Timeless Significance for Everyday
Short stories and also devotions that mix historical quotes and contemporary musings, as well as
author interviews and book reviews.
author interviews and book reviews.
 Jocelyn writes historical fiction at its finest. I’ve read outstanding novels about the Chicago Fire, but none have placed me so vividly on those panicked streets with ash falling from the sky and fear leading my blood. The author is quite familiar with this1871 tragedy, and exacting details fit into her story like snug puzzle pieces. Her characters respond to or rebel against restraints of customs and social expectations with a natural flow or knee jerk reaction. Very exciting and page-turning for me! Meg and Sylvie Townsend are sisters who grieve the loss of their mother’s early passing. Life is hard, and they work in their family bookshop while worrying about their father, Stephen. Townsend had returned home to his family after being imprisoned during the Civil War. He’s broken in spirit, emotions, and body. But this isn’t the worst of their situations to come that will challenge the very fiber of their being. Jocelyn plunges her readers into the mystery and darkness that this tragedy brought to Chicago’s residents. Mistakes and motives and clashes between selfishness and unselfishness make this a memorable reread for me! Here are some questions for Jocelyn, and I hope that you will enjoy the novel too! Questions for Jocelyn: The details you painted with words that the characters witnessed during the fire were extraordinary! Is there a detail that you didn’t get to include that you wish that you could have? JG: Thank you! I had so much wonderful material to work with, and I included most of the details I wanted to. However, I did read of some touching scenes where people were looking through what was essentially a lost-and-found collection of household goods after the fire. These were things people had discarded in the streets during their flight from the flames. Sometimes people did find what they’d assumed they’d lost forever in these collections, and I can only imagine what an amazing feeling that must have been to reclaim a family heirloom. You captured Stephen’s difficulties perfectly. His reaction to the atrocities of the Civil War gave me a wake-up call. Would you like to share another facet of information about the emotional struggles of men surviving the abuse of war with your readers? JG: There’s certainly a lot to say on this topic. I think what was most tragic about Civil War veterans was how misunderstood any psychological trauma was. There’s far more to discuss than I can offer here, so I’ll just say, for anyone who is interested at all in this subject, I would highly recommend the book Shook over Hell: Post-Traumatic Stress, Vietnam, and the Civil War, by Eric T. Dean, Jr. What do you want your readers to benefit from while they read Veiled in Smoke? JG: As with all my other books, I want my readers to benefit from walking with characters through hardships and coming out on the other side renewed. That doesn’t mean that everything will go “back to normal” after trials. It does mean that God is with us in the valleys as much as he is with us on the mountaintop, and He’ll bring us to the place He wants for us. There is a conversation in Veiled in Smoke between Nate and Meg which sums this up pretty well. Meg is sharing her concerns about her veteran father, and how he has changed since the war wounded his mind and spirit. Nate says something like, “Instead of praying for the Father you knew, pray instead for a father made new.” God doesn’t waste our hurts and scars. He uses them to make us better reflections of who He is, if we’ll let Him. The Pre-order for Shadows of the White City, The Windy City Sage, Book 2 can be found on Amazon for a reduced price. This novel will be available on February 2, 2021! I'm placing my order soon! :) The Most Recent Awards for Jocelyn:
Jocelyn's Bio: Jocelyn Green inspires faith and courage as the award-winning and bestselling author of numerous fiction and nonfiction books, including The Mark of the King; Wedded to War; and The 5 Love Languages Military Edition, which she coauthored with bestselling author Dr. Gary Chapman. Her books have garnered starred reviews from Booklist and Publishers Weekly, and have been honored with the Christy Award, the gold medal from the Military Writers Society of America, and the Golden Scroll Award from the Advanced Writers & Speakers Association. She graduated from Taylor University in Upland, Indiana, with a B.A. in English, concentration in writing. She loves Mexican food, Broadway musicals, strawberry rhubarb pie, the color red, and reading with a cup of tea. Jocelyn lives with her husband Rob and two children in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Visit her at www.jocelyngreen.com. 
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 BUSHWHACKED, Mystery at Point Beach, Book Four by Award-Winning Authors, Kate Jungwirth and Deborah Erdmann What an adventure! Just when I think that Dominic, Forest, and Sailor have solved all—they discover another mysterious situation that only they can investigate. I loved this book. I believe it’s tops! I must confess that every time I read a Mystery at Point Beach book, I think I’ve found my new in the series favorite! This book kept me interested—no shocker there! The characters were lifelike in attitude and goals yet very different from one another! The mystery began with a 1939 local lumberjack and a secret map that leads to an artifact. Dominic, Forest, and Sailor are contemporary kids who discovered that someone has recently messed with clues that were hidden long ago. Who could that be? I’m not telling. I loved learning more about the past linked with Point Beach. Keep your tissues ready—to pat your brow—Kate and Debby, you had me worried for the characters a couple of major times! But that’s fine. You have me yearning for the next offering in this series! No wonder that you are award winners! The codes and danger that these courageous characters are challenged with make this novel shine. I look forward to the summer camping that Dominic, Forest, and Sailor experience. This book had many familiar characters revisit, and I’m grateful for that. I’ve come to enjoy the kid’s families and the bothersome Ranger Rick. Sally is new to this series, and she made me smile! Well done, Kate and Debby! Did you hear that applaud? If you like engaging characters, suspense, humor, mystery, a touch of history (not too much—just enough), and a well written and paced novel, then BUSHWACKED is your next read! I bet you could guess that I highly recommend this youth book. You may find Kate and Debby and their books on their website http://www.mysteryatpointbeach.com/ and on FaceBook https://www.facebook.com/MysteryatPointBeach  Stella West and Romulus White sizzle with personality on the pages of this Boston, Massachusetts, 1897 time-period novel! These characters were fresh and invigorating to read because of their dialogue and interactions with each other and with various characters shinned. Their struggles and situations held me to the pages. Getting to know the characters and their opposition became a great reward to visit at the end of my busy days!
I applaud Elizabeth Camden as she has impressed me yet again. Stella is a talented London, England artist who abandons her popular situation to scare out the truth concerning her precious sister’s death. Opposition and secrecy and being a woman hinder her progress at every turn. Romulus White has a reputation and is entirely driven to produce his competitive SCIENTIFIC WORLD magazine. He’d been in contact with Stella—trying to contract her artwork for his magazine—for quite some time. This novel encapsulates the historical events, social expectations, and hindrances of the time and uses that setting to work in her characters’ strength and growth. Danger from those with secret ambitions offers much to keep the reader worried about the characters. I highly recommend this novel and encourage you to check Elizabeth Camden’s website for this and other novels! Elizabeth Camden has interesting information about herself on her website. Please visit her there: www.elizabethcamden.com  Sudan, July 2005 This novel continues the suspense from A LONG WALK HOME. DiAnn transports readers into the conflicts simmering and afflicting Sudanese, Muslims, and Christians in Sudan. As a reader, I’m able to imagine the heat and beauty of this untamed land occupied by people fighting to survive lack, war, and religious conflicts. There are so many needs, yet courage and faithfulness abound. Despite dangerous wild animals and limited resources, the characters, Doctor Larson, Paul Farid, Colonel Ben Alier press on. They overcome extreme circumstances and trials, both personal and situational. I couldn’t stop turning pages. The love and admiration that DiAnn Mills has for the Sudanese are apparent in this novel. The writing was lovely and inviting. I admit it, I’d stop—though I wanted to page through quickly to see what was going to happen next—to reread. Not because the story was confusing. I knew who I was with and what was happening at all times. It’s just that the story world is so intense, and I wanted to stay. My hope is that there will be a book 3 in this series! This series is only on eBook. I want to thank you, DiAnn, for loving well and writing strong as you brought the struggles of Sudan and the beautiful people there to light! I highly recommend this eBook novel and encourage those who do to read DiAnn’s Acknowledgments and A Note from the Author. DiAnn Mills is an author to pay attention to and follow! Here is her author bio! DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She combines unforgettable characters with unpredictable plots to create action-packed, suspense-filled novels. DiAnn believes every breath of life is someone’s story, so why not capture those moments and create a thrilling adventure? Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol award contests. You can download a list of her published titles by clicking here. DiAnn is a founding board member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, a member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and International Thriller Writers. She is Director of The Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference, Mountainside Marketing Retreat, and the Mountainside Novelist Retreat with social media specialist Edie Melson where she continues her passion of helping other writers be successful. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country. DiAnn has been termed a coffee snob and roasts her own coffee beans. She’s an avid reader, loves to cook, and believes her grandchildren are the smartest kids in the universe. She and her husband live in sunny Houston, Texas. DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on any of the social media platforms listed at www.diannmills.com. Here are some of her recent awards: 2019 Golden Scroll Novel of the Year – High Treason 2018 ACFW Member Service Award 2018 Rank #6 on July CBA Best-sellers for Fiction Romance – Deadly Encounter 2018 Rank #3 on June CBA Best-sellers for Fiction Romance – Deadly Encounter 2018 Rank #3 on May CBA Best-sellers for Fiction Romance – Deadly Encounter 2018 Rank #7 on February CBA Best-sellers for Fiction Romance – High Treason  |
Susan Marlene is the author of Sisters & Friends, HEARTS FOREVER FAITHFUL and SHORT STORIES, Some Fanciful, Some True, A Collection from Various Time Periods & Adventurous Tales, as well as Splashes of Hope, A Trio of Short Stories. Archives
May 2023
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