10,000 REASONS - BLESSED THE LORD BY MATT REDMAN

Bless the Lord, oh my soul

Oh my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
Oh my soul
I worship your holy name

The sun comes up
It's a new day dawning
It's time to sing your song again
Whatever may pass and whatever lies before me
Let me be singing when the evening comes

Bless the Lord, oh my soul
Oh my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
Oh my soul
I worshhip your holy name

You're rich in love and you're slow to anger
Your name is great and your heart is kind
For all your goodness I will keep on singing
10,000 reasons for my heart to find

Bless you Lord!

Bless the Lord, oh my soul
Oh my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
Oh my soul
I worship your holy name

And on that day when my strength is failing
The end draws near and my time has come
Soon my soul will sing your praise unending
10,000 years and then forever more

Bless the Lord, oh my soul
Oh my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
Oh my soul
I worship your holy name

Bless the Lord, Oh my soul
Oh my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
Oh my soul
I worship your holy name (repeat 3x)

Sing like never before
Oh my soul
I worship your holy name (repeat 3x)

THE DIRTY STREETS OF HEAVEN by TAD WILLIAMS

Title: The Dirty Streets of Heaven: Volume One of Bobby Dollar
Author: Tad Williams
Publisher: DAW Hardcover; First Edition edition (September 4, 2012)
Pages: 400

I hesitated in whether or not I should write a review for THE DIRTY STREETS OF HEAVEN by TAD WILLIAMS, after reading only a mere six pages. Typically I give a book, what I would consider a fair chance before stopping, by reading the first seventy or so pages. By page seventy there isn’t much hope for things to turn around. An author’s voice or writing style isn’t going to change at that point. Either you like it or you don’t. Like they say, writing is subjective.


I admit I’m a visual person, and thus I’m often either captivated or turned off by the cover of a book. The title is the next thing that will catch my eye. I don’t always read the synopsis, loving to be surprised, especially when it’s a book by one of my favorite authors. With a new author (new to me) I will often read the first page or two when provided to get a glimpse into their writing. I should probably also mention that I’m a Christian fiction writer and reader, though I do read some secular books.

With that said, here are my thoughts on THE DIRTY STREETS OF HEAVEN by TAD WILLIAMS:

Pros:
-Great writing
-Unique concept for a story
-Great cover
-Great title

Cons:
-Way too much foul language
-Not sure if I like where the storyline is going

The reason behind my stopping at page six was the foul language. I’m not so frail I can’t handle a little bad language, but when there are more then I can count on my hands in the first six pages, and what I consider the worst of words, I just can’t stomach it. With each foul word, I’m taken out of the story.

I could have not bothered to give a review at all, but that’s not me. What little I read, in my opinion, was good writing. For the author’s sake, I wanted to make that known. The other reason is to let those that would be offended by foul language, know that this would not be a book for them.

Review from Tad Williams website:

THE BOBBY DOLLAR BOOKS (2012)

Bobby Dollar would like to know what he was like when he was alive, but too much of his time is spent working as an extremely minor functionary in the Heavenly Host as an afterlife investigator and advocate for the recently departed. And now he’s stepped into the middle of something that has both sides very nervous — an unprecedented number of missing souls.

A new chapter in the war between Heaven and Hell is about to open, and Bobby is right in the middle of it. Someone has summoned a truly unpleasant Babylonian demon that’s doing its best to track him down and rip him to pieces. His opposite number on the case is arguably the world’s sexiest she-devil, and Bobby has feelings for her that Heaven definitely does not allow. And somehow he has to find out who he was before he becomes an unwitting pawn in a game of power that could end in the destruction of the entire human race.

Three books are planned for Tad’s new fantasy-fueled thriller series: The Dirty Streets of Heaven (September 2012), Happy Hour in Hell, and Sleeping Late on Judgment Day. Each book will be somewhat shorter than Tad’s usual epic length fare, and although part of a series, each may be read as a stand-alone novel.

DON'T TAKE THE GIRL by TIM MCGRAW

LET IT RAIN by DAVID NAIL

CHRISTMAS ROSES by AMANDA CABOT

Title: Christmas Roses

Author: Amanda Cabot
Publisher: Revell (September 1, 2012
Pages: 172

Celia Anderson is recently widowed and has no thought of remarrying, especially not to the two men that have shown her interest in the past months. If she were to consider marriage again, it would be for love this time, not as an arrangement by her parents.

In search for his father, Mark Williams finds himself in a small town in Wyoming. What he hadn’t expected to find was a woman and child that win his heart. With his carpentry skills, Mark crafts a gift for Celia, along with a question, in hopes of winning her heart.

At only 172 pages, CHRISTMAS ROSES by AMANDA CABOT, is a quick read. A sweet and heartwarming story, just in time for Christmas with a surprise ending.

DAWN COMES EARLY by MARGARET BROWNLEY

Title: Dawn Comes Early
Author: Margaret Brownley
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (March 13, 2012)
Pages: 352

Kate Tenney fled the city she was raised in for what she hoped would be a new life. One that would earn her the respect she sought her entire life. Kate would need to prove to the ranch owner that she was worthy of inheriting her ranch, and learning to ride a horse first would come in handy.

Luke Adams is not one for fancy words, but when he meets the educated Kate Tenney, he’s willing to learn. But learning new words is not his greatest challenge. Convincing Kate that she shouldn’t throw her life way by accepting the ranch owner’s agreement to never marry in exchange for inheriting her land, is.

So what do you say about a book that blows you away, and that’s exactly what DAWN COMES EARLY by MARGARET BROWNLEY did. This is not the first book I read by MS. BROWNLEY, but it is the first book in fiction I’ve read by her, and it won’t be the last.

What an unbelievable blessing it is when you run across a book that contains every aspect of writing that is needed to produce a brilliant story. I am convinced that the top priority in a great book is good writing. Without it, no matter if the rest of the qualities are there, it will fail. I cannot finish a book that isn’t written well, or at the very least, okay.

I have read countless of what I call, cowboy books. I have a few authors that are my favorites, that I believe get it all right, and thus I can’t get enough of their books. I have now added MARGET BROWNLEY to that list.

DAWN COMES EARLY is different than other romances I have read. Typically the hero and heroine meet right at the start, and continue to encounter one another on a regular basis throughout the book. Stories that don’t have the main characters meeting often can cause me to lose interest.

What makes DAWN COMES EARLY unique is the amount of encounters the two love interest have in the first half of the book. Oh, he was there, but the main focal point was the heroin’s story. It took me awhile to realize the hero wasn’t coming back around every corner, and once I did, I couldn’t help but become immersed in the heroine’s story.

MS. BROWNLEY does an amazing job of weaving an incredible story, one that will not soon be forgotten. Every character is three dimensional, one that you will come to love, with individual personalities. The author’s attention to detail brings the story to life in an educational, fun, and realistic way. You are lucky to have one of those moments in a story where you reread a line because it’s that good. With MS BROWNLEY’S story, there were many. As an aspiring author, I ate up every word she wrote.

I loved how the author was able to create a character that allowed her to weave faith in, in a powerful, yet non-preaching way. It wasn’t the author who gave reference to scripture and prayer, but the character. I have read several books where the main character is a writer, but never have I read one as well done as DAWN COMES EARLY. The way MS. BROWNLEY referenced the main character’s fictional story she was writing at the beginning of each chapter, as well as throughout the book, was refreshing and exiting.

Every aspect of the story was remarkable, from the very first page, throughout the middle, right up to the very last line. I can’t wait for the next book in the LAST CHANCE RANCH series, THE BRIDES OF LAST CHANCE RANCH, WAITING FOR MORNING.

Hurry up January and get here!

THE WIND by ZAC BROWN BAND

This song just makes me want to get up and dance, and call out a few, yee haws!

BEES IN THE BUTTERFLY GARDEN by MAUREEN LANG

Title: Bees in the Butterfly Garden

Author: Maureen Lang
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. (June 22, 2012)
Pages: 433

Since the age of five, Meg Davenport grew up in an exclusive New York boarding school. For all she had in a proper bringing up, she lacked in a family. It wasn’t until her father passed away that she discovers his secret…one that would drastically change her life.

Ian Maguire was Meg’s father’s mentee, one Ian looked up to since the age of nine. He always had feeling for the man’s daughter, but knew he was never to act on them. After all, Ian was everything her father was sheltering her from.

I wasn’t sure what I expected when I purchased BEES IN THE BUTTERFLY GARDEN by MAUREEN LANG. The cover is beautiful, and if I had read the back of the book, I would have been prepared for what awaited me between the covers. MAUREEN LANG is one of my favorite authors, so I wasn’t concerned.

BEES IN THE BUTTERFLY GARDEN is written with the quality of writing I’ve come to expect and love in MS. LANG’S books. I was pleasantly surprised to discover the storyline to be nothing like I imagined.

BEES IN THE BUTTERFLY GARDEN includes tension, danger, light romance, humor, faith, friendship and suspense. The characters are well thought-out, each with a distinct personality, set in the late 1800’s. I loved how each chapter started out with a few line from MADAME MARISSE’S HANDBOOK FOR YOUNG LADIES, or THE CODE OF THIEVES. Not only did they pertain to the chapter, they were quite interesting.

MS LANG is an amazing story teller, who brings her characters to life. You won’t be disappointed in BEES IN THE BUTTERFLY GARDEN, appropriately named, or any of the other novels she written.