Sunday Words of Encouragement May 23, 2021

I attended Church online again due to my own quarantine. Pastor was continuing with week 7 of his “It Matters” series.

Doing the wrong things right won’t work.
Most of us have at some time been responsible for something that we didn’t own it. It might be watching other’s children; collecting payments that belong to your employer, not you; caring for someone else’s dogs; renting a house or car. Do you treat that item the same as if you owned it?

Stewardship goes beyond money and tithes. It is set out in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. It is all about relationship. God initially placed Adam in Eden and directed him to tend and watch over the garden. Genesis 2:10-15. He was to care for it and enjoy all of it except he could not eat from one tree. Adam didn’t honor that directive.
All of our skills, gifts, emotions, talents, belongings – everything we are does not come from us but is on loan. What percentage ownership are you representing? Zero? One Hundred percent? Somewhere in between?

What percentage ownership does it appear you believe you are, or are acting as?

God gives us all that we have to use for HIS purposes. Jesus made us a new creation to serve Him. We surrendered everything to HIM.

If we aren’t seeing fruitfulness in our life, maybe there is something wrong with our stewardship. Are we treating our time and resources as ours instead of as belonging to God?
Who gets the best of our energy?

43% of Millennials don’t believe God exists. Our fruitfulness with the current generation isn’t showing up.

We need to sanctify our lives again to God. When we are faithful stewards, we will always be ready to answer His call.

The Point: We must manage every resource for God’s desires and purposes, not our own. Stewardship matters because it determines your fruitfulness.

Each day remind yourself why you are here, who you belong to, who and why you serve.

I chose this song this morning: “I Give Myself Away”

Verses for Today:
Acts 17:24-28
24 “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. 25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. 26 From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. 27 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. 28 ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’

Lord, help me each day to remember to serve You!

Book Review: Save Me (Broken Idols #2) by M.C. Frank

This is full of intense YA emotional romance.

Save Me (Broken Idols #2)
by M.C. Frank

ASIN : B087YG3KCX
Publication date : April 20, 2021
File size : 2133 KB, 173 pages
Genre: Billionaire, New Adult & College Romance
My Rating: 3.75 of 5.0.

"You saved my life."
"I did. Now I'm the one who's drowning."
I was playing Mr Darcy in a modern Pride and Prejudice film adaptation, shot on a Greek island. I was Hollywood's golden boy, Wes Spencer. A billionaire. One of the youngest Academy Award nominees. A prodigy.
She was just a stunt girl from Greece, surfing and diving into the azure waters of the Corfu beaches between my takes.
There was no reason for us to meet. The stunt girl and the actor. Our worlds should have never collided, but they did.
We went from a near-death experience to indifference, from indifference to hate and from hate to... to something I never would have imagined.
She changed my life and then she disappeared. I guess nearly dying in my arms scared her too much, and she couldn't come back from that. I was scared too. I still have nightmares about losing her, but this... this is worse than all my nightmares put together.
Losing her is breaking me. Without her I am constantly suffocating.
But how can I get her back, when she won't even talk to me? When she won't even tell me what I did?

Review:
This is a love story told from the perspective of a spoiled, famous and ridiculously wealthy actor. Wes is only 22 and known as “Hollywood’s golden boy”. Wes suddenly falls for a stunt girl who initially spurns him. He saves her from drowning and then his life begins to change. He begins to change for her and eventually realizes (maybe) that he has to change for himself. The story starts at his present sense of loss and then backtracks to tell the story of his dramatic romance with Ari.

Wes and several close friends hide emotional pain which he expresses with angst. I like the author’s ability to write intense emotional drama that is fitting to YA although perhaps it is a bit much for an elder reader like me. I appreciate the transition and growth that Wes experiences. There are a couple of mixed tenses that were momentarily distracting. My primary disappointment is, just as I was wrapped in the story and wanted to see what happened between them, this book ends -- to be continued in the next book. I do recommend this for fans of YA emotional love. Just be prepared to need the next book, Lose Me.

Source: Received from Author. This qualifies for 2021 Author goal.

Audio Book Review: One Hit Wonder by Kristi Rose

This is a quick, light, character focused mystery.
One Hit Wonder
by Kristi Rose
Narrated by Jennifer Stoneking

Length: 2 hrs and 55 mins
Release date: 12-13-19
Publisher: Vintage Housewife Books
Genre: Mystery, Women’s Detective
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.0; Narration 4.25.

Publisher Description
Do your job or move along already. Trouble is, I’m in too deep to do either one.
A year into Samantha True’s forensic photography classes she knows three things:
1. Crime scenes are messy.
2. Especially when you throw up on them.
3. She may not be cut out for this.
When the police drag her to an investigation, she’s just as baffled by the scene. With clues like superhero masks, disco balls, and Bigfoot, are they ever going to find who did it?
As she digs deeper into the photographic evidence, she realizes her small town is full of secrets. And she might be happier staying in the dark.
A laugh-out-loud mystery that will keep you guessing and quickly turning the pages. One Hit Wonder offers the just right reader escape, but fair warning, this book leaves readers wanting more.

Review:
Samantha is trying to find a career for her future. Her current focus is on forensic photography and she finally has the opportunity to exercise her intern skills with a real crime scene … actually two crime scenes. Unfortunately, she had to face the scene while fighting through the flu and word boxing with one of the handsome detectives who always seems to dismiss her efforts. Throwing up on the scene doesn’t win her any respect. But she pushes on to the second scene, trying to pick up the important details the photographer has to preserve for the police.

Sam takes the work seriously and ponders the facts she has seen. She realizes that she has recognized details she needs to bring to the attention of the police, especially before someone realizes she has info that would make her a target.

This is a quick, easy listen. I totally enjoyed the banter and the forensic details. There is just a hint of a possible future romance which is nice. I would be willing to read more in the series and I recommend this to mystery fans who enjoy a quick read.

Audio Notes: Jennifer Stoneking does a nice job with the narration. She provides distinct voices for the various characters and she portrays good emotion. I enjoyed the listening experience and would like to hear more by this new-to-me narrator.

Source: October 2020 Purchase at Chirp $.99. This qualifies for 2021TBR and 2021Audiobook goals.

Martha's Bookshelf***Friday Pick Giveaway May 21, 2021

Happy Friday!
Sorry - I didn't get to pull the box of books together during the week. I'll explain why on Sunday Post. Hopefully I can do it on Saturday.

TO ENTER FRIDAY PICK.

US Entrants: Leave a comment and tell me WHICH BOOK you would like to get from the Friday Pick lists.

INTERNATIONAL: Leave a comment indicating "Gift Card" (see further comments near the end of the post.)

CUT OFF TIME IS THURSDAY NIGHTS AT 9:00 PM CENTRAL so I do not have to stay up too late to do the winner post! I will randomly pick two winners to announce Friday mornings with the next Pick post.

Thank you to all who entered the May 14, 2021 Pick. There was no automatic win last week. Automatic wins are those who requested the book four times without other people asking for that book during those weeks. There was no title blocked.

CONGRATULATIONS
to Random.org picked Winners from May 14, 2021 Pick:
NATALIA gets a GC

AND
CAROL L gets Riders of the Purple Sage

All winners please fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me to confirm your win, send your snail mail address information and let me know if you would like bookmarks - sensual, sexy or sweet bookmarks. {The form is new because Google changed their forms and the old one wasn't letting me print out the responses.}

This 'poster' image fits me this week!
Image found at Zazzle.

New Book Groups #92 and #93 November 13, 2020.
#92 (15 books):

A Most Unsuitable Man by Jo Beverley
The Tender Stranger by Carolyn Davidson
Her Wedding Wish by Jillian Hart
Heart's Desire by Ruth Ryan Hagan
The Deputy's Duty by Terri Reed
Summer by the Sea by Susan Wiggs

Box #93 (14 books)

Seducing Mr. Darcy by Gwyn Cready
There's Only Been You by Donna Marie Rogers (personally signed)
For the Love of Pete by Julia Harper
The Irish Bride by Alexa Harrington
When We Met by Susan Mallery
Anne of Green Gables by Montgomery
All of Me by Lori Wilde

New Book Group #91 October 2, 2020 - Suspense themed

SINGLES: Ten books in this box:
Fight or Flight by Natalie J. Damschroder
The Sinister Pig by Tony Hillerman Audiobook

PICK TWO  your choice (listed below the picture) Nora Roberts:

Born in Fire Audiobook Cassettes
Montana Sky
Valley of Silence
Inner Harbor and
Chesapeake Blue


New Book Group #90 June 19, 2020
Quite a few mysteries in this box.

SINGLES:
Alias by Smy J. Fetzer
Hot Sex by Janet Evanovich (Audio cassettes)

New Book Group #89 March 6, 2020

Singles:
My Surrender by Connie Brockway
How to Tame a Modern Rogue by Diana Holoquist
Phoenix by A.J. Scudiere

New Book Group #88 November 8, 2019

Singles:
A Lady Never Tells by Candace Camp
Dawn of Redemption by Starla Childs

New Book Group #87 August 23, 2019

SINGLES:
Captain's Paradise by Kay Hooper
Open Season by Linda Howard AUDIO CASSETTES

New Book Group #86 June 7, 2019
Another group of variety from my shelves.

SINGLES:
Show No Fear by Marliss Melton
A Question of God's Balance (Vol 1) by Joseph Thek
King by Right of Blood and Might by Anna L. Walls

New Book Group #85 March 22, 2019
A variety from my shelves.

SINGLES:
Summer Skies by Judith Christenberry
Windfall (two stories) by JoAnn Ross
Daddy's Little Cowgirl (two stories) by Judith Bowen and Kimberly Raye
The Forever Year, Cold Pursuit, Lover's Lane and Temporary Sanity (Reader's Condensed)
ToxiCity by Libby Fischer Hillmann

New Book Group #84 December 15, 2018
Here are some Christmas titles to pick from.

SINGLES:
A Family for Thanksgiving
On this Holy Night
Christmas Haven
King Harold's Snow Job

New Book Group #83 November 30, 2018

(Starting bottom left and continuing up then down)
SINGLE
Seductive Secrets by Lynne Connolly
Seven Up by Janet Evanovich - Audio Cassettes
A Good Walk Spoiled by John Feinstein Audio Cassettes
Three Reader's Digest Condensed Books - each hardback:

Cold Harbour and The Courtship of Peggy McCoy
The Things We Do for Love, Three Weeks With My Brother, The Murder Artist and Night Train to Lisbon
Follow the Stars Home, Hunting Badger, The Quiet Game and Second Wind

New Book Group #82 November 9, 2018

SINGLES:
Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews
Killing Time by Linda Howard
The Wedding Night by Barbara Dawson Smith

New Book Group #81 August 17, 2018

SINGLES
Best Laid Plans by Allison Brennan
Darkness Tell Us by Richard Laymon
Cooking Most Deadly by Joanne Pence

New Book Group #80 August 17, 2018

Note: The Final Judgment and
The Book of Fate are Audio Cassettes
SINGLES:
Summer’s Moon by Lacey Baker
The Final Judgment by Richard North PattersonAudio Cassettes
Firebird by Janice Graham
No Getting Over a Cowboy by Delores Fossen
The Book of Fate by Brad Meltzer Audio Cassettes

New Book Group #79 July 13, 2018
I found this box of books buried under some other boxes.

The Vanishing Act of Esme Lenox by Maggie O’Farrell
P.S. by Helen Schulman
Her Sexiest Surprise by Dawn Atkins (personally autographed)
Dakota Child by Linda Ford
Calling the Shots by Ellen Hartman
Promises, Promises by Amber Miller
This Time for Keeps by Jenna Mills
A Daughter’s Legacy by Virginia Smith
Another Man’s Baby by Kay Stockham

New Book Group #78 April 27, 2018

SINGLES
Blackberry Bush
Breaking Point
A Tangled Affair
Too Wicked to Love
Roses are Red Audio Cassettes

New Book Group #77 February 16, 2018- 

All gone

New Book Group #76 November 3, 2017
13 books remain of the original 37:

I finally Have them Listed!
Boots & Booties by Kristine Rolofson
Saucer the Conquest by Stephen Coonts
The Scorpion Seducer by Bonnie Vanak
Hell On Earth by David L. Porter
Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey
The Glimpses of the Moon by Edith Wharton
Crisscross by Harmon Henkin
Maelstrom by Anne McCaffrey
Inhuman Condition by Clive Barker
101 Commonsense Rules for the Office by John R. Brinkerhoff

This shelf of 35 books are what is left from Groups #1 (11/27/09) through Group #75 September 29, 2017

(Title list reads left at bottom to right at top - 14 titles.)
Rehabilitation
Secret Blessing
Named of the Dragon
Aunt Erma's Cope Book
The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan
Bound by Destiny by Rayka Mennen

(Title list reads left at bottom to right at top - 21 titles.)
Plan of Attack by Dan Brown
(*Three One more very old books from my Gothics box.)
*The Man in the Garden by Paule Mason (1969 - yellowed)
Fire Dancer by Ann Maxwell
*Four One books are very old; pulled from a box of gothic novels I found.
*Maggie – Her Marriage by Taylor Caldwell (1953 very old, yellowed pages, some stain damage doesn't effect reading)
First Things First by Stephen R. Covey- Audio Cassette
Trilogy Of Mysteries Audio Book Shadow Prey, There Was A Little Girl, Smokescreen Audio Cassettes (NOT CDs)
Raintree Haunted by Linda Winstead Jones (spine creases)
The Shadowing by Joan Overfield
The Sweetheart Dance by Patti Ann Colt
BOX 4 2015 (reboxed from Boxes 47-53)
Undateable by Ellen Rakieten & Anne Coyle
Jezebel by Katherine Sutcliff
The Hidden Truth of Cytech's Randall Forty by Vickie Kennedy
Breakfast in Bed by Sandra Brown - Audio Cassette Tapes (link is for mass media version)
BOX 3 2015 (reboxed from Boxes 39- 47)
Shetland Summer by Janet Lynnford
BOX 2 2015 (reboxed from Boxes 24- 38)
The Trailsman: Texas Lead Slingers by Jon Sharpe
A Courtesans Guide to Getting Your Man by Susan Donovan and Celeste Bradley -- NOTE This book has dog bite damage; it is missing half back cover and the edges of pages in the back third of the book... it does not effect the text but I will understand if no one wants this one
An Honorable Man by Rosemary Rogers (spine creases)
The Willful Widow by Valerie King (spine wear)
Foundation (Foundation Novels) by Isaac Asimov
BOX #1 2015 (reboxed from Boxes 1- 23)
Ghost Writer (Shivers #3) by M.D. Spenser
Alien Chronicles - The Crimson Claw by Deborah Chester

If you saw the pictures posted of my bookshelves and boxes you know I do have lots of books! And that doesn't include the other eight or so boxes at my office!! And more books as I find deals too good to pass up! I am sharing my book bounty by these Friday Pick Giveaways.

I started Friday Pick on November 27, 2009 and in almost TEN years I have posted 91 groups of 16 books plus an additional 21 totaling 1,477 books available to find new homes! (As of November 6, 2020).

I am happy to say that so far about 1,360+ books have found new homes through this feature! YAY. [A year or so ago I posted I had reached 2000 books given away. As I calculated the numbers 11/2/17 I realized that had to be an error. I realized I went from 1098 to 2001 instead of 1101. Guess I was tired; sorry for the error.] I have to update my print out to check the exact number sent out - a few were never claimed. I periodically update the lists - deleting those won. You can still go to the Friday Pick list link to see older posts and the older lists book pictures if you want!

Note rules here regarding international entries.

Because postage to overseas can be prohibitive I am willing to give a $5.00 book certificate to international winners - Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Borders, TWRP, etc....you tell me where and I'll set it up. So for my overseas visitors, your comment may indicate a smaller book and I'll check postage or note your choice of gift card.

I learned that The Book Depository does not ship to everywhere. The postage for some of the books to faraway places runs between $7.00 and $10.00 and up. Since I would award $5.00 for The Book Depository to an international winner, as an alternative you may choose a smaller book and we will hope the postage will not exceed $6.00. If the postage is more, or if you want to pick a larger book and you are willing to pay any extra postage beyond the $6.00 I will work with you on that. This may not make a difference to many but if it helps one or two of you to give one of my books a home that will make me happy too. :o)

Repeating this helpful blog tip: You can right click on a link and you will be given the choice to open the link in a new window or tab so you do not navigate away from the screen you are on!! I use this all the time!

Audible Book Review: Zero Day Code by John Birmingham

This end of the world thriller is scarily possible.

Zero Day Code
End of Days, Book 1
By: John Birmingham
Narrated by: Rupert Degas

Series: End of Days, Book 1
Length: 12 hrs and 32 mins
Release date: 07-04-19
Publisher: Audible Studios
Genre: Post-Apocalyptic Thriller, Military Science Fiction,
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.25; Narration 4.25.

Publisher's Summary
Every modern city has one week’s worth of food to feed itself. Then it will collapse.
Cut off the resources to New York, Sydney, or even a mid-size metropolis, and millions will soon starve. In Zero Day Code we see those immense and open, hyper-complex, networked supercities of the new millennium die. And in the last moments we see their vengeance take form as all the best and worst traits of humanity bubble to the surface.
Zero Day Code is set in a realistic near future with dwindling global food supplies under increasing pressure from worsening droughts, floods and extreme weather events. Written by prolific Australian writer John Birmingham, the thriller follows a handful of survivors from the first day of society’s descent into violent, uncertain futures.
James, a consultant to the US National Security Council, is the first to suspect that the worldwide emergence of a crippling computer virus is actually a cover for something else - a devastating cyber-attack by China on the food distribution system of the United States. The attack is a bid for the Middle Kingdom to distract America as it seizes the food bowl of South East Asia and feeds its starving population. But Beijing has miscalculated.
Follow the missions of an embittered activist chasing salvation, a single mum rescuing her child from a frantic San Francisco and an army veteran who has long retreated from society, as the world they knew crumbles around them.
Please note: this audiobook contains mature content and listener discretion is advised.
©2019 Audible Australia Pty Ltd. (P)2019 Audible Australia Pty Ltd.

Review:
This story follows several key characters who struggle to survive a collapse of society. James is a business adviser who studies the trends of the markets. He manages to become a consultant for the US National Security Council, where they provide him some additional information on a glitchy computer virus. He suspects that China is planning an attack on the US food distribution system. His warnings are accurate but just a tad too late. Apparently, most grocery stores in the US have only three days’ worth of supplies on hand, always expecting the next truck delivery. When the food distribution systems are scrambled it doesn’t take long for society to breakdown into chaos and brutality.

When the government contractors are released, James invites his new co-worker, Michelle, to join him to travel to his family home and farm in the Midwest. First, they have to gather some supplies, primarily transportation and food, in a hope to break out of DC and then they have to travel safely.

Rick is a former soldier who has chosen a solitary live style, with a service Lab, Nomi, as his companion. He finds himself with a sharp young woman, Mel, who teaches martial arts and self-defense in a nearby park. The pair are off in their own world enjoying their new relationship and not following the news. A routine stop to pick up dog supplies finds them caught in the middle of an armed robbery.

Another character is a violent, low-life thug who dreams of becoming a famous pod-caster. He is part of the evil side of the society breakdown and contributes a barrage of ugly language to the book. One woman, dealing with an escape from an abusive ex-husband, is desperate to get to her son to find a safe place for them.

The author includes vignettes of the situation in other countries which led to this attack. The China powers tried to make the attack less than full on to minimize the response, but they didn’t recognize the extent of the damage they would cause and the reaction that would follow.

The plot is a scarily possible version of an end of the world scenario. The mix of characters are interesting with some quite likeable and others not so much. Real life struggles that emerge are shown through the various points of view. Few of the characters are prepared to face the rapid decline of life as we know it. This is the first book I have read by Mr. Birmingham but it certainly won’t be the last. I am glad to have books 2 and 3. I highly recommend this to fans of TEOTWAWKI thrillers.

Audio Notes: Rupert Degas does a wonderful job with the narration. He provides distinct voices and strong energy. I will admit I was engrossed in the story and I think that gives support for good narration that helped draw me into the story.

Source: February Free Audible Catalog. This qualifies for 2021Audiobook and 2021Alhabet goals.