I’m Not Supposed To Feel Like This by Chris Williams

I’m Not Supposed To Feel Like This by Chris Williams was recommended to me by my counsellor and I have found it incredibly useful.

Here is the blurb from Amazon:

Depression is so common that it has been described as ‘the common cold of psychiatry’. It is particularly difficult for Christians – there is often a feeling that Christians ’shouldn’t’ get depressed, and that it and anxiety are the result of a poor or damaged relationship with God. I’M NOT SUPPOSED TO FEEL LIKE THIS is an empowering and practical response to such common feelings. In the style of a workbook, with constant reference to the Bible, and the example of Jesus, it helps the reader to understand why they feel the way they do, and to draw on God’s love and grace to find a path through depression and anxiety. The authors are all Christians, and experienced counsellors and psychiatrists.

This is a self-help book with a difference. It is interactive and Christian. The authors go into great detail explaining symptoms and causes, where you have the chance to make notes in the book that are relevant to you. The latter part of the book is about overcoming the problems and help for church leaders. The book contains realistic examples, uses the CBT technique to help combat the problem, has worksheets are the back to help work through the therapy as well as encouraging and relevant Bible verses and prayers.

As someone who suffers with anxiety I found this book incredibly helpful as the explanations were clear and concise. They explained everything from the initial start of the anxiety to what different types of medical help I can receive. Although a book written by Christians, it had realistic advice and uses techniques used by most psychiatrists.

I found this book so useful I am lending my copy to my boyfriend to read so he knows how to help me. It is accessible to all and the sections are easy to dip in and out of.

8/10

The Mercedes Coffin by Faye Kellerman

From Amazon ~

Billionaire genius Genoa Greeves never got over the shocking death of her favorite teacher, Bennett “Dr. Ben” Alston Little, murdered execution-style and stuffed into the trunk of his Mercedes-Benz. No arrests were ever made, no killer charged for the brutal crime. Fifteen years later, the high-tech CEO reads about another execution-style murder; this time the victim is a Hollywood music producer named Primo Ekerling. There is no obvious connection, but the case is eerily similar to Little’s and Genoa feels the time is right to close Dr. Ben’s case once and for all—offering the L.A.P.D. a substantial financial “incentive” if justice is finally served for Little.
Lieutenant Peter Decker resents having to commit valuable manpower to a fifteen-year-old open case simply because a rich woman says “Jump!” Still, the recent murder of Primo Ekerling does bear a disturbing resemblance to Little’s case, even though two thug suspects are currently behind bars for the Ekerling murder. Decker can’t help but wonder about a connection. His first phone calls are to the two primary investigators in the Little case, retired detectives Calvin Vitton and Arnie Lamar. Lamar is cooperative, but Vitton is not only reluctant to talk, he winds up dead of a suspicious suicide twelve hours later. Plunging into this long-buried murder, Decker discovers that even though the two slayings are separated by a decade and a half, there is still plenty of greed, lust, and evil to connect the dots.
Decker’s team of top investigators not only includes his favorite homicide detectives, Scott Oliver and Marge Dunn, but also his newly minted Hollywood detective daughter, Cindy Kutiel, whose help proves to be invaluable. His wife, Rina Lazarus, continues to be his backbone of support, offering a cool, rational outlook despite her growing concern for her husband’s welfare and safety. Rina’s worries and fears begin to build at a fevered pitch as past and present collide with a vengeance, catapulting an unsuspecting Peter Decker closer and closer to the edge of an infinite dark abyss.
A relentlessly gripping tale spun by a master, Faye Kellerman’s The Mercedes Coffin races through a dangerous urban world of fleeting fame and false dreams, making heart-pumping hairpin turns at each step of a terrifying journey, where truth and justice are fine lines between life and death.

Could there possibly be a connection between two murders 15 years apart? No one seems to think so until someone offers the LAPD a seven figure endowment if they are able to solve the 15 year old cold case. Even though Peter is a lieutenant, the chief assigns him to the case. Of course his top detectives Marge & Scott are there to help him. As well as his detective daughter Cindy. The going is tough at first, yet slowly but surely Peter and his team start connecting the dots and can’t believe where it leads them. Has Peter pushed it to the limit one to many times??? I’m a huge fan of this series. I’ve read them all from book one. I love how the characters have grown along with each book – no soap opera rapid aging syndrome here. I can remember when Peter and Rina got married and had Hannah – and now she’s got her license and has become her own person. The one thing I didn’t like about this book was that Rina seems to have been turned into a boring cooking, cleaning and gardening housewife. She’s not as active in this investigation as she usually is. Other than that – another great book by Ms. Kellerman

No Time For Goodbye by Linwood Barclay

Blurb from Amazon;

On the morning she will never forget, suburban teenager Cynthia Archer awakes with a nasty hangover and a feeling she is going to have an even nastier confrontation with her mom and dad. But when she leaves her bedroom, she discovers the house is empty, with no sign of her parents or younger brother Todd. In the blink of an eye, without any explanation, her family has simply disappeared. Twenty-five years later Cynthia is still haunted by unanswered questions. Were her family murdered? If so, why was she spared? And if they’re alive, why did they abandon her in such a cruel way? Now married with a daughter of her own, Cynthia fears that her new family will be taken from her just as her first one was. And so she agrees to take part in a TV documentary revisiting the case, in the hope that somebody somewhere will remember something – or even that her father, mother or brother might finally reach out to her… Then a letter arrives which makes no sense and yet chills Cynthia to the core. And soon she begins to realise that stirring up the past could be the worst mistake she has ever made…

I purchased this novel in response to Book Club Forum  member recommendations. I wasn’t disappointed. I haven’t read a book so rapidly for a long time. From the start this mystery book is pacy but full of detail. You are quickly drawn into liking Cynthia and her family and wondering along with them what on earth happened to her family? The plot is revealed piecemeal and as a reader who continually tries to work out the ending of books, I found myself still baffled even though more than half way through which in turn drove me on to read late into the night to find out what occurred. All in all excellent to read and I would highly recommend this to anyone. Not an intellectual read but an attention grabber with a thoroughly worked on plot leaving no scrappy endings.

Hang a Thousand trees With Ribbons – Anne Rinaldi

Amazon Synopsis

This is a moving historical novel based on the story of Phillis Wheatley – the first African American female poet. It is an intriguing and moving story of a young girl kidnapped from her home in Senegal and sold, in 1761, as a slave to the wealthy Wheatley family of Boston. Phillis Wheatley – as she comes to be known – has a keen intelligence and a knack for learning. When the family discover her gift for writing poetry, they begin to mould her future by having her ‘perform’ for influential guests. Eventually, she is sent to England, where her work is finally published – the first book of poetry by an African American woman. However, all the trappings of success do nothing to change the fact that she is still a slave.

My Thoughts

A wonderfully told tale of the first African American female poet. It charts her life from when she was young girl in Africa, to how she got caught by slave traders, her voyage to America, then being sold into slavery. It’s a tale full of courage and determination that kept me turning the pages until the very end. The strength and determination of this young girl, her journey into womanhood, and her eventual success as a published poet is an inspiring story. This is a period of history that needs to be written about and Rinaldi has done a terrific job. 

The Last Days of Lacuna Cabal – Sean Dixon

Amazon Synopsis

An original, mischevious rites of passage novel which will delight fans of off-beat fiction such as ‘Salmon Fishing in the Yemen’and ‘A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian’. The Lacuna Cabal Montreal Young Women’s Book Club is THE foremost book club in Canada, no, in the world. Priding themselves on their good taste, intelligent discussions and impeccable opinions, they are a group of misfits and oddballs, living on the edge of normality. There are only two rules: what Missy says goes (ok, there is a nod to democracy but let’s be honest here) and NO BOYS. EVER. Of course, the premier book club in the world must read the first book ever written: ‘The Epic of Gilgamesh’. But this monumental book leads them to break all their rules, shed members who end up missing out on EVERYTHING, and travel across the open seas to Bahrain in search of a wise man who’ll hopefully have all the answers. Original, funny, quixotic and ultimately very moving,The Last Days of the Lacuna Cabal is set in a time of upheaval: the Iraq war is exploding and people across the world are marching in protest.It’s the story of a group of friends who find a family of sorts within their book group, who learn to cope with love, and the lack of it, loss, and the lack of that, and with growing up in a world that is falling apart.

My Thoughts

 Quirky doesn’t go anywhere near describing this amazing novel. I found it surreal, utterly unique, bizarre and at times perplexing but always absolutely enthralling, it kept me intrigued and entertained throughout. Having said that it did take 75 pages before I was well and truly hooked. I persevered with it because it seemed so promising from its blurb and I was pleased to discover I was right to hang on in there with it. I do feel this is destined to become a ‘Marmite’ book though. Another plus is that it’s also inspired me to read The Epic of Gilgamesh, although it by no means necessary to do so to enjoy this book.

The Life You’ve Always Wanted by John Ortberg

This is a Christian book which I have had recommended to me several times. This is my sister-in-law’s favourite book.

Here is the synopsis for The Life You’ve Always Wanted:

The heart of Christianity is about transformation — about a God who isn’t just concerned with our “spiritual lives,” but who wants to impact every aspect of living. It’s realizing that God meets us not in a monastery but on Main Street, and that all of everyday life has the potential to be lived as if Jesus himself were the one living it. John Ortberg calls us back to dynamic heartbeat of Christianity — God’s power to bring change and growth — and shows us how we can attain it . . . and why we should attain it. Offering modern perspectives on the ancient path of the spiritual disciplines, Ortberg guides us on a journey beyond performance and externalism. As we learn not to run harder, but to walk with consistency, we’ll encounter joy, peace, kindness, and all the signposts of a faith that’s vital and growing. Paved with humor and sparkling anecdotes, The Life You’ve Always Wanted, an ECPA best-seller, is an encouraging and challenging approach to a Christian life that’s worth living. Life on the edge, that fills our ordinary world with new meaning, hope, change, and a joyous, growing closeness to Christ.

I found this book incredibly helpful. I found some of it washed over me, however, the key points were easy to remember. It is very informative, uses real life examples to help teach and is written well.

From this book I have learnt to do things as if Jesus were doing them, how to pray more effectively, how to mediate and study the Scriptures in a better method and change how I think when I am sometimes feeling low.

This isn’t a long book, only 220 pages and the text is broken up with a few diagrams, funny stories and tip-boxes to help put into action what has been read.

A helpful read.

8/10

Villa Serena by Domenica de Rosa

According to the magazine column that Emily writes, life in Italy is just perfect. In reality though, it’s certainly not. After her husband leaves her, Emily is left alone in their Tuscan farmhouse, along with her three children, who all have their own problems.

We are gradually introduced to Emily, her children, her friends, and her new love interest, and the developing story is warmly and humorously told.

The surrounding countryside and towns are delightfully described, and there is some interesting local history explored.

The various storylines all weave together towards the end, and finishing the book felt like leaving behind some good friends.

Leading the Dance by Sarah Salway

Leading the Dance is a collection of short stories, bound together by the concept of secrets within everyday life. Sarah manges to write colourful characters, and fascinating tales, all presented within a few pages, something that I believe takes great writing skill.

Some of my personal highlights include a woman who has a portrait done of the contents of her fridge, which seems amusing, but deals with bulimia; a wife who secretly follows her husband’s affair via his emails; a touching tale of two sisters and their loneliness; a boy who has been taught to ignore his mother’s afternoon visitors; and especially the woman who locks another woman in her basement!

I can honestly say that not one tale within this collection disappointed, and I’m sure everyone will find their own personal favourite. Despite being very short, each one seems to have depth, and I will certainly be going back to read them again.

I very much enjoyed Sarah’s voice, and the way she writes, and I will be actively hunting more of her work.

A Difficult Boy by M.P. Barker

Set in 1839, A Difficult Boy tells the story of Ethan, who is sent to work for My Lyman, a wealthy shopkeeper. Being close to his family, this is not something he wishes to do, but it’s made necessary by the debts that the family have with My Lyman.

Once there, he meets Daniel, an Irish immigrant, who has been labelled as a ‘difficult boy’. Ethan soon realises that Daniel is the victim of both racism and violent abuse, as Mr Lyman’s discipline often includes beatings.

Despite Daniel’s coolness to everyone, a spark of friendship is soon seen between the two boys, and it steadily grows throughout the book.

For me, the first half of the book was a little too slow, although the author does a good job of setting up the various characters, and strands of the story. It’s worth continuing with, however, because as the story reached it’s conclusion, I was surprised to find how involved I had become with these characters, and how much I cared about the story outcome. For me, I would have preferred to see some of the earlier book shortened, with the ending made a little longer, but that is a personal opinion.

For those interested in American history, this would make an interesting read, but it’s also a warming tale of friendship, and overcoming difficulties.

A Season of Eden by J.M. Warwick

He’s my teacher. I shouldn’t be alone with him. But I can’t help that he’s irresistible. I let the door silently close at my back. He stared at me, and a taut quiet stretched between us. “I like hearing you play,” I said, moving toward him. He turned, in sync with my slow approach. He looked up at me but didn’t say anything. I rested my clammy hand on the cold, slick body of the baby grand. “May I?” The muscles in his throat shifted, then he swallowed. “Eden.” My knees weakened, like a soft tickling kiss had just been blown against the backs of them. “Is it okay?” I asked. His gaze held mine like two hands joined. He understood what I was really asking. “Let me stay,” I said. “Please.” “You’re going to get me in trouble,” he said.

J.M. Warwick is the author of An Open Vein, and she has produced another interesting YA read. Eden is portrayed as a very popular member of her school, with friends and boys flocking around her. Whilst at the same time, she is trying to deal with the loss of her mother, and her strained relationship with her father.

Mr Christian is her new, young, music teacher, to whom she feels a powerful attraction. As they build their  relationship, they have to stay aware of their boundaries. As Eden learns to deal with this new type of relationship, and her own changing feelings, she grows and matures – and it was this development that I found most intriguing.

How will the relationship end up? You’ll have to read to find out.