"The King's Feather" by Amy Earls

About this book:

  “Rescue Mom. Handle The Prophesied Power.
And Don’t Fall in Love.
Sure. No Problem at All.
    Pero Moshe’s mom vanished from their Oregon home, and the prophecy says it will happen to Pero, too. But when it does—and Pero is transported to an older universe, life gets more than a little nuts.
    Throw in a bodyguard who is almost criminally cute, a corrupt and brilliant doctor who wants to steal Pero’s power and rule all of Moon City, and her mom showing up as a pawn in the whole thing. And all Pero wants is to grab her mom and go home.
    But, uh, yeah, that’s not happening.
    In the end, Pero is forced to choose between forgiveness or escaping with those she loves before a shout crumbles Moon City’s walls to pieces. And both choices come at a cost she’s not sure she’s willing to pay.”


Series: Book #1 in the “Under His Wings” series. 


Spiritual Content- A quote by Joshua in the beginning (Joshua 6:16); A few Scriptures are quoted; Prayers; God is called God, Elohim, Yahweh, & Yeshua; The group of those who follow God are called “Lesaries” and the Bible is called “the Holy Words”; The city of Jericho is called “Moon City” and the events of the wall crashing down are prophesized and talked about (*Spoiler* the wall around the city falls towards the end *End of Spoiler*); Elohim talks to Pero and *Spoiler* comes to be with her in the flesh, talking to her and washing her feet, & heals someone else *End of Spoiler*; Many talks about Elohim, His plans, receiving power from Him, having faith, & forgiveness; 'H's are capital when referring to God; There are three people who are called the “chosen” and on their seventeenth birthday, they each received a gift (it’s said to be “like a power” that comes from Elohim) that has a special action (singing, dancing, & creating/growing trees) & have a special necklace; Pero and her mother are both one of the chosen; A man wants to be Elohim and use the chosen three as a channel to gain their powers; Pero doesn’t care about Elohim because He didn’t bring her mother back (*Spoiler* she quickly changes her tune about Him about because she won’t have to worry about control if she trusts Him and about halfway envisions herself giving Him her broken heart *End of Spoiler*); When Pero worships, she received visions of something that will happen; After trusting Elohim, Pero is able to fly; Many mentions of Elohim, prophecies, & visions; Mentions of prayers, praying, & blessings over food; Mentions of churches/church going (called a “sanctuary”), priests, & prayers and songs done there (Pero found it boring); 
             *Note: There are doors/portals that can lead others into another world/universe/planet and it’s called “magic” a few times as Elohim directs others to go and they “magically appear”; Origo is an older universe and sounds like Bible times in the way they live; Everyone has two different bodies, one on Earth and one on Origo (when they are at one or the other, the body in the other universe hides and if they die in one universe, they’re body can be taken to the other universe to live in that body); In a dark place, Pero is instructed to call out to Elohim as there are invisible creatures there (she says “demons aren’t real, are they?” and the other person answers that “maybe they are, but I think they’ll go away if Elohim’s here”; Pero is then able to sense the spiritual side); Lesaries are able to fly on eagles; Mentions of a healing ointment called a blessing; A mention of a magic wand (used as a reference, not an actual item); A mention of some believing a man has received power from the moon; A mention of a man being worshipped by a community; A mention of a man being called a devil; A mention of a place being called hell; A mention of someone going through hell; A mention of someone having a curse; A mention of someone looking like a Greek goddess; A mention of a goddess of wisdom and war.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a form of ‘blasted’, a ‘crudmuffins!’, a ‘dang it’, a ‘dang you’, a ‘darn it’, a ‘great shimpers!’, a ‘idiot’, an ‘oh my word’, two ‘gosh’s, two ‘heck’s, two ‘shut up’s, three ‘dumb’s, and five ‘stupid’s; A possible derogatory name is cut off; Sarcasm, Sass, & Eye rolling; Pero talks back to her parents & other authority figures; A few mentions of curses (said, not written); Seeing a dead body (up to semi-detailed); Being attacked, Fighting, Pain, & Injuries (up to semi-detailed); Being held at gunpoint and knifepoint, threatened, & seeing someone shot (x4, with an arrow and guns, up to semi-detailed); Pero saw her mother abducted & has had nightmares of the event and her screams ever since;  Pero is given a sedative/drug and drinks it; Pero is tempted to steal something, but does not because Elohim is watching; Many mentions of deaths, murders, bodies, violence, battles, fighting, injuries, pain, blood/bleeding, & passing out (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of the possibility of being killed & a plan to kill someone; Mentions of slaves, slavery, & experimentations on slaves (including being able to bring them back to life by eating a special plant if they die); Mentions of torture & beatings; Mentions of being held at gunpoint & threatened; Mentions of abductions & kidnappers; Mentions of nightmares; Mentions of grieving (for a mother, a father, a wife, & parents); Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of alcohol, drunks, drinking, & underage drinking; A few mentions of stalkers; A few mentions of being drugged; A few mentions of betting & bets; A few mentions of hatred; A few mentions of throwing up; A couple mentions of a man killing many children; A couple mentions of rumors; A mention of a burglar; A mention of night clubs; A few mentions of jealousy; 
             *Note: *Spoiler* About 2/3s through, Pero finds out she was adopted when her mother found her left in a tree; Pero wonders about her birth parents and thinks that the father who has raised her is not her dad and if he’ll still want her *End of Spoiler*; A few mentions of brand names (Gatorade, Barbie, & Disney); A mention of horror movies with creepy creatures; A mention of a bachelorette show.
 
 
Sexual Content- A hand kiss and a semi-detailed kiss; Recalling a kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to kiss; Touches, Embraces, Hand holding, Warmth, Nearness, Butterflies, & Smelling (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to touch & embrace (barely-above-not-detailed); Noticing & Staring (including muscles, barely-above-not-detailed); A ‘sexy’; *Spoiler* About halfway through, one of Pero’s love interests is thought to possibly be her half-brother and she’s very embarrassed about her feelings towards him, but it’s revealed closer to the end that she was adopted, so she’s confused on her feelings and if that means they can be together then. He proposes, but she’s not ready for that. She thinks that she’s drawn to him, but cannot love him *End of Spoiler*; It’s implied that Pero’s mother has been a concubine for a man while being held captive by him (including it being said that he took advantage of her and one man referring to her as one of the other man’s many girlfriends); Mentions of kisses, kissing, & touches; Mentions of flirting & blushes; Mentions of boyfriends; A few mentions of jealousy; A few mentions of crushes; A mention of swooning over a handsome older guy; Love, thinking about love, attraction, & the emotions;
             *Note: Both Pero’s love interests are in their mid-20s; A group of drunks tell Pero to take off her clothing (she does not nor is she in a dangerous situation because of them); A few mentions of a man being too old for Pero (she finds it gross when he calls her stunning); A couple mentions of a line of guys asking for Pero’s number; A mention of Pero wondering if she’s fallen for a guy like in a book where “the girl falls in love from a wolf-man’s psychedelic eye power? Or was [she] responding to something else in him?”; A mention of some guards making crude comments about women and fighting over them; A mention of a man kneeing another man in the groin; In the author’s note, she mentions about a prostitute from the Bible and a character being based off of her. 
 
-Pero Moshe, age 17
                                1^st person P.O.V. of Pero 
                                                   280 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

{ Add up to a full star for Older High School Teens who enjoy Allegories. }

This was a very interesting and different book (that has a great cover, by the way). 

I think it’s important before going into my final thoughts to know that I’m not a big allegory fan…I prefer things and plots of books to be straight up said, rather than have a hidden meaning behind the words. (It should be no shock to learn that I’m not a poetry fan either because of this.)

I would be really curious if someone who is a big fantasy or allegory fan read this book and their opinion on it. I don’t do high fantasy (extremely fantasy fantasy) books so it’s possible all of my lack of understanding is mostly my fault, but I still wished a lot of things were explained more to make it easier on those like me who has a brain that isn’t wired for such themes.

Here’s the thing, this book was well written. How things happened and the dialogue were good. I just wish events and how the worlds work could have been explained more. I struggled with caring about characters that we only knew for a little bit of time, not being sure the motives of others, how things are and people are connected, and points like that. There’s many worlds (?) but I honestly don’t understand really any of it—I’ve tried to do my best in the content sections to explain what I can. We’re pretty thrown into the plot in the first chapter, trying to figure things out, what’s going on, and learning new words. I wish there had been a bit more build-up, personally, in the first couple of chapters to have groundwork done before the main plot kicks in. 

Pero can be rebellious, but I’m not sure if that’s her personality or the stress of the current events, because it happens at the beginning and there’s no work up to the events that will apparently take place on her birthday. She was too quick to like someone then switch to another guy. But one corner of the love triangle is handled in a way I wasn’t expecting and can’t say I liked how it went down (*Spoiler* He is apparently her half-brother? Even a cousin would be Ick, but the potential relation is just weird. She’s embarrassed about her feelings for him. But shortly later, he’s back to being a potential love interest when Pero finds out she’s adopted and he’s excited that they means they can be together. Personally, I’m very uncomfortable with that either way. *End of Spoiler*)

I think this book has great potential, but I do think the worlds and how everything is connected could have been explained and fleshed out better.

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Author for this honest review.

"Wedding at Sea" by Melissa Tagg

About this book:

  “Lilian doesn’t remember anything about her life before the day Maggie Muir found her on her front porch—a toddler, abandoned and alone. And maybe that’s okay. She has a beautiful life at Muir Farm, including an adopted family she adores and a successful career as a lawyer. But she also has a secret . . . one that raises just as many questions about her future as it does her unknown past.
    And, of course, it would be private investigator Wilder Monroe, her brother’s best friend and the bane of her existence, who sniffs out her secret before anyone else.
   Wilder has spent the past three years trying to close the one case his father couldn’t—the mystery of Maggie Muir’s long-lost granddaughter. But the decades-long search has become more tangled than ever. It’s become more personal, too. Not only are the Muirs the closest thing to family he has left, but if he can solve this mystery, maybe he'll keep himself from drowning in the one he can’t . . . the truth about his father’s death.
    In the midst of secrets and swirling questions, Maggie asks a favor of both Lilian and put aside their bickering and work together to plan her summer wedding. It’s a big ask, made all the more difficult when danger comes calling at Muir Farm. But if the two enemies can stand each other long enough to pull off the event of the year, they just might solve a mystery in the process.
    And the biggest discovery of all? That sometimes the one your heart longs for is the last person you ever would've expected.”


Series: Book #3 in the “Muir Harbor” series. Reviews of Book #1 Here! and Book #2 Here!


Spiritual Content- Prayers; Talks about God, trusting Him, & living your calling; 'H's are capital when referring to God; Wilder hasn’t prayed much since his father passed away & struggles with trusting God since He could have prevented his father’s death; Wilder is mad at God for different loved ones’ deaths and when he says that he doesn’t know how he can trust God, Neil tells him to keep asking questions and that God isn’t going anywhere (*Spoiler* Shortly after that conversation, Wilder feels calmer and holds on to his Heavenly Father  *End of Spoiler*); Mentions of God, Jesus, trusting Him; Mentions of prayers & praying; Mentions of churches, chapels, church going, pastors, sermons/lessons, & a Sunday school class; A few mentions of a cross at churches/chapels; A mention of miracles; A mention of Christian goodwill; 
             *Note: The phrase “Lord” and “Oh Lord” is said at the beginning at a handful of sentences (could be taken as talking to the Lord or in vain); The phrase “for the love of all that was good and holy” is said; A mention of young boys breaking into a church to go hot tubbing in the baptistry; A mention of hell breaking loose; A mention of Mother Nature.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘crap’, a ‘heck’, a ‘holy blazes’, an ‘oh my gosh’, a ‘suck’, a ‘ticked’, an uunfinished ‘what the—‘, two ‘blasted’s, two ‘darn it’s, two ‘what the heck’s, three ‘gosh’s, three ‘sheesh’s, three ‘shoot’s, four ‘darn’s, four ‘dumb’s, five ‘oh my word’s, ten forms of ‘idiot’, twelve forms of ‘stupid’; The phrase “no chance in—” is cut off; Sarcasm & Eye rolling; Being held at gunpoint, being shot, pain, passing out, injuries, & blood/bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Falling into the water (up to semi-detailed); Recalling an almost murder & seeing someone throw themselves off of a cliff (up to semi-detailed); Wilder drinks a bit of spiked punch (on purpose) & Lilian has a sip of champagne; Many mentions of the deaths of loved ones & grief (for a father, a lover, a daughter, for a wife); Many mentions of a car accident & deaths (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of deaths, gunshots, being held at gunpoint, passing out, injuries, & blood/bleeding; Mentions of an attempted murder (Book #2), someone throwing themself off a cliff, & that person being in a coma; Mentions of crimes, criminals, thieves, stealing, stolen items, break-ins, arrets, & prison; Mentions of a stalker; Mentions of a seventeen-year-old running away from home; Mentions of when Wilder got drunk and hungover after his father passed away, going to the liquor store for the first and only time, drinking, & alcohol; Mentions of spiked punch & Wilder drinking a bit (on purpose) before dumping it (to avoid the anniversary of a hard day); Mentions of divorces & husbands leaving their wives; A few mentions of a place crash & death; A few mentions of kidnappings; A few mentions of almost drowning; A few mentions of vandalism; A few mentions of lies, lying, & liars; A few mentions of hatred; A few mentions of jealousy; A few mentions of an alcoholic; A couple mentions of gossip; A mention of a war; A mention of gambling; A mention of cigarettes; A mention of the death of an athlete’s dream; 
             *Note: Wilder was the one who found his father after he passed (border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Wilder has a hard time walking into the church his father’s funeral was at (comes across almost like PTSD) & recalls his father’s funeral and open coffin (up to semi-detailed); Lilian was left on Maggie’s porch as a toddler and has always wondered about her biological family, but has tried not to think about it; *Spoiler* Wilder feels guilt from his mother choosing to carry him instead of getting cancer treatments (she passed when his was a newborn); Wilder wonders if his father mixed up his medicine on purpose, which caused to his death and feels guilt for not being there (His father left him a letter which Wilder originally read as a goodbye letter, *Another Spoiler* but later rereads it and realizes that his father was just tired, not suicidal) *End of Spoiler*; Mentions of breast cancer, leukemia (including deaths from both), MS, symptoms, & MRIs; Mentions of car brands; Mentions of brand names (Nike, Levi’s, Tupperware, Mead Five Star notebooks, Slim Jims, Bagel Bites, Pepto-Bismol, & Coca-Cola); Mentions of social media & websites (Google, WebMD, Airbnb, & Facebook); Mentions of TV shows, movies, & celebrities (Matlock, I Dream of Jeannie, Bewitched, Alfred Hitchcock, Marilyn Monroe, Edith Head, Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn, & Elizabeth Taylor); A few mentions of fictional characters; A mention of acting like a zombie; 
 
 
Sexual Content- A fingers-to-lips touch, a palm kiss, five cheek kisses, two chin/jaw kisses, a hair kiss, an almost (semi-detailed) kiss, three not-detailed kisses, a barely-above-not-detailed kiss, two semi-detailed kisses, and two detailed kisses; Wanting to kiss/be kissed (up to semi-detailed); Recalling kisses, almost kisses, touches, & embraces (up to semi-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Hand holding, Warmth, Shivers, Smelling, & Nearness (up to semi-detailed); Flirting, Blushes, & Winks; Noticing & Staring (up to semi-detailed); Lilian wakes up in Wilder’s bed with him (accidentally, all they do is cuddle while asleep, he’s shirtless and she checks to make sure she’s wearing clothes, Wilder teases her about doing things out of order and getting into bed with him, up to semi-detailed); Wilder pulls Lilian into his lap (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a married man having an under-age mistress & him leaving his wife for her (he says he loved the mistress and was obsessed and possessive towards her (not letting her leave his house and she felt trapped); Both the wife and mistress were pregnant around the same time); Mentions of children born out of wedlock or affairs & a mother keeping the father of her child a secret; Mentions of Lilian & Wilder being alone together on his houseboat & how people would talk if they saw; Mentions of kisses, kissing, & almost kisses (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of boyfriends/girlfriends, dating, & dates; A few mentions of flirting & blushes; A couple mentions of Wilder’s desire & yearning for Lilian; A mention of a newly married couple sleeping in and Wilder not wanting to continue that conversation about what they were doing (it’s corrected that they had breakfast in bed); A mention of a secret lover; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: A few mentions of teasing mentions of a wedding night & the husband going to have a time with the button’s on his bride’s dress; A few mentions of a shirtless guy & his abs (barely-above-not-detailed); A few mentions of curves & figures (barely-above-not-detailed); A couple mentions of a knocked-up cat; A couple mentions of a guy manhandling a girl; A couple teasing mentions that a couple would have cute babies; A mention of a figuring out a couple is having a honeymoon baby; A mention of hoping a guy is not wearing just a towel.
 
-Lilian Muir, age 30
-Wilder Monroe
                                P.O.V. switches between them 
                                           Set in 2019 (Epilogue in 2023)
                                                        396 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

I’ve been so excited to read Lil and Wilder’s story since they first appeared in “Autumn by the Sea”. I’ve been eagerly anticipating this book for months and I’ve read it now. I’m honestly quite sad that this series is over now. I’ll still hope that Mariana (Lilian’s assistant) will get her own story because I feel like she deserves her own story (just please not a second chance romance!), but for now, this series is done. 

Here’s the thing about this trilogy: it’s not just all roses and sunshine and cute romance—I mean, it has those squee-worthy parts, yes, but there’s also a depth within the books because of what the characters have gone through that make them feel so real and also the mystery that’s carried on through all three books which adds in some suspenseful moments at times. 

I think that’s the thing that’s made this series stand out to me: the almost life-like characters with their struggles. If you told me there was a Muir family in Maine with Maggie, Neil, Liliana, and Indie that this series is based on, I wouldn’t doubt it—that’s how realistic it felt. I felt like I was reading about real people and that even though this book ended (with that perfect epilogue, by the way), it feels like they’re still around just living their own lives, Sydney and Neil being adorable, Indie and Philip being literally the cutest, Lil and Wilder driving the other crazy, and Maggie sharing wisdom. I love that feeling. It makes my heart happy—and yes, partially because that means the author could revisit those characters again at any time (hint hint 😉). 

The one thing I didn’t like in this story was that past events and secrets were kept by the main characters, teasing and taunting the reader with hints about them, but not giving us all the details about everything until the very end. Which I know this trilogy technically has a mystery, but I don’t like being left out of the loop, so those parts kind of bothered me a lot with our main couple and their secrets. Sure, sure, keep secrets from the other, I don’t really care since you’re not a couple yet, but tell me—the reader! I want to know! (Me? Nosy? Yes.)

Oh, I’m sad this trilogy is done. But it was such a good series and such a good ending, I can’t be upset. All I can do is happily sigh. 😌

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Author for this honest review.

"Every Dog Has His Day" by Janice Thompson

About this book:

  “A Large Reward Is Offered for a Missing Dog
    Kick back with your faithful companion and relax with a small-town mystery in book 5 of the Gone to the Dogs series.
    Lone Star groomer, Triniti Nelson, adopts a feisty rescued dachshund, and the two are inseparable. . .until Texans quarterback, Corey Wallis, announces a large reward for his missing female dachshund. Suddenly all of Houston are on the lookout for the MIA pooch that bares a strong resemblance to Triniti’s new pup. Triniti contacts Corey, but soon Ginger goes missing and Triniti is convinced Corey and his agent took her for a publicity stunt. Then there is a reporter who could be trying to manufacture a great story or a cameraman seeking the big reward. Can there be a happy ending for Ginger?”


Series: Book #5 in the “Gone to the Dogs Mystery” series. Can be read as stand-alones, but would be most enjoyed if read in order. Reviews of Book #1 Here!, Book #2 Here!, Book #3 Here!, and Book #4 Here!

Spiritual Content- Prayers; Talks about God; 'H's are capital when referring to God; Mentions of God & His timing; Mentions of prayers, praying, & prayer chains (including praying for animals); Mentions of churches, church going, pastors/reverends, services, sermons, & worship; Mentions of a ministry, ministry events, & outreaches; Mentions of blessings & being Blessed; A few mentions of those & events in the Bible; A couple mentions of godsends; A couple mentions of angels; A mention of a miracle; A mention of a testimony; A mention of Isabel not having strong ties to her Catholic upbringing; A mention of someone lighting a candle when praying at church; A mention of someone looking like they have a “saintly glow”; A mention of a convent; 
             *Note: A couple mentions of a cat being “demon-possessed”. 
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: an ‘idiot’, a ‘gosh’, an ‘oh my gosh’, two ‘duh’s, two forms of ‘stupid’, and four forms of ‘oh my stars’; A mention of someone working “their tail off”; A little bit of sarcasm & eye rolling; Mentions of the deaths of loved ones and beloved pets & grieving (for a mom, a grandmother, for a wife, for pets; including one from breast cancer); Mentions of injuries; Mentions of stealing, a stolen dog, a thief, & a dog being kidnapped; Mentions of warrants, arrests, jail, offering to put a hit on someone, & probation; Mentions of drinking, drugs, & someone getting sober (Isabel’s ex-boyfriend); Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; A few mentions of a fire & it possibly being burned down by the owner on purpose; A few mentions of the possibility of a dog being hit by a car; A few mentions of dogs being injured; A couple mentions of jealousy; A mention of a possibly abusive dog thief; A mention of a hoarding case (of dogs); A mention of an online scam; A mention of a man going to bars and causing scuffles; A mention of gossip; A mention of vomiting; 
             *Note: Mentions of Isabel’s ex-boyfriend being the narcissistic abusive type & threatening her when they were dating (she has forgiven him for all of that but will not date him again); Mentions of a man leaving his wife and children (leaving them to fend for themselves and doesn’t pay child support, called a “deadbeat dad” by a few others); Mentions of someone lying about being a veteran; Mentions of sports teams; Mentions of brand names (Dr Pepper & Blue Bell Ice Cream); Mentions of stores and fast food chains (Walmart, Goodwill, Burger King, Taco Bell, & McDonald’s); Mentions of car brands; A few mentions of plays in school (Brigadoon & Macbeth); A couple mentions of Girl Scouts; A couple mentions of FaceTime; A mention of a band & a song (Bee Gees & ‘Who Let the Dogs Out’); A mention of a young woman’s father not being in her life. 
 
 
Sexual Content- A nose kiss, a not-detailed kiss, and two border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed kisses; Touches, Embraces, Dancing, & Tingles (barely-above-not-detailed); Blushes; Noticing (barely-above-not-detailed); A couple men are called “hunky” a few times; Mentions of boyfriends/girlfriends, dates, dating, exes, & break-ups; Mentions of crushes, blushes, & flirting; A handful of mentions of seeing married and engaged couples kiss and embrace; A few mentions of an engaged couple being very blushy and embarrassed when the topic of their future kids come up; A few mentions of a woman stealing another’s man; A couple mentions of sexual harassment and being hit on in the workplace; A couple mentions of kissing; A couple mentions of women swooning over a handsome man; A mention of a teenager getting a girl pregnant and them getting married after the baby was born; A mention of a man cheating on his wife; Some love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: A mention of a granddaughter sharing a hotel room with her elderly newlywed grandparents and it being awkward; A teasing mention of Isabel’s parents saying that she’s an only child because “they kept at it until they achieved perfection”.
 
-Isabel “Izzy” Fuentes
                                  1^st person P.O.V. of Isabel 
                                                        251 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens-

My personal Rating- 

Let’s make something clear: I don’t like football. Not even a little bit.
But you know what I love? 
Janice Thompson’s books. 

There’s just something about them—especially this series—that just makes my heart sing with joy. I was giggling out loud many times. The Texas charm and Texas pride makes my Texan roots beam. I love this friend group soooo much. I just want to wiggle my way in, they’re so much fun and truly care for the rest of the group. 

I’ve said it before, you know I’m enjoying a mystery or suspense book when I’m not trying to figure out who did it—I’m too busy enjoying the story and characters and will figure it out when they figure it out. That was completely how I was with this book because I was just happy to see this friend group again and see the couple from the first book’s wedding (!!). I nearly cried happy tears with everyone at the wedding because it was just so sweet to see it and feel like I was apart of it.  

The romance and the faith content was light, but it worked well for the plot and just the natural-everyday-normal that this series has been highlighting so well. I honestly adore it a lot (if that wasn’t obvious). 

Oh, what more to say? While I’m super excited for the next book in the series, I’m also super sad that it will be the last book in the series, because if it wasn’t clear enough, I love these characters and friend group so much. This book almost feels like the final book for these characters, though, as the next book is about characters we haven’t met before. Maybe that’s a reason I cried at the end of this book, because it felt like a bittersweet goodbye. Readers who have loved a series like this will know this feeling, I’m sure! 
 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Publisher (Barbour) for this honest review.

 

"Safe All Along" by Katie Davis Majors

About this book:

  “As a missionary, wife, and mom of fifteen, Katie Davis Majors knows how hard it can be to receive God’s peace instead of giving in to fear and worry. Family emergencies, unexpected life-shifting events, and the busy rhythms of family life have at times left her reeling. 
   In Safe All Along, Katie offers reflections and stories from around the world and from her own kitchen table about her personal journey toward living from a place of surrendered trust. Every chapter leads us deep into Scripture as we learn what it looks like to break free from anxiety and take hold of peace.
   Rich in biblical explorations of lament and praise, forgiveness and hope, service and surrender, Safe All Along asks, What practical choices can we make to experience the peace Jesus promised amid disappointment and uncertainty? How can we live with joy and confidence even when we’re pulled into the rapids of life?
   Our God has promised us a peace that transcends all understanding. And we can accept His promise, trusting that in Him we are safe all along.”


Series: A non-fiction book. 


Spiritual Content- Each chapter starts with a Scripture and has many Scriptures referenced, quoted, and/or discussed within the chapter; About half of the nineteen chapters end with prayers; All about God, Jesus, trusting Him, knowing Him, making time for Him, being honest with God, anxiety, peace, & laments; 'H's are capital when referring to God (unless the Bible version quoted does not); All about many mentions of those & events in the Bible, books of the Bible, Bible reading, & Bible studies; Mentions of prayers, praying, praising, & worshiping; Mentions of Heaven; Mentions of churches, church going, pastors, & church events; Mentions of hymns & worship songs; Mentions of missionaries, missions, ministries, & service; Mentions of blessings, being Blessed, & miracles; Mentions of sins; A couple mentions of youth groups & Sunday school classes; 
             *Note: Mentions of the enemy’s lies; Mentions of idols (anything that turns our eyes from Jesus) & fake god statues; Mentions of Christian pastors & speakers (Curt Thompson, J. I. Packer, John Piper, Robert Murray M’Cheyne, Jim Elliot, & C. S. Lewis); A handful of mentions of contemporary Christian authors (Tara Leigh Cobble, Morgan Harper Nichols, Ann Voskamp, & Dr. Bryan Loritts).
 

Negative Content- Recalling almost drowning & the fear of it (from the author’s perspective, including it almost happening to her daughter as well, up to semi-detailed); Mentions of deaths of loved ones & grief; Mentions of crimes, violence, cattle raiders, being shot and killed by them, gunshots, & stolen cows and items; Mentions of arrests, beatings, torture, being stoned to death, jail, slavery, & slaves (in the Bible); Mentions of threats (in the Bible); Mentions of homelessness; Mentions of lies; A few mentions of injuries & pain; A few mentions of addiction; A couple mentions of abusive or toxic relationships; A couple mentions of animal sacrifice (in the Bible); A couple mentions of wine (one being a mention from the Bible); A mention of the possibility of finding a loved one’s body; A mention of war; A mention of bomb shelters; A mention of racism; A mention of jealousy; A mention of eye rolling; 
             *Note: Mentions of anxiety, depression, other mental illnesses, seeing a therapist, & taking medication (the author shares “I also want to acknowledge that you may be dealing with a clinical anxiety disorder, depression, or some other real, chemical mental illness. This is not the same thing as worry. There is a difference between situational anxiety or nervousness about the future and a true chemical disorder.” And “If you are struggling in a similar way, I am so sorry. I see you. This is not your fault, and it does not make you less faithful. There is no shame in seeking the help you need through therapy or medication or both. As I venture to share some things God has used to help me with my own battle with anxiety, I would never want to suggest that simply thinking differently or forming new habits will be a “fix-all.” He sends “fishermen” to help us on our journey, and therapists have often been mine.”); Mentions of social media & technology (iPhones, FaceTime, Siri, Google Maps, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, Airbnb, & Netflix); A few mentions of stories (Kroger, Target, & Tractor Supply); A few mentions of brand names (Lego); A couple mentions of Helen Keller.
 
 
Sexual Content- A couple mentions of affairs and marriage struggles; A mention of pornography; 
             *Note: A couple mentions of miscarriages & infertility; A couple mentions of nursing. 
 
-Katie Davis Majors
                                Non-Fiction 
                                                        272 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

Non-fiction books have always been hard for me to review—especially with ones like “Safe All Along” which hit so many cords in myself as I read it. There were so many parts I related to and honestly can’t put into words how I felt. Hence why non-fiction books are hard to review. I’d love to leave it just as “It was great. Related to about 80% of what the author was saying. Easy 4 stars.” But I suppose I ought to write a little bit more than that. 

I think my only real negative is that when most of the Scriptures are mentioned or quoted, the actual reference is marked as a footnote and they are all listed in the very back of the book. I would have preferred to have them right then and there within the actual Scripture and what Katie was sharing, personally. 

I’m touched by this book and heartened in a lot of ways, thanks to the author sharing her personal thoughts and struggles—but yet always pointing back to Christ and your relationship with Him. I love that and really enjoyed this book. 

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Publisher (Multnomah) for this honest review.