Review - Unfinished Puzzle - Ashley Alice White

At the beginning of the year I chose to start reading some devotional books I have been collecting but not reading. This was the first one. Ms. White writes a good series of short (and some longer) devotional studies. Many of them focus on trials she has been through. It appears that she has had some disease that appears to deal with the auto-immune system. Each story is a complete chapter. Some should have been closer together to have some continuity. Overall the book is a good devotional. While it is suitable for all ages, children would most likely be bored with it. It appears that the author's web site is now down.

Review: Legacy of Mars: Mars Ascends

Legacy of Mars: Mars Ascends by D M Pruden
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

​I received an ARC of this book. What follows is an honest review.

Legacy of Mars picks up where the previous book Mars Ascends takes place. It is a few years after those events. Our hero Melanie has taken a political position that was only supposed to be a figurehead but instead she has had to take a much larger role. Her friends (Dani and Felix) and her biological clone (Adrian) come to Mars to visit her. Adrian is only 4 years old but has the appearance of a teen because the cloning process accelerates aging. Melanie wants to find a cure so tries to take time off to help Felix (the only synthetic human) to come up with one.

At the same time, back on Terra (we would call it earth), they are fighting each other over land that is just not going to support them. They come under attack by a meteor thrown out of its path and aimed at Terra. They destroy it but start to think Mars is attacking them so they try to go to war with them.

One might think that with all this going on, one would need to have read the previous books. As I said in my review for the previous book, what you have to know is provided for you at the appropriate time and blended in to the the story nicely.

I would recommend it to most anyone. While there is not as much violence in this book as the last, there is still some. For that reason, parents of young teens and below might want to read it first to approve it. It is not a teen book but I would say some might be attracted to it.



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Review: Healing Justice: Stories of Wisdom and Love

Healing Justice: Stories of Wisdom and Love by Jarem Sawatsky
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

​I received an ARC of this book. I am leaving an honest review

This was an interesting book. I had not heard of Healing Justice concept before this book. I had the concept he refers to when I read his last book, 'Dancing With Elephants'. He used the concept of circles in helping with his disease.

Healing Justice is a concept that the person who is taken advantage of needs healing and so does the the one who did the crime. The author takes on the concept by visiting three different communities. Each one approaches the concept from their own point of view. Each one has had their own way of implementing it.

While I understand the concept I do have problems with how it can be truly implemented in the life of people today. While our society may be the problem, it is hard to move the ship while it is going strongly in one direction. I also understand that the abuser is in need of help as much as the one who receives the abuse, but sometimes an abuser is just that, an abuser, and there is not a clear way to reach them.

The book tends to read like a text book in parts. I understand from the forward that these were published as part of his college classes so that may be the reason.
Safe for all to read but as specialized as it is I do not think many of my circle of friends might be interested.

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Review: Mars Now: Mars Journey Book 5

Mars Now: Mars Journey Book 5 by Bill Hargenrader
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have received an ARC copy of this book, what follows is an honest review.

In Mars Now: Mars Journey Book 5 we have the continuation of the story line of the preparations of a journey to Mars. ​Bill Hargenrader has done an excellent job in this series. He has one thing I do not like in a series and yet he can get away with it. I hate a cliffhanger. Well this series has had not just one but 2 or 3 in each book. Yet somehow I will continue to wait for his next book each time.
In the series, our hero Brent Carlson is the main focus. Others though are coming into focus with these new chapters being revealed. We see Brent at the start of this book in a semi-failed rescue attempt. Then we see him with his wife as they urge people to travel the red planet. In previous books, the two parts have had equal footing with the last part as we learn how the plans to travel to Mars came about. With this book the focus has changed to the time a year and a half till take off.
We look at how a robot that has gained sentience is trying to keep himself alive. We see a competitor to the official Mars journey will stop at nothing to get his way. And we see Brent, as he is doing whatever he can do to have a group of people that will be on that official trip, landing on Mars and living there while the flight goes back to earth. And he is doing this under the guise of a reality TV show. Who will make it through to be in the top Mars 99.

I recommend this series to any interested in Mars and just like a good Sci-Fi Thriller. Good clean fun (well maybe a cuss word or two).

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Review: Killing With Kings

Killing With Kings by Lois Lavrisa
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

​I received an ARC copy of this book. What follows is an honest review.

Killing with Kings was an interesting read. I kind of figured out the who did it but not the why. There were clues as to the why but I just did not pick upon them.

When a friendly high stakes poker game turns not so friendly and one of the players turn up dead, there is a tendency by everyone to think that it was an accident due to the fact that peanut allergy he had. Even though Sargent Jose Rodriguez thinks it was murder, no one else does. He teams up with the victims daughter, even though he is not supposed to be working on the case.

While entertaining, there is a side story that works with the story but may be offensive to some. The sargent is gay. It did not bother me, but I know that some of my more stronger Christian friends may take offence at it.

There were a few places it got a little wordy, that is why the 4 star review. Pick it up, you will enjoy it.

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Review: The Blonde with the Dangerous 'Do: A Dani Silver Thriller

The Blonde with the Dangerous 'Do: A Dani Silver Thriller by Duane Lindsay
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

​I was provided and ARC of this book. What follows is an honest review.

This is the third in the series of Dani Silver stories. Dani is a female con artist who has a father that is the most famous grifter of all times. In case you did not know (I did not know until I read book 2) that a grifter is another name for a con artist.
This story picks up just after the previous book, 'The Ghost Coach'. You do not have to read it before this, what you need to know is provided you with little interference to the story. Dani has a day off before heading to her home and does a little window shopping. She buys some sexy outfits and then heads out to the airport and decides to watch people. Recognizing one as having the signs of a fellow con artist she decides to have some fun with him, and then winds up going with him to Branson in place of her home.
Now the fun starts, well maybe not for Dani. The man's brother thinks she is spying on them and their scam. They take her out to the development that they are building and throw her down a man hole and close it just as it starts to rain. Dani survives what would kill someone else by sheer luck and determinism.
Thinking she is dead, the men go on with their business until they start seeing weird things. The con men are about to be conned by Dani and her crew, as well as a new one or two.

This is a fun book. It has the right speed that it needs and the characters stay true to themselves, and in fact that becomes an issue that Dani had to face, staying true to herself.
Most ages would enjoy, though violence and sexual innuendo might not be appropriate for the younger crowd.

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Review: Dark Nights: Metal: The Resistance

Dark Nights: Metal: The Resistance by Joshua Williamson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received an ARC copy of this book. What follows is an honest review.

Dark Nights: Metal: The Resistance. is like most graphic novels a collection of comics that were published then put into a book. It ties with with the Dark Night Series of graphic novels. In Dark Nights: Metal: Deluxe Edition we get the story of Batman bringing over Multiverse versions of himself. They represent various members of his companions (Justice League) and his enemies but each are a dark side of the Batman. With this collection we see the events that took place during the events of Dark Nights: Metal: Deluxe..

The graphics can be a bit jarring. There are many different styles. That because the original artists/authors stayed with their own style with their comics. While a bit noticeable, once you expect it then you can look past it. It is interesting seeing hero's and villains work together not because of some noble cause but because their interests align with each other.

My only complaint, and this might be because I got an uncorrected proof, is that the stories appeared to be out of order. One chapter we see two groups that have been split and a chapter or two later, they are together and getting ready to split. Another quirk for my copy was that there were a couple of full page ads, One actually kind of fit in with the story.

Recommend for comic book fans. Not as much death as the other one, but still a lot. Would think twice about a preteen and younger crowd reading it.

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Review: Cherry Blossoms

Cherry Blossoms by Kim Hooper
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book. This is an honest review.

I did not know what to expect when I got the copy of the book. While I did not know anything about the author, somehow it seemed an interesting story. It was.

Jonathan has had a terrible loss. We know the love of his life, Sara is gone. Now he wants to end his life and makes plans for it, one year from now. This is his journey to that end. As he starts this journey, his chosen method of suicide is one that originated in Japan. For that reason, and because Sara always wanted to see the Cherry Blossoms in Japan, he plans a trip there before he dies.

To make that trip he starts a bucket list. One is to take a class in Japanese so when he visits he can try to not be a typical american tourist. In that class he meets Riko. She is Japanese but was sent here by her parents when she was three years old. Her quest is to find out why she was sent here, to find out the origins of her life. A sharp contrast to Jonathan seeking death.

The story jumps back and forth from present to his past life with Sara. While this could be jarring, the author does a very good job. The changes in time seem to flow into each other. Sometimes a chapter is about his past, other times his future. There are a few times where we see both in the same chapter.

In the chapters dedicated the current day we learn just how Sara dies. Just when you think that you understand just how it all happened , there is a jarring clue revealed. . In those revelations, many to Riko, we peel back the complicated life that was Jonathan and Sara.

In chasing her past, Riko needs to go to Japan so she invites herself to go along with Jonathan. We see Japan through their eyes.

I would recommend this book to anyone. While there is talk about suicide, I do not see it influencing anyone to do so. The rich depth of the main characters is so good, I really wanted the story to go on. Read it, you will enjoy it.

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Review: Dark Nights: Metal: Deluxe Edition (Dark Nights: Metal

Dark Nights: Metal: Deluxe Edition (Dark Nights: Metal by Scott Snyder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received an ARC copy from Net Galley, what follows is an honest review.

I did not know what to expect from this. I have not read many of the modern comics. I am a reader of comics but back in the 60's and early 70's. I know a lot has changed, that from time to time the comics need to reboot otherwise, Superman and the gang would be in their 80's or 90's.

I have known of the multiverse from the Arrowverse shows on CW. That took me as no surprise. I was not ready for a demonic dark universe. That caught my attention.

It was probably better that I read them all at once. I am not sure I would have lasted reading them in their original form, spread out over many months. It most likely would not have kept my interest over that long of a period.

We know the story of the heroes. So there is nothing new there. What was new was the dark multiverse. Out of it come our nightmares. How can we prevent it when it comes to take over our plane of existence.

Recommended to any who enjoy comics, though with all the death, preteens and below might be affected.

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Review: The Stranger In Central Park

The Stranger In Central Park by James Patrick Dillon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

​I so wanted this to be a book to help me in my spiritual beliefs. However, that was not to be. I will say that I enjoyed most of the story. A modern day Jesus arrives in Central Park in New York as a young woman is being raped. She has a room mate who loves her but Katie is not into girls though she is in approval of the lifestyle. Her brother, mayor of New York, once thought of as a potential presidential candidate before his affair is in a 'winner takes all' political fight with a rival that could remove him from politics forever. All of this in the first couple of chapters.

Then, Jesus appears. The story only calls him 'The Stranger' but it is clear by his words who the author is hinting it is. That is when I thought the story went south. It was clear that the author was trying to push his version of Christianity. While he has every right to do that, I was saddened when what could have been a great story turned in to a theological teaching.

Before you go negative and say that I disagree with the teaching and say that the book was bad for that reason, I would have said the same thing if it had agreed with my beliefs. Any time you use your platform to try to indoctrinate, I do not care for it. When the book is in the story it is great, but whole chapters where a theology of everyone is saved and I was wanting the book to end and soon.

Who should read? I would only recommend this if you can work around the preaching. As I said before, the story is very gripping as the stranger is urging people to put down the guns even though a World War seems to be approaching. Who is healed and who is not by the stranger leads to interesting questions. The idea of an 'eye for an eye' is even talked about in an interesting way. If you cannot get passed the teachings, then I would not suggest it for you.

I received an ARC from the publisher and Netgalley. This is an honest review.

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Review: The 49th Mystic

The 49th Mystic by Ted Dekker
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book from Interviews and Reviews and the publisher, Revel. What follows is an honest review.


The 49th Mystic is some heavy reading. The physical copy of the book that I received is 400 pages long. So in the physical sense it is a heavy book. In the story it tells, it is heavy as well. I usually put who I think would like the book at the end of my reviews. I am moving that to the top this time.


This book is written in the style of allegorical style of the Narnia books by C. S. Lewis. That is the last comparison I will make to Lewis here. The book is heavy with scripture references. So many in fact, the author has notes at the end of the book to tell us where to find them. For that reason, I would only recommend this to Christian friends. My only complaint with the book was if the author thought about his audience. I am sure that Mr. Decker being a bestselling author did. If he is writing to the Christians, he is preaching to the choir. I am not sure that non-Christians would get the references and if they do not, the book would become unreadable.


Story is very gripping. Rachel is a blind girl who lives in the small town of Eden, Utah. It seems that Eden was built in a valley. with only one way in and out. The man in charge of the town has built it so that when the apocalypse comes, he will shut the road down and the town will be self sufficient. Rachel, being blind has developed echo location, clicking and listening for the echos to see things. Yes this is real, visit ted.org and search for it, you will find a talk by a man who is blind and does it. So days she is blind but has some mobility. Nights, when she sleeps, she has dreams. Dreams where she can see and is being chased by an evil shadow man.


One day, when an experiment to bring her sight back does not seem to work, she is visited by a man named Vlad Smith (has to be the bad guy with a name like Vlad) who pricks her arm and now she can see. Her dreams have changed. She now sees clearly, but has been transported to a world not like ours. We get the impression it is set in her future. It is in this setting when she begins to see her purpose. She has been the one, called by Justin (obviously Jesus) to save Eden from Vlad but also restore harmony between the three groups of people in this time. To do this she will have to discover the five seals and meet the other mystics (48 of them?), but her time is short. The three groups of people are obvious if one knows Church history. They are not so clear if you do not.


When she falls asleep in one area she wakes up in the other. I kind of felt sorry for her after a while. She never really slept. At times, she doubted the other existence was real, only a dream, until she woke up in it.


I did enjoy the book. It was a gripping story. I did not like how it ended, set up for the next book, that it is a pet peeve of mine. As big as this book was I would say that another book was needed and the author wrapped up as many loose ends as he reasonably could.


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Review: Love, Forgive, Never Give Up!: 3 Powerful Ways To Turn Tragedy Into Triumph, Adversity Into Advantage, And Live Your Life at the Next level

Love, Forgive, Never Give Up!: 3 Powerful Ways To Turn Tragedy Into Triumph, Adversity Into Advantage, And Live Your Life at the Next level by Bill Hargenrader
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Bill and Linda have written an excellent book on surviving this thing called life that we must make it through. There are three steps they explain in more detail than I can here. Through each step personal stories are shared from their own life experience.

Love - you must start by loving yourself. Once you love self you can start to love others.
Forgive - like love, forgive yourself. Somethings happen to you that you cannot control. Forgive yourself for thinking that it is your fault. Forgiveness of self leads to forgiveness to others.
Never give up - probably hardest step. One that is nessary or we migrate back to the other two being needed again.

As noted before, these are highlighted by the stories of the author's on lives. This is not theory these people have lived it. They have put into words what I have tried to help people in churches I have attended.

That brings up another point. Usually when I am wrapping up a review I give recommendations of who should read it. This could be read by all ages. Everyone needs to learn these lessons. However, I would caution my Christian friends. While reading the first half I suspected the authors of having new age beliefs. About half way through and for a little while afterward that was confirmed. We disagree on the religious nature and that is ok. What is important is the lessons that they teach. It is important enough that these things need to be taught. I have been a group facilitator in a church where these concepts were taught. Please do not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

I received an ARC of this book. This is my honest review.

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The Machine by Craig Lea Gordon

The Machine by Craig Lea Gordon


​The Machine is more of a booklet. It is a short story that coud have been so much more. It has a great premise. A living machine that can give you anything you desire. A man who was told not to build it and did it anyway. The horror that it could bring is clearly shown here.

I will say it was a good story of how man can lose what he started in in the end play God.

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Review: Pineapple Disco: A Pineapple Port Mystery: Book Six

Pineapple Disco: A Pineapple Port Mystery: Book Six by Amy Vansant
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

​The latest in Amy Vansant's series of Pineapple Port books is a change of pace. For once Charlotte is not investigating a murder case. She is looking into a missing person. The problem is that the request comes for a person who does not know the name or address of the person.

I get ahead of myself. If you have not read any of this series I recommend you do. You do not need to in order to understand the story. Any backstory is added in as needed. However, the backstory goes like this. Charlotte's mother died and she was sent to live in Florida with her grandmother. Gram lives in a retirement community called Pineapple Port. Gram dies leaving our hero an orphan. She is allowed to continue to live there with the neighbors taking turns at taking care of her. Now she is 20 something woman who lives in an area with senior citizens. Because she keeps getting pulled into murders she decides to become a private investigator.

In this book she is called on to find a man that a former resident of Pineapple Port has been flirting with on her daily walk. He has been wearing a t-shirt each day with one word on it. Will. You. Go . Out. With. Me. ?

The day the woman is about to respond with her shirt, he does not show. While this might sound like a dull story, it does involve a hit-woman, drugs, an underground disco for senior citizens, and stuff that if I told you about it, it would be spoilers.

While she is not investigating a murder, that is not to say there is not murders taking place. For that reason, if it was a movie I would give it a PG rating. There is no other real problems with the book. I could recommend it to any reader who likes a good mystery. It is in the vein of the cozy mysteries but it is not what I would call one as it is not quite in that mode.

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Review: Capturing Freedom

Capturing Freedom by Angelique Conger
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

​I did receive an ARC of this book. I purchased a copy as well to support the author.

Capturing Freedom is the second book of a series by Angelique Conger. The series follows two children, grandchildren of Adam and Eve, in the time of the Bible. Man has fallen by this time and are following a collection of Gods. Nat has been kidnapped and sold to a series of evil slave owners. Because of his knowledge of reading he has worked his way up to the personal servant of high priest of one of the Gods. His sister, Ziva, was a little bit luckier. She was bought as a child to replace the child of a wealthy man. The young girl who had passed away when she was involved in an accident in town with her mother. Mother survived but not for long. The father kept her, not as a slave, but as a daughter. All of this is told in the first book and is back storied in quite nicely.

In this book, ZIva is expecting her first child, and then several more. Nat has committed himself to a young woman before the God Jehova. When the sneak time together, hard to do when you are a slave, she finds that she is with child. Any child born to a slave woman belongs to the master so they do not want this child born there. Nat, working with Ziva and her father work together to get the pregnant woman to be free. Meanwhile, the home of Ziva is attacked. If it had been an army it would have been easy. But disease is running through her home.

Ms. Conger blends the stories together quite well. Even though we can guess the ending (look at the title of the book) it still is interesting how we get there. This is a clean book that I would have no problem suggesting to any age. It is purely fiction, we do not know who lived at these time, or how their societies worked. I can imagine that this was the way of life for these people quite easily.

I recommend this book to any who are looking for a Biblical times story. If a movie, it would be rated PG for some scenes of violence, Nat being flogged is one of them. Enjoy.

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Review: The Lowdown

The Lowdown by Erik Carter
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book. I am providing an honest review.

The story takes place in a time that I grew up in. Though I am from the Boston area I had ties to New Orleans where this story takes place. The characters are like of the type of people I knew of the era. Prejudice was king not just in the south.

I was surprised to find out this book was part of a series. It had none of the signs that show it was. There was no heavy handed explanations of what had gone on it previous stories.

Prejudice, a KKK type of organization, an alphabet organization I had never heard of all are a part of this story. Dale is an agent of the BEI, an organization that is part of the DOJ. If a crime has an aspect of history to it, Dale is called in. Percy, a DOJ agent is partnered with him. Dale is white, Percy is black. While it does not bother them,the 1970's era that the book takes place in has a lot of people who do not like one or the other of them, sometimes both.

The KKK type of organization is out to flood cities in the south with joints laced with a drug that will kill them. Of course they are targeting the black population. Our heroes must find a way to stop them, even if it means working with the drug sellers.

Action was good, there was a fair amount of killing so I could not suggest this book for younger population, older teens would be OK. A movie like rating would be PG13. If you are in the need for a good thriller, I would pick this book up.

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Review: Hear Me Cry

Hear Me Cry by Amanda J. Evans
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book. What follows is an honestreview.

The author has taken an old Irish folktaleabout the banshee and recreated it in a world of fairies and humans. Faries are not the Tinker Bell type of fairies but more of the type that has been created in the fantsy books that have come out lately.

The story is engaging, charachters are real, and they stick to the way that they were written and do not deviate at all. There was one point in the story that did not make a lot of sense, but I feel the author used it as a way to move the story along.

The book is relativly short but it fits the style of the story.

Children might enjoy the story but parent should be aware of an itimate scene between the fairy and the human that gets a little graphic,
Recomeded for older teens though adults. If you like fantsy stories this might be for you.

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Review: Crosscurrents: Would you kill your brother to save yourself?

Crosscurrents: Would you kill your brother to save yourself? by Tom Bierdz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book. What follows is an honest review.

Cross currents is an enjoyable thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat through the book. This is the forth book by the author that I have read and have enjoyed each one of them.

Two brothers separated at a young age because of the mistakes of an abusive father. One goes on to become a crusading senator. The other gets amensia and becomes hit man for hire. As we wander through the life that each one has, and the people around them who love and support them, we see how intertwined their lives really are.

The big problem is that the men they have grown up to be are on a colision course when the crusading senator had become the target of the hitman when a contract is taken out on him. A knock on the head heals the amnesia, but is it to late.

Mr. Bierdz has written well developed characters. There are no throw aways here. Even the minor charachters are given something to flesh them out. All of the people stay true to their identies. Even when the times are frighing to them, they stay true to themselves.

I would recommend this to older teens and above. Obviously because when you have a hit man you have violence. There is also a degree of sexual activity. For the most part it is not written in heavy detail, but it is scattered throughout the book. If a movie I would say it would get an R rating. Let that be your guide if you would read it or not. I have enjoyed the book and would recommend it to anyone looking for a good thriller.

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Review: Coding Projects in Python

Coding Projects in Python by DK Publishing
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I got a review copy form the publisher through NetGalley.

This is an excellent book for children. As I teach a college class it helped me in learning Python ahead of a class that I am teaching in Introduction to programming.

For children it is a step by lesson on learning programming. Python is used for its simplicity. Fun projects are done with an eye to keeping children interested. If I had a young child who showed an interest in programming I would definitely have them look at this. Python is easily available for all systems and though they talk about a specific editor, any editor would work.

Recommend for anyone wanting to learn Python, even adults.

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Review: GHOST COACH

GHOST COACH by Duane Lindsay
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Available at Amazon
I received an ARC of this book. What follows in an honest review.

This the second of a series. It can be read with no knowledge of the first one as I have done.

What if you were a con man and wanted to pull of the ultimate con. How long would you wait to pull the trigger on it.

That is the premise of Ghost Coach. Can the best con man (Leroy) ever pull off the best con ever, even though it is his daughter (Dani) wanting to do it more. Together, along with the people they bring in, they are the best team to do the job.

I never thought about what would go into a con like this. All of the details that have to be done so that they can hook the person. Yet this team made all the work look easy. Even though at almost every step, something got in their way. There are many twists and turns in the story. There are sad moments and happy moments as well as ones that make you wonder if these con men (and woman) are really the good guys.

I would recommend this book to any who like a light hearted story about how people really want to swindle themselves.

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