Hold To the Rod arr. by Craig Petrie

Our choir sang in stake conference today Hold To the Rod arranged by Craig Petrie. I have to say what a great arrangement it is. Very powerful. Thank you to Craig and talented other composers who make their songs available for ward choirs to sing.

Identity by Betsy Love

I admit I was thankful for a cold this week. Why? It gave me a good excuse to hibernate and read Betsy Love's fun debut novel, Identity. Betsy is the one who helped me get started on the path to publication by inviting me to join ANWA, a writers group for LDS women. Thank you Betsy and ANWA for all your help!

After vacationing in Mexico, in the same town and the same resort, two similar-looking young women board a flight to Phoenix. One is a wealthy heiress and the other is a Mormon girl planning to serve a mission.

The plane goes down near Nogales, leaving several dead. One girl survives, but with all memory lost of who she is or any past experiences. After a lengthy stay in the hospital, she goes home with a loving Mormon family who has no doubt she is their sister. Savannah remembers nothing of the gospel and must relearn everything from Joseph Smith and the first vision, to Mormon lingo.

Amelia's fiancé Brent will not believe she died in the plane accident. After his ex-wife turns up murdered in Mexico, he is the prime suspect. He jumps bail and heads to Phoenix in search of Amelia, only to be detained by disasters and the police at every turn. One barrier after another keeps him from her, including desperate criminals who would do anything to keep Amelia from returning to her past life.

Identity is a fun read. I enjoyed the Freeman family for being a good Mormon family--not perfect, but good. Savannah's best friend was overweight and sensitive, the villains turned out very villainy, and the love interest was believable and fall-in-love-with-able.

Congrats to Betsy Love for an enjoyable novel of suspense and adventure!

Visit Betsy Love at her blog.

Buy Identity at Deseret Book.

In God Is Our Trust by LC Lewis

Freedom has never been free.

I recently read In God Is Our Trust by LC Lewis and recommend it to all. It is volume five in the Free Men and Dreamers series and covers the years 1816-1830, set against the backdrop of poignant American history. Even though this novel is the first I've read in the series, I had no trouble following this intriguing story.

Jed Pearson, a veteran of the War of 1812, enters politics in the state of Maryland. He genuinely cares about the issues facing America at the time. Jed owns a large farm called the Willows where he employs freed slaves, allowing them equality to his other hired workers. An evil-hearted foe from his war years continually harasses him and his family and friends, causing much heartache and damage.

The series, including this volume, winds through the lives of six fictional families—three American, two British, one slave--tying their lives together in similar causes of survival and the fight for a better life for all.

Reading In God Is Our Trust is like looking into a peep-box into the past. I can imagine the careful research Lewis must of done and the great understanding she has of the events of our history. I appreciated Lewis' dramatic illustrations of the issues of the day:

The beginning of the Industrial Revolution
The last days of the Founding Father's direct influence
Political upheaval in America as new leaders emerge
The increasingly volatile issue of slavery
The American Renaissance
Thomas Jefferson's final message to America on her Jubilee
The impact of Immigration on America
The westward migration
A new religious reformation

These issues set the stage for this generation's response to Joseph Smith's visions of angels and Deity. At first I questioned Lewis' reasons for leading the story to the restoration of the gospel, but when I honestly considered Diety's plan for America, it is where the story had to go. America's constitution "acknowledges the hand of God in the nation's founding" and provided a land of freedom for the gospel to be restored and His church to be established. We should never be shy in declaring that good news.

"I hope you'll laugh and cry with the Pearsons and their loved ones in In God Is Our Trust. I saw so many parallels between their day and ours as I conducted the research. There are great lessons for us in these glimpses of American history," LC Lewis said. She will be elaborating on them on her blog in the coming weeks.

Laurie C. Lewis tells us why she wrote the Free Men and Dreamers series:

"I’m from Maryland, but about 14 years ago, I fell in love with historic Williamsburg. There is a sacred spirit there, one felt also in other places that welcomed the great patriots—Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Madison, Franklin, Key, and others—cities like Philadelphia, Washington, and Georgetown; and places like

Fort McHenry, Hampton, Craney Island, Fort Monroe, and dozens more.

I believe it’s because God’s hand was over the events that happened in these places, moving people where they needed to be in order to accomplish His purposes for this land.

The past eight years of my research and writing have focused on an incredibly fascinating, and rather forgotten, generation of Americans. Most of us know a bit about the Revolution, and we have some basic understanding of the issues that drove us into the Civil War, but far fewer know anything concrete about the War of 1812, and yet historians will tell you that it was this period and these events that finally forged us into The United States of America.

The idea for a historic novel began back in 1998 after my first visit to Williamsburg, but I set it aside and moved on to another project. After 9/11, my heart, like most Americans', turned more tenderly to America and her history. By 2004 I submitted the first draft.

The original manuscript was set in the late 1840’s, but after much soul searching, many hours buried in American history, and a small mention in Lucy Mack Smith’s “Biography of Joseph Smith,” I knew I needed to back the books up a generation.

It was Lucy’s reference to her brother Stephen Mack’s service during the War of 1812 that was the deal-breaker. I had never before made the connection between the Smiths and the War of 1812, but there it was! Joseph Smith grew up during that war. He and his generation were affected and shaped by the critical historic events of the tragic burning of Washington, the critical Battle of Baltimore, Key’s rallying of a broken nation with his writing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

The generation that would take on Britain’s war machine in the War of 1812 was already unique in that they were the children of the Founding Fathers’ generation. They were the heirs of the great patriots’ vision, those charged to build a nation founded on the lofty principles of liberty and freedom, and now they would experience the great religious reformation and the Restoration led by Joseph Smith.

Buy In God Is Our Trust here.

Counting Christmas--a song. My gift to you.

Every year, our family sends out an original Christmas song. This year's is entitled Counting Christmas. Print your own copy here. Click on the link below the lyrics.

And have a great Christmas!

The Star Prophecy--A Book of Mormon Adventure

Christmas is the perfect season to read The Star Prophecy. It is a unique approach to the Nativity story--a personal interview with the shepherds, and a chance to walk in the wise men's sandals.

Read the first chapter here.

The Star Prophecy is available at LDS bookstores and Amazon.

Have a merry Christmas, and happy reading!

The Rogue Shop by Michael Knutsen

In the LDS novel, The Rogue Shop, author Michael Knutsen takes his main character Chris from the threshold of the Baptists and dumps him in Mormon country, without a wallet.

The Rogue Shop is a fun read in more ways than one, and to be truthful, it wasn't only the story that kept me reading, but Knutsen's unique writing style. I wanted to know what words he'd put together next.

The reader who picks up The Rogue Shop knows from the start it is a conversion story that has something to do with tuxedos, but has no clue they will know the business from front to back by detour of the basement before the tale is over. There also is no warning of all the fun characters they will meet: Travis the eloquent, Eva Chandler the resurging dress designer :-), Pablo the landlord. Knutsen doesn't candy coat Mormons, (okay, just a little), but sits you on the couch with their weaknesses and idiosyncrasies. At times, doctrine is explored, but with good taste.

From the back cover:
Trying to escape from his Texas Baptist upbringing and a troubled past, Chris Kerry came to Salt Lake City to get an education -- and nothing else. But keeping his promise to stay away from the Mormons proves difficult, especially with two cute college girls living across the hall. And when Chris finds a new job at a tuxedo shop, his promise unravels as he discovers new friendships, hidden secrets and a lost heritage he never imagined he had. The Rogue Shop illuminates how we recognize truth even in the most trying of circumstances. Michael Knudsen's hilarious debut will remind you about the value of faith, family, and friends as Chris learns from his past to move forward into a better future.

I enjoyed The Rogue Shop and recommend it. Meet Michael Knutsen at his blog.

Confronting the Myth of Self-Esteem by Ester Rasband

Liberating. Insightful. Inspired.

I discovered Ester Rasband's book Confronting The Myth of Self-Esteem by chance one day. The title spoke peace to me. So many people, including myself, have struggle with the concept of self-esteem. It seems the more we try to grasp it, the further it slips away.

Rasband explains why the search for self-esteem will always frustrate. We can't find it without humility, which seems ironic. Our worldliness would tell us not to face our nothingness. Genuine confidence and peace found through gratitude and service brings the happiness we seek. She uses examples, quotes and stories from church leaders, and many scriptures to make her point.

Some of my favorite quotes from the book are:

"We must be willing to lay our self-esteem at the feet of the Lord and seek instead to love and obey him."

"Peace and confidence are gifts from God, and they are gifts given only when we are willing to give up our self-esteem and approach him in total humility."

I particularly loved chapter nine, "Always Remember Him" that focuses on Jesus Christ and our relationship to him. As members of the Church, we are taught we are "A Child of God" and the birthright is ours--which should add to our self-esteem in itself. But, "The inheritance, however, belongs only to the birthright son: Jesus Christ" Through his atonement, we are "adopted" and he shares his inheritance with us. This chapter gives better understanding of our relationship with Him.

I found the book healing. Read a few pages a day and let the concepts digest.

Rasband explains: “Inadequacy is the human condition and unless we tap into the adequacy of our Father in Heaven, we live in a somewhat fearful state — fearful that our inadequacy will cause us to fail and will stand in the way of our being loved and valued.”

Confronting the Myth of Self Esteem can be purchased at Amazon, or on the author's website.

Watch the book trailer and another here.

Excellent.

Haunts Haven--a fun ghost story

Halloween is coming! If your looking for a good ghost story for Halloween, or like reading mysteries in the Fall, may I recommend Haunts Haven, an LDS ghost story. All right, I admit I wrote it, and I admit I really like it, too.

Haunts Haven is in hardback and on Kindle and can be purchased at some LDS bookstores and Amazon.

Happy Halloween!

Winner of Chocolate Roses!

Congratulations go to Christine Jensen, the winner of the gently speckled copy of Chocolate Roses, an LDS Jane Eyre parody.

Christine is a mom to 5 fabulous kids, and lives in Utah. She is a book reviewer for Fire and Ice, and writes a weekly fitness post and does product reviews for Outnumbered 3 to 1. Check out her sites. She also loves to read and run.

Thank you to everyone who entered the contest!

Two More Fun Novels by Marie Higgins

In my last post, I interviewed novelist Marie Higgins and reviewed her LDS romance, Winning Mr. Wrong. She gives some fun answers to the interview questions that you will want to scroll down and read. Marie and I share the same publisher, Walnut Springs Press. Today, I am reviewing her two novels Hearts Through Time and Heart of a Hero. Look for her next novel soon to be released, Secrets After Dark.

HEARTS THROUGH TIME

A love story that transcends time . . .

The first day Nick Marshal opens his new law office, a mysterious woman, Abigail Carlisle, appears and asks for help solving a murder--her own!

"Mr. Marshal, the reason I know you're the man who can help is because you––you can . . ." She cleared her throat. "You can actually see me."

Nick stifled a chuckle. "Of course I can see you. You're sitting right in front of me."

"True, but your lady friend could not . . . . You don't understand. The reason she could not see me is because, well . . ." Miss Carlisle's green eyes locked on his with something akin to fear shadowing their depths. "I'm a ghost."

Of course he doesn't believe she's a ghost until he tries to touch her. The further Nick investigates Abigail's life and the circumstances around her death, the deeper he falls for this gorgeous ghost.

Abigail's grandmother and Nick's mother both had foretold Nick and Abigail's unusual meeting through advice in earlier years. As Nick and Abigail put the pieces together, they realize it is their fate to stay together. The more time she spends with him, she becomes real to the point that Nick can finally touch her.

Through a one-hundred year-old artifact given to him by a 118 year-old woman, they are whisked back in time to 1912 to face Abigail's murderer.

Hearts Through Time is a beautiful, well told love story. Romance readers (and paranormal junkies :-) would love this timeless read.

HEART OF A HERO

Summer Bennett, a tomboy sent to her aunt's finishing school for refining, returns to her hometown of Richfield, Utah to find that Jesse Slade, her childhood rival, has grown up and is now her sister's fiance.

"That does it." Jesse picked her up and carried her to the horse, then put her feet on the ground... "You may be as bullheaded as you've always been, but you ain't walkin', not on my watch."

She slapped at his hand. "I'm not going into town with you."

"You listen to me, Miss Persnickety." He paused, his heated gaze boring into hers. "I don't care what you like or don't like, I'm takin' you to town."

"I--don't--like''you." She grinded her teeth with each word.

"Too--bad--darlin'," he mocked. "You have two choices. You can get on that horse willin'ly, or I'll hog-tie you and put you there myself."

Her mouth dropped open and her mind scrambled frantically for several seconds.

He smiled annoyingly. "Time's up."

This nineteen year-old girl hasn't reformed much. Summer still thinks she's invincible, wears men's britches when it's to her advantage, and takes on capturing a band of bank robbers single-handedly, hoping to get reward money that would pay for her father's surgery and allow him to walk again.

Falling back into childhood habits, Jesse and Summer clash throughout the entire story--while falling in love. Neither understand what is happening. One argument after another and several misunderstandings later, they manage

to finally confess their love. It is a relief when everyone ends up with the right sweetheart in the end.

The Heart of a Hero is a romping read that will take you back to old west Utah, and one any romance reader would enjoy.

Buy Heart of a Hero at Deseret Book.

Buy Hearts Through Time here.