Merry Christmas! Today I have something awesome to share with you: books. Specificaly, Christian fantasy books.Trust me, it’s exciting. XD Two of my favorite authors have released new books in the past week, and as spoonies tend to rather like books (if brain fog allows you to read), I thought, why not? 😉 These two series — the Ilyon Chronicles and the Blades of Acktar — have touched me in so many seasons of illness (and now recovery). Though I write nonfiction, I process the world and am often most touched by fiction. 🙂 Therefore, without further ado, here are my reviews! (Also, read all the way to the end for some giveaways and a special thing from yours truly.)

Bitter Winter

Already struggling with a harsh winter and the threat of food shortage, a catastrophic event leaves those in the Landale camps reeling. Just when things couldn’t get much worse, camp members fall ill with the same devastating sickness that’s sweeping across the country.

Determined to gain the cure, Jace sets off to Valcré. However, there are only two sources—the queen, or a powerful gang of smugglers who have made the dangerous city their home. When Jace gains audience with the gang leader, he finds the price of the cure is steeper than any of them imagined, forcing him to make an impossible choice—betray his conscience or let those he loves die.

Available now on Amazon!

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[Note: The rest of this may contain spoilers for the previous 4 books in the series.]

It was fun to watch Daniel start learning to become the leader he was born to be. And to see Jace in his semi-new role as an older brother. And Anne and Trask were adorable as newlyweds. I also really liked the glimpses we got of Cassie and Lacy. Excited to get to know them more. And Leetra. She’s one of my favorite characters. She’s so strong. Her and Timothy are great. Jaye did a great job keeping tabs on the now quite large cast of characters.

Overall, I think I read it yet again way too fast, but maybe I’ll enjoy it even more on a reread . . . knowing who lives and who doesn’t. It started maybe 6 months after Exiles ended. So excited that it’s officially come out so I can fangirl with everyone, make sure you go read it!!

Lacy

The last thing Aaron ever envisioned was falling for a prostitute. Everything about it spells trouble. However, he can’t help noticing the way her smile lights up when she sees him and how much brokenness she hides behind it. Neither can he ignore how desperately she needs rescue and protection.

When Lacy shares a life or death secret with him, Aaron is willing to risk everything to help her and to show her Elôm’s love. Yet, such a choice could destroy his reputation and maybe even cost him his freedom.

An Ilyon Chronicles Novella

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This was very helpful in helping me return to reality more gently (though the plot was still plenty to keep me reading way past my bedtime) after the intense ride that Bitter Winter was. 🙂 I read this in two late nights, and it was beautiful.

While Jaye did an amazing job with the giant cast of characters in Bitter Winter, it was nice to have a smaller cast in this one. Timothy and Aaron made great MC’s, and I loved their brother relationship.

Yes, the title character is a prostitute. But while Jaye doesn’t skirt around things or make things seem less than they are, she handles it very discreetly and purely. I felt so much more pushed to the edge of my comfort level when Kyrin was threatened by men sexually in previous books then I felt with the title character’s occupation in this book. This book does not at all glorify or praise prostitution, and the story is very redemptive. I loved the themes of healing, redemption, and self-sacrificing love.

The only thing I still wonder about at the end is Avery’s motives. I don’t fully understand him yet. But maybe I’m just been cynical or maybe he’ll be more fully explained in later books. 🙂 Overall, I loved this even more than Bitter Winter in some ways . . . surprising as that is!

Decree

The Adventure Continues.

Discover more of The Blades of Acktar in this collection of novellas and short stories.

The Blades as They Should’ve Been

A test and the Gathering of Nobles will decide Leith and Martyn’s futures. Can they fight to become more than the Blades they were? Will Keevan accept the man who attempted to kill him as family?

The First Mission

When Martyn visits Surgis, his past seems determined to haunt him. Can he figure out how to forgive, especially when confronted with an enemy in need of his help?

To the Far Great Mountains

A death sends Leith and Martyn far beyond the borders of Acktar. Will they be able to arrest their quarry before they are caught themselves?

From the story of how Leith and Martyn met to Ranson’s search for a life outside of the Blades, these stories will answer plaguing questions and expand the world of Acktar.

Available now on Amazon!

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She did a great job of touching on each character and making you appreciate them even more . . . even characters you thought you knew super well already. I loved getting to know more of Jolene and Shad’s story, and watching Martyn and Kayleigh’s relationships grow… I especially appreciated how Martyn and Kayleigh weren’t just a copy of Renna and Leith, even though the four are so close. They had their own dynamic and struggles and life. Ranson’s story as he figured out what to do with his unique skills and such was also so sweet. I loved watching the Blades grow into who they were supposed to be… in more ways than one.

Keevan and Leith’s dynamic was also healing to watch as they learned just how much they could work things out… and how much they couldn’t. When I read books 1, 2, and 3, I wasn’t sure about Keevan being king. But after Destroy and Decree, he turns out to be quite a good one in my opinion. Watching Acktar as a whole country change and heal and grow was also fun. It was nice to get to explore it more, and even get to know some of the surrounding countries.

This book wasn’t just love stories and such, however. It had its fair share of action and adventures and missions. Bandits and rovers and thieves and new trainees for *SPOILER* the Blade Marshals… or, the Blades as the should have been. *END SPOILER*

I just have one complaint. Why was there so little Brandi and Jamie in it?! I’m not asking for a love story. But them as individual characters and as friends is such an iconic part of this series! I suppose I could overlook such an omission if we were to get another book starring the two… *looks hopefully at Tricia*

Overall, though, this book will hold a special place in my heart, and I recommend this series greatly.

“New-fangled pencils . . . just about the best invention since the cookie.”

“Proposing involved baring one’s heart and soul and uncomfortable stuff like emotions and promising forever. Yes, of course he was going to mess it all up. . . . She deserved all the mushiness he could muster.”

“It was all so wrong. And there was nothing Shad could do to fix any of it.”

“Children should not be used to fight their parent’s battles.”

“All right, so jumping into heroics and all that nonsense was more Leith’s thing than Martyn’s, but Martyn had volunteered for this. He’d studied for hours to pass that blasted test. Heroics were just going to have to be his ting too from now on.”

“Romance. It was going to kill him more surely than an enemy’s knife ever would.”

“Maybe if God had wanted Martyn to be better at trusting, He shouldn’t have let Martyn get so broken in the first place.”

“They could live upstanding lives for the rest of their days. But nothing they did could ever heal the brokenness they’d caused. Only God could work forgiveness in the broken hearts of others and heal what seemed unhealable. But even that was rarely immediate but instead a process God worked slowly.”

“All Keevan could see was a flashing knife and gushing blood. . . . This was the hardest part of forgiveness. It would have been so much easier if Leith wasn’t a Christian.”

Content:
Violence: Memories of assassination attempts, a bit bloody (nothing much worse than in Destroy). One guy gets beat up, a rib cracked. (All in all, less violence than most of the other books in the series.) Various scuffles, nothing super graphic.

Sexual content: Some kissing, nothing more on screen or even implied. One woman is threatened, but nothing happens. Nothing worse than the first scene in Dare. She later feels a little bit traumatized.

Language: Some implied (i.e. “he cursed”), none written out.

Blog Tour Schedule

Make sure you visit the rest of the blog tour for more fun (and even more giveaways!) 😀

Wednesday – December 19

• Book Reviews at The Artful Author
• Book Reviews by Meagan Davenport
• Author Interview & Book Reviews by Brie Donning
• Author Interview & Book Spotlight at Saver of Memories
• Character Chat #3 by the Ilyon Chronicles

Thursday – December 20

• Book Spotlight by Sutori no Hana
• Book Reviews by Kaylee’s Kind of Writes
• Book Spotlight by H. Elrich
• Author Interview at The Ink Lizard
• Book Spotlight & Review at A Great God and Good Cocoa

Friday – December 21

• Book Reviews at Smyling Girl
• Author Interview at Dreams and Dragons
• Book Review by Faith Blum
• Author Interview & Book Reviews at Allison Grace Writes
• Book Spotlight by Hannah Gaudette
• Character Chat #4 by Tricia Mingerink

Saturday – December 22

• Blog Tour Wrap up post at Jaye L. Knight

Well, what are you waiting for? Go add these books to your list! Or perhaps get them for someone as a last minute gift. 😉 Or treat yourself to it so that you make sure you get some down time during the busy holiday season. Or if you’re having a tough Christmas, maybe getting into a fictional world can help you get through it. (Just ask, whatever it is, I’ll come up with a reason for you to get them. XD)

Lastly, as a Christmas special I am selling signed copies of my book He’s Making Diamonds: A Teen’s Thoughts on Faith Through Chronic Illness. This is the first time signed copies have been available online, and when my limited supplies run out, I don’t know when I’ll be doing it again. So if you want a personalized signed copy, go ahead and use the contact form to contact me, comment below, email me, or message me on social media. 🙂 Merry Christmas!