was a tropical nightmare! An escaped murderer was on the trail of her two foster nieces once more. To protect them, she had to rely on Dr. Ray Clyde—the man she had never wanted to see again. Ginger hadn't been able to forgive Ray's interference with her vocation as a missionary. Now, with danger lurking behind every palm tree, she'd have to find a way to forget the past to make sure they'd all have a future. (Inspirational/Romantic/Suspense) DEATH, DECEIT, AND SOME SMOOTH JAZZ
Kathy Carlton Willis 01/2007 Barbara Warren 01/2007 Laura V. Hilton 01/2007 Amanda Bell Brown is a woman on the edge. Between ignoring an insistent biological clock and nursing a broken heart, she's met her quota of problems. But life takes a turn for the better when former boyfriend, Lieutenant Jazz Brown shows up unannounced at her door. Jazz wants to reconnect and make their relationship work. There's just one tiny, potential problem; he's accused of murdering his ex-wife. (Inspirational/Mystery)
DEATH OF A SIX-FOOT TEDDY BEAR
Laura V. Hilton 06/2008
The Bargain Hunters Network swings into action to solve a murder at the Invention Expo--and this time one of their own is the prime suspect. The BHN members discover the dangers of confusing faith and wealth and find a hidden opportunity to grow more dependent on God. (Inspirational/Cozy/Mystery) DEATH WATCH
Karri Compton 10/2005
In a world rocked by 9/11, novice Los Angeles television reporter Sydney St. James is teamed with veteran international news anchor Hunz Vonner when people randomly begin receiving notices informing them that they have forty-eight hours to live. With chilling precision, every one who receives an official death watch notice dies at the tick of the clock at the forty-eighth hour. From an unlikely source, as time is running out, Sydney and Hunz are presented with a bizarre scenario, and they suddenly find themselves facing the ultimate terrorist. (Inspirational/Mystery/Suspense) DEEP BLUE
Laura V. Hilton 11/2005
When graduate student Jennifer Cassidy approaches cave-diver Beck Easton with a 140-year-old mystery, they set out on a suspense-filled search for hidden treasure--and hidden truths. (Inspirational/Adventure) DEFIANT HEART Laura V. Hilton 07/2007 In the first book in the Westward Hearts Trilogy, Fannie tries to escape a life of indentured servitude by secretly joining a wagon train heading west to find a new life. (Inspirational/Historical/Fiction)
DEIRDRE Vickie McDonough 05/2002 A Saxon pirate prince, loyal to neither God nor country, is skeptical of his Christian mother's predictions about his birthright...until he captures a devout princess with the key to both heavenly and earthly kingdoms. What his mother said about his true birthright seems possible after all, even when his newfound faith is battered by storms of betrayal that wash him and his half-drowned bride upon the sea-swept shores of Gleannmara. Deirdre, the third heroine in the Fires of Gleannmara series, is an Irish princess wed to a heathen thief. Although she is a reluctant heroine, compassion becomes her shield, prayer her sword, and God's Word her direction. (Inspirational/Historical/Romance)
DELIVER US FROM EVELYN
Barbara Warren 09/2006 After Evelyn Blake's reclusive billionaire husband goes missing, the heat's turned up for everybody in this high-speed thriller. (Inspirational/Mystery) DEMON: A MEMOIR
Barbara Warren 08/2007 Karri Compton 06/2007 Clayton, a book editor, has just been hired to author a once-in-a-lifetime memoir. The subject is Lucian, a demon with an extraordinary story to share. The fallen angel chronicles a life of heavenly bliss and rebellion, human creation and salvation, and God's relentless pursuit of mankind. As he begins to find eerie similarities between Lucian's otherworldly life and his own, Clay reaches a devastating conclusion: He is writing his own life story. After stumbling onto the revelation that his life is nearing its end, Clay will be forced to make a choice. Demon: A Memoir is a fresh and provocative look at the spiritual struggle for the souls of mankind. With intelligent characters and suspenseful dialogue, thriller fans will discover that evil isn't always what it appears. (Inspirational/Contemporary/Fiction) THE DEPARTED
Beth Goddard 06/2005 Joshua Lazarus and his wife, Maggie, are reeling from the overnight success of his new television show, starring Joshua as a medium--passing messages to the audience from their dearly departed. But when strange voices begin to haunt him without relief, he realizes he's involved with forces he never before believed existed. (Inspirational/Suspense) DESPERATE PASTORS' WIVES
Barbara Warren 04/2007 Laura V. Hilton 03/2007 Eileen Key 02/2007 Filled with humor, romance, mystery, suspense, and the Lord's grace, this sassy novel follows the lives of four pastors' wives as they try to deal with pressures and lean on each other. (Inspirational/Contemporary/Fiction)
Joyce Handzo 06/2004
One day we will stand before Jesus. Will we be ready when that time comes, or will we have regrets about how we lived our lives here on earth? This is the question Niki Bowers faces when she suddenly finds her grasp on life slipping away. Not until she meets Romuel, her guardian angel, does Niki realize that she is not ready to meet her Savior. She begs Romuel to ask Jesus for a second chance. Romuel is hesitant to question God's timing, but agrees to take some time to show Niki how Satan succeeded in subtly pulling her astray. (Inspirational/Contemporary/Fiction)
DIRECTOR'S CUT
Karri Compton 04/2006 Laura V. Hilton 04/2006 Success can bring more than fame and fortune. For Mayor Maddy Glenn and her starlet cousin, it might bring death. (Inspirational/Suspense) DISTANT ECHOES
Robert Peterson 06/2005 Laura V. Hilton 05/2005 While vacationing mainlanders and island locals revel in the cool waters and the sunny beaches of Kauai, Hawaii, a missile test goes off-course, destroying a local tourist boat and killing several passengers. Could sloppy science be at fault or could sabotage be the culprit? When the investigation leads nowhere, Kaia Ohana, island resident and dolphin researcher, is called upon by Jesse Matthews, head of security at the naval base, to help. Aided by dolphins Kaia's been teaching to communicate, Kaia and Jesse must try to stop a terrorist before he can strike again. (Inspirational/Romantic/Suspense) DIVINE
Eloise Schroder 06/2006 Mary Madison has lived a hard life, from a difficult childhood to an adulthood of prostitution and sin. But as Mary finds herself drawn into a mysterious scandal surrounding the resurrection of Christ, she begins to sense that God's plan for her life is far greater than what she had ever imagined. (Inspirational/Fiction) THE DIVINE APPOINTMENT
Barbara Warren 09/2007 While investigating a murder, Nashville attorneys Eli Faulkner and Jill Baker uncover evidence that incriminates Senator Proctor and places them in the cross-hairs of another deadly plot. (Inspirational/Political/Suspense) THE DOCTOR'S CHRISTMAS
Vickie McDonough 11/2003
God could not have chosen a worse time to send Dr. Grant Hardesty to Button Gap. Three abandoned children were depending on Maggie Davis's clandestine care until their mother returned. Maggie didn't think she could trust the by-the-book city doctor with her secret, until she got a glimpse into his soul...and God's mysterious ways became as clear as a starry night. (Inspirational/Romance)
DOESN'T SHE LOOK NATURAL Laura V. Hilton 12/2007 Eileen Key 07/2007 How do you cope when God asks you to bury a dream? In this new series by best-selling author Angela Hunt, readers will meet Jennifer Graham, the no-nonsense chief of staff for a Virginia senator who quits her job after a divorce and finds herself an unemployed single mom. Forced to live with her mother until she can find work on Capitol Hill that does not involve her gregarious ex-husband, her efforts are stymied until she learns that she has inherited a funeral home in picturesque Mt. Dora. Jennifer journeys to the small Florida town with her two sons and her mother, never dreaming that within a mortuary she will discover she has inherited a rewarding career that teaches her far more about life than death. (Inspirational/Fiction)
DOUBLE DECEPTION Laura V. Hilton 09/2004 Since her mother died, Rissa's stepfather, Pierre Le Blanc, has been her guardian. She hates the life they lead - always traveling from one place to the other - and longs for a way to escape. She has no hope - until they arrive in Litchfield, Minnesota. Lowell and Ollie Jenson are brothers as well as best friends, working side-by-side on their father's horse farm. When they become interested in the same woman - Rissa Le Blanc - a wedge is driven between them. Her attention, swinging from brother to brother, only worsens the problem. Can Lowell or Ollie help Rissa escape her emotional prison? Will the brothers find healing for the rift between them and allow God to work His will in their lives? (Inspirational/Historical/Fiction) DOUBLE VISION Laura V. Hilton 02/2006 A high-tech startup company in San Diego has a new technology worth billions -- if they can live long enough to bring it to market. (Inspirational/Suspense/Intrigue) DRAGONFIRE
Barbara Warren 09/2007
Before vowing his allegiance to Wulder as a knight, Bardon's life is suddenly complicated by a woman and her granddaughter on a mission to rescue the womans son, who is trapped in a chamber of sleep. Bardon learns that more of Paladin's knights are imprisoned in sleep and suspects one of them is Dragon Keeper Kale's missing father. (Inspirational/Fantasy)
DRAGONKNIGHT
Barbara Warren 08/2006
Before vowing his allegiance to Wulder as a knight, Bardon heads to the mountains for solitude. His life is suddenly complicated by a woman and her granddaughter, N’Rae, on a mission to rescue the woman’s son trapped in a chamber of sleep. Bardon learns that more of Paladin’s knights are imprisoned–and suspects one of them is Dragon Keeper Kale’s missing father. The secret is in their hands–and hearts.The band travels north, uncertain of their destination and encountering numerous perils. When they unlock the chamber, they discover a dozen knights–who cannot be awakened. The journal holding the secret to rousing them is in an unknown language. How can they find the help they need, and overcome even graver obstacles, to rescue the knights? (Inspirational/Fantasy) DRAGONSPELL
Laura V. Hilton 09/2004 Jason McDonald 05/2004
Once a slave, Kale is given the unexpected opportunity to become a servant to Paladin. Yet this young slave girl has much to learn about the difference between slavery and service. Feeling afraid and unprepared, Kale embarks on a perilous quest with other servants of Paladin to find the meech dragon egg stolen by the foul Wizard Risto. First, she and her comrades must find Wizard Fenworth. But their journey is threatened when a key member of the party is captured, leaving the remaining companions to find Fenworth, attempt an impossible rescue, and recover the egg whose true value they have not begun to suspect. (Inspirational/Fantasy) Vickie McDonough 10/2002 Only by God's design would Chelsea Adams, the woman whose visions solved a brutal crime in Eyes of Elisha, be placed on the jury of a murder trial. Darren Welk, the "Salad King" from Salinas, California, is charged with killing his wife. Shawna Welk was last seen alive on a remote beach late one night fighting with her husband. How could anyone but Darren have killed her? But the mystery deepens as it's discovered that more than one person may have wanted Shawna dead. A bloodstained blouse, a missing baby, a guilt-ridden son, a two-million-dollar insurance policy?all merge in this twisting tale of suspense, revenge, and God's power. (Inspirational/Contemporary/Suspense)
DREAM A LITTLE DREAM Laura V. Hilton 04/2007 Barbara Warren 04/2007 It was just a local newspaper column, right? But when reporter Molly Popp touted the marraige-worthiness of local rancher Bob Jacobs, would-be wives descended on his Mule Hollow ranch by the busload. Molly felt guilty for the ruckus she'd caused -- especially when Bob was injured rescuing an overzealous admirer from a bull. There was nothing else city-slicker Molly could do but pitch in and help Bob out. That is, until word of her column brought the job offer she'd been praying for and a choice she never thought she'd have to make: a Manhattan byline or Mule Hollow's most eligible bachelor. (Inspirational/Contemporary/Romance) A DREAM TO FOLLOW Lynette Sowell 12/2001 Thorliff Bjorklund has been writing since he was a young boy and now longs to study journalism. But his father has other plans for him and refuses to agree. Loving and respecting his parents, Thorliff dreads going against his father's wishes and cannot imagine any honorable way to leave home. To make matters worse, the threat of a crop failure may mean there'll be no money for college anyway. Thorliff is torn between love for his father and the pull of his dream. Must he choose between the two? Elizabeth Rogers has been raised in a life of privilege, yet she has an unwavering determination to become a doctor. Though she has the blessing of her family, society is not as kind, for it is nearly impossible for a woman to enter medical school. Has she misread her heart? (Inspirational/Historical/Romance)
DREAMING IN BLACK AND WHITE
Remade Gold 06/2005 Anne McDonald 05/2005 Laura V. Hilton 01/2005 Not your typical size two chick-lit heroine, Phoebe Grant aspires to the madcap life of a forties-style career gal—she lives in a cool apartment (even if it does need a little work), works at the city newspaper (ok, she writes obits—but she's sure she'll get her dream job reviewing movies), and has a best girlfriend to play straight-woman to her life's witty script. In fact, aside from a steady stream of laughably bad blind dates, over-thirty Phoebe has a great life—even if her leading man appears to have missed his cue. This is a funny, light-hearted look at what it means to be a thirty-something Christian singleton—with all the drama, adventure, and joy that women everywhere will recognize. Two thumbs up! (Inspirational/Chicklit) THE DRIFTER Barbara Warren 12/2005 Vickie McDonough 04/2005 Charity Burk is determined to find a husband. So when she discovers unconscious and injured cowboy Beau Claxton on her land, she decides her prayers have been answered. (Inspirational/Historical/Romance) THE DUET
Vennessa Ng 03/2005 Laura V. Hilton 04/2004
When widower Gerrit Vandekamp takes his granddaughter to piano lessons one day, he finds himself drawn to her music teacher, a woman unlike any he has known. Neither can predict how their duet will sound as they practice the music of renewed hope and second chances. (Inspirational/Contemporary/Romance)
DYING TO DECORATE
Laura V. Hilton 03/2006 Busy with the challenges of carpool, music lessons and never-ending laundry – a feisty group of moms, dubbed the Friday Afternoon Club, find themselves acting as sleuths to unravel mysteries they encounter. When a member inherits an old mansion, the group volunteers to help restore the home—and in the process uncovers a shocking surprise! (Inspirational/Mom-lit/Cozy Mystery) |