by Crystal Caudill | May 9, 2017 | Book Reviews
A Season to Dance by Patricia Beal
The day has finally arrived, the day I can share with you about Patricia Beal’s debut novel, A Season to Dance.
Ana dreams of dancing on stage at the Met in New York, and with plans to marry Peter and join the Atlanta Ballet Company firmly in place, she is well on her way.
Then the kiss happened.
Not with Peter, but with Claus, her first love and a premier ballet dancer who left her heartbroken. The story follows the aftermath of that single incident that changed all three of their lives forever.
This heart-wrenching story will have you reaching for tissues and remembering the dizzying and often sickening dance of emotions and poor choices that lead to more heartache than one can bear. Or maybe you are one of the lucky ones and have a perfect life. If you are, then you are probably in denial or haven’t reached middle school yet.
None of Ana’s dreams go as planned, yet God touches her life in a very real-life way. There are no great miracles or sudden turnaround and see God moments.
Instead, God is Ana’s spotter.
While she is spinning out of control, God is slowly tugging at her, pursuing her, and guiding her. Spiritual truth falls on Ana like a gentle spring rain, refreshing, soul soaking, and easy to deflect until she is ready to accept it.
This is a wonderful story that is unlike any Christian romance out there, and I would venture to even categorize it differently – women’s fiction with a touch of romance. The story is really about one woman’s harsh struggle to know true love and to chase her dreams in our contemporary culture. There are no clean easy answers, and happily ever after comes in fits and spurts, showing that love endures even when there are difficulties and grief.
However, I wish to forewarn Christian readers, that Ana is not the sweet, innocent heroine usually found in Christian romance. Ana is real, with real flaws. While there is no graphic material, there is sex before marriage and drinking. Ana’s relationship with Christ does not form until the end of the story and as Paul says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Most of the story takes place in Ana’s old life, but every instance of sex ends with the closing of the bedroom door. It is not something that should keep you from reading the book, but I felt it was fair to warn readers who may not be accustomed to less than perfect heroines.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to readers who love real characters and true to life complications and responses. And if you love ballet, it is chalk full of beautiful dancers and scenes to thrill your imagination.
*I was given an advanced reader’s copy in hopes of an honest review, which you have read above.*
Check out the blurb and links for purchase below.
Ana Brassfield has her path to the stage of the Metropolitan Opera House all figured out until her first love, renowned German dancer Claus Gert, returns to Georgia to win her back. Despite a promising start towards her ballet career and pending marriage to landscape architect, Peter Engberg, Ana wonders if her dreams of dancing at the Met are as impossible as her previous romantic relationship with Claus.
Then, an on-stage kiss between Ana and Claus changes everything.
Convinced the kiss is more than a one-time mistake, Peter breaks off their engagement. With an old dog crippled by arthritis and dreams deferred but not left behind, Ana moves to Germany to be with Claus. But the ghost of his late wife, Ana’s own feelings for Peter, and the pressure of earning a spot in a large ballet company are a high price for a shot at success. Ana seems on the verge of having everything she ever dreamed of, but will it be enough?
Purchase Links:
Amazon
Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas
by Crystal Caudill | Apr 27, 2017 | Counterfeit Love, History Facts
Just as any career has its own jargon, so did the counterfeiting world and the Secret Service. Below are a few of the most important terms to know. Below that are a few fun facts about the Secret Service.
Secret Service and Counterfeiting Dictionary
- Boodle – notes bought from a production firmBoodle carrier – a courier who delivered counterfeit notes from the dealer to the shovers.
Chief Operative – first-class men assigned to the division’s major districts, each chief operative would have assistant operatives working under his direction, and would be responsible for all administrative and investigative activities within his district.
Dealers – people who bought the counterfeit notes from wholesalers and then used shovers to distribute the money into general circulation
Distribution – the spread of counterfeit money through an underground sales network
Engraver – the person who created the plates used to print money
Firm – the collective group of people used to print money
Issue – an edition of a set of counterfeit bills
Manufacturer – a person or group of people who printed counterfeit money
Network – the sum of one’s personal acquaintances (which included non-criminals).
Notes – another term for paper money
Operative – the official title of the Service’s employees
Plant – a term used to reference where counterfeiters made their money
Plates – metal pieces with copied images from the bill being counterfeited
Product – another name used for counterfeit money, generally used by the counterfeiters
Production Firm – the collective group of people used to print money
Queer – another term for counterfeit money
Retailer – another term for a dealer
Shover – a person who bought low priced items with a higher counterfeit bill to get real money back in change
Straw bail – a situation in which a false bondsman was contracted to swear they possessed sufficient property to pay the bond, and then the counterfeiter would subsequently fail to appear in court
Wholesalers – men or women who would buy counterfeit notes from manufacturers and then recruit potential customers through personal contacts or the mail to create a sales network
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Fun Facts about the Secret Service
- D.C. was the Service’s bureaucratic headquarters and the chief lived there
- Between 1875 and 1910, the division never employed more than 47 men, and the average was only 25. 1878-1893, the average number of servicemen was well below that.
- Chief operatives often had several cases under investigation at once and had
testy battles with headquarters over conflicting demands for economy and results
- Each chief operative maintained a retinue of assistants and informers
- Each district contained a number of states and a single operative maintained a headquarter in a major city
- There were field offices in 11 cities across the nation.
- Operatives were paid once a month on a daily scale, an average of $7 per day.
- Each work day ranged from 12 to 16 hours long.
- There were no days off and any “vacation” time was unpaid.
- Operatives were required to itemize all their expenses for everything from travel to personal needs.
- Operatives were to maintain peak physical fitness, swear unquestioning obedience to chief’s directives
- In 1881, all toy money was removed from shelves and industries.
- While time-consuming, the work was not particularly dangerous (no Service employee was seriously hurt in the line of duty until the murder of an operative in 1908).
by Crystal Caudill | Apr 11, 2017 | Book Reviews
The Patriot and the Loyalist by Angela Couch
In a time when loyalties are questioned, rebellion to the Crown punished, and families divided, can love be true? Or is love just a deceptive weapon used by the enemy?
In this second installation of Hearts at War, we follow jilted and heartbroken Daniel Ried into the swamps of the Carolinas. Driven by his need to escape the pain of Rachel’s rejection and the need to prove himself to his family, he is drawn into the covert operations of the Contential Army’s Swap Fox.
Lydia Reynolds is a woman so pained by loss, she has drawn herself away from everyone and hopes to escape her pain aboard a boat bound for England. The only problem? He brother-in-law refuses to help her. When a possible rebel spy crosses her path, Lydia takes matters into her own hands.
In a dance of loyalties and spy versus spy, love enters and complicates the best-laid plans. Throw in a few unexpected plot twists and there is no clean escape from the web of deception.
The Patriot and the Loyalist is a masterful depiction of real people in the clutches of war, struggling with trust, pain, and loyalty.
I loved the continuing saga of Daniel Reid from the first book, The Scarlet Coat. It was a pleasure to better get to know him and watch his journey. Angela, once again, put my beloved characters through the wringer – and thus me as a reader. I loved the action, the emotional struggle of the characters, and personal connection I made to their lives. I may not have endured the American Revolution, but I can understand betrayal, the risk of trusting someone with my broken heart, and the struggle between what I think I want and what is actually best.
I highly recommend this book to others who love real characters struggling with a backdrop of war. It was a great mixture of action and emotional angst. Purchase your own copy in the links below or go to your library and request they purchase it. Then everyone can enjoy this book.
*I received this e-book as an advanced reader’s copy and have given my honest opinion above.
Purchasing Links:
Amazon.com
BarnesandNoble.com
Kobo.com
“Completing his three years in the Continental Army, Daniel Reid still has no desire to return home—not after losing the woman he loves to a British Captain—so he volunteers to ride south through enemy lines and deliver a message to Colonel Francis Marion, the Swamp Fox. With his temper needing a release and a dark haired beauty finding her way into his broken heart, Daniel decides to join the Swamp Fox’s efforts against the British. Little does he know the British still have the upper hand.
Lydia Reynolds has learned that love comes at a price, and she refuses to pay. Better to close her heart to everything and everyone. When her brother-in-law won’t grant her passage to England, where she hopes to hide from her pain, New Englander, Daniel Reid, becomes her only hope—if she can induce him to give her information about the notorious Swamp Fox and his troops. When the British grow impatient and Daniel evades her questions, Lydia must decide how far to take her charade. The poor man, already gutted by love, hasn’t grown as wise as she. Or so she supposes.
Until the truth is known, the muskets are loaded, and it is time to decide where true loyalties lie.”
– Amazon Blurb
by Crystal Caudill | Mar 30, 2017 | Counterfeit Love, History Facts
Have you ever pretended you were someone you’re not? As a child, I often pretended I was Michelangelo from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Don’t give me that sissy April, I wanted to be someone who fought for justice and kicked butt.
Nowadays I just pretend I don’t hear my children saying Mom over and over again while I try to use the bathroom in peace. As difficult as it is to convince my children I don’t hear them, I can well imagine Secret Service operatives had it much worse.
Even Hiram C. Whitley, Chief of the Secret Service from may 1869 to September 1874, admitted the difficulty of their job.
“There is no branch of the Government service where so many qualifications are necessary, and none in which the field of operations is so varied.”
“To meet and thwart [crime] requires the most subtle ingenuity, incessant vigilance, and unflagging energy upon the part of officers of the law.”
Investigating
Sometimes before working undercover or during the course of another operative working undercover, an operative would conduct interviews. Victims would report the passing or “shoving” of counterfeit bills, and through an interview, give the description of the alleged criminal.
Once located, another interview would be conducted with the suspect to discover whether or not the “shover” had knowingly committed the crime. In such situations, the operative had to appear honest and sincere, in order to gain the trust of those he interviewed. He also had to have keen observational skills and the ability to recognize a lie when he heard it.
While these investigative skills were great for interviewing the lower levels of criminal activity, they were practically useless for coping with the sophisticated criminals who financed, manufactured, and distributed counterfeit notes. That is where working undercover came into play.
Working within the Criminal Network
In order to enter a counterfeiting ring, an operative had to conceal his identity and cultivate contacts within the underworld, usually through the manipulation of their informants. By playing a role, he was able to participate in discussions about criminal activities and hopefully induce suspects to commit a crime when and where he could observe them.
Operatives, or their assistants, frequently purchased counterfeit money from the underworld criminals, carefully marking the buys with the date of purchase and the initials of the purchaser.
Though observing a transaction was an important objective, it was only a small part of a long-term strategy for discovering all of the criminals involved with a particular note. Operatives had to ignore minor crimes so they could build cases against major criminals. Small time criminals were offered inducements to betray the higher up criminals.
By spurning immediate arrest, the operative hoped to delve deeper into the counterfeiting ring and develop evidence against each individual. Like the Pinkertons, the Secret Service had a cataloging system of each forger’s name, age, aliases, physical description, dates of arrests and releases, criminal methods, counterfeiting specialties, and a photo of him and/or his cohorts. Ideally, arrests would occur only after all the guilty parties had been identified.
Cases required both the skills of investigating and instigating.
A Real Summary of a Case
Eventual Chief of the Secret Service, Andrew Drummond, concocted a scheme to gain a dealer’s confidence by making an arrangement with police in a small town to arrest him and his informer.
They then escaped from jail and headed for Cincinnati, where the dealers who supplied the upper South were headquartered. On their way through Louisville, local police arrested him again not knowing his true identity. After the mishap what slyly taken care of, they were released.
Drummond told others that he had secured his release “through strategy”, which suggested bribery. By the time they reached Cincinnati, news of his exploits had preceded him, ensuring a warm welcome among the local counterfeiters.
With Drummond providing inside information, four other operatives built cases against a large network that served customers in Kentucky, Tennessee, and the Carolinas. Their investigation occupied the summer and fall of 1873, culminating in a sweep that ensnared 72 dealers and shovers in October and another 20 in December.
You can read the riveting tale in Drummond’s own words here: Going to Prison to Make a Capture.
What do you think would be the most difficult part of working undercover? Did you have a favorite part of Andrew Drummond’s experience?
For me, I do not think I could stay in character long enough to see the job through. I know I would end up giving myself away and ruining the entire case. The Going to Prison to Make a Capture story was actually the inspiration for my hero. In earlier versions of my work in progress, I actually took my reader through the breaking out of jail. It was a scene I dearly loved and hated to cut, but perhaps it can be shared later like a deleted scene from a movie. 🙂
Previous Posts in this Series:
To Catch a Counterfeiter – Pt 1 – The Challenges
To Catch a Counterfeiter – Pt 2 – The Informant
by Crystal Caudill | Mar 21, 2017 | Book Reviews
The Widow’s Captive by Lucette Nel
Alright, so this is a “Christmas” novella and I am reviewing it in March. Despite the fact I think Christmas should be celebrated year-round, this book is not so wholly centered around Christmas as to be a Christmas season only read.
The Widow’s Captive is the story of a mother doing anything to survive being pursued by a dangerous man while being mere weeks away from childbirth and caring for her other two children. Help comes at the unlikeliest of times, during a blizzard, from a sheriff bearing gifts for the town drunkard.
This novella is a quick read with a focus on romance and an element of danger. Readers who enjoy stories with children, humor, and innocent love will enjoy this novella. The sheriff does get some time being a traditional hero, but most of the time he is a hero through the sweet acts of kindness and protection of this vulnerable family.
I recommend this story no matter the time of year. The warm cozy feeling you feel as you read it never goes out of season.
Purchase your own copy at:
Amazon.com
BarnesandNoble.com
Christianbook.com
“On the run with two small children and a third due within weeks, Adeline Spencer fears the approaching blizzard will seal their fate. An abandoned cabin is an answer to her prayers. She hopes it will shield them from both the storm and the enraged brother-in-law hot on her tail. But when a stranger knocks at the door, she is convinced they have been found by one of Ward’s lackeys.Blamed for the death of his friend, Sheriff Jonah Hale is determined to prove himself worthy of his badge, even if it means riding into a blizzard to check on a crazy miner. When Jonah reaches the cabin, he’s caught off guard by a pretty and very pregnant young woman wielding a skillet. Bound to a chair while the storm rages, and as Christmas settles in around them, he must find a way to earn Adeline’s trust…and perhaps her heart.”
– Blurb from Amazon
