Tuesday, Reviews day: Livi Starling

Posted on by amystoryteller

One of the best things about being a member of the Association of Christian Writers is the opportunity to meet other writers and discover new books.  Recently I’ve been doing a bit of light reading penned by a new friend, and here is my review:

I’ve just finished reading two of the four Livi Starling books by Karen Ingerslev. Starring an eponymous 14 year old heroine, these are Christian books for teens – and British, which is so unusual and welcome for this genre!

The books are brilliantly written. For a start, they’re hilarious. The characters are all very appealing: stylistically, the books remind me a little of the Anastasia Krupnik series that I adored as a teen.  The author is so creative that even her whimsical, fictional reality TV shows or social media sites sound more fun (and sometimes, more possible) than the real ones they are parodying.

The Christianity in the books is handled perfectly – seen from the outside by the narrator, it’s detailed but not cringeworthy, and still very recognisable to a Christian from that church culture. It helps that the main Christian family depicted are delightfully eccentric, and that the author doesn’t shy away from acknowledging how weird and funny Christians can look and how oddly they can behave!  She also depicts Christians of many different flavours and experiences, rather than sticking to the bland or perfect image that some Christian YA writers fall prey to.

The storyline is gripping and relevant and completely unpredictable – I thought I knew where the first one was going, but I was wrong and loved being surprised by it!

Highly recommended for young teens. And adults, apparently – I now can’t wait to read the next two!

Tuesday, Reviews Day: Those Who Wait

Posted on by amystoryteller

I have been very fortunate recently to be part of the launch teams for a few great books.  One of these, which came out yesterday, is Tanya Marlow’s Those Who Wait.

Marlow

It’s a gorgeous book which explores, through the imagined thoughts and feelings of four Bible characters, all the spiritual learning and longing that comes with waiting for something.  From distant promises to urgent needs, the heartfelt desires of Sarah, Isaiah, John the Baptist and Mary are seen from the perspective of not-there-yet, which gives a new breath of life to stories whose endings can be a little too familiar.

I loved lots of things about this book.  I loved Tanya’s skillful drawing of the characters so that each of them has a distinct voice.  I loved her equally clever weaving of little common elements through all of the stories (I won’t give examples, because half the fun is in spotting them for yourself).  I loved the combination of creative, imaginative retelling with detailed historical notes at the end of the book.  I loved her prayers, her benedictions and her insightful, gentle questions after each chapter and section.  And, being an Anglican and a season-dweller, I absolutely adored that the characters correspond with the candles on an Advent wreath; this book will definitely be coming back down from the shelf in December for journaling and prayer.

Whether you are waiting for a bus, a miracle or the return of Jesus, this book is super.  Grab a copy now while it’s still at the introduction price.  Lots more details and a link to buy are here.

Tuesday, Reviews day: CRT titles

Posted on by amystoryteller

A couple of weeks ago, I attended Christian Resources Together, a conference for those in the world of Christian publishing and retail to network, resource each other and celebrate successes together.  I was there as publicity officer for ACW (The Association of Christian Writers), which didn’t stop me having a good natter with some publishers as well!

As ever, it was fun to meet up and hang out with other authors that I know online, or from their books, or through ACW, but rarely get to see.

There was also lots of book launching going on, and I came away with a pile of free copies, signed by the author – next time I’ll be bringing a spare suitcase for them!  So I thought I’d pop some book reviews here for the next couple of weeks, as I get through them.  I’m also in several book launch teams at the moment, so look out for Tuesday Reviews and I’ll do my best to keep up!

Here are the books from CRT I’ve read so far:

Rebecca and Jade: Choices, by Eleanor Watkins

This was a light read on a heavy topic.  Rebecca and Jade are two girls from very different backgrounds, whose unlikely friendship carries them through a teen pregnancy.  I say it’s a light read because it’s teen fiction, so it’s simply written and I felt that it skimmed over the surface of events rather than taking time to explore emotions and character motivations more deeply.  However, it addresses the issues sensitively and thoughtfully, and includes a convincing portrayal of one of the girls’ encounter with Christianity which manages not to be too cheesy or to provide all the answers in the plot – a temptation not all Christian teen fiction manages to avoid so well.  All in all, I’d definitely recommend it to a teen audience.

 

Still Emily, by Emily Owen

This is the autobiographical story of Emily, who was diagnosed as a teenager with Neurofibromatosis and as a result faced a devastating catalogue of losses.  It’s very well written, full of honesty and a real page-turner as well: Emily invites the reader right into her experience and I was in agonies for her, especially as she described her last day of being able to hear.  But the most remarkable thing about the book is its positivity, encouragement and realistic hope as Emily, experiencing this loss of Job-like proportions, finds the place where she is still Emily and God is still God.  

As well as being lucky enough to hear her speak at CRT, I picked up two books by Emily, and I can’t wait to read the second.

 

Out of Silence, by Annie Try

As it says on the stunning front cover, this is ‘a Dr Mike Lewis story’ about a clinical psychologist who has already appeared as a smaller character in Annie Try’s ‘Trying to Fly’ but now takes centre stage.  We meet him struggling at a low point in his life, grieving the death of his son and separated from his wife.  He is given the case of ‘Johnny Two’ a refugee who so far has not said a word – but why is he so silent?

The double plot of Mike’s relationships and Johnny’s trauma make this a page-turner, and I really enjoyed reading it, though I still felt by the end that some loose ends hadn’t been tied up – left for future Dr Mike books, perhaps?  It was fun to spot the previous character and plotline from ‘Trying to Fly’ making brief appearances through this book, so I’m hoping that clients who got no more than a tantalising mention or two might eventually appear at the centres of their very own stories!