Merry Christmas from the Blumers

A Hymn On the Nativity Of My Saviour from A Sinner’s Sacrifice

Ben Jonson (c. 1573-1637)

I sing the Birth was born to-night,
The Author both of life and light;
The angels so did sound it,
And like the ravished shepherds said,
Who saw the light, and were afraid,
Yet searched, and true they found it.

The Son of God, th’Eternal King,
That did us all salvation bring,
And freed the soul from danger;
He whom the whole world could not take,
The Word, which Heaven and Earth did make,
Was now laid in a manger.

The Father’s wisdom willed it so,
The Son’s obedience knew no No.
Both wills were in one stature,
And as that wisdom had decreed,
The Word was now made Flesh indeed,
And took on Him our nature.

What comfort by Him do we win,
Who made Himself the price of sin
To make us heirs of glory?
To see this Babe all innocence,
A martyr born in our defence:
Can man forget this story?

Kiriath's Quest by Rick Barry

This week JourneyForth released Kiriath's Quest, a fantasy novel by author friend Rick Barry. Here's more information:

About the Book

When King Jekoniah of Xandria is kidnapped by evil Grishnaki, the royal family searches for a way to save him. The desired ransom is impossible, and an outright war on the Grishnaki would end in disaster—so Prince Kiriath undertakes a secret mission into the Grishnaki’s valley. But danger slows the prince's journey, and as the ransom deadline approaches, Kiriath begins to wonder whether he will reach his father in time.

Read a sample chapter here.

For information about purchasing the novel, click here.

About the Author

Rick Barry is a Christian writer who has participated in more than 25 mission trips to Russia and Ukraine. In part, his writing helps to fund his missionary activities.

Although writing is basically an "in-doors" activity, Rick appreciates opportunities to get outside and try new experiences, which have included skydiving, mountain climbing, rappelling, canoeing, kayaking, wilderness hiking, white-water rafting, and a high-ropes course through tree tops. All experiences in life provide fuel for this writer's imagination.

Publishers who have purchased Rick's work include Focus on the Family, Regular Baptist Press, the Salvation Army, Writer's Journal magazine, In Touch, Power for Living, and others. Rick and his wife Pam currently live in Plainfield, Indiana. They have two adult children, Jessica and Josh.

Visit the author's Web site.

Author Jeff Shaara talks about his historical novels

This week the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Dark Pursuit (Zondervan, December 1, 2008) by Brandilyn Collins.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR


Brandilyn Collins is known for her trademark Seatbelt Suspense®. She is currently working on her 20th book. For chances to win free copies of her work, join her Fan Club on Facebook. Here’s what Brandilyn has to say about why she wrote Dark Pursuit:

In John Milton’s Paradise Lost Satan’s followers, kicked out of heaven, boast about storming the gates and reclaiming their territory. Beelzebub scoffs at their boasting as merely “hatching vain empires” and suggests a different revengeful scheme: seduce mankind away from God. So Satan visits the Garden of Eden to teach humans the very thing he and his cohorts have learned to be futile—the dark pursuit of hatching their own vain empires instead of following God. He presented man with this “gift” of death, disguised as life. And man fell for it.

Upon this theme of man’s fall and spiritual blindness, I created the characters and events in Dark Pursuit. The story clips along at a fast pace, with much symbolism running underneath.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Dark Pursuit—A twisting story of murder, betrayal, and eternal choices

Novelist Darell Brooke lived for his title as King of Suspense—until an auto accident left him unable to concentrate. Two years later, reclusive and bitter, he wants one thing: to plot a new novel and regain his reputation.

Kaitlan Sering, his twenty-two-year-old granddaughter, once lived for drugs. After she stole from Darell, he cut her off. Now she’s rebuilding her life. But in Kaitlan’s town two women have been murdered, and she’s about to discover a third. She’s even more shocked to realize the culprit—her boyfriend, Craig, the police chief’s son.

Desperate, Kaitlan flees to her estranged grandfather. For over forty years, Darell Brooke has lived suspense. Surely he’ll devise a plan to trap the cunning Craig.

But can Darell’s muddled mind do it? And—if he tries—with what motivation? For Kaitlan’s plight may be the stunning answer to the elusive plot he seeks...

Read the first chapter of Dark Pursuit, here.

My Review

This one was good . . . really good. Once I got into this novel and understood what was happening, I had a hard time putting it down. Collins has done it again. The plot was riveting, and just when I thought I knew who was doing the murders, I was in for a big surprise. Great twist at the end. Believable characters. Real-life conflicts. A flawed protagonist who sees her need for God. A creepy killer who must be stopped before he goes after Kaitlan. What's not to like? I've read several by Collins, but I think this one is definitely one of her best. Don't miss this one.

One Perfect Day by Lauraine Snelling

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
One Perfect Day
FaithWords (October 22, 2008)
by
Lauraine Snelling


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Today, Lauraine Snelling is a member of the more than Two Million Books In Print club, but when she first began, she was a mother of three teenagers with a simple dream to write “horse books for kids.”

All told, she has over 50 books published. She thinks. She’s not sure. She’d rather write them than count them. Lauraine’s work has been translated into Norwegian, Danish and German as well as produced as books on tape.

Awards have followed her dedication to “telling a good story”: the Silver Angel Award for An Untamed Land and a Romance Writers of America Golden Heart for Song of Laughter.

Helping others reach their writing dream is the reason Lauraine teaches at writer’s conferences across the country. She mentors others through book doctoring and with her humorous and playful Writing Great Fiction tape set. Lauraine also produces material on query letters and other aspects of the writing process.

Her readers clamor for more books more often and Lauraine would like to comply, if only her ever-growing flower gardens didn’t call quite so loudly over the soothing rush of the water fountains in her back yard and if the hummingbirds weren’t quite so entertaining. Lauraine and husband Wayne have two grown sons and a cockatiel named Bidley, who loves to tease their Basset Hound named Chewy.


ABOUT THE BOOK


Two mothers end up more closely connected that they could dream...and yet they are strangers to one another.

The first has two children--twins, a boy and girl, who are seniors in high school. She wants their last Christmas as a family living in the same home to be perfect, but her husband is delayed returning from a business trip abroad. And then there's an accident--a fatal one involving a drunk driver.

Meanwhile, the other mother has a daughter who needs a new heart, and so the loss of one woman becomes the miracle the other has desperately prayed for. While one mother grieves, and pulls away from her family, the other finds that even miracles aren't always easy to receive.

If you would like to read the first chapter of One Perfect Day, go HERE