Review of The Gray Season: Summer of Salvation

“The Gray Season: The Summer of Salvation” by Dianna Donnely is not only a story about how the death of two family members only a few weeks apart caught two families completely off guard, but it records the wonderful guidance and nurturing that took place within the lives of those closest to them. Lily Eastbrook Rhodes' story shows how at each turn there was another “God Thing” or “Open Door” that led from one seemingly impossible event to another and how each of those things added up to not only healing for the family, but healing for individuals as well. Though the healing improves the lives of the individuals and of Lily in particular, there is an ultimate healing; a healing for the emptiness inside that has plagued Lily since she was a child.

“We will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands (2 Corinthians 5:1, New Living Translation).” As the story of Lily Eastbrook Rhodes unravels in this inspired story of her family, “The Gray Season: The Summer of Salvation” by Dianna Donnely, the reader will come to realize that the things that we see falling into place as we go through open doors are those things which God has been building for us in His Kingdom. Honest, compelling and inspiring; “The Gray Season: The Summer of Salvation” is a marvelously written chronicle of how those things which seem to be the end of our happiness, turn out to be our deliverance.

A personal note: This story reminded me very much of my family and the way that our lives were changed and blessed as we served and cared for my father in his last days. This should be at the top of your reading list, especially if you have recently experienced a loss very close to you.

Review of an Incredibly Written and Inspiring Memoir

Rose Wallace didn’t need IV antibiotics for her sewer stomach, wormy belly and a poisoned head, what she needed was good old fashioned honesty and the empowerment of a fully confident woman in order to make sense of the craziness that plagued her youth. In spite of the difficulties she experienced as a child and teen Rose Ania Wallace was able to navigate her way through it all and chronicles it brilliantly in her memoir “Rising from Quicksand: How I Rose Above Madness & Illness to Reclaim My Life.” Her strength was evident from childhood as she stubbornly pursued the kinds of things that a young lady hadn’t ought to, like desiring to play baseball with the boys instead of softball with the girls, climbing the plum tree and eating all of the plums she could gather, or learning to ride her bicycle in a day, however, having been perfectly trained in the practice of denial by the adults in her life, she allowed herself to at first be a victim to the circumstances surrounding her mother’s illness. As she began to discover her independence, highlighted by starting her own law firm straight out of law school, she also began to the discover the power of mining for the gold nuggets of truth which are often the most difficult, thought the most valuable to find. The result of her new discoveries transforms her life, as well as those around her.

“Rising from Quicksand: How I Rose Above Madness & Illness to Reclaim My Life” is a brilliantly written memoir by Rose Ania Wallace which reads like a fictional novel. The emotion and honesty with which she describes her transformation are inspiring and the way in which she weaves the details of her story make it a page turner that I had trouble putting down. Real, honest and emotional; “Rising from Quicksand: How I Rose Above Madness & Illness to Reclaim My Life” is a must read for those who are searching for a way to be free of their own madness or simply to be inspired and encouraged to step out and do the impossible.

The Texas Rangers Ride Again in "Attack on Orbital 454"

Muslim extremists continue to use terror to disrupt life on the new Utopian planet of Medina in this 26th century based Sci Fi thriller “Attack on Orbital 454” by XX. After an explosion destroys a major portion of Orbital 454, killing 250,000 people and most of the law enforcement force, four Federal Marshals remain however and those four are extracts from the 1800s and famous for their valor and initiative from the Texas Rangers and the old west. Through the assistance of “time slipping” by an AI form, they discover that the group of extremists is made up of a portion of the group of sixteen terrorists who were involved in the attacks on 9-11. With a master hacker at the helm, his plan is to extract them over and over again in order perpetuate terror. The four marshals, led by one of the most renowned Texas Rangers of all time, have to find that master hacker and prevent him from doing any further damage. “Attack on Orbital 454”, by XX is an incredibly creative story. Mixing events and characters from the past in a future serious of events allows the reader to imagine how a Texas Ranger and old west lawmen would have dealt with the Al Qaeda terrorists. The concept is intriguing and the characters are certainly a unique mixture which brings the story to life and adds a touch of reality. Intriguing, imaginative and ingenious; “Attack on Orbital 454” is certain to stir the imagination of the reader in a way that brings on a satisfying smile as the Texas Rangers ride again.