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Age Appropriate For: 18 and up (frank discussions about sex, masturbation, and struggle for purity).

Best for Ages: 18 and up

Description: Tired of feeling sorry for yourself? Sick of answering the same old questions about why you still haven’t found your perfect match?

Despite what many people think, singleness is not a disease. It’s not the lesser option. Singleness is God’s gift to you today.

In Thrive, Lina AbuJamra – who has been single for over 40 years - will show you how you can make a difference with your life right now instead of sitting around waiting for something to happen to you. If you’re ready to figure out what God has to say about singleness instead of relying on your own feelings and conclusions, this book is for you.

Isn’t it time you get excited about your life in Christ and quit falling back into the same old pattern of thinking? Freedom. Joy. Abundance. Hope. All these are yours the moment you embrace all that God has for you right here right now.

Go ahead. It’s okay to smile. Life as a single Christian is good.

I wish I had found this book as a single. Well, I did. A friend recommended it and it was at the top of my to-read list when my best friend declared his love. However, I still really enjoyed reading this book and highly recommend it to all my single friends.

I love Abujamra’s tone in this book. It is both friendly and humble, but also uncompromising and frank. She never sugar-coats anything and doesn’t hesitate to give the readers a kick where they need it most. Yet, she balances all that by being vulnerable and honest about her own shortcomings and sins. Her openness and honesty really gave this book a special perspective.

The format of this book was great. Her goal is to help you thrive as a single Christian. She shares five attitudes to embrace and four obstacles to overcome. She ends with the secret sauce that makes it all work (her words). And then she shares about single Christians who have thrived for Jesus. This format worked so well and made it easy to keep reading.

Some of her discussion on sex, and especially masturbation, wasn’t necessarily a comfortable read and some who aren’t struggling might skip those parts if they wish. However, I think her insights as both someone who has struggled and as a doctor will be helpful to many singles. She was frank, honest, and uncompromising without being crude or giving needless detail.

I especially apricated her discussion of about the church. God really convicted me on my attitude toward the church during my single years and it was encouraging to have someone both acknowledge that it isn’t easy to be a single in the church, but firmly and with humility say we need to stop using that as an excuse not to participate in church life. Her thoughts on the topic were both steeped in scripture and practical advice.

Overall, this book rocketed my top three books I recommend to singles (the other two being Kingdom Single and Living Whole Without a Better Half). I highly recommend it for singles seeking to thrive, married people wanting to relate well to singles, and pastors who might be looking for excellent resources for their single church members. 

Read and reviewed in January 2021. Post contains Amazon Affiliate Links

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Age Appropriate For: 16 and up (according to your background. There are frank discussions about sex, and avoiding sexual temptation)

Best for Ages: 18 and up 

Description:  If you’re single and feeling incomplete or even like a second-class citizen in Christian circles, Dr. Tony Evans wants to encourage you to live fully where you are.

Kingdom Single will encourage you to see yourself as complete in Christ and free to serve Him. It will empower you to live as Kingdom men and women in a corrupt culture.

Tony Evans is a much-loved pastor and known for his sense of knowing when to encourage and when to lovingly admonish, to help people become who God calls them to be. If you are single and reading this book—or if you lead or pastor singles—your identity in Christ will be affirmed. Additionally, you will receive coaching for what to look for in a prospective spouse, and be challenged to live godly lives while pursuing Kingdom causes.

I owe you an apology, Amanda. You recommended this book to me and I inwardly rolled my eyes. Pretty much all the books for singles that I've read or looked into reading by married people were frankly less than helpful. They focused either on marriage or read more like a rant against the selfishness of singles in today's culture.

This book wasn't like that at all.

Evens starts off the book by explaining why he feels he has something to say to singles and addresses some of the reasons people might not listen to him (like the fact he's been married for many years). I already liked his humility and compassionate tone as he explained. He tore down some of the reasons I was feeling defensive about reading the book.

This book deals head-on with many issues with grace, biblical truths, and common sense. Evens spoke plainly and without sugar-coating anything, yet maintained a humble and conversational tone throughout the books. This wasn't a book of rules, do's and don'ts, or about getting singles to get to work for the church, this book addressed the heart of many struggles singles face.

One of the best things about this book for me? Evens admitted the failure of the church at large toward singles while still encouraging singles to honor God and participate in the local church. He gave a voice to the hurt and pain many singles at church feel, yet still spoke words of encouragement to not allow that pain to deter them. Yes! This is the kind of voice we need in our singleness books!

Overall, I think this is the best general book on singleness for both men and women.

Just to be clear, I took one star off simply because of several sections (single parents, divorced) that didn't really apply to me and a couple of minor theological differences.

Content notes: Sex is discussed frankly. As someone who has come from a more conservative, less sex-saturated culture than many, I did squirm a little. However, I felt the discussion was appropriate for the targeted audience.

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Description: There are more singles in--and out of--the church today than ever before. Wendy Widder knows the struggles of being single from the inside out, and she has something to say. While there is no shortage of books about singlehood on the market, Widder's approach is markedly different. In Living Whole Without a Better Half readers study the character in Hebrews 11. Widder uses these Biblical examples to show readers how to embrace singleness as an abundant life and a God-given gift, not as an unfortunate stage they should move past as quickly as possible. By examining the lives of biblical heroes such as Abraham, Moses, and Jacob, she reveals that trying to bargain with God to follow our plans and timing often keeps us from appreciating the opportunities he places in our path.

I was going through a time I was super discouraged in my singleness. I was turning thirty and found myself frustrated with my single state. I turned to books to help me process. I read or started to read a lot of less then helpful books. I was beginning to think that all the singleness books could easily be placed in three categories: 1. Books that promise you will get married someday so hold on. 2. Cheesy upbeat books that talk about how awesome being single can be. 3. Books by disenchanted people who blame the church and everyone around them for their unhappy single lives.

Thankfully, I found some books that were truly helpful.

This book was the best.

Why was this book so good? Honestly, instead of trying to be an exhaustive guide to dealing with singleness, Widder addresses the heart of the matter on a spiritual level. Yet, she doesn't ignore the practical. She knows from experience the ache and the hardships of singleness. She didn't promise that one day I would be married. She didn't try to make singleness into the ultimate life. She led me through a spiritual journey that helped my heart come to a place of peace.

Widder drew lessons from scripture that weren't shocking or nothing that I hadn't thought about before, yet she framed them in a way felt knew because she related them to my singleness. It was the fresh perspective I needed.

I think every Christian woman, struggling with singleness should read this book and have a copy to underline and make notes in.

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Age Appropriate For: 15 and up for violence (including a non-graphic murder), romantic decisions, a child abuse discussed.

Best for Ages: 18 and up

Description:  There's nothing in Emily Post about dealing with murder. Katrina just wanted to spend time among the books at Frank's Bookstore. Yes, that's an unimaginative name for a store, but Frank's an unimaginative guy--or he was. Now he and his murder are the reason Katrina is spending her spare time with Wilkester detective, Todd Mason. Or, that's what she tells herself.

Why would anyone want to kill Frank Delaney? Who would do it? And is Katrina herself even safe?

Mixing faith, literary humor, sweet romance, and a cozy mystery that will keep you guessing, Barbara Cornthwaite's first Wilkester Mystery has everything you want for a cozy read.

Begin your investigation of Brought to Book today.

When I saw that Gretchen Louise read this book and gave it five stars, I knew I had to take a peek. I was drawn into the description and by the cover. I borrowed it on Kindle Unlimited.

Cornthwaite’s skill really impressed me. It’s been a while since I read a book that was so well researched as well as written with such a fresh voice. Not only that, but the story, characters, and structure were simply some of the best done I’ve read. On skills alone, Cornthwaite gets high marks from me.

I personally related to Katrina on many levels. I also am an older single, love reading, and struggle with some of the same things she does. She is a refreshingly different kind of main character. She is smart, funny, in her early forties, strong Christian, and not bitter about life. She is so real and also the kind of Christian I want to emulate, without being perfect. If you haven’t guessed it, I was totally drawn in by her character.

The mystery aspect of this book was unique enough that it didn’t feel like the same thing I’d read a hundred times. It was well-researched, realistic, and also moved along fast enough to keep me interested. The mystery kept me flipping pages that’s for sure.

The romance was another breath of fresh air. I won’t spoil it too much but let me say it was nice to have a couple with realistic struggles that weren’t too weird, no dark secrets, and appropriate boundaries. My favorite part was how they were both strong Christians. I’m not saying agree with every aspect in what I would do, but I have to say that the romance was another area that made me want to read more like this from this author.

Speaking of Christianity, Katrina and her friends love Jesus and put Him first in their lives. Some of them have flaws but don’t we all. I loved that in times of struggle, they pressed into Jesus instead of blaming Him. Katrina has struggled in her career as a professor because of her faith but was willing to make the sacrifice, one of her married friends fosters kids with a lot of baggage because of their faith.

As a whole, I have to say this will definitely make the top 10 list this year. When you consider that I will have read over 200 books this year, that says a lot. I will be following this author from here out.

I highly recommend those looking for superbly written Christian fiction, mysteries, and refreshing female characters. 

*post contains Amazon affilate links*

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Age Appropriate For: 10 and up (for some thematic elements)

Best for Ages: 12-25

Description:  Journey with a horseback librarian into the hidden crevices of Kentucky mountains. Feel her pain as she struggles not only to barely make ends meet but as she also attempts to connect the pieces of her own life while her mom continues to make selfish decisions.

Lena Davis is the daughter her mom never wanted.

But she survived. Through stories. Because books didn’t judge. Books weren’t angry she was alive. Books never expected her to be anything but who she was.

As she grows up, her beloved library becomes her true home. So when the library is designated part of President Roosevelt’s Packhorse Library Project, Lena is determined to get the job of bringing books to highlanders, believing she’ll finally be free of her mom forever.

But earning the trust of highlanders is harder than she imagined, and her passion for books might not be enough to free her from her chains.

I was very excited about this series. I mean, it was such a fun historical concept. I’m happy to say that Amanda Tero did an amazing job developing her characters, historical setting, and also getting a message that had some real impact.

Lena is a character that I intently felt I both understood and wanted to protect. True, I don’t live in a situation anything like Lena, but she reacted much like I suspect I would. I felt like her character depth and how she grows with the story shows also how Tero is progressing as a writer. Lena was not as flat as some of her characters have been.

Tero did a great job in this story with balancing being realistic, without giving a lot of unnecessary detail. It’s obvious that Lena’s mother leads a pretty sinful lifestyle and is verbally abusive to her daughter. Yet, it’s written in a way that a young person can read it and understand most of what is going on without feeling dirty. 

Book lovers will enjoy not only the refinances to libraries and books, but also get a glimpse into this interesting program from the ’30s. Roosevelt’s Packhorse Library Project I feel, from my limited knowledge, was shown well. The challenges, as well as joys, are shown. 

While a shorter book, Tero still managed to have a powerful and well-executed message. I felt like the ending was beautiful, realistic, and showed the love and forgiveness of Christ in a way many people can relate to. 

I highly recommend this book for teens, those who enjoy historical fiction, and anyone interested in the packhorse librarians. 

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Age Appropriate For: 13 and up mild peril and very mild romance

Best for Ages: 13 to 30

Description:   For uprooted orphan Elizabeth Corrington, nothing in life stays the same for long—not even the place she calls home or the people who look after her. But when a heart-breaking rejection brings her to live with her eccentric grandfather on the magnificent Shadowfield Estate, Elizabeth discovers not only the stability she has longed for, but a world of freedom, adventure, imagination, and unexpected friendships, too.)

But rejection has left her insecure and vulnerable; change threatens her world again, a manipulative uncle has plans for her home and future…and she may not have the strength or ability to resist.

Mary Ruth Pursselley (AKA Mary Schlegel) is a talented writer who I’ve enjoyed. This novella was one of those rare ones that has the depth of a novel, vibrant characters, lots of emotion. This author seems to do an excellent job with shorter works. Though, I really enjoyed her fantasy novel I read as well.

One of the things that I love about reading indie authors is you can find sweet stories. You know, the old-fashioned kind where no one has weird problems and traumatic pasts do not always include things I would rather not read about. This story was a feel-good read, but not without it’s moments of sadness, and not without the main character going through some pain.

Elizabeth was a sweet girl, but goes through some tough stuff. Also, she is willing to stand up to people when the situation calls for it. Sweet and strong. I love those kind of girls. The secondary characters were great! I loved all of them.

The setting in England was beautiful and vivid. This author is great at painting word pictures without even using a lot of words. That’s probably why her novellas are so good.

I highly recommend this to those who like novellas, sweet historical fiction, and light reads that still have depth to them.

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Age Appropriate For: 14 and up for mild violence and mild scary scenes

Best for Ages: 14 – 25

Description:  A race of miniature humans called to a faith of tremendous size. When the royal family of the Roden tribe of Minatchi vanishes without a trace, only Delia is left to wear the crown. Deaf since the age of three the princess prepares for a difficult reign, only to watch as her coronation day is turned into one of catastrophe. When the tribe of Minatchi disappears like their royals before, Fetch - a Bengal Retriever - faces a choice that will confront everything he knows and force him to evaluate a faith he never truly embraced. When matters quickly escalate beyond their control, the joined forces of a few will be stretched beyond their limitations, tribal loyalties, and even the border of the valley they call home. What lies beyond is more than a land of giants and untested danger...Destiny awaits the called.

When I saw one of my favorite authors had realized a new book, just before my birthday, I was so excited. I went and bought it right away. I’m so glad I did. It was worth every penny.

While almost of Sagar’s other books are in the same fictional world (she writes non-magical fantasy). This is a new world with a new race of people – people who only stand on average eight to nine inches tall.

As someone who was fascinated by the idea of tiny people when I was a kid, I ate this story up. Unlike the few books and movies I had seen/read on the subject that were a little creepy, this story was full of fun, adventure, and great morals. Sager took this very fun idea and used it not only to tell a great story but also to teach some great lessons.

The story itself had so many twists and turns that kept me on the edge of my seat. I wanted to not only know what was going to happen next but also to see if the various characters would realize their God-given potential.

As with Sager’s other books, the gospel and faith were not changed, even though it is a fantasy world. It’s one of the things that keeps me coming back.

I loved both the main characters. Fetch is a likable roughish character who I cheered for and hoped he would learn a lesson. Delia was just the best. She is deaf and goes through a lot of hard stuff and grand adventures. Her faith was the best and I loved seeing her grow into maturity.

I could go on and on about this story. I love it so much! But I’ll just end this review by saying you need to read it!

I highly recommend this book for those who love kingdom (non-magical) fantasy, adventure stories, and books that have a solid spiritual foundation.

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Age Appropriate For: 13 and up for some medical and social situations

Best for Ages: 15 and up

Description:   Too often we believe that our stories don’t matter. They do. This the power of a life story unfolding over time. Amy Young quit her job, packed up her belongings, and moved to China to teach English, initially for two years. She anticipated making cultural faux pas, trying new food, seeing God at work, and growing in her knowledge of language and culture. What she could not foresee, though, was nearly dying, experiencing political unrest, taking a job that involved traveling around China, training hundreds to live and minister in China, witnessing the craziness of SARS, or experiencing multiple medical situations. Join Amy, a natural storyteller, as she shares her life in China letter by letter.

I love reading personal memoirs but I haven’t really searched out a lot of them. I stumbled across this book while searching Amazon for books about writing Christian Newsletters. I enjoyed her book Enjoying Newsletters as an author that sends out newsletters. When I finished that book, I was excited to learn more about Amy.

This book chronicles Amy’s life in China from the late ’90s to the 2000s as an English teacher. She went to China to teach English, but also to share her faith. Using the newsletters she sent her supporters, we get a glimpse of life as an English teacher as well as the changing face of China.

Many events like 9/11 and SARS are events that I remember watching unfold. It was interesting to get a look at what it was like in China at the time, not just what the news was reporting. Also, Amy did a wonderful job of showing the good and the heartbreaking parts of the culture. Her love and compassion for the people and her fellow workers was evident in how she writes.

I also apricated reading about a woman who was passionately living her life for God as a single woman. It’s obvious she also loves her family and her family seems to support her. It’s nice to see that too.

I highly recommend this to those who want to learn more about China, those who enjoy memoirs, and anyone who likes to read about real people serving God.

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Age Appropriate For: All Ages

Best for Ages: 13 and up for mildly difficult situations.

Description:  The Goyer home--with two parents, eight kids, and one eighty-eight-year-old grandmother with dementia--is never without noise, mess, activity, and, often, complaining. And it's not just the kids grumbling. After adding seven children in less than six years through adoption, the Goyer family decided to move out of survival-mode and into unity- and growth-mode. They decided to tackle the impossible: a grumble-free year.

With grade-schoolers, teenagers, and a grandmother who believes children should be seen and not heard, plenty of room exists for flunking the challenge. Add to that seven children being homeschooled together in close quarters, and what could possibly go awry?

In The Grumble-Free Year, the Goyers invite readers into their journey as they go complaint-free and discover what it looks like to develop hearts of gratitude. They share their plans, successes, failures, and all the lessons they learn along the way, offering real-life action steps based in scripture so that readers get not just a front-row seat to the action but also an opportunity to take the challenge themselves and uncover hearts that are truly thankful.

I started listening to this book on Scribd right before the world seemed to start coming apart due to Covid-19. God used the upheaval and this book to address the grumbling that had snuck into my life. This lesson proved even more valuable as I tore my calf muscle and couldn’t walk for a few weeks.

While I don’t have the privilege of being a mom or wife yet, I felt like I could relate to Tricia Goyer easily and quickly. I too like to plan and come up with creative ways to accomplish my goals. I felt like understood how Goyer thought. There were so many moments that I laughed or cringed because I saw myself in what she was doing. Even some of the parenting blunders I could totally see myself doing someday.

Goyer’s honesty about the ups and downs, the victories and defeats made this book a joy to listen to. The narrator brought the story to life and I really felt that I was riding along with her family for the journey.

Aside from the honesty, I think the thing that helped me the most was the chapter on grumbling styles. While it wasn’t a completely new way for me to see it, it was a much-needed refresher course. It helped me to see some things that I really needed to work on.

This book is about one family’s journey to grumble less. It is also a wonderful book that will help spur you on your way to rooting out of your own life. I know it helped me.

I highly recommend this for every Christian who wants to grumble less, enjoys non-fiction written in a personal style, and likes books that you can laugh over and be convicted by.

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Age Appropriate For: 13 and up for violence, mildly scary scenes.

Best for Ages: 13 - 25

Description: She doesn’t have much longer to live.

Losing the last of the radialloy puts Andi’s life in immediate danger and sends her, August, and the Doctor rushing towards the demolished Qandon system in search of more. Their speeder is crippled, a powerful man is desperate to stop them—and they are running out of time.

Meanwhile, Crash has escaped from prison and is hiding somewhere in Hungary, hunted by assassins who have instructions to kill him if Andi and the others don’t return to Earth in one week. The only person on Earth who can help him is Guilders, who very nearly despises him.

Is there more radialloy out there? Can Crash and Guilders make it to safety? And will Andi ever be able to return to the way of life that she loves so much? 

This story is exhilarating, heart-breaking, faith-building, tear-jerking, inspiring, and so much more. Do I have your attention? Good. This book, this series, has been a favorite since book one. Not only is this clean sci-fi, it masterful story-telling. 

I think Pennington has reached a new level in her writing. While her story-telling abilities have always been great, this book had a new quality to it that just shines. She has always done a wonderful job of pulling emotion out of both her characters and her readers. However, this book just stood out to me as her best at emotion yet.

We get to meet some new characters, most notably to me was Book. While I don’t want to give anything about the plot away, let’s just say I like this very quirky character right from the beginning. I apricated how he handled Andi 

Andi herself is not the same girl from book one. In fact, there are a couple of times in this book that she doesn’t act very lovable. However, under the top-secret-I-will-give-no-spoilers circumstances, I think everyone will understand why Andi acts the way she does.

The faith element in this story shines brightly. There is faith and doubt, trust and suspicion, hope and tears. Yet, more than any of the other books in the series yet, faith was the solid foundation for some of the characters. It just goes to show you that when times are tough, that is when our faith shines. Now, not every struggle by every character is tied up with a neat bow. However, this book is encouraging and faith-building while being very honest that it’s hard to trust God at times.

The story took several unexpected twists. I had a serious book hangover. I was grateful my sister had read it two days before me because we were able to console each other. Yet, even though part of this book was sad, it still was very satisfying.

I highly recommend it to those who enjoy clean sci-fi stories, solid YA fiction, and stories that keep you guessing.