NO SAFE HAVEN

Book One in a three-part series by Kimberley Woodhouse and Kayla Woodhouse, to be released on March 15, 2011. Following is an interview with the authors.

Author/Artist ReviewAuthor: Kimberley and Kayla Woodhouse
Located in: Colorado Springs, CO
Submitted: July 28, 2010

Tell us a little about yourself. KIM: I grew up in a wonderful Christian home, studied music all my life, and went to Bible College where I met my incredible husband, Jeremy. In 2011, we’ll celebrate 20 years of marriage. (Wow. I’m really not that old.) We’ve served the Lord in full-time ministry ever since Bible College and we have the two coolest kids on earth, Josh and Kayla. KAYLA: My name is Kayla R. Woodhouse, I love Jesus, writing, swimming, reading, and painting. I was twelve years old when Mom and I wrote No Safe Haven. I was born with a rare nerve disorder (there are about 25 confirmed cases in the world) called HSAN, Hereditary Sensory Autonomic Neuropathy. Basically, I can’t feel pain unless it is twenty to thirty times what you would feel, I can’t sweat, so, if I were to get too hot I could die or have serious brain damage. (We keep our house at 64 degrees. It used to be even colder than that! My room is always around 60 degrees.)

What was your motivation behind this project? KIM: Well, Kayla and I both love to write suspense and because of all the TV shows we’ve been on and all the media attention, people are fascinated with Kayla’s nerve disorder and the rarity of it. So writing about a mother and daughter who deal with it came naturally. And in fiction, you can put your characters through your greatest fears and triumphs. It's a great way for people to understand HSAN, and a lot of fun for us to write together. KAYLA: The idea to write together actually came from our amazing editor, Karen Ball. And as the idea settled in, Mom and I loved planning out the story and the different characters we would write. You see, I write certain characters, and Mom writes others. We love Alaska, so the story being set there was a no-brainer.

What do you hope folks will gain from this project? KIM: A deeper understanding of Trust. The characters in No Safe Haven deal with this on many levels. Trust in loved ones who failed them, trust in each other, trust in God. Doubt, betrayal, and fear play into the hands of each of them as they learn about true trust. And no matter what you’ve gone through, no matter what you’ve done, God is always there. With open arms. And even though people may fail us, He won’t. Putting your full trust in Him—letting Him take control of your life—is the most wonderful adventure you’ll ever have. KAYLA: One thing we thought would be cool to have in the book was the daughter having the same disorder as me so people could get a sense of what it’s like to have HSAN. But as I was writing my character I was able to actually describe how it feels when I overheat. That’s something I’ve never been able to do before. We also wanted to get readers to know the dangers of HSAN plus the dangers of being stranded in the wilderness of Alaska. People love reading books set in Alaska and since we lived there we thought it would be cool to have it take place there also. We’d like readers to learn that God is always with us no matter what, and that it’s awesome and important to have a strong relationship with God and your family members.

How were you personally impacted by working on this project? KIM: My daughter is amazing, and writing together has been a gift and a joy. She also keeps me on my toes, and challenges me as a writer. It was fascinating to see her put into words things about her disorder that she'd never been able to explain before. Writing about it was educational for both of us. KAYLA: I realized even more how I can be a willing vessel and be used by God. I love writing, but using those talents wholly and completely for Him is so cool!

Who are your influences, sources of inspiration or favorite authors / artists? KIM: Tracie Peterson, Donita K. Paul, Colleen Coble. They are all not only favorite authors of mine, but mentors and dear friends. Each of them shaped my writing in huge ways. Ronie Kendig and Carrie Kintz. Ronie writes action better than anyone I know, and she and Carrie are the best crit partners I’ve ever had. KAYLA: Donita K. Paul is one of our dearest friends, I think she influenced me not only in person but by her books. I’ve read the DragonKeeper Chronicles all the way through seven times! She really inspired me to let my imagination flow. My favorite scene in all of her books is in DragonSpell where Kale is talking to Paladin and she decides to follow him. Tracie Peterson is another great friend of ours and amazing author. Her Ladies of Liberty series influenced me a lot. And she always makes me laugh and encourages us to keep moving on. Ronie Kendig is one of the best writers in the world, and a challenging critique partner! She and her family are awesome and never quit even when things get crazy. Colleen Coble is a fantastic author and is hilarious! We have so much fun together and I love her smiling face. She encourages me to write, write, write! James L. Rubart is one of our newest writer friends, but even though we haven’t known each other very long his faith is evident and encourages me to live mine more out loud.

Anything else you'd like readers / listeners to know: KIM: Kayla and I wrote the book together, but separately. I wrote the POVs (Point of View) scenes of certain characters, and she wrote the others. I wrote the adults, she wrote the kids. What better person to write about a 12-year-old girl with HSAN than a real 12-year-girl with HSAN? And what better person to write about a mom with a child who has a rare disorder, than me? It was fun to bring those characters to life and get on the page the incredible relationship we share as mother/daughter. KAYLA: My first priority is my faith. Nothing is more important than God, He’s the one that gets me through life day to day. I LOVE swimming, my coaches are AMAZING and my team-mates are hilarious. They make me smile and encourage me to go on even though I’m different. I want to encourage you to follow your dreams and use your gifts for God.

Availability: This product will be released on 03/15/11. You may order this item now and it will be shipped to you when it arrives. If you are charging this purchase to a credit card, you will not be charged for this item and its portion of your shipping charges until it is shipped. Available for pre-order NOW through http://www.christianbooks.com/ and http://www.amazon.com/.


Welcome Home: Our Family's Journey To Extreme Joy is now available!  You have heard the story of the Woodhouse family on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and in numerous media interviews. Now read the story behind the story as written by Kimberley Woodhouse. You will be touched.

Watch the video trailer for No Safe Haven!

Launch Party For Cara Putnam's Latest Book, Stars In The Night

The Latest From Cara


"Cara Putman is a truly gifted author who offers strong characterization and quality research in her fiction."
Tracie Peterson, best-selling author of Song of Alaska series

Stars in the Night (July 2010) is a historical romantic suspense set in Hollywood during 1942. Join the launch party today.
Could the man Audra loves be her sister's murderer?

During WWII, attorney Audra Schaeffer travels with the second Hollywood Victory Caravan--but she's more interested in solving her sister's murder than selling war bands. When two people on the train are found dead, including the ex-wife of handsome star, Robert Garfield, Audra starts to wonder if Robert's affectionate overtures are setting her up to be his next victim...
Read more...
see details of launch party and enter the contest to win fabolous prizes! http://ow.ly/2bu8V

His Princess: Girl Talk With God by Sheri Rose Shepherd - Book Review

As the subtitle states, this is a book of love letters and devotions for young women. There are 40 chapters, each containing a story, love letter from God, Scripture, and a prayer.

From the back cover copy: Like a loving Father, God holds you in the palm of His hand. He loves you no matter what you wear, what you say, what you've done, or how you feel. And He wants you to live a wonderful life.
In His Princess: Girl Talk With God, Sheri Rose Shepherd helps you experience God's unending love for you....Sheri remembers what it was like to be a teen girl, and she connects your experiences with God's love. ...you will feel just how much God treasures you, His Princess.

My review: Tenderly written and beautifully produced, this hardcover book is a gem. Sheri speaks from her heart of her own struggles.  She was raised in a dysfunctional home, and battled depression, an eating disorder, and dyslexia. Although she entered beauty pageants, and won the title of Mrs. America, all that pales in comparison to being a daughter of the King! Sheri shares her heart-felt message in the pages of this devotional. Topics include Your True Identity, Are You in Barbie Bondage?, How You Feel About Yourself, True Beauty, The Movie of Life Stars You, Divinely Different, The "Mr. Right" Checklist, Facing Fear, A Beautiful Life, and many others. Sheri wants her readers to grasp how much they are treasured by their "Daddy in heaven", and to see themselves as daughters of the Most High King.
This is a book that I wish I had read as a teen, and would be the perfect gift for all the teen girls in your life.

Read more about Sheri Rose Shepherd and her ministry at http://www.hisprincess.com/, friend her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter, sign up for her newsletter, and find a speaking event near you and see her live! Sheri's testimony can be found at http://ignitelifeconferences.com/testimony.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".

The Seeker by Ann H. Gabhart - Book Review

From the back cover copy: Charlotte Vance is a young woman who knows what she wants. But when the man she planned to marry joins the Shakers-a religious group that does not allow marriage-she is left dumbfounded. And when her father brings home a new wife who is young enough to be Charlotte's sister, it is more than she can bear. With the country-and her own household-on the brink of civil war, this pampered gentlewoman hatches a plan to avoid her new stepmother and win back her man by joining the Shaker community at Harmony Hill. Little does she know that this decision will lead her down a road of unforeseen consequences. Ann H. Gabhart brings alive the strikingly different worlds of the Southern gentry, the simple Shakers, and the ravages of war in 1860s Kentucky to weave a touching story of love, freedom, and forgiveness.

My review:  As an avid fan of historical fiction, I absolutely LOVED this book. It was hard to put down. I was transported to another time and place from the first page, through the well-crafted story, historical details and captivating characters. One could not help but walk in the heroine's shoes as she faced tough challenges and was forced to make difficult decisions. I love to read anything relating to the civil war, whether fiction or non-fiction, and in this book, Ann Gabhart does a superb job of weaving together details of the war with human emotions. She gives a face to the war, so it becomes much more than dates and battles. Many factual details are included via correspondence between Charlotte Vance and Adam Wade, the young artist who has come across Charlotte's path. The story also details the life of a Shaker village, which was new to me. It is evident that the author has done very careful research. She lives in Kentucky, just 30 minutes from a restored Shaker village, giving opportunity to walk where the Shakers walked. This lends authenticity to this story, as well as to her previous Shaker books, The Outsider and The Believer. Thanks, Ann, for a great story, one which will stick in my memory.  I highly recommend wonderful this book.

Ann is the author of over a dozen novels for adults and young adults. Her first inspirational novel, The Scent of Lilacs, was one of Booklist's top ten inspirational novels of 2006. Her novel, The Outsider, was a finalist for the 2009 Christian Book Awards in the fiction category. Visit Ann's website at http://www.annhgabhart.com/.


"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.

Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".

A HOPEFUL HEART by KIM VOGEL SAWYER - BOOK REVIEW

From back cover copy: "Dowryless and desperate, Tressa Neill applies to the inaugural class of Wyatt Herdsman School in Barnett, Kansas. The school's one-of-a-kind program teaches young women from the East the skills needed to become a rancher-or the wife of one. But will Tressa have what it takes to survive Hattie Wyatt's hands-on instruction in skills such as milking a cow, branding a calf, and cooking up a mess of grub for hungry ranch hands?

Abel Samms wants nothing to do with the passel of potential brides his neighbor brought to town. He was smitten with an eastern girl once-and got his heart broken. But there's something about quiet Tressa's bumbling ways that makes him take notice. When trouble strikes, will Abel risk his life-and his heart-to help this eastern girl?"




"In A Hopeful Heart, Kim Vogel Sawyer gives her readers a warm and endearing story. It is a different slant on prairie romances. Characters are so well depicted, as is the setting in rural Kansas in the 1880's. I could easily slip right into the story and be at home, feeling with the girls and the ranchers in their struggles.Kim adds elements of mystery, suspense and heart-searching, which all blend together to make this a very satisfying read. She not only addresses the emotions involved as the girls begin to court their prospective husbands, but she also depicts the struggles which Tressa faces in coming to terms with issues of forgiveness and seeing that what she thought was just a second-best chance might indeed be God's best for her.This is a story which will stay in my heart for a long time. I highly recommend this heartwarming historical fiction, and look forward to the next book by this wonderful author."

Kim Vogel Sawyer is the author of fifteen novels, including several bestsellers.  Her books have won the ACFW Book of the Year Award, the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence, and the Inspirational ReadersChoice Award. Kim is active in her church, and in her spare time, she enjoys drama, quilting, and calligraphy.  Kim and her husband live in Kansas.  They have three daughters and six grandchildren.  For further information, please see Kim's website at http://www.kimvogelsawyer.com/.

A Hopeful Heart is available now at your favorite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group.
Thanks to the publisher and Graf-Martin Communications Inc. for providing a copy for review purposes.
This book is available at www.amazon.com.

STUFF CHRISTIANS LIKE by Jonathan Acuff - BOOK REVIEW

For the last ten years, Jonathan Acuff has written advertising for clients ranging from the Home Depot to Chick-fil-A. In addition to his many day jobs, he also writes a blog called www.stuffchristianslike.net. He and his wife live with their two daughters outside of Atlanta, Georgia.

Learn more about Jonathan at http://stuffchristianslike.net/.
From a media release:
Sometimes, we fall in love on mission trips even though we know we’ll break up when we get back. Sometimes, you have to shot block a friend’s prayer because she’s asking God to bless an obviously bad dating relationship. Sometimes, you think, “I wish I had a t-shirt that said ‘I direct deposit my tithe’ so people wouldn’t judge me.”

Sometimes, the stuff that comes with faith is funny.
This is that stuff.


Jonathan Acuff’s Stuff Christians Like is your field guide to all things Christian. In it you’ll learn the culinary magic of the crock-pot. Think you’ve got a Metro worship leader-Use Acuff’s checklist. Want to avoid a prayer handholding faux pas? Acuff has you covered.

Like a satirical grenade, Acuff brings us the humor and honesty that galvanized more than a million online readers from more than 200 countries in a new portable version. Welcome to the funny side of faith.

Abundantly illustrated with pen and ink sketches, this book is a quick read, but the points which the author makes will stay with you and cause you to think. Acuff takes a 'tongue in cheek' approach, but there is much that is recognizable in the situations he describes. Nothing escapes this author's notice, and everything is fair game.  He covers such topics as "Guide to Food Prayers", disguising gossip as prayer, styles of hand-raising, worship leaders score chart, confessing 'safe' sins, and on it goes.  Jonathan's wit and insights help us to ask the hard questions, and perhaps to see our Christian behavior in a new light.  This is a book to share with your church friends.  They will thank you for it, and after reading it, will know how to give you an appropriate hug!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher, Zondervan, for review purposes.  It is available through http://www.amazon.com/.












Following is a list of blog tour participants.  Be sure and read their reviews.

About dreams and broken glass


Arms of a Sister

Aspire2 Blog

Be Your Best Mom

Bell Whistle Moon

Blame it on the Loud Mouth Gene

Blog Tour Spot

Book Hooked

Book Junkie Confessions

Cafe Lily Book Reviews

Carly Bird’s Home

CommuniKate

Critty Joy

Deus E Fiel

Emerging Mummy

God Restores

iamhealed.net

J’s Spot

Krellfish

life outside my window

Lighthouse Academy

Literary Fan Girl

Marc Whitman’s Blog

Musings by Lynn

Musings on This, That and the Other Thing

Paper Bridges

Readin’ N Writin’ with Patricia

Refresh My Soul

Sky-High View

Sunflower Faith

The Hahn Hunting Lodge

The Master’s Artist

The View From Here

The Writing Road

Uma Pirralha Na Universidade

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MAID to MATCH by DEANNE GIST - Book Review

Maid to Match is the first of Deeanne's books that I have read.  And what a beautiful book it is!  From exquisite cover through to its satisfying conclusion, this story is a delight.

Set in the early days of the 20th century, in and around Asheville, N.C. and Biltmore Estate, Gist takes us back to the Gilded Age and gives us a peek at the daily life of the Vanderbilts and their household staff.  The historical details are fascinating, as are the characters.  Gist draws the reader into the dilemma of the main characters. We share their pain and struggles, as well as their happiness, and laugh at their antics. I loved this book and look forward to picking up Gist's other books-A Bride Most Begrudging, The Measure of a Lady, Courting Trouble, Deep in the Heart of Trouble, A Bride in the Bargain, and Beguiled. I highly recommend this most enjoyable book.

Back cover copy: "From the day she arrives at the Biltmore, Tillie Reese is dazzled-by the riches of the Vanderbilts and by Mack Danvers, a mountain man turned footman. When Tillie is enlisted to help tame Mack's rugged behavior by tutoring him in proper servant etiquette, the resulting sparks threaten Tillie's efforts to be chosen as Edith Vanderbilt's lady's maid. After all, the one rule of the house is no romance below stairs. But the stakes rise even higher when Mack and Tillie become entangled in a cover-up at the town orphanage. They could both lose their jobs, their aspirations...and their hearts."

Deeanne Gist has a background in education and journalism, and she has a degree from Texas A&M. She and her husband live in Houston, Texas, and have four grown children.  Dee loves to hear from her readers at her website, http://www.iwantherbook.com/.  To learn more about Dee, go to http://www.deeannegist.com/.

"This fall, join bestselling author Deeanne Gist for a luxurious weekend at the beautiful Biltmore mansion in Asheville, North Caroline.  Let us whisk you away to the Gilded Age in a special readers getaway! Experience the romance of history up close as you relax with Dee and go behind the scenes of the Maid to Match world."  For more information, visit http://www.getawaywithdee.com/.

Follow Dee on Facebook!

Maid to Match is available now at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

I wish to thank Graf-Martin Communications inc. and Bethany House for providing a copy of the book for review purposes.