Monday, July 06, 2009

Do You Like Book Giveaways?

Cerebral Girl does, and she's compiled quite a list of them on her blog. Go see how many you can win! Kayla also has a list. Hasma lists giveaways of all sorts. FreeBlogGiveaways is a whole blog devoted to giveaways.

Mailbox Monday


Thanks to Marcia at The Printed Page for hosting. Stop by her blog to see what everyone else got this week.
On Monday the mailman brought me:
How to Score by Robin Wells, compliments of Hatchette.It is a fun romance novel.
Ransome's Honor for a First Wildcard tour in July, but you can read my review now.
As you can tell from my review, my five year old and I enjoyed No, Never! which I got from the author, Sally O. Lee, via Bostik.


The nice folks at Hatchette sent me Off Season by Anne Rivers Siddon. I'm giving away five copies July 10 so be sure to enter. I have also reviewed it.


Wednesday brought me two books:

Montana Rose will be toured by First Wildcard July 28, but my review is up now.



Hatchette sent me my copy of Julie and Julia. I'm running a giveaway and invite you to enter.



Friday brought me another book from Hatchette: The Imposter's Daughter. Check out my review and it it sounds like something you'd enjoy, enter my giveaway.

Another book to show up this week was Five Minutes with the Child Jesus. Here is the publisher's page about it. I also invite you to read my review.

Well, I almost made it through the stack!

Saturday, July 04, 2009

How to Score: My Review


Thanks to the folks at Hatchette, I've had the opportunity to read How to Score by Robin Wells. I'd generally classify it as a romance novel because the main plot line is the romance between the hero, Chase and heroine Sammi. He is an FBI agent who is minding the store of his brother's life coach business while his brother is spending a few weeks in the Witness Protection Program. She is one of the clients. His brother's business is conducted by phone and they sound alike, so no one is the wiser when he takes over. He is intrigued by her and arranges to see her as himself, and then ends up meeting her. For a while, she knows him on the phone as "Luke" her life coach and in person as Chase. "Luke" is giving her pointers on dealing with Chase....

A subplot deals with her boss, a lady who for years was the mistress of a wealthy man. For various reasons she is now forced to look at her past and realizes she was used; that the relationship wasn't what she thought it was.

This is a mass market romance. It has one sex scene and it happens before marriage. As far as how steamy the scene is, well, it is clear they are doing more in bed than sleeping, and we do get descriptions of body parts but it isn't one of those books where we get long descriptions of exactly who did what to whom and what the response was, though there is definitely too much there to be PG rated, if that makes any sense.

This was a quick enjoyable read, with a few twists that took it from the standard romance novel format.

Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival

Hi, and I'd like to wish everyone a happy Independence Day. In our parish we are celebrating our dependence on God by having a day of adoration to pray for our country.


For those who are new to Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival, this is a weekly opportunity for Catholic bloggers to share their best posts with the rest of the Catholic blogging community. All Catholic bloggers are invited to participate, whether you blog exclusively about things Catholic or just blog about Catholic things periodically. To join in the fun, go to your blog and create a post titled Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival. In that post, describe and link to whichever posts you want to share with us. Also, link to this post. Then come back here and sign Mr. Linky and leave us a link. Some who post infrequently have asked if they can use Mr. Linky to link directly a post. Of course you may, but remember that turnabout is fair play, and make sure your post links back here so your readers can meet the rest of us.

I reviewed three books this week that are Catholic themed. Five Minutes with the Child Jesus is a cute children's Christmas story. Chicken Soup for the Soul: Living Catholic Faith is typical of the Chicken Soup books. I also read a booklet about St. Gianna Molla.

If you'd like a weekly reminder to post, join our yahoogroup.

My Review: Five Minutes with the Child Jesus

I'd like the thank the Catholic Company for sending me Five Minutes with the Child Jesus. This book of about 100 pages features a ten year old boy, and my guess is that older elementary is the target age group. On the last day of school before Christmas, Michael stops by the local Catholic church. While the boy he is with goes to speak to the sacristan, Michale kneels to pray. A ten year old Jesus comes to him and together they take five trips of one minute each (at least according to his watch, though they seem like longer while they are gone). Basically, Michael helps Jesus answer prayers. He sends a broken man back to his family, he helps a poor widow find a family who takes her in, he sees a crippled girl take her first steps since an accident and he helps convince people to donate to food baskets for the poor. Finally, Jesus takes him to a local children's hospital where he meets a boy who is close to death and where Jesus tells him that the hospital is close enough to his home for him to visit.


This is a sweet heartwarming book, though perhaps a little heavy-handed on the lesson end. It is definitely Catholic in nature. Besides the fact that Micheal meets Jesus in the church, there is mention of communion, statues, saints, and the Blessed Mother.

The illustrations are beautiful and the cover is repesentative of the style.

Montana Rose: My Review

I enjoyed Mary Connealy's Gingham Mountain, so when given the chance to read her newest, Montana Rose, I jumped at it.


Montana Rose is the story of Cassie and Red. The book begins with the burial of Cassie's first husband, Griff. She has always been known (behind her back)as "China Doll" because of her expensive clothes and lack of interaction with the townsfolk. After husband is buried, all the single men at the funeral vie for her hand, since she needs a husband and the parson is there. The gravedigger, a young rancher who does odd jobs around town, wins her, simply because he seems like the least bad choice. She spends the rest of the day learning what everyone else in town already knew--that everything she and her husband owned was mortgaged to the hilt. She went to her new husband with nothing, except the baby she was carrying.

Over the course of the story, her husband learns that the "China Doll" was a creation of her first husband. They learn to love and trust each other and of course the book has a happy ending.

While Gingham Mountain was a fun read, with a little Christianity thrown in, Montana Rose more closely follows the Christian fiction model of a character finding redemption and Christ--but I won't tell you which one does. Something I found interesting about the religion in this book is that Red, an aspiring preacher, prays for the repose of the soul of Cassie's first husband. Also, when Cassie's baby is born, a baptism is scheduled. I know a lot of non-Catholics baptize babies, but I didn't realize any prayed for the dead.

There is a woman in the book who gets a lot of pages, but who really had little to do with the plot of the book; she could have been completely left out really, but since this is the first book in a series, my guess is that we'll see Belle in a future book. I'll look forward to it; I enjoyed this book and would like to know that happens to her.

First Wildcard will tour this book July 28. Check back then to read the first chapter and read about the author, Mary Connealy. To learn more about her other books, check on Connealy's website.

Friday, July 03, 2009

My Review: The Imposter's Daughter


I am running a giveaway for The Imposter's Daughter. Today I got my copy in the mail. I read it tonite. It was interesting. It is a graphic novel, in other words, a 250 page hardcovered comic book. The subject matter isn't very comic. It is sort of a memoir/autobiography of the author and her relationship with her father. Her father it turns out, isn't who she thought he was, and learning about him (along with how their relationship was her entire life) basically caused her to mess up her life. This is the story of her life with Daddy, her life as a young adult and how she gets her life together--and that process involves becoming religious for the first time in her life.

This is a book for adults. As noted it is a graphic novel and several of the scenes are of a naked woman in bed. Phone sex is mentioned and she and her boyfriend are shown in bed together several times. She gets a job in a strip club and other girls are shown giving lap dances. I'm not sure exactly what gets what ratings in the movies; maybe this stuff isn't X rated, but it surely is at least R rated.

If this sounds like your thing, please enter my giveaway.

Book Reviews in 2009

The blog world is a copy-cat place and I've seen lots of folks doing lists like this now that it is a new month, or halfway through the year, so I thought I'd play along. Since I review almost everything I read, and generally write the review before starting the next book, this is pretty much a list of what I've read this year. (click on title to read review)

  1. Off Season Mass market fiction
  2. A Hint of Wicked Mass market historical romance
  3. Knight of Desire Mass Market historical romance
  4. Womenomics Non-fiction. Business, economics, motherhood
  5. No, Never! Children's
  6. Mom Needs Chocolate Christian devotional
  7. Chicken Soup for the Soul: Living Catholic Faith Catholic inspirational
  8. St. Gianna Beretta Molla: A Modern Day Hero of Divine Love Catholic biography
  9. My Forbidden Desire Mass market paranormal romance
  10. The I Believe Bunny Children's
  11. Worth a Thousand Words Christian fiction
  12. The Book of Life Catholic Biblical non-fiction
  13. Maggie Rose Christian fiction romance
  14. Love Equals Sacrifice Catholic memoir
  15. What the Bayou Saw Christian fiction
  16. Devil in Winter Mass market historical romance
  17. Talking to the Dead Christian fiction
  18. Veiled Freedom Christian fiction
  19. Following Mary to Jesus Catholic devotional
  20. Off the Beaten Path Non-fiction travel
  21. Morningsong Christian fiction
  22. The Wackiest Weirdest Wildest Animals Children's
  23. Seduce Me at Sunrise Mass market historical romance
  24. Enemies and Allies Fiction
  25. Chicken Soup: Power Moms Inspirational
  26. Old World Daughter, New World Mother Memoir
  27. Magnificat Catholic prayer
  28. If I Had You Christian fiction
  29. 100 Bible Stories 100 Bible Songs Children's
  30. The Middle Fork Mass market fiction
  31. Parenting is a Contact Sport Non-fiction, parenting
  32. Secrets of a Summer Night Mass market historical romance
  33. She's Out There Non-fiction, politics, women's studies
  34. Four Wives Mass Market fiction
  35. You Make Me Feel Like Dancing Christian Fiction
  36. The Playboy and the Widow Mass Market modern romance--clean
  37. Dance Me Daddy Children's
  38. Annie's Ghosts Memoir
  39. Daisy Chain Christian Fiction
  40. City of the Dead Christian fiction, historical
  41. Critical Care Christian fiction, romance
  42. A Lover's Quarrel with the Evangelical Church non-fiction, religion
  43. It Happened in Italy non-fiction, history
  44. A Passion Denied Christian Fiction, 1920's romance
  45. Mohamed's Moon Christian Fiction
  46. All of Me Mass Market romance, modern day
  47. The Sneakiest Pirate Children's
  48. The Heroes of Googley Woogley Children's
  49. Entertaining Angels Inspirational fiction
  50. Don't Bargain with the Devil Mass Market Romance, historical
  51. The Moment Between Christian Fiction
  52. Silver Birtches Christian Fiction
  53. The Noticer Inspirational
  54. A Gift of Grace Christian fiction (Amish)
  55. The Someday List Christian Fiction
  56. Great Adventures Kidpack Catholic childrens
  57. Along Came You Children's
  58. The Smartest Way to Save Non-fiction, Financial planning
  59. The Reluctant Cowgirl Christian Romance
  60. New York Debut Christian YA
  61. So Not Happening Christian YA
  62. Nell's Cowboy Harlequin Romance
  63. Jantsen's Gift Memoir
  64. The Note II Christian fiction
  65. The Note Christian fiction
  66. Mine Til Midnight Mass market historical fiction
  67. The Lake that Stole Children Children's
  68. Stop the Traffik Non-fiction
  69. Go Back and Be Happy Memoir
  70. Girls in Trucks Mass Market fiction
  71. His Name is Jesus Biblical non-fiction
  72. Flickering Pixels non-fiction, religion, media
  73. Sugar Daddy Mass market modern romance
  74. Lucky Child Memoir
  75. East Garrison Mass Market fiction
  76. The Manning Brides Mass Market modern romance. Pretty clean
  77. Fifty Is Not a Four-Letter Word Mass Market fiction
  78. New Hampshire Weddings Christian Romance
  79. Stranger in My Arms Mass Market Historical romance
  80. Suddenly You Mass Market Historical Romance
  81. Whittaker Family Reunion Historical fiction
  82. In the Footsteps of Paul Inspirational
  83. Yesterday's Embers Christian fiction
  84. Katt's in the Cradle Christian fiction
  85. You Turn--Changing Directions in Mid-life Non-fiction, self-determination
  86. Side-Yard Superhero Memoir
  87. So Long Status Quo Biography
  88. If Tomorrow Never Comes Christian fiction
  89. Bark Up the Right Tree Memoir of a dog
  90. It's A Green Thing YA Christian
  91. Potluck Club: Trouble Brewing Christian fiction
  92. Blue-Eyed Devil Mass Market Romance, Modern
  93. Only Uni Christian fiction
  94. The Measure of a Lady Christian fiction
  95. A Child's Promise Christian fiction, romance
  96. Family Matters Christian fiction, romance
  97. Last Mango in Texas Christian fiction, romance
  98. Animals In Translation Non-fiction, autism, animals
  99. Confessions of a Former Child Memoir
  100. The Lamb's Supper Catholic Biblical
  101. Daniel's Den Christian fiction
  102. The God I Don't Understand Christian Biblical
  103. The Broken Parachute Man Mass Market fiction
  104. Sunday Brunch Christian fiction
  105. Red White and Blue Christian Fiction
  106. Age Before Beauty Christian fiction
  107. The Husband Project Christian, non-fiction, marriage
  108. The Gift of Psalms Christian, Biblical, Prayer
  109. The Puzzle Bark Tree fiction
  110. Scrapping Plans Christian fiction
  111. Gingham Mountain Christian romance
  112. Lost in Las Vegas YA Christian fiction
  113. The Spring of Candy Apples YA Christian fiction
  114. This Side of Heaven Christian fiction
  115. The Flavor Bible Cookbook
  116. Surviving Financial Meltdown Non-Fiction, financial planning
  117. Milk Money Christian short romance
  118. John's Quest Christian short romance
  119. Emily's Hope Catholic fiction
  120. Blood Lines Christian Fiction, thriller
  121. Rex Memoir, Special needs kids
  122. The Red Siren Christian fiction, romance
  123. Blood of the Lambs Christian non-fiction, Islam
Wow, that's more than I thought when I started this exercise! Let's see what I read:
Christian fiction: These are Christian novels that had more to the plot than boy meets girl, even if boy does meet girl. 28
Catholic Fiction: 1
Christian Romance: Christian fiction where the plot was almost entirely boy meets girl, conflict, resolution: 12
Mass Market romance: Usually have explict sex scenes, often have sex outside of marriage but in any case, religion is not a part of the story, even if the books are clean. 15
Mass Market fiction: Novels not written for a religious audience. 11
Memoir: 9
Non-fiction not fitting in other categories: 20
Devotional/prayer: 2
Catholic: 8
Christian YA: written for and about teens: 5
Children's books: 10

Thursday, July 02, 2009

Ransome's Honor: My Review


If you are looking for a good clean romance, and don't mind a tiny bit of religion thrown in, I recommend Ransome's Honor. Set in the early 1800's in England, the book opens with the heroine, Julia, watching her beau, William Ransome, go and speak to her father, who she knows adores William. She knows this is the night she will become engaged to him--only it doesn't happen. He believes he doesn't have enough money to be worthy of her. She is furious and returns to her home on a sugar plantation in Jamaica. Twelve years later she is in England again, and William is in port. William's best friend is her best friend's husband so they see each other. In the meantime, unscrupulous relatives plot to marry her off to a man who needs her money. Will they succeed? Ok, so the outcome was never really in doubt, but it was a good story.

As noted in my opening, this is Christian fiction, but definitely on the lighter end of the spectrum. The characters pray periodically and go to church, but the prayers are short, and we don't get treated to pages of sermons. No one has to find God before they get together. Another Christian aspect of the book is that Julia and her brother convinced her parents to free the slaves on the plantation--and in doing so made the plantation more profitable.

In short, while this was a pretty formula romance, it was a fun read. First Wildcard will tour this book July 10. Check back then to read the first chapter.

Wednesday, July 01, 2009

First Wildcard: Critical Care

Click here to read my review.


It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!


Today's Wild Card author is:


and the book:


Critical Care (Mercy Hospital Series #1)

Tyndale House Publishers (May 6, 2009)


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:



CANDACE CALVERT is a writer and ER nurse who believes that love, laughter, and faith are the very best medicines of all. After an equestrian accident broke her neck, she shared the inspirational account of her accident and recovery in Chicken Soup for the Nurse’s Soul, and her writing career was launched. Born in Northern California and the mother of two, Candace lives in the hill country of Texas.


Visit the author's website.

Product Details:

List Price: $12.99
Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers (May 6, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1414325436
ISBN-13: 978-1414325439

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:


Don’t die, little girl.

Dr. Logan Caldwell pressed the heel of his hand against Amy Hester’s chest, taking over heart compressions in a last attempt to save the child’s life. Her small sternum hollowed and recoiled under his palm at a rate of one hundred times per minute, the best he could do to mimic her natural heartbeat. A respiratory therapist forced air into her lungs.

Don’t die. Logan glanced up at the ER resuscitation clock, ticking on without mercy. Twenty-seven minutes since they’d begun the code. No heartbeat. Not once. Time to quit but . . .

He turned to his charge nurse, Erin Quinn, very aware of the insistent wail of sirens in the distance. “Last dose of epi?”

“Three minutes ago.”

“Give another.” Logan halted compressions, his motionless hand easily spanning the width of the two-year-old’s chest. He watched until satisfied with the proficiency of the therapist’s ventilations, then turned back to the cardiac monitor and frowned. Asystole—flatline. Flogging this young heart with atropine and repeated doses of epinephrine wasn’t going to do it. A pacemaker, pointless. She’d been deprived of oxygen far too long before rescue.

Logan pushed his palm into Amy’s sternum again and gritted his teeth against images of a terrified little girl hiding in a toy cupboard as her day care burned in a suffocating cloud of smoke, amid the chaos of two dozen other burned and panicking children.

“Epi’s on board,” Erin reported, sweeping an errant strand of coppery hair away from her face. She pressed two fingers against the child’s arm to locate the brachial pulse and raised her gaze to the doctor’s. “You’re generating a good pulse with compressions, but . . .”

But she’s dead. With reluctance, Logan lifted his hand from the child’s chest. He studied the monitor display and then nodded at the blonde nurse standing beside the crash cart. “Run me rhythm strips in three leads, Sarah.” After he drew in a slow breath of air still acrid with the residue of smoke, he glanced down at Amy Hester, her cheeks unnaturally rosy from the effects of carbon monoxide, glossy brown curls splayed against the starched hospital linen. Dainty purple flower earrings. Blue eyes, glazed and half-lidded. Tiny chin. And lips—pink as a Valentine cupid—pursed around the rigid breathing tube, as if it were a straw in a snack-time juice box. Picture-perfect . . . and gone.

He signaled for the ventilations to stop and checked the code clock again. “Time of death—9:47.”

There was a long stretch of silence, and Logan used it to make his exit, turning his back to avoid another glance at the child on the gurney . . . and the expressions on the faces of his team. No good came from dwelling on tragedy. He knew that too well. Best to move on with what he had to do. He’d almost reached the doorway when Erin caught his arm.

“We’ve put Amy’s parents and grandmother in the quiet room the way you asked,” she confirmed, her green eyes conveying empathy for him as well. “I can send Sarah with you, if—”

“No. I’ll handle it myself,” Logan said, cutting her off. His tone was brusquer than he’d intended, but he just wanted this over with. “We need Sarah here.” He tensed at a child’s shrill cry in the trauma room beyond, followed by the squawk of the base station radio announcing an ambulance. “There are at least five more kids coming in from the propane explosion. We’ll need extra staff to do more than pass out boxes of Kleenex. I want nurses who know what they’re doing. Get them for me.”

***

Why am I here?

Claire Avery winced as a child’s painful cry echoed up the Sierra Mercy emergency department corridor and blended with the wail of sirens. Almost an hour after the Little Nugget Day Care explosion, ambulances still raced in. Fire. Burns. Like my brother. No, please, I can’t be part of this again.

She leaned against the cool corridor wall, her mouth dry and thoughts stuttering. Being called to the ER was a mistake. Had to be. The message to meet the director of nursing didn’t make sense. Claire hadn’t done critical care nursing since Kevin’s death. Couldn’t. She wiped a clammy palm on her freshly pressed lab coat and stepped away from the wall to peer down the corridor into the ER. Then jumped, heart pounding, at the thud of heavy footfalls directly behind her.

She whirled to catch a glimpse of a man barreling toward her with his gaze on the ambulance entrance some dozen yards away. He looked a few years older than she was, maybe thirty-five, tall and wide shouldered, with curly dark hair and faded blue scrubs. He leveled a forbidding scowl at Claire like a weapon and slowed to a jog before stopping a few paces from her.

“What are you doing?” he asked, grabbing his stethoscope before it could slide from his neck.

“I’m . . . waiting,” Claire explained, awkwardly defensive. “I was paged to the ER.”

“Good. Then don’t just stand there holding up the wall. Let’s go. The charge nurse will show you where to start.”

“But I—,” she choked, her confusion complete.

“But what?” He glanced toward sounds at the ambulance bay and then back at her.

Claire cleared her throat. “I don’t know why I’m here.”

He shook his head, his low groan sounding far too much like a smothered curse. “If that question’s existential, I don’t have time for it. But if you’re here to work, follow me. Erin Quinn will tell you everything you need to know.” He pointed toward a crew of paramedics racing through the ambulance doors with a stretcher. A toddler, his tiny, terrified face raw and blistered behind an oxygen mask, sat bolt upright partially covered by a layer of sterile sheets. “See that boy? That’s why I’m here. So either help me or get out of the way.” He turned and began jogging.

Speechless, Claire stared at the man’s retreating back and the nightmarish scene beyond: burned child, hustling medics, a flurry of scrubs, and a hysterically screaming parent. Help or get out of the way? What was she supposed to do with that ultimatum? And what gave this rude man the right to issue it?

Then, with a rush of relief, Claire spotted the Jamaican nursing director striding toward her. This awful mistake was about to be cleared up.

“I’m sorry for the delay,” Merlene Hibbert said, her molasses-rich voice breathless. “As you can imagine, there have been many things to attend to.” She slid her tortoiseshell glasses low on her nose, squinting down the corridor. “I see you already met our Dr. Caldwell.”

Claire’s eyes widened. Logan Caldwell? Sierra Mercy Hospital’s ER director?

Merlene sighed. “I’d planned to introduce you myself. I hope he wasn’t . . . difficult.”

“No, not exactly,” she hedged, refusing to imagine a reason she’d need an introduction. “But I think there’s been a mistake. He thought I’d been sent down here to work in the ER.” Tell me he’s mistaken.

“Of course. A natural mistake. He’s expecting two more agency nurses.”

Claire’s knees nearly buckled with relief. “Thank goodness. They need help. I can see that from here.” She glanced at the ER, where patients on gurneys overflowed into the hallway. A nurse’s aide held a sobbing woman in her arms, her face etched with fatigue. Styrofoam coffee cups, discarded cardboard splints, and scraps of cut-away clothing littered the floor. All the while, the distant cries of that poor child continued relentlessly.

“Yes, they do,” Merlene agreed. “And that’s exactly why I called you.”

“But I’ve been at Sierra Mercy only a few months, and my hours are promised to the education department—to train the students, write policies, and demonstrate new equipment.” Claire floundered ahead as if grasping for a life preserver. “I’ve interviewed to replace Renee Baxter as clinical educator. And I haven’t done any critical care nursing in two years, so working in the ER would be out of the—”

“That’s not why you’re here,” Merlene said. Her dark eyes pinned Claire like a butterfly specimen on corkboard. “I need you to assess my staff to see how they’re coping emotionally. I don’t have to tell you this has been one miserable morning.” She studied Claire’s face and then raised her brows. “You listed that in your résumé. That you’ve been recently trained in Critical Incident Stress Management?”

CISM? Oh no. She’d forgotten. Why on earth had she included that? “Yes, I’m certified, but . . .” How could she explain? Merlene had no clue that Claire’s entire future—maybe even her sanity—depended on never setting foot in an ER again. It was the only answer to the single prayer she’d clung to since her firefighter brother’s death in a Sacramento trauma room two years ago. Being helpless to save him left her with crippling doubts, sleep-stealing nightmares, and . . . She’d mapped her future out meticulously. The move to Placerville, a new hospital, a new career path, no going back. Everything depended on her plan.

Claire brushed away a long strand of her dark hair and forced herself to stand tall, squaring her shoulders. “I understand what you’re asking. But you should know that I haven’t done any disaster counseling beyond classroom practice. I’m familiar with the principles, but . . .” What could she possibly offer these people? “Wouldn’t the chaplain be a better choice?”

“He’s going to be delayed for several hours. Erin Quinn’s my strongest charge nurse, so if she tells me her ER team is at risk, I believe it. They received six children from that explosion at the day care. Four are in serious condition, and a two-year-old died.” Merlene touched the amber and silver cross resting at the neckline of her uniform. She continued, frowning. “Dr. Caldwell’s working them ragged. An agency nurse threatened to walk out. Security’s got their hands full with the media. . . . You’re all I can offer them right now.”

Claire’s heart pounded in her throat. With every fiber of her being, she wanted to sprint into the northern California sunshine; fill her lungs with mountain air; cleanse away the suffocating scents of fear, pain, and death; keep on running and not look back. It would be so easy. Except that these were fellow nurses in that ER; she’d walked in their shoes. More than most people, Claire understood the awful toll this work could take. The staff needed help. How could she refuse? She took a breath and let it out slowly. “Okay. I’ll do it.”

“Good.” Relief flooded into Merlene’s eyes. She handed Claire a dog-eared sheaf of papers. “Here’s our hospital policy for staff support interventions. Probably nothing new there.” She gestured toward her office a few yards away. “Why don’t you sit down and review it for a few minutes before you go in? You can report to me later after I make my rounds.”

Before Claire could respond, the ambulance bay doors slammed open at the far end of the corridor. There was an answering thunder of footsteps, rubber-soled shoes squeaking across the faded vinyl flooring.

Logan Caldwell reappeared, shoving past a clutch of reporters to direct incoming paramedics. He raked his fingers through his hair and bellowed orders. “Faster! Get that stretcher moving. Give me something to work with, guys. And you—yeah, you, buddy—get the camera out of my face! Who let you in here?” The ER director whirled, stethoscope swinging across his broad chest, to shout at a tall nurse who’d appeared at the entrance to the ER. “Where are those extra nurses, Erin? Call the evening crew in early; a double shift won’t kill anyone. We’re working a disaster case here. Get me some decent staff!”

Claire gritted her teeth. Though she still hadn’t officially met him, there was no doubt in her mind that Logan Caldwell deserved his notorious reputation. Dr. McSnarly. The nickname fit like a surgical glove. Thank heaven she didn’t have to actually work with him—the man looked like he ate chaos for breakfast.

Claire turned to Merlene. “I’ll do the best I can,” she said, then drew a self-protective line. “But only for today. Just until the chaplain comes.”

“Of course. Very short-term.” Merlene began walking away, then stopped to glance over her shoulder. “Oh, a word of caution: Dr. Caldwell hates the idea of counseling. I’d watch my back if I were you.”

Claire hesitated outside the doors to the emergency department. She’d reviewed the summary of steps for an initial critical stress intervention and was as ready as she’d ever be. Considering she’d never done any peer counseling before. I’m a fraud. Why am I here?

She shut her eyes for a moment, hearing the din of the department beyond. It had been stupid to put the CISM training on her résumé. She’d taken the course last fall and participated reluctantly in the mock crisis situations, mostly because it would look impressive on her application for the clinical educator position. But afterward Claire knew that she could never volunteer as a peer counselor. Never. It felt too personal, too painful.

Healing the healers, they called it, the basis for the work of volunteer teams that waded into horror zones after events like 9/11, the killer tsunami in Indonesia, and the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. And a Sacramento, California, trauma room after a warehouse fire that killed seven firefighters.

Claire fought the memories. Yes, the counseling teams made sure that caregivers took care of themselves too, assessing them for burnout and signs of post-traumatic stress. Like difficulty making decisions, sleeplessness, nightmares, and relationship failures. Claire knew the symptoms only too well. She’d struggled with most of them herself these past two years, exactly the reason she’d run away from that Sacramento hospital—after refusing its offer of stress counseling—and never looked back.

But here she was at another ER door, peeking inside through a narrow panel of bulletproof glass. And now she was responsible for helping these people deal with everything she was trying so hard to forget and expected to offer the kind of counseling she’d never accepted herself. Beyond ironic—impossible and completely at odds with her plan.

Claire raised her palm and pushed the door inward.

Heal my heart and move me forward. She’d prayed it every single day.

So why was her life slamming into reverse?

The essence of Sierra Mercy ER hit Claire’s senses like an assault. Sounds: anxious chatter, a burst from the overhead PA speakers, beeping of electronic monitors, inconsolable crying, and painful screams. Smells: nervous perspiration, stale coffee, surgical soap, bandaging adhesive, the scorched scent of sterile surgical packs . . . and of burned hair and flesh.

No, no. Claire’s stomach lurched as she clutched her briefcase like a shield and scanned the crowded room for the charge nurse. Find Erin Quinn. Concentrate on that.

She took a slow breath and walked farther into the room, searching among the eddy of staff in multicolored scrubs—technicians, nurses, and registration clerks. She forced herself to note the glassed-in code room, a small central nurses’ station and its large dry-erase assignment board, the semicircular arrangement of curtained exam cubicles with wall-mounted equipment at the head of each gurney, and the huge surgical exam lights overhead.

Claire tried to avoid the anxious faces of the family members huddled close to the tiny victims. Because she knew intimately how much they were suffering. No, much worse than that. I feel it. I still feel it.

When she’d agreed to do this for Merlene, she’d hoped this smaller ER—miles from the Sacramento trauma center and two years later—would be somehow different, but nothing had changed. Especially how it made Claire feel, the same way it had in those weeks after Kevin’s death. Unsure of herself for the first time in her nursing career, she’d been antsy, queasy, and clammy with doubt. Dreading the wail of approaching sirens and jumping at each squawk of the emergency radio. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t shake the irrational certainty that the very next ambulance stretcher would be carrying someone she loved, someone she’d be unable to save, and . . .

A cry in the distance made Claire turn. Her breath caught as the young charge nurse opened a curtain shielding a gurney.

A child, maybe three years old, rested upright in a nest of blue sterile sheets, tufts of his wispy blond hair blackened at the tips—some missing in spots—reddened scalp glistening with blisters. One eye had swollen closed, and his nose was skewed a little to one side by the clear plastic tape securing a bandage to his cheek. The other blue eye blinked slowly as if mesmerized by the drip chamber of the IV setup taped to his arm. An oxygen cannula stretched across his puffy, tear-streaked face.

Beside him, a stainless steel basin, bottles of sterile saline, and stacks of gauze squares sat assembled on a draped table. Burn care: control pain, cool the burn to stop it from going deeper, monitor for dehydration, and prevent tetanus and infection. All the bases covered. Unless the burns are horrific and complicated, like Kevin’s. Unless there is profound shock, heart failure, and . . . No, don’t think of it.

Claire exhaled, watching as Erin Quinn pressed the button on a blood pressure monitor and efficiently readjusted the finger probe measuring the child’s lung status. She made a note on a chart and moved back to the bedside as the child stirred and cried out.

“Mommy?”

“Mom’s getting a bandage on her leg, Jamie, remember?” she explained gently, then caught sight of Claire and acknowledged her with a wave. She called to another nurse across the room. “Sarah, can you finish the ointment on Jamie’s scalp? watch him for few minutes?” After giving a brief report to the petite blonde nurse, she crossed to where Claire stood.

“Good, you found me,” Erin said, noting Claire’s name badge and offering a firm handshake. Strands of coppery hair had escaped from her ponytail, and her blue scrubs were splotched with snowy white burn ointment. She nodded as Claire glanced once more at the injured boy. “Second-degree burns. No explosion trauma, otherwise he’d be on a chopper ride to Sacramento. But Jamie’s got asthma, and the smoke stirred things up. So . . .”

“He needs close observation,” Claire finished. “I understand.”

Erin smiled. “Hey, I really appreciate your coming here. We’ve had a horrible shift, and my staff are workhorses, but the Hester child was a real heartbreaker. We worked a long time to save her, but it didn’t happen. And only last weekend we had the first drowning of the season. Junior high boy fishing on the river. Overall my crew seems to be coping fairly well, but today might be that last straw, you know? So I have a couple of issues I’d like to discuss with you. I can spare about ten minutes to fill you in. Will that be enough to get you started?”

“Yes . . . okay.” Claire tried to recall the details of her review. How much could she offer here? One person couldn’t do more than a brief assessment and let the staff know more assistance was available. At least she’d found the self-help pamphlets. “But first I should tell you that I left a message for the hospital social worker because if an actual debriefing is needed, then a mental health professional is required. That’s policy.” She swallowed, hoping she sounded more confident than she felt. “The debriefing should be done tomorrow or the next day.”

“What?” Erin shot her a look that clearly implied Claire was the one who needed mental help. “Tomorrow? I called you here because we need help now. Didn’t Merlene tell you that?” She pressed her fist to her lips. “Look, I’ve had a lab tech faint, the media’s harassing family members in the waiting room, and an agency nurse threatened to walk out. Walk out, when I’m short-staffed already! I’m sorry if I seem testy, but I’m responsible for the quality of nursing care here. My team needs help, and I’ll do everything it takes to make that happen. Merlene told me you were a trained peer counselor. Aren’t you?”

She hated herself. Erin Quinn was right. Claire needed to do whatever she could for these people. Somehow. She reached into her briefcase and grabbed a sheaf of glossy pamphlets. “Yes, I’ve been trained. And I can start an initial assessment, get things going in the process. I promise I’ll do as much as I can to help, and . . .” Her voice faltered as heavy footsteps came to a stop behind her. She fought an unnerving sense of déjà vu and impending doom.

“Help?” A man’s voice, thick with sarcasm, prodded her back like the devil’s pitchfork.

Claire turned, several pamphlets slipping from her fingers.

It was time to officially meet the newest threat to her plan, Dr. Logan Caldwell.

Question for My Readers: Author Interviews Yea or Nay?

I've recently been offered the opportunity to interview authors of several of the books I've reviewed. My question for you, my readers, is "Do you care?" Does knowing something about the author make you better appreciate the book? Do you read author interviews published on other blogs? Would you be interested in submitting interview questions? In other words, if I told you that I had the opportunity to interview the author of (insert name of book) and was wondering if you had any questions, would you submit some via comment?

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Off Season: My Review

The nice folks at Hatchette are allowing me to give away five copies of Off Season, and I posted that giveaway last week. Well, my copy of the book arrived, and I just wanted to tell you that it is a worthy read. Siddon is a first-class wordsmith and this in not formula fiction. It is a story of loss and love and intertwined lives. It is one of those books where you take away something different with each reading.

There was no explict sex, and religion didn't really seem to play much if any part in these people's lives, so this book is a little different from what I've been reading lately (yes I have somewhat eclectic taste in books). I do want to share a quote with you, that while it had little to do with the overall story, struck a chord with me:
(part of a page-long sentence about the 1960's) "the pill that was supposed to liberate young women enslaved a generation with rote sex that many of them did not even want yet"

My giveaway post has a plot summary, and if you haven't read this book, I'd encourage you to enter the contest; the book is a winner, even if you don't win.

My Review: A Hint of Wicked


I'd like to thank the nice folks at Hatchette for the chance to review Jennifer Haymore's A Hint of Wicked. In this mass-market romance we watch the heroine, Sophie, learn that her husband Garrett was missing and presumed dead at the Battle of Waterloo. Seven years later, she marries his relative and best friend, Tristen. Eight years later, Garrett reappears. He had suffered from amnesia but had recently regained his memory. Sophia loves them both. She can't have them both. Which will get to keep her?

This was an entertaining read and different from your standard romance. Besides the quandry of which man will end up with the lady, there is a subplot about Garrett's companion, who had helped him regain his memory, but who ends up trying to take much more.

As I noted earlier, this is mass-market romance with steamy sex scenes. It is too bad there isn't much middle ground between these steamy novels and Christian romances where the main coflict is often the lack of faith of a character or his/her inability to accept forgiveness. The story here would have been good even without the sex scenes, but it seems that in order to get a romance without the sex scenes you have to read the Christian versions.

Knight of Desire: Review, Giveaway and Blog Tour

Romance novel time! Yes, my favorite type of mind candy is romance novels. Like any other kind of candy, a steady diet of them probably isn't good for you, but in moderation....


Knight of Desire is pretty typical of the genre. The night before a wedding was to take place, William was sleeping in the castle stable. He is awakened when someone with a lamp appears. It turns out it is the bride-to-be, who wants one last night of joy and freedom before she is forced to marry a man she strongly believes is evil. William goes with her on her midnite ride to protect her, and while he does nothing dishonorable, she remains in his memory.

Five years later William approaches the castle of the traitor who has just been defeated. The king has given him the castle and the land. The king also gave him a choice--he could marry the traitor's widow, or he would throw her into the Tower. William decides to marry her, and as he approaches the castle, he realizes it is the girl from five years ago. When given the choice of marriage or the Tower, she reluctantly agree to marry him. On their wedding night he allows her to refuse him, and sets out to win her body, if not her heart. As her first husband abused her, she does not have a postive view of the marriage bed; something he sets out to heal.

The book is set in the early 1400's in England and deals with the battles between the English and the Welsh as well as the battles with the French.

It is mass-market romance and has vivid sex scenes, though they take place within the context of marriage.

One thing I liked about the book was that the female characters were strong women. They were involved in spying, the took care of the castles when the men were at war; they were concerned about far more than what to wear to the next ball.

If this sounds like your kind of book, leave me a comment including your email address--no email address no entry, I'm not playing detective, sorry. For a second entry, leave a second comment telling me what you look for in a romance novel. For a third entry, blog about this giveaway and leave a comment giving me a link.

If you'd like to know what others think of the book (and get another chance or two to win it) check out these blogs:
www.thisbookforfree.com - June 29 giveaway
http://mustreadfaster.blogspot.com/ - June 29 review and giveaway.
http://yankeeromancereviewers.blogspot.com/ - June 29 to July 10 review and giveaway
http://rannthisthat.blogspot.com - June 30 review and giveaway.
http://BookSoulmates.blogspot.com - July 1 review and giveaway.
http://epicrat.blogspot.com - July 1
http://www.loveimpossible.com - July 3
http://www.morbid-romantic.net - July 4 review, giveaway, and Q&A.
http://www.chickwithbooks.blogspot.com/ - July 4 review and giveaway
http://booksandneedlepoint.blogspot.com/ - July 5 review; July 19 giveaway.
http://bookinwithbingo.blogspot.com - July 5
http://ajourneyofbooks.blogspot.com - July 6 review and giveaway.
http://seductivemusings.blogspot.com/ - July 7 review and giveaway.
http://alphaheroes.blogspot.com/ - July 8 review and giveaway.
http://www.bookwormygirl.blogspot.com/ - July 8 review and giveaway.
http://martasmeanderings.blogspot.com - July 9 review and giveaway.
http://reviewfromhere.com/ - July 10 review.
http://www.startingfresh-gaby317.blogspot.com/ - July 10 review and giveaway
http://reesspace.blogspot.com - review and giveaway.
http://www.myspace.com/darbyscloset - review.
http://www.foreigncircuslibrary.blogspot.com/

Monday, June 29, 2009

My Review: Womenomics



Womenomics, written by two high-powered female journalists, challenges women to decide what they want out of their careers, and out of the rest of their lives, and then to take the steps necessary to get as much of both as possible.

On the positive side, this book talks about how women's approach to work, as their approach to most other things, is different from men's and that companies are starting to find value in women's collaborative approach and to our ability to think with both sides of our brain unfettered by testosterone, the hormone of instant gratification and competition. The authors remind women, especially post-boomer women, that they are needed in the workforce and that as a needed commodity, they have bargaining power. Further, they quote studies showing that companie with more women managers are more profitable. They also point out that Generation X and Y males are less likely than their boomer dads to allow work to control their lives. Womenomics gives concrete ideas about how to achieve flexibility in your job, how to set limits so that off-time really is off, and how to be more efficient while at work (turn off your email alerts and only check and reply to email twice a day is one hint). The main positive I found in the book was that, unlike some "having it all" books, these authors realize that you can't be in two places at one time. It just isn't possible to be the person who jets around the country working 20 hr days on a regular basis, and be the person who puts your baby to bed every night. They accept that obtaining a sane schedule in some of these highly competitive career fields may require a cut in pay or turning down a promotion.

The book is aimed at women who, in my words, have careers, not jobs. The authors talk about the highly educated women and the examples that populate the book are attorneys, investment bankers, vice presidents and the like. I'm not in a position like that. I'm every bit as smart as the attorneys for whom I work, but I've chosen the sane hours a paralegal works over the weekends in the office required to meet attorney's billable hour quotas. To some extent, I guess you could say I've already negotiated my reduced hours for reduced pay by making that decision; but on the other hand, I find that a lot of the ideas in this book are more aimed at those who are at a higher level than most women are. Negotiating for flexible hours, working from home, or part-time work is a lot easier when replacing you is harder than calling the staffing agency and having them send three candidates out for interviews.

This was a very readable book with personal examples from the lives of the authors. If you are a woman who has a career rather than a job, and wants some ideas about how to gain more time for family or for other personal reasons, I think you will enjoy this book.

I'd like to thank FSB Associates for sending me a review copy of Womenomics.

Book Review: No, Never!


Today there were four packages waiting for me when I got home with my five year old, and she was sure that at least one of them would have a good book in it. Luckily, from her viewpoint, one did.

No, Never! by Sally O. Lee is a beautifully illustrated book about a little girl (dog) who doesn't want to do chores or homework, or take a bath. She wants to be a famous writer or bicycle racer. Her mother explains that we have to practice achieving small goals (like a clean room) to get us ready to reach our real goals, like writing a great book.

I loved the illustrations; they are painted, bright and colorful. The expressions on Daisy's face are perfect. You can see other books Sally O. Lee has written and illustrated on her website. The website also contains crafts and puzzels that go with some of her other books, but I didn't see anything that went with this one. Maybe that's because it is new.

My five year old enjoyed the story and when asked to tell me if it was very good, good, ok or yucky, said it was good. We'd like to thank Sally Lee for sending us this book.

Mailbox Monday

My mailbox hasn't been that full this week. The Catholic Company sent me a booklet on St. Gianna Molla. (Click title to read review)





The nice folks at Hatchette sent me Jennifer Haymore's A Hint of Wicked. My review is scheduled for Wednesday.

For an upcoming blog tour I got Snow Melts in Spring.

The Thomas Nelson Book Review program sent me The I Believe Bunny. (Click title to read review)


Mailbox Monday is hosted by Marica at the Printed Page. Stop by and see what everyone else got this week.

Blog Tour and Review: Mom Needs Chocolate



Mom Needs Chocolate is a humorous devotional book aimed at moms. It is divided into 58 chapters, each with a funny title, of four to five pages each. The chapters being with a quote from literature and a quote from the Bible. They are followed by a reflection that generally includes a story about the author's family life. The chapters end with a section titled "Faith in Action" that has three questions related to the chapter for you to answer.

For example, chapter 46 is titled "Poxes on Those Little Foxes" and the scripture quote is from Song of Songs "Quick! Catch all the little foxes before they ruin the vineyard of your love". She compares the foxes to the small irritants in our marriages--like toilet seats left up. There is a story about putting up wallpaper and how she and her husband have learned to capitalize on their different styles rather than fight over them. The "Faith in Action" questions are:

  1. What is the security status of your vineyard of love?
  2. Name three of the "little foxes" that threaten your grapevines.
  3. What are some creative ways you can trap those sneaky little foxes and protect your beautiful vineyard blossoms? (A good place to start is 1 Cor. 13:4-8.)

I enjoyed this book and think most moms would.