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Noteworthy

    • The Reason I Wrote Sofi’s Bridge

      Guest post By Christine Lindsay The aspiration behind all my novels is to share journey the Lord took me on through my own canyons and valleys of loss to eventual emotional healing in Him. I share different aspects of that journey in my books to encourage others in their own struggles. And there you are: The valleys and canyons of Washington State are another set of the metaphors in Sofi’s Bridge. Here is an excerpt from a favorite character of mine, Kiosho, a delightful elderly Japanese man who in his youth mined for gold with Sofi’s grandfather shortly after they both immigrated to the US in the late 1800’s. Sofi watched her sister drift from pillar to pillar on the wraparound porch, a look of perplexity stamped on her face. Kiosho dried his hands on a tea cloth while Sofi pushed out a sigh. “I don’t know anymore, Kiosho. So little improvement in Trina.” Kiosho took her elbow and shook it. “Remember, Sofi, what I used to tell you. The love of God, all around. Like these mountains that circle this valley. First, Trina and you must go through different canyons of sadness, but He will bring you out to open spaces.” I live in a valley exactly like the fictional valley in the Cascade Mountains that Sofi and Neil escape to with her sister. Except, my real valley is just across the border in Canada, but still in the same beautiful range of mountains and glaciers. One day as I was going through a personal heartache, our pastor preached on the love of God, and used the metaphor of the mountains that encircle our real-life town nestled in the Fraser Valley. I know these mountains. I know this valley. I know each change on the faces of my mountains as seasons come and go. I also know how God can use our greatest heartaches to bring forth our greatest joys. If we let Him. I leave you with this last excerpt, when Neil, on a high alpine meadow starts to feel hope for his set of trying circumstances. He’s on the journey to God and healing, and doesn’t quite recognize it yet, but only feels the comfort and love coming from his Creator in the majesty around him. At the summit Kiosho reined the Clydesdales in and settled them under a shady tree. The wind, carrying a clean pine fragrance, blew unimpeded as though they’d reached the top of the world. Trina jumped from the wagon to run along a pathway strewn on either side with blue and purple lupine, pink phlox, yellow arnica, and red Indian paintbrush. Only a few feet to Trina’s right, the path dropped to plunge into a flower-dotted meadow. Grasses swayed in the breeze. Neil stayed behind with Sofi, sweeping his gaze three hundred and sixty degrees. Above the tree line, gray peaks scraped the sky, some still capped with snow. In the distance, pale blue and turquoise ice from glaciers filled crevices between serrated granite heights. Quiet awe filled his face. As Sofi watched him, she could only hope that up here for a while he could let go of whatever pain he was hiding from the world, and from her.   About Christine: Irish born Christine Lindsay is the author of multi-award-winning Christian fiction and non-fiction. Readers describe her writing as gritty yet tender, realistic yet larger than life, with historical detail that collides into the heart of psychological and relationship drama. Christine's fictional novels have garnered the ACFW Genesis Award, The Grace Award, Canada’s The Word Guild Award, and was a finalist twice for Readers’ Favorite as well as 2nd place in RWA’s Faith Hope and Love contest. This author’s non-fiction memoir Finding Sarah Finding Me is the true-life story that started this award-winning career in Christian fiction and non-fiction. This book is a must for anyone whose life has been touched by adoption. Christine is currently writing a new fictional series set on the majestic coast of Ireland and loaded with her use of setting as a character that will sweep the reader away. Subscribe to her newsletter on her website www.christinelindsay.org About the Book: Seattle Debutante Sofi Andersson will do everything in her power to protect her sister who is suffering from shock over their father's death. Charles, the family busy-body, threatens to lock Trina in a sanatorium—a whitewashed term for an insane asylum—so Sofi will rescue her little sister, even if it means running away to the Cascade Mountains with only the new gardener Neil Macpherson to protect them. But in a cabin high in the Cascades, Sofi begins to recognize that the handsome immigrant from Ireland harbors secrets of his own. Can she trust this man whose gentle manner brings such peace to her traumatized sister and such tumult to her own emotions? And can Nei, the gardener continue to hide from Sofi that he is really Dr. Neil Galloway, a man wanted for murder by the British police? Only an act of faith and love will bridge the distance that separates lies from truth and safety. Buy Now:  Amazon Barnes & Noble Visit all the stops along the tour

30 January 2014

January Clash Winner!


It is my great pleasure to announce the winner of this month's clash...



Redneck Debutante 
by Jenny Hammerle

Congratulations, Jenny!
Your book will be automatically entered for a chance to win a Laurel Award later this year!

And a big thank-you to ALL our participating authors!

Lacey Williams with Return of the Cowboy Doctor,
Norma Downing with A Promise Made,
and Anne Greene with Marriage byArrangement

Here are a few of the comments left by our voters:
  • Jenny Hammerle is a talented author who knows how to connect with girls through an engaging story where the reader can gain valuable life lessons along the way!:-)
  • I have spent some time in Fruitville and I Love this place. Many great memories there. I must read your book, I am sure it is wonderful, as are the People of Fruitville. Thank You for taking time to write this book.
  • Redneck Debutante is a great title! The cover is spectacular and really catches your eye. I have read this book and it is a very good, fast-paced read.
  • Great story and character development! Loved Redneck Debutante and am loving the second book Cowgirl Down!
And a couple Amazon Reviews:
  • "Jenny Hammerle's Redneck Debutante is a breath of fresh air that you don't want to miss. Her characters will engage you and keep you involved just as if you knew them personally. Whether you are an adult reader or a young adult, you will be captivated by this book and find it hard to put down. I enjoyed this first book in the series immensely and I can't wait for more of the story! Write faster Jenny!"
  • "If you or the teen girl in your life is tired of sparkly vampires, witches and werewolves this is a wonderful book about the real issues teen girls deal with. It is wonderfully written and will keep you engaged all the way through. Can't wait for the second book!!"

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Nothing could have prepared her for the sight of the rugged cowboy.
Green eyes, dark-brown hair, tall, tanned, nicely muscled.
And there she was, standing in the creek in only her underwear.


West Palm, Florida

Fifteen-year-old Rachael Harte has everything she could want—plenty of money, hang-out time with friends at the beach, and Colten, the hot boyfriend every girl in her prep school drools over.

But just as she receives her long-awaited debutante invitation, scandal strikes her family. Now Rachael has to go to public high school and live with her Aunt Margaret in a place called Fruitville. How much more redneck could it get? The first day, as she’s cooling off from the heat, she hears a soft “ahem” and looks up into the eyes of Travis Baxter, the most handsome cowboy she’s ever seen. His smirk is bad enough. Worse, they’re now neighbors and will attend the same school.

As Rachael plunges into redneck life in rural Florida, she’s charmed by a quirky new group of friends, including Travis’s twin, Maysie, but still misses her friends back home. Can Rachael and Colten survive on once-a-month visits? Or will Travis’s cowboy charms win her over? What she learns as a Redneck Debutante will teach her more about love and life than she could ever have dreamed.

The REDNECK DEBUTANTE Series®
Romance that’s a little bit city, a little bit country.
**********
Book Two, Cowgirl Down, is also available!

And guess what? Extra congrats are in order because Redneck Debutante recently won the ACFW Book Club Poll and will be one of three books for the Spring reading list. What fantastic news!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

On my father’s side we are sixth generation Floridians- cattle and citrus mostly. I grew up on a working cattle ranch. My dad still manages ranches in twelve Florida counties.

I have been bucked off more than a few times- I survived and lived to write about it. That is why you will find that some of my writing revolves around rural Florida and ranch life. My favorite place to be is at the hunt camp sitting around the campfire listening to, or in some cases, telling funny stories! I love to work cows in the cow pens- branding, tagging, marking, legging and parting out calves to keep or sell is always a good time!

I currently stay home with our two wonderful little boys. I can be found coaching a group of middle school cheerleaders which serves my writing well by keeping me in touch with the youth of today and their slang, drama and texting practices!

Storytelling is something that comes naturally to most cowboys and cowgirls. If you join us on any workday, around a campfire or in the cow pens you can experience the true nature of the cowboy storyteller and see that it is a living, breathing verbal tradition still being shared today. This storytelling tradition comes alive in the texture of my writing!


Congratulations, Jenny! We can't wait to watch your story unfold.
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Item Reviewed: January Clash Winner! Rating: 5 Reviewed By: Michelle Massaro
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