Christmas At Carnton

It's hard to imagine that war once divide this great country. That men and women both lost those they loved when the North divided against the South. Men ill equipped to go to war went anyway and so much blood was shed on both sides of the country. For Aletta Prescott, she learned that her husband would not be returning home from the war as he had hoped and now she has learned she is about to be laid off from her job at the Chilton Textile Mill. It wasn't due to her work, but as a matter of last hired is those who would have to face the burden of no longer having a job, a ways to provide for their family and for Aletta, now seven months pregnant and with a young boy at home, she struggled to figure out how she was going to pay for their mortgage now with winter coming.

She had hoped that the bank would be understanding regarding her recent loss and now unemployment, but despite all the bank manager's assurances that they might be able to work something out, the bank's board members refused to allow her any more time. They felt they were being generous in letting her have two weeks before they foreclosed on her home. But where could they go? When she learned that the Carnton estate was looking for help in preparation for an upcoming auction to lend financial resources to help the war effort, she felt assured this would be an answer to prayer. She had to find something otherwise she didn't know what she would do or where they would go.

Jake Winston felt that his life was spared when he was shot in the shoulder, but it also allowed him to deal with the loss of his eyesight even temporarily. He would have to wear glasses now to miss seeing the sharp details a marksman like himself would need if he was to be an use of continuing in the war effort, but such was not to be the case just yet. His commanding General has asked him to travel to Carnton Estate and lend in the security of helping the women raise funds to benefit the war. It would also give him time to continue to allow his eyesight to return. But there was no winning this battle with the General. He just didn't plan on having his heart fall for a young mother due with another child and her sweet, young, impressionable son as well. He will have to maintain the respect due to her after learning she had lost her husband while trying to do as ordered, but will God have other plans in store for them all?

I received Christmas at Carnton by Tamera Alexander compliments of NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Publishers. This is such a heart warming book because it really takes the readers into the very heart of both Aletta and Jake. You can understand how difficult both the timing and the circumstances surrounding them both would be, and with time running out for them both, anxiety only increases the need to figure out the future, even if it is out of their hands for the time being. I love the generosity of Mrs. McGavock, who is the wife of the Carnton Estate in how she is with her hired staff. She keeps the respectability of her position, but treats them all like family. I give this book a 5 out of 5 stars in my opinion.

For more information about Christmas at Carnton, Tamera Alexander or where you can pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Christmas at Carnton by Tamera Alexander

You can find Tamera Alexander on Facebook to stay up to date on all her latest books.

To read more reviews on Christmas at Carnton, please visit Thomas Nelson Publisher's website. 

Finding Mercy

Mercy is still trying to figure out just who she is. After finding herself injured and suffering from amnesia, she learns from Captain Elijah Hale, that she served in the Civil War as a Confederate sharpshooter for the South. Knowing nothing more than what Captain Hale conveys to her, she struggles with coming to terms in finding out who she is. She clings to a mercy medallion she was wearing when she woke up, and now goes by the name Mercy. Captain Hale is aware of who Mercy was during the war, because the medallion she was wearing used to belong to him. As Mercy stood trial for the attempted murder of the congressman she was engaged to. After Captain Hale managed to convince the courts that Mercy was innocent of the charges, there were still those that believed she should have hanged.

Now why she pieces together clues from her past on where she might have been raised, she attempts to elude a group of bounty hunters who will stop at nothing to ensure they are paid to bring her back and see her hanged even though she is considered an innocent woman now. Traveling with Captain Hale and Issac, a young slave for a time, she manages to lose them in an effort so find her memories without involving the two people who mean the world to her. However, Mercy's troubles are far from over when she realizes that no one person is an island, and everyone needs help from those you can trust. Out of food and exhausted, Mercy stumbles into a slave camp and begs for something to eat. Since they are just as poor as she is, she consumes the leftover fish a boat tosses nearby. But that soon turns to food poisoning and the only help she can find is Fort Danielson, who is supposed to be manned by the Confederate army, but she is more than surprised to find the Union soldiers have now taken over the fort and its been quite a while since any of them have seen a woman, especially one in the condition she is in.

I received Finding Mercy by Michael Landon Jr and Cindy Kelley compliments of David C. Cook Publishers and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation and the opinions expressed here are strictly my own. This is the sequel to Traces of Mercy and picks up precisely where the first novel left off. Fans of the American Civil War will appreciate the details in this historical novel from the hatred of the Civil War supporters, to the issue dealing with plantation slaves and their respective owners just trying to recover from the war, even though Abraham Lincoln had declared them emancipated and now free. Recovery was difficult for them all and soon Mercy discovers her long lost past isn't what she remembers at all. Will the picture of one man provide the clues she has been searching for or will it merely be another dead end? You'll have to read this one to find out. I rate this one a 4 out of 5 stars and is the second novel in the Mercy Medallion Series. There is a great discussion guide for book groups at the end as well as an author note details the role women played in the Civil War.

For more information about Finding Mercy, Michael Landon Jr., Cindy Kelley or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Finding Mercy by Michael Landon Jr. and Cindy Kelley

You can find Michael Landon Jr. on Facebook to stay up to date with all his latest novels and projects.

You can find Cindy Kelley on Facebook to stay up to date on all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on Finding Mercy, please visit Christian Fiction Blog Alliances book tour page.

Carolina Gold

Charlotte Fraser has gumption. A willingness to dig deep even though the men around her believe that she will ultimately fail. With the death of her father behind her, she heads back to her family home in Fairhaven now that the Civil War has ended. She has been told not to expect anything to be left since the freed slaves and Yankees have left nothing of value behind. She knows she will need to do whatever she can to ensure that the rice crop is planted to provide a living for her and to pay back the bank loan she has acquired. The only thing that remains in her name is the property at Fairhaven as well as the summer home at Pelican Cottage. The only question is the validity of her families claims on the property at Fairhaven since a land deed in her father's name can't be found.

Charlotte hopes that the remaining clue her father whispered to her about remembering the fire will lead her to discover some hope that she will not have to leave the only home she has ever known. She is more than pleased to find that some of the families she has grown up with have also moved back to South Carolina but now that all the slaves are free, Charlotte isn't quite sure how she will manage planting rice crops with no labor available. The only few men remaining now realize that they can charge Charlotte whatever the going rate is to restore some of her crops. When she arrives home, she finds the family home literally gutted. Not even the bathtub remains. The barn is in shambles, no live stock remains, and the fields where her family grew lots of rice and vegetables is in a state of disrepair. She soon bands together with the local family to hire a group of men to help plant their rice crops along with selling her stories to the Enterprise newspaper about the Southern Reconstruction efforts.

When Nicholas Betancourt moves back to Willowood, he hopes he can pursued her to tutor his two young girls while he himself attempts to start over, but Charlotte is far from qualified to teach anyone. Her methods don't follow the tradition formal training a teacher would use but she could definitely use the money to help make ends meet. Nicholas is hoping that having a woman's presence back in his daughters lives will help them readjust to a life after the death of their mother. Soon Charlotte finds a friendship with Nicholas she wasn't expecting and wonders if love can possibly arrive from the ashes of war. Being a woman living alone presents some problems for her but nothing she can't manage with raw determination and grit. Now if she can only put her mind at ease and locate the papers her father must have had to show ownership of the property otherwise all the money she is investing will be in vain.

I received Carolina Gold by Dorothy Love compliments of Thomas Nelson Publishers and Litfuse Publicity for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed are strictly my own. This novel was based on the true story of a Carolina rice plantation owner Elizabeth Allston Pringle. The author Dorothy Love shares just how she came to develop the storyline which gives readers an inside look at how this woman struggles in the midst of coming home after the Civil War and trying to make a start of things when life was extremely difficult with the many changes the war left. I have read every single book that Dorothy Love has written and once again, I give this one a 5 out of 5 stars. I love historical fiction and learning a little bit about history that I had never known before.

For more information about Carolina Gold, Dorothy Love, or where to pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Carolina Gold by Dorothy Love

You can find Dorothy Love on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest novels. 

To read more reviews on Carolina Gold from the Litfuse Publicity Book Tour, please click here. 

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (December 10, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 140168761X
• ISBN-13: 978-1401687618
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 1 inches

Don't miss Dorothy Love's latest historical novel, Carolina Gold. Fun news: The release of Carolina Gold coincides with Dorothy's birthday. Celebrate with her by entering the Southern Essentials Giveaway and RSVPing to her Facebook party on January 14th!

 
Between January 3–14, visit Dorothy Love's Facebook Page to enter to win a new giveaway each day and be entered to win the $100 Visa Cash Card grand prize. Winners will be announced at the Facebook Author Chat party on January 14th! (Don't have a Facebook account? Enter here.) RSVP today for Dorothy's Carolina Gold Author Chat Party on Facebook.

During the party Dorothy will be hosting a book chat, testing your trivia skills, announcing the winner of the Southern Essentials Giveaway, and giving away books, gift certificates, and more. Oh, and she'll also be giving partygoers an exclusive look at her next book!

So grab your copy of Carolina Gold and help Dorothy celebrate her birthday on the evening of January 14th! (If you haven’t read the book, don’t let that stop you from coming!)

DON’T MISS A MOMENT OF THE FUN; RSVP TODAY. HOPE TO SEE YOU ON THE 14th!

Traces of Mercy

For a woman known only as Mercy, a name bestowed upon her by a group of Nuns where she was living has the difficulty of two lives, one known and one becoming known. Mercy was found by a group of men, dressed like a man and with her chest bound at the buried under a wagon that had gone over a cliff. Now that she is in the process of recovering from her physical injuries, she can't remember who she is or what she was doing. She can't even remember anything as simple as her name. Now armed with learning things day by day as she retains the memories of only her present day, she struggles with understanding just who she was and what she was doing when she was found.

The only clue to her past lies with the clothes she was found it and the medallion she was wearing around her neck. A medallion that is meant to remind the wearer to pray for safety, Our Lady of Mercy. Now if she can only remember her past, she might have some ideas of what her future holds. Until that time, the doctor has arranged for a group of nuns at the Little Sisters of Hope to care for her and also a journal for her to write down her thoughts. It might be something in her writing that might trigger the memory that remains the only area that she hasn't been able to heal from.

When a chance encounter while out riding a horse to a nearby park in the heat of the day, she spots a peaceful looking pond. Thinking that a nice cool swim might just hit the spot while she waits for her horse to drink, she takes a plunge literally into a life altering course of action. Just as soon as she is stripped down to her undergarments, a carriage arrives with Rand Prescott and his date Cora on a picnic. Thinking that Mercy is a man, Rand asks Cora to turn her back and as Mercy rises from the lake it is apparent that he has mistaken her gender. More than embarrassed, Rand tries to apologize for his rude behavior but Cora isn't about to let it go. It will be just that fateful encounter alone that will bind Mercy and Rand in an unexpected way.

I received Traces of Mercy by Michael Landon Jr and Cindy Kelly compliments of David C Cook Publishers and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions contained here are strictly my own. This one for me was hard to immerse myself in, despite knowing that the author was indeed the son of actor Michael Landon. The beginning was hard to draw the reader in and I found myself wandering more than I wanted to with when the story was about to get interesting. I like the premise overall and without going into too many details as that would give away the ending, I will say I did not like how it ended. I was hoping for so much more and was simply left wanting more. Not in a great way as to make me pick up the next novel in this book, but disappointed is a more appropriate term. For those that love novels surrounding the American Civil War with a romantic twist, then this might be one you'd like. For me, I'd rate this one a 4 out of 5 stars and it simply wasn't one I could really get into the storyline without losing interest.

For more information about Traces of Mercy, Michael Landon Jr or Cindy Kelley, or where to pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Traces of Mercy by Michael Landon Jr and Cindy Kelley

 For more reviews on Traces of Mercy from the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance Book Tour, please click here. 

• Series: Mercy Medallion Trilogy
• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: David C. Cook (October 1, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0781408695
• ISBN-13: 978-0781408691
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 1 inches

A Heartbeat Away

AHeartbeatAway - Medium from S. Dionne Moore on Vimeo.


In the heat of the Civil War, Beth Bumgartner is called into action in a way she never dreamed. Her grandmother has asked her to join her as a nurse helping the wounded even though their very lives may be at risk as well as grandmother's home. Now that the Rebel soldiers have made their way into Harper's Ferry, many in the town have taken what little personal affects they possess and have attempted to make their way to safe places to hide until the war is over and they hope they still have a home standing. Only while her brother Jedediah has left to fight in the war against the North, she has been called to help care for the soldiers who have invaded their town.

It is through her grandmother's persistence that Beth finds the strength and will to at least offer what comfort she can provide, through reading Scriptures, writing last letters or simply praying for them before most slip into their everlasting sleep. She wonders just what effects her efforts will have on men that are doomed to die anyway, and despite defying her parents and at least trying to help, she knows she must stay. She can't leave her grandmother Greta alone.

When a Confederate soldier is brought to the home, she is asked to care for him despite that the odds are against this man. He has saved the lives of three slaves and it is through their pleads that Beth and her grandmother offer to help. Through faithful prayers and continued care, Joe fights his way back to the land of the living and offers a small peak into the war that many don't see. He fights night terrors where he faces losing his brother Ben to a mysterious man who seems bent on killing Ben and leaving Joe in the care of the slaves. He feels there is more to the puzzle that what bits and pieces his mind offers if he can only find those slaves that he helped. They might just provide him the answers he so desperately seeks.

Along the way Beth pieces together a quilt that her mother had sent along as a reminder and a message from home. What that message is will be revealed as Beth pieces it together and finds hope in not only coming to terms with her own disability but being able to see this war through the eyes of God and let the hate she holds inside finally heal. In the end that is the message that truly matters and will resound with readers of A Heartbeat Away by S. Dionne Moore, one of the many novels in the Quilts of Love Series.

I received A Heartbeat Away by S. Dionne Moore compliments of Abingdon Press and Litfuse Publicity Book Tours for my honest review and received no monetary compensation for a favorable one. This novel is part of the Quilts of Love Series written by a variety of authors and this is the first for S. Dionne Moore. This gives the readers an inside look at what life in the South really looked like in the midst of the Battle of Antietam and just how brutal it was from both sides of the war. It is hard to imagine men in our own country turning against each other but that is just one of the effects of a Civil War. The message in this novel is one about hope and finding it in one of the darkest times in our life. It's always there one just has to keep pursuing it in order to find it. I rate this one a 4 out of 5 stars and you can find this at your local retailer. Even though they are part of a series, since each novel deals with something different you can pick up any of them as they are stand alones in a greater series.

To find out more about A Heartbeat Away, S. Dionne Moore or where to pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

A Heartbeat Away by S. Dionne Moore

To read more reviews on A Heartbeat Away from the Litfuse Publicity Book Tour, please click here.

Wedded To War

"No one knows, who did not watch the thing from the beginning, how much opposition, how much ill-will, how much unfeeling want of thought, these women nurses endured. Hardly a surgeon whom I can think of, received or treated them with even common courtesy. Government had decided that women should be employed, and the army surgeons - unable, therefore, to close the hospitals against them - determined to make their lives so unbearable that they should be forced in self-defence to leave. It seemed a matter of cool calculation, just how much ill-mannered opposition would be requisite to break up the system.

Some of the bravest women I have ever known were among this first company of army nurses. They saw at once the position of affairs, the attitude assumed by the surgeons and the wall against which they were expected to break and scatter; and they set themselves to undermine the whole thing." ~ Geogeanna Woolsey, written in 1864

Anyone who has benefited from the Red Cross owes a nod of gratitude to the United States Sanitary Commission, the forerunner of one of today's most recognized charitable organizations.

The Sanitary Commission set up supply stations and hospitals, hired nurses, collected donations, sent inspectors to Union hospitals (to evaluate hygiene conditions that directly affected men's health), and taught troops in camp how to cook food properly to prevent the spread of disease. They also organized and staffed a fleet of hospital ships both in the eastern and western theaters of war.



Though Wedded to War by Jocelyn Green is a work of fiction, the story inspired by one Sanitary Commission nurse, Georgeanna Woolsey, whose letters and journals, written 150 years ago, offer a thorough look of what pioneering women nurses endured during those turbulent times. Charlotte Wavely is only 28, hardly of age to apply for the nursing program she had seen an advertisement for in the paper, but since trying to find a husband has proved futile, she longs for a way to contribute to the war efforts besides merely gathering medical supplies. While she knows her mother would not approve, she applies for the program anyway and is more than surprised to be accepted by Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell, one of the first women to become a doctor.

Phineas Hastings however, has plans to wed Charlotte and when he proposes, he expects her not only to accept his proposal but to also give up the notion to join the nursing program and learn to be a proper wife. So when Charlotte refuses to accept, he seems convinced to win her at any cost.

Caleb Lansing has been a close childhood friend to Charlotte and even helped her care for her ailing father when he came down with cholera until he passed away despite all their best efforts. Now after he has completed all his medical training, he has joined in the war in an effort to keep Charlotte off his mind, but no matter what he does, he can't give up the notion that he is truly in love with her. His only hope is the written letters Charlotte sends him to remind him a bit of the life he has left behind and learns she is training to become a nurse. While one man demands his way, another one encourages her to use the gifts God has given her, yet her heart is torn between the two. Will Charlotte's heart, survive the war long enough to find true love?

I received Wedded to War by Jocelyn Green compliments of Christian Fiction Blog Alliance and River North Publishing for my honest review. I am a huge fan of history and never before really understood just how difficult it was for women to help out in the war simply by becoming nurses, something you would think men would whole heartily accept since they are natural caregivers, but through the historical research Jocelyn Green did, you learn that this wasn't an easy path for women to follow. It took more than strong stomachs to endure the horrors of what they had to deal with along with a strong determination to stand their grounds against male stereotypes that did their best to discourage them in ever way possible. I rate this one a 5 out of 5 stars and a must read for anyone interested in the roles women played during the Civil War. Even though this is a fictional novel, it's a real as it gets based on the facts and research Jocelyn did to make this one as believable as if you were right there in the trenches with them.

For more information on Wedded to War, Jocelyn Green or where to pick up book 1, in the Heroines Behind the Lines Series, click on the links below:

Wedded to War by Jocelyn Green

You can also read more reviews from this book tour, by clicking here.

Touching The Sky

Laura Marquardt soon learns that being a strong, smart and independent women will win her the attention of two very different men and for two very different reasons in the historical fiction, Touching the Sky by Tracie Peterson. Set in the mid 1800's at the end of the civil war between the states, hostilities still run high between the North and South and those who remain loyal to either side. The Marquardt household even though residing the Texas maintain loyalties with the North with the Ironclad Oath. It seems however that some animosity still resides among their own citizens in Texas to the Marquardt family.

Most of their friends and family believed that the Emancipation Proclamation wasn't such a good idea and now will Lincoln dead, many feel that the war needs to rise up once again in the South. So when Malcolm Lowe arrives to begin courting Carissa Marquardt and eventually marry her, he has more on his mind that just wedding plans. Malcolm Lowe served in the Southern army and isn't so happy to have people like Captain Brandon Reid living among them as well as most of colored troops that he served over from the North. Now Malcolm is making plans with other men who feel the same as he does to make sure that the South will rise up and claim what they feel is their just reward and to take as many of the Yankees and colored with them.

Captain Reid is assigned to find out information about Malcolm whom the Northern Army feels is up to no good in Texas, so when he is asked to attend a party at the Marquardt's, he doesn't plan on falling for Laura in the process. Yet trying to keep both of his obligations separate, he struggles with wanting to tell her the truth about his actions so she doesn't believe that he is using her to get close to Malcolm. So when an opportunity presents itself that Laura finds out information about Malcolm that she believes he is planning to murder innocent people, it provides an open door for Brandon to help her without telling her everything. But will he have the opportunity to be completely honest with her before Malcolm's plans have a chance to be carried out, or will Laura find herself in danger without an opportunity to know just how Brandon feels?

I received Touching the Sky by Tracie Peterson compliments of Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review and found this story captivating. On one end you have the building tension between Malcolm and his hate for the Northern supporters and on the other side, the romance building between Brandon and Laura which keeps you wondering just where this will all end. This is the second book in the Land of the Lone Star series and I can't wait to see where this one will conclude. If you haven't read the first book in this series, this book can be enjoyed as a stand alone. However, being a huge fan of Tracie Peterson's novels, I know you will want to go back and enjoy the first one as well. She writes so well and is noticeable of her time periods. I think this is the draw readers enjoy as they immerse themselves into the story. For that I rate this book a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

For more information on Touching the Sky, Tracie Peterson, and where to pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Touching the Sky by Tracie Peterson

You can also stay on top of Tracie's books by following her on Facebook by clicking here.

His Steadfast Love

Imagine if you will, being in Texas just on the Gulf. It's the spring of 1861 and Amanda Bell is the oldest of four sisters and a brother she is helping to raise along with her father, Pastor Ezekiel Bell on their southern plantation. Her mother passed away and left Amanda tasked with raising her siblings until they are old enough to fend for themselves.

However with the rivalry between the North and the South, the stirrings of a Civil War is on the horizon and Amanda's only brother Daniel is willing to go to war to defend the South's position on slavery. What he doesn't seem to understand is even though they treat their slaves well, they are still not free. However Pastor Bell provides his blessing over Daniel as he heads off to war along with his childhood friends and Amanda is helpless to stop him.

When Amanda meets Captain Kent Littlefield during a church service, she finds her heart pulled in a way she hadn't expected. Now that the war has begun, Captain Littlefield has been called to duty fighting for the North, which now puts her at odds with the man she loves from the North, going to war with the brother she loves from the South. Will either of them return home from the war? Or will this war keep her love at a crossroads she can never hope to cross battle lines?

In the latest novel by Golden Keyes Parsons, His Steadfast Love, shows the horrors of what men, fathers, sons and families had to endure when our own country went to war against itself. In the end, lines were drawn and even when the war ended some feelings would never be resolved over what men had witnessed during their time of war. This is a chilling, fictional account of the Civil War that was waged in regards to the issue over men's freedom within our own country and along the way, God and love will prevail.

I received His Steadfast Love compliments of Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review and was amazed at this fictional account of one of our countries bloodiest battles on our own soil and the amount of lives that were lost in the war. Amanda Bell is a strong woman character I could relate to, who was willing to put aside her feelings of duty to her family and learn to listen to her heart and God's word. I rate this one a 5 out of 5 stars and would recommend this to anyone who loves historical romance!

For more information about this book, the author and where to pick up a copy of this book, please click on the link below:

His Steadfast Love by Golden Keyes Parsons

An Eye For Glory

It must never be thought that the field of battle falls silent once the fighting stops, for when the guns cease firing and the last echoes die, the wailing cries of the thousands of wounded arise in a pitiable chorus of woe. A short distance away I heard the rasping liquid breathing of a man who had probably been shot in the upper chest or throat. The whimpering sighs and guttural groans of those in the throes of deepest distress formed the cords of the ostinato, while from every direction individual voices called out their solo pleas, praying for help, hoping for deliverance.

"Help me...please help me.."
"I can't feel anything...just cold..."
"Hail Mary, full of grace, blessed art thou..."
"I am so sorry, Mother..."
"A sip of water...anyone...anyone..."
"Father, forgive this dying sinner..."
"Your Josh will not be home again..."
"Don't leave me, friend..."
"For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory..."

Then, from somewhere behind that dreadful rock wall, perhaps atop the frowning hill that had loomed over us all day, and carried between the lines upon a light breeze on that cold night, I heard the mournful strains of a violin as some soldier in gray or butternut bowed his own musical requiem out over that plan. The tune I did not know, but the sentiment that soldier conveyed was exceedingly somber and too familiar. So many died, and more would die before the dawn. (pg 125).

An Eye for Glory by Karl A. Bacon is the latest novel that chronicles the life of a citizen soldier in the Civil War. Eloquently told in breath-taking detail you can almost smell the gunpowder and hear the passing of a musket ball just inches from your face. This is an amazing book that any lover of war stories would love to read.

Using first hand accounts of the 14th Connecticut Infantry, author Karl Bacon has crafted a detail, genuine, and compelling novel on the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. Never reading a book like this before has changed me in ways I could have never imagined as we relive what it must have been like on the battlefields fighting for the end of slavery against the North and South within our own country.

I received this book compliments of Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review and was humbled by the stories seen through the eyes of Union soldier Michael Palmer as he leaves behind his wife and family to head off to the war. This book rates a 5 out of 5 American stars for me! It is available in paperback, MP3 and eBook formats.

Here's even more great information on this book, the author and where to get a first chapter peek.

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing An Eye For Glory Zondervan (February 28, 2011) by Karl Bacon
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A word from the author:

I grew up in the small picturesque town of Woodbury, Connecticut. After graduating from Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, I returned to Connecticut and found employment in manufacturing. “Just a job” turned into a professional career, much of which was spent working for a Swiss machine tool company. In 2000 I started my own business to provide services to manufacturing clients across the USA. This change also allowed time to develop my writing craft.

From youth I’ve been a serious student of the Civil War. The draft of An Eye for Glory took ten years from conception to completion. Thousands of hours were spent researching every detail through copious reading, Internet research and personal visits to each battlefield so the novel might be as historically accurate and believable as possible. I live in Naugatuck, Connecticut with my wife of thirty-three years, Jackie.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Michael Palmer is a good man, a family man. But honor and duty push him to leave his comfortable life and answer the call from Abraham Lincoln to fight for his country. This 'citizen soldier' learns quickly that war is more than the battle on the field. Long marches under extreme conditions, illness, and disillusionment challenge at every turn. Faith seems lost in a blur of smoke and blood...and death.

Michael's only desire is to kill as many Confederate soldiers as he can so he can go home. He coldly counts off the rebels that fall to his bullets. Until he is brought up short by a dying man holding up his Bible. It's in the heat of battle at Gettysburg and the solemn aftermath that Michael begins to understand the grave cost of the war upon his soul. Here the journey really begins as he searches for the man he was and the faith he once held so dearly. With the help of his beloved wife, Jesse Ann, he takes the final steps towards redemption and reconciliation.

Using first-hand accounts of the 14th Connecticut Infantry, Karl Bacon has crafted a detailed, genuine and compelling novel on the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. Intensely personal and accurate to the times, culture, and tragedy of the Civil War, An Eye for Glory may change you in ways you could have never imagined as well.

If you would like to read the first chapter of An Eye For Glory, go HERE.

Watch book video trailer: