Beach Reads

Just thought I would compile a list of some of my favorite beach reads in Christian fiction!

1. The Guestbook by Marybeth Whalen
http://www.amazon.com/The-Guest-Book-A-Novel/dp/0310334748/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370914277&sr=8-1&keywords=The+guest+book

2. The Beach House by Sally John
http://www.amazon.com/Beach-House-Book/dp/0736913165/ref=sr_1_9?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1370914506&sr=1-9&keywords=Beach+house

3.  Tidewater Inn by Colleen Coble
Those of you who love the Outer Banks will particularly love this one!
http://www.amazon.com/Tidewater-Hope-Beach-Colleen-Coble/dp/B00B2S4XTI/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1370914817&sr=1-1&keywords=Tidewater+inn

To Whisper Her Name

I just finished this great book by Tamera Alexander.   Set just after the Civil War, the story takes place at Nashville's Belle Meade Plantation.    Young, shamed widow Olivia Aberdeen arrives at the plantation to stay with her mother's dear friend and her family.   A young soldier, Ridley Cooper arrives at the same time to study under horse trainer Robert Green.  You see in the prologue that Cooper and Green met in an unusual circumstance during the war.   I would characterize this book as historical romantic fiction.  While the romance is the main part of the story, there are several other sub plots involving horse training, the plantation owner's past life, war stories, and the former slaves.  I am not usually one to read romance novels but I picked this one up because it was Civil War era fiction, which I enjoy.  I was pleasantly surprised that even though you can surely figure out where the romance is headed, the other parts of the story made it an excellent read.  

Other Civil War era books I've enjoyed:

Candle in the Darkness by Lynn Austin (set in Richmond)--there are two others in the series also
All Things New by Lynn Austin
A Sound Among the Trees by Susan Meissner
The Widow of the South by Robert Hicks (not Christian fiction, but a great read!)

Click on the Civil War tab at the bottom of the post and you can see some reviews of these books.

The Verdict: Left Behind series

Well, I made it through book 8.

Loved the first three.  Sped through them and couldn't wait for the next.
Books 4 and 5 were a little less riveting for me.
Books 6 and 7, to me, seemed a little out there.  
Book 8....did not like.  Made myself finished then wondered why.

I think it was worth my time to read through some of the series, but as I read more of the books I  found I wanted to read more nonfiction exploring the end times instead of these.   I think the further into the tribulation the authors got, the less biblical descriptions there are so it seemed more made-up.   Just my two cents.  

I've discovered a great author!

If you like suspense (which I do!), you need to check out Brandilyn Collins.
http://www.brandilyncollins.com/books.html

The book club read Deceit last year and we all enjoyed it.  This year we read Gone to Ground and I thought it was a excellent read.   I actually read the entire book in two hours (while in the bathtub!)
I liked the way she presented the story. Each chapter began with a newspaper article and the story was told in the voices of three women who were involved in the mystery in some way.

Shortly after finishing that one I found Brink of Death at Goodwill and picked it up.  It was well worth the dollar I paid for it.  It's the first in a series and I look forward to reading more.  This book centered around a former courtroom artist who finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation of a neighbor.  The local police ask her to work with the surviving victim to make a sketch of the suspect.

I'm looking forward to reading more by this author.  I like the way she subtly weaves in the Christian aspect of each story.  The plots are engaging and the characters are interesting!