Special Announcement: Tricia Goyer is celebrating the release of her first Christmas Novella, A Christmas Gift for Rose with a giveaway for TWO Kindle Fire HDX's! I'm so excited! I would LOVE to WIN ONE of these! Please enter - and let me know if you win!
Enter to win a NEW Kindle Fire HDX for you AND one for a friend!
One grand prize winner will receive:
A brand new Kindle Fire HDX and one to give away to a friend!
A Christmas Gift for Rose, by Tricia Goyer for you and your friend!
Four second place winners will receive:
A Christmas Gift for Rose Christmas pack (includes a recipe card, bookmark, a signed book plate, discussion questions, and a Gathering & Giving handout!)
Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on October 19th. All winners will be announced October 21st at Tricia's blog.
Don't miss a moment of the fun; enter today and be sure to visit Tricia's blog on the 21st to see if you won one of the great prizes! (Or better yet, subscribe to her blog and have the winner announcement delivered to your inbox!)
Welcome to the12 Pearls of Christmas blog series! Merry Christmas from Pearl Girls™! We hope you enjoy these Christmas “Pearls of Wisdom” from the authors who were so kind to donate their time and talents! If you miss a few posts, you’ll be able go back through and read them on this blog throughout the next few days. We’re giving away a pearl necklace in celebration of the holidays, as well as some items (books, a gift pack, music CDs) from the contributors! Enter now on Facebook or at the Pearl Girls blog.The winner will announced on January 2, 2013 at the Pearl Girls blog. If you are unfamiliar with Pearl Girls™, please visit www.pearlgirls.info and see what we’re all about. In short, we exist to support the work of charities that help women and children in the US and around the globe. Consider purchasing a copy of Mother of Pearl,Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace or one of the Pearl Girls products (all GREAT gifts!) to help support Pearl Girls.
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Christmas Mourning
By Tricia Goyer
As I sat in our living room last Christmas morning, there was a pile of presents under the tree. A smile filled my face, just thinking about the joy and laughter that would fill the house in a few hours when we gathered around to hear the Christmas story, worship Jesus, and open presents. That morning as I thought about the celebration of our Lord's birth, my mind was already busy unwrapping. No, I wasn't thinking ahead to presents. Instead, I was unwrapping the many memories of Christmas that I carry on my heart. I remember sitting at the kids' table in Grandma's mobile home, laughing and goofing around with my brother and cousins. I remember the doll house my Grandpa made when I was seven and the loving care my grandma took to decorate it. I remember the boom box and banana clips from high school and my first Christmas with my son Cory not long after I turned eighteen. Cory was only six months old, but the greatest gift God gave to both of us that year was John—my soon-to-be husband and Cory's soon-to-be daddy. There are memories of the kids acting out the Christmas story and Goyer family gatherings in which forty of us would eat in our cleaned-out and heated garage because it was the only place big enough to set up tables and chairs for everyone. I also will never forget the first time I celebrated Christmas in California with my biological dad and the four sisters I didn't know growing up. I had a happy heart that day, being with people I didn't know well but who amazingly looked and acted just like me. How cool is that?! As I write this, there are faces going to be missing around the tree, to be sure. There's always a sense of missing when the people you love are far away. And that's when Christmas Morning becomes Christmas Mourning. I'm thinking of my mom, dad, siblings, in-laws, and friends, wishing I could fill me house with their faces, their smiles, their laughter. I'm sure you understand. It's so easy to center Christmas around the baby who God sent, but we cannot forget the purpose for His coming. Jesus' mission wasn't just about the manager, the angels, and the swaddling clothes. His purpose was to offer himself so that we can spend eternity with Him and those we love. The greatest gift is one we've yet to open. Salvation comes to our hearts when we whisper a prayer of faith and relinquishment—when we give up the right to ourselves. Like a beautifully wrapped presents under the tree, the best part of the gift is still to come. My mind is anticipating the unwrapping. I can only guess of the joy and laughter to come!
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Tricia Goyer is a busy mom of four, grandmother of one, and wife to John. Somewhere around the hustle and bustle of family life, she manages to find the time to write fictional tales delighting and entertaining readers and non-fiction titles offering encouragement and hope. Tricia is also on the blogging team at MomLifeToday.com, TheBetterMom.com and other homeschooling and Christian sites. In addition to her roles as mom, wife and author, Tricia volunteers around her community and mentors teen moms. She is the founder of Hope Pregnancy Ministries in Northwestern Montana, and she currently leads a Teen MOPS Group in Little Rock, AR. Tricia, along with a group of friends, recently launched www.NotQuiteAmishLiving.com, sharing ideas about simplifying life. She also hosts the weekly radio podcast, Living Inspired. Learn more about Tricia at www.triciagoyer.com.
In Glacier Bay, Ginny discovers a box of old letters and is swept up in the love
story between Clay, an early missionary to Alaska Territory, and Ellie,
the woman who traveled there to be his children's governess. When Ginny
is reunited with Brett in Glacier Bay, will she discover-as Ellie
did-that healing and love are sometimes found in the most unexpected places? Still need a Gift? Do you need 1 more gift for that special someone who LOVES to Read? With Winter coming up they will definitely appreciate this book - PREORDER it NOW and it will come as soon as it's released - add a coffee mug or a tea mug along with a nice selection of coffees or teas and the receipt for this book and you are set!
On Sale ~ $8.62 on Amazon!
(Will be $12.99!)
Disclaimer: I am participating as part of Tricia Goyer 2013 Fiction Launch Team. I
received one or more of the products mentioned for the purpose of
promotion on GivingNSharing. Regardless, I only recommend products or
services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.
Book One in the Seven Brides for Seven Bachelors series
Every year, 30-40 young Amish men descend on the cozy little town of West Kootenai, Montana, arriving in the spring to live there for six months and receive 'resident' status for the hunting season in the fall. They arrive as bachelors, but go home with brides! Sarah Shelter has lived in West Kootenai for the last ten years and wonders if she will ever fall in love. Since the tragic death of her best friend, she carries her memories in a jar along with the small items connected to them. For just as long, she's also been carrying around her emotions instead of allowing them to penetrate deep into her heart. Now she's met a kind and gentle man who may be able to break down the wall. But can Sarah risk her heart to finally achieve her dreams?
My Thoughts:
This is a wonderful lighthearted read with a serious side to it. Does that make sense?
Sarah has a dream ~ and only one person ever encouraged her to reach out for that dream & now she's gone. After the terrible death of her best friend Sarah withdraws from those around her and at 23 she's an old maid (almost). Her family is supportive but Sarah is afraid to let anyone to close. Then she meets Jathan and allows herself to dream. Jathan has a dream too but his family responsibilities and fear of disappointing his father and brother hold him back.
This book is wonderful and probably one of the few Amish Genre type books I can honestly say have a place on my bookshelf. I truly like Sarah - and I'd love to find a Jathan of my own. Tricia has written a couple that are "perfect" for each other. The scriptural side of the book is solidly based, you see both Sarah & Jathan learn to rely on God and in turn on each other. I can't wait to read the next book!
Fun Links you'll enjoy:
Find out how to create a memory jar of your own and additional crafts to help you "collect" memories: Click Here
Discussion Guides - perfect for mother/daughter, book clubs, bible studies - Coming Soon!
Tricia Goyer is the award winning author of over thirty books including Beside Still Waters, Remembering You, and the mommy memoir, Blue Like Play Dough. Tricia is a regular speaker at conventions and conferences and is the host of Living Inspired. She and her family make their home in Little Rock, Arkansas where they are part of the ministry of FamilyLife.
Disclaimer: I was given a copy of The Memory Jar to read & review on GivingNSharing. I was not required to have a positive review and no money exchanged hands. Copy was provided by LitfuseGroup.com
Chasing Mona Lisa by Tricia Goyer & Mike Yorkey ISBN: 978-0-8007-2046-9 336 pages, $10.98 on Amazon
About the Book: It is August 1944 and Paris is on the cusp of liberation. As the soldiers of the Third Reich flee the Allied advance, they ravage the country, stealing countless pieces of art. Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring will stop at nothing to claim the most valuable one of all, the MonaLisa, as a post-war bargaining chip to get him to South America. Can Swiss OSS agents Gabi Mueller and Eric Hofstadler rescue DaVinci's masterpiece before it falls into German hands?
With nonstop action, Chasing MonaLisa is sure to get readers' adrenaline pumping as they join the chase to save the most famous painting in the world. From war-ravaged Paris to a posh country chateau, the race is on--and the runners are playing for keeps.
My Thoughts: Chasing Mona Lisa intrigued me on a couple fronts - one it's based in the 1940's during WWII and during the end of Hitler's reign and terror campaign toward the Jews. And two it's history and I've always loved history.
Chasing Mona Lisa takes place during the last month or two of Hitler's occupation of France. You have 3 groups of people fighting for the freedom of France - Charles De Gaulle who has left the country and is allowing the resistance groups to do the fighting for him and then steps in to take credit when the German's are ousted. Then you have the French Communist Party who think a communist government is the way to go & one member who takes matters in his own hands to return the Mona Lisa (after the Germans Heller & Gorman try to steal it) back to the city thus taking credit for the communist party and trying to discredit De Gaulle. Then you have Eric & Gabi - two Swiss people undercover as Red Cross workers trying to get into the city (I never did really figure out what they were doing). Combine them all together and it is certainly fast paced.
I found this book rather confusing obviously. I loved the idea behind the book - but had some trouble following along with it. The Swiss Courier (Gabi's story) is the prequel to this book and if I had read that one first that might have tied some of the pieces together for me. The authors have done their homework, know their history and the city of Paris - but the writing is hard to follow and I was a little (just a little) bored with it.
Please don't let my review hold you back from reading this book. I would suggest you maybe check it out from the library and see if you like it or sit down and read the first chapter before you purchase it. It may intrigue you enough and perhaps you'll really enjoy it.
About the Authors: Tricia Goyer is the coauthor of The Swiss Courier as well as the author of many other books, including Night Song and Dawn of a Thousand Nights, both past winners of the ACFW's Book of the Year Award for Long Historical Romance. Goyer lives with her family in Arkansas. For more about Tricia and her other books visitwww.triciagoyer.com
Mike Yorkey is the author or coauthor of dozens of books, including The Swiss Courier and the bestselling Every Man's Battle series. Married to a Swiss native, Yorkey lived in Switzerland for 18 months. He and his family currently reside in California. For more about Mike and his other books visit www.mikeyorkey.com
Win an iTouch SPY Pack in the Chasing Mona Lisa Giveaway
from @triciagoyer @mikeyorkey!
Chasing Mona Lisa is the continuing tale of Gabi Mueller and Eric Hofstadler (first introduced in The Swiss Courier). This time the due are on a relentless quest to save the most famous painting in the world - the Mona Lisa. You can help Gabi and Eric with your very own spy pack when you enter The Chasing Mona Lisa Giveaway!
One passionate protector will receive:
iTouch (The must-have device for any spy. Camera, Maps & Music.)
Starbucks Gift Card (For all those late nights.)
Moleskin Notebook (For those important notes.)
Invisible Ink Pen (Don’t want anyone reading those important notes.)
Chasing Mona Lisa by Tricia Goyer & Mike Yorkey (Great handbook and intriguing tale for any spy-in-training!)
Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends at noon on January 31st. The winner will be announced at the Chasing Mona Lisa Facebook Party on 1/31. Tricia and Mike will be hosting an author chat (on Facebook and Live from Tricia's website) and giving away their books and a Book Club prize pack! (Ten copies of the book for your small group or book club AND a LIVE Author Chat for your group with Tricia and Mike.)
So grab your copy of Chasing Mona Lisa and join Tricia and Mike on the evening of the 31st for an author chat, spy training (do you know how to pick a lock?) and lots of giveaways.
Don't miss a moment of the fun. RSVP today and tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 31st!Win an iTouch SPY Prize Pack!
