Mailbox Monday

I love participating in Mailbox Monday - it is so much fun to see what everyone is getting in the mail. A special thank you to everyone who stops by my mailbox and visits and/or leaves a comment - I LOVE hearing from people, and would love it if you left comments with links to your reviews of these books!

Thanks for taking the time to visit!

Here are the books that came into my house last week:

100 Ways to Simplify Your Life by Joyce Meyer - Non-Fiction/Christian Living/Inspirational - Many want a simple life, but find it difficult to actually live that way. They fight a constant battle to balance work, family, friends, and other demands on schedules stretched too thin. Joyce Meyer breaks it down to the simple principle of exercising faith rather than doubt and confidence rather than people-pleasing. She writes from her experience of struggling to balance work, family, friends, and all the other demands on limited time to show readers the simple answer to a simpler life. (Hachette Book Group/FaithWords - November 12, 2008)

A Cut Above by Ginny Aiken - Contemporary Fiction - Falling in love was never so . . . stressful. Despite her objections, Andie Adams is on her way to Colombia to broker a deal on some of the most fabulous emeralds in the world--and she's going alone. Maybe this time she can make the trip without any major drama. But before Andie can even get close to the mines, everything turns Twilight Zone weird. The guide who is supposed to meet her at the airport doesn't. Her high school Spanish goes AWOL. And her taxi driver treats her to a South American-style tour of BogotÃ.‚¬¡ not for the faint of heart. But that's nothing compared to what's next.
Can S.T.U.D. cohost Max get Andie out of there alive? And what will this dangerous trip mean for their reluctant romance? (Revell Books - Oct. 2008)

Bard King by Rowena Wright - Fantasy thriller - Terror and nightmare lurk in an adventure through New York City, London, and the Quinotaur Exchange as Ericca Ludwig and her friends Elle and Matt combat the forces protecting the petroleum economy and the age of the rulers. Environmentalism and global politics mix in this thrilling adventure featuring teen romances, a Byronic hero, and the festival of the Burning Man. (Finial Publishing, September 2008)

Crafting Jewish by Rivky Koenig - Non-Fiction - Crafting Jewish is a unique and beautiful book. It has been designed both for experienced crafters looking for creative and unusual ideas and For beginners just starting to discover the joys of crafts. This book has it all! (Mesorah Publications, Ltd, November 2008)

For the Love of St. Nick by Garasamo Maccagnone (signed) - Family/Christmas/Christian Fiction - Two boys who have lost their mother tragically, worry they'll never see their father,a Naval Commander, after he embarks on a secret mission with the United States military. After the boys are advised by their nanny to seek the help of St. Nick, the boys are shocked by an early Christmas visit. (BookSurge Publishing, October 2008)

The Darcy's and the Bingleys by Marsha Altman (Signed) - Fiction - By turns hilarious and sweet, The Darcys & the Bingleys also presents an intriguing view of Miss Caroline Bingley, who has such good reasons for being the way she is that the reader can’t help but hold her in charity. (Sourcebooks, September 2008)

Havah: The Story of Eve by Tosca Lee (signed) - Christian fiction - Many thanks to Tosca, as I won this copy of her book from her blog!! - Eve, exiled to a life outside paradise, nears death. As she waits, she recounts the story of her creation and a cruel existence. Revisit the birth of humankind through the eyes of the first woman ever to live. (NavPress, October 2008)

The Little Giant of Aberdeen County ARC by Tiffany Baker - Fiction - When Truly Plaice's mother was pregnant, the town of Aberdeen joined together in betting how record breakingly huge the baby boy would ultimately be. The girl who proved to be Truly paid the price of her enormity; her father blamed her for her mother's death in childbirth, and was totally ill equipped to raise either this giant child or her polar opposite sister Serena Jane, the epitome of femine perfection. When he, too, relinquished his increasingly tenuous grip on life, Truly and Serena Jane are separated--Serena Jane to live a life of privilege as the future May Queen and Truly to live on the outskirts of town on the farm of the town sadsack, the subject of constant abuse and humiliation at the hands of her peers. (Hachette Book Group, January 2009)

Plain Perfect by Beth Wiseman - Christian fiction - On the rolling plains of Lancaster County, PA., Lillian Miller is searching for her grandparents' house...and so much more. After years of neglect and abuse, she's turning to a lifestyle of simplicity among the Amish to find herself. (Thomas Nelson - September 2008)

The Shape of Mercy by Susan Meissner - Christian Fiction - I won this book from Karla of Ramblin' Roads, Thank you Karla!! - “We understand what we want to understand.”Leaving a life of privilege to strike out on her own, Lauren Durough breaks with convention and her family’s expectations by choosing a state college over Stanford and earning her own income over accepting her ample monthly allowance. She takes a part-time job from 83-year-old librarian Abigail Boyles, who asks Lauren to transcribe the journal entries of her ancestor Mercy Hayworth, a victim of the Salem witch trials. Almost immediately, Lauren finds herself drawn to this girl who lived and died four centuries ago. As the fervor around the witch accusations increases, Mercy becomes trapped in the worldview of the day, unable to fight the overwhelming influence of snap judgments and superstition, and Lauren realizes that the secrets of Mercy’s story extend beyond the pages of her diary, living on in the mysterious, embittered Abigail. The strength of her affinity with Mercy forces Lauren to take a startling new look at her own life, including her relationships with Abigail, her college roommate, and a young man named Raul. But on the way to the truth, will Lauren find herself playing the helpless defendant or the misguided judge? Can she break free from her own perceptions and see who she really is? (WaterBrook Press - September 2008)





What was in your mailbox last week??

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