Struggling to succeed in the Nashville music scene, talented singer/songwriter Parker James finds the competition fierce – even deadly. A young woman’s murder, industry corruption, and a menacing stalker draw Parker into danger and intrigue. Nothing is as it appears, and unraveling the truth challenges everything Parker believes about her talent, her future, and her faith.
The young girl with the Bohemian style was on the floor where she’d fallen, between Parker's computer case and her file cabinet. She wore a long, flowing skirt—lavender, the color of calm—and camel-colored Uggs. She lay on her back, her long, wavy blonde hair matted with blood.
For struggling singer/songwriter Parker James, the music business has just turned deadly. Her desk in the reception area of a busy recording studio has become a crime scene, and Parker finds herself drawn into a mystery where nothing is as it seems.
Unraveling the truth puts her own life at risk when she uncovers high-level industry corruption and is terrorized by a menacing stalker. As the danger escalates, Parker begins to question her dreams, her future, and even her faith.
Double Minds is a double treat—combining a compelling suspense novel with an inside look at the world of the Christian music industry in Nashville. Terri Blackstock grabs readers at page one and keeps them riveted until the final plot twist is untangled.
Blackstock introduces readers to the darker side of Christian music in Double Minds. Not all is dark, of course, but the scenario she weaves includes murder, investigation, stalking and a cast of unusual characters. The underlying theme of grown-up children who've experienced horrible or painful lives ends up being an interesting thread.
Parker James, the main character, is a songwriter/performer who is at the very brink of making a name for herself. Her best friend, the girl who has made some of Parker's songs hit the charts, struggles with an eating disorder and a past that haunts her. Parker's own past is still a lingering presence in the loving divorce status of her praying mother and her alcoholic father.
A murder of a girl who was sitting at Parker's desk rattles the tight-knit community of musicians. Fortunately, Parker's brother Gibson is one of the detectives assigned to the case. But as things unravel and are revealed, the tension increases. Parker begins to fear for her life. It seems the murderer isn't finished yet.
A solid story full of humanity in its beauty and ugliness that will take readers on a roller coaster ride to the very end. A strong faith thread that may challenge readers to consider motivation and to see people in a different light.
What if a fascinating stranger knew you better than you know yourself?
When her husband comes home with a farfetched story about eating dinner with someone he believes to be Jesus, Mattie Cominsky thinks this may signal the end of her shaky marriage. Convinced that Nick is, at best, turning into a religious nut, the self-described agnostic hopes that a quick business trip will give her time to think things through.
On board the plane, Mattie strikes up a conversation with a fellow passenger. When she discovers their shared scorn for religion, she confides her frustration over her husband’s recent conversion. The stranger suggests that perhaps her husband isn’t seeking religion but true spiritual connection, an idea that prompts her to reflect on her own search for fulfillment.
As their conversation turns to issues of spiritual longing and deeper questions about the nature of God, Mattie finds herself increasingly drawn to this insightful stranger.
But when the discussion unexpectedly turns personal, touching on things she’s never told anyone, Mattie is startled and disturbed.
Who is this man who seems to peer straight into her soul?
My Review: Nick (from Dinner With a Perfect Stranger) has gotten saved and become a Jesus freak. His wife, Mattie, is only too glad to escape to a spa in Arizona since a client who needs her to visit to get the spa experience in order to pull together a perfect brochure. Looking forward to escaping Nick and his new passion, and to re energize while deciding on the marriage decision she feels she must make, Mattie just wants to be left alone.But the airplane is packed and she is sandwiched between two men. And without anything good to read.
Mattie meets a stranger who asks some tough questions and shares some truth about a God who is very much involved in relationships.Simple and quick read that packs a powerful message.
You are Invited to a Dinner with Jesus of Nazareth
The mysterious envelope arrives on Nick Cominsky’s desk amid a stack of credit card applications and business-related junk mail. Although his seventy-hour workweek has already eaten into his limited family time, Nick can’t pass up the opportunity to see what kind of plot his colleagues have hatched.
The normally confident, cynical Nick soon finds himself thrown off-balance, drawn into an intriguing conversation with a baffling man who appears to be more than comfortable discussing everything from world religions to the existence of heaven and hell.
And this man who calls himself Jesus also seems to know a disturbing amount about Nick’s personal life.………….."You’re bored, Nick. You were made for more than this. You’re worried about God stealing your fun, but you’ve got it backwards.… There’s no adventure like being joined to the Creator of the universe." He leaned back off the table. "And your first mission would be to let him guide you out of the mess you’re in at work."
………….As the evening progresses, their conversation touches on life, God, meaning, pain, faith, and doubt–and it seems that having Dinner with a Perfect Stranger may change Nick’s life forever.
My Review:
I've meant to read this little book for some time. The thought is intriguing, a dinner with Jesus. Hmmm. David Gregory unfurls a story set in an Italian restaurant that ends up being mostly dialogue. But fascinating dialog.
Nick is skeptical, sarcastic, angry and not looking for anything even resembling church. He expects that this invitation is a practical joke and spends a portion of the dinner date scanning for his work buddies. But as Nick and "Jesus" talk, Nick begins to think.
This is a very quick and entertaining read. One that might just make you ponder some of the truths shared within. Nick is a scientist so much of what is shared is geared toward a scientific or logical mind.
So we made four recipes to try out over the weekend.
I LOVED Crazy-Good Cold Sesame Noodlesand the good news is that you can click on the title...the recipe is posted at the HG website. I am now a fan of these crazyTofu Shirataki noodles. These noodles are firmer than pasta. The only trick is that they have to be rinsed well and very thoroughly dried. If they have any other funkiness I couldn't pick up on it. I even ate a raw one and there was no aftertaste and the only texture difference is that it felt like extra al dente pasta. Very Yummo. The other three recipes wereJalapeno Swappers, Lord of the Onion Rings and Fiber-ific Fried Chicken Strips.All made with Fiber One cereal.
Honestly, I was less impressed. Fiber One has a sweet taste. The texture was great, especially with the onion rings. We baked them longer that suggested and cut the onions into thinner slices. But the sweetness bugged me. I will try to find another breading option that will not have a sweet overtone. If I do, I'll let you know what I discover.
So tonight, 22 and a friend are rustling up some recipes from this cookbook.
Here's my review of the cookbook. I'll be sure to let you know my review of the recipes!!!
If you are a fan of the website you will likely love the cookbook. With her same voice, flair and creative snippets of calories, serving and nutrition information, Lisa Lillien delivers what she promises. I found myself marking more recipes to try than I thought I would. Folks who are looking for more nutritious choices might want to look a little deeper before purchasing. The recipes in Hungry Girl can be summed up as fast/snack food menu made with low/non-fat, sugar-free substitutions so it almost tastes like the real deal. I personally don't like the idea of adding more chemicals to save calories and fat and won't use most of the recipes because of that. Lillien covers breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks and drinks including alcoholic and coffee. But with a few minor tweaks I will be able to serve some delicious and nutritious meals/snacks to friends and family thanks to Lillien's research and creativity.
First Chapter is a must read.Click here. VisitMary. Click on the bookcover to read more.
Mary has visited the Dregs...clickhereto read more.
About the book:
The abrupt disappearance of young Daisy Chance from a small Texas town in 1973 spins three lives out of control—Jed, whose guilt over not protecting his friend Daisy strangles him; Emory Chance, who blames her own choices for her daughter’s demise; and Ouisie Pepper, who is plagued by headaches while pierced by the shattered pieces of a family in crisis.
In this first book in the Defiance, Texas Trilogy, fourteen-year-old Jed Pepper has a sickening secret: He’s convinced it’s his fault his best friend Daisy went missing. Jed’s pain sends him on a quest for answers to mysteries woven through the fabric of his own life and the lives of the families of Defiance, Texas. When he finally confronts the terrible truths he’s been denying all his life, Jed must choose between rebellion and love, anger and freedom.
Daisy Chain is an achingly beautiful southern coming-of-age story crafted by a bright new literary talent. It offers a haunting yet hopeful backdrop for human depravity and beauty, for terrible secrets and God’s surprising redemption.
My Review:
Mary DeMuth's Daisy Chain transported me to Defiance,Texas, dropped me into the mid '70's and immersed me in the home of a wounded family. Jed is fourteen and has just lost his best friend and future wife. It's his fault, because he's weak and selfish and he wouldn't walk the little spitfire home because if he did, his daddy would be upset. And when daddy is upset bad things happen. Daddy is a preacher. Jed can't quite bring himself to stand up to daddy to protect his precious sister and his sickly, broken mom -- a mom who writes messages of love, encouragement, and sorrow on flower petals and leaves them by Jed's bed.
Jed's whole world is inside out and upside down. The town is holding its breath because Daisy is missing. And heaven is brass because God isn't listening to Jed, and apparently doesn't care to.
If this little sliver of drama turns you inside out and upside down you may not want to read this book. But if you are one who claims To Kill a Mockingbird or Peace Like a River as one of your favorite novels, you really owe it to yourself to look further into Daisy Chain. Tom Morrisey, Lisa Samson, Claudia Mair Burney, Charles Martin and W.Dale Cramer fans need to look in Mary DeMuth's direction as well.
This is a novel that will haunt me for weeks and months, probably landing on my 2009 favorite list. The characters are deep and rich, complex and challenging. The story is gut wrenching and awful, and beautiful and full of the power of love and faith and Jesus. I can't imagine anyone not being horrified and then blessed as this novel opens and blooms, bleeds, withers and fades. Technically, the only complaint I had was just a few moments of transition between the adult Jed and the younger versions of Jed, and a brief incident where a scene's timing didn't quite jive in my mind. And those issues are only because I read so many books for review and can't just get lost in pages and not look for flaws that might impede a reader's experience.
I so appreciated the depth of truth and faith in this novel. Daisy Chain could be a very tough book for some readers. Child endangerment, abuse, anger, bigotry, religious bullying, drinking and hints of sexual scandal are not buried under a layer of pristine Sunday-best white gloves. I do recommend Daisy Chain to anyone who hungers for honest fiction that doesn't leave one weeping over the hopelessness of a story without redemption and grace.
uter case and her file cabinet. She wore a long, flowing skirt—lavender, the color of calm—and camel-colored Uggs. She lay on her back, her long, wavy blonde hair matted with blood.
