Madam President, by Nicolle Wallace

First of all I would like to thank Net Galley and Simon & Schuster for providing me a review copy, for no cost, of this novel in exchange for an unbiased review.

If you were a fan of West Wing or enjoy the new TV series, Madam Secretary, then this book will be something that you thoroughly enjoy.

I felt that the book took some time to get into, since it talked about terrorist attacks on America and the Presidents response to those. The reason for this is that you don’t get back to those attacks until almost half way through the book.

But as I thought about it I realized that Nicolle Wallace took us through a detailed development of the cast of characters that was necessary for the story to come to life and for us to understand the responses of each of the people to the crisis that would face them.

The book is written as a “Day in the Life of” the President as it will entail mainly one 24 hour period of her administration, the day that terrorist attack 5 different sites in America.

You will follow the first female President as well as her female Vice-President, Defense Secretary and Press Secretary. Then there is the development of her Chief of State, Craig, one of the few men detailed in the book other than the husbands or boyfriends of the women of the Administration.

I thought the character development was very good. I thought that the personalities of the characters were developed and came to life very well in the crisis of the story. I particularly enjoyed how realistically Wallace painted President Kramer and her own personal crisis with her husband, loosing a good friend and then the strained relationship with her daughter. All of these things brought a very human quality to the President instead of painting her as just a Political President with no soul.

As you start to read, don’t get discouraged by not reaching the crisis too soon. You will find that the backstory development is highly necessary and it creates a wonderful read.

Enjoy!

At the Waters Edge, by Sara Gruen

At The Waters Edge, by Sara Gruen

First of all I want to thank Net Galley and the Publisher, Random House, for making an advance review copy of this book available to me for no cost, in exchange for a review.

There are several themes that run through this Saga about three young people during World War II and their personal issues. I was surprised by some of the low ratings that the book has received, but I think that is because it is not a fast paced, thrill ride about WWII. Instead it is a book about the personalities of the main characters and how they relate to each other and others.

The themes that I picked out were:

1.     The clash of Societal structures, in other words, how the wealthy view the working class.

2.     The importance upper society places on marrying the right partner

3.     The importance of upper society places on their children fulfilling the dreams of the parents.

4.     The fear some young men have of war and the lengths they will go to in order not to serve

5.     How Pride and Prejudice (yes Jane Austen Fans that is a theme) will influence two young men in regards to the others around them

6.     How a marriage needs to be developed and cared for and not taken lightly

7.     How war devastates families and countries

8.     How one hero who survives the war can still loose everything

9.     How love can conquer all and bring two people happiness

Those are just a few of the themes that I found in the book. I thought that Sara Gruen did a masterful job of developing each of the characters, whether they were the main characters or just the supporting cast.

She also does a great job of bringing to light the hardships that the people of England and Scotland went through during the war so that the battle could be waged and won. Also, the complete devastation that war brings on countries as citizens and young men of fighting age are brutally slaughtered in the pursuit of victory.

Also, there is a good case study of how the lack of American involvement was viewed until they finally joined the fight.

Then there is the plot of the story about the search for the Loc Nest Monster that the two main characters are engaged in to try and bring a name to themselves.

I was drawn, slowly, into the story but by the end I couldn’t put it down, I wanted to know how things would end.

I don’t think you will be disappointed in this book, it will bring you issues to think about and items that you need to take a look at yourself to make sure that you don’t end up having issues of pride or prejudice in your life.

Enjoy!

Mortal Threat, by A.J. Tata

First of all I want to the Publisher and Net Galley for making a review copy of this book available to me at no cost in exchange for an honest review.

Mortal threat is an entertaining novel that delves into today's world and the crisis that we face with Ebola, HIV and ISIS. It also shows the problem that can occur when an elected official (in this case the President of the United States) starts to think to highly of himself and takes on the belief that he is the "savior" of the world. But it's not just the U.S. President it is also two men who head up two of the largest Media Outlets in the World. When men start to play God bad things happen.

The gist of the story is that the CIA is funding research to find the cure for Ebola and HIV. What really happens is that the cure is found but that is tied back to the "Tree of Life" from the Garden of Eden and the power of God to bring aboutu healing.

So the book is going to have strong religious overtones. It will take you through a guided course of discovering where the Garden of Eden truly was and whether it still exists today and whether the "Tree of Life" is still there and functioning.

I enjoyed the book very much, so why only three stars? Well I thought the writer needs to develop his writing skill a bit more. For me there were several streams of plot that are never truly resolved in the book. Yes, you can leave a cliff hanger, which is great, but there still needs to be some resolution to certain parts of the story.

Because these internal plots aren't resolved you are left feeling that you didn't get the full story.

Will there be a sequel, I certainly hope so, if for no other reason than to answer the multitude of questions that I have.

BUT, this is an exciting read.

Enjoy!

Full Tilt, by Rick Mofina

A journalist is on a personal crusade to find her long lost sister. Authorities tell her that her sister died in a cold river but Kate knows in her heart that she is still alive. Then her sisters necklace that is the twin to hers is found in a barn where a fire took two lives and leaves a grizzly trail of other bodies. A serial killer is on the loose and has Kate's sister been one of his early victims or is she still alive after 15 years of being missing?'

Themes that are addressed in the book are grieving, loyalty, hope, fear and crippling doubt that sometimes weaves itself into the issues. Each theme is subtlety woven through the story in the lives of many of the characters. A further theme is the mindset and background of a serial killer, how he becomes one, what drives him, etc.

The final theme is that a journalist is as good as any detective or FBI agent when they are driven by a story and truly want to get to the truth that underlies everything. Kate does her work well and eventually the FBI, the police, and State Troopers come to understand how good she is at fact checking a story and uncovering the truth.

Kate's work will help lead them to the killer. It will help her find out the truth about her sisters disappearance. It will also make her a target of the killer as he is driven to make mistakes and wants Kate to pay for that.

The story is well conceived, it is well written and it will match up with any other mystery, police thriller, journalist thriller that you have ever read.

Enjoy!

The Last Sicarius, by Van R. Mayhall, Jr.

I want to thank iUniverse and Net Galley for making a review copy of this novel available to me for free in exchange for a review.

In this second novel regarding the Apostle Judas, Van Mayhall has extended his thriller to push the reader to the edge of their seat and beyond. In the first book, Judas the Apostle, we found Dr. Cloe Lejeune, an ancient languages professor, drawn into a mystery surrounding an ancient jar her father had found in WWII when he fell into a cave. This ancient jar became a sought after item when it was revealed that it could contain The Judas Gospel, supposedly written by Judas about his three years with Christ.

The last novel ended in the death of the Kolecktor who was the evil person pursuing Cloe and her friends and the Judas Jar. But with him dead it seems that all is well. That is until the Vatican comes back to Dr. Lejeune and informs her that they want to find the cave and the other jars. Then it turns out that the Kolecktor's servant and estranged son have taken over the search or the jars. They are trying to put an end to the Sicarius who are the ancient group of Jews who are protecting the jars.

This novel draws on history and draws also on the institute of the Vatican to bring about a well documented work that is so close to actual truth that it provides the reader with a work that they will be drawn into and won't be able to put down.

Will Dr. Cloe Lejeune, her son and the Catholic Priests be able to thwart the new Karik and his thugs while protecting the Last Sicarius and the Ancient Jars containing many of the works of the early church fathers?

The book is amazing. I will state that there are some things that happen in the book that I found sad, because you come to appreciate the different characters so well. But that just helps to make the story very realistic.

Again, this is a classic case of Good verses Evil and the question of who will win?

Judas the Apostle, by Van Mayhall, Jr.

I was given a copy of this book from the publisher through Net Galley in exchange for an unbiased review.

I wasn't sure what I would think when I agreed to read this novel and provide a review. As a very conservative evangelical who believes the Bible is the Word of God and continued without errors in the original text I was suspect of a novel that was going to declare the existence of another "Gospel" text written by Judas, the apostle that betrayed Christ.

I know this is just a novel but I get nervous about novels that declare something that may be totally against the Truth of God's Word. The term Gospel means, "Good News." That good news is the story of the life of Jesus Christ, God's only Son, who came, walked this earth and gave His life as a ransom for mankind so that we could have a restored relationship with Jesus Christ.

The Judas Gospel is a purported gospel text written by the apostle Judas, who betrayed Christ on the night of his arrest. The question of the novel is whether or not there really is a Gospel written by Judas and whether he would validate the other four Gospels and the life of Christ.

Dr. Coltile Lejeunne is an ancient languages professor. Her father found a Clay Jar during WWII that was part of a larger cache of jars in a cave. He has never opened it and doesn't intend to.

But someone wants the jar and someone is like happy when he will not sell the jar. So, the buyer sends an assassin to kill the old man and obtain the jar. But before that can happen he turns the jar over to the local Catholic Priest for safekeeping.

The story will involve the jar finally being opened by Dr. Lejeunne under the helpful eye of the Catholic Church (A Monsignor from the Vatican). What will they discover? Will it validate the life, teaching and miracles of Christ? Or will it put a new twist on history and invalidate Christianity. Before they can know the truth of that debate they are brought under constant attack by the minions of the Kolecktor who wants to obtain the jar in his quest to bring down the Catholic Church.

The writing is OK, but not exceptional. The story is intriguing. The history is OK, as far as it goes, but it does take some big liberties with truth to ask other questions. I don't mind the questions as long as truth comes to light.

The story will have an interesting twist and ending. Readers will be intrigued. But please not that there is a second book by Mayhall that you will need to read to find the total answer to the questions raised in the novel.

For Love or Liberty, by Jennifer Hudson Taylor

Grieving the loss of her twin sister and the loss of her only true love Charlotte must choose the path her life will take. She determines to honor her final promise to her twin sister Emma to watch over Emma's two children as well as support her husband David. That means that Charlotte must also put up with David's brother Conrad who broke her heart six years earlier when he choose a life in the Navy instead of marrying her.

The war is raging between the Colonies and England. Conrad and David have been transferred from the Atlantic Fleet to the Great Lakes Fleet. Thus they need to move the family. This means that Charlotte, the two brothers and the children, Davie and Ashlynn must travel by boat and then overland to the Great Lakes where Conrad will take his new ship as Captain.

Since Emma died in childbirth they also have hired a wet nurse, Mildred, who is a widow and has just lost her baby boy. She will travel with the group.

The main gist of the story is the overwhelming grief that both David and Charlotte feel over the loss of Emma. This grief is consuming and is in danger of causing them to neglect their duties of raising up Davie and Ashlynn. Conrad seems to be the only member of their traveling party who is not grieving, but that is not completely true as he realizes now that he gave up something special six years before when he walked away from a relationship with Charlotte.

The story will delve into the issues of grief, of love lost, of loyalty and duty as well as integrity. Those issues are portrayed well through the character development of Jennifer Taylor. Also at the end of the book you will find a "Group Discussion Guide" that will be a good tool if you read this as part of a book club.

Enjoy!