The Mountains Bow Down: Book Review and Giveaway

From the Publisher:

About The Mountains Bow Down: Everything's going to work out. Time away always makes things better . . ..

That's what FBI Special Agent Raleigh Harmon believes as she boards a cruise to Alaska. A land of mountains and gems and minerals, The Last Frontier is a dream destination for this forensic geologist who's hoping to leave behind a hectic work schedule and an engagement drained of romance.

But when a passenger goes missing and winds up dead, Raleigh's vacation suddenly gets lost at sea. The ship's security chief tries to rule the death a suicide, but Raleigh's forensics background points to a much darker conclusion: Somewhere onboard, a ruthless murderer walks free.

Engulfed by one of her toughest cases yet, Raleigh requests assistance from the FBI and receives her nemesis-perpetual ladies man Special Agent Jack Stephanson. As the cruise ship sails through the Inside Passage, Raleigh has five days to solve a high-profile murder, provide consultation for a movie filming onboard, and figure out her increasingly complicated feelings for Jack-who might not be such a jerk after all.

And that's only her work life. Family offers even more challenges. Joined on the cruise by her mother and aunt, Raleigh watches helplessly as disturbing rifts splinter her family.

Like the scenery that surrounds the cruise ship, Raleigh discovers a situation so steep and so complex that even the mountains might bow down.

My Review and A Book Giveaway:

I was a little bit worried when I realized I was starting Sibella Giorello's Raleigh Harmon series by reading the 4th book, but instead of being a problem, reading The Mountains Bow Down simply made me want to go back and check out the first 3 books in this series. My kids were sick and we weren't out of the house any, but I managed to sneak in reading time and finished it in only a day or two. I enjoyed the plot twists and the unpredictability of the murder mystery. I also appreciated the lack of guts and gore. The way Giorello beautifully paints the setting with words was also a big draw for me, as I would love to visit Alaska some day! Overall, this was a really good, quick read, mystery novel.

Did I mention that my kids were sick while I was reading this?? Yeah, well you now can benefit from my sleepless nights. As a result of too many all nighters I didn't realize I had received my copy for review, and by the time the second was on the way I found the original. So, now I have a copy to give away to one lucky reader. Simply leave a comment on this post and we'll let random.org choose a winner on April 1st at 11AM EST. Don't forget to leave your contact info in the comment.

Sibella’s celebrating the release of The Mountains Bow Down with a blog tour, a Cruise prize pack worth over $500 and a Facebook Party! Don't miss a minute of the fun.

One Grand Prize winner will receive:

• A $500 gift certificate toward the cruise of their choice from Vacations To Go.


• The entire set of the Raleigh Harmon series.

To enter click one of the icons below. Then tell your friends. And enter soon - the giveaway ends on 4/1! The winner will be announced at Sibella’s Raleigh Harmon Book Club Party on FB April 5th, 2011! Don’t miss the fun – prizes, books and gab!

About the Facebook Party: Join Sibella and fans of the Raleigh Harmon series on April 5th at 5:00 pm PST (6 MST, 7 CST & 8 EST) for a Facebook Book Club Party. Sibella will be giving away some fun prizes, testing your trivia skills and hosting a book chat about the Raleigh Harmon books. Have questions you'd like to chat about - leave them on the Event page.

This review is part of the LitFuse Publicity Groups' blog tour, so you can read what other bloggers have to say about this book as well by clicking here.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book for review and a copy to give away to one reader. I did not receive any other compensation for this review. All opinions are 100% my own.

Book Tour: Lost Mission by Athol Dickson

First the scoop from the back cover.....about the book:
What haunting legacy awaits deep beneath the barrios and wealthy enclaves of Southern California?

A billionaire driven mad by grief.

A pastor in love with the wrong woman.

An illegal immigrant desperate to feed his family.

Only Lupe de la Garza can save them from the ancient evil lurking in a lost mission's ruins, but it will take an act of faith beyond all human power.

An idyllic Spanish mission collapses in the eighteenth century atop the supernatural evidence of a shocking crime. Twelve generations later the ground is opened up, the forgotten ruins are disturbed, and rich and poor alike confront the onslaught of resurging hell on earth. Caught up in the catastrophe are...
· A humble shopkeeper compelled to leave her tiny village deep in Mexico to preach in America
· A minister wracked with guilt for loving the wrong woman
· An unimaginably wealthy man, blinded to the consequences of his grand plans
· A devoted father and husband driven to a horrible discovery that changes everything

Will the evil that destroyed the Misión de Santa Dolores rise to overwhelm them? Or will they beat back the terrible desires that led to the mission's good Franciscan founder's standing in the midst of flames ignited by his enemies and friends alike more than two centuries ago?

From the high Sierra Madre mountains to the harsh Sonoran desert, from the privileged world of millionaire moguls to the impoverished immigrants who serve them, Athol Dickson once again weaves a gripping story of suspense that spans centuries and cultures to explore the abiding possibility of miracles.

About the author:
Athol Dickson is an award-winning author of several novels. His Christy Award-winning novel River Rising was name one of the "Top Ten Christian Novel of 2006" by Booklist magazine. He lives in California with his wife. Find out more about Athol and his books by visiting his website.

My thoughts:

I thought this was a very good read. It wasn't one of those books that I just couldn't put down until closer to the end, but I still thought it moved quickly and once I neared the end I couldn't read fast enough.

While it was a bit confusing at first, I quickly came to enjoy the way the author paralleled the historical with the modern by flipping from one era to the other within each chapter.

I also really loved the fact that it wasn't tied up all nice, neat, every question answered, in a cute little bow at the end. It certainly makes you think about witnessing to others, greed, the effects of mega churches, immigration, and numerous other issues.

After reading this novel I will definitely check out his other books!

A Contest:

Tweet this and be entered to win signed copies of Athol’s award winning books:

Tweet 4 words that describe Athol Dickson’s #LostMission along with this link: http://tr.im/BPD1

Or

Athol Dickson’s redemptive tale #LostMission is a MUST read! Gripping story about mistakes and miracles! http://tr.im/BPD1

(To be clear – to be entered into the contest your tweet must have these 2 elements 1. Athol Dickson’s #LostMission 2. this link: http://tr.im/BPD1).

Thank you, LitFuse, for providing a copy of LostMission for me to review. You can find other reviews of Lost Mission on the blog tour here.

Religion Saves: Book Review

After reading no non-fiction aside from child rearing books for nearly a year, I eagerly volunteered to read Mark Driscoll's latest book, Religion Saves and Nine Other Misconceptions. I was intrigued by the title and even more so by the concept behind the book. Based on Corinthians 1 and the series of questions that the Corinthians asked Paul, Driscoll set out to determine the most controversial questions among visitors to his church. To that end, Driscoll took a poll via his Mars Hill Church website and received 893 questions and over 300,000 votes to determine the top 9 questions people have regarding Christianity.

Driscoll gives tons of biblical quotes and lots of personal insights and thoughts on each of the following issues: birth control, humor, predestination, grace, sexual sin, faith and works, dating, the emerging church, and the regulative principle, after a brief introductory chapter debunking the idea that religion is what saves us.

While not the type of book I would probably have ever picked up on my own, it is full of convicting, encouraging, and even shocking information that could possibly be helpful to have around should someone ever come to me with any of these tough questions. Having read through it, I believe I'll eventually go online and watch the sermons that each of the chapters was based on. You can go *here* to read or listen to an excerpt from the book.

About the author from the website:

Mark Driscoll is the founding pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, one of the fastest-growing churches in America. He is president of the Acts 29 Church Planting Network and is the author of several books, including Vintage Jesus.

Pastor Mark preaches on Sunday, trains pastors, and writes curriculum. Mark is married to his high school sweetheart, Grace, and they enjoy raising their three sons and two daughters. More about Mark here!

Driscoll is both biblically sound and culturally relevant.... a difficult balance to manage.

The schedule for the blog tour is available *here* in case you'd like to read what others have to say about this book.

Mr. Random Says...

Commenter #3 penguinmom is our winner. Please email me at foursillysisters (at) gmail (dot) com by 5 pm Friday the 30th with your mailing address to claim your prize. Otherwise I will ask Mr. Random to pick again! Thanks for playing and enjoy reading National Security Mom.

National Security Mom Book Review and Giveaway

Before strep throat descended on our house, I was almost finished reading a fabulous book by Gina M. Bennett. Now that the meds have kicked in and I no longer feel like I am dying by strep throat, I was able to finish it tonight. Thank you to the folks at Mom Select and Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing for the opportunity to read, review, and give away a copy of National Security Mom.

I was intrigued by the title, and wondered really how interested I would be in anything regarding National Security. In fact, I only agreed to review so that I could have something new to discuss with my husband who is currently serving in Iraq.... he knows a thing or two about National security. On the other hand, I am someone who admittedly knows very little about current events, much less National Security and foreign policy. I can say that this book was incredibly easy to read and understand even for someone like me. I think it will appeal to all moms.

Here's the book's description from their website:

"How Do We Solve Our National Security Challenges? In the wake of the war on terrorism, it seems today’s parents are constantly bombarded with news of the latest threats and messages of fear. But how do we achieve national security or even protect our children when we feel so insecure?
National Security Mom, by 20-year veteran of the intelligence community and mother of five, Gina Bennett, answers this burning question through an insider perspective on national security and a unique “soft” approach to achieving it.National Security Mom examines how many of the age-old, practical lessons we teach our children, such as “clean up your mess,” “tell the truth” and “don’t give in to a bully,” apply to the covert intelligence approach to national security. Through these comparisons, Bennett empowers America’s parents to engage with confidence in the national security debate and reinforces the fact—true and lasting security is a nationwide effort that begins at home."

In her book, Bennett ultimately challenges us as parents to engage in action...whether just in the ways we teach our children at home or through the PTA, Home Owners Association, Mayor, City Council, etc, and teach our children to be good citizens thereby preparing them to be our nation's leaders.

The publishers have offered a hardcover copy of the book National Security Mom to one reader here. Just leave a comment by noon EST on Thursday January 29th on this post. Be sure I can reach you via email in case you are the winner. The book will ship out to the winner the first week of February. Good luck!