Book Spotlight: Third Rail by Rory Flynn

At crime scenes, Eddy Harkness, the “Harvard Cop,” is a human Ouija board, a brilliant young detective with a knack for finding the hidden something—cash, drugs, guns, bodies. Harkness’s swift rise in an elite narcotics unit is derailed by the death of a young Red Sox fan in the chaos after a World Series win, a death some witnesses believe he could have prevented. Scapegoated, Harkness is exiled to his hometown, Nagog, just west of Boston, where he empties parking meters and struggles to redeem his disgraced family name.

But one night Harkness’s police-issued Glock disappears. Harkness starts a search— just as a string of fatal accidents in Nagog leads him to uncover a dangerous new smart drug, Third Rail. With only a plastic gun to protect himself, Harkness begins a high-stakes investigation that sends him into the darkest corners of the city.

One of the most electrifying thrillers you’ll read this year, Third Rail takes you deep into a gritty world of wronged heroes, corrupt politicians, and sinister kingpins, where your friends can’t be trusted, a sleepy town breeds deadly crimes, and nothing ever happens by accident.

“THIRD RAIL gets off to a ripping start and never lets off the gas. Rory Flynn is a suspense writer to watch.”

– Jess Walter, author of the bestselling BEAUTIFUL RUINS

“THIRD RAIL is an adrenaline-soaked tale of political corruption and personal redemption that never lets up. Eddy Harkness, the self-destructive Massachusetts narcotics detective at the novel’s center, is a worthy successor to Robert B. Parker’s Jesse Stone.”

– Sean Chercover, author of the bestselling THE TRINITY GAME

Available at bookstores everywhere on June 10, 2014, including:

Amazon.com
Barnes & Noble
Brookline Booksmith
Concord BookstoreIndiebound
Porter Square Books

Rory Flynn is the pen name of acclaimed novelist Stona Fitch, author of five previous novels, including Senseless, now an independent feature film and a graphic novel.

In 2008, Stona founded the Concord Free Press, a independent publishing house that publishes and distributes original novels, asking only that readers make a voluntary donation to a charity or person in need, then pass their book on. The CFP has inspired generosity throughout the world—and created a new approach to publishing that has earned praise from publishing visionaries and readers.
Stona lives with his family in Concord, Massachusetts.

Visit Rory Flynn’s Website: http://www.mrroryflynn.com/

Musing Mondays - June 9

This is a weekly meme run by Miz B of Should be Reading.

Musing Mondays asks you to muse about one of the following each week…

• Describe one of your reading habits.
• Tell us what book(s) you recently bought for yourself or someone else, and why you chose that/those book(s).
• What book are you currently desperate to get your hands on? Tell us about it!
• Tell us what you’re reading right now — what you think of it, so far; why you chose it; what you are (or, aren’t) enjoying it.
• Do you have a bookish rant? Something about books or reading (or the industry) that gets your ire up? Share it with us!
• Instead of the above questions, maybe you just want to ramble on about something else pertaining to books — let’s hear it, then!

My Musing:

The best part about summer for me is that it is usually a time to catch up a bit on my reading list. Since we drive to North Carolina, we are in the car 11 1/2 hours, so that leaves plenty of time for reading when I'm not driving. I also read while down at the beach because I'm not much of a swimmer.

If you look at my TBR Pile, you'll see it will take a long time for me to fully catch up. But I plot out my summers so that I can feel some of the pressure taken off by making my way through a dozen books or so. You can see some of the books I hope to read over the summer by checking out this recent Top Ten Tuesday post.

What books are you looking forward to reading this summer?

Book Review: Pressed Pennies by Steven Manchester

Pressed Pennies by Steven Manchester is a story of starting over and second chances.

Rick and Abby grew up and fell in love, but when Rick's family moved away they were lost to each other for years. When they reunite unexpectedly at a friend's party, sparks fly. But things are very different now. Rick has just ended a loveless marriage and Abby has fled with her eight-year-old daughter, Paige, from an abusive marriage. Abby needs time to focus on rebuilding her life and making better memories for her young daughter. How does Rick fit into that life, if at all?

Pressed Pennies is a sweet, romantic tale of two people reconnecting after many years apart. They meet again after their failed marriages and try to spend time reconnecting. The problem is Abby's daughter, Paige, whose acting out threatens their relationship.

Manchester writers a deeply romantic, nostalgic, and richly descriptive tale. Told from various points of view--Abby's, Rich's, and Paige's--the reader gets a chance to see things from all three characters' sides, which I feel is unique. This helps the reader connect with Paige more than in a typical romance novel where the actions of the rebellious child are shared merely from an adult's point of view. It therefore, becomes, just as much Paige's story as Abby's and Rick's. Manchester does an excellent job of giving the reader a glimpse into what is going on insdie each characters' head.

The style is a blend of long passages and short snippets where the points of view change. Email exchanges between Abby and Rick give this novel a contemporary feel, while Rick's overly romantic nature comes as a pleasant surprise--both to Abby and the reader.

My one disappointment is that Paige seemed more like a teenager than the eight-year-old she is supposed to be. Even though she celebrates a birthday over the course of the story, her actions, and especially her manner of speaking come across as that of someone years older. As a person who has young girls at home and is surrounded by pre-teen girls on a regular basis, it nagged me the whole time. Definitely not enough to ruin the story, but I kept wondering how this would have altered Abby and Paige's relationship if Paige were portrayed more authentically.

If you're looking for for an intensely romantic story that touches the heart, Pressed Pennies will be for you.

Paperback: 355 pages
Publisher: Story Plant, The (May 13, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1611881358
ISBN-13: 978-1611881356

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

I read this book for the following challenge:

Book Blitz: Rebuilding Civilization on the Bible by Dr. Jay Grimstead - Win $25 Amazon GC

Title: Rebuilding Civilization on the Bible: Proclaiming the Truth on 24 Controversial Issues
Author: Jay Grimstead
Genre: Religion/Theology/Instruction
Publisher: Nordskog Publishing, Inc.
ISBN:  978-0-9882976-5-4

Purchase at: http://www.nordskogpublishing.com/book-rebuilding-civilization.shtml

About the book:
False teachings threatening to corrupt the Church forced the leaders to join in councils, where they codified the orthodox teaching of the Bible into creeds received by the Church as faithful distillations of Scriptural truth and as a bulwark against future corruption. Error, heresy, and outright paganism are today common in churches that were once sound. Even many “better” churches have little depth to their teaching and are silent on critical issues of the day, and even in some paganism masquerades as Christianity.

This book is the fruit of the work of hundreds of theologians and Christian leaders working throughout a 37-year period to define and defend the key Biblical points on 24 controversial issues — which would not even be controversial if all believed like Jesus and Paul in the inerrancy of the Bible.

This book states the Bible’s position on 24 controversial issues and explains why each document needed to be written. It offers the global Body of Christ tools for reforming the Church and motivating Christians to live in obedience to Christ and to all commands in the Bible intended for us.

Excerpt:
“We heartily invite all Christians on this planet who desire to live in obedience to the Bible in all areas of life at all times, to form themselves and their local churches into “United Spiritual Armies” at the city and county levels, and to establish a network with other such churches and “spiritual armies” at their state and national levels with the goal of making Christ King of their cities and nation. We invite you to join with us in applying these 24 DOCUMENTS to the life of the Church and in making 2 Cor. 10:5 a reality. By that we mean that together we are called by God to destroy “speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.”

About the author:

Dr. Jay Grimstead was born in Bismarck, ND. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Biology in 1957 from Sterling College in Sterling, KS. He graduated from Fuller Seminary in 1961 with a Masters in Theology (ThM) and later received a Doctor of Ministry (DMin) degree. He spent 20 years on staff with Young Life Campaign, a ministry of clubs and camping to evangelize and disciple non-church teenagers.

In 1984 he founded the Coalition on Revival which created the 17 World-view Documents which state the biblical principles for the various spheres of life and the “blueprints for how the Bible applies to the fields of: Law, Government, Economics, Education, Science, the Media & Arts, Medicine, etc.” Under his leadership, COR organized the International Church Council Project in 1992.

In 2004 and 2005 he organized theological committees in Guatemala, San Salvador, Costa Rica and Panama to discuss and defend certain of the 22 Theological Documents of the Church Council Project which had been translated into Spanish. A year later, Dr. Grimstead gathered national leaders from various fields to create the “24 Year Plan to Rebuild America upon the principles of the Bible.”

Dr. Grimstead now lives with his wife, Donna, a registered pharmacist, in Murphys, CA. They have two grown children, Julie and Guy. Dr. Grimstead’s favorite hobbies are mountain climbing and playing jazz and blues on his trumpet.

To learn more about Dr. Grimstead and his work, please visit http://www.nordskogpublishing.com/book-rebuilding-civilization.shtml

Pump Up Your Book and Dr. Jay are teaming up to give away a $25 Amazon Gift Card!

Terms and Conditions:

• By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
• This giveaway begins June 2 and ends on June 27, 2014.
• Winner will be contacted via email by July 2, 2014.
• Winner has 72 hours to reply.

Good luck everyone!

ENTER TO WIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Rebuilding Civilization on the Bible Book Blitz Schedule

June 2

Cheryl’s Christian Book Connection

June 3

Rebecca’s Writing Services

June 4

The Book Connection

June 5

Cheryl’s Book Nook

June 6

Christian Children’s Authors

June 9

Review from Here

June 10

As the Pages Turn

June 11

Beyond the Books

June 12

Writing and other ways into the heart…

June 13

The Busy Mom’s Daily

June 16

Between the Covers

June 18

My Devotional Thoughts

June 19

Literarily Speaking

June 20

Plug Your Book

June 23

The Writer’s Life

June 24

The Book Rack

June 25

Lori’s Reading Corner

June 26

Little Shepherd

June 27

Maureen’s Musings

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Books That Will Be In My Beach Bag This Summer

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they will post a new Top Ten list that one of the bloggers at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All they ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

Ten Books That Will Be In My Beach Bag This Summer

(Numerals are linked up to the book's Goodreads page)

New books:

1

2

3

4

5

Books from my TBR Pile:

6

7

8

9

10

What will be in your beach bag this summer?

Book Spotlight: The Never Never Sisters by L. Alison Heller

An absorbing, highly entertaining novel about family secrets, The Never Never Sisters introduces you to the strong-willed and big-hearted Reinhardt women, as they reunite one summer in New York. Gifted storyteller L. Alison Heller has written another witty and moving page-turner that will captivate readers and keep them guessing right up until the satisfying end.

Sometimes you just need to get away…

Marriage counselor Paige Reinhardt is counting down the days to summer, eager to reconnect with her workaholic husband at their cozy rental cottage in the Hamptons. But soon a mysterious crisis at Dave’s work ruins their getaway plans. Paige is still figuring out how to handle the unexplained chill in her marriage when her troubled sister suddenly returns after a two-decade silence. Now, instead of enjoying the lazy summer days along the ocean, Paige is navigating the rocky waters of a forgotten bond with her sister in the sweltering city heat.

As she attempts to dig deeper into Dave’s work troubles and some long-held family secrets, Paige is shocked to discover how little she knows about the people closest to her. This summer, the self-proclaimed relationship expert will grapple with her biggest challenge yet: Is it worth risking your most precious relationships in order to find yourself?

ORDER FROM:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

BAM

IndieBound

Google Play

Powell’s

L. Alison Heller grew up in Connecticut and attended Bates College in Maine. After graduation, she

wandered dreamily around the eastern seaboard, temping and interning and shelving books, trying a little of this and a little of that, before landing in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Having hit her limit for dreamy wandering, she enrolled at the University of North Carolina School of Law. In 2000, she graduated from UNC with honors and moved to New York City, where she toiled in several law firms, growing increasingly nostalgic for those days of dreamy wandering. Alison opened her own family law and mediation practice in 2006 to help couples divorce with their sanity intact.

Alison is the author of THE LOVE WARS (The Penguin Group). Her second novel, THE NEVER NEVER SISTERS (also Penguin), is scheduled for June 2014.

Alison currently lives in Brooklyn with her family and is right now probably working on someone’s divorce or her next novel or riding on the New York City subway, dragging or being dragged by at least one child on a scooter. (Don’t be fooled by Alison’s modest blush—the subway dragging is every bit as glamorous as it sounds.)

She’d love to hear from you!

Visit Alison Heller’s website: http://lalisonheller.com/

Like her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LAlisonHeller

Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/lalisonheller

First Chapter Review: Tactics, Trends, & Traits of the Enemy by Jermaine Gadson

Jermaine Gadson's book Tactics, Trends, & Traits of the Enemy is about a topic I find fascinating and important to every Christian's journey: spiritual warfare. It is currently available for pre-order at Amazon and is scheduled for release on June 30.

BLURB:  Tactics, Trends, and Traits of the Enemy by author Jermaine Gadson is a must have resource for believers who want to be well equipped to be victorious against the strategies of the devil. The devil is cunning and deceptive, and he will stop at nothing to keep God's people from reaching their potential in Christ. In this book, Pastor Gadson discusses how the enemy uses temptation, seduction, fear, isolation, guilt, shame, and other such things in order to steal and destroy a person's life. Satan works tirelessly through various means and mechanisms to keep sinners from hearing and being receptive of the Word of God, in order to prevent them from being saved. If you have family or friends who are not born-again, this resource will help you to identify schemes that the enemy may be using to keep your loved ones from being saved. This book is intended to equip the Body of Christ to wage a good warfare against the strategies of the enemy. It is not God's will for His people to be taken advantage of by the enemy because of ignorance. This book exposes who the enemy is, what he has done, what he is doing, and what he will try to do in the future, as an enemy of God's people. This book is written for the everyday believer to be able to understand and use. However, it is also a helpful tool for Christian leaders to be able to identify specific ways in which the enemy desires to attack them in order to steal their influence, kill their destiny, and destroy their reputation and ministries. In this regard, it is an encouragement to the Body of Christ to guard and protect their spiritual leaders.

COVER: This is a perfect cover for this book. Christians are in a war against Satan and his demons. We are soldiers in God's army. This cover powerfully portrays that.

FIRST CHAPTER: Gadson starts at the beginning, realizing that in order to equip Christians for battle, they must know where Satan came from, the purpose of angels and humans in their relationship with God, and why Satan spends so much time trying to destroy humans' relationship with God. The chapter ends with a list of Biblical names given to the enemy and where in the Bible this name is used.

KEEP READING: After reading the preface and introduction, I already knew I liked Gadson's style. He's humbly sharing his insights from studying the Word of God and his experiences as a believer to better prepare the Body of Christ for a battle against an all too real enemy. His conversational manner is welcoming and engaging. The first chapter isn't overly long, either, so you can read it, digest it, and truly consider all he has to say and what this book will be about before moving on. He's written a book for you and for me, not some academic account that is over most people's heads. I look forward to reading more.


Title: Tactics, Trends, & Traits of the Enemy
Author: Jermaine Gadson
Genre: Spiritual
Publisher: Crossbooks – Division of LifeWay (June 2014)
ISBN: 9781462736362—Hard Cover
ISBN: 9781462736355—Soft Cover
ISBN: 9781462736348—eBook


I have been paid a fee to help promote this book through a virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book. That fee did not include any type of review. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.