A Time to Surrender by Sally John and Gary Smalley

I didn't realize when I picked it up from the library, but A Time to Surrender is actually the third book in the Safe Harbor series by Sally John and Gary Smalley.  I really enjoyed the book and will be keeping on eye out for the other two.

This is my first book by Sally John, but I have read other books by Gary Smalley, both ones he wrote on his own and ones he co-authored.  The fact that he co-authored this book was part of the draw for me, but I will also be looking for more books by Sally John in the future.  I enjoyed the writing style, as well as the content.

This book spoke to me on so many levels.  Characters are struggling with their relationships with one another and with God.  I could relate to many of the struggles.  I learned a lot from their struggles.  One interesting point of view is the military wife that is not sure how she feels about being a military wife.  While I can't relate in any way to being a military wive, I do have friends that are military wives and I had never thought before about some of the struggles they way face.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone.

Sarah's Song by Karen Kingsbury

I've read, and enjoyed, books by Karen Kingsbury before so I wasn't surprised that I enjoyed Sarah's Song by Karen Kingsbury.  I picked the book from the shelves of our local library because it was a nice, small, thin book.  :)

I didn't know it, but Sarah's Song is a part of Kingsbury's Red Gloves collection and is actually a Christmas themed story.  I love the idea of this series and will be reading more of them.  I'm not sure if I'm going to wait to read them during the Christmas season or not.  Kingsbury suggests that they make great read alouds during the 12 days of Christmas, and I really like that thought, but I'm not sure I can wait until then before I read another.  :)

This book counts for the Support Your Local Library and the 2nd Reading challenges.

Christian Authors I've read in the past

I have read a number of Christian authors over the years and I wanted to make a conscious effort to read more books by Christian authors in 2010 so I looked for a challenge to read Christian authors.  I came up with four such challenges - the 20 New Christian Authors in 2010 Challenge (which isn't open to Canadians and I didn't really want to commit to reading 20 new authors when I really wanted to read more of some of the authors that I have already read), the Christian Non Fiction Challenge (which wasn't what I was thinking about originally but I like the idea), the Christy Awards Reading Challenge (which interests me but still wasn't quite what I had in mind because I have to pick from a list of books rather than have complete freedom to choice ones that I want), and the Biblical Fiction Challenge.  I didn't bother to join the first challenge but I did join the last three.  

To prepare for the Christy Awards Challenge I checked out the Christy Nominated and Awarded Books list. I decided to make a list of authors mentioned on the Christy list and see if I had read any books by these authors, whether the actual books I had read were on the list or not.  It ended up being a great walk down memory lane for me, as it had been quite some time since I had read some of these books, and I also found some books to add to my TBR list. 

It wasn't that long ago that a friend introduced me to Liz Curtis Higgs books and I quickly bolted through three of her books: Thorn in My Heart, Fair Is the Rose, and Whence Came a Prince.  These three books tell the stories of Jamie and Evan McKie and and Leana and Rose McBride.  It is a retelling, of sorts, of the Biblical story of  Jacob and Esau and Leah and Rachel.  I loved the books!  These would be a great pick for someone participating in the Biblical Fiction Challenge. 

It was quite some time ago that I was introduced to Francine Rivers books.  The first one I read was Redeeming Love, a retelling, of sorts, of the story of Gomer and Hosea.  Loved the book! Another great one for the Biblical Fiction Challenge.  Next I read the three books in her Mark of the Lion Series: A Voice in the Wind, An Echo in the Darkness, and As Sure As the Dawn.  Excellent books that would be great choices for anyone doing the Historical Fiction Challenge because they are set in the time of the crumbling of the Roman Empire.

The same friend that introduced me to Liz Curtis Higgs books also introduced me to Lynn Austin and I am so glad she did!  I devoured her Chronicles of the Kings series which included these five books: Gods and Kings, Song of Redemption, The Strength of His Hand, Faith of My Fathers, and Among the Gods.  They would be a great pick for someone participating in the Biblical Fiction Challenge.  I also read her Candle in the Darkness, which I didn't realize was a part of a three book series set in the time of the civil war.  These would qualify for the Historical Fiction Challenge.  I also read one of her stand alone novels, All She Ever Wanted. 

I know I read at least some of the Zion Covenant Series by Bodie and Brock Thoene, but I don't remember which ones or how many. My dad was into this series big time and he was the one that introduced me to it.  I seem to remember enjoying the books I read but it was such a long time ago that I don't remember much about them.  I wouldn't mind rereading them or reading other books by them.  There are a lot to choose from, most of which fit into the Historical Fiction Challenge.  On this page they answer the question "How do I read the books in historical order?".  

I read a number of Gilbert Morris' House of Winslow Series a few years back and loved them.  I don't remember which ones or how many I read.  I would love to have the whole series and I wouldn't mind rereading them all.  These fit into the Historical Fiction Challenge, as they are set in American history from the time of the Mayflower on.

Many years ago I read a number of Gary Smalley's books, all of which would fit in the Christian Non Fiction Challenge. The ones I remember for sure that I read are Love is a Decision, Making Love Last Forever , If Only He Knew, For Better or Best, and The Two Sides of Love.  Recently I also read some books that he co-authored with Karen Kingsbury.

I discovered Karen Kingsbury this past year when I was browsing the shelves of our library.  The books in her Redemption Series caught my eye because they were co-authored with Gary Smalley so I decided to give them a try.  I was hooked!  I quickly devoured all 5 books in the Redemption Series, and quickly moved on to devour both the Firstborn Series and the Sunrise Series.  I also read On Every Side.  While these don't fit any of the challenges I've signed up for they are still great books to read.

So, that's some of the books by Christian author's that I have already read.  I'm looking forward to reading more.