Special Guest Post and Book Review

Good morning, y’all!  I have a guest post by Kassie Angle for you AND my review of Stop the Rain. I wanted to combine my love of food and books so of course, I asked her for a food related guest post and here it is!

“Food and Stop the Rain… lest the seriousness of most of my stories deceive you, I absolutely love more light-hearted topics that tie in with said stories. Especially with StR. ’Cause I don’t know what happened to that story, but it’s been invaded by pizza. Something about Harley’s personality just screams, in spite of everything else going on I’m a very normal teenager and I
would just like an entire pizza to myself, please and thank you. It wasn’t even intentional, it’s just who he is. And the amount of times pizza shows up in the story isn’t even funny.

Also, Oreos. Oreos are my weakness (fun fact ), and now I’ve ruined them for myself by deciding to throw in a conversation about poisoned Oreos at the beginning of one of the roughest chapters of the book. I’m not really sure how that happened either, but I kind of love it. And I promise, there’s not actually poisoned Oreos in the story.

And last but not least, it wouldn’t be an authentic Texan story without at least one mention of barbecue, right? Again, it wasn’t really a thought-out thing; I just needed a comfort food for a homey scene and barbecue sandwiches were the obvious choice.

Because yeah, Stop the Rain can feel really serious; I of anyone should know that. But you can’t drive home a serious point if your story doesn’t ring true. And in a story about an eighteen-year-old American boy, one surefire way to do that is to mention pizza a little too often.”

Well, barbecue is one of my absolute favorites and I’ve never been to Texas. Though, I was born in the other Barbecue capital, North Carolina!

Now, for my review:

I. LOVED. THIS. BOOK.  You need to read it. 

Oh. That’s not enough of a review? Seriously? I am much better at making Lemon Pound Cake than sitting still to put my thoughts out there for all to see. 

Ok. Let’s try again. I read this book three times the first week I had it.  I loved the brotherly relationship between Nigel and Harley.  I appreciated their mother’s love and ability to comfort even through her own pain. 

This book dealt with difficult subjects but it is real life.  (Even while writing this review, I got side tracked with rereading it again.) So, yes, real life.  Maybe not the best book for younger audiences but despite the difficult subject matter it was written tastefully. No foul language. It was a good edifying read.

Now, go make yourself a cup of coffee and Joy Filled Eats’ Lemon Pound Cake (Gluten Free, Sugar Free, Low Carb Deliciousness.) then read Stop the Rain for the hour it bakes. Oh, and don’t forget your tissues!

(Disclaimer: I received this book from the author but the review is all from me!)

Stop the Rain Release Tour: The War’s Not Over

Tour Info!

Synopsis:

He left his entire world in Iraq. So why did the war follow him home?

Harley Keane and his best friend Nigel were just kids when 9/11 rocked their world and changed their lives forever. When they’re finally old enough to join the Army, all their childhood dreams seem about to come true. But war wasn’t supposed to be like this. A kid’s dream isn’t supposed to become a living nightmare. Fellow soldiers aren’t supposed to bleed out in front of your eyes.

Back home, safe and unwounded, Harley feels anything but. Why would God spare him when so many others were taken? Why won’t the nightmares stop, even when he’s awake? And how long can he hide the truth that threatens everything he has left? When Harley’s invisible scars refuse to stay hidden, will he let anyone close enough to help? And how do you go on with life when “okay” isn’t okay at all?

Author Bio: 

Kassie Angle is a teenaged Christian author, cowgirl, therapy dog trainer, stereotypical INFJ, and Army girl to the core. Her first love, i.e. debut novel, O to be Like Thee, swept her unexpectedly into the world of indie authors. She tries to use her stories to fill the silences in literature, helping more people understand the world of the Army and showing how God heals the broken-hearted. You can find her and more of her writing at SoldierGirlStories.com.

Links:

Kindle

Paperback

Goodreads

Soldier Girl Stories

Giveaway:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/3863a92e1/?

Tour Schedule: 

9th – 

An Ordinary Pen, review and author interview 

10th – 

Abby Elissa, author interview 

Kaitlyn Krispense, Author, author interview 

EJ’s Journal, review, spotlight, and guest post 

11th – 

Beautiful Things by Laura, review 

Life of Heritage, review and spotlight 

Read Review Rejoice, review

Set Apart for Him, spotlight 

Lionhearted Art, art

12th – 

Little Blossoms for Jesus, review and guest post 

Jenna Terese, guest post 

Whimsical Writings for His Glory, review, spotlight, and author interview 

13th –

Kenmore Pines, review, author interview, and character interview

14th –

Stories by Firefly, review and spotlight

Well Go Read, spotlight