the circle maker by mark batterson

Disclaimer: This book is not fiction! I do read non-fiction sometimes…like when forced to. LOL

Prayer is something I struggle with—not the need for it, but certain intellectual aspects of it. If God will work everything to the good of those who love Him and serve according to His purpose (Romans 8:28), and His plans are better than my plans (Isaiah 55:8-9), why would I want to ask for anything specifically other than His perfect will for me and those around me? So for this reason, I was interested to see what The Circle Maker had to say about praying circles around my biggest dreams and greatest fears.

The Good: There is a lot to like about this book, and a lot of truth contained within it. We honor God when we ask for BIG things—things that only He can do. Why? Because it means we have faith that He can do it. God wants us to go to Him in prayer “in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell all your requests to God” (Phil 4:6).

From The Circle Maker:

“Some of the hardest moments in life are when you’ve prayed hard but the answer is no and you don’t know why. And you may never know why. But that is the litmus test of trust. Do you trust that God is for you even when He doesn’t give you what you ask for? Do you trust that He has reasons beyond your reason? Do you trust that His plan is better than yours?” – pg. 123-4.

 “With God, it’s never an issue of “Can He?” It’s only a question of “Will He?” And while you don’t always know if He will, you know He can. And because you know He can, you can pray with holy confidence.” – pg 75.

My Reservations: The premise of The Circle Maker is primarily based on legend. Mark Batterson uses biblical principles to back up his point, but the subject circles back again and again to the actions of a man named Honi, famous for his ability to pray for rain, and how he called down rain by drawing a circle in the ground and refusing to leave it until God sent rain. Now, we don’t know where Honi’s heart was. It might be that he made this request (demand?) of God purely based on the faith that God would honor it. And God did—according to legend—He sent rain. But part of me wonders where the humility in Honi’s request was? And why base your prayer life on legend?

Is it right to barter with God? I will stay in this circle until you do this… (pg. 11-12) Or the example of Mother Dabney (pg. 33-4): If you do this, then I will do this…

The Circle Maker is not about everyday prayer life. It’s about life goals and casting visions for God’s glory (mostly). It’s about making life goals and praying with expectation and consistency. Ask God for your wildest dreams and He might honor your request (if you’re asking for the right reasons). “The circle maker’s mantra: 100 percent of the prayers I don’t pray won’t get answered.” Pg. 91

Is it just me, or do you struggle with prayer as well? How?

back before dark by tim shoemaker

Wow. There is so much to like in Back Before Dark, but before I tell you about it, let me tell you what it’s about.

Back Before Dark is the second in Tim Shoemaker’s Code of Silence series. I haven’t read Code of Silence, but it’s not necessary for this book. A word of warning: If you do plan to read Code of Silence, then you’ll want to read it first because Back Before Dark does contain spoilers for the first story. Not intentionally, just as the characters remember past events/emotions.

Three friends watch helpless as their forth friend, Gordy, is abducted from a park by a sicko in a minivan. The story that unfolds is about trying to find and rescue him, and what happens as the hours turn into days. Will they find him? Is he even still alive? And what kind of risks are you willing to take to get your best friend back?

Theology/themes: Plenty to choose from…

What makes a true friend? Do they keep you from walking into trouble or go with you when you do? Or is a true friend the one that never gives up?

Coop is willing to do anything to get his best friend and cousin, Gordy, back after he is abducted. Lunk’s got Coop’s back, no matter what. Hiro, the voice of reason, worries about protecting Cooper from himself as he takes greater and greater risks on his search. The story is all about showing good friendship, but there’s telling too—in “A Word From the Author” at the back of the book when he discusses how to be a good Christian friend through difficult circumstances.

As a parent, the actions of the teenage characters make me want to keep my kids at home under lock and key until they’re parents themselves. I appreciate that Tim Shoemaker takes the time to point out when to go along with a friend’s crazy plans, and when to intervene.

What is your motivation? Back Before Dark looks at the difference between be motivated by guilt, revenge, or love. Can you guess which motivator is strongest?

Does God exist?

Coop believes in God and knows He can trust Him, but has a bad habit of taking matters into his own hands.

Lunk thinks that if God exists He’s doing a lousy job. How can a good God let bad things happen to good people?

Our kidnapper knows God doesn’t exist, and if He did, He’d have more important things to do than listen to some kids asking for favors.

Tim Shoemaker’s belief in a sovereign God is woven into the matrix of this book with deft balance.

Rating/Social issues: PG-13 for subject matter

Back Before Dark deals with the kidnapping of a junior high school student and all that goes with that situation. There is no sex, sexual innuendos, or gratuitous violence, but there are references to sex offenders. You don’t know until the very end whether Gordy will make it back alive.

The only negative is that Back Before Dark is a little long for a young adult novel—362 pages. It’s well worth the read, and there’s even a section at the end of the book that discusses how to prevent being abducted and what to do if you are.

Do you know anyone who was kidnapped or went missing? I do not, but there were two girls at my husband’s high school that disappeared and never returned (back in the 90’s). A parent’s worst nightmare.

the humming room by ellen potter

For not having read it before, The Humming Room was a nostalgic book for me. Based on The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett), Ellen Potter’s adaptation has macabre overtones similar to Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte) or Rebecca (Daphne du Maurier) with a dash of Peter Pan (J.M. Barrie).

After Roo’s father dies, she is sent to live with her uncle on a remote island and is pretty much left alone. Her uncle doesn’t want to have anything to do with her. His assistant, Ms. Valentine, resents her presence. Only one employee is kind to her and she’s often busy doing something else. Everyone is keeping secrets from Roo, which is mostly fine with her because she just wants to be left alone. But one day she uncovers the secrets, and her life, and the lives of those around her, are changed forever.

Theme/Theology: Guilt and Ignorance are overcome by Friendship and Confession

Guilt over past events can trap you more securely than a locked room. Trying to avoid your past doesn’t make it go away. Forgiveness is key–starting with forgiving yourself. And love is the greatest nurturer of all.

Rating: PG

The Humming Room is suspenseful, but there is nothing in the book that should terrify child readers. Roo’s father was a drug dealer with a string of girl friends, one of whom was Roo’s mom who then abandoned her. Roo’s life before and during the story is just sad. She’s left alone. She’s never been shown love or kindness. She’s a compulsive thief. She feels safest when she’s hiding and watching the world go by. You wish you could give her a hug and some love.

The Humming Room has a fantasy aspect. Roo can hear the earth. Another character, a boy named Jack, is rumored to be a “water creature.” A ghost may or may not be present. There appears to be some sort of supernatural force at work. Nothing sinister, yet nothing godly. It just is, and the source of the paranormal aspects are not explained. They are subtle yet present.

Social Issues: Absentee/dead parents

The three children in this book — Roo, Jack, and Phillip– have no real parents. Their parents are either dead, have abandoned them, or are physically present but emotionally absent. The children become friends and work together to rejuvenate a garden. This gives them a combined sense of purpose, and helps with their self-worth/loneliness.

I liked the book, but it was sad. Perhaps morose would be a better word. The ending resolves favorably, so at least there is that. I enjoyed reading to find out what the secrets were. It has been such a long time since I read The Secret Garden that, aside from the garden, I wasn’t quite sure what Roo was going to find at the house. I will be interested to see what my daughter thinks of the book.

Have you read it or any of the other books mentioned here? If so, what did you think about it/them?

searching for dragons by patricia c. wrede

Cimorene is not your average princess. She’s not helpless, she doesn’t want to be rescued, and she likes living with dragons. Not only that, but she does NOT want to marry a prince, knight, or king.

Searching For Dragons is the second book in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles. While I was ambivalent about the first book, I enjoyed reading this one with my daughter. The characters are fun and quirky, and reading the book is a bit like watching The Princess Bride.

Theme/Theology: Good prevails through teamwork and quick thinking

Searching For Dragons is peopled with a magical cast, literally. The King of the Enchanted Forest has the forest’s magic at his disposal. I’m not sure what that makes him…an enchanter perhaps? Cimorene, the Chief Cook and Librarian (don’t call her princess) for the King of the Dragons knows dragon magic. There’s a witch and a magician. And then there are the bad guys…the pompous magic-greedy wizards.

This is a rescue mission with classic good vs. bad guys. A team working together, each using their own special gifts, are able to defeat evil and release the damsel, uh dragon, in distress.

If you’re the type that doesn’t like fantasy books about wizards and witches on principle, then you’ll want to steer clear of this one.

Rating: G

Great for all ages.

Social Issues:

Those pesky wizards are at it again. But really, the social issues in this book are greed and corruption.

replication: the jason experiment by jill williamson

Not to give too much away, but Replication is a book about human cloning. Kinda obvious from the title and cover art so I feel relatively safe that the news isn’t a spoiler.

In Replication, Martyr is a Jason clone who has spent all 17 years of his life in an underground facility. He’s never seen the sky and he never will because he’s about to expire when he turns 18, and his purpose for existing is complete. High school junior Abby Goyer is suspicious of her father’s new job at Jason Farms, located in a strange barn in the middle of nowhere, Alaska. When the two meet, the direction of both their lives change. But will they survive it?

Theme/Theology: God loves clones too

Abby believes in God but her father does not. Neither do the other scientists who have created Martyr and the other Jason clones. Abby believes strongly in God’s sovereignty—that he has a purpose in all he does and that ultimately it will be good for those who love Him and serve Him according to His purpose.

Martyr had never heard of God before Abby. Provided a Bible, he quickly recognizes truth in Scripture that many of us in church all our lives miss. How to love your enemy and do good to those who harm you.

Abby desperately wants her father to believe in God, but he’s too jaded from life and his worship of science.

Rating: PG-13

Replication is mostly  a clean read but there are some topics that may be too mature for younger readers: experimentation on humans, torture, and violence.

Social Issues:

Human cloning, human experimentation, God vs. science

While this book can stand alone, there are more cloning facilities than Jason Farms. I hope there is a sequel that will tell us more about them.

Have you read any good books on human cloning?

a wrinkle in time by madeleine l’engle

A Wrinkle in Time has been in print for longer than I have been alive. I read it when I was in 5^th grade and loved the series. I remember doing a book report on the 3^rd book, A Swiftly Tilting Planet. My presentation of the novel confused my classmates and teachers and didn’t do justice to Ms. L’Engle’s work. J

I have tried to go back and read books as an adult that I loved as a child and the results have been mixed. There are some books, such as this one, that are rich in story and writing and will appeal to both audiences. There are some that don’t translate well across the ages. I very much enjoyed  renewing my acquaintance with Mrs Who, Mrs Whatsit, and Mrs Which. If you haven’t read this wonderful book, what are you waiting for?

Theme/Theology:  Good vs. Evil, Light vs. Dark, God vs. IT

A Wrinkle in Time was written back before people realized that you could only talk about God in Christian fiction.  In fact, it won many awards including the Newbery Medal. The book has a rich theology including scriptural references to Isaiah 42:10-12, 1 Corinthians 1:25-28, and John 1:5 and overt references to Jesus. Imagine!

A Wrinkle in Time looks metaphorically at faith versus intelligence, and the dangers of conforming to society. Love wins out in the end when the main character is able to accept responsibility for her actions and put off her own selfish desires.

While there is magic of sorts in the book and it is mainly science fiction, even the most stringent critics against this genre would have a hard time finding anything objectionable in this book. It is so God-honoring and written from a strong Christian worldview.

Rating: G

Great for middle grade readers and older. Even adults will grin at the characters in this book. Pick up a copy and read it with your kids.

Social issues:

Fitting in, the dangers of conformity, having a selfless attitude, taking responsibility for your own actions, judging people by who they are on the inside and not how they look

What was your favorite book when you were in elementary school? Have you reread it as an adult?

alias thomas a. katt by bob stewart

Have you ever wanted to date your cat? Then Alias Thomas A. Katt is for you! But seriously, I think Bob Stewart had fun penning this caper. It’s about a girl, her cat, and her sadistic serial-killer cop boyfriend. Of course, she doesn’t know he’s a sadistic serial-killer.

Set in New Orleans in modern times, Thomas the cat and Tom Katt the man switch places when they are walloped by Saint Expedite in a not-so-freak accident in the French Quarter. What follows is part fun/frolic and part suspense/thriller as the cat tries to keep his mistress safe from the man (or vice versa depending on who is in whose body).

Theology: Praying to the Saints

I’m not up on Catholic saintology, so I assume that Saint Expedite is made up as the author claims. This fictitious saint is the cause of the story’s pandemonium, and he keeps turning up to make things interesting.

To quote one the book, “Sometimes it takes The Almighty to knock the cr@p outta ya to get your head on straight.” — If this line bothers you, then you’ll want to steer clear of the book.

Rating: PG-13/R for language, violence, and content

Alias Thomas A. Katt contains grisly murders with moderate graphic description and sexual innuendo. This is certainly not a book I would give to the kiddos.

A note from the author regarding profanity: “As to the street language used in this book; I neither condone it nor use it, but insert it in the spirit of authenticity.” Bob Stewart has done what he said. Profanity and sexual innuendo are there but within character and not gratuitous. If you’re not comfortable watching a rated R movie, then you shouldn’t read Alias Thomas A. Katt.

Social Issues:

Like the Conte of Monte Cristo, Alias Thomas A. Katt is replete with personal vendetta and justice.

On the bright side, our heroine is full of morality—won’t sleep with Tom until they’re married, which is while he’s still around trying to win a bet back at the station—and compassion for people and animals.

Other comments:

Alias Thomas A. Katt is in no way plausible. At times humorous, at other times sinister, it is an entertaining tale written by an experienced author. I especially liked this description,

“Even the spices couldn’t hide the pungent smell of brimstone drifting out of the kitchen, a mixture of the odors of hell and cheese that smelled like dirty gym socks.”

A word of caution to my writer friends: there is one chapter towards the middle of the book that it looks like it was missed during final editing.

Did I mention Tom Katt’s cop partner’s name is Felix?

hero game by rl copple

Hero Game is similar but completely different than its predecessor, Mind Game (review here). This time, instead of virtual reality helmets transporting our heroes to a galaxy far, far, away, they stay at home and use virtual reality masks to be super heroes. Who wouldn’t like that? And the best thing, you can choose which super hero you’d like to become from many already programmed choices.

Is there a catch? Of course there is, or it wouldn’t be a book worth reading. This time, the bad guy’s brother returns to take revenge on Earth. Unfortunately, our forces are no match for the technology of the invading aliens. Can our teen super heroes save the day?

Theme/Theology: Teamwork and self-sacrifice

To save Earth, the characters in the book had to work as a team, each using their own strengths. They learned being a super hero isn’t about putting yourself first; it’s about putting the needs of others before yours or your close friends.

Rating: G

Anyone that likes sci-fi would enjoy this book. I believe that middle-graders especially would love it, both guys and girls. I plan to buy copies for our elementary school library.

Social Issues:

Do interplanetary relations count as a social issue? Thought not. Seriously, this book is about growing up and maturing. Taking responsibility and trusting others to do what they say they can do. We all need each other and there is no ‘i’ in team.

Want to know more? Check out our interview with RL Copple, the author of Mind Game and Hero Game.

Book Review: The Book of Romance by Tommy Nelson

Reblogged from newhopechurchbookstore:

April's Book of the Month review was written by my friend and colleague Lisa Gefrides.  Please visit Lisa's blog for more book reviews, author interviews and giveaways. 

The Book of Romance: What Solomon Says About Love, Sex, and Intimacy by Tommy Nelson

Tommy Nelson pulls from God’s Word and his own experiences with marital counseling to share the truth about God’s ideals for dating, marriage, and intimacy.

Read more… 258 more words

Interested in knowing more about the Song of Solomon? Or the Christian perspective on dating, marriage, and sex? Check out my review of The Book of Romance by Tommy Nelson at the New Hope Church Bookstore.

author spotlight and giveaway: the extraordinary greg mitchell

I lucked into a copy of Rift Jump by offering to review books for a small indie publisher, Splashdown Books. Grace Bridges, the owner/publisher, has similar taste in fiction to me. One day, I will have read everything she has published because I love Christian speculative (sci-fi/fantasy) fiction and I have yet to be disappointed with her offerings (see my reviews on: Finding Angel, Seeking Unseen, The Muse, The Duke’s Handmaid, Caffeine). I guess that makes me a groupie. But as a reward, I get to read and promote books like Rift Jump! Rift Jump will appeal to anyone who likes sci-fi/fantasy. Please give a hearty welcome to Greg Mitchell for joining us today!

Hi Greg! So happy you could stop by for a chat today. Tell us, do you consider yourself a Christian author or author of Christian fiction? What do you think the difference is?

Back when I first started writing professionally, I was big on making the distinction, but now I’m just simply a writer. I’m a Christian, first and foremost. And I’m acutely aware that, as I deal with people in the writing/movie business or with readers, I’m representing Christ. That has prompted me to be friendlier, more professional, and to work my hardest to turn in work ahead of schedule, polished, and as good as I can make it.

Having said that, some of my work is specifically for the Christian market—some of it is for the general market. Some of it talks specifically about Christians and the unique struggles they go through and how the Bible speaks to that—some of my stories are just about monsters and explosions and fast cars. In everything I write, be it secular or “Christian”, I try to put something meaningful in there, some sort of “theme” or a tiny light that speaks to redemption or hope or forgiveness—all things that I believe find their full fruition in Christ. That just comes out naturally in me and from my view of the world.

So, am I a Christian author, or an author of Christian Fiction? Yes. Yes, I am.

There have been many creative ways that God and Jesus have been portrayed in literature. A lion in the Chronicles of Narnia, a black woman in The Shack, Morgan Freeman in Bruce and Evan Almighty…When I think of your “Man in the Stetson,” I get this picture in my mind of Clint Eastwood. Is that the image you were trying to channel? Where did this come from?

Totally. Michael (the main character in Rift Jump) is only twelve when he meets the Man in the Stetson, and already he’s had a miserable life. He’s been conditioned as a child soldier on the streets, surrounded by addicts and killers and liars his entire life. He is completely ostracized from any sense of “right and wrong”, and his only father figure is this slimy manipulative criminal. The Man in the Stetson is a return to the kind of era “when men were men”; men who kept their word, believed in integrity, compassion, and fair dealing. Those were all things for which Michael had no reference, but precisely what he needed.

More to the point, I think that’s what we all need now. Boys need fathers who will train them, teach them how to show respect for women, how to protect the weak, how to do their jobs faithfully, and how to stand for their principles in the face of unbelievable odds. Girls need fathers for different reasons, but Rift Jump—among its many themes—is also an exploration of fatherhood as it pertains to sons. What sons need, what they’re looking for, and what they pass on to their sons. I didn’t always understand that growing up, but now that I’m a father (although of two girls :p), I see the power a father has and the awesome responsibility it is. It’s staggering, but can be really inspiring.

In Rift Jump, a piece of paper is the portal between dimensions in the multiverse (great name, by the way). What caused you to select something as mundane as a piece of paper? 

I could spend this time waxing philosophical on the implications of how many adventures can be found within simple sheets of paper, but I’m just going to be honest and blame it on a dream. As detailed in the Appendix in Rift Jump, the original concept came fully formed from a dream. In the dream, I saw a sheet of paper, gently fluttering on the breeze, and when I looked into the paper, I saw glimpses of another world. Then, out of this paper, steps this wiry punk kid in a leather jacket, with a humongous chip on his shoulder and a desperate need to find someone to love him.

I love the comic book/superhero feel of Rift Jump. Have you ever thought of turning it into a graphic novel?

Actually, no, ironically enough. I’ve long been trying to work my way into the comics business, and have a number of ideas I’d like to do—but strangely enough, Rift Jump was never one of them. However, I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to it should the right opportunity ever present itself.

There’s a part in Rift Jump where a minor character indicates he has never heard of God. Your heroine’s response is that he is probably better off. Clearly she has some God issues, but they are not resolved in the course of the novel. Can you tell us more of what she was thinking? (Unless there’s going to be a sequel to Rift Jump and it would spoil it for you to tell us.)

As it turns out, I do have at least one sequel to Rift Jump in the works, and it focuses almost exclusively on Sara’s relationship with God, just as the first book dealt with Michael’s relationship with God. I really love the dynamic between Michael and Sara, because it’s the exact opposite of how they appear to be. Michael is the one wearing black, with the dark shadows under his eyes and the bangs in front of his face, constantly beating up things—but in his heart, he’s soft, desperate for affection, and longing to be better than what he is. Sara, on the other hand, is bright, full of laughter, wide-eyed, innocent, and visibly weak. But underneath that is real anger and jealousy, bitterness, and rebellion. She’s only seventeen and she’s seen her parents pass away and she married this physically and emotionally abusive man. Then Michael sweeps into her life and he becomes her savior and Sara doesn’t see why she needs God at this point. In her mind, God wasn’t there for her before, but Michael is here for her now. In some ways, Michael is her god—which speaks to a larger theme in the book.

Rift Jump is kind of the anti-YA romance, in that it’s got the “frail, delicate flower” who falls for the “rugged stalker-esque rebel”, but it’s a wholly unhealthy relationship at the heart of it. When I was in high school and in my early twenties, I was hell-bent on finding “true love”. I thought that finding “The One” would fix me, would make me whole, would bring me fulfillment and worth. I was clingy and co-dependant, and, praise God, He broke me of that. I had to find my worth in Him, and who He created me to be, not in some mythical “soul mate”. It wasn’t until I learned that lesson, that God did bring into my life my wife Meghan, who fulfills so many needs in my heart—but there are still those deeper needs only God can fill.

Michael is on that journey of discovery in Rift Jump. He and Sara are two teenage runaways, who sought love from their parental figures, but fall in love and believe all of their answers lie in the other. But then reality hits. Michael begins to question his thinking. Sara, however, is not in that place yet. She still thinks that Michael is the one to fix her, and if he can’t, she will. God doesn’t factor into her equation. Her search for love and acceptance will lead to some dangerous places in the sequel.

Rift Jump appears to be a departure from your typical genre. Would you classify your other books as “Christian horror”? Can you shed some light on the challenges inherent in writing Christian noir? 

Definitely I would say that The Coming Evil Trilogy is Christian Horror, and not because it presents the gospel (though that’s somewhere in there, too). But it deals primarily with Christian characters and how they relate to each other within the Church, how they battle against a world that ridicules, misunderstands, and hates them, and how they respond to God. So it’s very Christian-centric, but I meant for it to be a much deeper exploration of faith and the believer’s life than just a simple evangelical tract-in-a-story.

As for the challenges, I think it’s just been up to me to make the distinction that I can talk about God freely and honestly, without having to put in a clear cut “gospel message”. When I first started writing back in 1998, with an eye towards Christian film, I was TAUGHT that you couldn’t even let a story out the door unless you had a very clear gospel presentation tucked in there. The whole narrative had to stop for this one evangelical moment. For years, I didn’t know there could be another way. In something like Rift Jump, and even later on in The Coming Evil Trilogy, there’s a lot of philosophy in the subtext, but there’s a lot of discussing matters of faith in the main text. Just as I don’t feel that we should have the Roman Road hammered into us in every story, I also don’t feel like we have to hide talking about God either. Some of my favorite types of scenes are two characters discussing God and their differing views, and then letting it stand. Leave it up to the Reader and the Holy Spirit to work it out together. I used to want the answers handed to me, but now I see the value in presenting the argument—both in word, and through the characters’ actions (the good and the bad)—and letting God do the rest. The Old Testament is written like that. You don’t necessarily have to have someone explain to you the life lessons in the account of King David—you clearly see it based on his actions and his mistakes and his attitudes and the consequences. That’s a much more satisfying approach to me, as a writer. I’m kinda in a place now where I want the reader to have to work a little harder to see all the little life-observations I put in a story.

What is one thing you’d like your readers to know?

I guess a pet peeve of mine is that idea that, just because a story is about monsters or superheroes or aliens or whatever, that it can’t be meaningful. I think a difficulty with seeing a breakout of sci-fi/fantasy/horror in the Christian market is that readers seem to think that, if it’s not about “real” people or set in the “real” world, then it’s not worthwhile. That a story about a guy with a laser rifle riding atop a dinosaur is “silly” and could in no way move them to think about their lives or examine a deeper understanding of God. I know that, with Rift Jump, people have read descriptions about the violence or the idea of alternate realities, and they sometimes think “Yuck, that’s got nothing for me”—and they may be right. But I feel like the weirder genres get pegged by just being full of “gross stuff” or “silly, imaginary things” or exploitation, and it’s assumed that they are devoid of spiritual merit. So I’d say, take a chance every once in awhile on something a little “out there”. You might be surprised.

And before you go, can you tell us what you’re working on now?

Really busy. Right now I’m slowly working through the edits on a non-fiction book. It’s a Back to the Future Timeline for Hasslein Books that chronicles all the events in the Back to the Future movies, the cartoon, the video games, etc, into a (hopefully) semi-cohesive chain of events. Also, I’m set to write the next book in cyber-thriller author Frank Creed’s Underground series. I’m trying to get some short stories in some anthologies. There’s a novel I’ve finished—a return to horror, though one could argue I never really left—that I’m shopping around. Somewhere in there I’m trying to pull together all my disparate ideas for that Rift Jump sequel. There are a couple more novels that I’m in the process of working on in any spare time I find lying around. And then I’m working on a super top-secret project that I’m not able to announce yet, but it’s a lot of work and could make for a really cool payoff. Busy!

Want to know more about Greg and his books? Check out his blog: www.thecomingevil.blogspot.com

Comment for a chance to win one of two signed copies of Rift Jump. Winners to be announced Friday morning. If I don’t already know how to get in touch with you, please leave your email in the comments section in an internet safe format: myname(at)gmail(got)com.