The Church Builder Book Review

SUMMARY:  One group focused on destroying all religion.  One group struggling to preserve the church.  One woman searching for the truth.
     For two months, small-town lawyer Bethany Barclay has been mourning the hit-and-run death of her enigmatic best friend, Annabelle Seaver.  Then the son of her wealthiest client is found murdered in her kitchen.  When Bethany herself becomes the leading suspect, she must flee both the authorities and a mysteriously killer.
     But there is more at stake than she knows.
     Bethany is caught in the web of a shadowy organization determined to destroy Christianity.  The final outcome rests on her ability to piece together the last three months of her best friend's life.

REVIEW:  This is a book that will keep you turning pages and sitting on the edge of your seat all the way to the end.  At times, trying to keep straight all the different characters and their roles was difficult for me.  I do not read many suspense novels so when shadowy characters are introduced and not fully explained to keep the intensity going, I had some problem keeping everyone straight.  But I was able to follow the story pretty easily and keep up.  The story was intriguing and unique.  As I read, I could see the novel being played out in movie form.  While the drama was not brought to a close at the end of the book, I can't wait for the next book to be released to finish Bethany's search for answers.
     If you are a fan of suspense novels, this is a book you will want to check out.

This book was provided by Booksneeze, Harper-Collins and Zondervan for review without compensation.

A.L. Shields is a pseudonym for Stephen L. Carter, the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law at Yale, where he has taught for almost thirty years.  He is the author of seven acclaimed works on nonfiction, and five best-selling novels, including The Emperor of Ocean Park, which spent eleven weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.

Harriet Beamer Strikes Gold Book Review

SUMMARY:  Adventure is never far away.
     After a whirlwind cross-country move, Harriet and her donut-loving basset house, Humphrey, have settled in to a new life in Grass Valley, California. When Harriet learns that she's going to be a grandma for the first time and gets a new suite with room for her salt-and-pepper shaker collection,
she can't wait for her best friend, Martha, to come visit so she can share her good news.
     But adventure is never far away when Harriet is around.  After listening to the pleas of a desperate teen whose daddy needs money right away - and happens to have a gold mine to lease - Harriet falls hook, line and sinker into the venture.  Although she's nervous about her investment, Harriet chooses to keep it a secret from her son, Henry, and his wife.  She can only imagine what she'll do if this turns out to be her ticket to a golden windfall.
     When suspicions arise, though, it becomes clear that Harriet may never see an ounce of gold.  But will she continue to trust and risk losing everything?  The fate of the young teen and a family emergency show Harriet where her true treasure lies.

REVIEW:  Harriet loves her family.  When she finds out she is going to be a grandma, she decides to invest in a gold mine in hopes of striking it rich so she can help her son and daughter-in-law.  With her best friend Martha in tow, she finds out the mine and the people she invested in are under FBI investigation.  Throw in the chaos of a new addition to the house, and you have yourselves a mess! 
     I love how Harriet still wanted to help Lily have a better life, even though she was a big part of the mine fiasco. Harriet and Martha believed the best in this young teen and their faith was proved right.  When Henry and Prudence finds out about the mine and the problems surrounding it, they didn't condemn Harriet but helped her figure out what she could/should do.  This family supports each other and is there for each other, no matter what.
     This is a good book and is perfect for some light reading.

This book was provided by Booksneeze for review without compensation.

Joyce Magnin is the author of five novels, including the popular and quirky Bright's Pond Series and the middle-grade novel Carrying Mason.  She is a frequent conference speaker and writing instructor.  Joyce lives in Pennsylvania with her son, Adam, and their crazy cat, Mango, who likes to eat nachos.