Review: Immaculate Assumptions: All the Stuff You Heard About the Bible That Isn't True by Cornelia Scott Cree

Immaculate Assumptions: All the Stuff You Heard About the Bible That Isn't True

by Cornelia Scott Cree

In a society increasingly ruled by secular humanism the notion that the unseen, unable-to be-seen-spirit world rules the natural seems almost quaint especially since modern men only want solutions not ideas. But increasingly the data of reality and science makes this more probable than not.

If we do the radical thing, accept the Holy Bible as truth whether we understand it or not, we can join theology with the movement of history as a spiritual exercise. This book is not about religion; religion is the day-to-day practice of faith. This book exposes the assumptions we have about faith and practice which keep us from learning and realizing truth in our daily lives.

My Take:

There is a lot of misinformation spread around concerning the Bible, God, faith, the path to salvation, the life and eternal security or lack thereof of the believer. In a hard-hitting, fireside-chat voice, Cornelia Scott Cree exposes 35 commonly heard heresies and untruths concerning the faith, backed with scripture and wit.

With a clear view on scripture based on a lifetime in the Lord's service, Cornelia lays down foundational principles by dissolving misconceptions that lead entire denominations astray.

Content:

Even though this is a non-fiction book on theology, figured I'd better put a bit about the content in here.

Language:

G - Squeaky clean.

Adult Content:

PG - There's some discussion of homosexuality, gender identification, and sex trafficking, rape. 

Christian content:

Um, it's a book about theology. It's principally Christian in content and nature. I have a few points where I may differ concerning the answers to a few of the questions, especially in regards to commentary and extrabiblical references in #15, Once Saved, Always Saved. But for the most part, the book is spot on in its treatment of the gospel, of faith, of the Spirit. Of the inaccuracy of the Word of God. Of the deity of Christ. I will just suggest that you be grounded in the Word and sober-minded.

Final analysis:
Cornelia has created a timely, witty and relevant quick read here that clearly presents biblical answers to common misconceptions concerning the Christian faith. The anecdotal stories and sometimes sarcastic commentary cause me to imagine her standing over me with a wooden spoon ready to give me a whack. An example of this is her declaration that she would soon expect Millennials to identify as cocker spaniels, referring to recent gender confusion.

While I found most of this short book to be meat, and entertaining, I will end with a note that there are a few places where I differ, and while I am not a qualified theologian, I expect these might take the reader through some bumps. There were also some ramblings which caused the pace through this to be a bit slow for my liking. So, a relatively well-researched and well written and entertaining read. Four Stars!

About the Author:
God said in Jeremiah 1:12 "I will watch over my word to perform it." At no time has He said "I will watch over the word of a TV anchor, the President or a movie star, or even you and me. Only His. 

"So I scoured the Bible to affirm how modern events verify His words. It is an inductive study, truthful and untainted for 4,000 years and my books and other writings are not about a church or what any man says, but what God says and means to come true. So you can see the future in the Bible too."

Cornelia Scott Cree studied the Bible especially in the original Greek, plus Latin for vocabulary and etymology, French, and Chinese; she wrote her Master’s degree thesis on theological sign language and finished one-half her doctorate at University of South Africa. She had a private school classical education, attended Smith College and other universities and colleges as well.

On TV Churchill's grand-daughter said the following. "Hitler made you believe he could do anything. Churchill made you believe you could do anything." As an author of Christian books my mission is to make you believe God can do anything.

She has an unusual work history, as a print journalist for a scientific, business and tech newspaper, as a wallpaper hanger and many years working with inmates and victims. She has three grown children, three grandchildren, and one great granddaughter. Except for those years spent in the foreign mission fields of China and the Philippines, in Texas and her youth in the Eastern USA she lived most of her adult life in North Carolina.

Please visit http://www.americanthinker.com/ to read her other articles and blog posts.

Waynesville, Maggie Valley, North Carolina 2017 桃李

Review: The Space Between by Shawn D Brink

The Space Between

by Shawn D Brink

When Hunter and his wife Nora begin to have nightmarish visions of evil and death, they feel driven to find what truth lies behind them. But the truth that they find is terrifying. The enemy they must face is powerful and unless defeated, will mean the end of the world as they know it.
Only by standing firm and relying on each other as well as on God, can they achieve victory. But is victory even possible? For Hunter and Nora, only time can reveal these answers. 

My Take:

Hunter, a debilitatingly OCD office worker and stalwart Christian, has been having a frightening recurring dream. An ancient lady stands before him, stating, "I am the 100 year old woman in the 100 year old store guarding the 100 year old door." The door opens and something flies out and nearly kills him. Something evil.

Realizing that the dream portends rapidly approaching events, Hunter desperately searches for the woman and the door, not knowing whether it will spell his doom. Unbeknownst to Hunter, his wife Nora has been having similar dreams, leading her to the ancient antique shop of Nancy Love, just moments before Hunter arrives.

The door opens and sucks them through, into a fight to the death against the world's oldest and most powerful enemy - an enemy bent upon the end of the human race. Only by standing firm in their faith and relying on one another can they have any hope at all of destroying the monster in the Space Between.

Content:

Drug Content:

PG - A minor character has a seriously alcoholic mother. Another is a drug addict, alcoholic and prostitute.

Violence:

PG-13 - This book has a series of vignettes where lone victims are violently attacked and their brains consumed in a bloody mess.

Language:

G - squeaky clean.

Adult Content:

PG - One woman, as mentioned before, is a prostitute.  

Christian content:

Hunter and his wife are both believers, as is Nancy Love and several other characters in this novel. The main plot is based on end-times prophesy, and the spiritual enemy is very real. Faith and reliance on prayer plays a major part here, and the entire dark path is lit by an incandescent hope for the future.

Final analysis:

I found Hunter and his OCD to be endearing, and his wife Nora to be enchanting. While the back and forth plot and vignettes were a bit hard to follow, and the work needs polish, it was an intriguing and enjoyable high-stakes thriller. The three main characters were the best part of this novel, though the supporting cast and the main enemy were somewhat two dimensional. The split worlds idea was interesting, and the pace, although slow at the beginning, picked up pace about a third of the way through, accelerating downhill like a water slide. While I found the plot solid, the world-building intriguing and the main characters real, the pacing issues at the beginning and the polish needed kept this at a reasonable Four Stars.

About the Author:

Shawn D. Brink was born in Clovis New Mexico, but has lived in Eastern Nebraska since he was five. He holds an undergraduate degree in Secondary Education from Wayne State College and a graduate degree in Management from Bellevue University. His interests (besides writing) include church, playing guitar, and spending time with his wife and four children.

You can follow his writing adventures at his WordPress.

Upcoming Reviews for February

Here's a brief look at the books up and coming in the ol' queue. Hoping to dig my way through at least these by end of month!

The Space Between

by Shawn D Brink

When Hunter and his wife Nora begin to have nightmarish visions of evil and death, they feel driven to find what truth lies behind them. But the truth that they find is terrifying. The enemy they must face is powerful and unless defeated, will mean the end of the world as they know it.
Only by standing firm and relying on each other as well as on God, can they achieve victory. But is victory even possible? For Hunter and Nora, only time can reveal these answers.

Immaculate Assumptions: All the Stuff You Heard About the Bible That Isn't True

by Cornelia Scott Cree

In a society increasingly ruled by secular humanism the notion that the unseen, unable-to be-seen-spirit world rules the natural seems almost quaint especially since modern men only want solutions not ideas. But increasingly the data of reality and science makes this more probable than not.

If we do the radical thing, accept the Holy Bible as truth whether we understand it or not, we can join theology with the movement of history as a spiritual exercise. This book is not about religion; religion is the day-to-day practice of faith. This book exposes the assumptions we have about faith and practice which keep us from learning and realizing truth in our daily lives. 

Shattered Roses: A Beauty and the Beast retelling

by E.L. Parfitt

A book for all Beauty and the Beast fans! A contemporary retelling viewed through the eyes of a teenager. Sixteen year old Megan wants to be a doctor. When Megan volunteers at a residential home she meets Lady. Lady tells a fragmented and confusing story of a duke who never aged; his fate tied to the roses that grew in his garden. As Megan hears more of Lady’s tale she is intrigued to know whether the duke existed or if he is a figment of Lady’s imagination. As Megan embarks on unravelling the mystery of the beast a hidden family secret emerges... will it shatter her life forever?

How to Remove a Brain and Other Bizarre Medical Practices

by David Haviland 

Have you ever wondered how long it takes to digest chewing gum? What hiccups are for? Whether it's safe to fly with breast implants? Taking in everything from the outrageous (yes, Hitler was addicted to crystal meth) to the eye-watering (such as the renowned surgeon who accidentally cut off his patient's left testicle) to the downright disgusting (like the cure for toothache used by the Egyptians involving dead mouse paste), this book proves that medical science is not for the faint-hearted, lily-livered or weak-stomached!

Review: The Landlord by Hannah Ross

The Landlord

by Hannah Ross

When Allie Morton rents an isolated lake cabin near the picturesque village of Gosbury, she only wants a quiet place to sort herself out after an abusive marriage. The last thing she expects is an encounter with a ghost that takes her back to the Regency era. At first Allie doubts her own sanity, but when she delves into the tragic fate of Elizabeth Williamson, the mysterious woman from two centuries ago, she doesn't just uncover a dark secret of the past - she opens a new venue to her future.

My Take:

Allie Morton is so done with her old life. Reeling from an ongoing, messy divorce from an emotionally abusive tyrant, she desperately seeks a quiet, peaceful place to recover. She snaps up a rental cabin by a peaceful lake near Gosbury for an unbelievable price. She quickly finds that the amazingly low rent has a reason. The cabin is in disrepair, far from the beaten path, and hasn't seen a tenant in decades. And that's before she learns there's a ghost.

The peaceful lake is home to a forlorn 200-year-old ghost trying to get resolution for her tragic end. Allie first believes the visions and dreams she has are stress-induced hallucinations, visions of a beautiful woman named Elizabeth Williamson, from the Regency era. When she finds out that Elizabeth did in fact exist around that time, she delves into her tragic story and death, aided by her ghost, uncovering a dark secret buried deep in the past, and inadvertently opening a new hope for her own future.

Content:

Drug Content:

PG - Alcohol is consumed a few times, there are a few scenes at a bar. One of the patrons at the village bar gets wasted, as well as an underage boy.

Violence:

PG - There is a shooting death, and a death under mysterious circumstances. Violence and death are threatened multiple times.

Language:

PG - The Lord's name is taken in vain once, there are a few other mild expletives.

Adult Content:

PG - Affairs are discussed. A man has a reputation as a ladies' man, advances are made on married women. A gentleman uses position to attempt to seduce women of lesser state.  

Christian content:

The pastor of the town church in the Regency era struggles with the decision of whether to expose a grievous sin, when it would be futile. He leaves judgement in the hands of a higher and later court. Faith plays a part in his life, but not much in the lives of any of the other characters. Sin is condemned soundly by certain characters in the novel, though their harsh judgmental condemnation is of the person, not the sin. Friendship, loyalty, forbearance, mercy, and grace all play a part in this work.

Final analysis:

Allie is a very believable character, and Elizabeth also has depth of character. The setting was immersive and the supporting cast were likable and real. I found the demarcations between the past and present a bit difficult to follow, but a great plot device. The pace was steady and fast, the action thrilling, the suspense tangible. I'm not a big fan of Regency but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. Five Stars!

About the Author:
Hannah Ross wrote her first story at the age of six and hasn’t stopped since. Wishing to have a steady profession, she trained as a clinical nutritionist, but the writing bug was too strong and Hannah continued to write fiction in the form of short stories, novels, poetry and plays, as well as many non-fiction essays and articles. 

Hannah enjoys a quiet life in the country with her husband, three children, two cats and a flock of chickens.

Review: The Missing Teacher II: The German Connection by Jeremy E. Owen

The Missing Teacher II: The German Connection

by Jeremy E. Owen

Recent high school graduate Dorothy Reine has dreams of studying to be an architect in America. But her father's disappearance two years earlier has put a damper on those plans. Frustrated by people who tell her to let the authorities handle his case, she decides to take matters into her own hands. 

As she discovers about her father's Stasi past, redemption, and suffering, will she be able to pursue her dream? Maybe, but not in any way that she ever expected!

My Take:

Dorothy Reine works hard at her Great Uncle Trotz' restaurant in Berlin, marginally aware of his past involvement in the Stasi, a neo-Nazi secret police operating in East Berlin shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall. Her father's disappearance two years earlier is the biggest obstacle in the way of fulfilling her dreams of going to America to study to be an architect.

As people at every turn stymie her efforts to uncover the truth of her father's disappearance, she discovers a secret room in the restaurant basement, revealing troubling clues to Herr Trotz' involvement in nefarious operations that might have something to do with her father's mysterious absence.

Content:

Drug Content:

PG - Alcohol is consumed a few times, there are a few scenes at a bar.

Violence:

PG - Torture is threatened multiple times, and occurs once off screen. While danger lurks in the background, actual violence rarely appears onstage.

Language:

G - None.

Adult Content:

PG - Dorothy is propositioned a few times, by various suitors, and her desire to give interested men the cold shoulder is discussed and rebuked a few times. She has trouble reconciling the bible and good friends who came out as gay. 

Christian content:

Pivotal decisions are made by characters based on the testimony of Deitrich Boenhoffer, and the main character struggles with her faith, due to her father's disappearance, among other things. Faith plays a backseat role through most of the book, though providence is visible in how things progress. Characters are encouraged to pray when doubting. Family loyalty is preferred over monetary gain.

Final analysis:

Dorothy appeared rather clueless as forces swirled around her without her notice. The action was gripping, though, and the plot kept me involved. I finished much of the book in one sitting, it was that engrossing. The settings were realistic, the action intense. The characters somewhat believable. All in all, an enjoyable and gripping high stakes adventure story. Five Stars!

About the Author:
Jeremy E Owen is the author of the Missing Teacher Trilogy and the Tim Cauling, Amateur PI series. He grew up in a small town in North America, but presently is an associate professor in South Korea, where he lives with his wife and two amazing daughters.

Review: Hope of Home by Samuel Cronin

Hope of Home

by Samuel Cronin

It's finally Christmas Eve. The entire Straw family has gathered to celebrate the best day of the year. But there's a problem. Grandpa Straw, a wounded veteran of World War II, on the brink of retirement, and facing cancer, has lost the spirit of their tradition. When the family goes caroling, he stays home alone. And perhaps he wants it this way, where he does not have to face the season with all its promise of good tidings and joy. But when his family does not come back, events transpire that encourage him to confront his bruised past and embrace his family, becoming the warm grandpa everyone longs to love. A story within a story, Hope of Home is a novel that Grandpa Straw has penned and gifted to his estranged grandson Marcus, written in the hope of helping him reunite with his family and bring him home. 

My Take:

Marcus Straw has been estranged from his family, living as far across the United States as he can get from his strict and distant grandfather Douglas Straw, and his eccentric family. But shortly before Christmas Eve he receives an unexpected present from Grandpa Straw, a book, and an invitation to please return one final time to his home to face his past and the unreconciled pain residing there.

As Marcus takes a long train ride across the country, he reads the story his grandpa Douglas Straw has written about a family Christmas gone terribly wrong. Dealing with an aggressive form of cancer and a short and certain lifespan, Grandpa Douglas alienates his entire family and they leave him to go out and look at Christmas lights, just as an EF3 tornado rips through the valley, destroying everything, and taking away Douglas' entire family in a moment.

As Douglas deals with the unbelievable grief and confusion, his friends help him unwrap the Christmas gifts left by his missing family, and rediscover the burdens and triumphs of the past. But as he tries to make peace with his loss and his estranged family, can Douglas make peace with the Maker that took them away?

Content:

Drug Content:

PG-13 - Alcoholism and alcohol-induced violence play a pivotal role in this poignant novel.

Violence:

PG-13 - The aftermath of the tornado, and the carnage it leaves behind, is rather graphic. Many people plead for help and die while waiting for assistance.

Language:

G - None.

Adult Content:

G - Squeaky clean.

Christian content:

The importance of family, the despair of catastrophic loss, reconciliation, redemption, and salvation are broad brush themes that permeate this dramatic tale of loss. Scripture is used in several places by the characters to encourage or admonish.

Final analysis:

The main character in this story within a story begins as a completely unlikable, unredeemable crotchety old rich man who never had time for his doting family or his patient and caring wife. As the story progresses, he grows less and less likable, until his despair and impotent rage reaches a critical mass. But his story is three dimensional and gripping, and his raw emotion and struggle is very real. The characters in this tale are real and the drama gripping, the character arc encouraging, and the conclusion satisfying. Five Stars!

About the Author:

Samuel Cronin was born in Burns, Oregon, and grew up in John Day, 70 miles north. He attended Corban University before transferring to Oregon State University, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts in English. He later attended Eastern Oregon University to obtain his Master in Education. In 1999 he sailed as a deckhand aboard Schooner Roseway, whose port of call was Camden, Maine. This experience laid the groundwork for his novel "How Well the Sailors Run". Growing up in Grant County, where gold was discovered on June 8, 1862, captured his interest in prospecting lore and romanticized his view of gold mining. These experiences helped shape his historical novel "Warm Gold". Golfing with his father and brothers helped fuel his interest in golf, forming the basis for "A Season for the Blessed." As a boy he remembers traveling to his grandparent's house at Christmas to experience a tradition on Christmas Eve that forms the groundwork for his fourth novel "Hope of Home." He lives in Idaho with his wife and son.

Review: Dark Water by Simon Thould

Dark Water

by Simon Thould

A girl goes missing – but has she been lost, or taken? Her frantic mother begs for help from the one man with the ruthless skills to track her down. Alex Rafter, former sniper, sees Madeleine Finch as a bad, erratic mother, and is reluctant to go back to a life he is trying to forget. But his own nightmares compel him to search, for the girl's sake.

Rafter embarks on a murderous hunt, aided by Gabriel Montero, another former soldier, that leads through the wilds of the New Forest to the squalid back streets of Southampton. Rebecca Grant, local veterinary, drug addict and would-be lover, offers help, but her own agenda threatens to send Rafter astray. It becomes a race against time to find the girl before she is lost forever to the heartless world of people traffickers.

My Take:

When Alex Rafter, former sniper for the British military, settles down in his old Uncle Max's cottage, Dark Water, in the New Forest community, he's expecting a tranquil change to the surgical killing he was used to. The last thing he really is looking for is more opportunities to use his deadly combat skills. That's a past he'd rather leave behind.

But when Madeleine Finch, local Mercedes dealership owner and erratic mother, begs him to find her missing teenage daughter, he reluctantly agrees to take on the task, for the girl Jac's sake.

Rafter relentlessly pursues the missing girl, stymied by local police and assisted by ex-military bar owner Gabriel Montero. The chase leads him from the wilds of the New Forest to the squalid seedy back streets of nearby Southampton, in a race against time to find her before she is lost forever in the dark world of sex trafficking.

Content:

Drug Content:

PG-13 - Ketamine, used by vets, is trafficked. Alcoholism is common here, with vodka, beer, and whisky consumed pretty much whenever people gather.

Violence:

PG - There are several battle scenes, with gunfire and methodical killing. Nothing gratuitous.

Language:

R - The F bomb is dropped 25 times. Other profanity is sprinkled lightly throughout

Adult Content:

R - This is a book about sex trafficking. There is one sex scene, not overly graphic or prolonged. There is a conversation about a sexual encounter, and there is some discussion about sex trafficking and the chances of the girls caught in it. Prostitution and pimps are discussed in a couple conversations. While the subject matter involves sex, abuse, and slavery, there's only casual come-ons, other than the one scene.

Christian content:

Um, not at all. There are no mentions of faith, praying, any gods, or church. God's name is used about 10 times but only as an epithet. On the other hand, there is camaraderie under fire, persistence, and an overarching theme of right and wrong. The lines may be off center. They say that in Texas, 'Your honor, he NEEDED killing' is an admissible defense. There is a bit of that here.

Final analysis:

Well, this one isn't for the little kids. The language is a bit rough for even teens. If you are looking for an adventure story, though, wanting to experience the bad guys getting taken down, this is a good read. The pace is slow in starting up, but the action held my attention and it grew rather gripping by midpoint. The internal struggles in the main character and the interactions between him and the ladies around him, and the friends on his team, made this a bit of a guilty pleasure, and I'm a fan of black ops and insurmountable odds rescues. There's plenty of that here. I'd love to give this a full five stars, but the pacing dragged in the beginning, and it was a bit tough getting started on the actual adventure. Four Stars!

About the Author:

Simon was born in 1945 in Somerset, England. He played sports at school with more enthusiasm than he studied but did manage to qualify as a Chartered Surveyor and practised for twenty years in London and throughout the south of England.
He completed two creative writing courses at night school and one correspondence course in his spare time. He also worked as a restaurant and bar manager in Hampshire before moving to Spain with his two cats for a year and a half where he wrote his first novel. He then moved back to the UK and took a position as resident groom/housekeeper in Kent and wrote a second novel.
Simon relocated to Charleston, South Carolina in the '90's for several years working in warehouse stock control, he sold insurance and artwork in a Thomas Kinkade gallery downtown.
Returning to the UK again, he worked as a mailman and in several retail positions and wrote a third unpublished novel.
Moving to Gozo in the Mediterranean in 2014, Simon wrote, 'Dark Water', a thriller introducing Alex Rafter. After a lifetime of rejections from publishers and agents with only minor success selling magazine articles, he made one more push to get published and sent sample chapters to more than fifty UK agents and was lucky to be picked up by David Haviland of the Andrew Lownie Literary Agency in London. 'Dark Water' was published in August 2017.
In the same month, Simon suffered a stroke and spent a week in hospital and for several months underwent tests and examinations before being singed off by the consultant at the Stroke Clinic, Blackpool where he now lives. Sucking down six pills a day, Simon continues with his recovery and therapy and has returned to writing work.
Simon's passion include horseracing, reading USA hard-bolied, noir novels and watching classic black and white movies.