Wonder

If you have never read Travis Thrasher's novels, he pretty much has a novel written to meet every interest but for me, nothing is more thrilling than to find Christian authors who know how to keep you glued to their novels, add the element of suspense and things that go bump in the dark, and you have me on their waiting list for the next one!

In the coming of age series geared more for the young adult or teen fans, The Books of Marvella have struck a cord in this book lover's heart! To say that there is something evil coming in the town of Appleton, earmarks what you will find when you enter the life of Brandon Jeffrey, a senior struggling to make his way in a difficult world marked by two unsolved murders involving teens that have happened in his town.

To say that the town is on edge is an understatement. Parents are concerned that their teens don't go out at night or alone until the person or persons responsible are caught. There is something brewing with an elderly man known as Otis who owns the quarry. Late at night he can be seen burying things in the back of his house but no one knows what is is. Now it seems he has formed a following when Brandon's best friend Devon, takes up watching his nightly activities believing he is behind the sinister evil building in town. Brandon doesn't want anything to do with stalking people at night especially when he is dealing with his own abusive alcoholic father who almost killed him in a car accident, watching over his younger brothers, keeping the secrets of the abuse from his mother, and trying to win the girl of his dreams.

Sounds like the typical life for a senior teen living in Appleton right? Now that school is back in session, all those summer escapades have not been forgotten. Brandon's intervention with the school's bullies, who also happen to be on the football team, have not gone unnoticed. Brandon's ex girlfriend, Taryn is stirring up trouble for Marvel on Social Media sites and Marvel still believes she will die doing something for God's glory and it will happen sooner than everyone believes. So just what is hiding in the shadows of Appleton? Only time will tell.

I received Wonder by Travis Thrasher compliments of NavPress, a division of Tyndale House Publishers for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed here are strictly my own. The best part of this entire series, is the tension that Travis is building but not sharing what is really going on. He is keeping that just beyond what the reader can see, but the suspense element that keeps coming from each of this novels is growing. Evil is slowly showing itself in the unexplained and just who is the hippie older man, Phil who shows up just when Brandon seems to be willing to take unexpected risks? We know he works at the record store with Brandon, but is there a spiritual element here at work as well? All I can tell you is that I can't wait for the next novel and poor Travis Thrasher can't write fast enough for me. This one hits it out of the park again with a stellar 5 out of 5 stars! Suspense fans looking for a bit of the creep factor, pick this entire series and Solitary Tales as well. This is the second novel in The Books of Marvella series with Marvelous being the first. Start there before reading Wonder or it simply won't make sense.

For more information about Wonder, Travis Thrasher or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Wonder by Travis Thrasher

You can find Travis Thrasher on Facebook to stay up to date with all his latest novels.

To read more reviews on Wonder, please visit Tyndale House Publishers website. 

Marvelous

Ever since reading the Solitary Series from best-selling author Travis Thrasher, I knew I wanted more! Something that you find yourself going back to again and again in memory of a great series. He has done just that with the Books of Marvella Series and I couldn't be more excited. Not sure how I missed knowing these were coming out, but now, I know they will be just as good if not better than  the Solitary Series was.

Marvelous is the first novel in the Books of Marvella series and begins with the life of Brandon Jeffrey, the oldest of three boys in the Jeffrey household. He is on summer break before heading into his senior year, one he is looking forward to completing in more ways than one. For Brandon it's not just about graduating, its about freedom from his abusive father who spends all his free time, drinking instead of looking for work. It is all Brandon can do to find ways to stay out of the reach of his father's drunken outbursts, which he hides from his two younger brothers and his busy hard working mother, a lawyer who can only see the best in him.

Brandon is struggling to find jobs to pay back the loan his parents provided him to buy a car, which was totaled when he loaned it to a friend. His father intends to ensure that Brandon pays all the money off this year and seeks to remind him of it whenever he gets the chance. Through a seemingly random coincidence, Brandon runs into Marvella Garcia, who goes by the name Marvel at Fantastic Street, a record store where he offers her a job even though it's not his decision. He decides she is so worth knowing he will find a way to get his boss Harry to hire her just to keep her around.

In between dealing with his father, the town of Appleton learns that a young boy Artie Duncan has been brutally murdered. While the police struggle to find suspects, they ask that all teens stay inside after dark and stay in groups. Brandon is your typical high school boy with an unbeatable crush on Marvel who insists that she only wants a friendship with Brandon. He only hopes in time he can convince her to possibly go on a date, while trying to keep the local football bullies from beating up a timid nerd named Seth. Brandon wonders if these same bullies could be the ones responsible for the death of Artie seeing as they love intimidate anyone they can.

I received Marvelous by Travis Thrasher compliments of NavPress, a division of Tyndale House Publishers for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions contained here are my own. This is such a realistic novel as told from the eyes of Brandon Jeffrey. He has his own issues to deal with coming to terms with how to handle his father, and being able to be truthful when he needs to. Trust is a big issue here, and it takes confiding in Marvel to help him come to terms with his own deep dark secrets. But the town of Appleton is hiding its own secrets while the murder investigation continues. I love the emotions that come through in each character that comes to life in this series, from the bullying of Seth and how he struggles to handle it each time he runs into the football team, to Marvel sharing her insight into what has happened in her past that has lead her on a path for God. I can't wait for the next novel Wonder which is the second book in this amazing series. Solitary Tales fans? You will definitely want this one!! I rate this a 5 out of 5 stars!!!

For more information about Marvelous, Travis Thrasher or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Marvelous by Travis Thrasher

You can find Travis Thrasher on Facebook to stay up to date on all his latest novels.

To read more reviews on Marvelous, please visit NavPress' website. 

Paige Turned

I can only imagine drinking more Starbucks in a day than the employees do, but it's all in hard days work for Paige Alder, working for her church as a youth teen intern. She thought this would be a 40 hour work week but lately it's been more along the lines of 70. On an average day she meets with around 8, teen-age girls and spends an hour, just drinking coffees, frappachinos, or just talking about whatever is on their minds. Just when she thinks she has spare time to run home to her apartment and change, she has to manage planning her best friend, Layla and her sister, Preslee's wedding as their Maid of Honor. How does she even have time for a love life?

Well now that it seems as though she has a handle on that with helping Tyler understand that she did have a past relationship with Luke, Layla's brother, but that it is definitely over in her mind, it seems as if Tyler has gotten more than cold feet when it comes to deciding if dating Paige is the thing for him. In fact, his behavior around her suggests that he is just waiting for the right opportunity to break things off with her, seeing as they haven't talked much in the last few months. But with Paige being busy at work, and dealing with wedding plans, she hasn't had time to put much thought into what is going on with Tyler. Funny, she just thought, she finally had the perfect guy, now what?

Such is the life of Paige Alder, in Paige Turned, the third book in the Paige Alder Series by Erynn Mangum. I've had the wonderful opportunity to be able to experience all three of these books in the series, and I can honestly say, this was not my favorite of the three. Dealing with all of Tyler's drama, Paige is more patient than I think most girls would have been when their "boyfriend" seems less than thrilled each time they talk or run into one another. Paige doesn't seem as concerned as I believe most girls would have at the prospect of potentially seeing him break up with her. After numerous times when she thinks he will, he simply walks away. But Paige perseveres and it pays off in the end, although by the time she got there, I was hoping she would pick things back up with Luke again. I love the part in the book when she has to meet Tyler's mother over lunch and can only imagine how difficult that would have been for anyone.

I received Paige Turned by Erynn Mangum compliments of Christian Fiction Blog Alliance and NavPress, a division of Tyndale House Publishers. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed here are strictly my own. After reviewing this one, I'd give it a 4 out of 5 stars. You can find all three of the novels in the Paige Alder series at your favorite book retailer. For more information on Paige Turned, Erynn Mangum or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Paige Turned by Erynn Mangum

You can also find Erynn Mangum on Facebook to stay up to date on her latest novels.

To read more reviews on Paige Turned, please visit Christian Fiction Blog Alliance's book tour page. 

Paige Rewritten

"There are things in my life that I would like to be permanent. Nail polish that permanently stayed on my toenails. Hair that permanently stayed away from my legs. Sweet tea that was permanently in my fridge.

Luke is not one of those things I want permanently in my life. Or even in my city.

My mom likes to say that good things come in threes. "Remember that time we went to see The Phantom of the Opera, Paige?" she always says to me. "Not only did our seats get upgraded for free, but we won those tickets to go see Wicked and we met Mariah Carey!"

By met, Mom meant "saw from a distance," and to this day, I still sear it was not Mariah Carey.

And if it was her, then I really feel the need to tell her that cornrows are not a flattering hairstyle for her.

I'm curious what Mom would say about my current situation. I really don't think I am looking at three good things.

Maybe three confusing things.

Not not good things. 

Paige Alder is ready for some permanence in her life. For one, a job that allows her to utilize the college degree in counseling that she worked hard to achieve, not being a secretary until the day she dies working for Lawman Adoption Agency. Even with the promotion offer sitting on the table to make more money for doing exactly what she's been doing all along leaves her wanting more.

She has been trying to figure out her personal life as well with Tyler Jennings. She isn't sure if they are strictly great friends who do things whenever they can or if he wants something more than just someone to hang out with of the opposite sex. And then there is Luke Prestwick, her ex-boyfriend who has decided to move back to town and wants to see if there is a possibility to start over again. Decisions, decisions just what is a girl to do?

On top of that, her long lost sister, Preslee has come home with news that she has found God and wants a relationship with her family again including Paige. But is it really that easy to simply forgive despite all the pain she has inflicted on her parents as well as herself when she decided she didn't need them in her life any longer?

I received Paige Rewritten by Erynn Mangum compliments of NavPress and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed here are strictly my own. Once again Erynn has done it again. I absolutely LOVE this series, possibly because I find myself living in Paige Alder's shoes! Such decisions that she has to deal with and wondering just where she is going in life. At some point she has to deal with her sister returning to the family fold and while her parents are easy to forgive, Paige isn't. Like a contemporary twist on the prodigal son, Paige finds herself relating to the older son from the Bible story more than she'd like and even the advice she hands out to her high school girls in Bible Study about forgiveness hard to swallow. How can she talk about the ability for them to forgive people who have hurt them, when she is having a difficult time doing the same? I have to warn you however, this one does end on a cliff hanger and will make you wish the third novel in the series was available immediately! For me, this one once again hits a stellar homerun for my book lover's heart and I give this one a 5 out of 5 stars.

This is the second novel in the Paige Alder series, with Paige Torn being the first. While you don't have to read the first one to truly LOVE this one, I would highly recommend it. Erynn's writing style is so easy going, you truly feel like you're more than just reading this novel. You feel like you're living it!  Don't let the cover fool you, you'll want to pick this entire series up! For more information about Paige Rewritten, Erynn Mangum or where to pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Paige Rewritten by Erynn Mangum

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

To read more reviews on Paige Rewritten from the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance Book Tour, please click here. 

• Series: Paige Alder Series (Book 2)
• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: NavPress (September 7, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1612913210
• ISBN-13: 978-1612913216
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches