Review: Into the Whirlwind

Into The Whirlwind

by: Elizabeth Camden

Genre: Christian Fiction, Romance, Historical Fiction

Medium: Kindle Document 

Date Read: July 19, 2013

Stars: ★★★★☆

After her father's death, Mollie Knox takes over his watchmaking company and uses her head for business to solidify the good name of the 57th Illinois Watch Company. Her future looks bright until the night her beloved city is destroyed in the legendary Great Chicago Fire. With her world crumbling around her, Molly must do whatever it takes to save her company in the aftermath of the devastating fire.

Zack Kazmarek is an influential attorney with powerful ties to the political, mercantile, and ethnic roots of Chicago. His only weakness is Mollie Knox, a woman who has always been just beyond his reach. However, all bets are off after the fire destroys Chicago, and Mollie is in desperate need of assistance. Just as Zack finally begins to pursue the woman he loves, competition arises in the form of a hero from her past who can provide the help she needs to rise from the ashes.

While Mollie struggles to rebuild, the two men battle for her heart. One has always loved her, but the other has the power to save her. In the race to rebuild the city, can she survive with her business and her heart intact?

☆ ☆ ☆ My Review ☆ ☆ ☆

I struggle with book title's sometimes. Some are just a line from the book, perhaps it was significant to the author, but makes no sense to the reader. Sometimes its right, and sometimes its spot on. Into the Whirlwind did just that. As I dove into the first chapter, I was swept into a fire storm of events, relationships, people, places things! This tale starts six days before the historic Chicago fire, with Mollie Knox owner operater of 57th Watch Company trying to come to a decision as to what direction her company would go. Would she strike out on her own and end her relationship with the largest retailer in Chicago, or give into pressure for the store's Handsome lawyer and sign over her rights? And then disaster struck.


This tale was nothing if not gripping, and to be honest I found myself opening the app on my phone and reading snatches of it every-time I could. However there were still some points that found me not placing one more star in my rating. Though the book's premise seems to be about Mollie, to me, it felt as if we followed and got to know Zach a lot better; and we also could understand why Zach loved Mollie, we knew where Zack came from, how he fought tooth and toe nail to get where he was, we got to meet and know his family; whereas Mollie's sections of the story were very abrupt and by the time I finished the book I didn't feel as if I knew HER. I knew about her she's loyal, she's compassionate, head strong, and vocal; but also very mistrustful. But I didn't know why.


Though the lack of character depth in Mollie had me struggling at some points, I still have to hand it to Ms. Camden for another well written tale.

I recieved this book for free through Bethany House Publishers in exchange for an honest review.

View all my reviews

What I'm Reading

Operation Bonnet

Author: Kimberly Stuart 

Date Read: January 25, 2013 

Medium: Free Kindle Book, Purchased Nook Book (Bought it than days later they offered it free on Kindle. Grrr)  

First Sentence: "I didn't set out to be the town luminary." 

Genre: Comedy, Christian Fiction, Young Adult 

I "Laughed Out Loud" Quote: "I will apologize," he said, taking a deep breath. Aggressively mocking a person takes it out of you."

Reviewed for: Me, Myself and I

Stars: ★★★★☆  

Twenty-year-old Nellie Monroe has a restless brilliance that makes her a bit of an odd duck. She wants to be a private investigator, even though her tiny hometown offers no hope of clients. Until she meets Amos Shetler, an Amish dropout carrying a torch for the girl he left behind. So Nellie straps on her bonnet and goes undercover to get the dish. But though she’s brainy, Nellie is clueless when it comes to real life and real relationships. Soon she’s alienated her best friend, angered her college professor, and botched her case. Operation Bonnet is a comedy of errors, a surprising take on love, and a story of grace.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -My Review - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Operation Bonnet, what a story. This will probably be one of the harder reviews to write, as figuring out where to start is difficult. I'll admit it took me a "hot minute" to get into this story. [read: a few months] I clicked this book so many times, yet moved on so many times its not even funny. The first chapter kinda of overloads you with information about Miss Nellie Augusta Lourdes Monroe, and while it is interesting, its not very relavent to the remainder of the book. But that is my humble opinion of course. 

Upon "meeting" Miss Monroe, I got the distinct impression she was much younger than the twenty years stated in the book. She's incredibly flighty and prone to be violent at a moments noticed. The more I read the more I felt like I could relate to ... some parts of her that is.(Apparently I have developed a reputation of being mean to boys in particular in my youth.. I am currently working to restore my image. Its hard work. Lemme tell you!)  Though I found her constant sarcastic nature a bit grating, and her constant attempts at humor a bit tiring,  I loved how strongly she loved despite her different ways of showing it. :) 

When its all said and done I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars, once you get started it was hard to stop! 

What I'm Reading

The Scent of Rain
by: Kristin Billerbeck

Could it be that the life Daphne's always wanted is right under her nose?

Daphne Sweeten left Paris—and a job she loved—to marry the man of her dreams in the U.S. But when he stands her up on their wedding day, she's left reeling and senseless. Literally. She's been trained as a perfume creator and now her sense of smell has disappeared along with her fiancé.

She has to figure out why her nose isn't working, fix it, and get back to Paris. Meanwhile, she'll rely on her chemistry skills and just hope her new boss at Gibraltar Products, Jesse, doesn't notice her failing senses. They'll be working together on household fragrances, not posh perfumes. How hard can it be?

As Daphne and Jesse work on a signature scent for their new line, she feels God at work as never before. And the promise of what's possible is as fresh as the scent of rain.

“Witty and upbeat” —Library Journal

My Review: 

As a huge Kristin Billerbeck fan I was all set to love this new book of hers, despite the ....interesting... synopsis. It was a plot line I have yet to see, and so I was intrigued to see exactly how our smell-less heroine was going to escape her first attempt at matrimony, snag a new job that demanded her nose, and catch herself a new man. 

I can admit I was pretty disappointed. It was a little too...un-believable. Her sense of smell disappeared due to shock? Yet she's still going to move forward with this, rather strange career path, in which she needs her nose, regardless..? There were a few interesting twists and turns, in the book, that kept me turning pages, but when I ultimately reached the end, it wasn't a book that I thought of again after closing the cover. 

All in all, I gave this book a three out of five, close but no cigar. 

I was given a review copy for free by Booksneeze.com. All opinions are my own (obviously) and I wasn't compensated in any way for this review!

Book Review: Through Rushing Water

Through Rushing Water

Catherine Richmond

Review from Booksneeze.com

Sophia has her life all planned out—but her plan didn’t include being jilted or ending up in Dakota Territory.

Sophia Makinoff is certain that 1876 is the year that she’ll become the wife of a certain US Congressman, and happily plans her debut into the Capitol city. But when he proposes to her roommate instead, Sophia is stunned. Hoping to flee her heartache and humiliation, she signs up with the Board of Foreign Missions on a whim.

With dreams of a romantic posting to the Far East, Sophia is dismayed to find she’s being sent to the Ponca Indian Agency in the bleak Dakota Territory. She can’t even run away effectively and begins to wonder how on earth she’ll be able to guide others as a missionary. But teaching the Ponca children provides her with a joy she has never known—and never expected—and ignites in her a passion for the people she’s sent to serve.

It’s a passion shared by the Agency carpenter, Willoughby Dunn, a man whose integrity and selflessness are unmatched. The Poncas are barely surviving. When U.S. policy decrees that they be uprooted from their land and marched hundreds of miles away in the middle of winter, Sophia and Will wade into rushing waters to fight for their friends, their love, and their destiny.

My Review:

I had high hopes for this book and while it didn't disappoint, I'm not sure it lived up to what I was expecting. The authors writing at times, was disjointed. We jumped from scene to scene with little to no warning and sometimes it took a moment to orient who, what, when and where. I also felt the story between the two main characters was dragged out a little longer than was interesting.

That being said, this story still sucked me in. I loved the main character Sophia. Not only was she feminine but she wasn't afraid to stand her ground in any situation she found herself in and she could speak multiple languages! Definitely a force to be reckoned with! My heart broke as Will (her love interest) and Sophia battled to helped the Indian people maintain their hold, on the land the knew and love, and then ultimately be forced on to reservations. People can be so cruel sometimes. However there was a resolution and a happy ending.

All in all, when I closed the book, there was a smile on my face. :)

Happy Reading!

I received this book through BookSneeze.com in exchange for an honest review.