The Linen Queen by Patricia Falvey

Where do I even begin? I have to say that this book was extremely challenging for me to get into and even to keep on reading. If I hadn't received this book to specifically review, I probably would have never even bothered completing it.

The book was very slow and written in the voice of the main character, Sheila McGee. Sheila starts out as being very self-absorbed, not caring for anybody but herself. Fortunately as the book goes along, she starts to realize that she is extremely selfish and life is not about her after all.

This book is set during World War I and while there is quite a bit mentioning the war and soldiers coming to their small town, I still didn't get the feeling that it was that important of an event. Part of this could be because it is written from one person's perspective the whole time and since she was self-absorbed it didn't really matter to her what was going on.

I am glad that about 100 to 150 pages in the story did get slightly more interesting and by the end of the book you really did feel that there was quite a bit of character development that had taken place; however, when you figure in the fact that the story spanned about 4 years you'd hope that the character wouldn't be stagnant.

In case you can't tell, I really didn't enjoy this book that much. I'll try to give some positives. The writer writes very well getting you to really feel like you are in a small town in Ireland. She definitely gives you the idea that the character feels trapped and wants to break free and start her own adventure. Other than that the story itself wasn't very compelling. I really didn't appreciate quite a bit of the language in it either.

Overall, I don't think I would recommend this book.

I received this book for free and was under no obligation to give a positive review.  

Spiritual Warfare for Women by Leighann McCoy

Spiritual Warfare has been around since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden.  A battle we fight daily.  How much do you know about winning the war against the enemy, Satan?  Are you equipped for the battle that is raging around you? 

Leighann McCoy's book is separated into four different parts to help you in your daily battle:
1. The Most Powerful Weapon of All--the Love of God  (chapters 1-3)
2. The Enemy Exposed (chapters 4-6)
3. The Targets in Our Lives (chapters 7-11)
4. Victory Is Mine (chapters 12-14)
Each chapter ends with questions and overview ideas,  a prayer, key Scriptures and an idea of how to commit Scripture to memory.

Reading through this book was a great reminder of how Satan is a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour as stated in I Peter 5:8.  I found myself contemplating a lot of what was said in this book.  I think that Leighann McCoy did a great job in being true to Scripture and informative as to how believers can be victorious through Christ. 

In chapter 4--Spiritual Warfare is Real, the author writes,
"Satan's purpose and passion is to profane the name of the Lord.  He has at the core of his being the desire to destroy God's reputation and shed doubt on His motives.  Just as he did in the beginning, Satan works his way into the hearts and minds of God's children.  For when he can steal the testimony of a disciple, when he can kill the joy in her heart, and when he destroys her spirit, Satan profanes the name of the Lord.

Because you are a child of the King, you are a target for attack.  Every day you make decisions that will either proclaim the name of the Lord or profane the name of the Lord.  There's no middle ground on this battlefield.  You are either with God or you're against Him." (page 80)

I enjoyed this book and would recommend it especially for Christians who are young in their faith and are just learning what it means to stand firm against the Enemy in their daily lives.

**I received this free book from Bethany House Publishers in exchange for an honest review.