Yearly Archives: 2009

Illusions by Wanda Campbell

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I featured this book awhile back as part of a blog tour.
After three years of marriage, Denise Hightower discovers that her husband, Pastor Bryce Hightower, has a secret addiction that not only jeopardizes his marriage, but impairs his ability to effectively preach the gospel.

Yielding to pressure from her mother and her husband, Denise agrees to keep his addiction a secret, although her self-esteem plummets. Her life as the perfect First Lady is falling apart at the seams. Denise suffers in silence until she is confronted with the addiction from a trusted member of the church.

Self-centered and determined to uphold his pastoral image, Bryce is oblivious to his wife’s emotional state. He’s convinced that he can overcome his “little problem” on his own, so he rejects the spiritual help God sends him. But when his secret is discovered, will he be able to come clean with himself, God, and his congregation before he loses it all?

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This book tackles an addiction that’s not usually seen in Christian fiction: pornography. Pastor Bryce is suffering from an addiction that’s affecting his occupation and his marriage. First lady Denise is stunned when she discovers her husband’s addiction, and he wants her to keep quiet about his problem. Playing the part of a perfect first lady takes a toll on Denise. Her mother’s attitude does little to help the situation. Denise doubts herself, wondering if she were prettier or thinner, maybe her husband would find her desirable.

As things spin out of control, both Denise and Bryce discover they need to hand everything over to God. Bryce learns that he can’t hide his problem, he needs to be honest about his addiction and trust that the Lord will help him.

This book teaches us that there’s no problem that God can’t handle. We need to repent and be honest about our sins.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

A Gift Of Grace by Amy Clipston

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A Gift Of Grace by Amy Clipston

Paperback: 336 pages
Publisher: Zondervan (May 1, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0310289831
ISBN-13: 978-0310289838

From Amazon.com:
From the Back Cover
Rebecca Kauffman’s tranquil Old Order Amish life is transformed when she suddenly has custody of her two teenage nieces after her “English” sister and brother-in-law are killed in an automobile accident. Instant motherhood, after years of unsuccessful attempts to conceive a child of her own, is both a joy and a heartache. Rebecca struggles to give the teenage girls the guidance they need as well as fulfill her duties to Daniel as an Amish wife.

Rebellious Jessica is resistant to Amish ways and constantly in trouble with the community. Younger sister Lindsay is caught in the middle, and the strain between Rebecca and Daniel mounts as Jessica’s rebellion escalates. Instead of the beautiful family life she dreamed of creating for her nieces, Rebecca feels as if her world is being torn apart by two different cultures, leaving her to question her place in the Amish community, her marriage, and her faith in God.

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My thoughts? The book was a great read, and I could see this being a novel that would also appeal to pre-teens, teens, as well as adults.

The Amish attitudes in this novel left me feeling a bit unsettled because, I think it’s hard for them (the Amish) to understand what it’s like to be like “us” the “English” since they’ve always been Amish. When Jessica and Lindsay first come to live with Rebecca, Jessica wants to know where she’s going to school. Her aunt says that she was not going to enroll the girls in school since the Amish education doesn’t go beyond eighth grade. Aunt Rebecca states that those are their ways and she wanted them to respect their rules.

Jessica flips! A good student, she wants to go to college and get a degree to become an accountant, and I felt for her because, I could see myself going crazy if I’d been forced to quit school in the tenth grade to work in a furniture store full-time.
Jessica continues to unknowingly break Amish rules and her unhappiness in the community creates strong tension in this novel.

In contrast, Lindsay takes to the Amish life like a duck to water, even getting to the point where she starts wearing Amish garb. Jessica doesn’t mind quitting school and working full-time in the bakery. She loves working at the business and enjoys her new family as well as the nightly devotionals and Sunday services. Lindsay has always struggled to do well in school, so, she doesn’t mind not having to go back to the classroom.

Daniel, Rebecca’s husband, wants the girls to return to their English life. However, Rebecca refuses, stating that it’s God’s will, as well as her deceased sister’s wish that the children remain in the Amish community. This creates a lot of tension in their marriage, leaving the reader to wonder if all of their problems will be solved.

I enjoyed this novel and look forward to reading the rest of the books in the series.

Also, I want to point out that there were some yummy-sounding recipes in the book! I wanted to make the Peach Streudel recipe, but, when I went to the store to get the peaches, I was told they were not yet in season! When I get my hands on some peaches, I’m going to make that recipe! There was also a recipe for a three-layer chocolate cake that sounded good!


~Cecelia Dowdy~

May Book Giveaway

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These are the new/slightly-used novels that I’m giving away for my May giveaway! All of these novels will go to ONE winner! Leave your email address if you want to enter the drawing! Continental US and Canada residents only, please!
1. John’s Quest by Cecelia Dowdy
John French, a science professor, is an agnostic–he’s unsure if God exists. When he’s hired to tutor a blind seven-year-old child, Scotty, he finds himself falling for the child’s beautiful aunt/guardian, Monica Crawford. Monica’s life changes drastically when her irresponsible younger sister abandons her handicapped son on her doorstep. As John helps Monica to educate her nephew, he falls in love with her. However, problems arise when Monica, a devout Christian, finds herself drawn to Scotty’s handsome and intelligent tutor. Monica finds herself in a bind because she knows it’s a sin to be unequally yoked with a non-believer. How in the world can these two lovebirds overcome the huge problems that stand in the way of their relationship?

2. Milk Money by Cecelia Dowdy
Running a dairy farm is a big job, but doing it alone is almost impossible.
When her dad dies, Emily must work hard to save the family farm, but she manages. Until the day the CPA pulls in her drive and announces he’s there to do an audit on the place.
Franklin Reese is appalled at the lack of interest the Cooper women have in the financial end of their livelihood, but he dives in, determined to help them learn. The further he looks into Mr. Cooper’s dealings, however, the more uncomfortable he becomes.
Can he uncover the truth of the situation and still earn the love of the amazing Emily Cooper? Will Franklin’s addiction to alcohol keep them apart, even after the farm is taken care of? Only God can heal hurting hearts and repair broken lives. Will these two let Him in?

3.
Bittersweet Memories by Cecelia Dowdy
Karen Brown is angry at God, and at herself, for falling in love with Lionel Adams, her ex-fiancé. When her beloved suddenly disappears, along with thousands of dollars stolen from their mega-church, she re-locates back to her hometown in Annapolis Maryland to live with her mother. She’s stunned to discover handsome plumber Keith Baxter living next door.
Keith is smitten with Karen, but wonders if she’s still in love with Lionel. He wants Karen to accept him into her life, but he doesn’t know if he’d be a good match for her due to his troubled past. Can Karen forgive Lionel, and let the Lord back into her heart?

4.
The Preacher Wore A Gun by Joyce Livingston
Mitch needs some kind of intervention. With his wife’s desertion and subsequent tragic death, life in Mitch Drummond’s home has gotten completely out of hand. Mitch’s job as a detective keeps him away from home at all hours. When his mother-in-law decides she’s had enough of caring for the kids, Mitch is hard pressed to find a nanny-quick. Tassie needs a job until she goes back to school in the fall. An unexpected turn of events brings her into contact with Mitch, and she agrees to be his family’s nanny. But Tassie has no idea what she’s getting into! God can use a willing person to reach even the hardest, most rebellious soul. As Tassie brings light into this dark, dysfunctional family, will love blossom and grow?

5.
Kate Ties The Knot by Loree Lough
Katherine Flynn has been widowed for seven years and has adjusted well to her independent lifestyle. She has started her own dressmaking shop and quickly has a thriving business. But, the day Kate’s eight-year-old son, Adam, is chased home by a burly shipbuilder is when Kate decides Adam is in desparate need of some male influence. John Joseph O’Keefe, who everyone refers to as J. J. , has never had any need for a woman cluttering up his life, but he figures a man could do worse than Kate Flynn. In fact, she just may be the answer to his prayers. Besides that, J. J, has a strong desire to help Adam stay out of mischief. He gives the boy a job at his warehouse and has to face his growing attraction to Kate nearly everyday. The North Carolina coast is changing as fast as Kate’s tide of emotions. Will she lose her son to a sea of trouble or surrender to the comforting arms of an Irishman?

6.Out Of The Blue by Janice A. Thompson

7.A Very Special Delivery by Linda Goodnight

8.Illusions by Wanda B. Campbell – I’ll be posting a review of this novel soon.
9.Love Finds You In Last Chance California by Miralee Ferrell

10.The List by Sherri Lewis

11.
Along Came Jones by Linda Windsor
Diana Wells lost track of God in her hard-earned quest for success in the New York advertising world. Now she’s accused of embezzlement, fleeing for her life with nowhere else to turn. When trail outfitter Shepherd Jones runs Diana’s car off the road, the ex — U.S. Marshal isn’t sure what to make of his comely stray. Instinct says this duchess of disaster is on the run and needs help — a girl like her can’t last long in the forsaken outpost of Buffalo Butte. But is Shep willing to risk his life and his heart to offer her the same refuge God once provided him?

12.
The Visitor by Lori Wick
The Visitor, book three in the series, is set in the English countryside, 1812. After being thrown from his horse, Alexander Tate is left with bandaged eyes and prayers for healing. Under doctor’s orders, he leaves London for rest in Collingbourne. When his Aunt Harriet asks one of the Steele sisters to read to him daily, the intriguing voice of this visitor sparks new light in his heart.

As Tate’s affection grows, he wonders if this vibrant woman could love a man who might never see. Will these two young hearts trust God’s healing touch, however it may come?

13.
Daisy Chain by Mary E. Demuth – I’ll be posting my review for this novel soon.The abrupt disappearance of young Daisy Chance haunts the small town of Defiance, Texas. Fourteen-year-old Jed Pepper searches for answers in this gritty and compelling story of love and sorrow, revealing God’s hand of redemption in impossible situations. Lyrical fiction from a bright new literary talent.

14.
Sutter’s Cross by W. Dale Cramer
When an injured stranger arrives in a small town, life gets thrown into chaos, teaching lessons in both humility and kindness.

15. The Shape Of Mercy by Susan Meissner

***Also, please note that I’ll add you to my newsletter list if you enter the drawing. Don’t worry, I only mail out newsletters a few times a year!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Question About Publication

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Shaun e-mailed me awhile back, asking the following question. I’ve been busy trying to finish up a manuscript and judge a contest, so, I’m just now getting to my response to her. Here’s the question:

I have written a book (it took forever to finish!) now I need to know the next steps to get it published? I would like to know if you self-published your books or if you found a publisher? If you did find a publisher how did you go about it?

Shaun, this is a broad topic and I don’t want to overload you with too much information at once, but I’ll take a stab at it!

#1. Congrats on finishing your book! I’ve met so many people over the years who ask me about writing and say they want to write a book and get it published…but then they never do anything about it! They never write the book, let alone seek a publisher.

#2. I’m assuming your book is a novel? I can advise you on how to go about getting your novel published. I don’t have much experience with non-fiction books.

#3. I’m not a self-published novelist. I’m commercially published. Meaning, the publishers I’ve worked with pay me an advance and I earn that advance back when the books are sold to consumers. The publisher prints, markets and distributes the books. I don’t pay the publisher anything. About every six months, I get a royalty statement showing how many copies have been sold, along with a check for the money that I’ve earned.

#4. If you do decide to self-publish, there’s not much advice that I can give you since I’ve never published that way. All I can offer are things that I’ve heard self-published novelists, as well as industry professionals say: If you decide to self-publish, be sure you have a way to market your books! A lot of self-pubbed people have regular speaking engagements, so they sell the books in the back of the room after speaking. By having a great marketing plan, ensuring that you sell lots of books, would help you if you’re self-pubbed. You don’t want a basement full of books and the only people buying them are your friends and family. You need to have a way to get your books out to the public.

#5. I knew I wanted to commercially publish from the beginning. Since I do Christian romances, I joined some writers organizations. Here are the two that I joined: American Christian Fiction Writers and Romance Writers of America. Both organizations have conferences, and at these conferences, editors from commercial publishing houses attend. You can meet with these editors to pitch your novel. If they’re interested, they’ll let you know. You can then submit it to them and they’ll let you know if they’re interested in publishing your book. But, be warned, it might take months to get a response after you submit. If you’re writing a certain genre, you need to do a google search to see if there are writers organization out there that focus on your genre. Join that organization and connect with other writers via writers meetings, the internet, and possibly a critique group.

#6. You also need to figure out which publisher would be interested in your novel. Go to the bookstore and browse! Look at the novels out there and see which publishers publish novels that are similiar to yours! If you can’t make it to a conference, you can look up the submission guidelines to different publishers via their websites. Be sure to do your homework before submitting. If you wrote a science fiction novel, you wouldn’t submit that to a publisher who only handles romances! I’ve heard both editors and agents complain when they receive submissions from people who don’t research the publisher/agency to see what kinds of books they publish and acquire. But, be warned, more and more publishers are requiring that writers have an agent before submitting to them! If you go to a conference, agents usually attend too. So, it’s possible to speak with both editors and agents at the conference. Currently, I DON’T have an agent. I’ve been able to sell my books on my own via editorial contacts at writers conferences.

#7. START ANOTHER BOOK! Don’t just stop at one! I wrote upwards of five (or more) novels before I landed my first contract! Keep writing and find a writers group, and connect with them!

Hope my suggestions help! Thanks for contacting me!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Illegitimate by Brian Mackert

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I saw this book listed on literary agent Rachelle Gardner’s blog. As some of you may know, I don’t read very much non-fiction. It’s hard for me to stay focused while reading a non-fiction book. However, I’ve always been interested in the subject of cults, and the description of this book intrigued me. I ordered it from Amazon and after I receive it and finish it – whenever that may be – I’ll post my thoughts about it. I posted the Amazon link on one of my loops and one of the loop members found the author’s testimony here. You should listen to the testimony if you have time. Makes you stop and think – I thought it was powerful…


Illegitimate: How a Loving God Rescued a Son of Polygamy (Hardcover) by Brian Mackert
Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: David C. Cook; New edition edition (October 1, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1434766918
ISBN-13: 978-1434766915
From Amazon.com
Product Description
The recent events at a Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS Church) compound in Texas have ignited a national dialogue on religious sects. Fundamentalist Mormon sects formed as splinter groups of the mainstream LDS Church exist in a world far removed from mainstream American culture: a world of abuse and twisted theology that seems too bizarre to be true.
Yet for Brian Mackert, life inside this sect was all too real. As a son in a family of one father, four wives, and 31 children, Brian experienced firsthand the devastating realities of polygamous cults.

Now Brian tells his remarkable story of tragedy and healing. Illegitimate takes readers behind today’s shocking headlines and inside the walls of this controversial sect. Brian reveals a world of loving mothers and abusive fathers, devoted children and sibling rivalry, deceptive religion and the truth eventually found in Christ–outside the walls of the FLDS. Ultimately, Illegitimate demonstrates the incredible love of God, and His ability to bring light into the darkest of places.

About the Author
Brian Mackert was raised in a splinter group of the LDS church that endorsed polygamy. He later embraced a true relationship with Christ and became a licensed Baptist minister and is dedicated to doing church plants in heavily populated Mormon regions. In addition to his profession as a telecom engineer, Brian regularly speaks to church groups about the realities of radical Mormonism.

Any of you read this book? If so, what’d you think?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Another Review For John’s Quest!

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Here’s another positive review for John’s Quest on Amazon.
From Amazon.com:
“John’s Quest” was a little away from the genres I usually read. It is a cozy Christian romance novel that teaches us about the powerful Love of Jesus. That is near and dear to my heart.

Monica Crawford is an independent woman who lives her life for the Lord. Because of her sister having a serious addiction to drugs, Monica is forced to take in her nephew, Scotty. He is blind which offers many challenges, plus his mother, Gina, has never taught manners and values to Scotty. Monica, with her Faith, begins to give Scotty the Foundation he can walk in, but the sister suddenly wants him back. What should she do? Scotty is better of with Monica, but Gina is the mother? Will Gina forsake drugs and find a cleansed path with the Lord?

John is a scientific man whose parents were agnostic until shortly before they died in a car accident. Angry with God, it is difficult when he meets Monica and falls for her. Her rules dictate that she will not yoke herself to man that doesn’t Believe. Will John make an attempt to find the Lord or will Monica be heartbroken at another decision he might make?

This is a short read and I know Harlequin romance readers would enjoy this book.

Thank-you Cecelia Dowdy for the privilege of reading your book. May God bless richly bless you.

Also, I’ve read some great books that I want to review on this blog. A couple of Christian Fiction titles as well as one secular title I read a few weeks ago by Sandra Brown (She used to be one of my favorites back when I read more secular fiction.) I also have a question I received from a writer seeking publication. I’ll be posting about all of this soon. I’ve been busy trying to finish and polish up my work-in-progress to submit to a publisher. Doing that has taken up a lot of my time and I’m tired.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Time Magazine Article About Amish Christian Fiction

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Funny how I blogged about Amish Fiction Selling In The Christian Market a few weeks ago. Well, on page 52 of Time Magazine in the April 27, 2009 issue they’ve featured the following article: Amish Romance Novels: No Bonnet Rippers

The authors mentioned in the article were included in my own Amish research. They interviewed author Beverly Lewis, and she basically said the same things mentioned on my blog post.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Chesapeake Weddings – Book Coming Next Year!

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I received an email from one of the Barbour editors with the release date of my re-released Heartsongs. Chesapeake Weddings will be released in April 2010! Chesapeake Weddings will contain the following re-released Contemporary Heartsong titles:

794 – John’s Quest by Cecelia Dowdy
826 – Milk Money by Cecelia Dowdy
846 – Bittersweet Memories by Cecelia Dowdy

They are starting to work on book covers, and they MAY have the final cover in a couple of months. This re-pack will be available in bookstores and on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

A Very Special Delivery

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A Very Special Delivery by Linda Goodnight
Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: Steeple Hill (May 1, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0373873697
ISBN-13: 978-0373873692
This novel is available as a free PDF here.

From Amazon.com:
Editorial Reviews
Product Description

It was the surprise of a lifetime for recluse Molly McCreight when single dad Ethan Hunter entrusted her with his infant daughter while he delivered medicine to an elderly man during an ice storm. Past experience had taught Molly how fragile life could be, but she was touched by this stranger’s faith in her abilities. Once the storm had passed, though, and her guests returned home, normalcy eluded Molly. The Hunters’ presence had brought much-needed joy to her quiet world, but their absence threatened to crush her forever. Still, was she ready to admit that this tiny family held the key to the future she’d always secretly craved?

This book had an unusual conflict: the heroine, Molly, is afraid to care for infants. Her nephew died of SIDS while in her care, and she questions her ability to care for babies. When Ehtan is stranded in her home during an ice storm, she’s forced to care for his infant while he delivers medicine to a cancer victim.

The two are immediately attracted to one another, and Molly discovers that Ethan is a fairly new Christian who’s caring for his infant daughter alone.

Molly is estranged from her sister due to her infant nephew’s sudden death. Molly’s sister blames her for the tragedy, and Molly becomes a recluse, refusing to interact with others as she abaondons her church family.

Showing patience, faith, and healing, this novel shows the meaning of foregiveness. It’s an emotional and enjoyable read.

~Cecelia Dowdy~