Friday Bookish Post - July 1, 2016

    

Thanks to Freda from "Freda's Voice" and Gilion at "Rose City Reader" for hosting these bookish link-ups!  Click one of the buttons to go to the link-up page.

SHORT SYNOPSIS

Jennie Bateman has again fallen in love with Thomas, her former husband, but Tasha, one of his children, is determined to destroy their relationship.

Jennie had done that herself a number of years earlier. In the midst of a manic episode, she had deserted Thomas and their two daughters, choosing, instead, a life of shameless debauchery.

Perhaps she was shocked when Thomas filed for a divorce. Perhaps it was the influence of a preacher who took an interest in her. Perhaps she simply cycled back toward normal.

Whatever the cause, years later, when she again made contact with her family, she was a different person. Even so, they wanted nothing to do with her.

But time moves on. Circumstances change...

~~~oOo~~~

BOOK BEGINNINGS

"Hump day, hump day," Jennie Bateman sang as she sauntered down the hall.  It was Wednesday afternoon, halfway through the week, two more days before she slid into the weekend and a mother-daughters dinner in Atlanta.

Lunch had just ended, and her third-grade class was with the music teacher.  Because of a quirk in this week's schedule, they would go from music class directly to art, and, as a result, Jennie had almost an hour to herself.  She was headed to the school's office for coffee.

Can I get an 'amen' from the teachers? :D  This book will be reviewed tomorrow on the blog, so be sure to stop back by!

~~~oOo~~~

FRIDAY 56

SHORT SYNOPSIS

In Henry Adams, Kansas, you can't start over without stirring things up ...

Many a good woman has had to leave a no-good man, but how many of them took a backseat to his six-hundred-pound hog?  On her own for the first time, Genevieve Gibbs is ecstatic, even if certain people preferred the doormat version of Ms. Gibbs./  Finding someone who appreciates the "new" her has only just hit Gen's to-do-list when TC Barbour appears in her life.

~~~oOo~~~

I did my Friday 56 from a different book, because my Kindle is under the weather, and I have a print copy of the above title.

As always, class began with the pledge and the Negro National Anthem.  It was Zoey's day to accompany the singing on the piano.  Eli had been in Henry Adams going on three years now and knew the words by heart.  When he had his dad first arrived it had been weird being one of only two White kids in town and he'd been pretty sure he wasn't going to like it, but nobody made a big deal about it and he'd done a lot of growing up since then.  He'd also learned a ton of Black history and realized people were people.  As Amari once pointed out, Eli was now bicultural and personall he thought there was a lot of cred in that.

(I had no idea there was even such a thing as the "Negro" National Anthem.  Now I've also seen it described as the Black National Anthem.  It is a wonderfully spiritual song, alluding both to past and present blessings as well as degredations.  Here is a link to the sons on YouTube for anyone who is interested.)

I'll review this book on the blog here a week from Monday (July 11, 2016).  Y'all come back now ... er, then.

~~~oOo~~~

   

Thanks to Billy B at the "Coffee Addicted Writer" for hosting this link-up!  Click on the buttons above to go to his blog.

This week's question comes from Elizabeth of Silver's Reviews:

Name an author or authors that you have read most of his or her books and would recommend to others.

I really can't claim to have read most of an author's work, but there are three I've read several of there books, and to whom I'd like to give a shout-out:

Joyce and Jim Lavene

Sadly, both these wonderful authors (and people) have passed in the last year:  Joyce in October 2015, and Jim in May of this year.  This is really a devastating to the cozy mystery genre - last time I heard a count on the number of books they had published it was like over 70.  SEVENTY!!!  Their son and daughter, Christopher and Jeni, have taken over the reins of "Team Lavene", as I took to calling them after Joyce passed.  I loved how the family pulled together to continue the legacy of this fine writing duo.  I've read maybe 7-10 of their books...give or take, well, actually only the one that means (maybe more than that).

Daryl Woods Gerber

One of Daryl's "Cheese Shop Mysteries" (written under her Avery Aames pseudonym) was actually my introduction to cozy mysteries.  And I won the book in an online drawing at Great Escapes Virtual Blog Tours.  Now I have read I think all but the lastest in that series.  I've also read several of the "Cookbook Nook" mysteries and her suspense/thriller "Girl on the Run".  I'm fixin' to read the newest Cookbook Nook Mystery ("Grilling the Subject"-to be published August 2016!).

NLB Horton

The first book in NLB's "Parched Series", When Camels Fly, is on my semi-official "Top Ten Books I've Read" list!.  The sequel, The Brothers' Keepers, only increased my appetite for Archaelogist Grace Madison's thrilling adventures!  Luckily I won't have to wait too long, because the third installment is due this fall.

~~~oOo~~~

        

Thanks to Ramona at Create With Joy, Janice at Mostly Blogging, and Tina at Mommynificent for these fun link-ups!  Click on the button to visit the sites to join in!  The more the merrier...really! :O)

Book Review: The Brothers' Keepers by NLB Horton

SYNOPSIS

A friend's deception. A family's dilemma.

While cataloging looted antiquities in Brussels, archaeologist Grace Madison discovers that her daughter has vanished in France, and her son's bride has been attacked in Switzerland. After the Madison family unearths a relic whose taproot pierces the Ancient Near East, they realize that before they can save themselves, they must rescue an old friend. If he'll let them. 

Because choosing what's right is all that's left. 

GUEST POST/REVIEW: When Camels Fly by NLB Horton

Publisher: NLBHorton, via Amazon’s White Glove (May 15, 2014)

Agent:  Mary Keeley at Books & Such Literary Management

Category: Contemporary suspense, thread of Romance

Tour Date: May/June, 2014

Available in: Print & ebook, 370 Pages

~~~oOo~~~

I am so happy to have author NLB Horton on the Back Porch today for a guest post about her book, "When Camels Fly".  

~~~oOo~~~

NLB Horton guest post for Back Porchervations

Sometimes the topic a blogger asks an author to write about for a guest blog requires a great deal of thinking and creative “wordsmithing.” But when the topic is my time in the Holy Lands and Mediterranean region, writing the post is a mini-vacation, albeit to the occasional beat of heavy artillery in Syria and machine-gun fire in Lebanon.

When Camels Fly, the first of five books in the Parched series, shares its Middle-Eastern setting with the second, The Brothers’ Keepers (November 7, 2014). To be fair, The Brothers’ Keepers also rambles through Western Europe, but that’s a topic for another post. Regarding the larger Mediterranean region, the third book (summer, 2015) occurs in Greece and Turkey. The fourth will be in South America, and the fifth in the States. I have “been there, done that” in every location.

Sometimes I forget how odd I am, although I predict a delightfully batty old age.

I remember my first evening in Jerusalem years ago, on a hill across from the Old City. No sooner had my bags hit the room floor than the Muezzins began the call to prayer. Unlike days of old, when men truly stood atop minarets to sing out over the city, these chants are now broadcast from speakers—and are unavoidable. I pinched myself. The little girl from Texas was a long way from home.

I am well traveled, but wandering through the lanes of the Old City is an experience unlike any other. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is a pedestrian zone, the lanes only wide enough for donkey-pulled carts. Raised ramps on each side of the pavers accommodate cart wheels. Kiosks and shops, many no bigger than a small closet, crumble and tumble into each other, depositing underfoot goods representing the four religions of the Old City Quarters: Christian, Armenian Christian, Jewish, and Muslim.

Favorite spots include the north of Israel, where I dangled all afternoon down the four-hundred-foot Cliff of Arbel, trying to remain polite. Catching my breath on the shores of the Sea of Galilee after a 118-degree day. (My protagonist’s daughter, Maggie, and her Arab-Christian bodyguard, Matthew, spar romantically here.)

Trying to get out of Jericho, one of my least favorite spots on the entire planet. (The Commodores’ “Brick House” bears mention here, but you’ll have to buy the book.) Marveling at the Ascent of Adumim, noted in the Old Testament book of Psalms. (My protagonist, archaeologist Grace Madison, escapes along this ridge via a camel caravan on its way to Herodium.)

Digging tel Dan, where I kept my head down during the aforementioned artillery and machine-gun fire. (Nothing happened here in When Camels Fly, but it’s a beautiful, verdant spot, nonetheless. And very memorable.)

I have walked the paths, ridden the camels (yes, photographic proof exists), heard the sounds, smelled the scents (cumin, turmeric, and lime!), felt the danger. Seen stone steps worn four inches lower in the center from millennia of leather soles and bare feet. Stood in the biblical wilderness, the most silent and desolate place I’ve ever been, wondering why snail shells littered the sand. Life is absurdly wonderful.

My precious Beta Readers remind me that my protagonist, Grace, is Everywoman. My Readers Guide for book clubs encourages readers to respond to Grace on a deeper level, and see how they would react when facing some of her tough decisions. I’m told Grace’s appeal is that she shares our normal concerns and priorities, although she’s managing to craft a meaningful “second life” that reflects her interests and passions. Her “Yenta-like tendencies” as she deals with her two adult children in situations more dangerous than I could bear reveal her humanity, and love for family. Her doubts and hopes for her relationship with her husband of thirty-plus years depict those of many partners in long-standing relationships. I have experienced these things, too.

Some of them I just happened to experience in the most amazing, dangerous, and important places on earth. It’s a joy to share these adventures, which every woman should share, at least vicariously. Join me via When Camels Fly, May 12, 2014.

~~~oOo~~~

MY REVIEW

Oh my *****!  When a book starts with a woman (Maggie Madison) hearing two of her kidnappers outside the tent planning her death, you know the camel spit is about to fly.  In flies Mama Bear Grace, an "archaeologist of mature vintage" by her own admission.  Thanks to her eagle-eye shooting and some 2nd-half help from a mysterious handsome shepherd, and the first rescue is in the record books.  But whom do you trust when it some of the players are not who they appear to be?

I was grateful for the list of terms in Hebrew and Arabic at the front of "When Camels Fly".  I already knew some of them, but it was very nice to have a reference list to check as to not slow down the pace of the story.  Also, most chapters were preceded by a character or time of day notation as well as geographic location.  The entire Madison family (father Mark, mother Grace, son Jeff and daughter Maggie) take us to Israel, the West Bank, Jordan, England and Colorado, switching from one place and person to another until the family is reunited.  And reunited in more ways than one.  In one location, which in itself has not happened for years, and actually communicating with each other (as opposed to talking at each other).

Being set in the Middle East, religion is almost another character in the book.  Grace prays for direction quite often in the book, and given the situation, I would probably be doing the same thing.  She has a split-second moral dilemma about shooting a man, but when it comes down to that or losing her daughter, the choice has already been made.

"When Camels Fly" has something for everyone:  exotic locations, intrigue, spies and their 'offices' on three continents, betrayal, old love, new love, despair, hope, enemies working together, friends and family having each other's back in incredibly tense and dangerous situations, and a host of people "of mature vintage" who apparently don't know how to retire...  I could go on.  But I won't.  Because you need to discover "When Camels Fly" for yourselves.

I started reading "When Camels Fly" one evening and when I looked up it was *ahem* well past my bedtime.  So I told myself "one more chapter".  Yeah, right. :O)  I also featured this book in my latest "Friday 56" post.  And I posted a quote on GoodReads for the first time; it's the one about "Hercules in a burkha".

The bitter end of the book actually gave me the shivers.  So I am thrilled to learn that we will be seeing the Madisons again, in several different locations.  I hope you will join me, because you KNOW I'm going to be there!

~~~oOo~~~

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

NLB Horton

After an award-winning detour through journalism and marketing and a graduate degree from Dallas Theological Seminary, NLBHorton returned to writing fiction. She has surveyed Israeli archaeological digs accompanied by artillery rounds from Syria and machine gun fire from Lebanon. Explored Machu Picchu after training with an Incan shaman. And consumed afternoon tea across five continents.

When Camels Fly is her first novel. Her second, The Brothers’ Keepers, will be available November 2014.

Website * Facebook * Twitter * Pinterest

(Disclaimer:  I received a print copy of "When Camels Fly" by NLB Horton from the Author, Publisher via Virtual Author Book Tours in exchange for my unbiased opinion.  No other compensation was offered, requested or received.)

Friday 56: When Camels Fly by NLB Horton

(hosted by Freda at Freda's Voice blog)

Rules:

*Grab a book, any book.
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
(If you have to improvise, that's ok.)
 *Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.

~~~oOo~~~

(cover picture linked to GoodReads)

Quote from Page 56:

"His long, white robe with a checkered scarf -- kaffiyeh -- held in place by a braided rope -- agal -- was peasant clothing seen all over the Middle East.  His iconic pose, enabled by flexibility earning the name Grasshopper, was authentic: knees to shoulders and heels flat on the ground."

COVER REVEAL: When Camels Fly by NLB Horton

Publisher: NLB Horton, via Amazon’s White Glove (May 15, 2014) 

Agent: Mary Keeley at Books & Such Literary Management 

Category: Contemporary suspense, thread of Romance 

Tour Date: May/June, 2014 

Available in: Print & ebook, 370 Pages 

A mother’s fatal shot. A daughter’s deadly choice.

In Israel, archaeologist Grace Madison shoots her daughter’s abductor. Seconds later, a handsome shepherd drops from the sky to kill a second assassin. Their world changes in two blinks of an eye. Unbeknownst to them, a fiercely ambitious evil is destroying everything in its path—the unconventional path Grace and Maggie take. They struggle to right a wrong as old as time, and discover time is running out in the race for their lives. Family and friends are swept into their vortex, extinguishing old flames while igniting new loves. While the scale tips dangerously toward disaster, millions of lives hang in the balance. And the mother-and-daughter team soon realizes nothing is as it seems. Even each other.

Because choosing what’s right is all that’s left.

~~~oOo~~~

Advance Praise for When Camels Fly:

The main character is a delightful woman named Grace, who is a brilliant archaeologist, but definitely no Indiana Jones. More comfortable digging and researching than getting involved in international “incidents,” Grace is lured (or dragged, she’d admit) into intrigue and danger when she discovers her daughter, Maggie, has been kidnapped. Like a mama grizzly, Grace heads out to find and rescue her daughter, get the bad guys, and make her daughter comply with her demands (essentially, go home and stay out of trouble). But Maggie has uncovered a disastrous plot that could affect the entire Middle East. And only Maggie (and now Grace) can do something to stop the mayhem and evil. 

—Ginger Kolbaba, author of Desperate Pastors Wives and A Matter of Wife and Death

~~~oOo~~~

"NLB Horton’s debut novel, When Camels Fly, incorporates features I have never before encountered in one novel: suspense, science, family, religion, and Middle Eastern intrigue. 

One charming surprise — and there are many in this novel — is Grace’s octogenarian seminary professors, former spies for Mossad who converge in Israel and Jordan to assist the family they hold dear. Their espionage skills, masked by the perceived harmlessness of the elderly, allow them to move about undetected, and assist the Madison family in creative and unexpected ways. 

When Camels Fly empowers women and family in an entertaining adventure. Unstoppable women, well-placed humor, and critical contemporary issues make this book my top read so far in 2014, and I’m watching for news of Horton’s second manuscript, scheduled to release later this year."

- Leigh Bennett, Reader

~~~oOo~~~

Author NLB Horton’s vigorous dialogue moved the story along, and portrayed each character as uniquely intriguing. Her descriptions of Israel and Jordan were an enjoyable way to learn more about that part of the world, and it’s obvious she’s “been there, done that.” I felt as if I were in the markets and atop the camels, participating in the story. 

One of the most interesting aspects of When Camels Fly is that it’s contemporary suspense from a woman’s viewpoint, set in a part of the world normally filtered through a male lens. And it presents the region in a realistic, approachable way. 

The Madison family is a refreshing, healthy model in the world of contemporary literature, where dysfunctional or overly simplistic family portrayals reign. 

When I discovered the end of the novel alluded to the story continuing in the next book in the series, I was delighted. I look forward to continuing the adventure begun in When Camels Fly."

- Lillian Bohannon, Reader

About the Author

 

NLB Horton

Links:  Website:  Facebook: Twitter: Pinterest: 

After an award-winning detour through journalism and marketing and a graduate degree from Dallas Theological Seminary, NLB Horton returned to writing fiction. She has surveyed Israeli archaeological digs accompanied by artillery rounds from Syria and machine gun fire from Lebanon. Explored Machu Picchu after training with an Incan shaman. And consumed afternoon tea across five continents.

When Camels Fly is her first novel. Her second, The Brothers’ Keepers, will be available November 2014.