Song of Silence

"There are moments in life, seasons in life, when it seems that God goes silent. We wait. We listen. Nothing. No movement. No stirring. No signs of hope or relief. In the silence, it's tempting to believe nothing is happening. Good musicians understand the crucial role silence plays in music. The pause creates tension. They give weight to what is about to come or what has just passes. These silences are not empty, dead space. They're the crucial, fertile silences that make a song what it is. Musically speaking, in the silence, something is happening.

"In your season of waiting on God to speak, don't be fooled into thinking that just because nothing's happening, nothing's happening. In the silence, a song is brewing. Even now, in the quiet pause, in the desperate waiting between what was and what is to come, a song is being composed. You are becoming, and this becoming is not empty and passive. It's active, fertile and alive no matter how hidden it may seem to your ears. Wherever you find yourself waiting...keep composing. Keep becoming. Keep hoping and listening. Somewhere beneath the silence that is your life, a faint chord is striking, a song is brewing. - Brad Nelson, Restoration Living" (pg 201-201).

Such profound advice for retired music teacher Lucy Tuttle who finds herself afloat in her life without a sure way to figure out what is next. Being forced into early retirement when the school board votes to eliminate the music program, she feels like she has no voice. No song left to sing. Her husband Charlie, who has been retired is looking forward to this chapter of their life where he has hopes of spending it with Lucy. Lucy realizes how much this early retirement will cut into their finances and can't seem to get her head above water long enough to figure out what she is going to do.

Her daughter Olivia, needs to move home temporarily while she finishes up school and at the same time, her son just announces that he is getting married to someone who he has barely known at all. Along with that relationship comes the fact of dealing with Sasha who is deaf and her son Evan who has Asperger's. Just how much more can one woman be expected to deal with at this stage in her life when age seems to play an imminent role in her finding another teaching position. The last thing she wants to do is hang out with her husband Charlie who is considering going into the worm farm business and Lucy would make the perfect partner.

I received Song of Silence by Cynthia Ruchti compliments of Abingdon Press and Litfuse Publicity for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation aside from a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This is such a great novel as I find myself considering entering the work force at the same age as Lucy is and wondering how I will be received. I couldn't imagine dealing with all that she is faced with all at the same time. Love her HHATT group, her doctor has her meet with and can only hope I can form my own such group to share my inner most woman feelings with to those who can truly understand. For me, this one easily goes down as a 5 out of 5 stars and a Reader's Discussion Guide is included for those real book clubs to enjoy! I hope Cynthia decides to expand this into a series of the women we meet in Lucy's HHATT group! Would love to know their stories!

For more information about Song of Silence, Cynthia Ruchti or where you can pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Song of Silence by Cynthia Ruchti

You can find Cynthia Ruchti on Facebook to stay up to date on all her latest novels.

For more reviews on Song of Silence, please visit Litfuse Publicity's Book Tour Page.


As the music fades and a chasm separates her from the passion of her heart, will Lucy's faith song go silent, too? Find out in Cynthia Ruchti's new book, Song of Silence. The musical score of her life seems to be missing all the notes. When a simple misstep threatens to silence Lucy forever, a young boy and his soundless mother change the way she sees—and hears—everything.

Celebrate the release of Song of Silence with a blog tour and giveaway. Two winners will be chosen!

 

One grand prize winner will receive:

• A copy of Song of Silence
• A $150 Visa cash card

One second place winner will receive:

• A copy of Song of Silence
• A music-themed prize pack filled with goodies hand-picked by Cynthia

Enter today by clicking the icon below. But hurry! The giveaway ends on May 9th. The winners will be announced May 10th on Cynthia's blog.

The Face of the Earth

When you take your wedding vows, you agree to follow them until one of you or possibly both of you dies and the vow is no longer applicable. Yet what happens when your spouse simply never returns home despite being happily married? How long does one wait before it's acceptable to move forward? That is the premise behind the latest book from Deborah Raney, The Face of the Earth.

Jill and Mitchell Brannon are your typical married couple. They attend church regularly, have raised two children that are now attending college nearby and have close friends that live in the property directly behind theirs. Jill Brannon takes her husbands advice and attends a conference designed for teachers in nearby Kansas City and is expected back in a couple of days. All goes well and there's even a message awaiting Mitchell on their answering machine at home, that Jill has checked out of the hotel and is planning to see him soon with a surprise just for him. That was more than 5 hours ago. More than enough time for Jill to have driven home. There are no adverse weather conditions that would prevent her from arriving home as expected and despite all his calls to her cell phone all he gets is voicemail. How long will he have to wait before she comes home. How long would  you wait?

In the latest novel The Face of the Earth, Deborah Raney takes the reader into every single persons worst nightmare. What happens when someone you love simply vanishes off the face of the Earth without a trace. I found myself cringing at the waiting that Mitch has to do in simply not knowing where Jill has gone. The police have no clues and no real motives to speak of. Despite all his attempts to convince them that Jill is not the type to simply walk away from her marriage and family, they've seen enough cases to know this could very well be a possibility. Mitch relies on the help of Jill's best friend and their neighbor Shelley, to see if between the two of them, they might figure out where Jill is before the police can. But what if they can't? What if she simply has had a mid-life crisis and has left them all behind? Will Shelley confide in Mitch that Jill's ex boyfriend contacted her on Facebook and wanted to meet while she was away at the conference?
You'll have to pick this novel out to find out how it all ends!

I received The Face of the Earth by Deborah Raney compliments of Howard Books, a division of Simon and Schuster Publishers for my honest review and received no monetary compensation for a favorable one. This was such a compelling novel for me to not want to put it down until I knew what the outcome would be. In fact, I had to fight myself several times to not rush to the back of the book to find out more than half way through because the suspense was killing me. I forced myself to wait it out simply because like people who experience this kind of nightmare for real, the answers aren't found simply by going to the end of the book. They have to painstakingly live through it minute by minute. I am thankful that Deborah Raney decided to come up with a conclusion for this novel instead of simply leaving it as Jill never coming back and leaving the reader to come up with their own conclusions on what happened. Thank you, thank you for that! This one is a great read and makes you wonder how you would react in the similar situation, and praying that you never will have to know. I rate this one a 4.5 out of 5 stars and have added this to my growing Deborah Raney library of novels.

For more information about The Face of the Earth, Deborah Raney, or where to pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

The Face of the Earth by Deborah Raney

You can also find Deborah Raney on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest novels.

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Howard Books; Original edition (May 14, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416599975
• ISBN-13: 978-1416599975
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 1 inches 

You can find this novel at your local book retailer in paperback or eBook formats. 

Forgotten

Emma Tupper never imagined when her mother passed away leaving her a ticket to Africa that her life would take unexpected turns she never imagined. As a dedicated lawyer just on the brink of making partner, she faces a choice. If she takes the trip to Africa, she forfeits her partnership with the law firm of Thompson, Price & Clearwater, and has to apply for it next year or she can turn down the trip which is what the lawfirm hopes she will opt for since she is one of their top litigators. She decides to take the trip to Africa as a dying promise to her mother vowing she will return in a month. Her boyfriend/coworker, Craig offers to go with her on the trip, but Emma tells him she has to do this by herself and to provide time to think through where her life is headed.

When she returns from the trip six months later, she learns that everyone assumed she was dead. In a twisted set of circumstances in her trip to Africa, she gets ill and has to be transported to a NGO medical center for care. While recovering there, a massive earthquake hits the country leaving them without communication and transportation for months. Since Emma's illness wasn't reported to her tour guide company, her last known location was in the city of the earthquakes epicenter and she was presumed dead.

Emma doesn't realize the complications of her six-month absence until she returns back to the United States and can't locate her car in the airport parking lot. Assuming nothing out of the ordinary, she takes a cab home and when she attempts to try her key in her apartment, it won't work. As a blizzard sets in that night in New York City, she is out on the street, all the numbers of her contacts are disconnected or she can only leave messages and just spent the last of her cash on the cab fare. Even the ATM machine declines her card. She is about to learn just how much the trip to Africa has changed the life she knew it and will force her to make some hard decisions about what to do next.

I received Forgotten by Catherine McKenzie compliments of William Morrow, a division of Harper Collins Publishers for my honest review. I can't imagine how so many people would assume the worst about Emma and how quickly most of her friends have moved on with their new lives. I really like how Dominic, the man now living in her apartment comes to her aid as the most unlikely of heroes and helps her find her way back to life. Perhaps starting over isn't as bad as she had thought. I rate this one a 4 out of 5 stars and it does contain some profanity which might offend some readers but the premise behind the story is amazing. If you had a chance to start over, would you take it?

For more information about Forgotten, Catherine McKenzie or where to pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Forgotten by Catherine McKenzie

You can also find Catherine McKenzie on Facebook by clicking here. 

You can also find Catherine McKenzie on her website by clicking here. 

The Song Remains The Same

Nell Slattery's life is about to be changed forever in a split second. When she awakens in a hospital room, one of only two survivors of a plane crash, she finds herself without any memories of just who she is, what her life has been up to this point and what has happened to her.

Her first moments in the hospital have revealed to her that she is married to a man in the room she doesn't remember and her mother is there, again someone she doesn't recognize. After meeting with Anderson Carroll, a big name celebrity, she learns that she was his hero while the plane was going down. Apparently while he had too much to drink and was beginning to panic, they discussed their favorite bands and music in hopes it might take their minds off of what was going on around them.

Aside from this conversation, she finds both herself and Anderson on the front cover of People magazine and sees a picture of herself that she can't remember, but mostly doesn't show her as someone she would like to know more about. While Nell learns that her husband has been having an affair with a co-worker writing music jingles, she works with Jaime Reardon, an up and coming news reporter to help her investigate her own life and hopefully begin to make some positive changes into the person she would like to become.

In the novel The Song Remains the Same by Allison Winn Scotch, Nell's life is choreographed to some familiar music that ties in with chapters of her previous life throughout the book. As Nell begins to unravel her past and begins to rebuild a better future for herself, as a reader we begin to wonder what would we do if faced with similar circumstances in our own life. Would you reinvent yourself or pursue digging into a self discovery and hope you find something you like? This is just what the character of Nell does when given a second chance so to speak. Whether she gets her memory back or not, will have to wait until you, yourself, get an opportunity to read this novel.

I received this book compliments of TLC Book Tours for my honest review. I like the character of Nell because even though she can't remember much she takes on a new role in her moving forward with a sense of courage and also one of forgiveness and she tries to find out more about her past she wasn't really interested in much before. I rate this one a 4 out of 5 stars and for more information on this book, the author and where to pick up a copy of this book, please click on the link below:

The Song Remains the Same by Allison Winn Scotch