The History Channel's The Bible Promotion and Giveaway

From Executive Producers Roma Downey and Mark Burnett comes The Bible — an epic 10-part miniseries retelling stories from the Scriptures for a whole new generation. Breathtaking in scope and scale, The Bible features powerful performances, exotic locales and dazzling visual effects that breathe spectacular life into the dramatic tales of faith and courage from Genesis through Revelation. This historic television event is sure to entertain and inspire the whole family! Where will YOU be 3.3.13?

To celebrate this upcoming event, PartnersHub is hosting a giveaway!  They'll be giving away a copy of one of the official The Bible companion books. (Prize will be chosen randomly from the book titles below!)

• A Story of God and All of Us (HARDCOVER)
• A Story of God and All of Us (REFLECTIONS)
• A Story of God and All of Us (YOUNG READERS)



The contest is open to U.S. entrants only.  To enter, take the Bible Scene Quiz featured in the widget below.  Come back and comment on this post, letting us know what your score was.  (When I took the quiz, the average score was 57%, and my score was 69%.  I contend that I rushed through it, otherwise my score might have been higher!) After leaving your score comment, be sure to include some way of contacting you if you win, such as your email address.  One entrant will be chosen at random. Entries will be accepted until 12:01am EST, March 17, 2013.  The prize will be sent via FedEx or UPS. No P.O. Boxes please. Good luck, and enjoy the series!

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Blogger Note: As I have not seen this series, I cannot confirm the Biblical accuracy of it, so this post is not an endorsement per se. My hope is that in some way, God will be glorified through it, and many will be led to read His word on their own.

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Contest Update:  The contest has now closed.  Congrats to Beth, winner of the giveaway!

Rapunzel Untangled Blog Tour - Book Review and Giveaway

Welcome to the next stop on the Rapunzel Untangled blog tour!  I hope you enjoy my review below, and be sure to enter to win a copy of the ebook in the Rafflecopter form at the end of the post.  Thanks for stopping by!

A Girl Trapped in a Mansion

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A Mysterious Old Woman

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The Boy Who Will Change Everything

From Goodreads.com:

Rapunzel is not your average teenager. 

For one thing, she has a serious illness that keeps her inside the mysterious Gothel Mansion. And for another, her hair is 15 feet long. Not to mention that she’s also the key to ultimately saving the world from certain destruction. But then she meets a boy named Fane, who changes all she has ever known, and she decides to risk everything familiar to find out who she really is. 

Filled with romance, adventure, and mystery, Rapunzel Untangled is one story you won’t want to put down. Discover the true meaning of love and friendship in this modern twist to the classic fairytale. 

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I’m easily taken in by retellings of classic fairy tales. However, once I’m in, the question becomes, will the story hold my attention and be entertaining? And in the case of modern retellings, how far into “modern” sensibilities will the authors take their version? More often than not, writers feel the need to interject plenty of adult material and plot devices that take the subject matter too far from the source. Much of the magic (and my interest) is lost in the name of being edgy or sensual.

Rapunzel Untangled has successfully satisfied this fairy tale lover. Cindy Bennett retains many of the original elements of this classic story in her modernized version. A beautiful girl is trapped in a tower, never allowed to venture forth or cut her hair. Her captor, a woman named Gothel, has kept her alive for all these years, for her own purposes. Rapunzel is discovered by a handsome princely-type, and much drama ensues.

These basic plot points still hold true in Rapunzel Untangled, but a modern twist is added. Our princely character, Fane meets Rapunzel on Facebook of all places! And as seen in the Disney version of the story, Tangled, Rapunzel’s hair has magical qualities, which is discussed in the latter part of the book. Most of the story revolves around Rapunzel’s emerging personality, as she begins to discover the world through meeting Fane, as she realizes that Gothel has kept so much from her over the years. This ultimately leads to a heady conflict at the end, when Rapunzel seemingly must decide between the man she has come to love and the freedom she so greatly desires and deserves.

Rapunzel Untangled was a fun, sweet read. It certainly has its romantic elements, but author Cindy Bennett keeps things decidedly PG-rated. There is a bit of black magic involved with Mrs. Gothel and it does get a bit dark in spots, but Bennett could have made it so much darker and sinister than she did. I was expecting much worse actually, and was grateful that things stayed as tame as they did.

As mentioned, many of the original fairy tale elements were retained in this version, but I felt that a clichéd tone was avoided. And although we do expect a happy ending, Cindy was able to write in a way that kept me guessing, despite my suspicions. The concluding chapters were particularly riveting, with earth-shaking moments for the characters and their world.

If you enjoy fairy tale retreads or are looking for a fun, romantic read for your teen daughter, I would highly recommend Rapunzel Untangled. Cindy Bennett has done a fabulous job with this fable, bringing my interest to some of her other similarly-themed works, such as Beautiful Beast, Red and the Wolf and Snow White. Her work is light and magical, entertaining and alive with wonder. I’m pleased to have discovered this author and look forward to reading more of her work in the future.

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About the Author

Cindy C Bennett was born and raised in beautiful Salt Lake City, growing up in the shadows of the majestic Rocky Mountains. She and her husband - who happens to be her high-school sweetheart - raised two sons and two daughters. She's now blessed with two daughters-in-law as well. She developed a love of writing in high school when a teacher introduced her to the joys of escaping reality for ten minutes each day in writing. When she's not writing, reading, or answering emails (notice there's no mention of cleaning, cooking, or anything remotely domestic), she can often be found riding her Harley through the beautiful canyons near her home. (Yes, she rides a Harley.)

You can find Cindy at:  Blog    Facebook    Twitter    Goodreads

          

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Review - Searching for Captain Wentworth by Jane Odiwe

When aspiring writer, Sophie Elliot, receives the keys to the family townhouse in Bath, it's an invitation she can’t turn down, especially when she learns that she will be living next door to the house her favourite author, Jane Austen, lived in. But, the neglected house is harbouring more than the antiquated furniture and nesting mice, though initially Sophie tries to dismiss the haunting visions of a young girl. On discovering that an ancient glove belonging to her mysterious neighbour, Josh Strafford, will transport her back in time to Regency Bath, she questions her sanity, but Sophie is soon caught up in two dimensions, each reality as certain as the other. Torn between her life in the modern world, and that of her ancestor who befriends Jane Austen and her fascinating brother Charles, Sophie's story travels two hundred years across time, and back again, to unite this modern heroine with her own Captain Wentworth. Blending fact and fiction together the tale of Jane Austen’s own quest for happiness weaves alongside, creating a believable world of new possibilities for the inspiration behind the beloved novel, Persuasion.

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In Searching for Captain Wentworth, I have found such a lovely mixture of some of my favorite things.  What could be better? Austenesque fiction? Check. Jane Odiwe, one of my preferred authors?  Check.  Time travel!?!?  I was in love before I even began this novel.  Throw in Jane’s unexpected and surprising thanks to me in her acknowledgements (a first for me as a reviewer!), and I was positively biased by the time I began reading.  I will do my best to present a balanced opinion, but the scales were already pre-weighted, I believe!

Although I have shamefully not read Jane Austen’s Persuasion, I have come to love the story in recent years through retellings and some of the cinematic versions.  While Searching for Captain Wentworth is not a retread of that classic novel, several elements are woven into the story. We have the setting of Bath, England, lovers torn apart over time and space, leaps off the Cobb and much more. A man who could easily stand in for the titular character is frequently about, and as in Persuasion, we root for him to finally be with the woman he loves.

In addition to fans of Persuasion, those who enjoyed Bid Time Return and its film version Somewhere in Time would love this as well. As in Richard Matheson’s tale, Odiwe’s novel has a talisman which affects the time in which the main character inhabits.  In Somewhere in Time, it’s a modern penny which has the unfortunate power to throw Richard Collier back to the present after falling in love while in the past.  In Searching for Captain Wentworth, we have a white glove that has the power to send modern Sophia in either direction—back or forward in time, sometimes with similarly frustrating results.  There’s a yearning there in Sophia’s heart that very much reminds me of the pain that Collier had in his experience.

Jane Austen herself makes appearances frequently in the novel, as do many of her family members.  After just reading an Austen biography not too long ago, I enjoyed spending time with these characters and getting to know them better, with the new perspective that was in my mind. Of course Odiwe takes her own liberties with history, but I think the choices she made with her Jane Austen and family were good ones and certainly possible scenarios for our beloved authoress. I’m also pleased that her brother Charles was such a prominent character, and even wish he had been given more time on the page.

In the interest of a completely honest, balanced review, I can say that Searching for Captain Wentworth is not my favorite of Jane Odiwe’s as far as her style of writing. There seemed to be a different tone this time around.  There was a bit more emphasis on describing the minute details of each environment, and at times I felt this slowed down the story.  Others may appreciate this attention however, as it does allow the reader to feel more ingrained within the scenes.  There also seemed to be an inexplicable shortage for commas from time to time, but if that is my most powerful complaint, Mrs. Odiwe is doing just fine.

Searching for Captain Wentworth is an excellent choice for a wide array of readers. It’s a sweet, clean love story.  It’s a time-travel science fiction fantasy.  And it allows us to once again transport ourselves into the world of Jane Austen and her characters.  So many elements come together in a lovely mixture of literary delights.  Jane Odiwe has given her readers their very own talisman with which they can be delivered into a world that has been, and will continue to be, savored time and time again.

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Connect with Jane Odiwe

Jane's Website

Jane's Blog

Jane on Twitter

               

Pride and Prejudice 200th Anniversary Giveaway (US/CA)

My fellow Janeites and I are celebrating the 200th anniversary of the publication of Pride and Prejudice. The media is buzzing this week, offering much content on this beloved novel.  I couldn't resist getting in on the celebration, so I'm offering a little Pride and Prejudice-themed gift pack for you!  Skip down to the Rafflecopter widget below and enter to win.  I offer gently-used copies of Wickham's Diary by Amanda Grange, Pride and Prejudice on DVD, and four new Austen-themed notecards. Just a little Jane to celebrate the big anniversary!

If you're unfamiliar with Wickham's Diary, you can read my review here.

Be sure and check out the many activities going on around the world today and this week as we commemorate the publication of one of the most treasured novels of all time.  One event that has particularly interested me is the live Jane Austen readathon going on in Bath, England today.  If you have a moment, stop by their live feed to enjoy the reading of Pride and Prejudice by a host of fans and authors.  Some orators are dressing up in Regency attire, which has been fun to see as well.

Have a great week, and enjoy the plethora of all things Jane as the world celebrates!

Be sure to read the guidelines below, enter via the Rafflecopter widget, and good luck!

• The contest period ends at 12:01am EST on February 10th.
• Contest is open to U.S. and Canadian entrants only.
• Make sure you leave your email address in the one required portion of the Rafflecopter form. Should you win, I will contact you on Sunday the 10th.  Please take measures to ensure that my email will make it past your spam filters, lest you miss my message. (CalicoCritic@gmail.com) You'll have 72 hours to respond before I pick another winner.
• All entries must go through the Rafflecopter form. If you leave an optional blog post comment, in order for it to count toward your contest entry, be sure to indicate this through the "Leave a Blog Post Comment" button on the Rafflecopter form.
• The award will be mailed via USPS Media Rate shortly after the U.S. or Canadian mailing address is provided.
• Entries will be verified.  If a fraudulent entry is detected for the winning name, another winner will be drawn.

If you can't see the Rafflecopter form below,

try clicking on the "Read more »" link

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Other blogs are also giving away some great anniversary prizes as we celebrate.
Be sure to check them out too!  Here's the link:  P&P Anniversary Blog Hop

             

Made to Crave and Cleaning Out the Closet

I don't talk about it too much here on The Calico Critic, but like many Americans, I struggle with maintaining a healthy weight.  Last year, following a difficult move to Georgia, a failed pregnancy and alot of moping, I let myself get up to 194 pounds.  I could see the "dreaded 200" creeping ever closer, and I did not want to allow things to get that out of control.  As soon as I was recovered from the miscarriage, I began the process of getting back on track.  By God's grace, healthy eating and exercise, I was able to shed over 40 pounds.  I'd like to lose about 13 more, but at this point, the bigger task is maintaining what has been accomplished so far.  On more than one occasion, I've come to a healthy weight, only to self-sabotage and allow the scale to creep back up towards (or past) 200 pounds.  This time around, I really want to commit to never going back.

In an effort to stay committed to health and wellness, I've slowly been ridding my closet of the "big girl clothes".  This is harder than you may think, as the big clothes provide backup for when pounds may come creeping back on, and they're so comfy!  But if my actions are going to back up my decision of never going back, then the clothes have to go!  Favorite big denim skirt: GONE.  Favorite big denim jumper dress: GONE.  Two pairs of XXL cotton pants: GONE.

One interesting moment in the closet-purge came when I decided to part with a black pantsuit.  I put it on Sunday morning to wear to church, and I was shocked to find that it was actually too big!  This one is hard to part with, but I'm staying the course. It was put near the front door, in preparation for its trip to the local Goodwill shop.  My 7 year-old son Colson saw the suit by the door later, and he commented, "Why did Daddy leave his suit there?"  I responded, "Honey, that's not Daddy's suit.  That's one of my suits. I've decided to give it away."  Surprised, he said, "That's a girl's suit?! That's too big to be a girl's suit!"  I got a chuckle then, feeling a sense of reinforcement in my decision to let the clothes go.

I share these thoughts with you because I'm sure that some of you are in the same boat I'm in, as you've been persevering in your New Year's resolutions to lose weight and/or get in shape.  As you see the pounds melt away, don't let all your hard work go to waste.  Commit to the new lifestyle you've chosen.  And make no mistake-- it is a CHOICE.  Choose every day to honor God with your body.  Choose every day to be the person you were created to be.  Choose to rid your closet as well as your kitchen of the things that could allow you to return to your old life. And if you slip up by making some bad choices, choose to get right back on track.  Don't wait until next January or next Monday-- start RIGHT NOW.

One of the things that has helped me stay on track in recent weeks are some daily devotionals from Lysa TerKeurst's Made to Crave. Lysa's words have been such an encouragement to me.  It's almost as if she has thought the same things I have, and has struggled in similar ways. There have been many times when her words have kept my head on straight, reminding me of truth and banishing the lies that tempt me to return to unhealthy coping mechanisms.  Made to Crave is available on Kindle and in paperback, but you can also get the readings for free by downloading the You Version Made to Crave Reading Plan.  I have a You Version app on my iPhone, which makes reading the daily entries super convenient.

For those of you who resolved to have a healthier 2013, I hope your resolutions are holding strong.  And if your motivation seems to be waning, know that you're not alone, it's worth it to keep going, and that there is One who is there to give you His strength at any time.



"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."  --1 Corinthians 10:13



"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."  --Romans 15:13




        

Book Review - Christian Encounters: Jane Austen by Peter Leithart

From the back cover:

Jane Austen is now what she never was in life, and what she would have been horrified to become—a literary celebrity.

Austen’s novels achieved a timelessness that makes them perennially appealing.  Kipling and Churchill found solace in her writings during times of war and illness. Mark Twain had a love/hate relationship with her work. And then, there’s our celebrity culture: the television hit Pride and Prejudice, the award-winning 1995 film Sense and Sensibility, and all the remakes and prequels and sequels. Modern-day Jane Austen fans just can’t seem to leave her characters alone. 

“Janeia” is the author’s term for the mania for all things Austen. This biography captures the varied sides of Austen’s character and places her Christian faith in a more balanced light and with less distortion than has been achieved previously. It is a delightful journey through a life spent making up stories that touched the lives of millions.

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Since diving into the world of Austenesque fiction a few years ago, I’ve been meaning to take in a biography of my now-beloved Jane Austen. This month I enjoyed one that was a perfect little diversion in between my many Austen-themed titles. The Christian Encounters series offered by Thomas Nelson Publishers offers several books that profile prominent authors, politicians and Christian leaders throughout history.  Jane is a perfect fit in this collection, and each title is very modest in size, 200 pages or less (including thorough end notes).  So these brief volumes are a great way to get to know important figures without having to make a large time commitment.

Author Peter Leithart does a wonderful job in profiling the different aspects of Jane’s life—her 18th to 19th Century world, her education, all of her writings, other life events, Christian faith, and of course her untimely death at the age of 41. He draws from many sources, both from Austen scholars and from the works of Jane herself. Throughout his highly researched content, Leithart presents the whole picture of Jane.  She was most certainly a Christian, but she was not obnoxiously overt about her faith in her writing.  He states, “Her Christian faith had always come to most explicit expression at the margins of life…” (pg. 137 or ~pos.1982 on Kindle)

While this Christian Encounters volume does read somewhat like a textbook, Leithart does find room to interject his own voice in the writing.  It seems that he has mixed emotions when it comes to the plethora of Austen-related material in the world today, from all the cinematic adaptations to the many retellings of her work, a la Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Apparently, the closer the content comes to mimicking the voice of Austen, the more he appreciates the work.  I would agree with him in this regard.  He also seems to admire Austen’s faith, how it affected her life and was so much a part of her, yet she wasn’t excessively upfront about it.

My only minor complaint in this work was Leithart’s insistence upon using the moniker “Jenny” for Miss Austen on many occasions.  This is not an incorrect term, but she will always be my Jane, and I in no way think of her as a “Jenny”.  There’s nothing wrong with the name, I just don’t associate her with it.  Just as I don’t appreciate being called “Laurie” or “Lauren”, as they aren’t my names either.  I’m sure a true Austen scholar could easily disabuse me of this idea, but I couldn’t help but recoil every time this term was used.

So to my fellow Janeites, if you have yet to enjoy a Jane Austen biography, or if it has been a while since you have done so, I recommend Christian Encounters: Jane Austen to you.  While it does examine her religious faith, it is far and away a true biography, also examining her as a woman, author, family member and friend.  Without a significant commitment, you can certainly see who she was, and why she remains one of the most popular authors of all time.

From Thomas Nelson:

Christian Encounters, a series of biographies from Thomas Nelson Publishers, highlights important lives from all ages and areas of the Church. Some are familiar faces. Others are unexpected guests. But all, through their relationships, struggles, prayers, and desires, uniquely illuminate our shared experience.


            

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BookSneeze® provided me with a complimentary copy of this book,

with no other compensation for an honest review.


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If you'd like to give this book a try, I'd be happy to send my copy to you at no charge, as long as you will cover just the cost of shipping.
I typically use Amazon e-gift cards for reimbursement.
Recipient chooses the shipping method.
And as this was a promotional copy from BookSneeze®, please understand that it should never be sold.
Just contact me if you're interested.
This paragraph will be removed when I have a response to this offer.
You can view the entire list of available free titles here.

Book Review - A Royal Pain by Megan Mulry

A life of royalty seems so attractive...until you're invited to live it...

Smart, ambitious, and career driven, Bronte Talbot started following British royalty in the gossip mags only to annoy her intellectual father. But her fascination has turned into a not-so-secret guilty pleasure. When she starts dating a charming British doctoral student, she teases him unmercifully about the latest scandals of his royal countrymen, only to find out—to her horror!!—that she's been having a fling with the nineteenth Duke of Northrop, and now he wants to make her...a duchess?

In spite of her frivolous passion for all things royal, Bronte isn't at all sure she wants the reality. Is becoming royalty every American woman's secret dream, or is it a nightmare of disapproving dowagers, paparazzi, stiff-upper-lip tea parties, and over-the-top hats?

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As a bit of an Anglophile, I’ve enjoyed watching the British royalty over the years.  I suppose it started as a child when my father woke me up in the wee hours of the morning to watch Charles and Diana’s wedding.  I think I started planning my own nuptials and thinking of dress preferences that very day.  The princess’s death was a shocking tragedy, with newspaper headlines I’ll never forget.  I watched with joy when William and Kate were married recently, and I once again gave up some sleep to take in the pomp and circumstance of the ceremony.  And if you visit The Calico Critic even occasionally, you’ll see that I have a strong preference for books related to English Jane Austen and her novels.

Megan Mulry’s modern novel A Royal Pain intrigued me when I learned of the concept—common American girl, Bronte Talbot, falls for an English noble, Maxwell Fitzwilliam-Heyworth, next in line to become the 19th Duke of Northrop.  Many young women could only dream of a romance like this!  Talk about a Cinderella story!  I looked forward to a fun, light read and a bit of escapism.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t as thorough as I should have been when vetting this title for review.  I clearly missed the phrasing “Filled with…witty banter and steamy sex…” in the book’s description.  Had I paid closer attention to this detail, I probably would have passed on reading this title.  While there isn’t much of it in the second half of the book, graphic sex scenes are common in the first half.  Another concern came in the almost-ridiculous use of the f-word by the main character, Bronte.  This use of language does make it clear that she’s a common, unrefined foil to her love interest, but she planted so many f-bombs at such a rapid fire rate, it became almost laughable.  Maybe that was Mulry’s intent in her writing. Regardless, I didn’t care for it.  I was grateful when this colorful talk eased up in the second half of the novel.

Putting the adult content aside, A Royal Pain is a moderately interesting tale.  The main story line is fairly predictable, with Max initially concealing his identity, and then later we have uncomfortable scenes between Bronte and Max’s family that require Bronte to trust in herself and the security of her relationship with him. Bronte also has to adapt to her appearance in tabloid publications and accepting a new lavish lifestyle. Some of it is fun and whimsical, a fantasy situation that many women would love to have.

A significant portion of the story also focuses on Bronte’s family life, her relationship with her parents and how that was impacting her as a woman. This vein was very well written, and it almost seemed like a separate story altogether. But Bronte’s struggles with her family help inform the reader in regard to her quirks and why she has trouble committing to Maxwell as times.

I can’t say I would offer a hearty recommendation to A Royal Pain. However, if you aren’t queasy with adult content and are also an Anglophile like myself, you may enjoy this light novel.  I love Cinderella stories, and this certainly is one. It just has more “common” content than “royal” material than I would have liked.

Sourcebooks.com

               

Paperback Version                               Kindle Version

If you'd like to give A Royal Pain a try, I'd be happy to send my copy to you at no charge, as long as you can cover the cost of shipping.
And as it's an uncorrected advance copy, please understand that it should never be sold.

Just contact me if you're interested.  

This paragraph will be removed when I have a response to this offer.