Rebel Book Reviews

Fatal Trust by Todd M. Johnson (Bethany House 2017) This was a book that took me a while to read. Not because of layers upon layers of plots or because of the writing style, but it was more of an interest factor for me. While I do like some legal thrillers, and this one did remind me quite a bit of a Grisham novel, there were technical issues that kept me from truly enjoying the novel. The flashbacks, told in memory format, were quite irritating. It would bog the story down. In my opinion, it could have been handled in a brief summary or through dialogue. But pages and pages of memory lane tended to become old and boring. At one point of the book, a scene with a clerk was used to alert us to crisp, old money. Of course this wouldn't be a strange occurrence, but it seemed out of place. And even the following scene of the man spying on the clerk to gain the passwords. These scenes more thrown in and not developed. A portion to explain a why, which I think did matter. The...

Blink by S.A. Jewell (Ambassador International 2017) Many cons and pros to this book. I'm going to start with the cons. I did find some political leanings in the book; they were slight and only eyebrow arching worthy. I will have to say that the beginning was strong. Although the point of view was old school (omniscient), and at times I forgot which character the scene was devoted to; because of it the point of view became jumbled. If the author had stuck with one way, either single point of view per scene or constant omniscient, the scenes would have flowed better. Another thing was the constant history info dump. Almost two pages (Kindle-wise) devoted to a history lesson on the EU (European Union). Another on a man's resume and why he had that particular job and why he was able to get that job. There were more, but these two really stuck in my head. To me, it was an extremely low blow to a reader's intelligence. In my opinion, and in the professi...

Swipe Right by Levi Lusko (Thomas Nelson 2017)  The play on words with the title, Swipe Right , relates to the Tinder dating app. This is more of a "Me" generation thing; so reading this book, I can see that the audience is the teens and upwards to the mid-20's. With so much sexual immorality that has become a blight on this world, this book not only shows why a young person should wait before having sex, but also shows how it is never too late to rededicate yourself to purity. Levi Lusko doesn't mince words or try to sugar coat so not to affront someone's delicate sensibilities. He is matter of fact, using language of the modern culture, and still he plays hard ball with a sensitive topic. The Holy Bible is his guide and he doesn't deviate from it. All he writes is written in love, even if it does sound harsh sometimes. Older people may not benefit from this as much; although, there are some...

Why Did You Choose Me? by Katie Cruice Smith (Ambassador International 2017)   From time to time I come across a great children's book. Lately my publisher has been dishing out quite a few great Christian books for children, which is a blessed relief. Of those books Katie Cruice Smith wrote a book about adoption. Not about how to adopt, or when to adopt, or the process of adoption. She wrote about the heart of adoption: what a child may ask his or her parent.  Why did you choose me? This was an interesting children's picture book. With an easy and flowing cadence, it expressed some of the major questions adopted children would ask a parent. These questions are posed beautifully and in a way for a child to understand his or her uniqueness. My favorite part is actually the end of the mother's reply: "Do you think that Mama chose you? It was no choice for me. From the moment that I saw you, I had found my sweet baby."  This epitomizes the uncond...