Book Review: "Max On Life: Answers and Insights to Your Most Important Questions" by Max Lucado

"Max on Life: Answers and Insights to Your Most Important Questions" is Max Lucado's newest book. The book was written to answer the many different questions that Max Lucado has received through the years. "Max writes about the role of prayer, the purpose of pain, and the reason for our ultimate hope. He responds to the day-to-day questions--parenting quandaries, financial challenges, difficult relationships--as well as to the profound: Is God really listening?" There are 172 questions organized in seven sections (Hope, Hurt, Help, Him/Her, Home, Haves/Have-Nots, and Hereafter). "Max on Life" is definitely different from the other Lucado books I have read. His books typically cover just one topic in which he is very thorough. This book ranges in topics and each answer is about a page to a page and a half. It is written in a way that you can read a few questions at a time and even read them out of order.

I really like Max's honesty on a lot of the questions. He does a great job of answering each question fairly specifically while still leaving the answer to apply broadly to a larger group of people. The majority of the questions have to deal with faith and Christianity as well as family issues. Some of the questions are answered with Max's opinion and from his experience as a pastor while others, specifically dealing with faith issues, are backed up with scriptural references. I really liked the topical index included in the back of the book. It really makes looking up a specific type of question really easy. This is more like a reference book and would be a great resource for individuals as well as ministers and counselors. It is definitely worth having in your home library and will be a valuable resource for families.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.

A Rush of Wings by Kristen Heizmann

Noelle St. Clair is running for her life. Fragamented images keep coming to her mind and causing her to have panic attacks. All she knows to do is to keep running. She is leaving behind a life of wealth and luxury in order to feel safe. Her running ends when she comes to a small tourist town in the Rocky Mountains. Looking for a place to stay, she comes to a ranch owned by Rick Spencer. The beauty and quietness of the area makes her want to stay there forever. If only the fragmented images would stop, she could really be safe and start a new life.

Noelle starts her new life being entertained, and wooed, by Rick's playboy brother, Morgan. She starts to paint again and even starts to sell some of her work. She also spends her time with the horses, riding the land, and really beginning to enjoy her new life. That is until her past begins to catch up with her. Who can she trust? Where should she go? All she wants is to be safe. How can she confront her past and save her life?

The author keeps you on pins and needles as she slowly gives you glimpses of Noelles past. While you might be able to piece parts of the story together and you think you have it all figured out, the author gives you another twist. Also, when you think you have discovered the truth about Noelle's past, you realize that Noelle is still putting together the pieces and you continue reading to see how she is going to figure things out. And the best part, with all the difficulties in Noelle's past, you watch as she begins to trust again. Not only in people, but in God.

My only warning is to make sure you have plenty to time to read this book in one sitting. It is so suspenful and good, you will not want to put it down!!


This book was sent to me by Bethany House Publishers as part of their book review program. I was sent a free copy of this book to review. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions expressed are my own.

Hatteras Girl By Alice Wisler

Jackie is a writer for a local magazine that highlights local buisnesses but has dreams of owning her own bed and breakfast. Not just any B&B, but the Bailey House. Jackie, and her best friend Minnie, grew up visiting the Bailey House and spending time with the owners. It became their favorite place to visit, of course the lemon cookies and raspberry soda was a bonus that was served by Mrs. Bailey and made their visit even more special.

The characters in this book became so real. They struggled with the same problems that many people struggle with. While Jackie has her heart set on owning the Bailey house, her family has other plans. They want her to get married. This leads to lots of blind dates for Jackie. Minnie lost her husband in a tragic boating accident and is left to raise their little boy, Zane, by himself. Minnie also had to put her mother in a nursing home. Her mother is confined to a wheel chair and can barely speak.

This leads to an interesting story of Jackie finally finding a way to accomplish her dreams (and maybe her family's too!). We also watch as Minnie grieves the loss of her husband, but slowly begins to heal. This is a very endearing story that makes you love the characters and has you cheering them on along the way.



This book was sent to me by Bethany House Publishers as part of their book review program. I was sent a free copy of this book to review. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions expressed are my own.

Where Hearts are Free by Golden Parsons

The story line for "Where Hearts are Free" begins in 1687 Philadelphia. Philippe Clavel is an indentured servant to the Barrington family. He immigrated from France and his family jewels were stolen on the trip over. He and his younger brother have to become indentured servants to pay for their passage over. The Barrington's only daughter, Bridget, and Philippe have become close friends over the years that Philippe has worked for them. They have become so close that Bridget has fallen in love with Philippe. As you can expect, Bridget's parents are not pleased about this and offer to pay off Philippe's last few weeks of service early if he will leave quietly and have no contact with their daughter. This leaves Bridget heartbroken and she finally accepts to consider courting a man her parents think is more suitable for her, who also happens to be wealthy and much older. This is where the book gets interesting. Edward Moorehead wants to marry Bridget, but not for love. It is to keep her quiet. Edward realizes that Bridget witnessed him murder a man many years ago when Bridget was a child. Bridget is not yet aware that Edward is the murder. As the plot thickens, Philippe learns who Edward truly is and has to decide if he will resuce the woman he loves.

I love to read fiction books. It is more like light reading for me. It is enjoyable without having to process deep information, like nonfiction books usually require of me. I started reading "Where Hearts are Free" by Golden Parsons on a Saturday afternoon. Needless to say, I stayed up really late finishing the book. I just could not put it down. It is more of a suspenseful, romantic fiction book. It is a realy page turner. This is the third book in a series by this author. For me, what sets apart the good authors from the great authors is how they handle books in a series. Parsons wrote a great book that you can enjoy without having to read the other books in this series first in order to follow the story line. (And believe me, I have read my share of books, where I spent more time trying to figure out the characters because they were introduced in a previous book).

This book was sent to me by Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their book review program. I was sent a free copy of this book to review. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions expressed are my own.

Within My Heart by Tamera Alexander

Rachel Boyd is a widow and mother to two young boys. She spends her days trying to maintain the ranch that was her late husbands dream. The reality is that keeping the ranch is becoming more difficult every day. When not working on the ranch, she helps her good friends, Ben and Lyda Mullins, at their general store. When Ben becomes ill, Rachel is forced to trust the new physician in town, Dr. Rand Brookston. Rand has always admired Rachel, especially her gift with medicine. He can never get to know her better as she as always avoided him. Now that he is treating Ben, will he get the chance to earn her trust and her love? Rachel is an amazing woman who is strong willed and determined. When faced with financial woes of running the ranch, she becomes business savvy to try to keep the ranch afloat. But will her distrust of doctors keep her from getting a chance to love again? Read this book and you'll find out.


Forgiveness, personal struggles, learning to trust, and second chances. There are a lot of different themes that are covered in Tamera Alexander's book "Within My Heart", but forgiveness and a second chance at life are central to the story line. This was a great story that kept you reading to find out what happened at the end.

This book is the last book in a series by Tamera Alexander. This was the first book of this author that I have read and it definitely will not be my last. I am usually hesitant to read a book in a series without having read the other books due to the possibility of not being able to follow the story. The author does an amazing job of introducing the characters so you really grasp the story line. You can easily read this book and enjoy it without having read the other books in the series.

The Lord's Prayer by R.T. Kendall

The Lord's Prayer is the most well known prayer by Christians. It is a prayer that most of us have memorized and say regularly, but do we really know what it means? R.T. Kendall's book "The Lord's Prayer: Insight and Inspiration to Draw You Closer to Him" does really good job of explaining why the Lord's Prayer is a perfect prayer, when to pray it, and the purpose of it. I really like that he spent a chapter on each verse of the prayer, going into a lot of detail.

I did not grow up regularly saying the Lord's Prayer, but I was familar with the words. This book really brought a lot of insight into not only this specific prayer, but in how God wants us to pray. Jesus gave the disciples this prayer when they asked him to show them how to pray. It was "to show them how to speak and listen to the Father". While we can pray the Lord's Prayer verbatim, it is also a model or pattern prayer to use in our everday prayers. This book will really transform how you pray. Not just when you say the Lord's Prayer, but in how you pray everyday.


This book was sent to me by Bethany House Publishers as part of their book review program. I was sent a free copy of this book to review. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions expressed are my own.

"Captivating:Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman's Soul" by John and Stasi Eldredge

This has been a book I had been wanting to read for years. I had heard good reviews from John Eldridge's book "Wild at Heart" and was looking forward to this book. I started reading this book a couple of months ago, and it took me a while to work my way through it. Each chapter was slow to read. This is not a book that can be easily read in a weekend. It took me a couple of months to get through this book. Overall, this book was ok. The book is inteded to look at a woman's heart and soul and tried to address some of the issues that women deal with. Most women have a lot of baggage that we carry around due to our life experiences. I would even dare say that many women have been hurt to a point that they think that can not be used for God. This book tries to show women how the past hurts effect us and how we really are beautiful and loved by God.

There were are few issues that I had with this book. There is an overuse of movie quotes. To make a point or to help the reader have a better picture of what the authors are trying to say, they use a scene from a well known movie. This really loses its effect on the book. Some of these scenes are from movies that do not reflect Christian values. I think the authors should have used either women from the Bible or real life stories. This might have helped illustrate their point better. Also, they seem to take random scriptures out of context.

I'm sure this book will be very helpful for some women. Personally, I think this book has a lot of flaws and it really effects the readability of this book. I was really disappointed with this book and will probably not read any other books by the authors.

This book was sent to me by Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their book review program. I was sent a free copy of this book to review. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions expressed are my own.