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Sunday, July 31, 2011

The Homecoming of Samuel Lake - Giveaway and Review


Every once in awhile you come across a book so profound in its ability to tell a story that needs to be told but no one wants to share. This is a review of that book, The Homecoming of Samuel Lake by Jenny Wingfield.

Samuel Lake has been a hellfire and brimstone preacher in Louisana for as long as he can remember the call of God on his life. He believes that people need to hear the word God has for them no matter how much they cringe on the inside when they hear it. It's that particular kind of preaching that has kept him moving from congregation to congregation, always unrooting his family until they can find a new church home for him to share his message with. Now Samuel's options have run out and there are no more churches for him to go to. Unsure of what God's purpose is for him at this point of his life, he returns to his mother in laws, Calla Moses and explains to his family that he feels like a failure but that trusting in God is vital to their faith.

Willadee Lake spends time once a year at their families reunion with their children, Swan, Nobel and Bienville. Her father, John has been a drinker his whole life, now lacing his morning coffee with whiskey, he has built a bar on his walled in back porch that serves the community while prohibition is still intact. He has more than walled in areas of his life besides drinking, he has also isolated his family from him including his wife Calla. Now that the reunion is underway, he loses his temper during an argument with her, slapping her in front of everyone. When Willadee tells her father he is a disappointment, the last thing any of them hear is a shotgun blast within the walls of the bar.

Now the family attempts to heal in so many ways. Calla is dealing with being alone at her age, without her husband. She asks Samuel and Willadee to move in to make things easier on all of them. Samuel attempts to find a job he can live with while trying to find God's calling in his life, while Willadee deals with a sister-in-law Bernice that still has her heart on winning Samuel back.

Meanwhile the kids find that spending time on a hundred acre farm has more to keep them occupied than what they thought besides all their make-believe play. A small young boy, Blade Ballenger, is about to change all of their lives in a very shocking and dangerous way.

I received this novel, The Homecoming of Samuel Lake by Jenny Wingfield compliment of TLC Book Tours for my honest review. I did not see the story developing the way it did, but it was so compelling it drew me into the lives of the Moses and Lake family that I could not put it down until I finished it. To me this is a sign of a great book, that you will eat dinner with it in your hand, take it with you wherever you go because you just have to know how it all ends and Jenny does a magical job at weaving these characters right before your eyes that you feel like you are a part of the book! To me, that makes this a 5 out of 5 stars. The story content can be sensitive to those dealing with suicide and violent content, but when telling a story like this you can understand why!

For more information about this book, the author and where to purchase a copy for yourself, please click on the link below:


Thanks to the generous folks at TLC Book Tours, they are offering a giveaway copy of this book. Here are your guidelines to enter:

1. Be a follower of my blog, Reviews of the Heart.

2. Be a resident of the US or Canada. Please No P.O. Boxes please.

3. Leave me a comment and tell me why you'd love to win a copy along with your email. You can use the words (at) or (dot) instead of the symbols along with your comment.

The giveaway will end on August 7th and I will notify the winner by email at that time.

23 comments:

  1. I follow by google reader as cenya2.

    cenya2 at hotmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  2. I have read many reviews of this book and the storyline sounds great and a real page turner.

    cenya2 at hotmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm a gfc follower: theresan
    Theresa N
    weceno(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm very interested to know the rest of the story in this book.
    Theresa n
    weceno(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am a GFC follower

    lkish77123 at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  6. This sounds like a very interesting story. One that I would love to read.

    lkish77123 at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  7. I would like to win because this is a new to me author and after reading your review, I would like to read this because I feel I could get "lost" in this book.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I am a follower and email subscriber. Tore923@aol.com

    ReplyDelete
  9. Please enter me in contest.I would love to read this book. It sounds very good. Tore923@aol.com

    ReplyDelete
  10. Besides the fact that I just love the names of the characters in this book it sounds like my kind of book- the story is so good you gotta keep reading and reading.

    amhengst at verizon dot net

    ReplyDelete
  11. I follow you as a email subscriber


    amhengst at verizon dot net

    ReplyDelete
  12. I follow your blog with Google Friends Connect.

    CarolNWong(at)aol(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  13. This book sounds so good. If it kept you reading while you were eating, it must be special.

    CarolNWong(at)aol(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  14. Please enter me! I'm a subscriber and a follower gfc. I posted this to my blog: http://dancealertreads.blogspot.com/2011/07/reviews-from-heart-homecoming-of-samuel.html

    dancealert at aol dot co0m

    ReplyDelete
  15. I would love to read this, I enjoyed your review. Thanks for a great giveaway.

    alongtheway at telus dot net

    ReplyDelete
  16. I am a GFC follower, ID: Megan (Celtic_Girl).

    lovetoread205 [at] gmail [dot] com

    ReplyDelete
  17. When Willadee tells her father he is a disappointment, the last thing any of them hear is a shotgun blast within the walls of the bar...sounds so interesting!!!

    lovetoread205 [at] gmail [dot] com

    ReplyDelete
  18. GFC follower

    Canada

    Sounds like an incredible book. Great review.

    littleone AT shaw DOt ca

    ReplyDelete
  19. I love the time period (1950s) of the setting and I know very little about Arkansas so this would be a chance to learn.

    Thanks for the opportunity to win!

    debbie AT exurbanis (dot) com

    ReplyDelete
  20. Wow, does this ever seem like a book I'd enjoy.
    Please enter my name in the giveaway.
    Mike
    dmd311@cshore.com
    I'm a follower of your blog

    ReplyDelete
  21. Sounds like a good read—please enter me to win! I'm a GFC follower!!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Sounds like a book I would really enjoy. Count me in for the giveaway. kittycrochettwo at msn dot com.
    I am a GFC follower listed as WV Stitcher

    ReplyDelete

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