Review: Splintered

Posted December 28, 2014 in Reading, Review / 0 Comments

Review: SplinteredSplintered by A G Howard
Series: Splintered #1
Publisher: Amulet Books (2013)
eBook (377 pages)
Via: Library
Rating:
Also by this author: Unhinged, Ensnared
Also in this series: Unhinged, Ensnared
Reading Challenges: Read 2014

Synopsis

This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence.
Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.
When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

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Review: The Case for Christmas

Posted December 27, 2014 in Reading, Review / 0 Comments

Merry Christmas!
It is so great that Christmas is more than just a day so I can say Merry Christmas
for quite a while yet, until the Baptism of the Lord on January 11 actually.
Merry Christmas!

Review: The Case for ChristmasThe Case for Christmas by Lee Strobel
Publisher: Zondervan (2014)
eARC (96 pages)
Via: NetGalley
Rating:
Reading Challenges: Read 2014

Synopsis

Who was in the manger that first Christmas morning? Some say he would become a great moral leader. Others, a social critic. Still others view Jesus as a profound philosopher, a rabbi, a feminist, a prophet, and more. Many are convinced he was the divine Son of God. Who was he really? And how can you know for sure? Consulting experts on the Bible, archaeology, and messianic prophecy, Lee Strobel searches out the true identity of the child in the manger. Join him as he asks the tough, pointed questions you d expect from an award-winning legal journalist. If Jesus really was God in the flesh, then there ought to be credible evidence, including Eyewitness Evidence Can the biographies of Jesus be trusted? Scientific Evidence What does archaeology reveal? Profile Evidence Did Jesus fulfill the attributes of God? Fingerprint Evidence Did Jesus uniquely match the identity of the Messiah? The Case for Christmas invites you to consider why Christmas matters in the first place. Somewhere beyond the traditions of the holiday lies the truth. It may be more compelling than you ve realized. Weigh the facts . . . and decide for yourself."

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Merry Christmas!

Posted December 24, 2014 in Faith / 2 Comments

Merry Christmas to you!

midnight-christmas
My kitty says Merry Christmas, too!

I love, love, love, love, love Christmas. Christmas is the time to remember an Infant born into poverty, born to die to save us from our sins.

This Christmas I will remember that it was a tiny baby who held the hope of the whole world upon His shoulders. It was a tiny baby who, though born in a stable, is the Son of God, the Word made Flesh. It was a tiny baby who became man to save me from my sins. It is because of a tiny baby whom we know is the Savior of the World.

Imagine the great joy of the Blessed Virgin to hold a baby in her arms, a baby who is both her Son and the Son of God. Imagine the great love Saint Joseph felt for a baby born to his wife, a baby who is the Savior of the World. Imagine the great awe of the shepherds when the angels called to them, telling them of a child who is the Prince of Peace. Imagine the great reverence of the magi who traveled so far to bring gifts to the King of Kings.

Merry Christmas! I pray you all enjoy time with your family this holiday season.

amanda

I’ll leave you with a poem I wrote a few years ago for Christmas.

What Gift do You Bring to the Newborn King?

By: Amanda Marie

What gift do you offer to the King of kings?
What can you give Him that truly comes from you?
What do you lay before Him?
Can you give a gift of self to the newborn King?

Do you bring Him gold?
A gift beyond all price?
A precious faith that knows no end?
A gift of self to the newborn King?

Do you bring Him frankincense?
The rising incense of your prayers?
A hope that even this shall pass and better things shall come?
A gift of self to the newborn King?

Do you bring Him myrrh?
A precious spice for His burial?
A love than can conquer even death?
A gift of self to the newborn King?

Do you bring Him talents?
Special gifts He gave to you, given back for all the world?
Things that only you can do?
A gift of self to the newborn King?

What gift do you bring?
An expression of faith, hope, and love?
A gift that only you can give?
A gift of self to the newborn King?

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