Recent Reads {The Blessed}

 

The Blessed (A Novel of the Gifted) by Lisa T. Bergren - In the final installment of this epic story of the Gifted, the group comes to Provence in France and comes under the protection of a powerful noble family there as they await an audience with the Pope in Avignon.  Meanwhile, the enemy forces, led by Lord Amidei, are strengthening their position and making their own alliances.  Very soon after their arrival in Provence, the Gifted find themselves with opportunities to use their gifts for God's glory, by miraculous healing and by preaching the Gospel to nobles and commoners in the area.  Sir Gianni and Lady Daria are finally wed, but their happiness and safety continues to be threatened by the powerful Lord Amidei, seeking vengeance and greater power and control.  He even gains influence with some of the Cardinals and hopes to control the Pope himself.   Cardinal Boeri has declared himself an ally and supporter of the Gifted, but can he be trusted?  The Gifted are still seeking the last member of their group, a prophetess, and are hoping to reunite with Hasani if he is still alive.  When all are together, they must continue to follow where God directs them, trusting Him in the face of great danger.  This powerful conclusion to the trilogy is full of suspense and action that kept me eagerly turning pages.  Bergren weaves a great story, full of drama and surprises, combining authentic history with compelling fiction.  And she does it in a way that doesn't compromise on the Gospel or demean the Church.  I highly recommend this series to readers who enjoy historical fiction of all kinds, as it includes suspense and mystery, and a little bit of romance as well.

By the same author: The Begotten, The Betrayed

Recent Reads {The Betrayed}

The Betrayed by Lisa T. Bergren - This is the second novel in Bergren's trilogy, and continues the adventures of the group of fourteenth century Christians known as The Gifted.  In the first novel, The Begotten, the group was brought together by circumstances and a portion of a mysterious illuminated letter from centuries earlier.  Each has a remarkable spiritual gift, and together they are learning to use their gifts for God's glory and to work together as a Body to discover God's calling for them, while facing the opposition of a dangerous enemy.  As The Betrayed opens, the band of believers is fleeing to Venezia where they hope to find more clues about their purpose, and the villain Lord Amidei and his allies are in pursuit with the goal of destroying the Gifted completely.  Many adventures await in Venezia, and the Gifted find some trusted friends and another of their number, all the while trying to discern what God is leading them to do, and keep each other safe from the enemy's increasingly vicious attacks.  They face some very difficult trials and great danger, and the suspense and drama of this compelling historical novel kept me on the edge of my seat.

By the same author:  The Begotten

Recent Reads {Tears of Pearl}

Tears of Pearl by Tasha Alexander - I'm finding the Lady Emily novels very enjoyable, and rather hard to put down once I've started!  They are generally a quick read as well.  This is the fourth in the series, and opens with newlyweds Lady Emily and Colin Hargreaves on their wedding trip.  They are looking forward to a relaxing and exotic honeymoon in Constantinople, but on their first night there one of the harem girls is found murdered.  It turns out the girl is the daughter of one of the British diplomats and had been kidnapped many years earlier.  Emily and Colin launch an investigation to find her killer, with Emily given access to the mysterious world of the seraglio so she can question the sultan's concubines and eunuchs.  The answers aren't easy to find, especially as new twists and turns - and more victims - keep bringing new questions into the investigation.  Emily's friend Margaret comes to Constantinople as well, and assists Emily with her investigation while providing the comfort and support of a trusted friend as Emily deals with some very personal questions and fears as well.  In this mystery, I had my eye on the suspect much earlier than in the previous installments, but was kept wondering how everything fit together and how Emily would find the solution and capture the killer.  Another winner in the series!

By the same author: And Only to Deceive,  A Poisoned Season, A Fatal Waltz

Recent Reads {A Fatal Waltz}

 

A Fatal Waltz by Tasha Alexander - in the third novel of suspense featuring Lady Emily Ashton, she and Colin Hargreaves attend a house party at the estate of a powerful member of the British government.  Lady Emily expects the event to be uncomfortable and tedious, as she despises the powerful Lord Fortescue, and attends only as a favour to her best friend Ivy, whose husband is a protege of Lord Fortescue.  It certainly is uncomfortable - one of the other guests is Kristiana von Lange, an Austrian countess who has a past relationship with Colin.  But the party is not tedious.  Lord Fortescue is found murdered and Ivy's husband is arrested and charged with the crime.  Lady Emily is determined to clear his name, and her investigation takes her to Vienna.  There she must continue to deal with the countess and her husband, and she matches wits with an anarchist, all in a race to find the real murderer before Ivy's husband stands trial.  In the end, Lady Emily must also trust the countess for Colin's safety as well.  An intriguing murder mystery and lovely romance all in one!

By the same author: And Only to Deceive,  A Poisoned Season

Recent Reads {The Skin Map}

The Skin Map by Stephen R. Lawhead - Most years, when I get birthday money, I spend at least part of it on books.  This year I purchased my own copies of The Skin Map and The Bone House with birthday money.  I had read The Skin Map very shortly after it was first published, but now that I had the second book in the series to read, I thought it would probably be a good idea to refresh my memory of the first.  I enjoyed it every bit as much the second time through, but then again, Lawhead is one of my favorite authors and I never seem to get tired of reading his work.

The Bright Empires series is an intriguing combination of science fiction, suspense thriller, and historical novel.  Kit Livingstone lives a rather dull existence in a dead-end job and a lackluster romance, but all that changes when he unexpectedly meets with his great-grandfather and is introduced to the adventures of ley line travel.  Kit tries to show his skeptical girlfriend Mina what happened, but they become separated - she finds herself in Bavaria of long ago, while Kit returns to the London of the 17th century where he had been with his great-grandfather.  And so begins their quest to find Mina in whatever alternate universe she has landed in, while eluding the bad guys in the race to find the skin map.  At the same time, Mina is adjusting to the surprising changes in her circumstance and making the best of things.

My comments from my first read of The Skin Map.

By the same author:  The Pendragon Cycle: Taliesin, Merlin, Arthur, Pendragon, and Grail;  Patrick.

Recent Reads {A Poisoned Season}

A Poisoned Season by Tasha Alexander - This is the follow-up to And Only to Deceive, and follows  the adventures of Lady Emily Ashton as she finds herself involved in another investigation.  Emily is being very choosy about the invitations she accepts as the London season gets under way, and soon finds herself gaining attention of a man claiming to be the heir to the French throne - attention she does not want!  She has a rather low opinion of Mr Berry, and is skeptical of his claim that he is the decendent of the dauphin who escaped the French Revolution.  At the same time, jewelry and other valuable items that once belonged to Marie Antoinette are being stolen from London homes by a clever cat burglar.  And Emily finds that she has a mysterious secret admirer.  Are there connections? Emily sets out to find out, and the urgency intensifies when a young man of her acquaintance is found murdered after he reports that a valuable diamond of Marie Antoinette's was stolen from him.  While navigating the social scene and dealing with gossip about her own character, Emily continues to pursue the investigation with valuable help from Colin Hargreaves.  And Colin is pursuing Emily with clear intent to marrying her.  By the end of this clever novel of intrigue and suspense, Emily identifies her admirer, unmasks a murderer, finds the truth about the dauphin's descendents, and makes a decision about marrying again.

By the same author:  And Only to Deceive

Recent Reads{The Begotten}

The Begotten by Lisa T. Bergren - This book was recommended to me by a friend at least two years ago, and has been on my to-read list ever since.  I finally got around to reading it this past week, and I'm so glad I did!  This is historical fiction that deals with the Church of the middle ages and spiritual gifts and calling.  The setting is fourteenth century Italy, and the main characters are a noblewoman with the gift of healing, an unusual priest with the gift of wisdom, and a knight of the Church with the gift of faith.  They are brought together by divine circumstances with an ancient prophetic writing and its illumination that challenges them and encourages them to use their gifts as God directs them and to trust Him alone.  The story is definitely a page-turner, something of a mystery and a thriller, because these main characters are being pursued by a powerful enemy that they don't identify until very late in the book, and there is danger and intrigue all around.  I found it to be inspirational as well as entertaining.

Although I do wish my friend had told me it's the first part of a trilogy! Now I have to track down the next two in the series so I can find out what happens next!