"Taken" by Dee Henderson

Shannon Bliss went missing as a teen and now, eleven years later, has managed to escape from her captors and is trying to put her life back together. Matthew Dane is a private investigator who has personal experience dealing with helping victims piece their lives back together and find healing.

“Taken” followed the same feel as Dee Henderson’s most recent books. The book surprised me, because it didn’t have a clear climax that I anticipated. It moved along at a comfortable clip and kept me from putting it down, but the lack of conflict that I’ve come to expect wasn’t there. The characters were well-written, and I applauded Shannon’s constant faith despite her chaotic past.

This book is great for reader who have enjoyed her past three books; however, if you are wanting a page-turner with danger and suspense, this book isn’t for you.

"Raptor 6" by Ronie Kendig

“Raptor 6” begins the start of Ronie Kendig’s newest series, “Quiet Professionals.” Captain Dean Watters comes to the forefront in this novel as the fearless leader who has earned the admiration and respect of his team. Zahrah Zarrick, a local opinionated Afghani missionary, turns his world (and heart) upside down when she doesn’t take orders as easily as his team and becomes a target of local terrorists.

Ronie proves her knowledge of military life as she creates an intense world in Afghanistan where a computer hacker is compromising the military’s secrets. Die-hard fans of Kendig won’t be disappointed with this fast-paced novel; however, readers new to Kendig will find certain scenes, particularly one with torture involved, harsh, abrasive, and the balance with romance a bit unrealistic. Even though this series isn’t off to the start I expected, it isn’t keeping me from eagerly anticipating the next one. November can’t get here soon enough with the continuation of the series in “Hawk.”

"The Skeleton Crew: How Amateur Sleuths are Solving America's Coldest Cases" by Deborah Halber

On July 1st, Deborah Halber is releasing an interesting book called "The Skeleton Crew: How Amateur Sleuths Are Solving America's Coldest Cases."

Deborah Halber delves into the taboo world of cold cases and their unidentified victims. With an approximated 40,000 nameless Does in America today, the task of solving cold cases is overwhelming and overtaxing to already inundated law enforcement agencies. Web sleuths, regular joes trying their hand at DIY-CSI, use the internet to troll for missing persons hoping to give identities back to the unidentified victims who have slipped through the cracks.

Though the topic of “The Skeleton Crew” is an interesting one, the technicality of the book was wanting. Halber does a good job identifying many cases and key players in the realm of web sleuthing, but the excessive names and jumping from case to case and back left me confused. The book, though well-researched, didn’t flow particularly well.

Overall, I enjoyed learning about those who work hard to bring home the unidentified. It’s a scary realization that thousands are lying unnamed in America’s morgues.

"Beloved" by Robin Lee Hatcher

Robin Lee Hatcher’s “Beloved” is a fictional story about Diana Applegate, a young woman who can’t seem to catch a break. This streak continues at her engagement party when her formerly presumed dead husband walks through the door! Her life takes a shift when he begs her to stand by him as he runs for Senate, but Diana isn’t quite sure since he wasn’t the model husband before his alleged “death.”

This story was enjoyable enough. The plot was good, and the characters were fun. It was nice to see Tyson Applegate’s change in priorities as the story evolves aided by flashbacks giving the reader a consuming picture of the evolution of his character. It was a good story, but it didn’t have a spark that had me eagerly trying to finish it.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

"The Radical Question/A Radical Idea" by David Platt

There isn’t much to say about these books. Having barely over 100 tiny pages, this two-in-one book is more of a sermonette of Platt’s other works than actual books. Think of it as cliff notes. The points are excellent yet simple, and Platt backs them up with Scripture and testimonies. The gist is simple: What is Jesus worth to you? What are you going to do about it?

Platt encourages readers to live outside the boundaries we so carefully construct for ourselves and live passionately for Christ. These two books serve as a good reminder for Christians to live out the Great Commission and to do so boldly.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

"A Path Toward Love" by Cara Lynn James

"A Path Toward Love" is a story about a young woman from a privileged background, Katherine Osbourne. Katherine suffered a bad marriage due to her juvenile choices and tries to put her life back together after her husband's death. Her two childhood best friends, Andrew and Randy, swoop in to try to help her find love again- each hoping it would be with himself. 

This book was a good story; however, I felt that the pace moved too quickly. Cara Lynn James did a good job providing an excellent plot, but the characters needed some work. The guys responded with too much emotion for my taste. 

Overall, it's a decent book, but lacking in development. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”