Monthly Bookshelf Review - January 2022

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Well, what can I say, except that January really did not turn out as I'd expected and I didn't get much reading done. It seems like something comes up to interrupt my reading goals every month, doesn't it?

January's Books Completed and Reviewed

Atomic Habits by James Clear - very detailed, practical guide to taking charge of your habits and changing the way you live. I will have the review up soon and will update here when I do! (Read my full review HERE)

High-Wire Heartbreak by Anna Schmidt - another dual timeline story in the Doors to the Past series. Modern day novelist Chloe researches for a novel set at the Ringling estate, and looks for clues about her mysterious great-grandmother who was a trapeze artist in the Ringling circus. (Read my full review HERE)

During January I started reading:

A Brush with Shadows (A Lady Darby Mystery) by Anna Lee Huber - I'm not sure I'll ever catch up with the Lady Darby read-along but I'm determined to keep re-reading the series. In this one, Kiera accompanies Gage to his family home in Dartmoor to find out what has happened to his missing cousin.

   Mrs. Witherspoon Goes to War by Mary Davis - This is a review book I just started, in which a widow joins the WASP force and defies orders to save some stranded soldiers.

During January I continued reading:

The End of the Magi by Patrick W. Carr - I'd wanted to finish this onw in time for Three Kings Day, but you see how that turned out. It's about a young magi apprentice following his vision of a great king and the mysterious star that heralded his coming.

`

Coming Up in February!

Lumberjacks and Ladies (a novella collection)

An Unexpected Peril by Deanna Raybourn

All That's Fair by Amanda G. Stevens

Raincoats & Sunglasses by Caroline Johnston

     

   

What I'm Highlighting . . . These are the 2022 Reading Challenges I've decided to take on this year. Trying not to be too ambitious, but to also give myself something to shoot for.

On my blogs recently . . . 

Besides the reviews, here on Just A Second you'll find:

Scripture and a Snapshot posts

Friday Fun posts - The Friday 56 and First Lines

Redeeming Love - Movie Review

What I'm Reading - January 17, 2022

2022 Reading Challenges

And on HS Coffee Break:

I Spy posts (#52-#56)

Five Minute Friday posts

January Photo Album

28 Days of Coping With Change

Share Four Somethings - January 2022

Redeeming Love: The Movie (Review)

High School Writing Tip Sheets - Conflict and Tension in Fiction

Currently . . . January 5, 2022

December Photo Album

Keeping Christmas All the Year

This post will be linked at the January 2022 Monthly Wrap-Up Round-up Link-up and Giveaway hosted by Feed Your Fiction Addiction; and at the weekly reading list meme hosted at Book Date.

 

©2008-2022 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 - Confidence in What We Hope For

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

~Hebrews 11:1, 6~

<div style='width:100%;text-align:center;'> <span style='margin:5px;padding:5px;border-radius: 5px;border:1px solid lightgrey;display:inline-block;'><a rel=_nofollow href='https://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/search/label/Scripture%20and%20a%20Snapshot'> <img style='border: 1px solid gray;width:330px;height:330px;' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBkEsmWJLn1f3VqhfaylcSn7IABJxDE4XrGPLFjO1V9xTM3ozVgjnerdCaVUqCwcRPIiwfqTfFqk4du0DK8acoLtyo-qFBOeBIKDwilTJVyIcRXpdYZC2QcFtMnVXKNk4Q1SLHMCX7SPU/s320/scripture+snapshot.jpg'><p style='align: center;'> </p> </a></span>

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.

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I also link up at Sunday Scripture Blessings, hosted by Peabea's Photos 'n Scribbles, and at Selah, hosted by A Spirit of Simplicity.

©2008-2022 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.

Friday Fun - The Friday 56 and First Lines for January 28, 2022

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Just A Second helps supply books and coffee. 

Howie stepped forward and handed a bundle of flowers to her and one to Mama Bird. Brownie smelled them. "Thanks."

Witherspoon merely held hers. "Thanks." An unenthusiastic response.

~from page 56 of Mrs. Witherspoon Goes to War by Mary Davis

Peggy Witherspoon, a mother of two daughters, has been widowed due to the war in Europe. She comes from a long line of US war heroes and, considering it her duty, joins the female pilots flying for the WASP (Women Airforce Service Pilots) in 1944. Most of Peggy's duties are safe and predictable as she ferries airplanes between factories and military bases, and she can be home early every night with her daughters.

After being injured in combat, Army Air Corp Major Howie Berg is stationed at Bolling Field in Washington, DC, while he continues to recover. As the new reporting office for the WASP, his first encounter with Peggy is when she disobeys one of his direct orders.

While flying a routine load of cargo to Cuba, Peggy learns about three US soldiers being held captive there. Furious that no rescue is planned due to Cuba's status as an American ally, Peggy and two of her fellow WASPs devise a secret rescue mission. However, if something goes wrong, she and the others will have no backup.

Will Peggy go against orders to help the men - even risk her own life?

The Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice

*Grab a book, any book.

*Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your e-reader.

*Find a snippet, short and sweet.

*Post it, and share in the Linky.

***************

Washington State, 1927

Seventeen-year-old Margaret Deny opened an old cookie tin and handed over a bulk of her savings from working various jobs the past three years.

The burly man squinted and rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm not sure if I should take your money, little lady."

~From the beginning of Mrs. Witherspoon Goes to War by Mary Davis

Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader.

*It's Book Beginnings on Fridays! Time to gather with our fellow book lovers and share the opening sentence (or so) of the books we are reading this week. Or share from a book that is on your mind right now -- whatever catches your fancy.

***************

First Line Fridays is hosted at Reading is My SuperPower

*Share the first line or two of the book closest to you, then visit other FLF participants.

*Please keep posts family friendly or clean reads.

*Link back to Reading is My SuperPower within your post or grab a button.

 ©2008-2022 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 - My Portion Forever

Nevertheless, I am continually with you;

you hold my right hand.

You guide me with your counsel,

and afterward you will receive me to glory.

Whom have I in heaven but you?

And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

~Psalm 73:23-26~

<div style='width:100%;text-align:center;'> <span style='margin:5px;padding:5px;border-radius: 5px;border:1px solid lightgrey;display:inline-block;'><a rel=_nofollow href='https://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/search/label/Scripture%20and%20a%20Snapshot'> <img style='border: 1px solid gray;width:330px;height:330px;' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBkEsmWJLn1f3VqhfaylcSn7IABJxDE4XrGPLFjO1V9xTM3ozVgjnerdCaVUqCwcRPIiwfqTfFqk4du0DK8acoLtyo-qFBOeBIKDwilTJVyIcRXpdYZC2QcFtMnVXKNk4Q1SLHMCX7SPU/s320/scripture+snapshot.jpg'><p style='align: center;'> </p> </a></span>

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.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

I also link up at Sunday Scripture Blessings, hosted by Peabea's Photos 'n Scribbles, and at Selah, hosted by A Spirit of Simplicity.

©2008-2022 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.

Friday Fun - The Friday 56 and First Lines for January 21, 2022

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Just A Second helps supply books and coffee. 

I straightened in surprise.

"I don't mean to imply he's a thief," he hastened to explain. "At least, of anything more than a woman's virtue. But . . . he's taken things before."

I hesitated to say the words, but the question had to be asked. "You mean the dagger?"

~at 56% in A Brush with Shadows (A Lady Darby Mystery) by Anna Lee Huber 

Sebastian Gage returns home to battle the ghosts of his past and prevent them from destroying his future with Kiera . . .

July 1831. It's been fifteen years since Sebastian Gage has set foot in Langstone Manor. Though he has shared little with his wife, Lady Kiera Darby, about his past, she knows that he planned never to return to the place of so many unhappy childhood memories. But when an urgent letter from his grandfather reaches them in Dublin, Ireland, and begs Gage to visit, Kiera convinces him to go.

All is not well at Langstone Manor. Gage's grandfather, the Viscount Tavistock, is gravely ill, and Gage's cousin Alfred has suddenly vanished. He wandered out into the moors and never returned. The Viscount is convinced someone or something other than the natural hazards of the moors is to blame for Alfred's disappearance. And when Alfred's brother Rory goes missing, Kiera and Gage must concede he may be right. Now, they must face the ghosts of Gage's past, discover the truth behind the local superstitions, and see beyond the tricks being played by their very own eyes to expose what has happened to Gage's family before the moors claim yet another victim . . .

The Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice

*Grab a book, any book.

*Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your e-reader.

*Find a snippet, short and sweet.

*Post it, and share in the Linky.

***************

The devil's boots don't creak.

-SCOTTISH PROVERB

JULY 1831

DARTMOOR, ENGLAND

The first time I laid eyes on Langstone Manor, I could not blame my husband for having stayed away for over fifteen years.

~From the beginning of A Brush with Shadows (A Lady Darby Mystery)

Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader.

*It's Book Beginnings on Fridays! Time to gather with our fellow book lovers and share the opening sentence (or so) of the books we are reading this week. Or share from a book that is on your mind right now -- whatever catches your fancy.

***************

First Line Fridays is hosted at Reading is My SuperPower

*Share the first line or two of the book closest to you, then visit other FLF participants.

*Please keep posts family friendly or clean reads.

*Link back to Reading is My SuperPower within your post or grab a button.

 ©2008-2022 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.

Redeeming Love - Movie Review

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Just A Second helps supply books and coffee. 

Redeeming Love: The Movie - One of the most moving novels I've ever read is Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. It is based on the story of the Old Testament prophet Hosea, but Rivers set her story during the Gold Rush. I remember wondering how the story of Hosea's unfaithful wife could possibly be told in any setting other than the paganism of the nations surrounding Israel in ancient times, but Redeeming Love did it so well that the story stayed with me for years.

Redeeming Love is a life-changing story of the power of unconditional love, the kind only God can inspire. The movie is coming to theaters January 21, 2022, and you will want to see it!

Synopsis: 

Based on the bestselling novel by Francine Rivers, REDEEMING LOVE is a powerful story of relentless love and perseverance as a young couple's relationship clashes with the harsh realities of the California Gold Rush of 1850.

Angel expects only pain from those around her. Sold into prostitution as a child, Angel survives with hatred towards herself and the men that use her. She meets Michael Hosea, a farmer who believes God wants Angel to be his wife. Dire circumstances force Angel to accept his proposal, but when Michael defies her bitter expectations, her wounded heart begins to mend.

As Angel encounters a love unlike anything she ever experienced, feelings of unworthiness and shame cause her to run from a life she doesn't think she deserves. As Michael sets out to find her, Angel discovers there is no brokenness that love can't heal.

My thoughts: Faithful to the story (as I expected, since author Francine Rivers collaborated on the screenplay), and with beautiful cinematography, the movie brought the characters and their struggles to life. Scenes of Angel's childhood and the suffering she endured that led to the brothel in Paradise are woven into the opening of the movie, and the portrayal of her broken and hardened character is heart-wrenching. Michael's goodness and perseverance in doing what he believes God has told him to is likewise endearing.

The shreds of humanity and goodness that are left in the evil of the world Angel lives in are few but sweet, and her situation seems hopeless. I loved the patience and gentleness of Michael's offers in contrast to the harsh greed and violence of Angel's masters and tormentors. 

One thing I was concerned about was how the brothel scenes and intimate scenes would be handled. After all, the novel could indicate what was happening without being graphic, but how would the movie version handle those scenes honestly but not gratuitously? I felt that it was done well, but with more realism than some viewers might expect from a "Christian film". Nudity is implied rather than shown, but the scenes of intimacy do not shy away from portraying the passion quite clearly. While in most love stories, I would consider these scenes gratuitous, I think that because of the way Angel has been used and exploited before meeting Michael, their interactions and the purity of his love for her are necessary to the story of her redemption. 

Although set during the Gold Rush, the plight of these fictional characters reminds us that sex trafficking still claims victims today. Redeeming Love: The Movie partners with Redeeming Love Sanctuary Foundation and Where Hope Lives, two organizations that work to support and help survivors and to stop sex trafficking. I'm glad that while this movie is heartwarming and truly entertaining, it also provides beautiful examples of faithful and sacrificial love and forgiveness, and draws attention to those who still need to be rescued and redeemed.

See Redeeming Love in theaters starting January 21st!

Purchase tickets at: RedeemingLoveMovie.com

Hashtags: #RedeemingLoveMovieMIN #RedeemingLoveMovie #MomentumInfluencerNetwork

Disclosure: Many thanks to Universal for providing a sample of the product for this review. Opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation.

©2008-2022 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.