A Modern Cinderella by Louisa May Alcott

The Brethren, The Englisher, and The Preacher’s Daughter by Beverly Lewis

The Revelation by Beverly Lewis
The last in my favorite series from Beverly Lewis, The Revelation brings the long-awaited conclusion to the Abram’s Daughters series. The books were ones I could always relate to in my relationship with Merritt… And many quotations from the books found their way into my journal. Now happily married myself, it was nice to see the fictional characters finally become one with their beloved.

Mother by Kathleen Norris
This books’ old-fashioned principles make it a timeless classic. If I had a shelf of books to re-read each year, Mother would be on it.

Shining Windows by Kathleen Norris
Mother was definitely Mrs. Norris’ first and best novel (written in 1911). I found it interesting to see how her writing had molded to the more popular style of the day in this later novel from 1935. While not a favorite, it was still a book with good lessons–and so delightfully innocent compared to today’s modern fiction! The well-to-do Ballard family faces bankruptcy and learns to live self-sufficiently on an old run-down farm. In the end, they find happiness they never thought possible in the simple life. It was definitely a cry to the young people of the day to look for meaningful activities, not just expensive party after party.

The Silver Horde by Rex Beach
My first Rex Beach book took me on a freezing cold adventure to salmon canneries on the coast of Alaska. The beauty of old fiction (this being from 1909) is that even though you may detect the ending, all the little twists in the middle are surprising because of its age. The characters were imperfect, and yet, had admirable qualities to be emulated. An interesting read (with plenty of twists and turns of romance, to make up for all the fish).

Deception by Randy Alcorn
I was the second on the library wait list for this book. And I finished it in the space of 48 hours. You can’t beat Randy Alcorn’s writing. And this is some of his best. This book follows Deadline and Dominion–while the story does stand alone, you should at least read Deadline first. Deception follows everyone’s favorite detective, Ollie Chandler, as he investigates the latest rash of murders to come to his attention. His skills are as sharp as ever, but he doesn’t like where the evidence leads: his own department. Deception is Christian fiction at its best–dialogue that makes you think and a storyline you can’t put down.