Monthly Bookshelf Review - October 2018

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October has been another very busy month for us, so I didn't get a lot of reading done. We arrived home from vacation the first week of October and had to jump right back into school, so there was quite a bit of catching up to do. I've had family visiting since about the middle of the month, so I made it a priority to spend time with them rather than with books. Here's what did happen in the world of my stack of books, and without the quotes from the books that I usually include. Hopefully I'll be back to my normal soon!

October's Books Completed and Reviewed

The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick - This is a post-apocalyptic novel for middle school in which a boy known as Spaz teams up with an elderly man, Ryter, and journeys through the hostile territory of rival gangs to reach his younger sister when she falls ill. (Read my full review HERE.)

Shelter of the Most High (Cities of Refuge) by Connilynn Cossette - Sofea is a survivor of a massacre brought to the refuge city of Kedesh. There she encounters the One God of the Hebrews, and Eitan, who is confined to that city because of a tragedy in his past. (Read my full review HERE.)



Disruptive Witness: Speaking Truth in a Distracted Age by Alan Noble - I just finished this yesterday (and need to get it back to the library because it's overdue! Eeks!) so the review is still to come. It's a deep and thought-provoking read.

During October I started reading:

The Picture of Dorian Gray (Dover Thrift Editions) by Oscar Wilde - I like to read a classic horror novel leading up to Halloween (my all-time favorite is Dracula, but Phantom of the Opera and Frankenstein are two others that I often turn to), and this year I picked something a little different. Dorian Gray is haunting and disturbing more than frightening. I should have started earlier - I've only just begun it and won't finish until well into November, I'm sure.

During October I shelved:

Condemn Me Not: Accused of Witchcraft by Heather B. Moore - I thought I would get this finished near the beginning of the month, but then all the crazy happened and I didn't get to it. (Didn't help that my Kindle kept dying!) I was far enough into it when I took a break that I definitely will finish though.

Coming Up in November!

Praise Habit: Finding God in Sunsets and Sushi (Experiencing God) by David Crowder - So much for starting this in October! I had very little time for reading, as it turns out. So I will try for November.

 

Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries by Kory Stamper - picked this up from the library a few days ago, and am hoping to get started on it very soon!

This post will be linked at:

5 Minutes For Books - What's On Your Nightstand? October 30
The Book Date - Reading Month In Review for October

©2008-2018 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Recent Reads - Shelter of the Most High

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Shelter of the Most High (Cities of Refuge) by Connilyn Cossette - Sofea and her cousin Prezi are exploring the sea caves around their island home of Sicily when they are captured by pirates. They discover that everyone in their village has been murdered, and they are taken prisoner. When they are able to escape, they wind up on a remote beach, injured and helpless. Sofea is still determined to anything to save her cousin, so when a small group of soldiers find them and appear to be wanting to help them, Sofea goes along, even though she doesn't understand their language and doesn't really trust them.

Eitan is a young man who has lived with his adoptive family in Kedesh, a Hebrew city of refuge, for most of his life. He chafes against the ruling of the high priest that keeps him and his mother Moriyah inside the city, even though the city walls protect them from the man still seeking their lives as vengeance. His father Darek and his army scouts bring home two young women in need of shelter, and Eitan is drawn to Sofea, despite the language barrier between them.

Sofea assumes that she and Prezi are to be slaves for the family, and that it's likely they will eventually be sacrificed to the local gods. To her amazement, she learns that they consider the two girls their guests and part of the family. As she learns the language, and learns to love and trust Eitan, he shares his secrets with her, and they plan to marry. But when the girls are taken from the city by someone they thought they could trust, they find themselves part of a murder plot. Eitan breaks the rules of the city of refuge to find them. Can he stop the plot and find both girls before the blood avenger claims his life?

This is the second book in the Cities of Refuge series, and does follow characters introduced in A Light on the Hill. Eitan was a young boy in that story, and Moriyah and Darek were the leads. Although this a sequel, it's not necessary to have read the first novel in order to enjoy this one. The story is told in chapters that alternate between Sofea's and Eitan's point of view and their perspectives. Through Sofea's eyes, we see the contrast between the honor, justice, and mercy of Hebrew worship of their God and the selfish and cruel practices of the pagan culture she came from. The historical setting is unique and a time period that isn't often featured (the period between the conquest of Canaan and the time of the judges), so I found the insight and context fascinating.

From the publisher:

The daughter of a pagan high priest, Sofea finds solace from her troubles in the freedom of the ocean. But when marauders attack her village on the island of Sicily, she and her cousin are taken across the sea to the shores of Canaan.

Eitan has lived in Kedesh, a city of refuge, for the last eleven years, haunted by a tragedy in his childhood, yet chafing at the boundaries placed on him. He is immediately captivated by Sofea, but revealing his most guarded secret could mean drawing her into the danger of his past.

As threats from the outside the walls loom and traitors are uncovered within, Sofea and Eitan are plunged into the midst of a murder plot. Can they uncover the betrayal in time to save their lives and the lives of those they love?

By the same author: A Light on the Hill, Wings of the Wind, Shadow of the Storm, Counted With the Stars

©2008-2018 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Scripture and a Snapshot - It Will Be Done

"Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

"Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them."

~Matthew 18:18-20~

Do we really believe that our prayers have power? Do we pray as if we believe it? Do we join with other believers and agree in prayer? Jesus tells us that if we pray in His name and in His will, we can move mountains and change the world. We can stand against the enemy of our souls and engage in the spiritual battle to protect others from attack as well. Hit your knees, put on the full armor of God every day, and stand firm with your brothers and sisters in Christ!

Thank you for joining Scripture & A Snapshot. Leave a link to your own post sharing a Scripture and a Snapshot. Take time to visit some of the other links and bless each other with comments.

(new grab button is coming soon!)

An InLinkz Link-up

I also link up at Sunday Scripture Blessings, hosted by Peabea Scribble Pad.

©2008-2018 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Teaser Tuesday/First Chapter First Paragraph - Shelter of the Most High

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Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Ambrosia at The Purple Booker. To play along, just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• Be careful not to include spoilers!
• Share the title and author, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers!

Not a slave.
The man whose name I now knew was Eitan had been adamant on that point. His family did not consider Prezi and me slave, but only guests in their family inn. The relief was overwhelming.

~Shelter of the Most High (Cities of Refuge) by Connilynn Cossette, page 84

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

First Chapter/First Paragraph/Tuesday Intros is a weekly link-up hosted by I'd Rather Be At The Beach. To participate, share the first paragraph (or two) of a book you're reading, or thinking about reading.

Sofea

Island of Sicily

1388 BC

The pulse of the sea pressed me forward, urging my body deeper into its embrace. I obeyed the nudge and kicked my legs, peering through water-rippled light at the hidden world inside this secret cave. Sea grass slithered along my skin, half-heartedly grasping at my ankles. I fluttered my toes as I cut through the water like an arrow flung from a bow, air bubbling from my nose with measure practiced over every one of my sixteen years.

Sensing that I had cleared the entrance, I allowed my body to float upward until my head broke the surface. The voice of the waters amplified and echoed within the surprisingly large enclosed area, a shush of constant sound at once soothing and exhilarating to one born of the sea. I can say I was born of the sea, for it was into this blue expanse I was delivered, with the clouds above to oversee my birth.

Here's the blurb:

The daughter of a pagan high priest, Sofea finds solace from her troubles in the freedom of the ocean. But when marauders attack her village on the island of Sicily, she and her cousin are taken across the sea to the shores of Canaan.

Eitan has lived in Kedesh, a City of Refuge, for the last eleven years, haunted by a tragedy in his childhood and chafing at the boundaries placed on him. He is immediately captivated by Sofea, but revealing his most guarded secret could mean drawing her into the danger of his past.

As threats from outside the walls loom and traitors are uncovered within, Sofea and Eitan are plunged into the midst of a murder plot. Will they break free from the shackles of the past in time to uncover the betrayal and save their lives and the lives of those they love?

What do you think? Would you continue reading?

©2008-2018 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

What I'm Reading - October 22, 2018

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This weekly reading list meme is hosted at Book Date. Join in to see what others are reading and maybe get some ideas of what to read next!

I finished reading . . . nothing finished this week - my parents are here visiting, and on the weekend my son and daughter-in-law and granddaughter were here too!

I'm currently reading . . .

Shelter of the Most High (Cities of Refuge) by Connilynn Cossette - Sofea is a foreigner in a Hebrew city of refuge, and is learning to trust the Hebrew God as she falls in love with Eitan and finds acceptance in his family.

Disruptive Witness: Speaking Truth in a Distracted Age by Alan Noble - should be finished this one this week, but I'm having to do quite a bit of skimming since it's a library book.




Next on the stack... 

Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries by Kory Stamper
Praise Habit: Finding God in Sunsets and Sushi (Experiencing God) by David Crowder



   

On my blogs recently . . .

Here on Just A Second:

Scripture and a Snapshot - Your Faithfulness

And on my homeschool blog, Homeschool Coffee Break:

Homeschool Highlights - The Week The Family Arrived
How Do You Keep Records and Calculate Grades?
Virtual Refrigerator - Amendment XIX
An Extraordinary Adventure on St. Bartholomew's Eve
A Florida Vacation PhotoJournal

What are you reading?

©2008-2018 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.