Leah E. Good

February 20, 2015November 28, 2017

Book Review: The King’s Scroll

When Jaye offered a review copy of The King’s Scrolls for the blog tour, I wanted to participate, but knew I probably wouldn’t have time to read it between the time I got it and now. So my brother volunteered to give it a read and share his thoughts. Here’s what he has to say.

The King’s Scrolls continues the adventure of Kyrin, Jace and their friends. Arcacia is rapidly becoming a dangerous place for a follower of Elom to live. Kyrin and Jace struggle to protect their loved ones from the emperor and his men as they attempt to preserve the last complete copy of the King’s scrolls (aka, the Bible). The stakes raise as they are forced to choose between the two things they care about most.

This country mirrors, in a fantasy world, the path our own country is following. Just as the US was founded upon Christianity, Arcacia has been faithful to Elom, but in recent years leaders have plunged Arcacia into spiritual darkness. This book challenged me (Jon) to think about what my reaction would be if the US follows (or continues to follow) the same course. How much am I willing to give for my faith? This book is very clean, but due to intense situations would probably be best for young teenagers and up.

Thanks Jonathan for doing the review for us today! What do the rest of you think of this book? For those who have read it, what did you think of it? If you haven’t read it, does it sound like the sort of book you want to get your hands on?

February 18, 2015

Author Interview: Jaye L. Knight

It’s been a long time since I did an author interview, so for those of you who enjoy author interviews, today is a day for celebration! 🙂 Jaye L. Knight (previously known as Molly Evangeline) was putting together a blog tour for her newest release, so I signed up to host an author interview. Hopefully you enjoy the interview as much as I enjoyed coming up with the questions. Having done a bunch of interviews for the publication of Counted Worthy, I know how repetitive questions can become, so I wanted to give Jaye something fun to answer and us something fun to read. 🙂

Who is your ideal reader? Describe the person who would most enjoy the Ilyon Chronicles.

My goal when I first published Resistance was to have a series geared toward new adult/college aged readers. I personally love young adult fiction, but sometimes you wish the characters were closer to your age. So Ilyon Chronicles is ideally for readers 18-25+ who enjoy YA fiction, but are looking for older, more mature characters. 🙂

If Jace and Kyrin could pick one person, dead or alive (but from their world), to spend a day with, who would it be and why?

Well, Jace would probably choose his mother (and I can’t say whether she’s alive or dead as that’s for a future book). He doesn’t know anything about her, but I know he would like to find out where he came from and what his past is. As for Kyrin, I think she would choose her deceased grandfather, Jonavan Altair. For most of her life she was taught to believe he was a traitor, but since she found out he wasn’t, she would definitely like to get to know him. Especially since she lacks a close relationship with her other grandfather.

What are Jace and Kyrin, respectively, most afraid of?

Besides losing loved ones, I think Jace’s greatest fear boils down to rejection, especially being rejected by Elôm (God). It terrifies him, really. As for Kyrin, she’s most afraid to lose her loved ones. She’s so close to different members of her family as well as Jace. She would give up anything else, but losing someone she loves would crush her.

Which of your “good guy” characters would be most likely to rob a bank if teleported into our world?

Haha! Oh my goodness, that is so funny. I have no idea why, but the first person to jump into my mind is Kaden. I really don’t know why. But, giving it a bit more thought, I could see Daniel doing it. Maybe more so than Kaden.

If you could chose to spend a day with one of your characters, which one would it be and what would you do together?

This is so hard because I could choose so many for different reasons, but I would probably have to go with Jace. He is, after all, my favorite character I’ve ever written. I’d take him to one of my favorite places to go hiking and spend the day in the woods exploring. (And keeping out of sight of his fangirls, lol!) I’d see how much I could learn from him since he knows so much about the forest.

Enjoy the interview? Visit Jaye’s blog to enter her release giveaway. She’s got a pretty cool package of stuff for one lucky winner.

February 13, 2015

Book Review: Hope Springs Eternal

These books were first recommended to me in 2007 or 2008. At that time I loved the series because it was historical fiction and about an orphan. It always bothered me that the library didn’t own the final book in the series.

This Christmas, I finally got book four. Reading the story seven years after first coming to love the series, I found myself still enjoying the story. These books are deep for short, middle-grade stories. Nessa wrestles with tough issues — like how to treat some very unkind neighbors in a Christian manner — and doesn’t get pat, tied-up-in-a-bow answers. She makes mistakes, learns from them, gets back up, and tries again.

Mrs. Lockett is one of my favorite characters. She’s one of those motherly, always-has-the-right-thing-to-say kind of people. She leads by example and knows how to soothe Nessa’s fears without numbing her conscience.

This book–and the series as a whole–is completely child safe. The books are also well written and deep enough for older readers to enjoy them too.

February 7, 2015

Book Review: Uncompromising

After skipping the book review last week, I wanted to make sure one went up this week. Uncompromising was one of my Christmas presents this year. The book first came to my attention through The Rebelution. I didn’t really know what to expect, but I definitely wanted to check it out!

In many ways, Uncompromising was very similar to all the other books written for Christian young women. It covered topics like dating/courtship, beauty, modesty, self-esteem, etc. When I flipped through the book before actually beginning to read, I noticed that trend and was a little disappointed. While those topics are certainly important, I’ve read about all of them before. A lot.

Thankfully, Uncompromising was more than the normal treatment of common girl issues. In fact, the whole book was worth reading for Chapter Three and the “Interjection” at the end of Chapter Three. I’ll being going back to glean encouragement and to spend extra time contemplating that section of the book. The author’s take on “the Cause”, self-esteem, and making God the biggest, most all-encompassing element of your life were thought provoking and challenging.

If you’re a reader who will throw up your hands in boredom or despair because of a heavy focus (and yet another perspective) on issues like modesty and self-esteem, Uncompromising is probably not for you. However, if you, like me, are always curious to look at those topics from a new angle and can appreciate the new content amid the old, you’ll really enjoy this book.

January 23, 2015

Book Review: Angel in the Woods

“Only a fool trusts to his eyes,” the Giant said. “You remember that. The eyes can only show you the appearance of things. You will never understand anything until you learn to look past appearances.”

Whimsical. Quaint. Flowing. A fairy tale that defies the normal constructs of the genre. A fantasy defined by it’s depiction of the ordinary.

When I began this book, which opens with mention of “the Pixie,” I couldn’t tell quite what I had stepped foot into. For someone unversed in the creatures of fairy tales, I wasn’t even sure what a pixie was. I still don’t know, for it turns out the character called “the Pixie” is an entirely human girl bearing that nickname. While the first books I read from Rachel Starr Thomson‘s collection (The Seventh World Trilogy) drew out the haunting, terrifying darkness of evil, this book displays the power of goodness and the sparkle of light.

If you want to read an edge-of-your-seat, blood-pressure raising narrative, this book will disappoint you. However, if you’re looking for a story that will inspire you to become a better person and leave you with a warm glow in your heart, Angel in the Woods will do so in a manner as unique as the story itself.

KINDLE USERS ALERT: I can lend the Kindle version of this book to one of my blog readers. If you have a Kindle and would like to read Angel in the Words, say so in the comments, and I’ll send it your way. (Please, only ask if you have time to read it within the 14 day lending period.) First come, first serve.

January 16, 2015January 16, 2015

Book Review: The Dragon of London

“He offered to help me,” Floyd said. “And I am so desperate for help that I actually considered his offer.”

Jeffrey Floyd, defender of the earth, is back and faces more challenges than ever. The brash, smart-alec face he shows the world is only a thin veil over his inner turmoil. Afraid to love and unwilling to confide in the few friends he has, he fights his demons alone–all while continuing to battle the supervillain outbreak. A new string of mysterious but linked robberies seem to point to a new threat. When the dragon of London offers to help Floyd and give him relief, Floyd knows better than to trust him. But at the same time, he hesitates to kill the one creature who seems to understand.

This story was an interesting addition to Katie Lynn Daniels’ series. The light hearted, slightly inane Floyd has disappeared, and so have the comic bookish villains. In this book, the dragon is a creepy reminder that evil can portray itself as a beacon of light. But actions speak louder than words, and the dragon’s actions show his true nature. Floyd too has a lot to learn about trust, friendship, good and evil, and life in general. I’m curious to see how his struggles and triumphs will continue to develop.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with this series, you can check out my review of Supervillain of the Day, book one of the series.

January 9, 2015

Book Review: Growing Up Duggar

Despite the varying opinions on the Duggars, even among my own friends and acquaintances, their family has been a reliable source of entertainment and encouragement to me. When I got Growing Up Duggar for Christmas, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew from other reviews that it wasn’t an autobiographical account of growing up in the reality TV “mega-family.” It turns out, the book is a lot more practical. I was impressed, encouraged, and challenged by the perspectives and suggestions the oldest four Duggar girls shared for the various relationships in a Christian girl’s life. They covered relationship with ourselves, our parents, our siblings, guys, the culture, our country, and the world. Their advice is grounded in Scripture, backed up personal experience, and presented in a clear manner.

That said, other reviewers mentioned buying it for tween/young teen girls and assuming it would be perfectly safe for younger readers because “the Duggars wrote it.” These buyers were surprised to find the girls spoke about some more mature topics like late-term abortion and the dangers of the internet. The book is aimed towards an older teen audience anyway, and I found the subjects to be handled tastefully, but if a younger person wants to read it, I’d suggest having a parent skim through it first.

I definitely recommend this book to anyone curious about the Duggar family or/or anyone who is looking for encouragement and is willing to be challenged. This book is written to girls, but other readers (especially parents) could enjoy and benefit from Growing Up Duggar as well. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

January 2, 2015January 2, 2015

Book Review: The Small One

Picture books are one of the rarer categories to appear here on Leah’s Bookshelf. Since I have a predominately mid to late teen audience, they don’t really fit. But every once in a while, even teens and adults can enjoy a good picture book. Plus I know a lot of you have younger siblings who probably like being read to and receiving books for birthdays.

The Small One is about a boy and his beloved donkey. Unfortunately, the donkey has become to old and weak to pull his weight in the family business. The boy’s father says Small One must be sold. The boy is devastated, but asks his father for permission to bring Small One into town himself in order to make sure he finds a good home. The father agrees. Unfortunately, there don’t seem to be any kind people in need of a donkey. And then, just when all hope seems lost, someone shows up who needs a donkey to bring his wife to Bethlehem.

Yes, Christmas is over. And this is most definitely a Christmas story. But the story is just as fun and touching after Christmas as before. I pulled it out on New Year’s Eve and enjoyed spending about five minutes reading it (it’s a short picture book). Apparently it’s based on a Disney movie. Has anyone seen it?

What’s your favorite fictional Christmas story?

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone! Hope both days were wonderful for you. 🙂