TRIAL RUN by Thomas Locke . . . A New Interactive Puzzle for your Puzzling Pleasure!

                   Trailer for techno-thriller TRIAL RUN by Thomas Locke

INTERACTIVE PUZZLE #1 at Thomas Locke's blog

INTERACTIVE PUZZLE #2 at JigSaw Planet

THE PILGRIM by Davis Bunn Is Officially Released Tomorrow!

     http://www.davisbunn.com/book/the-pilgrim-by-davis-bunn.htm

IT'S OFFICIAL!  THE PILGRIM by author Davis Bunn is officially released tomorrow.  Here's a sneak preview (the first three chapters) as well as advanced notice of a FACEBOOK One-Day-Only Book Giveaway!  The link is below, but will not be active until tomorrow.  Also, if you have problems with reading, or prefer audiobooks, I've included links to the audiobook version of THE PILGRIM.  This is a short novel (165 pages) that packs a huge punch!  Happy Reading!

FACEBOOK One-Day-Only Book Give Away

A preview of THE PILGRIM by Davis Bunn

Audiobook Links:    

              Amazon: http://amzn.to/1MdGhGD

                 B&N: http://bit.ly/1LdpCCW

THE PILGRIM . . . Q & A With Author Davis Bunn

 

Q: There are many legends about Constantine and his mother, Helena. How did you decide which legend to incorporate into the story?

Davis Bunn: The period when Constantine became the first Christian emperor is one about which so much has been written, and yet so little detail is known. No one knows for certain where his mother, Helena – the main character in The Pilgrim – was born. There are three main legends, and I used the one that has the greatest sense of historical resonance, that she was British, and her father ruled one of the provinces taken over by the Romans. Her husband was a general who met Helena in the local market and fell in love at first sight.

Q: What is the appeal of writing about a historical figure? What was one special challenge you faced in doing so?

First and foremost, Helena is a saint in the eyes of the Catholic church. Her son, Emperor Constantine, was the first Roman leader to convert to Christianity. His death marked the moment when Christians were freed from persecution. Constantine was led to faith by his mother. The Pilgrim is her story.

While I am a fervent evangelical Protestant, my wife is Catholic. My mother is a Catholic convert. As is my sister, who has raised her two daughters as Catholic. So part of what I wanted to do here was to grow closer to the heritage that these dear people treasure. Their faith has had such an impact on my own life.  It was important that I use this story and this opportunity to create something that would honor their perspective on faith. I also wanted to share with readers the enormous life lessons we can learn from the lives of the saints.

So many, many different issues came up as a result of this quest. It proved to be a beautiful and intense growing experience. Although this book is not particularly long, the actual writing took as long as some of my much bigger books. Part of this was honing the story so their faith, and their history, was honored, but done from a foundation that reflected my own personal walk in faith.

My hope, my fervent prayer, is that the story will resonate with readers from both faith communities.

Q: The end of The Pilgrim leaves the reader wanting more. Will you revisit this story down the road?

I am working on a second book, The Fragment, which is scheduled for publication in the spring of 2016. The Fragment carries some of the concepts from The Pilgrim into the early twentieth century, when the U.S. came to possess a reliquary with a supposed component of Jesus’s cross. It ends in a vignette that happens today, when a couple travels to Rome.  

http://www.davisbunn.com/

THE PILGRIM by Davis Bunn . . . Sometimes, re-visiting the past can change your future forever!

THE PILGRIM

Davis Bunn

ISBN 978-1-61636-865-4

Fiction/Christian/Historical

Franciscan Media

165 pages

$14.99 U.S.

“Helena stood on the ship’s deck and surveyed the army sent to kill her.”

In my opinion, author Davis Bunn is the reigning champion of “opening sentences.”  In fourteen words, he has managed to capture my curiosity, my attention, and my heart.  And it just gets better, from that point on!

Helena – the consort of Emperor Constantinus, from which union came Constantine The Great – is on a pilgrimage.  Abandoned by her husband, in danger because of her faith, Helena nonetheless presses forward.  In so doing, she impacts history as no other woman has done.  Miracles seem to follow her as she wins many over to the faith.  Lives are changed forever, including her own.

Her faith provides the necessary courage, strength, and zeal necessary to begin the journey. . .

Will it be enough to see her through?

The greatest compliment that I can offer to author Davis Bunn is simply this; he cares.

He genuinely desires to “get it right,” to be true to the authentic details of the time of which he is writing.  This latest novel, THE PILGRIM, is no exception.  And the necessary work that Davis Bunn had to have done in order to attain this authenticity, this faithfulness to the facts of a time so far removed from our own, is a testimony not only to his desire – but to his abilities as a researcher, a scholar, a quintessential student of history.

His ability to take the gleanings of his study, and weave them together into the rich fabric of a novel that will gently lay hold of the reader’s attention, and never let it go, is just the frosting on a beautifully baked cake.

For more on this wonderful novel, I've provided some links below!  You can read the first three chapters, visit THE PILGRIM page for more info on the background of this book, and get to know the author a little better!

                       The-Pilgrim-Sampler-Chapters-1-3.pdf

                                                                                                       Davis Bunn, Author

                                                 
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Franciscan Media in exchange for my honest review.

LOGOS BIBLE SOFTWARE - A FREE BOOK, EVERY MONTH!

Just wanted to make you all aware of a WONDERFUL preaching resource at FaithLife . . . the BOOK OF THE MONTH. It's based around LOGOS Bible Software, and it's ABSOLUTELY FREE! You can't beat that, folks! Here's the link for THIS MONTH'S FREE BOOK!https://www.logos.com/free-book-of-the-month… If you have LOGOS BIBLE SOFTWARE, this is a win-win. If you DON'T have LOGOS BIBLE SOFTWARE . . .WHY NOT? It's intuitive, has phenomenal support . . . and did I mention A FREE BOOK EVERY MONTH?

FATAL TRAUMA . . . Another Page-Turner from Dr. Richard L. Mabry

Dr. Mark Baker was in the wrong place, at the wrong time.

He was at work.  In the busy Emergency Room at busy Memorial Hospital.  That’s where it all started, and that’s where his life abruptly changed.

He just didn’t know it yet.

Writing in his traditional (read “edge of the seat, pulse-pounding suspense”) style, Dr. Richard Mabry brings his technical skills as a retired physician to yet another page-turner.   As the book deals with life and death on various levels, Dr. Mabry also brings his faith.

Demonstrating once again that faith and life do not have to live in separate compartments, author Richard Mabry tells the tale of life and death, winning and losing, and most of all . . . the tale of love.  Love for one another, and God’s love for all humanity. 

He doesn’t preach.  He doesn’t teach.  He is a master at Show and Tell.  A game that we all enjoyed when we were growing up has become a vehicle for entertaining readers, and impacting their lives.  And they don’t even know it, yet!

5 stars for another inspirational journey from Dr. Richard L. Mabry!

FATAL TRAUMA

RICHARD L. MABRY, M.D.

ISBN 978-1-6308-8116-0

Fiction/Christian/suspense

Abingdon Press

297 pages

$14.99 U.S.

FALCON: BOOK THREE OF THE QUIET PROFESSIONALS BY RONIE KENDIG

Now . . . it’s personal.         

As if it weren’t before.

The operators in Team Raptor have had their head cut off.  But they are not dead, neither are they any less deadly.  When you set out to yank the tail of the tiger – you’d better have a plan for dealing with his teeth.

Newly-minted Warrant Officer 1^st Class Salvatore “FALCON” Russo is totally ready to sink his teeth into the Osiris hacker.  But that means putting the team in the hands of Cassandra Walker.  In his eyes, the cliché “Anything is better than nothing” fails the test when it comes to Cassie.  The last time he trusted her, two of the most important people in his life died.  Never again.

Cassandra Walker knows exactly three things:  she has never loved any man besides Salvatore Russo, he hates her more than life itself, and her mission may destroy any chance of reconciliation.

In the third installment of The Quiet Professionals, “FALCON” must reassemble the team and send them into danger – yet again.  Yet he can’t escape the frustration of having his hands tied, the Raptor team unable to do what they do best:  operate.  With swift, unerring precision.  Ridding the world of a cancer that should never have existed in the first place.

Riding the razor’s edge has never been more crucial than now .  . . nor has it ever been more painful.  What will “FALCON” find waiting for him at the end of the ride?  Is that light at the end of the tunnel?  Or is it another freight train?  Ronie Kendig will keep you guessing to the very last page.

One thing that does need mentioning.  The Quiet Professionals series, by its very nature, is more interwoven than a lot of series might be.  Because this is an “on-going operation,” FALCON  is not as easily read “on-its-own.”  If this is the first book of the series you’ve come across, you might consider checking out the previous two, just to get the “lay of the land.”

5 stars for Special Ops action, suspense and a passion for others by Ronie Kendig!

FALCON:  The Quiet Professionals Book 3

RONIE KENDIG

ISBN 978-1-62416-319-7

Fiction/Christian/suspense

Shiloh Run Press

350 pages

$13.99 U.S.