Review by Jill Williamson

Innkeeper’s daughter, Aza, lives in a land where everyone sings. Though she has the most glorious voice anyone has ever heard, she hides her face at all times. Aza has discovered a new trick. She can not only impersonate any voice, she can throw the sound so that it appears to be coming from another place. A fun trick until the new queen blackmails her into being the queen’s voice. Before she knows it, Aza is deceiving the handsome prince and all of Ayortha. Will she ever get to be free from the queen’s control? And will she ever be really beautiful?

This is a wonderful story about true beauty. We girls are convinced we don’t measure up to perfection, though none of us can really say what that is or who decided it. Aza strives to find beauty and almost looses herself. A wonderful truth that sometimes takes a lifetime to discover. This was a sequel to Ella Enchanted, though it’s really more of a spin off. I loved the world Levine created. I loved Aza, and who wouldn’t love the handsome prince, big ears and all! I highly recommend this book for every girl. Read it and stop listening to those evil mirrors!

Age Range: 10 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Part of a Series: Sequel to Ella Enchanted
Pages: 326
Publisher: Scholastic
Released: 2006

Review by Gretchen Hoffman

Take a prom queen mystery, a wrestler reality show, a super hot newspaper editor, and an ex-boyfriend who keeps popping up. What do you get? Jenny B. Jones’ newest book, I’m So Sure. Book two in the Charmed Life series is just as laugh-out-loud, sassy, and hands down fantastic as book one. It’s one of those drop-everything-you’re-doing-and-read-this kind of books. (For me, never mind that I had a huge test the next day, I sat down and read I’m So Sure in one sitting.)

In I’m So Sure, Bella Kirkwood finds herself in even more crazy situations than before. After solving one mystery, Bella’s become the Nancy Drew of her Oklahoma high school. When some weird events surrounding prom occur, Bella is asked by some prom queen nominees to figure out what’s going on.

As if trying to solve a major mystery isn’t enough, Bella’s stepfather, a semi-professional wrestler, makes it onto a wrestling reality show. This thrusts Bella and the rest of the family into the limelight. But being on TV and in tabloids isn’t quite as exciting as it may seem, especially when some of it portrays Bella in a less-than-flattering manner.

Then there’s Luke, Bella’s super gorgeous newspaper editor. Bella doesn’t know what to think. Are they just friends or something more? And Hunter, her cheating ex-boyfriend, suddenly pops back into her life. He’s asking questions about God, so what else can she do but be a good Christian?

With Bella, nothing is simple. Expect surprises, craziness, and humor galore as she navigates life, boys, and God. My only complaint? Book three isn’t out yet…

Age Range: 12-16
Genre: Contemporary
Part of a Series: A Charmed Life, book two
Pages: 312
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Released: 2009

Review by Jill Williamson

Gypsy girl, Mariutza, was raised in the Louisiana swamps away from all modern conveniences. When “the Badness” kills her grandfather, Mariutza must go into the city and find the prophet, Jaazaniah, but Mari feels completely out of her element. She’s never even ridden in a car or tasted Sprite. Still, it’s what she trained all her life to do. Find Jaazaniah, the prophet.

Jaazaniah is a musician in a bar. He has a seizure of some kind and is convinced that someone spiked his drink. He goes home to find his apartment ransacked, and strange cloaked men start chasing him. Then he meets Mariutza, a beautiful girl whose religious ideas are a bit far-fetched. She claims he is some prophet and clearly has a few screws loose from growing up in the swamp. Still, she knows things about him that she can’t possibly know, and Jaazaniah is drawn to working with her to figure out what is going on.

I loved John B. Olson’s Shade, so I couldn’t wait to read Powers. At first, I was disappointed to find all new characters. When I really want to read a sequel, it’s because of the characters in the first book. Still, I kept at it. Olson’s non-stop action gripped me and kept me turning the pages. His characters, Mari and Jaaz, were totally intriguing. Then some old characters popped up and things started to come together in a bizarre and exciting way. And then it was over, leaving quite a few questions hanging. Where Shade reads as a creepy vampire/monster novel, Powers reads as supernatural suspense. “The Badness” is always at the characters’ heels, but I never really knew why or saw much of it until the end. So…a really fun read. Entertaining and action-packed. But the ending left me wondering. Is there a book three? I hope so.

Age Range: 16 and up
Genre: Suspense
Part of a Series: Sequel to Shade
Pages: 400
Publisher: B&H Books
Released: 2009

At the OCW conference last summer, I had breakfast with Randy Ingermanson one day and he started telling me about FictionFinder.com, a new project the ACFW board is working on. The point? Most bookstore employees don’t read Christian fiction and don’t have a clue how to help a customer find books. The plan is to promote the FictionFinder.com website to bookstores and libraries across the country so that readers can find books in the store using this new website.

The way it works is this. Set up a reader account, put in your fave books, and the system will be able to recommend other books for you based on what you like. Here is the FictionFinder.com plea in a nutshell. Please consider helping this awesome project.

FictionFinder.com is a new website to help spread the word about Christian fiction. It was started by ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) as a tool bookstores can use to help readers find new books. Right now, they need the help of readers!

To make the tool really useful, we need readers to add reviews and other input. Please take a few minutes, create a reader account, and enter a short review for your ten favorite books. Keep in mind, the review can only be about two sentences long.

Thanks!

Review by Jill Williamson

A seventeen-year-old Senate page goes missing over Christmas break, and three friends—who call themselves The Triple Threat—take a personal and professional interest in the case. Federal prosecutor Allison Pierce, reporter Cassidy Shaw, and FBI Special Agent Nicole Hedges each work the case from their own angle, occasionally working together. The case digs up personal experiences and for each woman, making things almost personal. Can they separate their own emotions from their jobs? And can they find the missing girl before it’s too late.

Awesome read! But not for the faint at heart. This book will stir up emotions, especially with female readers. Girls who love mysteries will benefit from getting a legal perspective on what can go wrong in male/female relationships. I enjoyed seeing the crime from three very different jobs: reporter, prosecutor, and investigator. I kept trying to guess who done it, and I was wrong, wrong, wrong. Well done, authors! This is an intriguing, stunning, and very real read. Highly recommended.

Age Range: 16 and up
Genre: Suspense
Part of a Series: A Triple Threat novel
Pages: 310
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Released: 2009

Review by Jill Williamson

In The Curse of the Spider King by Wayne Thomas Batson and Christopher Hopper, seven children go about their lives. With the exception of two siblings, these children do not know one another. But they all have two things in common. 1. An adult who has given them a very special book and, 2. A creepy man who watches them wherever they go. Tommy, the first to read his book, experiences a 3D history of Berinfell, a foreign world in the midst of a war between Gwar and Elves.

Stranger things start to happen to the seven children: they begin to experience supernatural abilities and dark creatures try to kill them. Their only hope for survival is to leave earth and face an unknown future in a distant world. For if they stay on earth, they risk their own lives and those of their families.

The premise of this novel is clever and fun. The characters were well-written, unique, and each one drew me into their story so that I hated to leave them. I loved the special book that comes to life to tell its story. There was also good mounting tension as the story built toward the action-packed ending, which I liked a great deal.

Because there are so many point of view characters, it took me a little while to get into the story. I kept trying to figure out who my main character was, but there are seven main characters. Each character was done well and drew me into his or her story, but it was difficult to keep them straight even when they finally got together (which was really fun, but the way). Plus, their names were similar. Three J names, three names that end in “y”, and two K names. Kiri Lee was a great name, though, and I never confused her with anyone. But I couldn’t keep the boys’ names straight.

The Curse of the Spider King is very well-written. The authors totally pulled off having so many main characters. If it weren’t for the similar names and the resulting confusion as to who was who, it would have been totally gripping, despite the ensemble cast. I’m really excited about this new series. I highly recommend it for readers of all ages who love a good contemporary fantasy. Looking forward to book two!

Age Range: 9 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Part of a Series: book one in the Berinfell Prophecies series
Pages: 372
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Released: 2009

Check out what other bloggers have to say about The Curse of the Spider King.
Brandon Barr, Justin Boyer, Amy Browning, Valerie Comer, Amy Cruson, CSFF Blog Tour, Stacey Dale, D. G. D. Davidson, Shane Deal, Jeff Draper, Emmalyn Edwards, April Erwin, Karina Fabian, Todd Michael Greene, Ryan Heart, Timothy Hicks, Becky Jesse, Cris Jesse, Jason Joyner, Julie, Carol Keen, Krystine Kercher, Tina Kulesa, Melissa Lockcuff, Rebecca LuElla Miller, Mirtika, Nissa, John W. Otte, Cara Powers, Chawna Schroeder, James Somers, Speculative Faith, Robert Treskillard, Fred Warren, Jason Waguespac, Phyllis Wheeler, Jill Williamson, KM Wilsher

Wayne Thomas Batson is the author of several best-selling novels. He is well-known for his : The Door Within Trilogy and his Declan Ross pirate series. A middle school reading teacher in Maryland for eighteen years, Wayne tailors his stories to meet the needs of young people, whom he cares so deeply about. Wayne writes adventures set in imaginative locals because he believes that on a deep level we all dream of doing something that matters and long for another world. When last seen, Wayne was tromping around the Realm with his beautiful wife and four adventurous children. Learn more about Wayne on his website: http://enterthedoorwithin.blogspot.com/

Books by Wayne:
The Berinfell Prophecies
        Curse of the Spider King

Declan Ross Pirate Series
        Isle of Swords
        Isle of Fire

The Door Within Trilogy
        The Door Within
        The Rise of the Wyrm Lord
        The Final Storm

Check out what other bloggers have to say about Wayne Thomas Batson’s work.

Brandon Barr, Justin Boyer, Amy Browning, Valerie Comer, Amy Cruson, CSFF Blog Tour, Stacey Dale, D. G. D. Davidson, Shane Deal, Jeff Draper, Emmalyn Edwards, April Erwin, Karina Fabian, Todd Michael Greene, Ryan Heart, Timothy Hicks, Becky Jesse, Cris Jesse, Jason Joyner, Julie, Carol Keen, Krystine Kercher, Tina Kulesa, Melissa Lockcuff, Rebecca LuElla Miller, Mirtika, Nissa, John W. Otte, Cara Powers, Chawna Schroeder, James Somers, Speculative Faith, Robert Treskillard, Fred Warren, Jason Waguespac, Phyllis Wheeler, Jill Williamson, KM Wilsher

Christopher Hopper is a recording artist, record producer, author, motivational speaker and youth pastor. In 2006 Hopper published the first book of The White Lion Chronicles, Rise of The Dibor. Book two, The Lion Vrie, released June 2007. Since then he signed a multi-book deal with publishing giant Thomas Nelson, with his first co-authored novel, Curse of the Spider King, due out October 2009 with author Wayne Thomas Batson.

He travels internationally each year speaking and performing for schools, churches, and conferences with a message of hope for his generation. His various business and academic interests perpetuate his desire to have a positive impact on world culture, inspiring people to lead meaningful lives. He lives with his wife, Jennifer, and three children in the 1,000 Islands of Northern, NY. Learn more about Christopher on his website: http://www.christopherhopper.com/

Books by Christopher:
The Berinfell Prophecies
        Curse of the Spider King

The White Lion Chronicles
        Rise of The Dibor
        The Lion Vrie

Check out what other bloggers have to say about Christopher Hopper’s work.

Brandon Barr, Justin Boyer, Amy Browning, Valerie Comer, Amy Cruson, CSFF Blog Tour, Stacey Dale, D. G. D. Davidson, Shane Deal, Jeff Draper, Emmalyn Edwards, April Erwin, Karina Fabian, Todd Michael Greene, Ryan Heart, Timothy Hicks, Becky Jesse, Cris Jesse, Jason Joyner, Julie, Carol Keen, Krystine Kercher, Tina Kulesa, Melissa Lockcuff, Rebecca LuElla Miller, Mirtika, Nissa, John W. Otte, Cara Powers, Chawna Schroeder, James Somers, Speculative Faith, Robert Treskillard, Fred Warren, Jason Waguespac, Phyllis Wheeler, Jill Williamson, KM Wilsher