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ADULTFICTIONFic. Clergy--Fiction; Grandfathers--Fiction; Fathersand sons--Fiction; Children of clergy--Fiction;Reminiscing in old age--Fiction; Kansas--Fiction;Conflict of generations--Fiction; Christian fiction.247 p. ; 22 cm.Adult (Grades 10-12). Rating : 4.There are a thousand thousand reasons to livethis life, every one of them sufficient (243).Rev. Ames lives in Gilead, the same small townin Iowa where he grew up and where his fatherand grandfather pastored. In 1956 he is in hismid seventies, with a much younger wife and ayoung son. Rev. Ames’s first wife died decadesago in childbirth, followed shortly by his child.For decades he was a single pastor readingFeuerbach and Barth and preaching faithfully tohis Congregationalist flock. Now he is dying,and he wants to leave a written legacy of counseland story to his only child. Gilead is that legacy,and consists of the personal jottings andmusings—some a paragraph long and someseveral pages—of the Rev. John Ames.John Ames has a no-good namesake. Rev.Ames’s best friend, another local pastor, namedhis child after Ames as a gesture of love after thedeath of Ames’s own child. However, that boyhas proven himself to be depraved—and justplain mean—his whole life, despite the love hiswhole family has showered on him. Now he isback in town and hanging around Ames’ home,where Ames’ young wife (soon to be widowed?)and son are attracted to his charm. Ames iscaught between his unwillingness to speak evilof any man and his desire to warn his wife—andhis own difficulty in forgiving and loving thissurrogate son.Marilynne Robinson shows a remarkableknowledge of pastoral life and even the finerpoints of theology in Gilead, though at a fewkey moments Rev. Ames falters theologicallyand one wonders where Robinson’s views figurein. Robinson shares memorable and quitepastoral insights throughout her story, and herflowing prose style has garnered much praise.Gilead, in fact, won the Pulitzer Prize for fictionin 2004.Mark L. Ward, Jr.*Giver of roses / Kathleen Morgan. (Theguardians of Gadiel ; 1.) LCCN2005007727. Grand Rapids : Revell, 2005.PAP, 0800730941, list price: $13.99.Fic. Quests (Expeditions)--Fiction; Princes--Fiction;Fantasy fiction; Christian fiction. 447 p. ; 22 cm.Adult (Grades 11-12). Rating : *5.Held captive for three years, Danae has grown tolove the royal family she serves, includingPrince Vartan. When her people attack the city,Vartan is left for dead, and Danae’s life takes anunexpected turn. Pursued by evil and hauntedby an ancient prophecy, Danae flees with thewounded and blind prince. A twisted ruler hasgiven himself over to the Dark Lord, threateningto overtake the whole land with evil. Vartan andDanae face long journeys and deserts,dragonmaids and nomads, sorcery and doubt intheir quest to follow Athan’s will and freeGadiel.Giver of Roses immediately draws the reader in,thrusting its main characters againstinsurmountable odds and sustaining both riskand adventure throughout. Each of thecharacters is expertly drawn, creating a blend ofemotions and motivations that allows readers tostep into their shoes while still having the epicfeel for which fantasy is known. The fantasyworld is well-drawn, but offers little that isunique from other books of the genre, becomingmerely backdrop. The measured dialogue addslittle humor but fits the sweeping, somber toneof the novel. Sorcery, demon possession, andthe supernatural all have a part in the book, butthe lines of good and evil are clearly set.Katie HartIn plain sight / Lorena McCourtney. (IvyMalone mysteries ; 2.) LCCN2004023867. Grand Rapids : Revell, 2005.PAP, 0800759559, list price: $12.99.Fic. Women detectives--Fiction; Organized crime--Fiction; Motor homes--Fiction; Christian fiction;Mystery fiction. 311 p. ; 22 cm.Adult (Grades 10-12). Rating : 4.Ivy Malone is a “little old lady with an attitude.”After taking down a crime syndicate, she’s readyto return to her calm life, but the bad guys don’tseem to want to leave her alone. Afraid she’s atarget, Ivy decides a three month visit with herniece in the Ozarks might allow her somebreathing room. Although her niece and herhusband have been transferred to Hawaii, Ivymakes the trip and becomes the guardian of hergrandniece, Sandy while they are away.Ivy has a way of getting herself into interestingpredicaments. She takes a job with a reclusivewoman and happens to discover a murder.Since no one sees Ivy as a threat, she decides toput her sleuthing skills to work once again.With the help of Sandy, an unusual characternamed Baby, and an incredulous policedetective, Ivy is determined to show the worldthat she’s up to the challenge.In Plain Sight is the second mystery featuringsenior citizen sleuth Ivy Malone. Sprinkled withhumor and light hearted suspense, this is theperfect cozy mystery to meet inspirationalreaders’ needs. Widowed Ivy is a uniquecharacter with quite a few quirks. The readergets to know her thoughts and motivations wellthrough her first person point of view. Thecharacter of “Baby” is lovable and hilarious inhis own right, and that only adds to theenjoyment of the story.Although the mystery and thematic elements areappropriate for high school level readers, theidea of an elderly protagonist may not hold agreat deal of appeal. The spiritual portion ispresent, although not truly a central part of theplot. Highly recommended for church librarycollections, In Plain Sight will delight mysteryreaders, especially those of Ivy’s generation.Melissa ParcelIntimidation / Wanda L. Dyson.Uhrichsville, Ohio : Barbour Publishing,2005.PAP, 1593102445, list price: $12.95.Fic. Kidnapping--Fiction; Mystery fiction; Suspensefiction; Christian fiction. 345 p. ; 21 cm.Adult (Grades 11-12). Rating : 4.God-given intuition leads Zoe Shefford to prayfor a woman in danger. Observation leads Zoeto pray for her hurting friends, includingboyfriend J.J., who was recently suspendedfrom the police department. When F.B.I. agentDonnie Bevere’s wife is abducted, both Zoe andJ.J. immediately try to help their hurting friendfind his wife. Their search leads them into aweb of corruption that extends into powerful,political positions. Suddenly the search forDonnie’s wife explodes into a mission to savehundreds of lives.Intimidation is a nail-biting, suspense fictionbook. The plot shifts quickly betweenseemingly disconnected scenes until theprogression of events connects the charactersand scenes. Characters exhibit limited personalgrowth through their struggle with commondecisions. For example, Zoe, a Christian,continues to date J.J., who “was still trying tofigure out if God could be trusted with his soul,much less his whole life.” (p.78) While Zoedoes take time to pray about the relationship, shedoesn’t break it off. Some characters experienceextraordinary situations with extreme growthpotential. For example, Donnie is forced to trustGod while his wife is missing. Dialogue guidesthe actions of the characters in this intense book.The theme, trust God, weaves its way around thecharacters. “…If we truly believe that God is incharge and working on our behalf, we have tostep out in faith and follow Him.” (p.171)Kristi WolcottThe moon by night / Lynn Morris andGilbert Morris. (Cheney & Shiloh : theinheritance ; 2.) LCCN 2003023585.Minneapolis : Bethany House, 2004.PAP, 1556615728, list price: $12.99.Fic. Duvall, Cheney (Fictitious character)--Fiction;Women physicians--Fiction; New York (N.Y.)--History--1865-1898--Fiction; Historical fiction;Christian fiction; Medical novels. 381 p. ; 22 cm.Adult. Rating : 4.Dr. Cheney Duvall Irons-Winslow and herhusband Shiloh Winslow return home from theirhoneymoon to New York City to begin theirrespective jobs. Cheney is a senior partnerC H R I S T I A N L I B R A R Y J O U R N A L 2 5 D E C E M B E R 2 0 0 5