Book Review| A Window to the World by Susan Meissner

Posted on May 8, 2017July 17, 2017 by Donna Stone

Megan and Jen are best friends, enjoying a typical childhood. Then one day Jen is snatched when the girls are out riding their bikes.

The novel, A Window to the World by Susan Meissner, follows Megan from young girlhood as she grows into an adult, showing how this one terrible event impacts every decision she makes from the moment of the kidnapping. Nightmares haunt her and fear colors her world.

I expected the story to focus on Jen, or her parents, but instead, Meissner told the story of the child left behind. This was a different angle for an abduction story. I was interested in the story told from the perspective of Megan, although the kidnapping and my desire to know What happened to Jen! was always in the back of my mind. Just about the time I was starting to worry maybe I would never find out, the question was answered. Good storytelling.

This is an inspirational read with Biblical truths at its core. I liked Meissner’s writing style and my attention never flagged throughout the book. This was an easy to read, high interest novel. I listened to the audio book on CDs narrated by Tavia Gilbert. The recording and reading was well done and easy to listen to. It was a good weekend novel.

Find out more about Susan Meissner’s books at her website here.

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Book Review|Invisible: An Ivy Malone Mystery by Lorena McCourtney

Posted on June 17, 2015July 13, 2015 by Donna Stone

Invisible: An Ivy Malone Mystery #1

By Lorena McCourtney

Invisible by Lorena McCourtney follows our possum grey haired heroine through various situations. Ivy Malone attempts to solve what started out as a simple vandalism mystery that turns out to big much bigger crimes. Ivy is a LOL (Little Old Lady) with more than a touch of curiosity and humor. She also had a tendency to get herself into scrapes.

When Ivy realizes that she is often overlooked to the point of feeling invisible, she decides that may not always be a bad thing. Invisibility is a boon when making observations and getting into places unnoticed. I loved this character. Ivy is one smart lady, but she does not take herself too seriously.

This is an inspirational cozy and the main character’s Christianity flows naturally. Ivy has some encouraging and comforting advise about life in various parts of the story that fit with the character and situation.

If you are looking for a light summer mystery with doses of Christian encouragement occurring throughout, Invisible: An Ivy Malone Mystery #1 may be one for you.

Invisible is one of my favorite inspirational cozy mysteries. I snagged this one as a free kindle copy a while back and liked it enough to buy the next two books in the series.

A new book in the Ivy Malone series, Go Ivy, Go! An Ivy Malone Mystery #5 was released on May 27^th, 2015. It is available for kindle and nook.

Author Lorena McCourtney’s Website

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Book Review |Ghost Boy

Posted on April 1, 2015July 17, 2015 by Donna Stone

Ghost Boy: The Miraculous Escape of a Misdiagnosed Boy Trapped Inside His Own Body

Martin Pistorious

“I didn’t have proof that He existed, but I believed in Him anyway because I knew He was real. God did the same for me. Unlike people, He didn’t need proof that I existed—He knew I did.”

Martin fell ill with a mysterious condition at age twelve and gradually lost the ability to move or speak and slipped into an unresponsive state. He was gone. Then Martin’s mind slowly ‘woke up’ but he could not control his body or speak. He could not tell anyone.

I found Ghost Boy: The Miraculous Escape of a Misdiagnosed Boy Trapped Inside His Own Body by Martin Pistorious well written and the style easy to follow. The biography is deeply touching, inspirational, and heartbreaking by turns. Martin writes about his struggles, dreams, frustrations, desires, and trials. His observations on life, human nature, and love often spoke deeply to me.

This is an emotional read. I had to put this book down several times but was constantly drawn back until I finished reading. Because of the subject matter, it was not always easy to read, but is well worth the time.

This is a story of resilience of the human spirit and of reclaiming life.

The ending is a happy, beautiful one.

SPOILERS

Martin is assumed to be in a vegetative state, but his mind has slowly been regaining awareness while his body remains unresponsive to his will. One caregiver sees meaning in Martin’s responses and if not for that one person, Martin may never have been released from his solitary existence, unable to communicate.

Part of the book talks about physical and sexual abuse suffered at the hands of his caregivers and is downright horrific.

This is a story that makes you think and wonder about how many people who are assumed to be in an unresponsive mental state may actually be aware. The accounts of abuse are disturbing and bring to light the vulnerability of those at the mercy of untrustworthy caregivers.

I read the kindle edition of this book.

I found this blog post Five Reasons You Need to Read ‘Ghost Boy’ by Martin Pistorius on Ollibean. The article tells about the story, so contains spoilers.

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Book Review | A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet

Posted on March 8, 2015March 14, 2015 by Donna Stone

A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet: Southern Stories of Faith, Family, and Fifteen Pounds of Bacon

By Sophie Hudson

This is a delightful collection of stories told with southern flair. When I was growing up in the south, I knew families like this one.

The stories are sweet, encouraging, and sometimes heart tugging. Sophie Hudson’s book is sentimental, humorous, and faith-filled.

Speaking as a woman who also loves her people, I enjoyed this peek into the lives of Sophie’s extended family.

Recommended.

Sophie Hudson blogs at BooMama

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